Preface

Going Home in a Box
Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at https://archiveofourown.org/works/35454424.

Rating:

Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning:

No Archive Warnings Apply

Category:

Multi

Fandom:

Five Nights at Freddy's

Characters:

Mike Schmidt (Five Nights at Freddy's), Marionette | The Puppet, Charlotte "Charlie" Emily, Foxy (Five Nights at Freddy's), Jeremy Fitzgerald, Fritz Smith, Natalie, Circus Baby (Five Nights at Freddy's), Ennard (Five Nights at Freddy's), Scott Caldwell | The Phone Guy, Charlie's Friends, Vanessa (Security Breach), Ness (Five Nights at Freddy's), Glamrock Freddy (Five Nights at Freddy's), Glamrock Animatronics (Five Nights at Freddy's), Moondrop (Five Nights at Freddy's), Sunnydrop (Five Nights at Freddy's), The Stitchwraith (Five Nights at Freddy's), Gregory (Five Nights at Freddy's), Vanny | Reluctant Follower | Beta-Tester, The Crying Child (Five Nights at Freddy's), Sun (Five Nights at Freddy's), Moon (Five Nights at Freddy's), Michael Afton, Springtrap (Five Nights at Freddy's)

Additional Tags:

Possessed Animatronics (Five Nights at Freddy's), Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex, Five Nights at Freddy's: Security Breach, Horror, Suspense, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, Bonding, Agony, Sequel to Can't Go Home Again, Sequel to Almost Feels Like Home, Friendship, Five Nights at Freddy's: Fazbear Frights Series, Aged-Up Character(s), Aging Characters, Michael Afton and Mike Schmidt are Not the Same Person

Language:

English

Series:

Part 3 of Home

Stats:

Published: 2021-12-01 Updated: 2026-07-06 Words: 1,131,847 Chapters: 106/110

Going Home in a Box

by Mable

Summary

(Sequel to Can't Go Home Again and Almost Feels like Home) Freddy Fazbear’s has returned from the grave and brought something of hatred and agony with it. Their livelihoods on the line, Mike, Marionette, and the others must learn to handle this new threat. This is easier said than done once Foxy finds himself snared by the new location, and the white rabbit now pulling the strings.

Chapter 1

Chapter Notes

Mable: I can't even begin to express how long I've waited for this moment.

I don't think I ever realized how much Can't Go Home Again and Almost Feels Like Home meant to me. I had a lot of fun writing them, yes, but I never considered how much they effected my life until they were gone. I tried to fill that void with other projects, but it wasn't the same. I even thought maybe it was me, but once I started working on this chapter, I recognized what it was. I missed this. It's like meeting back up with old friends I haven't seen in ages.

And I just can't wait for this any longer!

I should forewarn you that this first chapter is quite long and to not expect every coming chapter to have such a hefty word count. XD Finally, after all this waiting, we get to start a new journey together!

Enjoy!

He must've driven by that billboard at least three or four times since it had gone up and either never read it or never noticed what was printed on it. As much as he knew it could've always said what he read.

He had been driving on the main road when he squinted through his glasses to glance at what it said and in that second everything changed. He drove a little further, second guessing what he saw, and as soon as he had the opportunity to turn around, he did. He had to make sure of what he saw.

He drove past the billboard a second time and slowed down to make sure he was reading it right. There was no denying what it said in the upper corner, in smaller print, dwarfed by the much bolder 'Coming Soon!' advertised in the center. 'Now hiring' was also advertised, but he was much more concerned by the two words in the upper left corner, and the familiar logo accompanying them.

"This can't be happening," he blurted out. He proceeded to hit the gas and continued to speed back down the road towards the city of Hurricane. A quick glance back to the left and he could see the looming construction site far past the billboard of what he once assumed was a new mall. Now it was so much worse. "This is not happening."

He fumbled for his cellphone and quickly dialed up a familiar number. He got an answer right away but didn't give them time to speak. "Mike, it's me. Call Fritz, get Mari, and get over to Foxy's. We have a problem."

"Okay?" There was a click as the phone call abruptly ended without further answers.

Mike Schmidt slowly set his cellphone down beside his dinner plate before looking across the table. "That was Jeremy. He said to call Fritz and get everyone over to Foxy's, and he sounded freaked out. Said we have a problem."

"That's never good…" On the other side of the table, without a plate and with his dark fingers laced together, was Marionette. It had been the usual evening up until this call with the two conversing over dinner and generally enjoying being home after a long day at work. Though whatever conversation they were having was now long forgotten. "Did he give any clue to what?"

"No, he did his best to make sure I was completely in the dark," Mike said. He grabbed his half-eaten plate and stuck it in the microwave for safekeeping. "Probably so I wouldn't spoil the big reveal."

"Ah, then we get to guess! Let's see… All of the available apartments in St. George spontaneously combusted overnight. Oh, or perhaps the landlord is a closeted psychopath and had Jeremy sign a paper to sell himself into indentured servitude. Or perhaps not even that far, maybe he just had him sign his soul away."

"I could believe it with how freaked out he sounded. Either that or the rent over there skyrocketed. We could be looking at another few years of living together as one big happy family," Mike said.

"Now see, if that was the case, I could see you reacting like that, but not Jeremy," Marionette teased with a playful smile. He rose from his seat and started to head towards the pantry. "I'll tell Charlie."

He didn't seem too concerned and honestly Mike wasn't either. While Jeremy did sound panicked, it could've very well been something involving his current apartment hunt. The last few months since he had moved in- and since the dreaded 'Consequences Incident'- had been fine enough but he hadn't been able to find a new home. He had been searching frequently, but nothing had surfaced that was a good fit.

While Mike dialed up Fritz's phone number, Marionette leaned into the open pantry and called down the steps, "Charlie, we're going back to Foxy's!"

"Hold on!" After the sound of movement in the downstairs workshop, Charlie appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

Ever since the workshop had been properly cleaned out, she had been using it for her work. The robotics textbooks could only do so much without the hands-on experience and so far, she had gotten a little bit of it. She had begun repairs on her old Ella doll, taken apart an old toaster, but hadn't done any work on a sentient animatronic except loosening Plushtrap's jaw once when it locked up.

"You're going where?" she called back.

"Back to Foxy's. Apparently, Jeremy has some news and wants us all there to hear it. Would you like to come?"

"Sure! Just give me a second and I'll be right up," Charlie said with a smile before she disappeared back through the door.

Marionette couldn't help but smile too. It still made him happy to see how the basement was being used for a better cause now, especially since he had been so afraid that she would become fearful of the house after the incident. Honestly, they all were for a while. He turned to watch Mike who was on the phone and just got a response from Fritz.

"Jeremy just called, and he wants us to meet him over at Foxy's. He said that there was a problem," Mike said. He leaned against the counter. "…No, I don't think the problem's at Foxy's. The way he worded it I don't think he was over there… Unless he got a call from Foxy, I don't know. I'm heading over there now. Careful on the roads, it still looks like it's icy out there." The call ended and Mike gave a sigh. "Here's hoping Jeremy's bluffing and that he really found a great apartment."

There was a rather obnoxious laugh and both Mike and Marionette looked over to the couch to see Balloon Boy peering over the back. His blue eyes were filled with mocking mirth at the man's expense.

"Thanks, BB. That makes it all better," Mike said sarcastically. He went to grab his jacket off the hook. "But if that's what it turns out to be, I'm bum rushing you out of here myself."

Balloon Boy didn't seem worried about the threat and sent a playful glance towards Marionette who returned it with an equally playful shrug. He wouldn't exactly put it past the security guard. As the boy animatronic sunk back behind the couch, the puppet floated over to Mike's side where he eventually settled on his thicker jacket. He glanced over the striped one's thin frame before offering his uniform jacket.

"Think this'll work or do we have to bust out the Christmas sweaters?" he asked with a teasing smile.

"As much as I would love that, it would be rude not to accept an offered gift," Marionette replied as he took his jacket. Mike wasn't surprised with how much the puppet always adored it. He eagerly slid into it and wrapped it tightly around him, lavishing in the familiar fabric as he looked over to see Charlie coming out of the basement. "Ready to go?"

"All set," Charlie agreed as she zipped up her jacket. Instead of the usual sheet, the puppet grabbed for the throw blanket on the back of the couch and covered himself, then offered the other half to her which she wrapped around her shoulders. They then followed Mike out of the house and into the dark, snowy world outside.

Foxy wasn't expecting to see anyone else for the night. Even though it was still early he had just assumed it was going to be one of those quieter nights that came with the winter season. Hurricane was the kind of town where once it got dark everything seemed to shut down, so nobody was inclined to go back out. Not to mention that he knew Jeremy was looking at apartments after work, so he didn't expect a pop-in.

And then out of the blue, Jeremy suddenly let himself in through the backdoor and rushed in in a flurry. Foxy hadn't seen Jeremy this out of sorts in ages; hair fluffed, hands tight, and with an anxious look on his face. He was still excited to see the blond regardless.

"Lad, what're you doin' here so late?" Foxy greeted. He hopped down from the stage and hustled over to him before pulling him into an embrace. Normally he would confront Jeremy right away, but he looked a little too on edge for a direct confrontation. So, he waited until he pulled back before getting to the point. "A'right, now that we exchanged formalities, what's wrong?"

"…Something," Jeremy bluntly admitted. He then waved his hand dismissively and fumbled a little with his words. "Just give me a minute. I already called everyone; I'll tell you when they get here."

"This already ain't soundin' good…" Foxy realized. Flustered Jeremy was one thing, but him purposefully holding back information to tell everybody was a bad omen. After considering his options, he slowly put his arm around his back and rested his hook on his shoulder. "Sure ya don't want to break it to me now?" he coaxed.

"I'd rather not be the only one here in case you fly into a blind rage," Jeremy tried to joke. He even forced a slight smile through his nerves, but it started to fail as he admitted, "Jokes aside, it's not good for us."

"The apartment hunt be a lie an' you've been shackin' up with some dame over in St. George," Foxy guessed sarcastically. "Lad, ya know I'd never flip me top!... I'd just tie ya up and hide ya under me stage."

"Gee, that doesn't sound too bad. What's the rent?" Jeremy joked. There was still unease and a slow look of remorse started to appear. "You know that no matter what happens, we'll get through anything, right?"

"…Enough of the banter, Lad. Who died?" Foxy asked bluntly.

"It's more of a back from the dead thing really," Jeremy admitted. Which got an alarmed look from Foxy, eyepatch popping up and teeth tight together. "No, I don't mean literally. I mean… I really don't want to be the one who has to deliver news like this, but if I have to be, then let me at least wait until everyone gets here so I can do it in one fell swoop."

The look of alarm eased, but Foxy seemed to finally realize that this was going to be bad news regardless and stayed guarded. Jeremy tried to smile reassuringly.

"But who knows! Maybe I'm making a big deal out of this, and Fritz and Mike already know about it… And look, here comes Fritz," he said, gesturing out the front window as Fritz's car pulled up outside. He tried to ignore the way that Foxy suspiciously stared at him and greeted Fritz and Natalie. "Hey guys. Thanks for coming so fast."

"Anything to get a night out, right?" Natalie jokingly asked Fritz. He got a half-smile, but then looked to Jeremy questioningly.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"He ain't talking," Foxy said flatly. Jeremy shot him an unenthused look before clarifying.

"I'm just waiting until everyone gets here." At that moment, Mike's car pulled up. "Err, and there they are…" It was only then that Jeremy realized that he was actively stalling, not waiting, and he watched silently as Mike came in the back door with Marionette and Charlie. All the owners and primary staff was there, he had to be out with it. "Sorry about the scare, Mike."

"I don't get scared until the words 'lawsuit' or 'search warrant' start getting thrown around," Mike said. He crossed his arms and stood alongside Fritz. "Which are we looking at?"

"Heh, that's- that's funny," Jeremy awkwardly agreed. That wasn't a natural reaction, it was a dead giveaway that something much worse was going on.

Mike dropped any attempt at humor after that. "What's actually going on?" he asked with dead seriousness.

Jeremy got an out of place look of remorse and looked back to Foxy. Then he gave a tired sigh, adjusted his glasses, and began to explain.

"I drove into St. George to look at an apartment and while I was coming back, I looked at that billboard for the new mall. Or I thought it was a mall, I don't know what it is now. You know, the 'coming soon' sign?" They nodded, and he knew he was stalling again. "I've never really looked at it closely before, but today I did, and I noticed this thing in the corner, and I looked closer and… It was a Fazbear Entertainment logo."

"What?" Foxy didn't even allow a second of silence. Just an instant, emotionless, knee-jerk response. That didn't bode well and Jeremy inwardly cringed.

"That big construction site out on the highway? It's owned by Fazbear Entertainment. I think it's going to be a mall, but there has to be a Freddy's or something inside of it…"

"Please tell me you're joking," Fritz nearly begged. Jeremy didn't have to say anything else; they just exchanged a look and it confirmed that it wasn't. He slapped a hand over his eyes dejectedly.

"Wait a minute," Mike spoke up. This had to be a mistake, he thought desperately, grasping at whatever straws he could. This couldn't just happen like this, not without warning, not a Freddy-themed mall. "You're sure that the billboard was for whatever's being built out there? It could've been advertising something in town. Did you see anything that said 'turn off at the next exit' or anything? Anything at all?"

"No, and it was far enough off the road that I know it was for the construction site."

"Okay then," Mike said with a shrug and dropped his hand to his side with a smack. Then he said, entirely devoid of emotion, "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go swallow an action figure and hope I choke to death."

"Oh God I knew this was coming," Fritz vented as he now rubbed his hand vigorously over his face. "I knew it was just a matter of time. Just one of these days one was going to pop up."

"How can this happen? Who even owns the rights to Freddy's now?" Charlie asked. Her eyes were wide, and her mask was twisted in shock. She looked to Marionette beside her seeing if he would answer, but he didn't. He seemed surprisingly stoic, having no reaction to the news at all. Not even surprise, just a default smile and blank stare.

"I don't know," Fritz said, tossing his hand up with exasperation.

"Well, somebody has to!" Charlie said with growing exasperation. "They can't just open a Freddy's without the rights to it, and the only person who I could even think of who might've gotten them after Dad died would've been my aunt, but she would've never agreed to this. She hated Freddy's."

"I really don't know. Maybe a former owner? Or, no, like a former shareholder? We know how messy Freddy's legal affairs get; they probably hired a fleet of lawyers just to get the place off the ground."

"No!"

It was Foxy who cut everyone off. Just a look at him showed that he was not taking the news as 'well' as everyone else. He was nearly shaking as he processed the information, his voice growing garbled and panicked.

"No, this ain't- it can't be! They can't- They'd be mad- Ain't gonna get away-! This ain't hap-hap-hap-hap-!" Suddenly Foxy's whole body seized up and then just slumped in place. Still standing but entirely unresponsive.

"…Foxy?!" Jeremy choked as he reached out to shake his arm. He tried to straighten him up. "Gabe, snap out of it!"

"It's alright, he's fine," Marionette said with a worried sigh. Finally pulling out of his frozen state and sounding completely unsurprised. "He just… Overloaded himself a little. He'll wake right up." Within a few seconds, Foxy straightened his back and blinked back to consciousness. "There he goes. Foxy, it's going to be okay."

"Yer bl-bloody wrong it won't!" Foxy argued. Somehow slipping right into his argumentative panic with little more than a stutter. "Freddy's crawled out of the grave just ta sink me ship!"

This led to a long pause, one that ended with Foxy groaning loudly. He turned away from the group and began to walk off with a hand clasped over his uncovered eye. He was still twitching from the incident earlier.

"This be a nightmare. As soon as Freddy's back, we're gonna be forced outta business…" Foxy lamented. He dropped his arm and head and muttered quietly, "I'm going to lose everything."

"Don't even say that. You're just pouting for the sake of it. You know nobody could replace you," Jeremy said. He reached out to pat his back. "I know you're worried- I'm terrified- but the town loves you!"

"He's right. You're the biggest thing we've got in this town," Natalie quickly chimed in. She had silently watched the whole debacle but decided now to step in. "You've got the cartoon, you've got the online store, and they still air those anti-drug PSAs on the news. Forget Freddy's, you're what everyone loves." She smiled confidently and Foxy raised his head a little more.

Meanwhile, Mike hooked an arm around Fritz and pulled him aside. He lowered his voice and asked, "So, how screwed are we looking here?"

"Six ways 'til Sunday. There's no way that thing's just a mall if it only has the Fazbear logo on it, unless Fazbear Entertainment owns a mall. In which case, we'll be lucky if we make it to Sunday."

"We're going to have to figure out what this thing is… I'll call Scott, he has a lot of connections. Might drive by the construction site and see if I can make anything out of it." Mike sighed and shook his head, the sinking feeling already starting to tug at his gut. Along with a feeling of betrayal, as though this was an act directly against them. Being that the building was going up so close, Mike couldn't help but feel like it was.

"We didn't get this far to get shut out by Freddy's," Mike said. A newfound tone of determination and bitterness in his voice. "If they want to compete then we'll beat them at their own game."

"I think you're putting the cart before the horse here. Or the pizzeria before the bear, whatever. We don't even know if this place will get to open once the word gets out that it's Freddy's. There's got to be protests or something, right? Fazbear Entertainment couldn't have thought opening this close to the old businesses was a good thing. Someone's going to say something," Fritz insisted. Though he sounded more like he was trying to convince himself. "…We're going to have to expand fast."

"Unless we can buy out the hair salon and the laundromat, I don't see us getting that much space," Mike flatly reminded. He looked around at the dining room as Fritz rubbed over his face stressfully. "I guess we could maybe afford to push back that wall. Might give us enough room to… I don't know, put in a ball pit." The technician groaned in response. "Yeah, I know. That felt just as bad saying it as it did hearing it."

"I think you two are taking a little too much from Foxy," Marionette chimed in. He had inserted himself into the conversation so quietly that neither even heard him coming over. He was still smiling, though a bit smaller than usual. "We've gone through much worse than this. Remember, the last few things that nearly destroyed the business weren't Freddy's, and we weathered through those storms."

"…Yeah, I guess you're right," Mike admitted with a sigh. He paused a long moment before turning back to Fritz. "We better keep an eye out for someone's father coming for revenge. Hopefully it's mine this time."

"I still owe my dad twenty bucks. Could be mine," Fritz added with mild amusement.

"Just as long as it's not mine. We already have one long-dead creature of the night hanging over us, being Freddy himself," Marionette said. He looked back to the others and his smile fell fast as he saw Foxy. It looked like he was starting to become a bit more confident, with Jeremy, Charlie, and Natalie continuing to encourage him, but he couldn't be certain that his brother would be alright. "We'll survive this."

But as much as Mike and Fritz wanted to be so certain, they could feel the rug slipping out underneath them.

The next day wasn't much better either.

After a restless night of worrying for all those involved, they somehow dragged themselves into work the next day and was able to pull through a normal workday. It wasn't until closing time that the news would be broken to the remaining staff. Mike volunteered to do it himself since Fritz wasn't holding up too well, stuck in the office and frantically crunching numbers. Not that Mike wasn't a professional at giving bad news.

"So, in the next couple of months that place is going to open, and whatever it is isn't going to be good for us. Now I'm not saying we're going to get run out of business. Believe me, if that was going to happen, I'd find a way to take Freddy's with me… But we're going to have to figure out a way to fight this. So, if any of you have any ideas on how to drum up more business or get Foxy's face on more merch, I'm all ears."

The reaction was about what he expected. Louise looked shocked and devastated. Though she had little history with Freddy's, she was very aware of what that amount of competition would do for them. Tabby got that defeated 'here we go again' look, probably already expecting Foxy's to shut down any day. Carlton, the newest member of staff, looked utterly floored.

"Wait, you're sure this is a Freddy's? They're really going to open another Freddy's right at that mall?" he asked in disbelief.

"Either that or Freddy's is the mall. Which seems like the worst investment to make in the middle of nowhere. Probably something about the cheaper property down here," Mike answered. At least, he hoped that was it and it wasn't also opened by someone formerly connected with the franchise. That never ended well for him. "But it's definitely a Freddy's."

"Dad's going to have a field day with this. Mom too, you know it was a couple of friends of hers that started that protest when the last Freddy's opened. You know the… one that burned down."

"Glad to see that the voices of a bunch of angry, middle-aged women still have the same reach they used to," Tabby lamented bitterly. "Mike, if you're going to keep this place open, you're going to have to fight fire with fire."

"Set the mall on fire, got it," Mike clarified. Tabby gave him an unamused look, though didn't correct him.

"What we should do is have a bunch of specials going on before it opens," Louise chimed up. "And not just food specials. Like half-off prize day or an arcade championship. Get a bunch of people in here, have them really enjoy themselves, and leave with good memories. Then when the new Freddy's opens- and is super expensive and packed full of people- we'll be the fallback! Trust me, it works."

As much as Mike didn't want to be Freddy's fallback, this was looking more reasonable with each passing day. "Good point. I'll run it by Fritz and see what we can set up," he agreed.

It was then that he caught a glimpse of Marionette coming away from his stage and heading back towards the Prize Corner. He watched him go for a second before saying, "Let me go ask Mari. He's pretty good with this sort of thing." He followed the puppet, leaving the three to return to what they were doing before he called them aside.

He caught up with Marionette in the Prize Corner and found him restocking the lower shelf. It had been a good day today; toys had flown off the shelf and tickets had filled the bottom of his box. If not for the looming threat of the unfinished pizzeria it would've felt like nothing had changed.

Mike leaned against the doorframe. "How's it going?" he asked.

"Not too good, actually. I think we might run out of Coat Foxy's before the next shipment comes and because of it nobody's choosing the Classic Foxy's. The obvious solution would be to have two shelves of Classics, but that would look weird with the rest of the setup," Marionette explained as he eyed the shelves.

'Coat Foxy' being Foxy wearing a pirate coat, which he had been wearing during service for the last few months. Originally it had been a one-time thing for a large costume party thrown at the pizzeria to look more like his cartoon counterpart, but then Foxy decided that he liked it a little too much and now made it a sort of uniform.

The coat was a greenish blue with gold-colored decals like clasps and shoulder guards. He would also wear a black pirate hat with a faux feather and the Foxy's logo on the front. The plush toys that matched this were only a few weeks old and were already a popular item.

Marionette had taken some inspiration from this and occasionally came into work wearing a bowtie or a handkerchief. He had three or four of both, though didn't wear either today. That was a little odd.

Though what was much odder was that Marionette seemed completely detached from what was going on. They had not talked about Freddy's the night before, neither wanting to bring it up so they awkwardly talked around it. The fact that he was still doing this seemed a little concerning.

Mike tried to break the ice. "I just told the others about this whole thing with Freddy's."

"I'm glad you brought that up," Marionette interrupted. He turned to him with a smile. "What would you think about us going over and exploring the construction site? If we're really planning on fighting this, then we should go size up the competition." Which would've been a reasonable belief, though he was clearly joking.

Mike half-scoffed at the idea. "Gee, I don't know. As tempted as I am to go stare at a bunch of support beams, I don't need a trespassing charge on my record. I've gotten pretty lucky until now."

"I don't recall you every being afraid of getting caught," Marionette said coyly. He clasped his hands eagerly together. "Come on, it'll only be a few minutes. Just long enough to imagine what we're dealing with."

His eagerness seemed strangely out of place. Maybe if it really was just a normal mall then his curiosity would've been warranted but being a Freddy's- Mike knew he had to be hiding a different motive. Maybe he actually was more worried than he let on and wanted to check out the grounds before the place was finished. Maybe he just wanted to see the full extent of the building. Mike could give him that much.

"You've got a point. Alright, we'll go, and if we see anyone we'll split," Mike agreed. Marionette smiled wider at hearing this.

"Great! We'll head over as soon as we drop off Charlie. In the meantime, would you like to help me reorganize some of this?" he offered. Of course, Mike said yes and even let the conversation drop for now.

Though not everyone was as ready to let the subject drop. Such as in the case of Carlton, who waited until Mike went to speak with Marionette before going over to check in on Charlie. The Security Puppet was climbing out of her box before pulling out her jacket and slipping it on. It had taken a little while for Carlton to learn how to read the more subtle expressions on her mask, but now that he could he recognized the distant look on it. She was lost in her thoughts.

"Hey," he said, pulling her out of her thoughts. She turned to him, and he gave a half smile. "How're you holding up?"

"Alright… Better than Foxy, at least," Charlie tacked on quietly. They both glanced over at the closed stage curtain. It wasn't usual for him to hide behind his curtain during closing and it was a clear sign that he wasn't handling this well. She mimicked a sigh and zipped up her jacket. "I'm going over to Scott's to break the bad news to Baby, Ennard, and him. I'm hoping it'll be easier hearing it from me than learning about it through a commercial."

Carlton went strangely silent, and Charlie noticed the weird look on his face, like he was thinking about something. "What's on your mind?" she eventually asked, once it was clear that he wasn't going to say anything.

"Me? Nah, nothing. Just thinking about stuff… But hey, I could drive you over there if you want. I'm not doing anything," Carlton suggested. He rubbed the back of his neck and Charlie's mask shifted like she was furrowing her brows.

"You want to go over to Scott's?" she asked in disbelief. He gave a sort of nonchalant shrug, like it was no big deal, like he could take it or leave it, but Charlie knew him well enough to notice that this whole thing was strangely out of character. To put it in perspective, Carlton had only seen Scott a few times at the business and hadn't ever gone to his house. He hadn't seen either of the clowns since the incident at the Fazbear Entertainment Processing Facility.

"I've got nothing better to do. Either that or go home and sit around the house for the rest of the night," Carlton said. Charlie found this answer equally weird.

"Uh huh," she said somewhat doubtfully. "Well, if you really want to. I'll go tell the guys the plan."

"Hey, umm…" Jeremy suddenly interjecting made the two realize he was there.

He had walked up behind Charlie's box with his Minireenas in his arms. They were in little striped dresses today with pirate themed sashes and handkerchiefs. Or Rose was. Forget-Me-Not had shed both and Daisy, was missing the latter and had the sash tied like a scarf around her neck. Jeremy seemed less than concerned about their costumes as his mind was focused elsewhere.

"How long has he been back there?" he asked worriedly, shrugging back towards Foxy's stage.

"A while. I think pretty much as soon as the last family was out of here," Charlie answered, her own concern showing in her voice. "I don't want to be pushy, but maybe you should go check on him."

"Yeah, I was just thinking about that…" Jeremy said. He sent a long look over at the curtains before sighing. "Here I go. Wish me luck."

He held the Minireenas close as he headed over towards the curtain, Charlie and Carlton watching him go. Normally he would've set them down and approached Foxy alone for a one-on-one talk, but he didn't feel up to chasing the Minireenas if they wandered off. Daisy was the only one he was sure wouldn't scoot when he had his back turned.

He carefully stepped up onto the stage and shifted Rose to rest on his shoulder to free up his hand, then pulled open the curtain.

"Foxy? How're you…?" Jeremy trailed off at the sight of Foxy lying face down on his mat. Or as facedown as he could, body laying out flat with his head turned towards the curtain. A small bit of his muzzle stuck out from under his pirate jacket, which he had removed and draped over his head. It was all very overdramatic but considering the situation Jeremy couldn't really trust it as being just overdramatic.

"…Are you still awake?" he finally asked.

"It'll be frigid waters down in the depths o' Davy Jones' locker 'fore I sleep again," Foxy muttered. He reached up and peeled his jacket off his eyes with his hook. "You goin' home?"

"Not if you don't want me to," Jeremy offered eagerly.

"Ya don't want to be here, trust me," the pirate mumbled. He turned his hook and dropped the jacket carelessly over his eyes. "I ain't gonna be fun to be around once night falls and the darkness looms."

"I think we're a little past the shock stage if this is any sort of indication," Jeremy said, gesturing towards Foxy with a gentle and still somewhat strained smile. "How about this: you come home with us? You can sleep in your old bed."

"Just when life couldn't get any more depressing," Foxy grumbled difficultly. He shook his head slightly. "Nah, I'd just bring ya down… Need to just work this out meself." He lifted himself to turn his head away. "Behind me curtain."

"Oh, okay. If you're… sure…" Jeremy said without any certainty.

"I'll be fine," Foxy said flatly without any convincing.

"Right, sure! You just get some rest and try to keep cool. And I'm just a phone call away if you change your mind," the blond man continued. When Foxy didn't respond, he decided he wasn't happy leaving it like that and knelt down. He reached down to pat Foxy's back before pulling down his jacket to adjust it more around his shoulders, like he would a blanket. "Love you," he murmured.

Foxy mumbled and shifted a little. His free arm stuck out behind him and reached towards Jeremy, who smiled again and took it in his own. It assured him a little more, and he stayed there with him for a while longer.

The Minireenas were remarkably patient.

Charlie had gotten a handful of rides from Carlton in the last couple of months. Normally during events when she was going to meet up with her friends, typically at Marla's house when her folks weren't at home, and not usually on the way home from work. Never to Scott's since he had never asked to go. That was the reason this drive felt so quiet and awkward.

It didn't take them long to arrive at the house and Carlton squeezed in and parked beside Scott's van. That is, Scott had purchased a van. One lacking the tools like in Fritz's, but with an open back and enough strength to carry two passengers heavier than typical humans. Charlie had ridden in it only a couple of times, but it seemed like it had been a good investment.

Wrapping a throw blanket around her, which they brought solely for this, Charlie ducked out of the car without a word and darted in through the front door. It had been left open since she called in advance. Considering how dark it was outside, this might've seemed like overkill, but she couldn't be too careful when there was a chance that there could be kids out playing in the snow.

Carlton sat in the car for a second, wondering if that was a clue that he was supposed to wait in the car, but then unbuckled himself and followed her inside. He found her already catching up with Scott.

"It's sort of important… Actually, it's really important and it just isn't the sort of thing you say over the phone," Charlie was explaining. Her explanation was cut off by the redhead shutting the door behind him. She acknowledged him with a look before turning back to Scott. "Baby and Ennard are going to need to be here for this."

From Scott's look alone, her tone of dread didn't fall on deaf ears. "Uh, sure! Ennard's out in the garage right now and Baby's in the bedroom. We just got in some new foster kittens- There she is!"

He directed their attention to the bedroom door which was now opening. The moment he did, the door swung open and none other than Circus Baby herself rolled out across the carpet.

To someone like Carlton, who had seen Baby few times, she was just a terrifying as the first time he saw her. Though for Charlie, she could see the significant progress that had been made on Baby's repairs. By now many of her plates had been replaced, with her chest, legs, and arms totally intact. There were some spots that could probably use a touch-up of paint, but she no longer looked broken. Just a little incomplete, not that anyone would tell her that.

The only parts left untouched were her eyes, her hand, and her claw. All of these parts would require much more intense detailing, and in the case of the claw Baby seemed unsure if she was willing to let go of it. This aside, Baby was looking pretty good, and when Baby looked good, she felt good.

Yet Charlie could see the subtle signs of her deflating when she spotted Carlton. That subtle tinge of exasperation that brought a smile to Charlie's own face.

"Hello, Charlie. I wasn't expecting you so soon… or that you would be bringing a friend," she said, sending a slow, weary glance at Carlton. Once her gaze was back on Charlie her eyes literally brightened up. "I have someone for you to meet."

"Sure, but there's… there's something we've got to talk about first," Charlie led into awkwardly. Apparently, Baby assumed it was about the redhead in the room as she sent him another look.

"Can it wait a few minutes? You should see them while they're awake and squirming," Baby encouraged. She reached for Charlie's wrist; her sharp metal fingers surprisingly restrained considering that she was about to drag her out of the room. By now Charlie realized she wasn't getting out of it and sent an apologetic shrug back towards Carlton before getting led off, feeling like she was abandoning him.

This led to Carlton and Scott standing there awkwardly, right outside the garage door and kitchen entrance. Scott was definitely the more awkward of the two, not really knowing what to say and eventually clearing his throat.

"So, how're your folks?" he asked.

"Surviving. They're going to counseling, trying to work out their issues, but they're still "separated"," Carlton emphasized with air quotes. Maybe not news his parents would've wanted to have spread around, but really, he could care less. Wasn't like Scott Caldwell, the clown man, was going to spread it around. He did look sympathetic though.

"Well, uh, that's good! A good step in the right direction. I've heard of a lot of couples who pulled it together with therapy and then had long, happy marriages, so I think that's a good sign," he said optimistically.

They proceeded to fall back into a weird silence. Carlton especially feeling like he should say something. He usually was the one to fill weird silences, but in this case, he felt out of place. He stole a quick glance at the garage door.

Not quick enough. Scott noticed and quietly offered, "He's in there if you want to say hello."

Carlton's eyebrows shot upwards in surprise. He cracked a smile and dismissed, "I just came to drop Charlie off. I'm not staying or anything-." He cut off at the sound of another creaking door. This one clearly being the garage door and his eyes flickered over to see it cracked open.

Okay, so the clown was watching him. No big deal. Nothing weird about that. There was absolutely no reason for him to feel like he was about to break into a cold sweat. He snapped his head away with that same smile.

"I'm good, thanks."

Meanwhile, Baby had taken Charlie into the master bedroom and shut the door behind them. The overhead light was off, and the room was only illuminated by the bedside lamp, which cast just enough light to fall on the cat bed in the corner. Baby took her hand back so she could lower herself onto the carpet, moving cautiously onto her knees, staring at the bed with intense fascination.

As Scott had said, they were homing two new foster kittens. It looked like their eyes weren't open yet and they were curled up together beside a teddy bear. Scott's sphynx was loafing beside the cat bed, eyes half-lidded and unphased by the two visitors.

"Look how small they are," Baby said quietly. She raised a hand and traced the kitten in the air, wanting to touch and resisting the urge. "They have to be bottle fed every three hours, which is the only time they really wake up. You missed it. Before you came, they were crawling around trying to find each other."

"Aww," Charlie said. She sat down beside Baby, legs crossed, and looked at the tiny kittens. "They look pretty young. How long are you guys keeping them, until they're ready for adoption?" Baby nodded with a hum and Charlie smiled. "Lucky."

"Why are you here?" Baby abruptly asked. Her bluntness surprised Charlie, who made an expression like if her brows were raising- if she had details brows on her white mask. Green eyes rolled over to her. "Not that I don't enjoy your company, but I know something is wrong. You don't usually appear so unexpectedly… and with him."

"Don't be like that. You know I have other friends." Baby mimicked a huffy noise and an amused smile briefly appeared on Charlie's mask before fading. "Carlton's just giving me a ride. Mike and Mari are going to go do something tonight… I'll explain once we get out into the living room. It's a long story," she tried to explain. Her voice gave away more than she meant it to and now Baby was looking much closer.

"…Is it about Burke?" she asked. Charlie shook her head. "What is it then? I can handle it."

"It's not that I think you're going to freak out or anything, it's just… This… Might make you freak out," Charlie tried to explain, gesturing with her hands, and struggling to explain without explaining. She met eyes with Baby and her look of worry came through. "…It freaked Foxy out."

This caught Baby's attention and she stared silently for a long moment. Her eyes reading Charlie's face as she processed how serious it must be to shake the Security Puppet. Foxy was bombastic, she knew this, so to have something rile him to the point of this much concern was in and of itself worrying.

"…Let's not discuss it by the kittens then. Just in case," Baby agreed. She crawled back from the cat bed before standing up and making her way back out. The kittens had to wait, she had to know what was happening. Charlie followed close.

They came out to find Scott and Carlton close to where they left them, save that the former was looking at the garage door, the latter was looking at the floor, and said door was slowly creeping open. Probably solely to mess with Carlton.

"Okay, so… Here's the deal," Charlie began as she approached them. She turned herself to face Scott and Baby, fingers lacing together with her pointer tapping in a semi-nervous way. She paused a long moment before continuing, "Have you see that building being built on the highway between here and St. George? The one that looks like a mall?" she asked. Baby looked to Scott.

"No, I haven't. I don't really drive out there much- but I did hear about the mall down in St. George getting hit by that last twister. I'm shocked they're not just repairing that one. Seems like it would cost a lot more to build a new mall from the ground up," Scott said. From the fact that he was already starting to ramble, Charlie knew that he was already starting to catch on. Unfortunately, he didn't have a clue about the true scope of it.

"That's because it's not a mall. We're not entirely sure what it is yet, but we know who's building it and it's… it's going to come as a shock," Charlie slowly led into. Carlton picked up on her discomfort and decided to help out.

"I've got this," he said. Charlie got as far as a 'wait' when Carlton continued undeterred with, "That mall being built out there? Yeah, it's being built by Fazbear Entertainment. It's not a mall, it's like some kind of giant Freddy's."

The reaction was immediate.

"What?" Baby asked quietly, rolling back in surprise.

"WHAT?!"

The garage slammed open so hard that the wall might've shook. Carlton's eyes widened but he didn't dare look back at the clown now standing behind him in the doorway. Ennard looked how Charlie expected him to; pupils shrunk in shock in his yellow and blue eyes and his wires splayed in a flustered manner. For someone with a perpetually smiling mask, he looked absolutely dumbstruck.

"No. Wait, wait. Hold up. This is a joke, right? Kind of a tasteless joke if it is, but it's gotta be. You've gotta be joking," Ennard said with a faux good-humored tone that barely covered his pleading. "Ha ha, please, PLEASE be kidding."

"I really wish he was, but that's what it's looking like. To be fair, we don't know what it is, if it even is a mall, but we do know Fazbear Entertainment is involved with it. Their logo is on the billboard," Charlie explained.

"Great. Of course. Freddy gets another pizzeria," Baby said coldly. Her shock quickly boiled over into anger. "Freddy gets four- five- more pizzerias than I can count and gets them all shut down, and he gets another chance. Everybody forgets what he did."

"Wish I could deny that, but people can be dense," Carlton agreed.

"You're not helping," Charlie muttered with a look.

"Yeah, but am I wrong?"

"Apparently not if THERE'S A FR-R-R-REDDY'S OPENING DOW-DOWN THE STREET!" Ennard cried.

In contrast to the clowns, Scott was dead silent with a thousand-yard stare on his face. He eventually inhaled deeply and muttered under his breath, "This- This is a lot sooner than I thought."

"What?" Baby asked again, looking to him. "What do you mean sooner? We all thought Freddy's was gone."

"Yes, but I always thought- I just, I always assumed- I knew that eventually something involving Freddy's was going to come back, but- Wow. I was thinking, like… Maybe five to ten years from now. A- A different generation. Not this soon," the man half-rambled. Even when he moved the focus of his gaze, he still had that frozen panic sort of look. "I really hope they lost my number."

"Why would they call you? You left Freddy's years ago, before everything fell apart," Charlie pointed out.

"Because I was a former manager and night guard and if they're looking for someone who can keep secrets then that's who they'll want…" Scott got a tense look and quietly tacked on, "Guess I should be expecting a call any day now…"

Baby gave a frustrated cry and spun around, one arm crossing across her chest while she let her clawed one dangle, her fingers tight on that arm. She was now quiet, but it was clear that she hadn't calmed down and was still upset. Charlie's mask grew empathetic as she walked up behind her and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Baby, you don't have to be afraid," Charlie encouraged quietly.

"I'm not afraid," Baby instantly corrected. She fidgeted in place, claw twitching and eyes flickering around at anything other than the Security Puppet. "I'm just so mad I can't even handle it. What can I do?"

"I'll tell you what I'm going to do: I'm about to reject the contents of my entire body all over this room," Ennard announced. This managed to be the only thing that pulled Scott out of his look of shock, but only to replace it with a mix of concern and slight squeamishness. Ennard wasn't done. "Chriiiiiipes, what are they thinking?! Nobody even likes Freddy, why would they bring him back?!" he continued to lament, dragging his fingers down his mask.

"Money," Scott answered. He reached out and pulled one of Ennard's hands away, then rubbed comforting circles over the back of it with his thumb. It turned to gently clasp his hand.

"They're going to blow more money trying to paste his fuzzy butt back together and steam cleaning the blood out of his reputation!" Ennard exclaimed, tossing his free hand dramatically away. He seemed to suddenly notice Carlton staring at him, glancing over before off-handedly adding, "Oh, sorry. I forgot there was a kid in the room, or I would've cleaned up my language, ha ha." He winked at Scott, who returned a small, stressed smile.

Meanwhile, Charlie managed to coax Baby into turning enough that she could put her arm around her back and rested her other hand on the wrist above her clenched claw. Baby slightly turned her downed head away, but Charlie could read the motion. She was upset and embarrassed, but she wasn't rejecting her comfort. Within a few seconds she changed her tune and turned back, resting her head against Charlie's. It was the most vulnerable she had seen her in ages.

"What if there's a new Circus Baby?" Baby whispered, trying not to let the others hear.

"I don't think there's going to be. Your father-… Afton had the rights to Bonnie before he died and Mike, Fritz, and Jeremy managed to get ahold of them and Foxy's, and Mari's, before they opened the business. If there's any rights that I don't think he would have ever let go of, it would've been the rights to Circus Baby… Take that as you will."

"It's disgusting, but useful for us," Baby agreed. She closed her eyes and pressed closer. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"If Foxy's doesn't survive."

"Foxy's is going to be fine," Charlie assured. She could feel the denial creeping up and fought it with logic and reason. "There's going to be plenty of people who don't trust Freddy's or can't afford to go to whatever this place is. We'll manage."

Yet even as she said this, she didn't think it sounded believable. Maybe if she kept saying it, she would eventually buy into it. For the moment, she knew at least four people who weren't going to. The ones who currently showed their support through their silence.

It was dark by time Mike pulled up to the construction site. The snow had started to pick up but was still gentle enough that it wasn't a driving hazard. He pulled off the highway and onto the unfinished road leading back towards the construction site. Seeing it from this angle, he could now take in the sheer size of it. It was enough to make him grit his teeth a little, a bad omen for sure.

Unfortunately, he didn't get far down the road- just under the Coming Soon- Now Hiring sign- before his path was suddenly blocked by a gate across the road. The car stopped with its headlights illuminating it. He leaned forward and squinted at the gate, only to realize quickly that he wasn't going to be able to raise it on his own. This was as far as the car was going.

"Looks like we're getting out here," Mike said with a sigh. He sat back in his seat and turned to look at the passenger one, only to realize he was alone. He stared at the empty space for a long moment before shrugging, giving a relatively unphased, "Alright," and getting out of the car.

He zipped up his jacket the rest of the way and got out his flashlight before locking up the car, walking around the gate, and heading down the path towards the half-complete building waiting at the end.

It would've been a rather peaceful walk if not for his destination. The soft snowflakes fluttering down, the distant sound of wind mixing with the noise from the highway; it was kind of nice, save the daunting structure standing in the distance.

Mike wanted to keep some semblance of calmness and doubt about this whole thing, living in ignorant bliss as long as he could, but it was hard to ignore something of this size. Looking around, he could tell that they chose a good place for it. Like Magictime had been before it closed, not too far from here, it was backed up on an area of flat, cleared out land. More than enough room to build whatever they wanted.

This was going to be a huge pizzeria- if that was even what it was going to be. It couldn't be, it had to be more than that. He sent a wary look up at the sign to double-check if it said anything more that he had missed, but it didn't.

His eyes lingered on that sign as long as they could before he turned ahead and continued onwards.

"Help wanted, huh? Wonder if they've seen anyone with my credentials," he thought. He narrowed his gaze at the massive structure ahead. "…I bet they would hire me. I could change my name and walk right in. Could play them from the inside." Yet as soon as he thought this, he immediately snapped out of it and shook his head. "No, forget that. All that'll happen is that someone will find me out, I'll look suspicious, and it'll blow up in my face. That's it."

He really wanted to believe that he could keep that promise and tried his hardest not to be tempted by the disaster that was sure to come. The last thing he was going to do was repeat the mistakes of the past… Unless something came up.

Something usually did, but this time he was even more determined to break the cycle. He wasn't doing Freddy's any favors.

A thin layer of snow crunched between his shoes and the sparsely covered road. It was the only sound other than the winds, not even the faintest jingle to signal that he wasn't alone. He wasn't sure what was being planned, but he would willingly go along with it, and eventually he started to close in on the construction site.

It was still in the beginning stages of being built. The whole thing was just a layered frame, a skeleton of what it would eventually be, but he could tell now that it had to be three or maybe four levels tall. It looked a whole lot like a mall, and in hindsight Mike considered that it very well could be. Just a large Freddy's-licensed mall to replace the one that went down in St. George and the one that never opened in Hurricane.

As he stepped into what he assumed was the front entrance he felt a weird presence hanging over the area. A foreboding feeling that tightened in his gut as he stepped onto a concrete slab coated in a thin layer of wood dust and snow. It felt ten degrees colder in this building, but it wasn't possible that it was anything beyond his mind playing tricks with himself. The structure was as new as could be and the only haunted thing here was much warmer than this.

Speaking of which, Mike heard a small tapping noise. His head snapped over and he leaned forward to peek around a post, spotting some tools and equipment left behind to be used the next day. His eyes gravitated to an abandoned bucket and knew that must've been what he heard, and he knew exactly what caused it too.

He shined his flashlight slowly around the building and watched shadows dance between the pillars. As he began to slowly make his way further into the construction site, only a few feet further really, he noticed them moving a little more sluggishly. Once or twice, he would notice something dark slipping behind a post, or hear what sounded deceptively like fabric brushing along metal.

Then he suddenly felt it. The feeling that something was directly behind him and slowly closing in, and he knew exactly what it was. Something baiting him to turn around, which he began to do slowly. His eyes followed the beam of his flashlight as he began to turn himself around to confront the force slowly closing in behind him.

Until…

Mike suddenly stopped and snapped forward again, shining his flashlight in front of him, intending to catch his actual pursuer right in the act. So, he was genuinely surprised when he found that nothing had appeared in front of him, waiting for him to turn around and then look back to startle him. He realized quickly that he had made a mistake.

Especially when he suddenly felt something thump into his back and had his arms pinned to his side by a pair of soft and warm ones wrapping around him.

"You were right the first time," Marionette teased, hugging him from behind with a playful chime. He pressed his cool mask into the crook of his neck, bringing a smile out of Mike.

"That's a first," he countered. The Puppet trilled and squeezed tighter, and Mike brought his arms up to rest over the striped ones. They held like that for a few moments. Even with the cool of the porcelain, Marionette's fabric still held the warmth it absorbed from the car heater. Even compared to Mike's winter jacket, he was downright toasty.

Eventually he drew back and spun around to the front of Mike, still holding his hand with held him as though keeping him from floating away. Even in this cold prison he seemed so full of life.

"So, I was thinking about it, and I think I came up with something," Marionette began.

"What's that?"

"A movie theater!" Marionette chirped. Mike quirked a brow. "Think about it: it would fit the space since each theater would need room, they could still sell pizza and candy, they could have an arcade, and it would explain where they got the funds. There could be a theater company backing the project and the whole thing is just Freddy themed to sell to kids!" he continued to explain.

Mike thought it was just wishful thinking but had to admit that he did have a point. "Could be. Would make a lot more sense than a three-story pizzeria. You couldn't sell enough slices to meet that overhead, even if the place was packed."

"I can see it now!" The puppet waved his hand as though guiding his vision. "Each theater is themed with another Freddy's character. Freddy's is family themed, Bonnie's plays musicals, Chica's is food and farm animals, and Foxy's would be adventure movies- oh, no, wait. Foxy wouldn't be in the equation. Come to think of it, neither would Bonnie. What a shame, I suppose that means no theater based off me."

"Thank God for that. It would play nothing bad, cheesy horror movies, living dead dolls, and Casper the Friendly Ghost."

"You take that back," Marionette replied, smile remaining and eyes narrowing.

Mike only grinned a little broader. "Tell me I'm wrong and I will."

The puppet pouted for a second, short enough to show that he was just feigning it, and then waved it off. "Well, that's for the best. A theater out in the middle of the desert, between two cities with their own movie theaters? It won't last."

"Alright, I played along as long as I could," Mike said. He still held a slight smirk as he gave a rather patronizing, "You're in complete denial."

Marionette almost seemed surprised for a second, but then gained a coy smile. "I'm being optimistic. I'm sure that's foreign to you." He chuckled, chiming high in his chest, folding his free arm behind his back. He looked convincingly mellow.

Mike's smirk dropped as he looked at him for a long moment with a largely unreadable expression. Then finally decided to put all prefix aside and level with him.

"I'll be honest, I don't know how you're not freaking out about this. I'm freaking out, I just do it quietly," he confessed. He gave a tired sigh and looked up at the towering beams above their head. Definitely felt like the bars of a cage but offered no illusion of protection. "I can't believe this is happening. That it popped up this quick," he muttered.

"Me neither, but we always knew there was a possibility," Marionette said. His voice growing more somber, which didn't go unnoticed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm livid. Even right now, I want to grab a sledgehammer and just go to town on this place. I'm barely holding back," Mike said, the bitterness coming out. Though it died quickly as he looked to his puppet. "How do you feel? I mean really feel?" Marionette's façade began to wane as he looked aside uncertainly, and Mike's features softened. "Don't hold it in. We got enough of that with Foxy and Fritz."

"Honestly?" Marionette asked almost timidly. Mike nodded, and the puppet hesitated a long moment.

What followed next was something that he hadn't expecting. A strange chill crawled up his arm from where their hands were connected and for a split-second Mike was struck by sensations that weren't his own. A cluster of intense emotions; anger, fear, raw feelings. Marionette must've not realized it was happening because he didn't react, and Mike was too rigid from this intrusive feeling to react. It was intense.

What was weirder was how quiet the puppet was. Normally this amount of frustration would've made itself apparent through static and dialing, but it was very faint. As though he was suppressing the sound.

"As… angry and… devastated as I am… I'm okay."

All at once, that sensation was gone. It wrenched so quickly away that it almost left Mike feeling strangely empty. It was a relief though, enough that he released the breath he didn't realize he was holding. Marionette finally lifted his head again and he watched as his smile, which had waned before, returned to its normal state.

"I'm doing a lot better than I thought I would," Marionette said. Whatever just happened didn't really back that up, but his words sounded sincere. "And I think that's because I know it's all going to be alright."

"How can you be so sure?... Granted, you've got a point. Even if Freddy's does affect our business, it's not really going to ruin our lives. We've still got each other, we still probably have a slew of customers who aren't going to trust Freddy's, and… we're not dead, so there's that," Mike admitted. He decided to take Marionette's advice and tried his best attempt at an optimistic perspective. He noticed Marionette's smile growing and quirked a brow. "How are you so sure?"

"Because…" Marionette trilled. He leaned in and raised his hand as though preparing to whisper a secret to him. He tugged Mike's hand to coax him in. "I have reason to believe that Freddy's will at most last one year."

"How are you so sure of that?"

"Because it's Fazbear Entertainment, my dear Schmidt!" Marionette chirped. He playfully tapped the brim of Mike's hat to nudge it down. "Even without us haunting their establishments, Freddy's has an innate way of sabotaging themselves with a refusal to keep up standards and a backwards way of doing business."

He finally released Mike's hand, but only so he could spin around with his arms splayed out, facing the structure towering behind them as though challenging it.

"Let them build their pizzeria, or mall, or whatever else they want- it isn't going to change anything. History repeats for those who ignore it," he proclaimed.

Mike liked the sound of his confidence and readjusted his hat with a smile. "You sound pretty sure of that."

"I would bet my life on it," Marionette assured. Feeling particularly mischievous, he began to twist and spin in place as music began to ring from his chest. The few snowflakes that made it through the beams above getting caught up in his motion. "Come down to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, three weeks since grand opening! Freddy Fazbear's Pizza- and the lawsuits keep on rolling!"

"That's a cute little jig there," Mike teased. He spun his finger around. "Now do the Bonnie shuffle."

Which surprisingly, Marionette willingly did. The Bonnie Shuffle being this awkward sort of Bonnie-themed suited character dance. It would involve a little shuffle, kicking a leg out, and then a bow. Marionette always added his own little flare at the end, to which Mike clapped after. Not in a patronizing way either, considering how painful he assumed the dance had to be- especially while wearing a springlock suit.

"It's like I always say: nobody does the Bonnie Shuffle better than Prize Puppet," he remarked.

"It runs in my blood. Or whatever this purple stuff is," Marionette replied. His features softened up as he returned to his side. "Feeling any better?"

"Shockingly, yes. I don't know how you pulled that one off… But look, don't feel obligated to cheer me up, okay? I don't want you burning yourself out on my account, and I don't want you to think I'm going to fall apart if I don't have a distraction." Mike reached out to cup his mask, getting rewarded with a vibrating trill as he traced his cheek. "You were right earlier. We're going to be fine."

"Fazbear Entertainment always has been and always will be a vessel for disaster," Marionette said. He rested a hand on Mike's as he pressed his mask further into his touch. "With those odds, how can we fail?"

"Very easily," Mike's bitter mind wanted to say, but he held his tongue from following suit. He instead steered back towards a joking tone. "So, you're saying I shouldn't start breaking down support beams?"

"No, you might get arrested. Then they won't let us continue sneaking in," the puppet said with a chime. "I would guess that we have a few more months of this being our personal playground before they start watching it more carefully."

"Oh yeah?" Mike asked with a growing smile. "What do you have in mind?"

"I'll give you twenty seconds to find a good hiding spot," Marionette said as he gently pulled away. Squeezing Mike's hand in his as he got a more challenging glint in his eyes. "Let's see if you can do any better than I did."

"In a building with no walls? I think I deserve at least forty seconds," Mike hinted. He didn't sound unconfident though. "And if we're really leveling the playing field, cover your ears. No footsteps to tip you off. Not when this place echoes."

Marionette chuckled as he turned away and covered over where his ears would be, if he had them, and began to make a low humming noise. Probably an extra step to block out the sound. It was endearing to say the least, and Mike stepped forward, briefly taking hold of the puppet to kiss him on the back of the neck. He trilled as Mike drew back and turned to head further into the construction site.

He knew only a few steps in that there was no way he was going to find an adequate hiding place here, but that wasn't the point. The point was to have a little bit of fun in a place they weren't supposed to, in a place that would no doubt be causing them a lot more pain in the next couple of months. Mike supposed that he should appreciate this time while he had it, when this building was still a shell, when he still didn't know what it was.

Though before he could even get that far, Marionette called back, voice louder than he probably intended. "But watch your step! There's places where the basement's exposed!"

"Oh, that would just be the icing on the cake," Mike said under his breath. With a shake of his head and a small smile on his lips he headed further into their would-be playground.

And somehow, they made their first memory of this place a good one.

…

…

…

With an enormously loud creak, the metal door started to slide open. It took two harsh shoves to get it to budge, heavy enough to cause the man pushing it to puff and give another firm heave. It finally slid open the rest of the way and revealed the looming darkness inside of the abandoned factory. In stepped a group of four armed only with flashlights to search the massive room.

So, here was the legacy of the old Fazbear Entertainment: an empty factory full of rust and garbage. It was quite a sight to see.

"What a dump," a scruffy faced technician muttered. The leading technician gave a tight mouthed look in response seemed to show that he must've agreed. Shining light on the scene didn't help matters either.

"Careful what you stir up. An old place like this could be full of asbestos, and it's not like they would've admitted to it before sending us out here," the third man said, who was at least ten or more years older than the two technicians. He tried to lift the collar of his shirt over his mouth. "Just see if you can find anything so we can get out of here."

"Doesn't look like much of this is going to be useable," the leader said. He shined his light over the shelves and noticed the stacks of old, abandoned toys left on them. He silently shook his head; what a shame. Why leave all this stuff?

The group slowly made their way into the back. The leader and scruffy technician made it into the back first. They found a figure laying off to the side in a heap. Rotten fabric wasted away to reveal exposed, rusty metal hiding underneath. The second man nudged it over with his boot, letting out a noise of disgust as its head rolled to reveal a gaping mouth and empty eyes.

"I'm guessing it's a… Chica? Yeah, that rancid yellow's got to be a Chica," he muttered. He gave it another kick in the side and his boot went straight into it like the side of a weakened pinata. He staggered with a swear and his companion barely caught his arm to keep him from falling.

"Watch your mouth," the older man snapped. Then was straight to business with, "Does it look like a salvage job?"

"Are you kidding? My shoe went straight through it. We try picking this thing up and the whole thing's falling apart!" he called back as he yanked his foot free.

The older wasn't impressed with his theatrics and looked to the leader for a second opinion.

"He's right. This… There's no salvaging this. Wight'll never write off on this, it would cost less to buy a new one."

"Whoa… Hold on a second," the scruffy man suddenly interrupted. His tone changed instantly from annoyed to cautious as he shined his flashlight past his partner. "What is that?"

The leader followed the direction of his light with his own and found the same spot on the back wall, half-hidden by a shelf of broken and dirty toys. On first glance it just looked like a tarp covering something in the corner, but on closer inspection his eyes widened as he noticed the shape of whatever was underneath it. Two distinct arms and legs, and a slouched head covered by the edge of the tarp.

It looked like a body.

The older man noticed their motions and pushed aside some stuff on the shelf to see through, and only then did he get a look that matched up with theirs. He was uncharacteristically silent, not stopping the technicians as they made their way between the shelves to this figure propped up against the wall.

The leader reached out and took ahold of the dusty, cold tarp and began to pull it away until it was stuck behind the form's head. Taking a deep breath, he gave a firm tug and unveiled what lay before them.

It was an emaciated endoskeleton.

Its body was sturdy but thin. It was enwrapped in something that looked like a mass of garbage bags but could've been a ratty coat. Its chest was exposed enough to reveal some kind of corroded battery mounted into it with some frayed wires sticking out. Its arms lay stiffly at its sides and its legs stuck out in front of it rigidly like it had been there for a while, though it looked like the tarp had spared it from any dust collection.

The only distinct feature it had was a white mask with a crooked grin. It didn't look made for the body, more sized like it was for a small animatronic or doll and then somehow mounted to the head. Its features were drawn on with black marker, a toothy smile beneath one blackened out eye and one punched through eyehole that let the endo's eye peek through. Its mouth was stained with something, either food or paint.

When all the parts came together it gave the animatronic an ominous appearance. It looked more like the grim reaper than anything made for children, even though it was probably kids or teens who vandalized it to look like this.

The leader took in the scene for a long moment before planting a hand on his hip and looking to his companion.

"Well, Chaz, in all your wisdom… What character do you think this is?" he asked.

"Whichever was mauled by a coyote," the second technician, Chaz, said. "Y'know, they should've known kids were going to get in here. There's no way we're finding anything worth saving."

"Maybe we just did," the other countered. Chaz gave him a look of disbelief as the leader looked back to the older man. "The endo looks salvageable, but there's no suit. What's the call?"

"Does it look like it's going to be a pain to refurbish?" the older man asked. Even he sounded doubtful, but it wasn't like they had seen much better, and hopes weren't high in finding some kind of hidden gem. All thing's considered; this semi-intact endo was what they were looking for.

"Not really," the leader said. Chaz's look of disbelief only increased. "Take the mask off, clean it up a little bit, take that… car battery or whatever it is out and stick it in a suit. Mount it somewhere they need a slightly movable statue."

"Hmm… Yeah, alright. It's not looking like we'll be finding much better, and I don't want to spend all day digging around in here. I'll go get the cart and you two can haul it out to the van."

"Take the easy job, why don't cha," Chaz said under his breath. Loud enough that the leader could hear but the older couldn't, the former getting an amused smirk before falling as they waited for the dolly. Once it was wheeled in, the two worked together to get the endoskeleton onto it. It was heavier than it looked but with a little maneuvering they managed to get it on.

The older helped clear the way as they guided their hefty find out of the warehouse. What they didn't notice or had noticed but didn't send a second glance at, was that something fell out of the endoskeleton's coverings when they had lifted it from the floor. It looked to be a dirty plush toy of some kind. Just one of the many forgotten toys they lay abandon amongst the shelves now laying facedown on the grimy floor.

Taking pity on the thing, the fourth of the group leaned down to pick it up. It wasn't until it was turned over that it was revealed to be a plush rabbit. Even though it was old and worn, it was recognizable as a Bonnie, though its coloring was unusual. Instead of the typical blue or purple it was a brownish yellow. Or maybe a greenish yellow. It was hard to tell with how dull its faux fur had become over the years.

Poor thing was in dire need of a bath and a few stitches here and there, but it was otherwise in fine condition. There was nothing special about it except for its coloring and yet something about the toy was enticing. Maybe it was worth taking it home and cleaning it up, even if it was just to prop it on the dresser.

She followed the others out with the plush in hand and a slight smile on her lips.

Chapter 2

It had been ages since he had been in this office. He had been with a bad crowd in high school, so he was usually swept up into their issues whenever one of them acted out. Sometimes he was even brought in for questioning, which only made the school feel more like a prison. Or that's what he thought at the time. It wasn't until he actually went to jail that he realized how different it was when you didn't get to go home at the end of the day.

It was a relief to be an adult who wasn't sitting here waiting to see the principle, but not too much of one. One of his girls must've acted up, probably Forget-Me-Not. Hopefully they went easy on her; they had to understand that an animatronic wouldn't act like a normal teenager. He really hoped they didn't use this as an excuse to expel her. They let a Chica go here, he saw her out in the hallway.

It was then that he spotted something that caught his eye and walked to the other side of the room. There were office supplies lined up on the same desk just like he remembered, down to the same guillotine paper cutter sitting on a file cabinet at the end. He had always thought it looked so gnarly, imagining someone getting their fingers caught in it and the insanity that would've followed an accident like that. Gruesome, bloody, maybe they would've closed the school.

He pressed his cheek against the cold wood and stared at the wall. The warm sun was shining through the window just like he remembered it. He wasn't sure what he was doing here, but he went along with the motions as he slid forward until the cold metal started to brush over his cheek. His heart suddenly jolted as he realized the position he was in, but he didn't stop his motions.

He closed his eyes tightly as he lowered the blade and heard it cutting into the skin along the side of the face. Warm liquid poured into his eyes as he slowly brought the guillotine through skin and cartilage. All while a mouth pressed up on the back of his neck, dragging its filthy teeth through his hair as it panted on his skin. It smelled like rotten meat. It whispered in his own voice:

"I want to carve off your face and wear it as my mask."

Jeremy woke up choking on his own saliva. He inhaled a mouthful of it and lurched upright as he coughed and wheezed, clearing it from his burning throat and lungs. He only barely acknowledged the little bodies falling off his shoulders and into his lap and beside him on the bed, only really noticing them when he heard their fussy noises.

"Sorry! Sorry, it's okay. It's okay," he managed to get out. He coughed again and felt around until one latched onto his arm. He recognized that needy squeeze as being Rose's. "We're okay."

"Daddy?" He winced as he heard the voice from the dresser. It was one of the Bidybabs, but he couldn't tell which one. "What happened? What was it?"

"It's nothing, girls. I just- Daddy just inhaled his spit and threw his tiny dancers all over the place," he explained. Not only did they buy it, but he heard one of the Bidybabs giggle.

He hastily sat up on the bed and reached around in the pitch dark to make sure all of his dolls were accounted for. Two Minireenas, a third by his pillow, a fourth at the foot of the bed with Plushtrap; everyone was accounted for. He carefully pulled the blankets off himself, making sure not to cover up the dolls he just dropped, and went to stand only for his foot meet something wooden and rounded before reaching the floor. He knew who it was and recoiled.

"Sorry, BB! I didn't know I knocked you off. Here," Jeremy offered. He leaned down and started trying to pull him up, but the short animatronic was limp.

"I was already down here. Return me to the rug, Father," Balloon Boy said with a recorded laugh and finality. Jeremy got the message and slowly lowering him back onto the rug, deciding not to question it. Balloon Boy then rolled a little towards the bed so Jeremy could step over him and get up.

"I'll be right back, guys. I promise. Just two seconds." He knew he must've sounded odd with how he was rushing, but he had to get out of the darkness and to a mirror. He could feel his sleep shirt pulling at his throat and a weight on his back and realized he had picked up a hanger-on but decided to ignore it and make his way to the bathroom.

He only realized he forgot his glasses once he was in the bathroom and noticed the blurriness in his vision. Not enough to make him go back though and instead he leaned over the sink until his reflection in the mirror was clear, studying his startled features as though he expected to suddenly see the gore appear, but none did. His skin was smooth, untouched, unscared, not even the smallest scratch or drop of blood.

Even though he knew he wasn't going to see anything, he still felt a wave of relief. He ran his hands over his face before sighing and reaching back to pull the Minireena off of his back. It turned out to be Forget-Me-Not and he held her reassuringly for a few seconds, kissing the top of her head- she responded with an 'Ah!' noise- and then set her down beside the bathroom door, giving her a small nudge.

"Back to bed. I'll be there in a minute," he assured. She ran out and he shut the door behind her.

Jeremy took a few minutes to use the restroom and splash some water over his face. Even though the house was cool, it felt like something that needed doing, and it helped snap him out of his unease. He then took a deep breath and opened the door to step out into the hallway.

Only to find Mike standing outside. Jeremy barely held himself from yelping but apparently his face must've displayed his surprise.

"Sorry. I just felt like sulking around in the dark," Mike said groggily. His voice was rough, and eyes were glazed over from sleep. "Thought you'd get a kick out of my Foxy impression."

"Maybe if I got a little warning," Jeremy said, recovering as quickly as he could with his frayed nerves. Though he then got an uneasy feeling as he realized that Mike was here, awake, in the middle of the night. "…You didn't hear me, right?"

"No, I heard the doll scratching at my door. Would've slept through it too if Mari didn't start poking me in the back," Mike answered. Apparently, he wasn't awake enough to filter his words because that was a little more information than he usually gave out. He rubbed a hand up his face and back through his hair. "You want to talk about it?"

It was no surprise that Mike already knew. This wasn't Jeremy's first nightmare; it was just the first one in a while. Jeremy could feel the heat growing in his recently cooled face.

"Uh… Yeah, no thanks. I'm good just pretending it didn't happen," Jeremy said. It was supposed to be a joke, but it came out sounding a lot more awkward and pitiful than he intended. "I think I'm just going to go back to bed."

"That works for me," Mike agreed. As they made their way back down the hall towards Foxy's room, now Jeremy's room, he put a hand on the blonde's back like he was guiding him. It felt very older brotherly, which was a little strange considering that he was the younger of the two. It was a little embarrassing, but not enough to even consider pushing him away.

Jeremy gave a quick, "Good night," as he headed back into the bedroom and was instantly swarmed by a waiting group of dolls. Mike quietly shut the door behind him, not wanting to risk letting them out.

Mike started heading back towards the master bedroom, not noticing the dark figure peeking around the corner at the end of the hall before disappearing. He entered the room to find Marionette sitting cross-legged on the bed waiting for him.

"He's fine," Mike said. He knew the puppet was going to worry anyways so he didn't try to convince him further. Besides, he was worried himself, but not enough to stay awake. The nightmares finally die down and here comes Freddy to bring them back. He was surprised he didn't wake up in a cold sweat from visions of mechanical monstrosities left homeless after the eventual closure of Foxy's.

Marionette hummed in understanding as he watched Mike get back into back, still watching him as the lamp was turned off. He almost considered going out to Jeremy's room. Mike must've realized this as he reached out and pulled him in before he could do so, pulling him back to the bed.

It could wait until tomorrow.

Which it did. Jeremy didn't wake again until thirty minutes after he would've usually gotten up. He opened his eyes to find dull light pouring through the curtain-covered, snow caked windows. Daisy was curled up in the crook of his arm, but it didn't take him long to see that the others were all gone. This wasn't abnormal; they usually got up early to seek out distractions.

But not Daisy. As he sat up, he moved her to cradle her in his arm as he rubbed his eyes and reached for his glasses with the other. Daisy gave a happy giggle and hugged onto his arm; a typical 'good morning'.

"Good morning, Daisy," he said in the most upbeat tone he could manage. He then kissed the top of her head, getting another giggle, and got out of bed.

He couldn't let last night get to him. He couldn't let Freddy's get to him. This was a trying time, and he was the only one who could be the adult for these little guys, so he had to push past this. Not fall back into the same slump he fell into after the incident a few months ago.

He came out to find the living room surprisingly lowkey compared to usual. No frantic rushing to greet and get his attention, so he guessed Marionette had probably told them not to do so. Said puppet was currently in the kitchen opening a box of frozen waffles and taking out the rubber banded bag inside. He greeted Jeremy with a tilt of his head.

"Good morning!" he chimed. "Two or three?"

"Two's fine, thanks," Jeremy said with a smile. Marionette making breakfast wasn't too unusual though he didn't do it every morning. Typically, it was something easy to make and not too messy, but the lack of a waffle press meant frozen was the best they could do on this front. He could work with it.

Though Jeremy wasn't oblivious. He knew that the breakfast was probably because of last night, but he decided to not bring it up. He noticed that Marionette didn't ask about it either. He sat down at the table and set Daisy on the edge.

"You can go play if you want," he offered. She shook her head and swung her legs, daintily setting her hands in her lap. She wanted to stay with him, and he was fine with that.

It took a few minutes for Marionette to finish the waffles and when he did, Jeremy got full confirmation that he was aware of what happened last night. Because the waffles were decked out with an array of toppings. Butter was smeared around the top and bathed in syrup, then topped with a handful of blueberries that were topped with chocolate sprinkles. White icing was also oozing out from between the two waffles. This amount of overkill was saved for cheering up.

"You really overdid it, Mari. In a good way, I mean. It looks good! Thank you," Jeremy got out with a smile. Marionette returned it eagerly with a chime and returned to the kitchen. Probably to make something for Mike.

The question of where Mike went was put off for his first bite of the waffles. They were good, if just a little too sweet- not that he was going to complain.

All of a sudden, the front door swung open and Jeremy bit down so hard on his fork that it dug into the roof of his mouth. He and the puppet both looked back to see none other than Mike shutting the door hurriedly behind him, puffing and gasping. He gave a hissing inhale through his teeth and rapidly rubbed his arms, which were only covered in a long sleeve grey shirt.

Marionette narrowed his eyes and put his hands on his hips. "I told you to take a jacket," he said with a light scolding tone.

"Can't run in a jacket," Mike said stiffly. He took another deep breath and held it a moment, then exhaled. "I'm okay. The brisk was good."

"The frostbite won't be," Marionette disagreed as he turned back to the kitchen counter. Mike sat down at the table across from Jeremy and rubbed his hands together vigorously to try and get warmth back into them.

"Probably should've worn gloves though," he admitted under his breath. Then he turned his attention across to the blond. "How're you doing, Jere?"

"A lot better than last night… But since we're talking about last night, I was thinking and the dream must've just been from the shock of learning about Freddy's. Just delayed a couple of days. I've really haven't had a nightmare in weeks- a month or two, and it wasn't about Freddy's. It was about… I don't know. Zombies or something," Jeremy rambled. Mike saw right through what he was trying to do but decided to let it slide.

"Could be bad timing, but I wouldn't blame you if it was. I'm sure there's dozens of kids out there who had nightmares after visiting Freddy's," Mike said with a shrug.

"Yes, and we all live with you," Max called in from the living room. Announcing rather blatantly that he was listening in on the conversation. Mike's mouth pulled into a smirk and Max wobbled around the edge of the couch, to which Mike had to cover his face to smother a guffaw. The magician noticed and didn't seem to care. "What was the dream this time?"

"Oh, it umm… Ugh… You don't want to know. It was just bad," Jeremy deflected. He focused on cutting up his waffles into tiny pieces, his nerves beginning to dispel his appetite.

"You're only making me more curious, and you really don't want us to be talking about this when Beeb's around," Max said matter-of-factly as he stopped beside him. "Just because I'm small doesn't mean I can't handle your Red Man dreams."

"It wasn't about him," Jeremy quickly denied. He left off the 'this time', but Max knew it was there.

"Don't push him. You know we can't control our dreams, the last thing anybody wants is to chat about them," Marionette swooped in and defended. He was carrying another prepared plate of waffles that he handed off.

"Besides, don't you see into dreams? You already know what he saw," Mike pointed out before turning to take his plate with a, "Thank you."

"You're very welcome," Marionette trilled. He circled his chair and sat in the other one, eagerly waiting to see him react to the food.

All the while Jeremy had a blank look as he realized with sinking horror that they were right. Max must've seen that. He knew all about what he had dreamed about.

"When I'm in the room. I wasn't in the room last night," Max quickly corrected. "That would've taken an amount of focus I can't spare when I'm channel surfing in the dregs of the morning. Nothing but soap operas and adult programming." Marionette looked at him with a start and Mike slowly raised a brow, but Jeremy didn't take the bait. "Look at me like that all you want. Chances are I'm older than both of you."

"…Now that's a scary thought," Mike remarked. He turned his focus down to his plate and started to eat.

"Was it about Gabe?" Max asked, eyes rolling up to Jeremy again. The blond gave an awkwardly dismissive sort of noise. "…Was it about us?"

"No, it was about me. Just me," Jeremy confessed. Knowing this probably raised more suspicions, he quickly added, "I got in an accident and there was a lot of blood. It was that kind of dream."

"Okay, but did it involve a knife?" Max pressed.

Jeremy gave him a slightly exasperated look and a believable, "No." Technically it didn't.

"Alright, I'll let you off the hook… Oh. That wasn't intentional, I swear."

"Sure, it wasn't," Mike muttered.

Jeremy decided to change the conversation. "I was supposed to check out some more apartments today, but I don't know. I feel like I should be with Foxy… Maybe I should put off the apartment search while this is all going on."

"You don't have to do that. This isn't that big of a deal, I promise you. It'll all blow over quicker than you think," Marionette assured with a smile. Jeremy glanced at Mike expecting something sarcastic or at least for him to give Marionette a funny look, but instead Mike just slowly looked away and turned back to his food. "…In fact, I was thinking of going down there myself and spending time with him. I feel badly for not trying harder yesterday…"

"He wasn't really feeling up to being comforted," Jeremy sympathized.

"No. I tried to talk with him before we left, and he shut me out. Just short of shutting the curtain on me."

"That would've required him to get up," Mike remarked. Quip or not, he seemed legitimately concerned. Then turned his attention to back to Jeremy and offered, "I could go with you if you want. Apartment hunting, not to the pizzeria. We could go together and play good cop bad cop until they bring the rent down."

"You don't have to do that. It's bad enough that I woke you up last night, I'm not going to turn around and then make you come with me to look at apartments."

"Every second I'm not sitting in this house thinking about that four-floor train wreck waiting-to-happen out on the highway is a gift from heaven. Trust me, you're doing me a favor," Mike dryly reassured. He then added much more confidently, "I'm also an expert at spotting water damage."

"Well, when you put it like that… Yeah, okay. If you're really looking for a way to get out."

"Trust me, I'm always looking for a way out," Mike said with a smirk. With that the conversation lulled and the morning continued as usual.

Work was relatively uneventful, but equally tense compared to the day before. Foxy was able to manage around the children better, but it was clear that he was still struggling, and as soon as the restaurant closed, he was sitting on his stage looking as despondent as ever. At least he wasn't hiding- was the only desperate attempt at positivity Jeremy and Marionette could take out of it.

But Foxy wasn't the only one acting weird, Mike noticed. Marionette was still working a little too hard and acting a little too wound-up compared to usual, Fritz looked like he hadn't slept the night before, with Natalie following him around trying to keep him from finding projects to work on, and Charlie, Carlton, and the rest of the staff just seemed a little tense. Almost like they were waiting for the shoe to drop.

Mike knew he wasn't feeling normal, but he liked to think that he exuded the same exhausted sarcasm that he usually did. It was hard not to think that every customer and every dollar was vitally important to Foxy's Pirate Cove survival, but he had to keep shaking that mindset or he was going to drive himself crazy.

The only one who seemed to be acting pretty typical was, surprisingly enough, Jeremy. He seemed a little awkward and worried about Foxy but considering the situation this was a pretty appropriate response. He seemed to be taking it better than even Mike was, regardless of the nightmare the night before.

The restaurant closed at the normal time, but instead of staying around to close up, the two left to check out the apartments a little earlier. Jeremy managed to make some calls in advance so even though they wouldn't be able to check all of the eligible apartments, they could see some. Marionette stayed with Foxy while Charlie rode with Fritz and Natalie to visit her grandfather before being taken home. Everything was going as planned.

Until they started to look at the apartments.

The first apartment was closer to work than even Mike and Marionette's house was. The trade-off being that it looked more like a motel than a typical apartment building. Might've been one before being formatted into apartments. They were showed inside the and found it was slightly bigger than it looked outside. Basically, two motel rooms that had been remodeled to look like one functional apartment, with one being turned into a living room and kitchen.

Mike assumed that he was going to have to be the backbone of the due, but surprisingly Jeremy was very capable of taking up that role himself. The apartment wasn't big enough, it was literally on top of the neighbors, and pretty much the entire front wall was windows. It simply wasn't going to work in his situation. Mike was impressed in how he laid down the law so eagerly and they moved to the next place.

The second apartment was almost day and night to the first. It was still rather small, but the layout was much more pleasing. It was a duplex comprised of two vertically styled apartments. Each apartment had a living room with a kitchen behind it, then a stairway leading from the corner of the living room up into the second floor, which was comprised of a bathroom and the bedroom. The wall between the apartment was much thicker and the windows were sparse.

The benefits of the apartment came from the location. It wasn't much farther from Foxy's, situated closer to the highway but not really bothered by the sound, but in a barer section of the city. Both apartments of the duplex were free- though the second duplex of apartments looked to be filled- and there was even a small, overgrown backyard that was entirely closed in by a tall, wooden fence. Maybe it could be used for something.

Except that Jeremy tore into this apartment just as readily as the first one. First it was, "I don't like that the bathroom's upstairs." That was fair. Then it was, "I don't think it's enough room." Which was somewhat plausible, though seemed to be kind of similar to the size of his old apartment, just not broken into so many rooms. Then, "What if someone moves in next door?" And then, "The paintjob in the bedroom isn't great. It's… Depressing. Almost as depressing as the showerhead."

It was at this point that Mike started to notice that Jeremy's complaints seemed out of character. Especially when, by time they left, Jeremy complained more about this apartment than the first one, which had been genuinely flawed.

That was fine though. The point wasn't to force Jeremy into an apartment, it was to find a place where he would be safe and comfortable. Well, no, that wasn't true either. It was to get out of the house and hang out with Jeremy. They even stopped in the middle of it and got some fries from the drive-through. This wasn't an apartment hunt; it was a casual search. So, Jeremy's intense criticism seemed odd.

It wasn't until the third apartment that it became very apparent that Jeremy wasn't acting as normal as Mike thought.

By all means, this third apartment was perfect. Even if it wasn't, he knew it was exactly what Jeremy would like, so he could've expected some sort of positive reaction. The apartment was actually a very small house, maybe built from a modular home, but it had been remodeled with modern furniture and wooden floors that looked almost new. To the right was a little living area and to the left a small dining set beside the kitchen.

Down the hall was a decent sized bedroom and an acceptably sized bathroom. The real drawing point was the fact that there was an upstairs. The upstairs area stretched almost the length of the house, but the downside- or what would normally be a downside- was that the ceiling was rather low. An adult sized man could comfortably sit on the floor, or a child could sit on a chair, but one would have to hunch far over to get through.

For anyone who wasn't housing dozens of small animatronics this upstairs wouldn't have any real use. For Jeremy, it could give his little gang a large playroom, and since the apartment wasn't attached to another, they could be relatively loud without tipping off any suspicion. Not to mention that the place was cheaper than any of the ones they had seen before. Mike wasn't expecting Jeremy to choose it, just to consider some of it.

Jeremy didn't consider any of it. He walked in saying, "This is way too small," before he had even seen the rest of the house. At least the last two times he pretended to look at the apartments before turning them down, but not this time, and he continued to be merciless. Apparently, he had decided that stairs were a no-go since the last apartment, and the bedroom felt too cold, the bathroom tiles looked like they would eventually need to be replaced, and the carpet was 'crunchy'.

It was almost like the apartment offended Jeremy. He looked at it with an amount of scrutiny that he had never seen before, which would've been commendable if it didn't seem so unlike him. They left without any debate.

The fourth apartment was awful, so Mike didn't have any problems insulting that one. He even threw in a couple of his own.

It wasn't until they were in that car after the fourth apartment, driving back towards the middle of Hurricane since it was further out, when Mike decided it was worth bringing up.

"So, what was wrong with the one before this?" he asked seemingly out of nowhere. Jeremy was a little surprised by it.

"The apartment?" he asked. "I told you, it's too cramped."

"Other than that. They were all cramped. What else was wrong with it?"

Jeremy was confused to why Mike was asking him when he told him while they were there, but he decided to indulge him.

"Okay, well there was the smell, the size, again, the living room was too small for a good-sized TV and couch, the stairs were too steep- and we couldn't even stand up in the second floor!" Jeremy listed back out. He looked out the window and watched the houses pass by. "And I don't really want to commute this far to get to work. It's twice the drive of my old place."

"Fair enough," Mike agreed. "…What about that second place?"

"Same thing. Too small, too… tight, and the stairs were a problem."

"I didn't know the stairs were going to be a problem."

Jeremy smiled a little. "When you have a bunch of little bodies running around, you've got to keep an eye out. Especially when those steps were taller than most of them."

"Makes sense," Mike agreed. Then he slowly sent a side-glance over. "I'm a little surprised that they didn't tell you about the stairs beforehand. Like when you called them to set up the tour."

In that moment Jeremy realized he had been caught, and the only thing keeping Mike from a triumphant smirk was the distinct feeling that something was wrong. He just waited to see if Jeremy would fess up to any of it. Shockingly, he did.

"…They did, at least for the first and seconds ones, I just didn't think about it at the time. I know I need to find a new place soon and I know I can't afford to be picky, but I'm not just making the choice for me. It's for the whole family and once we move there's no going back, I'm locked into it… I've got to make a good choice," Jeremy explained. His worry was obvious.

Mike gave a pensive frown and took the plunge. "…Jere, can I ask you something without you becoming defensive?"

"Considering how you worded that, probably not," Jeremy answered. Mike sent him a tired look and he added, "I can handle it. Ask me."

"That dream last night… Was it about Freddy's?"

Jeremy was expecting that question, but he certainly wasn't expecting it now of all times. Though it made since that it came from Mike, who hadn't been shy about talking about their newest issue.

"No… Maybe. It had nothing to do with Freddy's directly, no Mangle, nothing like that, but I know that's what probably caused it." Jeremy sunk deeper into the passenger seat. "To tell you the truth, this whole thing's got me a little freaked out. Just not knowing what's coming is killing me… and I don't want to put this on Foxy but seeing him like this really isn't helping things- not that I'm blaming him! I just- you know what I mean."

"I know exactly what you mean. Mari's doing the same thing just in the opposite way. He acts like he's sure everything's going to work out and super upbeat, but I don't believe it for a second. I know he's scared and he's angry, but he's trying so hard to keep it in that it's coming out in other ways," Mike confessed tiredly. "I thought we talked about it yesterday, but I don't think we really did."

"I noticed he was a little… Yeah," Jeremy agreed. "What are you going to do?"

"Play along with the Mari Poppins act until he's ready for whatever comes next. To be honest, I think I'm more afraid of whatever that will be than this."

"…Probably wind up like Foxy," the blond quietly agreed. Mike gave a half nod while the other returned to looking at the window, watching a restaurant pass by the window. He huffed and added, "I'm just not-!... Ready for this."

Mike looked to him questioningly.

"I'm not ready to deal with Freddy's, and I'm sure not ready to deal with any of the stuff it brings with it," Jeremy admitted. His voice lowered to a mutter, "Not when I just got my act together. I'm already having nightmares again."

It was those two repeated words, 'not ready', that tipped Mike off that this wasn't all about Freddy's. It was also about unfinished business, because in hindsight he knew that nightmare hadn't been about Freddy taking a knife to him.

"Jeremy, you don't have to look for an apartment. And you didn't have to find things wrong to get out of getting any of those ones, because you don't have to move out… Except that last apartment. That deserved everything we could throw at it. They didn't even try to cover up that puddle," Mike said.

Jeremy was a little surprised, but quickly deflated. "It's not that simple, Mike."

"It is that simple. You don't have to move out," he affirmed. "It would be one thing if we were trying to share a one-bedroom apartment, but it's a four-bedroom house, and we still have a bed not being slept in. Things are going good right now, why rush thing when we've got other stuff to worry about?"

"…Do you mean that?" Jeremy asked. "Mike, be honest with me. Are you only saying that because you're afraid I'm going to, I don't know… Spiral out?"

"If I was, I sure as hell wouldn't tell you," Mike quipped with a brief smirk. "But I'm not. I like having you around, even if it means having to put up with the munchkins and the gremlin."

The car was silent for a few long moments until Jeremy suddenly and abruptly caved.

"I'm afraid to go back to living alone. I know it sounds stupid since I know he's gone, but I keep thinking what if I get a place, move everyone in, and then can't handle it?"

"I don't see that happening, but that doesn't mean you have to go," Mike encouraged. "How long have you been thinking about this?"

"Once I started apartment hunting. That's why it's been taking me so long, I just keep finding reasons to stall… And it sucks too because I turned down some good apartments." He let that sit a moment before the relief suddenly set in. The weight of an invisible timer was pulled off his chest and he reattained a real smile. "Thanks for this."

"No problem. Nothing worth getting sappy about," Mike playfully nudged. All seemed to have returned to a place of normality, at least as it could in the situation. Though now that it had, and now that Jeremy felt so much better having talked about it, he decided to return the favor.

"What about you, Mike? How're you doing?" he offered, opening the door up for him.

"I'm waiting for Mari to pull it together and then I'm going to completely lose it," Mike said. It was framed like a joke, but the dead seriousness in his voice was convincing. "Just a head's up."

"Thanks. I'll make sure to be gone that day," Jeremy replied. He got the impression that Mike wasn't feeling like saying anything more, so he let it drop. "…So, there's one last apartment, but if I'm not moving out, I guess there's no point in looking."

"Screw that. I'm already out, let's go."

Marionette couldn't remember the last time he saw Foxy in this state. He had seen him on hard times before, with the most recent example being after the incident a few months ago. The one with possession, the break ins, and the snake. He wasn't alone either. Everyone came out of that incident in a state of shock and horror, including himself. He had been the one person to witness Afton's descent into that lake and he still hadn't felt safe.

But Foxy still wasn't like this. He was afraid, angry, and defensive, but not this lost in despair. He had hoped in staying over he could in some time with him, and he was, but all Foxy wanted was to sit on his stage with his eye unfocused, not willing to make any small talk unless it was forced out of him. It was almost scary to look at. Marionette was desperate to stop it.

"…I could put the TV on. We could watch a movie or a cartoon," he offered gently. "I know you don't probably feel up to it, but it could be a good distraction."

"Don't feel up to it," Foxy grumbled. Though then waved his hook in his general direction, "Go ahead an' put somethin' on fer you though. It's fine."

Dismissive assurances were not fine, and Marionette could predict putting anything on would only shut down conversation more, and no doubt Foxy wouldn't even look at the screen. He had to think of a better tactic.

"I shouldn't tell you this…" Marionette began with a sly smile and narrowed eyes. "But Tabby left a half of a moist chocolate sheet cake in the fridge."

Foxy gave an almost exasperated mimic of a sigh, and it was enough to snap the smile right off of Marionette's face, now replaced with a tight line.

"Look, Marion, I know what yer doin'. Yer tryin' to pull me outta this funk, but Lad, that just ain't gonna happen. There's some things cake and candy ain't gonna make you forget," Foxy said in a surprisingly gentle tone. Or perhaps it was just a surprisingly listless one. It was enough to stop the puppet's attempts in their tracks. "…How moist?"

"Exceptionally moist?" Marionette offered with a tiny smile daring to appear. It didn't last when Foxy's head dropped again with disinterest. That was the most effort he could give.

Equally downtrodden, Marionette let out a windy out-of-tune twang and floated over beside the pirate before sitting on the stage alongside him. He stared down at his striped legs and tapped his fingers dully on the stage, trying to think of something that he could say. Nothing could make it better, but it felt like he couldn't just leave it like this. It took a minute or two, but finally he found the words he wanted to say.

"I love you," the puppet said. He reached out and wrapped his arms around the fox, slid in closer, and rested his head against his. His soft faux fur was warm and comforting, like a plush toy. "Whatever happens, we're going to still have each other. Freddy's can take our customers, they can take our fanfare, but they can never take away my big brother. We'll always have each other."

Something in those words triggered something deep in Foxy's core. The depressed slump he had been in suddenly snapped into an alertness, a protectiveness, a heated frustration and drive he hadn't had to feel in years, if ever.

Freddy's wasn't going to take away his family. Freddy's wasn't going to take away anything. He was going to make sure of it, come hell or high water.

"…I ain't takin' this sitting down."

Marionette was startled both by the change in tone and the fact that Foxy volunteered anything at all. He gently unwound himself from the pirate, who immediately stood up on the edge of the stage. He looked up at Foxy and the intense look in his eye and he cautiously felt a renewed hope.

"If Freddy thinks I'm gonna roll over and let him take everything we worked for, he's got another thing comin'," Foxy growled. He lifted his hook and stared at it with a, frankly, almost murderous glint. Reaching up to run it over with his fingers and looking like he wanted to gut someone with it. "In fact…" He turned down on Marionette and boldly proclaimed, "We're gonna run Freddy's straight outta town."

"We are? I mean- yes! We should!… But how would we go about doing that?" Marionette asked. He meant to sound encouraging, but instead he just sounded confused.

"A strategic campaign to get ev'ryone on our side and to dredge up all of Freddy's bad blood. This time, Foxy ain't playin' the villain fer some two-bit bear joint. We be the underdogs! Up again a fierce foe, the capitalist sow that is Freddy Fazbear & Friends!" Foxy said, pointing a hook off into the distance. It might've been intentionally in the direction of the highway.

He could tell that Marionette was still skeptical. Rightly so, as what Foxy was suggesting was going to be quite an undertaking, but it was what they had to do. He crouched down alongside him.

"All we gotta do is play the game a lot harder than Freddy's be. They're gonna throw out merch and discount, flash and flair, and whatever else they got. We gotta be better. Foxy's gonna have to be a hometown hero." Foxy paused to tap his hook on his 'chin' in thought, eye darting around as his racing thoughts spilled in. "…We need to get back in the news."

"I hope you mean in a good way."

"When's that Christmas thing goin' on downtown?"

"Oh, the festival? Next week!" Marionette said. He perked up considerably, eagerly accepting the direction they were going in. "And I'm sure after last year's performance they would be happy to have us return."

"We're doin' it, and we're doin' it fer free," Foxy proclaimed. This act of generosity surprised the puppet, who almost considered pointing out that they may need that money for the expansion before Foxy continued. "Because I want them comin' to us fer now on. I'll be hog tied and dunked in chum 'fore I hear of Freddy Fazbear performin' in my town."

"Good point," Marionette agreed. Though while he was glad to see Foxy out of the slump, he couldn't shake the feeling that Foxy's abrupt swing in behavior wasn't exactly a good thing. He just flung himself out of depression and into bargaining, but he had a point. They couldn't just accept that there was nothing they could do about Freddy's. They had to fight back.

Marionette wanted to fight back.

He felt that creeping frustration tightening his spools until they ached, but he managed to swallow it before Foxy could notice and took care not to get too close.

"What else did you have in mind?" he asked.

"To be honest, I ain't got much. There's no tellin' how long we got before that place opens, so we're gonna have to use up every minute. Maybe start pushing fer parties off-site again. Iff'n they want us at home er at some other willing venue, we'll do it… Still ain't enough." Foxy did a little circle on the stage, like he was preparing to pace only to realize he didn't have a great space to do so. He looked down at the puppet, "You stayin' over tonight, Marion?"

"I could if you'd like," Marionette agreed instantly. Then after some consideration added, "…Or you could come home with me."

"I'd love too, Lad, but… I don't think I'd be good company," Foxy said with a sigh. "I'll just bring ya all down. Or getcha all wound up with all these plans fer conquest."

His tone shifted so smoothly back into somberness that it wasn't only jarring, but it confirmed that Foxy hadn't flipped on a dime entirely. He was ramped up and ready to fight, and it was the only thing keeping him from sinking again. That wouldn't do, but Marionette also wasn't ready to give up on getting him home.

"…Alright Foxy, I didn't want to have to tell you this, but Jeremy had a nightmare last night," Marionette revealed. Foxy looked up attentively. "A rather rough one. Bad enough that Forget-Me-Not ran into the bedroom to wake Mike and I up."

"Really?" Foxy's ears ticked upwards in concern. "Did he say what it was about…?"

"I think we both know what it was about," Marionette murmured. "I know it's selfish to ask this when you're going through a lot, especially since I know Jeremy wouldn't have wanted me to tell you about it… But I think it would be best if you came home and stayed with Jeremy tonight. Just in case."

"…Are ya just tellin' me this to get me to come home?"

Marionette stared blankly before answering.

"…Yes."

"But Jeremy did have a nightmare last night?"

"Yes," Marionette said more somberly. Foxy contemplated this before giving a nod.

"Then I be comin' with you. If me first mate needs me, I'll be there… Even if it means squeezing onto that godfersaken one-person cot." He sat back down on the edge of the stage beside a thankful, smiling Marionette before pointing his hook towards the kitchen door. "Do a seafox a favor and go fetch that cake."

Marionette chimed and got up to head into the kitchen. Foxy waited until he was gone before slouching in on himself. Of course, Jeremy would have a hard time with this. It wasn't that Foxy didn't want to be there for him- if anything being with him might've made him feel a little better- but that he didn't want to burden anyone else with this, either out of pride or protectiveness.

Because Foxy just wasn't coping with this.

His hand was fidgeting on his leg, and he looked down to watch his own fingers tighten into his pants. Twitchy as usual, he thought bitterly. Always twitchy, shifty, legs wound up ready for a sprint and nowhere to go. That's how he felt right now. So wound up and on edge, ready to fight and with nothing to fight except a vague corporate entity.

When he thought of Fazbear Entertainment, he didn't just think of the old pizzeria or Freddy Fazbear's oversized mug. He thought of the long days shoved back into maintenance when he acted up, the dark, cold nights alone in the pizzeria. Spending the night alone at Foxy's was different because Foxy's was his. This whole building, these arcade machines, these party tables, they were his pirate ship to protect.

But here came something he couldn't protect it from. Just like back then, he was a helpless soul trapped in a body that had its voice purposefully yanked away. He could feel the bear trap sliding closed.

Foxy was always forcibly separated from others. Whether it be his stage back at Freddy's or his home life that came before it, he was the odd one out. The bad one. The troublemaker scourge of the seven seas. Nobody was going to choose him over Freddy, or anyone else for that matter. He was set up to lose from the moment he came into existence.

It made him wonder who was going to replace him. Foxy the Pirate was no longer part of the Fazbear & Friends license. He couldn't help but wonder who was going to replace him. It made his whole-body tense. Probably someone cooler.

The worst part was that Foxy was getting desperate enough that he would've talked to someone, but he realized quickly that he couldn't. He wasn't going to worry Jeremy or Marionette; he was too proud to talk to Mike- and worried he would tell one of the first two. He wasn't going to spill his guts to Fritz or Ennard, or put the weight on Charlie or Natalie, and that pretty much left few remaining options. This was what he got for shutting everybody out for so long.

Though the thought of being vulnerable twisted him up inside. It was so hard for him to show that amount of weakness, even to Jeremy whom he trusted with everything. He wasn't about to tell him that he was afraid; then Freddy's would win. It would be like his father winning, or that's how he felt about it.

He just had to deal in any way he could until the day came that the new pizzeria was upon him. Then he would… He didn't know. Something would happen. Something he couldn't control.

Thankfully, that was when Marionette returned with the sheet cake. Maybe if he overwhelmed one sense it would dull out the others.

It was worse than Foxy could've ever imagined it to be. The mall was just a massive maze of a pizzeria and no matter where he went, he couldn't find his way out. Which was especially problematic since a pack of purple clad security guard weasels were chasing at his heels. He vaulted over a bench and flew through the air before landing on the rail of an escalator and sliding down into a lobby area.

There was a carousel spinning at incredible speeds that Foxy ran past and down through a bunch of tables. Then he spotted the exit doors in the distance and dashed down before barreling through and out into the parking lot outside of the diner. Except it was broad daylight, much to his horror. He needed a ride home and looked around desperately. Thankfully, Scott and Michael were talking nearby. Either human could drive him home.

He ran up to them while frantically jittering in place. He couldn't get his legs to stop thumping. When he opened his mouth, all that came out was a stretched and corrupted, "Yaaaaaaaaarrrgh." His mouth tasted like stale pudding.

Michael looked over and sucked through his teeth. "What did you do?" he asked. Foxy tried to say something, but his voice box was crackling. He was, in fact, haywiring again, except this time he was totally conscious.

Michael's mouth opened dramatically in shock. Scott turned to run and then Michael boldly pointed past Foxy's head. "Freddy's coming! Get out of here, quick!"

Foxy's vision suddenly separated from his body and circled around his head to stare behind him. Freddy ran out of the front doors and was coming at him fast. His fur was golden, and his eyes were empty- and he was wearing a very spiffy painted on tux- and Foxy couldn't do anything to stop him as the bear grabbed him and clamped his jaws on his muzzle, breaking it off in its teeth.

It wasn't nearly as painful as hitting the nightstand on his way to the floor.

The moment Foxy hit the carpeted floor; he knew exactly what had happened. The dream was long forgotten as the mortification sank in with the realization that he just fell out of bed. For a minute he just laid there, hoping to go unnoticed.

Then the bedside lamp clicked on, and Jeremy leaned over the edge of the bed to look down at him.

"Are you okay? That sounded like a pretty hard fall," he said. Foxy turned his head with a groggy groan and saw two Minireenas peeking down at him. The third, Rose, he had almost taken with him. She currently was climbing up the blankets dangling half off the bed. Jeremy noticed how Foxy's head was bent and tilted against the nightstand. "Did you hit your head on the way down?" he asked worriedly.

"Not hard enough," Foxy grumbled as he sat up onto his backside. He adjusted his head to make sure everything was securely attached. That was how he saw Balloon Boy slowly stretching his head out around the end of the bed. They exchanged a stare for a minute and, once BB decided he wasn't actually injured, he laughed at his misfortune. Foxy rolled his eye and groaned as pulled to his feet.

Jeremy made quick work of fixing the blankets, but that didn't do much to fix the actual problem. Which was an adult man, a human sized animatronic, a small rabbit, and a gaggle of lanky dolls trying to fit into a bed that originally belonged to a single teenager. Foxy looked down at the bed warily as Jeremy pulled down the blankets and waited expectantly for him to get back in.

"Maybe the couch be better," Foxy suggested.

"No, come on. We'll be more careful. I've got more than enough room right here," Jeremy insisted. He patted the bed beside him.

Foxy didn't know whether to scoff at the implication that they weren't being careful or at the fact that the bed space clearly hadn't changed. Regardless, he got back in, and it was as awkward as it was before. Though sleeping in a bed was always weird for him. Blankets got tangled up, his head never wanted to fit right- he was half willing to take off his head just to manage the pillow.

Without warning he worked his head free and dropped it off beside the bed before dropping back onto the bed.

"Better. Good night," Foxy said. He laid there for a long moment before looking over at Jeremy who was still just staring at him. "…What?"

"Nothing!" Jeremy quickly declined and went to adjust the blanket.

Foxy would've smirked a little, or tried to, if he still had his head on. Half of the reason he ever yanked off his head was just to see Jeremy's reaction. It emboldened him enough to turn and face him, propped on his side.

"How do I look?" he asked teasingly. That smirk now on his voice, winking at the blonde.

"You look great! I mean, y'know, for having your endo out…-o," Jeremy answered. He wasn't even that thrown off by it, it was just his attempt to save face that came out a little weird. He turned off the light and laid down facing Foxy, reaching back to cup Rose who had cuddled up at the back of his neck and then scooting closer to him. He got as far as putting an arm around the pirate before suddenly having epiphany. "Jaw dropping! You're jaw droppingly gorgeous."

This got the first real snicker out of Foxy in days. He reached out- cautiously in the dark because of his hook- and rested it back on Jeremy's side. Where it had been earlier before his quick sprint through the nightmarish Freddy mall.

Jeremy pulled him in close and Foxy didn't stop him, letting him get dragged to his chest and coddled like a child's plush toy. It couldn't have felt comfortable to cuddle metal, but Jeremy didn't to mind. Then again, he was used to cuddling up with wooden dolls, so maybe he had tougher skin than he thought. It definitely felt different on Foxy's end. Everything felt a lot more concentrated, but gentle enough that it wasn't painful.

He hummed and nudged the blanket up over his head before putting his arm back around him, hook facing out and digging into the sheet. He felt leagues away from the whole world. Part of him wished he could stay here forever and not have to face whatever waited outside the bedroom. He would have to though, if just to thank Marionette for coercing him to come home.

Foxy didn't want to sleep, but eventually he did. Jeremy was there before him and found to his relief that there were no nightmares awaiting him.

Foxy wasn't so lucky. At least he stayed on the bed.

Chapter 3

Scott was just waiting for that phone call. No matter what he was doing- work, taking meals, feeding the kittens- he was waiting for the phone to ring and very prepared to have his life torn apart once he answered it.

Fazbear Entertainment still had his number. They always did and they always called back.

Apparently Ennard must've picked up on it because he was sticking close by. He hung out in the office for a while, which was significantly more cramped because of it, but his presence was comforting. He kept his hands loyally on Scott's shoulders, occasionally squeezing comfortingly or patting like they were in a boxing movie, and he was riling him up for a fight. Eventually settling into resting his head on Scott's and watching him work on his computer.

It was nice. The security of his warm, wire laced arms kept Scott grounded even while his thoughts were trying harder and harder to float away.

As luck would have it, and he was on the phone on and off numerous times that day, it was while Ennard had stepped out of the room to check on Baby that he finally got a call. His breath hitched as his eyes snapped to the phone, and for a long moment he considered not even getting it, but he had to. He slowly reached over and then snatched it off the receiver and pressed it to his ear.

"Uh… Hello?"

His heart was already rising in his throat before he even heard the voice on the other side.

"Afternoon, Scott. May I speak with Ben?"

Scott exhaled in relief; it was just Michael. "Oh, uh, sure! No problem. He's right here." He turned his chair to face the door. He had heard the rapid footsteps when the phone started ringing and as expected, there was Ennard standing in the doorway. He was silently staring when Scott handed the phone to him. "It's Michael."

Ennard instantly perked up and excitedly took the phone and clattered it to his mask.

"Ha ha hey, Buddy! I was just wondering about you! Lemme just move out to the living room, Scott's on the clock," he chattered sociably. He then handed the phone back to Scott. As he went to take the phone, the amalgam swooped down and pressed the mouth of his mask against the top of his head in a would-be kiss. This brought a smile out of Scott and Ennard giggled as he pulled back with a little goodbye salute and slid out.

Scott was feeling a little better, maybe from the relief and maybe from Ennard's antics, and he scooted his chair back up to his desk. He was planning on hanging up his phone as soon as he heard Ennard speaking from the other line, but he hesitated when he heard what it was that the clown asked.

"So, what didja find on this new Freddy's?"

Against his better judgement, Scott paused and then tentatively lifted the phone closer. Just for a moment, just long enough to hear Michael's answer.

"So far, not much. This is nothing new. Freddy's used to be notoriously tight-lipped," Springtrap answered. There was a tapping noise on the other side, him typing with one hand. "I even checked maps to see if I could find anything. Nothing. There is absolutely nothing saying what it is... Not that I would doubt what Jeremy said was true."

"Hey, I ain't gonna risk my teeth to doubt him. He called that thing with "the Snake" weeks before screwy stuff started going around. He knows things."

"He knows a Fazbear Entertainment logo when he sees it, you mean."

"But see, here's the thing I don't get," Ennard said, lowering his voice. His tone took a much tighter edge, like he was hissing the words out. It was an amount of frustration Scott hadn't heard since Ennard's reaction yesterday. "How does Freddy's get away with opening an. entire. mall. The place just went from dead in the water and now they're building a whole mall?!"

"Which tells me that the new Fazbear Entertainment is significantly bigger than the old one. That can be problematic," Springtrap said cryptically. "…If Scott has any old contacts, he should start asking around now."

"Hang on, I'll ask." Scott expected to hear Ennard walking back to the office, so it was probably in his best interest to hang up the phone or set it aside, so they didn't hear-. "Hey Scott, you still got connections to Fazbear Entertainment, right?"

It wasn't the fact that Ennard noticed the lack of him hanging up and calling him out on it, it was the fact that Springtrap made no sound of confusion or surprise. Meaning that they both knew he had been listening the whole time. It made Scott's mouth dry out and his face go flush with embarrassment, knowing it was too late to hang up now.

"Uh… Well, sort of. I never really kept in contact with anyone except for- except for Mike and Fritz, obviously, but I probably have some numbers somewhere. So, yeah, I guess I could, you know, call around or email and see if someone knows something about whatever this is," Scott strung together in one long ramble. He could hear Ennard barely withhold a snicker while Springtrap was completely unaffected.

"If you could, yes. Just don't mention your connections to Foxy's or this warehouse. We don't need them to think we're all in this together or they might begin to look a little too deeply," he said.

"Right, right. So, I'll just… Go do that. Take care, it's going to get cold tonight," Scott fumbled out. He proceeded to hang up the phone and hang his head in his hands, rubbing his temples, thoroughly embarrassed.

On the line there was a few seconds of silence before Ennard broke it.

"I bet he's as red as my nose right now," Ennard said. Clearly holding back, a giggle and voice sounding like it should've come from a brilliant grin. "Shame I missed it!"

"You know he was listening to make sure you weren't going to hike over here," Springtrap said matter-of-factly. This ended up coaxing that stifled laugh out.

"Ha ha! I know, I know."

"Don't be giving him a hard time."

"I'm not! Who knows how many times I've listened in on his calls?"

Springtrap decided to remain pointedly silent at what almost sounded like pride in Ennard's voice. Of course, he would be proud of something that ridiculous. He rolled his eyes in his suit and readjusted the phone.

"I'm going to see what I can find, but like I said with Scott on the phone, it's looking like everything's clammed up… Which is not good for us."

"Well, I mean, the place isn't even BUILT yet," Ennard said, now having the concise tone as he leaned against the wall. "Once they got the walls up, they'll have to put something out. Like an ad or something."

"Don't you go over there."

"You sure? I've got a flying machine out in the garage and a helipad on the roof. I could be there lickety-split!" Ennard teased. He could hear the other groan on the other side. "Even if I wanted to go over there- which I really, really don't after last time- there's no way I'm getting over there without a ride. Unless Scott decides to drive me over there, I'm not hiking down the highway to see it."

"Good. We don't need to get dragged into that… Neither of us do."

Yet there was an edge in his tone that caught Ennard's attention. Oddly enough, not one of suspicion but instead of a solemn thoughtfulness. That tone Michael got when he was thinking of doing something and, considering that he had said absolutely nothing about his feelings for Freddy's, it could've been anything. It set off alarm bells in Ennard's head; it made him wonder if he was planning on doing something risky.

"Did you catch the show last night?"

And now he was trying to change the subject, clever.

"Oh, so you think you're gonna drop it that easily, huh? That I'm just going to 'lose the plot' the second you bring up something I like?... Well yes, I am, because I did see it and it was ha-ha-ands down the WORST episode ever," Ennard vented with a laugh. "What was even going on?! A baby beauty pageant? Their kid's been missing for, what, three episodes and they find him at a baby beauty pageant?!"

"And would you believe they spoiled it too? They revealed the twist- the "twist"- in a commercial that aired directly before the show came on. I've been watching this show for years and they've never blown it that bad."

It seemed like it worked well enough. The conversation about Freddy's wasn't going anywhere and even if it was, Springtrap was done thinking about it. So, instead, their day would go on as usual.

Unfortunately, the life of Michael Afton wasn't one where 'usual' was preferred. Especially in these winter months, where venturing too far away from the office was uncomfortable. Heating the warehouse was difficult with its size, so it was significantly easier to hole up in one room and ride it out. It wasn't like he had anywhere to go anyways.

At least he had gone ahead and agreed to get the office more presentable. Everyone was always offering it and while Springtrap didn't want unnecessary charity, he realized quickly that he wasn't stubborn enough to lay on the floor and stare at the ceiling twenty-four seven. Over the past few months, he had managed to secure an old couch, a television set, some posters and knick-knacks, and various things he scavenged from the warehouse. It reminded him of his old place.

It was evening now, and he was laying across the couch as the space heater blasted at one end and the office fan aimed at him from the desk. He was somewhere near sleep with a blanket thrown over his lower half. His old one from back at the house, which Marionette had managed to find and Mike had brought over for him. The TV was on something but turned down, so he didn't have to listen.

So, he heard when a banging came from somewhere in the warehouse.

He sat upwards immediately, fighting past his cumbersome suit, and shoving the blanket off his lower half. He cocked his head to listen and heard the resounding banging again. Almost sounded like someone knocking, but it was one in the morning and practically freezing outside and would've been impossible for anyone to hike over in this temperature.

He pushed off the couch and strode towards the office door, grabbing a flashlight on the way out. He didn't need it, but the beam of light was comfortable and normal, and perfect for blinding an unsuspecting burglar before making his move.

Though he was rather certain that he knew what was banging on the door.

"That better not be him," he said gravelly as he passed by Candy Cadet. The bot had been placed outside the office door to try and absorb any of the heat it could. It never showed any interest in coming into the office and instead seemed content to rest through the chill. He always seemed more aware than he let on, so he was probably aware that the office was terribly cramped.

Candy Cadet muttered something, briefly flickering to life before fading back into its hibernation. It hadn't even said anything cohesive and yet Springtrap felt like it was a confirmation.

He stopped beside the warehouse door and listened to the knocking. He knew who it was, but paranoia made him knock back and wait for a response. There was rapid- excited- knocking back. That was all he needed to unlock and swing the door open. As expected, there was Ennard, clothed in only an oversized raincoat.

"Get in here," Springtrap said wearily. Then yanked Ennard in by the shoulder and slid the heavy door shut.

Ennard staggered at the pull. Which wasn't usual, but his wires had stiffened up due to the cold. He gave a full-body shudder and a casual, "Catch ya at a bad time?"

"What are you doing walking around in this?" Springtrap asked with that same exasperation.

"What? It's a jacket! Helps keep the snow off."

"You know I mean this weather and no, that is not a jacket."

"It's got a soft lining. It's close enough."

Springtrap grumbled and led Ennard back to the office. He wished he could say he was surprised, but this was entirely in-character for him. Popping up randomly in the middle of the night was a common occurrence. What wasn't nearly as common was him willing to hike in such frigid temperatures. He knew better than to play around in heavy snowfall.

Ennard didn't shiver. His body wasn't made to do it. Instead, his wires would tighten up and twitch as they warmed back up. As he stepped into the office he began to twitch under his raincoat, flinching a little. A dead giveaway that he had gotten colder than he had let on. He looked over towards the couch and noticed the blanket haphazardly thrown aside.

"Aww, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you up," Ennard honestly apologized. He looked over the couch before added, "…Buddy, you gotta get a bed."

"And put it where, the ceiling?" Springtrap asked, shutting the door behind them.

"How about that giant basement that would probably heat a lot better and have a lot more rooms?" Ennard retorted matter-of-factly.

Springtrap scoffed. "I'm not yet desperate enough to go hide in the basement like a gremlin. If I wanted that, I would've taken up Fritz's offer to stay with him." He turned back to the clown with an inquisitive look, watching the clown crowd over the heater. "You usually call beforehand," he pointed out.

"I did," Ennard said matter-of-factly. He pointed towards the desk and Springtrap looked over and only then remembered that he had taken the phone off the hook. Considering what time it was, he didn't exactly regret this decision. "But this is better! You would've told me not to come."

"I'd take that as a sign," Springtrap scoffed. Ennard chuckled a little, but something felt off about all of this. "What's really going on?"

"Nothing! Can't a guy come visit his best bunny pal?" the amalgam asked. As though that wasn't dodgy enough, he suddenly snatched up the remote and started flipping through channels. Clicking through it suspiciously fast, like he was on a mission and knew exactly where he was going, especially when he glanced at the hanging clock. Then he suddenly stopped, teeth opening in a 'grin'. "Hey, look what's on!"

The Immortal and the Restless was on and only a few minutes in, and shockingly enough, it looked to be the awful episode from last night. It didn't take a genius to know this was exactly what he came for.

Ennard looked between Springtrap and the TV before snickering. "Okay, before you start thinking I'm some kind of speed demon, they were airing the episode before this, so I took a gamble and made my way over here."

"And if you were wrong and it wasn't coming on?"

"Then great! The episode sucks."

That was what finally dragged a chuckle out of Springtrap. Ennard perked, shirked off his raincoat, and dropped onto the couch before eagerly snatching up and cocooning the blanket around him. He was twitching even more; still recovering.

It always baffled Springtrap how Ennard could be so reckless, but he shouldn't have been surprised. This was one of those things he had brought over from his past life. The whole clown persona and Funtime Freddy voice didn't matter, Ben's mannerisms oozed out of everything he did. Just like back then, Springtrap gave into the madness pretty easily.

The next two hours flew by. Two, because after the newest episode an old one was aired, a relatively decent one, so Ennard stuck around to watch it. The whole time the conversation jumped in between the show itself and whatever else was on their mind. Freddy's only dropped in and stayed for a few seconds before both decided that they didn't want to give it more time than that.

Unfortunately, it couldn't last. Ennard was watching the tv closely as the second episode went off to see if another would come on, then groaned loudly when it turned into an infomercial.

"Have you ever wanted to capture the taste of finely seared meat even after the meal is over? Now introducing the "Sauce Separator!" With the Sauce Separator, now you can turn all of your juices and drippings into a delicious glaze."

"It's moments like this that make me thankful I don't have a stomach," Springtrap muttered as he started flipping through channels. He noticed Ennard's silence and glanced over. "…Please don't tell me you're considering it."

"Nah, not that… Well yeah, a little- heh- but no. I'm thinking about how I'm gonna get home. Trying to think of the quickest route back since the sewer's a no-go," Ennard said. His arms crossed and eyes tilted downward in thought.

"Still pretending like you're not staying over?" Springtrap asked nonchalantly. Wouldn't be the first time, and it wasn't like Scott would get upset. Scott had been very clear in the past that he prioritized Ennard's safety over whether he got home or not. He just didn't want to hear that he spent the night camped out in a ditch. Though he was taking the office chair or floor tonight, he just didn't know it.

Ennard chuckled and stood up, tossing the blanket off onto Springtrap, who caught it, and grabbing his raincoat. "Well, I'm off!" Springtrap rumbled and muted the tv.

"You can't think this is a good idea. It's only a few hours until morning. Just hold out here and Scott can come pick you up." His concern rung loud and clear, but the clown's mind had been made up before he left the house.

"Can't! Already told Baby I was gonna be back… an hour ago. She knows not to worry unless I'm a no-show, ha ha!"

As much as Springtrap wanted to argue his point, he decided not to. It wasn't too much more danger than the clown usually put himself in, so he initially decided to let it drop. "If you insist. Should I walk you out?"

"Nah, you're good! You stay all cozy in here and I'll lock the door on my way out into the frigid tundra," Ennard said with a wink. Springtrap rolled his eyes and said his goodbyes as Ennard shut the door and started to walk off.

It was at that moment that Springtrap suddenly had a gut feeling that this was a mistake. One that came when he noticed some kind of whitish noise in the room. Maybe he was just being paranoid, only now listening closely once he knew Ennard was on his way out, but he got up to turn off the fan and went to listen beside the door that headed directly outside, now blocked by a file cabinet.

Either that was constant wind or sleet. He wasn't sure which was worse, but he took out of the office immediately.

"Ben- Ennard," he called after him, catching him down by the end of the shelves.

"Did you just call me Bennard?" Ennard asked, a teasing glint on his eyes like he was about to pounce.

"No. Look, say I'm overreacting all you want, but you can't go out in this. You're nothing but exposed wiring and you're wearing nothing but raincoat. Lizzie will be fine. We can call Scott in the morning; it should be any minute now."

"Aww, are you worrying about me again? I told Scott you had a soft side!" Ennard teased. "Heh, but no can do. As much as I'd love to hang out here all night, watching late-night trash and shooting the breeze, I gotta get going."

But Springtrap was aware enough to know that this cheekiness was an attempt to rile him enough to be let out of the snare. Though it would be right out of the snare and into the ice box.

"Ben, I'm being dead serious. I don't know how you made it here like this," he admitted. He forced his voice to soften, trying to get through to him. "If you don't want to stay then we can call Scott now, but I don't want you going back out in this."

"Scott's already under enough stress with this whole Fazbear's Revenge thing. I'm not adding onto that by waking him up in the dead of night to drive over here and pick me up, or by not being there when he gets up. You can come with me if you want, but I've got to go."

"I wouldn't be caught dead out in this weather," Springtrap said flatly. He mimicked a sigh, crackling through whatever speaker was left deep in his chest, and raised his hands. "…Fine. I'll let you go, but you need to watch yourself. Keep an eye out for any static, fuzziness, or numbness. If you collapse and shut down not only is there a chance of permanent damage, but there is a very real risk of you getting caught."

"Yeah, I know…" Ennard's voice finally fell enough to betray some degree of unease. Though it seemed more like guilt than fear for his own wellbeing. He forced himself to perk up, "But I'll be quick! I know a shortcut that cuts off a couple of minutes, and it's pretty quiet out there so nobody's going to see me. I'll make it! And I'll call you when I get there."

"Please do," Springtrap muttered. He didn't want Ennard to go and he hated himself for not being able to go with him. He knew his body couldn't handle that much cold and moisture without risking a full suit failure, and he wasn't about to be found by the police locked up on the side of the road, since Ennard wouldn't be able to move him in this state.

Frustrated and reluctant, Springtrap kept his gaze turned away and his fists clenched tight. Ennard picked up on the posture quickly and this time took it seriously.

"You really think I'm gonna die out there, don't you? Michael, I'm gonna be fine! I've walked this same hike dozens of times!"

"In weather this bad?" Springtrap challenged.

"Well, yeah! Didja think it just got this bad?" Ennard replied. He patted the other on the back comfortingly. "I'm going to be quick, okay? Plus, I got the raincoat to keep off anything too wet. I'll make it."

"If you are certain," Springtrap stiltedly agreed. Though with all these warnings Ennard wasn't feeling nearly as confident. "Be quick, be safe, and call me."

The amalgam nodded and after a few more goodbyes was finally let off the hook enough to be let outside.

It was only once he was outside that he started to wonder if maybe Springtrap had a point.

It wasn't much colder when he came over earlier, but it was coming down harder. Not just snowflakes and frosty powder either, but something icy and wet that hung in the air. This wasn't great for his wires. They were mostly waterproof- well, in the places where they were properly covered- but that wasn't to say that something would get inside and start frying circuits. He knew he had a chance to turn back then, but instead he pressed on.

The good thing about this weather was that the roads were mostly dead. A lot of businesses were closed too. Though, that was sort of a given considering that it was the middle of the night. At least there weren't any cars on the road. He spotted one coming here and was seeing none in the beginning of his trek back. The snow had started to settle and crunched under his feet, but his weight helped keep him from slipping.

He knew he should've worn something heavier, but he was too afraid it would slow him down. Last time he prowled around dressed in his Freddy head mock-up he had actually had a car stop and stare at him, only to move on when he waved and gave a thumbs up, apparently convincing them that he was a totally normal human. Because normal humans walked around in bear costumes at night- though considering this town's history, that might've not been too unusual.

He just had to stay focused and keep ahead. The first quarter of the journey seemed to go alright. He was making okay time, but he felt the chill starting to sink into his wires. They burned a little, oddly enough, and he wrapped his arms tight around himself. He could feel the dregs of warmth collected by the space heater settling in the middle of his chest and rode that as long as he could.

Until about the halfway point, when he was feeling a little more confident, but a little less of anything else.

"Almost there! Just down the alley, around the Gas and Go, jump a couple fences, and home sweet home! Get all warmed up, get in bed once I'm not suspiciously icy, and- no, wait. Call Michael first. Do that while I'm warming up," Ennard said to himself. He readjusted in his raincoat and paused, then readjusted again, rubbing the soft interior against the wires of his chest. Noticing that he could hear it but couldn't really feel it.

"Oookay, that's not a great sign," he mumbled. He was more than a little uneased by it. He reached up and pressed into the wires around his neck and upper chest. He could feel through them, but he noticed, disturbingly, that his fingers were also completely numb. He wasn't oblivious, he knew that this was a sign that he was passing the point of too cold.

He stopped for a second to consider if he should head back. Even turned to start heading back only to stare at where he just came from and realizing he was pretty much at the halfway mark. No matter where he went it wouldn't be quick.

"…I just made a big mistake, didn't I?"

That thought was enough to send him into a brief panic mode. He turned around and continued onwards, striding a little faster, chatting up himself.

"It's fine! I mean, it's not great, but I'm almost there! Just- Just gotta keep moving! Ha, I'm gonna be so messed up once I get home…" Ennard tried to think of how embarrassing it would be to get home half frozen and stiffened up like a statue, so he didn't have to think about the possibility that he wouldn't make it home. He was overreacting, he kept telling himself. Just in case, he tried to run down the alley.

Only to stop and bow over once he realized how much of a mistake that was. Not only was the windchill enough to reach what few bits of him still felt enough to function, but it made all of his stiffening wires burn. He had to slow down and carefully plod down the road, trying to seek protection beside a tall wooden fence that only went to his shoulders. He pulled his arms in and tried to lace his fingers into his wires.

By time he reached the end of the alleyway, something was going terribly wrong. It took him a minute to notice it since his mind was primarily focused on keeping moving ahead. The panicked thoughts quieting down as he pressed on, slightly pressing his shoulder on the wooden fence, looking around occasionally but not as much as he should've- not that there was anyone there.

He came off the fence and prepared to walk across the gravel road between it and the Gas and Go. Then he would walk around the back of the gas station and continue on towards home. That was the plan and he intended to see it through.

Until he came off the fence and started walking only to not feel his own steps and stagger. He stopped a few steps into the road like a deer in headlights, staring dead ahead, trying to shift his legs. There was something lost in translation- he could move his legs, and they were actually moving, but he wasn't feeling any of the process up until his hips. His legs were entirely numb, and he couldn't figure out how this suddenly happened.

Unless it didn't suddenly happen. Unless it slowly happened and Ennard wasn't noticing it because his mind was wobbly. Like a plate of Jell-o slipping between panic and then smoothly sinking into vacantness as he pushed on ahead.

"This isn't good," that was the first cohesive thought he managed in the last few minutes. Like a lightbulb above his head, the realization that he just passed some sort of threshold. At least, he wasn't hopping fences in this state.

He looked around at his surroundings in silence, as though reverting to animal instincts as he watched for predators on the horizon. He needed to move, but he wasn't sure if he could. Not until he forced another step. It didn't feel right at all. It felt like his wires were about to unravel underneath him, even if they were solidly stuck in place. His mushy mind briefly awoke with the amusing thought that he was shuffling around like a zombie, wondering how bad it looked.

He got behind the Gas and Go but things were declining fast. So fast that he briefly considered if it was worth going inside the gas station, which was the only store he saw that was still open. For an instant his cold addled mind wondered if he could get spotted and run and just have it get blown off or be able to chat whoever was inside into helping him out. That was when he really realized that he wasn't thinking straight.

"I can't make it like this. I'm going to keel over in the streets," he though. He stiffly staggered behind the gas station looking for something to help him. Maybe even a cardboard box or a dumpster to huddle in, though at this point he didn't think either would be warm enough.

What would be though? The gas station bathroom, which he suddenly spotted at the back corner of the building. One of those ones with an outdoor entrance, thank goodness. He got a second wind as he made his way over and fumbled with the icy knob, which he couldn't feel on his hand and had to base off his rapidly narrowing vision. He went to turn it, expecting a nice, heated bathroom that he could warm up in before hurrying home.

Except, as should've been expected, the door was locked, and the knob didn't turn. Though Ennard wasn't sure if it was locked or if it was his hand because of how numb he was. He tried to grasp it with both and could hear the metal of his fingers sliding on the knob. Frustration and panic took over and he gave a shove.

Only to be rewarded with a loud snapping noise. He froze up, eyes wide and teeth clenched, and slowly looked down.

It was just the doorknob that broke off in his hand, not his wrist. He was only slightly relieved, but the panic returned as he realized he lost his way into the bathroom. Couldn't keep his strength in check and now, as he tried to claw in where the knob had been seated, knew it wasn't going to open. He kept fighting with it, not willing to go back to walking. He didn't know how much further he could get.

He was still grappling with the door when he heard something nearby. His hearing was unaffected, but his reaction times were delayed, turning his head and listening. Then suddenly recognizing the sound of footsteps coming around the gas station. Someone was coming. Running on instincts again, he looked around, spotted the dumpster, and threw himself behind it. He ended up slamming into it a little too hard and making an unintentional amount of noise.

"Hey! Is someone back here?" a voice called from the other corner of the building. Man's voice, somewhere in his twenties to thirties, probably not easily fooled and Ennard wasn't in a state to outrun him. He was getting closer too. He muttered something under his breath in confusion as he saw the bathroom door and missing doorknob. Something like, "What on God's green earth?"

That flashlight beam started to get a little too close to the dumpster and Ennard had to act fast.

"I'm sorry! I was just trying to get into the bathroom and the knob came off!" Ennard called back. Though he didn't use his voice. He purposefully mimicked the voice of an old man, a character he saw on one of his shows, just taking care to try and make it sound hushed and gravelly, fearful and sympathetic. "I'm really sorry! Pl-Please don't call the police!"

"What?... Uh, no, I wasn't going to. How did you even…?" The man sounded thoroughly confused. The voice slowed him down, but apparently didn't stop him as he started walking closer. "It's okay, sir. If you had some trouble with the bathroom door then we can fix it. No big deal… Where are you?"

"Over here, but don't come over." Ennard feigned a hack. "I'm sick."

If it wasn't for Ennard's head being so fuzzy, he might've realized that instead of setting up an innocent defense and dissuade, he was actually luring the man in closer. He was trying to not look like a criminal and instead came off as helpless.

"You're sick? Then why are you-… Do you want to come inside? Maybe I could call someone to come get you, you can come in and warm up a little."

The guy was really trying, Ennard realized, but that amount of willingness was scary in this kind of situation. He slid closer against the fence as he watched the light shifting around, pulling in tighter so his legs wouldn't be seen.

"Oh, that's awfully kind of you! I'll think about it. You go on inside. You'll catch your death out here!" To drive this home, Ennard mimicked a gross sounding cough. One that by the end sounded more like wire rejection than hacking. The man heard this and winced back, and Ennard lathered it on. "H-Heh. S-Sorry, Sonny. I might've had one too many- and now they're all coming up!"

The attendant's face scrunched up at that mental image and he turned partially like he was almost considering it. Then he stilled himself, took a deep- if exasperated- breath, and turned back towards the dumpster. He started to make his way over to it. "Let me just help you-."

"No! I-It's fine! I don't need your help! I may be old, but I'm not feeble!" Ennard called back. Except the man was getting closer and the light was too, and he couldn't crawl into the dumpster or behind it and everything was hazy and distorted. He had to think quick. "Urck! Hack! D-Don't bring that- Don't bring th-th-that li-i-ight overrrrrr- j-jusst stay b-b-ack! J-J-Jusssst stay ba-a-ack!"

Ennard flinched and clamped a hand over his mouth. That was definitely not the voice that was supposed to come out. It startled him almost as badly as the gas station attendant, who stopped in place and stared at the dumpster. The only sound being from wind in the distance.

After a long moment without anything being said, the man found his nerve to speak. "Uh… Sir? You… Are you okay?"

Ennard knew he wanted a response and forced himself to calm down, calculating what he wanted to say, and then called out.

"I'mmm f-f-fiii-innee!"

But he wasn't fine, and his voice was totally mangled. It was his horrifyingly butchered real voice pouring forth even when he tried to mimic anything else. It had to do with the fact that everything in his chest and neck was either numb or fuzzy, including his head. Things just weren't turning over and between that and the lack of focus he was slowly breaking down, dooming himself.

Oh right, and the guy was still there. Or he was there until Ennard suddenly heard rapid footsteps as the guy broke into a sprint away from the dumpster and back to the front of the gas station. Now he was probably going to call the police.

…Wait, call. A phone. There was a payphone on the side of the gas station.

All at once, Ennard had a possible out and he struggled to get himself up. His legs fumbled beneath him, but he managed to get upright and stagger in the direction of the payphone. He noticed the world was starting to tilt a little bit more. His sense of balance was shifting, and his vision was starting to get static around the edges. It was the strain on his servos, and a good indication that he didn't have much longer before he went into an emergency shutdown.

Though if he didn't, he was probably looking at severe damage. He briefly wondered if an animatronic could function after reaching such cold temperatures. If it would be like hibernating or if it would also burn out his core.

"Focus!" Ennard scolded himself, snapping out of his foggy thoughts so he could collapse against the payphone and fumble around with it. He snatched the receiver up and got it against his mask before raising his fingers to dial.

Wait, no, he couldn't. He needed change, two quarters to be exact. His hand lingered there as he stared at the fifty-cent sign- which he should've known was going to be there and yet totally forgot about it- and tried not to break down into complete panic as his last means of escape slipped through his fingers. After a long moment he lowered his hand and after a few misaims, activated the coin release out of desperation.

To his shock and reinvigorated hope, a single quarter dropped into the coin return. He scrambled to grab it, fingers unable to feel and grab properly. Eventually he had to catch it in his wired palm and hold it to his chest, making sure it didn't slip out. One down, one more to go. One quarter away from safety.

Ennard began to look around the ground beneath the payphone, catching himself to keep from teetering as he leaned down. Nothing, as to be expected. No spontaneously dropped quarters waiting in the crusty dregs of snow.

There were three options. He could give up now and either try to keep going or look for a place to hide and hunker down, he could keep crawling around hoping he found a quarter, or he could do something very risky.

Going into the gas station was outside the question. Even in his edging on deluded state, he knew he couldn't get spotted on camera. Getting seen or heard by one guy was nothing to the fallout of video evidence. If he could get that guy back out here, then maybe he could get a quarter from him. By any means possible. Which wouldn't be too hard if he was afraid.

Ennard slinked down the side of the gas station until he reached the windows. He lifted his fist over a section of window that was covered by a sale poster and gave a few firm bangs, just like he would've on the warehouse door. No response, so he began to bang harder, desperately, all but smacking his hand against the door and feeling nothing except the dull tug of his wires. They normally moved like muscles along his limbs, but not they were tight in place.

He vaguely wondered if he was damaging himself and couldn't feel it.

Finally, he spotted movement through the crack between the wall and the poster as the attendant hustled by. Ennard flung himself back, falling to the ground and hastily crawling on all fours back down the side of the building and around the corner. He then lay in weight as he heard the hasty footsteps making their way down.

"I'm not afraid of you! Get out of here or I'm calling the cops!" the attendant yelled threateningly. The cracking in his voice showed the bravado was only skin deep. At this point Ennard was too far gone to be concerned.

His teeth were clenched shut and he couldn't open his mouth, but that didn't stop him from speaking. He didn't even try to disguise it.

"Neeeed a quar-r-r-rter-r-rrr."

"…What?" The man sounded somewhere between horrified by it speaking and flabbergasted by the request. "A what? Did you say a quarter?"

"YES."

"You want a quarter," the man repeated. His flashlight was still shining down past the end of the gas station. "…Why?" he sounded suspicious.

"Ma-a-a-a-ake a c-c-alll," Ennard answered. There was a long moment of silence where that request hung in the air. He was starting to become impatient, and as weak as his body was coming his resolve was even weaker. He was going into survival mode, and if that meant rushing this man and stealing change directly from his pockets then it was going to have to happen, and it was going to have to happen soon.

Just when his better judgement was gone and Ennard started to stiltedly lean forward, the attendant finally answered.

"If I give you a quarter… will you get out of here? I take back what I said, I won't call anybody if you'll just leave. Please. What- Whatever you are."

Cover was entirely blown now it seemed, but Ennard could care less about that. The guy didn't see him so he could deal with the consequences later. He needed that quarter and he needed warmth before he did something foolish.

"YES."

The man took a deep breath. "Well, okay then." He reached in to get his wallet and scrambled with it without taking his eyes off of the space ahead. He fumbled to get out a quarter and then held it in his fingers. "…I'm going to throw it on the ground- don't come out! Just… Stay over there," he said. His heart was racing as he gently swung his arm to underhandedly toss the quarter. It ended up stopping a little past the payphone with a clink.

Ennard lifted his head at the sound. He didn't dare to look around the corner, but he knew exactly what it was. Hearing was pretty much the only sense not currently dulled.

"ThhhanK yo-ou, S-S-SooonnnNnny," he murmured. Then lowered his voice to its deepest pitch, it heavy with static and corruption. "Go… Back… In…"

The attendant didn't need to be told twice. He backed down the side of the gas station, slipping at least once on the way, and skirted inside the building. Probably locking the door and going straight to call the police, but Ennard was too busy clamoring around and grappling for the quarter to care. He managed to snare it and stood up.

The whole world went with him, and he fell into the brick wall so hard that his vision jolted. He was numb enough to pull himself up and lean back into the payphone where he popped the quarters in and slowly, carefully dialed Scott's number.

The phone rang, and rang, and rang.

"Please, please, please," Ennard inwardly begged. He slumped partially into the payphone to keep himself upright. "Come on, come on…"

And right when he was about to run out of rings, and lose both the quarters and his last chance-

"Hello?"

It was Baby. Against all odds she had answered the phone, even though she very seldom was the person to answer the phone unless expecting a call. In Ennard's eyes it was pretty much a miracle.

He tried to speak, and his voice still came out in a breathy, staticky crackle instead of forming words. He tried to pry open his mouth hoping it would help and was rewarded with a full body shudder. He couldn't get anything to work.

"Ennard?"

But of course, she would connect the sound of broken machinery gargling on the phone with him. He couldn't even muster up the feeling of being insulted when she was going to be the one to rescue him.

"B-B-B-B-Ba-Baaaaaabby, heh-heh-heh-heeeyyy," Ennard forced out. He couldn't even muster up embarrassment at his broken voice at this point. "G-G-Go ge-e-e-e-et Sc-Sc-Scrrt."

"What happened?" Baby asked. Her tone changed instantly from her typical flatness to real audible concern. He must've sounded worse than he thought because she sounded genuinely startled. "…I'm getting Scott. Where are you?"

"G-G-Ga-Gas- Gas aaaan-n-nd-d-d g-g-go-o."

Somehow, she was able to make sense of the stuttering enough that she didn't ask for clarification. Ennard could hear her moving around, sounding like she even picked up and moved the entire phone base with her to reach Scott's bedroom. Though at that point Ennard started to lose interest as he slid further against the wall. It wasn't until his vision was overlayed with soft fuzz that he realized he was actively shutting down.

"Stay awake. Alert. Up. Scott's almost here. Five minutes. Stay awake," he told himself. Even his thoughts were starting to lose sense. He managed to raise the phone to his ear again. "B-Baaa-by?"

Baby, who was saying something to Scott on the other end, who she had no doubt barged in on and woke out of a dead sleep, heard his voice, and lifted the phone again. "Hello?"

"Mmm goi-i-in-n-ng."

"…Going?" Baby's voice took an almost frightened edge. "Going… where?"

"Hiiiiiidde beshzzzzeeek hi-i-i-innnnd pl-ce so-c. So- c-cooold."

"You're cold? Is that what you said?"

"Freeezzzzeezzzziiiinng."

"What…?" There was a breathy panic on her voice. Ennard gave a scratchy wheezing groan. "…If this is a joke- I swear, Ennard, you better be dying- No. You better not be dying or so help me I will bring you back just so I can kill you myself."

This managed to connect the wires enough to get Ennard to laugh a little in a broken way before he hung up the phone. It wasn't until after he did that that he realized he hadn't wanted to do that. He couldn't take it back now though, and he wasn't in a state to dwell on it long. He was too numb to think on it too hard and instead started to make his way back behind the gas station.

For a brief moment he got his second wind where he regained his stagger and lurched behind the building. He lifted his head to look towards the dumpster.

That was what did it. That last bit of exertion. It wasn't even like he faded out; the world just snapped off like someone pressed a power button. He stood only a second longer, not of his own volition but of rigid limbs, and then teetered forward before collapsing into the alley with a loud crash. No movement, no thoughts, not asleep, entirely shut down.

And that was how Scott would find him.

Chapter 4

Chapter Summary

Scott and Baby find Ennard.

Chapter Notes

Hey! I've got a special Christmas gift for you today. I'm not saying what it is, but you'll find out soon enough. ;D Enjoy!

It was kind of funny. All day Scott had been dreading a call and then he found himself woken up by one ten times worse than what he had been expecting. This was the last thing he ever thought was going to happen. Ennard calling with an emergency was always a fear, but from what he heard of the conversation when Baby came barging in, that Ennard was breaking down from the cold, was never something he had considered.

Animatronics tended to be kept in cool environments in storage facilities, and he knew it was heat that could force them out of their bodies. So, the fact that it was the cold that was a threat felt like it came totally out of left field.

That was, until he got on the road and saw the weather conditions. Now he was even more thankful he had the weighted van with its newer tires because his car would've slid all over the road. Not that he was feeling any better about the situation. The frigid climate was small peanuts compared to the fact that Ennard was out somewhere in this.

Baby wasn't making the situation any better. He could hear her muttering from the back.

"I knew it. I knew it was taking too long. 'One hour, it'll feel like five minutes'- what was he thinking? How can he put us through this?!" But it was clear from Baby's frustrated tone and how she spat her words that she was afraid.

In the moments directly after he had hung up the phone, she had become unusually quiet and helpless looking, watching as Scott frantically pulled on whatever and blew out of the house to get the van backed up. It was the closest Baby ever got to being timid and it was just a tribute to how alarming this whole ordeal was for them both.

"It's okay. We'll find him," Scott said. He said it a few times during the drive, almost like a mantra, but he wasn't sure if even he believed it. He was too focused on not crashing the car to think about the alternative.

It was then that they pulled up to the Gas and Go, or whatever the actual name of the gas station was. Seeing that it was open made Scott more than a little uneasy.

"This is it," he said.

"He said he's behind it," Baby said from the back. He nodded and turned to drive around back.

And that's where he found him.

It didn't take any effort, Ennard was just lying face down at the edge of the alley. Only the littlest amount of snow dusted his raincoat, so he hadn't been laying there long, not that it changed anything for Scott. Without a word, he stopped the van, grabbed the blanket he brought out of the passenger's seat, and tore out of the driver's side.

"Ennard?!" Scott called. He kept his voice semi-low as to not draw attention, but his fear was evident and only growing when the amalgam didn't move. He hurried up and almost dropped the blanket at the same time his stomach dropped.

It was much worse than he was expecting. Ennard wasn't passed out like he assumed, because his eyes weren't closed, or tilted in the way that would make them look closed. His eyes were still open with his pupils shrunk as far as they could go. He wasn't moving even the slightest bit. If he was a human, he would've looked dead.

"This isn't good," Scott mumbled. He dropped down beside him and tried to rouse him, half draping the blanket over him so he could shake him. "Ennard? Can you hear me? I'm here- we're here, you're going to be okay."

That fear was growing as Ennard failed to respond. His body felt abnormally heavy, adding credence to the fact that absolutely nothing was moving. "Baby, I need your help!"

Baby was already in the process of opening the back of the van when she was called. Upon hearing it thought, she hastily hopped out of the back. Her skates immediately lost traction on a patch of slush and skidded right out from underneath her. She gave a short scream before crashing onto the icy pavement.

Scott's head snapped over. "Baby?! Are you okay?!" She was already scrambling to her feet, too humiliated to answer.

He looked back down and started to lift Ennard's upper half off the cold ground. His body was as cold as could be, lacking any of the familiar warmth his wires usually held. The skin of his palms almost stuck to them.

"What if he froze to death? No, he couldn't. He- He's so cold. He's never been this cold," Scott thought in panic. He tried to wrap the blanket around the clown's shoulders. "It's- It's okay. We'll get you home, get you warmed up. You'll be fine!"

"Until I get to him. So help me, Ennard-," Baby threatened as she came over. She looked down at the other clown for a long moment, noticing how still he was, save for Scott's manipulating. "…He's not moving," she said. Her frustration replaced with a hollowness, a breathy sounding worry. "…Scott?"

"We got to get him home. Can you help me?"

He didn't have to say a word more. Baby skated forward and dropped down at Ennard's side on one knee. She took ahold of him, taking care not to clamp down with her claw, and pulled him onto her back in a fireman's carry. It wasn't easy with him being completely limp, but she could handle his weight, and Scott tried to help while tucking the blanket back in. He held her as she stood back up, to help her keep her balance, before hurrying over to the van.

Scott tried to kick some of the slush away from the back of the van as Baby cautiously rolled over. She then crawled into the back of the van before letting Ennard roll off her back and onto the rug laid out on the floor of the van. She hastily nudged the blanket back in around him as Scott shut the doors and ran around the van, sliding outside the door, and barely catching himself to hop back inside. The van was still on, so he shut the door and pulled out.

He sent a glance over at the open gas station and felt a foreboding feeling in his stomach but ignored it as he turned off and began to carefully drive back home.

The van was significantly warmer than outside. The heater had been on since it was started and the blanket, while not being much, seemed to be better than nothing. Baby sat kneeled beside him with her hand and claw resting in her lap. She watched him like a hawk, looking for any sign of movement as they slowly made it towards home.

Until suddenly, Ennard's body jerked and his shrunken pupils, staring up at the ceiling, suddenly swelled with consciousness. Baby made a noise akin to a gasp and almost told Scott.

She didn't even have a chance.

Suddenly Ennard started thrashing. His arms flopped and his chest lifted, his head turning violently and his eyes swirling around unable to focus. He seemed confused, and he probably was if he had just woken from a shut down, but she couldn't let him hurt himself. She dropped forward onto him, grabbing him around the middle and forcing him down to the van floor. He made a garbled, skipping sound from his chest.

Scott stopped the van without skidding and spun around to look in the back. "What's going on?!"

"He's fighting. I think he's confused," Baby answered curtly. She grunted when he heaved upwards enough to actually lift her- she had almost forgotten how strong he was. "We need him to calm down before he hurts himself… Put on some music. That might help."

"…I don't think that's going to work, but we can try," Scott agreed. He was just relieved that Ennard was moving at all honestly. He fumbled around with the stereo before turning on his tape of relaxation music. It was mostly pan flute melodies.

"Calming music, not funeral music," Baby corrected.

Scott, more than a little confused at that comment, started flipping through the radio stations. The only thing he could find was polka music. As ridiculous as it was, Ennard would probably like it.

Putting his fear aside, Scott continued to drive back towards the house. While he was in the process of backing up to the garage, which had been left open, Ennard finally started to calm down. Though Baby wasn't convinced that he was doing it out of his volition. His body was still frigid even to her touch and his eyes were still rolling around.

She forced his arms down and wrapped the blanket tightly around him before pulling him back onto her shoulders and crawling back out of the van. Scott helped guide her back out of the van safely.

"It's too cold in here," Baby realized. Any heat that had been left in the garage having leaked out through the open garage. "Your room?"

"Please. On- On the bed if you can. I'm just going to get this door shut and the van turned off and I'll be right there," Scott said. He sounded flustered, probably worried out of his mind. Baby nodded and slowly carried Ennard inside.

By time they reached the bedroom, Ennard's state had changed again. She rolled him onto the side of the bed and watched him twitch and writhe in the blanket cocoon before finally getting an arm free. He was making more garbled noises.

"H-Ha… Huuuuh…"

"Ennard?" Baby snapped to attention at what sounded like a word. She rolled him over to face her and watched his hand tighten and shake. "Can you hear me? You're home now," she said, cradling his head with her hand.

"Mmmph urgggh…"

He sounded like he was in pain but pressed further into her hands. She also noticed now that his eyes were actually closed. It must've happened sometime when she was carrying him in. As she was watching them, they opened a thin crack.

At this moment, Scott came into the bedroom and Baby raised her head to look at him.

"He's coming around. He's not making any sense, but his eyes aren't rolling around and his pupils look normal," she said. The kneejerk reaction was shock, not knowing about the eyes rolling uncontrollably, but he recovered quickly.

"That's good! He, uh… This was a close one," Scott admitted. He came over to the bed and she removed her hand and rolled back so he could take her place. "Ennard? You're safe, we got you. Just need you to look at me. Can you do that?"

Ennard's eyes flickered up momentarily before rolling back down with a wince. He curled into himself with his wires twitching and tightening, a dead giveaway that he was in pain.

"What hurts?" he gently asked. Ennard bent his free arm and gestured to his head with clenching fingers. "Your head? I guess you could've hit it on the way down. Or it could be because of you, uh… It looks like you might've powered down and… passed out in the snow. Can you remember that, or anything? Anything that happened tonight."

Ennard groaned and cracked his eyes again, one more than the other. Scott was glad to see his eyes were returning to normal, even if his entirely busted voice was marginally concerning. That was when his voice started to contort.

"S-s-s-ssss…" Like he was trying to say something.

"Yes?" Scott leaned in closer to listen, assuming he was trying to say his name. "I'm here. What is it?"

"Ssssss-ss-s-so... St-St-Sttshshhhuuuppid."

So stupid.

The corner of Scott's mouth twitched up with a small smile. "It was a little stupid. I'll give you that."

"Stupid is an understatement," Baby hissed. She rolled forward to look down past Scott, her eyes zeroed in and showing her frustration. "You are never leaving this house again. Not as long as I'm around."

"S-s-s… Mmngh… Ssssor-r-r-ry."

Baby huffed and crossed her arms with a clatter while turning her head away. It looked like she was pouting, but it was clear that it was more than this. Ennard was alert enough now to notice. He looked over at her before looking down at the bedding with shame. Scott sympathized with him, knowing he was hurting, but he wasn't going to disagree with Baby's harshness. Maybe just soften it up.

"I've never seen you get like that. Not even that time you completely unraveled, you never got to the point where you were… gone." Scott's throat tightened when he said that. Like his body was unconsciously rejecting the word. Ennard looked up with sad, but alert yellow and blue eyes. "That was too close… Way, way too close. You should've stopped or- or something. That woman who works for Mike lives out there, she could've- if you knew where she lived…"

"Or just stayed with Michael. That's where you were, weren't you? With Michael?" Baby needled, slowly turning her head to look down. Ennard nodded stiffly.

"T-T-Tooold meee not-t-t-t t-t-t-ooo go," he admitted.

"I'm sure he did," Baby muttered.

"Haaa-a-av-v-ve to c-c-crchtzz-aaal himmm." Ennard started trying to push himself up, starting to feel a little better. That didn't last long. As he pulled up onto his elbow, he felt a tingling pain spreading along the wires shifted during the movement. They were all still cold and as feeling crept back into them he felt this resisting pain. Ironically, this was the closest thing to feeling like he had a human body that entire ordeal.

Scott caught him by the shoulder to try and stop him only to notice he was still wearing the raincoat.

"I'll call him, but we've got to get you warmed up first. Let's start by getting this coat off," Scott said. He gently peeled back the blanket and pulled apart the snaps on the coat.

Ennard gave a fuzzy hiss as he turned himself to cooperate with the motion. The fabric irritated his wires as it was slowly peeled off. Getting a second wind, and just wanting it off, he forced himself upright and started to twist until it was sliding off with Scott's help. As soon as it was pulled off, and his wires exposed once more, Scott quickly tossed it aside and brought the blanket back up to wrap around him. Ennard shuddered at the contact.

"Does this hurt too?" Scott asked worriedly. Ennard nodded stiffly. "Maybe it's just because you're warming back up. You've never felt this cold before."

"Feeeeeeeelinng c-c-com-ming b-bacck," the clown answered in explanation. Which it was. Oh boy, was it ever. Unfortunately, the kneejerk reaction to the opposite of going numb was having every pain sensor shoot off at once. Though Ennard could remember few instances of pain while being a human, especially full body pain, this prickling sensation seemed familiar.

Baby didn't like any of this. She didn't like Ennard being in pain, she didn't like Ennard almost dying, she didn't like how Scott wasn't harsher, and she especially didn't like how pitiful Ennard was being because it was keeping her from cracking down harder. He was infuriating, as usual, and she was left feeling useless.

Baby finally turned herself away.

"I'll call Michael," she finally said. Scott looked to her in surprise.

"Are you sure? I can do it."

"I should be able to. After all, we are family," she pointed out. She slowly rolled to the door. "I'll be back as soon as I can hang up the phone."

"Okay, thanks. His number's on the corkboard. It's under 'Michael', not Mike," Scott said. She gave a nod and coasted out of the room.

Ennard watched her leave with remorse. He really, really wished that she hadn't been the one to answer the phone. Scott was used to hearing him as a mess, but not Baby. Or at least, not to this degree. He could barely remember what he said.

"You had her worried. Both of us worried, I mean, but you know I worry about everything. She's a lot harder to shake," Scott pointed out. Ennard winced both from hearing that and at the touch of the blanket on his sensitive wires. Though he was sure that was the point, to gently remind him that his actions had consequences and that this had been a huge mistake.

But Scott always followed it up with assurances. Such as now when he pulled Ennard somewhat into his arms and held him securely. They were still slightly shaking from the adrenaline that had already passed. He must've been truly scared.

Ennard had been, part of him still was. He wouldn't have been so careless if he had though cold could do that. He knew he got numb on the way over there, but he didn't expect a total shutdown. Even now there was a hazy period before collapsing and waking in the back of the van that he just couldn't remember. That was terrifying. How close he was to having no control of his body was terrifying. How close he had gotten to being seen-.

That was the moment that Ennard remember the gas station attendant and suddenly the panic set in. The man hadn't seen him, he thought, maybe, he wasn't sure, but he definitely heard him. Though maybe he couldn't identify the voice well. Maybe he didn't hear the metallic tone or static on the back- maybe it was a partially deaf and largely ignorant witness- and he thought he was just some kind of mutant straight out of a "Hallow's Eve Cleaver" movie.

"Ennard? You're tensing up, is the pain getting worse?" Scott asked. Which yes, the pain was getting worse from his wires tightening, but that wasn't the cause of said tightening.

"Ssssomeb-bod-dy hrrrrd mee."

"Somebody- Oh… Oh, that's not good. That's pretty bad, actually." Scott took the admittedly frightening news in stride. His pulse shot up again, but otherwise he kept his outward reaction suppressed. "Did, uh… Did they see you?"

"No." He was certain of that at least and that alleviated Scott's worries slightly.

"Good! That's good. We can work with that," he reaffirmed. He wasn't sure if he was trying to assure Ennard or himself, but this was definitely not the time for either to lose their head.

Ennard hugged onto him, pressing his mask into the winter jacket he was still wearing and somehow trying to absorb the heat from it. It was so strange, the warming up hurt and yet his body craved it, and his forced himself through it desperately hoping it would eventually lighten up. All the while Scott patted his back and held him close.

"Just a little scare. We're all good now," he assured him. "…But would you please call me next time? Before you pass out in an alley." Ennard nodded against him. "Good, because it's either that or I'm putting a tracking anklet on you."

"Wh-Wh-What ammm I? S-Some kkkind of f-ferrral dog?" Ennard asked playfully. Finally, his voice started to lighten back into the Funtime Freddy mimic, with only an amount of glitching remaining.

"No, you're under house arrest," Scott quipped. This got a soft, staticky chuckle. Scott withheld the urge to wince at how painful it sounded. "But I'm serious, Ennard. You've been being so careful. How could this happen?"

Ennard didn't know what to tell him. Worse still, anything he could say he knew would come out chopping and difficult anyways, even if there was an excuse. Which there wasn't any that would make up for such a mistake.

"Whehhen we wer-r-r-e t-t-talllking, I g-got thhiis wei-eirrrd v-vibe frrrom M-Mich-al," Ennard confessed. His jaw hurt from how tight it was and he struggled to relax the joints. "Callled t-t-tonnighht and he-e-e diiin't a-a-aannnswwer. Thhough-t hee leeffft, wenttt-t-to ccchhhchchzzzeck. Diiidn't th-nk it-t-t wazzzzzzat c-col-ld," Ennard said. He groaned and pressed tighter into Scott. "B-Bad caalll."

So that was why he went. Scott had noticed that sometimes Ennard's visits to Springtrap weren't just friendly visits, but house calls to make sure he hadn't disappeared. Ennard had a very rational fear that one day Springtrap would up and leave, a possibility that Scott himself had considered. He didn't have a great track record from what they knew, and this new Freddy's could've tipped the scales.

Scott held Ennard a little more protectively against his chest and pet the wires on the back of his neck.

"Yeah, it was, but I get it. You just can't make another call like that," Scott agreed. "…Speaking of calls. Again, call me next time."

In the other room, Baby had found the phone number and just dialed it before raising the phone to her head. Doing it all with one hand and listening as it rang a few times before there was an answer.

"Hello?"

"It's me," Baby answered.

"Liz-… Baby. I didn't expect to hear from you… Wait, did Ennard get home?" There came the paranoia and that instant feeling that something was horribly wrong. Good to know that they were already on the same page.

"No, I would say that he didn't. He has now, now that Scott and I went and found him half-frozen to death in a filthy alley behind a gas station. By time we found him he had completely shut down," Baby said. She paused to give him a moment and listened to him swear on the other side of the phone. "Save some of that for when you speak to him next. Scott's a soft touch."

"I knew this was going to happen. Goddammit, I knew something was going to happen if I let him walk out and I still did! Sleet pouring down like hell itself froze over and I decide now to not put my foot down!? What was I thinking?!"

"What were youthinking? Letting him go like that, you could've made him stay," Baby snapped back. "And what was he even doing over there?"

"Watching soap operas," Springtrap muttered with exasperation. It sounded like his face was covered or his head was down. "I… I fought with him on it, but just as usual he convinced me to go against my better judgement."

"He does that," Baby admitted with a faux sigh. She too had fallen into the same trap. Ennard's confidence could be very convincing. "…But don't let it happen again."

"I won't. Mark my words, Baby"

"I will," Baby answered. She paused for a beat before humming, "Hmm…"

"What?"

"I thought once or twice you called me 'Lizzie'."

Springtrap was a little taken aback by the bluntness. Enough so that he fumbled his words, "I thought that it bothered you…"

"I don't remember saying that," she tsked. He didn't reply to that right away, which didn't surprise her much.

It was strange. When they were in a life-or-death situation, Baby and Springtrap could act like an effective unit. Seldom tripped up and with their focus on the task at hand. Here on the phone, the two could barely make it through a conversation without her feeling something weird in the back of her head. She blamed it on his voice but took it back when she decided she didn't like the implications that brought.

She waited for him to say something and eventually he did so.

"Well then… Lizzie… May I speak to him?"

"Thank you, and I'm afraid not yet. Either he's still warming up or he permanently destroyed his voice," Baby finished with a sigh. "But I'll tell him to once he's more… stable."

"But he's awake. Is he confused?"

"No more than usual. He's remorseful now, but only because he got caught."

"Go easy on him." Baby scoffed at the comment, especially after hearing virtually the same thing from Scott. Though Springtrap's context was different. "I want to give him a piece of my mind and I can't do that if he's acting like a kicked puppy."

"…Well, I'm sure he would take it harder coming from you. I'll hold what restraint I can," Baby agreed. "I suppose I should go see him."

"Alright. Take care, Lizzie."

"You too… Michael."

Baby twitched at how uncomfortable that was and hung up the phone quickly. As determined as she was to mend these familial bridges, it always came off so saccharine to her. Even when she and them meant every word it came off feeling phony and unbelievable. She could only hope that it was all in her head, if only because it would be less embarrassing.

She headed out of the office and started to return to the master bedroom, only to hesitate. She really didn't feel like going back in just yet. She didn't feel like sleeping either. Whether it be paranoia or her body too riled to be shut down, she didn't know. Instead, she went into the living room and turned the television on with its volume low.

Now, Baby did not like childish things. Reminiscing over childhood objects was alright, but actually indulging in things for kids made her feel ridiculous- even when willingly doing so. Yet for some reason that even she couldn't defend, here she was watching cartoons at the crack of dawn. Old ones that looked like they were made years ago and brought about a weird sense of familiarity to her. She watched befuddled as a rabbit and duck attempted to maim each other.

Right as the sky was just starting to slightly get color outside, she heard movement in the other room and turned back to see who it was. If it was Ennard getting up to mess around, she was about ready to cut him down and send him back in.

But it wasn't, it was Scott. His hair was fluffed, and he was still wearing his outside jacket, so he must've fallen asleep. Though she expected as much when hours passed without seeing him. He slid off his jacket and folded up on the back of the couch before looking past and noticing her. He definitely looked only half awake.

"Hey. I think I fell asleep," he said with a smile.

"Oh. I didn't notice," Baby replied. Her tone was more matter of fact than of snark. "What about him?"

"Still sleeping. It probably took a lot out of him… I know it took a lot out of me," Scott mumbled. He rubbed at his eyes and blinked, trying to wake himself up. "How was Michael?"

"Upset. He said he told him not to go, just like Ennard said."

"I should probably call him back. I've got to feed the kitties anyway, so it gives me something to do. Not that you didn't do a good job, but I feel like I owe it to him."

"No, I understand," Baby said. He nodded and made his way into the kitchen where he got himself a drink. She stayed there kneeling for a moment before starting to get up and was standing by time he came back. "I'll go keep an eye on Ennard," she offered.

"Really? Thank you. You don't have to, but… I guess I'd feel better if he didn't wake up alone," Scott said. She gave a simple nod and headed into the bedroom.

She stood at the foot of the bed and saw the blanket lump that was probably Ennard. He looked out like a light, which was probably a good thing. Scott came in behind her and scooped up the cat bed. The kittens began mewing as his carried them out. She longed to follow and watch them paw at their bottles, but she was here for a reason.

Which turned out to pay off, because as soon as Scott was gone, Baby heard rustling underneath the blankets.

"B- Baby…" Ennard called quietly from his cocoon of blankets. "Ba-aby."

"What?" Baby asked grumpily.

"Baby."

"What?" she asked again, turning to look. He slowly reached out his arm in her direction, it shaking like it was barely staying up. She looked away with a sigh and rolled over to the side of the bed. "What is it?"

"C-Come c-c-closer…"

She rolled a little closer. He beckoned her with his hand. She rolled her eyes upwards before leaning over on the bed and propping herself up on her arms. "Is this-?"

Before she could finish the question, Ennard's frail and weak looking arm suddenly snatched her around the shoulders and yanked her down. She gasped and almost lost her balance for the second time, feet turning awkwardly to stop sliding as her face was only a few inches from the bed. He snatched her with his other arm and pressed his mask to the top of her head with a kissing sound. His nose squeaking against her.

"Mwah! That's for being my guardian angel! My knight in shining armor! My patient and precious protector-!"

"That's enough," Baby interrupted. She grabbed his shoulder with her hand like she was going to push him back to stop the onslaught, but then after a short pause she changed her mind and instead pulled him closer. She huffed again and said, "You're unbelievable. Do you know that? Unbelievable."

"I know, I know," Ennard said with a giggle. Though that humor left his voice quickly as he rested his head on hers. "I don't even believe it sometimes, ha ha. How I can make such a bad move… I owe you big, Babydoll. If you didn't answer-."

"You don't need to say it. We both know where you would've been… In the garbage," Baby interrupted, voice growing quieter at the end. Her hand began to move until she was slowly petting his shoulder. His arms wrapped tighter around her.

"Never gonna make another mistake like that again, I promise. I'm gonna be more careful, more prepared, I… I- I'm sorry." His voice began to crackle with emotion and Baby knew he was being honest. She wasn't sure if he would keep this promise, she could only hope that this was enough of a wake-up call to make him think twice. From the way he sounded, maybe it had scared him straight. He was almost shaking against her.

"Ennard," Baby began softly, soothingly, almost in a coo. "Do you know some animals eat their young?"

"…What?... Err- Yeah, I've heard that!... Why?" He was trying to look over her towards the cat bed, and she rolled her eyes again and poked him in the chest with her claw.

"Because if you wander off like a little kid again, I'm going to eat you."

This got a snicker out of Ennard. While this wouldn't normally been the undesired response, this was the exact one Baby was banking on.

Meanwhile, Scott had settled into his office chair with the kittens and the prepared bottles. He fed, stimulated, and cleaned them before doing anything else. Waiting until they were content to call Springtrap.

Springtrap, on the other hand, had managed to fall asleep. By some small mercy, he reacted to stress of this nature with exhaustion, so he laid on the couch in the glow of the television before the world faded into darkness. It only lasted until his phone rang. His phone which he had kept plugged in expecting an eventual call from Ennard. He shot up, hastily thumped to the phone, and snatched it up before letting loose.

"Before you say anything, I want you to know that if it wasn't below zero outside, I would be over there right now giving you a piece of my mind. Because goddammit, I TOLD you to stay. I TOLD you to let Scott come and get you in the morning, but as always, and even though I know you know better, you didn't listen to me- and worse, you were so stubborn to stick to it that you didn't just turn around and come back! now you could have serious temperature damage, Scott's gone through twice the stress, and I come out looking like the instigator when I would've told you to stay home! Christ, Ben, you have your entire circuitry system exposed to the elements! You KNOW you're fragile!"

Springtrap caught himself for a second to give a moment of rest, but he was already raring to go. Just waiting for Ennard to say something so that he could pounce. Except, he didn't. There was silence on the other end.

"…And this is Scott, isn't it?" he asked.

"Well, yeah."

Springtrap gave a frustrated growl and dropped his head forward. He was unsure what was more disappointing, that he just humiliated himself or that he wasted it on the wrong target.

"Good evening… or morning, Scott. I assume you realize that wasn't for you."

"I had a hunch," Scott said with a nervous sounding chuckle. "So, uh… You holding up over there?"

"Barely."

"Same. Well, so… So, I think we're through the worst of it. His voice has straightened out and he's not in as much pain as when he first woke up. I've never seen this before. I didn't know animatronics could get too cold- well, I mean, I guess it makes sense. The sensitivity to heat, I guess it goes the other way too… But yeah, he's doing a lot better."

As relieved as Springtrap should've been, it did little to ease the mix of disappointment and frustration, which only revealed itself in a low groan. Scott heard it and was sympathetic, but he didn't know what to say.

"It just infuriates me," Springtrap began. A metallic growl grinding at the back of his words before dying with the next ones. "How little I can do."

"What? Michael, no. It's just the season. You were right, Ennard shouldn't be out there."

"It's not just the weather. It's being confined in this office, in this warehouse. Even if there were better conditions outside, I have a much higher chance than him of getting caught on the street. Unless the problem comes to me, I'm useless."

"Don't say that," Scott said a little more firmly. "I know… I know things haven't been great, but they are getting better. You can't start thinking like that or you're just going to get stuck in it. Just… stuck in that feeling of being trapped."

Springtrap knew that of all people Scott would probably know this best, but he couldn't shake the thought that he really didn't know. He was trapped in his home by fear, not because of what he was. Springtrap silently looked down at his hand.

"It's normal, y'know? To start thinking like this when we have a scare like this. I'm sure that Baby didn't spare any of the details. And to be honest, I'm upset too, but I know there's a part of this that's my fault."

"You can't stop him from making bad decisions no more than I can," Springtrap murmured.

"Maybe not… but I can do more to prepare for them. Like what you said about Ennard's exposed wires. Maybe it's time I did something about them… Or at least bought him a jumpsuit or something. Think he'd wear one?"

"Only if you buy it in the gaudiest blend of lemon lime green and yellow that you can buy," he answered. Though after a second, he gave a noise like a sigh. "But that might help if he is willing to wear it. It would at least be a disguise."

"I think you're right. Heh, worst case scenario he's too embarrassed to wear it and stays home more."

Right then, Scott heard footsteps coming from the bedroom and knew it was the clown in question. He could distinctly notice a slight limp in his gait but as he walked past his posture was more slouched with fatigue than rigid in pain. It was unexpected that he didn't come in, but Scott had a hunch to where he was going.

"I think Ennard's about to come on."

"He's awake?" He was answered by the recognizable click of a third party getting on the line.

"Heeey. Guess who?" Ennard sounded a little crunchy but mostly normal compared to earlier. Still evidently weak from how lowkey his tone and volume were, but that hardly changed that he was awake and talking.

Springtrap was dead silent on his end of the phone, to which Scott got the message and cleared his throat.

"I'm going to let you two talk. Night, Michael."

"Sounds good. Love ya, Scottie," Ennard cooed. One the phone clicked and signaled that they were alone, he turned his attention to the other. "So, how's it- how's it going…?"

"There's something I need to get off my chest," Springtrap answered, tone too vague to read.

"Lay it on me, bunny buddy. I want to hear it."

He sounded at the least remorseful. A good sign, maybe he would think twice next time. Though he could never be too certain, so he knew what had to be done. Springtrap took a deep breath to steady himself and then began.

"Before you say anything else, I want you to know that if it wasn't below zero outside, I would be over there right now giving you a piece of my mind-!"

Meanwhile, Scott was left sitting in his office. This time he gave them their privacy, knowing that Ennard was going to get an earful and also knowing he probably deserved it. In the meantime, he thought about what they had talked about.

Ennard tended to lie low after scares like this, but eventually he would go out again. The thing was that Scott couldn't blame Ennard for needing to go out. He knew he had started to go stir crazy with this weather, and the stress of the Freddy's situation didn't help. While this scare might've fixed that for now, it was just postponing the issue until another day. The issue that Ennard would inevitably be at the mercy of the elements.

…But maybe he didn't have to be.

Scott yanked open one of his file cabinets and searched the back for an old notebook that looked like it had seen better days. Like Freddy's never lost his number, Scott kept ahold of some of the contacts he had made over the years, just like he had held onto all of those tapes lined up on the shelves and shoved in boxes behind him.

He couldn't stop Ennard from leaving. It wasn't humane to keep him trapped in the house when he knew he could be careful. Maybe there was another solution, and thankfully he now had the time to find it.

"The call came in this morning from the Gas 'n Go. Sometime around two or three, I'll double check. The young man on duty reported that he heard strange noises from behind the building and went to investigate, during which he heard a strange voice that- from his own statement- asked for spare change. Wouldn't seem too out of the ordinary, but he said that the voice sounded 'monstrous' and 'robotic', and that he felt threatened. He said he didn't see what it was."

He lowered the paper and finished with, "All things considered, I think we might've gotten another clown call."

The dreaded clown call. A mass hoax sweeping Hurricane in which people would either be pranked and call in with their concerns or call in with fake stories of their encounters with the rumored Clown of Hurricane, a local horror story that had only just been created and gained popularity. There had been numerous fake clown calls or pranks resembling this alleged clown, but only a handful were real sightings.

Though he was the only one who could tell the difference. When it came to the officers and detectives working in Hurricane, they were under the assumption that all of them were fake. Because the idea of a clown running amuck terrorizing the city, at times, was too baffling for anyone to take seriously.

Except for Clay Burke, who took what might've been a real sighting very seriously. He gestured for the police report.

"Leave it to me. I'll take care of it."

"Sure thing, Chief."

Clay was aware that the Hurricane Police Department didn't have a great track record, especially when it came to mysterious circumstances. Their previous police chief had a habit of sweeping things under the rug to keep the peace in the community and this led to a lot of criminals walking. A lot of monsters too. Now that he had been raised into the position, Clay had vowed that he wouldn't fall into these same traps.

But sometimes protecting everyone meant covering up some things, and unfortunately that thing just happened to be an increasingly brazen clown who kept popping up around the city. Something Clay would've put a stop to immediately if he wasn't aware of the full situation. Not to say he was condoning this behavior, but he wasn't about to stir everyone up into a frenzy over a clown hunt.

He would wait a few hours before he called Scott. Knowing what he did, he had probably been up most of the night. He wanted him nice and lucid before he lit that fire under him.

Chapter 5

Chapter Summary

Fritz gets an unexpected call...

Chapter Notes

Merry (early) Christmas! A second chapter to get the ball rolling! ^_^ Enjoy!

In the months directly after the discovery of the coming pizzeria, things had been tense but relatively quiet. Life had somehow managed to continue even when every passing day was a day closer to the opening of their competition.

Today was Fritz's day off and it was still one of the first times he had sat down all day. Recently, things had been so busy at the pizzeria that care to the house had fallen on the wayside. It wasn't too uncommon for Fritz and Natalie to put off the dishes an extra day or put off changing a lightbulb in a closet or spare room. The house wasn't a disaster, so it could wait until later.

They had made a pact to make this day off that 'later'. After sleeping in and eating breakfast, they had gone right to work into chiseling away the lengthy chore list hanging over their heads. They were making pretty good time too, but it was time for a break, even for someone like Fritz who had a habit of overworking. He settled into the couch while Natalie went into the bedroom to change her pants- which had gotten dirty from yardwork.

Fritz was only on that couch for a few minutes, just long enough to consider turning on the TV and get into a mental battle on whether he was going to or not when the phone rang. He pushed off the couch and answered the phone shortly after.

"Hello?"

"Hello. Is this Sam Fritz?"

It was an unfamiliar voice. "It is."

"Sam Fritz of Foxy's Pirate Cove?"

Now he was becoming a little more wary of this random caller. "Yes, that's right. Who is this?" Fritz asked.

"Excellent! Glad to get ahold of you. My name is James Wight, and I am with Fazbear Entertainment. How are you doing today?"

It was like the world stopped in that moment. Like his stomach filled up with glue and a cold sweat crept across the back of his neck. Fritz knew immediately that whatever this was it was going to be bad. It felt like an ambush even though he sounded like a telemarketer.

"I… Uh… Good?" Fritz got out. He quickly recovered, clearing his through and feigning some form of normalcy. "Sorry, I just got finished with some work. What did you need…?"

"I'm glad you asked! I've been looking to get in touch with you. As you may know, a new Freddy's location is opening nearby very soon, and I was just calling to offer an exciting opportunity for Foxy's within the business."

"Uh huh. And that would be?"

"We would love to have Foxy's be a part of our new establishment. Foxy himself has been such a pillar of the Freddy Fazbear brand for so long that bringing them together again would be a… momentous occasion!"

"I'm going to stop you right there. If this is about the licensing rights to Foxy, we do have them. The Foxy the Pirate brand has been separated from the Freddy Fazbear brand and is no longer under the rights of Fazbear Entertainment," Fritz said as though reading it out. After all, he had been preparing for this moment. "So, I'm sorry, but that's not going to happen."

"Oh no, no! That's not at all why I'm calling. This isn't some kind of brute force attempt to confiscate Foxy! That might've flown with the old Fazbear Entertainment but rest assured that the new Fazbear Entertainment will not be nearly as careless. No, our goal is to work together and coexist with other longstanding brands in the area. Such as El Chip's and Big Top Burgers."

"El Chip's?" Fritz asked in disbelief. "Wait, you've talked with Glenn?"

"I have! In fact, we're already made El Chip's a place in our food court- and we're looking to exchange the same offer to Foxy's! We would love to feature Captain Foxy and friends in our establishment. May it be a section of the food court, or perhaps even a place in the arcade. Maybe even as a mascot for our seaside themed kids area. We have more than enough room and it would be nothing but free publicity for Foxy's Pirate Cove."

"That's… That's pretty generous of you," Fritz said cautiously. He wasn't buying it for a second. "But what does Freddy's get out of it?"

"…Well, if you must know. Freddy's doesn't have the best reputation after some of the… decisions made by my predecessors. The rumor mill certainly doesn't help. In contrast, Foxy's is beloved, adored by everyone I've spoken to. Us working together might show people that we aren't a product of the last decade, but a new, reborn example of what Freddy's should have been."

Fritz understood immediately. They wanted to ride onto Foxy's Pirate Cove's coattails to alleviate any worries that would come from reopening a business where countless murders had happened. Fritz understood it, yes, but he didn't think there was any way that plan was going to work.

He knew from experience that there were two kinds of people in the area: people who didn't know what happened at Freddy's and people who were directly affected by it. The former might drop in if they didn't hear what the latter had to say, the latter wouldn't be caught dead in the establishment- an idiom that Fritz immediately regretted thinking of.

"Well, what do you think?" Wight asked. His voice oozed schmooze.

"I… I have to think about it," Fritz answered. "And I'd have to talk to my business partners before I made any decisions like this. I'm only partial owner."

"Of course! Of course, no rush. You take all the time you need to and, in the event you decide not to partner up, know that there will be no hard feelings. As much as we want Foxy in the Pizzaplex, we also are looking forward to a healthy and open relationship between our businesses. After all, we will be sharing most of our clientele."

"Right…" Fritz didn't miss the namedrop, but he had no idea what a 'Pizzaplex' was.

"If you could discuss with your fellow owners about the license of Bonnie the Rabbit while you're at it then that would be wonderful. We were halfway through theming a locale on him before we realized the rights had changed hands!" He gave a jovial laugh. He sounded so unbothered. "Next week we will be having a- what would be something along the lines of a- an open house event if you would. And if you would, you and your partners could swing by and drop in on the fun!"

"Uh huh. Sure, sure. We'll… We'll stop in." Natalie walked up at this point and noticed the look on Fritz's face and knew something was up. She stood there waiting for the call to end.

"Well, thank you for your time, and I hope to speak again very soon."

The call ended and Fritz slowly hung the phone back up and stood there for a long moment. He raced through everything he said and everything he had wished he said, and what he just agreed to. The only reason Fritz hadn't given a firm no was fear of retaliation, something that was haunting him even now. He looked over to see that Natalie had walked up sometime during the call. She had her brows raised.

"That didn't sound good," she finally said. Fritz shook his head. "What was that about?"

"That was the sound of our impending doom… I need to call Mike."

"The Weird Woods stretched on as far as the eye could see. In every direction there was nothing but trees! He couldn't see the trail or the other girls and boys, but before he could cry or shout, he heard a funny noise- Hoot hoot! Roger looked up to see a great big bird flying down. It circled once, twice, trice, and landed on the ground."

"Hoot hoot, my boy! Are you lost? You're the only boy I've come across. What are you doing out so late?"

"Oh, Mr. Owl, I think somehow, I must've lost my way!"

It was precious. Not just the fact that he was doing the voices- that was adorable too- but how much investment he put into this performance. Even when it wasn't on a stage, but in the last place Mike ever thought he would be comfortable: a hospital. Though the audience hadn't changed, he was still surrounded by a plethora of adoring children listening eagerly and watching wide-eyed as a living puppet read to them.

Marionette had actually brought up his interest in visiting the children's ward long before Foxy's image campaign, and the only reason they hadn't gone through with it was because his wariness of hospitals. He was afraid they would unlock some memories he didn't want to or give him a deep-set uncomfortable feeling that he couldn't shake, but neither case happened. Instead, Marionette took to the experience wonderfully. He loved seeing the children happy.

They had been set up in some sort of activity room for the kids. Mike was sitting in a chair in his face paint and puppeteer costume while Marionette sat in a chair directly beside him so the man could hold his back and mimic having control. During this time, they had done a few little routines, some jokes and stories, and then the reading had begun.

Mike didn't think they were going to eat this up as much as they did. He thought they would be wanting to see Marionette doing tricks or something more exciting than just reading to them, since he knew others came in and read to them, but it turned out that they loved it regardless. Listening with full attention and no boredom on their faces.

Charlie was also there, though had chosen to take a more subdued role. She had her box outside the door and was greeting and passing out candy to whoever passed by, child or not- so, basically a distraction and lookout so that Marionette could have a little more freedom.

They stayed for about two and a half hours before it was deemed time to pack up and leave. Mike wheeled Charlie's box out to the van first before coming back for Marionette on his stand. This gave the puppet a few more minutes with the children. Safely, since they had bought the ruse that Marionette was either magically alive or being remote controlled from somewhere else.

With Mike gone and nobody watching, Marionette dared to show off a little of his 'magic' with floating tokens and string tricks- "accidentally" binding himself up in a comical display. Gave the kids one last little show before handing out a gift.

"Before I go…" Marionette trilled, knowing he was cutting it close and still going ahead. He had moved to kneeling on the floor once Mike left so he wasn't as visible through the hallway windows, but still had to keep a watchful eye. He reached for a roll of tickets that had been left with him. "I'm going to give each of you a special ticket! And when you get better, you can come see me at Foxy's and have a very special day."

These tickets were little more than normal tickets stamped with present designs, which he had done before he left the pizzeria. These special tickets would give them a free day at Foxy's: free games, free food, and free prizes.

Though the tickets themselves weren't special in any way. They were just a physical object to encourage the children to look forwards to getting out of the hospital. Instead, as he passed out every ticket, Marionette paused a moment to activate his facial recognition so he would remember the child he passed one out too. He seldom used this feature of his, but it felt like it was about time he put it to good use. Everyone got a ticket, and everyone was scanned.

Soon afterwards, Mike came in to get him. He was practically trembling by time he was being wheeled across the parking lot with leftover excitement. He could still remember every child's face if he thought deeply enough.

The excitement didn't end either. Recently, Mike and Marionette had started to let their guard down when it came to the van. If Mike was costumed up and they were driving the Foxy's van, he would prop Marionette up in the passenger's seat. He would be in plain view, but under these circumstances it wasn't seen as suspicious, just as long as he stayed perfectly still.

This allowed him to get a better view of the daylight hours of Hurricane. He could see everything without hiding and be seen without it leading to disaster, just maybe some odd looks or staring. It felt very close to how he imagined it would be to ride passenger side as a normal human being- not that he was down on being a puppet. Especially not after he brought so much joy to all of those kids who really needed it.

Charlie didn't mind sticking to the back. After being in her box for so long, it felt good to stretch her legs and move around freely, and the front seat wouldn't have offered that. Though she did share that fulfilled feeling for what they had done, as did Mike. Maybe it wasn't the typical family outing, but it felt especially special. It had been a good day.

A good day that was about to become sizably more complicated when Mike turned on his phone and noticed numerous missed calls. Taking a slow breath, he held his cell phone with his shoulder and listened through the messages as he left the parking lot and slowly made his way through town. Eventually setting the phone aside and having to break the news.

"Looks like we're going over to Fritz's," he said defeatedly. Marionette's eyes snapped over without turning his head.

"Did something happen?" he asked with concern. He hadn't been able to hear well with the phone's smothered position, but it wasn't hard to figure out how long it took to listen through the messages.

"Yeah, something. I don't know what but considering how many calls he left it's got to be big," Mike said. His mouth tightened as he started thinking of Fritz's tone. He didn't hear that panicked tone often from him, it was a worrying sign.

Charlie must've had the same idea as she climbed over and leaned between the seats to look at him. "You don't think… You don't think it's Grandpa, do you?" she asked. Marionette felt a chill at the thought of what that could mean.

"I don't think so. He sounded kind of panicky and if it was about Chance, he'd probably keep his cool. He'd be the one pulling him apart, so he'd have to," Mike said. Both puppets seemed a little relieved, but Mike was far from it. "I just know it's going to be something about that stupid pizzeria."

"Don't call it stupid. You were the one who wanted to open it," Marionette lightly teased. Mike sent him a flat look and his smile only widened before he looked back out the window again.

The rest of the drive was uneventful until they pulled up to Fritz's. Natalie answered the door. Mike helped Charlie inside and Marionette teleported in after them just in time to catch a glimpse of Fritz pacing between the kitchen and the living room while eating what looked like a bologna sandwich. Mike and Marionette exchanged a pair of concerned looks.

"We've upgraded from fanatic pacing to stress eating. Considering that he's been dropping weight since we found out about Freddy's, this is sort of an improvement," Natalie said with a tired sigh. Fritz must've heard her as he came to a stop and looked over. Upon seeing that they had arrived, he quickly set the sandwich down on the table and wiped his face with a napkin.

"H-Hey. Just in time," he said in a muffled voice. He swallowed down the mouthful before continuing, giving the three time to come into the room. "So, I got an interesting call earlier," he said with audible nervousness.

Marionette started ticking instantly. Both Mike and Charlie identified it, looking at the puppet standing between them. His mask looked entirely unaffected, a complete poker face, as was his voice when he asked, "From?"

"From a 'Mr. Wight' of 'Fazbear Entertainment'."

"Oh boy, here we go," Mike muttered, feeling the sinking feeling kicking in. "Alright, start from the beginning."

"For starters, he called me knowing who I am- Sam Fritz, owner of Foxy's. After sweettalking me a little, he starts throwing out offers to have Foxy's and Freddy's work together in some kind of licensing deal. Said how they would be 'proud to have Foxy's in their establishment' and then in the same breath admitted that it was because of Freddy's bad reputation."

"And you said no," Mike said.

Fritz clammed up for a long moment. Then he tentatively began, "I was sort of on the spot-."

"And you said no," Mike half-begged. Fritz gave an apologetic and intensely stressed smile.

"I told you, you should've said no!"

Fritz closed his eyes and dropped back his head at the voice calling up the stairs, then slowly walked over to them with his hands in his pockets. From that motion alone, Mike could already assume that this wasn't the first time he heard this. It was followed by heavy footsteps and Mike leaned forwards so he could peer down the stairs. A familiar black bear animatronic thudded to a stop on the lower landing.

"Hey, Grandpa," Charlie called down, peeking around the corner.

"Hey there, Girlie- I told you, Fritz, if you give that man an inch, he's going to take a yard. No, more than a yard. Your whole business," Chance called up the stairs. "You should've nipped this in the bud when you had him on the phone… Mike, what are you wearing?"

Mike didn't even spare a glance down at his costume. "About a pound of greasepaint," he replied.

"Well, give me a warning next time. I've got enough nightmares without you joining in," Chance remarked. He turned his stifling gaze back on Fritz. "If you go down there, he's just going to try and corral you into some kind of business deal."

"If you go down there…?" Mike muttered questioningly. He shot a quizzical look towards Fritz out of the corner of his eye. Fritz fought the urge to roll his eyes and turned down towards Chance.

"I know. I know that's exactly what he wants. I'll figure something out," he called. Chance gave him a dismissive wave and turned to thump back down the stairs. It had been a while since Chance had been this wound up, but he supposed he had a right to be. He faced Mike again, and Marionette and Charlie at his side. "He asked if we wanted to come down to the Pizzaplex and meet him."

"Pizzaplex," Mike repeated flatly.

"So, it IS a movie theater! Well, that explains the size," Marionette exclaimed. He turned and added to Mike, "You can pay up when we get home."

"It's not a movie theater. I don't know what it is, but I know it has a food court and Glenn's already sold out El Chip's to be there," Fritz interrupted. Both of their heads snapped to him in disbelief.

"Are you serious? Glenn, the guy who was talking about getting screwed over Freddy's sold out to Freddy's?" Mike asked in disbelief.

"Apparently so. I don't think Wight would've lied about it. Who would lie about getting Chipper's Salsa and Chips? That's not something you brag about."

"But… How can that be? El Chip's was doing better than Chipper's ever was! Their business was practically-." Marionette cut off suddenly as a look of realization dawned on his face. From the shift of his mask's eyes, he was looking between both of the men with concern. "You don't think… because I broke some of their machines-?"

"Nah, it can't be that. I've spoken to Glenn since then. He said everything was going fine," Fritz reassured. He paused a second before coughing and adding, "…But he was spooked after that health scare. I never told him what was going on, so he still thinks he had a spontaneous heart attack out of the blue. He told me he was trying to get his blood pressure under control."

"You know, Glenn's not young. If they offered him a big enough number, he might've decided to take an early retirement," Natalie chimed up from the couch. "Or it's just a licensing deal and El Chip's staying open."

"I'll go easy on you since you haven't seen the place," Mike began, turning to look back at her. "But nobody would spend a cent on Chipper's unless it was to knock them out completely."

Natalie stared back for a long second before her face cracked into a smile.

"…I cannot take you seriously wearing that," she said, breaking with a snicker halfway through. Mike gave he an unamused look. "I'm sorry. I've been planting bulbs all day. I'm delirious over here."

Mike sent her a flat look before rolling her eyes back to Fritz. "Have you called Jeremy?"

"Should be here any minute," Fritz answered.

"Then let's wait until he gets here and figure this out. We'll tell Foxy later; he's barely holding it together as it is."

The group started to migrate into the kitchen after Fritz headed over to retrieve his sandwich. Mike briefly laid a hand on Marionette's back to comfort him, but the moment he was at the table, the puppet fell behind and drifted to the stairs. He looked between both for a moment before silently dismissing himself into the basement, following behind Chance's thumping footsteps.

"Chance," Marionette called after him. "I was hoping I could ask you something."

"Shoot," Chance replied.

Though the puppet instantly second-guessed what he was doing. This was the first time he had seen Chance in a while and they were finally on decent speaking terms, and this was the first time he had an opening to broach the subject, but he started to flounder on the spot. Chance turned back to look at him and he realized he got himself tangled up again, this time with his words.

"I was… Well, with this Freddy's thing, I was… Do you think that maybe Charlie's mother might've signed off on this?" Not the question he wanted to ask or the person he wanted to ask about, but a good enough start.

"Was Charlie asking about that?" Chance asked in confusion. Marionette gave a semi-shrug, a partial truth. Chance sighed, "It's a shame she's in the position to ask these questions… She could've. Charlie's mother, I mean. She might've been approached about it and signed off on whatever just to get rid of them. She's been trying to get Freddy's out of her life since Henry died."

"Understandable," Marionette sympathized. "…But would she still have the rights?"

"She might. She and Henry were still married when he had his accident. She didn't get remarried until a couple of years later, but she's got a new family now and she's not going to want that around. She's going to want to cut Freddy's loose."

Marionette mask took a tightened look. Chance was a little confused by it until he started speaking.

"…I'm sorry, but I thought you just said she had a new family-."

"Don't tell Charlie about this."

"-when Charlie's only been deceased for little over a year… Or two, give or take some months."

"…Don't tell Charlie about this."

Marionette dropped his head into one hand and took a moment to process this. Wonderful, another painful familial revelation that he was expected to keep hush. It just kept getting better. With an off-tune noise as a short lament, he dared to ask, "What was Charlie's mother like?" Thankfully, considering what just happened, Chance wasn't suspicious enough to question it.

"She's a good woman. She and Henry loved each other dearly, almost as much as they loved those kids. She was always a little closer to Sammy, I guess that's why she took his disappearance so hard. I'll level with you, with how wrapped up in his work Henry got after that, their marriage wasn't going to last. She didn't marry Henry thinking she was going to become a target of William."

"I see… What was Sammy like?"

Marionette took the plunge and immediately regretted it as the question felt too out of place. Enough so that Chance looked at him abruptly and gave a confused, "Why?"

"I was just… thinking," the puppet tried to excuse. Turning his head partially away, hands clasping together, giving every unintentional tell-all he could.

"About what?" Chance pressed. It sounded like his paranoia was returning and this was the worst time to tell him the truth.

"About Sammy," Marionette confessed. Then, at the silence that followed, he added on in almost his defense. "A new Freddy's with numerous animatronics. It is possible- though I would hope it wouldn't be the case-."

"I get it," Chance said with a nod. The suspicion went away quickly and was replaced with a soberness. "Sorry, I'm just on edge about all of this. But finding Sammy at this new location? I don't think you have anything to worry about." His voice had fallen significantly as he said this. "You've met most of the Freddy's animatronics from back then, haven't you? What's the likelihood of you missing Sammy?"

"I… I guess pretty low… I just still wonder," he answered. He knew this was his opportunity to bring up his suspicions, but after hearing that sadness he didn't think he could broach the subject. Any chance he had of learning about Sammy without confessing his suspicions were out the window. He just couldn't do it. "I'm sorry I brought it up. I know how hard it is to talk about him."

"I'd rather bring him up than act like he didn't exist… Besides, you've got a right to be thinking about this. We don't know what's going on in that place, or who's in charge," Chance admitted. Marionette nodded and there was an uncomfortable silence that lasted until Chance broke it. "…Sammy was a good kid, not much more to say than that. He was too young to even have a chance to discover himself."

"True… I'm sorry I brought it up," the puppet said softly. He drifted back towards the stairs, like he was recoiling from the conversation.

"Don't worry about it. Like I said, at least we're still talking about him." Chance turned to head into the den. "You can stay down here if you want."

"I might. I'll be right back." With that, Marionette turned to head upstairs and get a moment to recollect himself.

What he didn't expect was to come around the corner and catch Charlie on the landing, positioned like she was coming down the steps.

"Charlie!" he said. Voice jumping in surprise and struggling to cover it.

"I wasn't eavesdropping," Charlie denied with a similar tone. Though from that startlement it was apparent that she had heard something.

Marionette looked back to see Chance fumbling with the remote and not paying attention, then came up the stairs to meet the Security Puppet on the landing.

"How much did you hear…?" Marionette asked worriedly. Charlie shifted from leg to leg; she had heard something.

"Not too much. Just you and Grandpa talking about Sammy," she admitted. After a moment she looked straight on at the other puppet and directly asked, "Is there something you want to talk about? About Sammy?"

She figured something out. Something must've clicked and she would know better than to think he was just spontaneously asking about Sammy, or maybe even be offended that he was sneaking to ask behind her back. It was at that moment that he knew he was going to have to tell her the truth. Instead of answering right off, he took her by the wrist and began to lead her back upstairs.

By now Jeremy had arrived and was standing in the kitchen with the others. At least, Natalie was standing, leaning against the counter. Fritz was currently going through the fridge while Mike sat at the dining room table with his head in hands. He had taken his gloves off, but his face paint was definitely going to be smeared after this- not that he cared. Daisy was climbing from the crook of Jeremy's arm onto his shoulder.

Marionette slipped around the corner and into the hallway. He led her into the bathroom and pulled the door closed behind them. Charlie might've joked about this but decided there were more pressing matters when she saw how Marionette immediately began wringing his hands after releasing hers.

"First off, how much did you hear about your mother?" he asked. She looked a little surprised by the question.

"Uh, nothing. I must've come in after then… Why? Did something happen to her?" she asked

"Not quite…" He really didn't want to say this, but he couldn't risk lying to her. He tried to break it to her gently. "Chance just told me that… your mother… your mother remarried."

"Oh," Charlie said. "That's fine. I don't care." Marionette's head snapped up with a startled and dumbstruck look on his mask. "Look… Mari, I know there's something on your mind. Something about Sammy. I'm okay if you want to tell me about it, I just want you to tell me. I can handle it," she gently coaxed.

The worry returned to his face, and he looked down at his wringing hands. She started to reach out for them, to pull them apart, but didn't make it before he pulled back and spoke.

"Charlie… I don't want to upset you, and I really, really didn't want to tell you about this unless I was sure, which I'm not, but I also don't want to continue waiting and have you think I'm hiding something-."

"Mari-."

"I think I might be Sammy?" It came out more like a question than a statement, showing just how uncertain he was. He waited for a surprised reaction, but it never came. Instead, her expression just softened. "Wh-What's that look?"

"…Do you remember when you were talking to Mike after we, uh, after "Old Man Consequences", and I came in and told you that I heard you talking about him?" Charlie asked. Marionette's mask shifted to a look of dread. "When I told you I just heard a little bit, I meant it… But I did hear you say something about you being Sammy."

"And you didn't say anything?" Marionette asked quietly, almost fearfully.

"I thought you would talk to me about it when you were ready. You were so upset, Mari. What we went through was awful, we couldn't handle anything else. So I waited, and when you didn't come to talk to me about it, and I never heard you or Mike bring it up again, I thought maybe you just… let it go," Charlie said with a shrug. "Everything was so emotionally tense. I thought you reconsidered it and just decided to let it drop."

"…I didn't," Marionette said. He turned away sheepishly, catching sight of himself in the mirror and, feeling awkward looking at himself, turned back to her. "I just don't have any evidence and nothing to go on. What's worse is that I can't very well start asking questions or everyone will find out… This isn't the sort of thing I would want to plant in Foxy's mind without having concrete proof. Baby or Michael's either."

"No, I get that. That probably wouldn't go over well," Charlie agreed. She rubbed her neck, then up the back of her head until she bumped her prong that jingled. It snapped her out of the silence, and she looked up to him. "But it's okay. You don't have to worry about me. Maybe we can try to figure this out together."

Marionette raised his head with surprise. "Really?" he asked. "You're not… upset with me?"

"Why would I be? I know exactly what you're going through. Back when I was a kid, I wanted to ask questions about Sammy too and couldn't because I was afraid of upsetting people. Trust me, I'd like to find out what happened just as much as you do," Charlie reassured. He made a motion like breathing a sigh of relief and she offered him a smile. "And if it so happens that you're him then, well, you're already sort of like my twin."

It took a second for this to sink in. She knew the moment it did though because it was right when she was about to speak, and it was cut off by him darting forward and clasping her into a tight embrace. She patted his back before returning it.

"…But what if I'm wrong? I could be dredging up bad memories for nothing," Marionette worriedly asked, squeezing a little harder.

"At least then we'd know! The way I see it, I'd rather go through the pain of finding out then living with the pain of never knowing. It's like lancing a wound. Yes, it's going to hurt, and yes, it's not going to look pretty, but if it means healing then that's all that counts," Charlie insisted.

She believed every word of it too. The lack of closure in Sammy's disappearance had always been frustrating. Even more so now that she knew the truth about so many things and yet still couldn't find that one answer. Maybe they could finally close the case on what happened to her brother, and maybe fate would've landed her with her twin all this time.

Though she wasn't worrying about the outcome just yet. Not too long ago they had gone through a similar occurrence when trying to prove Michael's identity, during which Ennard believed that he was Michael and the lot of them headed into the bowels of Afton Robotics to find the answer. It turned out that he was not, but that didn't seem to damper the relationship between Ennard and Baby. Charlie felt her and Marionette's relationship could handle it.

"I just wonder why he said what he did. That 'are you sure'," Marionette said. They drew apart from the embrace. "He was manipulative and sadistic, and either of those could be the reason… But something doesn't make sense. He couldn't have thought that would've upset me enough to stop me. If anything, he should've assumed me not being related to him was a relief! Why say it? I don't understand…"

"I don't either. I think he was trying to get at you, but I don't understand how…" Charlie agreed. She thought for a second before shaking her head. "It doesn't matter what he was trying to do. Unless we want to let him hang this over our heads forever, we have to figure this out together. Mike's already on board, we're on board… Not sure we can get through to Grandpa, but I'm sure I could pull some favors with Clay."

"Do you really think he would give us information on the disappearance so easily?" the Puppet asked hesitantly.

"Why not? I think he owes us at least one favor, and if we figure it out then we're doing him a HUGE favor," Charlie remarked. She turned to open the bathroom door before reaching back to grab Marionette's wrist like he did to her. "But first, let's go figure out what kind of Freddy's we're looking at."

Marionette managed to smile again with a quiet chime and followed her back out to the others. It felt like a burden was lifted off his shoulders.

Even though he had no idea what they were about to go up against.

The moment he saw it, Mike thought he was going to have a panic attack.

The sheer horror brought on by the completed building was enough to get his blood pumping and adrenaline flowing. Any fond memories of his and Marionette's midnight playground were washed out by the massive complex looming on the other side of a relatively vacant parking lot- save a group of cars parked directly around the door.

The thing looked like a mall. From the stout structure, to the numerous windows, to the large, glossy sign proudly proclaiming its name, the thing looked like a massive building made solely to drain pockets. Along with some cartoonish caricatures of what he assumed was the new band- he thought one of them might've looked sort of like Freddy- read the words: Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex.

There was that rolling feeling in his gut signaling the descent into madness. Either that or his body was rejecting the sight alone of so much gaudy neon. He wanted to make an insult, but if he opened his mouth, he knew a swear would fall out and give away how quickly he was losing his cool. He couldn't believe what he was staring at.

A quick glance into the driver's seat showed he wasn't the only one. Fritz had his jaw tight and was staring ahead with a glazed expression. It sort of reminded him of the look someone might get when they suddenly realized they were about to get fired without any severance pay and with rent due in only a few hours. Natalie was leaning over to look between the seats while Jeremy was as wide eyed as could be. Like when he showed Mike and Fritz his old mugshot photo.

Mike was suddenly very glad that Marionette had to stay at the pizzeria for a requested birthday party, because this might've sent him into a blind fury. Mike sure would've been in one if he didn't feel so much like he had to belch.

It wasn't until they pulled up to the front under that neon sign that Jeremy spoke up.

"Is that just Silver but a girl?" he asked, pointing up at the sign. Fritz glanced up; Mike couldn't stomach looking.

"…Maybe. Let's hope so, maybe we can get a lawsuit going," Fritz remarked as he shut off the car and started getting out. It wasn't until he was shutting the door that he noticed Mike hadn't moved. "Mike?"

Mike snapped out of it and unbuckled his seatbelt. "I'm coming."

The group was soon out of the car and walking towards the front door. A tense silence fell over them as they approached the broad entrance doors. Only a few steps away from something that could make or break them, and they were already feeling the pressure just looking up at it.

Mike took a deep breath to steel his nerves and strode in like he owned the place.

Chapter 6

Chapter Summary

Mike, Fritz, Jeremy, and Natalie go take a look at the competition.

Chapter Notes

Sorry this one was a half-hour late, but I needed to finish up a little at the end. ^_^ Enjoy!

It Mike felt bad looking at it from the outside, he felt downright awful once he got a look at the inside.

The place was a glorious nightmare of limitless budget and untampered ideals, all with an oversaturated gloss of neon. It was hard on the eyes, both in what it was and what it stood for.

The front room was absolutely massive compared to even a mall structure. Hued a gaudy purple and illuminated with so many fluorescents that it hurt the eyes to stare too long. Further ahead were turnstiles- like the place was an amusement park more than whatever this was supposed to be. Fritz looked startled, Mike just looked sick, and Jeremy was somewhere between the two literally and figuratively.

There were a few small groups of people standing around the foyer and lobby for the open house. The only one who looked like he could've worked there was a nicely dressed man in a grey suit who was speaking with a boisterous voice. He had brown, curly hair that was slightly receding on the forehead and a neatly trimmed short beard and mustache. His eyes lit up when he turned and noticed them and hastily hurried over.

He must've recognized them from Foxy's. Of course he did, anyone with half a braincell would've noticed the way they were dressed. Fritz was fine in a flannel long sleeved shirt and jeans. Mike was wearing his Foxy's Pirate's Cove branded security jacket and a black cap with the same logo while Natalie was in black calf-length pants and a 'Mari and Lottie' t-shirt.

Then there was Jeremy. Jeremy was wearing a Foxy face t-shirt, Foxy head hat, Foxy wristbands, Foxy face patterned socks, Foxy branded pirate pendant- he was about two or three Foxy items short of looking like a complete fanatic.

This was likely the man who had spoken to Fritz on the phone and yet the moment he turned to face him, he flinched uncomfortably. He could only silently stare as the space was closed between them.

"Sam? Sam Fritz?" he asked. Fritz simply nodded. "Ah, fantastic! I'm James Wight- I'm sure you recognize my voice from our conversation on the phone," he introduced himself. He clasped Fritz's hand in an eager shake as he leaned in and lowered his voice. "I'll have you know that I've already greeted four men thinking they were you. We weren't expecting such a turnout."

"Yeah, it's… it's something." Fritz cleared his throat as he pulled his arm back and started gesturing to the others. "These are my business partners, Mike Schmidt and Jeremy Fitzgerald, and my, uh, my fiancé, Natalie."

Mike side glanced at that but didn't correct him. Instead, he kept a poker face of disinterest as he put out his hand and shook James'. Jeremy and Natalie took turns after him.

"Now then, before we get into business," James began, clasping his hands together eagerly. "Why don't we begin the grand tour?"

"Sure. Sounds good," Fritz agreed.

"Wonderful! Just a moment." James hustled back to the group and wrapped up things with them quickly. As soon as he walked away, Natalie reached forward and grabbed Fritz by the shoulder.

"Fritz, we have a problem," she whispered. Her eyes were wide and her tone tense. As on edge as he was, he immediately returned the look. Until Natalie suddenly held up her other hand. "My engagement ring has magically disappeared!"

That shock dropped into disbelief as Natalie's mouth twitch into a smile. "Don't give me an opening if you don't want me to pounce."

"Hey, I thought it sounded classier than live-in girlfriend," Fritz said with a matter-of-fact smile. Natalie clicked her tongue in disapproval.

That was when James returned and eagerly began to lead them into the Pizzaplex. Mike kept a closer eye than any of the others. James was suspicious, though not in the traditional sense. He got the impression that he was really into this show he was putting on- which was a problem, because that show portrayed a concerning amount of confidence. They passed the turnstile and headed further in.

The lobby was circular in shape with a massive golden painted Freddy statue in the center. Except it wasn't the Freddy that Mike remembered, but a new version entirely. Outside he had seen the cartoon version of Freddy and imagined a stout bear with glitzy face paint, but the shape of Freddy portrayed in this statue was weirdly muscular. It reminded him of something Afton Robotics would build, he could already see where there might be segmented plates.

There was a store to the right with a 'Glamrock Gifts' sign above it, probably a gift shop. To the left it looked like the entrance to a restaurant or something. Behind the statue and square fountain it sat upon, were stairs and escalators leading up towards the second floor. There were advertisements screens darted around but they were showing a blue default logo instead of anything significant.

"This is our gift shop on the right. Self-explanatory, I know. Our own little prize corner," James said, then gave a warm laugh like it was a good joke. Natalie and Fritz managed chuckles while Mike was absolutely deadpan. "Now on this other side, we have our fabulous Faz-Pad café. Not for the children, of course, but for the parents to decompress and give their kids a little freedom."

"Nothing settles my nerves like a cup of coffee," Mike said sardonically. Though in hindsight, coffee did seem to take the edge off for him, but that was probably his budding caffeine addiction. "Where's the animatronics?"

"Still in their rooms, unfortunately. Still working out the last kinks- or shall we say, working out those last-minute jitters. Once we open, they'll be right out on stage! Though not for long. Our animatronics are highly advanced- as are yours- and are fully capable of walking the establishment, greeting children, getting involved in all the fun. We haven't turned on their pathfinding yet, but we have gone through plenty of tests and is shaping up to be a rather impressive system!" James explained. "Of course, our main staff are also automated."

"What do you mean by that?" Fritz asked with a tinge of dread in his voice. "Like, fully optimized vending machines automation or actual automated staff?"

"Instead of employees, we are implementing Staff bots to take over the menial labor tasks," James explained. Fritz's eyes popped open, and Mike felt himself clench inwardly. It didn't get any better as James continued. "Our server and staff bots can deliver food, clean up spills, exchange tickets for prizes, and so on and so forth. It is a life saver- because of this, we've been able to cut down on human workers dramatically. Which is a relief, as we've already had problems."

"Problems?" Fritz asked. The growing sinking feeling was evident in his voice. "Like what?"

"Well, for starters. Both our foreman and our lead technician left without warning, we have had two pipes burst and flood the sewers on two separate occasions, and we've already had to recycle a bot from the playground area."

"What was it doing?" Mike asked. Unease and concern settled in his gut for an animatronic he didn't know anything about. Though when he said playground area it immediately made him think of Marionette, made him protective.

"Oh, it wasn't doing much of anything. Someone came in after hours- more than once, mind you- and vandalized it! It got to the point where we repaired the thing… six or seven times! It finally got to the point where the repair team was saying it was a lost cause. But mark my words, we will find whoever did this! He owes me a sun!"

Mike and Fritz exchanged another concerned look, Mike of disbelief and Fritz teeth clenched. A creeping fear fell over Jeremy who noticed how familiar that sounded. Natalie was looking at him in concern, standing beside him in the back and noticing his look, so he leaned in and simply whispered, "Mangle." She understood right away and gave a sympathetic hiss.

James continued the tour unaffected. He stepped up onto the purple carpeted steps behind the Freddy statue. "Now if we take these stairs, we'll be led to the lobby hall that connects with the daycare-."

"Hey, don't take anyone in the elevator! There's a funky smell in there and we're not sure it's not a gas leak!"

James was cut off to dead silence with his arm still poised out as though in explanation. Up on the second floor, right outside the café area, was a man in what looked like a technician jumpsuit with a Freddy face logo on his hat. He looked somewhere in his thirties with fuzzy, fluffy, almost wolfman styled brunette beard and sideburns. Looked a bit stocky, was probably shorter than most of them.

As soon he appeared, he was gone, and Mike looked from him and back to James and got a slight smirk at the look on his face. He could tell that this was the closest James had ever gotten to wanting to die.

Eventually he managed a smile and nod and looked back at Mike, giving a quiet, "That's Chaz, our current most experienced technician."

"Sounds about right," Mike answered. He gestured ahead and James gave a defeated sort of nod and continued on.

"Now far to the right are the doors to our Superstar Daycare. Where the younger tots can have just as much fun as their older siblings, and their parents get a break from them," James lightly joked. "Do any of you have any kids?"

"Not yet, but we're thinking about it," Fritz said, reaching to put an arm around Natalie. It looked casual, but she could tell that his nerves were frayed. "Someday."

"You know, once we get married," Natalie said, sending Fritz a playing glint and shaking her left hand out. Fritz got an equally amused and unamused look.

"What about you two?"

"Sort of. My boyfriend's sister lives with us," Mike said with no inflection. He looked at James' face, daring him to make a comment, but he didn't really react. He gestured to Jeremy, "Jeremy has a small army."

"I, uh, I adopted a lot of… siblings from a bad home," Jeremy fumbled to explain. He then elbowed Mike in the side when he was sure James wasn't looking.

"That is wonderful, it really is. In fact, you should bring them by sometime! I'll give you a free daycare pass and you just come by whenever you feel like it- once we're open, of course," James offered.

"Great. Sure, why not?" Jeremy vaguely answered, trying to sound appreciative. This seemed like enough for James who proceeded to lead them into an elevator where they took a short trip upwards. One that was painfully quiet.

There were posters on the wall. Fazer Blaster, probably some sort of shooting game, Mazercise, looked like a gym or something, Monty's Gator Golf, the only thing Mike felt any real intimidation from, and one for Kids Cove. Something that Mike almost leapt on until he remembered that Kids Cove was technically originally a Freddy's term. Not something he was going to dispute.

Besides, he had bigger problems. Or he did once the elevator doors opened, and he found himself staring out at something much worse.

"And here we are at the main atrium! The heart of Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex!"

The atrium was huge, beyond even the front room in size. Large walkways looked down upon a sizable dining hall made to branch out into various other locations. Neon advertisements and idle screens were everywhere, bathing the room in an overly bright glow- which didn't contrast well with the sunlight coming through the windows high above. There was a stage on the far side, but it was hard to see it between the lights and distance.

It was a dizzying display, enough to make anyone lightheaded. If the height was the cause instead of the rushing panic of seeing all this room and realizing how many bodies could fit into this tight space.

"Wow," Natalie said. Her mouth had actually dropped open. "How did you afford all this?"

"Ah, well… Barely," James admitted with a chuckle. "But it's set to pay for itself, so budget isn't an issue."

Mike was losing track of the conversation. The massive room narrowed in, and a dull numbness crept up onto his shoulders. His face started to feel tingly, and he forced a deep breath. Though it still didn't feel like enough.

"I'm about to have a panic attack. I'm standing in the world's largest Freddy's and I'm about to have a panic attack. I'm letting Freddy's work me into a panic attack, I'm not even working here, that's so pathetic," Mike's thoughts began to race. "Fritz's going to notice. I've got to get my act together or he's going to see. If I start sweating and they see me sweating in a children's establishment while I'm wearing purple- I bet they're all thinking I'm Michael Afton. If they know who he is."

He had to get this under control. He reached into his jacket and yanked out his cellphone and, before he could get put on the spot, he made up an excuse on the fly.

"I've got to tell Charlie about this. She's never going to believe this place," Mike said. Then he speedily walked a good ways away to a quiet area by the escalator. That seemed to do the trick. James wasn't suspicious, at least. Everyone else noticed it was a little brisk, but they went along with it. Probably assuming he was trying to hold in a surge of unbridled rage.

Mike quickly dialed the pizzeria's number before leaning forward on the railing, clasping his free hand over his face to try and rub away the stress. He kept his eyes clamped shut and listened to the faux-soothing mall music baring down on him.

After a few short rings a bubbly voice answered the phone. "Foxy's Pirate Cove! How can I help you?" It was Louise.

"Hey, it's Mike. Is Mari there? I need to talk to him," he asked.

"He's a little tied up at the moment. Why? Everything okay?"

Paranoia crept in and rather than risk her figuring out something was up, Mike decided to back out quickly. "No, it's fine. Just tell him to call me when he's got a chance."

"Mmm-kay! Can do, Boss," Louise playfully said. She got a slightly more reserved tone and might've cupped the receiver with her palm as she added, "How's it looking over there?"

"It's a disaster."

"Thank goodness!"

"No. I mean for us," Mike corrected. He could hear her hope deflate in the following 'oh'. "I have to go. Pray for me."

He hung up the phone and stood there a moment longer. He didn't exactly feel any better, but it helped him get a grip. Though it was hard to keep that grip when he had to eventually peel back his hand and stare at the atrium beneath. He forced a deep breath and returned to the others.

"When you said a place in the cafeteria, I didn't know you meant you were actually opening an El Chip's in the building," Fritz was in the middle of saying. It was something that James, again, seemed overly delighted by.

"It was Glenn's idea, I swear! The man's got ambition and seems to be having more than a little trouble getting in a steady stream of business where he is," Glenn said. Then, noticing Mike had returned, immediately pounced. "Oh good, you're back! Now then, let's continue the tour."

There went that feeling of cooling off. Mike managed to keep a stoic face as they rode the escalator down to the first floor. He found himself falling behind as they were led towards the front stage.

"Now I'm sure you saw some of our posters hanging around, but we tout a slew of exciting activities for both kids and adults. We have laser tag, miniature golf, bowling, and even a go-kart racetrack! All themed after our new band of Glamrock animatronics, who I won't be able to introduce you to in person just yet. Perhaps if you come to our opening day ceremony!"

It continued on like this for a majority of the tour, with James narrating every grandiose nail in the coffin known as an attraction. Most of what they saw was just the entryways, having to sit through an elevator ride for most of them, but even that little glimpse was enough to get them spooked.

The one they got the best look at being the minigolf course. It was themed like a swamp or jungle and even with the overhead lights all on had a surprisingly on-point atmosphere. Fake trees and vines, sand pits made from ball pits, and a mossy green color scheme stretching from the walls to the carpet. Just seeing it was enough to get the point across that they weren't sparing any expense. They didn't spend long there.

Mike was used to running and still was feeling an uncomfortable burn in his calf muscles as they hiked nearly a mile just to see glimpses of what would eventually be. The place definitely didn't seem ready for opening, but James was insistent that it was just around the corner. At least he didn't have to see any more than he wanted to, which was honestly none of it.

They didn't head up to see the bowling alley, but he noticed a peculiar sign mounted on the wall for it with a calico-colored cartoon rabbit and the words "Bunny Bowl" beside it. Mike nudged Fritz and pointed it out and both decided without words that it was probably a cheap replacement for something Bonnie related.

One of the last places James showed them was Rockstar Row, a hallway set up almost like a little museum. Some replications of old Freddy memorabilia were trapped in glass cases and there were a few cut-outs of the band, but they weren't the most important thing. There were four singled out rooms, each with a large window that was blocked by a curtain and a few character-specific maintenance posters, and each with a little entryway. James was happy to explain.

"This would be Rockstar Row, and these are the green rooms. Freddy and his band each have one where you can see them between shows and even get an exclusive photo with your favorite character! Isn't that charming? That was Nel's idea. I think the children will love it."

"That is pretty neat. Why are the curtains shut?" Natalie asked.

"Maintenance reasons. Specifically, we're going to make absolutely sure the band's to-." James was cutoff mid-sentence by Mike's phone ringing. The man raised a finger in dismissal and fell back behind Jeremy and Natalie to answer. The man waved him off and continued on, "That the band's totally ready for showtime. We don't want any more surprises. Especially none that possible investors might see." He raised his brows knowingly at Fritz who nodded.

Now back out of hearing range, and with James taking off on another tangent, Mike answered his phone. "Hello?"

"Hello, my love,~" Marionette's melodic voice trilled through the phone. "How are you holding up?"

Mike barely withheld a relieved exhale. "You better keep whispering sweet nothings in my ear, because I'm about to lose my shhh-." Mike noticed Natalie look back at him and realized he was being a little too loud. "Shhhoes…" he finished. Then after a second, quietly tacked on, "Right up Freddy's ass."

Jeremy choked on a snicker.

"Oh dear. That bad?"

"Pretty much." Mike almost said more before holding back. "I don't want to stress you out when you're about to perform for a birthday."

"Don't worry about it! The party wrapped up a while ago. Now it's just Chrissy and I, and she's getting in a few rounds of Fruity Maze. I'm in the office so nobody will notice," Marionette assured. He could tell that Mike was bothered more than he let on, so he continued to encourage him. Half curious and half aware that Mike wouldn't have called for nothing. "Tell me about it."

With a slow sigh, Mike gave in. "Well, for starters, they're keeping their animatronics in glass enclosures."

"Do you mean like tanks or that they have glass around the stage?"

"Like animatronic-sized fish tanks. Down to them being on full display for kids to come by and tap on the glass."

"Huh… That is a bit odd." Concerning was a better word, but he decided not to say it even though they both knew he was thinking it. "Have you seen them?"

"Only on posters. For an open house, they're sure holding back on the goods," Mike muttered suspiciously. He sent a narrowed glance at the back of James' head. "That's not all. They've already scrapped an animatronic. Apparently, someone kept coming it and vandalizing it after hours."

That was a major red flag. Mike could literally hear that flag popping up with a startled chime, but once again the puppet was able to compose himself. "Do you think it might've been self-inflicted?"

"The thought crossed my mind. At this point anything's possible," he mumbled again. He couldn't take the distaste and paranoia out of his voice. Something about James was starting to rub him the wrong way; maybe how phony his act was.

"…But that's enough of that. Tell me about the pizzeria itself. Paint me an exciting picture!" Marionette said, steering the conversation in a hopefully lighter direction. Though Mike found himself even more hesitant to go down that path. He could hear the office chair squeak as Marionette leaned forward onto the desk.

"I don't know if that's a good idea. Just know it's not looking great for us," Mike vaguely answered.

"How bad is it looking?"

"Let's put it this way: Foxy's in its entirety could fit inside the atrium alone and they would still have room for the bowling alley,"

"…There's a bowling alley?! Imagine: if you got a job as a night guard, we could sneak in and bowl as much as we wanted!" Marionette chirped playfully. "…Though it might be hard trying to bowl over my dead body."

Mike scoffed at the idea and listened to the light chime through the speaker. Marionette was, as usually, more than a little comforting, but it was hard to shake that foreboding feeling. Suddenly he regretted calling him. Not because it didn't help, it did, but because he didn't want to work him into worry. He had been mercifully accepting of this whole thing and whether that was denial, or a fiercely unwavering optimism was yet to be seen.

"If there's one thing in our favor, it's that this place is a lot more like an amusement park than any kind of pizzeria. I'm betting it costs a fortune to get in. You'd blow your kid's college fund paying for a birthday package… So, maybe it's not going to sink us. It's not going to help our numbers, we're going to take a hit either way, but we could still be looking at enough business to stay afloat."

Marionette gave a positive chime, though Mike noticed it was a little more subdued than a real joyous chirp. Not enough, he decided. He got an idea and a slow smile appeared.

"But the one thing that'll save us is the animatronics. Ours look a lot better, a lot more friendly, downright adorable. Especially that one we've got hung up over in the prize corner," he said quiet enough that none of the other would hear. He could hear the trill on the other side. "…And don't get me started on the fox. Real hot stuff, he could batten down me hatches any day."

"This would be an excellent time to tell you Foxy's in here," Marionette said coyly. Mike's mouth instantly snapped shut. "…He's not, by the way. You dodged quite a bullet."

"You've got to warn me before you joke like that. Almost gave me a heart attack in front of the competition. Any sign of weakness and they'll swarm me like a flock of vultures," Mike retorted. Marionette gave a short, chiming laugh. "My point is that if we have to become budget Freddy's to stay afloat, I'm willing to do that. I've worked at Freddy's; I have no dignity."

"I caught a slice of pizza top down today and still haven't gotten the grease off my hand. Dignity, what's that?" Marionette mused playfully.

"It's keeping your head held high as you peel the cheese off your first-degree burns."

Mike was actually starting to feel better. Which was saying a lot as they had walked back into the atrium and were heading towards the front. Here he was facing all this again, but this time he was backed away from Wight's shlock and instead listening to Marionette's soothing assurances. It couldn't erase what he was looking at or what they would no doubt go through in the coming months, but for the moment he was composed.

"We'll head right up this escalator and be back at the elevators to the lobby. Just a hop, skip, and a jump now," he heard James say. This meant yet another elevator ride and after a moment of consideration, he decided he had to end the call.

"Sorry to cut you off but it sounds like we're heading back to the lobby. I'll have to call you back," Mike forewarned.

"That's alright. We can talk more as soon as you get back to Foxy's. Unless you need me before then!"

"Sure," Mike said with an amused smile. "…If it's still open by time I get there."

"Don't be so melodramatic... And Mike?"

"Yes, Mari?"

"It's going to be okay. We always pull through; this is no different. Freddy's is far from perfect; you just have to keep an eye out for the cracks."

It was almost jarring how quickly Marionette could go from lighthearted to that gentle seriousness, but it was appreciated. Mike took a quick look around at his surrounding, at the unfinished attractions, at the missing animatronics.

"I think I'm already seeing them," he agreed. "Alright, got to go. Love you."

Marionette gave a warbling reply in return and the call was ended. He still took a minute before he caught up with everyone else, putting his hands in his jacket pockets and looking around at the atrium. It was still just as intimidating, but there was something wrong. He just knew something was off about this place- though maybe it was just wishful thinking.

After yet another elevator ride- there was a crack in and of itself- the tour looped back out into the main lobby, the one with the fountain and the large Freddy statue.

"And here we are back to the beginning," James said as they reached the bottom of the steps. He spun around to face the group with his hands eagerly clasped together. "Now then, what did you think?"

"Your overhead must be massive," Mike bluntly stated. This got a laugh out of James and he looked to Fritz, beckoning him to say something.

"It's really something. Its bigger than any Freddy's I've ever heard of," Fritz offered. "And from what you've said and what we've seen, at least on posters and statues, the animatronics look pretty advanced. That's always a plus."

"Not really approachable for kids, but they look good at a distance," Mike quipped. The insult flew right over James' head. "Of course we didn't SEE them."

"Wonderful, wonderful," he said. He clasped his hands and looked between them. "Then what do you say we get down to business?" Fritz could feel the hairs stand up on the back of his neck at the suggestion.

"Is your giftshop open?" Jeremy suddenly piped up. All three men looked to him and he got a half smile. "It- I thought it looked open and I thought I'd get something for the kids."

Actually no, this was something they discussed before coming in about seeing if one of them could get into the gift shop and get a look at the stuff inside, to see if any characters were 'accidentally' not shown to them. James didn't even bat an eye at the suggestion.

"Go right ahead! The automated systems aren't up yet, but we do have someone in there just in case anyone wanted to take a piece of Freddy's home with them already," James announced proudly. Jeremy thanked him and started walking off, only to get stopped by Mike catching his arm.

"Hey, wait," he whispered. Not removing his gaze from James, he stealthily shoved his hand in his pocket and grabbed his wallet. He pulled out a couple of fives and put them in Jeremy's hand. "Grab Mari something?" he asked. Jeremy gave him a thumbs up and continued on his way.

"I'll go with him. Make sure he doesn't get lost," Natalie joked. She kissed Fritz on the cheek and followed off towards the gift shop, leaving Mike and Fritz with James.

"Now we'll still be able to discuss matters without Mister…?" James trailed off. Making a hand rolling gesture like he was trying to remember Jeremy's name.

"Fitzgerald, and yeah, it's fine. We're the ones who handle more of the business decisions. Not saying Jeremy doesn't have an equal say, but he's… You've met him. He's quiet," Fritz tried to explain. Mike raised a brow at him, and he ignored it.

"Perfect. Let's step into the café. Whatever you want, consider it my treat."

Next thing Mike knew, he, Fritz, and James were all seated at a booth in the Faz-Pad. Like with the gift shop, there was a human employee stationed there, but he didn't seem to be doing much. Instead sitting at a different table working on a crossword book, waiting for eventual customers to show up. By then, the three had already been given coffee. "On the house" as James had insisted.

The coffee was alright. Mike had to dump some cream and sugar into it to give it some taste, but the fact that it wasn't some kind of spectacular blend that they were touting was enough to make up how flavorless it was.

"Now it may be close to opening, but I am willing to offer you the same deal we offered El Chip's. We can make room for a full Foxy's here in Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex," James eagerly offered.

"That's not happening," Mike immediately shot down. Fritz was startled by and unsurprised by his bluntness and tried to smooth it over.

"We're not looking to open a second location right now. We're doing fine, we're turning a great profit, but managing a second Foxy's isn't on the agenda."

"Why are you so interested in getting Foxy's in here anyways? Half of your first floor is dedicated to selling pizza and other than Kids Cove, there's no ocean or sailing themes anywhere that I saw," Mike pointed out. "You've already got El Chip's and from what you've said, this amazing band of high-tech, brand-new animatronics. Why want Foxy's? This can't just be about PR."

"…As a matter of fact, it really is," James admitted. His voice fell, probably more with embarrassment than anything resembling empathy or guilt. "We have been having difficulty getting the public interested in the new Freddy's. Even though we truly are high-tech and brand-new ourselves. It doesn't help that when we chose this location, we weren't aware of the… incident that occurred nearby."

"…You weren't aware that five Freddys' opened and closed suspiciously around the time when numerous children and employees miraculously 'disappeared'?" Mike asked in blunt disbelief.

"No, no, not that! Not those… Not whatever that was, no. I'm talking about the more recent incident at that theater and arcade that was down here on the highway. When that maniac killed a woman and took children hostage. Not only is it terribly bad timing to put a location here when that's still fresh on the mind, but that young woman was the daughter of Henry Johnson, one of the original founders of Freddy's."

"I know," Mike said soberly.

"He really knows. He was the 'local hero' who found the kids and brought her home," Fritz said matter-of-factly. Mike's eyes flicked up from his coffee to judge James' reaction. He looked startled; perhaps he really hadn't known.

"I… Did not know that. How are you holding up?"

"I'm alive. There's that."

"Ah, I see… I'm terribly sorry for what you must've gone through," James said. He did sound sincere, but Mike couldn't help but think cynically. That the only reason he felt bad for him was because he was a possible partner. He probably didn't think twice about those kids. Or the ones they glossed over when they built this place in spite of all the death surrounding Freddy's.

At least Foxy's was being run by some of those victims, getting their blessings while working towards being an actual, safe, functioning business for children. The thought of Foxy's going back on that to help Freddy's- who were possibly already mistreating their animatronics- was straight up sickening. Mike wasn't even going to pretend he was considering it now.

"Look, we really appreciate the offer, but I don't foresee us ever agreeing to any sort of deal between Foxy's and Freddy's. Foxy's deviated from Freddy's for a reason and going back on those principles would be us selling out. Sorry, but no," Mike swiftly and firmly declined. He left no room for negotiation. That was his final word, and he didn't care how much it upset Wight. He was lucky he was being as civil as he was.

But unfortunately, just like before, Fritz decided to chime up.

"But that doesn't mean that we won't maybe be up to other offers in the future. We're just not looking to open a second Foxy's," Fritz clarified.

"We're also not looking to get the rights to Foxy tangled up, so chances of us spontaneously deciding to put Foxy memorabilia in Freddy's will probably never see the light of day," Mike retorted. "That would cover any other offer."

"Unless we would be able to hold full rights and, I don't know, full revenue from whatever it was. Like if we had a, uh… Foxy merch kart somewhere down in the atrium wherever," Fritz suggested.

Mike knew what he was doing but this time wasn't nearly on board. James already got a smile back, like he was already calculating his next sales pitch in the back of his head. Mike needed to shut that down now, but he couldn't when Fritz kept coming up behind him and talking about future scenarios that were never going to happen. This guy was already the type who was willing to keep bartering through a no, Fritz wasn't helping.

Thankfully, before they could devolve any further, James must've gotten the picture and raised his hands.

"I understand. How about we just keep the lines of communication open and leave it on a "maybe". Who knows? Perhaps you will come see the Pizzaplex when it's opened and if you like what you see, we can work out an arrangement," James offered. His tone hadn't changed much from earlier. Obviously, he was under the impression that he could still get what he wanted, which was absolutely not the impression Mike wanted to leave him with.

If Mike had been keeping his cool earlier, he was downright chilly after that. The frost icing the edge of every word, and Fritz could feel them aimed in his direction. He grinned and bear-ed it, just glad they were remaining civil.

Elsewhere, things were going a little better for Natalie and Jeremy.

The Glamrock Giftshop was something but wasn't as glorious as either Jeremy or Natalie was expecting. It was certainly bigger than Foxy's moderate sized prize corner, but it didn't look very full or seem to have too much variety. There were plushies and stylized drinking glasses, a few shirts, and sweaters on the back wall, but nothing like even what Jeremy was wearing.

"Weird. I expected more than this," Natalie said, matching his thoughts exactly.

"I know. Maybe they're not done setting it up?" Jeremy offered. She shrugged and nodded, and then they headed further inside.

There was a woman standing behind the check-out counter. She had a pale complexion and shoulder length wavy brown hair and was wearing a blue shirt with a Pizzaplex logo. Obviously one of the staff members. Natalie acknowledged her with a smile before looking over the shelves of plush toys. Freddy, Chica, the alligator, and the wolf all had toys lined up here. She found this a little strange, expecting there to be more than this.

Jeremy was the first to spot an outlier. There were a couple of jester-looking dolls propped on a higher self, one yellow with a sun shaped face and one blue with a moon one.

"This must be that sun he was talking about," Jeremy said. He picked it up and looked it over. "It's kind of cute. What do you think?"

"Aww, he is," Natalie said. She then spotted the moon and picked it up. "Look at this little guy. He's precious," she said. Though then she furrowed her brows and quietly asked, "Wait, so he said the sun was scrapped. Does this mean they're still selling the merchandise with no sun?"

"Huh," was all Jeremy answered with. Though if that was true, that was kind of sad for the lonely moon. Assuming it was alive, which he really hoped not.

"A-Actually, there's not a sun and moon. The sun and moon is the same animatronic, it just flips back from one to the other. The toys are kind of deceiving," a voice chimed up. Natalie looked back to see the woman edging around the counter. She had a mousy smile and took the look as an invitation to come over. "It's over in the daycare. In fact, that's technically its name, the 'Daycare Attendant'. Which is kinda weird. I mean, I would've named them after the candy at least."

"There's candy?" Jeremy asked. She nodded and pointed towards the counter, and he leaned sideways to see past Natalie and spotted the display of candy he missed on the way in. It didn't take him long to spot the little wrapped yellow and blue candies in tubs at the bottom. The Bidybabs would love those; he wondered if they sold them by the tubs. Though he recognized the name on one of them. "I didn't know Freddy's owned Moondrop candy."

"They don't. Or they didn't. I don't really know. I think they came from, uh… Lally's Lollies? Something like that," the woman said. She fluffed at her hair while watching Jeremy slide by to get some, but then her eyes caught a closer look at his shirt and she followed him, peeking over his attire. She got a tiny, amused smile. "Big fan of Foxy's?"

"Sort of. Partial owner," Jeremy admitted. She popped back in surprise.

"Oh! Oh wow, I just thought you were really into them," she said. She seemed both in awe and slightly intimidated by it, but her smile returned. "I think Foxy's is great. How it has that sort of old Freddy feel. All of this is kind of… a lot. It misses that feel, that down-home diner feel, and the old characters were just so great," she chattered before catching herself. "Sorry, I just- I don't really get a chance to talk about the old Freddy's."

"Don't be sorry! We take that as a compliment," Natalie reassured her in a friendly tone. She offered her hand. "I'm Natalie and this is Jeremy. We both work at Foxy's."

"It's nice to meet you!" Her smile seemed to regain its luster as she took her hand and shook it. "I'm Ness."

She shook Jeremy's too before Natalie took the liberty of both bluntly and quietly asking, "Okay, so what's wrong with the wolf and gator guy?"

"It's not exactly them. I don't really think they're great, but they're okay enough, I guess. No Foxy and Bonnie. It's what they did to Freddy and Chica- well, I guess Freddy's okay enough. The old Freddy had that sweet teddy bear look and this one's just a little… Not… And it's worse with Chica." She glanced at the doors to make sure nobody was listening. Probably didn't want James to hear her.

"What did they do to Chica?" Jeremy asked curiously.

"Okay, so, don't tell anyone, because I probably shouldn't be saying this…" Ness mumbled under her breath. "But I hate the new Chica."

"Huh. Really? I saw they changed her up a little. Did they change her personality too?"

"YES, so much. It's like- she used to give off this mom feel. This, how do I say it? Downhome cooking, baking in the kitchen with mom feel. Now she's just another rocker. She doesn't even cook anymore. She just, I don't know, eats?"

"That's a pretty impressive talent though. I don't know a lot of people who eat," Jeremy joked. This got a crooked smile from ness and rolled eyes from Natalie. "But I get it. Chica used to the sweet one of the group, cupcake included."

"That's really a shame. Chica used to be one of my favorites," Natalie sympathized.

"Mine's Bonnie. He's not doing much better…" Ness added in. She looked at Jeremy's shirt again and smiled again. "But it looks like Foxy's doing pretty good for himself."

Jeremy wasn't sure why his face filled with heat at that. There was no way she could know the hidden contest in those words, so it was all him. Made only worse that he was effectively drenched in his merchandise. "That's the plan!"

They came over to the counter so they could be checked out. She rung up both sun and moon dolls and a handful of each kind of candy, tapped a few buttons, and announced, "That'll be twenty-nine dollars twenty cents."

Jeremy's jaw almost dropped at the price. He looked down at the toys and candy for a long second, eyes sliding between them, and then, expression still shocked and befuddled, got out his wallet and silently pulled out the allotted amount. He counted it out and handed it over to Ness and only then, expression now defeated, turned to Natalie.

"Remind me to get a couple more bucks from Mike." Natalie didn't know whether to be sympathetic or amused, so she was both. Then bought herself a moon too.

The two sat down on the edge of the Freddy fountain as they waited for the others. The moment they sat down, Jeremy started scanning the receipt and Natalie made a little 'hmph' noise at seeing it. Then looked past him to make sure Ness wasn't looking out of the gift shop to see it, or how they were just sitting here doing nothing. Thankfully, it seemed that she stayed in the back of the store.

"She was nice," Natalie said, attempting to make small talk. "…What's that short for, Agnes?"

"That or Vanessa," Jeremy offered. Now crumpling up the receipt and shoving it in his pocket, then unravelling a piece of the yellow candy. Saying, "Give me some of that sweet, sweet pep," under his breath.

"Oh right! Yeah, that makes a lot more sense. It's way more modern," Natalie added. Jeremy finally peeled the wrapper open and popped a creamy orange candy in his mouth. Then he offered one to her. "Are you sure? They weren't cheap," she reminded, but he nodded unbothered, and she accepted it.

They fell into a comfortable silent that lasted for a while until they heard the sound of footsteps approaching. They looked over to see Mike and Fritz walking side by side with James following up behind them. Mike with an annoyed look and Fritz with a sheepish or defeated one. Both could tell that something must've gone wrong but didn't ask with James looming over their shoulders.

Before they could leave the lobby, James stepped into a room beneath the café and returned with four free day passes and a daycare pass. The day passes carrying the Freddy logo while the daycare pass had cartoon sun and moon faces on it. These were, as they would be, one last incentive to butter them up before he wished them a rather friendly goodbye and went to greet another small group who wasn't there before.

Mike picked up speed once they got outside and it was more apparent that he was upset. Natalie also quickened her pace to catch up with Fritz and raise her brows questioningly. He gave a guilty smile and she put an arm around him for assurance until they got into the car. Mike was in his seat with the door closed before most of them got in.

That was when a doll dropped into his lap from over his shoulder. He looked down to see the moon staring up at him and picked it up.

"Huh," he said. He turned it over in his hand, looking at the details, and then asked, "Was there a Sun?" Which was answered by Jeremy sticking it out between the seats. "…Someone must've missed the memo on the sun's untimely passing."

Jeremy gave a little scoffing sort of chuckle before noticing Natalie waving for his attention.

"What about the two bucks?" she mouthed. Jeremy's smile tightened and he gave a quick shake of his head. She got the message and dropped it.

Fritz got in and got the keys in the ignition before sitting back in the seat. He sat there for a long moment before quietly asking, "Are we going to talk about it?"

Mike sent him a flat look. "Your disappearing backbone? Sure! By the way, what happened back there? I gave us three or four outs and every time you dragged us back in."

"Not that. About how much Wight looks like Fredrick," Fritz said through his teeth.

This took Mike off-guard, and he actually paused to consider it, only to come to an alarming revelation once he thought about it. Something about the facial hair, the facial structure, the teeth.

"…You're right," he admitted. Frustration melted away into a sort of shock mixed with the slightest edge of dread. As though it couldn't get worse. "But that's just a coincidence."

"I think so. Has to be," Fritz said. His uneased look said differently, but his words sounded confident. "I've met a lot of people who've looked like Fredrick. It's just easier to connect dots that aren't there when it's in a place like this."

"He was trying to blend in. Trying to look as inconspicuous as he could," Mike reminded, to which Fritz nodded. Though after a moment he glanced over and asked, "He ever mention any living relatives?"

"Uh, none that I know of. Scott might know… Should we ask Scott?" Fritz asked. Mike got an unsure look. "Right, best we didn't. We don't want him getting worked up over nothing." There was a long, uncomfortable pause before he sighed and added, "I'm sorry I was pandering to him, but I got spooked. I just know that Freddy's used to be cutthroat, and if we keep him thinking we might cave then he won't try anything… Rash. We'll say rash."

"I know, but I don't want him getting the idea that we can get bought. Or start thinking that we're not on the same page, because then he'll start trying to play us against each other."

"Let's see how well that works out," Fritz said with a slight scoff. It was the first time he had a real smile since they got there, and he took that as a cue to start up the car. When he didn't get a response, he glanced over at Mike while turning around to back out. "Right?" he asked. The other man hummed, and he stopped midway to look back at him with surprise. "Mike, you don't actually think I'd-?"

"No," Mike quickly interjected. "No, I don't. I just… I don't know, I don't trust him. Especially not now that he's Fredrick. Come to find out this is yet another long-lost business partner or something," he muttered.

Fritz wasn't entirely satisfied by this answer, but he looked back to continue backing up. Briefly exchanging looks with Jeremy and Natalie as he did so. That weird silence lingered in the car until they were back on the highway.

Finally, Jeremy spoke up, "So, basically you good cop bad cop'd him," Jeremy remarked from the backseat.

Mike opened his mouth before slowly closing it, deciding he had a point. Fritz filling in with a, "Well, yeah."

The silence returned once again. Now Mike had a moment to think and suddenly it made a little more sense why Fritz had lost his nerve. Noticing something like that would've thrown him off too, if he had noticed it, which he somehow didn't. It was easier to see something when you were looking for it, and when it came to Freddy's they were expecting someone two-faced and sleazy to be leading the way.

"Okay, I'm just going to come out and say it," Natalie volunteered, deciding to clear the air. "…What elevator was Chaz talking about, because they both smelled fine to me?"

"Whichever one leads to the room where they're storing the bodies," Mike chimed up. Natalie wrinkled her nose and gave an unamused glint. Fritz caught them both by surprise with a stifled laugh. "Not the response I was expecting, but sure."

"No, I just-." Fritz flashed him a mischievous smile. "So, I thought you were talking about the Sun and I was trying to figure out what they did to make it smell so bad, and the first thing that came to mind was-."

"Don't finish that or we're getting a divorce," Natalie mock threatened. Fritz paused for about five seconds before adding on.

"You know, there used to be this rule at the old Freddy's…"

"And don't try to slip one past me. I already know about Rule Number Four, from you," Natalie said. That clammed him up, didn't wipe the smile off his face though.

"I mean if you think about it, the Sun's in a daycare, so there's a good chance its already got some on it," Jeremy nonchalantly volunteered. Natalie turned her gaze on him.

"You're not helping," she said flatly. She then looked towards the passenger's seat. "Whatever you're about to say, Mike. Don't."

Mike, who wasn't preparing to say anything, considered it for a moment before chiming in, "Forget the Sun, let's just assume there was a gas leak of some kind in the elevator." Then he sent Natalie a cheeky smile that she didn't appreciate.

Tension dissipating, it was starting to feel easier to breathe in the car. Maybe it was just putting distance between them and the Pizzaplex, or maybe it was just the good company. Mike appreciated them both with how strung-out he was feeling and was glad to feel the knot in his stomach begin to soften up.

Only to tighten right back up when he realized their next stop was breaking the news to Foxy.

Chapter 7

Chapter Summary

Someone decides to overstep their boundaries.

On the plus side, Marionette loved his little moon. He carried it around in a protective hold and coddled it like an old favorite. That was the only positive thing to come out of this.

Everyone was shocked at the news of the Pizzaplex. They realized right away that the four weren't exaggerating about what they saw either. There was too much they said with completely straight and totally shellshocked faces.

Once again, Foxy had taken it the worst. He didn't haywire again, but he did storm off into the back of the men's bathroom to start yelling every obscenity they he know. Like he thought the others wouldn't hear, which they all did. Eventually he came out and dragged himself to his stage to sit on the edge. Jeremy sat down with him while the others went through with cleaning the restaurant for closing.

"It's going to be okay. We'll figure something out," Jeremy assured, arm around Foxy's shoulders. "They charged me twelve dollars for a plush. Parents aren't going to be taking their kids there on a daily basis. Kids aren't going to be able to walk there from school and dump their allowance in the arcade. We'll be fine! We're just… Not going to be the hot spot we used to."

But for Foxy that was even worse. Logically he knew he should've been content with the idea of survival but being cast into the shadow of Freddy's made him want to tear through his own suit. Freddy's ended numerous childhoods, Freddy's tortured and ruined aware animatronics, Freddy's was a living nightmare and got away with all of it, and now here they were to play the role of the hero.

It made him so angry that he was twitching his leg, tapping his foot, and grinding his hook on the edge of the stage. Which Jeremy noticed and could feel the anger. He rubbed soothing circles in his back.

"They're not going to get away with this," he whispered to him. "They might be opening now, but people are going to remember and they're going to get angry."

"Only ones who get angry be us," Foxy muttered. "And there's nothing we can do."

Jeremy didn't say anything to that. He thought about it but didn't have anything else to contribute. Foxy huffed and slumped his head down into his hand with a look of defeat. He got a one-armed hug.

"Want to come home with me tonight?" Jeremy asked. Foxy shook his head. "…Are you sure? I don't think you should be alone…"

"I ain't gonna do nothin' stupid if that's what yer thinkin'," the pirate muttered. "I just want to wallow in me sadness without worryin' how I look."

"…When you say wallow in sadness-?"

"Take off me pirate coat, put on me depression hoodie, and gorge on whatever's left in the fridge… er in the garbage," he grumbled. "An' if I ain't feelin' dead enough, I'll put on some old Freddy movies an' wish I was."

Ah yes, the depression hoodie. The one article of real clothing Foxy owned other than his costume and was used exclusively for moping. Extra, extra-large so it was baggy and loose, and pitch black like his mood. A gift from Jeremy once when Foxy had joked about wearing a hoodie as an angsty teen. Neither realized he was promptly reverting back into said angsty teen anytime soon, but at least he had it.

Though Jeremy still frowned. "Please tell me you're at least pretending about that last part."

"…Yer right, I am. Because I sure ain't the person I be wanting dead," Foxy growled. That was a little livelier. At this point even anger sounded better than him being sad. Jeremy managed the slightest smile.

"I know, but… It could be worse. Don't forget that."

"Yar. It can always get worse."

"No, I didn't say that," Jeremy corrected flatly. He slid in closer to get a better hug while pushing up his glasses with his other hand. "It could always be worse. They're flashier and bigger than us, but they're a stage show. We're the local heroes. You're a local hero. We might not be raking in the dough, but we're right where we want to be. So, no matter what happens, it's going to be okay."

Foxy sat on that thought for a long moment before leaning in to press his head against Jeremy's. A motion that he welcomed and returned. Whatever was going to happen, they were going to get through it together.

…

Until someone decided to take it a step further.

…

The Pizzaplex was still some ways away from opening and there was still a plethora of features that had not been completed. Some attractions were going under last minute renovation, others were just getting tweaks to their system, many of the staff and security bots were not yet up and running, and the main band were still being fine-tuned as the big day steadily grew closer.

The key point though was those security bots. Having learned from the past, the common night guard had been replaced by a fleet of friendly faced robots that would roll around and alert if they spotted something out of the ordinary. Not that they would with the state-of-the-art security system that consisted of numerous security cameras, doors locked with both traditional keys and keycards, and hefty covers for the front entrance to keep everything out after hours.

This wasn't the only security measure though. The front doors, the back doors, the doors to the loading dock, the emergency exits and fire escapes, they were all locked up and sealed. Once the protocols were full in place, numerous doors separating the various attractions would be sealed shut as well. Only to be opened by their own combination of clearance, code, or ticket.

Once the Pizzaplex was open and these measures were put into place, it did it would be the safest, most secure amusement complex in the country. At least, that was the theory. After everything it took to reach this point, the only way Freddy's could survive was if it could avoid any bad publicity. Once those systems were in full effect, it would be foolproof.

Except for one thing. Those systems too were not yet in effect. Whether it was because so many workers had to stay late and come in early or just because of them still trying to implement said features, the security measures on the megaplex had yet to be activated. The doors were locked, and the entrance sealed, the shipping doors closed, the fire escape locked, but everything on the inside was left terribly under-protected.

This was the best possible time for someone to spontaneously decide to break in. Though in his defense, he probably would've found a way in regardless. He was just that determined.

That wasn't to say it was easy. It had been time consuming but not difficult to find a loose vent around back that could be pried open that was big enough to crawl through. In a few short minutes- after finding the vent- that first line of security had been breached and he was crawling into the compound, dragging a small backpack behind him.

Unfortunately for him, this would turn out to be the easy part. After a good fifteen minutes of vents, he found his way out into a storage room and snuck out through an unlocked door into an additional storage room, then found another door that led to a hallway that connected to two sturdy, locked doors and a third unlocked door that turned out to lead back to the first storage room.

He wasted an hour of precious, limited time just trying to find his way out of these crevices of tight space jammed up in the back corner of the Pizzaplex. It got to the point where he had to buck up and climb over some kind of barricade into a section of unfinished hallway, lined with drop clothes and leftover tools. By now he was completely lost and had no sense of bearings, so even if he did give up, he wasn't sure he was getting back out.

Eventually he made it into a small kitchen that looked like it belonged to a snack area, out into a cleaner hallway- one with carpeted floors and posters on the walls and walked himself up to a pair of double doors. He pushed them open and the true image of the Pizzaplex revealed itself to him as he was welcomed into the atrium.

It was nearly pitch dark save some running lights and a few neon signs. He still saw more than he wanted to. He remained dead silent as he trudged out across the carpet and towards the center of the enormous room.

One of the few things that was decently lit up was the main stage. Its running lights were some of the ones that were on, standing out as a partially illuminated pedestal in the darkness. Though again, not complete darkness. The place was too gaudy to ever truly be dark. Even now he could see clashing colors with frantic themes and when paired with the signs that would no doubt be fluorescent neon, it gave the image of something harsh on the eyes.

It also made him stand out as the thing that didn't belong. A figure in dark clothing, save for a dull, red mask that he wore to disguise his identity. In an act of intentional irony, the mask was a figment leftover from Freddy's distant past. The face of a character they no longer owned or could use. He doubted they would think that hard if they saw the footage, but to him it meant everything that he was here for.

He stepped up onto the stage and did a slow spin to look at the large atrium. Just seeing all of this hurt, but it wasn't going to much longer. He spun back around and reached into the child-sized backpack hung on one shoulder to pull out a can of yellow spray paint. He had black too, but this looked like it would show better on the stage. Shame that he hadn't found any red.

He painted bold, large letters across the bottom half of the massive stage with a clear message slowly being written out: "REMEMBER THE MISSING CHILDREN."

Once he was done and had admired his handiwork, he looked around at the massive building for another target. Just the act of committing the vandalization left him jittery and excited, reigniting a long-lost desire to break the rules and show up to authority. It was enthralling. The problem was that the atrium was simply too big for his work. The stage was an easy to see target, but just putting it anywhere wouldn't achieve the desired effect.

That was when he spotted the sign for Rockstar Row. He was looking at all of them- Golf, Arcade, El Chip's- for another sizeable target, but this one caught his attention. Because he was moderately sure he had heard Rockstar Row casually mentioned as being the hallway with the, for lack of a better term, animatronic enclosures. Feeling that defiance swell, he dropped off the stage and headed over.

After a few minutes of, again, walking through nearly pitch-dark hallways, one unfinished and another loaded with ads, he found himself in the Rockstar Row and the covered windows stretched out before him. Like earlier that day, the curtains were drawn, and maintenance posters were slapped on them. He walked to the end, looking at their entryways as he did and getting a good look at the competition.

Freddy himself was a gangly, freakish thing in comparison to the bear he remembered. It hurt just to look at him.

Roxanne Wolf looked suspiciously like a female Silver Fox, though not buffed up like he was and definitely not in captain attire. Probably both a Foxy and Silver Fox clone in one.

Monty looked like that frog thing from Magictime Theater. Thinking that was amusing enough that it was hard to feel intimidated by his cool factor.

Chica was looking pretty cute though. She kind of had a blend of Toy Chica and that Funtime Chica Charlie once talked about and drew a little drawing of. But even then, she still wasn't the real Chica. None of these were the real band.

So, he got out the spray paint and got to work. Writing in big bold letters across the glass as far as he could reach: "FAKE."

Then he moved on to Monty. He had just drawn the 'L' for 'Lame' when he realized that in and of itself was lame. He was trying to spread a real message; he didn't want to ruin his credibility with terminology they could just write him off with. So, he changed it at the last second, and spelled out: "LIES." Because the Pizzaplex was full of them.

He got to Roxanne Wolf and stared at the glass for a long second. Then decided just to write: "SELFISH."

The last one was the special one. He had been preparing for this moment and already knew what he wanted to write. Unfortunately, the yellow was getting low. He noticed it requiring a lot more shaking during the end of that last word and still coming out a little thin. He would have to switch to the black, which in hindsight felt pretty appropriate.

Then he spraypainted smaller letters until he spelled out a name. Then another one nearby. Then another, and another, and as many as he could remember and fit without overlapping in his area of reach. At least a dozen names, some with last names but many without. Names like Chris and Susie, names like Gabriel and Marion, names that people could look up and see connected with Freddy's, and then could remember them all.

Unlike with the others, when he stepped back and looked up at his work, he felt no thrill. It was as though he committed a sin writing those names without their consent. But they would've wanted it, he was sure. They wanted to be heard.

He turned and started back down Rockstar Row with his head aimed down.

There was a loud clank directly behind him.

He spun around instantly and saw that the door to Freddy's room had opened up, but nobody was standing inside the doorway. From this angle, it didn't look like there was anyone inside at all- though he was only seeing a partial corner of the room. Weirdly enough, the lights were on in there, and the room was decorated in a sharp red color scheme. Instead of looking like Freddy's old storage rooms, it was a proper dressing room.

Part of him wanted to slip in and do a little more damage, but he was wary of approach. That door hadn't opened for no reason and instead he found himself walking backwards towards the way he came in. He slipped through under the security door and only then removed his gaze from that general direction.

After an egregiously long amount of walking and an uncomfortable hike up a set of dead escalators, he arrived at the elevator to the lobby and rode down into it. It was slightly brighter in the lobby, but that wasn't doing any favors when he had to look at the massive gold-tone Freddy statue standing in the center. He purposefully looked away with it, groaning inwardly at how much paint he wasted in the other room when he could've used it to blot out Freddy.

But that wasn't important now. What was important was getting his message out there, and he chose the stretch of clean floor in front of the fountain to do it. Shaking the black spray paint can, he thought up exactly what he wanted to say, and then he slowly began to spell it out onto the floor one letter at a time.

"AFTON KILLED US ALL."

Blunt, jarring, self-explanatory to an extent, it was perfect. It wasn't everything he wanted to say, but it was something that would catch eyes and jolt readers into a sense of horror. It was about time someone pointed the blame, and he wasn't afraid to use his name. If anything, there was something empowering about spilling the truth. To drag Freddy's down to his level by revealing their dirty secrets.

That was, until he heard a noise. It was a squeaking, then a metallic swivel, something rolling closer, and he spun around towards the darkness beside the gift shop. He watched as a grey figure slowly wheeled itself out of the darkness.

It was a robot. In fact, it was the most basic and stereotypical robot he had ever seen. Something that looked like it shouldn't even really exist, like a cartoon bot brought out as a stage show character. Except it wasn't on a stage, it was wheeling itself over with some kind of square mop in its hand and began to wipe at the freshly sprayed paint. He was so stunned that it took him a second before he darted forward.

"Cut that out," he hissed, trying his hardest to keep his voice down. The bot didn't even acknowledge him and just continued smearing the letters into a black mess. He strode forward to block his work. "Stop it!"

The bot finally acknowledged him. It stared directly at him and then waved its hand as though trying to get him to move before rolling in again. Starting to edge on frustration and panic, he shoved it back. This turned out to by a mistake as it made some sort of weird alarm noise and began waving its arm like it was flagging something. That edge quickly devolved into actual panic as he ran forward and kneejerk shoved the cleaner bot.

It proceeded to fall backwards and land flat on its back, then began to release an even more obnoxious alarm noise as it tried to push itself up and, once failing, began waving its arms like it was flagging for someone. He knew this was about to get a lot worse and looked around for a way out, not knowing if this alarm was about to call the police or just drag a security guard down here.

He had to shut it up, and that's when he saw the fountain. Get it in the water, short circuit it, problem solved. The thing wasn't acting alive, so it wasn't hurting it, just shutting down a piece of very loud equipment. He grabbed it around the middle, trying to avoid the flailing arms, and started to drag it back towards the water.

When all of a sudden, he heard a bang followed by a stretch of rhythmic thumps. Like a door slamming open followed by rapid footsteps, except there was something very wrong with how heavy and fast they were. It was a dead giveaway immediately that it was not a human running through the outer lobby past the turnstiles. He dropped the cleaner bot and turned his head to look back.

It was Freddy Fazbear himself. Not the one that he remembered, but the one displayed in the golden colored statue behind him. Tall and bulky, with broad shoulders and long legs, and currently running directly at him.

He had never seen a Freddy run that fast and it was so jarring that it startled him. So, his first instinct was to run first and ask questions later. He caught sight of Freddy vaulting clean over the turnstiles before he turned around and made a mad dash back towards the stairs. He could hear those quick footsteps pounding right behind him. It was one of the fastest animatronics he had seen in a long time, but he was about to outrun it.

Or that was the plan before he had to sprint up two flights of stairs. Mercifully, the animatronic was also slowed by the ascent and it gave him enough breathing room to sprint over to and slide into the elevator. He slammed his fist on the button and pulled into the corner, keeping his head down and waiting for the doors to close. The Freddy came to a stop outside the door and made no attempt to reach for him or try to catch the doors.

The doors closed and the elevator began to lower. Now having a moment to think, he was hit by the full weight of what just happened and what he had seen. Freddy had been up and moving on its own volition. It was likely summoned there by the alarm the bot had let off, though that didn't explain why the Freddy was here and not in its room. Though it probably hadn't been in its room earlier or it would've come out when the door opened.

Just the sight of it sent a chill down his back. The tall, gangly, broad-shouldered Freddy was downright spooky in motion, and so fast that one trip-up would've been the end. He had to get out of here fast, and he adjusted his sleeves as the elevator came to a stop and opened its doors a few seconds later.

As soon as they did, he started to run and didn't stop. He ran down the escalators to the lower floor and across the stretch towards the double doors he had first come through. The room was deathly silent save his rapid footsteps and all at once there was a looming dread that he hadn't felt when he first came in. He could be heard very easily in this cavernous room. It had been so long since he actually felt hunted.

He burst through the doors and after only a second to get his bearings started to dash down the hall in what he thought was the direction of the storage room. He had barely made it a few feet before he began to hear something.

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP,  THUMP,  THUMP !

Heavy footsteps closed in quickly from a different direction and he was being chased again. He broke into an even more mad dash and was soon going at full speed, a speed where he could've lost the animatronic- if he knew where he was going. The moment he was back in that maze of hallways and storage rooms things started to blur together, and the instinctual flight reflex wasn't helping matters.

All it took was a single mistake. He realized the moment he made it too. He took a right, took a few steps, recognized it as a dead end from earlier, and immediately turned back and tried to run past. He knew the moment he did that that there was no chance, yet he still tried to slide under the clawed hand that reached out from the hallway. It missed his head only to grab ahold his hood and yank upright in an attempt to stop him.

It hoisted him into the air for only a second before he lost his grip and fell straight through the baggy fabric and onto the floor in a heap. He was exposed and he rolled over onto his back prepared to fight for his freedom

But upon seeing him, Freddy had come to an abrupt halt. He hadn't had a chance to really look it in the eyes until now with the glowing irises shining down like a spotlight. Its eyes were flicking over him and while the face didn't show much expression, the jerky motion of them scanning him showed something like confusion, or maybe shock. He looked down at the hand hold his hoodie and watched it slowly tighten, and he couldn't tell if it was reflexive or reaction.

The silence was almost deafening in that hallway. Even the squeaks Freddy once made were absent now that it was standing completely still. Something was keeping it from attacking him, he decided. Maybe because it could see what he really was and didn't understand how to process it.

That was when it took a turn that he wasn't expecting and in one moment everything changed in a way he could've never anticipated.

"Are you… Foxy?"

It spoke. Freddy had spoken, was capable of intelligent speech, and recognized what he was even without his proper head on display. Freddy Fazbear was alive…

…and he had caught Foxy red-handed.

Though that was the least of his problems right now, because as bad as it was to know that he was fully on display- with his disguise quite literally wrenched away from him- it was nothing compared to the dread that came with this revelation.

Someone had already died.

But he was quickly snapped out of that thought and back into intense focus the moment Freddy slightly moved forward. Foxy began to edge back across the floor, his hook raised threateningly in an attempt to ward him off. That didn't detour Freddy who was slowly lowering into a crouch, still watching him closely, as though carefully approaching a feral animal. Which Foxy definitely felt like cornered like this.

Freddy started to lift his opposite hand and that was when Foxy realized he was about to reach for him. That was what triggered those fight or flight reflexes to kick in again. Foxy swiped at the hand, missing it completely but getting Freddy to yank it back before rolling over onto his hands and knees and was up in a mad dash in only a matter of seconds, sprinting down the hallway at full speed.

"Wait! Please do not run away!" Freddy called after him.

His baritone voice only barely resembled the original's which Foxy was familiar with. Rumbly and echoing down the hall around him, and it wasn't too long before that thumping joined in. Freddy was running after him again, though now there was a different kind of fear driving him to run.

Foxy ducked into the first open doorway he saw and into a tight space between two shelves, crouching down and hoping to lose Freddy long enough to figure out where he was going. He had a new problem too. While he was still wearing the sweatpants and garbage bag wrappings around his lower legs, without his hoodie his torso and endoskeleton head were exposed, and the flimsy mask did little to hide it.

It didn't help that he could hear Freddy still stomping around outside the door. It was only made significantly worse when the bear began to call for him.

"I am not going to hurt you! I can help you. Please do not hide from me," Freddy called for him. His speech pattern was stiff, but his tone was emoting significantly more than his features had. There was no denying that he was awake and alert. He sounded concerned, but Foxy couldn't trust it. He wasn't putting himself at the mercy of his own competitor.

That thought left a much more bitter taste in his mouth than he expected. Probably because he wasn't supposed to be alive. That was the whole reason he was trying to sabotage Freddy's, because it was a vile corporate entity that was going to destroy his business. Now there was at least one living animatronic complicating that. He didn't even want to think about what he was going to do if there were more.

Freddy walked into the storage room and looked around before continuing down past the shelves in the opposite direction of Foxy. He was still clutching the hoodie as he searched the room for the other animatronic. Foxy considered making a run for the door at that point, but it was left home and he was behind it, meaning he would be stopped midway through his escape. Eventually he decided the best option was to keep his head down.

It turned out to be the right plan as after only a minute or less Freddy returned. Now he was emoting. His ears were tilted forward and down, and his eyes were lidded with sadness, accompanied by a mock sigh as he came back towards the door. His eyes slid across the shelves in Foxy's direction, and he dropped down to try and hide from it.

The beam fell right over him, with only a few boxes and the shelves saving him from being spotted. Though he did notice that light stay on him a little longer than needed. He stayed completely still.

Then Freddy finally stepped out of the room. Foxy could hear him do something with the doorknob before his heavy footsteps headed down the hall the way they came. He waited for about thirty seconds and listened, noticing that it didn't seem like the bear had gone far but it did sound like he was further down the hall. He began to carefully slide out of his hiding spot, taking careful little steps.

He gently edged the door closed, listening to the dullest squeak and wincing, waiting, and after not hearing the familiar thump, thump, thump slid past the door to leave.

Only to regret it the second he spotted his hoodie hanging on the doorknob. A dead giveaway that Freddy knew he was in here and was baiting him. He almost rushed back to his hiding spot, but he was tight on time and couldn't afford to get himself cornered by the bear again. He carefully pulled it off with his hook and then began to pull it on. His elbow lightly bumped the shelf, he froze instantly, and when there was no reaction, he continued putting it on.

Then he finally stepped out of the door and looked down the hall after where the bear had gone. There was a corner not too far down, about exactly where he heard the footsteps stop. Paranoia seized him as he realized Freddy could be standing right around the corner waiting for any signal to sprint out of his hiding spot and after him. He wasn't about to go hide again, and he didn't want to keep running like a coward. So, he did the best thing he could think of.

He began to slowly creep down the hallway. Keeping his head back to look at that corner, Foxy took gentle steps forward and started to inch away from the door. He was sort of impressed with how quiet he was.

Until Freddy's head suddenly poked out around the corner. Both froze on the spot as their eyes locked in another staring contest. From this reaction and how Freddy was peeking out, it was obvious that he hadn't planned on getting caught.

"Oh, uhm… Excuse me," Freddy said. Then he slowly pulled back behind the corner and was gone. Well, not GONE. Just standing around the corner again.

This bear was going to be the death of him. After he got him caught and ran him out of business.

Though less on edge, Foxy managed to reign himself in enough to regain some self-control. Freddy was, at least, not aggressive, and Foxy didn't want to continue slinking around like he was afraid of him. So, he straightened up his posture, puffy out his chest- in a sense, and held his head high as he walked backwards down the hall without removing his eyes from that corner.

Eventually he backed himself into the right storage room and right into the corner of a shelf, which he grumbled about and finally turned around. There was the vent left wide open for his escape. He ran over and scrambled into it, clawing at the bottom, and dragging himself inside, about to make a clean get away when-

He suddenly realized that he was missing his backpack. His backpack with the spray cans in it and his own face on it, taken straight out of his own merchandise, and now probably sitting between his graffiti and the robot he knocked over.

"Bloody 'ell. Don't even remember takin' off the blasted thing," Foxy muttered. No point in not sliding back into character as he squirmed back and out of the vent. He was about to climb out when he noticed a peculiar amount of light on him, and he knew exactly where it was coming from. That bear was standing somewhere behind him, staring right as his backend. He instantly crawled back in. "Forget it. Ain't goin' back. Nobody's gonna figure it out."

Children disappeared hand over fist at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza and nobody ever connected it back to them. What was the likelihood that a Foxy's logo backpack was going to be linked back to the cove?... Honestly, probably rather high, but his disguise was passable enough that it wouldn't be linked to anyone in particular, and there weren't any cameras in the hall where his hood was wrenched out.

This was a bad, bad idea and yet Foxy continued crawling ahead. He felt like he was in quicksand and getting closer to being suffocated. Like he was buried in sand with only his head sticking out, staring up at a sky about to spill forth a torrential downpour. Though to be fair, he had been feeling that one since news of Freddy's opening was spread.

He was just turning the first corner when he heard a clatter from behind and looked back suddenly. Freddy was standing there, as expected, with his hands resting on the edge of the open vent as he stared inside. He opened his mouth like he was preparing to say something, looking down like he was searching for words, but he didn't get enough time. Foxy was getting twitchy and paranoid, and he continued to crawl onwards.

Freddy didn't follow him, much to his surprise, and didn't try to stop him. Maybe he wasn't aware of how far he was going, instead thinking he was hiding somewhere in the building when, in actuality, Foxy was going much further. After crawling back the way he came, he got as far from the pizzeria as fast as he could.

It wasn't until he was walking beside the highway that he started to think about it. He was worn from the trip here and everything that went on inside, so he was forced to keep a steady, slower pace as to not burn himself out before he got back to the pizzeria. This left him with more time to think than he wanted.

And most of that time was spent wondering if he had made a horrible mistake.

The other was about that strange living Freddy Fazbear whose lines he kept running through his mind. It was all so bizarre. It was one thing to lash out at the conglomerate whole of Fazbear Entertainment, but to try and derail the livelihood of another living animatronic? It felt weird. He liked to think that he had the backs of those like him- except the ones that tried to kill him.

Did he actually feel bad about what he did? Not for the business' sake, no bloody way, but for that strange, wide-eyed bear? Maybe, he reluctantly decided. Maybe he did.

But at the end of the day, survival came first.

…

It was a while before he got back to the pizzeria.

By then he was starting to feel the effects of so much prolonged walking. Though not human, his body could not go on forever, and the soreness in his joints was a sign of that. Maybe he was just starting to get a little rusty too. Or maybe he could've paced himself a little better. At least he got off the road long before sunrise, which meant nobody saw the suspicious man in the dark clothes and weird mask hiking down the hallway.

And if they did, they would probably just blame it on the Hurricane Clown. God bless Ennard for being such a menace.

He discarded the trash bags in the kitchen trash and hid the hoodie and sweats in the nook underneath his stage, then slipped his head back on and was back to being Foxy. Though he still felt amped up, twitchy, exhausted, and yet having to pace to work off the nerves leftover from his close encounter. He eventually made a silent, solemn swear that this was it, that he was never doing something like that again, crossing his hook over his heart like it meant something.

Which it didn't. He had the creeping realization right then that he wasn't really in control of himself. He went over there and did something stupid on a whim and saw something he couldn't take back.

It was only a matter of time before he took it too far again. He wondered if Freddy would be waiting for him when did.

Chapter 8

Chapter Summary

News of the break-in reaches Foxy's and some decisions are made. Meanwhile, Freddy's hires a new security guard.

Chapter Notes

Here we are! This chapter gave me a little difficulty for some reason, but I got it cleaned up just in time for post. ^_^ Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

The day had been a pretty typical one. There was a normal flow of patrons, the single party went off without a hitch, and while Foxy was quieter than usual, he didn't seem to be in a depressed funk. So, everything seemed to be relatively alright.

It wasn't until closing time and cleanup had begun that the rather usual day was suddenly turned on its head, and it started with Mike noticing that Carlton was looking out the front windows instead of sweeping around the entrance.

Mike wasn't a stickler when it came to work. As long as it got done, he wasn't going to crack down on Carlton for taking a break or getting in a moment to talk with Charlie or anyone else. It was the fact that the younger man was clearly looking at something outside with such interest that he had stopped in place. Mike, who was leaning against the doorway of the Prize Corner, called to him.

"What's going on out there?" he asked. The redhead looked to him and back through the window, then pointed out.

"My dad just pulled up," Carlton answered. Mike's brows shot up and he walked over to see for himself. Sure enough, there was Clay Burke getting out of his car with a firm look on his face. Clearly not a leisurely visit.

"Ugh, what happened now?" he muttered, and Carlton shrugged. Without another word, Mike walked to the front door and opened it, then greeted Clay with the exact same, "What happened?"

"Someone broke into Freddy's Megaplex and tore up the place."

That one line was enough to knock Mike entirely speechless. He had absolutely no response, instead choosing to just step aside while holding the door open to let the man in.

"I'm taking it from that look it wasn't you," Clay said as he came in. "But there's reason to believe it comes back to Foxy's. Is there somewhere we can speak in private?"

Mike snapped out of his shock and gestured towards the Prize Corner door. "In here," he said as he led him inside. Carlton raised his brows after them before walking off to tell the others. Mike leaned back against the counter with his hands in his pockets, took a deep breath, and very bluntly and grimly asked, "Who was it?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," Clay said. Mike quirked a brow, solemn expression quickly receding.

"Wait, so you don't know who it was? Then why do you think they came from here? I know we have bad blood with Freddy's, but we're not the only ones and we've got the most to lose."

"I would agree, but they were wearing a mask that looked like Foxy's face."

Mike let it sink in a second before covering his eyes with one hand and muttering a colorful swear under his breath. He then drew his hand up across his forehead, through his hair, and then pointed with it at an upper shelf. "There they are."

The masks were rather simple and made of a sturdy plastic. There was currently only about ten of them hanging up, with a few Puppet masks and a majority Foxy. The Puppet ones tended to go a bit better, but they weren't nearly as popular as the toys and trinkets were. Clay looked up at them and immediately furrowed his brows.

"These are the only ones you have?" he asked. Mike nodded, and Clay shook his head. "It didn't look like these. I saw the footage myself, the mask had a rounder shape and looked to be made of felt. There wasn't this much detail either."

Clay wasn't looking at Mike, so he didn't see a slow realization pass the younger man's face. He knew exactly what mask he was describing and off the top if his head he couldn't remember who had it last, though he did know who had it first. That wasn't the only realization he had though as he picked up the older man's less than professional way of dropping information.

"This isn't like an official search, is it?" he asked.

"No, it isn't. It's just me trying to figure out what happened before it's out of my hands," Clay confessed. "And to give you heads up in case there is a full investigation."

"What gets the ball rolling on a full investigation?"

"Whether or not Fazbear Entertainment are looking to press charges," Clay said, and Mike hissed through his teeth. "Level with me, Mike. I don't have a search warrant and I'm not turning anyone in. Any idea who could've done this?"

"No clue. This whole thing is news to me," he insisted. Even though he did have a slight suspicion of a lead. Though before he could worry about being called out, a third voice suddenly joined in.

"He was with me all night," Marionette said. Both looked over to see the Puppet rising from his box, with only one of them knowing he was in it. He stood at full height, stance straight and controlled, and turned to Clay with his mask holding its default grin, save the slightest tilt to the eyes. He was always somewhat wary of Burke and this newfound accusation didn't help matters.

"What about you? Did you hear anything?" Clay asked.

"I have not. This is the first time I've heard of any break-in. If anyone said anything or acted suspicious, I would have noticed it, and I certainly wouldn't protect someone who was willing to make us a target," Marionette said firmly. He was believable but Mike recognized that edge of protectiveness in his voice. There was no way that the mask tip had gone over his head.

Clay considered this for a moment before giving a nod. "I trust your judgement. I'll still be asking the rest of the staff, see if any of them flinch under questioning," he said. He began to head out to find Fritz or Jeremy. "Are you coming?"

"I'll be there in a second. Let me just double-check my alibi really quick," Mike answered. Clay didn't take it seriously and continued out, with Marionette slipping out of his box to follow and peeking out the door to make sure he was gone.

He then promptly spun around and faced Mike with an expression of shock and horror.

"It was Foxy."

Either it was the look on Marionette's face or the dire way he said that, but something made Mike burst out with a barely stifled laugh. The Puppet's face fell with an unappreciative frown. "Mike, it's not funny."

"When you say it like that it is. You caught me off-guard," he retorted. He quickly got himself under control. "I think you're onto something with that being Foxy's mask, but I think if Clay was looking close enough to see the texture of it that he would've noticed it was Foxy wearing it. He's not exactly subtle. You've seen the way he walks."

"…Yes, that's true. Foxy could've been wearing a disguise, but it would be hard not to notice something… Especially when we're discussing Clay Burke," Marionette murmured that last part. Fingers tented, eyes cast down, and wariness showing.

"And unless I'm wrong, the last time I saw that mask was in Foxy's room." Mike's smile tightened as the wheels in his head turned to an uncomfortable possibility. "With Jeremy."

"Could Jeremy?" Marionette asked doubtfully.

"I don't know... No, he wouldn't, but I'm going to ask him when Clay's not haunting the place," he said. Honestly, he didn't think Jeremy would do anything like that. The only reason he even suspected him was the mask and because of Jeremy's relationship with Foxy. But as far as he knew, the mask could still be here at the pizzeria. He leaned in and muttered to Marionette, still looking out the door, "Probably Carlton. He has a history of break-ins."

Marionette chimed in strained, awkward laughter. Mike patted him on the back before heading out, with the Puppet following close behind him before taking his hand to accompany him.

The first thing they saw was the look on Fritz's face as he was talking with Clay. There went the last connections on those frayed nerves, they would be lucky if he didn't have a total breakdown. Marionette caught sight of Jeremy's expression, who was standing nearby. He was looking startled by it all, but he didn't have that look of guilt. Marionette leaned in and spoke in a hushed tone.

"I don't think it was him," he said. Mike stole a glance for himself and nodded in agreement. "And there IS a possibility that it wasn't any of us at all." The man looked sidelong at the puppet, who leaned in closer to whisper into his ear. "Fazbear Entertainment has their reputation for ruthlessness for a reason. One day after you turned down their offer and suddenly we're the prime suspect in a crime at their establishment? That is peculiar."

He had a very good point with that one. Enough of one that Mike was going to pass it on to Clay on his way out. Though as said as he had said it, Marionette noticed the drawn curtains on Foxy's stage. That worry and suspicion briefly welled up again before he pushed it down. Mike was right, they would've noticed Foxy on camera.

Clay went around and asked everyone what they knew and found similar shocked reactions to Mike's. He was a good read of people, and he was confident he could've spotted the smallest hint of guilt or fear, but nobody showed it. He headed into the kitchen to ask Tabby. The moment he was out of the room, the three owners and the puppet gathered into a small circle.

"Here comes that lawsuit we've been joking about," Fritz said through clenched teeth, watching the kitchen door. That's as far as he got before Clay came right back out, having got a brisk answer from the cook and being content with it. He looked over the small group momentarily before coming over himself.

"Alright then I'm going to get out of your hair. If you do hear anything then call me, please. I'm not looking for a suspect, I'm just trying to keep a close eye on the situation," Clay said a little more gently. This seemed to ease up Fritz and Mike's concerns a little, Jeremy still looked nervous, and Marionette had that blank smile.

"…What if this is a set-up by Freddy's? We were just down there yesterday rejecting a business deal," Mike asked.

"With Freddy's history, I'd rather that than someone sneaking in afterhours. If you catch my drift," Clay said. "If anyone over there coughs up to it, get it on tape and in my hands and you'll be fine. I'm not taking anything else from them." After a brief pause where he mulled this over, he asked, "What did you see in there?"

"The place is huge, the animatronics are in tanks, they've already got one they dumped," Mike listed off.

"I've got a free pass if you want it," Jeremy chimed up.

Clay sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. Even he looked fed up with all of this and he wasn't the only one. Though he still stayed and listened as the three recounted their semi-tour of the Pizzaplex in full. None of it went ignored either and he found the same little tidbits as they did to be concerning. It was clear that even the police force was wary of the return of Freddy's, at least from how Clay put it.

When they finished up, he started to make hid way out and only delayed so when he noticed Charlie out of her box and speaking to Carlton. They looked to him as he walked up.

"Afternoon, Charlie. How's life treating you?" he asked. There was always an amount of familiarity and concern in his voice when he addressed her over anyone else. She smiled a little despite the circumstances.

"Surviving. When it's not a supermall wiping you out of business it's something else. Like a paper plate shortage," she said. "…Or some guy who decided to advertise your business while committing a bunch of crimes."

"It really is a strange situation. Have you heard anything?" Clay asked. Then added, in what was obviously not seriousness, "If you come clean now, I might be able to arrange a plea with community service."

"You caught me, Clay. I fashioned a Foxy mask out of some curtains and wrote a list of complaints all over their furniture," Charlie said with an edge of snark. She then clarified, "This is the first I've heard of it, and you see how many tables are around my box. The news must've not spread yet."

"I'm thinking this is one of those things Freddy's won't want to get out," Carlton said. "How do you tell people that your security's so lousy that someone broke in before it even opened?"

"Add that to Freddy's history of accidents and disappearances and it's going to look bad. They're already trying to partner up just to make themselves look better," Charlie added.

"That is a very good point…" Clay seemed to get lost in thought for a moment. Charlie slightly tilted her head with a jingle, hoping he would take the message and voice his suspicions, but he didn't. "I'll let you know if I find out anything. Are you coming home after work?" The question was aimed towards his son, who he looked at.

"That's the plan," Carlton said.

"Good, I should be home and have dinner done by then."

"Aww, but Dad I wanted to eat the leftover pizza piled up in the trashcan," Carlton joked, leaning on the broom.

"You might have to fight Foxy for it," Charlie chimed in. She sent a look over to see if Foxy was looking out from his curtain, hoping it caught his attention. His curtain was still closed to an inch, and she dropped her arm with a defeated slump. She thought he would've been all over this, but maybe he was too aware of the possible repercussions.

"Don't give anyone a hard time," Clay reminded Carlton, unenthused by his joke but getting a slight smile. "And be careful driving home. There's a football game at the high school tonight."

Carlton agreed a little more seriously and walked his father to the door before returning to his sweeping as Clay headed out. Charlie sent him a last wave before turning her attention back to the closed curtain. Foxy still hadn't moved.

As soon as Clay's car could be heard driving off, Marionette hovered past Mike and started making a beeline towards the hallway. Saying nothing more than, "Office, now. Follow me."

"You're the boss," Mike answered. He wasn't going to argue with that tone. Fritz and Jeremy looked over, so he pointed at them and then pointed back at the wall with his thumbs, signaling them to follow.

They hastily did, not noticing Foxy peek out from behind his curtain as they headed into the hall and into the office. Charlie did but couldn't read much from it. As soon as the last one stepped through the office door, Fritz, Marionette shut the door behind him- as he had been squeezed behind the door when they came in and almost gave Fritz a start with the quick motion of it- and faced the three men.

"It wasn't any of us," Marionette said. Though it was more of a question than a statement and all three nodded. "Then that means it is either someone out there, someone with an affinity for the business, or someone looking to frame us."

"What do you mean, frame us?" Jeremy asked in confusion.

"He means using the possibility of a lawsuit as leverage," Mike pointed out. Fritz especially got a grim look at that and took a deep breath.

"Guess that means I'm calling Wight back," he said while releasing that breath slowly. He started around the desk to reach the phone. "Unless that's going to be some kind of admission of guilt."

"The mask he mentioned sounds an awful lot like Foxy's old mask," Marionette said grimly. This got a sudden look from Jeremy, but he noticed the unsureness of the puppet's face. "…That being said, as Mike has said, Clay must've been looking close at the footage. He would've had to have noticed if it was him."

"Yeah. Right. You would notice that…" Jeremy said with equal uncertainty. It was more that he wanted to believe it than he did, but just as quickly he started thinking about the entirety of the situation, and that's when he had an epiphany.

"Guys…" Jeremy said with a growing tone of dread. "They're going to think it was me." Mike and Fritz both looked at him with surprise and confusion. "I was wearing all that Foxy stuff yesterday, I left during your big talk, and I was getting in trouble for graffiti all the time as a kid. I got suspended two or three times getting caught 'vandalizing school property'." He paused for comment but the two remained awfully quiet. "…Why are you looking at me like that?"

"We're not," Mike swiftly denied. The blond continued looking between them questioningly. "…Okay, I'll admit that I did have a couple of minutes where I thought you might've done it, but I straightened myself out." The look on Jeremy's face was enough to make him feel guilty. "I'm sorry. You know I trust you," he said more sincerely.

"I know," Jeremy said. "…Was it because of my rap sheet or because I'm with Foxy?"

"Because you're with Foxy, I swear. You know I'd do the same thing for him," Mike said, gesturing to Marionette.

"I never doubted you for a second, Jere," Fritz announced as he found the paper with Wight's number and began to dial it in. "But only because I know you wouldn't have done anything that crazy without us." He then made a motion for the others to quiet as the phone rang through.

"Please put it on speaker," Marionette requested, which Fritz seamlessly did. The Puppet then lowered his voice to address the other two men. "Their hand is now better than ours. We will need to play carefully."

"Is it too late to fold?" Mike flatly asked.

"Y'know when you fold you lose everything, right?" Jeremy asked. There was a tinge of amusement, but still a lingering nervousness in his tone.

"Don't remind me," he muttered.

"Fazbear Entertainment, James Wight speaking."

"Heeey, James. It's me, Sam. A little birdie with a badge told me about what happened over at the Pizzaplex, and I wanted to check in and see what's up," Fritz said in the most charismatic tone he could manage.

"Why, thank you! Really is a terrible shame. Not any lasting damage though. Someone took a spray can to the main stage and Rockstar Row, but I believe it's been cleaned up by now. The bigger issue is finding how they might've gotten in. We couldn't find a single unlocked door to the outside! The fiend must've dropped in through the ceiling!"

"That's rough, but at least it was something you could just clean up. I heard vandalism and the first thing that came to mind was broken windows and a lot of glass." James laughed over the phone. "Mike's here too. He's on speaker."

"Hey."

"Ah, hello! How has it been?"

"Our usual 'get through one day before disaster strikes'," Mike answered.

"So- Okay, that's not the only reason we called. We heard- from this officer- that there was footage and that the person who did this… might've been wearing a Foxy mask. We didn't see it for ourselves-."

"It didn't even match the masks in our Prize Corner. Ours are plastic," Mike chimed in.

"-but this looks bad for us, and we wanted to call and tell you that it wasn't us. We were just discussing business yesterday, we're not going to then turn around and then attack your pizzeria," Fritz insisted.

"And if we did, we wouldn't be advertising our brand."

"Exactly!"

"Oh no, don't you worry about that! I find this all very suspicious too. Some of the things they wrote with paint were… disturbing, to say the least…" James' typically jovial tone dropped to a much more uneased one before adding in, "Don't be afraid of that. I was quite certain it wasn't you two."

That "you two" was caught by everyone in the room. The way he emphasized it meant it was impossible to ignore it and the implications he was suggesting. Maybe it was guilt from his position earlier or just his loyalty towards him, but Mike felt protectiveness towards Jeremy kick in. Though he knew directly bring it up would be suspicious. He had to go another route.

"It's a real shame. Anyway, since we've got you on the phone…" Mike began. He looked at Fritz as though double-checking with him. Fritz gave him the go ahead with a nod. Mike leaned on the desk and finished with, "Let's talk business."

"Really? Certainly! I didn't expect you to change your mind so quickly!"

"I didn't. We were just discussing the deal last night and we have a few questions we were hoping you could square up," Mike quickly corrected. "Is this a bad time?"

"Not at all! Go ahead, what would you like to know? Let me be your window to clarity!"

"Right, that," Mike said, getting a disinterested glaze to his eyes. "First thing's first, the rights to Foxy. We are under no circumstances ever handing over any rights to Foxy, Mari, Lottie, or any other characters. You got any problems with that?"

"Certainly not. El Chip's is the same way. Everything we do with El Chip goes through Glenn beforehand. We own no legal rights to El Chip's… That is, we do have a contract of ownership with the location. But if El Chip's decided to leave the Fazbear family, the restaurant would be immediately rebranded."

"That what happened to Bunny Bowl?" Mike blatantly asked. He got a wicked grin at James' following sputtering and Fritz's violent neck cutting motion.

"I- I assure you- I know what you're thinking and no, we never had any intention of using Bonnie the Bunny, if that's what you think. No, no, Bunny from Bunny Bowl- spelled with an 'i', that is- was an original rabbit character made after we realized we no longer had the rights. She has the spirit of Bonnie, but she's a fresh face for the Freddy gang!"

"But can she do the "Bunni" shuffle?" Mike asked coyly. This was enough to get Marionette to poke him sharply in the back and have Fritz overtake the conversation.

"Okay, so that sounds good. Us keeping our characters and rights I mean," he said. "My question would be: where would you put Foxy in the Pizzaplex? Just off the top of your head from what we've said, where would be the best spot?"

"Excellent question! I was thinking about it and remembered something Mr. Schmidt said. Kids Cove is truly the only ocean or beach themed attraction, and wouldn't you know it, but it is the only attraction that does not have a character mascot!"

That was suspicious. Suspicious enough that Fritz sent Mike a quirked brow, a silent "is he serious?" While Mike looked at Marionette and gestured at the phone is disbelief, a silent "are you hearing this?" Marionette's glare signaled that he did.

"Now it wouldn't require an animatronic, so don't you worry about that. I was thinking of something more subdued. Character cut-outs, posters, perhaps even a painted mural, and then we can have the merchandise cart set right outside the entrance. So that kids might get a Foxy on their way in and out of the play area."

"That's a good idea. That would be great for Foxy to get such a sizeable role," Fritz tentatively said, clearing his throat. "But we're thinking of something smaller to start out with."

"Way smaller," Mike added.

"I see. Well… Well, what about that merchandise cart idea? We could do that on a sort of trial basis and once you see the profits, you can decide on Foxy's role at the Pizzaplex. Better to try something simple than nothing at all!"

"That's a possibility. We'll have to crunch some numbers and see if it'll work for us," Fritz excused, trying to back out of the fake deal as fast as possible. "Give us a few days to talk it over with our guys and then we'll see what's what."

"Wonderful! Take all the time you need."

He sounded certain of that. Marionette noticed and a low noise was beginning to stir in his chest. A sort of humming rattle, like a mix of static and ticking. Nervous and frustrated most likely, and Mike reached back to put an arm around him.

"In the meantime, we'll be… having to take a closer look at our security," James admitted with a sigh. "We were hoping we could get by until all of the measures were online, but now there's some concerns about whether that will be enough. Automation is the wave of the future, but it is also in its infancy. We might need to get a human on-site until we're certain there won't be any more slips."

"Wait, do you mean like a security guard?" Fritz asked.

"Possibly. Likely."

Marionette instantly went rigid at that reveal and looked to Mike out the corner of his eye. He searched his face for any interest and noticed that brow edge again, but no instant draw in his eyes. No spontaneous reaction that showed he was about to pounce… but he was thinking. That motion was enough to show that, and Marionette could only imagine what he was thinking of, bringing the troubled line of his mouth into a worried frown.

A temptation like this didn't come every day, but usually when it did Mike was quick to snatch it. Except in this case, it was something much worse than a week at Hickory Dickory's or a weekend at Chipper's, and harder to resist. He was barely paying attention as Fritz finally went ahead with ending the call.

"Well, we're going to let you go. Hope that all goes well."

"Thank you! I'll be awaiting your next call!"

"Sure, bye." Fritz hung up before he could get dragged back into a conversation. He stared at the phone for a long moment before looking across at the dark-haired man. "…Mike, what just happened?"

"We saved ourselves from becoming a target. As long as Fazbear Entertainment thinks there's a chance of reeling us in, they won't throw us to the sharks," he answered before leaning in. "We didn't make any deals just yet. It's all just talking."

"That's like saying we're not drowning yet, we're just walking on thin ice," Fritz said dryly. It was then that Jeremy leaned in with a raised hand to flag their attention.

"What about him hiring a security guard? I'm pretty sure 'possibly' and 'likely' equal a yes," he said, then proceeded to look directly at Mike. As did everyone else at that second. Mike looked between them before getting a flat look.

"I appreciate the concern, but I'd have to be pretty stupid to try and take a job at Freddy's when the guy running the place already knows my face. I know I've got a bad track record, but I'm not that desperate to get myself almost killed."

"So, you're not going to try for the position?" Marionette asked in surprise.

"You sound disappointed," Mike offered with a quirked brow. To which the puppet's mask broke with a relieved smile.

"On the contrary, that's great to hear! You know I would follow you to the ends of the earth and I would always protect you, and I know you can protect yourself, but… Freddy's holds an amount of danger and uncertainty that I don't ever want you wrapped back up in. At least, not with any kind of binding employment contract," Marionette confessed. He rubbed his arm sheepishly, but his smile remained. "I want you here with me."

"Good, because that's the plan," Mike agreed, getting a smile of his own. "As much as I would love to do reconnaissance from the inside out, I'm not looking to get in that deep. I'll just burn the place down after it closes. Worked last time."

"Try not to say anything like that around Clay. It's a Freddy's, there's a good chance it will spontaneously burn down," Marionette reminded. His perking mood faltering slight with a sigh. "One can only hope."

"Looks like we're in for another round of bad news for Foxy… Let me break it to him alone. Even if it's not a real deal, he's going to think it is," Jeremy said. Nobody argued with that, though it was clear his confidence wasn't all there. "Where do I even start? If I say it first, he's not listening to the rest. If I wait to say it, he's going to take it the wrong way."

"Just tell him that the reason we're even pretending to go along with this is because you are the primary suspect, and if we don't play nice with Freddy's you will be the one who they target," Marionette said. His voice firmed up considerably. Jeremy nodded and started to head out the door.

"Back to thinking it was Foxy?" Mike asked lowly enough that he thought Jeremy wouldn't hear. The blond did in fact hear it and spun around at the door, and the two exchanged a brief stare.

"I can't be too sure. It's still possible that this might be a ruse from Fazbear Entertainment. The timing would be perfect with you turning down his first offer. But I can't ignore that mask, and I can't ignore how frustrated and helpless Foxy must feel about all of this…" Marionette said, voicing dipping in sympathy. Though it quickly slipped to suspicion. "I don't trust Mr. Wight. I can hear that he's covering up something."

"Other than about thirty murders?" Mike flatly asked.

"Yes. An accent," he answered. That was enough to silence Mike as fast as Clay had. While he processed what the puppet meant, Marionette looked back to Jeremy. "But please don't tell Foxy I suspect him, or that any of us do. He's having a hard time right now and if I am wrong, which I might be, it would break his heart a lot more than someone trying to set us up."

Jeremy felt his chest tighten at that and nodded. "I'm going to go do that," he said before heading out the door.

The office was left in an uncomfortable silence. All three occupants left deep in thought and none about the same thing.

"I hope he's not hinting what I think he's hinting," Mike thought. Still looking at Marionette who had his eyes down casted, probably worrying about Foxy. "…Maybe he's imagining it. I already told him James looks like Will, so maybe he got the idea in his head even before he got on the phone. It didn't sound like there was an accent to me."

"Of all the times we could've sent someone in to spy, this time we've got the perfect setup and for some reason we decided to all announce that we worked at Foxy's," Fritz lamented. Then added with more deflation, "Guess it doesn't really matter. It's Fazbear Entertainment, they probably have us all on record." There was another long pause where neither of the others commented, then he popped up from his seat. "Guess it's back to work."

Business as usual, really. The three left and returned to their closing procedures, expecting to get only a little done before Foxy made another run to the bathroom to start barking obscurities.

But Foxy was oddly silent and this time everyone noticed.

While Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex was largely self-sufficient, there were some things that required a human touch. Things such as the business aspect, the marketing side of things, the paperwork, most of that was down outside of the Pizzaplex itself in an office building located right on the edge of St. George. That wasn't to say there wouldn't be some office work happening in the Pizzaplex once it opened, but most of the managerial magic happened here.

This was also where the hiring happened. Typically, they were looking for IT workers, robotics technicians, but even on those fronts they had been cut back now that the Pizzaplex was about to open, leading to a wave of layoffs to cut back on any extra expenses. Except now they needed to hire on a security guard, something that by all accounts wasn't supposedly necessary with the numerous cameras and bots watching over the complex.

But he could get behind that. It only seemed necessary to have a few humans in there to oversee the place at night. Even if it was just one person. A person who he assumed would be something like a retired cop.

Not a young blond with bright eyes and a face of freckles.

By all accounts she was the worst pick for the job and the first candidate to show up, which surprisingly didn't do her any favors. Her inexperience didn't help either. Sure, she had a security guard job on record, but it was for a small company in the next town over. It was nothing compared to keeping an eye on the entire Pizzaplex on her own.

She had only one thing in her favor, but it was quite a doozy. She had a recommendation from a previous manager at a Freddy's establishment and, while Fazbear Entertainment prided themselves with being new and improved, this wasn't the first time they had bowed to previous employees to give them jobs or get references. That was the whole reason Charles, or Chaz as he went, had gotten a job regardless of his history with Freddy's.

Now the hiring manager did not recognize the name of the man who recommended her, but he had a Fazbear email and sent faxes of all sorts of paperwork. Either it was official or a very good forgery, to which he would lean towards the former. The woman was probably a friend or relative looking for what she thought was an easy job.

Technically, with that referral his hands were tied. He was stuck hiring her even against his better judgement. Yet he was still the slightest bit reluctant.

"So, Vanessa, what led you to applying for this position? It's a big job for one person and your work history in this field is… brief compared to other candidates," the interviewer asked. Of course, there hadn't been other candidates, but the only way he would be able to see anymore would be if he could convince her to not take the job. She seemed unbothered by his question.

"I've always loved Freddy's. Back when I was a kid, my family was struggling, and my only escape was going to Freddy's to play games and eat pizza and stuff. I loved it so much, but then Freddy's closed, and things got rough. I had to start working young to help out the family and I've been working ever since. I would love to work at Freddy's. I was planning on applying before, but this is the first job I'm qualified for."

"Right…" The interviewer glanced down at the paperwork again. "But you are aware of what the job entails. Your shift would cover from 11PM to 6AM and you will be expected to do routine rounds through most of the building. It's a much bigger undertaking compared to the job you listed on record."

"I understand that, but I'm in shape and I'm a night owl. I'll manage," Vanessa insisted. She gave him a smile that he returned in a less than convincing fashion.

"Plus, it will be afterhours. None of the attractions will be running and no shows will be playing. You would likely be sitting in silence for hours when you're not doing your rounds. It's not really the Freddy's experience you think it is."

"No problem. I was doing the same thing at my last job. The only difference was it occasionally got broken up by taking rowdy people outside. Watching a quiet building's going to be a lot less stressful."

She was utter determined it seemed, and he wasn't in a position to say no. Maybe he could send a message to Wight and talk him out of it, but right now his hands were tied. He supposed that worst case scenario, she did a poor job and they had to get someone else anyway. That wasn't really his problem. As long as he could get his doubts in writing, he wouldn't be liable if she screwed up.

He finally managed a more realistic smile. "Well, Vanessa, it looks like everything's checked out. I'll have to run it by the higher ups to make sure, but it looks like you're on your way to being part of the Fazbear family."

She barely restrained her excitement as they went through the last of the formalities before she left the building with her head held high. She got into her car and drove out of the parking lot, her smile never leaving her face.

In fact, it only grew more eager as she eventually pulled up into her driveway. She forced a normal face as much as she could and let herself in the front door.

"I'm home!" she called. She made her way into the kitchen area where her boyfriend and friends had been waiting for news. She managed a straight face until that moment when she smiled and gave a triumphant, "I got the job!"

"You did?! That's insane!" Fritz exclaimed. "Not saying I'm surprised, you're way more qualified than most the people they've hired. Including us." He pointed back at Mike, Jeremy, and Scott. None of which argued. "Just that- Wight didn't recognize you?"

"Wight didn't even see me. They had a completely different guy interview me and let me say, I don't think he had any faith in me," Natalie remarked. She smiled towards Scott. "I think Scott's referral is the only thing that sealed the deal."

"Yeah… Glad to help," Scott said. He wasn't looking great, slumped in the armchair with his hands gripping the armrests, voice sounding shaky. "…They didn't, uh, say anything about me, right?"

"Nothing. He didn't even question it," Natalie said, to which he breathed an exhale of partial relief. "But he was seriously questioning me. I wouldn't be surprised if he calls here just to talk me out of it."

"Congrats, Nat. You've finally joined the club," Mike said, coming in to shake her hand with a cocky little smile. Jeremy coming up as well to give her a one-armed hug.

"Thanks! It was worth selling out for the chance of an employee discount. Anybody needs anymore toys or candy? I'm your gal."

"You know it's going to be me and I'm going to use up that whole discount," Jeremy forewarned. "My children demand sun candy- and yes, they put it exactly like that when they asked me."

"Doesn't sound like an ask."

"It isn't."

"I'm really glad this worked out. I'll tell ya, I haven't used that work account since… gosh, it had to be before I left Freddy's. I barely even used it then," Scott explained. He still had that distant look like he was imagining the worst-case scenario of every outcome, which he probably was. Mike, sympathetic and knowing exactly how he felt, reached down, and squeezed his shoulder.

"Take it easy. They don't know where you live," he reminded.

"Uh, right. They don't..." Mike gave a final pat and drew back his hand to stick in his pocket. Scott stared ahead for a moment before pushing up from the armchair. "Well, I should get back to my emotional support clown."

"Are you sure? We're probably going out to celebrate. You're welcome to tag along," Fritz offered. Scott considered this for a second.

"Uh… Maybe. I've got to go home and change, I can't go out in this," he said, gesturing down to his button-down olive sweater, which was arguably the most formal thing being worn in that room. Not that they were going to fight him on it. "…You know, maybe I should come along. I don't want to just go home and hide. Just let me stop by the house, change my shirt, give Ennard and Baby a quick head's up, unplug my phone, and I'll meet you there. Call me about where?"

"On your cell?" Mike asked with a grin. Scott pointed at him as though confirming and headed towards the door.

"Thanks again, Scott. I really owe you one, and don't worry about a thing. I'm not going to say anything about you or any of us once I'm in there. My lips are sealed," Natalie reassured.

"Don't worry about it. Really, you're the first person I've ever recommended who I'd actually recommend. My last one was this guy named Patrick who kept stealing everything he could get his hands on. I felt bad for him, but he'd walk out of the pizzeria with five or six rolls of toilet paper shoved under his jacket. He didn't get laid off until he started emptying out the tip jar," Scott rambled as he made his way to the door, Mike following along with him. "…So, yeah. Call me."

Mike gave him a thumbs up and shut the door behind him. Back in the kitchen, the conversation had continued.

"So, in case they call, what name did you use?" Fritz asked.

"I gave them my cell only, so if they call on the house phone you don't know who I am," Natalie clarified. "And I'm going as Vanessa!"

"…Like Ness?" Jeremy asked in confusion.

"Right! I thought if I used the name of someone already working there, I'd get lost in the crowd. They'll never be sure if it's me or her," Natalie explained. Jeremy gave her a knowingly doubtful look. "…Okay, so I like the name and wanted to try it out. It'll be fine! She works in the gift shop, it's not like we're going to see each other."

"Watch, now that you said that you're going to be on gift shop duty," Fritz remarked. She sent him a look and a little smile.

"I'll make sure to ask when they call to give me my schedule," she said sarcastically. "I'll be going in at eleven and getting home probably around six-thirty, so it looks like we'll be sleeping in shifts."

At that moment something clicked

Fritz had known Natalie was going to do this. They all discussed it beforehand, she had volunteered, and they had all warned and tried to talk her out of it, but she had been adamant that she wanted to do this. Fritz had known well in advance what she was planning on doing and even initially celebrated her getting the job. It wasn't until hearing those hours that it suddenly registered that Natalie got a job at Freddy's.

Compared to Scott and Jeremy's experiences, Fritz's time at Freddy's had been rather tame. Sure, he had to change his name and had a few traumatic memories, but he didn't come out maimed. He handled life post-Freddy's pretty well. Yet the fear that suddenly gripped him when he realized he had let his Natalie get a job at Freddy's was unlike any he had felt before. It was sudden and ruthless, and he fell silent.

Natalie noticed his quietness after a minute. He kept a relatively neutral face so she couldn't see the true extent of his feelings, but she could tell something was bothering him. She slipped an arm around his lower back, catching his attention, and as he turned to her, she gave him a quick kiss and an assuring smile. He returned one, but she could see the nervousness in his eyes.

But that was okay, she decided, because she had already made up her mind.

It was time to put that exercise regimen to good use.

Chapter End Notes

Yes.

Chapter 9

Chapter Summary

Natalie's first night at the Pizzaplex is more eye-opening than she expects.

The day after the interview Natalie got a call confirming that she had gotten the job, and it was the day after that when she was to have her first shift. Both she and Fritz spent that day on the edge of their seats, with their goodbye before she left being a notably long one. She knew he was starting to get cold feet about the idea, but she had made up her mind. She kissed him before she left and wished he could’ve driven with her, but they couldn’t risk it.

She arrived at the Pizzaplex a few minutes before eleven to find the parking lot mostly empty except for a couple of cars. The Pizzaplex was alit like it was open though which made her feel a little less uncomfortable with how dark and foreboding everything was right outside the door. She hurried over and found the front door unlocked, letting herself into the lobby.

Right away, Natalie spotted a man who she assumed was waiting for her. He looked to be on the shorter side, perhaps even shorter than Jeremy, with a chubby build and soft brown hair. He was wearing a jumpsuit similar to the technician they saw during the tour, Chaz, and leaning on the turnstile while talking to someone around the corner. He looked up to see her and she waved at him, and he seemed surprised by her.

“She’s here,” she could hear him say to whoever was nearby before raising a hand in greeting. “Hey. Vanessa, right?” he greeted.

Though before she could answer, the second person stepped out from around the corner to reveal himself as Chaz himself, the technician who had seen her with Fritz, Mike, and Jeremy. She kept up her smile and still continued to walk over even though she was in a panic underneath it. She could just feel herself edging towards a nervous sweat, waiting for that look of familiarity.

“So, you’re the new night guard! I’m Chaz, that’s Stanley. How’s it going?” he greeted in a friendly fashion. He grabbed her hand in a bold shake and for a second it seemed like he didn’t recognize her. She had just started to dare relief when he suddenly stopped. “…Do I know you? I swear I’ve seen you before,” he said with more curiosity than suspicion.

“Nope! Not that I remember. Maybe you saw me somewhere?” Natalie asked, trying to keep her cool. He studied her for a moment longer before shrugging.

“Eh, maybe. But let’s get this show on the road. We’ve got an hour before this whole place locks down and that’s barely enough time to show you the ropes. C’mon.” He released her hand and motioned for her to follow him. Stanley followed from the back as he led her through the door under the Faz-Pad, then took a sharp left through a door, then through another into a compact office crammed with boxes of stuff.

It might’ve been a security office from the bunch of monitors on the desk, but it looked a little subdued compared to what she was expecting for a place this big. Her eyes snapped to the desk as she noticed him picking up a stack of folded clothes topped with a black hat branded with “Security” in bold, white letters. He handed it to her.

“Here’s your uniform. If you want to go over and change in the locker room, we’ll wait here,” Chaz suggested. He noticed her eyes briefly glance at the screens and got an amused smile. “Don’t worry, we’re not creeps. Him maybe, not me.”

“Don’t say that. She won’t know you’re joking,” Stanley grumbled. He sent her a tired look. “You’re good. We’ve got you covered.”

“Sure. I’ll be right back,” Natalie said. She believed them enough, but she still changed as far into the corner as she could. Scanning the room for cameras and not spotting any, so she felt a little more comfortable.

The uniform was pretty standard. Not purple like she was expecting, considering Mike’s old uniform and what Fritz said. The top was instead a simple black and gray with a Fazbear security logo on the breast and the pants were a simple black. There was also a belt provided that she put on, assuming they would provide her with a radio or a taser of some kind. They didn’t provide her with shoes, so she just put hers back on.

Finally, she slipped her ponytail through the hat and secured it on her head. The uniform fit fine, though that wasn’t a surprise since they had taken her measurement over the phone and provided her with the closest match. She left her clothes folded up on a bench and made her way back into the office. Both men looked over as she stepped in, and Chaz even whistled.

“Smoking,” he complimented.

“Quit that, I have a boyfriend,” Natalie said. She had a tinge of a joking smile, but it was clear from the sharpness that she actually meant it. Chaz got the message loud and clear.

“Sorry, my social skills went down the can once I started working here. You’re the first woman I’ve seen in, what, a month?” he asked Stanley like he would know. He just shrugged again, and Chaz turned away to grab what turned out to be a security badge off the desk and handed it over. “Put this on and we’ll get down to business.”

“Sounds good,” Natalie said and slipped it on her belt. She then watched attentively as Chaz clicked the mouse and turned on the computers.

“Just give me a second to pull this up… We’ve got a security clearance keycard too, but the system’s not up yet so don’t worry about it,” Chaz said. Regardless of this, Stanley fetched it off the desk and handed it over, which Vanessa slipped into her pants pocket. “Okay, come look at this.” She did, peering over Chaz’s shoulder to see what looked like a map on the screen.

“Here’s a map of the Pizzaplex. See those little boxes? Click on them and bam!” He clicked on one and a small window of a camera feed popped up. “That’s how you check the cameras. Now, this whole thing’s rigged up with the Staff Bots too, so if you see a red dot and hear an alert, that’s a Staff bot alerting to something. Check it on the cameras and hike over there to figure it out. I’d check first because these bots false flag.”

“A lot,” Stanley added in. Natalie looked to him and he sort of fumbled under her gaze, “We’re still fixing the bugs…”

“We’ve got a full-fledged infestation in here. They’re like cockroaches, nothing kills ‘em,” Chaz remarked. He pointed back to the screen, “Okay, okay, see this little icon over this room? Looks like a badge? Security room. Fit with monitors just like this one where you can get into the system. Now this isn’t the main security room, but you’re not gonna want to be up there. Place is huge and it’s a lot harder than managing this thing.”

“I think I’ve got it,” Natalie agreed. She squinted at the screen. “So, where do I make my rounds? Just circle the whole place?”

“Nah, I’d say… Just, like, every hour or two, do a circle around the atrium. Maybe hit each level, swing by the lobby, and then you can come back here and kill some time.” He suddenly pointed back at her. “Two things. One: don’t go into Monty Golf if Monty’s in there. Twp: if you go into the daycare and the lights are off, turn around and walk back out. Don’t go trying to get the lights on, don’t go poking around in there, just leave.”

“Should I even ask?” she asked.

“Don’t get him started,” Stanley quietly said.

“Yeah, yeah, look: there’s a twitchy bot in there who gets a lot twitchier when the lights are off. Lights are on? You’re good. Lights off? Get out of there,” Chaz clarified. “Monty’s just a loose cannon when you get a golf club in his hands.”

“What about the other ones? Like Freddy,” Natalie dared to ask. Chaz shook his head.

“Nah, they’re safe. The bots too. Any of the Staff Bots start giving you a hard time, show ‘em either your hat or your badge. They’ll recognize either of ‘em and clam up,” he said, much to her relief. Unlike the corporate talk of James, Chaz was much more forthright, so she had no reason to believe he was lying. “But make sure they stay in their green rooms. We don’t need any more wandering off and getting busted up.”

Natalie nodded in understanding. She wondered if that was the real reason, but then again, she did remember what James said about the scrapped bot. Didn’t seem like it needed much more explaining.

“Okay!” Chaz clapped his hands and got up from the chair. “I think that covers it- Oh! And if the place catches on fire, don’t go for the fire escape. Just go out the exit by the loading docks. Then split town.”

“Thanks for the tip,” Natalie said.

“Eh, don’t worry about it! Just covering bases,” Chaz said. “Last thing: when six comes around, go here and here to clock out. You can clock out on any of the security office computers, and it’ll get you out of the system. The doors will be unblocked, just lock ‘em on your way out. Nobody gets in here until about six-thirty, seven, but you don’t have to hang out here. Just get home and get some sleep. Think that covers it?”

“I think so.”

“Don’t worry, it’s not hard. Really,” Stanley assured. He managed a smile. “The hardest part is going to be staying awake.”

She returned the smile and proceeded to walk them out to the front door. Stanley headed out first while Chaz stopped to hand her a small ring of keys and a slip of paper.

“Here’s my number. I swear it’s not a come on, just call me if you need something,” he said. She agreed and he headed out the front with a final, “Good luck!” Stanley also waved and soon the two were walking off towards their cars.

Which meant Natalie was left alone in this massive building. For a second, she suddenly felt more nervousness return, but she shrugged it off and returned to the lost and found office. She hung around the office waiting for midnight to come and knowing it was the effective witching hour- also from what Fritz and the others had said. She managed to find a magazine someone left behind and started skimming through it.

Midnight came with unexpected silence. She was thinking maybe the dimmed lights would go off or there would be an alarm or something, but instead she ended up checking the clock and realizing it passed a few minutes ago. She quickly checked some of the lobby cameras before deciding to go do her rounds and check the place out. It wasn’t until she was out in the lobby and looked at the front doors that she realized the entrance had been sealed with a security door.

“Locked in,” she thought. It wasn’t an assuring thought in the slightest, but she pressed on with the rounds.

She walked along the second-floor walkway of the atrium with her flashlight in hand and took in the same sights she had seen a few days earlier. Walking past Roxy Raceway and looking down into Kid’s Cove. She decided to walk the upper floor on her next go-around and for now returned to the same office in the lobby. It just felt more comfortable being there instead of somewhere in here.

Except she was in for a surprise when she got back. As she opened the office door, Natalie heard a beeping from the computer and hustled over to look. “Here we go,” she murmured under her breath.

As luck would have it, there was a red beacon flashing in the daycare. She turned on the cameras and it was enormous, way bigger than she was thinking, but she couldn’t find the proper angle to look at what had tripped the alarm. From the actual map it seemed to be located near some stairs. Taking a deep breath and grabbing her flashlight again, she began to hike over.

The hallway before the daycare was the most unsettling place so far. It was darker than even the atrium and for some reason there seemed to be a chill in the air. In the distance she could hear music, as otherwise the hall was dead silent. Even devoid of the constant mall background music she had heard when she came for the tour. That too must’ve been an unfinished feature. She quickly made her way down to the garage-like entrance door. It opened automatically.

Natalie was immediately hit with light and a full blast of music as it opened. Unlike Chaz’s warnings, the daycare was completely alit, not even dimmed like the rooms outside. There was bouncy, goofy music playing over the speakers, which seemed inappropriate considering that the place wasn’t opened yet. At least it drained any amount of creepiness out.

She was also greeted with a tall golden statue that looked like the cartoon sun character she had seen on ads dotted around. Walking around it, she found a moon one behind it. Both of them didn’t look quite as cuddly as their cartoon counterparts, but that was probably because some genius decided to leave the details out on their eyes. Around them was a small sitting and locker area, and she continued forwards to peer into the daycare.

The room was an atrium in and of itself with its own walkway and other rooms branching out, but the main attraction was the absolutely enormous play area in the center. A totally padded enclosure with a full indoor playground of climbing tubes, slides, ball pits, and plush toys spread out amongst the floor. A large castle decal was on the wall with its own balcony too.

“Why couldn’t they have had this when I was a kid? I would’ve loved this,” Natalie said to herself, trying to break the weird tension in the room. She couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off, but she blamed that on Chaz. She looked towards a slide into the daycare and then down the walkway, deciding that the latter path was likely where the alarm came from.

Besides, she couldn’t slide in pants this stiff. Not to mention if she lost her badge, she would never find it. Or if someone saw footage of an adult woman wading through a ball pit, she would never live it down.

She kept her eyes peeled as she walked down the long stretch to the other side of the room, past doors leading into party rooms, which she only knew because of the ones with windows. At the end she found two sets of stairs leading into the lower level around the actual daycare. That was when she saw it, the source of the tripped alarm.

There was a robot laying on its side at the bottom of the steps, flailing its free arm around like it was signaling for help and making a warning noise.

Natalie hurried down the steps and got a closer look before noticing its cleaner mop, its position, its slightly dented side, and realizing that it must’ve fallen down the stairs. So much for having automated staff. Though this was her first time seeing one of the robots and while it was a little weird, she couldn’t deny that it was kind of cute. In a helpless sort of way.

“Alright, up you go,” she said. It was heavier than she expected, but she managed to hoist it back onto its wheels.

It made a confirmation noise, cutting off its wailing alarm as it fidgeted its arms as though righting itself. It then did a small circle before facing her directly, leaning in a little closer than she expected. It tilted its head as though looking her over and she realized that it was probably looking at her hat and badge like Chaz had said. Then it righted, made a waving gesture, and began to roll away into the daycare. Taking a sudden turn into some room underneath the stairs.

“Huh… Okay. Mission accomplished,” Natalie said. She looked around to make sure there was nothing else going on and then headed back upstairs.

She hoped this wasn’t going to be a common occurrence. Not that she didn’t appreciate a quick job, but if she was going to have to walk around and pick up bots all night then this was going to be a much different job than she was expecting. She let herself back through the little gate into the entrance area and took only a few steps before she noticed something out the corner of her eye and looked towards the slide.

There was something there that wasn’t there before: a smiling face.

A very familiar figure was laying inside the slide. Its sun shaped head propped up with its hands as it stared at her with stark white eyes. Its legs slightly bent behind it to rest on the top of the tube, but not having quite enough space.

It was the same animatronic from the statue and the posters, the sun-shaped one, and it was much more unsettling in person. Not just how in snuck up on her, but just its silent stare with that toothy grin. It was oozing the same off-ness that she felt just walking around this place. It left her utterly speechless, just staring back at it as though expecting it to do something.

Which it did. It removed one of its hands from its head, sun spines popping out where it had just been, and waggled its fingers at her in a wave. Still thoroughly alarmed by the whole thing, Natalie cautiously raised a hand and a brow.

“Uh… Hello,” she greeted awkwardly.

“Heeeelllloooo,~” it answered back. Then, while still drawing out the word, it lowered it legs and slid down the slide with a small twist. Its voice following as it disappeared down the slide before fading out.

She pursed her lips and listened to hear it dropping into the ball pit beneath the slide, and hastily left the daycare when it didn’t. She was just too thoroughly creeped out to stick around.

“Was that the Sun?” she mumbled to herself once outside the safety of the daycare security door. “But Wight said they scrapped it… But then Ness said it was still there. Why would he lie…?” Probably because it was twitchy, she guessed. She would run it by Fritz later, for now she was needed elsewhere and ready to be back in the safety of the office. She pulled open one of the double doors into the lobby.

An arm thrust through towards her.

Natalie yelped and immediately slammed the door back again, catching a metal arm in between them. She studied it with eyes wide and her head reared back before it suddenly clicked that it was the arm of one of those Staff Bots.

“Hi! Please take this map.”

Her brows scrunched together as she slowly leaned enough to peek through the crack in the door. There was another Staff Bot standing on the other side, though this one had a different design. It had a yellow chest with a black ‘i’ painted on it. It also had what looked like black glasses frames and a light gray hat. Upon seeing her face, it repeated itself.

“Take a map.”

She looked down its arm and, sure enough, there was a map clenched in its fingers. She slowly and cautiously opened the door and as soon as it was free it rolled in towards her. Stopping only a foot away with the map held out.

“Okay…?”

“Take a map.”

“Okay, okay!” She threw caution to the wind and reached out to grab the map away. “There. Thank you.”

“Thank you. Please enjoy.”

The Map Bot then turned itself around and began to roll into the lobby, its wheel riding the edge of the stairs- “No, no, not that close!”- before taking a sharp right and rolling to the elevators. They opened and it rolled inside, and Natalie breathed a sigh of relief before continuing to the lost and found.

She got to sit down and hang out for a while. About an hour later she went to do her rounds again, this time doing them on the upper floor of the atrium. She considered walking into Mazercise and seeing if it was like a normal gym. It had been about a few months since her last gym visit and while she was still fit and fine, instead exercising at home, it felt like something that could’ve helped pass the creeping time.

Same thing went for the bowling alley. It had been a while since she went with the guys or with Louise to bowl. Things had just been so hectic after they discovered the Pizzeria opening that nobody had been feeling like going out. She wondered briefly if she would get an employee discount before immediately recoiling at the idea of actually handing her paycheck back to Freddy’s. Never mind, they could bowl full price in town.

The evening was still creeping along as she made it back to the lost and found once more. By now she was starting to feel the effects of not having time to prepare for the night shift. She didn’t go to sleep too early, so she was moderately sure she was going to make it, but the hours of silence were not helping. She helped herself to some coffee up in the Faz-Pad and hoped nobody would notice.

After a cup of that, she went on her rounds again, this time on the first floor of the atrium. However, this time she decided to go a little further. If only to wake herself up but also to snoop around a little more. Not too much though. Not after seeing the Sun and being jumped by that Map Bot, and when she was already feeling sore and weary.

She did walk into Rockstar Row though. At least far enough to see the curtained enclosures of the animatronics. Sounded like there was music coming somewhere from the other side of the hall, but after the daycare had its music on, she wasn’t too concerned about it. She only lingered there for a few minutes before returning back out to the atrium and back to the lost and found office.

Soon Natalie collapsed back into the office chair and was pulling up the cameras to flip around again. It was the closest she had to television, and it filled the job she was supposed to be doing. Also allowed her to look beyond the touring zone without having to actually walk that far. She checked the daycare and saw what was probably the same bot mopping the floor and no sign of that sun bot.

Remembering earlier, she narrowed her eyes in suspicion and checked the cameras around the locker area. Turned out that they weren’t set to face into the locker space, so there was no way the technicians could’ve peeped at her. That was a relief. Not that they would’ve seen much, but it would’ve definitely annoyed her. She moved on to scan the lobby and then out into the atrium.

That was when she noticed something moving on the lower floor. It didn’t look like a Staff Bot, so she moved to a closer camera and her eyes popped open.

“Oh wow, that’s Freddy,” she mumbled. She leaned in closer while zooming the camera in as though to see better. Not that she needed to. She knew what she was looking at. “Yup. That is Freddy Fazbear himself walking around down there.”

Indeed he was, and he looked exactly like how he was portrayed in his statue and posters from what she could see. Even closer than the sun was. He was walking around outside the laser tag arena like he had just come from hallway his enclosure was in. In fact, it looked like he had followed her straight out and was looking for her. That was concerning.

…Well, that was one of the many concerning things she had seen this evening. This one had her drawing a blank though. Perhaps she should’ve been expecting the animatronics to come out and wander around after seeing that the sun wasn’t contained, and after being told they were supposed to stay in the enclosures, but now she was at a loss. Unsure whether she was supposed to just observe Freddy or go try to corral him.

Her knowledge of Freddy’s in mind, approaching a wandering animatronic seemed exceptionally dangerous, but part of her did at least consider getting a closer look. Then she would be on the cameras attempting to put him away before coming back to hide in the lost and found until the doors unlocked. Natalie sat there for a long moment before finally getting up from the chair.

By time she made it into atrium he had moved to the snack bar directly underneath her, which she could tell through his heavy footsteps. This angle made it impossible to see him unless she walked down one of the walkways or went down an escalator, and after some consideration she dared to do the latter. She got around the corner at the midway landing and then caught sight of Freddy.

Freddy was standing at one of the doors that led behind the snack bar with his head tilted forward. She couldn’t tell if he shut down or was trying to listen through it. He only did that for a few moments before starting to turn around, Natalie didn’t have time to run so she went completely still and hoped he would notice her. Alas, he caught sight and his eyes locked directly onto her. She braced herself to run.

“Hello, ma’am! I did not see you there.”

She hadn’t braced herself hard enough for that. Natalie started in partial surprise as Freddy jogged over to the bottom of the escalator and looked up at her.

“I have never seen you before,” Freddy said. He looked up at her hat and it clicked. “You must be the new security officer!”

“That’s me,” she was quick to agree. She wasn’t sure if this was the kind of situation where he might attack if he thought she was an intruder, but she had to admit that he seemed pretty friendly. Maybe a little too friendly, she considered.

“It is a pleasure to meet you,” he greeted. He started to come up the escalator and she considered stopping him, or making a run for it, but she was frozen and found him soon right in front of her. Standing a step down so they were almost at eye level. “Give me a moment to check your employee profile.”

“You don’t have to-.” Natalie was cut off by Freddy’s glowing eyes literally scanning over her face. She tightened her lips and stood through it. This must’ve been why they made her take a picture after getting hired on.

“Scanning completed. Your name is Vanessa! That is a very nice name,” Freddy greeted. Thankfully, he then took a step back to give her room. “I am Freddy Fazbear, the lead singer of the band and the face of Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex… Which I suppose is self-explanatory.”

“Yeah, I sort of picked that up when I recognized you,” Natalie said. She tried to joke but it came out feeling awkward, so she cleared her throat and was back to business. “What are you looking for?”

“Oh! I-I was just looking around. I thought I heard something over in Rockstar Row,” Freddy said. His eyes darted about a bit, almost like he was nervous.

“That was me. I just wanted to take a look in and make sure everything looked alright,” Natalie explained. The bear’s ears twitched a little lower.

“Oh. I see. Well, I am glad to have met you. I will return to my room now.” Freddy turned around and started to walk back towards Rockstar Row. His posture seemed a little slumped, like he was upset about something. It didn’t take her long to come to the assumption that maybe he just didn’t want to return to his room. After a moment of consideration, she stopped him.

“No, wait! I’m not going to make you go back to your room,” Natalie said. Freddy turned back towards her. “You can walk around and do whatever! Just don’t knock into any bots. I had to pick one up off the floor earlier.”

“Really?! Where was it?!” Freddy asked with renewed vigor. It almost caused her to step back, but she didn’t She definitely wasn’t getting danger vibes from him.

“Over in the daycare. It looked like it fell down the stairs.”

“Hmm… I should go check for myself… But it is against protocol for me to stay outside my room unless called for repairs or for rehearsal… Is it alright if I do?”

“Of course! Go right ahead. I’m not going to tell anyone,” she assured him. He seemed to perk up a bit, but she got a slight frown on her lips. “Are you always stuck in your room?”

“…We were not always, but… things have changed. It is safer for us to stay where we belong,” Freddy said. There was something he wasn’t saying, she could tell, but before she could ask, he perked back up. “But once the Pizzaplex is open, we will be free to walk around the Pizzaplex and entertain guests. I am very excited!”

“I can imagine,” she said with a small smile. “If you want, you can come with me, and I’ll walk you over there. I’m heading back in that direction anyway.”

“I would be happy to have you escort me to the daycare! But only if it is not a bother…”

“It’s no trouble. Come on,” Natalie said. She turned and headed back up the escalator with Freddy following behind.

In honestly, it was less about comfort or duty and more about reluctance to let him wander alone and an insatiable curiosity to why he was walking at all. Though she definitely didn’t feel comfortable enough to ask him directly why he was. She learned a long time ago that not all animatronics were capable or comfortable of talking about their creation. If he started freaking out or rejecting his own wiring, she wouldn’t be able to fix it. That was a quick way to get fired.

Though by time they were approaching the elevator, she realized she was going to have to say something. Freddy let her press the button and stood across from her as they rode down. He was looking at her with curiosity, but between his height and stature he was a little intimidating. She still managed to find her voice.

“Sooo how long have you been here? At the Pizzaplex, I mean.”

“I am not sure. There have been times when I have been shut down for maintenance and do not know how much time passes, but I do remember when much of the Pizzaplex was still unfinished. So much has changed since then! It is a little overwhelming,” Freddy said. It kind of answered her question. “What about you? Have you worked with Fazbear Entertainment long?”

“New. I’ve never worked at a Freddy’s before,” Natalie quickly denied.

“Well, I hope you stay! I think it is a good idea to have a security guard in case of an emergency,” he said. The elevator was slowing to a stop, but before it could Natalie had a thought.

“So, are any of the others out?” she asked quietly so nobody could overhear.

“No. They were still in their rooms when I left. They were not as curious as I was,” Freddy said, which was a relief. The doors opened and they stepped out into the lobby.

 “Okay, so the daycare’s down there. I can walk you over there if you want,” Natalie offered.

“Th-That will not be necessary. Thank you for letting me come out. I promise if I see anyone, I will tell you right away,” Freddy assured. The beginning part sounded rushed like he was hiding something. She considered questioning it before noticing that Freddy was silently staring at her for a little too long.

“No problem. Just do me a favor and pick up any bots you find tipped over,” she answered. “…Need anything else?”

“Can I ask you something?” Freddy asked. It felt like a weird question after they had been talking for so long. Apparently, he thought so too as he didn’t wait for an answer. “I know they are our competitors, but… have you heard of Foxy’s? The Foxy the Pirate themed pizzeria outside of the Pizzaplex?”

It took all of her control to show no reaction. “Sure, I have. How do you know about it?”

“I think I may have heard a technician talking about it. They have very advanced animatronic intelligence,” Freddy explained. “Do you know if there is a Foxy animatronic entertainer there?”

“I’d guess so. Not that I’ve seen him but probably,” Natalie said, voice growing increasingly halting. “Why…?”

“I was just wondering. I heard of him and just… was wondering if you knew. It is also no problem,” he said. “I will get going now. Maybe I will see you again?”

“Sure you will. I’m going to be working here from now on. We’re bound to run into each other,” she kindly said. Even managing a smile even though there was an increasing franticness under the façade. That question about Foxy’s totally threw her off and she couldn’t help but make a quick escape back to the lost and found.

At first Natalie had been suspicious and borderline panicked that she had somehow been found out, but by time she made it to the lost and found she realized that Freddy’s questions were probably brought on by the break-in. It was still concerning that Foxy’s was brought into the conversation when talking about the crime, but it was expected.

This was all just weird enough that she got her cellphone out of her pocket and went to call Fritz, sure he was still awake. To her surprise the call didn’t go through. She checked her phone to see why. No cell service, weirdly enough. Maybe it was the levels and layers of cement above the office. She returned to the cameras and flipped to the daycare to watch for Freddy.

Freddy walked all the way back to the daycare stairs and ended up finding the mop bot who Natalie had picked up cleaning the floor in front of the daycare’s massive doors. He looked it over before going under the stairs. From the angle of the camera, Natalie could see two bathrooms underneath, and she watched as he went into them one at a time. Judging by the length of time he spent in them, he was searching them.

“What are you looking for?” Natalie murmured as she looked closer at the bear. Then it suddenly clicked. “…He’s looking for the vandal.”

That had to be it. The way he was searching, the interest he showed after she mentioned an alarm went off, asking about Foxy’s- he had been asking because of the mask. He was aware of and looking for the vandal. Though what he intended to do when he found them was a mystery. A switch could flip, and he could suddenly become something terrifying and violent, but in this state it was hard to imagine the gentle sounding bear being that way. Though looks could be deceiving.

She continued to watch him as he left the bathrooms and, after looking around the room for a long moment, and then staring at the daycare doors for a long moment, suddenly took a sharp turn and walked into what looked like a gift shop. She continued watching him for a little longer before switching cameras to check the lobby and atrium. Him searching so feverishly left her paranoid that someone really was in here, but there was no sign of anyone.

Except the map bot looping around the second floor of the atrium. At least there were plenty of railings to corral it in.

Natalie returned to the daycare cameras and found that Freddy was now standing in front of the large wooden doors which were opened a little. Zooming in the camera, she could see the sun’s face through that slender gap. It was up higher than she would’ve ever hoped it to be. Freddy’s mouth was moving so he was probably asking it about what happened, which was somewhat confirmed by a long arm reaching out and pointing directly to where the bot had been picked up.

The conversation was wrapped up pretty quickly, ending with Freddy walking back to the stairs and the sun quickly shutting the door once more. Natalie was able to easily track the bear’s movement as he returned to the lobby.

She considered going out to see him when he was passing through the lobby, but then decided against it, still feeling a little wary. He didn’t come looking for her, instead taking the long walk back to his green room.

It was precisely when Freddy returned to Rockstar Row that Natalie began to crash again. This time it was much worse too. Coffee wasn’t helping and she hadn’t brought in any money to buy a soda with. She got up and paced a little and did another set of rounds, even walking back towards the daycare in the hopes of getting her blood pumping. It wasn’t helping, but at this point it wasn’t too long until six crept up.

Ten minutes before the hour hit, even if she wasn’t supposed to, she changed out of her uniform and into her normal clothes in preparation to leave. She then propped her head up with her arm and tried not to fall asleep as she watched the numbers ticking to morning. If she had been prepared, she would’ve done one last check of the building, but she was too tired to consider it. She didn’t have the strength to pick up even one more robot.

As soon as six came, she clocked out like Chaz showed her to and headed out to the lobby. Thankfully, the security doors were sliding open as she was making her way there, and she let herself out and locked the door behind her using a key from the small keyring she had been given. Soon she was in her car and driving home, and by some blessing she was able to stay awake the whole trip.

The house was dark as Natalie unlocked and pushed the front door open. By now Fritz had to be asleep, no doubt because he stayed up half the night with worry. She quietly shut the door back and made her way through the house and into the bathroom. She had left her nightclothes in there with the intention of taking a shower when she got home. Now that she was here, she didn’t really feel like it, but got in anyway.

She dropped her clothes in a pile against the wall- she would deal with them tomorrow. Same with her uniform, left folded up and abandoned on the dining room table. Right now, she just wanted to get in and out and into bed as fast as possible. She stepped under the warm spray and shuddered at the heat, like it wasn’t entirely expected. She tilted her head forward and allowed it to soak her hair.

Through the water, Natalie detected the sound of footsteps, and she raised her head to listen. The ordeal of the night left her a little paranoid, but it didn’t take long to recognize that it was Fritz.

“Natalie?” he called in. His voice was a little groggy which gave away that he just woke up.

“Yar, guess again, Landlubber,” Natalie said in a fake Foxy voice. She gave a light chuckle before sighing. “I’m so tired, Hun, I can’t even think.”

“I know how you feel,” he sympathized. She knew he did, he probably went through the same thing whenever he was stuck doing the night shift. “Do you need anything?”

“I’m good. Go back to bed, I’ll be there as soon as I’m out,” Natalie assured, rubbing at her face to try and rouse enough to finish washing. She noticed he hadn’t left but didn’t say anything about it. He was probably just worried about her.

She fumbled around for the shampoo and squirted a glob into her hand before she noticed Fritz moving around outside the curtain. Sounded like he was moving clothes around and she began to massage the shampoo into her scalp. She didn’t get very far into it when the curtain partially drew aside and Fritz stepped into the shower behind her.

Natalie immediately turned to face him and dropped her arms to her sides and her head onto his shoulder. He wrapped his arms comfortingly around her.

“I’ve got you,” he said, his voice low and warm. He began to run his fingers through her hair and work the shampoo into it further before gently combing it out. It was so soothing that it was a wonder she didn’t fall asleep then.

It was almost like she had to be woken up just to get out and dried off, but soon she was in her night clothes and into the bedroom. She didn’t check the clock, but she wouldn’t have been surprised if sunrise was any minute now. With her last moments of consciousness, she spread the towel over her pillow and then flopped into bed. She was almost asleep by time Fritz laid down and put his arm around her, nudging his forehead against her damp bangs.

He hadn’t even asked about her night, but that didn’t mean he didn’t stay awake thinking about it. There was always tomorrow.

…When she would be going back.

Chapter 10

Chapter Notes

Okay, so I'm thinking of changing my schedule a little. Normally I post around 6PM my time on Wednesday, but next week I was thinking of aiming a little earlier. Maybe 4PM or 4:30PM. What do you think? I would love to hear your thoughts! Enjoy!

Natalie woke briefly when Fritz got up for work and then fell back asleep almost immediately. She barely acknowledged him kissing her on the forehead by giving him a muffled, "Love you," before drifting right back off.

The next thing she remembered was waking up to her cellphone ringing. She didn't even remember bringing it into the bedroom and knew Fritz must've and rolled over to reach for it. She briefly noticed the alarm clock reading two-forty-eight through blurry eyes and hissed before clearing her throat and answering her phone.

"Hello?" she tried to sound as awake as possible.

"Hello! I'm Kayla Stringer with Fazbear Entertainment. Am I speaking to Vanessa Smith?"

That woke her up right away. "Yes, this is she. What do you need?"

"I was just going over your paperwork and it seems that you never filled out your on-site liability packet. If you could just come by the office and fill it out today, that would be wonderful."

"Sure! No problem! Just… Give me a few minutes to get ready and I'll be there," Natalie agreed before even thinking about it. They said quick goodbyes and ended the call, and only then did she have a moment to think about it. She gave the idea of a 'liability packet' the same reaction as the alarm clock and got up to get ready.

Once she was somewhat presentable and while she made some toast to eat on the way there, she made a quick call to Fritz. He answered with a simple, "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."

"Hey! I didn't expect you to be up so soon. How's it going, Sleepyhead?"

"Was going great until Fazbear Entertainment called and told me to come over and sign more paperwork. I shouldn't be there too long, then I'll be in."

"More paperwork? Did they say what kind?" he asked with a tinge of suspicion.

"The 'liability' package."

"Right... Kind of shocked they didn't make you sign a stack of wavers already." That suspicion was quickly replaced with an exhausted understanding. "…When you say be in, you mean coming here? To Foxy's?" She confirmed that. "Nat, you don't have to come in! You had a big night last night. Why don't you stay home today? You can swing by once we close and tell us how it went."

"Hmm… Maybe. I'll think about it," she replied. Her toast popped and she quickly pulled them out and dropped them on a plate. "Alright, food's done so I'm heading out! Don't push yourself too hard today either."

"I won't. Love you."

"Love you too," she finished before ending the call. She appreciated Fritz's concern, but she was still planning on heading after there once she was done. Whether she was going to come home and change into uniform first was undecided.

After a short drive into St. George, Natalie was back at the same office building she was hired at. She gave her name at the front and was sent up to the third floor, which was largely comprised of cubicles and offices from the looks of it. She had been on the first floor when she interviewed so this was a semi-new experience. Though with how much new technology was spouted in the Pizzaplex, she was surprised how standard this building was. No keycards or anything.

Kayla was a rather nice woman. Quick to business matters and not very chatty but gave the impression that she could've been a warm person when not on the clock. Natalie sat in her office for about fifteen minutes signing her signature on sheet after sheet of paper listing out how Fazbear Entertainment was not liable for incidents involved in her job description. She scanned through it closely and couldn't find anything too suspect hidden within.

Fritz had mentioned distinctly signing a paper that had discreetly suggested that Fazbear Entertainment had the right to clean up after any accidents and before medical attention arrived. She couldn't find that one here, but apparently if she was shot by an armed intruder, she wasn't going to be able to sue them for security failures that allowed for him to get in.

Once she was done, she shook Kayla's hand and left, intending to return to the elevator and leave the building. What she didn't expect was to find two people waiting not too far outside the door.

"You're the new hire, right?" one of the men asked. He looked to be in his thirties with short-cut dark hair and a crisp white button up shirt. He offered his hand and a smile, "Aiden Jackson. Welcome to Fazbear's!"

"Hey! I'm Vanessa," Natalie returned and shook his hand.

"And I'm Luis," the second man greeted. He was dressed like Aiden, though his hair was longer and looser, and his tanned skin wasn't as dark as his. He also seemed closer to her age. "How's it going?"

"Good so far! I just had to come in and finish some paperwork," she said. Not about to mention to them what she had seen the night before.

"Not surprised. I work in IT and these last two weeks I've been doing more work on paper than on the computer. Not what you'd expect when we've got the grand opening coming up," Aiden remarked. Before Natalie could ask when that was, she lost her chance when he continued. "You're the second Vanessa we've got working here. At first I was thinking she got transferred."

"I think someone mentioned her. She works in the gift shop, right?" Natalie asked. There was no need to get nervous yet.

"No, she works in the IT department. I think she's over in her cubicle right now," Luis said. "Let me go see if she's free. She'd love to meet you."

How quickly that nervousness kicked in after that. Natalie watched Luis start to walk off, as did Aiden, and knew she had to make a quick escape. She wasn't sure if this was the same girl from the gift shop, but she didn't want to risk it.

She looked around for a clock and the fake hissed when she saw one. "Sorry to cut this short, but I have an appointment soon and I want enough time to get home and recover before work," she excused. Aiden didn't seem bothered.

"Don't worry about it. It could take a while for him to get back," Aiden said with a knowing little smirk. One that dissolved quickly afterwards. "…But everything went okay for you down at the Pizzaplex? You started last night, right?"

"I did. It seemed to go okay, but I'm going to need to start bringing in change with me," Natalie said dismissively. "…Why? Did someone say anything?"

"Eh, Chaz talks. Not about you, but about the Pizzaplex. We've been having a lot of glitches that we've been trying to work out- Don't worry about it. It's more getting all the automated services up and running," Aiden explained. It wouldn't sounded convincing if she wasn't already aware of how lively Freddy was. Yet she kept her lips sealed on that matter. She couldn't push her luck in this building. "Hope it's a little easier tonight."

"Same. It's just one of those things you have to break into. Like jetlag," Natalie said. She then dismissed herself and began to head back towards the elevator. She thought for a moment that she was let off the hook.

Until Luis came around the corner-.

"Found her. Vanessa S. meet Vanessa A.," he introduced with a friendly smile.

All things considered; Natalie managed a pretty good poker face. Ness did not. Not only was it the same girl from the gift shop, but the moment she saw Vanessa her eyes widened like she was under a spotlight. With that sort of reaction, Natalie would've never expected that she would then proceed to play along.

"Oh, h-hey. I'm Ness. Vanessa, but everyone just calls me Ness," Ness introduced with a small smile. She held a handout a hand which Natalie shook, the tenseness as thick as a block of wood. "You just got hired on?"

"That's right. I'm working as a security guard… for the Pizzaplex," Natalie clarified, clearing her throat halfway through. There was an uncomfortable pause with Luis standing there watching them with an oblivious smile.

"I should get-."

"So, I have a-."

Natalie and Ness then proceeded to talk over their excuses to leave the conversation. That clammed up Ness quickly, but Natalie coaxed her with a simple, "Sorry. Go ahead."

"I was just, uh, saying that I'm in the middle of something and I haven't saved but it was nice to meet you and we'll see each other around," the brunette rushed out. This finally caught the interest from Luis and Ness was quick to tack on, "My computer's died twice already. I'm just waiting for it to shut off and delete everything."

"Oh geez. What do you think's causing that?" Luis asked. Ness, who had already been established as working in IT, hesitated before giving a silent shrug. "We'll let you get back to that, but I could take a look at it later if you'd like. Maybe see what I can do."

"Sure. That would be great," Ness answered. She said a quick goodbye in Natalie's direction and was on her way speed walking back into the cubicles.

"She's a little shy, but she's really a sweetheart," Luis assured. A small but adoring smile settling on his lips as he looked after her. Natalie's lips were tight as she tried to not look as suspicious as she felt.

"I understand. I have a sister who's the same way. I have to get going anyways," Natalie said. She gave Luis a friendly smile and strode past. "I'll see you around."

"Okay! Good luck tonight!" Luis returned. Thankfully, Ness went in the same direction as the elevators, so it looked like Natalie was leaving in the right direction before he turned away. Then she quickly disappeared into the cubicles.

It didn't take too long to find Ness sitting at one of the many desks. Her cubicle didn't look much different from any of the others, save that there was what looked to be a Pizzaplex calendar tacked up and showing a picture of Glamrock Chica poised with her guitar. There were two bobble heads Bonnie and Chica beside the computer. From their design, they were probably vintage merchandise from the old business.

As soon as Natalie walked up, Ness looked up at her, already half turned towards in her office chair. This led to yet another awkward silence until the blond found her words.

"I thought you worked at the gift shop," Natalie finally said, awkwardly, guiltily.

"I don't. I was just- I was doing a favor for… for Mr. Wight," Ness answered.

"It's not what you think," Natalie continued. She knew Ness knew who she was, so there was no point in lying or playing dumb. "I know this looks bad, but I'm not here to sabotage the Pizzaplex or anything. I'm just- It's a long story."

"I didn't think that. I'm… not really sure what I though. You just kinda surprised me," Ness admitted with a little smile. She kept her voice low too. "But what are you doing here? Is this about that guy wearing the Foxy mask?"

"That's most of it. For starters: that wasn't us. We don't know who that was, but the police have already been snooping around asking about him. That's why I'm here, to try and find out what's really going on," Natalie explained. She sent a quick glance around to make sure there was no one by to hear. "We think maybe we were set up."

"I know! That did sound weird! When I heard about the footage and that it happened right after you were here, I thought: "Something's rotten in the state of Denmark". And you know what it smelled like? It smelled fishy," Ness agreed quietly. She wrung her hands in her lap and kept her perked voice hushed. "Sooo, you're going to try and catch them in the act?"

"That's half of the plan. The other half, if this is a setup, is to maybe get someone confessing to it on tape… I know, it sounds crazy, but this whole thing is crazy. You should've seen some of the stuff I saw last night," Natalie mumbled. Ness looked up at her with curious eyes and the blond quickly underplayed it with, "I had a bot that kept falling down the stairs."

"Oh, they can do that. If their pathfinding's off, yes," the brunette agreed. She fell back into silence.

After a few seconds of nothing, Natalie asked, "Can you keep this between us? I don't want you to have to put your job on the line-."

"I will." Ness didn't even hesitate, and Natalie arched a brow questioningly. "Things… around here aren't perfect. There's a lot of things they're hiding and I just… can't help them with that. I don't want this job that bad. I'd quit, but I can't."

"Thank you," she replied with a relieved smile and almost an exhale of relief. "I promise, nobody's going to know that you know. If they find me out, I won't throw you under the bus. I owe you big time."

"How much?" Ness asked. She got a playful little grin. "Enough to get a Foxy shirt? Or a stuffie?"

"I think that can be arranged."

As assuring as it all seemed, by time Natalie got into the car she began to feel uneasy again. She didn't think Ness was going to tell. From her motions and comments about Freddy's, she didn't seem to hold that much loyalty to them. It was more the fear that someone else heard. Or that someone would see her on camera and ask Ness, in which case she seemed meek enough to crack under the pressure of questioning.

She tried to shake the thoughts as she drove back into Hurricane and straight to Foxy's. Nobody would care if she came in without her uniform once, especially since the 'uniform' was a pretty loose concept to begin with.

She walked in to find a moderately busy day. Foxy was standing in the dining room surrounded by a small crowd of kids while Marionette was on his stage in the arcade. She couldn't see where Fritz was, but she could see Mike fiddling with the trash can beside the kitchen and Louise standing in the kitchen doorway.

"You're looking a lot better than I was expecting," a voice spoke up from her side. Natalie looked over to see Charlie's box opening a few inches and her peeking out. "…Wait, that came out wrong. I'm sorry."

"No, I get it. You didn't think I'd be conscious," Natalie said. The Security Puppet got a crooked, little half-smile. "Believe me when I say it took a lot of sleep to get to this point."

"But you're feeling alright?" Charlie asked. The blond nodded. "Good! That's great."

"Thanks. Did you see where Fritz went off to?" she asked, pointing towards the hallway. Charlie slid an arm out to point in the same direction.

"Office. We just got a call, and he went in there to take it. Don't worry, I don't think it was about Freddy's or anything," she explained. Natalie nodded and was about to dismiss herself by walking off when the younger woman continued. "Speaking of Freddy's- about how it went last night, Fritz didn't say anything…?"

"I haven't told him yet. Don't worry, as soon as we hit closing, I'm going to tell everyone at once. It's going to be a lot to unpack," Natalie confessed with a sigh. "We might be looking at another haywire."

"…Foxy or Fritz's?"

"…Maybe Freddy Fazbear's."

At that comment, Charlie's eyes widened as though her brows were raising with nothing more than a tiny jingle and an, "Oh."

"Yeah, it's one of those situations… Again." Another sigh and she continued off, giving Charlie a brief wave.

The puppet returned one in a small, silent wishing of good luck before opening her box all the way to welcome some patrons who were about to enter through the front door. To stall them until Jeremy, who was over with the Minireenas, could come over and help them if they needed assistance.

Natalie stole a glance over at Foxy standing in the middle of the dining room only to notice he was looking at her. Caught on the spot, he quickly raised a hook in greeting and she smiled and waved back. He quickly looked back to the children as she turned forward once more, crossing the rest of the dining room and coming up on whatever was happening outside the kitchen door.

It looked like Mike was scrubbing a sludgy mess of dissolved cake and melted ice cream off of the trashcan and the wall behind the trash can, and where it was oozing between them. Natalie wrinkled her nose a little.

"What happened?" she dared to ask.

"Oh, hey. Didn't think you were coming in so soon," Mike greeted, briefly glancing to her as he pulled another paper towel off. "And this? This is the reason we don't let people bus their own tables."

"Poor kid really wanted to help out. Totally missed the trash. Splat! Right into the wall," Louise tsked with a shake of her head. She then held up her hands. "I'd do it, but my nails are wet."

"Funny how your nails are usually wet during service," Mike said under his breath.

"Because my paint chips whenever I help Mom with the dishes, and I can't walk around like that. People might talk," she said in a faux-pouting tone. Making sure to add a little wink towards Natalie. Though she was probably being honest.

"Let me go check in with Fritz and then I can help," Natalie offered.

"Thanks, but this is almost done. Don't worry about it," he assured. It really was a one-person job, and it wasn't going to be much of one after a few more wipes.

Natalie continued on into the office where she found Fritz with his back to her leaning over the desk. He had the phone in one hand and was writing something down with the other. She shut the door behind her and waited for him to finish.

"We can have both. One of them might have to step away depending on how busy it gets, but Foxy and Mari would both be happy to visit the birthday boy… No, no extra charge, but you'll probably want a sheet cake with that many kids… Sure!"

It sounded like he was getting the details for a party and if his wording was any indication, probably one on the larger scale. That would probably raise everyone's spirits after Natalie was forced to bring them down. The call didn't last too much longer and as soon as he finished up, while he was still writing down the details and before he could turn around, she slipped in to hug him from behind.

He must've been expecting someone else because he jumped at first, but then reached back to hook an arm around her.

"So, you decided to stop in early? That can't be a bad sign," he lightly joked. "How'd it go?"

"I met some of my new co-workers. They were pretty nice!... Including Ness, who was there and recognized me."

"…You mean the gift shop girl?" Fritz asked incredulously.

"The IT girl who was temping in the gift shop," Natalie clarified. He was silently letting that sink in, so she was quick to add on, "But she said she wasn't going to tell anyone and for some reason I believe her. She doesn't seem very happy working there and I explained the whole situation with the possibility of us being blackmailed. I don't know, I just don't think she's going to be a problem."

"I'll take your word for it. Chances are Fazbear Entertainment's still making enemies with its employees," Fritz agreed. He turned to Natalie and put an arm around her. "How was last night?"

There were still a few hours until service was over, and she could tell the others what she had seen and she didn't want to leave him in suspense for that long, so she went ahead and told him everything up front. Then stayed with him in the office when he needed a minute to sit down and mull it over. The reaction was about what she expected- maybe a little tamer than what she was worried about.

Eventually they got back out and returned to work, in Fritz's case, or joined in on work, in Natalie's case. The rest of the day went relatively quickly and thankfully nobody prodded her for answers on what she had seen. In fact. Mike and Marionette's silence especially surprised her. Foxy's made sense- he had a way of shutting down all outside influences to submerge himself in the Captain Foxy character- but Mike wasn't nearly so coy, and Marionette had moments free.

It wasn't until the front doors were locked and the curtains were drawn that everyone suddenly stopped what they were doing and migrated into the center of the room. It was like Natalie turned around and suddenly they were all front and center- save Louise and Carlton who were cleaning off a table nearby. She sat down at the table closest to the stage and the others followed suit.

Mike and Marionette sat across from her while Charlie was at the end beside her. Jeremy sat at the other end with his chair scooted back enough to hold two Minireenas in his lap while Foxy sat on the stage. Fritz, naturally, sat at her side with a look that gave away how much he already knew.

Jeremy broke the semi-silence. "So, what did you see?" he asked.

"Where do I even begin?" Natalie answered, leaning back in her seat.

"Begin at the beginning, go on til ya reach the end, then stop," Foxy clarified. She almost sent him a look at that but didn't know which she would send.

"Let's see... I suppose I could start with the earth-shattering shocker halfway through the night, but instead I'm going to take you on a journey. The same journey I experienced just a few hours ago. I call it: Fazbear's After Dark," she said, gesturing her hands as though unveiling it. "I got in a little before eleven and there were two guys waiting for me, including Chaz the smelly elevator guy."

"But he didn't recognize you," Mike finished for her.

"He almost did, but he didn't. Didn't stop him from flirting with me though," Natalie said with a roll of her eyes. Fritz got a twitch of an amused smile. "So, they leave after a little while. I get my uniform on, I settle in, I do some rounds, then I suddenly get an alert on the computer that there's an alarm going off in the daycare. Now this daycare is HUGE. There's like a massive playground area in the center and then there's some stuff around it. The lights were on, everything was on. I walk down the length of the playground and there's a cleaning robot laying at the bottom of the stairs."

"So, they do have staff bots," Charlie said, voice somewhere between awe and disappointment. Like she both wanted to press for details and wince. She went for the former. "What do they look like? And how do you think they work?"

"Considering it got off track and fell down the stairs, not great. This one was about as tall as a human, with a grey… robot looking body. They roll around on little wheels, but they have normal arms and a head. No mouth."

Foxy could've added his own description but couldn't do so without blowing his cover. He wasn't even tempted to, instead listening closely.

"Did it look like it ran on a battery, or could you see any charging port?" Charlie asked. Though then caught herself. "Sorry, I'm having trouble swallowing that Freddy's has actual robots."

"Our in-house technician. Already trying to figure out how they tick," Marionette said with pride and adoration barely covering his anxiousness. This only succeeded in giving Charlie an embarrassed smile.

"Yeah, well, you know. That's my job."

"I'd tell you more, but I didn't get that good of a look. Surprisingly enough since I had to haul the thing back up on its feet. It gets weirder from this point on," Natalie promised. "So, I get it back up and it starts cleaning again, and I start heading back to the lobby. I was staying in an office right beside that locker room under the café. I start walking back down towards the lobby, I get to the little gate and I look over…" Natalie gestured off to the left. "There's the sun."

"The sun?" Marionette asked. "The broken sun?"

"The sun that doesn't exist anymore, according to Wight, but they're still selling merchandise of it?" Mike asked sardonically.

"That sun. He looks nothing like the toys or posters, and he doesn't look broken. I'm going to get back to him, because there's someone else I want to get into first," Natalie explained. "Thoroughly creeped out by the sun- which was just hanging out in the slide by the way- I head out to the lobby and suddenly this arm thrusts through some doors at me!" She threw her arm out. Rose pressed her hands to her cheeks in surprise. Foxy leaned forward with anticipation.

"…It was a bot handing out maps." This received a few less than enthused looks- save Jeremy's relief and Fritz's returning smile. "This thing scared the heck out of me. Then scared me again when it almost fell down some stairs on its way out."

She folded her fingers on the table and braced herself. This was when the story was going to take a turn and she braced herself for the seriousness of it.

"I get back to the office, I do some rounds, I make some coffee, the nights goes on… Until I spotted Freddy on the camera," she said. She caught a curse slip under Mike's breath; he already knew where this was going. "So, I go out into the atrium to see what he's doing and he's… I'm just going to say it: Freddy's alive."

Marionette made a noise somewhere between a gasp and yelp, sounding like his voice and a cracking twang like his music box spontaneously broke. From his lack of a pained reaction afterwards, it must've just been a noise. Mike would've checked in on him but was too busy dragging his hand down his mouth and staring at Natalie with the growing dread that he had known this was going to happen.

"Are you sure?" Jeremy asked in equal surprise. Blue eyes wide behind his glasses, his Minireenas looking less surprised in his lap.

"I'm positive. I had a full conversation with him. He's alive and totally aware of his surroundings," Natalie insisted. She watched as the puppet across from her looked more horrified with every word. "Back to what I was saying about the sun-."

"Oh, please no," Marionette blurted out, not even trying to hide his feelings. "He's alive too?"

"Yes." The Puppet covered his face with his hands. "Or that's the impression I got. He waved at me, gave a slightly creepy hello, and then hung out in the slide while I walked off."

"He's, uh… sounding pretty good for someone who was just scrapped," Charlie volunteered, the awkwardness of the situation not lost on her. Mike had hooked an arm around Marionette's lower back while trying and failing to get his hands off his face with the other. Charlie just reached and put a hand on the other puppet's shoulder to try and comfort him through her support.

This reaction was what Natalie expected, but Marionette wasn't the one she had in mind when she imagined it. It was Foxy- but stealing a look at him showed that he was just staring blankly. Either he was in shock or just wasn't surprised.

"How old did they sound?" Marionette finally blurted out. The puppet sounded just on the edge of a total meltdown. "Did they sound young? Were they aware that they were animatronics? Were they scared of you-?!"

"Easy, Marion. Yer gonna have a blowout over there," Foxy finally spoke. He got up from the stage and walked over behind his brother, putting his hand on his head. "Yer as bad as I am," he mumbled, petting him.

Marionette finally dropped his hands on the table to reveal a truly distraught expression aimed down at it. Natalie leaned forward on the table and lowered her voice.

"I can't be sure, but they didn't sound like children to me, and neither acted like they were afraid of me. Heck, the moment Freddy saw me he ran up to say hi, started having a whole conversation. I'm not sure what kind of sign that is, but it could be a lot worse," she assured him. He raised his head to look at her, Foxy moving his hand to his other shoulder.

"And his voice?" Marionette desperately asked.

"Kind of sounded deep and gruff, but not in a creepy way. The sun sort of sounded like Ennard."

"So, he was the creepy one," Fritz joked, struggling to lighten the mood.

"He had white zombie eyes. He was the creepy one," Natalie clarified.

"Really? Ennard? I sort of thought from the posters that he was going to have, I don't know, a little kid's voice. Like remember how Tyke sounded from the old Freddy cartoon?" Jeremy asked, looking to Marionette who nodded. "Like that."

"We're gettin' off topic. What about Freddy?" Foxy said, cutting straight to the point. "Ya said he was talkin' to ya. He say anything 'bout that bloke wearin' me face?"

His voice lowered at the end in what Natalie assumed was faltering bravado. She sympathized, knowing he was probably going through the same thing as his brother but holding a firm face since he couldn't.

"Well… First off, he scanned my face and was able to see my employee profile," she began.

"Facial recognition," Marionette murmured.

"He has it too," Mike explained for him, and the puppet nodded. "Scary to think they're taking that much information off of their employees."

"Tell me about it. Anyways, he said he came looking because he heard me walking around. Apparently, the animatronics aren't supposed to leave their rooms after hours, and I think the only reason he did was because he was looking for that guy. I know that was it, because he started poking around the daycare when I told him an alarm went off in there, and he asked about Foxy's."

Foxy's head snapped up at that. "He did what?" he asked sharply.

"Specifically, he asked if we- not we, but Pirate's Cove- had a Foxy animatronic. I think he must've gotten confused with the mask and thought it was another animatronic."

Immediately, Mike turned in his chair and snapped his head around to stare daggers into Foxy. Foxy's ears pulled back. "What the bloody 'ell er you lookin' at?"

"The Foxy animatronic in Pirate's Cove," Mike said suspiciously.

"Whatever ye be thinkin', ye best be thinkin' elsewise," Foxy hissed, narrowing his eyes. His hand slightly tightening and twitching on Marionette's shoulder. Before it could escalate past that point, Fritz spoke up.

"Natalie's got a point though. Back when Jeremy and I were working at Freddy's, they used to give us Freddy masks so the animatronics would think we were animatronics. Freddy could be programmed the same way," he explained.

Charlie looked to Marionette and asked doubtfully, "Did that work?"

"Not on all of us, but it did work on some of us," Marionette explained. His eyes briefly darting down to the metal hand on his shoulder.

"Well, I'm going back tonight. Chances are Freddy's going to be walking around again, so I'll ask him when I see him… But only if he comes to me. I don't want to push my luck with the other ones until I know they're safe," Natalie said. She furrowed her brows in thought. "The way all the employees talk about the place makes me think they're hiding something, so I'm going to keep my guard up and assume the others aren't as friendly as Freddy."

"I wouldn't trust Freddy just yet…" Fritz hesitantly added, rubbing at his tight neck muscles. "It's a good sign that he didn't try to hurt you, don't get me wrong, but it's a little too soon to let our guard down."

Natalie understood his point and mostly agreed, but only responded with a small, "I don't know…"

"I do," Mike butted in. "We've seen animatronics and people who've played nice and innocent before suddenly pulling the rug out from under us. Acting friendly is the least they can do, so don't get comfortable."

"I won't," she said with more sureness.

"Good," Mike said. He turned his attention back to Marionette who was looking less than comfortable about all of this. He gave him an affirming, "We'll figure this out."

The Puppet folded his hands together on the table and nodded meekly. It wasn't entirely convincing, but it was more than enough for someone who knew how hard this was for him.

What followed next was an uncomfortable silence until Fritz eventually took the initiative to break it.

"In lighter news," he announced in a less than dire tone. "We've got a huge party booked on Tuesday. I got the call earlier; we're looking at a whole class of kids and Mom asked that birthday boy could meet Foxy and Marionette. I think we can pull this off, but we should probably get some kind of gameplan."

Normally Foxy would pounce on a big party. Especially since his newfound "good publicity" policy, but instead he was still stuck in the last topic. Still thinking about some two-bit Freddy Fazbear in an overinflated pizza mall. Wondering why it had still been looking for him after all this time, what it wanted with him after it had practically let him walk from the building.

Marionette wasn't faring much better. He went along with talking over preparations for the party, but it was clear that his heart wasn't into it.

Jeremy was the one to give both him and Foxy an out. "We can go over the rest of the details later, we've got time. Practically a week of it," he suggested. Nobody felt like arguing with that.

Marionette went to speak, music box giving a tight click despite himself, and he sighed before making a second attempt. "I need to restock the Prize Corner… If you will excuse me."

Then before he could get a response, he turned and lifted out of his chair. Turning away from Mike, slipping past Charlie, and then hovering between the tables like he was following his track back to the corner. His arms limp at his sides, his head angled downward to stare at the carpet, and the silent defeat ringing louder than any uncomfortable noise his music box could've made.

Mike dropped his own head for a second before getting up and striding after him. Charlie quickly followed suit while the others started to slowly return to work. Including Louise and Carlton, who had stopped in their cleaning to listen to Natalie's retelling and the aftermath. Foxy wasn't one of them, instead pulling Mike's chair closer to Jeremy and dropping into it.

The moment he did, Forget-Me-Not, who was hiding under the table, climbed up into his lap and hugged herself onto his chest. He pulled his coat around her and held her close, her looking up at him with adoration and concern. It brought a warm, fuzziness back to his chest, but it was hard to feel good when he was secretly feeling so rotten.

Mike didn't initially see Marionette when he stepped into the Prize Corner, but he heard him. It didn't take long to track him down, leaning to look behind the counter itself and finding the puppet kneeling on the floor with his hands in a box of plastic wrapped trinkets. He was tearing open a bad of plastic mini figurines when Mike crouched down behind him. He didn't turn to face him, instead just setting the bag down in his lap.

Mike took that as a go-ahead and scooted closer to put his arms around Marionette. The puppet let out a tiny whimper at the touch and leaned back into his grip.

"I'm sorry I made such a scene," he quietly said.

"Hey. Don't say that," Mike firmly then gently answered. "That wasn't even a scene, it was just a reaction."

"He's right. I've seen a lot worse from a lot less," Charlie agreed. She came around the other side of the counter and sat on the floor in front of the other puppet. "You've got every right to be upset. We all do. This is… This changes everything. There's others like us and we don't know why they're there or how they got there. This is a huge deal."

Mike felt Marionette tense up and then for a split second felt that other sensation. That feeling of upset projected from touch alone. It was brief and fleeting, much more than some of the other times he had felt it, but it was definitely there. That alone gave a preview of his thoughts even before he was able to voice them.

"That's what worries me the most. Not just that Fazbear Entertainment is in the possession of more haunted animatronics, but that we don't know where they came from. Are they new, which would mean there's been recent deaths and consequential possessions, or are they old and we never saw them before? Or are they old friends we thought moved on who were forced back? If they're not new, they would've had to have been remodeled and altered…" Marionette began to tick and the thought and shivered at a mental image of the old Toys being taken apart. "Concept unification all over again…"

"They could be new," Mike offered. Though what he meant was that they were probably new.

"That's not any better! The place hasn't even opened, and people would've already died!" the puppet lamented. He covered his face to try and fight back the frustrated tears that wanted to come out. Charlie patted his leg.

"Well… We know they probably weren't killed by a night guard or anything like that if they were so friendly with Natalie," she pointed out. When she noticed him start to respond, she pounced on that point. "Look at it this way: they're walking around on their own and they're not afraid of people. That suggests that they're not being treated too badly, hopefully."

"Maybe, but you can never tell. Fazbear Entertainment treated their animatronics just as badly as their employees. In some cases, worse," Marionette murmured. That sorrow making way for a bitter tone.

"I'll be the first person to back you up on that, but she's got a point. We've seen animatronics kept in terrible condition- Glenn's animatronics- and we've seen Fazbear Entertainment treating their own stars like garbage. So, to have them walking around casually and chatting up the employees instead of trying to kill them is a huge improvement. I'm not saying there's not shady stuff going on, but at least they seem to be doing alright."

"Wasn't one of them recently scrapped?" Marionette asked unenthused.

"Yeah, and suddenly it's repaired and climbing up kiddie tubes," Mike answered. "I didn't say Wight wasn't a boldfaced liar, I just said he's not Glenn."

"I don't know, Mike. They replaced all their workers with robots, so animatronic repairs at warp-speed might not be too far out there," Charlie added sarcastically.

The puppet hummed. He couldn't muster up a curtesy chuckle or anything of the sort, so this had to do. It wasn't entirely assuring to Mike and Charlie, who were now actively working together to try and pull him out of this, to limited success.

"I know what you're saying, and I know it's true, but I just… can't convince myself," Marionette confessed, "that this is anything more than a waking nightmare."

It wasn't working, though Mike wasn't surprised. Even he knew that everything he was saying was coated in an optimistic sheen just to give the illusion that this wasn't a disaster. Marionette had taken every word out of his mouth and spoken them himself, and now here he was trying to pretend that he didn't agree with them. He already didn't trust Wight, and this only validated the suspicion that he was hiding something.

Funny, normally he would've been so eager to pounce on a new mystery to unravel, but it was hard to get in the mood when their livelihood was in danger and everyone was struggling to deal with it.

Yet in a very unfunny twist, the same tactics would apply.

"I'm going to find us a way in," Mike said. Nothing but complete seriousness and determination in his voice. Marionette's head spun around to face him. "I'm not getting a job with them, I'm just going to find a way to get us in there without compromising Natalie's," he quickly defended, knowing exactly what that reaction was for. Then after a moment, he began to carefully push his head to turn it back around. "And don't do that. You might break something."

"Sorry, I guess I just assumed…" Marionette trailed off and thought about it for a long moment. "…I think you're right. If we're going to get any answers, we have to go in and get them ourselves…"

"Just like old times," Mike sighed and rubbed the puppet's arm.

"Are you guys sure that's a good idea?" Charlie asked as she looked between them, and they looked back. "I know my track record's not great… and I'm not going to lie to you, I've thought about it too. I'm just a little worried about getting caught. We'd be playing it close because you know they're going to be looking for the vandal."

"Foxy," Marionette lamented. Mike arched a brow.

"Did he say something?"

"He didn't have to," the puppet tiredly muttered.

"Ooookay, well if Foxy got in then obviously we could too. I just don't want us to push our luck," Charlie offered. All things considered; she was being perfectly reasonable.

"Don't worry, we're not going to do anything without having a clear, foolproof plan first. No running in and hoping things work out; we're going to have everything planned ten steps in advance. It's not how we usually do it, but I'm not even going to pretend that we haven't had too many close calls. This time there's no margin for error," Mike assured. It was clear by his tone that he meant it too.

This seemed to assuage Charlie's concerns enough for her to nod. He then turned to Marionette and squeezed him closer. "How're you feeling about this?"

"I feel… I don't know how I feel, but I know I don't feel as bad as I did," the puppet answered. It didn't sound that convincing, but then he leaned back against Mike, resting his head against his. That was a slightly more positive sign.

"Should I give you two a moment alone?" Charlie asked with a playful little smirk. Mike flashed her a flat look.

"Nah, it's fine. You can stay and watch," he countered.

This was finally what managed to get a smile out of Marionette again. With a little chiming, he reached to put his arms around them both and pulled them into a tight hug. Charlie didn't need any further encouragement to join in on the embrace and Mike wasn't planning on going anywhere anytime soon. Even in this uncertain time, they made Marionette feel safe. Or at least loved enough to counter the creeping fear.

The fear that it was all going to happen again and the knowledge that there was no way to stop it.

He was going to go through all of the horrors of Freddy's again.

…

But he wouldn't have to go through it alone.

Chapter 11

Chapter Summary

Natalie's second night at the Pizzaplex. Foxy's too.

Chapter Notes

I would like to wish a Happy Birthday to my dear friend Deblod! ^_^ Hope you have a good day and a great year!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Natalie was a little surprised when she got into the Pizzaplex only to find there was nobody waiting for her. Shrugging it off and guessing she didn't really need to be checked on, she went right into the lost and found security office and started getting set up. This time she brought her bag in and with it had plenty of change, snacks, and even a couple of puzzle books for if she got bored during the downtime between rounds and camera-checking.

She had just gotten settled into her office chair and was starting to check the cameras when she caught a glimpse of the lobby elevator doors opening. Brows shooting up, she clicked back to that camera to check, only to find none other than Chazz and Stanley coming into the lobby. Chaz wear carrying a toolbox while Stanley carried a toolbelt and was eating a slice of pizza. She got back up to go meet them, getting out to the lobby before they could turn to enter the locker room.

"Hey!" she called. Chaz raised a hand in greeting as he came down the final steps while Stanley froze mid-bite. "I thought maybe you guys weren't coming in tonight. What were you doing?"

"Trying to get the kitchen bots up to snuff. So far, we've got the ones in the snack bar programmed to heat frozen pizzas, but we've got our work cut out if we're going to get any of them making fresh," Chaz said. It sounded from his tone that he wasn't too excited in the prospect either. He perked up though. "You're right on time. Guessing last night didn't go too bad."

"No, it went fine. One of the bots fell down the daycare stairs, but everything else was quiet," Natalie assured. She then greeted Stanley with a friendly, "Hey Stanley."

"Oh, uh. Hey!" he answered. He almost seemed embarrassed that he got caught eating on the job.

"So, here's the deal," Chaz interrupted. "We caught Freddy wandering around outside his room earlier, so we had to lock his door. It's a precaution, but don't be shocked if he finds a way out. It never works." The way he stretched that 'never' made Natalie more than a little uneasy. "On the plus side, Freddy's pretty easy to handle. Just tell him to get back to his room and he'll do it."

"This is probably a stupid question, but why can't the animatronics just walk around?" Natalie asked. Both of the technicians seemed confused by this question. She quickly added, "It's not like they're getting out of here. Wandering around seems like the least of our problems."

"You'd think that, but no. I told you yesterday they'll wander off and get broken? Yeah, that happened already. I kid you not," Chazz answered.

"…Wait a minute, are you talking about the Sun or are you telling me that there's another entirely different animatronic that just disappeared off the face of the earth?" Natalie asked. Chaz sent her a smug little smile and she was done. "…Alright, you two have to leave. I can't handle anymore insanity tonight."

Chaz laughed and continued on towards the door with Stanley following behind him. Before he could get far, Natalie stopped him.

"Before you go, where's the nearest vending machine?" she asked. She didn't really feel like going into the daycare hallway if she didn't have to. Not that she planned on tipping them off by telling them that.

"There's a line of them right down the hall leading to the daycare." Never mind, then. "And I don't think anyone would care if you helped yourself to the coffee up in the Faz-Pad. We do it all the time."

"I might have to do that," Natalie replied with a small smile. She turned back to return to the lost and found. "You two have a good night! Stay safe driving home!"

"We will! You take care too," Stanley replied. Chaz gave a wave, but was already at the front door, eager to leave.

Soon they were gone, and Natalie was alone to sink into the office chair and wait for the doors to seal so she could begin her first rounds of the evening. She was hoping it was going to be another easy night.

Little did she know, but within the hour the Pizzaplex was going to receive an unexpected visitor in the form of a masked intruder sliding in through an open vent.

Foxy had left earlier tonight than he had on his first night in. Largely because he had cut it too close on getting back to the pizzeria the first time. He hadn't left himself with enough time to recover and rest before service and while he had managed, he was wiped. He didn't want that happening again or it was going to look suspicious, and he couldn't afford to look suspicious when there was a possibility of her seeing him on the cameras.

He was careful to not draw attention to himself as he made his way down the edge of the atrium wall and over towards Rockstar Row. There were more lights on tonight than before. At least, the snack bar area had its lights and signs on, so Foxy got away from that area as quickly as possible. He got into Rockstar Row, the only other location with its lights on- except maybe the lobby- though they were still dim.

His yellow eyes locked onto the curtains of Freddy Fazbear's enclosure. They were opened about a foot tonight, revealing the warm, colorful glow from inside. He crept closer and ducked behind a display case in the middle of the hall outside of the window, peeking around for a glimpse into the room. He caught sight of an arcade machine inside but couldn't make out the blur of colors on the bright screen.

As he was leaning to get a better look, his eyes briefly glanced down and then did a double take at what looked like a foot sitting in the case. He stared at it for a second before leaning closer, only to realize in only looked like an animatronic foot. He crouched down and squinted at the little tag labelling the boot.

"Vintage costume shoe used at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. Donated by P. Taggart."

Foxy scoffed at the use of vintage. The last Freddy's was open less than ten years ago. Nothing at Freddy's could be considered even that old… Maybe outdated, the thought creeping into his head without his control.

He grumbled sourly and stole a look at the other cases around him, with only one of them catching his attention. His ears rubbing against his hood as they perked and he walked over to get a better look, confirming what he was seeing.

There was a microphone sitting in one of the cases. One that looked remarkably similar to the one Freddy Fazbear used to hold. The original Freddy Fazbear, his bandmate, his friend. It probably wasn't and yet he still rested his hand on the case like it held that significance as he looked down at it. His eyes lowered to read the tag in front of it.

"Original microphone used by Freddy at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. Donated by P. Taggart."

How something that brought with it so many feelings could be summed up so blandly was beyond Foxy. When he looked at it, he couldn't help by remember Freddy clutching it in his hand while singing an out-of-tune bubbly song on stage. So embarrassing, so goofy, and yet there was something so nostalgically warm about it, even though Foxy couldn't remember any joy from those years trapped in Freddy's. He just missed them so much.

As though he didn't feel awful enough under the eye of all this glitz and glamor. He felt depressed enough now that he was numb to his better judgement and turned his gaze back to the gap between the curtains. Straightening his back and lifting his chin, he strode over to the window and boldly looked through, and yet froze up as his eyes landed on Freddy- the new Freddy Fazbear.

Freddy was sitting upright in something that looked more like a barber chair than a proper seat and pulled up to a vanity. He seemed to be staring at himself in the mirror with an arm resting on the desk in front of him. It was clear that he hadn't noticed Foxy coming up and he knew at this point that he could've still left without being detected, but temptation and curiosity crept up.

Freddy was just as alive as he was. That was enough for Foxy to raise his hook and tap against the glass. Immediately Freddy perked up and tilted his head a little, then turned in his chair to look at the window. The second he saw Foxy, he sprung up from his seat and stood there frozen. He couldn't tell what kind of look the bear was giving him. Maybe he was afraid he was going to start spray painting his window.

Not wanting to rile him up any more than he already had, Foxy raised a hand as a sign of submission to get him to ease up. Freddy must've misread this signal as his face brightened up and he began to wave back. Then he held out his hands like he was signaling for Foxy to wait before suddenly and unexpectedly sprinting out of the room through a security door on the back wall.

For a moment Foxy could only stand there staring at the door that had closed behind him. That was bizarre, and now paranoia creeped in as he wondered where Freddy could've gone. If he was coming out then he would've just used the door, he was running off on a mission. Possibly to find and signal the security guard- though then again, why take the back door unless it led to the same place?

It didn't help that there were bizarre noises coming from a few windows down. It sounded almost like something was stomping around in one of the rooms- not too unlike Freddy's thundering footsteps. Between that and Freddy wanting him to wait, Foxy decided to get a move on and returned to the atrium. His better judgement was telling him again to leave, reminding him that there were cameras all over this place, that he shouldn't wait for what Freddy was going to do.

Until he stopped to take a good look around the atrium from beside one of the escalators and in the darkness noticed a sign that now held more meaning: Kids Cove.

Foxy was aware of Wight's ideal plan for his brand. He wanted him to be the face of Kids Cove, which Foxy would've protested vehemently to if Jeremy hadn't assured him that it was a fake deal. A fake deal to protect him after Foxy's reckless decisions made him a target. Something that he was doing again, he realized. He would've never come back if it wasn't Natalie. She was, thankfully, a safety net in these rough waters.

But Kids Cove stood there unmanned. It piqued his interest, a morbid curiosity in a way, and he took the long way around the room to reach it. The garage-like door responded to his approach and opened for him to slip underneath.

Foxy's heart sunk when he looked at Kids Cove. If this had been a play area in Foxy's Pirates Cove it would've been perfect. There was a towering lighthouse with a little door and a slide wrapped around it, a fishing boat snared by tentacles that was probably to be climbed on, and even a little sitting area with a fake fire. The place was decorated with faux rockery, treasure chests, piers, and palms. The walls were painted like the night sky, with puffy clouds and a full moon.

The children would love this, and if it was at his pizzeria he would love it too. It was wasted here, not even having a mascot who could play with the kids and get their imaginations going with it. He could have so many adventure here- if it wasn't Freddy's. The amount of money it would take to make something like this was beyond any expansion they could afford.

His rapidly declining mood was suddenly cut off by a loud noise out in the atrium. He lifted his head and listened to hear what sounded like machinery activating, and cautious curiosity led him to step back out that garage door.

It sounded like something was happening on the main stage, but between the darkness- which wasn't a problem- and the fact that the stage was elevated- which was a problem- he couldn't see what it was. He came a little closer, coming to stand at the escalators on this side of the atrium, prepared to duck down and hide at any moment.

That was when a familiar face began to raise up onto the stage. Carried by some unseen lift beneath him, there was Freddy Fazbear slowly coming into view. Posed with one finger pointing towards the ceiling and his eyes closed.

Foxy scoffed a little. Apparently, Kids Cove wasn't the only place where imaginations ran wild.

Unfortunately, Foxy scoffed in a dead silent atrium and while the stage was still making an unholy amount of noise, somehow Freddy had heard him specifically. His eyes opened a crack as he continued holding the pose, only to open fully and drop the act the second he saw Foxy standing in the distance. It wasn't hard to see the stark black figure with the weird-shaped mask as the odd thing out in the room.

Foxy must've had a premonition because he knew exactly what was coming. He turned to bolt before Freddy could break into a run. At this point it wasn't even that Foxy was afraid of Freddy- he would never admit to that- but it was something between a fear of being caught and the overwhelming feeling that he just didn't want to deal with this. When things got a little too tense, Foxy split.

The garage door leading into Kids Cove wasn't nearly as on board with the plan. It took its sweet time hoisting itself up, all while he could hear Freddy sprinting up behind him. He clamored under it, which would've gone a lot better if the top of his mask hadn't bumped the door and pulled out of place, briefly blinding him. He staggered for a second as he pulled it in place and instantly spotted the darkened stairs beside the lighthouse.

Foxy had gotten onto the pier when Freddy suddenly caught the security door and shoved it up with a grinding squeak. He spotted the other running up the stairs as called after him, "Wait! Please do not run! Please."

There was a pleading that could only be heard in that last word, and it was enough to get Foxy to look back. If Freddy wasn't emoting much when they last met up, he was definitely doing so now. His eyes lidded with something akin to sadness and his ears drooped to match it. This had to be some sort of ploy and yet it almost worked. It got him to freeze up at the top of the stairs and stare down at him, not unlike a wild animal about to flee.

"Please. I will not hurt you, and I will not tell anyone you came, but…" There was a clicking sound before Freddy's chest started to open up. Foxy watched flabbergasted as some sort of hatch opened on his belly. The bear reached inside and pulled out a familiar backpack. "I have something that belongs to you."

It felt like a ruse, like he was getting baited down the stairs with how Freddy held the bag out in his hand. Foxy knew better to fall for such a trick and yet after a long moment he dared to take a step back down the stairs. Blast this bloody bear.

Foxy turned and began to slowly make his way down the stairs back towards Freddy. The bear in turn perked up with his eyes literally glowing. They felt especially robotic, less like an animatronic and more like something metal and unfeeling. Yet somehow, they were getting Foxy to come back down the stairs. He cautiously reached out his hand and beckoned with his fingers to hand it over, his hook primed and ready for a backstab.

But Freddy did nothing more than hand the backpack over. Foxy noticed as soon as he took it that it was significantly lighter and shook it to hear no rattling.

"…Where's the paint?" he asked. His first words to Freddy, who reacted accordingly with his ears popping up with a wiggle.

"I-I disposed of it. Spray paint is not allowed in the Pizzaplex for… obvious reasons."

Foxy gave a little, unenthused 'hmph' and slipped the backpack over his arm. He didn't say anything more.

Freddy waited for a few moments more before asking, "Are you the real Foxy the Pirate? The one from the Foxy's Pirate Cove?"

"What's it to ya?" Foxy challenged, sending him a sharp and suspicious sort of look.

"Oh, I was just wondering. You do have a traditional pirate accent and hook- and official Foxy's Pirate Cove merchandise. I just assumed that you were him," Freddy explained. He could act uncertain and intimidated all he wanted, but Foxy knew it had to be an act. Probably just another attempt to assuage him.

Foxy hummed and clicked his endoskeleton teeth together. Pride welled up in his chest along with that constant background of inadequacy that he couldn't help but feel being in a place he didn't belong.

"Nah…" he finally said. Then he suddenly hoisted his hook up while planting his hand on his hip and his foot on a higher step, striking a much more impressive pose. "That'd be Captain Foxy fer ye landlubbers."

Freddy got an excited look to his eyes and his mouth opened in a smile. "I see! Well then, it is nice to meet you, Captain," he said without a hint of patronizing in his tone. "I am Freddy Fazbear of Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex."

"Ya got yer mug plastered on half the stuff in here. I'd be blind not to know who ya are," Foxy said with less harshness than he intended.

"I suppose so. My apologies," Freddy said, unphased by it. Though his voice did grow softer. "I did not expect you to come back. I was hoping you might, but I knew there was a chance you would not."

"Why?"

"Well, because I had caught you in the middle of an act of vandalism, and now that we have a security guard-."

"Not that!" Foxy snapped. He flinched back at his own voice and looked around quickly in paranoia before making eye contact again. "Why'd ya want me back? To turn me in?"

"Of course not! If I was going to turn you in, I would have gone to the security officer by now. I would not do that… Erm, unless you are planning to vandalize again?"

"How'm I gonna do that when ya dumped me paint?" Foxy asked, hoisting up the bag. Freddy looked a little more concerned at that and the pirate scoffed. "Take it easy. I didn't come back fer trouble."

"That is good! Then I will not have to ask you to leave!" Freddy said. Just the cheerful way he said this was enough to force a chuckle out of Foxy. He caught it quickly and stifled it in time to be asked, "What brought you back?"

…

This was a bad time to suddenly draw a blank. Even if he convinced himself it was just to check on Natalie, he couldn't tell Freddy that. While he said he wasn't going to turn Foxy himself in, there was nothing to say he wouldn't turn Natalie in if he found out she was a fraud. Or that he could just spout it out to the wrong person and have her identity, and their whole plan in general, fall apart.

Yet Foxy just kept blanking on what to say. He was too proud to say he came to see Freddy, even if it was surely a lie, but there were few believable alternatives. Freddy seemed to be waiting for an answer too, but after a while off watching Foxy silently stare at him, he started to realize he wasn't going to get one. He made a motion and sound like if he was clearing his throat.

"To answer your question earlier, I wanted you to come back so I could meet you, and so I could apologize. I know I must have frightened you running up like I did, but I meant no harm. I thought you were attacking a Staff Bot. We have to protect those little guys."

"I wasn't scared of you, I was scared of gettin' caught," Foxy quickly corrected. At least his words didn't fail him now. "Some rogue animatronic runnin' 'round ain't gonna be welcomed with open arms… 'Specially not when he's yer competitor." He shuffled around on the steps, growing antsy. This had been enough excitement for one night he decided. "Speakin' o' which, I should be shovin' off."

"You are leaving already?" Freddy sounded surprised and a bit disappointed.

"Aye. I gotta be back at me pizzeria by mornin'," Foxy excused.

"That is a shame. I was hoping you could stay longer…" Freddy said, disappointment in his voice. "…But… There is still plenty of time before morning. Why not stay longer? If you are afraid of being seen, we can return to my room. It will be much safer in there! The security officer rarely passes by and if she does, she will not see you with the curtains drawn. What do you say?"

Foxy could've predicted Freddy's clinginess a mile away. This wasn't that different to how he was acting when he was trying to creep out of here the first night. The only difference being that he was now confident enough to try and talk Foxy into staying, which wasn't going to work. It was a wonder he stood on these stairs as long as he did knowing good and well that Freddy could be trying to fool him.

"Sounds like a trap," he thought. He was less direct with his words. "Sounds like a good way to corner meself."

"I promise it is very safe! If anyone tried to come in, you could escape through the backroom. That was how I was able to come and find you," Freddy explained. His voice softened up. "It is the least I could do after our first meeting."

It was becoming abundantly clear that Freddy wanted something. Foxy wasn't sure what that was- if he was just cripplingly lonely or if he was on the road to set him up- but it had to be something, and he wasn't falling for it.

…Then again, this could be a window to that valuable in-house information they had been gunning for. It didn't seem like any of the employees had been coughing up any of Freddy's dark secrets to Natalie, but so far Freddy himself had been relatively open with whatever he said. He seemed a little on the naïve side too. Unless that was a ruse Foxy, could probably weasel secrets out of him in seconds.

But was he actually about to take another gamble on this accursed business?

"Ehhhh…." Foxy mulled it over a little longer. Hand and hook on hips, shuffling from foot to foot, with Freddy watching her with eager anticipation for his answer. This was foolish. This shouldn't have even been a consideration.

But someone had already  died .

"Alright, if yer that sure then I'll stop fer a snifter."

"Really? That is great-!"

"But!" Foxy raised that hook quick and pointed it right at Freddy's nose, more than willing to get his point across. "I ain't gettin' comfy just yet, so don't you go gettin' any ideas. Ya rat me out and I'm doin' some real damage on me way out."

"I would never. You are now my guest," Freddy said, slightly offended. Which was much better than the sympathy that took his voice right afterwards. "It does not matter that we have different pizzerias, you are welcome here."

That took the wind out of Foxy's sails immediately. Not only did it take any enjoyment away from knocking Freddy down a peg, but the fact that Freddy was sympathizing with him made him feel downright pathetic. Maybe if he was wearing his coat and cap instead of looking like some kind of vagrant- or at least had his head on. He grumbled to himself and thrust his hook into his hoodie's pouch.

"Let's get movin'."

Freddy must've known that he was treading uneasy waters as he nodded but said nothing more. He turned around and led Foxy back out the same door they came in.

"We should stay close to the snack bar. There should be a blind spot from the cameras near the counters," Freddy instructed. Foxy could've told him that, but he decided to stay silent and kept his head down as he followed.

They walked the long way around the atrium and into Rockstar Row through the same entryway as before, through the same section of partially finished passage, but that was when he got sidetracked. There was a counter outside of Rockstar Row that Foxy had passed earlier without a second glance, but now Freddy approached it instead of going into the hall. The pirate came to a dead stop and watched him like a hawk.

Freddy went around the counter and began to go through the back of it, eyes narrowed and focused and humming a little in his chest as he searched. He gave a confirmative nod as he plucked up what looked like card of some kind and returned to duck under the security door. He offered no explanation and only noticed he hadn't been followed after a few steps. He looked back to Foxy expectantly.

He was too old to be feeling peer pressure, Foxy decided, but he still followed under that door and kept up behind the bear with only a few steps between them.

It turned out that the card Freddy had gotten was to use on his own door. One quick swipe and the door slid open easily.

"Why'd you need a key to get in yer own room?" Foxy asked lowly.

"Well… Earlier today the technicians caught me wandering the pizzeria at an undesignated time. They thought it would be safer if I was kept secured," Freddy explained. He almost seemed ashamed, and Foxy couldn't be sure if it was because he had been caught or because he was locked up at all. Either way, the answer made Foxy uncomfortable.

"…They lock ya in yer room often?" he asked with the same tone.

"Only when they are concerned for my safety… and I usually am not caught." The two lines jarringly contrasted with each other, but not nearly as much as they did against the sudden cheery tone that seized his voice. "Welcome to my green room! You are welcome to entertain yourself with all I have- or I can entertain you! You are my guest."

Foxy didn't even want to step inside if it meant toying with the risk of getting locked in, but he had come too far to walk off now. He stepped into the green room and allowed the door to shut behind him as he got a better look at the place.

Earlier he hadn't really paid much attention to the green room, so this was a better first impression of it. The walls were painted red with Freddy head decorations in the form of a neon sign, facial decals, and posters. A few illuminated lightning bolt shaped signs were hung along with a bold, yellow "Freddy Fazbear" sign above the couch. Or what looked like a red couch hiding under a slew of plush toys, including one massive Freddy doll, and a bowtie shaped pillow.

There was the vanity and the arcade machine, both of which Foxy spotted earlier, but there was also a corner filled with photograph equipment. Probably so people could get their picture taken with Freddy. He ached looking at it. Some kids and adults had asked to get their picture with him, but never enough to warrant that much equipment. He was already starting to feel depressed; thankfully he matched the dress code.

Freddy went over to close the curtains the rest of the way before turning back to Foxy expectantly. "Make yourself at home!"

Foxy took his advice and crossed over to the couch. There was a short table there too covered in various things. He ignored it, instead choosing to pull the massive Freddy plush off the couch and taking its place, laying across the length and kicking his feet up on the pillow. Almost like an act of defiance, not that Freddy seemed to notice or care. He sat back down in his weird barber-looking chair and looked to Foxy expectantly.

If he was waiting for him to compliment the room he was going to have to wait. Nice or not, it was property of Fazbear Entertainment, a dolled up holding cell for their dancing bear, and Foxy wouldn't ignore that for pleasantries.

He looked down at the table for something to remark on and happened to notice a bowling ball sitting on the floor. He craned his neck to double check, but yes, it was a green and orange bowling ball.

"Ya bowl?" he simply asked.

"I… used to. Not as much anymore," Freddy said with a strangely somber tone. Foxy hummed questioningly and cocked his head on the armrest. The bear changed tone as quickly as he had at the door, "What is your pizzeria like? I have heard of Foxy's Pirate Cove, but I do not know anything about it."

"It's a pirate themed pizzeria," Foxy said curtly. "Why'd ya stop bowling?"

Freddy must've actually thought he was going to drop it because he looked startled that Foxy brought it back up. His eyes darted around uncomfortably as he fumbled for words.

"I… I am not… I do not get up to the alley as much as I used to…"

Then it suddenly clicked. Of course Freddy couldn't go bowling, when he was caught outside, he was rewarded by getting his door locked. This was enough to convince Foxy to back off, leaning back on the couch to stare at the ceiling.

"It be like the old Freddy's but better in every way. We got a big dining room, huge arcade, prize corner stocked with prizes as far as the eye can see, and I get full run of the place. Nothin' gets done without my say so. Don't let the landlock fool ya, there may be no sea but it be my ship," Foxy said. He glanced to see if Freddy was listening. He was, closely, and that pride started swelling up in his chest as he turned on his side.

"We be expandin' sometime soon. Ye'd be best not tellin' anyone but know we're gonna be havin' ourselves a friendly competition," Foxy said confidently. "Just next week we got big gig. The hull's gonna be packed."

"That is great to hear! And do you still get to perform on stage?" Freddy asked innocently. That question surprised and confused the pirate who looked at the bear with a funny look.

"What's that mean? Course I perform on stage."

"Oh, good! I was just wondering considering your current condition. It is a very good mask though! I recognized it easily."

"What're you…?" Foxy trailed off as it clicked. "By the Flying Dutchman, you think I'm out o' service, don't ya?!" he exclaimed. Sitting upright on the couch and sounding very offended. That suddenly explained why he had been treating him with kid gloves even though he broke into his establishment. That offended him more than him just assuming he was broken because he was from the old Freddy's.

"I did not think you were out of service! I just assumed you were missing your suit head. The rest of you looked quite put together!" Freddy reassured. He kept his tone calm, but he sounded embarrassed.

"I took it off to fit this thing on!" Foxy answered, pinching the hood with his fingers.

"Oh! My apologies. I should not have assumed."

Foxy gave a little grumble and trailed off. Still offended but unable to really lash out when Freddy rolled over as quickly as he did. As tall and impressive as Freddy looked- and it killed him having to admit that- he seemed rather soft. He had gotten a glimpse of it the last time he was here, but this backed up that suspicion and Natalie's claim. Freddy seemed relatively harmless and meek compared to even the average animatronic.

Then again, Foxy had fallen for Ennard's Baby ruse. He couldn't trust his instincts like he used to.

He looked away from Freddy and ended up instead noticing the arcade machine in the corner. Now he had a much better view of it and could see what looked like a teenage Freddy riding on a skateboard. He couldn't understand the continued drive to put Freddy on a skateboard, though was half surprised there wasn't actually a skateboard in the room with them.

"What's that?" he asked. Freddy, who had lapsed into his thoughts, quickly returned to the present and looked to the arcade cabinet.

"That is Street Skate Superstar! It is a skateboarding game. Tear up the streets, land wicked tricks, and paint the town RAD! Would you like to play?" Freddy offered. Foxy stared back, still reeling from the fact that the bear suddenly threw a commercial into the middle of their conversation. "It is very fun! You should try it. This one does not need coins or tokens."

"Eh… Ya got me curious," Foxy agreed. He dragged himself up off the couch and over to the arcade machine. "I'm guessin' ya play it a lot."

"I do! Not just because it is in here either, though that does make it much easier to access," Freddy said. He got up from his chair too and came over to stand behind Foxy, something that made him a little wary. "I do not mean to brag, but I am quite good at it!... Not so much with real skateboarding."

"You've tried it?"

"No, but once I fell off of a standing cart while I was being moved. I suppose it is as close as I should get."

That was absurd enough to get a chuckle out of Foxy, one that he promptly pretended never happened, going stone-faced as he started up the game.

The game was about what he expected; weaving down a street with many lanes trying to avoid oncoming traffic and collect slices of pizza for extra points. Once or twice, he noticed a skateboard powerup, but they were always inside of a cluster of cars, and he was fixated on playing perfectly while being watched so closely. Not that it was too difficult, and he reached the end of the stage without any mistakes.

"Well done! You completed the first level without getting hit!" Freddy congratulated. "But those skateboards on the road are extra lives. You should collect them just in case."

"Ya don't say?" Foxy asked, a tinge of smugness in his voice. Propped up by the compliments, he continued onto the next level, and the next after.

It wasn't a long game by far. With only ten levels that only got slightly longer the further they were into the game, Foxy was able to wrap it up pretty quickly with only a two deaths and what he thought was a pretty hefty score. He assumed as such when level ten ended with a screen to input his initials.

"Well done, Captain! You got a high score, and on your first try!" Freddy congratulated. Considering that he had been praising him the whole time, the words didn't hold too much weight to Foxy, but it didn't put a damper on his victory.

What did take the wind out of his sails was the high score screen to input his initials. Only now did he register the 'a' high score and not 'the' high score, as he was sixth down behind four "FAZ"s and a "BON". Well, Freddy did say he played this one a lot, so this was to be expected. There was a "ROX" directly underneath him, more "FAZs", and the list ended with a "CHI" at the very bottom. Foxy chose to input his name as "FTP", to keep it somewhat vague.

"Well, that was somethin'," he said. "Pretty short fer a game ye play all the time."

"Perhaps because it is to be played by guests who get a photo pass to visit my green room. I have not had any yet, but I suppose they will not stay long," Freddy explained. He hesitated for a moment, looking at the screen for a second, and then asked, "Would you like to keep playing?"

Foxy felt a slippery slope coming as he looked back toward the title screen. He could be playing arcade games in his own pizzeria instead of bumming off of Freddy's free machine, he didn't need his charity. He didn't want to give this place anymore credit than he already had.

But he also didn't want to go back to that empty pizzeria to wallow in his own thoughts. Not yet.

Not until he got higher on that scoreboard.

"…One more shot."

Chapter End Notes

Sorry the ending is a little rushed, but I have work today and I am going to be late if I don't skedaddle. XD Hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 12

As soon as midnight hit and the doors were sealed, Natalie went to do her first rounds of the night. She went out into the atrium and did a quick loop around the middle floor. She briefly stopped at the escalator and considered going down to see Freddy, but then hesitated. The last thing she wanted was to get him in trouble. The thought of him being locked up in his room was already giving her a bad taste in her mouth.

Still, she got back into the elevator and returned to the lobby. She was considering grabbing a soda now, but she was still feeling fine and didn't like the idea of it sitting there warming up while she waited. She would just return to the office and do a crossword to pass a little time. She stepped out of the elevator.

Something was wrong.

It was hard to explain, but Natalie was suddenly hit by the feeling that something was off. A kind of creeping fear that suddenly seized her and made her look around quickly. She felt like she was being watched, or like the feeling she might've felt walking to her car in the dark and suddenly hearing a noise nearby, but there was nothing there. The lobby was comfortably alit, and she couldn't hear anything. There was no reason to be afraid.

Yet something was wrong. Swallowing it as best as she could, Natalie slowly made her way down the stairs and approached the lost and found. She hoped that once she was settled in the office, she would feel a little safer.

Alas, this wasn't the case. She didn't feel any better inside of the office. She checked the other two doors that led out behind one of the counters to make sure nothing was there, then shut and locked the office door before settling into her chair. She did a quick check of the cameras around the lobby and couldn't see anything there.

"I'm just a little creeped out being here alone. Psyching myself out, that's all," she convinced herself.

Yet Natalie still found her eyes frequently returning to the office window and the stairs outside. Checking to make sure someone wasn't creeping up on her even though she knew she would've seen it coming. She couldn't focus on anything and the thought of getting coffee was out the window, because she didn't want to go up those stairs and she really didn't want to walk the long way through the lobby.

Eventually she broke open the crossword book and tried to work on a puzzle to ease her nerves. This started to work and after a few minutes she started to have a distraction going. The mood still felt a little off, but she was able to deal with it.

She was pulled from that distraction by a soft thumping that sounded like footsteps.

…From above her.

Natalie instantly shot forward and was back on the cameras. She clicked the Faz-Pad's camera and after a few seconds the feed showed up.

Nothing. There was nothing up there.

Except she could still hear the slow thumping of something padding around up there. She moved the camera around to readjust, watching it drag itself with a lag it didn't usually have. It couldn't be in the café, so she started checking the other cameras in the area. The computer wasn't switching cameras as fast as usual. Instead of a snappy response, there was a good two to three second delay between every change.

"What's going on here? Why're these so slow?" she thought. She huffed to herself. "Of course! The second I need the cameras and they suddenly start acting up."

The sluggishness was only succeeding in making her more uncomfortable as she continued to search. Yet she wasn't seeing anything in any of the cameras and the noises above her had suddenly stopped. She was beginning to feel increasingly uncomfortable and slowly turned her chair, considering getting up and investigation.

Only to catch a glimpse of movement disappearing around the corner at the top of the stairs. She turned her head quickly but not fast enough to see what it was, or if it was there at all. She couldn't even make any details of what it was. Like it blended in with the wall, or like it didn't exist at all. But it had to because it being there explained why it wasn't above her head.

She stared at the top of the stairs for a long moment before realizing that she wasn't breathing and inhaling sharply to feed her aching lungs. By the coloring and height, it could've been a Staff Bot, but it didn't explain the footsteps or how it could've gotten down the stairs. The footsteps still hadn't returned either, leaving the place eerily quiet.

"…I'm going to have to go up there," Natalie said, grimacing immediately afterwards. She reached over for the flashlight and tested its weight. It would be a decent enough weapon against a human, but even though the footsteps were light she wasn't convinced that was what was upstairs. Taking a deep breath, she stepped outside the office door and looked up the stairs.

Then proceeded to walk straight out into the lobby. She was going to cut them off from escaping and save herself from getting jumped in a stairwell, with the latter being more important. It hiding behind the corner was too much of a red flag to waltz right up there after it. Instead, she headed upstairs and quietly stepped into the Faz-Pad. There was nobody inside.

Keeping as quiet as she could, she made her way to the other door. She leaned against it before slowly creeping it open and shining her light inside.

The small kitchen was also empty. She breathed a quiet sigh and pushed the door open the rest of the way only for her light to glint off a knife lying on the counter. She stared at it for a second and knew right away that it wasn't supposed to be there. She had come through here to make coffee plenty of times yesterday and it wasn't here, and it wasn't dirty, so Chaz and Stanley hadn't used it. Not that they would bring a dirty knife into this kitchen anyway.

Someone could've been moving things around during the day, but she had a hard time believing they would leave a single knife out in the open. Especially a large kitchen knife, either a chef or a carving knife.

It felt like a threat. Maybe that was her paranoid mind imagining that, but it was significant enough to make her feel vulnerable. Vulnerable enough that she picked up the knife and proceeded to shove it underneath what looked like a dishwasher. She wasn't going to be caught on camera carrying around a knife and she wasn't leaving it out for someone else to find it. She would hear if someone came digging for it.

It wasn't until she started standing up that she noticed something was blocking the light from the doorway behind her. She snapped her head and flashlight back in a sweeping motion- but there was nothing there. This time she wasn't as certain about what she had seen, looking back at the counter and her position, and realizing it could've been her own shadow. Unconvinced, she strode to the door and threw it open.

Again, there was nothing. Huffing to herself, she turned back into the kitchen to go for the stairs. She opened the door and upon seeing nothing, hastily made her way down the steps to catch anyone who might've heard her coming.

But there was still nobody there. The footsteps had quieted, the lobby was silent, and she was left alone. With nowhere else to turn, she returned to her little office.

"Was that a paranormal thing? I mean, Freddy's alive, so maybe this place could be haunted? Like back in the warehouse… Please not like back at the warehouse. I can't handle that amount of insanity," Natalie thought as she approached the computer. She looked at the screen and noticed a red dot flashing on the map. "What now…?" she muttered and leaned to look.

The alarm was going off on the first floor of the atrium. In fact, it looked to be right in the snack bar area that Chaz and Stanley said they had been working in.

"What, did they leave something on in there?" Natalie wondered out loud. Suddenly her eyes popped open before she hastily jogged out of the office. "Please don't be a fire. Please don't be a fire."

She hurried out into the lobby and up the stairs towards the elevator, turning in place while she did to see if she could catch sight of anything suspicious. She didn't, but she didn't know if that was a good or bad thing considering that she was certain she had heard and almost certain she had seen someone. Part of her was eager to leave the lobby from just that alone.

Soon she was down on the first floor of the atrium and after a bit of searching found her way to the kitchen door. She found someone waiting for her, a Staff Bot dressed like a chef who flagged her down as she approached. It wheeled back from the slightly ajar door and gestured stiffly at it. She could already hear noises from inside before she started to push it open.

The kitchen was large and dominated by stainless steel, which made it all the more disorienting when her flashlight reflected off of so much. She could hear a weird sound coming from further into the room. It sounded almost like tearing cardboard mixed with some rustling and the occasional clatter of something scraping at the floor. Natalie carefully made her towards the back while hugged against the wall before she came around a prep table and saw the source.

There was an animatronic crouched down on the floor. Its white and pink head and back faced her as its hands tore at the flimsy carboard of a pizza box. A torn open trash back lay before it with its contents spilled around its legs. There wasn't much there. A lot of it looked like plastic wrap that things might've came from. She watched as it drew its head back with a ripping noise and realized it was eating the pizza box.

It didn't take more than an instant to recognize that this was Glamrock Chica. Natalie didn't have to see her face to recognize her body type.

"Chica?" she dared to asked. Chica lurched upright, her head raising so fast that her casing clattered.

A hand reached out to grab ahold of one of the tables. It was smeared with grease and redness, which Natalie recognized as pizza sauce, and helped the chicken shaped animatronic pull up to her feet. Her motions were both stiff and loose, her standing in a wobbly pigeon toe before suddenly turning her torso and snapping her head back to face the blond. Natalie flinched back.

"I'm sorry. This is a restricted area," Chica said. Her voice as automated and stiff as her motions. She turned to face Natalie all the way, head half tilted, and beak smeared in the remains of Stanley's pizza. A piece of cardboard even stuck out. Her zombie-like motions and glassy stare made Natalie extremely uncomfortable, so she found her voice quickly.

"Not for me it's not. I'm the security guard," she boldly announced. In a split second, as soon as she said that something changed in Chica's demeaner. Her widened pupils shrunk, her leering pose drew back, and her posture relaxed.

"Oh?" Her eyes quickly traced over the blond's uniform before returning to hers. "Oh! I'm sorry, I did not recognize you." She tilted her head even more. "What are you doing here? You should be in one of the sectional security offices."

"The staff bot outside sent me an alert and I came to check what was up. What are you doing in here?" Natalie asked. She kept the authoritarian tone; it was her only line of defense at the moment.

"Having a midnight snack! Somebody left perfectly good pizza out to waste. I- I couldn't h-help mys-self!" Chica explained, her voice stuttering as she grew excited. She ran her free hand down her face to collect some of the remaining sauce on her fingers, then shoved them into her mouth. Rubbing it onto the inside of her beak with a squeak. "Mmm! So good!"

Something about the whole scene made Natalie lose what little appetite she had. She didn't show it though and kept an even tone.

"I see that. Alright, no big deal then. I just wanted to make sure nobody broke in again," Natalie said, trying her hardest not to look like she was staring. "I don't mean to break up your fun, but you should probably get back to your room. The tech boys didn't leave too long ago, and they already locked Freddy up for being outside his room."

"Mmm, okay! I'm all done anyways. There's barely any good food in here!" Apparently, the cardboard counted, Natalie thought. She watched as Chica started to lurch and stagger forward. Her footsteps seemed awkward, and her upper half seemed to sway as she made her way around the table and towards the kitchen door.

"Are you okay? You're walking a little weird," she dared to ask.

"Hmm? Oh! Sometimes when I eat too much, my battery gets a little… f-funny," Chica answered. Her voice warbling weirdly as she turned her head back to look at the blond. "I couldn't help myself! I LOVE pizza!"

"I guess that makes sense. I'm going to walk you back to your room just in case, okay?" Natalie suggested. Chica gave a nod and a hum, seemingly unbothered by this.

As soon as the Glamrock animatronic walked out of the kitchen, the chef bot zoomed back in, almost running into Natalie before darting towards the back. She sent a wary glance after it before following Chica out. "How alive are those guys?"

Back in Rockstar Row, Foxy had gotten himself up to third place on the scoreboard and found himself unable to budge past that spot. He continued playing try after try, but Freddy didn't seem to mind. He just watched from beside or behind, always eager to offer an obvious tip or a seemingly undeserved compliment- in Foxy's eyes. He was halfway through a lesser run when he heard thumping and his head shot up.

"Ya hear that?" he asked lowly. Freddy hadn't been paying attention but now that he did, he could hear the familiar footsteps of an animatronic passing outside. "Somebody's comin'!"

In all likelihood they weren't coming into his green room, but Freddy too felt a spark of fear and after looking back at the closed curtains, gave Foxy a gentle nudge on the back. One that Foxy almost recoiled from.

"Go through that door and hide in the back. I will take a look," he coaxed.

As suspicious as Foxy felt, he wasn't about to stand here and let himself get seen, so he hastily darted to the security door. Freddy pressed a button behind the arcade machine to open it and Foxy entered without delay. Freddy shut the door behind him before hustling over to the window and drawing open the curtains.

There was Chica and the new security guard walking right outside. The other animatronic's face was messy so she had probably been scrounging for food again. Natalie noticed him peeking out right away and he raised a hand to wave.

"There's Freddy," Natalie murmured. Chica looked over as well and rested a hand on her hip, waving with the other before blowing Freddy a kiss. He made a motion like he was catching it in his hand before she continued on. Natalie looked between them before catching up with her. "Is there something going on between you two?"

"I'm his arm candy!" Chica said in an almost bragging tone. Though then tapped her beak thoughtfully. "Or… No. It's more like he's a big hunk of gingerbread and I'm the icing that makes him look good… No! No, it's like a pizza! We're all like the parts of a pizza. Roxy's the sauce because she's saucy and wears red, Monty's spicy green peppers, I'm the melty cheese because I can be sweet sometimes, but I can be warm too! Warm and soft."

"What's Freddy, the dough?"

"Freddy's the crust," Chica answered. As she was saying this, they were approaching Monty's room and Natalie could hear what sounded like rapid, frantic bass strumming from inside. "He holds us all together, kinda."

"So, not because he's brown," Natalie said. This got a tiny giggle out of Chica. She nearly knocked over a velvet rope as she thumped towards her door. "Hey, careful," Natalie warned, grabbing and righting it. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Uh-huh! Thank you for walking me home, Officer Vanessa," Chica said. She turned back towards the door with a perkier bounce to her delayed steps. She kicked one leg up behind her and winked. "I think we'll be good friends very soon!"

"Sure thing. You can count on it," Natalie agreed. It wasn't until the door shut that she clenched her teeth upon realizing that Chica had somehow figured out her fake name without seemingly scanning her.

She didn't linger and quickly made her way down Rockstar Row. There was still frantic scratching from Monty's room, not even qualified as playing anymore. She kept her eyes ahead and started to approach Roxy's window when she noticed that the curtains had been opened. She slowly approached and looked in to see that there was another animatronic standing in their window.

This time it was none other than Roxanne Wolf, and from the facial structure alone Natalie could see the similarities to Foxy. The wolf was leering at her with half lidded eyes, hands on her hips, with one set of sharp nails tapping on her hip. The aloof look alone was a far cry from Freddy's friendliness. Unsure if it was just how she looked in general, Natalie raised a hand in greeting.

Roxanne proceeded turned away with a flip of her hair and confidently strode over towards her vanity, fluffy tail swaying behind her. Apparently, that chilly vibe wasn't just skin deep. Natalie wasn't really affected by it. If anything, she was more surprised that the animatronic actually had a tail and spent the brief walk to Freddy's window thinking about whether or not Foxy used to have one too.

Freddy was no longer standing at the door. Natalie peeked in the crack between the curtains to see him picking up some toys from the floor, including a huge plush of himself. He heard her at the window and looked over, and she sent him another wave, which he returned. It was sort of assuring to see that he wasn't sulking in his room so she continued back out of Rockstar Row so she could do her atrium rounds.

Little did she know, but Freddy was watching her closely. As soon as he could hear the security door out of Rockstar Row close, he looked around carefully and shut the curtains, then hastily opened the door to the back.

"Captain?" he called in quietly.

He looked around the backroom. It was a small, cramped space. Boxes of parts and supplies were stacked on shelves and carelessly on the shelves, and in the darkness they would cast intimidating shadows. There was an elevator in the room, but Foxy wouldn't have been able to use it himself, so Freddy crept in deeper. He came around the tight corner in the back and there he found where he went.

Foxy had found him staring at something almost beyond his comprehension. It looked like a sort of candy apple red tube with a big circular window in it. From the space inside and the height, it wasn't hard to guess that someone could easily fit into it. He assumed that person was Freddy and that idea made him both curious and uneasy. He looked over as Freddy came around the corner.

"What's this?" he asked, gesturing at the tube with his head.

"That is my charging station! When my battery gets low, I step inside and go through a charging cycle. My battery lasts around five hours between cycles, but there are charging stations across the Pizzaplex," Freddy readily explained. Foxy's looked him up in down in confusion.

"Ya run off a battery?" he asked. Now a battery would've made sense for a normal animatronic, or a set of pressurized hoses to make it move like it was alive, but they were alive. He had yet to see an animatronic that required a battery who had a soul in them. He didn't know how it worked, but he moved fine on his own without having to plug into an outlet. If Freddy had a soul in him then he shouldn't have needed to charge in some kind of sci-fi looking tube.

Brief doubt crept in for a moment as Foxy wondered if he had been wrong, but he shrugged that thought away immediately. Even with the stilted talking, there was too many quirks to be some kind of brainless machine. He was definitely alive.

The whole time he was thinking this, Freddy was talking.

"I do. We all do. Though not all of us require use of the charging stations. I am not sure how the others recharge their battery… Hmm… But from your confusion I am guessing you do not charge in the same way. How do you recharge yourself?" Freddy waited for an answer. Foxy was staring vaguely at the charging station. "…Captain?"

"Aye," Foxy said, more as placeholder answer to get a moment to remember what Freddy was asking him, and when he did he gave a proper answer. "We don't. Just a couple of hours of rest and we're back on our feet. No battery, no cables."

"That makes sense!" Freddy said. Foxy sent him a doubtful look. "I have heard that the old Freddy Fazbear animatronics were built to function without a cord and or charging stations. Do you know how it works?"

"Nah," Foxy admitted. He didn't feel comfortable enough to start talking death and souls with glamorized Freddy. "And quit callin' me old."

"Oh. My apologies, I was not trying to imply that you were."

"So, what, you don't sleep?" Foxy asked, still doubtful. "Don't get tired or feel weak?"

"I do feel tired when my battery runs low, and if it reaches critical, I can activate sleep mode, but it does not seem to recharge my battery. At least, I do not think it does," Freddy explained. "Perhaps the ones who do not charge sleep."

The two fell into silence as they continued looking at the ruby red charging station. Foxy still had so many questions about how it worked- if it went through his feet or shocked him like a taser- but he was becoming antsy again.

"They gone?" he asked.

"They are. Our security guard does not pass through here frequently, so I do not expect her back soon. You are free to come back to my room, it is safe," Freddy offered. Foxy just hummed low in his chest in wariness. He didn't realize Natalie was out there too. That had been closer than he thought. Perhaps that was a sign.

"I'm thinking it's about time I shove off," Foxy mumbled. He looked up to see the dejection in Freddy's eyes. "Don't give me that look. Ye knew me time was short."

"That I did. Do you think you will return?" Freddy asked. Foxy stared at him blankly.

"…That a question or invitation?"

"An invitation, of course! I had a lot of fun tonight. You are welcome here- just as long as you refrain from any more acts of delinquency."

Foxy couldn't tell if he was just so desperately lonely or if he was in for the long con. At this point he knew it had to be one of those, because he wasn't sure if what they had done should've been fun for Freddy. Unless he enjoyed watching people repeatedly try to beat his score on his skate game. Foxy had to nip this in the bud.

"I'll think about it."

Or he wasn't. He was honest though; he did need some time to think. If not about the bizarreness of Freddy, then about him charging in a tube. He started to head back to the door with Freddy in tow, only pausing to steal a glance at the elevator doors that he had noticed earlier.

"Where do they go?" he asked, continuing to the door.

"That elevator takes me down to parts and service," Freddy answered. Foxy came to a dead stop in front of him. Freddy stopping behind and taking a polite step back before the pirate sent him a look over his shoulder.

"Ye only brought me to yer room ta get me down in parts and service, didn't ya?" he flatly accused.

"I did think you may need repairs… but I meant what I said. I brought you to my room because it was safer, and because I cannot be seen outside it tonight."

Foxy hummed like he was questioning it, but in all likelihood, this was more of Freddy's blunt honesty, so he turned ahead and continued through the door. He started to head towards Freddy's door and was about to waltz through when he suddenly stopped on a dime before the door could activate.

"Wait… How long's she been gone?" Foxy asked.

"The security officer? She left Rockstar Row before I came to get you."

"…So she could still be in the dining room," Foxy mumbled. Now he was really feeling like a caged rat. He didn't want to stick around after that close call, but if he got caught and cornered by Natalie then the jig was up. He knew he was going to have to confess sooner than later, but he wanted that on his own terms. Not by getting caught in the act.

Freddy must've noticed how uncertain he was as he volunteered, "Perhaps you should stay a few minutes longer. Then I will escort you back to the vent. So if she is still out there, I can distract her long enough for you to get away."

Foxy had a suspicion that Freddy was just plying him for more time, but he did have a point and realized that he didn't have much choice. He hummed and stepped away from the door, considering it a long moment before nodding. Freddy didn't say anything- probably to not push his luck- and Foxy made his way back to the arcade machine.

"One more game," he said. He stared at the cartoon bear skateboarding on the title screen for a moment before turning to face the bear towering behind him, gesturing his hook to the cabinet. "Ya want it?"

"Are you certain? I am fine watching," Freddy offered. Though it wasn't hard to see how his eyes seemed to 'perk' with excitement.

"I be good. Show me how you've been gettin' them high scores," Foxy offered, waving for him to get on with it. It was going to be excruciating to watch if Freddy ended up getting another score higher than his, but he wasn't feeling safe enough to sink his attention into another try. He stood alongside the cabinet like he was keeping guard as Freddy started up the game.

"Now when you begin level one, you should hug the right side of the street and collect the first two slices of pizza. This means you will miss the stopwatch, but the first level is very generous with time. As soon as you get that second piece, you must move towards the middle before you run into traffic," Freddy began to explain. Hunched over with his eyes locked to the screen and his hands moving as though he had played it hundreds of times. "Towards the end move to the left-."

Foxy watched the screen with a nonchalant look and tried to not look too eager. It wasn't like he expected to play this game more than once or twice more, and only if he did decide to come back, which he wasn't sure if he even would.

To think that this was his main rival, hiding him in his little living room and showing him how to play a skateboarding game. It wasn't exactly the clash of the ages that Foxy was expecting.

…It wasn't exactly bad either.

Though things weren't the same on the far side of the Pizzaplex.

After a quick once-around the atrium, Natalie returned to the lobby feeling a little less creeped out. Or she did until she stepped out of the elevator only to hear an unfamiliar sound and look up to the elevator in the center of the room raising towards the ceiling. She hadn't seen anyone use that lift, she didn't even know where it went, but it moving was a telltale sign that someone had just been here.

"You've got to be kidding me!" she hissed and hustled down the steps to try and catch sight of whoever was in the lift through the glass on the other side. She just missed them, but this was enough to answer her questions.

Freddy might've used an elevator once, but the glass one was compact and far from Rockstar Row or even the daycare. She couldn't be certain, but this mixed with those pattering little footsteps made her believe it was a human. Maybe even the would-be vandal from the other night. She hastily ran back into the lost and found.

"Alright, where are you?" she muttered as she pulled up the map. It looked like that elevator went straight up into the third floor and a quick check indicated that it did. She clicked on some of the cameras in the area and her brows shot up at the sight of a massive prize area just upstairs. Already loaded with prizes and as big as the lobby, it put the dinky little gift shop to say. "Mental note: do not tell Mari about this."

But while she saw toys and trinkets on numerous counters and tables, and even saw the top of the elevator itself, she couldn't find anyone. This time she wasn't nearly as willing to pretend that she had been mistaken.

"I'm going up there," she said. Maybe just to convince herself because the thought made her more than a little nervous. Taking a deep breath, she got up from the desk and strode out of the lost and found.

Natalie didn't know much about the room above the lobby. All she knew was what she saw in those brief glimpses from the camera, but there was on peculiar thing that only occurred to her now and that involved the glass skylight. Or what she thought was a skylight but was really more a glass dome into some kind of starry room. It was in the center of the ceiling, high above where it would've gone ignored.

Except that when Natalie sized up that elevator shaft with a tight frown, she caught a glimpse of something on that glass dome. Something standing in that dark room in the middle of the prize corner, mere steps from the elevator. She looked up at it and time seemed to stop as she realized what she was looking at.

It was white, slender, with crooked ears above its head and its hands pressed on the glass. It wasn't clear enough to make out more fine details. The whole thing a blur except for the vague silhouette illuminated by the light from below.

A rabbit shaped silhouette.

But Natalie knew from that one glimpse alone that it was not a rabbit. It had the shape of a human underneath that rounded head.

It stared down as she stared up, frozen on the spot with eyes wide and lips still tight. The feeling that struck her was unlike any she felt before. Seeing someone running around in a bunny suit should've been ridiculous, silly, goofy, but that was far from what she felt. There was something wrong with it and it filled her with a deep dread. The sickening realization that followed didn't help matters.

"That's what I saw on the stairs," she thought. That also fit what she heard upstairs. It had actually been something circling around her without her knowing. It had been in this lobby with her since she got there.

Just when she thought it couldn't get worse, it cocked its head and suddenly its eyes filled with a red glow. It wasn't anything too spectacular, just looking like a typical light-up Halloween mask, but something about seeing that light filled her tense stomach with stones. Like she was staring at something she wasn't supposed to, but it didn't last long.

Because the rabbit suddenly bowed out of sight and was gone. As though it had just dissolved into the darkness from whence it came, leaving her alone and unsafe, feeling like it could appear anywhere now.

She resisted the intense urge to make a break back for Rockstar Row to spend the rest of the night Freddy or Chica and instead turned and sprinted right back into the lost and found.

No chances this time. She locked the doors, blocked the doors with whatever boxes she had, and was on the cameras searching. She looked through the lobby first, then the Prize Counter, then the atrium, searching for any sign of the rabbit. She could find no trace, but it was while she was searching that she noticed that the cameras were working normally again.

Her hands were shaking at this point. It wasn't an animatronic, it was a human, but her gut feeling was telling her it wasn't human. She had never been afraid of an animatronic like this and still the rabbit scared her.

She continued searching the Pizzaplex, only pausing to look out the window and make sure it wasn't creeping down the stairs, then back to the cameras. Searching for any sign of life.

Until she found one. Except that it wasn't the rabbit that she found.

It was Freddy walking across the ground floor of the atrium followed by a figure dressed in black with a telltale red-orange mask.

"What? Wait, hold up," Natalie said, surprised. She angled to a better camera and zoomed in as best as she could to get a better look, though was now looking at the vandal's back.

It had to be the vandal too. It matched the description she heard, stalking closely behind Freddy with its head down. She estimated him a little shorter than her, wearing a hoodie with his hands shoved into the pouch and sweatpants. Something black and plasticky was wrapped around its feet, which she only noticed because it had gotten a little frayed by use. It almost looked like trash bag material. That mixed with that familiar striding gait made something click.

"Oh my God," Natalie said in utter exasperation. "Foxy!"

If she had any doubt, he started to quickly look around in paranoia. A twitchy, jerky sort of motion. Motions she recognized from a nervous Foxy. Not to mention that he was walking around with Freddy- no wonder Freddy was looking for him.

"He is so busted. I can't believe him," she grumbled. She watched as they walked out of the cameras line of sight, heading towards the snack bar area where she had been only a while earlier. Probably getting the same idea as Chica and going to raid the kitchen. She shook her head and clicked back to the lobby cameras, considering if it was worth taking off after him.

The urge died quickly. She had more important things to deal with than Foxy. She could- and would- tell the others tomorrow, but right now there was something much worse prowling around. At least he was with Freddy, she decided, though she did feel creeping worry settle in. She really hoped Freddy was a good guy.

As she was still searching for the rabbit, Freddy escorted Foxy all the way back into the storage area and right back to the vent. Foxy expected him to put up a fight about leaving, but Freddy stuck to his word and watched as he tossed in the backpack and began to climb inside.

"Captain," Freddy interrupted. The pirate stopped halfway into the vent. "I apologize, but there is something I must ask you. I did not want to ruin our time together, but I am afraid that I must know."

Foxy dropped his head with a huff. "Here it comes," he thought, expecting to be asked to stay. He pulled out his head from the vent. "Better ask while ye can. What izzit?"

"…Who is Afton?"

Foxy went rigid- thankful that he pulled himself out of the vent or he probably would've smacked his head on it. The name caught him off guard for a few seconds… until he remembered that he had written that name in his graffiti. Freddy had gotten the name from him. It didn't make the question any less uncomfortable, but it made it much less suspicious.

"Ya never heard that name?" Foxy asked.

"I am afraid I have not…" Freddy replied. His eyes glowed with curiosity. "Who were they?"

"He was a monster," Foxy answered, his voice low and heavy. The bear picked up on that solemn tone and decided not to ask further questions. Instead, he watched the pirate stare at the wall for a long moment before looking back. "Can I ask you something now?" he asked. "You don't have to answer it."

"Go right ahead! I will answer as best I can," Freddy willingly agreed.

"…Where'd you come from?" Foxy asked. The bear looked confused. "Take no offense. I mean only… Where? Ya couldn'ta just popped out of a clamshell."

"Why, I came from here, of course!" Freddy answered. Foxy shook his head.

"No, no, you ain't gettin' me," he said and then clarified further. "Before this place. Before this… thing got built. Ya came from somewhere."

"Err, no. I was built here," Freddy said. Foxy rolled his head back with exasperation until the other also clarified, "Underneath this facility are the production lines they used to build me. Such as Parts and Service, but not limited to."

This caught Foxy's attention and he thought about it for a long second, yellow eyes tracing along the floor. He remembered Marionette said there was a massive basement, so that made sense- that was also more than a little concerning, but he couldn't think of that right now. He nodded, satisfied with this answer but not done.

"Gotcha. 'Nother question if I may?" Foxy offered him a hand in gesture. Freddy gave him a high-five, almost as a reflex. The pirate stared at him for a long moment before recovering enough to continue. "You remember anything before that?"

"Before what?"

"From back down there. Before ye were Freddy."

"What? I… I am not certain… No, I couldn't. How could I remember something before I was… myself?" Freddy asked, suddenly recognizing the paradox.

"Guess ya can't… Forget it. I just be havin' some kinda… existential crisis. That's all," Foxy quickly excused. He looked at the ground for a long moment before asking, "Can ya keep this between us? What I said about Afton."

"Of course, but if you ever want to talk more about it then I will listen," Freddy offered. Foxy had to remind himself that the animatronic before him was especially lonely and trying any tactic to get him to stay. "…If you will come back."

"I'll be back," he said with defeat. He then began to climb back into the vent. "One o' these days. Don't get yerself locked up lookin' fer me."

"I will be very careful. You take care on your way to your pizzeria, Captain," Freddy said after him. He continued to peer into the vent as Foxy crawled away and waited until he couldn't hear him before leaving.

Foxy, meanwhile, had a lot on his mind. The situation at the Pizzaplex, Natalie's role, some kind of animatronic building facility, the Pizzaplex building and repairing its own animatronics, and his rival- his real-life Silver Fox- being too friendly and empathetic to even wish ill will towards. Though his thoughts on Freddy were aimed in a much different direction now, one that connected to that factory under the ground.

Animatronics were being built underneath Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex.

And Freddy only remembered being Freddy because he was fresh blood.

Needless to say, Natalie didn't do any more rounds that night. She only dared to leave the lost and found once to use the bathrooms in the daycare hallway, but she spent the entire time on high alert. Thankfully, the only thing waiting for her when she came out was a Staff Bot who then followed her out of the hall and began cleaning the floors outside the elevators. She felt unsafe and alone, and direly wished that morning would come.

Exhaustion crept in, but it wasn't nearly as bad as the night before. She wasn't sure if it was because of how long she slept today or because she was too hyper aware of her surroundings to relax, let alone sleep.

Yet as vigilant as she was, she didn't see the rabbit again. Not even when she swore she could hear it somewhere in the lobby. Not even when the cameras slowed to a crawl.

In the last minutes before she could leave, Natalie made her way carefully up the stairs and into the Faz-Pad kitchen. Making sure the door was shut and secure, she carefully crouched down, back to the corner instead of either door, and reached with her fingers for the knife.

Her heart sunk when she found that it was no longer there. She got out of the kitchen quickly and started watching her back even closer. When six came, she immediately clocked out and made her way to the doors. She only looked back once before getting in her car and driving away.

Natalie let herself into the house and started making her way inside when she realized she wasn't the only one awake. Fritz was sitting on the couch, shutting off the tv and leaning his head over the back when he heard her come in.

"Hey," he greeted with a warm, tired smile. He must've set an alarm because he hadn't been up long. She smiled at him, but it must've not been convincing as his own faltered. "What's wrong?"

"Just… Hold on." She set down her things on the table, pulled off her hat, and kicked off her shoes behind the couch before circling around to sit beside him. It was clear that she was tense. She laid back into her couch, but her motions seemed delayed, as though she was nervous. He could tell immediately that she was stressed but was glad she wasn't as tired as the night before.

"I didn't get to see you in uniform last night. It looks great on you," Fritz said, trying to ease the tension. It worked a little, getting a tired smile out of the blond.

"Oh yeah? I'm hoping you didn't only agreed to me getting this job to see me in it," she lightly teased.

"It wasn't to wrangle up tipsy robots all night," Fritz retorted. He hated doing it when he got a smile out of her, but he returned to his concerns. "How'd tonight go?"

The look on her face said it all. The way she blankly stared ahead as she recounted the night in her head was all he needed to see to know something had gone wrong. He reached out to take her hand, triggering her to take a deep breath.

"It went… Bad," she confessed. "It started off okay and it went downhill so fast that I…" She took a shaky breath and stared off at the coffee table before steeling herself enough to look him in the eyes. "Fritz."

"Nat?"

"There was someone in a bunny costume stalking me all night," she said. He had a slow look of shock appear on his face. "It wasn't an animatronic. I thought that at first, but the way it was shaped, the way its footsteps sounded- it wasn't. It was someone wearing a costume… I think I might've been a woman. The shape kind of looked like it." She cut off to make a cupping motion with her hand. "Not that I could see much when she was thirty feet above me."

As lost as Fritz was looking, that look of fear had never left his face. "Did she do anything?" he asked.

"She threatened me with a knife, sort of. She left a knife out in the open for me to find and then came back and got it after I tried to hide it… But I got the message loud and clear. If her circling me like a vulture wasn't clear enough," Natalie muttered. She sat there a long moment before adding, "I think we have a problem."

"We have a huge problem," Fritz agreed. He sounded nearly as shaken as she did, though for different reasons. Not that the prospect of someone running around in a bunny suit wasn't terrifying enough, but that wasn't the only thing he was worried about. He pulled her into a hug, which Natalie gladly accepted. Her hands tightly clutching to his back.

"We'll figure this out," he promised, already planning on getting ahold of a taser for her to smuggle in.

"Yeah…" Natalie trailed off for a second. Leaving them sitting quietly in the dark living room. "…I should've warned Foxy."

"We can warn him tomorrow," Fritz assured. Only then recognizing the oddness of the comment. "Why Foxy?"

"Because if he's going to be over there hanging with Freddy he needs to know to watch out."

"What do you… Oh, okay. I just caught up," he said, exasperation creeping into his voice. "We'll deal with that tomorrow too. Nobody's going to be up yet… Except maybe Foxy."

"And I've had enough of Foxy," Natalie finished. She slowly drew back with a sigh, resting her head on her hand for a moment before reaching back to pull her hair down. "Let's go to bed."

"Okay," Fritz agreed. He guided her out of the living room with a protective hand on her back and tried not to dwell on how unsettled he was. They could deal with it and the morning, and with how serious this was, they would be.

Neither of them realized that Chance had been standing on the landing of the basement stairs.

He hadn't meant to listen in. The plan was to walk upstairs and welcome Natalie home after her ordeal, then let her sleep and get answers tomorrow. He knew how tough this job was, even though he was biting at the bit ever since they had told him about the living animatronics in the Pizzaplex he still wanted to support the woman who had been supporting him.

It was an accident to come in when she was talking about the rabbit, and he had been so stunned he stayed frozen on the landing. He hadn't even found his voice when they got up to leave, he just continued standing there thinking about what this could mean for all of them.

He hoped it was a copycat. He really, really did. It would still be a nightmare, but he would take anything over the real deal.

Thank goodness Henry wasn't here to see this.

Chapter 13

Chapter Summary

Mike, Marionette, and the others find out about what Natalie encountered the night before... among other things.

Chapter Notes

You can tell from the word count that I couldn't stop myself. It must be a programming bug. Anyway, sorry this posted late! Enjoy!

It was a typical morning at the Schmidt-Afton-Johnson-and temporarily Fitzgerald residence. Mike had been back from his late-morning run for a while and was currently stretched out on the couch watching TV, with Moppet curled up between him and the back of it. Marionette was sitting on the floor in front of the couch putting together a puzzle with Bow and Plushtrap. A picture of a dragon was slowly coming together.

Today was their day off and while they still expected to get news from Natalie, things were more lowkey than they had been in weeks. Unfortunately, it couldn't last. Mike's cell phone began to ring, and he reached above his head to grab it.

"Hello, hello?" he answered.

"Hey, it's me," Fritz said. His voice alone just sounded like bad news was coming. "Think you could get everyone together and meet us over at Foxy's? Natalie's got a few updates."

"Sure, I'll get us over there," Mike agreed. "…So, what happened this time?"

"Mike, you have no idea," Fritz said. He hesitated for a long moment and Mike's silence prodded for an answer. "Natalie saw something last night."

"Saw what?" he pressed. He reached over and tapped Marionette on the back of his head to get his attention. The Puppet looked back at him curiously while Fritz still seemed torn. "How bad was it?" Mike pressed.

"…Natalie was harassed by a woman with a knife wearing a bunny costume and running around the Pizzaplex afterhours."

"…What?!" Mike shot upright. It jostled Moppet enough that she got up and quickly scooted off the couch. Plushtrap jumped and Bow looked over, and Marionette was already looking so he just got a slightly concerned look. "Is she sure? Is she absolutely sure it wasn't just one of those creeps that were peeking on her trying to mess with her?"

"No, they were long gone by then. The doors were already sealed when she started to hear her running around," Fritz said. It was clear that he was a little freaked out, even more now than he had been last night. "I just- I can't believe this! I don't even know if this is real or just someone pranking her- which I hope it is. I hope this is some kind of sick joke and not someone actually running around pulling a 'Purple Man'," he finished through his teeth.

Mike hissed a swear through his own teeth and slowly made eye contact with Marionette. He wondered how much the Puppet could hear. Normally he was able to overhear things on the phone pretty well, but he probably hadn't been listening too long. His brows were furrowed like he was confused and concerned, so he must've heard that 'Purple Man' comment.

"And that's not all. Remember how we were thinking Foxy was the vandal? Natalie saw Foxy at the Pizzaplex! He IS the vandal, and he's been over there hanging out with Freddy!"

"Big shock," Mike muttered. Marionette leaned forward onto the couch, tilted his head, and raised a hand to shrug in questioning.

"…I'm taking from that that you already knew."

"Oh yeah, I knew. That look on his face yesterday told me everything," Mike said. Noticing Marionette, he covered the receiver and mumbled a quick, "It was Foxy."

He didn't even need to clarify what. Marionette's head snapped up with a start and within seconds a low and disgruntled static began to hum through his chest.

"How's Nat holding up?" Mike asked, trying to ignore the dial tone at his side.

"She's doing okay. Didn't get much sleep, but I'm hoping she'll nap a little later… Because they're expecting her back tonight, and she's planning on going." Mike hummed. "Speaking of which, can we borrow your taser? Mine needs to charge and I don't want her going in unarmed."

"Sure, I'll bring it to the pizzeria. I'll get everyone together and we'll be over there in a few minutes."

"Thanks… Maybe you shouldn't tell Jeremy yet. I don't want it hanging over his head the whole drive over here. At least if he hears it here, we can all jump in and-."

"Keelhaul Foxy."

"Comfort Jeremy. But I like your idea too. Go on a fox hunt before rabbit season opens up."

"That reminds me, I really need to get a gun," Mike remarked. "I'll see you in a bit. Take care." The call ended and he shoved his phone into his pocket. Then stole a glance at the seething Puppet. "I have the suspicion that you might be upset."

"I think you might be right," Marionette replied, voice heavy with that static, dotted pupils glowing.

"I shouldn't have doubted you for a second. Your instincts are dead-on, as usual," Mike assured as he got up from the couch. He patted Marionette's head before going into the kitchen and taking a few steps down into the basement, knocking on the wall and calling down, "We're going to Foxy's!" Charlie called back in agreement, and he turned around to step back out, only to find Marionette waiting behind him.

"That wasn't what you were worked up over," the Puppet said. His frustration gone and now replaced with concern and perplexation. "Foxy, I mean. We both suspected it was Foxy… I thought I heard Fritz say something about the Purple Man?"

"Right…" This wasn't great, but he supposed it was best to get it over with now. It wasn't like Marionette wasn't going to find it suspicious if he tried to hide it, and he would rather tell him where they wouldn't have an audience for him to feel embarrassed expressing in front of. Mike took his hand. "…Let's go to the bedroom."

"He better not be in there," Marionette said in a lukewarm attempt at humor. He let Mike lead him by the hand into the hallway. "…He better not be anywhere," he added a little more dangerously. Quietly enough that nobody would hear.

The man's silence and the wording on his side of the phone call made the puppet nervous. He watched as Mike stopped and knocked on the doorway of Marionette's bedroom door, catching the attention of Jeremy, who was sitting on the bed helping his Minireenas get dressed.

"We're off to Foxy's in five," he forewarned. Jeremy gave him a thumbs up and hastily continued the dressing. Marionette looked at him with sympathy as they passed by, hoping he wouldn't take the reveal of Foxy's actions too hard.

Mike shut the bedroom door behind them and stood there for a moment considering how he would go about this. He slowly turned around to face Marionette and upon seeing his face realized there was no way to soften the blow.

"Fritz said-… That Natalie said she was stalked by a woman dressed as a rabbit last night," Mike began. His voice losing almost all its volume over that one statement. "He said she had a knife and was running around the Pizzaplex after the doors locked." The Puppet moved like he was about to speak, but Mike beat him to it. "And it was a human, not an animatronic. It wasn't that Bonnie replacement Wight was talking about, it was a person in a suit."

Marionette's face went blank. The expression on it completely unreadable and it was a good five or six seconds before it was broken by those white pupils returning. They were locked onto Mike in an equally blank stare. He reached out to put a hand on his shoulder and gently rubbed his fabric in little circles. He didn't say anything yet, just allowing the other a minute to process it all.

Which he did, and he could only come to one sudden conclusion.

"I change my mind. You can get a job at the Pizzaplex."

Mike was utterly blindsided by the statement. Whether it be how rapidly he flipped on his previous desires or how convinced he sounded of it. No hesitation or doubt, he had completely changed his mind.

As if sensing Mike questioning it, he very willingly explained himself. The way he said it almost to a greater effect than the words he spoke.

"I-I'm not going to st-stand aside and let this happen again," Marionette said. His voice crackling and wavering with white noise and clinking as he spoke. "N-Never again. Never again."

This clarification didn't make it any less shocking, but Mike was definitely able to read it a little better. Marionette meant it, but he didn't want it. That much was clear. Looking to assure in this fragile state, he pulled him in closer, catching the back of his neck to coerce him into resting their foreheads together.

"Hey, hey. We'll figure out another way in," Mike calmly assured him. The static wavered slightly. "Nothing's happened yet and we're not going to let anything happen."

This managed to make Marionette's anger deflate slightly. Not because he felt any better, but because the ready determination was assuring to hear. He cupped Mike's face in his hands and pulled him a little more surely against him, his mask cool against his warm skin. The porcelain almost vibrating from the low noises still echoing from his internal music box.

"It's the same thing. It's all the same," he choked, box twanging and tightening. The static growing and looming with it, audibly projecting both frustration and fear. "Why-y would they let this happen?!"

"But it's not the same," Mike said, pulling back to look Marionette in the eyes. "It's not him. He's gone. He's too far gone and he's not coming back."

Whatever Marionette was working himself into was cut short by that sudden yank back to the present. The dialing faltered with a sound akin to a soft gasp or gentle sob, the latter more likely as a few small droplets of purple dripped out from the eyes of his mask and down his stripes.

Marionette's face softened up further and he dropped his gaze, finding Mike's t-shirt a lot more interesting than making eye contact. "…It seems he always finds a way back…" he said quietly.

"Maybe when he was alive, but since then he's only came back once, and he slipped up big time when he did. There's no coming back from whatever that red pond was. I don't even know what it really was, and I know it's the last stop," Mike reassured. Then he lowered his voice, catching the puppet's chin and lifting it. "And let me tell you this, if we put an end to the big bad "Purple Man" then we can deal with a copycat wannabe."

The Puppet's eyes narrowed at the thought. "How disgusting. Who would want that? Who would aspire for that other than him?" he hissed.

"Trust me, there's a lot of twisted, sick people out there who are so desperate to get their names to mean something that they're willing to do anything for it. Real sickos- almost like Afton, and yet still not as pathetic as him," Mike said with a sneer. "Something about a forty-year-old man preying on kids in a bunny suit is hard to beat."

"There will be so many children…" Marionette said. Anger fading enough to make way for the dread to rise once more. The same happening to Mike, whose face grew somber.

"They're not open yet. Who knows; if this gets big enough it might not even open," he suggested, voice softer. Though not even he believed the last part.

"…What about Natalie?"

"I'm giving her my taser to borrow in the meantime."

There was a quiet moment between them. There was a wispy sigh from Marionette followed by a twang in his chest before the static started to recede. Though not before Mike got another one of those strange emotional sensations through his hands. Like a flash of anger up his arm before finally cooling down once more.

"…I'm sorry, you're right. You shouldn't sign up with them just to get us in there," Marionette said. He reached up to wipe his tears away with his hand, which Mike took and then tried to wipe off with a random, dark shirt he pulled off the dresser. This got a tiny smile out of the puppet. "What are you going to do with me?"

"Well first, I'm going to take you over to the pizzeria so we can all gang up on Foxy," Mike began. He looked up with that spark of determination and the slightest smirk on his lips. "Then I'll work on finding us a way in."

"Maybe if we're still on speaking terms we can ask Foxy how he's been getting in."

"You'll have to ask him, I'm going to be too busy holding this over his head," he quipped. It almost sounded normal, but it didn't feel normal. With a weary sigh for the day they hadn't yet had, he tossed the shirt over into the laundry basket and took Marionette's hand once more, giving it an assuring squeeze. "Let's get this show on the road."

Nobody noticed how quiet the two were on the drive to Foxy's. At least, they assumed that it was out of worry for what Natalie was going to tell them, so they didn't piece together that they knew more than they said.

They also barely dodged a bullet with Foxy's reveal too when Button and Bow had uncharacteristically asked to go to the pizzeria with Jeremy, likely to hear what Foxy was in trouble for. Mike had rushed out an excuse about grown-up talk and rushed the blond out the door shortly afterwards. Jeremy also didn't ask because he too was worried about getting upsetting news and having to comfort the Bidybabs afterwards.

He was none the wiser to what was coming, and neither was Foxy himself.

Foxy was in a completely different headspace though. He was wracked by guilt. The first time he had snuck into the Pizzaplex he had felt a little guilty too, especially once Jeremy started getting the heat for it. Somehow it didn't stop him from sneaking back in, but now he was feeling it. He betrayed his family, his friends, his first mate, and his franchise with what he did last night. Putting everything in jeopardy to play games with the enemy.

He had to tell them. He had to tell Jeremy, he had to tell Marion, and he had to do it today. He knew they would be coming by to hear whatever Natalie had to say from Fritz calling and telling him, so he could only brace himself for what he was going to have to do. Fritz seemed a little weird on the phone, so it was likely to be rough waters ahead. Though he must've skirted by detection yet again.

That only made him feel a little worse, honestly. He had to do it, he had to come clean, and the opportunity walked right through the door when both Jeremy and Marionette arrived with Mike and Charlie. Jeremy was without the Minireenas, giving Foxy a perfect opportunity to pull him aside and tell him.

"Welcome all ye who dare to enter," Foxy greeted with little enthusiasm or character. He then promptly turned to Jeremy. "Lad, mind if I pull ya away fer a minute?"

"Umm, sure! No problem. We've got time before Fritz gets here…" Jeremy agreed. He stole a quizzical glance at Mike, who shrugged back, and followed the pirate across the dining room. He watched his back, watching how he walked with his arms folded behind his back, how his ears were lowered, and he got the distinct impression that Foxy was upset about something. Though this wasn't the same as the depressed fog that followed bad news.

Unfortunately for Foxy, he had a few telltale signs of guilt, and though Jeremy recognized them he wasn't nearly suspicious enough to jump to conclusions, assuming it was from something last night alone.

Mike and Marionette had a hunch of what was happening and exchanged unenthused and exasperated looks respectively.

"I wonder what that's about," Charlie mused.

"Chances are Foxy's coming clean about going over to Freddy's," Mike said. She sent him an amused little half smile before noticing that he wasn't joking.

"Wait, you're serious," she said. She glanced between him and Foxy's retreating for with a hum. "Now is this just another hunch or did Fritz tip you off?"

Mike quirked a brow and shot her smug little grin in an answer. It didn't take her long to put two and two together from that look.

"…He went back last night, didn't he?" Charlie asked. Her arms dropping at her sides almost dejectedly. Marionette gave a slow nod and she sighed. "Great disguise choice then," she said sarcastically.

"Mm-hmm," he agreed. She mimicked the noise and they both looked after the two who were now talking by the stage. Both trying to read the conversation when they couldn't hear much of it.

…

"But that's not all he said…"

Mike found his jaw clenching at Marionette's comment. Not just because of the grim tone- though that played a big part- but because he had briefly forgotten that they hadn't told Charlie about the rabbit and knew the reaction wasn't going to be great. He inhaled slowly through his teeth as round two began with Marionette turning to face her.

"Charlie, there's something we need to… tell you about…" he began, only to trail off as he noticed Fritz's car pulling into the parking lot. Mike gave him a pat on the back, snapping him out of his brief pause to finish. "…Charlie, Natalie is about to give us some… dire news. Horrible, disturbing news."

"Worse than Foxy using guerrilla tactics against our competitors?" Charlie asked flatly.

"Much, much worse." The hushed seriousness of his tone sobered her up instantly, and if it hadn't the shared stoicism in Mike's face would've done it. This was going to be one of those 'Freddy is alive' moments, she could already tell.

In the meantime, Foxy had brought Jeremy over to his stage. He had almost considered taking him behind the curtain, but then decided against it, instead choosing to keep his voice low. He was nervous and twitchy, and he could tell that Jeremy noticed when he looked over in time to see the blond looking down at his tapping foot. Blue eyes popped back up to him and his yellow one quickly flicked away.

"Jeremy…"

If the twitchiness wasn't a dead giveaway, then the way he said his name was. Even before he said anything else, Jeremy recognized that he had also dropped his stage accent, which was probably why he also dropped his volume.

"I don't know how to… You know I haven't been in the right head for the last couple of-… months," Foxy began. He crossed his arms, then uncrossed them, then reached for Jeremy, hesitated, and laid his hand on his shoulder. He was beyond nervous. "…How many times have I done something stupid without thinking twice?"

"Not that many." Foxy scoffed at that. "It's true! I've done plenty of stupid things and I know you'd say the same for me. Right?" he asked knowingly. The other responded with a halfhearted chuckle.

"You got me there… but we're not even in the same league when it comes to bad calls…" He closed his eyes with a low groan in his chest. "I made a really bad call this time." That despondent tone was telling in the worst ways.

"Gabe, you're starting to get me nervous. Not that that's that hard to do… What's going on?" Jeremy encouraged. Foxy started to turn away, but Jeremy followed right after him, stepping in front of him so they were still face to face. Foxy unintentionally cornered with his back to the stage, but Jeremy's features gentle and not confrontational. "…If you're in trouble, you've got to tell me."

Foxy's head snapped up and he wondered if the blond already knew. He honestly wasn't sure, but that statement landed very close to the mark. Just him being supportive, he guessed, or him knowing Foxy had a tendency to get in too deep.

He gave a cautious nod and started to reach for Jeremy when his ear twitched at the sound of the front door. He looked over, Jeremy did too, to see Fritz and Natalie walking through the door. The pirate huffed a little and was about to suggest they go into the kitchen, already fearing that they were going to get interrupted, when something happened that halted that plan in its tracks.

Natalie came in first, greeted the group at the door, and then looked across the room until her eyes landed on Foxy.

And her eyes narrowed.

And Foxy knew he was busted.

Suddenly the plan was going to have to take a backseat and the first and most important thing was to get out of sight as fast as possible. Even if he knew he was delaying the inevitable.

"Excuse me a second," he said. Then proceeded to do a weird half backwards roll onto the stage behind him and under his curtain. All while Jeremy stared in confusion.

"…Do you want me to come in too or should I wait out here?" he asked.

"Nah, just- just stay out there, lad. I won't be being too long," Foxy answered, slipping back into his pirate lingo. A clear sign to Jeremy that he was shutting down the conversation right there and he couldn't help but take notice as why.

Foxy closed up his curtain and stood there for a long moment trying to listen in to what was happening over at the door. He started to barely nudge open the curtain a crack when he felt something shift behind him, recognizing it as Marionette teleporting even before he turned back to face his brother. He saw the disappointed look on the puppet's face and knew that he had to come clean.

"Marion, I've got to come clean. I let me impulses get the best of be again," he quickly whispered out. Marionette quirked a brow at him, less questioningly and more like "you think?". "…I'm guessin' from that look ya already know what I'm gonna say… I did it."

Which was as far as he got before the curtains were pulled open. He hadn't even been paying attention to the footsteps, but when he looked back there was Natalie standing in front of the stage, hands on her hips, eyes narrowed and lips tight. Jeremy was still standing where he was and the others a little ways away, but everyone was looking directly at him, putting him on the spot. As though Natalie's intense look didn't do that enough.

"So, how was your date with Freddy?" she asked.

He stared at her before his eyes flicked around looking for reactions. Much to his dismay, the only person who looked even a little shocked was Jeremy, though he looked properly startled by the accusation as he stared at the blond.

Foxy was embarrassed and flustered, still guilty and panicked, but also unsurprised as he knew this was coming. Yet in all of that, there crept up that nervy little edge to grab his tongue and reply for him.

"T'was alright."

Jeremy's head snapped to Foxy and the animatronic regretted it instantly, flinching under the horror of that stare, while Natalie clasped a hand to her face and took a deep breath like she was trying to keep her composure.

"Is that what you were coming clean about?!" Jeremy exclaimed. Foxy gave a meek little nod. "But- But how did you even-?! What disguise?!"

"His hoodie. You know, that black one you got him," Natalie grumbled through her hand. Jeremy looked to her again in shock before looking back to Foxy.

"Your comfort hoodie?!"

Foxy dropped his head before swinging it in a slight little nod.

Jeremy turned away and made a sound akin to a frustrated cry smothered by an annoyed huff with the heels of his hands blocking his eyes. Fritz walked over to give him a barely comforting pat on the back.

Natalie meanwhile uncovered her own face to ask, "Foxy, what were you thinking?"

"I don't know!" Foxy crumbled on the spot. With a dramatic slump, he came forward and hopped down from the stage, then sat down with his head in his hand and hook. "I don't know what happened. It wasn't supposed to go down like this."

"Which part: breaking into Freddy's and vandalizing the place or going back days later to pal around with Freddy?" Natalie asked, less than sympathetic at his response. She groaned, "If you had any idea what went down there last night- do you know what could've happened if you got caught by anyone other than me?"

Foxy groaned deeply as an answer. It sounded exceptionally guilty.

"He did get caught," Marionette translated. Porcelain lips just as tight as hers and his somewhat annoyed look still lingering. She was confused for only a second before it suddenly clicked.

"Freddy caught you, didn't he? That's why he was asking about you because he saw you," Natalie realized, eyes widening. "…Did you tell him you were Foxy, or did he guess because of the mask? Because he was asking about a Foxy's animatronic, so he must've known you were one."

"Oh, he knew a'right," Foxy confessed, voice muffled. "Caught me red handed, chased me round the bend, and pulled me hood off tryin' to stop me."

"So, like any logical person, you went back to the scene of the crime to hang out with the only witness," Mike casually added in. His look and tone equally unenthused. "Makes sense. Some of my best friends chased me down the first time we met. A few even tried to kill me. Good times."

"Mike, you're not helping," Natalie flatly remarked.

"This is me holding back. That's helpful enough considering that him playing around at Freddy's is the reason we got all tied up in Wight," he answered. His voice was still relatively mellow, but Foxy groaned and sunk further into himself like he had been chastised. The blunt truth was more painful than any yelling match.

"I just… I bloody lost it… After I heard about how amazing and- and fantastic this new Freddy's was, with all its shiny new animatronics and all its trinkets and games… and all the things we ain't ever gonna have… and that they got it off'a our backs." His hand and hook dropped from his face. Hand on his thigh, hook hitting the edge of the stage with a small thunk and digging into the wood. "We suffered just so Freddy's could use our graves as a stepping stone. It just…"

His hook was shaking in anger as he said this and his fingers dug into his shorts and fabric. His back tensed for a moment before suddenly it all deflated on the spot as the frustration was washed out by remorse.

"But there's no excuse. I sold out me whole crew, me ship, me business, all just to try an' take a jab at a big no-face company that don't give a bilge rat's sodden bottom 'bout us."

This was what finally got Natalie's face to soften up. That wasn't to say she was going to let him off the hook, but she was starting to understand. Marionette shared those feelings and had already understood his brother's motives before he said them, but he remained steadfast. Because his business wasn't the only thing Foxy risked last night.

"I'll tell ya everything, I just… I don't know where to begin," Foxy offered.

The tense pause lingered a few moments longer before someone finally stepped forward. Unlike what might've been expected, it wasn't Jeremy, who was still standing there with Fritz facing away. Now with his hands resting on, fingers laced on, his head which was tilted down. He was obviously affected by what Foxy had said but still unable to face him.

Instead, it was Charlie, who had been listening quietly from the sidelines up until now. She came up alongside him and leaned on the stage on one arm.

"Begin from the beginning," she gently encouraged. Her face serious but soft in comparison to some of the others'. "We won't interrupt. We just want to know what's going on."

Marionette gave a hum of agreement from behind. It was enough to push Foxy into spilling it all. They all deserved the truth.

"Ya could say it started the day Jer'my spotted that billboard on the highway… but it wasn't 'til we got that look at the inside that somethin' snapped. After I heard about that place, I knew I couldn't stand around and let 'em get away without a little trouble. I threw on me disguise and shoved off and made it there around an hour later."

"You just walked there?" Charlie asked in slight disbelief.

"Wasn't that far. Wasn't as far as Magictime."

"Oh, right… There's a name I mentally blocked," she said. Still looking at his lap, he hooked his arm around her shoulders. She made a throat-clearing sort of chime. "Sorry, keep going."

"Took me a while to find a way in, but it's a Freddy's; there's always a weak spot… Started sprayin' up the joint when some swab bot rolls outta the shadows and starts moppin' up me work. I get in a tussle with it and the next thing I know, there's Freddy leapin' over a ticket gate and runnin' at me faster than a seagull to a bagel. I outrun him, but he corners me in the hall! Suddenly, he snatches me by the hoodie and hoists me up, slidin' it straight offa me! And there I be on the floor starin' up at Freddy and he starin' down at me, just as spooked as I was, when I make a hasty retreat."

At some point, Foxy's instincts as a natural storyteller came out because he was telling the story as dramatically and fluidly as if he was retelling a cartoon-based tale between him and Captain Silver Fox. He caught himself though, or the weight of what he was actually discussing caught up with him and he quickly deflated once more.

"Last night I made the choice to go back. Can't say why fer sure…. But prob'ly had to do with Freddy. See, after he knew what I be, he started followin' me like a stray. I didn't get why then, but I think I got a feel for it last night… So, I got back inside and started snoopin' 'round til I found Freddy in his room. I didn't know it then, but he'd been locked up in there tighter than the Dutchman's brig. He waves at me and peels outta the backroom like he's got the devil on his heels.

I coulda left then, but instead I went to see that Kids Cove Wight was talkin' big game of… It be just as impressive as he says," Foxy admitted with a sigh. "…Freddy came up through the stage an' cornered me in the cove. When I went the first time, I brought a backpack full o' spray paint, but lost it after Freddy showed up. He saved it and gave it to me. It's shoved under the stage if ya want to see it, but he threw out everything inside.

He asked me back to his green room. No, he pleaded fer me to come back to his green room. I still don't know if it's cause he was lonely or cause he thought I was broken- saw me without me head off… So, I went back with him."

"I was wondering how he got out. I thought you let him out," Natalie said.

"Nah," Foxy denied. "He couldn't even let us back in without some kinda photo pass."

"Freddy got caught wandering yesterday so the technicians locked him in his room," Natalie explained, turning to Fritz and Mike specifically. "I asked them why they didn't let Freddy just roam around on his own and they said it was because an animatronic got damaged roaming around the Pizzaplex. They didn't say if it was the sun or something else."

Something about this in particular irritated Mike a little. Maybe it was because his family members were animatronics, but the idea of locking one up who was clearly awake and aware- while typically normal in cases where they were dangerous- rubbed him the wrong way. He couldn't help but steal a glance at Marionette to try and judge his reaction and noticed he looked disturbed.

"What did Freddy say about that?" Mike asked, switching to look at Foxy.

"Didn't say nothin' 'bout any other animatronics, but he did tell me why he was locked up," Foxy said. He looked down with a look of confusion and thoughtfulness. "Funny, he got out pretty quick once he saw me there. Could've gotten out the whole time, but there he was just sittin' in there until he saw me…"

Suddenly he straightened up as he remembered something and nudged Charlie's side. "Ye know what else he said? Okay, so Nat starts walkin' around outside, so shove off to hide in the back and I see this tube lookin' thing with a window on it. Like some kinda rounded metal closet looking thing. Get this, Freddy says it be a charging room. Says he has to 'recharge his battery', goes and stands in a closet fer a while," he explained.

"What?" Charlie asked surprised. "That's not possible. He has to at least plug in or something. Did you get a good look at the inside?"

"'Fraid not, Lass. Just a look 'round the outside."

"Okay, so maybe possible. There might be a power cable on the inside," she said, voice lowering as she spoke to herself. "Not that I was expecting a pneumatic system, but a walk-in charging station? How are they getting this technology…?"

"Might be buildin' it themselves. Freddy said somethin' 'bout a production line under the Pizzaplex," Foxy said half under his breath. Marionette heard and caught on to the significance immediately.

"I think I've seen one of those. There's one in the hallway to the daycare, but I just thought it was a weird space-themed art deco thing," Natalie said. She crossed her arms casually. "And I wasn't just walking around outside, I was escorting Chica back to her room. I caught her in the kitchen eating a cardboard box."

That got Foxy to snap into an upright position with a look of surprise. "Blow me down, she was walkin' around too?... Is she, uh…?"

"Yes, she's alive too," Natalie answered. She started to get a slightly uneased frown as she thought back to the encounter. "…I did get a weird vibe from her though. She was acting weird and robotic before she found out I was the security guard. Kind of aggressive in a way… I don't know. Maybe I imagined it. I'm not going to pretend I wasn't already spooked when I found her in there."

"Wait, she didn't come at you, did she?" Fritz asked. She had mentioned her encounter with Chica briefly to him, but she hadn't brought up this. At the time the rabbit had seemed more important.

"No, no. Nothing like that," Natalie reassured him. Even going so far as to reach out and pat his arm affirmingly. "She snapped it back into gear the second she found out I was staff. I don't know, I guess she thought I was the vandal or something. She was acting a little off."

"Was it the eating cardboard that tipped you off?" Mike chimed up.

"That was part of it," she sighed.

"All jokes aside, I'm taking from this that we should start buying into the idea that all the animatronics are alive," Mike said, growing serious. "Maybe not those staff bots, we'd be looking at a genocide if that was the case, but Freddy's band and the sun, and whatever else is crawling around in there."

"Chipper?" Fritz offered.

"Chipper," Mike agreed.

"I'd put my money on that. I saw Roxy Wolf too and she snubbed me," Natalie said, sounding at least a little offended. "And it sounded like Monty was killing a bass in his room."

"Bloody Blackbeard, that was 'im? Heard that caterwauling all the way down in Freddy's room!" Foxy exclaimed. The blond nodded with a tired look.

"Maybe we should get back on topic," Marionette suddenly interrupted. His voice cutting through the somewhat casual tone to forcibly return the conversation to its tracks. "They're building animatronics underneath the Pizzaplex?"

"Ya heard that?" Foxy asked. Not with real questioning though, assuming the Puppet had and looking back at him over his shoulder. "That's what Freddy says. Now he's a little bit of a dim bulb if ya get me drift, but he was upfront with the charging and being locked up. He believes they're buildin' bots down there. He believes HE was built down there," He hesitated briefly before grumbling, "…And no, I didn't miss the 'family resemblance' to ARI."

"Let's hope that's as far as it goes," Marionette agreed. He considered it for a second before something suddenly clicked in what Foxy had said. "Wait, Freddy said he was built there?"

"Aye, but he remembers very little."

"So, he was built…" The Puppet started to trail off as Foxy looked up at him again. The solemnness in his gaze enough to validate his suspicions. "…Recently," he quietly finished.

"Aye," Foxy agreed. "…And he don't remember nothin' before it… He's brand new."

The realization sunk in slowly and settled only momentarily before it unfurled into something much worse as he connected a few dots and lined up the facts. His mask snapped from collected to petrified; pupils illuminated and shivering in place as he stared ahead. Outwardly the whole process was dead silent, but inside grew loud as thoughts clicked together.

Because Marionette knew something about last night that Foxy didn't, and when it matched up with the facts he had been given it painted a picture so repulsive that he could barely face it. His thoughts were racing back and forth, like voices calling over each other to argue their importance. Yet all of that noise was suddenly pierced through by one single cohesive thought worse than any before it:

"There is a rabbit running loose in the Pizzaplex and someone has already died."

It all crashed in on him at once. The panic and horror, the disgust and anger, fear, anxiety, all washing over him and wanting to rattle at his spools and break the teeth off the comb of his music box. It all wanted to come out in one garish display.

But instead, he stood there stiffly on the stage. Too wound up tightly to so much as tick, let alone release the agonizing sounds that were fighting eagerly to come forth. Even with him so submerged in these thoughts he fought to keep them in.

From Foxy's perspective, Marionette had suddenly became a rigid statue with trembling white pupils. It wasn't hard to notice that there was something off in his facial features.

"…Lad?" he asked. The Puppet heard him but couldn't really answer without the risk of a full-blown meltdown. Or worse, what he feared was happening, a haywire incident. "…Marion? What's that look…?" Foxy asked, growing more uneased. Now Charlie looked back as well, and her expression quickly shifted to confusion to concern.

Mike was unusually slow to notice what was going on, but that was because he too was having the same revelation. Someone armed with a knife and dressed like a rabbit and animatronics who had recently came to life were two puzzle pieces that fit together in the worst possible way, and unfortunately depicted a familiar scenario.

"There's got to be another explanation… because if this broad's picking up Afton's work and is already killing people, and Freddy's is already covering it up, then we are in so much trouble. That can't be it. It can't have happened this fast. Someone would have to say something right? -Nobody ever said anything before. This is the same damn setup as before, and if she's running loose and someone already died under 'mysterious circumstances'…Wait a minute. What's going on up there?"

Mike's mental tirade was cut off when he finally caught sight of what was happening on stage. It didn't take more than one look to know that something was off- if Foxy's unanswered questioning of Marionette wasn't confirmation enough. He couldn't tell if the puppet was petrified or trying to suppress his emotions, but he decided that it was time to step in.

"He's fine! He's fine. He's just a little shaken up," Mike said as he came up to the stage. Attempting to do damage control even as he stepped up and reached to grab Marionette's wrist to coax him off.

The second he touched that fabric he was hit by the full extent of what was bottled up inside. It was much sharper than any time before it, loud enough that he could've imagined hearing it with his ears, and it was the first time in ages that Marionette's telepathy instantly spiked a headache. He yanked back out of reflex and immediately the onslaught was gone, his heart jolting and racing like he had just had a panic attack.

"What was that?" Foxy asked. He was definitely at alert now, with his back straight and his ears raised. Poised more like an overprotective police dog than the fox he was supposed to be. Mike caught himself quickly and excused it.

"Ah, just got one of those static electricity shocks. That's all," he said, shaking out his hand like it had hurt. Technically the touch did hurt, so it wasn't that much of a lie. He cautiously reached back for Marionette's hand, taking a careful glance upwards to see that the puppet had turned his head slightly to look at him. His mask was neutral and without a smile, but his eyes held that fear in them.

It wasn't as bad the second time. It was still rough, but now that he was prepared, he was able to handle it better. Though it was still intense and hard to focus when there was distortion at the edges of his vision and racing thoughts that weren't his own filling his head. While he was guiding Marionette down from the stage, he saw two vague flashes of what looked like the rabbit suit Will had worn at the Red Lake but white- probably what he imagined the suit Natalie saw to look like.

The whole time they were being watched closely, specifically by hawk eyed Foxy who didn't seem to believe his excuse, but Mike kept his cool and Marionette his outward silence until they were standing beside the stage.

Mike was surprised that Marionette could keep quiet with all this going on inside. Normally there would've been something. If not dialing, static, or ticking then it could've even got to the point where telekinesis started misfiring. It wouldn't be the first time Mike saw something accidentally move while Marionette was upset, and this would be an appropriate time for it. The fact that it was this rigid silence along with the explosion on the inside was a sign that something was wrong.

Quickly thinking back to other moments where he had felt these emotions off of Marionette, Mike noticed that it tended to be at times when he was withholding a much more intense reaction. Perhaps this was some sort of extreme stress reaction whenever he tried too hard to suppress his feelings.

It was worrying, as it wasn't something Mike ever felt before the last few months and he couldn't tell if it was the Pizzaplex that truly started it or the Afton incident- the fact that Marionette was still thinking about that rabbit costume Afton wore was a little in that favor- but perhaps it wasn't as dangerous as he first thought.

"Could've started with Afton… Come to think of it, this could've been going on since Will showed up. Freddy's would've been the first big scare since then," Mike thought.

Though he could barely think of anything when there was still so much noise. It was hard even hearing his own thoughts, let alone process them when his temple was throbbing. He still managed to compose himself enough to release Marionette's wrist and move his arm around his shoulder, getting a brief respite from the sensation only to sink back into it.

Yet the changed position seemed to help. The harshness softened up and Marionette turned to press further into Mike. Slowly it continued to lighten and fade away, with the visual anomalies fading first and the headache loosening up until it was a painless thump, like a pulse in his head. His heartbeat was racing like before, but now it was tolerable. He took deep breaths to slow it down.

But the sounds didn't leave him before he heard one last final statement spoken directly into his mind and clearly through Marionette's voice.

"He will never truly be gone if they keep bringing him back!"

Mike released a shaky exhale at that. He wasn't sure if it was from the relief of the emotions letting up or from the way that statement branded into the back of his mind. By the end of it, the only thing that was left was the sound of Marionette dialing and ticking just like normal, and a tightened look on his face like he was trying not to cry. Mike didn't have to imagine how he felt, he felt it for himself.

Though he hated it, he knew it was time to rip the bandage off for everyone else. Apparently, everyone other than Foxy had been convinced that that Marionette just needed a minute as Charlie and Natalie had started talking about the Staff Bots. Though Jeremy was watching with a little concern, standing close enough that he could hear Mike's uneven breathing before the puppet's nervous noises began.

As soon as there was an opening, Mike spoke up. "Natalie, maybe now's the time to tell everyone about what else you saw last night."

Natalie was aware that Mike already knew so she wasn't surprised by the suggestion, but she was definitely not looking forward to it. She inhaled deeply and sighed, and then explained.

"Okay… There was someone messing with me last night in the Pizzaplex. I could hear them walking around up in the café up above my office and I thought I saw them on the stairs, but it wasn't until I was coming back from walking Chica to her room that I ended up seeing who was doing it… It was a woman wearing a white rabbit costume."

This was concerning enough on his own without Fritz quickly throwing in, "She threatened her with a knife."

"What?!" Charlie said with a startled ring.

"WHAT?!" Foxy parroted, jumping to his feet instantly. Jeremy just stared in aghast.

"Well… Yes, she did. Sort of. I don't know, it was weird. She left the knife out where I could find it and I tried to hide it, and she found it and must've taken it with her," Natalie rationalized. As though trying to convince herself that it wasn't as awful as it had truly been. There was no toning down what had really happened though.

Charlie looked to Mike and Marionette and all it took was the look on their faces, along with the incident the other puppet had a few minutes earlier, to confirm to her that this was what they had forewarned her about. She was left reeling

Foxy, somehow, did not immediately blow his top. His patch popped up and his pupils shrunk as he stared in startlement, but he somehow managed to ask in a relatively calm but underline dangerous tone, "You sure it wasn't a Bonnie?"

"First of all, it's Bunni with an 'i'," Fritz said. He was rewarded with an unhinged sort of twitch from the fox. "…And no, it was a woman."

"It was definitely a human and I think it was a female," Natalie clarified. She looked Foxy in the eyes, and it was the first time she looked apologetic. "I'm sure of it."

Foxy was about to blow a gasket if his head didn't just outright explode. A low murmur was beginning in his chest as he began to twitch like he was about to overload, but before he could Jeremy came forward and gently pushed him back down onto the stage by his shoulders. This somehow seemed to snap the pirate out of it, though it didn't take the intense look off of his face. Though he did close his eyes once Jeremy started rubbing his shoulders.

It was obvious from the look on his face that he wasn't exactly doing better. The look on his face wasn't too unfamiliar to the one Marionette had on his own while standing on stage. Though he kept it together for the most part.

Once Jeremy was sure Foxy was not going to have another incident of spontaneously shutting down, he slowly turned and looked back towards the others.

"So, guys, do you… Do you think that there's… any way that maybe this woman could maybe somehow be pos-possessed by William Afton?" Jeremy cryptically asked. Natalie sent a worried look to Fritz. "We know what I did when I wasn't in total control of myself… He had me pick up a kitchen knife and start swinging. We know he can do this."

"It can't be him. He's dead and gone," Mike quickly shot down.

"But that's what we thought last time and there he was," Jeremy insisted. His voice becoming a little more frantic. "All that he said, what you said- something about tethers a-and holding on, hooking onto people. What if she's another one who's hooked and he just… reeled himself back out of wherever we thought he went?"

Foxy gave a low growl that slowly turned into a groan before pulling Jeremy in closer and resting his head against his chest. Like he was clinging to him for comfort even when he knew he was still in hot water. The blond patted his back.

"Not where he went," Mike continued to deny. This time he got backup in the form of Charlie.

"Mike's right. I was there when it happened and I saw him get dragged under and just, like… come apart into pieces floating on the lake. I don't know what I was looking at, but I know what I saw," she said with certainty. Though then she slouched a little more. "That doesn't mean that she's not following his lead. It just means she's doing it on her own."

She sat on that statement for a breath before looking to the others. "…So, what are we going to do about it?"

"Well… I'm going back to the Pizzaplex tonight. Obviously, it's my job," Natalie began. She held up the taser Mike gave her when she came in. "And I'm taking this, so I'll have some protection… and we see if she shows back up."

"I've got an idea," Mike suddenly volunteered. It was his tone that drew the most attention. Low and serious, like he had already concocted a plan, and this was his forewarning because it wasn't budging. "Nat, why don't you go back to that office where you were hired and tell them that you need some help. Not that you can't do it alone, but that you need more eyes to be effective."

"I think I can do that," Natalie agreed. "What do I tell them about the rabbit?"

"You can tell them about the rabbit. Don't expect them to believe you, but you can try," Mike cynically, almost bitterly offered.

"Good point. Then what?"

"Then leave the rest to me."

Nobody in the room missed what he meant. They all knew exactly what he was planning on doing, they just weren't aware of the specific details. He was going to go back on his word even when he didn't want to.

"…Are you okay with this?" he quietly asked Marionette. They hadn't had a full discussion of this, and he didn't really consider his outburst earlier to be true consent on the matter.

Marionette nodded and tentatively leaned in like he was going to whisper. Though the moment he tried to speak, all that came out was a cluster of noise. He clasped a hand over his mouth and chest and gave Mike an apologetic look.

"That's fine, you don't have to say anything. Just take a deep breath- you know what I mean. Just take it easy… We're going to work this out," he assured. Leaving out the implied, "By any means necessary."

With everyone worked up and talking about Natalie's night, along with further descriptions of the White Rabbit and Foxy's time with Freddy, it took a while before he and Jeremy had a moment to talk. Waiting until he was sitting beside him on the stage, and nobody was too close by before taking the plunge.

"Jeremy, I'm so terribly sorry," Foxy began, reverting to his real voice again. "I never wanted to lie to you, and I never wanted you taking the fall for what I did. I love you, and I know I could've trusted telling you the truth… but I didn't want to let you down. I didn't want you to know how weak I really was," he confessed.

"I know," Jeremy simply said. He reached over to take Foxy's wrist, giving it a gentle squeeze right above where hook met limb. Foxy scooted in a little but didn't risk anything more. The blond gave a tired sigh. "I don't know why I was so shocked. Everyone was telling me it was you, I guess I was just giving you the benefit of the doubt."

"Who's everyone?"

"Everyone," Jeremy insisted. Foxy groaned and slouched on himself. "And I forgive you, but I'm still upset."

"Not letting me off the hook that easy?" Foxy asked with tentative coyness.

"Let's put it this way: Freddy Fazbear could've slammed into you, broke both your legs, dragged you off to his room, ate you, and I would've never known where you were," Jeremy said. That was enough to lower those ears again. "…But that doesn't mean I'm going to give you the silent treatment or anything if that's what you're thinking. That's not going to help anything."

"Right… And I'm not going to hide anything from you," Foxy insisted. "…Freddy asked me to come back."

Jeremy's brows raised at that. "…Are you going to?"

"Not if you tell me not to," Foxy said, turning to look at him, waiting for a command.

But much to his and admittedly Jeremy's surprise, he didn't get one. The blond hesitated on the spot, staring back at him for a long moment as he considered it, and then turned away without giving one. He just wasn't ready to give an ultimatum just yet. Not until he had more answers of his own.

Foxy would wait for him to decide. He owed him that.

Chapter 14

Chapter Summary

Mike makes a sudden decision and Natalie gets a new partner.

All things considered, nobody was surprised when "Vanessa" came into the working office of Fazbear Entertainment and vied for another hire. This was actually expected from anyone who knew of the conditions inside of the Pizzaplex. Though Vanessa had made it clear that she didn't intend to quit, she strongly suggested that they consider signing on a second security guard.

As luck would have it, less than a few hours later someone showed up looking for a job. Though he didn't exactly look like the security guard type, so it was no surprise that it wasn't the job he was applying for.

The interviewer couldn't say he had much confidence in this one either. The guy looked like he had just walked out of a sitcom; hair slicked back, wearing a button up white shirt and a thick pair of square glasses, even brought his own pen that was poking out of his pocket. He had a goofy smile the whole time his work history and recommendation was being read with his hands folded in his lap.

The kid's name was Nathaniel Shalt and for some unbelievable reason he had a recommendation from the same person who recommended Vanessa. This could've been a coincidence, but he had a hunch that maybe, with how she had been talking today, she had probably reached back out to that man to send up another applicant. It was peculiar, but he wasn't concerned, because there wasn't technically a deadline to fill a position over his head.

"So, exactly what position were you applying for?" the interviewer asked. He had gone through a list of various locations he had worked at- including El Chip's and Hickory Dickory's, which Freddy's had both done recent business with- and listed skills he had, but he never specified anywhere what he was angling towards. Looking at his application papers, it didn't look like he was qualified for too much.

The young man nervously shifted in his chair and eagerly began to prattle. "I was- well- y'know, I just- I think that Freddy's is amazing. The stuff you guys have been doing over the years is phenomenal, super cool stuff, and I just- I want a chance to be a part of that. To prove I can be a part of that. That's like my life's dream, y'know? Real life robots- it's like something out of, uh, Galaxy Battle… Y'know, sci-fi! I'm sort of a sci-fi buff myself, heh."

Something about this guy's eyes stood out a little too much. They were a simple brown, but they seemed especially boldly colored, like he was wearing contacts. The interviewer only noticed because his own eyes were glazing over at the ramble.

"So, I could… I could do any position! I'm a hard worker, you can put me anywhere! I just want to be a part of this, and I'll work really hard, and who knows? Maybe someday I can start working with the bots! That's sort of my main goal, to become like some kind of animatronic technician, and where better to get started on the first leg of my journey than here!... It'd be wicked cool, y'know?" Nathaniel said with a smile.

"I'm sure it would be, and I've got to say, I admire your enthusiasm… The problem is your qualifications," the interviewer said. He drew back the paper to look over it. "You didn't mention your degree."

"Oh, uh, I don't have one- yet! I'm working towards it! I'm a year in the door!" Nathaniel assured, pointing finger guns at the man. He looked exceptionally dorky, it almost made him feel bad cutting him down.

"Well see, that kind of rules you out of most open positions. As for being a technician, that's not going to happen. Sorry to be blunt, but you don't even have an associate degree. You would need a bachelor's in an appropriate major at least and a work history with references."

"I-I'm working towards one," the kid defended. "I meant as a goal! I didn't- I didn't think I'd be working with robots now-."

"I hope El Chip's didn't have you working on animatronics," the interviewer said. He meant to say it under his breath, but it ended up coming out as a blunt statement. The other was staring at him in surprise, rendered speechless, and while he felt a little bad, he knew he had to shoot this kid's expectations down a little. Working at Freddy's wasn't the magical dream job Fazbear Entertainment made it to be.

"What I mean is that you are underqualified, and I don't want you being on the hook for anything when you weren't properly trained. That's not fair to you, it's not fair to Freddy's, and it's not fair to the customers," the interviewer explained in a gentler but matter-of-fact tone. He got a slight grimace. "Unfortunately, there's not really any positions open for someone of your… limited qualifications. Now, I'm not saying you're not a hard worker! I'm just saying that I am required to have a certain amount of schooling and experience before I hire anyone on."

"O-Okay, but- wait, what about- I heard you guys were hiring night guards? What about a night guard? I could do that! I might not look that big, but I can run really fast," Nathaniel said. His smile shakily returned in desperate hope.

"That position is already filled."

"But- isn't- there was only one position?" he asked meeker. The man across the desk nodded. "Err, uh, well… What about a janitor?"

"We've got a fully automated cleaning staff. Sorry, but we just don't hire janitors anymore."

"You don't have anything," Nathaniel repeated.

"All of the jobs you would be able to apply for have already been filled. I'm sorry."

At that point a sort of weird look settled over Nathaniel's face. The interviewer was expecting disappointment from the flustered kid, just hoping he wouldn't burst into tears and beg for a job, but instead there was a glint in his eyes. That glint he saw from applicants only before they exploded in anger. Even the tightness in his jaw seemed to suggest he was holding him back.

"Oh… Well, thank you for your time and, uh… I-if you change your mind, there's my number! I could still come in… Yeah," Nathaniel said awkwardly as he stood from his chair. He was surprisingly quiet as he exited the office and made his way out of the building. Much to the interviewer's relief, expecting something much worse from glint that passed his eyes.

He was right too. It took every amount of control to get into that elevator and simply leave without another word. A few of the workers around the office watched him go- some scrawny guy with fluffed hair, some mousy girl with doe eyes- and he shot them all the same brief glance before the doors shut and he sunk into the lower floors. After a brisk walk to his car, he got in and drove out of the parking lot, gritting his teeth through the remainder of his drive.

Soon he arrived home and let himself in the front door. He barely got the front door shut before he yanked off his glasses and tossed him on the dining room table, then gave his jacket similar treatment before turning around.

He almost walked directly into the wooden puppet-themed animatronic who had popped up behind him. Taking a step back, he looked down at the large, glassy, blue eyes staring up at him.

"You look like a nerd," Balloon Boy cackled in his double-toned voice. Just as obnoxious as ever.

"I feel like a chump," Mike countered. He then proceeded to curtly step around him and head for the hallway.

"That's not the word you wanted to say," Max chimed in from in front of the television.

"You better believe it's not!" Mike called back as he strode past the couch, down the hall, and straight into the bathroom.

All of that tension was starting to bubble over, waiting until now to remind him how frustrated he really was. Which was inopportune timing as he was about to have to get a pair of itchy, irritating, colored contacts out of his eyes. Jeremy showed him how with his own, but he definitely wasn't working with enough patience right now.

Mike leaned close to the mirror and started poking at his eye when he saw Marionette slide into the doorway. He must've not expected to be spotted so quickly as in a flicker he got an awkwardly tilted smile.

"How did it go?" he cautiously asked. He could already tell from the motions alone that it hadn't gone well. Mike gritted his teeth a little.

"Great. Just great. I had some pencil pusher tell ME how unqualified I was to work with animatronics. Just because I don't have a degree. Like college is going to prepare you for working in a cesspool like Freddy's. Flaming trash pit of the industry and he's got the nerve to go off on me like I'M wasting HIS time," Mike borderline rambled. Only keeping his cool somewhat to keep him from getting overheard. He hissed as he tried to get a contact out. "So yeah, it went swell."

"Oh… I'm so sorry, Mike," Marionette apologized. He came up behind him and rested his hands on his shoulders, causing Mike to exhale and deflate a little. "You know that's not true, right? You've worked on plenty of animatronics, myself included, and your history at Freddy's far surpasses any of theirs. You would've gotten a job in a heartbeat if they knew about your real qualifications."

"Maybe," Mike muttered, sounding unconvinced. After a long moment of leaning on the sink, he sighed and admitted, "But he was right. I don't know what I'm doing."

"You don't know the technical side, but that's alright. That's something you can learn!" the puppet assured. He squeezed his shoulders and leaned in to peek at him through the mirror. "What you can't teach is compassion- and a confident touch. I'm sure many a technician would be too afraid to work on a real animatronic. You've done it knowing what we can do."

He knew Marionette wasn't just trying to placate him. Being an animatronic himself, he understood the value in a gentle hand. After all he had gone through it probably meant more to him than the actual technical finesse. Especially when he was one of the only animatronics Mike knew of that could heal himself. He did appreciate it and the assurances helped, but it didn't mean much when it came to the world outside their lives and business.

"I know, I know… but I'm supposed to be an owner. I don't want to be like Wight, buying into a business when I don't know what I'm doing. We know that's not true, but it's going to look that way to anyone else who sees me on the lease to Foxy's and finds out that I'm technically not qualified to do my job…" Mike said. He took a deep breath. "But you're right. It's nothing I can't learn. It's just a piece of paper, right?"

"That's right," Marionette assured. His voice quieting and his smile growing more sympathetic at his words.

Mike looked down into the sink for a second. Eyes still itchy and vision a little blurry, thinking about where he was supposed to go from here when he was suddenly hit by an idea. Or perhaps just the sudden impulse to do something.

"…What do you think if I went back to school? I already put one year into it. If they can find those credits and I can pull enough together for the tuition, maybe I could get that piece of paper. Maybe I could get qualified," Mike suggested, looking back up to the mirror to see Marionette's reaction.

The Puppet looked surprised for a moment, but then his face broke into a more delighted smile than Mike had seen in days. One unexpected with how upset he had been earlier.

"I think that's a great idea! Why not? If anyone could learn the material, it would be you. You've practically gotten a head start!" Marionette said. There was an excited ring through his voice, so it was audibly clear he was in favor of the idea.

"Maybe I've gotten shocked enough times that I'm building up a tolerance," Mike said. A little smile dared to return. "The hardest part's going to be working up the tuition. College isn't cheap."

"You can't get a scholarship?" Marionette asked, tilting his head.

Mike almost scoffed. "I think it's a little too late for that. Maybe I can work something out though. I could talk with the school, see if they would let me work out some sort of payment plan. Maybe use my name on that business to show that I'm good for the money and grease them up a little."

"You could dip into the savings. As much as I enjoy the comfort of a nest egg, this is something important," the puppet suggested thoughtfully. "We're nowhere near expanding the pizzeria again anyway. Why not put our share to a good cause?"

"What about the next hospital visit?"

"That's not funny," Marionette scolded. "…How dare you imply that I can't stitch you up myself. I'll have you know I'm very good with a needle."

"What about the feelgood juice?" Mike cheekily countered.

"There's a can of expired pineapple in the pantry. We will make it work."

Mike chuckled and turned to pull him into an embrace. He was feeling better. Better than he had in a while actually because this was a hungry drive that he was going to be able to feed. It wouldn't fix the Pizzaplex situation, but he decided to not think about that for the moment- if they got stuck climbing in through Foxy's vent then he could live with that. He couldn't live with all of Freddy's looking down their noses at him, even if he knew it was ridiculous.

"Doesn't really help us get into Freddy's, unless- God forbid- the place is still open in four years," Mike pointed out.

"Don't worry about that right now. We'll find another way into Freddy's… Now then would you go to Charlie's school? I think that's the closest one to us, but I really have no idea," Marionette asked. Mike thought about it for a second.

"Seems like a safe bet… Hold on, let me go check," he said. He beckoned the puppet to follow as he headed back out of the bathroom. "Hey, Charlie-?" he started to call only to turn and find her standing in the hall outside of bedroom's door with Balloon Boy and Jeremy. Either they had heard the commotion, or the little wooden boy tattled on him. Either of which was possible.

"Oh, hey. I know this is going to be sudden, but theoretically what would you think about me going to your college to finish my degree?" Mike asked. It took Charlie's eyes widening for him to realize that she might not be so comfortable with this plan. "But I haven't looked around yet. I could just as easily go somewhere else," he quickly added.

"No! I think that's great!" Charlie exclaimed. Her features brightened up just as much as Marionette's had, which was the last reaction either of them expected. "Where'd this come from all of a sudden?"

"I got snubbed by Freddy's," Mike muttered.

"Ouch," Jeremy sympathized. Balloon Boy gave an ill-timed giggle.

"Well, forget that. Their loss," Charlie quickly brushed off. "But this is perfect! I could even help you study! In-In fact, if you're alright with it, we could study together. I… I can't go back, obviously, and I'm never going to be able to get my degree, but that's fine if I can still get the knowledge. We could learn together; it'll be like us taking the class together. What do you think?"

"Sounds good to me. And I'm not just saying that because I know I'm going to be struggling with the technical terms," Mike agreed, a playful smile on his lips. "Just give me a second and we'll work out the details." He then turned his attention to Jeremy and pointed at his eye, "I can't get them out."

"I'm on it. You go wait in the bathroom, I'll get my eye wash," Jeremy said. The two separated, leaving the two puppets in the hallway.

Marionette chimed happily as Mike passed by and returned him a smile. He had been especially concerned for and the relieved by Charlie's reaction and thrilled to see the two so excited about something they could do together. He looked back to Charlie to see her rubbing the back of her neck, now with a slightly more nervous sort of smile.

"You don't think it's weird that I just inserted myself into that, do you?" she asked.

"I don't and you didn't. If anything, I think Mike's relieved to be getting a little help. We know plenty of technicians, but few who've cracked open the books in the last few years," he reminded. She agreed with a nod and watched as Jeremy came back down the hallway. Stepping back out of his way and under Marionette's outstretched arm. He chimed and pulled her into a hug.

Charlie hadn't expected him to get anywhere near this happy after the bad news their received earlier, so it was a relief. It validated her own excitement at the prospect. It wouldn't be returning to college, but it was the next best thing.

Later, Fritz came over to discuss this newfound plan of Mike's. He came alone since Natalie was getting in a nap so she could make it through the coming night, and they all settled into the living room to plan.

"There's a few different directions you can go in when it comes to degrees in robotics. Frankly, I don't think a blanket robotics degree is such a good idea. If I was telling you what to go for, I'd suggest mechanical or electrical engineering. It's not specific to animatronics or robotics, but I think they'd pay off more in the long run. And you could still take a robotics class alongside it."

"What's the difference?" Charlie was sitting on the couch beside Fritz almost transfixed. When she had enrolled, she hadn't really gotten much help aiming what direction she wanted to go in with her degree. Not that she had gotten that far.

"It's sort of hard to explain. They're distinctly different, but they also overlap in a lot of ways. I'd say on the whole, electrical engineering aims more towards the electrical aspect than mechanical does, even though mechanical does cover some of it," he tried to explain. "But my thought is that going for a degree with a wider scope then just animatronics gives you better tools to work with. That's just me though." He raised his hands as though anyone was questioning it.

"Makes sense. I'm thinking mechanical," Mike offered. He was sitting in the armchair, leaned back against Marionette who was laying across it behind him, legs dangling over the armrest. He nodded in agreement when Mike looked at him. Mike then turned back to Fritz and asked, "So, you think it's a good idea?"

"Sure! I don't see any reason why not. Got for it." Fritz seemed so nonchalant about the whole thing, which was better than Mike was expecting. "Why? What's that look?"

"Eh, I'm just thinking about the money side of it. Don't worry about it," Mike brushed off.

"You know, you could take out a loan. Remember I took one out to open Foxy's and we got that paid off pretty fast," Fritz suggested.

"After living with hospital bills hanging over my head for half my life, I think I'd rather not throw myself back into debt," Mike quickly shot down. "We have some money saved; I'm just thinking it's not going to be enough."

"But he did have a scholarship," Jeremy piped in from the other side of Fritz, nudging him with his elbow. "Think he can do something with that?"

"I don't know. I don't think scholarships roll over," Fritz said thoughtfully. "If they do, it has to have been too long to use it… I don't know, you're going to have to ask them when you're in there."

"I'm pretty sure that bridge has been crossed and burned by now," Mike again shot down.

Jeremy hummed and thought about it before looking like he had an idea. "You know…You could tell them about how you saved all those kids," he slowly suggested. "This IS Charlie's old school, right? Maybe that would be worth something."

"I'm giving you full permission to namedrop me if it helps you get in," Charlie chimed in. "You've already got enough going against you being late for enrollment. Use what you've got."

"We'll see," Mike said noncommittally. He wasn't too concerned about it. The way he saw it, he couldn't be rejected if he was willing to pay their prices. It wasn't going to be like Freddy's where they would judge and reject him- they might do the one, but they wanted his money too badly to do the other.

He sighed inwardly and leaned back again, to which Marionette quickly snared around him and pulled him in like a plush toy. It had been a hard day for them both, it was easy to forget that just earlier today they had been told such awful news. Mike patted Marionette's hand and let himself be clung to as he listened to the conversation still going on between Charlie, Fritz, and occasionally Jeremy.

This felt like the right choice. It felt a lot better than selling himself to Freddy's, then getting look down on by people as unqualified as he was. This was what he wanted to do, to be better than Freddy's.

Hopefully he wouldn't change his mind by morning.

As a matter of fact, he didn't.

Mike's mind was still made up. He allowed himself a few minutes to wake up with coffee before he looked up the number in the St. George phone book and made the call. After a few minutes of being moved around, he was directed to someone in the office of admissions and began to lay out what he was there for.

The conversation didn't last very long and at first didn't seem like it was going everywhere. The semester already started, something the woman on the phone had reiterated a few times over the call, but she was willing to make an appointment to speak with someone else- a Mrs. Bailey, whose role and the school wasn't outright given as far as he knew- for some time in the future. This wasn't great but this was about what he expected.

She asked for his name to make the appointment, which he gave her, and then she hesitated for a moment. She waited a few seconds, long enough that he thought she shrugged it off, but then she asked about it.

"That name sounds so familiar. Are you a former student?"

He knew exactly why his name was spoken around campus and instantly pounced on it.

"No, you probably heard of me from the news. I was that guy who found the kidnapped kids in Magictime Theater."

Suddenly the woman had to check something about the appointment, sounding distinctly hesitant as she got off, and he waited on hold listening to music not quite fitting the mood of the call. Tapping his pen on the table, he waited to see if the gamble paid off without getting his hopes up. After a few minutes she returned.

How peculiar. Earlier they were talking about an appointment sometime in the unknown future. Suddenly an appointment opened with Mrs. Bailey that afternoon. He made a mental note to thank Charlie when she got up.

That's how he ended up sitting in an office at St. George University when he usually would be at work. Taking a glance at the clock, he estimated that Marionette was probably tending to the first birthday party scheduled for the day. He almost hated missing it, but he was going to hate missing it a lot more if this didn't end up working out.

"Mr. Schmidt? Mrs. Bailey's ready for you. You can head on in," an older lady with a gentle tone and coarse voice said. Mike gave her a nod as he stood and headed past her desk into yet another office.

This office reminded him a little too much of a traditional principal's office. Not that he spent much time in the principal's office in his schoolyears, but he vaguely remembered seeing it at some point, and this room gave him the same feel. Down to the shelves of knick-knacks and the framed pictures of events that had clearly happened at the university. It gave off a lukewarm feeling of pride or tried to give the illusion of it.

Mrs. Bailey was a remarkable woman. That is, if not for her puffy, cotton candy textured perm and lighter skin tone, she would've been the spitting image of his mother. That threw Mike off a little, but he recovered quick enough to take and shake her hand when she offered it.

"Hi, it is so nice to meet you, Mr. Schmidt. I'm the admissions counselor, Mrs. Bailey, but please call me Brenda," she greeted. Before he could pull his hand back after the shake, she trapped it under her other in a gentle hold. "Let me start by thanking you from the bottom of my heart. I've heard about what you did for those children. If you hadn't been there… Well, I wouldn't want to think of what could've happened."

"It was nothing," Mike denied. Though then second-guessed this and quickly added, "I mean there's no need to thank me. I was just in the right place at the right time. Anyone would've done it."

"But you were there and that's what matters," she said, patting his hand. She finally released it though and gestured to one of the chairs opposite of her desk. "Please have a seat." He did, though by now he was feeling a little uncomfortable.

"Keep it together. This isn't the first time you've been asked about what went down and this time you're not doing it on live television. Even if you botch it, you're not incriminating yourself," Mike thought as he sat down. As though this wasn't bad enough, the chair was hard and uncomfortable, with him having to sit sideways to get any amount of comfort. "I didn't really think anyone was going to still remember that. Being over a year ago, people have short memories."

"Not here we don't. To have one of our brightest students killed in such a horrible manner- it's a tragedy. It will be years before we can move on," Brenda said sympathetically.

While Mike agreed with everything she said, he was under the impression that she probably didn't know anything about Charlie. He couldn't fault her for it though and had to give her credit for at least trying to acknowledge her.

"I know. It feels like it was ages ago and just yesterday at the same time… Did you know her before it happened?"

"I didn't know Charlie myself, but her teachers spoke nothing but pleasantries about her. They said she was a sweet girl, an excellent student. It's just such a tragedy to lose such a young life."

"It is…" Mike agreed. "She was… very special to me too."

"You knew her beforehand?"

"Yes, she's like- she was like a sister to me. We even lived together for a while," he explained. "We were both missing that family connection, so we made our own."

He knew he was giving events out of order, but he didn't think it mattered in this case. He might've not known Charlie well then, but now he felt like he knew her better than any teacher or student could've ever known her.

"She's part of the reason I'm here," he said. "I know that I'm late to enroll, but I've been putting my life on hold, and I can't keep waiting for things to change. We were in the same field so and I want to follow in her footsteps and get my degree. Almost like I'm… finishing it for her." His voice grew softer, but it wasn't an act. "She loved college and she loved learning… I'm doing it for me, but I want to do it for her, if that makes any sense."

It wasn't until right now that Mike realized he meant what he said. Charlie might've not been the initial reason he wanted to get his degree, but he did want to do this for her just as much as himself. He wanted to study with her, to help her learn the things that she missed out on because of what happened. He wanted this to be something more than a sudden decision made because Freddy's forced his hand. He wanted this to mean something more.

Brenda leaned forward on her desk, her face soft with sympathy and concern. Maybe it was because of the resemblance, but he could only assume that she was a mother. That was the feeling her expression gave.

"We can work something out," she promised him. He smiled a little bit, even if he felt weird doing so. With those sincere words, she slid back into her chair and opened a lap top computer on her desk. He had barely noticed it there and assumed it must've cost a fortune- probably belonging to the school and not her personal computer. "Now you said over the phone that you were enrolled previously?"

"Not with this university. I was enrolled in Utah State for a little over a year before I had to leave due to, uh, health issues. I was in a bike wreck, it's a long story. I don't know if my credits from there would move over to here."

"There is a chance they can be, but we would have to check which credits and if the material has changed. Do you have your college transcripts?"

"…Not on hand, but I can get them."

"It's fine, we can request them ourselves. Don't be too disheartened if some of the credits can't be used. It may take a little more time, but when it comes to your education, every extra hour is an hour well spent."

A cynical thought passed that it would benefit the school if he took longer, but it was hard to linger on it. Mike was beginning to feel strange as they continued working out the details. Not a foreboding strange, which was atypical since he usually found himself on constant guard anyway, but something harder to put his finger on.

Whether it was because of the woman's sweet demeanor or the fact that he was trying to enroll in school, and had very little say in how this process was happening, he felt young. He felt like someone just stepping into the world instead of someone who had been fighting against it for years now. Younger than he was supposed to be, college aged.

Except that was the catch. Mike was only just out of traditional college age. He wasn't a kid anymore, but he was still young. Pretty much the youngest person in his human friend group. Sometimes he forgot that when it came to numbers, he wasn't nearly as old as he felt. It was a weird sort of feeling to have. Night and day to how he felt at the Freddy's interview.

He wondered what his mother would think about him trying college again. He had a hunch she would be thrilled, but he wasn't able to dwell on it long.

"Now this is just a round estimate, but this would be tuition cost for a year, and this is the cost per semester. It doesn't count any student assistance that you may qualify for, though with your age and previous enrollment, it may not be…"

At that point Mike stopped listening because he saw said number and time briefly stopped. It was about what he expected, which meant that it was a hefty sum that only inflated more as he did some quick math in his head. She was still droning on, and he gave little half answers, but he wasn't thinking beyond that number and the sinking realization that maybe this wasn't such a good idea. He could maybe make it, but he wondered if it was worth it.

"Have you seen the memorial?"

That comment was out of the loop enough to snap Mike out of his half-listening and to attention. "There's a memorial?" he asked.

"Yes, for Charlie. We had a plaque mounted outside of the library, though please, don't feel pressured to see it. I know it can be painful to reopen old wounds."

It did definitely feel uncomfortable, but he hid it as he gave a simple, "I might just go do that…"

But he didn't. At least, he didn't right then. Not when he eventually got out of the office, everything still up in the air but now with the ball rolling in a direction. Instead, he headed to Foxy's and finished up the workday like any other one.

It wasn't until late that night when he decided to see the memorial, waiting until the darkest hours so he didn't have to go alone. He kept a careful eye out as he pulled up to the front of the university's library. The place was deserted.

He got out of the car and headed up to the plaque first, gave it a quick once-over, and then looked across the parking lot area to make sure nobody was out to see them. As he did, the passenger's side door opened, and Charlie slipped out. She was wearing her usual jacket and a pair of Mike's jeans tightened impossibly with a belt. It wasn't much of a disguise, but it would work well enough at a distance.

She hastily jogged up beside Mike and looked up at the copper-colored plaque mounted beside the doors. It read:

In Loving Memory of:
Charlotte Emily "Charlie" Johnson.
An angel on Earth taken home too soon.

Even though she was expecting it, seeing her own name on the memorial filled her with an uncomfortably squirmy feeling. She didn't exactly like seeing it, but that wasn't why she decided to come up and see it anyway. It was more just to witness it. It was for her after all, it only seemed fair that she come take a look at it.

"How's it feel to be immortalized on the most boring building on campus?" Mike playfully asked. He gave her a little nudge and a sly smile, trying to break the awkward tension threatening the moment. She rolled her eyes.

"It's really great. Sure," she said sarcastically. Her hands moving to her hips. "And what do you mean boring? Students are coming in and out all day just to use the computers. This is a real hot-spot."

"Just as long as you come before it closes," he quipped. He then looked back at the memorial. "All jokes aside, I think it's perfect in your case. You spent a lot of time here. You'll be remembered as someone who worked hard and liked to read."

"That's true. I'd rather here than stuck near the pools," Charlie agreed. Though then she shot him a suspicious side-glance. "…Or were you saying I'm boring?"

"Bookish, not boring. The library's not boring because it's full of books. It's boring because of the iron-grip of oppression they have over their students," Mike explained. This was sudden enough to get a snicker out of Charlie.

Which perked Mike up for a moment until he looked back at the library again and his face began to fall. It didn't take her long to notice that solemn look on his face, largely because it seemed so out of place.

"What's wrong? I thought you said they were working on getting you in," she gently pried.

"They are… I'm just wondering now if that's what I really want," Mike admitted. "You and I and everyone else all know the only reason I'm going for this is because I got rejected at Freddy's. What if that's really all this is? That I just convinced myself I wanted this? I know I don't want extra paperwork, or extra hours away from the house. Think of all the time I'll be wasting."

"It won't be a waste! You'll be learning skills you'll be using the rest of your life!... Don't give me that look. It's not like you're going in to study French history and advanced algebra. You're going in to get a degree that's going to help you work on animatronics. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but chances are this whole Foxy's deal is a lifelong commitment, and even if it isn't Mari's not going anywhere."

"Yeah, you've got a point," Mike agreed. He sighed through tight lips. "Guess I just started second-guessing the whole thing once I saw the price of entry. Including all the time I'll have to commit to it." Charlie gave a knowing little hum and he looked to her and arched a brow. "What?"

"I think… and I could be wrong, but I think maybe you want something you can commit to," she quietly suggested. Then daring to look at him as she added, "Life doesn't have to be just Foxy's and home. Just like college doesn't have to be back-to-back classes all day, seven days a week."

He had to admit that she had a point. If him eagerly throwing himself at Freddy's, and whatever knock-off was floating around, was any indication, there was a spot in his life he could fill. Though that wasn't to say that he threw himself at those jobs because of boredom, or to suggest that he was bored with his otherwise great life. Things got rough, but on the whole, he was happy with what he had.

…But maybe he could use a little more.

"What about you?" he asked.

"What about me?"

"Do you need something more than Foxy's and home?"

Charlie seemed taken aback by the question. "Me?...Maybe, but this isn't about me."

"Why not? I used the hell out of your name to get in," he quipped. This got a small smile out of her.

"This is the sort of thing you have to do for you, you know? That's the reason I enrolled. Aunt Jen hated that I was sticking this close to Hurricane, so for a while I didn't tell her, and when I did, I played up that it was so I could go to college with my friends- which was Jessica." The smile grew more playful, "But glad to be a help."

He got his own subdued smile. There went his subconscious plan to believe he was doing it for her to justify doing it for himself, though she did make a lot of sense, and she was convincing him a lot more now than the chat in the living room had. Maybe it was worth gambling with a little money if it meant a better grasp of what he wanted to do. Forget being a night guard, he could promote himself from the inside.

"Okay, you convinced me. Once they get their act together and call me back, I'll sign up, but you're going to have to keep your end of the bargain and make sure I don't fail," he announce, sending her that coy glint.

She was more than happy to agree to these terms. "Sounds good."

The quiet moment was interrupted by delight trills coming from the car.

"I'm so proud of you both!" Marionette called, head sticking out the driver's side window. He then pulled out and bent his arm, clasping Mike's camera tightly in his fingers. "Turn around and give me a smile~!"

Mike snorted at this, murmuring an amused, "Smile with the plaque. Yeah, okay," as he turned around. He then quickly threw an arm around Charlie's shoulders and shot a cheesy grin which was promptly caught by a snap of the camera.

Well, if he couldn't say he was doing it for Charlie, he could always falls back on Marionette.

Natalie walked into the lobby and upon seeing what was waiting her knew exactly what corners Fazbear Entertainment was willing to cut.

"So, good news and better news. Good news: your request for a partner was accepted and, uh… Better news: you get to try out some brand-new tech that we weren't planning on having up until opening," Stanley introduced. From his tone it was clear that even he knew this wasn't what she wanted. Chaz didn't even try to make any excuses for it.

Natalie had said she needed another pair of eyes watching the Pizzaplex. They gave her a Staff Bot with a flashlight wearing a security hat.

This was the lengths they were willing to go to not hire another person. She couldn't imagine that Mike's disguise would've been suspicious enough to warrant this. That wasn't to say the bot wasn't… cute, in a way, but it didn't look effective.

"Is this just that mop bot that was out here last night?" she asked flatly.

"Nope. To our credit, this baby's its own model," Chaz said. He patted the bot's back like patting the hood of a car and the bot responded by fidgeting around a little. "So normally these guys do their own rounds and will alert you if they spot anything, but since we haven't had a chance to finish pathfinding on any of them, he's just going to follow you around and keep an eye out."

"And how exactly does that help me?" Natalie asked, arching a brow challengingly.

"It gives you an extra set of eyes?" Stanley offered. This got a look from both others. "…Okay, it doesn't help, but it's kind of like you're not alone. Maybe, uh, helps look like you have backup?"

"There you go! Looks a lot more intimidating than it is. Anyone's going to think twice if they see you running around with this," Chaz said. From the cheesy smile paired with it, he wasn't even trying to be convincing. Natalie wasn't amused.

"Oh wow, my very own robot arm candy. I've always wanted one," she said sardonically. The technicians seemed amused and apologetic respectively, but obviously didn't have anything more that they could do. They started to take their leave.

Natalie suddenly considered asking one of them about the rabbit woman, but as soon as the urge came it died on her tongue. She couldn't risk it; she couldn't trust anyone in this situation, and she trusted the humans less than the animatronics.

Or she did until she saw the rabbit.

They gave their normal spiel- "Take care", "Be careful driving home", "Don't leave any food out"- before heading out through the front door. Now Natalie was left alone once more. Or semi-alone, as she turned around to come face-to-face with that security bot once more. It wasn't that she didn't like the Staff Bots, but they didn't exactly make her feel safe. Especially not one that was staring this intensely with unfocused eyes.

She withheld a sigh and gave a simple, "Come on, buddy." It followed her right into the lost and found.

She had a feeling it was going to be another long night.

Chapter 15

Chapter Summary

Natalie finds footing with her new partner while someone else faces uncertainty.

Natalie didn't have a problem with the Staff Bots. While at first glance she had been a little wary of them, she quickly learned that they were harmless. They didn't act like they were possessed, so they didn't act human like Freddy did, but they were pretty docile. Except the one handing out maps, in which case that might've been part of its job.

The Security Bot wasn't much different to what she had seen. As she sat down to check the cameras, the bot absentmindedly circled around the room behind her. Occasionally it would stop at a wall and stare for a moment before turning itself around and rolling back. Not exactly the intimidating bodyguard she wished it was, but it almost felt like there was someone else in the room.

Also, unlike the Mop Bot- or what she assumed- the Security Bot had managed to figure out stairs. His large wheels would carefully lift him from step to step and he smoothly followed onto the second floor. Natalie was surprised, a little impressed, and moderately concerned about how this would work coming back. It did though, and the bot followed her on her first and second rounds.

Speaking of her second rounds, she had heard footsteps walking around in Kids Cove while walking the second floor of the atrium- deciding to take the first floor on the first set, second on second, and so on. She hustled over to the side of the walkway where she could peek down into the playground, equally expecting to see Foxy or the rabbit wandering around inside.

Instead, she found neither. It was none other than Freddy Fazbear himself walking around down in the playground. He didn't seem to be feverishly searching this time, but he was still looking around for something.

Natalie sighed and shined her flashlight down on him, causing his head to snap up. "What are you doing down there, Freddy?" she asked tiredly.

"Officer Vanessa! I was just… stretching my legs. My apologies, I will return to my room," he quickly said. A little too quickly.

"Relax, I'm not sending you to your room. What did I tell you the other day? I'm not going to make you stay in your room. The only reason I took Chica back to hers was because she was unsteady," Natalie said. He seemed a little relieved, but it was short lived. "Come on. What are you really looking for, Freddy?"

"I-I am afraid I do not know what you are talking about." Freddy was, unfortunately, terrible at lying. His eyes flickered back and forth all over the place, his voice stuttered, and even he sounded unconvinced with his explanation.

Natalie decided she wasn't going to play around with him long.

"Freddy, enough. I know that Foxy's been sneaking in, and I know you were hiding him in your room last night."

Freddy gasped and froze up for a second. "I… I…" Then he suddenly turned and bolted. Natalie furrowed her brows at him.

"Freddy, where are you going?!... Oh." Exasperation fizzled out as she realized he wasn't running away, but upstairs so he could loop around and meet up with her. He hastily jogged over and came to a stop before her and the Security Bot.

"Please do not tell anyone that you saw Foxy," Freddy desperately pleaded. His hands clasped and fingers laced together. "I know he was not supposed to be here, but there could be serious consequences for us both if anyone found out… Besides, it is my fault that he stayed as long as he did. I think he came to see Kids Cove, but I was the one who invited him back to my room."

"You understand why he can't be in here, right?" Natalie asked. "I know you do, because you knew to hide him."

"I, erm, I am aware."

"If Foxy was found out, who knows what would happen to him. It's not even a matter of being locked up somewhere; there's a good chance he wouldn't make it back to his pizzeria. The technicians here might shut him down, move him into the basement- at best, because they might see him as a threat and totally take him apart," she forewarned. Her scare tactic must've worked because he looked rather frightened with wide pupils and an agape mouth.

"You're not in trouble, and neither is Foxy right now, but that's only because I'm cutting you both a break," Natalie said with a little more sympathy. Freddy nodded and lowered his head in shame. "I'm not going to report Foxy, but if I see him again, I'm cracking him over the back of the head with my flashlight." Freddy's head popped up and mouth dropped in aghast. "…Okay, that was a joke, but I will not-literally wring his neck if he sneak in here."

"I see. I will tell him if I see him…" Freddy agreed.

"Good. Thanks." Natalie wasn't exactly happy with having to knock Freddy down like this, but Foxy's safety was the main importance. Freddy's too, as she couldn't predict what Fazbear Entertainment would do if he kept getting caught wandering around when he wasn't supposed to. Let alone breaking security protocol in such a way. She sighed and affirmed, "Look, I'm not trying be hard on you. I'm just doing my job."

"No, no. I understand," Freddy assured. He lifted his head and returned to a more neutral look, though it could've been a cover. "Thank you for not telling on us. I will return to my room now."

"I'm not telling you to return to your room. You can do whatever you want to, okay? As long as you're not in danger, you're free to do whatever you want," she said. His eyes glanced up towards the corner thoughtfully.

"Hmm… I think I may go down to the Pizza Bar- if that is alright with you," he half-asked.

She knew he was going to go watch the area where Foxy came in and yet she didn't call him out on it. She gave him an approving nod. "Anywhere you want, just be careful."

"I will. I do not have much trouble on the stairs myself," Freddy said with a tinge of amusement. Of course he would assume that was what she meant. "I will be seeing you!"

Even when saying that, Freddy walked alongside Natalie as she and her Security Bot companion returned to the elevators to the lobby. They exchanged a wave before he turned to hear to the stairs. She watched him disappear before heading into the lift with her bot.

After that point, the evening seemed to get a little quieter. Natalie returned to the lost and found while her bot companion started rolling around the fountains. Which was fine by her as elsewise it would've just been circling around behind her. At least like this it had a chance of actually spotting something. She meanwhile returned to the cameras to take a quick look around.

There had been no sign of the rabbit woman tonight. This should've been a relief, but not knowing where she was made Natalie even more antsy.

Which hit its crescendo when an alarm went off on the computer, causing her to jump slightly in her seat. She hastily checked the map and realized that it was out in the lobby by the front door. The Security Bot must've spotted something.

"That's got to be her," she guess quickly. Yet before she could even get up, a second alarm popped up on the screen right beside the initial one. "What…?"

She didn't question it long. Instead, she sprung from her seat and made a mad dash out of the lost and found, sprinting across the lobby and towards the source of the alarm. She could already catch a glimpse of the Security Bot around the corner with its flashlight raised and its body rigid as it stared something down. She pushed through the turnstiles and raced around the corner.

Only to find that the white and grey being that the Security Bot had cornered was not the rabbit woman but the Mop Bot. Both were blaring obnoxiously loud alarms as they stared each other down. The Security Bot shining his flashlight into the other's face, the other waving its hand as though to flag down help.

"…Are you kidding me?" Natalie huffed. She walked over to them and pushed the Security Bot back to break their stare. "Whatever this is, you two stop it."

They had the presumed gall to then silently stare at her like she was the one who was out of line. She turned to the Security Bot.

"He's not what you're supposed to be on the lookout for. He's supposed to be here," she said. He either nodded or proceeded to size her up, and she was almost positive in either regard that it was a reflex and not any real acknowledgement. She sighed and beckoned back towards the lobby. "Alright, let's go. You're hanging out in the lost and found with me."

He must've gotten that as he started to roll past. Natalie looked back to the Mop Bot who watched him leave before looking back at her.

"You're fine, buddy. Just keep doing what you're doing," she said in a gentler, assuring tone. It occurred to her that he probably didn't understand, but she felt somewhat protective of it regardless, since from the dent it was obviously the same bot who fell down the stairs. It looked for her a moment longer before beginning to mop again. "There you go. Good job," she encouraged before walking back towards the turnstile.

As Natalie was crossing through, she looked up just in time to catch a glimpse of something on the second floor. It was sudden, a blur, just like what she saw on the stairs.

"Who's there?!" she called out. She was answered by the clatter of the daycare hallway doors opening.

She immediately broke into a sprint and hastily climbed the stairs to the second floor. Her hand already clutched around the taser hanging off her belt as she barged through into the daycare hallway. She couldn't see anything, but she heard a clicking and realized it was the door to the men's bathroom closing. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, and she began to slowly creep towards the door.

She unhooked the taser from her belt and switched it with her flashlight, which she now poised high in her left hand. She was careful to be as quiet as possible as she slowly moved in on the door, sidling along the wall, her heart pounding as she braced herself for what she was about to do, a very foolish and risky maneuver.

Mustering up all of her courage, Natalie steadied herself and then rammed through the bathroom door. She felt it collide with something on the other side before swinging open.

"Freeze!" she yelled. She aimed both the flashlight and taser ahead and prepared for a fight.

But instead of a fight she got yet another Staff Bot, one significantly different than the others she had seen. It was designed to be more feminine with molded blue hair, painted eyelashes, and a purple dress with painted on buttons and apron. It was rolling back away from her.

Natalie's face dropped from both relief and exhaustion. "Oh… Sorry, I thought you were someone else. I didn't mean to knock you around," she apologized. Knowing that she probably set off an alarm slamming into it.

The lady bot stopped rolling back and stiffly raised a hand as though in greeting. Natalie noticed how strange it looked in contrast to the other Staff Bots' behavior but found the suspicion dropping when its stiltedly dropped its arm and did a big, awkward circle around her to try and get to the bathroom door. She stepped out of the way so it could slip by.

"I'm really sorry!" she called after the lady bot as it took a sharp right and started heading down to the daycare. She didn't even know why she tried, but it almost made her feel less embarrassed. She watched the bot roll to the end of the hallway and stop outside the security door for the daycare, scanning the rest of the hallway and only turning back to the lobby door when she was sure the area was clear.

She didn't notice the bot turn around on the other side of the security door to watch her. Nor the yellowed arm that reached out pulled it away enough that the door could shut.

Natalie pushed open the doors to the lobby and immediately gained a befuddled look upon seeing that the Security Bot wasn't alone.

"Hello again! I heard a Staff Bot alert and came to check and see if everything was alright," Freddy said. His semi-excited tone betrayed that he probably expecting something else, likely Foxy.

"It's fine, Freddy. This one here got in a dispute with the one that fell down the stairs, and then I, uh… Got a little too gung-ho and crashed into a lady bot in the bathroom… It's all good. She's alright and I'm heading back to my post."

"I see! Then you do not need my assistance. Just know that I am not far away if you do," he offered warmly. "You said the Staff Bot who fell is here?"

"Right over by the front door if you want to drop in and say hi," Natalie offered. She started back to the stairs while beckoning the Security Bot with her hand. It followed obediently, as did Freddy. "Sorry, I'm just a little on edge."

"Because of Foxy? Do not worry about him! He is very friendly," Freddy insisted. She shook her head.

"Not him… Don't worry about it, I've got it under control."

She was hesitant to mention the rabbit to him. Not because she thought he would have some kind of intense reaction, but because he was very open with his thoughts and feelings. If she told him something, there was too high of a chance that it would come out to someone else, and she needed as much control as she could have on the situation. Even when it felt like she had very little.

Thankfully, Freddy didn't press and while she and her Security Bot headed into the lost and found, he headed over to check on the Mop Bot. She didn't blame him; the poor thing needed a close eye on it.

Natalie was starting to feel a little winded and was ready to settle into her chair for at least an hour or so. She let the bot in before dropping into the chair and pulling up her bag into her lap, fishing through for a protein bar to chew at while watching the cameras, then scooted up to the desk.

Only to notice there was a folded piece of paper tented on the keyboard. She froze up as she saw it, pausing in tearing open the plastic to stare at it, then picking it up and opening it to see what was written inside:

Are you having fun yet?

Natalie's stomach twisted up as she read it. She put the paper and bar down and was on the cameras in a heartbeat, flipping wildly through. Or she would've been if the cameras weren't tellingly slow, and just like before she couldn't find anything on them.

But she didn't have to see the rabbit to know it was there.

Suddenly all that confidence Natalie had earlier was gone in an instant. The taser didn't help, the bot circling behind her didn't make her feel any safer, and she still had no idea where it was other than knowing it was close by.

After clicking through the lobby cameras, she made a very sudden decision. One that could possibly be a mistake, but one that she needed to make regardless. Standing from her chair, she hastily, but cautiously, made her way back out into the lobby. Her security bot following closely behind. It didn't take her long to spot Freddy past the turnstiles.

"Hey, Freddy!" she called over. He looked back at her. "What do you think about hanging out for a while?"

"I would love to!"

So, he did. Freddy seemed more than eager for any type of socialization- which was odd since his entire band seemed to be as aware as he was- so he hung around in the lost and found with no complaint. It didn't make things any less uncomfortable really. She could tell when the cameras suddenly bogged down, and she caught the faintest sounds of movement in between their talking, but she never saw it.

She never saw the rabbit, but she knew she was there. Waiting, watching.

After a night like that, waking up after only five hours of sleep was the last thing Natalie wanted, but there was her cellphone ringing. She peeled up her sleep mask with her thumb as she reached for the phone with her other hand.

"Hello?" she answered groggily.

"Hello."

That was the last voice Natalie ever expected to be calling her. She recognized it right away as the hushed voice of Baby.

Her silence must've come off as questioning as Baby continued into an explanation.

"I know you must be surprised to hear my voice, but it is urgent that I speak to you. I know you have been spending your nights in that new Freddy's."

There was a bitter tinge to the name, but the rest was rather mild, and it was hard to guess what she wanted. Though Natalie knew she wanted something if she was calling. They never had the best relationship. Baby had apologized and Natalie had gotten over the 'scissor incident', as she called it, but they didn't spend enough time communicating to have much beyond an acquaintanceship.

"That's right," Natalie replied. Her grogginess came through on her voice. "Why, what's up?" she asked. Hoping this wasn't going to lead to a request to be let inside.

"I have some questions about the location. About the animatronics inside…" Baby said. Her voice quieter, as though to hide what she was saying. "…Did you see anyone… familiar while you were in there?"

"What?" Natalie's brain wasn't awake enough to sort out that vagueness.

"Is there a new Circus Baby?" she asked much more bluntly.

"Uh, no? Not that I've seen, and there's no Baby themed restaurants or anything."

"Oh…" Baby said. She waited a long second and then, before Natalie could speak, swiftly asked, "You wouldn't hide it from me if there was, would you? I can handle it; I just want to know."

"Baby, no. I don't have any reason to hide that from you," Natalie said, managing a gentle tone even though exhausted, trying to talk the clown down. "I'll admit that I haven't seen all of the animatronics, but I haven't seen any posters, any signs, anything for you or anything that even looks like you."

"But there could be?"

"Maybe, but I think I would've seen something." Natalie stifled a yawn. "Tell you what, I'll ask around tonight. Okay?"

"Yes. Thank you… Forgive me for being blunt, but you sound awful."

The blond smiled a little. "I rolled into bed at seven."

"Then I will leave you be. Thank you for your time, and for being honest."

From how quickly she was trying to get off the phone, she was probably uncomfortable. Natalie was fine with that so she could get back to sleep. "No problem. Talk to you later, Baby."

Baby gave a hum as a goodbye and let the call end there. Though she wasn't fully satisfied in what she had received.

Natalie had sounded sincere enough. She wasn't invested enough in Baby to lie on her behalf either, unlike some other parties. This was why she dared to ask her instead of someone who may feel reluctance… like Charlie.

That was the problem, in fact. She had been updated daily at the pizzeria when Natalie came in and recounted what she had seen. Whether it be about the animatronics or the Staff Bots, who Charlie would go into deep, speculation-filled conversations about- which Baby barely understood but enjoyed listening to her passionate explanations- she was always upfront about what she knew or heard about the Pizzaplex.

Until she wasn't.

It was exactly when Charlie had told her about Foxy sneaking into the Pizzaplex that she began hiding something. Baby couldn't say she was shocked by the reveal and was sure enough that Foxy could handle himself if he had managed to get inside on his own, but she did notice that there was something being left out. Something that Charlie was tiptoeing around.

Now, Baby trusted Charlie and knew that she would do whatever she could in her best interest, but that was exactly the problem. She could be shielding her from something, and if she was doing it now then it must've been serious.

The only thing that she could imagine that would be horrible enough that Charlie would have to protect her from it would be that there was a new Circus Baby, or a new animatronic resembling her, or a rebrand, or something like that. Baby had made it very clear that she was worried about the prospect of being replaced and forgotten by an upgraded animatronic made to sap away her remaining identity, so Charlie could've been hiding it.

Even Ennard hadn't had a great reaction when he found out about the weird sun animatronic with his voice. At the time he played off being curious and finding it 'neat', but Baby could see that competitive edge in his eye. That feverish questioning of what could possibly be encroaching on his identity, even though his voice was already just Funtime Freddy's with a tinge of a lower pitch. He might've smiled, but she knew it was driving him insane.

The only thing worse would be not knowing, and Baby felt like she was in that boat.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the only thing she didn't know about.

Scott had done something rather odd today, which inadvertently set off Baby's quest for knowledge. This morning he had tried to slip in a large package while Ennard was still asleep and she was in her room, but she had caught him after hearing him coming in with it. He slipped it into his office and hadn't mentioned it to either of them for hours, and after this long she was suspecting he wasn't going to.

There were no gift-giving holidays coming up and neither of their would-be birthdays either, so she doubted they were gifts. She wasn't naïve enough to see a box being brought in and assume it was gifts. It was just something that Scott was hiding and that was weird. She hadn't mentioned it to Ennard yet- distracted with this whole Pizzaplex replacement Baby thing- but she was sure to mention it to him later.

Of course, she could've always asked Scott, but she found that Ennard was better at getting answers out of him. Though that could wait. Scott hiding things wasn't the problem, it was just peculiar timing.

After hanging up the phone, she rolled out of the office to check if Scott and Ennard had overheard her. They hadn't, still sitting where she had left them; Scott sitting in his armchair reading and Ennard stretched out on the couch and watching television, both sharing the same bowl of popcorn. Both looked properly distracted and she decided to leave them as such, save one interruption.

"I'm going to use the computer," Baby announced.

"Go right ahead," Scott answered. He didn't react in any way out of the ordinary, so she rolled back into the office and shut the door halfway.

She rolled over to the computer and turned it on, and after a few minutes of booting she found herself online. Her fingers danced across the keys as she eagerly typed 'Freddy Fazbear Megaplex Circus Baby' into the search engine. The results weren't exactly what she was looking for. She found the website for the "Pizzaplex" and scrolled down it, through paragraphs building up about all these attractions and their grand opening ceremony coming soon.

Yet she found nothing relating to herself, or Circus Baby. She went through a few more results and the closest she could find was an article about "What happened to Circus Baby's Pizza World?" Which had very little information other than some speculation about the restaurant being built shoddy and a rather offensive suggestion that it was not a spinoff but a knock-off. She wasn't even sure why it irritated her.

Next she looked up "Freddy Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex Animatronics" and found a page connected to the official website talking about the band itself. It was a dead end, just talking about the four faces of the franchise when she knew there was at least one other animatronic in that building. Nothing on Circus Baby's, though Roxanne Wolf's outfit almost looked like her original molded clothing design if she squinted and pretended really hard.

After a while, the search boiled down to "Circus Baby Animatronics Still Functional" and she tried to hunt down any remaining animatronics like her. She had done this before but had given up when she couldn't find anything. This time she was more than determined, searching through what she could find: an online auction of some props, footage of a birthday party featuring a Ballora that might've been hers.

Then, finally, there was a result that caught her eye. It was a webpage for an amusement park called Fairyland Park, which wouldn't have been interesting if not for the "original Circus Baby's animatronics" highlighted in the description. She hastily clicked to pull it up.

The park itself looked rather unimpressive from the pictures and she couldn't see any of the animatronics themselves. Baby almost thought she had been misled when she spotted the highlighted line in the entertainment paragraph. It listed off live music and performances by various local singers, whom Baby couldn't care less about, and original Circus Baby's animatronics. No pictures, no other descriptions, she couldn't even tell if it was a full band.

"One of them must be a Baby," she thought. "Otherwise they would've said they were from Freddy's. Both Freddy and Foxy were recognizably Freddy's own. So, unless it is Ballora, Freddy, and Foxy all together, there must be a Baby." That brought up an uneasy idea, "Unless it is my band… No. Don't be stupid. There's no way they could've been repaired. They were barely keeping it together even before they met the furnace."

That was an uncomfortable thought to think of. An equal mix of guilt at her actions and anger at there's. "May they rest in peace… and stay there."

Which finally led her back to the issue at hand. There was very likely a working Circus Baby animatronic in that park right then and there.

…And she decided she wanted to see it. She didn't care how dinky and unthreatening the park itself looked. She wanted to see if they had a real Baby and how it looked and functioned in comparison to her.

Now there were two ways she could go about this. The one would be to wait until nighttime and sneak out. Get someone who can drive on board, like Charlie or that redhead who was so wowed by Ennard- maybe even get Ennard on it if she was sure he wouldn't tell on her- drive the- she quickly looked up the city online- two-to-three-hour drive there, sneak in, see the other Baby, slip out and home, get in without alerting Scott, and tell him later on.

Or she could just ask Scott to take her.

Without another moment wasted, she rolled out into the living room. She didn't have much confidence in this plan even though it was arguably the right thing to do. It must've showed on her face when she rolled up beside him, because he got a look of concern when he saw her.

"What's wrong, Baby?" Scott asked gently. So warm and friendly, unaware of what she was about to ask.

"Scott, can I ask you something?" she began.

"Sure. What's on your mind?" he asked, pulling off his glasses.

"It's such a silly thing… I know you are going to be against it. I just know what the reaction's going to be," she said.

"Maybe not. Ask away."

"But I suppose it is better to ask you than to slip out and do something rash without trying. That has never truly worked in the past, has it? I should be upfront and honest."

"…I'm not sure if I like the way this is going, but okay?" Scott said, now starting to get a feel of what was coming. Baby noticed that look of hesitation but decided to go ahead and continue with it.

"There is a still working Circus Baby animatronic at an amusement park called Fairyland and I want to go see it. Will you take me?" she asked. She tried to soften her voice in the hope that would soften him up. Much to her dismay, she sounded more pitiful and childish than she intended to.

The reaction was immediate, with Scott fully embracing the startled look and even Ennard's head snapping up to look at her.

"There is?! How'd you find that one out?" the other clown asked.

Baby slouched a little and confessed, "I was looking to see if there was a Circus Baby at the Pizzaplex. I spoke to Natalie on the phone and she said she didn't think there was, but she wasn't certain. However, I have doubts, and their website is not to be trusted. That's when I found this place, Fairyland Park, and they were saying that the have a Circus Baby band of some capacity, which likely means they have a Baby."

"Quick question: what's this got to do with the maybe Baby at Freddy's?" Ennard asked. Baby stared blankly for a moment, having mostly forgot the immediate connection.

"…It doesn't. I just want to see this other Circus Baby too. That will soften the blow when I find out about the one at Freddy's," she suggested.

"Who said there was a Circus Baby's at the Pizzaplex?" Scott asked. As bizarre as this all was, he couldn't help but notice that her tone was out of sorts and her logic was jumping in a way it didn't typically. She was beginning to sound genuinely upset; he had no idea she was frantically searching for answers like this. Just the unsureness as he eyes darted away and back felt telling.

"Nobody said it. It was more what they didn't say," she said. She looked away again, her eyes crawling along the floor. "I just have this… feeling that everyone knows something, and they aren't telling me. Trying to shield me or protect me, and that is the only thing I could think of them hiding." Her eyes finally locked on the TV screen before she turned her head away with a disgruntled sound. "I hate this commercial."

"Yeah, me too. Baby, you know we wouldn't do that. It's alright to be scared about Freddy's, I am, but you know that nobody's going to hide anything like that from you," Scott gently assured.

"I don't know what to think. The last time I spoke to Charlie about the Pizzaplex she did that halting talking she does when she's anxious, when she's trying to avoid something but fumbles in doing so with halts big enough to see through. Between her speech impediment and your enormous box, and now this other Baby, I feel like-."

"Hold up. What box?" Ennard asked. Turning himself enough to prop his head on his elbow.

"-I don't have a grasp of much that's going on," Baby finished. She huffed a little, flashing a scolding sort of look at the other clown's interruption, and then recalled what she said. "It's nothing. It's just this large box that came in the mail. The least of our problems considering I'm having a crisis."

Ennard looked to Scott with a smiling tilt."Scottie, did you buy us a puppet?~" he playfully asked.

"N-No, no. It's not that. It's just…" Scott hadn't expected either to find out about it this early but wasn't too surprised. After all, it was sitting in the office. There was a good chance someone was going to take notice. He had planned on bringing it out sometime tonight, having stalled because of his own nerves about the reaction. He guessed this was as good a time as ever to get it out. "You know what? I'll show you. Wait here."

Scott set his book on the armchair's armrest and got up to head into the office, which surprised Baby. She hadn't expected him to be so willing to show her what he was hiding.

"I sleep in one day and you go out and make a kid without me!" Ennard called after him. He then looked back to Baby, head propped, and eyes lidded. "So, what's the place like?"

"Wouldn't you rather come with me and find out…?" Baby coyly offered. Ennard's eyes widened.

"Wha- me? No, no, no, no, no. Not without the van, not without Scott, nope. No more dying on the side of the road," he quickly denied. His eyes darted between her and the office door, making sure he hadn't been heard.

Baby hummed. "I suppose I should be happy to hear that… In this case, perhaps not." She didn't say anything further as Scott returned with the large box. He rested it on the back of the pouch.

"Alright, here we go! Ennard, come on up. It's for you," Scott said. Ennard shot upright and was over the opposite armrest and swooped around the back of the couch in an instant.

"For me?! Aww, you shouldn't have! You didn't have to!" the clown said. Though it was clear that he was barely holding himself back from tearing apart the box. Scott slid it to him and watched as he eagerly pulled open the flaps, which were already cut open, and pulled off some packing plastic.

He was met by the sight of green fabric and the edge of a white frill.

"Wait, what…" Ennard's volume dropped dramatically. Not in disappointment but in shock. He peeled more plastic back. "Is this- is this a…?" He got his fingers around the fabric and drew it out.

It looked like the coat a ringleader would wear, though green in color and without coattails. Golden colored buttons lined two rows in the front, with a zipper hidden under an edge of fabric between them. The collar was a deeper, emerald color and edged with sequins that matched the buttons. The sleeve's cuffs matches the collar, but with an edge of a white frill lining it.

Ennard's reaction hadn't kicked in yet. He was still staring at it in his hands, so Scott took the moment to chime up.

"I know what this looks like, and it's not. I mean, it's not a costume. It looks like a costume, but if you feel the inside, you'll see it's not built like one," he quickly explained. He opened the jacket in Ennard's hands and felt along the inside. The inner lining having a much studier texture, fireproof and partially insulated, but dolled up on the outside. "Not like that flimsy stuff you get from the Halloween store and tears open when you move the wrong way."

"Scott, did you…?" Ennard's voice sputtered, pitch wavering. "D-Did you- Is this a-…?" Suddenly it all caught up to him and his pupils widened in excitement as he clutched the jacket tightly. "Did you MAKE ME A SUIT?!"

The change of volume was almost startling, but it brought an eager smile to Scott's lips as he watched the reaction play out before him.

"Well, not really a suit. Just a… Uh, well, actually, I guess it would be a suit," he said.

Ennard made a choke and a metallic wheeze as though buckling under his own emotions before holding out the jacket before him.

"Th-This is AMA-Ammmaazing! It's like the real deal, really made for me, could've been the- wait! Wait, wait. You said suit, so you're saying there's…?!" Ennard held his tongue as he reached in and pulled aside more plastic. He spotted green and yellow fabric underneath. "THERE'S A WHOLE SUIT!"

Scott chuckled a little. He had started to second-guess himself the moment the box got here, thinking Ennard might take some offense to the fact that he got him something more clown themed than traditional technician's coveralls. They definitely would've been cheaper, and probably would've lasted longer than these were going to, but he was just so thrilled as he hungrily dug through the box.

The pants had one leg green and the other yellow and were made out of a slightly stretchier material, but otherwise looked like normal pants. There was a pair of new work gloves and boots in the bottom. These were relatively simple compared to everything else, just forest green to somewhat match the theme of the rest. There was a velveteen red ribbon in the bottom, likely to be tied in a bow, and something else tightly wrapped in bubble wrap.

Scott was practically relishing the other's reaction. "I take it you like it?" he jokingly asked.

"Like it?! I LOVE it! Them! I LOVE ALL OF IT!" Ennard exclaimed. He swooped in and caught Scott in a tight hug between the jacket and pants. He giggled with glee before pressing the mouth of his mask to his forehead, mimicking a kiss noise, and noise squeaking as it bopped the top of his head. He quickly pulled him back to arm's length with an eager smile. "Where'd it even come from?!"

"I knew a guy who used to make costumes for Freddy's. I had to pull a few favors with him, had to tell him I was working on a new project, but I got him on board! He made everything himself- except the shoes and gloves."

"But this must've cost a fortune! Scott, you didn't have to do that for me. You know I would've been happy with anything," Ennard reassured. Though then proceeded to clutch the suit to his chest, excitement crackling in his voice. "…But not THIS happy, ha ha! It's my own suit! My own skin! Not some kinda hand me down refurbished Freddy's clown suit- it's mine! It was made for me!" He was nearly trembling. "I'm putting it on right now!"

He eagerly spun the jacket around to his back and slid it on easily, it being just big enough to fit comfortably. Which was a big surprise considering that Scott had taken measurements some time ago to look for a jumpsuit. Turned out that the jumpsuit was just a delightful ruse to get his size. He restrained himself enough to carefully draw up the zipper, babying it in case it could break.

While doing so, Ennard spotted the still wrapped object in the box and started to pull it out. "And what's this?" he coyly asked.

Scott was quick to reach out and push it back down into the box. He made a head motion over towards. Ennard got the picture, a playful look budding across the joy.

"Oooh," he said. The punctuated it with a click of his teeth and a wink.

Up until this point Baby had just been staring at the scene in surprise. Not in the suit itself- though she had to admit that Scott managed to get something remarkably tasteful considering that it was such sharp colors- but the fact that the box had actually been gifts. She had gotten so into her own head that she just assumed it was something else. Maybe something from Freddy's, maybe parts, maybe inherited items from a deceased relatives, but nothing so innocuous.

It sparked a memory in the back recesses of her mind. Vaguely she remembered sneaking into her father's bedroom and searching for early Christmas gift. She couldn't remember much except that she was sorely disappointed. That she had tried to climb onto something to reach the top shelf and then…

And then she noticed the motion Scott had made towards her and took attention to it. "What?" she asked.

"Oh well, since the jig is up…" he said, eagerly pulling the wrapped object out of the box. Ennard's reaction had given him a little more confidence and he handed the gift to Baby. "I didn't think it was fair to get Ennard something and not you."

It was clearly a smaller gift in comparison to the suit, but Baby didn't feel any jealousy. Instead, her eyes lit up at the prospect of getting something for herself and she carefully peeled away the layers of bubble wrap, slowly revealing what was underneath. It didn't take her long to realize it was the shape of a top hat. It confused her until she finally pulled the plastic off the rest of the way and saw it.

It looked like it might've been a refurbished Freddy's hat, though which model she couldn't identify. The black fabric had been replaced with a crushed red velveteen and was wrapped with an orange band. A small, fluffy, cream-colored faux feather stuck out from under said band. It was simple, but elegant. Almost like the hats Baby had seen in magazines, save the top hat design of it.

"It's beautiful…!" Baby said quietly. She held it on her claw so she could trace it over with her fingers. "…It's well made. Nothing like a costume, so subdued, even the feather… It's not a hat a clown would wear, even with my coloring."

Baby's quieter reaction was expected, and Scott could read in-between her words. Ennard was the one who wanted exaggerated costuming, Baby just wanted something simple and sublime.

"You didn't have to. I would not have been jealous," she said. It wasn't the first gift she had received, but it felt so odd getting something for no specific reason. Not to mention that she wasn't feeling great about suspecting him now that she knew it was just her own paranoia.

"No, no! I wanted to," Scott assured. "And don't feel pressured to wear it either."

"I will… Wear it, I mean." Baby considered putting it on now and while she would've had to figure out how to fit it on over her crown shaped headpiece- or just removed and replaced it- she found herself surprisingly hesitant to do so. It was such a beautiful little hat, but she wasn't sure if she was ready to put it on. "…Thank you, Scott."

He could hear the smile on her voice and smiled himself. He always had a way of making her feel like a child, though not necessarily in a bad way. It was soft and warm, even if only on the inside.

Then the mood was ruined by Ennard thumping into the back of the couch while fumbling to get the pants on. He was then back in the box, plucking out the work gloves and pulling them on.

"Oh, these are good. These are really good," he praised as he flexed his fingers in them. "And they've got that sort of grip on them! You can't believe how slippery stuff gets when you're nothing but wires."

"Oh no, I believe you're slippery," Baby flatly said. This caught a giggle out of Ennard but, more importantly, a laugh out of Scott. She liked being the one to make him laugh. It made her hate what she was going to do next. "Scott?"

"Yes, Baby?"

"Now can we talk about Fairyland?"

"…Oh, right!" Scott got a tight grin that didn't cover the anxious dread at all. He was probably hoping she had forgot. "Well, I just- let me just say that I'm so proud you came to me instead of just sneaking out and doing it on your own."

That was not a good start.

"But I don't know, it seems like it's a little risky?" he tentatively offered. "An amusement park- an open amusement park- is a way bigger deal than getting you guys into a closed down pizzeria where the doors are unlocked and there's no security. Plus, it's not… I don't think it would be… great to go find another Circus Baby. All it's going to do is upset you."

"He's afraid you're gonna pull a Funtime Chica on her," Ennard translated. Slinging the ribbon around his neck and beginning to tie it in a large, neat bow.

"That was different. I was unstable… and low on wiring," Baby defended, her voice tailing off at the end. She found it again though. "But this is different. I just want to see the other Baby; I don't want to destroy it. I didn't want to destroy Chica either, but my options were between her and him," she said, pointing past at Ennard.

"In that case you made a good choice then, but still, I don't know…" Scott was very concerned and unsure about this whole thing. "…I think I need a little time to think about it. That's not a no, but just a… a maybe for now."

"Of course. Take your time," Baby agreed, rather certain it was a no. For a moment she considered going back to Plan B and seeing if someone else could take her, but then her eyes dropped back down to that hat she was still holding. It was enough to fizzle out any defiance. Maybe that was his plan all along. She sighed and added, "I'm not going to be upset if you say no. Just consider it."

"I will, I promise."

"But first, consider this," Ennard chimed in. Now fully in his new suit he stuck a partial pose while tightening his bow. "Do I look great or what?"

"Or what. You look fantastic," Scott said. The clown snickered.

"Ha ha, great! Then I guess it's time to break it in," he said. That was his only warning before catching him in another tight hug. Nearly pulling him off his feet in the process.

Baby scoffed a little at the scene, though more in an amused way than in distaste. Just dealing with these two was a little too much. Though it wasn't without its perks.

One of which being the hat she still held. Scott did care and she would give him the benefit of being patient, assuaging her disappointment with her interest in the lovely, little hat. She couldn't wait to wear it.

…

Someday.

Chapter 16

Chapter Summary

Casual trespassing leads to a few findings, including ones that Baby would've rather not found.

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Scott thought about it for a while. In fact, he was still thinking about it now as he stared at the road stretching into the darkness and felt his nervousness start to increase. This was a bad idea and he knew it, but he couldn't deny that he too was a little curious to see if there really was another Circus Baby in use somewhere, and to make sure she wasn't alive.

What convinced him to go was not that though, but Fairyland Park itself. Sometime after the gift exchange, he had gone into his office and looked around online for this supposed amusement park. Though amusement park was a little bit of a stretch. It was more like a kiddie park, the kind with smaller attractions and a docked ticket price, and probably very relaxed security. More like a mini-golf course than a theme park.

The drive there had been a long one. Two hours not feeling like much until he was hunched on the wheel looking around outside like he had already broken the law. Baby and Ennard were in the back, with the former shutting herself down to 'sleep' during the trip and the latter watching the road from between the seats. The stretch of highway was thankfully quiet, so there wasn't much risk of him being spotted.

He was still wearing his suit. Constantly fussing with and adjusting it, especially the bow around his neck, and it always brought a smile to Scott's face. It wasn't going to ever be camouflage, but the way he thought it would at least play more into the 'man in clown suit running around town' instead of 'possibly feral mechanical creature prowling the streets'. Besides, it looked good on him. Better than he was expecting it to.

The town around the park was quaint, small, none-too-interesting or threatening. A little patch of suburbs and a roll of fast-food restaurants and gas stations, a stop in the middle of an otherwise long trip. The park being here was probably less to draw out tourists and more because the land was cheap. Following the directions, he himself wrote down, it wasn't long before Scott drove up on Fairyland Park.

From here it looked more like a permanent fairground than an amusement park, but he couldn't make out too much except the entry booth, the closed front gate, and what looked to be a building that probably housed bathrooms. Scott could feel his nerve starting to wane as Ennard planted his hands on the seats and leaned in to get a better look. The clown gave a low hum.

"…Okay, so I gotta admit I'm a little disappointed in the size of this place," he said. He tapped his fingers on Scott's shoulder. "But hey! Looks like they don't have much for security, right?"

"Probably not, but they might have someone sitting in that booth over there," Scott said and pointed towards the entrance. "Or maybe a motion detector. Something. Probably an alarm if we try to open the gate."

"Well, we're not going through the front gate, are we?" Ennard asked mischievously. He pointed in the opposite direction. "How 'bout you take that access road and loop around back?"

Scott knew what was coming even before he was standing outside the chain-link fence that surrounded the park. Now that he was seeing inside, he got a better feel for what Fairyland was: a quaint, cute little park with only a few small coasters and a couple of other attractions broken up by paved walkways and a few decorative fairytale themed statues. Definitely a park aimed at children more than all ages.

Honestly, it was the type of place he would've really liked as a kid, and it didn't look like the type of place where they would be too afraid of someone breaking in unless to vandalize.

The van was parked back twenty or so feet on the side of a dirt road. Scott kept a lookout at the fence while Ennard woke up Baby.

"Rise and shine, Babydoll," Ennard chirped as she snapped awake.

"Are we here?" she asked.

"No, we're there," he answered. She gave him a look and he cheekily slid out the back and offered his hands to help her out.

It took a minute to get to the fence. Walking on grass was never great, especially not craggy grass with clumps of crumbly dirt underneath. Better than getting her wheels stuck in it, she supposed. Once there, they stared at it momentarily.

"We can still turn back," Scott offered. He knew from the silent stares he received that this was not going to happen. With a sigh, he turned back ahead. "Okay, let's… let's get in there."

He decided to take the lead and started trying to climb the fence. He vaguely remembered climbing one of these when he was a teenager at least once, as a short cut to get home from school, but he hadn't remembered it being this difficult. It wasn't even from his prosthetic either, it was just a mix of his shoes slipping and the fence mesh sticking up past the end and jabbing into anything he rested onto it. He got a leg over.

He caught sight of Ennard coming up behind him and whether it was foolish pride or sheer embarrassment that this was being watched, Scott raised a hand- and wobbled on the fence because of it.

"It's okay! I've got it!" he protested. He leaned over further. "Just let me get down and- oomph!"

He dropped off the fence and landed on his feet but staggered and almost tripped over a decorative shrub. He managed to pull together what was left of his dignity and gave a simple, "It's been a while."

"I know exactly what you mean," Ennard said. He then hopped the fence like it was nothing. "It's been a good, gosh, maybe two months since I hopped one of these babies. Where does the time go?"

Scott knew from that sly look alone that Ennard was toying with him. "Yeah, yeah."

"Speaking of babies, over or under, Babydoll?" the clown asked, looking back at their third.

"Under," she answered. Then proceeded grab the lower part of the fence and uproot it, even breaking some of it in the process. Scott's eyes were as wide as saucers, and he was between staring at the amount of damage and looking around frantically to make sure nobody could hear but ended up staying rigid through the whole thing. Baby crawled under, dusted mulch off herself, and then bent the gate down again. "There. No one will notice."

Well, no. Someone would notice if they looked, Scott thought. In all likelihood though, it wouldn't be noticed until sometime long after they were gone.

Ennard snickered and pulled him in with one arm. "The look on your face right now, Scottie...~"

"Looks a lot like the one I had coming off the fence?" Scott guessed. More laughter bubbled up, but Ennard kept it hushed. They then stepped onto the pathway and started through the park.

As worried as Scott was, both Baby and Ennard kept a vigilant look out for cameras or night watchman. Though they also had alternative motives, with Baby looking for the animatronic stage and Ennard just taking in the sights.

He tried to keep a cool head as he looked around at the park. Eventually he spotted something slightly worth note.

"See that little merry-go-round over there?" he asked. Both clowns looked over. "Freddy's had one exactly like that."

"Neat!" Ennard said.

"Is it the same one?" Baby asked.

"Probably not. I mean, there's some differences. It just looks really close," he said. A slightly awkward attempt to make conversation, though that could go for a few things tonight. Ennard slung an arm around his shoulders and kept him close, which equally made him feel reassured and fear that he was getting too comfortable.

"There's a building over there. Maybe that's the stage," Baby said, directing their attention past a spinning cups ride and to a section of closed up stalls. They continued on with her leading the way.

Though much to her dismay, that was not the stage but some other attraction entirely. It was a two-story building painted like a castle with fairy and unicorn cutouts outside the doors and a spiraling slide down one side. The bottom floor looked to be lined with numerous full-length windows, which looked to be a mirror maze on second glance, and a large sign above the supposed entryway read "Magical Castle".

Baby huffed a little and intended to roll straight past. Unfortunately, this wasn't to be.

"Oh-ho-ho, what have we got here?" Ennard asked, sizing up the building.

"I think it's a funhouse. With that wall of- hall of mirrors on the bottom floor, it probably is," Scott said. He then noticed Ennard looking at him and did a slight double-take, not trusting the glint to his gaze. "…What?"

"I bet this is the only attraction in this whole park that doesn't need to be on to work," Ennard said, rolling out the last word. He gave Scott a little shake. "Let's go in."

"What?" Scott asked again, almost dumbfounded. Ennard motioned his eyes to the funhouse, as though that was supposed to be convincing him. "Why? You know it's not going to be fun with the lights off and no music."

"Why not? When's the next chance we're gonna get to go run around a real-life funhouse? We gotta take the chance why we can!" Ennard exclaimed excitedly.

Baby couldn't say she was surprised at his budding interest in some run-of-the-mill funhouse, but she was slightly disappointed at getting distracted. "You do remember we're trespassing, right?" she asked.

"I didn't say we were going to set up shop in there. In and out, whole thing'll take three to four minutes flat!" he answered. He made a finger snapping motion while mimicking the sound. "Besides, it's not like we're sticking around long. Second we find the band we're out of here. We ought to do something fun while we've got the chance."

Neither Scott nor Baby could figure out if Ennard was trying to lighten a relatively tense mood or if he just really wanted to see the funhouse while he had the chance. Either way, she decided it wasn't worth fighting him on it.

"Fine. Just don't take too long," she said before turning back around.

"Sure, but I was kind of suggesting we all went in together," Ennard gently prodded. Then physically prodded as he walked up behind her and planted his hands on her shoulder, steering her around and back towards the funhouse.

Baby sighed and pressed down one of her skate stoppers. The smallest amount of resistance and Ennard got the message to stop pushing.

"Even if I felt like squeezing through all those mirrors, I don't feel like getting trapped in a slide," she said matter-of-factly. She easily ducked and twisted, rolling out from his grasp. He gave a pouting slump, and she rolled her eyes at him, a tinge of playfulness. "You get five minutes. Any longer and I have full right to leave you."

"O-Okay, if you're really sure," Ennard said, giving her a double thumbs up. She nodded and turned back around to continue down the path. "But if you change your mind, you know where we'll be! And don't do anything Scott wouldn't, ha ha!" he called after her, though not too loudly. Once it was clear that she wasn't changing her mind or looking back, his shoulders dropped with disappointment.

That sort of cleared up whether this was just an Ennard thing or an attempt to salvage the evening thing. Scott couldn't say he was surprised Baby turned down the offer. She had been a woman on a mission since they got here, and he wouldn't have been surprised if she managed to find the animatronics on her own now that she cut both of them loose. Apparently Ennard thought it was still worth a shot, and Scott gave him a comforting pat on the back.

"Still want to go in?" he offered.

Ennard perked up in an attempt to pull back on the mask, but his expression was a little uneasy. "Sure thing! Time's a-ticking so let's get a-moving."

They started heading to the funhouse entrance, but before they could even get up the steps, Scott dared to ask, "Are you worried about her?"

"About Baby? Nah! She's pretty good at not getting caught," the clown answered, rolling out from the question just as easily as Baby rolled out of his arms. "…Why, are you?"

"A little. To be honest, I'm really, really hoping that the website was wrong or that it's just… any character other than Baby… because I know she's going to be disappointed if she doesn't find another Circus Baby, but if she does find another Baby… I-I don't know. I don't think she's going to take it well," Scott confessed.

He led the way up the steps and shined his light over the glass panes. Numerous plates of his own reflection stared back, with Ennard's behind it, looking towards the Scott outside of the glass.

"I know… but what could we do? She wanted to come," Ennard offered. Scott nodded slowly before he suddenly noticed something, and his look changed to surprise as he turned right around.

"Are you saying you didn't want to come?"

"Hey, I'm always down to break into a funfair," Ennard said, raising his hands and with a coyly goofy sort of look in his eyes. A look that quick started to crumble into concern. "…When there's not this much emotional baggage hanging on."

"…Do you think I made the wrong choice saying yes?"

"No! No, no. Quit that. You put that look back," Ennard 'sternly' scolded. "If there's one thing Baby hates it's being babied. She's a big girl and she can make her own decisions… Which is why we let her go off on her own in the dark so we could go play in the Magic Castle. Which reminds me..." He smoothly turned Scott around and started to nudge him towards the entry into the maze. "Let's get a move on! We're at least down to four minutes."

"I don't mean to burst your bubble, Enn, but we probably just spent that five minutes talking out here," Scott reminded. A little smile daring to return with a slight chuckle as he found the doorway in.

Something about dozens of flashlights shining back in an otherwise nearly pitch-dark room of mirrors was a little eerie. He could see his own hesitation on his face, along with the amusement on Ennard's as he slowly leaned in to whisper.

"Still want to go in?"

He couldn't back down after that challenge, not when he knew the scariest thing in this whole park was likely standing directly behind him. "Sure. It's just a little darker than I thought… but that's what this is for. So just, uh, stay close."

"I plan on it," the clown said. A low hum hanging in his chest.

It turned out that the mirror maze was going to be significantly more difficult in the dark. The flashlight being reflected was disorienting and there wasn't really the ability to use outside light to get much bearings beyond direction. At first Scott led, but eventually Ennard was actively helping, until it got to the point that they were less trying to solve a maze and more trying not to fall over each other while walking around the walls.

"Hey, you want to hear a creepy story?" Ennard asked out of the blue.

Or it wasn't that out of the blue. There was a distinctly uncomfortable feeling in the pit of Scott's stomach the closer he was getting to the back of the maze. A claustrophobic feeling, mixed with the dread that he was about to get stuck trying to run through these tight corridors. Again though, from what was beyond rational guesstimation.

"Uh… No?" Scott answered.

"It's got a really neat twist ending," Ennard coaxed. "And it's not that creepy. Like, not as creepy as, y'know, our new prison." He reached up to pat his hands on the ceiling and walls, practically towering in the tight space.

He knew Ennard was leaning into something, but he decided to take the bait. "Sure… but not a lot of gore?"

"Gore only works when you can see it," the clown tutted. He gestured for Scott to turn around and keep going, and once he did, he began:

"As far as I know, they say this is a true story, but people tend to stretch the truth when they're scared. Sometimes they think they see things in the shadows that aren't there. Sometimes harmless people look like killers hiding in the shadows. All I can tell you is that wherever the story came from, they believed what they saw was real, and that's what makes all the difference.

There was a family on vacation in a small town just like this one. They were trying to get in the last week of summer before the kids went back to school, but they weren't the only ones who had that idea. So, they found themselves stuck staying in motel just beside the city dump."

"That's a real-life horror story alright," Scott joked. He looked back at the clown with a smile.

Ennard tsked and shook his head in playful chiding. "You're not taking this seriously."

"Sorry, ignore me. You keep going while I find us a way out of here."

"My plan exactly!" Ennard chirped, then his voice dropped back into a low, haunting tone. "The man books two rooms. One for his wife and him and the other for his three children. The first night seems to go well, but when they get up the next morning his son tells him that something weird happened that night. Late, late after the parents went to bed, the kids were woken up by a noise outside.

They looked out to see a tall man walking out of dump. He stopped in the field between them and stared up at the motel. The kids weren't too sure because they couldn't see its face, but it looked like it was staring at their window.

Mom and Dad assume older brother is playing a joke and the younger kids believe him, so they don't really do anything about it. They go out, enjoy their day, and return to the motel that evening. They tuck in their kids and go to sleep… But a few hours later, they're awoken by their oldest son who says the man from the dump was standing underneath their window. Not believing him, his parents send him back to bed.

They're not woken back up, so they think everything's fine. But everything's not fine. Their kids are exhausted! When they ask, they reveal that the man had climbed up to their window… and watched them… and tapped on the glass… all night."

Ennard tapped his fingers on the mirror wall. It echoed through the tight passageway.

"Mom's a little uneasy, Dad doesn't believe them. The mood of the day is dead on arrival. They go do their activities before returning to the motel, but tonight the kids are afraid to go to sleep. The parents head to bed. A few hours later, Dad wakes up and hears something funny from the next room. He heads over and peeks into his kids' room…

There is a bloodless white face staring in the window. Sharp fingers scratching at the glass." Ennard scraped his fingers on the wall. "The older and middle kids are hiding in the corner, but their younger sister is slowly creeping towards the window. Dad then realizes that the thing is opening the window. He runs in and grabs his daughter just before a long, greasy, metal hand reaches in and misses. The creature drops down from the window and disappears.

Now realizing that his kids are telling the truth, Dad wakes Mom and they consider going to the police, but in the end decide to stay the night in their own room all together, since they're leaving the next day and it's the witching hour. Dad sleeps on one side, Mom on the other, kids in the middle, and with their bedroom window covered up… but Dad wakes up to a noise a little later and realizes his daughter is gone.

Frantic, he heads back into the kids' room and finds that there's nobody there, but the window is wide open. He calls out the window for her and in the distance, he hears a faint: "Daddy!"

He runs out of the motel and heads towards the dump. He calls for her again. He hears her again: "Daddy!"

He walks into the dump. Piles of trash and heaps of scrap metal tower above his head as he frantically calls for his daughter. Each time she replies, but her voice sounds hollower, echoey, wrong, until he doesn't hear it any longer. At that moment he comes up on a deep pit dug into a mound of garbage and leans down to look inside. There is a body wrapped in trash bags inside. He calls for her, she whispers back, and he crawls in…

Only for the trash bag wrapped body to turn around and reveal the white face from the window. Now he could see it in all its horror. Long, sharp teeth like needles. Hunks of scrap metal and trash sticking out of its body. It had the face of a lost toy thrown away and forgotten, and its body made of the garbage it absorbed. He couldn't make it out before it ensnared him and pulled him deep into its lair.

The next morning Mom and children awoke confused to find Dad gone and the only person who saw him leave? His youngest daughter, who got up to use the bathroom and heard him go down the hall and leave the hotel. He is still missing to this day, but everyone knows where he is. In that pit of bodies hidden in the dump."

Ennard leaned in close to whisper into his ear.

"The Hurricane Clown has claimed another victim."

Scott released any held breath in a disbelieving guffaw as the bottom fell out of any tension.

"Why?" was all he could ask.

"Because I forgot to on the drive here," Ennard cockily answered.

"So, you didn't make that up on the way here?"

"Nope!"

"Are you sure?" Scott looked back at him with a teasing smile, reflecting the flashlight off the mirror to illuminate the space.

"Oh, I wish I could take credit for that, but it was Burke's kid who told it to me. You remember when he called saying his theater group was talking about me? That was it!" Ennard said. He brightened up while he said that, like the idea alone exhilarated him.

"I don't know why you get so happy about that. I know they say 'any publicity is good publicity', but I don't think that counts when people are calling you a garbage monster that… eats people?" Scott furrowed his brow before suddenly remembering something. "Wait, what part of that story was real? You being at the dump, right?"

"The part where I hang out at the dump." Scott gave him a look. "I'm serious! If you don't believe me, ask Carl. The original was a lot worse before I toned it down."

Scott paused for a moment and considered if he wanted to ask the next question. He even started to turn like he wasn't going to before giving in and turning back. "How much worse?"

"Gore only works when you can see it, but they painted a pretty good picture," Ennard said. He too seemed to consider stopping there before blurting out, "Graphic depictions of harvesting and trash stuffing. There was a dog too."

"…Okay, almost regretting that decision. Thank you for keeping it tame," Scott said. Apparently, the theater group weren't the only ones who could paint a nasty picture in only a few sentences. Ennard snickered and pulled him back into a tight hug, now padded by his new suit. His nose poked his ear with a squeak and Scott chuckled.

"You know the scariest part?" Ennard murmured in the same low tone he used to tell the story. "You're sharing a house with that same trash monster. It knows where you sleep…~" He gave a sinister crackle and drummed his fingers on his arms.

"I think it's worse that I'm sharing a bed with a guy who spends his off time hanging out at the dump," Scott replied.

It caught Ennard by surprise and he burst into laughter. It echoed through the mirror maze at a volume that would've concerned him if they were standing outside. He was such a goof, Scott thought. He turned back and caught the clown by the chin to pull him into a gentle kiss. Ennard gave a delighted squeak and pressed back, like he was kissing back even when it was through a mask.

Scott had a choice then. They had taken up a bit of time already, but they had reached the back of the room beside some stairs that led to the upper floor, with him stopping long enough for Ennard to finish his story. They could go upstairs and search for the way out, but it could take more time if there turned out to be more obstacles. Chances were there was something up there to slow them down. So, they could also turn around and leave the way they came in.

Unfortunately, Scott wasn't thinking and made his choice when he leaned back in for a second kiss. The mood shifted instantaneously. The quirky little squeak was replaced with a curious hum, and he didn't have far to go before his back was against the mirrored wall. Ennard practically had him pinned in before he tilted his head and moved in further. Pressed in so close that his teeth grazed over Scott's lips.

This was what spiraling felt like, Scott realized. He could barely keep his head above water as one of his hands grabbed at the back of Ennard's jacket. He didn't know if it was stop him or to just hold on.

Ennard did eventually draw back, and Scott took the opportunity to turn his head upwards, trying to get control of himself. Baby was probably waiting right outside the funhouse by now and while he didn't want to stop- the tingling in his chest and along his skin being attributed to that- his better judgement started to slip through, along with concern and paranoia. He decided to tell this to Ennard.

"Uh- hah." The timing was bad. The second he started to speak, he was cut short by a bundle of wires sliding out of Ennard's mouth and up along his throat, ending the lick with a little nip to his chin accentuated with a playful 'nom'.

The moment came to a sudden halt when Scott fumbled with the flashlight and lost his grip. It fell to the floor with a loud clatter and went out. Scott winced at the sound of a battery flying out and rolling somewhere. Ennard flinched at the noise and froze up in place. A long moment passed in that dark hallway of mirrors.

Then Ennard began nibbling at his chin again.

"Ennard, wait. About Baby," Scott reminded. Ennard gave a disappointed hum but didn't argue, giving him one last kiss on the cheek before pulling back.

"Don't go anywhere," he quipped before crouching down to retrieve the flashlight and batteries. "We have what, two minutes left?"

"I-It's more like we have two minutes before it's twenty minutes," Scott said. He self-consciously fixed his clothes, knowing his face was probably burning beet red and there was nothing he could do to fix it. He reached blindly to give Ennard another pat on the back, missed, and ended up patting him on the head instead. "But maybe she's not keeping track," he offered, knowing she probably was.

"Eh, she is. But it's me! I get a thirty-minute buffer just in case," Ennard replied. "…Which I'm gonna need. I think these mirrors are messing with my already pretty sketchy night vision, 'cause I'm missing a battery."

"Take your time," Scott said. Though after a few seconds of standing in the dark, claustrophobic hallway, he began trying to help feel around on the floor. Hopefully Baby wasn't waiting outside.

In reality, Scott and Ennard's whereabouts were the last thing on her mind.

Neither was the assumed stage that she was still looking for. That was a big part of what she was doing, but it definitely wasn't what had been clouding her mind since she got here. Something had been bothering since she had gotten inside.

She was glad to get a few minutes away from the two because of it. Not because of anything they had done to worsen it, but just the feeling itself, especially once she realized what it was.

This place reminded her of the toy store her father used to take her to.

It was such a sudden and intrusive revelation that crept up only when she started seeing little gnomes and statues of fairies and elves sitting on toadstools and fishing into artificial streams. When she was a little girl, her father used to take her to a toy store that was themed a lot like this. It had that faux fairytale themed with unicorns and fairies painted on the walls, or at least on the walls of the designated girls' section.

Maybe that was why he called her Princess. It used to make her feel special, now it made her feel like her a fool. Like her father's fool.

She had been thinking of her father quite a bit recently. There had been a time after his appearance that he had faded out of her immediate thoughts and the pain of his betrayal- second betrayal- had died down. A time when he was truly gone and she had gotten some form of closure, even if all it did was open her eyes instead of offering any comfort. She wasn't sure if the reopening of Freddy's did it or if it was just a matter of timing.

Remembering those assumed happier days of when he took her to get toys and ice cream did little to numb the pain of him using her like he had. It all left her very confused.

She only realized that she had been staring at the ground when she spot a plastic frog toy on the ground. One of those cheap ones that you would press the back down of to make it hop. She raised her head up and looked around and only then spotted what looked to be a cleared-out area nearby, and she wheeled over to it, briefly putting her feelings to focus on the task at hand.

That was when she finally found the outdoor atrium, or what might've been one. There was an uncovered stage with some basic decorations and a few speakers. There were rustic log benches for the audience to sit on, topped with maroon pillows to cushion them. It looked quaint, but the acoustics had to be horrendous- or Baby thought so.

There were also no animatronics on stage, but she had a hunch where they were. The back wall of the stage was really the wall of a trailer behind it, which was likely where they stored the animatronics afterhours. Considering the rather lackluster security, locking up the animatronics was a must, and Baby wheeled off the path and walked through the grass to find it sealed with a chain and padlock.

It would be relatively easy to break through it. Baby felt the lock in her hand and while it was rather sturdy, she was sure either it or the chain could be broken with her claw. However, she agreed not to break anything, so she was going to either need Scott's consent or Ennard's encouragement to justify doing so. That way she wouldn't be breaking her promise.

She wasn't surprised when she returned to the funhouse to find nobody outside. She could faintly hear their voices inside, so she knew they were still in there. Instead of going in after them she waited for them by the slide, already preparing a flat sort of look for when one of them came down.

Which never happened. Much to her surprise, Scott and Ennard walked right out the door they came in. She caught up with them quickly.

"What took you two so long?" Baby took one look at Scott's slightly scuffed hair and quickly looked away. "Never mind. I don't need to know."

"Don't even act like that. I'll have you know I spent the last ten minutes crawling around looking for batteries," Ennard said matter-of-factly, planting his hands on his hips.

"The door was locked. The door up the stairs- there's stairs at the back that leads up to the second floor, and there's a door at the top that was locked," Scott explained. Just the flustered way he said that suggested this wasn't the whole truth, but Baby let it slide.

"I see. Speaking of locked doors, I found where they're keeping the animatronics," Baby said. They were a little quieter than she expected them to be, so she simply beckoned them. "Come along, I'll show you."

"S-Sure thing! Lead the way, Baby!" Ennard chirped, giving her a double thumbs up. Though as she turned away to do so, he and Scott shared an uneasy look.

It didn't take long to get back to the stage and the trailer behind it, where Baby had Ennard look at the padlock.

"Do you think we could pick the lock?" Baby asked. Ennard hummed and looked at the bottom of it.

"Ehhhh, no can do, Babydoll. Even if I had the tools and the know-how, this is a pretty tiny keyhole. I don't see it happening," he said.

"There must be another way to get the lock off," Baby suggested. She found his hesitation kind of strange, and he almost looked a little nervous. "I know you've broken through much stronger."

"Heh, true! But there could be an alarm on this thing or… Something?" Ennard stole a glance at Scott then abruptly stood. "What a shame! Well, it happens. Better safe than sorry."

Baby looked between them, her suspecting that Scott had probably mouthed to him not to do it or something. "So, that's it? We come all this way and then are stopped by a flimsy, little chain."

"Well, uh-," Scott started, only to be interrupted.

"I can get this padlock open, we can look inside, close it again, and be on our way in only a few minutes. They won't care that we broke the chain, they are only concerned about the animatronics," Baby tried to convince. She had to pick her words carefully. She didn't want to coerce him, but she did want to convince him. "Please. We can't have come this far to stop."

Scott felt both of their eyes on him. Baby, who desperately wanted to tempt fate, and Ennard, who only didn't want to tempt fate because of the possible backlash from the other clown. It was a bad position to be in and he could already tell that nobody was going to win from this decision. He looked around behind him, hoping for a quick excuse to get them out of the area and avoid him making the decision, but there was nothing there.

With a tired sigh, he turned back and looked to Baby. He ran a tired hand along the back of his neck and sighed.

"…Okay."

Ennard's mouth dropped open, looking at him with the same shocked aghast that Scott himself felt.

"But that's all we're doing! Just… Just opening it up and looking inside. No touching the animatronics. Heck, no even- no leaving the padlock. If they see it, they might notice it wasn't cut by, uh… normal means," Scott rambled. He wet his dried lips and added, "Only so you can look, Baby, and only because it looks pretty dead out here."

Baby honestly didn't think he was going to say yes. "Thank you…" was all she said, then turned and quickly caught the padlock and chain in her claw. She worked with it for a minute, applying pressure and twisting, adjusting so she could break them in a clean fashion. With one hard snap, yank, and twist, the padlock was crushed and the chain broken. Overkill perhaps, but they were taking it anyway, so she let them fall to the grass.

She wasn't sure why she hesitated now of all times, but she did, just long enough for Ennard to decide to take lead. He pulled open one of the doors and leaned in to look. He paused for a long, frozen moment before-

"Ooooh, I see a familiar face already!" He couldn't hide the little twitch of nervousness, but he walked into the trailer unconcerned. Baby felt something tighten in her chest cavity.

"Is it me?" she quietly asked.

"It's Foxy!" Ennard called back. Both Baby and Scott's heads snapped over.

"Foxy?!" Scott asked. He hurried over and shined his light inside to see Ennard's back, but the clown stepped aside eagerly to reveal what he found. The flashlight illuminated a familiar white and pink fox character. Or white-ish, as time hadn't been kindly keeping its plush body that crispy colored. One of its eyelids was rolled down lower than the other and its mouth was ajar, with its body hunched forward in an off position.

"Oh, Funtime Foxy!" Scott said. He came up to get a better look, noticing again the plush suit and the hook on its hand. "No, wait. This is a Toy Foxy. It's the same line as Marionette. They were sort of in that time between diner and pizzeria."

"But this can't be the same one that was with Mari. The one that bit Jeremy? I thought that was the Mangle," Ennard asked.

"It's not. Or it is. That Toy Foxy was, uh… Out of commission a lot of the time. People started calling it the Mangle, it bit Jeremy, then Mangle was put out-of-service. This might be the same model, but it's a different bot," Scott explained.

Ennard stared at it thoughtfully, rubbing his chin, and then dared to ask, "So, what's the chances of a second Puppet popping up?... Ha ha, OTHER than Charlie." He grinned a little while Scott fumbled.

"None. No. There was- from what I know- only the one Puppet… At least, when I was talking to managers and employees from other locations, none of them ever mentioned another Puppet… But I'm pretty sure it was one of Henry's own."

While they were talking, Baby made her way into the trailer and tried to see past them. It was rather cramped on the inside as it wasn't just holding the animatronics themselves, but what were likely props for the stage. She could see what looked like a bird animatronic just passed Ennard and something wide blocking her view on the other side. No sign of Baby just yet, and this "Funtime" animatronic wasn't even part of her line.

"Excuse me," she warned, then squeezed behind Ennard and deeper into the trailer.

It was harder for her to get around the stuff, having to shove a carboard box of wires aside just to get to the bird animatronic. Actually, it looked to be a seagull, with a little cracking on the rubber of its facial build. The third animatronic, the big one, looked to be some kind of generic character she hadn't seen before. A female from the eyelashes with a pink plush suit, perhaps an elephant or pig, but Baby didn't care to pay more attention.

Not when she caught a sprig of red hair in the dull light. It poked out from behind the pink bot's shoulder, revealing a final animatronic in the back. That hair color looked familiar.

"Ennard…" Baby began in a hushed tone. "…I think I found her."

Ennard's head snapped over and Scott inwardly winced. Between them all though, Baby was the one most fearful of her findings. She had not only found another Circus Baby, but she had found one with real hair. That alone was devastating.

"Really? What's she look like?" Ennard dared to ask.

"I don't know. I can't see her behind this thing here." Baby gestured to the pink animatronic. "Help me. We can move it together without damaging it."

"You got it, Boss!" the other clown agreed and came over. He got about halfway through wrapping his arms up under it when he noticed its face. "Now there's a nice set of eyes…" he murmured, leaning in closer to study the glassy, blue orbs.

"Ennard," Baby huffed.

"Sorry! Sorry, heh, always gotta be on the lookout," Ennard apologized. He wrapped his arms under. "On three we move her back in this direction."

"Uh, are you two sure this is a good idea…?" Scott cautiously asked. As though the two weren't going to do it anyway. "Or wait, here, let me at least move Foxy-."

"No worries, we got this!" Ennard reassured.

"Step out of the way, please. Once we start moving, we cannot stop," Baby warned.

So, he did. He kept the flashlight on them and watched with bated breath and gritted teeth as the two dragged the surprisingly light, for its size, animatronic aside. It was set down in the middle of the trailer, partially trapping Ennard between it and Foxy, so that Baby could turn around and see what wait behind it.

Which she did, and she immediately got an eyeful of it. It was unlike anything she expected.

"What…?" she began, almost speechless. She rolled closer to see better. "Is that…?"

Ennard peeked out and gawked while Scott was now the one whose mouth dropped open.

"What is that…?!" Baby began to twitch as she stared at the animatronic in front of her. She jabbed her hand at it. "What is that?!"

What that was would happen to be the most bizarre animatronic that any of them had seen. It looked like Circus Baby only in details, but it itself was a caricature stretched and elongated like it was pulled from a funhouse mirror.

It did have hair, Baby was correct. Two broom-like red pigtails stuck out of the top sides of its head, but that was all the hair it had. There was something akin to a painted plate between them, almost giving it the impression of being largely shaved around the pigtails. It had a molded on red top, but it was almost bikini-like, no frills around the shoulders and with a long expanse of belly-buttonless stomach. Its long red skirt was a little more modest but frayed at the end.

But these were the somewhat normal details. It was everything else that was borderline uncanny. Long, skinny arms and legs, with a matching neck that stood at least six or seven inches longer than pleasant to the eyes. Its face was dolled up with heavy lidded and painted eyes with thick lashes, bright red lipstick, and round blushed cheeks jutting out of its face. It sort of looked like Ballora, but instead of her more elegant stature, it was emaciated and inhuman.

Baby could've never imagined the amount of disgust and horror she was going to feel seeing this thing. This mannequin thing dolled up to look like her. It actually offended her to look at it.

Ennard snorted through the hand covering his mouth and Baby turned on him in an instant.

"Don't you DARE laugh! Look at this- it's hideous!" Baby spat. She turned back on it with a glare. "Its body, its face; it's obscene! What is this?!"

"Oh wow, that's- yeah, that's not great…" Scott said. He was just as shocked as she was. When she looked at him, he could only shrug. "I don't know what to tell you."

"Looks like it came out the wrong side of a funhouse mirror," Ennard snickered. Apparently, they were thinking alike, but that didn't excuse how hard it was for him to stop laughing.

Baby gave an aggravated huff and waved widely with her arm, gesturing him towards it. "Make sure it isn't alive. Please."

"Good call. Two seconds," Ennard said. He stepped around a spool of cable and leaned in close to the other Baby. While studying it, Baby turned away with a low, staticky noise in her chest, like a low growl.

Seeing her distress, Scott reached out and rubbed her upper arms comfortingly.

"It looks nothing like you," he assured her.

"I should hope not," Baby hissed. She stole a look back before looking forward again. "Ugh! Yes, it does!"

"No, it doesn't. It just… It looks like something else that was reformatted into a Circus Baby theme. Probably was a completely different type! Could've been a…" Scott looked over at it. "…Scarecrow."

Baby half-scoffed and almost laughed despite herself. She blamed it on her being distraught because there was nothing funny about that thing standing nearby.

"Well, I have bad news, Baby," Ennard announced as he came over. He put an arm around her shoulders and patted her arm. "I'm afraid that… you won't be getting a new sister."

"Wonderful," Baby grumbled.

"Think you can check the others?" Scott asked.

"Heading in that direction! Mind holding the light? It's better doing the eye trick when you're not in complete darkness," Ennard asked. Scott agreed and they turned, not even really having to take any steps, to address the pink animatronic.

Instead of watching them, which would've probably been the better use of her time, Baby found her eyes dragged back to that other Baby. Hers meeting its glassy, drooped ones. She felt that irritation grow at seeing it, but she could say without any doubt that she didn't envy it. While it had some hair and a slightly more human build- no, scratch that. She might've been bulkier, but even she was less off-putting than this one. In a way it gave her a sinister reassurance.

She rolled closer and looked it over. How it would perform for children was beyond her. She could see that its feet were mounted on a stand so probably that would keep it upright while it waggled its arms around.

She also noticed that it was wearing a silver necklace. The only reason she took note of it being that it reminded her of the silver bell necklace of Charlie's. She reached forward and flicked at the heart shaped pendant, which moved freely, loosened from the heart shaped slot that had been made in its chest. That was an odd sort of outlier. Jewelry that wasn't molded on wasn't common in animatronics, so she assumed this wasn't an Afton original.

If she thought about it, and this moment did bring those memories back, she could remember seeing her father working on the original Circus Baby once or twice. Unable to work in the house, he had a garage or warehouse he used to work in, though she couldn't remember if it was the warehouse she was familiar with or not. She could remember that Henry was frequently there and that her brothers were never allowed to go. Being his favorite, she was.

She could remember one of the first times she had seen Circus Baby. It stood before her so glossy and freshly painted, with pretty eyes and a cute skirt. To her it was more beautiful than any of the Freddy's animatronics. Feminine, cute, perfect for her, and she had thought- and she was sure her father had said once- that she was made for her. She remembered poking the cold metal before her father came in and…

He had grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back so quickly that she fell off her own feet, and then dragged her back by the arm. She suddenly had a vivid memory of how her arm had pulsed when he grabbed her.

It was so jarring to suddenly remember that, that her father grabbing her roughly and wrenching her back. She couldn't believe he had touched her like that. She always remembered him spoiling her with ice cream, dollies, bedtime stories; happiness and innocence. She had been loved and adored back then and this memory was a stark contrast to that. Her father was a monster, no denying that, but he used to dote on her.

…But that wasn't the first time he had roughly grabbed her. It wasn't even the roughest he had been with her.

It was like that memory was a key that unlocked a door that hid others behind it as they all started to slip out. Some days her father came home different. Sometimes he would be acting weird and she would know not to bother him. Weird, her childlike mind would've identified it. Her now matured mind identified it correctly: intoxicated. She didn't think he was an alcoholic, but there were days when he came home wrong.

But just as quickly as she latched to that thought it unfurled in her grasp. It wasn't the alcohol because he could be just as rough sober. He could lose his temper and yank her aside or drag her along. In fact, she vaguely remembered having to wear a long-sleeved shirt on a warm day and being grumpy about it. Her father had taken her out for ice cream after school to reward her and told her how good she was.

Perhaps to apologize without apologizing, because she was hiding a bruise put on her. A welt on her arm when Daddy accidentally grabbed too hard. Though it was always her fault when it happened, or she thought it was.

Baby's claw tightened as her eyes stared dead ahead. Occasionally shifting just the slightest bit as the vivid memories started to ooze their way back. Staring at the feeble animatronic but instead watching the horror unfold inside of herself.

It wasn't even that she loved her father or thought he loved her, it was just that some part of her did still look back at those times of childhood bliss to remember when she thought things had been better. Just like earlier with the memories of the toy store. Days of playing dress up, of playing in her dolly dreamhome, of being a princess. Being loved, being adored, being snapped at only when she asked too many questions, grabbed only when she stepped out of line.

She remembered his calloused hands grabbing her around the arm and dragging her out of his garage, grabbing her chin and holding her still so he could slowly explain to her why not to interrupt him, hoping she would get it this time because she was such a bright little girl, but she could be so thick sometimes. The loving hands that would carry her to bed, the ruthless hands that would grab her by the biceps and shake her.

And when she was being too loud one of those hands would clamp over her mouth and silence her.

Baby was overheating to a dangerous level. She only realized it when something akin to a fan started humming from inside. Though she didn't think she had a fan anymore, so it could've very well been static. It was hard to think about it when she was in the middle of remembering something so horrible, so vile that she couldn't handle it. Yet she had to stay silent because she wasn't alone.

She could hear Scott and Ennard talking behind her, oblivious to what was happening. She didn't want them to notice her, to know what she was thinking about. She didn't want to think anymore.

Suddenly even caring about whether there were any other Circus Baby animatronics seemed like such a moot point. The thought that she would even care- that she was stuck in the body of something he loved more than her- hurt in a deep way she had never felt before. It was a weird feeling, something leaning closer to anger than anything else. She wanted to scream, and it took every ounce of willpower not to, like she was fighting off his influence all over again.

Then her eyes fell on that gaudy little pendant. It looked like something her daddy would've bought for her to make up for being such a brute. It reminded her of playing princess and dress-up, and dressing in Momma's clothes, and climbing in closets to look for Christmas gifts only to go snooping around the wrong place and have Daddy rip her down by the back of her shirt and fall on her backside so hard that her tailbone aches for hours.

She couldn't stand it. Elizabeth was about to scream.

"You okay over there, Baby?" Ennard must've heard her. "You're making some angry cat noises."

"I'm fine," she somehow managed. Her jaw was locked so tight she wondered if she would break her teeth. "Just looking at this… thing."

She had a feeling that they didn't believe her. Possibly Scott's whisper of, "Let's finish up with this." To get back to her, no doubt, and then see what she was devolving into. She had to pull herself together, but that was easier said than done.

This thing in front of her was mocking her. Not literally, of course, but its presence. An amalgam of human and clown that vaguely resembled Circus Baby. Her father would've loved it, would've loved for her to be something like that more than to even be human. He would've given her a necklace just like that to apologize for everything. No, not to apologize. To pretend that he was apologizing. It was always an act; he was never sorry.

Baby reached forward and tightened her fingers around the heart-shaped locket. Just like the padlock and the chain it could break easily and go unnoticed, thrown away like the piece of valueless metal it was. She rested her claw on its pale belly to keep it from tipping forward before she suddenly yanked her hand and ripped the locket off, the chain snapping easily and dangling from her hand, and causing the mannequin's torso to be tilted forward.

It felt good to break something, but it was only a fleeting relief. It didn't matter what it represented when it really meant nothing at all.

"What was that?" Scott asked.

"Nothing," Baby quickly denied. She began to roll back away from it. "I just-."

The excuse was cut short as the gangly animatronic teetered forward the moment she drew her claw away. She quick nudged it back and it teetered before falling forward again and collapsing onto her. She caught its rigid body and shoved it off just as quickly, watching it fall back against the wall before sliding into the corner. It was so stiff that it simply stayed propped up sideways like that.

"What was that?!" Scott repeated. He hurried back up to her and Baby, mortified at her own clumsiness, hid the necklace under her opposite arm. Not that she wanted to keep the thing, but after all this she didn't want him to find out about what she really had done. Scott shined his light over the fallen animatronic. "Did she move? What happened?"

"I'm- I'm not sure," Baby tried to excuse. Her voice was tight, and she still didn't feel quite herself. Almost like she wasn't in the moment, just observing it through her eyes. Scott must've noticed as he looked to her. She began to grow panicked, "I- I didn't mean for that to happen! I wasn't trying to break it- even if it is the most h-hideous thing I've ever seen!"

"Baby, it's okay. It's alright!" Scott assured her. He put a hand on her arm to try and comfort her, because he could tell immediately that something was wrong. She was jittery just standing there. "We'll just pick her back up, okay?"

Baby gave a stiff nod and kept her head down as Scott stepped in front of her to try and pick the mannequin animatronic up. It wasn't as heavy as he was expecting, but he did have to wrap his arms around the middle to try and lug it up.

Which went alright for about three seconds until he must've hit a release of some kind, because suddenly the rigid animatronic suddenly went limp. As limp as a ragdoll, head dangling on its bendy neck and arms swinging down. Scott, who was already trying to lift it with one and a half arms, lost his grip and it fell before Ennard could reach around to grab it. It fell back into the corner, head bent down near its chest, arms bent underneath and beside it.

Scott stared wide-eyed at the animatronic for a long moment before turning to look at Ennard over his shoulder.

"I think we should head home now."

Soon they were outside. Ennard shut the trailer doors while Scott picked up and carried the chain. Baby was standing to the side, still uncharacteristically silent.

Which meant that Ennard was paying closer attention to the outside world when he suddenly yanked his head up.

"I hear voices," he warned. Scott's teeth clenched as he began to look around. Ennard homed in and patted his arm, pointing towards the front of Fairyland. Scott swallowed thickly and motioned with his hand for them to take the long way.

With them looking away, Baby was quick to swing her arm back to toss the necklace off somewhere in the grass where it would never be found. Except the chain had gotten itself annoyingly tangled in her fingers. No matter how much she shook her hand it wouldn't come free, until the point when her wrist was aching. She was about to rip it off with her claw when she had to hide it again.

As they got further across the pathways back towards the car, the sound of talking grew louder. Loud enough that Scott could hear it at least. There were definitely other people in the park now- if they hadn't been there the whole time. They had to hasten their speed, especially once a flashlight was spotted in the distance. One right about to cut them off at the pass.

"Back," Scott said, pushing back Ennard who was practically on top of him. "Back, back. Somewhere else."

"Hide out in the mirror maze?" the clown offered.

"No."

"Hop the fence back that-a-way?" he pointed his thumb back towards some stalls.

"Uh… Yeah, good call."

They quickly made their way behind the stalls to more fencing and went through the same routine as earlier, except a little more frantically with their motions. Ennard all but shoving Scott over the fence and throwing himself over right afterwards. The lights were getting closer, and chances were whoever was approaching was going to hear something from all of this.

Baby was remarkably calm. In fact, she found that she didn't feel much of anything.

"Baby, come on!" Ennard whispered. He made a grab for her over the fence, and she shrugged him off, determined to peel her way through herself. This time wasn't as difficult as this section of the fence wasn't rooted as deeply.

The necklace's chain only seemed to tighten around her fingers as she climbed underneath. While the park allowed her to leave, this useless little trinket wouldn't let her go. Eventually she gave up trying to free herself from it.

Chapter End Notes

Sorry if this ending seems so abrupt, but I decided at the last minute to switch the final scene of this chapter to the next one so I could expand upon it. I hope it doesn't feel too anticlimactic because I'm thinking it'll work better there than here. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 17

Chapter Notes

I'm so sorry that this is a day late, but here's hoping the extra time helped the chapter in the long run! Enjoy!

All things considered, there should've been some relief in the fact that they had gotten out of Fairyland Park without getting caught. Yet an uncomfortable mood had taken over inside of the van.

Baby had continued acting strange up until her request for Ennard to shut her down for the ride, which she made only once they were out on the highway and the coast seemed clear. She was in the back now slouched in a dormant slumber.

Ennard on the other hand had decided to take the risk and move into the passenger's seat. Normally this would've been especially dangerous, but it was very late by now. Plus, he had his seat tilted back and was slid far into it. Normally budding with energy at the beginning of a trip, he kept quiet and let the dull hum of the radio instead fill the space. He could tell Scott was feeling antsy.

He could also tell that Scott wasn't antsy about almost being caught, nor the incident with the animatronic, but the way Baby had acted after. He was concerned about it too. It wasn't even her silence or her briskness when blowing off their questions that was concerning, but the shakiness her voice took. That wasn't like her at all. Something must've happened, but he didn't know what.

Though she was asleep right now, so the only one Ennard could fuss on was Scott. "You look tired."

"That's ironic. I feel tired," Scott lightly joked. He was trying at least.

"We could stop at a motel. I know of this nice little one just beside the dump," Ennard coyly answered with a sharp grin. The other played along with a chuckle, but then they fell back into that thick silence.

The music droning out of the radio was weird. Staticky and without lyrics, just off-beat partial techno that sounded more like it belonged in a strip mall than on broadcast. It only succeeded in increasing the awkward feeling. Eventually even Scott couldn't take it anymore.

"What happened back there?" he asked with weary desperation. "With Baby, I mean."

"She saw the other Baby and got upset… A lot more upset than we were expecting," Ennard finished quietly.

"I don't know. The timing doesn't add up. She was upset after she saw it, yeah, but she wasn't the same kind of upset as she was after it fell over… and I don't think it was her knocking it over that did it. Something happened."

"What could've happened? We were right there," the clown pointed up. He noticed the man's worried frown. "Don't you dare start beating yourself up about this."

"I'm not…"

"I'm looking right at you and I know you are," Ennard affirmed. He leaned over between the seats. "It's got to be a scary thing, you know. To see this identity you've put yourself in for so long suddenly slapped on another body. I can't say I know what that feels like since I sort of chose this," he said, gesturing over himself. "Might've just taken a few minutes to kick in."

It almost took Scott off-guard for Ennard to be the one to bring this up, to see this deeply into the concept. He knew the other's façade of ignorance and ditz was just that, but that was an amount of existentialism that even he wasn't thinking of, and now that he was, he wasn't feeling great about it. At least Ennard had gone ahead and volunteered that he didn't feel that way. That stopped more budding concern before it could grow.

"Maybe. I can't even begin to put myself in her shoes…" Scott tightened his mouth. "…But I don't know. I just had this feeling…" He trailed off unsurely, which Ennard noticed.

"Hey, if we're going by gut feelings here, I definitely trust yours! We're never gonna know unless Baby tells us," he said. He rested on that note for a minute before adding, "We'll see how she's doing when we wake her up."

"Right. Maybe it's nothing. Maybe… Maybe she'll be feeling better once we get home," Scott offered. Ennard gave a overly confident 'yeah!' and they fell back into silence backed by the uneasy music. The driver watched a few signs passed as he stared out into the darkness beyond his headlights. Then he took a deep breath and added, "Since she can't hear us, and we won't get a chance to talk about it later… Did you get a good look at that Baby?"

"Are we trash talking scarecrow Baby? Because if we are, YES!" Ennard exclaimed. He held his arms out in disbelief. "What the heck was with the neck and the arms? And did you look at the way it was dressed? Children's performer my left eye!"

"Yeeeeaaah." Scott inhaled through his teeth. "William's designs always sort of feel in the off-putting category. Especially whenever he tried to do one that looked more human. If you looked closely, you could see the similarities to Ballora. The top of the head, the cheeks, the… let's say overly mature facial build. Not sure why it's designed like Baby though. I never saw a Baby design that looked that, uh… we'll say mature again."

He noticed that Ennard was staring at him and did a slight double-take. "…Too much? You know, by mature I meant that she looked like an adult. Most animatronics lean more on the cutesy side."

"Nah, you're good…" Ennard said thoughtfully. He straightened up slowly, still leaning on his arm. "I was just noticing how you were talking about that weird looking wannababy like it was a real Afton original."

"Let's call it a hunch. You know someone long enough and you pick up their quirks, their design philosophies. A lot of it comes to the similarities to Ballora, but just as much comes from what I used to see of old design documents and early sketches… A lot of the cute and cuddly animatronics were designed by Henry. Will's artistic style was a little more… You could call it deranged."

"I could call him deranged too," Ennard cheekily added. Though he still seemed curious. "I'm pretty sure I know why you didn't say that back there."

"I didn't really plan on saying it now either. Longer I go without sleep, the easier these things slip out," Scott admitted with a sheepish grin. "You know though, I'm surprised you didn't notice."

"I noticed she was pretty sturdy. Pretty glossy, similar plating, standing up on its own even with those lanky little limbs, meaning she wasn't just some slapped together low-budget job… I think I was in denial, ha ha," Ennard answered. His expression looked tight as he thought back to it. At the time he had just put it off as a really impressive duplicate, but there was no denying it. "…That pink one though, that thing came straight out of Franky Fazboar's Pizza Planet."

Scott chuckled a little and reached over, to which Ennard quickly caught his hand and laced their fingers. Even with the new gloves, his hands were warm and comforting. A less uncomfortable moment passed by.

"…But you were sure she wasn't alive right?"

"I'm betting our freedom on it!"

It was a while before they finally made it home and by then Scott was tired enough that Ennard reoffered the motel idea twice more. This time not as a joke but out of concern, but Scott was determined and managed to make it home. Ennard woke Baby once the van was backed into the garage. He was crossing his fingers that she would be feeling better as he woke her up.

"Up and at 'em, Baby! We're home free," he greeted as she snapped awake. She was initially silent, which wasn't too uncommon while she collected her bearings.

"Home again, home again," Scott added in wearily before getting out of the driver's side door.

"Jiggity jig… Hey, wait a second. You don't think that pink thing was a pig, do you? It had a weird sort of nose," Ennard called out. Scott gave a sort of nondescript answer.

"He's exhausted," Baby murmured. Her voice was quiet but no longer wavering like earlier. "What time is it?"

"Late. Don't worry, I'll toss him into bed," Ennard assured. He took her arm to try to help guide her out when she noticed the thin necklace chain dangling from her fingers. "What's that you've got there?"

Baby suddenly snapped her wrist back. He looked up at her face to see her shaking her head, silently asking with her eyes for him to let it drop.

Ennard had noticed that the other Baby was wearing a necklace. It was noticeable considering that animatronics didn't tend to wear jewelry. Seeing it in Baby's hand, he assumed that she had been looking at it when she accidently knocked it over, then picked it up before they left. He decided to let it go with a wink. It wasn't like the other Baby was going to miss it and being on an animatronic meant it was probably costume jewelry anyways.

He could tell Scott tomorrow when he was a little more conscious. For now, he helped Baby out of the back of the van. Then reminded Scott that he had to get back in the van and move it up so they could shut the garage door.

In the time it took them to do that, Baby finally yanked the necklace free of her fingers and tossed it under her pillow. Scott didn't notice anything amiss when he came in to wish Baby a good night, Ennard didn't ask her further questions about it yet, so soon she found herself alone in the garage. It was a mixed blessing; she didn't want to be alone with her thoughts, but she also didn't want to be with anyone else.

The necklace wasn't the only thing on her bed. She had left her new hat in here as well while boarding into the van. She took it in hand as she sat down on the bed and looked at it longer, turning it over and trailing her eyes over it.

Scott didn't give her gifts to apologize. He gave her gifts because he wanted to and gave gifts that he thought she would like.

…And even though she knew this, she could still feel doubt creeping in. If her own father couldn't love her, then how was someone not even of blood supposed to feel that role? Rationality was present but didn't speak as loudly, so she heard those doubts regardless. How funny it was that she finds herself almost over one problem and something much worse cropped up behind it.

Baby sat in silence until she was ready for the day to be done, and then she slept once more.

It didn't take long for Scott and Ennard to realize that the peculiar behavior the day before had spread into the next. At first Scott had thought it was a depression brought on by seeing the other Baby, but it became obvious that it was something more than that, or that it was worse than he imagined it to be.

Baby stayed in her room for a large portion of the day. Eventually she was dragged out on Scott suggestion and came to see the cats and even watched a little television with Ennard, but she seemed distant, lost in thought. Sometimes he would speak her name and her head would jump and look over, as though snapped out of a daydream.

The most concerning thing was, surprisingly was the tone her voice had taken. It was softer than usual. Almost faint, almost timid. Baby always kept a hushed, controlled sort of tone to her speech, but in never sounded weak like it did now. She also was noticeably less apt to speak than usual. It was definitely a cause for alarm, and worse it was going on for hours. Still, Scott gave her space, not wanting to upset her further.

Until that evening when Ennard suddenly popped up behind him while he was opening up cans of wet food for the cats circling his feet.

"I've got an idea," he announced. Scott hummed questioning and looked back at him. The clown held up the box for Clue and shook it. The man raised his brows before nodding and giving a thumbs up.

Ennard returned it and made his way over to the garage. While Scott was filling the cat food bowls, he slid a little further down the counter so he could listen in on the conversation inside the next room.

"Hey, Baby! You, me, and Scott solving a murder. What do you say?" the male clown offered. He gently shook the box again with an eager smile showing in his eyes.

Baby was sitting on her bed with a magazine opened in her lap. She was staring at it with the same lidded glazed look that she raised to aim at him. She seemed totally deflated even before he asked.

"I don't feel like it," she said, barely holding in a sigh. Seeing in his eyes that he was about to ask, she averted her gaze back to her magazine and tacked on a further excuse. "I'm busy with this."

"Oh, but it'll be fun! That magazine's not going anywhere. Let's play a quick game, the three of us," Ennard continued to coax. She sent him a look and he returned with that sharp, needle-teeth smile. "It's way better with three people. Heck, I think it's a three-player minimum unless I read it wrong."

Normally Baby would've just agreed upfront. On a typical quiet night, a game was a nice escape from the boredom of a magazine she knew she looked over once before. Though that wasn't nearly as easy to go along with when she felt like this, when her head was filled with unwanted thoughts that she couldn't get to let up. Maybe a distraction would be a good thing- just as long as they didn't notice she was acting strangely, which they likely already did.

Ennard's persistence in the matter wasn't that unusual, but the tightness of his jaw and grin seemed to suggest otherwise.

"Alright, fine. If you insist," Baby sighed. She set the magazine on the bed beside her. "But no stretching out the game. I can tell when you do, and it takes the fun out of it."

Ennard brightened up excitedly and with it she noticed the slip of his façade and the relief it was trying to cover. "Ha ha, great! I'll go get it all set up!" he chirped. He hurried out before she could change her mind.

She sighed and dragged herself off the bed. This was probably for the best. She enjoyed Clue, and she admittedly enjoyed playing games with Ennard, even if he acted half his age when he got into one. This perhaps would make her feel better.

She came out of the garage to find Ennard hastily setting up Clue at the dining room table while. The cats were crowded at the back of the kitchen past him, so she knew they had just been fed. So, she found it a little odd when Scott came through the front door a few moments afterwards, locking the door and hanging up his coat.

"Where were you?" Baby asked.

"Putting some cat food out around back. I think we've got another stray under the house," Scott said. He seemed more upbeat than earlier, probably because she was tempted from her room.

"And how long until it becomes another pet in the house?" Ennard chimed up.

"I think he might be a little too feral for that. I heard him under there, but I couldn't get him to come out. Even when I walked back around the corner. At least he's getting a good meal."

Scott came to join the two in the dining room and soon the game was set up on the table. Baby played Miss Scarlet, as usual, while Ennard and Scott chose Mr. Green and Professor Plum respectively. The cards were dealt and the game began. Though almost as soon as they got into the game, Baby's mind started to drift. She wasn't surprised, just a little disappointed at the lack of focus.

Not that Clue was a particularly demanding game. She won plenty and when she didn't, she never felt cheated- except for that time someone knocked on the door and Ennard blurted out a guess before running off into the garage. A guess which managed to be correct, much to Baby's chagrin.

Clue wasn't the only game they played, but it was definitely the one that Baby had the most fondness for. It didn't last too long and involved more brainpower than rolling a die. Not like Monopoly, which Baby never seemed to get good dice rolls on, or that horrifically lopsided Freddy board game Marionette made her, Foxy, and Michael play. It made sense at the time why they were playing it, but if there was ever another family game night, she was pushing Clue instead.

She wondered if Marionette remembered when they used to play games just the two of them. Children's board games, the kind that were especially easy and definitely decided winners on card pulls or dice. Where little tokens hopped spaces on a colorful board patterned with smiling characters. A simpler time with simpler games.

Sometimes Gabe would join in, but he wasn't nearly as eager as he was during their recent game. Back then, he would have to be poked and prodded into playing and stayed a poor sport through the whole thing, sometimes even downright cheating where anyone could see it. Once he got frustrated enough to smack over a bunch of pieces or something like that. She couldn't even remember the argument leading up to it.

She had been so angry after that though and she remembered… She remembered calling for their father and telling him what Gabe had done. Gabe hadn't defended himself hard, just calling it a 'baby game' or whatever he did until their father got him into the other room so that he could… punish him, she supposed. As a little girl she always thought he got what he was coming to him, but never wondered what exactly that was.

Never cared, really. Always too busy in her own little world to notice or care about her mean big brother. Nobody else seemed to notice or care either. Not when his cheek was swollen, when there was a dark mark here or there.

The idea that she might've aimed their father's wrath towards Gabe was jarring enough, let alone the realization that she had never really cared. Their father had grabbed and slung her around and she was the favorite, so she knew he wouldn't have been nearly as merciful to Gabe. He hadn't been though. He had killed Gabe. He set up the means for her death, but he murdered Gabe outright.

All over a board game. She had set such horrible things in motion over a board game, and the was the first time she thought about it long enough to realize how awful it really was.

"Baby?"

Baby's head snapped up to see Scott and Ennard both look at her.

"Of course. Drift off for one second and I miss something," she thought. A relatively calm thought over the growing panic that they could somehow hear her thoughts. "…My turn?"

"Right… Is everything okay?" Scott offered. "You look a little upset about something."

"Probably about me breaking this case wide open," Ennard cheekily remarked. He was covering for her, she realized, and she covered herself with a roll of the eyes, feigning normalcy.

"I'm fine. Just thinking about yesterday, got lost in it," she denied. Though her voice betrayed that shakiness. She tightened her claw and chest and tried to forcibly even it out.

"That's okay. Well, if you want to talk about it, we can. There's no reason we can't," Scott offered. Though it was clear from how quickly Baby went to rolling that she wasn't planning on it. She returned to paying full attention to the game.

But that was only because she was trying her hardest to not think of anything else.

It didn't help her win the game, but she was unbothered by the loss. Instead trying to keep a normal face and voice once the distraction of it was gone, watching as Ennard packed the game back up.

"Okay, so I won, so I get to choose the next one, right?" Ennard tried. Pushing his luck, she thought with a scoff. Trying to snare her into another game… Perhaps not a bad idea. She didn't really want to sit alone in her room again.

"Sounds good! If that's alright with Baby," Scott said, looking to check with her. She nodded and he offered, "Maybe we should finally empty out the closet and see if the Parcheesi's in there. Better late than never."

"While you two are figuring it out," Baby began as she rose from the chair, "can I use the computer? I need to check something online."

"Sure! No problem!" he answered. The breath and tight pause afterwards gave away that he was about to ask something and caught himself. Not wanting him to get worried- and paranoid he might try to sneak to find answers- Baby spun up a quick excuse.

"I just want to see if there's anything online about what happened last night. If anyone noticed we broke in, anything at all," she explained. He seemed to buy this, maybe even seemed relieved by this.

"That's probably a good idea. I thought about doing it earlier but didn't end up checking. I guess I'm a little afraid of what I might find."

"'Hurricane Clown Strikes Again!'" Ennard proclaimed.

"Hurricane Clown strikes again," Scott agreed. He then get a funny look and turned towards him. "…What exactly goes on when you go out at night? I'm starting to see a pattern with this and the dump story."

Ennard tensed and then laughed it off and chattered off an apology that Baby missed as she headed down to and slipped through the office door. She shut it behind her with hopes that they wouldn't hear, then locked it after consideration.

What she told Scott was a lie, but it wouldn't be for long. She would go on the computer right afterwards and look it up, barely interested but wanting to feel like she kept her word. Though before that she rolled to the corkboard and let her eyes drift over the pinned numbers before falling onto one of them.

She began to have second thoughts the second she saw it. Her chest tightened up and she felt the same weighed down feeling from earlier. Ironically, that was what sealed her fate as she turned and picked up the phone, dialing the number. There were a few rings before there was an answer on the other side.

"Ahoy, matey! Thank ye for calling Foxy's Pirate Cove! We've already shoved off fer the night, be if ya leave yer name and number, we'll get back to ya in a jiff!"

Baby was both relieved and slightly disappointed. "It's me… We need to talk."

"Baby? Huh. Didn't expect you'd be callin'."

Baby was usually quick on catching if someone was faking a voice, so she must've been more out of sorts than she thought when she realized that hadn't been a recording.

"…Do you always answer the phone like that?" she asked, trying to cover her embarrassment.

"After hours? Aye," Foxy replied. His voice grew lower, "This be about the Pizzaplex?"

"…No, it's not." There was no point in getting this far and backing down now. "I just…" Her voice wavered with unsureness as her fingers tightened and scratched along the plastic of the phone. "I just called to tell you… that… I love you."

"…What?" Foxy sounded so befuddled. She might've expected a similar reaction if she would've blurted out about the scarecrow-looking Baby at the funfair.

"I love you. I know it may be hard to believe, I know that we are… very distant, but I do," Baby said. She paused and awaited an answer, but after a few seconds she still hadn't gotten one. "…Is it really that hard to believe?" she quietly asked.

"Huh? Err, no! No. Ya just… sorta sprung it on me is all. Caught me off-guard with that one, lass," Foxy answered, sounding flustered.

There was a silent beat as she awaited something further. She really hoped there was something further after she had effectively poured her heart out over the phone. She had so easily given him a weak spot, but she got her answer.

"I love ya too, Ba-… Eh…" He hesitated a long moment before correcting. "I love ya too, Lizzie."

"Gabe…" she quietly answered. She wasn't sure what she was feeling. Relieved perhaps, but also sad, and she didn't know why it still hurt.

Foxy gave a discontent hum on the other side. There was movement as he readjusted himself before asking in a tone gentle and unlike him, "What's the matter, Lizzie?"

"I don't know," Baby confessed. She was self-conscious of the inflection of her voice and whether she would be heard, so she lowered it to a whisper. "…We were playing a board game and I started thinking about us; you, Marion, Michael, and I. How we played together down in that basement underneath the warehouse… Amongst other things."

"Other things?"

She was suddenly hit by a strange sensation. It was like a creeping panic that slowly spread across her body, starting weirdly in her feet and climbing her legs before branching out across the rest. She felt like she was being watched and glanced to the window, there was nothing, and then the door, still nothing.

"I don't want to talk about it…" Baby denied. It didn't halt that uneasy feeling.

"If it's about that forsaken Freddy game, I don't blame ya."

That got a slight titter despite the tenseness of the conversation and the room. He chuckled too and for the first time in ages it felt like they were on the same page. Though it was abrupt, Baby thought that might be a good place to leave it.

"I have to go now… and find what's left of my dignity."

"If ya find mine, ring me back," Foxy quipped. "…And I stay up pretty late iff'n ya ever want to call back."

"I think I may do that," Baby agreed. "Take care, Gabe."

Foxy seemed reluctant to say goodbye, but he did and allowed the call to end. Now she was alone in the office, feeling at least a little better about his situation and yet still feeling that weird sensation from before. She chalked it up to something between guilt and self-consciousness and turned on the computer but got too uncomfortable to stay and left immediately after looking up the Pizzaplex again.

Apparently, Scott didn't find whatever he was looking for because Ennard was shuffling a deck of cards in his hands. Upon noticing Baby had returned, he shot her a grin and lifted the cards to her.

"How about this? An endless amount of games in fifty-one cards! You just have to pick your poison," he offered.

She tried not to look so obviously disinterested. "I thought it was fifty-two."

"Yeah, not in this deck. So, whaddya say?"

Baby had considered returning to her room after the phone call but didn't entirely want to. Though she equally didn't want to need to focus on juggling a handful of cards.

"Hmm… I might just watch you two play. If you don't mind. I've never been one for cards," she answered.

"Well, we can play something else," Ennard kindly offered, springing the cards from one hand to another. "We've got Monopoly.~"

"You're about to talk me out of staying."

He laughed as though she wasn't completely serious.

Baby couldn't sleep.

It was a peculiar problem since entering sleep mode was usually such a simple process. At least it had been since she had grown accustomed to having a safe, comfortable room surrounding her. Even if it was a half-converted garage, there was something comfortable and familiar about the room. It made it easier to trust that she would remain untouched until she roused again.

Except that didn't seem to help the foreboding feeling she kept waking up to. It had happened at least three times by now and she knew they were in close intervals. Suddenly dragged out of a dreamless sleep with a jolt like something had shaken her awake, humming in the back of her head, only to look at the garage door and around the room and know she was safe and alone.

She couldn't tell what time it was, but it felt like these jolts were all happening within moments of each other. By the last time, Baby felt so bizarrely wrong that she couldn't ignore it anymore. She decided to get back up and go find something else to do. It wouldn't be the first time she got up to watch tv in the middle of the night.

Or that was what she was thinking until she opened the door to see that Scott was still awake and realize it was much earlier than she thought. Though it was still a bit later than he usually stayed up. Ennard was nowhere to be seen, unexpectedly, and Scott was sitting on the couch watching a sitcom while Cleo took up his entire lap.

He looked over and sent her a smile. "Hey! I didn't wake you up, did I?"

"No, that would imply I slept," Baby mumbled. She slowly rolled to the couch before sitting down on the other side, resting her claw in her lap and her hand on it. "This is late for you."

"Not as late as last night," Scott reminded. He seemed more amused than begrudging of it. "I might've overslept a little later than I should've, but it gives me an excuse to catch up with some old friends," he said, referring to the show.

Baby hummed in understanding. They sat there for a few minutes together just watching the tv. Half-watching in Baby's case. She didn't mind the show- she wasn't paying enough attention to mind- but she was slipping back into her thought again. Scott noticed after a little while and had the urge to say something. It wasn't until Cleo got up and went over to hide in the kitty condo that he decided to go ahead and speak up.

"You know, umm…" Scott trailed off after that and was quiet for a rather long time. Long enough for Baby to think he might've forgotten what he had to say, or suddenly decided not to say at the last minute. That was sort of the case. Scott wasn't entirely sure if he was pushing his boundaries, but he decided to go ahead and finish. "I don't want to sound like a broken record, but I noticed that you weren't really… you were a little down today."

Baby's claw tightened a little. Thankfully, regular oiling kept it from squeaking and giving away the motion.

"And that's okay! I don't want it coming off like you can't show your feelings or I'll get on you about them, but uh… I just think you should know that you don't have to deal with it alone." Scott considered leaving it there, but in the last moment ended up racing out. "If it's about that necklace, it's no big deal. I'm sure nobody noticed."

"It's not the necklace…" Baby sighed. Then her head snapped up and over. "He told you about the necklace?! The one thing- I could kill him," she huffed.

"He was worried," he said with an apologetic smile.

She huffed again. Of course he was, and of course he would tell Scott about it. The type of person who could hide behind a persona for years and then spill it all to Scott. She wasn't nearly as fortunate and while she appreciated the concern-.

…

…Maybe she did want to talk about it.

She didn't want to think about it, she didn't want to admit to it, but she couldn't shake the feeling of pressure whenever it crept back up on her. Like an overinflated balloon, the thoughts were all-consuming, leaving her airheaded and useless. While she didn't want to appear weak, she did want something- maybe that was someone to listen other than herself.

It wasn't something she could've talked to with Ennard or Gabe. Gabe would've been too uncomfortable and while Ennard was plenty caring, there were some things he couldn't understand. He didn't know her father, he was only really a second-hand victim of him. Scott had been controlled physically and emotionally just as she had, and he had faced fewer consequences of her own actions. He fit the role of a listener like a glove, and she trusted him to listen and understand.

"…I will tell you," Baby said quietly. She turned away, preferring to look off at the table by the door instead of him, and this angle totally cut him out. "Last night when we were in that trailer, I remembered some things that I had previously forgotten… Memories of my father I had somehow suppressed."

"Oh, Baby…"

"I remember him manhandling me," Baby hissed. The bitterness resurging and hissing on her voice like acid.

"What?!" Scott choked.

"Pathetic thing. Him, not me. Yanking around a little girl like she was a toy. All I was to him, I suppose, but all he was to me was just a provider. Nothing more. Daddy dearest could've easily been replaced," Baby muttered in a sour ramble. She could feel that borderline overwhelming anger starting to creep up on her, but it didn't have the strength it had the day before. Even when she could still remember the memories clearly.

Scott looked positively horrified by the confession. Though he wasn't naïve enough to be surprised, he hadn't thought she had been treated like that. He had been given the impression that she was the child who had been spared.

"Did he… How often was he like that with you?" he carefully asked.

"Frequently. I can't believe I ignored it for so long… But I guess I've done that before. Ignored the truth to keep myself blissfully aware. Every time I think I'm over it, I find more hiding somewhere. Like an endless game of make-believe, except I'm playing it with myself and giving up at the most inopportune time," Baby quietly vented. She made a noise like a sigh and finally dared a look back. Scott's face was filled with dismay. "I'm sorry. I know this must upset you."

"You didn't upset me- and don't be sorry about it! I care about you, that's why I'm upset," Scott insisted. He scooted closer and reached to take her hand off her claw and into both of his. "Baby… Elizabeth." It was the second time someone said her real name tonight and it effected her just as intensely as it did then. "I'm… I'm so sorry you had to remember all that. I wish you didn't have to, but since you are I want you to know that nothing that happened to you was your fault."

"I know it wasn't. I know it was his," she said. Though the listlessness in her voice wasn't convincing.

"I can't begin to imagine what you went through, and I know what I went through is totally different, but… but when I was in that situation, I thought that it was my fault. I thought that it was my decisions that led me up to it. Like… Like it was a punishment from God for something I did. It took me years to realize that's not it. That you can just get drawn in by these people… You had even less of a choice in the matter than I did. He was your dad; he was supposed to take care of you."

She nodded stiffly and he patted her hand, trying to give what comfort he could and knowing there was so little he could do. At least now he knew what was bothering her, but it was just as complicated as he had feared.

"Now I'm not about to give you a sermon, but Arthur was talking just the other day about how God has this plan for all of us. I don't know what I think about that. Sometimes it's hard to look back at everything and think that there's a reason that some of us hurt and some of us don't, but I started think that maybe…"

Scott trailed off at a dull sliding noise coming from the kitchen. He turned his head to listen and furrowed his brows. It sounded like someone opening the kitchen window.

Baby gave a huff. "And here comes Ennard at the worst possible time," she lamented.

Scott leaned upright to look over the back of the couch.

"That's not him. He's in the-."

His voice caught with a sharp clench of his throat as he recognized what was climbing in through the kitchen window. Already half in with its long arms bent spider-like over the sink and its long neck arched forward to dangle its heavy head.

For a split second he thought he had to be asleep or hallucinating, because what he was seeing couldn't be real. They had left that deformed Baby back in the trailer at Fairyland Park, and here it was climbing through their window.

He let out a cry that turned into a string of panicked words that sounded something like, "WHAT?! NO! THAT'S THE-!" That was enough to get Baby up off the couch and she looked back just in time to see skirt and legs as it slid in and crashed onto the kitchen floor with a loud clatter.

"Is that the thing from last night?!" she gasped. She rolled to the side of the couch to see past and found its crumpled body on the floor. The sight of it filled her with disgust and dread.

The elongated Baby pushed itself up off the floor with its arms, which wobbled and teetered like the legs of a newborn fawn. Its casing was caked in dirt and damaged in a few places, such as a sprig of wires coming out from around the base of her long neck. They sparked when she lifted her head up, it wobbling and twisting around to stare more at the ceiling than at either of them.

Its mouth opened like that of a puppet's and a crackling noise came from inside, one that ended in what sounded like an audible yawn.

"Is it showtime already?" the doll asked. It rolled its head further until it was nearly upside down and Baby watched its eyes slide back and forth in a jittery motion, almost like it was scanning an audience that didn't exist. Then they slid into a corner. "Oh wow, look at all the friendly faces! Rosie, why didn't you tell me we had guests? I would've brushed my hair-ir-ir-r-r-rha-ha!"

Its hinged mouth flapped vaguely in line with the voice before hanging open. Its molded lips stretched far open, and its eyes rolled back as they were gave it a ghoulish expression. Less like a broken toy and more like a body. An illusion only worsened when it drew up onto its knees and then onto its legs. Its feet broken and detached at the ankles, hanging on only by wiring as it stood on the end of its calves.

"-Oh, Foxy! Don't listen to him, folks. We would love to sing a song for you! What ssshhhzzzld we siing?"

As it moved Baby could feel that creeping sensation over her plating and sinking into it. It was that same feeling as before but much more intense, like an aura of discomfort and creeping panic coming from the animatronic doll. It was the feeling Baby had felt in the office, in her bedroom, had been caused by this thing. How long had it been circling the house? Had it been under the house? Was this what Scott thought he heard when he discovered the 'stray cat' in the crawlspace.

Seeing that Baby was just staring at the other animatronic, Scott managed to pull himself together enough to realize that they had to get out of the room. His spare taser and Ennard were both in the bedroom and while he couldn't yet tell if it was aggressive, he wasn't taking any chances. It wasn't acting right. Even the recording spilling from its chest was fuzzy and empty, a hollow recording.

Speaking of the recording, the doll had begun to sing. Or at least, began to play a poor-quality recording of a song. There was more than one voice calling out from her now, singing together in a chorus of 'Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows'. The recording skipping and breaking with every crack of her moving body. Thoroughly horrified, Scott pulled Baby's arm and got her to roll with him, but she couldn't stop staring.

They were just past the other end of the couch when the doll had gotten up onto its legs. It straightened its back and its head popped up like it was on a spring. It swiveled just enough to turn its eyes towards Baby, their only warning before it suddenly started to stagger towards her. Its arms bent at the elbow and frozen at its sides, knees wobbling and hyperextending as it moved, dragging its feet across the carpet as it quickly shuffled towards them.

Scott yelped and Baby yanked her claw out of his arm just in time to smack it back away. A searing heat pulsed through her claw where she had touched it, causing her to gasp and pull it back to her chest. It still easily knocked the other Baby aside, who ended up taking out the lamp beside the armchair as it fell to the floor. It laid there only a moment, its recording skipping and its body twitching.

Baby wouldn't get any closer. She didn't trust it, pushing Scott back with her hand as she rolled back towards the bedroom door. This turned out to be the right decision as it suddenly turned it head to stare at them. The recording dissolved into something akin to a drawn-out squeal before it suddenly started to crawl towards them, grabbing at the carpet with its dirtied fingers to propel itself across the floor, its eyes never leaving hers.

Its stare made her sick. Baby panicked, shoving Scott back through the door and following to slam it in the doll's face. She could hear its fingers dragging over the door as though trying to still propel itself towards her, like the door wasn't there.

As soon as she and Scott had come barging in, Ennard, who had been in bed at the time, shot up in bed with a rather startled, "What the hey?!"

"That Baby- the other baby, the one from the park- it j-just- it just climbed through the window! It's right there! Right outside the door!" Scott hastily explained. He then promptly spun around, threw the bathroom door shut, and locked it.

"…I'm waiting for you to tell me you're joking," Ennard said, staring at him in blank shock. He only waited a few seconds before he got his answer from the renewed babbling outside the door. The sound of the other Baby continuing its one-sided conversation with itself. He threw off the blankets and sprung out of the bed before snatching up and yanking on his jacket, not wearing any of his suit.

"I thought you said it wasn't alive!" Baby cried, turning on him.

"It wasn't! I was sure of it!"

"Well, it followed us home and climbed into our house!"

It was clear from the pitch alone that she was frightened, and it took Ennard by surprise. They had faced some nasty animatronics in the past and terrifying situations, near death experiences, old friends turned enemies, and it took a lot to get her so frantic. He wasn't sure if he had ever heard her like this. Though instead of making him more fearful it did quite the opposite.

He squared up and gave a resolute, "I'll take care of it."

Now it was Scott who was surprised by his tone. Baby simply pulled her arms close and looked around the floor for the cats. Hopefully they were hiding under the bed and not somewhere else in the house. Scott was worried too, but at this point he was sure that they were the ones the thing had its attention on, and soon Ennard too.

"H-How exactly are you going to 'take care of it'?" he asked. Ennard lifted up his hands and made sparks crackle at his fingertips. "Oh, yeah, that's- that's actually a good plan… But you're going to have to get close…"

"Ha ha, I KNOW," Ennard said through tight teeth.

"Be careful. Don't touch it any longer than you have to," Baby warned. They both looked to her for clarification. "When I touched her, she burned me-."

"BABY!" Scott's warning tipped her off to the danger before she even noticed the squeak of the door behind her.

Her head snapped back to see the doll leaning into the slowly opening doorway. Its painted face all the more garish when bathed in the overhead light; eyes rolling and dancing, mouth flapping open to the beat of the hazy song from its chest.

"It's myy party, and I'll cry if I want to. Cryyy if I want to. Cry if I-.~" interrupted just as easily as Baby was by said clown throwing herself against the door and trying to force it closed. Most of it was shoved out, but its arm was still jammed in the doorway. Baby didn't want to touch it, but it didn't matter how hard she shoved, the door wasn't enough to break it off. "Y-Yooou would cry too if it ha-appened to you!~"

"Help me!" Baby called back to Ennard. She was so close now that she could feel that aura washing over her. She felt hopeless and angry, feeling something trying to yank control from her.

Before control was literally yanked from her as Ennard suddenly pulled her aside. She barely had a moment to recover, and the other Baby only got that moment to start pushing at the door, before Ennard took his turn shoulder ramming the door. Something cracked in the doorway. The music caught on a note and hung on it, but the doll gave no indication that it felt anything at all.

"Did you lock the door?!" Scott asked. The panic was back, especially now that the face in the doorway was angled at him.

"I- I must have- I mustn't have…" Baby sputtered.

Ennard had his weight fully against the door and raised a hand in preparation to tase, trying to think of the best way to go about this. As much as he hated it, he realized from the plating alone that his best bet would involve him having to get up close and personal if he wanted to overload it. As uncomfortable as he felt, he was willing to do that.

Then the other Baby's arm suddenly twisted back at an obscene angle and dug its fingers into his jacket sleeve and the wires beneath. Even with the protection of the jacket, the touch stung, and he quickly swatted it back, metal clattering against the material of her plating. It felt more like ceramic than plastic. The doll made a whirring sort of noise as it fumbled through a few voice lines, with only the last one being clear enough to understand.

"I'm s-s-soooorrrrrry D-DAADddy."

Baby audibly and shortly shrieked at that, clasping her hand over her mouth.

"That's it, I'm going for it!" Ennard forewarned the others. "Three… Two… One…"

Suddenly he stepped back and yanked open the door. The other Baby started to fall in, but Ennard quickly stepped forward, catching her by the neck, and took her back down to the carpet. Crouching over her, he pinned her down to the floor and after briefly adjusting his hold delivered the full jolt. She shuddered and shook, recording scrambling and popping before going limp as the volts stopped.

There was a second of silence as Ennard watched to make sure that it didn't start trying to fight again. It didn't, it had been successfully overloaded and promptly shut down. He then yanked his hand back and shook it out with a hiss.

"You weren't kidding about that whole burning thing," he remarked. Scott cautiously came up into the doorway to peek down at it.

"Do you think it's, uh… Well, not dead, but y'know, down for the count?"

"If this thing gets up anytime soon, we've got a huge problem. I must've fried something, if it wasn't already fried with how much heat's coming off of it."

"I think we're already looking at a huge problem, Enn. If it's here, then that means… That must mean that it walked all the way from the park. That's miles away, and somehow i-it still found our house," Scott said. Ennard looked back at him, and they shared similar looks of unapologetic horror. A horror that didn't care whether the thing was down, just that it had gotten here in the first place. After a moment, Scott pointed towards the office. "I-I have to make a call."

As he turned towards the bathroom to avoid stepping over the other Baby, he stole a glance towards the real Baby. She still had her hand over her mouth, frozen in a look of fear that he had never saw from her before. He understood it though and went to step through the door.

He froze mid-step as he suddenly remembered what the doll's final words had been. He stood there a moment and remembered the conversation from earlier and looked back to Baby again. She hadn't moved, but the way she had screamed…

He couldn't dwell on it now, not yet. Scott continued on through the bathroom, around the downed animatronic, and towards the office. He stole one last look back at Ennard and the other Baby. Its head was angled up enough that it looked like it was watching him go.

So much for sleeping tonight.

Chapter 18

Chapter Summary

Help is on the way after Scott sounds the alarm.

Chapter Notes

Sorry that this was a day late… again. o_o I'll get back on track one of these days! Enjoy!

Living in a house where you effectively lived with a dozen small children meant you had to be creative when it came to alone time.

Which meant if Mike and Marionette wanted to play a gory horror game, they had to do it in the middle of the night, sitting on the floor so close to the tv, with the volume turned up only a few clicks. Sure, Mike's eyes were starting to get uncomfortable, but sacrifices had to be made when it came to slaughtering monsters on the streets of London.

It was just about time to hand over the controller when they were suddenly interrupted by a familiar tune from back at the couch. The Toreador March, Mike's cellphone's ringtone. Not wanting to have it wake someone and cut short their night, Mike passed the controller into Marionette's hands and nearly raced to the couch to answer it while the puppet picked up where he left off.

"Hello, hello... Oh, hey. Working the night shift again?... Whoa, hold on, I can't understand you. You're going to have to slow down and… What are you talking about?... What?"

Marionette had been half-listening to this side of the conversation as he continued to play the game. It wasn't until Mike's tone changed from a friendly greeting to confusion, then concern, and finally shock that he realized something was wrong. He silently paused the game and tried to listen, but he didn't turn back. He simple sat rigidly in place as he imagined the panicked voice over the line, assuming it was Natalie's.

"Are you serious?!" Mike's mouth pulled into a grimace as he listened to a short, frantic recount. "…Okay, but how in the hell did it get to your house?!... Yeah, I'd say that's something to be worried about! Where is it now? Is it still in the house?... Okay, just leave it there, keep an eye on it, we'll be there as fast as we can. Don't take your eyes off of it for even a second." With those final words, Mike ended the call and grabbed his shoes from under the end table.

Marionette set down the controller and pushed off the carpet to smoothly drift up behind him. "Was that Natalie?" he dared to ask. Though he was thrown off by mention of a house, unless it was Fritz saying something was at their house.

"No, it was Scott. Some kind of spinoff chain Baby that broke into their house? I'll explain in the car. As best as I can anyway," Mike hastily rushed out. He went for his jacket and his keys.

This took Marionette completely off-guard. It was the last thing he expected to hear, but it was still very serious, and he knew they had to get over there. He started to follow Mike before hesitating and looking back down the hall.

"I should tell Charlie. She might want to come with us."

"Alright, just make it quick. The way Scott sounded on the phone-." Mike turned around to see Marionette already gone. "…Yeah, like that."

Charlie had been trying to get her sleep schedule back on track- what with work and Mike's impending classes- so she had gone to bed at the same time as Jeremy. She didn't wake when Marionette appeared in her room, so he had to gently rouse her with a shake.

"Charlie? Charlie, I'm sorry to wake you but something's happened over at Scott's," he forewarned. Waking groggy and only half-alert, she still managed to grasp most of what he was saying.

"What happened?" she asked. There was a jingling as she stretched out her stiffened limps and sat up in beg, not sure if it was from her prong or something internal.

"I'm not entirely sure. Scott called and Mike spoke with him, and he said something about another Baby breaking into their house. I'm not sure what's going on, but it doesn't sound good," Marionette warned. Just repeating it was making him increasingly concerned. There were so many details that were alarming, least of all this other Baby and where it came from, but none more than the fact that he didn't know if anyone was injured.

"…What?!" Charlie shot up the rest of the way. "He said what? Another Baby?"

"We have to go. Mike said he'll explain in the car, but I don't think we'll know for sure until we see it," Marionette said, now fussing at his hands. He grabbed Charlie's jacket of the hook they mounted beside the door and handed it to her as she climbed out of bed. She hastily hurried to pull it on as she followed him out the door. Then stopped and ran back into her bedroom, grabbing the taser out of the nightstand, before following him again. He waited for and led her down the hall.

"Fast enough?" he chirped in mock cheerfulness as they came out of the hallway.

They caught Mike biting into one of the cupcakes that was supposed to be for a party tomorrow. They caught him quite literally pink handed. Marionette gave him a slightly disapproving look which Mike answered with a quick, "Let's go," and hustled to the door like he didn't just talk through a mouthful of icing and cake.

The drive to Scott's was brief. It was a quiet night and there weren't many cars out on the road, so Mike was able to push the speed limit. During which he recounted what details Scott had given him. The details did nothing but stoke up Marionette and Charlie's growing concern until it matched his own. While he kept a cool face, the idea of some kind of unhinged Baby walking over fifty miles to break into a house and chase them around was downright chilling.

As he pulled up outside, Charlie took a good look around and suddenly threw open the back door once Mike was slowing to a park. "I'm heading in," she called back as she already sprinted towards the front door, sheet wrapped like a cape.

Marionette watched with a quick look of alarm before simply disappearing, leaving the lone human to continue parking the car. Business as usual.

Charlie intended to smoothly open the door while running and slip inside before there was any risk of being caught. Instead, the door was locked, and she only realized as such when she thumped into the unforgiving wood. The door opened a moment too late to reveal Scott on the other side with Marionette already inside beside him.

"Sorry, I forgot to unlock it," Scott apologized. He wasn't as frantic as he was earlier but was still audibly on edge.

"It's fine," Charlie said. She stepped in and looked around, seeing Ennard crouched over by the bedroom door but no sign of the other clown. "Where's Baby?"

"She's in the bedroom- but, uh, be careful. It's right outside the door," Scott forewarned. He stayed at the door to greet Mike while she headed in that direction, with Marionette following shortly.

Only for her to stop short when she saw what was laid out in front of the bedroom door. When she had been told it was some kind of Baby it didn't matter how much emphasis was put on it being creepy, she assumed it looked a little more like a traditional Circus Baby. In fact, even though it was wrong she mentally imagined a slightly slimmer and shorter traditional Baby. That was not this. This was something much more garish.

"What…?" Charlie was in near disbelief as she carefully stepped behind Ennard and past the fallen lamp. She stood over the head of the doll and could only stare down at it. "What in the world…?"

"I know, it's really something, isn't it…?" Ennard muttered. She glanced to him, and he cheekily adjusted his bow like she was talking about that. "Scott paid a small fortune to get me dolled up like this. Heh, I must've done something right," he said, completely flipping his tone on a dime. Charlie had been too distracted to even notice the change in wardrobe.

"I meant that but yeah, that's… actually a really cool suit."

She found it hard to look away from the animatronic on the ground. Its design was just so uncanny, even without the dirt and stray wires sticking out, and whatever happened to the feet. Its face straddled that railing where it was trying to look seductive but instead leaned into nightmarish, with its only saving grace being that it wasn't currently moving any of its features.

On a technical level, the animatronic was bizarre. It looked more like an android, but still with unrealistic features. Even with its plating and the glimpses of metal along its frame, its shape made it look too frail for it to move appropriately, and it features too sharp to be a children's entertainer. She could've guessed it came out of Afton Robotics, but she didn't want to think of the implications it brought with it.

Charlie finally looked up and spotted Baby inside of the master bedroom. Though before she could make any attempt to go for her, a protective hand gently wrapped around her arm to cautiously tug her back. It was Marionette and he was staring down at the other Baby with a piercing sort of look. Less wariness and no disgust, just a silent suspicion, like he expected it to lash out at any moment and was just as prepared to pounce.

It was clear that he wasn't going to let her walk over the doll, an already less than tempting idea, and so she pointed to the bathroom door. He looked to it, to the bedroom, and then back to the doll with a nod.

"Careful," he quietly, gently warned as he released her. She headed to the door as he drifted up to the opposite side of the animatronic, across from Ennard. "…You're positive she followed you home? She couldn't have hitchhiked in the van?"

"Nah, we high-tailed it out of there. It would've had to catch up, get under the van without us seeing it, stayed under there the whole drive and when we backed up the van into the garage to let Baby out, and then crawled under the house and hid out for a whole day. Could've happened like that, but it didn't."

"The other option being that it was able to track you from two towns over," Marionette said warily. He studied its body; less judgmental of how physically abnormal it looked and instead noticing little clues in its design. The similarities to Afton's creations didn't miss him, and while he wasn't sure what it was used for, performance didn't seem to be the main idea. "How very curious…" How very concerning.

Charlie had noticed Baby was standing far back, but it wasn't until she came into the bedroom that she noticed how the female clown was practically cowering against the wall. She had put as much distance between herself and the doll as she possibly could and was almost hunched in on herself, as though protecting herself from an incoming fight. Even if it had attacked her, which Mike implied it had, she seemed more shaken than usual.

Just the way Baby's eyes looked was telling. Only when Charlie stepped in did she look away from the animatronic to look at her, and there was something unfamiliar in her gaze. Something fearful and vulnerable, and it was startling.

"Are you okay?" Charlie asked as she strode over. Her voice now edged with worry that Baby might've gotten hurt during the altercation.

"I… am… Whatever it wants from me, it didn't get it," Baby said. The stilted way she spoke didn't alleviate Charlie's concerns and she watched her slowly shift into a normal posture. She then sent a cold look towards the door. "Wretched thing."

Charlie sent a wary look over as well. "Where did it even come from? Mike said it followed you from somewhere?"

"Fairyland Park. We went yesterday to see their animatronic band and I found them touting an original Circus Baby. Instead, we found that, a Toy Foxy, a seagull, and what might've been a pig. Heaven help us if the rest of the band shows up."

It didn't take much thinking to know that she was leaving details out, but Charlie didn't think this was the time to start pressing her on them. Instead, she gave a reassuring, "Let's deal with this one first before we get all worked up worrying about the others. With any luck, they got lost on the way here." The attempt at a joke fell flat. She reached out to lay a hand on her arm. "I'm kidding… But I'm sorry. I can't imagine how terrifying it was to see her show up."

"No more terrifying than seeing her in general," Baby said. She turned her head towards the bed and pulled her arms into a loose cross, and in the process pulled her arm from Charlie's hand.

It was the first time Baby had pulled away from her touch in nearly a year. It both surprised Charlie and signaled that everything wasn't alright. That something more had happened.

Then Mike announced his arrival with a very loud swear.

"Ha ha! No, there's nothing holy about this one, Mikey! But thanks for reminding me- we should probably grab a bible," Ennard joked. Though it was clear from the look in his eyes that he was borderline exhausted.

"While we're at it let's get a priest and a flamethrower. The book alone's just not going to cut it," Mike remarked, looking over the doll. At some point then noticing the bright green jacket. "What are you wearing?"

Ennard leaned back far enough to show the front off and splayed his hands with another bright but ultimately forced grin.

Mike whistled. "Finally decided to embrace the clown, eh?"

"You got it," Ennard said with a wink. "Join the club. We all float."

"That how you get around the sewers?" he asked with a quirk of the brow, to which Ennard chuckled. He then turned to Scott and asked, "Was it the guy who made Foxy's coat?"

"Yeah, I'm… I'm pretty sure it was," Scott answered. He wouldn't take his eyes off the doll and was making sure he was standing out of its reach. Mike noticed, eyes glancing back down to it.

"Top quality stuff," Mike complimented. "Back to business: this thing."

"Did you check for signs of possession any time before now?" Marionette asked, straight to the point.

"'Course I did! I checked while we were back at the park and I… I didn't see anything. I didn't notice anything; no twitches, no fidgets, no fans, no nothing. I was sure it was empty, and I checked all the others to make sure!" Ennard insisted. Marionette hummed as she looked down at it. "I don't know, maybe I missed something. We knocked it over, maybe that woke it up."

"Or maybe that just ticked it off," Mike suggested.

"Yeah maybe…" Scott quietly and guiltily added.

"Or maybe you were right and it's not alive. We've been attacked by animatronics before who are aggressive but not aware, instead programmed to be so. Assuming that it must have some form of programming if it was able to track your location through its own means, we can assume that something else might've been loaded into it. Something much more sinister," Marionette cryptically suggested. "…But if you don't mind, I might as well double check."

"Go on ahead! You're the expert on this," Ennard offered without bitterness. Though he stopped the Puppet with a hand the second he started to lean in. "But before you do, I don't know if it's an overheating problem or a short circuit somewhere, but this thing's burning up. Could be some kind of low volt shock, but whatever it is you're going to feel it if you touch it."

Marionette hummed and looked down at the animatronic. He wondered if it was possible that Ennard just touched a loose wire, but he seemed a little more aware than that.

"It's fine. I don't need to touch her to see into her. Not if I get the right angle," the Puppet said. He turned his body and slid up closer beside her before beginning to lean over her, an arm resting on the floor on each side of her head. His eyes began to glow as he stared deep into hers and tried to seek a response.

The doll's eyes were empty. No movement of any kind, no stirring from within, not even the quietest sound of a fan. Which was odd considering how much of a strange feeling was coming off of her. He couldn't explain what it was, but it didn't exactly feel like heat. He didn't know how to explain it. He let out a few testing chimes and tones, but there was still no response.

"Did it say anything when it came in?" Mike asked quietly, trying not to interrupt what Marionette was doing.

"Well… Kind of. It was talking, but it wasn't 'talking', if you get my drift," Scott started. When even Ennard looked back at him, he reiterated, "It was playing a show recording. It even sung a couple of songs half-through."

"But not speaking intelligently? Okay, got it. Lends a little more credibility to the preprogrammed deathtrap theory," Mike muttered. He still wasn't too keen on Marionette being so close to the animatronic regardless and moved a little closer, prepared to step in if it suddenly sprung to life again.

The Puppet meanwhile wasn't able to find what he was looking for. Perhaps it really was a soulless bot, but the strange feeling coming off of it gave him reason to doubt. Knowing the consequences and bracing himself for any pain, expecting little because of his fabric padded body, Marionette reached to lift its chin so he could align better with its eyes and search one last time for something beyond the glass.

He didn't even get that far, because the moment his fingers were brushing her chin, he was hit by something he wasn't prepared for.

There was pain, but that wasn't the worse of it. Crawling up his arm and filling his head like helium into a balloon. The heat, the stinging was one thing, but it was nothing compared to the images and phantom sounds that accompanied it. Seized by it, he could only stare into its eyes as he saw nightmares in the back of his head and heard horrors beyond any this doll could bring. Still, it hurt, it ached and spread and consumed him all at once.

Once he recognized what he was seeing he couldn't stand it any longer. It had only lasted a few short seconds.

Marionette shoved off of the doll with a startled cry and scrambled away until his back thumped against the wall between the bedroom and bathroom doors. The pain, visions, and voices dissipated immediately leaving only a dull, unpleasant tingle in his arm, but he was still a mess. His vision flooded with purple from uncontrolled tears, and he let out a few panicked little sounds mixed of voice and off-tune twangs.

Everyone reacted immediately. Mike was at his side in seconds and both Scott and Ennard were alarmed and on-guard, not sure what happened or what to do, even exchanging a confused and uncertain look. Mike crouched down and got him by the shoulders. "Are you okay? What happened, did you get tased?" he asked.

He wasn't shocked when Marionette stiffly shook his head. It had been so sudden and unlike a tasing, trembling and seizing replaced with one frantic lunge backwards. There were so many tears that Mike struggled to wipe them away. Eventually he gave up and just pulled him into his arms. Out of the side of his vision he caught sight of Charlie leaping over the other Baby before coming up behind him and looking past at Marionette with worry.

"What happened?!" she parroted.

"I don't know! He touched it and it must've shocked him or something! The thing was short-circuiting on me when I took it out!" Ennard explained. Though it was clear that he didn't know what was going on.

Marionette was starting to pull himself together. Whatever it was it had overwhelmed his body and he desperately wiped away the profuse tearing, looking past to see it and Mike looking at it, and turning the man to face him.

"We- We have to get rid of it," Marionette said in a shaky voice. The man looked startled at the comment, and the Puppet pointed an accusatory finger at the doll. "There's- Th-There's something… evil and ho-horrible inside of that- that thing. It's awful and we- we can't let it roam around like this! We have to destroy it!"

"So, it's alive?!" Ennard choked.

"No," the Puppet firmly denounced. His voice was still shaking and trembling in Mike's arms. "It's something worse- it's awful! I-It's like nothing I've ever seen! Just one touch and I saw everything!"

Ennard snapped to alert at this comment and all at once reached out and snatched Charlie off her feet, swung her back over, and held her protectively away from the downed animatronic. Charlie got a tense face, but it was too quick to protest.

A moment afterwards, Marionette suddenly straightened up and started to turn his head as though realizing something.

"Baby…" He stiffly turned and then began to lean out of Mike's arms to hold onto the bedroom doorjamb. He could see Baby once again pressed against the back wall. The tears began to flow freely once more. "Baby, what happened?! Did you touch it?! Did it touch you?!"

"I- No! No, it- that's just like you to assume it was something I did!" Baby defensively argued.

"Baby, please!" Marionette pleaded. "Please…"

It wasn't his voice, but the look he was giving her that told her he knew something she didn't. She wondered if the doll had whispered something to him- perhaps repeated that same phrase from earlier.

She reacted immediately and silently rolled to the bathroom door, out the other one, and continued a brisk but steadfast line to her room. Scott moved aside to let her by, and nobody stopped her, even when unsure if she would return.

"We've got to get this thing out of here," Ennard whispered, rather obviously, to Scott. He still held Charlie with one arm, who sent a confused look after Baby, knowing she was hiding something, but unable to slip out from Ennard's hold.

Baby returned quicker than any of them expected her to. She rolled herself over before stopping beside Scott and silently holding out a hand. She opened her hand and released the heart-shaped locket to dangle underneath it, its chain caught between her fingers.

"This is what I did," Baby said. Her voice as empty as she could make it, unwilling to show even the slightest shred of emotion. Marionette's eyes leveled on the swinging pendent. "I stole its necklace, knocking it over while I did."

Neither Scott nor Ennard chose to say anything, both equally kicking themselves for not doing anything about the necklace. As though they had a chance to or any idea what would come if that was even was caused it.

Charlie seemed to think so. Or it seemed that way as she pulled free of Ennard and approached Baby with an open hand.

"You might remember that some puppets were built to be compatible with security tracking bracelets. Maybe this is a similar case," she said.

Baby hesitated a moment before slowly releasing the necklace and letting it drop into Charlie's hand. The Security Puppet began to study it, turning it over with her fingers and trying to open it to no avail.

"It seems heavy for something that should be hollow," she remarked. Baby hummed in agreement and averted her gaze while Charlie looked to Marionette. "This could be how she tracked them back here."

Marionette's mask tightened and a few final tears rolled down. He looked like a mess but considering the circumstances he wasn't the only one. Charlie looked back to Baby, but she was still unwilling to meet her gaze. She almost went to tell her it wasn't her fault, that she couldn't have known this would happen, but she expected it would lead to the opposite assumption from her. She remained silent; they all did.

…

"And you still left the window open. Good job."

There wasn't a soul in the room not taken aback by the sudden addition of a new voice calling in through the kitchen window. Ennard perked up instantly.

"Heh- heh- hey! Look who finally showed up!- Don't stand too close to that, Buddy." Ennard tacked on the last part while nudging Charlie back into Scott and Baby as he slipped by and made his way to the window. Sure enough, there was a familiar rabbit partially crouched and peering through. "What the hey happened to you?"

"Considering that I was expected to walk across town in the middle of the night, I think I made excellent time," Springtrap remarked. He jerked his head towards the other side of the house. "Let me in?"

"Sure thing!" Ennard chirped and started to head to the front door. Passing by Scott who looked quite surprised, having heard him call Michael after he had called Mike but never hearing anything about him coming.

"Why didn't you tell me Michael was coming over? I could've gone and picked him up," Scott offered.

"And left me with that? Ha, no way! I'd never blink again. I already pretty much don't," Ennard said with a wink. He pulled him into a brief one-armed hug before continuing on to open the door. He was stressed, it didn't take much to tell.

Springtrap slipped only seconds after the door was opened and smoothly closed it behind him in one motion. He looked to Ennard standing there behind the door, then did a double take downward at his suit. Ennard splayed his arms with an eager smile, a silent beckon for his opinion.

"It's not nearly as gaudy as I was expecting. Works for you," Springtrap admitted. Ennard's excitement only seemed to grow while the rabbit started to look around. "Where is it?"

"Over here!" Mike called. Springtrap approached the group with Ennard tailing close behind and looked at the scene. It didn't take him more than a moment to notice Marionette's state.

"What happened?" he asked with concern. Marionette tried to partially shield his face with his hand. Baby twinged at the discomfort of hearing Springtrap's voice.

"That happened, apparently," Mike answered, pointing at the downed doll. "And the working plan's to take it out before it takes one of us out."

Springtrap looked even more befuddled by this, which was probably why Marionette found his voice so readily. "It's true. There's evil inside of it. It isn't a soul, it isn't alive, it's a monster. We have no choice," he insisted.

This was a lot to suddenly spring on the newly arrived sibling. He looked to Charlie beside him, considering her rather levelheaded, and when she looked back with determination but not doubt, he found himself compelled to go along with it.

"…Very well. What is the plan?" he asked.

"I've got a hatchet in the car and there's probably a shovel around here somewhere," Mike suggested.

"Yeah, I've been on the other end of that hatchet, and it doesn't work. That thing's walking around busted up already, if we leave that much behind then she's just going to pull herself together and crawl back over here," Ennard disagreed. He then paused, giving a sort of thoughtful hum as he rubbed the chin of his mask. They waited a few seconds, but the clown didn't offer it up.

"What about burning it? I don't think we can, it's not like we have a furnace, but we could get gasoline and try to start a fire. Maybe not one hot enough to melt metal, but…" Scott trailed off and Springtrap shook his head.

"No good. There's no way we can build a fire of that magnitude without drawing attention to ourselves, even if we drove out to Silver Reef to do it."

"But won't we, uh, need some sort of heat to… y'know… y'know, stop it for good?" Scott offered. Considering the room of people he was standing with, he approached the suggestion cautiously.

"…Maybe we don't," Mike considered. "I'm not sure how the whole fire thing works. We know it's more than just destroying the body. It stops possession too, forcing the soul out of the body. If this thing doesn't have a soul and is just running on some kind of programming, then we should be able to stop it by dismantling it."

"Which sounds simple enough if you ignore the fact that Marion said there was evil inside of it," Springtrap reminded.

"I don't think that's the kind of evil he was talking about," Mike answered. "…But don't let me put words in his mouth. Mari, what do you think?"

The Puppet was still shaken but by now had pulled himself together enough to speak normally. His tears had stopped as well, leaving a purple mess in their wake smeared on his mask and down his chest. He made a staticky breath of a noise and then began to explain, hand moving to clutch Mike's tightly.

"When I touched it, I felt the same pain that Ennard and Baby felt… but then I began to see and hear things. Horrible things, voices… like it was playing back footage but directly into my mind, all in a second. I saw so much…" Marionette tried to explain. He seemed to be holding back, cautiously stepping around what he was saying. "I could feel anger and sadness, pain, all coming from it. As though it was playing back that too. It never felt alive, just a hollow recording… I don't know how to explain it. It's like a corruption, like just touching it was spreading into me whatever was inside of it."

"Spreading…?" Baby asked.

"Like a virus," Marionette added.

"Like a computer virus or like a virus virus?" Scott asked.

"…Both," the Puppet offered. "Something like both."

Now Mike's face had slowly turned from seriousness to slow spreading shock over the course of Marionette's entire explanation. Anyone there couldn't guessed it was from what he was saying, but it was more than that. It was how familiar everything he described sounded. He could've been describing the episodes Mike had been noticing with him, with only a few slight differences.

And this was the first time Mike realized that Marionette didn't know about those incidents. He had never brought them up because he thought Marionette was aware, that it was his emotions literally pouring out, but unless he was purposefully feigning obliviousness, which was very unlike him, he had no idea that they were happening. That was a bad sign if he had ever seen one.

"You said you could hear voices," Springtrap pointed out. "What did they say?"

Marionette side-glanced at the other Baby. "I couldn't say."

"Perhaps for the best… Alright, then we must deal with it. We must get rid of this thing before it become a danger to even more people," Springtrap agreed. "But wouldn't that mean burning it to make sure whatever it is doesn't spread?" Marionette looked to the doll for a long moment.

"…I don't know. It's not alive and it must be destroyed, under whatever means possible," he offered.

Mike finally snapped out of his thoughts long enough to return to the conversation and add, "The hatchet's not going to be enough. Nothing's ever that easy." He mumbled the last part. He didn't just mean the doll either.

"Then we just take it apart ourselves. Ennard and I are more than capable of doing it. After all, it looks remarkably like an Afton original."

"Except you can't touch it," Baby finally chimed in. She met his gaze too when he turned to look at her. "Didn't you hear what he said about the pain? It burned me, it burned Ennard, and it left Marion in his current state."

"I got an idea," Ennard interjected. The others looked to him, giving him the floor to speak. "We don't have to nuke it, we just have to dispose of it like a normal animatronic, right? There's a way to do that at the dump!"

Springtrap gave an unenthused look and was about to shoot him down, assuming he was talking about abandoning it at the dump until Ennard caught him with a raised finger.

"Ah-ah! There is a way to dispose of scrap metal at the dump. Or crush it down into little, easy-to-manage cubes. A trash compactor!" the clown revealed. "Just think about it. Any damage we're gonna do isn't going to full decimate it as much as that's going to. We get it all crushed up and then bury it somewhere where nobody's going to find it. Closest thing we got to a furnace unless you all feel like breaking back into ARI."

That last comment might've been what effectively got Springtrap on board. He gave a nod and then looked back to Marionette.

"What do you think, Mari?" Mike asked for him. Marionette looked a little hesitant, especially when he looked to the other Baby again.

He had seen plenty of animatronics get broken beyond repair and still be capable of moving and functioning. Though that was because they had a soul fueling them. While whatever that was fueling this thing was vile, it wasn't the same as a sentient consciousness- and though there was a margin of error, he knew what he saw wasn't this thing's memories. Eventually he managed an answer.

"It… might work… As long as it's actually destroyed and not just broken beyond repair," he somewhat agreed. "I could always check afterwards to make sure…"

"Then there we go! Better than nothing!" Ennard said. He pointed past to Charlie. "And we can throw that necklace in there with her," he offered, then held out his hand for it. She almost handed it over before second-guessing it.

"I think it would be better if I handle the necklace," Charlie offered. "We don't want this thing floating around out there. I can crack it open and find a way to deactivate it, THEN we can get rid of it. Maybe toss it across Sand Hollow Lake."

"Even better idea!" Ennard chirped. Though that eagerness was short lived as he looked down at the doll. "It's going to be a pain to move it though. Should've told you to bring a dolly with you."

"Oh yes, wouldn't that have been a sight? A human-sized rabbit pushing a dolly down the street in the middle of the night," Springtrap half-scoffed, then sighed. "I can do it. I've dealt with worse."

It was that comment that made Mike think. He had gone through those moments with Marionette and pulled through well enough, so maybe he was strong enough to handle whatever this thing was dishing out. Soon it was less about being helpful and more the insatiable curiosity to know whether or not this was like Marionette's moments. Without any warning, he reached out and grabbed the other Baby's wrist.

"Mike!" Marionette cried, but it was too late.

…But nothing happened.

"Huh…" Mike mused. He felt along the animatronic's arm. Other than being a little warm, not nearly as warm as Ennard had been playing up, he couldn't feel anything else. It was nothing like Marionette's moments. Or at least, it didn't discharge into him. "Maybe it's not the same thing after all. Here's hoping it's not." But it sounded too similar to be a coincidence. He pulled his hand back. "Guess it doesn't work on us flesh people."

"Okay, then I guess Mike and I can move her," Scott offered. He didn't sound like he wanted to, but he preferred that to anyone else getting hurt. Especially if it meant getting the doll out of the house faster. "Mike?"

"I'm on it." He slowly released Marionette before getting up to go help. He could discuss his suspicions with him later, when there weren't so many people listening and as amped up as they were.

They were heading towards the garage when Baby suddenly spoke up.

"Can I stay here? I know that I am responsible for provoking that thing…" She reflexively stole a glance against her wishes and quickly looked away. "…But I don't want to ride in the van with it."

"No problem. It's better that we all don't go anyways. We'd put ourselves at a bigger risk of getting," Scott willingly agreed. She gave a nod and he a worried frown, wanting to offer to stay but not knowing how to go about it without embarrassing her. She tended to get defensive when there was an audience watching.

Thankfully, Charlie picked up on the cues, whether it be Baby's behavior or the expression on Scott's face. "I'll stay with her. It'll be easier to get the necklace open if I'm not bouncing around the back of a van."

"Good! Good idea, and we're not going to drag our feet. We'll be back as soon as we get everything done," Scott agreed, seemingly relieved. He then beckoned Mike along. "You open the garage door and I'll back the van in."

"Sounds easy enough," Mike agreed. As they approached the garage door he glanced back over his shoulder. Charlie was now with Marionette who was starting to stand up and Ennard had moved over to rest his hands on Baby's shoulders as he recounted what happened to Springtrap. The animatronic itself hadn't moved this whole time.

Something about seeing the relatively calm scene did the exact opposite to Mike and he had a foreboding feeling. After all, nothing was ever easy.

Mike and Scott carried the doll to the van, the three animatronics boarded into the back while trying their best not to touch it, and soon the only ones left were Charlie and Baby. The former watching them leave through the front window with an uneased look on her face. She carefully closed the curtain back before heading to the garage, where Baby had already retreated to. Stopping only when she noticed the kitchen window was open and shutting it with a sigh.

She stepped into the garage to find Baby sitting on her bed with her eyes closed and her hand and claw resting in her lap. Charlie wanted to say something but decided against it, deciding not to press as she headed over and knelt down in front of Ennard's toolbox. She got out a pair of vice grips and the smallest flat headed screwdriver that she could find, then turned around, sitting on the floor cross legged, and got to work trying to get it open.

She managed to fit the screwdriver into the crease of the locket. While it was clearly not made to open, she pressed in and started to wedge it upwards, working to open it. That was when Baby unexpected broke the silence.

"I feel awful. What a dreadful night…" she murmured. Charlie paused to look over at her. The clown's head was now raised but her eyes were close to sliver.

"I can't even imagine," Charlie sympathized. She returned to working, but kept her head tilted up like she was listening, which Baby noticed. Her eyes rolled forward with an exhausted mock sigh.

"I wouldn't never taken that stupid thing if I thought it was anything more than a worthless trinket. Or that the thing wearing it was anything more than a crime against nature."

Charlie smiled a little bit at the last part before it faltered. She paused there with the tools in her hand and considered her options. Eventually she decided to ask, "Why did you do it?"

As expected, there was silence. She patiently continued with the pendant and finally managed to force the screwdriver into that crease, opening it up a slight amount. She focused in, a low tone humming in her chest as she pushed harder, angling it just right…

With a small pop, or maybe a crack, the pendant broke apart. Charlie's eyes literally brightened, pupils briefly popping green as she set down the screwdriver and released the pendant into her hand. She pulled apart the pieces to study closer.

All of her suspicions were confirmed when she saw the inside of the pendant. Half of the inside of the pendant was solid with what looked like a small computer chip lodged into it, save that it was shaped like a heart. There was a tiny red light at the bottom of it, signaling that the device was on. While it didn't look like the security bracelets on the outside, she was certain that it was another piece of tracking jewelry.

"Well, that answers that question," Charlie remarked. She raised her head to see that Baby was already looking at her. She held up the pendant pinched between her fingers. "This is how it followed you."

"Of course it is," Baby lamented. Her voice betrayed her discomfort. Charlie clasped the pendant in her hand.

"Well, the good news is that once we get rid of this, that… animatronic won't be able to track you anymore. Even if it does somehow survive the trash heap," she said. She set the pendant on the concrete and reached behind her and into the toolbox. In less than ten seconds she pulled out a hammer and promptly smashed the exposed circuitry into the floor. Baby jumped at the noise and looked on in disbelief.

"Didn't you want to keep it and study it?" she asked in surprise.

"It's too much of a risk. Besides, we've already got a box of bracelets that do the same thing," Charlie reassured. She checked the remains of it and noticed that the light was now off. Then lifted it to her head to make sure she couldn't hear any sound and then decided that it was probably off. She brushed the remains into a tiny pile on the floor before standing up. "I'll get rid of it the rest of the way later."

Baby shuffled over enough that Charlie could sit beside her. It wasn't until now that she noticed the hat sitting on the dryer and picked it up before sitting down. "What's this?" she asked.

"Scott got it for me. I think he was afraid I would feel left out."

"I'd say it's more than that. This wasn't just some hat he picked up at the thrift store," Charlie pointed out. She was expecting either a response or silence. She wasn't expecting Baby's head to tilt before resting on her shoulder. She was a little surprised but recovered quickly and set aside the hat to turn towards her, crossing one of her legs on the bed and resting a hand on Baby's back.

Baby slowly wrapped her arms around Charlie's middle and pulled her into a tight embrace. It surprised the puppet, not expecting her to show such vulnerability after being so walled off up until now. She returned the hug and gently rubbed little circles into her back with one hand and gently stroked over her hair wires with the other. Her fingers tracing along the wires more than brushing them.

They sat there like that for a long while. The silence no longer uncomfortable, though still just as solemn. When Baby's fingers began to grasp onto Charlie's jacket, she knew she was preparing to speak.

"How could things go wrong so quickly?" she murmured into the green fabric covering her shoulder. "One slip up and then all of this…"

"What do you mean, slip up?" Charlie asked. Her voice holding no accusation.

"Ripping that necklace off that scarecrow's neck," Baby slightly grumbled. "I knew better and I still did it… I was just so angry."

"I can't imagine. Going all the way out there to see another Circus Baby and finding that. I'd feel a little ripped off too," the puppet sympathized, slightly joking. She started up the little circles on her back again.

"It wasn't that," Baby admitted. Charlie's hand slowed as she listened.

"…Was it about there being other Circus Babys?" she eventually guessed when she didn't get an answer. Baby shook her head. "Was it about your dad?" Baby stiffened, not expecting her to guess that quickly. "Oh. I'm sorry."

"I don't want to talk about it really, but I got so upset that I had to do something. I suppose ripping off that necklace was me trying to lash out at him… Not that he would care even if he was here. Then that thing showed up. Said some… Vile things, just like Marion said. I think it knows things that it shouldn't and I don't know how it could."

Charlie was sure that she was getting only half of the picture now, but that was alright. It wasn't important to get the whole context when she knew Baby could give it in time.

"Well, whatever it knows doesn't matter, because they're getting rid of it right now and it's never coming back. And if it does, I'll take care of it." She made a point to tap on the taser pinned to her jacket pocket. "I'll be here to protect you."

The quietness returned and Charlie went back to assuring her, but it didn't last long. Baby finally pulled back and lifted her head, not entirely breaking their hold but making them face to face. There was so much sadness and fear in her eyes.

"…Charlie," Baby tentatively began. "…Is there something you haven't told me about the Pizzaplex? I worked myself up into this frenzy because I thought there was, and if I'm wrong then I'm wrong… but please, I need to know. I can't keep living like I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop."

There was a tinge of anxiety deep inside Charlie as she realized she was cornered. She didn't want to upset Baby further, but if she kept it from her now after being so open with her, their relationship would be permanently tainted. She knew what it was like to feel that someone was hiding something and not getting answers. Sometimes the painful answers were needed.

Charlie made a low toned discontent chime despite herself and drew back the rest of the way. Baby rested her hand and claw back in her lap, showing a surprising amount of patience as she waited for the answer that she now realized was coming. Her eyes aglow as she watched the other brace herself.

"There is something I didn't tell you… Yet. I was planning on telling you, but I didn't know how, and I didn't want you to freak out. Not that I'm saying you would- gah…" Charlie caught herself mid-ramble and decided to stop stalling once she managed to make eye contact again. "...There's a woman at the Pizzaplex whose been dressing up in a rabbit costume and threatening Natalie with a knife. We don't know anything else about her except she's been getting in there afterhours."

"A woman in a rabbit costume?" Baby echoed.

"Right."

"Oh."

There was a brief moment of pause.

"…But there aren't any new Baby models?"

Charlie was floored by Baby absolute lack of reaction. It wasn't even like a delayed reaction either, she just didn't seem fazed by it at all.

"Uh, no. Not that I know of."

"Oh good. Or not so good, since I was worrying over nothing. Put all of this into motion over nothing… but I would rather be wrong than right in this case," Baby said with audible relief. She then noticed the visible confusion on the Security Puppet's face. "What's that look? Surprised I didn't fall to pieces over this rabbit woman?"

"…Yes?"

Baby seemed the slightest bit amused at the answer. The most amusement she had shown since this night had begun. "I can see why you might, but she's not him… Unless you think she's possessed."

"I don't. She can't be. We know he's gone and even if he wasn't she's not really following his MO beyond the similar get-up," Charlie rationalized. The nervousness was always there, but she was adamant not to give in so easily. "But even if she's not him she has us worried. I guess I wanted to spare you of that."

"I know you just want to protect me," Baby began. Though suddenly she stopped and reconsidered what she was going to say. She finally finished with a much quieter, "Thank you." Leaving it at that.

Charlie smiled and put her arm back around her. Baby didn't return to her shoulder but didn't seem as rigid as she was earlier. Which was good, because they had a long wait in front of them, and their long night wasn't let over.

…

…

"But you do like the hat?"

"Oh yeah. I think it's going to look great on you."

Chapter 19

Chapter Summary

Time for a trip to the junkyard.

Chapter Notes

A little late but made the Wednesday posting! 8D Hurrah!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

What Ennard had been calling a dump was actually a junkyard. In hindsight, it made a lot more sense. While he was still effectively scouring through trash, it was less garbage bags and more chucked electronics and scrap parts. Mike wouldn't have been surprised if he caught sight of an abandoned animatronic within the piles of refuse, but so far saw nothing but car parts and junk, the latter being also mostly made up of cars.

Ennard led them to the back entrance and opened the gate so they could drive the van straight in, meaning no jumping fences in the middle of the night. That didn't make the task much better. Even now, Springtrap and Marionette were sending wary looks at the Baby-faced doll in the back while Ennard spent as long as he could between the seats. Though he had been bold enough to step over it to go out and open the gate.

Soon they were parked inconspicuously towards the back of the lot and cautiously climbing out. Mike hopped out of the van and almost shut the door on Marionette who slid around the seat and tried to sneak out after him. He quirked an amused brow before shutting the door behind him. Marionette took a moment to look around at the junkyard and frowned at the sight.

"What a depressing place," he remarked.

"I know. Chances are this is the final resting place of my last two cars," Mike said, leaning against the side of the van. "It doesn't strike me as the kind of place Ennard would hang out."

"Can you imagine spending a whole night here, digging through all this stuff? One wrong move and you could be buried alive," Marionette said.

For some reason, the comment gave Mike a very vivid mental image of being stuck in a tunnel of trash before having the whole thing caving in. It came out as blending of his imagining of a springlock failure and memories of that time he went spelunking with Fritz and Jeremy, and it was almost scarier than the clown they had laying out in the back of the van.

"That's a pretty image," he said tensely.

Marionette hummed in agreement before turning his head to listen. Ennard was chattering on the other side of the van, and it sounded like it was to both Scott and Springtrap. They would probably be distracted for a few minutes.

"I don't think the others can hear us…" he murmured. He turned back to Mike only to see his brows raised. "No, not that. Don't get so excited," he said with a tiny smirk. It quickly fell to an uneasy look, along with his voice falling to nearly a whisper. "It's about what happened earlier when I touched that other Baby. There's something I need to tell you."

As much dread as that statement caused, there was a glimmer of hope. Mike was hoping that Marionette would reveal that he knew about the emotional outbursts he had, such as the one at Foxy's, and have some rational explanation why this apparently dead machine was doing the same thing. That would be the best outcome to all of this, but he knew to keep his expectations tampered.

"Sure. What's up?"

"…I wasn't entirely honest back at Scott's. I saw and heard things more clearly than I let on," Marionette admitted guiltily. He sunk into himself in a way that almost managed to make Mike's heart clench a little. "You'll understand once I explain- and I will explain in full once we get home. If we get home."

"When we get home."

"If we get home."

"…Let me live in ignorant bliss up until I'm sleeping in my car," Mike said. It got the desired reaction: a smile. "Keep going. I'm listening."

"Have you ever seen a haunted arcade machine?" Marionette asked. His fingers tapped together nervously.

"As a matter of fact, I have. There was one over at Chipper's."

"Would you believe that they're not actually haunted? Or at least, they don't have a spirit inside of them. We used to have them pop up all the time at Freddy's. It was as though they became haunted just being around us, the animatronics," Marionette explained. He tapped his fingers a little quicker. "And then I was thinking about what I saw inside of that animatronic and I started to think that maybe this is a similar kind of…"

Suddenly the Puppet cut off. His head snapped towards the van and he must've been listening for something, though from what Mike could hear Ennard was still going on. Someone must've said something about getting started. Marionette turned back to him and dropped his voice to a faint whisper once more.

"We'll talk about this later, okay?"

"That's fine. Don't worry about it, Mari. We've got a job to do, it can wait," Mike assured him. He knew there were numerous things Marionette was already worried about, he didn't want him to be worried about him too. He reached out and rubbed over his upper arm and shoulder, bringing a trill out of the other, along with another little smile. "Tell you what, once we dump the clown, why don't we sneak off behind some of this garbage and make out?" he joked.

That smile shifted immediately. Now to one that looked somewhere between a little amused and completely mortified, especially in the widening of his eyes. It seemed like an overreaction for flirting he did on a daily basis.

Then Springtrap stuck his head around the corner of the van and he and Mike locked eyes in the most uncomfortable stare-off the security guard had ever had. Suddenly that reaction of Marionette's made a lot more sense.

After a long moment of uncomfortable staring, Springtrap decided to finally pull back around the corner. Mike didn't have anything to say in his defense anyway and decided not to open his mouth to risk it.

It took a few seconds before Marionette's eyes narrowed and his embarrassed smile slowly spread into a coquettish smirk.

"You're so red right now, Love," he trilled. His voice oozing both amusement and adoration at once.

"You could've warned me," Mike mumbled.

"I could say the same thing!" Marionette chimed.

Mike clasped a hand over his face and rubbed in with a sigh, knowing he would have to face Springtrap again, and trudged around the van to get it over with. Marionette gently patted his back as he passed and followed along.

Soon the group was heading through the junkyard. Scott and Mike were able to carry the other Baby themselves, with her being heavy but just light enough for them to manage. They had wrapped her up in the sheet Charlie covered herself in to keep her limbs from dragging but had kept her face uncovered so they could watch for any sign of her reactivating.

Though Scott was the unfortunate one who got stuck carrying her torso. Her head was angled up on his chest like she had been watching him the whole time. He half expected to look down and see that her eyes had moved, but they didn't.

Ennard led the way and Marionette and Springtrap flanked both sides. It was unclear if this was to keep an eye out for any possible witnesses or, more likely, to pounce on the elongated animatronic if it suddenly sprung to life and lashed out at the men carrying it. The mood was incredibly tense because of it, so Ennard tried his best to combat it.

"Because when it rains, this place doesn't get wet. It gets flooded. You'll get mud puddles up to your ankles, then you take one wrong step, sink in to your knee, and get poked at by twenty-year-old pieces of buried scrap metal. Other than that, atmosphere's great! Like rain on a tin roof but all over the place," Ennard casually explained as though they were walking through the park and not a junkyard.

"How do you find anything out here?" Scott asked. A question pretty much anyone else could've been asking.

"Very slowly and rarely," Ennard quipped back. He sent a wink over his shoulder before falling back to walk alongside him, arms folded behind, spiffy in his new suit. "And when the guy who runs this place shows up, I just hop in a car and fade into the scenery."

"Somehow I don't see that happening anymore," Mike forewarned. Ennard snickered at that. "And you might want to roll up your pants if you want them to last."

"Oh, don't you worry about that! I'm going to treat this suit like it's my baby. My second skin. No more muddy dump excursions unless I'm in dire need of some hubcaps," the clown proclaimed, holding a hand on his chest, and raising the other as though a solemn swear. Then noticed up ahead and pointed with the raised hand. "And here we are!"

What he was pointing to was a warehouse at the edge of the junkyard. It was rather unremarkable and maybe in slight disrepair. Though that was probably just because it was hiding in the back of a junkyard.

"…We could've probably driven a little closer," Scott suggested.

"Nah. The road they got leading back here comes in from the front. That would be way too obvious," Ennard said.

"I think I might've risked it, all things considered you know."

The warehouse was unlocked and Ennard was able to open the heavy door relatively easily and led them inside. The inside of the warehouse was rather messy. There were some stacks of boxes and things in one half of the building, there were shelves that were largely empty, and then there was the trash compactor taking up a sizeable portion of the floor near the doorway. It was one of the kind with a chute leading in instead of a conveyor. Made for minor scrap, not cars.

"So, my best guess is that this warehouse was set up for some kinda recycling project and then they just lost interest. There's another compactor up towards the front of the junkyard, a real big one, so I don't think this one gets used that much. Like everything else it kinda just sits here collecting rust," Ennard explained.

Considering the state of the junkyard in general, this wasn't a big surprise.

"Hey, I was thinking we were going to be out in the open, so this shaped up to be a lot better for us. Now I should've asked this before we left, but does anyone here know how to turn on one of these things?" Mike asked. Ennard pointed a thumb to himself and then the same thumb at Springtrap who nodded. "Alright good. Let's toss this thing in and get started."

He and Scott carried her over and started to lift the animatronic upwards. It was awkward with her long body bending in weird direction, something that only got worse when Mike started to unwind the sheet. One of its arms fell free and smacked into Scott's chest, causing him to jump back as fast as he could without dropping it. He realized his mistake quickly, but that didn't make him any less uncomfortable.

"We'll toss her in on three. One… Two…" With a single heave, he and Mike tossed the animatronic into the chute. Mike got the sheet out the rest of the way and pushed in the leg sticking out while Scott wiped his hands off on his cardigan and took a step back, stepping right into Ennard who had seemed to just pop up behind him sometime after the scare. Not that Scott minded the backup, leaning back as Ennard's hands settled on and squeezed his shoulders.

Springtrap stepped forward to turn on the trash compactor. It took him a few minutes to get it on, during which Mike unhooked his taser and held it at his side. He didn't take his eyes off the chute, expecting for the other Baby to suddenly crawl back out and make one lash dash for freedom, or attempt to drag someone else in with her. Considering that he and Springtrap stood closest to it, he knew he would be the likely victim.

He was a little surprised when the compactor turned on without this outburst, but relieved. Though there was a part of him that might've been disappointed that he missed the action, he could just feel how strung out everyone else was- save maybe Springtrap- and knew this was the best outcome. Just in case he continued standing there with his taser, his thumb resting on the button just in case.

Marionette was having the opposite reaction. While he knew the animatronic in the compactor wasn't alive and came to terms with destroying it before they left the house, the sound of metal beginning to slowly get crushed inside put him off quite a bit. It wouldn't have been so bad if he didn't know there was a metal skeleton being crushed and crunched inside- no different than if he knew there were bones inside.

He turned himself around and tried to find distraction elsewhere. Eventually he noticed some toys on a back shelf and hovered over to it. They were especially broken. One a porcelain doll with a dirty dress and a piece of her face, leaving her with no nose and a lot of cracking, and the other was a plastic horse that was missing a leg, covered with wear smudges all over it, and with its mane cut crudely. There was also a rubber duck on its side on the floor.

It was a poignant sight; lost and broken toys left abandoned in this warehouse where no child would find them. Even with their lack of sentience, Marionette found an empathy and pity for them. One he somberly realized he couldn't show for the broken doll inside of the trash compactor. Though it wasn't its suffering that came to mind…

He turned to look for more toys and spotted a green tail in the back corner. Approaching it he soon realized it was actually the end of a string of Christmas lights laying beneath an outlet. The string itself led into a mound of stuff covered by a tarp, so he didn't expect it to be functional, but was curious enough to plug it. Much to his surprise, the lights popped to life, and he could see them glowing from under the tarp too.

Curious still, he circled around and that was when he realized that it wasn't quite a mound of stuff. Sure, there was stuff stacked up around and inside, but it was actually a shelf that had been tilted against the wall and covered with a tarp and pushing some half-filled boxes aside he found a little hidey hole underneath.

There were a couple of blankets in a tight nest on the floor, topped with one especially soft-looking, but equally dirty, blue baby blanket with sleeping stars on it. A car's seat cushion was propped up almost like a pillow in the back. The lights were weaved into the shelves above it, lending a warm glow to the almost cozy space. It looked like someone had been sleeping in there, and that was terribly sad.

Unless it was Ennard. "Ennard, can you come here?"

"I'm on my way!" the clown chirped. He looked down at Scott momentarily before slipping his hand into his, lacing their fingers together, and pulling him along with him.

"Err, uh, I guess I'll be right back," Scott said to the others apologetically before falling along. Though there was no denying the relief he felt once he got more than a few feet away from the trash compactor. If not for what it contained, then for the noise alone. They found Marionette knelt down amongst the boxes. Scott noticed that Ennard reflexively slowed once he noticed the light, unaware who turned them on and cautiously making sure nobody else was there.

"What's up? Or down?" Ennard asked.

"Have you been sleeping in here?" Marionette pointed into the hiding spot. Ennard crouched down to peek in.

"Nope! Looks like someone has though… Huh." The clown trailed off uneasily as a weird stare took his face. Him studying that spot and how secluded it was, and knowing he missed it, and knowing he could've missed anyone hiding inside.

Scott leaned over behind them to look and frowned at the sight. "That's really a shame. There's a homeless shelter in St. George. Why wouldn't they just go there?"

"Can you be rejected from a homeless shelter?"

"Uh… Y'know, I don't know. Maybe if you're getting into fights or have a serious drug problem, or are caught stealing or doing anything else illegal, maybe. Still, I don't know why you'd hide out out here. Hurricane doesn't have any sort of homeless loitering laws that I know of. We've even got a food pantry! I don't know, maybe I should leave Arthur's number. I don't want to butt in, but he could get them some help," Scott said. "I think I've got a pen in the car-."

"Say no more, I'm on my way!" Ennard agreed and stood up.

"Hold on, I wasn't hinting for you to go get it. I can go get it."

"It gives me an excuse to stretch my legs and makesurenobody'shangingaroundoutthere and it's better I do it now when everyone's here then you trying to come back alone, which you will," Ennard teased with a knowing look. Scott didn't try to argue. "Give me two minutes and an extra five to find the stuff."

"O-Okay, if you're sure. Just don't, uh… Don't take too long," Scott said without saying something. Then at risk of Ennard going ahead with it and feigning ignorance, he clarified, "And if you see anyone, don't… engage?"

Ennard gave him a wink. "And blow my cover that easily? No way, they gotta work for that!" He started to turn away before turning back, looking at Marionette while gently shaking Scott by the forearms. "Guard this with your life."

Marionette gave an amused chime and a nod. With that, Ennard turned and began running for the door. As he passed by the compactor, both Mike and Springtrap looked over, with the latter's half ear twitching as he straightened up.

"Are we running?" he called.

"Going to grab something!" Ennard yelled back. Springtrap deflated once more, ear slipping into a somewhat cock-eyed position. He didn't even acknowledge it.

Though with Ennard passing by and both Marionette and Scott distracted with something, Mike suddenly recognized who he was standing alone with and there returned the painfully awkward silence. One that he knew he was imagining since they had been standing in this silence- save the compactor- for a few minutes without issue. It was enough to force him to break it.

"How's it been? It's been a while since we're caught up," he asked. He had to speak loudly to be heard over the rhythmic crunching and mechanical wheezes.

Springtrap looked at him for a second in disbelief at the out of the blue question, but then answered. "Fine enough. I'm looking forward to the weather getting warmer again."

"Same. I used to come home from my morning runs being able to feel my fingers. I miss that," Mike said. Springtrap gave a hum of agreement but added nothing more. "…I'm going back to college. It's going to cost me, but I think it's worth it if it means getting a degree in my field of work."

"What degree?"

"Mechanical Engineering."

"Good choice, on both accounts. You'll have a good time with it." Springtrap sounded a little more somber towards the end but then returned to silence.

"Okay, so he doesn't want to talk about it. That's fine. I made a big deal out of nothing," Mike thought. He stole a glance over at Springtrap, only to notice that the rabbit was eyeing him out the corner of his eye. Which wouldn't have been as weird if he didn't uncharacteristically look away the moment he was noticed. "…Let's just get this out of the way. I was just joking back at the van with Mari."

"Mike, with all due respect, I find your relationship with my brother to be a bit odd and somewhat embarrassing but perfectly fine," Springtrap said curtly. "That being said, I don't want to hear about it."

"I can live with that," Mike agreed.

"Now then, this is about finished and then we can see how things have shaped up."

Mike got a tinge of a smirk at the pun as Springtrap walked around the other side. The compactor noise had finally died down to a dull hum that lasted until the sudden and nearly deafening noise of scrap metal clattering to the floor.

"For God's sake!" the rabbit hissed. He thumped back around and beckoned the other man with a wave. "Come take a look at this cube."

He came around to see for himself and promptly whistled.

"That's a beautiful cube," Mike remarked as he stared down at the pile of crushed and broken trash from the compactor.

"I'm starting to see why this one's sitting in the abandoned warehouse," Springtrap muttered, pointing to the compactor.

His eyes scanned over the refuse for any sign of the animatronic. It had seemed to melt into the scrap it had been crushed with, but eventually he spotted a pale hand sticking out. The plate of its palm and back of its hand cracked from the pressure but its fingers all intact. He cautiously reached for it, Mike readying his taser again, and clasped it in his own. A few tense seconds passed.

"…Nothing. I feel nothing," Springtrap remarked.

"In general, or from her?" Mike retorted. This got rewarded with a sharp look. "Sorry. I know this is serious, it's just been a long night and this is all I've got to get through it… I don't remember you touching her. Did you?"

"I bumped it coming out of the van and felt it."

"So, you know what you're feeling for…" That should've been assuring, but it all sounded too easy. Especially when the animatronic's hand was largely intact. "Should we dig up the rest of her?"

"Perhaps," Springtrap agreed, "but first we need Marion to come feel for himself."

Mike knew this was coming eventually but his heart still sunk at the thought. All it would take was a second, but that's all it took last time to Marionette in such a state. He took a deep breath and considered their lack of options.

"I know. Better safe than sorry," he sighed. He then looked back towards the Puppet now talking with Scott. "Mari, Doll, can you come check this for us?"

Marionette knew exactly what he was talking about. His expression dropped in a blink of an eye as drifted back to the compactor. He came up between the two to find Springtrap holding the other Baby's hand. It didn't look like he was in pain.

"You can't feel anything?" the Puppet asked.

"No… but we can't be too sure." Springtrap released the hand and moved over to make way for his youngest brother. "It's partially detached but I think its pinned by wring, so perhaps still connected to the body."

Considering that the point was to completely destroy the body, that was largely the point. Marionette reached down and hesitated, his hand hanging in the air above its for a second, and then he gently made contact. First a brush of the fingers, then gently sliding into lacing them together. He tried to get as much contact as he could as he sought out any trace of that earlier feeling.

But there was nothing. There was still a tepid warmth to the body, but the burning heat and jarring pain was gone. Their plan had seemingly worked. It was too good to be true.

"I don't feel anything," Marionette said. Scott, who had walked up behind them, breathed a sigh of relief. "But…" Perhaps it was too soon, as the Puppet's voice took a skeptical tone. "…I don't trust it."

Without any warning, he released the hand and then proceeded to shove both of his into the mound of metal. Pushing into it and squirming his limbs through the tight, heavy mass interlocked and crushed together.

"Hey, hey, careful! You might cut your arm open on one of these things," Mike warned. Marionette nodded and twisted himself, burying his arms in deeper, and now totally kneeling on the pile.

Something got jarred loose and Springtrap noticed the hand flinch. He instantly snatched it up, only to realize that Marionette's efforts had dislodged it from the pile. Other than a few, thick wires, the casing of the arm was practically hollowed out, which raised some concerns. Though not nearly as many as the wires that did remain.

He stood back up and silently held out the limb to Mike and Scott, tapping the edge with his finger as he continued to watch Marionette. Scott felt his mouth dry out at the familiar metal wiring hanging out, innards just like Ennard's own.

Marionette suddenly flinched with a soft chime and Mike's head snapped back to him. "Mari?"

He had felt it. Somewhere in the scrap he had felt that intrusive heat pressing back. It was fainter than before, but he knew it was there, and after a brief recoil he searched after it. Soon he grabbed ahold and felt the pulsing through his hand and up his arm, though this time it went no further than that, and both voices and visuals were gone. Confused, he pulled with all his might to dislodge whatever he had grabbed.

In one jerk he pulled the offending mass free of the pile. It turned out to be a handful of metal wires. Marionette felt his spools tighten as he saw them and got his confirmation that the off-model Baby was, in fact, an Afton Robotics creation.

As soon as he pulled the wires free, he felt the heat starting to die down, as though whatever was fueling them was either draining out or slowly losing its power. Soon he no longer felt anything at all and stared down with confusion and surprise. Perhaps it actually had worked. It was hard to believe it had, but the evidence was sitting in his hand.

Springtrap took one look at those rather intact wires and knew they had a second problem. He turned to Scott and Mike- "We can't let Ben see these…" -only to immediately spot Ennard staring back at him from by the door. "…In the rare chance that he hasn't already."

Scott looked over and immediately started to flag the clown back. "It's, uh, it's okay! You just stay over there!"

"What's going on? Is it still moving?" Ennard asked.

"No, just stay back!" the man insisted. "It's all good, we've got it under control!"

Mike wasn't sure exactly what Michael or Scott were worried about, but he guessed it was either the fear that Ennard would start uncontrollably devouring the wires or rejecting his own. Either way, best to keep him back, and with them distracted Mike stepped towards Marionette. He had to step on the mound and had his foot shift unsteadily but reached enough to lay a hand atop Marionette's head. He didn't trust his footing enough to lean further.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine, I just… I felt it for a second, but then it faded away…" Marionette said quietly.

After a brief pause, he lurched forward and started to dig into the scrap again. Mike was left standing there with his hand out, watching as the Puppet feverishly searched and felt through the scrap metal. He let his arm drop to his side and after a few minutes Marionette let his own follow suit as he pulled back from the heap and sat back into his kneel.

"I can't feel anything else… Perhaps it worked?" he offered. "…I'll be honest, I didn't really expect it to work. I was more than prepared to have to return to ARI if we needed to… but I can't feel anything."

"That's a good thing, right?" Mike asked. He reached out and managed to snare a hand under Marionette's arm. He helped him back up from the ground. "I didn't think it was going to work either, but if you're not feeling anything then it must've done something," he offered. The Puppet still looked unsure, and Mike glanced over the scrap. Remembering what he said earlier, he asked, "Would the arcade machines stay haunted after they were broken?"

"…No. Not if they were broken to this extreme. Not that I know of, I don't think," Marionette said unsurely. Though Mike trusted his initial answer. He gave him an assuring pat on the back.

"We'll give it a few minutes and if we don't see anything we'll get out of here. I don't think there's much use in picking out all her parts and burying them. If she was still kicking it wouldn't do much to stop her."

It was still a few minutes before they got out of the warehouse. Enough time for Scott to write up the note and leave it in the hiding spot alongside the porcelain doll Marionette had left there. He unplugged the lights too. Ennard stayed close to him and decided to trust his and Michael's judgement enough to not look at the pile. Springtrap gathered what parts of the other Baby that he could find into his arms and scattered them across the junkyard on the way to the van.

Soon they were piled back in and back on the road away from the junkyard and back towards Scott's house.

"Michael, you want me to drop you off at the warehouse?" he offered. Springtrap considered it a moment before shaking his head.

"I think I should stay overnight just in case. If it's alright with you."

"That's fine with me! To tell you the truth, I think an extra body in the house might do me some good, because I'm just… not really looking forward to going back just yet," Scott admitted with a tense smile.

Mike sent him a sympathetic look from the passenger's seat. "How'd this whole thing start anyway? You said you went to the park because you heard there was a Circus Baby there?"

"Right. Baby found out about it online and asked to go… and for some reason I said yes even though I knew better," he confessed. He sounded remorseful. "…She's just been so upset about this new pizzeria opening. She convinced herself that there was a new Baby there and started looking around online and found this one. Err, I mean, she didn't know it was going to look like that. We were all pretty shocked when we saw it."

"You heard my first reaction," Mike remarked.

"Don't be modest. The whole neighborhood heard your reaction," Marionette teased. He was sitting behind the passenger's seat again with his back against it, back-to-back with Mike who gave a dismissive 'eh'. Though Marionette thought back on what Scott had said and looked to Ennard questioningly. "Why did she think there was a new Circus Baby?" He assumed she was more likely to tell him. "Is this because of that sun that sounds like you?"

"Oh, don't remind me," Ennard said, tone dropping at the end. From the disinterested glint that took Springtrap's eyes, he had probably heard plenty about this sun over the phone. "Nah, she was just overthinking it is all. Getting paranoid."

"She called Natalie earlier and asked about it," Mike said. Scott looked to him with his own surprise and the younger man gave a half shrug. "Didn't think anything of it. I didn't even think about it until I was driving over there."

"She was asking Natalie? Why didn't she just ask Charlie?" Marionette asked.

"She did, she just… You know, when you get into thinking like that, worrying about stuff you can't control, it's a slippery slope…" Scott said. When this got a look in return from Mike, he clarified, "She thought Charlie was trying to hide something from her. It's no big deal, she just got into her head."

There was an uncomfortable silence shared between Mike and Marionette. Neither made any comment on the situation, but they just knew the other was thinking of the same thing. Of the thing that Charlie hadn't told Baby about. About the thing that the three others in the van knew nothing about.

Suddenly Mike knew what he needed to do. This was the worst time to drop it on them, but this was the opportunity he had, and he needed to take it. They deserved to know.

"Everything okay? You went a little quiet there," Scott asked.

"Yeah…" Mike looked out the window at the night before taking a deep breath. "Mari, I'm going to tell them."

"Oh no," Scott said under his breath.

Marionette felt a tinge of dread, but he knew that they couldn't keep this from them any longer. Tilting his head back against the headrest of Mike's seat, he gave only a, "Go for it."

Mike took an extra moment to brace himself, looking at the streetlights and the occasional patch of illuminated windows. He rolled his head back to look at Scott with his regret on display. Scott was already starting to look nervous as he kept his eyes on the road, occasionally stealing a glance over. Mike plunged in headfirst.

"Natalie's been getting harassed at the Pizzaplex by a woman running around in a rabbit costume with a knife."

Scott reacted immediately. He didn't say anything, but the car lurched like he might've accidently nudged the break. Ennard's reaction was vocal, with a surprised, "There's a what where?!"

"There's a-."

"I'm sorry, but I thought you just said there was a woman with a knife dressed as a rabbit in the Pizzaplex, which would be the newest Fazbear establishment," Springtrap said in a dangerously low voice. It was the only warning that he wasn't going to take this well and was just harsh enough that even Ennard side-glanced him with a little unease.

"Yeah, that's it," Mike said. He slid slightly down into the seat like he was bracing himself or trying to disappear out of view.

Springtrap's neck twitched a little as his eyes narrowed. "And exactly how long has this been going on?"

"We just found out about it. Natalie's only been working there a few nights and the rabbit wasn't even there the first shift or two…" Mike explained. He let that settle before shrugging and adding, "Just a few days."

"A few days?!" Springtrap exploded. "You're telling me there's a deranged woman dressed in a rabbit suit at Freddy's even as we speak, and you decided not to tell me until now?! Does Gabriel know?! Does Lizzie?!"

"This is the first time we're hearing about this!" Scott jumped in. "I would've told you, o-or Ennard. One of us would've."

"Gabe knows, but he was going to find out anyways because he's been running around over there. He and Freddy have been buddy-buddy," Mike answered. "Look, we just didn't want to work everyone up into a frenzy."

"I have a goddamn right to have a frenzy! Freddy Fazbear's was built on a man in a rabbit suit slaughtering children, most of which with a knife- Gabe himself was killed with a knife- and you hid that for days?! My God, Mike, people could be getting killed right now and you didn't think it was important to tell anyone?!"

"Michael, calm down," Marionette said. He already sounded irritated, which didn't bode well for him deescalating the situation.

"I am not going to calm down! You know just as well as I do how it feels to be left in the dark!"

"Well, you're not helping matters! All you're doing is making a big scene!" the Puppet yelled back. Static and discontented crackles filled his chest.

The two were now staring each other down like they were about to tear through each other, though more likely vocally than physically. The pressures of the night only adding gasoline to the already flammable situation.

Then something else sunk in and Springtrap's head snapped back to the front. "And you said Gabe's been down there?!"

"Here we go," Mike mumbled as he sunk down further. Now covering his eyes with one of his hands. "Yes. Gabe's been sneaking out and going down there."

"My brother is going down there-!"

"Yes, our brother is going down there!" Marionette snapped. "And it's already been dealt with! Foxy was caught, Natalie humiliated him, and he said he was going to stop." He hung on that for a moment before his glare dropped to the corner. "Or he… said something like that… He got caught and he knows about the rabbit. That's the best we can do."

"The best we can do," Springtrap repeated lowly. His gave narrowing further. "And tell me, Marion, how did it work back at the old Freddy's? Where everyone 'did the best they could'?"

"Don't talk down to me about Freddy's," Marionette rattled back. His pupils beginning to glow.

That was when Ennard quite literally threw himself in between them. "Whoa-ho, okay! I think we're getting a little too heated, ha ha! Okay, so this is really, really bad, but let's not make this a whole lot worse please!" He dropped a hand on each of their shoulders and regardless of how wound up they both were, neither pulled away. "We've all just had a real rough night. No reason to get at each other's throats! Ha ha…"

"I was going to tell you," the Puppet hissed, cutting through Ennard's attempts to placate them.

"When? You waited for days," Springtrap returned. His eyes lidded with doubt. "Perhaps whenever you got around to telling us what you "couldn't" say you saw inside of that animatronic."

Marionette caught onto what he was applying and looked startled. "You heard me talking to Mike..."

"Of course I heard you talking to Mike. You were standing on the other side of the van," the rabbit hissed.

The Puppet's glare returned. "I thought you wouldn't be able to hear me over Ennard... No offense, Ennard."

"None taken," Ennard awkwardly interjected. "But hey, since we-."

"I should've known. You said you couldn't say. You made it purposefully sound like you didn't know, but chose your words to cover the lie," Springtrap scolded. Marionette looked away, knowing that he had done so. "She's my sister too, Marion. You can't gatekeep her from me."

"Gatekeep?!" Marionette's head snapped back. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that you're so fixated on keeping control of the situation that you're not even willing to be honest about what that situation is." He finally brushed Ennard's hand aside. "I know you think you're protecting us, but all you're doing is hiding the inevitable until the last second when we have no choice but to step in. With the rabbit, with Lizzie- I know you know what you're doing, Marion, because it's exact same thing Henry did to you."

That was the tipping point. It was his name being brought in that finally pushed Marionette over the edge and before Mike could get himself involved- he was currently turning to lean through the middle seats- he found his voice.

"Do you really want to know, Michael? Do you want to know what I saw? Then I'll tell you what I saw," Marionette said. His voice low and feigning calmness, but the static and ticking coming from his chest showing that he was using every ounce of willpower to keep it that way. "I saw Father hurting Lizzie."

Springtrap was struck silent. He was struck silent so fast that it was like he had been physically hit by it, but Marionette wasn't finished. Once it started coming out, he couldn't stop it.

"I watched through her eyes as he dragged her over a concrete floor. I felt his fingers digging into my arm just like they would've into hers, twisting it so far it could've snapped. And I heard her screaming, begging, pleading with him- but she wasn't begging him to stop. She wasn't telling him it hurt even though I know it did. No, she was apologizing. And I knew- I know from how scared she was that it hadn't been the first time."

It was with those words that a look of dawning passed Ennard's face. His look of shock changing to one of horror as he remembered the words the other Baby had cried out to them. His face almost matched Scott's, who had been looking for a good place to pull over to try and break up the fight before hearing the confession and finding himself freezing up. Everything Baby told him replaying in his head as he made the same connections.

Marionette still wasn't done. He made what sounded like a shaky inhale but was actually a roll of static, trying to suppress the twang from his stressed music box that followed afterwards. Tears had welled back up in his eyes, but he refused the show any form of weakness and kept his face firm in its galled expression.

"I didn't tell you what I saw because it was none of your business what I saw, nor mine, nor his, or Mike's, or anyone else's. Those were Lizzie's memories and I think it was Lizzie's pain that brought it to the house. What was I supposed to do, tell a room full of people that I saw our-! That I saw those things? How was I supposed to stand in front of Lizzie and do that to her? I couldn't, and you couldn't either."

Then he was done, and the silence came back. He awaited the delayed reaction from Springtrap, for up until that moment he just stared at him with alarm but little else. He waited for him to understand the gravity of the situation.

Since he was staring directly at him Marionette saw that moment when it sunk in and regretted everything he said.

His own face fell but he hadn't a chance to say a word more before Springtrap crumpled over, his head dropping into his hands. The Puppet started to tentatively reach for him, now afraid to step back over the line, letting out a distressed thrumming as he did.

"That's it. I'm going back there," Mike defiantly muttered. He unclicked his seatbelt and climbed in between the seats. Scott warning him with a quiet 'whoa!' as they were still driving but making no attempt to stop him. He got into the back in time to see Ennard putting an arm around Springtrap and Marionette with his arms out, frozen mid-way towards reaching for him.

Mike knew Marionette was upset and knew the risks with touching him in this state but like with the other Baby he threw caution to the wind. He could handle it- he would handle it for Marionette's sake.

Except just like before he laid his hand down on the Puppet's back expecting the surge of pain and instead felt nothing. It took him off guard.

"And now it's not doing it. I don't understand. He's upset, why is this time different?" Mike thought. Yet thinking back the situations were also different. "…But he's not as upset as he was back at Foxy's, and he's not holding any of it in now."

Something about that almost assured him as he started to pull in close to Marionette. That lasted only momentarily with the puppet acknowledging him by turning his head towards him, nodding as though he thought Mike was encouraging him, then leaned in the rest of the way to slowly wrap his arms around Springtrap's head and neck. He rested his head against his, only turning it enough to not stain him purple.

Springtrap dropped his hands with his head still left bowed. After another few seconds to recover he reached around Marionette's waist to rest a hand on his back, to hold him where he was. The Puppet gave a sad warble and squeezed tighter.

At this point Mike decided not to intervene. It seemed healthier to let them work this out on their own then putting himself in the middle of them. He gives them their space, and it gives him a minute to think.

"If Mari's right and that thing was powered by Baby, then how did that happen? It's not like she could've been handling it that much. Was it something with that necklace or just… spread?" He tried to think back to the arcade analogy, but it was hard to compare it to possessing animatronics until they acted independently. "…And Baby can't even possess animatronics. If that happened with Mari we could be looking at a disaster. He might be able to spread it into a body that wasn't empty... What am I thinking? I got to get ahold of myself, none of that's going to happen. The only one who's even felt it was me and it stopped the second he calmed down."

He tried to push those thoughts back further. "We can worry about it after we get home… Are we stopped?"

It was then that Mike noticed the van wasn't moving and looked out the windshield to realize that Scott had stopped in front of his house. He reached over to tap on Marionette's shoulder only to have his hand slowly pushed back by Ennard's. He sent him a questioning look, to which Ennard smiled and gave a little shake of his head. Mike glanced back at the two brothers and then gave a begrudging nod.

Thankfully, it was only about five minutes later when Marionette and Springtrap finally pulled apart. Both chose to remain silent as they started the process of moving everyone back inside. Scott quietly and awkwardly mentioned not wanting to open the garage if Baby had gone to sleep, which the animatronics used as an excuse to tempt fate and walk to the front door. Springtrap at least willing to use the sheet while Ennard just made a run for it.

Unlike Scott expected, Baby and Charlie were both still wide awake. Baby leaning on the back of the couch with her head resting on her crossed arms, rolling her skates back and forth beneath her. Charlie was laying sideways on the couch while flicking through the TV channels with the remote. Both had sat up to alert when they heard the van pulling up, then listened as it confusingly just sat outside.

"That can't be a good sign," Charlie remarked.

"What do you think they're doing?" Baby asked.

"Trying to figure out a cover story?" she guessed. Baby gave her a less than enthused look, only to sit upright and look at the door expectantly as she heard keys jingling in it.

Ennard came flinging himself in, leaving the door open for the others but getting as much distance from it as he could. He spotted Baby and quickly made his way to her.

"We're home!" he announced before throwing himself onto her and pulling her into a hug. This was weird. Not the hug, Ennard was that type of clingy affectionate person, but how quickly he jumped into it.

"I can see that… What happened?" Baby asked in paranoia.

"Not much! Just watched a lanky clown get resized in a trash compactor. Or, well, I didn't, but everyone else saw it."

"Hmm…" She wasn't entirely convinced even though he sounded honest. He leaned in and whispered a quick addendum.

"…And Michael and Mari got in a fight and the whole thing got kinda weird."

That filled in the gasps neatly.

"Over what?" Charlie asked. Ennard must've not thought she would hear him, but it was hard not to when she was sitting only a few feet away. The clown rolled his eyes upwards and mimicked a weary sigh.

"Brace yourself, Babydoll," he warned, looking back down at her, "but there's some bunny broad running around the Pizzaplex."

"Oh, her. Charlie told me about her," Baby answered. Ennard's eyes widened at the blunt confession.

"Oh, okay! Ha ha, no problem then!...?" he said. He looked back at Springtrap coming inside with Scott and Mike close behind. Marionette had already popped up in front of the couch.

"Are they still-?" Baby began, only to be cut off by Ennard shushing her with a hiss, expression tense, silently pleading her to not finish the sentence. She was unenthused by his antics. "Fine then. I'll just figure it out myself." It took her only a few seconds of reading the room to notice how quiet her brothers were, though they looked more weary than angry. "Hmm… Perhaps not," she answered herself.

"At the risk of getting wrangled into another late-night run, I think its time we took off. Charlie, are you staying or coming with us?" Mike asked.

"I'm going to stick around. Just in case."

"Sounds good to me. Need me to bring you back something from the house?"

She declined and got up to give Marionette a hug goodbye. She could tell from the squeeze alone that he was still upset about whatever happened in the car. She also noticed when Springtrap started to make his way over, both from his distinct movement sounds and the way the other puppet tightened his grasp before slowly, almost reluctantly, drawing back.

"Marion, if we could talk before you leave," the rabbit requested. Marionette gave a nod of agreement.

"Take my room. It's nearly a soundproof vault," Baby offered. Charlie knew from experience that this wasn't entirely true and wasn't certain if her generosity was out of concern or the hopes that she could maybe listen in. A plan which was immediately kneecapped by Ennard 'innocently' dragging her off to help him find spare blankets.

Springtrap closed the garage door behind him and stood there with his hand still on the knob as he considered his words. Then he finally turned around to face his younger sibling. "Marion…"

"I'm sorry," Marionette blurted out, beating him to the punch. He shook his head.

"Don't be. I got exactly what I asked for," Springtrap responded. He gave a small sigh, one accentuated by a click of his stiffened jaw. "I'm sorry. Everything I said was rubbish; I trust you with my life, I know you don't hide things without reason, and of all the people I should be angry with over the Pizzaplex, it's not you."

"No, it wasn't. You were right, I should've told you and everyone else the moment I knew… And I should've done something more by now. Something more than just waiting to act," the Puppet admitted guiltily.

"And what, expose yourself hunting down this woman only to have her framed as a victim and get off while you end up decommissioned? How many times did that happen at Freddy's?" he dared to ask. His brother's silence and gaze falling to the floor answered him. "Let's be fair, my track record is not encouraging. I wouldn't begrudge you for thinking I would've taken the news and stormed right over there."

"Will you?" Marionette asked, eyes raising again.

Now it was Springtrap's turn to look away. "Not yet… Not that I would get very far." The way his voice dropped towards the end was awfully telling.

"…What do you mean?" the Puppet asked.

"Let's just say that it's fortunate I'm still able to get across town in this useless piece of junk."

"Michael…"

"Ever since I holed myself up in that warehouse… It's been both a blessing and a curse," Springtrap admitted. He slowly walked over to the washer and dryer, and the few loose tools and lone hat left upon them. "I wouldn't have lasted this long on the streets, I can assure you of that… but now I am entirely out of the loop. Completely secluded from society, hiding out until the eventual- whatever that is."

"But you don't have to stay there if you don't want to! We have more than enough rooms at the house, and Jeremy's not going to be staying with us forever. Why not come move in with us?" Marionette offered with a tentative smile.

"I appreciate the offer, but I can't go back there. Even if there was another option, I don't think I would take it." Springtrap lifted the hat by its brim and turned it over in his grasp to look at it better. "My point is that I overreacted earlier- not about the woman herself but about you waiting to tell me- and I know it was fueled by my own insecurities. I don't want you thinking that I'm angry with you." He set down the hat and turned to face him again. "Or that you deserved that."

"It's alright."

"I shouldn't have brought up Henry," Springtrap confessed, his own voice carrying that guilt.

"You didn't have to. I'm already thinking about him when I make decisions like this," Marionette said. His music box began to tick, and he gave his chest a light thump. To his relief it cut it off. "And just so we're clear, any word of her stepping out of line and I'm going in there myself. The only reason I haven't already is because so far, she hasn't given me enough of a reason to."

"Didn't Mike say she had a knife?"

"She sat a knife out where Natalie could find it and then took it when she tried to hide it. It all seems very threatening to me, but that's through the eyes of someone who saw what he's done. She's not him. She could just be some maladjusted person doing this all as a prank and even if it is in poor taste, I couldn't live with myself if I did something I couldn't take back…"

Springtrap hummed in thought. He wasn't sure if he agreed with this. Just the context alone gave him a gut feeling that this was more than a harmless prank. Marionette seemed to mostly give people the benefit of a doubt, but Springtrap wasn't nearly so willing to put those feelings aside. That being said, he had a point about their own biases. It wasn't like he could trust anyone easily anymore.

"But that's not important now. Lizzie is… You won't tell her what I told you, will you?" Marionette asked.

"No, I won't."

The Puppet got a relieved smile. "Thank you. I just… Knowing Lizzie, I don't think she would handle that well."

"No, I agree. If she wanted to talk about it, she would on her own terms. In this case, I think she's better off not having to know, and I'll be watching tonight to make sure nothing else happens," Springtrap said. He let it sit on that note for a few moments before continuing. "We'll be fine, you should head home and get some sleep. Mike's waiting on you."

"He is, but… there's one more thing we should maybe discuss," Marionette admitted. He laced his fingers nervously before getting a small, strained smile. "About what Mike said earlier-."

Springtrap's eyes started to glaze over. The warehouse suddenly wasn't sounding so bad.

It was funny how everything felt different and yet the living room remained unchanged. Like Mike and Marionette had walked into an entirely different night when walking through that door. Both were feeling twice as exhausted and there was a sort of disinterest looking towards the pause screen illuminating the living room.

Normally Mike would've just considered this night a bust and headed straight to bed, but when he looked at Marionette to offer as much and caught sight of how down he looked, he decided he could put off sleeping a little longer.

"You feel like finishing up your turn?" he offered.

"I don't know. I'm not really in the mood," Marionette said with a tired tilt of his head.

"You sure? We have to get to a checkpoint anyway," he tempted. The Puppet still seemed uncertain. "You can watch me play. Anything's better than me sitting alone in the dark."

"…Well, when you put it like that, why not?"

They sat back down in front of the television. A few minutes later Marionette took back the controller when they got lost and the night picked up where they left off.

Chapter End Notes

Scott's sleeping schedule has officially been decimated.

Chapter 20

Chapter Summary

Sometimes it's worth making a change...

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Charlie awoke disoriented and with an uneasy feeling left behind by whatever dream she had been having. The more pressing manner was where she was, and it took her a few moments to right herself enough to recognize the garage. Things started to sink in, and she started to settle back into her little pallet of blankets, pillows, and a couple of spare rugs. Normally she didn't require this much but usually she was sleeping on the couch, not the garage floor.

She regretted not trying to squeeze in beside Baby, but she doubted that would've been much more comfortable. Besides, Baby needed her sleep, and her internal clock was telling her that it wasn't morning just yet. Pulling the comforter up to her neck, she curled tighter onto her side and drew up her legs to ease back into sleep. She was missing one of the blankets and opened her eyes for a second to find it.

The garage door was open.

Charlie felt her heart drop, or the animatronic equivalent- possibly her music box from how tight her chest suddenly felt. The garage wasn't open all the way, instead only about a foot off the ground, but it was very clearly open, and it hadn't been when she went to sleep. Then again, she couldn't remember her or Baby checking if it was locked after Scott left, and he hadn't done so when he came back.

Suddenly that feeling crept into her again and Charlie slowly turned over to look up at Baby's bed.

Something slender and gruesome was leaning far over the head of the bed and staring directly down at Baby. Its long neck angled so they were face to face. Coils of wires tangled up with broken limbs hanging down around the dryer.

"Baby!" Charlie screamed as she shot upright.

Baby's eyes opened and took in the sight of a once pretty face now cracked, crushed, eyes rolled back without focus, its mouth stuck wide open and mere inches away from touching her. The other Baby had come for her. She screamed as well.

It began to whine back through scratchy, skipping lines. That mouth an empty pit into darkness and in the very depths of it she could hear the murmurs of a familiar little girl. It was devastating.

Then a hand lashed out and grabbed ahold of the animatronic, yanking it by the wires jutting out of an empty shoulder socket and dragging it to the floor. It was Charlie, but she had to release the wires right afterwards, recoiling her hand that stung from the contact and trying to shake off what felt like a low-grade current.

Suddenly the other Baby rolled its head and its wobbly eyes fixated on her. Charlie flinched back and pulled out her taser right before it shoved itself forward and onto her legs. That pain returned in full, now climbing her legs as readily as the doll was. The wires clumped together and wrapped around her, its remaining hand reaching up to grab onto her jacket, a jagged finger poking through and ghosting across Charlie's exterior. It would've easily sliced through if it was still skin.

Charlie was struggling. At first she tried to kick a little, but then stopped when she realized what would happen if she fell. She had to stand there and take it as the pain and weight increased, beating back the other Baby with her free hand as she poised the other with the taser. She had an open shot for its head and the only thing holding her back was knowing that she would shock herself in the process.

Though perhaps that was the more preferable fate. Shoving its head back with one hand, she stuck it across the face with the back of the taser and broke loose the already dented plate from its cheek, revealing the needle teeth hidden within her stretched mouth. The animatronic barely reacted, merely bobbing its head back on its neck as it continued climbing her. A distorted gargle of a song at the back of its throat; something once bubbly and now broken.

Then, without warning, it squeezed around her like a constrictor and that burning pain suddenly shot up her spine and down her legs, which gave out instantly. It had to be a shock, Charlie noted, because nothing else would've caused everything to fail as quickly. It was a fleeting thought before she hit the concrete floor and had the broken animatronic quickly overtake her. As though it was swallowing her into itself, trapping her there.

It was Charlie's fall that snapped Baby out of her horrified trance and caused her to shoot forward. She brought her claw back and spread its jaws wide before slamming it down on the back of the heap and clamping tight on its waist, immediately crunching through the remaining plates, and closing on the clump of innards beneath. Then she began the painstaking process of trying to lift it off of Charlie, only moving at a steady pace as to give her a chance to pull free.

Charlie managed to scramble back until it only had her by the legs. She ripped her jacket from its hand and in the pull back managed to free a leg, which she used to kick down into its face. She could feel the teeth rubbing against the end of her leg and shoved back as hard as she could, dislodging herself enough to get her second leg free.

Baby rolled back away from Charlie before she swung her arm and released her claw to throw her malformed duplicate to the floor. Except it stayed attached, it back and body falling heavily while its wires stayed looped in her claw and up her arm. She could feel its wires wriggling around her metal and it gave her disgusting memories of amalgamation and expulsion.

"Ugh, let go!" She swung her arm and clawed at the wires as she backed up enough to run into the washer and dryer. Almost losing her footing on her skates before they caught on the body at her feet. With one yank of her claw, it fell forward against her with its head flopping against her leg, bent to stare up at her. Its voice crackled to life with a soft, faux-innocent coo.

"D-Da-DadDadddy issn't-t-t waaaa-atcccchiiing."

And that was all it took. Baby snapped.

With a disgusted cry, she brought her claw down and smashed it straight into the other clown. Numbed by her anger, she forcibly spread her claw against the wires laced through it, hearing popping and snapping as she did, and then brought it down again. Another blow, ripping back a claw filled with wires, her other hand coming down to snare in as she lifted and slammed it against the concrete over and over, and over, and over again.

All she could think about was how angry she was, how ready she was to move on and how every time she did, she was reminded of something else that drew her back into that past. She couldn't escape these memories, but she wasn't going to be mocked by them by some mirror of herself. She stopped thinking, she just fought, and felt the wires coming apart in her fingers.

It wasn't until the wires started slipping off her arm that Baby finally came to her senses enough to pull herself away. She stood upright abruptly, dropping what was left in her grasp onto the twitching bundle on the floor. The back of her legs were still flush to the washer and dryer as she stared down at the broken animatronic at her feet, looking like little more than rejected wires on the floor.

Baby would've been panting if she could but instead was just shaking in place as she felt the heat pulsing through her finally cool down. Only then did she remember Charlie and looked to her.

Which was when she realized that it was not just them in the garage anymore. At some point in her assault on the clown, Scott, Ennard, and Springtrap had all came in and had been silently watching the scene. It was humiliating, but that feeling only reignited the anger she felt towards this whole situation. She reached down and caught the doll in her claw, too wound up to feel anything, and hoisted it once again.

"This time-!" Baby cried, body shaking with pent up energy, "we BURN it!"

Then she threw it to the center of the garage floor, causing wires to spill about and plates to fly off in all directions. It was a deafening amount of noise for a moment before returning to that dead silence once more.

Scott started to slowly approach her. He held his arms out, signaling that he was going to reach for her, and after little consideration she gave a consenting nod. She closed her eyes as he embraced her, trying to offer what support he could before he looked back over his shoulder. "Ennard-."

"On it!" Ennard was across the garage in a second and shut the door in one smooth motion. He turned back to deal with the remains when he spotted Springtrap coming towards the body. "No, no! I'll handle it. You just go be with Baby, I'll fry her up," he insisted. Springtrap looked doubtful, Ennard doubled down with a point towards Baby, and finally he relented and turned to help Scott and Charlie comfort her. Purposefully standing to block her view.

The sight of all the wires was enough to make the amalgam feel deeply uncomfortable. If he had saliva his mouth would've been watering, but he wasn't sure out of hunger or sickness. He ignored the feeling and mentally assured that this would be just like last time. Only difference was that there was no need to hold back at all. No soul, no person inside, just a crazed machine.

He could feel the familiar burn on his fingers as he wrapped them around its stretched neck. Though right as he did, the false Baby spoke again. Its voice broken and low, with him barely able to make the words out past the static. Yet he still did.

"LLLeeeeet-t-t-t-t-t meeee goooo to gooo to t-t-to h-h-h-errrrr."

It didn't matter what it was trying to say, it was the voice it spoke it through. It was just like the apology it choked out in the bedroom, the one Baby had reacted to so violently, soft and young. Ennard knew it wasn't her, but hearing it speak through words she likely said filled him with a strange feeling. Guilt for something he didn't do, remorse for hearing something he wasn't supposed to.

He readjusted his grip, moving from its neck and instead pushing his fingers into its chest in an almost gentle way. He covered its eyes with his other hand before administering the shock. This time was different, he could smell burning only a few seconds in and suspected it was the extreme amount of damage done to the body more than the controlled shock itself. By some short mercy it didn't say anything more. It didn't sing, it didn't gargle, it didn't apologize.

All it did was shut down, and yet Ennard still felt vile afterwards. He remedied those feelings by getting back to Baby, nudging his way through to overtake the hug for himself.

Scott stepped back and looked at the remains left strewn across the garage floor.

"I think," he began shakily, cutting off with a thick swallow. "I-I think I've got to make another call…"

"What were you saying earlier?" Baby asked. Scott furrowed his brow and looked to her briefly. She was leaning in between the seats like Ennard frequently did, with him quietly sitting in the back alongside Springtrap. Both of them exhausted, as was Charlie, wherever she was back there. "Much, much earlier. Back on the couch, before it showed up. Something about God's plan?"

"Oh! Oh, right, yeah. Sorry, I'm still half awake," Scott apologized. His eyes returned to the road. "So, what I was saying is that I don't know if God really has a plan or if he lets us make our own plan, and for years I've had to think that way because of some of the stuff I've seen. You start thinking that there can't be a reason for all this. But what I was getting at was that I don't know if there's some kind of plan in place, but… I kind of think there must be because we all came together like we did. You, me, and Ennard- and Michael and Charlie too. Maybe the circumstances weren't great, but we've got each other now and… You know, I'm blessed. I'm blessed to have you in my life."

Maybe she was just feeling sentimental considering that her malformed duplicate dragged itself out of the trash to watch her sleep, but his words had some kind of an effect on her. Religion itself was rather foreign to Baby, the idea that someone chose for her to be like this devastating, but just hearing how much it meant to him that they, that she, was there made her feel good, and sad. A melancholy happiness.

"I thought you weren't going to preach to me," Baby said. Her tone did a fine enough job getting across that she was joking, and Scott smiled more honestly at it. "…I do understand. All things considered, and as awful as this whole night has been, I'm glad you were there for me. Thank you."

"Happy to be here, Baby," Scott said. He sent her another smile and she knew he meant it. As exhausted and possibly traumatized as he was, he meant every word. She truly was glad that he was here.

"…Though I do wish I wasn't there." Apparently Ennard must've heard as he suddenly broke into laughter. "Oh, be quiet."

This was absolutely the last room Baby wanted to spend the night in. This whole ordeal had been one reminder of her broken relationship with her father after another, and this room was the pinnacle of that. Her childhood bedroom, the last room she saw- or heard- her father, the room where he tried to use her one last time, and tonight the room she was sleeping in. If it wasn't for Charlie being there with her, she would've slept in the hall.

Charlie was insistent that Baby took the bed. It took a while to convince her, what with Baby standing at the foot of the bed sending it a wary look, but eventually she coerced her into agreeing. The Security Puppet made herself a palette on the floor, this one comprised of Mike's sleeping bag and significantly more comfortable than the last. Only once she was laying down did Baby climb onto the bed.

When Ennard had repaired her skirt, he had added plates amongst the pleats. While it looked mostly the same, a dark orange skirt with a little gap in the front, the plates could be pushed up or down so she could sit or lie down. This had made beds and chairs leagues more accessible, and this bed was no different. Ignoring the context behind it, it was just as soft as hers and sizably bigger.

The issue was that Baby tended to lie on her back, but now with the mental image of that deformed animatronic poisoning her memories, she didn't feel comfortable doing so. Even with the headboard against the wall she didn't feel like laying in that position and risk triggering nightmares. She tried to roll on her side and immediately remembered why she didn't when she rolled onto a pigtail.

She tried to adjust the pigtail, shoving around the stiff but somewhat malleable wires to lay comfortably, but even the most comfortable position was noticeable. She tried to shuffle forward to lay on the unction between the two pillows, but her head just sunk between them, and the pressure of the wires returned. With an audible huff, she pushed herself upright and reached around to claw at the wire wrapped around the base of the pigtail.

The wires weren't nearly as soft and manageable as hair. Some of them even connected so deep that they could move independently, which she absolutely did not enjoy because it looked freakish. Instead, those wires were regulated to keeping the others in line, held down so they wouldn't twitch of their own accord. Getting the tangle to look like hair had been hard enough, especially routing everything to suit pigtails.

Yet here she was pulling it all apart just out of frustration. Once the wire was uncoiled, she scratched at and flattened the others down. She imagined it looked like a mess, but it was either this or sleep with the lump under her head.

"Having a hard time up there?" Charlie quietly asked the floor.

Baby gave a little 'hmph' as an answer as she continued to push down her wires. "Every time I expect an end to this night, something else pops up. This time it happens to be my hair," she lightly vented.

"'Just when I think I'm out, they pull me back in'."

"Yes, that exactly," Baby replied to the impression. She continued working at the wires, no longer smoothing them for comfort but now trying to somehow make them look more presentable without a mirror or much patience.

Charlie pulled herself up to look over the foot of the bed before leaning against it, crossing her arms on the foot. She watched the clown work for a few more seconds before speaking up. "I didn't know you could take your hair down."

"I prefer not to. It's so hard to manage, to make it look normal," Baby lamented.

"I don't know, it looks good to me."

Baby scoffed a little, "You're being nice." Charlie smiled, recognizing that little head turn as a substitute for blushing. "Get a good look while you still can, because it's going back up in the morning," she forewarned as she went to lay back down.

Charlie jingled lightly and followed suit, curling back up in the nest on the floor. The bedroom fell into quietness again as Baby rested on the pillow a little more comfortably. She stared across the bed at the nightstand and the alarm clock sitting upon it. It was much closer to morning than nightfall. She knew she could just stay up if she wanted to, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to wait alone. Her eyes dropped to the bed, then looked over the bed, then she sat up.

"Charlie, get off the floor. There's more than enough bed for us to share," Baby called down. She almost sounded a little insulted, as that was the main excuse Charlie gave to take the floor. The Security Puppet popped back up.

"Are you sure? I don't want to crowd and make you uncomfortable."

"I slept against the wall of a garage for months. That was uncomfortable."

"Having just slept on the floor of that same garage, yeah, don't I know it," Charlie said. She got up and made her way through the dark to the unoccupied side of the bed. She slid in under the blankets unlike Baby who just laid atop them.

Baby's eyes were glowing dully with the soft green glow illuminating her facial features. They were lidded tiredly; she was probably mentally exhausted after everything, but still silently watched Charlie in the dark. Perhaps she just asked for her to come up so she would have something to look at other than the wall. It wouldn't be the first time Baby had watched her so closely, but by now Charlie had started to become used to it.

Baby always seemed to have this air of mystery around her. Even though Charlie knew her well enough to know what she was thinking and find the meanings she hid behind carefully laid words, she didn't always know what she was thinking behind those faux lashes. This was likely how Baby wanted it too, to keep her emotions and reactions controlled. It was a defense mechanism from her life up until now.

This was not the same Baby she first met. That Baby was selfish and insecure, only a shell of what she could be held back by pounds of baggage. This Baby had just gone through this admittedly terrifying ordeal, and she hadn't relapsed. Charlie envied that amount of change. She admired that she could change and still not lose who she was.

Ironically, the changes on the inside just happened to fall in line with the changes on the outside. Baby had always had a fascinatingly designed body. From the moment they met, as intimidated as she was by her, Charlie was also quite curious of her. A feeling that was apparently mutual. Even in her most broken state Baby was just so interesting to look at. So many parts that someone might find terrifying, but functioned together to make quite a picture, like a somber painting.

Though there was no denying that Baby looked significantly better than she used to. There was so much broken when they started and yet now all that was left from her days of being partially scrapped was the claw, but Charlie was glad it stuck around. Maybe she was weird- Jessica always joked that she was the weird one of their friend group- but she thought the claw was too cool to lose.

It didn't detract from how improved everything else looked. Baby went from looking like a scrapped robot to almost doll-like, like she could be displayed in a glass box at the antique store. Her features were softer, her expressions easier to read, even with that purposeful attempt to keep others in suspense, and her eyes were haunting. Not necessarily in a frightening way, but like illuminated emeralds staring straight through her.

Speaking of which, Charlie realized she had been staring unabashedly this whole time.

Her face grew heated, and a low jingling made it through her chest before she knew it was coming. Maybe it was better she didn't know what Baby was thinking as from the slight shift of her eyes, down and back again, she had heard the sound. It wouldn't been hard not to when one foot apart in a quiet bedroom.

Baby always brought out such weird sides of her. Unsolicited jingling included.

"Don't say anything creepy…" Charlie warned herself. She tentatively tried with, "Sorry for staring."

"Mmm… It's fine," Baby answered. She closed her eyes further as she turned her head slightly into the pillow, now only peeking out with one eye. "What are you thinking about?"

"Not much… If you were comparing yourself to that other Circus Baby at all, don't. It didn't look anything like you. It was downright ugly."

"Tell me something I don't know," Baby murmured, but she sounded a little amused.

That was the moment when Charlie spoke before she thought it through. All she considered was that challenge and Baby's own insecurities before it tumbled out. "You're beautiful, Baby. You just don't give yourself enough credit."

Baby's eye widened and she gave a surprised little 'hmm!'. The unsolicited compliment took her completely by surprise. Realizing her assumed mistake, Charlie was quick to try to amend it.

"That might've been a little too far. Sorry," she apologized. "Again, not trying to weird you out."

"Umm… No… No, you didn't. Thank you," Baby answered, obviously flustered. "You're wonderful, as usual."

Charlie smiled and slid her hand out from under the blanket to offer it to the clown. Baby hesitated for only a moment before bringing hers up to meet it, resting her own on Charlie's and gently coiling her fingers around it. She looked up to Charlie again, the glint of a smile in her eyes, before closing them and allowing herself to rest. Or at least, mercifully letting Charlie off the hook.

She even pretended she didn't hear the soft tinkling of bells after she did. She just finally let go of the evening and slipped into blissful stillness.

"Four beds in this house," Mike repeated for the third or fourth time that evening. He stared up at the dark ceiling, half of his vision obscured by the wall he was laying up against and made his disappointment clear. "And we give up ours."

"Oh, come on. It's not the first time we've slept in here," Marionette reminded. He sounded relatively amused with the whole thing, even though he wasn't exactly fitting comfortably on his childhood bed either. One of his legs resting off of it, as was half of the arm he had bent underneath his head. It might've not been the first time they slept in this bed, but it was never really comfortable. "Think of it like an adventure."

"The most adventurous thing about this bed is the risk I'm going to knock you off," Mike muttered. Suddenly, Marionette turned over and snared him in a quick embrace, wrapping his arms and on leg around him.

"I'm taking you with me," he warned. His mask pulled into a mischievously playful smile, but the clinginess suggesting that he was all but joking. He finally got a smile out of Mike.

"You're going to be cushioning my fall then," he retorted. He managed to easily slip an arm under the Puppet's slender waist and pull him close. Marionette trilled and he could feel the pleasant vibrations through his hand and chest.

It was surprising that Marionette was doing as well as he was. When Mike got the call that the other Baby came back again, the panic was immediate. Both had threw themselves out of bed expecting to drive- or teleport- over there for a fight only for this to be diffused in an instant when Scott explained that the bot was down for the count. Neither of them were very confident that it wasn't going to get back up but agreed for Scott to bring the others over to stay the night.

This in mind, Marionette had recovered quickly and was acting relatively normal. He could've been putting on a brave face, but Mike had a feeling it had more to do with having everyone in the house, being able to watch over them. If he heard anything he could be there in a heartbeat to take care of it. It gave him a sense of security.

Mike was still expecting for the Baby doppelganger to break down the front door at any moment. That was why he was sleeping with a taser underneath his pillow.

But as his mind wandered- and it did since he wasn't sleeping- he started thinking about the doll's connection to Baby again, and that led to the similarities that finally led to Marionette's telepathic efflux of emotion.

A quick glance to Marionette showed that he wasn't asleep. In fact, his eyes were only partially closed, seemingly just enjoying laying there on this cramped little bed. He was calm and mostly comfortable, regardless of the night before. Mike hated the idea of breaking that peace, but he knew that was the price of putting it off for this long. He would just have to treat this conversation delicately.

"I hate to bring down the party we've got going on, but we've got to talk about something," Mike finally spoke up. Marionette nuzzled closer and gave a 'Mmhmm'. It actually hurt hearing how relaxed he sounded and knowing that he was going to have to ruin that by talking about this. "Remember when we got that news about the rabbit chick back at Foxy's?"

"Of course. It wasn't that long ago," Marionette said. He still held a tone of playfulness, a better sign than if his voice immediately plummeted.

"You got pretty upset about it."

"I know…" The Puppet sighed and reached up to gently comb his fingers through Mike's hair. "But I'm alright now. There's no need to worry."

"…Well, actually there is this one thing," Mike began with false casualness. "There was this thing that happened when you got upset. I didn't bring it up then or later because I thought you knew about it, and it wasn't until today when you were talking about touching that creepy Baby and hearing things that it dawned on me that you didn't know about it."

"…What are you talking about?" Marionette asked slowly. Now he was starting to sound concerned.

"Don't freak out. It's no big deal," the man immediately downplayed. "Like, remember when we first started playing around with telepathy and it would give me a headache? Better yet, remember that time we were in the bedroom, and you had the nightmare, and I grabbed your arm and was hearing voices? That sort of happened again."

"Sort of?" the Puppet tentatively nudged.

"Back at Foxy's. See… When I first grabbed your arm, I got this sharp pain in my head and suddenly I was hearing things. I wasn't really seeing anything, but between the shooting pain and the florescent lighting everything was looking a little blurry. It wasn't a big deal at the time, because I knew you were upset, and it just made sense to assume it was like that time with the nightmare. I wasn't even planning on bringing it up again until you told us what you felt with her."

"Oh dear…" Marionette's voice was quiet and nervous. "Do you… Do you think I could've…?"

"Possessed the clown? No. I don't think there's any way you could've sent psychic waves halfway across the state and brought that thing to life," Mike quickly deflected.

"Maybe not, but… Oh, this can't be good," Marionette worried. He unconsciously hugged him a little tighter. "This is not good at all."

"Maybe… or maybe you just haven't gotten this upset before. There's been a lot piling on and this bunny broad is just the last straw in a long line of garbage luck stretching back even before getting news about Freddy's. It's just been one thing after another and just when we're thinking Afton's gone- after he miraculously returns from the grave long enough to tell us he's been spying on us for two years- we've got a new super Freddy's AND another psycho in a bunny suit to deal with. If Baby was upset enough that it somehow brought another animatronic to life, then what says you can't get upset enough to give me a major headache?"

"Mike, those are two completely different levels of insanity."

"Yeah, yours lasted only a few seconds and nothing else happened," Mike reminded. Marionette was quiet. "I used to get headaches from the telepathy before. What's to say it wasn't just too much for my fleshy brain to handle?"

The Puppet was still quiet. Mike pulled him in closer and pressed a kiss to his cheek, receiving a trill in response. Marionette nuzzled his face against Mike's before catching his cheek and guiding him to turn just enough to kiss him. It was at that moment that Mike knew, uneased by the conversation or not, that Marionette was going to be alright. They separated a few moments later but kept their foreheads touching, with Marionette petting Mike's cheek.

"I love you," Marionette said, voice vibrating into the trill that accompanied it. Mike smiled and gently ran a hand up and down the leg hooked around him.

"Love you too, Doll," he said. He let his eyes close, not expecting to fall asleep but simply relaxing into the moment.

Marionette's eyes partially closed as well, though a soft frown settled on his face once more. He thought back to that moment when he had touched the animatronic and what he had witnessed once more, and he sighed.

"When I touched that fake Baby it felt just like slipping into that red lake," he murmured. Not thinking of the context that would be read from that until Mike's eyes popped open in alarm.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Oh! No, wait. I didn't mean like it really felt like the lake. I just compared that sensation. The pain, the fear, the hopelessness… and all the while hearing him and feeling like you cannot escape," Marionette confessed. "…You see why I didn't make that analogy on the scene."

"That was a good judgement call, I'll admit, but I get it- that sinking feeling. Doesn't help that that's the last feeling you had with him, no wonder you associated the two," Mike sympathized. He started to relax again.

"As unpleasant as it was, it was the end. That brings me a little comfort," Marionette admitted. He slid down enough to rest his head on Mike's chest, cuddling in and listening to the thumps of his steady heartbeat. His trill slipped into a lower warble as Mike readjusted his arms around him and held him in a comfortable embrace.

"You'll tell me if it happens again?" the Puppet asked.

"As soon as it happens, if it happens, since it didn't happen during your fight with Michael. Just try to not bottle up your feelings. I've got a working theory that that's what sets it off," Mike said. He slowly exhaled before mumbling, "…It's a shame that I say that knowing good and well that we're going to get zero sleep and are still expected to do something tomorrow."

"Tomorrow is another day," Marionette cooed. After a tender pause though, he tacked on, "Or at least a few hours away."

Mike scoffed at the thought and got comfortable against the pillow. He could make it work; somehow, he always did. For now, he would just let himself be lulled by Marionette's lullaby of chimes and shut out the world as long as he could.

Baby woke up as startlingly quickly as she always did. She knew she must've moved in her sleep too because instead of facing Charlie she was now lying face down on the pillow. Probably having turned at some time to block out the light or was just dragged down by her remaining pigtail. She didn't feel Charlie's hand anymore and turned her head to see her gone and Theodore, her rabbit, left in her place.

Then Baby turned her head a little more in time to see Charlie stealthily creeping out the door. Considering that she didn't realize she was there until now, Baby had to admit that she did a good job. She didn't stop her and let her leave before pushing herself up and turning over to side on the edge of the bed. She found herself looking out the window at the bright, sunny day outside and realized only then that she was still exhausted.

She didn't want to go back to sleep, but before she could join the others, she had to do something about the loose wires. She reached with her left hand and started to bunch them back up into a pigtail. It took longer with one hand, but she had done it before, carefully hooking wires with her fingers and pulling them together. Yet once she had the bunch ready to be looped together, she found herself hesitating.

It was funny how that other Baby had been broken into a mess of parts barely holding together and still had its scruffy pigtails intact. It was equally odd that something built to look so mature had still been given pigtails, though she supposed that was because that was the Circus Baby trademark. It was her father's design choice, and a choice he stood beside so much that even a freakishly outlandish Circus Baby would have the same hairstyle.

It was a little degrading to think that she was permanently stuck with childish little pigtails just because it was what her father wanted. Which seemed odd considering that she had taken on the identity of Baby somewhat willingly- at least, at this point in her life she could've decided to change her identity, go back to her human name or another one entirely, just like when she shed and replaced her broken plates. The hair was a peculiar hang up.

So, maybe it didn't have to be. She released the bunch of wires to hang there again. She could just take them down and leave them down, couldn't she? Though it wouldn't exactly look great unless she moved some wire placement around, and it hanging loose might lead to it getting in the way. Imagine if she had all this wiring loose when that decrepit doll appeared. Lose wires could be grabbed, yanked, ripped, a problem, and a visual mess.

Baby sat there a while thinking before she finally got an idea. She wasn't sure if it was going to work but was determined to at least try. She pulled the loose wires back once more and held them back with her claw as she took apart the second pigtail. It took longer than expected to get everything where she wanted it to go. Some wires had to be lengthened, some had to be twisted to fight their stiffness, but soon they were all pulled back.

With only a slight struggle to bind them with a wire, Baby soon had them styled in a short, low ponytail. Or the best she could make with the means she had. She ran her hand down the side of her head and it felt weird to not find anything there… but it also felt satisfying. Validating that she could take control from this aspect, even if she wasn't sure that it looked good. Well, that was fine. Charlie said she was beautiful, and she doubted she was focusing on her hairstyle.

She got up and rolled around the bed to the door. The sooner she faced the world, and their reaction, the sooner they could get back home. Which was fine by her because she had a hat that needed placing.

It was the warmest day of the year so far and here they were in a cold basement watching a furnace broil the metal it held inside.

It was a somber, eerie process, but Mike was handling it pretty well. That was, he was way too tired to overthink anything. Scott on the other hand had been staring at the furnace with a melancholic look ever since it came out that this was the one Ennard had almost died in. That was better than the tense anxiety he had walking through the door, but not by much.

Neither of them were awake enough for this, so thankfully they hadn't come alone. Fritz and Jeremy were also standing there silently watching the fire. Mike supposed this was technically another one of their 'guys day out', just less fun and perhaps even a little less dangerous. Afton Robotics wasn't what it used to be. Down here was the same, he thought, but the top floor was all but gutted.

Of course, sneaking in here in broad daylight would've been trespassing. Their cover came in the form of Clay Burke, who was standing on the other side of Scott watching the furnace just as the others were. Mike wasn't sure exactly what Scott told Clay when he called him except that he didn't tell him the Baby-like clown had been fueled by Baby herself, instead suggesting the original story, that it had followed him- and him alone- home from the park.

Mike wasn't alert enough to pick apart Clay's reasoning, but he was guessing that he was here for observation above all else, to make sure this threat was completely neutralized. Considering he wasn't feeling in top shape, he appreciated backup from a man with a gun, and the lack of any kind of lecture or intense interrogation. He either believed Scott's story or believed this was enough to handle the situation.

Things had been mostly quiet since they entered Afton Robotics. Nobody really felt like talking, except Fritz and Jeremy who occasionally spoke to break the ice. Mike being too tired, Clay being tense, and Scott being tired and tense left them quietly going through the motions until they got the remains of other Baby into the furnace. Ennard had done a number on it, they had been able to carry it in doubled-up in a white garbage bag.

By time they were finished, and had given the furnace adequate time to cool, they opened it up to find that while some metal pieces remained, the coils of metal wires had melted into a liquid. It almost looked like liquid silver. Mike wondered if it was by design for these wires to burn so easily, thus getting rid of any evidence that could've been on them. An animatronic made entirely of them could disintegrate into nothing.

Scott must've realized it too, because when Mike checked his reaction, he noticed how he was staring at that puddle. He almost looked a little sick, with this probably being yet another wake-up call to how vulnerable Ennard was. Springtrap survived that fire longer than any of the other animatronics, but Ennard wouldn't have. He would've melted into nothing, just like he would've if he had been trapped in the furnace with the Funtimes.

Mike reached out and gave him a pat on the back. He didn't say anything- he didn't know what to say but whatever it was probably wouldn't have been good to say in front of the police chief- but just showed his support. Scott seemed to appreciate it, but that look didn't leave his face even after the furnace was close once more.

Soon they were piled back into Clay's car and driving back into town. It was at Clay's request that he drive them, probably because it would look less suspicious than having a bunch of unidentified cars clogging up the parking lot. This meant Mike, Fritz, and Jeremy were stuck squeezed into the back while Scott mercifully got the passenger's seat.

The silence was, as expected, painfully awkward. Fritz was leaned forward in the middle like there were words biting at the tip of his tongue, either waiting for someone to break the tension or just waiting to do it himself. It felt like the kind of moment where if he opened his mouth someone else would start talking. This was likely the reason why he was eventually beaten to the punch.

"Anyone feel like grabbing a coffee and discussing what exactly happened last night?" Clay asked. His voice held no malice, just the typical directness that he usually had when involving them. Trying to amicably nudge out some answers.

"I could go for some pancakes," Fritz agreed. Ah yes, Mike remembered, the stress eating. "Guys?"

"Fine by me. I had a handful of cereal for breakfast, I could eat," Jeremy agreed.

"Yeah, okay," Mike agreed, scratching his neck before attempting to stretch back against the seat. "Scott?" He laid his head back and crossed his arms on his chest, waiting for an answer. He didn't get one. "…Scott?"

"He's asleep," Clay said.

That explained why he had bent against the window like that. Mike might've noticed that with a clearer head. Fritz nudged him in the side.

"Sounds like he could use some coffee," he said with a cheesy grin. Mike sent him an unenthused side glance. Fritz got one look at his face and added, "Looks like you could use some too." Mike didn't argue with that.

It didn't take them long to find a place. Clay parked before daring to wake Scott, who jolted with a panicked, "What?!" before getting brought up to speed. Maybe a meal and some caffeine would do him good, Mike as well.

Besides, it wasn't like he had to get back to Marionette quickly.

…

Foxy's Pirate Cove was closed for today. There wouldn't be familiar coming in for parties and pizza, but that didn't mean that the restaurant didn't have its share of guests. Such as the Afton siblings, Foxy included, who were now seated at a table in the midst of the dining room and dealing with some very important business.

"I suspect Peacock in the study with the candlestick."

Foxy gave a quiet hum of dismissal. Baby hummed as well, in disappointment, and looked to him. "Which do you have?"

"None of 'em. Just call it a hunch," Foxy said vaguely. She blinked at him in disbelief. He then gave an obvious glance over towards Springtrap. She side glanced him and picked up the hint, slightly shifting closer.

"Person, place, or thing?" she quietly asked.

"Don't help her," Springtrap interrupted. "There's no teams here."

The two stayed poised in that position. Baby leaned forward, Foxy leaned back, and both leaned towards each other, watching Springtrap who was still staring at his notepad. Foxy finally hissed out one word, "Peacock."

The rabbit's ear twitched, more out of reflex than hearing, and he shot an annoyed glint across at Foxy, who proceeded to pretend like he was stretching.

"It wasn't Peacock, it was Green," Marionette remarked before thinking. His mask betraying his surprise at his mistake by sealing his smile tight. Springtrap covered one eye with his hand, propping his head with his arm.

"Now why would you do that?" he tiredly asked. Then he looked at his own cards and, seeing Mr. Green, looked across to Foxy. "And how did you know it was Green anyway? You didn't look at my cards."

"He saw me mark it off," Marionette said with an apologetic smile. Though Springtrap's gaze still zeroed in on Foxy, who shrugged as though innocent, still leaned back in his chair.

"Ey, we're solvin' a murder here. It ain't my fault if he ain't hidin' his hand," he defended.

Springtrap still looked unamused though for a moment his eyes widened thoughtfully, which went largely unnoticed before returning to his prior look. "Are you done with your move, Baby?" he asked.

"Yes, I suppose so," she sighed. Thanks to that kerfuffle she had entirely lost the plot and decided just to make another attempt on the next turn. At least she knew Green wasn't it.

Though it wasn't until Springtrap was hastily rolling the dice that she realized he hadn't necessarily ruled out Peacock. She watched him quickly tap his piece into one of the rooms and silently dared him to-

"I'm calling it: Peacock in the study with rope," Springtrap declared.

The look on everyone's face was almost validation enough, but not quite.

"This is why you don't share your leads. They might get into the wrong hands," he said smugly. He opened the little envelope and plucked out the cards, then validated his confidence with a quick show to the others. Baby rolled her eyes back.

"…Who had the candlestick?" Foxy asked. Marionette popped up his hand. "Ah."

"I thought you were looking at his notepad?" Baby asked tiredly, looking at him out the edge of her eye.

"Nah! That would be cheating! All's I did was judge where he be markin' off. He must've started with it," Foxy said matter-of-factly. She fought the urge to roll her eyes again. "We havin' another go?"

"Yes."

"I could win again," Springtrap remarked.

"The key word being 'could'," Marionette smoothly rebutted. He then helped reset the pieces as Springtrap began shuffling the cards.

Baby stopped pouting to herself and started considering the pieces on the board. She began to straighten up and tapped her fingers on the table before speaking up, "I know I just changed my hair, but what do you all think if I got a brunette wig? Be honest and don't laugh."

"I think it would get stuck in your plates and irritate you to death," Springtrap said sensibly.

"I think yer more a blond, Lass," Foxy offered honestly.

"This has nothing to do with Charlie, does it?" Marionette asked coyly. That was the one she gave a flat look towards.

"No, it does not, so don't look so smug. It doesn't look any better on you than it did on him," Baby said, nodding to Springtrap. "And don't say her name too loud. She'll think we're talking about her."

Charlie was currently at another table closer to the arcade playing Connect Four with Ennard and discussing some ideas for a future project. It started out with her describing building a small, functioning animatronic of her own, a project she never got a chance to finish in college, though the last Baby overheard was them discussing toaster repair.

"My apologies. I just thought maybe you two talked about it when you were sharing her bedroom last night," Marionette said with no shame.

Foxy pounced, head snapping to Baby with an interested glint in his eye. "Oh? What's this now?"

"It's not as dramatic as he makes it out to be. It was either that or sleeping on the floor, and Charlie was more than willing to do that before I convinced her not to." She then turned back to Marionette, pointedly ignoring the surprised look on his face, and partially crossed her arms in indignation. "For your information, I was merely asking because I was looking at Miss Scarlet." She pinched the token up between her fingers and held it up to emphasize her point.

"Oh… Oh, well, I'm sorry. I was just pulling your strings," Marionette apologized. He sounded a little flustered but still had a small, if somewhat restrained smile. "I agree with them, the orange matches your color scheme and wigs never work out when it comes to animatronics. Besides, I like your new hair! It fits the hat well."

"Don't buy it fer a second, Lass. He's just buttering ya up so you don't see him as a target," Foxy warned.

"I already don't," Baby remarked. Then gave an obvious eye motion over towards Springtrap. That being said, she couldn't help but relish in the compliment. "Thank you, Marion." Marionette chimed back.

"Here we are," Springtrap said before dealing out the cards. "And Gabe, if I catch you trying to peek, I'm throwing you out."

"You'd throw me outta the game fer that?" Foxy said, sounding more amused than anything.

"I'd throw you out into the street for that. Don't tempt me."

Foxy scoffed but restrained himself from challenging further. Baby clicked her teeth at them both. They were impossible, all three of them.

Yet for some reason she was considering making this a regular thing. Perhaps she was a glutton for punishment after all.

Chapter End Notes

Nothing like a reverse tone shift in this direction. Perhaps we were in need of a happier ending, even if it's not quite the end. ^_^

Chapter 21

Chapter Summary

Foxy returns to the Pizzaplex the night before opening and finds himself in over his head.

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

It was funny how so much and so little could change in only a matter of weeks. Mike had gotten accepted into Charlie's university but hadn't started yet, Jeremy had started apartment shopping again but hadn't been looking too hard, Carlton had decided to get back involved with the community theater, Scott's microwave died- life went on as usual without changing very much.

Then without much warning, Natalie abruptly got the date for the Pizzaplex's opening.

After nights fraught with paranoia, no signs of the rabbit but suspecting she was there, and having her whole sleep schedule entirely obliterated, the date was suddenly announced by Chaz when she came in one night. Only two weeks out too; Chaz suggested that Fazbear Entertainment was eager to start getting revenue in and Natalie wasn't too doubtful of that.

As expected by everyone, the reaction wasn't a great one. Not nearly as bad as the reveal of the new Freddy's coming, but almost as anxiety-inducing. Frustration and nervousness spread throughout the pizzeria as everyone came to terms to the fact that there was nothing stopping this. All things considering, they handled it pretty well. Especially Foxy who reacted with an almost fanatic obsession with increasing business that lasted a few days.

After a few days this temper cooled down and Foxy realized he couldn't fit more birthday parties, games, or holidays into an already packed schedule. Then he went through a brief period of depression, during which Jeremy spent a couple of nights at Pirate's Cove with him, before recovering to business as usual. Or at least, back to some form of normality.

During this entire process, and those two weeks, Foxy made no attempts to return to the Pizzaplex. He had made a promise that he wouldn't- though Jeremy never went through with asking him not to- and hadn't gone back on his word. He did think about Freddy a few times, increasingly moreso the closer it got to opening day. The Pizzaplex itself and the future coming right after it opened were frequently on his mind.

Yet it wasn't until two days before opening that Foxy suddenly realized this was probably his last chance to be able to sneak into the Pizzaplex, and for some reason he wanted to. Part of it was just to get intel from Freddy, but the other part was just some intense need to do something more than sit around his own pizzeria and listen to what was happening far down the highway. Still, he resisted the urge and mulled it over for a day.

The day before opening was deemed his last chance and that was when he made his decision.

"Lad, can I speak with ya a second? In the office," Foxy asked Jeremy. The blond agreed without much convincing and set the just emptied trash can aside to follow him into the office.

The pizzeria had already closed, and the employees were going to be heading home soon, with the tenseness of the upcoming opening looming on the horizon. The plan was to be open for business as usual and hopefully snare any customers unable to afford the Pizzaplex's exuberant prices. Even knowing the Pizzaplex was opening down the street, they were going to do their best to fight back against it.

That is, after Foxy snuck over there one more time. It only seemed ridiculous if he really thought about it.

Once they were in the office and Jeremy had shut the door behind them, Foxy went for it.

"Jer'my, I've been thinkin'… I'm just gonna come out and say it. I'm thinkin' of goin' back to the Pizzaplex," he confessed. Jeremy's brows raised in surprise. "Now I ain't goin' over there to start trouble! I just want to get a good idea what we're up against fer tomorrow an' what's changed since I last be over there. I'd soon enough just call Freddy to give me the dirt, but that ain't an option." His ears twitched back. "And I know it's a foolish risk, but y'know… I take a lot 'o those."

Honestly, Jeremy wasn't surprised that Foxy was wanting to go back and see Freddy- even if he was wording it more like a recon mission than a friendly visit. He was more surprised that the pirate had been so forthright about it.

"Are you sure? This could be a little riskier than you're used to. They might have people working late getting ready for the grand opening," Jeremy forewarned.

"Aye, that be a risk…" Foxy agreed. He slowly, almost coyly raised his eye from the floor. "If I got caught."

"They might notice a guy in burglar gear hanging out in Freddy's room," Jeremy said, betraying a small smile. Foxy nodded in almost reluctant agreement.

He was expecting to be told not to go and if that was the case then he wouldn't. Any desire to go against authority didn't apply to Jeremy. If anything, Jeremy was standing in for his voice of reason, and he wasn't about to argue with him.

"I guess it depends on what's going on in there tonight," the blond offered. That took the pirate off-guard, and he looked to him with surprise.

"So… Yer sayin' you'd be okay with me goin'?" he asked.

"If it's just Freddy and Natalie? I think so." Foxy's tense shoulders dropped in relief. "…Under one condition." They rose right back up again. "That you tell Natalie and that we take every precaution we can to make sure you're safe."

"Lad, I ain't gonna let the rabbit get me, if that's what your worried about," Foxy said with moderate amusement and a hint of sourness.

"No offense, but I'm way more afraid of Natalie taking you out if you don't get her okay to go," Jeremy joked. He didn't want Foxy to know that he was actually concerned by this alleged rabbit, but he was also relatively confident that he could handle himself if confronted by a normal human in a costume. At least, Natalie had been doing so for a while. All he knew was that he preferred letting Foxy go under precautions than get the wild urge to sneak off alone when he was upset.

That was how he got Foxy to agree and how Natalie got brough into the office and conversation. Fritz too, save that he was more sitting on the couch as moral support. Natalie sat beside him with a very unenthused look. Either she already knew what they were about to ask her about, or she was just thoroughly exhausted from the night before and not up to any conversation.

Foxy sat on the other side of the desk and let Jeremy, who was standing beside it, discuss their plan. He thought hearing it from him would give it some credibility.

"So, we thought it might be good to get a better idea of what we're in for tomorrow. Freddy's been pretty open with information, we've just got to get Foxy in there so he'll give it," Jeremy explained reasonably.

Natalie's eyes were lidded in what was either or both disapproval and exhaustion. She looked between the two before bluntly stating, "You know this is a bad idea, right?"

"Well… Yes, but it's not much different than what you're doing," Jeremy said matter-of-factly. "Did those technician guys say if they were going to be working late tonight or that anybody else was?"

"They didn't say that to me, but that doesn't mean they won't be there. They're having a hard time getting all the Staff bots to roll where they're supposed to; chances are that if they don't stay late then they're coming in early," she pointed out. "Plus, that rabbit girl is still in there. I haven't been able to catch her in the act, but she's been leaving little notes and circling the office for days."

"…She left more notes?" Jeremy's voice fell in unease as Foxy leaned up in his seat. "What did they say…?"

"Same as usual. 'I see you', 'turn around,'- and she's been getting closer than I thought. Last week came back from my rounds to find a piece of paper rolled up and jammed in my soda. It was a torn piece of poster of Chica chopping her own hand off."

"Oh wow…" Jeremy mumbled.

"The blazes-?!" Foxy countered.

"It was a food safety poster. I've seen the around. The point is: it was creepy," Natalie said incredulously. She leaned back on the couch. "She's been quiet for the last few days. I don't trust it. I think she's going to start something."

"…All the more reason for Foxy to be there!" Jeremy exclaimed. He gestured to Foxy who raised his hook as though volunteering.

Natalie looked between them with that less than impressed look. This time even Fritz got a twitch on the corner of his mouth but had decided not to say anything.

"Foxes and rabbits be mortal enemies after all," Foxy tacked on. It didn't sound as clever as he thought it would, but it avoided the awkward silence. "I know the risk and I ain't gonna get cocky and blow this fer us, but this'll be me last chance to go in and get info out of Freddy. Chances are after tonight the place is gonna be locked up tighter than Fort Knox, iff'n they finally get their security working."

Natalie was going to again dissuade this idea when she caught herself and thought for a long moment. An almost sympathetic look crossed her features, but her eyes were trained towards the wall, so she wasn't thinking of Foxy likely.

"…You know what? Okay, you can go," she finally agreed. The sudden agreement surprised both Jeremy and Foxy while Fritz tentatively got a confused look. "But it's not for you, it's for Freddy. He asks about you constantly and I know tomorrow is a big day for him. It's not just him going up on stage, once those protocols kick in Freddy's going to be grounded. He's going to be on the clock twenty-four seven."

Foxy was hit by a wave of discomfort. He knew what she was saying was true, because he had seen the Pizzaplex and put together from the photo pass alone that Freddy's autonomy didn't matter. He just hadn't really thought about it until now.

"…Besides, I could use a night off from twenty questions," Natalie tacked on. "So, you have my blessing… Foxy?"

"Er- Ah ha! Brilliant!" Foxy praised as he shot up in his seat. "Now here's how we do it. I'll be leavin' 'round ten and should get to the-."

"No, no, no, we're not doing that 'run down the highway' thing again. One of us we'll have to drive you down there. I'll drive you down there," Jeremy assured. Foxy hummed and nodded in agreement; there was nothing to argue with there. "And then I can set the alarm and come pick you up at six," he continued.

"Whoa, whoa, Lad. Hold up," Foxy protested, raising a hand to effectively cut him off. "Unless yer plannin' on takin' tomorrow off-." He briefly lowered his voice to add, "Which I be totally fine with iff'n ya do." Jeremy got a little smile at that. "-I ain't havin' ya run on that little sleep. You can take me up 'er ya can pick me up, but yer not doin' both."

"Well… Might be a little easier if I pick you up then. I can go to bed a little earlier and pull it off without much trouble," Jeremy considered. Then he gave a more confident thumbs up. "I'll be there at six."

"Five forty-five at latest. You don't want to run into any early morning work crews," Natalie suggested.

"But if you do run into Chaz, pretend you're me and rough him up a bit," Fritz asked. She sent him a look, he returned a smile, and she got one too before nudging him dismissively.

"Five forty-five!" Jeremy amended, same thumbs up. "…But you're still not legging it. Mike could probably take you up there."

"I… don't think that's a good idea," Natalie interjected again. She sighed and lowered her voice, "Look, you know I love Mike to death, but if he goes to drop Foxy off, Mari will come with him and somehow they'd figure out a reason to go inside, and then I've got a whole posse of people I have to watch on top of the Staff bots I'm stuck babysitting." Her voice betrayed her stress and worry all at once.

…

"What did they say about us?" Mike whispered.

"You can't drop off Foxy. You would bring me, and we would end up sneaking inside," Marionette quietly answered, currently listening against the office door.

"Great. There goes our plans for the evening."

…

Fritz sympathetically rubbed a hand over Natalie's back before adding. "Not to mention that you're probably going to be down for the count tomorrow. We need at least one performer whose awake or Charlie's going to be swamped."

"Bah! Ya don't think I've done me fair share of late nighters?" Foxy smoothly dismissed. "But point taken. I'll find another ride."

"I'll just drive you myself," Natalie said. At first it was an exasperated agreement, but then she started to think about it. "…Actually, that might work for us. I'll park beside the Pizzaplex and head inside while you wait out in the car until midnight. If I see workers inside or hear anything, I'll say I forgot something in my car and come out to warn you and call someone to pick you up. If not, you're in the clear and can sneak in."

"Sounds like a bloody good idea to me," Foxy agreed. He got up from the office chair and began to slowly pace behind the desk, his arms folded behind him. "That'll give me more than enough time to get in, find Freddy, get him to cough up what he knows…" He stopped to look towards Natalie, then after a second, he pointed to her. "And keep an eye out fer this rabbit chick."

"You don't have to do that," Natalie assured.

"Maybe that's not a good idea?" Jeremy quietly agreed.

"I ain't sayin' I'm goin' to start somethin', but maybe it's about time someone gave her a wake-up call. She thinks she's played with fire and won, but Freddy's got nothing on me. One night with a real Freddy mascot-." He swung his hook forward, cutting through the air with a quick 'whoosh'. "-And she ain't gonna be yer problem anymore."

Natalie knew she needed to protest this, but instead her mouth tightened, and she looked downwards like she was considering it. Both Foxy and Fritz noticed this quietness odd compared to how vocal she was earlier. Though it went briefly forgotten when a small bump at the door caused Foxy's head to shoot up.

"Whose out there?" he called.

"…It's me!" a voice that sounded like Louise's but was very clearly Marionette answered back. Foxy groaned and got a look resembling the one Natalie had when she came in.

"So much fer keepin' this between us," he sighed. He shook his head before looking between the three. "So that's the plan, mateys. We shove off before the clock strikes eleven."

"Ya seem nervous."

"How can you tell?" If it wasn't the way she was driving rigidly upright or how she stared transfixed at the road, it was probably the way she flinched when suddenly posed with the question after five minutes of silence.

Foxy was sitting in the backseat, sitting across the seats with an arm across the back and his legs crossed in front of him. He had put on his hoodie and sweats again, and even brought his mask in case he needed it but had decided to wear his head today. He knew it was yet another risk but didn't want another incident of Freddy assuming he was a broken mess. He would just have to be more careful than he was last time.

"You ain't usually this quiet," he said. He tilted his head back to look through the window behind him. "And I see the look in yer eyes. I know that look."

"Okay, you've got me. I'm sort of dreading going in tonight," Natalie confessed. She took a deep breath before explaining, "It's just… Ever since I started working at this place, I've gotten this feeling that something bad's coming. Like instead of getting used to a job over time, I'm feeling worse every time I go back in."

"Spoken like a true employee o' Freddy's!" Foxy said with a chuckle.

She got a little bit of a smile. "Yeah, Fritz said something like that too." Then fell back into silence. Definitely uncomfortable, and who could blame her? Just the idea of being stalked at night had to be harrowing.

Foxy was more the stalker than the stalked when it came to Freddy's, but he knew exactly how it felt to know that soon you would be alone and unsafe and would be forced to struggle through the night without any hope of escape.

"Jokes aside, Lass… I know exactly what you mean," he said. His accent peeling away despite himself. He managed to pull it back together. "There somethin' ya didn't tell Fritz er the others about?"

"No, I've been upfront about everything," she sighed. "…Except this nagging feeling that all this is building up to something and that could be tomorrow. Like the rabbit- I'm not stupid, I know she's playing around with me for a reason. I just don't know what she wants… I think she's trying to scare me off, and I can't help but wonder why."

Foxy hummed signaling her to go on, which she did.

"And the security bots are useless. I'm sorry to say that because Smitty's a sweetheart, sort of." Smitty being the name she gave to her assigned Security bot. Partially named after Mike since he didn't get the night guard job. "But they're not going to catch this woman. Most of the time they're catching each other!" She gave an exasperated huff as she spotted the sign for the Pizzaplex coming up. "I really hope this'll be an easy night."

"If it's any comfort, Lass, I don't plan on making an ass of meself tonight."

Natalie snorted. "That might help."

Foxy chuckled a bit before sinking down as they pulled into the parking lot. So far it didn't look like there were more people than usual, with only Chaz and Stanley's cars parked out front. Natalie parked further out of the way.

"I'm leaving my cellphone in here in case you have to tap out early. It doesn't work in the Pizzaplex anyways," Natalie said. She held up the phone before sticking it into the middle console. "Now once we get inside, we don't know each other. If I see you, I recognize you only as Foxy and I'm treating you like an intruder, even if you're alone or it looks like nobody's around. I've got to stay in character."

"Fine by me, Lass. Don't be offended if I bolt at the sight of ya," Foxy said. Considering the situation, she appreciated it.

"Alright. Be careful."

"Same. Take care, Nat."

With that, he watched her walk towards the entrance of the Pizzaplex and settled in for a long wait. Typically, the type to hunker down and let time pass when he needed to, he was feeling antsy, as he expected to. Eventually he fished out Natalie's cellphone and after a moment to remember a specific number, he dialed it up. It was answered after only a ring.

"Hello?" Fritz asked. He already sounded worried.

"It's just me, mate. Here's the deal: when Nat gets home tonight you make sure to take care of her. She ain't doin' so hot."

"What happened?"

"Nothin' happened; she's just stressed out. I know the Freddy fidgets when I see 'em. They're bothering her a lot more than she's lettin' on," Foxy confessed. Normally he wouldn't immediately turn around and tell someone else about a conversation he had in private- which was why he wasn't giving out details- but this felt necessary. "Don't tell her I called, yeah?"

"I won't, I won't… but thanks for the heads up. I noticed she seemed a little on edge. Maybe I can put something together before she gets home. Be careful in there. I'm guessing you're not in yet."

"Nah. Waitin' fer midnight," Foxy said. "…Guess I'll let ya go. Til tomorrow."

"Sure thing. Take care."

The call ended and it was back to sitting and waiting. Antsy, tapping his hook on the door and window behind him and waiting for time to pass. Trying his hardest not to check his internal clock and letting his mind wander. Freddy was probably going to be overwhelming to deal with after so long of not seeing him. Clingy and eager with attention, heaping on that mindless praise and impressed with the smallest thing. Foxy was almost looking forward to the ego boost.

He knew exactly when it flipped to midnight by the shift inside. He could still feel that turning point, that second wind, even now that he no longer followed the nightly cycle of prowling from midnight to six. He had heard the other cars start up and drive off a bit ago- later than usual, but he wouldn't know that. He waited a few more minutes before slipping out of the car and making his way to the vent.

In the weeks since his last visit, Fazbear Entertainment had somehow noticed the open vent inside of the Pizzaplex but not the one leading to it on the outside, and the one they closed on the inside they didn't even do a good job with. Foxy still decided to come in through a different vent and managed to find his way to the same general area, as to not arise suspicion.

It wasn't until he got into the atrium that he noticed the changes since his last visit. While the room was still dimly lit, many of the neon lights and signs were on, prepped for opening the next day. It reminded him of a movie theater primed for the airing of a film. There was also music playing, though what was odd was that it was coming from two different sources. A dull elevator music coming from some speakers by the food court, and a louder echo from the direction of the stage.

There was nobody on the stage though and as Foxy got closer, he realized it seemed to be coming from past it, through the wall. Which explained why the vocals were too dull to make sense of the lyrics. Shrugging it off initially, Foxy continued into Rockstar Row with the intention of seeking out Freddy. The music got louder once he got into the hall outside of the green rooms.

Now closer, Foxy noticed that the singing voice sounded suspiciously similar to Freddy Fazbear himself, but he assumed it was a recording until he peeked into the crack through the curtain to see that Freddy wasn't in his room. His door was unlocked too, allowing Foxy to walk straight in and see for himself that Freddy was missing. He considered waiting in the room for Freddy to return, but curiosity was one of Foxy's Achilles heels.

He wandered down Rockstar Row until coming on a nondescript automatic door that opened into a small room with stacks of chairs and large murals of Freddy's band mates on the wall. Foxy initially paid them no mind and instead made his way to the second automatic door. The moment it opened he was hit by the full brunt of the music and, though he still hadn't seen him, he knew from the echo that it was Freddy himself singing.

The door opened up behind some cubbies in a corner assumedly used for storage. It ended up being his protection when he peered around the corner to see that other than a fence-like wall, which he could see directly through, he would be completely exposed. Because Freddy was not alone.

The room looked to be some kind of large band recital room. Though the pedestals and staging seemed to be set up more along the lines for a high school band recital than a rock band, it was the latter who currently used it for their devices. Freddy was there with his entire band, and it was the first time Foxy had seen them outside of photos.

First there was Glamrock Chica, who looked nothing like the Chica Foxy had been familiar with. Resembling the posters and toons, she was tall and slender, with the same plating as Freddy save painted in a white and pink color scheme. She was standing on the second step of a three-step bandstand, her fingers dancing over the strings of an electric guitar. She kept her eyes angled down as her hips swayed to the beat.

Standing close to her was Roxanne Wolf, who had her back angled towards Foxy. So, the first thing that stood out to him was that unlike him, she had a fluffy tail that matched her wild hair. Though instead of feeling jealous, Foxy felt a little relieved he didn't have to learn how to sit around an extra appendage. Her instrument looked sort of like a keytar and one of her legs jumped a little as she played.

Monty was sitting on the third step of the band stand with a bass resting in his lap. He was playing, but he had his head turned down and his eyes shielded by his sunglasses. His size, though about the same as Freddy's, was slightly more intimidating. Though it could've just been the aura of unapproachability that radiated from him. Definitely the rock star type if Foxy ever saw one.

Then there was Freddy, with one leg hiked up on the first step and a microphone held close to his mouth as he sung.

"They're gonna brand our names in neon lights, we're gonna make it big on a Friday night! We're gonna paaaiint thiiiis tooown red!~" Freddy sung against the guitar thrumming. "Gonna put myyy feeeaaaars to bed!~" He paused for a slide of the keytar that ended with a slow ascend of the keys. "Because if I can't live myyy liiiife…~" There was a pause, a chuckle. "Then I'd rather be… Fred.~"

Foxy could just hear the cue for the wink and felt a degree of secondhand embarrassment. Which was a shame because up until that line, the song actually didn't sound too bad. Freddy had a rough sort of voice, but it did sound good.

It was so surreal seeing Freddy performing like a real rockstar. Not stiff like an animatronic but encouraged to be as human as possible. They were even playing their own instruments.

…

And just like that, the floor seemed to suddenly drop out underneath him.

Foxy was familiar with the feeling of crashing, but this one was especially vicious. Suddenly realizing that Freddy, the one he was coming to just to show off that he had a head and prattle on about his successful business, was on such a higher pedestal to him was hard to swallow. Freddy was the closest thing an animatronic got to a rockstar, practicing in their own rehearsal room with his equally skilled band.

Meanwhile Foxy just sung pirate shanties while kids ate cake and played arcade games nearby. He was just a distraction in comparison to the main act he was staring at. It hurt a lot more than he wanted to admit.

He shouldn't even be there. How embarrassing to come strutting around this place when he was a little fish in a big pond. Perhaps Freddy had just been nice, feigning interest in his own meager endeavors to appease him. Maybe it was worse- maybe Freddy was taking a sick enjoyment in patronizing him while he was out of earshot. He didn't seem like the type, but it only occurred to him now that he didn't know Freddy at all.

Suddenly Foxy wanted to get out of this Pizzaplex as fast as he could. He didn't belong here. Though before he had a chance, the song started to die down and he couldn't risk moving and being heard. The music flared and cut off.

Chica gave a celebratory whoop while Freddy sent a beaming smile at his bandmates. "Well done, gang! You all did an excellent job!" he praised. Though right in the same beat, and without any malice, he added on. "Roxy, you played very well, though I think you might have been a little off your mark towards the end."

"Excuse me?" Roxanne retorted. She planted a hand on her hip and looked him over in challenge. "I was dead on."

"I agree, you were! It was just at the end when you desynced with the lyrics, right around the bridge into the final verse. It is not a big deal."

"I take my cues from Monty, so my timing was on-point unless he was off," she said defensively. She looked to the gator for backup. "Were we off?"

Monty seemed out of it. He silently dragged his claws over his bass strings with a spaced-out look.

"We weren't off," Roxanne corrected. "Unless you were off."

"Perhaps, but… I do not believe I was. I also take my cues from Monty, and I began the bridge on his bass strum."

"If you're halfway through a line when I'm starting my riff, then we're not both taking cues from Monty," she said. It was the slight growl in her voice that finally provoked Chica to step in.

"Guys, come on! Let's not fight about this. We're all just getting jitters 'cause we're so siked to finally get up on stage tomorrow!" Chica chirped excitedly. Roxanne turned her head away and chose to remain silent. "…Buuut, you were a tiny bit early, Freddy-bear," Chica said, pinching with her fingers. She gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder and a wink, "I know you're excited, Big Guy, but you've got to wait for your cue like everybody else."

"Oh! Perhaps I was mistaken. My apologizes, Roxy," Freddy quickly fumbled. She shook her head in a non-descript answer, perhaps just brushing it off.

"Maybe that's a sign that we should take a little break. Oh! How about a midnight snack? I'm totally starving," Chica chirped.

"That sounds good to me!" Freddy agreed.

"Fine. It's not like we're getting anything done here," Roxanne briskly agreed. She then turned and planted a hand on Chica's own shoulder before she could run off, turning her towards her. "Hey, go easy tonight. We've got a big show tomorrow and you can't afford to gum up the works," she reminded, free hand on her own hip. Chica gave a peppy nod and a winking pose.

"Can do! Monty, we're going!" she called. "…Monty!"

Monty's head finally snapped up before he quickly adjusted his sunglasses and stood from his seat. He grumbled something as he followed the three out of the room.

They went from playing their hearts out to coming in Foxy's direction in a surprisingly short amount of time. He quickly turned and retreated through the doors and back into Rockstar Row, looking around for a quick place to retreat. Even at top speed there would be no way to make it back to Freddy's room without being heard or spotted. That was when his gaze fell on some Freddy and Friends cutouts off to the left.

He dashed over, stepped over the barrier, and crouched down behind the widest cutout- one of Monty. He listened as the Glamrock animatronic stepped out from the backstage, none the wiser.

Roxanne came out first and briskly made her way down Rockstar Row to the further exit, the one Foxy had come in. He could hear what he assumed to be Monty's heavy footsteps plodding in the direction of his room.

"Chica," Freddy spoke up, stopping her outside the door. She looked back curiously. "I am… worried about tomorrow," he confessed. His eyes and ears lowered with regret.

"Aww," she cooed. She reached up to pat his cheek. "You worry too much, Honey-Bear. We sound really good!"

"We do, but we have not had much time to rehearse, and not on the main stage. What if we sound different in the atrium? What if we are not prepared for the moving stages?"

"Don't you worry about that. That's for all the techies to worry about! Our job's just to get up there and rock out!" Chica assured with a pump of her fist.

"I suppose…"

"Tell you what, big guy, why don't you come to the bakery with me? We've got cupcake and cookies, I'm sure we'll find the perfect lil pick-me-up!"

At the risk of losing any contact with Freddy and risking the chance of getting caught- and this was regardless of the horrendous epiphany he had moments earlier- Foxy decided to take the plunge and flag down his attention. He stuck out his hook. Freddy, who was somewhat more angled towards the cutouts, spotted the movement immediately and looked over. It took all of his control to quickly look back to Chica while withholding his reaction.

"Actually, I think I might be staying here for a while. You go on without me, I will be fine," Freddy said.

"Mmm, if you're sure. Oh! And take this back to my room for me, will you? Thanks!" Chica eagerly handed off her guitar into Freddy's arms. She then turned her attention to Monty who was returning from his room and thumping past towards the exit by the cutouts. "Hey, Mon-ty! Want to walk me over to my brand-new bakery?"

"No."

Chica made a sort of huff of a noise and thrust her arms down as though pouting. Though then she sent Freddy a friendly wink before following the gator out with a swaying saunter.

Freddy waited until the door shut and he could hear the footsteps walking away before hastily racing over to the cutouts.

"Captain Foxy! I did not expect you to return! How are you?" he greeted warmly. He sounded happy to see him, Foxy considered. Though maybe that was just because some of his friends seemed less than friendly. Swallowing his pride, Foxy stepped out from behind the cutout with exaggerated confidence. Freddy's eyes widened in response. "You have your head on!"

"Thought it was 'bout time to set the record straight," Foxy said cheekily. "Lest ye try draggin' me down to parts and service."

"Certainly not! Though I must admit, it is very good to see you in full working order!" the bear said happily. Foxy knew he was being paranoid because he detected a backhanded compliment that he knew wasn't there. Reality finally caught up with Freddy and his face fell. "Foxy, you should not be here. The security officer knows you were here and if she catches you there will be trouble."

"IF she catches me. Hasn't gotten close so far," Foxy said matter-of-factly. Freddy opened his mouth to interject, but Foxy beat him to it. "…You don't count. Yer a lot faster than the night guard."

"Perhaps, but we should still be careful," Freddy warned. After a pause his eyes seemed to brighten again. "But I am glad you returned! Here, let me put this in Chica's room and then we can go to mine."

It seemed that the doors were purposefully left unlocked tonight as Freddy didn't need to get a pass to walk into Chica's green room. Foxy followed along and unabashedly looked in as the bear carried the guitar over and set it down on the couch. Chica's green room resembled Freddy's own in many ways, with a vanity, sofa, and arcade machine in the same locations. However, the whole room was themed in pink with green accents.

The room reeked of pizza. A quick look around showed that Chica plushies weren't the only thing cluttering up the floor. There was a stack of pizza boxes in the corner, some of them looking like they had been there for a few days at least.

"Got an appetite on her," Foxy thought. He couldn't blame her though; it was hard to stop once you figured out the tasting loophole. "What was that about a bakery?"

"Oh, Chica's Bakery! Or Chica's Bakery and Cupcake Factory. I am not sure what the official name is," Freddy explained. He gently set the guitar on the couch. "It is one of her attractions with the other being Mazercise. They would be to her what Monty Golf is to Monty or what Roxy Raceway is to Roxy," he continued and turned around to face him. "It was not up and running when you were here last. Well, admittedly very little was."

"Her attraction, eh?" Foxy hummed thoughtfully. "So, which one's yers?"

"I am glad you asked! That would be Fazer Blast. It is laser tag but out of this world," Freddy chirped. He sounded more than excited to talk about it. Foxy was almost surprised though that he hadn't mentioned bowling.

"I think I've seen posters up fer that. Ya been in there?"

"I have! Though I have not spent much time there. I assume I will once we open tomorrow, as I am supposed to routinely stop in between shows and VIP visits."

Foxy reluctantly felt a mix of envy and self-consciousness ache in the center of his chest. Rationally he wouldn't have even wanted that little control on his schedule and yet there it was, the disappointment rearing its ugly head yet again. He shook it off fast enough that it didn't tip off Freddy.

"I see… Then how's about we stroll on over there an' check it our fer ourselves?" Foxy suggested. He wasn't sure why he was such a glutton for punishment, but some masochistic part of him genuinely wanted to see it.

Freddy was surprised. "Are you sure? We may be caught walking through the atrium."

"Ah, we'll be careful! How'd ya think I got in here?" Foxy coyly asked. "Unless yer too afraid of rocking the boat."

Freddy considered it for a moment before making his decision and perking up. "Why not? I should get more acquainted while I can, and we can be careful. Just follow close by."

The walk through the atrium was actually less tense than expected. With the lights on, it was easier to see if there was anyone hiding out in the wings, which there wasn't. Apparently the other Glamrocks had gone to their respective attractions and would hopefully stay there for some time. Freddy led him towards the food court before branching into a security door like the one to Kid's Cove, except technically on the exact opposite side of the large room.

The security door opened to reveal the lobby outside of the Fazer Blast entrance and even it was more impressive than it should've been. Above the entrance was "Fazer Blast" in large, red lettering with an illuminated moon on the wall alongside it. To the right of the entrance, he could see a small snack bar labelled "Snack Space" with stairs leading to an upper floor. To the left-.

"That better not be a Ferris wheel."

It was, in fact, a Ferris wheel. Just smaller than an outdoor one and themed with spaceship themed pods. How Fazbear Entertainment could afford this- and why they would proceed to hide it in here instead of having it out in the atrium- was beyond logical thinking. Foxy was barely able to hold his tongue as he followed Freddy to the front doors. They opened for Freddy and the two skirted through.

They were then in the Fazer Blast lobby proper. The room was illuminated by neon lights, some shaped like stars or characters in spacesuits, screens in stand-by, green beams stretching the length of the ceiling, and illuminated support beams. Foxy wasn't sure if this was the normal lighting, but the neon effect was well done if it was, giving a space-like illusion with the bright lights against the dark backdrop. What sounded like futuristic elevator music played in the background.

"This… is Fazer Blast! Or it is the check-in counter for Fazer Blast," Freddy said. He was watching Foxy and awaiting his reaction. The pirate hummed and began to walk around to look, his hand and hook shoved in his hoodie pouch.

Other than the counter there was also a small merchandise corner, a small arcade, and even a shelf of trophies. The last of which catching his attention the most and he walked over to get a better look. Freddy eagerly followed along with him.

The faux-gold trophies didn't look too different from the massive statues littered around the Pizzaplex. In fact, quite a few of them were topped with figures resembling the Glamrock animatronics, but there were others following the space theme and one even decorated with a lightning bolt mimicking the one on Freddy's chest.

"These fer show?" Foxy asked.

"I am not sure. The way Fazer Blast is played is with two teams competing against each other and a team neutral "Alien" Staff Bots, so perhaps we may have a tournament someday," Freddy offered, and Foxy hummed in response. "But there is also a single player option-."

"Calling all recruits! Fazer Blast is a high-intensity space combat simulation! Suit up and save the universe as you blast everyone and everything with high-tech laser effects! Blast strangers, blast your friends! Beat the Superstar Score and get a free Fazer Blaster gun. Enlist now!"a very familiar voice suddenly blared over the intercom.

Freddy had been struck silent. The look on his face was priceless. His eyes wide and mouth shut tight as he watched Foxy's own twist into his own version of a smirk.

"…That was not me. That was a recording," Freddy awkwardly explained.

"Ya don't say," Foxy remarked. He was just as amused but decided to throw him a bone. "Happens to the best of us. What were ya sayin'?"

"Erm, yes. I was just saying that there is a single-player option and that I uh…" Freddy still sounded flustered. He made a throat clearing noise and motion before offering, "…Would you like to try?"

Foxy was a little surprised by the offer. He pulled his hand out to point a thumb back at the wall behind him, tilting his head questioningly. "That? Yer serious?"

"Of course! The attraction is up and running and as of now I have full access to it. It will be on me," Freddy offered warmly.

Foxy considered it for a long moment. "This is one of those things that's going to blow up in my face. I just know it," he thought. Yet even with this self-warning, he answered right afterward, "Eh, why not? I got a couple hours to kill."

"You are staying that long?! That is great!" Freddy's ears wiggling with his delight. "Consider me your host and tour guide to the Pizzaplex. I believe I have done an adequate job so far," he said with a chuckle.

Freddy then beckoned Foxy back towards the check-in desk and then beyond to the doorway beside it. Like before, the door opened the moment he got close to it, and he gestured his hands for him to go first.

Foxy started to have second thoughts. If Freddy was going to backstab him then he would've done it by now, but one look at the tight passageway beyond the door made him feel uncharacteristically claustrophobic. Maybe it had something to do with being in a competitor's establishment hours before it was supposed to open while his band mates circled around nearby and knowing somewhere there was a woman in a rabbit suit creeping around.

Or maybe Foxy was just paranoid about someone walking behind him.

"…Whatcha waitin' for, mate? Lead the way," Foxy said lowly.

"Aye, aye, Captain!" Freddy answered obliviously. He turned and led the way into the corridor. No questions, no conflict, just instant and enthusiastic agreement. It was an admittedly jarring shift and Foxy's suspicion was instantly resolved.

The corridor was more just a tight corner illuminated by neon pink and green lights. Immediately around the corner was another door that opened into a small room. To the left were two rows of seats, to the right a stage with a Staff Bot decked in black and orange Freddy-themed armor standing on it. Their approach triggered the Staff Bot to suddenly perk to life and began to speak to the non-existence audience in the empty chairs.

"You must be the new Fazer Blast recruits and from the looks of you the orange slash blue team hasn't got a chance. Soon you will be fighting for your lives on a hostile alien planet… but first I am here to tell you how to play Fazer Blast. There are two rules you must follow at all times. Rule number one: no running, no climbing, no jumping, no hitting, kicking, pushing, shoving-."

"He's takin' the fun out of this," Foxy leaned over to murmur to Freddy. The bear sent him an amused look.

"You should be listening. If I recall correctly, you previously had a hands-on experience with a Staff Bot," Freddy remarked. The tone was hard to read, somewhere between playful and still maybe hiding a slight scolding.

"Was that before 'er after ya snatched me up by me breeches?" Foxy challenged confidently.

"Rule number two: have fun... Do you want to hear the rules again?"

"I'd like to know how to play the game," Foxy retorted.

"It is not complicated at all! The name of the game is Capture the Flag- not literally, of course. You and your team must claim three flags by pressing their buttons and holding the area until it is claimed. You will have to use your Fazerblaster to hold off both the other team and the alien Staff Bots while also protecting yourself. You have only six hits before you are out of the game!"

"I think I got it."

"Good!" Freddy led Foxy towards the door on the other side of the room, ignoring the Staff Bot who was still droning on. The door opened to reveal another passageway like the one before. "This door leads to the armory where you will be supplied with a Fazerblaster and a helmet before being assigned to your team-."

"Whoa, slow down," Foxy interjected. "Why're you sayin' that like you ain't comin' with me?"

"Well, you see… I am not authorized to play with the guests. From what I have been told, I am to play against Staff Bots in-between matches, so that the spectators will have something to watch while they wait for their match to begin," Freddy sheepishly explained. "However, I will be watching and rooting for you!"

"Belay that, mate!" Foxy swiftly declined. Freddy blinked and the pirate cocked his head. "It means forget it. What I mean is that you ain't on the clock. Who says you can't walk in there and play a game?"

"Technically Fazbear Entertainment."

"I don't see Fazbear Entertainment's name hangin' over the front door," he spat back bitterly. The sudden change in tone surprised Freddy, and that visible surprise signaled for Foxy to reel it in. "Maybe I be a stickler, but if I'm playin' this game I'm playin' it against the best, and since this is yer attraction, it must be you." He shot him a sly glint. "So, whaddya say, Freddy?"

"I am flattered!... Very well, Captain. I accept your challenge!" If there was any trepidation, Foxy managed to talk him out of it. "But I am not sure how the game will work if I am in it. It is not set up for me to play against a guest."

"Then forget the flags. Let's see…" Foxy considered it a moment with a tap of his hook on the chin of his muzzle, then got an idea. "We get three hits apiece. First one to get three shots in wins. We keep our own score, and we play on our word," he offered before also offering his hand. "As captain of Pirate's Cove, I solemnly swear to call only the shots I make. Lest me word be mud."

"Agreed!" Freddy eagerly took his hand and shook. "May the best man win!"

As though Foxy didn't feel competitive before, he was suddenly given an opening to beat Freddy at his own game. There was no way he could lose.

…

The Fazer Blast arena was an impressive sight- or a daunting one, depending on who was asked. Though like most of the Pizzaplex it had been pushed beyond the boundaries of reasonable budget. It was a maze of walls illuminated in neon colors to differentiate the separate areas, one that stretched into two smaller floors above, ramps leading to the second and the bridges to the third platform in the center of the room. A large spaceship was mounted above it all.

If he wasn't in the middle of a hunt, Foxy would've been in the throws of another pity party, but right now he had a job to do: be the best man and win.

Understandably, the helmet sized for children wouldn't work, so he had only the Fazerblaster alone. It was a plasticky little spaceship shaped gun that let out a red laser when the trigger was pressed. It wasn't exactly a flintlock pistol, but he intended to wield it like it was. He kept crouched low as he peeked through a hole in between the walls. There was no sign of his target, but there was a Staff Bot with an alien helmet on rolling rather close.

Not wanting to attract attention, Foxy intended to let it slip by, but as it rounded the corner of the wall he was left with no other option. He shot it dead-on before it could expose his location. The bot responded to the innocuous zap of red light with a clinking noise and then slumping its upper body as it continued to roll to a stop. Effective, but louder than he wanted… unless he could use this to his advantage.

There was a ramp up to a second-floor platform up ahead, so he hastily made a run for it. His footsteps quieted on the carpeted floor but him having to take care not to thump up the ramp. He hid behind the wall at the top and listened for the dull thumps of approaching footsteps.

Freddy slowly came out from the passageway just behind the ramp, tipping Foxy off that he had already been on his tail. He had his Fazerblaster held up and close, leaning out from cover before slowly creeping forward. He could see the Staff Bot rolling to a stop and kept his distance as he scanned for any sight of the fox, not realizing he way looking down at him from behind.

Foxy's mouth opened into a wicked grin as he aimed the Fazerblaster. The zapping noise it made gave away what he had done immediately but he took no shame in calling out, "Ya-har! Gotcha!"

Freddy spun around and swung out his arm to aim directly at his competitor. It wasn't until Foxy saw the look on Freddy's face- eyes narrowed and mouth tight- that he suddenly realized the bear was taking this game very seriously.

He barely had time to pop back behind the wall before he heard the zap of the Fazerblaster and then made a run for the bridge up towards the third floor, expecting Freddy to race up after him. He was half-right. Freddy did break into a sprint, but instead of running up after him he ran around the low walls and came out underneath the bridge, taking aim while running, and just catching Foxy darting across.

All it took was a split second, but he got that red dot of a crosshair on his target before pulling the trigger. "Direct hit!"

Foxy kept running and so did Freddy, weaving through the labyrinth underneath the highest platform to cut off Foxy at the second bridge. He wasn't so lucky this time, with him jumping from the bridge to the ramp and disappearing into the maze. He had to admit, Foxy was quick, and his height definitely gave him an advantage in this scenario. Freddy took refuge behind a wall, back pressed tight to it, and returned to his earlier tactics- listening for Foxy to give up his position.

Foxy had gotten into a hiding spot between two walls within the red section. There were small slots in the walls that he could peek through, but it didn't do much good when he was almost entirely encapsulated by neon. It didn't help that he couldn't hear Freddy anymore either. He leaned against one of the walls and tried to listen in.

"Intruder alert!" Foxy growled and snapped his head back in irritation to see another Staff Bot rolling around the corner, giving away his hiding spot. "Resistance is futile!" To which Foxy swiftly put it out of commission with a single shot.

Freddy started creeping up while his back was turned. Back against the wall, slid down enough that he couldn't be spotted over it, he steadied himself before leaning out and taking aim, waiting for Foxy to betray his position through the hole.

Foxy looked back and caught sight of Freddy and brought up his weapon with lightning-fast reflexes, aiming it through the small window and firing right at him. He was pretty certain he hit his mark, but he couldn't see if it did.

Because the last thing he saw was a bright red glint before his vision became a blurry scramble of misfiring servos.

"GAH!" Foxy staggered back against the wall, violently rubbing at his eye with his sleeve. The stinging remained and his vision was heavy with static.

"Captain Foxy!" Freddy exclaimed. He rushed over to the fox's side, who was now muttering swears as he continued to rub at his eye. "I am so sorry; I should have not aimed so close to your eye!"

"Gor Blimey, 's like a hot poker in the eye," Foxy hissed. He tightened his jaw and tried to reel in his reaction, not wanting to suddenly be seen as a weakling because a laser pointer burned out his retina. He forced his eye opened and noticed his vision was starting to clear up.

He also noticed when he started to step, or stagger, back that Freddy had put a hand on his back to steady him. He looked positively guilt-ridden, probably blaming himself and his decision to go ahead and play. Foxy had to pull himself together and salvage the situation while he still could.

Or that was the plan until he suddenly realized that Freddy had literally dropped everything to run over to him, and that even in his pain Foxy had not.

"That was a bad move, Bear," Foxy said lowly.

"I know. I should have made sure I had a clear shot before I…" Freddy trailed off and looked down in surprise as Foxy's Fazerblaster clunked against his chest. There was a brief pause before he pulled the trigger, causing the gun to audibly zap.

"Now me brains might be fried, but I think I can still count to three," Foxy remarked cockily. His eye still twitchy and unfocused but showing the smirk less apparent on his face.

Freddy looked utterly floored, a look that was broken by a guffaw that further dissolved into a rumbling laugh. Relieved and more amused than expected, he pulled Foxy into an unexpected hug before giving him a thumping pat on the back. Foxy went rigid at the touch before daring a chuckle of his own. He patted Freddy's shoulder before pushing him back.

"That's enough. I don't need ya gettin' sappy on me, mate," Foxy said, still sounding more amused than uncomfortable, even if he put a good step between them. "But tell ya what, I be feelin' generous tonight. How's about best out of three?"

"Are you sure? I will be more careful, but we cannot be too sure it will not happen again," Freddy warned. There was that guilt again, that borderline coddling tone that made Foxy all the more dead set on his decision.

"I think ye might be afraid I'm gonna win again," he challenged, exaggerated smugness returning. He almost expected the comment to go over Freddy's head, but this time it did not.

"Hmm… Alright then, Captain," Freddy said. He offered his hand. "May the best man win."

Foxy wasn't sure why he hesitated before taking Freddy's hand. It was just a game, it wasn't like he was agreeing to anything else, like he was going to get in over his head.

Funny how the only way he could forget about Freddy's was to take the bear head-on.

Chapter End Notes

Foxy's on an important mission to get information here, folks. Laser tag is just a step in that plan.

Chapter 22

When the first alarm of the night went off, Natalie had just assumed that it was Freddy and Foxy running around. She had spotted them on the camera twice and chose to pretend she hadn't and suspected that eventually they would trip something up that would trigger an alarm. Though when she checked the map, she found that the alarm was going off in the front of the lobby.

"Not again…" she huffed as she stood up. Smitty was out circling the fountain, so she had assumed that he had run into that same cleaner bot again and the two got in a 'disagreement'. Something that had already happened a few times.

But when she got out into the lobby, she found Smitty doing little circles in front of the water fountain before rolling up to her once he spotted her coming out. So, it obviously wasn't him who set off the alarm, but that didn't mean it wasn't the other Staff Bot currently in the room. She told Smitty to follow and headed through the turnstiles.

That was when she noticed something so unexpected that she stopped in her tracks. Smitty stopped loyally behind her as she stared on in confusion.

The large door to the parking garage was open. It hadn't been when she first came in and she hadn't noticed it opened on her last rounds, though she hadn't come over here at that time. Considering that it looked to be the Mop Bot who sent out the alarm- he was staring at her instead of mopping, which meant he was distressed- the door probably hadn't been open long.

"Here we go. Already starting early," Natalie muttered to herself, trying to ignore the dread she felt the moment she saw the doorway open.

She shined the flashlight inside to see a dark, largely non-descript hallway that turn a gentle corner at the end to lead towards the garage. The walls were painted the same pinkish color as the lobby's and the floor was simple greyed tile. Right at the corner she could see a "Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex!" poster with a similar picture to the one on the entrance sign and an arrow pointing towards the lobby.

Natalie hissed a little as she considered her options. It didn't look like there were any controls on either side of the raised security door so it wasn't like she could just shut it. Even if she could, she almost felt obligated to go take a look around inside first. Even if this was some sort of ruse, which she almost assumed it would be considering that tonight had been quiet so far.

Finally, she decided that she had to at least walk as far as the garage. Then she could turn around and come right back to the lost and found. "Let's go, Smitty."

Unlike the rest of the Pizzaplex, which had been updated with enough running lights to see without a flashlight and soft music playing in the background, this hallway was pitch dark and dead silent. If it wasn't for the sound of Smitty humming and wheeling behind her, the only noises she would've heard would've been coming from her.

The hallway ended in yet another security door, which was also raised up, and stepped out directly into one floor of the parking garage. With the pink walls replaced by grey concrete, the massive room seemed to sap much of the power from her flashlight, and she couldn't see too far even when the place was entirely barren.

With a scrutinizing hum, she began to walk further into the parking garage. Her eyes and light continuing to search around while her path was brightened by Smitty's light shining past her. They had just about made it to the back when a soft noise suddenly echoed up from the ramp to the lower level. Natalie snapped her light over and listened. It sounded an awful lot like footsteps.

She made her way over to the top of the ramp and shined her light down. It looked like the basement level wasn't cleared out like this one was, and the bottom of the ramp was blocked by caution signs. The moment she shined her light down, she heard the hurried footsteps retreating further into the dark.

"Who's down there?" she called. As expected, there was no answer. "If there's anyone down there you better come out now before I have to come find you."

It wasn't a threat she intended to follow up on, but it didn't work anyways. Natalie huffed and considered her options before continuing down the ramp, Smitty following closely behind her.

Unlike the floor above it, the basement level was packed with stuff. Carts to deliver building supplies, the building supplies themselves, oil drums, some leaking down their sides, some leftover stands and parts of stalls, even some props that looked like they belonged in a desert or canyon- probably Roxy Raceway. It was a mess. It was the visual representation of a rush job.

"What's going on down here?" Natalie muttered. She shined her light over the stuff crowding the parking level. She sighed, "So much for being ready to open…"

She stepped past the caution sign bots who followed her with their eyes. They only moved apart slightly as to let Smitty by, which was probably some sort of collision detection instead of a conscious effort to do so.

They hadn't gotten very far in when she heard the rapid tap, tap, tapping of footsteps as something scurried by. She tried to catch it in her light but just missed it.

"Okay, if this is the rabbit girl, this isn't cute or funny. It's not scary either, you're just wasting my time," Natalie called.

She knew it probably wasn't the best idea to challenge her, and she knew it was her, but she was starting to get irritated with this whole thing. Irritated enough that she kept up the pursuit after the footsteps at a brisk pace. Smitty struggled to maneuver around the obstacles as quickly as she did, but she could always hear him, and he would eventually catch up.

She could sometimes see movement just in the edges of her vision. Just when she was stepping past a stack of wooden pallets, she would catch a glimpse of movement and hastily hurry around only to find nothing. Sometimes she wouldn't even hear the footsteps, making her wonder if she had seen anything at all. She found herself slowly getting led into the back corner, somewhere that smelled of sour machinery oil.

A low creak caught her attention and she turned suddenly to see a gated wall and its chain length door in the slowly edging closed. She approached and shined her light through and into the hallway beyond it, watching the shadows of fencing dance along the pale brick walls. If someone was moving at the end of the hall, she wouldn't have detected them easily beyond the movement.

She pushed the gate door open all the way to let Smitty in behind her and cautiously started to step inside. There was a red door at the end of the hallway with a paper taped onto it, though it didn't look like there was anything on it. No doubt that was where she went and where she was trying to lead her, if the rogue piece of paper was any indication. She couldn't see Smitty's light but could hear him coming up behind her, and that encouraged her to keep going.

Her footsteps echoed off the cold concrete as she approached the door. She could see clearly now that the paper had nothing written on it, or at least not this side of it, so she carefully reached out and lifted it up. There was something written on the other side, taped upside down so she could read it clearly when she lifted it up.

Hi.

Natalie stared at the word for a long moment before letting the paper drop.

"That's it, I'm done here," she said. The irritation almost covered how creeped out she was. "I'm not getting paid enough to go on some wild goose chase. If she wants to play around in the basement, she can go ahead."

She was talking to Smitty, sort of. She didn't think he could understand her beyond direct commands, but it was nice to pretend she wasn't talking to herself. She turned to face him and as she did the familiar squeak and hum of his internal mechanics started to distort and fade until it was that hollow silence drawing at her ears.

Her flashlight beam fell directly onto what was really been standing behind her. It wasn't Smitty, it might've not been for a while.

It was the white rabbit.

It was a hideous sight to behold. No longer blurred by distance and glass, Natalie could make out every detail as clear as day. Every line of stitches holding a patchwork fabric together, its glassy red eyes, its smile stretching open towards its chest. Now seeing it up close, her suspicions were confirmed. This was clearly a person in a costume. The patchwork was skin-tight, betraying the shape of the body underneath.

What might've been a goofy rabbit suit in broad daylight was something much more sinister in the harsh beam of the flashlight, surrounded by darkness and with a backdrop of a wall of chain-length fencing.

It was enough to cause Natalie to jump and take a few steps back, trying to get as much distance as she could from the intruder in the suddenly claustrophobic hallway. The rabbit was frozen in place for a long moment, so still that she couldn't even see it breathing through that thin fabric, and she wasn't even blinking.

The rabbit suddenly jerked and leaned forward, causing Natalie flinched back enough to bump the door behind her. The rabbit turned its head as though studying her, the eyes of its mask unfocused and staring off into space, ears bobbling stiffly. Its arms were down at its sides with its hands pointed out in an either cartoonish or childishly feminine pose.

"Oh…" was all Natalie could say. She didn't know what else she could say, her mind was empty. Any of that gumption she had scouring the basement had run out now that she was cornered by her pursuer.

The rabbit pulled its head back and straightened upright before eagerly raising a hand, leaning into it, and waggling its fingers in a playful wave. Not an innocent playfulness, but something creepy enough to put a lump in her stomach. Without a single word or any warning, the rabbit woman suddenly started to make her way towards her with long, overlapping steps. Hips swaying with the wobbly movement, arms swinging at her sides. It was wrong coming from a person.

Natalie finally reached the point where she wanted out of the situation and grabbed at the doorhandle. It was stuck tight in place, locked, and she was as good as backed up against a wall. The rabbit was taking its time but was no more than some odd feet away. The blond hastily fumbled for the taser on the back of her belt and right as the rabbit was nearly within arm's length, she whipped it out, pressing the button for good measure to give a threatening zap.

"Hey- whoa! That's close enough!" she snapped. The taser aimed right at the big blue ribbon around the bunny's neck and draping down the top of its chest. So close that if she lifted it, she might've bumped its chin.

Apparently, the rabbit wasn't expecting this as she jerked back just as quickly as she had jerked forward, her hands popping up defensively. There was a painfully uncomfortable hesitation after that, during which Natalie didn't take her eyes off the rabbit and didn't lower the taser. Slowly the rabbit raised its hands to its face, then pressed them to its cheeks as though in exaggerated shock. Like it was mimicking a terrified scream.

"Oh, that's no fun at all."

Natalie's eyes slowly widened once again at the voice. Not because the rabbit woman spoke, she assumed she wasn't a mute, but how distorted her voice sounded. Heavy with static and warble, like she was using something to distort and mask her voice. She likely was, but Natalie couldn't even begin to wonder how some random woman got ahold of that technology.

The rabbit slowly dragged her hands up the sides of her costume head until her fingers were trapping the base of her ears. "If you won't play nice, maybe I won't ei-ther," she said quietly, mockingly.

Natalie's lips tightened into an uncomfortable scowl at this point. "What is that supposed to mean? And who even are you?"

"I can't explain myself, because I am not myself, you see…" the rabbit teased. She began to walk back towards the gate door, kicking it open with her heel and catching the doorway with a gloved hand. "Wouldn't you know about that?"

Natalie suddenly realized what she was about to do. "Don't you shut that door," she said. Throwing caution to the wind, she started to bolt forward. "Don't you dare-!"

The door was shut, and the latch turned to lock it before she could reach it and start shaking the knob. The rabbit backed up, giving her another little wave.

"You better open this back up right now, or so help me I'm going to come out there-!" Natalie threatened. Her frustration barely covering the panic that was beginning to leak through. "I'm not playing anymore of these stupid games with you. Open this door. Now."

"Maybe if you keep yelling… someone will find you before morning," the rabbit teased. The emphasis on 'someone' made Natalie's stomach twist. "I'll be watching you!~" Then her voice dipped to something much less faux-friendly, "Vanny."

The rabbit gave a little spin, posed her hands before her for a second, and then began to blatantly skip away into the basement. Something that should've been goofy and silly was extremely off-putting, especially when haloed by the red glow coming from the eyes of her mask, something less noticeable when she was standing in direct light.

Natalie didn't continue yelling after her because of it. She just felt so uneased- plus she assumed calling after the rabbit girl would do nothing but amuse her, since she clearly wasn't coming back. Suddenly the blond was very aware of her situation; trapped down in a dark basement hours before the Pizzaplex was to open, alone for now but possibly with dangerous animatronics waiting for a moment to strike.

She took a shaky breath and aimed the flashlight down at the handle, and that's when her situation suddenly changed.

"Wait a minute…" She reached her fingers through the fencing and with some maneuvering was just able to reach the latch. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

The door was easily pushed open, and Natalie stepped out a freed woman. Though she was less than pleased, unsure if that had been an oversight or a scare tactic. Neither was exactly a good options; either she intended to leave her there all night or was just making a fool out of her. As irritated as she was, Natalie hesitated before charging after the rabbit.

The rabbit woman could still be dangerous. She was more than willing to lead Natalie directly into a trap if she wasn't careful, but she didn't have a knife, and she had backed up quickly once she saw the taser.

That sealed it. Natalie took off after her into the dark, crowded basement.

This turned out to be a mistake.

First off, it was clear that the rabbit woman expected her to get out on her own because she was still egging her on. She kept catching glimpses of her. Every time she was considering turning around, she would see her face peeking out from somewhere and the chase would be on again, leading out of the garage and into the utility tunnels underneath the Pizzaplex. Natalie could hear her laughing in the distance when she wasn't appearing in the edge of her vision.

Until even that stopped and Natalie found herself abandoned deep beneath the Pizzaplex. The tunnels stank of stagnant water even though they couldn't have been in use for too long and there was little to go on for direction. Whenever she saw a sign that looked to be signaling something on the wall, it would typically lead to a secured cyclone fence or even nothing at all. At this point she was suspecting that the rabbit might've just lost her.

She wasn't sure how much time passed before she managed to find some stairs. She trudged up a few flights of stairs and into yet another room, but this time spotted a sign that seemed important. It looked like a Staff Bot at a desk with an "L" on it. Assuming it probably meant the lobby, or anywhere that wasn't this basement, she headed through and continued on.

It was now that she was seeing the cracks behind the Pizzaplex, passing through a few halls and a storage room, and seeing how much stuff was cluttered and messy. Supplies leaking out of the former and into the latter, cluttering up the walkway and making her half to squeeze by. Eventually she wound up in a hallway that looked a lot like the utility tunnels underneath, though bathed in a florescent red glow.

It made her uneasy and she began to slowly creep down the hall, eyes shifting to the gates and doors lining the walls, expecting the rabbit girl's face to peek out. Except she seemed to be entirely alone. She didn't know if that was much better.

Especially when the floor began to groan underneath her. She looked down at the grate flooring and couldn't see anything underneath, but she could hear it still. It could've been something like steam, but she didn't know what could've been running that deep in the Pizzaplex. Perhaps water pipes, but her imagination was messing with her. Either way she hastily hurried along.

Eventually she made it to another few flight of stairs and by time she reached the top, she was half-worn out. She hesitated for a moment to catch her breath before noticing what looked like a security badge symbol on the far wall.

"Oh, thank God!" she choked. She got a second wind and hastily hurried through the door and into a security office.

It wasn't too different from the one Fritz and Mike had described back at one of the old Freddy's, with two doors leading in that were controlled by simple buttons. She quickly shut the doors and dropped into the office chair, getting a few deep breaths in before scooting up to the computer and logging herself in like she did on the Lost and Found computer. Within a few clicks she was able to get to the map.

To her relief, she looked to be only a hallway away from the main lobby. Somehow, she had gone through the parking garage, down the utility tunnel, and came up on the other side of the Pizzaplex, in the south-western section. There were two alarms flagging her already: one from the lobby and one from the parking garage.

"I hope one of those is Smitty," Natalie murmured as she stood up. She hated to think that the rabbit woman might've done something to him. Though it wouldn't have taken much effort to lead him astray. She headed out once more.

She arrived in the lobby to find the first flag in the form of the Mop Bot standing outside the parking garage hallway. She didn't know if someone rushed by or if he had just been disturbed by the open door, but he was waving as she came up, then rolled up to stand alongside her as she stopped outside of the parking garage entrance.

She really didn't want to go back in, but she wasn't leaving him alone down there. She took her taser off again, took a deep breath, and headed back into the garage. This time the Mop Bot followed along with her. She didn't stop him.

After a cautious hike back to the basement floor, she heard Smitty before she found him. He was making those loud alarm noises which led her right to him, circling around a section of basement scouring for something with his flashlight.

"Hey," she called. He spun back instantly and upon looking at and recognizing her, he began to roll back. It took him a moment to get out of the little section he had gotten pinned in, but he had stopped blaring the alarm.

Apparently, he had been looking for her. That was good to know, even if she wasn't certain he would've been able to let her out.

"Let's get out of here," Natalie coaxed. She led both bots back out. They acknowledged each other with a look but didn't get into another loop of mutual flagging, instead following her back out to the lobby.

Now here she was stuck in the same position; the door to the parking garage left open and a rabbit hopping around who was now confirmed to just be trying to mess with her. Deflated and exhausted, she gestured them towards the door she had come through just earlier.

"Come on, guys. We're moving to a better office," she said. She didn't know if they understood but they both followed. Including Mop Bot, which was her intention as she didn't want to leave him alone.

She settled into the new office with a worried frown resting on her face and went to scouring the cameras. There was no sign of the rabbit, but some of them were especially jerky.

None of the cameras in the parking garage were working. She wondered if the rabbit knew that. She wondered how much else it knew.

As gaudy as this place was, Foxy had to admit that there was a little bit of a charm to it. Not the whole place, definitely nowhere that was overflowing with adds, but places like the little lobby outside of Fazer Blast could be sort of nice to just sit in and listen to the relaxing music droning on. Though he doubted it would have the same feel with a bunch of people trampling through.

After three heated games of Fazer Blast, they were taking a breather. Or technically two and a half games, as Freddy called for a timeout on the third game once it lasted a good thirty minutes without much progress. He could say he needed a break as much as he wanted but Foxy knew it was the bear trying to coddle him again, but he was willing to take the out for a change of scenery.

He was leaning back against the counter of the Snack Space snack bar outside of Fazer Blast, elbows resting back on the counter as he looked out at the section of atrium that he could see above the lobby.

He could hear Freddy returning from the back before seeing a basket being plopped onto the counter beside him, looking over to see it overflowing with bags of chips and candies.

"How about this?" Freddy asked. He looked quite proud of his find. Foxy visibly perked at the surplus of junk food.

"Mighty fine haul here, Fred-o! I'd say this ain't the first time you've plundered a kitchen," he chuckled. Then he began to pull out the bags to look at them.

The packaging was all pretty generic, probably made in-house, but at least there was a variety to them. El Chip's tortilla styled chips, crunchy meaty bites, a small bag of something labelled 'Chica of the Sea'- they felt like gummies, like the Buccaneer Bounty ones they sold in Pirate's Cove, and some bars and wrapped sweets in the bottom. There was plenty to go around and Foxy wasn't too good to accept free food from a competitor.

"It actually is! We were just fortunate that everything has been stocked in preparation for tomorrow," Freddy explained. Right as he said it the realization fell on him. "…Err, you do think they will be able to replace it before lunchtime?"

"Course they will! Blimey, Freddy, the place is crawlin' with food. The place is crawlin' with snack bars. There's a whole line of 'em right out there." Foxy pointed his hook in the direction of the nearby salad bar. He then piled the bags back up and hoisted the basket into his arms before gesturing Freddy to follow with his head. "'Sides, it's yer place. Ya get a cut."

"I suppose you have a point. There are quite a few eating establishments in the Pizzaplex. I am sure there is more than enough that they should not have a problem," Freddy agreed. He followed Foxy as he led them towards the steps leading up above the Snack Space and watched Foxy sit down on them. "Are you allowed to have whatever you want from your pizzeria?

"Yeah. As long as I don't get meself trashed 'er eat a cake with a name on it," Foxy remarked. He glanced up at Freddy before patting the step beside him. Freddy eagerly plopped down beside him; legs bent awkwardly to deal with the length.

"That is good!"

"You've been gettin' a hard time from the employees?" Foxy asked bluntly. It seemed to surprise Freddy and he rested his hands on his knees, tapping his fingers on them.

"No, no... but they were a bit hard on Chica. Before they decided that it was better to give her pizza and let her use her bakery than have her look for… other venues…" he explained vaguely. Foxy looked directly at him with a questioning glint. Freddy crumbled under it in seconds. "…I should not tell you this, so please do not tell anyone else… but Chica has a problem controlling her hunger. It has only gotten worse since they started testing out the ovens."

"Aye. I see," the pirate said with a nod. "And?"

"And they have decided to let her have as much pizza as she wants. I am sure you noticed all of the pizza boxes in her room…" He leaned in and lowered his voice to whisper, "Those are cleaned out weekly."

Foxy hummed in response. Maybe a little disappointed; he expected Freddy to give him something scandalous and instead he confirmed something he already noticed. It was hard not to notice that many empty pizza boxes.

"Sounds like some kinda programming flaw," Foxy suggested. He was in the middle of opening the bag of tortilla chips when a new question cropped up. "Where's it all… go?" he muttered, gesturing towards himself.

"I am… not entirely certain. Since we are not made with stomachs, I assume it must get trapped in the casing and that is why Chica must be cleaned so frequently," Freddy said, voice edging on uneased.

The mental image alone was enough to make Foxy lose his desire to eat. He didn't even have a stomach to turn and yet the idea of seven or eight mashed-up pizzas shoved under Chica's plates for days on end- he shuddered.

"Perhaps that is just part of who she is. She is the mascot for healthy eating and fitness after all," Freddy remarked. Foxy would've wrinkled his nose if he could. Nothing he had seen suggested Fazbear Entertainment was pushing healthy food. "There was a rumor that there was going to be a pizza chef mascot who could taste test the pizza to make sure it was cooked properly, but it turned out to not be true."

Foxy gave another hum of acknowledgement as he finally popped open the chips. He grabbed a few and popped them into his teeth, chewing threw them enough to absorb the flavor before it became crumbs in his suit. The chips were good enough, with their saltiness being their only defining taste but the crunch being a nice change. He offered the bag off to Freddy.

"Now the Daycare Attendant- Thank you!- He is able to drink Fizzy Faz through a small hose. I am not sure what the purpose of this is unless it is to advertise and sell more Fizzy Faz. In which case, yes, I could see that working."

"There's so much wrong with all ya just said there," Foxy remarked. In fact, it took him an extra second to figure out which part of it needed addressing first. "Where is this hose?"

"I believe it comes out from his mouth, but I am not sure how it works. Perhaps you can ask him if I get a chance to introduce you two. Though… it may best that we do not tell many, if not anybody else that you are here. It is not that I do not trust them, but if Officer Vanessa overhears then she may come looking for you, and then our night will be over," Freddy warned. He sounded a little disappointed as he shoved a chip in his mouth. Foxy was unphased, but curious.

"How many bots be in here anyway? Animatronic bots, not those staff puppets runnin' 'bout."

"There is quite a few! You already know about Chica, Roxy, Monty, and myself. We are all very good friends. Then there is the Daycare Attendant, he is very charming. There is also the DJ for the West Arcade located upstairs. We have met only once, but he seems very polite. Unfortunately, he is also much too big to fit out of the West Arcade doors, so we would have to go to him to visit. There is also an Arcade Attendant in the same arcade."

"Quite a few of ya in here…" Foxy mumbled. "…Which one's the sun?"

"That is the Daycare Attendant! Have you met him?"

"Course it'd be the one with the bloody hose," Foxy scoffed. He rustled around in the bag and rather directly asked, "And no Bonnie?"

"What?" Freddy's reaction was immediate. His voice dropped and his eyes went wide, staring at the pirate. Foxy picked up on the reaction and his eyes snapped up onto him.

"There's no Bonnie?" he asked. This time his tone was lower, barely hiding an edge of suspicion. "Ya know: you, me, Chica, and…"

"Oh! I- I thought you were… No. No, there is no Bonnie. Monty is the bass player for our band," Freddy answered. He seemed dodgy, looking away and shoving the second chip in his mouth. Him eating one chip at a time aside, that reaction was still a red flag and Foxy narrowed his eye.

"A'right, how's about this? Is there a Bunny here? Up in Bunnie Bowling?"

"No, there is not. Bunnie Bowling does not have a mascot… I suppose I am the closest thing to that," Freddy said. His tone had utterly deflated, and he absolutely refused to look Foxy in the eye.

This was not how Foxy wanted the night to go. Not only did Freddy shut down the information well, but he was obviously covering up something, and now it was at danger of ruining their night. He had to let it drop and figure out a way to salvage the evening before he lost what was effectively his last chance to be here.

"…You got any tokens? I noticed there's a lil arcade right in the lobby in there," Foxy remarked, gesturing his arm towards Fazer Blast.

After a pause, Freddy finally turned back with that eager glint back in his eyes.

"I am sure I could 'plunder' a few."

…

Of all the bizarre things Foxy had to face this evening, the fact that the best arcade game he had played so far was about stacking beds was definitely up there. It wasn't even a matter of the games all being awful either, there was just a spontaneously addictive bed making game taking up space in the corner of the Fazer Blast lobby.

The only other multiplayer game in the small arcade being a game called Dino Shock. The name would've implied a more exciting experience, but the gameplay was more of a chore than the literal bed making. Firstly, it forced Freddy to use the second controls of the four, meaning that he was practically on top of Foxy for a majority of the game. Then the game itself, a typical side-scrolling beat 'em up, seemed only have interested in registering his button presses.

He stuck it out for a while but a game over was inevitable when he was slowly losing his patience. Once it did, he pushed back from the game, getting a little breathing room from Freddy.

"Yar, this blows," he announced.

"Want to go back to Bed Maker?" Freddy offered. The fact that he made no comment in defense of the game suggested he politely agreed.

"Eh… Nah, we've seen all there is to see in that one. There be no other arcades nearby?"

Foxy was maybe getting a little too comfortable, but Freddy was still just as on-guard as ever. "The main arcades are all located on the third floor. I do not think it would be safe to lead you that far from the exit… Hmm." He hummed thoughtfully for a second as he considered something. "…On second thought, I may know of a place."

…

Foxy watched warily as one of the half-circle shaped security doors at the back of Kid's Cove opened up into a hallway. Freddy waved for him to follow and headed inside while Foxy stayed back a little.

"I think you will like the Daycare Attendant- if we see him. He may be too busy to greet us, in which case we can head straight to the arcade," the other explained as he continued in.

"And what if he spreads the word back to Blondie?" Foxy grumbled suspiciously.

"I doubt he would. He is not very comfortable around the human staff, so I do not see him going out of his way to tell Vanessa," Freddy reassured.

With this Foxy quickened his pace to catch up at the next door. While he wasn't thrilled to be risking blowing his cover, he did trust Freddy's judgement at least a little. He had been adamant about not having his bandmates see him, but was saying that this guy was alright, so he must've had some standards on who was or wasn't a safe bet. Besides, now Foxy was strangely curious about seeing this whole hose thing in action.

But when the door lifted it revealed a dark room instead of the bouncy daycare that Natalie had described. This wouldn't have been as alarming if not for Foxy noticing Freddy tensing out the corner of his eye.

"What's up?" he asked lowly. His eyepatch popping up and eyes scanning the darkness.

"It- Erm- it seems that the lights are off… Which means the sun is resting. We should leave and come back some other time," Freddy explained. He sounded nervous, but before Foxy could ask why, he suddenly jumped in front of him.

Foxy gave an 'oomph' at his muzzle getting bumped and went to take a step back, only for Freddy's arm to suddenly reach back and pull the shorter animatronic against him. He was hiding him, he realized, and Foxy went silent.

"I am sorry to disturb you, I did not realize that the lights were off. We will just be leaving. You enjoy your night," Freddy called to someone. He was looking up and toward the right somewhere and started to back up, pushing Foxy with him.

Only once they got back far enough that the automatic door closed again did Freddy spin around and start leading Foxy by the shoulders back towards Kids Cover. He wasn't nervous, Foxy realized, he was scared.

It wasn't until they were out in Kid's Cove by the assumed safety of the fake campfire that Foxy dared to ask, "So, ya gonna tell me what happened back there?"

Freddy fumbled to start a few sentences and failed each time until finally settling with, "It is best not to be in the daycare when the lights are off. The Daycare Attendant… is not quite himself when they are."

Now that was programming that Foxy was familiar with. Or at least, he recognized the concept of animatronics getting aggressive when it was past closing, and the lights being off usually assured that they full reign of the place. Freddy looked nervous enough that he would probably spill under the slightest provocation.

"I am sorry to get your hopes up. How about we play another game of Fazer Blast instead? I am sure the Staff Bots have recovered by now!"

…After one more game of Fazer Blast.

…

Freddy was acting strange. Foxy had noticed it right away when they left Fazer Blast for the second time. He seemed quiet and looked a little nervous again, and this was after he had all but thrown the last game. Something was on his mind.

Foxy didn't broach the subject and instead waited for Freddy to be out with it. Which, eventually, he was. "Would you mind if we returned to my green room?"

"Sure. What's up?" Foxy asked. Freddy looked distinctly embarrassed at the question.

"My battery is starting to run low. I will need to charge at a recharge station soon, and while there are others located across the Pizzaplex, I do not want to leave you out in the open. Besides, you will be able to play Street Skate Superstar!" The cheery perk at the end didn't cover how self-conscious he sounded about the whole thing.

As for Foxy, who had gone into another lapse of unneeded paranoia, he relaxed at the believable explanation. "Sounds dandy. Let's lift anchors," he said, then began leading the way back. He hesitated entering the Atrium but, seeing that the place was still empty, continued on towards Rockstar Row. "Yer friends usually this quiet?"

"They are all preparing for tomorrow I am sure, and each of their attractions have recharge stations located inside. Save Chica's, but there is one not too far from her. It gives them time to get acquainted with their home away from home."

"You think they charged by now?" Foxy asked. Freddy gave an honest 'possibly'. "…Ya know, ya could've told me earlier. I wouldn'ta minded stoppin' fer you to charge up."

"I know, I just did not want to stop…" Freddy looked at the floor for a long moment. "It is… cumbersome at times."

"Don't I know it. I be runnin' a full ship tomorrow on three hours sleep- iff'n I'm lucky," Foxy said, trying to lighten the mood a little while he waited for a security door to lift. "I've pulled worse but it ain't gonna be fun."

"I would offer my recharge station, but I am not sure if you are…" Freddy cut off there, deciding very quickly that any word following would've come out wrong.

"Good save," Foxy chuckled. He continued on towards their destination.

Soon they were in the backroom behind the green room and standing alongside the recharge station. The door opened automatically as Freddy walked up but he did not get in just yet instead turning back to Foxy.

"This will not take long. Fifteen, maybe twenty minutes," he explained. After a tense moment- Foxy noticed his hands tighten and relax- he asked, "You… will still be here when I come out?"

"I ain't goin' nowhere. Except out there."

Freddy seemed relieved to hear this and stepped into the station, triggering the recharge cycle to begin. Foxy looked through the window at him and he gave a friendly wave back before the pirate nodded and headed off.

It was exactly seventeen minutes and forty-one seconds before the cycle was complete. Freddy gave an approving hum as the charging station dinged to signal that the cycle had finished. Not that it needed to tell him when he could feel the energy flowing through his body. He felt brand-new as he stepped out and made his way back into the green room. He noticed with concern that he couldn't hear the game being played.

Any questions he had were answered when he stepped through to find Foxy stretched out on the couch. He caught himself before he could say anything, noticing that the other had remained remarkably still the whole time.

He leaned forward and realized Foxy's eye was closed. He was sleeping- recharging perhaps. It was so strange to see it in person and, while it felt so odd, knowing it was a more natural way of refreshing oneself.

It looked like he was still in the process of charging, so Freddy quietly made his way over to his chair. He could just sit and wait for him to finish up, just like Foxy did for him. At least they were still technically hanging out.

Funny enough, he hadn't been awoken by Freddy walking out here, the second the chair squeaked Foxy shot upright on the couch and snapped his head to attention.

"Oh! I hope I did not interrupt," Freddy apologized, trying not to sound excited. Foxy grumbled out some kind of response as he heaved himself upwards.

"How long have you been out?"

"Only a few minutes."

"Right… How long 'ave I been out?"

"…I am assuming a little longer than that," Freddy guessed. "So! Where to next, Captain? Unless you need longer to recharge."

"I'm good." Foxy got up quickly after that, not wanting to seem delayed now that Freddy suddenly had a spring in his step. "Night's still young. Let's go tear up the place."

And though Freddy should've disagreed with the sentiment, he couldn't deny that he was a little intrigued to see what was coming next.

…

Of all the risky stunts they could've pulled, this one was relatively tame. The biggest risk being if they ended up getting stuck, trying to jam themselves into a booth already a little undersized for even a normal adult. Foxy got himself in alright, it was just getting Freddy in with him and both into frame that was the hassle.

"Further in, further in."

"Maybe if I lean in this way?"

"Just tilt it like… Yeah, there. Yer gonna be a little off kilter, but you'll be in frame."

"Good! Hold on." Freddy reached to turn it on, having gotten most of it set up before they climbed inside. There was a confirmation sound and he leaned back in again. "What is the plan?"

"Don't look like a couple'a posers. These things bring that outta ya," Foxy warned. He then popped up his hook and shot a grin at the camera. "Cheers!" Freddy quickly posed with a smile right before the camera flash.

Foxy winced and blinked at the light. "Blimey, they don't even need a flash in- Hey, hey, quick. Make like that face ya made when ya shot me in the eye," he said. He then cocked his head back and posed his hand like he was in mid-grab towards his eye, it closed, mouth open in a silent scream. Freddy put his hand up, dropped his mouth open, and stared wide-eyed at the pirate. There was another flash.

Freddy chuckled and requested, "Square up." He raised his fists with a mock intense expression. One that ironically didn't look too different from the one he got while playing Fazer Blast. Foxy got his hook up between then and narrowed his gaze with the edge of a smirk, or what he felt was one. Another flash and both facades dropped instantly.

"Right, one more oughta do it," Foxy said. He tried to think up a quick idea, but was beat to the punch when Freddy suddenly hooked his arm around him and pulled him in. Foxy's eye widening a little at the unexpected grab.

Freddy, as smooth as ever, shot a wink and a peace sign towards the camera. Foxy got as far as a smile before the flash went off. Though that was only because the smile came so naturally.

"Alright, show's over. Let me out." Just as naturally, Foxy pushed Freddy out of the photo booth so he could get past. He got out just in time to see the photo strip getting fed out of the machine and plucked them up. "Not too shabby!" he admired. Perhaps a little embarrassing but it wasn't like anyone other than him, Freddy, and probably Jeremy and Marionette would see it. "Which ones d'you want?"

"Oh no, keep them! I will just print a second set," Freddy offered, fiddling with the controls to 'order' a second set. "I doubt anyone will notice an extra charge… and my name is on the building."

"There ya go!" Foxy encouraged, thumping him on the arm with the side of his hook. He then returned to admiring the picture strip for a moment before asking. "Time?" He knew he was calling it close.

"It is… almost five-thirty," Freddy admitted.

"Then I guess it be time fer me to shove off. Lest I get stuck in here 'til the place opens and 'ave to kill meself."

"Foxy!" Freddy said in aghast.

"I'm kiddin', mate. I'm already dead inside," Foxy only partially joked as he started to head out of the center of the atrium and back towards the new way he came in. He had been keeping a closer eye out for the last hour. Not only had Roxanne started tromping around on the second floor while he and Freddy were trying to get the Fazer Blast Ferris wheel working, but he kept hearing these strange ticking noises that he knew hadn't be present earlier.

Freddy followed slowly. He looked at the photo strip before opening his chest and hiding it inside. Then began to rub at his arm once it was closed again. In only a few short hours everything was going to change.

"Foxy…" Freddy began quietly. Foxy's ears perked at the change in tone, and he turned to face him. His eyes were filled with worry. "I am worried about tomorrow. About opening."

"Why's that?" the pirate asked.

"I am not sure. I do not expect anything to go wrong, but… I feel like it could. I feel like I am not ready for the stage, if that makes sense," Freddy confessed.

"I know what ya mean and I know how you feel, but what's the worst that can happen?" Foxy asked nonchalantly.

"…I fall off the stage."

"…Aye, I'll admit that's a risk in our line of work."

Funny that only now did Foxy realize he could've effectively sabotaged opening day by getting into Freddy's head. It wouldn't have been hard; he was already especially nervous. Yet he didn't like the idea. That wasn't to say that he wasn't still boiling about this place opening, but sabotaging Freddy would just be hurting him. From all he had seen tonight, he realized that Freddy himself was really a small part of a much bigger problem.

"Look… It's going to go fine," Foxy said. He eased into a more serious tone as he did so. "People like us are born to be up on that stage. Once you get up there, you'll know what you need to do. It'll just come to you."

"Do you really believe that?" Freddy asked desperately.

"Yeah, I do." Then realizing how somber the moment had gotten- and how sad it was that he was giving a pep talk to his replacement- he quickly tacked on, "…But just in case, stay away from the edge."

Freddy smiled once more. "Aye, aye, Captain."

"And watch where ya shoot that gun of yers! You start blindin' kids and they'll downgrade ya from lasers to foam pellets," Foxy warned. Then he turned and continued leading again. Freddy chuckled and followed along loyally.

They stayed rather quiet until they made it to the open vent. During which time Foxy had been expecting Freddy to ask him if he would come back, but he didn't. Maybe he was waiting for the right time, or likely he had recognized the risk they would face now that the Pizzaplex would be opening. It was actually sort of sad that he didn't.

"Well, here's me stop," Foxy said. He nodded at Freddy like he was tipping a non-existent hat and moved to climb inside.

"I hope you come back," Freddy confessed. Foxy hesitated halfway into the vent. "I mean- I had a good time tonight! I would not be against having another one."

"It ain't that easy, Freddy," the pirate murmured. He looked back towards the bear and just from the look in his eyes recognized that the bear already knew this. "…We'll see. If I can I will."

"I would like that! Take care, Captain. Have a safe trip home," Freddy said. Foxy nodded, deciding any response would be too sappy, and took into the vent. Freddy waited outside the vent until he could no longer hear him, then sighed, tried to set the vent cover back over the opening, and then began the long wall back to his green room.

As he passed through the atrium, he stepped out enough to see the large stage. There was still a feeling of great anticipation in his chest, but he decided to take what Chica and Foxy said to heart. They were ready for this; they were made for this. His name and face was on the sign. He was Freddy Fazbear; he could do this.

With that last thought, he turned and continued into Rockstar Row.

He hadn't noticed wicked grin peering down at him from the second floor.

…

Jeremy had been so afraid that he was going to arrive late that he showed up early and had to fight the urge to nod off in his seat. He thought he got enough sleep, but his body didn't appreciate the change in routine. To fight the grogginess, he had the radio turned up and was tapping his hands on the steering wheel along with the beat.

He only vaguely recognized a noise outside but didn't get a chance to look out before the back door was suddenly yanked open and Foxy threw himself inside. He could just give a short "guh!" before he could recollect himself.

"This be Pizzaplex private parking, matey! Ye better cough up the fine 'er yer walkin' home," Foxy playfully teased. Jeremy was already relieved to hear that he was in a good mood, a sharp contrast from the frantic way he jumped into the car.

"Th-This is all a big mistake, officer! This isn't even my car! I'm, uh… borrowing it… from a friend named… Mike. Yeah, Mike," Jeremy played along.

"Oh yeah? Mike what?"

"Just Mike, I don't know his last name. I was just borrowing the car. Call him yourself! I don't have his number, but yeah, if we did, he'd tell you he gave it to me."

"…Lad, it sounds like you used this excuse before," Foxy said slyly. Though instead of concerned, he sounded rather intrigued. He reached around the other side of the back of his seat to gently ruffle his already fluffed up bedhead. "And it looks like ya just tumbled out of bed."

"Okay, I might be guilty of that, but I'm pleading the fifth on the other. And no, you can't search my vehicle. I want your badge number," Jeremy said. He started up the car again and looked back, shooting Foxy a smile before beginning to back up the car enough to pull away, having parked just behind Natalie. "Sooo, how'd it go?"

"How do ya think?" Foxy answered vaguely. He answered a little more concretely by fishing out the photos and handing them over. Jeremy stopped the car to look at them and almost did a doubletake, taking them in hand and adjusting his glasses to get a better look. A smile broke across his face which caused Foxy to heat with budding embarrassment. He started to sink into the backseat.

"So that's Freddy! He looks a lot more friendly in person than the statues would have you believe," Jeremy said. He noticed Foxy sliding down and slid up to see him. "Looks like you had a good night."

Foxy gave a low groan.

"Sounds like you had a great night," Jeremy teased.

"I went in there to get information. I got a bunch of weird anecdotes and spent the whole night screwing around," Foxy lamented. To punctuate this, he pulled something out of his pouch and dropped it into Jeremy's hand. "Here's a candy bar."

"Hey, thanks. I could use… Lemon Chica Bar? That doesn't sound half bad," Jeremy murmured. He started to peel it open. "But I thought part of it was to check on Freddy too, and to see how the place is turning out. There's nothing wrong with having fun while doing that."

"He's a competitor. I can't forget that," Foxy said. He forced a stony tone as he looked out at the building with a tight glint in his eye.

Jeremy recognized it as him being dramatic and went ahead to point out the second photo in the list. "This one's my favorite."

Foxy perked back up. "Yeah, that was my idea. Bloody bear fired a laser directly into me eye! Lemme explain: so me and Freddy go over to check out the laser tag. We get in this place and it's a maze lit up in neon. I was half-blinded the second I walked in!" This quickly spiraled into one of Foxy's long somewhat exaggerated retellings, and Jeremy ate it up as quickly as he did that vaguely lemon tasting bar.

Foxy didn't look back at Freddy's. He hated Freddy's. He hated Fazbear Entertainment and he hated that this accursed place was opening. He hated that tomorrow he would have to begin fighting for his livelihood. He hated all of it.

Except Freddy. Freddy was okay.

Chapter 23

Chapter Summary

It's time for the Pizzaplex's grand opening...

After much debate, Marionette decided to go ahead and wear the red velvet bowtie. It just felt like the kind of day that he wanted to look good on, to make a statement on, to make a little more special. He put it on in the Prize Corner while he was getting prepared for the day and headed out shortly after to show it off.

Mike took notice right away. The way his eyes trailed down and back up and a smile slipped across his face seemed to suggest that he liked what he saw too, only further boosting the puppet's confidence and coaxing a low trill to begin stirring.

"What do you think?" he asked. The vibrations could be heard on his voice.

"Cute," Mike replied coyly.

"Just cute?" Marionette returned.

"Devilishly handsome," Mike corrected.

The puppet chimed in delight because he knew that he meant it even with the playful coaxing. He adjust the tie even though it was already straight. "Good! I just felt like trying something different today."

"It's already paying off. I can't keep my eyes off you… but what else is new?" Mike murmured. He leaned in and kept his voice just low enough that Jeremy wouldn't be able to hear from the table he was getting ready for an early party. While his shameless flirting was a dead giveaway for how hard he was trying to ignore what today was, Marionette played into it just as eagerly. "Seriously, you look great."

"Thank you! Though you might be a bit biased," the puppet returned, voice quieting towards the end and eyes narrowing slyly. He then looked over towards Jeremy setting up the table and then to Foxy's stage. The curtains were cracked enough that he could see nobody was inside. "Is Foxy still in the office?"

"Mmhmm," Mike agreed. He was still looking over the striped one with a thoughtful look. "Almost off topic, but what would you think about getting a costume for you?"

"You mean a pirate costume like Foxy's? Or I suppose like the one from the cartoon?" Marionette asked. He looked a little intrigued.

"It doesn't have to be either of those. You could do whatever you wanted, just something so you're not running around like a streaker." This was abrupt enough to get a laugh out of Marionette. Mike smirked a little bit. "Okay, okay, jokes aside, I think it's a good idea. You could even design it yourself and then we'll just get Costume Guy to do it," he suggested. "How about a matching jacket?"

"I always look good in a jacket," Marionette boasted.

"True but imagine one that actually fits," Mike countered. Another chime and he smiled wider, feeling the edge of tension letting off.

"It is a tempting idea…" the puppet considered; one arm crossed while his chin rested on the back of the other hand. After a moment of thought he waved it off with that same hand. "It would be complicated. My measurements are weird."

"He suited Foxy," Mike reminded.

"Foxy's different. He's closer to a normal animatronic."

"He suited Ennard," Mike reminded.

"…Okay, so we can establish that he IS flexible," Marionette caved. His face started to betray his actual feelings before his words did. "But I don't want to take the money that you should be using on tuition."

"Don't start worrying about money. We're got more than enough to manage and half of it's yours, and we even get a little more every week. No big deal," Mike assured. He knew Marionette was worried about the business after today. Mike was an owner, Mike had to worry about the business, but he didn't want to yet. He just wanted to ride as long as he could. "I consider it a business investment. We could probably write it off as a tax deduction."

Marionette smiled and thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure that's how it works… but let's say we did decide to go ahead with it. I suppose a jacket would fit better with Foxy's, even if it's not pirate themed. Maybe something with longer coattails or even brass buttons- what looks like brass buttons that is. Or maybe even a tuxedo! Not the whole thing but the jacket- could you imagine me trying to wear pants?... Hmm, perhaps it wouldn't be that difficult."

Mike listened to Marionette with only an occasional interjection here or there. It was always a treat to hear him get on a role about something. This was the first time it was about clothes. That piqued Mike's interest; how long had he been holding back on costume ideas for himself? Everything got sidelined after the news about Freddy's, so it could've been a while. Now all he had to do was condense those ideas into something that could be stitched together.

"But enough of that!" the puppet finally interrupted himself. "We're opening in- goodness, that soon? We're opening soon and still no captain! Let's go see if Foxy's ready," he suggested. Mike agreed and led back towards the office.

He opened the office door and looked in, finding Foxy laying on the couch. The fact that he didn't wake up the second the door opened signaling he was in a deeper sleep than expected.

Mike turned back to Marionette and mouthed, "He's out."

The puppet was only a little concerned and slipped by so he could peek around the door for himself. Foxy was lying on his side facing the back of the couch with his blanket bunched up in his arms and his face pressed into it, probably to block out the light from the desk lamp. It wasn't immediately apparent whether he kept the light on because of it being business hours or just because he didn't plan on napping long.

Marionette caught one look at him and decided not to wake him, smiling to himself as he turned off the light and slipped back out. Foxy didn't stir. Mike was still waiting out in the hall as he quietly shut the door behind him.

"I can take over the first party. He'll be up by noon," Marionette said.

Mike got a small smile somewhere between knowing and amusement and threw an arm around the puppet as they headed out. "You've got this, and I've got your back if you don't," he said once he was certain they were out of earshot.

Marionette was sure that he did, but the physical assurance went a long way, because today was going to be a long day.

It was the first day Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex was opening alongside them.

Natalie awoke to a pleasantly dim bedroom and briefly mused that blackout curtains were the best thing they ever invested in. She couldn't tell what time it was, but from the fact that she felt relatively rested she assumed that it was either late morning or early afternoon. A quick check of the clock confirmed that she had gotten in about seven hours of sleep, and it was some of the best sleep she had gotten in ages.

She could still smell lavender from the oil Fritz used when he rubbed her back last night. She vaguely remembered nodding off a few times during it, but it had worked wonders it taking the tightness out of her back. Alas, as much as she wanted to continue lying in bed with that soft memory, she knew she had to get up.

She pulled on a shirt and ran a brush through her hair before heading out of the bedroom, feeling dried rose petals under her feet from last night. She expected them to still be there, doubting that Fritz was going to come in and vacuum when she was still asleep. What she didn't expect was to come out and find the coffee machine on.

She furrowed her brows, especially once she noticed voices coming from downstairs. She walked to the top of the stairs and listened and, sure enough, she could hear Fritz downstairs talking to Chance. She couldn't make out too much of the conversation, but it sounded like a casual one. Either he stayed out of work today, a shocking turn of events, or he just stopped in to check on everything during lunch.

She decided to leave them be and make something for breakfast-lunch. Fritz must've heard her walking around because he came upstairs shortly after, catching her midway through frying an egg.

"Morning!" he greeted, coming up beside her to steal a kiss.

"Morning was about six hours ago," she retorted, doing a rather close impression of Chance's tone. He chuckled at it. "I appreciate you stopping by to make sure I dragged myself out of bed."

"Actually, I 'stopped by' the Pizzeria this morning to open and came back. I'm taking the day off," Fritz said. She looked startled. "What, I can't take a day off?"

"I honestly didn't think you could," Natalie said in mock shock. She smiled knowingly as she gently turned the egg over, eyes darting between it and him. "Oooh, I know it must be killing you to not be working yourself to the bone right now."

"The withdrawals haven't kicked in yet. Once they do, I'll just break open our least favorite appliance and tinker around."

"The blender. Everything I make in it has a slightly metal taste," she suggested.

Fritz stared thoughtfully for a second. "…That probably should be looked at."

"Fritz!" Natalie scolded.

"Someday! Not today. Today my schedule is wiped totally clean. It's just you, me, and maybe Chance if he's not too tired of me," he reassured. Natalie gave him a suspicious look, but his somewhat cheesy grin wore it down into a smile.

"Okay, I'll let you off the hook… But I'm watching you, mister!" she threatened. Then returned to putting together an egg sandwich, looking forward to the day more than she was expecting to.

It was a good day too. Unlike they had joked, Fritz was totally capable of separating himself from work. Considering the tenseness surrounding today that was probably a good thing. They spent the day just existing in their house and with each other without any hassle.

That was until a little before seven.

The two of them were watching a game show with Chance, actively competing against the competitors on the screen, when Natalie's cellphone began to ring. There was a moment of silence. Fritz looked to Natalie, she closed her eyes with exhaustion and begrudging before standing from the couch and making a run for the stairs. They both knew who it was. Chance knew too, watching her go but not commenting.

Well, not commenting beyond a toss at the screen, "Oh, come on. It was Jamaica! They made a movie about it!"

Natalie managed to get to her phone before it stopped ringing. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing, but it was definitely a sign that whoever it was would probably be calling again if she hadn't. She answered with, "Hello?"

"Hello! Is this Ms. Smith?"

She grimaced at the question but covered it in her voice. "Yes, who is this?"

"Hi, I'm Misty. Marketing associate at Fazbear Entertainment, currently running the check-in counter at the Pizzaplex," the woman introduced. She sounded exhausted. "We're starting our first show at eight and we're swamped. Mr. Wight asked me to call and see if you could come in early to monitor the situation? I know you're technically on the night shift, but he's- we're afraid- I'm afraid that things might get out of hand once the show starts."

Natalie was gritting her teeth. She didn't hold any ill will towards the woman- she sounded at the end of her rope- but she didn't really want to head in there early. She could just hear the loudness in the background of the call and knew there was going to be a lot of people. Which wouldn't be a problem if she wasn't somewhere between 'responsible to keep a rowdy crowd in line' and 'significant other to an owner of the rival establishment'.

She hissed through her teeth before asking, "Do I have to stay all the way through to my shift?"

"Mr. Wight didn't say, but I don't think so. The show should wrap up long before then, so I don't think he'd argue with you leaving and coming back. If it's worth the gas," Misty offered.

"Believe me, it is," Natalie agreed defeated. "I need a few minutes to get ready."

"Thank you so much! You're doing us all a huge favor."

"No problem." It definitely felt like a problem though. She hung up with a sigh and looked back towards the stairs, hearing Fritz coming up with her. She gave him an apologetic look. "They want me to come in early to keep an eye on things."

"Things getting hectic over there?" Fritz asked. He was disappointed, maybe a little worried.

"It sounds like it. They want me to come in and monitor a show at eight, but she said I might not have to stay until my shift," Natalie muttered. Fritz gave her a sympathetic pat on the back, and she groaned before heading to go get dressed.

The phone call was not enough to brace her for what was coming when she arrived at the Pizzaplex.

The place was beyond packed. If not for the small parking section devoted to employees- with signs up threatening a fine if anyone else parked there- she would've had to park at the edge of the lot. Though even the employee section was overfilled, probably because they had to call in so many workers to handle the workload.

The front lobby didn't seem too busy. There were a few people up in the Faz-Pad and in the locker room and gift shop, but it was nothing crazy. She met Misty at the locker room counter, who thanked her profusely for coming, and went to clock herself in on the lost and found computer. Then she started to drag herself in the direction of the atrium, knowing from Misty's behavior alone that it was going to be a lot more hectic.

She was climbing the stairs towards the elevators when she glanced over through the gift shop window and noticed a familiar face inside. It was Ness, sitting at the counter and nibbling at a box of fries.

It was still a little while before the show was supposed to begin and Natalie wasn't jumping through hoops to get out there early, so she decided to stop in and visit. There were only a few people in the giftshop, a family and a couple of preteens, but none of them were at the counter so Ness wasn't busy. The brunette noticed her only once she was a few feet away and brightened up.

"Hey there, Nat-ah… Uh, Van… nessa?" Ness gave an embarrassed and apologetic smile. "How's it going? You got roped into some overtime?"

"Something like that," Natalie sighed, not hiding her disappointment in the slightest. "What about you?"

"When Mr. Wight makes the call to arms… I'm always standing nearby," Ness admitted with a tight smile. "I could always use the money, but I really don't want to be here," she whispered out the end.

"Tough day?" Natalie asked. She leaned in on the counter just in case the other woman wanted to keep it quiet. Ness' mouth pulled briefly into an even more tense, rather fed-up smile.

"You have no idea. That elevator out there? The one right out there? Leads up to the Prize Counter. It's down, and I've had people coming in here all day asking, "is this all?" And so I say, "No, this is just a gift shop. The prize counter's upstairs. You've got to go through the elevators, up the escalators to the third floor, and right into the door under the big 'Prizes' sign". And they leave, and half of the time they come back because they don't understand why they need tickets and tokens, and I tell them it's a prize exchange, but if they want to buy stuff there's five other gift shops across the Pizzaplex. There's one in Monty's Gator Golf, Roxanne's Raceway, Fazer Blast, there's even one in the daycare-."

Ness finally stopped herself and after a short moment quietly added, "This has happened like ten times now."

"Oh, I can tell," Natalie agreed. She gave her a sympathetic smile. "But nobody's giving you that hard of a time?"

"No… but some got close. It's no big deal," the brunette murmured. She popped another fry and offered the box to Natalie, who took one.

"Yeah, well, I'm here now. Anyone starts giving you a hard time, you tell me and I'll throw them out," she said with playful firmness. That tone that would suggest that while she was playing around, she wasn't exactly joking.

"Then don't go too far. I'd love to leave early, and they've been here a long time," Ness lightly joked. She pointed towards the family who were currently going through some toys off to the side.

"I'd love to, but I've got to go out and make sure nobody storm's the stage," Natalie joked. Ness gave a sympathetic little noise. "You know I don't think anyone would mind if you slipped out to see the show."

"I don't know… You know how I feel about the band. I'm not really that in-."

"The show is about to begin. Please head to the main stage in an orderly fashion." The automated voice over the intercom cut her off midsentence. She decided it wasn't important to finish it.

"Guess that's my cue to go," Natalie murmured. Ness gave her an apologetic smile. "I meant what I said earlier. Anybody gives you trouble, and you come and get me, okay?"

"I will. You take care. It's… I've just got a little hunch that it's going to get a little crazy once the music begins," the brunette tentatively warned. She waved after the blond with a tiny smile. "Good luck!"

Natalie left and headed to the elevators to head into the atrium, though it wasn't long before she was wondering if she could've stalled longer at the giftshop. It wasn't like she was going to be able to break up a crowd if they got rowdy.

Nothing made that clearer than when the doors opened, and she was hit by the sheer volume of everything. Natalie had grown up in a house with a lot of kids, so she had a tolerance for noise that others might not have. Yet the atrium was still impressively loud, even before the show had begun. She steadied herself and walked over to the railing to look down at the crowd that had gathered in front of the stage.

There were so many people here. It reminded her a lot more of a crowd in an amusement park than one in a pizzeria, which was fitting considering this place was more like an indoor amusement park. No wonder they need so much staff.

She was almost startled by an automated voice from behind her- "Hi! Please take this map." -accompanied by a short gasp from the victim in question. She smirked a little; at least the Map Bot was up to his old tricks- and must've recognized her since it didn't run up on her. She glanced back over her shoulder, then shot upright in surprise.

"Hold up! What are you doing here?!"

There, with a map shoved in his chest and the guiltiest smile he could muster, was Fritz. He took the map, which triggered Map Bot to slowly turn and roll off with a simple, "Thank you."

Natalie gave him the look and he cut in with a quick, "I can explain." He wandered over to stand beside her, probably trying to pull together a reasonable excuse before he got there. "I thought about it, and it seemed like a good idea to come spy on the competition. Keeps my hands out of the blender."

"You know if someone sees us together, they're going to know something's up," Natalie remarked.

"Hey, as far as they know, Wight let me in for free to see the opening show and I'm just talking to the first pretty girl I saw walking out of the elevator," he said, then winked. Natalie slightly snickered but recovered quickly, shaking her head.

"Yeah well, I don't know you. So, if you start acting up, I will bum-rush you out of here. I know your soft spots and I'm not afraid to use them," she almost flirted. Just barely, though she didn't dare express the action with any body language in case anyone was paying attention. She leaned on the railing, and he joined her at a comfortable distance as they looked down at the crowd.

He inhaled through his teeth and exhaled slowly through his lips at the sight of it all. It was just as busy as he was expecting. It made him want to call and check on Foxy's.

"Did Wight really let you in for free?" Natalie asked.

"That he did," Fritz said. "And all it took was one phone call."

"…Do we owe him our firstborn or something? Because it normally costs an arm and leg to get in here," she asked with a slight smile.

"No, just my soul," he answered. A partial joke until he added on, "Had to make it sound like I was really interested, and he took the bait."

Before she could ask what exactly he said, and how he might've schmoozed Wight into coughing up a free pass, the lights suddenly dimmed across the atrium. There was an excited murmur from the crowd, especially from some loud children, which was even more audible once the background music was abruptly cut off.

"Looks like the show's about to begin," Natalie remarked.

Fritz nodded as he looked out at the stage. Then popped his lips and discreetly asked, "Think if I run really fast that I might make it out of here in time?"

As though on cue, music boomed across the massive room, echoing from the stage and channeling through mounted speakers. Fritz and Natalie looked over at the stage the moment smoke began to gush out of slots in the stage and a circle of lights illuminated atop of it.

"Oh no. You're stuck," Natalie answered.

"Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls," a voice that sounded suspiciously like the HandUnit's automated one announced. "Fazbear Entertainment would like you to put your hands together for the one, the only, Freddy Fazbear!"

The music hit a crescendo and the audience in front of the stage began to clap and cheer with an excitement that Fritz wasn't expecting and found himself sinking down at it. Natalie either shared the sentiment or noticed him react as she laid a hand on his. He turned his hand to take hers as they leaned on the railing and watched the show begin.

Screens on either side of the stage alit with footage of the band coming to the stage. Framed in smoke and travelling down a hall lit by neon and dramatic lighting, each bandmember got a pose, a flash of their face, a moment to silently introduce themselves before they would come out to perform. A prerecorded introduction to the newest members of the Fazbear family, to tonight's main event.

But things were much less dramatic inside the lift. Freddy could hear the music amping up and the cheering following it from far above. He tightened his hand on the microphone stand and stole a quick look at his bandmates. Chica was stretching her neck and arms, Roxanne fluffing her hair one last time, and Monty staring down at his bass as he adjusted his grip on it. They all had to be as nervous as he was, but they didn't show it.

Freddy owed them the same. He gave a nod of finality and looked up as the lift finally began to ascend, bracing himself for the big moment.

The lift arrived at the stage and the band members literally burst onto the scene. Freddy leaping off of the lift and onto the stage proper and coming face to face with a crowd of cheering patrons. He couldn't explain the feeling that spread through him upon the sight of so many eager faces watching and goading him on. It was exhilarating, and he eagerly lifted the microphone to his mouth.

"Welcome to the Piz-za-plex! Where the par-ty nev-er eeends!~" Freddy sung. He gave a quick spin on the stage. "Rock out, cause you're going far. Blast off!~" He gave a forward fist pump, pausing for emphasis. "And you'll be a superstar!~"

Chica, Monty, and Roxanne spread out across the stage while Freddy backed into the center stage once more.

"My name is Freddy; you'll hear me belting as I-.~" He pointed a finger towards the ceiling and bowed his head down into his tilted microphone stand. "-Reach for the stars.~"

Chica was swaying her head to the beat as her fingers strummed the strings feverishly, her foot tapping in thumps to the beat. Freddy sidled up beside her.

"This here's Chica, she's a master when she shreds the guitar,~" he sung before leaning out the mic to her.

She promptly broke into a squealing guitar solo, leaning into the mic before breaking it off with a peace sign to the audience.

Freddy then rushed to the opposite side of the stage, right up to Monty. He leaned in back-to-back with the gator.

"Then there's Monty, watch him tear up the bass.~"

Monty pulled down his sunglasses with a claw to wink at the crowd. Freddy smiled and nodded towards the front of the stage.

"And then there's Roxanne, she's leading the race.~"

Roxanne hiked her leg up on an amp and tossed her hair back. This got an exceptionally excited buzz from the crowd directly underneath her.

"We're all together, 'cause it's now or never!~" Freddy rushed the edge of the stage and slid in on his knees, fully committing to the moment and the music pumping through his body. He felt alive. "We're gonna rock this pizza place!~"

As the music hit for the chorus, the platforms built into the stage began to raise up and lifted Monty and Roxanne- who hustled over to get on one before it could. They didn't miss a beat and seamlessly played into the next chorus.

"Freddy's Piz-za-plex! Jam out with your new best friends! Time for a brand-new start, so shoot for the moon and sing from you heart!~"

In a brief respite between the chorus and the bridge Freddy looked out across the sea of faces. So many smiles, so many wide eyes staring in awe at him and his bandmates, who were also playing their hearts out. The pulse of the music, the brilliant flair of the neon lights at his back; it was magical. He couldn't understand how he could've been worried about this; it was so amazing.

The show had only just begun and yet he couldn't wait for the next one, for the next song, for more of this. He straightened up and prepared for the coming verse, taking it all in and living in the moment.

And that was when he saw him.

There was a child standing outside of the entryway into Kids Cove, alone. In fact, the only reason Freddy spotted him across the packed auditorium was that he was standing alone. There were no adults or kids nearby, he didn't come any closer to the stage either. He wasn't cheering and at this distance Freddy couldn't even tell if he was smiling. He was just silently watching the show, arms at his sides, completely alone.

A lone little boy standing where Foxy had only a few weeks beforehand. It almost felt like fate that Freddy saw him and for some reason his eyes were transfixed. He couldn't understand why he was standing over the alone without his parents.

He realized that he just passed his cue to start singing and tried to snap back into the performance, but his body wouldn't respond. He was frozen to the spot and when he tried to fight it his body shuddered and twitched. He couldn't pull his eyes away from the unattended child standing on the far side of the room.

A warning popped up on his vision along with a halo of red, alerting him of a threat, detecting something before distorting. Sapping the color from his vision as he read the words dancing in front of his eyes. The microphone stand slipped from his hand as his fingers went numb. He thought he was still holding the mic itself in the other hand, but he couldn't tell, and he couldn't move his eyes to look.

His body was twitching but it didn't feel right, his head suddenly feeling very light and wobbly. It was as though he was beyond the reach of his body, watching the twisting shapes and colors between his eyes and in the back of his head.

Behind all of it he could hear the music distorting and twisting. No longer able to hear his band beyond a shrill tone in his ears, then a muffled voice in the back of them. A dull whisper slurred and incomprehensible that slowly grew louder.

"...R….R…R…"

"…REVER..AN….ER….VER…"

".. ..AN...EVER…AN..VER…"

"FOREVER..AND…EVER…AND…EVER…"

The tune repeated in the back of his head as his circuits overloaded with the vital warnings he couldn't process. The concert disappearing behind the haze and that song drowning it all out as the world swung.

"AND EVER. FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER AND EVER."

Freddy hit the ground with one heavy thump. Seeing his microphone rolling out of his hand, seeing Chica running towards him, and seeing the numerous warnings stack up before-

"LET'S GO!"

Everything was gone.

…

The best way to describe the immediate aftermath of Freddy's collapse on stage was mass confusion.

The band on stage reacted instantly. Chica ran to and was crouched down beside Freddy in a second. Roxanne yelled something to Monty- which could barely be heard from the booming background music- before running over to stand by his other side. Monty took the cue and sort of did a kicking little shuffle in front of Freddy, perhaps to block him from the audience, and then began a bass solo with no end.

There was a collective gasp from the audience that soon turned into confused murmurs and the loud questions of children with no volume control. All of them asking how and why their animatronic entertainment had stopped.

Natalie and Fritz just stared with mouths agape. It wasn't even the fact that Freddy collapsed on stage, but the fact that Freddy Fazbear collapsed on stage during Fazbear Entertainment's grand opening of their mega entertainment venue.

"Wow," Natalie finally said.

"Wight is going to freak," Fritz said.

"Oh yeah."

She caught sight of a couple of familiar figures running out from backstage, Chaz and Stanley, with three more people dressed in various uniforms. Two of them didn't even look like technicians and yet it was all men on deck to get up onto the stage and over to Freddy. Over the intercom the Handunit voice attempted to placate the onlookers.

"We are experiencing some technical difficulties. Just sit tight- the show will begin momentarily."

"It doesn't look like they're getting him up," Fritz mumbled to Natalie as he watched one of the technicians- Chaz- try to rouse Freddy. When he couldn't, he pressed a button to open his chest and stuck a cord somewhere inside, one that was connected to what looked like a sleeker, grey Handunit that the other technician- the one Natalie didn't recognize- was holding. "See, this is the sort of thing I was expecting to happen the day we opened Foxy's."

But even with them managing to start a conversation, they were both in a state of shock at what they were seeing. It didn't look like things were getting better either once Monty was called out of his solo to start hoisting Freddy off the floor, them either not having a dolly on hand or just thinking it would look more authentic than wheeling him off the stage. If they were taking him off stage and not just rolling him around.

It was rather unfortunately that Natalie had gotten as close to Freddy as she had, because now worry was starting to twist up her insides. Chaz and Stanley were alright guys, but their- and Fazbear Entertainment's- track records weren't great.

Fritz must've had the same idea as he out of nowhere asked, "Should I do something?"

"Run while you still can?" she dryly asked.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for visiting and we hope you enjoyed the show! Freddy and the gang are pretty tired, so we will be closing early tonight to let them rest. Please make your way to the front of the building where you will be given novelty glasses, a voucher for one free soda refill, and where you will sign a legal disclaimer releasing us of all liability for anything that might have happened during your visit. Have an awesome night, and we'll see you again soon."

"I was joking!" Natalie choked.

"That was the punchline," Fritz tried to joke, the whole thing feeling exceptionally tense. They looked down to see some, though not many people starting to come back in their direction. "Maybe I should get out of here?"

"Right. I guess I'm going to have to hang out and make sure everyone leaves… So much for coming back home," Natalie sighed. Fritz suddenly leaned forward and planted a kiss on her lips. "Whoa!" she scolded.

"Sorry, I tripped," he said with yet another cheesy grin, patted her shoulders, and then turned and jogged to the elevators. She sighed but waved after him with a slight smile, his apologetic, as the doors shut.

At least he chose the one time nobody would be looking in their direction. She could let him off the hook for that, especially when it was looking like she had a long night still ahead.

Fritz made it into the lobby and speedily made his way down the stairs. He didn't want to look suspicious, but he did want to get out of here before someone assumed the worst. Though his speed quickly increased when he heard Wight's voice from somewhere. He was just through the turnstiles when a voice called after him.

"Sam! Sam, wait up!" Suddenly James seemed to swoop out of nowhere and speed walk after him. Fritz inwardly cringed and slowly turned back towards the older man. He looked to be whipped up into a panicked frenzy. "Did you see what happened out there?!"

"Well… Yes. You saw it?"

"No, I didn't! I was in the gift shop; I start ascending the stairs and I catch a televised screening of the show just in time to see Freddy down on stage!" James exclaimed. "This is the absolute worst thing that could've happened today. Freddy Fazbear collapsing in front of an auditorium FULL of people! And I can't count on those buffoons to get him back up. My God, I'm already down one entertainer because of them! How are we supposed to get a replacement in one night?!"

"Whoa, wait. Don't do that. You don't need to replace him," Fritz suddenly interjected. H he quickly readjusted his volume. "I know it's not my place to say, but considering you let me swing by for free I think I owe it to you. I've been in the animatronic game for a long time, and I've seen what happened on stage happen before. I think what happened to Freddy's was… like a power surge, from charging."

"A what?" James asked. He looked desperate and was listening very closely.

"That looked like a battery that got overloaded. Basically, you've got a low battery, you suddenly fill it up, and then you put it under pressure. It surges and the animatronic shuts down to save the systems from failing. So, technically there's nothing wrong with the battery or the animatronic, it's just a matter of charging," Fritz explained. He was lying, he had no idea what was wrong with Freddy. He was just trying to save him from the scrap heap.

"Then what should we do, replace the battery? We wouldn't have to replace the wiring, would we?"

"Nothing that complicated. I'd say to start by letting him charge up slowly and then make sure not to charge him right before performance. Especially if you're coming off an empty battery, so he doesn't rebound." Fritz decided to cover himself further with, "I'm surprised your guys never mentioned anything like this."

"You can't count on them. They couldn't even get the Staff Bots finished on time," James said bitterly. He shook his head, then offered his hand to Fritz. "Thank you, thank you. I'll have them take a look. Now if you'll excuse me."

James' sudden departure from the conversation was a little surprising until he rushed up to a family who was on the way out and started talking to the father on a first name basis and sounded to be schmoozing his heart out. Maybe someone important, maybe just a business acquaintance, it didn't matter. Fritz took whatever opening he could get and slipped out the front door.

Natalie watched the atrium empty out slowly. At one point she had to call down to a group still lingering in front of the stage to get them moving, but now they all made their way outside of the elevators, where they were then stuck in a bulky crowd waiting to load in. Those elevators were likely used to funnel people in slowly, but the result of such a decision now had her standing down on the walkway over Kids Cove as they slowly filed into the elevators and out.

This whole thing was a mess, whether it be the sheer amount of customers decked out in Freddy merchandise or the fact that the place had a hiccup and was forced to shut down instead of rolling with the punches. Though she wondered if it would effect business at all when they already pulled in this many people, regardless of Freddy's past transgressions. Maybe they didn't know, or maybe they just didn't care.

It was while lost in this train of thought and watching the crowd slowly file out that Natalie caught movement out of the edge of her vision. She looked down to see a kid grabbing stuff off a table down on the floor beneath her. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal as there were still a few stragglers making their way back from Fazer Blast and Monty Golf, it was the fact that he was unaccompanied and swiping chip bags that caught her interest.

"Hey, kid," she called down. The boy looked back and up at her. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for my parents," he said. He seemed a little dodgy, but that could be because his arms were half-filled with other people's leftovers. Not that Natalie would rat him out for it, instead pointing a thumb to the second floor.

"You're going to have to wait up here, bud. If you want, you can come hang out in the security office with me. I'm sure there's snacks stashed in there," she offered.

The change in demeanor was instantaneous. Up until this point the scruffy boy seemed largely unphased and direct with his answers, but the second she suggested he go with her he got an edge of nervousness on his previously stoic face.

"Can't I just wait here? They'll be back," he said. His voice had an edge of frustration.

"Sorry, but we're trying to get this place cleared out…" She trailed off as she noticed him beginning to look around. Not quite like he was looking for someone, but something- a quick escape route. "Don't you dare," she said before thinking. Not in a scolding way, but in a 'I know what you're about to do, so don't do it' way.

This turned out to be a mistake because he immediately decided to take that dare and suddenly bolted off towards Monty Golf, dropping the bags in the process.

"No, wait! You're not in trouble! Geez…" Natalie dropped her head with a sigh before dragging herself after him.

She didn't run after him, not willing to stir up an unnecessary scene, but did follow briskly down the escalator and in the general direction he had gone. Only risking to speed up once she was sure nobody was watching. It sounded to her like he had went into the hall leading to Rockstar Row, so she followed in that direction, keeping a careful eye out.

All of the patrons had already been sent out of Rockstar Row and on first glance the place looked empty, save for Chica's green room. Natalie stole a glance inside as she passed. Monty was sitting on the couch with his arms stretched out on the back while Chica and Roxanne stood beside the vanity, the wolf's back to her, Chica's head down and arms slouched like she was upset.

While Natalie looked away before they could notice her looking, she didn't get by unnoticed. Chica spotted her past Roxanne and made a run for the door. Natalie's only warning were a few thumping footsteps and she turned around just in time to have Chica leaning way too close into her personal space. So close that she could smell the combined scent of vanilla and pizza coming off of her.

"Hi, Officer Vanessa!" Chica greeted with a rather phony sounding cheerfulness. "Are you here to bring Freddy back up to his room?"

"No, I'm looking for someone right now," she said. "Where did they take Freddy?"

"Parts and Services, but they were getting all worked up about it- and we're really worried!" the chicken lamented. Now she was starting to sound a little more honestly upset. "Freddy's never gone down like that," she fussed.

"Freddy's never gone down period," Roxanne spoke up. Natalie hadn't even noticed her leaning in the doorway. "It wasn't his battery. He charged up before we headed out."

"Something else must've happened, but I'm sure they'll figure it out. They might be dragging their feet on the Staff Bots, but they can't with Freddy. He's the star of the show," the blond assured Chica, who gave a small nod.

"One of them," Roxanne said briskly.

Natalie realized that she might've offended her and was about to amend her statement but was beat to it before she could.

"Wait, you said you were looking for someone?" Chica asked with a cock of her head. Natalie nodded and pointed back the way she came.

"Some kid ran back here. He's not in trouble, I just don't want him getting locked in here somewhere and stuck all night," she explained. "Would you guys tell me if you see him?"

"…Of course!" Maybe she imagined the delay in Chica's response, but she didn't miss that something strange happened with her expression. Her pupils seemed to shrink just a bit and her one overly expressive eyes seemed to freeze up. For a second she looked just as listless as the time Natalie caught her eating cardboard in the kitchen, but she seemed to snap out of it- head literally snapping out of its slight tilt- when Roxanne spoke.

"I'll keep an eye out. If there's a kid in here, I won't miss him," she said. Natalie took what she could get and smiled.

"Thanks. I'm going to keep looking, and I'll tell you if I hear anything about Freddy."

With that she continued on her way, feeling the eyes of the animatronics on her back. She wasn't sure why she got such a weird feeling talking to them in comparison to someone like Marionette, Foxy, or Charlie, but she pushed it aside for the moment. She had a job to do- and if she did it fast enough, she would almost have an hour off until her shift truly began.

She tried to ignore the feeling that this was about to be a very long night.

Chapter 24

Chapter Summary

An atypical night at the Pizzaplex transpires after Freddy wakes up and finds something that shouldn't be there...

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

There was a moment of black void before the words "SAFE MODE" suddenly appeared in the center of his vision. His mind was slow to piece together what that meant as he roused into a state of alertness. A familiar tone and sliding sound tipped him off to where he was and his eyes snapped open to reveal the inside of the recharge station behind his green room, the door sitting open.

"Showtime already?" Freddy asked. His voice sounded a little out of tune. Not only that but he couldn't remember how on earth he had gotten back into his recharge station. He had recharged earlier, hadn't he? Before the show?

Suddenly the previously missing memories of the show all raced back in so quickly that he could've gotten whiplash. He jerked as a very vivid image of that last memory, him collapsing onto the stage, suddenly resurfaced. He knew exactly what must've happened and now he knew why he was in here, leaning against the back wall of the recharge station, stuck on some sort of unknown "safe mode".

Maybe he could make it back to stage. It only felt like a little while ago, so maybe the show was still going. He could get back up on stage and finish off with his band, make up for his long absence.

Yet when Freddy pushed off the wall and stepped out of the station, he realized he was far from showtime ready. His legs were wobbly, his body heavy, his energy sapped; indeed, his battery was registering at half charge even though he had just gone through a charge cycle. Maybe that had something to do with the safe mode, but it made him feel terribly off.

"I am experiencing a malfunction… The recharge cycle cannot be complete," he said. He stepped back into the station and tried to see if the process would start again, but it refused- the typical response when he was at full battery.

There was no point staying in here then. He managed to straighten out enough to walk but he wasn't sure if he was going to make it back on stage.

It wasn't until he got out into the green room and heard the quietness outside that he realized it was later than he thought. His internal clock was off, and it took a few moments of checking before he could recalibrate it and guessed that it was probably around ten or eleven o'clock at night. Long past closing, much closer to evening lockdown than any type of showtime.

If he had a heart, he might've heard it drop into the bottom of his stomach and shatter into hundreds of pieces. The memories replayed in his head like he was watching them on a television set. The show had been going so well, everything had been so wonderful, and then something happened, and he collapsed. He had ruined the show, the first show the Pizzaplex had ever had, and on the first song.

Freddy sighed and walked over to his vanity. He rested his hands on it and leaned against it, looking at himself in the mirror.

"I suppose…" he began somberly, looking deeply into his reflection's own sad eyes. "That the show is over… and that I am the reason for that."

He had been so afraid that something was going to go wrong and then in the end it was him who set that into motion. It might've been less traumatic if he had fallen off stage. At least then he could've gotten back up and finished the show. Now he had embarrassed everyone, his friends, himself. He wasn't sure what caused it, but he couldn't help but feel solely responsible for it.

At least Foxy hadn't seen it, he lamented. He sighed and shuffled back, body still heavy and off balance, and dropped back onto his chair with his head falling in his hand.

"Augh! Watch it!"

Freddy's eyes popped open at the thump and voice and shot back up to his feet in an instant. He turned around to see what had happened, but there was nothing there. It was just his chair.

"Is- Is someone there?" he asked in confusion. It didn't look like it, but he definitely heard that voice come from around the chair itself. "I am afraid I cannot see you. Where are you?"

"I'm down in here!"

"Down where?" The voice almost sounded like it was echoing through him, but he still leaned down and peeked under the vanity. He froze up when he felt something slide inside of him.

"Stop! I'm in here!" Freddy was taken aback by a thump on the inside of his chest. "Now will you please shut up!? Somebody's going to hear you!"

Freddy brought a hand to his chest in surprise. Sure enough, if he clearly feel something moving around inside of him, and their additional weight. He just hadn't noticed it earlier because of how off he felt from the supposed safe mode. He had assumed that the weighted feeling went along with the soreness in his legs.

"M-M-My stomach hatch? How- How on earth did you get in there?!" he asked, border panic in his tone. The voice inside huffed a little.

"Okay listen, you were sleeping, and I had to hide, so I opened your hatch and climbed in. But then some guys put you in that… tube thing and then I couldn't get back out- and they could still be out there somewhere, so keep quiet!"

This was reasonable enough, but the idea of a person- a child by the sound of the voice- holed up inside of his chest was terrifying.

"But- It- It is not safe for you to be in there! That space is reserved for oversized birthday cakes and pinatas- there are no seatbelts OR adequate padding! I am sorry but you will have to come out." To punctuate this, Freddy spun to face his room and popped his hatch open. He leaned down enough for the person inside to climb down safely and waited patiently.

There was a pause before the weight shifted inside and the child dropped down to the floor before turning around to face him. He was a rather small child with scruffy brown hair and amber-brown eyes, wearing a striped, blue shirt, cargo shorts, and a pair of admittedly ratty off-white sneakers. Freddy sighed as he knelt down in front of him.

"There you are!" he said in relief. He reached out to take the boy by the shoulder. He flinched back.

"Hey, what are you-?"

He was answered by Freddy scanning him with his eyes. He tensed in the blue light before relaxing when he realized he couldn't feel it at all.

"Scanning complete… How odd. I cannot find your guest profile on record… Hmm…" Freddy's eyes narrowed as he focused on something.

"What?" the boy asked uneasily.

"You have a cut on your cheek. Do not worry, there are plenty of first aid stations across the Pizzaplex. It is an easy fix!" Freddy pulled his hand back from the boy's shoulder to rest on his knee. "What is your name?"

"I-I'm… Gregory," the boy said.

He couldn't help but be a little nervous. While he had been inside the animatronic, seeing it awake and moving around this closely was a whole different story. The bot towered over him in both height and sheer size, and while him kneeling helped it didn't exactly change the fact that he could just stand up.

"Gregory. That is a very nice name," Freddy complimented. Gregory tightened his lips a little, feeling like he was being talked down to. The bear didn't notice. "I will notify the main office. Sit tight."

He closed his eyes, as he didn't want to spook Gregory with seeing them flicker and tried to contact the main office. It was a peculiar process, almost feeling like 'thinking' very hard and following the same format as when one may call for security- though the signal was different. Which was good, as alerting an emergency situation was probably unnecessary. Especially after the scene he made earlier and with how shy Gregory seemed.

He was rewarded with an error tone. At first Freddy thought it had been him, as he hadn't needed to call the main office before except during testing, but it became clear quickly that he was doing the right thing, it just wasn't working.

"Huh, connection error. I cannot connect to the main office… Perhaps because the Pizzaplex is closed, or because I am in safe mode. I had a bit of trouble on stage."

"Yeah, I saw that," Gregory admitted. "You went down."

"Yes, I did," Freddy guiltily admitted. "…But that is alright! Even if I cannot reach the office, that does not mean there is no hope. I could perhaps flag down the security guard through the window when she does her rounds." Gregory's eyes widened significantly. "She would be-."

"No!" the boy cried. Freddy leaned back a bit in surprise at the outburst. "I'm hiding from her. You can't tell her I'm here!"

"But that's the security officer, Officer Vanessa. She would be the one who could help you. You are not in trouble; she is just the only one who I could think of who would still be here."

"That's what she said, but then she chased me back here," Gregory grumbled suspiciously. Freddy tilted his head, and the boy gave an exasperated little noise. "Can't you just help me yourself, please?"

"Well… I suppose I could escort you to the main lobby. There we can call your parents to come and get you." Yet just as he realized this, Freddy realized something else too, and straightened up. "But we would have to hurry. Nighttime procedures begin at midnight. The main doors will be sealed, and you will be stuck until morning."

"What?!"

"But we still have time! There is still plenty of time to escort you to the front doors and to make that call," Freddy reassured him. He then looked around, rubbing his chin with his claw. "But the first step is to get us out of this room."

"You can't just open the door?" Gregory asked incredulously.

"Unfortunately, no. I lack a photo pass. Which makes sense, as I cannot take pictures with myself," Freddy explained. The boy gave him that look again. "And if you said that there were people in here… they were likely the animatronic technicians, which means that they may still be down in Parts and Service. I would rather not face them right now… Wait! Here, come with me."

Freddy stood and hustled into the back room. He was still wobbly and limping a little, but he now had a drive that pushed him onward. He went around the corner at the back and looked up at a vent on the wall. The only reason he even remembered the vent was because he had once considered it as an escape route if Foxy ever got cornered. He had pulled it loose, which nobody had seemed to notice, and even stacked boxes up under it.

"This vent travels down the air duct behind the green room and comes out on the other side of Rockstar Row," Freddy explained. He turned around to face Gregory. "Do you think you could climb through to the other side?"

"Well, yeah…" Gregory seemed a little hesitant. "But what if it's blocked off or there's a big fan in it?"

"There should not be, but if there is please come back and we can find another way," Freddy offered. While Gregory seemed a little wary of this plan, he nodded and walked around the bear.

But as he started to climb the precarious boxes, Freddy was starting to feel wary himself. This was an unattended child who he was sending through a vent shaft alone. Such a breach of protocols, so dangerous. What if he got stuck? What if he got lost? These thoughts became so overpowering that he would've willingly crawled in the vent after him if he could've. He really was helplessly stuck in this room without even a phone or a radio.

Once again, Freddy's addled mind caught up with him. "Wait! Do not go just yet," he said. Gregory looked back with confusion but just caught sight of the back of Freddy as he ran off around the corner and back into his green room.

He opened the VIP compartment drawer on his vanity and plucked out one of the novelty watches inside. These were complimentary gifts he was supposed to hand out to children who were fortunate enough to have the "Superstar" VIP birthday package, but he supposed that he could lend out one to Gregory. They were just sitting in a drawer anyways.

He turned it on, pulling out the plastic tag that kept it from activating, and then went into the settings. Eventually he was able to find where he could input security frequencies and put in his own, FZ901, before returning to the back room.

Gregory was sitting at the top of the box pile and Freddy gestured for him to hold out his arm. The boy seemed unsure and, noticing the watch, held out his hand to take it. Freddy handed it over and Gregory fit it onto his left wrist.

"What's this for?" he mumbled.

"That is a Faz-watch! Fazbear Entertainment licensed watches- though to call them 'watches' is quite an understatement. They can keep the time, play games, there is a built-in ticket goal counter, and you can even communicate between them. If you have the right server frequency," Freddy explained.

Gregory was about to question why he needed this when Freddy raised a finger for him to pause and closed his eyes. A few seconds passed, then there was a chime from the watch. Opening his eyes again, and starting the edge of a smile, Freddy gestured for him to tap on the watch. Which he did with his face still scrunched up in confusion.

"Hello, Gregory! It is me, Freddy, sending you a specially encoded message! Now we can stay in touch even when we are not together."

"Whoa. That's kind of cool," Gregory admitted with surprise.

"It is very cool!" Freddy agreed. He rested his hands on his hips. "And it goes both ways. All you have to do is press that button. The one your finger is currently on."

Gregory pressed the button and gave a, "Got it." He looked up to Freddy, who got the message internally at the same time. He gave a nod of confirmation and then Gregory turned to start climbing into the vent. "Alright. I'm going in."

Though he now had the safety net of the watch, Freddy felt a pang of worry at letting him go. He could only watch helplessly as he crawled into the unknown vents.

The vents weren't great. The metal was cold, and his knees bumped on it as he crawled along. The air smelled kind of runny, like wet playground equipment. Like an old swing set that sat out in the rain for years until it rusted. At least there wasn't any rust that he could see of and risk scraping his skin on.

Eventually he reached a vent cover that led into another green room like Freddy's, though this one mostly purple in color. He continued further down, passing more covered vents and more rooms until he came to the end of the shaft. It too stopped with a dead end, a covered-up vent. He frowned and reached out to shove at it, to verify it was closed. He didn't expect the loose cover to pop right off and fall to the floor with a loud clatter.

Gregory lurched back into the vent and waited, and waited, and about five minutes passed and nobody came. He didn't hear anything at all in fact and he peeked out to get a look around. Rockstar Row was completely empty.

The vent was a little high off the ground, so Gregory tried to lower himself. His hands didn't hold his weight when he dropped though, and he fell to the floor but landed safely on his feet with only a slight stagger. He looked around, still seeing nobody coming, and started to creep towards Freddy's room while hiding behind the glass display cases.

Though he soon realized he didn't need to do this when he looked into Chica's room and then Roxanne's. The other animatronics were missing. Monty might've been in his, but his curtain was drawn closed. Maybe they were friendly like Freddy anyways, but they weren't here so it didn't really matter, and he hustled the rest of the way to outside Freddy's room. He found the bear waving at him through the curtains.

"Good job! Now all you have to do is use your photo pass to open the door," he encouraged.

"I don't-," Gregory started before stopping and pressing the button to record a message and have Freddy actually hear him. "I don't have a photo pass."

"Oh! I just assumed… but that is an easy fix! See the door right over there?" Freddy pointed to the security door further down the hall. "Just through there is a check-in desk. There should be photo passes just behind it."

Gregory was unsure about continuing on but decided to just go and get it over with. Which turned out to be a fine decision, as there was nobody in the next hall and he managed to find the passes stacked up in an unlocked cabinet behind the desk. He grabbed a handful of them and returned back to Rockstar Row. As he was walking around the line dividers outside of Freddy's room, he found himself momentarily hesitating.

He didn't trust Freddy. Not in the sense that he thought the bear was going to hurt him, but he had a suspicion he was going to turn him in to the security guard once they got up to the lobby. Freddy definitely struck him as the type to pull the whole 'for your own good' card and drop him into the arms of the nearest authorities. Gregory had met people like that before and wasn't particularly fond of them.

His problem was getting out of Freddy and out of his room, he could just walk away now and make his way to the lobby himself… Though it wasn't going to be easy. He didn't know what doors were going to suddenly be locked up like Freddy's was, and he didn't know what he was going to do if he got cornered. At least with Freddy he could make a run for it and maybe the bear would stall for a few seconds. He at least seemed nice enough to do that.

After a long moment of thinking about it- with Freddy being silent even though Gregory could hear him pacing around on the other side of the door- the boy made the decision to go ahead and accept the help. He could always ditch him if he turned out to be deadweight. He slipped the photo pass through the reader of the door, and it popped open with a clatter so quickly that it almost startled him.

Freddy was standing on the other side with a bright smile- or bright smile-ish eyes and his mouth partially open.

"Way to go, Superstar! I knew you could do it," he praised. He held out his hand for a high five.

Gregory stared at his hand for a long moment and once it became apparent he wasn't going to lower his hand, slowly reached forward and gave him one.

"Now then, we must hurry. The front doors will not be open for much longer," Freddy warned. As he was coming out of the room, he tried to put a hand on Gregory's opposite shoulder, but the boy noticed at the last moment and slipped out of his reach before he could. Freddy didn't protest, simply following behind the child to the security door.

Though then he hesitated as he noticed the set of staff only doors

"What are you waiting for?" Gregory asked impatiently. "Let's go!"

"I just had a thought…"

"First time?" the boy grumbled.

"If there are still technicians here- or even my friends if they see me out of my room after collapsing earlier- they will make me return to my room. Perhaps it would be safer to take the utility tunnels underneath the Pizzaplex. They will lead to the same place and will save us an elevator ride- and a walk past the Lost and Found. That is where Vanessa usually stays," Freddy offered.

That didn't sound like too bad of an idea actually. "Alright. But you know where you're going, right?"

"Of course! We are required to learn all of the possible exits in case of an emergency situation." Freddy started over to the doors with Gregory close behind, the security door automatically closing again as he walked away from it.

Freddy opened the double doors and Gregory immediately wrinkled his nose at the smell of dank and the weird gush of surprisingly warm and pungent air behind held back by the door. It smelled like the back of a truck stop, and it didn't help that it was nearly as dark as one too.

"You want to go… down there?" he asked.

"I know it is not as glamorous as the Pizzaplex… and there is somewhat of a smell, but I believe this is the safest and quickest option!" Freddy assured. He noticed Gregory's grimace. "I could carry you if you are… uncomfortable." He didn't want to offend Gregory by suggesting he was scared.

"In your stomach hatch?" the boy asked.

"…Sure! If that is what you prefer." Freddy would normally never suggest this after the near accident earlier, but he was aware of the many flights of stairs between them and the lobby and deemed them more dangerous than himself.

"Okay, but you better be careful not to trip or anything. I don't want to get crushed and twisted into a meat pretzel," Gregory said. He stepped forward expectantly and waited for the hatch to open. It didn't. "Are you going to open up?"

"I am starting to have second thoughts…"

Gregory started to reach up for him, so Freddy finally decided to go ahead and open his hatch. He leaned forward just enough that Gregory was able to climb inside. Soon the hatch was closed and clicked into place. It wasn't terribly comfortable, being filled with wires and metal bits- one of these being what left the cut on his cheek- but it wasn't that bad either. At least he felt a little more hidden, and the motion wasn't bothersome for him.

"And we are off! This is Captain Freddy: I have retrieved the cargo and am now returning to base. I will be travelling through deepest, darkest sector of space. Danger awaits around every corner!" Freddy playfully narrated. He stepped in and shut the doors behind him, then started down the first flight of steps. "Here we go! Down into a black hole. Will we be able to escape?"

"You don't have to treat me like a little kid," Gregory remarked, crossing his arms on his legs, and resting his chin on them.

"Oh! I was not trying to. My apologies." There was an awkward silence, punctuated by the thumps of the bear's footsteps.

"…Okay, whatever. You can keep going. It's weird when you're just quiet," Gregory muttered. A strange consideration since earlier he had just wanted Freddy to be quiet.

"Very well! We have just entered into a vortex," Freddy picked up right where he left off, smiling to himself. He continued to thump down the stairs. "Some minor turbulence, but we are making excellent progress! We are circling an asteroid-."

Right as Freddy came around the corner of a landing, he heard a creaking noise. He froze up on the spot and listened. A moment of silence passed, then he heard something. A slimy noise along with scraping, scuttling, and clattering as something ran off. Freddy cautiously made his way to the next ledge and peered down into the utility tunnel, but by now he couldn't hear or see what it had been. All he knew was it hadn't been a Staff Bot.

"What was that?" Gregory asked. Apparently, it was loud enough that he heard it too.

"I am not sure… On second thought, perhaps it would be best if we stayed quiet. Just as long as we are down here," Freddy murmured. Gregory could hear the unease rumbling through his chest before the footsteps resumed.

The utility tunnels weren't the friendliest place in the Pizzaplex. While unbelievably helpful for moving supplies, props, and more underneath the facility, it lacked any of its charm. It was dark, moist, a hollow shaft stretching out and around underneath the building. Freddy did not like coming down here alone and yet having a child with him somehow made him feel even more aware of his surroundings.

That being said, they were making excellent progress as they passed through another security door. It was pretty much a straight walk down to the lobby turn-off, so Freddy was sure they had more than enough time to make it.

That was what fueled his decision to make a pitstop. That and noticing sign signaling a first aid station was nearby. Accidents could happen very easily down here so he knew it would be stocked and ready.

Freddy opened his hatch and Gregory peeked out in confusion. "Where are we?"

"We are at a first aid station-."

"Freddy! I told you it was fine! It's just a little cut!"

"But a little cut could become a big problem if not properly cleaned and covered! It will only take a few minutes. Better to be safe than sorry," Freddy insisted. His tone had changed though. Now it was less 'I am worried' and more 'I am worried, and that's final'.

Gregory groaned out a, "Fine," and willingly climbed down.

Freddy pulled back the curtain into the first aid station. There were a couple of bottles of antiseptic inside, some folded towels, a couple of boxes with some supplies in them- Freddy hummed with slight disappointment. It wasn't nearly as stocked as he had hoped, he would have to report this to the appropriate sources. Gregory scrounged into one of the boxes and found a box of band-aids and a half empty tube of antibiotic.

He worked quickly, smearing the gel along the cut, and then slapping the band-aid over it. Freddy would've done it for him- Freddy intended to do it for him- but he had it taken care of before he could even offer.

Gregory turned to face him and, seeing the cut was 'mostly' covered, Freddy gave him a smile. "Great job! And thank you. I feel much better knowing that you are taken care of. Climb back inside and we can keep-."

"Is somebody down there?!"

They recognized the voice calling from somewhere surprisingly close and shared looks of alarm before Gregory yanked the curtain closed to hide. Freddy quickly closed his hatch as he heard the footsteps close in. They were coming from a set of stairs in the corner of the room, one restricted behind a chained gate.

"Freddy, is that you?" Natalie called. The light from her flashlight making it down the steps before she did and for a moment Freddy wondered why he hadn't hidden too. He couldn't now, instead standing his ground as the security guard came down to the gate, only to find it securely locked. "Are you kidding me right now?" she muttered to herself. She sighed before looking over at Freddy. "Freddy, what are you doing down here?"

"I, uh… Good evening, Officer Vanessa. I was just… It is the strangest thing, but I do not know! I just woke up here," Freddy said.

Natalie gave him a look very similar to one Gregory had given him earlier.

"…I was trying to find a way out of my room, and I thought perhaps I would stop by Parts and Service," he amended. A more reasonable excuse and not technically a lie as he would've probably headed there after saying goodbye to Gregory.

"Well, I'm glad to see you up and about, but you shouldn't be wandering around in the dark when you had that fall earlier. If you got lost down here, we'd never find you. It's like a maze," Natalie scolded. Her features softened a little to ask, "That aside, how are you feeling?"

"I feel… strange. My battery does not feel fully charged and I have been put into some kind of… Safe Mode… I have never needed to be put in this mode before." Freddy's face fell with returning guilt and embarrassment. "What happened after I went down on stage?"

"Not much. They decided to shut down and got everybody out of there pretty quickly," Natalie explained. She noticed the look settling on Freddy's face. "Don't beat yourself up about it. You couldn't control what happened. We're just lucky that it wasn't a lot more serious than it was. Just a little hiccup."

"A hiccup on stage. A hiccup that ruined the show for everyone," Freddy lamented.

"That's not your fault. There's a lot of things that went wrong today, your accident was… just the one that everyone saw. Besides, the show was good! Up until your fall you were rocking it."

"I know what you are saying is true, that I could not have controlled whatever malfunction I had, but I still feel awful about it," Freddy confessed.

"That's okay. Just try to feel awful because it happened, not because you think it's your fault. Easier said than done I know, but try to keep that in mind," Natalie encouraged. She sighed again, "But back to business. Have you seen a kid sneaking around anywhere?"

"A child?" Freddy asked. The nervousness returned with a vengeance, but he managed to hide it. "I have not."

"Well, if you do, notify me immediately. I've already told the others and they're looking for him too. He's not in trouble, but if we don't get him out of here in the next ten minutes or so, we're going to be babysitting him all night."

Gregory was listening from inside of the first aid station and felt a spike of fear at the mention.

"Hmm, I see. That is very concerning. I will look for him as well."

"No. I don't want you taxing your battery looking for him when I've got the rest of the band and a small army of Security Bots searching the place. You need to worry about you and head back upstairs."

"Back to my room?" Freddy asked cautiously. Natalie's face softened a second time.

"I'm not saying that. You can go wherever you want as long as it's not down here or anywhere else equally dangerous. Not when you're on reserved power."

"I will take the next stairwell I see out of the tunnels… Well, not the first one I see. That would be the one I am looking at behind you and I do not foresee myself strongarming that fence."

"Good. Glad it's not just me," Natalie said with a small smile. "Guess I'm heading back up this way. If you see that kid, don't chase after him. Just tell someone where he is."

"I will do that, and I will leave the tunnels shortly," Freddy agreed. She turned to start up the stairs and Gregory took a deep breath finally. "…Officer Vanessa, wait." Gregory sucked that air right back in, eyes wide and heart racing. He could hear Freddy walk over to the gate and turned his head to listen closer as the bear leaned against the fence.

"I heard strange noises in the tunnels earlier. I know they were not of a child or Staff Bot… Please be careful while you are down here. The Pizzaplex is safe, but these tunnels… They are not well guarded. I am not sure what could be down here," Freddy cryptically warned. Natalie's eyes widened at the statement.

"Oh… Yeah, I'll be careful. You too," she said, then made a speedy ascent up the stairs. Freddy watched even after she disappeared, listening for her sounds to fade away, and then turned around only when he heard Gregory coming out.

"I told you she's after me," Gregory said. He then looked at Freddy with a slightly suspicious look. The bear's eyes widened, and he fumbled.

"I said nothing! I will keep you safe… From a possible reprimand that is," he assured. He opened his hatch and leaned forward to let him in. Gregory, now sporting a bandage on his cheek, climbed back into his chest cavity.

"Can we go now?"

"Aye, aye, captain."

With that, he closed up his hatch and headed back out into the utility tunnel. There was another truth he told the security guard- he would be heading up the first flight of stairs he arrived at. He just wasn't turning around to do so.

Which was probably a good thing. He hadn't gotten much further down the hall when he heard something behind him. He thought they were footsteps and stopped to look back the first time, looked back while walking the second, and neither time spotted anything else in the tunnel. He wasn't afraid- not only was the Pizzaplex safe but he was an animatronic capable of defending himself against an armed intruder- beyond afraid of getting caught by an employee.

Finally, he made it to the stairs that led up to the lobby. Which was fortunate as there was a group of Staff Bots cleaning up something further down the tunnel and he didn't want to risk walking through whatever it was that spilled. He approached the stairwell before hesitating.

"Hmm…"

"What now?" Gregory asked with slight dread.

"I detect high levels of turbulence. You may have to hold on tight. This is going to be a bumpy one," Freddy said with gentle playfulness. The boy gave a little, incredulous snort, but he could detect the slightest amusement in it.

Then he began up the stairs, careful not to trip as he strode up the first two flights. They were very close to the lobby now and with only a few minutes to spare they could probably call Gregory's parents and get him outside before-.

The world swayed just like it had on stage. No music or colors, but a sudden weakness that caused Freddy to hesitate and lean forward on a knee midway up the next flight of steps. He had managed to catch himself, with his hand tight on the railing, and tried to figure out what had just happened. It didn't take him long to realize exactly what it was.

He had noticed a lingering weariness ever since he awoke in his charging station. Of course he had; his battery had been limited by some kind of safe mode that made him quite literally weak in the knees. The stairs might've exasperated it, or it could've just been the timing, but he was just about out of charge. Unlike normally, he could almost feel the energy trickling out of him. Everything felt sluggish and foggy.

"Freddy? What happened? What's going on?" Gregory asked. He had felt the motion and even now was fighting gravity in the awkward angle of the hatch.

"I am beginning to run low on power," Freddy confessed. He pushed himself back up to his feet only to have a 'low power' warning suddenly flash across his screen. "I am terribly sorry, but I will need to find a recharge station."

"Should I get out?" Gregory asked uneasily. "You're not gonna just fall down, are you?"

"No. No, I should make it a little further," the animatronic said with a slight chuckle. He didn't want Gregory to be anymore frightened than he already was.

"Well, if you do fall then fall backwards, okay?" the boy asked with nothing but seriousness.

Though he didn't understand the direness of the situation. Freddy was just on the verge of staggering at the top of the stairs and shuffled onward with an almost pained gait.

Though just when he was considering letting Gregory out, salvation came around the corner with the reveal of a charging station. He would still need to let Gregory out, but now at least he wouldn't collapse unresponsive, frightening the boy and leaving someone- likely his bandmates- to haul him back to his room. He opened his stomach hatch and leaned forward, resting his hands on his knees.

"The typical recharge cycle takes fifteen minutes at the very least. You will have to go on without me, cadet," Freddy said.

"You want me to go alone?" Gregory asked. "Can't you… Can't you just walk a little slower?"

"I am sorry, but my cycle, the safe mode- if I do not charge now, I will not make it much further, and if you wait here you will lose your chance to make it to the front doors. I will not be able to accompany you, but I will still be with you." He pointed to Gregory's watch to clarify what he meant. Then he straightened to wobble towards the recharge station, leaning on the now opened doorway with one hand. "It will not be much further."

"Okay. If you say so…" Gregory agreed. He couldn't say he was surprised; he knew that likely he would eventually lose Freddy along the way, but he didn't think it would be this soon. "Have fun… recharging."

"Thank you. I will try," Freddy said with no sarcasm before climbing inside. The door sealed behind him, and he felt static on the bottom of his feet as the charging began. He waved to Gregory through the window before the boy turned to leave.

After hesitating momentarily at the next set of double doors, he pushed through and walked into the unknown beyond them.

Turned out that while they got out of the tunnels they hadn't necessarily gotten out of the cramped, less than appealing basement section of the Pizzaplex. He walked past a half-finished bathroom and squeezed around an amount of clutter, then through a small storage room and some additional halls. He felt like he was going in circles, but there was no way he could be. He didn't want to ask Freddy for help either, not this soon after he left him.

He walked down a pink and green painted hallway with crackling lights and found himself staring into an intimidating open door waiting at the end. It looked like it led into another security tunnel, but that wasn't possible. Just some kind of metal filled hallway with a weird orange-red hue to it. He inched towards it a little slower, not liking how significantly darker it was compared to the hallway he was currently in.

He slowly stepped out into it and was engulfed by thick air and heat. Maybe it was coming off of all the pipes in the room, like the weird humming that seemed to settle directly in his ears. He stepped out onto the grating and slowly into the passageway, looking both ways. The left was gated off so he would have to go to right, further down the passage and into the darkness. He took a few tentative steps.

Then he heard the ones coming up behind him. Quick, heavy steps banging against the same metal flooring and him knowing that it wasn't Freddy. He turned around right as a hulking form smashed against the fencing.

It was Monty. Montgomery Gator, the cool and chill member of the band, whose clawed fingers were currently grabbing the metal mesh so tightly that it was bending in his grip.

Gregory stared back wide-eyed with shock as Monty stared through his dark sunglasses, his eyes blacked out by his lenses but the boy knowing they were locked on him. The croc's body went rigid, still, too still after how fast he came in.

Gregory's fear of the animatronics were that they were going to rat him out. That they were not the lively and friendly creatures that was implied and were instead big dumb robots who followed orders and who would turn him in to the proper authorities. Freddy had been the exception, but his trust of them in general was still borderline. At any time, they could suddenly decide that it was for his own good to be given to the proper authorities.

He wasn't afraid of the animatronics; he wasn't a baby. He was afraid of how they could get him in trouble.

But when he saw how Monty was staring at him- with a look much less like a person or a machine, but a wild animal…

He was afraid.

"Monty?" he asked timidly. There was a fleeting hope that maybe Monty was just like Freddy, and this was just some sort of stare of confusion now that he realized he wasn't someone breaking in or anything.

Monty slowly released the fence and took a few steps back. His motions were stiff and his stare unflinching. Maybe he was going to leave. Maybe he was going to look for another way through.

He strode forward two steps and violently kicked open the fence with a loud grunt.

Maybe it was time to start running. Gregory turned on his heel and broke into a wild sprint down the corridor. Monty didn't miss a beat and broke into a run after him, hunched forward and claws reached out in front of him, only held back by his weight. Though he was not far behind, with Gregory able to sense his presence so close that he could almost actually feel him. The gator panting and heaving down his neck.

The disorienting flashes of light in the darkness made it difficult for him to figure out where he was going. He was running blind, running until he saw a flight of stairs and started to climb them, only barely pulling his feet up before Monty leapt forward and slammed into the steps beneath him. Gregory was around the corner and up the next flight, stealing a glance back to see Monty heaving and crawling up the steps, clawing up the steps, clamoring to his feet.

It wasn't long before Monty was full-fledged running up the steps behind him. He was having more trouble than Gregory, getting ahead of himself so much that he kept stumbling, each time with an enraged roar as he leapt back to his feet. He wasn't like a person at all, he really was like a rabid animal hunting him down.

Gregory's heart was pounding, and his lungs started to ache as he raced up the steps. Despite the fear he felt, he was starting to slow down, unable to keep up with the pace of the chase. Just when he thought he was going to get caught, he was at the top of the steps and bounded down a short hall and into an open doorway. Monty came off the steps hard, so he had an extra second to look back in time to see a button beside the door.

He slapped his hand over the button and the door slammed shut just before Monty slammed into it. Gregory staggered back as he listened to the animatronic beat its fists against the metal. There was a window beside it, but he didn't dare get close enough to look through. He instead pushed the button on his watch.

"Freddy?! Freddy, can you hear me?!"

"Gregory? What's wrong?!" The relief that the message had gotten through was short lived as it was almost drowned out by the gruff bellows through the door.

"I-It's Monty! He chased me into some kind of office- he's trying to break down the door!" Gregory cried.

"What? He must be trying to catch you to take you to Vanessa."

"No, Freddy, he's not-! He's trying to get me!" Realizing he wasn't being taken seriously, he held his watch out. "Just listen to him! He's going crazy!"

"Gregory, it is going to be okay. I know Monty might be a bit intimidating, but I can assure you that he is…" Freddy trailed off as he heard his bandmate raving and banging on the door. He was silent for a long moment, in shock.

"See?! What do I do?! He's going to break down the door!"

"Where are you? Look around and tell me what you see," Freddy instructed. Now he sounded serious, and Gregory looked at the office surrounding him.

"There's, uh, there's a desk with a really big screen and two little ones, and there's two doors…"

"That is a security office! Good, that is very, very good. Security offices are the safest place in the building. Those doors are heavily fortified and will stay closed as long as they have power. Nothing can break through them! Not even Monty!"

While Gregory wanted to believe this, he too quickly noticed some sort of bar mounted beside the door. It looked to be a monitor showing the power level, and it only had the smallest amount of blue light signaling the power left.

"Freddy, I think the power's running out!" he exclaimed. With each thump the bar crept further. "He's banging on the door and it's eating up the power!"

"Do not panic. There is a way to redistribute power into the office by activating security protocols. We could perhaps use your watch to do it. There should be a button to turn on the monitor on the desk."

At some point during this explanation Gregory stopped listening because Monty had briefly stopped banging on the door. He watched as the animatronic slowly leaned into view and peered through the window at him. He wondered if the gator could somehow hear him and Freddy's conversation through the doorway. He could've believed it. He could've believed that Monty was capable of anything.

But what Monty decided to do was slam his fist onto the window. Cracks splintered through the thick glass and Gregory could practically feel the vibrations in his chest. He could only imagine what would happen if he was in the same position as that window, and then his eyes darted back to the ever-lowering power on the door.

That was the tipping point. That was the moment Gregory knew he had to run, and he did. He turned on his heel and ran straight out the other door and out into a hallway. His body was barely rested from the brief respite- if you could call it that- in the office. It must've been the fear that had him running so easily after all those flights of stairs.

"Gregory? Gregory, what is happening?"

"What do you think?!" Gregory started only to clamp his mouth shut when he heard something ahead. Something strange. Something crunching mixed in with the rustling of plastic. He took a step back, staring ahead at where the hall abruptly ended and led off in two directions.

"Did you leave the office?"

The boy hustled back a few steps and cupped his hand around the watch before shushing the bear. Freddy got the jest and went quiet.

With the banging still behind him and his time still slowly running out, Gregory took a deep breath and crept further along, taking a right and going to the next hall corner, and peeking around it to see the source of the noise.

It was Chica. Her back was to him, and he was hunched over digging through something and making noises that sounded like feverish eating. He furrowed his brows before a piece of her meal dropped to the side, revealing what she was feasting on. Chica was savagely devouring trash, tearing apart a mound of garbage bags. Candy wrappers, food containers, half-finished food was some of it, but there was also used napkins, gross looking Styrofoam, and other nasty stuff.

Gregory's face twisted up in disgust and he pulled back around the corner. He would have to go the other way and he would have to move quick because he knew once Monty got through, he was going to be between a rock and a hard place.

Except that he already was. As he was trying to come around the other way, he realized that it went around identical corners. Sure enough, when he peeked around the last one, he got a better look at Chica shoving garbage into her mouth. There was a door between them, his only way out, but he knew she would see him if he made a run for it, and he didn't trust his legs to be able to make that run again.

He looked around where he was and spotted a couple of paint cans, including a spray paint can which he picked up. He toted it back to the passage connecting behind them and after a pause threw it back towards her side of the hall. It clattered to the floor. Chica made a startled noise, her mouth clamping down on the mushy mass she had been masticating in her beak and stood up on wobbly legs.

Gregory got a chance to peek around just in time to see Chica shuffle back in the direction of the sound, giving only a curious hum as a response to the noise. As soon as she was out of sight, he made a run for it through the doors, and through more doors, and out into the lobby.

He took only a second to get his bearings and looked to the front doors only to see a shutter already coming down. His heart lurched as he broke into a sprint.

"No, no! I'm still here! Wait!" he cried. The automated systems were unsympathetic, and the shutters hit the floor before he hit the shutters, hands flat on them. He banged on them with the same desperation that Monty had earlier.

But there was nothing he could do. The shutters, decorated with Freddy's winking and almost mocking face, sealed closed against the door and his way out was suddenly cut off. Gregory stood there for a long moment processing it.

"I'm trapped…" he said meekly. One second earlier and he would've gotten out, but he hadn't, and now he was stuck here.

Stuck with a bunch of psycho animatronics- save Freddy, who was practically incapacitated- and some crazy security lady who was out to get him in trouble. Though that seemed like a slap on the wrist compared to what Monty wanted to do, even if it would result in a whole lot of problems if he was handed over to authorities. Now he was stuck here, and it was much worse than he could've ever imagined.

All the while a mocking voice in the back of his mind reminded him that this was exactly what he had wanted.

Chapter End Notes

It will only feel like an eternity. ;)

Chapter 25

Chapter Summary

Gregory gets more than he bargained for when he hides out in the daycare...

Gregory stood with his back against the shutters for a long few minutes before he realized he had to keep moving. As far as he knew, Monty was still coming in this direction and likely Chica was going to start looking too. He pushed off and them and began to walk towards the turnstiles into the lobby center.

"Freddy? Are you there?" he asked into his watch.

"Yes! I am right here. Or my voice is- I am still in the recharge station. Did you make it to the lobby?"

"I did, but I didn't make it outside. The doors were shutting, and I couldn't get through…" Gregory explained. His voice heavy with disappointment as he ducked underneath the turnstiles. There was a Security Bot circling around the fountain outside of the locker room, so he hustled in the other direction and skirted past the gift shop, climbing the steps to the second floor. All done the while listening to Freddy's reply.

"Oh, Gregory. I am terribly sorry. If I had not slowed you down, you could have gotten out…"

As frustrated as Gregory was, he couldn't say he liked that somberness in the bear's tone. This was partially his fault, but not nearly as it was everyone else's. Including Gregory's own, which he begrudgingly admitted.

"No, it wasn't just you. There was that security lady and Monty, and Chica was eating trash and it took me forever to get around her… You're sure there's no way to open the doors?"

"I am afraid not. Once the nighttime protocols go into effect they cannot be overrode, but-," Freddy interjected himself, hearing Gregory's whining groan on the other side. "If there is another way out, I will help you find it… I promise."

"Sure…"

Freddy's tone didn't exactly raise his hopes any. Though this disappointment was short lived as he heard the clatter of a door opening. He turned back and listened, hearing footsteps and very familiar voices approaching the lobby; Chica and Monty were coming.

"It's them! Stay quiet!" he warned before bounding up the rest of the steps and hiding in a little hallway nook past the second-floor entrance to the gift shop.

From that vantage point, he could watch as Chica and Monty came into the room. Chica was still waddling like she could barely stand upright but Monty's posture had changed dramatically. He was still a little hunched, but in a lazily slouched way, a far cry from the rabid beast he was only a few minutes earlier.

"Helllooo? Is anybody hoooome?" Chica called out across the lobby. Gregory quickly pulled back behind cover. "You're not in trouble, Cupcake! We just want to make sure you're safe!"

"Yeah, come on out! We're only trying to help," Monty added. It was especially hard to believe him after that stunt earlier.

"Are you hungry? We've got lots of pizza and goodies! And candy! And chips, and fries, and cookies. Mmm-mmm!"

No amount of sweet talk was going to make him forget what happened earlier, though it did suddenly limit his escape routes. If he ran out to the elevators they would see him, and he had no doubt that they would be quick enough to catch up before the doors closed. It was a no-go and he looked for another solution.

The most obvious one was the set of double doors at his direct right with the words "Superstar Daycare Pick-Up" above them. He grimaced at the thought of getting stuck hiding in a kiddie daycare but knew he didn't have much of a choice. He crept over and snuck through the doors, closing them cautiously while Chica was still shrilly yelling so that it would hopefully be drowned out.

Now he was in some sort of dimly lit hallway with starry night patterns on the ceiling and triangle shaped tiled floor. There were large murals decorating the walls of some sun and moon shaped cartoon characters, which Gregory was familiar with. He saw similar posters are Kids Cove earlier when he had been hanging out in there. He really hoped they were just mascots and not more animatronics running around.

He finally dared to speak into the watch. "Okay, I got away from Monty and Chica."

"Good. Chica is very sweet, but I… After that encounter with Monty, I do not think you should get close to him. I am sure he did not mean harm, but…" Freddy couldn't even come up with an explanation for the behavior. Instead, he eventually asked, "Where are you?"

"I'm outside the daycare. It was the only place I could go," Gregory begrudgingly admitted.

"That is great! Are the lights on?"

"Yeah?"

"Even better! The daycare should be quite safe. Do you think you would be alright staying in there until I finish charging? I will finish the cycle as quickly as I can, but I still need a little longer before the station will release me."

"Do I have any other choice?" Gregory grumbled. He held his lips tight before sighing. "Okay, I'm going."

"Very good. I will be with you as soon as I can," Freddy assure him. Gregory gave a quiet agreement. "And Gregory… it is going to be okay. No matter how long it takes, we will get you home. I am sure your parents are worried about you…"

Gregory was silent at that. He just continued on towards the security door, letting his arm drop to his side as he did. As much as he didn't want to go into the daycare, the idea of being somewhere that was somewhat safe was an appealing one. He could handle hiding for a few hours if it guaranteed he wouldn't get chased around by Monty. He couldn't run forever but he could hide as long as it took.

Or that was his thought process before the door automatically raised and he found himself staring at a towering sun clown statue while being bombarded by bouncy music. He didn't know what was worse, the confirmation that there likely was an animatronic running around in here, or the cacophony of goofy noises- car horns, cat meows, and rooster crows- that mocked him through the music.

Yet against what might've been his better judgement, Gregory walked into the daycare and allowed the security door to shut behind him. He was standing in a little drop-off area, fit with a set of turnstiles and a front desk. From here he could look through the wall and see the massive play area within the already arena-sized daycare itself. There was even a slide leading down into it.

Gregory hummed as he scanned the area inside of the play structure. He couldn't see any sign of the animatronic mascot but that didn't mean it wasn't down there. Though it could just as likely be out here in the outer area. All Gregory did know was that as obnoxious as the music was, those play structures looked like a good hiding spot, and this outer wall looked like more than enough to keep out Chica and Monty.

"I could hide in one of those tubes for hours and nobody'd find me… At least, I could hide until Freddy's done," he thought. He wondered why Freddy wasn't done already considering that he said it would only be fifteen minutes. Time was kind of hard to judge right now, but it couldn't be much longer, which meant he wouldn't have to listen to this music for that long. "Okay… I'm going down there," he whispered in determination.

He approached the slide and sent a wary glance at the "Slide into Fun!" rainbow sign above before sitting down inside. He could probably climb back out if he needed to. Taking a breath, he pushed off and slid down the colorful corkscrew.

He slid a lot faster than he expected, the whole slide slippery and a little wet, and smelling like hand sanitizer. Before he could really brace himself, he was dropped into the ball pit at the bottom with a crash. He went rigid in place for a long moment, waiting for something to run out of the shadows- or Monty somehow throwing himself down the slide to catch up with him. When neither happened, he breathed a sigh of relief. He began to wade through the ball pit.

Only to stop only a few steps in after hearing a whirring click from somewhere. He paused and listened, hearing a jingling, then what sounded like soft footsteps from above. He slowly looked up to see a balcony up on the wall, the background around it made to look like a castle tower and could see the faintest shadow on the wall. Something was coming, he huddled down in the balls behind a foam divider that looked like a brick wall and peeked out.

What spun itself out onto the stage was recognized instantly as the same animatronic portrayed in the statue. It was tall and lanky, with puffy yellow and red striped pants and red and gold trimmed ruffles around its waist and neck. A halo of points spun around its sun shaped face before popping out as it kicked a leg and then fell back into a pose identical to the one on the statue. Bells on its wrists and curled slippers rung with glee at the motion.

"Ho ho hooo!"

Gregory had a foreboding feeling that it knew he was there. Though it wasn't directly looking at him, its face seemed to be angled in his direction. He watched as it crouched down, legs bowed and hands tented above it, before springing off the stage and diving headfirst into the ball pit below. The balls barely splashed and the thing itself disappeared almost immediately.

Now it was in here with him and unless it had gone still directly where it fell, it was moving around in here somewhere. Gregory felt a growing unease and considered trying to climb a wall, but he already knew it would be in vain. The texture of the divider wasn't the best to get a grip on, and that was before his already worn-out shoes got a bunch of sanitizer on their soles.

The only chance he had was to get onto this rainbow bridge only a few feet in front of him that led out of the ball pit. Though that meant venturing directly into the area that jester thing had dropped into. He finally mustered up enough courage to start slowly inching forward. He barely moved the balls, nearly at a snail's pace as he approached that bridge.

He was just about to pass the cloudy edge and be able to step up onto it, so close to climbing up on it, when he started hearing ticking. Clicking and ticking, whirring, right underneath the balls from somewhere nearby. He decided to make a run for it. He got as far as leaning forward before large hands snared him around the middle.

He gave a short, startled cry as the sun face popped up out of the ball pit in front of him and he was suddenly hoisted straight off his feet.

"Helloooo!~" the Sun loudly greeted. "New friend! You're sure up late-? Are we having a slumber party?! Where are all your friends?"

Gregory was bombarded with the slew of questions without having any chance to answer until the very end. Then he was suddenly left with the opportunity to either lie his pants off or immediately give away that he wasn't supposed to be there. He had to think of a lie quickly- not that he actually had a choice to before the Sun beat him to the punch.

"Oh, who cares! We can just have the party OURSELVES!" he chirped.

This whole time he had been carrying Gregory out of the ball pit and over the same rainbow bridge that the boy originally planned to escape by. He strode with bouncy steps and clicking ticking before stopping in a little area in the center of the daycare, beside a tower of colorful barrels and between two of the massive climbing structures. He set down Gregory onto the padded floor.

"We can finger paint, tell stories," the Sun started to list off on his fingers, growing more excited with each finger. "Drink Fizzy Faz until our heads ex-PLODE-!" He went out of his way to make an exploding gesture with one hand while his prongs popped out to emphasize the already borderline screamed word. "And then stay up all night!"

The clown bounced on his heels excitedly before he rested one fist on his hip and waved a finger in the air matter-of-factly.

"There is only one rule!" he chirped. He cocked his head and made a noise like an inhale. "Keep the lights…" His wrist slowly swiveled until the finger was aimed at Gregory. "…On." His tone dropped, his constantly moving body now uncomfortably still save for him slowly leaning forwards. "ON." He punctuated with a small air jab of his finger. His voice dropping to a low, new sinister volume. "On…"

"Uh… Okay?" Gregory said uneasily. Instantly the Sun popped back upright.

"Great! Oh, that's great. Now we can have fun!" He dropped forward again to lean with his hands on his knees. Gregory leaned back to get some distance from his face. "Whatcha wanna do first?! Ooo, wouldja like to play Simon Says? Or we could do a puzzle! We got a bunch of puppy and kitty puzzles- Oh! Or wait, wait. How about championship Pat-a-cake?! You can play the reigning champion- Me!"

"Actually… I'm not supposed to be here." This was the tipping point where Gregory began to back away. He was thoroughly creeped out, and its attempt to suddenly pretend that didn't just happen didn't help. "Look, I gotta go," he said.

He turned around and looked for any kind of an exit. Thankfully there was a big wooden door on the other side of the daycare, so he at least knew how he was getting out of here. He took two steps forward.

Then the Sun sideways walked in front of him.

"New Friend, where are you going?" the Sun asked. He sounded worried, or exceptionally clingy.

"I just told you, I'm leaving."

"But you- you can't leave! Kiddos can't leave the daycare, it's dangerous! They can't leave unless they're picked up by their mommies and daddies… But we're gonna have so much fun that time's going to fly! Hey. Hey. Why did the man throw the clock out the window?"

"Yeah well, my mom and dad aren't coming, and I checked myself in," Gregory said, ignoring the question. "And isn't the Pizzaplex closed? Shouldn't you be taking me to that security lady?"

The second the words came out Gregory regretted it. He wasn't sure why he had been dumb enough to remind the animatronic that he wasn't supposed to be here. It didn't help that the jester, who had been sort of swaying back and forth in front of him, suddenly stilled at the mention. He prepared for the worst.

"I don't trust the 'security lady'…" Sun said. His voice was tense, bordering that tone he had during the 'keep the lights on' outburst.

That was pretty bad, but not what he was worried about. Somewhat assured, Gregory crossed his arms and looked away.

"Then that makes two of us," he huffed. "Now are you going to let me go?"

"…I think I know what's going on," the animatronic said quietly.

"Did it just click now?!" Gregory thought, the panic returning instantly to his face.

He stared at the Sun as it leaned in once more. Its face was just so jarring to look at, looking very little like the cartoony sun on the murals outside the daycare. Its eyes just like white marbles staring blankly at him.

"Buddy, it's oka-ayyy! A lot of my new little friends get scared of me the first time they meet me, but that's okay! I'm sure we'll be best buddies really, really soon!" the Sun tutted.

Gregory didn't know what part of that made him so defensive, but he guessed that it had something to do with the fact that he was actually scared of him.

"I'm not scared of you! YOU'RE treating me like a baby!" he snapped. This took the animatronic off-guard, him recoiling with his hands up to his chest.

"Uh… I, uh… Oops?" The Sun awkwardly tapped his fingers together. "I-I-I'm sorry, little guy. I didn't mean to- Why don't- Why don't we play a game YOU want to play? What games do you like?"

This time Gregory managed to stop himself before answering right away. Sure, he could yell at the Sun how he didn't want to play, and he wanted to leave, but that hadn't gotten anywhere so far. Maybe he needed to get a little craftier if he wanted to slip out of here. He looked up towards the play structure beside them. Noticing him looking, the Sun cautiously started to lean back into the corner of his vision.

"Fine, if we have to play then… I want to play hide and seek. In there," he said, acting like it was a decision he made as a last resort and not a calculated one.

The Sun gave an overdramatic gasp, one that immediately filled Gregory with secondhand embarrassment, and popped his hands to the sides of his face.

"I LOVE hide and seek! And in the fun tunnels?! Oh yes, yes! Let's do that!" the jester gushed. "I'll count to twenty and you go hide, and then I'll come find you! You can run, you can hide, you can slide, you can climb, but no jumping off the top, okay? OH, and no climbing on the outside, okay? You could get hurt and that's no fun! Safety first!"

He then clapped his hands together and interlaced his fingers, pointing at Gregory with the pointers. "One more thing…"

"What?"

"One tiny thing." The Sun held his fingers close together.

"What?" Gregory repeated, a little more impatiently.

The Sun beckoned him closer, looking around to make sure nobody was listening. The boy leaned in slowly, cautiously, and the animatronic leaned in, shielding his unmoving mouth with the back of his hand as he whispered.

"I'm the reigning champion of hide and seek too!"

Gregory gave him a less than enthralled look, but the Sun didn't seem to care, snickering as his points spun around his head. It was like he had totally forgot that conversation and outburst earlier had happened.

"I'm gonna go count now!" he chirped. He turned around and speedily skipped down the length of the play structure to go count.

Much to Gregory's dismay, the Sun decided to stop and count in front of the door, while directly facing the door. Even with his eyes covered there wasn't a chance of rushing by and making a quick escape. Maybe he wasn't that oblivious.

"One… Two… Threeee…"

But that didn't mean that the whole plan was a bust. Gregory climbed into the structure and immediately started to make his way upwards. There was at least one slide that pointed directly towards the door, so if he could get there and get the Sun somewhere in here, then he could slide down and make a run for it. It wasn't the perfect plan, but it was moderately better than being stuck in here all night when the Sun was likely one wrong answer from going cuckoo.

He could hear the loud counting as he climbing into the play structure. Unlike what he might've assumed, it wasn't all tunnels. In fact, a lot of it was comprised of square shaped passages with soft flooring and absolutely nothing to hide behind. Most of the tunnels were in the top and he had to weave his way through the maze before he managed to get up and into one.

"TWENTY! Ready or not, here I come!" the Sun called. He then threw himself into the play structure.

Gregory could hear the jingling even from a distance and started to quietly crawl forward, trying to find his way to a slide. It was easier said than done though. He had thought if he went in the correct direction that he would just eventually end up at it, but at some point, he must've gotten turned around. He ended up in a tight section of tunnels but couldn't find the slide.

He froze up at a familiar sound not too far away. That ticking and whirring edging ever closer, along with the quietest patter of hands and feet. Between the slippers and the soft, silicone, texture to its hands, the Sun was almost silent when climbing through the structure. It was unsettling, and if it was this bad for him then he couldn't imagine what it would be like for little kids who got dropped off here.

Gregory suddenly realized that he really didn't want to get stuck in this tight a space with that Sun guy and started to inch along the back of the section only to notice something.

There was an opening from off one of the tubes and dropped down into another padded section only a couple of feet below. It wouldn't have been noticeable except at the bottom he could see what looked like a couple of thick cords. Gregory tried to lean down to get a better look when he heard the clicking starting to get closer and decided to literally take the plunge, dropping down painlessly onto the padded floor.

Immediately he saw what the cords were used for but all it did was raise more questions when he did. For partially sectioned off into the wall of the structure was some kind of box shaped machine. It was purple with the Pizzaplex logo and the words "Gen Unit MK II" on it.

"What is this thing?" he murmured under his breath.

He was answered by a sudden jingling that sounded like it was coming from directly above him. He snapped his head up only to see nothing there.

Until a yellow face suddenly came swinging down in towards him. "Peek-a-boo!"

"GAH!" Gregory cried, flopping back. Surprise quickly turned to annoyance. "Don't do that!"

"Goodness! I'm sorry, Sunspot! I didn't mean to spook you," the Sun sympathized as he climbed further down into the tight space. Gregory watched as his limbs seemed to contort to fit him through the tight area while keeping him hanging above him. "But I found you! Now it's your turn to hide again!"

The Sun tapped him on the nose- making the 'beep' sound effect himself- and Gregory waved his hand a way.

"In a minute. What's this?" he asked, pointing to the machine.

"Hmm… Oh, that! That's a back-up-gen-er-a-tor. That's for if the lights go off!" the Sun explained. He climbed down the rest of the way. Gregory scooted back to give him enough room to do so, and so they weren't jammed up together. "You remember what I said, right? We keep the lights on, and we keep having fun. Those make sure that the fun never ever has to stop!"

"Why's it in here?" Gregory asked.

"Because, silly, then I can get to it!" the Sun chirped. He rested on his belly with his legs bent back behind him, feet bopping to the ever-constant music.

Well, there went any chance of shutting off the lights and making a run for it. Not that Gregory liked that idea much anyways. He had already stumbled around in the dark earlier and it didn't help him lose Monty any quicker. He was just going to have to keep up with this plan. Maybe he would have a better chance as the seeker, and the Sun was none the wiser.

"That's weird… Okay, my turn. You go hide and I'll count."

"…Wait, you want me to hide?" the Sun asked in surprise. He even cocked his head at it.

"Uh, yeah? I'm it."

"Oh wow, I guess you are! Oh, most of my little friends never ever want to be it! Gosh, I haven't been it since…" The Sun looked down and stared at the floor for a long moment, blue flickering through his white eyes. He looked back up. "A really, REALLY long time!"

"Guess it's your lucky day," Gregory said with mild sarcasm. The Sun giggled at the comment. "Just don't hide in the balls or somewhere weird like that," he added, more to play up the ruse than out of actual concern.

"Okie dokie! Heeeere I go!"

With that, the Sun did something akin to a roll up into the same way he came down and disappeared. Gregory didn't bother closing his eyes because he couldn't see anything anyways.

"One, two, three…" Gregory began to count at a quicker pace than the Sun had, though he either wasn't listening or didn't care. He raced through the end of the count, "Eighteen, nineteen, twenty. Ready or not, here I come."

But the Sun wasn't what he was on the hunt for. Instead, he crawled up that next tunnel and began to search for that slide. He came out of the tube and peered through the squares of the structure to see the slide nearby and realized he somehow got into another structure. All the while he listened for the Sun. It was jingling loudly in comparison to earlier, to the point that he knew it was somewhere nearby.

He was trying to go easy on him. Gregory might've been offended, but he was actually glad to know where it was. He pattered around a bit, starting and stopping a few directions, pretending that he was looking as he narrowed in on that slide.

Soon he was at the top of it, and he braced himself briefly before taking a deep breath and sticking his legs through, then pushing himself and sliding smoothly to the bottom. The second his shoes touched the padded floor he darted into a sprint towards the large wooden doors. It was right there, he just had to keep from tripping over the pillows blocking his way.

It was all very quick. A sort of swooping noise, a thump and jingling, and just as he realized what just happened behind him- large hands hooked around his middle and hoisted him right off his feet.

"Oh ho ho! Trying to pull a fast one on me? I think that's enough hide and seek!" the Sun said. His tone bouncing in between amused and fussy through the comment as he carried Gregory away from the door.

"This isn't fair! I'm not even supposed to be in here!" Gregory protested. He kicked his legs and tried to twist out of the grasp but it was steadfast around his waist. "Freddy's waiting for me outside and there's going to be a lot of trouble if Monty finds me before he does! And- And if that security lady finds out you're hiding me in here, she's going to lose it!"

"Ooooh, she's not coming in here," the Sun said with finality, nervously. "And is Freddy really coming to get you? Oh wow, that's super cool! You must be really, really excited! But he's going to need a pick-up pass like everyone else." He said matter-of-factly and dropped Gregory in front of the same tower of barrels as before. The boy glared up at him.

"But don't you worry, Grumpy Gus! I'm not mad, and we can still play! I just can't let you out of my sight again, nope. You're going to stay put right here where I can keep my eyes on you!" the Sun assured. Though it wasn't exactly assuring, especially when the jester punctuated this by stepping even closer, causing Gregory to step back. "…So, whaddya like to dip your carrot sticks in?! We've got ranch, peanut butter, caramel, miracle mayo-!"

"I'm not- ugh!"

The boy's answer was cut off when he bumped into the tower of barrels. At this point he was so wound up on edge that his brain connected the wrong dots and he thought he walked into someone, and he reactively shoved back. The Sun tried to reach forward in vain but was unable to stop the barrels from falling to the floor. A staticky, muffled, celebratory, 'Surprise!' noise came from hidden speakers in the barrels as they fell.

The Sun's head twitched and some of his prongs jittered in an agitated way, almost as though the noise bothered him. Or at least Gregory assumed it was the noise. It looked a lot like that twitching Freddy got before he dropped on stage.

"Ngh! What a mess! Let's just get those back up," he said. He hunched over them and looked them over. His head shifted around as he looked back and forth between the barrels. "Oh, which is the bottom? The blue? I think the blue…" he mumbled to himself. He finally tilted the bottom one up before picking up a second and carefully laying it on top. He looked at it for a second before shoving it back off. "No, no, no, no! That's not right! The green? That's it! Clean up, clean UP!"

Gregory was actually starting to feel a little bad with how much the animatronic was freaking out over this tower of three barrels. Not exceptionally bad, not bad enough to feel like he didn't deserve it a little, but enough that it took until right then for him to suddenly realize that his way to the door was open. He instantly made a run for it.

"No, no, wait, wait!" The Sun turned to run after him before nearly being stopped in his tracks, jittering about before forcibly throwing himself back onto the barrels to pick them up.

Gregory sprinted as fast as he could across the play area and towards the wooden door. He had almost made it there before he heard the tell-tale jingling and some really fast footsteps closing in on him. He threw himself at the mercy of the wooden door and tried to push and pull at it, but it wouldn't budge.

"Come on!" he cried. He tried one more hard push before looking back and then diving behind the counter directly to his right just a second before the Sun slammed into it, body folding over it. Gregory backed away cautiously as the animatronic made desperate little reaches for him.

"New friend, this- this area is off-limits! You're gonna get us in trouble…" the Sun said anxiously. He pulled himself up from the counter. "H-H-How about you just come out from behind there and we'll, uh, we'll have a puppet show! Or- or- we could do some arts and craft! You seem like a crafty kid! I-I have glitter glue! Do you like glitter glue?!" he pleaded, desperation oozing from his body language. Gregory just staring at the scene. "Googly eyes?!"

"All I want is to get out of this stupid place. And if you're not going to open the door, then I'm going to do it myself," Gregory challenged. He then started to look over the counter with frantic determination. He didn't trust the Sun not to pull a quick one while his back was turned.

The Sun slowly sunk behind the counter. Gregory didn't notice for a few seconds but managed to look over quick enough to look back and up in time to see the Sun's hand reaching over the top of the counter. He ducked down in time to dodge. If anything, this just increased that panic tenfold as the jester began to pace around the front of the desk, clearly wanting to get around it and not being able to.

"I-I-I'm sure you want to go play out there in the arcade o-or go see the gift shop or whatever but running around the Pizzaplex unsupervised is a HUGE no-no," he tried to rationalize with the boy. Then he quickly returned to baiting. "I have seven!" the Sun hesitated to reach both arms over and hold up the appropriate amount of fingers. "SEVEN flavors of Fizzy Faz! And you can mix them together! You could make grape-pink lemonade or orange-blueberry!"

Gregory just moved further down to continue searching. There had to be something here if the Sun wanted him out of here so bad, and it was clear the door was locked. If it was a security door, then maybe there was a button to open it.

That was when he found a Freddy head shaped button under a little glass-looking-but-actually-plastic case. He was starting to lift the unlocked cover just as the Sun made his way back to the side of the counter to peek at what he was doing- and when he did the reaction was immediate.

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!" he yelled. The volume alone caused Gregory to jump and stare at the Sun, who had devolved into even more panic. "S-S-Sunspot, you- you remember the rules? The one rule I had? Keep the lights on?"

"Yeah…?" he asked.

"That button initiates naptime mode. It turns the lights off," the Sun said. His voice was tense like he was gritting his grinning teeth. "So, whatever you do, don't press that, okay?"

So, it was basically the light switch. That wouldn't exactly help him then, but just as Gregory was about to shut the case and shut the clown up, he suddenly reconsidered. He suddenly had an idea and sent the clown a sly look.

"Okay, I won't press this button… If you open the door and let me out."

"Wha- I CAN'T DO THAT! I already told you I can't do thaa-aat!"

"And how do I even know this is really the light switch? Why would they cover it up like this? Why would it be on a desk?" Gregory asked mischievously, attempting to talk down to the Sun in the same way he had talked down to him. It felt good to be the one in control this time. "Are you suuure this isn't the button that opens the door?"

The Sun was beginning to genuinely freak out now. He reached up and started to grab at his own points, which slipped in under his fingers. "No, no, it's not! It's not!"

"But what if you're lying?"

"I'm not! Pinky promise, cross my heart and hope to die!"

"Then why are you freaking out?"

"Becaaaaaause," the Sun started. He tried to regain a somewhat normal pose, the same pose as earlier in fact, where he had a hand on his hip and a finger pointed up. "When the lights go off, the sun goes doooown. And you really don't want that because then the-."

There was a soft click and the lights all shut off in the daycare. The Sun twitched as the realization slowly sunk in that Gregory had indeed pushed the button.

Then he practically exploded, "…DID YOU JUST PRESS IT?!" Gregory's face was struck with shock and guilt. "No- NO! WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!"

"I… I thought it was for the door," the boy admitted. He was almost more stunned that it actually was for the lights because he had been absolutely sure the Sun was tricking him.

"Why would I- Turn it back on! TURN IT BACK ON!" the jester cried. He threw himself onto the counter, climbing onto his knees like he was planning to crawl over, but no matter how far he leaned he couldn't actually breach the point of climbing past the counter. He could only get as far as being on it.

Gregory didn't need to be told twice. He pressed the button again, and again, and again, but nothing was happening. "I can't! It won't come back on!"

The Sun would've been sweating bullets if he could've. He was already sounding like he was panting as he clamored to his feet on the counter. His hands clawing at the edge of his head, pulling out the points as they tried to slip back in.

"Lights on! Lights on, lights on, lights on…" he repeated like a mantra. Some of his points slipped in despite him and his face started to turn. He caught it with his palms against his faceplate, fingers digging into the seam along the top where the points once were. "No, no, no! I- I warned you! I WARNED YOU!"

Gregory watched in horror as the Sun writhed and staggered above him before falling back off the desk and landing on the padded floor with a clank. The jingling and ticking whirring had both stopped. The room was dead silent.

Apparently when he said that the Sun went down when the lights went off, he wasn't kidding. Gregory was just stunned. That was not the intended affect at all… but this could still probably help him. Now with the Sun down for the count, he could look for the real way to open the door. Or better yet, as he was greatly considering, he could just walk back across the daycare and climb the slippery slide. He could maybe do it without someone grabbing at his-.

There was a loud click. Then there was a mechanical sliding noise, and the whirring and ticking returned once more. He could tell it was coming from the other side of the counter and started to walk over to check.

Only to stop in his tracks when a much more unexpected sound came from the other side of the counter.

A hoarse giggle.

"Sun?" Gregory asked tentatively. "Are you okay?"

The giggling sounded almost pained and yet still significantly more sinister than he would've expected. Especially since the voice sounded different. It still kind of sounded like Sun, but it sounded wrong.

"Naughty boy…"

Gregory tensed up at the crackly voice and then jumped as a hand suddenly grabbed the edge of the table. It looked like Sun's hand- it was Sun's hand- but now his fingers were a luminescent blue. A second hand joined the first, fingers flexing on the counter before they started to lift the rest.

What's head starts to raise over the edge was no longer the Sun. It once was, he knew that, but it was no longer. A large section of his face had been darkened out while the rest glowed a softer, starker white in the shape of a crescent moon. His points had all drawn into his round head and his eyes too had changed color. No longer a milky white there was now a ruby glow inside of them, the scarlet pupils locked onto his target and unmoving.

"It's past your bedtime…~" he crooned. His voice significantly more uncomfortable, the goofiness drained out and now replaced with a threatening edge. It straightened up more and reached behind him, and in doing this Gregory could see that more of his body had adopted the blue color scheme. He yanked his arm back forward in a rough motion, now clutching what looked like a nightcap. He spun it on his fingers before tugging it on smoothly.

"You. Must. Be. PUNISHED." His face swayed to punctuate every word before lurching forward on the last one. Gregory stepped back with wide eyes. It stared at him a long moment before crackling and, swinging back while still holding the counter, and using the motion to hop up onto it.

Its puffy pants had changed too, somehow. Instead of yellow and red stripes, they were a deep blue and dotted with dozens of stars. Between this, the other blue accents, and the nightcap, Gregory recognized him from the other murals that had been on the wall with the Sun's, its moon themed counterpart. He remembered the word "Moondrop" stretched out underneath its peaceful face- a sharp contrast to the nasty grin facing him now.

"Moondrop" hopped from foot to foot with a sinister giggle before rattling a taunting, "Nighty-niiiight…~"

He crouched down before leaping up into a backflip. There was a clanking noise from the air before he suddenly dove down towards Gregory. The boy yelped and ducked, but the jester simply swooped over his head and swung off somewhere into the darkness. Gregory peeked out for only a second before throwing himself under the security desk.

With the music off, all he could hear was his heavy breathing echoing in the small space as he brought the watch to his mouth and pressed the button. "Freddy?! Freddy, where are you?!" he whispered frantically.

"Gregory! What is wrong?! Is it Monty again?!"

"Where are you?! Are you still charging?!" Gregory frantically asked.

"No, I am in the lobby. I am attempting to acquire a daycare pick-up pass so I can come get you. What happened?" he asked more firmly.

"I'm at the daycare and there was this sun guy who wouldn't let me leave and then I pressed this button thinking it would open the door and it shut the lights off, and he changed into a scary flying moon and I need you to come get me!"

Freddy audibly gasped over the line. "That is not good. When the lights go out the Daycare Attendant becomes… temperamental, and if the power is out then I will not be able to reach you. I am on my way, but is there any way you can turn the lights back on? You mentioned a button?"

"I tried; they wouldn't come back on!" Gregory exclaimed. Freddy was silent for a moment, likely thinking, and it gave him a moment to think too. He remembered the Sun warning him about turning the lights off, how it was the number one rule, and what he found mid-way through their game of hide and seek. "…Wait. There's some kind of back-up generator in the playground tunnels. He said it was for when the lights went out."

"Where are you now? In the play structures?"

"No, I'm hiding under the security desk. I don't think he can get back here… but if I could get back to that generator, maybe I could turn the lights back on."

"Do not go into the play structures. It is too risky," Freddy insisted worriedly. "Just sit tight and I will find a way to get the door open. There is a Nanny Bot on site who may be able to help us."

After this run-in with the Sun, Gregory wasn't exactly jumping at the prospect of getting yet another animatronic involved. He removed his finger from the button and listened for anything nearby, but there was no ticking or whirring. He knew better than think the Moon just left, but this was probably his best chance to be able to skirt off somewhere. He knew he could climb into the tunnels, but maybe, if he was quick and quiet, he could beat it to the generators.

Gregory dared to peek out from his hiding spot to make sure he was in the clear before shuffling over and grabbing a flashlight he had spotted earlier on the desk. Then crouched low to the right side of the desk before peeking around it.

Still no sign of his pursuer and a straight shot for the slide. He took a shaky breath before sliding off his shoes, knowing he would have an easier and quieter time climbing in his sockless feet. He listened closely and looked around for a moment longer, considering whether he really wanted to do this or not, before deciding that he didn't want to- but he was going to. He made a run for it and was soon pattering up the dark slide.

It was much harder to see inside of the play structure with the lights off. The soft glow from the star shaped lights barely reached past the bars and though his eyes had adjusted to the dark it was still disorienting. He was going more off memory than vision, trying to find his way back to generator. He froze up at the sound of nasty giggling from somewhere outside the structure, holding his breath, listening closely.

It sounded close but he couldn't hear the familiar ticking, so it wasn't that close. Gregory pushed onward, trying to move as quietly as possible as he got into the safety of the tube leading down to the generator. He crawled up to it and finally clicked on the flashlight to get a better look. There was a little lever and a button, which he pressed and didn't do anything. He then flipped the lever and pressed the button.

Suddenly the generator sputtered to life and began to rumble in its plastic enclosure. This should've been a victory, except for one problem: the lights were still out. The lights were still out, and Gregory just turned on an exceptionally loud machine that was giving away his exact location. He had to get away quickly and climbed back up the tunnel. There went his only plan, now back to the security desk to press buttons and see if something came on.

Gregory crawled out of the tunnel and came face to face with red eyes and a grisly smile. It didn't matter that it was on the outside of the bars, he couldn't stop himself from yelping no more than he could slow his racing heartbeat. Moondrop cackled and spun his face with a mocking sway, and Gregory's face burned with embarrassment.

"What happened to 'no climbing on the outside'?" he snapped. The jester's face stopped spinning.

"It's not fun when someone doesn't play by the rules, issss it?" Moondrop mocked. He started to slide his hand through the bars and Gregory finally skirted by and made a run for it. "Hidey-hide. Hide awaaay.~"

Gregory wasn't sure where he was going but knew he had to get away fast. There were more than enough openings for the Moon to climb inside and pursue him. The flashlight was barely helping him figure out his way with the clashing colors.

When all of the sudden he ran up on a second generator. It was obviously not the same one, being in a completely different location and not turned on, so it shocked him to find it.

"There's more than one?!" he thought. That explained why the one didn't work, maybe. He threw the lever down and pressed the button, and it too sputtered to life, but the lights were still off. "Maybe there's others?" He shined his lights out through the bars and noticed more wires in the other play structure. "There's got to be more!"

There were more too. He managed to find another one on the bottom floor of the first structure, still not getting the lights on, and returned into the depths. All the while hearing the ticking inching ever closer. Occasionally he heard a giggle or noticed a flash of red out the corner of his vision as Moondrop assumedly climbed around the outside of the structure, watching him.

He ran around a tight corner and into a deeper intersection of the play structure where numerous tunnels and passages met together under a lone light fueled by one of the generators. Coming around the corner, he met that garish face once more, but this time it was no longer outside the bars. It was in one of the tunnel openings.

"Knock, knock,~" Moondrop mocked. Gregory ran past and down a plushy slope to the lower section of the play structure. Moondrop kept up, crawling easily through the tunnel, his legs turned around and knees bent like the legs of a spider.

As Gregory weaved through a narrow passage of plush walls, he could see a red hue fall over him and hear the whirring and ticking coming closer. He came around the corner and threw himself into a tunnel, crawling as quickly as he could, hearing the jester thumping into it right after him. When he staggered out of the tunnel, Moondrop's long fingers caught his ankle, but he yanked free before he could secure his grip.

Gregory kept running until he spotted wires crossing his path and looked to the right just in time to see them leading into a third generator. He ducked into the nook and quickly flipped it on. It hummed to life; the lights didn't come on.

He turned to run and there was Moondrop's face again popping around the corner and his arm swinging out. Gregory ducked and was running again, but this time his pursuer was right on his heels as he ran out of the play structure and into a sea of little chairs and tables. He had to make a sharp left to avoid them, almost running into an oversized Freddy Fazbear plush, and while recovering his eyes landed on a familiar tower of barrels.

Moondrop rolled out behind him and was back on his feet, rushing him just quickly enough that he would've overtaken him in seconds if not for Gregory reaching out without missing a beat and shoving the tower of barrels over.

The barrels made their celebratory jingle as they fell over and Moondrop flinched just like the Sun had with a pained little 'tck' noise. He recovered for a few seconds, jolting forward after Gregory before stopping as though being held back. He looked back to the tower and back to Gregory, who was now running into another play structure, and back to the barrels-

"UGH! C-Clean up, CLEAN UP!" he choked in frustration before spinning around and racing back to the fallen tower, hurrying to stack them back up.

Gregory could see a wire running up into the structure and ran up the plush ramp to the next floor, then up the next one. He knew he was slowing down, all the running finally catching up with him while his lungs ached, and his heart pounded so hard that it hurt. He stumbled a little as he made it up to the top- but he wasn't the only one.

He looked to the left and saw a generator. He heard a thumping and looked to the right just in time to see Moondrop's face appear at the top of a slide. Gregory flung himself to the side towards the generator, reaching for it before being yanked back by both ankles. It giggled again and started to draw him back towards the slide.

"What's wrong, Moonwort?" he tsked at the boy. "I thought you didn't liiike Sunny. Don't you want to play with meee? I won't treat you like a baby. You're not a baby." He gave him a small tug and hissed, "You're just a brat."

"Let go!" Gregory grunted and twisted his legs, getting one free and using that to push himself forward and reach for the generator. He threw down the switch and reached for the button. Moondrop must've suddenly figured something out as he made a startled noise and suddenly grabbed at the back of his shirt, but it was too late. Gregory pressed the button.

This time the generator wasn't the only thing that turned on. The lights booted back up with a hum, illuminating the whole structure in an instant. Moondrop made a pained-sounding grunt and slinked back into the slide, his hands covering his face. Gregory could see it trying to turn as he slid down into the slide and disappeared, and a quick look through the bars showed that he hadn't gone out the other side.

Now was his chance- there was another slide that led right down beside the security desk. Gregory hurried over and slid down, making a break for the security desk and then for the door. Only then noticing something that he hadn't before, a button on the wall beside it. He reached up and pressed it, and there was a click in the door itself. He pushed and there was give. It was very heavy, but the door was starting to open, creaking as it did.

Almost creaking loud enough to drown out the sound of rapid footsteps closing in directly behind him. Right when he had gotten the door open enough to try and squeeze through, he felt a familiar pair of hands yank him back up.

"No!" he cried. So close to being out and being dragged back in. Before he could put up any amount of a fight, he was turned around in the grasp and suddenly face to face with the Sun.

Its expression hadn't changed, but from the little twitches of its head and points he could tell he was agitated.

"Uh…" Gregory began but didn't have a chance to say anything more.

"Rule-breaker, Rule-breaker!" the Sun hissed through tight, unmoving teeth. "And I was going to let it slide! Even when you were being rude and trying to trick me!"

"Hey, I didn't mean to turn the lights out! I thought- Look, just let me go and I'll get out of your hair," Gregory offered.

"Oh, you're going somewhere alright. I've got a place just for little rulebreakers like you," the Sun said sourly and lowly. Gregory felt a prickle of dread on the back of his neck at that tone. "I'm putting you in TIME-OUT!"

Gregory had never switched so quickly from fear to disappointment as he did in that moment. Especially when he was easily toted away from the doors and back towards the ball pit. This time he began to thrash and fight it.

"What?! No! Why can't you just let me go?! I'd be way safer out there than stuck in here with you!" he yelled.

"All you're doing is adding more minutes on, little guy- and I've already tallied you up to thirty-five minutes!"

"Oh yeah? Well, I'm going to tell Freddy what you're doing when he gets here and he's going to tell that security lady and you're the one who's going to be put in 'time-out'!"

"Forty-five!"

"Shut up!"

"Sixty!"

"Sunny!"

The sudden addition of a third voice caused the Sun to stop abruptly in his tracks. He looked up towards the balcony and while his expression couldn't change, the way he flinched said quite a bit.

"Sunny, what are you doing?" the voice called down. Gregory looked up towards the balcony but couldn't see anyone from this angle. They had to be around the corner.

"I'm taking this little troublemaker-," Sunny hoisted Gregory up, "-to the Time-Out Table!"

There was a short pause after this.

Then the voice rather gently said, "Sunny, put him down."

Sunny dropped his arms- though not Gregory- in a motion as though surprised, making a sputtering noise. "What?"

"Put him down and let him go. He's right, he's not supposed to be in here."

"But he- BUT HE- But you saw what he did! He turned the lights off, he sassed me, he broke every rule, and you just want ME to break the rules and put him outside where some weirdo in a uniform could just come up and take him?!"

"Sunny, listen to me."

"I gave him one little rule-!"

"Put him down."

"-and he gets snippy!"

"Take him to the door."

"I'm not supposed to-!"

"And let him go."

"-do that! I can't do that!"

"Right now."

"BUT-!"

"Or I'm coming down there."

That stopped the argument dead in its tracks. The way Sunny's points suddenly recoiled gave off the impression of shock or fear, slowly sliding back out as he gave a flustered little chuckle.

"What? No, no, no, that's okay! I'll just… I'll do it! Be right, right back!" Sunny turned his head to look down at Gregory. The boy knew he shouldn't, he knew better than to, but he couldn't help the edge of a sly little smile tugging at the side of his mouth. Sunny gave a disappointed 'tck' and began to carry him back towards the door, grumbling in his chest.

"Okay, new plan! You wanna hear it? Huh? Do ya? Do ya?" he asked with phony excitement. Gregory didn't answer, those white eyes staring daggers into him as he strode all the way back to the door. He hit the button with his elbow and shoved it open with his foot. "You are BANNED from the Daycare!" he exclaimed, dropping Gregory outside the door. Though 'tossing' might've also been an appropriate description for it.

The Sun proceeded to cup a hand around his mouth and loudly called, "SECURITY ALERT! SECURITY ALERT! Woo woo, woo woo!~"

Then with a spin of his prongs, slid back inside and slammed the door behind him. Then promptly began a mad sprint across the daycare back in the direction of his balcony.

Meanwhile, Gregory was now outside the daycare like he had wanted, but he didn't like that call for security at the end. He remembered Freddy mentioning being able to connect with the office and security, so that didn't bode well.

"Gregory!"

But speak of the bear, there was a familiar voice from behind him. Gregory spun around to see Freddy standing nearby by the stairs with a Staff Bot in a dress and made a run for him. Freddy met him with only a couple of strides and opened up his stomach hatch without question, allowing the boy too quickly climb inside.

"Let's get out of here!"

…

To say that Freddy had been worried when Gregory had messaged him was a massive understatement. While Monty's behavior was odd and unpredictable, Freddy knew that the Moon was especially more temperamental, and he had immediately sprinted to the daycare, forgetting the daycare pass, and just vaulting over the turnstiles like he wasn't on reserved power, and came right up to the doors only to be barred out.

The Nanny Bot had been there, and he had been trying to explain to it that he had to get inside- he wasn't sure if she understood him with how she sort of blankly stared at him- but then the lights came on and, sure enough, the Daycare Attendant- sweet Sun, not moody Moon- deposited Gregory outside of the door shortly after. Within seconds he was back in the safety of Freddy's stomach hatch and, after saying goodbye to Nanny, they were heading up the stairs.

Unfortunately, that didn't fix the immediate problem. No doubt the lights going off in the daycare was going to attract some warranted and unwanted attention. Vanessa would probably be here soon. She hadn't been in the lobby or the lost and found when he was, but she had to be somewhere nearby, and she would be coming if the Daycare Attendant had indeed called for security and wasn't just playing into theatrics.

Freddy climbed over the turnstiles this time, definitely not feeling up to jumping them again, and made his way to the door out of the daycare. He was already starting to feel worn down like his battery was starting to drain, but it was clear that he couldn't leave Gregory to fend for himself. Not when everyone was acting… weird. He just had to hurry and find an exit before somebody found him.

Which would've been a great plan if the door didn't roll up to reveal Chica, Roxanne, and Monty all walking directly towards him.

Chica looked just as surprised as Freddy. Though instead of freezing up like in a spotlight like he did, she gave a surprised little cluck and hobbled to him.

"Freddy! Oh my gosh, Freddy! I didn't think you'd be up and at 'em so soon!" she said with bubbly relief. "What are you doing here?"

He tried to think up an excuse fast, but, thankfully, he didn't get a chance to answer.

"Freddy, what happened earlier?! You totally died on us!" Roxanne snapped. Her arms were crossed tightly on her chest while she tried to suppress the twitching of her leg. "You didn't even make it through one song! What happened?!"

"I am sorry, Roxy. I-I do not know what happened," Freddy apologized. He could feel the embarrassment creeping up and the lingering weakness wasn't helping him make any excuses. Thankfully, Chica jumped to his aid.

"Don't be mean to him. It's not like he wanted that to happen," Chica lightly scolded. She looked back to Freddy. "Don't listen to her, Honey-bear. She was just worried! We all were!"

"I wasn't worried," Roxanne defensively argued. She hesitated a moment before correcting, "Actually, yes, I was worried. I was worried we were going to have to stop the show early and flop bigtime on our first performance, and we did! All of that practicing and planning and what happens? We're a laughingstock!"

"Oh, stop that! It's not Freddy's fault that he broke down," Chica defended. Freddy couldn't say her defense was making him feel much better, but he couldn't feel much over the sheer panic of having a stowaway hiding inside his belly while his bandmates argued amongst themselves. Chica narrowed her eyes slyly and countered, "I think you're just upset that Freddy got all that attention and you didn't."

"Please, did you see how that crowd was looking at me? I didn't need to take a dive on stage to have all eyes on me," Roxanne scoffed, turning her head away and flipping back her hair.

"Maybe that's because you were hogging the front of the stage," Chica tittered. Roxanne's head snapped back to glare at her and Chica gave her a cheeky little wink. The wolf huffed and thrust down her fists at her sides.

"I don't need to be lectured on 'hogging' anything by the chick who decimated the free samples at her own bakery," she spat back. Chica's eyes popped open, and she looked like she was about to erupt.

Monty, who looked half-dead to the world himself as he stood behind the two of them, finally rumbled out a rather blunt, "Weren't we here to do somethin'?" Though considering how out of it he looked, he could've just forgot.

"Yes," Chica said grumpily. She finally turned back to Freddy. "Did you see anything in there?... Freddy? Are you okay? You've got a funny look."

That distant stare on Freddy's face was, in fact, him staring at the low battery warning that suddenly popped back up on his vision. His jaw tightened at seeing it. He was sure it hadn't been long enough to require another charge but he could feel that weakness all throughout his body. It was like the charge was just draining back out of him.

"Freddy?" Chica repeated. He blinked to attention.

"Err, excuse me, Chica. I believe I need to charge myself," he said. She was giving him a funny look as he stared trying to walk around her, only for that look to change quickly at the slight teeter to his step.

"Whoa! Hold on, I've got you!" She leapt into action, ignoring her own wobbly gait to get an arm around him. She gestured her head for Roxanne to come help. "Come on, Roxy!"

Roxanne had also noticed the stagger and looked a little startled by it, as though suddenly realizing that Freddy was indeed not fine. She circled to his opposite side to support him.

"Take it easy. We don't need you going down twice in one day," she said, trying her hardest to sound as aloof as possible. "What were you even doing over here?"

"I… heard that the lights went out in the daycare. I saw Officer Vanessa earlier and she said that there was a child lost in the Pizzaplex, so I thought that perhaps the lights going out had something to do with that. I saw the Daycare Attendant, but I did not have a chance to ask him what happened before I had to come back here," Freddy explained. All together it was technically not lying to his friends, but he still felt guilt. He still wondered if it was necessary to hide from them.

"Ugh, another blackout. We had one of those in the raceway earlier," Roxanne remarked.

"I started to feel strange… I have been put on some kind of safe mode and it seems to limit my battery charge," Freddy explained. "I feel weak… Everything feels very light. My head does."

"Aww, poor thing! Betcha those daycare fumes aren't helping either. All that music's bound to tire you out, and I'm sure looking at the Sun too long could make anybody lightheaded… LIGHTHEADED!" Chica nearly bawked at her own unintentional joke. "Roxy, did you get it?!"

"Chica, you're terrible," Roxanne said. "Are you going to just stand there or what?"

She was talking to Monty who was partially standing in front of them, still staring distantly like he was thinking about something. Though Freddy didn't miss that Monty seemed to be staring at his chest. He felt a nervous buzz in his head.

Though his fears were somewhat alleviated when Monty finally grumbled out a flat, "Just fer that I ain't moving."

Roxanne rolled her eyes and shook her head before pulling Freddy forward, nearly dragging him and Chica to the recharge station where they helped him inside. Freddy leaned against the back of the station as the door closed, already feeling the cycle beginning through the tingles in the bottom of his feet. Chica blew him a kiss through the window before following Roxanne towards the daycare door with Monty in tow. Much to Freddy's relief they seemed none the wiser.

"…Are they gone?" Gregory quietly asked.

"Yes. They are heading into the daycare," Freddy assured. He rested a hand on his chest, on the closed hatch. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine… but that sun guy's going to tell them I was there," the boy muttered. Freddy could feel him readjust inside. It felt like he might've been sitting with his knees to his chest.

"He may… but that is fine. They do not know you are with me, so we can keep moving once I finish charging… again. I am sorry, I do not know what is wrong with me."

"It's fine. Don't worry about it," Gregory said. He didn't want to admit that he was exhausted and that this was the first time he had rested his legs in what felt like ages. After all of that, being inside Freddy inside of a charging station felt like the only place where he could let his guard down. "…I'm not going to like… get microwaved in here, am I?"

"Goodness no! You are entirely safe in these charging stations. You will just be stuck inside my stomach hatch until the cycle is complete."

"I can live with that," Gregory said.

Freddy wasn't sure why, but something about how tired the boy sounded when he said that comment distressed him. He couldn't put his finger on why, so instead he just relaxed into the process of charging. Both keeping a close eye on the outside world and trying to think of a plan on where to go once they rejoined it.

Chapter 26

Chapter Summary

Every night comes to an end...

"Gregory?"

Gregory didn't realize he was falling asleep until he woke up. He was still in the same position with his head resting on his folded arms which were on his knees, which wasn't especially comfortable but good enough with how tired he was. He could hear and feel Freddy climbing out of the recharge station.

"I'm awake," he said groggily, rubbing his eyes. It couldn't have been that long because it barely felt like he slept. "Are you charged up?"

"Well… No, but the recharge cycle is complete. I should have enough power to last us for a while, long enough to continue looking for another exit," Freddy explained. He sounded uneasy, which was explained by his next comment. "Vanessa just passed by and went into the daycare. She did not see me, but I do not want to risk being here if she comes back through."

"Yeah. Let's get out of here," Gregory agreed. He tried to not let his unease come through on his voice, not wanting Freddy to know that he was even the slightest bit scared. Not that the security guard was any scarier than the animatronics, but she definitely had more of an effect on what would happen after he got out of here. If he got out of here. "…Do you think that sun guy's going to tell her what happened?"

"I am not sure. Whatever happened in the daycare, Sunny did not seem pleased with you. I have never heard of him banning someone before!... Though the daycare has only been opened for one day, so perhaps it is not that surprising…" Freddy trailed off for a moment before continuing. "That aside, I do not believe he will. He doesn't trust the human employees. We are more at a risk of him telling Chica, Monty, and Roxy, and then them telling Vanessa."

"Yeah, he said that. That he didn't trust her. I don't blame him, I don't trust her either," Gregory remarked. It was still the only thing they agreed about. "…So, he doesn't like humans? Is that why he was being so creepy and chasing me around?"

"No, no! Sunny is very good with children! It is just that he works with much younger children. I could imagine it would be difficult to adjust to working with a child out of his age range, such as yourself," Freddy explained. Gregory made a scoffing little huff noise. "Due to overhauls required at the daycare, Sunny has had to receive frequent maintenance work, which I believe led to his distrust of the employees… He has gone through quite a lot. Please, try to be nice to him."

"What does that mean?" Gregory asked defensively.

"…There used to be two daycare attendants."

That was an answer to a question the boy hadn't asked, but something about the way Freddy said it and the implications behind those words halted any correction in its tracks. Just the bear's drop in tone seemed to hold a weight that any normal child would have trouble grasping. Not Gregory, he knew exactly what that tone was solemnly implying, even if it was about robots.

"What happened to the other one?"

"I am not entirely sure…"

There was a pause.

"Well… It's too late for that. I already got 'banned from the daycare'," Gregory said, mimicking the Sun's voice. Freddy chuckled warmly, his chest rumbling around him. "So, what's Monty's problem?"

"Hmm, I am not sure on that either. He seemed to be acting normal with Chica and Roxy… but what I heard in the office was anything but normal," Freddy said. His voice grew pensive and concerned. "It is just not like Monty to be that way. He is laid back and relaxed, chilling out on stage just as he chills out on the golf course- like a real alligator!"

"Uh, don't alligators eat people?" Gregory asked.

"Well… Perhaps… But this one eats Pizza Gumbo! He does not count."

"He was acting like he wanted to eat me."

"Perhaps it was a security protocol. Monty needed to get to you and when he could not it caused his systems to get confused. I highly doubt he would have ever seen you as a threat, but… but Monty does have a habit of taking out his frustrations on anything in sight. And that is anything, not person," Freddy suggested.

Gregory wanted to argue that he wasn't there, that he hadn't seen Monty, but he decided that it wasn't worth the effort. Freddy, on the other hand, noticed the boy's silence and knew it wasn't a contented one. He too thought it was best to just leave it there, because there was nothing, he could say to explain what Monty had done. He didn't understand it, so he couldn't excuse it.

There was a few moments of silence only punctuated by the thumping of Freddy walking downstairs, and he only broke that silence once reaching the bottom.

"I have located two possible exit points that may circumvent the nighttime protocols. The first being the fire escape and the second being the loading docks exit. The fire escape can be escaped through at any time in case of an emergency. My only fear is that it will activate an alarm upon opening. The loading docks exit is kept under less security for nighttime and early morning deliveries. I believe that one would be better."

"Okay. How do we get there?"

"We are on our way as we speak!" Freddy proudly proclaimed. "We will just have to cross through the kitchen. Which we will be doing after we ride down on the staff elevator."

Gregory just allowed Freddy to take the wheel. This was the closest he had to a free ride all day and his legs were thankful for it, even if Freddy bumping down the stairs wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world. Though progress was progress, and every jarring step was a step away from getting caught.

That was, until the steps stopped. Until he could hear a rattling noise as Freddy fidgeted with something and hummed.

"What?" Gregory asked. He had a creeping suspicion that something else was about to go wrong.

"It seems that the door to the kitchens is locked. I cannot understand why they would- Oh… Hmm…" Freddy stopped yanking at the knob and took a step back. He rested his hands on his hips as he looked around and tried to think of another way. "The problem we have is that the elevator to the lower kitchens is behind this door. There is another way through, but I am almost certain it too will be locked. The other alternative is through the tunnels, but that is not… preferable."

But Freddy wouldn't make it through the tunnels. They both knew this. He would be forced to stop and charge, and it would eat up the precious time they had before someone caught wind that they were travelling together.

Gregory was, unfortunately, out of options. He barely knew the Pizzaplex, let alone could concoct an idea to get out of it- especially when he was currently grounded inside of Freddy, so the bear was the one who had to figure this out. He tried to consider his options quickly. He knew of only two direct ways into the kitchen but knew there had to be more. He just didn't have access to full detailed maps. Not like the Staff Bots who had overlapping routes.

It was that thought on which an idea formed. That and him noticing a large vent in the wall nearby, just as big as the one behind his green room and flush to the floor.

"I believe I have an idea, but it is not without risks," Freddy said pensively. He then popped open his stomach hatch while looking over his shoulder to check for anyone behind him. "Here, take a look."

Gregory cautiously leaned out a little, though it didn't take much to see what Freddy wanted him to. "Another vent?"

"I cannot be certain, but I believe that this vent may let out somewhere behind this door. Climb out and let me show you something," Freddy coaxed. Gregory did as told with only a little reluctance. The bear crouched down on one knee and pointed a claw to his watch. "Now, your Faz-Watch has a special button right- Gregory! Where are your shoes?!"

Gregory knew he had forgotten something the second he felt the cold tiles sticking to his feet. "…I guess they're the sun guy's now."

Freddy gave a disapproving hum but knew it was too late to do anything about it now. He went ahead and took Gregory's wrist in a gently hand as he pointed out a middle button with the other.

"This is an emergency button. As you are on my server frequency, when you press that button, it will alert me to your location. If you go through the vent, come out the other side, and press the button, it should lead me to you. In theory."

"Won't it just lead you to the door?" Gregory asked skeptically.

"That is the good part! The mapping system it uses to pinpoint your location is the same system used for assigning Staff Bot routes. It will lead me along the same path they are supposed to take, so none of the doors will be locked… However, it may still take me a few minutes to get to you depending on how far the detour takes me. Would you be alright until I reached you?"

Freddy's eyes were wide with questioning and concern and Gregory felt rather small under them, even when the bear was kneeling down to almost his level. He looked away quickly as to not tip him off that the idea of splitting up again made him increasingly nervous. He was very close to outright protesting the idea, but then Freddy would know he was scared, and he didn't want that. That was just embarrassing.

"I guess so… Guess I'm not going to run into those other guys if they're all stuck in the daycare," Gregory thought. That was a welcomed thought. He got a more determined look. "Okay. I'll do it."

"At-a-boy! I know you will do fine. Just be careful, and if at any time you cannot continue onwards turn around and come back. We can always find another way," Freddy warmly assured him. His eyes darted to the side momentarily, betraying concern before his voice could. "…There is one small thing."

"What?"

"As far as I know, I am the only one who is alerted when the emergency button is pressed. Though I would not be surprised if Vanessa also gets an alert. If that happens, she may come looking for you and you will need to hide, but do not worry. I will still come, even if I lead her away or must hide myself. It would be best if she does not see me."

"Then we just get to the loading dock before she does and we don't even have to run into her," Gregory proclaimed. Freddy's worried tone was starting to seep through, so he had to shut that down before it risked getting mushy. "Can you open it up for me?"

"Of course! Please step back."

Gregory stepped back. Freddy started to reach for the grate before looking back at him and pausing.

"…Please step back a little further."

Gregory tightened his mouth and took a few more steps. Only then did Freddy slip his claws around the loose edge of the vent and pull it off in one swift motion. He propped it up against the wall beside it and looked back to the boy. Gregory came forward and shined his flashlight into the vent. It looked like the other one without much else of note.

"You do not have to do this. We can stay together if you would prefer," Freddy offered, giving him one last out. He shook his head.

"I can do it. I did it last time," Gregory said. He then crouched down and began to crawl into the vent. Freddy stayed knelt behind him and watched until he took a corner and disappeared from sight.

The inside of the vent wasn't much different than the last one either, save that the air wafting through it was warmer and had a slight, lingering food scent. He supposed that made sense since it was connected to the kitchens. He could hear a rattling coming from somewhere but couldn't tell from where. He crawled along the tight passage for a while, it opening into a larger room momentarily where he found vent covers on the floor.

Almost like something had come through here already. That was an uncomfortable thought, but so far, he hadn't heard or seen anything else, so he pressed onwards.

The shaft continued a little further before it suddenly sloped down. This raised a few red flags, being that he was supposed to be let out on this floor, but he had climbed an upward slope earlier and assumed somehow it would justify itself. It was, again, a rather gentle slope. He started to crawl down it, but the smoothness mixed with the slope and an oily sort of finish caused him to slide down, stopping himself at the next turn.

That wasn't so bad. Wasn't too much different that the slide. He readjusted himself and pushed down the next slope, then was able to go around the next one with the slightest push, and then suddenly- and it was so sudden that he couldn't stop himself- the bottom of the vent opened up and he was falling headfirst into the room before. Before he could even consider how much it was going to hurt, he landed face first into laundry cart full of oily, sticky drop cloths.

Other than falling at a weird angle and the aftereffects of the adrenaline, Gregory was alright, and pushed himself up with a groan.

"Gregory?! Gregory, what happened?! Are you alright?!"

He sat back in the cart and pressed the watch's message button. "I'm fine. I just fell out of the vent into some kind of cart thing."

"What?! Are you hurt?!"

"No, I'm fine! I'm fine! I landed on a bunch of gross sheets," he insisted. This wasn't the time to get fussed on by Freddy.

"Thank goodness! When I heard you scream through the vent, I was afraid something terrible had happened. I would have never been able to forgive myself," Freddy confessed, quieting towards the end. "Now then, what do you see?"

Gregory took a look at the room around him. "I'm in some sort of room with brick walls. There's red tanks on both sides of me with stickers of your face on them, and there's pipes, and one of those carts they move stuff on."

"Hmm, it sounds like you may have fallen into the basement. Can you press that emergency button?" Gregory did and could hear Freddy make a little sound on the other end of the line. It sort of sounded like the noise Sunny made when the tower of barrels got knocked over, but unlike him Freddy returned to normal quickly. "My suspicion was correct. It seems that you have fallen into the basement, right outside the main kitchen."

"Ugh, that's just great! How am I supposed to get back up now?!" Gregory vented. Looking up at the vent he had just come through he knew instantly that he wasn't going back that way.

"No, Gregory, this is a good thing! The loading dock IS in the basement, and you are on the right path to it. I have been given access to the path to your location and am on my way!... It will take me a few minutes like I suspected."

"Then can I keep going?" the boy asked as he climbed out of the cart. Freddy was silent for a long moment, seemingly hesitant to agree to it. "Come on, I made it this far. Then it'll take you less time to find me."

"Hmm, that is true… And there should not be anyone down there… And you are very close to the kitchen… Very well. You have my permission to continue on ahead," Freddy said. Gregory scrunched his face at the comment. He wasn't asking for 'permission' to do anything. "Now be careful, cadet. This alien planet has been unexplored by scouts. There could be hostile lifeforms around every corner!" The boy relaxed once more.

"I'll be careful, uh… Captain?"

"Oh, no, no! Captain is Foxy's name. Please, call me Chief."

"Oookay, Chief," Gregory said with a tinge of playful smugness. Then he let his arm drop to his side and started to look around for where to go. It looked like there was a way to the left and right, but he took the left.

He walked past a line of lockers and up to a security door that matched the ones that led into the office he hid from Monty in. It was unlocked and opened automatically for him to step through, but the office inside was only barely like the one he had been in before. There were a bunch of little screens and some large ones all tight together with office chairs squeezed in between them, but the most noticeable thing was all of the thick wires strung around, one even sparking.

Gregory decided it was best to just cross through and not get himself electrocuted in the process. An idea that was only encouraged by one of the wires hanging by the door twitching as he passed. He spared it a brief look while rushing by.

He stepped through the next door and stared in shock and awe at what lay past it. The room was filled with huge tanks that were only separated by a metal walkway. He carefully stepped down onto the walkway and began to walk in between the massive containers, which were grey with red Pizzaplex logos on them but had no further details explaining what they were for.

Looking down he saw something thick and dirty under the grating. Gregory stuck out his tongue at it and lifted his eyes to the tanks and the watch to his mouth. "Hey, Freddy? This room is full of huge tanks! What's it for?"

"Huge tanks?... Oh! You must be at the Fizzy Faz vats! All of the Fizzy Faz served in the Pizzaplex is manufactured, canned, and sold by the Pizzaplex. That is why Fizzy Faz is only sold here. For now, at least."

"Do you think they might have some just… lying around somewhere?" Gregory asked. "I'm thirsty."

"Hello, Thirsty. I am Chief Fazbear."

"Ugh, Freddy!" Gregory said grumpily. Freddy gave a good-natured chuckle. "I'm just going to keep going," he said. He continued down the walkway towards a blue door in a yellow wall. There was a suitcase looking sign mounted beside it.

"I would be happy to get you a drink once we make it to the loading docks," the bear offered warmly.

"Don't worry about it. Over and out," Gregory said. He then opened the unlocked door and stepped into an office.

This one wasn't a security office, just a bunch of desks with computers on them. The whole room had a strangely murky color to it, from the dark carpet to the deep green walls, so Gregory didn't feel like sticking around. He crossed through quickly and opened the door on the next side. Just like before, the scene rapidly changed as he found himself on yet another walkway. This time on one above a large kitchen.

He looked down over the railing as he walked to the next door, which was also unlocked. It led into another hallway with another security door and this time a little window to peek into and see the office inside. Dark, with a large screen and a bunch of small ones and some boxes stacked on the other side.

"Why's there so many security offices?" Gregory quietly asked himself. He looked through the window with scrutiny. "…And only one security officer?"

It was weird, but not weird enough for him to really stop and think about it. He continued on to a flight of stairs and stepped down them before turning back to the door behind them, in the direction of the kitchen. He was rewarded with a sign over the door that proudly proclaimed, "Exit To Docks," and hurriedly ran over before pushing through. It led into the kitchen just like he expected it to.

In the dim light of the costume, another "Exit To Docks" sign was illuminated above a door on the other side of the kitchen. Gregory began to hustle across the room and was about to burst through just like last time when his eyes caught something off to the side. Up until now he had largely ignored whatever he was passing on his quest to the loading docks, but that flat of Fizzy Faz cans was hard to ignore.

Gregory stopped outside the door and stared at the lot of cans, looking between the two for a few seconds, then slowly inching towards the latter. While looking around to make sure nobody was nearby, paranoia creeping up once more. All of the cans were orange with Freddy's visage, meaning they were all the same flavor. He pulled one out and noticed the cans weren't exactly cool either, but at this point he was willing to drink out of a bathroom sink.

He cracked open the can and looked around with paranoia again. If not for some crazed animatronic hearing, then Freddy himself seeing it, deeming him a troublemaker, and handing him over willingly to the security lady. Freddy didn't seem like the type, but Gregory knew better than to get too comfortable. Sometimes the nicest smiles hid the coldest people.

But the Fizzy Faz was definitely not cold. That was fine though, because other than being excessively bubbly the flavor was pretty good. Sweet and tangy, tasting almost like orange candy more than the fruit, and it helped that he was so thirst that even that grime clogging up underneath the Fizzy Faz tanks might've tasted good.

Then, right as he was gulping it down, there came a thump. He yanked the can down and looked up and around as he listened. That was a weird noise, a heavy clunking noise, that sounded like a metal door shutting or heavy stuff being moved.

Gregory lifted his watch to his mouth. "Freddy, is that you?" he whispered into it.

"I'm… n… ay…!" Freddy's scrambled voice spoke through. There was something creepy about how staticky it was after the clarity either. His words barely coming through a lot of pulsing static.

"Freddy?! I can't hear you!" he whispered back. Though there was no response. He pulled his finger off the button and looked around with growing discomfort. He couldn't hear anything else, but he didn't feel safe, and he started to back towards the doors. Still carrying the Fizzy Faz can as he pushed through them and into the next room.

The Loading Dock wasn't nearly as futuristic as he was imagining. With all the space theming upstairs, he half-heartedly hoped that it would be neon and spaceship thing, like the loading dock in a spaceship. Instead, it was the same grimy normality as everything else once he stepped below the ground floor. He wasn't surprised, he was just disappointed.

Instead, it was concrete floors and large, shuttered doors for trucks to drop off stuff into towards the right. There were a couple of forklifts and most of the far-left side of the room was made of freestanding shelves.

What caught his attention right away a lone desk on the far side of the room that almost looked like a smaller security desk, and the door sitting beside it with an exit sign above it. This must've been the exit that Freddy had been talking about. Gregory ran over to see it better, then set the can down on the desk and pressed the button on his watch.

But before the other's name could make it past his lips, noise began to spill forth from the watch. It was that same static he had heard while trying to talk to Freddy a few minutes ago, but it was worse now. Loud and crackly, crunchy, and pulsing like a heartbeat. The whines and crackles only briefly displaced by the pounding throb of a tone building in the back, slowly getting louder and clearer, like a warning sound.

"Fre- Freddy?" Gregory managed. There was no answer, not even the quietest murmur of Freddy's voice. Just that growing, pulsing, throbbing sound growing against the static.

It uneased him and eventually he reached the point where he couldn't bare it any longer and pulled his finger off the button. The Faz-Watch silenced instantly.

Fast enough to hear a door creaking open.

Gregory snapped his head back towards the left side of the room with wide eyes. There were a few large boxes blocking his way and he cautiously stepped to the side to see around them. There was another door on that left wall. Blue in color, like many of the doors he passed already, and illuminated by a sole light above it. It was sitting halfway open.

He stared at it without daring to step any closer, knowing that something was holding it open on the other side and that it couldn't and wouldn't be Freddy. He breathed shallowly and quietly as he waited for it to come through, but it didn't. It felt like ages were passing and nothing had happened, as though it was waiting for him.

Eventually Gregory couldn't stand the tension anymore and called out, "Who's there?"

He got his answer in the form of gloved fingers curling around the edge of the door.

The boy could only watch as a second hand joined the first, then a pair of ears poked out from behind. The greyish white fabric was a dead giveaway that it wasn't any of the animatronics he had seen but another being entirely. As its head slowly peeked out, he found himself under the gaze of another set of glowing red eyes. This time the belonged to a white rabbit.

It leaned out further until he could see its face fully and recognized right away that it didn't look like a robot, that it was wearing something akin to a Halloween costume mask, but that didn't mean it felt like a human either. Just looking at it made his eyes ache for some reason and that alone made his heart pound harder than it already was.

It lifted a single hand from the door and waved its padded fingers at him in greeting before turning its hand over and beckoning him.

There was no way. Gregory couldn't find his voice, but he certainly found the will to shake his head and refuse the offer. The rabbit beckoned a little more insistently, more animatedly, like a cartoon character, like a proper animatronic.

"No," he said. His voice was weak. He wanted to yank up his watch and call Freddy, but he was afraid any sudden movements.

The hand slowly lowered to the door and the rabbit stared at him for a long moment. Then it slowly slunk back behind the door. A long moment passed where he continued staring at the door, knowing it didn't leave and waiting with bated breath for whatever it was going to do.

What it did was catch the edge of the door with a bunny shaped foot, or costume boot, and suddenly yank it open all the way in one dramatic flair, revealing itself in full standing in the doorway. It was a tall white rabbit- not as tall as the animatronics but tall to Gregory- with a stretched open smile and vacant red eyes. It stood in the doorway staring at him for a long moment before it started to move.

It stepped through the doorway and immediately into a dance. Stretching its arms above its head and raising up on the balls of its feet, then lowering down before bobbing back up with languid movements of its arms. It was almost like a slow, awkward ballet, performed by someone who had probably never done it before. In the next step it started moving towards him.

It began a tiptoed little shuffle across the floor, arms bent at its sides, hands waving back and forth in front of it, creeping ever closer. This was interrupted by a little kick to the side followed by a step forward that turned into a twirl that came to a dead stop only a few steps in front of him, where it ended its performance with a theatric bow. Even if he wasn't creeped out, he would've been speechless.

The rabbit slowly lifted itself back up with its arms still at its sides and looked at him for a long second. It leaned forward and cocked its head quizzically, and he leaned back in response.

"Are you having fun yet…?"

Its voice was strange. Feminine but garbled up. Sort of like how Freddy's voice was on the watch but Gregory could hear her words clearly.

"What?" he asked.

"Are. You. Having. Fun. Yet?" she repeated. Slowly leaning in further with every punctuated word.

"N-No," Gregory defiantly answered. Though his shakiness betrayed his fear. "Who are you?"

"Who in the world am I?" the bunny asked faintly. Then she gave a little hop, popping her hands up to pose beside her face. "My name's Vanny. Vanny the Bunny, and I love to play games." She tucked her arms behind her back and leaned back in. "Would you like to play a game with Vanny the Bunny?"

Gregory shook his head. He tucked his own hands behind his back like she had, but it was so he could rapidly press the emergency button and hope Freddy could hear.

"No?" Vanny asked. She slowly tilted her head in the other direction. "But what if… you were already playing?"

He continued pressing the emergency button as fast as he could as he took a cautious step back. He was starting to breath faster, just edging on hyperventilating as the rabbit slid her foot forward like she was going to close that space. Like she was about to make a leap for him.

But before he could run, before she could grab him, before anything else could happen, he started to hear a heavy thumping noise. Quiet at first but quickly growing louder as it grew closer. He knew that it had to be Freddy.

Sure enough, the kitchen doors flew open and there was Freddy sprinting in. Gregory immediately ran for him, making a wide circle away from Vanny out of fear of getting grabbed.

"Open! Open!" he called. Freddy opened his stomach hatch without another word and Gregory practically dove inside, helped by the bear to climb in fully.

As he turned around in the cavity, he caught sight of Vanny waving at him. That was the last thing he saw before the hatch closed up and sealed him inside.

"Gregory, what happened?" Freddy asked worriedly. Gregory was still breathing heavily, and it took him just a few gulps to recover enough to speak.

"It's that rabbit lady! I-I think she was going to hurt me, and the watch wasn't working!" he blurted out.

"Rabbit lady?! What rabbit lady?" Freddy asked in surprise.

"That-! She's right there! Over by the desk! She was right in front of me!" He could hear the shifting of metal as Freddy looked over. The long moment of silent searching didn't bode well. "…You can't see here?"

"I… I do not see anyone."

"Open up," Gregory instructed. Scared or not, he had to see it for himself. There was no way that she could be gone.

But when Freddy opened his chest, she was gone. Gregory was in enough disbelief to lean out and look around the large room. Freddy loyally turned with his leaning, both so he could see and that he wouldn't risk falling out. There was no sign of her. He knew she could've been hiding somewhere in the room, but from where he did see she seemed to have vanished into nothing.

"What…? No! She's gotta still be in here! Over there, look at those shelves!" Gregory insisted. Freddy walked closer, keeping a safe distance, and allowed both of them to peek around the shelves. She wasn't there, and in her light-colored suit it should've been easy to see her. "I don't understand. She must've ran out the door… But how come you didn't see her? You didn't see her standing right beside me?"

"I did not. When I came in, I only saw you!... Hmm, though I did notice minor glitching around the edges of my vision. Perhaps my visual feed was corrupted, and I could not see her… That is still very strange."

"You believe me, right?" Gregory asked suspiciously. He looked up at the bear's face, with Freddy looking surprised by the question.

"Of course I believe you! I saw how frightened you were- not frightened, startled. My apologies," Freddy said. Gregory's less than pleased look suggested that he was digging himself deeper. "It is just that… there is not a rabbit at the pizzeria…" He closed his eyes as though in pain, making a motion similar to if he was mimicking taking a deep breath as his hands slowly clenched. "…Not anymore."

Gregory recognized that tone and his browns slowly drew together. Before he could ask though, Freddy suddenly seemed to snap back into a more upbeat persona almost instantly.

"But good news, Gregory: you have made it to the loading docks! And you made it here on your own. I am so proud of you," he assured. His eyes brightening up and his voice warm, and Gregory feeling a little awkward getting all this mushiness while currently half-hanging out of his chest. "You were very brave tonight, Superstar."

"Let's just get out of here before she comes back," Gregory dismissed.

"Yes, that would be for the best. Let us see…" He turned towards the desk before perking further. "Good news again! There is a phone on the desk. You can call your parents to come and get you," Freddy said. He carried Gregory over before letting him down to the floor, not noticing the boy's lack of a response. He then guided him over to the desk with a hand on his shoulder, stopping him in front of the landline phone.

The boy stared at it but made no attempt to pick it up. Freddy could sense his hesitation.

"It is okay, Gregory. They will not be upset with you, they will just be relieved that you are safe," he assured him.

Gregory stared at the phone for a moment longer before taking a deep breath and picking it up from the receiver. He poised his finger over the four button and hesitated again, but this time looked up at Freddy who was standing behind him.

"Hey, can you look over that way?" he asked, pointing towards the space between the kitchen door and the one the rabbit came in, towards a passage blocked by a fence. "I don't want anyone sneaking up on us."

"I would be happy to," Freddy assured. He turned around, folding his arms in front of him as though standing guard.

Gregory looked back to the phone. After another beat, he quickly dialed in ten numbers, and then as quietly as he could pressed the receiver button to cancel the call. He kept the phone tightly pressed to his ear, even while it droned a dial tone.

"Hey, Mom. It's me… I went to Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex, the one on that commercial, but I got lost and locked in. But I got some help, and I found a way out. Can you come pick me up?... Okay! Thanks!" Gregory hung up the phone. "You were right, she wasn't mad. She's going to come pick me up."

Freddy turned back to face him. For a second, he had a strange look on his face. Probably because of how quick the phone call was, Gregory assumed. "We don't live far away, so she'll be here any minute!"

"That is… good. I am glad you got ahold of her at this time of night," Freddy said with a vague tone.

"She, uh, she stays up pretty late. Her and dad," he excused. "So… I should just go wait out in the parking lot. The door's open, right?"

"It is, and it should not sound an alarm… But perhaps you would like that drink before you go? I am sure you are famished too. Perhaps I could find something we could cook. We are right beside a kitchen, after all," Freddy tempted.

This was weird. Earlier Freddy had been so on-board with letting him leave and now here he was having second thoughts. Gregory felt that suspicion creeping up but tried not to get defensive just yet. This was Freddy, the only person who had been helpful and friendly this entire time. He wasn't going to suddenly turn into a completely different person.

"I already got one," he said, pointing to the can on the desk. Freddy looked at the can and then reached over to pick it up with his claws.

"…But this Fizzy Faz is not appropriate temperature! It will not give the same refreshing sensation that an ice cold one will. There should be some in the fridges-."

"There's no time for that. My mom will be here any minute, so I should really get outside."

"But…" Freddy caught himself at the last second. He closed his mouth and looking into the lower corner thoughtfully, then looked back to Gregory, a sort of sadness in his eyes. "If you are certain. It is… against protocol, but I am willing to let you go… But I am also willing to break protocol and let you stay. At least, until your mother arrives."

"No, that's okay. I'm good," Gregory assured. Though right after he said that he got this weird feeling in his stomach. Not a twisting of fear or a gnaw of hunger, but a sinking sad sort of feeling. Maybe because he realized that this was goodbye and, in all likelihood, they would never see each other again. "So… I guess this is goodbye."

"I suppose it is. Will you come back?" Freddy asked. Seeing the confusion Gregory's face, he quickly corrected, "Not to stay afterhours I meant during the daytime, when we can properly spend time together."

"You don't think I've been banned from this place too? If that lady saw me come back, she'd come after me."

"She is only the nighttime security guard. If you came during the day, then it would surely be safe!" Freddy assured. Gregory looked a little concerned. "And if you are able to make it in, I may just be able to find an unclaimed Superstar VIP pass.~ I think you have more than earned it being so brave."

"Well… Maaaybe," the boy said without commitment. He lifted up his wrist. "Here's your watch back."

"Keep it," Freddy assured, pushing his hand back down. "Consider it a gift for getting me out of my room. Though we will not be able to communicate once you leave the premises. Oh! However, if you do return, you can use it to contact me! Yes, it is best that you keep it with you. To remember me by."

"I don't think I'll ever forget tonight," Gregory joked. He then dropped his arm to his side and walked to the door, looking back one last time. "…Goodbye Freddy."

"Goodbye, Superstar," Freddy said solemnly. That concerned and sad look took his eyes again as Gregory turned away to open the door.

The boy stepped out into the parking lot section designated to trucks. The smell of asphalt still lingering in the night air as he stepped out of the light, still holding the door open as he looked back at Freddy one last time. The bear gave him a warm smile and a wave, hiding that trepidation behind both, and Gregory returned it with a more subdued version of both. Then he let the door shut.

Gregory had made it out.

Freddy was still standing by the door long after he had left.

This whole night had been a disaster for Natalie. There had been alerts going off all over the place and yet somehow there was no sign of the kid. The few Security Staff Bots kept getting spooked by something and preemptively flagging for something that was either long gone or never there. Either that or someone was messing with her, and since she hadn't seen the rabbit, she knew that was a real possibility.

Finally, she got a real alert, but she didn't realize it wasn't a false alarm until she walked into the daycare and heard a commotion inside. She hustled down the second-floor walkway to the large wooden doors of the daycare and was surprised to see Chica, Monty, Roxanne, and the Sun standing outside of them talking. She was almost surprised to see it outside the daycare, though not as surprised as the horrifying realization that it was as tall as the other three.

It was rambling too. It looked so worked up as it flung its arms around and babbled a longwinded explanation that definitely sounded like it could've come from Ennard's mouth.

"-And then I tossed him out here and told him, 'You're banned from the daycare!' and off he went! Like nothing happened, bye-bye, no sorry, not even a, 'Good-bye, Mr. Sun. Sorry I broke your one rule and was mean to you!' Nope!" Sunny vented to the onlooking audience. His prongs twitching and some of them pulling in, showing his agitation.

He wasn't the only person who was annoyed though. Monty was especially leering at him with a surprising amount of focus compared to usual. He huffed and interrupted before the jester could go into another tangent.

"Did ya see where he went or not?" he asked gruffly.

Sunny's arms and shoulder's slouched as he leaned forward, head cocking in a sort of "are you kidding me?" sort of look. His ticking counting the seconds in his pause before he straightened back up, hands on his hips.

"I just told you! I put him right here!" He gestured his hands to where he sat the boy down. "And then he went over to-…" He trailed his hands over before spotting Natalie coming down the stairs. His points popped with an "Eep!" and he skirted right back through the small gap in the wooden doors and shut it quickly behind him.

Roxanne gave a frustrated noise as she dragged her claws down her face. "This is just a waste of time," she growled. Her ear then perked at the footsteps and looked back, seeing the security guard coming down. "Great. Keeps getting better."

"Maybe she'll have better luck than we are," Chica suggested slyly. She then flipped quickly to a more perky posture and waved to the blond. "Hi, Officer Vanessa! Any luck finding that little boy?"

"None whatsoever. Did-?"

"Neither did we! But SUNNY here has seen him," Chica interrupted and said, pointing a thumb back at the wooden doors while the other hand rested on her hip. "Sunny's a little mmm fluttery. Maybe you would have better luck getting an answer out of him!" she chirped and stepped aside, watching expectantly.

Roxanne's lidded eyes were a little more challenging in their glint, as though daring her to test that luck.

"I'll talk to him," Natalie agreed. She headed over to the door, walking past Monty who stood alongside with his arms tightly crossed, and knocked on it. "Sunny?" she called in.

She could see his white eye peek through the slender crack in the door. "Helloooo…" he said quietly, uncomfortably.

"Hey there. Chica said you saw that kid in here."

"Mmm-hmm," Sunny agreed. He then fell silent, clearly not wanting to talk with her.

Now, she considered just continuing to ask him and hope that eventually he would tell her something, but she knew from this coyness that it was going to be like pulling teeth to pull answers out of him. Except she had seen that he wanted to talk about what happened before she came up, so she decided to take a different approach.

"Did that kid give you a hard time?" she asked in her most sympathetic, matronly voice.

He cracked instantly.

"YEEESS! Oh, he was just- and he just- I can't even BEGIN! And it wouldn't have been so bad if he hadn't been so smug about it!" Sunny pushed the door open and leaned his upper body out. His points popping and fidgeting with a mix of agitation and anxiousness. "He could've gotten me in sooo much trouble and he didn't even care!"

"Well, nobody's in trouble yet. If we can find this kid and get him handed off to his parents at six, we might just avoid a lawsuit. I might even avoid losing my job," Natalie remarked. "So, if you know anything else it would really help."

"I know something," Sunny remarked. He lowered his voice and leaned further in, the closeness of his face more than a little intimidating. "His name's Gregory."

"Alright, that is something. Thanks," Natalie agreed. "Is there anything else?"

"Like can you at least point to the door he left through?" Roxanne asked from behind her. "We know you didn't just let that kid out and let him walk away. You have to know where he went."

"I-I-I'm trying!" Sunny stuttered. "I carried him right outside, plopped him down right there-." He reached out an arm to point at the same spot he had pointed at numerous times. Though this time he didn't get a chance to try the same story.

"Are you gonna give us a straight answer or not?!" Monty bellowed, suddenly losing his composure. It was loud enough and close enough to Natalie that she jumped and took a step away from him with an almost offended look to cover any fear. Sunny's head snapped to him just as quickly, and while his expression didn't change his tone certainly did.

"Huh, that's funny. Because I swear the kid said that he ran into YOU before he came into the daycare," he remarked. His voice dropped in a lower, colder tone. "Said you weren't playing so nice…"

Monty growled lowly. Natalie turned to him and asked bluntly, "What does that mean?"

"Means I chased him up from the basement and lost him," Monty gruffly answered.

Natalie tightened her lips at that. There was something he wasn't saying, but Monty's current behavior was tipping off what it could've been. That he got impatient with and might've even scared the kid, which wasn't helping anybody- which was the best-case scenario in all of this. She was still eyeing Monty, who had decided to look off towards the gift shop. Arm still resting on the edge of the door and still leaning on it.

She turned back to the Sun. "So, you didn't see where he went?"

"Nope!"

"We're out of here," Roxanne suddenly announced. She almost looked more fed up than Monty did, turning away with a swish of her tail and heading to the half circle doors that led out to Kids Cove. "What a waste of time."

"At least we know he's not here!" Chica tried to reason. She looked back and gave a little wink and wave to Natalie. "See you later, Miss Security Guard! Hope your luck gets better soon!"

"Yeah, same," Natalie answered. She looked back to Monty to find him looking at her. He slid off the wall and sent one last tense look at Sunny before following his bandmates back out. The blond tightened her lips as a new suspicion cropped up and waited until the door closed to act on it. She looked back to Sunny. "Well, they're gone. Are you sure you didn't see where he went?"

"Nope! Honest! I shut the door as soon as I put him out, and then I called security! That's all, the end, un-happily ever after!" Sunny said. So, he was dodgy without the Glamrocks being here too. Nice to know.

"What about what happened with Monty?" she asked with concern.

His head tilted town and his voice deflated. "Dunno. All's I know is that the kid was pretty scared of him… They should put a warning sign on that guy!"

She quirked a brow. "Monty or the kid?"

"Both!" Sunny chirped with a spin of his points. "Okie dokie, Ma'am! Time for me to go restock the arts and crafts, so have a good niiight!"

Before she could even react to the fact that he just dismissed himself, let alone try to stop him, the door was suddenly shut behind her and she was effectively shut out. She stared at the door for a second before deciding that she would likely have a better chance looking through the security cameras than waiting for an answer from anyone else.

She started heading back towards the lobby and got as far as the daycare security door when she heard something wheeling up behind her. She recognized the sound of a Staff Bot and was mildly surprised to look back and see the Nanny Bot.

"Hey there. What are you… doing?" Her one-sided conversation was sidetracked when the Nanny Bot continued by and wheeled over towards the line of Fizzy Faz machines. It then waved her down and once she caught up began pointing towards the Fizzy Faz machine with Freddy on it. It pointed firmly, adamantly, as though trying to tell her something.

"Freddy?... Is this about that kid?" she asked. The Nanny Bot nodded. "Is he with Freddy?" she guessed. It nodded again. This wasn't as much of a surprise as it might've been, not after finding Freddy wandering around in the basement. She had thought that was weird at the time, but she didn't think he was capable of misleading her, let alone that he would hide a child. Unless they met up after that. "I'll go talk to him. Thank you."

The Nanny Bot didn't respond, it just rolled past her and returned to the security doors, which opened again to let it inside. Natalie watched it leave before quickening her pace and heading towards a new destination: Freddy's green room.

He wasn't there. She waited around for a while before leaving to go check the cameras, but she came back later. He still wasn't there. A few times she returned to check the room before he finally showed back up. She hadn't even seen him on the camera, she just came by the window again and spotted him sprawled out on the couch. One foot resting on the floor, one arm tucked under his head, staring up at the ceiling with a melancholy look.

Freddy didn't even notice her until she was using her security pass to open the door. He straightened up quickly, teetering just a little as he did.

"O-Officer Vanessa!" he shouted in surprise.

She didn't return the greeting, instead choosing to walk into the room, put a hand on her hip, and shooting him the look. He wasn't sure how to describe such a look except that it became immediately apparent that she knew exactly what he had done. He dropped his head and shoulders with shame.

"Where's the kid?" she asked. He didn't answer right away. "…Freddy, come on. I know he was with you."

"…I took him down to the loading docks and let him out through the exit. He… He called his mother, and she should be coming to pick him up."

"He got a call through?" Natalie asked questioningly.

"He used a landline phone."

Freddy too seemed reluctant with details. Though unlike the others who were being purposefully dodgy, it seemed like Freddy was more so guilty about the whole thing. Her face softened more with weariness than to let him off the hook.

"I don't need to tell you what part of that was wrong, right?" she asked.

"I know…" Freddy simply said.

"Can I at least ask why you did it?" she asked again.

He stared at the floor for a long moment, arms resting on his knees, with his expression slightly changing as he thought about it. To be honest, he didn't really know why he had gone through such lengths to keep Gregory hidden from her. He knew she was the responsible authority afterhours, and that Gregory was just afraid of getting in trouble. Yet he had done it and he couldn't very well say he wouldn't make the same decision again.

"I just… wanted to help him," he finally said. He sounded so defeated, so uncertain, that she decided to throw him a bone.

"Well, you got him out of the building in one piece and you contacted his parents. That's not great, but that could've gone a lot worse. From what I've heard its been a crazy night, so the sooner he gets home the better," she said. He nodded silently in agreement. "…Are you okay? You're not usually this quiet," she pointed out. His head snapped up at that.

"Oh! My apologies, I am still not quite myself. The safe mode is taking a lot out of me," he explained. He sounded a little more normal saying this, but she couldn't tell if he was being truthful or covering. Either way, she let him off the hook.

"Then I'm going to get out of your hair and let you rest. If you need me, I'm going to be glued to the cameras for the next couple of hours," Natalie said. She turned to head for the door, only to stop and spin on her heel. "And if this ever happens again, please just tell me next time?" He agreed and then she let him off the hook. Leaving him to recover while she returned to the security office.

Natalie walked out of that green room feeling like she dodged a bullet.

…And still feared that there was a gun pointed at her head.

Chapter 27

Chapter Summary

Marionette finds out about last night and Charlie has a reunion with her friends.

"-Finally, Freddy shows up in his green room and I go to get answers from him. Turns out that the kid was with him the whole time, or at least was after whatever went down at the daycare. Which I will never know because apparently, I don't have access to any of the footage from last night, and that's IF there's any recorded footage. Freddy smuggled him downstairs, had him call home, and then let him out into the parking lot. Wasn't going to tell me! Just puts the kid out and goes to sulk in his green room. Which is fine if it means the kid gets out some way, but I would've liked a heads up."

Natalie cut off her venting before she could get started up again. Between her tone and how tired she looked after a full amount of sleep; it was abundantly clear that last night had been hard for her. Fritz could agree to that, having seen the exceptionally exhausted state she was in when coming home. More tired than usual and more frustrated than expected. Taking a semi-calming breath, Natalie finished off her recount.

"So, then I went back to the security room and watched for most of the night. I couldn't tell the Glamrocks what happened, not after how weird they were acting. I barely trust them as it is, I don't want to stir up some long-lost programming that'll trigger them to freak out. So, instead, they were prowling the place all night. Which meant I got to listen to Chica circle the lobby for an hour, offering candy to someone who wasn't there. They all headed back to their rooms a little before six and I was able to get out of there and go home… And that was it! That was the opening night of Freddy's and one of the most exhausting nights of my life."

The lack of any outburst during or after Natalie's recount of her night didn't necessarily suggest that all was well. Such as Foxy, who had somewhere along the lines- about the time Freddy had come into the picture- slowly leaned back in his chair, tilted back his head, and covered his face with his hand and his hook. A much more restrained action to his window shattering "WHAT?!" when Fritz dropped in after work to mention Freddy's fall on stage.

"Freddy, Freddy, Freddy. Bloody bear, foolhardy… Freddy," he muttered to himself, cutting off with a groan. Jeremy patted him on his coat clad shoulder and Foxy muttered a low, "One day in and here we go."

"All things considered, they're lucky that's the only thing that went wrong," Natalie remarked. She sent a look to Fritz who cracked a smile despite the stress.

Foxy hummed and lifted his hand to peek at her. "They open today?" he asked. She shook her head. "Hmm, good… Gives Freddy some time to rest…" he mumbled.

Though it was clear that wasn't what he was really thinking about, if his lost-in-thought look was any indication. Jeremy grimaced just slightly.

The other reactions weren't much better. Charlie was quiet but had begun to pace, Louise had showed a variety of animated expressions from the other side of Natalie, and it had taken until now for Mike to notice that he was clenching his jaw.

But the most concerning reaction- or the reaction that Mike considered most concerning- was the one directly beside him. The dead silent puppet who merely had a disapproving smile and slightly narrowed eyes. The fact that he showed this at all instead of the blank smile being a warning sign that there was something much worse brewing beneath the surface.

The two of them were standing a few feet in front of Natalie and Fritz, so it wasn't like they hadn't noticed it too. They just probably couldn't read it like Mike could, mistakenly thinking that the ability to emote was a sign that it wasn't so bad. He knew better than to get comfortable; a dead silent Marionette was typically brewing like a tea kettle, just waiting to let out all that steam.

"Sooo…" Mike dragged out slowly, stealing another quick side-glance at the ticking time bomb beside him before continuing. "Exactly how much 'I'm about to lose it and maul someone' energy was coming off the gator?"

"I totally got the vibes that if there wasn't a door there, he would've taken a swing at the sun, and with his arms he might've taken his head off," Natalie agreed with a nod. "Like, I didn't get the vibe that he was going to attack me, but I'm not putting myself alone in a room with him."

"How tall was the sun again?" Jeremy chimed up to ask.

"About this tall." She lifted her hand to a good guesstimate of where he stood.

"Well, there goes my adopt-the-sun plan."

"Yeah, now you might have to fight Scott for him," Mike remarked. It didn't lighten the mood much. At least not when he had to turn and look back at Jeremy, giving him another quick look at Marionette, who had slightly turned his head. Mike turned back to Natalie. "Any sign of the chick in the bunny suit?"

"I didn't see her," Natalie said. She bit her lip pensively, considering her next words.

"Well, there's that," Fritz offered. He might've not said anything if he noticed that look, but he didn't.

"But I know she was in there," she finished. Apparently, she hadn't said this to him earlier from how quickly that cautious optimism dropped to disbelief and dread. His look alone said everything.

"What?" he asked.

"My cameras starting goofing up after I returned to the office, so I know she was running around," Natalie explained. "…But that's fine! She can run around all she wants. Obviously, she knows not to mess with me anymore since I pulled the taser on her. If she wants to sneak around like a rat, then that's her choice."

"Huh. And when did that happen?" Mike asked. That nonchalant tone contrasting how hyperaware he suddenly became after she mentioned drawing the taser. Because it didn't matter how much she underplayed it, he knew Natalie well enough to know that she would've only drawn that taser if she was afraid.

Mike dared another look towards Marionette. His eyes had widened a little bit in surprise, but then narrowed past the point they had earlier. Another brief glimpse into the storm brewing beneath the surface.

Natalie must've caught her slip up and was quick to do damage control. "I just got creeped out. She was just skipping around acting goofy and trying to rile me up. She didn't even have the knife on her."

That sentence uncomfortably floated around the room before the puppet suddenly turned to his companion at his side.

"Mike, can I speak to you in private?" Marionette asked in a dangerously neutral tone.

"Sure. In the office or the prize corner?" Mike asked, pretending he didn't know what was coming.

"In the bathroom."

"Ah yes, the soundproof vault. That's not a sign of things to come," Mike remarked. He then followed along as the Puppet made a brisky beeline towards the hallway and into the bathroom without sharing any further glances at anyone.

The next sign would be when he came into the bathroom to find Marionette standing at the other side facing the wall, standing as stiff and still as a board while equally silent as one. The man raised his brows and slowly closed the bathroom door behind him before walking over, reaching him in only a few steps.

"Mari?" he asked with concern. The Puppet made a discordant little sound and his head twitched to the side.

"It's all happening again…"

"It's all-."

"IT'S ALL HAPPENING AGAIN!" Marionette exploded. His volume only accentuated by a mechanical screech from his chest.

It was enough to get Mike's eyes wide and his mouth shut, but not enough to make him back away. Marionette raised his hands to his head, hands clawing and wringing at air as he gave another infuriated cry.

"This is how it starts, Mike!" he cried. "It starts with broken machines and children left behind, and RABBITS! ALWAYS RABBITS!"

"Take it easy. You're not wrong, but he got out. The kid's okay," Mike said, trying to talk him down. He knew he was upset, but he didn't expect this level of upset. Apparently, this kid was the tipping point.

"But what about the next one?! I have trouble believing that some lone child was spontaneously left at the Pizzaplex on accident!" Marionette pointed out. Purposefully yelling at the wall or the ceiling or the bathroom stall, anything other than Mike. "And the only reason he got out was because of Freddy, who for some strange reason IS ALIVE!" he spat. "I didn't PUT anyone in Freddy, SO WHO DID?!"

"That's a good question, but unless someone scribbled it on the bathroom wall, we're not getting answers in here," Mike said. The Puppet let out a pained noise and he snapped to attention. "Hold on. Are you okay?"

"No, I am not okay! I can't believe this!" Marionette vented. A growing dial tone sound in his chest grew worse with those words, before fluctuating, along with a hitch in his voice. "I have to calm down. I can't let myself get upset-!"

Him trying to calm himself down sounded downright painful and considering the incident they had during the last round of bad news, it was probably going to hurt for both of them. Mike wasn't going to let that happen.

"No. That's exactly what you don't want to do. Just let it all out. I want to hear it, I can handle it," he reassured. Marionette finally looked at him and Mike made a goading motion with his hands. "Come on. Tell me where it hurts."

The Puppet snapped his head for a moment and withstood only a few more, twitching and shuddering, before he let the rest of it flow out. Along with a gush of tears, though no sobs to be heard in his audibly cluttered voice.

"I hate this!" Marionette exclaimed. "I was once the protector of children, of lost souls, of Freddy's, and here I am rendered a- a spectator! How could I become so complacent?! How could I let it get this far?!"

"You're not complacent," Mike calmly disagreed.

"How am I not?! If not for Freddy, that boy could've been murdered last night! Look me in the eyes and tell me that you don't think that gator has the same wretched programming that was in those Afton made machines! Tell me you don't think that psychotic rabbit woman only backed down because her target fought back!"

Mike didn't have a rebuttal fast enough to cover up that he agreed with both of those. At that point it wasn't even worth trying to lie just to pacify the puppet, he would know.

The static returned to Marionette's voice as the pinpoints of light appeared in his eyes and he stood at full height. For a moment he was almost intimidating. No, he was definitely intimidating, Mike just knew that Marionette would never do anything to hurt him. He didn't scare him, he just made him feel unexpectedly small. Especially when surrounded by the distorted noises bouncing off the closed in walls.

Marionette's voice was filled with an authority that he couldn't remember ever hearing before.

"I am more than this, Mike. I am more than just an entertainer. A ticket taker in the back of a prize corner. More than the protector, more than the reaper, more than the complacent! I am the soul of Freddy's!"

There was nothing to say to that, but he was convincing enough Mike believed him. He just silently stared back at the lighted eyes gazing into his own. Heat spreading up his neck from his collar.

The heaviness and silence suffocated the room for only a little longer.

"Did-?!" Marionette suddenly continued. "…Did that sound insane just now? Because now that I said it out loud, I think that might've sounded totally insane."

Mike snapped out of his fog. "What? No… A little bit, but you noticed." He made an 'okay' symbol with his hand. "Totally sane."

He decided it was best not to mention how warm he got. If he was showing it, he'd just blame the stuffy bathroom.

The tuneless noises fell into a dull hum Marionette slowly turned himself towards the sink. His hands resting on the counter as he eventually lifted his eyes from the drain to look at himself in the mirror. His stripes were oozing off his mask and dripping onto his chest and the tiles.

His voice was so quiet, now devoid of all the other sounds and yet Mike could barely hear it.

"None of this would be happening if I was still there…"

With that confession, Mike finally saw the root of Marionette's guilt.

Marionette lightly thumped his fists on the bathroom counter before wavering there a minute and then slowly sliding to the floor and to his knees, dropping his arms limply to his sides.

Mike was over to him in an instant and hooked his hands under his arms to pull him up. "Come on, don't do that. This is the last place you want to do that. You know this floor's dirty."

"Not as dirty as my conscious."

Between that defeated little comment and how limp his body was, it was clear to Mike that he wasn't getting him back up off the floor. So instead, he moved his hands up to squeeze and then pat his shoulders reassuringly.

Besides, that wasn't the important part. Now he had the floor, and he was going to say his peace.

"If you were still at Freddy's this exact same thing would still be happening because you wouldn't be at the Pizzaplex. Chances are you'd be stuck in one of the spinoff chains or in a warehouse somewhere, confined to your box, wasting your life waiting for the eventual. Even if you were at the Pizzaplex, you know what Fazbear Entertainment's capable of. They could've had you shackled up with so much programming that you would've been stuck serving in a prize corner that wasn't yours watching all of this happen. I know you're stronger than that, but I know you would've stuck through it even when you didn't have to if you thought you could stop what was coming. That's not a life; that's a prison sentence."

He heard what sounded a lot like a mechanical whine and rubbed gently at his shoulders.

"And you've got nothing to feel bad about. Up until Natalie said all that, I was starting to think we were overreacting. That we were just assuming there was some sort of conspiracy going on at Freddy's because it's a godawful company that ruined all of our lives and is threatening to ruin our business. This is the first time we've gotten real concrete proof that we've got to do something. Freddy being alive doesn't count. There's practically twenty places across Utah with haunted animatronics living in them. That's not as much of a red flag as you'd think it is. Rabbit chick's borderline, but what were we supposed to do? Barge in there? Blow Nat's cover and give her full reign? We had to be careful."

Marionette gave a somber little nod.

"Now I'm going to be straight with you because you're going to see through me if I start doing the whole 'it's fine, we've got this' spiel again. Something's up at Freddy's. We're got a huge problem brewing over there and it's a lot worse than just some friendly competition, whatever the hell happened last night proves that. And it's becoming abundantly clear that nobody over there's going to do anything about it until someone gets hurt. If that means we've got to step in and cover their shift, then whatever, we'll do it. Even one life is worth more than spiting Freddy's, especially if it's a kid's."

"Of course," the Puppet quietly agreed. "…But there must be something more."

"You better believe we're going to do something more. You said it yourself, you're the protector of Freddy's and I'm your backup. They dropped the ball, and we step in. We're not being complacent, we just gave them a chance to do their job," Mike said with the slightest edge of acidity. "Now we fix it, just like we always do." His voice softened considerably to add, "Don't beat yourself up for something that hasn't happened yet. We can still save them."

The words nudged some deep-set programming and caused Marionette to flinch the slightest bit. To become more aware, if only for a moment. Then relaxing back into his companion's affirming grasp. He tilted and turned his head to rest the edge of his mask against Mike's hand before snaking his own hand up to gently take the other one. They stayed like that for a few quiet minutes.

During that time Mike took note of the lack of pain of any kind. No hallucinations, no voices, no headache or burning touch. All of that overwhelming build-up was simply not there. This seemed to confirm his suspicions and Mike released a breath that he didn't know he had been holding. It felt like he had been holding it for weeks.

Only once the constant hum had dimmed and the posture of the puppet relaxed did he know he had truly calmed down. He really wished he could leave it like that, so he braced him with a squeeze of the hand.

"I know I've asked you this before…" Mike began softly. "…but how many did you save?"

"So many," Marionette answered. "Too many."

"Any unaccounted for?"

"…Yes."

Mike inhaled deeply and exhaled through his mouth. "So maybe."

"Maybe," Marionette agreed, understanding what he was saying. "…But not if they're new."

"So, probably not Freddy."

"Not from what Foxy and Natalie have said, no."

They fell back into silence. After a bit, Marionette shifted like he was going to get up and Mike helped pull him to his feet, even though he didn't need the help. The Puppet pulled a few paper towels out from the dispenser and dampened them under the faucet while Mike rubbed at a small purple stain left on his pants.

"I'm sorry," Marionette said, wringing the napkins in his hands.

"Don't worry, it comes out easy," Mike answered.

Marionette looked to him in confusion and noticed the spot, and he actually managed a chime. He offered the wet bundle which Mike rubbed into the spot for a second. There was still a slight stain, but nothing that wouldn't get out with a wash. Besides, it was nothing compared to what had leaked onto the puppet's chest. Two seconds addressing himself and then he turned to work at Marionette, gently brushing his hand away when he tried to stop him.

"You don't have to," Marionette said quietly, guiltily.

"Are you kidding? And let my puppet go out in public looking like this? There's no way," Mike replied.

The puppet gave a hushed trill that slowly grew into a warble at the smoothing and cleaning of his velveteen textured fabric. The tears came off his fabric much easier than the pants, but Mike still took his time and soon there was only a dull tint from where it had been. Mike was going to toss the napkins in the trash, but Marionette caught his hand before he could do so, softly wrapping his fingers around it and holding securely.

Mike met his gaze without much surprise, seeing that a solemn but steadfast expression had taken his mask.

"Tonight," Marionette said, tone dead serious. "We are going in there tonight, and we are finding that rabbit, and we are finishing this tonight."

"Fine by me," Mike agreed without hesitation. If anything, he was waiting for this moment, knowing that eventually it was going to come.

The puppet nodded then leaned in and kissed him, reigniting the heat that had previously started to fade. Once they parted, he circled Mike before leading him out by the hand. The man tossing the napkins sideways into the trash as they went.

Marionette got a glimpse out of the hall and into the dining room first. Upon which he gave a disappointed, "Oh…"

"What? Everyone heard?" Mike guessed.

"Yes, and everyone left," he replied. Indeed, they stepped out into a dining room now largely devoid of life- save for the voices from the kitchen and the redhead and other puppet at a table, Charlie and Carlton. "Except for them."

"Our little thrill seekers," Mike said with a cheeky grin. He then started heading over, with Marionette meandering alongside him, less than enthused about his previous volume.

Carlton was sitting at a pulled-out chair while Charlie was leaning on the back of another one. She noticed them coming over before he did and straightened up right away.

"Heeey…" she greeted.

"Ayyy," Mike replied with a slowly raising thumbs up. She got a small, almost incredulous smile. "So, did you catch all of that or should we bring you up to speed?" he asked. Now Marionette gave him a similar but much less amused look.

"I was under the distinct impression that Mari might not like the bunny," Carlton remarked, hands tented and pointed them at said puppet. Said puppet who gave him a look that was enough to get him up and out of the chair and back to sweeping the front mat, which was where he was headed before Natalie began her retelling of the last night.

"Assuming you didn't hear much more than that," Marionette began. Any tinge of irritation quickly dissolved back to seriousness. "We have decided that tonight's the night we will see the Pizzaplex for ourselves. We'll sneak in after midnight."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Charlie asked. She didn't sound shocked or even too worried, just like she was considering it. Like they had suggested renting a different kind of movie instead of breaking and entering.

"Let me put it this way: at this point Freddy's is one bad idea away from someone getting seriously hurt, and if it's not us then it's going to be somebody else. Might as well even out the odds," Mike said. It wasn't a joke either.

"Not that we intend to hurt anyone," Marionette assured.

Mike raised a finger and interjected, "Except the rabbit."

The Puppet didn't even laugh. His eyes slightly narrowed as he responded with a distant, "Oh yes. The rabbit."

The man looked at him for a moment before turning to Charlie and giving a quiet, "Obviously that was a joke, but you know." He gestured towards Marionette, and she nodded.

"Right… Then maybe I should stay home tonight and we can work out a plan. It shouldn't be that hard to get in. Foxy's pretty much doing it on a weekly basis," Charlie remarked.

Though this comment snapped Marionette out of his moment as he realized what she was offering. "Oh, no! You don't have to do that!" he protested. He had returned to his familiar, more assuring tone of voice. "Foxy's been able to sneak around without getting caught because he's been waiting until the Pizzaplex is fully closed. Our best chance will be to do the same. That gives you plenty of time to go out and for us to still construct a plan together."

"But see, I was thinking I was going with you," Charlie suggested. Mike had already assumed as much from her earlier reaction.

"I was assuming you would be back before midnight," Marionette retorted with slight playfulness. "Burke strikes me as the type to enact his own curfew."

"Only on me!" Carlton called from nearby.

"Are you sure about this? I don't want to be screwing around while you have to take care of everything. I can help, we can plan this out together," she said. The other puppet gently laid a hand on her shoulder and cut off her protests.

"We will, but I don't want you to spend all night obsessing over the details like I'm going to. You've been looking forward to this for days. Go have fun with your friends! Freddy's can wait. Heavens knows we're going to have to wait for Freddy's," Marionette reassured her.

"He's right. You're just going to be watching the clock if you stay home. Go out and have a good night, we'll be fine," Mike agreed.

They both did have a point, so she agreed with them too.

…

But to tell the whole truth. Charlie might've been trying to get out of tonight.

Now since meeting back up with her friends some months ago, Charlie had seen them on a regular basis. Some more than others. Such as Carlton, who was now a fixture at Foxy's, and Marla who stopped by rather frequently. Her most frequent visitor was Jessica, who either came to the house or the pizzeria weekly, and who she talked to on the phone frequently. They were as tight as they once had been.

The exceptions were Lamar, who lived out of town so of course she wouldn't see him regularly, and John. She had only seen John a few times since they had met back up. He was always friendly, but she never sought him out.

If she was being honest with herself, she was avoiding John. As much as she could when he could always drop into the business at any time. It just felt so weird to talk to him and have so many unsaid words that she knew was lingering there.

She felt like she was supposed to apologize, but the words never felt appropriate. Therefore, it was just easier to avoid him while she could and make perfectly serviceable small talk when she couldn't.

Except for tonight. Tonight was special because Lamar was getting back into town and so everyone decided to meet up and hang out at Carlton's. They would have a pizza, watch some movies, shoot the breeze, and live like one of them hadn't died and become a puppet. Charlie was quite fine with that part. Save the fact that it meant she couldn't exactly avoid John.

She kept having the same irrational fear of being stuck alone in the same room and having nothing to say. It wasn't like Foxy's where she could look around until she found something notable enough to change the subject. If she was cornered, then there was nowhere to run.

"So, what's that noise mean?" Carlton asked.

Only then did Charlie notice the dull humming coming from her music box as her eyes stared both unfocused and fixated on the right air vent in front of her.

"I'm downloading a social interaction directive. It comes with icebreakers, one-liners, and a detailed guide on how to make the perfect screwdriver," she wisecracked. "Now that I'm a robot I can finally be the life of the party!"

He snickered a little at that and she almost relaxed, save her tight grip on the door rest.

"Okay, that's good. But what's actually going on?" he asked a few seconds later. Charlie sighed.

"I'm just a little nervous. That's all," she admitted.

"Nervous? You?" He sounded surprised. He was aware that he had been keeping up with everyone and that everyone was very aware of how she looked now, and of the company she kept who she wasn't nervous around, so this seemed like a weird time to get antsy. It didn't take him long to narrow down the difference between tonight and hanging out with him and Marla after a long shift.

"Is this about John?" Carlton dared to ask. He looked uncertain, like he knew he was pushing the boundary. Though just as quickly he decided to throw himself over that boundary with a cheesy smile and a waggling brow.

"Don't give me that look. In fact, don't give anybody that look. It's not doing you any favors," Charlie said unamused.

This only goaded him on. "You're downloading the hot date directive, aren't you?" he teased.

"Considering that John is dating my best friend. No, I'm not," Charlie remarked.

"Sorry. My bad," he said. He stayed silent for a second before that smile crept back up. "I forgot. You save that for weekends at Baby's." She gave him a narrowed little glare. "…Too far?"

"You know I can still drive. I could kick you to the curb and drive there myself," she remarked. Then a little more smugly added, "Or I could just I walk. I run faster than you drive."

"This is how you have to live when you can't hide a speeding ticket from your folks," he answered. Though then he finally got a little more serious. "Okay, I'm sorry. I'm not trying to give you a hard time."

"Thank you."

"But… do you still have a thing for John?" he asked. She couldn't hide how startled she was by the question. "It's okay if you do. You two were dating before this whole puppet thing. It wasn't like you guys broke up; it just sort of… stopped."

"Yeah, this puppet thing puts a stop to a lot of things," Charlie admitted. He gave her an actually concerned side glance that she noticed. "But I've gotten over it. That's not even what this is about. It's not about how I feel about John, it's about… other things… Like that, umm… feeling you get when... when you know there's something that you eventually have to talk about, and you really don't want to talk about." Her mask tightened as though in pain. "Like that last phone call…"

"Oh. Yeah, I'm up to speed on that one. I know what you're talking about," Carlton agreed. He considered it before shrugging. "Then just don't talk about it. Change the subject! Talk about all the crazy stuff going on down at Freddy's. Sit by Marla, she knows how to read a room and can do it for you."

"Easier said than done if we end up alone together."

"We're a little old for Seven Minutes in Heaven, so I think we're going to notice if you and John split," Carlton said. He then snapped his fingers again. "I'll tell you what: if things start to get weird, I'll drop a line about the circus."

"That's- That's just going to make it weirder!" she protested aghast.

"I know, but it won't be about you. Right?"

"The hell it will. You'll loop it back to Baby." She knew her mistake the second she saw that smile edging back up. "Don't even-."

"Is that what you do with your strings when-?" Carlton tried to rush in, only to be abruptly cut off by something small and thin smacking him on his face. "…Did you just hit me with a piece of floss?"

"...Yes, I did! And I'll do it again if you say anything like that in front of anyone else," Charlie threatened. Realizing that the threat held as much weight as a piece of floss, she quickly added in, "Or I could just tell Baby."

"Oh GOD. Okay, that's the last time I open my trap for the rest of tonight. Don't tell Baby." While Carlton exaggerated his reaction, she could almost smell his fear. Though it could've been the fear of getting cut off from Ennard too.

Thankfully, they pulled up to the edge of Clay's driveway. Carlton got a somewhat unimpressed look as he realized he was going to be the one stuck on the street. Charlie wasn't expecting everyone to be here already but, counting up the cars, they were all here. Clay was likely home too, probably to keep an eye on things.

"You take the sheet, I'll carry in the pizza," Carlton offered while reaching into the backseat.

Charlie felt a sudden pang of embarrassment. It wasn't like they weren't going to ask when she walked up to the front door draped in a sheet like she was trick-or-treating. She knew that they knew she had to be careful, but that was just going to be one of those awkwardly painful reminders that even if she had the same voice and personality, she wasn't quite the same friend they knew for all those years.

"…No, that's alright. I can carry the pizza and you just stay close behind me. We'll be fine. Nobody will notice," Charlie said.

She knew he was sending her a funny look as she quickly scanned the surrounding street before opening her door and slipping out. She stayed hunched down as she shut the door and opened the back one to grab the pizza while he raced around to catch up with her, her pushing the door closed with her leg and then hastily crossing the yard. Looking out from under her hood and around feverishly the whole time.

What a night to decide not to wear her green jacket. Normally it was a constant, comfortable and reliable, but she didn't want them thinking it was the only thing she could wear. It turned out to have been a good thing when she went back to the house for her clothes, even if she hadn't really been wearing them. She was wearing a V-neck green shirt with her spare jacket, a purple one with a lot of pockets. Not Mike's, it might seem odd. No jeans, it would look too goofy.

But it did have a hood so she could keep her head covered as she made it to the front door. She raised her hand to knock but didn't go through with it, hand pausing in the air, bracing herself one last time before heading in.

"You can just walk in. I live here," Carlton reminded.

Charlie decided to spare him a response and went ahead to do so, finding Marla waiting on the other side of the door. She must've heard them pull up.

"Hi! We were wondering when you were going to get here! And not just for the pizza, I swear," she greeted with a tight hug. Marla's hugs were just tight enough to knock the wind out of someone. Charlie was always pleasantly surprised when reminded that the lack of lungs didn't change that. She returned with one arm while balancing the pizza with the other.

"What about me?" Carlton asked with mock betrayal.

"Okay, if I have to," Marla tsked. She let Charlie go and caught him in a quick hug, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

Charlie took a moment to peek into the living room, catching sight of Lamar sitting on the couch talking to Jessica who was leaning on the back of it. She couldn't see John, so she assumed he was on the other couch under the window.

"But the question is…" Charlie turned back to Marla who had pulled away from Carlton to send her an expectant look. "…Did you bring the goods?" Marla asked with a tiny smile slipping through.

Charlie knew what she wanted and beckoned with her own sly little smile. She turned away, giving herself one last moment to steel her nerves- "It's all good. Just a normal night hanging out with friends you've known for years. Relax." -and then stepping out into the living room.

She received a couple of warm greetings that she returned. As she expected, there was John sitting on the couch under the window. Their eyes met for a second, but she quickly snapped hers away and returned her focus to the task at hand. She set the pizza box down on the coffee table, spun it towards Marla standing at her right and smoothly pulled open the lid.

"Behold! The Dumpster Fire!"

Lamar leaned forward to look at it and pointed at a lump of chunky meat. "What's that?"

"Canned tuna," Charlie replied.

"That's what I thought it looked like, but I wanted to make sure," he replied.

Jessica took one look at the pizza before sending a flat look at Charlie. "Why?" she simply asked.

"Why not?" Charlie answered with a grin.

"Try it! It sounds weird but it's really good," Marla insisted, plopping down beside Lamar with Carlton quickly sitting on the other side. She continued trying to plead her case, with Lamar listening but not yet willing to commit to a slice.

Charlie didn't realize she had sort of drifted out of the conversation until John spoke up.

"How's it been going?" he asked. A friendly greeting in a quiet tone. Even without looking back to check, Charlie knew the question was aimed at her.

"Pretty good! I mean except the whole Freddy's thing, but hey, it hasn't put us out of business yet. That's something," she answered. It didn't sound too terribly awkward, and she turned to face him. He gave her a warm smile that she couldn't detect any remorse or somberness through, much to her relief. "How about you? It's been a while."

"It's been good. Just finished moving into my new apartment."

"Oh? Where?"

"Over by Pioneer Park. We've been rebuilding the complex after it got hit by that twister last year and they only just started renting out again."

Everything seemed like it was going well. Sure, there was always that awkward feeling in the back of Charlie's mind, but the conversation itself didn't seem weird. Nobody was staring, nobody seemed uncomfortable, it was totally fine.

Jessica mentioned something about getting plates, which John took notice of and got up from the couch. "I'll help," he offered. He dismissed himself with a, "I'll be right back," before following her out.

Charlie wasn't offended. On the contrary, it gave her a moment to recollect herself as Carlton still had hold of the conversation, which she only just now realized had swapped to eating spaghetti and mayonnaise. She took that in for about two seconds before deciding to buck up and go see if Jessica needed anymore help. She could see into the kitchen and saw that they were just getting dishes out, so it wasn't like she was encroaching on a moment.

It wasn't until she got to the back of the couch that she caught wind of the conversation around the edge of the doorway.

"It's not the sort of thing you blurt out over the phone," Jessica was whispering. "I don't think it's the sort of thing you can sneak into a group conversation either."

"I know… I'd tell her myself, but I don't think it should come from me. I don't want her to think I'm putting her on the spot, not when this is the first time I've seen her in months," John said. He sounded a little guilty, or perhaps just a little sad.

It was about her. It definitely wasn't about that last phone call though. It was about some sort of news they wanted to give her. She immediately jumped to them moving in together. Maybe they could be getting engaged, but she had trouble believing that Jessica would hide that from her. She couldn't be pregnant either; Jessica was too conscientious to have an unexpected pregnancy. This coupled along with John's new apartment made her think moving in together was the case.

But she had trouble believing that too, because Jessica had openly mentioned going on a date with John once or twice. Charlie had told Jessica upfront that she was fine with the two dating and that it didn't bother her. Why Jessica would decide to hide something so innocuous was odd to her. To spare her feelings, no doubt, but it had to be something more than that.

At this point there was no way she was walking in there, so instead she walked around the couch and sat down on the armrest beside Carlton, crossing her arms on her chest.

"Hey," she whispered subtly. He turned back to her. "…Do you know what John and Jessica are whispering about?"

"No, what?" he asked.

"I don't know. It's about them telling me something."

"Huh…" He considered it a moment. "I don't know. Did they tell you they broke up?"

They had absolutely not.

Charlie's mask eyes widened as it clicked. "…No."

"Carlton," Marla hissed lowly. She gave him a poke in the side. "I don't think that's the sort of thing you were supposed to tell."

"Oops?" he said with a shrug. She just shook her head while Lamar gave a disapproving but surprised look.

"And it's probably not that. It's probably that thing with Arty… Archie. Whatever his name was," Marla offered.

"Arty?" Charlie questioned. A familiar name, a friend from college, but she wasn't sure where that came from. It was enough to pull her from her shock though.

As luck would have it, this was when Jessica and John started coming out. Charlie flinched while Marla turned her head back to blatantly ask, "Did you tell Charlie about the Arty thing?"

Jessica's immediate reaction was slight startlement. "Uh, no, but I wasn't planning on bringing it up in front of everybody."

"What happened?" Charlie asked, managing to mask a normal expression.

"You know that guy you used to share a class with?" the blond asked. She passed off the plates to John and replaced her spot at the back of the couch. "I found out that he's been telling people you two were dating."

"What?!" Charlie gawked.

"Yeah, he was really doing that. So, I tracked him down and set him straight in the middle of a room full of people, so don't expect anymore rumors circling around… Except maybe the one about crazy blond lady who chewed out a guy at a club meeting. Or whatever he was doing."

"Good. Thank you. Arty was a nice enough guy, but we weren't anything beyond friends. Even friends was sort of stretching it. We just did a project or two together," Charlie said, a little relieved. "I didn't think they'd still be talking about me on campus, let alone my social life, considering I'm dead." She felt the tone shift the second she said that and quickly corrected, "As far as they know I'm dead."

"Don't be too surprised that people still remember you. You're a hard one to forget," John remarked. He got a touch of a smile.

"And it's not the first time. Remember when Mom ran into your aunt?" Marla asked. "She told Mom she thought you were secretly dating Mike."

The Security Puppet make a ringing little sputter that she smacked a hand to her chest to try to halt. "You didn't tell me that!" she cried.

"I forgot, sorry. I went to sleep and by the next day it was like it never happened," Marla said apologetically.

If Charlie could've blushed, she would've been beet red. This was probably the worst-case scenario of the evening: her friends were entirely comfortable with saying whatever they wanted to and weren't holding back. And for some reason the conversation seemed to be rooted directly in her nonexistent love life.

…Wait, why WAS the conversation still about her love life?

Paranoia began to climb up and poke at her music box until the combs tightened and ached to let out a no-doubt off-tune jingle. There was no way that they would all be working together to set something up, especially when Jessica and John were already worried about how they were going to tell her that they ended things. This was just a matter of circumstance, and yet she suddenly felt like she was under the spotlight.

"Alright, that's enough about me!" She had to change the subject fast, and there was one surefire way to do that. "…But if we ARE talking about me, then let's talk about something more interesting. I'm sneaking into the Pizzaplex tonight."

It worked like a charm in getting them off the topic at hand, but the price was that all eyes were on her and each one having a variation of a concerned or shocked look. Save Carlton, who just looked a little surprised that she brought it up.

Their reaction wasn't entirely unexpected, and she was quick to add, "Obviously this isn't going to be like last time." Punctuating it with a little smile.

"But you're not going alone," Jessica clarified.

"No way. I'm not making that mistake twice. I'm slipping in with Mike and Mari. Foxy's gotten in there three times now without getting caught, so the odds are in our favor," Charlie explained. Jessica didn't seem entirely satisfied though.

"You should've heard him unloading in the bathroom earlier," Carlton chimed up, trying to cut back on the tension. It only succeeded in getting him some weird looks.

"…Did he eat the Dumpster Fire?" Lamar cautiously asked. "Because this strikes me as the type of pizza that'll do that."

"Not Mike! Mari, the Puppet! It was crazy, he sounded like a deranged TV set."

As luck would have it, Carlton somehow managed to derail the conversation enough that Charlie was able to skirt out from questioning. She knew it was coming though because she could definitely tell the difference in Jessica's demeanor. Though that also could've been her having to crack down and actually try the pizza against her better judgement.

That aside, the night seemed to go pretty well. Clay was at work in his office and only came out once to get something from the kitchen, during which he briefly stopped in to say hello. Thankfully, he didn't ask any questions about Foxy's or Freddy's or anything. He just stopped by to see her and that was it, and it made her feel very human. If hanging out with the others like she used to didn't already do that.

The evening broke up a couple of hours later. Lamar was staying over instead of heading back to his parents' house, so Marla was the first to leave, with the others preparing to walk out soon afterwards. Carlton had agreed to drive Charlie home, so she didn't have to ask anyone else for a ride. Normally she would've asked Jessica, but she was afraid of the possible conversation.

Though if she thought she would be able to slip out the door without having it, she had another thing coming.

"You said you guys are going to Freddy's tonight?" Jessica asked. It had been a while since they talked about it, so it almost came out of nowhere.

"In a few hours." She could see a worried tug at the other's mouth. "But don't worry about me. I've taking my taser and I'm not going to be alone. It's going to be fine."

Jessica hummed and considered it before crossing her arms. "I guess that means there's no talking you out of it."

Charlie nodded with an apologetic smile.

Jessica sighed. "Which means I'm going to have to go with you," she said, and it was clear from the way she said it that she wasn't joking.

"What? No! You don't have to do that!" Charlie protested. Yet Jessica merely quirked a brow as though in challenge. "Just because I'M going to be fine doesn't mean that we aren't technically breaking the law. Or at least trespassing. You don't want to get wrapped up in this. If you got caught, it could jeopardize your future."

"Are you planning on getting caught?" Jessica asked. Charlie dropped her arms in exasperation and gave her a correlating look. The blond returned with a smile. "Then we've got nothing to worry about."

"…I feel like me telling you this is a bad idea is just going to rubber-glue back to me even though there's a huge difference in what's at stake. We're-… We're not entirely confident that the animatronics at this place aren't aggressive. There's some woman running around in a costume- You don't want to be involved in this. I don't want to risk your life getting you involved with this."

"I know, and that's why I wasn't with you last time," Jessica admitted with remorse.

"That wasn't your fault," Charlie quietly assured.

"I know, but I should've tried harder. I always think to myself that if I could do it over again, I would've tried harder. Well, here's my chance. Let me do this for you, please," she insisted. She managed a smile despite it all. "Besides, my first class isn't until noon. Why not live it up while I can?"

Charlie smiled despite herself but still took a moment to consider it. This was terribly risky, having another person coming, inviting someone without Mike and Marionette's agreement, but there was a part of her that still wanted her there even though she knew it was dangerous. Besides, it wasn't like Jessica didn't know what she was getting into. She held her own well in the Fazbear Processing Facility, and this would hopefully be nowhere near that dangerous.

In the end, she found that guilt was a factor too, because Jessica wasn't the only one remorseful for how last time turned out. If this could help her get closure, then Charlie owed her that.

"…Okay… Okay, but only if Mari and Mike say it's alright, and only if you promise me that you'll follow my lead. Just like back at that factory, okay?" Charlie insisted.

"I promise. You're the boss," Jessica agreed without hesitation.

Then they were in agreement. This would probably be fine, Charlie guessed. The guys would probably be wary about bringing someone else, but it wasn't like it was a stranger, and one extra body wasn't a lot to account for-.

"Can I come too?" John volunteered.

Charlie hadn't accounted for that one. Now she was in a bind because she had already said yes to Jessica and every qualification, she lined up to reason that Jessica could come were all lined up in John's favor too. Two extra people was a little more crowded, but not crowded enough to reasonably use it as an excuse. Maybe it would even get her out of the uncomfortable conversation that she had been dreading, or maybe push her more squarely into it.

"…Sure. The more the merrier… Well, no. Actually, it's probably the less the better, but if you still… If you're sure, sure," Charlie agreed. John didn't give an out by offering not to go; he might've been even more determined than Jessica.

Now, Carlton had witnessed this whole scene play out since he was standing right there, preparing to head out and drive Charlie home. It did admittedly take him until now to realize what Charlie was getting herself into, and he probably wouldn't have noticed it if not for the conversation they had earlier. He wasn't sure how to go about interjecting himself in without going all in, so he did.

"You guys talked me into it! Guess I'm going too," he said. Charlie sent him a baffled look and he returned with a wink. She caught the gest that he was trying to help but didn't know how much of it actually helped. Before she could decide, he turned to Lamar. "You up for a little adventure?"

"No thanks. I'm good," he swiftly declined. "The pizza's as adventurous as I'm going to get."

"Suit yourself, but you're going to be missing out. It's the only place in town where you can see a seven-foot bear running at Mach Speed," Carlton remarked.

"Spares us the trip to Alaska," John quipped. It got a smile out of Charlie, even if by now the weight of what she agreed to was sinking in.

She promised to call with the details before finally making it out the door and to the car, this time sprinting since she no longer had to juggle the pizza. She slipped into the passenger's seat and slid down into it wondering how exactly she had lost control of the situation that fast. At this rate she might as well have called up Baby and invited her along too. She was never going to believe this, or likely she would and get a little huffy at the Arty thing. Huffy was better than homicidal.

Perhaps this wouldn't go so badly. A lapse in judgement, yes, but surely they could salvage the plan before it began.

Now she had to figure out a delicate way to break the news to Mike and Marionette.

Chapter 28

Chapter Summary

Mike and Marionette finally make it to the Pizzaplex- along with Charlie and her friends. They face what they can only assume will be a long night...

Chapter Notes

AH-HA, yes! Finally on proper time! ^_^ Enjoy!

All things considered, Mike and Marionette were taking the news of having three extra people tagging along pretty well. That is, Mike only made two babysitting cracks and Marionette only had that huffiness that came with being worried. Yet they didn't put up much of a fight. Not once Charlie made it a little clearer why she couldn't say no to Jessica and John. They sent each other a long look and decided not to kick Carlton to the curb.

At about eleven forty-five at night, they started their drive to the Pizzaplex. They took a single car, Mike's car, to draw less attention. So, he was driving, unsurprisingly, Marionette was in the passenger's seat, and the four others had squeezed into the back. Charlie had taken the window seat beside Jessica with John and Carlton cramped in the middle and by the other window respectively, with them behind the driver's seat. It was just another risk being taken tonight.

With them pulling up on the turnoff for the Pizzaplex, Mike decided that now was a good time to go over some of the things he didn't feel he had been specific enough with before they left.

"So, here's the deal. Natalie- or Vanessa, as she goes by here- knows we're here, but she's not supposed to. So, if we set off any alarms, she's going to come looking for us. Or is going to make it look like she is for the cameras. If she sees us, she's going to treat us like she just caught a bunch of strangers breaking in, and we're not going to act like we know her, but we ARE going to scatter," he instructed. "The best thing you can do is not get caught."

"And that goes for the animatronics especially," Marionette added. He turned around in his seat to face those in the back, focusing mostly on the three newcomers. "These animatronics are not like the ones we encountered together. They are clean, brand-new, and very vocal. They may seem friendly, they may talk like Foxy and I do, but we cannot be certain they are safe. So far, we know for certain that Monty Gator is aggressive, but seeing adult humans trespassing might set off any of them. Be on guard, don't let them see you."

"And keep the taser close," Mike added.

"Got it! Charged and ready," Charlie said. She pulled it out of her jacket pocket and showed it off for emphasis.

They pulled up the gravel road and down the stretch towards the Pizzaplex. Mike could remember driving here with Marionette before it was finished. Playing around in the snow, hanging out at the construction site, all sorts of dangerous things that they couldn't gotten in trouble for if they would've gotten caught. Those were good memories.

Yet now at the end of this long road wasn't a construction site sitting in the snow. It was this large space-themed pizza mall with animatronic mascots sitting in the lull before true spring with sparse relocated trees outside its front entrance.

It was only when the others started making comments in the back-

Such as Charlie's, "Whoa!"

And John's mutter of, "How did they get this up so fast...?"

-that Mike suddenly realized this was also the first time Marionette had seen it too. He looked over to see his reaction, totally expecting that mask to steel up with determination and distain, and he wouldn't be shocked or disappointed to see it.

However, that was not what was happening on his mask, and likely not what was going on inside his head. Marionette's eyes had widened, his unmarked brow raised, and his mouth slightly parted in rather endearing look of astonishment. Less like a person confronting their former captor and current competitor and more like a kid seeing it for the first time.

Mike much preferred an awed Mari over a depressed one, though he wasn't confident it would last.

"This place is huge! It must've cost a fortune to build," Jessica nearly gasped.

"It had to of. Just buying and clearing the land alone would've cost a small fortune," John agreed.

"I wonder where they got that kind of money," Jessica remarked suspiciously.

"You're not the only one," Mike muttered.

"Probably from absorbing so many smaller establishments. There must have been a monetary gain of some kind," Marionette suggested. His voice betrayed distrust while his look of surprise only now started to fade.

"So… Is Nat leaving a door unlocked, or are we going the Foxy route- crawling in a vent and hope we don't get stuck or shredded by a fan?" Carlton asked.

"We're going in through the parking garage. She's leaving it open for us," Charlie explained. "But once it hits midnight everything's going to seal up and we're going to be locked in. So, if anyone's thinking of backing out, now's your last chance."

"No problem. I've been thinking of backing out since the moment I agreed to come," Carlton remarked.

"That makes two of us! Great minds think alike, don't they?" Marionette chimed up. Serious circumstances aside, he still managed a wispy little chuckle. "But she's correct. Last chance."

"Didn't come this far to turn back now," John said. Jessica agreed with a nod.

"Yeah, I'm just kidding around. No way I'd miss out on this," Carlton also agreed, even if he did seem a little more nervous.

"Wouldn't this be a great time for me to suddenly change my mind and ditch them here?" Mike asked, flashing his puppet companion a sly grin. Marionette returned with a small 'you better not' smile. The man winked and started to move to open the door and get out, only to stop and suddenly turn around.

"One last thing," he said as he turned around in his seat and looked into the back with a look of complete and utter seriousness. "The rabbit."

He could see Marionette's face firm up as he slowly turned his head forward. Ah yes, the rabbit- he could almost imagine him saying in his silence.

"If we see the rabbit, we're going after her. 'We're' being Marionette and I and only Marionette and I. If that happens, don't follow us, don't go for Natalie, just stay calm, stay quiet, don't get caught," he asserted. "Also, here. Take this."

Mike started to reach into Marionette's seat to grab the two-way radio, only for said puppet to meet him halfway by handing it to him.

"Thanks. Here." He then handed it back to Charlie. "You know how to use one of these, right?"

"I think I can figure it out," Charlie said. She did a quick look over of the radio and could tell it would be easy to use, what with a clearly labeled call button and not many else. "Where did you get this? Fritz?" she asked.

"Hilariously enough, I found it in the closet. Ignoring any implications of why they were there, they started working once I threw new batteries in them. Use what you've got, that's what I always say," Mike explained. A telltale sign that he really didn't want to think about William having radios in his closet when he knew there had been others stashed around the house. "In case you guys don't know, cellphones don't work in here. No reception."

"What?" Jessica said in surprise. Mike gave a sympathetically flat hum of agreement, his look showing that he shared her sentiments. "Well, there goes our backup if anyone gets seriously hurt," Jessica said with a slight huff.

"That's strange. It can't be the building itself causing it. As large as it is, we should still get reception through it," John pointed out. He got his phone out to double check. "Yeah, I'm getting bars out here… Think it's something to do with the animatronics, or do you think there's a reason they don't want working phones in there?" John asked Mike, his expression showing that he knew exactly what he was asking.

In contrast, Carlton and Jessica looked uneased by the suggestion, but neither denied the possibility.

"It's funny. Normally I'd say, 'oh yeah, it's to cover up what's going on inside', to make sure nothing gets out about any possible 'accidents'. See, back when I was a worker at Freddy's, they had you sign a bunch of wavers and could basically strongarm you into keeping your mouth shut if someone got hurt. It's not that easy in a place this big and with a lot more people carrying phones," Mike explained. He hesitated on that note before adding, "But considering how this place is being run, it could've been another blunder in the laundry list of bad decisions Fazbear Entertainment made opening this place."

"…They really made you sign contracts forcing you to keep quiet?" Jessica asked in disbelief.

"Yes. They even had wavers that said they didn't have to get us immediate medical help and weren't liable if that led to us dying," Mike said matter-of-factly. "And I wasn't working there when Fritz was, but he said that they had a clause where if you saw blood anywhere you had to clean it up with bleach and then report it to the manager."

"They can't do that! That's beyond illegal!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, it was, and I bet you anything that all it would've taken was one whistleblower to out the whole thing… But Freddy's- and we'll keep pretending it was "Freddy's" and not just Will- knew how to deal with loose ends, and they did!" Mike slid back into his chair and stared across the parking lot. "…I don't want to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but I wouldn't be too shocked if Jeremy's accident was a planned thing. We know Scott's was."

"Someone tampered with Mangle in the past. I wouldn't be surprised if they did so before that accident… They were never that aggressive during the daytime," Marionette agreed somberly.

Mike looked over towards him and considered saying something, but alas, Carlton beat him to it. Leaning up behind his seat and whispering, "There's nothing like that in my contract, right?"

Mike quirked a brow and looked back. "Didn't you read the contract?" Carlton made a fifty-fifty motion with his hands and the brunette sent him an unamused look. "Okay, first rule to entering the job market: don't sign anything unless you've read it. Secondly, no. I own you, but I can't kill you or let you get killed… Thankfully, your shift ended, what, six hours ago?" He shot the redhead a grin and opened the driver's door. "Let's roll."

The car had been parked around the corner closest to the parking garage, so it wasn't too much of a walk to the open door, but if anyone had come out of the front doors, they would've spotted them right away. For one, everyone had chosen to wear dark clothing, which in hindsight was almost more obvious and suspicious than if they wore normal clothes.

The important part was that Mike himself didn't show up on camera. As long as he was with Marionette the cameras would be defunct, but he couldn't trust that something wouldn't crop up to separate them. Case in point: he was wearing Foxy's dark, baggy hoodie. Which meant if he was caught, he would be taking the fall for a lot more than this, but he wasn't going to let that happen.

The parking garage was nothing to write home about. If anything, the lack of neon or Freddy character standees was sort of a disappointment. The plan was to hide out there until midnight and, knowing about the crowded lower floor due to Natalie's recount, the group headed down there and were able to find an adequate hiding spot behind a forklift.

Almost immediately, Marionette began to wander around the garage with that look in his eyes, making sure the area was safe and that nobody, or nothing, was hiding in the shadows. Mike decided to join him without any convincing.

"We're going to take a quick look around. See if anything got left behind," he told the others. By the rabbit, he meant, but nobody asked.

Mike followed after his partner into the dark stretch of the dank subfloor. He had brought his flashlight and though it worked well to light the area, there was just an amount of grime that fogged up the place. How this culminated in only a matter of days or weeks was beyond him. It was enough that the puppet blended into it, nearly vanishing into the crowded space.

It didn't take long to find him. Mike spotted an open gate for a fenced in area and walked over to find Marionette at the other side of a hallway. He watched as he swiped a piece of paper off of the floor and looked at it.

The gate door squeaked obnoxiously as Mike pushed it further open. "Hey," he quietly called in.

Marionette turned his head towards him and then held the paper to show off what it said. "Hi."

"Huh." Mike shined his light over the lone word on the random scrap of paper. It felt like it was probably significant in some way. "Weird."

"Very," Marionette agreed. He hovered back over to him while folding up the paper and then handed it to him. "Hold this for me?"

"Sure thing." He took it and slipped it into his pocket while the puppet drifted back to the end of the hallway, watching as he tried to open the door and then, when finding it locked, tried to unlock it. If he knew Marionette-.

He couldn't even finish the sentence before the door was unlocked and pulled open. He got a twitch of a both amused and impressed smile and made his way over to follow him through, only for Marionette to back out of the doorway, gently pushing him back with his arm.

"Don't come in. It's a breaker room and it doesn't look very safe," he warned. He craned his neck to look around from directly inside the door. "I hear sparking coming from somewhere."

It could've come from anywhere though, Mike realized as he shined his light past his partner's shoulder. The place was overrun with wires. So many that they were falling over both the mounted and standing breaker boxes. Some of them looking tangled and glossy in the light. Not a shiny glossy either, he swore some of them looked downright greasy, maybe even slimy.

"Look at this place. It looks like something that would've come out of Afton's, but they managed to pull it off in record time," Mike remarked. He shined the light over the corners of the room. "How do you pull this off in a week?"

"Maybe they didn't. Maybe they came in looking like this…" Marionette said cryptically. Mike looked to him with a quirk brow, the puppet finally turning his head to look back at him. "…Or maybe they let the wires drag on the floor and then dumped them all in here. Honestly, it's hard to tell when something suspicious as opposed to negligent."

"I mean, you see what it looks like out there. It's a possibility," Mike said, pointing a thumb back to the rest of the parking garage.

Marionette stuck his torso in fully now, holding himself with one hand on the doorway, and looked around closer at the state of things. Nothing looked too obvious, but an out of sorts breaker room could mean a bigger problem, especially if they started having power failures. Though likely from the size of the building, this was only one of many breaker rooms.

Both he and Mike were suddenly taken off-guard by an initially unfamiliar but then recognizable voice. One that was audible but from a different level, an announcement travelling through the concrete ceiling above. Marionette snapped his body back out of the doorway to listen. Mike took a few quiet steps towards the gate to hear better.

"Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex is now closed. Initiating nighttime protocols,"an automated voice echoed. It sounded like the same one from the Handunit- another thing from Afton Robotics, Mike noted. He knew Marionette noticed too.

Mike checked his watch and hummed. "Midnight. Come on, let's get back to the kids," he suggested. Marionette gave a slight chime despite himself at the 'kids' remark and followed him out.

It didn't take them long to get back to the others. Charlie and Jessica, who were sitting on and leaning back on the same little cart respectively, noticed them first and got up to greet them.

"Midnight has come, young ones. Come along, it is time to explore this neon fortress," Marionette proclaimed with a sweeping motion of his arm. Then hovered a circle around them and back behind John and Carlton to usher them forwards.

"Isn't he like a year older than us?" Jessica quietly asked.

"Uh, maybe. Jury's still out," Charlie answered. Jessica gave her a perplexed look at that unnecessary vagueness, and she returned with a smile and an exceptionally quiet. "You know, the twin thing."

"Ah," she simply answered. She didn't say another word, sparing them all the risk of John or Carlton hearing, asking, and the resulting conversation to come from it.

Instead, they quietly made their way back to the upper level and into the hall that connected with the lobby. After a short walk, they came up on the open security door- likely left open by Natalie- and stepped into the corner of the lobby.

"Huh, so it's just as big on the inside. Neat," Carlton remarked.

Mike scoffed under his breath. If only he knew what was coming. A thought that was a much less appealing when he realized Carlton wasn't the only one who was going to be seeing it for the first time.

"It does have a sort of movie theater look to it," Charlie pointed out. Though that thought was dashed when they came up on some turnstiles, not the main ones but some side ones, and was able to see through into the lobby proper. She caught a glimpse of something and leaned over them to get a better look. "…Okay, I thought you were joking about the golden Freddy statue."

"Oh, there's no way," Jessica said. She leaned over the end of the turnstiles to look. "…That's not real. There's no way."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure its fake. Look at it up close and you'll see it's got that dollar store paint gloss to it," Mike said. He looked at the two and then hummed. "I like your idea though," he said. Then punctuate such by climbing over the turnstiles.

Carlton followed right after him. Jessica and John needed a little more convincing, not climbing over until Charlie did. Marionette just found it more appealing to pop up unexpectedly on the other side, startling Jessica who watched him seemingly pop into existence. He was a strange one, she thought, but she couldn't say she wasn't curious. Especially not since Charlie just reminded her of those suspicions she had.

When they got out into the main section of the lobby- Mike directing them to stay by the gift shop as they headed for the stairs- Jessica found her attention only briefly on the faux-golden statue before returning to the puppet. He had been slowly scanning the area when they first entered, but now he was looking into the windows of the gift shop while passing. She mistakenly believed from his attention in there that he had seen the rest before.

"So, Mari, have you been here before?" she asked. It was an easy assumption to make considering that Charlie had mentioned Foxy coming here- along with the attention on the gift shop.

Marionette seemed surprised to be addressed directly. He turned back to look at her, a smile returning to his face.

"I have not, but both Foxy and Mike have," he answered. He fell back to hover between her and Charlie, arms tucked behind his back. "But they've been trying their hardest to shield me from the harsh reality of this place."

"That's not true. I told you upfront it was a big, gaudy building with a bunch of goofy bear faces plastered over it," Mike said over his shoulder.

"That could've gone for the old Freddy's too," Marionette reactively quipped to Jessica.

"Tell me about it. If there's anything I remember about Freddy's, it was this big poster with a Freddy that looked like a real bear and had this big mouth drooling over pizza that made me so uncomfortable that I was irrationally scared of it. And it was looking right over the dining area. That poster still haunts my nightmares," Jessica remarked. Charlie grimaced, remembering the poster in question. Marionette simply perked up.

"I forgot that you used to go to Freddy's!" he chirred. "Goodness, that must've been long ago. It must've been the diner; I remember they had some very questionable rabbit posters."

"Wait, yes! I remember those! Like, they weren't as bad as the Freddy ones, but they were a far cry from the cute and cuddly thing they did with the characters later," Jessica agreed.

Marionette gave a little chime and the two started making their way up the stairs. Charlie fell behind them but didn't feel ousted. She noticed how delighted the other puppet was by the conversation. Delighted and completely distracted.

She also noticed John coming up beside her and briefly felt that weird sort of out-of-place feeling, but it was dashed quickly when she noticed the look on his face. He seemed troubled by something, considering something, like he had something on his mind but didn't dare to ask.

"What's up?" she quietly asked. He seemed surprised that she noticed and covered up quickly with a small smile.

"Nothing much. I've just got a lot on my mind," he admitted. He looked back up at Marionette's back for a long moment.

She also looked to Marionette before looking back. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"…Maybe later. We're going to be here a while, so we'll have time," he said. She didn't press any harder.

Mike kept an eye out as he ushered them into the elevator and once it was going bumped himself back to the front to stand alongside Marionette, who was still chatting away like they were hanging out at the coffee shop. He hadn't even been this talkative in the car, just the right switch had been flipped and now he was eating up the attention. Mike kept a dutiful eye out but stayed quiet and let him indulge, taking his own enjoyment in the puppet's lively chattering.

"-But Mike and I have been together for a long time," Marionette said, finishing off the end of an explanation of some kind. He then boldly and happily laced his fingers together with Mike's.

It brought a little smile to Mike's face and a nervous twist to his stomach when he remembered that the atrium was just a short elevator ride away. A twist that turned to a knot when the lift slowed to a stop and a dinging signaled their arrival.

The conversation dropped off as everyone faced the doors that he stood in front of. No shielding any of them from this anymore, not even if he suddenly changed his mind. The doors opened and the Pizzaplex was revealed.

Along with a Staff Bot who zoomed around the corner and shoved its face into Mike's.

"Augh!" Mike jumped back with his arms spread out to shove everyone with him. Only to have the bot suddenly stick a map out at his face.

"Hi! Please take this map."

Mike's look of alarm slowly fell to a slightly irked one. "…Ugh. Thanks," he said and snatched the map.

The Staff Bot immediately did a little circle and rolled away somewhere.

"That was just a practice run," Mike muttered. He decided not to look at Marionette or Carlton's face and instead strode out of the elevator, gesturing out towards the atrium. "Welcome to Freddy's."

Marionette had followed him out of the elevator and was staring in silent shock at what was around him. The lobby hadn't prepared him for what it wasn't going to be like- if anything, it gave him the false hope that maybe it was like a big movie theater, even when he knew about the laser tag and the golf, and all the many other fantastical things hiding inside this thick-walled building. Here it stood in all its glamor and glory, lit up with neon even in nighttime gloam.

While the others spoke through their shock, staring with wide eyes and perhaps open mouths at this place, Marionette drifted forward like a sheet in the wind and stopped himself with his hands tight on the railing. He could see the main stage from here and the numerous party tables before it. This place could fit so many people, so many kids. His pupils alit at such a thought.

"Mari?" Mike asked. He was paying some attention to everyone's reactions, but his was the most important, and his silence was telling.

He probably assumed he was going to have another outburst, but Marionette was determined not to. As good and fine as it was to get these emotions out before they led to something dangerous, he couldn't run around in a panicked frenzy all the time. He chose to remain calm about this. He chose not to give Fazbear Entertainment that amount of power over him.

"I'm fii-ine."

Well, that failed spectacularly. If anything, that discordant crack in the middle made it all the more apparent that something was wrong.

It didn't just tip Mike off, it tipped everyone off. Charlie was standing behind him, so she got to him first. She put an assuring arm around him and tipped her head towards his, a motion that he returned even with his fingers tight on the rail.

Jessica came up on the other side of him and only then did he remember everyone who was there and watching his reaction. He needed to remain guarded and collected, he felt. Though she seemed to have a plan of her own.

"It's big, alright, but it's nothing that impressive. What, mini golf? Bowling? It's just an amusement park without the rollercoasters," she said. Considering that she managed to stay face so well, he could've believe her. He mustered the smallest smile and tried his hardest to not look over the entirety of the room and have to take in more surprises. She stood alongside with her head propped on her hand.

Mike was concerned, but he gave them a moment since it seemed like it was working. Then drew his attention to Carlton who had come up beside him. Unlike Jessica or even John, his thoughts were on full display on his face. That look of equal shock and panic was one that Mike knew too well. He looked to him expectantly until the redhead managed a quiet, stunted whisper.

"We are in such… deep…"

"Don't," Mike said through his teeth, cutting him off. He then continued with a firm, "The overhead on this place is huge, it costs a fortune to get in here, and there are parents groups planning protests even as we speak. We'll. Be. Fine."

He might've been trying to convince himself more than Carlton, but he knew everything he said was true. Besides, Marionette didn't need to hear that. Mike was the boss, co-owner, he was the one who had to be on top of this. Not the star, not the staff, it had to be him.

Carlton started taking something out of his jacket pocket and he looked over to see him pulling out a camera. That alone got a slight, amused smile and he reached out to push it back down when Carlton started to lift it up.

"You're going to want to hold off on that until you're at least twenty feet away from Mari or it's coming out warped," Mike forewarned.

"Ooh, right. The camera thing."

"Yeah, it effects these ones too- but keep that nearby. We might need it," he said. Carlton nodded slipped it back into his jacket. Mike then headed over to join Marionette and the girls and patted the puppet's back from behind. "You're taking this a lot better than I did. I took one look at this place and almost dry-heaved."

"It's the lighting. A couple of minutes staring directly at it will give you a headache. Or at least burn out your retinas," Charlie joked.

Marionette gave a soft chuckle. Not a chime, but a good attempt to show his humor. He seemed to be easing up and that was a good sign to get this show on the road and the distraction going. Mike slid in between him and Jessica.

"So, where to first?" he asked. He fished out and unfolded the map in his hands. It wasn't an easy read, but he could fill in the gap with his memories of the tour.

"You said you were looking for a rabbit, right?" John suddenly chimed in. Both Mike and Marionette turned back as he waited for them, standing beside a standing map of the location. "Looks like there's a place called Bunny Bowl up on the third floor. Might not hurt to check."

"Good point, I second," Charlie agreed. She leaned over the railing to try and look up on the third floor for it. "That's probably where she's hiding out."

"Then there we go," Mike agreed. He folded the map back up in his hands and looked to Marionette to agree, but the puppet seemed to be lost in thought. "Bad idea?" he asked.

"No. I think he's right… You go ahead. I'll catch up shortly."

"Oh no," Mike mumbled. Marionette gave an apologetic smile. "…Alright. Where are we going?" he asked. Emphasizing the 'we' so Marionette knew he wasn't talking him out of coming.

"I want to see Freddy. Not to speak with him, not for him to even see me, just to see him. To see with my own eyes that Foxy was right," he said solemnly. "Then we can deal with the rabbit."

"Great! We'll come with you," Charlie said. Jessica agreeing with a semi-curious hum.

"It's better that you don't. There is a reason I don't want Freddy to notice us, and that goes for the rest of his bandmates. We won't be long. Or at least I won't be," Marionette said. He patted Charlie's hand as he detached from her before turning and heading towards the nearest escalator.

"I really think we should stick together," she protested, following behind him.

"We will. We're just going to take a quick look at Freddy, and we'll meet you up at Bunny Bowl," Mike assured. He had to quicken his pace to catch up with the puppet who quickly descended the stairs. "We'll be right back!"

Charlie frowned after them. It was less a matter of her being worried about them- though she did think this was a really risky idea- and more that she had effectively been left behind. Begrudgingly realizing that the only reason she was left behind was to watch her friends, whom were all more than capable of watching themselves. That 'young ones' comment should've tipped her off.

"Do you think he's going to be okay?" Jessica asked.

It was only with that question that it suddenly dawned on Charlie that maybe it was just an excuse for Marionette to get a moment away, and her face softened.

"He will be. It's just a lot to take in…" She turned back to the escalators that led to the upper floor. "Let's get moving."

The small group made their way up the escalators like they were stairs and found themselves on the third floor. Charlie went first to make sure the coast was clear and was about to step off the escalator when she noticed movement near the far left and held out a hand to stop the others. There was a Staff Bot wheeling down the walkway out front of Mazercise and El Chip's. From the way it seemed to be patrolling to the light it was carrying, she guessed it was a Security Bot.

"What is it?" John asked as he came up behind her. She was too focused on the bot and where it was going to notice how close he was.

"I think that's a Security Bot over there. It's too far away to see us, but it might be coming back in this direction, so we should hurry," she recommended. She looked back and he nodded, which she returned before stepping off the escalator and breaking into a sprint. One that was normal for her but almost surprised John by the speed of it, leaving him staring until Jessica gave him a small push.

Charlie was down the stretch in only a few seconds and was about to round the corner when she noticed something to her left and stopped on a dime. Freezing up in the middle of the floor and staring like she was under headlights.

It was another Staff Bot. This one was stationed outside of what looked like large elevator doors underneath a sign that read 'Fazcade', and it looked different from the Map Bot and the Security Bot. That was, they all looked relatively similar, but this one had something that looked like a Handunit attached to its arm. It didn't look like a Security Bot but almost more like a bouncer stationed outside the arcade.

She expected it to set oof an alarm regardless or signal for the Security Bot, but it did neither. In fact, it didn't seem to notice her at all. It wasn't looking at her but at her friends as they finally caught up with her.

"What's- Oh!" Jessica noticed the bot too. It continued to just stare at them. "What do we do, turn around?"

"Let's just…" Charlie trailed off, finishing her answer by moving further to the right and motioning them to follow. They followed her lead and continued on towards Bunny Bowl, passing another set of escalators and around some stuff before coming across an unfortunate revelation. "There's one outside the bowling alley too."

Indeed, there was a second Staff Bot that looked almost identical to the last one standing outside the entranceway to Bunny Bowl. It didn't seem to notice them yet and instead stood in place staring dead ahead.

"Guess they were prepared for people trying to stay after closing and sneak around," John remarked. "Why hire more security when you can just stick a robot outside every door?"

"Well, that's great. What do we do now?" Jessica asked. Her tone showing that she was already expecting the answer to be 'turn around and give up', which wasn't far from where Charlie was now.

Carlton shrug and gave a half-sarcastic, "Walk up and see if they let us in?"

"Maybe slip it a twenty and see if it lets us in?" Charlie offered sarcastically.

When she didn't get the retort she was expecting, she looked to him. Only then did she notice how his brows had stitched together in a thoughtful look.

"…You're not actually thinking about it, are you?" she asked.

"I'm thinking about walking up and seeing what it does," he said. Everyone looked equally shocked at the comment. "The other one saw us and didn't do anything. Maybe it'll think we're workers and let us in?"

"Carlton, that's got to be the worst idea ever. Even bribing the robot sounds better than that," Jessica shot down immediately. She crossed her arms as she began to list off, "It's after hours and we're not wearing uniforms. If we walk up to that thing, it's going to know we're not supposed to be here and set off an alarm. Then we're going to have the security guard AND the security bots onto us."

"And that's if the other one didn't already set off a silent alarm," John pointed out. While his nonchalant face showed that he probably doubted this, Jessica's eyes popping open and lips pursing shut suggested that she didn't.

"All good points, but here's mine: Foxy got into the laser tag arena with Freddy a couple of times. They had to have walked past a bot just like this and it would've seen Foxy in his disguise, thought he was a human, and set off the alarms, but that didn't happen. It's looking at us right now! Look!" Carlton stepped out and the bot's head followed his movements. "The alarms would be going off now, not when I got closer."

As bad as the plan was, he did have some of a point. Even as he walked in a little circle, the Staff Bot clearly saw him, but made no motion like it was alerting a security alarm.

"See? It's staring right at me. Distance shouldn't matter. Charlie, back me up," Carlton suddenly volunteered.

Charlie looked at him like he was insane. "Sorry, but I'm with them on this one," she declined.

"But…?" he coaxed.

As though him tagging on a 'but' was going to suddenly change her mind.

…

Charlie sighed. "But he does have one point. If they were going to set off an alarm on sight alone then they would've done it the second they saw us, or you guys- but that doesn't mean it won't set off an alarm if you walk up and engage it. We're lucky we got this close, we don't need to play with fire by getting closer," she said with some exasperation.

"It's worth a shot," Carlton offered. "I'll do it. And if something goes wrong, I'll run like hell."

"Excellent leadership," John remarked. Carlton turned and started to head over. "I wasn't agreeing with you!"

"Relax! I've got it covered," the redhead insisted as he started over. The three were left staring helplessly as he approached the Staff Bot.

"This is a terrible idea," Jessica muttered. She got in the last word before an automated voice suddenly spoke up.

"Hello. Entry into bowling alley requires one Bowling Ticket."

"Uh…" Carlton seemed to suddenly regret this plan now that he was standing in front of the robot. Something about its blank eyes and utterly lifeless voice made him feel seriously on edge, like it could reach out and grab him at any second. "We don't have a bowling ticket. Where can we get one?"

"Bowling Tickets can be purchased at the following locations:… the front desk located in the lobby… the help desk located on the first floor of the atrium… the prize exchange counter located in the prize counter on the third floor…"

Charlie started to notice a humming noise and turned back only to see the Security Bot that she noticed earlier was now coming down the stretch towards them, almost at the escalators they had come up. She gasped, the sudden tinging in it causing Jessica to jump and both her and John to her.

"Heads up, that security bot's coming this way!" Charlie warned.

It was coming fast, only slowed down by the curvy pattern to it path as to cover more ground with its light. It was enough time to make a run for it but not nearly enough to make it to those second set of escalators, which were facing away from Bunny Bowl. They wouldn't even be able to reach the escalators without running into the Security Bot on the narrow walkway beside them.

It was mutually decided that the best option was to turn and run past Bunny Bowl to the end of the pathway and hope there was somewhere to lose the bot at the end. Or that was what they assumed the plan was as John gave a direct, "Come on!" and made a run for it, with Jessica right on his heels and both assuming that Charlie was going to overtake them shortly.

Until there was a loud clunk from behind them. Jessica turned back only to see Charlie lifting open the shutter on this boxy stall they had just run by. Then, without any warning or explanation, she dove inside and pulled it shut behind her.

"Charlie?!" Jessica half shouted.

John looked back in time to just see that she was missing. "Did you see where she went?!"

"In there!" She pointed to the stall, and right as she did the Security Bot rolled into view.

John had to make a quick judgement call and grabbed Jessica's wrist. "She'll be fine. We have to move," he said. He pulled her away, trusting that Charlie knew what she was doing and hoped it was the right call.

For the two of them, they found themselves at a dead end with little more than a locked door against the wall and a corner with a kiddie ride. John pushed Jessica behind it and crouched down with her, watching the Security Bot roll in closer, closer, and then… it suddenly made a loop and rolled right back the way it came from. It hadn't even came up to the end where they were before turning around and leaving.

The two were only a little shaken. If anything, they were more shocked at how anticlimactically it resolved. Not disappointed, totally relieved, but still a little shocked. They watched from a distance and waited until the Security Bot was passing the escalators and arcade before hurrying back to outside of Bunny Bowl.

The shuttered stall was still closed when Jessica walked up and, after a moment, daintily knocked on it. The shutter slowly lifted, and Charlie peeked out of the small crack, her pupils alit a soft green. Jessica waved down at her and Charlie stared back momentarily before pushing the shutter up the rest of the way, the glow leaving her eyes as light fell over her.

"So, I might've panicked…" she said.

"You think so?" Jessica asked. The twitch of her mouth betrayed amusement, which only ignited Charlie's embarrassment. She hastily began to climb back out of the stall.

"It's, uh, it's a programming thing. Boxes and stuff-," she tried to rationalize. Only to have her explanation cut short with a dull clicking sound. She snapped her head over to see a camera aimed at her. "Carlton, really? Now?"

"Gotta take 'em when I sees 'em," he quipped. He got a smarmy grin. "Baby's going to love this one."

That's when Jessica did a double-take towards the redhead. "Wait a minute. Where were you?" she asked, hand on her hip. "You didn't come with us."

"Here. I just hugged the wall; it didn't see me," he nonchalantly answered

"So, you just stood there, and it didn't see you? How?" she asked.

He could only shrug. They were both baffled by this finding while Charlie was already trying to put the pieces together.

"Huh… So that's why it didn't see us when it was coming up," she murmured thoughtfully. She finished climbing out of the stall before look back down after the Security Bot, which was about to turn the corner towards El Chip's again. "It must have its attention focused on the beam of light. Maybe their field of vision is really narrow, or- you weren't moving, right? Maybe they only detect movement."

"So basically, I just got lucky," Carlton said.

"Considering you threw yourself at the mercy of that robot-," Jessica said, pointing to the Staff Bot outside the door. "Yes, I'd say so."

"But hey, it worked!... It didn't get us in, but at least we know that these bots are just gatekeepers and not security. Like a ride operator who will skimp on the rules as long as you cough up the cash."

Miraculously, this didn't seem to win anyone over.

"There's no alarms going off and we're not in handcuffs. I'd say we all got lucky," John said. "What do you think, Charlie? Should we head back downstairs and wait for those two to get back?" He looked to her for her opinion.

She instinctively pulled the two-way radio off the jacket pocket she had it hooked to, but then hesitated. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to send a call out until she knew they were back in the atrium, not when they were trying to keep a low profile and when she didn't know how loud it was. She kept it in her hand, thumb running circles around a button as she looked out across the atrium and the steadily moving Security Bot.

"…Actually… Let's keep looking around. Look at it: the Security Bot's moving in a pattern, so we might be able to avoid it and keep looking for an open door," she suggested. She gave him a shrug. "They can't all need a pass, right?"

"Now that you said that they will," John said.

"I thought of that right after I said it," Charlie agreed.

They cautiously continued further into the Pizzaplex, now keeping their pace much slower and their destination much more open. One of them had to be open.

And if it wasn't, it was going to be a very long night.

Chapter 29

Chapter Summary

Mike and Marionette run into trouble while exploring the Pizzaplex and become acquainted with a familiar face...

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Mike remembered the way back to Rockstar Row, though that wasn't surprising. Nothing really had changed, save for a large patch of plywood covering a wall between the entrance to the row and what he assumed was probably Roxy Raceway, like they either had to do a quick repair or a remodel. It seemed a little late to do either, but at this point he wasn't shocked. He didn't even point it out, just held Marionette's hand and led him to the hall.

There was soothing music playing overhead before they even entered Rockstar Row. Smooth and jazzy, but clearly a rendition of the same theme from the elevator. Other than that, they were silent except for the soft sound of Mike's footfalls against the carpeted floor, growing slightly louder when stepping out onto tiles. The hall was dim but the soft neon of numerous signs dotting the walls allowed him to keep his flashlight off.

Marionette had fallen behind him as he took in the surroundings, so Mike continued leading him by the hand to the first window, Freddy's window. The curtains were pulled open to a crack of a few inches. Mike got a quick look in as he passed by before gesturing for the puppet to do the same, which he did. He leaned in close to the glass and scanned the inside of the room, seeing all the trinkets, the luxurious looking furniture, the "glam", and no Freddy.

He hummed as his eyes affixed on the door in the back of the room. He stole a quick look around to make sure nobody else was there- beyond sounds from the other rooms- and then pointed at the glass. Mike nodded, and Marionette teleported into the room. He did a spin to check the room in full before approaching the door, which opened only when he lowered his legs to tap the floor outside of it, triggering the motion detector.

He looked into the back room but did not go any further inside. Foxy had told them about the charging stations, and he could hear a peculiar hum coming from around the corner, so he assumed Freddy was probably in there, and he decided not to risk getting any closer. This back room, closed up and stagnant like a storage room in a factory, made him uneasy. That and he didn't want to risk getting far enough from Mike that the cameras activated.

He teleported back outside the window and beside Mike once more.

"I think he may be charging in the back. I didn't want to go any closer," Marionette said.

Mike quirked a brow. "Why not?"

Knowing that none of his excuses held much water, the Puppet did not answer. He just gave an indecisive hum.

"Alright," Mike simply said, looking back through the window. "Well, what do you think?"

"I think it's a nice… enclosure."

He didn't even have to hear the bitterness to know it was there. At least he hadn't been overreacting when he compared this place to a zoo.

"Can you imagine being stuck in one of these?" Mike asked, before realizing that, yes, he likely could. "…Bet they'd do it in monochrome and stripes too, just to make it disorienting."

"Monochrome and stripes are only disorienting to you, and I use that to my advantage," Marionette retorted. For a moment managing that playful edge to his voice and a sly slip of a smile. Though it didn't last long, replaced with a sigh. "Though I don't think I would get the curtesy of a room. The Prize Puppet belongs in the corner, where it can't scare anyone."

"Not every man can handle one in their bed," Mike cheekily added. That definitely flustered the puppet if is directly shifting face and little trill were any indication. "And you scare off burglars. Win-win."

"Mike, please, I'm trying to do something here," Marionette lightly scolded with a ring on his voice. He turned and started to make his way to the next window. "Wait there. This one's open," he warned, his voice dropping to a whisper.

The curtains were drawn back fully to reveal the purple-colored room inside, though Marionette hardly paid attention to that when he came around the edge of the window and the first thing his eyes laid on was another animatronic.

It was Roxanne Wolf, obviously. She was on her couch with her back to the window and her legs stretched down it, one bent at the knee, looking through a magazine. Marionette curiously drifted behind her to see what she was looking at. It looked to be a fashion or beauty magazine of makeup and hairstyles, but much to his dismay it turned out to be less of a genuine publication and instead a pamphlet for a salon in the Pizzaplex.

The reason this was so disappointing was not because it was a Fazbear product, but because it blurred the lines between sentience and simulation. He initially assumed Roxy was reading the magazine because she wanted to, but she could just be performing a programmed action to make her seem more alive while advertising the Pizzaplex's facilities. That was a shame if it was true.

Though maybe that was a good thing. The fewer animatronics awake and alive the better, because then they weren't trapped under Fazbear Entertainment's thumb… Unless they were alive and still forced to follow in preprogrammed routines. The thought frightened Marionette, made him all the more aware that he himself might've been forcibly programmed into a literal puppet if he hadn't gotten so fortunate to get out.

Suddenly he wasn't feeling quite as guilty to not be here.

A loud crashing noise interrupted the moment and he quickly looked over. It had come from the next windowed room, one whose curtains were drawn tight, and it sounded like glass breaking. Maybe it was a vanity mirror since both other rooms had them. Roxy turned her head towards the wall and his snapped back to her, and then he immediately disappeared and reappeared halfway to Mike. He hovered backwards towards him before turning around to meet him.

"We should get back to Charlie and the others," Marionette quietly suggested. After that racket, Mike had no disagreements, and the two made their way back the way they came.

Mike stole a look back and figured out whose room the noise came from. "Of course it's the gator. He's going to be a problem," he thought. "…But not ours."

Soon they were out of Rockstar Row and into the quiet passage leading back to the atrium. Mike couldn't hear anything nearby, so he thought it was safe to talk.

"What do you think about this place?" he asked.

"I think Carlton said it best," Marionette answered. Mike knew exactly what quote of Carlton's he was referring to.

"Forget Carlton, he doesn't have all the details," he brushed off.

"Well, you do. What do you think?" the puppet asked, looking over inquisitively.

"I think…" Mike licked his lips. "…I think we can scrape by. I think that we're going to take a hit for a while and that we're going to get known as the discount Freddy's that people go to when they can't afford the big one, and that might be complete garbage but that will mean we're still open… And we keep pushing on and hope your two-year prediction's right."

"Did you see inside the breaker room?" Marionette asked. Mike quirked a brow; how could he not? "And you saw that ply wall up on the wall?" he asked, pointing ahead in the direction of the boards they would soon pass again. Knowing he did, he folded his arms behind him and said with a glint in his eyes, "I know I'm right."

It was hard to argue with that.

Soon they were back out in the atrium. As soon as the security door was shut behind them, Mike pulled out the radio and pressed the button to call through.

"Hey. We're back in the atrium and on our way to you," he said. He received an answer within a few seconds.

"Oh, hey! Glad to hear it, but there's been a change of plans," Charlie began. There was loud mariachi music backing her voice.

"They swiped the car and jumped the border," Mike told Marionette, keeping his thumb on the call button so Charlie could hear.

"Ha ha, very funny," Charlie said. Apparently, she could tell there was a slow grin spreading across his face. "If I was going to run, I'd go to the beach… Okay, okay, jokes aside, we couldn't get into Bunny Bowl."

"So, you're where? El Chip's?" Mike guessed.

"Bingo. It's the only place that we could get into."

Marionette pointed up towards the third floor and Mike craned his neck up to look. "I see it. Did they leave it open or did the automated door just open for you?"

"Automated, rolled right up for us. Or rolled up halfway and got stuck," Charlie explained.

"Mr. Schmidt, this mean robot wouldn't let me go into the bowling alley and tried to take my money," Carlton chimed in with a fake whiny voice.

Mike tsked over the line. "Carlton, I've told you a hundred times now: you can't keep letting these bullies take your lunch money. You have to stand up for yourself. First thing when we get home, I'm going to teach you how to box."

"Oh yes. Punch the robots, that should work," Marionette chimed in beside him.

"I was this close to clocking the one with the maps," Mike remarked. He took his thumb off the button for that one, but quickly returned it and continued. "Did you check both floors or just the third?"

"Just the third," Charlie replied, quickly taking back over the radio. "But honestly, I think us getting into here was just a fluke. Just the fact that the door's stuck sort of suggests it might've been a mistake."

"Wouldn't be the first broken thing we've seen tonight."

"…It was… probably Chica. I can't say for sure, but it sounds like a Chica thing. You can't keep her away from a good meal."

Mike had been moseying towards the nearby escalators only to stop on a dime at the unfamiliar voice on the line.

The young man sounded to be somewhere between their ages. He could've assumed it was one of Charlie's friends if he didn't know them as well as he did. Charlie too seemed to be struck silent in surprise and left it to Mike to find his first.

"Well hello, complete stranger. What are you doing on a two-way radio call?" he bluntly asked.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to listen in. I think our lines got crossed. I've got a radio here and it's picking up both sides of your calls."

"That's not concerning at all," Mike said tightly. He looked to Marionette who had slid up beside him to listen and turned the radio out towards him so they could both listen.

"This, uh… This isn't what it sounds like," Charlie scrambled to excuse. "We're… My dad works here, and we were just taking a look around. We're not here to steal anything."

"Hey, no! I get it! We already had a couple of kids try to stay over at the daycare, thinking they can hide in the tunnels and come out once the coast is clear. I'm not surprised that a couple of big kids tried the same thing… No offense! I'm not trying to take a dig at you with that big kid comment. We're all big kids around here."

That wording gave both Mike and Marionette a good idea who they were talking to, and they exchanged a knowing look. It was either an employee, likely a technician, or it wasn't. Marionette listened closer to see if it wasn't.

"None taken," Mike simply said. "So, stranger, I didn't catch your name."

There was a murmur on the line. All three listeners strained to hear, but it sounded like the speaker was covered.

"I didn't catch that either," Mike remarked.

"I'm Charlie," Charlie introduced, taking the risk to grease the wheels.

"Sorry about that. Nice to meet you, Charlie! I'm Jake."

"Max Smitt," Mike smoothly introduced, hoping to erase Carlton's namedrop of him earlier."And this is Mari."

"Hello, Jake," Marionette said into the radio. His voice as warm and welcoming as he could make it. "What are you doing in the Pizzaplex? Are you one of the big kids that tried to hide in the daycare?"

"No, I'm a… Sorry. I'm a technician. I was working downstairs when the doors shut and now it looks like I'm stuck here into morning. No big deal, happens all the time!"

"I see," the puppet said. He removed his thumb off the button and bluntly proclaimed, "Animatronic."

"I had a hunch," Mike agreed.

Marionette pressed the button again. "So, Jake, since you work here, where would you recommend to go? Keeping in mind that we're just exploring, not looking for trouble."

"Sorry to say, but your options are limited. You already found El Chip's… Actually, speaking of Chica, there IS a bakery on the second floor that you can just walk into. It's a cupcake factory themed bakery cupcake shop sort of thing. Biggest risk you've got is Chica being there, but you've already taken that risk leaving the El Chip's door open and letting the taco smell out. The lobby's open too… and the daycare."

Marionette was noticing a pattern. "The daycare? Hmm, we considered heading over there," he said. He had managed to get the radio in his hand and was now heading slowly towards the escalators with Mike following close enough to listen. "But is it not just a playground? We're all a little too old to be playing in tunnels."

"Speak for yourself," Carlton chimed in. "Hey, I'm Carlton."

"Hey! Nice to meet you."

"We just won't tell them about that time at Hickory Dickory's," Mike teased.

"Hush," Marionette deflected.

"There's a lot more to the daycare than meets the eyes. It's also where the Pizzaplex keeps its traditional party rooms, and where the Fazbear Theater is located. It's worth checking out."

There was a funny noise over the radio. Almost like a squeaking sound.

"What was that?" Charlie asked. Unconfrontational, just curious.

"Nothing. I'm just working on a Staff Bot here. These things are always breaking down- No, quit it- But yeah, if you want to come by- go by the daycare, then it should be safe."

"That sounds like an excellent idea! Charlie, what do you think?" Marionette asked. She was almost surprised at how overly friendly he sounded, which tipped her off that he was onto something.

"Uh, sure! Everyone's on board, I think?... They're nodding at me, so yes," she agreed. She paused before cautiously asking. "You don't think this'll be another Ennard situation, do you?"

"I think it already is," Marionette answered, bringing her up to speed in an instant. "We're on our way."

"We'll leave right now and meet you there."

"Take the entrance on the second floor of the atrium, it spares you the trip through the lobby," Jake recommended.

"We will do that. Until then!" Marionette finished and removed his finger from the call button. "Heads up," he warned before tossing the radio back at Mike. Mike caught it; might've said something too if the radio wasn't built like a toaster.

"Think he's playing us?" Mike asked.

"I'm not sure yet," the Puppet remarked. He was now leading down the stretch towards the lobby, about to come up on the escalators.

"Then we won't get comfortable," Mike said. He picked up speed to a brisk pace as he followed closely behind. A pace that he had to keep up if he was going to make it to the other side of the atrium before morning.

They had just passed a charging station and were about to breeze past the bottom of escalators to the third floor when Marionette suddenly stopped and turned his head. He then put an arm back to stop Mike, but by then he had instinctively looked in the same direction in time to see the elevator doors open and a Staff Bot with a flashlight roll out. Something that would've been concerning enough if not for the familiar blond stepping out afterwards.

"Oh, for-!" Mike began and cut off as he dipped back and behind the plants. He made a grab for Marionette, but he was already darting back around and behind the cover. Peeking through the leaves, Mike saw Natalie look both ways, the Security Bot standing patiently beside her, before, of course, coming in their direction. "For crying out loud," he muttered and raised the radio close to his mouth. "We're going to need a minute. The night guard just showed up."

"Oh no… Okay, do you need us to make a distraction? We could try to lure her over to this side of the atrium," Charlie asked. She already sounded ready to take charge with a plan. A plan that Mike decided to shoot down.

"Just go on to the daycare. We'll catch up."

"…So that's no on us making a distraction?" she asked.

"That's a huge no. Going quiet until we're in the clear. Be careful and don't let anyone catch you," Mike raced out. Charlie gave a quiet hum of agreement, somewhat troubled, and the call ended. He flipped off the radio and hooked it to his belt.

"There's some sort of stand behind us," Marionette whispered. Mike turned back to see and he pointed it out, back a few feet behind the escalators.

"She's going to hear us yanking that open and climbing in… Hang on."

His eyes flickered to the charging station once and then twice, and then sized it up. It was big enough to fit a person and within a few steps, still in the safe little nook behind the escalators. He walked up to it and looked through the window, trying to judge if it was safe. The lack of exposed wiring seemed to suggest that. Only one way to tell for sure though.

There wasn't a handle, so Mike had to dig his fingers into the crack of the door and pull until it automatically slid open the rest of the way. He looked around inside, especially checking the flooring before starting to step inside.

That was, until Marionette gently pulled him back by the shoulders. "Let me go first," he offered.

"Are you sure?" Mike asked, looking back at him. He was returned a little smile. He patted one of his hands and stepped aside, holding the door open. "Be my guest, but careful."

The Puppet slipped into the charging station and did a little circle inside, trying to make sure as best as he could that it was safe. During which, Mike checked back in on the approaching duo. The Security Bot was leading the way now coming around the corner and up on the escalators faster than he expected. All things considered; he was more afraid of it than Natalie. He knew she wasn't at risk of wailing like a siren and zooming at him.

Mike pushed Marionette into the charging station before sliding in behind him and shutting the door after them. Then immediately dropped into a kneel so he couldn't be seen through the window.

Marionette watched the Staff Bot get a little closer before sliding down and kneeling behind him. Mike tilted his head forward and devoted full attention to listening for the approaching bot and guard, when he felt Marionette's arms wrap protectively around his middle and squeeze onto him. The puppet clutching him like on might a security blanket, one that they weren't willing to risk losing. He smiled for a second at that.

The Security Bot, it was likely Smitty, rolled past the station and continued on. Mike released a breath he was holding and mistakenly thought they were in the clear. So, he was startled when he heard the wheeling noise growing louder again, and that slowly grew into dread when it rolled up to beside the charging station and stopped.

"What the hell? There's no way it can see us," Mike thought. The Security Bot started to slowly roll in front of the station, its light glinting off of the window.

"I think it can sense me," Marionette's voice slipped into his mind. He sounded just as startled by the revelation. "I don't understand why, but…"

His thoughts fell silent as they heard Natalie's footsteps outside.

"What's up, Buddy?" she asked. To her it must've looked like the bot was staring at a closed charging station.

The Security Bot reangled itself and leaned in, staring at the charging station for a long moment and processing. So close to finding them and Mike began to feel his palms starting to sweat. It wasn't even out of genuine fear for his life but just the dread of getting caught. An unwanted and perhaps unwarranted surge of adrenaline pounding through his veins as they got so close to getting caught.

Any second now it could find them, it could see them, and it would all be over.

…But it didn't. It didn't see them, it didn't open the door, it didn't even shine its flashlight in.

It just set off its alarm.

Mike swore under his breath at the loud siren-like noise that blared from the Security Bot. The following sound was less abrasive but still an alarm nonetheless, droning on as it began to wave its arm and signal its distress.

"What?" Natalie asked in disbelief. She walked up to the door before suddenly turning away. "There's nothing in there, Smitty. Come on, let's go."

That sudden shift in tone from curious to direct in a second signaled that she must've either seen something or figured out a second late what was in the charging station. Mike couldn't feel relieved, so he just felt embarrassed.

She couldn't get the Staff Bot away from the door either, apparently. It sounded like she tried to physically pull him away, but Smitty was steadfast, twitching his light around and flagging that there was something there. Natalie continued trying to coax the bot away, but it kept putting up a fight, adamant that it sensed something and refusing to budge.

"I have to teleport out!" Marionette warned before suddenly vanishing. His arms disappearing from around Mike and his presence leaving the charging station. He didn't have to explain that it was to mislead the bot.

Natalie watched as Smitty suddenly craned its neck upwards and then shifted directions to now to a little circle under the escalators, which she had to step back out of the way of. It then passed and started to go towards the escalators before returning back to the charging station and flagging again, then returning to the little circle under the escalator. Following something but unwilling to be led astray.

Mike appreciated that Marionette was the patient one, because he would've been frustrated by now. He already was, hearing it come back, dreading the possibility of being stuck in this tube all night.

And right when it seemed like this was the worst-case scenario, it got a whole lot worse.

"What's going on up there?"

Natalie must've heard the footsteps coming, but between the station and the alerts of the Security Bot outside he didn't. Just from the double-tone alone he knew it was an animatronic, a female, and a very irritated sounding one.

"Nothing, Roxy! We're just having a little technical malfunction. False alarm," Natalie called back. That didn't stop them from coming up, and from the two sets of footsteps he knew it wasn't just one.

Which it wasn't, but the one Natalie was facing was Roxanne Wolf. She looked irritated, though this wasn't anything new. She sent a scowl towards the circling bot.

"What's wrong with it? Why's it just spinning around like that?" she asked.

"I don't know. We were just doing our patrol and he started doing this. Don't worry, I'll take care of it," Natalie assured.

"If you were going to take care of it, you should've done that before I got here," Roxanne snapped. "Do you know what it's like to finally get a moment to yourself and have it ripped away by back-to-back security flags. Flags that I only got because my raceway is over there? But I guess you wouldn't understand, sitting in a cushy office all night."

Natalie's moment of silence betrayed that she was likely offended, but she didn't risk lashing back or arguing with the animatronic.

"Roxy, I do not think-," an unfamiliar voice started to interject before being interrupted.

"I didn't ask what you think," she shut down. "…Wait…"

It was that suspicious tone that tipped Mike off that she noticed something. Thinking she might've caught a glimpse of something in the window- though he wasn't sure how with her being on the other side of a planter and him under the window- he tried to get down further and against the wall closest to her, to avoid any chance of being detected.

He never expected to hear her start sniffing and the thought that she could suddenly made him aware of how much he was sweating under this hoodie. Not to mention the hoodie itself smelled like crawlspace and potato chips. If she could actually smell him then he was in serious trouble, and the fact that she started to slowly step around the planter started to suggest that she could.

"Roxy, what is it?" the unfamiliar voice asked. Considering its baritone voice and gentle tone, Mike assumed it was Freddy Fazbear himself.

"I smell something…" Roxanne warned lowly.

She took another step around the edge of the planter when suddenly- and Mike was going solely off what he could hear- the Security Bot must've suddenly rolled at her and ran into her. She gave an, "Ugh!" and shoved it back with an enormously loud clatter. Probably knocking it over in the process. "Get off!"

"Hey!" Natalie warned. She knelt down to try and help get the bot back up. A few heavy steps that nearly shook the ground signaled that Freddy went over to help her, thumping again as he knelt down. Natalie huffed and began, "Look, I get that you're upset, but you can't-." She then cut off abruptly. Mike didn't know if Roxanne shot her a look or Freddy quieted her or if she had seen something, and frankly that was the least of his problems when his hiding spot was compromised.

What he didn't know was that she had been struck silent when she looked back at Roxanne and caught sight of what was hanging above her. There were what looked like white wires hanging from the ceiling. Wires that came around the edge of the escalator above and clung to the ceiling before lowering down right above Roxanne's head, creeping down towards her. Natalie could even see them moving.

Because they weren't wires, they were strings. Blowing as though in a light breeze but in actuality reaching towards Roxanne as she finally located the source of the smell and narrowed her gaze at the charging station before stepping in close.

"Roxy, no!"

When all of a sudden Freddy barreled forward and jumped in front of the charging station, hand thumping against the window to hold the door in place. Mike stared up at the large hand and was half surprised the glass hadn't cracked.

"I just remembered!" Freddy began in a frantic rush. "I know what you are smelling. There was an… incident in this recharge station yesterday."

"What?" Roxanne actually sounded startled, a sharp contrast to her abrasive tone up until now. She recovered quickly though, and from the sound of it had backed up a step or two. "What are you talking about?"

Freddy's voice turned somber and regretful. "Yesterday afternoon a child was separated from his parents while they were visiting Fazer Blast. He must have gotten lost and… unfortunately… once they had found him… he had violated rule number four in this very charging station."

Roxanne went so far as to step back in recoil and gave an audible sneer in disgust. As though she herself had been violated by the possibility of smelling this broken rule. Understandably, if rule number four was the same one Mike remembered.

"I am afraid so. I was warned by the employee who was unfortunate enough to have to clean it out," Freddy explained. He then turned his attention to Natalie. "He told me that he would be putting a warning up to not use the charging station until it has been properly sterilized. Perhaps that explains why your companion Staff Bot is acting so strangely. He is reacting to the warning as though it was a threat! In all intents and purposes, until it is thoroughly cleaned… it is."

"Oh… That makes a lot of sense, actually. If I would've known that I wouldn't have brought him over," Natalie played along. "No harm no foul, I suppose."

The strings had hesitated when Freddy started talking and now, they began to recede back up towards the ceiling, only to hesitate when Roxanne spoke again.

"That can't be it," she protested with confusion. "That doesn't smell like- ugh, I know what a rule four smells like. That smells like a sweaty truckdriver."

Mike knew she was just being overdramatic, but cautiously sniffed the hoodie just in case.

"Hmm, I suppose it could have been the worker who cleaned it up. He had been assisting in Fazer Blast and running quite a bit before we were told of the missing child, and he used his uniform shirt to clean up the mess. Let me check," Freddy said. Mike only had long enough to duck his head down as the bear looked in, but then looked away once more. "He must have come back for the shirt because it is not in there."

"You could have left it at sweaty employee, Freddy. I didn't need that mental image," Roxanne said with disgust. Finally fed up, and seemingly believing Freddy, she turned away with a flick of her tail. "Whatever, I'm out of here. Just shut that thing up so I don't have to," she said, pointing back to the downed Staff Bot. She sauntered away muttering about how nobody could do their jobs right.

Now it was just Natalie and Freddy, with the latter coming back over to her and the Staff Bot and offering, "Let me help you."

"Thanks," she said, and then the two lifted the Staff Bot onto its feet. Though Freddy did most of the heavy lifting. The whole time Smitty was giving the 'can't get up' alert, but once he was back on his wheels he started circling again, only to abruptly stop a few seconds later, after Natalie groaned but before she could voice any complaint.

Smitty seemed a little confused- an understatement after everything. It no longer did circles, but it still seemed to be looking around, and when Natalie tried to lead it away again it looped around and stopped at the charging station again. This time it only made a single flagging buzz. No longer in a panic, but still unwavering in its resolve that something was there.

"I don't know what to do about this. It's like he's stuck," Natalie said.

"Stuck…" Freddy repeated. He hummed thoughtfully. "…Shine your flashlight into the Staff Bot's right eye a click it on and off quickly twice, then do the same in the left eye. That should reset the path of a stuck Staff Bot."

She decided it was worth a shot and reached in between Smitty and the station to do as told. She clicked into both eyes and with the completion of the second, Smitty gave a small sort of registering noise. Finally, it turned away from the recharge station and back towards Natalie to stare at her attentively. She took a few steps back towards the escalator, beckoning it, and it obediently followed just like normal. Even keeping its flashlight lowered when facing her.

"It worked! How did you know that?" she asked.

"I cannot remember. I believe I might have read it somewhere?" Freddy said pensively. He moved his eyes like he was thinking about it, but he couldn't search out an answer. "Perhaps it was in one of the manuals I read."

Mike made a mental note to remember this, because he knew it would come in use in the future.

"Well, if you find it, give it to me. I could use tricks like those for guys like this," Natalie said appreciatively. "And thanks for the help."

"It is no problem, Officer Vanessa," Freddy chirped. "Will you be returning to the lobby?"

"Just to drop off this guy, then I'll be doing rounds."

"Then allow me to escort you! Just in case you need any further assistance. Or company," he offered. To which she agreed, and not just for her own sake.

Natalie glanced up to see that the strings were gone entirely. She wondered if Freddy had seen them too but did not ask, instead starting back towards the elevators. This time Smitty followed loyally behind her, along with Freddy himself.

Mike was finally able to take a deep breath without being afraid that someone would hear and tried to slow down his heartrate. So very close to getting caught. It was exhilarating in a way, but he was stubbornly determined not to take enjoyment out of it. This whole thing had been a bad idea. Not that the shutter would've been better; he should've just circled the escalator cartoon-style and would've avoided the whole thing.

Even though he was expecting it, he flinched when Marionette was suddenly popping in beside him and smoothly snared his long arms around him again.

"Roxanne Wolf has a guardian angel watching over her… and his name is Freddy Fazbear," the Puppet said. His voice had a dangerous edge to it, but the way he latched onto Mike so protectively was much less intimidating. "You smell fine, by the way. Only moderately stressed."

"That's great because I started sweating bullets the second she started sniffing around," Mike remarked. He sighed and put an arm around Marionette's back. "Let's give them a minute to get to the elevator and get out of here."

The Puppet nodded against him. His mask was cool, and Mike turned to rest his face against it. It wasn't just the adrenaline or the hoodie, he realized. The air floor in this charging station was adequate but stale. He wasn't going to suffocate, but it already felt like it was warming up since he got in here. So much for machines and chrome being cold to the touch.

Maybe it was because it was on his mind, but Marionette smelled nice, like the fabric refresher spray he frequently used to help mask the pizza scent that stuck onto everything that spent too long in Foxy's. It was a soft, clean scent, and didn't make him smell like he climbed out of the dryer. It mixed with a lingering sweet vanilla scent, probably from frosting from baking or the pizzeria.

It was comforting. Everything about Marionette usually was, but especially now. Though that could've been the lull of coming down from adrenaline making everything so intense. Not that Marionette was practically buzzing without it. It was clear from his tone to his touch that he had been exceptionally concerned. It wasn't a matter of getting caught or risking injury, it was a matter of reaching that threshold where Marionette would've stepped in that was the real risk.

Mike reached up to soothingly caress the side of his mask. Marionette softly warbled and pressed his face further into his hand, his own cupping it, and his eyes sliding shut only to pop open again when Mike slid in and kissed him on the neck. The warbling grew in volume and wavered in pitch as he began to slowly kiss up his neck and along the edge of his mask.

His own warm lips peppered along the white porcelain and briefly grazed over a stripe before taking his own lips. Marionette gave a quiet keen and pulled him in close.

"Mike~," the Puppet's voice flowed into his thoughts. "You almost just got caught and the others are waiting on us," he warned. Funny how his voice could be so explanatory and sensible while he still so eagerly kissed back. Fingers slipping under and knocking back Mike's hood so he could comb them through his hair. "She must be gone by now…"

Mike hummed in agreement. "Just a little longer," he thought and Marionette likely heard. "Then we stop, and we'll pick this up later."

Marionette nearly trilled at the promise, which he covered with a sigh and tilted himself in further. His porcelain lips were starting to heat from Mike's own and he eagerly pulled in until they were chest to chest. He hadn't broken that protective hold, with both hands now moving to cup Mike's face to keep them together, fingers tracing the jawbone as they did. Breaking apart for only seconds in between so that he could get quick breaths of air.

Mike wasn't sure what felt better, the risk or the knowledge that the likely most powerful animatronic in this whole place was currently held up in his grasp. It wasn't something he thought of often, but it was a pretty thrilling realization.

What wasn't was when Marionette abruptly wrenched them apart and sat upright as he listened, because Mike knew instantly that it meant something was coming. This was confirm with the thumping echoing through the atrium shortly after.

"Christ, it's the bear," Mike guessed. It matched Foxy's description at least. "…Probably racing over here to ask if Foxy can come over and play."

"I certainly hope so. I would hate to have to smack him around after saving your bum," Marionette remarked. The joking didn't disguise the slight distrust in his tone. He had a hunch Freddy would come back, but not so quickly or eagerly. He noticed a small smirk had replaced Mike's frown. "What's that look mean?"

"It means there was a couple of words in that last sentence that shouldn't go together," he retorted. "You wouldn't believe the mental image I got."

"That's your own fault," Marionette tsked. Amused for a moment but quickly returning to his previous bothered state. "You know he won't leave without answers. We should've made a run for the daycare while we could."

Mike knew he was right, especially when he heard Freddy coming up outside, and sighed. "I know. I got carried away-."

"You can come out now, Captain," Freddy quietly called into the recharge station. "Roxy has left the atrium and Vanessa is back in the lobby. The coast is clear!"

Mike sat there for a second before slowly looking over to Marionette. "He thinks I'm Foxy… Right." He gestured down to the hoodie matter-of-factly in realization. He sat there considering what to do for a moment, then started to stand.

Marionette grabbed his sleeve to stop him momentarily before pressing his fingers into his arm. His voice flooded into his mind once more.

"Don't tell him I'm here. Not yet."

Mike nodded and Marionette let him go, watching closely as he slid open the door and stepped out.

Freddy was initially standing with his back towards the charging station, so that he could look out at the atrium and keep watch. He started to turn around to face the man.

"I was wondering if you would- Oh!" The surprise was obvious, if not from his voice than the way his eyes widened upon seeing a human's face instead of a fox mask. "I… My apologies, I- I thought you were someone else," he said, flustered.

The fact that the bear didn't immediately take a swipe at him or demand to know why he was there both relieved Mike and made him equally suspicious. He kept his guard up.

"Who, Foxy?" he asked. Freddy fumbled over his words and Mike raised a hand. "Relax, I work with Foxy. I know what's been going on."

"Then… you must be Jeremy! It is wonderful to meet you! Foxy has spoken about you many times," Freddy said with a perk in his voice. "I am Freddy Fazbear!... But I am sure that you already know that."

"No, I'm not Jeremy, but I'm friends with Jeremy. I'm… friends with Foxy too. To a lesser extent," Mike said, deciding to hold back on giving out even a fake name in this situation. He already could barely remember the one he had given on the radio, and he didn't necessarily want it linking up with video footage.

"Ah. My apologies then," Freddy said warmly. He seemed to become a lot more comfortable once he knew he worked with Foxy, not even questioning if Mike could've been lying. "But does that mean- Is Foxy here too?" His voice rose with excitement and his ears twitched a little.

"Fraid not. That's why I've got this," Mike said, pulling at the hoodie's baggy chest. Freddy didn't say anything, but his shoulders seemed to slouch a little. "But who knows. Foxy might still find a way down here."

"I hope he does… Well, erm, I know he should not, but I do enjoy our time together," the bear said. "But then again, I must ask…" He crossed his arms and got a slightly more interrogative look. "What are you doing here?"

That took Mike a little by surprise. Not the fact that he was asked, but the fact that Freddy had a look that reminded him dead-on of one Clay Burke would've given him. A low static warning started to come from the escalator above along with an occasional twang. Freddy looked up with a tilt of his head, unable to recognize the noise and thus not especially unsettled by it.

"Not until a sock monkey drops on his head," Mike considered. He assured the bear, "I'm just taking a look around. Foxy told me about the place and I thought, what the hell, why not see it for myself?"

Freddy looked down at him and his face softened considerably. "Is that so? Well, that is fine by me. I was just worried that you were preparing to vandalize the Pizzaplex… Foxy did so on his first night here, but I managed to talk him out of it."

That wasn't exactly what had happened from Foxy's words, but considering how Freddy was framing everything, he might've actually believed that.

"But you must be more careful. I am not sure if Foxy told you, but the other animatronics do not know of his visits to the Pizzaplex, and they will not be nearly as welcoming to a late-night guest," Freddy warned. "Fortunately, I too was signaled by the Security Bot, as this charging station is also located outside of Fazer Blast. Otherwise, I would not have been here to help, and it was already a very close call."

"Believe me, I know. Foxy told me all about what he's seen going on in here. That Staff Bot just had issues," Mike defended. He toyed with the idea of pulling out his taser to show Freddy, to make it very clear if Freddy was tricking him that he wasn't to be taken lightly, but then decided that it would be best to hide his hand. To not play his cards too easily. "Well, thanks for that. You really saved my 'bum'."

"It is no problem! Any friend of Foxy is a friend of mine! Hopefully," Freddy said with a smile. Then pausing as though he was waiting for something.

But he was going to have to keep waiting, because as interesting as Freddy was, and as reluctantly curious as Mike convinced himself he wasn't, he knew that Charlie and the others were still waiting at the daycare, and that was with some kooked out sun that acted like Ennard- which didn't bode well for anyone.

That added with the fact that hallway through the conversation, Marionette had appeared in front of the railing a few feet behind Freddy and was staring at him. After that warning static earlier, Mike might've assumed he was standing guard- and he probably was, but that wasn't all. His expression was much more curious than the protective static earlier would suggest. Studying him closely, trying to make sure that Foxy's recount had been correct.

But Mike understood why. In a way, he was trying to do the same thing.

Mike considered himself a skeptical person and a relatively decent judge of character. At least, he could usually see when someone was faking and when they were putting on an act. He had seen animatronics act docile in an attempt to hide a sinister demeanor and almost every time he had reasonable suspicion beforehand. Freddy didn't have those same tendencies. His movements and directness felt genuine.

But Mike couldn't help but be suspicious when he had fallen for the Old Man Consequences ruse hook, line, and sinker. He couldn't let himself fall for that again, so the best he was going to give Freddy the benefit of a doubt and say it was too soon to tell. Keep his guard up and pay close attention to the animatronics; that's pretty much what he was good at.

But again, Charlie and the others were alone in the daycare.

"I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got to get over to the daycare before 'Blondie' shows back up," Mike said. He started to walk past, keeping his guard up as he did, testing if Freddy would try something behind his back- knowing there was a looming mime behind his back to cover for him. One who vanished but was always there. "Catch you on the flipside… Or in a couple of hours when I end up setting something else off," Mike added.

"Allow me to escort you there," Freddy offered. He quickly thumped up beside Mike, coming up on him so fast that it made him immediately step back in response. Freddy noticed and did so as well. "I would gladly accompany you, just in case you run into trouble with anyone else."

"You sure? You don't have to."

"I insist!" Freddy said. "And it is no trouble. I would just be returning to my room otherwise."

"Yeah?" Mike asked. He thought back to what Marionette said about the enclosure, about the place being no more than a zoo, and he felt concern creep up past the guard he had up. "Foxy said that they make you stay in your room," he said, asking without directly asking.

Freddy's face visibly fell. "They… encourage that we stay in our room…" he answered.

"Foxy said they locked your door," Mike pointed out. Freddy responded with a noncommitting, but likely confirming, hum. Mike then remembered and asked, "Wait, if your room was locked then how did you get out here?"

"When we are flagged by security our green rooms are unlocked. That way we can address the problem without having to… unnecessarily disturb the others," he said. He made it sound like a curtesy to the animatronics, and Roxanne herself seemed to voice this in her frustration at getting called, but Mike could tell this wasn't a decision to benefit them. This was a measure to keep them from wandering, something they must've learned from the old Freddy's.

But did Freddy truly believe what he was saying? All Mike could go off of was what Foxy told him, and if that was the case then he was likely making excuses for them. That eased up Mike's suspicion of him more than any favor or friendly banter could've. After all, this was the one who supposedly helped that kid escape, so he deserved some credit. This was Freddy, not Fredrick.

"Well, if they're not going to care then I don't. Let's go. You can tell me what's going on with the wall over by Rockstar Row on the way," Mike invited.

"That? There was a minor wiring issue in the wall, but we have been assured that it has been fixed and that the wall repair should be finished in only a matter of days," Freddy explained. He perked up considerably, walking almost jauntily beside him, even while his footsteps clattered so loudly. He moved pretty easily for something Mike assumed weighed three times as much as he did.

"Having electrical problems in here?" Mike guessed, remembering the state of the breaker room.

"We require a substantial amount of electricity. Not just us, the entire building: the arcades, the charging stations, even just keeping the lights on. All of that requires frequently maintenance. Myself included… Has Foxy- Have you heard of the, erm, 'incident' on opening day? During the show?" Freddy asked, his initially proud and informative voice faltering into tentative embarrassment at the end.

"You mean about you passing out on stage? Yeah, we heard. Foxy knows," Mike said. Freddy looked a little startled before covering his face with a hand and groaning, ears lowering.

"I was afraid of that…" he sighed. "It was not my shining moment… Who am I kidding? It was a disaster! And on all of the nights it could happen…"

"Hey, don't worry about it. It happens," Mike said. After a moment that slow smirk started to spread once more. "In fact, it happened to Foxy. He once fell off a porch and into a kiddie pool full of balls in front of a whole birthday party."

Freddy looked to him in surprise. "He fell into a… what?"

"A kiddie pool full of little plastic balls in front of a whole audience," Mike said, definitely smirking now. "And he dragged his brother in with him."

"He never told me that!"

"If you don't believe me, look it up. The video's floating around online."

Freddy's mouth had dropped open in surprise, but then closed as his eyes alit with mirth. "Now he never said anything about that," he said. "I might have to see it for myself. Just to make sure it was not another pirate."

"You better believe he wishes it was- I was there, saw it with me own eyes! The mighty Cap'n Foxy capsized into the mighty blue plastic tub," Mike said. The bear chuckled warmly, with laugh rumbling through his insides like he was hollow, and Mike's smirk softened into a more natural smile.

They stayed in a semi-comfortable silence until they stopped to wait for the security door to open. That was when Freddy spoke again.

"I did not catch your name," he said.

"I didn't throw it," Mike casually returned.

"Huh?... Oh, I get it! That is a good one," Freddy congratulated. He turned back ahead. "But do know that I will not tell if you do."

Mike gave a non-committal shrug sort of thing but didn't offer it. Freddy didn't ask again. Maybe he would by the end of the evening, and maybe by then Mike would change his mind.

Maybe by then Marionette would show himself to Freddy instead of hovering twelve feet behind him. Or maybe he would at least figure out why he was so reluctant to do so.

Chapter End Notes

This wasn't originally where this chapter was supposed to end, but the next section grew so long that it seemed better to cut it off here than try to squeeze it in and risk rushing that part. I hope you enjoyed regardless! ^_^

Chapter 30

Chapter Summary

Charlie and her friends enter the daycare. Little do they know, but this is going to lead to an ordeal of an unusual kind.

Chapter Notes

Normally this isn't the place where I'd plug something, but if you've been looking forward to my next jester book, A Fool's Golden Cage, it's coming out on the 17th. Only a few more days away! ^_^ Hope you check it out! Also, Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Charlie and her friends didn't leave right away. In fact, she was determined to hide on the escalator and wait until Mike and Marionette were free so they could meet up again. Then came the alarms, and then a period of a Security Bot circling around and Natalie trying to get it to leave, and it was finally at that point that Jessica dragged her out by the arm.

"It looks like they're going to be stuck there for a while," she said as they slipped under the security door with John and Carlton. Charlie might've been more worried, but it was clear from Natalie's efforts that she was going out of her way to not bust the two, so it was probably a situation they would have to slowly weasel out of. She would give them ten minutes to handle it and then come back and do something if they were still stuck there.

Beyond the security door was a small passage broken up by stairs and ramps, both illuminated, with a curved ceiling that was decorated with a starry pattern. It ended in another security door that entered into a room with a fountain, the entrance to the daycare. John was leading the way towards another rolling door, one that had the words "Superstar Daycare Pick-Up- this way!" painted on the wall beside it, suggesting it was the right direction.

As they got closer, they started to hear the sound of muffled music coming through the closed door.

"Is the music supposed to be on?" Jessica asked warily.

"Yup," Charlie said. "Natalie warned us about it."

Any questions the blond had were answered when John stepped close enough to trigger the door and they were flooded with the bouncy music. If that and the bright lights weren't jarring enough, then the faux-gold sun statue in front of them definitely did it. John stopped under it and looked up at it with his hands in his pockets and his brows furrowed. Charlie walked over and stood beside him.

They stood there for a long moment backed by the inappropriate music and looking at an exceptionally scary clown statue when John finally looked over and asked,

"Is it too late to go back to El Chip's?"

This got a laugh out of Charlie. A real laugh, one backed with ringing, but she didn't know if it was from true amusement or the weird secondhand embarrassment she felt standing in this place.

They walked past the statue and towards the turnstiles that led deeper into the daycare along with a slide leading into the play area proper. While the others were looking in, Charlie fell back and pressed the call button on her radio.

"Anybody there?" she asked.

"I'm here!" Jake greeted. "How's it hanging?"

The lack of response from Mike meant he and Marionette were probably still cornered in the atrium. She stole a quick look at a clock up on the wall and started the ten-minute timer right then.

"We just got to the daycare. We're right under the, uh…" Charlie looked up at the equally frightening Moon statue on the other side of the Sun statue and almost lost her train of thought. "…Terrifying moon statue."

"Great! Just, uh, one second… Hold on, let me just…" It sounded like he was moving stuff around on the other side of the line.

Meanwhile, the others were looking around at everything. John had walked over to try the turnstiles and was unsurprised to find them stuck in place.

"Locked?" Carlton asked. John nodded and the redhead hummed, then sent a look down at the slide. Jessica was looking at it too and their eyes raised to meet. She sent him a flat look.

"Don't even think about it," she said.

"I'm thinking about it," he replied.

"Do you have any idea how much bacteria's crawling on this stuff? This is like the one guaranteed place where you'll get dysentery without water," Jessica forewarned. He started to edge towards the slide, likely more to mess with her than out of intense desire to do so. "Not to mention you'll probably get stuck, in which case we will have to leave you," she warned again. Carlton started to slowly kneel. "Carlton, I'm telling you no."

Carlton sat down at the top of the slide.

"No," Jessica mock scolded.

"Please, Mom."

"You get up right now, young man." Jessica crossed her arms and sent him a much less amused look. "Before the security lady walks in and calls your dad."

"What's going on over there?" Jake asked. Almost half-heartedly, like he was half-listening. Though Charlie he was shocked he could hear it at all. Yes, her thumb was on the button, but they weren't being loud.

"It's nothing. Carlton's just pretending like he's going to go down the slide," she answered. She didn't expect much of a reaction.

"Don't let him do that! Tell him not to do that!"

Charlie was genuinely surprised. She wasn't the only one either, because he was loud enough over the radio that the others heard too. John coming over to stand alongside Charlie again while Jessica and Carlton looked back from the slide.

"Uh, I don't think he's really planning on it," the Security Puppet said. "Why? What'll happen if he does?"

"Nothing will happen, it's just…" Jake trailed off for a second. Hesitating on that tone before lowering his voice and mumbling through the speaker, "The Daycare Attendant's in there."

Charlie exchanged quick glances between John and Jessica. Carlton looked up at statue of the moon before very quickly pulling himself back out of the slide and to his feet. After considering it for a moment, Charlie lowered her own voice.

"Jake, I need you to tell me now. Is the Daycare Attendant dangerous?"

"No!... No. He's just… fussy. A stickler for the rules. Don't bother him and he won't bother you."

Normally this would've done a poor job to convince her, but it instead only grew a suspicion whose seeds were already sewn by Marionette. She only hesitated to get those thoughts together, because already knew what she was going to say.

"We won't go in there. Just be honest with us, okay? We're not here to hurt anything, you've just got to let us know where our boundaries are," she said in an assertive but assuring tone.

"Thank you. I appreciate it, and I will." There was relief in his voice. "…So! If you could just climb over the gate right there, we can begin our tour of the daycare!"

Charlie looked up from the radio to see that John had a suspicious and questioning look on his face. Suspicious towards Jake, questioning towards her. She gave a little shrug and walked over to the gate that she easily climbed over. She waited for the others to catch up before they started walking down the length of the daycare, getting a vantage point where they could see over the large room.

"This music's starting to do a number on me," Carlton confessed. That might've not been the only thing from how he kept looking around and behind them.

"I can't believe I'm saying this… but I kind of like it," Jessica admitted with a little smile. "You know what it reminds me of? Tatertots."

"It does sound like that! Man, I used to love that show. I had that Halloween episode where Russel and Violet get lost in the woods behind the house on tape. I bet I could recite the whole thing," Charlie said

"Violet was such a little brat. I loved her," Jessica said fondly. "My favorite episode was the one where she gets the life-sized dollhouse and thinks the doll's plotting against her."

Charlie turned to the door they were coming up on and noticed John watching with his subdued smile. "What about you? Did you ever watch it?" she asked.

"A couple of times. I was more of a Castles and Covens kid," he said.

"I remember." Charlie got a touch of a teasing smile on her mask. "I remember your magic coat."

Nobody ever truly forgot the year where John walked around wearing a jacket twice his size because his kid-self thought it made him look like a wizard. Nobody had really forgotten it, but nobody had remembered it in years until Charlie dredged it back up in one fell swoop. Fortunate for her that she still wore cheekiness well or he might've been mortified.

"That's a shame," John replied.

She jingled a little and walked ahead so she could look through the window beside the door. Inside was a party room already prepared with tables topped with plates and party hats, just waiting to be filled. There was an illuminated screen in the back projecting a cartoony picture of the ocean and a lighthouse, fitting with the Kids Cove theme she had seen already.

"Ironic that they chose an ocean theme," Charlie flatly remarked. Jessica gave a hum of agreement, equally as impressed.

"So, I'm guessing you're at the private party rooms by now. How it works, or how it's going to work, is that parents rent a room in advance and choose add-ons. You pick the room that fits your party, the cake size, pizza toppings, with or without balloons, favors, and then you can even pay extra to have one of the Glamrock band members come and wish you a happy birthday. There's five, ten, fifteen-minute intervals for that too. It's crazy."

"Crazy expensive?" Charlie guessed.

"That too. I don't know the exact numbers but judging by the whiteboards downstairs with party plans on them, they're making a killing off of them. Or going to."

"Freddy's has been known to do that," John muttered under his breath. A sentiment that the rest of them could've readily shared.

"How's… business been so far?" Charlie dared to ask.

"It's hard to tell. There's plenty of people lining up to have their kid's birthday here… but it was closed today because there was a band malfunction on the first day. Go figure."

"That good, huh?" She didn't mean for her voice to audibly fall, but it was hard to contain her disappointment. She knew the place was going to be successful, but it still worried her. Especially now with their seaside themed playground.

Jessica picked up on it and put an arm around her before steering her away from the window and leading further down the walkway. They soon turned the corner and were walking the stretch directly in front of the daycare. A couple more party rooms were lined up along the wall, these being larger, and some even connected with each other. All ready for the eventual to flood in and fill their seats.

Charlie decided to look out towards the daycare and caught a glimpse of something yellow disappearing behind the top of the wooden daycare door. She stopped in place and stared where it had been, knowing they were being watched.

Jessica, who still had an arm around her, noticed the hesitation. "What's up?" she discreetly asked.

"Not much," Charlie said, "but we're being watched."

"Figured as much. You don't usually guess exactly where someone's standing," Jessica remarked. Charlie hadn't considered it at the time, but knew she was right. They continued on.

Unknowing that there was a storm brewing just on the other side of that door.

The Daycare Attendant had dropped down the moment he was seen and now sat crumpled against the door with his hand pulling and pushing in his spines to assist in keeping not the smallest sound from slipping out.

Because he wanted to scream the moment he had seen that. There were supposed to be people coming into the daycare. Troublemakers staying after hours, yes, but normal people. Nearly kids! Just big kids wanting to hang around the daycare and look at all the party rooms and just be a spectacle to observe and exist with.

There wasn't supposed to be an animatronic in their midst. Let alone one that looked like… that. The white mask, the soulless eyes, just a slightly different shape but the same haunting visage-!

"What am I going to do?! What am I going to do?!" he whispered frantically, popping up to his feet to pace behind the cover of the door. "What's it doing he-ere?! Whyyy?! Don't panic, it's just- it's just-!" He fell silent to listen and caught wind of the conversation, making out a few choice words. "It's just heading to the theater?! No, no, that can't- why would it…?!"

He slowly turned his head and stared at the balcony. This whole thing was a ruse; he knew what it really came for.

Sunny let out a soft little gasp and shrunk in on himself. Blinded by panic and paranoia, and the itch of his own programming, he knew he had to do something. But he couldn't just skip on out there and confront them! He knew what it was capable of. He had to do something, he was desperate to do something, but he couldn't think of any options that weren't barred by his rules.

Unless, of course, the rules suddenly went bye-bye.

The Sun slinked around the security counter and popped up on the other side. He reached over the top and walked his fingers down and around until he found what he was looking for. His finger circled the naptime button.

Before he suddenly realized what he was doing and yanked his hand back.

"No! I can't do that!" he whispered scoldingly. His points twitched anxiously as he held his hand to his chest. "Bad, bad idea! If he finds out I-I-I'd…"

He tilted his head up to stare at the balcony again. Behind him he focused in on the chattering of voices both from and outside of the radio. His hand tightened painfully as he felt himself slipping.

Then he spun back around and slammed his hand on the button before he could think rationally once more. In an instant the lights died and suddenly everything felt a lot clearer. He knew exactly what he wanted to do.

Back on the second floor, the group was approaching the last party room door before they would reach the theater as their guide filled them in on the details.

"The Fazbear Theater is the real highlight of the daycare. They play cartoons, there's Staff Bots who come out and perform, and there's been talk about even letting the St. George community theater put on performances there. Isn't that neat?... It's a lot neater when you're here all the time and could use something new to look at. The Staff Bots leave a little to be desired-."

At that moment, the lights suddenly died and the whole daycare was thrown into darkness. A few star shaped lights illuminated on the walls, but it wasn't nearly enough to see well with. At least, for anyone other than Charlie. Her night vision still managed to support her well, but that didn't make the sudden darkness anymore jarring. She still had brought a flashlight that she quickly turned on.

John and Carlton had both brought flashlights too. John's a small, square one sized to fit in his jacket pocket and Carlton's an old clunky one of his father's that he tied to his belt. Jessica just had her little keychain flashlight, but betwixt the three there was enough light for them to get their bearings as well as Charlie had.

"…Oh no."

The amount of anxiety that suddenly filled Jake's voice instantly put Charlie on edge. She lifted the radio to ask him,"What happened?"

"The lights went out," Carlton flatly answered.

"Oh, really? I didn't notice. I just thought it got dark all of a sudden," she sarcastically replied. Not even giving him the courtesy to turn around and show him the disapproving frown on her face. She huffed static and spoke into the radio, "How much danger are we in?"

"What? No, you're not in danger!" He tried to laugh it off. Even it sounded strained. "This happens all the time. It shouldn't happen, but it does. No big deal!"

"Look, I already know something happens in here when the lights go off," Charlie said sternly. "What is it? Is it that the moon comes out? Is he hostile?"

"…I'll get the lights back on. I sure I can, I'm right beside a huge fuse box. Just sit there and don't go anywhere."

Charlie's non-existent brows raised as she slowly lowered the radio. "Huh… Well, I guess that answers our question," she murmured.

They stood there for a long moment before John slipped up between Charlie and Jessica, who had moved back in beside her. He leaned in and murmured to them.

"Did you hear that noise after the lights cut out?" he whispered to them. Both turned to listen while he made sure to keep an eye out over the room. "Right after the music cut out, there was this creaking metal sound that came from inside the daycare… and it's been quiet ever since."

"No," Jessica said quietly, warily, but Charlie then gave a slight nod.

"I heard it."

That wasn't the only thing they heard either. Shortly afterwards there was a strange whooshing noise from out towards the daycare and both Carlton and Jessica shined their lights out towards it but could see nothing. Even Charlie, who could see better in the dark, hadn't seen anything. She knew they weren't alone… but then again, they never were, she mused as she remembered the glimpse of yellow.

But before she could even consider voicing her suspicions, Jake came back on the line. This time he didn't even try to hide exactly what he was feeling.

"Okay, so I can't get the power on from back here. So, what I need you to do is just turn around, go down the stairs, and take one of the downstairs doors out. It'll take you into Kids Cove, right back into the atrium. I promise." He hesitated a moment before quietly adding, "I'm so sorry about this. This wasn't supposed to happen."

"I figured as much," Charlie said, her voice holding little blame. She then looked between John and Jessica. "Did you both catch that?" she asked, knowing very well that they did. Not just the directions but the sudden shift in mood as well.

John held a solemn selection, Jessica a more concerned one as she nodded.

"Sounds good to me. Heck, I don't even know why we left El Chip's. That's where the party's at," Carlton said, or rambled on the edge of nervousness. Then went rigid as he heard a soft thump from behind him. He slowly turned and brought his light around to fall on the source of the noise. "…Oh, that's- that's just… Wow." A soft pattering and jingling sound followed. "That's so much worst," he almost squeaked out.

Charlie heard the thump immediately but didn't see the source until she got past John and found herself standing beside Carlton in equal aghast.

It was the moon animatronic from the statue. Its arms and face illuminated in a soft blue glow so that it would've been visible even without the flashlights, and yet a sharp red glint from its eyes cut through both. Framed above a wicked smile. Its hands and spiderlike fingers spread out on the floor to hold its weight in an uncomfortably framed handstand while its legs circled its own body, feet pattering on the floor. Jingling and ticking as it did so.

It came to an unceremonious stop midway through a spin, then twisted until its legs were dangling above its head. It lowered itself further and turned its hands around to rest its head on them.

"My, my, do my eyes deceive me…" it hissed through sealed teeth. "…Or is that a puppet with no strings? Lost little puppet far from her box. Discombobulated. Disobedient. Discontinued."

It crackled out a wicked laugh that matched its frozen smile. Its face began to slowly turn as its fingers tapped against it.

"I know what you're here for, Little Miss Puppet…" he lulled. All of a sudden, his face spun and snapped back into the correct position. "And you can't have him."

"Wait, hold on. I didn't come here for anything! We were invited by Jake!" Charlie defended. Moon made a disconnect rattling and a vocal growl at the name. Evidently it didn't help her case any. "…I'm guessing you turned the lights off?"

"Charlie, I don't think this is a great time to ask questions," Carlton muttered out.

"We get the message: you want us out of here. Fine. Just let us by and we'll be out of your hair," John tried to offer. The Moon didn't acknowledge this offer, let alone even turn its head in his direction. "All you have to do is let us by."

"Rulebreakers and tresssspassers don't get to bar-ter their way out of pun-ish-ment," the Moon said in a mocking singsong. It was a very bitter sort of tone, bubbling anger just beneath the surface. "Security can have the rest of you. As for you, Miss Puppet, it's time for a nice, long nap… I already have a box waiting for you."

This was enough to make Charlie go from creeped out to actually afraid. Just the tone of it sent a spike of panic through her. She reflexively lifted the radio to her mouth and pressed the call button. "We need help-!"

Right then the Moon decided it was done toying with them and proceeded to barrel straight for them. Still in a handstand as it raced towards the group.

Carlton yelped and started rapidly clicking the button of his camera as he took a step aside. Not far enough apparently as Moon crashed right through him and shoved him painfully aside and into John. Charlie had turned and started to run, able to get out of reach before the Moon could grab for her only to suddenly be yanked by the jacket and dragged, half stumbling into the nearest party room by Jessica.

The room was tight, and they only had a second before Moon was through the doorway and in pursuit. Charlie was forced to run between the table and the wall to escape his grasp, only to have the jester suddenly shove the whole party table back in an attempt to block her way. Something that barely worked, with her clamoring over it. He looked like he was about to do the same when Jessica smacked him over the back with a metal chair.

He buckled only momentarily, but then his limbs seemed to reverse, his head tilting back and face spinning around to look at her directly, and he grabbed ahold of the chair. He wrenched it from her grasp, flipped it, and chased at her. In seconds he had her shoved to the wall, pinning her to it with the bars between the chair legs.

"NO HITTING!" he scolded through his graveled voice. She pressed back on the wall wide-eyed, staring up at exactly how much taller the Moon was. He twitched, shoulder rolling as though in pain. "I'm putting you…" He leaned in over the chair, face so close that it nearly brushed the tip of her nose. "In time out," he gritted.

But before he could follow through on this threat, the room suddenly filled with music. Music box music ringing out a frantic version of 'Ring Around the Rosey'. Both looked over in time to see a white face and a black blur before Charlie completely tackled into the Moon. Her weight and speed just enough to send him staggering before both fell in front of the open doorway.

Now atop him, she got out her taser and raised it above him, pressing the button to release a warning spark. A scare tactic, a threat that she hopefully didn't have to follow through on. A threat that she didn't have a chance to follow through on because suddenly he twisted one arm around her other one and pulled her in flush before fighting for her other arm. She got one knee on his thigh and another leg up to try and pry herself back again.

Which wasn't working at all until a second pair of hands came from behind the Moon and started grabbing at his upper half. It was John who was looking to hold the Moon down. This had the exact opposite effect. Instead, the Moon suddenly spun its torso, twisted up John's arms, and started subduing him. All while wrapping his legs around Charlie and trapping her. Temporarily rendering her taser useless unless she wanted to shock John and herself too.

The radio fell out of her jacket during the scuffle and Jessica picked it up while trying to pry one of the puffy pants covered legs off of her. Even with the scuffle beside her she identified two voices coming though.

"Wait, wait, don't do this! Stop!" Jake's panicked pleas.

"What's going on?! Charlie?!" and Mike struggling to yell over him. Considering the circumstances, he was the one Jessica was more relieved to hear.

"Oh, thank God!" she cried. She used her whole bodyweight as leverage to drag back the leg and Charlie finally pried her way out, falling flat on her back in front of the Moon. Jessica swooping in to pull her back farther. "Where are you?!"

"Outside the daycare door! It won't open! I've got Freddy Fazbear himself trying to lift the thing and it won't budge!"

"Can Mari warp in?!" she asked desperately.

"Not into a place he can't see or hasn't seen before!"

Or that was what he assumed considering that Marionette was disappearing and reappearing and going absolutely feral directly behind Freddy Fazbear who must've heard him, but was too busy on a knee, trying to physically force up the security door to even spare a moment to look back. Or perhaps just knew better than to do so.

At this point the Moon, who was pinning John down and had just gotten Carlton off of him by elbowing him in the gut- so hard that he fell against the railing- decided to turn and make another grab for Charlie. Turning and lifting onto a knee like he was about to pounce until John noticed loose wires on the back of his head and grabbed for them, yanking them. The Moon let out a pained cry and whipped his arm back, grabbing John by the shoulder and yanking him forward.

In seconds their positions were reversed with John dragged in front of the Moon and its illuminated arm hooking around his throat. Not tightly enough to choke him, but enough to show that he could start at any moment. His large hand atop and dwarfing John's head as he slowly turned it to face Charlie, as did his own. A wordless challenge and a silent threat, waiting for her to make a decision.

All the while Charlie could hear Jake's voice calling out over the radio.

"Don't hurt him! Just turn on the generators in the play tunnels! That'll shut off the naptime protocols, turn the lights on, and unlock the main door! There's five of them, you just have to follow the wires! Please!"

That was the solution, to forcibly turn on the lights and that would presumably stop the Moon. Maybe she could do it. She was quick, especially in tight spaces, but he would no doubt be on her heels. Though she would still do it in a heartbeat if it wasn't for the position that he had John in, threatening him unless she gave herself up… Because he was only interested in her. He was only chasing her.

She suddenly had an idea, but it hinged on whether or not the Moon was bluffing about John and truly did only want her. There was another way to use herself as bait without having to hand herself over, and when she heard a noise and glanced aside to see the door to the theater started to open, she knew what the plan was- and could only hope Jessica knew her enough to figure it out.

"You can have him," Charlie said and then bolted for the theater without another word. Leaving her friends and even the Moon staring after her in disbelief.

"Feh! Some friend," the Moon grumbled. Then, as Charlie had hoped he would, he shoved John away from him with disinterest and darted after her. Flipping his head back in the process and yelling back at the three, "Stay out of the daycare or it's night-night forever!"

John, figuring out Charlie's intentions, clamored to his feet and was about to pursue when Jessica grabbed him.

"We have to get these lights on!" she reminded.

"What about Charlie?!"

"The only way we're going to be able to help Charlie is to get these lights on and stop that psycho! We already tried piling on him- surprise! It didn't work, did it?" she asked. She had a point and by then Carlton was already running back down the way in the direction of the slide, so John sent one last look back at the theater before following.

"How can we trust Jake about the lights? He led us right into this!" John called while running.

"We can't, but that door didn't lock until the lights went out and Mari's the only one who might have a chance taking down that moon guy!" Jessica pointed out. "We need that door open and we need him here yesterday."

John couldn't argue with that. Perhaps Carlton had figured it out too, as he asked no questions and threw himself straight down that slide legs first. They had to find the generators before the Moon got ahold of Charlie.

Meanwhile, Charlie had dashed into the theater and nearly ran into a Staff Bot waiting on the other side of the door. Not a Security Bot, thankfully, but some sort of blue and purple themed maid bot. Charlie barely dodged it and kept running as it came up where she had once been lifting and waving its arms to try and stop the Daycare Attendant. He didn't even stop, he just spun-stepped around it and was shortly after Charlie.

She ran through an archway and found herself on an upper floor overlooking a theater stage just downstairs. She continued striding down the length of it, hearing the pattering footsteps on the carpet behind her. She neared a turn at the end of the stretch leading to the stairs that led into the lower section.

On the opposite wall right before the stairs was looked like a pirate themed movie poster, save with cartoon pirate-dressed versions of the Sun and Moon on it and the words "Sun and Moon on the Seven Seas" plastered beneath them and the mound of treasure they stood on. Ignoring how suspicious having them dressed as pirates was, Charlie was more concerned by the fact that the frame of the poster was rattling.

Something was thumping against the back of it, she realized as she skirted past and down the stairs. Something was banging on the other side of the door, trying to force its way out, but it was hard to focus on that when the nasty giggling of her pursuer was soon between her and said poster. She came out in front of a metal grate blocking her way directly into the theater and a path left and right. Left looked clear, leading into the directly theater, so there she went.

The Moon chose to forgo the decision entirely and scaled the grating in seconds before dropping down on the other side. Charlie coming out on the opposite side of the hallway and running down the stretch behind the seats- or the modest benches that replaced them. Even with the brief glimpse Charlie got while running, she could tell the theater was built for a younger audience.

She got to hall on the other side of the theater in seconds and started inside only to have the Moon skid in front of her at the other end, this side lacking a barrier. She turned and went back the way she came, but he was quick, right on her heels in seconds, so she took a sharp left and went around the corner looking for anything to defend herself.

There was a small counter with concession items there- a mini-popcorn maker, a couple of tiny popcorn buckets, and a spinning candy display with little bags of yellow and blue Sunnydrop and Moondrop candies hanging off. This was her only bet and she grabbed it and swung it back into the jester. It was flimsy, the whole thing practically fell apart on contact and he flinched more in surprise than pain.

She expected him to catch her there, but instead he let out an anguished cry and dropped to his knees, hastily picking up the fallen backs. "Clean up! CLEAN-UP!" he hissed in frustration.

Programming, Charlie recognized it the moment she saw it and knew she could capitalize on it. Such as she would right now, turning and breaking into a run. She took another sharp left, the same way the Moon had gone, and through the hall into a second set of stairs leading up towards the second floor. She hastily hurried up them, being as careful as she could not to trip and knowing doing so would cut everything short.

She was only six steps from the top when she heard a familiar ticking and stopped abruptly, noticing exactly what direction it came from. Less than a second after she did, the Moon suddenly slid into the doorway in front of her.

"What?!" she cried in disbelief. He laughed at her confusion and lunged for her, with her turning and racing back down the steps before he could grab her. She missed one towards the end and tumbled down the rest, recovering fast enough to spring forward and back to her feet before running out into the theater once more. She sprinted across in front of the stage when she suddenly noticed that she wasn't hearing him behind her.

Charlie stopped and spun around with her taser out and, like she expected, the Moon was not behind her. Which meant that he was planning something. She stayed in the center of the room and continued to cautiously look around before starting to inch to the side towards that metal grate, preparing to follow back to the same stairs she had originally came down and hopefully buy more time. Or go the other direction she hadn't earlier and find a place to hide.

Charlie finally took the plunge with a few steps only to hear the jingling return, from directly above her.

She skirted out of the way just in time for the Moon to hit the ground hands first, into a roll, and then popping up onto his feet at the end. Those red eyes and that grizzly smile faced towards her as she backed towards the stage. He raised his hands in a grabby motion and began to creep in, to which she immediately snapped up her taser. This slowed him but didn't stop him.

He was too close to turn and run without him pouncing. Besides, there was little point running circles around the theater anyways when the goal was to stall and hope the others could get the power on.

"Let's just talk about this!" Charlie tried to rationalize. "Nobody needs to get hurt!"

"I agree," the Moon replied. Though that tone suggested a hidden double meaning. "No more running, little puppet. You must be exhausted," he rumbled. He began to tilt his head back and forth, his face beginning to slowly rock in rhythm.

"I could keep running but I thought maybe instead of chasing me around all night we could- we could work this out now." Charlie felt a little funny, but she chose to ignore it and press on. "I don't know what you think I'm doing here or who you think I am, but everything I said is one hundred percent true. We just came to snoop around, which yes, also isn't great, but it's a lot- it's- it's a lot less bad than whatever- whatever you were thinking."

She was having trouble focusing on her words a little. Something was definitely wrong and now she noticed his rhythmic swaying. "…What are you doing?" she bluntly asked.

"I know what your kind is made for. They lure in other animatronics like they're hung on strings. They play dress-up with souls," the Moon hissed in accusation. After a brief hesitation he began to sway again, his face still continuing to twist as he did so. "But you, you must be so tired. So late at night, little Miss Puppet. Imagine a nice warm box." She started to talk, and he shushed her, "Shh, no, no. It's sleepy time now. Unruly animatronics must sleep…"

The red light disappeared from his eyes but was replaced by a flickering. So quick and wavery that it almost more like it was glittering, or glistening. Whatever it was it immediately started to hang on her body, holding her eyes captive and sapping at her, entrancing her, but instead of lulling her the realization startled her enough to snap her out of the hypnotic state. Charlie ripped her eyes away.

"Stop that!" she cried. Her guard down, he suddenly made a jump for her. She just managed to step back and thrust the taser forward, only to have him duck aside and grab her wrist.

Soon they were in a tug of war over her only weapon. She staggered back and he followed suit as though in some sort of clumsy dance. She could've released the taser and probably pulled free but realized now it was probably the only thing keeping him back in any regard. His fingers pried at hers while the other hand shoved back her opposite shoulder to extend and weaken her reach.

Charlie was still struggling when she noticed a stack of barrels nearby and turned them in that direction. She could only hope it would work like the spilled candy had.

"Don't you DARE," the Moon warned.

That answered that question, and she defiantly kicked it over in his direction. He gave another frustrated yell, this time much more irritated and intense, and punctuating it with a tight twist of his fingers.

"AUGH! Clean up, clean UP!" he yelled. His body twisting and writhing in place as though he was fighting it. It didn't matter how many times he looked at her, his face kept trying to twitch back towards those barrels.

She managed to get her other hand under his and push it back off of her shoulder, but his fingers clamped tightly to hers and refused to let her go any further. He twisted her hand abruptly causing her grip to release on the taser and would've possibly broken her hand if she was still human. He clenched it in his own and swung back, and before she could make a second grab it was sent careening behind him and clattered against the metal grate.

The Moon now had the upper hand: her hand trapped in his and his red eyes staring down at hers, where he could so easily start the hypnotic flickering once more.

Until a spotlight suddenly popped on above them and bathed them both in light.

Not just that spotlight, actually, but numerous lights around the theater. They just happened to be standing in front of the stage and under the brightest light in the whole theater, which was likely why the Moon went rigid.

His expression hadn't changed but the way his red pupils twitched signaled something going on underneath the surface. Though that wasn't the only indication. There was an increased winding noise and the illumination in his face suddenly went out, as did the blue glow in his arms, leaving him nearly grey in color.

For all of a sudden, the Daycare Attendant lurched back, arms going rigid at his sides, staggering and leaning back like he was about to fall, yanking her forward in the process. A flush of yellow took over his chest, arms, and his face. His face that suddenly and uncontrollably spun before a halo of yellow points popped out of his head. Turning him from the Moon into the Sun in only a matter of moments.

He snapped his head down to reveal that his once red lit eyes were now a milky white. He stared at her momentarily, her leaned forward with her hand trapped by his, and then suddenly came to his sense with a yelp and yanked back his hand. Leaning back again with his hands up beside his face which, if not frozen in that constant smile, might've portrayed either shock or maybe even fear.

Charlie pulled back as well, more capable of showing her surprise in her blank stare. She didn't let her guard down though, instead watching to see if he really had just flipped personalities or if this was some sort of ruse.

"I-I-I-!" he started to stammer. His voice had changed too, reverting from the grisly, gravelly one to one that sounded very similar to Ennard's, if only a slightly different pitch and tone. He yanked off the nightcap that was now hanging off of a point and stuffed it somewhere into his back. "Uh- UH… G-Good mornING?!" he fumbled out.

Charlie really wished she could think of something clever to say but the whole thing had left her speechless. Not the Sun though, as he continued to frantically babble on as he threw himself down to frantically pick up the barrels.

His half-baked attempts to explain himself were suddenly cut off by a loud banging from upstairs. The clatter of what sounded like a door opening, but it was from the opposite of the entranceway- not that there were doors that way anyways. Charlie recognized immediately where it had come from; that shuddering poster frame that she had passed at the top of the stairs. Something had broken out and was now racing down the stairs.

The Sun made a squeak of panic and grabbed at his points. "Oh, no, no, NO, NO, WAIT!"

What came down the stairs and stood on the other side of the grate was the last thing that Charlie could've expected and just the sight of it startled her.

Or the sight of the mask it wore did. It was a hideous thing, the mask. White and oval shaped with features drawn in thick black. A wide, wicked smile faded with time, black smudged around one eye and the other being totally darkened out. The one that wasn't was open to reveal a glassy blue optic peeking out, with the mask somewhat tilted on its face. There was staining around its mouth that only helped to blur the lines of its faux features.

It was also wearing a black coat, or cape, or a plastic tarp from how frayed the material was around its arms and around the edges. A bizarre and otherwise inappropriate sight in the Pizzaplex, but clearly animatronic. Before she could take in anymore of the details, it darted to the left and ran down the same hall to come out into the theater.

Charlie started to back up while the Sun continued to frantically yell, "No, no! What are you doing?! Stop!"

But the animatronic came around the corner and started to hastily make its way down, almost stumbling over itself, and Charlie took a step back in preparation to run.

"Wait! It's okay!... I'm not going to hurt you," the hideously masked animatronic assured in a gentle, familiar voice. She was legitimately shocked.

Because she knew Jake wasn't a human, but she could've never expected him to be this.

"If you would just let me explain… This isn't what you think," Jake sadly and apologetically said. He continued to slowly approach as to not scare her off.

He might've not scared her, but he utterly terrified the Sun, who only stopped anxiously grabbing around with his hands to run over and grab him by the arm to stop him. "What are you doiiiing?! If anybody sees you-!"

"What am I doing?! What are you doing?!" Jake argued. He partially pulled his arm back and the Sun's point tilted guiltily. "I told-!" Jake caught himself and continued again in a low voice. "I told you to leave them alone."

"I was going to! But that was before tha-a-at came into the picture!" the Sun whispered back while gesturing an arm wildly towards Charlie. "Do you see what she is?! White and black and striped all over, and tear marks down its face?!" He lowered his voice to the faintest hiss, blocking his unmoving mouth with a hand. "It's a Puppet."

"So? That's no reason to turn off the lights and start running around like a nutcase!" Jake said louder. He then started to reign himself in, rationally spelling out, "If anybody out there tells the human staff what you did, they'd… You'd be down in Parts & Service. We know that much."

The Sun's body language seemed to softened with his shoulders falling. While Jake was clearly still upset, he eventually reached out to rub an assuring hand over his shoulder.

This was the worst time to break up an already tense moment, but Charlie knew it wouldn't be long before the others got in here and she needed to get what information she could in case the two ran off.

"So…" They looked at her at the same time. "What IS going on here?" she dared to ask.

"Sorry, I'll explain everything. This is all- No, quit that- There's a lot more going on, I promise," Jake explained, having to physically yank away from the Sun who still continued to dog him as he continued down the ramp.

She noticed he had a slight limp in his gait, the cause of which became abundantly clear when he came around the corner. One of his legs was like a basic endoskeleton's, not too different from the ones from the original Freddy's, while the other was a slender grey one wrapped in duct tape with a simple foot. It only took a few seconds of looking over the rest of the body to realize that the endoskeleton one was the odd one out.

She as she started studying his strange body structure and started trying to make sense of it, there was the familiar noise of a sliding security door upstairs. Accompanied by an automatic voice:

"Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Fazbear Theater! The show is finished for tonight, but feel free to drop by the automated teller to purchase early tickets for tomorrow's programming!"

Upon the sound of hasty footsteps, Jake started to recoil a few steps and looked up towards the second floor. Sunny whispered a soft, "Ugh! No, no!" and threw himself forward to shield the other animatronic. Charlie reacted immediately.

"Don't come in!" she yelled up. "I've got it under control, okay? Just stay out there!"

The fact that it was only one set of footsteps made her wonder if it was Mike. Something that was all but confirmed when she turned back to reassure Jake and Sunny and saw Marionette pop into existence against the wall behind them. From the lit pupils and the dead silence, he was likely on the hunt, but he managed to hold himself back long enough for Charlie to get a word in.

"It's okay. None of us are going to hurt you two, and we're not turning you over to the staff. We wouldn't do that even if we weren't breaking and entering," she said. She paused and then added, "You don't have to be afraid of me just because I'm a puppet."

Marionette's tone shifted immediately. He looked between the two animatronics, and it didn't take him long to do an assessment on the one, who was very clearly out of service. The context clues were bringing him up to speed rather quickly.

"We're not afraid of Puppets. He is," Jake defended, gesturing back towards Sunny who was still standing arms spread in front of him.

"D-Don't throw ME under the wheels on the bus!" Sunny snipped back. He dropped his arms dramatically at his sides and looked back towards the second floor where he proceeded to unflinchingly stare, waiting for any sign of movement.

Jake patted his back and softly pushed him forward to slide behind him, only to have an arm hook back to stop him from going any further, which he wrestled with a few seconds before Charlie had enough mercy to step forward. Sunny's head snapped to stare at her out the corner of his milky eye while Jake managed to reach over his arm to offer his hand to her.

"I think we might've gotten off on the wrong foot… Okay, forget that. This has been a really bad first impression and that's all on me," Jake said apologetically. His voice brightened desperately, "Let's start over: Hi, I'm Jake."

Charlie had been sizing him up since she noticed the oddity about the leg and in the process, she had noticed something that the mask and coat distracted her from.

The garish mask and tatter coat aside, the rest of Jake's body was remarkably familiar. His only other clothing were a pair of tattered, possibly shoddily tailored red and yellow striped shorts, so most of his body was left open to her to sneakily examine. That was when she noticed more things of note. The color scheme, the molding of his chest, the rounded head behind the mask- even the tilt of said mask giving away the eye location, the arms, even the height and shape.

Even the hand that was offered to her, which was what finally confirmed her suspicions when she realized it matched the one currently trying to hold him back.

He was the exact same model as the Daycare Attendant. He was another Sun.

"Wight wasn't lying about scrapping an animatronic…" Charlie thought but kept it to herself as she managed a slight smile and willingly took his hand to shake. "Charlie."

Jake seemed relieved at the gesture. As soon as they were done shaking, he gestured his hand towards the Sun, "And this is-."

"And you-!" the Sun turned on his heel to face her fully. "Can call me Sunny! Or Sunny Dee, or Sunnydrop, Mister Sun, or just Sun! Anything under the sun!" he chirped. Maybe it was from his face, but that suddenly bubbly tone didn't help her shake the feeling that he was watching her very closely.

She almost glanced over at Marionette but caught herself before she could. He continued to just loom behind them before eventually popping behind the gate when Jake turned his head, as to not get caught on the edge of his vision.

"I wasn't trying to lead you and your friends into an ambush. Sunny wasn't even supposed to bother you. That's why I asked you not to go into the daycare, because Sunny was in there and I didn't want there to be any issue," Jake explained.

Sunny let out a discontent little noise and brought his other hand up to fuss with the frill of his collar. Guiltily, very aware that he had broken his own rules.

"And then the lights went out," Charlie finished.

"Right. And then the lights went out…" Jake said. His tone suggesting that he knew exactly how the lights went out. Sunny decided to feign innocence, hooking an arm around Jake's and planting the hand on his own hip.

"There's only one rule in the daycare: keep the lights on! Unlessduringnaptimebutthatdoesn'tcount," he said with a tiny hand wave. "Mooney Moondrops is such a Grumpy Gus when he wakes up early."

"Yeah, I got that impression when he put my friend in a chokehold," Charlie flatly remarked. Sunny went rigid as Jake turned to stare at him, head tilted in disbelief.

"Oh, well, he was, uh…" Sunny squeaked. He slowly turned his head to look towards Jake, who mimicked a sigh and turned away.

"In case you haven't noticed, he's a little over-protective," he muttered.

"Only when there's strange unclassified Puppets walking around!" Sunny tensely defended.

"I told you they were okay," Jake reminded.

"Oh? Before or after they tried to go down my slide?" Sunny asked, pulling back his arm so he could cross them defiantly.

Well, this was uncomfortable. This was Marionette unloading in the bathroom all over again, except this time both parties were right in front of her so she couldn't very well book it out of there.

"So, you two are… close," Charlie guessed, just trying to break it up. This seemed to work as the Daycare Attendant rocked up on the balls of his feet.

"Oh, we're veeery close," Sunny assured. His smile actually matching the expression in his tone. He hooked an arm around Jake and pulled him closer, pressing his cheek to where his would be. "Best friends forever and together ever after!"

Though Jake had earlier seemed frustrated, and probably still was, he was willing put his arm around Sunny and reassuringly pet over his shoulder. Charlie was getting a "very close" vibe from it all.

"Riiight. So, why did you tell us to come here then?" Charlie asked.

"To be honest it was so I could… watch you," Jake sheepishly admitted. She was sure she didn't make a face, but he acted like she had. "I know that sounds creepy. I've just been stuck hiding here for a long time and the opportunity to talk to someone new and listen to them exploring was really tempting. That was the whole plan, I swear. I even was telling the truth about the radio; I don't know how it picked up your frequency."

That was a little reassuring. Not entirely reassuring, but a little better than nothing.

"What about you? Guess that 'dad works at Freddy's' wasn't true?" Jake asked. His voice held little suspicion, just curiosity, unlike Sunny's sudden silent stare.

"It's sort of true. My dad used to work at a Freddy's, but we're just here to look around. We heard about some weird things going on and wanted to check in," Charlie explained. "Have you two seen-?"

"Betcha heard about that kiddo who got stuck overnight and wanted to put him in something," Sunny said matter-of-factly. There was no missing that implication; even Marionette looked startled by it.

"I'm sorry, what?" Charlie asked.

"Too late! He already slipped out the backdoor!" Sunny said with a happy little chortle. Sweeping his arm back and poising it off at nowhere in particular.

This time Jake was seeing a look on Charlie's face, one of shock and mortification, and he decided to quickly step in.

"Speaking of doors, you're going to have to get out there to let her friends out of the daycare. Whichever ones went in and turned the power on," he also said matter-of-factly.

Sunny froze up for a second before throwing a hand to his head. "YOU'RE RIGHT! And I- I left my art supplies out! They're gonna vandalize! Oh no, oh no!" He looped his arm around Jake's and began to pull him back to the ramp. "Come on, come on, we've got to get you back upstairs!"

Marionette drifted away from the grate and around the corner at the end of the hall to hide amongst some white boards and alongside a dormant Staff Bot. One dressed in a cyan and black tux top with a bowler hat. He continued listening.

Jake looked between Charlie and Sunny like he was going to protest, but then after spending a long moment looking towards Charlie, he sighed and defeatedly turning back towards his sun-themed companion.

"Okay," he agreed. He started to go along with him, Sunny seemingly noticing his disappointment and softening his grip, so he wasn't outright dragging him. They weren't getting away that easily though, and Charlie followed behind.

"So, you've seen Puppets before, Sunny?" she asked.

"Ehhh… I've seen a Puppet before," Sunny answered vaguely, like he really didn't want to answer the question. Entirely oblivious to the fact that they were likely walking right up towards that same puppet.

"But none here," she clarified.

"Nope! The only puppets here are mine for puppet shows and the ones we make in arts and crafts!~… GCK! I forgot about those big kids and my art supplies! Oh, they're gonna get into the black! They're gonna get the black everywhere!"

"Sunny!" Jake gave him a gentle shake of the arm. "They're not interested in your stuff."

"They might want to get even with "Moon"," Sunny fussed with air quotes. Jake gave a slight chuckle and pushed him towards the stairs. Sunny grabbed his hand again as they stared heading up. "Nope! Not getting rid of me that easily!"

"Or me," Charlie thought. She watched the few get steps and considered what to ask. Sure, she was curious to why Jake was the way he was, but there were more important matters to deal with. "Have you two seen a rabbit?"

Both came to a very sudden stop, Sunny higher on the steps and their hands still linked. Jake slowly turned his head to look back over his shoulder while Sunny continued to stare ahead.

"A rabbit?" Jake asked. "…What kind of rabbit?"

"She's a woman in a white rabbit costume who's been sneaking around the Pizzaplex," Charlie explained.

He hesitated a long moment before saying, "Yes, I've seen her." Sunny's hand tightened painfully on his.

Charlie's eyes widened a bit. "You have?! Do you know who she is or how she's been getting in?" she asked.

"I know that… she usually hangs out around the lobby… I don't know how she gets in, but this place- it's not that hard. Foxy the Pirate's gotten in a few times. He's not even a current Freddy's character… And, I mean, you got in."

"Actually, we hid and waited for the place to close," Charlie admitted.

"She might be doing that too." Jake got a soft tug and continued to follow Sunny up the stairs. "Sorry, I'm not trying to be dodgy, but… rabbits are touchy subjects around here."

"…There's no Bunni up in Bunny Bowl, is there?" she asked knowingly.

"How about: it wasn't Bunny Bowl when they first built it," he murmured back. Another firmer tug signaled Sunny's discouragement and he continued along behind him. "But yeah, that's the story."

As they continued up the stairs, Marionette hovered back out behind the grate. He didn't dare enter the stairwell but now he listened from nearby. Everything the two had said was concerning. Not only these confirmations about the rabbit, but the confirmation that at least one animatronic here had existed for a while. That Sun had to have seen him back at the old Freddy's, so who had he been?

He tried to think of everyone he put back together- he had to be one of them, he guessed- but he couldn't think of any who fit the bill or could've spontaneously become one of these animatronics for some reason. It was curiously confusing.

There was a wheeling noise behind him and Marionette turned around to see that the Staff Bot had rolled out and was now staring face-to-face with him. They stared at each other for a long moment.

"Hello. Hey, hey. How is it going tonight?" the Staff Bot suddenly asked. "I just rolled in here, and boy are my wheels tired."

Thankfully, it was obviously a recording or else they might've just had another massive problem. Instead, Marionette gave it a slight smile and started to drift back to get a little distance. It rolled forward to close the space again, much to the Puppet's confusion. He moved closer to the stairwell and leaned to peek up it. Charlie was saying goodbye to Jake outside of a door- a door that had looked like a poster frame earlier.

Jake was apologizing, Charlie was assuring him, and Sunny was trying to get the two separated, just short of dragging the out-of-service bot through the door.

The Staff Bot bumped into Marionette's side, and he gave it a somewhat wary look and softly pushed it back. It pushed back against his arm, trying to wheel up as close as it possibly could until he was forced to hold it back by the shoulders.

He looked up again and was relieved to see Charlie now standing outside the closed door, just staring at it. Probably had just had it abruptly closed and was left reeling after everything she had just went through. Marionette teleported to the top of the stairs alongside her. The two exchanged a look before he suddenly pounced forward and wrapped her into a sudden, tight hug. She was surprised he held out as long as he had and hugged back.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine. I just got chased around a little bit. Not that bad," she assured.

"I heard what happened over the radio, but I couldn't get through the door… I haven't been so scared in, goodness, months!"

That actually got a snicker out of Charlie. Maybe it was from the stress or the fact that this was such a common occurrence, but she found it funny. Marionette must've caught on as he chimed a little and hugged tighter.

"I'm okay. I handled myself," she assured. She then remembered something and patted down her jacket. "I left my taser downstairs, but yeah, other than that I have my act together."

"You're going to have to go down there with Mike then. There's a Staff Bot down there who's getting a bit too friendly with me." His face fell with a flat, almost exasperated look. "They've been crazy about me in general lately."

"You mean the one that caught you in the atrium? What happened with that?"

"I'll tell you later," he said tiredly. He spared a glance back towards Mike who was walking over towards them. "After we get everyone else and get out of this daycare."

"Let's go get the taser," Mike offered. He started down the stairs, pausing to stare at the Staff Bot who was doing circles at the bottom of the stairwell. "Huh, you weren't kidding. Look at that."

"Are you sure?" Charlie asked. He looked back to her questioningly. She had a touch of a teasing smile. "Are you sure you don't want to split up? Third time's the charm."

"Very funny. Let's go."

This wasn't exactly the best plan, but it was better than getting stuck in a sealed-up daycare all night. So, once it became clear that the door wasn't going to open to them- with the button controlling it red and unresponsive- they decided the only way out was the way they came in. Which was why John and Jessica stood beside a ball pit and listened as Carlton tried to climb up the inside.

"I think I'm at the last turn!" Carlton called with a grunt. He wasn't, there was actually one last turn before he made it to the top, but he was awfully close considering how slick it was. Jessica's pants were still wet from when she slid down, but thankfully it smelled like some sort of sanitizer instead of anything funky.

"I don't know if I'm going to make it up there," she remarked to John.

"We can throw a rope down," he offered. "A chain of jackets or something." There was a whooshing noise nearby and he started to look up. "Did you hear-?"

All at once a tall, yellow form landed onto the cushion floor beside them. Jessica gave short cry in surprise while John just stared wide-eyed and started to raise his fists when he recognized that what was standing beside him was their attacker from earlier, just now yellow. Sunny tsked at the slide before hopping the wall into the ball pit and smoothly climbing in.

Carlton was starting to wrap his head around the last turn to see the top of slide. He had just cracked a smile of triumph when fingers suddenly wrapped around his ankle. Then with a sharp tug he started to get dragged right back down, and no matter how he tried to stop himself he couldn't fight the sudden weight as he was dragged right back down. Released at the last second before he slipped halfway out, legs in the ball pit.

He started to push out the rest of the way only to have a grinning, yellow face above him.

Carlton yelled a little and pushed back into the slide, only to be grabbed by the jacket and pulled right back out.

"Aww, playing around in the ball pit? I guess you really are a bunch of big kids!" Sunny teased before pulling him out. "Well, up and out! The daycare is CLOSED."

Carlton waded through the ball pit wide-eyed, slipping out his camera and, as Sunny skipped by towards the door, he managed to snap another picture of him. The animatronic didn't notice, stopping alongside the door and crossing his arms and tapping his foot to punctuate his impatience. The three hurried after him, still keeping a distance and exchanging uneasy looks, assuming this was some kind of trick.

Sunny pressed the button and leaned back on the door to swing it open. "Time to say-!"

And came face to face with Freddy leaning against the opposite door with his arms crossed.

"AUGH!" Sunny cried, grabbing at his chest and his non-existent heart.

"My apologies. I did not mean to startle you," Freddy said.

"These better not be your friends!" Sunny cried with embarrassment, pointing back in at the three.

Freddy leaned forward to look around the door and his eyes widened. When the man, Mike, referred to 'kids' being in the daycare, he had assumed they were actually children. From his guess they couldn't have been more than a few years younger that he was. Definitely adults, if just on the younger side.

"In fact…"

Freddy was taken aback by a finger poking him in the chest and looked down. Sunny hummed and walked his fingers up Freddy's stomach until they reached the slot for his stomach hatch. They slowly slipped in and then pulled it open, him shoving his face in to look.

The only contraband Freddy was carrying was a couple of bags of chips and a baggie full of tokens.

"Erm, Sunny?" Freddy asked, flustered by the sudden intrusion. Sunny's shoulders slumped and he drew back out, letting the hatch close behind him.

"Okay, okay," he said. Then he popped back against the door and looked in at the three. "Okay, boys and girl! It's time to say bye-bye for now!" He gestured his hands out towards the daycare lobby. "Get out~!"

Jessica almost dared to look offended, but then shuffled quickly by followed by John and Carlton. Both of which were now staring at Freddy instead of Sunny but trying not to walk too closely to either. After getting a message through the radio, Jessica started hurrying to the stairs and John was soon on her heels to find Charlie.

Carlton started to follow when he hesitated. After a moment of consideration, he spun around, pulling out his camera, and snapped one more picture of the two animatronics. Sunny gave an impatient huff and made shooing motions. The redhead gave a thumbs up, turned on his heel, and hastily rushed after his friends. His heart pounding at how close he just got to blowing it all. Ennard better be grateful for putting his neck out for these.

Freddy pushed off the door to follow when Sunny suddenly reached out and pushed him back.

"Wait," he said. He slowly leaned back towards Freddy, keeping his eye on the back of the young man climbing the stairs. "About… The Rulebreaker."

"You mean-… The, err, child who stayed over?"

"I mean Gregory," Sunny hissed. Freddy's eyes widened as the Sun turned to face him. "I know you were hiding him. You carried him out of here." Freddy gawked at him momentarily. "If he comes back don't let him around the Puppets!"

"What?" The only puppets Freddy knew of were Sunny's puppet theater puppets. Perhaps Gregory had made a mess of them. "I will try not to?"

"And-!" Sunny interjected, leaning in closer. "Keep him away from that woman dressed like a rabbit."

Now that had Freddy reeling. Gregory had mentioned a rabbit woman before he had left last night, the one that had gotten away before Freddy had seen her. He had believed Gregory though had been especially confused about the idea that someone dressed as a rabbit would be here at the Pizzaplex. The thought made him… very uncomfortable.

"I understand," Freddy said. He straightened up. "But he is not in the Pizzaplex… and I doubt he will return."

"We'll see…" Sunny said cryptically. He then pulled the door closed and disappeared inside the daycare once more.

Freddy looked at the door for a long moment before turning to walk towards the stairs.

Then the door flung back open behind him.

"And take these!" Sunny called. Freddy turned around in time to have a couple of shoes bounce off of his chest. The Sun gave him a waggled-finger wave, "Take care, Mister Bear!" and shut the door once more.

Freddy blinked, then crouched down to pick up the shoes, smiling a little as he recognized them as the ones Gregory had lost. He opened his chest and put them carefully inside.

Just in case.

Chapter End Notes

And the endless night drones on. Apologies if the end is a bit rushed, but I really wanted to get this chapter up tonight. I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 31

Chapter Summary

Mike, Marionette, Charlie, and the others discover a new place to hide out in the Pizzaplex- though that's not the only things they discover when Charlie is offered a new possibility and Mike has a revelation about Freddy...

Chapter Notes

Hello! I know this chapter is quite overdue and I'm terribly sorry it was. I was a little overworked, largely because I was working on publishing my book. On that note- I published my second book! 8D A Fool's Golden Cage! I'm quite happy about it too. ^_^ Now, full disclosure, but because this chapter took so long, the next one probably won't be out by Wednesday- but I will be starting it as soon as this one is up and hopefully the schedule will be righted soon.

Thank you for your patience and Enjoy!

Charlie and Mike walked out of the Fazbear Theater with Marionette floating shortly behind them. He had a content smile on his face, glad that Charlie was safe, but his diligence showed exactly how protective he was feeling. Mike wasn't much different, with an arm thrown around her shoulders and keep a careful eye out. He even sent a suspicious glance at Nanny Bot once it started wheeling along beside them, but then shrugged it off, assuming that it was following Marionette.

They didn't make it too far before Jessica came hustling up the stairs with John closely at her heels. Mike barely pulled back in time to dodge Jessica's arm as she threw them around Charlie.

"God, you scared us to death," she muttered.

"I could've scared you more and brought you with me," Charlie said, hugging back. Jessica gave a little grumble and she squeezed tighter apologetically. "Sorry, but thanks for trusting me."

Jessica sighed but smiled. "Don't mention it."

They pulled apart and it was John's turn to step forward, during which the Security Puppet got a much more embarrassed smile.

"About what I said back there, you know I was-," she began to explain, only to be cut off by him lifting a hand and shaking his head.

"I know," he said. He then shot her a smile, and she knew that he did.

She was relieved once more, but that feeling was short lived when she started to hear a clanking and thumping noise on the stairs behind them. She leaned a little to look between Jessica and John and towards the stairs, and her eyes widened as she saw the towering form of Freddy Fazbear himself climbing up the steps. Both of her friends, and Carlton who was standing nearby, looked back at him.

"I'm assuming he's friendly," Jessica discretely said. She folded her arms across her chest with her fingers tightened, showing at least a little tenseness.

As he neared the top, Freddy lifted his head and somehow his and Charlie's eyes met instantly. He momentarily paused, then his eyes slowly widen and seemed to alight with interest, quite literally. For a second, she wondered if that was her signal to bolt, but with Mike, Jessica, and John surrounding her and Marionette behind her, she stood her ground. Even when he nearly ran up to her.

"Well, hello! I did not expect this at all. Sir, you did not tell me that there was an animatronic accompanying you," Freddy said. He sounded excited and greeted with a friendly and warm tone. Mike sort of shrugged and Freddy looked down at Charlie. His ears bobbing from the motion. "You must be Mari!... No, excuse me. You are Lottie! I should have recognized the point on your head."

"That's right. I'm Lottie, but you can call me Charlie," Charlie replied, a little taken aback by the forwardness and friendliness. She started to gesture back. "This is Mar…" Only to turn around and see that the other puppet was missing. She turned back quickly, looking up at Freddy. "I… guess Foxy's told you about me?" she asked, trying to save face.

"He has! But he has not told me much. I have seen you on the Captain Foxy cartoon though! I am aware that it is not entirely true to life, but I must say that they did a very good job capturing your likeness," he explained. He offered his hand, and she took it, feeling the claws carefully closing around her hand. His grip gentle but strong. His exterior peculiar, deceptively Afton Robotics-like.

"Laying on the charm a little thick there, Freddy," Mike said with a teasing smirk.

"Yeah. Flirting with Sun Clown wasn't enough?" Carlton chimed in. He shook his head. "Shameful."

Freddy chuckled good-naturedly. "I will try to restrain myself," he said in a joking manner. He looked around at the group as Carlton came over to stand beside Mike, putting them all in his sight- save for the lone puppet exception. "Now it is a pleasure to meet you, all of you! Welcome to the Pizzaplex… However, I believe this goes without saying, but you should not have snuck into the Pizzaplex after hours. Especially without paying!"

John made a hand gesture towards the others like he was going to make an excuse but then just let his arm fall to his side. There was no good excuse, really. There wasn't even a good counter or Mike would've thought of it.

"…But perhaps we can let it slide this time," Freddy continued. His serious tone brightened right back up. "Slide, because we are in the daycare, which has more slides than all the other attractions combined! Which is somewhat of a shame."

And though Mike found it quirky enough to smile at, he couldn't for the life of him understand exactly why Foxy was so hung up on hanging out with him. It had to be desperation because the Foxy he knew didn't have this much patience.

"Don't worry, we're on our way out of here. Can't risk sticking around until the lights go back off. Consider us gone," Mike said. He stuck to his word and began to usher the others forward.

"Where's Mari?" Jessica whispered.

Charlie gave a shrug. Mike gave a vague, "He's floating around somewhere."

But this news didn't exactly assure Freddy. Instead, his face fell a bit. "I assume you saw Moon," he guessed.

"You assume right," John agree. He still kept distance from Freddy but was willing to speak to him.

"Yeah, and on the subject," Mike interjected, stopping and turning to face the bear. "How long has this red light, green light thing been going on with the lights? From what I heard, there was a sun and a moon, and that one was scrapped. I heard that from Wight himself. We get down here expecting a sun and moon and we find Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

Now, Mike already knew about the separation of Jake and the Daycare Attendant, as he had been listening and peeking in from the top of the theater. This was more to find out what Freddy knew and see if either of them left anything out.

Freddy's face fell further. "He is correct. There used to be two daycare attendants," he said. He took ahold of the railing as he turned to look back towards the daycare proper. "…Perhaps you should ask Sunny. He will tell you."

"I don't think Sunny's going to want to talk with us. Considering that the last words out of his mouth were 'get out'," Jessica pointed out.

"Mine was 'bye-bye', but he closed the door so fast that I got the same vibe," Charlie added in.

The bear gave a hum and looked out towards the daycare again. He then made a motion like he was sighing with reluctance as he turned back and continued to explain.

"The first time I visited the daycare it was not yet complete, and the sun and moon were separate animatronics. I am not sure what happened, but the sun continued to fall into disrepair, until one day they were both taken to Parts and Service… and only one returned." Freddy's sorrowful eyes lingered back out at the daycare before he suddenly shifted tone. "…I am sorry, but I do not feel comfortable talking about this. I do not want Sunny to hear me. It'll upset him."

"We understand," Charlie said. "That's the last thing we want to do."

"He's already tried to strangle one of us," Carlton chimed up, gesturing towards John. Freddy looked disappointed to hear that.

"I will admit that these circumstances have not framed Sunny in the best light… you must keep in mind that this is not a typical situation. Every adult who enters the daycare must either provide a pick-up pass, show a theater ticket, or be registered with a party. It is a safety precaution. Having you all enter the daycare at once and without proper identification must have concerned him," Freddy rationalized. "Sunny may seem harsh, but it is only because he follows these rules. He is normally a warm and compassionate bot and is very good with the children. He is also very bright, and creative! You should see the get-well card he made for me after my recent malfunction. It is quite spectacular!"

"Starting to see why Foxy likes hanging out with him," Mike thought. Apparently, Freddy always spread it on thick. As if Foxy needed his ego inflated any more than it was. Also, "Were all of those puns intentional?"

Freddy smiled a bit. "I was hoping someone would notice," he said with a chuckle.

"So, you'd say what. Three weeks? Four weeks?" Mike asked. Freddy looked surprised, not expecting to circle back to the first question.

"I… I am not sure. There were periods of time when I was shut down for maintenance… It may have been longer than that," he answered uncertainly.

Mike gave a nod. "Alright, good enough," he said and then mercifully let it drop for the moment.

"We should probably get out of here," John recommended. Nobody disagreed and the ushering began again.

Unbeknownst to the ground, but someone had been listening in- other than Sunny himself, who was likely on the other side of the wooden door. Instead, it was someone who took an exceptional joy in the moment the friends reunited.

Jake really wished he could've been there for it.

Instead, he watched Charlie reunite with her worried friends through a little screen while sitting against a mound of pillows in the dusty corner of the room behind the balcony. It was comfortable enough and he could see what was happening, but it wasn't the same as being there. It wasn't the same as being amongst people and getting to talk and have fun, to exist as a person instead of some broken thing hiding in the shadows.

He couldn't blame Sunny for insisting that he come back here though. Like they always said: out-of-service, out-of-luck. The wrong person saw him, like the security guard, and everything would be over. He couldn't trust a bunch of strangers who just waltzed into the Pizzaplex… but how he wanted to. How he wanted to meet all of them and get to socialize outside of this room and these hollow Staff Bots.

Not to mention that it wasn't like any of them were ever coming back. In less than an hour they had established that he was untrustworthy, and that Sun was a ticking timebomb. He would be lucky if any of them so much as step foot in the Pizzaplex again, let alone the daycare. Finally, someone who would have it in their best interest not to rat on them and they had gotten ran out in minutes.

But they were going to have to go somewhere. There were ways out of the Pizzaplex, but none that a group that size would be able to reach. So, they would likely be staying overnight. Maybe he could make up for this little disaster.

He lifted the control unit sitting in his lap closer to his mask and pressed the button. "Hey Charlie?" he asked. He saw her react on camera. "Let me make up for all this. I think I know of a place that would make a good hideout…"

The sign over the door called it the Over-The-Moon Bounce Park, but it was less of a trampoline park and more like the biggest bouncy castle that any of them had ever seen.

The room was about as wide as the daycare but with only one floor, and that floor was nearly wall to wall in pillowy material- save two sections on the far right and left wall. The left section comprised of a trampoline section and on the right a foam pit section. The middle of the room was comprised of what looked to be an obstacle course of inflatable slides, smaller bounce houses, various ball pits, and a scattered array of square pillows, foam cubes, and various soft toys.

On the other end of the room was the actual bouncy castle, the quite literal castle in design and size. With rubbery gates pumped full of air and a couple of towers blown up in it. The inside of said castle couldn't be seen from this far away, but it was clear whose castle it was supposed to be from the twisty light and dark blue stripes up the towers and the star speckled deep blue roofs.

The floor was soft blue while the inflatable fixtures were a plethora of colors, and the entire curved ceiling matched the one from the hall outside the daycare, dotted with dozens of stars on a black background. Neon lighting kicked on as soon as they came in, illuminating caricatures and cartoon faces on the wall of Freddy and his band in space gear and dozens of much friendlier designs of the Moon. Along with one sleeping Sun near the entrance.

It was an impressive sight to behold, even to someone familiar with the Pizzaplex.

"This is fantastic!" Freddy praised. He scanned the room with wide eyes and took it all in just as readily as the others.

"You've never been here?" Charlie asked. She was a little surprised at that.

"Only once but that was before it was finished. All of this, none of this was here! The walls were completely bare!" Freddy gushed. "It really is impressive. I must show Foxy the next time he- Oh, erm, I mean if he returns," Freddy quickly corrected. He glanced towards Mike to see if the ruse took. It didn't, but Mike was too busy staring at yet another attraction and trying not to think about his disappointment at how impressive it was.

"Hey, but that's good, right? Maybe nobody comes up here?" Charlie asked.

"I do not believe so. This looks to be Moon's attraction and he, understandably, stays in the daycare. The rest of my bandmates are in their green rooms and the Arcade Attendant and DJ are both stationed in the West Arcade. So, I believe you should be safe here. I have never seen the security officer do rounds in this direction either," Freddy explained. "But it may be safer if you hide towards the back. Perhaps in the castle?"

"Sounds like a plan," Mike agreed.

"Good! Now if you will excuse me, my battery is nearing half charge and the technicians have recommended that I do not let it get any lower than that until they find the cause of my previous malfunction." He gave a two-finger salute. "I will return shortly. Please, take care- and have fun! But perhaps not too much fun."

"Will do. Or not do," Charlie said. "Don't tell anyone we're here?"

"Of course not! Your secret is safe with me," Freddy assured. He turned and headed back towards the doors, walking across the section of carpeted floor and past the check-in desk to the right of the doorway, which automatically shut after him.

Marionette appeared alongside Mike once the coast was entirely clear. He had a discontent look on his mask.

"I'm awfully tempted to follow him," he murmured. Mike hummed without obvious agreement or not.

"You really don't trust him? I didn't get any obvious vibes," Jessica remarked.

"Sometimes you won't… But that's not it. I'm not sure what it is," Marionette confessed. He thought about it for a long moment before clarifying, "His overt friendliness makes me cautious. I know he's been friendly with Foxy, but… I have trouble trusting it."

"After what we saw with the Moon, I'm hard pressed to trust anyone in this place. You can't tell when someone will do a one-eighty," John agreed.

"Agreed. Now if you all will excuse me," Marionette said. He turned towards the room like he was going to hover away.

Instead, he launched himself forward, throwing himself through the air and towards the bouncy floor. He dove headfirst, arms stuck out in front to catch him, with the residual bounce tossing him back up and over and landing flopped on his back arms spread. Somewhere in the process his mask had shifted into a playful smile, one that stayed when he rolled over onto his front to look back at the onlookers.

"Who's next?" he invited. "Oh, come on now. You're never too old to play in a bounce house. Especially not one of this size! Mike? Charlie? Jessie?"

"Okay, but only if you never call me that again," Jessica agreed and began to slip off her shoes.

"Messy Jessie," Carlton reminded in a low singsong voice. Jessica shot him a dangerous look.

"I'll be waiting until you fall asleep."

"Thankfully for you, Carlton, you won't," Mike quipped.

"Miiike," Marionette goaded. He looked to see the Puppet beckoning him with a finger.

Mike got an amused grin. "Thanks, but no thanks. One of us should be keeping an eye out."

"Now that's no fun! You can do that fine from over here- and we'll take turns!" the Puppet offered. "When will an opportunity like this drop into our laps again?"

"Considering we almost got caught twice? Guess it depends on if we get out of here at all," Mike answered darkly. The puppet tsked at him and he smirked back in return. "I don't know. Call it an intuition or a hunch, but for some strange reason I feel obligated to be the adult here."

"I'd be inclined to agree if you weren't wearing that hoodie," Marionette cheekily countered.

They hung on that moment for a few seconds. Mike looking rather unamused by the comment, quirking a brow like he was asking if that was a challenge, and Marionette smiling back with a tilt to his grin, suggesting that it very much was.

"…If we get caught, again, I'm placing the blame solely on you," Mike caved. He never thought he was one to be peer-pressured by his own puppet, but here he was kicking off his running shoes. "You're a bad influence. A menace!"

"Mr. Schmidt, no, I'm just misunderstood!" Marionette mock defended. "Oh, excuse me. Mr. Smitt."

"Hey, you try coming up with new names all the time. Eventually you stop being creative and just aim for something you can remember," he retorted. He stepped out onto the inflated floor and began to bounce a little in place. "Happy?"

"I always am," Marionette chimed. He spun his finger. "Now do a flip," he joked.

Mike would've brushed the comment off if not for that assumed challenge being batted back and forth between them. So, he instead considered how much air he could get and how soft the floor was. He wasn't necessarily out of shape either, he could probably land on his feet.

"You know what?" he asked, starting to bounce higher. "I'm going to do it. I'm going to do a flip."

Marionette's mask eyes widened. "I wasn't seriously suggesting-."

"Too late. Time to flip!"

Mike got in a few more seconds of gaining height, Marionette staring wide-eyed, Carlton calling encouragements, everyone else watching, and then he went for it. He took a deep breath and on the highest jump threw his whole weight back.

Technically he did land on his feet. His feet did get underneath him. Just not at a good enough angle to stop himself from flying forward and flopping flat on his face. He wasn't sure if Marionette dove for him or if he just cleared more distance than he expected because somehow, he landed partially on him, taking him to the pillowed floor.

Carlton gave a whoop and clapped as Mike pushed himself up with a muffled, "Ta-da." He probably should've been embarrassed, but the burning in his face was definitely from friction.

"This is the too much fun Freddy was warning about," Charlie teased once she was sure that Mike wasn't actually hurt. She clapped a little too, for the effort, and stepped out on the soft ground. It took her a few extra seconds to get her footing, almost falling over but managing to catch herself before Jessica had to. She looked across the room before affixing her gaze on the nearby obstacle course.

"I don't know if it's my inner child talking or child-friendly programming, but I really want to go climb on that," she confessed. She cracked her knuckles or made the motion to stretch her fingers. "Anyone up for a race?"

"I'm game," John agreed. Up until that point he hadn't yet pulled off his boots but did so readily right afterwards. Carlton sent him an unimpressed look.

"Did you see that hundred-meter dash she made earlier?" he asked. "…Or wait. You might've passed out by then."

"I really should've done something about that Moon," Marionette murmured, an edge of static in his voice. Mike rewarded his restraint with a sympathetic pat on his back as he stood back up.

"I'll go easy on you," Charlie remarked with a spark of boldness that was enough to get John's eyes back on her. She turned away quickly, looking towards the obstacle course. "Ready?"

"Hold on, hold on," Jessica said. She slid her bag securely behind her as she got on the other side of her. "I'm probably not outrunning you, but I can outrun both of them."

"Put your foot where your mouth is," Carlton challenged. Then proceeded to look just as confused as she did.

"That was almost clever," she replied. "Ready… Go!"

It went about as expected. Not only was running on the wobbly floor awkward, but Charlie was significantly faster than the others. Though John was pretty fast too, as she could hear him behind her, and he was seemingly keeping up.

That was, until she suddenly lost balance and fell to her knees with a painless little bounce. Harmless to everything but her dignity and she tried to push herself up quickly, expecting him to stop and ask her how she was. So, she was utterly blown away when he continued running by, looking back at her to make sure she was alright but not stopping to help her. Not checking on if she was okay. Not worried that she might've hurt herself or that something was wrong.

And something about that filled her with a relief she didn't expect to feel, and a determination to get back up and overtake him, and not care about her inhuman speed in the process. Not stopping at the obstacle course, eagerly climbing up the puffy handholds and over the first hill before sliding down the other side into the course proper. He wasn't too far behind, and neither were the others.

"Should we go after them?" Mike asked, watching the four high-tail towards the inflated structures.

"Yes, but first-," Marionette began and didn't finish. Mike looked towards him to see him now standing, legs barely touching the bouncing floor, and preparing for something. He figured out right before the Puppet suddenly threw himself upwards, pulling his legs in tight as he flipped and twisted back, doing two full rotations, no doubt controlled more by his levitation than propulsion. His legs barely scraping the ground when he 'landed', arms stretching above his head.

Mike clapped. "Impressive!"

"Thanks. I had to cheat a little," the Puppet confessed.

"I know." He watched as the other's striped legs tried to settle onto the flooring again. He could imagine that it was even shakier ground to stand on than normal with his weakness with his legs. It was borderline impossible for him to jump normally when his legs struggled even to stand holding his weight. "I've got an idea."

"Hmm?"

"Get on my back," Mike offered, turning to offer it up. Marionette was a little surprised and confused.

"Really? Are you sure?" he asked.

"Sure, I'm sure. You weigh practically nothing. And if we get seriously hurt, at least it'll probably be funny." He pointed his thumbs at his back. "Hop on."

Marionette doubted some of what he was saying but caved into the suggestion with a short laugh. He practically sprung onto Mike's back- though the way his weight was slowly added suggested he was still using his levitation- wrapping his arms around his shoulders and hooking his legs around his waist. It sort of resembled the hug in the recharge station if Roxanne hadn't appeared and Marionette just protectively climbed further and further onto him.

As predicted Marionette's full weight wasn't any issue. It was noticeable, but not uncomfortable. Mike could feel the faint vibrations of his chiming through his back and smiled, getting a comfortable hold on his legs.

"Hold on tight," he said. Marionette hugged a little tighter, resting his head atop his, and then the two followed after the others.

For nearly the next hour or so, their plans were set aside for indulgence. Having fun in a playground that wasn't theirs. Horsing around in a trampoline park made for children half their age. Nobody came in to investigate. Freddy hadn't even returned, which was noticed but, considering nobody else came in and suggested he told on them, the concern started to wane away.

For Charlie, it was like some bizarre blast from the past. Like she was reliving her childhood days playing with her friends at the diner, and the grandiose and wonder from her wide-eyed youth survived through the sheer size of this place. For a while she was able to experience that same lull that she could only imagine the patrons of this place would feel- a delight that numbed one's better judgement, and the memories of the tragedies that Freddy's was built upon.

It helped to remind herself that this was just a brief respite. That this was okay. That Mike and Marionette were having fun too, and they were definitely upset about this whole thing. A break wasn't a bad thing. She could let her guard down.

In fact, she let her guard down so much that the next thing she knew, she was alone with John.

It had been a gradual thing. They had moved to the bounce castle in the back of the room, and then Jessica went to get her bag and came back, and then Carlton was talking with Mike, and Charlie decided to get a breather, leaning back on a star dotted triangular pillow, and she looked over, and there was John sitting alongside her. Only then did she realize that they were a short distance from the others, though still in the castle's safer walls, but alone together.

Up until this point, there hadn't been too many exchanged words. The last thing he said was to compliment her on a cartwheel and she had said something embarrassing about her prong- or, no, maybe it was the fact that she referred to it as a prong- and then they were all good until now. Now when they sat together silently, taking in the view of a colorful plastic world, and listening to the faux-techno space rendition of the daycare music playing over the intercom.

He broke the silence first. "This is nice."

She wasn't sure what he was referring to, but she agreed.

He looked to her with a smile. "I'm glad I came."

But when she smiled back, she noticed his falter a little. He looked back towards the wall again even though there wasn't much there that he hadn't already seen. Remembering his silence earlier in the lobby, she decided to broach the subject

"What's on your mind?" Charlie asked.

He continuing looking ahead for a moment. His eyes lowered as though in thought, considering her words and his own and whether or not he really wanted to disrupt the moment speaking them. Finally, he decided to again break the silence.

"I'm sorry I haven't kept in touch," John said remorsefully. "I wasn't trying to avoid you, I just… I think I had a hard time adjusting to everything."

Funny enough but hearing that she was the reason he stayed away, confirming her suspicions, was somehow a relief. Maybe because she no longer had to wonder and worry, and because she could immediately identify with it.

"I understand. How could I not? Everything changed," she said.

"That's what I thought," he admitted. "…but I was wrong. Something didn't change."

He looked to her again and that smile had returned along with a familiar fondness in his eyes. A look she hadn't seen aimed at her in such a long time.

"You," John said. "You're the same Charlie I always knew. Maybe a little braver, but I don't know. I'd say you taking on the Moon alone was pretty gutsy, but you've always put yourself in front of others."

It took her every ounce of control to resist the reflexive jingle that nearly slipped from her music box, but she still returned that smile.

"That's what I meant. I'm glad I came. This is nice," he finished.

"I'm glad you did too. I missed you," she agreed.

For a moment it felt like the air had been cleared. Charlie realized that the confrontation about that phone call, the one she had dreaded, was not going to happen. That wasn't what was bothering him, but everything else. She could handle that; she herself remembered how long it took her to adjust. She much preferred that than him trying to accept it too fast and realizing that he couldn't.

That could've been the end of it, but she realized it wasn't when John sighed.

"There's something else," he said. She looked to him again. "I don't want to make this weird, but… you deserve to know. Jessica and I split up."

"It wasn't because of me, right?" she asked. She couldn't help it, it just blurted out even though it was the last thing she wanted to ask.

"No, it was because of me," John reassured. "We just… We're friends, and we were friends trying to be something we weren't. It wasn't ever going to work out."

"There's nothing wrong with trying as long as it doesn't get in the way of your friendship," Charlie assured. "…It didn't, did it?" To which he agreed that it hadn't. "Good! Glad to hear it."

"That's not too different to what we did, is it?" John asked fondly. "'Let's just try it out and see how it goes?'"

Somehow, Charlie did not foresee this direction in the conversation even though in hindsight the path led right up to it. She had that itchy tightness in her music box and wondered if she was going to start ticking with nervousness.

"Hey, we came out of it okay. No reason you and Jess won't," Charlie said jokingly.

John still smiled but hesitated a moment, glancing down at the floor beneath them before sliding a little closer. Not uncomfortably close but noticeably closer.

"Charlie, I came here to make up for lost time, but after everything tonight…" He dared to look her square in the eyes with a look of resolve. "I've been thinking about it and… I want to try again. If you want to."

"Want to-?" Charlie knew what he was saying but she was nearly dumbstruck, in full disbelief. "Wait, are you talking about- you mean, us?" She made hand motions between them. She didn't want to say the word 'dating'. They technically never did date, had they? They went on things akin to dates, but it was never official. At least, she didn't think it was.

"I know it's sudden. I wasn't planning on any of this happening, but tonight opened my eyes to a few things and… I do," John said with fully honesty and assurance. Charlie was a little less sure.

"John, I don't know. This is all a little fast. It's not like we're really picking up where we left off. There's a lot of things we'd have to consider before we jumped into something like that," Charlie said, slowly talking faster the further she got along.

"I think I've considered most of the big things," he said.

"Like the fact that I'm not-?" Charlie cut off and gestured up and down at herself. "I might be the same person on the inside, but things have changed on the outside. It won't be the same as it was before. It'll have to be a secret to everyone who isn't in the loop. And- And I can't be seen in public, so we won't be able to go out at all unless we're under cover of complete darkness. Our plans to hike in Zion? That's not happening unless we hike in the dark."

John's mouth tugged into a smile. Charlie looked less than amused. "I'm being serious. This isn't like a normal relationship. There's a lot more… maintenance work. No pun intended."

"Works for Mike and Mari," John offered with a little shrug. Though upon seeing that it hadn't helped, his face started to soften. "Charlie, I understand why you're nervous, and I don't want to trap you into this. If you don't think it's a good idea then we don't have to, and I'm not going to be upset if you don't want to," he said with full sincerity. "You were my friend before we were a 'we'. I can go back to that; I just don't want to lose you."

"You won't. I'm just saying… I need time to think about it," Charlie said apologetically.

"Take all the time you need. I know I dropped this on you at an awkward time. At the worst possible time," John reassured her, sounding equally apologetic towards the end.

"No, the worst possible time would've been while you were getting wrangled by the Moon," Charlie said. She sent him a timid little smile. "Thanks for holding back."

"It wasn't easy," John played along. She jingled slightly, more of nervousness than humor, but then they fell back into silence.

They stayed there for a little while longer before they headed back to the others. John kept his word and didn't press her on it, which gave Charlie more than enough time to make a decision.

…But Charlie didn't know what she wanted.

John and her relationship hadn't been as clear cut as he made it seem, made clear by her hesitance to say that they had been in an official relationship. He had been the one to ask her out and at the time she had been uncertain of it. It was strange enough reconnecting with childhood friends, some of which she hadn't seen in years, let alone to start dating on when her feelings on Freddy's were so complicated.

But it was quite clear that John was soft on her and that alone was enough to convince her to try. Not that she didn't like John and didn't start to soften for him too, but it was quite a jump from 'not yet ready' to 'suddenly into it'. Dating had been entirely foreign to her, but it felt like it had gone well enough. Things would've likely only continued to grow more serious as they grew closer together.

But they didn't, and now things were at least moderately different. Though while she presented it to John like it was just the fact that she was an animatronic, that wasn't it. Though she didn't want him getting the wrong idea from Mike and Marionette, that there wasn't some caveats and sacrifices that had to be made for a relationship like this. There was something else.

Only a year ago she would've been jumping at the chance to get back with John again- though she might've jumped at any chance to reconnect with her old life- but now she wasn't sure. She really liked John and did enjoy spending time with him, but something held her back.

All she knew was that when he said he wanted to get back together, her first reaction wasn't relief or joy; it was panic.

That's why she needed someone else's opinion. Not Jessica's, that would be too awkward. Not Mike or Marionette's, not while they were all staying overnight in a mall together. There was really only one person Charlie wanted to ask.

Which meant she was going to have to find a phone.

Charlie found Mike, Marionette, and Carlton hanging out at the circular bounce house in the center of the castle. Both men sitting in the opening, with Mike turned so that Marionette could rest his head on his leg, arm dangling across Mike's lap. At first, she thought he was asleep, but once she walked up, he tilted his head back to look at her.

"Hey," Charlie began, leaning forward against the bounce house. "I need to make a call, so I'm going to be looking around for a phone."

"Sounds good, but remember there's no cell service," Mike reminded.

"Right, but I saw a normal phone in El Chip's, so odds are that those still work… As long as they're not bugged… I'll cross that bridge when I get there. Point is, I'm going to go check the check-in desk for one. I won't be gone long."

"Want me to come with you?" Marionette offered, rolling over.

"No, I'm good. I've got my taser just in case," she said. He nodded and warned her to be careful, and then she was off.

Normally she would've gladly allowed him to come, even if it was just to have a second set of eyes looking out for her, but she needed this phone call to be private. It already was barely going to be chatting at the check-in counter.

Though that problem was quickly resolved when she got there and realized that there wasn't a phone at said counter. Papers, hand stamps, a bowl of yellow and blue candies, but no phone. Odd, but the more concerning part was having to hike up to El Chip's. After a moment to consider it, she decided to at least head out to the atrium and check on the situation out there. Then she could decide if it was worth the risk.

The Security door opened, and Charlie stepped out into the hallway only to come to an abrupt stop when she noticed Freddy sitting on a bench outside. He was already looking back when she stepped out, head raising upon hearing the door opening, with his hands rested in his lap like he had been lost in thought. They had wondered why he hadn't come back, she wondered now how long she had been out here.

"Freddy?" she asked.

"Hello, Charlie! I was just… sitting out here," he answered. Apparently, he realized how odd it looked too.

"Why didn't you come inside?" Charlie asked as she walked up to him. He lowered his head almost ashamedly.

"I did not want to overstep…"

"Freddy, we're the ones trespassing."

"I know. Foxy has told me many times that this is my pizzeria and that I should have a say in what happens here. Specifically, 'my head is the head above the door'…" He raised his head to look her in the eyes again. "Forgive me, but I noticed that they all treat you like… like you are another human. Do they treat Foxy the same?"

"Almost. Foxy likes being the boss if you get my drift," Charlie admitted with fondness. Freddy seemed to share it from the following chuckle.

"I think I do," he agreed. "Foxy had said that it was different in his pizzeria. Not that I did not believe him! I just wanted to hear it from someone else."

"Do they… I'm guessing they don't treat you like that here?" she guessed.

"They… treat us like valuable assets. Which we are, being the star attractions of our various attractions," Freddy said. In so few words effectively confirming her worries. "But enough about me. Where are you going?"

"I was just looking for a phone. Do you know if there's one nearby?"

"There is a security office against the western wall of the bounce park. It will have a working phone, though I may need to accompany you to get past the security clearance," Freddy offered.

"Would you have to stay in there?" she asked. "It's sort of a personal call."

"Possibly. But I would try not to listen."

It was a safer offer, but Charlie wasn't exactly sure if she wanted to go for it. "There's a phone up in El Chip's. Is it all clear out there?" she asked, pointing towards the atrium.

"Oh yes! I believe Monty, Chica, and Roxanne are still in their rooms, and Officer Vanessa did her rounds approximately twenty minutes ago," Freddy said certainly.

"And there's no other animatronics up there? You said something about an arcade attendant."

"In the West Arcade, not in El Chip's or its connected arcade, the Superstar-cade, or in the Prize Corner. Though there will be security Staff Bots patrolling on the third floor."

"I've seen 'em. I guess I'm just going to head up there then-."

"I will come with you!" Freddy eagerly volunteered while raising to his feet.

"No thanks. You don't have to do that, I'll be careful," Charlie assured. That excitement quickly fell from his face. "…But you can go inside if you want. Everyone was asking about you."

Freddy gave a pensive hum. "I may do that."

"If you do, could you do me a favor? If anyone asks about me, tell them that I'm just heading up to El Chip's to make a phone call and then I'll be back," she asked. He agreed but continued to stand there, so Charlie began to leave.

Once she was out of sight he sat back down on the bench and looked towards the security door with a sigh. It was clear from his look alone that he longed to go in, but he resisted. There were a lot of conflicted feelings going through his head, some he was massively unfamiliar with. It wouldn't been so much simpler if it was just Foxy.

That was when something suddenly clicked. In an instant Freddy straightened up with an idea and then quickly got up from his bench and strode up to the security door with a goal in mind.

He continued on until the edge of the normal flooring, where the ground became as unstable as walking on balloons. Freddy looked at it warily before cautiously resting a foot on it. Surely, they would've made the material strong enough to hold animatronic mascots. He began to slowly shift his weight until it was fully on the bouncy floor, which dipped far under his weight… but didn't collapse. Yes, they had built it with the animatronics in mind, maybe.

After a sigh of relief, and a hand to his chest, Freddy continued his journey across the bounce park. He still had to take care though. The uneven flooring sent him wobbling more than once. For him it was less bouncy and more like wading through melting floor- floor that at least regained its shape once he stepped off. He made his way to the castle, following the sound of voices, and stepped through the archway.

Jessica had noticed him before he noticed her- he was watching his feet very carefully- and walked up to him.

"Hey, Freddy. We were wondering what happened to you," she greeted with a cordial smile. He wouldn't have been able to tell she was feeling him out, spurred on by doubts Marionette had planted.

"Oh, hello! My apologies, I did not realize you were waiting for me," Freddy said. He stood with his hands on his hips and his legs spread enough to hold a footing he didn't have to look at. "That man in the hooded sweatshirt- I did not catch his name- where is he? I need to speak with him."

"Mike? He's in there," she said. She pointed her thumb at the center bounce house.

Looking over, Freddy realized he could see him and Carlton sitting there. That wasn't the only thing he realized either. So that was Mike! It was nice to put a face to the name after the stories Foxy had told.

"Thank you! I will be making my way over there," the bear informed. He began to slowly turn in that direction before pausing to look back at Jessica. "But before I do, I have a message from Charlie. She said she is heading to El Chip's Fiesta Buffet to make a phone call and that she will return shortly."

"On her own?" Jessica asked in disbelief.

"She said it was a personal call," Freddy explained. She hummed, believing it but not exactly sure if she liked the sound of that. In fact, she was awfully tempted to follow- to keep an eye out, not to listen in.

"I see. Thanks for warning me."

"It is no trouble! I will be seeing you later!" he said. He continued on his way, allowing Jessica to go on hers. He was still some ways from the bounce house when he cupped his hands to his mouth and called, "Hello? Mike?"

"Over here!" Mike called back. He was still sitting as he was when Charlie left and didn't seem too surprised by Freddy popping in. Not like Marionette, who was caught off-guard and rolled of his lap and further into the rubbery shelter. That was right when what Freddy said suddenly caught up with Mike. "Wait a goddamn minute…" He turned to face the approaching bear. "Who told you my name?"

"That nice young woman with the blond hair."

"Huh. I guess I can't fire her," Mike remarked. He turned himself to fully face the bear. "What's up, Freddy?"

"I was wondering if you could tell me: does Foxy have a phone? That is, does Foxy's Pirate Cove have a phone number and would Foxy be there to answer it?" Freddy asked.

"Yes and yes. Thinking of calling him?"

"I am!" Freddy said excitedly.

"Fine by me. He's probably over there doing donuts in the dining room anyway, waiting for us to call and say we accidentally set the place on fire and we're all going to prison," Mike joked. "So yeah, he's awake."

"I did not know Foxy baked," Freddy said innocently. "I know that Marionette does, but Foxy did not say he did too. That must come in handy."

"…You know about Marionette?" Mike asked. On the outside he kept that cool demeanor, but on the inside, he was starting to become increasingly alarmed. "The hell? How much did Foxy tell him?"

"Of course! I have seen the Foxy cartoon, as I have said before," Freddy remarked proudly.

Though then something happened that Mike was probably not supposed to notice. Freddy suddenly looked past him and around the inside of the bounce house. It was very quick, but it was obvious what he was looking for.

"He's seen Mari," Mike realized. "I mean, unless he's completely deaf he must've heard him back at the daycare, but I didn't even see him look back… All that noise and he didn't look back once. Christ, he DID see Mari." Which was quickly followed up with, "And he's been pretending this whole time that he didn't."

This whole time Mike was just silently staring at Freddy with a nonchalant look before giving a slow exhale, seamlessly covering up the alarm beneath the surface. "Do you have a pen or something? I'll write down the number for you."

"That is not necessary. I can memorize multiple names and dates, as required for Superstar VIP party rosters," the bear reassured. Choosing to believe it, Mike recited the phone number to him. "Thank you! If you would like, I can pass on the message that you are all safe while I am speaking to him."

"Go ahead. I guess it would be plain cruel to leave him in suspense," Mike said. He sent a little glance to Carlton before looking back, only to do the same thing Freddy had done to him earlier and look at something just past him. The bear didn't notice.

"Then I will do so! Thank you again," Freddy said happily and turned himself around.

He was instantly frozen in place when he locked eyes with Marionette behind him. It wasn't just the surprise of seeing an unexpected animatronic; it was intrusive, like the white dots in his eyes were shining into the back of his head. He could hear a dull humming in his ears as he silently stared, unable to speak, almost unable to move. He didn't feel the need to put up a fight, but for a moment the eye contact had him cemented in place. The lights searching his eyes for something.

Then the lights were gone, and the Puppet slipped back to put a few inches of distance between them. The hold on Freddy was released but he was rendered nearly speechless by the whole thing. He wasn't sure what had just happened.

"Hello," Marionette greeted.

"Erm, h-hello," Freddy returned.

"If you don't mind," the Puppet continued. His cordial voice contrasting with the moment beforehand. "I need to speak with you."

Chapter 32

Chapter Summary

An attempt to get answers gets Charlie (and Jessica) into a bind while Mike and Mari (and Freddy) take steps...

Chapter Notes

Apparently updates are on Saturdays now. XD At least it's not a day I work? Ha ha, well, Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

"Hello, uh… Hello?"

"Hey. It's me, Charlie."

"Well, hello, hello! Hey there, kiddo! How's Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizza Mall treating ya?"

Considering that Charlie was currently sitting on the cold tile floor behind the El Chip's counter with mariachi music looping endlessly in the background, and not shoved in a box in the back of the daycare, not too badly.

"Better than I thought it would. Is Baby awake? I need to talk to her."

"She sure is! Hang on just one second."

She looked around at the restaurant as she waited. In the distance she could hear a clanking and distant creaking, an ambience she noticed was constant in the Pizzaplex. She wondered if that was a result of machinery or the building being structurally unsound. Though the thought of construction looped her back to John and she quickly had to change topic. Afton Robotics, she thought. This place reminded her of Afton Robotics.

There was a shuffling on the line as the phone was picked up again.

"Okay! Here she is!"

Then the soft tapping of metal on plastic as the phone changed hands, followed by a familiar voice.

"Hello?"

Charlie wasn't sure why, but she felt a wave of relief at hearing Baby's voice. "Hey, it's me."

"Oh, hello. I take it that it hasn't gone too disastrously if you were able to call me," Baby remarked. "How is the "new" Freddy's?"

"It's a trip. At least the lighting's pretty trippy," she remarked. Baby made a little scoffing noise which brought a small smile to her face. "And you'll be happy to hear that there's been no sign of any Circus Baby or Funtime licensing anywhere."

"That's a relief," she said with a sigh. "…Although… You haven't seen anything even remotely similar? No chubby faced child character with her hair up in pigtails?"

"Nothing like that as far as I've seen," Charlie assured. She heard a discontented hum. "I'll keep looking around, but I think you're in the clear."

"No, it's not that. It's just…" Baby huffed a little. "It's very silly. I'm thankful that they don't have me in there, or have replaced me with some sort of copycat, but I… I think I may actually be disappointed that they didn't try to. Was I not good enough for them? That's a rhetorical question, I can already hear you fussing on the line."

"No, sorry. That's the mariachi music. I'm sitting in a big taco stand," Charlie corrected. She readjusted and leaned forward a little, as though to escape the speaker hanging above her head. "If it makes you feel any better, chances are they couldn't get ahold of your rights because they were all tied up in Afton Robotics and all of that. Same thing that happened with Foxy and Bonnie."

"Right… I wonder if they tried to get permission. I find it hard to believe that they could've forgotten the brand entirely. Circus Baby's was- mmm, could've been just as successful as Freddy's."

"The only thing holding it back was… you know, him. If he wasn't in the picture, it could've been a whole different story."

"I suppose it could have been. We could still be human right now too," Baby said somberly. Though after a beat she tacked on a less than enthused, "Working nine to five at Fry Me Taco just to pay rent. Coming home every evening with grease in our hair and meat under our nails, and that music is downright awful. It's looped three times since we've been on the phone."

"I know," Charlie agreed with a jingle. She leaned back against the wall. "But that doesn't sound too bad. It's kind of like a sitcom."

"Please. My life is a sitcom," Baby tutted. "But since you went through the effort of calling me, I suppose I can bear with the noise long enough to hear more. What did you see?"

"Oh, all sorts of things. There's Security Bots with a severe case of nearsightedness, there's a lot of neon, the whole place is in a sci-fi space theme- except for the beach and ocean themed party rooms, and the pirate themed movie they're playing over at the theater," Charlie said sarcastically. "Speaking of which, we met the Sun. Natalie was right, he sounds a lot like Ennard."

"Thank goodness you waited until he was out of the room to say that. He would've taken the phone right out of my hand. He's going half-mad about this whole thing."

"Well, he certainly doesn't act like him. So, don't let him worry about that…" Charlie paused for a long moment, making it clear that she was going to continue but unable to follow-up.

"What's wrong?" Baby asked.

"Nothing. Right now, we're hiding out in a big bounce castle. The place is huge, Baby. You wouldn't believe the size of it. Bigger than the auditoriums in Afton Robotics if you put both of them together, and there's an obstacle course and towers. I have to give them credit, they went all out. At least with this they did," Charlie explained.

Baby hummed to show she was listening, and listening she was. She noticed the change in Charlie's tone and knew there was something bothering her, answering the unasked question of why she had called.

"…And it was nice to spend some time the guys. You'd love Jess, I've got to get you two together in a situation that doesn't involve the risk of death or breaking and entering. But, you know, it reminded me a lot of the old days. Like when I was a kid and I used to play around at the restaurant with them. You just have to push aside all the weird feelings and focus on what it is, having fun."

"That sounds nice," Baby agreed. She took a moment before asking, "…Charlie, what happened?" Her voice now softer to gently coax it out. "I know something must've. I can tell."

"Can't slip one past you," Charlie said. She let any disguise drop as her voice fell with it. "Something happened alright."

"What was it?"

"We were having fun and just goofing off when I stopped to take a break and that's… when John got me alone."

"Oh no."

"Yes. And we started talking about how nice it was to be hanging out again and how he had trouble adjusting, and somehow, we got around to why he and Jessica broke up."

"Oh no."

"Right." She would've been amused by how aghast Baby sounded if not for how embarrassed she was recounting everything. Specifically, what she had said, what she had done, it all played back in her head in a very unflattering way. She sighed, "And it didn't end there."

"Let me guess," Baby interjected. Sounding both flustered and frustrated by the whole thing, and likely rolling her eyes as she spoke the following. "He still has feelings for you."

"And he wants to get back together. Start back up where we left off."

"…What?"

It was clear from that sudden reaction and the uncharacteristic raise in tone that Baby hadn't been making a real guess. Even though she had guessed the order of events correctly. It was the most obvious next step though she, like Charlie, assumed it wouldn't happen.

Baby was still silent, so Charlie finally spoke up. "Are you okay?"

"What- What was he thinking?" Baby sounded totally flustered now. Like she was barely holding back another eruption of emotion. "This must be- This IS the first time you two have spoken alone and he asks that in the same breath as he talks about having broken up with your friend, who couldn't have been far out of earshot. I can't believe it. I can't fathom that sheer amount of audacity."

"I know," Charlie agreed. The reaction finally getting a smile out of her, even if it was one aching with embarrassment. "I wasn't expecting it. Not that he'd want to get back together- though honestly, I didn't think he was going to want that now that I'm so… different. But that he'd make any motion towards it this soon. It was a total shock."

"Well then… What did you say?" Baby cautiously asked.

There was a long silence.

"You said yes," Baby guessed.

"No," Charlie tiredly admitted. "Even worse. I told him I'd 'think about it'. Which means I set myself up for another conversation and am leaving him in suspense for hours. Which isn't fair to him, but… I wasn't ready."

"Oh. No, that's fair," Baby said. She sounded a little less wound up- trying to hide her obvious relief by going back to her usual collected way of speaking. "And what are you thinking of?"

"I'm thinking of asking you what you think?" Charlie asked timidly. The tiny smile noticeable in her voice.

Baby was silent for a few moments.

"Why would it matter what I thought?" she finally asked. Her tone was unreadable. Charlie nervously clawed at the arm of her jacket.

"Because sometimes… sometimes I feel like you know me better than I know myself," she confessed. "And you're a good judge of character, and honest. I know you'll tell me what I need to hear."

Baby was silent again. Charlie patiently waited, assuming that she was considering what she was going to say, maybe leveling the pros and cons, and no doubt struggling to put her own feelings about John to make an unbiased decision.

She had no idea what silent turmoil she had just put Baby through.

Baby knew she was stuck between a rock and a hard place. No, worse than that. It was like she was stuck in a trash compactor that was slowly closing in around her, and the only way out was to answer a quiz question that she didn't have the answer to. She had a few options, but each one led to her sinking in deeper. Funny how she had effectively been given the say and still felt utterly powerless.

Because she could tell Charlie not to get back with John, but it would be solely a selfish move. She could come up with plenty of reasons why it was a bad idea for them to be together, but they all came from the same root: she didn't want them to be. She couldn't ever give an unbiased opinion in this state. She could barely hold back this long without blurting out how incredibly baffling this whole thing was.

The worst part was that she could've easily slipped back into those old patterns. She could've given into the urge to say no for her own desires and maybe she would've gone along with that, but the thought of betraying Charlie's trust like that already filled her with guilt. It would taint their friendship forever. She would never be able to forget what she did here.

Because she felt nothing for John, but maybe Charlie did, and maybe he was good for her, and she just couldn't see it. He was stable, an old flame, someone willing to ignore her transformation- obviously, if he was already pouncing on the opportunity. It didn't matter what Baby thought about him. It didn't matter what Baby felt about Charlie. All that mattered was what Charlie felt about John, and vice-versa.

It wasn't Baby's choice to make, so he wouldn't choose.

"I think… that maybe that's true… but in this case, I cannot make that decision for you," Baby quietly murmured. Her hesitation took Charlie by surprise.

"Really? I mean, you're right, but that doesn't mean you can't give your opinion on it. It'll help me out," she encouraged, hesitantly stringing out the words. "It's okay. I know you don't think much of John."

"I think he's painfully dull and I think he's being painfully inconsiderate waiting until now to pose this question," Baby admitted bitterly. She managed to reign it back in. "But I care about you and all that's important is what you think. If he is what you want, then… Yes, you should get back together with him."

There was a long pause on the line, one that Baby noticed right away.

"…Unless there is a reason you might not want to," she verbally nudged.

Charlie yanked at her sleeve and readjusted her legs. The floor wasn't comfortable, but not nearly as uncomfortable as facing this head-on. Though perhaps this was why she sought out Baby, knowing it would be a little easier to confess to her.

"For starters, I don't think what John and I was doing could technically be called dating. We went on maybe one or two dates, and they weren't exactly great… It wasn't anything he did. John's great. He's nice and funny, he listens…" Charlie trailed off for a moment. "…There's this one thing, but it's pretty stupid," she confessed.

"I'm used to stupid things. As you may recall, I live in a sitcom," Baby goaded. This brought a weak jingle out of Charlie.

There was one other thing itching to come out. Something she could never tell her friends or even Mike and Marionette. Something that she hated even admitting to, but she had a feeling that Baby would understand.

"He reminds me of my dad."

"…Oh."

She heard the way Baby's voice deflated. She knew exactly what she was going through and how painfully awkward it was to admit.

"That could be a problem."

"That IS a problem," Charlie blurted out. All at once letting the cool composure drop with that revelation. "He has hair almost like his, sometimes he acts like I think I remember him acting… And this isn't a new thing. That's part of the reason us dating was so… weird." She made a dry twang of sound. "I thought there was something wrong with me. That I just was having trouble dating John because I had been sheltered for most of my life and just wasn't social adept… And now, even as this, I feel like a more open person. Like I'm a little more emotionally stable, weirdly enough, and I'm STILL not able to form a relationship with him."

"Then why do you keep trying?" Baby asked.

"Because… I know that he has real feelings for me," Charlie admitted.

"That's not grounds to make yourself love him when you don't," the clown reminded. She then added quieter, "…Unless you do."

"I…"

Unless she did. Unless she loved John. Because if she did then who cared about the awkwardness and the different lives. They could rise up together and fight it, and she could return his love. She could return his love.

"…I don't think so," Charlie confessed.

"That could be a problem then," Baby considered. "Or perhaps it's not. People start dating all the time and love rarely has something to do with it. You should see these dramas Ennard watches. They go through three to four loves in a month. It's no happily ever after."

"I know… Where is Ennard? He's not listening, is he?"

"He's sitting out on the couch eating a frozen waffle. Still frozen."

"Good 'ol Ennard."

"Charlie, why did you really call me?" Baby finally and directly asked. Her tone growing firmer. Not out of annoyance, but a strictness to draw out the truth.

Charlie sat there a moment before sinking down into her jacket. "…To have you tell me to not date John," she admitted.

"Fine," Baby said. "Don't date him. If you do, I will mock you relentlessly."

That got out another smile, but it was short lived. There was what sounded like a thump through the wall and Charlie straightened up. She carefully lifted up against the wall to peek over the counter but, understandably, couldn't see anything since there weren't any windows. The noise seemed to come from Mazercise next door, so there wasn't a direct doorway into it like the arcade.

"You told me to say it," Baby huffed.

"No, that's not it. I think I hear someone…" Charlie whispered. Baby went silent and allowed her to listen for a little longer, and finally the Security Puppet slid back to the floor. "Okay, I think whatever it was moved on. Or maybe it's just noises. There's a lot of humming and creaking here. That's probably why they play music all the time." She sat there a moment before adding on, "I wish you came."

"Hmm?" Baby sounded surprised.

"We could've really torn up this place. Maybe not the bounce castle, but there's three floors of escalators we could've had fun with," Charlie said. Baby made a more amused sounding little scoff. "We've really got to figure out somewhere elsewhere we can go. Scott's house is great and all, but you know."

"I would eagerly break back into that same mall if there was even the slightest chance that they had anything in my size," Baby remarked. "…But I agree. As much as I loathe Freddy's, I might've put aside those feelings to go with you. If simply for the skating space." She paused and Charlie could faintly hear the sound of her moving her wheels on the carpet. "But you wouldn't have wanted me there."

"That's not true."

"Yes, it is. I would've put up a huge fuss over John's inadequate timing and embarrassed everyone, including myself."

"…Good point." Charlie couldn't help but smile again. "Thanks, Baby. For being here, even if you're not here."

"Now, are you feeling better or are you covering?"

"I… Both."

"I suppose that's good enough for now," Baby concluded.

Though by that point Charlie had pulled the phone away from her head and was listening again. She had heard something again, though this time it was louder than a thump. It sounded almost like a door clattering closed. She listened closer and felt panic creeping up when she noticed the sound of footsteps out in the atrium closing the distance between Mazercise and El Chip's security door.

"Charlie?"

"There are definitely footsteps outside," Charlie whispered into the receiver.

"Is it Natalie? Or the Rabbit?"

"No, too heavy. It's an animatronic," she said. She started to slowly edge towards the corner of the wall leading into the kitchen. "It might be Freddy, but… I have to let you go for a second. I'm not hanging up."

"Yes. Go hide," Baby encouraged. Charlie could hear the edge of dread in her voice, and it was enough to send her moving. She released the phone, letting it swing by the end of its cord under the receiver.

Charlie got back into the kitchen and around the shelves until she was tucked in the corner behind the door. Just in case she needed a quick escape, or at least the best chance of a hiding spot in the kitchen. The cabinets looked too small to climb into soundlessly. Maybe if she had more time, but the security door was already sliding open.

She really hoped it was Freddy, but she had a feeling that it wasn't. That feeling turned out to be correct.

"Helloooo?" a feminine voice called through. There was a mechanical squeak as she bent over to slip under the door. "Don't be shy, Honey. I already know you're here. I just want to help! I know all about boy trouble~."

It had to be Glamrock Chica and she spoke like she was friendly, but there was an undertone that was anything but. Something sinister hiding behind her words. Less assuring and encouraging and more attempting to lure her into a false sense of security. She didn't fall for it.

"Hmm…" Chica scanned the room and then the area past the counter, and it didn't take her too long to notice the phone dangling from its cord. "Hmm…" she hummed knowingly and walked over.

She lifted herself up onto the counter and leaned as far as she could over until her fingers caught the cord. She then snapped the receiver to her, sliding her hand up the cord and catching it, and pulling it up to her head.

"Is anybody there?" Chica asked. She wrapped a finger in the cord and lightly kicked her feet behind her. The line was deathly quiet. "Sorry, but the Pizzaplex is closed. Ya'll call back now, ya hear?"

She then released the phone, watching it swing down and smack against the wall before hopping back off the counter. She then began to slowly saunter her way to the end of the counter and towards the kitchen door. She began to slowly push it open, poking her face into the crack of the door.

"Is somebody looking for a late-night snack?" she cooed. She then pushed the door open and strode into the kitchen. Charlie caught it and coaxed it open the rest of the way so she could hide behind it. "I know you're in here. Don't worry, I'm not going to tell! I bet you're awfully hungry. How about we split a couple of tacos and have a nice chat? It'll be a girl's night!" Her voice was more bubbly and less sinister, but it was obvious to Charlie that it was still a ruse.

Chica gave a little 'hmph' and put her hands on her hips. The slid off as she began to walk around the kitchen and look around the sparse pieces of furniture, even open a few cabinets. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!~"

Charlie shifted the door enough to peek out and watched as Chica stopped on the other side of the room to poke around some boxes. She quickly ducked back in when the animatronic's head started to slowly turn, and she was out of sight as it turned all the way around to get a full view of the room. Though in the process Chica had noticed something. Her head smoothly spun forward again as her eyes locked on the prize.

The nacho cheese dispensers. Someone forgot to put on the safety caps.

Chica narrowed her gaze as she looked back towards the counter and around the kitchen. She couldn't see anybody or any obvious hiding spots, even though she knew they were there. Still, she couldn't pass up an opportunity like this.

Charlie heard Chica messing with something on the other side of the room and dared to peek out. She caught Chica with her head under the cheese dispenser, completely backwards, beak opened, and pumping nacho cheese in clumpy gulps directly into her mouth. Some of it splattering on her cheek or oozing out the edge of her mouth.

As bizarre as that all was, this left her an excellent opening. The angle Chica was in meant that the door wasn't in her peripheral, which meant maybe she could sneak out. Staying close to the floor, Charlie nudged the door open slightly before smoothly crawling around it, one hand tight on her prong's bell to make sure it kept silent, the other balancing her on the floor. She moved with every pump, carefully sliding back, shifting out the doorway.

She caught the door with her fingers and slowly pulled it with her, and only released it when she began to feel tension. Though by then it was halfway closed. It almost looked natural. Anyone could've believed it drifted closed itself.

Now Charlie was out of the kitchen, but it was no time to get cocky. She continued to crawl along the wall and around the counter at the front of the restaurant, then looked across at the security door. She knew what was going to happen when she started opening the door. Likely, Chica was going to hear her, and she could only hope she would be too caught up in her current position to get to her.

She peeked over the counter one last time to make sure Chica was still chugging cheese before going ahead and silently crawling the short distance to the security door. It began to automatically open.

Chica let out a sputtering noise and was thumping towards the kitchen door in seconds, but the security door was just fast enough that Charlie could slide underneath. Or she was going to before a beam of light crawled across the floor in front of her, outside of the restaurant. She couldn't tell if it was Natalie or a Security Bot, or something else, but she knew she was stuck.

Charlie admittedly panicked and in a last-ditch effort to not set off every security alert in the building, she hastily sprinted and dove over the counter. Disappearing from sight right as Chica staggered around the corner. She quickly took her position back behind the kitchen door as Chica stomped around out front.

"Were you trying to sneak out? That's not nice! I was only trying to help," Chica said. The irritation starting to edge through her voice as she wiped her mouth, smearing cheese across it. "No more games. You better come out."

Then she proceeded to stand guard in front of the security door and look into the kitchen like a hawk. She wasn't going to be moving anytime soon, Charlie got that much, and is Roxanne, Monty, or Natalie appeared then the whole thing was blown. She had to get out of here and find a way back downstairs.

There was only one other way out of El Chip's, and that was through the arcade. She had briefly peeked into the attached arcade earlier when she was up here with her friends and knew it was huge. She also knew there was a security door leading from it to the atrium, though it was likely shut tight. It was still her best bet, especially because she could radio Mike from in there and figure out a plan.

Of course, that meant going through another security door and alerting Chica again, but in this case the arcade was much larger and more than adequate a hiding spot. In fact, if Chica moved slow enough, she could've very well hustled back into the kitchen, or hid beside the security door in the arcade and slipped back inside after Chica went through and before the door could close. She could lose her entirely.

It was worth a shot because she couldn't just hide out in the kitchen forever. Charlie steadied herself and slipped around the door until she was crouched in the doorway staring down the security door.

Then she made a run for it, moving quickly and quietly before sliding in at the base of the security door, ready to roll under the second the door lifted high enough for her to do so. She could hear Chica's footsteps thumping after her, but she was just as quick to make it to the next security door and watched as it lifted up and revealed the dark arcade laying beyond, illuminated by neon strips along the walls and waving along pillars.

Directly in front of her were two strips of red couches set in a wavy patterning and leading out towards the arcade proper. Other than a cluster of pool tables to her immediate left, there weren't many arcade machines back here, but there was plenty of space to run and hide, which was exactly what she did. Charlie broke into a sprint and raced off into the arcade to find a place to hide.

Chica would've been hot on the heels of the woman in the purple jacket when her eyes suddenly focused on her legs. Her inhumanely slender, entirely bare, and pure pitch-black legs.

"BWAK?!" she choked in surprise. She straightened so fast that she teetered on her feet, staring after the retreating animatronic until it disappeared with wide eyes.

Then a violent twitch spread through her body and her pupils shrunk as her eyes focused in. This was not a human; this was a major breach of protocol. She lurched forward in an awkward stagger before hastily stomping after her target.

Charlie had gotten up against the right wall and behind some arcade machines in a curved corner. She discovered while running over here that though there were no animatronics in the arcade, it was far from empty. There were Staff Bots in here. A few Security Bots were doing loops through the length of the arcade while as many cleaning bots were dotted around mopping the floor. One as close as being on the other side of the machines, though it hadn't noticed her.

She listened for Chica and with her still thumping around on the other side of the arcade, she started to look around for better cover or another way out. She found the latter in the form of a red and blue door on the wall further ahead.

Charlie crept out long enough to try the handle, but found the door locked tight. She turned around to retreat back into her hiding spot, noticing Chica fumbling past a counter in the middle of the room. She was moving weird, differently to before. She always had a weird sway to her walking, but now her motions were much stiffer, and she was feverishly looking around as she did so. Charlie got behind the line of cabinets before she could come over.

Even though Chica was still in the middle of the room, Charlie could hear her voice echoing through clearly.

"You're not supposed to be here. Wandering around all on your lonesome. That's against the rules," the other animatronic lulled. Her tone had changed once more, becoming somehow more sinister than originally. "If any of the technicians find you, they'll take you straight to the furnace. You don't want that, do you? I can help you. Just come out and I won't tell anybody that I saw an unauthorized animatronic walking around where she doesn't belong."

The talk of a furnace didn't help things, and it did little to encourage Charlie to reveal herself. Though she felt like even Chica knew that they had passed that option long ago.

The more concerning thing was that the animatronic was starting to edge in her direction. Apparently, she must've noticed how far the footsteps went because she was staying in the general area, circling around other clusters of machines, and searching for the Security Puppet. Her hiding spot wasn't exactly great either, it just seemed less obvious than racing into a bathroom. Chica wasn't checking them now, but she definitely would've heard one of the doors.

Chica must've heard something though because she was coming closer. She walked down the length of the counted and at that point Charlie had to crawl around and hide behind the end of the line of arcade cabinets, elsewise Chica would've already seen her. It sounded like she had slowed down and Charlie couldn't tell if she was imagining it or not if she was actually looking as closely as she imagined.

Charlie considered running for it, she tried to judge the arc she would have to run in to equally dodge Chica and not get stuck against the wall, but in the end, she decided to stay put and pull out her taser. This time she wasn't going to let it get yanked out of her hand. This time she was going to use it, because she was quite literally backed into a corner.

This was the moment that would make or break her escape.

And that moment was interrupted by a familiar alarm blaring from the direction of the El Chip's entrance. It was the same noise the Security Bot had made when it detected Mike and Marionette in the charging station.

Chica instantly spun around and broke into a shuffling sprint towards the sound of the alarm. Charlie didn't miss the fact that Chica was running a lot faster now that she had in El Chip's. Something had changed, and she suspected it was something that turned over the moment it became clear that she wasn't human. She peeked out and caught the back end of the chicken as she disappeared past the counter.

Only to then watch someone else quickly sprint past her and make a run further into the arcade, the sound their footsteps masked by the noise the Staff Bot was making. Charlie was stunned to recognize it as being Jessica, who continued back into the arcade while looking around frantically. Looking for her, Charlie realized, and after only a second of deliberation she was after her too.

The arcade turned into a wide hall after the bathroom and she caught a glimpse of Jessica disappearing around the next corner as she ran down it, not daring to call for her. She sped up, tapping softly on the cool tiled floor, and came around the corner and into a section filled with clusters of photo booths. Her eyes immediately locked on the movement of a curtain and she ran to that booth and hopped in.

Jessica cut off a scream by clamping her hands over her mouth and let them drop with a sigh of relief once she realized it was Charlie squeezing in beside her.

"Where did you come from?" the puppet whispered.

"I could ask you the same thing!" Jessica retorted. She slid back further to give Charlie more room and explained, "I saw Chica come in and when the door opened and you didn't come out, I figured I'd come in and get you myself."

"You were outside?" Charlie asked surprised. Jessica nodded, and an uneasy look passed her mask. "You didn't hear what I was talking about on the phone, did you…?"

"No, I was further down. I just wanted to keep an eye out for you since Freddy said you came up here alone," the blond explained. It was clear that she was being truthful, not that she would've doubted her. "Think she'll find us here?"

"I…I don't know. I know she's dead set on finding me and these are the most obvious hiding spots, so she might start pulling back curtains until she's checked every one."

Jessica frowned worriedly while Charlie got out her radio.

"But she's still out of earshot so first thing's first…" Charlie pressed the call button. "Mike, can you hear me? Jessica and I are up in the arcade and Chica's got us cornered."

The bounce park's security office surprised Mike because it was exactly what he expected it to be. It wasn't a big room that was wall-to-wall in screens with high-tech equipment and lit by a neon glow, but a tiny, cramped space with a desk shoved in, a couple of monitors, and exactly one security door with a glass window looking out to the hall leading to it. There was a door in the back, but much to his amusement he found that it led to a closet-sized bathroom.

Mike dropped into the office chair and kicked his feet up on the desk. It was awfully nostalgic, down to the animatronics crowding in the doorway. Marionette was standing beside Mike with his arms crossed, facing the wall with his back towards Freddy. An effect that would've been a lot more potent if they weren't all cramped in there. Freddy stood directly behind him, half out of the doorway, waiting obediently for whatever was coming.

"…When did you first see me?" Marionette finally and somewhat unexpectedly asked. Freddy's ears perked attentively as the Puppet turned to face him. "It was outside the daycare, was it not?"

"Ah… No. It was back at the recharge station. I saw you leaning over the railing above us, but I did not say anything," Freddy answered. This was a surprise to both listeners.

Mike couldn't understand why Marionette couldn't feel Freddy looking at him. Marionette could though. The more people had looked at him, the more comfortable he got working at the pizzeria and spending time with other people, the weaker that reflex had become. Now he could miss it if he wasn't paying full attention, and at the time he had almost all his attention on snaring Roxanne Wolf. That… was something he had to think about from now on.

"I see. Why didn't you warn Roxanne that I was there? I know she must be your friend," the Puppet asked.

"She is! But when I saw you, I recognized you from the Foxy cartoon. I assumed that you had come here with him, as he has spoken about you before," Freddy continued. He perked a little. "Plus, I could detect your security receiver frequency: Unrecognized Frequency FZ554. That verified that you were a former Freddy Fazbear animatronic performer!"

"What?" Marionette asked blankly. Mike's brows silently shot up as he mouthed the same question.

"Your security receiver frequency; the frequency for which you are aligned with the security protocols. I recognized the 'FZ' as being a Fazbear identifier, which would make sense considering that you, like Foxy, are retired- erm- repositioned Fazbear characters. I too have a frequency code! Mine is FZ901."

The Puppet stared at him wide-eyed for a moment before shaking it off.

"Freddy, you really shouldn't volunteer that information to someone you just met," Marionette said with exasperation. "Someone could use that code for their own means. I had someone try to use mine to trick me once. It was terrible."

"Oh… I am sorry to hear that. I just thought that it was only fair since I could detect yours," Freddy explained. "And I believe that is why the Security Bot was reacting to the recharge station. It must have detected your signal and believed that you were inside."

"I've noticed that they've been following me," he remarked. Freddy didn't seem to have anything to say to that. "And you thought Mike was Foxy."

"I did. If not when I saw you here, then when I looked in and saw him wearing his jacket. I assumed that you were trying to protect him. That was why I stepped in and told Roxy the story that I did… I do not want to lie to her, but I know what may happen if Foxy gets caught," Freddy said somberly.

"I can tell you care about him," Marionette said. It was unclear if he really did or if he was just saying that to drag out more answers.

"I do! He is a very good friend of mine," he said. "...And I am very aware that what we have been doing is wrong. Just like allowing your friends to stay without telling the Security Officer, I have been letting Foxy stay in the Pizzaplex and enjoy the attractions without paying- but I believe this is a good thing! We do not need to be competitive rivals. We can be friendly rivals! And perhaps someday we can have a crossover album."

"Yeah, that's not happening," Mike thought. He might've said it out loud if not for the situation at hand. He was giving Marionette full control of this conversation; he was just here for backup. Watching the cameras and minding his business.

"Well, Foxy is very fond of you too. I can tell. He doesn't normally warm up to people so quickly, let alone other animatronics. We have had… a mixed history with them to say the least," Marionette explained. He hesitated a moment before deciding to go ahead and rip off the band-aid. "How long have you… been awake?"

"You mean my activation? A few weeks, or perhaps a few months. I cannot remember the exact date."

"Can you remember being activated?" Marionette asked. "What is the first thing you can recall?"

"The first thing I remember was…" Freddy hesitated, looking down with a thoughtful expression as his eyes slid slowly across the floor in thought. His fingers tapping on the doorframe. Then he straightened, as though it suddenly came to him. "Ah, yes! I was in a recharge station. One of my bandmates was outside looking in at me. I knew who they were, but I did not know how I got into the recharge station."

"Who was it?" Marionette asked. Freddy visibly hesitated. He actually tensed for a moment, giving it away completely.

"I… I cannot recall," he finally said. His ears lowered a little.

"He's lying. He knows exactly who it is," Mike thought. "Well, we know the Sun's been around a while and he's been doing damage control for him all night-."

"That's fine… On another topic, how long has the Sun been awake?"

Mike smirked a little, glad to see that he and Marionette were still on the same page.

"I am not sure. Longer than I have been. It seems I was the last to wake up," Freddy explained. Before the Puppet could pose another question, he gave a pensive and audible hum.

"What's wrong?" Marionette asked with a tilt of his head.

"It is just… Foxy asked me the same question," Freddy mused.

"I'm not shocked. We don't meet too many new souls," Marionette assured.

But Freddy seemed bothered by something. He hummed again, looking down in thought, and was given the time he needed to process whatever it was. What eventually came was not what was expected.

"May I ask you a question too?" Freddy asked, and Marionette nodded. "Have you seen a rabbit lady?"

Funny how the whole 'woman in a rabbit suit' thing was so ridiculous and yet the solemn way Freddy asked that immediately sent creeping sensation down Mike's spine.

"I have not, but I have heard about her," Marionette said. "Have you seen her?"

"I too have not but there are others who have... There was a child who was locked in the Pizzaplex overnight who told me that he had seen her, and just earlier tonight, Sunny warned me about the rabbit as well," Freddy explained. A look of concern settled on his face. "I feel as though something is happening and everyone knows except for me. I do not like this feeling. It makes me feel unsafe."

Marionette stared at Freddy silently for a long moment. The bear returned the gaze with one of uncertainty and questioning. He wasn't acting, Marionette realized then. He really didn't know.

"…You don't know about the children who went missing?" Marionette quietly asked.

"The rumors?"

"Those weren't rumors, Freddy. Years ago, long before the last Freddy's closed its doors, numerous children went missing at Freddy's. Or that's what was believed. In actuality, there was a man in a rabbit suit who lured them away-." Marionette cut off his explanation when Freddy suddenly snapped to alert with a startled blink. "Do you know what I'm talking about? Do you remember?"

"No, I just got a security alert. From Chica, it seems. She is up in…" His eyes widened with a gasp, and he quickly looked between him and Mike. "She is in the Superstar-cade!"

"I'm assuming that's bad for us," Mike finally said.

"Yes! Charlie went to El Chip's to make a phone call, and the Superstar-cade is connected directly to it!"

"What?!" Mike jolted up from the office chair. "Why didn't you say anything?!"

"I told that young lady who was accompanying you, but I should have also told you. This is terrible! I thought Chica was still in her room!" Freddy seemed genuinely panicked, but not nearly as much as the two of them were.

Marionette gave a startled chime while Mike immediately ran out of the office without another word, with both animatronics quick to follow after him. It didn't take long to get back out to the main room, and they continued running along the solid flooring stretching down the wall towards the front. As they did, Mike called back across the room.

"Hey! Charlie's in trouble and we're going to go get her! All of you stay here, we've got it under control!" he yelled. Honestly, he just didn't want more people to get underfoot, though his request fell on deaf ears as the second they heard it, John and Carlton came running. Though they had a lot more distance to cover and nobody was waiting for them.

The three were just about to make it to the security door when there was a crackle over the radio, followed by the voice of Charlie herself.

"Mike, can you hear me? Jessica and I are up in the arcade and Chica's got us cornered."

Mike snatched up his radio and replied. "We hear you and we're already on our way!... Wait, Jessica is up there too-? Forget it, just lay low, hide somewhere, and we'll be there in two seconds. Three tops."

He wasn't expecting a third voice to suddenly chime back in.

"Chica's sent out a security alert, so it's not going to just be her for long. You've got to get out of there fast," Jake warned over the line. "I don't know where you are, but there's a tunnel that leads between the arcade and the Prize Counter. If you can get through there, you can probably hide out or take the elevator down into the lobby. Or take the fire escape. There's a roof access in there too. Anything's better than staying still."

"Jake's right. We're in a really bad hiding spot," Charlie confessed. "…Chica's still down by El Chip's. I think we can make a run for it."

"…Yeah, go for it. We'll find a way up," Mike almost reluctantly agreed. They just made it through the security door and were only a few steps in when Freddy suddenly sprinted past them.

"Follow me. There is an elevator in the lobby that leads directly up to the Prize Counter," he said. Mike didn't question it since Marionette had already started after him, apparently trusting him to lead the way.

The Over-the-Moon Bounce Park's entrance was down a hall that was connected with a hallway that led directly under El Chip's, only a little ways away from the assumed entrance to Chica's Cupcake Factory or Bakery. It led to a walkway that looked down on the Kid's Cove playground and the entrance to Monty's Golf and ended in another security door beside the escalators.

Freddy took a sharp left and started to lead back towards the lobby and had almost made it when he noticed the familiar thumping of footsteps nearby. Monty and Roxanne were down on the first floor, and he couldn't be sure which escalator they were going to take to come up. At the last moment he decided to take a sharp veer to the left. "This way!"

Marionette caught sight of Roxanne coming up one of the escalators behind them, so when Mike hesitated only for a moment, he gave him a firm shove and that sent him going again. Though it didn't take him long to remember that there was that second daycare entrance through the lobby. They were in through the security door and heading down the stairs before they could be noticed.

They tore through yet another security door and through the daycare lobby. Freddy took the long way around the fountain while Mike decided to take the shortcut and went straight through, stepping over the square platforms and splashing through the shallow water.

"Mike, that is a fountain!" Freddy cried.

"Oh hell, really?! I was wondering where all this water came from," he retorted sarcastically. He slipped slightly while coming out the other side but caught himself and continued running, now following Marionette who had taken the lead.

Marionette threw the doors open with his telekinesis and started to enter the lobby before suddenly looping around and coming right back. Mike barely skidding to a stop before running into him.

"The 'night guard' is down there," Marionette said tensely. Tensely in a warning more than of dread. Not that he would hurt Natalie, but more that he was about to blow their cover if they didn't figure out something fast.

That fast solution was none other than Freddy Fazbear who ran by with a, "Leave it to me!" and went straight down the stairs towards her.

Natalie was briskly walking around the fountain towards the other set of stairs when Freddy came racing down the other side.

"Did you get the alert too?" she asked.

"Yes, I did. That is what I came to tell you about," Freddy said as he jogged up. Much to her surprise and confusion, he suddenly walked up on her until he was practically standing on top of her.

"Whoa! A little too close, Big Guy," Natalie said. She took a step back only for him to step in close again.

"My apologies, but I must stand close so nobody else hears," he explained. "It is… of a sensitive nature."

"Oookay?" she said, half-asking. "What is it?"

"A few nights ago, I was in the lobby of Fazer Blast when I heard a peculiar noise coming from inside. I thought that, perhaps, it was a late-night technician. Technicians do occasionally stay late to test the attractions, but this was a very strange noise, so I alone decided to investigate. But I did not go unarmed. I took with me the golden Fazerblaster, the most rare and valuable Fazerblaster of them all, and entered into the arena. Much to my surprise, I found the entire arena swarming with Staff Bots. But they were not normal Staff Bots. They were fully painted green with large black eyes. The moment they saw me they all drew their own Fazerblasters! I was surrounded."

Mike and Marionette made their way down the wall before crossing to the elevator and pressing the button. It opened with a ding and almost instantly they were both hit with a foul odor. Mike ignored it and slipped inside, crouched down, and reached up to press the button before covering his mouth with his sleeve. Marionette knelt beside him as the doors closed and the elevator began to rise.

Natalie briefly started to lean to look past at the elevator, but Freddy smoothly leaned as well to block her vision. "Someone just went up the elevator," she said.

"It may have been Monty or Roxy. Or perhaps I triggered the elevator from walking by," Freddy suggested. "But as I was saying- I was surrounded by a crowd of alien Staff Bots. Thinking quickly, I ducked behind the nearest wall and pulled out my trusty golden Fazblaster! I knew that I was in for quite a battle-."

Meanwhile, Mike hadn't felt this nauseous in an elevator since the time he had almost bled out in one.

"This must be that rancid elevator that guy was going on about," he muttered into his sleeve. A sleeve that already smelled a little stuffy. "Oh yeah, this hoodie is going to be wrecked by time we get out of here."

He looked to Marionette to notice that he had a distressed look. His brow was furrowed and he had a discontent frown on his face. Taking sympathy, Mike reached for his hand.

"Hey, we're going to get to them. They could be up there waiting for us," he pointed out. That didn't seem to ease Marionette's mind. Not from the slow motion of him looking over, or the soft ticking beginning in his chest. Mike didn't like that look, nor the way it felt like it put an iron ball in his stomach. "…What?" he asked.

"…It smells like decomposition in here," Marionette whispered.

A rather gentle way to say it smelled like a rotting body. A rather subdued reaction when paired with a look that suggested anything but.

"Oh boy," Mike said, barely resisting the urge to say something much less clean. His own eyes widened, and he might've very well broke into another sweat as he noticed that foul, fruity odor in the air. "That's bad."

"I'm wrong I'm sure," Marionette said. He laid his free hand atop Mike's. "…Let's just worry about Charlie and Jessica. They need all of our attention."

Which inadvertently warned Mike that he was absolutely certain of the smell on the air. He felt even more sick at that, but now it was the familiar sourness of panic welling in his gut. Mike stubbornly swallowed it down, squeezed Marionette's hand, and focused on the job at hand. Then they could figure out the next step.

Even if that meant looking for something they really didn't want to find.

For once, he really, really hoped Marionette was wrong.

John and Carlton hadn't been nearly as lucky as Mike, Marionette, and Freddy had been. They had gotten into the atrium around the same time that Roxanne and Monty had started climbing the escalators and had to lay low in hiding until the two bots were up on the third floor. By then they had been totally left behind and only knew where the three had gone by being able to see over Kids Cove.

By time the two got down to the daycare lobby, the security door was open, and the Nanny Bot was waiting outside. They were planning to just blow past and continue towards the other door when the Nanny Bot started to flag after them, waving its arms and rolling after them while making a short alert noise. This got John to stop and Carlton to a moment afterwards.

The Nanny Bot waved them in before turning and rolling into the doorway and stopping there to keep the door open.

John considered it for a couple of seconds before deciding to follow.

"This seems like a great idea," Carlton muttered under his breath. Those complaints aside, he still begrudgingly followed him back into the daycare.

Even though he followed the Nanny Bot, John was still cautious as he walked back into the daycare. At least the lights were still on and there was no sign of the Daycare Attendant.

"Hey!" a voice called. John recognized it as the voice from the radio, Jake, and he followed it towards the slide.

Through the netting he could see that there was someone hiding in the balcony above the daycare with the curtain pulled around them. This would've been strange if Charlie hadn't informed them about his true nature.

"I have a plan and I need your help!" Jake continued

"If it's for Charlie and Jess, we're in. Where do you need us?" John called back. Carlton looked a little uneasy at being spontaneously volunteered but didn't disagree.

"First thing's first, we have to get the overhead lights on in the atrium."

Chapter End Notes

This is the greatest plan~.

Chapter 33

Chapter Summary

Mike and Mari make it to the Prize Counter, but can they get to Charlie and Jessica now that they're in an even more compromised position?

Chapter Notes

Hello! Sorry this chapter was so late. In case you didn't hear, I caught Covid and have been having a hard run of it. X( But I'm alright, and here's the new chapter! Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

The arcade was a lot longer than expected. Charlie and Jessica both realized this when they were making the run towards the back and still had to turn a couple of corners to get there. There were too many arcade cabinets to count but plenty lined up and ready to hide behind, which was especially useful considering that there were two more overly curious Security Bots circling this back section of the arcade.

The arcade itself was a blur of shadows and neon. Flickering screens requesting tokens on arcade machines plastered with images of the Glamrocks styled like fighters, or in fantasy gear or fighter planes, or even the depictions of other Fazbear characters who had nearly been lost to time. Balloon Boy being one of them, with his goofy smile printed on the side of a set of pinball tables.

Finally, they made it to the end of the line, where the room narrowed in and ended abruptly at a small security door. They waited for the Security Bot to do a circle and pass by before running over, but much to their surprise, the door didn't automatically open. They tried lifting it together too, but to no avail. It would not lift; it would not budge. Jessica kept fussing with it as Charlie got her radio back out.

"Jake, problem. The door to the Prize Counter won't open. This has to be it, it's the only one in here," Charlie said.

"That's not good. It didn't use to be…" Jake answered. Mike didn't respond, so he was likely still on the move. "Okay, there's another door in there, but you're going to have to go back the way you came."

"If it's the red and blue one, I tried it already. No good," Charlie said. Jessica tapped her and gestured back, pointing out that the Security Bot was returning, and the two hurried to the wall and got back behind the arcade cabinets.

That's where Charlie spotted something that piqued her interest. There was a covered vent opening hidden behind the cabinets that looked big enough for them to fit into. She made her way to it, staying close to the wall to avoid the Security Bot's spotlight that was peeking in between the arcade cabinets. Even though it was likely an air vent, there was little to no air motion through the slates in the vent.

"Hey, I found a vent by the door that looks big enough to fit through. What's the chances of it leading to the Prize Counter?" Charlie whispered into the radio.

"If it's facing that direction, then I'd say it's worth a shot!... Wait, is it open?"

"No. We'll have to get it open ourselves," she said. She tested the vent cover, and it rattled a little, but it was too steadfast to physically pry off. Apparently, Jessica had an idea as she dug into her bag and soon after produced two items.

"Quarter or pocketknife?" she offered. Charlie looked between the options.

"Quarter. The knife might break."

Jessica nodded and dropped it back into her bag before getting started with the quarter. She was just able to fit it into one of the thick screws and after some working was able to loosen it enough to unscrew it. She then moved to the next one.

As luck would have it, that was when they began to hear the thumping of Chica's approaching footsteps.

"She's coming," Charlie warned.

Jessica tightened her lips and buckled down, unscrewing the second faster than the first and hopping to the third. She was in the process of starting it when they heard a voice echoing from further back in the arcade.

"Where oh where has my long-legged bot gone?" Chica asked with fake worry. It quickly melted into a more sinister tone. "Poor thing. I'll find her real soon…"

The worst part was that both girls knew that if this vent cover didn't come off quickly, she was going to end up finding them. Jessica twisted the coin rapidly and got the third out, finally making it to the fourth as the footsteps edged in closer. She had to be passing the seating area they had, one with a glowing floor and a few simple tables, which meant she was at the last corner. Charlie resisted the urge to beckon Jessica to hurry.

The fourth screw came free and both of them pulled the cover free with a slight clatter.

"There you are!" Chica cried. She began to race towards the noise.

Jessica threw the cover aside and pushed Charlie in first. She didn't waste a moment and crawled in quickly, giving her friend plenty of time to climb in after her and begin to crawl through the cool metal shaft.

Until a hand grabbed her around the ankle and yanked back with a force she hadn't expected. Jessica shrieked as she was pulled out in one firm motion, her fingernails uselessly catching on the ridges in the vent. She was pulled free and dumped onto the floor at the chicken's feet, looking up to see her round, white face hanging over her.

"Oh! There really IS a human in here!" Chica said with surprise. Her tone shifted to one with only a sinister cover as she sat her hands on her hips and leaned in close. Cheese dripped out of her beak and on Jessica who grimaced in disgust. "I'm sorry, but the Pizzaplex is closed," she said through the ooze. Her voice lowering and gargling. "But don't worry! We've got a place for you…"

A sudden burst of music echoed out of the vent and Chica spun her head in time to see Charlie coming at her with her taser out and primed to deliver a controlled shock. She was ready for a fight, and she wasn't about to back down.

She didn't expect Chica to react the way she did.

The animatronic let out a startled cry and staggered back, bumping into the arcade cabinets and almost falling back against them, her legs bent and feet turned in to catch her. She stared wide eyed- not at the taser, but at Charlie herself. She was afraid of her. Unfortunately, this wasn't the time for an amicable chat about what had her so frightened.

She grabbed Jessica and pulled her into the vent with a strength that, again, the blond wasn't anticipating. Not that Jessica missed a beat, she began crawling after Charlie instantly and got far enough into the vent that when Chica snapped out of it and threw herself forward to grab her again, she ended up just missing.

Chica gave a frustrated cry and thumped her fists on the bottom of the vent. She wanted to follow them, she wanted to crawl in and catch right up to them, but the "stupid, stupid" rule that said animatronic performers couldn't go crawling into off-limit and dangerous spaces, such as vents, she couldn't. Even if she decided to break the rule, she physically couldn't go through with it.

Well, if she couldn't go in then they weren't coming out. She stomped around the arcade cabinets before giving them a hard ram, causing one to tip back and fall against the wall, blocking the way. Then shoving another for good measure.

Charlie and Jessica were already a ways into the vent went they heard the thumping. They both looked back, but by then they had turned the corner and could no longer see. It didn't sound like Chica was following at least, so they continued.

Jessica wiped some of the cheese off of her face. "Ugh, that was so gross."

"You should've seen it going in," Charlie remarked. She lifted the radio as she led the way. "We're in the vent. We've lost Chica for now."

"Good. Keep going, you might just lose her for good."

Charlie didn't want to be pessimistic, but she highly doubted it. "That's the plan," she simply said.

She turned down and lowered the radio as they continued forward, but it wasn't long before they were interrupted again. This time it was by faint music coming from somewhere further in the vent. It sounded like music from a music box.

"Mari?" Charlie whispered. She hesitantly continued, listening for the music, and soon figuring out that it wasn't him. This sounded too much like an actual music box in contrast to his chiming voice.

It was getting closer too. She noticed there was a shaft leading upwards up ahead and it sounded like that was where the noise was coming from. Unfortunately, they would have to go directly underneath. Charlie cautiously crawled forward and shined her flashlight up the shaft. Right away she saw the source of the music.

It was the last thing she expected to see. A familiar visage in an unfamiliar size.

A tiny Music Man.

Though it wasn't quite the same Music Man she remembered. This one was exceptionally tiny, small enough to fit easily in the vent and still have space to spare. It had a dirty metal body with spots of wear and rust. Considering how new the Pizzaplex was, this had to have been an old piece of Fazbear Entertainment memorabilia that was brought to it, not a newly built animatronics. It had a little pair of cymbals and stuck to the wall with suction cup feet.

"They bought out Music Man," Charlie mumbled.

"What?" Jessica asked.

"Uh, nothing. Just looking at this little… guy."

Jessica tried to squeeze beside her and looked up to see it. "Huh, that is a little guy… Do you think he's going to be trouble?"

"I don't know."

The little Music Man must've understood that they were talking about it as it suddenly pulled one of its feet free and re-suctioned it closer. It continued the process as it sluggishly inched down towards them while chattering its teeth, of which it was missing a few.

Charlie jingled back up towards it and, much to her surprise, it stopped in its tracks. It made a stiff motion like clattering its cymbals without them fully touching and stared down at her. It didn't come any closer after that.

As interesting as this all was, Jessica knew they had to keep moving. "We've got to go," she said. Charlie nodded and crawled the rest of the way under the shaft, watching the mini Music Man until she couldn't anymore. It did not follow.

The vent eventually ended in another cover. Peeking through, Charlie could see some sort of office room inside, but the cover couldn't be unscrewed from this side. She turned over and tried to kick the cover out with her legs. After a few second without progress, Jessica squeezed in beside her in preparation to do the same.

"On three," Charlie said. "One… Two…"

A kick from both managed to force one of the corners out. Jessica focused her foot there while Charlie struck at the middle, and slowly the kicks forced the cover out until it collapsed to the floor. Charlie dropped down first, picking up and resting the cover on the wall, and began to look around as Jessica followed inside.

It was some sort of office. Shelves, desks, and file cabinets, even a couple of arcade cabinets were scattered around, but the weirdest thing was what looked to be a second smaller office inside of the office. Almost like a walled-in security office that was surrounded by more office space. It was strange, but there wasn't time to dwell on it, nor even really remark on it.

There were voices coming through the wall, one of which sounded a lot like Chica's. There was also a doorway with an exit sign over it in that same direction, which meant in all likelihood said speakers could just come waltzing in.

There was a door to their left though and Charlie ran for it with Jessica shortly behind and tried the handle. It was a red and blue door like the one in the arcade, and it too was locked. She stepped out of the doorway and looked around, and spotted a second door further down, and ran over to try that one too, to the same result. She could only assume from the location that the door beside the voices was the one in the arcade she tried earlier.

Charlie ran back to Jessica. "No good! Both locked!"

Jessica hesitated only a second before whispering, "Back to the vent!"

The two started to run over when suddenly there came a horrifically loud bang as the door into the arcade was rammed open. Taking a sharp turn, the two ran into the small inner office, with Charlie shutting the security door behind them. She then hastily crept to the other side of the room to get the other one, listening as the voices outside became much clearer.

"Still on the hinges? Disappointing," a female, obviously also robotic voice remarked.

"Pipe down," a deeper growl of a voice snapped.

Charlie pressed the button on the door right as he spoke, barely covering up the sound of it closing, and hid in the corner where she would be out of sight of the small window beside the door. Jessica joined her and they listened to the heavy footsteps turning the corner and walking past the door. The animatronic hesitated when he noticed the door not opening and knocked on it, to no response.

"Huh?" He stepped to the window and looked through, but he couldn't see anyone in the office. He couldn't even see any indication that anyone had been in there, what with the office chair pulled up to the desk. The only thing suspicious was that the doors were shut but being that it was a security office, that could've been done on purpose. He snorted and pulled back before continuing on, and Charlie leaned out enough to see his retreating back and confirmed it was Monty.

Charlie knew then that they were in a jam, but the direness of the situation didn't truly take hold until she heard the next exchange.

"Stay out there and watch the door," the female voice barked. Then there was another set of heavy footsteps walking around, though this time in the other direction and towards the other door.

That was when the weight began to crush down. With few options, Charlie could only bring the radio to her mouth and ask as quietly as she could, "Mike? Jake?"

Mike and Marionette were more than ready to get off the elevator when it slowed to a stop, but neither were expecting what was coming when those doors finally slid open.

It suddenly made sense why the gift shop was so small, because the Prize Counter was utterly massive. A lit by large swaths of pinks neon and floored with starry print carpet, the room was a treasure trove of prizes. Directly in front of them alone were two large mounds of plushies varying in size from moderately small to larger than a small child. One mound dedicated to Roxanne and one to Monty, but there were two more mounds for Freddy and Chica on the other side.

There were more than one prize counter two. They sat along the walls of the semi-circular room and were littered with more plushies and trinkets. Shirts with faces of the characters and emblems hung on the wall, action figures were lined on the shelves, pinatas, guitar toys, keychains and other little trinkets hung on displays or on the wall amongst the other items, and posters hung up above displays holding rolled-up duplicates.

The sheer amount of prizes was the more jaw-dropping part. Both the Sun and Moon had separate sections dedicated to them and each had their own line of merchandise, from action figures to shirts, to posters to plushies. There was a smaller section devoted to other characters too. That counter had some El Chip merch, including sombreros and shirts, and a couple of posters, one depicting what looked like Music Man with headphones and the other a bee character with a ball bun.

Marionette was left reeling. He slipped out of the elevator and did a slow spin to take all of it in, but it was going to take more than one spin to do that. It was the biggest Prize Counter he had ever seen, and all the prizes left him in awe.

A strange feeling settled in his chest as he took it all in. It wasn't so much jealousy but a somber sort of remorse. The awe of this glorious place letting way to the disappointment of it all, of how beautiful it all looked, of how empty it felt. He both envied it and shunned it, longing for the comfort and warmth of his own Prize Corner and knowing it couldn't compared to something like this.

There was no puppet either. Marionette was relieved at such, but that too held its own sorrow. They didn't even replace him, they just left it empty. They had completely written him out of the script. How tragic.

…And dear heavens, they had a Staff Bot on display. Was that a prize? He didn't even envy that, he just thought that was a bad idea in general. It probably would cost a fortune in tickets. Perhaps he could convince Natalie to save up to get it.

Mike let Marionette wander a little as he turned the radio back on and spoke in a low tone. "We've made it to the Prize Counter. Which way now?"

"Back and to the left. Like, turn around, all the way around."

"As opposed to partially around."

"And it's to the back left. On the left wall past the elevator. You're going to have to see if it'll open because it wouldn't on Charlie's side. She crawled into a vent, so keep an eye out for any of those."

While normally hearing that Charlie and Jessica crawled into a random vent might've been concerning, in this place it gave a slight assurance. At least they were hidden from plain sight and probably out of reach of anything.

He looked to see if Marionette was paying attention, but he was standing by one of the plush piles looking distracted. He watched him pick up one of the large Freddy plushies and begin to coddle it in his arms. He was stressed, Mike could tell.

"We will," he finished. He hooked the radio back to his belt, this time keeping it on since they were finally in the clear and walked towards the puppet. "Hey. He said it's this way."

"Coming!" Marionette said. He set down the Freddy doll again, readjusting it quickly so it would stay upright, and then floated over to his companion.

Mike turned and started walking briskly alongside him. "What's on your mind?" he asked.

"Not much. Just thinking," Marionette replied.

"Always thinking," Mike mused with a fond smile- despite the fact that he was borderline jogging past the elevator. "About what?"

"What it would be like if we had a Prize Corner of this size. We might someday if Foxy's gets big enough. If we'll be as big as Freddy's someday. Then there's the existential crisis when I can't tell if it is me or programming nudging at me to straighten the stock so it appears more presentable, reminding me that I am in fact a robot, and reminding myself that in another life I might've been tending this prize counter," Marionette listed out. By time they reached the security door, Mike had slowed down and was giving him a funny look. "…You know, anything other than the elevator."

"Right, I'm still trying to black that out," he said and nodded. "But just to let you know, you do that straightening thing off the clock too. Mostly when you're nervous."

"Oh. Then I suppose there's nothing to worry about," Marionette said. He sounded a little amused.

Less than a few seconds later there was a loud bang from somewhere through the wall, loud enough that both of them looked over. Not that they could see what caused it or hear anything explaining it afterwards.

"I suppose there's that," the puppet added, now sounding much more worried. "We should hurry."

"Way ahead of you," Mike muttered as his ditched the speedy walk and broke into run the last few feet to the security door.

Alas, it did not open when he arrived at it. With no obvious door controls, all of the others being automatic, and the previous warning that the door on Charlie's side didn't open, they already had a hunch that they weren't going to have much luck with this one.

Mike reached under the stuffy hood to run his fingers through his hair. "Okay. Time to look for that vent."

Marionette looked back towards the prize counters. "Do you think that noise we heard-?"

"Mike? Jake?" Charlie whispered through the receiver. Both snapped to alert, dropping any conversation, and paying full attention to the radio.

"Still here."

"We're here too. Where are you?" Mike added.

"We're in an office between the arcade and the prize counter and there's animatronics trying to get in," she said. It was clear that she was struggling to stay calm in the situation. "We've got the doors closed, but it looks like there's power meters on them. I don't think they're going to stay closed."

Mike pulled his thumb off the button long enough to swear and barely reached out to catch Marionette's arm before he darted off. "We're on our way. Do you have any idea where you are? There was a bang, are you anywhere near that?"

"That was Monty breaking in a door. That's right beside us."

"I know where they are," Marionette said. His eyes alit and his chest humming with incoming static.

"I have to turn the radio off."

"Do it. We're coming," Mike assured. He shoved the radio back on his belt as he began to run in the direction of the bang with Marionette right in front of him.

The Puppet stopped at the first counter they reached and leaned over it to look into the back. It looked like there was storage space behind it. As he was looking, Mike noticed a noise and looked back, and swore again as he realized that what he was hearing was the elevator starting to lower back into the lobby. A short-lived panic when Marionette suddenly swung himself over the counter.

"Back here," he said, and then made a beeline straight for the back.

By time Mike had gotten over the counter and caught up with him, he had found a door and was listening against it. It looked like there was another doorway further down, but from how he was listening it was clear he found his target.

"I hear them," Marionette said. With how they were stomping around, Mike thought someone would be half deaf not to.

"We got a problem," he warned through clenched teeth. The Puppet slightly turned his head. "Natalie's coming up the elevator." The Puppet gave an exasperated little huff of static. "But we might be able to use that to our advantage. If she can get them out here." Marionette hummed, thinking about what Mike was suggesting. "She gets them out, I'll get in and get them out, and we slip out one way or another."

Marionette didn't say anything but seemed intrigued by the plan. He nodded in agreement.

Mike meanwhile stepped back and behind a shelf to look through the open doorway, past the counter, and watched as Natalie stepped out of the elevator. His mouth twitched in a smirk when he saw she was covering her mouth.

She wasn't alone either. Stuffed in the elevator behind her was Freddy who followed closely behind and was looking around with rapidly darting eyes. This could work to their advantage, but it all depended on what happened next. He took Marionette by the arm and gently coaxed him back amongst the shelves, with only slight resistance and hesitation, and shortly afterwards Natalie stepped into view down the hall and up to the other door.

Meanwhile, Charlie and Jessica were now huddled in the opposite corner by the other door as Monty and Roxanne loomed outside. She realized Roxanne was the other animatronic wandering around when she spotted her looking through the window. The wolf looked around the office, also unable to see until the blind spot, and pulled back with a shake of her head.

The two had been bickering out there since Charlie ended the radio call with Mike, and Roxanne's inability to see anyone, and not being convinced that there was someone in there, seemed to rile up Monty. Enough at least that he thumped loudly on the door, perhaps hoping to somehow trigger it to open. It did not, though Charlie did notice that the power had visibly lowered from that banging alone.

But all of that came to an abrupt halt when there came the sound of someone trying one of doors. Both animatronics' heads snapped in that direction.

"Who's there?!" Monty barked.

"It's me!" Natalie called back. His shoulders lowered and she gave a huff. "But it looks like I'm not coming in, because the door's locked, and instead of giving me a ring of keys, they gave me a keycard that barely does anything."

Monty grumbled and headed around the back of the office with Roxanne in tow, and Charlie and Jessica quickly moved to the opposite side once again.

Natalie had turned back to ask Freddy about the door when Monty's voice suddenly rumbled from the other side of it.

"Outta the way."

Apparently reading the tone, Freddy grabbed Natalie around the waist and pulled her aside. She gaped but before she could even ask, the door slammed open with a resounding bang, the only evidence of what just happened being Monty's foot sticking out through the doorway. The gator then came sauntering through and lowered his glasses to acknowledge the blond.

"Ma'am."

Both she and Mike made mental notes to try and avoid getting anywhere near Monty's legs.

"Works better than a key, I guess," she murmured. She pushed out of Freddy's arms and cleared her throat. "Okay, so what's going on?"

"Chica said she saw an unregistered animatronic walking around up here," Roxanne explained as she stepped into and leaned against the doorway. Her hands rested on her hips and her tail swayed behind her.

"What?" Natalie asked in what might've been genuine surprise. "…Where is she? I need to hear this from her."

"Back in the arcade, watching the door," Roxanne said. She turned around and headed back inside, leading the way for Natalie, Freddy, and Monty to follow her back in.

Before they got to that other door though, Month stopped Natalie with a tap on the shoulder.

"'Ey," he said. He rested that hand on that shoulder, leaning over the other one- his grinning maw awfully close to her face- and pointed a thumb at the office door. "We need in the office."

"What, a security office?... Oh, wow. Okay, just noticed the layout of this room. That's really weird," Natalie remarked. She casually pulled away from him to look in the window. "Is there someone in there?"

"Gotta hunch there is."

"I don't see anyone."

"That don't explain why these doors are shut. It could be hiding in there, up in the ceiling or something'." Roxanne gave a doubtful scoff. "It could happen!" Monty defended. "You saw that vent was open!"

"There's a vent open? Which one?"

Roxanne looked utterly fed up with them both. "Just open the door so we can shut him up," she said.

"Alright, alright. Let me just check on Chica and then I'll figure out how to get it open," Natalie agreed. She trudged towards the other door with Freddy and headed through, leaving Monty and Roxanne looming outside the office door.

This whole conversation was overheard by Marionette, who quietly recounted it to Mike. He had his head tilted against the door with one hand on the handle while the other's fingers were wrapped around the lock, unlocking it while he listened, waiting for his cue to make a move.

"Go on the other side an' look in the window. This whole side over here's a blind spot."

"Maybe if you took your sunglasses off for once…"

"Ain't no need to get desperate yet."

That was the cue. While Marionette didn't know this would totally expose her and Jessica's hiding spot, something about the mention of windows and the idea of an animatronic on each side of a power restricted office pushed him over.

"We're going with your plan. Wait here," he said.

Mike got as far as, "My plan-?" before Marionette was at the other door. Without any further warning, the Puppet suddenly blared a very familiar noise from his chest; the alarm the Security Bot made when it had found them. It was practically an exact replication save for a major increase in volume. Someone would have to be nearly deaf to not hear it, even through the wall.

The results were instantaneous. Heavy footsteps rapidly approached the opposite door and Mike barely backed behind the shelves in time before Roxanne burst through the door, which had close automatically, and looked around wildly. By then Marionette had disappeared and must've reappeared somewhere back in the Prize Counter, as the alarm noise moved somewhere into the back.

Roxanne was lured off into the Prize Counter with Monty coming out behind her with a slow, hunched-over gait. Mike waited until he couldn't see him before stepping forward and slipping through the door. He slowly closed it behind him, trying to keep it from slamming shut behind him and managing to ease it into only an audible click.

Yet Monty still heard it. It was quiet enough that he couldn't distinguish what it was, but he recognized that something distinctly clicked and turned to make his way in that direction. He looked down the wall at locked onto that second door, then began to silently stalk over. Hunting down the prey he hadn't even confirmed yet was there.

The shelves beside him creaked. He snapped his head to the right to look at them, scanning them up and down, but they just sat there. Nothing behind them, nothing that visibly touched them, there was nothing there. He turned back away.

And in one sudden, sweeping motion every box, every plush toy, every pinata, everything suddenly started flying off the shelves in front of him. Flinging against the walls before falling uselessly towards the floor, more items crashing down as the shelves were left bare. He backed out of the range of fire, but the moment the line of destruction hit the end of the shelves, where he stood, he was hit by something.

It was a harsh enough shove to stagger him slightly, catching him off guard. He swiped back but there was nothing there. Whatever hit him had been just as invisible as whatever just shoved all that stuff off the shelves.

Roxanne ran back through the counters in time to see the stagger and the mess laying out before him. "What happened?!" she asked. From her tone alone, she didn't seem entirely convinced that it hadn't been something he did.

"There's somethin' over there!" Monty answered. A pinata suddenly flew across the hall and smacked him in the head, knocking his sunglasses askew. Between this and the shove, he was suddenly set off, and with a nearly feral bellow he crushed the pinata under his foot and tore into the storage area behind the shelves, shoving them over as he searched for the perpetrator. His yells for it to come out devolving into bellows and yells the more stuff was flung at him.

Roxanne didn't follow, knowing better than to get close to Monty while he was throwing a tantrum of this size. Instead, she ran back out into the Prize Counter to get a better look for herself at what was happening.

It was hard to comprehend exactly what she was looking at. It looked like merchandise was literally flying off the shelves and hurling itself at Monty. Though he wasn't helping things, assisting the process by tearing down stock before it could up and throw itself at him.

Suddenly she felt a strange sensation and snapped her head back. It was as though there had been something right beside her, but there was nothing there. As she turned around the sensation still lingered, and a quick check showed that there was an unrecognized security frequency close by. She kept catching a glimpse of darkness out of the corner of her eye as she turned but she couldn't catch up with it, no matter how quickly she threw her head around to look.

"I know you're there, so give it a rest. You're just embarrassing yourself," Roxanne spat. Her irritation gave away her discomfort, but the snarl on her voice showed little weakness. She turned around with a frustrated growl. "Where ARE you?!"

She was answered by long fingers suddenly sliding up the back of her head and through her hair until they rested atop her scalp. Something was above her, and it rested its head between its hands and whispered faintly into her ear:

"You have such lovely hair."

Roxanne snapped out of her trance and ripped herself free with a startled yell, and it the same motion swiped back but made no contact. There was nothing there, but much to her horror when she checked for the security signal, she found that it was still there, circling around her, toying with her as it did to Monty. It wasn't until Natalie came running in that the sensation suddenly dissipated, but she continued snapping her head around and spinning until she was staggering.

Natalie came in to find Monty tearing up part of the Prize Corner and Roxanne acting disoriented, but that was all that she saw.

Meanwhile, Mike had gotten into the office before the chaos has started and made it to the door for the smaller office. He looked through the window and could see Charlie and Jessica staring back at him from the corner on the other side. He hastily beckoned him, and they quickly crossed the office and opened the door.

"Mari's got it covered. Let's go," Mike quickly whispered. That was the only way to describe whatever the craziness that started ensuing in the other room was. He knew Marionette knew what he was doing, but it sounded concerning loud.

Charlie immediately pointed him towards the vent and he nodded, deciding to go ahead and trust that it was the safest way out. They hurried over and he cupped his hands to give her a boost, which she gladly accepted. Then he boosted Jessica. Then he started trying to climb up himself before realizing quickly that it was probably in his favor to grab a stool.

He just grabbed one from beside the office when the door from the arcade opened and Natalie came running through. Around the opposite way, thankfully, before quickly running out the same door Monty and Roxanne had gone. Mike released a breath he didn't realize he was holding. He knew Natalie wasn't necessarily a threat- not compared to the actual animatronics- be he didn't want to be the one to blow their cover. Especially after he almost already did.

He put down the stool and was up on it and into the vent in a matter of seconds, speedily crawling and catching up to Jessica in only a few short moment. As soon as he did, he noticed a chiming coming from nearby.

"What's that music?" he asked. Music box music, but not Marionette's. The notes were on a loop unlike the deliberate chimes and tinkles of Marionette's internal mechanism. This sounded like an actual music box.

"There's a little Music Man. He's up in the vents up ahead," Charlie whispered, about to reach said open vent.

But as she said that, Mike swore he heard the music coming from his right. Or really it was coming from everywhere, but one of the strongest points was directly to his right, behind a thinly grated, slow-circulating fan. He shined his flashlight in at the edge to see if he could see past it. He didn't, but he heard pattering from somewhere on the other side.

"Sure he's not back here?" Mike asked. "Because something just ran by."

Charlie turned her head in surprise before giving a concerned him but didn't yet reply. Instead choosing to crawl ahead, under the open vent, and shine her light up the shaft to see for herself.

The little Music Man was still there, much to her surprise. It had moved down a little closer but otherwise was in a nearly identical position, staring down at her.

"He's still up here. Which probably means there's… more than one… But maybe that's not a problem. This little guy didn't give us any trouble," Charlie said. That confidence wasn't carried over by how quickly she crawled on ahead. Likely just hoping that if she didn't acknowledge it, it would just not become a problem. Jessica read the room well enough to hastily follow after.

Mike couldn't resist the temptation of shining his light up and getting a look at the little animatronic.

"That's a creepy little thing," Mike thought. He wasn't nearly stupid enough to say it out loud and have it hear him, so instead he made a non-descriptive 'huh' and continued crawling. "Nobody tell Jeremy."

It wasn't until Charlie got around the corner that she was able to see what Chica left in her wake. "Now this might be a problem…" she mumbled.

"What?" Jessica asked. Charlie answered by crawling up enough that Jessica could get around the corner and then flattening herself at the bottom so she could see past. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me."

"Let me guess, she blocked off the vent," Mike guessed unamused.

"She did. Doesn't look like she did a great job though. I might be able to squeeze through," Charlie offered. Chica had knocked the arcade cabinets over to block the vents, but they had fallen against the wall at an angle. So, there was still an opening that, it hadn't been totally blocked off. It was just a much smaller gap. If she could get her head and chest through, she would be home free. "Let me give it a shot."

Charlie crawled up and briefly tested the arcade machine with her hands. Between the weight and the angle there was no way she was going to shove it back, so she started to work on climbing downward and through.

She had only her shoulders down into it when a soft thump echoed through the vent.

"Did you hear that?" Jessica asked, snapping her head back.

Mike sighed and rolled himself onto his back. "Yeah, and I know exactly what it was," he answered.

There was a pattering coming up the shaft before a familiar face showed itself around the corner. It was the little Music Man, swerving its way down the vent with its legs moving in tandem like a proper spider's.

"What's up, little guy?" Mike asked, giving it the benefit of a doubt.

It stopped in front of him and slowly lifted its head. Its teeth clacked together twice as its large black eyes stared at him and its arms twitched in place. Mike didn't even react, he just braced for impact.

The Lil Music Man ran at him with its arms spread wide, prepared to slam its cymbals onto him. Of course, it was only about a foot tall, so once it got close enough he shoved it back with his foot. Detoured but undeterred, it circled his foot and started clamoring back up between his legs. Mike impassively pushed it back with his hand.

"That's close enough," he said. It continued pushing back against him, trying to clatter its cymbals but having them catch on his wrist. Somehow it got it head turned enough that it managed to clamp down its teeth and pinch Mike's finger. "Oww! Okay, that's enough." Now a little more irritated, Mike gave a much harder shove that toppled the Music Man over and sent him skidding back.

It righted itself quickly, and as it lifted itself back upright a second face popped around the corner. There was a second Lil Music Man which ran after the first towards Mike, who was then followed up by a third, and a fourth.

Mike's eyes widened but he said nothing. Yet again, he braced for impact, and when the first one reached him, he was ready.

It started with one firm kick, then a shove, then swinging his arm back to pin one and kicking forward again. Mike silently fought a one versus four battle with a gaggle of walking music boxes. One slammed its cymbals on his hand, which actually managed to hurt, and he swung harm enough in the small space to launch it back down the vent, taking out another in the process. Both got up and were soon on their way once again.

Jessica was just staring aghast up until this point. Then she decided she needed to do something.

"Charlie, we need your taser!"

Charlie tried to twist her arm to grab her taser and instead slipped down and met a faceful of floor.

"I've got one, I just can't use it," Mike grunted back. He didn't even pause in his constant kicking and shoving. "Just keep moving. I've got this under control."

"I can see that," Jessica said in disbelief. She looked forward again to see Charlie finally succeeding and squeezing out of the space and, after biting her lip and looking back at Mike again, went to follow her out. "Okay, I'm going!"

It was a harder squeeze for someone with lungs and softer skin, but Jessica was a slender woman and managed to maneuver out with help from Charlie. Charlie then called back in, "We're out! Come on!"

Mike started to crawl backwards, solely relying on kicking to keep the Lil Music Men back while pushing himself back in the progress. Until he bumped his head on the arcade machine and rolled over to crawl out. It was a struggle. It reminded him of spelunking, but if he thought his history of that would help, he was dead wrong. Especially when the little Music Men were smacking his feet and nipping at his pants legs; harmless, but annoying.

Eventually he got halfway out, and Charlie hooked her arms under his and helped pull him. Jessica helped by shoving back in a Music Man that tried climbing out onto him. Soon he was crawling out on his knees and free, and by some act of mercy the Lil Music Men seemed unable to come out after them. Or perhaps lost their nerve once Mike was out of reach, still swearing under his breath as he followed Charlie and Jessica back through the arcade.

Soon they made it back to the larger room with the door that led back into the security room. Freddy and Chica were standing outside the door, his hands her shoulders as they watched the door. They had to hear what was going on, but they didn't try to go inside.

The three stayed close to the bathrooms and skirted around a patrolling Staff Bot before hugging the back wall the rest of the way to El Chip's. The security door opened and they slipped through.

Chica's head snapped over at the sound. "Did you hear that?" she asked suspiciously.

"I did. It must be a Staff Bot," Freddy suggested.

"Or them," she said. Her eye twitched and she started trying to walk over when Freddy pulled her back. A disgruntled noise gurgled through her chest. "Let me just go check…"

"It cannot be them. If they had gotten away from Monty and Roxy, they would have surely come out and told us. We need to stay here and guard the door like Vanessa said." Chica gave another disgruntled noise and Freddy rubbed gently over her shoulders. "I am sure that it will all work out in the end," he quietly assured her.

Chica broke her fixated stare with a few blinks and stepped back in front of the door, crossing her arms like she was pouting. He continued giving silent assurances, hiding his guilt and worry well.

Meanwhile, El Chip's was empty so the three were able to rush through. Charlie hesitated briefly to look back towards the still dangling phone. She knew Baby was likely still on the line, but she couldn't risk stopping. She would just have to call her back, and she ducked under the door with Mike and Jessica. For some reason the Atrium was lit up, with the overhead lights on, but assuming this was a security protocol they continued to run.

"Where now?" Jessica asked.

"Didn't think that far ahead. The best bet is the bounce house. At least there we'll be able to outrun these suckers a lot faster," Mike said.

They made it down the escalator and to the security door, but right as they were about to head in, something slinked out from behind the escalator and grabbed Charlie by the back of the jacket. She gave a startled chime as she was pulled back.

"I'll be taking this~!"

Freddy and Chica waited only a little longer before they heard the approaching footsteps. Natalie came out first with a frown on her face and Roxanne right behind her.

"The verdict's in," she began. She paused for emphasis before giving a nearly exhausted, "Nothing."

"Bw-what?!" Chica exclaimed.

"I do not understand. There was no one in the Prize Counter?" Freddy continued, equally surprised.

"We 'saw' nothing," she clarified. "Jury's still out on whether or not there was something in there."

"Don't even act like you didn't see what was going on. That junk wasn't throwing itself off the shelves," Roxanne half-snapped.

She seemed on edge. Her hair was fluffed up and messy and hadn't been combed back into its proper tamed wild do. Chica noticed right away.

"What happened to you?" she asked worriedly.

"Ugh, some creep snuck up behind me and messed up my hair," Roxanne snarled. She crossed her arms and looked back at her. "You're sure it was a girl and a female animatronics?"

"Yup. For sure."

"Well, this was a guy. I recognized it from the voice. Ugh, and his total lack of personal boundaries. What a loser."

"Oh, yeah! Totally!" Chica agreed. "…But, umm. What did he say…?" she coaxed.

"He was just mocking me. He didn't say anything worth a sniff," Roxanne scoffed. Chica's shoulders slumped with disappointment.

"Oh… Oh! But did you get in the office?" she asked, perking back up.

"We did, and we checked it top to bottom, but we found zilch," Natalie answered.

"They weren't in there either?!" Chica cried in aghast. "That doesn't make any sense! The vent was busted open, they had to of come out!... They must've climbed back in! Yeah, they must be squirreled away up there like a couple of… rats!"

"Well, if they're in there then they'll be in there for a while, because once we lock these doors-… Oh, right," Natalie muttered, looking back to see Monty coming through and suddenly being reminded how the doors were opened. "…I'll keep an eye on the security cameras and do a second set of rounds through here later," she said with a tired sigh. Then she beckoned them and began to walk towards El Chip's. "Let's get out of here."

Monty with silent as he came out of the office, but his internal fans were going off with a dull hum, signaling that he was overheating. Both Freddy and Chica knew better than to ask him anything in this wound-up state and left him alone. He followed a little ways behind them, still huffing out steam every few steps.

The group remained in silence throughout the entire walk to El Chip's and it wasn't until they were steps from the atrium door that Natalie decided to break it.

"Okay, look. I'm probably not supposed to be telling you guys this, but Freddy's used to have this sort of… blinding technology? It was only for the safe rooms, but animatronics weren't able to see them. For them it would just look like a normal wall, and they wouldn't be able to see the door, let alone go through it," she explained.

Freddy's eyes widened a little at this. "How strange. I cannot imagine why they would require such a precaution… Rest assured that we have nothing like that at the Pizzaplex. There is no need for it."

"No, we do," Roxanne said. Freddy turned to her with a startled look. "In the back corner of my raceway there's this one unpainted wall that sticks out like a sore thumb. I've caught human employees walking straight through it."

"And you never went in and checked it out?!" Chica asked in surprise.

"I can't. That's the whole point," Roxanne said. She then paused with realization and looked back to Monty. "It might've looked like the stuff was flying off the shelf, but what if it wasn't?" Monty hummed.

"That's what I was getting at. I'm not sure how those doors worked or if someone could do that to themselves, but it's possible. Stranger stuff's already went down in this place," Natalie said. On that final note, she turned back and continued to the security door, ducking underneath it and into the atrium. After a moment she sighed. "…Is there a reason why these lights are on?"

Freddy wrestled with the security door for a moment before managing to lift it past the spot it had been stuck, holding it up so the rest of his bandmates could slip past. Chica patting his arm as she did. Immediately they could see what she had been talking about. For some reason the overheard lights were all on as though the place was about to open.

But before anyone could say anything, a voice called from nearby- as though it had been awaiting its cue.

"Yoohoo~!"

Natalie looked over to see a hand waving from behind a booth before a familiar sun-faced head popped out. The Daycare Attendant skipped out from his hiding spot and towards the group.

Freddy perked up, Chica's eye twitched, Roxanne groaned, and Monty was still huffing and puffing while he stared off into nothing. Sunny ignored all of them, instead coming to a stop in front of Natalie.

"Oh, Officer Vanessa! You are just the lady I'm looking for!" he said. He clasped his hands together pleadingly. "I know you're busy, but I have a teensy-weensy problem and I really, really, REALLY need your help!"

"Okay?" Natalie found the timing peculiar but went along with it. "What do you need?"

"Oh! It's my friend, my special friend! They've disappeared and- and I can't find them!" Sunny said. His hands popping up to his cheeks in worry. "They left the daycare and I've been looking all over, but unless they're in the light- Oh dear."

"Do you mean the Maid Bot?" Natalie asked, referring to Nanny Bot. He shook his head.

"No, no, no! My friends is thiiiis tall-." He lifted his hand to show the height. "With a biiiig smile-." He made a smiling motion with his fingers over his ever-present one. "And they're wearing a pretty purple jacket."

Chica squawked at the description. Natalie was equally surprised and growing increasingly nervous at the idea of even more witnesses.

"Where did you see them last?" she asked.

"I thought they came up here, but I came up here and couldn't find them anywhere! Oh, I don't like this. Not one bit!" Sunny shook his head and laced his fingers in pleading again. "Help me? Please?!"

"Sure, I'll help you look. That's my job, right?" she agreed. He perked up right away and began to skip back towards the escalator, with Natalie following behind. "You guys can head back to your green rooms if you want."

"Nuh-uh! Not until we find that… thing," Chica said. Her voice taking an uncomfortable tone at the last word. Natalie noticed it, she recognized it from the first time she met her, and it still succeeded in making her uncomfortable.

There seemed to be a weird silence over everyone else. Excluding Monty, who was probably in his head again, both Freddy and Roxanne were uncharacteristically without comment, deciding to follow after the two and after the Sun.

This seemed like the perfect setup for another lengthy ordeal that they were going to come out of feeling exhausted and with no real results. Instead, much to Natalie's surprise especially, the task ended almost as soon as it began.

Because as soon as Sunny skipped around the edge of the escalator, his hands flew to his cheeks with an exaggerated gasp before he threw his arms up.

"OH! OH! FRIEND! OH, DEAR FRIEND, YOU HAD ME WORRIED!" he cried before excitedly skipping down the stretch.

But when Natalie looked after him to see his 'friend', with Chica and the Glamrocks shortly behind her, what she saw was not what she was expecting.

It was a Staff Bot. It was a Staff Bot wearing a purple jacket and its face scribbled with markers to give it a big black smile, yellow glittery tear marks, and two smiling sun stickers stuck where its cheeks would be.

Natalie had a hunch what was going on and that was part of the reason she kept her mouth shut and watched as Sunny took the bot by the hand and led it back to the group.

"I can't believe it! They must've been here the WHOLE time!" he chirped, his points spinning with delight. "Thank you so, so much, Officer Vanessa! You must be a lucky charm!"

"Is this some kind of a joke?" Roxanne rather bluntly asked. She pointed a claw at the Staff Bot. "You did this?" she asked. Everyone was pretty sure he did, but she thought it was worth getting a confession.

"Do you like it?! I found this pretty purple jacket in the theater, and I was going to take it to the Lost & Found, but then I saw my friend and I thought: 'Golly! Wouldn't they look spiffy in a jacket like this?' And they do! It, oh, it doesn't fit too well, but it's so colorful and nice! Then I gave them some stickers and glitter and a friendly smile-!"

"It's hideous," Roxanne flatly said. The Sun gave a soft gasp, a hand raising to his mouth before dropping to his hip.

"M-Miss Roxanne, that's not nice! You'll hurt their feelings."

"It's a Staff Bot, they don't have feelings. Now you better go clean that off before opening or it's taking a one-way trip to the silo."

Sunny made a little 'eep' at that. Up until now a lot of his emotions seemed a little exaggerated, but that was a legitimate amount of concern, and he speedily turned the Staff Bot around and started to wheel it away. He turned his torso around, still pushing the bot behind him- or in front, since his legs were still pointed forward- and waved back. "Thank you, Officer Vanessa!"

She raised a hand and watched him eventually disappear through the security door that led towards the daycare.

"Roxanne-," Freddy started.

"Don't start," she swiftly interrupted. So, he didn't continue past that.

There was a long pause.

"What the hell is goin' on tonight?!" Monty suddenly blurted out. Loud and sudden enough to make Natalie jump and get Roxanne's leg twitching.

"Monty, language!" Freddy scolded.

"There ain't nobody here! Eh, whatever. I'm out." Monty turned his back and stalked to the security door at the base of the escalator. "Ya'll need me, ya know where I'll be," he said as he headed in. The door shut behind him shortly afterwards.

Natalie blew out tiredly through her lips before returning to the topic at hand. She looked to Chica, who wasn't looking quite right. She had that distant stare Monty himself usually had, though it was aimed at the floor. Her hands were in tight fists at her side too, her posture rigid, and at first she didn't look up even when Natalie started to speak.

"Chica, do you think there's any way that-?"

"NO!" Chica snapped. It was so sudden that it took the blond aback, if the wide eyed, glassy stare wasn't enough to do that already. Chica was borderline spasming in place, thrusting her fists down at her side. "No! I know what I saw! I know what I saw! It wasn't that thing, it was a long-legged, black, masked-face-!... Thing!" she said, having a borderline tantrum in front of her.

Freddy stepped up to assure her and Chica quickly turned on him seeking validation through her wide, wild eyes. "You believe me, right, Freddy? I know sometimes I get a little excited, but you know that I couldn't make a mistake like that!"

For Natalie and Roxanne, Freddy's hesitation was entirely expected. Chica just all but threw herself on him, her fingers clawing at his arms, putting him on the spot and demanding he convince her that she didn't look crazy.

His guilt was entirely hidden even as it swelled up like an oversized balloon in his chest.

"Of… Of course I believe you, Chica," Freddy said. He did too, he believed she saw exactly what she said she did. This seemed to convince her.

"Sure, you do. I can always count on you, Honeybear," Chica said with relief. "How about you, Roxy?" She looked over to see the wolf already starting to walk to and back up the escalator. "Roxy? You're going back up there?"

"That's right," Roxanne said coolly. She continued up a few more steps before turning around abruptly. "Alone."

Freddy had his foot on the bottom step while Chica froze only a few steps above him. Upon seeing that dead-serious look, the bear stepped back off the escalator while Chica remained on it, though she no longer continued up. She just watched Roxanne leave with narrowed eyes and her arms back to being tight at her sides, like a scolded child trying to make their silent aggravation known.

"I'm going back to my office now to check the cameras," Natalie spoke up. "You two try to stay out of trouble. I'm not sure what's going on tonight, but I don't want anyone getting hurt."

"We will keep an eye on things. Thank you for your help, Officer Vanessa," Freddy said. She nodded and turned to head back towards the lobby. He watched her go before looking up at the animatronic chicken on the escalator. "Chica?"

It took her a few seconds to turn her wobbly body around on the tight steps. By time she turned around she had her shoulders slumped and her hips were askew. He wondered how much she had eaten tonight, but instead of asking he simply held out his arms to her. She hummed, or gurgled, in consideration before lowering her head and coming down the steps. Looking positively defeated, she willingly stepped into his arms and let him give her a comforting hug.

She dropped her head against his chest. "I'm hungry," she quietly admitted. She always was, so her solemn little confession of such was unusual. It was almost like she was ashamed by it, upset by it.

"How about a hot and fresh Pizzaplex Pizza? A little birdie once told me it was the most 'totally delish'," Freddy offered. Chica hummed again before abruptly pulling back.

"Okay! But you're making it, m'kay?" she said with a wink. Back to her usual self in a heartbeat. Not the grumpy Chica or the Chica with the empty eyes and the twitchy beak who sometimes looked at him like she didn't know who he was; this was their Chica. He agreed and they headed down to the first floor together.

Freddy tried to shake away the nagging guilt that reminded him that all of this was by his doing, from his decisions. He would make it up to her, he would make it up to all of them, he would make sure of it.

Chapter End Notes

Sorry the ending's rushed, but I thought it was time to kick this thing out of the boat and hope it floats. XD Hope you enjoyed!
Also, little note here, because I know a few people might be wondering about this, but the Glamrocks haven't yet received their upgrades. So Roxanne cannot actually see through walls (yet).

Chapter 34

Chapter Summary

Charlie comes to terms with a few things, Marionette finds himself face-to-face with a reminder of the past, and Foxy receives an unexpected call... All while morning finally comes.

Chapter Notes

Late again but hoping it's worth it! ^_^ Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Throughout it all, Baby stayed on the phone. She kept the receiver to her cheek and listened to every moment, even when it was completely silent, even when it was her shrill voice, even when she heard strangers. She listened and waited, knowing there was a good chance that Charlie was not going to get back on, but too certain that the second she set it down, she would suddenly come back and need her.

This entire time Baby stayed silent, listening in on whatever she could over the phone. At some point Ennard must've caught on to something being wrong- she hadn't told him, elsewise she would have to speak and something waiting on the other side of the line could hear her.

Not that it helped. Eventually he caught on, which she figured out when he started jingling the van keys at the office door. Pulling on his jacket while giving her that 'I'm about to go get killed' look he always had.

She chose to ignore him. So much as a hand wave might get him jingling them again and then she might actually be tempted to drive over there and put that farm animal in her place.

No, she had to stay calm. Her going insane and doing something downright stupid was going to get everyone in trouble. She calmed herself down and continued to wait, and listen, until the silence was broken by the beep of the call waiting.

"Someone's calling. How do I switch?" she asked quietly. Ennard restrained himself enough to just point out the button and she switched lines. "…Hello?"

"It's me! Sorry it took so long," Charlie answered. She sounded tired but undamaged.

Baby made a little breath-hitching noise, but managed to reign herself in. "Thank goodness. What happened?"

"It's a long story… I'll give you all the details later, but the short version is that we got ambushed and it took us forever to lose them. I'd go more into it, but I don't have long."

"Are you still in danger?"

"No, I'm okay. I'm just…" She sent a glance towards Mike's legs kicked up on the desk and then out the window where Marionette was doing pacing loops; he permanent bodyguards. "…Not alone. So, it's best that we keep this short."

"I think I understand," Baby agreed. "But thank you for calling me back. I was worried."

Charlie wouldn't tell Baby that she had been the perfect excuse to dash off to the security office once questions started to crop up about why she went to El Chip's. She simply said that she had to call Baby back before Baby took the liberty of inviting herself, and likely Ennard, over and nobody argued when she hustled off. Those conversation were still waiting for her, but at least she had a little time to avoid them.

"No problem, and don't worry about me. Everybody does that enough already."

"Oh, don't be like that. You wouldn't have nearly as many people fussing on you if you didn't constantly put yourself in the line of fire."

"But what is life if not living on the edge?" Charlie asked. A little more jokingly, likely knowing how asinine of an excuse it was and just trying to rile her. Though it was hard to do that after how ruffled she got at hearing Chica.

"It sounds like something Ennard would say. He's been jingling keys in front of me for near twenty minutes and now he's just outright eavesdropping."

"Actually, it's something along the lines of what you said when we got back from that mall," Charlie said matter-of-factly. Baby had sort of hoped she wouldn't remember that. "And same."

"In hindsight, I should have known I would regret that eventually… Speaking of skirting disaster. Perhaps having Marion with you- I am assuming he's with you- will avoid any more unpleasant conversations."

"Uh… Yeah, we'll see."

She almost fiddled with her sleeves out of reflex, even though they weren't even there. The Sun still had her jacket wherever he was, but she wasn't planning on seeking him out. Maybe if it was her green one, but she wasn't up to tracking him down right now. Especially since the whole place was on high alert.

"Guess I'm going to let you go. You guys are going to be okay, right?"

"We've not coming over, if that's what you're worried about. Perhaps if you were injured… Definitely if you were injured, but since you are fine it seems rather silly to whip ourselves up into a frenzy," Baby said, trailing off at the end.

Charlie smiled to herself. Even with what she said earlier about everyone always worrying about her, Baby's concern was one of those things she knew had to be earned. She didn't take it lightly.

"I'll call you if anything changes. If I don't, assume everything's fine and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Very good. Good night, Charlie."

"Night, Baby."

Then the call was over. Baby didn't blame her for not wanting to chat when someone was listening. She could tell from her briefness and volume, especially after she mentioned the John thing, that this wasn't the best time. She also sounded uncharacteristically worn out- not necessarily physically tired, but mentally. Baby doubted she was going to get any rest; perhaps she should've said something, but it was too late for that.

But now she was left here to think to thank about it. At least, for a few seconds before Ennard stepped into the office.

"Sooo, what's the skinny?" he asked.

"She's safe. I'm not sure where she is or how safe it is, but she sounded convincing… Of course, they won't really be safe as long as they're there, but I'm sure she knows that well now," Baby murmured. Her fingers tracing the teeth of her claw.

"Hey, that's good news! Never doubted 'em for a second!... Probably 'cause I've seen ol' Mikey S's quickdraw with a taser up close and personal. You never forget your first…" Ennard mock-swooned, resting a hand on her shoulder. "…Or y'know, the first in recent memory. Too much voltage and stuff starts getting a lil- zzzzt! -foggy," he added, purposefully crunching up his voice. He patted her shoulder. "So! Just for my curiosity, which one was it?"

"It was Chica. I knew it from the tone… About as sweet as a shriveled-up grapefruit, including the thick coating of sugar to cover up the taste. Charlie said she would tell me more tomorrow, so that's all I know about it…" Baby's claw tightened, and she rested her other hand on it, tapping her fingers on the metal. "…I think I might I hate her."

"Hey now, that's no way to talk about your special friend," Ennard said cheekily. She sighed and sent him a look.

"Don't clown with me, Ennard. I'm not in the mood," she grumbled.

"Oh, I think this is the perfect mood for a little clowning around," he teased. He leaned in and bumped his nose to the top of her head with a squeak. "She's fine, Babydoll. She's going to be okay."

"Bold of you to assume I'm not worried about my younger brother," she pointed out with a tsk. She realized her mistake even before he could react.

"AWW! Being such a good big sister!" Ennard gushed. He squeaked her once more. "I think you deserve a treat. How about a frozen waffle?"

She almost turned him down reflexively, but after a moment of consideration she decided that perhaps it was worth knowing what got him so eager to pick one out of his teeth. A good distraction to briefly forget about the hours ahead.

"Perhaps… But I think I would prefer a warm one, please."

"I can do that! Gimmie three minutes tops!"" Ennard eagerly agreed. He popped back up and headed out of the office, and after a moment she stood up from the floor where she had been sitting and followed after him.

He was a good distraction himself, as a matter of fact.

Meanwhile, Charlie ended the call on her side by hanging up the office phone. Almost reluctantly, not quite ready to explain herself but knowing she couldn't stall with Baby longer than she had. She sent a look towards the office window to see Marionette doing little figure-eights outside, an arm across his chest and a hand to his chin in thought.

"He's not happy, is he?" she quietly asked Mike. He sat up to look for himself.

"Yeah, I think this whole situation has him on edge," he said. He lowered his voice and tilted his head in towards Charlie. "You should've seen the size of the Prize Corner upstairs. They've got bears bigger than me up there."

"I could see how that might upset him," Charlie sympathized. Mike stood up from the office chair and stretched, and it was the most tiredness he had shown all night. "…What about you? Are you upset?"

"You kidding? I'd have to be the world's biggest hypocrite to get on you for the same thing I do on a daily basis. I got sniffed out in a closet like two hours ago, I know how fast it snowballs," Mike explained. He watched Marionette looping around outside. "…So, yeah, it scared the hell out of me, but I should've been keeping an eye on things."

"I'm an adult. You should be able to trust me to take care of myself," Charlie admitted guiltily.

"I'm the night guard. I brought you kids into this world, and I've got to make sure nothing else takes you out," Mike reiterated.

"Still, it was a bad call. I just needed Baby's advice and I didn't want to wait…" Charlie inwardly groaned. To no surprise of hers, it came out as an off-tune rumbling in her chest as she turned to face him. "This isn't the time or place to talk about it, but John approached me about getting back together and I panicked."

Mike's brows shot up in surprise. That could've given the illusion that he didn't expect it, but he did. He just didn't expect it now, while they were trespassing in Freddy's trying not to their cover irreversibly blown. If they hadn't already.

"Makes sense to me. We don't have to talk about it. Not with your friends hanging out outside the door," he offered.

"Thanks," she said, relieved. "…Still doesn't excuse it, but I didn't want you thinking I lost my mind over nothing."

"No, I get it. Those are clearly grounds to get out of dodge," Mike said with a little smirk. She looked less than amused and his smile softened. "Tell you what: we'll blame Freddy. If he would've told me where you were the second he walked up, we could've gotten you two and got out long before Chica got there. Or Mari could've just scared her off ransacking El Chip's. Either's fine by me."

She smiled a little once more. "Okay, but only if we don't tell him we're blaming him," she said.

"Deal, unless I need to guilt him into getting us some chips," Mike quipped. Then gestured her towards the security door and followed her out. Marionette was pleased to see them and joined them on their way out.

As expected, John, Jessica, and Carlton were camped outside of the office door. John and Jessica both leaning on the wall while Carlton had sat down on the floor, likely because he was starting to get tired. Though John and Jessica were both showing more telltale signs of fatigue than he was, which made sense considering that both tended to get up earlier than he did. All three looked to attention when Mike came out.

"So, here's the plan. Before we do anything else, we should set up some sort of base back there where we'll spend the night," he instructed, aiming finger guns towards the back before burying them into the hoodie pouch. "So, if you guys want anything from the vending machines, I'd get it now and bring it with us."

"Aye, Aye, Captain," Carlton saluted. The others didn't require such theatrics to say yes and followed him into the back.

The safest and most comfortable area seemed to be the secluded section inside of the bounce house castle. There would be more than enough warning if someone was coming, and it was within walking distance to anything they needed. Mike himself wasn't exactly planning to hunker down and sleep anytime soon, but he felt better having everyone else in one spot for when he and Marionette inevitably went looking for the rabbit woman.

Once they got better, Charlie announced that she was going to call Jake and climbed into the bounce house nearby to get a little privacy. She crawled in and sat beside the door.

"Hey, Jake?" she asked into the radio. As before, he replied in seconds.

"I'm here. What's up?"

"Not much. We're settling in," Charlie explained. "I just wanted to thank you for helping us out. I know you and Sunny are putting your necks out for us."

"Don't mention it. We were happy to help!" Somehow, Charlie doubted that they were both happy to help. "You guys doing okay? If you need anything, we've got you covered. I could have a Staff Bot deliver a pizza."

"Thanks, but I think we should lay low for a while. We'll make do with the vending machines."

"Yeah, on second thought we don't want to give Chica any reason to go in there. She'll hunt a pizza down halfway across the building."

Charlie gave a little amused scoff, then asked, "Where's Sunny?

"Trying on your jacket."

There was a mechanical squeal in the background. "No, no, don't tell her thaaa-at!" was shout-whispered from somewhere in the room with him. Jake gave a little snicker of his own, his voice box whistling slightly.

"I'll make sure you get it back," he added on. Charlie wasn't too concerned.

"No rush. Whenever he's done with it," she quipped. She could hear fussy noises in the back, so apparently the Sun could hear her, and Jake seemed to get a kick out of it. "Hey, would you mind if I asked you a few personal questions? You don't have to answer if it gets too intense."

"Sure, no problem." Before she could ask, he asked for himself, "About why I'm out of service?"

"That's part of it. I heard from Wight- well, secondhand from Wight, that you were broken and replaced?"

"Yeah… It's a long story."

"I understand. Sorry to put you on the spot."

"No, it's okay, I'll tell you. I just wanted you to know what you were getting into," Jake said more assuredly. "You probably figured this out, but I used to be a daycare attendant alongside Sunny. I used to be the sun, actually, but there was a… It's a really long story, but I got damaged, and they decided that I was too expensive to replace. So, they fixed up Sunny so that he could play both of the daycare roles and scrapped me. Or they tried to scrap me. They don't know I'm here. The Glamrocks don't either. See… out of service animatronics are flagged as being dangerous. If they saw me, they'd come after me just like they came after you. Except maybe Freddy. He doesn't follow the rules."

"I noticed that. Freddy bent a lot of the rules for us tonight," Charlie agreed. Before she could ask more, a second voice chimed in.

"Oh, Freddy is quite a rulebreaker," Sunny tsked. "You're not the only friends he's let in after closing. Not the only bot either, no, no!"

"Sunny's seen Freddy hanging out with Foxy the Fox, who isn't a Freddy's character anymore. He's got his own spinoff chain," Jake clarified.

"But I think you would know about that…" Sunny said coyly.

"What?"

"She's from Foxy's pizza place. She's even on the cartoon!"

"Wait, really?" Jake asked Charlie.

"He's right. My stage name is Lottie," she agreed. That sort of confirmed that he had been listening in on at least one of their conversations with Freddy, or it was likely that he had. "Everything else I told you is right. I came to find out about the rabbit woman and check out the other animatronics, not to cause any trouble."

"I believe you, I'm just a little shocked. That's pretty cool!" Jake complimented. "How many living bots are over there?" He could hear her hesitate. "Don't worry, we're not going to tell anyone. We came from the outside too. We've been around for years; this Sun and Moon thing is pretty new."

"Well… I don't know how comfortable I feel talking about this over the radio, but there's about… I know of about twenty other animatronics who are awake and alert just like us, and most of them live with our friend Jeremy," she said.

"Have you seen the clown?"

"Uh… Which one?" Charlie asked vaguely.

"The one that hangs out at the dump."

"I think I've seen him once or twice…"

The conversation continued for a while. During which, Charlie was forthright but careful to not give out any information too specific. Not because she worried Jake would tell anyone, but because she couldn't be certain that the line was totally secure. Most of the time she talked about the Minireenas, using details and stories that, if ever prompted, someone could probably pretend were made-up for the cartoon or something of the like.

Jake was pretty sparse on details as well, though he didn't seem to be hiding anything. It seemed more like he had been secluded for a while and that the only real animatronic he had seen was, bafflingly, Ennard.

One detail did catch her attention:

"They found us like a year ago… Maybe? I'm not sure how long we were down in the basement. Time sort of warps once you get in this place and away from the windows. It's been months at least."

Which meant that when Jake said that he had been on the outside, he meant recently. This wasn't a matter of him wandering around five or ten years ago before getting stuck in a warehouse. This really was a new thing.

That was concerning, but she didn't make a big deal out of it to him.

Jake and Charlie talked for a while later before they decided to end the phone call. She said her goodbyes and sat the radio aside, laying back on the soft floor to rest. Though almost immediately as she did, she heard a knocking noise outside the curtains. Or the mimic of a knocking.

"Yes?" she called.

"Can I come in?"

It was Marionette. Charlie reached out and pulled the curtain for the door back. "Sure. Mi casa salta, su casa salta."

The other Puppet slipped inside. He had a cordial smile, so she wasn't worried that they were about to have an uncomfortable conversation. She laid back on the floor of the bounce house, resting her head on her arm, and he shortly after laid down alongside her.

"Just checking in. You were talking to Jake for a while," he said.

"Ah, so you've come to snoop," she playfully accused.

"Me? Oh no, I could never! I would never!" Marionette protested, raising his hands in defense. "…Unless you were talking about me. In which case I would have no choice but to take it as an open invitation."

Charlie jingled a little and Marionette took that as an invitation to slide in closer, gently bumping his forehead against hers with a trill.

"But I was really coming to check on you. I know earlier must've been frightening," he sympathized. She sighed and nodded in agreement.

"I was this close to avoiding her," Charlie said, pinching her thumb and finger. "All I had to do was hide a little better and I could've avoided the whole thing." He chuckled and she let her arm drop. "…It kills me that I can't protect myself."

That change in tone snapped Marionette out of his amusement right away. His features softened. "Charlie, you can protect yourself plenty. It's different when you have to stay hidden at the same time."

"I know, but it's frustrating," she confessed. She rolled to face him. "…What's the chance of me still getting powers? It's been a year and the best I've got are strings."

"Still? It's not on a set timer, Charlie. I'm not even sure how it works myself," Marionette said with amusement. "Yes, mine developed quickly, but I was forced to learn quickly. I wouldn't have been able to move without them."

"But what if the odds aren't in my favor?" she asked. "I sort of… In the beginning the idea of me suddenly not being in control scared me, but if I could move things or throw my voice, or anything I could've gotten away from Chica."

Marionette gave a thoughtful hum. She did certainly have a point. Charlie's disadvantage was that she lacked many of the abilities that he had inherited over the years. She didn't even have as many strings as him. He could only imagine how frustrating it might be to look so similar and yet not have the same perks.

"Well… Maybe we could practice!" he offered. She looked questioningly curious. "Now, I'm not sure how well it would work, but it's worth a shot. We could try to move things and practice with our voices- it would be like the college work you'll be doing with Mike, except you will be doing it with me, and instead of becoming a technician you will become a force of nature."

"That is pretty tempting…" Charlie agreed with a smile.

"It's worth a shot! I don't know the ins and outs of what chooses who is gifted with what, but everything I do know suggests that you should be in a good position. That maybe you just need to stretch that muscle."

"You know what? You're right. I want to practice," Charlie hastily agreed. She didn't feel like there was much need to debate it. This wasn't the first time she considered her lack of powers.

"That's wonderful! We'll start first thing-!... After I get home from the Pizzeria tomorrow," Marionette quickly corrected himself. "If I end up going in. Foxy gave me an out, but I'm afraid he'll be up all night and need the help," he explained. He contemplated it for a moment, looking up to the stars on the roof, then added on, "Don't be discouraged if your powers are weak at first. Especially with telekinesis. It can exhaust you."

"I can't imagine," Charlie agreed. She couldn't imagine where he got the energy to cause the ruckus in the Prize Counter, unless he was just going off of pure protectiveness- or frustration. "Mike said you guys saw the Prize Counter."

Marionette side-glanced at the ceiling again. "We did. It's very impressive."

"Size-wise?" she guessed. He gave a nod. "Same with the arcade, but it had none of the charm."

"Maybe not, but it's quite the spectacle. It doesn't need that old Freddy's charm. It may benefit them more if it didn't," the Puppet suggested. She frowned at the solemn tone his voice took. "And… No Puppets, as expected." His fingers tapped on the plastic padded floor. "I'm sure that wasn't a tough decision, even if they didn't have my rights."

"More like because they didn't have your rights. I don't remember them putting up that much of a fight for Foxy either," Charlie pointed out.

"Maybe so… but I was never a beloved character. Employees used to find me so off-putting. I'm sure those comments were passed along to the new Fazbear Entertainment…" Marionette suddenly gave a staticky huff and buried his face into his arm. "I don't understand why it suddenly bothers me now of all times. If anything, I should be much more upset that those two cornered you."

"Oh, don't worry. I'm pretty sure you were upset about that too," Charlie joked. She reached out and patted him on the shoulder only to notice something peculiar. "…You're hot."

"Why, thank you. I try to give the parents something to look at."

Charlie was caught off-guard enough to laugh. "You KNOW that's not what I meant," she said. She patted over his shoulder and arm. "It feels like you're overheating."

"I got a little worked up earlier and I'm still in the process of coming down," Marionette excused. His gentle smile returned. She felt his porcelain head with the back of her hand like feeling for a fever only to find the mask cool to the touch, which was why she didn't notice it earlier. He gave a content little chime at the touch as she reached for his arm between them.

His hands and arms were cool too. The only thing that felt a little warm was his middle, and on second touch it didn't seem nearly as hot as it was before. It was peculiar, concerning, but it looked like it was under control for the moment.

"We're going to have to keep an eye on this. You might want to get some rest too, at least until you cool off," Charlie suggested. He gave a nod of agreement before opening his arms to her. "…Okay, for a minute. It's going to be weird if anyone sees us."

"Somehow, I don't think they'll mind," Marionette said. He wrapped his arms around her in a not too clingy embrace and she tossed an arm back over him.

She really wasn't that concerned if anyone saw. Her friends wouldn't get the wrong idea, except maybe a little teasing from Carlton. If he was awake long enough to see it, and if they didn't separate before he had the chance. She was expecting a thirty-minute rest, not really intending to fall into a deep sleep. She just needed a moment to breathe. She suspected Marionette might've needed it too.

He was always protecting her, but she didn't want to have to rely on him. Or worse, be the reason he got hurt someday. She didn't want him to have to be her guardian.

…But honestly, it was nice that he was.

It was nice enough that she ended up falling asleep. Marionette intended to rest a while but stay awake, as he and Mike would soon go looking for the rabbit woman. That did not happen. He fell asleep even faster than she did.

They weren't sure of how long they stayed like that, but they remained uninterrupted for some hours.

That was, until there was a mechanical clatter from the ceiling of the spacious room and the overhead lights suddenly all turned on. They were dimmer when inside the bounce house, but they still managed to wake both puppets up. Charlie wasn't sure how long she had slept, but Marionette knew from a quick check of his clock that they had been asleep for hours since it was almost six o'clock.

"Ho ho ho! Goooood MORNING!" A voice called from overhead.

If the lights hadn't woken the group outside, then that surely would've done it. John, Jessica, and Carlton all woke in a daze and shot up with a start when a body swung in and suddenly landed in the midst of their little area outside of the bounce house. The only one who hadn't been awoken being Mike, who had been up all night and was leaning against the bounce house watching as the animatronic jester swung in and plopped down amidst them.

"Here we go," Mike mumbled. The Sun either didn't hear him or ignored him, too focused on the group around him. He was carrying a basket of goods and Charlie's folded up jacket over his arm.

"Rise and shine, New Friends!" Sunny greeted. He must've detected their obvious confusion, his points spinning around his head. "I was feeling bad about last night. Sooo, I decided to give you a surprise wake-up call! I brought all sort of goodies- super energizing Sunnydrops to help you up on your feet and Sky-Blueberry Fizzy Faz to get the pep in your step! Here you go!"

He dropped down into a crisscross between them and held up a bag of Sunnydrops, gesturing a hand to it as though introducing it. "Sunnydrops are packed with all sorts of sunshine-y goodness to keep you going all day long!" he explained. He tossed a bag to Carlton, who he deemed the most tired looking. "And this is special Fizzy Faz made just for the Bounce Park! It tastes like clouds and rainbows- and mixed berry- it's a bubbly berry blast!"

After this commercial, two of his teeth clicked apart, giving the impression of him having a gap in his teeth. He cracked open a can of the Fizzy Faz and held it under the gap, and after a few seconds a clear hose slid out from between his teeth and lowered down into the can before sucking up some the blue liquid through it. Mike couldn't see what he was doing, but he could see the looks on everyone else's faces.

"Thanks. That's sweet of you," Jessica said. She averted her eyes from the internal straw and down to the purple jacket hung on his arm, brushing back her messy hair before gesturing to it. "And thanks for bringing back Charlie's jacket."

"Mmm!" Sunny hummed like his mouth was full and stopped the flow of soda before continuing. "Oh, you are very welcome! I even threw it into the wash, so it smells so good! Like daisies~!" He made a slurping noise as he drew back in his straw, barely disguising the actual clicking of the mechanism in his chest. He popped back to his feet and looked around, swaying as he did so. "Where is Miss Puppet?"

"She's still asleep. In there," Carlton pointed out.

Just as quickly, Mike volunteered, "You can just leave it here. I'll give it to her."

"Oh, no, no. I should do it. Moony was so mean to her last night, so I have to be extra, extra nice. But I have something for you…" Sunny said. He reached a hand behind his back, fingers slipping into the hole on his back, then suddenly swung it forward again with three Sunnydrops caught between his fingers. "Little bites of sunshine! Here-you-go!" He dropped them into Mike's open hand and spun towards the bounce house flaps.

Mike decided to just shove the candies in his pocket and keep a close eye on the Sun as he drew apart the curtains.

"Well, hellooooo! It's your early morning wake-up call from-!" Sunny poked his head into the bounce house and cut off instantly.

He hadn't looked through the window. He hadn't peeked in, he just threw his upper half through, so he didn't realize Charlie wasn't alone until just then. Until his whitened-out eyes locked with the inky blackness of Marionette's own. His reaction was instantaneous, frozen in place silently. Or as silent as he could be with the sudden increase of ticking and humming throughout his body, fans whirring and humming throughout his frame.

It didn't take much to guess that the Sun, or the Moon, had lashed out at Charlie out of fear. He had made his trepidation of puppets very obvious, and it was clear that Marionette had to be the puppet he feared. Though what wasn't clear was how much he actually feared Marionette or if it was just a protectiveness for Jake.

That clarification was made the second Sunny crushed the soda can in his fingers. Fizzy Faz spurting out and pouring down his arm and splattering on the bounce house and plush floor below. A reflexive motion and an immediate crunch.

Marionette knew he was going to run. "It's alright. I'm not going to hurt you," he tried to assure in his gentlest voice. To no avail, as the second he lifted his arm, Sunny made some sort of scrambled clatter of noises and dipped back out.

"NONONO IT's fiiiiiiNE! I'll- I'll- I'll just leave it hERE!" Sunny raced out. He tossed the jacket sideways towards Mike as he backed away from the bounce house. He tried to swivel to turn away, but he seemed glued on the spot. "I'll just- I'll just- CLEAN UP, CLEAN UP!" He gave a frustrated cry and no short of turned his head away by the points.

He then broke into a short run, bounced twice into a summersault, and was caught by his line before disappearing over the castle wall. In the process of doing this, Marionette finally burst out from the flaps, desperately calling after him.

"Please come back!" he shouted. He could only watch helplessly as the other animatronic fled over the wall and sighed. "He's certainly one of mine, alright… But one of my 'whats' is the question."

"Greatest mistakes," Mike answered.

"And as for you-." Marionette turned towards him with his hands on his hips and a slight scolding look. "You never woke me up for rabbit hunting."

"No reason for both of us to get caught," Mike offered. At the frown he received, he clarified, "Actually, I thought it was better to have someone here to watch the group in case things got ugly. I took Carlton and Freddy walked us around."

"I see… Well, that's fine, I suppose. As long as it went well. Did you see anything?"

"Nothing. I got inside two other security offices too, including the one the Blondie's been holed up in. All of the camera feed was fine, no weird glitches, no rabbits," Mike said. He sounded as dissatisfied as Marionette looked, not just because he couldn't find the rabbit but because her lack of appearance the night they broke in could signal a bigger issue. "But I didn't come back empty-handed."

Mike walked over to the corner of the bounce house and reached around it, and brought out a familiar, over-sized Glamrock Freddy plush. It wasn't just the same size as the one Marionette cuddled, it was actually the exact same one. The Puppet gave a delighted chime despite himself and eagerly took it into his arms.

"Oh, Mike! You shouldn't have," he said with delight as he coddled it in his grasp. "I suppose I can let you off the hook, but you didn't need to steal a bear for my sake."

"Who said anything about stealing? I earned that bear," Mike bragged. "Freddy gave me a baggy of tokens he was saving for Foxy, and I just blew through basketball until I had enough tickets for it, and some to spare. Charlie, I got you something too." He reached back again and pulled out an orange shirt that he tossed to her. "A little reminder of the night that just keeps on giving."

She unrolled it to see a picture of El Chip printed on the front, with streamers behind his sombrero and the words "It's Fiesta Time!" underneath him.

"Jokes on you, Mike. I love this," Charlie said.

"I got some junk too," Carlton chimed up. He started to pull some stuff out of his pockets but was interrupted before he could.

"Head's up. He's coming back," John suddenly warned.

Nobody had to question who 'he' was. Not when they could hear the sound of the cord mechanism as it moved across the ceiling. Sunny was lowered down quickly, unhooking himself and dropping down onto the bouncy floor. There was a roll of paper towels, a spray bottle of cleaner, and a small white trash bag in his arms, so it was clear what he was there to do. He did not make eye contact and he was eerily quiet.

Well, save the muttering of, "Clean up, clean up," under his breath. He hastily dropped to his knees and frantically started to clean, tossing the crushed can in the bag and ripping off some paper towels.

This was likely the only chance Marionette was going to have to get close to him and while he knew he probably should've left him alone; he couldn't pass up the opportunity. Though he did have to be careful. He quietly passed the Freddy plush back to Mike and then gestured everyone to move back, which they did so while gathering the rest of their things. Marionette turned back towards Sunny before drifting towards him.

Sunny could feel him approaching. Marionette could see the slight shiver through his back as he came up on him and watched as he frantically continued to mop up the soda. There just seemed to be so much and it wasn't coming up- which was likely more a problem with cheap paper towels than the drink itself. Marionette gave him a few seconds before kneeling down on the floor beside him.

Sunny froze instantly, and it wasn't just fear now. The rigid way he was posed was an indication that he was likely preparing for a fight. Marionette didn't take it as a threat, not in these circumstances.

"If you don't mind me asking…" he quietly began. He kept his voice as gentle as possible. "…Why are you afraid of me?"

"I'M- I'm not afraid of you," Sunny injected instantly. His voice was tight, like coming through the clenched teeth of his faceplate, and worn with stress. It didn't sound as bubbly as before; it was low and grating.

"Okay." Marionette fell silent for about five seconds, waiting until Sunny felt comfortable enough to continue wiping down the plastic before continuing. "But you know who I am. Have we met before?"

The daycare attendant tensed up again. Marionette half-expected him to shut down the conversation at that point, but he did not.

"You- You wouldn't remember me," Sunny murmured. Suddenly he slung the wet napkin into the trash bag. His motion sudden, his voice equally tense. "But I remember you."

"What did I do?" the Puppet dared to ask.

"You shoved me inside a robot," the Sun answered. "I was alive and awake, and you shoved me into a stupid little robot!"

He barely managed to cut himself off after that rushed and rather loud tangent he almost continued into. Sunny ripped off a bunch of napkins and started to harshly rub at the remains of the puddle of soda.

Marionette was silent. Dumbstruck perhaps, but also equally filled with dread. That was what he was afraid of. One of his- but was it a child he had put into an animatronic or some employee who blacked out shoving into a suit? Either was very possible, and this amount of aggression and fear leaned more heavily towards the latter. That got him quickly ticking, lacing his fingers uneasily and considering his words carefully.

Really, he should've just left then, but he still couldn't. He had to know more and contemplated it a long moment, only finding his words right as Sunny drew up the squirt bottle.

"Did it hurt?"

The question caught Sunny so off-guard that his fingers clamped down and he sprayed blindly into the air.

"Wh-WHAT?!" he cried. He actually turned to face him, utterly stunned by the question, up on one knee and looking ready to bolt. Marionette's mask was softened by sorrow and sympathy, as was his voice.

"That wasn't what I meant. I meant; did you feel when I put you in the suit?" Marionette asked.

"…No," Sunny answered uncomfortably. His voice took a suspicious edge, his head tilting back similarly. "Why? What's it to you?"

"…Because that means you were almost gone," the Puppet answered. A tinge of relief making it into his voice at the revelation. "You were a child, not an adult. You were… You must've been one of his." One of the old victims back at Freddy's. "And I put you in a suit, because I was trying to keep you here…" he explained. The guilt still returned. "…I'm sorry. I didn't have a choice, but I didn't give you one either. That wasn't fair for you."

That actually got the Sun to stop. He was ticking loudly, and his fans were ruffling his collar, but he was silent and pensive. He just stared at Marionette, and the Puppet truly had no idea what was going through his mind.

Then, finally, the yellow face turned back to the mess.

"…Don't be," he said. Maybe begrudgingly, probably still reeling from the revelation. "I didn't want to die," he said as he began to wipe down more of the soda.

"You've been around a long time," Marionette sympathized.

"Yup!" Sunny chirped with faux perk that quickly dropped. "I still don't want to."

"I don't either," Marionette assured. His voice gaining a bit of strength. "I didn't come to hurt anybody. I came to find that rabbit woman."

He was building up to asking Sunny about it, since Freddy had said he mentioned it, but he suddenly answered his own question. Of course he would warn Freddy about a woman in a rabbit suit, because he was one of William Afton's victims.

Sunny didn't say anything. Maybe he wasn't entirely convinced, but he had gone back to cleaning. Though it wasn't a frantic effort to do so but a more slow and methodical motion. Marionette offered out his hands.

"May I help?"

Sunny paused to consider it before deciding that the offer to not be the one cleaning was a tempting one and handing over the paper towels and spray bottle. His points drew in with unease when their hands touched but he didn't recoil. He just rested on his haunches and watched as Marionette finished up cleaning the mess. Just watching it getting done managing to soothe his overwhelmed programming.

Unfortunately, it gave him time to think. He dug his fingers into his pants and twisted them, squeezing the fabric, considering his words carefully before they forced themselves out against his control.

"Was…? Tell the truth, was… was there… If I didn't go in the suit-?"

"Not everyone I attempted to put into a suit went into one," Marionette clarified. "But nobody I put into a suit would've survived not going in."

"Oh…" Sunny released his pants to wring his hands together. "…Can you take them back out?"

"No," Marionette looked to him slowly. "…Why?"

"No reason!" Sunny quickly covered, raising his hands in defense. "Woo, but that's a relief! That would be- oh good golly- that would be bad for us, wouldn't it?"

Remembering that one time in the warehouse when he lost hold of his body-.

"…Yes, it would," Marionette agreed.

He finished up the cleaning while Sunny began rubbing at his pants to work out his anxiousness. Once the puppet was done, he held the trash bag open to him, letting him throw away the used towels and gathering everything up.

"O-kay, guess it's time I get going. Daycare opens at eight on the dot and I've still got a mess I've gotta clean up," Sunny scrambled. He stuck out his leg and pointed at a blue stain on his lower pantleg. "And I guess it's time YOU got going too!"

"Consider us on our way out," Marionette agreed. It felt weird ending the conversation so abruptly after everything that was said, but Sunny seemed eager to go. He gave a one-handed wave and a tilt of his head before turning and walking back towards the wall, preparing to hop up and get carried off again. He got as far as one jump before Marionette called after him. "Wait!"

Sunny stopped and partially turned back. Still on guard, but not nearly as panicked as before. Marionette considered his words before coming up beside him.

"Our phone number is four-three-five-." He listed the number out, hoping Sunny was capable of remembering as well as Freddy was. His voice softened to a quiet whisper. "If you need anything, please call us. We'll do whatever we can to help."

"Oh, uh- oh WOW, thank you! I'll… I'll think about it," Sunny hesitantly agreed. Which Marionette translated as: "maybe if I'm seconds from the scrap heap." He could live with that.

"Alright then. Take care, and good luck with today's service," he said. Then he turned and headed back towards his group, putting aside any hesitation to give the Sun the distance he needed.

Sunny stole a quick look back at him before going ahead and making his exit back over the wall. Silent save the constant jingling from the bells at his wrists.

"Now that that's been taken care of, let's make our way back out to the lobby. We can wait until the security guard leaves and slip out the front door behind her," Marionette suggested, taking back his new Freddy plush from Mike.

"Sounds good," Mike agreed. Then lowered his voice to add, "And it sounds like they're not all as new as Freddy."

Marionette knew they must've all heard the conversation. The overhead music wasn't nearly loud enough to cover it up. So, he simply nodded.

"Anything we should do?" Mike asked. Marionette shook his head.

"I gave him our phone number for if he ever needs us. I don't expect him to use it, but it gives him the option. That's really the most we can do," he said.

"Maybe I'll pass it on to Jake too. Just so they both have it," Charlie suggested. He agreed and she got the radio, which she had stuck back in her jacket, out to make the call. Meanwhile Marionette turned to her friends.

"We should head to the lobby. Single file, Class, and stay close to your buddy," he instructed, ushering them with his free arm. The other all but taken up by the oversized Freddy. Jessica gave him a playful eyeroll.

"Does that happen often?" John asked. Marionette looked to him and he clarified, "Running into 'one of yours'?"

"Not as often as it used to," the Puppet answered solemnly.

At first John seemed satiated with that answer, but as they started to walk out of the bounce castle walls, he continued thinking about it. Until the point where he finally had to ask.

"Did you know a…?" He cut off before the name could leave his lips. After a moment he shook his head. "Never mind. Forget it."

Everyone was looking at him. Just from Jessica and Carlton's concerned looks alone, Marionette guessed that they knew whoever he was talking about. Like with Sunny he decided not to press, just to be honest and to console.

"I might've. Like I told Sunny, they didn't always become one of us. If they didn't then you can be assured that they moved on. If they did, then I likely knew them… even if it was a short time."

John lifted his gaze. "Even him?" he asked.

"I believe so. He was at Freddy's, in a 'little' robot… I think I know which one he was."

Mike made a mental note to ask him about it once they were out of the Pizzaplex and on their own. This time John didn't have anymore questions. Though that could've also been because they were out of the safety of their hiding spot and had to be alert for the walk back to the lobby. Though he did seem generally pacified by what he heard. Charlie got off the radio by time they made it to the security door, and they made their way out.

They made it into the lobby to find it empty and the parking lot looked clear, so they headed out through the now unblocked entrance doors. Mike spared a glance down towards where Natalie had parked and noticed that her car was still there, so he could only assume that she was still inside, likely waiting for them to leave before she did. They piled into the car quickly and drove off.

This theory was all but confirmed when Mike got a call on the way home.

"Hello?"

"I just want to let you know," Natalie said, "that that was the most unsmooth thing I've ever seen."

"What, us walking out?" Mike asked.

"No, I meant the whole night. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Foxy was more discreet than you," she said. It sounded like she was fighting to keep a serious tone, or to keep a smile back.

"Yeah, I know. Not some of my greatest work," Mike agreed. He paused, then popped his lips. "But you didn't notice I was in your office, did you?"

"…Sure, I did. I just thought it was Bunny Lady," Natalie said unconvincingly. She sighed. "So, I'm heading home now. I'll figure out what kind of report I'm going to write later."

"Do you have to write a report?" he asked warily.

"I wish I didn't, but I've got to do something to cover our backs. I can maybe use Sunny's stunt to shake Chica's credibility, but it's going to be a lot harder to explain what Monty and Roxy saw… If they talk, that is. I get the feeling that there's some distance between the human and animatronic staff."

"I got that vibe too," Mike agreed. "You can tell that none of them are dating the bots."

Natalie gave him a little scoff over the line. "Okay, I'm too tired for you. Go home and get some sleep, I'm going home and getting some sleep, and we'll figure out whatever else this afternoon."

"Sounds good. Careful driving home," he finished and ended the call. He noticed Marionette looking at him from the passenger's seat and sent a smile back. "She sends her love."

It wasn't too much later when they drove back into Hurricane and made it back to the house. John and Jessica's cars were still parked outside, and the neighborhood was still rather quiet. Jessica and Charlie exchanged a quick hug in the car before the blond got out and went to get in her car to leave. Carlton had already gotten out and John was in the process of following when Charlie stopped him.

"John, before you go… Can we talk for a second?" she requested. He caught on and handed his car keys off to Carlton so he could go get it started before sitting back down and shutting the door behind him.

Mike also caught on and gestured to catch Marionette's attention before pointing at the front door. Marionette nodded and was gone in an instant, managing to carry the bear off with him. Mike got out and headed to the front door, finding it already opening for him as he got up on the step. The sooner he was out of this hoodie, into the shower, and into bed the better.

This left Charlie and John alone in the car for the moment. As much trepidation as she had for this moment, she felt surprisingly calm once it finally came.

"John, I've been thinking about it, and I do want to spend more time together. I've missed hanging out with you… but I don't think we should get back together," she confessed. She could already see the disappointment on his face but forced herself to not look away. "It's not because I'm an animatronic now- I think it's incredible that you're willing to look past that but that's not it. The truth is… I wasn't ready when we got together, and I still don't know if I am. There's some things I haven't figured out yet… And I don't want to give you false hope, but I don't want to lose you either."

"You're not going to lose me," John assured with a small smile. A sad smile perhaps, but an honest one. "I meant what I said. I can live with going back to being friends, I just don't want to live without you."

"Are you upset?" Charlie dared to ask.

"A little. Not at you. Just, you know."

"I know," she agreed with a smile. "Thanks."

They sat there in a semi-comfortable silence for a few seconds. The sun not yet up but the sky slowly growing brighter with the soft light of morning. Still early enough for it to be quiet and safe, and to feel miles away from the waking world.

"Probably for the best," John finally said. "Carlton told me last night that if we got back together, Baby would break my ankles."

Charlie wasn't going to give Carlton the second-hand satisfaction of a reaction.

"No, she'd break her ankles getting to you," she joked.

"Should I make a run for it?"

"While you still can."

He was still smiling as he got out of the car and leaned back in to give her one more. "I'll see you around. Take care, Charlie."

Just like that, he was gone. Or walking back to his vehicle to drive Carlton home. Charlie felt relief that it was over, but also remorse for having to turn him down, and soon was second-guessing herself. She wondered if she had made the right decision. For the moment it took off the pressure so perhaps, for the moment, it was the right one. Maybe someday she would change her mind. She would only be able to hope that he wouldn't change his then.

She looked towards the house and noticed a separation in the blinds suddenly closing. She knew right away that it was Marionette peeking at her, probably checking to make sure she was coming in now that John was leaving. Which she was. The last thing she wanted was to get stuck out in the car after a night like that. She pulled her jacket up around her, securing her shirt and radio, and braced herself to run in.

Or perhaps, she considered, she could focus vary hard on the inside of the house and maybe she would pop inside just as easily as Marionette did.

…

…

…No, it looked like she was running today.

Foxy had to give him credit; if this was Jeremy plan to keep from running over to the Pizzaplex, it was a surprisingly effective one. He couldn't very well sneak out when the blond was currently weighing down his chest, completely conked out.

Jeremy had decided to stay over at Pirate's Cove tonight, but he hadn't come alone. The Minireenas, Bidybabs, Plushtrap, Max, and Balloon Boy had all come as well, and had been remarkably behaved. It took a while, but Foxy was finally starting to see some progress with them. Then again, he had seen significant progress right after one of the last nights the whole group had stayed over. When Jeremy wasn't quite himself and snakes and wolves terrorized them all.

They stayed up for a while, but Jeremy was down for the count not long after they moved to watching movies. They had made a palette on the floor, got together a stack of VHS tapes with comedies and family films, and even the tapes Foxy had been recording his cartoon onto, and started watching them all together. Foxy was leaning on his side, Jeremy reclined on him for a moment, and the next thing he knew he looked down and saw Jeremy sprawled beside him.

Which was probably a sign that Foxy himself fell asleep, but he wasn't too concerned. He was in and out for the rest of the night. Head propped up with his hand, hooked arm around Jeremy- with the hook turned out, peeking out of a would-be cave of blanket that he had formed around him in the last few hours. The Minireenas, Bidybab twins, and Plushtrap were sprawled around. Some awake, some pretending to be awake, though no doubt would wake right up if the TV turned off.

They were midway through some kind of Christmas movie that Foxy couldn't remember the title of when the rather calm evening was interrupted by the phone ringing. Foxy roused the rest of the way instantly, because six o'clock was still a couple of hours away and that meant any news now was likely a bad sign. He carefully climbed out from behind Jeremy and the blanket cocoon, listening to the phone ringing as he tried to hurry up.

He got to his feet and started to creep towards the kitchen door when Balloon Boy suddenly came scuttling out beside him, rushing towards the phone on all fours.

"Dontcha dare!" Foxy whispered. Then he broke into a sprint, quickly overtaking Balloon Boy, nothing short of hopping over him, and snatched the phone off of the receiver. Balloon Boy let out an ugly laugh and Foxy sent him a glint before bringing the phone up. "Yar, Foxy's Pirate Cove!" he said in his default 'automated' tone. Just in case it was a missed call and he had to cover quick.

"Hello! It is me, Freddy Fazbear!"

With no exaggeration, this was one of the last people Foxy expected on the other side of the phone. For a second, he almost thought it was a trick.

"That you, Freddy?" he asked in disbelief.

"That it is! My apologies for calling so late, but Mike assured me that you would be awake and baking," Freddy greeted. He sounded like he was bubbling over with joy. Foxy was growing increasingly confused but decided to keep his cool.

"Any pirate worth a deck sleeps with one eye open- or they be sleepin' with the fishes," Foxy remarked. He leaned on the wall, subconsciously posing nonchalantly. "How ya doin', Boyo? Ya holdin' up?"

"I am doing much better, thank you! Mike informed me that you knew about the… malfunction I had on stage," Freddy said shamefully. He perked up quickly. "But I am happy to report that my battery has been holding adequate charge since my collapse. Just as long as I charge it frequently and as soon as I start to notice any weakness."

Foxy took pity on him and changed the subject. "So, ya met Mike, didja? Ya ran up on him like ya did to me?"

"I almost did, in fact! See, Mike was cornered in a recharge station by one of the Staff Bots, and since it was located outside of Fazer Blast and Roxy Raceway both myself and Roxy were released from our rooms to investigate. However, when I got there I noticed a very familiar puppet character above us on the escalator, and an equally familiar hood inside of the charging station! We were able to convince Roxy and Vanessa to leave, but that was when the door opened and I realized that it was not you in the station, but Mike! We then went to the daycare where I met Charlie and her friends, Carlton, John, and Jessica. I did not formally exchange introductions with Marionette until about an hour later."

"Sounds like a busy night," Foxy said. It sounded like a rather close call too, but Freddy wouldn't have called if they were in danger… He hoped. "Where they be now?"

"They are now in the Over-the-Moon Bounce Park. Do not worry, Vanessa does not do rounds in there and the security bots cannot travel on the trampoline floors, so it is quite safe."

"…Ya got a bounce park too?" Foxy asked flatly. "The bloody 'ell even is that?"

"Have you seen a bounce house? Imagine a very large bounce house. Or bounce house flooring across an entire room and with other inflatable structures throughout it. Such as slides and a traditional bounce castle. It is quite charming!"

Foxy tried to swallow down the fierce competitiveness that made him want to suddenly demand that they buy a bounce house for Pirate's Cove even though it wouldn't fit anywhere.

"Sounds like somethin' I'd pop with me hook," Foxy remarked.

Freddy chuckled. "I was worried about the same thing! But it was able to hold my weight, so surely it would be thick enough to handle your hook." The bear then trailed off for a moment. Foxy took notice.

"Somethin' on yer mind, Mate?" he asked.

"Hmm, there is. There is another reason I called," Freddy said pensively. He considered it a moment before suddenly steeling his nerves. "Captain, I do not think you should sneak into the Pizzaplex anymore."

That felt like it came completely out of the blue. Something must've happened, Foxy decided, and he was about to ask as much when Freddy beat him to it.

"Instead, I would like to extend a formal invitation for you to visit the Pizzaplex. That way you can enjoy all of the amenities as myguest," Freddy warmly clarified. Then he asked, directly but with a tinge of trepidation, "What do you say? Would you like to come by tomorrow night after closing? I am sure I can collect plenty of tokens by then."

Having received proper whiplash from the conversation, Foxy still found the offer awfully tempting. He tapped his hook on the wall as he considered it.

"I'd have to ask me first mate first… Eh, I'll be there. Iff'n he has no qualms with it," he agreed. He swapped to a more competitive tone, "But don't start thinkin' I'll be goin' easy on ya just cause ya had a spill. I've fallen off stage plenty 'o times!"

Freddy chuckled rather suspiciously. Almost like he knew something. "What, ya don't believe me?"

"I certainly believe you, Captain, and I would not have it any other way," he said. There was a finality in his voice and for a second Foxy thought that would be the end of their call. "But enough about me. How was your pizzeria today? Any interesting stories to tell?" Or maybe not, maybe it just signaled another whiplash.

Well, he asked. It was only polite for Foxy to tell him, even if he did brag a little doing so. Freddy wouldn't mind; he was just happy to listen.

Chapter End Notes

And as soon as they got off the phone, Freddy commandeered a computer and found the kiddie pool video. XD I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 35

Chapter Summary

Natalie spends the day with an unlikely person, as does Mike and Charlie when they make a concerning discovery...

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Natalie rolled out of bed shortly after noon and seriously considered rolling back into it. Unfortunately, she knew there were things that needed to be taken care of and was forced onto her feet by them. She got down some coffee and a light breakfast, or lunch, before throwing on some professionally casual clothes to drive down to the Fazbear Entertainment offices.

Fritz had left her a little love note on the counter. She smiled at it and slipped it in her bag for if she needed a pick-me-up later on, went downstairs to say good morning- or good afternoon- to Chance, then slipped on her shoes and left.

It didn't take her too long to arrive in St. George and to the familiar building. She headed inside, showed off her keycard to confirm her employment, and after a few minutes found herself settled at a desk across with a blank paper laid before her to put the details of last night on. For an official report, nobody really seemed too concerned or interested in it, though that could've been because there weren't even that many employees currently in the building.

She made the details very clear: Chica alerted to an unknown animatronic roaming the Superstar-cade and Prize Corner. She, Roxy, and Monty had searched both rooms and the office between them and found nothing. Monty had a disagreement with some of the prizes after he thought someone was hiding amongst them. They then went to the atrium where they saw a Staff Bot that Sunny had been playing dress up with. The Staff bot matched the description that Chica had given of the unknown animatronic. There was also a false alarm security alert when a security Staff Bot got stuck at a recharge station.

When she put it like that, the many flags from last night didn't seem nearly as suspicious. Though she didn't know how she was going to explain any questionable footage if anyone got spotted on camera.

Before Natalie could leave, she got stopped by a familiar woman who she did not recognize the name of.

"Before you go, Mr. Wight wanted to speak with you. He's in his office so you can just head in," she requested. The woman's tone was friendly, and her words lacked any cryptic tone, so Natalie's pulse quickening was entirely on her.

Though it was hard not to break a sweat when she realized she was going to be spending even more time in this stuffy office building. Fritz would get a kick out of that; she would have to remember it for later.

The door to Wight's office was closed but she could hear his voice coming from inside. Thinking he was maybe on the phone, she quietly knocked twice and let herself in. To her surprise, he was standing in front of his desk talking to Ness. They both looked to the door as she came in, Wight greeting her with a warm smile and Ness with what looked to be a more stained one.

"Ah, Vanessa! I didn't expect you so soon. Come right on in!" Wight assured. She stepped in and aside as he led Ness past her and to the door with a hand on her back. "Now, you just think about it. I think it would be an excellent opportunity to really cement yourself in the company and bond with your fellow co-workers," he said.

"I'll think about it," she agreed. He patted her on the back and sent her out, shutting the door to a crack before turning back to Natalie.

"Thank you for coming in. I can't imagine how hard it is to get up and run around after being awake all night. Though I remember very little from collage," he said, then gave a jovial laugh.

"I'm just glad you don't ask for me to come in at the crack of dawn," Natalie said. After that bit of friendliness, she casually asked, "Is Ness getting a promotion?" Knowing that she wasn't and trying to uncover what was really happening.

"In a way, yes. Due to Ness' outstanding work, she has been offered a position on the first ever Fazbear Entertainment company retreat! She's just a little nervous, which I don't blame her in the slightest. Stuck in the woods with a bunch of stuffy co-workers? Hah! If I wasn't required to be there, I certainly wouldn't be," Wight casually explained. He was playing it up, but it didn't sound like he was lying. At least, not on the fly. "You have to be an employee for at least six months to qualify, elsewise you would certainly be a candidate. You have been doing an excellent job down there."

"I have?" Natalie thought. She said instead, "I try."

"You do. Not one break-in since you've started working the night shift!" he assured. He sat down at his desk. "I'll be honest, I was expecting nightly vandalism even before the break-in. A place like this is a magnet for hooligans."

"I know, and half of them are probably my little sisters," Natalie joked. Wight gave a good-natured chuckle. "So, you wanted to speak with me? I'm guessing it's about last night."

"No, though I would like to hear about what happened last night. I heard Monsoon Monty has struck again, and the Prize Counter this time."

"Well, sort of. It was just a case of mistaken identity. Sunny dolled up one of the Staff Bots, the animatronics must've mistook it for an animatronic they didn't recognize, and it sort of spiraled from there," she explained.

"…Now that is very odd," Wight said in genuine confusion. "Hmm… I know one of them is due for vision enhancement, but maybe we should look into investing into that for all of them. When budget allows it, of course. But speaking of budget, what I wanted to discuss with you." He leaned forward on his desk with his fingers laced together. "Starting tonight we are going to be implementing a new method of power distribution to cut back on cost and make sure the mascots are receiving adequate charge. This should also cut back on any issues with wandering."

"It should but it won't," Natalie thought. She just smiled and nodded.

"From midnight to six, there will be a period at the end of each hour during which all power in the building will be rerouted to the recharge stations. The mascots will head into the stations where they will receive a full charge. The power returns on the hour and the night continues as usual until the next period of rerouting. By cutting off all the excess utilities and focusing solely on animatronic recharge, we can refresh and perhaps even supercharge their batteries while cutting back on the excess electrical waste," Wight explained. He sounded rather excited by the prospect; Natalie was much less so.

"That's… an idea. How long are we talking?" she asked.

"Only about five or ten minutes."

"Oh, okay. That's not as long as I was thinking," Natalie confessed. "But is that really going to cut back the electric bill any? It almost doesn't seem worth it."

"Oh, it will be a huge difference. We've already run the numbers and it should cut back our usage by at least five percent. Plus, we will finally be able to narrow down where we're bleeding electricity," Wight insisted. "Now I wanted to let you know this beforehand so that the power didn't cut out on you, and you were left thinking you would be in the dark all night. The front doors will still be locked tight, so you don't need to worry about that, but many of the security doors will not function, the vending machines will be off, and the camera footage will be down. I suggest treating it like an hourly break: grab a cold one and settle in."

"I'll do that. Though speaking of footage," Natalie led in, trying to cover any nervousness. "If I was going to take a look at last night's security footage, where would I go?"

"The center security office in the Pizzaplex. All of the footage from every security camera is kept in there and you can pull it up on the monitors," Wight explained. The nervousness only intensified, only to suddenly bottom out when he continued. "Just make sure to check it before the twenty-four hours overlaps and it records over last night's footage."

"It… What?" Natalie asked in disbelief. "Wait, the security footage records over itself?"

"Well… Due to budget restrictions, and a restriction on memory space- what with the numerous cameras throughout the Pizzaplex- we have implemented a twenty-four-hour security feed. We figured that was more than enough time to retrieve footage if it was required while saving time and space. Otherwise, we risk overloading the system with dozens of multi-hour videos from dozens of cameras. Many of which won't see anything."

Wight wasn't as ignorant as his wording would suggest. Just the halting and somewhat bashful way he explained it suggested that he knew what he was saying was ridiculous, but either due to the budget or some other reason he felt the need to stick to the plan and go along with it and keep pretending that he believed what he was saying.

As for Natalie, she thought it sounded like the worst idea they could've concocted and that there was absolutely no excuse for it. However, she couldn't deny that it came in handy.

"That's…" Dangerous, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to tell him that. "…Pretty smart. Who's idea was that?"

"Dr. Talbert's! The man is a modern Da Vinci. He also came up with this circulating power idea to conserve cost and make sure that the performers are getting the purest electricity that we can give them. No more battery issues- though we still plan on implementing a larger lasting battery into Freddy once it arrives," Wight explained. "But back on topic! The footage will be there until late, late tonight, so you are welcome to go take a look."

"I probably should, but if it's alright with you I'll wait until my shift starts."

"It's more than alright," Wight agreed. "Now then, was there anything else you wanted to discuss while I've got you here?"

"No, I think that's everything covered," Natalie said as she got up from the chair. He eagerly offered his hand, and she shook it, though wasn't sure if this warranted a handshake. "I'll be in for my shift as usual."

"I wish you a pleasant evening and if you need anything, anything at all, then drop by anytime," he assured. He walked her to the door like he did with Ness and after a quick goodbye shut it after her.

With that taken care of, Natalie was eager to get out of the office before anything else needed her attention or anyone else wanted more details about last night. Since the office was mostly quiet, she detected a conversation nearby, which she would've walked past without a second thought if it wasn't for the fact that she heard Ness talking. She found herself slowing down her steps to eavesdrop, trying to see if Wight was honest about what he said.

She heard Ness say something that sounded like the end of, "-Don't know about it."

"Then tell him no. Mr. Wight's not going to fire you just because you don't feel like going." Natalie recognized that as being Luis.

"It's not that easy…" Ness said quietly. "It's a pretty big opportunity, I guess I should take it. When else am I going to get a chance to go out into the woods and… whatever they do on company retreats."

"Try not to kill each other?" Both chuckled a little at the joke.

Natalie finally caught sight of them standing at the corner of the cubicles. They hadn't noticed her though. Luis only had eyes for Ness, and she had her back to the blond. After the chuckle was an awkward pause.

"But uh…" Luis began tentatively, losing his previous confidence with the change of tone. "So… I noticed when Mr. Wight was escorting you out he was, uh, being pretty friendly."

So, he noticed that little gesture too. Natalie noticed Ness' little gesture in response: tucking her arms behind her back and squeezing one hand with the other.

"Oh, that. He's- He was just being nice," she assured him.

"Well… You know if you're not comfortable with that then you can say something. Or I can say something for you if you're afraid to speak up to him," Luis suggested.

"Wait, no, it's nothing like that!" Ness insisted. Her hands yanking apart and raising in defense. "He was just being nice, I swear. He's just excited about me going to the company retreat. Trying to sweeten me into going. But he's not- no. Nothing… weird."

"Good. I'm glad to hear it because that would be seriously inappropriate," Luis said. Though there wasn't much relief in his voice. "…I noticed this wasn't the first time he's been, uh… 'Sweet' on you."

"It's nothing. He's just being nice," Ness said. This time her tone started to change. She practically hissed the words, low enough that Natalie barely heard them. Luis was a little surprised by the shift in tone.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to get pushy. I just don't want someone taking advantage of you," he said apologetically. "…Is he going to the retreat or is it just an employee-only thing?"

"…I don't know," she said vaguely. Luis might've not noticed, but Natalie did, and she knew right away that she knew that he was.

For some reason, Natalie was seriously considering stepping in. She knew it was an invasion of privacy, but Ness was definitely floundering, and whether or not Wight was acting inappropriate it was clear that she didn't appreciate this direct confrontation. Taking a deep breath, she started to walk over towards the two.

Luis was cut-off midway through whatever he was saying when he noticed Natalie walking up. He quickly covered his concern with a smile. "Hey, Vanessa! What's up?"

"The amount of paperwork I've got to fill out. I don't remember that being part of the job when I signed up," she remarked. She then turned to Ness who had that strained smile again. "Alright, I'm ready. Let's go."

Ness looked a little confused, but before she could ask Luis did.

"Going to lunch?" he guessed.

"That and we're going to get our nails done," Natalie said. "It's just been work, home, work, home for the last week so it's time we went out and did something for us for a change."

"I didn't know you two hung out outside of work. That's great!" Luis said. He did sound genuinely glad to hear it. "Sorry to hold you up, you two have a good time. And Ness? You don't have to do anything you don't want to, so don't worry it."

"I'll think about it! But we need to get going," Ness struggled not to race out. She boldly hooked an arm through Natalie's, though did so slowly, like she was prepared for the blond to yank away. "We'll talk later. Have a good lunch!"

"I will! One of these days you have to come with me. You would love the fries at this place," he said. She smiled and agreed and headed with Natalie back to the elevator. Not letting that smile drop until they were inside with the doors shut.

"I owe you so big," Ness said quietly. Letting all of that strain deflate into her voice.

"Don't worry about it. I just thought you looked like you could use an out," Natalie assured her. "Someday I'll need to get away from a chatty co-worker and you can return the favor," she joked.

Ness managed a smile but still looked equally nervous. "I don't know how much you heard, but we were just- we were talking about the company retreat," she fumbled her words. "That's all."

"I know. No problem."

"…You heard what he said about Mr. Wight too, didn't you?"

"…Well, yes."

Ness groaned and clasped her hands over her face, rubbing little circles into her temples like that was going to help.

The elevator arrived at the first floor and the doors opened, but both only briefly acknowledged it.

"Okay, well, so you know, it's absolutely one hundred percent not what it looks like. Maybe Mr. Wight is a little nicer to me than some of the others, but it's nothing like that. He's just trying to make me a team player or a productive citizen or something like that. Luis is just a little overprotective." She sighed deeply and quietly added, "But he really shouldn't be. He cares about me too much."

"Hey now, don't say that."

"No, I mean… I have a boyfriend," Ness confessed with a tiny, awkward smile.

Natalie quirked a brow in surprise. "And he's still coming on strong?" she asked. Then, realizing what she said, she quickly corrected. "That's not what I meant. I meant, he's… still being so protective even though he knows you have a boyfriend?"

"No, you didn't," Ness said. Her awkward smile became goofier. "But yeah, he is. And- And I appreciate it! I just wish he trusted me a little more. Trusted me when I tell him everything's okay."

"Well, in his defense, he wouldn't know unless he asked," Natalie offered.

"Good point," Ness quietly agreed.

Natalie was uneasy ending it like this. She started to head out the elevator doors before stopping and turning back.

"He was right about one thing. It's your say, so if anyone comes on too strong. Anyone, not just Wight, don't feel bad standing up for yourself. If they can't handle it, well tough for them. That's life," she said assertively.

Ness was a little surprised by it, but then gave a thankful smile. Natalie returned it and turned to leave with a simple, "See you around." She didn't get very far before she heard quickened footsteps following her out of the elevator.

"Wait up!" Ness called. She stopped and turned around. "So, I know that was just a cover back there, buuut do you… maybe actually want to go get our nails done?" Ness asked, cracking a smile. "Nobody will notice if I take off for a few hours and you're leaving anyways, and my nails are blah." She held up her hands. Her nails actually looked fine, they just weren't painted or anything. "Maybe?"

"Sure! It beats doing them myself. It takes five minutes to paint them and then thirty minutes with a bottle of nail polish remover to clean up the edges," Natalie agreed. The brunette's tentative smile filled with relief and excitement.

"Okay! Then let's-… Uh… Actually, wait right here. I've got to go tell someone I'm going and grab my bag," Ness admitted awkwardly.

"I'll bring the car around," Natalie offered.

While Ness hurried back to the elevator, it briefly, briefly crossed Natalie's mind that maybe this was a mistake. She shrugged it off and assured herself it was fine. She could use a day off anyway, and it seemed like Ness could too.

After the long night before, it was pretty much assumed that Mike wasn't going into work. Marionette was given the option not to as well but had gotten enough sleep that he decided to do so, likely spurred on by the knowledge that Freddy's was going to be open as well. This turned out to be a great decision as one of the children with a 'magic ticket', from the hospital, had come by and he had been there to make sure he had a wonderful time.

It would've almost made Mike regret his decision to stay home, but he wouldn't have been in the right state of alertness to handle all the noise. Though he wasn't the only one, as when given the option, Charlie also agreed to stay home. Though that could've been because she was half asleep when Marionette asked her and rolling over into the blankets was really the only option her mind could come up with.

Eventually he and her got out of bed and woke up enough to realize that they had to go ahead with the plan of today and be the bearers of bad news. A quick call to Carlton confirmed that he was trying to get his pictures done at a same-day development store, so they decided to go see Michael first.

The warehouse was the same as it usually was. There wasn't too many cars around outside, so Mike was able to get the door open and Charlie in relatively easily. Springtrap didn't meet them at the front door, but Mike didn't really expect him to. While all animatronics weren't the same, many of them seemed to adapt better to a nocturnal schedule, and Springtrap was no different. Plus, he got the impression he was a night owl. Perhaps because he was a former security guard.

They headed to the office door, and he knocked.

"Who is it?" a gravelly voice called back. Definitely sounded like he had been asleep.

"Pizza man," Mike answered.

"Come in."

That was weird. Normally Springtrap would at least answer the door. In fact, even when he knew who it was, he tended to answer the door- usually with a weapon hidden behind it just in case something else resided on the other side. That amount of paranoia was hard to miss. Mike shrugged it off and let himself in, telling himself that Springtrap had probably just woke up and didn't feel like being paranoid just yet.

He was partially right, yet as he stepped into the office Mike got the distinct feeling that something was off.

Springtrap was laying out on the couch with the blanket half on the back and half over his legs. The way he was sprawled suggested he had just woken up, but oddly he made little attempt to get up and greet them. The tv was droning on something low and was barely audible over the fan humming on the office desk. He noticed that the trash can beside the door was overflowing and spilling over with crumpled up balls of paper.

"Charlie's here too," Mike said as he came in, letting her step in behind him before shutting the door. He continued to get a good look at the room.

"Hey, Michael," Charlie greeted.

"Hey," Springtrap greeted in a mumble. Rubbing a hand over his mask and his fingers into his eyeholes. "What time is it?"

"It's…" Mike looked up to the clock on the wall only to see that it had stopped. "Well, that explains why he's asking me." He checked his watch. "One-fifteen."

"God, that late?" the rabbit muttered. He dropped his arm alongside the couch. "Alright. What do you need?"

"Not much. We were just in the neighborhood and thought we'd drop by with our weekly disaster report."

"It's not that bad," Charlie quickly defended. "We just went by Freddy's last night and thought we'd brag about how close we got to getting caught."

Springtrap blinked before looking a little more alert. "Freddy's- you mean you went to the Mega Pizzaplex?"

"That's right," Charlie agreed. "We snuck in, ate their chips, slept in their bounce house, and left."

"And traumatized every animatronic we could find. At least, Mari did," Mike added in. "He's over at Foxy's right now. That's why he didn't come with us. Always the martyr."

"Ah yes, Freddy's newest shrine capitalism and consumerism. Stick around long enough and you'll see one of the dozens of commercials they air on repeat," Springtrap muttered bitterly. He glared at the ceiling for a moment before languidly looking up between the two. "So, what did you find there?"

Mike let Charlie recount the details to him. He was too busy getting that funny feeling that something was off with this scenario. Including but limited to the fact that Springtrap still hadn't gotten up off the couch.

He continued looking around the room for signs of what was going on and eventually his eyes landed on the television. It was on some sort of news show, though instead of broadcasting news they seemed to instead be doing some sort of cooking program. It wasn't exactly the material he had expected him to watch, but then again, he was aware that the rabbit actively watched the most painfully melodramatic soap opera he had ever seen.

There was a pause that hung over the room after Charlie finished her recounting of Marionette's run-in and revelations with the Sun. While they were letting it sink in, Mike decided to chime up.

"What's this?" he asked and pointed towards the TV. Springtrap looked down at it and hummed.

"…I don't know," he mumbled. He then began to feel up and down the couch beside him, then along the floor and the back of the couch and shook out the upper portion of the blanket. Obviously, he was looking for the remote, to no success.

Eventually Springtrap collapsed on the couch for a long second before tossing the blanket off and starting to get up. The couch fabric slightly clung to his suit and as he sat up, they could hear the faint sound of it peeling off of him. That was enough to get the two onlookers exchanging brief look.

"You've got to spend some time off this couch," Mike remarked. "Or at least clean it."

"I would, but then I would be stuck in the office chair until it dried," Springtrap declined. He pushed up to his feet with a groan, shuffling over to the television and crouching down in front of it. His joints squeaked and rattled as he did so, as though they hadn't been lubricated in ages. He didn't seem concerned, staring dully at the television as he manually turned it down.

Charlie looked to Mike again and it was her concerned expression that assured him that it wasn't just in his own head. He nodded and then gestured towards Springtrap with his eyes. She hesitated, then pointed between Mike and her questioningly, and he pointed back surely. Charlie nodded and finally faced the rabbit. After a moment of getting her words together, she took the plunge.

"Michael…" she began. He turned his head back to face her, expecting her to reveal something that she had left out of her explanation. "Is everything okay?" she dared to ask.

"I'm sorry?" he asked back.

"You just… don't seem like yourself. You know, you seem a little more tired than usual. Usually, you get up to answer the door," she gently suggested. She then quickly added, "Which is fine, I'm just making sure you're not feeling stiff or sore."

Instead of him getting offended, like she feared, he seemed surprisingly blasé.

"I'm fine. There's just not much point dragging myself off the couch just to make sure who's out there is who they say they are. If someone's going to put on that much of a show, odds are they're going to see me anyway. No point in fighting it."

"Uh huh…" Charlie looked to Mike and silently handed him the reins. He inwardly sighed and took a stab at it.

"Good point. Well, now that you're up to speed we're heading over to Scott's. Want to come along?" Mike offered.

"I don't remember you having a van," Springtrap remarked.

"I don't, but you don't care about getting seen, right?"

Springtrap sent him a look before standing up purposefully to send an unenthused look down at him. "If you're just inviting me along because you think something's wrong with me, then I'm afraid you're wasting your time. If anything, my comfort in my own home should be reassuring, not a sign that you need to insert yourself in and fix me."

"No, I'm inviting you along because I know something's wrong, and I'm hoping it's just that you've been stuck in this warehouse for too long," Mike said with an equal look. That bluntness was enough to get Springtrap to close his eyes like he was exasperated, but Mike suspected that he just didn't want to continue eye contact. Mike softened his tone back to a nonchalant one. "Come on, what have you got to lose?"

"My will to live?" Springtrap drawled.

"Oh please, you lost that a long time ago," Mike said. Springtrap rolled his eyes up past his eyelids. "Just give us this much. We're worried about you. We don't want you holing up in here until you lose yourself to it," Mike continued, his voice now more sincere and allowing that concern to come through.

Springtrap closed his eyes again and mimicked a sigh. Opening them slightly, glancing off towards Charlie, and then giving a nod.

"Fine," he agreed.

"Thanks," Mike said, trying to not sound too excited. "Want me to get the sheet or would you prefer to run and dive into the back?"

"Don't make me regret this," Springtrap muttered. He then answered by walking over to the couch and yanking up his blanket, bundling it up under his arm before heading to the door. "Let's go."

"That's a little higher than I was expecting," Natalie finally said after a good minute of staring at the prices displayed outside of the nail salon. Ness didn't look willing to defend it either. When Natalie looked over, she just rolled her eyes away, as though trying to play innocent that she suggested the idea. After a moment Natalie offered, "You know we could probably buy the stuff ourselves and do it for half the price."

Which was how they ended up at the department store picking out nail polishes. They got a couple- Antique Pink for Natalie, Midnight Blue for Ness, and a couple of extra colors since they were there- and then got back in the car. That was when Ness made a suggestion that Natalie hadn't anticipated.

"My apartment's not too far from here. It's not really what you would call 'clean', but it's almost bigger than the car," Ness lightly joked.

"Sounds a lot better than driving us out to my place in Hurricane," Natalie clarified. She honestly didn't expect the offer when she hadn't received it until now. They hadn't really discussed where they were going to do the painting, but she had assumed it wouldn't be just in the car and was trying to figure out how she could discreetly call Chance and warn him to stay downstairs if she ended up driving Ness home. Turned out that wouldn't be a problem.

Ness' apartment turned out to be in a rather nice apartment building. That was, for a young woman living by herself, it was in a slightly more expensive-looking complex than Natalie would've expected. She obviously didn't comment on this, especially not when she noticed that Ness was getting especially fidgety as they got to the apartment. As soon as they parked outside, the brunette quickly popped off her seat belt.

"Here we are! Okay, so you just sit tight for a second. I have to run in and… uh… Just straighten up really quick," she confessed with an utterly embarrassed smile. "I know that's a little weird, sorry."

"No, that's pretty much what I do whenever my parents drop in. I just don't have to drive them to my house, they just appear in the driveway," Natalie remarked. She gave an assuring, if somewhat amused smile, and Ness looked appreciative.

The brunette got out and rushed up the steps and to her door with only slight restraint to hold back from a run. After she let herself inside, it was about five minutes before she leaned out and waved for Natalie to come up.

As expensive as the apartment complex looked, the inside was downright tiny. Natalie figured out as much when she spotted Ness' bed in the living room. It was still large enough to hold a double bed and still have a few feet between it and the couch set in front of its foot, but that suggested there were likely no other rooms other than an assumed bathroom.

Once a few steps in, the kitchen was to the immediate left of the entranceway. It was compact in size, but the granite countertops looked nice. It was sectioned off from the rest of the living room-bedroom by another counter. The kitchen was surprisingly barren, with only a box of cereal and a box of Twinkies sitting on the fridge and no other immediately apparent foodstuff. The sink, she noticed, was filled and soaking dishes. The excessive bubbles suggesting they were just put in.

The rest of the apartment was pretty quaint. The bed's comforter was pale pink and patterned with white daisies, with the pillows being a more peach shade of pink. The couch was green with a sort of plaid pattern to it and there was a standing lamp on one side and a little side table on the other. There was a TV stand with a medium sized TV on it and a line of tapes beneath it. The walls were a simple cream, the kitchen had tiled floors, and the rest was a soft beige carpet.

There were some decoration items that made the apartment uniquely Ness'. Natalie spotted a calendar up on the wall with a picture of a puppy and kitten on it, there was a shelf with trinkets on it- one that she noticed off the bat being a little faux-stone statue of a dragon circling a castle, and unbelievably, there were even more bobbleheads. Though these weren't licensed Freddy Fazbear ones.

The only thing out of place in the apartment was a lump on the floor against the wall, right between the closet and bathroom doors. A lump of something covered by a blanket. She didn't look at it long.

"Nice place you've got here!" she complimented.

"Thanks. It's small, but it's just me, so I live with it," Ness excused. "Couch or stools?"

Indeed, there were a couple of barstools on the other side of the counter. Probably to replace the fact that, as she noticed now, there wasn't a dining room table.

"Stools. It'll be way easier to do our nails with our hands flat," Natalie suggested.

Ness was more than eager to go along with this. In fact, her tone had perked up considerably from the car earlier, barely showing any of the nervousness she previously had. She hopped up on one of the stools and got their supplies out of the plastic bag she had toted with her.

"Mind doing me first?" she asked, shaking the blue bottle.

"Fine by me. You're sure you want to be stuck painting my nails with yours still wet?" Natalie reminded.

"Sure am! Worst case scenario, yours turn out goofy," Ness joked. Then almost instantly recanted, "I'm kidding! They're probably going to be fine."

"Eh, I can live with those odds."

There was definitely something off about this whole situation. Natalie couldn't put her finger on it, though it probably had something to do with her coming home with someone she barely knew to paint her nails. Something that would've seemed totally innocuous to do with Louise but felt peculiar in these circumstances. Yet that wasn't just it. There was something a little more difficult to pin down.

Something was off about the apartment too. It smelled stale, like it hadn't been aired out in a while. The only sound was a ticking clock from somewhere, but she couldn't look for it now. Not when she had already started painting the dark blue polish onto one of Ness' nails. It did remind her that it was unnaturally quiet, so she decided to speak up.

"So, how did you wind up working at Freddy's? Or with Fazbear Entertainment," she asked.

"I work in IT. Sort of, it feels like I mostly do a lot of paperwork and computer-work and not a lot else. Right before they started construction on the Pizzaplex they hired a workforce en masse to support it. I was one of the lucky people to hop on board. And I loved the feel of old Freddy's. I think I mentioned that when we met, when we were talking about old and new Chica."

"I remember that! Speaking of which, I'm starting to see the difference between the two. Not that anything's wrong with Chica, but sometimes she gets this weird stare and it's hard not feeling a little uneasy."

"Wow, so you're getting really close to the animatronics," Ness said with mild surprise.

"I shared a ride in the Prize Counter elevator with Freddy last night," Natalie clarified. She glance up in time to see Ness' tensed look, either having a good idea on the size or the smell.

"I don't know how you do it. I don't think I could do it! Seven hours alone in a dark mall? It sounds like it would get really lonely… Not that you'd want company when your options are, well… Them."

"Freddy's alright," Natalie said. She didn't defend very hard though as she left it off right there. That and she needed to focus in a little more while doing Ness' ring finger after running off slightly on the middle.

"But since we're not at work and nobody can hear us, and you know I'm not going to tell- what's it like working at Foxy's?" Ness asked curiously. "It's got to be like a blast to the past working in that cozy pizzeria with the curtained stages and the pizza parties that everyone feels like they're a part of even when they're two tables over."

"It's actually pretty nice. It gets busy sometimes and you deal with the occasional bratty kid, but it's easy to feel like a family, and to see the results of your work. I'm not saying the Pizzaplex isn't nice, but you can get lost in there."

"Please, the Pizzaplex is too big. I'd give myself, like, leg cramps just trying to walk from the arcade to the Prize Corner- err, Counter," Ness interjected. "…Sorry, go on."

"There's not much else to say. I think it's a nice place, but I might be biased," Natalie confessed. She finished up the hand and gave Ness a moment to wave it dry before moving onto the second one.

"You're so lucky," the brunette said while still waving out her hand. "I was so psyched when I heard there was going to be a diner and all this cool stuff in the Pizzaplex that I guess I assumed that somewhere in the building there was going to be a real, traditional pizzeria and it would have the old Freddy experience, but that didn't happen." She cut off her ramble with a disappointed sigh. "They don't make them like they used to…"

"I know," Natalie agreed. Assuming that the other had fond childhood memories from Freddy's and not terrifying ones from the night shift.

"You've been to one?" Ness asked.

"No, but my boyfriend used to work at one. He's told me all the dirty details," she said. This wasn't a slip-up; she intentionally meant to slip a little more information Ness' way and see how she reacted.

In this case, the woman reacted with her eyes popping open in a look of total shock.

"Wait, really?!" she sputtered. "That's- That's crazy! I didn't even think- but that really makes a lot of sense! Nobody who worked on the Pizzaplex worked at Freddy's, but Foxy's- Foxy's is like a traditional Freddy's, and of course it would be!"

"Hey, I didn't say he worked at Foxy's too!" Natalie protested with a small smile.

"Isn't he that brown haired guy who was looking for you on opening night?"

She didn't expect that answer in the slightest. She hadn't even realized that Fritz had talked to her at all. He hadn't said he had.

"…Well, yeah," Natalie hesitantly agreed.

"And he's also one of those guys who was talking to Mr. Wight about the Foxy deal. So, yeah, Foxy affiliate," Ness said with a rather triumphant little grin.

There was just the slightest tinge of anxiousness starting to build somewhere in Natalie's stomach. A growing panic that she might've just really screwed up.

"…Umm, not that I'm going to tell anyone. Not-Not that it really matters! It's just a little weird that none of the people who used to run the old Freddy's came back. At least, I find that kind of weird…" Ness confessed. Slightly relieved, Natalie nodded in agreement and looked down to continue painting the rest of her nails.

"Well, for the record, I never worked at Freddy's. I just worked as a daytime security guard for a couple of years," Natalie clarified. She paused a moment, popped her lips, and asked, "What about your boyfriend? Did he work at Freddy's? Or does he work at Freddy's, the new Freddy's?"

Unlike Natalie, Ness seemed a lot more nonchalant about the question. In fact, from how quickly she responded, she was pretty eager to talk about him.

"He doesn't, which is why nobody at the office has ever met them and is kind of why they all think I made him up," Ness said. Noticing Natalie glance up, she quickly reassured, "Which I didn't. His name is Brad and he's a wonderful guy. He's supportive, he's loving, he's just perfect. He accepts me for me. We just want to keep things quiet- and it's not like there's a 'bring your boyfriend to work' day anyways. There's just some things you have to keep… separate."

"I get that. Especially considering this job," Natalie sympathized. "Though, here me out, it might put a stop to some of this unwanted attention if you did mention him more at work. Or put a picture at your desk… Or just wear a ring. That might put a stop to it."

"I might. I'll think about it," Ness quietly agreed. Hearing the change in tone, the blond quickly amended.

"But you know what? You shouldn't have to do that. You do what you want, you don't have to prove anything to anybody," she affirmed. "…But I told you about the Freddy's thing, so you at least owe me one juicy tidbit about Brad."

Ness perked up and was off once more. Talking about anecdotes of candlelit dinners, spontaneous bouquets of flowers, stereotypically romantic gestures that came straight out of the movies. Natalie didn't interrupt, even when they switched and she was the one getting painted. She just let Ness talk and listened. She talked like she had been waiting for this moment her entire life.

And it was kind of sad that Natalie realized that maybe she had been. That maybe this was the first time anyone had listened in a while.

Maybe that explained some things.

Mike, Charlie, and now Springtrap arrived at Scott's not too long after they left the warehouse. Charlie called Carlton on the way and he agreed to meet them there as he was now finishing up with his errand. They still arrived long before he did.

They pulled up to the front of Scott's house and caught a glimpse of someone peeking through the window before disappearing inside.

"I bet that's Baby. Probably running off so she can pretend to not notice me coming in," Charlie joked knowingly.

"Or she saw me and is attempting to restrain Ennard," Springtrap added. Mike smirked a little and turned off the car.

"So, which of you wants to go first?" he asked.

"I'll make a run for it and get the door open. You come in after me," Charlie said, turning around in her seat to address Springtrap. He simply nodded. "Okay. Here I go." She readjusted her hood, pulled the sheet over herself like a cape, and swung open the car door, hopping out and shoving it closed, then ran for the door. It was unlocked so she was able to let herself straight in.

"I don't think I need to tell you this, but I'm not running," Springtrap announced.

Mike snapped his fingers in disappointment. "Darn! You should've told me before I wasted the gas bringing you out here."

Springtrap gave a tired look and started pulling the blanket overhead while Mike climbed out to stand guard. There were some people outside and they had to wait a few minutes for the coast to clear out before following inside.

Meanwhile, Charlie slipped into the house in time to meet Scott and Ennard coming out of the kitchen. Baby was nowhere to be seen, but the garage door looked to be slightly ajar.

"Hey, Kiddo!" Ennard excitedly greeted. Resting on his hands on the back of the couch. "Boy, I heard you had one heck of a night last night!"

"That's not the word I'd use for it, but yeah, it was crazy," Charlie admitted.

"Sounded like it. Mari called earlier and brought us up to speed on most of the details. There's a couple of big holes waiting for you to fill in, but we heard about the whole getting chased around a Mexican restaurant part," Scott said. As nonchalantly as he said this, he did get a look of gentle concern. "How are you doing?"

"I'm good."

"You're sure?… Sorry, I don't even know why I asked that. I'm not trying to pry," he apologized.

"Yes, he is. We want all the dirty details," Ennard teased. He winked at Scott cheekily when he looked over.

"Okay, maybe I am, but that's just because, all things considered, we've both got a little, uh, emotional investment in Freddy's. That's a good way to put it?" he asked Ennard, who nodded. "And, you know, we do worry about you all. Usually a little more about Mike, I'm sort of just relieved that I didn't get another call that he was in the hospital… Don't tell him that."

"I won't, but I think he already knows," Charlie said teasingly. "What else did Mari say?"

"He said you had a run-in with Sun Man," Ennard said coyly. His voice lowering just a touch. Scott's mouth pulled a little at that shift in tone.

"I did. You might've too. He's got a friend named Jake who saw you at the dump," Charlie retorted. She felt a bit of self-satisfaction when Ennard stared at her blankly for a long moment.

Though before he could respond- and right after Scott's brows furrowed into an exaggerated look between confusion and budding horror- the garage door opened the rest of the way and Baby rolled out. She looked towards the puppet.

"Oh, Charlie. I didn't hear you come in," she said. Charlie jingled slightly as Baby rolled out. "How did-?"

"OH, WHOA! HOLD UP! You didn't say YOU were coming by!" Ennard suddenly exclaimed, drowning out the entire room. This was because Springtrap had just come walking in the front door with Mike close behind to shut it behind them.

The clown came around the couch and passed through the now crowded entrance before hooking a welcoming arm around Springtrap. One that he returned, but only momentarily as Ennard straightened before leaning in.

"Are you wearing cologne?" he asked. Springtrap gave him a questioning look instead of an answer, but by then it was clear that it wasn't him. The clown snapped his head in the other direction, catching Mike as he was trying to squeeze past behind him. "When'd you start wearing cologne?" Ennard asked.

"What do you mean? I always wear this," Mike said. Then he realized how defensive that sounded and quickly tacked on, "I had to cover up the funk of Freddy's with something, so I tried a second layer of Christmas Tree."

"Oh, it's working, alright!" the clown said with a smirk on his voice. Mike got a purposefully flat look and pointedly stepped past him and up to Scott where the two exchanged greetings.

"How's it going?"

"Fine for me. You look tired."

"Eh, so what else is new?"

Scott wasn't entirely satisfied with this answer but accepted it. He had felt the same way too many times not to.

In the meantime, Baby, perhaps to reclaim Charlie's attention after Ennard's outburst, came forward and took her hand. "Were you able to sleep at all?"

"Plenty. I got in a nap at Freddy's and a few hours of sleep at home too," Charlie said. She gave the other's hand a soft squeeze or tried to. It wasn't easy to squeeze a metal hand.

"Good. And it's good to see you," Baby said. She looked past to Springtrap. "You too, Michael. Even if I'm not as overbearing about it as some of us." She glanced to Ennard who had absolutely no shame, only amused at her comment.

"Same. I hope he hasn't been too much," Springtrap said. He almost sounded a little tired. One could've easily assumed this was just to play along with Ennard's 'overbearingness', but after hearing similar exhaustion when he was dragging himself off the couch earlier, Mike had trouble ignoring it. If anything, it reminded him of the other issue they came for.

He took a moment to plot an excuse before turning to Scott again. "Hey, I hate to mooch off you like this, but could I have one of those granola bars you keep around?"

"I hardly call it mooching when you're asking for a granola bar, but sure! You're welcome to whatever we've got," Scott said.

"Thanks. I shall stave off starvation for another day," Mike said. He glanced back at Springtrap and Ennard and saw his chance, with the former now paying attention to Baby and Charlie. He pretended to scratch his cheek and beckoned Ennard.

Ennard caught on and played along instantly. "Lemme show ya where they are!" he offered. He released Springtrap and followed into the kitchen.

"There's some stuff in the fridge too! Just grab whatever you want," Scott called after them.

"I always do!" Ennard quipped back. He slipped past Mike who stopped at the sink and headed back to the pantry. "So, whatcha in the mood for? We've got raisin and cinnamon, peanut butter and chocolate chunk- Oh, and you're going to hate this." Ennard crackled and pulled out a box that he shook. "Sour candy ball filled granola bars! A match made in heck!"

"It must be if you don't like it," Mike quipped.

"I'd like it a lot more if the little balls didn't keep getting lost in me," Ennard retorted. He shoved the box back in and pulled out the chocolate and peanut butter one, to which Mike nodded and was promptly tossed a bar. "Now that that's out of the way, what're we really in here for?" Ennard asked, lowing his voice to a playful whisper.

"Right…" Mike looked down long enough to open the bar and gather his words before looking back up and asking, "…Is something up with Michael?"

"Oh no," Ennard said, instantly giving away that this was probably going to turn into a 'yes'. The clown's voice dipping from its typical boisterousness to concern. "What do you mean?"

"Let me start by saying that there's a chance I'm reading too much into this." A slim chance, but a chance. "But when I got to the warehouse, I don't know, I got a weird vibe."

"What vibe?" Ennard probed.

"For starters, he didn't answer the door, he just told us to let ourselves in. He just stayed on the couch. If it wasn't for him losing the remote, I don't think he would've gotten up at all, and he must've not been up for a while because the couch was starting to mold onto his suit. I thought maybe it was just me but then Charlie noticed it too," Mike explained. "…I take it from that look that it wasn't just us."

If Ennard could look anguished, then he did. He almost looked to be in pain, slinking down and propping himself up with an arm on the fridge, his free hand wiping over his mask.

"No, it wasn't just you," he murmured. His volume low and pitch leveling into a somber tone. "I noticed something funny was going on, but I just hoped, y'know, it would go away? Maybe I was thinking too much into it? I worry about him a lot, and you can only get told 'you worry too much' too many times by someone before you start, sort of, internalizing it?"

Mike nodded and Ennard continued. "I-I just noticed that he was starting to sound a little… down, and I, uh… Don't tell him this." Ennard leaned in closer, voice low and serious. "I remember he used to get in these slumps a long, long time ago- but back then it was different! He wasn't alone over in that rinky-dink warehouse, and I can't get him to stay here-!" He barely cut off his ramble and finished with, "It's not good for him, being alone over there like that."

"Yeah, I know," Mike agreed. He took a deep breath and asked, "Should I offer for him to stay with me and Mari?"

"You can. It's not gonna work," Ennard said with slight exasperation, sending a tired lidded glance towards the kitchen door. "Michael's got this thing about taking handouts, even if they're not handouts. Like that granola bar? He would've gone hungry before he asked for one. For himself, he'd probably ask for me." Suddenly Ennard started to straighten up. "Scott's coming. Play cool."

"I don't have to play cool. I am cool."

"Course you are, o' Christmas Tree," Ennard said cheekily. Then eagerly bounced back into his typical persona. "Hey, Scottie! Felt like getting a snack too?"

"Err, sure!" Scott agreed. From that hesitation alone, Mike realized that he must've heard something, or had come in to snoop. Ennard turned to grab him one. "So, uh… what's new?" he asked Mike.

"I couldn't unload any of the sour ones," Ennard answered.

"Augh, foiled again!" Scott joked. Ennard snickered but it was obvious he was tense. Both men noticed it and Scott clear his throat. "So, uh… I was thinking that maybe we could-."

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Uh…" Scott trailed off at the unexpected sharpness from the living room, from Springtrap. Mike looked back too.

"You didn't say anything about that," Springtrap continued. His words directed towards Charlie who was standing there looking a little jolted. Baby was looking at Charlie with her hand now recoiled to her chest in surprise.

"I forgot all about it. There was just so much going on. This is the first time I even remembered it since we got home," Charlie explained.

"Oh boy, I wonder what anecdote from last night he just found out about," Mike quietly remarked. He didn't expect Springtrap to hear him- he also didn't expect the room to go dead silent right before he said that, and the rabbit looked to him.

"Did you know about this?" he asked sharply. "About that Moon Man trying to hypnotize her?"

"What?" Mike betrayed his shock immediately and looked to Charlie. "He did what?"

"I don't even know if that's what he was doing," Charlie defended, raising her hands and looking away. Only for a moment before looking back and admitting, "Okay, I know that's what he was doing. I don't know how he did it though."

"When did that happen?!" Mike exclaimed. "Was it when he was with you in that theater?!"

"…Yeah, it was. Before the lights came on and before Jake showed up," she said with a sigh.

Mike was utterly dumbfounded, but he could hardly stand there and keep asking obvious questions where there were a lot more important ones. "How'd he do it? Did he play a song? Was it a music box thing?"

"Weirdly enough, no. He sort of did this swaying rocking thing and then his eyes started flickering- it was the flickering, I'm sure. But I was fine! All that happened was I turned away and it didn't work. I think that's what the dance was for, to distract me long enough for the lights to affect me."

"But you did feel it," Baby clarified.

"A little?" Charlie tried.

"And you didn't see this?" Springtrap asked Mike, looking back at him once more.

"No, I didn't get there until after everything calmed down. If I had walked up on that happening, I would've fed that Moon his own ass," he firmly defended. Despite the situation, it forced a guffaw out of the utterly horrified Ennard. "You could've given me a heads up before I ate that candy he gave me," he continued, though not harshly.

"Now, that's your own fault. Not taking candy from strangers is one of the first rules every child learns," Baby remarked. Though then suddenly snapped her head back to Charlie, "But that means- you let him get close after that happened?!"

"Uh… Well, sort of, but I wasn't alone." Baby gave a frustrated mechanical huffing sound- both like frustrated sigh and the noise a machine might make before going completely berserk. "Once he flipped into his Sun persona, his friend Jake ran in and broke the whole thing up. I was so thrown off track by meeting him that it was the last thing on my mind," Charlie explained.

"Sun persona, right," Springtrap muttered. He shook his head. "I can't believe Marion would let him get off scot-free. Let alone continue to allow him to hang out in your vicinity."

"Mari went easy on him because by time we got there he switched into the Sun and because he's one of the kids he suited up," Mike said matter-of-factly. When the rabbit looked at him, he quirked a brow knowingly, getting the point across that he shared some of his sentiments.

All the while that this conversation was going on, Scott was noticing Ennard getting significantly more worked up, and it was making him increasingly nervous.

"Don't do anything," he warned quietly.

"What am I going to do, fly over there?" Ennard barely whispered back.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The room fell silent.

"That might be Carlton," Charlie finally said.

"I really hope so and not the neighbors dropping off another casserole," Scott tried to joke as he squeezed around the mass of people. He made it to the door before looking and waving back. "You might all want to step back a little."

Everyone migrated a little closer to the wall. Including Mike, who didn't want to get spotted and hit up for an introduction.

Thankfully, it was Carlton. Who proceeded to step into the house with a, "Yo, what up? I got the goods," and promptly stare at Springtrap like he had been the one to say it.

"Ah ha! Excellent!" Ennard crackled as he clasped his hands together and rushed in to see. By then Scott had gotten the door shut, so he was able to eagerly claim some of the photos Carlton was carrying for himself. He willingly handed them over, still outright staring at the rabbit in the room. Something that didn't go unnoticed by the clown beside him, who hooked an arm around him like he had done earlier to said bunny. "You remember Michael! Michael, this is Carlton."

"Burke's son," Baby quietly tagged on behind him.

"Our newest employee. Intern errand boy sort of thing," Mike added before taking another bite of granola bar.

"I'd say take a picture-…" Ennard's wisecrack was cut off the second he caught sight of something in the splayed picture. He spread them further and lifted them closer and was rendered speechless.

Springtrap gave him a less than enthused look before reaching out a hand towards Carlton.

"Michael, right! Hey! Sorry about that, I didn't sleep a lot," the redhead excused. While this excuse wasn't entirely believed, it was accepted since Carlton willingly shook his hand and didn't wipe off his own afterwards. Springtrap continued keeping his hand out afterwards and was given the rest of the photos. He began to go through them.

"So, how'd they turn out?" Charlie asked.

"Terrifying," Carlton answered with a smile. "You should've seen the look of the guy who handed them to me. I told him my brother had a party at the Pizzaplex and me and my friends got to mess around with the animatronics afterwards."

"Did he believe it?"

"Seemed like it. The magic of Freddy's is that the 'whole animatronics being alive' thing is so unbelievable that the idea of a bunch of people staging pictures with animatronics to make them look alive is believable," he said with a sly smirk.

"Take. A look. At THIS thing," Ennard said as he slid a photo over for Scott beside him to see. He looked down and practically did a doubletake.

"Oh, okay," he said. He adjusted his glasses. "So, uh, that's the new direction of Freddy's."

"Unfortunately, it looks like this is the new direction of Freddy's," Springtrap muttered, handing over a picture of Freddy Fazbear to Scott.

"Huh, he kind of looks like the, uh… What's he like? Is he as friendly as Foxy said?" Scott asked, looking to Mike for answers.

"He seems like it. He was downright hospitable to us and even went along with setting us up for the night, but I can't say if that's just because he's generous or because of Foxy," he said.

Springtrap gave a suspicious hum but didn't interrupt. Mike looked down at the picture in Scott's hands. It was a photo Carlton had taken while they were in the arcade touring for rabbits and tickets, long after the chaos in the Prize Counter had wound down. Freddy was waving at the camera with an open-mouthed smile. Mike himself had his back to the camera, partially looking over his shoulder, hunched over one of the basketball games.

Maybe not one of his best pictures. He definitely looked like he was up to no good, but that could've been the oversized black hoodie that instantly made him look half his age. He decided to focus more on Freddy.

"Truth is, there's something up with Freddy," Mike confessed in a murmur. "I'm not sure what it is and I don't think he's faking what he's like, but something's off. I think there's a chance the employees are mistreating the animatronics."

"I sort of got that impression too…" Charlie admitted.

"That doesn't give them the excuse to act out, but I would be a hypocrite if I didn't show them some sympathy. I know what it feels like to be trapped in a place like that," Baby said. She turned her head slightly towards Ennard. "We both do."

"This is a really scary sun. I can't believe they let this thing around children," Ennard remarked.

"As on-topic as usual," Springtrap remarked. Ennard held out the picture for him to see. He narrowed his gaze on it. "…It really is nightmarish, isn't it?"

"The point is, there's something up with Freddy's, and it's not just our history with them making me paranoid or their questionable animatronic designs," Mike said.

And as he stood there and really thought about it, he had felt that feeling the entire night. He felt like there was something Freddy wasn't saying when he talked about the arcade games, the felt like there was a warning neither Jake nor Sunny were saying out loud, and it went beyond the rabbit. They were willing to talk about the rabbit, but there was something they weren't willing to talk about.

"I get this feeling…" Mike said, crossing his arms as he thought deeply. "…That something, not sure what but something, went down long before we got there."

"There's a good chance that you're right on the money," Scott agreed tiredly. "But if this Fazbear Entertainment's anything like the last one, they've already got rid of all the evidence."

"Yeah, you'd think that…" Mike murmured. He hesitated with that same pensive expression, then added, "…Must be hard to do a cover-up when you can't get rid of the witnesses."

Maybe next time he would be a little more direct with Freddy. The worst he could do was clam up, but with how social he was it couldn't last forever.

Baby looked to Ennard who had an equally knowing glint in his eyes. Springtrap simply returned to looking at the pictures, eventually giving a soft chuckle at one of them.

"I might have to keep this one for my desk. This is precious," he murmured. He proceeded to hand it to Charlie to sate her curiosity, revealing that it was a photo of her and Marionette lying together in the bounce house.

She sent a side-glance towards Carlton- he was looking smug, of course- and Baby gave the quietest little 'aww' from beside her. Soft enough that she could pretend it was condescending if anyone else heard and made a comment.

"…This one's pretty cute too," Springtrap added. He then flashed a picture of Jessica eating some tortilla chips with weirdly focused look. Probably lost in thought, probably why Carlton snapped the photo.

"She's single," Carlton chimed up.

"I'm contagious," Springtrap shot down.

Ennard looked up from his tight stare at the picture of the Moon to look at Springtrap with a rather interested glint to his eye. Whatever wheels were turning in his head had a wrench thrown in by Baby, who had been listening to the ordeal and promptly shook her head at him. Maybe later, he decided, and he returned to looking through the pictures, as did Springtrap himself.

The only one who hadn't made any attempts to do so was Mike, who was still slowly eating while replaying the moments of last night through his head.

He stopped midbite when he thought about the smell in that elevator.

Then bit the rest of the way through, chewed, and swallowed. He couldn't shake the feeling that he already knew what happened at Freddy's, but they were just going to have to take this one step at a time.

Chapter End Notes

Mable: This is the closest I've gotten to a Wednesday posting day in weeks and it was entirely unintentional. XD Regardless, I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 36

Chapter Summary

While Natalie tries to scope out answers, Mike is the one who is suddenly confronted by an unexpected revelation.

Chapter Notes

Mable: And here we are! Hopefully back on the Wednesday schedule! 8D Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Natalie wasn't sure exactly how doing nails turned into watching a movie, but she didn't have any complaints. 'Going Dutch' was on, possibly the corniest romance pretending to be a comedy that she had ever seen- and one she would never admit to watching, let alone enjoying. She did briefly wonder how long Ness told the office she was going to be out for, but supposed it wasn't her place to confront her about it. Not when Ness had finally started to relax.

But Going Dutch was starting to lose its luster when rivaling a painfully small breakfast and the progressing afternoon.

"So, my nails are mostly dry," Natalie eventually said while checking the tackiness on her nails. "Want to go get something to eat?"

"Sure! Or, if you want, we can order in. My treat!" Ness popped up from the couch before heading into the kitchen. "I have so many of those little takeout flier things I could staple them together and make a book," she remarked. Then pulled open a drawer beside the fridge and started pulling a stack of them out and splaying them on the counter before her. "What do you feel like?"

"Anything but pizza. I've had leftover pizza three times this week," Natalie said.

"Yeah, same. It's one of two things in the staff fridge," Ness agreed. She tilted her head towards the refrigerator before pulling it open with half-hearted curiosity. As though something might've appeared in there since she had gotten out a couple of sodas earlier. "…Want to go on an adventure and try what's in the mystery Tupperware?"

"I think I'll pass," Natalie said. Apparently, Ness was tempted enough to still get it out and pop it open and proceeded to choke. Hearing it, Natalie looked back towards the kitchen. "That bad?"

Ness audibly dry-heaved.

"Need help?" the blond offered. Ness started choking out some kind of defense through her hand, but Natalie was already up and coming in, catching Ness in the act of trying to get the possibly warped plastic container closed.

"Here, I got it," Natalie offered.

The other woman gave up all pretenses and left it on the counter, walking to the other side of the sink with her face covered- either from embarrassment or to stop the gagging.

It wasn't until Natalie started trying to close the Tupperware that she was suddenly hit by the smell. It was gruesome. It didn't even smell like food, and the plastic lid wouldn't close back down without the tub wobbling.

Eventually it was too much, and she went ahead and peeked in, and then promptly closed the lid back when she saw a thick layer of green and yellow and neither looked like they were supposed to be there.

"Yeah, that's bad," Natalie said, cheeks puffed in disgust. She could taste it while she said it. "Is there a garbage can-?" Ness pointed to the one on the floor, overflowing with food containers already. "-Outside?" Natalie finished.

"There's a dumpster on that side of the building." She pointed behind her somewhere.

"Okay, no. that's not happening. Uh…" Natalie considered her options. One was dumping it down the toilet. A fitting end to the rancid waste, but then she would have to see it, smell it, and still have the plastic. Which she couldn't even clean in the sink because it would taint every dish in the house. There was really only one option. "I'm just sticking it back in."

"Put it in the freezer. Maybe if it freezes, we won't be able to smell it and then I'll just dump the whole thing later," Ness suggested. Her back practically against the cabinet now.

This seemed like a decent idea, so Natalie gladly yanked open the freezer door, and immediately her eyes popped open.

"What is this?"

'This' being a funky sludge of brown with flecks of color and darker clumps and swirls through it that was currently pooling all across the bottom if the freezer. There was a sludgy box half deformed along with it. Ness leaned in to look.

"DAMN!" she yelled, thumping her fist on the counter. "That's- That's three-fourths of an ice cream cake! UGH, I told Dad this thing was dying on me!"

Indeed, the freezer was warmer than the fridge. Her car was currently likely cooler than that freezer. Ness simply shut the freezer, standing there with her hand on it and her face a tomato red flush from embarrassment and disgust.

"…I'll just-!" Ness ducked under the sink and started to dig around. "I've got gloves!" She continued yanking stuff out, including a burned-bottom baking pan and a box of trash bags. "I've got gloves in here somewhere!"

"Just hand me a trash bag. That'll work," Natalie said. Ness yanked one out and open, then stood up and held it open. Natalie dropped the Tupperware inside and got a delightful view of it hitting the bottom and popping open, spilling its mess into the bottom of the bag. The smell leaked out before Ness could even shut and twist it closed. Just the squelching noise it made was enough to cringe at.

"I'm making a run for it," Ness warned. Holding the bag out as far as she could, she ran for the front door and fumbled it open, choking as she did so. She barely pulled the door behind her and was off.

And so was Natalie. She only waited around long enough to hear Ness on the steps before making a run across the room and doing something she had been waiting to do all day, yank the blanket off of that mysterious pile.

…

It was just clothes.

Shirts, pants, pajamas, a mix of a whole wardrobe laying on the floor and barely hidden under a blanket. She moved some off the top, but it quickly became apparent from how the stuff was clumped together that it wasn't an effort to hide anything, just an innocuous mound of clothes. Nothing suspicious to be seen, so signs of Ness being up to something.

No rabbit costume.

But Natalie wasn't done. Deciding she had gone this far, she threw open Ness' closet and looked inside. Unlike blanket, the closet wasn't hiding that many clothes- it seemed like a majority of them were on the floor- but it was sheltering a small collection of Freddy Fazbear memorabilia separated into boxes and a basket on the floor. The basket filled with plush toys, the boxes with miscellaneous pieces.

There were things like a couple of old plastic mugs and a couple of framed posters stacked together, but there were also less traditionally collectable pieces. Like a small stack of used paper plates with Freddy and Friends' faces on them, and a rolled-up birthday banner. Hanging on the back of the door was the shirt from Foxy's that Natalie gave her while the plush she gave her sat on the very top of the basket.

Natalie found herself frowning at the collection. Not that Ness hid it, but that she felt the need to hide it, and she honestly couldn't tell if she had just done this for her or was doing it constantly. Maybe it was for Brad, which was worrying.

Once again there was no rabbit suit. Now Natalie was finally starting to get a clear picture on what she had stumbled in upon.

So, this was Ness' diabolical secret. The pile of clothes, the stack of dishes, the ancient leftovers: she just had a semi-messy house and didn't feel like cleaning out her fridge. This wasn't the sign of something amiss, but a rushed cleaning job.

Knowing she was running out of time, and at least sating her curiosity a little bit, Natalie hurried back over into the kitchen. She didn't have to wait long before hearing the footsteps on the stairs outside.

After a moment of hesitation, Ness slowly opened the door and let herself inside. She closed it behind her, back still towards Natalie, before finally turning around. Her eyes were owlishly wide and her face beat red, likely less from embarrassment and instead from the dry heaving. Just seeing that look, just recalling everything that just happened, Natalie couldn't hold out.

She snorted with laughter.

"That wasn't funny!" Ness defended, though the smile that broke across her face betrayed her. She covered her face as Natalie continued trying to swallow her snickers. "I want to die. Right now. Die."

"It happens to everyone! You wouldn't believe the stuff I cleaned out of the fridge back when I was living at home," Natalie dismissed. Finally reigning herself in, though still smiling.

"Like what?" Ness asked. Daring to peek through her fingers.

"Like when someone leaves an open cup of yogurt in the fridge and someone else knocks it over, and neither cleans it up, and then it spreads around the bottom of everything around it until you get home from work, pull out a drink, and have this pink-white stuff start dripping on your shoes."

"…Okay, I see your point, but was there a two-inch layer of like… layered burrito dip green stuff on the top?"

"Is that what that was, burrito dip?" Natalie asked in disbelief. She supposed that would explain the coloring and the smell.

"No, I think it was some sort of leftover casserole thing." Or maybe it didn't. "The total, one-hundred percent truth is that I've been spending a lot of time over at my boyfriend's and I just haven't even been going in the fridge at all."

Natalie could believe that. The brief glimpse into the fridge that she got revealed about twenty cherry Fizzy Fazs, some eggs, some take-out boxes, and very little else. It didn't look like Ness was struggling, but it didn't look like she was cooking.

"Makes sense. Still, it's no big deal. It happens."

"Ugggh, and the freezer too." Ness rubbed circles into her eyes.

"I can help you clean it out. It's just melted ice cream, it's nothing compared to the dip."

"No! I'm not ruining our nails. I'll do it once I get some gloves. It's not going anywhere," Ness insisted. In seconds she managed to recover and waved the whole thing off, though from the strain in her voice it was clear that she was trying to cover. "So, uh… Still hungry?"

"A little," Natalie said half-truthfully. "You?"

"Not really," Ness admitted. "…But maybe I will if we go get something? And that's go somewhere else, outside of this apartment?"

"Alright, but we're going to miss the end of Going Dutch."

"So what? We've already seen all the good parts." Ness whipped back open the door with a tight smile showing how desperately she wanted to get back out of the apartment- and away from the slight smell still hovering in the kitchen.

Though it would mean walking away from any possible leads hiding inside the apartment, Natalie agreed. It wasn't like she was going to get to snoop around with Ness around here anyways, at least she got in a little of that already.

Besides, a breath of fresh air would probably be good for them both.

Since Foxy's was open and nearly everyone of importance was still there, the only person left on the list was none other than Chance. He was also the last person Mike wanted to see, as he regularly was. While Mike's demeanor towards and understanding of Chance had softened, he always got the feeling of walking on eggshells around him. Like he would say the wrong thing and stir up a hornet's nest in response.

It also didn't help matters that Springtrap was here considering his colorful history with Chance. Mike had offered to let him off at Scott's, Ennard had practically bribed him into staying, but Springtrap had his mind made up. He would continue traveling around on their errands until they were done and then they would drop him off, where he would likely return to his fuzzy TV and clingy couch.

In hindsight, Mike could've probably convinced him to stay at Scott's right then by mentioning that they were going to see Chance, but at the time he was too concerned at how saying the name would upset Scott himself and maybe his clowns. He didn't make the reveal until they were on the road. At which point Springtrap asked to be let off on the side of the road, to which Mike gave a simple no and locked the car doors.

He called Fritz before letting himself into the house with his spare key, as Natalie was still not home. Fritz didn't mind. If anything, he was probably relieved to not be there while two time bombs walked around the same general area.

They didn't waste any time before heading to the stairs. Charlie took the lead, Mike more than happy to fall back and let her soften up the bear, but she turned back to Springtrap before heading downstairs.

"Maybe you should wait here," she suggested.

"I am," Springtrap answered. "On the stairs, where I can hear him."

"Oh, okay. Sounds like a plan," Charlie said with slight relief. She began to head down the stairs, holding the railing tightly as she carefully and quickly descended. "We shouldn't take too long."

"It'll only feel like eternity," Mike muttered over his shoulder. Springtrap bumped him in the back with his elbow. "Alright, I'm going," he said. Then followed down into the lower floor.

Chance had paused in flickering through the channels when he heard the door opening upstairs. By time he heard the muffled voices on the stairs, he recognized that one was Charlie and relaxed before he could've got up and done something. He still got up to greet her, and she knocked on the wall of the stairs before stepping down into the hall.

"Hey, Grandpa. It's me," she greeted with a smile.

"Hey, Girlie! I didn't hear you come in," he said. Not wanting her to know that he had been listening- not that he heard anything, but he couldn't afford to have their relationship put back in a shaky position. Not when it had finally got to the point where she greeted him with a smile and without a beat of hesitation. He held his arms out and she accepted the hug, even with his suit always being a little awkward to manage.

Something pressurized in his chest. His internal music box started to tighten up like it was preparing to fight the deeply crusted ash to start playing its beguiling music. He put it back in its place with a straightening of his back, then coughed.

"So, what can I do you for?" Chance asked. He was quick to sit back down on the couch, letting his body relax into complacency once again, and when she sat down on the couch beside him, he felt fine. That was also when he acknowledged Mike who had come in behind her with a nod. "Afternoon, Mike."

"Hey. How's it going?" Mike replied.

"How do you think? I've been seeing that damned Freddy's commercial so many times I could probably translate the thing in pig Latin," Chance remarked. He pointedly grabbed the remote to mute the television before dropping it at his side. "You got any news on that place?"

"It's funny you should ask," Mike said, a grin sliding onto his face. "I happen to know for a fact that last night some gang with absolutely zero self-preservation skills snuck into the Pizzaplex, scared their robots, ate their snacks, and left without getting caught by security."

"Well, they should've known that was bound to happen! They've got a place that size with that many doors and they expect one person to walk the whole thing-… It was you, wasn't it?" Chanced realized at seeing Mike's ever-widening smile.

"It's always me. I always come back," Mike said, patting his chest and winking.

Chance gave him an overwhelmingly exhausted look before slowly turning his gaze back to his granddaughter. "Did you go too?"

"Someone had to watch him," Charlie tried.

"Good, then I can just pretend he's not here."

Mike just continued to smirk, knowing he won.

"What did you find?" Chance asked, his tone growing serious. Mike went ahead and let Charlie explain on her own.

"First off, almost everything Foxy said was right. Freddy's friendly but most of the others aren't. The place is huge and barely held together with duct tape. We've confirmed at least one animatronic who's been scrapped, barely holding himself together with duct tape in the back of the daycare… One of the animatronics, the Sun, the one that wasn't scrapped, recognized Mari. Turns out he was one of the kids that went missing back at the old Freddy's."

"What?" Chance actually sounded aghast. He sobered up quickly, but his eye was still open wide. "I should've known. We should've known this was bound to happen-." The budding anger quickly receded with a long silence following the outburst. He was silently staring at her now, and Charlie noticed.

"Uh, Grandpa?" she asked.

"Was it Sammy?"

Charlie leaned back in surprise and Chance was immediately apologetic. "Sorry, I… I shouldn't have sprung that on you, Sweetheart. It's just… he's been on my mind," he confessed.

"No, it's okay! You just surprised me, that's all," Charlie reassured. This was the first time he really brought up Sammy unprovoked, so she didn't want to discourage that line of communication. Not when that was one of the biggest issues she had with her family. "It wasn't him. Although I almost wish it was."

Chance's eyelid lowered further in disappointment. "You're not the only one…"

"What's got you thinking about him?" Mike dared to ask. He made sure to ask quietly and nonconfrontationally, to show that he was being genuine and not leading to anything. He was used to Chance getting defense. Oddly, he wasn't this time.

"I don't know… Marion for one. Him asking about him the other day brought back old memories… I started thinking he might've suspected something and didn't tell me, and that was why he was asking," he confessed.

He didn't realize how close to the mark he had hit.

"It just keeps creeping back up on me," Chance continued. "…Not that I've got much choice. I've got the face of Freddy Fazbear popping up on my TV screen every ten minutes. What else have I got to think about?" he muttered.

"Right… Well, if you feel like taking a trip down there, it's insanely easy to sneak in. Once you find a way past the front doors, you're pretty much home free," Mike suggested, knowing good and well that Chance probably wouldn't take him up on the offer and yet still giving it. It only seemed fair considering their topic of discussion.

Chance scoffed. "Yeah, I bet you'd like to see me haul this clumsy hunk of junk around that place. I saw how many floors they have, and I don't trust any elevator contracted by Fazbear Entertainment."

Charlie gave a disagreeing hum at his comment.

"Might be good to get you out of the basement for a while. If not Freddy's, then maybe Foxy's?" Mike offered. A question he only posed because he knew Springtrap was listening and didn't want to get cornered on it later. In all actuality, Chance seemed to be holding out better than Springtrap. Or he at least got up to greet them.

Unfortunately, he realized that this had backfired the second Chance started to speak.

"This basement's the best place for me. I'm safe from people, they're safe from me, and I'm not rotting away in someone's garage. You've got to keep in mind that we're not all built for the spotlight. This body was built for one purpose, and it failed. Better to hide that away when the reporters flock in asking about the latest industrial accident that mangled some guy at Freddy's."

While the words themselves weren't especially dire, and the tone definitely lightened back up at the end, Mike knew Springtrap had heard and could only hope he didn't equate the comments to his own situation. Which, considering Michael's perchance for harsh realism, wasn't likely.

"Don't say that. It's not about protecting people from you, it's protecting us from people," Charlie assured. She knew exactly what was lurking deep in Chance's body and what it was made for, so her comment could only be to assure him.

Which, Mike noted to himself, was also not exactly true. Chance was just a different kind of dangerous now than he used to be. He used to be those people who were threats, now he was just what they targeted.

"And Mike has a point," she continued.

Though before she could elaborate further, there was a dull thump from the stairs. Chance's eye darted over to the closest approximation of where the noise had come from.

"…Who else came with you, the clown?" he asked.

Charlie hung on the spot for a moment before answering, "It's Foxy. He's not really doing so hot after last night."

"He went with you?"

"No, but… It was upsetting context-wise."

"I'll go check on him," Mike said. Both to spare Charlie from having to lie any further- he knew she was only doing it for Chance's sake- and to figure out what the sound actually was. If Springtrap slipped on the steps or was barely holding himself back from charging down and confronting Chance.

He wasn't sure why he assumed that was what Springtrap might do. He could occasionally be unpredictable, but that would be an especially volatile mood. Though he couldn't really predict Springtrap's response with how odd he was acting.

Nothing punctuated that more than him coming around the corner of the landing and finding Springtrap sitting on the steps with his head in his hands.

Mike expected anything else. More so to find him standing there with his arms crossed, or leaning on the wall, with a look of general fatigue at the whole situation. Yet instead, he looked utterly defeated. He didn't react when Mike came up.

Eventually he dragged his head up to look at him and the two exchanged a stare for a long moment. Then Springtrap silently stood and turned, heading up the stairs. He followed quickly behind the rabbit.

"What's on your mind?" Mike finally asked. His voice gentler and more concerned than Springtrap would've ever heard it, usually saved for the direst of circumstances. Something about this moment felt like one of those.

It took Springtrap a moment to get his words together. His back to Mike, he wavered back and forth, looking around at the living room and seemingly struggling to hold it together. Then finally he pointed down at the floor, through the floor, at the exact spot of the downstairs couch where grandfather and granddaughter were still talking.

"I killed that man," Michael said. His voice shaky and disturbed. "I took away what was left of his life. I ruined his life."

"Okay, wait. It was not like that," Mike defended. "It was a bad situation-."

"I left him with that suit. I knew what was going to happen and I didn't care." Michael's voice cracked at the end. It sounded just as broken as the rattling and squeaking of his suit.

"It's not like he was much better," Mike bitterly reminded. "I'm not saying what you did was right, but I AM saying that he was planning on killing me and didn't bat an eye about it. Either by fire or bullet, and he didn't care which."

"That's not the point!" Michael's outburst silenced his defenses instantly. He was still fumbling in place, fidgeting and uncomfortable, looking around like he wanted to run but didn't know where. "The POINT is not that he would've done the same thing- I am quite aware of that!" He turned back to face Mike, eyes wide and wild. "I could've just killed him. Yes, I would still be a murderer, but then it would've been true self-defense. No matter what he says now, he would've never stopped coming after us. It would have been vile, but somewhat justified. But that's not what I did. I inflicted the same curse onto him that was placed onto me."

He gestured a hand to the floor again. "An empty, useless life taking up space and wasting time, hoping that there will be a someday where this prison sentence is over! Chance may be kept among the living in that suit, but he's not living!"

Mike was silent and Michael recognized from his look of shock that he had said too much, that he had read the throughlines. He forced himself to turn his head away and stare at that point on the floor, arm dropping at his side.

"This is not one of Marion's acts of mercy, an attempt to save, a gift of life. I gave Chance the gift of a non-life. I turned him into a… a statue. A statue that can only observe the world and never be part of it," he lamented.

There was a long moment that passed before Mike inhaled deeply.

"So, that's what's going on," he said, and the moment he did Michael's shoulders dropped and his whole body seemed to deflate. "Look, I can't even pretend I know what it's like. Nothing that's ever happened to me has come anywhere close to what you've been through… But Michael, it doesn't have to be like that. This might not be a normal life, but it doesn't have to be a miserable one either."

"I have no choice," Michael murmured. Before the other could continue, right as the protests sat on his lips, he added, "You have no choice when you look like this."

As much as Mike didn't want to agree, it was hard to argue when his situation was so different from Marionette, Foxy, or even Baby or Ennard's. Though the latter gave him some wiggle room. "Then let's fix you up. Let's get you a new suit, or just build you a new one from scratch, get all that… gunk cleaned out of your joints, your wires all fixed up, get you out of that warehouse and into a better place. There's options, Michael. It'll take a while, but we can do it."

"It's not the same…"

"Why not?" Mike challenged. The other didn't answer. "No, I mean it. Why not? If you're feeling like you're stuck and you're not enjoying life, then why not try to fix it? I can't guarantee it's going to fix everything, but it can be better."

Michael stared at the floor for a long moment before turning his head back to Mike with a look of thorough exhaustion.

"Because it doesn't matter how much new upholstery we put on it or how much we shine up the metal, I am never getting out of this suit alive."

Once more Mike was struck silent, and Michael took a few unsteady steps back before dropping down onto the couch. His head dropping into one hand, both mortified and exhausted from what just transpired.

It took a long moment for Mike to stop reeling long enough to consider his next actions. Not until now did he realize exactly how out of his league he was with this entire situation, but he had to make do with what he had. He was the one Michael had given this information to, that had to mean something. So, he sat alongside him on the couch, letting the moment sit a little longer before attempting to reach out.

"This is stupid question, but do you feel any better?" he asked.

"Yes," Michael muttered.

"Been keeping that bottled up a long time?"

Michael nodded into his hand.

"I figured as much… Do you want to talk it out?"

"I squandered the precious years I had as a human. Such a wasted life," Michael muttered. Then he shook his head and lowered his voice, "We shouldn't. Not now."

"No time like the present," Mike offered. He had a feeling that if Michael clammed up now, he wouldn't be able to get back in again.

In response, Michael pointed down, referencing and remembering the two still sitting downstairs. The two who Mike completely forgot about and who had probably heard at least some of that. "Good point."

"That's fine. You don't have to… Look, I think you should come home with us tonight. We can swing by the warehouse and grab whatever you need, but I don't think you should be alone, and Candy Cadet's not exactly good company."

"Do you really think the warehouse is the problem?" Michael asked with tired exasperation, pulling his hand away from his face.

"Yes," Mike immediately answered. "Just hear me out. I think you're spending too much time sitting in that room alone with your thoughts. I'm not saying that you're wrong or it's wrong to feel that way, but when you… when all you hear is your own voice telling yourself stuff like that over and over again, you start to internalize it." He looked to Michael, watching his grey optics study the floor. "…Maybe it's time you came home."

"There's nothing left there for me," Michael said.

"See, that's what I'm talking about. You say something like that, but do you really mean it? Because Mari's there. Charlie's there, Jeremy's there, hell, even I'm there sometimes, when I'm not peddling pizzas or breaking and entering," Mike said. Michael gave a humorless huff. "…I'm serious though. I don't think anything good will come out of you sitting there along in that office." Something shifted in his tone and with it did the feeling in the room.

Michael took notice and faced the increased tension head on. "What are you implying?"

"I don't know. You tell me… Or I guess you already did the night we met," Mike said with dead seriousness and a look to match.

It took Michael a minute to figure out what Mike was referencing, but then it came to him, and he absentmindedly rubbed his neck. He could still remember the feel of Mike's fingers reaching through the wires and decay before the whole world went to black. Before what felt like seconds afterwards, he opened his eyes to find himself in that maze. He thought it was purgatory when he first woke up, but he had been mistaken. It was hell.

But he didn't think it was going to sit with Mike for that long. He wondered how long he had worried about it, or if he had worried at all before this very moment. Not that there was anything to worry about. Due to that exact situation, Michael learned the error of his ways. He couldn't relinquish that much control or risk being at the mercy of an unsympathetic world.

"I won't make the same mistake twice," he finally said.

"I'm glad to hear it," Mike said with genuine relief at how smoothly he brushed off the suggestion.

There was a long silence between the two before Michael released a sigh or mimicked doing so. Though it did sound like something deflated inside of him.

"I seldom had thoughts like this before I became stagnant. If idle hands are the devil's workshop, then idle minds are where he writes his soliloquys… Perhaps I just need something more than television in my life."

"It's worth a shot," Mike said encouragingly. "And you know I'll have your back, and so will Ennard and Mari, and Foxy, and the rest."

Michael gave a slightly amused half-chuckle. "And what about Chance? Think you will wear him down enough to get him home?"

"Can't. One, I'm pretty sure he still hates my guts. Two, I can't risk him sleepwalking and eating Mari in the middle of the night. I'd have to gut him open with Charlie and Jeremy watching."

"I forgot about Jeremy and all of his take-ins… It would hardly be fair to them for me to intrude."

He was actually considering it, Mike realized. He doubled down.

"Don't worry about them. This isn't about them or Chance. It's about you," he insisted. His tone gentle and reassuring, but just firm enough to get his point across.

There was another long moment of silence. The two just sitting on the couch alongside one another in the quiet of the living room. The sun shining through the windows in a pleasant way that contrasted the otherwise gloomy conversation. Both had been up for most of the night and were likely feeling the effects. Mike realized in this moment, as he had once or twice before, that he and Michael shared some similarities beyond a name and some of a work history.

"…Why has Mari been asking around about Sammy? Does he think he found him?" Springtrap finally asked. It was clear from the shift in tone that he was trying to change the subject. Mike let it go and considered what he was going to say.

Michael had been honest with him. Even in his current state it only seemed right to return that honesty.

"When Mari faced Will at the lake, Will asked him if he was sure he was his son. After that Mari got in his head that maybe he's really Sammy and that they were swapped at some point. Personally, I think it was a load Will was dumping because that's what he did, but what's got Mari all wrapped up in this idea is the fact that he never found Sammy."

"That's insane…" Springtrap said. He stared distantly for a moment before snapping out of it. "But you're right. It was likely a tactic to get in Marion's head. Or just a cheap shot when he was down. He used to say the same thing to me."

"…That Mari was Sammy?" Mike asked with noticeable surprise.

"No, that Mom must've had an affair, because he was sure I wasn't his son. That I didn't look anything like him, that I didn't inherit any of his features or his intelligence."

"And yet you looked enough like him that you took the fall for him," Mike remarked. He briefly glanced over his suit while the other wasn't looking.

"What can I say? Father was a real class act," Springtrap spat bitterly. He turned his head enough to look at the man beside him. "I think he was trying to imply I was Henry's son. Jokes on him, I loved the idea."

"Ironic considering the only person in that house who would've had an affair with Henry was him," Mike said without really considering it. There was an extremely awkward pause.

"I hope you've never said that to Mari," Springtrap finally said.

"I haven't. I was waiting to get you alone."

"…That was actually pretty good. Tell Ben; don't tell Scott," he said. "…And while you're at it, you can tell them both that I'm spending tonight at your place."

Mike released a deep breath that he felt like he had been holding for ages.

"Consider it done."

Once Charlie finished up her visit with Chance- it lasted for nearly an hour, so Mike and Springtrap eventually turned on the TV for the rest of it- they left Fritz's house, Mike locking the door behind him, and they drove back to the warehouse. Charlie didn't mention if Chance recognized Michael's voice through the floor or thought it was just Gabe out of character. Frankly, Mike wasn't too concerned either way.

Springtrap went into the warehouse alone at his own request. Not to grab anything, he intended to be back in a few days- knowing Marionette would likely hold him hostage for two days at least. Three if he found out about the circumstances with the couch. It was just a vacation, not a true escape from this office. Which was fine by him. Solitude suffocating him or not, this was the closest thing he had to having something of his own.

Taking a look around at the office he had spent the last few months in he decided that, yes, he could handle a few days away. At least it would give him something new to look at. He turned off the television, the fan, the computer, and made sure everything was relatively in place before grabbing his pillow, the notebook off the desk, with a pen stuck in it, and his Handunit. The weight of the last item filling him with a familiar comfort.

He stepped out of the office and briefly acknowledged Candy Cadet. Turning towards him and making his intentions perfectly clear.

"I don't know if you can hear me, but I'm leaving now. I'm going to go spend a few days in my childhood home- of which I have nothing but bad memories- with my brother, his boyfriend, their co-worker, and a dozen or so animatronics who act like children and as far as I know do not require sleep. Pray for me."

With that, he turned and headed to the front of the warehouse. He didn't expect a response. He just assumed he wasn't even listening.

That was, until he was stopped in his tracks by a call from behind.

"Now I will tell you a story…"

Springtrap stopped in place, but that didn't stop the Candy Cadet from continuing into its charade.

"There once was a bird with beautiful feathers. The bird was so beautiful that those who saw it would throw it the best breadcrumbs and give it many praises. That made the bird vain. When it came time for the bird to build a nest, it did not want to jeopardize its feathers by seeking the best twigs and leaves. Instead, it plucked them off the ground and the nest it built was dirty and unsafe. When the eggs hatched, they too were beautiful birds, but it was not long before their feathers were stained by the nest-."

"Give it a rest and just be out with it," Springtrap interrupted with a sigh. He wasn't in the mood for riddles and metaphors, he much preferred some amount of directness.

"Michael."

And there it was, and it was more jarring than he expected. Not just that he had answered but how he had. Candy Cadet very rarely addressed him directly. Or that was, the voice of the one pulling Candy Cadet's strings seldom spoke directly to him. He turned back suddenly to look at the faceless animatronic. The colored lights flashing across its form as though it was preparing to tell a story. Though in this case it seemed much too lucid to do so.

"I am proud of you."

That was even more jarring. Praise was one of those few things that made Springtrap immediately suspicious, but in this case, he assumed there were no ulterior motives. He just let it be what it was, an honest comment.

"I haven't done it yet, but thank you I suppose," Springtrap answered. He paused a long moment for tiredly asking, "Have I really gotten to the point where this is worth being proud of?"

"Every step is worth being proud of," he said, the Candy Cadet still flashing in a rhythm to music that wasn't there. "Do not worry about me. I will be fine."

"Will you be watching me the whole time?" he asked. He tried to make it sound like exasperation, but it was forced.

"Do you want me to?"

"Not until I get my act together," he said, betraying the still lingering self-consciousness. Both at being found out by Mike and Charlie and now knowing that they weren't the only ones who noticed.

Candy Cadet let out a crunchy beep and he took it as a signal of agreeing. He sluggishly turned away and went to continue on before pausing again and turning back around.

"You should know that Marion's looking for Sammy," he said. The Candy Cadet's constant humming momentarily faltered at this.

"…I am aware," the voice quietly conceded. "…I worry about him too. He seems troubled."

"I would be more worried if he wasn't," Springtrap said wearily. "Just giving you a head's up."

In fact, he was positively certain that he already did.

"I'm leaving," Springtrap said.

"Take care of yourself. For once, put yourself first."

"Don't be overdramatic. I'm spending the weekend at my brother's, not entering rehab," Springtrap scoffed. He continued heading out to the door, listening as Candy Cadet started to power down behind him.

Its voices overlapped into one. The dull drone of "Candy. I sell candy. I am the Candy cadet," slowly covering up the final, "Just remember that you are never alone," before both trailed off and the Candy Cadet relaxed its body once more.

The lonesome feeling of the warehouse fell in once more and Springtrap stood there between the shelves. He recovered quickly and made his way to the front door and soon out of it.

No time like the present.

The late lunch had gone well, and Natalie and Ness were now making their way back to the Fazbear Entertainment office building. The windows were rolled down and the mood was quite pleasant, with Ness singing under her breath and tapping her deep blue fingernails on the edge of the window.

"Into the jalopy, gonna go for a ride. To the pizza shop with our fri-ie-iends~," she murmured. No doubt a song from the Pizzaplex's roster considering that while they were at lunch, she mentioned that the office workers frequently had to listen to Pizzaplex music and songs sung by the Glamrocks, using at Wight's request and to ask them their opinions. That alone was almost enough to make the nightshift seem desirable.

They pulled up into the parking lot. Natalie glanced at Ness in time to see a disappointed look pass her face, but it disappeared quickly. She started rolling up the window and pulled rainbow macramé bag off the floorspace and into her lap. She was preparing to go, and Natalie probably didn't need to walk her in, so this was where they would say goodbye for now.

"I had a really good time! We've got to do this again, maybe this weekend? I mean, we obviously won't be doing our nails again that fast, but we could do lunch again- or get our hair done! Just, uh, somewhere that's not the Pizzaplex. Their salon prices are crazy. Probably making up for all the money spent on gas! Or whatever the go-karts run on. I haven't really asked," Ness said. Natalie could tell she was getting nervous by how she was starting to ramble.

"Sounds great, but maybe we shouldn't try to do our own hair?" she suggested teasingly. Ness got a lopsided smile and readily agreed. "You know, you could probably stay over at Freddy's with me some night. You're an employee so it shouldn't be a big deal, and you could get a good look at the place when it's not swamped by people. What do you say?"

It was almost comical how quickly Ness froze up at the suggestion. The smile came back but now it was tinged with a nervousness, as with the slight fumbling of her words.

"Oh, I don't know about that. I think that might be pushing it a little. With management, I meant. I'm down for a sleepover pretty much anywhere else. Some nights we almost have 'em in here," she said, pointing a thumb back at the office building. "Besides, I hear the animatronics get a little quirky at night," she added.

"No, really? Who said that?" Natalie asked jokingly.

"Chaz. He says it a lot," Ness said equally playfully.

While Natalie was left wondering what exactly this 'special voice' was, Ness gave a little wave and started to head towards the door. "See you around!" she called. She had a bounce to her step as she pulled open the door and headed inside.

Natalie waved back before turning to drive off. She was still smiling but it started to fall by time she was pulling out of the parking lot. It was replaced with a pensive frown once she was out on the highway.

She had agreed to the impromptu day out despite the fact that she had been starting to suspect that Ness was the woman in the rabbit suit. There wasn't much evidence for this suspicion, just a paranoid feeling that made it hard to trust anyone. Especially someone who worked in Freddy's and knew a little too much about her current situation. It was nothing but a thought, a concern, but enough to have her digging through her closet. In hindsight, not her brightest hour.

All today had proven was that Ness was a sweet but awkward person who had trouble speaking up for herself. That should've reassured Natalie that her suspicions were unfounded.

Yet all that it had done was cemented them. Now that she was alone, she could put all the puzzle pieces together and the picture was becoming even more clear.

Ness said herself that she felt trapped in her job, that she couldn't leave, and it seemed like the only person she regularly talked to she couldn't open up to. It was also possible that she was hiding all of this from her partner.

Ness also did not like the changes implemented to the Pizzaplex and how different it was to the traditional Freddy's. She also knew a lot about the old Freddy's, which meant it was likely that she was aware of the kidnapper in a rabbit suit.

Perhaps this whole rabbit woman charade was an homage to that. Not in the way of a copycat, but perhaps an elaborate ruse for some other reason. Perhaps an effort to sabotage Freddy's. It would explain why the rabbit woman just kept popping up, trying to scare her, and then disappeared. Maybe she was baiting Natalie to write a report on her, maybe that would get her feelings across when words didn't do so.

It would also explain how startled she had gotten when that taser had been thrust towards her. Ness definitely didn't seem like the type to be handle that amount of confrontation. It was one thing pretending under the safety of a full-body suit, it was another altogether to be threatened with a weapon. Natalie didn't necessarily think that was the wrong choice considering the situation, but this was maybe shedding a new light on the incident.

If this was true, this changed everything. Though she couldn't be sure. She thought the woman in the rabbit suit was a little taller than Ness, though it was hard to tell with the round bunny head. Maybe it was worth checking the security footage the next time she showed up to get a closer eye on the situation. Body language could out Ness instantly in the right circumstances.

She didn't know. All she knew was that she wanted to get home and spend what time with Fritz she could get before she had to head to the Pizzaplex. Decompressing with a little cooking sounded like a good idea, and she wanted to make sure Fritz was eating something other than pizza tonight. Even if she probably wasn't going to eat much after such a late lunch.

For now, Natalie could only wait… and see if Ness would take her up on her offer.

By time Mike had gotten home he was feeling worn out. Maybe even as worn out as if he had gone to work, considering that he got home after the Pizzeria had closed. He hadn't expected Marionette and Jeremy to be home yet, but when he saw the latter's car in the driveway, he naturally assumed they had probably just cleaned up quickly and came home. It made sense; while to a lesser extent, Jeremy had also been out all night.

If Springtrap was getting nervous by time they pulled up, then he didn't show it. Instead, he was slinked down, briefly peering out the window to make sure nobody was watching from outside. Somehow, the return of his paranoia was assuring.

It didn't take too long to get both him and Charlie into the house. Though the reactions they received were widely different. Jeremy's little orphans were all confined amongst the living room and Daisy, the would-be leader, popped up to eagerly greet Charlie with a little dance and giggle. Jeremy was in the kitchen trying to open a family sized box of microwaveable chicken parmesan.

Then in walked Springtrap and the room got eerily silent. He was used to this reaction, including the eyes peeking over the back of the couch. He pretended to not notice Balloon Boy's unblinking stare.

"Hey, Michael! I didn't know you were coming by," Jeremy greeted, unphased. Much more phased by the fact that he was having so much trouble with the box. "How's it going?"

"It goes until it stops," Springtrap replied.

"Most things do, like work," Jeremy agreed. He turned his attention to Mike who was hanging up his jacket. "Mari was feeling tired, so he went to lay down."

"Kids wore him out?" Mike asked. The blond nodded with a sympathetic smile, having witnessed it firsthand. "I'll go check on him." He looked to Springtrap who nodded in agreement.

"Want some of this?" Jeremy flashed him the now open box.

"Sure, thanks. Just leave it in the microwave for me." He then headed down the hall towards the master bedroom.

With him gone, Springtrap felt significantly more out of place. Not that he had issues with Jeremy or that Charlie wasn't company enough, but between the staring and being back in this house, he felt more uncomfortable than usual. Which was saying a lot considering that just looking at himself in the mirror felt like an out of body experience. Looking at the familiar dining room table and kitchen flooring he longed for the ceiling of the office to stare at instead.

He scrambled for any subject of conversation. "How was Gabe?"

"On the phone with Freddy all night," Jeremy said. His voice broken up by the beeps of the microwave buttons.

"…We all do realize that might be a problem, right?" Springtrap asked. He looked between him and Charlie. "Gabe getting a little too close to Freddy. That could come back to haunt us."

"Oh yeah, but Freddy's not what I'm worried about," Jeremy said with slight worry slipping past his nonchalance. "I'm way more worried about that gator guy. You know Foxy; if someone punches first then he's doing everything in his power to make sure he's punching last… And with that hook, he's taking out an eye, and then we're looking at a lawsuit."

"I'm sure that alligator has appropriate legal representation," Springtrap said flatly. Charlie gave him a slight look.

"Freddy's alright. He had our back last night when we needed him. He's just a little…" She made a fluttery motion with her hand beside her head. "Out there."

"Freddy regularly tours the galaxy," Jeremy chimed in.

"Ah. Sounds pleasant," Springtrap remarked.

Before he could say anything more, he felt a tapping on his leg and looked down. What stood beside him was what looked like it could've been his own little doppelganger with how beat up it was and being that it was a yellowed little rabbit. He remembered someone mentioning Plushtrap so he knew what it was, but just looking at it he recognized it as one of those little Bonnie dolls with the chattering jaws and kicking feet who were advertised to walk on their own.

Unlike the ones he had seen though, this one managed to stay up on its feet. Its little mouth chattered as it looked up at him, its hands clasping together beneath its jaw. It looked so in awe of him. Likely not a victim of this suit, it innocently just assumed they were the same model, or perhaps that he was just a bigger version, or hopefully wasn't confused enough to think that he was its father.

It was a little endearing. Only held back by its appearance, though Springtrap didn't have any grounds in that department. He leaned down, ignoring the crusty squeak in his springlocks, and reached down to pat the little rabbit on the head, treating it like the child it once was. Plushtrap was so excited that his whole body seemed to vibrate in place- from his clamping jaw, of course- and he proceeded to plant himself right beside Springtrap for the rest of the night.

Meanwhile, Mike quietly let himself into the bedroom. The lights were off but the light from the opened door illuminated the room enough to see Marionette laying on the bed. He laid atop the covers with his face turned into the pillows and his arm hooked around his large Freddy plush, which was currently taking up Mike's side of the bed. The music box lay open at the foot of the bed, playing its soft melody.

He smiled at the sight and stepped into the room, quietly shutting the door behind him, and kicking off his shoes. He could still somewhat see from the soft light coming through the curtained windows and used that to make his way around the foot of the bed. He got on the bed on the other side, atop the comforter too, and laid down behind him. He wrapped his arms around the soft, slender body and pulled him to his chest.

Marionette made a pleasant trill in his sleep and squeezed the bear tighter.

"Very cute," Mike thought with a smile. The children must've worn him out today if he hadn't already been worn out after the night before. He needed as much rest as he could get.

While he could get it, Mike begrudgingly realized. He exhaled deeply and relaxed. The cool, dark room and the soft, familiar lullaby were all so soothing. He could've fallen asleep right then under normal circumstances. If his mind wasn't so full.

"What am I even going to tell him? 'Hey, Stripes! Guess what? Your brother hates his life and won't leave his couch. Oh, and the Moon? Yeah, he can hypnotize other animatronics and already tried it on Charlie.' A double whammy. He might break a comb from stress if he doesn't just overheat and catch fire on the spot."

Usually, cynical thoughts like that were just exaggerations to ease the tension. In this case just thinking about those possibilities was stressing him out. Both just sounded a little too likely. Mike hugged Marionette closer and pressed a kiss to his neck. The puppet shifted a little bit and chimed. If not for the music box, he would've probably been awake by now. Mike took the opportunity to steal another quick kiss.

"I'll just break it to him carefully… Maybe not both at the same time either. I'll just tell him that Michael needs some time away from the warehouse. Mari's intuitive enough to pick up the rest without me having to spell it out. It spares me having to break Michael's trust too," Mike thought. "Maybe Charlie can help me break the news about the Moon to him… Maybe not tonight. We'll aim for tomorrow."

Probably for the best considering how comfortable the bed felt. He wasn't even sure if it was worth getting back up to eat dinner honestly. It would probably stay fine. It had to take more than one night to get food poisoning worthy.

As relaxed and comfortable as Mike was, he didn't fall asleep. He was still awake but finally managed to quiet the thoughts enough to settle into a comfortable lull. Everything was where it should be, and he felt separated from it all.

Eventually the music box started to wind down. He considered just letting it run out without winding it back up but decided it wasn't worth the risk of waking Marionette just because he felt lazy. So, he carefully pulled his arms back from the puppet and climbed down the bed to sit on the foot. By now the box had fallen silent and he pulled it into his lap and began to wind it up, trying to be as quiet as possible. One crank, two cranks, three…

He felt a soft shift on the bed behind him and a pair of arms looped around his middle. Mike smiled and watched one of the clever black hands shut the music back and push it aside. He set it aside on the foot before being pulled back on the bed, following along until he was back up at the pillows and enwrapped by his puppet companion. He found himself taking the place of the bear who had taken his place, much to his amusement.

Striped legs hooked around his own as white buttons pressed against his chest. Marionette had a brilliant smile as he wrapped one arm around Mike's back while the other hook upwards so he could pet his messy hair. He stole a chaste kiss and drew back with a playful smile and waited expectantly. Mike's smile tugged slyly and he leaned in. He cradled the back of Marionette's neck with his hand and pulled them together for a longer union.

There went any concern of having Marionette wake up and having to jump immediately into a conversation about everything. In fact, there went any concern or care about anything that wasn't currently in his arms. Something about ethereal porcelain did that to him. He ran a hand along Marionette's back and reveled in how the soft fabric made his palm tingle. He then pressed his hand flat against the fabric to feel the thrumming of the music box inside.

For a while they stayed like that, stealing small kisses in the dark. Miles away from anyone else including those only a few feet down the hall. It could've lasted forever and Mike wouldn't have complained.

Eventually the kisses slowed and the two cuddled up together.

"How was your day?" Mike asked. From Marionette's especially lovey-dovey behavior he guessed it had been a good one.

"Wonderful. Yours, Love?"

Well, that was a loaded question.

"Long," Mike said. The Puppet gave him an apologetic hum and continued playing with his hair. Mike sighed at the sensation in his scalp. "But we got stuff done. Brought everyone outside of Foxy's up to speed; we stopped in to see Michael and he came with us to Scott's, ran into Carlton, got to see the pictures he took- got a cute one of you, by the way- stopped at Fritz's, let Charlie break the news to Chance, and came home."

"That sounds like a very productive day," Marionette complimented.

"Yeah," Mike agreed. "…" He readjusted his arms to pull him in a little more securely. "Michael was a little down."

"He was?" So quickly that relaxed tone softened into concern.

"A little. So, he came home with us. He's probably out there wrestling the remote out of Max's hand right now."

"You got him to come home with you? That's great!" Marionette chimed excitedly. Relief flooded his voice and he shifted to lace his fingers together behind Mike's back, fully listening. "How long do you think he's staying?"

"Until we wake up one morning to find he's snuck out the window," Mike cracked. Also relieved, but for different reason. He could give him rest of the details later.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that. I'll keep a VERY close eye," Marionette said in a mock-sinister tone. The lights in his eyes flickering to punctuate the point.

Mike was aghast. "But- But Mari, you're supposed to keep your eye on me. What if I get into trouble?"

Marionette's laugh mixed melodically with his trilling before he sent a playful little retort, "You are trouble."

Mike clicked his tongue and winked, immediately drawing out another laugh. He couldn't help himself; he leaned in and kissed the 'chin' of Marionette's mask even while he was still trembling.

"I love you," he said against fabric and porcelain.

The delighted trilling lowered into a warm mechanical purr.

"I love you too," Marionette returned. "…Do you think Michael will mind if we stay back here for a while?"

"I think he'll be okay," Mike assured. Though he wasn't sure, he doubted a short nap- or perhaps a full night's sleep if they didn't get up at all- would be a problem. Though that could've just been his subconscious convincing him to stay right where he was, comfortable and totally preoccupied.

They could talk later, they mutually decided as they fell back into a comfortable silence. For now, they just needed each other.

Chapter End Notes

Mable: They finally got up at two in the morning so Mari could watch Mike eat a piece of microwaved chicken.

Chapter 37

Chapter Summary

Foxy and Freddy's night is thrown through a few loops with the addition of a new nighttime protocol and an unexpected appearance...

Chapter Notes

Huzzah, on time again! 8D Maybe it'll stick for good! Enjoy!

Foxy grumbled to himself as he crawled through the vent. He should've just taken his head off and slipped it back on once through the tight shaft, but he expected that Freddy would be waiting for him nearby and didn't want him to see him putting his head back on. It ruined the image. At least when his hoodie had been yanked off, he hadn't seen him with his head yet. He hadn't made those worried hints about Foxy going to Parts and Service yet either.

So, he would deal with it, and he pushed through the last stretch of the vent and around the corner. He was glad to see that the vent cover was off, both because it would be easier to get out and because it confirmed that he made the right decision leaving the head on. Sure enough, a familiar face peeked in at the end of the vent.

"Good evening, Captain, and welcome to the Pizzaplex!" Freddy greeted friendlily. He pulled back and stepped away so that Foxy could climb out. "I hope you are prepared for a night of high-speed action, crazy cool games, and plenty of hot and fresh pizza! It is going to be out of this world!"

That sounded like it came directly out of an ad. Not that Foxy could say anything when he was fluent in 'Kiddie Pizzeria Pirate' and spoke it regularly.

"Ya bet yer bowtie I be! Question is, are ya prepared to fight fer yer title as champ o' Fazer Blast?" he asked cockily, only reinforcing his decision to not remark on Freddy's advertisement laced speech.

Freddy chuckled warmly and deeply. "I am hardly the Fazer Blast champ! I have not formally won any tournaments or championships, as the name would imply. I am simply built for and programmed to be excellent at the game."

"How very humble of ya, Freddy," Foxy said sarcastically.

"I am quite good," Freddy said more overtly confidently. "…But I have not been able to practice in days. The technicians have advised me to not put any unneeded strain on my power supply, and unfortunately Fazer Blast is one of the many activities they recommended again," he continued, face falling quite a bit. "I am still not sure if I have been cleared to-."

"That's great ta hear! Makes it easier fer me to win," Foxy cut in. Freddy's somber look jumped to surprise, and the fox nudged him in the arm. "Don't overthink it. Ye knew yer body better than a bunch 'o technicians. Less that 'built fer the game' spiel was a lotta talk," he goaded, trying to rile the bear up.

Freddy started to look like he was considering it.

"I was… And I do feel like I am no longer malfunctioning…" Freddy said thoughtfully. He looked at the floor for a moment then back up to Foxy, who popped up his patch long enough to send him a questioning, challenging look with his eyes. That was what seemed to do it and Freddy seemed to smile again as he nodded. "You are right! I am at full charge, and I did not have any issues today during service. Why not try and see how it goes?"

"Atta boy, Mate!" Foxy praised. He gave him a hardy and unintentionally loud smack on the arm.

"And if I do have a malfunction and collapse, the Pizzaplex is not open, so nobody will see me!" Freddy continued. That actually got Foxy to hesitate. Then he slowly patted his arm.

"Eh, always the optimist," he said.

"Thank you!" Freddy said. "Well then, shall we head to Fazer Blast first?"

"Aye. Lead the way!"

They headed to Fazer Blast and soon were in the arena. For the first game, Freddy was playing rather cautiously, making sure not to make too many sudden movements or running for too long. No doubt this was what led to him losing that game, as Foxy didn't hold any punches. This was also likely what convinced Freddy to play a little harder in the second game. Much to his relief, he felt fine. Much to Foxy's relief, he didn't fall over and shut down midway through.

After the third game, they came out to take a break at the arcade cabinets. It was then that Freddy said something that should've tipped Foxy off but at the time didn't, "I am sure we can get in one more game."

Now, when they had first come out of Fazer Blast and went to the corner arcade, Freddy had jokingly talked about Foxy getting the 'Deluxe Superstar VIP Package' and it coming with free plays of the 'hottest games this side of the sun!' So, when Freddy mentioned 'one more game', he just assumed that he was implying that they could fit in one more game before they moved onto the next part of the agenda.

Which was fine by Foxy, because at that point the score was one to two and he wasn't sure if he could tie up the score with how Freddy was playing. Apparently, all those days being barred from Fazer Blast really pent up.

"What're we in for now?" he asked as they left Fazer Blast.

"Captain, before we continue, there is a reason we had to stop Fazer Blast early," Freddy explained. He stopped beside the Fazer Blast desk and turned towards Foxy who followed suit. "Starting tonight there will be new nighttime protocols throughout the Pizzaplex."

"Uh huh." Foxy already didn't like the sound of that. "Such as?"

"Every hour on the hour- well, not quite on the hour. A few minutes before the hour but still every hour- the Pizzaplex will reroute all power to the charging stations. I am required to go to the charging stations at that time, but the lights will be off and many of the amenities and facilities will shut down."

"I see. How long's that last?" Foxy asked.

"Not long! It only lasts for five minutes. It is much shorter than our usual charging cycles," Freddy explained. "But we are getting close to time, and I am not sure if we will be able to make it back to my room. There is a charging station on the second floor of the atrium, so would you like to stay here in the Fazer Blast lobby while I recharge? Or perhaps somewhere else nearby?"

"Eh…" Foxy thought about his limited options. It was only five minutes, but he didn't exactly want to stand in here the whole time. He walked towards the entrance with Freddy in tow, considering his options. He finally made his decision when it became apparent that there weren't many places he would be able to reach. "I'll just go bum over in Kid's Cove fer a while."

"An excellent choice! I wonder if the campfire will stay on when the power goes out. That would look very authentic," Freddy suggested. He continued to follow Foxy like a puppy. "And please, do not worry. My bandmates will also be charging and will not be searching for you."

"Good. Me night vision's fine, but I don't feel like breaking me face runnin' into a dead door," the pirate scoffed.

As cool with it as Foxy tried to sound, the idea of power getting shut off to the entire building made him wary. He didn't know how these animatronics would react to the dark, if they would become even more of a problem the second the lights went out. He knew at least one of them reacted to it, which didn't bode well for the situation. Just because Freddy said they were supposed to charge didn't mean that they would.

If he would've known this was going on he might've been a little more reluctant to swing by and he wondered if that was why Freddy waited until now to tell him.

"Perhaps it won't feel as long if you think of it as three hundred seconds instead of five minutes… Hmm… Perhaps that makes it sound longer…"

Foxy chuckled a little and decided then that Freddy probably didn't plan this. Just like all the other strange things in the Pizzaplex, he just probably took assurances that it was what they were supposed to do with full acceptance. He was a little too trusting and a bit too naïve, whereas Foxy suspected everything. He couldn't help but wonder what this hourly power dispersal was actually for.

They arrived at Kid's Cove quickly and found the place relatively the same as the last time he saw it, save that some of the pillows were moved around and that there were some toys scattered here and there.

"Here we are, Captain! I will be charging in the station on the second floor of the atrium in case of an emergency."

"The Rule Four closet, eh?" Foxy asked sly.

"That one exactly!"

"…The bloody 'ell is that?" Foxy asked, pointing a finger towards the doors leading into the daycare. They were now covered in a makeshift banner with the words "Banned!" written in thick yellow and red crayon, along with a small frown.

"Hmm… Now that is odd. It seems that Sunny has banned someone from coming inside," Freddy said. He sounded just as surprised.

There was a soft sound from nearby that Foxy only barely picked up. A sound that he was somehow able to instantly place as someone stepping on an empty bag of chips- probably through experience. He snapped his head towards the ship.

"Could- Could he have banned me? Because of last night?!" Freddy said in aghast. "That would be awful! I have to perform at birthday parties in there!"

"Keep yer voice down! We ain't alone…" Foxy warned in a harsh whisper. The bear's mouth shut tight, and he snapped his head up to scan the walkways above them before looking back at the pirate. Only then seeing what he was looking at, which would be the large pirate ship off to the side.

"…What should we do, Captain?" Freddy asked quietly.

"Go stand by that door. Act all casual-like," Foxy instructed. He pointed at the security door they came in.

While Freddy was becoming increasingly aware of the time, and wasn't sure if this was a good idea, he went along with it.

Foxy, meanwhile, began to slink around the other side of the ship. He kept his movements slow and his footsteps as quiet as he could. A first glance behind the ship showed that nothing was there, but there were plenty of hiding spots, including a large opening in the back of the pirate ship. There was a small space inside that was almost like a crawlspace and definitely didn't look on purpose.

There were some foam cushions, a blanket, some trash, and toys stashed inside, but nothing else. He pulled back and started to turn to the left-

That's when he saw it. It was very quick and very subtle, and it disappeared into his blind spot right afterwards. Something hiding amongst the props in the back corner behind the pirate ship. He didn't show any reaction because the moment he saw it he knew what it was, and he had to play it cool.

"There ain't nothin' back here!" Foxy called, though not too loudly. He began to walk around the ship- in the direction of the corner- looking around like he was searching but keeping that one section hidden behind his patch.

"Perhaps you were mistaken?" Freddy called back.

Normally Foxy would scoff at the thought, but in this case- "Aye. Must've been."

He edged closer to the end of the ship and beside the props, comprised of fake tentacles and cushions with fish decals on them. He moved slowly like he was still searching, but not slow enough to tip off what he was preparing to do.

He started to walk on past.

Then abruptly turned and reached into his blind spot and behind the props and snared his target dead-on. He fished him out from behind the props and hoisted him up under the arms, squirming and kicking. It was a child.

And from the description and the way he was actively trying to kick him, Foxy had a feeling he knew who this child was.

"We've got a live one!" he called. In seconds Freddy hurried back to them and was surprised to see who Foxy was currently holding out at arm's length.

"Gregory!" he gasped. He came forward with his arms out to take him. "Foxy, it is alright. That is Gregory, the boy I told you about who was locked in the Pizzaplex by mistake."

"Figures," Foxy remarked as he studied the kid. He noticed that his hair was unwashed, and he had a sizeable bruise on his knee before passing him over. Gregory sent the pirate a defiant look as Freddy set him down on his feet again.

"Gregory, what in the world are you doing here?... Were you locked in again?" Freddy asked. During which he knelt down in front of Gregory and laid a hand on his shoulder, and in that moment that defiance was replaced by the look one would get in a police lineup. But Freddy was not demanding or scolding, he was just concerned.

"I… I came to see you… but then I started playing with some kids and I got tired and fell asleep, and when I woke up the whole place was closed. Guess I'm stuck here for the night," Gregory said with a shrug. Foxy found it unconvincing, but Freddy seemed to believe it.

"That is quite unfortunate. And quite surprising! That this could happen twice in a matter of days…" Freddy hummed with disappointment. He didn't notice, but Gregory's shoulders started to slightly fall. "…But it is good to see you again," the bear continued, his voice regaining its warmth. Then brightened up further, "And this time we know a quick way to get you out of the Pizzaplex! We can head down to the Loading Docks after I recharge."

"Uh… Actually, we can't. My mom's got a new job and she doesn't get home until morning, so she can't pick me up until then," Gregory explained.

"That is problematic…"

"Can I just hang out with you until six?" the child asked cautiously. Gregory's voice then gained a bit more confidence, "Or I could just hang out here. I'm not a baby, I don't need to be babysat."

"It is not standard procedure, but perhaps we can make an exception for tonight. It will be just like a slumber party!" Freddy agreed. A little quickly too, as noted by Foxy's ears twitching with alert.

"Freddy," he murmured.

"Hmm? Oh! Forgive me. Gregory, this is Captain Foxy of Foxy's Pirate's Cove!" Freddy introduced. Gesturing the hand that wasn't on Gregory's shoulder towards Foxy. Foxy gave a salute with his hook.

"Wait, you're Foxy?" Gregory asked in confusion. "Don't you have a pizzeria too or something?"

"That'd be right, Lad. Foxy's Pirate's Cove: a scallywag's hideaway fer plundering pizza, prizes, and plenty 'o boot- plenty 'o treasure!" Foxy answered.

"So, you're a pirate," Gregory clarified.

"That be correct, Bucko!" Foxy said with a swipe of his hook and a wink. It was hard not putting it on for the children.

"Then why are you dressed like that?"

Never mind. It would be significantly easier now.

"Wait… Are those trash bags on your feet?"

"Eh, belay that!" the fox swiftly interrupted. "This just be a disguise, so Blondie don't spot me. Bein' a rival of Freddy's, we could get in a lot of trouble iff'n we got caught schemin' together. 'Sides, I ain't scuffin' up me boots in the vents."

"And speaking of which- Gregory, I like your new shoes!" Freddy complimented.

The talk of trash bags reminded him of the beat-up sneakers Gregory had left behind and then drew his attention down to the ones he was currently wearing. He was delighted to see that they were a brand-new pair of white and red sneakers.

He recognized them immediately as being one of the Freddy Fazbear licensed shoes sold in the Pizzaplex, which was exactly why he then playfully asked, "Where on earth did you get them?"

"…Uhh… Here! I got 'em for free because I lost my old ones," Gregory explained.

"I see. Well, you have an excellent taste in footwear. Unless you were not able to choose, in which case you were very lucky to get these ones. They are very cool," Freddy said with a wink.

"Freddy," Foxy tried again. This time a little more firmly.

"Yes, Foxy?"

The lights suddenly shut off. Throughout the atrium there was the slowing hum of everything shutting down as they were deprived of electricity.

"Oh, right. That."

The lights in Freddy's eyes clicked on to see Gregory's startled look and Foxy's entirely unamused and unimpressed one.

"What just happened?!" Gregory cried.

"The power went out," Freddy said simply.

"It did? Blimey, I didn't even notice," Foxy remarked. He gestured his head down at the boy. "Tell the lad."

"You see, Gregory, the Pizzaplex is going through its new nighttime protocols. During this time the power in the Pizzaplex is rerouted to the charging stations. It will only last a few minutes, but I will need to head to a station. I will return shortly, I promise. Foxy will watch you until I return."

Foxy stared at the bear blankly through the darkness. He didn't remember volunteering for that, but then again, he supposed it was better than letting the kid run around alone in the dark. Watching kids was pretty much his career simplified.

"Aye," he agreed. Gregory looked back at him, now with a look much more wary than anything else.

"Okay?" the boy said uncertainly.

"Great! I will return shortly," Freddy said. Then he began to hustle to the security door. It did not open automatically, but it wasn't locked so he was able to lift it and slip underneath.

That left Foxy and Gregory standing awkwardly in complete silence.

The pirate side and gestured for him to follow, "Come along, Lad. We'll sit by the fire." He put his hand on his shoulder to lead him. Gregory tensed up but didn't yet pull away, likely because Foxy had yet to do anything worth worrying about.

"Don't you have glowing eyes like Freddy?" he asked.

"Nah, takes too much power," Foxy said. Better than saying he was an older model, he supposed. "Watch yer step. Bench's right in front of ye."

Gregory felt it out and sat down and Foxy followed suit on the other side.

"So, yer Gregory. Freddy's told me 'bout yer lil prison escape the other night," Foxy began. He leaned forward with his arms resting on his legs, leaning towards the fake fire that wasn't even glowing and thus gave none of the effect.

"Really?... How many people did he tell?" Gregory asked. His look said it all and Foxy could mostly make it out in the lowlight.

"Only the ones who ain't gonna say nothin'. We don't work fer this Pizz-o-plex," he assured. "…And I know yer thinkin' it and no, I ain't gonna turn you into Blondie. I'm hiding from her too."

There was a paused for a short while.

"Sooo, if you don't work here, how'd you get here?" Gregory asked.

"I ran," Foxy answered.

Gregory looked unimpressed. "No, you didn't."

"Swear on me ship. The night me and Freddy met, I hiked all's the way down the highway and broke in through one of them vent. Best security system money could buy; couldn't keep out a pirate," Foxy said proudly.

"You broke in?" the boy asked in surprise. "Why?"

"To make a statement!" Foxy boldly proclaimed. He thrust a hook in the air, but then quickly slumped back into his previous position. "Only got through one can 'o spray paint 'fore Freddy caught me."

"You spray paint? Cool!" Gregory said with more excitement than he intended. He quickly recovered and added, "Don't tell Freddy I said that."

"No sweat. If he finds out I've been bragging to ya, he'll get on me about being a bad influence," Foxy waved off. Then after a moment to consider, promptly leaned forward and slyly added. "I tagged all up and down Rockstar Row."

As luck would have it right when Foxy was starting to enjoy himself, he heard footsteps. He straightened his back abruptly and looked around, soon looking up at the wall above the security doors into the daycare. Someone was walking around past those decorated panels.

"Someone's walking around up there…" Foxy warned. Gregory didn't need to be told twice. He even stood up as though prepared to run in the pitch dark.

Which turned out to be a good idea when there was a bumping on the other side of a doorway located at the top of the lighthouse. Foxy popped off his seat and made a run for it, snatching up Gregory as he passed and making a run for the pirate ship. The boy giving a quiet, "Hey!" before going along with it and only pushing Foxy off once they were safe. Foxy ignored his frustrated huff and kept his eyes on the lighthouse, patch raised to see.

A figure immerged from the doorway bathed in blue. From the white glow of the face to the blue arms and starry pants, Gregory not only could see him too, but he recognized him immediately as the Moon. Foxy may have not seen him before, but he recognized him from the descriptions he had been given and what he had made from the random posters around.

Moon circled around the top of the lighthouse before throwing himself down the slide headfirst. They could hear him sliding down before he rolled out and to his feet at the bottom. He stalked over to the opposite corner of Kids Cove where there were a mound of fake stones, looking around but not seeing Foxy and Gregory ducking behind the ship, and then hastily climbed up them. From there he hopped up, grabbing the edge of the railing above, and pulled himself up and over.

Foxy listened closely to the animatronic's ticking as it faded off somewhere into the atrium. At least that constant noise was a dead giveaway if he started slinking back in this direction.

"I think we're in the clear," Foxy said. He kept his voice low just in case.

"That's Moondrop. Or I think that's his name. When the lights go off, the Sun guy turns into him," Gregory explained.

"That's one creepy bot, I tell ye."

"Yeah…" Gregory then got a cheeky little smile and thrust a thumb to his chest proudly. "I'm the one who got banned from the daycare."

"What'd ya do, pants him?"

"No, but I should've! He chased me all over the place!"

Foxy chuckled and nudged Gregory's shoulder to lead him back to the sitting area. "Well, he ain't our problem now. Lights should be on soon, so let's settle in an' wait fer Freddy."

They sat back down at the fire like they had before. Now a little antsier and quieter than before, listening closely for if anything else would come up. They didn't have to wait long before something did, as the lights booted back up a few minutes later shortly afterwards they could hear Freddy's thumping footsteps. Gregory eagerly stood and waited, and shortly afterwards the security door lifted to reveal, as expected, Freddy on the other side.

"All done! Now that was not so bad, was it?" he said with a smile.

"Uh, YES! Moondrop showed up!" Gregory exclaimed. He ran up to Freddy and started to reach for his hatch. "Let me in." Freddy, surprised, stuck out a hand to stop him.

"Stay back," he warned. Only once the boy's arms dropped to his sides did he open his stomach hatch. "There you go! I would not want you to get your fingers pinched."

"Thanks," Gregory said grumpily. He then started to climb up into him with Freddy's assistance.

Foxy had been doing the noble and paranoid thing of taking a quick look around as he got up, fixing his hoodie, and then looking over just in time to see Gregory halfway into Freddy's stomach, and if he had a heart it would've stopped.

The panic of seeing Freddy willingly leading a child into a stomach hatch could do that. It suddenly reminded Foxy, quite forcefully, that Freddy looked a lot more like an Afton built machine than a traditional Freddy's one. It was horrifying.

"Can I have some of these chips?" Gregory asked, holding up a bag from inside the hatch.

"You can have all of those chips!" Freddy encouraged.

"Freddy…" Foxy said lowly. His accent slipping as he continued staring. "What are you doing?"

"I will be transporting Gregory inside of my stomach hatch just in case Moon- err, or perhaps Sun, is still in the area. It is against regulations of course, but I will be extra careful. He is precious cargo!"

"Are you sure that's safe?" Foxy asked. His voice distant and his stare unblinking.

"Well… I am not entirely sure..." Freddy said hesitantly. He was starting to second-guess his decision, noticing exactly how Foxy was eyeing him. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"It's okay. I had to ride around in him a lot the last time I was here," Gregory said, quick to defend the bear. "So don't worry about me, I'm fine."

He wasn't sure if it was Gregory's assurances or Freddy calling him out, but Foxy managed to snap himself back into character. Freddy had done it last time and it had gone fine- horrifying but assuring.

"Err, sorry, Mate. Just threw me for a loop. Though he'd be gettin' crunched up in there," Foxy quickly excused.

"I understand. If these were any other circumstances, I would never allow a child inside of me. I will be very careful," Freddy reassured. Foxy got the direct impression that the bear didn't get any of the implications and just thought he was upset because he broke the rules. That was a different kind of concerning and would have to wait as Freddy perked up. "Now then, Captain, Superstar, are you two ready to go?"

"Sure. Where are we going?" Gregory asked. The stomach hatch closed and sealed him inside.

"Well, that depends. Captain Foxy is steering this ship tonight," Freddy said. He looked to Foxy. "Captain, if I may make a suggestion, I recommend a journey to the nearest arcade followed by a stop-in at the kitchen for a complementary pizza."

"Aye, sounds like a plan, Privateer Freddy. Let's draw anchor and set sail! I have a feelin' we be in fer a long night," Foxy agreed. Then followed alongside Freddy as he led the way, trying his hardest to shake the uneasy feeling.

It was weird how something so simple could remind him that he barely knew Freddy. He would keep an eye out, while hoping he didn't have to.

Considering the sheer size of the Pizzaplex, it was no surprise that the pizzas would be made on an assembly line. Not a literal one, at least not in this kitchen, but in a systematic fashion that restrained on quality to make up with quantity. Many of the pizzas were frozen, but for a pricier charge- such as when catering a birthday party or under specific request- the pizzas were actually made fresh down in the kitchen on the lower floor.

These pizzas were, in theory, supposed to be made by Staff Bots. In fact, recently more of the Pizza Bots had been brought into working order and were connected with the Staff Bot Intelligence Web to follow paths to any location in the Pizzaplex to deliver. While these systems were still not up to snuff, in theory they would be a monumental jump in entertainment and service technology as they knew it.

At least, this was what Freddy recited when he led Foxy and Gregory down into said kitchen. Though when it came time to make the pizza, Freddy had his own plan.

"Keep pressing down and slowly roll it out… Good! Keep going, applying the same pressure… Perfect! Now let's smooth it out with a few more rolls."

Gregory did as instructed and rolled the rolling pin over the pre-sized ball of dough until it rolled out into a reasonably neat circle. It was probably the first time this kitchen had witnessed anyone rolling out dough the old-fashioned way, on a counter, with a rolling pin that was likely seldom used. Gregory frowned at its unevenness, especially it ending up uneven while Freddy was watching so closely. Though he was the only one so critical.

"Good job, Superstar! That is an excellent crust!" Freddy complimented. "Now it is time to head to: the Sauce Station."

Gregory couldn't help but smile at Freddy's grandiose tone. The two moved the flattened dough carefully onto a circular pan and Gregory carried it as Freddy led him to the saucing station towards the front corner of the kitchen.

They passed by Foxy in the process, who was currently busy raiding the cabinets. Alas, all he was finding were boxes of plastic utensils, stacks of party plates, and some replacement equipment for the kitchen appliances. Very little foodstuff.

"Bah! Nothin'!" Foxy grumbled. He moved to the next cabinet and yanked it open. His ears lifted with interest. "Oh ho? What be this then?"

Gregory didn't get to see what it was before he was out of eyeshot. He found himself led before what almost looked like a drink machine except wider and advertising pizza sauce. A sauce dispensing machine.

"It is time to sauce the pizza! What kind of sauce would you like, red, purple, or green?" Freddy asked. Gregory scrunched his face up at the idea of a pizza with green or purple sauce on it.

"Just red's okay."

"The classic! Then let's just put the pizza under the appropriate spout…" Freddy took the pizza pan and set it in the appropriate spot. "Now you hold the red button down and sauce will be applied. The longer you hold the button, the more sauce will be added to the pizza."

"Jackpot!" Foxy suddenly called. Freddy leaned to the side and Gregory looked around the corner to see him hauling out a large bag of little chip bags out of the cabinet. "Freddy, yer booty is mine!"

"I am terribly sorry, Captain. You are certainly welcome to anything in the Pizzaplex… But I need it for sitting."

Foxy downright sputtered. "That wasn't what I-! Yer such a nerd, Fazbear," he remarked, spotting the playful glint in Freddy's eyes.

Freddy chuckled before stepping back to his place in front of the saucing station. "Go ahead, Superstar," he encouraged.

Gregory pressed the button. Immediately the thick sauce sputtered and then began to pour out over the crust. It came out quickly and covered the pizza quickly, and with him having trouble seeing he wound up with more than intended.

"That's a lot of sauce…" Gregory murmured.

"Maybe. Do you like pizza sauce?" Freddy asked.

"Well, yeah."

"Good! Then you will have plenty!" the bear encouraged. "Now to the Cheese Station!... You are not lactose intolerant or have any dairy allergies, do you?"

"No."

"To the Cheese Station!"

They went to the cheese station where things went very similarly to the sauce station, though this time Gregory purposefully put extra cheese on it. By now his mouth was starting to water and he was staring hungrily at the pizza even though it was uncooked. He resisted the urge to start picking cheese off and was led to the meat dispenser, passing by Foxy who was tearing open a tiny bag of tortilla chips.

He offered one to Gregory, but the boy just gave a simple, "Maybe later."

The meat dispenser went a lot like the cheese dispenser, save that instead of a flurry of cheese they were partially clumped up wads of pepperoni. Freddy carefully broke them apart with his claws and spread them across the pizza.

"There we go! Now we move on to the Not Meat Station."

"You mean like vegetables?" Gregory asked.

"No, it is more like a meat substitute. Vegetables do not do well in the pizza topping dispensers…"

"I-I think I'm good."

"Very well. You are the chef!" Freddy assured. "Which means now it is time to put the pizza into the super-charged Express Faz-oven!"

"Ya know, yer cuttin' it close, Freddy," Foxy added in. Up until this point he had purposefully stayed quiet to let Freddy and Gregory have their time, taking mild amusement in how parental Freddy was being, but he felt it was worth bringing up.

"Do not worry. The Express Faz-oven is the fastest cooking oven in the Pizzaplex! Perfect for quick delivery orders. By my calculations, we will be able to finish the pizza with a few minutes to spare. Just long enough to get you two a couple of slices and to make my way for the charging station."

"There's one down here?" Foxy asked.

"Right through that door and down the hall. It is a short ways away, but it should not take me long to get there or back… Though I am concerned that Chica might smell the pizza and make her way down here. As soon as the pizza is done, we should leave the kitchen. Just in case," Freddy forewarned.

Gregory didn't like the sound of that, scrunching up his face as he picked up the pizza pan and followed Freddy to the boxy red oven sitting near the loading docks door. Freddy started it up before taking the pan and sliding it inside, shutting the oven and listening as it hummed to life. Foxy came over to investigate it, looking at the oven with some scrutiny. It didn't look like much to him. Maybe new, but nothing state-of-the-art.

Yet all he had to do was look at the short timer counting down and suddenly he wanted one for Foxy's, direly.

"This the only oven like this?" Foxy asked.

"As of now it is. It is only used for the fresh pizzas," Freddy explained. He turned to him curiously, not noticing how he was eyeing the oven. "How do they make pizzas at your establishment, Captain?"

"Eh, fresh. Made to order, except fer the ones Tab- our chef cooks up in the mornin's. So, we got premade stock fer anyone grabbin' a quick slice, but otherwise it all be fresh."

"That is fantastic! I have heard that fresh pizzas are better, and the smell is even more enticing than with the frozen. It is a shame that the Pizzaplex is not smaller or perhaps we could do all fresh too!"

Foxy knew there was no way that Freddy intended that as a backhanded compliment but did feel a little bit of a twitch or wince somewhere in his chest. He looked around the stainless steel, nearly perfect grade kitchen and looked for a fault.

"Yer right 'bout that. Place this big built more like a factory than a pizza shop," he remarked. He then fixed his eye on one of the standard ovens. "…So, what's these things run on? Electric or gas?"

"Almost everything in the Pizzaplex relies on electricity. Except for, as luck would have it, the heating of the Pizzaplex itself. That is handled by a massive boiler located deep underneath the Pizzaplex," Freddy explained. "There is also a furnace- Err… But it does not- it is not required for heating."

Foxy turned to look at Freddy and the bear quickly looked towards the oven. The fox hummed a little and sent a suspicious look, but then looked down at Gregory, who was also looking up at Freddy, and decided not to pry- yet. Foxy certainly knew what he associated furnaces with, and Freddy's reaction would've lined up with that to a T.

They stood in silence a moment, then Freddy's head snapped back to Foxy.

"Captain, why don't you tell Gregory about your many adventures?" he invited. Foxy assumed he didn't mean the possibly illegal activity, including the one he might commit if he found out there was a second oven- "Such as your adventures out at sea with Mari and Lottie! I am sure he would be very interested in how you thwarted Captain Silver Fox."

Ah, now Foxy caught on. Gregory was looking confused- and definitely didn't seem like the type of kid who would believe stories like this at face value- but Foxy decided to go along with it. After all, it was his job to entertain, and he reveled in it.

"This old salt might be able to haul up a tale from the deep…" Foxy agreed with a glint in his eye. He rolled it down towards Gregory before leaning down, resting an arm on one knee. "Ya know what a kraken is?"

"It's like a squid, right?" Gregory asked with a quirked brow.

Ah yes, this one was going to be a tricky one, but Captain Foxy never backed down from a challenge.

For the most part, he did succeed. Gregory was paying attention to him. He didn't seem fully enraptured, likely because he knew it wasn't a real story, but he still listened and engaged. Occasionally asking a question. One of which that caught Foxy off-guard being, "Aren't grey foxes girls?" He almost didn't know how to respond to it, having to pull out of character long enough to explain that, no, grey foxes weren't exclusively female.

Right when Foxy was really getting into the swing of it and Gregory was finally looking invested, after almost stubbornly fighting to not be invested for this long, they were interrupted by a loud ding.

"The pizza is done!" Freddy said excitedly. He opened the oven and out came a burst of extremely hot air that made Gregory blink and the sliding tray that held the now finished pizza. "Please continue, Captain. This will take me a moment."

"-And the beak bit straight through the wood, leaving a huge gaping cavern that began to fill the ship with salty drink! Any moment the ship'd go under, and it was gonna take half me crew with it! I belayed the crusade an' grabbed Mari round the middle 'fore launchin' meself over the rail and grabbing ahold the rope, swinging clear over the mass o' wriggling tentacles!"

Freddy listened as he got out a couple of plates- real white plates, not just the printed paper ones- and a pizza cutter. He cut a larger than usual slice and plated it before passing it to Gregory.

"Here you go! Careful, it is still very hot," he said. He then began to cut a piece for Foxy who had come around the other side of him and started asking about wet cleaning wipes.

Even with the warnings, Gregory tried to snatch it up the slice and promptly dropped on the plate and snatched his hand back, shaking it off. He changed tactics and scooted the pizza to the edge so he could start eating it, able to tolerate the heat with his mouth when his hands couldn't. He took a few quick, large bites at a savage pace.

"I am sure we must have them somewhere. Perhaps in one of the janitorial closets," Freddy said. At this point, Foxy was looking past him at Gregory and pointed him in that direction. The bear looked back to see him gorging. "Gregory, slow down! You might choke!"

"I've eaten before," Gregory retorted through a mouthful of barely chewed pizza.

"Perhaps, but you might also give yourself a stomachache. You should take your time and enjoy the pizza," Freddy corrected. He grabbed another slice and laid it on Gregory's plate to Foxy's slight confusion, thinking it somewhat scrambled the moral until the bear clarified, "There is plenty more where that came from. Just take your time." He then ruffled his hair.

"Pizza?!"

Freddy froze while Foxy's head snapped to the other side of the kitchen, listening to the sound of banging, and clattering somewhere through the hall.

"It's Chica!" Gregory gasped.

"PIZZA?!"

"Blimey, she's tearin' the place down!" Foxy sputtered. He hastily squeezed past Freddy and ran for the back, hesitating only to look back at Gregory who looked like he was about to bolt, but hesitated long enough to look up at Freddy.

"Go. I will distract her," Freddy assured him. That was all Gregory needed to turn and run after Foxy, still clutching his food.

Foxy set his sights on a nearby door and unlatched it before pulling it open. He was hit with a burst of chilly air and realized it was the freezer, but it seemed like a good hiding spot for them. Or it would've been if he had been able to successfully hook the back of the boy's shirt as he ran by. He gave a hushed "Hey!" after him before flinching at the kitchen door slamming open and retreating into the freezer, leaving the door open only a crack.

Gregory took refuge in the back of the kitchen under some of the counters. His heart pounding as he cautiously peeked out to see what was happening.

Chica came hastily stagger-running into the kitchen. Her eyes were as wide as a feral animal's and her shrunken pupils didn't remedy the look. Her mouth was gaped open, and her whole body seemed slumped and tilted. She was like a zombie. Like a brainless drone running at the first sign of a hot meal. Totally focused on one thing and one thing only.

"Pizza?" she asked. Her mouth didn't even fully move, just slightly stutter. Just like her twitching eyelid.

"Pizza!" Freddy said. He stepped aside and gestured to the pizza.

In an instant everything shifted. Chica perked to life, hands clasping to her cheeks with a delighted squeal and kicking her leg up, then dove for the oven. The heated pan bothered her little as she peeled up the pieces and shoved them into her gaping beak. Smooshing the mix of cheese and crust inside of her mouth and smearing sauce across her face in the process.

Freddy couldn't help but be disappointed that Gregory wasn't going to have as much as he wanted but tried to spin it in a positive way. "I was just practicing baking pizza. What do you think?"

"It's SOOOO GOOD!" Chica gushed. Her voice gurgling in her chest.

"Not too much sauce?"

"Mmm, nope!" she said through the chewing. She wiped a hand over her beak and then shook off the sauce and cheese that stuck to it. "A little messy, but so, SO good!"

"I am glad you like it! I will give your compliments to the chef," Freddy said. He watched as she started to shovel it in again. "Would you like to take it with you? You should take your time and enjoy it!"

Chica managed to get down the thick mass in her beak and turned to face him. A piece of pizza dangling in her hand half eaten, her other on her hip, and all sorts of pizza mess straining her casing.

"No can do, Honeybear!" she chirped. She flicked some cheese off of her chest. "Light's out's coming soon, so I've got to dine and dash!" She pointed towards the door.

In Freddy's mind, this was still a solution to their problem. Chica wasn't sticking around and lights out was coming soon. Gregory was already hidden and hopefully Foxy would be fine in the freezer. If not, they were both close to the loading docks door. While Freddy didn't like the idea of Gregory racing outside, it was a better outcome to him getting caught. As much as he cared for Chica… for some reason he didn't trust her around Gregory. She just seemed too focused.

"I suppose that makes sense. Do not let me stop you," Freddy said. She full threw herself back in again and for a moment he stood there watching her eat. Then he began to think. Then he began to speak. "Chica, about last night…"

Chica abruptly halted in her gorging. "About that animatronic you said you saw…"

"I saw her," Chica sharply said. The bubbles on her voice gone and her tone like a pizza cutter slicing him down to size.

"I believe you! I was just thinking that… perhaps if there is a new animatronic mascot amongst us, we should try to be welcoming to them. I am sure she was just frightened if she ran away from you."

"Freddy, what are you doing?" Foxy thought. It sounded like he was leading up to blowing their cover and hoped to high heaven he was wrong.

"Hun, she had a bad security signal and was creeping around after closing. We don't welcome bots like that," Chica continued bitterly. "We don't welcome bots like her."

"Do you mean of her model?" Freddy asked.

"Any model. Anybody who crawls up here. End of story."

"But perhaps if they were not aggressive and not a threat-."

"We don't let creepy bots come in and do stuff!" Chica suddenly snapped, turning on Freddy in an instant. He was startled by it, enough to draw back. Even Gregory shirked down across the room. "We can't just have unauthorized bots come in and poke around at our things and break stuff and poke around our bodies- I don't know why I have to tell you this! We just don't!"

"I… I am sorry, Chica. I did not mean to upset you," Freddy said in shock. He looked utterly gob smacked as he stared down at her unflinching glare.

Chica gave a frustrated huff and turned away; her arms crossed over her chest tightly. She stared down at the pizza but restrained from throwing herself back onto it.

"I-I suppose I just thought that if they were friendly, we could-." It was at that moment that the Pizzaplex powered down, the suddenness of it cutting Freddy off midsentence and mid-thought by reminding him of the task at hand. "Chica, we should head to the charging stations. You can take the one down the hall and I will find another, or I can take that one and you can head back up-."

Freddy was cut off again. Though this time by Chica reaching out and pressing a finger under his jaw and gently closing it.

"Freddy, I think you would look cuter with your mouth closed."

Freddy's mouth stayed shut and he cut any continuation off there. Chica gave him an appreciative pat on the cheek.

"You go on ahead. I'm going to finish up the pizza and then I'll go get charged. Hmm?" she asked.

He nodded and turned to leave. He looked back into the kitchen one last time but didn't see Gregory, and then he stepped out the door and headed off towards the charging station.

Chica watched him leave and waited until the kitchen door closed behind him before turning back on the pizza. She was back to being a ravenous beast in seconds, scraping off the last of the pizza and shoveling it into her gaping beak.

After she was finished, she walked over to a counter against the wall and to a roll of paper towels. She tore off a wad of pieces and wiped them over her beak and face, managing to get off a majority of the sauce but not able to wipe away the residual grease left behind. She tossed the napkins onto the counter and turned to leave only to hesitate. She slowly turned her head towards the back of the kitchen.

"I smell pizza…~" she cooed. Her body turned to align with her head, and she began to limp towards the back of the kitchen. Slowed down by the amount of masticated pizza packed into her plating. Too distracted on the elusive smell to even notice the way the freezer door edged open when she passed by.

Gregory heard her coming and knew exactly what was luring her to him. Sacrifices had to be made, and he made them without hesitation. He held the half-eaten piece of pizza in his mouth while setting the plate with the over under the counter, then hurriedly crawled down the length of the counters. He had to feel his way as he couldn't see, but the layout of the kitchen was mercifully streamlined.

He got around the corner just as Chica came around the other side and felt out a new hiding spot right as she looked into his old one.

She gave a dramatic gasp. "I knew it!" she cried. Then proceeded to gobble up the other piece savagely.

Not too differently from how quickly Gregory was trying to dispose of his piece by wolfing it down. He had just gotten it down to the crust when he heard something that caused him to freeze up. Swallowing thickly, mouth thick with grease from the pizza, he slowly peeked out from under the counter and looked upwards- and promptly pulled back under.

"No, no, no! Not now!" he whispered with panic. To make matters worse, he could hear Chica's thoughtful hum before she started to walk down the counters in his direction. He couldn't even throw the crust to be rid of it now. He was trapped.

Foxy had been watching the scene the entire time. Helplessly watching as Chica stalked around the kitchen looking for the source of the pizza smell. He was really hoping Gregory could evade her on his own, because while he was fully willing to blow his cover to protect a kid, he really did not want to blow his cover. A fact that came all the more apparent when he heard a very familiar noise return.

Chica was oblivious to everything. She didn't notice the freezer door inching open enough for Foxy to peek through, she didn't notice the noise, she was just fully intent on that smell. The faintest smell of pizza, so faint that she might've mistook it for coming off of her. She would've been convinced to if she didn't catch the faintest hint while passing by one of the counters. Barely smellable; she must've been built to detect the slightest whiff.

Gregory watched her legs stop beside the end of the counter and saw as they eventually turned towards him. There was no cover under this prep table, if she knelt down, she would see him. He couldn't run, he could just watch as her knees began to bend as she started ducking down-

"Knock knock."

"BWAK!" Chica jumped, staggering into the counter, and turned her head around to see a glowing moon shaped face just inches from her own. "Oh! Oh, Moon! You scared the cluck out of me!"

Moon gave a rather sinister little chuckle. He was dangling upside down with his legs hooked onto the walkway above. Not just his face but his entire torso had been rotated and neck stretch so that he could look at her face to face.

"It's past your bedtime. You should be in your charging station," Moon forewarned. "Go now."

"In a minute! Freddy made a pizza, and he left pieces scattered all over the kitchen," Chica said. She turned around and then bent down to look under the counter, giving a confused squawk before pulling something out. "Just a crust?!"

"Chiiica."

"So, if this was a piece, and I ate six pieces and found one, and it was cut to make eight pieces, then this MUST be the last piece. But why's it over here? And I STILL smell pizza coming from somewhere!"

"Chica."

"What?" Chica asked impatiently. She turned to look back towards Moon only to be struck silent by soft flickers and gentle sways.

Moon's eyes were flashing. Not together but alternatively; back and forth from one to another. His faceplate shifting and rolling in tandem with the way he rhythmically rocked his body back and forth. It looked like something that should've been done to music, but instead he did it to the beat of his own internal ticking, shifting directions every time something rolled deep inside his chest.

"Shhhhh. It's naptime. Time for you to rest. Time for you to rechaaaarge…" Moon droned. Then all of a sudden it all halted. The swaying, the flickering, everything stilled. "Head to a recharge station. Now."

Chica flinched at the command, seemingly snapping out of her trance. She stared for a moment before giving a frustrated huff and turning her head away.

"Fine," she said like a petulant child. She then stomped towards the closest doors and yanked them open, then strode through in an overdramatic fashion.

Moon tsked at her scene before slowly turning his head to look around the kitchen. He lowered himself further to try and see better as he scanned the room. Eventually he was sated and easily drew himself back up and over the railing. Soon he was little more than faded colors moving in the darkness before going through a door and disappearing entirely. The kitchen fell silent once more.

Until Foxy threw open the freezer door with a firm shove.

"Get in!" he called. Gregory didn't need to be told twice. He popped out from around one of the counters and felt his way towards Foxy's voice and towards the chilly air. Foxy helped him the last leg of the way, taking his shoulder and leading him inside. "This place's full of freaks," he muttered.

"Yeah, and they're all Freddy's friends," Gregory agreed.

"Mm-hmm," Foxy agreed. Then what he said sunk in. "…Hey!"

"I didn't mean you! Didn't you say you were his rival or something?"

"Hmm, supposed I did. Sorry, Lad."

Gregory came into the freezer and began to rub his arms in an attempt to warm himself up. Foxy used his foot to keep the freezer door open to let in a little warmer air, and soon Gregory became bold enough to stand in the doorway. To which he was promptly rewarded with something falling over him.

"Hey!" Gregory pulled the fabric off of his head and even in the dark he realized that it had to be Foxy's hoodie. It had the same texture that he felt when he had been picked up back in Kids Cove.

Foxy chuckled. "Put it on. I ain't lettin' you freeze on my watch," he instructed.

While Gregory didn't necessarily want to be treated like a weak little kid who couldn't handle a little cold, he didn't feel the need to argue. Not when the freezer was at least a little uncomfortable. He pulled it on over his head, it covering him more like a cloak than a hoodie, and hoped the lights would come on soon.

A long night indeed.

Chapter 38

Chapter Summary

Freddy and Foxy finish out the night... but Freddy might've been found out, and he might not be the only one...

When Freddy got back from charging, Gregory was quick to inform him of what happened during his absence. Needless to say, Freddy was rather concerned and swore that he was going to stay close to both him and Foxy. Which he did.

Because after that point Foxy realized that he especially had to be more careful. Gregory was now under his immediate charge, so they couldn't handle these blackouts all willy-nilly. They had to stay on guard and keep an eye out.

…For about four more hours.

…

2AM:

"Welcome to Fazer Blast!" Freddy introduced as they walked into the neon-lit lobby. It wasn't too different to how he introduced it to Foxy, with the same awe and grandeur.

"Wow. This place is actually kinda cool," Gregory admitted as he looked around. "It's not like a kiddie place like the daycare or Kids Cove."

"That is because Fazer Blast is a high-intensity space combat simulation. It is only recommended for children seven and up. It is super cool! Foxy and I play together all the time!"

"Eh, I wouldn't say 'play'. More like we take turns shootin' each other in the face," Foxy chimed in. Freddy gawked at him.

"That is not true! I only shot you in the face on one occasion!... Err, except for that accidental second occasion earlier… My apologies," he said sheepishly.

"I lift me patch fer two seconds," Foxy mock lamented.

"It was my fault. I should have been more careful… However, you probably should not have ducked down right then."

"Fazer Blast is like laser tag, right? Can we play?" Gregory asked. He actually seemed excited about it, much to Freddy's dismay, who suddenly regretted playing up the game so much.

"Er uhm, I am sorry, Superstar. I do not think it is a good idea. Not only would you have to play alone- I am not allowed to play with guests. Human guests, that is- but it may draw attention to you."

"Oh..." That excitement deflated instantly.

"But we can play in the arcade! There are many more options than just Street Skate Superstar! And if you collect enough points, perhaps I can calculate the amount of tickets you would have won and we could get you a prize from the Prize Corner," Freddy offered temptingly.

"Sure… Are you sure I can't play one game? You and Foxy were playing it. I could just tag along," Gregory suggested.

Freddy briefly glanced up from Gregory and past at Foxy who gave a noncommittal shrug.

"…Maybe later," Freddy hesitantly said. Gregory's face fell flat, realizing that was just him trying to say 'no' without saying it. Freddy covered it up quickly and gestured to the arcade cabinets, "How about you choose the first game?"

Realizing he wasn't getting anywhere, Gregory quickly decided that limitless arcade games was better than nothing and decided to go ahead and pick one.

He supposed he was a lucky kid. Anyone else would've died for the chance to play arcade games with Freddy Fazbear. Which Gregory initially thought was a little weird. Up until he met Freddy, he didn't think he was a person at all. Just some robot that pretended to sing and made everybody happy. He looked pretty cool, but he wasn't like a real rockstar or anything.

Things were different now, but he still didn't exactly feel starstruck by Freddy. Probably because Freddy didn't act like a rockstar. He was friendly and goofy, and a little embarrassing. Even if he was still pretty cool.

Still, he didn't feel weird about Freddy Fazbear playing games with him.

He just wasn't sure why Freddy Fazbear wanted to play gameswith him.

…

3AM:

When Freddy had mentioned prizes, Gregory assumed he meant the little corner of merch in the Fazer Blast lobby. It turned out that was just a gift shop and the actual Prize Corner was much bigger than he could've ever imagined. He hadn't seen so many toys in one spot, or dolls as big as the biggest Freddy ones.

Foxy got one look at the place and had no idea how Marionette got through here without having a complete meltdown. Though then he noticed a section of counter that was emptied out. The shelves were bear save for some prizes on the lowest one and there was a large laundry tub behind the counter overfilled with stuff. Apparently, they still had yet to recover from Monty's meltdown. That made Foxy smirk.

Gregory had his attention elsewhere and was currently eyeing a line of action figures displayed in glass. They weren't the only action figures displayed, but this case showed the entire lineup: Freddy, Chica, Monty, Roxy, Sun, and Moon. For so many animatronics who were a pain, they actually made neat action figures. Though he supposed he was too old to play with toys. He couldn't even remember the last time he played with an action figure.

"Gregory, check out these shirts!" Freddy suddenly said.

Gregory quickly turned away from the display and towards Freddy who was facing a colorful wall of various shirts.

"Which one do you like best, hmm?" the bear asked.

"I don't know. Uh… That one, I guess."

He pointed to a green one with orange trim and long sleeves. Compared to the other it was a lot simpler of a design and lacked big goofy faces plastered on the front. Instead, it just had the words "Freddy Fazbear" framed by two blue outline lightning bolts. It also looked like it would be warm.

Freddy seemed to perk up at this and gave a fond, "D'aww!"

"It's not because it's yours. It's because I like green," Gregory quickly excused, now thoroughly embarrassed. Unfortunately, it was too late. He could tell Freddy was not convinced.

"I see ye have a Music Man," Foxy grumbled as he walked up and leaned forward on the counter beside Freddy. This got the bear's attention on him, much to Gregory's relief.

"Music Man?"

"That spider lookin' thing with eyes blacker than the depths of a seabed trench."

"Oh, you mean the DJ! Yes, he is stationed up at the West Arcade. I only met him once, but he was very welcoming."

"There's another arcade?" Foxy asked dryly, side-glancing at Freddy.

"Indeed, there is. The West Arcade houses many more arcade cabinets but the main draw would be the electronic dance floor and private karaoke rooms. It is already a hot spot for the older Pizzaplex crowd!... Unfortunately, this has already led to some rowdy patrons. I heard that they were considering implementing a bouncer."

"How d'ya 'implement' a bouncer?" Foxy asked suspiciously.

"I am not sure. Perhaps it has something to do with the Staff Bot network," Freddy answered honestly.

"Hey, Freddy," Gregory interjected. "Do I have enough tickets for that backpack?"

He pointed to one of a few of backpacks hanging up on the wall. The one he chose was small and black, with the Pizzaplex logo on it- the cartoonish one above the entrance- along with yellow and blue lightning bolts dotting it. The pouches were outlined with a purple pink that was supposed to give the illusion of neon. Freddy could understand why Gregory would choose that one- he thought it was very cool.

"A backpack! That is an excellent idea, Gregory!" he agreed. How responsible of Gregory to choose something that was both very cool and useful. While he did not nearly have enough ticket to exchange for a prize of that tier, Freddy supposed that they could bend the rules considering that he had been technically locked in twice- and considering that Freddy's face was on that Pizzaplex logo. "Sure thing, Superstar. But it will cost all of your tickets."

"That's okay," Gregory said without hesitation.

Freddy let himself around the back of the counter and pulled the backpack down. Gregory reached for it, but the bear gestured for him to spin around. The boy gave him an unenthused look and a little groan before turning around as instructed and letting Freddy put the backpack on him.

"Look at all these pouches. There should be plenty of room for your school supplies!"

"Yeah, I've got a lot of stuff," Gregory said sarcastically. He felt Freddy still tugging at the straps. "What are you doing?"

"Adjusting the shoulder strap size so it will fit you better," he explained. "…There we are! Not too tight, not too loose. How does it feel?"

"Feels fine."

"That is great! You are now in possession of an official Freddy Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex licensed backpack! I am sure all of your friends will be very envious, but all in good fun," Freddy said happily.

Foxy looked at the backpack as Gregory turned around and chuckled a little. "Remind ya of anything, Freddy?" he asked.

"Yes, it does…" Freddy said somberly. Foxy lifted his patch and set a quizzical look at the tone. "…It reminds me of that dreadful night… when the Pizzaplex was raided by the Masked Painter. Legends foretold of his arrival, but we were ill prepared for the sheer awesomeness. A spray can in each hand- err- in one hand and a look of mischievousness and artistic freedom being expressed through civil disobedience in his eye."

By the end of it, Foxy had already slumped onto the counter, partially with exasperation. He genuinely couldn't understand why he was still willingly hanging out with Freddy. He was going to drive him insane.

The chuckles shaking his body were a sign he was going in that direction.

…

4AM:

Foxy had been waiting for this moment for ages. Freddy had his guard completely down and his back was fully exposed to the pirate as he slowly crept through a passage of neon walls. Not realizing that he had been silently stalked for the last few minutes since he came down from the second floor. Foxy could've taken his shot now, but then he would be corralled in this passage and Freddy would surely get a shot in.

No, Foxy wanted to have his cake and eat it too. He wanted to get a sudden shot in and still have a clean getaway, and he was just about to get it. Freddy was non-the-wiser as he went to the right and left a clear escape route to the right.

Foxy aligned his Fazer Blaster with Freddy's back and steadied his aim.

"Freddy, look out!"

Foxy would've still fired off at Freddy if it wasn't for the glimpse of a red light out of the corner of his eye, to which he promptly ducked down and shielded his face to avoid yet another eye shot. He could see the light on his hoodie that signaled he had been 'shot' by none other than Gregory, who was standing above them on one of the bridge and still wearing the helmet Freddy made him put on- even if it wasn't on.

Freddy spun around on his heel with his Fazerblaster in both hands, but Foxy managed to get a shot in at his chest before hightailing it around the corner, just skirting the laser from Freddy's own gun. Both ducked for cover, back to the wall.

"Foxy! I should have known!" Freddy called over.

"Yer lucky, Fazbear! I suppose it WOULD take a two-on-one to keelhaul Captain Foxy!" Foxy snapped back.

Freddy seemed to take particular offense to this. "Two-on-one? No, Gregory and I are not on a team. He just saw the perfect opportunity and took it!"

Gregory couldn't tell if it was Freddy's comment or Foxy's, but he suddenly realized that he had a very clear shot right now.

"You should never let your guard down. You never know-." There was a quiet noise and Freddy noticed a red light on his chest. He looked down, then up in shock to see Gregory with his blaster aimed. "Gre-Gregory, did you just shoot me?!"

"Sorry, Freddy, but he's got a point- and like you said, you shouldn't let your guard down," Gregory said matter-of-factly.

"The betrayal! Well, if that is how it must be, then I have no choice… but to show you my full potential!" Freddy announced.

"Ooo, ya done it now, Lad!" Foxy called from the back. Then proceeded to sneak off somewhere.

Gregory hunched a little, expecting Freddy to take a shot at him, but the bear didn't. The bear did much worse- suddenly bolting off into the maze somewhere. Signaling that the game was truly on.

Freddy's heavy footsteps should've been a dead giveaway, but eventually he stopped running and it became impossible to pinpoint him. Foxy was just as bad, with Gregory occasionally hearing quick bursts of sprinting and knowing it was him. Gregory chose his own tactic: keep the high ground and take advantage of the little hiding shelters scattered around, as he was the only one who could fit in them.

Eventually, his luck ran out. He was in the process of moving down the bridge to one of lower platforms when he noticed one of those sprinting bursts that just didn't stop. He turned and bolted back up to where he came from, but he could hear the footsteps closing in.

But Gregory was just good enough at dodging and weaving that Foxy couldn't yet get a clear shot. Unable to get enough time to hide, he headed straight through the upper platform and started across the second bridge. He got through the platform and out onto the ramp to lead to the floor, only to look up and see Foxy standing on the bridge with his Fazerblaster aimed.

"I've gotcha now, Lad!" he called. Finished with a dramatic, pirate-like cackle.

It wasn't like Gregory was in actual danger. The only thing that would suffer if he was shot was his point count, still being the only one who hadn't been hit. That was enough to make him decide that the ramp wasn't that high from the floor.

It wasn't until he turned that Foxy realized what he was about to do- "No, don't-!" -but was unable to stop Gregory from jumping off the ramp. He was fully prepared for a slightly uncomfortable landing.

Only to suddenly have all the oxygen yanked from his lungs as something grabbed him around the middle and he found himself caught between Freddy's arm and side. Left to dangle like a sack of potatoes, Gregory looked up at him. Freddy had a rather stern look on his face.

"Uh… Thanks?" Gregory tried. A guilt smile creeping onto his face.

Freddy was not amused. "Gregory, you are now under arrest."

"For jumping?"

"For impersonating a space officer! Who knew you would be a spy the entire time!" Freddy tutted. "…That was a joke. Jumping off the arena equipment is a very serious matter and can be very dangerous. Do not do that."

"Let the kid go, Fazbear! This is between ye and me!" Foxy called down.

Freddy turned and aimed his Fazerblaster with one hand while still toting Gregory under the other arm.

"If you want him, then come and get him," the bear challenged. Then he raced out of the way, dodging Foxy's incoming shot.

Thus, the rivalry of Freddy Fazbear and Captain Foxy was rekindled once again.

Gregory got stuck along for the ride.

…

5AM:

Foxy wasn't asleep but he felt as close as he could get. He was reclined on Freddy's couch with one arm leaning on the tie-shaped pillow and a leg propped up on the table. Gregory was no better. At first, he was boredly propping up his head on the other side of the couch but in the matter of a few minutes he slumped down onto it and might've fallen asleep. It was probably hard for him to pull an all-nighter like this.

But considering that he had had stayed awake this long, Foxy couldn't help but wonder how frequently Gregory was pulling these late nights.

While he was thinking this, the power returned to the building and the overhead light turned back on. Foxy almost winced from it and shielded his face with his arm. Gregory groaned and dragged himself up from the couch.

"…Ya know, if yer gettin' tired we can just chill in here," Foxy remarked.

"I'm fine," Gregory quickly deflected.

"Yeah, well I ain't. Gives me an excuse to stay put." His ear twitched at the sound of thumping in the next room. "Sounds like Freddy's comin'."

He half expected Gregory to say something smart, but he either decided not to or didn't get a chance to before the door opened.

Ironically, both hopped up pretty quickly once that happened. Neither wanting Freddy to notice.

…

The rest of that night felt like it had gone by rather quickly. Even though Foxy was feeling the effects of a whole night on the edge, there wasn't really a dull moment. He was almost a little disappointed when Freddy led them back downstairs, through the same kitchen, and out to the loading docks- and not just because the loading docks were also huge and triggered his inferiority complex.

It was about time for Foxy to head out. The plan being for him to leave about fifteen minutes before six and being long gone before anyone showered up or came out. Which Freddy agreed with, but Foxy noticed that he was becoming increasingly more antsy the closer they got to that time, and the closer they had gotten to the loading docks.

"Gregory, would you like to call your mother?" Freddy suggested.

"I will," Gregory agreed. He said it without much obvious emotion. He willingly walked over to the desk, picked up the same familiar phone, and began to dial. He peeked over his shoulder, but Freddy hadn't followed him.

Freddy had, instead, turned to Foxy as soon as the boy approached the desk. He gave the pirate a subtle waving gesture for him to come with him. Foxy looked quizzical but followed along. The bear led him towards the corner of the room, between another door and a passageway that was blocked off by fencing. Freddy kept halfway turned towards Gregory to keep an eye on him as he addressed him.

"Foxy, there is something I need to talk about, and you are the only one I can tell."

Foxy was taken aback. It wasn't the first time Freddy directly called him by his name, but he had so frequently called him "Captain" tonight that it was jarring. It made him well aware that something was up.

"Go ahead. I'm all ears," he assured.

Freddy finally pulled his eyes off of Gregory long enough to look down at Foxy and his worry was apparent. It wasn't like the worry about whether he would strain himself or the risk of getting caught; it was something much more solemn.

"It is about Gregory… I have been having some concerns and I am not sure if I am imagining them or not… About his care," Freddy confessed.

"Yer not. I'm noticing 'em too," Foxy revealed. Freddy looked a little surprised before his face fell again.

"Did you notice how small he is?" he asked. "Gregory told me that he is eight years old. He should not be this height and weight…"

"He's eight?" Foxy asked. He made no effort to mask his surprise. "…I noticed the bruise, and his hair's a bit scuffed."

"That bandage on his cheek is the same one I put on days ago. No one has replaced it," Freddy said worriedly. After a long pause he turned fully towards Foxy once more, this time lowering his head and his voice. "I do not believe Gregory is calling his parents. I believe he is only pretending to call his parents."

"What makes ya think that?" Foxy asked. Not doubtfully, if anything more concerned than doubtful.

"…Because that is what he did last time. He pretended to call his parents and then left the building. I do not know where he went or who took him home. He does not know that I know and I am unsure if I should tell him," he said quietly.

Foxy's shock returned and he stole a glance at Gregory. That probably explained why his phone conversation sounded so odd, which he only noticed listening now. Gregory was talking like it was a casual conversation, like his parents weren't reacting at all to the news that their son just disappeared and stayed overnight at Freddy's. Or like a kid who was pretending he called his parents.

"I do not know what to do. I cannot tell Vanessa… Not if there is something that he is hiding from."

Foxy knew what Freddy was implying even if Freddy himself didn't realize it. The long and short of it being that he was coming here as an escape. Foxy knew that form of escape well; he still remembered those nights sleeping in that tent in the backyard, scared and cold but rather being anywhere than inside the house. If there had been a place like this he would've wanted to be here too, and he wasn't sure the scary robots would've ran him off.

"He wants to stay until six? Let him stay until six," Foxy suggested.

"I will."

"You've got yer work cut out fer ya, Freddy. Wish I could stick around an' help…" Foxy looked up at Freddy knowingly. "But I'll keep an eye out. Trust me on that."

Freddy noticed the look nodded with silent understanding. The two didn't have to wait much longer for Gregory to finish up with his phone call. Him hanging up the phone signaled them to come back over.

"Okay, she's going to come get me, but it's going to take her a while to get here," he told them. It was clear that he hadn't heard them talking.

"That's alright. You are welcome to stay as long as you like. Or need to," Freddy assured him. He then turned to his pirate companion. "Unfortunately, Captain Foxy cannot. He is due back at his pizzeria."

"Aye. I be in fer a late mornin' tomorrow," Foxy said honestly and tiredly. He started to pull his hood over his head the best that he could and offered a low hand. "Take care, lad. Hope the wind's at yer back and yer seas be calm."

"Err, okay. I hope your… morning's not that late?" Gregory said, not sure what that meant. He did return the low five however.

"We'll work on yer pirate talk next time we run aground together," Foxy playfully assured. He gave a little salute with his hook. "Take care, Lad. An' stop by Pirate's Cove if ya get the chance!"

He made his way to the door with Freddy close behind him, with the bear stopping at the first set of doors while the fox continued on.

"I had a very good night tonight! I hope you did too," Freddy said pleasantly. His tone a sharp contrast to their conversation earlier.

"Aye. Yer a good host, Mate… When ya ain't runnin' fer the head," Foxy retorted. The bear chuckled at the comment. The fox, however, found himself slowing down as he started to push open the second set of doors. He paused there for a moment and stared out at the night revealed between the gap.

"…Captain?"

"I suppose it's only fair to offer the same invitation to ye. Dunno how the bloody 'ell you'd get there, but if yer ever in Hurricane… Drop by me ship. It ain't as regal as all this, but it's good. It's the best I've got."

Freddy caught on quickly. "I would be honored! I… Someday. I will find a way. You found a way here; I should return the favor!"

Foxy gave a scoff, an audible smirk, before heading through the doors. Deciding to put an end to the mushy display. "I'm shovin' off."

"Be careful! I will call you tonight about tomorrow!"

Foxy stared ahead as the door shut behind him. Did Freddy just imply that he expected Foxy to come back tomorrow? Well, that wasn't happening. He wasn't sure if he would be back at all. He always was when he left, normally while crawling through the uncomfortable vent feeling like a scoundrel, and not in an adventurous or exciting way. Now walking around the building under the starry sky, he felt strangely melancholy. Maybe because of Freddy. Maybe because of Gregory.

Maybe Freddy would find a way to Foxy's. Maybe Foxy would come back to Freddy's. It seemed like Foxy somehow always did wind up back at a Freddy's, so it wouldn't be anything new.

Maybe he was getting a little too attached to someone he had a bad feeling wouldn't stick around long. Wouldn't be anything new.

For the last time of the evening, or morning considering what time it was, the power went off throughout the Pizzaplex. It would be six o'clock in only a few short minutes and the nighttime protocols would be over. The front doors would open, Officer Vanessa would leave, and it would only be a matter of time before the Pizzaplex was abuzz with life once more as guests flooded the lobby.

Freddy thought of it fondly as he made his way through the darkness of the basement towards the recharge station. After a long night like this- which had been plenty of fun, but equally worrisome in its own rights- performing on stage felt like an escapist fantasy. Along with being able to tell the technicians that he had practiced Fazer Blast and was ready to get back in the game. Foxy was right, he could make that say for himself.

"And where might you be going~?"

Freddy looked up abruptly and was startled to see a white glowing face with a wicked smile staring back down at him. It was Moon. At first, he wondered how he hadn't heard him, if he had been that lost in thought, but then realized that his typical ticking had quieted until right after he revealed himself. He had been being quiet on purpose. Moon ambushed him.

"Moon… I am going to my recharge station," Freddy said. His hesitation from nervousness over dishonesty.

Moon hummed and began to climb down along the wall. His wide smile stayed aimed at Freddy even as his body rotated to slowly crawl down the wall, palms and feet sticking to the side. His bells slightly tinkling with every slow movement. He took his time and reveled in the way that Freddy was staring at him.

The jester turned over, going from legs above his head and backwards to lowering into a poised crouch on the floor. The motion smooth, showing off just how capable he was to get wherever he wanted.

Moon giggled sinisterly as he raised from his hunch and slunk towards the bear. His motions were delayed and slow, uncomfortably so, and Freddy straightened up as the jester suddenly and quickly slipped beside him. He got in close, his face turning to the left and right as he studied the bear's own. Freddy made a noise akin to clearing his throat.

"I should be going," he said. He turned and started to walk away. Only to have a hand clamp around his arm and pull him right back into place.

"Not ssso fassst," Moon hissed.

Freddy couldn't do anything but look helplessly at the blue glowing hand. While the slender arm it was connected to didn't look like much, there was an amount of considerable strength behind it. He looked at the crescent face with questioning.

The jester hummed and tilted his head slowly in one direction before taking a step behind him and out of sight, his head following a millisecond behind the rest of his body. He released Freddy, but that didn't mean he was letting him go. If anything, the way he stalked behind him made him feel even more trapped.

"You've had quite a busy night, haven't yooou?" Moon drew out as he lurked behind him. The bells on his feet jingling with each slow step. "So far away from your room…"

"I was making pizza! You can ask Chica; she ate one of them," Freddy tried to excuse.

"Oh, Freddy…" Moon trilled. The pale glow from his face casting across Freddy's shoulder. "Did you really think I'd believe that?"

Freddy's hands tightened with embarrassment and dread. Moon must've noticed as he gave another low chuckle as he continued his circle around him.

"Such a silly bear…" he murmured. He sidestepped in front of Freddy, standing so close that the bear couldn't help but start to step back. "Ah-ah," Moon warned. Freddy halted in place. "Don't. Go. Anywhere."

Freddy wasn't sure what he was doing and gave him a look of confusion. It changed to shock and realization when Moon suddenly laid a hand on his chest right beneath his bowtie. He lifted onto the tips of his fingers and slowly walked them down the lightning bolt insignia towards the opening of his stomach hatch. All the while Freddy just stared in befuddlement.

Until Moon grabbed ahold of the divot in his mid-chest. Freddy flashed back on Sunny so easily pulling open his chest back at the daycare.

But that was not what Moon did. Instead, his hand turned over and hooked onto the bottom portion of the hatch and used that to pull Freddy down and close. His red eyes piercing into Freddy's pupils in a way that made his head itch.

"I know you're hiiiiding something, Freddy, and it's not just Foxy anymore. No, no. It's something much, much worse," Moon growled lowly.

Freddy gasped at the mention of 'Foxy'. That would've betrayed his guilt instantly if the other didn't already know. If anything, the jester tilted his head in a very smug sort of way.

"Huckle Buckle Beanstalk."

Freddy got a perplexed look that was promptly shoved from his face when Moon pushed him back, flipping over his hand, and yanking open his stomach hatch in quick succession. Holding Freddy by the chest so he couldn't draw away, he stuck his head in close until his glow illuminated the entire cavity and revealed what Freddy was hiding inside.

…Nothing.

There was nothing there.

"What?!" Moon hissed. He looked around the small space in disbelief. "No, no, no, I know you had him! Where is he?!"

Freddy knew he meant Gregory, who was still very much in the building at the loading dock. He tried to think of a quick way to defuse the situation and reached down to grab his shoulders.

"Moon…" he began.

Unfortunately, with how Moon was angled he couldn't see him past his open hatch, so he had to blindly guess where his shoulders were. Which wouldn't have been so difficult if the jester wasn't still moving around like the foot of space, he was searching was some sort of massive cavern. Freddy didn't even reach his shoulder when one of his claws grazed the slot in his head where his points were hidden away.

Moon squealed and tried to yank back but only succeeding in slamming the back of his head into Freddy's open hatch. He staggered back grasping the sensitive wires on the back of his head and Freddy wobbled before quickly reaching to steady the other animatronic by the shoulders.

"Are you alright?! I am sorry, I-I was not being careful enough. Here, let me grab your nightcap for you," Freddy apologized profusely. He quickly closed up his stomach hatch and knelt down to retrieve the fallen cap off the floor. He dusted it off to the best of his ability before standing and offering it with both hands, posed like he was planning on putting it on him.

Moon grumbled deep in his chest. One of his eyes only glowing halfway as though it was squinted in pain. Then he grabbed the cap back and quickly fit it back over his head. His motions no longer slow and methodical and instead just flustered.

He muttered and rambled under his breath as he did so, "Teh. Down here trying to get yourself scrapped. Such a rulebreaker."

"I know. I am sorry," Freddy apologized. Mostly for the accident than anything else. "…You look very nice tonight. Your colors glow handsomely in this lighting, or lack thereof. Moondrop? Well, consider me moonstruck."

Moon stared at Freddy seemingly dumbstruck before clasping a hand over his face. It would've seemed like a motion if exasperation if he didn't start pulling down his cap slightly with the tips of his fingers, even more flustered.

With a low grumble, the jester finally turned away, beckoning him with his hand as he did. "Come along."

"Are you taking me to the recharge station?" Freddy asked, cautiously asked.

"Yes," Moon said. "…Not that thirty seconds of charging will do anything."

Freddy followed along the short distance before they arrived at the recharge station. Moon had regained some of his previous demeanor and proceeded to watch him with an unblinking gaze to make sure he got into the recharge station. He stepped inside and turned around as the door slipped shut. Moon was still watching him so he gave a wave, which got the jester turning and hurrying off on his way. He watched him climb up a further wall and disappear.

Freddy sighed and finally relaxed. That had been close. He had considered bringing Gregory with him and it had been Gregory who decided to instead find a hiding spot in a nearby office. If they had gone alone with Freddy's plan, Moon would've found them out right then… Or at least found Gregory. It was clear now that Moon knew exactly what was going on, to very little surprise.

He looked down at his hand, the one whose claw had missed its mark and might've nearly landed Moon in Parts and Service, and then closed his fingers. He sighed and rested the fist to his chest, then closed his eyes and relaxed.

It could've very well been only thirty seconds before the lights kicked back on. The charging cycle didn't end, but he could feel a significant shift in the amount of energy flooding his body. He waited a few more minutes before stepping out.

Keeping an eye out for anyone else, Freddy made his way back to the kitchen, through a door on the left between the trash compactor and the loading dock door into another hallway, and followed that to a small office nearby.

Gregory was spinning back and forth in the office chair waiting, only stopping momentarily when he heard footsteps, but then doing so again when he recognized the footsteps and stopping once he got to the door. He hopped out of the chair.

"How'd it go?" he asked.

"…Err, it was… eventful."

"That doesn't sound good. Nobody followed you back, right?" Gregory asked. He squeezed between Freddy and the doorway- almost like a rock and a hard place- to peek down the hall and make sure.

"No, no. We are alone, and the others have likely already started heading back to their designated areas in preparation for opening," Freddy assured. His voice then fell with, "I am sorry to say, but… it is time for you to head home."

"I know," Gregory said solemnly.

"But that does not mean you cannot come back! I have something for you. Hold on one moment," Freddy said, quickly returning to an upbeat tone. He opened his stomach hatch and reached inside to reclaim the flimsy ticket he had pinned safely in his endo. He handed it over and Gregory recognized it as a Photo Pass. "I am sure you know what this is. Keep this in a safe place and the next time you come by you can join me in my green room. We can play games and eat pizza in between shows! I will have to leave every once and a while for parties and shows, but we will get plenty of time together, and nobody will be able to say anything. Not even Vanessa."

"Okay… Thanks, Freddy," Gregory said. He gave the bear a small, honest smile. "I-I'll come back. I promise."

Freddy smiled as well. "I hope you do. Now let us head to the exit and get you on your way. I am sure your mother is… She should be outside."

"Yeah."

Freddy willingly walked with Gregory through the kitchen and back to the loading docks. Back to the same door he had watched Foxy go through only fifteen or so minutes ago. He held the door open for him and watched as he stepped out.

"…You could continue waiting inside if you like," Freddy suddenly offered. He was starting to have second thoughts the moment he saw the dark parking lot behind the Pizzaplex.

"Nah, I've got to go," Gregory said. He didn't sound like he wanted to go but he did sound determined to. He checked his Faz-Watch and Freddy smiled a little, having noticed it earlier and pleased to see he was still using it. "So… I guess I'll see you later?"

"You can count on it! Until then, Superstar," he said kindly.

Gregory smiled before turning and starting to run off down the back of the building. Freddy stepped out as far as he could to watch him go, still holding onto the door so that it didn't count as him leaving. He only headed back inside after Gregory disappeared around the corner and didn't seem to be coming back. He still stayed in the loading docks for some time afterwards.

Gregory hurried around the outside of the building while keeping a close eye out for anyone watching. Thankfully the parking lot was almost entirely empty save a car here or there. The only one he got close to not having anyone in it so he walked past and made his way to the front entrance. The shutters that had been blocking the doors had now lifted and he could see into the lobby. He couldn't see any sign of the security guard.

He looked across the parking lot one last time before hustling through the automatic doors and back into the Pizzaplex. The doors shut behind him almost silently, like he was never even there.

Freddy wouldn't know. Officer Vanessa wouldn't know. Nobody had to know as long as he hid well enough.

…

…

"Well, blow me down. He ain't been gettin' himself trapped on purpose, he just never left."

What Gregory hadn't anticipated was that Foxy was a lot sneakier and a much less trusting than Freddy. Instead of choosing to believe Gregory and letting him leave the Pizzaplex alone, he and Jeremy decided to stay over long enough to see exactly who was going to come pick him up.

As Foxy had suspected, nobody was coming to get him. Gregory had just lied so he could get back into the Pizzaplex, and two witnesses could contest to that. Three if you counted the tiny white head peeking up over the steering wheel.

"That explains some things," Jeremy agreed.

"I had a feelin' somethin' was off… Think he might be a runaway?"

"Might be. But see, that's weird, because Natalie didn't say anything about that and if someone called about their kid running off into the Pizzaplex, wouldn't they tell the security guard?" Jeremy speculated. "That means something."

"That means nobody's calling."

"…Yeah. That's a scary thought," he said with a sigh. "…Should we wait and tell her?"

"Nah. I gotta get to the pizzeria an' pass out."

"Sounds like you had a fun night!" Jeremy teased. "So, uh… Want to come home?"

"Nah. I don't want to crowd Michael. I'll just crash on me floor til Fritz pokes me with a broom an' tells me to dance."

"We used to do that with Toy Freddy too. Always worked like a charm," Jeremy joked. He tapped Daisy on the back. "Alright, Little Lady. Time to get going."

Daisy hopped down from the steering wheel, popped over into the passenger's seat, and tucked herself behind the already plugged-in seatbelt. Crossing her legs and wrapping her arms around the belt to make it work effectively.

Meanwhile, Jeremy looked back to Foxy questioningly. "Right?" Foxy looked down for a long moment before nodding slowly, and Jeremy turned on the car to leave.

While he didn't really want to leave this unresolved, especially knowing Gregory was in there on his own, it was about to be daylight. Daytime offered some amount of security at Freddy's. At least he hoped it still did.

Speaking of which-

"'Member that sun ye wanted to adopt?" Foxy asked.

"Yeah?"

"You ain't."

Jeremy quirked a brow even as he kept his eyes on the road. "Thanks for telling me."

"I'm serious. The bloke's a nut," Foxy dismissed. He wasn't the only one either. Chica definitely had a few screws loose. The way she snapped at Freddy suggested a whole bunch of soft spots under that shell, and not just pizza mush.

The way Freddy reacted to it… Foxy didn't ask because Gregory was there, but he did notice that he was rather quiet up until they got to Fazer Blast. Though that could've been because of his worry that they would get caught.

Either way, the whole thing made Foxy think. Until the point when he couldn't think anymore.

"Stop fer a second," he said.

They were on the road leading to the highway and hadn't pulled off yet, but Jeremy still came to a stop, unconcerned with someone driving up on them. He turned to Foxy, who gently reached forward to turn his head and gently pressed his mouth to his cheek. Giving the soft skin a little nuzzle in his version of a kiss. It was just as effective, with Jeremy eagerly pressing back.

"Thank you for doing this. You're always so good to me," Foxy mumbled to his cheek.

"Hey, don't mention it," Jeremy said. Pink flushing across his cheeks either from the compliment or gesture, or likely both. "You're worth it. Besides, it gives Daisy and me a little one on one time!"

Daisy's little nod and giggle signaled that she agreed.

"Good. I just want you to know that I notice. Love you."

"Love you too," Jeremy assured. He turned to give him a kiss before they continued to drive back to Hurricane.

Foxy settled into the backseat and relaxed for the rest of the ride, watching the lights pass through the window. He always found the back of that car to be surprisingly soothing. Either that or the feeling that Jeremy had his back.

He still noticed when they took a turn that they didn't usually take. Going past one of the roads to the Pizzeria and in the direction of the domestic section of Hurricane. He felt a slow dread when he realized where they were going.

"Think you might've blown off course…" Foxy casually murmured.

"Nope! Just, uh. Just going to drop off Daisy at home and then we'll head over to the pizzeria."

Oh. Oh. Never mind, he was more than fine with that. He could use the company.

And it wasn't that he didn't want to see Michael. He loved Michael, Michael was his brother and he cared about him. He would rather him just not see him in his hoodie with his trash bags having just came back from a night with Freddy and son.

They pulled up outside the house and Jeremy ran in with Daisy in his arms to go get her settled in. He wasn't planning on staying long obviously, what with him leaving the car on and the door open. Foxy stayed reclined in the back, not daring to let his eyes close but willing to let his body relax. Letting his mind stir up the information he ingested that evening and make it more palatable.

A quiet knock came from somewhere nearby and Foxy jolted upright from his position. Though caught himself in the last second and hunched back down so he could carefully peek out. It didn't take him long to see the source of the noise.

Michael was standing at the kitchen window. The blinds rolled up and the lights off, leaving him only partially illuminated in the glow from the television in the next room over. He looked positively terrifying.

He lifted up a notepad to the window and Foxy had to squint- not because of the pitiful lighting, but because he had decided to write it in pencil. It didn't take him too long to make it out: "Call me."

Foxy groaned and rolled his head back. Michael tapped the window a little more firmly and gave him an unamused look. Finally, Foxy gave a more serious thumbs up, finally sating him. It was about time they caught up, he supposed.

Though between Michael and Freddy, Foxy was going to have to unplug the phone just to get some sleep.

Chapter 39

Chapter Summary

When something unexpected comes up, Clay has to call on an equally unexpected person for help.

It started out as a missing girl case. A possible runaway, not a supposed kidnapping. A call from a concerned grandfather that his granddaughter had seemingly vanished, and he couldn't get in contact with her. No calls, no note, no noticeable displacement of funds or removal of her belongings. She had just vanished supposedly, and the police were concerned but not too much so.

The girl fit the criteria for a runaway well. She was a high-school student, a loner who supposedly didn't have many friends. Talking to some of the students who knew her yielded that she had recently had a falling out with one of the few she did have. Some of the others confessed that she was bullied. Talking to her grandfather revealed that her parents had left her with him and went abroad, possibly due to monetary issues and a questionable tax history. It would make sense.

Because of that, the girl's case pretty much fizzled out by the second day. They were still calling around and gathering evidence, but attention to the case wasn't a high priority. Everyone involved assumed she would just show up one day.

Until her grandfather made an unexpected and alarming call to the police department with a new piece of information. One that made him increasingly concerned.

He noticed a smell in the garage.

A smell coming from an animatronic which he purchased at an auction not too long ago.

An animatronic that looked to be a Freddy Fazbear model.

That was when the case was handed to Clay Burke. As was every case involving animatronics, Freddy's, or mysterious circumstances in Hurricane, it was handed straight to the police chief. That was how he ended up on the possible crime scene just after dark, accompanied by two additional detectives: Detective Larson and Detective Mathews. Two men who had been partially involved with investigating situations like the Freddy's fire, the last one, and various sightings.

To describe in short details, Larson was a pale man with blond hair and blue eyes while Mathews was a dark-skinned man with ebony hair and brown eyes. Larson had more youthful features that he had to compensate for by keeping a tight face. Mathews looked older, possibly because of his goatee, but also friendlier. Both were in their thirties and married, but only Larson had kids, a son.

While the two weren't technically partners, Clay thought the two worked well together. He thought they both had potential and good heads on their shoulders.

The important part was that he knew they wouldn't talk unless it was absolutely necessary. Some things couldn't afford to get out, and this thing he saw in the backroom of this old man's house was one of them.

That was how Fritz Smith got involved.

The smell coming from the thing was musky but didn't have that smell. That didn't exactly alleviate Clay's concerns, but it did make getting the animatronic open their top priority. He assumed that someone who had experience with Freddy's would be able to deal with this delicate situation better than going in with harsher methods and risk something much worse.

Unfortunately…

"I can't help you."

In Clay's line of work, being able to keep a poker face was key. Unflinching, unwavering, straight to the point. After years of hearing lies and uncomfortable truths, this was the line that nearly broke that poker face.

"Why not?" he asked.

Fritz gave a defeated sort of shrug and gestured back to the door. "There's no way I'm qualified to work on that. You're going to need someone who's worked on an animatronic like this, like an Afton Robotics technician… Or the jaws of life."

"I take it from that wording that you know one?... Oh, for God's sake." There went the steely gaze as Clay caught on and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Yeah, you know what's coming," Fritz said, an amused smile popping up even with the situation. "The rabbit or the clown."

Clay dropped his hand and took in a deep breath. He stood there a few moments longer considering those options, with Fritz waiting with him while sending a brief weary look back at the door. They didn't really have time to waste.

What an impossible decision.

…

It was a rainy night. Not a gentle sprinkle either but a heavy downpour that clogged up the windshield. The wipers barely keeping it at bay even at their highest setting.

As though Scott wasn't already a nervous wreck as it was.

Ennard, in contrast, was whistling. Nearly buzzing in excitement and excitedly tapping his gloved fingers on the toolbox in his lap. He was sitting with his back to the passenger seat, still able to be seen by Scott but hopefully unable to be seen when they pulled up to the scene. He didn't seem anxious at all, but Scott knew he had to be. He just kept it together and buried it under the delight of what he was happening.

And that was that the police chief himself called upon him to open up an animatronic and see what was inside.

That alone got Scott's stomach knotted up.

"So, uh…" he began and trailed off.

"Yeeess?" Ennard drawled out playfully.

"We, uh… We might see something in there."

"Nothing we haven't seen before," Ennard said with a teasing wink. Scott's mouth tightened a little. "Oh, come on. You know I'm kidding!"

Both knew that even if he was, he wasn't wrong. Ennard set the toolbox beside him so he could kneel between and behind the seats.

"Y'know, you don't have to go in with me. I'm not gonna be upset if you have to sit this one out. You can always see a demonstration of my amazing technical skills when the police aren't involved!"

"I'm not exactly worried about me. I'm worried about the girl, sure, but I'm, uh… I'm also worried about you," Scott eventually got out. He glanced over and took a steadying breath. "Not just the obvious: you getting caught. If it turns out that Clay's right, when you open up that Freddy it's not going to be pretty… Oh wow. That sounded really bad… You get what I mean."

"I've gotcha, and yeah, there's a chance of that… but I'm ready for it! I can turn it off like that," Ennard said with a snap.

Scott could never be ready, but he swallowed that thought down and chose to address the second part, because he understood that 'it' wasn't the Freddy.

"I guess that's okay? As long as you deal with the feelings later, I mean. It's not like first responders can deal with gut feelings when they get on a scene. They focus on the work first, saving lives, and then process it later. Yeah, that's healthy."

"Who said anything about processing it later? I plan to let it sit there and stew for a while and then when I just it- POW! Let it all out with one big emotional explosion!"

"Ennard."

"Yeeess?"

"You shouldn't joke about things that might be doing in the next hour or two. You'll jinx me," Scott said. He tried to joke, but his stress and exhaustion leaked through. There was a brief pause and Scott glanced over again, seeing Ennard staring at him. "That was a joke. Don't worry about me, let me worry about you." There was a continuing, telling pause. "You can tell me you were joking now."

"…I wasn't," Ennard admitted sheepishly with that uncomfortable smile in his eyes. Scott looked over with confusion and concern. "What? I rather just get it all over at once!"

"Yeah, no. That's definitely not healthy," Scott said dryly. Still unsure if this was a long skit or if Ennard was being genuine. Usually, it wasn't this hard to tell. "My point is if something does, err, come of this I think it would be better if I was with you. I don't want you to be alone if you have to see that."

"Scott, I've seen a lot of gnarly stuff. One body-…" Ennard suddenly decided that whatever that sentence was, he didn't want to finish it. So, he tried something else. "Okay, let's make a deal. You come in and join me and if it gets too intense, like if the girl's not there and I start chowing down on Freddy's spaghetti, you can just walk out and I'm not gonna be upset. Deal?"

"Deal," Scott agreed. He squinted at a street sign. Even with his glasses he could barely read it, and he took a right turn down the road and towards the supposed house. "I don't know how you do it, Ennard. How you're holding it together. I'm almost a wreck and we haven't even gotten there."

"You know me! Prepare for the worst, hope for the best! And don't be shocked if I lose a body part or two," Ennard joked. This finally got a slight smile from Scott, likely because he knew he was joking. Ennard sidled a little closer, resting his arm over the back of his seat. "Hey, this is just a thought… but maybe you're feeling a little more antsy 'cause this is a little like your accident?" he asked. His voice slowly shifting from its typical tone to a gentle softness by the last part.

"Uh…" Scott hadn't even thought about that. He blinked in realization. "You might be onto something."

Ennard had a hunch but now with that confirmation he had to choose his words carefully. He reached around and gave Scott's arm an assuring rub, feeling how tense the muscles were through his sleeve.

"Maybe we've got this all wrong. She might be okay. Heck, she might not even be there! I don't think a teenager's gonna fit inside Funtime Freddy's chubby cubby."

"Maybe. Clay seemed to think so."

"Clay's got a stick lodged somewhere and no amount of bacon grease's gonna shake loose."

There was a life on the line and their own lives were at risk of being unveiled to the public and ruined, and somehow Ennard still managed to get a laugh of him. The stress and absurdity breaking his restraint. Ennard giggling alongside him.

"Ennard, that's terrible!" he said once he got it under control.

"I know," Ennard said with gleeful eyes.

"You know I'm going to be thinking of that when I'm talking to him."

"I know~."

For a few short seconds Scott had a lapse in the utter dread threatening to swallow him whole. Then he just happened to notice the amount of cars parked around a house in the distance, a couple being police cars without their emergency lights on, and suddenly it all came crashing back. They had arrived.

Ennard noticed too and slunk into the back, giving Scott's shoulder one final squeeze as he did.

As he pulled closer, Scott could see that Clay had taken some of his recommendations to heart. He had effectively used his and a few unmanned cars to block off parts of the driveway and view. There was only one car with people in it, a patrol car with its lights on and two people inside, but it was parked further away and past the other cars. The front door was also left open as well.

One of the suggestions that hadn't been taken, oddly enough, was that Scott suggested if there was a garage to leave it open and that he could just back up to it and let Ennard inside. There was a garage, but it wasn't opened. Scott gave a slight frown but decided to let it go considering that some effort was given. If Ennard was careful, he could get inside just fine.

Considering how frequently Ennard prowled the city without anyone getting concrete photos, he was sure he could be that careful.

Scott still backed up the van into the small remaining section of driveway until it nearly bumped the garage door. He turned the van off and took a deep breath, rubbing his hands on his thighs.

"Okay!" He clapped his hands together. "Going in. You just, uh, wait out here and I'll go scope it out. I'll come back and get you."

"You got it, Boss!" Ennard agreed. "Unless I get an opening to just slip on in."

"Well, there's four cars without anyone in them… So, don't expect that opening anytime soon. Yeah, stay put."

Scott got out of the car and into the pouring rain. He spared enough time to look around before jogging around the back of the van and promptly slipped on a slick spot and barely caught himself on the back bumper. His heart leapt and pounded in his chest as he got himself back up quickly. Much to his dismay, he looked up to the back window to see Ennard looking through with a concerned look. Scott gave him a thumbs up and carefully hurried to the front door.

Clay looked from the living room to the front door as Scott came staggering in, practically drenched in the short distance he had walked.

"There you are. I was getting worried with how bad it's coming down out there," Clay greeted. He offered his hand, Scott pushing his glasses into place before accepting it. "Thanks for coming down here. I take it he's out in the car?"

"Yes, and he's ready to go. I just wanted to come in and make sure you guys were ready for him," he replied.

"Believe me when I say that I will never be ready for him," Clay said, slightly exhaling through his nose. Scott could feel the tension and felt his nerves starting to work back up but ignored them as the man continued. "The girl's grandfather is waiting in a car outside and we have an ambulance on standby," Clay explained. They stopped outside the living room where two men stood inside talking. "That is Detective Larson and Detective Mathews. They will be observing."

"By observing you mean-?"

"They will be in here the entire time," Clay explained. He took a deep breath and added, "And they will have to see him."

"…What? Wait, no. That wasn't part of the plan," Scott immediately protested. "You- You said they were going to be outside. Outside. No witnesses."

"There's still going to be no witnesses. They have both been informed of the delicate nature of the situation… But Scott, my hands are tied. I alone can't report that nothing happened here or it's going to lead to trouble, to an investigation, and possibly to me losing my job. We're going to need others to be aware of the circumstances and to back up my claim, and both Larson and Mathews are the most trustworthy I've got… Except Dalton, but she's on maternity leave."

Scott was utterly petrified. This was the worst-case scenario in his opinion and even though he understood it, it was a breach of comfort that he had trouble accepting.

Damage control. He had to do swift and immediate damage control.

"Can I talk to them? Before Ennard comes in. I'll be quick, but uh, I need them to know exactly how serious this all is. Would you mind?" Scott asked.

Clay shook his head and gestured to the door. "Be my guest."

"Do you have a… a notebook or a notepad, or something?"

"There's one by the phone. Hang on." Clay retrieved a small notepad and a pen and handed it over. Scott flipped through the yellow pages until he got past any phone numbers or notes and to blank space.

Ge took a deep breath to brace himself and adjusted his glasses. He didn't even know where to begin, how to voice the sheer importance of this and how risky all of this was. Or better still, how to get them to listen. How to talk in a way where they would listen and understand the dire nature of what they were dealing with.

Which was, ironically enough, something he used to do at Freddy's on a daily basis. Back then he had to stress exactly whose neck was on the line in only a few short words- not counting the tapes but instead the face-to-face meetings. He had to channel that. If he was going to do this then he couldn't be Scott Caldwell 'the Phone Guy', he had to be Scott Caldwell 'the manager of a morgue with a bear's name on the sign'.

He braced himself again and then strode into the living room. In that moment, when the two detectives looked at him and reminded of him of the risk of either of them speaking, it was like the accident had never happened.

"Evening, detectives. Scott Caldwell, Fazbear Entertainment," Scott greeted and offered his hand. He shook each one, listening to them introduce themselves before jumping back in. "I'm going to need to see both of your IDs. It's standard protocol. Your driver's licenses should be fine."

While they seemed a little confused, they went along with it. Likely because Clay, standing back behind Scott, had nodded in agreement with him. Mathews handed his over first while Larson took longer to get out his. Scott took them one at a time and wrote down a few notes in the notepad.

Clay watched the scene play out. He didn't noticing something silently sidling up until he heard an unexpected squeak from directly behind him. He spun around and got an eyeful of Ennard caught in the process of sneaking up behind him.

Clay, who was usually unflappable, did noticeably flinch. That alone brought a smile to Ennard's face- most noticeable in his eyes.

"Ha ha, well look who it is! Nice to see you again, Buddy," the clown teased. He held a toolbox in one hand and used the other to adjust his bowtie ribbon. "Gosh, sorry I was so late. I had to get all suited up for such a special occasion."

"I don't know if I consider this an occasion worth celebrating, Ennard," Clay replied.

"Are you kidding?! Any time you have to call me for help is worth celebrating!" Ennard said smugly.

"Mm-hm." The man seemed entirely unphased. He glanced down at the heavy, partially rusty toolbox he was lugging with him. "I hope you brought everything you're going to need. I don't think normal tools will cut it."

"No problem! These are the tools I use to break into cars. They'll work like a charm!" the clown said with a wink.

"Ennard, please. This is serious."

"Yeah, I know, but I'm a clown."

Clay wasn't amused, he was just tired.

"Well, let's get this party started! Where d'ya need me?"

"In a minute. Scott's finishing up with them in there," Clay said, gesturing to the door.

Ennard leaned to glance through before popping back to avoid the sight of the detectives. Then he casually waited. Unlike what Clay expected, Ennard didn't continue rambling on endlessly, though he couldn't tell if that was out of genuine restraint or the sudden awareness that there were people in the other room. From how he got around, he knew he must've been capable of willing dead silence.

Clay grew tired of that silence quickly. "How's your eye?"

"Ouch," Ennard said. Recoiling like he was hurt, or more likely offended.

"That wasn't a crack, I'm serious. How's your eye doing?"

"It's dead," Ennard said flatly. He pointed at the yellow eye. "This is one of my spares." Clay glanced down at his suit. "…That's right. Those spares. They're not just for show."

"I figured as much," Clay replied. He did seem intrigued, which emboldened Ennard further.

"Speaking of spares, I don't know what you plan on doing with the bear after this, but how's about I take a few souvenirs? Just as long as I get the girl out in one piece and Freddy's not alive or anything. Not running hot."

"Ben, if you can get that girl out of that suit then not only are you free to anything inside and outside of that bear, but I'll pay for your drycleaning for the rest of my natural life," Clay swore. He wasn't exaggerating. If anything he was doing the opposite. Ennard could ask for anything and Clay would be hard-pressed to deny him, if he could just get this girl out alive.

Something Ennard might've pounced on if he hadn't frozen up on the spot. His mouth snapping shut as he stared at Clay for a few seconds.

Eventually he quietly, uncomfortably, asked, "…So, just out of curiosity. Who exactly gave you my name?"

"Scott. I called him after I got out of the hospital to fill in the blanks about what happened. I blacked out much of what happened that night, and I still don't know if it was all the medication they shot me up with or the… Anyway, he brought me up to speed on a lot of what I missed, including your real name. I'm sure he was thinking I would be coming after you and wanted to protect you by making you more human… but he didn't need to. I had my eyes opened that night. Or two or three days later when I finally came out of my stupor," Clay explained. Then not missing a beat, he added on, "I hope you know that I didn't intend for what happened that night. I wasn't right in the head."

"Hey, I get it! I watched Scott have to fight himself to keep from driving into a ditch, and he STILL drove into that ditch!" Ennard said, pulling it back together after the unexpected confession from Clay.

Who knew all it took to get Burke off his back and to lighten up was for him to need something. He was going to have to offer up his services more often.

Any retort Ennard had was cut off by Scott's voice inside the room and he quieted down to listen. He was surprised by the new attitude the usually timid man's voice had adopted.

"Thank you for your cooperation. I'm sure Chief Burke has already told you, but this entire situation? Completely confidential. This cannot get out to anyone. You should be aware that if any of this leaks there will be consequences, and now that we have both of your addresses on record we can follow through with those consequences."

Both of the detectives seemed startled by this sudden change in demeanor, and the possible suggestion of blackmail.

Unsure how to react, Mathews gave a rather disbelieving, "I'm sorry?"

"That is not a threat, but a reminder that what's about to happen here is beyond anything you can imagine and telling anyone about what you see could put numerous lives in danger. Including mine and both of yours. There are some things that the public cannot know about and if they do then whatever happens after that will be on your hands. Make the right decision. Remember, you are the protecting force of the citizens of Hurricane. All of them."

Scott's voice held a tone of authority that neither of the onlookers had witnessed before, leaving the detective somewhat impressed and the clown reasonably taken aback.

"Now that's a side I haven't seen," Ennard remarked. Clay noticed, much to his dismay to notice, that he sounded especially interested instead of off-put. "Where'd this come from?"

"They're going to have to see you."

Ennard's head snapped to Clay with an uncomfortable squeak as wires rubbed together and the clicking of his mask shifting from the motion before snapping back into place. He stared for a moment, then started to wind up for a boisterous laugh and a comical, "Are you joking?" only to lose the desire immediately afterwards. Because Clay was obviously not joking. No amount of clowning could soften that up.

"Oh, that's not going to work," Ennard mumbled. His voice dropping in tone, becoming more metallic and defensive.

"There's not a choice here. Not for either of us," Clay said with sympathy.

Ennard was preparing to put up a fight when he realized that Scott was coming back. Him switching from defensive to undeniably guilty once Scott spotted him and that look of cool professionalism swapped out to alarm.

"I thought you were going to wait in the car?" he whispered.

"I know, but I was fiddling around with the door, and would you believe it? It opened!" Ennard cracked. Scott made some kind of desperate hand gesture between them and Ennard shrugged with one arm.

All while Clay called to the two detectives, "If you two will come here for a moment."

Both Ennard and Scott got an instant look of panic. Scott lifting his hands almost protectively, as though preparing to either shield Ennard or shove him out the door and barely resisting both. Ennard wasn't nearly as controlled, and that look on the other's face sent him into an immediate panic.

"No!" The word left Ennard's mouth before he realized it was coming. Elsewise he wouldn't have let that demand slip out so harshly or so fearfully, or in that voice.

Clay reacted as expected, looking at him suddenly and stopping the detectives with a pausing motion with his finger before they could even start to come over. Scott got that same look of impending doom that he had gotten in the van.

Everyone was waiting for Ennard's next move and he could tell from both of those reactions that neither expected it to be good. Strangely enough, that snapped him to attention instead of the possibly armed men standing in the next room.

All things considered, he rolled with the punches pretty well, but he didn't like this situation one bit. It wasn't an accidental spotting on the street, it was two unknown individuals getting a good look at what he was against his wishes.

Ennard understood that there was a reason. Scott knew what it was, he was just nervous. Clay wasn't out to get him. There was a reason for all of this, and he wasn't some wild animal who couldn't be reasoned with. He wasn't a monster, he wasn't even a clown, he was just a concerned citizen stepping in to maybe save a life.

So, he wasn't going to fight this.

Though he would be damned if he didn't try to stall as long as humanly possible

He regained his voice and threw up a hand. "Okay, okay, fine! I can handle it. At least let me see the beast I'm working on before they get to see the circus freak working on it," he said, dropping that hand onto his hip.

Scott didn't expect him to reel it in and was noticeably relieved. He wasn't the only one.

"That's fine. It's right through there," Clay said. He pointed towards a door that, due to its location, likely led into the garage.

That suddenly answered Scott's question to why he hadn't left it open for them. As Ennard started to the door, he hurried behind him, resting an assuring hand on his back and rubbing in little circles. The door opened and he felt the wires of his back tense through the jacket even before he saw what Ennard was looking at.

It was indeed a Funtime Freddy. What Clay had failed to say was that it was huge, at least twice the size to a normal one. It might've been seven or eight feet tall if standing, but instead it was sat to the ground with its legs sticking out before it. Its head was normal Freddy sized, but its belly was surprisingly bulbous and round. An adult human could've probably fit inside, but they definitely would be cramped.

"What- WHAT IS THIS?!" Ennard blurted out. He set down the toolbox and dramatically gestured his arms at the bear. "Look at this thing! It's built like a walk-in freezer!"

"Yeah, I think I would've remembered you telling me that Funtime Freddy was, uh… super-sized."

"This thing could've EATEN the Funtime Freddy I knew!" Ennard exaggerated. That aside, he did look genuinely thrown off.

Scott said the first thing that come to mind: "Just a… family sized bucket of chicken."

Ennard didn't even laugh, he just did a double take and was too confused to do anything but continue focusing on the bear.

He took a cautious step towards it, holding his hand out to catch Scott and push him back- which he didn't have to do since Scott stood in place- and got a closer look. It didn't attack him, so he stepped in further for a closer examination.

While its size was off-putting, it looked almost exactly like a typical Funtime Freddy. Its coloring was faded and its metal dull, thick with grime and dust in the cracks of its plates, and while all its parts looked intact its eyes were strange. A closer inspection showed that they were somehow rolled back into their sockets, blocking the eyeholes with their own wiring.

Ennard pulled off a glove and felt the side of the bear's arm. It was warm to the touch but not blisteringly hot. So, it wasn't another scarecrow Baby situation. He knocked on the bear's belly, tapped around, and then gave a firm knock.

"Something's in there," he said definitively. He drew back from the bear and stepped back to Scott, clasping his hands and rubbing them together. "Okay, time to crack this bad boy open!" His pupils shrunk as his hands tightened together. "Ha ha, gosh I really, REALLY hope I don't set something off and kill her!" he said tightly.

While startled by the bluntness, Scott recovered quickly, because he could tell Ennard was starting to get nervous. Perhaps because he was sure that 'something' was the girl, a nerve-wracking thought.

He put on a tone of confidence. "Big or not it's just a Funtime Freddy. You've worked on them, you know the ins and outs of them, you've got this."

Ennard have a half-chuckle. "That was cute… Really?"

"Sure! You're the best qualified. You're… You're the only one who could do this, Ennard. And I mean that," Scott said a little more honestly. "I don't think there's anyone alive today more qualified than you."

"Aww, that's really sweet in a dark way."

"Err, that's, uh, that's not what I meant."

"I get it!" Ennard assured. He leaned in and scooped Scott into an assuring- desperately clinging- hug. "And you know what? If you believe in me that much then, well… I gotta try, right? I'm the last chance- Burke wouldn'ta called me if I wasn't!"

"Right," Scott agreed. He returned the hug, patting down his back and trying to comfort him the best he could. He couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt at getting him wrapped up in this, but a life was on the line… hopefully.

Ennard ruffled his face into Scott's hair, squeezed a little tighter, and then finally released him.

"Okay!" he announced, clapping his hands together once more. "Let's crack 'em open!"

Ennard picked his toolbox back up and set it down between the big animatronic and a shelf against the wall. He opened it but before taking his tools out he instead removed his other glove and shoved both of them in his jacket pockets, then removed and folded up his jacket neatly, setting it on the bottom level of the shelf right to his left.

While he did this, Scott stood behind him and looked at the memorabilia on the shelves above that one. There wasn't a whole lot of stuff that was Freddy's related. In fact, a lot of it was just junk that might've or might not have any significant value. There was a few pieces of Freddy's merch though. One was an old diner-styled plastic wall clock that used to be sold at the Prize Corners in certain locations. There was also a pizza slice wall decoration that was faded from years of use.

But what held the most value and took his attention the most was on the shelf below them. Right beside a plastic replica of Chica's cupcake laid sat what was clearly an animatronic. A small one, a familiar one.

"Hey, Ennard. Look at this," Scott said. He cautiously touched it and, when it didn't move, he picked it up around the waist. Ennard turned back in time for Scott to show it to him. "This is one of those Bonnie hand puppets, right?"

Ennard looked back and his eyes widened at the sight of the animatronic Bonnie 'hand puppet' that was usually attached to a Funtime Freddy. It looked just like the one from Afton's and was in pristine condition, just pink instead of blue.

"Hey, it's Bon-Bon! Now that's pretty neat. I didn't know they came in this color," Ennard gushed. He took the rabbit and turned it towards him. "And it's in great condition too!... Huh…" He looked back at the Funtime Freddy, specifically its present hands and its thick wrists. "It couldn't have gone with this one."

"They were probably auctioned together in a lot. You know, someone can say they're selling a full Funtime Freddy set with Bonnie included even if they technically don't go together," Scott suggested. "She's pretty cute. Is she, uh…?"

"Oh, I've got no idea- but I bet you're right! You usually are," Ennard remarked. He hummed as he turned her over to look at its underside and then poked around at its belly. He managed to open it up rather easily and looked around its insides before closing it up. Then gave it a playful tap on the nose.

Its arms shot up to cover its nose in response.

The room was very quiet. Scott surprised and Ennard silently staring at the rabbit in his hands. Then he slowly reached up and pushed the arms back down one at a time, then pressed the button again. The arms shot up once more.

"Aww, now that's really cute," Ennard cooed. He carefully set it back on the shelf where Scott had gotten it. "There you go, lil guy. You can keep us company."

As expected, Bon-Bon did not respond.

"Now let's get that stomach hatch open…" Ennard stepped over Funtime Freddy's leg and stood between them facing the bear. He rubbed at the dust beneath the bear's right cheek before finding what he was looking for. "Bingo."

He pressed something there, then under the under cheek, then twice in separate spots between the eyes, all in quick succession. Nothing happened and he hummed thoughtfully, then felt over the spot again. He tried to scrape at it a little.

"I've got a business card in my toolbox. Would you hand it to me?" Ennard asked.

Scott agreed, crouched beside the box, and quickly found the dull card pressed up against the side. He handed it over to Ennard before readjusting himself to sit in a more comfortable position, ready and willing to help out, even if all he could do was hand over tools. He found a comfortable position with his legs crossed and his back to but not leaning against the shelf.

Ennard tried to use the business card to unstick the nearly invisible button on Funtime Freddy's face. Alas, it was too thick to fit. The button was so flush that pretty much nothing else would fit.

"Oookay, plan B." Ennard tossed the card back into the box without even looking. "Couldja hand me one of my flatheads, please?... Yeah, that one! Perfect!"

Scott handed over the yellow handled tool and Ennard tried to slip it in between the facial panels between the eyes. It was a tight squeeze. On the outside, the separation between the plates looked clear and defined, but either they gathered gunk in between them, or they were simply set too closely to work with. Ennard tried breaking into the facial plates from a few angles, and with a few different tools. Under the chin, around the eyes, around the cheeks; nothing worked.

With his options slim, Ennard tossed his most recent tool back into the box and sighed.

"Looks like I'm gonna have to get hands on… or in this case-." He nudged his thumbs into the sides of the bear's mouth and applied enough pressure to tug it open. "Hands in."

"You're not actually going to stick your hands inside though, right?" Scott asked.

"Nah, just one. Just far enough in that I can try to reach up and see if I can release the faceplates from inside," Ennard answered.

"…I know you're the expert here, but I don't know if that's such a good idea," Scott continued with an uneased look. "Shoving your hand and arms into places that, uh… have a history of crunching down on anything shoved into them."

"In most cases you'd be right, but I'm a special case. I'm built to be on the inside," the clown joked. He managed to get the mouth open almost all the way. "Alright, down the hatch!" he said before sliding inside.

This was when he noticed a distinct difference between this and a normal Funtime Freddy. Weirdly, this large Freddy felt surprisingly hollow, and he wondered if he was feeling straight through into the upper portion of the stomach hatch. Though if that was the case then said hatch nearly took up all of his body.

A small tremor shook the bear's jaw. Ennard felt and started to carefully draw back his hand, but only made it halfway before the mouth suddenly reset into place. Effectively chomping down on his wrist and trapping his hand inside.

Well, that wasn't good. It wasn't as bad as it would've been if he was human, but the pressure on his wrist was tight and uncomfortable. Ennard winced at the sudden pressure and slowly looked over to see if Scott had noticed.

From the look on his face, Scott did indeed notice. The two exchanged a long stare; Scott waiting for the assumed pain to hit and Ennard waiting for the panic to set in.

Scott caved first. "…Are you okay?" he finally asked. He was trying his hardest to keep a neutral tone.

"Me? Sure! You'd be surprised how often you get bit in this line of work, heh," Ennard tried to brush off. It was hard to do so with the pressure steadily increasing on his trapped hand. "…Could you hand me the pry bar?"

"Wait, there's a pry bar? Why didn't we start with that?" Scott asked. He began to fumble through the box, hands clumsy with nervousness, and got his answer when he found said pry bar. It was nearly a quarter inch thick and nowhere near thin enough to fit into a tight space, let alone in between the crusty panels. "Do you want me to…?"

"Nah! I got it covered!" Ennard assured. He was way too embarrassed to accept any more help than this and hoping that freeing his trapped hand easily would alleviate some of it. Scott reached to hand off the pry bar before sitting back down.

He must've bumped the shelf without feeling it because while he was watching Ennard he suddenly felt something fall onto him. Already so on-guard because of the giant bear in the room, he jumped aside onto his knee and the object continued its journey to the floor with a clatter. It was none other than the pink Bonnie.

Ennard had just pried up the mouth when the scuffle happened and pulled his hand free right as his head snapped over. He quickly realized that it was nothing serious.

"You okay?" he still asked.

"Yeah, I just must've bumped the shelf or something," Scott excused.

"That bad bunny hop on you?" Ennard asked playfully, leaning in as he stepped over Funtime Freddy's leg and then crouched down beside the tiny animatronic. He carefully picked it up and dusted it off. "You okay, little guy? Took a little spill?"

The rabbit didn't respond and Ennard did a quick once-over to make sure it was alright. Scott found this rather peculiar- did he think it was alive? He didn't tend to treat random animatronics like this, so he must've.

"All good!" Ennard chirped. He tapped its nose, though not hard enough to set off any squeak or arm reflex. He then placed it into Scott's arm. "Keep an eye on this one. They're ready to jump ship."

"Sure. As long as I keep one on you, I can spare the other," Scott replied. Ennard gave a contented little rumble in his chest and slowly leaned over him, purposefully leaning over him, to start digging through his toolbox.

After a few seconds of digging, the clown gave a discontent hum. He pushed a few things around, continuing to search, stopped to think, and then finally smacked a hand to his forehead. With a groan he dragged it down his face and let it drop.

"You know that tool I've got that's flat with a hook? Kind of looks like those things painter's use? I think… I might've left it at home," Ennard admitted with defeat.

"Should I run home and get it?" Scott offered. He didn't really want to leave Ennard alone in here, but if that was a necessary tool, which it sounded like it was, then it was best if he just went ahead and got it. Maybe Clay would stay with him.

"No, I don't want you driving around in this… Tell you what, this house is FULL of junk. There's boxes and stuff all out in the hall. Go get Clay to get his little sidekicks to poke around and see if they can find something like a hook or like a thin metal… Something. Something I can use to hook these plates and give a good yank."

"Consider it done," Scott agreed a little more confidently, preferring this option more. He offered his hand and Ennard eagerly and easily pulled him to his feet. Scott set Bonnie carefully back on the shelf, patting its motionless head just in case Ennard was onto something, and straightened up his clothing to be more presentable. "Don't go sticking your hands in there until I get back!"

"Ha ha, I'll try not to!" Ennard answered. He watched Scott step out and finally let his shoulders slump. To know he was coming here to open up an animatronic and still forget a tool that valuable; that was a rookie mistake.

"Finally! I can't stand those fidgety types; they never loosen up!"

Ennard went rigid as he heard a very familiar voice. One that did not belong to him but frequently came from his mouth.

One that, in hindsight, he didn't remember as well as he thought because the pitch seemed a tad shriller than he remembered. Or perhaps just knowing where it was coming from was what gave him the feeling of nails dragging down his back.

He heard the sound of movement and turned slowly to see Funtime Freddy's eyes rolling forward to reveal a very alert gaze. Those eyes snapped to him and he knew immediately that he was dealing with a live one.

"Well, you're not what I expected," Funtime Freddy said as the looked over the amalgam before him. "You've got a real nice voice. Sounds pretty familiar…"

Ennard didn't buy that friendly tone for a second, not from a Funtime animatronic, but he played along.

"I bummed it off a guy I shared a furnace with. Looked a lot like you!" he answered.

"Looks like he really left an impression on you," the bear remarked. His eyes dancing over his exposed arms and masked face. "So, you're the technician they hired? Gee, you guys sure wear funny clothes these days."

"I find technician coveralls unbearable. They just don't do it for me. This? This is a statement, and you gotta make one when you've got such big shoes to fill," Ennard remarked. He casually- anxiously- adjusted his bow. "But don't let my appearance fool you. I'm the best technician in Utah."

"Ooo, well then, it's a good thing you're here! I have a real big problem and I just don't know what to do!"

"Lemme guess. You're stuck in a geezer's garage."

"Well, that is a problem too, but not my problem…" Funtime Freddy's voice dipped in a sinister way. "But that's not it! I don't know how to cook my potato and it's eating me up inside!"

"What does that mean?" Ennard asked in confusion.

"You knooow, a potato! A little potato all waiting to be served up. But how should I cook it? Should I… boil it?"

Something rumbled along the wall of his belly. Just from the sound alone Ennard could tell it was water being pumped through a partially clogged tubing.

"I could… bake it."

Then there came a humming, the sound of a heater slowly kicking on before popping off right afterwards.

"Or I could… dice it. Or fry it. Or mash it. Or CRUSH it. Or peel it and slice it up into little wedges! Or I could get it allll dried out until all the skin flakes right off!" Funtime Freddy gushed. There was a cruel edge to is voice that tipped off that he wasn't talking about food at all. "There's so many ways to do it! So many possibilities- I can't decide!"

Ennard stared for a long moment, then he cracked up laughing. Laughing heartily and with no sincerity while waggling a finger at the bear.

"You better not be talking about that girl!" he playfully scolded. Then his voice dropped just like, and much further than, Freddy's own. "Because if you are, I'm gonna have to gut you and eat you."

"Now you're speaking my language! And in my own voice, classy!" Funtime Freddy said unswayed. "You're a real hoot, ya know that? A lot more fun than this spud in here. Tell ya what, I'm gonna let you in on the fun. I'm gonna let you choose how this ends."

The way he said that with such sadistic joy almost set Ennard off. His chest compressed and his wires tightened, and he couldn't tell if he was preparing to reject them or just throw himself on Freddy and claw out his eyes. Ennard managed to calm himself down, keeping on the façade of cordialness with only slight unease. To keep the bear from getting suspicious.

"I don't think you're gonna like my ending, but maybe we can cut a deal. You let that girl out and I'll get you out of this garage. Whaddya say? We both win," Ennard offered. He had to pretend really hard to act like that promise didn't have a dark double meaning behind it.

"Sorry, but we're kinda in the middle of something here. Come back in about, mmm, twelve hours! Then I'll let you have her," he suggested. Ennard clenched his sharp teeth tight to hold his tongue. "…Unless you want to speed things up."

"And that means?" Ennard asked through his teeth.

"They don't know she's still alive. It's not like they'd blame you if there was an… unfortunate accident," Funtime Freddy said quietly and gleefully. "And believe me, I can make it look like an accident."

"You know I got hired to come down here and get her out in one piece. I think I'm being pretty nice in offering to let you off easy when those guys out there are planning on calling the fire department to cut you open," Ennard said, barely restraining that bubbling anger.

"They are?! Oh ho, that's too good! I'm gonna love seeing the looks on their faces when they cut into me and accidentally cut right into her! Ha, then what? They're gonna stick me in a warehouse for a bajillion years until someone forgets what I'm there for, auctions me off, and I wind up in the house of another stupid person who doesn't watch their kids. Circle of life! And death."

He said that like it had happened before. That was a terrible thought.

"Besides, this is what she wanted! She crawled in on her own, you know. All I did was shut the door behind her."

"That doesn't mean she wanted to be stuck in there! You're so full of it she was probably trying to find the source of the smell," Ennard spat.

"Now hold on, you didn't let me finish," Funtime Freddy tutted. "She was such a downer. Always dark and gloomy, and talking about death. She dressed like she was going to a funeral, and she acted like something crawled in HER and died!"

"Yeah, that's what teenagers do! That's not-… Was?" Ennard blinked and lost his focus. "Was?"

"She isn't talking much anymore!" the bear gushed. Before the clown could react, he clarified, "I guess her mouth's all dried out from being in there so long. But that was no good! What's the point of having her sit in there and not be able to hear her speak and plead? So, I dribbled a little water in down my side and watched her lick my walls trying to get some. I don't even know how long that water's been in my tank! Not that it mattered. She cried it all out later."

Ennard was about to lose it. His hands began to crackle and Funtime Freddy's eye rolled down to see.

"Oh, you don't want to do that. I don't think the poor thing could take a shock."

"You're disgusting," Ennard said in a particularly cheery voice. "And I think you're full of it again. I think- I think I could prob- probably fry your circuits without touching her! Should we test that out? Because I would really love to."

But before he could do anything, there were suddenly footsteps right outside the door. Funtime Freddy fell silent and rolled his eyes back into his head again while Ennard stood there with his hands shaking and fingertips sparking. He looked back to see Scott slowly walking back into the room. From the look they exchanged alone he realized, with both relief and remorse, that he heard the entire thing.

Scott turned his attention to the bear and steeled his nerves.

"There's no point in hiding. I already heard everything you said," he said, returning to the more forceful tone.

Funtime Freddy rolled its eyes back out to stare at him, and Scott resisted the uneasy shiver that wanted to go through his body.

"Well, well! Look who grew a backbone while they were gone. Heh, or is that just 'cause you're hiding behind this big guy?" the bear asked, his eyes darting over to acknowledge Ennard.

Scott purposefully ignored that. "It's in your best interest to take his offer. Hand over the girl and you can go back to your warehouse. Don't and we will be forced to take more drastic measures…" he threatened. His words slow and methodical to keep from stuttering or showing any weakness.

"Oh?"

"Drastic measures being deconstruction and then melted in our furnace."

"A quick dismember and flambé! Now we're speaking YOUR language!" Ennard mocked.

"Fazbear Entertainment is a family company that puts the safety of our patrons, our employees, and our profits above all else. You're not needed anymore."

"Aww, that's not nice!" Funtime Freddy scolded. "What would Gramps think when he found out what you did to his dreadful little granddaughter? That would be her life on your hands, not mine!" He looked between them excitedly. "But don't be mistaken, her life is very much in my hands now. She handed it right over."

"You're saying she willingly got in you to let you kill her," Scott said dubiously.

"Yup! Or, well, it was more a happy accident. Seee, she's all into this death stuff and would you know it, I was built for that kinda stuff! She climbs in and gets exactly what she wanted."

"Ennard's right, you're full of it," Scott snapped. His voice a little shakier but now propelled by anger. "Let us talk to her. She can tell us if she wants to die."

"That's not her say anymore…" Funtime Freddy said lowly. His voice becoming hostile and possessive, then instantly brightening back up. "Hey, I gave her the option of a quick go! She was the one who decided to make it all difficult."

In the first moment of actual movement since he started talking- and not counting when he purposefully bit down on Ennard's hand- Funtime Freddy turned his head slightly in the clown's direction. His eyes locking onto him.

"I think you're gonna get a kick out of this one. I know your kinda humor," he started. "Since she was so kind as to climb in on her own, I thought she deserved a treat. I asked her how she wanted her potato cooked and give her the full menu of humane ways to give her the nice dirt nap she's been dying for. I mention the boiling and the crushing and smooshing. Heck, I even offered to give her a nice shock! Can you guess what she chose?"

Ennard did not answer.

"To starve?" Scott guessed. It rolling on his tongue and down into his stomach like a ball of lead.

"Heh, nope! She decides… decapitation! Yeah, she wants me to really lop her head off! A real blood geyser!"

Scott's face blanched and Ennard's mouth partially dropped open. Funtime Freddy looked between their reactions before crackling with laughter.

"Oh, the looks on your faces! Oh, I really, really wish it would've worked. I would've LOVED to see you two's reaction to her head rolling out!" he gushed. Then he sobered up with a disappointed huff. "Hmph, but it turns out she was just joshing me! Trying to pull a fast one on me! I line everything up and give a quick swipe, and in the last second she DUCKS! She dodged it! She RUINED it! Well, I wasn't going to take that sitting down! Heh, or maybe I was."

A wicked edge took his voice. "You wouldn't believe the look on her face when I told her she had to choose again. That she wasn't getting out of it that easy and that I wasn't falling for it twice. It was priceless! Better than both of yours combined! I really, really thought she was gonna try it a second time... But then she takes the coward's way out and chooses to sit there until she dries out. What a sore loser!" he finished with disappointment.

Ennard made a slight gulping noise and Scott glanced over to notice that the clown had his fist to his mouth. His chest seemed to be heaving a little under his shirt too. Since he couldn't breathe, Scott recognized what was happening as him trying to resist a wire rejection. He reached out to put a hand on his arm, trying to assure him without giving the bear in front of them anymore ammo.

"But she's a lot more fun than the other ones were. I didn't think about this whole 'let 'em choose their own way out' thing so I just let them cry and scream, and then did whatever came next in my primary command index."

That was the moment everything changed. That was the second when the situation became something much worse.

Scott froze up while Ennard's heaving chest suddenly halted and his fist slowly lowered. Both were remarkably silent considering the situation. Funtime Freddy had not stopped talking.

"You win some, you lose some. The important thing is to learn from your mistakes, and oh boy, have I learned."

Ennard turned away and walked out of Scott's grasp and into the corner, or as far as he could go into the corner before he was blocked by the stuff occupying it. It was hard to imagine what he was going through when Scott himself was having trouble handling this. Angry and anxious, he faced Funtime Freddy once more.

"You know- You know what? Let's talk about what we're going to do with you. L-Let's see how you like it," Scott challenged.

"Ooo, l-l-let's," Funtime Freddy mocked.

"Well, obviously we can just deconstruct you. Or we could dump you into the bottom of a lake, let you rust down there forever. We could bury you, fill you up with dirt, and leave you there. And you wouldn't die, right? So you'd just sit there awake, forgotten, under dirt or water. Possibly with no arms and legs. Totally useless and trapped alone with your thoughts. We don't have to burn you, but you're not going back to a warehouse."

"Uh huh. Uh huh. What else? Are you gonna do to me whatever you did to him?"

Ennard stared at that corner looking for something, anything, and then he found it. He discreetly started to push things aside until he could wrap his fingers around a wooden handle.

"I don't want to hear another word out of you," Scott hissed. "Now you listen to me, because this is your final offer."

"No more offers."

Scott barely acknowledged the change in voice before Ennard smoothly stepped by and swung down a shovel into the center of Funtime Freddy's belly. It stabbed in between the plates underneath his speaker. Ennard brought all his weight down and he felt the shovel hit something metal. Then he threw all his weight on the handle and began to pry with all his might.

Slowly the panels started to be lifted, the shovel sliding deeper underneath them.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Funtime Freddy tasked. This only spurred Ennard on more as he shoved harder. There was a low creaking from the metal. "You're making a biiig mistake, buddy boy! Big, BIG mistake!"

Ennard tried to replies and wires almost came up. He clenched his teeth and pushed harder, unwilling to falter for even a moment.

"For a clown you sure aren't a lot of fun," Funtime Freddy remarked. "Ha ha, then again, I guess you aren't a clown! You're just a hunk of guts. 'Bout as smart as 'em too."

Ennard tightened his grip and gave a harsh shove.

Then there was a loud CRACK.

Before Ennard fell forward and ran right into the wall of the garage, falling half onto his own toolbox in the process. He realized what happened even before noticing how light the handle was in his hand.

The shovel had broken. The head still lodged into Funtime Freddy's belly and the handle broken as low as it could. Ennard stumbled back in front of him and beside Scott, now looking much less composed. A few of his wires were sticking out and his hands were shaking, giving him the illusion of being one twitch away from totally snapping. He wasn't what Scott was worried about though. Scott was much more concerned with the now silent bear.

Funtime Freddy's eyes slowly rolled down to look at the shovel jutting out of his belly. Then they suddenly snapped back up.

"Looks like that didn't work. Big shock."

It looked like it hadn't.

"But you know what? That gives me an idea."

Both Scott and Ennard had an ominous feeling about where this was going.

"I've got this attachment thingy that looks kinda like a shovel. Kind of like a spade. Well, not really, but good enough," Funtime Freddy said. He could've had a sparkle in his eye from the inspiration on his voice. "I'm going to skewer my little potato right through the belly while you two watch! See, she can't really react all too much. She can't cry and plead- but you two can! Oh, I canNOT wait to see the looks you get when she starts drip, drip, dripping of me!"

For a second Ennard might've thought he was bluffing, but then he heard the mechanical groan of movement inside of Funtime Freddy. He began to panic just as quickly as Scott did, who could hear the noises too.

"This is great! And the best part's that once she's gone, she's no use to me. So, you can have her. A real win-win!" Funtime Freddy gushed. "Just getting things lined up. Would ya like me to open my mouth so you'll be able to hear her scream? If she can scream- no guarantees."

"Wait, no! We can still work something out!" Scott attempted to reason.

Funtime Freddy ignored him and rattled around a little before opening his mouth wide. "Are you two ready for the show of a lifetime? Eh heh ha ha! Let's start the countdown. Ten… nine… eight…

"WAIT, WAIT, STOP! DON'T DO IT! I'LL CLIMB IN! I'LL TAKE HER PLACE JUSTLETHERGO!" Scott blurted out. He was bluffing, saying the first thing he could think of to buy time.

Ennard did not take that offer well.

Funtime Freddy only made it to three before Ennard lunged at him, and what followed next was something beyond description.

Ennard wrestled the bear in his grasp and twisted at his neck as though intending to snap it, or at least subdue it. Funtime Freddy managed to raise one of his arms and smack at the clown, but his limb was stiff and squeaked terribly as he moved. The fight would've been borderline comical in any other situation.

Until Ennard got the upper hand and forced back his head. He stared down into those cold blue eyes and gaping mouth-

-and heaved his internal wires out of his mouth and into Funtime Freddy's own.

Scott could only stare as Ennard's own metal guts entered into Funtime Freddy's husk, expecting the mouth to snap shut on them. Except that it couldn't, Ennard kept it forced open as his fingers dug in underneath his chin. Funtime Freddy yanked his head back with an aggressive shriek, somewhere between a wild animal and a mechanical monster's, but there was no escape. There were too many wires, and Ennard unraveled to provide more.

One of Funtime Freddy's rolled back eyes popped out, dangling by its own wires as a mass of wires was pushed into the tight space. Scott wasn't sure why his own eyes fixated on that spot, but he couldn't look away.

The shrieks suddenly changed to a dialing noise, a popping and scrambling 'error' sort of noise filtering out of the bear's speaker, and Ennard's fingers dug in tightly under the bear's head and around his neck. He leaned in closer, heaving- but not to reject more wires. Instead, it was sort of a reverse motion, as though trying to gulp the wires back into his body. Likely to keep from getting emaciated enough to reveal his endoskeleton.

He slid and swallowed more of them back down. A slow motion, cautious and patient, until the wires were pulled slightly taunt. Then in one sharp motion, one sudden flourish, Ennard shoved forward and twisted the bear's head and off it came. It was still connected by his own wiring until Ennard turned and threw it to the floor behind him, dislodging his wires and jerking them free of the motionless head.

Ennard caught sight of something as he did this and looked up to see Scott gawking and Clay and Detective Larson standing in the doorway behind him. The amalgam froze up, mind reeling in panic at the realization of being spotted.

He felt like a cornered animal and the way they were looking at them fit the bill well. Wires were still hanging through his teeth, still heaving with his pupils dilated, and him having no idea when they came up and how much they saw.

So, as he tended to do when in immediate danger, he yanked back up that clown façade and hid behind it like a riot shield.

"What? Never seen a clown empty his guts into a trash can?" Ennard called over the constant drone of Funtime Freddy's discombobulated noises. "Show's over! Keep moving!"

Larson was just startled enough to actually go ahead and walk away from the door. Clay gave a nod, looking surprisingly flustered himself, and stepped aside. Aside, not away. He was still outside the door and Ennard knew it.

Now it was just him and Scott, who looked shaken as well. Ennard suddenly became self-conscious and quickly began to shovel his wires back in hand over fist. Scott pulled his eyes off of Funtime Freddy's head to see what he was doing and quickly stepped in to stop him.

"Hey, whoa. Don't do that." He grabbed Ennard's wrists to stop him. Then he gathered up the wires and started to gently guide them back in. "Just like last time. Go in slow and they don't come back out."

His hands were shaking, not out of fear but instead from leftover adrenaline. He looked up but Ennard kept his eyes down, unable to make eye contact. Scott took a deep breath to calm down his own heartbeat and continued.

"Almost there… And there we go," Scott assured. The last of the wires were dragged past Ennard's teeth and he could hear the sound of them sliding together through his shirt. "Are you okay?"

Ennard nodded awkwardly and slowly reached for him before pulling him into a cautious hug. Scott eagerly returned it, rubbing over his back both to comfort him and to make sure the wires were aligning right despite the frenzied reentry.

"It's fine. You did what you had to. I… I would've done the same thing. I mean, if I could," Scott assured. Ennard hummed into his hair. "It's all over. Or, well, kind of over… Wait, no- Ennard, the girl!"

"Oh cripes! I forgot all about her!" Ennard cried. He quickly pulled back and hustled back to the bear's headless body, reaching down into the open neck. "Make sure one of us warns Burke that he's just deactivated not dead."

Scott's briefly quelled dread doubled down once more. "He's not…?"

"Don't sound so disappointed," Ennard quipped. "But no, this is just a setback. If someone puts his head back on right, he'll be right back in working order."

"That's not going to happen," Clay said, having stepped back into the doorway.

"You better make sure it doesn't! You heard him yourself, if he gets the chance he's going to kill again," Ennard warned.

Scott and Clay stared at the scene of the clown reaching around the bear's neck in an uncomfortable silence, only broken once the former turned to the latter and asked, "So you heard most of that?" Clay nodded. "…Good to know."

There was a loud creaking noise before the stomach hatch finally popped open. Ennard gave a triumphant cry before kneeling down, holding up a hand at the others before they could come up. "Stay back! Let me see."

He opened the hatch and looked inside.

There she was. The teenage girl they were looking for was inside of Funtime Freddy's oversized stomach hatch, and she was looking terrible. She was alive and conscious, looking at Ennard with wide glassy eyes that were sunken in their sockets. There was a little dried blood on her cheek, likely a result of her severely chapped lips. Even though she was technically sitting up, she was slumped against the back wall of the hatch.

Her pale skin against her black hair and dark clothes gave her an almost ghostly appearance, but that look in her eyes made her very human. It made her look less like a teenager and more like a terrified child.

"Hey there," Ennard called In gently. Purposefully making his voice quieter and lower as to not scare her, and to make it sound less like the voice of the monster who trapped her inside itself. He began to slowly come in.

She moved a little and began to pant a little harder. She made repeated motions with her mouth like she was either trying to talk or trying to swallow, but it wasn't going anywhere.

"It's okay. I'm just here to get you out, okay? I know I look scary, but that's just because I'm a clown," Ennard said. He reached for her and she got enough of a second wind to raise her arm as though shielding herself. "Okay, okay. I won't touch you. Can you come out? I'll move back, you just come out on your own," he coaxed. He leaned back into the hatch.

The girl moved very slowly as she tried to push herself forward, but then proceeded to insistently sway and buckle under a wave of dizziness. Ennard reached for her and though she tried to shirk him off, or maybe she was just trying to move in general, he pulled her into her arms. She felt so light, but it was clear that starvation was the least of her concerns. She was severely dehydrated and though she was awake she seemed out of it.

"Oookay, I'm just gonna pull you out now," Ennard said. Scott and Clay were both standing over him as he pulled her out into his lap. "There you go! All good."

Clay swore under his breath and promptly got out his cellphone. "I'm calling for the ambulance," he warned.

"Then I'm just gonna carry her out to the living room. I don't want them seeing this thing," Ennard remarked, gesturing his head towards the bear.

Clay seemed to agree. He nodded and reminded, "Be very careful with her."

Ennard resisted the urge to crack a joke because he didn't really feel like it. Instead, he readjusted her in his grasp and slowly stood up. Scott spotted him the whole time, shoving back Funtime Freddy's leg with his foot and escorting him out.

The girl had gone limp in his arms with her head resting against his shoulder. Likely not out of relief or acceptance, but because she was simply to weak to stay upright. She said something as he carried her down the hallway, but her voice was too hoarse for him to garner what it was.

"Lemme just say, I love your hair. And I'm not just saying that 'cause it's in my mouth," Ennard complimented. "Don't worry about a thing, Sweetie. Compared to that psycho the hospital's gonna be a breeze."

Larson and Mathews were both in the living room when Scott and then Ennard walked in. While Larson had forewarned Mathews of what he had seen, that didn't stop the man's eyes from nearly popping out of his head. Scott acknowledged them with a knowing look and straightened his posture back up, folding his arms behind his back as he watched Ennard lay the teenager out on the couch.

"Theeere you go. Comfy?... Okay, maybe not 'comfy', but better," Ennard assured. He gave her a gentle pat on the head, taking the time to steady himself, then turned his attention to the men on the other side of the room. "What a night, eh?"

There wasn't a good way to reply to that. Larson, who had the benefit of a quicker recovery, managed to find one, "And it's not over yet."

"Nope! But we're getting there!" Ennard said, giving double thumbs up. He then stepped in and offered his hand. "Ben Hansberry! Certified technician. This clown thing's just a side gig."

Larson hesitated in taking the hand but eventually decided to go ahead and do so. The sharp look Scott sent him at the hesitation softening dramatically as he shook the clown's hand.

"Everette Larson. I am a detective with the Hurricane Police Department. This is Detective Joseph Mathews," he introduced. The other man snapped out of his trance enough to offer his hand, surprisingly more ready to do so.

"I expected you to be a man in a clown costume. I don't know if I should be surprised or relieved," Mathews remarked.

Ennard laughed so hard at that that wires almost started coming up again.

"That's not entirely off the mark!"

He planned on continuing but cut himself off at the sound of sirens in the distance. Apparently, Clay wasn't joking when he said they had the ambulance on standby, because it couldn't have been at the hospital to get there that fast.

"Sounds like the circus finally caught up with me. Looks like it's time to split," Ennard said. He didn't think they or Scott noticed his fight or flight reflexes kicking in. Maybe Scott got a hunch when Ennard turned and hurried back to the couch. He crouched down beside it momentarily beside the girl. "Hey, I gotta bail before the fuzz finds me. You take care, Kiddo. If you need anything at all, you can find me prowling the city like a ghoul."

Ennard winked at her and hopped to his feet before rushing out of the room. He caught some of what Scott was saying to the detectives as he did.

"-what he did. The only reason she's going to survive is because he was here," he could hear Scott saying. He was flattered, he was also intrigued to hear that tone return, but he had to stay focused. He hurried into the garage and started to close up his toolbox, Scott following in a few moments later. "Maybe you should hide in a bedroom or something until they leave? I'm sure her grandfather's going with her to the hospital and Clay's not leaving anytime soon."

"Can't risk it. I'll just slip under the garage door and into the back of the van. Easy as pie!" Ennard assured him. He turned in his crouch to grab and pull on his jacket. "And then we're out of here!"

"Ennard-!"

Something suddenly fell on his head and started tumbling down his back. He barely hooked an arm back to catch it, only to feel a familiar plastic body. Bon-Bon fell off the shelf again.

Though 'fell' was a rather generous word when Scott had watched the small animatronic all but leap off onto him.

"Take me with you!" it cried.

Ennard didn't miss a beat. "Sure thing!"

He snatched up his toolbox in one hand, had the rabbit in the other one, hustled past Scott- stopping long enough to "mwah" his mouth against Scott's sweaty forehead- and then dropped it all off at the garage door so he could lift it. He peeked out to see the ambulance parked on the street nearby and, grabbing toolbox and rabbit again, squeezed under the door, got the van open, and got himself inside and the door shut before getting caught.

If he had a heart, it would've been racing. Instead Ennard felt twitchy and twisted up, but that could've been because some of his wires didn't lay right. He would have to check later. For now, he got himself hidden behind the passenger seat.

Then he had a moment to address the little rabbit in his lap.

Ennard was not shocked that the Bon-Bon was alive. In fact, he already had a hunch when the non-existent 'arm reflex' happened after he poked her nose. He just hadn't called her out at the time for her benefit, and his own to monitor her for a while longer.

"Well, hello there! Look who's finally coming out of her shell. Or off of her shelf," Ennard chirped. He gave her a playful little tap on the button. She gave a tiny squeak and caught his hand playfully between her own. "My name's Ennard and that man who's with me is Scott. What's your name?"

"Hi! I used to be Bonnie, but then they started calling me Bonnet after they colored me pink," the bunny, apparently named Bonnet, introduced. "Thank you for saving me! Thank you, thank you! I didn't want to be there anymore."

"Couldn't stand another minute with loudmouth in there?" Ennard asked.

She shook her head. "Nope! He's awful. It was really awful what he did to Millie. I saw the whole thing! He was so mean!"

Millie must've been the girl's name. Ennard's voice softened with sympathy as he realized the full extent of what Bonnet had to have witnessed from that shelf. "It really is awful… But she's okay! She's going to be a-okay now." He hoped, at least. "So, uh… You're not afraid of me?" he asked hesitantly.

"Nope!" Bonnet answered without a shred of doubt. "You were so nice to her- and me! You picked me up and didn't set me down really hard!" she gushed. Her ears started to lower as she further confessed, "Nobody's held me in a long time... And I didn't want Freddy to hold me."

"Hey, at least you weren't stuck to him," Ennard pointed out. "And he's not going to be hurting anyone else. The only person he hurt tonight was himself. And maybe me when he chomped my hand, but I've been bit by worse."

"He asked me to get inside of his belly once too, but I didn't. I thought it was weird," Bonnet admitted Her own voice taking a serious tone as she looked up at Ennard with big green eyes. "I don't think I would've come back out."

Ennard pulled her in against his chest and held her protectively. Funny, he didn't usually get attached so easily, but tonight had been a hard one. He might've gotten just as attached to a bunny shaped squeak toy.

"It's a good thing you didn't. Don't worry, you're safe now. No more Funtime Freddy, no more garage."

"Am I going to go home with you?" Bonnet asked. Pushing back with her arms to look up at his face.

"Of course! Where'd you think you were going, to the thrift store?" Ennard playfully asked. He gently tapped her ear and she giggled and swiped at his hand. "I hope you like cats."

"I like looking at cats!"

"Good enough!"

The next few minutes were devoted to listening out of the van at what was going on and watching Bonnet explore the van. She occasionally whispered gushingly about happy she was to be out of the garage and how excited she was to go home with him, and sometimes quietly complained about Funtime Freddy. The latter giving him brief glimpses into the events that transpired before he got there.

Apparently Funtime Freddy's story about the attempted decapitation wasn't a lie, and neither were the two or three days he spent chattering to the girl trapped in his belly. No doubt mocking and tormenting her the entire time. Ennard would've been a lot angrier if he hadn't successfully decapitated Freddy. In fact, it made him feel a lot better about doing so.

He was able to hear what sounded like a gurney being rolled by and heard both the ambulance leave and a couple of cars following it. At least she was going to be getting help. He might've saved a life tonight; it felt fantastic. Fantastic enough to silently pump his fists in triumph and proclaim this night a victory. He wouldn't let the bear win by dwelling on him a moment longer.

Bonnet eventually crawled over and collapsed face first into his lap. No more than a few minutes afterwards, Ennard heard someone circling the car and tensed up, only to relax when the driver's side door opened and Scott got inside.

"Welcome back. Verdict?" Ennard asked.

"Her grandpa's with her and they're on their way to the hospital. As far as he knows, she climbed inside and got stuck, but he agreed to let Clay take him. So, not our problem! Not anymore," Scott explained. He turned on the van and began to pull out of the driveway as he finished. "Clay's going to call us later to thank you personally. He might even swing by the house if it's not too late."

"Probably to arrest me for pilfering the rabbit," Ennard remarked.

"Oh, right! Bonnie! How is he doing?" Scott asked. He glanced back and Ennard pointed him down to the small rabbit laying in his lap. "Is he okay?"

"She's fine. Just tired herself out."

"Aww," Scott said. He turned ahead to watch the road again. Alas, the rain hadn't let up any since they got here. "Think she's staying with us or is she going to Jeremy's?"

"No way, this one's mine! If Jeremy wants a bunny buddy to daddy over, Michael's less than fifteen feet away," Ennard said. Scott chuckled and it was much more genuine now than earlier in the evening. He seemed relieved but tired, but the clown was still more than a little nervous. "You're still freaked out, aren't ya?" he asked playfully. Or trying to be playful, but that worry came through audibly.

"What? No!" Scott said. "Sometimes you've got to do what you've got to do. It's about what you do and why you do it, not how you do it."

"Right! Right…"

"…But if you feel up to talking about it, how did you know to, uh… do that? Have you ever done that before?"

"Nope! It was, uh… Like a spur of the moment thing. Something I thought about once but never really tried- thank goodness, right?" Ennard gave a strained chuckle and Scott's face softened with worry.

"Ennard, it's okay. Those detective aren't going to say anything, and who cares what they think? You saved a life tonight. You saved a family. That's all that counts."

"I know, I know," Ennard agreed. He gave a slight chuckle and rested his head on the seat behind him. "Betcha you're never gonna kiss me again without seeing that beautiful image flashing in your head."

Ennard didn't expect for Scott to pull over onto the side of the road. He didn't really get much time to question it either as Scott unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned between the seats, grabbed him by the jacket, and pulled him into a kiss. Scott was seldom this direct and that alone gave Ennard a clear message. It nearly short-circuited him too, or at least it felt like it.

Eventually Scott drew back with an assuring, flustered sort of smile, one utterly battered by the night it had been through. It took all Ennard's willpower to not draw him back in before he slid back into the driver's seat.

"Not that that's cleared up, let's head home," Scott said. He pulled back onto the road and continued their slow journey.

…

Back at the residence, Clay waited for proper transport to arrive so they could wheel off the bear shaped deathtrap in the garage. He hadn't taken his eyes off of it since Ennard had left and he didn't intend to until it was secured. He even had half a mind to take the head and dispose of it himself, but he had to make sure it was done properly. Even now the thing was making all sorts of obnoxious noise. He could imagine it swearing vengeance on the clown who bested it.

Speaking of the clown, Clay had to admit that he might've misjudged him. He may have not had ill will towards him, but he didn't take Ennard seriously. He thought of him as a non-threatening menace who occasionally stirred up the town before slinking off into the night. This had changed that perception entirely. If it hadn't been for him, they wouldn't have gotten to the girl in time.

He was, for tonight at least, a hero.

Thank God Michael didn't answer his phone

Chapter 40

Chapter Summary

An unexpected visit is tense enough without Mike and Mari getting unsettling news dropped in their lap. All while Charlie deals with troubles of her own...

"Relax. You're tensing up too much," Marionette said. His voice calm and carefree in contrast. "You can't force it, you just have to feel it. It's hard to explain but once you do it you will know."

Charlie took his advice and loosened up her vice-like grip on the edge of the table. She paused a moment like she would if taking in a deep breath and then looked down once again at the task at hand.

A pencil laid on the dining room table in front of her. The task was to try to roll it. Any distance, any movement was fine, but her goal was to push it all the way across to Marionette on the other side using only her mind.

The only problem was that it had been about ten minutes of this and nothing had happened. They tried with a piece of paper, a marble, even trying to have her push back against the other puppet. She was moving things with her mind just like a normal human would, which was not at all. It was a little disheartening when he did it so fluidly and naturally.

Marionette didn't seem too concerned about the lack of progress, but she wouldn't be lying if she said she wasn't a little disappointed. Even if she knew this would be an exceptional amount of progress to make on her first day of practice.

So, she continued a little longer. She stared at the pencil, she tried wiggling her fingers around as though casting a spell, and she tried to image herself pushing an invisible forcefield. There was no response.

"I think I'm done for now," she finally decided.

"Are you sure? I know progress is slow, but that doesn't mean we should give up yet! These exercises are a good step," Marionette encouraged. He leaned forward on one arm, the other up and gesturing as he spoke. "Not only that, but you can't expect to focus well with the TV on and all these distractions around."

Distractions being the small animatronics who occasionally popped into the kitchen, hung out for a while, and then hurried off to do something elsewhere. Not blaming them directly and instead blaming 'distractions' was a kindly move.

"I'm not giving up. I think I just need a break. Maybe I'll stare at something else for a while."

As Charlie said this, Mike returned from his bedroom with a slightly troubled look on his face. She looked to him which signaled Marionette to turn around and look as well. He saw that look too.

"What's wrong, Love? Is your mum alright?" he asked.

"She's doing great," Mike answered. "Speaking of which- Can I get everyone's attention?" He turned his voice towards the living room and everyone in it.

Michael, who was on the couch, twitched an ear. Jeremy and Balloon Boy, who were sitting in front of the TV while the latter watched the former play videos games, turned back to look at him. The little bots in the room looked up as well.

"Just a heads up, but my parents are dropping by," Mike warned.

Jeremy quirked a brow. "Your parents?"

Mike stared back blankly.

"Freudian slip?" Jeremy guessed.

"Ignore it. Anyways, they're dropping by, so you're all going to have to disappear before they get here. Now I'm not saying you have to leave, but your other options are the spare bedrooms, the basement, and the attic crawlspace. So, yeah, you'll want to leave," Mike explained.

"Such a tough decision," Springtrap murmured. He returned to sketching in his notebook seemingly unconcerned. "What day are they coming?"

"They're on their way."

Springtrap shot up from the couch and to his feet in a heartbeat, knocking Plushtrap off the couch and then catching him before he could hit the floor while doing so. "What the hell?! Why didn't you say anything?!"

"I told you as soon as I found out, which was about three minutes ago," Mike replied, unable to hide the touch of amusement slipping through. "Now we've got about an hour. That's enough time to figure out what we're going to do."

"I've got to get to a checkpoint now," Jeremy said. He turned back to the game and hastily started to rush through. Balloon Boy gave a strained but equally obnoxious laugh.

All of the Minireenas mass migrated back into the hallway, led by Daisy and followed by Plushtrap who Springtrap had set down. Likely they would spread the news to the Bidybabs who would then panic. In short, the room devolved into panic.

"And it didn't occur to you to maybe postpone the visit until some of us were out of the house?" Springtrap asked with exasperation.

"How can I postpone? She's already on the way here. At least we have an hour warning instead of her just dropping in."

"I still consider this dropping in!"

"Michael, it's okay. She knows we're alive and she's been exceptionally kind to me," Marionette chimed in.

"Yeah, but Patrick doesn't," Mike reminded.

"…Oh dear. That might be a problem," the Puppet sheepishly retracted.

"At least Patrick shouldn't. I told Mom not to tell him, but if she's gotten too comfortable with it she might've let something slip," Mike added. He got a thoughtful, borderline suspicious look as he considered it.

His mother didn't specifically ask if she could bring Patrick to the house. While under normal circumstances it would've made sense to assume she would do so, this was a very abnormal situation, and she knew that well. His mother wasn't absentminded and wouldn't just forget about the circumstances just because she got married. Either Patrick already knew or, the better option, that was the reason for the warning call.

"Is Patrick the type of person we should worry about?" Charlie asked quietly.

Mike snapped out of his thoughts and wave it off. "No, no. Patrick's a cool guy… But this thing we've got going on really needs to stay with us. It's hard enough keeping all of this under wraps when so many people know about it."

"How long are they staying?" Springtrap asked wearily. He had already come to terms with the fact that they couldn't get all of them out of here and the little animatronics were a bigger risk to blowing their cover than he was.

"A few hours at most, and I might be able to get them out of here for a while to go have dinner," Mike offered. Springtrap gave a weary sigh.

"You can stay in my room. Or Foxy's room. Or wait, it was your room too, wasn't it? Why don't you stay in there?" Jeremy offered, voice kindly but unable to take his eyes off the screen.

"Are you heading over to the pizzeria?" Springtrap asked, turning his head back lazily.

"Actually, I might pick up Foxy and go over to Fritz's. We should really sit down and come up with a plan for this kid situation," Jeremy remarked. Springtrap hummed in agreement.

Mike inhaled through his teeth. "Yeah, we really should do something about that."

Marionette gave an unsettled tune and laced his fingers worriedly on the table.

"I appreciate the offer. I think I might take you up on that," Springtrap agreed. He grabbed his pillow and a blanket off the couch. "I might as well move back there now."

Nobody stopped him and as he thumped off Mike circled around and sat down on the couch, crossing his arms and legs, and watching the game play out before him. He watched for a minute before sighing.

"Do I still call him Uncle Patrick if he's also my stepfather?" he asked.

The character Jeremy was controlling noticeably hesitated when he did. He silently considered it for a few long moments, then gave a rather direct, "Not in public. People might talk."

As though they needed anymore talking.

Over the next hour, Jeremy got off of the game and Mike helped him wrangle up the little animatronics and move them into his car. Moving Max was the hardest part, with Mike deciding to lug his heavily weight body out without a blanket. He was just small enough and still enough to pass as a prop, so if there were neighbors out to see then he wouldn't have been worried.

With them out of the house and Springtrap refusing to leave the back bedroom, the rest of the time was used to clean up the house into a presentable state. Mike and Marionette worked together in getting thing in line- Mike rushing to get the illusion of clean while Marionette took his time with the details after him- while Charlie pretty much gathered up anything the little animatronics left out and stashed them into Marionette's old bedroom.

It didn't take long, but once it was done Mike still felt antsy. He wasn't sure why; he had seen his mother and uncle since their wedding, so it wasn't that. Yet he still felt a strange nervousness when he heard them pull up outside.

"They're here. Everyone panic," he announced.

Marionette chimed and made a rather speedy exit down the hallway. Charlie was on his heels with a, "Good luck!"

Mike lifted Moppet out of his lap and sat her on the couch beside him before standing up and heading towards the door. After which the cat promptly claimed the spot where he had just been sitting and curled up in it. Mike quickly fixed his hair and double-checked his clothes. Deeming it all good enough, he opened the front door.

Isabelle Schmidt was just as he remembered her, grabbing two armfuls of gift bags out of the backseat, and hustling up to the front door to get out of the rain. This time Patrick was there to hold an umbrella over her. No doubt he offered to carry the bags but, like she did with Mike, she probably insisted that she could handle it.

Funny enough, but this familiar sight alone was enough to melt away all that previous nervousness.

She greeted him with her typical gushing hello and a partial hug. Then sat the bags inside the door to give him a more proper hug.

"Oh, I've missed you!" Isabelle with the same gusto as if she hadn't seen him in years.

Instead of pointing that out, he gave a simple and honest, "I've missed you too, Mom. I like your hair."

"You noticed! Thank you. I thought it was time for a change," she said. She fussed with the loose waves as soon as she pulled back, as though to poof them back up before promptly digging through one of the bags.

"How's it going? Been staying out of trouble?" Patrick asked. He closed the umbrella up along with the door behind them.

"You kidding? I'm barely staying out of prison," Mike retorted.

Isabelle made a dismissive noise and lined up the bags. "Is Jeremy here?" she asked.

"He had to take the Minireenas over to Fritz's."

"Oh, okay," Isabelle said. She either caught on or remembered the Minireenas- Mike had decided it was easier to not tell her about the five other animatronics Jeremy took in. "Well, this blue bag is his and the green is Fritz's."

"Mom, you know you don't have to do this," Mike pointed out with mild exasperation.

"I didn't go crazy. Most of this is just the souvenirs from Hawaii," she brushed off. The ones she forgot last time, which, Mike noted, must've tripled since she had forgotten them.

"Sure," he said doubtfully.

"You're going to love what I got you. You're never going to use it, but you're going to love it," Patrick remarked.

Mike had a suspicion he was probably right. He watched his mother hoist up an especially heavy bag and finally interjected.

"Hey, before we do that. I know it's early, but what do you think about going out to eat?" he suggested.

"That sounds fine to me," Patrick agreed. He looked to Isabelle who also agreed. He started getting the umbrella out again. "So, got a place in mind?"

"Anywhere that's not pizza. I get enough of it at work," Mike said matter-of-factly. Then confidently tacked on, "I can think of a few places."

"That reminds me," Patrick said with a snap of his fingers. "I saw a commercial for that new Freddy's megaplex."

Isabelle shot him a look and in one second Mike had figured out exactly what they were tiptoeing around and that they had been doing so for the last five minutes. Instead of feeling awkward, he was rather amused by it.

"Yeah, that place. I've been over there a few times. In fact, the manager or whatever he is reached out to us about a business deal to get Foxy's in there. They did the same thing with a place called Chipper's that used to be a part of Freddy's and split off when the company went under the first time. Now they sell bean burritos in Freddy's mega mall."

"I take it you told him no?" Patrick guessed.

"I told him to go to hell."

"Mike!" Isabelle scolded.

"I told him no," Mike corrected.

"I think you were right the first time. Considering what you went through for that business," Patrick remarked. Mike brushed it off, not noticing the somewhat worried look on his mother's face.

"Refusing to get caught up in a contract with them is good enough… But we did get stuck agreeing to selling merch there after one of our employees broke in and vandalized the place before they could open. We haven't gotten that set up yet. We're sort of hoping the guy in charge just forgets," Mike explained. Isabelle and Patrick looked somewhat surprised by the news. "…He's our star employee and we had to cover for him. What are you going to do?"

"Give him a raise," Patrick suggested.

"Don't tell me what to do, Dad," Mike joked. That was a joke too, not a Freudian slip. Though from the weird aura that fell over the room it certainly felt like it. "…Alright, let's go," he said, keeping a cool tone as he quickly yanked on his jacket.

"You two go ahead. I need to use the restroom before we go," Isabelle said. Mike had a hunch that wasn't all she was doing considering that she picked up a couple of bags and took them with her. She looked into the living room as she passed by, stopping to come back and pet the cat on the couch, and then continued down the hallway.

Patrick had already stepped outside to open the umbrella, so he didn't notice any of this. It was up to Mike to make sure he stayed out there.

"Perfect. We're going to be in the car alone and the topics of conversation are Freddy's and me calling him Dad. I can't see that being uncomfortable," Mike thought. He stepped out after him and pulled the door closed with the keys left in it.

…

Charlie had retreated into her own bedroom instead of heading into the master bedroom with Marionette. It just seemed like a safer option when she knew that he and Mike's mother were somewhat close. It at least spared her the possibility of the woman letting herself in and catching her off-guard.

At least that was the plan, but Charlie couldn't help but eye her bedroom door. She could vaguely hear voices down the hall and knew they weren't anywhere near accidentally walking in on her, but she still felt on edge. She got up from sitting on the foot of the bed and locked the door, but something still had her on edge. By now it was clear that it was irrational, but she couldn't figure out what it was.

Charlie sighed and just decided to get the eventual over with and just get into her safety spot. She opened up the closet and stepped inside.

Since the last time she camped out in here Charlie had decided to fix it up a little. There was a little spot on the left side that was blocked off with boxes and had a soft blanket folded up to sit on. There was a book, two magazines, and a Rubik's cube stashed in there for if she got bored and she put up a dragon poster on the wall to give it a less closet-like feel. All in all, a nice little place to hide away in.

Though still a tight squeeze to get into and sitting there meant she either had to have her legs crossed or bent in front of her. She made it work but regretted not bringing a pillow in with her and didn't feel like climbing out to get one. It definitely felt silly hiding in a closet when she was already behind a locked door, but it soothed the agitation.

Programming, she acknowledged. The programming itching at her to go climb into her box. At least the closet was a functional substitute.

Though of all the sacrifices that came with becoming a puppet, the desire to hide in a box was on the smaller side. Along with how awkward it was to lean back on a wall with the prong on the back of her head. She had to adjust it around for a few moments until it was up enough to be comfortable. Again, a small thing in the grand scheme of things, but it could occasionally get in the way.

She picked up the puzzle cube and began to start working on it again. She hadn't gotten much progress by time she heard footsteps coming down the hallway. She stilled and listened, and she could hear the footsteps lead to the master bedroom door. There was a soft knock.

"Mari? Are you in there?" a voice called. It was a very warm and loving voice. An assortment of delighted chimes answered it and she heard the door open, followed by proper greetings and what sounded like a hug- had to say what a hug sounded like, but her voice after that sounded like Marionette had her compressed in a tight hug.

She sounded… very nice, actually. Marionette had said she was, but Mike had been so tense that she had briefly wondered about it. She was glad to have these thoughts be unfounded, she even smiled as she listened to them.

Her mother had always been affectionate from what she remembered-.

She shut down that thought before it could fully creep up on her. She didn't want to get sucked into that pitfall right now. Instead, she wanted to think about something else and returned to focusing on the puzzle cube.

Back to the prong- she didn't dislike having it, but there were moments when it was in a place it shouldn't be or jingling in a tense situation. Unlike the ringing in her chest, controlled by her emotions and an extension of her voice, the bell on the prong was just that. Just a normal bell that rung if it was moved the wrong way. At least it was a cute bauble.

Sometimes Charlie was suddenly reminded of how weird it was to touch her head and not feel hair. Like a moment of déjà vu where she would touch her head and in the back of her mind expect to feel it. She had never been too fixated on her hair, so it was weird to be so nostalgic for it now.

Then again, she did notice that this had gone away for a long while and then cropped up again after Baby's recent change of her own hair. Maybe Charlie envied her subconsciously for something that she normally would think was so trivial. Or maybe it was Baby's occasional wig talk finally worming into her brain.

She wasn't sure. The only thing she was sure about was that she had just gotten two sides lined up and hadn't the foggiest idea how to get the rest without tearing them apart.

…

Was her grandfather right? Had she moved on and had another family? Did she remarry and adopt his kids, or did she-?

Once again, her mind started to wander. Charlie wrenched it back into place and set the puzzle cube down beside her. She was just going to get frustrated if she ended up ruining her progress while she was distracted.

When it came down to it, it was all just a matter of control. Some things she just didn't have control over. The prong was one of those things that was a little harder to manage while the fact she had it was something out of her control. She couldn't control whether or not Mike's mother came, but she could manage her response to it, and it would be her decision on what she wanted to do.

All of this was just nerves and programming because Mike's mother was here. She was under no pressure to meet her, Mike said as much. She could just stay in her room, and it wouldn't be a big deal. Those thoughts of her own mother were just a reflex. Just a faint recollection of something she used to have, just like with her hair. Occasionally creeping up to remind her of what she had lost.

Though in this case there was a significant difference. Becoming a puppet was a life-changing event that occurred recently while the loss of her mother happened years ago. Not long after the loss of her father, in fact. Just one day she was gone and nobody would talk about her anymore. Aunt Jen stayed tight-lipped about the whole thing, but it was clear someone knew where she was if Chance knew.

Yet she hadn't reached out for her. Though that was fine. Where once there was longing now sat hollowness. Not only did Charlie get along fine without her, but she didn't need the love of a woman who saw fit to abandon her in her time of need. It was just peculiar that a once affectionate woman would suddenly turn her back on her only remaining child-.

Maybe her mother left because she resented that Sammy was the one taken instead of her.

It popped up in her head so quickly and yet equally slowly unfurled itself into her conscious mind. Something she may have thought before but never acknowledged suddenly reared its ugly head and this time no amount of distraction avoided it.

Charlie seldom thought about her mother. Largely because she came to terms a long time ago that she was never coming back and that she was going to have a life without both parents. It was a hard thing for a child to face but it was an easier pill for an adult to swallow, and over the years she swallowed down a lot more than just that acceptance. She swallowed her questions and how she felt about it.

Except that there was still a vacuous void left in her wake. Charlie could still remember her mother. She could vaguely remember a time when they were a happy family, but barely. Instead, she remembered somewhat clearer the time after Sammy was taken, when both of her parents forced smiles that didn't seem genuine and tended to avoid being in the same room. Even still, she was always closer with her dad than her mother.

Sammy was her favorite. As much was said when she looked in the albums and saw many of his pictures labeled with endearments such as "Momma's Boy" and little hearts. Though in a way, Sammy was everyone's favorite. Everyone loved him.

But Charlie came to terms with it all. She accepted the fact that her mother had gone through too much pain, that she couldn't be a mother anymore.

Except that wasn't true because Chance said she had a new family. Her mother could be a parent just fine, she just couldn't be her parent. Perhaps because every time she looked at her, she saw her brother's face.

Charlie was already shaking by time she felt something warm rolling down her mask. Here she was crying alone in a closet, just like the night Sammy was taken. The night where everything stopped. She buried her face into her knees and wrapped her arms around her legs, tightening into a ball to suffocate the noise, and wept quietly. The off-tune whines of failed jingles unable to make it out of the closet.

It was so silly to cry about it. So, so silly. It happened years ago, it was over. It wasn't even the worst thing that ever happened to her. Or it wasn't supposed to be. What a shame that her actual death was more fondly remembered.

The scariest part was that if she had survived that night, she could've still imagined herself having this same revelation. Except perhaps she would've been even more alone. Or maybe she would've had it alongside Jessica or John, or maybe she would've been alive but still here, in this house with Mike and Marionette. Maybe someone would've called her mother after her near-death experience and she would finally come- no, wait. She missed her funeral too.

That should've made her feel worse, but Charlie found it almost funny in a too-ridiculous-to-be-true kind of way. She finally started to pull herself back together, still resting her head on her knees but no longer crying. Some tears still leaked out without the sobs. At least she did it in the closet, where nobody would hear her. She didn't want Marionette to know about this, even though he would no doubt be there to comfort her.

It seemed like the more Charlie thought of the present the more alright she felt. She had a family who cared about her now, as odd as they and this whole situation was, she was still connected with her friends but also had new friends, and new relationships, and people who weren't going to leave. It wasn't an easy gig, but she was happy where she was.

She nearly jumped out of her jacket at the sudden knock on the bedroom door.

"Charlie?" Marionette called through. She felt a rush of panic and embarrassment at the thought that he- and Mike's mother- might've heard her. "Could I come in?"

"Hold on!" she called. Though not too loudly as she didn't know where Mike's mother was. She hadn't been paying attention during her… distraction. She could be standing right out the door with the other puppet.

Charlie stepped out of the closet and looked down at herself. Much to her dismay there were blue tear spots on it and wiping them off didn't do much to help. While Mike's mother wouldn't recognize that she had been crying, Marionette certainly would- if he hadn't heard already, which he likely had.

Shedding her jacket, she looked around for something else to wear. She settled on the El Chip's shirt Mike had given her which has hanging on a hook on the back of the door. She pulled it on and looked down at herself. It didn't cover her nearly as much as her jacket would, but at least it was something to make her a little more normal looking. Or at least to make her feel normal. Then she unlocked and opened the door.

"Yes?" she asked.

Marionette leaned his head and torso into the doorway. He was wearing a straw fedora with a black and white tropical leaf print band on it. His excited smile filled her with immediate relief; he mustn't have heard her.

"You will never believe what Isabelle brought me back from Hawaii," Marionette said. Charlie sent a glance upwards. "No…" He suddenly popped through the doorway, brandishing a wooden ukulele in his arms. "This!"

"Huh, a ukulele. That might actually fit a pirate themed restaurant," she remarked. "But the question is: do you know how to play one?"

"You tell me," he replied. He strummed the chords.

No, he did not.

"But I can learn! I have an ear for music, a touch for strings, and more than enough time on my hands," Marionette said. His smile grew softer as he absentmindedly plucked at the strings. "Mike's taking them out to dinner soon. Would you like to meet her before they leave? It'll be a quick introduction, but you don't have to. She'll understand if you don't feel ready."

Considering that she had met back up with her old friends and Clay it seemed silly to turn down Mike's mother, someone who was a safer bet to not accidentally spill their secrets. Plus, if they were leaving she wouldn't have to entertain long.

"No, I think I'm ready… Besides, I'm not going to turn down a chance at free stuff," she said, putting on a more confident smile.

Marionette perked with a happy chime. "You'll be happy to hear that it's not just a chance then," he said.

He turned to head out before offering back his hand and looking to her expectantly. She was a little too old to be led around by the hand but decided to go ahead and take it. It made him happy, and it made her feel a little more grounded.

After that bout in the closet any physical contact was like a warm blanket after a trek through the snow.

Marionette guided her to the master bedroom where she found Mike's mother folding the few clothes left atop the dresser. She was exactly what Charlie might've expected, a short lady with a gentle face and wavey hair that matched Mike's own in color. She all but cooed when Charlie came in, which was a little embarrassing but also endearing.

"Charlie, this is Isabelle Schmidt, Mike's mum. Isabelle, this is Charlie Johnson, our… well, my protégé," Marionette introduced.

"It's so nice to finally meet you!" Isabelle greeted. She leaned in and put her arms out, but then stopped, perhaps deciding at the last second to just offer the hug instead of taking it. Charlie decided to go ahead and return it and found the woman just as warm and soft as she sounded. Her perfume was a little strong, but flowery and unoffensive.

"It's nice to meet you too," Charlie said as she pulled back. "I'm sorry I missed you the last time you came by. I was visiting a friend."

More like she had fled to Scott's, but she didn't have to clarify that.

"Don't worry about that. I'm just happy to meet you now," Isabelle insisted. She picked up a pink gift bag off of the bed and handed it over. "I wasn't sure what your favorite color was, so I just got a little of everything," she joked.

Or at least, Charlie thought she was joking until she felt the heftiness of the bag and caught a glimpse of a multitude of colors inside. It was definitely worth coming out of her room for- if the sweet woman herself wasn't enough.

The three had a short visit but it was a pleasant one. Isabelle got in a few questions for Charlie. As expected, one was about her favorite color for future gifts, and another was about what she did at the pizzeria. It was clear that Isabelle was trying her hardest to treat both puppets like they were people. Or not quite people, but additional children she got to spoil with goodies.

Eventually she did have to leave, remembering that Mike and Patrick were still out in the car. Marionette escorted her to the front door and neither noticed losing Charlie halfway down the hallway. She lingered there a moment before walking up to Jeremy's, or Foxy's, or currently Springtrap's bedroom door and knocking. Springtrap was silent.

"It's just me. They're leaving now to go out to dinner. Can I come in?" Charlie called.

"Come in," he replied.

She opened the door to find Springtrap reclined on the bed. She noticed that he had laid out an old sheet they used for covering animatronics on the bed underneath him. A limp magazine dangled from his hand, and he turned his head to her.

"How did it go? I heard Marion come and get you," he said. In that case she would've assumed he must've heard some of the conversation, but maybe the walls muffled the sound.

"Good! She's nice. Very friendly, very mom-like," Charlie explained. She shifted her weight from foot to foot before gently nudging the door closed behind her. "…Can I ask you something?"

"It depends. Whose mother are you asking about?" Springtrap asked bluntly.

"No, not that, but I appreciate the subtlety," Charlie sarcastically replied. She looked away in embarrassment. "It's about modifying a body- an animatronic body, I mean. Not like extreme modifications, but something like what was done with Baby. No, not that extreme. Just… appearance modifications on a smaller scale. Like let's say attaching or removing something small," she rambled. Gesturing with her hands while trying to get her points across.

Springtrap processed it for a moment but understood the jest. "What were you thinking of having changed?"

"Nothing huge- and I'm not even saying I'm going to do it, I was just thinking about it," Charlie insisted. He lifted an eye lid like lifting a brow and she got to the point. "What if I wanted to remove my point and do something else, like a wig?"

Springtrap looked a little surprised by the suggestion. He hummed and patted the bed beside him before scooting over a small amount. She walked over and sat on the edge of the bed beside him, and he sat up to study the point. He gently felt the material and the thickness of it and the point itself.

"What did you have in mind?" he asked.

"Not much. I was thinking of getting a wig and then maybe I could get a hat made that resembles the point that I can wear at the pizzeria. Something like a nightcap or like a wizard's hat, that pointed shape so I can stay on-brand with the Lottie character." She thought back over what she just said and sighed. "Alright, it sounds stupid when I say it out loud."

"It doesn't sound stupid."

"It's an animatronic with realistic wig hair. I'll look just as ridiculous as that skinny Baby did."

"You're exaggerating. It takes skill to look that bad," Springtrap remarked. He squeezed at the point. "Can you feel this?"

"A little. It feels like touching the back of my head, just out," she said. She motioned her hand back to explain.

"I see. You do realize that if we did this there would be permanent changes. In theory, I know you're just thinking about it." There might've been an edge of amusement to his voice at the end.

"What do you mean? Did you feel something?" she asked with concern.

"No, it's just material- whatever this material is. It would be easy to remove," Springtrap explained. "I meant that if we removed it and you changed your mind, there would be scars left behind. It's not like skin, for better and for worst."

"Oh, I know. I don't care about that. Scars or seams, they're just little lines that I'm never going to see," Charlie brushed off. "I just…" She sat there with her head down for a moment.

"You want something back that you used to have," Springtrap finished for her. "There's nothing wrong with that. I'd give anything for my old body back… Or at least better fingers. My God, drawing with felt-covered hands is so much more tedious than it has to be," he muttered. She rung a little despite herself, then sent him an apologetic look. He was less than amused, but then reached for his notebook.

"How about this: I will draw up a few drafts of what it might come out looking like and then you will have a better idea if you want to go through it," he offered.

"That would be great, actually. You don't mind doing it?"

"Gives me something to do," Springtrap assured. "And if you decide to go through with it then it gives us a reference point. If there's any positives to these bodies, it's that modification carries fewer risks as long as we take every precaution. One of which being knowing what we're doing."

"Thank you, Michael. I really appreciate this, even if I don't end up going through with it," Charlie said with a thankful smile. He gave a simple nod of assurance. "…Maybe we could keep this between us? Just for now. I'd tell them if I decided to go ahead with anything, but I could wake up tomorrow and decide the whole thing's a bad idea."

"I won't tell anyone," Springtrap assured. "Not unless they sees the pictures. I don't want them thinking I'm sweet on you."

"God forbid someone thinks you're sweet," Charlie remarked. Michael gave an honest chuckle in return.

Dinner had gone well. During which, Mike, Isabelle, and Patrick had caught up on a multitude of things. Mike brought up his plans for college, which Isabelle knew about but hadn't recently been updated on. Patrick was especially encouraging and then somehow the conversation turned into college anecdotes from both him and Isabelle. While Mike couldn't say he was enthralled by the conversation, it was a nice one.

Instead of heading straight home, Mike decided to take them by Pirate's Cove since he knew Foxy wouldn't be there. Isabelle had seen it before, so this was really to show Patrick around and tell them about possible future plans. He wasn't sure if they were really interested or just listening for his sake, but he appreciated it regardless.

Then, right before they were about to leave, his cellphone began to ring. Assuming it was Marionette or Jeremy, he dismissed himself and headed into the kitchen, answering it on the way.

"Hello, hello."

"Hello, hello. It's me," Fritz answered.

"Oh, hey! What's up?"

"Not much. I'm just calling to give you a head's up on what's going on."

Mike paused in the doorway and furrowed his brows, then continued stepping through.

"That's not ominous at all," Mike remarked. "What is going on?"

"I got a call from Burke and to make a long story short: missing girl, big Freddy in her garage, I've got to break it open and see what's inside."

"…What?"

"Yeah, that was my reaction, but this is what we're doing apparently. I'm on my way now," Fritz explained. Mike could tell, hearing the background noise of a car humming and windshield wipers going.

"Can I get the long version now?" he asked, significantly more on edge now. "What, there's a girl that went missing and they think she's stuck in giant Freddy? …Are you sure she's not at the Pizzaplex?"

"Thankfully no, so she might actually have a chance," Fritz said. He then awkwardly cleared his throat, regretting the joke. "No, see, her grandfather somehow has a big Freddy in his garage and he thinks, for some reason, that she might've gotten stuck inside. Burke thinks so too, and he doesn't think she's… He thinks she's alive. At least, that's the impression I got. But he also said she's a teenager, not a kid, and that originally they thought she ran away. So, unless she's a really small teenager and he's a pretty big bear, there might be a slim chance that Burke's just paranoid and she's not in there… By which I mean, I really hope that's what's going on and not this."

Mike silently agreed. "Is Jeremy with you?" he asked.

"No. Burke told me to come alone. I think he's trying to do damage control."

"Should I come. Burke can't really stop me from showing up."

"…I don't know, we'll see," Fritz said vaguely. "I haven't even looked at what I'm working on… To tell you the truth, I have a hunch it's going to be out of my depth."

"Fritz, you're the best technician I know. You can do it," Mike assured. "But if you can't, get Ennard. He's the one who got Mari out of Lefty."

"Huh. Good point. We'll see, maybe it's not that bad. I think I'm pulling up to the place, so I'm going to let you go and I'll call you back later."

"Sounds good. But if you change your mind, call me and I'll come over… I can't really help but it'll sure as hell tick off Burke," Mike offered. Fritz chuckled a little, likely a nervous laugh. "Call me back when you're done. You've got this."

It wasn't until the phone call ended and he was standing there quietly in the kitchen that the weight of what he had just been told on him. He swore under his breath, then continued to do so as he quickly dialed up the house number, running his hand through his hair as he listened to it ring.

"Come on, come on, pick up…"

"Hello?" Jeremy's voice answered. Though he knew it wasn't Jeremy.

"Mari, it's me. I'm over at Foxy's and I just got one hell of a call from Fritz," Mike rushed out. He tried to keep his voice low and moved towards the far side of the kitchen to not be heard.

"What happened? Did Foxy and Chance get into a fight?" Marionette asked worriedly.

"It's so much worse than that," Mike muttered. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Whatever it is we can handle it. You just need to tell me what it is," the Puppet gently coaxed. He could hear the stress in the other's voice and tried to assure him.

"Don't panic," Mike said, still in the same position. "But Fritz just called me. Burke's got him driving out to a house where a girl's gone missing to see if she might've gotten trapped inside of the giant Freddy Fazbear they have sitting in their garage." He rushed out the last part with growing exasperation.

He expected an immediate explosion. Much to his surprise, he got something worse.

"…What?"

A single, quiet word. Just on the verge of a whisper, just on the verge of cracking.

"Now before you get the wrong idea, she's alive. That's coming from Burke and he doesn't have a reason to lie," Mike interjected. It felt like a lie saying it even though for all he knew it was the truth. "Fritz is heading over there now and he's going to call me once he figures out what's going on. There's no need to panic yet."

"I think this is a very good time to panic," Marionette quietly said. Yet it was clear that he was attempting to hold it back. "And they're sure she's inside?"

"That's the only good part of this. He isn't sure. Nobody's sure yet. Frankly, I have trouble imagining a teen squeezing into a Freddy. She'd have to be a contortionist," Mike said. "...Okay, I'll level with you. I might be grasping at straws."

"Mike, I'm about to panic."

"Thanks for the warning. I'll pick up a fire extinguisher on the way home."

"Why on Earth would someone have a Freddy sitting in their garage?!" Marionette whispered. Likely trying to keep Charlie or Springtrap from hearing. His growing static was suddenly interrupted by a sharp chime, a ting of realization. "Mike, call Fritz back and tell him to get Ennard over there. He can get that Freddy open."

"Don't worry, I already told him. If he can't get it open, then that's where he's sending Burke, and if Burke refuses then I'll drive Ennard over there myself- and since I'll be in a blind fury, Mom and Patrick too."

"Let's not get carried away just yet," Marionette said with only an edge of humor past his concern. "…Maybe you should come home."

"I'm on my way," Mike assured. "I can stay on the phone."

"No, that might tip off that something's wrong. I'll be alright until you get home."

"If you're sure. I love you, Mari."

Marionette trilled a little, though clearly still nervously. "I love you too." He made a little kiss sound against the receiver.

The call ended and after a moment Mike headed out into the dining room, now worried that his mother and uncle would notice something was wrong. They didn't, and Mike brushed it off as something about the business before suggesting they headed home. Not noticing the suddenness of it, they agreed and started to head back home.

They were almost home when Mike's cellphone started ringing. Since he was not driving- he had been delegated to the backseat while Patrick drove- he was able to answer without Isabelle getting onto him about being on the phone while driving in the steadily increasing rain.

"Hello?" he greeted.

"Me again. So, I'm off the case," Fritz said. "It's a Funtime Freddy, and you're never going to believe the size of it."

That changed things. That made things a whole lot worse.

"So, what's the plan?"

"I told him to get Ennard or Michael to handle it. He said he was going to make a few calls."

"Did you tell him that he's not at the warehouse?" Mike asked, meaning Springtrap.

"…I guess he's calling Ennard then."

Mike scoffed a little. "Well, there's a silver lining. We just left dinner and we're heading home."

"You're in the car with them right now? You don't think they hear me, do you?"

"No."

"Good. Guess I'm going to let you go then. We'll talk later."

"Alright, take care," Mike finished and quickly hung up. He didn't like being brisk with Fritz, but he knew the other caught on to why he was. Once again he had a sick feeling the moment he ended the call. Probably his nerves.

"What was that about?" Isabelle asked. Though right before Mike could start sweating bullets, she quickly tacked on, "I'm sorry, I'm not trying to be nosey." She sounded genuinely apologetic. It gave him a moment to pull a response together.

"Don't worry about it, Mom. It's just Fritz again. We're trying to figure out how to get rid of this big hunk of machinery that's not good for anything. We've got a couple of guys who deal with stuff like this and he's trying to track them down."

Isabelle seemed to believe this and didn't question further. Just giving a simple, "Oh, okay."

"I've got to meet some of these coworkers of yours," Patrick joked. "Is the guy who lifts machinery the same one who broke in and tore up Freddy's?"

"No, but they're both Mari's brothers. He's the white sheep of the family," Mike replied.

"There's another good question. When am I going to meet this fabled Mari?"

He knew this question was coming and was prepared for it.

"As soon as you sign the non-disclosure agreement."

It was brushed off as a joke and that was the end of it, and it wasn't long before they got back to the house.

Mike learned long ago that it was better to just be upfront with Marionette that to try to shield him. He had been on the receiving end of having it done to him too, which meant he knew what it felt like. It was best to be totally open, but Mike wasn't sure whether it was the best course of action to run into the master bedroom and blurt out that Fritz failed and it's an Afton-made, programmed to be homicidal, FuntimeFreddy.

So, he put it off. He decided to hold off a little longer and see if he got anymore calls. Besides, he had an excuse. After taking two calls while his family was visiting it would've been weird to randomly disappear to his bedroom for a long period of time. Might've given them the wrong impression. So, he put on a brave face- one that wasn't suspicious- and went ahead with the evening. Isabelle broke out the rest of the gifts, they watched some television, and all was going well.

At one point Mike looked over and noticed his mother's head on his uncle's, or his stepfather's, shoulder. He could've thought that something like that would've made him uncomfortable, but it didn't. No, it just sprung up a new fear at the possibility of them staying the night and him having to juggle a house of animatronics with them here. If she fell asleep, then he was doomed. He was sleeping on that cot in Marionette's room tonight.

Though before he could get stuck with such a fate, the home phone rang and roused his mother, and sent him to his feet and speedily walking into the kitchen. He answered quickly, "Hello?"

"Hello? Uh, hello, can you hear me?" Surprisingly it wasn't Fritz but instead Scott. "Good! Sorry about that, I'm getting spotty service. It's really coming down." Judging on how loud Scott was talking, it could've been. "So, I wanted to bring you up to speed on where I've been for the last hour."

"If I can take a wild guess, you've been hanging out in a musty garage with Clay Burke."

"Wait, you know? Wait, of course you know. Fritz was up here. Sorry if I'm a little scattered, it's been a long night. But, uh, I thought everyone should know about what happened and your house covers a lot of 'everyone'," Scott explained. Instead of sounding scattered he just sounded tired. "I'm not sure how much Fritz told you, but a few days ago a teenage girl went missing and her grandfather thought that she might've gotten stuck inside of a retired Freddy that he had sitting in his garage. We get there and, yeah, she's in there, and it's a Funtime Freddy. Ennard had to open it up, but she's okay. She's at the hospital getting fluids."

The mood of the call shifted immediately. Mike exhaled out what felt like pounds of stress weighing him down from the inside. She might've been in there, but she was alive. That was good enough for him. Though it did raise some questions.

"How big was the size of this bear?"

"Big," Scott answered.

"BIG!" he heard Ennard call from the background.

"Big and totally insane… but what else is new?" Scott added.

"Glad to see he's upholding the Funtime name," Mike remarked. Though his tone quickly turned serious, and his voice grew quietly. "So, he was alive and aware of what it was doing. Where is he now?"

"He's, uh… He's down for the count right now. Clay's going to take care of it… And he's going to have to take care of it if you get what I mean. From what Funtime Freddy said… Yeah, there's no chance of helping him. I don't even know if there's a person inside of that suit."

It didn't take a genius to realize that something more happened then he was letting on.

"Alright, what happened?" Mike pried. Clearly indicating that he wasn't going to take this answer alone.

Scott gave a tired sigh and caved.

"From what I pieced together from what Funtime Freddy said, between the insults and the weird potato comments and the threats, was that somehow the girl climbed into him, he sealed up the hatch, and then proceeded to… ask her how she wanted him to kill her. He then followed through with trying to kill her and when it didn't work, he tried to either starve or dehydrate her to death… And from what he said, he's done this before. Or at least, he's killed people before."

There came that weight again. Along with the slowly spread of anger. That kind that became a little more prevalent the longer he let those words set in.

And Mike had wondered why Scott had implied that rehabilitation wasn't an option when he had witnessed it firsthand. Because this wasn't a haunted animatronics with issues, it was just an extension of William Afton. Worked just as intended.

"…But hey, we can't be too sure. He said a lot of stuff that I know was just to get in our heads, so I could believe that he made that part up. And I'm going to believe it so I can sleep tonight," Scott said in a lighter tone. "…But I do believe what he said when he said he'd do it again. He didn't have any remorse and enjoyed it way too much."

"He made decapitation sound so fun that I just HAD to try it," Ennard said sinisterly. Though he faked a delighted tone, it was clear that he was sour about the situation. Understandable considering what must've happened.

Mike tried to rein in his satisfaction at Funtime Freddy's fate.

"No, you made the right call. Now we see if Burke's going to hold up his end of the deal," Mike remarked.

"Freddy said he was going to kill her and that he'd kill again if he had the chance, in front of Clay. Don't worry, he's going to take care of this. I trust him."

"And if he doesn't, we know where he lives," Ennard added in. "Ooo, Scottie, tell him about how you threatened those cops."

"Uhm, ahem, I've got to go. We're sitting out in the driveway and it's really coming down, so I'll talk to you later? Maybe come by tomorrow we'll give you the rest of the details."

"Sounds good. My parents are here so I should get back to them."

And there was the second Freudian slip of the evening. He wanted to cringe and looked towards the living room, but Isabelle and Patrick were talking now and didn't notice it.

"Oh, we'll be there! We got a HUGE surprise!" Ennard gushed. As though he was barely holding back on whatever this 'surprise' was. "You take care of that mom of yours, okay?"

"I plan on it. I'll tell Mari and see you two tomorrow," Mike finished. After a few brief goodbyes, he hung up, then passed by the living room towards the hallway. "I'll be right back. I've got to check something."

"Is everything okay?" Patrick asked.

"It's all good. Fritz got ahold of the one guy and they're going to straighten it out," he smoothly deflected, turning around and walking backwards into the hall. He pointed his thumbs back behind him. "I just have to run back to my bedroom really quick. I've got my file cabinet with all our receipts in my closet."

"Good place for it," Patrick complimented.

With them none the wiser and him barely being honest, Mike made it back to the master bedroom. He knocked on the door briefly before leaning himself in, only to find the master bedroom empty. Only to have Marionette appear beside him a few moments later.

"Hey, hey. You'll be happy to hear that Ennard popped Freddy's top," Mike announced.

"Good," Marionette said. He then promptly retracted it, "I mean- No, not good but… Was she in there?"

"She was, but she's okay. Scott said that they got her out and she should be at the hospital getting fluids."

"That's… That's wonderful! That's fantastic- of course Ennard could do it!" Marionette chimed with delight. Mike could hear that same relief of weight through his voice and smiled. He stepped through the door, pushing it closed behind him, and coaxed him into a hug which the puppet eagerly returned. For a moment they just soaked up the feeling; the feeling that they had somehow averted a catastrophe.

Funny how they got so invested in a girl who neither was ever going to meet. In this case, they would rather that than the circumstances that might've thrust them together.

Marionette had a sobering thought and pulled back. "And what will become of Freddy?" he asked.

"Considering that he said he planned on a killing spree in front of Burke, don't expect him to show up for Christmas."

A small smile returned to Marionette's mask. "Cute, but we need to be sure. If he meant what he said then we need to make sure Clay takes it serious. Or he will get the chance again."

"We'll call him tomorrow and straighten it out," Mike affirmed. He leaned in and stole a quick kiss. "Sorry to split, but I've got to get back out there. Mom's starting to nod off on the couch so this might be my last chance to nudge them out the door before they commit to staying the night."

"I don't mind them staying the night! And I doubt Michael or Charlie would either. We could let them stay in here and we could stay in my room," Marionette offered.

"…You know, as tempting as that sounds, I think I'd like to sleep tonight," Mike answered with a cheeky smile. Marionette gave a scoffing chime and a playful push.

"Go ahead. If you get a chance, please tell your mum I was so glad to see her and that I hope she comes back soon, and that I love her," Marionette requested. His smile stretched wider with excitement. "And later we can celebrate. I'll show you what else your mother got me. I think you'll find it… intriguing," he said vaguely. He could already imagine the look on Mike's face when he whipped out the ukulele.

Though the current look he had was equally entertaining. No doubt he was expecting for him to reach into his bad and pull out a garish tropical-themed souvenir that would become a staple of their bedroom. Alas, Charlie got the snow globe.

"That's not terrifying, but sure. Will do," Mike agreed. He then headed back out, looking back at Marionette again to make sure he was alright before leaving.

Once he was gone, the Puppet was left alone with his thoughts, and he decided it was worth processing them before going to tell Charlie and Michael.

As jarring as this all was, this wasn't an unusual occurrence. They simply hadn't had many unhinged animatronics pop up recently. Especially not ones who he knew his father had a hand in- but he knew they existed. They existed and he wanted to help them, and he did feel a sickening guilt at so willingly accepting Funtime Freddy's decommission. He liked to believe that every animatronic could be saved and could be helped to have a comfortable life before an eventual afterlife.

But the truth was that he couldn't stand by and let something so willing to kill continue doing so. It didn't matter if it was human or animatronic, he wasn't going to let more innocents lose their lives. If Ennard hadn't had gotten that bear open, then he would've- even if he had to pull it apart piece by piece. He had put enough people back together to know how to take them apart.

Feeling himself getting worked up, he calmed himself down and released the tension on his spools. It was all fine. If there was a soul inside of Funtime Freddy it would surely find peace and forgiveness once freed from the shell and the directives his father laid out for it. He supposed it was hypocritical in a way, to go along with taking away another's body when he nearly had the same thing done to him, but he knew this was different.

Perhaps it didn't have a soul. Maybe there was something else steering it.

He would ask Ennard tomorrow if it was hot to the touch.

Springtrap was awoken by a rhythmic little knock on the door. He shifted around and rolled over, knocking most of his stuff off of the bed and to the floor. He could care less, cracking open an eye to stare at the door, recognizing the knock.

"Come in…"

He braced himself for the door flying open and the expected party to come striding in, but that was not what happened.

Instead, the door slowly creaked open a small amount before pink ears slid through, then a pink head, and then the body revealing a small rabbit. He recognized its model instantly, being one of those hand puppet Bonnie's typically stuck to the end of a Funtime Freddy's arm. If not for its coloring, it would've looked nearly identical to the "Bon-Bon" puppet he had seen during his time working in Afton Robotics.

It had its hands shyly over its mouth when it first poked out, but then pulled them back to wave one at him. She slid out further as a familiar white mask poked into the crack of the doorway beneath her.

"Guess what I stole out of an old man's garage?" Ennard asked gleefully.

A whole lot of trouble, Springtrap predicted.

Chapter 41

Chapter Summary

Freddy is missing and Gregory must seek help from an unlikely source. Looks like it's back to the Superstar Daycare...

It had been a mostly normal day at the Pizzaplex. Gregory spent most of the time moving around the atrium and lobby to not look suspicious, avoiding any animatronics and staying in crowds when there were employees nearby. He did noticed there were fewer human employees to the days before, with a few more Staff Bots at the counters. Not that he approached them, instead snatching food here and there when he wasn't noticed.

Only once was he spotted, and he was able to put on the 'dumb kid' act and pretended like he mistook their table for his parents'. They bought it, they thought it was adorable, and he skirted off quickly with them none-the-wiser. While Gregory's size didn't benefit him against robots or nutty security guards, it definitely gave him a pass with unsuspecting adults. Like, nobody thought it was weird that he hung out a lot in Kids Cove.

He had a photo pass ticket in his pocket, but he didn't use it. Unless he wanted to get caught or waste his chance going in amongst a bunch of other kids, Gregory was going to wait until closing and then use it to get to Freddy. Then he could stall long enough that he could get stuck at the Pizzaplex overnight on accident under Freddy's watch- to make Freddy less suspicious, though he hadn't really seemed to catch on.

They had done this routine for days now: come visit after closing but before midnight, stall, get locked in, stay overnight, and get another photo pass for the next day. Somehow, Freddy didn't seem to catch on.

Freddy was great, really. Gregory thought he was pretty cool for a robot. He just wasn't the most observant of robots. Probably why he kept thinking his friends were acting normal when they were acting so weird.

Gregory got to see Freddy perform on stage a few times. Once he even saw him walk through the other side of the atrium from Rockstar Row to Fazer Blast. During which he was utterly swarmed by kids, and no amount of Staff Bots could keep them back from grabbing at him. It left a sour taste in Gregory's mouth even though Freddy seemed happy to talk with the children, even signing autographs and handing out tokens.

Freddy never gave him an autograph. Then again, he would've bet that Freddy never gave them free photo passes, of baked pizza with them, or played Fazer Blast with him and Foxy.

Freddy started to turn in his direction and Gregory quickly turned and darted back into Kids Cove. He was sure that he wasn't spotted because, knowing Freddy, he would've just ran over to see him. Instead, he peeked out a few minutes later to find the bear gone and assumed he had headed into Fazer Blast. Somewhat disappointed, Gregory headed upstairs to swipe some popcorn for a snack.

The last show of the day was at eight o'clock and was something akin to a closing show for the Pizzaplex. Though the building stayed open a couple more hours after that, it was the last big performance on the stage, and it was definitely the coolest. There were spotlights, smoke machines, and lasers, and it was all so much cooler when the room was darker. Gregory watched from the back of the crowd, not expecting Freddy to see him in the crowd.

He was still sort of disappointed when he didn't, but that was alright. The show was good enough. He had trouble looking at the other bandmates without thinking about them chasing him around, but Freddy was super cool.

Gregory wasn't too shocked when he didn't see Freddy after the show. He didn't seek him out either, instead being especially careful to hide as the crowd started to thin out. The attractions closed before the atrium and lobby shops, so by time it reached closing there were no longer plenty of people to camouflage into. He hid out in Kids Cove until the atrium was empty, save the Staff Bots attempting to clean the many messes, and then snuck to Rockstar Row.

By now all of the animatronic would've been in their rooms. He couldn't hear much but could see that Roxanne's curtains had been pulled further closed, so likely she was in there. Gregory quietly made his way up to Freddy's door and let himself in, bracing himself for Freddy to be standing inside and ready to greet him.

Except Freddy wasn't there.

Gregory was a little surprised but wasn't too concerned at first. Likely Freddy was just charging in the back, so he sat down on the couch and decided to wait for him. At first it was nice to just get off his feet and relax for a little while.

Then he heard the announcements signaling the closing and locking of the Pizzaplex, and then saw his Faz-Watch click to midnight, and he decided to go check on Freddy. He walked into the backroom and went around the corner to look up at the window for Freddy's charging station.

There was nobody there.

Now this was strange. Ever since Gregory started coming nightly, Freddy was always in here waiting for him. Not only was he not here but Gregory had been waiting a while and he didn't show up. Now he decided to turn to the Faz-Watch.

"Freddy?" he asked into it. He was used to getting a rather speedy response, but there was no response. Now he was started to get a little worried, which he quickly shook off. "Maybe he's over in Fazer Blast?"

That was the best he could think of. Either way, nothing was getting done hanging around here, so Gregory headed back out of Freddy's green room. Blocking the door open with the bowtie pillow so it wouldn't shut him out before stepping back into Rockstar Row- only to promptly leap back to hide around the corner again.

Chica was outside of her room. Instead of eating garbage, she was looking over a duffle bag with an occasional audible hum. She would unzip a zipper, peek inside, and hum even louder. Someone must've left the bag behind, and she was either searching it for goodies or trying to identify who it belong to, probably the former. With her distracted Gregory had a perfect chance to sneak away.

Yet while he was in the process of inching towards the security door, he suddenly hesitated. Freddy had told Gregory many times that Chica wasn't dangerous and seeing her talk with Freddy while they were in the kitchen made her seem a lot less scary. Sure, she was loud and talked to Freddy in a way that Gregory didn't appreciate, but she acted like a human- just like Freddy did. The eating trash thing was weird, but maybe she was like Freddy.

They had all been chasing him, but it was Monty and Moon who had been the insane ones. Perhaps Chica would actually help him if he explained what was happening. Though what likely fueled this idea was the realization that she was going to hear the security door either way and it wasn't like he could sneak behind her. Maybe he could go back through the vent, but he didn't really want to.

Gregory decided to trust Freddy and take the chance. "Ch-Chica…?" he called quietly.

She snapped upright in a rigid posture, then her head slowly turned in his direction. As soon as she saw him her head snapped fully towards him, fast enough to make her eye twitch. A strange, empty look took her gaze as she stared at him.

Gregory realized that he had made a huge mistake.

"Ooooh? Is that a lost little boy I spy?" Chica said. Her voice had changed. It was no longer sweet and lively and instead changed to something creepy and malicious. "Don't worry, I'll take you to your parents."

All she had to do was take one wobbly step towards him and Gregory turned and bolted. He stole a glance back at Chica as the security door lifted, watching her speedily strode after him. Her head hanging and her whole-body shaking in an uncoordinated shuffle. Yet somehow, she was still fast and had almost caught up with him by time he got through the door and made a run for it.

Gregory ran at full speed out of Rockstar Row and back to the atrium, slipping under every door he passed and never missing a beat. Chica was never too far behind. He could constantly hear her heavy footsteps as she managed to keep up with him. He had gotten a little way ahead of her by time he made it into the atrium and used that to try and loose her. He darted up the closest escalators and hid behind a divider of plants.

His heart pounded in his chest as he tried to listen for her. He could hear her thumping around down on the first floor.

"Where did you go? Come out, little guy!" she called across the empty room. Her voice echoing across the large space. "Don't worry, your parents want you to follow me!"

Gregory nearly made a disgusted noise but stayed quiet as he caught his breath.

"That was a bad idea. Ugh, I knew they were all crazy! Freddy just thinks they're okay because they act normal around him!" the boy realized. Just thinking of Freddy again made him nervous and he looked down to his Faz-Watch. One of the things it had was a little map of the Pizzaplex. It was tiny and hard to see, but he squinted and only got a vague idea of the shape of the place. "Where is he?"

Fazer Blast was still a possibility, but Gregory had reasonable concerns about going back downstairs and walking around where Chica currently was. Besides, something else had to be going on. Freddy had stayed on schedule since Gregory had started showing up nightly. Even if he was called away for something else, which seemed unlikely since everyone was gone, he wasn't responding to the watch.

"Something's wrong. Freddy's never gone this long and wherever he is he can't hear my messages… I'm going to have to find him, but how?"

"Would you like some caaandy? I have a whole bunch of candy, and cupcakes!" Chica tempted from below. The idea of eating anything she gave him turned his stomach.

He was going to need help. Normally he would've turned to Freddy, but obviously he couldn't do that.

"I could call Foxy!... Wait, no. I don't know his number- Ugh! Is there anyone in this place who isn't crazy?!" He sat there for a long minutes, cringing as he heard Chica continuing to call for him. He even considered risking it with the night guard… until he thought back to that night at the daycare. "Wait, there was someone up in the daycare. Someone the Sun guy was afraid of… Maybe he could help?"

It was worth a shot. At this point Chica wasn't giving up and it wasn't like Freddy was showing up. Taking a deep breath, Gregory peeked out of his hiding space before creeping along towards the elevators at the front of the atrium.

He could hear Chica walking around nearby. It sounded like she was just under him, but he was as quiet as he could be. Eventually he made it to elevators and pressed the button to call for it, wincing at the noise it made as it lifted to this floor.

He felt a growing fear as those footsteps quickened and were suddenly thumping closer, higher, and he looked back at the escalator, watching with wide eyes as Chica rose into view, climbing the steps and spotting him.

"There you aaa-are~!" she cooed. Then broke into a fumbling jog.

Gregory ran into the elevator and pressed the button before backing up to the corner. Chica ran up fast enough to catch the elevator. She could've easily stuck her arm through the closing door, but she didn't. She just stood there and stared through the crack in the door as it slowly closed like she wanted to, like something held her back.

The doors shut and the elevator began to slowly descend. Gregory finally breathed a sigh of relief, but it was short lived. He turned around and waited for the doors to open, then crept out into the lobby.

Thankfully the place seemed empty. He snuck through the upper floor and through the doors into the hallway outside of the daycare. He was about halfway down it and almost there when he noticed a familiar noise closing in and stopped in place. The thumps of heavy footsteps- not Freddy's but Chica's. He stood there frozen, trying to figure out where they were coming from before hearing a security door from the fountain lobby.

Gregory ran back and into one of the bathrooms before hiding in a stall. He stood in there, prepared to crawl under the wall or make a run for it, anything, as he heard the footsteps hastily approach. Only for them to continue right past the bathroom and towards the lobby. Chica had no clue he came this way and hadn't heard him. He waited until her footsteps were faint before daring to peek out the bathroom door and continue to the daycare.

The daycare was exactly as he remembered it, bright and overflowing with bouncy music. Gregory walked inside carefully. Part of him half-expected to be bombarded the second he walked through the door on account of the banned posters. The banned posters that were regularly put up and taken down without him seeing it happen. It wasn't hard to guess that someone was still angry with him.

"I wonder where that Sun guy is…" he mumbled.

He walked over to peek into the daycare but didn't see anyone inside. That wasn't a great sign, but maybe that meant the Daycare Attendant was up in the balcony. In which case he could probably get into the daycare and call up to the other person behind the curtain before Mister Sunshine hopped down and tossed him out through the front doors.

It wasn't a great plan. It was, in fact, the only plan. He just had to go with it.

Gregory took a deep breath and approached the slide. He crouched down in front of the opening before moving into the sitting position. He stretched his legs down and started to scoot forward, preparing to push off.

"Here I go…"

When suddenly a yellow face popped around the corner. The white eyes and wide grin just as jarring as the first time they were shoved into his face.

"Gah!" Gregory cried and fell back out of the slide.

"Here you do not go!" Sunny cried defiantly. He easily climbed up the slide to stare down Gregory from the top. "Or have you forgotten that you're absolutely, positively, totally and certainly, wholly and fully, undeniably and reliably BANNED?!"

"I know that, but-."

"Ah, ah! No backtalk!" Sunny waggled an accusatory finger at him. "If you wanted to get in so bad then you should've followed the rules and been a lot nicer! Then you could've spent allll night every night playing and having fun! Now nope, nope! YOU are staying OUT HERE! No arts and crafts for you! And it's a real shame because I got brand-new Faz-Doh."

Gregory narrowed his eyes at the Sun's condescending tone.

"I don't want to play in your stupid daycare, okay?" he huffed.

"That's ten more minutes, Sunspot! Wanna go for twenty?" Sunny tsked. Gregory rolled his eyes.

"Okay, look. Freddy's gone and I don't know where they took him, and now Chica's chasing after me! I need someone to help me find Freddy," Gregory tried to reason. Though either because of his continue huffiness or Sunny's absolute stubbornness, this fell on deaf ears.

"Too bad, so sad! Maybe you should've thought of that before you snuck in again. I'm keeping count, y'know! It's been like eight times now!" Sunny said with another point. His finger so close it almost brushed Gregory's nose.

Gregory frowned at it before looking back up at Sun. "What about that guy on the balcony? Can he help me?"

Sunny sputtered dramatically and wrenched his arm back. "Wha-What guy? There's nobody up there but me. You must've been mistaken!" he insisted.

"Yes, there is. The guy who got mad at you when you wouldn't let me go. Who said he was going to 'come down here'."

"D-Doesn't ring a bell!" Sunny said nervously, poking at the bell on his wrist to make it ring. "Now y-you just move along! The daycare is strictly off limits until you clean up your messy, messy behavior!"

This was not good. Gregory wasn't even sure if that person was going to help, but he did know that turning around was probably going to land him right back in front of Chica. Maybe even everyone else too if she told on him to the security guard and the rest of the animatronics. This was his only option, and he reached a dead end with a creepy smile.

Or maybe it didn't have to be.

Gregory spun around and bolted at the slide.

"What are you do-ING?!" Sunny's voice shot up in pitch as Gregory all but dove at him. He could barely get out the, "STOP!" but it didn't do much to stop what was coming.

Gregory's thought was that with how Sunny was lifted and his spidery limbs, he could dive into the slide and maybe slip right underneath him and down into the pit. Unfortunately, not only would this have not worked, but Sunny somehow managed to catch him. Not that it stopped his momentum, as the next thing he knew he and the jester were sliding down the dizzying swirl of the slide, having thrown off the sun's grip.

Sunny fell into the ball pit backwards, managing to keep his grip on Gregory enough to hoist him over his head to keep him out of danger. Though the second they sunk in, Gregory twisted out of that grip and went wading through the balls. There was a frenzy of clattering plastic balls behind him and he looked back in time to see Sunny on his feet, towering over him, with his ever-present smile but a stance that gave away that he was mad.

"You little hooligan! You get back here right now!" Sunny demanded. When Gregory didn't turn around and immediately give himself up, he hastily strode a few long steps through the balls and snatched him up under the arms. "Gotcha!"

"Hey! Hello?!" Gregory called up to the balcony. "You up there in the balcony! I need your help!"

"Stop that! There's nobody up there…!" Sunny hissed worriedly. He turned Gregory around to face him. "And YOU are in big trouble, little guy! Do you know what happens to kids like you?!"

"What?" Gregory challenged. Yet deep inside he couldn't help but feel a pang of fear.

"They have to wear the Friendly Mitts!"

Never mind, that fear was long gone.

"So help me, as soon as we're closed for maintenance for the weekend, I am dragging the Time Out Table out to Kids Cove and you're gonna sit there until ALL of your time is served!" Sunny threatened. That threat actually had a little more weight, if only because it sounded like the most excruciatingly boring thing ever.

"What's going on?" a voice worriedly called from above. Gregory perked up and Sunny went rigid.

"Nothing!" Sunny called up. An anxious strain to his voice.

"Down here!" Gregory yelled over him.

It was hard to see at this angle, but he could vaguely make out one side of the curtains moving around, like someone was hiding behind them.

"Hey!"

"Hello down there!" the person behind the curtain called back down. While Gregory still had his guard up, he was relieved to hear that the voice sounded genuinely friendly. Not to mention that Sunny seemed stuck in place now. "What are you doing here? It's long after closing," the voice offered. He then gave a slightly exasperated, "Sunny, put him down."

"And let him disappear into the pit?! No, no, no! He is staying RIGHT here!" Sunny said with finality.

"Okay, I'm not going to argue with you," the voice said, not yet at the point to argue. "What's your name?" he asked more gently.

"It's Gregory," Gregory introduced.

"Nice to meet you, Gregory. I'm Jake," the voice introduced. "Now what did you need help with? I couldn't really catch what you were saying at the slide."

"I, uh… accidentally got stuck here after closing… again," Gregory explained. Sunny gave a little scoff and readjusted his grip, hooking a single arm around the boy, though keeping him still to his chest, just so he could put his hand on his hip. Gregory tried to send him a look to no avail and continued. "I went to find Freddy, but he's gone. Now Chica's chasing me and I can't find Freddy or get through to him on the Faz-… On the, uh…"

"The Faz-Watch? Huh, that is weird," Jake agreed.

"Wait… You know about the Faz-Watch?" Gregory asked hesitantly.

"Golly, what's that little boxy doohickey on your wrist?" Sunny asked mockingly. Leaning in his face over his shoulder to accentuate the point. Gregory turned away with a frown and covered the watch with his hand.

"If you want me to be honest, sometimes when you're close to the daycare, I… pick up your signal. Hear you two messaging each other," Jake admitted. "I'm not trying to eavesdrop! I just listen to all the radio chatter and sometimes something ends up popping up."

"You're not going to tell that security guard lady, are you?" Gregory asked, a touch of fear edging into his voice.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to tell anyone. I'm sort of in the same boat as you in a way," Jake assured. "But anyways, I know Freddy went for maintenance after the last show… but he's still not back? That is pretty strange… Tell you what. I'll come down and-."

"You're coming down?!" Sunny blurted out.

"-check the security desk computer and see what I can find," Jake finished. He drew back from the curtains, calling out as he did. "It's really the only way I can find out!" probably to answer the question.

Sunny gave a dramatic slump and a sigh. Then he hoisted Gregory up tighter and turned to wade out of the ball pit.

"Can you put me down now?"

"No."

That was sure enough of an answer that Gregory didn't think it was worth arguing.

Sunny stopped off to the side to grab a tiny blue chair and for a second he thought that he was going into time out like he was threatened, but instead it was carried over to a tiny kitchen area. Though 'kitchen' was an exaggeration. It was more a soda machine with a couple of counters, a sink, and a mini fridge alongside.

As huffy as Sunny seemed about the whole thing, he began to hum as he flittered around through the cabinets and fridge. It was probably eating him up inside that he had to have the 'Rulebreaker' stick around. After the fuss he put up earlier, Gregory couldn't help but feel more than a little pleased. He decided to not be too overt about the smugness; the last thing he needed was Sunny putting him in a more uncomfortable chair. This one was already wobbly and way too small.

He was distracted wobbling the chair on the padded floor when he suddenly had metal lunchbox dangled before his face. It had the Superstar Daycare logo on it with a yellow background and red and yellow striped sides.

"Here you go!" Sunny chirped.

Gregory gave the random lunchbox a suspicious look, then gave the same one up at Sunny.

"Before you get any weird ideas, one of the kids left their lunchbox behind. I thought instead of letting it go to waste I could give it to you," Sunny said. He started to slowly pull the lunchbox back. "Unless you don't want it."

"I'll take it," he quickly said. He eagerly grabbed the box, only realizing how needy he seemed when he did. "I mean, if I'm going to be stuck here all night anyways."

Sunny's points dipped in a spiral around his face.

Gregory opened the lunchbox to see that it was packed full. There was a carton of juice, a plastic wrapped sandwich cut in half with the crusts cut off, a package of carrot sticks with a sealed cup of ranch, a box of "Sunny-shine" golden raisins, and a small bag of Meat Bites. Someone really liked the food from the Pizzaplex apparently because everything in it was labelled to suggest that it had come from it.

Not that Gregory could care. Food was food, and the Pizzaplex food was a lot better than what he had to eat before he got here.

"That's a fancy backpack you've got there," Sunny remarked. He leaned sideways on bent legs and titled his head to look, his points swaying with his movements. He must've noticed it when it was shoved to his chest. "Where'd ya get it?"

"Prize Counter. I won it," Gregory, taking the question as suspicion, quickly tacked on.

Any further questions were sidetracked by the sound of the daycare doors opening. Gregory's head snapped over, but he could hardly see through the play structure. He could hear the doors shut back.

"It's just me!" Jake called. He could then be heard walking around the security desk.

Gregory started to get up only to have a finger popped up before him, signaling him to wait.

"Ah-ah! All food and drink must stay in the snack area!" Sunny corrected. He then turned his hand over and pointed the finger down.

Giving him an unimpressed look, Gregory sat back down on the chair. He wouldn't usually consider being this obedient, but food sounded good. He tore open the bag of Meat Bites and poured a handful into his palm.

He shoved the handful into his mouth only to notice that the unsettling jester was watching him very closely. Gregory chewed through the meaty mouthful hoping that eventually the Daycare Attendant would get the hint. He did not.

"You don't have to stare at me. I'm not going to do anything," the boy muttered.

"Oh, I don't know WHAT you're going to do next. That's why I have to watch you veeeery closely," Sunny remarked. He spun his face to accentuate such.

Gregory couldn't tell if he was just that paranoid or just messing with him. At this point it could be either of them with how weird the jester was. All he knew was that it was making it hard to eat. He looked around for a distraction and noticed the soda dispenser just behind the clown.

"Are those all Fizzy Faz?" Gregory asked. He pointed past Sunny's shoulder and towards the drink machine.

The Daycare Attendant stared a for a few seconds longer- and Gregory though he caught on to the ruse- then flipped back his head and rotated his face to look at the drink machine.

"Oh ho, no, no! We have a whole bunch of Fizzy Faz flavors, yes indeedy, but we also have less Faz-y but just as fizzy Chica Chug and Sodaroni! -Well, Chica Chug isn't exactly fizzy, but it's the thought that counts! Ooo, and there's a special mystery~ Fizzy Faz flavor too! But since I've tried aaall of the flavors, I can tell you-!"

"I found him!" Jake called.

He found Freddy. The second Gregory heard that nothing could stop him from jumping up and running for the security desk. He shoved the Meat Bites into the lunchbox and closed it up while getting up and carried it with him as he sprinted towards the desk before Sunny could stop him.

Meanwhile the Daycare Attendant snapped his head forward and tsked.

"This is exactly why I have to keep an eye on you!" Sunny said with disappointment. Only to then realize that Gregory was running towards the security office, where Jake was. "GAH! Wait, wait, come back! Don't go over there!"

It didn't matter that Sunny broke into a run; he couldn't catch up to Gregory before he got to the security desk. Jake, hearing him coming, had ducked behind the desk with some sort of, "Wait! Hold up!" of his own. Not that it stopped Gregory from coming around the corner of the desk, to avoid getting grabbed by the Sun, and suddenly seeing the source of the voice, the old sun.

Now Gregory was the one staring as Jake frantically waved his arms. "It's okay! I know I might look scary, but I'm really not. I'm just a little busted up," he insisted.

"Uh… No, I'm okay. I'm not scared of you," Gregory quickly defended. "I sorta thought you were a robot since you were hiding and stuff." Jake was relieved to hear it and stood back up. "You found Freddy?"

"I did. It says here that's he's down in maintenance. They took him down after the last show," Jake explained. He leaned forward on the desk to look at the screen, scanning over the words again.

"See? He's been fine this whole time!" Sunny loudly remarked. Unnecessarily loudly as he had been standing directly behind Gregory for a while now. The boy looked back to see him with his hands behind his back and his heels tight together, and likely would've had a smug look on his face if he could've. The Sun held that tone for a moment before his points dipped pensively. "Gee, that's an awful long time for Freddy to be in maintenance, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is," Jake said suspiciously.

Sunny's pose relaxed and he walked around the outside of his desk, keeping his head turned on Jake until he was standing in front of him. It was sort of weird to see him walk without skipping or bouncing, or anything else.

"What've they got him down for?" he asked. His voice softer than usual.

"It doesn't say."

Sunny's internal whirring started to pick up speed.

"You don't say. Well, erm…" Sunny stole a glance at Gregory before leaning in further over the desk and lowering his voice. "You don't think they might've, umm… found out about what Freddy's been doing and decided to…?"

"…No. No way. If they found out Freddy was breaking protocol or whatever, I would've heard something about it," Jake said. Even though his words seemed sure, his tone held concern.

None of this made it past Gregory who was listening to the exchange.

"What are they doing to Freddy?" he asked while looking between them.

Apparently, both had forgotten that he could hear them because they looked to him in unison. Their expressions a mystery how quickly they both looked away and back at the computer respectively saying enough.

"We don't know. Normally there's a note or something that says what they're down there for. There's nothing here," Jake explained.

"Then… What do you think they did to Freddy?" Gregory asked. There was a hesitation and he impatiently asked, "They wouldn't hurt him, would they?"

"No! He's the star! I hear really good things about Freddy. He's the most engaged 'animatronic mascot' they've got in this place. Well, expect maybe Sunny," Jake said and gestured over the desk at said attendant.

Sunny's points dipped like he had heard the compliment, but he seemed to be staring past Jake at the wall behind him. At the screen projection of the Sun character that almost looked like him. His fingers tapped on the edge of the desk.

"I should go down there and check on him…" he said distantly.

Jake's hand tightened on the mouse and there was a heavy second, then he shook his head.

"You can't," he said. "It's going to be dark down there and if anyone catches wind of you being there without being called… Yeah, it's going to be bad. We can't give them a reason to start poking around trying to 'fix things' and we really can't have another incident like last time."

Sunny's fingers tightened on the desk.

"What happened last time?" Gregory dared to ask.

"I scared a technician," Sunny huffed. He might've rolled his eyes if he could've.

"Did you turn into the moon and chase him around?" the boy flatly asked.

"As a matter of fact, Smart Guy, YES. Yes, I did."

"We could get someone else to check on him… I'd say Chica, but if she knows about Gregory then trying to get her involved is a really bad idea, and I don't see Roxy agreeing without getting suspicious," Jake listed off. "The night guard-."

"No," Gregory and Sunny somehow said at the same time.

"…Wouldn't be a good idea either. And the Staff Bots only go so far," Jake finished.

Before he could voice it, Gregory asked, "Why can't you go?"

"Oh, no! That would be a really, really bad idea!" Sunny immediately shot down. Just the idea seemed to suddenly panic him. "Jake is a decommissioned animatronic," he whispered. "Nobody can know he's in here. Not even Freddy! I-If he leaves the daycare he could be in HUGE danger!"

"I can leave the daycare… but going all the way down to Parts and Service would be really risking it. I'm sorry," Jake apologetically agreed.

"Then I guess that means… that I have to go down there?" Gregory asked. He didn't really like the idea, but at this point it seemed like this was what they were leading towards.

The synchronized 'no's seemed to suggest otherwise.

"Oh, no, no. You can't go down there. It's very, very dangerous. A huge, big health hazard, no good for fragile little bodies. No guests should ever go down there," Sunny quickly recited with a wag of his finger.

It was likely the fragile comment that made Gregory instantly become defensive. "It's not that bad. Freddy took me down there once."

"…Oh, isn't that nice?" Sunny said sardonically, sending Jake an exasperated head tilt.

Jake gave him a half-shrug.

"Okay, then what about Foxy?" Gregory asked before thinking, then immediately realized that was probably not a good idea. "…You know about Foxy, right?"

"Oh, we know all about Foxy. He's probably why Freddy's down there," Sunny said disapprovingly. "But we don't have his phone number."

"But we do have A phone number," Jake interjected. "We could call Charlie and her friends! They snuck in before, what stops them from doing it again?"

"But that's no good! They're just a bunch of kids!" Sunny disagreed. "And they got caught one, two, three times while they were here. Who's to say they'll even make it to Parts and Service anyway?" He counted off the fingers and held them up.

"Well… We could ask the Puppet."

Sunny's points drew in as he slowly closed his fingers and pulled back his hand.

"I… I don't know about that," he quietly said. He was understandably uneasy, and Jake sympathized but knew they had limited options.

"Who's the Puppet?" Gregory asked.

"He works with Foxy. He's another animatronic but he's been around for a long time. Longer than Sunny and me at least. I don't know too much about him, but he did offer to help if we needed anything," Jake explained. He stepped over and picked up the phone before looking to Sunny. "What do you say? Worth a shot?"

Sunny gave an uncertain hum as his points bobbed in a thinking manner. Finally, he gave an exasperated sigh and dropped his arms to his sides.

"Go ahead."

Jake started to dial the number. He recited the first six digits questioningly before Sunny recited the last four. His whirring had picked up speed again and, while Jake sympathized, he went ahead and let the phone ring.

…

The first night in ages that Mike went to bed early and someone decided to call after midnight. There was no point in ignoring it either; any call this late was typically some kind of a cry for help. At least, it better be to be waking him up.

Mike rolled over and grabbed for his cellphone, answering it with a tired, "Hello?"

"Oh, uh… This is Max right? Or Mike?"

He recognized the voice instantly and that was nearly enough to rouse him the rest of the way. Nearly but not quite.

"It's Mike. Jake?"

"That's right. Sorry to call so late but we've got a little bit of a problem over here…"

"Uh huh…" Mike laid back on the bed so he could reach over and give Marionette a gentle shake. The Puppet woke quickly and lifted his head questioningly. "Keep going."

"I don't know how much Foxy told you, or Freddy told you, but there's this kid-."

"Jake's on. It's about the kid," Mike quickly recited. Covering the receiver so Jake couldn't hear while still listening. Marionette's eyes widened and he pushed himself up on one arm, the other bent pensively.

"-named Gregory who's gotten himself stuck in the Pizzaplex a few times. He's friends with Freddy and Freddy's been taking care of him, but tonight he came by the daycare and told Sunny and me that Freddy was missing. I checked the computers, and it looks like Freddy was taken down to maintenance… but there's no notes, nothing that says why he was taken, and he's been gone for hours, and now Chica's found out that Gregory's here so it's only a matter of time before everyone in creation comes looking for him… And I was wondering if maybe the Puppet- sorry, don't know his name- maybe he could come and help out?"

"Hold on," Mike said. He turned to Marionette, considering how to process that down into a quick explanation. "…Hold on," he repeated. Marionette quirked a brow, Mike returned to the phone. "His name is Marionette, and I need you to repeat half of that. I'm barely awake here."

"I know the feeling," Jake joked. "Freddy's stuck down in maintenance and we don't know why, Gregory's here and it's only a matter of time before someone comes looking for him, and we're kind of at a loss. We can't even call Foxy."

During the simplified explanation, Marionette had slid in and was listening to the receiver as Mike held it between him. Both of them waking up a lot faster the more details that were laid out.

"We could probably hide Gregory until morning, but… we're kind of worried about what's going on with Freddy. There's no maintenance report and he's been gone for hours… If anyone found out what Freddy's been doing then they could've taken him down there to 'correct the behavior'. If you get my drift," he whispered.

It was hard not to, and Marionette straightened up in alertat the unease that rolled down his spine. Neither he nor the half-awake Mike missed those implications.

"I can help you," the Puppet said, announcing his presence to the other animatronic.

"Oh hey! I didn't realize you were on the phone…" Jake said awkwardly. Especially feeling sheepish after he confessed that he had effectively forgotten his name.

"I'm on a second line, on a second phone," Marionette attempted to quickly cover.

"We used to have a third one before we axed the extension in the basement," Mike chimed in. That was enough to get an unamused look from his companion.

"But yes, consider us on our way. Can you keep an eye on Gregory until we get there?" Marionette continued.

"Sure, no problem! Just… thank you. You're kind of our last option here. Save maybe Foxy. I don't suppose you could give us his number?"

"Leave it to us. Foxy has a party in the morning," the puppet gently insisted. "But I can give you the number once we get there… And don't worry, it's no trouble."

The phone call ended swiftly after that, and Marionette was out of the bed in a heartbeat.

"Might not be trouble but it sure is bad timing," Mike mumbled as he got out of bed. He grabbed the clothes he wore earlier out of the hamper.

"This would happen on the night we start trying to get our sleeping turned around," Marionette remarked. It might've been a joking comment, but the way he was drifting around the room as he watched Mike get dressed betrayed his distress. "…Maybe I should wake up Charlie and tell her. Maybe I should try to call Foxy too. He'll be upset if he finds out I didn't tell him."

"If you call Foxy then expect him to show up," Mike warned. "But yeah, I'd tell Charlie. She might want to go."

"But should she go?" Marionette wondered aloud.

"The one time she doesn't the rabbit chick will show up and we'll have no one to take pictures as evidence," he swore. "…But it's her call. We'll let her make it."

"Alright," the puppet agreed. He continued to watch as Mike finished getting his clothes on and grabbed his taser, and then the two left the bedroom together.

…

"They're on their way!" Jake announced.

"Good! Great! Then they'll find Freddy and we don't have to! All good, all good!" Sunny over-compensated in agreement. "That puppet can jump from place to place, so he won't even need a maintenance pass!"

Jake froze on the spot while Gregory scrunched up his nose. "How many doors take passes in this place?"

"Oh, most of them. Except mine! My door is always open for children who want to have fun- that's why my door's a slide!" Sunny chirped.

"I don't remember you letting me in," Gregory said grouchily.

"I don't remember you wanting to play in my 'stupid daycare'," Sunny retorted.

"The pass is going to be a problem. There's no way they'll get through the utility tunnels that far without one. Marionette can 'jump' around, but whoever comes with him isn't going to be, and neither is Freddy. They'll need one of those passes just to get him out." Jake began to redial once again. "Hold on…"

…

Marionette had knocked on Charlie's door and received no response. She had given him permission to come in before to wake her, so he started to do so. Just as he was quietly opening the door though, Mike's cell phone began to go off directly behind him. He spun inside quickly and tried to quickly by quietly shut the door while Mike speedily answered.

"Hello, hello?"

"It's me again. Sorry to bother you, but we might have a small problem."

"That's a nice change. You know, compared to the big problem of Freddy being AWOL," Mike said matter-of-factly.

"Heh, true. Okay, so here's the thing. You need a maintenance pass to get into Parts and Service. That or a security badge; those really open doors around here. Anyway! So, just giving you a head's up that you might have to go find one."

"Any idea where one would be?" he asked. He could tell this was already going to be a long night.

"Well… Odds are both would be in a security office. What would you say, Monty Golf?" he quietly asked someone in the background. Then he reiterated, "Likely Monty Golf. Have you been there?"

"No, but I'm sure I can find it. I'll follow the big neon sign with the golf club on it," Mike remarked. "Where would the security office be? I'd rather be in and out."

"It's sort of to the back right of the entrance. You go in, go down the stairs, and if you can find the hallway towards the back right then you can walk right towards it. Or, if you get to the snack bar you can take the door in there to it."

"Sure." Mike withheld any comment, but he couldn't say he was thrilled to go walking blindly through gator country. "You've got a way to get the office door open?" he asked.

"I do, don't worry. I just have to get a little close and I can override those lower-level doors."

It was a small mercy; Mike would take them when he could. "Good. That should save us some time. We're heading out now but we're still in Hurricane so it might take us a few minutes to get there," he forewarned.

Jake was silent.

"…Still there?" Mike eventually asked and Jake seemed to snap out of it.

"Sorry, I was just thinking… You know what?... I can take care of it. I'll get the pass. You just focus on getting to the daycare without getting caught."

"Sounds like a plan. We'll be there as soon as we can. Keep an eye on the kid," Mike said, trying not to sound too relieved and trying to get off the phone before Jake changed his mind. While he knew about the situation- him being a damaged animatronic in hiding- he really didn't feel up to running around blindly to find something when Jake could probably walk right in and grab it.

A maintenance pass. Seemed like everything at the new Freddy's was locked behind paid passes and security codes, and yet still they were finding ways around it. They weren't the only ones either.

Though what Jake said about the security badges did catch Mike's attention. He wasn't sure why there would be random badges sitting out in offices, but he had seen Natalie's own hanging from her belt when he had saw her in uniform. Likely Jake had meant it figuratively instead of literally, but he liked the sound of that idea. Then stepped back into his bedroom to grab one last thing.

He could hear Marionette and Charlie talking when he got back so he continued to the living room, and he was surprised to see that they weren't the only ones up. Springtrap staying up to wild hours was a given, but Jeremy was awake too, playing video games again but with the TV turned down low.

"Hey Mike. What are you doing up?" Jeremy greeted, not looking away from the screen. It looked like he was at a large snake boss.

"What are you doing dressed?" Springtrap added.

Jeremy stole a glance to see for himself and looked a little surprised. Enough so that he went ahead and paused the game.

"I just got a call from Jake, the guy who hangs out with the Sun. That kid's in the daycare with them and Freddy's a no-show, so we're going to go look for him," Mike explained.

"As concerning as it is that the kid's back there again, is this really a 'you' problem?" the rabbit asked.

"It wasn't until he suggested that they're down there lobotomizing Freddy. I'm really hoping he's just paranoid, because if he's not… If he's not then that is not good. That's not good for anyone," Mike said. He let some of his concern slip through, but even then he was severely understating the gravity of the situation. If they were aware the animatronics were sentient and were 'fixing' them, then that was downright terrifying.

"If that's what they're trying to do then it's not going to work. It doesn't matter how much programming you pump into a machine, if it has a soul behind it then it will find a way around it."

"Even if they can't do it, them trying to do it is a crime against humanity. Even if they don't know Freddy's alive, they're brainwashing an intelligent being who thinks it's alive- Okay, I'm getting ahead of myself. We don't even know if that's what going on. For all we know, Freddy's down there getting his defunct battery fixed," Mike quickly backtracked, putting his hands up in defense. He couldn't let himself get carried away.

There was an uneasy quiet for a moment before Jeremy gave a decisive exhale.

"Guess I'm coming with you," he said. Then sat the controller down and got up. This got surprised and questioning looks from both Mike and Springtrap.

"That was sudden," Mike said.

"It seems like it, but I've been looking for a reason to get in there anyways. I can't do it while Foxy's hanging out with Freddy or it's weird. It's like I'm inserting myself into their buddy time," Jeremy admitted. "It's okay is I come?"

"Sure, you can come. Just don't expect to sleep tonight."

"Nah, I wasn't planning on it," Jeremy joked. He then headed to his room to throw some clothes on.

That brought up the question of why he was up anyways, and Mike was surprised that it took him that long to realize that he must've had another nightmare. He might've joked about the irony of escaping a nightmare by playing a game about chopping through hideous monsters, but knowing what Jeremy's dream was likely about, it wasn't a joking matter.

Jeremy was going to be tired tomorrow, but Mike appreciated him coming. With all this stuff going on the two of them and Fritz really hadn't had much time to hang out, and though this wasn't exactly 'hanging out' time, at least Jeremy wouldn't have a dozen dolls hanging off of him. An extra set of hands was always an assurance too, especially when it was another human along for the ride in a swarm of animatronics.

Mike leaned on the back of the couch before looking down at Springtrap. "What about you?"

"Being that this might be my only chance to sleep in a bed in the near future, I'm afraid not," Springtrap remarked.

"If you hate the couch that much, just take Mari's bed."

"Have you slept on Mari's bed?" he challenged with a twitch of his ear.

"…Fair point. I'll make a note to drag a mattress or something in here for you."

"I don't want to intrude," Springtrap said sarcastically.

"It's not like I'm offering you my bed," Mike retorted.

By now he was hearing someone coming and looked down the hall to see Marionette coming with Charlie behind him.

"Alright, we're ready. Charlie's coming with us and she has the radio she used to speak with Jake," Marionette explained. She held the radio up as he said so. Other than it, she was wearing her normal jacket but had her taser hooked on.

"I almost forgot," Mike said with a snap of his fingers. He walked around them and started heading back down the hall. "Jeremy's coming with us."

He didn't realize Marionette had vanished until he suddenly cut him off by popping up in front of him with the radio. Mike quirked a brow and took the radio and shook it at him.

"This is why you're my better half," he remarked. Marionette gave an almost flustered little trill and followed him back into the living room.

It wasn't long until Jeremy returned. He had thrown on a pair of sweats and a jacket but was still wearing his sleep shirt, not that it was noticed with his jacket being zipped up.

"Should we call Foxy?" Jeremy asked.

"I'll call him on our way," Mike said. Pulling on his own jacket he headed for the door.

"If you call him, he'll twist your arm about bringing him along. I'll call him. You just worry about pulling this off," Michael reassured.

"Thanks, Michael," Jeremy said appreciatively. "You can play the game if you want."

"Actually, I plan on commandeering your bed."

"That works too! Just don't step on Balloon Boy. He's on the floor."

"Let's get moving then. We don't have much time until the power shuts off and I don't know if Moon's as into this plan as Sun is," Charlie suggested. Taking her advice, they hurried out the door and into the car, and soon were on their way.

…

It wasn't until Jake was talking Mike through the plan that he really considered the logistics of it. Asking them to come over just to go down to Parts and Service was already a huge ask and their willingness to agree was a miracle. Now he was also asking them to go walk around Monty Golf to find a security office and passes when he not only knew where the office was but had the exact means to open the door.

This coming right after he had to iterate that he could leave the daycare was appropriate timing too. He hadn't left the daycare proper in a long time and he knew it was a major risk to even consider doing so, but he was going to have to do so anyway to open the security door since there was no way that they had any kind of badge and the one that was in the daycare was missing- likely stashed away in their room somewhere, thus consuming more valuable time.

And that was the important part: time. Time to reach Freddy and see what was going on and see if they could reverse whatever was being done.

"…Still there?"

Jake was snapped out of his thoughts by Mike's voice.

"Sorry, I was just thinking… You know what?... I can take care of it. I'll get the pass. You just focus on getting to the daycare without getting caught," he assured. Mike agreed and they finished out the call.

There was no reason he couldn't do this much himself. Sure, he didn't look too great, but Jake had two functional legs and access to the Staff Bot Network at his disposal. He wasn't too helpless to do this much. He didn't want to be helpless.

Being stuck in this daycare was no better than being confined to bedrest- a comparison that he knew too well. That solidified Jake's decision.

There was only one obstacle now, the one that was staring him down from the other side of the desk.

"And how are you going to get that?" Sunny asked. He knew already if that warning tone was any indication. That 'You better not' tone.

"We can just go get it," Jake offered. Purposefully leaving in the 'we' since he knew an 'I' would be immediately shut down.

"Oh no we don't!"

"Don't fight me on this. The quicker we figure out what's going on with Freddy the better off we're all going to be, including Freddy. Why waste time having them run around looking for a pass when we already know where it is and have access to the room? Access that I would have to walk farther out of the daycare to give to them anyways," Jake tried to rationalize. "It's just a few hallways. We'll be back before they even get here."

Sunny groaned and slouched his shoulders, then raised his hands in defense. "Okay, okay how about this? I'll go get the pass. I'll be back lickety-split!" he volunteered and shrugged. "Whaddya say?"

This could've been the end of it right then. Sunny would go and as long as he didn't run across Monty he would probably be back pretty quickly. Jake could watch Gregory, since they seemed to mutually agree that he couldn't be alone.

Except that the idea of going back to their room was suddenly much less appealing, and the idea of stepping out of the daycare was increasingly growing on him. Even if it was just in the hallway, even if it was just two minutes. He wanted out.

"I appreciate it, but I can take care of this. I know the control panel like the back of my hand, it'll be easy," Jake offered.

Sunny's arms dropped and his points slowly drew in. If he could emote, he would likely be frowning right now. The points popped back out as he started to sidle along the edge of the desk, watching as Jake drew back from the computer in preparation to walk out from behind it.

"Okay, okay, I see your point. But there's one thing standing between you and that office. Do you know what?"

"What, Monty?" Jake asked. To which Sunny stepped out from behind the desk and blocked him. "…Oh."

"It's not safe out there! What happens if someone sees you?! They'll tear apart the daycare until they find you!" Sunny warned him.

"Thanks for the warning, but I've made up my mind," Jake insisted. He gestured back to the door. "If you weren't holding us up, we'd almost be there by now."

Sunny crossed his arms stubbornly.

"If you guys are just going to keep standing around fighting then I'll go get it myself," Gregory suddenly and defiantly chimed in.

Sunny's head snapped to him suddenly and Jake gave a small sight.

"No, Gregory. It's fine. We're all going," he assured him. When Sunny's head snapped back to him, he gave a much firmer, "I need this, okay? I can go back into hiding once we get back, but I've got a chance to help out and I want to take it."

With how unyielding the Daycare Attendant was, Gregory was sure that this wouldn't work. That he would put his foot down and go on some overexaggerated tirade about rules or whatever. He was surprised when that didn't happen.

"…Fine," Sunny said. His voice quiet and unreadable.

Jake perked up a little. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

The tense silence that followed almost made Gregory want to double-down on going alone. Eventually though, Jake was forced to break that silence.

"…Uh… Could you please swing up and get my control panel?"

Sunny gave a frustrated little huff and tossed up his arms. "YES. I SURE WILL. SINCE I'M SOOO HAPPY ABOUT THIS PLAN."

He turned on his heel and began to stomp off in a cartoonishly overdramatic fashion back towards the ball pit and the balcony. Only going far enough to make a show of it before crouching down and then backflipping into the air, getting caught by the line that slid down to meet him and being carried off towards the balcony where he unhooked himself and dropped down onto it.

"Now's our chance! Let's make a run for it!" Jake said. Now having a playful edge to his voice.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Sunny called from the balcony.

"I'm kidding!" Jake called back with a friendly little chuckle.

These two were a couple of oddballs, Gregory decided, and he could've questioned these two's helpfulness without much difficulty. But he was starting to warm up to Jake. Enough so that he was willing to stick it out with the Sun even when he knew of the looming threat of the Moon. He check his watch; they still had a little while before that became a problem.

Whatever it took to find Freddy, he supposed. He just hoped that they weren't already too late.

Chapter 42

Chapter Summary

Gregory accompanies Jake and Sun into Monty Golf to get the pass to get into Parts and Service, but things can never be easy.

Chapter Notes

I had an issue getting this chapter done, explaining how long this took. I’m not going to be too surprised if this throws off the schedule for a few weeks but rest assured that I’m going to be putting my all into these chapters, so it’ll hopefully be worth it! ^_^ Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

It felt like they had been walking for a long time, but it was probably because these hallways seemed to go on endlessly. Apparently, they stretched from the daycare to Monty Golf and if what Jake said was correct, were used by employees to get between the two without having to walk around guests. At least they weren't as dark and humid as the tunnels underneath the Pizzaplex, not that he wouldn't be heading down there after Freddy. He hadn't told Jake or Sunny that.

His backpack was weighed down by the lunchbox he fit inside but other than that he felt fine. It hadn't been that long of a walk, and it wasn't late enough to feel tired. Even if it was, he didn't know if he could've rested feeling as antsy as he was. Looking around at these narrow walls that all seemed to blend together, smelling like fresh paint and clogged air, and reminding him of the hallways he walked through his first night at the Pizzaplex.

Sunny led the way. While Gregory was initially suspicious of him doing so, it became apparent that he wasn't planning something quickly. He was nervous, and it exuded through his body language. He was partially hunched, his steps were quick and close together, and he hadn't stopped wringing his hands since they left the daycare. Every time they came up on another hall or the set of stairs leading down, his head snapped to them and he would stare until they passed.

Jake was in the back and in contrast he spent a lot of his time looking between the hall ahead and the control panel in his arms. Control panel was the right word for it. The rectangular hunk of hardware looked like it had been uprooted directly from a desk or module, what with the unfinished bottom to its and the loose wires that had been duct taped to said bottom so they wouldn't hang down.

There was a keyboard and a number pad on the panel along with an imbedded green screen that was partially jutting out of the top. There was a Freddy shaped button in the upper left corner, but it too had been covered with duct tape and a piece of carboard. Not in a way to keep it pressed down but as though to keep it from getting pressed. There was a sort of yellow handheld thing with a screen and what looked like painted eyes crudely bolted on the right side.

When Jake noticed him looking back at him, Gregory asked, "So, what is that thing?"

"This? This is my control panel! Or that's what I just call it. Half panel, half Handunit, half hunk of junk," Jake joked. He tilted the panel so Gregory could see it better. "Using this I can open doors, check cameras when it's plugged into a monitor, and I can hook into the bot network and take control of Staff Bots."

"Whoa, really?!" Gregory said with surprise.

"It's true! Usually, I use it to control the Nanny Bot in the daycare, but it works on security bots too. And security doors, which is why we're bringing it. See, animatronics like Sunny have a certain level of security clearance, but if they open a door, it'll record that they were the ones who did it. Opening it with this means they won't be able to trace it back to him," Jake explained.

"Huh. That's pretty cool. Why don't you just use that to get into Parts and Service?"

"It's a whole different beast down there… Err, what I mean is that this thing works well with all the stuff up here, but everything downstairs is a little more… jumbled. It's harder to get stuff to crack. That's why it's easier to get a pass."

"We're almost there so you two use your inside voices," Sunny warned. He was ticking and twitching more the closer they got to the end of the hallways. "Oh, this is a bad idea! We're gonna get caught…"

"What happened to your adventurous side?" Jake asked with slight playfulness.

"I think I must've lost it around the time I started having to babysit three dozen kiddies for hours and hours and hours all day every day," Sunny huffed. Though suddenly realizing what he said, he quickly correct. "And it's wonderful! I love the kids! Especially the ones who don't pull on my points or have sickies on my pant legs. Oh boy!"

Gregory almost felt bad for him, but then he remembered who he was and felt less so.

"Oh ho! Here we are!" Sunny said. He pointed a long finger at a door at the end of the hall in front of him. He then held a hand out behind him, signaling the two to stop before sneaking to the door. Slinking in an uncomfortable 'Moon-like' way.

Gregory checked his watch. They were cutting it pretty close. Hopefully Jake could hold off the Moon like he did to the Sun, but if he couldn't then Gregory was more than prepared to run.

Sunny slowly turned the handle and pushed open the door. He slid his head through and craned his neck around to make sure nothing was in the hall. Then he slid himself out, palms and body flush to the wall as he continued to peek around. Music could be heard through the crack of the door. Guitars and banjos, dipping through a heavy "rockstar" theme to a southern sort of twang.

Eventually the Daycare Attendant deemed the hallway safe enough and pushed the door open before beckoning the two with his hand. Gregory came through next and looked both directions down the hallway. It was a rather unexciting one: greenish grey in hue with square tiled floors that nearly match and square, crackling lights above.

Jake followed behind Gregory and the three made their way down the hall and eventually to two doors marked with security badge insignias above them.

Sunny stepped aside and led Jake go first through one of the doors. It was unlocked, though before Gregory could question this he stepped through and saw the actual security doors on the other side. It was like a tiny office inside of an office, with windows peeking out into the hallway around it. Kind of like that first office he hid from Monty in- just remembering that made him feel much less safe.

"Okay, let's see…" Jake started to click along buttons on the keyboard section of the control panel. His fingers moving quickly, like the legs of a spider. It wasn't until now that Gregory realized they were just like Sunny's.

The security door opened with a clank and revealed the inside of the cramped office. It could've been smaller than the one he compared it to a few minutes ago. There was a desk, a couple of chairs, and some file cabinets all crushed together.

The only thing that caught his attention was a cardboard box in the back that was overflowing with disposable cameras shaped and colored like Glamrock Freddy's head. When he followed Jake in, he picked one up and looked it over.

"Don't think about iiiit," Sunny warned from outside the doorway. Gregory set him a flat look at the jester who was tenting his fingers and watching him.

"I was just looking at it. I wasn't going to do anything," he grumbled.

"Back in the box," Sunny instructed, pointing down. "Those things are banned for a reason."

"Everything's banned in this place," Gregory grumbled. He put the camera back down, if only to quiet down his current warden.

"They also only sell them here. Go figure," Jake remarked off-handedly. He was currently digging around the desk and into the drawers before snatching out and holding up a thin card. "Ah ha! Here we go. Now let's look for a badge."

"We shouldn't push our luck…" Sunny warned nervously. "Let's just take the pass and go!" he insisted, pointing his thumbs at the door to his right.

"We will. Let me just check this Freddy head case and then we'll go," he assured. Gregory looked back and, sure enough, there was a tiny box shaped like Freddy's head sitting on the desk. Jake pressed its nose and the case popped open, revealing a card sitting inside. Jake half-gasped at seeing it. "There is! We can use this!" he said and plucked it out.

An alarm blared through the security office. It was so sudden that all of them jumped and none of them had time to react before the security doors both slammed shut. Gregory's eyes widened in panic and he ran to the closer door, the one Sunny was behind, and frantically pressed the button for it. It wouldn't open back up.

"It won't open! What's going on?!" he cried.

"I'm not sure. Hold on, I can fix this," Jake said, his own voice bordering on panic. He started to press those buttons with as much frenzy as Gregory had with the door's, trying to override the security protocols.

"I TOLD YOU SOMETHING LIKE THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN!" Sunny yelled. His face pressed in the window.

"I can fix this!" Jake called back. He was scrambling to at least, trying to force the doors back open.

Yet through the back wall they could all hear a door banging open and thundering footsteps. It was Monty, it had to be, and Sunny raced back into the hall to try and buy them a little more time. Gregory pressed his back to the security door furthest from Monty's inflamed voice when suddenly- "Got it!" -the door opened behind him. He stumbled and was caught by Jake who ducked behind the corner with him right as the office door slammed open.

Monty came storming right in and searched the office as the alarm continued to drone on overhead. He shoved the chairs aside to look under the desk, then turned around and ripped over a locker standing against the wall. All the while Sunny rushed in the other door and stood into the security door doorway to block it off, going so far as to grab the edges of the door as he watched Monty search for someone who wasn't there.

Sunny reached one hand to Jake and he handed him something before nudging Gregory forward and around to the front of the office to hide. Unfortunately, there weren't any real hiding spots, and if Monty whipped around the corner, then they would be spotted immediately. Thankfully, he seemed to have a one-track mind. Once he deemed that there was nobody in the room, he turned his gaze on the other possible culprit.

"What's going on?! You see somebody in here?!" he demanded.

"Wha- Me?! No! No, no! It's just me! Sunny Dee!" Sunny rambled in an unconvincing way. Splaying his hands as his points recoiled and popped out. "Just coming to say howdy-do and be on my way! Eh heh heh!"

"Why're you all twitchy like that?" Monty asked, looking the clown up and down. Sure, he usually was twitchy, but he didn't miss how especially so he was now. "You see somethin'?"

"No! Oh, no! If I saw something I-I-I would tell you!" Sunny lied badly.

Monty didn't seem to buy it and Gregory regretted putting his faith in the jester and was even scooting towards the corner in preparation to bolt.

Right as he was about two things happened in quick succession. Monty headed back out the security door and started towards the left to walk around the front of the office, in which he would see Jake and Gregory, and as soon as he did there was a loud outburst from the Sun.

"OKAY! AUGH, I can't take it anymore! I've been lying the whole time!" Sunny gushed guiltily. He pulled at his points before covering up his face with his hands. "Th- The truth is… I SET OFF THE ALARM! I did it! I was the one who snuck in here!"

"Really? No kiddin'," Monty replied. He turned back as his lack of amusement quickly started to shift to annoyance. "What're you tryin' to pull?"

"Nothing! Oh, well, a fast one, maybe- but I had a good reason! I-It was to get this!" Sunny whipped out the security pass that he had gotten from Jake during their brief exchange. "I need it to get down to Parts and Service!"

"Well, why didn't you use yer own?" the gator asked gruffly.

"I would, but it's gone! Somebody must've taken it! Oh, I hope one of the kids didn't take while I had my back turned. They're always trying to sneak behind the desk, the little rugrats!"

"Why're you going to Parts and Service anyway? Ya look fine to me."

"Oh, it's not for me. Well, I guess it is 'for me', but it's for me to go see Freddy! He's still not back from maintenance and I'm getting awfully worried!"

Monty hummed and lowered his sunglasses to shoot him a look.

Sunny recoiled in offense. "What's that look mean?" he asked defensively.

"Ya could've taken it without setting off a damn fire alarm," Monty said with exasperation. Both ignoring Sunny's question, lowering his glasses, and starting to head back out. "Just keep it, I don't care."

"Really?! You really, really mean it?!" Sunny chirped. "Oh Monty, thank you, thank you! Oh, I'll make it up to you!"

"Don't. Just stop sneakin' around down here."

It seemed like Monty was calming down and had bought the ruse, going so far as to stop his search and start heading out of the office.

Meanwhile, Sunny leaned out from behind the corner on bent legs to send his constantly beaming smile at Jake and Gregory. From his slow motions alone there was no doubt that he was reveling in his act, perhaps smugly. Jake gave a relieved sigh and a thankful nod.

"Hey, why's that door open?!"

Any confidence Sunny exuded was shot down immediately by the yell. Pushing off the floor with his hands he all but sprinted to the door, shoved through, and raced Monty down the hall. Jake's head dropped into his hands.

"Get ready for round two," he warned.

Monty got to the door before Sunny could and they could both see that the door was open a crack. In fact, Sunny was sort of impressed that Monty had noticed. The gator was always so out of it that he seldom seemed aware enough to notice what was going on around him, let alone a door that was barely ajar. Yet he had, and he turned on Sunny quickly, with him sliding to a stop so close that he had to stay leaning back to not have Monty's jaws in his face.

"Did you open this door?!" he demanded, pointing a clawed finger at it.

"Uh, er, yes! I came through that door," Sunny answered.

Monty cooled down a little. Though not physically, Sunny could feel warmth coming off him even from this far away and could hear the other's internal fans already kicking on. As though he worked himself up enough to start overheating. Monty turned his head to stare down the door.

"How long ago was that? How long's it been open?"

"O-Only a minute or two! Geesh, what's the big deal?"

"The big deal's that ya left this door open! Anything could've crawled up and gotten in here!" Monty growled. Hot exhausted exhaled through his mouth like a non-existent breath. "I don't know how it works in yer daycare and frankly I don't care. When yer here you keep this door shut!" He grabbed the handle and slammed the door shut with a loud crack. "We clear?!"

Sunny stared at him.

Monty stared back. Then looked down at the door handle still in his hand. "…Oops."

"Wha- Nice going! How'd you pull that off?" Sunny cried. Gesturing both hands at the knob in exasperation.

"Wasn't me! This thing's been loose fer days, I thought they got it back on!" Monty defended. He then trying to stick the handle piece back in, to no avail. He couldn't even stick it inside and leave it for the illusion of being stuck in.

Sunny gave a frustrated little huff, crossed his arms, and tapped his foot as he watched the gator continue to try and fix what he had broken. Which had no doubt easily broken due to past rough treatment.

"What are you even afraid of? There's nothing down there but endoskeletons!... And maybe rats, and cockroaches. Probably spiders- okay, never mind," he said. "But how am I supposed to get back to the daycare?"

"Maybe take the front door like yer supposed to?" Monty suggested.

"Oh, right! Why didn't I think of that? Why don't I go walking through the dimly lit Golf Course?! I'm sure it'll be fiiiine!"

"Then take that gold door over by the bathrooms. Just make sure to shut it-!"

All at once the lights died and the sound of everything powering down echoed through the hallway and the rooms connected to it. There was a pause before Sun's glow suddenly sputtered out and he made a noise akin to a hitching breath. His hands balled into fists as he hunched forward, shoulders and head jerking and dropping down. One by one his points pulled in, and by then Monty silently adjusted his sunglasses and very quickly made his way out of the hall.

The door shut behind him right as a jingling chime broke from the Daycare Attendant's chest, signaling when the changing of the guards was complete.

"Oh no!" Gregory whispered in panic. He looked at his watch and saw that the lights had gone out right on time. "What are we going to do?! That Moon guy's gonna come after me!"

"It's going to be okay. He's not going to do anything. Not as long as you're with me," Jake assured. He sounded much less worried and instead maybe a little peeved, likely at Moon. "It sounds like Monty's gone. Let's sneak back out of here."

By time Jake peeked out of the office door, the hall was completely empty. No Monty, no Moon. He wasn't nearly as concerned about the latter roaming around, hopefully going to do his rounds and get Monty in his charging station, so he focused on leading Gregory back to the door. Gregory couldn't see at all, save using the watch's light to get his bearings but it didn't do much but light the area directly in front of him.

It was going fine until Jake realized that the thing sitting at the base of the door was its broken handle.

"Oh, that's just…" Jake exhaled tiredly. "Looks like we're going out the front door."

"What?! But then Monty AND Moon are going to see us!"

"I mean, we can wait in the office until the power kicks back on, but this might work in our favor. Monty's night vision isn't great so we might be able to sneak by without much trouble. We'll just have to be extra quiet," Jake warned.

"And you can't just kick the door down?" Gregory asked. Jake gave an apologetic head shake. "…Okay, fine. Just… stay close. Okay?"

"I'll be right beside you the whole time," Jake agreed. He readjusted the control panel into his arms. "Hold onto my leg, alright? I'll lead the way."

Gregory felt weird about holding his leg- it seemed like a very kiddie thing to do, just a step beneath holding his hand- so he instead grabbed a handful of the end of his coat, or cloak, or whatever this tattered thing was draped over him.

Jake led down the hall to the furthest door that wasn't at the end of the hall and opened it up. Immediately Gregory was hit in the face by a weird smell. Kind of like what pools smelled like with that sharp chemical scent. The air was also sort of thick and humid, like it would be on a warm day. Though it wasn't really that warm in here. It was more… misty. Muggy.

The music had gone off and the old sounds they could hear were distant footsteps and whirring of nearby Staff Bots. In fact, the place would've been pitch black if not for a few scattered lights moving around that illuminated pieces of the golf course. There were Security Bots in here and they hadn't been effected by the lack of power, continuing to search on their designated paths. Their lights beaming across and through fake trees gave the illusion of them being in a real forest.

There was a Security Bot that kept circling the general area right in front of them. From its flashlight, Gregory could see the mini-golf courses on the floor and some railings segmenting them, blocking them from portions of fake trees. Jake turned to the control panel, pressing a button before looking at the imbedded screen. There were some moving dots on labeled with numbers that appeared on it, and he chose one dot's numbers and typed them in on the keyboard.

He pressed a few more buttons, tapped the Handunit screen until it glowed with a keypad, tapped in something there- all while Gregory was looking around with paranoia- and then finally pressed one last button which caused the Security Bot to lurch to a halt. It lifted it flashlight to stare ahead in a default position.

"Got it," Jake whispered. He then pulled free one of the duct taped cords from the bottom and holding the control panel with one hand, used the other to pop open a panel on his forearm under his elbow, and plugged the cord into his arm.

The Security Bot jolted and shifted around a little before spinning around and coming to them. Gregory reflexively took a step back, but as the lights fell on him there was no reaction from the bot.

"Here we go…" Jake murmured. He readjusted the control panel into both hands before relaxing his stature, and then the Staff Bot moved past and stopped a few feet ahead of them. Jake took a few slow steps after the bot, almost bumping into a photo booth as he did so. Gregory hurried a few steps and followed behind him, them trying to rush along.

The Staff Bot might've been leading them with its light but the two were still keeping a careful distance. Partially because every time the Staff Bot had to move Jake would get uncoordinated. Eventually Gregory had to start pulling him by the cloak to help him along as they inched around what looked to be a giant alligator's gaping mouth. It was actually a walkway- any other circumstances and Gregory would've thought it was really cool.

All of a sudden Jake blocked Gregory with his arm.

"Wait right here," he whispered.

He moved the Staff Bot further along the path between the props and fake foliage and stopped it with its flashlight aimed forward. Gregory could see an artificial river and a wall with a doorway to a hall with what looked like a bathroom door, along with what might've been stairs in the distance, but it was hard to tell at this angle.

Jake crept up behind the Staff Bot while keeping low and seemed to be looking at something. Whatever it was Gregory hadn't noticed it, but he wasn't willing to risk anything with Monty on the loose.

A quiet jingle from somewhere above reminded him that he wasn't the only threat either.

Gregory ducked down by the railing beside the mouth and looked up and around for the telltale starry print, blue glow, and white face, but he saw nothing. He couldn't see anything but darkness, but he surely couldn't see the Moon either.

Jake came shuffling back hurriedly and put a hand on his back to guide him across the gator mouth. Even before Gregory heard the water directly gurgling underneath, he had figured out that it was a bridge, and he thought it was maybe the entrance to Monty Golf too. Instead, Jake stopped them at the back teeth and then began climbing over them. It took Gregory all of two seconds to realize that this was just a shortcut over the river.

Still juggling the control panel, Jake was halfway over the teeth when Gregory saw movement in the still stagnant beam of light and watched with eyes as wide as saucers as Monty walked out of the hallway.

"Monty!" he warned as he pulled at Jake's arm. The animatronic caught on and rolled back over the teeth and laid flat on his back. He might've avoided sight, but the clatter of the motion was just audible enough for the alligator to snap his head in their direction. Gregory just barely dropping his head down before he too was seen.

"Who's over there?! Moon?!" Monty called. When there was no answer, he started to stalk across his bridge, briefly stopping at the frozen Security Bot on the other side of the river. "What's up with you?" he muttered. He poked the side of its head with his claw, to no response.

This bought them very little time and Jake realized they had to move quick. To his right, where the throat of the massive gator mouth would've been, was an open doorway leading into a hallway section with one of the holes in it. A quick place to escape if not for the Security Bot currently passing through and heading past in the exact direction they needed to go. He needed that bot out of that way, so he pressed the button to sever his connection with the other one.

The Security Bot snapped to alert and began to spin in place searching for the route it was supposed to be on. Monty watched it with confusion before continuing on down the way towards the initial sound.

Jake was scrambling to reestablish connection onto the network, now with the Security Bot to his direct right, but time was not in his favor. At least, it didn't seem like it to Gregory. It felt like it had taken a dozen little steps to get to the point of control, and after that he was nearly stumbling just to get moving. All while Monty was creeping in. Monty who was sounding and acting normal now, but who he knew would change the second he saw him.

He remembered that crazed face pressed up against the office window vividly and white-hot panic shot through his veins. Normally he didn't feel this way unless something was outright chasing him, but something about Monty being that close sent it through him. It made him feel like if he didn't run now he was going to suffer the consequences.

And then the lights kicked on. Dozens of tiny lights like fireflies hanging from fake vines and branches kicked on across a swampy backdrop. A few spotlights lit notable locations, such as the large gator head they were sitting inside, but otherwise the lighting was surprisingly low. The power on should've meant the Moon wasn't a problem though, and the return of the music and ambience of gator hisses and crackles and calls disguised some of their own sounds.

And as soon as those lights were on and Gregory had his bearings, he knew he had to run.

He sprung to his feet and ran further down the mouth, shielded by a wall of fake barrels, and slipped around teeth and railing to sprint back in the direction he had come from. He ignored Jake's whispered calls to stop him, he could barely hear them over the louder bellows from further behind.

"Hey, who's over there?! You get back here!" Monty gruffly yelled. Though his booming voice did make Gregory quicken his footsteps, it was nothing compared to what he knew was coming if he was spotted.

He didn't run back into the hallway, there didn't seem to be much point. Instead, he continued running blindly along the back wall of the golf course. There were more Security Bots too. Somehow, he managed to dodge one in his path but then alerted another whose light shined through the fake plants a few moments later. He left the blaring behind, trying to figure out the paths before the heavy footsteps- which were concerningly more beside than behind him- found him.

Gregory took to a middle path trying to avoid a Staff Bot and caught sight of the alligator head again and a way back to Jake. One that was unfortunately cut off by a close-by roar.

"HEY! LITTLE GUY!"

He had been spotted, and from the hasty, heavy footsteps Monty was directly on his way. Gregory turned back and looked for a hiding spot and spotted a beacon towards possible safety only a few feet away. It looked like a trailer, but the fact that there was a hole running through it suggested that it was just a prop. What was more important was that its narrow doorways were open and suggested any easy place to hide.

Tripping over the edge of the hole, Gregory got inside and hid to the right of the door. There was a little seat there, positioned in what would be the back of the RV, and he sat on it with his back to the wall by the door and his legs pulled in tight. He held his breath as best as he could and listened as Monty thumped around outside.

Apparently, Monty's vision wasn't so good with the lights on either, because he thumped right past the RV and down the path Gregory had initially came from. He breathed a sigh of relief but knew better than to get comfortable. He had to get back out and out of this golf course before Monty caught wind of him again. There was a second exit to the RV, one at the end that was also part of the hole, and he got up and crept to it instead of risking it back out the door he came in.

He took a careful step out and looked around. There was a lit-up snack bar and eating area to his right that it seemed best to avoid, so he was either going back to the left of the RV or making a straight shot for a flight of stairs he could see. All things considered, running for the stairs might've been the best chance he had.

He was pulling up his backpack straps and bracing to run for it when he suddenly noticed a familiar ticking noise from very close by. When he paused to listen, he also noticed a slow, quiet whirring along with it. He recognized the sound; it was the telltale sign that the Daycare Attendant was creeping around nearby somewhere. Which shouldn't have been a problem since the lights were on.

Except Gregory noticed that the sound seemed to be coming from the RV roof above him. The Daycare Attendant was hunched down on the roof of it, probably sitting on his heels with his long legs bent and his spindly fingers on his knees.

That seemed a little out of character for the anxious, twitchy Sun, but it was perfectly in character for Moon.

Gregory didn't even second guess the- "But the lights are on?!" – and instead just took a slow step back, then another, and back into the RV he went. He took only a moment to listen for Monty's footsteps and once he targeted them to somewhere behind him and not in his escape route, he started making his escape again. This time taking a slow step out the door he came in, looking up towards the roof as he did.

There was a crescent face staring back at him and confirmed his worst fears. The power might've been on, but the Sun had not come back out. Gregory froze in place, staring back silently and waiting to see which direction to run.

Moon slowly raised a finger to his ever-present grin in a shushing motion before using the same hand to beckon him closer. Gregory shook his head with similar sluggishness. Moon insisted, beckoning faster, and beginning to lean further over the edge. As he tilted his body down it was like he was defying gravity. All he had to do was drop forward and-

"THERE YOU ARE!"

Both Gregory and Moon's heads snapped over in time to see Monty trample a plethora of fake ferns and take down a clothesline of jeans and shirts strung from the back of the RV. He was huffing and puffing already, with his claws up and ready to grab anything that got too close. Gregory turned and ran knowing that Monty could close that short gap in only a matter of seconds.

But Gregory prided himself in thinking on his feet- at least, he managed this long doing that. Right now he was stuck with an impossible choice; turn right and have the Moon pounce on him from the top of the RV or turn left and lose a half-second of distance and get grabbed by Monty. What lay straight was a dinky barricade blocking off an artificial pond that the rivers fed into and from, and a boat settled by the water's edge.

He was pretty sure that robots didn't like water, and he was even more certain that Monty couldn't swim, gator or not. So, he made the rash decision to push past and jump onto the boat.

…There were only two issues with this plan. First, the boat was slowly turning, and his timing couldn't have been worse, with it facing sideways with the slimmer end partially in his direction. This meant that he landed on the edge. Which he might've recovered from if the boat didn't bob in the water, the lone tether holding it underneath not keeping it sturdy.

Gregory fell back off, going feet first into the pond. Then promptly had his feet slip on the bottom and splashed fully onto his back. It was too shallow to be a risk of drowning, but he still found himself covered in this bad smelling water that burned his eyes. He hacked on the dregs that went up his nose as he got to his feet, now totally saturated.

However, the plan had seemingly worked. He looked back to see Monty trying to step out onto the boat, but when it sunk under his weight he was forced to give up. He huffed and slammed his fist on the railing, which bent under the blow.

Before the boy could so much as smirk in triumph, he was jarred by Moon suddenly thumping into the railing beside the pond and reaching for him. Gregory was just out of his grasp and he gave an infuriated growl as he grabbed the railing.

"You get out of that filthy, filthy water this instant!" Moon snapped. No rhymes, no singing or mocking, just a direct order.

A direct order that Gregory decided to obey by turning and wading as far away from both as possible. He knew they were going to follow him, especially Moon with how he darted along the side of the pond, growling and muttering even more than Monty was.

He knew he couldn't get out. The water was the only thing keeping them back, so if he got out at the wrong place, they could easily get ahold of him. However, if he followed the river… he would still be in the same boat, but at least he could get back to the entrance. Maybe then he could meet up with Jake and get the Moon off of his heels, since he was slowly becoming the bigger issue.

The only way forward was under a wooden bridge and Gregory hastily waded towards it, hoping to get under it before anyone got on it. Moon figured out the plan too quickly and sprinted out of the fake reeds, hopped a railing, and was on the bridge in seconds. He wasn't just dancing around mocking either, he was on his heels with his hands tight on the bridge's railing posts, watching him like a hawk. He was going to grab him as soon as he went under.

Gregory knew Moon likely couldn't get wet though. If he got close pretending he was going to go under and splashed him, he could probably get enough time to slide underneath. Especially since Moon mentioned how gross the water was. Likely all he had to do was get a few drops on him and he would go into one of those crazy 'clean up' spells. So, Gregory got close, and Moon watched him with twitchy fingers, and Monty started making his way around the pond.

And then out of nowhere, Jake ran in from the right and shoved Moon aside with a quick and panicked, "Move!" Which caught Moon off-guard so much that he actually toppled onto his backside while Jake reached a hand out to Gregory.

Gregory took it and was hoisted from the water and helped over the bridge as fast as he could before being shoved behind Jake who now turned to face Moon and Monty. The former hopped onto his feet while the latter lifted his glasses.

"Wha-?" he asked in confusion. His ruby eyes looked the strange animatronic before him over. He would've identified him as an unrecognizable animatronic off the bat, but the exposed body was clearly one like the Daycare Attendant. It left his programming confused and his mind equally addled. "The hell 'er you supposed to be?"

"Uh… Hey Monty! Remember me? I was the Sun! Y'know, the Sun before Sunny took over?" Jake attempted to offer. He wasn't sure why Monty hadn't outright attacked. Moon wasn't either from how he was looking between them.

"…Ya mean the old sun? The one they trashed?" Monty asked in confusion and disbelief. His focus had gone solely to that strange mask he was wearing.

"Right, yeah. That one," Jake agreed awkwardly. He pushed up his mask so that Monty could see his face. Gregory couldn't see it for himself and wasn't too eager to barge around his shield.

Much to Jake's surprise, Monty didn't react to the visage under the mask. He didn't react at all, just staring blankly, silently, in sharp contrast to his previous bluntness.

Suddenly he had a full body shudder, a sign that something was kicking in, and he dropped his sunglasses back in front of his eyes. Jake had a bad feeling he had made a terrible mistake. He wasn't the only one to notice the change.

"Do you remember me?... Monty?"

"Out of service rogue mascot sighted in Monty Golf," Monty said. It might've been his voice, but it wasn't as though he was speaking it. More like he opened his mouth and a recording spilled through.

Jake tightened his hold on Gregory.

"Indeed. Hmm, that is no good. No good at all…" Moon drew out in a sly hiss. He gave a menacing crackle as he stepped in front of Monty. "Go finish your recharge cycle, Montgomery. Leave these troublemakers to me…"

Monty made no attempt to move. He didn't even seem to hear or acknowledge what was said, and Jake looked past Moon's shoulder just in time to notice that Monty was starting to slink down behind him. The gator was bracing himself.

Jake barely turned and grabbed up Gregory in time as Monty shoved Moon aside into the bridge railing and all but threw himself after his target, slamming to the ground on fists and a knee right where Jake had been a moment before and would've still been if he hadn't broken into a run. The gator pushed off the ground and ran with a hasty yet lumbering gait.

Ignoring the fact that his decision to hide the control panel out of the risk of it slowing him down might've just saved both of them, Jake ran for his life carrying Gregory like a child half his age. His weight wasn't too noticeable, but Jake was already trying to work around a limp. The stairs in front of them looked like a chance for freedom, but he knew Monty would overtake him and catch them both, so he took a hastily left.

With Monty right behind him and him unable to make any sharp maneuvers while holding Gregory, he took notice of a large ball fit to the left. A majority of the balls were green and yellow, and they circled a little island with a play shack atop it like a moat. He had to make a quick choice and it came to him what he had to do.

"Get him!" he called.

The next thing Gregory knew he was being tossed out of Jake's arms and landed right on his back into the ball pit. He was swallowed up by the balls instantly and had to struggle to surface.

"Hey!" he cried. For a second thinking that Jake might've thrown him as bait, but he quickly realized that wasn't the case when he saw Jake take a quick turn around some props and railings and starting to run back in the direction he had come from, getting Monty completely turned around- and significantly more wound up as he shoved his way violently through everything.

Then Gregory realized who the 'get him' really had for when he heard the loud clatter of something diving into the ball pit nearby. He looked back to see Moon rise in the pit and start striding easily after him.

Gregory turned away and made a run for the only quick exit to the ball pit, the play shack on the artificial island in the middle of the pit. He was just close enough to race up the stairs and make it around and into one of the doorways. A long arm shot through the window beside him, only held back by the wooden cross running through it. Gregory pressed back into the corner as those reaching fingers finally recoil.

Moon's red eyes peered into the window before he climbed onto the roof of the shack, turning his body and rotating his head so his startling gaze could stay on him as long as possible.

"Tick, tock. Tick, tock. You're running out of time, and I'm running out of patience…" Moon crackled lowly as his face slid out of view.

He sounded more irritated than usual, and that along with the pattering and creaking on the roof reignited a fear Gregory hadn't had since the first night he came across the jester. He stayed in the middle of the room and circled around, occasionally catching a glimpse of a crescent face trying to distract him from coming up with a new plan.

Then he noticed it. There was a large wooden slide shaped like a log that connected the ball pit up to the second floor, possibly on the same platform as the entrance. That was where he had to go. Planning to outwit the Moon, he began to 'quietly'- noticeably but quiet enough to make it sound like he was trying to be subtle- backed towards the opposite corner of the shack. He shuffled his bag a little as bait.

The Moon's large hand shot through the window behind and just barely scraped the back of his backpack as he dashed back out the doorway, to the edge of the island, and hopped off. Once again, the ball pit saved him from a painful fall as he practically swam towards the opening of the log slide, expecting do hear sound of Moon diving in behind him.

Instead, there was a flash of blue and a resonating bang through the log as Moon leapt onto it, just as Gregory had made it to it. Knowing there was no time to turn back, he hurriedly crawled in and began to climb the slide, only to have a long arm follow him in and grab him by the backpack like a claw in a crane game, easily tugging him down the slide.

Once out and with the Moon caging him in, Gregory tried to shed the backpack to no avail. Those large hands hooked under his arms and lifted him up helplessly, holding him far enough out that no amount of kicking would help anything.

"That was a bad choice, little Moonwort. A very, very bad choice," Moon said. His voice sounded like rocks grinding in teeth and his frustration was beyond what Gregory had previously heard. It was downright terrifying. "Jumping into that nasty, nasty water- trying to get yourself sick. Not just naughty- no, no- you are utterly puckish. A tiny little gremlin. A little bridge troll."

Gregory could barely figure out what Moon was getting to when he was swung and started to be carried towards the side of the ball pit.

"Thirty minutes? No. Forty minutes? No, no. Sixty minutes. Sixty minutes apiece for every rule you broke- and a minute more for every minute of my time you're wasting- and you're sopping wet! Ugh!"

Gregory couldn't say he wasn't still frightened, but he couldn't help but be peeved that he was being lectured by the same psycho who ran him towards the water. Not that he could say much about it when he was totally at his mercy.

Moon waded to the edge of the ball pit and started to climb out of the designated steps. He was stewing and had Gregory totally at his mercy with no one to mitigate whether or not there came a swift or unjust punishment.

All that went forgotten at a single agonizing cry.

Jake managed to outmaneuver Monty for a while, but he couldn't shake him. Even though he might've been the same model as the Daycare Attendant, the adjustments that made him unique held him back. There were empty spaces throughout his body effecting his stability and his replacement endo leg wasn't doing any favors. He couldn't hop around nearly as easily- in fact, he couldn't very well hop at all.

This made losing Monty more difficult. He knew he couldn't outrun him, barely able to get any ground at all after making a U-turn to head back towards the stage area and away from Gregory and Moon. The tentative plan was to run into the kitchen of the snack bar- the Gator Grub counter, specifically- and then try to lose Monty by going out the other door. Monty was like a bull in a China shop; all he had to do was tear through and he would probably get tripped up somewhere.

Jake ran past a Security Bot that began to blare its alarm and barged into the kitchen, only to have Monty all but fly in behind him, skidding and crashing into one of the stoves. Jake, nearly knocked off his feet, realized he wouldn't make it to the other door and instead climbed onto the open counter, having to all but throw himself over it and out from Monty's claws. He landed hands first and transitioned into a roll that was broken in a painful thump as his slow to respond endo leg struck the ground outstretched. He stumbled to his feet as he heard the door slam back open behind him and started to run.

All at once a mighty weight slammed into his back and threw him flat on the ground, and then Monty was above him. He wasn't sure if he had pounced on him or just kicked him dead center in the back before dropping on him, either way was possible and equally painful. Either way he was pinned and entirely at Monty's mercy. The gator was overheating so high that he could feel the warm exhaust escaping between his plates.

Jake tried to pull out from under him by crawling at the ground when Monty suddenly lurched up. In a split-second of precognition, Jake yanked his arms in under him and watched as Monty slammed his fists to the ground where they would've been. His hands would've been broken beyond repair, but as the gator dragged down his claws and cut through the carpeted flooring smoothly, he realized he was still in immediate danger.

"Stay down!" Monty warned. He sat upright and roughly grabbed him by the back. His claws slicing through his cloak and catching into the opening where his rigging hoop used to be, where his endoskeleton spine was still very much exposed.

Jake seldom panicked, but when he did there was only ever one thing he could rely on.

"ANDREW! ANDREW!"

Moon's eyes flashed blue, but he was seeing red.

Without a word, he all but tossed Gregory into the closest baby stroller, entirely ignoring his complaints, and broke into a sprint down the path. He came up onto the scene in second, Monty knelt down with Jake pinned underneath him.

Monty noticed blue out the corner of his eye and looked over just in time to see Moon coming before he slammed into him full force. The strength and speed of it sending Monty off of Jake and onto his side, and then on his back, and then at the mercy of Moon twisting up around him. The two getting into a scuffle as Jake managed to roll out and scuttle back away.

As strong as Monty was, Moon got an upper hand almost immediately and during the tussle got into position to twist the gator's arm behind his back, then used that as leverage to make a grab for his face. He ripped off his star shaped sunglasses and barely pulled back before Monty could sink his teeth into his hand. To which Moon swung up his elbow and hit him in the chin, snapping his mouth closed and his head back.

This also snapped the gator into some amount of cohesion as he suddenly stopped fighting back and instead tried to get Moon off of him. He rolled himself over, Moon scuttling to keep from getting trapped underneath, and lined himself up enough to finally kick back and shove the jester off. Moon landed nimbly on his feet and waited expectantly as Monty finally pushed his back up, still half-sprawled on the carpet. His uncovered eyes showed a degree of confusion.

Moon's showed no mercy. He mockingly waved the sunglasses. Monty reached up for his face like he only then realized they were the sunglasses off his head, then gave a steamed-up huff and pointed a finger at the jester.

"Ya best be tossin' those back or I'm comin' to get 'em, Moon," he threatened. "Don't think I won't."

Moon tightened his fingers on the glasses, his hand slightly shaking, and gave a low chuckle.

"Oh Montgomery…" he said as though speaking to a child. "You're not going anywhere."

He dropped the sunglasses to the floor and crushed them underneath his slipper, grinding his foot into the pieces.

Monty stared in aghast before giving an enraged yell. "What was that for?!" he bellowed. In seconds he was back to huffing on his own exhaust- especially when Moon started to dance in front of him. Hopping from foot to foot and swaying his head in a mocking display. The gator growled and slammed his fist hard onto the ground beside him. "Knock that off! Now you better cough up another pair by mornin' or I'll be pickin' up all them pieces and shovin' 'em right- r-right, uh…"

Something felt wrong. All of that fury building up suddenly went lukewarm as a prickling sensation started to crawl along the back of his head. He didn't feel right. He felt like those creepy long fingers waving in the air at Moon's sides were climbing up the back of his neck and pushing through the back of his head like it was made of jelly. He didn't like the look in its eyes. He didn't notice when they started flickering but it made his head fuzzy. He couldn't look away.

"Stop that," Monty said. He couldn't look away. "Stop that. Yer creepin' me out."

"Always so aaangry. Always so worked up. Throwing tantrums like a child," Moon mocked. His movements didn't slow or hitch. "You don't know what real anger is."

Monty wheezed as a puff of heated exhaust forced out of his mouth like a pant. His fingers clawed at the scrapped carpet as he tried to get his body to do something other than sit here.

"So, I'm putting you in time out," Moon hissed. "And maybe you can think about what you did… And what I'm about to do," he added sinisterly.

He gave a petty little wave in the midst of his rocking and rhythmic dance.

"Nighty-night…" he rolled off his non-existent tongue. Then he announced with a much more authoritarian tone, "Initiate sleep mode for FZ905 Montgomery Gator."

Somewhere inside a switch flipped and everything started to shift. The fans struggling to cool his overheated body started to slow down and his body entered the same state it would sink into during repairs.

But this was not normal, and Monty didn't trust it. He could feel something squirming around in the back of his head and even with his body obeying his mind was in a panic.

"Stop it…" he blurted out. He seized control for a moment and got a hand up on his head. He scraped his claws along the shell. "Stop it. Get it out. Take it out."

"Stop that," Moon curtly corrected. "Relaaaax."

The scariest part was that Monty jerked his arm away against his will. He fought back, slamming his hand against his head, then the second one, clawing at his casing and trying to get off the invisible fingers.

"Stop… Stop! Get- Get out of my head!" he yelled. He was starting to thrash in place, lurching away from a touch that wasn't even there. He could feel it all over, like concrete dust settling into his nostrils. His body was not his own.

By now it was very apparent that Monty was not reacting normally. While Moon had not needed to use this coercion frequently, it should've worked just as it had with Chica. Implant the suggestion and coax them on their way. Upon the activation of sleep mode, Monty should've gotten right up and went to the nearest Charging Station where he would've stayed until summoned in the morning. Instead, it didn't look like he could get up at all.

Moon broke his swaying routine to wave back Jake who was still standing beside the RV watching. He should've made a run for it a long time ago, and he would've if he didn't start seeing whatever this was unfolding.

Monty didn't even notice. He barely noticed Moon at all anymore. Just his red eyes swaying back and forth and blurring into the error messages starting to crowd around his vision.

Red. Hued red closing in around his vision. Fighting to shove him off when he wasn't touching him.

He could hear music that wasn't there. He felt cotton on his claws and blindly threw himself forward towards the source of the scratching and to silence the music and the hum. To get it out. To get it out of his head.

"Wait, stop…" Jake warned as he watched Monty decline. Moon had finally stilled, but Monty had not, continuing to writhe and shudder before digging his claws into the carpet, his heels following suit, and launching himself forward. "Move!"

By time he yelled it was already too late. By the time the jester stopped his hypnotic suggestion and sprung aside it was too late. He just couldn't move far enough and was thus sucked in, trapped underneath as the hysterical bot crashed full force into a cluster of tables. One buckles under the weight while the others were knocked over. A couple of chairs all but shattered when they didn't buckle fast enough. It was an inhuman crash, and there was a gut-wrenching crunch.

Monty felt like he had been hit by a wrecking ball, which was probably what managed to finally shake him out of his stupor. There was a brief moment of twilight innocence, where he technically knew what happened but didn't realize what he had done. Not realizing the weight of his partial black-out until he dragged his gaze down and saw it for himself.

The moment Monty's weight was off of him, Moon started to crawl back from underneath him. He noticed a distinct weakness in his left arm and when he tried to move it pain shot down his torso. He gasped and grabbed the limb to stabilize it. It didn't feel broken, and it definitely was still attached, maybe dislocated. He could fix that on his own and he looked down to access the damage.

It wasn't his arm. At least, it wasn't only his arm. The seam down his chest that divided lighter and darker segments had been separated with one of the panels bent back a few inches and loose wires spilling forth between it. Through the gap in his chest, he could see both his speaker and drinking hose. It was a bizarrely visceral sight, almost unreal.

He wasn't the only one staring in aghast at the damage. Monty looked down with wide eyes that could finally see but didn't want to.

"Did I-?... I wasn't tryin' to- I swear, Moon. I wasn't gonna- I didn't mean to-!" Monty rambled. His hands hung in the air over the exposed wiring until Moon smacked one back, causing the gator to recoil.

"D-Don't touch me-e!" the jester warned. His voice wavering and hitching as he did from the disturbed speaker.

Monty recoiled his hands as though the motion actually hurt him and continued to stare in disbelief. But the longer he stared, the more his mood began to shift, and soon his hands tightened into fist.

"Ah warned you," he said lowly. The change in tone didn't go unnoticed by Moon, whose eyes rolled up from his exposed wiring to stare at Monty. "Told ya- Told ya to stop… And ya didn't. It ain't my fault." Monty huffed. The fans kicked back on as his hands tightened and his eyes stared distantly at the damage he had done, then closed tightly. "It ain't. my. fault. Ya wouldn't let go-oah!"

A chair hit him over the back of the head. Not enough to damage him, but enough to throw him off momentarily and give Moon a moment to slink out from in front of him in the blink of an eye. Not that Monty was looking. The second he recovered he looked back, but by then Jake had made a hasty retreat as well, leaving Monty seemingly alone.

No longer distracted by Moon's injury he remembered the decommissioned animatronic still on the loose. The guilt, the frustration, it was all wiped away and replaced with one narrow focus, the one he originally had, to contain the threat. He got back to his feet and was back in pursuit. The lone witness watching him leave being the still alerting Security Bot by the counter.

…

Gregory wasn't the most obedient child in the world, especially when it came to following the orders of someone, he didn't trust to not turn their back on him. Moon fit into that category well. What kept Gregory in the stroller this long was the sound of the scuffle on the other side of Monty Golf, because the last thing he wanted was to get back in the middle of that.

Though he could've done with a better hiding spot. Not only was this humiliating but he couldn't see what was going on. Still, he stayed put and waited.

Until there was a crash so loud that he swore he could feel it shake the stroller.

"Was that Monty?!" Gregory thought. He tried to peek through the mesh of the stroller, but there was too much stuff in between him and the location of the noise. "Ugh, I can't see anything! What are they doing over there?!"

That annoyance didn't last long, because after a few moments of muffled talking and what might've been another scuffle he caught a glimpse of none other than Monty stalking around in the distance, and he was alone.

"Where's Jake and Moondrop?... There's no way he could've got them," Gregory thought. Yet he felt fear building up inside him.

That noise was loud, a huge crunch sound that could've been a whole robot being shattered to pieces- what if that was Jake? Jake was already a little broken up, he said so himself, and if something as big as Monty jumped on him he could've smashed him to bits. At least, that was how Gregory saw it. The fact that Monty was walking around and there was no sign of Jake OR Moon was a bad one.

He had a sinking feeling in his chest. He was alone again; he just had a sure hunch that he was. He could've checked to make sure, but there was part of him that was afraid to- and it wasn't just a fear of Monty or Moon.

He had to get out of here, fast. Gregory wanted to run back to Kids Cove and hide, but the better solution and the one he knew he had to take was to run back to the daycare and see if those friends of Jake's were there.

"Maybe… Maybe they can help him, if something happened to him," he thought. He took a deep breath and straightened up, listening and making sure he couldn't hear Monty anywhere nearby. "Okay. I'm ready."

Gregory quickly got out of the stroller and carefully looked around to make sure nobody was there before turning back towards the entrance. For a split second he thought he saw a white face up on the second floor and his head snapped up to stare, but there was nothing there and no footsteps and yelling afterwards, so he guessed it was probably a Staff Bot. There were plenty of those around.

He quickly and carefully avoided them as he made his way back to the bridge, the one he and Jake had tried to avoid on the gator mouth bridge, which now loomed to the left. The Security Bot was long gone but so was everyone else, giving him a free shot towards the stairs tucked off to the left. He raced over to them and started to hurry up, going around a sharp corner only to have a horrifying wakeup call.

"Oh, THERE you are!"

Chica was waiting for him on the stairs, just far enough up that he couldn't see her until he was around the corner. Suddenly he regretted brushing off that glimpse of a face so quickly, but it was too late to take it back. All he could do was turn and run, but it was too late to do even that. As wobbly as Chica's steps seemed, she rushed down the stairs with exact precision and grabbed his arm before he could run around the corner.

"No, no! No more games," Chica said. Her sickening sweet coo turning sour towards the end. She gave a firm tug that nearly pulled him off his feet. "Please come with me," she said. The tone was a lie, it was an order not a suggestion.

Gregory wasn't going without a fight. He grabbed onto the railing and hooked one of his legs on it, trying to fight against Chica's grip. It worked for a few seconds before she all but yanked him off, her grip much stronger than his. His arm ached where her fingers dug in and was twisted back as she started to drag him up the stairs. He tried to hold onto the steps to no avail.

"Stop! Let me go!" he yelled. Also, to no avail. "You're hurting me! Let me go!"

Chica ignored his pleads and dragged him to the top of the stairs, and it was clear she was intending to drag him all the way to wherever she wanted to take him.

Or that was the plan until a golf club swung out and cracked Chica across the chest.

Chica bawked loudly and started to fall backwards down the steps. Though before Gregory could even register that he was about to get crushed underneath her, he was suddenly grabbed up by something tight and soft and whisked out of her weakened grip. He was carried down the steps, around the corner, and into the safety of the hallway in a matter of seconds. Chica came sliding and bumping down the stairs on her back and only stopped at the bottom.

It didn't take Gregory more than a few seconds to realize that what was wrapped around him was a pair of fabric covered arms. As soon as he did he began to fight against them, only to be held more securely and softly shushed.

"It's okay. It's okay. I'm going to protect you," an equally soft voice whispered.

He wasn't sure how much he trusted it, but he stopped thrashing the moment he heard the heavy footsteps that signaled Monty racing over. The plush animatronic carrying him pushed back on the bathroom door and ducked inside.

Meanwhile, Chica gave a pained sort of cry and sat upright in a daze before her eyes focused on the man standing at the top of the stairs with the golf club, Mike Schmidt.

"Oww!" she yelled at him. "You creep! What did you do that for?!" She stared for a moment before that distant look settled on her face. "I am sorry, but the Pizzaplex is closed. Trespassers found on the grounds after hours will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Also: damaging or vandalizing animatronic mascots is punishable by fines equal to or exceeding the amount for repair and funds lost during period of repair. Please lower your weapons and wait for security staff and or local law enforcement to arrive."

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Chickadee," Mike retorted with exaggerated confidence. He reached into his jacket and pulled out his security badge which he held for her to see. "But I am security."

"You are… What?" Chica seemed confused. The clarity came back to her eyes as she narrowed and zoomed to see the badge. It didn't look like the current security badge, but that was definitely a Fazbear Entertainment security badge. "…No. No, you're not! The current security officer is Officer Vanessa Smith, and you're not her!"

"I'm Marcus Wight, senior security officer. Smith might be the night guard, but I'm the one who gave her that job," Mike lied through his teeth. "With all the reports we've been getting I was called down here to help keep an eye on the place, and what do I find? One of our stars manhandling a child!"

"M-Manhandling?! No, I wasn't! He was running from me; I was taking him to safety!" Chica defended, startled by the accusation.

"He gave you two verbal warnings, and you didn't let him go. He told you that you were hurting him, and you didn't let him go," he recited while stuffing his badge back in his pocket. "Do you know what would happen if you broke that kid's arm? Do you realize what we had to go through to get this place open with all those rumors floating around? One incident, one injured kid, and it's done. The place is shut down, I'm out of the job, and you end up in a back alley."

"I wasn't trying to hurt him! He's been in here for days, running around lost and confused! I was trying to help him!" Chica pleaded. She played up the guilty tone well, but Mike wasn't sure if he believed it. "I would never hurt a little boy! My programming makes me incapable of hurting anyone- unless done accidentally while subduing a violent customer," she insisted.

While she continued to plead her case, Monty came up the steps to stand beside her and stare up at him. Just from the motions alone he seemed significantly more suspicious. He waited until there was a break in Chica's protests.

"Who're you again?" he bluntly asked.

"Marcus Wight, senior security officer," Mike repeated.

"Got any proof?"

He flashed the badge quickly before returning it to his pocket. "Want more? Go ask Smith. She's out there in the main room chasing shadows," he deflected. "You can do that on your way out. I want both of you out of here."

"What?! But that boy's still in here!" Chica protested. She suddenly remembered that he wasn't beside her anymore and looked around. "Where did he go…?"

"I'm going to find him, but I'm not going to have you two running around risking a lawsuit because you couldn't keep your hands to yourself."

"But- But you hit ME with a GOLF CLUB!" the chicken guffawed.

"And I could've done a lot worse. Unlike Officer Smith, I'm qualified to carry a taser," Mike said matter-of-factly. He punctuated his point by pulling back his coat and tapping said taser on his belt. "Now unless you two want me to drag Smith in here to drag you out of here- in which case I will be filing a report about you ignoring a direct order from a human staff member- I want you two to get back to your stage. NOW."

The result was immediate. Chica seemed to jolt and while Monty didn't, he also didn't continue putting up a fight. Something had changed instantly, and Mike wasn't sure which threat it was that did it but he wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. He played up his role, stepping aside to tap his fingers on the railing and look out across Monty Golf as though looking for the kid.

Chica gave him a glare as walked past and headed out the entrance of Monty Golf. Monty stayed back at the top of the steps, waiting until Mike looked to him before speaking up.

"There's a decommission bot runnin' around out there," he warned.

Mike quirked a brow. "Which one?"

It was a sarcastic comment, playing into this act that worked so well in getting him some amount of control. As far as he knew there was only one decommissioned animatronic and that was the ex-Sun, Jake, who he knew came in here.

He wasn't expecting the wide-eyed look Monty got from the question. A fearful look that was backed up by how quickly he looked down. He reached for something on his face only to then lower his hand uselessly; Mike only noticed now that he was missing the trademark sunglasses that were present on every piece of official art.

"The old Sun… Moon's in here too somewhere," Monty muttered. He sluggishly turned to leave, his hand twitching up like he was already trying to reach for his face again.

There was something definitely up with Monty, Mike decided. Though that wasn't saying much when Chica was flipping back and forth between mindless robot and clear sentience. If not for the knowledge that they had been chasing a child around he might've felt bad for coming down so hard on them.

As soon as Chica and Monty were gone and he couldn't hear either of them, he called over towards a gift shop to the left of the entrance. Right from his perspective. "Coast is clear."

Jeremy hustled out of the gift shop and walked quickly to him. He kept his eyes towards the entrance while he did so.

"I can't believe that worked," he confessed.

"I can't either," Mike agreed. "They cleared out just in time. Any longer and I would've thrown up."

"Sounds gnarly. Mind if I join you?" Jeremy remarked. Mike rolled his eyes to him, and he returned with a cheeky, nervous smile. "Did Mari get the kid?"

"Yeah, it looked like it. Let's go find them before Nat gets in here," Mike suggested. Jeremy nodded and followed suit, and the two headed down the stairs. He waited until he got to the bottom before whistling, a signal that the coast was clear.

Marionette exited the bathroom and promptly set Gregory down. Gregory immediately tried to get what distance he could- which wasn't that far when they were in a narrow hallway- and spun around and looked up, and up at the animatronic who had been carrying him. His eyes widened at the sight of it, then dropped down to confirm that it was, in fact, hovering above the ground. That alone was enough to blow his mind.

"I'm sorry I grabbed you so suddenly, but I wanted to get you away from Chica. Are you alright?" Marionette asked gently. He sunk down onto his knees in a less intimidating kneel while doing so.

"…Yeah, I think so," Gregory mumbled.

He heard footsteps and both turned their heads to see Mike and Jeremy appearing at the end of the hallway. Gregory took a cautious step like he was preparing to run but didn't do so yet, thinking that these might've been Jake friends.

"Who're you guys?" he asked.

"I'm Mike, this is Jeremy," Mike said, gesturing between them. Jeremy waved. "And that's Marionette."

"You can call me Mari," Marionette chimed in. "Jake called us. We're here to help you find Freddy."

"Wait, so you're the puppet they were talking about," Gregory confirmed. Said puppet nodded. "It took you long enough! There's so much crazy stuff going on. I don't even know where Jake is!... I think he might've got in a fight with Monty."

Mike felt a sinking feeling at hearing that. "Wonder if that's why Monty was acting so suspicious," he thought. He could just see from Marionette's face that he too was concerned by this.

"Well, Monty and Chica are gone now," he assured. He stole a look at Mike to make sure and he nodded in agreement. "We'll go find him ourselves. What do you say?"

"Okay…" Gregory agreed unsurely. He couldn't help but be a little skeptical of the newcomers, even if they did fit with Jake's story. After all, how well did he even know Jake? He watched Marionette slowly lift back off the carpet, tall and thin, and still floating somehow, and he double-checked, "So, you guys are friends of Foxy?"

"That's right! He's my brother," Marionette agreed.

"I've got pictures if you want to see," Jeremy offered. He was already getting out his wallet and after a few seconds managed to pull out a couple of pictures of them at Foxy's. One of which being him dressed up with Foxy at Halloween and the other being a group photo of them at one of Marionette's birthday parties.

Gregory quirked a brow at the second photo. "What's he doing?"

"Getting blinded by a flashbulb," Jeremy answered.

"Huh. Okay, I believe you," Gregory said, handing the pictures back. It did help ease his suspicions a little. He followed along a little more confidently as the men led the way deeper into Monty Golf.

As confidently as he could when he dreaded what they were going to find.

Chapter End Notes

Weird place to end it, I know, but I had to cut it off eventually. ^_^ I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 43

Chapter Summary

Mike and Mari find themselves with an unexpected third while sheer stubbornness leads to difficulties involving the damaged Moon. All the while Charlie runs into an unexpected detour of her own...

Chapter Notes

This wasn’t the original plan of the chapter, but it went in its own direction. XD Hope you Enjoy regardless!

With Gregory's guidance it wasn't long before he, Mike, Marionette, and Jeremy arrived at the source of the commotion from earlier, the dining area outside of the snack bar. The evidence that there had been a dispute was the mess left in its wake. Tipped over chairs, a broken table, but there was no sign of Jake or the Daycare Attendant.

They pressed onwards, taking in the scenery while they searched. Like most of the Pizzaplex, they had to reluctantly admit that it was impressive. Though this wasn't exactly the time to take in the view beyond that.

Eventually they made it back to the doors that Gregory and Jake initially came through. He pointed them out.

"That's where we came from. Maybe we should check in there? Monty broke the door back to the daycare, but maybe they got it open," he suggested.

"It's worth a shot," Mike agreed. He decided in a moment of restraint to not bring up how many things Monty had broken tonight. He carefully opened the door, peeking through before stepping in. Almost instantly he heard voices from nearby. "I think you're onto something, Kid," he complimented.

"…It's Gregory," Gregory said with slight hesitation. He wasn't sure if he wanted to give his name out to everyone, but they would probably find out from Jake anyways.

"Gotcha," Mike returned with a smile. "Stay behind me, okay?" Gregory nodded, and Mike continued in.

Though while the badge insignia on the wall suggested that there was a security office across from them, the muffled voices sounded instead like they were coming from the right. In that direction was a red door with 'Staff Only' written on it and when Mike tried the handle, he found it unlocked and carefully pushed it open. Marionette and Jeremy all but leaning over his shoulders as he did.

The room was pitch dark save for some glowing computer screens on the opposite side. It was musty, steamy, and filled with pipes. Not really the place where one would expect a multitude of electronics, but likely some sort of control room. The voices went silent the moment the door opened. Mike turned on his flashlight and shined it around inside.

"Anybody here? Jake?" he called.

There was a beat, then a voice spoke back.

"Mike?" It was Jake.

"It's us. Me, Mari, a friend, and Gregory. Gang's all here," Mike listed off. He pushed the door open for the others. Marionette passed by to stand alongside him while Jeremy and Gregory stepped in behind him.

"That's great to hear! How'd you get the door open?"

"I just turned the handle. Was it supposed to be locked?" He shined the light back towards the door before suddenly remembering what Gregory said. "Oh, you mean the other door. We came in through the front."

"Did Monty see you?" Jake asked worriedly.

"He did but I told him I was a security guard and he and Chica both bought it. They're gone for now."

"They believed you? Wow. How'd you pull that off?"

Mike shot Marionette a cheeky smile as he answered Jake. "I'm pretty persuasive when I want to be."

"And he flashed an old Freddy security badge. That always helps," Jeremy chimed in. "I'm Jeremy, by the way. Friend of Mike's and Foxy's. Here to help."

"Nice to meet you, Jeremy! We, uh, we could use all the help we can get…"

That ominous hint wasn't missed by anyone. There was a section of pipes in the center of the room that blocked their view of Jake, and from how his voice remained stationary it was clear he was still hiding back somewhere.

"What happened to you? I heard a loud crash but…" Gregory trailed off.

"Monty happened," Jake said with a sigh. "I'm sorry we left you. I thought you were hiding and we had to get away from there."

"I was. Don't worry about it," he said. He didn't need them to start thinking he couldn't protect himself. Getting caught by Chica was his own mistake, he reminded himself.

Jeremy clicked on his own flashlight and started to take a couple of steps down the right side of the room when Jake called out to stop him, "Don't-!... Don't come over here."

"I'm not! I'm just… over here," the blond assured. He sort of shrugged towards the others and Marionette now began to drift closer to the left.

"Are you hurt, Jake?" he gently asked.

"…Well, I'm not," Jake answered, placing emphasizing on the 'I'm'.

A worried look settled on Marionette's face as he silently moved in closer and peeked around the corner.

Jake was crouched down in front of the Moon who was slumped back against the corner. The positions alone gave away which of the two was injured, as it wasn't until Marionette looked a little closer that he noticed exposed wiring jutting out of Moon's chest. Jake must've noticed the motion as he suddenly looked to the right and spotted the puppet. They exchanged a long look.

Then Marionette began to come in closer. Jake didn't stop him, instead sending a sympathetic look back towards Moon. Moon took notice and lifted his head off the wall to look, then all but snapped it upright to stare at the approaching puppet. His red illuminated pupils darting between both the animatronics in front of him. Though it was clear once Marionette got closer that Moon wasn't a threat, not with how his casing had been popped open.

"Monty did this?" Marionette asked. His voice was still soft. Only a trained ear would detect the slight edge of protective anger edging in. Both Mike and Jeremy did and started to move carefully and quietly closer.

"Yes. He was chasing me, and Moon tried to stop him, and the whole thing went south from there," Jake explained. He tugged at his cloak self-consciously, nervously, even when Marionette was looking at Moon instead of him. "I know I look pretty beat up, but I'm okay. I'm just, uh… Out of service. You know," he suddenly volunteered.

The Puppet looked to him and looked him once over. "You look fine to me. I've seen terribly broken animatronics; you're quite put together," he assured him.

Jake seemed relieved by the comment. "Thanks. Just letting you know I'm not-."

"S-Stay back-k," Moon hissed. Not at Marionette, but at Jeremy who started inching around the other corner and directly into his line of sight. Jeremy raised his hands in submission, ignoring the hissing from inside his jacket

Gregory, in contrast, ignored the warning entirely and walked past Jeremy to see for himself. He came to a surprised halt only once he saw the amount of wires gaping out and illuminated by the Daycare Attendant's glow.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed. "That looks pretty bad. Are you okay?"

"I-I feel like my chest has split down the middle a-and my insides are spilling outside-de," Moon replied.

"Where's Charlie?" Jake asked, interrupting them both. He looked up to Marionette and now Mike who stood alongside him.

"She's running around keeping the security guard distracted. She'll show up soon enough," Marionette assured.

"Good, because we could use her help. She said she's a technician, or a technician in training, right?"

"She is… but I'm not sure if she's qualified to handle something like this. She's very good, don't get me wrong, but this is a bit…" He stole another look at the open cavity. "…Complicated."

"She's the best chance I've got. I'm not getting him down into Parts and Service," Jake said.

"I-I'm not going to Parts and Service-ce," Moon muttered.

"See?"

"She's got a good eye. She can take a look," Mike partially agreed, running a hand through his hair as he looked over the damage. "For now, let's get you two back to the daycare. That's where Charlie's heading once she shakes the night guard."

"We will once it quiets down. The hallway door's busted and the closest way would be to leave through the front and cut through Kids Cove," Jake suggested.

"He can get it open," Mike said, pointing a thumb to Marionette who nodded. "Can he get up?"

"Uh…" Jake knew even before he answered that the question alone was going to get Moon up- and it did. Moon shifted himself and pulled his feet underneath him, lifting onto bent legs. "…Yeah, he can get up," Jake finished. Then he hastily got up and tried to help, to which he was deflected.

"J-Just get the lights off-f," Moon muttered. Jake somewhat reluctantly agreed and picked up his control panel, which he had on the floor behind him, and hurried out the door they had just come in.

"Wait, we're turning the lights off?" Gregory asked in disbelief. Jake gave him a 'yup' as an answer and kept going. "That's just great…" he muttered. He stole a glance back at the Moon. At least he didn't have to worry about him right now, but he still followed after Jake.

Moon pushed off the wall and walked in a swaying limp that didn't look too out of place for a clown. Marionette and Mike slowly watching him pass by in shared disbelief, knowing he was probably trying to make a point he didn't make.

"…Need a little help?" Mike eventually volunteered. He offered out his arm.

"I-I don't need anyone's help. I'm fine-ne," Moon curtly corrected. "J-Just be thankful that your trespassing is not the most pressing matter tonight-t."

"…So, you always walk like you're hammered?" Mike asked. Marionette nudged him, but all it succeeded in doing was bringing out a small smirk. The Puppet got a slight smile and shook his head; this was absolutely not the time.

Moon either chose to ignore him or, more likely, was in significant enough pain that he didn't feel like dealing with him. He slumped against the wall beside the open door and waited for the hall light to be shut off. It didn't take long before it was, and Jake returned. He offered Moon an arm and he attempted to deflect again, but this time Jake didn't take no for an answer. All but putting his arm under Moon's responsive one and helping him into the hallway.

Moon's head dropped against his shoulder and Jake knew he made the right decision.

He had turned off the lights to the utility hallway too and led the way with the shuffling Moon down that seemingly endless hallway. If it felt long before it felt triple the length now, what with the snail's crawl and the general feeling that everything was already going wrong. Though that trip didn't last all the way to the daycare as Jake stopped at the stairs leading down into the darker lower level.

"These stairs lead down to the utili-tunnels. From there it's mostly a straight shot to parts and service. You just have to take a right when you can and follow the signs," Jake explained. Moon slipped the pass he had back to him and then he handed both over to Mike. "Just be careful. It's really dark down there and all the bots act a little strange."

There was a pause where Mike and Marionette both took turns glancing at the elephant in the room, currently gushing out of Moon's chest.

"Are you sure you two don't want to tag along?" Mike suggested.

"Neither of us are technically trained, but perhaps in the right atmosphere and with the right tools we would have a better chance. Especially if Charlie's there," Marionette jumped in.

"Yeah, it'll be fun. You know, as much fun as basement crawling can be," Mike finished.

"That's awful nice of you, and we really should head down to parts and service, since I'm barely equipped to handle anything like this and we're just putting off going down there anyway," Jake said, an uncharacteristically pointed tone taking his voice. If he could've, he probably would've been side-glancing at Moon, who was sinking further towards the floor, either in weariness or dramatically. "…But he's not going to go. Just worry about finding Freddy."

"If you're sure," Marionette said. He then turned towards Mike. "Maybe we should wait for Charlie before we head down."

"Sounds good to me."

"I can wait for Charlie," Jeremy said. Both looked to him questioningly. "I'll walk them to the daycare, wait for Charlie and bring her up to speed. You two can handle it on your own, right? I can still come, but I'd have to, uh… 'stop by' the daycare anyways," he said, making air quotes with his free hand.

They both caught the jest of it. After all, Jeremy's jacket didn't usually squirm this much.

"I think we can handle it. If we run into anything we can't get around then we can always come back," Mike agreed. He looked to Marionette for a nod of agreement before looking back. "Do you want the radio so you can reach her?"

"Keep it. We can use mine," Jake suggested, tapping the control panel under his arm. "That would help if you could, Jeremy. I'm going to have to stay with Moon, so I won't be able to help if something happens."

"Then there's the plan. Do you want my flashlight?" Jeremy offered. He handed it to Marionette and was surprised when Gregory popped up between them and eagerly took it for himself.

"I do! I'm tired of getting stuck in the dark all the time. I can barely see in this place," Gregory said as he took it. It was just a normal flashlight. Maybe on the small side for Jeremy but looked big in Gregory's grasp. "Okay, let's go."

Everyone exchanged looks with one another.

"Y-Yes, let's go-o," Moon volunteered. Then swung his arm back and pointed his thumb behind him in a jerking motion. "B-Back to the daycare-re!"

"What? No, that wasn't the plan! The plan was that you guys were going to get your friends here and they'd go with me to get Freddy. I'm not going to just sit in the daycare!"

"T-That is exactly what you're going to d-do. Y-You're going to sit down and eat your sandwich-ch… a-at the time out table-le!" Moon tilted his head and spun his face. "O-Or have you forgotten that you jumped in that nasty, nasty water-er?"

"Oh, I was wondering why you were wet," Marionette remarked. He wiped down his still damp front. It explained the weird chlorine scent too.

"Hey, I was running from you and Monty!" Gregory protested. He then said with absolute determination, "I'm going to find Freddy. That was the deal."

Moon gave a crackly growl and leered down at him. It might've been enough to unease him when he was alone, but he wasn't about to back down where so many people were watching.

"…Do you guys think you can take him?" Jake asked Mike and Marionette. Moon's head snapped to him, and he promptly choked at the pain through his chest in response. Jake looked back and gave a semi-exasperated shrug. "I don't want him going down there anymore than you do, but he wants to find Freddy and we can't stop them."

"I-I can stop him," Moon hissed. "H-He's NOT going down there-re."

"I don't think you're in a position to talk when you should be going down there and you won't," Jake said under his breath. Moon 'tsked' and turned away in annoyance. Jake looked back to the two. "Is that okay?"

The looks on Mike and Marionette's faces betrayed their feelings a little too well. Mike's teeth clenched in what could've been a wince while Marionette's smile was replaced by a tight line. Both managed to somewhat recover, replaced with phony nonchalance and a tense smile respectively.

"I don't see why not," Mike reluctantly agreed, looking down the stairs into the foreboding dimness as he ran his fingers through his hair a few times. "…There's nothing down there, right?" he asked, looking back up to Jake.

"No. Nothing…"

"Nothing at all?" he asked more insistently.

"Nothing but Staff Bots and endoskeletons," Jake said a little more assuredly. "They get a little weird in the dark, but just avoid them and you'll be fine."

"Then let's go. I don't want to hang around here until the lights go off," Gregory insisted. He walked over to the stairs and waited a beat before starting to go down the steps. Mike followed behind before turning back towards Jeremy.

"Radio us if anything happens. We can be back up here quick. Him especially," he said, pointing to Marionette.

Jeremy gave him a certain nod along with a, "You got it," and a, "Don't trip over anything."

"I don't plan on it," Mike returned. Then he continued down the stairs, exhaling through his lips while doing so.

"We'll keep a close eye on him," Marionette assured Jake and Moon. He could feel and tell from Moon's body language that he wasn't on board with this plan, understandably so, but he couldn't stick around. He followed Mike and Gregory down the stairs and into the cool basement waiting below.

The small group watched them go before Jake started to tug Moon's arm and looked between him and Jeremy.

"Let's go, guys. We've still got a ways to go," he reminded.

Moon silently dragged himself into a hobble as Jake helped him back to the daycare, Jeremy following along behind.

Roxanne was getting tired of this.

Every night something set off an alarm somewhere and she was dragged out to go find it, and most of the time there was nothing there. Apparently that same kid had gotten in a few times and ran around, setting off some of the bots- and Chica- in his wake. Honestly, though Roxanne was effectively on-call all night, she could care less about some kid running around. Security should've been able to handle that.

She had bigger things to deal with. There were cracks on the raceway.

Nothing too concerning now, but if it got any worse, she would have to report it and get someone to patch it. She couldn't have her clean raceway interrupted by a couple of ugly cracks, but she also didn't want to get saddled with her attraction getting closed. Freddy might've gotten a kick walking around the atrium greeting people all day, but she was built to race, and she had an image to uphold.

Tonight wasn't her night. It started with another report of that kid running around from Chica, then a Security Bot alert, and during both of those Roxanne had chosen not to pursue. There were plenty of other animatronics here capable of going to look, including the night guard who was getting paid to do so. She didn't have to go out there.

Then she got a different kind of alert. One that she hadn't ever gotten before. An alert that there was a decommissioned animatronic running around. That was a bizarre alert to have, she didn't even realize that was a thing to be alerted about, but when it got into her head, she had no choice but to head out of the raceway and towards the atrium. It was out of her hands now.

She only got a few steps out of the security door when she heard the sound of racing footsteps somewhere beneath her. From how light they were she could only assume it was Vanessa and went to the railing to look down.

For the second time that evening she was baffled, because what she saw was one of the last things she expected. Vanessa was running across the atrium chasing a figure wearing a green jacket- and that was figure, not person. It was clear from those long, black and white-striped legs that it wasn't a human. It was hard enough calling it an animatronic with how lanky it was.

It did somewhat resemble what Chica mentioned seeing up in El Chip's, a black and white doll-like model wearing a coat. It was as fast as Chica mentioned too, easily outrunning Vanessa as it ran from Kids Cove towards Fazer Blast.

"Look who's back…" Roxanne remarked. She tapped her claws on the railing as her tail swayed behind her. Though maybe it wasn't a matter of coming back, but a matter of something coming up.

There was that decommissioned animatronic report she had gotten, and there had been Glamrock variations that hadn't made it off the cutting room floor. Maybe this was one of those models. Bright stripes went well enough with neon, and it did sort of resemble those striped lights from up in the east arcade. This thing could've been a shelved bot crawling back out and trying to find its way back to where it was supposed to be- poor thing.

As pitiful as that was, they couldn't have this going on, and as it ran in her direction Roxanne knew it was time for her to put a stop to it.

She waited until the puppet was halfway to the escalator beside her before running down and smoothly jumping off the side halfway down. She dropped onto her feet with a resonating thump as the puppet skidded to a stop ahead of her, staring with wide, round eyes. Roxanne stood up, flipping her hair before settling her hands onto her hips.

"You think you're pretty fast, don't you?" she asked. She slowly narrowed her eyes at the puppet. "Let's see how fast you really are."

Roxanne got in position to run but gave the puppet long enough to turn around and start running. Which she did, turning on her spindly heels and immediately bolting at a speed that would put a human to shame. Nothing compared to Roxanne herself, and she let her get that head start before breaking out into a full sprint after her. Her powerful legs propelling her as she beelined after her green clad target.

Blocked to the left by security and the right by Fazer Blast, the puppet singled in on a door that led behind the snack bars. Officer Vanessa watching in shock as she blazed past her and shoved through the door with Roxanne hot on her heels. She took a sharp left, ran to the end of the back room, and then another sharp left and through another door leading back out into the atrium, nearly bumping into Smitty in the process before continuing to bolt.

"If you're trying to lose me, you're going to have to try a lot harder than that!" Roxanne yelled after her. She wouldn't admit that the constant changing direction had slowed her down a little- if this doll had to use cheap tactics like that to get away from her then it just showed how much faster she really was. She plowed onwards, unwilling to be made a fool.

The puppet vaulted over a railing, racing through a dining area, and vaulted over the other side again before making a brisk run for Rockstar Row. This managed to get a good amount of distance between her and Roxanne as while the wolf was obviously faster, she couldn't so easily hop those railings. It was better for her speed if she just ran around the area and then pumped her legs into a mad dash towards the entrance of Rockstar Row.

"Roxy!" Vanessa called as she ran after the two. "Roxy, I can handle it!"

Roxanne didn't feel like there was much of a reason to argue when it was obvious that wasn't the case. All it would do is distract her from her goal as she charged through the security door and then the next and into the hallway entrance outside of Rockstar Row. Roxanne ran down the neon hall only to slide to a stop halfway, nearly peeling up the carpet as she did so.

The security door into Rockstar Row was closed tight. There was no way that it could've shut that quickly, not with how fast she had ran in here. That puppet thing had to still be in here.

Roxanne slowly turned her head and listened closely to her surroundings. She couldn't hear anything, and a tentative sniff didn't yield any results. Unless it was really rank, she would've had to be closer to smell it anyways. Instead, she needed to focus on possible hiding spots, and her golden eyes rolled to the corner to eye the counter at the end of the hall. She saw that puppet vaulting those railings; it could've easily popped over that counter.

She stalked over to the counter, hunched and bracing herself to dive for the puppet if it suddenly made a run for it. Right before she could reach the side to look around, she heard the security door at the other end of the hall opening and spun around, ready to make a run after her fleeing prey. Only to see that it was actually Vanessa letting herself into the hallway.

"Where did it go?" she asked.

"That's what I'm trying to find out," Roxanne snapped, not appreciating the other's attempt to take control of the situation. "She's in here somewhere… Stay over there. She might make a run for it," she said.

Then she followed up by stepping around the counter and leering down at an empty space. Hmph, not here. There were still plenty of places to check.

Vanessa started to look around as well, shining her bright flashlight into the nooks and crannies of the heavily decorated hallway. She looked behind the reception counter of that side of the hall, lingering there for a long moment before moving on to check the supply closet behind it, and then moving to the staff only door that led backstage she hesitated again before calling down to Roxanne.

"Hey," she called. When Roxanne looked to her, she lowered her voice and gestured to the door with her flashlight. "This door's open."

Roxanne's ears twitched at that. That puppet could've ducked through that door easily without making a sound, and it wasn't like those doors were kept properly locked. There was another one leading to the same backstage portion beside her and it opened right up for her. The large room beyond it was dark and full of stuff to hide behind.

"Watch your side. She could be anywhere in there," Roxanne warned. Then she stepped inside, shutting the door harshly behind her to warn anything hanging around inside that she was coming. Vanessa followed suit.

The Rockstar Row entranceway fell into silence for a long minute.

Then Charlie carefully stood up from behind the reception desk that Natalie had checked. As carefully and quietly as she could, she walked around the desk and headed back out through the security door and back towards the atrium.

That had been a close enough call. Time to head to the daycare.

At least, that had been the plan until she stepped out into the atrium and could hear a chattering voice that sounded distinctly like Chica's coming from the far left. She took cover behind a canyon or raceway themed "Come back soon!" sign and shuffled around to the other side to peek out across the Atrium.

Chica and Monty were coming out of Monty Golf and heading to the other entranceway of Rockstar Row. They were far enough away that Charlie was relatively sure she wouldn't be seen, but it also meant that the only reason she could hear them was because Chica was talking as loud as she was.

"-So rude! I hate human employees who think they're better than us just because they're humans and we're not!" Chica huffed. "And I knooow that's why he was acting so hoity-toity! He was giving me those same funny looks that the girl who teaches the Mazercise classes gives me when I come in on their lesson. But I'M the face of Mazercise! I should be able to sit- stand in and eat as many nachos as I want!"

"Mmm…" Monty hummed, barely paying attention.

"…Hey, wait a minute. What happened to your sunglasses? You never take those off!" Chica suddenly realized. This suddenly snapped Monty out of his stupor, especially when she poked him on the cheek. He swatted her hand back.

"Buzz off. I ain't feelin' good."

"You don't have to get so huffy. I just thought it was weird… Unless you broke them again."

"I broke them again."

"Uh huh," Chica nodded, believing it fully. She stretched her arms behind her back as they watched the Rockstar Row security door lift. "…Sooo, who was the decommissioned bot running around? It wasn't that weird dolly thing, was it?"

"No. It was, uh… The old Sun," Monty confessed. Chica's eyes widened at that.

"…The OLD Sun?! Oh wow- that's… Oh WOW. I didn't know the old sun was still kicking. D'you think Sunny's seen it?"

"Moon saw it. He was there."

Monty swiftly walked into the entrance hall with Chica following shortly behind.

"Then he'll deal with it," Chica dismissed. "Still, weird."

"…Moon might've gotten caught up in our scuffle."

"What?"

"He's fine. He ran off after it, so he's fine," Monty insisted. Chica didn't seem too concerned, just humming and shrugging it off.

As for Monty, he knew what he had saw in between the moments where he lost control. Moon had been protecting that old Sun… but he couldn't say anything.

Because if he did then she would know what he did. They would all find out what he did.

He doubted they would look kindly on someone fostering around a decommissioned rogue, but he knew he was sunk if it got out that he had attacked another animatronic. Especially the "Daycare Attendant", especially with his history.

Thankfully, Chica had shrugged it off and was going off on something else. Apparently, Moon had caught her in the kitchen at some point and she was thought he had been a little pushy with her. He tuned it out as he continued on towards his green room, looking forward to the silence and a new pair of sunglasses, and hiding as long as he possibly could until it all caught up with him.

Once the security door shut behind them, Charlie continued on through the atrium. The last remaining "threat" being Smitty, who Natalie had apparently told to do patrolling loops in front of the snack bar. Likely to keep him from following and blowing both of their covers. Charlie easily avoided him by heading up the escalator and continuing unrestricted towards the daycare.

The daycare was exactly how she remembered it, with the lights on and bouncy music playing on loop. She looked down into the playground area only to see nobody there, meaning they were still in Monty Golf. Choosing not to panic yet- Monty had only just left so they had probably just gotten stuck over there- she slid down the slide and into the ball pit. Everything had a chemically clean scent, so it might've recently been disinfected.

Charlie climbed out of the ball pit via one of the bridges and made her way across the playground and to the security desk. She dropped into one of the office chairs to rest her legs, finally processing how close she had gotten to getting caught.

Thankfully, Roxanne had not seemed to recognize her as being an animatronic from Foxy's, which would probably be good for them if they ever reported what happened. Though from what Natalie said it didn't seem that was the case.

Eventually she heard a door opening somewhere and distant voices, which then turned into quickly approaching footsteps. She wasn't too concerned since she was certain she heard Jake's voice, but she still pulled closer to the desk and started to slide off the chair in preparations to drop underneath it while watching the propped open wooden doors.

Then Jake came hurrying in and alleviated any of Charlie's concerns. She stood up and he finally noticed her, staggering slightly before continuing towards her.

"Good, you're here! I need your help," Jake said. Between his tone and his hasty movements, she knew something was up.

"What's wrong?" Charlie asked. She stepped back so Jake could get to the desk. He pressed a button, and the lights and music went off. The room was only illuminated by stars on the walls and screens like the one behind them. Charlie unhooked her flashlight from her jacket pocket and clicked it on to assist in seeing.

"Moon got hurt. Monty body-slammed into him and it split his casing open. There's exposed wires, he can barely feel his left arm- it's bad," Jake explained. He beckoned her to follow as he rushed back out through the doors, and she did. "I don't know if you can help but maybe you can take a look at him? He's refusing to go down to Parts and Service- as usual. There's no way we can get a technician on him, and I don't know if I can do it."

"Sure, I'll take a look. See what I can do," Charlie agreed without hesitation. That didn't mean she felt confident after what he had said, but she was more than willing to try to lend a hand.

By time they made it to the door, Moon was already staggering out after once again rejecting an offer of assistance from Jeremy. He did accept Jake's help. A little too eagerly too, almost knocking him over when he all but collapsed against him. It gave Charlie a good look at what his injuries was, and she already knew it was out of her means. Unless they were satisfied with her pushing the wires back in and taping him closed.

"Hey, Charlie. Glad to see you got back safe," Jeremy greeted with a small smile.

"It was a close one. Did Mike and Mari already head down to look for Freddy?" she asked.

"Yeah, and they took the kid with them, Gregory."

Moon gave a fussy mutter to show his disagreement as Jake started to lead him towards the stairs.

"I stayed back to wait for you. They didn't want to leave you alone," Jeremy explained. He and Charlie now followed along behind the two, conversing as they slowly made their way up the steps. "What do you think?" he quietly asked.

"It doesn't look great," Charlie admitted. "…But we'll see. I'll know when I get a better look at it."

The two followed Jake and Moon into the Daycare Theater and back to that poster disguised door, which had been left open to a small crack. Jake pulled it open with one hand and Charlie went ahead and held it for him- to which he thanked her- and they stepped into the dark hallway. Charlie's flashlight and Moon's glow being the only ambient lighting once they passed that door.

"Shut it behind us, please," Jake requested. Jeremy did so. "Thank you."

The group walked down the dark hallway and through another door. It opened into what initially looked like a dusty storage room until the flashlight beam managed to land on a ledge and the curtained opening that sat atop it. It was the back of the balcony that looked over the play area. There was a little ladder leading up to the ledge, which had a thin wooden railing and a couple of storage crates on it.

The room itself was a mess. There was stuff scattered everywhere. Toys, props, old pieces of machinery- speaking of machinery, there were no less than three deconstructed Staff Bots- a possible fourth under a tarp in the corner- with parts scattered onto two makeshift worktables. There were also plenty more cardboard boxes stashed around, especially in the crawlspace under the ledge. It was clear exactly where daycare supplies clashed with Jake's handiwork.

But the room wasn't just messy. The red paintjob was dull and scuffed and there were thick cobwebs hanging up in the corners. There was also a coil of hanging lights stretched across the wall, but the lights out it wasn't clear if these were the only working lights or just extras. The final notable features being a cluster of breakers on the far wall and what almost looked like the entrance to a tunnel on the wall right of them.

"Sorry about the mess, most of it's mine. Be careful for any loose glass," Jake excused.

He helped Moon to the tunnel where he let himself in and climbed through. Jake followed after and then Charlie followed after him, with Jeremy choosing to stay outside of the hole sitting on a colorful foam block.

On the other side of the short tunnel, Charlie found an even more dreary room. Cement walls were covered in children's drawings and hung-up clothes collected from the Pizzaplex. There was a collection of toys lined up on a shelf and boxes scattered around, and there was an arcade cabinet taking up a corner of the room. From the quick look she got, it looked like Balloon Boy or some version of him was on it.

Half of the room was comprised of a bedding of pillows and blankets. Numerous pillows of all sizes and colors, blankets of yellow and orange stripes and of starry patterns on a deep blue background, and a few scattered plush toys piled in the back corner of the bed. There were some star decorations hung on beaded strings from some wooden planks and dangling above the bed, while the planks seemed to make up an unfinished loft section.

Moon slowly and shakily lowered himself down onto the pillows before stretching out on his back. He laid there a moment while Jake moved stuff out of the way. His glowing pupils rolled to Charlie after a few moments.

"W-Why is she in here-re?" Moon asked in a grouchy and tired tone. Less a question and more of an instruction for Charlie to leave.

"She's here to look at you, Genius. And see if she can put this back where it goes," Jake said matter-of-factly.

"…O-Oh right-t." Moon chose to be quiet after that.

Charlie crawled in the rest of the way and knelt down beside Moon, with Jake shortly kneeling beside her. Moon stretched his right arm above his head, resting it against the wall and exposing the full nature of his damage, while the left lay useless on the pillows at his side. As she shined her light into and around his chest, he reached up and flicked at the stars dangling above their heads, watching them swing back and forth afterwards.

Between him and how tightly Jake was grabbing his knees, it was clear that both of them were aware of the seriousness of this situation. Charlie pushed those thoughts aside and continued to peek and poke around inside.

"I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?" she offered.

"G-Good. It is such a rare thing-ng," Moon murmured.

"The good news is that from what I can see, there's not much damage," Charlie said. Moon scoffed. "I'm serious. It might look bad with all these wires sticking out, but I can't see any that are cut or torn out. You were really lucky on that front. And if that's the case, that could mean that the pain and the weakness in the arm is just from the wires being displaced. That's really the best-case scenario because just setting everything back where it's supposed to go should fix the problem."

"Great!... And I'm guessing the bad news tells us why we can't do that," Jake said.

"The bad news is that the casing's bent," Charlie clarified. She pointed down at the edges while she explained, "It looks like Monty's weight caused the casing to bend in and the pressure popped the casing open. Even if we forced the casing closed the edges wouldn't line up together. Which is already problematic enough, but even if we could bend the casing back, it's a clean seam. It's not going to just snap together; it needs to be welded shut."

"And we definitely don't have welding equipment up here…" Jake agreed. He didn't sound surprised; Charlie wouldn't have been shocked if he knew all of this already considering how he knew the ins and outs of the Staff Bots.

"J-Just bend it back and tape it shut-ut," Moon said dismissively. "D-Double wrap it. I-I can baby it-t."

"You can't babysit a broken chest. What happens when you're leaning down to pick up a kid and it splits open and everything spews back out? If the kids aren't scared to death they'll start grabbing and yanking them. They already do whenever they get the chance," Jake reminded. Moon flinched a little. His right are bending so his fingers could ghost the wires on the back of his head. "And then you're going to Parts and Service while all the technicians are on duty."

Moon growled a little at that.

"Have you had problems with the technicians?" Charlie asked.

"He has."

"W-We both have-ve," Moon quickly interjected.

"…Okay, I'll admit that the technicians weren't great to me either. They're underpaid and underqualified, and the only one who isn't is-."

"Sket-chy," Moon finished. His fingers dug into the pillow behind his head. "A-And a liar."

"Chaz. Moon doesn't like him," Jake finished. "And he's not that great anyways. He likes to cut corners."

"I heard the head technician left. Or Wight said something like that," Jeremy chimed in through the hole.

There was a long silence. Charlie could've sworn that Jake shot a look at Moon from the way his head twitched. Moon continued to look away at the wall. That was an awfully uncomfortable silence.

"…Or maybe I just got things mixed up," Jeremy added on.

"Em-Employees don't last long-ng," Moon said cryptically. "A-Ask the wrong question, be-be replaced by a Staff Bot, and be out on the street-et."

"Sounds brutal," Charlie sympathized.

"Doesn't surprise me one bit," Jeremy admitted. His voice, for the briefest moment, took a soured edge. He quickly covered it up as he cleared his throat and then asked Charlie, "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?... Not about you guys. It's about this whole basement thing."

"I-It's about US," Moon said. A mock dramatic tone to his voice. "Wh-Whispering about our dirty, dirty, messy room-m."

"You should see my room. My toys are all over the place," Jeremy joked. He gently poked at his jacket and there was a hushed giggle from inside.

Charlie climbed through the tube and stuck her head out while holding onto the edge. Jeremy had moved aside to let her out, but then leaned in to speak.

"Since you're here and safe, maybe I should drop off the girls and go catch up with the guys," Jeremy suggested. "I'm worried about them getting lost down there."

"Me too… You know what? I'll go with you. I can't really help here," Charlie said, saying the last part in a lower volume.

"You're going after Freddy?" Jake asked, seemingly catching wind of the conversation. It wasn't hard to do considering they were only a few feet apart.

"If it's alright with you. I can stick around if you need me," Charlie offered.

Jake thought for a second, seemingly coming up with an idea. "…Actually, that's a good idea. The quicker we can get Freddy back the better. He might be able to help out," he agreed.

If Freddy was anything, he was direct and honest, and could be persuasive- and had clearance high enough to walk in and out of wherever he wanted. Jake couldn't convince Moon alone but maybe he, Freddy, Charlie, and possibly Gregory could pull it off. That would be enough peer pressure to at least pry him out of this stubborn refusal.

"Don't worry about us. We'll be fine until you get back," Jake said.

"We'll be quick," Charlie assured. She slid out of the tunnel and Jeremy offered a hand to help her up.

Jake watched them through the tunnel while crouched on the other side. When he hears Moon's all but deflated voice from the corner.

"H-Have them turn the lights on on their way out-t."

"Wait… What?" Jake looked back a little startled. "I think that would be a really bad idea."

Moon gave a dismissive tsk and waved his good hand. Jake shuffled back to his side.

"Andrew, if those lights come on your sensitivity is going to go through the roof. We can't turn those on," he quietly warned.

"I-I can handle it. I don't-." He broke the sentence with an impatient huff and said low through unmoving teeth, "I-I don't want them to see me-e."

Like this, Jake thought. It was okay to see 'Sun' injured, but not 'Moon'. Even if it meant that 'Sun' had to go through the wringer for it. It baffled him in a way.

"Guys, hold up!" he called out. If only because he knew there was no way he was changing Moon's mind if they were on their way out. He turned back to Moon, "Just think about it for a second. We don't have to let anyone else in here."

Moon laid there for a moment pretending to consider it before giving a final, "I-I want the light on-n."

Jake gave a tired sigh and reluctantly turned to the tunnel to give the order. Charlie and Jeremy were waiting outside. "Can you guys turn the lights on? I'm sorry to ask, but I can't get in those tunnels like I used to."

"Sure. We'll do it on our way out," Jeremy said, pretending like he didn't immediately remember Carlton going on about him, John, and Jessica cramming into the play tunnels to find a bunch of generators. "…Mind giving us an idea where the generators are? And how many there are?"

"Five. Here's the fastest way I've seen it: go in through that entrance in that back corner, take a left instead of going up, there will be a generator there. Go up two floors, over the hump, take a left, go up the blue tunnel, take a left and go through the blue tunnel that's further down to the left. Then it's a straight shot and a drop down in front of generator three. Go up the winding tunnel, up the slope, around the bend, and there's generator four. Then you start going down. Just take every path down until you get to this wavy hallway, through this tunnel, and then take a right and follow the wires and you'll find the fourth generator. Take a left and come out, then head to the third tower, that one, and the generator's at the top. No maze or anything, it's just at the top. Think you've got it?"

Charlie and Jeremy were just staring at one another. Neither sure which of them had gotten lost on the directions first.

"…I think so. We can figure it out," Jeremy agreed.

They headed out of the disorganized room. Charlie waiting until they were at the end of the hallway before speaking up. "Did you get any of that?"

"About half," Jeremy admitted.

"Please tell me it's the second half," Charlie said. He chuckled a little and pushed the door closed behind them.

It didn't take long to make it back down and into the daycare proper. The two looked up at the three somewhat daunting play structures.

"Want to take the flashlight, you do this side and I do that one and we'll meet in the middle?" Charlie offered. She pointed out the structures with said light before offering it over, to which he raised a hand in decline.

"Nah, we've got this."

He walked over to the corner and the entrance that he assumed Jake was talking about with Charlie following and lighting his way. He knelt down in front of it, but instead of starting to crawl in he unzipped his jacket and opened it up.

"Alright, girls. Ready for a little adventure?" Jeremy asked.

In response, three Minireenas climbed out of his jacket and hopped to the padded floor. They weren't wearing dresses or even their tutus, likely so they could fit in the jacket easier. Because of that they were virtually identical, but he could tell which one was Daisy by who looked up first. He also knew which was Forget-Me-Not because she started to stretch the moment she hopped down, as she had gotten fussy being cooped up so long. Rose was, as expected, the quietest.

"Okay, so we've got five generators to find if we want to get these lights on. Think you can handle it?" he asked. Daisy and Rose nodded. Forget-Me-Not put her hands on her hips. He wasn't sure if it was out of confidence or offense that he even asked. "If you get lost, just call for me and I'll come get you," Jeremy offered, knowing good and well they wouldn't. "You all ready?"

Daisy gave a little laugh and a nod. Rose patted her hands together excitedly. Forget-Me-Not waited for her cue.

"And… Go!"

They turned and ran for it. None as fast as Forget-Me-Not, who intended to make it a race the second he made it sound like one. She was outright running, a weird motion to see a Minireena do when they tended to stick to ballerina leaps and dainty movements. Not that Daisy and Rose were far behind her with their flouncier movements.

They found the first generator fast and turned it on immediately before continuing into the structure. Unable to climb the slides, and unwilling to patiently walk through the maze, they climbed up and through the bars with ease, working as a unit to spread out and finding the generators in the first structure before hopping to the next one.

Meanwhile, Jake was still sitting at Moon's side in silence. Even though he knew they were down there fiddling with the generators he held back the urge to look from the balcony and instead stayed where he was.

"Last chance to change your mind," he warned. Moon gave a noncommittal, crunchy humming noise. He probably didn't even consider it.

Jake briefly considered that maybe this was what would push him into Parts and Service, feeling the full brunt of the sensation when the lights were on. Moon was definitely more numb to pain, if him getting up and walking around was any indication. Likely his limp was less from discomfort and simply from having so much stuff where it wasn't supposed to be. Sun wasn't going to have that advantage. He was about to feel it all in full force.

And Jake hated that he was going along with it just to get him downstairs. It felt manipulative.

"Andrew…" Jake began but trailed off again. He sighed and looked off somewhere in the room. He really should've cleaned up a little before he let Charlie in here. Ah well, the deed was done.

Suddenly Moon turned over and dropped his head into his lap. The motion was so sudden that Jake jumped a little, but then eased up. He patted the top of his head sympathetically.

"I-If I start screaming-ng…" Moon began. He dragged over a pillow with his bent back right arm which was trapped underneath him. "Y-You know what to do-o."

"…Stuff you in a pillowcase and drag you downstairs?" Jake tried.

That was probably the worst time for the lights to turn back on. Of course, that was when they did.

The familiar whirring of change didn't sound right. It sounded clunky, heavy, and a little too loud. Instead of a smooth emission fade from blue to yellow it flickered, and Jake sat rigidly waiting for it to fully kick in. Even as the point popped and poked against his legs.

Silence. Whirring and ticking, but silence.

Then.

"ACK-ARRGHGHHHH!"

Sunny's hand clawed down the wooden floor as one of his legs kicked and thumped against a plush brick. "UGGGHH!"

"Uh… Are you okay?" Jake asked dumbly.

"I MADE A MISTAAAKE!" Sunny wailed into his lap. "Oh G- Oh G- Oh STARS I should've JUMPED!"

"Should I go turn those back off?" Jake offered.

"NOOOO!" Sunny grabbed and threw the pillow overtop his head, smooshing it down onto the back of it to suffocate the noise. "I'm fine! I can handle it! I just gotta get used to it is all-ll-ll!"

Well, that confirmed that the voice box hadn't spontaneously fixed itself. It just seemed to do better when he was yelling.

Jake reached down to pat his back, hesitating when he noticed a clear misshape on one side of his back from the bent casing. He instead patted the other side, which thankfully didn't seem to hurt.

"Just try to stay calm. It's not like this is the first time we've gotten dinged up," Jake said. He tried to keep an upbeat tone. "And hey, this time we don't have to get parts out of the garbage! No getting eaten by the Dumpster Clown tonight."

Sunny grumbled something and hooked his arm around Jake's back, clinging tighter and needier. Jake continued to try and talk him through it. It was the least he could do for being spared a similar fate.

Down on the daycare floor, the lights had just come on and Jeremy and Charlie were waiting at the bottom of the third structure for the Minireenas to come down. Hearing them on the slide, Jeremy waited at the bottom. They slid down one by one, and he scooped them up one at a time. Soon having one in each hand and Forget-Me-Not climbing onto his shoulder, as the victor of the supposed race.

"Good job, girls!" he congratulated. They gave satisfied giggles at the praise, and Rose hugged his arm. He kissed her on the top of the head, and she giggled again. "Now that the lights are on, we're going to go after Mike and Mari. Do you three want to stay here until we get back? You can play-."

There was a pained yell from up in the balcony. One loud enough to get Charlie spinning around to look and get a flinch out of Jeremy. All of his Minireenas craning their heads to look around him.

"I think that was Sunny," Charlie said tensely.

That wasn't the end either. Sun could still be heard yelling, but it was hard to make out what he was saying beyond the anguished cries. After a few minutes of this it quieted down and only then did Charlie dare to pull out her radio.

"…Should we shut the lights back off?" she quietly asked. It took at least ten seconds before she received an answer.

"No, it's okay. We're okay. You guys just worry about finding Freddy. If it gets too bad, I can take care of it," Jake assured. She could hear a strange noise in the background but couldn't piece together that it was Sunny whining through a pillow.

"Okay… Okay, well we're heading down now. Call us if you need us," Charlie said. She released the button and paused for a moment. "…Mike didn't hear that at all. Think we should be worried?"

"Not yet. With the whole cell service thing, I wouldn't be shocked if the basement's a radio dead zone," Jeremy said. He would rather pretend that the statement didn't make him nervous until he got down there, then he could worry. "So, girls, want to stay here or come with us? It's okay to stay. I'll be back."

Daisy shook her head. Forget-Me-Not gave a dismissive, "Uh!" Obviously, they had been paying attention to what everyone had been saying about the basement. Their sudden lack of giggles showed that they were wary, and when they were wary they became protective and clingy. Which Jeremy was fine with.

"If you're sure. You don't have to!" he insisted. He opened up his jacket again for them to climb in. "I'll see if we can come back and play later, okay?"

Forget-Me-Not tapped his shoulder and pointed to him and then the slide structure. He knew what she was asking: if he would come in with them.

"…Only if I fit," he agreed.

Satisfied with this answer, she slid down into his jacket and she zipped it back closed.

"Okay, let's go," he said. Charlie nodded and they started to head towards the entrance. "…This music's not as bad as Mike made it out to be."

"You haven't listened to it on repeat for an hour," Charlie joked.

"I stand corrected," Jeremy said. He shrugged. "But the night's still early. Maybe I'll still get the chance… And who knows. Maybe I can still walk out of here with a sun."

Charlie jingled a little as they stepped out through the wooden doors and headed back to the hallway.

At least in that scenario they would still be walking out.

Chapter 44

Chapter Summary

Mike, Marionette, and Gregory find themselves in the depths of the Pizzaplex basement to find Freddy, but they find something much worse...

Chapter Notes

Sorry this chapter took so long, but I hope it's worth the wait! Enjoy!

Where the upper floors of the Pizzaplex were styled in a sleek modern design soaked in neon, the basement was like an endless garage soaked in grease and steam. The difference was like night and day. Ironically, it looked more like a spaceship down at the bottom of those steps than it did anywhere else in the similarly themed building. It was a huge tunnel of pipes and pathways, made simply to haul other machines through it.

It reminded both Mike and Marionette heavily of Afton Robotics. Neither said it out loud, but they knew each other and knew what they were seeing enough to come to the conclusion that they already knew. It made them both uneasy.

Gregory was oblivious to this context, but that didn't make him any less wary. He might've led the way- a step in front of the two but with them still positioned on either side- but he looked around like someone who expected something to come jumping out from around a corner at any minute.

They followed the tunnel for a while before getting through a large security door. Considering that it responded to the maintenance pass when he swiped it, Mike had a feeling they were on the right path.

On the other side of that door the tunnel was cluttered. Freddy colored forklifts and similar machinery, some covered in tarps and some not, lines and lines of Glamrock character themed garbage cans, and a large shelf on the right side of the tunnel topped in spray paint cans and jugs of likely toxic chemicals. It was unsurprising that the continuing tunnel was blocked off by a fence and more clutter, with the path ahead leading to another security door.

Yet Mike still hesitated and started down that tunnel before looking between it and the door.

"Jake said something about taking a right, right?" he asked.

"He did. As soon as we can, he said… Would this count as a 'can'?" Marionette asked pensively.

Mike hummed and walked further down towards the gate to get a better look. Getting past the crates and shining his light along it revealed that it was a solid fence without any gates to let them through. A light to the right revealed a sizable vent on the wall on the other side of the gate, a possible way for them to get through. However, Mike was still uncertain, and walked back to Marionette and Gregory waiting a little ways back.

"So, here's the thing: Jake clearly said to go to the right and that's the way the tunnel's going, but there's no way through the fence. There's a vent that we could probably find a way through or, you know, we could just jump the fence, but Jake didn't mention making any detours. So, now I'm wondering if this fence is new or if we were supposed to keep going past it, because I feel like he would've mentioned a right at the fence."

"Hmm… That's a tricky one," Marionette murmured. He looked back towards the security door, then pointed at it. "Maybe we could go through the door and see what it looks like on the other side? We should know rather quickly if we're going the right way if it leads to a dead end, or to the kitchen or a stairwell."

"Good point. Let's take a look," Mike agreed.

Gregory had the distinct feeling that neither had any idea where they were going. He didn't have a map either since the Faz-Watch's only covered the attractions and how to get to them, fitting for a trinket designed with guests in mind. He went along with them though since he too hadn't the foggiest idea where he was going.

The security door rolled open and revealed a long and narrow passageway. Though this didn't immediately suggest this was the wrong way either. It looked to be a hallway in what could've been a warehouse, considering that the light revealed the end of a conveyor. Though it also revealed that the passageway went on for a while down, and it did at least somewhat resemble a maintenance area with tires stacked directly to the left.

"…I think this might be the way to go," Marionette offered.

"I think you're right. At least it's going somewhere," Mike agreed. He shined his light around before it landed on what looked like a mural to the right. "Take a look at that."

The picture was of an endoskeleton of some variety knelt down in front of a boy sitting on a chair. The endoskeleton had a first aid kit and was holding its thumb up while the boy had a Band-Aid on his knee.

Marionette admired the mural with a hum before coming to his own conclusion. "This is the right way. Endoskeletons were always a fixture of Freddy's Parts and Service, and Jake warned us about them," he said. He began to lead the way down the passage. "Follow me and keep close."

"I always do," Mike agreed. The mural wasn't off-putting, but the idea that they were walking into endo territory was. He waved for Gregory to come up beside him, which he did.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Gregory asked.

"No, but if I'm wrong, we can always hike back."

Gregory frowned at that. "That's just going to be a big waste of time! Freddy could be in danger," he reminded.

"I know, and we're going to find him. We just can't let ourselves get lost down here. One trip down the wrong tunnel and we could end up on the other side of this place," Mike said coolly. The last few years of working with children had made him more patient with them. Especially when he had dealt with children much louder and angrier than Gregory was.

While he still frowned, Gregory didn't continue arguing. He knew that he did have a point. This place was huge; if they got lost they would never find Freddy.

"Cold?" Mike asked. He had been so busy looking out for danger that he hadn't noticed how tightly Gregory kept his arms at his sides.

"A little. I'm okay," Gregory quickly said.

Mike unzipped and shrugged off his jacket before handing it over. "Take this. I don't want you getting sick on my watch," he offered with a smile.

Gregory stared at his shirt for a long minute- and the picture of an iguana stretched on a beach chair with a Hawaiian backdrop the words 'Lounge Lizard' underneath- before reminding him, "I'm still pretty wet."

"More reason to put this on," Mike said. He shook the jacket temptingly.

"…Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you if it gets all funky," Gregory said. He took the jacket, slipped off his backpack, and then put on both together. It was too big for him, but it was warm, and kind of covered up the cholerine smell.

They then shined their lights ahead and followed the puppet illuminated by them. Steam puffed up along the sides of the hallway and there was a crackling and sparking sound coming from somewhere. That mixed with the heavy darkness gave the area a remarkably rundown look even though this place was just as new as the rest of the Pizzaplex.

Marionette suddenly dipped into a doorway to the right. By time Mike caught up and shined his light in, the Puppet was on his way back out. Nothing, a dead end, and it looked like they were closing in on another one as they came up on another mural that blocked the way. This one showing a man and a little girl standing beside an endo with a balloon.

There was a glowing, green, Freddy head-shaped button mounted beside the mural. Marionette gave a curious hum and pressed the button, and all three watched as the mural before them lifted up and revealed a further passage.

"Oh, it's a door! How quaint," Marionette remarked. A little playfulness on his voice as he continued on. "I do like these ones much more than the ones at the old Freddy's."

"They really would've brightened up the office. Or at least gave me something to look at when I wasn't staring unblinking at a computer screen," Mike remarked. Marionette chimed in amusement.

But then he suddenly stopped. It was so abrupt that Mike stopped as well and made sure to catch Gregory to keep him from going past.

"What?" Gregory asked quietly.

"…There's an endoskeleton standing in passageway up ahead," Marionette warned. "Standing there slumped in on itself. Blocking our way."

He was a little way ahead of them so Mike couldn't immediately see what he was talking about. He walked up to him and by the edge of a conveyor belt, shining his light over it and having his brows shoot up when the light landed directly on the endo in question. It didn't look quite like the endoskeletons Mike or Marionette were familiar with. It was taller, thicker, especially on the broad-shouldered chest and the lower legs. It fit the shape of Freddy rather well though.

The endo was hunched over like Marionette had foretold. Its head was down with its arms hanging, yet it stayed rigidly upright on its feet. The fact that it was blocking their way was concerning and suspicious.

Marionette slowly hovered forward and stood before the bot. He waited a long moment for any response, and when he received none, he reached forward and laid a hand atop its head. The bot was cold and still, like a statue. There was still no response and Marionette dropped his hand to his side before brushing past and circling to the other side. There was still no response, and he looked up to Mike and Gregory.

"I think it may be deactivated, but be careful just in case," he warned. He looked back down at the endo and watched it carefully for any signs of movement.

Mike went first, getting up close and personal with the endoskeleton while getting a good look at it. It was a far cry from the scrawny things occasionally spotted on the cameras late night at the old Freddy's. While still standing beside it, he gestured for Gregory to go past and only squeezed by himself once the boy was safely on the other side of Marionette. He brushed the side of the endo while passing it, it thankfully remained dormant.

Mike stepped past and stood alongside Marionette momentarily as they studied the suspicious endoskeleton. While they did, Gregory continued to the little room at the end of the passage and looked around.

"That looks like another moving wall and there's a button here," he said.

Finally deeming the endo as deactivated and not wanting Gregory to get too far away, Marionette turned away and headed after him. Mike continued watching the endo as he took a few steps back, then turned and followed after them.

He barely got in two steps before he heard a noise akin to something activating behind him, along with a clumsy clatter and thumping footsteps right at his heels.

Marionette spun around startled. "Mike?!"

But Mike was already moving, stepping forward out of the way at the same time of spinning around and coming face to face with a hand reaching for him, having just barely dodged its grasp.

It was the hand of the endoskeleton. It had sprung to life the moment he turned his back and lunged at him. Even though it had frozen in place, he noticed the red glow deep in its eyes signaling that it was still active.

"Oh shhhheeze," Mike caught his balance, barely, and backed up from the hand. "Jeez, do you see how close he got?"

"You're taking this awfully well!" Marionette half-sputtered.

"I've got a kid right here. I have to hold it in," Mike said through his teeth. He reached for his taser and unhooked it just in case. "Well, now we know how these things tick. They wait until you turn your back and then jump you."

"It's more than that. I… I can't be sure, but I think it only stopped moving once I made eye contact," Marionette said. After a moment he moved in, leaned in, and reached for its head, trying to turn it towards him- perhaps testing it. When the neck didn't move, he leaned in further to peer into its eyes, even when Mike was giving a warning "hey, hey, careful" and trying to pull him back. "…It's still on but it's totally unresponsive now. It stopped the moment we looked at it."

"Don't break eye contact- got it," Mike said. He finally succeeded in hooking an arm around Marionette's waist and pulling him back away, if only because the puppet finally cooperated. "Think it's anything like how you used to freeze up when someone looked at you?"

"I didn't even think about that... Maybe. Though I'm not even sure if that was a programmed feature or a defense mechanism," Marionette admitted. Narrowing his eyes, he suddenly swung up his arm and telekinetically shoved it back, causing it to fall backwards and to the ground, still rigidly stuck in the same position. "Maybe that will make it less of a problem."

"How did you do that?!" Gregory asked in surprise.

"Magic," Marionette said with a wave of his fingers.

"Sheer willpower," Mike answered as well.

"No, really," the boy insisted.

"He can explain as soon as we get a little distance between us and this guy," Mike assured. He reached back for the button, but Gregory beat him to it and pressed the button. The next wall raised to reveal another hallway.

There was another activation noise from the corner and Gregory snapped his head and flashlight over towards a figure draped in a tarp. Movement stilled underneath it the moment he did.

"There's another one right there!"

"Keep your eyes on it," Mike instructed. "Mari, check the hall?"

Marionette did and then spun around to face the corner endo. "It's clear. Gregory, head through. I can watch it." The boy took a few careful steps before turning around and heading into the next hall. "Now you."

"Alright." Mike backed towards the door, Marionette joining him and them both backing through. He shined his light around the inside of the door. "And there's no button on this side…" he muttered.

"Keep watch. I'll press the button and hop through," the Puppet said. He did a quick spin to get a feel for the area and then went back through, keeping his eyes on the corner endo as he pressed the button again. There was no response. He pressed it again to no avail and then, still with no response, he hovered back into the doorway. "Here's the new plan: you lead the way and I'll follow behind and keep an eye on them."

Mike nodded and led the way further down the passage. The smell of stagnant water becoming stronger as the room became more humid from steam leaking through the pipes. The hall seemed to close in as well, with more boxes of stuff piling up on either side- where they weren't already cramped in by conveyor belts.

Gregory noticed a box overflowing with Moon plush toys. "There's a lot of daycare stuff down here," he said.

"Maybe this is where they store all the stuff they don't use." Mike shined his light around. "Huh. I guess the Moon stuff doesn't sell that well."

"I'm not surprised," Gregory grumbled. "Who would want a toy of him? He's nuts."

"He cares about you. He may be a little… much but he does," Marionette gently assured, still floating backwards behind him. He could tell as much just from how quiet Moon got once it became clear that Gregory was going into the basement.

"He has a funny way of showing it…" Gregory mumbled. "…So how did you do that thing?"

"I can move things with my mind. It's called telekinesis and it's also what I use to keep myself up. Just in case you didn't notice, I'm floating," he said with a playful edge, trying to relieve the tension.

"It's kind of hard not to," Gregory said. "But how can you do that? Is it like some sort of… magnet thing? It can't be a robot thing."

"It's a haunted robot thing," Marionette said with a light chuckle.

Gregory slowed down and looked back as Mike continued ahead to the corner. The boy's brows were furrowed in a mix of confusion and unease. "Haunted?" he asked under his breath.

Which was drowned out by Mike looking around the corner and giving an exasperated, "Aww, come on."

"Let me guess: there's more of them," Marionette guessed.

"Yes. Of course there is."

There were a couple more endoskeletons positioned against the wall. Both were slumped over in the same dormant state as the first one had been, but there was no doubt it wouldn't last long.

Mike sighed and once the two caught up he started slowly down the hallway. "Let's just stay close together. They probably won't kick on until we walk past them, just like those other ones did," he suggested.

Honestly, this might've been a good time to turn back if they weren't being followed by the same endoskeletons- and he knew they were being followed by the clanking footsteps down the hallway back where they had come from, only halting when getting into Marionette's line of sight.

The group made it past the next endos and, just like before, the activated once they were only a few feet away from them. They continued on into the hallway, passing through yet another mural and more endos.

They did come up on a weird spot not too much further in. There was a mural to the left depicting an endoskeleton knocking over a cake and table in front of a child, but there was no button for it. The hallway also continued down to the right. A sharp right, a right that mixed with the last few corners made it seem like it was spiraling in on itself. He could believe the button could be on the other side of the mural, but about this hallway…

"I think we're coming up on a dead end," Mike forewarned. "We've turned enough times that through that wall should be the hallway we first came in."

"I think you're right…" Gregory admitted. "What do we do? We can't turn back."

"We're going to have to turn back. It'll be okay. We'll just keep an eye on the endoskeletons and squeeze by. I brushed past that one earlier and it couldn't do anything about it," Mike reminded reassuringly.

"Agreed, but I think we should see what's at the end," Marionette suggested.

"There's not going to be much. Judging on these walls, I doubt it's Parts and Service."

"But there might be a staff elevator."

That made Mike pause. He remembered being told about the secondary staff elevator in Afton Robotics, about how narrow it was. From the length of the corners, the internal room was probably large enough to fit one of those.

"Or stairs," Marionette added. "Which isn't exactly the direction where we want to go but could spare us from having to pass through the endos."

"…You know what? Sure. We've come this far anyway. Why not see what's in there?" Mike agreed. He continued down the hallway, stepping over a deactivated Staff Bot slumped on the wall.

"So, this was a big waste of time," Gregory sourly muttered.

"Not yet. Let's see what's at the end of all this and if it's not Freddy… then yeah, it'll be a big waste of time," Mike agreed, his voice deflating at the end.

They continue to the end of the next passage, which ended in a painted portrait of the Moon on the wall and a door to the left, while continuing on into the center room to the right. He considered both paths for a moment.

"Mari, there's a door here that I'm going to check in. You sit tight," he forewarned. The Puppet gave a 'mm-hmm' of agreement. Mike looked to the right and noticed more endos in the corner of the next room. He pointed at them with his flashlight. "Think you can keep your eye on them?" he asked Gregory.

"Sure but make it quick."

"Sure thing, Boss," Mike remarked. He then carefully turned away and tried the door, which opened right up into a small room. One small enough to still fit in the space that he imagined.

Right across from him were three endoskeleton suspended within cages of fencing. It was a bizarre sight, but it was even more bizarre that Freddy's apparently had the means to keep the endos from wandering and still decided to only do it for some of them. They must've been unfinished models as they didn't activate when he passed by them.

There was an open doorway in the back of the room. One large enough that there could've been a security door that had already been lifted. Mike approached it cautiously and shined his light inside, and what he found was bizarre, and more unsettling the longer he looked at it.

It was a small, secluded, padded room. There was a TV tipped over in the corner and some little furniture, a line of plush toys by the wall, and even a stack of those circular barrels he had seen in the daycare. In fact, this room was styled very much like the daycare, with the floors matching those in the playground and the cushioned walls depicting pictures of cartoonish landscapes.

Something had been kept in here, that much was clear. While Mike was looking around, he eventually glanced up at the roof and noticed the two sizable hooks hanging from the ceiling. They almost looked like wench hooks.

His eyes eventually lowered back to the floor and the small furniture and toys.

"God, I hope no kids wound up down here…" he thought. It was at that moment that his light fell on a partially tipped stack of VHS tapes beside the little table and tipped television.

He knelt down and picked them up one by one to read the label.

"Daycare training tape one… two… four… Huh." The last one was labelled differently. Instead of a printed sticker, someone wrote on a black label with black marker. "Sun-Moon Test… These might be worth watching."

He stacked them back up and picked them all up at once, carrying them back out as he shined his light around to make sure there wasn't anything he missed. There wasn't, but he had an unsettling feeling about the room. Maybe it was those lone hooks dangling from the ceiling but something just seemed off about it all.

He shut the door behind him as he came out, then looked down and at Gregory's small backpack. "…Hey, Gregory. Think you can squeeze these in your backpack for me?"

Gregory turned back, assuming Mike could keep an eye out while he did and saw the tapes. He quirked a brow. "What're those?"

"They're some kind of daycare training tapes. It might be nothing, but I thought they might be worth checking out," Mike said. Gregory considered this and then turned around to let him put them in. It took a minute to squeeze them in around the lunchbox, but he fit them in a way where they wouldn't clatter around.

Then he took lead again and started to go around the next corner and into the center room. At first glance it looked to be a dead-end, and that this had been a waste of time and likely they had gone the wrong way, but a step closer and he noticed a button near the wall. Its soft green glow being the only way he noticed it through more hung up and fenced in endoskeletons.

He hadn't even gotten past the endos in the corner when they both suddenly activated with a dull chime. Just as suddenly there was a whooshing noise before something suddenly thumped him in the back. Mike jumped but had familiar long fingers grab his hand at his free hand, in an instant telegraphing that it was Marionette's back against his. They laced their fingers together and Mike took a calming breath before starting to walk forward.

He could feel the other's weight continuing to press against his back as he did. Upon pressing the button, he could hear something moving through the wall.

"That might be that other door," Marionette suggested, and Mike nodded. "…We should probably stay like this."

"Works for me. I gave my jacket to the kid," Mike agreed, playfully pulling the puppet's arm like he was wrapping it around his. Said puppet chiming lightly and turning with him as he turned around.

They got past the two recently activated endos easily, but they walked around the corner into the hall and their lights fell on an even bigger problem. A cluster of endoskeletons were crowding the hallway directly in front of them. Every endo they had passed clogging up their one way out, and with two more biting at the bit to follow.

"…Can you do that shove thing again?" Gregory dared to ask.

Marionette gave a hum like he was considering it.

"Switch?" Mike offered.

In a smooth motion, Marionette spun them around. Mike managing to catch his footing but almost thrown off-balance by the spin. Now Marionette was able to see what was blocking them and, after brief surprise, he looked for the weakest target. Eventually he focused and harshly shoved down the middle. Some of the endos shifted from the push, their limp pose forcibly changed, but one was hit hard enough to be toppled onto its back.

The problem was that they were so heavy. Each shove sapped a bit of energy and while he felt okay now, shoving them all down one at a time would noticeably tire him. Something that could be dangerous in this scenario.

Knocking down the middle endo had made a sort of a passage through the center of the cluster. They would still be bumping elbows with them, but they could maybe get by if they took care to look everywhere.

"I think we can squeeze by," Marionette decided. Gregory looked up at him surprised.

"You can't just knock them all down?"

"I can, but I am afraid to use up that much energy… Maybe one more though." He swung up his arm and hit a second, this one falling back against the wall and partially crumpling over large industrial sink. "There we go. That's better."

Gregory tightened his grip on his flashlight and looked at the cold, emaciated faces of the endos. They looked nothing like Freddy and his band even though these were supposed to be what was inside him- at least, that's what Gregory assumed these things were. He didn't want to get this close to the group, especially not when there was that many of them, yet he didn't want the puppet to run low on power either and- he assumed- get them stuck at a recharge station.

"Okay. I'll… I'll go first," he volunteered.

Marionette's head turned to Gregory while his eyes remained on the endos. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I don't want to get stuck back here with those guys," he said motioning back. Something that Marionette hadn't even considered and halted even the thought of arguing.

"Don't worry. They're not going anywhere," Mike assured, keeping his eyes trained onto the two. He swore that he saw them shiver whenever he blinked. "But boy, do they want to."

"That's a shame. Go ahead, Gregory. We'll stand watch," Marionette said.

Gregory started to walk towards the endos. His eyes darting between them as he stepped over the ones that had fallen and passed through the middle of the remaining ones. He nearly held his breath with ever step, exhaling all at once when he got to the end and spun around to see that they were still locked in place. He shined his light up on them.

"Okay! Come on!" he called.

"Right." Marionette leaned his head back on Mike's shoulder. "Switch?"

"Okay. On-." Before he could say 'three', he found himself already being pulled about and back into the front.

"I'm sorry, what?" Marionette innocently asked.

"Don't worry about it. Let's move." At least it wasn't as jarring the second time.

He took careful steps towards the endoskeletons. They were humming now, he realized, or making some sort of low buzz deep in their heads. It could've been coming from their glowing eyes. Mike had to get uncomfortably close to one while stepping over the fallen one and could hear that buzz in his ear. He quickly took another step to move forward, briefly losing the contact with Marionette on his back before he caught up an instant later.

He was waiting for one of them to reach out. Waiting for one of the endos to suddenly decided that it didn't care that they were looking and grab for him.

…But it didn't. He stepped past the last endoskeletons without any of them moving- save the two at the end of the hall that had gotten to the doorway but couldn't step out into the line of sight. Mike and Marionette finally separated, hands still linked but no longer back to back so that Mike could check down the hallway they had gone down initially to make sure there weren't any stragglers.

Feeling more secure with the two on this side of the endos, Gregory turned his attention to the open doorway and stepped inside. There was a short passageway leading up to a corner and he cautiously inched towards it, wondering if there were any more animatronics on the other side.

But he didn't even have a chance to look.

There was a dull squeak from somewhere in the roof that was followed by the rush of metal and a resonating bang.

Mike and Marionette were so taken off guard by the noise, so close that they could feel it through their bodies, that they both looked back fearing the worst. The decorated security door had slammed shut, cutting the two off from Gregory.

Though they couldn't even begin to deal with that when the rapid footsteps raced in. Mike spun around with his light out just in time to stop them, but they managed to get a couple of feet in only a matter of moments. Now all those glowing eyes were locked directly onto him, just biting at the bit waiting for him to blink long enough for them to move again.

"Gregory?!" Marionette called through the door. "Gregory, can you hear me?!"

"I'm here!" Gregory called back. "I didn't do it! The door just shut on its own!"

"I know! Are you okay?!" he called again.

"I'm fine, but there's no button in here!"

"Just stay there! We'll get the door open!" Marionette assured. He turned to Mike. "I'm going to press the button," he said before just as quickly vanishing away.

"I-I think those things are in here! I hear footsteps!" Gregory called.

"Just try to stay calm! Remember, they can't move if you're looking at them! Just put your back in the corner and we're on our way!" Mike called back to reassure him. Soon enough he could hear the footsteps as well. It was harder to hear them through the thick wall, but there were definitely a few of them.

Gregory shouted as the footsteps suddenly ran into the area where he was standing. Mike could hear a fearful, "Get away from me!" and the constant squeak and thump of the endos on the other side. One made a short tone, the noise they made when they froze up, but the rest continued circling around inside the door.

Mike stomach twisted sharply, and his heartrate started to quicken. A flare of adrenaline-fueled heat spreading across his skin. The panic was sinking in, and Marionette's return didn't alleviate it in the slightest.

"It didn't open?!" Marionette asked in dismay.

Mike reached aside and grabbed his shoulder, still looking ahead at the endos. "You have to get in there. Now. There's endos on the other side and they might've grabbed him," he rushed out.

Just hearing the distress in Mike's voice set Marionette off instantly.

The Puppet made a startled noise that very suddenly jolted into a frenzied rendition of 'Pop Goes the Weasel'. Wordlessly, he turned towards the door and laid his hands on it and focused. He hadn't paid attention to the inside of the passageway, so he was having to work with that brief glimpse to target where to teleport and did so as fast as he could. Once he thought he had a good enough idea, he took the plunge and popped through.

And found himself surrounded by metal, in the midst of a cluster of active endos. Within an instant he was being grabbed and tugged. Thick metal hands tight around his limbs and yanking at them, wrenching them back, with the only still one being the one he had come face to face with. Though even without that one's strength they could've easily torn him apart. Their fingers digging into his fabric so deep that they could've sliced through.

He lashed back immediately. A full force push shoved them back before rolling himself over in the arms of the only one that still held him, trapped in the corner, and went for the neck. Clever fingers reaching through wires and twisting at the metal until he found one that ran hot and prickled his finger, wrapping it around it and yanking, and watching the lights in its eyes click off as the power flow was cut short.

Marionette twisted himself around at the sound of footsteps and his illuminated pupils landed on the endo coming for him. He sprung and pounced onto it, taking it to the floor, deftly taking it apart.

Somewhere in the process of this one the back of his wrist was sliced. He felt the sting of it but made sure the endo was deactivated before he recoiled. He pushed back off of it and floated back quickly until the endos were in his sight and frozen under his gaze. His forcibly hushed his music until it was just a low rumble of dialing noises and looked for Gregory in his peripherals, fearing he scared him off. There was no sign of the boy.

He also felt over the cut on the back of his wrist. It wasn't sliced through to the metal so it would close quickly.

"…Mari?!" Mike yelled through the wall. No doubt the sudden silence was more alarming than the preceding scuffle.

"I'm alright! I took care of them!" Marionette called back, his music briefly spiking back to life on his voice. "But Gregory's not here!"

"He might've bolted! Can you get the door open?"

"…No! There's no button on this side!" As concerning as that was, Gregory's disappearance was more so. "I'm going after him! Will you be okay?"

"Don't worry about me! I can handle it; you find the kid!"

"Alright! Love you!"

Marionette darted towards the corner into the hallway, shoving back one endo in his way before skirting into the hallway. He could hear their footsteps clattering around behind him.

…But they weren't following him.

Confused, Marionette stopped and looked back, and to his confusion the endos seemed to be walking around in the area inside of the door. Well, they did until they walked into his line of sight, then they froze once more.

It was as though they were looking for something, or perhaps they had gotten confused by the door and instead of coming this way kept circling around, trying to follow whatever designated path they were on. Which would imply that they had a path to follow when all of the others had followed them so doggedly. As odd as it was, he couldn't investigate until after he found Gregory and reconnected with Mike.

Speaking of Mike, he started to back his way down the hallway and away from the encroaching group of endos. He was torn on whether to leave the door but at this point it seemed like finding another way in was his only option.

He hoped this was the correct choice of the evening.

…

Gregory stopped running once he realized that the endos were no longer following him. He was now around two corners and heard that their footsteps not getting any closer. It was weird, but he wouldn't put it beyond the things being air-headed enough to lose him, like the Security Bots tended to be. That didn't mean he wanted to hang around. He kept moving on with the hope that there was another way to meet back up with Mike and Marionette.

It was just a shame that the warehouse had suddenly gotten so creepy.

The hallway around the corner was bathed in a red glow. Illuminated by three staticky screens on the wall that had the same rosy tint to them. Between the color and the flickering, it hurt his eyes to look at. As he crept down the hall, he began to feel a dull pressure in his forehead. A budding headache to match the uncomfortable feeling this hallway gave him. He consider running straight through it but didn't want to risk running up on something.

A hallway like this gave him a bad feeling that something was waiting up ahead for him. Something just as bad, if not worse, than the endoskeletons.

But that was before he saw movement out the corner of his eye and looked suddenly to the right. It was nothing, just his own prominent shadow from the bright red lighting, stretching over the wall and the benches lining it. He nearly scolded himself for being so jumpy when it happened again. A brief movement out the corner of his eye and he turned his head further to see what it was.

There was a tall shadow stretching on the wall behind his.

Gregory slowly continued to turn to look over his shoulder and his heart dropped.

It wasn't Mike. It wasn't Marionette. It wasn't even an endoskeleton.

It was the dancing rabbit lady. It was Vanny.

She wasn't dancing now though. She just stood there rigidly like she was waiting for him to notice, and once he did, she sprung to life. Her hands popping up in a double wave. Her eyes glowing so bright that they cut through the matching glow.

"Hello, Gregory," she greeted. Her calm voice not matching her excited movements. "Oh dear. You seem lost. Where are your friends?"

"They're- They're right over there," Gregory answered vaguely. He then gave a much more challenging, "What's it to you?"

"Little mice shouldn't be wandering around on their own… I know!" She raised a gloved finger. Gregory could see the pink pattern on the fingertips and palm. "How about we play a game until your friends get here?"

"I don't think so…" he said unsurely. Anyone else and he would've been much more outspoken against this. Something about her made him too uncomfortable to speak up. Like one wrong word would flip the switch on the fake personality.

"There's need to be shy. I would love to play with you! I know you've very good at running, so let's play Bunny Foo Foo!" Vanny suggested with that fake cheeriness. She then stood there silently, staring at Gregory, waiting for her cue.

"…Uh… What's that?" Gregory eventually asked.

"It's a very fun game that I play with only my most special friends," Vanny explained. Folding one arm behind her, she poked her chest with her other hand. "I'll be Bunny Foo Foo and you'll be a field mouse, and you run, run, run away."

Vanny started to do an excited little hopping dance in place. Teetering her arms up and down as though in an airplane fashion. She stopped with a hop, popping her heels together.

"And if I catch you, I'll bop you."

"Bop me?"

"Bop you." Vanny balled her fist and made a little swing in a bopping motion. "Bop you on the head."

It sounded so innocently childish, but Gregory had a feeling that it wasn't. That something else was going to happen if he got caught. He got a sick feeling and wasn't sure if it was from the lighting or her.

"Greeegoryyyy…" the rabbit said playfully. She leaned forwards on the balls of her feet and stared deeply into him with those burning eyes. "Ŕ̴̖ú̷̱ñ̶̹."

Gregory turned and ran as fast as he could away from her. He could hear her softened footsteps hot on his heels and stole a glance back to find her closing in on him. Her arms stretched out after him and her fingers waggling, eager to grab him.

His heart pounded, his head pounded, but he ran as fast as he possibly could. Even as the hallways blended together and even with the threat of endoskeletons he couldn't stop. He couldn't let her get him.

Two open doorways appeared ahead and he kept through the one that went straight instead of the one to the right, and quickly realized it let him out at the entrance to the warehouse. He had just come through an open doorway that had been blocked by the first mural they saw. With that in mind, he threw caution to the wind and took a sharp right, running right back into the warehouse. Desperate to find anyone to protect him.

He weaved around the conveyors and felt fingers graze his backpack, then took a sharp right and smacked right into something. He gave a startled cry, only realizing a second later that he had run into Mike's legs.

Mike was startled for a second until he realized it was Gregory who had just ran into him. The relief was short lived, because before he could get further than a hand on his shoulder, let alone ask what happened, what happened came running around the corner behind him and Mike looked up in time to come face to face with the thing he had been looking for and never expected to see. An adult woman in a full-body rabbit costume.

Vanny must've been just as surprised as Mike was at the way she stopped and straightened up. She stopped just as fast as any of the endos, which would've been comical if not for the extremely heavy tension falling over the room.

"You!" Mike shouted, lifting his light, and pointing it accusingly at the rabbit.

She clenched her hands and fumbled them a moment before tilting them both to her chest. Almost like she was silently saying, "Me?"

"Yeah, you! Don't get cute with me!"

Mike wasn't feeling like playing games. Just the sight of her- and the sight of her chasing Gregory nonetheless- was enough to set him off just as quickly as Marionette had. He pulled out his badge and brandished it threateningly.

He knew exactly what he was going to say in this rare opportunity to confront the rabbit face-to-face: "Fazbear Entertainment Security. Hands up and drop your weapons or I'm going to drop you like a bag of dirt." He had thought about it sometime after the Chica and Monty confrontation while walking around. It sounded like a nice balance of direct and threatening.

But then his words got ahead of him and instead it came out as a much more direct: "Fazbear Security! I'm going to drop you like a bag of dirt!"

No wonder the rabbit lady's reaction was to promptly turn heel and run away. Mike almost took off after her, only stopping himself a few steps in to turn back to Gregory, who was watching the cluster of endos in the hallway with gritted teeth.

Mike crouched down. "Get on!" he said, waving for Gregory to get on his back. The boy didn't even hesitate and climbed on, with Mike hooking one arm back to hold him while running after the costumed woman.

Unfortunately, he was a little too late to catch up with the retreating rabbit, but he was just quick enough to figure out where she escaped to- the lowering mural door gave it away. That didn't make it any less frustrating. He gave it a little kick.

"Ugh, come on!" he muttered. He took a deep breath to try and calm his racing heart before looking over his shoulder. "Are you okay? She didn't do anything did she?"

"I'm okay… but she would've! I know it. There's something weird about her," Gregory insisted.

"Other than her running around in a bunny suit?" Mike remarked. Not wanting Gregory to take it the wrong way, he quickly said, "I believe you. I don't know what her deal is, but you should stay away from her. She's trouble. You did the right thing running away from her."

"Do you know her?" Gregory asked with confusion.

Mike took a minute to consider exactly how much a child should be told about the situation and eventually decided that safety came first. "…I don't know her, but there was a situation a long time ago where a man in a rabbit suit lured away a bunch of kids. It was at a Freddy's too. She's not him, but I don't know what she's playing at. Best keep our distance, you and me both."

"Don't worry. I'm not one of those kids that walks up when you offer them candy. You can ask Chica," he said. A little bitterly too.

That comment didn't exactly assure Mike. Neither did Marionette's continued absence. From his guess of the layout of this place it wasn't too big, so he should've either caught up to Gregory or returned by now.

"Her name is Vanny," Gregory suddenly said.

"Vanny?" Mike asked, turning his head back. Vanny; that had to be short for Vanessa. "What a coincidence, she has the same name as our prime suspect," he thought. He didn't say it out loud. He just gave a little, "Huh."

He wondered if what was keeping Marionette was that he was pursuing the rabbit on his own. In which case, Mike almost felt bad for Vanny. Almost, he thought as he readjusted the small, damp child on his back, but not quite.

…

There was a second room in the center of the circling hallways. Located within the hallways that Gregory had ran through and on the other side of the open doorway that he had sprinted past. The room was a large storage room filled with strung up endoskeleton and unused props. The floor was colorful, and the walls were padded- at least halfway up until the padding stopped and revealed the dull cement underneath.

A single light hung down in the center of the room over a desk topped with a monitor and control panel, a security module. While this room was clearly initially planned to hold animatronics while still in their testing phase, it had been reformatted into a sort of security office. Or a control center to keep and eye on the tight corridors without having to walk through them.

The costume clad woman sprinted into this room and was on the monitor in seconds. All it took was a few clicks and the door she had just come through slammed shut, sealing out the unexpected intruder.

Though it wasn't quite right to say he was unexpected. She knew he was there, walking along with Gregory in what looked like a cloud of distorted static on the feed. That said, he was supposed to still be cornered on the other side of the door. Not standing in the hallway where they would just run up on him. What a pity that the fun had to end so soon.

Ruby eyes were fixated on the screen as the cameras were clicked through one by one. She was trying to pin down the location of the static now, and whatever was causing it, but it was no longer in the hallways outside of the security office.

It had to be around there somewhere. Not back in the outside halls, not in the other halls, not out with the two standing outside the recently shut door. Click, click, click. Clear, clear, clear.

Static. Static on a single lone camera, distorting it to the point where the contents could barely be seen. Though from location and process of elimination she knew exactly what room it was. It was the room she was currently in.

The rabbit stood quickly from the desk and stared ahead silently at the dark room. It was in here with her, she must've realized, though whatever was going through her head was unclear. Maybe the realization that there was nowhere to run now that it was inside. She could feel it watching her. She took a sidestep towards the door.

A soft twinkling chime came from the back corner of the room. That chiming slowly turned into a gentle melody, like one from a steadily wound music box. It was a recognizable tune of a familiar nursery rhyme, Pop Goes the Weasel.

She turned her head towards the corner. The lighting in the room left the corner nearly pitch black, but through her night vision she could see a long, slender figure standing in the corner. Unmoving. Watching her.

Until she looked at it. Then it started to move forth from the corner. Moving so slowly that at first it could've seemed like a trick of the light. The closer it got, the more it towered over her.

It seemed like she was standing her ground, but her heartrate said elsewise. Something the Puppet could all but hear thundering in his hyperaware audio receptors. Everything was in overdrive, barely held back as he stopped under the light.

"Why, hello," the Puppet said. His voice forebodingly calm. "…What's wrong? I thought you liked animatronics. Dressing like one like that."

She did not answer. He was certain that he couldn't.

"I'm not fond of rabbits," he continued. A prickling of static starting to raise in his voice as he did so. "But you must be so lonely looking for children to play with. Then very well." His eyes illuminated with trembling points of light that stared down at her. "I will play with you myself."

He suddenly leaned in. His arms dropping from his sides to dangle dangerously close as he stared down at her. She flinched back, her hands lifting defensively. His lifting as though preparing to grab her.

"Don't worry. After we're done... I'll put you back together."

Vanny inhaled sharply and staggered back. An awkward stumble as she tripped over her own booted feet before turned and running for the door. The Puppet was on her in seconds. His long fingers caging in around her before she threw herself into a sharp left and raced down the hallway. Halfway down tripping on the lip of a doorway and flat on her face and having to scrape at the floor to get herself up.

It was quite a pitiful display. So much so that it told Marionette everything it needed to. A silly little copycat indeed. Hardly a threat to anyone except herself.

He couldn't leave her though, not yet. Not until he was sure that he had taught her the errors of her ways. He wasn't going to hurt her, but he would make her believe he was going to. He was going to show her real fear and then maybe she would know what it really felt like to run for one's life.

The woman got to her feet and bolted down the same red hued hallway she had pursued Gregory through. Just before she reached the other doorway he appeared in it, blocking her way. She barely stopped herself from running into him and started to back away, her hands up in defense once again.

"No, no, no…" she said under her breath as she backed away. Now she was as afraid of him as children would've been of her. Now she knew who was watching her.

Marionette let his music burst to life into a crescendo and sprung forward at her. She raised her hands to block her face as he grabbed her by the shoulders.

PAIN

PAIN BURNING PAIN HOT

MUSIC VOICES SCREAMING SCREAMING

SINKING IN RED BURNING IN RED FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER AND EVER AND

Marionette crumpled to the floor at Vanny's feet and promptly fell over. He gave a wail of terror and agony as he writhed there at her feet. Tears poured freely from his eyes and sobs freely from his chest.

Vanny stared down for him for a second. Then she suddenly pulled herself back, fumbling over her own feet before turning and running. She ran back into the office and frantically clicked to open the mural door, then ran as fast as she could.

Even through the metal walls, Mike had heard the scream from further down the hall and immediately turned and ran back towards the closed door. Gregory managing to hold back the endoskeletons while looking back while Mike ran.

He got there just in time to see Vanny escaping the door. The way she ran out of there and into the tunnel wasn't how she did it earlier. It was the run of someone who had got caught doing something bad and was trying to jaunt away from authorities. It was the panicked arm-flailing run of someone who believed the devil himself was on her heels. He would've taken off after her in a heartbeat if not for that scream.

"Mari?!" Mike yelled as he ran through the door. He raced into the office and looked around before running back out and down the hallway.

It wasn't long before he was met by the heart-stopping sight of Marionette laying out on the floor. Tears pouring down his mask and pooling on the floor as he writhed in agony.

"Marionette!" Mike choked. He was at his side in an instant and reached for him. It looked like he had been hit by a particularly strong taser.

But that was not the case, which he figured out as soon as he touched the Puppet and a jolt shot up his arm. He swore despite himself and yanked back his hand. Though it didn't go far, and soon he was hunched over Marionette with his hands poised over him, unsure what to do or even what happened.

"It's okay. It's okay. I've got you. I've got you…" Mike repeated. He slowly reached down and touched him again. That intangible heat burned his palms. It was like his fabric was only mildly heated by scalded to the touch, but since his skin wasn't actually burning, he continued trying to do so. "Christ, what did she do to you?"

Marionette's voice was a garbled mess as he tried to explain to no avail. At some point Mike managed to decipher a single cry of, "Help!" in the middle of the broken noises.

There came that feeling of nausea rearing its ugly head. The burning and sour sensation along his throat as his heart pounded so hard that it hurt. That mixed with the dull throbbing invading his temples made him feel like he had been hit by a truck. The least of his problems considering that Marionette was laying here completely incapacitated.

"What's wrong with him?!" Gregory cried. He had climbed down from Mike back once he crouched down and was now watching the scene.

"I don't know- I have an idea but I don't know how she could've done this unless he just…" Mike trailed off. It couldn't have been a taser and it couldn't have just been him getting worked up. "It's like how he got with that Scarecrow Baby just a whole lot worse. It's the same thing, the pain, the tears…" he thought.

It didn't make sense though. He thought they had figured out the deal with the other Baby, and the way they worked it out it had to do with animatronics and imprinting emotions on them…. Unless they had been wrong. That was a possibility.

Or unless this was something different. Something worse. That was also a possibility.

Mike slowly worked Marionette further into his arms until he was holding him. The Puppet was still limp but had stopped wailing, now just making distorted dialing noises, surging in and out, almost like heavy breathing. The tears still oozed out and had smeared on his fabric and Mike's skin a clothes. He hadn't ever seen this amount of tears before. Even when the heat eased up the tears continued to flow.

He hadn't realized that Marionette had gotten his senses back until his limp arm suddenly bent upwards and his fingers brushed his cheek.

"Hey there. Glad to have you back," Mike said quietly. A smile broke across his face; at least this was a step in the right direction. The arm lifted again and weakly brushed his cheek, lightly pushing it and aiming his face towards him. "Mari?"

Marionette's hand dropped weakly before he beckoned him down with his fingers. He was too worn out to do much else, left drained even as the turmoil faded. Mike caught the drift and leaned in while lifting him, unsure if he was about to kiss him or whisper something to him. It turned out to be the latter as Marionette dropped his head onto his shoulder.

"Th-rrrr's…ometh-ng eevil in heerr," the Puppet said through the static.

"You saw something?" Mike asked. "What happened? Did she attack you?"

"I-I donnn't know… Grrrabbed heerr annnd sudd-d-dennlyy…" A discordant choke cut him off.

"Hey, it's okay. It's over. I've got you," Mike tried to assure. He held him tightly and rubbed over his back.

"I hhhear-rd music and scr-screeamms. Awful. Awful." Marionette shivered at the thought. "…Scaar-d of me…"

"Him? Nah. He's seen a lot worse," Mike assured, assuming he meant Gregory.

"No. Her."

"Oh…" he took a deep breath. "…Good."

"Yeah, good. Maybe she won't keep coming around now," Gregory agreed. He had taken up the roles of watching the hallway. Doing so gladly to not wind up getting ambushed. "What now? What about Freddy?"

"We're still going. Just… give us a few minutes. I promise we'll still find Freddy," Mike said. Trusting his more solemn tone, the boy nodded and left it at that. For now.

Mike felt patting on his shirt and looked down to see Marionette trying to brush off the purple splotches. "Sorry," he managed.

"It couldn't have happened to a better shirt, honestly," Mike lightly joked. The Puppet chimed a little, his voice cracking halfway through, and it ending in a sigh. No doubt he would've been distraught if he wasn't too tired to be so.

Mike continued to sit there holding him as long as he needed. Keeping his mouth closed as his mind raced with thoughts and theories about what could've just happened. Though it was clear now that his suspicions hadn't been as unfounded as he initially thought. He wasn't imagining connections; he just couldn't tell what they were.

There was a rabbit woman at Freddy's, and there was something very wrong with her.

Chapter 45

Chapter Summary

Mike, Mari, and Gregory finally make it to Parts and Service... and find something they weren't expecting.

Once Marionette stabilized enough, he assured Mike that he was okay to continue on to Parts and Service. Something that would’ve been much more believable if he didn’t have such a struggle getting up after saying so. Not that Mike minded carrying Marionette, quite the opposite after finding him in that state. It was more that he didn’t exactly agree with his dismissal of his own feelings.

But he got it. Freddy was in danger, Gregory was antsy, and neither of them wanted to think about the elephant in the room until they were out of this muggy basement. It wasn’t avoiding the issue if they were doing the only thing they could in this situation. Though he did try to call through and warn Charlie or Jeremy. Neither the radio nor cellphone worked in the basement.

Honestly, Mike was still reeling from it. It wasn’t the first time he saw Marionette out of commission, but the suddenness of it, and the state he was left in after it, was enough to leave him shaken up- and feeling exceptionally protective. Even if Marionette did spontaneously recover enough to carry on his own, Mike would be hard pressed to let him go, and not just because of the pleasant warmth.

It didn’t take them long to walk back up on the same fence from earlier. Mike was already thinking of ways how they could go about this when Marionette straightened up in his arms.

“Boost me up?” he requested. His voice was still shaky but now much clearer, and he was strong enough to start grabbing for the fence.

Mike quirked a brow. “Are you sure? We can find an easier way. That open vent probably lets out somewhere nearby,” he suggested.

“No, no. I’m okay,” the puppet assured. While he was hesitant, the man went ahead and started to boost him up. “Thank you,” Marionette said. His voice lightly strained as he pulled himself up onto the fence. He straddled it, catching the tips of his legs into the fence to help hold on securely, and then looked back down. “Now boost up Gregory and I can help him over.”

“Okay. Sounds like a plan,” Mike agreed.

He looked to Gregory who nodded and stepped forward to be picked up. It was remarkably, and concerningly easy to pick the boy up and hand him to Marionette, who held him atop the fence.

“Wait,” Mike quickly said and before either could do anything, he moved further down and climbed the fence. It took a running start and two tries to get a grip, but he managed to get over. He then returned to help Gregory down.

When he reached for Marionette, he held up a hand to stop him. “No, wait. Let me try,” he insisted.

Mike was giving him that flat look of disbelief and exasperation that he wore so well and stepped to the side. His thumbs hooked on his pockets but hands not in his pockets, so he was likely preparing to make a sudden catch if he needed to.

But Marionette believed that it was time to get back up on his own again and was moderately confident that he had recovered enough to do so. He might’ve felt loose and tired, but no pain, no soreness, and no reason not to get back in the air. That rabbit wasn’t going to keep him down any longer.

That thought sealed the deal. Marionette swung his other leg over, sat on the fence to brace himself, and then pushed off.

Unfortunately, he didn’t catch himself quite like he expected. As far as his psychic grasp went, he slipped right though his own fingers. He landed on his pointed feet and somehow his legs managed to catch his own weight without instantly buckling underneath him. Apparently, his attempts to use them more had been paying off- he might’ve considered if they didn’t buckle a second later.

It was unclear what caught him first; Mike or his hands swinging back and grabbing the fence. The important part was that he didn’t touch the grimy basement floor. Fabric seldom cleaned as well as skin, even his. Something Mike must’ve noticed too now that he was so close to it.

“Careful, the floor’s slippery,” Mike excused. For his sake, of course, which Marionette appreciated.

“Are you okay?” Gregory asked. He looked over the bent legs and disheveled body and was skeptical.

“Er, yes. I just- I lost my footing,” Marionette said with embarrassment.

“In fact, this floor’s downright disgusting,” Mike continued. His only warning before he suddenly pulled Marionette back up into his arms. His arms hooking back under his back and knees again, just now with him facing the opposite way.

“Miiike,” the Puppet drew out. A low squeak in his voice.

“I’m not taking no for an answer. It’s the least I can do for getting us lost,” he insisted with a grin.

This managed to pull a smile out of Marionette and quieted his protests. Though he made sure to stay more upright and draped his arm affectionately around Mike’s shoulders. To make it clear that this was a choice and not a weakness.

Gregory sent them a funny look but then shrugged it off once they continued down the tunnel. At this point he was just eager to get to the actual Parts and Service. Thankfully, the tunnel didn’t lead much further until they came up on a security door that led into another area that looked like a warehouse. At least they were seeing progress.

They made it through another security door and watched their surroundings take a significant change. The floor turned to wood, the walls turned to clean and even bricking, and the musty smell of the basement had decreased significantly.

“Looks like we’re getting somewhere,” Mike said.

“Maybe…” Gregory said doubtfully.

They continued further down the hallway when Marionette suddenly flinched. He patted Mike’s shoulder to get his attention and pointed towards the right. He cocked his head and whispered into his ear.

“I hear something. Over there.”

Mike caught Gregory’s shoulder and all but dragged him behind him. He then released Marionette under his back, since he was holding on with his arm, and used that to get his security badge out.

“If it’s not Vanny, go limp,” he said. Marionette gave a nod of agreement. Then Mike began to slowly approach the corner of the wall. He couldn’t hear footsteps, but there was a whirring noise. Perhaps like a Staff Bot.

As he stepped out from behind the wall, something came in fast from his right. Something that had been waiting for him. It didn’t give him a moment to react before it was upon him.

“Hi! Please take this map.”

It was the Map Bot. Yet another robot shoving its hand at him and this time it was to push a map on him.

Mike barely suppressed the words wanting to slip out as Gregory gave an audible, “Ugh!” but covered it up quickly.

“Take a map,” Map Bot repeated. Mike having not reacted fast enough to appease the bot.

He was less than amused as he took the map with the same hand already holding his badge.

“Thank you.” With that, Map Bot did a short circle and headed back in the direction he had come from.

“I hate that thing,” Gregory muttered.

“He’s something alright. At least this might come in handy,” Mike remarked. He looked down at the designated ‘Staff’ map in his hand. Peeling it back open with his thumb he was rewarded with a partial layout of the basement. “Scratch that. This’ll definitely come in handy. This would’ve saved us that whole trip through Endo Alley,” he said. He looked to Marionette only to notice his amused smile. “Is there any chance you were behind that?”

“The Staff Bot? Mike, please. If I was capable of a prank this devious then I certainly wouldn’t tell you,” Marionette teased.

“Oh, okay. Then he’s stalking me,” Mike said flatly.

“Or me,” Gregory agreed in a similar tone. Though then he noticed something down the hallway with a blink. “Hey look! There’s a door down the with a gear sign over it. Could that be Parts and Service?”

It certainly looked like it. A pair of red double doors sat underneath the sign in question. As they approached, they got a better look at the doors and the two windows sitting on either side that showed another room with more doors and more windows just past them. There was a recharge station to the right and an automatic door against the wall to the far left, which was likely where Map Bot went off to. Along with a multitude of stuff stashed around.

They pushed through the first door easily but the second had a keycard reader. Gregory walked to the window while Mike tried to get his badge in his pocket and the keycard out of the same pocket while holding the map between his teeth. At this point Marionette found it a little ridiculous

“You’re going to have to put me down,” he said.

“I’m not that desperate,” Mike disagreed.

The conversation was abruptly cut off by a cry from Gregory.

“It’s Freddy! I see him! He’s right in there in some sort of tube thing!” he cried.

Mike hurried to get the card out and slid it through the reader before pushing the door open. Gregory squeezing through before he could even get the door fully open, and before he and Marionette could see what waited on the other side.

It was nothing like they could’ve expected. Neither like the old Freddy’s nor even like the basement they hiked through to get to this point. It was a massive room with a smaller, cylindrical shaped room in the center. Or not quite a room, but maybe an oversized, circulator glass enclosure in the center of the other side of the room. Large tubes traveled from the metal top of it and into the ceiling. A large, white lighting ring mounted above it illuminated the area in a soft glow.

There were stairs on either side of the cylinder that led up to doors, though at this angle they couldn’t get a good view of them. To the left there was a work area with some fenced in and strung up endos. To the right there were a couple of large windows that looked in on small rooms. They almost looked like holding cells, but they were empty. There was equipment and worktables scattered here and there and a few tarps spread on the floor as well.

None of this compared to that massive structure in the center. Freddy was inside it, as Gregory had said, and it looked like he was mounted atop a worktable or chair.

Upon seeing all of this, Marionette lifted out of Mike’s arms and stood alongside him. This time he didn’t put up a fight about it, even though it was clear that the puppet was still partially resting on his legs. Other than that he seemed to be floating fine now, if cautiously, but Mike made sure to stay close in case he started having trouble.

“This all looks so much like ARI. That circular windowed room especially. It looks just like the Scooping Room,” Marionette pointed out.

Mike’s brows slowly raised as he recognized it. “You’re right. I didn’t even notice that,” he agreed. He then stopped suddenly. “Jeez, I didn’t notice that either.”

“What?”

“Look at Freddy.”

The moment Marionette did he realized exactly what he was talking about.

Gregory had noticed it first when he ran up to the circular enclosure. His mouth nearly dropping open as he looked through the window to see Freddy laying out on this chair- with his head detached and being held above his body by the claws of a machine arm. It was only being held to his neck by some strands of wiring. His eyes were closed, and his body was completely still.

“Freddy!” Gregory cried in shock.

Though that shock couldn’t amount to what he felt when Freddy’s eyes suddenly popped open and started looking around.

“Gregory? Is that you?” he asked.

“Uh… Yeah, hold on!” The boy took a sidestep in front of the door leading into the cylinder and it opened automatically. He rushed inside and stood alongside Freddy’s feet. It was so weird for him to see someone so big and strong laying out on a table like this. Or to see Freddy, a robot who didn’t act like a robot, with his head off revealing the thick metal coils and tubing inside. “I’m here.”

“Gregory, what are you doing here? It is not safe for you to be down here! This basement is full of tripping hazards- not to mention that the air quality is nowhere near the Pizzaplex quest standard,” Freddy said with concern. His mouth and eyes moved, both angled upwards, but the rest of his body remained still. It made Gregory a little uneasy, but he tried to pretend it wasn’t that weird.

“I came looking for you! You didn’t come back to your room and I- I thought…” Gregory trailed off, but Freddy could still hear the tone.

“Oh Gregory. I am sorry I was not there to tell you. I would have told you if I had the chance, but I was brought down here immediately after the last show, and I did not expect to be here as long as I was.”

“It’s fine. I can take care of myself. I was just afraid you were in trouble,” the boy quickly shrugged off. “Are… Are you okay?”

“I am doing very well, in fact! I just received my brand-new battery upgrade! It has double the lifespan of my old one. With any luck, I will be more energized than ever!”

“Does that mean you won’t have to charge all the time?”

“That is exactly what it means!” Freddy agreed. “My upgrade should be finished, but when I rebooted, I was still here. Since it is now after closing, I believe they must have decided to let me charge overnight.” He paused for a moment, long enough for Gregory to give a somewhat doubtful ‘uh huh’, before continuing. “I do not mean to harp, but how on earth did you get down here? The basement is so large that even the workers frequently get lost.”

“Oh, we got lost alright,” Gregory said matter-of-factly. “Mike and Mari brought me down.”

“Hey, Freddy!” Mike called from outside the doorway.

“Hello!” Marionette called as well. Both with tight smiles as they acted like they weren’t staring at a decapitated bear.

“Why, hello to you both! I did not know we had guests tonight!” Freddy greeted welcomingly. “My apologies for not being up there to greet you.”

“Don’t worry about it. And consider yourself lucky; we’ve been having one heck of a night,” Mike tiredly remarked.

“You have? Did something happen?”

“Well, yeah! That crazy rabbit lady chased me around again! Then she went after Mari, and there were all these endoskeleton things coming after us! And before that, I got chased around Monty Golf by Monty and Moondrop, and then Monty smashed into Moondrop and all these wires came out, but Jake was there, and they got away. That’s when I met Mike and Mari, and they came down here with me to find you.”

“Wait, what happened to Moon?!” Freddy asked in surprise.

“He got sorta… split open down the middle.”

“He’s okay,” Marionette chimed in. “Or, that is, as okay as he can be. We tried to convince him to come with us, but he was very resistant. He should be at the daycare now.”

“That is terrible! How could-… Moon must come down here immediately. He can be repaired, but I know it will not be easy to convince him,” Freddy admitted. “First things first, I must exit the repair capsule. I know I should remain here until released by a technician, but this chair is needed by Moon more than I. Plus, I will… probably need to carry him down here.”

“Kicking and screaming?” Gregory asked.

“It depends on whether he is Sun or Moon,” Freddy softly confessed. “Mike, would you mind going to the console outside of the capsule and releasing me? There should be a command to do so.”

“I can try,” Mike agreed. “Is that going to fix your…?”

“Oh, my battery is already fixed. Do not worry.”

“He’s talking about your head,” Gregory said.

“My head?” Freddy asked.

“Yeah. How do we get it back on?”

“…My head in not on?!” Freddy gasped in shock. His eyes rolled around trying to see for himself. “I-I had no idea! That explains why I could not feel my feet or get off the chair!”

“Don’t freak out! We can get it back on, right?” Gregory said, looking back at Mike and Marionette.

“Sure. There’s probably a command for that too,” Mike agreed. He decided that a nonchalant tone was probably best considering that Freddy was already freaking out. He just ignored the hornet’s nest that had been raging in his gut since finding Marionette and went out to the console. “Okay. Let’s see what we’ve got here…”

The words installation complete were depicted on the screen and when he clicked they disappeared and revealed a list of commands: scan, repair and recovery, power controls, CPU controls, and restraint controls. Mike went to restraint controls and had another list of options, one being ‘finish maintenance procedure’. He considered it for a moment, leaning forward on his desk and tapping his fingers while Marionette and Gregory watched from beside him, then clicked it.

An error message appeared on the screen: “Cannot complete maintenance procedure: head unit is detached.” When he clicked to close it, a second pop up appeared. “Reattach head unit?”

“Yes,” Mike said as he clicked the option. The module processed this before giving a jingle to confirm.

A familiar, automated voice called over a speaker somewhere between the module and the circular room. It was the same automated voice that announced when the Pizzaplex was closing.

“Please enter the protective cylinder to continue,” it announced.

Gregory started to lead the way inside the cylinder with Marionette and Mike following behind him. That was until Freddy suddenly called out.

“Gregory, wait!”

Marionette grabbed the boy by the shoulders and pulled him back before he could even react. “What?” Gregory said, aimed partially towards both of them.

“I am sorry, Gregory, but it is too dangerous. I am not under proper control of my body. If I accidentally swung out and hit you while my head was being reattached you could get hurt, and I would never forgive myself. It is already hard enough asking Mike to take the risk…” Freddy admitted guiltily.

“I’m used to it. I’m a professional animatronic wrangler,” Mike assured him. He stepped through the doorway, and it closed up behind him automatically.

He looked back to see Marionette’s surprised face through the door window. Taking a testing step towards the door revealed that it wasn’t opening back up. That wasn’t promising.

“In case of an emergency, the protective cylinder will protect important service personnel outside of the protective cylinder. Deactivating animatronic safety protocols now. It is recommended that no mistakes are made during the procedure.”

And that was extremely concerning.

Mike must’ve showed it on his face as Marionette pointed to himself and then inside of the glass. Offering to come in himself. Mike raised a hand and shook his head.

If something went wrong, then he didn’t want Marionette getting in the middle of it. Using the taser was pretty much out of the question too unless Freddy went completely rabid. He was just going to have to hope that this went smoothly.

“Alright, Freddy. Let’s put you back together,” Mike said. He walked over to the bear’s side where he could see him.

“Thank you, Mike. I will try to keep control of myself.”

“Do you normally get combative during repairs?” he asked.

“Not typically… but I do not normally have my head off either,” Freddy said sheepishly.

“Man, I do. The last time I woke up in a hospital I took a swing at an IV stand, and that was after I got the blood transfusion,” Mike chatted, trying to lighten the mood. He rubbed his hands together as he looked over the exposed neck wires.

“What happened? Were you in an accident?” Freddy asked in surprise.

“Eh, I fell through a floor. It’s a long story; remind me later and I’ll tell you.”

“I will be sure to. For now, I am ready to begin if you are.”

Mike took that as a go ahead to start leaning in. As he did, Freddy looked to the ceiling before letting his eyes slide closed. At least he wouldn’t be watching the whole time. That took a little bit of the pressure off. Though he felt it return as he looked into the bear’s neck space.

Apparently, he must’ve set off some sort of motion detector because the automated voice suddenly piped up above his head, causing him to jump.

“To reconnect Freddy’s head, begin by reaching under the chin and retrieving the red, blue, and yellow marked wires. Then proceed to insert them into the matching slots located on the inside of the neck cavity.”

Mike carefully reached into Freddy’s head and found one of the cables, tugging it out to reveal the yellow ring around the plug. He had to get closer and crane his neck to see far enough into Freddy to spot the ports along the throat. He slid them into place one at a time until all three were lined up.

“Good job. Now reach into the underside of Freddy’s head and find the Servos System bundle. Carefully insert the bundle into the slot on the spinal port within the neck cavity.”

Once he translated that, he reached into Freddy’s head again. This time having to go deeper, feeling coiled wiring and over the endoskeleton until he found a thick bundle of wires. He pulled them down to see that they were black, but almost resembled the wiring material that the Funtime animatronics had been made out of. There was a large plug at the end that he had to really push to fit into its slot.

The moment it clicked into place Freddy’s body jolted. Mike leaned back in case the bear was going to lash out, but he didn’t.

“Good job. Now, use the buttons on the console to align Freddy’s head with his neck. Slowly lower the head until it is aligned properly against the neck.”

The mechanical arms hanging dormant above them, many tipped with tools and elsewise, suddenly sprung to life and rotated. One of the arms lowered itself above Freddy’s feet and revealed a panel with four arrowed buttons and a small joystick. Mike carefully pressed one and the arm moving Freddy’s head realigned itself in response. The buttons lifting and lowering it while the joystick moved arm’s angle.

It almost reminded him of the controls on a crane game. It worked about as well too. Taking him numerous attempts to line up, then lower, then raise and realign Freddy’s head for what felt like ten straight minutes.

He must’ve found the sweet spot without realizing it, because suddenly the controls locked, and the arm automatically slid Freddy’s head down the rest of the way. It snapped into place. There was then a louder popping as the neck secured back together. An arm with a built-in power drill lowered behind and secured something into the neck before all of the arms pulled away and raised up.

“Good job. Now, use the testing console to run diagnostics and complete the procedure.”

Another little control panel was lowered down. This one a rectangle with five unmarked buttons on it. A few of them lit up white with little beeps after each. Mike took a guess and repeated the sequence, which turned out to be the correct thing to do. As he pressed the buttons, Freddy blinked, twitched, and shifted his head.

“You okay, Freddy?” Mike asked.

Freddy gave a simple ‘mm-hm’ and kept his mouth closed tight.

After a few sequences, the arm and console lifted back to the ceiling.

“Good job. Freddy is all patched up and ready for the big show. You may now exit the protective cylinder and finish up on the control module.” As the automated voice finished, the door opened back up and Mike was finally able to step out.

“Well, that was easier than I expected,” he marked. He ignored the ghost of a smirk that passed Marionette’s face before he turned to head to the monitor, Mike following behind him. Gregory remaining at the doorway to watch Freddy.

The ‘finish maintenance procedure’ option was already waiting on the screen. Marionette clicked it without hesitation. There was a long squeaking noise as the chair Freddy was on tilted forward and allowed for him to step off and leave the cylinder. He hesitated a little when first standing up, but once he started walking there was no limp or sway. Nothing to telegraph that he just had his head reattached.

“How’s it feel? Everything screwed on right?” Mike asked.

“I feel fantastic! I do not know how to thank you,” Freddy said appreciatively.

“Take-.” Mike was very close to telling Freddy to take over watching Gregory, in a joking matter, but suddenly second-guessed it. Deciding not to risk Gregory getting the wrong idea, not when he had been so reluctant to accept favors. “…Care of yourself. I don’t want to see you back down here. At least, not when I’m the one on duty.”

“Yes, Sir,” Freddy agreed with a smile. He then turned to Gregory and knelt down in front of him before laying a hand on his shoulder. “My apologies again for leaving you alone, Gregory. I promise I will be at your side from now on… Until I am called on stage after we open, but that is a long time from now,” he said sincerely.

Gregory was a little surprised that Freddy was still apologizing. He didn’t really expect an apology the first time, considering that it was his own fault for coming down here. It wasn’t like Freddy was obligated to watch him. He only did it because he was nice. Though Gregory didn’t fully understand it, it did make him feel good that Freddy was taking it seriously and not just brushing it off.

“Well, you’re here now. So, it’s okay,” he said. A smile managing to slip through. Freddy smiled back, but his face fell back into worry.

“We should hurry back to the daycare. The stage elevator would be the fastest way there, but I believe it may draw too much attention. We will take the elevator to my green room instead,” he suggested.

“Sounds good. Now let me in.”

Freddy chuckled and opened his stomach hatch, to which Gregory eagerly began to climb inside.

Much to the shock and horror of Mike and Marionette who were watching off to the side. Mike freezing up in the middle of rubbing his hands and Marionette audibly gasping. Otherwise staring silently at the scene wide-eyed.

“Gregory, I like your new jacket!” Freddy complimented, entirely oblivious to the reactions of the onlookers.

“Thanks. It’s Mike’s,” Gregory replied. He turned around in the stomach hatch before sticking his head back out. “I’m gonna give it back when we get upstairs, okay?” he asked, or told, Mike.

“Fine by me. Just as long as I get it back before we leave,” Mike said. He managed to cover up his reaction and stole a look at Marionette to see how he was handling.

He almost covered it up. He managed to get his default smile back on as a shield, but his eyes were still wide, giving him a too happy look. Or perhaps a deranged one.

He could only guess that this was much calmer and more collected than whatever what was happening on the inside- and he was correct. Whether it be a child climbing into an animatronic, or how they might’ve figured that out, or the fact that an animatronic that resembled an Afton model had a stomach hatched sized to fit a child, Marionette was feeling a little overwhelmed. A little overprotective.

He moved in. Mike watching as he floated ahead to stand alongside Freddy. He watched tensely as Freddy closed up his stomach hatch, with Gregory inside, and carefully stood up. Unabashedly staring by time Freddy noticed him looking.

“He was not in too much pain, was he?” Freddy worriedly asked.

“He… Ah, Moon. No. Some, yes, but he was managing it. But he needs to be seen to as soon as possible,” Marionette said. Freddy started to turn, but the puppet followed him, floating in front of him and pointing at his chest. “Do you usually carry Gregory around like that?”

“I do. I am aware that it is not the safest option… but I have been being very careful to make up for that. You should have seen how surprised Foxy was when he saw Gregory hop in for the first time,” Freddy said with playful amusement.

“I’m sure he was,” Marionette agreed.

Speaking of Foxy, how could he not tell him about this? Foxy must’ve noticed the same things that he did, so it was unbelievable that he decided to just leave that out. Even if it was to protect him or Freddy. He should’ve been warned about this. If he handled Natalie telling them about the copycat rabbit running loose through their massive competitor who came back from the dead, then he could handle this.

It almost felt like a betrayal after how honest they had been with one another. Yet Foxy hadn’t given the slightest indication that anything was wrong. All he had said was that Freddy had been carrying him around. He had assumed on his shoulders since Foxy had said he had been carrying him ‘on’ him. Then he had continued chatting on about his visit like it was nothing.

…Unless Foxy had said ‘in’ and he hadn’t noticed.

…

…Oh dear. Foxy had told him. He just hadn’t picked it up at the time and Foxy didn’t press the issue. Likely afraid that if he made a big deal that it would set him off, or more likely he hadn’t thought it was a big deal once he got used to it.

“Is something the matter?” Freddy’s voice snapped him out of his long moment of silence. During which he had been staring at Freddy’s bowtie and saying nothing, with Mike coming over to stand beside him like he was preparing to break them up if they got into a tussle.

Marionette pulled himself together and looked up at Freddy.

“My apologies. I haven’t slept,” he excused. His eyes narrowed but his smile remained. “I’ve been up all-night chasing rabbits.”

“So, you too have seen the dancing rabbit lady…”

“I told you she was real!” Gregory called out.

“I believed you! I know you would not make up a story like that. I just find this all very alarming…” Freddy confessed. “…But we cannot worry about that now. Moon needs our help. Follow me, we can take my service elevator.”

Freddy started to the stairs and Marionette and Mike followed along behind him. He was right about one thing certainly; this was all very alarming.

The bear walked up to an automatic door with his silhouette insignia plastered on it in red. It did not respond.

“Hmm… That is strange,” Freddy said. He walked to the next door, with Roxanne’s insignia on it, and it opened to him. “Now this one is opening. Let me try the others and make sure.”

Mike and Marionette followed him along the short walkway leading behind the cylinder. It was there that Mike noticed a large board with blueprints pinned to it hung on the wall between the second and third door. His eyes locked onto the blueprints, and he stopped to look at them. Marionette noticed them too, looking over at them as he continued to closely tail Freddy who checked the other doors, which both opened.

“How odd. It seems that only my door is locked… Perhaps they did not want me to leave Parts and Service until they returned. We are not allowed to take the elevators designated to other mascots… But this is an emergency situation. Perhaps we should, for Moon’s sake and ours.”

“Hey Freddy. What can you tell me about these?” Mike started, gesturing pointing to the blueprints. “It looks like a lot of parts have been going out, not just your battery.”

“Those? No, no! Those are Roxy’s, Monty’s, and Chica’s new upgrades respectively. They are more… practical upgrades. To help them with their performances and attractions,” Freddy explained. Gregory patted on his hatch, and he opened it so he could see. He pointed to the blueprints as he continued to explain. “Roxy will be getting new eyes that will help her see better while going top speed in her go-kart. Monty is getting a new pair of fine-tuned claws to help him strum the base and grip his golf club better. Finally, Chica will be receiving an amplifier so that she can begin singing in the band.”

“Why aren’t you getting any of these upgrades?” Gregory asked.

“Because I see just fine, I already have an amplifier, and my golf swing is only slightly below excellent,” Freddy playfully replied. Though that relaxed look was quickly replaced with an anxious one. “They are scheduled to be receiving their upgrades in the morning, so it would be best if we could repair Moon and return him to the daycare before them.”

“Yes. Let’s go,” Marionette agreed. He got up close to the blueprints and quickly scanned over them before nudging Mike along. Apparently, he hadn’t noticed anything concerning. Mike still intended to get a closer look later.

Gregory slid back inside, and Freddy closed up his hatch before heading back the way they came. Though instead of returning to his door, he stopped in front of Roxanne’s which opened automatically before him, revealing a narrow hallway.

“We will take Roxy’s service elevator since it is closest to my room. It is unlikely that she will be in her room, but if she is then I will find a way to distract her so you two may pass by,” Freddy told them. He waved them to follow and they started down the hallway together.

“You know, if you don’t want to risk it, we can still go back the way we came,” Mike offered.

“I insist. I rather take the risk than have you risk yourselves walking through the basement. Not when it is this close to the hourly recharge,” Freddy said.

“I thought you didn’t have to recharge as much,” Gregory called out.

“I do not, but we are instructed to go to the recharge stations regardless. Possibly so we do not trip in the dark and seriously injure ourselves.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to split up. Not after what happened earlier,” Marionette said. He discreetly caught Mike’s hand in his and shortly after he had the tickle of a voice in the back of his head. “I don’t want to leave them alone.”

Mike couldn’t say he was surprised after the stomach hatch revelation. Especially on top of an already tense night. He squeezed his hand back.

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” he agreed. Since Freddy and Gregory were still talking, he lowered his voice and whispered, “But I think Freddy’s safe. Remember, he’s been doing this for days now.”

“I know and that scares me,” Marionette confessed. His soft voice hushed even further. “He seems so genuine, but it’s so hard to trust him.”

“I know what you mean,” Mike said. He tried his hardest to keep from thinking of the last time he trusted someone who seemed so friendly. Just in case Marionette somehow picked it up.

After going around a sharp corner, they waltzed up to the elevator that opened for Freddy who stepped inside. He almost took up the entire space.

“Would you look at that! It turns out this was where the staff elevator was hiding,” Marionette remarked. A light chime on his voice and dismay in his smile.

“Hiking back through the basement is starting to look like a better idea, isn’t it?” Mike retorted. Just a touch of smugness that barely covered the growing weariness.

Comments aside, they still found themselves crammed in the corners of an elevator that was definitely only made to fit a Glamrock and only one technician comfortably. The ride wasn’t too long at least, playing a brief rendition of the elevator jingle before slowing to a stop and the doors sliding open.

But instead of silence, the music was replaced with the sound of someone talking nearby. Someone who Freddy recognized immediately, and the rest needed only a few seconds of hearing to follow suit.

“-just got lucky. It wasn’t about speed; she hid like a coward. She didn’t play the game fair because she knew she wouldn’t have won. She knew she couldn’t outrun you forever,” Roxanne could be heard saying through the wall. Her voice fierce and firm as though she was lecturing someone. “Cheaters are disqualified. She might’ve gotten away, but she didn’t beat you. She didn’t win… So, why are you hiding in here like a loser?”

It soon became clear when the person who responded to Roxanne was actually herself. Her voice falling, softer, almost meek in comparison. “I’m not a loser. I’m a winner.”

There was a pause, then she huffed irritated. “That’s right. You’re a winner. You’re the fastest, the smartest, the BEST. You go out there and show that baby-faced stick figure who’s the boss around here. What, are you afraid that sluggard in slacks is going to get you in trouble? This Pizzaplex can run without you. Your fans would riot. You’re just hiding because you’re scared,” she said. To which her voice lowered to a solemn, angry growl of, “I’m not scared of anything.”

Mike nudged Freddy’s arm and gestured his thumb back to the elevator. This time being completely serious. Freddy shook his head and reached out for him and Marionette, the latter of which shirked back, and guided them to the corner of the back room. They were hidden behind the recharge station for now, but it wasn’t a safe space that would last past the hourly recharge. Freddy knew this. He raised a hand for them to wait before turning around and heading for Roxanne’s door.

He collected himself at the door before stepping forward and triggering it to open.

Roxanne had been so lost in her ‘pep talk’ that she didn’t hear Freddy coming until the back door suddenly lifted open. She jumped back with her hands out in front of her, claws bared, eyes wide, looking flustered and as wild as a wolf should. Though that shock quickly turned to aghast, then annoyance.

“Freddy, what were you doing back there?!” she snapped. “You better not have been eavesdropping, or so help me!”

“No! No, no. I just came up from Parts and Service! My service elevator was not responding, and I expected you to be at the raceway-.” In the middle of Freddy’s explanation, Roxanne gave a frustrated huff and pinched her snout like she was pinching the bridge of her nose. Her patience continuing to wear out the longer he went on. “-I really should have knocked.”

“Freddy,” Roxanne cut him off. She pulled her hand from her face and pointed towards the door. “Get out of my room.”

“Of course! I am heading out right now. No problem… But if you would like to join me-.”

“Freddy, get out,” Roxanne said more sharply.

“I’m going, I’m going,” Freddy said. His voice falling as he walked around her to the door like a child who had just been scolded.

The door opened, but he did not go through. Instead standing in the doorway lost in thought. He knew he was supposed to be making a distraction, but something else was bothering him now. Eventually he bucked up the nerve to look back at Roxanne, who was still staring daggers into him.

“Roxy… did something happen?” he gently asked.

Her eyes narrowed further. “You were listening.”

“I tried not to, but I am concerned,” Freddy admitted.

“I told you, I’m fine!”

That was a lot louder and more defensive than she had intended it to sound, and yet Freddy did not back down. He stood his ground, eyes briefly widening before returning to that concerned look. Concerned and questioning.

Roxanne gave an impatient huff and broke eye contact. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes up somewhere like she was barely tolerating the conversation. Her twitchy leg gave her away though.

“I’m fine, okay? Just got into my head and needed to regroup- but I’m getting back out there. And so are you. You can hang out in your own room,” Roxy said matter-of-factly. While this wasn’t exactly what he wanted, Freddy got a slight, appreciative smile at her honesty. She purposefully avoided looking at him. “Just know that thing Chica said she saw up at El Chip’s is running around again.”

“Oh. How strange…” Freddy said vaguely. He wasn’t sure if she actually meant Charlie or Marionette but knew both of them were probably here. She started out the door only to double-take and turn back.

“Hey. If you see me running after it, don’t get involved,” Roxy said. She leaned back in on the doorframe and pointed at him. “I mean it. I don’t need help; I just need everyone to stay out of my way. Got it?”

“I hear you loud and clear, Roxy,” Freddy insisted. “I am sure that you can catch any intruder. You are the fastest one here.”

“I am, but don’t push it,” Roxy remarked. She headed out with Freddy close behind her, entirely unaware of what he was hiding in his chest and in her room.

Mike and Marionette gave them time to leave before coming through the automatic door. Marionette quickly made his way to the curtains and whisked them closed before peering out through a slender crack left between them. Scanning Rockstar Row before spotting a familiar face standing over by the displays outside of Freddy’s green room window. Natalie was watching the closing security door out of the row with a hand on her hip.

In the meantime, Mike was looking around at Roxanne’s green room. Hers being painted in dark purples with the occasional racing flag checkerboard accent here and there. Her couch was a soft lavender and there was a partially deconstructed go-kart laying out by the window. Tires, wrenches, wheels, and other racing themed shaped decorations were mounted on the walls and the star shaped light on the ceiling was a neon green.

“At least Charlie’s alright. Here’s hoping she made it back to the daycare,” Mike said. He noticed Marionette still peeking out the window. “What are you looking at?”

“Natalie. She’s standing over there,” he replied.

Then all of a sudden, so quickly that it was almost a blur, Marionette yanked back and shut the curtains closed in front of him. He stood there for a long moment before peeking back over his shoulder. “She saw me.”

“Uh oh. I hear a scolding coming on.”

“You could be a little more concerned,” the puppet suggested with a twitch of a grin. “The whole point of this charade was to not get caught so she didn’t have to explain herself.”

“She doesn’t have to. You’re still knocking out the cameras, right?” Mike asked. Marionette’s masked moved like he was raising his brows, briefly forgetting himself. “Besides, I need to talk to her anyways. Bring her up to speed on that lie I told Chica and Monty, so she doesn’t accidentally blow my cover.”

“Maybe we should also tell her about Moon so she’ll know in advance that someone will be down there… and about our little problem.”

Mike didn’t even need to ask. From that suddenly cold tone, he knew exactly what problem in a skin-tight bunny suit he was talking about.

He watched as that serious look turned to surprise when there came a knock on the window. Marionette turned back and hesitated a moment. There was another knock, and then he finally drew back the curtain a sliver, knowing who was there.

Natalie’s peeved frown was met with Marionette’s usual smile sent with a little head tilt. She pointed towards the left and then began to walk in that direction, no doubt signaling that she was coming in. He shut the curtains back.

“Oh, I’m in trouble now,” he said.

“Better you than me,” Mike replied. He clicked his tongue and winked.

Though that mock cockiness dropped as the door opened and Natalie stepped in. She was looking less than enthused if the slightest bit irritated. Mike realized his joke about receiving a scolding might’ve been a correct guess.

Natalie held out her hands. “Well?” she asked.

“…Well, here we are?” Mike finished.

“Well, what happened to me not finding you?” Natalie quickly corrected.

“Why would I care about you seeing me? After all, I am Marcus Wright, senior security officer and the man who hired you,” Mike explained.

The blond blinked at him. Then shook her head.

“…No. See, you can’t be senior security officer when you’re, what, a year older than me?”

“I can if I’m the boss’ son,” Mike said. She rolled her eyes, and he shot her a cheesy smile.

“You have a much bigger problem than us,” Marionette warned. His serious tone cutting through the air of playfulness between the two humans. “We had a run-in with the white rabbit, Vanny.”

“What?” He could all but see the alarm on her face. “Where did you see her, in Monty Golf?”

“Downstairs. We just came up from the basement.”

“I knew she was hanging out down there… Wait, she called herself Vanny?” she asked. He nodded and her furrowed brows softened into a look of realization. “…Oooh God.”

“What?” Mike asked.

“I know what she’s doing. The first night I ran into her, she called me Vanny. I bet she’s using that name to try to set me up. Or trying to blackmail me. I can’t report her name if it’s my name.”

“That’s a very good possibility,” Marionette agreed.

“Or it could be Vanessa,” Mike offered.

“It could be. I don’t know… How did she act around you two?”

“Goofy as hell,” Mike answered.

“Scared,” Marionette finished. “Of me. Very scared of me.”

“…Okay, that sounds exactly like Ness.”

“There’s something wrong with her. When I touched her, I felt a… pain and horror that I’ve never felt before. I felt something similar once with that slender Baby model, but this was much worse. It completely incapacitated me,” Marionette continued to explain. He laid a hand on Natalie’s shoulder. “I know it’s your job to protect this place and especially the people inside it… but don’t let her get you into a corner again. I don’t trust her.”

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to make that mistake twice,” Natalie assured. “…At least, not without this bad boy.” She patted the taser.

“Good. Now then, I’m sorry to cut this short but we really must catch up with Freddy.”

“Oh, so that’s why he was acting fidgety. Makes sense now,” Natalie said knowingly.

“Don’t be alarmed, but we’re heading back down. Though we’ll find another way to do it,” Mike added in. Dropping the joking tone in favor of a serious one as well. “Moon got damaged in a scuffle with Monty earlier. That’s part of the reason I had to come up with the fake identity, to get him and Chica out of there. We’re going to try to get Moon downstairs and repaired. We managed it with Freddy, so… wish us luck.”

“Oh wow. How bad is he hurt?” Natalie asked with concern.

“He’s, uh… Sort of split down the middle right here.” Mike made a cutting motion across his chest with his hand. She winced sympathetically. “But we’re going to see what we can do.”

“We’re not going to leave until we make sure we fix everything that’s been broken,” Marionette agreed. “Even if not directly by us. And then we’re off! On the road again.”

“Sounds like a plan. See if you can find Charlie too. Roxy was chasing her earlier and I want to make sure she got away,” Natalie reminded. The two agreed. “Alright, then. I’m going to head back out and start making my way back to Lost and Found. Maybe I can catch sight of Bunny Girl on the camera, or the blur of her.”

“Maybe we can get ahold of the footage, see if we can make anything out of it,” Mike suggested. There was a pause of thought, then he added, “Later. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

Natalie agreed and turned to head out. “Just be careful, you two. And try not to set any alarms of. Monty just got settled down… After he wrecked his room,” she remarked. Then she headed out with a sigh.

After a few minutes, Mike and Marionette slipped out as well and made their way out of Rockstar Row and after Freddy. The only sound cutting through the quiet lull of the overhead music being the shifting of the security door.

---

“It went something like… Extra cheese, yes please. Hold the veggies and extra meat,~” Jeremy sung. His voice slightly echoing in the stairwell, along with the soft clunking of his footsteps on the steps. “Hot and ready at Freddy’s!~”

“Huh, I don’t remember that one,” Charlie said.

“Probably because it was a commercial, not like a real song.”

“…Oh! I’ve got one. The milkshake song. That’s not what it was really called, but who knows what it was actually called,” she said with a shrug. “Totally lost to time.”

“Knowing Freddy’s, it was probably The Milkshake Song,” Jeremy joked. “How’d it go?”

“Uh… Shake, shake, shake. Shake, shake, sh-shake. Shake, shake, shake. Shake, shake, sh-shake.~” Charlie shook her arms to the beat. Right, right, right. Left, left, left. While still walking down the stairs. She paused and then admitted, “And I don’t remember the rest. I remember there were more lyrics though. Something, uh, vanilla, chocolate, strawberry twist.~ Something like that.”

“Twist, twist, twist. Twist, twist, tw-twist,~” Jeremy sung along.

“That’s it!” Charlie jokingly agreed. “I used to have a tape of songs from the diner that I listened to all the time when I was little. I didn’t take it with me to college, so I guess it’s still back at my aunt’s. Unless she threw it out… But you wouldn’t believe how many songs were about pizza.”

“I can believe it. I worked there. Well, not at the diner but Freddy’s,” Jeremy said.

They stepped off the stairs into a portion of the basement tunnel. Charlie shined her light forward down the spottily lit way before they continued on

“We had three different versions of ‘Happy Birthday’ and I’m pretty sure which one you got depended on who was bringing the cake out,” Jeremy continued. He lowered his voice a bit but continued talking to keep the mood light. His hands deep in his jacket pockets to help hold the Minireenas. “There was this time when someone dropped a birthday cake on their way out to the table and the whole party went from singing to dead silence… and then came the crying.”

Charlie gave a sympathetic noise.

“It gets worse. See, Freddy’s apparently had this policy with ordering cakes- long story short, we weren’t supposed to give out replacement cakes for free. They would give them half-off the next cake. So, I’m shoveling cake up with a paper plate in each hand while Scott’s getting chewed up by both parents, grandparents, and what was either an uncle or just some guy who was really invested and…”

Jeremy trailed off as he heard the sound of footsteps further down the passageway. Charlie’s head quickly turned towards the noise as well and both stared forward. It sounded like someone was running, and the lack of heaviness in them of mechanical noises suggested it wasn’t an animatronic.

“That’s got to be Mike,” Jeremy said. “…I wonder what he’s running from.”

“He’s coming this way, so I guess we’re going to find out,” Charlie said cryptically. She unhooked her taser just in case and held it at her side in preparation. Something that got Mike running wasn’t worth hesitating on.

She crept on further and this spurred Jeremy to do the same as the footsteps got closer. In the last few moments Charlie realized they were not coming from directly in front of them, but a branching passageway to the left, blocked by a fence but with the gate slightly opened.

Suddenly a white figure came crashing through the gate door and slammed it shut behind them. Holding it closed with both hands and staring through the openings, head moving a little to show that it was searching through the darkness.

It was someone in a rabbit costume. Both Charlie and Jeremy recognized that it had to be the alleged rabbit woman, and both stopped on a dime to stare at her. Her costume was patchy but clung to her frame, with rabbit-shaped boot feet and even a little tail that they could see because she was turned to the side. Her crooked ears hanging forward and bumping the fence.

That was when she noticed them. Her head snapped in their direction and the stark red eyes of her masked leveled on them. It was an uncomfortably creepy mask.

But if they were startled by her, it was nothing to how she reacted to them. Or more specifically, how she reacted to Charlie. Her head leveling to show she was looking at her before all but jumping back. Her hands up in defense, shirking back on herself and slowly backing up.

Somehow, Jeremy was able to look past the bunny suit and read the body language. She was frightened, terrified, to the point where she almost looked helpless. It was easy to assume she was harmless.

“We’re not going to hurt you,” he finally said. He raised his hands as well in defense. “I don’t know who you are or why you’re running around in THAT, but we’re not going to do anything to you. Okay?” he tried to reason.

He couldn’t tell, but it didn’t seem like she was paying any attention to him. She was transfixed on the Security Puppet. When Jeremy sort of stepped forward, slightly in front of Charlie, the rabbit took a few fumbling steps back and then turned and dropped into a crouch. She started grabbing at her lower leg, clumsy gloved hands clawing at the fabric.

“What is she doing?” Charlie asked lowly.

“I don’t know. Maybe she’s hurt?” Jeremy whispered back. She had been a little wobbly in her motions, so it could’ve been that she was grappling at an injured leg. He slowly moved in closer with his hands still up. “Are you okay?”

The rabbit woman was clawing at something, and Jeremy leaned to the left to try to get a better look. Right then her fingers wrapped around something and pulled it free, and in one motion she rose to her feet and pointed it at his chest.

It was a knife. A large, clean, sharp kitchen knife now aimed directly at him. His heart stopped and dropped at the sight of it, staring wide eyed at the tip of the blade.

He only found his voice not to talk her down, but to give a panicked shout of, “Kn-Knife! She’s got a knife! She’s got a knife!”

At those words, the bottom of his jacket pushed out and immediately the Minireenas dropped to the floor. They didn’t even hesitate and rushed the rabbit woman in seconds. She started backing up, but Forget-Me-Not leapt onto her leg and began to climb. The rabbit kicked her off after a few attempts, the doll getting tossed to the ground in front of Jeremy who quickly scooped her up and tried to grab for the others.

The rabbit turned and ran for it down the tunnel, shoving Daisy off her hip. The doll clattered to the ground before being scooped up by Charlie who was fast on the rabbit’s heels with Daisy in one arm and her taser in the other hand.

It didn’t take long to catch up to the rabbit who was now zoning in on a metal door with a ‘S.T.A.F.F.’ sign on it. She was closing in, but right before she could reach her she spun around, holding that knife out again. Charlie reacting on instinct swung her hand forward and knocked the knife out of her hand. It flying over and clattering in the concrete. The taser thumping hard on gloves knuckles.

The rabbit looked down at her hand and back up at Charlie and then returned to her hands up defensive posture. Backing away as though she hadn’t been the one waving a gun around. Charlie could hear her frantic little breaths through the stretched smile of the mask’s mouth. Steeling herself, she pointed the taser at the rabbit.

“It’s over,” Charlie announced. “Just give it up.”

The rabbit was practically shaking in front of her. Her fingers clamping tightly into fists while still shielding herself. Her breathing heavy from exertion and panic.

And then one of those inhales kept going and didn’t stop. Inhaling so deeply that her lungs must’ve been fully filled. Then she slowly exhaled as her shaking hands stilled. Her shoulders relaxing and the trembling fear easing.

And then the labored breathing began. Heavy and slow and hoarse. So heavy that Charlie could clearly see the rise and fall of her chest. Though that also could’ve been from the shaking having stopped.

Her arms slowly lowered and then dropped limply to her sides. Her head lulled back and then to the side as those vacant red eyes set upon her- assumedly.

Charlie had a strange feeling. It prickled the back of her head and spine. The closest thing she connect it to was sitting in a dark room and feeling like something was watching you but being too afraid to move even to turn the light on. The sudden change in the costumed woman made her severely uncomfortable- and that was before she suddenly tilted her head back. The motion so sudden that the puppet almost jumped.

Head now cocked in the other direction and a little forward, the rabbit woman studied her closely. Then she spoke, her voice gravelly and crunchy like it was being altered. Charlie could almost hear the feedback of a voice modifier.

“̴W̸e̵l̵l̴,̵ ̸l̵o̸o̶k̴ ̵a̴t̵ ̵y̸o̸u̵…̴!̷” the rabbit remarked. She leaned in closer and looked Charlie up and down, one arm folded behind her back while using her free hand to tap her chin. "̴A̶r̶e̸n̶'̶t̵ ̴y̶o̵u̸ ̴a̷n̵ ̵o̷d̸d̷ ̶o̷n̴e̶?̵"̸

“What?” Charlie wasn’t sure if she was offended or just severely off-put by the scene.

"̶I̶ ̶b̶e̶t̴ ̶I̷ ̵k̷n̸o̸w̵ ̷w̶h̶o̸'̸s̷ ̸p̵u̵l̸l̸i̶n̶g̴ ̷Y̴O̸U̷R̶ ̴s̷t̴r̵i̴n̵g̶s̴.̴"̵ the rabbit muttered.

Then she stepped forward in one jolting motion and reached for Charlie. She stepped back reflexively, just avoiding the sweep of her grasp. Though as she realized a moment later, this was exactly what the rabbit wanted.

In the same swing it spun itself around and suddenly raced for the door. By time Charlie was on her heels the rabbit was through and slammed the door in her face. She fought against it for a few moments before the rabbit got it held closed long enough to lock it. Charlie only stopped fighting against it when she heard the dull sound of laughter and plodding footsteps as the rabbit retreated.

That was extremely creepy. Charlie was glad to be rid of her, but still gave a frustrated huff as she turned away from the door. She then made her way over to where the knife fell and found it laying on the ground.

“Well, at least she’s not armed anymore…” she murmured. Yet as she picked up the knife, glancing at her reflection in the clean blade, she shivered. That entire confrontation was weird, wrong.

It reminded her too much of a confrontation they once had with Clay. Though he wasn’t just acting strange, he was horribly sick. Sweating profusely and ghastly paled. Then again, it wasn’t like she could see through a layer of white fabric.

Daisy tapped on her arm with an impatient, “Uh!” and Charlie remembered Jeremy. She got up and walked back to him, clipping her taser back on and carrying the knife close at her side. At least she didn’t have to worry about leaving fingerprints on it.

She was a little surprised to find Jeremy still kneeling on the ground where he was. He noticed her coming and finally got up with Forget-Me-Not cradled and Rose on his shoulder. He didn’t look right. If anything, he looked sick and sweaty.

“Are you- you okay?” he asked, voice hitching halfway through. Charlie handed over Daisy who Jeremy cradled as well.

“I’m fine. She got away from me. She faked me out and made a run for it through a door. But-!” Charlie explained. She then held up the knife, shaking it in her fingers. “I got her knife.”

Jeremy stared at that knife unblinking for a few seconds and only shook out of it when she dropped her arm back to her side. He then quickly looked away.

“Good. That’s, uh, good…” Jeremy took a deep breath and exhaled in a sigh. “I’m sorry. I freaked out.”

“No, it’s okay! Let’s be honest, that’s the normal reaction to having a knife shoved in your face. I’m the weird one.”

“Just seeing the- it wasn’t even the rabbit suit. It was the knife, just having a kitchen knife right there, I…” Jeremy swallowed thickly. His hands were shaking as he cradled his Minireenas to him. They fussed, patting him down and making distressed noises at seeing him like this. Daisy reached up and patted his cheeks worriedly. “I’m okay,” he got out. His voice heavy with the tightness in his throat. “I’m okay. We can- We can keep going.”

“…I don’t know…” Charlie murmured.

She looked around at the dark tunnel and considered her options. While she did want to press on, this run-in had roused the more sensible part of her brain. The part that reminded her of how reckless she had been in the past. Her track record at the Pizzaplex especially wasn’t great, and though she was torn between pursuing the rabbit and pushing after Mike and Marionette, that voice suggested that she maybe take a step back.

That voice warned her that she was about to get in over her head again.

“…Let’s go back to the daycare.”

“Charlie, I’m okay. I’ll be fine.”

“I know, but I think we should…. She was running from something, and if it wasn’t Mari then it’s something worse than her. Which means either Mari and Mike can take care of themselves, which I know they can, or we could walk right up to trouble. We should head back,” she asserted. She stepped up and laid a gentle had on his free shoulder. “And anyways, this isn’t as fun as I thought it was going to be,” she lightly joked.

He managed a smile. Probably more in relief than humor and gladly turned around and started back. Charlie looked back down the hallway behind them to make sure nothing was following before continuing back to the stairs.

She knew she was making the right call, but something didn’t sit right. She knew it was that rabbit woman. She would have to let Mike and Marionette know- and Jeremy once he calmed down a little.

Then they could go after her together, maybe. Or maybe figure out another plan to catch her. Like a rabbit in a snare. The idea of catching a grown woman in a cartoonish snare trap being comical enough to almost rouse a jingle.

But this was where Charlie had to draw the line.

Chapter 46

Chapter Summary

Everyone finally makes it back to the daycare and a few discoveries are made- including at least one that Freddy was not expecting.

Chapter Notes

Sorry about the delay! I hope you enjoy!

Charlie and Jeremy dragged themselves into the daycare and began the long hike up to the Daycare Attendant’s room. Before they could even get there, they were met by the Nanny Bot outside the Fazbear Theater.

“Hey Jake,” Charlie nonchalantly greeted.

The Nanny Bot waved and then followed along beside them. While the Staff Bot couldn’t emote, it almost did so in a worried or fussy way. It brought a smile out of her.

Then again, he could’ve also been looking at the Minireenas. The only one who returned to the comfort of the jacket was Forget-Me-Not, who decided after he brief shake up that she liked the feeling of being cradled. Or perhaps decided she was simply done with the evening. Daisy and Rose sat on each shoulder respectively and were keeping a lookout. Daisy was eyeing the Nanny Bot with an intensity that wasn’t typical with her.

The two made it into the cracked poster door and headed inside, with the Nanny Bot waiting outside the door behind them. By time they got down the hallway and through the second door, Jake was waiting for them, control panel in hand.

“Couldn’t find them?” he asked.

“No, but we found something else,” Charlie said cryptically. She leaned on the door to shut it behind them.

 It didn’t take too much perception to read that response and know something went sour. Jake didn’t press her for answers yet, instead turning to Jeremy who still had his hands full.

“Who’re these little guys?” he asked in a friendly way. Even though the dolls were now eyeing him.

“Daisy, Rose, and Forget-Me-Not’s in the pouch. My girls,” Jeremy introduced. He smiled a little and it seemed like he was doing a little better. Charlie hoped so, at least.

“They’re pretty cute. Nice to meet you three too! I’m Jake,” he introduced. “I’ve got an idea! Why don’t you show them to Sunny? He could use a pick-me-up and it’ll give me a minute to, uh… get up to speed on what’s going on. I don’t want to stress him out.”

“Sure, I’ve been dying to meet him,” Jeremy agreed. He scooted over and crouched in front of the open tunnel. “He’s not going to be upset if I go in?”

“No more upset than he was when I came out,” Jake answered.

Taking that as probably a ‘no’, Jeremy crawled into the tunnel. Taking care not to jostle Forget-Me-Not while Daisy and Rose hopped down to lead the way inside. Meanwhile, Jake turned back to Charlie.

“Let’s go up on the balcony,” he suggested. She looked a little surprised.

“Aren’t you afraid someone’ll see you?” she asked.

“Nah, not really. Not tonight,” Jake said. He headed over to the little ladder that climbed up on the balcony stage. She followed him up the ladder and out onto the balcony.

The view was pretty impressive. It didn’t look like it would be much seeing it from the floor, but from up here the room looked huge. The colorful playground stretched out beneath them. The stadium lights above keeping the room comfortably bright. A far cry from the cold, dark basement tunnels crossing the underside of the Pizzaplex.

Jake sat near the edge with one leg dangling off and the other, the endoskeleton one, bent and resting before him. Charlie sat alongside him and let both of hers hang. Far beneath her she could see the rainbow-colored moat of plastic balls.

“Did you see the endoskeletons down there?” Jake asked.

Charlie shook her head. “We didn’t get that far.”

“That’s for the best. But if you need a description, try to imagine a metal frame in the shape of Freddy. They’re pretty sturdy,” Jake explained. “…You know, this leg didn’t come off one of those endos.” He tapped his leg.

“Where’d it come from then?” Charlie asked.

“It came off of the endo that we were sharing before we became these guys, the Sun and Moon. See, back a long time ago, Andrew and I ended up in the same body. It was pretty rundown, but we made it work for a long time. We used to hide out at this old factory and made trips to and from the dump. We had a couple of hideouts and just sort of survived together. The three of us.”

“The three of you?” Charlie asked questioningly. “Not you two and the endo.”

“No. We had a third friend. He didn’t share our body; he had his own. Except that it was a plush toy instead of an actual robot. Didn’t really seem to bother him too much. Like, he would complain about it occasionally, or us not picking him up fast enough, but he never seemed too upset about it…” Jake trailed off for a long moment.

“What happened to him?” she asked. She noticed he hadn’t given his name either but decided this was the more important question to ask.

“The long and short story is Freddy Fazbear’s happened. One day they come into the factory looking for parts to be used in this place. We didn’t have a chance to escape, so we just… let them take us… We were dumped off in the basement with the rest of the endos and that was when we decided that maybe it was time for a change. Or, well, we ended up finding a pair of bodies that might work better. Our old one was really showing its age.”

“And Andrew’s Sunny,” Charlie confirmed.

“Right. Just don’t call him that. He gets touchy about it. It’s okay if I do it in private, but he tries sticking to his character.”

“Foxy’s like that too. I guess maybe it’s easier to stay in character than switching back and forth. Or maybe staying in character keeps you away from what you left behind,” Charlie suggested.

“I could believe either. I was never great at it, but I never made it to opening day.”

“Jake, what happened?” the puppet asked more directly.

“…I don’t- I don’t really want to talk about it, but… this.” He gestured to the entirety of his body. “A lot of this came from them taking out my light emission system to put into Andrew. When they decided he would take over both roles.”

“But you were damaged before that.”

“…Yeah, I was… disassembled a few times…” Jake trailed off, resisting a further explanation.

Charlie looked at him for a long moment before lowering her head in understanding. “It’s okay. I’m not going to make you talk about it. I appreciate you telling me this much, what with all that’s been going on.”

“No problem. I thought maybe you’d get a kick out of it. You know because the leg?” Jake asked with light playfulness. She smiled back at him. “So, it’s your turn. What did you see down there?”

He tensed up as though bracing himself for the worst.

“We saw that woman in the rabbit costume.”

Jake relaxed right afterwards. “Oh, it was just her? Huh… Well, at least you got to see her for yourself.”

Charlie sent him a deadpan look at his lack of a reaction and clarified, “She pulled a knife on us.”

“She what?!”

He hadn’t noticed that her opposite arm had been staying at her side with her hand in her pocket until she drew out the knife she had been partially concealing in her pocket. He made a startled, nearly choked-up noise.

“She actually drew a knife on you!” he blurted out.

“That’s right,” Charlie said. “I slapped it out of her hand, so I guess it’s mine now.”

“…Oh okay. This is a big problem now,” Jake said. He looked ahead in a sort of state of shock. “A knife. Can you believe that? I know she was trying to copy the murderer back at Freddy’s with the whole rabbit thing, but THIS?”

Charlie almost asked him how he knew about Afton before remembering that Andrew was one of his victims. Though that still raised questions about Jake.

“Did you ever see him?” she dared to ask. He shook his head.

“No. I died at home. I was a sick kid, and I didn’t make it. Next thing I knew, I was sitting in a doll in the basement of some crackpot would-be scientist with something to prove,” Jake lamented with a humorless laugh. “…You?”

“A few times. He’s gone now but he had a direct hand in me becoming this… But that’s okay. He didn’t get what he wanted and that’s what counts,” Charlie said.

They fell back into silence for a few minutes as they continued looking out over the daycare.

“So,” Jake broke the silence with a lighter tone. “If you don’t mind, how’d you wind up living with the Puppet and a bunch of humans? And what’s the deal with Foxy’s? Is it really its own thing?”

Charlie began to tell her story from the beginning and once she made it past the tragic beginning, she was able to smile freely at the anecdotes. Jake seemed to appreciate the escape; he was fully invested. For a little while, it was as though the rabbit lady didn’t exist at all.

Meanwhile, Jeremy scooted his way into the tiny room and looked around. It was messy, but there was a sort of comfortableness to it. The sterile nature of most of the Pizzaplex felt more like a facility than a pizzeria. This messy room was the closest thing in the whole building to a well-used apartment. He had to step carefully but not at the risk of immediate bodily harm.

That was when he got his first look at the elusive Sun. Laying on his right side facing the door with the arm he was laying on bent up to hold a pillow to his face. His points peeked around the edges of the pillow and his coloring has turned yellow, with his blue glow replaced by a yellow one. Except for on his left arm, which was laying limp in front of him, carefully posed to not touch the exposed wires, and instead a whitish-grey color without any light coming from it.

His long legs were bent and pulled up close, borderline in the fetal position. He didn’t move at all, but he unexpectedly spoke before Jeremy could announce his presence.

“S-So, I was thinking and I-I dunno if I want this to be my life from now on-n,” Sunny quietly admitted. His voice meek in comparison to his shrieking earlier. His voice had slightly changed from when he was the Moon, but not too much. Just enough to lose the previous hoarseness.

While Jeremy didn’t like seeing anyone in obvious pain, he took this as a semi-good sign. That tone of defeat could mean he was starting to reconsider not going to Parts and Service. “When Mike gets back-!”

“EHH?!”

Sunny sort of jumped. Or he kicked a little bit and grappled at the pillow before yanking it down. White eyes stared into the unexpected visitor, who now had an awkward and almost guilty smile. Before he could even begin to get huffy about the uninvited guest, he suddenly noticed the two dolls standing on their own in front of him. He immediately recognized them as animatronics instead of toys.

“OH!” he shouted in delight. He began to push himself up on his elbow. “WHY, LOOK AT YOU LITTLE- AUGHAHAGH!”

He must’ve moved his chest too much as he suddenly writhed back. His head thumping painfully on the floor as his hand grappled tightly at the pillow.

Jeremy’s brows shot up. “Do you need some… help?” he asked, genuinely afraid that Sunny might’ve broken something.

“I’M fiiiine!” Sunny had his fist against his teeth like he was preparing to stifle himself with it. That was, if he could open them. He calmed down after a moment and dropped his arm to the side.

Then he turned his arm around, twisting it backwards to lay his hand flat on the floor and start to slowly push himself up. Jeremy watched uneasily as the jester dragged himself up into the sitting position, giving another pained hissed- more like a boiling teapot than a robot- and got into a crossed legged position.

By now Forget-Me-Not was peeking out of the collar at the scene. Rose covered her mouth with her hands while Daisy looked back up at Jeremy. He gave her a shrug and she pointed towards the Sun, as though telling him to do something.

“Err, sorry. We didn’t mean to barge in like this, but Jake wanted to talk with Charlie and thought maybe you’d like to meet the girls,” he hastily explained.

“YES! Y-Yes, I do!” Sunny gushed. He gave a mechanical groan as he finally pulled his second leg into position, resting his hand and weight on one of them. “O-Okay. Okay. Allll better,” he said. His voice stuttering as he managed to lift up his drooping head to look down at the Minireenas. “H-H-Hey there, lil dollies! Oh, you’re so c-cute!”

Rose lowered her hands and rubbed them worriedly before giving a little curtsy. Daisy followed suit afterwards. Forget-Me-Not stared with scrutiny.

“Aww-w-w! And so polite!” Sunny gushed. His good hand coming up to cup his cheek. Him slumping a little at the loss of it propping him up. “Well, hellooo! I’m Sunny! Bu-But you can call me Mr. Sun or Sunflower, or whatever-er!”

“Well, uh, sure! But they don’t actually talk. They communicate in their own ways,” Jeremy explained. Daisy nodded and rose up onto her toes in a ballerina pose.

“Oh, th-that’s okay!  t-talk enough for everybody anyway-ay!” Sunny remarked. “What’s their names-es?”

“This is Daisy.” Jeremy gestured a hand to Daisy and on that cue, she gave a dainty spin and a giggle.

“And they dance! Th-That’s pre-cious!” Sunny seemed to be overloading at the sight of him. Or that could’ve been because he was still wincing over his side. “Th-They’re little ballerrrina babies!”

“Well, they’re my little ballerina babies,” Jeremy agreed. After getting a little poke in the chest he added, “Except Forget-Me-Not. She’s a little ballerina lady.” He pulled his collar out further. Forget-Me-Not slid further down into it.

“A-And what about this one-ne? Let me guess, she’s a shy violet-et.”

“Close! That’s Rose,” Jeremy introduced. Rose was staying close to his leg. “Everyone’s just a little on edge. Normally they’re a lot more social.”

“Aww, it’s okay! I-I know how to get some smiles on their faces! Er, m-more smiles! Hand me that box-x?” He pointed beside Jeremy. There was a folded closed cardboard box labeled “Spare” in squiggly handwriting and he passed it over. Sunny pulled it open with one hand that he then dipped inside and shifted around. “Wh-Who wants…” He pulled out his hand to reveal a Glamrock Freddy hand puppet now slipped over it. “A puppet show?!”

Daisy gave an encouraging giggle and that was all Sunny needed. No amount of pain would keep him from winning over his newest, tiniest audience.

Back on the balcony, Charlie was still telling her story. She had gotten midway through the part about her reunion with her friends in the processing facility when she heard the sound of a security door. She paused and Jake leaned forward to look past her. Then he promptly pushed back and crab-walked back into the safety of the balcony door while Charlie turned to look down at the entrance.

Much to her relief, there was Mike, Marionette, and Freddy all walking through the door. There was no sign of Gregory peculiarly, and Freddy was leading the way with a steadfast stride like he had somewhere to be. She stood up and called over with her hands cupped around her mouth.

“Hellooo!”

Freddy jolted to a stop and looked over. Then he gave her a wave in return.

“Hello up there!” he called back.

Mike waved as well with a casual, “Yo.”

“The door’s open! Come on around!” Charlie called. She waited until they headed through the guest gate before heading inside. She then stopped at the sensation of a fluctuation behind her and looked back to see that Marionette had teleported onto the balcony behind her. She smiled at him and greeted him with, “Glad to see you made it back safe.”

“I could say the same for you. I heard about your little race with Roxanne Wolf,” Marionette lightly teased.

“That’s not even the half of it.”

“Not for us either…” He folded his arms behind himself and looked aside. “…We saw the woman in the rabbit costume.”

Charlie couldn’t say that she was surprised with how she had been running. “Yeah. So did we.”

Marionette did get a look of surprise though and she must’ve unconsciously fidgeted with the knife enough to draw his attention, starting to pull it out and then hesitating, that he noticed and looked down. She took the knife out to show him. His eyes widened and he gasped, but that shock quickly turned to anger.

“She drew her knife on you?!” he cried, static jumping in his voice. That fury was just as quickly replaced by worry. “Are you alright? Did she hurt you?” His hands went to his shoulders before patting down her arms. Likely looking for wounds.

“We’re fine. She didn’t get a chance to do anything, and then I smacked it out of her hand to make sure she didn’t… It was hard on Jeremy though. It shook him up,” she explained, voice sympathetic.

That stopped his fussing, but his hands stayed where they were. He held her like he was afraid she was suddenly going to float away. His expression sharing her concern.

“I can’t imagine how that must’ve been for him,” Marionette looked down and around the room. “…Where is he?”

“He’s in with Sunny right through that tube,” Charlie said and pointed the entrance out.

He nodded and released her momentarily to begin to turn, but then looked back at her, turned back, and pulled her into a tight hug. She returned it and accepted the comfort that came from it. She might’ve not gotten as spooked as Jeremy had but that didn’t mean it hadn’t gotten to her. At the time she had gone through the motions fine but thinking back on it made her much more uneasy. Especially when she thought of what could’ve happened if Jeremy had been stabbed.

Not that she wanted a knife through the belly either, but at least she wasn’t at a risk of bleeding out.

Marionette gave one final squeeze and only pulled away so he could go check on Jeremy. He dropped down at the ladder and finally noticed Jake who was moving some boxes underneath the stage. They exchanged a brief greeting.

“Hello again,” he greeted.

“Oh, hey,” Jake said. He shoved a large crate aside. “Glad to see you made it back in one piece. I’m guessing Gregory’s with Freddy?”

“He is. They should be here shortly. I need to check on Jeremy, if you’ll excuse me,” Marionette said. Though not curtly, and Jake didn’t stop him. Charlie almost did, confused at how she had missed Gregory, but decided to let it go for now.

Marionette ducked down and hastily climbed through the tube before popping out on the other side, startling both Jeremy and Sunny. He wasn’t sure exactly what he had walked in on, but Jeremy was wearing a Chica and Monty Gator hand puppet on each hand, Sunny had a Freddy one on his good hand, and Daisy was standing there with a Roxanne one pulled over her upper half like a costume.

“Sorry to interrupt,” Marionette excused. He didn’t wait for an invitation or explanation and instead climbed in the rest of the way and knelt alongside Jeremy. “I heard about what happened with the rabbit woman. Are you alright?” he asked worriedly. Laying a hand upon Jeremy’s shoulder.

“Oh yeah, I’m fine. I just got a little, uh… I’m guessing Charlie told you what happened, so yeah, I had a moment,” Jeremy vaguely answered. He seemed a little embarrassed about it now, but Marionette was still concerned for him.

“I just wanted to make sure. I know that can be upsetting for anyone, but…” Marionette trailed off.

Instead of finishing, he wrapped one arm around Jeremy’s shoulders and pulled him into a hug. As he did, Forget-Me-Not turned around in Jeremy’s jacket and gave him a hug as well. Or pressed her hands and cheek to his chest in a sort of hug.

Jeremy appreciated it, patting Marionette’s arm and Forget-Me-Not’s back respectively. Still wearing the hand puppets as he did so. They sat there a moment.

Then Sunny interrupted with a frustrated huff.

“Wh-What did she do this time-me?” he asked.

Marionette was contemplating how to go about telling Sunny when Jeremy beat him to it. “She sort of… Well, not sort of. She pulled a knife on us, me and Charlie.”

Sunny went still for a long moment. As still as he could, it seemed, as even in that rigid posture his head slowly started to lean towards the right. Probably to help take off weight from his left side. Then he gave a crackly laugh.

“Y-You’re joking!”

“No-.”

“Weapons aren’t allowed in the Mega Pizzaplexxx.”

It was almost jarring how easily that hoarseness slipped back into his voice. They were almost surprised that his eyes didn’t turn red too.

Jeremy wasn’t sure why he felt like tempting fate, but he found himself asking, “What about tasers?”

Sunny gave a staticky little tsking noise. “Fa-Fazbear Entertainment em-employees are allowed to carry tasers for the protection of themse-selves and guests. Si-Since you and Mike are former employees, technically I-I can trust you with them.”

“…How did you know we were former employees?” Jeremy asked.

Sunny’s face didn’t change but his voice grew coy. “W-Wouldn’t you like to know-w?”

If anything, that was more concerning. Though before Jeremy could ask what that meant, there was the familiar- familiar to Marionette and Sunny- sound of thumping footsteps coming past the back wall. Sunny turned his head sharply and glowed, only to be rewarded with a sharp pain and flinching with a squeak. He head cocking sideways as he tried to swallow the noise.

“Th-That’s Freddy,” Sunny remarked. He looked at the hand puppet before shaking it off into his lap and then running his freed fingers nervously over his points. “Oh boy, he-he’s gonna flip when he sees me-e…”

“He’s very worried about you,” Marionette agreed.

“Y-You told him?” the Sun squeaked, grabbing his points tighter.

“Gregory did, but we would’ve.”

“O-Of course he did-d…” Sunny sunk into himself slightly. Or into himself and slightly to the side.

Marionette pulled back from Jeremy with a pat on the back. “I’m going to go tell Mike what’s going on,” he said. He then turned and in a smooth motion was going back through the tunnel.

“I’ll come too,” Jeremy agreed. He removed the hand puppets and set them back into the appropriate box. “Girls, you can stay if you want. I’m not going far.”

Rose nodded and Daisy stuck an arm out to wave. Before he could slip into the tunnel, Forget-Me-Not decided to slip out from the bottom of his jacket and join her siblings. He smiled at her before continuing through.

“I never knew that was a door!” Freddy could be heard saying from the hallway. His footsteps grew closer before they stopped outside the door and he knocked.

“She said we could go on in,” Mike reminded.

“I know but I feel it is only polite,” Freddy said as he opened the door and stepped it. He stopped in place so fast that Mike might’ve walked into him if he hadn’t been paying attention.

The bear looked around with wide eyes at the room. Slowly he stepped into the middle of it, looking at the clutter and cobwebs and broken things- though not noticing Jake squeezing behind the boxes.

“This is… I was aware he did not have a green room, but this is not…” Freddy spoke. He was too distracted by the sight of the room to notice Marionette whisking Mike aside and whispering to him. “This is not what I expected…” Freddy said. His expression and voice dipping sadly as he saw the state of it. Though his eyes didn’t focus on the clutter, but the storage, the barely painted walls- which were not painted anything close to Sun or Moon’s coloring.

Gregory pushed for the hatch to open and looked around. “Looks like a dump.”

“Gregory!”

“What? That was what you were saying, isn’t it?”

“That was not at all what I was saying! It is… It is a very nice room! Sunny has done so much with… so very little.”

Though while they were distracted talking, Marionette whispered with Mike behind them.

“Mike, we have a problem,” he said.

“Sun’s still refusing to go?” Mike guessed.

“Vanny pulled a knife on Jeremy.”

“What?!” Not even seeing Vanny had filled him with as much alarm.

“He wasn’t hurt. Nobody was, Charlie got the knife away from her. Now, I checked on him and he seems put together, but I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for him.”

“Jesus…” Mike exhaled through his teeth. Looking over to see Jeremy coming through the tunnel and immediately heading over to him. “Jere? Hey, are you alright?” he asked.

“I’m half-blind and haven’t slept,” Jeremy joked. “But what else is new? Oh, thanks.” He took Mike’s offered hand and was helped to his feet. He was then put in a familiar position when Mike threw an arm around his shoulders reassuringly. “I guess Mari already told you about what happened in the basement.”

“He brought me up to speed,” Mike agreed. His face showed his protective concern and not a shred of nonchalance. “Seriously, though. Are you okay?” he asked quietly. Low enough to not draw anyone else’s attention.

“Uh…” Jeremy considered it for a moment. “…No. But I can pull through tonight. It hasn’t really hit me yet.”

“If you’re sure. If you change your mind and you need to tap out, I can give you the keys and you can head out to the car. Heck, you can just take my car home and we’ll catch a ride with Natalie or Fritz or something,” Mike said.

“I’m not about to leave you here and take your car,” Jeremy said with amused exasperation. “At worst, I might go out in sleep in your car. But only if I get really desperate.”

“Just know the option’s there if you need it,” Mike said sincerely. After a beat he managed to crack a smile, “And what, you don’t feel like sleeping in the middle of a football stadium with circus music blasting over your head?” He wasn’t in the mood to joke around, but Jeremy looked like he could use it. At least it got a smile out of him.

“Eh, no different than sleeping at work,” Jeremy half-joked. “…Maybe you should take the car. You look tired.”

“I’m starting to feel it,” Mike admitted. His voice betraying the weariness left behind after coming down from the high of the Vanny scare. He was sure Jeremy was probably feeling the same thing.

“I am sorry to interrupt, but where is Sunny?” Freddy asked with concern.

“In here,” Jeremy answered, tapping on the rim of the tunnel’s opening.

“Thank you,” Freddy said and began to carefully cross the cluttered room.

This was technically Jeremy’s first-time seeing Freddy in person. He knew what he was supposed to look like from the statue and advertisements around the Pizzaplex, but this was the actual real deal in person. Something that wouldn’t have been so significant if this wasn’t the friend Foxy had been meeting up with for the last few weeks.

“How is he?” Freddy asked lowly.

“He’s in some pain, but that’s not stopping him,” Jeremy offered.

Freddy gave a discontented hum and started to crouch down on one knee while resting the tips of his fingers on the tunnel. Before he could get into a full crouch though, he glanced back up to Jeremy as though to say something. But then he noticed something, looking a little closer at Jeremy, his eyes widening.

“Wait a moment…”

Mike was prepared to interject and introduce Jeremy if Freddy was about to grow suspicious, but instead the bear’s eyes alit with an unexpected excitement.

“Blond hair, blue eyes, wearing glasses- you must be Jeremy!” Freddy gushed in delight. He stood right back up, towering over the blond. “Foxy has told me all about you. It is a pleasure to finally meet you!”

“That’s me!” Jeremy agreed, trying not to seem too relieved. A clawed hand was offered to him, and he took and shook it. Freddy had a strong but controlled grip, not forcible or overpowering, he noticed. “Hope he’s said good things.”

“Only the best for his first mate,” Freddy assured with a chuckle. Jeremy might’ve imagined that tone in his voice if Mike hadn’t heard it too. “I am Freddy Fazbear! Welcome to the Mega Pizzaplex!”

“Glad to be here,” Jeremy joked. “I, uh, thought it was time I dropped in. Foxy’s talked about it so much I had to see it for myself.”

“I am glad to have you! Is Foxy here too?” Freddy asked eagerly.

“Ah, no. He has a show tomorrow and we had to fly over here. His brother was supposed to call him, so don’t be surprised if he just shows up.”

“That’s our Foxy!” Marionette chimed in, now standing alongside Charlie who had come down.

“Oh. Well, that is for the best I suppose. With all that is going on tonight,” Freddy said. Though there was a tinge of disappointment in his voice, one quickly replaced with a regretful tone. “My apologies for the… current state of the Pizzaplex. It is a fantastic establishment during the daytime hours, but we have been having some… peculiar incidents at night. Including but not limited to a dancing rabbit lady who is not on the guest list,” he said awkwardly.

Jeremy couldn’t help but visibly tense up. Freddy did not seem to notice.

“But that is not the most pressing matter… One moment please.” He crouched down and started opening his stomach hatch. “Gregory, would you mind stepping out? I need to crouch down to look through the tunnel.”

“You’ve crouched down with me in you before,” Gregory reminded as the hatch opened in front of him.

“Only when it was absolutely necessary. It is a more perilous position. Without proper handgrips, you will not be able to hold on adequately.”

“Fine…” Gregory sounded like he might’ve considered still arguing his point but decided in the end to just go ahead and slide on out.

He hopped to the floor before looking back at the tunnel. He stared a moment before looking back at the bear.

“Freddy, there’s no way you’re fitting in there.”

“You do not think so? Hmm. That might be a problem.” Though the way Freddy said that implied it was another one of his goofy jokes instead of an actual comment. Though his face sobered up as he leaned onto his knee to look through. “Sunny? Can you hear me?”

Sunny had his hand pulling at his points again. He tried to steady his voice as much as he could to reply. “Yes, Freddy?”

“Good. It is good to hear your voice. How are you?”

“Doing… Fine! Great. Great!” Sunny said, trying too hard to sound normal. “What about you Fred-d-d-ddyy?”

He slapped a hand over his frozen mouth. Not that it helped silence any of the crunchiness. On the other side Freddy got a much more concerned look while Gregory looked all but deadpanned.

“I am… I am well! I had my upgrade and I am now showtime ready… And Parts and Service is empty. There will not be any technicians in there until tomorrow morning, when Chica, Monty, and Roxy get their upgrades.”

“…Good,” Sunny said in a tiny voice.

There was a tiny thump from under the stage. Charlie had a feeling it was Jake dropping his head forward or back against a crate.

Freddy made a noise like clearing his throat and continued, “Gregory told me that you had an accident in Monty Golf. He said you were split down-.”

“I-I know what you’re getting at Freddy, and nope! N-Not going down there-re!” Sunny interrupted. Having to sacrifice any ruse of normalcy for that declaration. “…B-By which I mean I don’t NEED to go down there-re! I- hah- I can fix this-s myself! All I need is a little elbow grease and some duct t-tape!”

Freddy’s face fell with worried doubt.

“What happened to ‘I don’t want to live like this’?” Jeremy challenged.

“I changed my mind-nd!”

This was rewarded with a huffy “Uh!” from one of the Minireenas. Which quickly turned into a chorus of them. Sunny looked to them in surprise and disbelief as they fussed at him. 

“You’re just scared,” Gregory chided. “You’ve just got wires hanging out. When we found Freddy, his head wasn’t even on! If we could use that machine to put his head on, why can’t we use it to put your wires back?”

“What?” Charlie quietly asked Marionette.

“I’ll tell you later… but yes, that was exactly how it went,” he replied.

“His- His- What?!” Sunny sputtered. “What-at?!”

“I had a battery upgrade,” Freddy clarified.

“…Y-You’re battery’s not in your head-ad?! Oh, for- forget it- FREDDY, I am fiiine! I can fix this my-myself!” the jester continued to argue.

But somewhere in that the straining caught on his voice and Freddy was able to hear the pain he was feeling. Which made sense; as much as Sunny hated Parts and Service, this amount of defensiveness was less about the location and more because he was helpless with his valuable wiring exposed. No wonder he was more frightened than usual. Between hearing that and seeing this room…

Freddy’s fingers tightened on the edge of the tube.  It was a real shame he couldn’t just force himself through, but unless he could pull of his head and roll it like a bowling ball, that just wasn’t going to happen. He leaned down a little further to try and see better through the tunnel and realized that if he angled himself, he could just see the edge of Sunny’s points. He had to be hiding just around the corner.

Hiding from him, Fredy considered. Maybe that wasn’t the intention, but it felt like it. He sighed a little and spoke into the tunnel. His voice lowering further to a mere rumble of what it was moments earlier.

“Sunshine…”

Mike definitely recognized that tone. He stole a glance in Marionette direction and saw him peering back with a tiny smile on his face. So, he wasn’t the only one who noticed.

“I know you do not want to go down there. I am… aware of how the employees treat you…” Freddy looked back briefly and looked up at the room before his eyes dropped to the floor. A solemn look of pleading and concern settled on his face as he looked back into the tunnel. “But I also know that you are in pain. If we head down now, then perhaps we can repair you. All of us, together.”

There was a long moment of silence before there came a shuffling inside of the room. Freddy looked hopefully inside of the tunnel and soon saw Sunny’s face appear on the other side.

The jester turned onto his knees and leaning into the tunnel, purposefully hiding his chest underneath the lower rim. His frozen expression might’ve depicted a smile, but his listless points depicted elsewise. He rested his arm and head in the tunnel and tilted his face to look at the bear.

“F-Freddy, you know what’s gonna happen if I go down there. If I get on that table it’s not just gonna be to fix me-e… I-It’s gonna be to fix me-e,” Sunny murmured.

“There’s nothing wrong with you, Sunnydrop,” Freddy assured.

“Th-That’s not what they think!” he hoarsely whispered. “I just know they’re g-gonna try getting another software update into me while they’ve got the chance-ce!”

“We will not let that happen,” Freddy insisted. He looked over the other’s draped posture and felt his heart sink. “I know you are hurting. Please let us help you.”

“Wh-Whatcha gonna do if I don’t? Climb in and get me-e?” Sunny lightly teased. Walking his fingers down the tunnel until his arm was stretched out and tapped his fingers.

Freddy took the offering and reached in to lay his hand on Sunny’s. He gently closed his fingers around Sunny’s only to have his tightly squeeze back.

“No…” Freddy said. “…I will send in Gregory.”

Sunny gave a half-offended huff and Freddy smiled back at him and gave his hand a tiny tug.

Sunny gave an exasperated groan and pulled his hand back, rolling his head back and around to simulate the eye rolling that he couldn’t do. He disappeared out of view, hissing as he maneuvered himself around, and then eventually he returned, waved Freddy to move back, and then started to pull himself into the tunnel.

Freddy stood up and stepped back to give him room, and nearly knocked over a stack of cardboard boxes in the process. He righted it right before Sunny stuck his head out.

“I-I’ll go down under one condition-on,” he said, raising a finger. He then turned his hand around and beckoned him with the finger, then pointed it towards the door. “T-Talk to me in private-ate?”

“Of course! All you need to do is ask.”

“No, th-that’s not the condition,” Sunny corrected. He twisted his body enough to get his legs out and finally stood up. He still had that shuffling little gait he had before they split up.

Freddy had to withhold his shock at the sight of Sunny’s injury. Not just the loose wiring and open chest panel either but the fact that so much of his lighting was out. It took him everything he had to stay quiet.

“Y-You stay here,” Sunny said, pointing at Gregory as he passed.

The boy returned an unimpressed frown and watched Freddy follow him out and shut the door behind them.

“I-I need you to do something-ng,” Sunny instructed. He could tell from how intensely Freddy was staring him down that he was fighting not to look down at the exposed injury.

“Anything,” Freddy agreed. He was almost surprised when the jester reached forward and dropped his good hand onto his shoulder, then pulled him in quickly to whisper to him.

“T-Take Gregory downstairs and PLEASE give him a shower. H-He’s been in that nasty, germy water over in Monty Golf-f. H-He jumped right in-n!”

“My Gregory? Why did he do that?” Freddy said, surprised by the news.

“To drive me insane-ne,” Sunny fussed. “Here.” He had been carrying something tucked under his arm and only when he tossed it to Freddy was it revealed to be a shirt. “H-He can wear this. It’s a little big, but it’s clean-ean.”

“Thank you, I appreciate this. As I appreciate you keeping an eye on Gregory while I was not here,” Freddy said. He unfurled the shirt in his hands and peered down at the sun face staring back at him, then gave a deep chuckle.

“A-And what’s so f-funny?” Sunny asked while putting his hand on his hip.

“Oh… Nothing,” the bear said. Though between that tone and the slyly lidded glint in his eyes it was hard to be believed.

“Oh, I-I know what you’re thinking- and nope! Th-This was just the only one I had that wasn’t all dusty-ty. See, I don’t put as much importance onto a shirt-rt. N-Not like some people,” the Sun denied.

“Perhaps I do. I just found it peculiar that you would give him one of your shirts when they are so rare. I would understand if they were the only ones you had, but with all those boxes and access to your gift shop…” Freddy had a coy look and tone, and Sunny could only assume he was being cheeky just to push his buttons. “That is very generous of you.”

“I-I’ll have you know that the only one who’s soft on that little m-mischief-maker is you-ou,” Sunny denied.

“Hmm… I should take your word on it, but… I think that… I think you might like Gregory. I dare say you might be attached to him too.”

“Oh ho, so I’M attached am I, Papa Bear?! Wh-What about you!? Giving him free photo passes and sne-sneaking him into restricted areas! L-Let alone your green room-om!”

Freddy’s eyes widened at the comment. “You know about that? I… How?”

Sunny rested a hand on his cheek with a mockingly coy head tilt. “W-Wouldn’t YOU like to know?”

The look on Freddy’s face would’ve brought a snicker out of him if he wasn’t direly afraid that it would hurt like the dickens.

“L-Let’s just say that Moony tells me everything-ng,” Sunny clarified. He leaned in a little closer, voice lowering in suit. “Everything.”

“…Does he tell you how cute you are?”

Sunny’s points retracted instantly before he gave a flustered cry, smacking a hand over his face, points popping back out.

“WH-WHYYY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?! I’M ALREADY EMBARASSED ENOUGH AS IT ISSSS!” he choked out. Freddy didn’t know whether to chuckle or try to calm him down before he hurt himself. So instead, he got a rather goofy expression and started to reach for him. Sunny waved his hand away. “Oh, no! Y-You keep your hands to yourself-f!”

Now Freddy devolved into chuckles, but he stifled them as Sunny shuffled past him to open the door.

Meanwhile, the moment the two had headed out the door, Charlie walked up to Mike.

“Hey. Take a look at this,” she said. She flashed him the knife half hidden in her pocket. He hissed at the sight of it.

“That’s a knife alright. A kitchen knife too, just like the one Natalie saw,” he reminded. He stared at it a moment longer before adding, “I’m surprised she didn’t pull it on one of us.”

“She wouldn’t have had a chance to pull it on me,” Marionette said lowly. His voice edging with static.

“She wouldn’t have had a chance to pull it on either of you. It took her a couple of minutes to get it out of where she was stashing it,” Jeremy said matter-of-factly. He bent down to pick up the Minireenas who had followed Sunny out and came to stand around his feet. “It must’ve been in her boot.”

“I think so. It was a little too low for a leg strap,” Charlie agreed. “She was… creepy. I got a bad feeling from her.”

Mike sighed and looked to Marionette who had come up beside him.

“Well, Mari, there’s your segue,” he quietly coaxed. Marionette nodded, and Mike looked back toward Charlie and Jeremy and added, “Her name’s Vanny.”

“Vanny?” Jeremy asked.

“Right.”

“So, it is Vanessa?”

“Right… Maybe,” Mike caught himself. “Natalie raised a good point. She said the bunny chick might be looking to frame her.”

“I bet it is her,” Gregory suddenly chimed in. Effectively reminding everyone that he was there. “There’s something weird about her.”

There was a thumping noise and a “Sorry!” from Jake.

“It couldn’t be. She and Roxanne were chasing me at the same time Vanny must’ve run into you guys, because we ran into her running- I guess- away from you. What happened with you?” Charlie asked, looking to Marionette again.

He hung there a long moment before giving a low, slight tinny twang of a noise in his chest.

“I ran across Vanny in the basement after she had run off from Mike and Gregory. I began to chase her, intending to scare her straight, but… When I grabbed her, grabbing her just by the shoulders, I was filled with this pain and fear that was so bad that I couldn’t do anything by collapse on the spot. It was very much like the feeling I had when I touched that Baby lookalike, but so much worse. So all-consuming that I couldn’t handle it.”

Both Charlie and Jeremy looked shocked by the news. Even Jake was, though his reaction was unable to be seen. Marionette turned towards the other puppet with a solemn look.

“Charlie, whatever you do, do not touch that rabbit again. I’m surprised you were able to so much as knock the knife out of her hand,” he instructed. “Whatever she is or whatever’s inside of her, I don’t want it getting anywhere near you.”

“Do you think she’s possessed?” Jeremy quietly asked.

Marionette hesitated so Mike offered his answer, “Yes-.”

The door slammed open. “W-Whoever’s taking me down, get on up-p! This train’s a ‘leaving! Choo-choo!” Sunny called in. The moment broke up immediately, silently decided to be dealt on later.

Freddy came in as well, donning a smile in contrast to the grim look when he left.

“Gregory, I have an idea. How about we go play a few games in the arcade after we get back from your shower?” he offered.

It took Gregory a second to unpack that sentence because he knew something was off in it, and it became clear quickly that it was the last part.

“What shower?” he asked.

“The shower you will be taking to clean off the water from Monty Golf. It is a safety precaution,” Freddy answered.

“Let me guess, that was the “one condition”,” Gregory said, making air quotes. He looked suspiciously at Sunny and Freddy glanced over as well.

“It was... However, I too would have insisted on you washing off. The artificial pond in Monty Golf is a prime spot for tired guests to dispose of their refuse. The water IS treated but I would strongly recommend a quick rinse, just to be safe.”

“But Freddy that rabbit lady’s running around, Chica and Monty were both chasing me, that security lady’s out there. I can’t just stop and take a bath when the whole place is looking for me!” he exclaimed. Not to mention that he didn’t want to take a bath when he had to run at any minute. It was bad running around soaking wet the first time, and he had only just started to dry off.

“Gregory, nothing is going to get you while I am here to protect you, and I will always be here,” Freddy said in a softer tone. He leaned down to lay a hand on his shoulder. “And part of protecting you is making sure you are cared for.”

Because while Freddy would never say it, he noticed the unwashed texture to Gregory’s hair. He was not an unkept child by any means, so this lead him to believe that he just didn’t get the chance for a proper wash regularly. Which is awful.

Gregory wasn’t sure what to make of all of this. Sure, Freddy had been feeding him and playing with him, and keeping him safe from the others, but the idea of being ‘cared for’ made him feel weird. Like a little kid that needed to be babied, which he wasn’t. But on the other hand, he wasn’t going to make the mistake of putting up a fight and have them think he was just a little kid refusing to take a bath. Whatever, if Freddy insisted.

“Okay, fine. But its got to be a quick on,” Gregory said. His face then scrunched up in unease. “I’m not going to have to take a bath in a sink am I? Or like some kind of water hose for cleaning off robots?”

“No, no! The Pizzaplex is equipped with a showering facilities for the staff, and since I am staff I can let you use them,” Freddy said. “We can even wash your clothes. There is a laundry room down there as well, and I have this shirt for you to wear in the meantime. It is very cool.”

It was very orange too, so Gregory guess it had his face on it. He decided to agree and gave a nod.

“Okay. As long as it doesn’t take too long,” he said. Freddy opened his hatch, and he was about to climb in when he remembered something. “Hold on,” he said. He took off his backpack and then Mike’s jacket and handed it to him. “Here’s your jacket back. Thanks for letting me use it.”

“No problem Least I could do after getting us lost,” Mike said. He tossed it over his shoulder instead of putting it on and hoped the chlorine smell didn’t stick to his hair.

Marionette watched Gregory climb back into Freddy. Just the sight of the motion made him uneasy, especially when this time he had a better look at Freddy’s insides. Not to mention the latches that would secure the hatch in place-.

“Actually-.”

Mike was surprised by Marionette’s hand quickly reaching up and grabbing his jacket. He took it in a much gentler manner though, a sharp contrast to that initial snappy movement, and folded it over one arm. Mike willingly let him take it with no more than a raised brow.

“I think I will accompany Freddy and Gregory to the showers. Just to keep an eye on things,” Marionette said. He turned his head to look at Mike and he noticed his pupils were alit, betraying his hyper-vigilance. “I’ll wash your jacket while I’m down there. Don’t want you catching a cold.”

“Alright…” Mike agreed with only slight hesitance. Which he covered up with a more certain, “Alright. Just be careful, and don’t go chasing any rabbits.”

“I’ll try not to,” Marionette said.

“Thanks, Doll.” Mike hooked an arm around his waist and pulled him in for a kiss on the cheek. He could hear Marionette’s ticking, but it turned into a much more comfortable trill after the kiss.

With his stomach hatch secured, Freddy waited until Marionette caught up with him at the door before starting to step out. Stealing one last look to Sunny as he did.

“If you need anything, I can be down to you in only a few short minutes,” he reminded.

“Y-You better not. Y-You just keep that little bridge troll out of trouble-le.”

Freddy gave him a little two finger salute and left with Marionette in tow. Sunny helping push the door shut with his foot after them.

The moment that door was shut, Mike felt a sudden spike of anxiety as he second-guessed his decision.

“I shouldn’t have let him go. Not alone,” he thought. “She could just show back up. She knows she doesn’t need the knife now, and then she’s got a straight shot to Gregory. Unless Freddy’s immune to whatever that was.”

He couldn’t get that image of Marionette on the floor out of his head. That image would probably haunt him for years to come. He wasn’t particularly clingy, but it took every ounce of willpower not to give an excuse and race after him.

He reigned in his thoughts at the sound of thumping and looked to see Jake climbing out from behind the boxes. Brushing dust off his cloak as he did so.

“So, I pretty much already know the answer to this, but do you want me to come with you?” he asked.

“NO! No, no, no, it’ll go great! Y-You stay right here! I will be one-hundred and ten bazillion percent okay, okay-kay?”

“That’s a lot of okays, but okay,” Jake agreed, knowingly. Charlie found it weird that his didn’t push harder than that, but she supposed it had more to do with the risk of him being seen.

Mike turned his attention now on Jeremy who was trying to balance his dolls. “Why don’t you just hang back here? Charlie and I can probably handle it,” he offered. Charlie nodded in agreement.

“Thanks, but I’m good to go. Gives you another helping hand if something goes wrong,” Jeremy offered. He noticed Sunny’s head slowly turn towards him, the points sluggishly pulling in as he did. “Not that anything’s going to go wrong! Just if you need an extra person to help out.”

“We’ll give you a broom and you can beat back that Bot that hands out maps. He’s got it out for me,” Mike offered. Jake snorted a little at that. Or the mimicking animatronic equivalent.

“Deal,” Jeremy agreed. He started to slip the Minireenas back into his jacket for safe keeping.

“We’ll take good care of him,” Charlie assured Jake.

“I’m a little more afraid of how he’s going to take care of you,” Jake lightly joked.

And even though it was clear that he was joking, there was something strained in his voice. A genuine worry, and she reached out to pat his shoulder before following along with the others. Once again Mike offered to help Sunny, to which he was quickly rebuffed as the Daycare Attendant wobbled out the door. After giving Jeremy his deadpan look, Mike followed after him. Soon the door was closing behind them too.

Jake promptly got his control panel out and climbed back into the tiny room. He plopped down on the mound of bedding and hooked himself up to the panel.

Sunny would never allow Nanny Bot back in the daycare if she went into the basement. So, with a rather mischievous mirth glinting in his good eye, Jake connected himself to the next best thing. The only logical choice.

Hopefully Mike and Jeremy were bluffing about the broom.

Chapter 47

Chapter Summary

Marionette finally confronts his fears towards Freddy while Mike, Jeremy, and Charlie get a behind the scenes look at how Fazbear Entertainment 'fixes' their mascots.

Chapter Notes

I'm so sorry this took so long, but I hope you enjoy!

Freddy led Marionette down through an elevator located by the kitchen and past the loading dock to the Staff showers and lockers. This was, as far as Marionette knew, a first for Freddy Fazbear's. While they were a stickler for their employees to have a virtually undetectable scent- even strong perfume could receive a reprimand- they hadn't been nearly big enough to justify installing showers. Honestly, for having so few human employees, it was weird to have them at all.

It made Marionette wonder if the Pizzaplex wasn't always intended to have this much of a robotic workforce.

"Here we are! The shower room," Freddy introduced. Though it was less a room and more a hallway of showers with red curtains blocking them. He opened up his stomach hatch and let Gregory lower to the floor.

Gregory looked at the row of showers and seemed less than excited.

"And here you go," Freddy said. He handed him a bottle that he had grabbed off a random counter while coming in.

Gregory took it and looked at it. It was some kind of generic two-in-one shampoo and conditioner. It had the Freddy logo on it, but otherwise the bottle was a drab green and popping it open revealed that it smelled like soap. Boring old soap.

As much as Gregory didn't want to do this, he knew he had to. One look at Freddy's encouraging smile made it very clear that no amount of reasoning would get him out of this without Freddy being disappointed. Besides, he and Marionette were going to be out here. One of them would surely spot someone coming before they got to him. He slipped off his backpack and handed it to Freddy, then kicked off his shoes.

"I see you are using your backpack. Has it been working well?" Freddy asked, testing the backpacks weight.

"Yeah, it fits a lot of stuff. I've got a lunchbox and a bunch of tapes in there right now."

"Tapes?"

"Like, video tapes. Mike put them in there. You can look at 'em if you want."

Freddy hummed and curiously unzipped the backpack. He looked around at the tapes stacked inside before spotting the lunchbox. He poked it until it tilted back enough for him to see the Superstar Daycare logo, and he smiled.

"I see your new lunchbox," he said with a knowing tone.

"Don't get any funny ideas. Someone left it at the daycare and that Sun guy gave it to me."

"I see. How very fortunate! I will need to thank him."

Freddy wondered what was packed inside. Though he couldn't get the box out without removing the tapes, so he would just have to wait until later. He chuckled shortly to himself as he zipped the backpack back up.

He looked up in time to see Gregory throwing his socks and shirt on the floor beside his shoes in a soggy pile. Freddy gave a slightly disapproving hum and Marionette gathered the clothes in his arms, along with the rest that Gregory tossed out once he was behind the curtain.

"Now you should start by turning the hot and cold knobs equally and then adjusting them to fit the right temperature," Freddy suggested.

"Freddy, I know how to take a shower," Gregory replied flatly.

"My apologies. I just did not want you to burn yourself," the bear added. Once the shower was turned on and going, he turned towards Marionette. "It is quite fortunate that you came with us. I was not thinking at the time, but I would not have been able to leave Gregory to put the clothes in the washing machine. Would you mind staying with him?"

"Not at all. Here you are."

Marionette handed over the clothes and took the backpack to hold. No wonder Freddy took notice, it was a little heavier than he expected.

"Thank you. Gregory, I will be right back!" Freddy called in. He then turned and headed off.

This left Marionette alone with Gregory and despite the residual guilt it made him feel, he felt more comfortable that way. Freddy was a good person and by all accounts he had taken good care of Gregory and had been a good friend to Foxy. Yet he felt like there had to be a catch. That stomach hatch lent itself to suggest as much.

But being here watching Gregory- or standing guard outside of a shower curtain- made Marionette feel oddly contented. It made him feel like a protector again. That he could keep Gregory safe under his watchful eye. That there didn't have to be any losses this time, that he had gotten here quick enough to save someone. While he couldn't shake the fear that something had happened, this was enough to bring him comfort.

At least until Freddy's heavy footsteps returned. Marionette turned to greet him and watched Freddy come down the hall. Only now did he realize he hadn't given the bear any special directions for Mike's jacket. Which was likely fine. It was a relatively sturdy jacket; it could survive any wash that a kid's clothes could.

Freddy had brought back the orange shirt Sunny had given him, the green and black alligator print shorts he had gotten from the gift shop on the way here, and a towel. He held them on his arm at the ready for when Gregory needed them.

But he was surprisingly silent. Marionette noticed it immediately but had assumed Freddy was just waiting to get closer to speak, as to not risk drawing outside attention. It turned out that wasn't case when Freddy stopped a good five or six steps away. His steps, so a bit further than a human's own. It felt like a significant gap compared to earlier. Marionette acknowledged his approach with a greeting nod and Freddy stood there silently for a moment.

Then, as though having finally decided on it, he made a throat clearing noise to catch attention and then beckoned the Puppet to come over. Despite himself, Marionette felt his guard edge up, but he still drifted over to him.

"Mari, forgive me for bringing this up… but I have noticed that you have seemed bothered tonight," Freddy quietly said.

"Yes. It has been a long night," Marionette admitted. His head lowering and mask betraying his fatigue. "And this whole rabbit deal has my strings in knots."

"I am sure it has, but that is not what I meant," Freddy said. His voice surprisingly hesitant. "I meant that I noticed you have been… uncomfortable around me."

Freddy came off as at least a little oblivious. It was just a natural assumption that came from how blissfully optimistic Freddy seemed about what were serious issues in the Pizzaplex, but that was obviously not the case. Because somehow Freddy had still noticed the tension that Marionette thought he was hiding. It almost startled the puppet.

"…Yes, I have. I didn't mean for you to notice."

"Was it something I said? Or was it seeing me with my head removed?... Or is it because I was not present for what happened earlier?" Freddy asked softly. He sent a guilty look past Marionette at the shower curtain.

The Puppet quickly moved to the side to block his view. "Freddy, no! It's not that. It's…" Guilt started to well up inside of him. "…It's how you carry Gregory around inside of you. How you hold him in your stomach."

"I see, and I understand completely. I know it does not look very safe… and it is not as safe as I would like, admittedly. I am going against every precaution carrying him around like this-."

"No, Freddy. That is not it," Marionette quietly interjected. Freddy fell silent and listened expectantly for an answer. Marionette hugged himself with one arm, the other still holding the backpack that dangled beside him. "It is dangerous for a completely different reason. When I saw him climb in there, it brought back memories… It terrified me. It still does."

He tried to keep it vague, hoping that would be enough. Because he didn't want to go into those painful explanations.

"Why?"

But he was about to anyway, because Freddy looked thoroughly concerned and wasn't taking 'no' for an answer. At least, not unless Marionette put up a fight he wasn't willing to commit to.

"Because…"

But how was he supposed to tell Freddy the truth? The stomach hatch terrified him on so many levels. Children trapped in animatronics; numerous machines built by Afton Robotics with stomach hatches to hide them in and abduct them with.

"Because…"

Bodies stuffed into animatronics with the hopes that they would come back. People shoved into suits at the mercy of golden bears and faces that looked just like Freddy's. Bears that looked just like Freddy. Bears built like Freddy.

"…Because I was once trapped in the stomach of a bear that looked a lot like you. It was built to trap me inside. Someone made it with the intention that I would never get out… And I nearly didn't. I was stuck in there, trapped, and when I fought it would play music to make me weak. And when I fought harder it shocked me until I was limp… I barely escaped and when I look at your hatch… It reminds me of being trapped," Marionette said in a hushed, despondent voice.

Freddy's eyes went wide with shock. "That… I…" His voice was quiet, showing that same alarm but also a different kind of dread. It slowly sunk in as Freddy processed what the Puppet had just said to him. It all made sense, but it also didn't make any sense at all. How something like that could happen, how someone could build something like that, and why. "That is terrible! I cannot even begin to imagine… I can imagine but I also cannot imagine the fear you must have felt being trapped like that. No wonder you were uncomfortable around me! Mari, I am so sorry that happened to you!"

Marionette was almost a little embarrassed by the caring tone. "It's alright Freddy. It isn't your fault, none of this is. I just projected those feelings onto you, I suppose…"

"Very justified feelings, if I may say so," Freddy insisted. "Why on earth would anyone do that to you!?"

"It's, well…" That was a loaded question. It didn't help that by now he was starting to tick, meaning the risk of his voice catching at an inopportune time was very present. He rubbed his arm with slight nervousness. "It's a long story."

He was about to offer to tell it when he was suddenly cut off.

"It does not matter."

Marionette was surprised by the firmness in the bear's tone and looked to him questioningly.

"There is no reason to do that to someone. No matter what they are or what they have done… It is simply unacceptable," Freddy said. He watched Marionette's expression relax with understanding and his voice fell softer. "I knew the older models were… questionable but I had no idea they were capable of this! That someone could build such a thing is worrisome."

That caught Marionette's attention. "The older models? What have you heard about the older models?" he asked. His suspicion long gone and replaced with concern-tinged curiosity.

Freddy lowered his head. He almost looked ashamed. Or maybe just hesitant, like he knew he was saying something wrong.

"Do not tell Foxy. Please, I do not want him to know that I know…" Freddy murmured. The puppet nodded and the bear believed him, and continued, "I hear how some of the guests speak about me. Or about the… rumors about the old business. I am not surprised you are afraid of me, so are they. Though I AM surprised to hear this is true. We have always been told that the rumors were false."

Suddenly the water shut off and Gregory called out, "Okay, I'm done!"

Freddy covered up his concern as best he could. "Good job, Superstar! And here you go," he said. He handed the towel in through the curtain. To which Gregory gave a quick "Thanks!"

"We should continue this later… But if it is any consolation, that trap that was built for me was not an old model. It was recently built," Marionette quietly said. "Foxy and I are older models though."

"I was not trying to imply-."

"No, no. It's okay. I know you weren't. I am just assuring you that… Hmm…" Marionette paused to think about it. "…That even though we are something, that doesn't make us dangerous. A fitting moral." He smiled a bit, which Freddy returned.

"I agree," he said. He opened his mouth again like he was going to say more when he was interrupted.

"Shirt!" Gregory called and stuck a hand out.

"Shirt!" Freddy repeated. He flipped the orange shirt off of his arm and into Gregory's hand.

"Thanks!" The arm drew back in behind the curtain. After a few seconds there was a groan. "Fred-dy!"

"Yes, Gregory?"

"I thought you were going to get me one of your shirts, like that one we saw the other day. Not this!" He held the shirt out and shook it, showing off the sun face on it. "This one's got the Sun's face on it! If anybody sees me in this, they're going to think I like him!"

Marionette got a small smile and chimed with amusement. Freddy was just as nonchalant about it. "I apologize, Gregory. It was the only one that Sunny had on hand. I could go get you another one if you would prefer."

"No, I'll wear the stupid Sun shirt," Gregory grumbled. He could be heard pulling it on. "Pants?"

"Very cool pants!" Freddy offered, repeating his earlier action. Gregory took them and started to put them on behind the curtain. Meanwhile, Freddy hummed. "The hourly recharge is coming soon. The clothes will be fine; many of the appliances in the Pizzaplex are programmed to come back on and continue their prior processes before the recharge takes place… I am more concerned about Sunny. I hope they are not working on him when the lights shut off…"

"I'm sure they'll be watching the clock. Sunny doesn't strike me as the type to let something like that slip by," the Puppet said.

"He is not. He is very much on top of everything, especially time… Perhaps I will send him a message of support," Freddy said. He then closed his eyes and fell quiet for a significant amount of time. Marionette could hear his servos humming.

Gregory threw back the shower curtain with a less than enthused look. Freddy shot him a winning smile and a thumbs up.

"Looking good!"

Gregory didn't believe him. He believed that Freddy believed it, but he didn't believe it was true. He stepped out and looked down for his shoes, furrowing his brows.

Marionette answered his silent question. "They're in the washer."

"Oh," he said simply. Marionette offered his backpack, and he slipped it back on. It too was still a little damp, but with the material it was wet enough to soak into his dry shirt. Even if it did, he would probably use it as an excuse to switch into a less kiddie one. "So, what are we going to do now?" he asked.

"It will be a little while until the clothes are done. How about we return to the daycare and play a few games while we wait for them to finish?" Freddy offered.

"Sounds good to me," Gregory agreed. It sounded a lot better than sitting around waiting down here. He stepped forward and Freddy got the signal and leaned over, opening his hatch so he could climb in.

Marionette watched the hatch open and could feel his spools tightening again. That apprehension rising inside as he looked at that open cavity and finally pinpointing why it was.

His hand shot forward.

"Wait," he said. His hand raised to stop the bear. Freddy looked to him with concern and Gregory with confusion. Marionette looked pensively at Freddy's open stomach hatch. He closed his hand into a fist and rubbed his fingers nervously. Finally, he dared to ask, "May I… May I climb inside of your stomach hatch?"

Freddy's eyes popped open in surprise. "Wh-What? You want to… climb inside of me?"

"Yes," Marionette said. His voice quiet and slightly unsure.

"But I thought you were scared of the hatch. After what you went through, why would you want to climb inside?"

"Because I am scared of the hatch and I'm tired of it," the Puppet answered. The motion of his mask showed him looking back up at Freddy. "If you are comfortable with it. I don't want to impose myself on you… Or, well, in you."

"No! That would be fine if it would help you confront your fear. I just am not sure that you will fit…" Freddy said. Looking over the rather tall puppet and glancing briefly down at the relatively child-sized opening.

Marionette laughed with only a slight hitch of anxiousness. "That's no trouble. Believe me, I've fit into cardboard boxes even tighter than that," he assured. "But only if you are alright with me doing so."

"I am! Here."

Freddy turned towards him with his hatch fully opened. The Puppet felt the tenseness spread to his comb now and released a hiccup of a chime to take the tension off. Freddy looked worried and Marionette recovered with a more natural smile before reaching forward and laying his hands on Freddy's shoulders. He rested his hands there a moment before lifting himself up with his arms and lowering in legs first.

It was a little tighter on the inside than he expected. Largely because of Freddy's endoskeleton taking up so much space in the middle. He bent his knees and continued sliding inside, regardless of how every instinct told him not to.

"It's a tighter fit than Lefty's hatch, that's for certain…"

"Lefty?" Freddy asked.

"Oh, the bear. The bear trap I told you about. Well, actually his name is Chance now. The man who tried to trap me in the bear passed on a little too closely to it and now he's the bear. Which is also terrifying, as he has admitted that he still gets the urge to trap me… Though then again, he doesn't like me very much. He might've been saying that to keep me from popping by as much," Marionette somewhat rambled nervously.

"He became the bear?" Freddy asked in confusion.

"Yes."

"Wait, is this like that haunted thing you were talking about? You said you were haunted, like you're a ghost or something?" Gregory connected.

"That's right. I used to be a human too. As was Chance and Charlie, Foxy, and there's plenty more of us outside-…!"

At that moment Marionette just happened to catch a glance at Freddy's face and saw how he was staring at him. It was with shock or wide-eyed confusion. As though Marionette's words were surprising to him.

Which was the exact moment when Marionette realized that Freddy didn't know.

"And… me?" Freddy asked, confirming as much.

Normally the Puppet would've said yes off the bat because he knew Freddy was too awake and aware to be fueled by something like the virus that controlled the unnatural Circus Baby. No, Freddy must've been a person, he was certain of… he just didn't know it. Which made Marionette a little hesitant to suddenly blurt it out. It could be a jarring realization to just have thrust upon someone- especially if it roused memories.

"Perhaps…" Marionette answered vaguely, gently. "…Do you remember anything like that?"

"I cannot. Though Foxy did ask me a similar question…" Freddy said. He then made the connection, Marionette saw it click in Freddy's eyes. "And you said Foxy also used to be human?"

"Yes… But please, don't let that change your opinion of him. Remember, he is still the same pirate he was before I told you," Marionette said. A twang of worry lingering in his voice.

"I would never! Foxy is one of my- is my closest friend. It just explains some things…"

Marionette waited a moment to make sure Freddy was alright. The bear looked to him expectantly which gave him the go ahead to continue climbing in. Trying to escape the conversation gave him enough willpower to stop dragging it out and just squeeze in. It was a weird fit and he had to have his neck bent painfully to get his head inside. His entire body folded up and compressed so tightly that he couldn't recall if he had ever been in such a position.

All the while, Freddy had started to talk again. Now he seemed to be the one rambling.

"We are supposed to be the most advanced models, the Glamrock line. We are able to emote and feel just as humans would… Yet Foxy does so too, and he is not as advanced as us- err, don't tell him I said that."

"I won't," Marionette said. His voice portraying a little of his strain. A small puff of non-aggressive static slipping out like a sigh. "You can close the hatch."

"Alright. I will close it slowly."

Freddy slowly closed the hatch, and then closed it again once Marionette squeezed further inside. The latches clicked into place, and he was trapped inside the claustrophobic space. His ticking was increasing, and his spools were so tight that his strings might've snapped. He was surrounded by the hums and tones of Freddy's internal system. It sounded much more electronic than Lefty's hatch ever did.

"It's alright. You are alright. You could teleport straight out if something went wrong. You are safe," Marionette told himself. He started repeating the last line like a mantra, even starting to imagine it in Mike's voice to calm him down.

"Mari, is everything alright? You seem to be… ticking," Freddy asked. His voice rumbling from the speaker above. "You can come out now if you like. You have faced your fear!"

"I would, but I- I can't until I calm down. Until I relax. Then I will have faced my fears," he insisted.

"I understand. Take all the time you need. You are doing excellent so far," Freddy encouraged him.

"Doesn't that feel uncomfortable?" Gregory asked. His brows permanently furrowed since the puppet had actually fit inside.

"Not at all! He is quite soft," Freddy assured.

Strangely enough, Freddy talking did help. It was a sharp contrast to the soft shushing and music box lullaby of Lefty. A reminder that he was aware and willingly going along with this at Marionette's insistence. It helped relax him a bit.

Eventually he deemed himself calm enough to get out. Not all of the tenseness had gone away, and the tight hatch still made him uneasy to think about, but at least he felt a little better about it. Better enough that he had stopped ticking.

"Okay. I'm going to get out now," he said.

"Would you like me to help? I could tilt forward," Freddy offered.

"I can handle it, but thank you," Marionette said. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate the help, but he wanted to do it himself. It seemed more appropriate.

Marionette reached back and up, bowing his back to reach, and hooked his hands on Freddy's shoulders. Then with one swift push of his legs he pushed his upper half back out of Freddy's hatch. He found himself back face to face with Freddy, pausing there to take a breather. He needed one after feeling so suffocated even without lungs to fill.

Freddy smiled encouragingly at him, and Marionette naturally returned it.

He felt better. He truly did.

Sunny had one rule upon leaving the daycare. "Wh-When I start setting, you all look away, m'kay-ay?" Considering he requested such while wringing his hands with his good hand, this clearly came from a place of nervousness. Nobody argued.

This request made much more sense a few minutes later when Sun stepped outside the daycare and started to immediately shift. He gave a pained cry as the change took over, but the others did as agreed and averted their gazes. By time they looked back the Moon had returned and was now shuffling down the hallway. They were lucky nobody came out to investigate. Natalie must've heard it but likely didn't rush out because of Mike's forewarning earlier.

Moon still refused help as he limped along leading the way. He took them a different way to the one Jake initially led them down, involving an elevator by the kitchen, a few hallways, and coming out the door outside the double doors to Parts and Service. The only time he let anyone overtake him was to check for a light switch in any halls that were lit up. Usually there was one, if it wasn't dark enough for him to just walk through.

But they arrived at Parts and Service in one piece. Moon leered at the large safety capsule before glancing to the two men who came up at his side, waiting for his go ahead. He made an impatient noise and pointed them at the monitor.

"T-Turn that on and put in a repair request-st," he instructed. Mike nodded and headed over to do so, with Jeremy shortly behind him. Moon decided to stay put as long as he could.

Charlie did too apparently. She was standing at his left looking at the massive piece of machinery looming before them. He was too aware of her presence, likely due to the pain in his side leaving him agitated. She could tell. Though not towards her, more so picking it up in the sharp way he addressed Mike and Jeremy.

That was when he gave an impatient little huff and a quiet, "What now?" Charlie looked to him to find his eyes darkened and his head down, as though he was focusing with his eyes closed.

Much to her surprise, Moon gave a low, out-of-place giggle. He kept his head down for a moment longer before lifting it. He noticed her looking at him and turned his head back away, pulling down his cap a bit.

"Preparing for repair procedure. Please deliver the animatronic mascot into the protective cylinder and secure it onto the work chair."

Moon winced further, growling or groaning lowly before dragging himself towards the cylinder. Charlie followed along behind him.

"Are you still going in, Charlie? If you want, I can go in there with you. I went in with Freddy," Mike offered.

"No thanks, I think I've got it covered," Charlie said. She looked towards Moon to see if he would give any input.

He didn't. Instead, Moon just silently limped to the door, halting in spot when it opened, and gave the slightest shudder. It was unclear if it was from the light partially falling on him or just the sight of the work chair. He stepped inside and began to shift back into Sun, trying to suffocate any sounds of pain.

"He might be more comfortable if it's just me," Charlie whispered quickly. Mike agreed and sat down in the office chair as she headed in after the pending patient.

Even with his frozen face, Charlie could tell from his slightly tilted head and drooping posture that Sunny was looking at the work chair with utter distain. He barely acknowledged Charlie coming in behind him except to step forward beside the chair, and then finally climbing up onto it. He settled onto it uncomfortably.

"Security Frequency recognized. Welcome, Daycare Attendant. Activating comfort restraints."

The head rest spread and tilted forward. The two padded edges closed around Sunny's neck. The armrests then closed to clamp onto his arms, or on his limp arm as the other was still bent back behind him. A band restraint then slid out and secured around both of his thighs. Sun's points recoiled but he didn't react with much surprise elsewise.

"Whoa, wait. Did they do this to Freddy?" Jeremy asked.

"No." Mike got up from the office chair to look and spotted the newly applied restraints. He threw his hands up in a shrug. "Sunny, I didn't do that."

"I-I know! This is normal-al!" Sunny called back.

"…What?" Mike returned.

"What?" Charlie mirrored. Though before she could receive an answer from him, she got the answer from another source.

"Daycare Attendant's right arm is not secured in the proper restraint. Daycare Attendant must be retrained before the repair can proceed."

Sunny groaned and balled his hand into a fist. He knew he wasn't going to get out of this and started to lower his arm slowly, shakily. That was, until Charlie caught it.

"Wait. Maybe they can override this," she offered. She turned to look out the window and called, "Can you turn this off?"

"I'll try!" Mike called back. He sat down and found the error pop up on the monitor. He clicked around trying to get it to cancel out, since there was no 'x' to close it, but it just flickered and stayed. He inhaled slowly and exhaled, "Jere, do you think you can help me out with this? You're better with computers."

Jeremy leaned over beside him to look at the screen. "…Yeeeah, let's try this," he said. He pressed a few buttons down- control, alter, and delete- but the pop up flickered. "Okay, so that's not going to work. Let's just…" He started to press the escape button to no avail. "Huh. It's really putting up a fight."

They continued trying to work with the monitor. Sunny watched them a moment before groaning and rolling his head in Charlie's direction.

"I-It's no good. Th-They ALWAYS do this," he said. His voice filled with weariness that might've suited Moon's exasperation better.

"They'll figure something out. There's got to be a way around this," Charlie assured him. He gave a frustrated cry and twisted his legs on the chair as much as he could.

"I-I just wanna get this OVER with-th. I don't even want to BE here-re," he whined. He turned his head to look at them, then to her, then down at the restraint, and then with an irritated huff he suddenly slammed his arm down into it.

It immediately locked into place around him. His points pulled in again, the only telltale of his immediate regret.

"Good job. The Daycare Attendant is now secured. We can now begin repair procedures. You may now enter the protective cylinder and begin a visual diagnoses. During which, make sure that the animatronic is secure in the restraints. Enter findings into the control module after diagnoses is complete."

Mike got up and he and Jeremy headed into the cylinder. Though it was less because the robotic voice told them and more because they wanted to figure out what was going on. Now they both got a look at the restraints.

Sunny turned his head away in embarrassment. "Qu-Quit staring! Can't we just get this over with-th?" he asked.

"What happened? Did it close on you?" Jeremy asked.

"No, he put it in himself. Just like he said, to get this over with," Charlie said with slight tiredness and exasperation.

"Sunny, you didn't have to do that-."

"YES! Tick, tick, time's tick-cking away! If- If I'm in here when the lights go off, golly gee, I'm g-going to be in so much pain!" Sunny blurted out. His growing panic finally starting to leak out in full. "C-Can't we just hurry up, PLEASE?!"

"Okay, okay, we'll speed it up," Mike assured him. He looked down at Sunny's side and said quietly to Jeremy, "What would you say, damaged left side and exposed wires?"

"That sounds like it'll cover it," Jeremy agreed. "Maybe put in that it's on the chest too."

"We're going to go do it now," Mike told Sunny.

"Y-Yup!" he replied. Still tense, still agitated.

Able to tell they weren't helping, Mike and Jeremy decided not to stick around and instead do what he said. They returned to the monitor to find what looked to be a blueprint of Sunny's body on the screen. As Mike scrolled the pointer over, different sections lit up.

"I'd say right there," Jeremy said, pointing to his side. Mike nodded, rolled his mouse to it, and clicked.

"Middle left quadrant. Click anymore points of interest. When finished, press the enter key to begin scan."

"I'm just going to click the whole chest."

"Good idea."

He did and then pressed the enter key. The machine whirred to life inside the cylinder.

"Beginning scanning procedure."

One of the arms lifted to the ceiling and pulled something that looked like a square microphone out of the base of the tools, connected to its spot by a scrunched cord. Though except for a microphone cap, it had a round lens mounted on the tip of it. The lens protruding out of the socket like an eye. It was lowered to Sunny's side where a flickering blue light came from it and scanned along the damage. It readjusted and took a second scan on the chest.

"Taking additional scans."

The scanner was moved to different angles as it did a few more quick scans. Up at Sunny's shoulder, further down by his side, and very close to his chest. So close it nearly bumped the protruding wires.

"Scanning complete. Oh dear, it appears that Daycare Attendant has a breach in his hull. It will require a replacement. A warehouse Staff Bot is on its way with the part. In the meantime, let's get everything ready. Open the panel on Daycare Attendant's lower arm and plug in the cord from the back of the service chair."

Charlie hesitated before reaching forward to Sunny's arm. "Can I…?"

"H-Have to," Sunny answered.

She took that as a yes. Though before she could do any more than touch the arm, the panel popped open. Obviously, he did it himself. Charlie reached behind the chair and found the little white plug, which looked like a longer version of the wire Jake used to plug himself into his control panel and brought it around to plug into a slot in his arm. Sunny looked down at it warily, though it was hard to tell with his mask.

Some statistics popped up on the monitor screen. Security code, power level, currently in 'Sun Mode', positive for both 'R' and for in functional order. A lot of stuff that was hard to decipher, especially when it flicked off the screen almost immediately. Either way, Mike pulled over a nearby sticky pad and started writing most of it down just in case. Jeremy gave him a thumbs up out of the corner of his eye.

"Good job. Please stand by while the Daycare Attendant is being repositioned. If you notice any looseness in the restraints, make sure to flag down and inform any technicians outside of the protective cylinder."

Sunny's fingers grabbed at the end of the armrest as he watched the clawed arms start to lower towards him. The chair tilted upright and stopped, then the neck rest pushed forward and lifted him partially from the back of the seat. Raised until there was a significant gap between him and the chair, his arms still in the restraints. He groaned a little at the tug on his side from his limp arm.

"The Daycare Attendant is now ready for repairs. In case of an emergency, the protective cylinder will protect important service personnel outside of the protective cylinder… Begin by unscrewing the two red knobs on the Daycare Attendant's chest."

That was Charlie's cue to step in again. She looked to Sunny questioningly, he was looking back at her, tapping his fingers on the armrest impatiently. She literally stepped in beside him and reached for the knobs. Thankfully they weren't directly on the seam, so she was easily able to avoid the protruding wires. She gently and carefully unscrewed the button-like knob and pulled both free. His chest shifted a little, like the panels were loosened.

"Good job. Now please stand by while the automated systems remove the defective hull piece."

Charlie took a few steps back to around the lowering arms. Two claws descended on Sunny and grabbed ahold of the opened panel. He whined at the sensation as a third arm lowered behind him and used a tool to start opening up his seams. His fingers grabbed tightly at the arm restraint and Charlie stepped right back forward, taking his hand in hers. His fingers tightened around hers. Hers squeezed back in an attempt to comfort him.

The claws removed the bent panel and practically that entire corner of his chest. Part of the back as well, as when it was pulled away, she could see the half circle of the opening in his back. Two arms grabbed ahold of his upper left arm and suddenly popped it into place. That was enough to make Sunny cry out and twist up his legs.

It was horrifying to watch. It was the closest Charlie felt to actually feeling sick, watching this happen and knowing Sunny could feel it. She would've shut him down in a heartbeat, but there was no shutoff on his neck. She could see that for herself. She wasn't the only one who noticed either. Jeremy and Mike were watching too. Jeremy standing at the window, Mike standing beside the desk, and both looking equally disturbed in their own ways. Horrifying even for humans.

"Carefully return the exposed wires into the remaining casing. Be sure to use Fazbear-quality electrical tape to seal up any damaged wiring."

"Fazbear-quality electrical tape," Charlie muttered in disbelief.

"B-Be carefulll…" Sunny warned quietly. His voice now much hoarser.

"I'll do my best," she assured him. Squeezing his hand one more time, she leaned forward to begin.

Charlie carefully cupped the mass of wires and began to slowly lead them back into his chest. Sunny went rigid the moment she touched them, but he only released the tiniest wince as she did so. It was much more restrained than when the machine was working on him. Though she didn't know if it was because she was doing a good job or because he was trying to smother it.

The wires laid in pretty easily. The hardest part was just going slow to make sure there was as little pain as possible. It wasn't long before they were carefully tucked in, and she drew away.

"Good job."

There was an eerily long pause after those to words. Then a beeping noise came from somewhere above.

"The Daycare Attendant is showing high levels of activity." Sunny went rigidly still on the spot. "Before we continue, let's soothe it with a controlled shock."

Charlie was startled. "Are they serious...?"

They were very serious. One of the arms took another wand like the scanner out of the base and lowered it towards the chair. The difference being that the head of this one much more closely resembled a Fazbear Entertainment-brand taser.

"I-I didn't even move this tiiiiIIIIME?!" Sunny yelled, his voice peaking as he stared at the taser lowering down in front of his face. It angled itself like it was aiming for his neck. "NO! No, no, no, no, turn IT OFF!"

What he didn't know was that Mike was already on it, trying to click out or cancel out with the tricks he saw Jeremy use, to no avail. Blocked by a screen that simply read "Procedure Underway" with a little Freddy head spinning underneath it. He was starting to grow frantic, half banging on the keys and looking for any way out. Direly not wanting to be the reason that this injured person was suddenly electrocuted into submission.

"Jeremy, help me!" Mike didn't know what Jeremy could do, but at this point he was out of options, and he was the only person he could count on.

"I'm on it!" Jeremy was back from the window and at his side in a second, though just as aware as Mike that his options were limited.

He tried the same tricks again, and when they didn't work added in bolder ones. There was a power button on the monitor but pressing it did nothing. The monitor refused to cooperate. Even if it did, neither was sure it would halt the process.

All the while Charlie was inside the protective cylinder being the only thing standing in between Sunny and the taser. Since she couldn't physically do so without getting on top of him, onto his open chest cavity, getting tased, and likely tasing him in the process, she settled with trying to wrestle back the arm while the automated voice repeated warnings for her not to do so. Sunny watching the whole thing while helplessly cinched in the seat.

It bought them time, but not enough time to figure out a solution. Jeremy was trying another set of keys when Mike noticed a nearby sound and looked back, and then both were all but pushed aside as some charged through and took over.

Which, considering that it was the Map Bot, left Mike and Jeremy very confused.

Using the edges of what appeared to be clumsy fingers, the Map Bot somehow chicken pecked at the keys like a natural. Something that tipped off Mike to the fact that this likely wasn't the same Map Bot he ran into earlier- at least, not under the hood. He looked to Jeremy, but the blond didn't notice. Instead, he tried to watch the keys it was pressing.

Much to both of their shock, and relief, the Map Bot managed to bring up another screen. One with the simple question, "Are you sure?" splayed on it. Map Bot waved for both and either Jeremy and Mike and pointed a hand towards the mouse. It then rolled back out of the way. Jeremy got to the mouse first and clicked on the yes as Mike scooted the chair back over.

As soon as that yes was clicked, the arm stopped pushing back against Charlie. It hung there a moment before raising back to the ceiling and inserting the tased back into the base. All alongside an automated warning.

"The controlled shock has been manually cancelled. Proceed with caution."

Sunny's hands went limp, but the rest of his body was still rigidly stuck upright. His points were still drawn in. Charlie looked to him with concern.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Uh… huh… Uh huh," he answered. He was clicking and rattling inside, probably worsened by his bouncing leg, and his fans had kicked into overdrive. Charlie took his hand again and after a moment he squeezed back, his grip looser now.

Jeremy looked in on the scene and breathed a sigh of relief. Mike did as well, but then sent a somewhat deadpanned look at the Map Bot still posted at his side.

"So…" he said, leaning back exhaustedly in the office chair. All but collapsing into it. "Is this a new thing or is handing out maps your side hobby?"

That gave away that he already knew it was Jake. How could he not, considering it had pretty much just brute forced its way into shutting down an automated system. Something he doubted a casual Staff Bot could be capable of doing.

The Map Bot, Jake, gave an unreadable shrug and a less than clear, "Hi. Please take a map." Which got Mike to raise a brow.

Though that brow dropped and his face softened into a look of sincerity. "But thanks. There's no way we were going to stop that. You really came in on the clutch."

The Map Bot lifted and moved his hand side to side. "Take a map."

"No thanks. I've already got one."

"I'll take one," Jeremy volunteered. Map Bot took a map out of his holder and handed it over. He opened it up to look at it. "Wow, that's a lot of basement."

"Yeah, and we walked through most of it trying to find our way here," Mike remarked.

There was a clatter at the door, and both looked over to see another Staff Bot rolling through. It had a green hat and shirt on and was carrying a cardboard box. It rolled over and handed off the box to Jeremy, the first human it saw, before turning around and rolling back out.

"This must be the part," Jeremy said. He sat it on the edge of the desk to open it, stealing a brief glance at Mike. "No, 'No, you think'?"

"I'm tired," Mike said. He still sat upright and fished out his pocketknife to pass on to Jeremy.

He used it to cut the tape away and opened the flaps. Much to his surprise, it wasn't just one part like they were expecting, but Sunny's entire chest section. Just separated into its individual plates.

While he was getting out the pieces, another message broadcasted into the protective cylinder- "The required part has arrived. Please exit the protective cylinder and retrieve the package from the warehouse Staff Bot." -and the automated door opened and allowed Charlie to step back out.

"What's up?" she asked dryly.

"Here it is: Sun's new chest," Jeremy replied. He held the casing out for her to see it before nudging the box towards her. "They've got the whole thing in there too. I just took out what we needed."

Charlie pulled in closer with her finger and peeked in. It was surprising how much color had to have come from Sunny's lighting system, because the chassis was a neutral grayish-white color, and unsurprisingly thin.

"Hey," Mike said. She looked at him. "Do you want to tag out? I could go in with him."

She smiled back. "Nah, I've made it this far. I can handle it."

"Sure you can. But one of us could come in with you if you wanted. Only one of us is needed to man the mouse," he offered.

While they were talking, Jake rolled Map Bot over to the side window to look in at Sunny. He knew there was no way he would've been able to get Map Bot inside the door with the pathing route being blocked for Staff Bots, so this was the next best thing. He could tell he was stressed from here, head back and staring at the ceiling with unwavering fixation. Jake tapped his hand on the window and only then did the jester look at him with milky blue eyes.

Jake waved at him. Sunny waved back; his right arm still trapped tight but the motion still being visible. He was relieved to know Jake was here, but it didn't sate all of his fears. He was growing more agitated with every passing moment, and it didn't help that to him his supposed helpers were outside the door chatting amongst themselves. Even if it was about how they were going to go about this. His patience ran out before they could finish.

"C-Can we just get this over withhhh?!" Sunny hissed. His voice having now fully changed into the one associated with his Moon self. Snapping them out of their discussion in an instant.

"We are, don't worry. We still have a while before the power goes out," Charlie called back. The only reason she had even taken this long was to give him a break. She took the casing section from Jeremy. "I think I'll just go in myself. He's not comfortable and we shouldn't crowd him."

"Right. Good idea," Jeremy agreed. She headed inside and he stepped forward to watch through the window after the door shut and secured.

"Align the replacement casing along the appropriate seam and hold it steady while it is mended back into place. It is very important that you do not move during the mending procedure. Coming into contact with the Quick-Weld may lead to severe burns, blood loss, or an amputation of fingers or greater value limbs. Fazbear Entertainment is not liable for any injuries sustained by not following exact directions."

It rushed out the last part awful fast, but Charlie caught the jest of it. She came over and carefully aligned the panel where it needed to go. From the opening in the back to the seam on the waist, it fit on perfectly. She made sure to keep her hands flat on the panel and her fingers drawn in.

Suddenly a metal arm looped down and began to quickly make its way around the seam. It had a tiny welding head on it and closed up said seam in only a matter of moments, maneuvering around Charlie to seal every crack. It pulled away and she dared to remove her hands, only to replace them as another arm came down. Though this arm has what looked like a micro sized buffer head attached to it and quickly ran it over the welded seam. By time it was done, it was barely visible.

"Good job. Now replace the knobs and screw them back in."

Charlie did so, being careful as she tightened them all the way until they were properly secured.

"Good job."

Now she removed her hands for good. Just in time, as the chair began to move once again. The neck restraint slid back and allowed Sunny to lay back on the backrest once more. This was the first time she noticed that his eyes were blue. His head had been turned away when she came in and she kept her eyes on her work, so only now did she see the change. She had a hunch.

"How are you feeling, Sunny?"

"Nnngh… Sore," Sunny replied. He still had Moon's voice. Hunch confirmed.

"Good job. Now use the lighting controls to test the Daycare Attendant's emission system."

The arm that lowered with a panel for Mike to reattach Freddy's head lowered and presented itself to Charlie so she could use it. The only part of the panel that responded was the knob, as when she turned it the bright lights above the chair began to dim. She paused instantly and looked to Sunny.

"Is it okay if I try turning the lights down?" she asked. He tilted his head in a lethargic and confused way. "I don't want to hurt you," she clarified.

"…You won't. I'm not going to fight it," he assured. He readjusted his head on the chair and leaned back like he was sinking into it.

Taking that admittedly uncomfortable answer as a go-ahead, Charlie began to turn down the lights until they were off. She half expected him to slowly turn from yellow to blue, but instead halfway through the process he suddenly flipped over. He gave a hiss and huff of discomfort, but it was nothing like earlier, and to everyone's relief they watched the blue glow return to his left arm.

"Alright, looks like you're good to go! And not a moment too soon," Charlie said encouragingly. She slowly turned the lights back off and watched Moon turn back into Sunny. Sure enough, his glow was still functioning.

"Hurray…!" Sunny said tiredly. His voice starting to soften up again.

"Well done. The Daycare Attendant is now ready to return to the daycare. You may now exit the protective cylinder."

But Charlie instead decided to stay inside and let the others handle the work on the monitor. Mike already knew what to do from this point, having the monitor flick onto the same option screen that it did with Freddy. He knew exactly where to go to release the animatronic and finish up the procedure.

Except once again he was blocked by an unexpected pop up. This one reading: There is a software update available. At first, he assumed it was for the computer, something so baffling that he was about to announce it, when he clicked- outside the box, but it still did nothing- and a new page covered the screen. This one having a lengthy list of fixes in said update. All it took was a glance over one line to realize this didn't apply to the computer.

"Jere, Jake, come take a look at this," he said. He continued to read over the last as the two made their way over. "What did Sun say about a software upgrade?"

Map Bot came to an abrupt halt while Jeremy came over to look. He too got to read what Mike was currently looking over, and it was eye-opening.

The list was rather direct:
*Fixes Daycare Attendant's cleaning cycle. Daycare Attendant will no longer have cleaning as the highest priority.
*Daycare Attendant will be strongly discouraged from taking more than the allotted craft supplies for the daycare.
*Daycare Attendant must now report all unregistered parents to the security staff.

"Are they reprogramming him? That's… Wow, that's fast. You remember how long it to Fritz to reprogram Baby. They just tack it on in an update," Jeremy said.

"I don't like this," Mike said immediately.

An opinion that Jeremy shared. "Same."

The lines sounded innocuous on the surface, but programming in general was a questionable subject when it came to these sentient animatronics. Both of them had witnessed the lengths Marionette, Ennard, and Baby herself had to go through just to make their own decisions. This wasn't just dancing when a certain song came on, this was effectively changing the way Sunny thought. This was closer to the brainwashing Jake eluded to.

And nowhere was that more apparent than the next line.

*Daycare Attendant (Sun) streamlining to exhibit less performance hiccups and behavioral ticks.

"THAT is a loaded statement," Mike said, pointing to the line. "What does it mean by streamlining? Does it mean that it fixes the programming that makes Sun clean up constantly and that makes him work better? Or does it mean they're going to try to reprogram him to get rid of his anxious ticks?"

"I… I don't know," Jeremy said. It slowly starting to sink in for him too. "I guess they think Sunny's ticks are programming bugs."

"They can't actually think this is all just programming. Somebody has to notice something's up; they can't be that naïve," Mike muttered.

"Maybe they just don't care."

Mike had a feeling that comment was going to haunt him for a while.

Though not as much as the next line his eyes fell on a few down. He silently pointed at it and Jeremy readjusted his glasses as he peered in.

*Daycare Attendant (Sun) will no longer be able to exit Daycare unless escorted by employee.

"That's bad. That's really bad," Jeremy said. His eyes scrolling down to read some of the ones closer to the bottom.

"Look at all of these! How can you even program this much red tape?... Geez, if this is what they've got on Sun, I don't even want to know what they've got on Moon," Mike muttered.

"This one down here installs a safety phrase that automatically shuts Moon down."

"There's no way…" Mike looked and Jeremy pointed it out to him. Indeed, the phrase was: 'Nighty-night to Mister Moon Man'. It sounded innocently childish, but in this context, it was anything but.

"No wonder he was so afraid. I thought he was just scared of it hurting, but this- this is what Jake was talking about!" Jeremy said. Then, remembering he was there, he turned back to the Map Bot. "This is what you were taking about?"

The bot silently nodded.

"There's no way I'm doing this," Mike denied. He rolled the mouse around as he looked for an 'x' or a 'cancel', an arrow back or anything else. He couldn't even click outside since it was the whole screen. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me," he muttered. He sighed and scooted his chair aside before turned towards Map Bot. "Think you can get us out of this?" he asked.

Jake nodded and rolled forward to the desk. He brought the edges of his fingers down and pecked at the keys the same way he did before. Though stopped instantly when a pop up suddenly appeared on the screen. His head snapped right up and he stared at the words: Installing Updates. Do not unplug animatronic.

The Bot jerked upright startled and then instantly began to continue pecking away. The combination he used to stop the controlled shock only rewarded him with a disapproving error noise for the effort. That was when the panic set in.

But not just for him, and not just for the two human onlookers who realized what was happening either.

Sunny suddenly lurched on the chair, catching Charlie's attention and she looked away from the window and back to him. He was beginning to twitch, flinch, his shoulders tensing and his legs trying to bend as he stared out the door window.

"Wh… What's… Is that- Is that-?!" Sunny went frantic in seconds and began to thrash on the chair. "What are they doing- WHAT ARE THEY DOING?!"

"What's going on?! What's wrong?!" Charlie asked. She hurried back to his side. "Are you hurting?!"

"NO, THEY'RE- I feel it! I feeeelllelelelehehehehahhaahah!"

Sunny broke into a, uncontrollable laugh as he rolled his head around back on the chair. It was borderline hysterical and paired with the flickering of his eyes and the roaring of his fans it signaled something was seriously wrong.

"I should've- shooould've know better- better- betterrrr to trust yooou all yooou all yooou shut it off SHUT IT OFF! TAKE IT OUT I CAN'T THINK!"

All she got out of this was 'take it out' and she locked onto the cord still attached to his arm. She raced to the other side and tried to pull it out, but it was locked in place. Sunny twisted up into himself, bending his legs in unnatural angles.

"Jake, he's freaking out! What can we do?!" Jeremy asked.

Jake couldn't exactly respond, instead continuingly trying to find some way to shut off the process. Mike shot up from his chair.

"There's got to be a breaker around here somewhere! We can find it and shut all this down!" he said. Though before he could run off, Map Bot's arm swung out to stop him. It then straightened up and stood there unmoving for a few moments before coming back to life and pointing him off towards the gated corner of the room. It returned to the keyboard as he raced off in that direction.

Sunny's joints had been so twisted up that Charlie thought he was going to break them, folding them and rotating the joints, with it suddenly becoming apparent that he might actually be able to contort out of his restraints a split second before he got a leg free. Then a few moments later the other, and then using both to press off the chair and bowing his back, pulling on the restraints on his arms and neck.

"Sunny, you're going to hurt yourself!" Charlie warned. She grabbed his upper arm, and he twisted around. His spider-like legs coming up to face her like he was about to kick her off.

"Stop it, STOP IT! DON't TOUCH me!"

Charlie released his arm but didn't back down. "That welding's still fresh! If you keep thrashing like this-!"

Her warning was cut off by Sunny suddenly snapping his neck through the small gap in the neck restrains, partially freeing him further from the grip chair. His face snapped in her direction, his teeth separated to reveal the little gap for his straw, and then he lunged. In her direction but not for her, instead dropping his mouth to his arm. The gap closed on the wire, and he started twisting his face to try and chew through it.

It was like a lightbulb went off and Charlie pushed his face back before getting out the knife she still had sticking out of her pocket. Sunny was already starting to push back when he saw that and recoiled. He swiftly drew his leg up to kick it away only to halt when she started sawing at the cord and then cut straight through.

In an instant the connection was severed, and his mind went clear. The unfinished update slipping out of his head like water through a sieve. Charlie put the knife back as she tried to pull out the connector, which now came out easily.

She looked up to Sunny who seemed to be in a state of shock before collapsing back on the chair. As though his energy drained out with the unfinished upgrade.

There was a clatter from outside and Charlie looked out the window to see Jake all but rip the keyboard off of the monitor, unplugging it in the process, desperately trying to stop the update. It wasn't until then that Jeremy noticed the screen had changed and caught Jake's attention. The Staff Bot looking up and staring with a blank expression and frozen arms. She could only imagine his relief since she couldn't exactly see it.

That was when the room went dark. The humming emanating from the protective cylinder powering down as the restraints holding Sunny's arms popped open. He yanked his arms up even as he went through the shift into Moon.

Charlie knew it wasn't time for the power to go out and, sure enough, looking out the cylinder she noticed there was still dim light coming through the large windows on either side of the double doors. The power was just out in the room.

Jeremy came up to the door and it opened for him, much to both of their relief. Though they didn't even have the chance to exchange a single word when suddenly Moon lunged forward. Jeremy barely stepped out of the way in time for Moon to land on his feet and break into a sprint. The jester sprinting down the way, racing past the returning Mike, and barging through the double doors which swung close behind him.

"Did I get it shut off in time?" Mike asked.

"I think so, but I think Jake got the update to stop. This screen popped up that said the connection was interrupted or something and… yeah, that." He pointed at the keyboard laying on the ground.

"Or it could've been me cutting the cord," Charlie volunteered, stepping out of the cylinder. "Sorry I didn't do it sooner. I forgot I had a knife."

"That's quick thinking. You didn't get shocked, right?" Mike asked. She shook her head. "Good work. For that, I'm getting you a pocketknife for your birthday."

Charlie smiled a little and started to point towards the door to suggest they go after Moon when Map Bot rolled up. He reached forward and patted her on the shoulders.

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you," Jake repeated through the Staff Bot's voice. Then he steered the bot to turn around and started heading for the doors. Charlie and Jeremy followed behind, with Mike making a detour to turn the power back on before following them out.

"What about the mess we left behind?" he asked as he followed them out.

Map Bot raised his arm a few times.

"You'll take care of it?" Charlie asked. He nodded, and she turned back and clarified, "He's going to take care of it."

"Thanks," Mike said. He appreciated it, not wanting to do it himself while not wanting anyone else to spot it and get suspicious.

They searched for Moon the way they had come from. Jake led the way, swerving around to search and frequently looking up at the ceiling, but there was no sign of the Daycare Attendant. Something that became increasingly more concerning the further they got away from Parts and Service. It wasn't like it was a one-way path either. Moon could've gone either; Jake was just heading the way they came because he assumed he had gone that way.

Until they arrived at the elevator. Jake had rolled around the corner and stopped on a dime as he noticed the doors to the elevator were opened. The bright light inside pouring out into the much dimmer hallway. The fact that the doors were staying open suggested that someone was inside. Jake put an arm out to stop Charlie and the others as he continued to watch the door.

When nobody came out after thirty seconds of waiting, Jake had a hunch that he knew who was hiding inside. He waved his hand for them to stay and rolled down on his own to peek into the elevator.

There was Sunny sitting on the floor while hugging his legs. His face buried into his puffy pants until he heard Jake roll in and he silently lifted his head.

"Hi," Jake said.

Sunny gave a little nod. His points were tilted forward like they were drooping like the petals of a wilting flower. He didn't seem to be protecting his side any longer though, so there was a positive.

Jake waved for their companions to come over. Sunny noticed and dragged himself to his feet before sliding sideways into the corner. His eyes flicking from blue back to their neutral white as his fingers hooked on the edge of the door.

And then suddenly swung himself around and popped his head around the corner. "Peek-a-boo!"

Charlie gave a short cry and flinched back. Then promptly relaxed once she realized it was him.

"Thanks for that," she said sarcastically.

"Gotta keep you on your toes!" Sunny chirped as he leaned back in. Rocking on his heels and lightly swinging on his arm. He raised a hand to wave at Mike and Jeremy, who looked mildly amused and relieved respectively.

"Guess that means you're feeling better," Charlie continued.

"Me? I feel great! All ready-Freddy for showtime tomorrow! No more stitch in my side!" Sunny gushed. He waved for them, backing into the elevator. "Come in, come in quick! We've gotta get up the elevator before the lights go out!"

Nobody had to question why he was acting like none of that had happened. The strain of exaggeration in his voice gave away how hard he was trying to play up this role. Yet as they entered the elevator, Mike had to bring it up.

"I'm sorry about what happened back there. Believe me, that was the last thing I wanted to happen. There's no way we would've been on board with that," he explained.

"Oh, no worries! All is forgiven- if there was anything to forgive! I know you didn't do it on purpose, I know," Sunny insisted. He wrung his hands together. "B-Besides, you worked so hard to turn it off- especially Charlie! Smart thinking!"

"Thanks… but do you maybe want to talk about it?" Charlie cautiously offered.

Sunny looked past her to watch Jake roll back out as she asked. The controlled Staff Bot waved and then pointed down the hallway before continuing on his way. Sunny didn't stop him, waving quickly before returning his attention to Charlie, and then flinching at the end.

"When you say talk about it you mean…" He trailed off anxiously while tapping his fingers together. Then splayed his hands with a forced laugh. "That! Well, the thing about that is that, well, that wasn't me, nope! That was Moon! Moonie gets a little squirmy sometimes. All I can remember are bits and boops here and there!"

"…Right. Okay," Charlie said. She decided to accept that with how stressed he obviously still was.

Jeremy pressed the button for the elevator and the doors slid closed before it began to lift. The elevator music began to chime through the small space, breaking up some of the suffocating silence that settled over.

Until the music suddenly cut off and the lift slowed to a stop. Leaving them suspended between two levels.

"You don't think-?"

Whatever Jeremy was asking was cut off by the lights suddenly cutting out. The Sun's glow following suit as his points pulled in and his yellow turned to blue. He was eerily quiet the entire time.

Mike clicked on his flashlight and shined it over his watch. As expected, it was the beginning of the hourly recharge. He sighed and dropped his arm to his side. "Well… At least we don't have to worry about the music getting annoying."

"AUUUUURRRRGH!"

The sudden yell from the Daycare Attendant caused everyone to jump. He grabbing at his head in exasperation before scuttling back, dropping against the opposite wall, and curling back up into a frustrated ball on the floor.

Mike's mouth stayed tight as he glanced between Jeremy and Charlie. Jeremy having that awkward look of someone witnessing a complete stranger's meltdown in a restaurant and Charlie's mask paused in a wince, giving the false impression of a half-smile. Still in the restaurant, likely recognized the stranger as an old classmate. Unsure how to approach after how Sunny desperately pretended that nothing had happened, putting it on Moon two seconds before the lights died.

Jeremy started to step forward and it was that that encouraged Mike to do so as well. He couldn't help but feel responsible for this. Obviously, the upgrade wasn't any of their faults, but this could've been avoided if he got to the Pizzaplex a little faster. At least he could've done something beyond rolling up after the fact. Though guilt was only one of the many feelings he was feeling about this situation.

He didn't want to think about how much that update sheet scared him. Just remembering the dread that gripped him when he saw that 'installing updates' pop-up made it start to creep back up. The worst kind of adrenaline rush.

Mike didn't want to sit in this cramped, dark elevator thinking about it until he worked himself up into something. So instead, he walked over and sat down alongside Moon. He didn't say anything- he knew he was already walking the line breaching this much of his personal bubble- and instead just sat there. Moon shifted slightly, barely noticeable if his wrist bells didn't jingle.

Jeremy and Charlie followed suit. Jeremy sitting beside Mike while Charlie sat on the other side of Moon. While sitting down, Jeremy had to readjust his jacket and by time he was settled in there was a little white head sticking out.

"Uh!" the Minireena fussed. Forget-Me-Not, Mike presumed.

"Shh. It's just a few minutes," Jeremy gently shushed. He tapped her head with his finger in a soft patting motion.

She stopped her fussing, but the way she slowly turned her head displayed her continued displeasure well enough. It brought a smile out of Mike.

On the other side, Charlie was sitting there with her arms folded in her lap when Moon shifted beside her. She looked down to see his arm resting on the ground, hand up, slightly turned in her direction. She looked up to him, but he had his face turned away into his other arm and pants. Though that confirmed that this wasn't just a reflex to relax his arm, but a request.

Charlie reached down and laid her hand on his and his fingers closed around it. She smiled at him even though he wasn't looking and then leaned back against the wall and waited for the lights to come back on.

…

By time the lights came back on, Sunny popped up with the same vigor is earlier and pretended that all was fine.

Though by time they actually got back to the daycare, that excitement had all but fizzled out and the act was all but over. He was practically dragging his feet through the hallway outside of the daycare, seeming all but fed up with tonight.

Sunny made a beeline straight for the slide with the intention of sliding into the daycare and getting a quick lift up to the balcony. He was stopped by a call before he could.

"Hey!" Jake yelled.

Sunny straightened up and waved back. "Hello! Miss me?"

"You? No way," he denied. "Freddy's down in the arcade. You might want to tell him you're back. He was worried about you."

"Oh? Maybe I will," Sunny said coyly. He turned and headed towards the little gate instead.

"Mari's down there too," Jake called to the others.

"Thanks!" Charlie called back.

They followed Sunny through the little gate, him going so far as to hold it open for them and headed down to the stairs. He seemed a little more excited than nervous, fluffing his ruffled collar and fixing the ribbons around his wrists.

As they approached the arcade, they could see Gregory playing an arcade game while Freddy and Marionette stood behind him and watched. He was all but shielded in front of them, playing with one hand and eating from the lunch box that had been sat on a tall stool beside him.

Marionette was wearing Mike's jacket and holding a blue ball with stars on it. He spun around the second he felt someone's gaze only to break into a delighted smile when he saw the repaired Sunny and his family all in one piece.

Sunny brushed down his pants and strode into the arcade.

"Gooood morning!" he greeted with a theatrical little twirl. Freddy turned back with a start while Gregory slightly turned but was unable to pull his eyes away from the game. "Is it just me, or is it a little brighter in here?" Sunny asked jokingly.

"Sunny! You have been repaired!" Freddy said happily. He patted Gregory's shoulder to signal he would be back and walked over towards the jester.

"Mm-hmm! Yup, all better! And it's all thanks to- Eep!"

Sunny was cut off by Freddy suddenly pulling him into a hug. One that wasn't tight enough to be painful but did leave him standing on the balls of his feet, chest to chest with Freddy's arms fully wrapped around him. The bear softly nuzzling against his retracted points. It might've caught Sunny off-guard, but he then eagerly returned it with a little giggle.

Freddy drew back with a smile and looked over his repaired chest and arm. To which Sunny couldn't help but strike a pose, one hand on his hip and the other arm bent behind his head.

"How do I look?" he playfully asked.

"You look fantastic! Glowing so bright- If I had not seen you beforehand, I would not be able to tell that you were damaged at all!" Freddy fawned. He rested a hand on Sunny's shoulder, rubbing it with his thumb. "I hope it was not too hard on you. How was it?"

"Oh, uh… It was… Fine!" Sunny said. He splayed his hands to play into the act. "Good, good! All together, all good! Went fiiine!"

Something briefly passed Freddy's face. It was so quick that it could've been missed, but it was a split second of doubt. Though Freddy covered it back up with a smile that shown through his eyes.

"I am so relieved to hear that. I was very worried about you, Sunshine," he said warmly.

"You worry too much~," Sunny said in a singsong tone. "About me, you should be worrying about that." Him emphasizing exactly who 'that' was by suddenly tilting his whole body sideways to look past him and at Gregory. "Did you clean up?"

"Yes, Mom," Gregory called back sarcastically. He seemed unconcerned about the Sun's return, but he did steal a look back when he had a moment and was satisfied to see him all back together. Maybe even relieved, but he wouldn't say that.

"Good! Now I would looove to stay and have you sweet talk me some more," Sunny said. Popping back into place and taking Freddy's hand, which had remained waiting where he left it. He gave it a squeeze before rhythmically tapping his fingers over it. "But I should really go tell Nanny I'm home. She gets awful lonely without me to brighten up her day."

"I can imagine. So do I," Freddy said with a wink.

Sunny snickered and turned on his heel, head rotating to remain in place a moment longer, and waved back at the bear before flipping it forward and rotating his face to head out.

Only to instantly turn and lock onto the onlookers inside the doorway. Jeremy had a goofy smile while Mike and Charlie had more subdued ones.

"…And what's that look?" Sunny asked suspiciously. His question aimed mostly at the blond.

"I'm really into puns," Jeremy excused.

"Ngh…" That sound seemed to suggest Sunny didn't believe him. He hurriedly headed back out the door, only to suddenly twist around and grab Charlie by the shoulders. She jumped at the suddenness. "But first! Can a borrow you for a second, pretty please?"

"Sure," Charlie agreed. He released her and she turned and followed him out. She almost expected him to take her back to Jake, but instead he just led her a little ways. Stopping beside a table against the wall of the playground area.

"First of all, I think a thank you is in order," Sunny chirped. His points spinning around his face. "Thank you, thank you! Two whole thank yous! No, three!"

"You're welcome, but I really didn't do all that much. The machine did most of it. Sorry, the 'protective cylinder'," Charlie replied.

"Au contraire! You did so, so very much for me! And I don't just mean that thing you did at the end with the knife and with me almost having a whole buncha junk forced into my head!" His voice grew tense at the end, but then recovered and softened considerably. "I-I meant being so nice to me. Especially since I haven't really been nice to you."

"Sun, I kind of barged into your home. You didn't have to be nice to me," Charlie said flippantly. "It's no big deal."

"It is a HUGE deal to me! Because I… I don't know why you're making excuses for me," Sunny admitted. "I know I'm… difficult. And I know whatever was in that update was to try and make me easier to handle."

"Have you heard them say that?" she quietly asked. Wondering if this was why he didn't like the technicians.

"Are you kidding? They talk about me like I'm not even here! Then they act all weird about it. Very rude. Very, very rude," the jester explained animatedly. Though that peppiness faltered once more, his head dropping with guilt. "You've got every reason to feel the same way…"

He trailed off for a second, slouched there, before looking back up at her. She offered him an understanding smile and he instantly perked back up. He grabbed her hand in both of his.

"Let's start over! We can be friends, right?" he offered.

"Sure! Friends," Charlie agreed. He dipped his points happily. "How about Jeremy and Mike?" she asked.

"Well, I was going to be friends with him until he gave me that look," Sunny said flatly. His eyes had darkening, almost like his eyes half-lidded without the eyelids. "…Ehh, I guess so. They really got me out of a jam. They're not too bad for former Freddy Fazbear flunkies!... Don't tell Freddy I said that. I don't think he'd find that funny."

"Somehow, I don't think Freddy would mind," she said.

"Eh, maybe not- but I'm not going to risk it! Nope, I'm going to go check up on Jake and then recharge. And by recharge, I mean I'm going to lay face down in a dark tiny room until I feel okay enough to move. Tell Jeremy if he's still here when I get up, I'll give him and his little sunflowers a super-fun tour of the tunnels! M'kay?"

"I'll do that. You just take it easy. And don't worry about us, we'll keep it lowkey for the rest of the night," Charlie offered.

He seemed content with this and with a little 'ta-ta' took off. His tiredness echoed in the lack of bounce in his steps but his posture indicating that he was feeling better. She turned and headed back to the arcade.

Mike and Marionette were coming out as she reached the door. The look on Mike's face gave away that he was about to deliver bad news.

"I need to talk to you both before I go talk with Freddy," he said, seamlessly bringing her into the conversation as the door shut behind them. "It's about what was in that upgrade."

Marionette and Charlie listened as he detailed exactly what they had found. At first Marionette had fiddled with the ball in his hands, but by the end they were still, and his attention was entirely on Mike. Charlie, meanwhile, was both shocked and unsurprised at what she was hearing. Having enough hints to have a suspicion but still shocked to hear the truth.

"So, it looks like it didn't take, which is great, but chances are they're going to try to pull that stunt again the next time he goes down there," Mike summed up. "And if that happens, his world is going to be changed forever. They're going to have a lot more control over what he does and doesn't do."

"That's insane. Do they realize how dangerous it is to just go in and tamper with an animatronic like that? To just add in all this extra programming willy-nilly? Look at what Baby had to go through to break her programming. Fritz couldn't even break it, he had to change it, and she's still having trouble trying to balance it out. It's ridiculous! And that's ignoring the moral implications of just forcing someone's personality to change to make the 'easier to deal with'," Charlie said.

The rambling nature of her explanation betrayed her fear while the tone gave away her frustration. Both feelings shared by Marionette.

"Frankly, I'm not surprised at all. You'd best believe they would've done the same thing to us if they had the technology. They nearly did with blocking out the saferooms," Marionette remarked. "You're right. We should tell Freddy… Though if Sunny's already aware of it like Charlie said, then he might already know."

"Then maybe he knows more. Freddy doesn't seem like the keeping secrets type," Mike pointed out. All three looked in at the bear who was currently standing there while Jeremy played the game. Having taken over for Gregory who took a break to eat more sandwich. Mike sighed and opened the door. "Let's get this over with."

Freddy looked back when the door opened and waved.

"Hey, Freddy," Mike said back. "Can we talk to you for a second?"

Freddy agreed and started to come over.

"I'm going to leave this to you two," Charlie said. They agreed, letting her between them so she could take Freddy's former spot. The bear offered her a high five as she passed, so she gave him one.

Freddy walked up to Mike and Marionette with a smile on his face and in his eyes. "Greetings once again! Mike, I would like to thank you for taking such good care of Sunny," Freddy thanked.

"Don't mention it," he answered, scratching the back of his neck. It was hard doing this when Freddy seemed so happy. "Speaking of Sunny, we were wondering if we could ask you a few questions."

"Is this about what happened with Sunny's repair?" Freddy asked. His voice lowering as he did.

"You know what happened?" Mike asked in confusion. Freddy shook his head.

"I know that something happened. Sunny cannot hide when something is bothering him, and when he does it means that it is worse than if he did not… What happened?"

"Well, what almost happened was that Sunny nearly got a software update, but they put a stop to it," Marionette explained. "We were wondering what you knew about these updates."

Freddy seemed taken aback, but as expected he was forthright.

"Sometimes our… behavior is not fitting of a mascot at the Mega Pizzaplex. When that happens, we receive software upgrades to correct it," he explained. Just from the quietness and hesitation it was clear that he understood the seriousness of what he was saying. "…What was it for?" Freddy dared to ask.

Mike took a deep breath and sighed. "There was a list of stuff, but there were a few that concerned us more than the others. Like one that made it so Sunny couldn't leave the daycare unless an employee was with him, and another that would've installed some sort of shutoff phrase. Basically, someone would say the phrase and Sunny, or Moon, would shut down on the spot."

"That is… Why would they do that? I know that some employees and children may be scared of Sunny, but he is an excellent Daycare Attendant! I just do not understand. First his unfinished room and now this…" Freddy gave a discontented noise. "…He is just returning to his room, yes? He will be back?"

"Charlie, Sunny's coming back?" Mike called over to her.

"I think he's going to sleep this off," Charlie called back.

"Then that is fine. Anything he needs to recover," Freddy agreed. He seemed rather distressed, and that made Mike feel bad for causing it.

"I'm sorry to have to be the bearer of bad news. I didn't want to distract you when you've got your hands full-," he started to apologize. He was quickly cut off.

"I need to know. I am more upset that I did not notice it sooner… But rest assured that I will not be distracted. Gregory comes first… That is not to say that Sunny does not also come first, but since he is resting my full attention is on Gregory. And you all as well! And my bandmates and so on."

"You're spreading yourself thin, Freddy."

"I am the pizza crust of Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex. I can be cut into slices to be shared amongst all of my friends."

That comment was goofy enough to get a smile out of both Mike and Marionette.

"We appreciate it, Freddy. You've been doing a lot tonight. Especially since you too were on the chopping block earlier," Marionette remarked. He kept his voice light as he asked, "Have you ever had a software update, Freddy?"

"Not that I recall. I remember Monty has received a few, such as one for when he joined the band as the bassist, and Chica has had a few," he answered.

"Ah, good." No firsthand experience, but also no having to worry about Freddy. "Thank you for being open with us. We'll let you get back to the game. We're going to step out for a moment, but we'll join you in a minute."

"I hope you do! I know that tonight has been rough on us all, but perhaps we can have a little fun before it's over," Freddy offered. He regained some of his pep from earlier, but they were sure he was still bothered. More so he was doing exactly what he said, putting everyone first. He returned to the game where he immediately shot a compliment at Jeremy's playing skills and ruffled Gregory's hair. Back to being good ol' Freddy.

Meanwhile, Mike and Marionette stepped back out into the daycare proper.

"We did the right thing in telling him. Even if he already knew, he deserves to know the full extent. Chances are we won't be here when they try it again," Marionette assured him. His hands resting on his shoulders.

"That's true. I'm glad he's going back to the game. I don't know what it is about Freddy, but it kills me having to bring him down like that," Mike confessed.

Marionette could tell that Mike was worn out. Between his tone, posture, and expression this night had done a number on him. He wasn't the only one, but he was the one showing the effects of the night in total, how it wore on him. Because of this, he decided to keep the mood light. Maybe a more positive direction was in order.

"I know what you mean. I can see why Foxy likes spending time with him… And on that note, you will not believe what I squeezed into today," Marionette hinted.

"…Washing machine?" Mike guessed.

"Close! As a matter of fact, I-." The Puppet drew out the 'I' to spin around him, adding a little flourish to his announcement. "-Climbed inside of Freddy Fazbear himself, the crust of Freddy Fazbear's pizza."

"Wait, what?" Mike asked with surprise.

"Yes! I decided to finally face my fear! No longer would I be at the mercy of nightmares of being trapped in a bear. I would put myself in that bear and climb out on my own, and I did! And I survived to tell the tale," Marionette playfully boasted.

"Mari, that's great! I can't believe you did that!" Mike applauded. He hooked an arm around him and pulled him in. Intending to give him a kiss on the cheek when Marionette smoothly turned and caught him on the lips.

They stayed together for a few moments, exchanging what warmth and affection they could in what felt like a fleeting moment through a long night. Comfort that they both needed, accompanied by a pleasant tingle they were familiar with. Only pulling apart to allow Mike room to breathe, with Marionette gently resting his head against his.

They stood there in silence until Mike broke it.

"It's a shame I missed it. I would've loved to see the look on Freddy's face," he said.

To which Marionette laughed. "It's not like I yanked him open and jumped in!" He nuzzled closet, cool porcelain on warm skin. "We don't have to stay all night you know. I can tell that you're tired and it's been such a long night already. Freddy's with Gregory and Sunny's with Jake, and Foxy's bound to show up any time now. I think it's safe to go home."

"Maybe… Let's just stick around for another hour to make sure things stay quiet. I can make it that long," Mike suggested. Marionette found this reasonable and agreed.

Eventually the two separated but didn't head back into the arcade just yet. They just strolled a little further into the daycare, hands still interlocked, not saying anything but not needing to.

Somewhere along the line, Marionette looked into the windows of the daycare and at the tunnel filled structures, and he got an idea.

"Remember that night at Hickory's?" he asked, breaking the silence.

"How can I forget? I got bit by a rabid sheep. Come to think of it, I got bit by the same rabid sheep that bit Jeremy," Mike answered.

"No, I mean our night at Hickory's. The one where we spent the whole night hiding from Music Man, Orville the Elephant, and the local police department," Marionette corrected. He got a playful smile. "This isn't too different from Hickory's, is it? Plenty of arcade machines, the constant risk of being caught and arrested, and there's even a Music Man in here somewhere!"

Mike got an amused smile. "What are you suggesting?"

"Let's recapture those old memories! There's a whole nest of play tunnels right there and completely unguarded!" the Puppet pointed out. "What did Freddy say about getting in what fun we could tonight?"

"Is that what you call fun, falling asleep in a plastic tube?" Mike teased.

"As a matter of fact, I do," Marionette retorted. He gave a playful tug towards the wooden doors. "Shall we?"

There was only one answer to that.

"Why the hell not?"

Chapter 48

Chapter Summary

Mike, Mari, and the gang pick up a hitchhiker and make it home in time to watch a few interesting movies while Freddy has an interesting encounter. There is also a second accident waiting to happen...

Chapter Notes

Hello again! Seems I was late on the chapter again. This is going to have to be where I put my foot down.
I am FED UP! Ever since I decided to lighten up on deadlines, I have found it impossible to finish a chapter on time. This was supposed to make it easier for me, to give me more time to work on a chapter, but instead all it has done is give me more time to procrastinate. It must end! I demand it!
So, next week I am going to have the chapter posted next week,and if it's not finished then I will just have to post an unfinished chapter and continue working on it afterwards. I will make. This. Happen.
Thank you for being so patient, and I hope you Enjoy!

It was a little after four when they finally decided to leave the Pizzaplex. There had been no sign of the dancing rabbit woman, Sunny hadn't emerged from behind his balcony- though Jake dropped in for a while, and Jeremy had gotten plenty of time to hang out with Freddy, Gregory, and the Minireenas.

Mike had gotten a crick in his neck from falling asleep in the kiddie tunnels. Not that he regretted it, or else he probably wouldn't have been able to drive. Though waking up to find Forget-Me-Not staring down at him with silent judgement- and he knew it was her from that alone- wasn't the most pleasant thing to see first thing. It could've been worse. If he hadn't fallen asleep using Marionette's arm as a pillow, he could've very well woken up with a pressure bruise.

Not too shabby of a night. As long as he pretended to ignore the rabbit in the room and the software update, and that Fazbear Entertainment was brainwashing living animatronics, and that Marionette had been so broken up on the ground- Mike chose to keep to the tone at the end of the night for as long as he could. In which case it wasn't too bad. It ended on a high note if you stuck to the end.

Jeremy was finally starting to look tired. Which made sense considering that he had gotten out of pulling all-nighters. He was slouched in the passenger seat with his eyes closed and Rose curled up in his lap. Daisy and Forget-Me-Not were sitting in the back between Marionette and Charlie. Both of them seemed relatively awake, but they would need a few hours of rest at least before even considering heading into work.

Mike would too. It weighed on him that he had been away from the business so much. Though he knew this was important, Foxy's was both a vital part of their livelihood and his pride and joy, regardless of the jokes he cracked about it. Not to mention leaving Fritz with the heavy lifting. He wasn't shocked that Fritz wasn't bothered by it, Fritz was both aware of the situation and work-centered enough to be willing and able, but it made him feel like a freeloader.

But he wasn't going to tell anyone that. No, he was just going to start going back to work and pick up the slack. He was more than willing to do that. All he had to do was get a few more hours asleep and he could do that today.

Because he was still seeing moving shadows out the corner of his eyes.

Unless that was Foxy. Mike looked over his shoulder to check.

"There goes Foxy."

That woke Jeremy from his doze. "What? No."

"Should I turn around and check?" Mike asked.

"You don't have to. That's him," Marionette said flatly.

"There's a spot where you can turn around," Jeremy said. It was a turning lane so that Mike didn't have to make an illegal U-turn. Though he probably could've with how few cars were out here.

"I guess I should just be happy him and Michael are talking," Marionette added, still flatly.

"Talking behind your back?" Charlie teased.

"Yes, and I am tired of it," he replied deadpanned.

The car quickly caught up with the dark clothed figure. As it inched closer, the figure quickened its pace and started to walk further out from the road. Undeterred, Mike rode up directly beside him as Jeremy rolled down his window.

"Excuse me, Sir," Jeremy called out. "But I think you're going the wrong way. The ocean's back that way." He pointed his thumb back, barely hiding a growing smile. "You can't miss it. Just follow the sign with the pirate fox on it."

Jeremy couldn't see an expression under hood, mask, and dark of night, but he could assume from the lazy roll of the head that he was probably taking after his younger brother right now.

Within a few minutes they were back on the road again. Marionette and Jeremy having switched seats and Foxy now crammed in between him and Charlie. An arm slung around Jeremy's shoulders, and Forget-Me-Not sitting on his raised knee. He had also gone ahead and put his head back on, with Daisy fiddling around with his discarded Foxy mask.

Since he was here it seemed like any a time as any to be out with the news about how Fazbear Entertainment was 'correcting' their animatronics' behavior. They expected a visceral reaction, typical to Foxy's usual response, but instead he was surprisingly calm about the whole thing. In fact, his reaction was very much like Marionette's.

"I knew they'd be pullin' somethin' like that. Ye know how they be. 'Specially with all that fancy hi-tech technology they got pumpin' through that place," Foxy said. He scoffed in distaste. "It all be soulless. Pizza's on a conveyor belt, everything's blocked by passes an' keycards, an' instead of leanin' in on their true-to-like animatronics, they be tryin' to turn 'em into braindead husks like those Staff Bots."

"Which is even more crazy when you consider the fact that the biggest thing they've got going for them are the highly advanced animatronics," Charlie agreed, also bearing some of her bitterness. "They don't know what they have."

"Nothin's changed… Freddy say he get any of those updates?"

"No, but most of his band has gotten them. Which is probably why they obeyed a stranger with a badge so easily," Mike pointed out.

"That ain't surprising. Not with Freddy stickin' to the rules," Foxy said. He did seem more than a little relieved though.

"I don't know if I'd go that far. Freddy broke plenty of rules for us," Jeremy pointed out. "And I don't mean rules like not telling Natalie we were there. I'm pretty sure he doesn't have the okay to hand out as much free stuff as he does."

"Freddy only breaks rules when he's got a way around 'em. He uses these mental loopholes to talk himself into what he wants to do," Foxy explained.

"So, the only one who doesn't have the programming knows the trucks to work around programming. That makes sense," Charlie remarked.

"Don't let Freddy's goofy sorta vibe fool you. He ain't a fool, he's just a little… I think the word be 'optimistic', but that's a pretty foreign concept to me," the fox quipped. "How'd the Sun turn out?"

"He's going to be okay. He was sleeping it off when we left," Jeremy said.

"Good. I know Freddy's real close with him."

"You can say that again," Mike said with a half-laugh.

"What's that mean?" Foxy asked. Mike angled the rearview mirror so that he could flash him a wolfish grin before fixing it again. Foxy caught on fast. "…Oh criminy, Freddy."

"He really brightens up his day."

"Freddy," Foxy groaned. He ran a hand down his face and asked in a mutter, "What happened to Chica? I thought they had this good thing goin'."

"I hit her with a golf club," Mike bluntly answered. Which got Foxy to uncover his face and stare again.

"He was protecting Gregory," Marionette corrected, giving him a playfully scolding look.

It was then that Charlie remembered what Jake told her and Sunny confirmed. She considered keeping it to herself but then decided it was worth bringing up.

"So… Don't tell him or anybody else that I told you, but his name's Andrew. Sunny, I mean," Charlie said. "He told me in confidence, but if it can help put a name to the face…"

"Andrew?" Foxy looked over at her.

She was surprised at the recognition in his voice. "You knew him?" she asked.

"'Course I did. Used to hang out 'round Freddy's."

Marionette straightened up in surprise and turned to look between the seats. "You remember him? I don't remember an Andrew. What did he look like?" he asked.

"Yeah, you do. He was that kid that threw the piece o' pizza at ya. Was about yay high, black hair, always actin' up or makin' some sorta scene," Foxy described.

As he did, long repressed memories slowly returned, and Marionette's surprised expression fell to a slightly irked one. "Oh right. I do remember him…"

"I dumped a trashcan over his head for it," Foxy casually confessed to Jeremy, who raised a brow. "I might've given Mari a real hard time, but that didn't mean I was gonna stand aside and let some punk do it. I was the biggest punk in that whole business," he pointed out. Jeremy cracked a smile at that.

"I remember where I put him…" Marionette quietly interjected. His face now dour. "…It was in that dog animatronic. That one they used to keep in the back… I think he was named Sparky?"

"Ehhh, maybe Butch?" Foxy guessed.

"I suppose it doesn't matter what the character's name was. It was Andrew… That's what he meant when he said it was small body. I didn't even think it took. No less than a few days after I did it, he had been moved. To where? I'm not sure, and I'm not sure if I can ask him," Marionette regretfully said. He rested his chin on the car seat.

Mike reached over and gave him an assuring pat on the back before rubbing in little circles.

"At the very least he seems to be doing better now," Marionette said with a sigh.

"He seemed happy… Not when he was in pain, obviously, but he had a lot of fun with the girls. We all put on a little puppet show," Jeremy volunteered. Foxy hummed positively.

"And I hear he has a real nice boyfriend," Foxy agreed. Jeremy guffawed while Marionette chuckled and chimed. "Another one a'counted for's good enough in me book. Ye can't change the past, but we can work on the here-and-now. Speaking'a which, you see anything of that bilge rabbit madwoman?"

"Oh, uh…" Marionette would've broke into a sweat if he could've, but instead he just slinked back behind the chair. "…We'll talk about it when we get home."

"Aww, bloody 'ell. What'd she do this time?" Foxy groaned.

Marionette seemed reluctant to tell Foxy. Unsurprisingly, considering all that would be revealed with it. He tugged a string from his wrist and wrapped it around his fingers nervously as he considered how to go about it.

Mike watched him, noticed what was going through his head, and decided to take some of the pressure off. With a slow exhale, he began to explain for them.

"Her name's Vanny, and we ran into her on our way to Parts and Service. We got sidetracked into this set of hallways full of Endoskeletons. They were already a pain to deal with, but that's another story. We got separated from Gregory and Mari went after him while I went back around the way we came to see if there was another way through. What we didn't know was that this disturbed woman was down here with us, and the second she got Gregory alone she started chasing him around. Ran him right back up to me, but then I scared her, and she bolted. I grabbed Gregory and went after her, but she shut a door on us… And then-."

"And then she ran into me," Marionette said. Mike looked to him and silently passed over the reins. "My intention was to scare her. Still thinking that she was a non-threat who I could scare off from Freddy's."

"But not anymore?" Foxy murmured. He had already caught on.

"...Not quite… She was terrified the moment she saw me. I gave her a warning and began to pursue her down a hallway. She was doing everything she could to run away from me, but I blocked her way. I threw myself at her intending to grab her by the shoulders and frighten her to the core. Cruel, perhaps, but it was no different to what she was doing to Gregory… But… But when I touched her, I was filled with pain."

"Was it like when you touched that Scarecrow Baby?" Foxy asked.

"…Yes," Marionette admitted.

"I see…" The pirate was silent for a long moment. Then he rather bluntly asked, "And you still think she's a human?"

"…Yes?" Marionette said this a little more uncertainly. Though it was unclear if it was because he wasn't sure or if he was questioning the question itself.

"Think she's possessed?" Foxy continued.

Marionette hesitated, so Charlie answered in his stead.

"Yes. Maybe. It's hard to tell because she wasn't showing any of the signs that Clay was, but she went from one personality to another faster than even Sunny switches," she explained. Foxy turned to her in surprise.

"Ya saw her too? But ye weren't with them," he clarified.

"No. In fact, we ran into her while she was running away from them. She, uh… She was pretty scared of us…"

Charlie reached down for the handle of the knife and rested her fingers around it. Fidgeting it and partially turning it in her pocket as she considered how to go about this, and whether to go about this or not.

"Whatcha got in yer pocket, Lass?" Foxy asked uneasily.

Well, there was no going back from this. She sent him a solemn, though partially deadpanned expression as she slowly withdrew and then revealed the knife to him.

His eyepatch popped up. It would've been comical in any other situation. In fact, in the tenseness of this situation, the smile that Charlie couldn't restrain was equally from amusement and anxiety.

"Ya got that offa her?!" Foxy cried out, pointing his hook at it.

"If by got off of her you mean smacked out of her hand and stole for myself- yes, I did," Charlie clarified.

Foxy gave a rather un-pirate swear before looking suddenly to Marionette. "She didn't have this round you an' the kid, did she?"

"No. Elsewise I would've expected her to try defending herself," the puppet said.

"No, we saw her get it out. She had it shoved in her boot or pants. Down here somewhere," Charlie said. Vaguely gesturing to the area on her leg.

"She pull it on ya?"

That seemed like a natural conclusion to make, but Jeremy suddenly started shaking his head like they were on the edge of disaster. Which also reminded her who she was talking to and, at Jeremy's silent insistence, she tweaked her answer.

"She did. I think she might've mistaken me for Mari. Not that a knife's going to do any good against an animatronic, and she took off afterwards anyway. Even before I got the knife from her," Charlie explained.

It wasn't to imply that Foxy wouldn't be any more protective of her than Jeremy, but there was a huge difference when it came to drawing that knife. Knives could damage animatronics only if they could pierce their exterior. Her thicker skin could've probably deflected it well, and even if it didn't repairs from a knife wound were a pain, but not deadly. A knife aimed at Jeremy was much more of a threat than one at her.

And that was without what that knife meant.

"Atta girl," Foxy said. Though his voice was low and much less than celebratory, which was understandable. At least he didn't seem suspicious.

Unfortunately, there was someone who didn't feel like leaving it at that.

"Uh!" Forget-Me-Not interjected. She tapped Foxy's leg impatiently until he looked at her and then held out her hand and made a jabbing motion. A stabbing motion, maybe, then pointed at Jeremy. "Uh! Uh!"

Jeremy could only watch helplessly as she ratted him out. So much for thinking Charlie could cover for him. He could only hope that Foxy didn't catch on- a hope immediately dashed when Foxy snapped his head, literally snapped, towards him.

"She tried to stab you?!"

"No!" Jeremy quickly denied. "No, no, no! She just… I was there when she pulled the knife on Charlie! She's just worried about me for, heh, obvious reasons."

But Forget-Me-Not continued to make protesting noises and jabbing motions, seemingly frustrated that Jeremy wasn't being forthright with what happened.

"I was wonderin' why Charlie was lookin' at ya weird before she told me!" Foxy said. Charlie discreetly slapped her hand to her forehead before giving Jeremy an apologetic shrug. "What happened, did she take a swing at ya?!"

"No! I mean, not really. It was more like a 'stay back, I'm going to shoot' thing. Or not shoot, but you know. Stab," Jeremy tried to brush off.

"So, she pulled it on you, not Charlie," Foxy clarified.

"Well… I think it still counts as both of us, but technically yes."

Foxy was about to lose it. The fact he hadn't so far was due to sheer willpower. The refusal to make a big scene and have everyone think he couldn't control his emotions- which he assumed was why this was left out, and it partially was.

"So, just to make sure we're clear…" Foxy began calmly. Though that being the calm of an ocean hiding a riptide inside under the surface. "She chased Gregory, she threatened you with a knife, she attacked Mari, and she might be possessed."

"…That pretty much sums it up," Mike volunteered when nobody else did.

"Let me out of the car."

Mike locked the doors.

"Gabe, come on. It's not a big deal," Jeremy began. That got a look and he quickly backtracked. "Okay, it is a big deal, but we already took care of it!... As much as we could. We scared her off!" he tried to rationalize.

"That's great. I'm going back to make sure," Foxy said. "Move over, I'm getting out."

"You're not diving out of a moving car," Jeremy said flatly.

"That's on Mike. He can break if he feels like it."

"Don't count on it. I'm already falling asleep at the wheel," Mike remarked. "Look, Foxy, it's late, Freddy's got a handle on it. Let's just get home-."

"Freddy does not have a handle on anything going on in that place!" Foxy suddenly vented. "You saw it for yourself, Mike! He doesn't have any real pull! If he ever puts his foot down, they'll just drag him down into the basement and 'fix' him!"

"Gabe, I can't do this tonight! I need you to work with me!" Jeremy suddenly yelled.

It was so sudden that it almost felt unwarranted. That it made Foxy jump and silenced him immediately. He looked to Jeremy, as did Marionette, Charlie, and the Minireenas, and there was an uneasy silence.

Jeremy was instantly embarrassed, but he was also so overwhelmed that he couldn't dwell on it long.

"…Freddy can take care of Gregory. Or Natalie, or Sun and Moon. One of them can watch him for the next couple of hours," he got out. Taking a few deep breaths to slow his racing heart. "We'll figure something out in the morning. Or later.

"I'm sorry," Foxy apologized. Not just sorry from being called out either if his worried tone was any indication. It was much clearer without the faux pirate drawl.

"No, don't be sorry. You're right. You're right, we should do more. We've got to do something more about this… It's just been a rough night and I can't really think straight," Jeremy said.

He didn't have to say anything more. Foxy, whose arm had never left its place from behind him, slid in closer and rested his head against his. Jeremy leaned back against him, accepting the motion and the silent apology that came with it. Foxy could tell he was still tense but over the next few minutes Jeremy eventually began to sink further into his shoulder, somewhat relaxing in the process.

Daisy climbed around by the back window before kneeling behind him and rubbing her hands through his hair in a comforting way. He reached a hand back to give her head a pat, missed, and instead had her pat his hand in return.

The car remained silent up until they were driving through Hurricane approaching the house.

"…You know what we could do," Mike suggested. "See if Natalie can get that security footage from last night. If we can catch that rabbit broad on tape, then we can show it to Wight and get him to do something."

"If he would do anything beyond covering it up," Marionette remarked.

"Exactly. He's not going to want this getting out to the public. It's hard enough pretending that those well-documented missing children cases were 'rumors'," Mike explained. "If that gives Natalie more pull then she might be able to convince him to bring in help. Or better yet maybe get him to have the animatronics moved out for a night. Then we could all go in, track her down, hogtie her, and hand her over to Clay or whoever the police chief is of that jurisdiction. Problem solved and we go back to seeing Freddy's a competitor instead of hotbed of rabbit-related crime."

"…That's not a bad idea actually. We might have to iron out the details, but I like the part about blackmailing Wight," Marionette remarked. Though the playful tone deflated. "But we might not be able to get her on tape. Natalie couldn't."

"We'll find a way. If not with one of their security cameras, then with the camera or a camcorder. Even the most haunted objects have angle where you can catch them. You just have to find their good side."

"Quit trying to flirt with me in front of my brother."

"Never."

"Great job staying on topic, guys. You almost made it five minutes," Charlie chimed in.

Foxy scoffed in agreement. Mike and Marionette paid neither much mind.

The rest of the ride was relatively quiet, but that was largely because the ride only lasted a few more minutes before they pulled up into the driveway. Then they started the process of moving everyone inside.

Mike carried the plastic Pizzaplex branded bag with the video tapes in it and unlocked the door for the rest of them. Speaking of those tapes, the process of carrying them in and reminding him that he had them convinced Mike to spare a few more minutes and watch them now. Lest they distract him from getting decent sleep.

Michael was still on the couch and greeted them as they came in. "You're home early."

"Define early," Mike said dryly.

"I'm still awake," Michael returned.

Mike gave a sort of 'yeah, yeah' and waited for everyone else to get in. Then he headed over to the TV and knelt down in front of it. He pulled out one of the tapes and held it up. "Mind if I borrow the TV?" he asked.

"Go ahead. Anything's better than this," Michael replied.

Mike pushed the tape into the VCR, rewound it to the beginning, and pressed play. He scooted back a bit and sat down so he wouldn't be blocking the TV screen. A moment afterwards, Marionette settled on the carpet beside him. The others took places around the living room. Charlie in the chair, Foxy and Jeremy leaning on the back of the couch, and the Minireenas sitting in front of it on the floor, cross-legged.

Then the video started. Mike wasn't sure what he was expecting, but if it was a verbatim step by step guide of working at the daycare then he got it. It was the most basic guide and unlike the training tapes he had become accustomed to at the old Freddy's, it was squeaky clean. No allusions to hiding bodies, no warnings of dangerous animatronics, just a guide to checking in children, the rules of checking out children, and etiquette dealing with parents.

They fast forwarded through a portion of it, and nobody complained. Though Marionette seemed disappointed.

The second video, uncreatively labelled as Daycare Training Tape #2, had much the same. Though instead of being about the check-in desk, it dealt with the gift shop, the arcade, and what to do in various emergencies. Though not exciting emergencies, more like 'what to do if you suspect a shoplifter' and 'what to do if the bathroom is out of order'.

It wasn't until the last line of the tape when something interesting was hinted.

"In tape three we will discuss working around and with the Daycare Attendant and party etiquette."

"Oooh, now it's gonna get interesting. Let's see all'a Sunnymoon's dirty secrets," Foxy said. Rubbing his hook against his palm in a mock-sinister way.

Mike checked the bag again before giving a defeated, "We don't have tape number three."

"Yer kidding."

"I wish I was."

Foxy let out a disgruntled noise and a mutter of, "And I'm stayin' up fer this?"

"This is the highlight of my night," Michael flatly answered.

"Ours too," Charlie countered.

"These people," Mike muttered. Marionette gave him a sympathetic pat on the back and a grin.

The next tape was put in and played. This one went over the rules and regulations of the Fazbear Theater. Basic things like how to run the snack bar, running the projector system, what to do if either broke down, and so on so forth.

The only thing notable being one line in the tape: "The Daycare Attendant will come down and entertain the children. Do not stop the Daycare Attendant." Which got a chuckle out of Mike.

The tape ended shortly afterwards, and it was onto the last one. He glanced over the label and perked up as he remembered what it was.

"Here we go. This is it, folks. This is the big one," he announced.

The voices behind him seemed a little doubtful but Marionette gave a curious little hum as he read the label himself. He rested a finger on his chin as Mike pressed play, not needing to rewind it.

The video opened in the same room the tapes had been found in. The was shuffling around the camera.

"Okay…"

From the height of the camera, it was likely either set on or beside the television. Suddenly a technician walked into view. It was clear he was a technician from the jumpsuit he was wearing. He sat down on the padded floor in front of the camera before patting his knees.

"Alright, guys. Pat-a-cake time. Sunnydrop, you're up first," he said. His voice was upbeat and friendly, like he was coaxing a child, and he was looking at something just outside the camera.

That's when the Sun stepped into view. Except while it had the same pants and relative build, the face was widely different from the one they were familiar with. It has an open mouth smile with a little gap in the upper teeth and eyes with blue-grey pupils instead of being fully whited out. His movements were also much more subdued than Sunny's typical bouncy motions.

"That's Jake," Charlie said in surprise. She sat up in the chair as she watched him come over and sit down in front of the technician.

"Okay, hands up," the technician instructed. He held up his hands and the Sun mimicked. The man clapped his hands, the bot followed suit, and then they began to play.

They started slow but began to pick up speed the longer they exchanged claps. The technician kept his eyes downward, watching the Sun's hands and seemingly checking his reflexes. They continued on for about a minute before he stopped with a final clap.

"Good job! Okay, okay…" He dug around in his pocket before pulling out a length of already tied string. The Sun held out his hands and the technician hooked it over them. "Cat's cradle, please."

The Sun began to lace the strings in his fingers until he made a square design between his fingers. All the while the technician studied closely. The bot held it out towards him, and he clapped.

"Great job, Sunny! Scoot over?" he asked. The Sun untangled his fingers and scooted to the side. The technician craned his neck to look up at the ceiling. "Your turn, Moondrop. Come on down!"

"I don't feel like it," Moon grumbled from off camera.

The Sun rolled his head back in an exasperated motion to look up towards him. The technician seemed a little disappointed as well. The look on his face suggested this wasn't a new phenomenon.

"Okay… Tell you what, you come down and play a game with me and I'll bring you in some Fizzy Faz," he offered. There was a disagreeing grumble as a response. "Not good enough, eh? Let's see. We've got coloring books. I could bring you in more paint if you're really careful… Still no?" He hummed with consideration. "How about more movies?"

"I'm tired of watching children's cartoons."

"I'll bring you in a real movie. An adult movie- Not an ADULT movie, but a movie for adults, not kids."

There was a pause and a jingling before Moon suddenly dropped from the ceiling and into camera view. He landed alongside the Sun before sitting alongside him. He looked almost exactly the same to the Moon they remembered.

"That's the Sun we know. He's both the Sun and the Moon now," Charlie explained to Michael.

"Huh. He doesn't sound like Ennard," he noted.

"Only when he's the Sun."

The technician raised his hands and finally the Moon cooperated. He impatiently clapped back. Apparently with more force than the man was expecting as his hand popped back a little. He didn't comment on it however and instead continued to play the clapping game to test the bot's reflexes.

Though instead of slowly gaining speed like the Sun, the Moon started to speed up immediately. Going faster and pressing harder until he was leaning forward at the technician was having to draw back. Quickening faster and faster until the technician fumbled, and then the Moon instantly drew his hands back. Palms still up and face spinning mockingly at the technician.

"Great job, Moondrop! That was really good, you're showing a lot of progress."

From the deflated sag of his shoulders, this was obviously not the response that the Moon had wanted. The technician draped the string on one hand and the bot pulled it back and quickly complied with lacing the string on his fingers. He swiftly pulled it into and then flashed a star symbol before immediately pulling it apart again. He was irritated, impatient, while the Sun sat beside him with his head turned towards him like he was watching.

"Now let's see you two do it together. One more quick round of Pat-a-cake and you're good to go," the technician encouraged.

The Sun turned towards the Moon, who was now all but staring down the technician. The Sun insistently tapped him on the arm, or poked him in the arm, and finally the Moon turned on his hands to face him. They began to repeat the same routine, but unlike with the technician the Moon kept a quick but followable pace. The Sun kept up with him fine enough and the technician stopped them after about a minute.

"And there you go. Good job to you both! You're doing a lot better," he said. He held the string for a moment before shoving it back in his pocket. "I think we can go ahead and skip more cat's cradle. Now I'm going to get out of your hair, let you two rest, and I'll swing by with the movies before my shift ends," he promised.

He got up and came over to turn off the camera. The Sun and Moon watched him, heads turning to exchange a silent look before the footage came to an end.

For a second it seemed like that was going to be everything on the tape, but then the footage abruptly cut back on.

The camera was aimed towards a monitor showing security footage. Marionette was the only one who could recognize the room it was taken in, the room where he had confronted Vanny. The camera was pushed closer and adjusted to line up with the picture on the screen. That picture was a feed of that same little padded room where the Sun could be laying on the floor on his back beside the Moon who sat on his heels, up and alert.

"Confirming now that they do sleep," a familiar voice spoke. It was the same technician from the earlier clip, as expected. "That's kind of cute. It might be a feature for naptime. I've only seen Sunnydrop sleeping… but I can't find anywhere where this is mentioned. And as far as I know, I'm the only one who's been working with them," he quietly explained. His voice was hushed, like this whole thing was secretive.

He then moved the camera to point it down on the desk and revealed three movies laid out on it. They were marked like they were rentals.

"I've got Out of Yesterday, Sunspot, and The Frost. Let's see how these go over," he finished. Then the scene abruptly ended.

That wasn't the last clip, but that was the most significant one. It sat with Mike through to the next one, lingering on the back of his mind as he watched the old Sun running a test with a shape sorter toys, which seemed like a relatively questionable test to run considering that the animatronics were already showing enough intelligence to speak. It was the same technician running the test, but the interactions were light.

It was after that clip that the tape finally came to an anticlimactic end. It just stopped after that, which seemed strange when the tape had plenty more space on it.

Maybe the testing came to an unexpected end, he considered. Or maybe it was just an unfinished and forgotten tape left behind once the daycare attendants were deemed ready to perform. He really couldn't be sure.

"What do you think?" Marionette unexpectedly asked. He had a pensive tone and a matching expression on his mask when Mike looked to him. Almost like he too noticed the abruptness of it.

"I think watching that gave me the same weird vibe as being in that room. You know, that general 'off' feeling. Like something's wrong but you don't know what it is," Mike said. "I don't know, maybe it's just me."

"No, I feel it too. Something doesn't sit right about this tape, but I'm not sure… Oh… Hmm…"

"What?" Mike asked. He watched as Marionette's looked at the screen thoughtfully, processing whatever he was thinking before looking back at him.

"I think I might know what it is… Could you please put it back on? Rewind it to the beginning. I want to watch through again," he said.

"Sure." He reached forward and began rewinding the video tape once more. "Going to cue me in?"

"Not yet. Not until I watch it again just in case I put my foot in my mouth," Marionette remarked.

"I've got to start doing that," Mike replied. "You wouldn't believe what I yelled at that rabbit chick."

"You said you were going to drop her like a bag of flour," Marionette said with an tickled smile.

"It was a bag of dirt, and my point exactly."

Though the seriousness returned once the video was playing through a second time. Marionette's eyes returned to the screen and he watched closely. Mike did too, looking at the finer details and trying to see what it was that the puppet had picked up. It could've been that Jake wasn't talking, but that didn't seem like enough of a clue. Moon was acting rather in-character for what they had seen as well, and it couldn't have been the room itself since Marionette hadn't a comparison.

"This is all very strange," Michael murmured. Mike looked back at him and his lidded eyes, perhaps resembling furrowing brows.

"What part of it?" Jeremy asked, beating him to it.

"Both of 'em," Foxy answered

"Not that. Though yes, I agree. They are rather strange. No, I mean a lone technician going into a padded cell to 'test' animatronic features. That's very strange." Michael rubbed at his chin before looking to Mike. "That's a very human test to perform on an animatronic."

Foxy gave an agreeing hum.

"From what you said about the lackadaisical programming and the adherence to the rules, I was under the impression that they treat all of their animatronics like robots. Even the ones who exhibit more personality are treated more as an asset than a person… So, why is it that they were testing these ones like humans? Or perhaps, more like animals, but certainly not like robots," Michael laid out. "There were no direct commands. Practically no monitoring equipment."

"Because they're not testing them. He is," Marionette said.

He still studied the video but now with a look bordering between suspicion and uncertainty. The second he said it, and as he continued to explain it, Mike looked to the screen and saw the signs as clear as day.

"He's recording them in secret. That's why he was whispering in the office, that's why he's always testing them alone. He's recording it himself which means there's likely nobody watching the cameras, because as we saw the feed is perfectly fine. There's no need for a handheld camera in there. There's no need for him to record security footage in secret if he's doing what Fazbear Entertainment told him to do."

"And the fact that he said he was looking into things he can't find answers on. That sounds like the sort of thing that Fazbear Entertainment might not be cool with," Charlie pointed out.

"That too," Marionette agreed.

"He could've gotten fired for this. Didn't they say something about losing a technician suddenly? Forget leaving unexpectedly, I bet they canned him, didn't want to say why, and this tape got thrown in with the training tapes. Just like they did with that one of Scott's accident," Jeremy pointed out.

"That sounds about right," Mike said dryly.

"…Or he got himself killed," Foxy lowly added.

Jeremy nearly guffawed at the statement. "You mean Moon, right? I don't think Moon's capable of killing anyone. He might look creepy but that's pretty much it."

"I second that," Charlie agreed.

"I don't just mean Moon. I mean if this guy got the wrong idea with these two then he might've gotten close to somethin' he shouldn't of," Foxy pointed out. There wasn't a shred of humor in his voice and that sobered Jeremy up quickly. "It's no different than a zookeeper thinkin' he's got the animals figured out 'til he walks into the wrong cage."

"That's what happened to Ben…" Michael volunteered quietly.

The way his apathy broke and let the grief bleed through the cracks was enough to disquiet a room. More than even the talk of death had done. Swimming in that feeling until Charlie offered up her two cents.

"So, here's the thing I don't get. He's acting friendly with them. He might be asking them to do these tests, but he's being nice about it. Even bribing them. But the way Sun's talked about technicians- Moon Sun, not Jake- it's like they've been mistreated by all of the technicians. It's weird neither mentioned him or even alluded to him at all," she pointed out.

"Perhaps he did a test they didn't like…" Michael volunteered.

That sent a shiver down Marionette's spine. One tangible enough that it caused him to shudder and for Mike to notice. He processed that idea a moment before slowly turning towards the chair.

"…Charlie, I hate to ask this and put you in this position, but… did Jake say anything about how he was damaged?" he asked, voicing his concerns.

She looked surprised at first. Then she got an unsettled frown as her eyes slid to the paused TV screen.

"No… He wouldn't," Charlie said. From her voice it was clear that she was now suspecting the same thing.

It was downright chilling if it was true. Perhaps Moon really could be capable of murder.

"…Eh, I'll ask Freddy. He'll know somethin'," Foxy volunteered.

"As far as we know, that is Freddy," Marionette cryptically suggested, gesturing a hand at the screen. Foxy gave a negative noise and shook his head.

"Nah, can't be. We'd know right off. This be someone else," he assured. Then he pushed off the back of the couch and wandered into the kitchen, briefly glancing inside of the fridge. Leaving a silent living room in his wake.

This time Mike decided to break that silence a little faster and stretched before getting up.

"Well, now that you're all good and riled up, I'm calling it a night," he said, offering a hand to Marionette to help him up as well.

Jeremy arched a brow in surprise. "That was sudden."

"It's almost five. Not sudden enough," Mike replied.

"You know you're going to need to get that kid out of there," Michael cut in. His voice regaining its general mix of seriousness and exhaustion.

That comment was even more sudden than his own. Almost enough to take him off guard, but it was hard to be surprised by Michael's trademark bluntness after living with it for a while.

"I know. We offered to take him tonight, but he wouldn't budge. Freddy's got toys and games and all the junk food he can eat; we can't compete with that," Mike said. His quippy tone barely hiding his weary concede.

"They also have a deranged woman in a rabbit suit who just might be one of our equally deranged father's followers. It might be time to get tough."

"Gregory's not the type of kid to respond well to 'tough'," Marionette sighed. "He may trust us more now, but I get the impression that the only reason we've gotten this close is out of desperation and our shared association to Freddy."

"Aye, and ya ain't wrong. He's a good kid, he just can't trust people. And it ain't like Freddy's trying to ply him with goodies. Freddy's a lil indulgent- at least compared to any father we've ever known- but he's making due with what he has. He's tryin' to keep him fed and safe without runnin' him off- and it paid off! Freddy's prob'ly the only one who Gregory'll listen to," Foxy explained.

"Sunny's helping too. He gave him a lunchbox full of food that wasn't junk," Jeremy added. "…But he and Gregory butt heads a little."

"Least it's somethin'… We're figurin' this out, Michael. We're not letting this slide," Foxy swore. Michael nodded, trusting that tone.

"Can we put it back on cable now?" Max asked from the dark corner of the living.

"What's the magic word?"

"Now, damn it. NOW."

Michael rolled his eyes into his suit and turned it back over to television.

Meanwhile, Foxy pulled back from the fridge and turned away to pace around the kitchen. It was going to be a hard day tomorrow because he was feeling wired tonight and hadn't gotten in nearly enough running to burn it off. He set a glance to the blind covered kitchen window and wondered if he was disguised enough to run around the block, then inwardly scoffed at the idea. Instead leaning on the table and pulling down the blinds with his hook to peek.

"Hope Freddy's holding up..."

Freddy was holding up as well as could be expected considering that Gregory just walked out into the unknown. While he wanted to take some relief in knowing that Gregory would be coming back in through the front, he couldn't. If anything, tonight had enforced that the Pizzaplex wasn't nearly as safe as it was during operating hours. Really, the only relief he could take was that they were opening in only a few hours.

Freddy waited by the Loading Dock door for a while after Gregory left, just in case he changed his mind. Which he didn't. In fact, by time Freddy finally turned to leave the door he was probably already back in the Pizzaplex.

It took all of his self-control to not run up there and go get him, but he gave him his distance. He didn't understand why Gregory was sneaking back in, likely because he would think Freddy would make him leave. Nothing was further from the truth. Freddy wasn't required to contact parents unless he knew who those parents were, which was exactly why he didn't ask about them. He knew Gregory was coming here to escape something, he wouldn't make him leave.

Though this rabbit woman situation was beginning to scare him. It seemed too close to the rumors about the old Freddy's. Rumors that, with what Foxy and Marionette had said, were sounding a bit more realistic. He hated having to do it, but he was going to have to ask Foxy directly the next time he came. He needed to know the truth about what happened, and how a human could become an animatronic.

Had he been a human?

Freddy stopped outside the kitchen door and stared at it silently. He didn't remember being human, he didn't suppose that he felt human with the occasional error pop-ups and the need to recharge his battery, but it was worth wondering about. Perhaps that was why Foxy did not need to charge. It was all very confusing, and Freddy didn't really have anyone to talk to about it. Nobody who was both here and awake, at least.

He wasn't here anymore.

With a sigh, Freddy pushed through the kitchen doors and started to head back towards the elevator. His eyes tracing the tiles on the floor as he dragged himself along.

He was interrupted by a jingle and looked up from the floor just in time to see a familiar form dropping to the floor from the upper walkway. It was Moon. He landed gracefully before rising to his feet and beginning to slink over.

"Gooood evening, Papa Bear…"

"Moon!" Freddy was shocked to see him down here after everything that had happened today. He watched as Moon made his way around the corner of the kitchen equipment and stalked up to him.

"Sooo far away from your green room, hmm? What could you be doing down here so earrrrly in the morning?" the jester drew out. His body clicking and clinking and jingling as he crept closer.

"I could ask the same thing. How are you feeling?"

"…Exhausted." Moon dropped his head to the side and hung it in a somewhat uncanny way. One that Freddy didn't even bat an eye at. He lifted his head back up slowly, face turning to stay level as he did. "Where is your goblin-child?"

"…He has already left," Freddy confessed. His ears and eyes lowering as he confessed such. Though he pulled himself back together quickly, not wanting Moon to see him sulking. "Speaking of which, I would like to thank you for taking care of Gregory while I was indisposed."

"There is no need."

"I insist!... And I must apologize on behalf of Monty. I am sure he did not mean to hurt you."

"Oh, I am sure he is verrrry sorry," Moon growled under his breath. Freddy's shifted uncomfortably and looked aside guiltily. "Tch. Don't apologize for him. He fought dirty because he knew, oh he knew, that I had him."

"I am sure you did but perhaps- and I mean this in the best way, of course- perhaps you could… not have him?" Freddy tentatively suggested. "I know you were protecting Gregory, but I do not like the idea of two of my dear friends fighting."

Moon made another disapproving 'tch'.

"…Especially when it risks you going back into Parts and Service," Freddy continued. He made eye contact with the jester and his voice grew even more solemn. "You cannot return to Parts and Service. It is out of the question."

"That ship has sailed, hasn't it? Mmm, very well. Next time I will simply have to take Monty out before he does something stupid- like trying to cross me," Moon suggested. Freddy wasn't exactly pleased by the implication, but he chose to believe that the Daycare Attendant was putting on airs. Moon noticed, shifting his weight onto one leg, and propping his head on a hand. "…Sun is soft on him."

"Gregory?" Freddy said in surprise.

"No, Monty. He sees such an unchecked temper and swoons," Moon said. Clasping his hands in mock adoration and spinning his face with the last word, only to quickly spin it back. "Hmm… On second thought, that doesn't sound right."

This roused a chuckle out of Freddy.

"I am just surprised that Sun would admit to it. He was so resistant earlier," he said. His eyelids lowering with a warm smile. "Remind me to thank him for making sure Gregory was well fed."

"I will pass on the message," Moon agreed. "But there still is a problem, Freddy. Do you know what it is?" He leaned in closer, clicking and rattling in anticipation. "You're not where you're supposed to be."

"I am heading back upstairs now… Unless there is somewhere else you want me to be?"

"Always such a fast learner, yesss." Moon shuddered with a low giggle, one that filled Freddy with equal trepidation and fondness. "I have had such a loooong night, Freddy Bear. Such a long, long night filled with so many unruly people. And though it is not your fault- no, no- would you make it up to me?"

"I would be happy to! Anything that you need I am here to provide," Freddy agreed.

"Good, good…" Moon beckoned him with a crooked finger. "Come with me."

…

There was something so soothing about the daycare at naptime. Though Freddy assumed that was on purpose.

Still, there was a comfort in the room that wasn't found anywhere else in the Pizzaplex. The lights turned low and the illuminated stars on the wall only bright enough to glow and still leaving most of the room in a tranquil deep blue. Just like staring off into a starry night sky even though the neon shapes were a far cry from actual celestial bodies.

The room was slightly cooled by the air conditioning units. Not enough to feel cold but just enough to make the plush floor beneath him feel warm. He could imagine laying out on it under one of those small, soft blankets that were passed out to the children. It would have to be so comfy and cozy. He couldn't imagine anyone not enjoying it- even though he knew why rambunctious children were so reluctant to settle down and sleep.

It had been a long time since he had felt so comfortable. His head resting on a cushion that was held up underneath it by his bent arm, putting cushioning between him and the limb. The soft weight of a second pillow resting on his lower chest, puffy warmth stretched out over his legs- it was better than a blanket. Even if they had a blanket his size, this was much more fitting.

Freddy wished that he could sleep. He just wasn't certain how, especially when he was toting a fully charged battery. But it was fine; he was more than comfortable laying here and letting his mind wander. Because his thoughts weren't nearly as abrasive while laid out on the floor of the daycare, staring at the fake neon stars like they hung in a vast sky. These thoughts were fleeting and airy, like dreams. He couldn't remember sleeping, but he could vaguely remember dreaming.

He trailed his hand up the non-existent seam on Moon's back and gently traced his fingers along his hoop.

Moon hummed a little into the pillow he was lying face down on and pressed into it further, pressing it further against Freddy's chest, his long fingers hooking around one shoulder and his other arm slid further around his waist.

He was totally submerged in sleep mode, Freddy could tell. If not from his lack of a glow, then from how relaxed he was. It filled Freddy with a warmth somewhat like the pillow and the puffy pants shifting along his legs. It also took off the foreboding pressure that had started weighing him down after he found out the truth about the update. At least some of it, at least for a little while.

A perfectly comfortable silence only interrupted when Moon would slightly shift, or their feet would bump, and one of his many bells would jingle. Freddy couldn't help but smile when they did. Such a delightful little noise.

It was all so nice. Freddy felt great… but in the back of his mind he couldn't suppress all of the worries.

He worried about Gregory first of all, being alone in the Pizzaplex somewhere. He worried about his bandmates, feeling guilty that he hadn't approached them with more offerings to help. That he had been skipping out on the practices when he was supposed to be leading the band and making sure they did them. He worried about Foxy putting himself in danger coming by and what consequences there would be if he was caught. Especially and including with his friends.

But perhaps most of all he worried about Sun and Moon. It weighed him down considerably, possibly because he was literally weighing on his chest.

He had always known that they were to receive updates to iron any issues with their behavior and he knew that Sunny distrusted the human employees, but he had never realized the full extent of what they were doing or why he had been so scared. Freddy had naively believed that they just wanted to help Sunny function better, but this was a step beyond that. An automatic shutdown, confining him to the daycare, and that added with the condition of his living space…

It was almost like the staff actively disliked Sunny and Moon. Like they were doing this on purpose. It sounded insane but Freddy couldn't understand such measures elsewise. He felt like he had to do something, but what? What could he do?

Perhaps he needed to get Sunny out of the daycare. Get him to meet more of their guests until he was as beloved as the Glamrocks themselves. Sure, it would take him away from his duties, but little children were unhelpful in this situation. Their voices weren't enough to speak up for Sunny, and many of them got spooked by him just from his face alone. Nobody was going to speak up for Moondrop.

Freddy reached up to the hand on his shoulder and gently pulled it free before lacing his fingers with it. Moon's hand pressed back, and his fingers coiled around Freddy's in his sleep. Freddy sighed, that comfort easing up his worries once more.

They would figure it out. Now that Freddy knew he could do something about it. He just had to figure out what.

He had to stay strong, and with a few nights like this maybe he could.

Natalie wasn't confident that this was going to work. She had seen the state of the security equipment when the rabbit was running around. Not only did she doubt it was picking anything up, she was certain that was the point. That she either tampered with the security system or had something on her that twisted up the footage, just like Marionette did.

But she still had to try. Because the longer Natalie thought about it the more she realized that she needed the safety net that the evidence provided. Not even the evidence that Vanny was real, but the evidence that she was in uniform patrolling the upper floors while Vanny was skipping around threatening people.

Because while her main priority was to keep people from getting hurt, Natalie wasn't about to take the fall for Vanny. Even if that was what the rabbit was setting up for.

She got surprisingly far into the Pizzaplex before anyone approached her about it. In fact, she was heading through the door leading up to the main security room when a man hustled up to her with something of a, "Excuse me, Ma'am. Hold on." He was wearing a basic floor staff uniform, but she had no idea what he did. Considering that he was hanging out in Rockstar Row, chatting up groups that headed through, he was probably some sort of tour guide.

Rockstar Row was a little busy today. The only one of the Glamrock band who was in their rooms was Roxanne Wolf, and she had her curtains wide open so they could watch as she fluffed her hair in the vanity. Putting on a show of it.

It didn't take more than a flash of her keycard to get her effectively off the hook. The man apologized awkwardly and returned to whatever he was doing while she headed up into the main security office, nervously wondering who she would find up there and how she would sort through the security footage in front of them.

It was a huge office. Security camera screens were mounted on desks and in the walls, including all over the island wall that cut through the center of the room. Large screens depicted various camera angles of the front door, of the door to the parking garage, to attractions like Monty Golf and Fazer Blast, and spied in on plenty of children. There were also walls of windows, one facing backstage and the other out into the atrium.

A huge room with dozens of screens spying on hundreds of people.

And one guy reading a magazine.

He looked up suddenly.

"Oh hey, you can't be back here," he nonchalantly said.

"Oh hey, yes I can," Natalie disagreed. She still had her keycard out and showed it to him.

He took it and glanced it over before smiling and standing up.

"It's about time!" he said and offered his hand. She furrowed her brow. "That we met. I'm halfa the dayshift."

"Oh! Right, sorry," Natalie shook his hand. "I'm Vanessa."

"Tommy."

Tommy was rather standard looking all things considered. He looked around her age, maybe a touch older, a little on the short side and with fluffy dark hair sticking out underneath his security cap. The only thing that really stood out about him was his Brooklyn accent.

"I'm shocked there even is a dayshift with how reluctant Wight was to hire a nightguard," Natalie half-asked.

"People keep lifting stuff outta the giftshops. Safety? Nah, no big deal. About fifty dollars wortha Freddy Fazbear junk? We're hiring on a new workforce," Tommy joked. "Abe's hanging out over in Glamrock Gifts. He's a temp but he might stick around… Sorry to talk your ear off. I've been sitting in here all day watching people walk back and forth on TVs- gets a little lonely. Anywho, didya need something or you just passing through?"

"Actually, I came to look at last night's security footage. I think there was a scuffle between Monty and Moon, and I want to double check," she explained.

Though Natalie wondered if this was going to be a problem with Tommy in here. If he was going to try and look over her shoulder, she was going to have to cut this short and come back later.

"Sure thing. Over here," Tommy said.

He stood up and led her to the other side of the room, around the wall of electronics and into the opposite corner. All the while still talking.

"I dunno how ya do it. Some of these bots got something real screwy going on up there," he said while tapping his temple. He then pointed to one of the random screens in the corner. "That's the one you can watch the playback on. You press the ehhh. Here, let me try."

"I can handle it."

"Lemme just…" Tommy leaned over the desk while clicking his tongue. He moved the mouse into the corner, clicked to pull up a menu, and then clicked again to make a login screen pop up. "Here ya go! You just put your stuff in and you should be good to go."

She noticed the emphasis on 'should' but stopped herself from asking once he turned to walk back to his chair. Not wanting to risk unintentionally inviting him to stick around. She just thanked him, pulled over another chair, and put in her login information. The screen loaded for a long moment before popping up on an error screen, which surprised her. She could've expected an invalid login, but not an "Error please try again later" screen.

She backed out and tried a second time only to have the same result. Then she reluctantly required Tommy's help. She pushed back and turned the chair to call over to him, "I'm getting some sort of error screen."

Tommy came back over and looked at the screen. Then he backed out and tried to log in with his own credentials. He didn't get her error, but he didn't get any farther either.

"Insufficient Security Clearance."

"Oh, that's real nice," Tommy grumbled. "Nothing like that to show you what the big boys really think of ya. Here, try again. Might be working now."

Natalie did but once again she was rewarded with an error screen. She gave an impatient huff.

"Ain't that screwy…" Tommy said. Pulling off his cap to scratch his head before replacing it. "Eh, we can send a message down to the technicians, but don't expect any sorta fix anytime soon. I bet they're still up to their elbows in bots since that accident up on stage."

"Accident?" Natalie asked in confusion. "Don't tell me. Freddy went down again?"

"Nah, it wasn't him. Much worse, lemme tell ya," Tommy declined. He raised his hands as though framing a picture or framing the shot of his story. "So, there I was!... Sitting right over there. When all of a sudden, I hear this-."

…

Gregory didn't like the looks people were giving him today. Mostly nosey parents who scrunched up their faces and talked amongst themselves. It got to the point that he decided to spend most of the time in Kids Cove, tucked inside the bow of the pirate ship. The sound of little kids running around the ship sounding like it was miles away. At least he had gotten some snacks from Freddy last night, so he didn't have a dire need to scrounge today.

He only eventually dragged himself when the first show of the day was going to begin. A lunchtime noontime show where families were encouraged to grab a bite to eat in the atrium while watching the band rock out on stage. There wasn't such a big crowd gathered in front of the stage, but many of the tables were filled up- specifically by people who hadn't filled out an order for the table and simply hadn't been called out by the few members of human staff.

It was usually worth dealing with the crowd to watch Freddy perform. Sure, the songs were cheesy, but they were starting to grow on Gregory. Or maybe he just found it cool to watch Freddy do his thing.

Or it would've been, except they had a different plan for today. Instead of the usual setup where Freddy was the main singer with the other bandmates occasionally chiming in, none other than Chica herself was suddenly playing a headlining role alongside Freddy. She still played her guitar but was now performing a duet with him, singing a song that Gregory didn't recognize. A techno pop number about coolness. At least, they said that a lot.

It was far from cool, Gregory thought as he watched the stage with distaste. Chica was the last person he wanted to see. Seeing her bounce around with that cheekiness on her voice was just annoying. She was just annoying.

Yet as sour as Gregory was towards Chica, he never anticipated what was coming. In fact, he was expecting this to go off without a hitch and everyone would clap, and the show would go on. Hopefully with Freddy back in the lead. They neared that point as they built up towards that final note. That note that Freddy usually bellowed out but was now turning over to Chica, going so far as to lean his mic stand out for her.

She leaned back to reach it, striking one hard note on her guitar as she opened up her beak and let loose.

It was like straight metal to the ears. The sharpest most grating shriek of a noise Gregory had ever heard. So shocking and loud that his hands reflexively flew to his ears with a short cry. "Gah!"

Freddy was shaken by it too. He shuddered as though in pain and dropped the mic stand, then looked up at Chica in surprise. She stared back wide-eyed before her beak clamped closed.

Then then first wail began. Both animatronics looked out towards the crowd and listened as the younger children in the audience began to cry. Though those weren't the only audible complaints that could be heard now with the music's abrupt halt. The only thing left being the slight picking of Monty's bass. Freddy looked back to see the gator looking over the top of his sunglasses with an utterly floored look.

The audience weren't the only one's feeling the effects either. Noticing a clattering noise, Gregory looked back to see a Staff Bot that had dropped a platter of food and was currently trembling in place, malfunctioning. It wasn't the only one either. Gregory could see at least one of the ones at the counter twitching in place in front of an already impatient looking line of people waiting to order their lunch. It looked like they would be waiting a while later.

It was as though the Pizzaplex stopped, and Gregory could only watch the chaos unfold. It was very different to when Freddy collapsed on stage, people seemed a lot more irritated. He didn't blame them; his ears were still ringing.

Eventually some guys in uniform jumpsuits came up on stage. Gregory could only guess that they were those technicians he had heard about. One scruffy guy pointed at Chica and then swiftly pointed a thump behind him. Gregory could imagine a harsh, "Get off the stage!" even though that was likely not what he said.

Chica still seemed surprised though from how swiftly she stood upright. Freddy stepped forward, putting a hand on her shoulder and holding the other up at the men. He seemed to be trying to defend her, but the man cut him off with something. A sudden hand gesture and a sharp point. Must've said something smart, Gregory supposed, as Roxanne suddenly stepped in and pointed right back. Growling something intimidating enough that a different technician raised his hands in defense.

Gregory started to get closer and could hear the first technician's voice a little better over the drone of the nearby crowd. He heard something along the lines of, "I'm not going to tell you again," and a very harsh, "NOW," to punctuate it.

Chica thrusted her arms down in frustration and followed the technicians off the stage right afterwards. Freddy started to follow before another one of the technicians pointed for him to go back. Though this guy was much less harsh about it. Freddy seemed reluctant as he returned back to the front of the stage and picked the microphone back up. Roxanne glaring after the group with a twitchy leg and Monty staring blankly off at the unsettled crowd.

Gregory knew he should've felt back for Chica. Especially since she was Freddy's friend and her messing up messed up his whole show. He didn't feel bad at all. In fact, he was glad she made a big scene and had to be led off.

After all- he ghosted his fingers over the large bruise stretching down his arm- she was the reason he was suddenly the center of attention. She got what she deserved.

...

"-And half the Staff Bots had to be hauled downstairs and none of 'em came back up yet. And because they're all set up on some kinda grid, they can't send ones over from somewhere else. It's real bad."

"Yikes," Natalie sympathized. "Glad I missed that… But what am I supposed to do now?"

"You want my advice? Get out while you still can. I hear they've been calling in employees to come run the stuff in the Atrium. Don't let 'em figure out you're here or ya might be on fry duty down at the snack bar," Tommy warned.

"Yeah, that's the last thing I want…" Natalie considered her options before standing with a sigh. "Maybe I'll call Wight later and see if he has another way to get that footage."

"Good luck with that. And hey, drop in sometime! Gives me somethin' to look forward to."

They shook hands, said their goodbyes, and soon Natalie was back out into the Pizzaplex. She decided to take the other security guard's advice and instead of getting caught lingering there she made her way out. She stopped by Glamrock Gifts on the way out and glanced in. There was no sign of Ness, with her post tended to by a Staff Bot attendant. A lanky redhead with a security guard cap sat on a plastic chair nearby. She waved and he returned it, though looked a little confused.

Soon Natalie was hiking out into the parking lot and heading towards the employee's section where the car waited. She opened up the passenger door and climbed in.

"Sorry, Hun. I didn't mean to take that long, but I ran into the daytime security guard and got roped into a long story about the latest major malfunction on stage."

"No problem," Fritz assured. He leaned over to kiss her; a pick-me-up since he could already tell she hadn't gotten what she needed from her tone. He then started up the car and backed out of the space. "Freddy again?"

"Worse. Chica. Something about her new voice box being too screechy and scaring a bunch of kids… and possibly putting twenty Staff Bots down in Parts and Service," Natalie said. She sighed again. "I didn't get it, by the way. Every time I tried to log in there was an error and he didn't have high enough clearance."

Fritz hummed at first but then noticed what she said. "High enough clearance? Wasn't he the security guard?"

"Yup. Maybe it's because he was just hired on? He called the other guy a temp, so it's a possibility," Natalie offered. Fritz nodded in agreeing. "I'll try to call Wight a little later. He said they're asking employees to come and fill in, so I'll wait until a little closer to my shift."

"Good idea. I wouldn't get my hopes up though. Wight doesn't strike me as the most hands-on guy with his business."

"No. He's more the choose the menu based off of focus groups and the color scheme off of whatever's chic enough," Natalie joked. Fritz grinned at that, and she returned it as she stretched on the seat. "So, what now? Should I call Mike?"

"Sure, if you don't mind."

Natalie got out her cell phone and dialed Mike'. Fritz sat quietly in the driver's side and listened as she recited the story to him.

"Yeah, I know… Sure. I'll probably do it around four or five and I'll call you back. Just try to take it easy… Alright, bye," she finished. She ended the call with a sympathetic hiss. "He sounded tired."

"I've noticed. I think these nightly escapades are starting to burn him out-."

They were interrupted by the phone ringing. Natalie arched a delicate brow and answered the call.

"Hello?" she asked. After a second she mouthed "Mike" to Fritz, tipping off who it was before continuing to listen. Then she furrowed her brows. "I mean, we can, but I don't know how much help he's going to be. I had clearance, there was just some kind of error that kept popping up," she said. There was a few moments of a response. "…Good point. I guess it won't hurt to try… Okay, we'll meet you there. We're just leaving the parking lot now so don't rush. Okay, bye."

She ended the call and looked back to Fritz. "Change of plans. Looks like we're heading to Scott's."

Fritz shared her quirked brow, and she gave a half shrug and smile. They set their doubts aside and set their destination to Scott's.

Chapter 49

Chapter Summary

After finding a possible avenue to the security footage with Scott, another trip to the Pizzaplex is underway. Meanwhile, Gregory might find a solution to a repeated problem in an unexpected new friend.

Chapter Notes

I think this still counts as 'next week' right? XD It looks like I'm taking in my computer on Monday, so hopefully this is enough for if the next chapter is a few days off as well. We'll see! Hopefully it'll be a quick turnaround. Enjoy!

Mike might've sounded tired on the phone, but he looked downright exhausted in person.

He had called a little before noon claiming he had wanted to come into work and ended up replacing Fritz when he went with Natalie to the Pizzaplex. He had insisted on it, and he seemed alert enough when he had come in. Though he had been nursing a cup of coffee so that could've been helping him through. He intended on going right back and finishing out the shift, letting Fritz and Natalie have an afternoon together.

Except he looked like he was barely going to make it through the following conversation with Scott. He didn't look alert enough to even hold a conversation, let alone formulate some kind of plan to crack the case of the elusive security footage. Fritz and Natalie quietly exchanged concerns through brief words and looks.

Eventually Fritz tried to broach the subject with a, "How are you holding up?"

Mike gave a noncommittal, "I'm standing," and shrugged the question off.

Normally Fritz was fine with Mike's sarcastic non-answers, but in this case, he found his friend and business partner's state incredibly concerning.

But before they could dwell on it, the front door opened for them. It was Scott who answered and greeted them with a smile and a, "Hey, you three. Come on in!"

From his lack of surprise, it was evident that Mike must have called him beforehand. From his lack of unease or tenseness of any kind, Mike must've left out most of the details. Fritz saw him take notice of Mike's state. He gave him a onceover as he passed by and his smile softened with sympathy, and he stepped aside to let Fritz and Natalie through before shutting and locking the door behind them.

Ennard and Baby were both waiting for them in the living room. Baby was sitting on the couch with her claw in her lap and her hand resting on it while Ennard stood beside the couch, leaning on the back on his elbow.

Fritz's eyes were also drawn by an unexpected pink color and spotted the third animatronic present. It was the Bonnie hand puppet he had heard about but hadn't seen. She noticed his eyes fall on her and froze in place, staring back with wide unblinking eyes with the slightest of trembles shifting through her. Almost like she was vibrating for a second.

"Well, well, well! Look who's come crawling back to the Clown House," Ennard greeted in a playfully evil voice. Rubbing his hands together and cackling deviously. "I knew you'd be back! They ALWAYS come back! Ahahaha!"

"It's great to be here. Really," Fritz played along.

The pink bunny jumped when he started talking and suddenly lost her nerve. She turned and buried herself behind the pillow beside her, pushing it up the block her from view and even pulling her ears in. Not that it did much to hide her. Natalie gave a little 'aww' from beside him, so she must've noticed it too.

"Good afternoon, Mike, Natalie, Fritz. It is a pleasure," Baby politely greeted. "No Charlie or Marion today?"

"Still at the pizzeria," Mike answered.

"Good to see you too, Baby. How's it been?" Natalie greeted.

"Quiet, thankfully. Until you showed up, but I suppose that is to be expected."

Everyone in that room had become accustomed to Baby's eloquence and knew not to take her seriously.

"Can I get you anything?" Scott offered. Mike, tired and possibly missing that he was referring to a drink, cut straight to the chase.

"We need your help," he said, pointing at the older man with both hands. "You said something about having a buddy on the inside of Freddy's, right?"

"Pretty much. He's a former employee from back when I was working there… which he had to leave off his resume to get the job. But yeah, we're still friends," Scott answered.

"Which means he would have an employee account. That's what we're looking for," Mike explained.

"Sure!…Well, technically I have an employee account too."

"What? How did that happen?" Mike asked in disbelief.

"So, remember how I have a Fazbear Entertainment email account? Yeah, I just used that and pretended I forgot my password for my employee login and ended up, you know, making an employee login. Heh, not sure how I managed to slip that one past them. But, uh, all it really does is let me get to a few more sections of the Fazbear Entertainment website. It's not really good for anything."

"It might be good for one thing," Natalie said, perking up at the mention of this extra account. "Do you have any idea what your security clearance could be? Or your friend's?"

"Security clearance? I… I have no idea. I don't even know if they were doing security clearance when I was working there. It was just a pizzeria… with a really high mortality rate," Scott awkwardly admitted. "I don't even know how the company's run now. They're not hiring old employees and they're not run by any of the old owners as far as I know, so there'd be no reason to put in my information."

"But they might if they have your email," Natalie said matter-of-factly.

"…Good point. Yeah, they might."

"That's downright brilliant. Forget the person on the inside. YOU'RE on the inside," Mike complimented. Scott smiled at that.

"In which case if they did have your credentials, do you think you'd have any sort of security clearance?" Natalie asked. Scott's smile waned.

"Well… Maybe. I-I did hold a management role for a while- but that could just as easily give me no security clearance. I mean, you can't really say the Freddy's were ran well," Scott explained. He seemed a little more off-put by the line of questioning, though less by their bluntness and more with what he had to be out with. He stole a look to Ennard before offering, "But that guy's working there as a technician, I think. Something like that. He probably has real clearance. Like, clearance that's not going to buckle the second they realize he's not actually an employee."

"That's a good point too. Alright, then we'll stick to him. Do you think there's any way you can ask your buddy for his login information?" Mike asked.

"…Suuure, but what's this all about? Before I go and ask him, I mean. What's going on?" Scott asked. He was finally starting to catch on, his voice holding a shred of suspicion. The concerned kind, like he could tell that last night had happened.

Well, of course he could. It was written all over Mike's face. Underlining along the dark marks under his eyes. Mike looked to Natalie who gestured a hand either as a shrug or a 'go ahead', to which he decided to.

"We're trying to get security footage out of the Pizzaplex. Natalie's login kept bringing up an error and the only other security guard didn't have a high enough clearance, so we're looking for another way in."

"And I find it very suspicious that I'm the only one who can't get in. Unless his login was a fluke, but I'm thinking it might've been more than that," Natalie said. "I'm already on the verge of being framed and blackmailed."

"Wait, you're trying to get security footage?" Scott asked in surprise. "Why, to delete it?"

"Can't be that that. A little birdie told me that footage erases itself on its own," Ennard volunteered.

"No, we're not. We're going to try to get ahold of it and see if we can get evidence of Ness- Vanny… the rabbit woman who keeps messing up the cameras. There was an incident last night and she's gone too far. Now we have to deal with her, and since I couldn't get the footage myself, we're looking for other ways to get ahold of it. Otherwise, I'm going to have to smuggle a camera in there, cross my fingers, and hope she doesn't start swinging," Natalie laid out.

"Oh, that actually sounds pretty cute. A bubbly blond and a buxom bunny duking it out in the middle of a mall," Ennard joked coyly. Natalie gave him a look and he snickered a little. It almost seemed like the comment flew over his head until he ventured to ask, "Now how far was too far? Couldn't have been someone getting hurt, you guys seem a little too ehh… mellow. What was that a minute ago? Framed and blackmailed?"

"Yes," Natalie tiredly drawled.

"And you said her name is Vanny? Oh dear. I think I see the framing device as we speak," Baby remarked.

Natalie groaned and nodded. Fritz put an arm around her both for comfort and as a sort of protectiveness.

"But that's not even half of what happened last night. We have to get this woman off the street," Mike said. His tone expressing both his mental exhaustion and a degree of seriousness that clashed with the previously 'mellow' tone.

"What happened?" Scott asked soberly.

Mike almost went off into an explanation but stopped himself. His look of tiredness quickly shifting to concern.

"A lot happened," he simply said.

"Like…?" Scott coaxed.

"Like a lot of intense stuff. Stuff I know is going to freak you out, because it scared the hell out of me," Mike warned. He knew Scott especially would be a little more effected by the news- not that the present clowns would be any calmer- and wanted to give them a heads up before risking throwing them into a tizzy. "When I say it was bad, it was bad."

"What happened?" Baby spoke up. Her voice much more assertive, refusing to take a 'no' from this point, and that was what finally got the floodgates going. That and Scott giving an encouraging nod for him to continue.

"First off, I ran into her in the basement. Mari and I were down there with that kid whose been staying overnight at the Pizzaplex, Gregory, because Freddy had gone missing and a whole bunch of other stuff happened that I'll get into later. We got down there and got split up and she found Gregory and started chasing him when she ran into me. In fact, I know she's the one behind us getting split up, because she was holed up in an office watching us."

"And she is dressed like a rabbit," Scott confirmed, to which Mike agreed. "Is it an official Freddy's Bonnie suit? What color is it?"

"It looks like a knock-off. Might be for that bunny character they've got up on the bowling alley sign," Mike said.

"I think it's handmade. It's patchy and the seams look like they were done on the outside. Probably with a normal sewing machine," Natalie offered. "And because it's skintight I thought she wasn't carrying anything on her. But no! Turns out she either has an ankle strap or something on her boot, because she's carrying around a knife right down here." She leaned over to gesture to the general area.

"She has a knife?" Scott choked.

"Yes. It's a kitchen knife. I don't know if anyone told you, but there was a night where she set it out for me to find like she was taunting me. It's that same knife so apparently, she's still carrying it around on her."

"And she pulled it on Charlie and Jeremy," Mike said, ripping off the band-aid.

Scott all but sputtered for a response and Baby jolted with alarm

"She what?!" she cried.

"Mostly at Jeremy, but Charlie was there. She actually ran after her and smacked the knife right out of her hands," Mike said with a proud smile and a demonstrative swing of his hand. "She's got reflexes like her half-brother puppet twin."

That didn't really alleviate anyone's concerns, even with the laid implications that everyone was alright. Alas, that wasn't the end of it either.

"…But that's not the worst part," Mike confessed, voice sobering and smile faltering. "…Something happened with Mari- he's not hurt, but there was an incident. One you're all going to be familiar with," he forewarned. He took a moment to breath and gather his thoughts before leading from a sigh into, "Mari went to scare her and when he touched her, he had the same reaction as he did to that Scarecrow Baby you guys had break in here… The only difference was that it was a lot worse. He was inconsolable. It totally put him out of commission and even after it started to wear off it was a while before he could even stand on his own two feet… It was pretty terrible."

The words didn't even matter. It was clear from the way Mike stared off into the carpet that what he had seen had severely upset him. Scott could tell right away, shaking off his shock to reach out for his shoulder. That sort of snapped Mike out of it and he gave an appreciative nod, took another deep breath, and continued.

"We're starting to toss around the idea that she might be possessed. Both because of what happened with Mari and because Charlie said she saw her acting like she suddenly switched personalities," he said.

Fear passed over Scott's face, but he didn't have a chance to ask about his suspicions before he was beaten to it by another.

"Is it… him?" Baby quietly asked.

"No," Mike swiftly answered. "No. No way. Mari drowned him in some kind of spirit lake, I axed his computer tower, and we torched the remains out in Silver Reef. Mari just said this felt like whatever was in that Baby."

"But wasn't that… wasn't that me?" she asked, her voice still soft.

"No, that… That's not what it was," Scott managed. Knowing very well what he had seen and heard but not wanting to dredge up old worries in regards to this new one. "This has- This is something different. She's not an animatronic and you're not… there's no way. It has to be a something else."

"I'm not saying it's connected to Scarecrow Baby at all. Not with how much more intense this one was, and there's the fact she's a human," Mike added in. "I'm just saying what Mari said, that it feels like what happened then."

"Then who is this woman?!" Baby snapped. She reined herself in immediately afterwards, becoming self-conscious at how desperate her voice came out. She then said in a much more composed tone, "You said her name like you know her."

"I do. At least, I think I do," Natalie pitched in. "I'm almost certain Vanny is a girl name Ness who works at Fazbear Entertainment. You know: Van-Nessa. But that's not the only reason I think it. Ness has some issues with Freddy's. I know she's Wight's go-to girl, but I get the impression she doesn't want to be. Big fan of the old Freddy's, but she doesn't like what they're doing with the new one. Lives alone, doesn't really seem to spend a lot of time at home…" Natalie's eyes down casted in thought and concern. "…I thought she was just doing this as a way to get back at Freddy's, but it's beyond that now. It's… She's a danger. If not to other people, then definitely to herself."

"It's scary to think that she might be as much of a victim as everyone else," Fritz agreed.

Scott and Ennard were both silent. Scott still looking frazzled and the only noise coming from Ennard being the faint tightening of his wire coils. She wasn't sure what part of her explanation made them that concerned- Mike did, it was the fascination with the old Freddy's that raised the same alarm bells as the prospect of a psycho with a knife running around in a bunny suit. You couldn't get further down the rabbit hole than that.

Scott stared silently for a long moment, then inhaled deeply through his nose. It was noticeable enough that Ennard looked at him questioningly but was still wide-eyed and silent. Scott raised a hand as though preparing to say something, then rushed out a brisk, "I need a minute." He turned and started to head off towards the office, turning back to stop Ennard who was quick to follow. "I'll just be a minute. I just- I just need a second."

"No problem, no problem. You got it," Ennard assured. He watched him go alone into the office and could subtly hear the squeak of the office chair as he dropped into it. Probably with his head in his hands leaning forward on the crowded desk.

Ignoring that clear mental image, Ennard turned back towards the group before forcing an incredibly strained laugh.

"Ha ha, holy schnapps! She's… She's a real problem alright!" Ennard said. His voice dipping at the end. His tone dramatically dropping from strained faux amusement to dead seriousness. "She's a problem we're going to have to deal with."

"You better believe we do. She's dangerous and we have to do something before she does. That's why we need to get ahold of some kind of evidence that she's in there, so we can make it Wight's problem, so he'll do something about it. Or at least give her the okay to," Mike explained. He finished by pointing a thumb back at Natalie who nodded.

"Good! Because this is really, REALLY bad. Ha, it's so bad that I'd hate to ask what that 'other stuff' was!" Ennard said with a tense look in his eyes. His teeth practically grinding together. "…On an unrelated note, what was that 'other stuff'?"

"Monty Gator body slammed the Moon and we had to take him down and repair him in parts and service. THAT was also another degree of awful, but for totally different reasons... He's alright though. That's the best we can hope for."

"Oh. Well, okay. That really does count as 'other stuff'," Ennard agreed. His tension deflating slightly. "…I know this is a real bad time for this, but does he sound like me?"

"Ennard, this is quite possibly the worst time. The only way this could've possible been a worse time is if someone was actually stabbed," Baby said, sending him an unamused leer. He gave an apologetic, clownish little shrug.

"Ennie!" Bonnet whispered from behind the pillow. She reached an arm out towards him and patted on the couch. "Ennie, pick me up!"

"Sure thing, little buddy," Ennard agreed. He reached down and carefully grabbed her only to perch her on his hand. With him holding her by the attachment on the bottom that would've fitted into the end of Funtime Freddy's arm. She seemed to perk up a little being held up in his hand, swaying a little happily until she was unexpectedly held out. "Fritz, Natalie, this is Bonnet! Our youngest~," he introduced.

Bonnet squeaked and lifted her arms to hide behind her paws. Ennard pulled her back in, gently rubbing her between the ears.

"She's a little shy."

"She's very cute. It's nice to meet you too, Bonnet," Fritz greeted.

Natalie joining in with a little wave before unexpectedly adding on, "He does, actually. The Sun sounding like you? He must have some kind of Funtime Freddy voice box or something. There's a slight difference in inflection. It's hard to explain but if you two were in the same room, I don't think it'd be hard to tell you apart."

"And not when he's Moon. Moon sounds like you if you were a chain-smoker," Mike added.

"He already sounds like a ton of fun," Ennard quipped. He then got a sly look and turned to point at him. "Y'know, if you really need a camera that's gonna look past all that interference and see that buNNy, you've already got one. It's just gonna be a pain in the neck to get that footage out."

"What, you?" Mike guessed.

"No! Mari! He's got that facial recognition, right? Well, how d'ya think that technology works? It snaps pictures and lines 'em up with the data it's got. Sure, Mari's probably flushed out a lot of that stuff just being in the body, but that built-in camera system's still in there, and that means there's a way to get that info out… But probably not without a massive headache. Ha, literally!"

Mike had never been so torn on an idea the second he heard it. That was actually an ingenious idea on how to get footage, but the thought of having to get invasive to get it instantly soured his stomach.

"Good idea, but let's not get desperate. There's got to be another way."

"Eh, there probably is. If she's got something on her that's warping the- the cameras…" Ennard trailed off as he heard movement in the office. He turned his head towards the door and watched as Scott came back out. He looked a little more recollected, but there was something weird in his eyes. A sort of steadfastness that wasn't usually there. One Ennard only recognized because he saw his act that night at the Fitzsimmons' house.

"I sent him an email. It's going to be a while before he gets back to me. Some nights he works until eleven, so we'll see... Should be before midnight though, hopefully," Scott got out. He coughed a little. "Which I guess means that you guys might be going back tonight?"

"Looks like it," Mike agreed.

Fritz frowned at the sound of that.

"I'm-…" Scott trailed off while still paused in midsentence. Finger raised, lips parted, hesitating long enough to get another deep breath before finishing. "I'm going in with you," he rushed out.

That surprised everyone- well, except for Mike. Though he was largely tipped off by the question that proceeded it. Ennard might've been too by his somewhat delayed reaction; still looking tense but no gasp or exclaim of shock.

"What?" Not like Baby's. "Why would you want to do that? There is a psychopath running around in there."

"I know," Scott said. "I know…"

"…That doesn't answer my question," Baby flatly pressed.

"I just… I can help. I feel like I should help. I'll… I'll go in with you, I'll put in the logins, and that way if we get caught nobody has to take the heat except me. A former employee who weaseled his way back into the company. And, uh… I feel like I should do something… I stood by too long and let William do what he did. If this is how I make up for that, then that's what I'm going to do. I'm probably not sleeping tonight anyways, so why not?" Scott finished with a slight smile.

It was completely understandable. Even for Baby, who turned away with a huff but did not argue with him. They knew why Scott would be driven by guilt and responsibility.

Except for Ennard, who bought it initially until he was about halfway through Scott's explanation. There was something in that tone that tipped off something else was at play. He was a little too open, like he was covering for something else. Ennard had known him long enough to pick up Scott's little quirks, and that was one of them. He rambled when he was nervous, when he was stressed, and when he was covering.

"If it's okay with you, Natalie," Scott added. All eyes went to the blond and she considered it.

"Well… You know what? It's fine by me. Obviously, they're not checking the security cameras anyway and Mike was able to lie his way out of trouble, so if that's what you want… then I'll back you up. If you get caught, I'll say I let you in. They won't ask questions- the animatronics won't," Natalie agreed.

"Thank you. I appreciate it, really I do."

Ennard snapped out of his thoughts and back into character, feigning excitement as he threw an arm around Scott's shoulder.

"Ah ha, YES! Then that settles it! Look out, Freddy and Friends- the circus is coming to clown!" he proclaimed. Bonnet gave an excited little cheer as well, waving her arms excitedly.

"…So, uh. As much as I love 'I'm' being 'us', I just meant me," Scott admitted.

"Oh, I know," Ennard said. He gave him a wink. "But we're a package deal."

"That sounds like- is that a threat?" he half-joked.

"Ha ha, yes!" Ennard agreed with a sharp smile. "…Or a promise. Sounds a little more kid friendly."

Scott still managed to smile, but then gave a deflated sort of sigh. "Ennard…" He gently uncoiled the clown's arm from around his shoulders but held his hand in both of his, squeezing enough to be surely felt through the glove. "I know you're worried, but I think I should do this on my own. You know, with all that's going on."

"See, I disagree. I think it would be a really, really, really bad idea to let you go alone into a place like that with a bunny like that," Ennard said, voice strained. Scott didn't seem won over, so he leaned in and lowered his voice, pleading his case. "I'll be on my best behavior. No bunny hunting unless she walks right up to me, and even then, I'll only body slam her once."

"Ennard-."

"Ignore that. Y-You know me, I've always got a punchline! But I'm being serious, Scott. I think I should be in running distance if something goes wrong," Ennard insisted. "…I'm willing to hang out in the car."

Scott decided at that moment, with Ennard's pleading eyes and encouraging tone, that he wasn't in a place to judge. Not when Ennard could be so sure and things could still go amiss due to no fault of his own, like with the trip to Fairyland. He looked to Natalie for her answer, as did everyone else once again. She pursed her lips at being put on the spot once more.

"You're the lady in charge, Natty. What you say goes," Ennard encouraged. Possibly trying to butter her up.

Natalie was less than impressed with the effort. "Normally I'd say you're risking getting us all caught but considering it's this hard to get footage, chances are you're probably not," she said cynically. Ennard gave Scott an eager look and Natalie quickly amended, "But that doesn't mean I think you should do it! It's different for Mari and Charlie. For one thing, they're not wearing bright colors. Green and yellow is the most inconspicuous color combination ever."

"It's too late. You already said what he wanted to hear," Baby sighed. "I don't even understand why we are obligated to go."

"You don't have to go, Baby," Scott reminded, sounding even more nervous at her sudden addition. "It's probably best if you didn't…?"

"I don't feel safe letting you two go alone. I know how to handle myself. I have no intention of being seen by anyone I don't want to see me."

"So, you're both going. That's great," Natalie said tiredly. She considered this for a long moment, looking between the two of them, and came to a decision. "Then let's cut a deal. I'll agree to you both coming… IF you stick to the daycare."

"The daycare? Why on earth is that?" Baby asked with slight aghast. "I suppose to be babysat by the Sun. Or perhaps Jake."

"For safety reasons. The daycare has plenty of places to hide and the band barely visits. Plus, the music in there drowns out most of the noise. Nobody's going to hear something and run in there, but if they do, there's a good chance you'll hear them and have time to hide a lot quicker than you would somewhere else," Natalie laid out. "After the amount of crazy last night, it's just not safe for any outside animatronics to get caught wandering around. Daycare or bust."

"Hmm. Very well. I don't feel like being interrogated by Fashion Foul," Baby agreed.

"Ooo, that's a good one," Ennard complimented.

"Thank you. I've been waiting to use it."

Scott was the one who looked the most hesitant now. He turned to Ennard and Baby, who noticed and looked back at him expectantly, awaiting his call.

"…Alright. We can all go- but we can't afford to let this get as out of hand as Fairyland, okay? We barely got out of there without getting caught," Scott reminded. He looked specifically towards Baby. "I know how you feel about Chica, but if she shows up, you're going to have to-."

"I can control myself. I'm not going to do anything to jeopardize us," Baby affirmed him. Then after a beat gave a firm, "I promise."

Scott believed her fully and gave her an appreciative smile.

"What about me, Ennie? Can I come too?" Bonnet asked excitedly.

"Ha ha! Aww, little buddy. You know I'd be lost without ya!" Ennard replied. He lifted her up and bumped their noses with double squeaks. "…But no. You're going to stay right here, all safe and cozy.~"

"Wh-What? But… But I want to come! Why can't I come? I'm small! Nobody will notice me!" Bonnet insisted.

"Because, Bon-Bon, you'll get yourself all scuffed up crawling around those hard floors," Ennard reminded. Bonnet's arms and ears drooped with disappointment. "But you're going to have the house to yourself! Isn't that neat? And I've got a super important job for you-!"

"Is it to record your shows?" Bonnet asked with a pout.

"Oh, uh… Heh, no! No, no. I need you to keep the kitties company! They get awful lonely without Scottie here." Ennard leaned in next to Scott, pulling him in with their still conjoined hands. Likely trying to get him to back him up.

Though while that was going on, Fritz cleared his throat, catching the attention of both Mike and Natalie. Baby too, but she silently watched.

"Mike, can I talk to you for a second?" he broached.

"Sure," Mike agreed. He stepped back to stand alongside him and Natalie.

"Err, outside?" Fritz pointed a thumb back towards the door. The younger man quirked a brow.

"Sure," he agreed again. Now he was anticipating a significantly louder talk, but he didn't expect that from Fritz. The two stepped outside and stood on the front step.

"Mike, I don't think-," Fritz began and cut off when he noticed a woman gardening the next lawn over, watching them. He waved with a smile, Mike turning and doing the same, which the woman returned before going back to her gardening. He began again though much quieter, "I don't think you should go back to Freddy's tonight."

"I know last night was a bit of a fiasco, but I'm going to be a lot more careful. We need to at least try to get that footage," Mike said. "Look, maybe we can ask Scott to stay back."

"He's not what I'm concerned about, you are. When was the last time you slept?"

"This morning."

"Good sleep. Not just three or four hours."

Mike paused for a moment too long and Fritz face furrowed further.

"This is what I'm talking about. You can't keep doing a double shift, you're wearing yourself out," Fritz said. His tone migrating out of tentative broaching to firm concern.

"I know that. I'll get in a long nap before tonight," Mike agreed. His lack of an argument being a dead giveaway for how tired he was.

"Mike, you're barely awake. A nap and a full night of running from robots and crazies isn't going to cover it."

"Well, what am I supposed to do? If Scott's going then Mari's going, and now Ennard and Baby are going, so add in Charlie, possibly Foxy. This isn't the night for me to tap out. Not after what happened last night."

Mike's exasperation was obvious, and he did raise a good point. Likely Jeremy wasn't going back, but Fritz would've been even more nervous about him going after the knife incident. He knew Natalie could handle most of it, but she couldn't play the role of Pizzaplex protector and friend of Foxy's at the same time. Ennard and Baby could be trusted to listen to what Scott said, and they were supposedly inconspicuous even though they looked as subtle as a circus tent.

Someone really needed to be there. Fritz knew what he was leading towards and took the plunge before he could reconsider.

"I'll tell you what, I'll go. You stay home and get some rest," he offered.

"…I can't let you do that."

"Yes, you can. It gives me an excuse to go in and peep at my girlfriend," Fritz lightly joked. Mike looked hesitant and he put a hand on his shoulder and beat him to it. "Just let me do this for you. You've been carrying a lot of the craziness from Freddy's since it opened. I can handle one night."

Mike sighed and considered it a minute longer. Shoving his hands into his pockets and considering whether he wanted to hand over control. Marionette going back in after last night, let alone without him, made him especially antsy, but he trusted Fritz. He knew that Fritz was more than qualified to handle the task, and in his current state he wouldn't be reliable. Finally, he gave a nod.

"You're right. Okay, you have my blessing," Mike agreed.

"I'll keep a close eye on Mari. Any sign of trouble and I'll round everyone up and split."

"That's probably what I should've done last night… I know you've got this, and if anything crops up you can always call me."

To which Fritz agreed, even if Mike wasn't sure if he would. It was hard for him to hand over the reins, but at this point he was so worn out that he knew he would be a detriment. He wasn't going to protect anybody.

Sure, he could've asked Marionette not to go and likely he and maybe Charlie wouldn't, but he didn't know it he could do that either. He trusted Marionette's ability, regardless of what happened to the rabbit, and he knew he wasn't going to let anyone go alone. Regardless of it was Scott or Scott, Ennard, his sister, and Fritz. For now, he followed back inside and decided to go ahead with this and hope he got a second wind before midnight.

Though considering that he was expected back at work after they finished up there, he wasn't counting on it. Instead, Mike would just buck up and put the last of his energy into work. It was the least he could do. It was the best he could offer.

In hindsight, it turned out to be a good choice. Fritz headed home with Natalie and prepared for the long night while Mike got back to Foxy's in time for the next party. Just in time to watch Marionette bring out the cake and present it to the birthday girl. Wearing his red ribbon and smiling happily as he did so, barely able to keep it close enough to his default smile to not tip off suspicion.

It was good to be back, for both of them.

Scott had already been nervous about this plan, but that was nothing compared to getting in the car and actually driving over to the Pizzaplex. Let alone when he pulled into the parking lot and his pulse rocketed. He had brought his medication for relaxing his nerves at Ennard's suggestion, but he would've been hard pressed to take it. He needed to stay alert for what was coming.

What was coming being a massive building looming on the other side of the parking lot.

Scott drove up beside the building and parked alongside of Fritz, who was already there. Seeing him pull up, Fritz got out and the back doors opened to reveal a thinly disguised Foxy. Though Scott knew he should go out to meet them, he remained stuck in the driver's seat. Having not even put the vehicle in part, let alone removing his hands from the wheel.

"It's not too late to back out, y'know."

Ennard's presence between the seats snapped Scott back into action. He parked the van and turned it off, readying himself to head in. "I, uh, I think it is," he tried to joke.

"Not yet it's not," the clown assured. He grabbed one of the radios out of the passenger's seat and shook it. "I can take the walkie-talkie with me, and you can tell me exactly where you want me. Simple as that!"

"I appreciate it and I know you'd do it. I trust you, but I… I've got to do this myself. It's not fair if I send you in to do it while I hide out here," Scott insisted. Quite literally swallowing down the shakiness in his voice.

He wasn't sure why this place made him so uncomfortable. Maybe because it was such a huge building; something about that alone made Scott both suspicious and uneasy. It must've been a huge company that absorbed Fazbear Entertainment, and a company with that much money to blow made him very nervous.

"M'kay. Whatever you need, I'm up for!" Ennard assured. As Scott leaned over to also grab the taser in the passenger's seat, Ennard pressed his mask to his cheek in a would-be kiss, signaled by a squeak.

Scott turned his head and returned it, feeling both assured and guilty at the same time.

Baby let herself out of the back while they were busy and rolled over to Foxy. She looked him up and down but said nothing.

"It's fer consistency more than disguise," Foxy explained.

"I can smell that."

"Stark difference to car exhaust, ain't it? 'Less Scott stopped parking in yer bedroom."

"Strong words for someone who sleeps behind a shower curtain."

"Sacrifices be made when ya own yer own business."

This back and forth continued for a while. Long enough that Marionette got out and gave the two a rather amused look that deflated the longer the exchange continued. It was nice to see the two bonding, but this bonding experience could've been equated to the two bopping each other with inflatable hammers. The mental image bringing back the smile as he started to head down along the building.

"Should we break them up?" Charlie asked jokingly.

"Not yet. This is the most they've talked in ages… We'll wait until it gets physical," Marionette replied. She jingled and he chimed in echo.

Fritz joined up with them along with Scott and Ennard. Surprisingly, unlike Scott himself, Fritz wasn't feeling nearly as nervous as he expected to. If anything, he was downright excited for all the wrong reasons. This had to be how Mike felt coming out here. He could understand the temptation; that mix of fear and excitement felt like it could quickly become addicting.

They followed Foxy and Marionette towards the vent they usually took to get in. Though as Marionette turned to approach it, Foxy stopped him.

"We ain't going that way, Lad,"

Marionette was surprised but quickly followed along behind him.

"You've got another plan?" he asked with a curious smile.

"Aye. Just 'round the back here," Foxy assured. He led them around to the back and after what felt like quite a hike, he saw what he was looking for, the shuttered loading dock doors. Along with a pair of familiar double doors left open. "Ah ha! There we are! Looks like 'ol Freddy pulled through."

Indeed, Freddy had left of the doors slightly open with a doorstop. He had also set a 'Sorry! We're closed' sign outside the opening. As though that would stop anyone from waltzing in like Foxy was about to do. He half-chuckled and set it aside, then led the group down the steps into the loading bay proper. He pointed out the kitchen and introduced them to the Pizzaplex's way of streamlining pizzas before taking them to the elevator.

It wasn't long until they were pushing through the double doors beside the snack bar that led into the atrium.

"Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex," Foxy introduced, spreading his arms wide. "Fazbear Entertainment's answer to Vegas, save that it's a good deal cheaper to go there."

While Baby's reaction to the enormous atrium was very much like her brothers' first time seeing it- a mix of awe and horror- Ennard distinctly lacked one of those.

"Ooooh-ho! Look at this place!" the clown gushed. Keeping his voice down but doing little to hold in his feelings as he looked at the neon lights in the dim room, at the massive spread of colorful decorations and spectacle. "Oh, it's so pretty!"

"I- wow- I, uh… I knew what this was going to be like but seeing it in person…" Scott looked around at it before turning slowly to Fritz. "…So, uh, mob money, right?"

"Nah, the government's got to be involved. Like this is all some kind of top-secret project funded by the government to see how far a person's willing to walk to get a corndog," Fritz retorted. That got a snicker out of Ennard.

"Jokes aside, did, uh… Did Wight ever mention a parent company?" Scott quietly asked. Fritz shook his head, leaving the older man to silently wonder.

Baby was still looking around in surprise. Her quietness tipping off the others that she was having some kind of reaction. Charlie decided to step in and hooked her arm through hers.

"I know it can be a lot to take in. How about we go for a spin on one of the rides? I think we're tall enough to ride that one," she said, pointing directly at the nearby escalators.

Maybe because of the audacity of the comment, but it actually roused a laugh out of Baby. Or maybe not quite a laugh, but something of a humored scoff.

"Tall enough, yes, but desperate enough? Give me a few hours to decide," Baby retorted.

Marionette chimed and looked to Foxy who looked pleased as well. Both of them overwhelmingly relieved at the somewhat pacified reaction for the moment. Even though it could change quickly in these circumstances.

Foxy then beckoned the group's attention. "A'right, here's where we split up. Smith, Scott, ye both follow me. Rest of you are goin' with Mari. If ya have to make a quick escape, remember the way we came and slip out the back."

"You planning on leaving us, Captain?" Ennard cheekily asked.

"If yer slow, yes."

The clown gave an 'eh' and waved him off before turning his attention to Scott who gave him a smile.

"Looks like this is where I leave you," he said. Ennard got a slightly concerned look to his eyes. "No, don't be like that. You know what I mean. We're just going over to, uh… whatever that place over there is called to check on the footage," he assured, vaguely pointing over.

"Rockstar Row," Foxy answered.

"Right, that."

"Okay, okay. I'm not gonna cling. Or stalk. Or any of that," Ennard agreed. He snatched up Scott's hand. "But if you need me, just give me a call and I'll be there in a jiffy!" he said, patting on his jacket where he had the radio stashed inside.

"Sure thing. Same goes to you and Baby. We're not going to be that far."

There was a hesitance to go ahead and go with how their fingers stayed interlocked. There was also some sort of tension and Scott knew he wasn't the only one feeling it. Not with that look in Ennard's eyes. He seemed especially concerned, beyond just getting caught, and it couldn't have been about the animatronics or else there was no way he would willingly leave Scott's side. No, it was something else.

He wondered if Ennard knew. He had trouble believing that he could know and wouldn't ask about it.

Or maybe it was as simple as Ennard being nervous to let him go off into such a big building. Scott definitely shared those feelings both ways. The touch offered comfort. Even something as basic as holding and squeezing hands offered a relief that only a human touch could- something Scott had learned in the years where he had been alone.

"You two have to let go of each other eventually," Fritz jokingly prodded.

That got them moving, if only because it reminded them that they had been silently standing there holding hands, giving each other increasingly nervous looks while friends and family watched them. They separated and divided up.

The small group of animatronics watched as Foxy led Fritz and Scott towards Rockstar Row. Exchanging a few brief waves between them before they got far enough that Marionette started to lead them on their way.

"Follow me. It's not very far," he directed. They did, walking down the stretch outside the Snack Bar.

"Looks like there's not as many Security Bots out tonight. I wonder if it's because of the accident earlier or if Natalie had them moved," Charlie said. Her arm still linked with Baby's, leading her along as she looked around suspiciously.

"I'm not sure. Either way it's good for us, unless they've all been relocated to the daycare as a safeguard to keep us from leaving," Marionette remarked. His voice brightened, "So, Baby, Ennard, what do you think so far?"

"I think… I think the entirety of Fairyland Park could fit inside this room alone," Baby said. "I suppose it is more like an amusement park than a… whatever this is supposed to be. Certainly not just a pizzeria."

"I think indoor amusement park is a pretty good description of it," Charlie agreed.

"How about you, Ennard? You're awfully quiet," Marionette said.

"Huh? Oh! Hah, sorry. Just got distracted by all this glitz!" Ennard excusing. Gesturing out his arms and spinning while still following after them, not tripping up on himself in the process. "I think it's in-credible! I can see why people get in here and forget all about Freddy's lengthy history of criminal negligence. I don't know if I've ever told you guys, but I LOVE spaced themed stuff."

"Really?" Marionette asked. Baby also gave a questioning hum.

"That's right! If I wasn't circus themed, I would be so deep in space right now."

Before anyone could dare make a comment on that statement, there was a thump somewhere in the distance and Marionette stopped short. His eyes affixing on the security door for Kids Cove, their upcoming destination. Though he wasn't the only one who heard it, with the other three stopping and staring as well.

Listening longer they heard some more bumping and thumping from that direction. Something was moving things around in Kids Cove. While Marionette could've believed it was Sunny or Moon, he wasn't even considering the idea of taking the chance. He looked around quickly and pointed them to the nearby elevator by the escalator. He didn't have to say anything more, they followed along as well and crammed inside.

After a short elevator ride, they stepped out on the higher level and continued on in the direction of the daycare. Now keeping completely silent, not risking so much as audible directions as they made their way down.

Marionette gestured for them to continue on while heading off in the direction of Kids Cove. He cautiously came up to the railing and looked down upon the playground. The source of the noise was immediately apparent.

Chica had discovered the hidey hole in the back of the pirate ship and was digging around inside. From the scattered trash at her feet and the smeared orange powder on her face it was clear that she discovered a little stash of snacks. Likely Gregory's stash, as Foxy had mentioned finding Gregory hanging around in here.

Marionette frowned with worry and frustration. Luckily it seemed that Gregory hadn't been caught or she would likely be chasing him instead of stuffing her face. That didn't make the situation any better though. Where would he hide now? He supposed that was something he would have to discuss with Sunny, Jake, and Freddy once he got a chance. For now, he drifted back from the railing and returned to the others who were waiting at the security door.

Once he made it back, Charlie stepped forward to activate the security door. Inwardly crossing her fingers with the hope that whatever was right nearby wouldn't hear them.

Alas, it couldn't be that easy.

"Greeeeegory? Is that you, Sweetie Pie?"

Baby went rigid and Ennard quickly caught her by the shoulders, either as a comfort or more likely as a precaution to keep her from doing anything he would regret. Charlie turned to Marionette to ask what to do and was beat to the punch.

"No, it's me!" Marionette called back in Natalie's voice. "I'm just doing my rounds."

"Oh! Miss Vanessa, hello!" Chica called back. "Your voice sounds funny. You getting enough sleep?"

"Sort of. I took a nap before I came and never really woke back up… Come get me if you find that kid, alright?"

"Will do, Boss!" Chica called up. She gave a soft titter and continued moving around, none the wiser to the fact that she had just been fooled.

Marionette did a sweeping beckon for the others and hurried in through the security door, with them following close behind him.

Nobody said anything. The closest thing was Baby's little huff when they came up on the stairs and she had to take the extra time to climb down sideways, Charlie holding her hand to held her keep her balance. It wasn't until they were through the next security door and in the safety of the lobby outside of the daycare that they felt comfortable speaking again. Though the reason was somewhat unexpected.

"If you two don't mind," Baby began, looking between Marionette and Charlie. "I need to speak to Ennard alone for a moment."

Both puppets looked at her. Marionette with a soft, "Oh?" and Charlie with a questioning look.

She was a bit insulted. "…Whatever you two are expecting, no. When I say speak, I mean talk. Not scheme, not run off after Chica, if that's what you think I plan on doing," she said.

"Sorry. We believe you, Baby. It was just so sudden… yeah," Charlie apologized awkwardly. "But it'll give us a second to tell Jake and Sunny we're here."

"Don't tell him I'm coming. I don't want him splitting before I get there," Ennard insisted.

She wasn't sure if that was such a good idea, obviously from the look on her face, but she and Marionette headed inside and let the two speak. Ennard turned to Baby.

"So, whatcha want to talk about?" he asked, clasping his hands together.

"I despise her."

"Now that's not a nice way to talk about your best friend."

"Stop that. You know I mean Chica," Baby huffed impatiently. "I heard her that night, you know. The night when Charlie was cornered in the restaurant? I could hear her in the background of the call, stomping around, searching for Charlie… and apparently pouring a gallon of liquid cheese down her throat."

"…Gee, you would think that would really gum up the works. Especially since that throat probably lets out into a bunch of vital wiring. Still, great way to die."

"I'm being serious!" Baby snapped.

"I know, I know! I'm just trying to get a couple of potshots off, that's all!" Ennard said, raising his hands in defense. He lowered one onto her shoulder. "I get it. You better believe I'm not her biggest fan. The only thing she's got going for her is that we never had to deal with a Funtime Chica."

"Hmm…" Baby looked aside.

"But, what're you gonna do? She's got a hard enough life being stuck here, so it's not like Miss Priss is hanging out in an ivory tower. Least you got that on her, right?"

"Yes, I suppose so," Baby quietly agreed.

There was a moment of quiet before Ennard gave her a thumbs up and then tilted it towards the daycare security door, inviting her to continue along. She nodded and was prepared to follow along with him. They got as far as turning.

"You're not the only one who doesn't like her."

The voice alone was enough to put the two on edge, because it was clearly the voice of a child. A human child, not a small animatronic mimicking one. Ennard snapped his head around while Baby turned hers much slower and both spotted someone stepping down from the edge of the fountain, having likely been hiding in it when they passed by.

It was a small boy with brown hair and a blue striped shirt. It had to be Gregory.

Ennard immediately sidestepped behind Baby and grabbed her by the shoulders. Though this time not just to hold her back but because of how startled he was at being caught. Both clowns silently stared at the child.

"Uh… Aren't you guys friends with Mari?" Gregory asked uneasily. Suddenly second-guessing his decision to reveal himself, which didn't go unnoticed by Ennard. He sprung back into performance mode.

"That's right! Ha ha, sorry for staring, Kiddo. You just spooked us a little. See, we're not supposed to be in here," Ennard finished in a whisper. He slowly released his hand from Baby's arm and then popped his hands on his hips. "So, you don't like her either, huh?"

"Are you kidding? I HATE her. She's awful! She's mean to Freddy, she's always chasing me around, and she's tearing up my secret lair right now! And she left this big bruise on my arm, and I've been getting funny looks all day because of it!" Gregory vented. He held out his arm so they could see the large bruise stretching across his skin.

Ennard's eyes widened at that. It was enough to get the rigidly stoic- who was frozen out of the fear that moving so much as an inch would suddenly unleash uncontrollable programming- Baby to react as well. She stared at that dark bruise.

"How did… she give you that?" she quietly asked.

"She dragged me up some stairs," Gregory complained.

"That's- That's really bad!" Ennard sympathized. "Wow! I think I might hate her too and I haven't even met her!"

"Believe me, you don't want to," Gregory huffed. He crossed his arms, wincing and readjusting when he accidentally bumped the bruise, and muttered, "I just wish I could give her a taste of her own medicine."

"…I know how that feels," Baby quietly admitted.

Ennard, sensing this conversation was about to go in a much worse direction, suddenly stepped back in. "Well, hey! Gives you a reason to pal around with us for the night! Err- and by 'us' I mean us and Mari and Charlie who are in the daycare right now. Come on, let's go add a couple more people to the room we're in," he suggested, pointing his thumb back again. At least that would take the edge off of Baby. His own programming was already numb enough that he was just very aware of the presence of a lone child instead of being any danger to him.

"Okay. I'm not going to make it to Freddy with stupid Chica running around, and I don't want to call him when I don't need him…" He didn't need to bother Freddy; he could take care of himself. "…Guess I have no choice."

…

Meanwhile, Marionette and Charlie had already made it into the daycare. Though awfully tempted to just take the shortcut down the slide, they decided to knock and be let in by Sunny proper. It seemed like the sort of thing Sunny would appreciate. Charlie had also radioed Jake when she had come in- then explained to Fritz that she was, in fact, not talking to him- and now she and Marionette were approaching the wooden doors.

One of the doors was sitting wide open, which was odd, but they assumed it was for them. What was much stranger was that there was no sign of Sunny himself.

“Sunny?” Marionette called. He drifted a little further in while looking around at the structures and over at the balcony. He expected to catch a glimpse of yellow but did not.

“He’s probably still up with Jake,” Charlie suggested. Not noticing something slowly creeping out from behind the door and up behind her. Instead noticing something on the nearby counter. “Are those his shoes?”

Something suddenly grabbed around her waist and hoisted her up. She gave a startled ring only to recognize the long, yellow glowing arms around her waist and the sound of ticking and rotating pieces against her back.

“SURPRISE! Welcome back, New Friend!” Sunny greeted excitedly.

He hugged her like one would a teddy bear, swinging her lightly in his arms before giving a small spin- his upper half only. It wasn’t fast enough to be disorienting and he finished by letting her back down. Releasing her to clasp his hands together excitedly. He had removed the bells from his wrists as well, explaining his lack of jingling.

“I didn’t expect you back so soon! Did you come to check up on little old me?” Sunny asked with a tilt of his head and roll of his points.

“That’s half of it. But first: who are you and where is the real Sunny?” Charlie joked.

“Oh, it’s still me! I just thought that maaaybe we could start all over again!” he asked. He twiddled his thumbs together. “I haven’t forgotten last night, nope! No more slip-slipping back into old ways! At least, not with you, Jingle Bell. Can I call you that? That just came out, I won’t call you that if you don’t want me to. Nicknames aren’t required! Err, but I must insist you use mine for obvious reasons.”

“I don’t mind it at all, Sunny,” Charlie said with a smile. “And I think I would like that.”

“Then follow my lead,” Sunny instructed. He straightened up with his legs together, bowed forward, and offered her his hand. “My name’s Sunny Dee! What’s your name?”

“My name’s Charlie. It’s nice to meet you, Sunny,” she played along. She took his hand and shook it, sealing their agreement.

Then Marionette came up and offered his hand and Sunny only processed it for a second before going ahead and taking his as well. Another agreement to start over, one that needed less introduction or explanation. At least, for now.

“I’m that mime thing from the Prize Corner. How do you do?” Marionette introduced.

“I do very good, thank you!” Sunny chirped with another dip of his points. “I’m that thing they let around children!”

Marionette chimed as he shook his hand. Once they separated, Sunny made his way to the counter where he pinched his bells and ribbons and pulled them out of his shoes.

“Now then, what really brings you back to my daycare?”

The next few minutes were spent catching up, explaining about the ‘technicians’ who were coming in to check the footage, and getting an assessment of Sunny. He seemed to be feeling better. If he was still in any pain, he wasn’t saying as much. That aside, it was a surprisingly pleasant exchange.

That was, until they were interrupted by the sound of someone crashing into the ball pit. Sunny perked up and flipped his head back, rotating his face to look towards the back of the room.

"Hmm, did you hear that? I think a hungry little mouse might've come sneaking down the slide!" Sunny chirped. They had, naturally, told him about what Chica was doing so he was anticipating Gregory to either pop up here or head to Freddy. "I'll be back in a jiffy!" he chirped. He then began to skip across the daycare in long smooth strides.

Charlie had a suspicion of her own. "Do you think…?"

"Oh no. Probably not," Marionette said.

Sun skipped to the edge of the ball pit and peered over the walls lining it. A hand pressed to his forehead like he was peering out far over the ocean instead of a moat of plastic balls.

"Hmm, that's funny. I thought I heard a little fish hopping around in here, but I don't see anybody," Sunny said. Which was true, he couldn't see anybody, but from the slight shift of balls from when he approached, he knew where they were. He mimicked pulling up his non-existent sleeves and made grabby hands. "Guess I'm just going to have to do a little fishing of my own!"

He leaned over the wall and reached down slowly towards the rainbow-colored balls.

But then stopped a few inches above them and tilted his head. White eyes half-blackened in an unamused look.

"Oh, by the way. I know you're hiding in there, Sunspot," he said in a tone to match.

Suddenly a pair of white gloved hands shot out of the balls and caught him by the hands. The balls separating as a white clown mask poked through.

"What tipped you off?" Ennard teased.

Sunny gave a shrill shriek and yanked his limbs back. Pinwheeling and overcompensating, and landing on his backside on the padded floor.

"YOU?!" he cried. Ennard peeked over the wall after him. "Oh, no, no, no! You- YOU STAY BACK!" Sunny cried with a point.

The second Ennard stepped over the wall, not even quickly or in a threatening manner, Sun screeched and turned over, bolting to the closest play structure, and deftly climbing to the top.

"Probably not?" Charlie asked, hearing the commotion.

"Probably not Gregory," Marionette corrected.

Ennard could've easily followed Sunny up the playground but seeing as he was crouched on the top staring down like a cornered animal, he thought against doing that. Instead stopping at the bottom with his hands on his hips to look up at him.

"Aww, Buddy! It's okay! I promise I'm not gonna do anything weird. I just wanna look at ya!" Ennard called up. A teasing edge on his voice.

"I-I know EXACTLY what you do with animatronics, 'Buddy'!" Sunny cried back, pointing an accusatory finger down. "If you're so hungry, the kitchen's that-a way!" He pointed off towards somewhere.

"Ooo, so you do know me!" the clown answered. Him doing his best to study the lanky animatronic from this much of a distance. "And I don't eat animatronics! I just-… wait, what flavor are you again?"

Sunny did his best to glare at Ennard's teasing yet menacing grin when he heard the clatter of more balls in the pit. He looked up and all but choked as he saw Gregory wading through them towards the bridge.

"GREGORYYY, RUN!" he yelled.

Gregory stopped on the bridge to look up at him with confusion. He then looked to Ennard and then gave a sort of shrug.

"Okay," he said. Then he booked it past the both of them and towards the other side of the daycare where Marionette and Charlie still waited. Sunny dropping his arms in exasperation and Ennard snickering.

By time Gregory made it to the puppets it wasn't just him, as Baby had made her way down the stairs and met them at the door. She stepped- waddled more like- onto the padded floor before looking around at the colorful daycare with a look of surprise. Charlie thought she could detect the faintest look of wonder in her wide eyes- before she suddenly looked ahead in the direction of Ennard and Sunny's bickering.

She sighed and looked between Charlie and Marionette. "I apologize. You know I have no control over him."

"We knew what we were getting into when we brought him here," Charlie joked. Baby gave the lightest titter at that.

"Hello, Gregory. It's good to see you," Marionette greeted. He gave Gregory a big, and relieved smile. "I was worried about you after I saw Chica out in Kids Cove."

"She's got it out for me. But what're you guys doing back here?" Gregory asked.

"A friend of ours is trying to get footage of Vanny so that we may use it against her. So, we decided to stop by and check in on Sunny as we passed through," Marionette explained. He glanced down the daycare, pausing long enough to hear Sunny give a frustrated cry, and got a somewhat more embarrassed smile. "I suppose he was feeling a lot better before we showed up."

"Eh, he doesn't do anything but clean stuff all night anyways," Gregory said. He then looked past towards the door. "Oh, hey Jake."

The three others turned back to see Jake standing outside the door. He started to step closer only to take a half-step back at the sight of Baby's claw.

"Erm, uh- hey! You must be Baby," he greeted.

"And you must be Jake. It is a pleasure to finally meet you," Baby answered. She rested her claw at her side. "Don't be nervous. It doesn't go off on its own."

"No, it's cool! Sorry for staring, I just didn't expect it," Jake apologized. He tilted his head to get a better look. "…Actually, that's really cool. How'd you get that mounted like that?"

"Interlocking wires and some degree of patience. I'm fortunate it hasn't dropped off yet, honestly," Baby remarked. Placing her hand on her him as she lifted her claw and turned it over, looking over it and the wrist attachment.

"Don't joke like that. The second you say that it will," Charlie said.

"Why? You don't believe in karma," Baby tutted.

"No, but I believe in irony. I've seen enough of it in action," Charlie retorted.

"What… is… THAT?"

Sunny's voice cut from the top of the closest jungle gym behind them.

"He better not be talking about me," Baby said with a snap of her claw.

All of a sudden, Sunny dropped down behind Gregory. The boy tried to turn around only to be steered forward again. The target of his question revealed as he lifted up Gregory's arm and studied the sizable bruise.

Marionette gasped, having not noticed it until now. Being on the opposite arm, the only person with a clear view of it was the one crawling around nearby, and after the clowns' relatively calm reactions Gregory hadn't thought of having to hide it like he tried to do with the parents. Feeling self-conscious, he tried to pull out of Sunny's gentle but firm grasp.

"It's just a bruise. What's the big deal?" Gregory asked.

"The big- The big deal is this big bruise! Who gave this to you, huh? Who grabbed you?" Sunny asked. His voice was strange. A little more firm than usual and lacking all of its typical goofiness. It was jarring after the display just earlier.

"Chica did," Gregory said sourly.

"From last night…" Marionette realized. "When she was pulling you by the arm. Oh Gregory…"

"It's really no big deal. It's not like I'm bleeding or anything," Gregory dismissed. Finally shrugging enough to have Sunny let go, but the attendant then proceeded to catch him by the shoulders to keep him in place.

"That is exactly what bruising is, Sunspot. Bruising is bleeding under the skin," Sunny said lowly.

"Really? Cool."

"No, it is not cool!"

"What's going on?" Ennard asked as he walked up. Only to stop abruptly and stare at the back of Sunny's head. "Oh, wow. Now that's an accident waiting to happen," he warned, pointing at the bundle of wires plugging into the back.

Sunny flipped his head back and spun his faceplate to face him.

"Th-That's close enough!" he warned. Gregory sunk further back against his puffy pants as the Sun all but circled him, pulling him further underneath and away from the clown, who lifted his hands in defense and smoothly stepped aside.

"Ennard, leave that deranged cereal mascot alone," Baby sighed. Jake snickered.

Sunny let out a betrayed noise as he flipped his head back again.

"You'd be laughing if it wasn't about you," Jake offered.

"Waaait a second," Ennard interjected. He shook his finger at Jake as he carefully stepped closer, as to not spook him off. "I know that mask from somewhere…"

"From the dump?" Marionette guessed.

"Well, yeah. Most of the neat stuff I find comes out of the dump," Ennard replied with a nudge to the arm. He walked up to Jake, though stopped as close as Baby had. "You wouldn't happen to be recycled from another endo, were ya?"

"Sort of," Jake remarked. Then pointed down at his leg to clarify. "…But what you probably remember is what we used to look like. We've seen you before, at the dump," he tentatively continued. He pointed to his mask. "This mask was the face of an endoskeleton we shared."

"I remember you!" Ennard grinned with a knowingly look. "You were playing dead, weren't ya?"

"Guilty as charged!" Jake said with a little chuckle.

"Oh, I had a vibe. I noticed that funny masked endo ending up all over the dump. Either you were alive and I didn't know it or you were bait and I wasn't gonna risk it," Ennard joked. He had already noticed Jake was the same model as Sunny. "So, how'd you end up in here in one of those? Not a bad upgrade, by the way."

"Thanks. We had a friend-."

"Maybe we should take this conversation somewhere else?" Sunny asked, impatiently tapping his foot with his hands on his hips.

"Oh, right. Come on, guys! We can head back to our room and talk there."

"I meant more like one of the party rooms! I don't- Augh!" Sunny huffed. Gregory tried to sneak by to follow when Sunny suddenly spun in front of him. "Hey," he said. "I want you staying right beside me all night, got it?"

"I'm not going to do anything," Gregory grumbled.

"It's not you I'm worried about," Sunny answered in a similarly bothered done. He then cautiously followed the others out, putting aside his wariness of the clown, who had turned its attention towards Jake, for Jake's sake.

Gregory followed with them, but his mind was elsewhere. He hadn't realized that bruises were some kind of bleeding. It shouldn't have really mattered at this point, but somehow it made him even more upset about this whole thing. An ugly bruise was bad enough on his own without the knowledge that Chica yanked at him so hard that he bled without cuts or scrapes.

Though at this point, anything about Chica irritated Gregory. Everything had just been building up and festering over the last few days to the point where he could genuinely say that he hated her and was confident he meant it.

He really wished he could do something to get back at her. That he could grab and yank her arm and see how she liked it.

His eyes were drawn to that big claw mounted on Baby's arm and an idea started to form.

He waited though. Sunny was hovering and it wasn't until they were in the Fazbear Theater that he had gotten distracted by something else. That being him rushing in to speed clean before anyone could come in and see the mess of their room. Marionette was watching him closely but wasn't hovering and Baby was talking to Charlie. This was his moment to strike, and he walked up to her.

"Excuse me, Baby?" he asked. He didn't tend to find much of a use for politeness unless it was schmoozing adults. This seemed like a perfect time to do so. "Can I ask you a question? Over there, it's private."

He pointed back the way they came, down the catwalk that looked over the theater. It took a moment for Baby to reply, looking between him and the distance with an anxious flick of her eyes.

"…Alright," she agreed.

"Do you… want me to come with you?" Charlie asked. She seemed equally surprised at the notion.

"…No, I'll be fine. Let's go."

Baby wheeled after Gregory across the carpeted floor. He stole a look back and saw Ennard separate from Jake and start coming over. He worried he was going to follow and eavesdrop, but then he ended up stopping at Charlie. Both leaned on the railing, Charlie leaning back with her arms crossed and Ennard on his arm turned in their direction. They could be listening, Gregory decided, so he made sure to take Baby all the way to the entry of the confession stand.

"What did you need to ask me?" Baby asked. Her voice was quiet and tense, but Gregory paid it no mind.

"So… Look, I know you don't like Chica and I really don't like her. So, why don't we team up together and get back at her?" he asked. Her eyes widened even as the rest of her features stayed still. "I know it sounds crazy, but she's been going after me for days! She eats garbage, she's mean to Freddy, and she acts nice but she's really just a liar. We need to teach her a lesson!" he said, smacking his fist into his hand.

"Are you asking me to strongarm Chica for you?" Baby asked in utter befuddlement.

"No! I don't want to hurt Chica, I just want to scare her. Or make her look stupid. Let her know what it feels like to be chased around all the time."

Gregory wouldn't mind Chica getting yanked around a little though, but this didn't feel like a good time to bring it up.

"It's the only way I can stop her from chasing me and get back at her for what she's been doing. And you can get back at whatever she did to Charlie! Are you in?"

Baby looked at him for a long moment before closing her eyes with finality.

"I'm sorry, but I can't help you."

"Why not?"

"I have made some mistakes in the past and I am trying to be a better person. I can't give into temptation, regardless of how much I do loathe that bird," Baby said. She finally opened her eyes, partially, and looked down at Gregory. She softened her voice and asked, "Why haven't you told Freddy about what she's been doing?"

"He won't believe me. She's like his girlfriend of whatever," Gregory grumbled.

"That's a shame. Maybe you should try to anyways. Or tell the night guard?"

"She's even worse than Chica!"

"I have trouble believing that," Baby said flatly. Though her voice eased up once more. "I am truly sorry. Someone should do something about her, but I can't be the one to do it."

Gregory couldn't really understand why she would say 'no', and he couldn't see how much resolve it took to say no. To him it seemed so cut and dry, but it could never be that easy. He couldn't blame her for not wanting to fight his battles.

"Fine. Don't worry about it, I'll figure something else out."

"Try to avoid her for now. She doesn't seem especially smart, so you shouldn't have a problem."

Baby led the way back to the others, moving a little quicker while Gregory lagged behind. He was a little worried she would immediately rat him out, but that didn't see to happen. Instead, Charlie offered her a hand, which Baby accepted, and they headed back towards the open door where Marionette and Jake were still waiting. Gregory continued to drag his feet after them.

"…I'll help you."

"What?" Gregory was stunned. He turned and looked up at Ennard still standing beside the railing. His gloves hands wrapped tightly around it. "Really? You will?"

"Yup! You wore me down, kid," Ennard said.

Which wasn't too far from the truth. He had been able to easily hold out earlier but after all this context and see this child all but beg for help, he cracked under it. Especially since what he was asking for was in his wheelhouse. He could do it.

"Look, look, I got a history with this sort of thing," the clown explained. He got down on one knee. "I probably don't look so scary to you, but underneath this suit I'm an animatronic's worst nightmare. I'm like a local legend around Hurricane, a regular menace to society. I know how to really spook people and not get caught. And I mean people, so I'm pretty sure I can spook a bot without getting caught."

"You'd do that?"

"Sure! But here's the deal: nobody gets hurt, nobody gets caught, and if stuff starts getting out of hand then we call it quits. Deal?" Ennard offered out a hand.

Both knew what they were doing was technically wrong, but Ennard still offered his hand and Gregory still took it and shook.

"Deal!"

Chapter 50

Chapter Summary

Gregory and Ennard go along with their plan to ward off Chica, with mixed results...

Chapter Notes

Two important notes here!

Firstly, I added an extra Sunny, Charlie, and Mari scene to the last chapter. It was supposed to be in the chapter, being in the outline, but I totally forgot about it until I was going over my notes later. . So, it's there now! Check it out!

Secondly, my computer went out about a week and a half ago and I only just got it back. I was still able to get some work done through alternative means, but it wasn't until now that I was able to finish and upload it. So, sorry for the delay. This time it was mostly out of my hands. XD Blame FedEx.

Anyways, I hope this chapter makes up for it. ;) Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Foxy might've been nonchalant about splitting up, but once they got closer to Rockstar Row, he started to become much more paranoid. His head kept snapping around and he scanned his surroundings, listening closely, as they slowly edged further towards the animatronic enclosures. He ducked under the last security door and looked around quickly to make sure nobody was out and about. He waited on guard as Fritz and Scott followed alongside him.

"This be where I take me leave, aye?" Foxy asked.

"Aye, aye, Captain," Fritz agreed. "Here's wishing you smooth sailing."

"Aye. Blue skies and calm seas fer us both," Foxy agreed.

A door opened nearby, and Foxy proceeded to suddenly bolt for Freddy's door without a sound. Both watched as the door opened to reveal Freddy standing on the other side, greeting with a friendly, "Welcome back, Captain!" and Foxy speedily slipped in and pushed him back so that the door would automatically shut. Entirely abandoning Fritz and Scott by the door.

While Foxy's paranoid sprint suggested he didn't know who was coming, they knew who was supposed to be coming, and remained in place at the approaching footsteps. Soon a familiar blond wielding a flashlight walked over.

"Who's there?" she called. Once she got closer, she shined the light towards them and then quickly changed her tone. "Oh. You two are the technicians sent by corporate, right? Where were you? We closed like an hour ago."

"We got held up in the garage. Looks like one of the doors is on the fritz," Fritz replied. He couldn't help but smile wider at Natalie's feigned peeved look, eyebrow arched, and lips pursed. "I can take a look at it before we leave."

"Let's stick to one job at a time, alright? The door can wait for dayshift," Natalie dismissed. "And I don't know what they told you, but you're going to be here for a while. The doors don't open until six and those emergency doors don't open period. Not on my watch."

That comment was all the more comical considering that they just walked in through them, which she possibly wasn't aware of since Freddy had been keeping the visits with Foxy hushed.

"Now let's go. I've got rounds in twenty minutes," she said. She turned and began to head off towards the door she came through, beckoning with a wave of his free hand. The two followed closely.

Something about this situation made Fritz a little hot under the collar. Both knowing what he was doing was technically wrong and having his enforcer being his pretty girlfriend who was acting stern and direct instead of her usually sweet self- it was a lot. Though that was 'a lot' in a peculiarly exciting way.

"The name's Vanessa. Security guard, obviously, and the only employee on shift this late. So, if you see anyone else creeping around then let me know. We've been having problems with people trying to stay over after closing," Natalie listed off. She turned her head to look back towards Fritz, tossing her ponytail in the process. "What about you?"

"I'm Sam-."

"No, you're not," Scott quickly interjected with a both amused and anxious smile. Looking over his shoulder even as he said so.

"Wha- Oh! Right, he's right. Sorry, that's my nickname. My real name is…" Fritz gave a small cough. "Steve. Steve Samson."

She couldn't resist the look of amusement that slipped onto her face before she quickly turned ahead. "Alright, Steve then. What about your friend?"

"Friends call me Eggs Benedict. I know it's weird, but my real name is pretty embarrassing, so that's what I put on most paperwork. As long as its legal, I'm Eggs," Scott semi-rambled.

"Free-Range eggs are usually better," Fritz agreed.

"So, you're what, the cut-up of the duo?" Natalie flatly asked. The slightest ghost of smile on her lips but aimed away from them. Her eyes set ahead on the stairs as she began to ascend them.

"You can also call me the wild card, yes," Fritz answered. Natalie might've given an unimpressed 'hmph' but he knew she was smiling.

They got to the top of the stairs and through the doors into the massive monitoring room. Immediately a Security Bot rolled over and shined his light on Fritz who was coming through the door with a loud alert.

"You can stand down, Smitty. He's Fazbear Entertainment staff," Natalie said. Smitty immediately lowered his flashlight at the command and turned to follow her. As he did, Scott looked after the robot in surprise.

"I can't believe they actually replaced the staff with bots. I mean, I knew they did, but seeing it in person's just-." Scott was abruptly cut off by Smitty wheeling around and coming in his direction.

"Stand down, Smitty. He's an employee too," Natalie quickly called him. Once again, he turned around and followed her off.

"…There's a couple of bugs they could probably work out," Scott offered.

"Maybe not. Think about it, we could just be two random guys pretending to be employees to get in," Fritz joked.

Scott gave him an alarmed look and Natalie gave a swift, "Don't joke like that."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"And come on. We don't have a lot of time before the hourly recharge," she continued. She pulled a chair to the proper monitor and Scott thanked her before settling in.

"Let's try mine first," he said. Natalie pointed him to the login and once he got there, he put in his username and password.

Neither he nor Natalie actually thought his was going to work. In fact, he tried his first to get his out of the way, to assure him that it wouldn't work, so he could use the insider's login. Alas, it came right up on a page of security feed video files.

Scott's brows shot up as he looked at the numerous files named with blending numbers. "…You said it only records for one night, right?"

"That's what they told me. Every hour records over itself or something like that."

"Oookay, then I guess I better get started. This might take a while," Scott warned. He clicked on the first file and pulled it up, got a confused look, and then pulled up another, and his brows shot up. It took a few more clicks and tests before he gave a slow exhale and pushed back from the monitor to turn towards Fritz and Natalie. "This is going to take a little longer than a while."

"What's wrong?" Natalie asked.

"It looks like each file's a different camera. And from the looks of that list and the fact they're not labelled, he's going to have his work cut out for him," Fritz said, leaning over Scott's shoulder.

"It's worse than that," Scott revealed. He had a strained little smile that was somewhere between cynical and comical. "Each of those files? Different cameras, but also different hours. Like, all of these are for midnight to one on a bunch of different cameras, and I can only guess from how they're set up that they're going to be the next to be deleted." Fritz's brows shot up in surprise. "I'll get started."

"Maybe we should take turns," Fritz offered.

"Sure, but I should be good for a while. I'm used to staring at a computer screen all day."

But before he could, there was a bump from somewhere behind them. Both looked back in tandem, as did Natalie, and listened as that bump turned into heavy footsteps up the nearby stairs.

"I've got this," Natalie assured. She walked over, trying to keep a cool demeanor while speedily walking, and opened the door. "False alarm! I have some technicians working on the computer in here!" she called down.

"What're they doing, beating it over the head?" Monty's rumbly voice answered.

"No, but if we end up losing this footage, I'm going to beat myself over the head," Natalie remarked.

She thought that would be enough to get rid of Monty, but he continued coming up and then boldly walked right through the office door. He spared an intimidating stare towards Fritz and the back of Scott's head. Scott tightened his shoulders and continuing to pretend that he was fully focused on work. Fritz raised a hand in greeting and, much to his surprise, Monty gave him a greeting or approving nod.

"What are you doing?" Natalie asked.

"I need to talk to you," Monty said. He turned to her, nearly towering over her, and lowered his voice. "It's about that guy who was in here last night. The one with the badge."

"Yeah?" she asked. He was very close. She didn't step back as she didn't want to seem intimidated, but Fritz was definitely uneasy with how close Monty was standing and watched closely.

"Said his name was Wight."

"That's him. Why?"

"Found out today that there's a guy in upper management named Wight too. The big fish in the little pond. Head honcho," Monty drawled, pulling down his sunglasses to peek over them. New ones, Natalie realized, with black and purple striped frames instead of the usual yellow ones.

"Yeah, and?" Natalie asked.

"And he ain't him."

"He's his son," she explained, trying to beat him to the assumed punch.

"I knew it," Monty growled. "That guy's got a lot of nerve throwing his weight around when the only reason he got this job is because his daddy gave it to him."

Natalie tried to not look relieved. "Bingo. That's also why he's head of security or whatever and yet I'm the one here every night."

"It's a real shame that they let this fly. You oughta go to some kinda workers bureau or a union. You got a union?" Monty asked. She shrugged. "Freddy's oughta get a union."

"Could the animatronics join the union?" Fritz dared to ask.

"You bet yer ass we're joining the union. We're the talent," Monty agreed. "I've got hit with so many golf clubs this week. Those kids may have bad aim when it comes to the ball, but they'll launch a metal stick halfway across the golf course."

Monty then proceeded to stand there for a long moment. Staring off at the wall for most of it with a distant look. Fritz and Natalie exchanged a look before the latter spoke.

"So… You want to hang out or…?"

"Right on," Monty agreed. He flipped back his sunglasses and stepped back to lean on the edge of the middle monitors, ignoring the buttons pressed underneath him and crossing his arms on his chest.

"Okay…" Natalie sighed and looked to Fritz who had a tense sort of smile.

Scott didn't even look; he just began to work and tried his hardest to ignore the literal gator in the room.

…

Freddy was a little confused when he saw Monty heading up after the group of workers. Though he was also a little glad to see him leave. With Roxanne at the raceway or salon and Chica likely at the cupcake shop or up in Mazercise, that meant Rockstar Row was empty, and he didn't have to be as careful hiding Foxy. Though he had been quickly brought up to speed on the fact that the two technicians coming here were actually affiliated with Foxy's.

He wasn't sure why they didn't just tell Officer Vanessa. He was sure she would understand that people could work at two locations. Perhaps it had something to do with this competition Foxy alluded to so frequently.

Freddy closed the curtains and turned away from the window. He smiled at Foxy who had settled in on the couch, with his arms crossed behind his head and his feet up on the table.

"The coast is clear, Captain!" Freddy announced. He came over to sit down on the couch beside him. "But it looks like we've been stranded on this little island."

"Marooned, Freddy. When ya be ditched by yer crew, ya be marooned," Foxy corrected. "Where's Gregory?"

"I have not seen him yet, but I suppose that is due to Vanessa and the technicians being out. In which case, he is likely over in Kids Cove."

"Prob'ly with Mari by now," Foxy agreed. He cocked his head towards Freddy. "What's the plan til then?"

"We are in for quite a night!... But first, may I… shoot the breeze with you?"

"Shoot whatever you'd like, Freddy. Just don't be surprised when I return fire."

Freddy chuckled but seemed hesitant. Perhaps shooting the breeze in an uncomfortable direction if his wording was any indication. Foxy took notice. "What's on yer mind, Freddy?"

"Well… Last night when Mari was climbing inside my stomach hatch, he said something surprising. Something that I have been thinking a lot about."

"He what?" Foxy asked deadpan. He shook it off quickly. "Err, forget it. Keep goin', keep goin'." He could always ask Marionette about it later.

"He was facing his fear, and he did an excellent job!" Freddy proudly proclaimed.

"Good on him! Might'a not told me on account of all that was goin' on last night. Less he was afraid I was gonna pull the whole protective big brother thing," Foxy said with a chuckle.

"I thought you liked playing that role," Freddy said, nudging him with a bump of his elbow. Enough to cause Foxy to slide over a little.

"Eh, most of the time. When I ain't shovin' a peg leg down me gullet," Foxy answered.

"Well, he did very well… But while he was doing so, he said something…"

Freddy's change in tone made Foxy straighten up. He leaned forward, arms resting on his knees, and looked to the bear attentively.

"What did he say?" he asked.

"He said that you and he used to be… human. Sunny as well," Freddy said.

Suddenly Foxy understood the 'startled' reaction and the continued hesitation.

"Aye, we were… But that don't change who I am now. That be a long time ago," he began to explain, becoming increasingly defensive until Freddy cut him off.

"No, I completely understand! That is not what bothers me. Surprises me, yes, but I do not mind it at all. You are still my friend… I just do not understand how it could possibly be. How a human can become an animatronic. How that is possible." Foxy cringed inwardly and prepared to give the majorly uncomfortable explanation of how it was when Freddy stopped him by continuing. "And if it is possible that… I too could have been human."

Foxy's ears perked up with interest. There was that broaching point he had never been able to truly reach. Freddy was willingly offering to talk about it.

"Might be," Foxy offered. "Ya said ya don't remember it."

"I do not. I think I would, wouldn't I?"

"Depends. I did, but I know a few that didn't. They just slowly got hunches and feelings until the memories crept back up… You been having any memories, Freddy?"

"Not really, but I have gotten feelings sometimes that something is not quite right with me. At first, I thought it was an error in my programming, perhaps caused by or caused by the same fault as my collapse on stage, but it has not gotten any better or worse, and it has not been flagging for maintenance. It is just a feeling, a feeling I cannot shake."

"Can you describe the feeling?"

"Confusion."

"Ah." Well, Foxy couldn't say that was out of character. "Let's see… Alright, what's the first thing ya remember? As far back as ye can recall."

"Hmm… I think I… I can remember the first time I was activated. It was not an intentional activation I do not believe, as I was wandering the Pizzaplex… I think I might have been in the hall leading into Rockstar Row. That was back before the door began getting stuck at night… On second thought, I hope I was not the reason the door is like that. I suppose I could have walked into it."

"Do you remember walking into it?"

"No, but I suppose I would not if I walked into it hard enough."

It was growing increasingly difficult to have this conversation with Freddy.

"Then what happened?" he asked.

"My friends came and found me. They led me back to my room and helped me into the recharge station… and that was it. I remember spotty memories after that, but the ones that were successfully banked were some time later. Nothing about being a human, so… perhaps I was not one?"

Freddy seemed almost hopeful. Was it that he was afraid to find out he was a human? Perhaps scared to find out that there was a whole life he left behind when becoming the face of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.

He couldn't remember being a human at all. Not even a moment of it. Though instead of leading Foxy to the same assumption that Freddy had, he had more trouble believing that Freddy couldn't be a human to him being one.

"Maybe! Ya never know with these things. Won't change anything. Fer us, I mean," Foxy assured.

"I am glad to hear that," Freddy said. That sat there silently a moment. "…What were you like as a human, Foxy?"

"I'd tell ya, Freddy… But then I'd have to kill ya," the pirate replied. "Dead men tell no tales."

"I think that might break out no vandalization truce. I would have no choice but to retaliate by coming to your business and telling everyone about my extremely high score on Street Skate Superstar."

"…You got it higher?"

"I was expecting your arrival," Freddy challenged.

"Perhaps ye did. We'll see how prepared ye were," Foxy challenged with a dramatic flourish before standing from the couch and heading to the arcade machine, Freddy quick on his heels. "Brace yerself, Fazbear. Shoot at the breeze all ye like, the wind won't be in yer favor."

"We shall see," Freddy goaded. It sounded like he was feeling better.

And he was. For now, at least, Foxy had reassured him. Reminded him that at the end of the day he was Freddy Fazbear, even if that wasn't Foxy's intention.

But that was fine. Freddy Fazbear was the only role he knew how to play.

It had been only a few minutes into this partnership and Gregory was already realizing that working with Ennard was going to be much different than working with Freddy. When it came to Freddy, Gregory usually could work him into seeing things his way and he was just as willing to keeping a secret. Ennard was a little harder to convince.

"Can't we just go and do it and tell them when we get back?" Gregory asked.

"I find that honesty's the best policy. Less chance of it coming back to bite me," Ennard explained. He sauntered up to the propped open orange door leading into Sunny and Jake's room.

"But they're just going to try and stop us."

"Yeah, probably. I'll take that over everyone thinking I'm some sorta creep that snatched a child."

Gregory gave him a less than enthused look, pouting at the thought of the time they were going to waste getting out of here. He already only had a limited amount of time before Freddy showed up and the plan would likely be off.

Thankfully, Ennard failed to disappoint. He threw open the door and called in, "I'm taking the kid to go scare the daylights out of Chica! Be back whenever!" Then he shut it back and jauntily strode back down the hall. "Alright, let's move!"

Gregory decided to fight the urge to question it and instead turned around and began to walk alongside of Ennard. They almost got to the poster door when their way was suddenly blocked by Marionette appearing out of thin air.

"Whoa!" Gregory cried.

"Oh, hello. I was wondering when you'd show up," Ennard cheekily remarked.

Marionette didn't look quite so enthused. His mouth a tight line and his eyes curved in tiredness.

The door behind them also flew open and Sunny came storming out jingling all the way.

"Oh, no you aren't, Bucko!" he cried with an accusing finger. He then pointed that finger down at Gregory, smiling face staring down the other clown. "This child isn't going anywhere with you!"

"What happened to me being banned?" Gregory challenged as he crossed his arms.

"From the playground, and that doesn't include stranger danger EVER," Sunny denied with an 'x' of his arms. Ennard gave a dismissive sort of shrug back at him.

"Ennard, what are you planning?" Marionette asked.

"Exactly what I said! I'm pulling another 'chasing the robbers', only this time I don't have to hike halfway across town afterwards. Don't tell Scott, I'll break the news later," Ennard half-pleaded.

Marionette sighed and pinched his furrowed brow. Sort of a replacement for pinching the bridge of a nose he didn't have, but Ennard still caught the intention. The Puppet then dropped his arms to his side.

"Ennard, you know you can't do that," he said adamantly.

"Why not? Like the kid said, I'm just giving her a taste of her own medicine!"

"Because it's wrong. It's not our place to punish Chica. Specifically, because this is not our restaurant," he said. Punctuating the last part with a dramatic tilt of his head.

"Well, you know what I think is wrong?" Ennard asked. Something else edging into his voice and contrasting his sharp smile. "Harassing a kid. And not just this kid either. That kid in there, the one in the green jacket," he said, pointing a thumb over his shoulder. "Face it, Mari, she's a menace. I'll give her the benefit of giving us heck since we're not supposed to be in here, but him? He's made it pretty clear he's not leaving, and she's made it clear that she's not backing off."

"That is true, but-."

"And I seem to recall you having the same idea," Ennard pointed out. His voice becoming a little slyer as he did. "I don't care about Miss Bunny, but I'm sure Miss Wolf didn't appreciate you spooking her."

That was unfortunately true. Marionette had purposefully attempted to scare both Roxanne and Monty during that distraction for let Mike get Charlie and Jessica, and he still felt justified in doing so to save them… but he had definitely gone beyond what he needed to. He had gone out of his way to rile them a little more out of retaliation. He couldn't hold that against Ennard without holding it against himself. Not when Ennard's justification had a clear throughline.

"You know this could quickly get out of hand," the puppet reminded.

"Oh, this is already way out of hand, and I only just showed up," the clown retorted.

"What do you plan on doing?"

"I'm gonna corner her somewhere dark and dank and put on the whole hungry amalgam with double voices routine, and somewhere in there I'm gonna throw in a moral about how she treats children. I'll work out the details on the way."

Marionette looked seriously doubtful and so Ennard laid a hand on his shoulder. His voice quieting.

"Mari, I can do this! I'm great at this! This is the reason I've lived this long. You remember what I did to those guys who robbed Scott, and you know how scary I can be. And when it comes to animatronics who are all put together, I'm practically a zombie. She's not even going to have the faintest clue of what I am!"

"Now that part's true, because I have no idea what you're supposed to be," Sunny murmured.

"Let me just try. Worst case scenario it doesn't work because she can tell on me all she wants. If they didn't believe her about Charlie, you know they won't believe her about me," Ennard assured.

Marionette wasn't sure about this. Agreeing to this was like signing a contract with Freddy's; it was only a matter of time until something went wrong and then it was going to all fall on him for not reading the fine print. He briefly glanced to the side at Gregory who was also awaiting an answer, and his eyes magnetized directly onto that bruise.

That bruise. The only physical mark left of what Chica put Gregory through. He had seen Sunny juggle Gregory around, knew Freddy toted him around in his metal canister of a belly, and yet this was what left any sort of mark. Chica's tight grip as she dragged Gregory up a flight of stairs. Perhaps fueled by anger at having to chase him around, or perhaps unable to recognize her strength. If she even cared.

That bruise. How Chica tore out his little home as Marionette watched. How desperate she was to find this child. Maybe she was a good person deep down, she probably wasn't genuinely evil, but she was definitely out of control.

"…Alright."

"What?!" Sunny blurted out.

"I'm tired of sitting around waiting for problems to go away. Ennard, if you think you can scare her straight then go for it," Marionette agreed. He looked back to Ennard with alit pupils and a warning look. "But keep in mind that if anything goes wrong, that's on you."

"Got it!"

"And don't hurt her."

"I won't!" Ennard now spun around and pointed towards Sunny. "What about you?"

"Wh-What about me?" Sunny asked uneasily.

"You're one of her friends?"

"I-I would hardly call us friends! More like…. Coworkers! Coworkers who work on whole different sides of the world," the Sun explained.

"Eh, close enough. Close enough to tell me if I'm stepping over the line. I want your say before I do something crazy like spook your friend," Ennard explained.

Sunny was startled by the suggestion on its own, let alone being put on the spot. He tapped his fingers anxiously.

"Erm, well. I… I think Chica has been absolutely and positively out of line! Chasing children? Nope, nope, we do NOT do that here! And in Kids Cove? The daycare? This is a safe space for children! Or its supposed to be, but now with that Vanny and Chica acting like such a-!" He gave a frustrated huff. "And I like Chica! She's-!... Well, she's better than Monty by far, and she's not nearly as, ugh, rude as Roxy can be. She can say mean things when she's grumpy."

Sunny continued to prattle for a few moments, fussing and tugging on the ribbons around his wrists, before finally falling silent for a long moment. Ennard patiently waited but looked to him expectantly.

"…You're not going to eat her, are you?" Sunny asked suspiciously. "You seem awfully excited."

"I love getting this close to getting caught," Ennard clarified, pinching his fingers together. "But no! I only eat wires when I'm running low, and even then, I don't eat 'em out of living animatronics! Maybe a long time ago when I first woke up, when I was desperate and confused, but I've gotten my act together. Ask this guy, he had to deal with me at my worst," he said, turning to reach back and put his hand on Marionette's shoulder again.

"Ngh…" Sunny seemed on the fence before he looked down at Gregory. Marionette wasn't sure if he was looking at the bruise too, but something suddenly changed in his demeanor. His hands, rubbing worriedly together, slowly lowered and stilled. His white eyes began to turn a blue before flicking back to white as he snapped his head forward. "You know what? You're right, Mari. Someone reeeaally should do something about herrr."

Gregory looked up uneasily at that change in voice at the end. Only to suddenly have those large hands plop on his shoulders and pull him aside and back against his puffy pants.

"But Sunspot stays with me!" Sunny insisted.

"Yes, he really should," Marionette agreed.

"We can do that," Ennard also agreed.

"What?!" Gregory sputtered in disbelief. "No way! I want to help! He needs my help!"

"You want to be part of a possible crime, hmm?" Sunny disapprovingly questioned.

"Freddy says the only crime here is the price of the hamburgers," the boy retorted.

"We should really serve burgers at the pizzeria. We could call them Pirate Patties," Marionette murmured to Ennard.

"Great name, but I thought you guys were more of a fish place," Ennard whispered back.

"Not really. The tuna and anchovy pizza is more of a novelty."

All the while they were having the conversation Gregory and Sunny were still going off a few feet away.

An argument that was abruptly shortened by one exchange.

"Do you know how many rules you'll be breaking? This is much worse than sneaking around here after closing! Tampering with mascots are grounds for an immediate lifelong ban from the Pizzaplex! And you better believe-."

"Stop pretending like you care! The only reason you're not just throwing me out like you did that first time is because of Jake! Or Freddy! Or- Or because you're programmed to or something!" Gregory accused.

Sunny was startled. His points retracting showed as much. He sputtered and fumbled over his words. "Th-Th-That's not true! I'm- I don't act- I'm not programmed- I'm not some kind of-?!"

But Gregory had already turned his head away defiantly and Sunny's pointed popped back out with an impatient huff.

"Oh, so now you're going to pout, hmm? Well, fine! You want to go so bad? Go ahead!" Sunny turned away, crossing his arms, and tilting up his head. "But don't expect ME to come after you!"

"Good! I don't want you to!" Gregory exclaimed.

"Well, I won't!"

"Fine by me!"

"Good! I'm glad!"

"So, he's coming or what?" Ennard interjected. Knowing what the answer was and simply asking to break up the back and forth.

"Yeah, I'm coming," Gregory grumbled.

He walked over to Ennard who waved back towards Sunny. "I'll keep an eye on him! Maybe even two!"

Sunny grumbled something. His arms still crossed but now watching Gregory walk off with Ennard.

"Remember what we talked about. If things get too intense then please come back here and call the whole thing off," Marionette insisted as he passed by. He reached down and patted Gregory's head as they passed. "Be careful."

"We will, I will, and no problem!" Ennard agreed. Then he and Gregory headed down the hall and out the door.

Sunny was still riled up when Marionette stopped alongside him and gestured towards the door.

"You go ahead. I need to stew," the Sun said. Sympathetic, Marionette nodded and continued inside. He held the door momentarily before letting it shut behind him.

Charlie and Baby were waiting for him inside. Both noticing that Ennard hadn't followed from how they glanced towards the door, one after another.

"I guess you couldn't talk him out of it?" Charlie asked.

"Well… It's more like he talked me into it," Marionette admitted with a sheepish smile. To while Charlie looked less than amused.

"He'll be fine. As terribly dumb of a decision this is, Ennard knows how to handle himself," Baby flatly added. "…Though I do wish he would've consulted with me first."

"Maybe he does, but… Chica's going to tell on him. You know that, right?" Charlie asked Marionette specifically. "She made a huge deal about seeing me. She's not going to keep quiet about him. Especially if he scares her."

"I know, but nobody believed her then and hopefully nobody believes her now," he said.

Jake, who was standing by the worktable, chimed in to ask, "Was Sunny going with them?"

"No, he's out in the hallway cooling off. He and Gregory got into a little spat."

"Yes, we heard," Baby agreed.

"Huh…" Jake said suspiciously.

He looked over towards the balcony then walked over. While the puppets and clown continued speaking, he climbed up the ladder and stepped out beside the curtain to peek out. He didn't interject again for a few more minutes.

Until he did.

"Uh oh…" Jake said as he watched Ennard and Gregory make their way out. "We already have a problem."

"What?" Charlie asked.

"Sunny's not with them," Jake said. He turned around, gestured his arms out, and gave a rather foreboding, "And he's not here."

"But Mari just said he was…" Charlie trailed off at the squeak of the door and looked back to see Marionette opening it to reveal an empty hallway. "…Never mind."

Marionette looked back towards Jake. "How big of a problem is this?"

"Not too big, and not ours. Not unless Sunny brings someone back with him," Jake remarked. He started to climb back down the ladder. "I'll get on the cams."

"Well, this should be a very interesting evening," Marionette quipped as he headed over to join him. Charlie following as well, leading Baby by the hand who pushed forward with her skate before letting the puppet guide her coast.

"That's a nice way of saying it's on its way to disaster,"Baby remarked. Though her tone was light, betraying that she wasn't quite so concerned. Ennard could handle himself.

Whether or not he could handle a chicken, a child, and another clown was another thing altogether.

Speaking of which, Ennard led Gregory out into the fountain lobby outside of the daycare. He let the door open and edged out first to make sure they were alone, then deemed it safe and beckoned Gregory to follow.

"Oookay, so here's my idea," Ennard started to explain. Clasping his hands excitedly as he looked around the lobby, particularly studying the recharge station before turning to face Gregory. "We get Chica alone somewhere dark and dank. The closer to sewer conditions the better. There's nothing scarier to a robot than one wrong step leading to a short-circuit. Then I get into character, spook the chicken, and we- urk!"

Ennard looked at Gregory and was suddenly hit by a repulsive sensation that ran through his wires. A sickening tightening and blurry fuzz through his head, like he was raring to do something. A compulsion tugging at his servos and asking him to do something, and he had a bad feeling he knew what it was that it was trying to coax him to do. It might've been dull enough to control, but it was a yank of programming nonetheless.

He hadn't expected it after standing in the hallway alone with him, but apparently it was aware and waiting until they were truly alone.

"What's up?" Gregory asked. He furrowed his brows at the weird stare that took the clown's face. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"HA HA! Sorry, I- I just- oof!" Ennard sputtered and stalled as he tried to recover. "Sor-Sorry! I've got this- I get bugged out sometimes. I'm not staring at you, I'm kinda staring through you. Don't worry about it!"

"Are you sure?"

"Posi-tive~!" He gave as much of a winning grin as he could and fought back the sensation to feign normalcy. "S-So, l-let's get to that plan!"

"Right!"

"I-I noticed the kitchen is super dark and dank, a-and I heard Chica's got an appetite on her."

"She does. She'll eat anything, even if it's been in the garbage. Even if it IS garbage!... But she loves pizza. Last time Freddy and me made a pizza down there, she must've smelled it and came in and ate the whole thing. Maybe we could make a pizza and use that to trick her into coming going into the kitchen, then you can scare her."

"Th-That's the idea!" Ennard agreed.

Gregory lifted his Fazwatch and pressed the button. "Freddy? Are you there?"

"Gregory, hello! It is good to hear from you, Superstar," Freddy chirped back happily. "My apologies for not being out and about tonight. Vanessa has technicians working in the security room above Rockstar Row and with Foxy here I am somewhat stuck in my room… Oh! And Foxy is here! He would say hello, but my messaging system is internal. You will have to take my word for it."

"Tell him I said hi. Hey Freddy, what's Chica's favorite type of pizza?"

"Well, Chica enjoys all kinds of pizza. I cannot think of a topping or a style she does not like, but she tends to prefer pizza with a tomato base, extra cheese, and all of the available toppings. Why do you ask?"

"I… So, Chica's been hanging out around Kids Cove a lot… Sooo, I thought maybe if we made her favorite pizza, maybe that would distract her enough that she'd leave," Gregory vaguely explained. Freddy seemed to buy it anyways.

"That is an excellent idea! And I am sure Chica would appreciate it too!... Has she been… giving you trouble tonight?" Freddy's voice became more concerned. "I am aware that you… tend to use Kids Cove as a hiding spot on nights you are here."

"She's just being a pain, but what else is new?" Gregory grumbled. "…Oh! And I met more of Mari's friends. I'm hanging out with Ennard." He held out his wristwatch towards Ennard, who leaned in.

"Hey-hey, Freddy!" Ennard greeted.

"Well, hello! It is a pleasure to meet you! Foxy has said very nice things about you."

Ennard was baffled by that.

"Is it true that you can jump car batteries with your bear hands?"

"That's right! But I don't know how he knows that," Ennard joked. He really didn't. Maybe Michael told him? Maybe Scott told someone. After all, he had seen it firsthand.

"That is quite a talent! And very useful, I know who to see if I need a quick charge," Freddy joked good naturedly. "I take it you two are in the daycare with Mari?"

"Yup!" Gregory said.

"Very good, you should be safe there. As soon as Vanessa finishes with the technicians, Foxy and I will come to meet you and we can try your pizza idea. Then perhaps we could play a game of Fazer Blast?" Freddy offered. "With Ennard and Mari too, of course. Perhaps we can even convince Sunny to join and have two full teams. It will be a blast! A Fazer Blast, that is."

Gregory fought the urge to roll his eyes at Freddy's leap for a pun. "Sounds good. See you later, Freddy."

"Be seeing ya, Freddy! Make sure to brace yourself!" Ennard joked.

"I will! Take care, Gregory. I will let you know when we are on our way."

"Got it." Gregory removed his finger from the button. "…We're still going right?"

"S-Sure thing! Unless you cha-ange your mind."

"No way," the boy said steadfast. He began to lead the way towards the security door.

…

"Gregory said hello! He is over in the daycare with Mari and Ennard, who I was also able to say hello to as well. You are right, he does sound a bit like Sunny. They could be brothers!" Freddy explained.

Foxy was currently hunched over the Street Skate Superstar arcade machine with his patch up and his eyes locked on. That was Freddy's biggest sign that he was getting ever closer to the most recent high score.

"What did I tell ya? Could've been separated at birth!" Foxy assured. Even though his only experience with Sunny's voice was secondhand accounts. "What're they up to?"

"They are over in the daycare right now. Gregory was asking about Chica's favorite kind of pizza. He had an idea to bake her favorite pizza to distract her. It is very clever!... But… I wish he did not have to do this," Freddy said defeatedly.

"She givin' him trouble again?"

"She had a hard day today. She was very excited to take up the place as secondary singer and now… It is unfortunate that it did not work in her favor," Freddy said sympathetically. "…But perhaps Gregory's plan is exactly what we need! It will distract her from him while also cheering her up with a freshly baked pizza. Nothing lifts her spirits more than a hot and cheesy slice of pizza!"

"Eh, I'm on board but we've seen her chew through a pizza in seconds flat. Might buy her some time walking down there, but unless she gets holed up in the lift, she ain't gonna be held off fer that long," Foxy pointed out.

Freddy hummed and tapped his chin. "That is a good point…" he said quietly. He continued trying to think.

Then something changed on his face. Foxy didn't notice because he was focused on the screen, but Freddy's deeply thoughtful look was replaced with one of realization, then softened with trepidation and somberness.

He stood there silently pondering something for a moment before closing his eyes once more.

…

Gregory and Ennard had just made it into the lobby, intending to take that way into the atrium to avoid Chica, when he was startled by a voice unexpectedly coming from his Fazwatch.

"Gregory, I was just thinking… Foxy brought up a good point about how a pizza alone may not be enough to distract Chica. It might not be enough to even coax her away unless we get it close to here. Which we can, but that would defeat the purpose of getting her away from Kids Cove. However, there may be something else that we can use as a distraction. Something that would surely keep her occupied…"

"Great! What is it?" Gregory asked.

"Monty Mystery Mix."

"What's that?" Gregory asked. He really hoped it didn't require him going back into Monty Golf.

"Monty's Mystery Mix is a retired syrup used for slushes. It had to be discontinued only a few days into opening both because of the poor reception to the mysterious flavor and Chica's reaction to it. Chica liked it a little too much. They could not stop her from going around the counters to get a taste and decided it was simply not worth selling under such conditions. The leftovers had to be hidden so she would not find them. They are up in… the bowling alley. In the backroom."

"You think that stuff'll distract her better?" Gregory asked. He looked to Ennard to make sure he was listening, to which he was.

"I am certain it will. However, it is too dangerous for you to go up there alone. I… I will take you there… Later. Once I can leave my room."

There was something strange about Freddy's voice. He seemed seriously hesitant about the idea, which should've made Gregory nervous if not for it being his ticket to a Chica-free future.

"Okay. Thanks, Freddy!" Gregory thanked.

"It is no problem, Superstar. I will be seeing you soon!"

With that the exchange was over.

"So, it's called Monty Mystery Mix and it's up in the bowling alley. Let's go."

"U-Up to Bonnie Bowl? Or Bunnie Bowl?" Ennard asked.

"Well, yeah? Where else?"

"Well, here's an idea," Ennard suggested, lifting his index fingers. "How about we try the pizza thing annnn-d if it doesn't work then we'll go up to bunny th-themed bowling alley?"

"Why? Are you scared?" Gregory asked with a quirk of his brow.

"The word 'dangerous' kinda makes me nervous, yeah," Ennard said. The boy didn't seem impressed by the idea. "Okay, okay. W-We'll get the stuff. You want to wait here while I go get it? I can go get it fast, you can wait here. All good."

"No, I want to see what the bowling alley looks like. I know Freddy likes bowling because he has bowling balls and pins and stuff, but he never offers to go up there."

Ennard sighed and gave a defeated, "Then let's get this over with…" He dragged himself into the elevator, only to turn around and point towards Gregory. "B-But if there's some crrrazy bunny mascot running around up there, kid… I'm gonna thank you. Bec-Because if it's the one I'm thinking of, ha ha, that's going to make my job a LOT easier."

It didn't take a genius to understand that he was referencing Vanny. The mention of her was the only thing to make him second-guess this decision, but he followed the clown in, and they headed into the atrium.

There wasn't a Staff Bot blocking the bowling alley like they usually guarded the attractions. Gregory could only guess that it was the same reason that there were so few Staff Bots out, because of the incident earlier. He wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth and the two walked through the unguarded doors and into the bowling alley proper.

The entrance lobby to the bowling alley was rather typical to what he expected. There were a few glass cases displaying bowling balls and trophies, and other memorabilia that might be purchasable somewhere in the establishment. The walls were a teal green on the top and an orange-red brick along the bottom, with a high ceiling dotted with artificial stars. Up on the left wall was a red, orange, yellow, and blue sign that read out "Bowl". On the right, star decorations.

The mascot, painted on the inside as it had been on the outside, looked to be a calico bunny. Ennard specifically noticed that it seemed to be a poor job, with the pupils being uncentered and the proportions being slightly off. Probably a rush job done by a single person, and for that he was sympathetic.

"I-Is that what Vannny looks like, kiddo?" Ennard asked. Gregory looked up at it.

"Not really. The eyes are red, not pink, and she's all white. It kind of looks like the Easter Bunny on that commercial with the peanut butter cups."

"I'll be darned, you're right," the clown realized. He squinted at the image before snickering. "I can't believe that! Th-They were worried about a lawsuit with Bon-ngh-nnie, so they ripped off the Cus-Custard Crème Bunny!"

"Who's Bonnie?"

"Eh, old news. Old character from Freddy's. No big deal," Ennard shrugged off. He then continued ahead, eyes lighting up curiously, and literally, as he wondered what else lay ahead.

There was a security door with bowling pins on them in front of them while a hallway led to the left down towards some bathrooms and couches. They continued through the security door into a small arcade and through that into the bowling alley proper, and it was quite a sight. The room dropped down into the long bowling lanes, illuminated by the neon glow and star shaped lights on the ceiling above. Screens above the allies either showing scorecards or adds.

Against the far-left wall was what looked to be a diner. Or more specifically, a snack bar styled like a diner. Though the most impressive part of the room was on their right, and what Ennard spotted right away.

"Would you look at this?!" Ennard exclaimed as he made a beeline for a wall of windows. He looked down through them and grinned with excitement. "Take a look at that view!"

The windows didn't look outside, but out over a large go-kart track. A line of snack bars beneath them, a mountain of bleachers against the opposite wall of the auditorium, and an even bigger mural of Roxanne Wolf waving two racing flags staring over all of it.

"That's Roxy Raceway! It looks huge!" Gregory said in surprise. It was just as amazing as the ads spread around made it out to be.

"It IS huge! Forget laser tag, we should go goof off down there! Look, they've got the karts out and everything!" Ennard pointed out, tapping on the window. After a little longer of looking he finally pushed back from the window. "How in the heck did they pull off building a whole racetrack in here? It's crazy!"

"I know," Gregory agreed. He was distracted though, looking down at Roxy Raceway with wide eyes and not seeing it as a place to hang out, but instead a place to hide away. He could probably lose Roxanne easily in a place like that, and there had to be tons of food sitting around in the concession stands.

"C'mon, kiddo. I- I don't want you getting too far away in case there's some-someone else up here," Ennard coaxed. Gregory pulled his face from the window and followed him.

They made their way over in the direction of the dining area.

And that's when Ennard saw it. Something that made him stop in his track. Something standing behind the counter.

"Oh no…" he drew out. Hissing lowly through his teeth, sympathetically and worriedly.

"What? The Staff Bot? I don't think it's going to stop us," Gregory pointed out.

"Nah, not that. But yeah, that," Ennard murmured.

No, it wasn't the Staff Bot itself, but the particular design that it had. It may have shared the same shape of any other Staff Bot, but it shared the colors and pigtails of something else entirely.

In short, it looked like Circus Baby. An orange and red colored Staff Bot with high orange pigtails styled in in the shape of Circus Baby, a character who Fazbear Entertainment may or may not have owned.

It looked like Baby's worries weren't unjustified after all.

"N-No problem! Just, uh… Don't tell Baby about this, m'kay?" Ennard asked.

"Why?"

"Long story," the clown dismissed with a wave. He started down the counter towards the door that would lead around back. His eyes settling on a stage at the end of the line. "Weellll, there's something."

It was a small stage set with a red curtain and closed attraction sign posted in front of it. It was about the size of Marionette's stage from Foxy's, only big enough to serve those who would be seated at the counter or in the diner booths. Curiously, cautiously, Ennard listened in for any signs of movement and, when he got none, he slipped his fingers in and drew open the curtain. Alas, there was nothing inside.

"Huh… Well, guess we can confirm that something was up here. Or is up here. Cre-reeping around," Ennard said as he looked back to Gregory. "…Yeeah, so stay close."

Gregory nodded and then took the lead to sneak behind the counter and towards the door behind it, being the only door that led to anything that looked like a 'backroom'. He expected the Staff Bots to try and stop him, and though one watched them go through it didn't do anything. Ennard followed close as they stepped into a chilly hallway. To the left were some mini-freezers and supplies while the right direction led off somewhere, so they stuck to the left.

And it didn't take them long to spot something of interest.

"Is that it?" Gregory asked. He pointed to a box on top of the freezer.

It was a carboard box with the Pizzaplex logo on the side and a section cut out of the side and top. Inside of the cardboard box was a large plastic sack with a little spout attached to it. It was filled with a noxious green syrupy mixture.

"S-Sure looks like it!" Ennard said. He easily hoisted up the box and set it on one on the floor so Gregory could see it. The boy reached out and poked at it. It was like plastic covered jelly.

"What do you think it tastes like?" he asked. A slight wrinkling of his nose signaling that he wasn't curious enough to try for himself. Ennard on the other hand-.

"Here, lemme take a taste," Ennard volunteered. He pulled off his glove and stuck his finger under the spout, drizzling some of the green syrup on the edge of it. It had the texture of maple syrup or liquid candy.

"P-Probably lime or maybe like a sour fruity taste," he guessed.

He brought his finger up and slid a wire tongue out to lick the substance off. He took in the taste, rubbing his slightly sticky finger and thumb together as he did, humming.

"…Nope! Tastes like pizza. That'd be one rancid slush right there!" he said.

"Eww," Gregory agreed.

"It's not that bad! It's just kinda… funky," Ennard said. He licked his finger again to rub off as much stickiness as he could before slipping on his glove. "Alright, K-Kiddo! We're off!" He directed, hoisting up the cardboard box.

Gregory nodded and checked his watch, and then nearly did a double take at the time before groaning.

"What?"

"It's that stupid hourly recharge thing. In three minutes, all the lights are going to go out and the elevators won't work," Gregory explained.

"Ha, well we're not st-sticking around for that! Let's go!" Ennard said. He then turned on his heel and began to hustle down the hallway. Less afraid of the lights going out and more of what the lights being out might do to him.

Unfortunately, time was not on his side. Ennard knew he wasn't about to make it across the bowling alley in three minutes unless he jumped the counter and bolted, but he couldn't risk losing the child he was escorting. So, they only made it around the counter and halfway back towards the arcade when the lights suddenly died. The neon lights died on a dime and left them in pitch blackness. Gregory pressed at his watch to make it light up, but it still wasn't much.

Ennard went rigid as he waited for the worse, but thankfully nothing changed. That dull buzz was still there, but the lights going out hadn't effected his handle on it. For that he relaxed a little bit, though stayed on guard.

He felt like he was being watched. He decided to keep his cool for Gregory's sake.

"Heh, uh, well this is… spooky," he said.

"Yeah… It's pretty dark…" Gregory agreed. "…You're not scared of the dark, right?"

"Me? Nah! As a matter of fact, I can see in the dark! But, umm, not as good as I see in the light."

"Can you make your eyes glow like Freddy's?" Gregory asked hopefully.

"Ehh, kinda." Ennard looked down at the boy standing beside him and pointed at his eyes. Sure enough, they were illuminated in blue and yellow, but it was a dull glassy glow. "D'you know what the word autonomic means?"

"No?"

"It's like breathing and blinking, it just kinda happens and you don't really control it," Ennard explained.

"Oh… Neat! Can you do that when you're scaring Chica? Or try?"

"I can try!" the clown agreed.

It was painfully awkward. At least it felt like that for Ennard, who was much too aware of his behavior. Though it was hard not to be when standing in a dead silent room. Well, not entirely silent, that was. He could hear some distant groans and echoes through the walls, which he could only help wasn't coming from the structure itself.

There was also this faint ticking noise. He had noticed it earlier too but assumed it was coming from the Staff Bots, who had gone prone at the counter. He looked back towards them.

There was a lowered ceiling that sat like a roof over the diner's counter. There he saw a white face staring back at him surrounded in a cloudy blue hue. A blue hue that turned out to be the glow from its body once he realized what he was looking at. Which wasn't hard when he recognized the face, then the gangly limbs bent around it, and realized that he was staring at the Sun's other half, Moon. He recognized him from the pictures.

"Ha ha, well hey diddle diddle, Mister Moon! Fancy seeing you up here! Or hearing you," Ennard greeted him.

Moon hunched back like a frightened spider until Gregory spin around and spotted him. Then he quickly took a casual pose, propping his glowing face in his hands. Gregory gave a grumpy frown.

"What happened to 'don't expect me to come after you'?" he challenged.

"Sunny is so easily swept up in his emotions," Moon rolled his words dismissively. "What happened to your little plan, hmm? This is faaaar, faaaar away from Kids Cove."

"Oh, we're just getting some bait," Ennard answered. He gave the cardboard box a hearty pat. "Nothing like a bag of pizza slime for the pretty Chica-dee."

Moon gave a disgusted noise at the sight of it. "Yes, the rejected Faz-flavor… You best be careful with that."

"No problem! This is stainproof," Ennard replied, tugging at his collar. "Even if it wasn't, how would you spot the stain?"

He was purposefully playing around, and Moon was aware of it. Not amused, but aware that his ignorance was an act.

"If you get aaaany of that on you, stains will be the leeeast of your problems," Moon warned with a roll of his face and a dark giggle.

"Aww, are you worrying about lil old me? Ha, I'm flattered! But no worries, Glowworm. This stuff's going straight on a pizza on a silver platter."

"That easy, is it?" Moon asked.

"The hardest part's going to be getting undressed," Ennard assured.

Moon cocked his head suddenly. Something Gregory almost did too as he looked up at him in befuddlement.

"Wait… You're going to take your clothes off?"

"That's the plan!"

"Uh, why?"

"Whyres."

Gregory furrows his brow harder and Ennard waved it off.

"It'll make sense later, just trust me on this. Way scarier under the suit," Ennard assured. Gregory looked him up and down, a little more doubtful than concerned, before deciding to take his word for it.

"Okay…" He looked up at Moon again. "You're not going to follow us down there, are you?" he asked accusatorily.

"I certainly could, couldn't I?" the Daycare Attendant teased. "…But no, no. I won't be a part of this- but certainly good luck to you both, hmm? You will need it, you will."

"Stop that. You're just trying to creep us out," Gregory said grumpily.

"Yeah, and we've already got Freddy telling us its dangerous and an empty stage over there," Ennard pointed out. "What's the story on that?"

"A tale of big business and small companies, and a past longed to be forgotten… and a lawsuit waiting to happen, a trademark of Freddy's. A story for another time, yes, but a story I am sure you and I both know well," Moon answered.

"I might need to hear that story. But first thing's first, we should probably skedaddle before Chica smells this stuff early and catches me with my pants on. You wanna come with us?"

As much as Ennard offered the notion with friendliness, it was also an attempt to get the programming monkey off of his back. Just having him here was already helping it ease up. Not that he was going to tell Gregory or Moon that.

Moon pondered it for a few seconds, rocking his face, and then crawled forward and hopped down from the ledge, landing easily on his feet.

"Perhaps I will," he agreed and slinked over. Gregory might've pouted at this, but Ennard was glad to hear it.

"Ha ha, great! Glad to have ya!" he greeted. He then turned back towards the direction of the arcade, which was now just a dark room- a stark change to the flashing lights and chiming music earlier.

He wondered how Scott was handling this. With his head clearer, it dawned on him that he wasn't the only one stuck in complete darkness. Scott handled the dark well enough, but the same couldn't be said for blackouts.

Ennard fished out his radio and clicked the button a few times on.

Searching through security footage hour-by-hour and camera-by-camera was tiring work but someone had to do it. That someone was Scott, and it meant that he didn't have to be one of the someones behind him who were currently chatting up Monty Gator like it was a completely normal occurrence, if only to keep him distracted and unsuspicious.

Though as uncomfortable as Scott had initially been, Monty seemed to be much more passive than everyone had let on. He wasn't nearly as talkative as he had initially made himself out to be. Or maybe just didn't feel like talking, instead simply listening in as Fritz and Natalie did. Occasionally chiming in with something. Sometimes just a "Rock on" or "Naw", sometimes a more substantial contribution, but this was a far cry from the aggressive bot Scott had been warning about.

Then again it was possible, neigh likely, that Monty was just so docile because there were three presumed workers in the room. He was probably programmed to have his behavior regulated around workers. It made just as much sense as anything else did in this place. Case in point, this egregious security system. It was almost like they didn't want anyone to find anything.

Actually, that would explain some things.

But before Scott could even consider voicing as such, which he likely wouldn't do with Monty in the room, the power suddenly died. Without warning, the whole room fell into darkness, the monitors went out, and a powering down noise echoed through the building around him. Scott's breath hitched as his heartrate began to increase before suddenly jumping into racing.

"There's the hourly recharge," Natalie sighed, squinting over at the clock on the wall. She looked back to nod and Monty, "You might want to get charged up before Moon starts prowling."

"Don't have to tell me twice," Monty said. Sunglasses still on, he began to walk through the darkness towards the door, only lit by Natalie's flashlight. As soon as he was out and could be heard walking away, Scott dared to speak up.

"Please- Please tell me there's like a-uh automatic save feature or something like that," he said pleadingly.

"There is, don't worry. Normally it just kicks back on where it was," Natalie assured.

Scott breathed a sigh of relief. "That's great news, because otherwise… yeah, I would've probably been doing all that over again. Just to find where I was," Scott admitted. He managed a dry chuckle and rubbed at his temples.

"Are you okay?" Fritz asked.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeeeeeah," Scott stretched out.

Deciding that the answer didn't sound sure enough, Fritz walked over and planted his hands on his shoulders. Giving them a reassuring squeeze and encountering tight resistance at his tense shoulders.

"It's just five minutes. No big deal, right? It's all good," he assured him.

"Yeah," Scott said with another empty chuckle. Now pulling off his glasses to rub a hand down his face. "Heh, just like the good old days. At least- except we're not getting paid, and we're not in that much danger… Yet."

"We don't get paid unless we're in danger," Fritz said.

"True. That's sort of the, uh… y'know, the trademark of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza."

"You know, I would've appreciated somebody telling me that before I signed up," Natalie said with exaggerated, pretend annoyance.

"We can't tell outsiders…" Fritz said cryptically. He turned back slowly and sent her a smile. "She's one of us now, isn't she, Scott?"

"Eggs."

"Actually, it's Steve. Nice to meet you."

Scott actually did laugh at that. A short one but a real one. It was just so much like the jokes Ennard constantly popped at him that it caught him off-guard. Fritz, proud at his work, patted his shoulders alternatingly.

Less than a minute later, they were interrupted by a clicking from Scott's coat. He hastily got out his radio and pressed the button.

"Ennard?"

"That's me! Is it safe to talk?" Ennard whispered back.

"It's all clear," Scott said with a smile. "And it's good to hear your voice."

"Then get ready for a whole lot of it, 'cause I've got plenty to spare! I do a mean 'dashing ringleader' impression, but you already knew that.~"

"Full disclosure, but Fritz is standing right behind me," he warned. Not necessarily telling him to stop but letting him know what he was getting into.

"He can take notes," Ennard joked. He snickered a little before adding on, "Sooo, how's it going? You get in?"

"We did, and you're going to get a real kick out of this. So, there's got to be hundreds of videos here, and you'd think there'd maybe be one for each camera? No, no. There's one for each hour of each camera, and they're not labeled."

"Ouch," Ennard sympathized. "They should be paying you for that." Scott snickered a little. "You already said that didn't you?" Ennard guessed, a grin in his voice.

"Something along those lines. How's your night been?"

"Great!"

"I can't tell if you use that sincerely or sarcastically," Scott teased.

"It can go either way- just like me! But you already knew that.~" If it was possible to hear a wink, Scott heard it.

"Yeah, yeah, okay." He was starting to get a little flustered- probably because Fritz was still stationed behind him- but he much preferred a flush of embarrassment to the chill of fear. "Seriously though, did you finally meet this Sun I've been hearing so much about?"

"Yeeees, I did! Matter of fact, I met the Moon too. He's been eyeing my suit since he showed up, so if I go missing you know who to look at," Ennard joked. Though then his voice became slightly more serious. "We also got a good look at Chica as she tore up Gregory's little hideout. She's something alright. Something awful."

"That bad?"

"Oh, much worse!"

"Well, try to steer clear of her. Maybe try to keep Baby away from her too."

"Funny you should say that! We were-."

That was exactly when the lights kicked back on. The office hummed back to life and Scott watched as the computer started booting back up in front of him, eventually coming back onto the same screen of files he had left it on. Fritz finally let him go but didn't go far, just walking back over to Natalie to give Scott slight privacy. Even though it was hard to not hear Ennard's voice over the receiver.

"There we go! To quote the big guy in the sky: let there be light! Ha, I half expected 'em to stay off. Things always break when I don't want 'em too."

"On the one night we're in here while there's a clock ticking down to footage deletion? Sounds about right… But then again if that happened, I'd be thinking it was sabotage. I'm already thinking this camera system is some kind of it," Scott murmured as he clicked onto and began to comb through the next video. He gave out a small hiss. "Yeah, I'm an hour ahead. That just wrote over the last hour."

"…Huh."

Scott noticed Ennard's pensive tone. "What?"

"Weird how it deleted all those videos when the power was supposed to be off. That much footage would've had to take at least a second or two, right? But it was already done when you booted up. Weird."

That was a little strange. Sure, it could've automatically done it while the power was shutting off and coming on, but that seemed awfully quick.

"…You know, everything didn't shut off," Scott said lowly. Even though Natalie and Fritz were the only ones in the room he kept his voice quiet, unsure if someone else would be listening and unsure if it was his paranoia or valid concern. "I could still hear the sounds of things running from somewhere and it kind of sounded like… I don't know, creaking? Did you hear that?"

"…Actually, I did. I thought it was just shoddy construction."

"Err, yeah. That's possible."

"But there was a dull sorta hum coming from somewhere… Something's still running even when the power's off. Or maybe the power isn't quite as 'off' as we think it is."

"You think?"

"I don't know. I notice the security doors stayed closed, but that's only a thing to notice if they didn't fix that major health hazard of having the doors swing open when the power dies."

Scott cracked a smile, but it was equally anxious as it was amused. He continued to work.

"I wouldn't put it past Fazbear Entertainment to think they're shutting everything down and miss something, but I also wouldn't put it past them to leave something on just because it would be harder to boot up later. Even if it defeats the whole purpose of cutting costs on electricity. Who knows… Anyway, what were you saying before about Baby?"

"What? Oh! Yeah, we ended up spotting Chica creeping on that kid again. Oh-ho boy, Baby must have a whole lotta restraint because she downright hates her! I'm not so fond of her myself."

Then Ennard went weirdly quiet. There was a long pause on the line. Initially, Scott thought maybe he got to a place where he couldn't speak and because of that he too remained quiet, waiting for whatever threat it was to pass. Silently worrying until the clown finally spoke up.

"Scott…" His voice was quieter, but not out of keeping his voice down to stay hidden. "I'm… I'm going to go scare Chica, so she'll leave that kid alone. He showed up with a bruise on his arm the size of Texas and she's tearing up his little hideout… I know I shouldn't be doing this because I know she's going to rat on me and I'm putting this whole thing in jeopardy, but I kind of feel like if I don't do something I'm going to kick myself later… and if I DO do something I'm still gonna kick myself."

"Oh…" Scott said. He wasn't expecting it, but he also wasn't surprised by it. He had known it was Chica that gave Charlie a hard time that night Baby was on the phone with her, but he didn't realize it was that serious.

Sort of like how that Moon character chased Charlie around and now they were on friendly terms, to the point that Ennard was chatting him up. Animatronics chasing animatronics just sort of happened. Sometimes they fought. In the case of Michael, he fought practically everyone at least once and they were now all on good terms.

It was different when there was a child involved. Especially when that child had bruises. Where were they, on his face? Because Ennard must've easily seen them. He saw Monty, animatronics this large could severely injure a child with one hit.

That instantly dredged up distressing memories of Funtime Freddy. The oversized bear animatronic slumped innocuously in a garage, bent on inflicting pain for no reason except it wanted to. Except that it was made too.

All of these animatronics were built like Will's and Will always built to inflict pain.

"Scott…?"

"I'm here, sorry. I was just… thinking about things," Scott said. He rubbed at his temple absentmindedly as he tried to think about this clearly and logically.

"I swear I'm not going to hurt her or anything, no funny business. I already told Mari and he went along with it after a little cajoling. Pretty much because the kid was on board with it. He's a feisty little sport."

"I'm standing right here," a child's voice could be heard in the background. Something that immediately had Scott gritting his teeth because that was clearly a child. Ennard had a tendency to call everyone younger than him 'kid' or some variation of it. No, this was a little boy.

"But it's… it's your call. You're my better half and all. I sort of just jump into this stuff without really thinking it through and IIII… am asking you what you want me to do, and I'll do it."

Scott knew he would. He knew he could tell Ennard no right then and he would stop. Just from the remorse in his voice he knew Ennard would.

Because there was a huge difference between chasing down a couple of robbers and confronting Chica. In fact, the only similarity was the risk in getting caught, but unlike with the robbers where the authorities didn't care to get involved, a company like this might start poking around if it gets out that some clown shaped endoskeleton spooked one of their intelligent animatronic mascots and ran off. In this case the robots were capable of and expected to talk back.

Fazbear Entertainment might've not been the same beast it used to be- that is, no longer constantly in the grip of William Afton- but from all of these cut corners and safety concerns, along with their attempts to discredit past employees and the losses of numerous missing children, showed that they were still just as ruthless as they ever were. It had little to do with morality at this point, but more the risk versus the outcome.

As angry as it made Scott to think that Fazbear Entertainment was getting away with having their animatronics run loose attacking guests…

…

…Forget it.

Forget Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex. Screw Afton's design. Ennard knew what he was doing, and he could do what he wanted, and Scott wasn't going to stop him. Scott didn't want to stop him.

"Ennard, I'm more afraid of you getting yourself hurt to you hurting someone else. I know you wouldn't do that. Not unless it was like, you know, another Funtime Freddy situation. In which case, yeah, you've got my full go-ahead," Scott said. His voice more certain, edged with the slightest tinge of bitterness.

"Right! Right, I know. That was, heh… That was a living nightmare," Ennard admitted. A tinge of nervousness to his voice. "And with Chica…?"

"Go ahead."

Ennard was shocked for the second time that night. He didn't actually think Scott would so willingly be on board.

"Just… be careful. I mean it, I'm much more afraid of you getting yourself hurt. I don't want these guys cornering and ganging up on you," Scott warned.

"Aww, have you been worrying about me?" Ennard asked with mild playfulness. There was a serious silence on the other end of the line. "…Wait, you really were? What did you think was gonna happen?"

"Well… I was expecting you'd try to come find me and all the animatronics would be here in Rockstar Row and they'd just… pounce."

"I wouldn't let that happen," Ennard assured. While there was some amusement on his voice, it was still softer and edged more towards serious. "You know I wouldn't. You come first hands down, but I can take care of myself."

"I know… But I don't trust this place to play fair."

"Sure, but I fight dirty, so it evens out."

Scott gave a light chuckle with a slight amount of force. Ennard sensed he was sort of humoring him, but he was just glad he was willing to do that all things considered.

"Well, when you're done call me and tell me if I have to come by and clean up," Scott joked back. Almost immediately he hit himself with the unintended implications. "I meant that as a play on words, not that I expect anything to happen."

"Nah, I get it! And I love you, Scott. I'm going to be fine, okay? You worry about yourself and that nine-to-five job you're working over there."

"I'll try to," Scott agreed. "But I mean it. Call me back when you're done."

"Sure thing, Chief!"

"And I love you too."

Ennard gave a happy little rumbly chuckle on the other side, one that always sent those little flitters through his stomach. Enough to ignore the sound of Gregory making a grossed-out noise in the background.

After little more than that and a soft, "Take care. Over and out," Scott reluctantly ended the radio call. He wasn't sure what he was feeling right now after all of that. It was enough to have him staring silently at the list of videos.

"Feeling better?" Fritz asked in a timely fashion.

Scott cleared his throat and gave a nod. "Much better, thanks." He scooted back forward and returned his fingers to the keys. "Back to work."

The pitter-patter of squeaky little sneakers on tiled floors was a dead giveaway that he had returned. Chica knew he would eventually. If he wasn't hiding out somewhere in this pirate-themed playground, then he was going to show back up at any time. Somehow, he had either heard her or was just trying to rush by, because all she heard was the soft patter of those feet as he made a run for it. Loud enough for her to follow right after him.

Behind the snack bar and to the service elevator that led down to the lower floor, to the kitchen, and stopped by its closed doors. She knew he was in there and gave an impatient little stomp of her foot before crossing her arms, shifting her hips, and tapping her fingers as she waited. She wasn't going to risk rushing off for another way down and risk losing him, not when she was this close.

After a ride down in the elevator, she sauntered out of the lift and listened for any sign of the boy. Though that sense was quickly overridden by another, her sense of smell. There was a familiar scent wafting in the air.

"Pizza?" she gasped in delight. Suddenly the need to find that child and take him to- take him to- take him to- didn't matter anymore, because that was fresh baked pizza and it smelled delicious.

There was something specifically in the scent that Chica recognized and yet couldn't put her finger on. It certainly smelled good though! So enticing, with a sharp tang of pizza on top of the melty cheese and sizzling meats.

In seconds Chica was practically running for the kitchen. She didn't even think twice about the child and instead barged through the double doors of the kitchen. Her eyes darted around the room, but she didn't have to look far to find what she was looking for. There, sitting out on a counter by the pizza oven, was a freshly made pizza. She eagerly hustled over, not noticing that the target she just lost was currently hiding under another counter and peeking out at her.

But if she had been thrilled before then that was nothing compared to when she actually saw the pizza itself, because there was something very special about it. It had all the normal toppings- sauce, cheese, meat, and not meat- but there was also an ingredient that stood out above all the rest. Largely because of its sharp green color and because it had been divvied out in little puddles across the pizza, making it even more noticeable.

She dipped a finger in and raised it to inspect it and gasped, pressing her other hand to her cheek.

"This is-!" Chica cut herself off with a squeal. Then she promptly began to shove the pizza into her beak. Frantically gorging herself, shoving the pieces into her beak and pushing them down into the abyss behind it.

She was restless, starving, insatiably filling what little emptiness where was inside of her shell with a mush of barely chewed pizza. Piece after piece pressed in, smearing green fluid reeking equally of pizza along her beak.

Somewhere in that frenzy she heard a squeak and still with a slice clamped in her beak she turned her head and caught the glimpse of a white face peeking out from the machine at the end of the line. It was only the faintest glimpse, not enough to see all of the details, but Chica filled them in quickly and had a hunch that she knew who she was looking at.

"Dolly? Is that you?" she cooed. Pressing the rest of the pizza piece into her mouth with her fingers and then doing her best to wipe off the sauce left behind. She began to walk over in a slow sway. "I'm sorry, was this yours? Ooor… was this a gift for me? That's so sweet! Well, now that we're friends, how about you come out of hiding, hmm? We can have a pizza party and talk about boys! What do you say?"

But Chica's tone left much to be desires. In the back of those sugary words was a bitter drawl, a threatening edge like a tightening noose. That kindly offered laid out slowly and methodically, like a line cast out in a pool of hungry fish.

She slowly looked around the corner, but she saw nothing there. She hummed again and was rewarded with a shuffling and squeaking further in the back of the room. She hustled into a jog to the back and came around the counter to catch a glimpse of something, then rushed back to the next aisle only to find nothing there. She began to walk down the aisle, her eyes narrowed as they scoured the bottom of the counter.

There was a clattering of plates near the front.

"Stop!" Chica called. She broke from a jog into a clumsy sprint and stumbled out in front of the counters again and looked around. Still nothing to see.

Chica hummed and slowly walked around the pizza oven.

"Don't be shy. You're not in trouble. I think you're just lonely, and that's okay! But I can't fix it unless you come out, come out," she said with a wink.

The animatronic didn't bite. Chica gave a disappointed little 'hmph' and continued down towards the remains of the pizza. While she hadn't given up her search on the doll or the boy, since she was here, she could grab another quick bite. She reached for the largest of the remaining slices.

A hand reached out from under the counter and clamped onto the end of the table.

"Bwack?!" Chica cried out in surprise and stumbled back.

In her place something climbed out from under the counter, contorting its body to fit through the cramped space. Its body a nest of wires tangled together in the vague form of limbs. A white face twisting around as its neck rotated and twisted along with its writhing structure. Another hand smacked onto the tilted floor and scratched its fingers down the surface, an endoskeleton hand weaved in wiring.

A bent leg slid out as it suddenly spiraled upright. It jerked and shuffled as its body parts reset into their assigned location. All the while its white face was aimed at her, its mask segmented into familiar plates. Its glassy eyes leering at her through the eye holes, twitching, adjusting, refocusing across her face. One of the plates over its jaw drifted back, revealing a metal mouth of needle teeth hiding underneath.

"L-Look a-at yy-oou…" the creature rattled out in a stuttering, garbled voice.

It took a lurching step forward and closed the gap between, plates clattering and wires shifting as it did. Its eyes scraping across her frame in sharp, jerky motions.

"S-So neeew. Fr-Freshh no r-ssst. Plaaastic shell. Want-t-t to ssss-ink my teethhh in-in-into that sssofft sshhh-sheelll."

Its needle teeth dragged together as it suddenly hunched in, limbs and head rolling as it stared her down.

"And tassste… yoour-r-r inSIdeS…"

"You're… You're-!" Chica sputtered. Her eyes were wide, and she was practically trembling.

"St-t-t-ARRvingg," the creature rumbled. Its wires sliding together as it readjusted upright. A faint glow taking its eyes.

Chica's hands raised to her mouth but stopped on their way. Her fingers tightening and clenching up.

"Y-You look- You look so- so- look so-…"

Chica was cut off by a noise that was something like a simulated gulp before her beak all but dropped open and the words spilled out.

"So good, so good, so good, so good, so good, so good."

The creature stilled. Its eyes had not released her, but all of its motions halted. Frozen like one of the statuesque endos crowding the basement.

"What?"

Chica slowly dropped her head as her eyes focused on the real source of her interest, his chest of tightly weaved wires. They moved so fluidly together. Tense now, perhaps, but smooth and silky, like the most polished of metal.

"Oh so, so good. Those… Wires, those wires look so good! Where- Wh-Where did you get those? Oh, so good, been looking so, so long and never saw something so good."

"Whhat are you t-tall-king about?" the creature asked. The increased corruption of its voice betraying its discomfort in what she was saying. Or even in the way she was looking at it.

"I've- I've been looking forever and ever forever for those wires and UGH! They are just so good- Never could find a proper replacement, but you have so, so many! I'm… I'm sure, sure you could spare… just a few…" Chica started to reach out.

"St-Stay back. Don't t-touch mee-e."

"Shh, shh, shh. No, no, it's- it's okay! Let's- eat- Let's just, just let me, let me have one bite. One bite! Just one bite, okay? One bite and I promise I won't tell anybody anyone you're here, I promise. One bite, one taste! And I'll let you go, and nobody will know, okay?" Any fear Chica was presumed to have had was long gone as she walked up on the amalgam with wild eyes and shrunken pupils. Her beak spreading wide in preparation of that one longed for taste.

"Get back. Now."

Chica stopped in her steps. There was a twitch of her eyelid as the partially uttered programmed phrase sunk in. Then the twitch stopped, and she was left standing there unmoving and unblinking. Her mouth still open wide, her shoulders slouched and hips shifted, and still staring at the amalgam who did not dare to move until it was clear that the command settled in.

But the more time passed without her doing as told, the more obvious it became that while the phrase had done something, it hadn't stopped her.

And before Ennard knew it, Chica lunged.

He smoothly dodged to the side, but she managed to still catch a hand on his shoulder and dig her fingers into the wires. She pulled at him with an unexpected strength and went to grab him with her other hand, but he caught it by the wrist and immediately applied a shock directly to it. One just strong enough to ward her off. Or that's what should've happened in theory, because instead the shock only landed on the casing and other than the smell of burning plastic, she was unfazed.

They began to struggle. Ennard trying to wedge his fingers through the casing, but the way she had her hand bent he was unable to reach, and he couldn't risk sliding his hand up or she could pull away. She was manic, continuing to shove herself at him and pin him into the counter. He managed to leverage her force against her and slipped aside, letting her fall into the counter instead. The pizza pan clattered to the floor, taking the last soggy pieces with it.

Chica pounced again and this time Ennard caught both arms in a way that he could hold them over her head and hold her back. She was still fighting with him, but then she also began to plead with him.

"Please, please, please! Just one bite! I need it! I feel so empty! So hungry!"

All the while her face held the same dead-to-the-world look it had since he had tried and failed to ward her off. He could only watch in aghast as what was clearly a breakdown of misaligned programming. He could probably shock her now if he pulled his arm back and moved quick, but he wasn't even sure if he should do that in this state. A hesitation he soon regretted when she flopped forward and bit the wires alongside his button.

He shoved her back so hard it shoved her to the ground, pulling his wires loose from their coiling but also from her dull beak. Any hope that this was going to snap her out of it fizzled out quickly as she started to get back up.

He could see Gregory climb out from under the counter behind her and run for the door where he started to call for help.

"Moondrop, are you here?! We need help! Chica's gone crazy!" Gregory called out.

But the person who answered his calls was not Moon.

Chica climbed to her feet, sliding slightly on the mess of green fluid and pizza remains left on the floor. Her chest craned forward and her eyes wide as she regained footing with a look both empty and full of hunger at the same time. She was about to lunge again. Ennard knew it and was bracing himself for her. She took a few clumsy, heavy steps towards him that were only stopped by a voice cutting through the kitchen.

"Don't you dare touch him."

And stop Chica did. As did Ennard- freezing up as he heard an unexpected voice from the kitchen door and looked past the stilled animatronic to see Baby standing in the doorway. Her holding the double doors open and shooting daggers at the back of Chica's head through her glowing green eyes.

"Ba-Baby!" Ennard cried in relief and immediate panic at what was about to transpire. "H-How did you find me?!"

"Sun gave away your little plan and I came to make sure nothing got out of hand," Baby said. She rolled in, shutting the double doors behind her. "I am glad to see my intuition still hasn't failed me."

Ennard detected that this could easily spiral out of control, especially with Gregory sneaking back in behind her. He tried to defuse the situation.

"Baby, I got this under control! Why don't you just-?"

"I… know… that… voice…"

The clarity in Chica's voice was alarming. Ennard looked back to her face to see her staring ahead with realization. Then she gasped loudly, so much so that it crackled at the edges if her voice, and of her upgraded voice box.

"What?" Baby asked in confusion.

Chica turned around slowly and stared at her. Her eyes narrowing as she looked her up and down before fully turning around. The look in her eyes showed recognition, Baby could tell that much.

"Do I know you?" she asked.

"It is you… Do you know me?" Chica repeated. Her hands tightened into fists and her body shifted and fidgeted like she was fighting herself. "Do you KNOW me?! You SHOULD know me! You ATE me!"

At that second not only did Baby realize who Chica was, but she was struck by a feeling of panic she had never felt before. Her hand clutching at her chest in alarm.

So many animatronic models looked the same and seldom was one a true successor of another. Yet here stood a pale Chica with pink accents, claiming to be one she had seen before. It couldn't be possible.

"What, don't recognize me?" Chica continued to goad. "I guess I did clean up pretty nicely after you totally trashed me!"

"You were… No, that can't be right. She… She wasn't alive, that Chica in the mall. You couldn't have been her. She showed no signs of life," Baby insisted.

"How could I show signs of life?! I couldn't move! I was all locked up!" Chica shrieked back. She stumbled a few steps forward. "You- You broke into MY place, knocked me down, tore open my chest, and ate my guts! And then- And then you just ran off on your merry way and left me there! On the floor, empty!"

"So, wait, you're Funtime Chica?!" Ennard realized. He put a hand to his head. "Oh, that explains a lot of this…"

Though Ennard's comment went ignored by the two currently staring each other down. Baby in a state of shock and if looks could kill then Chica would've struck her dead.

"I couldn't see you, I couldn't move, I couldn't stop you, but oh, I could feel! I felt every. Single. Wire you pulled out of me and shoved down your throat!" Chica continued to yell. A brief look of pain passed her face as she grabbed at her middle. Her fingers clawing at her exterior. "And now I'm empty… They filled be back up, I fill me up, over and over, and I'm STILL EMPTY! BECAUSE OF YOU!"

She pointed an accusatory finger at the clown who was still in a state of complete shock.

Back then Baby might've not cared much for those she used, but she had truly thought it was an empty machine. Though she might not noticed or cared that there could've been someone feeling what she was doing. Now with this new context she felt an unimaginable horror. Monstrous, it was a monstrous feeling.

She wasn't even sure how to respond, but she attempted to.

"I'm so terribly sorry. I… I can't imagine-."

"Whatever you're going to say, I don't want to hear it!" Chica shot down. A hand on her hip while she flicked her head away. Though that passionate pose devolved quickly, her body shaking and almost buckling in anger. "Who cares what you say? You did it! It doesn't change anything! And you- You CAN'T imagine it! You have no idea- NO IDEA!"

There was a long beat of silence. Baby didn't try to speak again. She had been rendered speechless.

Not Chica though, who suddenly snapped her eyes over. Then her head slowly followed to stare at the clown with a narrowed gaze. She looked over her body, took in her model, knew what she was made of, and came to one assumption.

"…Maybe you should."

With that threat the mood shifted instantly. The look in Chica's eyes changed as well, from raw anger to something much more insidious. Something empty.

"Wait. Let's not do anything rash," Baby said, trying to get a quick handle on the situation. "Ennard, stay back."

Ennard paused in mid-step and waited.

"I know what I did is terrible, and I can't change that, but I can make it right. I can get you more wires. The kind that I initially took from you," Baby attempted to barter.

"I don't want more wires! I want MY wires!" Chica cried. Stamping her foot like a child on the verge of a tantrum. She began to step towards Baby threateningly. "I bet you still have them, don't you? I bet they're still all coiled up your belly!"

"Ennard, stay back. I can handle this," Baby called past Chica towards Ennard. She made no motion of her own to retreat.

"Are you going to handle me like you did last time?! Huh?! Is that why you're here?! To handle me like last time?!" Chica yelled before unexpectedly rushing her and throwing herself at the clown. Baby didn't attempt to flee, instead bracing herself and taking the hit head-on.

There was a brief tussle, Chica swinging her arms and clawing at Baby's face and chest as the clown shielded herself with her claw. Bringing it up and down to knock into Chica's hands when they got too much of a grip. The chicken making increasingly frustrated cries as she failed to do any damage. Eventually she clocked the claw aside and grabbed Baby by the chest, trying to squeeze her fingers into her plates and pulling at them.

She didn't notice her fault until Baby swiped her claw in and closed it on her wrists. Not enough to break them, but enough to get a grip and pull them off, upward, causing Chica to stagger as she tried to pull against the vice grip.

"You have every right to be angry. But please, for both of our sake, don't give me a reason to defend myself," Baby said. Her voice shifting from apologetic to firm in a matter of seconds.

If anything, that just made Chica more defiant. She yanked her arms down, Baby's claw still locked on tight and pulling it with it, and unexpectedly kneed her in the belly. Clattering into the hinged pleats of her skirt and hitting with a thump.

Baby promptly uppercut Chica and it devolved into a brawl. The chicken twisting her arms free while the clown swung at her until the two were hurling blows and insults.

"Ugh, it just makes me- ugh- SICK looking at you and knowing- ngh- you took MY wires and stuck them in your gross… puppet mouth!"

"Such childish insults, how cute. Is this- mph- your first time?"

"No, I've seen trash before!"

"Perhaps in a mirror."

It was hard to count the blows and shoves when they were so fast and, to the watching eye, appeared to be doing no damage on either party. Baby wasn't fighting hard enough to damage Chica and Chica simply didn't have the means to severely damage Baby. Not when she was so capable of deflecting the hits.

Ennard didn't know what to do. He stood there hands out ready to intervene when he was needed but didn't know how he was supposed to do so. Ignoring that Baby told him not to, what could he do? He couldn't guarantee a shock on Chica- even if he did he would probably shock Baby too- and if he manhandled her he had a risk of breaking something. That was the risk, Ennard could break animatronics too easily and in this case he couldn't, not unless Baby was in real danger.

Meanwhile Gregory could only watch in shock as his plan continued to spiral out of control. Not only had they not scared Chica, but to him it looked like she was getting the upper hand, considering how offensively she was fighting. And now she knew he was here too and that he had been with them, and she was going to tell Freddy and he was going to take her side, and he was going to get kicked out of the Pizzaplex and back out into- He had to do something.

He had to do something, but he didn't know what. He couldn't distract them, he couldn't pull them apart, he could only watch as they continued to fight.

Right beside the trash compactor.

Gregory hadn't known what it was until Ennard told him. To him it just looked like an empty little room with a second room to the left with a bunch of trash bags shoved into it. It didn't smell that bad, maybe because the trash was all from that day. He pointed it out while Ennard was getting ready, and he explained what it was and what it did. Not that the title of a trash compactor needed too much explanation.

A big room made to smash up trash.

Maybe there was another way to stop Chica.

Gregory looked for a button to control it and saw nothing by the door, but when he followed a cord leading from it across the ceiling, he found it ending in a dangling button beside the counters. A button with a piece of tape on it that had the word 'Trash' written on it. He stared for a long second at that Freddy head button before another loud crash of metal on metal caused him to take the plunge and press the button.

"Push her in! Now!" Gregory yelled.

Chica's head snapped to him as Baby shifted to get her shoulder into position to shove Chica away from her. Chica's eyes widened as she turned back, and Baby pushed forward.

Only to have Chica's leg catch under hers and pull her rollerblade out from under her. In that second Chica all but rammed into Baby, throwing her off balance and causing her to fall directly into the trash compactor.

"NO!" Ennard cried and ran for her.

Chica turned to meet him, but he all but shoved her out of the way, to the ground in fact, ducked down, grabbing her around the thighs and all but threw her to the ground before throwing himself into the compactor.

It was already starting to lower, and Baby was struggling to get out, having started to tilt back into the garbage. She reached her claw desperately for Ennard, but he ignored it, instead choosing to grab up a metal bar off the ground and quickly wedging it up into the corner of the compactor. It managed to catch its weight. Or, more likely from the error noise from above, the compactor sensed the pressure the bar gave off and stopped its descent.

Then Ennard reached for Baby's claw and started to try and hoist her up. He didn't get far before Chica was on him again, but this time Ennard wasn't playing so nice. So, when she got her fingers into his wires and started pulling, he twisted his arm back and caught her by the neck before using the leverage shove her off and into the right edge of the compactor.

Unfortunately, this was what got Chica's eyes back on the bar holding the trash compactor up. She leaned in to reach for it, trying to grab it without putting herself inside. Seeing it as a last-ditch effort to finish this once and for all.

Gregory didn't see what she was doing, he just saw it as an opening. The only warning Chica had was a few rapid footsteps and she tried to turn back only to have Gregory shove her with all his might. Chica fell back into the corner of the trash compactor on her backside, falling into the pipe in the process and knocking it free.

Baby saw it. Ennard saw it, so he didn't see Baby's claw swing out until it hit him in the chest and knocked him back to the floor.

Gregory saw it all. He looked on with wide eyes filled with horror as Chica reached back for him.

Only to have the trash compactor fall and crush her beneath it.

Ennard let out an agonized shriek as he stared at the large crushing slab laying near flat with the floor. He was already bordering hysterical, on his knees clawing at his mask, and watching with abject terror as the slab began to raise.

Underneath it lay Chica. She was prone on her belly with her head turned to the side. Her shell was covered in thousands of cracks, like an eggshell cracked under the firm smack of a metal spoon. She had been entirely crushed.

Then there was Baby, laying back in the trash with her legs up towards the ceiling in the most ridiculous pose one could've imagine, but having just dodged being smashed. She dropped her legs, still bent so they wouldn't be under the compactor, and started upwards in just as much shock as everyone else.

"Oh, than-thank you, G-God! THANK YOU, GOD!" Ennard choked out. He started trying to lean back in for her. "Baby, we have to get you out-!"

When suddenly Gregory was grabbed by the leg.

He let out a yelp and tried to pull away, but she tugged roughly and pulled his leg out from under him. Gregory fell on his bottom before being pulled in close as Chica lifted her head with a metallic shriek.

Her voice now a sharp whirring of wet mechanical parts grinding together. Just as shrill and painful as her mishap on stage, but now much more terrifying as she stared up at him. Her face was a hideous mess of cracks showing into a dark hollow underneath. Her beak was barely staying on. He kicked at it, trying to get her off, but all it did was shove the beak deeper into the gaping cavity of her mouth.

The look in her eyes was nightmarish. It degraded her from the mascot he once knew to a crazed machine in a matter of seconds. It was like he was staring down at a monster.

Ennard looked back and didn't just see Chica, but the wall behind her starting to press in on them. Baby gasped, but not from the incoming wall, as Ennard looked back to find Baby sinking into the trash. He grabbed her by the claw and tried to hold on but the grip wasn't tight and the angle was all wrong, and Baby slipped from his hands before plummeting into the falling trash with a scream.

But there was no time to react. The wall was just about to crush them all and Ennard just barely scooped a hand backwards and caught Gregory's chest, pulling him with him out of the reach of the trash compactor. Chica was still holding on, arm still latched onto Gregory's leg.

"Getbackgetback-!" Ennard warned. He was cut off by the crunch of Chica's head getting caught between the wall and the edge.

She gave another mechanical wail that was cut of by a crunch as her head cracked under the pressure. Enough to dislodge her eyes from their sockets, leaving them sticking out unfocused as she crumpled to the floor after the wall began pulling back. But she didn't stay there long, soon starting to slide back into the same abyss that Baby had fallen down into. Her fingers still gripped tightly onto Gregory's leg.

Gregory yelped as he was smoothly dragged after her, only to be caught around the middle by Ennard and pulled back. This finally dislodged Chica's hold from her leg, and he watched as she disappeared down the garbage chute.

Finally, it was silent. But as he sat there in Ennard's grasp staring into the abyss, he knew it wouldn't last for long.

Chapter End Notes

Middle of the story, we got all the past in view. Got to where living was something you'd do.
For the time.

Chapter 51

Chapter Summary

Marionette, Ennard, and the others head into the basement to find Baby and Chica. What they find is a massive mess... and something that was supposed to stay hidden.

Chapter Notes

Happy New Year! 8D Still working in the new computer but doing well! Hope you are too and Enjoy!

Everything was fine. Work was going slow, but it was fine. Everything was quiet, except for the sound of Fritz and Natalie pretend flirting, and there had been no signs of danger of any kind. Scott had started to let his guard down.

Then there were a few innocuous clicks from the radio, and he answered it. That was when everything went straight downhill.

Ennard was babbling, inconsolable, almost completely incomprehensible as he frantically got out a few clear words in the mess of panic. "I don't know what to do," "Trash compactor," "Come quick!", "Kitchen," and "Baby."

The picture so few words painted was downright terrifying. Forgetting all pretense, Scott shot up from the seat and ran out of the office with a strangled explanation that sounded remarkably similar to Ennard's own. Fritz and Natalie shared a look of surprise before taking off after him, only for Natalie to come to a quick stop.

"Hold on!" she said, then turned back and almost ran right into Smitty who was following. She quickly guided him by the arm back to the monitor Scott had been working on and pointed at it. "Smitty, monitor the computer. Patrol the area, no unauthorized personnel beyond this point. Full stop. Don't let anybody touch that computer," Natalie attempted to explain. She tried to be as specific as possible in the hopes that one of the commands would go through. "Stay here and secure the area, okay?"

Smitty gave a confirmation noise and began to do little circles beside the chair.

"Good. Like that," Natalie agreed. She then turned and jogged for the door where Fritz was leaning in waiting for her. The two then made their way down the stairs after Scott.

Scott meanwhile came racing down Rockstar Row only to run up on Foxy and Freddy who were going in the same direction, having gotten a cryptic message from Gregory. It had been simple but not very detailed.

"Freddy! I need your help! There was an accident… We're in the kitchen, you need to hurry!"

Freddy hadn't asked any questions. He had given a steadfast, "I'm on my way," and was out the door with Foxy in tow.

The worry on Freddy's face had quickly turned to surprise as he saw the man run up while Foxy was a little more perplexed.

"Where's the fire?" he asked. His words might've been joking, but his tone was dead serious. He already had a bad feeling that this related to that message, and he didn't like how flustered the Phone Guy looked.

Scott was so ruffled that he could barely get a proper explanation out. "Ennard! Ennard just- just said Baby-! I think she fell into a trash compactor! In the kitchen!" he finally got through.

Foxy's patch popped up and Freddy gasped in realization. "The trash compactor! Foxy, the accident! That is what Gregory must have meant!"

That little bit of confirmation had Foxy's pupils shrinking in growing horror, then he bolted for the security door. Scott was right behind him, as was Freddy who only hesitated to look back when he heard incoming footsteps. He spotted Natalie coming and reacted quickly by shoving Foxy, who was bending under the security door, out of the way and hopefully out of her view. Foxy, who wasn't expecting it, promptly faceplanted into the carpet.

"Blimey, Freddy, I ain't goin' that slow," Foxy grouched as he pushed himself up. Freddy quickly ducked under to help him, but the pirate was already up before he could try.

"My apologies, Captain. I was- Officer Vanessa is coming," Freddy warned in a whisper.

"I ain't waitin' for her," Foxy proclaimed. Then used this as an excuse to throw caution to the wind and break into a full run to the next security door.

Freddy looked between him and the still open door and Scott, who was following Foxy, and then bolted after the pirate. Overtaking Scott in a few heavy footsteps- which flew up so fast that Scott shirked and hopped aside like the bear was about to run him down- and bolting after Foxy. The two sprinted through the atrium, which was thankfully empty, and straight to the room behind the snack bar that led to the elevator into the kitchen.

They found Marionette and Charlie waiting outside of the elevator. The Puppet spun to face them.

"Thank goodness! Here, take the elevator with Charlie," he said. Then in a split second he spun around and was gone, leaving Charlie looking at an empty spot. She didn't waste time, instead turning and hopping into the opening elevator as Foxy and Freddy followed suit.

Charlie was about to press the button when Foxy put out a hand to stop her. "Hold on. We've got one comin'," he said. She nodded and waited, still resting her hand beside the button as they waited. "How'd you two catch wind?" Foxy asked.

"Fritz radioed us. What happened? He didn't tell us much except there was an emergency and to head to the kitchen," Charlie asked.

"…Baby might've fallen into a trash compactor."

"I- What?" Charlie was aghast and Foxy simply nodded. Her face fell with regret and a huff, "I knew I shouldn't have let her go."

"What was she doin'?"

"She went after Ennard."

Foxy hummed but more in an agreeing way. He didn't need to question more than that. At least, not until he got down that and saw what was happening.

Before he could get too antsy, Scott ran into the room. Foxy whistled for him and beckoned him to come in. He hurried over and slipped inside, and Foxy reached over to peck the elevator button with his hook. The doors closing before Natalie and Fritz could make it across the room and get in. Charlie gave Foxy a funny look.

"Just keepin' in character," he replied, turning his hook nonchalantly as he waited for the lift to lower.

Scott hunched over and got in a few deep breaths, both because of the run and to try and calm down from the panic. He gulped and got out a winded, "I'm getting out of shape."

"Ya just ran a couple miles in five minutes. Yer fine," Foxy deflected.

"You outran Natalie and she's been running… Oh! I mean, uh, Vanessa." Charlie glanced between him and Freddy before smiling awkwardly and tacking on, "She looks just like my friend Natalie. I get them mixed up."

Freddy didn't seem to take note at all. Instead, he leaned over and offered Scott a hand, "Hello, and welcome to the Pizzaplex! I am Freddy Fazbear, what is your name?"

Scott looked at that clawed hand for a pause before looking up at Freddy standing over him, then dropping his eyes quickly and managing to take his hand. His own was shaking from adrenaline, but Freddy took it gently.

"I'm, uh… Eggs Benedict. I'm just here to work on getting the security footage. It's nice to meet you."

Freddy hummed questioningly though before Scott could get too paranoid, the bear looked over towards Foxy.

"Eggs Benedict? I thought that was Ennard's name," he said with confusion.

Scott's head snapped to Foxy, Charlie looked quizzically at Foxy, and he gave a dismissive noise. "Eh, it is. He's using a fake name to throw off Blondie," he said. He then added to Scott, "He knows ya work with me too. He won't rat ya out."

"Of course not! I find this whole competition business to be very overblown. Competition should be friendly and fair, what kind of example do we set when we are not?" Freddy agreed.

"That's… That's good to hear Freddy, honest," Scott said. He cleared his tight through and straightened up. "It's a good thing you trust Freddy, Foxy, because, uh, elsewise that would probably be really dangerous, giving out names like that," he said. His voice just on that edge of a warning or a scolding.

Weirdly enough, hearing Scott have that tone was surprisingly effective.

"Trust me, I wouldn't be tellin' him anything if I didn't trust him," Foxy reassured. His ears perked as the elevator dinged and he watched the doors slide open like a hawk, adding in, "And if I didn't have dirt on him."

"Freddy, he's got dirt on you?" Charlie asked doubtfully, slightly in a joking manner- trying to break the increasing tension.

"Indeed, he does. I have… technically… broken six rules tonight," Freddy sheepishly admitted.

"Is this your first time?" she added.

"It is not. Just last night alone must have been twelve at least!" Freddy said, not catching that it was a joke.

But then things returned to seriousness as they stepped out of the elevator and hustled down the hall towards the kitchen. They weren't running anymore, though that was mostly because Foxy didn't want to run up on something and the rest took their cues from him. It didn't take them long to come up on the double doors for the kitchen, through which they could already hear Ennard's panicked babbling.

Foxy opened the double doors and found Ennard babbling out confessions to Marionette while Gregory stood there watching. The clown looked over the second he heard the door creak and suddenly bolted for it. Foxy barely stepped aside before Ennard slid through the door he was holding open and up on Scott, grabbing him by the shoulders, practically leaning over him with wild eyes and a crackling voice.

"Baby fell in the trash compactor!"

Scott blinked a second to process it. Then his heart dropped in horror, his worse fear being realized. All his questions and fears boiling down to a lone one, "Where is she?!"

Ennard pulled him right into the kitchen and led him right back to the large, walk-in trash compactor. Just the sight of it filled Scott with increasing panic, his heart clenching up tightly.

Foxy, Freddy, and Charlie followed them into the kitchen and spotted the others already inside.

"Gregory, there you are!" Freddy said with relief. He hustled over to the child, who got a look of nervousness before turning around to face him.

"Hey, Freddy…"

"I am glad to see that you are okay. I was very worried," Freddy said. "What happened?"

"Well…" Gregory trailed off. He didn't want to lie to Freddy, but anything except a complete lie would leave him looking very bad.

Ennard beat him to it, "I don't know what happened- she was right there! I was just about to pull her out and then- a-and then-n-n-!"

It wasn't until Ennard started to gesture while he rambled that Scott noticed a portion of his wiring has been displaced. Some of them even hanging out loosely while others were just pulled forward. He stopped him with a hand on the shoulder.

"What happened to you? Why are these all pulled out?" he asked. His free hand feeling over them to make sure they weren't damaged. Thankfully, even if pulled out they seemed to be connected- the ones that were.

"Chica bit me! She was crazy and then angry, she recognized Baby, and suddenly fwoosh! And this slab comes down and smashes right into her!" he rambled.

Scott's head shot right up with that. "Chica or Baby?!"

A question that was all but cut off by the double doors swinging open again. In rushed Natalie with Fritz close behind her. A keen eye could've caught the brief glimpse of Moon's face peeking through the double doors swinging shut behind them, but he did not come in.

"She got down here quick," Foxy muttered.

"She must have taken the emergency stairs," Freddy said anxiously. He turned to face her, reaching back to gently pull Gregory behind him. "Officer Vanessa, I know this may seem strange, but I can explain! These are… Err… Competitors?"

"Forgo the introductions, Freddy. Right now, the most important thing is figuring out what's going on and straightening this out… and maybe I'll still have a job in the morning," Natalie said. Freddy decided not to question it and everyone else in the room played along.

Ennard was much too frantic to do either.

"Look, look, here's the deal! Okay, they fell through that- that- that chute under there. Under that little room and got dumped with the trash somewhere downstairs! We've got to get down there FAST! They're- They're both down there right now! In the garbage!"

"What the bloody hell happened in here?!" Foxy finally cracked, losing any semblance of patience. "Was Baby hurt?!"

Ennard gave a somewhat exasperated noise as he recited a clearer version of his story, though seemed frustrated at wasting the time to do so and thus did so quickly.

"I was going to scare Chica. I got everything together and got her down here. I crawl out from under a table, and she starts trying to bite me! Then Baby, who was not part of the plan and didn't want any part of the plan but followed us because she was worried, came in, Chica recognized her, the two started beating each other up, Chica shoved Baby into the trash compactor, Chica fell into the trash compactor, she got partially crushed, and they both fell and are downstairs somewhere!"

A mix of emotions spread across the group. Scott leaning to look into the machine, Foxy clasping a hand to his face, Freddy and Fritz both holding similarly blank looks as they processed the full ramifications of that story, Marionette looking between Ennard and the trash compactor, and finally Charlie standing there with her arms at her side staring with an almost comical look of shock if it was any other situation. One eye wider and mouth slack.

"…What is 'partially crushed'?" Natalie asked quietly, her eyes wide and her voice slightly wavering.

"Her shell got super cracked, but she was still making grabs at Gregory… Err, until the end," Ennard winced at the mental image.

"But Baby wasn't crushed?" Scott turned back to ask.

"She dodged it."

"Thank goodness…"

"But that doesn't mean she's out of danger. We don't even know where that shoot goes or how far she fell!" Ennard frantically pointed out.

"I'll find out," Charlie proclaimed. She then spun on her heel, pulled out her radio, and with the same look on her face she began to speak. "Jake? Are you there? I need your help."

"I… I just do not understand how this… How this could have happened…" Freddy said in shock. He seemed at a loss for words. Foxy silently reached out his claw to hook on his shoulder, still silently covering his own face. "Why were you trying to scare Chica?" Freddy asked Ennard. His voice heavy with worry and regret.

"Because she was harassing Gregory! And Charlie, and everybody!" Ennard half-pleaded. "It wasn't supposed to go like this! Nobody was supposed to get hurt!"

"Ennard, all I ASKED was that nobody got hurt!" Marionette scolded.

"And it was going fine until the trash compactor got involved! I didn't even- it must've kicked on automatically when Baby got shoved in!"

Gregory had been holding his breath but finally released it. Ennard had to have heard him, so he was covering for him. That spared him for a second.

"I-I'm- I'm not the monster here! Chica's the one who was attacking children- and me!" Ennard frantically defended. Some of his loose wires flaying as he devolved further into panic. "But it still wasn't supposed to go down like that!"

"That cannot be! I… I apologize on her behalf for going after you. While she might have been frightened, there is no need to escalate it so far. But she would never hurt Gregory," Freddy insisted, wholeheartedly pleading her case. "I know she has been persistent, but she is only following basic protocol. Even if she does not know-."

"Open your eyes and look at Gregory's arm and tell me that Chica hasn't already hurt him," Marionette firmly interjected.

Gregory tensed up and his hand shot up to his arm to shield it before Freddy could look. Not that it did any good, as the bear could spot the angry skin spreading past his fingers. He was startled at the sight.

"Gregory…?" he asked in quiet shock.

Gregory looked away and muttered out a quiet, "I'm fine."

"You're not fine, Gregory," Marionette pleadingly said.

"…Is this why you wanted to distract her?" Freddy quietly asked.

Gregory got a tense look. Marionette's head snapped up with an incredulous look.

"You knew about- so you thought Gregory and Ennard were going to distract her?" he asked, holding out a hand in disbelief.

"Well… yes. Gregory had come up with a plan to use a pizza to lure her away from Kids Cove. However, I did not know he was planning on going to do so himself."

"…And that wasn't a sign that there was something wrong?! That maybe- oh, I don't know- maybe Chica is becoming a problem?!" Marionette retorted, static already edging on his voice. Freddy was taken aback; the Puppet was too, surprised his own outburst. He caught himself and quickly forced himself to calm down. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped. I am just so… sooo very upset. And worried, for their sake and his, and Baby's the most," he confessed and apologized.

"No! No, do not apologize. You are right. I… should have noticed it was this serious," Freddy said. Realization taking his voice as it all came together. The truth was, he had noticed. He just hadn't acted in time.

"That's not even the half of it. She's a Funtime!" Ennard chimed in. This got all of the eyes back on him. "Or she's, like, a rebuilt Funtime. What's that thing where they change the body- I forget the name?"

"I know what you mean. That's, uh… concept unification," Scott finished for him.

"Right! Concept unification. That's Funtime Chica. That Chica Baby ate."

Charlie spun back around with surprise and Marionette gasped. Fritz could be heard sucking tensely through his teeth.

"That explains everything," Marionette said quietly.

"What does that mean…?" Freddy asked with concern.

"Let's worry 'bout the task at hand. We've got to find a way down there and get them," Foxy said, swiftly cutting down any real response to the question.

"I'm way ahead of you," Charlie agreed. Having been spending the last few minutes talking with Jake who, from the background voices she could hear on the line, was probably ten to twenty feet away in any direction. "There's got to be a way down there. How do we get to where the trash is dumped?"

"It's in the basement. Here, I'll tell you where to go. You might need clearance to get through."

"I should have it covered. Alright then, lead the way," Natalie instructed. Charlie got quickly to the front with her, and they hurried out through the doors towards the loading docks.

Everyone was antsy and worried for one reason or another, especially Freddy himself. Not only was one of his bandmates and a guest in jeopardy, but something awful had happened without him knowing it, something with Gregory. Gregory wouldn't look at him, instead hurrying ahead between the nearly inconsolable Ennard and the determined Foxy. Freddy could've caught up with him easily but decided instead to jog in the back and give him his distance.

Freddy was so distracted that he didn't notice Marionette coming up beside him until he spoke.

"The Funtimes were a line of animatronics imbedded with sinister programming and insidious features guised as party tricks," Marionette explained. His alit pupils slid to the corners of his eye to peer back at Freddy. "They were built to kidnap children from birthday parties and smuggle them out without anyone noticing."

"What?!" Freddy gasped. He kept his voice low as Marionette had, but he was utterly floored. "I do not understand. Who would build animatronics for such a purpose, and why?"

"Their creator was a man named William Afton, and he was a monster."

Freddy's eyes gave away the recollection of that name and Marionette too knew where it came. They then both looked ahead towards Foxy. He had been looking back at them and, since he had already been caught, he decided to not hide his blatant eavesdropping. Instead, just looking shiftily between the two.

"Do you want to tell him or should I? Because one of us must tell him," Marionette said. His voice softened up considerably and sympathetically as he added, "So that nobody else has a chance to get hurt. He deserves to know the truth."

"Eh, I'll tell him- after we find Baby. And, er, Chica. We can't get distracted when we've got lives on the line," Foxy insisted. To which Marionette and Freddy both nodded. Not that it took much of the suddenly added weight off Foxy's shoulders.

Jake's direction led the group to a room close to the employee showers. It appeared to be a storage room that had a gated off area with a workbench, shelves of tools, and some stairs leading downward. Natalie got the gate open and led the way towards the stairs, clicking her flashlight back on and shining down them. She furrowed her brow before beginning to head down, with Charlie following and Fritz catching up to go down alongside her.

The stairs went down for a surprisingly long time. Twelve steps, a landing, twelve steps, a landing, and it didn't take long before the thumping of metal feet on the stairs behind them deafened out almost everything. Eventually Natalie and Fritz came around the corner of a landing and could finally see into an open room below them. Shaped in a circular fashion with pipes standing like pillars at the walls, and almost completely pitch dark. At this point, Fritz pulled out his flashlight too.

Natalie's first step off the stairs and onto the ground was rewarded with a squelching noise. She wrinkled her nose down at the floor while Fritz raised a brow at it.

"They didn't finish the floor down here?" he asked in surprise.

"Apparently not. No big shock there," she answered. She sighed and continued into the room. "Charlie- that's your name, right? Charlie, ask your friend how big this place is."

"How big is the basement?" Charlie asked.

"Huge," Marionette answered behind her.

"Big. It's practically as big as the raceway, but don't expect it to be that easy to walk through. I'd watch your step."

"We've figured that much out," Charlie remarked. She wasn't too concerned about getting dirty but couldn't help but frown as her legs sunk an inch into cold muck. She ignored it and looked back to Marionette. "How did you know?" she asked.

"I saw it before they finished the Pizzaplex. Quite the health hazard. You could've fit the entirety of Foxy's in that hole," Marionette remarked.

The others came down and followed towards the large doors that led out of the silo-like structure. Natalie pulled on them only to find them stuck tight.

"Here, allow me," Freddy offered. He came forward and with a grunt dragged open one of the doors. Ennard coming up to assist with the other one and revealing what lay beyond. In this case a passage of cracked cement walls and rubble.

Ennard shuddered at the change in temperature and his wires weaved a little tighter. "Anybody else smell that?" he asked.

"I wish I didn't," Natalie admitted.

"It smells like there could be a leak down here that should be address," Freddy remarked. She looked to him with slight incredulousness, and he added on, "…Perhaps more than a leak."

Ennard jumped when a weight was suddenly pressed on his back before recognizing the warmth of Scott's coat as he smoothed it over the clown's shoulders. Ennard turned back to him, smiling a little- guiltily- as he took his hand.

"Aww, Scottie, no. It's too damp down here, you'll catch a cold," he insisted. All the man was wearing under it being a long-sleeved shirt and slacks. He tried to gently push the coat back, but Scott doubled down, pushing it fully up onto his shoulders.

"Damp's exactly what I'm worried about. We need to cover up those exposed wires," Scott insisted. He turned him around to zip him up, during which Ennard leaned forward and bumped their heads together.

"Guess if you get too cold, I could always invite you in," he quietly suggested. That got a slightly flustered but otherwise agreeing smile out of Scott.

He laid his hand on the back of Ennard's head to hold them together, gently tracing the ridges on the exposed metal. His hand would've been shaking if he wasn't. He was still worried to the point where his nerves felt frayed, but he knew Ennard was going through the same lot of it. He could hear it in how restrained his voice was. In how quiet he was.

"…Ngh, here," Foxy suddenly volunteered. Scott turned back to see Foxy yanking his hoodie over his head and caught it when it was tossed over. "I got a hunch I'm gonna need to be freed up anyways."

"Is that hunch all this?" Fritz asked, shining his light over a mound of construction waste outside of the door.

"That be part of it," Foxy agreed.

"Well, thank you! You didn't have to, but thank you," Scott said appreciatively.

He started to put it on only to stop, take a tentative smell of it, get a rather quizzical look, and then pull it on anyways. He wasn't about to make a show of rejecting a offer from Foxy, even if it did smell like nachos, stuffy crawlspace, and fabric refresher all at once.

As they continued on down the dried-out sewer shaft, Marionette caught up to Foxy.

"That was courteous of you," he quietly appreciated.

"Eh, he's been good to Baby," Foxy replied. "…Shoulda seen him come running."

"He really does care," Marionette said fondly.

"Aye… She needs that," Foxy agreed.

It was weird talking about Baby like this when they had no idea what state she was going to be in, but there was a mutual comfort in knowing that she was being taken care of. It helped take the sting off that uncertainty.

They continued down the shaft and through what looked suspiciously like a sewer tunnel, save that it was dried up. A metal walkway ran through the center of it while large pipes led along the wall. It was cramped, especially since Natalie was trying to lead the way while Ennard and Freddy both tried to squeeze in behind her. Freddy bumping into Ennard, saying "Excuse me", getting a "No problem" in return, at least four times over as they were walking. Poor Fritz didn't even stand a chance, getting pushed to the back.

Eventually they made it down a few more stairs and into what looked like a dirty, cluttered level of a parking garage. There were a few carts parked around, some oil or gasoline drums and work equipment, and the air smelled especially stuffy.

"This looks like part of the parking garage, but I don't think we're anywhere near there," Natalie remarked. "Maybe an underground garage?"

"It would make sense! Much of the equipment is moved through the utility tunnels by work carts or other vehicles. This is likely one of the rooms they store those vehicles in," Freddy offered.

"Smells funky in here," Gregory said. Before he thought, really, as he had been trying to not draw attention to himself.

"I think it is safe to say that it might not get properly ventilated," Freddy almost embarrassedly admitted.

Though this was nothing compared to what was waiting not too far away. In fact, the underground garage had been a misleading reprieve from what they were coming up upon.

The first thing that hit them was the smell. They had already crossed through two odor zones, stagnant tunnel and messy garage, but nothing compared to the smell of trash that hit them as they passed the threshold of another door.

"What… is that?" Natalie asked suspiciously.

She answered her question two seconds later when she strode ahead and shined the light to the side to see a corner of the hallway overflowing with bags of garbage and pieces of old machinery.

"Ugh… Found it," she groaned.

"Is it a body?" Fritz casually asked. Knowing good and well that it smelled a lot more like an overfull dumpster. Then he saw the cavity. "No, it's just a month's worth of trash."

"Why is it down here and not at the dump?" Natalie asked with exasperation.

"Don't ask us. Yer the one who works here," Foxy said matter-of-factly. Then strode by and continued briskly down the stairs. "…Smell's getting worse."

Charlie stole a glance as she passed by before lifting the radio to her mouth. "They dump the trash in the basement?" she asked. She was rewarded with crunchiness and a stutter of Jake's voice. "Jake? Can you hear me?"

"Ye-… Dump… Th-re…"

"You're breaking up. I'll radio when we get back to the stairs," she said. There was a buzzy reply before she returned her radio to her jacket. "Well, there goes our backup."

"Hopefully there's enough of us to handle it," Marionette said. A comment that could've been spoken as a joke but was kept serious. Not surprisingly considering the situation.

A situation that got much more intense when Foxy opened the next door and walked through, only to stop on a dime at the sight of a decimated Staff Bot laying amongst some trash.

"What the… Blimey…!" Foxy slowly turned his head and his eyes widened. His patch slowly lifting as he looked around. This was only the edge of a larger room, the door letting out into a walkway held in by a cement wall and a wall of trash.

But not just trash. Staff Bots littered the immediate area. Even if it was just heads or arms, there was an uncountable number of Staff Bots leading the way deeper into the darkness. Natalie even gasped when she saw it.

"Look at all the Staff Bots!" she said.

"What's going on down here?" Foxy bluntly asked Freddy. The bear hummed as he looked at the trashed bots.

"Perhaps these were… of an older model?" he guessed. Foxy gave him a flat look. "I will be honest; I have no explanation for this."

"A'right," Foxy settled. Then continued onward, just waiting for what would come out of this next.

They didn't have to go much further before the room opened. Though 'opened up' was more than a little exaggeration.

What they entered was less a large room and instead an open basement turned dumping ground. It sounded like there was water running somewhere, but it was hidden by the mounds of trash stacked up everywhere. Mounds of trash bags, mounds of Staff Bot bodies, rubble, and pipes hidden underneath it all.

"You were right," Charlie murmured to Marionette as she looked around at how huge it really was. He didn't feel validated in the slightest. "Where do we even start?"

"Let's just spread out. They can't be too far. The kitchen should be in… that direction, right?" Natalie asked, pointing off.

"Nope. That direction," Ennard corrected. Leaning over her, a hand on her shoulder and pointing further towards the left. "Over yonder in that direction."

"Okay, then that's where we start…" Natalie said uncertainly. That direction just happening to lead through some of the rougher of the trash and the light not even making it nearly where 'yonder' was with the obstructions. She started to lead the way before stopping and turning back. "And another thing: when I say spread out, I mean don't go too far. I want us all in shouting distance, and if you find either of them, you shout."

"Aye, aye, Lass," Foxy agreed with a salute. Then doubled down by asserting to the others, "Ye heard the lass! Move out and keep it close."

He looked around the direction Natalie and Ennard were aiming to go, foresaw their problem, and started to head off towards a natural path along the wall towards the right. Freddy naturally followed along with him, as did Marionette and Charlie, only to stop and look down at Gregory who was accompanying them.

"Gregory, it is dangerous down here. All this refuse is a major health hazard! You should climb inside of me just to be safe," he suggested.

"Uh… Okay."

As awkward as he felt around Freddy right now- afraid he was going to say something and tip him off to his involvement- it was cold and grimy down here, and the last thing he needed was Freddy insisting he take another shower. So, he willingly climbed inside, breathing a sigh of relief at the safety of the stomach cavity. Freddy then followed off behind the others.

While they continued off to the side, Fritz and Scott accompanied Natalie and Ennard straight through the garbage. It was especially difficult to walk, having to pretty much search for a makeshift path. All while under the gaze of dozens of empty eyes. Some of the Staff Bots had their faces broken apart, revealing speakers where their mouths should've been. Others were simply headless, or twisted up, or buried so deeply that one couldn't tell what happened to them.

"It's kind of sad," Natalie confessed. Her softer tone breaking her character for a moment. "All of these broken bots just thrown down here."

"It is, and I don't get it. This has got to be a huge waste of money, and they can't all be broken, right?" Fritz said. He shined his light around at the Staff Bots. Many of them being very broken. "…It just doesn't make sense to throw out this much hardware."

"So much for cutting back on costs," Natalie mumbled.

"Well, it's good to see they treat their automated staff the same as their human ones," Scott added in.

This got a brief snicker out of Ennard. Though right afterwards his eyes caught a glimpse of a bright color stark against the mounds of grey, black, and brown. Curious, he headed over in that direction, having to step over a hunk of cement dangerously jutting rebar.

Scott took notice. "Ennard?"

"Wait there, I'm just looking at something," Ennard assured.

Scott kept the flashlight trained on him, watching Ennard weave his way around the overfilled basement like a pro. He was almost impressed, but equally afraid he was going to take one wrong step and enough up stuck in it.

"Ugh. Okay, so this is completely flooded, ha ha. Make sure to watch your step!"

Make that very afraid.

Ennard climbed up onto a cement walkway and over a half-bent railing and used that to walk safely to what he saw. It was a sticky note, bright pink in color and half stained. Yet somehow the writing on it was still legible. He started to walk back down to the others, who Fritz had led through to a further portion of that same walkway. Ennard waited until Scott climbed over before handing him the sticky note, to which Scott shined his light down and squinted through his glasses.

"Battery running low…" Scott read out loud. It was a weird note to find scribbled down here. "…Huh."

"I'm guessing one of these guys didn't write it," Ennard said, pointing his thumb down at the nearest Staff Bot.

The handwriting looked neat enough, it just looked like it was written on an uneven surface. Possibly against a bumpy concrete wall. Likely one of the workers, which made that comment about the battery even more concerning.

Ennard noticed the frown on his face and reached out and rubbed his arm reassuringly.

"Hey. Don't worry about it too much. Odds are it just got trashed and dumped down here," Ennard said.

"You're probably right. I'm overthinking it," Scott agreed. He folded up the note and started to put it into the hoodie pouch only to stop, realize what he was doing, and hold it back out. Offering it to Fritz and Natalie with the intention of dropping it elsewise. Fritz ended up taking it, Natalie leaning in to peek at it but not willing to touch it. Scott turned back to Ennard. "Let's keep moving. She can't be that far."

"Right! In all likelihood, she landed on a big pile of trash bags and the longer we wait, the more angry and smelly she's gonna get," Ennard chirped. Tensely, Scott could see him covering again, but he smiled and agreed readily.

Then they continued onward through the basement. Their progress quickened as they were on the walkway but slowed the moment it came to an end, and they were forced to drop down onto some slimy dirt with pieces of razor-sharp junk sticking out. It was precarious, but manageable for the most part.

Then they hit a ditch. Not a huge ditch, only a few feet deep and the same wide, but noticeable. A sign that the bottom of the basement wasn't finished, making this situation even more concerning. Trash bags, old food containers, and more Staff Bot pieces laid inside. Ironically, as damp as the mud was and even with the sound of running water, the ditch seemed mostly dry.

Ennard easily stepped across. Scott was following alongside him, hopping across the ditch when his shoe slipped on the slick dirt, and he started to fall. He grabbed for Ennard's arm and was caught by the hand, easily pulled right back up into place.

"Have a nice trip?" Ennard asked. The first ghost of a joke since they had gotten down there and followed with a quick checking to make sure he was alright. Switching the hand, he held Scott's with so he could put his other on his back.

"Any trip where I don't end up in a ditch is a good one," Scott replied with a smile.

Fritz hopped across and Natalie was shortly after him, her hand landing on his shoulder to steady herself.

And metal clamped onto her ankle and pulled.

"Hah!" Natalie cried. She started to fall back, and Fritz turned to grab her, but the grip kept tugging. She shined her flashlight down and saw a face staring up at her.

One of the Staff Bots who had been lying dormant amongst the trash suddenly sprung to life and had grabbed ahold of her. Its eyes alit and its rusty, dirty body partially lifted out of the ditch. With Fritz's help she was able to pull her leg free, to which the Staff Bot's arm and head dropped and it fell prone yet again. Its eyes flickering out once more.

"Are you alright?" Scott asked.

"Uh, yeah. Just a little surprised was all…" Natalie said. She was still surprised by the ordeal, hooking an arm around Fritz's before daring to lean in a little. She shined her light closer to the Staff Bot and took in its severely damaged state. Fritz gave a hiss as her light fell on a deep crack down through its chest, revealing severe rust inside.

"How did it even kick on?" he muttered. He started to slide his foot down so he could lean forward and look. Natalie tried to pull him back, to which he assured, "I'm not getting close." He leaned in over it. Not quite in reaching distance but far enough that if it did grab him he was losing his balance and going in.

Scott also dared to step beside Fritz, though made sure to keep plenty of distance between himself and it. Though that couldn't be said for the Staff Bot torso laying over a trash bag to his left. He didn't notice it lifting itself up until it swiped at him, and even then he was tipped off not by it but by Ennard suddenly grabbing him up and pulling him back. Narrating it with a quick, "Yoink!"

Then he noticed the second Staff Bot rather quickly, looking around frantically for whatever danger had Ennard stepping in. As his and Fritz's lights fell on it, it shuddered and craned its head around before flopping back into the ditch. This one a little twitchier.

"…I really hope that they're not all just playing dead," Scott expressed uneasily.

"Oh, I think we stepped on enough of them to figure that one out," Ennard remarked. He pulled Scott tighter against him and gave him an assuring squeeze before going still.

"Okay, that's enough playing in the ditch," Natalie said. She tugged Fritz back out by the arm.

"You're probably right, but still, this is very weird. I don't know, maybe it's like those Endoskeletons Mike was talking about that stop when you look at them," Fritz suggested. He noticed the second Staff Bot was missing its lower half from how it had flopped down again. "I guess this means there's power supply isn't in their bases like I thought."

"Fritz, look at them. They've got rust and dirt all over and in them. They shouldn't have power at all," Natalie pointed out. "…Or Sam! Whatever your name is."

"Don't worry, I can't remember either," Fritz admitted. A teasing grin but being completely honest. They stepped up and away from the ditch and back into the trash. They only realized they weren't being followed when Scott spoke up.

"Uh, Ennard? You can let me down. I think it's safe-… I'll watch my step," he said.

But Ennard was still standing in place holding him, even when Fritz and Natalie's lights landed at their feet. It was absolutely in character for the amalgam to be clingy, but that wasn't the case. He wasn't cuddling him, he just seemed to be halted in place, locked up, and a look over his shoulder saw Ennard's eyes moving around as though he was thinking. He almost seemed spooked; a sharp contrast from the playful chirp he gave when he yanked Scott up.

"…Ennard? What's wrong, are you getting that feeling again?" Scott asked. Now, Ennard had a whole host of feelings and 'that' couldn't be pinned down that easily, but he expected it to be some sudden fear or harsh realization, or perhaps just the weight of the situation suddenly and rapidly catching up with him. That didn't seem to be what was happening.

"Scott…" Ennard started quietly. Still holding him around the middle, still up against him, slowly sliding his eyes to look at him.

"Yes?"

"Is this a gun?"

He meant the object currently pressed between him and Scott's back.

Scott's heart leapt into his throat. He swallowed thickly.

"Uh… Yes, it is."

Ennard moved back only to bunch and pull up his shirt and hoodie. Scott didn't stop him, and he pulled it all up and saw the concealed holster on his lower back. The clown proceeded to jump back and throw his arms up like it had been drawn on him.

Scott spun around and immediately began to fumble out explanations. One of which being, "It's not what you think." Even though it was in fact exactly what he thought it was, a gun.

"Wh-Why do you have that?!" Ennard sputtered. His teeth tight and his eyes showing his discomfort. "That- That could've just gone off right then! Right when I picked you up! Shot right through us both!"

"Well… first of all, I don't think this gun's shooting through anything. Let alone you and me… I guess that's not helping," Scott said, realizing his joke had little to no effect. "I have the safety on. It won't go off. I could throw it down the stairs and it wouldn't go off."

"Wait, you have a gun right now?" Fritz asked in surprise. He almost expected Ennard's behavior to be a routine, but sure enough Scott pulled his shirt back up to reveal it. "Hey, that's cool! I didn't know you bought a pocket pistol."

"That makes two of us," Ennard half-hissed. He looked back to Scott, still entirely uneased. "Did- Did you buy that today?" he asked hopefully.

"Well, uh… No… But this is my first time wearing it out or anything." If anything, that made Ennard look even more aghast. "But it was recently! I promise. I just- I didn't know how to bring it up…"

"How about, 'Hey, Hun. I bought a gun!'" Ennard retorted, mimicking his voice spot-on.

"…Yeah, that could've worked," Scott sheepishly admitted. He rubbed the back of his neck while Fritz stepped in behind him, nudging up his shirt to which Scott willingly pulled it up so he could see it. He gave a little 'huh'.

"I know why you'd be upset, Ennard, but that's a tiny gun. I think he can handle it," Fritz said. "That being said, you should've told him you got it."

"Yeah," Scott agreed.

"You probably should've told us too," Natalie added.

"That might've been a good idea. I wasn't planning on using it thought. Not unless that woman in the bunny suit showed up- No, that's not what I mean. That didn't come out right," Scott quickly interjected and Fritz and Natalie's raising brows. "I just thought- after what happened with Jeremy- there might be a chance that she might come after us for trying to expose her. But who knows. Maybe we could, I don't know, maybe it would be good if she did. Because if she's scared of tasers she'll be scared of this, then you could just restrain her, and we could turn her in. Won't do much good without the footage but anything's something. I mean, swinging a knife at a group of people has to be breaking a few laws at least."

"I'm sorry, what?" Natalie blinked.

"OH ho, so there's why you were so eager to get in here!" Ennard said accusatorily. "I knew something was up when you were all gung-ho with no talking it out. We're hunting rabbits!"

"No, no! It was still to get the footage, that was just a sort of back-up plan I came up with when I was thinking about all the things that could go wrong tonight."

Ennard didn't look enthused. Scott inhaled deeply and exhaled.

"I'm sorry. They're right, I should've told you I brought it. Obviously, I should've told you I got it in the first place, and I was planning on it, but I… hadn't gotten the nerve up to do it. I know how you feel about guns after what happened, but I got to talking with Clay- ironically, I know- and I just… I couldn't go back to being afraid in my own house. I needed something to protect us. That's what it is. It's just to protect us… Ignore what I said about that, uh, bunny woman. She wasn't even in the picture when I filed for the permits."

"Scott, you don't need that to protect you. Forget what Clay says, I'm already a dangerous weapon," Ennard insisted, pressing his hands to his chest. "So, he got a potshot on me. Big deal, I lived!"

"It's a huge deal, Ennard! All Will needed was one shot to hurt us both!" Scott insisted. Ennard's eyes softened. Scott reached forward with shaking hands and laid them on his arms. "You're not a weapon, Ennard. You're not a weapon and you can't pretend like you are, because you're not indestructible and you will get seriously hurt."

Ennard was quiet but it was clear that he knew Scott was right on that front. The loose wires on his chest reminded him of this.

"I just… I got scared. I got scared after Will came back and I got scared when I heard about Jeremy, and I made a couple of bad decisions… I screwed up," Scott admitted regretfully. "…If you want me to get rid of it, I will. I can trade it in first thing tomorrow."

"I don't know. I… I need to think about it." And while he wasn't done thinking about it, only about ten seconds later he asked, "…Can you take it out? I want a better look."

"Sure, sure. Safety's still on," Scott assured. He slowly and carefully took the pistol out and showed it to Ennard. Fritz had been right; it was almost comically small.

"It is pretty tiny," he agreed. "Where've you been keeping it?"

"In the nightstand."

"Good gravy, I sleep by that nightstand."

Scott chuckled a little, mostly out of relief.

Ennard continued to look at the gun and still felt uneasy. It wasn't even aimed towards him and yet he imagined it spontaneously going off, ricocheting off a couple of pipes, and somehow taking out his other eye. He knew it wasn't going to happen, but he didn't want to tempt fate any longer. He gently, carefully, pushed Scott's hand back.

"Ehhh, I'll think about it later. Just put that thing away. We've gotta go find Baby."

"You're right. Sorry, I didn't mean to sidetrack us," Scott said. He returned the gun to the holster and pulled down his clothes once more, hiding it from view yet again. "…I am sorry though."

"I know. We'll work it out later, okay? Once we get Baby back, we can figure it out," Ennard said. After a quiet moment he leaned in a bit and added, "And by that, I mean I get it, and I'm not mad… I'm a little peeved at Clay, but what else is new?"

He reached forward and rubbed Scott's arm affectionately before hooking it the rest of the way around his shoulders. He could feel the weight leave those shoulders as Scott exhaled and relaxed. He must've been holding that weight for a while. They followed along after Natalie and Fritz who decided to add no comment, likely feeling it wasn't their place to reinsert themselves into it and instead focusing on not getting grabbed.

They were going to have to talk about that more than anything. Well, the gun too of course, and there were the repercussions of what happened here tonight, but that fear was alarming. It had been ages since Scott kept something of this magnitude to him, and to be so desperate to still go through with it even though he was clearly unsure, it was alarming- and maybe Scott did raise a good point about his fragility, but it would take a little more convincing before he was sold on this whole loaded gun in the nightstand idea.

They could deal with it after they found Baby. It looked like they both made mistakes tonight, he acknowledged as he hugged Scott closer. At least Scott's didn't end with anyone getting hurt.

Just in case, no more 'yoinks'.

Marionette wasn't sure at what point checking two different sides of the same area turned into him turning around and seeing Charlie and nobody else. He could still hear Freddy's crunchy, thumping footsteps echoing through the cavernous room, so he knew they hadn't gone far. Deciding to loosen the leash, he continued in the direction he was going, finding a path leading up to a fence.

He tried it only to find it stuck tight. He hummed and looked it up and down, then leaned down and laced his fingers, cupping them to make a step. He gestured his head for Charlie to climb over. Which she did, stepping up and hopping onto the fence before swinging her legs over and landing on the other side. Marionette followed over quickly afterwards, though he basically just levitated over before dropping himself on the other side, catching himself just before his legs could touch the ground.

He knew he was wandering far out of Natalie's allotted comfort zone, specifically because he could no longer hear her at all, but he considered the risk worth it. Baby could be anywhere down here. If she fell in one piece like Ennard said, then she likely wouldn't stay in one place amongst all this garbage. She could've wandered, and it looked like they were coming up on an open area.

Charlie was following closely behind but slowed down to look over a gaping room of trash and sewage. She looked at the Staff Bots with the same sympathy Natalie did. Marionette would've too if he wasn't so distracted searching for Baby.

"This is really sad," Charlie finally said. "They don't repair them; they just dump them down here."

"It really is tragic," Marionette sympathized. He looked down at one laying out near the wall. "…Beyond that, it is very strange too."

"That they're throwing away expensive service robots by the dozen just because they don't want to repair them? I can think of another 's' word that could go with that too."

"Succulent?"

Charlie gave him a look and Marionette smiled back. Trying to lighten the mood, no doubt, but still the worst time for it. In the end it got a small smile out of Charlie.

They continued along a ledge over what looked like a sludgy trench. The cool cement significantly cleaner than what they walked on to get here, but that wasn't saying much. The slurry of mud and assumedly oil spilled out of everywhere.

It was weird that they hadn't heard Baby yet. Charlie kept expecting to hear her yelling for someone to help her, likely to hep pull her out of the same bed of trash she had gotten dumped with. Yet she was met with silence.

Finally, it got too much. She cupped her hands over her mouth and called for her.

"Baaaaabyyyy!"

Nothing. Charlie dropped her arms to her side and looked around at everything. Marionette reached out to pat her on the back of the shoulder.

"She's going to be alright. Baby's sturdy and relatively waterproof," he said.

"Relatively?"

"She'll be fine if we can get her out and cleaned up. Who knows, she might be buried in garbage bags and can't hear us."

"That's not exactly assuring," Charlie said flatly.

"It likely cushioned her fall," Marionette said. He turned away and continued to look around. "Though I expect she's not very happy about it."

"Maybe she's too embarrassed to call out for help," Charlie said. Though even she knew that wasn't the case, it was still a more positive thought.

Marionette wandered ahead and ducked through a gape in the wall that looked like it could've been a set of doors at some time and lifted his head only to be met by an unexpected sight. Another pocket of space in this overflowing basement, but this one was different. This one was filled with color, albeit faded and dirtied, cast under shadow and the grime of the basement.

This area looked to be some sort of secluded dumping ground for old merchandise. There were mounds and scattered remains of it all over the place. One of the closer items caught his eye.

There was a plush toy sticking out of the mucky floor. Its body stained with the oily, muddy residue covering most of everything down there. Marionette sympathetically fished it out and looked closer at it, only to chirrup in alarm. He stared at the toy for a long time, clasped between his hands, and then looked forward towards the mounds of dumped trash just further in.

He drifted in slowly and looked around at the hills of multicolored material, soaked in runoff and grimy fluid and yet some still holding their shine. Like a plastic mug laying on the ground. Marionette picked it up and upon seeing the familiar face, gathered it in his arm with the plush toy. Then he snatched up a wet hat, then a broken plate only to drop the pieces once it was clear it wasn't salvageable. So much merchandise, so much evidence.

His eyes focused in on a poster sticking out of the side of the closest mound and he gently pulled it free and opened it with one hand. It was the same façade that was shown on the objects in his hands.

Even though cartoonish, the brilliant smile sent a pang of dread through him. A happy grin on a cheery face under a pair of crooked blue-purple ears, stamped with a golden star over the left eye.

It was Bonnie.

Not any Bonnie that Marionette knew personally, but Glamrock Bonnie. The Pizzaplex's Bonnie the Rabbit.

The one who was no longer part of the band, as depicted by merch showing him alongside Freddy and Chica. The one from the bowling alley, as depicted on one of the shirts that clearly said Bonnie Bowl and depicted a cartoonish version of the rabbit in a bowling shirt.

The one who's entire rolodex of merchandise had been gathered up and dumped into this basement. Every plush toy, every faded sign, every ripped poster, everything belonged to Bonnie. It had all be dumped here and hidden away.

But where was Bonnie? Was he down here too?

"Where'd you go?" Charlie's quiet voice reminded him that he wasn't alone. He turned back to see her coming into the dumping grounds. "What is all this stuff?" she asked, looking around.

To answer her, he handed her the poster that he found. She took it and opened it in her hands, and her expression slowly morphed into shock and recognition.

"Is that a Bonnie?" she asked in surprise.

"That's certainly what it looks like…" Marionette quietly agreed.

The seriousness of what this was wasn't lost on her. She stared at the rabbit-shaped visage for a moment, looked to the merch in Marionette's arms, taking in the same information that he had.

Then she pulled out her radio and pressed the button. "Jake, was there a Bonnie in the Pizzaplex?!" she asked.

She was answered with crunchy static.

"Oh, right. No service," Charlie said exasperatedly.

"I think we already know the answer," Marionette said cryptically. He took ahold of the Bonnie plush again and looked down at it somberly.

Suddenly they were interrupted by an unexpected third voice.

"Did you find a Bonnie down here?!" Fritz called through the radio.

Charlie had almost forgotten that he too was on the line. "Sort of. Mari found bunch of dumped merchandise for a Bonnie character."

"Oh! Give me that real quick, thanks. Hey!" Ennard took over the line. "When we were up at the bowling alley, we saw a stage with an out of order sign on it. So that would make a whole lotta sense."

"It does. Some of these souvenirs have Bonnie Bowl on them. It looks like that was Bonnie's attraction that they rebranded," Marionette added in.

"And that explains the rushed paint job on their new mascot! Or, heh, not quite theirs. I'll tell you later. Any sign of Baby?"

"Not yet…"

"Well, we just have to keep looking. She can't have gone that far," Ennard said, barely covering his disappointment. "You can ask Moon Man about Bonnie when we get out of here. He knows."

"He said that?" Charlie asked questioningly.

"He knows. Trust me."

Marionette had a feeling Moon wasn't the only one who knew either. There was no way that Freddy couldn't. Unless he had been brainwashed to forget, but he highly doubted that. He felt like something terrible happened here.

…He felt like he was being watched too.

He lifted his head and looked out of the clearing to where it led back out into the open basement, but there was nothing there. He couldn't hear anything except the sound of distant water. He felt a strange sort of anxiety staring out at that darkness. Nervousness for Baby or Bonnie would've been expected, but this was something different. Something about this place felt wrong.

He sighed and returned the plush to his cluster of gathered merchandise in his arms. "We need to keep looking… Maybe Baby's not the only one we'll find down here," he said.

Charlie agreed and ended the call on the radio before helping him look around the rest of the clearing. Nothing except for damaged merchandise and broken dreams.

No sign of Baby.

No sign of Bonnie.

Chapter 52

Chapter Summary

You can't keep a good bot down...

Chapter Notes

Posting very late, so there may be a few errors that I will have to come back and get tomorrow. Sorry in advance! Enjoy!

Through another damp sewer shaft, Freddy and Foxy had made some distance into the seemingly endless basement. Though that progress was halted abruptly by them coming out of the end of the tunnel in a large room, the floor open in a large shaft being filled endlessly by numerous pipes. This was no longer just a dumping ground if the additional scent of chlorine, grime, and something that smelled suspiciously like an open sewage line were any indication.

And over that large opening in the floor, built more like an underground dam than anything septic-related, was a walkway. Not one of cement, not a metal bridge, not even a wooden bridge, but a set of poorly nailed together wooden boards and planks leading across.

Freddy stared at the wooden planks

"Ye ain't gettin' over that," Foxy bluntly said.

Freddy gave a thoughtful hum and looked up to the right where there was a cement ledge lined with drainage spouts. Foxy looked over as well, gave a similar hum, and stepped up to it.

"Wait here while I have a go at it," he commanded.

"Be careful please," Freddy said.

"Eh, I'll try. Prob'ly shoulda wrapped me feet," Foxy mumbled. He moved onto the edge and tight to the wall before slowly making his way down. Making sure to give himself enough distance that if he did fall, he would have plenty of room to do so.

Only a little water trickled out of the covered pipe openings, thankfully, but wet garbage was bunched up underneath them. It was a slick trek. Doable, but slick, and it didn't help that the gaping opening lay before him. Foxy glanced over and then away, then glanced again, and he wasn't sure if he was offput by the graphic thoughts of what would happen if he fell or enticed by that edge of danger. It was the closest thing he could get to being the Captain Foxy from the cartoon, just edging past a grisly fate. It was weird to think about.

Meanwhile, Freddy watched him from back on the ledge, realizing that he too would soon have to walk that path. If he fell, he would likely be damaged severely, but worse still was what may happen to Gregory. Especially if they landed in the water at the bottom of the pit. If it was too deep and Freddy shorted out, Gregory would be trapped inside of him, and he knew he wasn't watertight.

He looked back towards the bridge. Was it safer for Gregory to cross there? There were no railings and while the boards would likely carry Gregory's weight, they may be slick.

"I need to crouch down for a moment, Gregory. Brace yourself," Freddy forewarned.

"Sure… Or wait, can I get out? I want to see."

"Hmm… Alright but try to stay close. The ground may be slippery here."

Freddy turned around and let Gregory out as far from the ledge as he could. He watched as the boy looked out at the big chasm that lay between them and the rest of the basement. It was a far cry from the more biologically hazardous condition of the previous trek here. Freddy kept an eye on him and stole a quick glance to Foxy before kneeling beside the bridge of boards. He tapped a claw on the wood. It was firm, not dry rotted. He then tried to shift the board; sturdy enough. He dragged his fingers over; somewhat slick.

"I don't think that's going to hold you," Gregory pointed out.

"It will not, but perhaps… It may be safer if you walk across these boards than climb on the side with me. I am afraid if I slipped and fell that you would be injured. Would you be comfortable with that?" Freddy asked.

"Uh… I think so," Gregory hesitantly agreed. He peeked over into the pit only to have Freddy stop him with his hand. He wasn't sure how Freddy expected him to cross on the wood without getting close to the edge, but he would just let him figure that out.

Freddy sighed as he dropped his arm, the other resting on his knee. His face fell into a somber look as he watched Foxy continue the last stretch of the cement walkway. Then he looked back at Gregory, and as fate would have it he had a clear shot of that bruise.

"…Gregory, can we talk for a moment?" he asked lowly.

Gregory immediately tensed up and looked off somewhere in the opposite direction, but he agreed. "Uh, sure. About what happened to Chica?"

"More about what has been happening you," Freddy admitted. He hesitated a long moment before sighing again and turning to face the boy, resting his hand on his shoulder. "Gregory, I want to apologize. For Chica, for Roxy and Monty, and for myself."

"Don't worry about it. It's not your fault," Gregory remarked.

"But I must! This is supposed to be a safe place for children and adults alike, but especially children. You should not have to live in fear that one of us might hurt you, accidentally or not."

Gregory scoffed at the word 'accidentally'. He had trouble believing anything the others did was accidental.

"Freddy, I'm not even supposed to be in here…" he grumbled.

"That does not matter. I want you here, with me," Freddy insisted. His eyes dropping to that bruise spread across Gregory's skin. He drew his hand back from Gregory's shoulder and held it there tentative before starting to take his arm beneath the mark. "Perhaps we should get ice for this…"

Gregory jerked his arm back reflexively; afraid Freddy was going to poke at the bruise.

"I'm fine, Freddy! I don't need you to take care of me. I'm not a baby."

Gregory regretted snapping immediately. He wasn't angry with Freddy; he was the only member of his band who wasn't chasing him around all the time. The defensiveness was coming from something else that he couldn't understand. It felt weird to be coddled, especially when he knew that any minute now Freddy was going to find out that he turned on the trash compactor and he pushed Chica in and then everything was going to change. Freddy was going to change.

But for now, Freddy was the same. His face falling further at what he said.

"…My apologies. I was not trying to, I was just… Please, if anything like this happens again, please tell me."

"I did tell you," Gregory mumbled.

Something about that comment sent a pain through his chest. Likely his overworked processors suddenly draining a portion of his battery from the stress of all that was going on, but he could've equally compared it to the feeling of his heart breaking. Because Gregory was right, and it was too late for him to change that.

Freddy slowly lowered his hand. "Yes, I… suppose that you did," he said.

Their moment of tense silence was interrupted by a thump as Foxy climbed over the railing separating the cement walkway from the bridge on the other side. Both looked up to see him holding up his hook in triumph.

"Excellent job, Captain," Freddy congratulated.

"Thanks. Now it ain't too difficult, but yer gonna want to stay as farrr back on the wall as ya can. And if you hit anything ya can't step over, kick it off, don't risk stepping around," Foxy suggested.

"Thank you, I will be sure to follow your direction… But, err, Gregory will be crossing on the boards first."

Foxy looked down at the walkway before shooting Freddy an incredulous look. "Yer kidding."

"Nope. Here I come," Gregory agreed.

Apparently Foxy didn't believe Freddy because his patch flew up when Gregory started walking towards the board without the bear stopping him. Then he threw his arms up and began to wave.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold yer sails, Lad! Walking across that bridge be just as dangerous as walkin' the plank. Freddy, put him back in an' carry him over," he insisted.

"I would, but I feel that in this situation being inside of my stomach hatch may be just as dangerous as crossing the bridge. Perhaps even more so."

"Why, ya plannin' on diving off?" Foxy asked flatly.

"…I am hoping I do not," Freddy admitted, eyes wide before blinking back to normality. "…But I have checked the bridge and it does feel… sturdy enough. I am not sure if it would support the weight of adult- ironically, as I expect this must have been built by and for the adult workers to access the back of the basement- but it should hold Gregory."

"Uh huh…" Foxy seemed doubtful. "Well, why don't ya just toss him over then? Sounds just as safe!"

"Oh, umm, that is an excellent idea, Captain! But… well… I am a little afraid that you might have trouble catching him with your... peculiar situation," Freddy said. Hesitantly, like he was afraid he was going to offend him. Forget the hook, Foxy was nearly offended that Freddy thought he was seriously suggesting something so reckless. He rolled his eyes, lowered his patch, and came forward, cutting off any further assurances by thumping his foot down on the wooden beam.

He half-expected it to collapse under the blows alone but anticipated wobbles and creaks. Yet he was rewarded with very little of either. The wood was surprisingly sturdy- likely because it looked to have been built recently and hadn't had time to rot.

"Hmm… Might be able to pull it off," Foxy mumbled. He scratched his cheek with his hook thoughtfully before looking across to Gregory. "A'right, Lad. If yer sure, come on across- but be careful. There's no shame in crawlin'."

Gregory scrunched his nose at the idea and stepped forward. Though then he actually got a good look down and realized it was maybe a little scarier than he thought.

"You can do it, Gregory. I believe in you," Freddy cheered him on.

"Aye, it just be like walkin' the plank. Watch yer feet, but don't look down," Foxy suggested.

"How do I watch my feet if I can't look down?" Gregory asked.

"Ya do. Ya look down, but ya don't look down."

Gregory figured it out. Look at the boards, don't look at the drop underneath. He did steal a second look down and this time could see the glittery reflection of light on water at the bottom. Reflecting the lights from Freddy's eyes that already reflected off the glossy wet pipes and garbage scattered around. Gregory started to feel a little off-balance and looked to the boards instead and felt himself stabilize. Then he began to walk across.

The boards creaked a little, but they didn't buckle. They didn't even sway under his weight, just as sturdy as the solid ground. He made it to the other side easily and quickly.

"Atta boy, Lad!" Foxy congratulated and ruffled his hair, getting a smile out of the boy.

"Great job, Gregory! You were very brave," Freddy agreed with a proud smile. His face fell slightly, then grew serious as he looked at the cement ledge. He straightened up as though strengthening his resolve before climbing up like Foxy had.

Pressing his back as close as he could to the wall, Freddy sidled down the cement walkway. He made a motion like gulping as he stared down at the fall he could be in for. It was weird to be afraid when he knew that he technically could be repaired, as long as the damage wasn't too severe, but he supposed he just really didn't want to fall into that hole. He had spent enough time in Parts and Service for a lifetime.

"Come on, Freddy! You're almost there!" Gregory coaxed.

That snapped Freddy out of his reverie, and he continued to scoot down the cement. He briefly wondered how they would be able to move Chica and Baby if they weren't able to walk, but then shrugged it off. They would literally cross that bridge when they got there.

Soon enough he got to the end and hopped the fence just like Foxy had. Then proceeded to bend over with his hands on his knees.

"I think I may have a fear of heights," he admitted. Foxy gave him a clattering thump on the back.

"Ye'd have to be a fool to not fear a drop like that. It'd be a softer landing landin' in a coffin," he remarked.

It was weird for Gregory to see Freddy shaken even the slightest bit by anything, even if this really did count as the slightest bit. Not a bad weird, he wasn't sure how he would categorize it. After a moment of consideration, still regretting what happened earlier, Gregory put up his hand. Freddy was a little surprised, but perked up instantly and gave him a high-five. Then gave a little victory pump of his fist before straightening up. It brought a smile back to Gregory's face.

They followed Foxy who led the way up a windy path only to be stopped shortly afterwards by a fence. Foxy tested it only to find it locked firm. He mumbled and took a few steps back. Freddy raised a finger preparing to offer a suggestion, only for the fox to break into a sprint and ram the fence knee-first. It flung open with a clank and clatter.

Freddy gawked momentarily before crying, "Foxy!"

"What?" Foxy asked. He sent the bear a shrug. "We're on a rescue mission! The lives of two lasses be more important than a fence."

"You could have at least let me do it," Freddy suggested.

"Tryin' to show off, Fazbear?" Foxy asked with a coy glint in his eye.

Freddy answered with a cross of his arms and a disappointed look.

"Next time I leave it to you. That fair?" Foxy asked.

Freddy gave a nod and the three continued on. Or they would've, if not immediately stopped by the path splitting into two. One leading ahead and the other leading into a tunnel to the left.

"Which'a these, if any, leads under the kitchen?" Foxy asked as he looked between the two.

Freddy stood beside him and hummed, rubbing his chin, as he looked between the two and tried to access the approximate location. Something that was incredibly difficult to do in this otherwise unmapped basement. Eventually he pointed ahead.

"I think, perhaps, this way."

"Aye," Foxy agreed.

He continued to lead ahead onto a metal walkway that looked above where they had just came. He ducked through an open doorway and into a tunnel overflowing with trash and Staff Bot parts.

"Back into the boneyard," Foxy cryptically muttered. "Watch yer step. It be soggy."

Gregory continued in next and then Freddy who looked around at the tunnel warily before lowering his gaze to the boy.

"Gregory, perhaps it would be safer if you returned to my stomach hatch," he offered.

"No, I'm good," Gregory said and continued after Foxy. Walking around a bunch of trash wasn't great, but it was more exciting than hiding in Freddy waiting to get somewhere.

While Freddy wasn't quite on-board with this plan, looking around at their surroundings, but he didn't insist. Instead, he stepped down and followed through. His eyes trailing to a pipe spilling a surplus of water that thankfully was collected by a grate beneath it. It truly was a hazard down here. Why on Earth were they dumping Staff Bots down here? Why couldn't they repair them? Because they were an older model? Because they didn't want to risk dumping elsewhere and having competition find out about the Staff Bots?

Just thinking about it made Freddy uncomfortable in a way he couldn't understand. He didn't have long to dwell on it.

At the end of tunnel was a doorway and Foxy stepped through and found a dumping ground on the other side. A more compact room but overflowing with especially rancid smelling garbage. That smell tipped off Foxy right away because he could only guess it was coming from decaying food waste. Though if it hadn't, the sight of a white head would've done so. Foxy's eyes perked as he looked at the top of Chica's head poking out of the bed of garbage she was laying on, facing the other direction.

"Freddy, it's Chica," Foxy whispered over his shoulder. He decided to not risk revealing himself until he was sure if she was awake or not.

Freddy gasped and squeezed between Gregory and Foxy before sliding down on a pile of trash, barely catching his footing, and ran over to her. He ran around to face her and gasped as he saw the state she was in; laying out on a bed of garbage with her body riddled with cracks, her beak sunken into her broken face, and her eyes staring out unfocused and unblinking. She wasn't moving.

"Chica, no!" Freddy cried in aghast. He reached towards her with cautious hands, afraid to touch her, and lowered onto one knee. "Oh, Chica…" He dropped his arms listlessly and just stared down at her with a look of distraught.

Foxy sighed and waded down over the garbage before walking over to Freddy. His hand and hook resting on his hips as he did. He stopped alongside the bear and looked down at Chica and had to restrain the urge to make some sort of reflexive dour noise. Instead, he reached out and tapped his hook on the back of Freddy's shoulder, as though replicating a pat on the back. Freddy dropped his head and closed his eyes in response.

All Gregory could do was watch. He had been so afraid that he was going to get found out that it had been the main thing on his mind. He had known Freddy was going to be disappointed, upset, but he hadn't really thought about how upset he was really going to be.

It was the first time Gregory felt bad about what happened. After all, Chica had been such a pain for so long. She was annoying and cruel, she pretended like she was nice when she wasn't, she tore up his hidey hole, and she just wouldn't leave him alone. And on top of that, she was the one who pushed Baby in first. Maybe he pushed her in too, but she was acting crazy anyway and he just wanted to stop her. She was just a stupid robot.

But looking at how upset Freddy was made him upset too. He didn't want to hurt Freddy. Part of him didn't really think about it- largely because the initial plan was honestly just to scare her, not to bang her up. So, even though she got what was coming to her in Gregory's eyes, Freddy's sadness made him feel guilty.

It didn't help when he crept over a little closer to get a look at Chica. He kind of expected her to just be busted up like he saw earlier, and she was, but now looking at her laying there like that made him feel a little bad.

Or a lot bad. He didn't like her by far, but he really didn't want to hurt her. She might've just been a robot, but so was Freddy and Foxy, and they were just like humans. As awful as she was, she was too. She was a person and Gregory had broken her.

He felt even worse. She was broken, Baby was gone, Ennard was in trouble, and Freddy was sad, and it was all because of him. Because he pressed that button. Or because he asked Ennard to scare her. Or because he was in this Pizzaplex when he wasn't supposed to be.

He felt even worse. And he still didn't like her, but he didn't want this. He didn't want all this stuff to happen because of him.

"Can't you… Can't you fix her? Like they fixed Sunny and Moondrop?" Gregory dared to ask.

"Yes… Yes, they will. She will be alright," Freddy agreed. He lifted his head and sent another regretful look at Chica. Then he began to lean forward and tried to gather her into his arms. Eventually having to sling half her torso over his shoulder to do so. He patted on her back before looking around. "I do not see Baby."

"Bloody 'ell! Baby!" Foxy cried. Suddenly remembering his own sister, Foxy began to scuffle around in the trash. There wasn't any sign of her. "She ain't here… Hold on!" Foxy noticed some doors on the walls and climbed across the trash to reach them. The one on the back wall was almost entirely buried and unresponsive, the one to the right equally so, and the one to the left opened a crack once he pulled away the trash but too heavy for him to lift.

He dropped the door with a grunt and stepped back. "It's no good… Bah, she prob'ly didn't go through there anyways. Woulda taken the easy door out."

"Then where is she?" Freddy asked worriedly.

"She could be down that other tunnel. The one by the fence," Gregory suggested.

"An excellent observation, Gregory. I almost forgot," the bear said. He was exaggerating, both Gregory and Foxy could tell, but he started walking towards the door. "Let us go see where it leads."

As he passed, Gregory briefly made eye contact with Chica. Though it was hard to tell with how her eyes rolled with each of the bear's steps. It sent a chill through him. He might've felt bad now, but she still scared him, and she was even scarier busted up.

Gregory stayed close to Foxy as they walked back to the tunnel. Which wasn't bad. Foxy ruffled his hair again to which he fussily fixed it, getting a chuckle out of the pirate. He noticed how quiet Gregory had gotten and tried to lighten the mood a little, as it wasn't the boy's burden to bear. It was hard enough that it was Freddy's, but he couldn't really do anything to help him until they found Baby and got Chica into Parts and Service.

Freddy stopped at the fence and crouched down before carefully laying Chica down. She still slumped in the crook of the fence and the wall, but at least she wasn't lying on the floor.

"Do not worry, Chica. We will be back very soon," he assured her. He wasn't quite sure she could hear him; it was more for him than for her. Then he stood with another sorrowful look before coming along with Foxy and Gregory. This time the pirate giving him a proper pat on the back, which Freddy returned by putting a hand on Foxy's shoulder. Foxy was slightly surprised by the motion, but accepted the reassurance. He needed it just as much as Freddy they both realized.

Gregory led the way down a more cramped tunnel until he went around a corner and found a pair of eyes staring out of the darkness at him. Glowing dotted eyes.

"Freddy!" he called with a start.

Freddy raced up the few steps to catch up with him and came around the corner, shining the light from his eyes over the assumed threat. Which turned out just to be a malfunctioning Staff Bot. Barely anymore than a head staring out from a nook in the wall.

"Ugh, never mind. It's just a Staff Bot," Gregory said quietly. Somewhere between embarrassed and annoyed.

"How strange that it is still functional… Try to stay close. I fear Staff Bots in such disrepair may not function as they are supposed to," Freddy forewarned.

"That'd be assumin' they usually do," Foxy quipped. He scooted past the two and got a look at the bot before preparing to take the lead.

Freddy squinted as though furrowing his brow and blinked. "These are Alpha Staff Bots," he said.

"Huh?" Foxy looked back.

"Alpha. That was the name of the initial line of Staff Bots that were produced for the Pizzaplex… But they did not function properly. I cannot remember all the details, but they did not respond well to programming. Not like the current Staff Bots."

"Aye? What'd they do?"

"I believe… they would wander… It must have been before they finished the pathfinding and mapping systems for the Staff Bots. I am not sure. Though they indeed had a very long battery life."

"Huh. So, they wander 'round and don't have an off switch. Explains why they dumped 'em down here… almost," Foxy muttered.

He waved for the two to follow him and they did. Gregory finding the Staff Bot creepy, Freddy feeling uncomfortable, and neither wanting to stand there much longer. The Staff Bot's lit eyes dimmed once more after they passed.

"Anything else hidin' down here that we should be wary of?" Foxy called back. His tone only partially joking as he sent a questioning look back at the bear.

"Not that I am aware. Except for Baby, hopefully."

"Aye. Hopefully…"

The sewer tunnel opened into another sizable room. This one was a little different. The ceiling was so tall that he could barely see the top and the middle area was cleared enough to walk through. Though there were still plenty of trash and laundry carts scattered about. Large, plastic drainage pipes trailed down from the ceiling before lodging themselves into the flooring. A rather flimsy example of pipework in what was supposedly a sewer.

If anything, this room only reassured what this place was, a massive trash heap. Even more mounds of garbage and broken bots lines the walls in mountainous piles surrounding the clearing. A 'clearing' that still consisted of a wet dirt flooring covered in pieces of trash, old sticky notes, posters, and even more pieces of abandoned robots.

"Blast me booty and call me a bilge-sucker," Foxy tiredly grumbled. Something that got an especially weird look from Gregory and a "hmm?" from Freddy. Instead of answering, Foxy barked across the cavernous room. "Baby! Ya down here, Lass?"

He didn't expect a response.

He heard a gasp.

"Ga-Gabe! GABRIEL!"

Foxy straightened with a start and snapped his head towards the sound of the voice before sprinting towards it. Halfway across the large room and he still couldn't see any sign of her.

"Lizzie?!" he yelled. "Lizzie, where are ya?!"

"Here! Down here, over here!" she called back. Her voice showing an amount of panic and desperation that he hadn't heard in ages. It was enough to send him into a panic, that and the muffled nature of her voice.

He got to the other side of the room and realized her voice was further out. Past where the clearing turned into mounds of trash yet again. He climbed over a rickety half bent railing and started to climb up one of the mounds, disrupting the pieces of metal and sinking into the softened bags amongst them. He hooked into the trash and dug in his feet to climb the unstable structure.

"Lizzie!"

"I'm down here!"

On the other side of this trash, he realized. Foxy made it to the top and looked over the other side. A pit or a trench had been created between the mound and the cement wall behind it. Down in this pit was where Foxy spotted Baby, sunken in to her thighs in what he hopped was just muddy water and clutching onto the garbage in front of her for dear life to keep from sinking any further. Her eyes glowed up at him.

"Avast ye, Lizzie!" he called down.

"Gabe! Thank God you found me! I can't bear another minute down here," she said with a breathless sounding sigh.

"Don't worry, we're gonna get ya right out. Just as soon as we can," Foxy reassured her. He crouched down and leaned over to get a better look. "How'd you even get yerself down there?"

"I was looking for a way out and I saw that- that- that stupid hatch over there and I thought maybe it would go somewhere and I walked along the edge of this stupid hole, and the whole thing collapsed in! I can't pull myself out. All this, ugh, garbage is too loose."

"…Ya didn't see the fence over there?" Foxy asked, pointing his hook back in the vague direction of it.

"Yes, I saw the fence! And that pitiful little bridge on the other side! Calling it a bridge is generous," Baby said huffily.

"Yeah, it t'was pretty pathetic…" Foxy almost mentioned the concrete ledge, but he wasn't sure if she would've been willing to risk it with her roller skates. Unfortunately, since she soon would have no choice. "How are ya holding up?"

"How do you think?" Baby retorted.

"Sorry. What I meant is were ya injured? In this fall or the other?"

"Oh. No, I wasn't…" Baby shifted around a little. "My legs hurt."

"Are they broken?" Foxy asked. His tone shifting to seriousness and concern.

"I… I don't think so… They were fine and all this disgusting slime cushioned my fall. I don't know what it is."

And it was too early for her legs to be degrading. Perhaps something got wet that wasn't supposed to, or maybe just the fall itself was rough. Foxy wouldn't know until he pulled her up. Which would have to be soon now that he was given a red flag.

Foxy looked at his options and muttered under his breath before turning himself to have his feet first. "Alright, I'm coming down."

"What? No, you will just get stuck too," Baby pointed out.

"Nah, I got this," Foxy assured.

He began to carefully climb down along the side, where the trash was so close to the wall that he could use that for leverage. He almost expected Freddy to follow, but he didn't. He had been standing obediently at the edge of the clearing, awaiting the captain's further orders. It didn't take long to get to the bottom, especially with some sliding at the end, but using his feet against the wall he kept himself up about the funky sludge.

"Oh yeah, yer deep in it alright…" Foxy muttered as he looked at how high it had her legs sucked in.

Baby scoffed a little and readjusted her claw on a Staff Bot sunk so deep into the mound of trash that it braced her. "Tell me something I don't know…"

"Some of these things are still on," Foxy said matter-of-factly, knocking on the chest of a Staff Bot. She stared at him, and he tilted back his head and called out, "Oiy, Freddy!"

"Present, Captain! What do you need?" Freddy called back.

"Mind lookin' around and seein' if there's anything around here to pull her up with? Chains, rope… Prob'ly chains." Baby lightly smacked his leg. "We can wrap 'em round her, get the others over here, and pull her up."

"Ugh, the others," Baby groaned. She dropped dramatically against the trash in front of her. Face burying onto her arm with embarrassment. "Everyone has to see this."

"We've all seen a lot worse," Foxy assured. He then leaned in and very quietly, so quietly that Freddy wouldn't be able to hear, whispered, "You should see Chica."

Baby made a disgruntled hum.

Freddy was quick to do as Foxy said, only briefly taking a moment to turn to Gregory and say, "Will you be alright to wait here? Considering the state of this basement, I would not feel comfortable rummaging through any of this if there was a risk of it falling on you. But at least the lighting here seems better!"

He looked up and so did Gregory. There was either a distant light or an opening high on the ceiling that shined a dull but sufficient light down. Though only onto the center of the clearing and not into the room in full. Better than standing in the dark, Gregory supposed.

"Okay. Just don't fall in a hole or something like Baby did," he said, whispering the last part through a cupped hand. Freddy gave him an assuring thumbs up and started off into the nearby rubble to begin searching. Soon walking behind something and disappearing.

Being under the light and being able to hear Foxy and Baby's somewhat lowered voices kept him from getting creeped out, but it didn't keep him from getting bored fast. Especially when the only thing he could do when he was just standing around was thinking. He didn't want to think about stuff, so he started to walk around and look for ropes or chains under the light that he did have.

He didn't see any of that, but his eyes caught the sight of a little plastic leg sticking out from some trash. He hastily yanked it out, uncaring where it had come from, and found a Roxanne Wolf action figure. It was missing the other leg unfortunately, not that he minded too much. A toy was a toy, he didn't get many of those so he couldn't be picky. He unzipped his bag to shove it inside.

When he suddenly heard a very weird noise. It kind of sounded like a laser zap, added with something grindy and squeaky. It wasn't a scary noise, but it still made Gregory jump.

"What was that?" Foxy suddenly called out.

"I don't know! Sounded like some sort of laser or something!" Gregory called back. He pressed his watch button. "Freddy, did you hear that?"

"I did! I heard you and Foxy too. I wonder what that was," Freddy replied. Gregory could hear his voice coming from the other side of the room. "I think I might have found-!... Bah."

"What?"

"Oh, I thought this might be a rope, but it is a tangled string of Christmas lights. Unfortunately, I do not think that is strong enough to pull anyone up."

There was another shrill noise. It almost sounded like a machine backfiring. It almost sounded like that noise that came out of Chica before and after she was crushed. The thought filled Gregory with panic. Was it Chica? Was she out there screaming by the gate? Was she coming for him? He backed up beside a laundry cart and looked across the room with paranoia. It could be her, he realized. Broken Chica could be coming to get him. He lifted his watch close to his mouth.

"Freddy," he whispered into it. "Can you come get me? I want to go back inside."

"Did something happen?" Freddy asked worriedly. His volume lowering to match Gregory's.

"I… No," Gregory confessed. He was almost embarrassed admitting it even though he was now thoroughly creeped out.

"Do not worry, I will be there in a moment," Freddy reassured. There was a clattering noise from the far side of the room. "…Just one moment," Freddy added sheepishly.

"Okay…"

A few moments passed. Gregory considered telling Freddy to hurry up but by time he decided to take the plunge and press the button he heard the heavy footsteps coming from the right. He muttered a small, "Finally," under his breath and stepped out to wait for him.

It staggered clumsily into sight. The source of the footsteps. Its whole body swaying on bent and bowed legs. Arms bent and twitching at its sides, head rolling and twisting on its neck, shivering and writhing while standing in a way he didn't think animatronics could.

It was her. It was Chica.

Gregory's heart could've stopped. His eyes went wide and panic spread through him like fire. His worst fear had come true. She wasn't supposed to be standing, she didn't look right. She looked so terribly and nightmarishly wrong.

He had never been so afraid of her.

Her head slowly began to turn and he hastily scrambled back and ducked behind the laundry cart again. Her head immediately spun in his direction and she turned towards the cart. She stumbled over her own feet, shoulders wobbling and twitching, and shambled in the direction of the faint noise. Gregory could hear her approach with his back pressed against the cart and felt it shake as her weight suddenly fell on it.

Chica nearly fell into it, her body folding over sideways over the rim. A rumbling crackle echoed through her chest before raising into a skipping shriek grinding out behind her sunken beak. She rolled onto her front, feet scuffing on the dirt, cart shuttering underneath her weight, and leaned forward to stare at the junk in the bottom of the laundry cart. She let out a rattly noise but it expressed no confusion or discernable humanity at all. Though Gregory didn't need words to know she was looking for him.

She shuffled a step closer, and Gregory clenched his teeth and slid aside. He considered running, but she was so close now that he knew she would catch him. He could only cower behind the cart as her body slid further down it and closer to him.

A step closer. A drag of broken plasticky material on the edge of the cart. So close that he could see her shallowly cast shadow. So very close…

"Chica?"

The startled cry cut through the tenseness and Gregory's eyes popped open again. It was Freddy. He had just walked up on the scene and now stood no more than ten feet away looking at the back of his shattered bandmate in shock. Relief only barely fought back the fear, but Gregory clung to the hope that Freddy could still protect him.

All the while that this had been going, Foxy and Baby had still been stuck in their little pit when that noise started to become more clear.

"Hope that ain't some sorta walking trash compactor," Foxy had remarked. Baby gave a dismissive sort of hum, unconcerned.

Or that was unconcerned until she suddenly caught wind of that noise now that it had gotten closer. She had heard it before, but only partially, muffled by trash and distance. Now that she heard that whirring squeal up close she recognized it immediately and her head shot up from its position on her arm. Foxy took notice but didn't have a chance to ask before she spoke.

"That's her," she said with alarm.

"Who, Chica?" Foxy asked. That being the only 'her' he could think Baby would show such alarm at hearing.

"Yes!"

"Can't be! We found her before we found you. She ain't getting up anytime soon."

"Well, she must have! I heard her shriek before I fell. That's her!"

Seeing how adamant Baby was, Foxy gave a simple 'alright' and began to climb up the pile to the best of his abilities. He had to be extra careful but managed to get to the top again and looked over to see what came wandering into the room.

It was the broken body he had witnessed Freddy lug around and leave out by the fence, Chica herself. Just the sight of the way the broken animatronic stumbled disturbed him deeply. It was like watching someone walking on a broken limb. He clenched his jaw.

"Bloody hell, it's her," he muttered down through his teeth. When Chica turned, Foxy finally caught sight of the boy hiding behind the edge of the cart, and he nearly choked. "Oh bloody HELL, Gregory's right there!"

Foxy started scrambling over with the full intention of running out into the clearing and drawing Chica away. He could be loud and fast, and that's all he needed to get the broken bot's attention. He would've done it too, but he stopped himself when he spotted Freddy running up. Then it was just a matter of staring at the scene like he was watching two trains preparing to collide. All while Baby hastily whispered and asked what was going on.

Then there was Freddy who stood in the middle of it all. Who could only stare silently as Chica responded to his voice by sluggishly turning around. Feet turned in to keep her stabilized and head rolling like her neck couldn't even hold it up any longer. He could remember a few incidents where she had eaten more than her fill and became wobbly and off-balance, but this was so much worse.

She wasn't full, she was broken. Her body was shattered.

"Chica…" Freddy quietly repeated. He then snapped out of his shock and stepped forward. "Chica, you should not be walking around in your state! You are… very, very damaged. We need to get you to Parts and Service immediately."

Chica was looking at him, at least in his general direction. Her eyes were unfocused, so it was hard to tell if she was actually looking at him or not. Even when her eyes rolled over his face there was a distance in them. She took a few steps closer and continued to roll and refocus her head and eyes, as though struggling to detect him. He met her halfway and reached out for her wrist.

Her whole body crinkled up on itself. He retracted his hand as she pulled her arm up and rotated her head and eyes, flickering them with incomplete scans as she tried to detect him but couldn't. This was even worse than Freddy could've imagined.

"It is okay, Chica. It is me, Freddy. I am your friend," he assured her. Her shoulders shifted and her head lulled forward. "Oh Chica…"

It was in that moment that Freddy caught sight of Gregory out of the corner of his eye peeking out from behind the cart. He resisted the urge to look directly at him and instead looked to Chica, then closed his eyes momentarily, then opened them and began to talk to her once again. His tone shifted, becoming a little jauntier and louder.

"It will be alright, Chica. All of this can be fixed. You will be back to showtime ready in no time! Now we just need to get you to Parts and Service. Now I should warn you, we had quite the time getting here…"

Gregory didn't understand it until he got a message on his Fazwatch. He raised it close to his ear and listened.

"Gregory, sneak past while I distract Chica. Go back the way we came and find a place to hide. I will come find you when it is safe."

Freddy's tone on the watch betrayed his true feelings. It was dead serious and brimming with its own kind of fear. Gregory could tell from that tone that Freddy finally knew what kind of threat Chica was, and he knew he couldn't stick around to get spotted.

Every nerve in his body was screaming at him to run for the hills as fast as possible, but instead he forced himself to stay quiet and cautiously stepped out of his hiding spot. He began to creep back in the direction they had come from. Making his way right behind Chica while Freddy continued to prattle on in an attempt to keep her attention. It was hard to tell if he was when she wouldn't even look at him.

Gregory was almost past the carts. He was almost at the way they came in. He didn't know how Freddy expected him to see with it being so dim and nothing more than his watch to light his way, but he didn't need to be told twice. He kept his eyes on the back of her head as he crept past, paying no attention to Freddy's chattering, only able to hear the humming in his ears as he passed. He held his breath as he inched past. Watching her sway, watching her back.

Watching as her head suddenly spun around.

Gregory gasped and watched as those eyes whirled and locked onto him. She let out an ear-piercing shriek at the sight of him and then with no further warning broke into a run. She was much faster than he could've expected, up upon him in seconds as Gregory jumped back, back against the side of the laundry cart. He stared up in fear as she towered over him, only to watch Freddy hook his arms around her waist and yank her back.

Chica struggled against Freddy's grip, flailing and fighting against him, pushing it to its limit. Eventually even hooking a hand back to shove at his head, her fingers catching across his eyes until he had to turn away. He finally used all his strength to lift her off the ground.

"Gregory, RUN!" he cried.

Gregory jumped to his feet and made a mad dash back the way he came. All the while Freddy continued to fight, but his attempts to stop her was his own downfall. Literally. Lifting her threw off his balance once she started thrashing all of her limbs, and suddenly the whole world tilted before he fell flat on his back on the wet muck. He laid there like a statue for a moment until Chica planted her feet and broke out of his grip, getting right back up as her body cracked and popped beneath her.

He desperately caught her leg. "Chica, stop! Let him go! Leave him be!" he pleaded.

She didn't acknowledge him at all. She kicked her leg forward, yanking it from his grasp, fell into the step with a lopsided stagger and then broke into a clumsy run. One arm reaching out desperately before her while the other, the one that had shed most of its plating, continued to dangle at her side uselessly. Freddy fumbled to his feet and ran after her shortly after.

Foxy proceeded to all but throw himself over the trash and skid down the other side. The motion knocked loose a headless Staff Bot that proceeded to tumble into the hole and land onto Baby. She gave an agitated huff and shoved it off with both arms, only to promptly start sinking into the muck beneath. She gave a frightened cry and grappled at the trash in front of her. Fear quickly turned to panic as she struggled to regain a latch, with everything sliding down as easily as she did.

She finally shoved her claw in deep and used that to leverage herself. By then the trash was pushing up the pleats of her skirt, signaling that she had sunken in a few more inches. She felt something shift on her ankle and sting.

Suddenly Foxy came flying down the trash beside her and barely stopped himself with a foot on the wall from going into the muck.

"You okay?! What happened?!" he asked. He had heard the shriek and ran back for her.

Normally she would've been embarrassed to be caught in such a state, but in this case it was the last thing on her mind. She grabbed for him and took his hand when he held it out for her, clutching on for dear life.

"Don't go!" she pleaded. "Don't leave me alone! Please! I'll sink!"

Foxy couldn't remember ever seeing his sister in such a state of desperation. Though then again, he hadn't seen her in a situation this precarious. She had already started to sink down further, he realized, and the grip with her claw looked much looser.

He found himself stuck with an impossible choice.

Meanwhile, Gregory had managed to make it back to the wooden bridge and started crossing. Fear pushed him out on that bridge and it wasn't until he was halfway across that the fear started to creep in. Nobody was here to help him if he fell, so he had to make sure he didn't. He threw pride to the wind at that point and got down to crawl the rest of the way across. It was safer, less slippery, and he was almost there.

That was when he heard the wild footsteps coming. He turned back to look over his shoulder, wobbling as he did, and watched Chica run down the same path and after him. Thankfully, there was no way the bridge was going to hold her.

Except, Gregory had a bad feeling that the bridge wasn't going to stop her either. He turned back ahead and began to crawl as fast as he could to the other side.

His assumption was right as Chica started to run across the bridge after him. It shaking and creaking loudly under her weight. There was a loud crack of wood, but it still held, and as he got to his feet and ran into the next tunnel, he could hear her following right behind him. The bridge complaining under her weight but holding long enough to get her to the other side.

"Oh, great!" Gregory thought. Of course, Chica would be able to make it. Then he returned to thinking of nothing but running as fast as he could and getting back to the others.

Only to find his way unceremoniously blocked by a fence they had passed through earlier. It had been open and they had walked straight through, but now the gate was closed. A black cable weaved through the fence to keep it closed.

"No, no, no!" he cried. He grabbed the fence door with both hands and tried to shake it open, but he wasn't strong enough to force it open and he didn't have enough time to even consider unweaving the wires.

He turned back in time to see Chica running up the way towards him. With no other option, Gregory ran for his life down a separate tunnel and into the unknown darkness. Weaving through mounds of trash as the air grew heavier with moisture and decay. In the distance he spotted a reddish light and ran for it only to run up upon yet another bridge of flimsy wooden planks. He held out his arms and quickly rushed across the short bridge and into a tunnel.

The tunnels were tighter than the ones he had seen before. Walls of cement and trash were held back by frames of wood and a soggy floor was sucking at his shoes. The red lights sent an ominous glow over the tunnel, but only in the sections that it actually illuminated. Most of the time it was nearly pitch dark and Gregory had no idea where he was going, just had to keep running.

The only thing that got him to stop was the sound of footsteps. Chica's clumsy quick footsteps, and for some reason they sounded in front of him instead of behind. Or maybe it was behind him. It was almost impossible to tell as her footsteps seem to run past before slowing to a dragging stroll. He tried to make sense of what direction she was in and then decided to turn around and start running back only to immediately walk into a new problem.

The path broke into two tunnels. He hadn't even seen a second tunnel running this way, so he had no idea which one was the right one. He turned around and tried to judge from what he saw. Maybe the left path? But that would lead him closer to the sound of her footsteps. He decided to take the further path that led into the darkness. He quietly walked over planks laid out on the ground, feeling around the gross, wet wall to see as he listened to the whirring shrieks and wails move around him.

By time he made it back into the light he could see a tunnel leading into numerous paths and had no idea which one led where. It was like a maze, and he had nowhere to go but forward quietly. The footsteps were getting louder but he couldn't tell where they were coming from. Everything echoed in the tunnels and when he turned his head the sounds seemed to shift where they were, making impossible to pinpoint their origin, but they were getting closer.

Gregory made a run for it down another path. By now it felt like the walls were closing in around him. Panting only filled his lungs with the thick air and made him want to cough, but he couldn't risk that much noise and pushed through. He could hear her stomping around somewhere He ran as fast as he could, certain he was finally getting away from her as the path turned deeper into the darkness. nearby.

Until suddenly he saw a change in the scenery and a familiar wall enwrapped in black plastic. He saw something similar when he had come in and realized he had to have looped back around to the entrance. With a burst of adrenaline, he ran out into the tunnel-

-right as Chica was coming down the other way.

Gregory took a sharp left and right the other way, only to find himself immediately at a dead end. What looked like the beginning of another tunnel came to an immediate halt and he was trapped inside. Looking back, he realized that Chica hadn't noticed him yet and shoved himself against the wall, crouching down and curling his body tightly into a nook there, using it as his only chance at a hiding spot.

Chica continued to saunter in his direction, staggering past the entrance and following the path. Her head continued to roll and bob with every unsteady step, little shudders occasionally shooting through her body. Gregory pressed tighter into the wall as he watched her inch closer and closer. So close that he could nearly feel the ground shaking after each of her heavy footsteps. Her voice box hazy with static even when she wasn't shrieking.

She was the scariest thing he had ever seen. He thought Chica had been bad, but he was wrong. She had been annoying and irritating, but now she was a monster.

He closed his eyes and pressed tighter into the wall as she got close, hoping and praying that she would just pass by without noticing him. He waited, heart pounding between every heavy footstep.

"Just go. Just go. Just go."

Chica swayed to a stop at the turn into the tunnel. For a moment she just stared ahead and Gregory could only hold his breath and stay perfectly still in the hopes that she would keep going. She shivered and rolled her head around.

Then she halted, body half tilted and head laying on her shoulder. Sliding just the slightest bit closer as her eyes struggled to fixate on the same point.

And then…

She shrieked, and he knew she saw him. His eyes opened and he looked up to her in fear. She had definitely seen him. She stomped in place, nearly staggering to the side before righting herself and coming at him with her hand outreached for him.

He should've run, but he couldn't. He just pressed tighter into the nook and frantically yelled out, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" as though it would stop her. It didn't.

His eyes filling up with tears as his heart climbed up his throat. Chica reached for him and he threw his arm up to shield himself, shut his eyes, and braced himself.

"CHICA, STOP!"

Gregory's eyes opened again only to see the glow of a flashlight shining on Chica's back. Chica was leaning directly over him. So close that he could smell trash and pizza wafting from her and feel the heat radiating off her body. Her crushed face much too close to his own. One of her eye lids blinked lazily while the other seemed to be stuck, and her eyes wandered around distantly as though she was trying to recognize the voice. Gregory knew who it was immediately.

"Chica, step back from him right now," Natalie commanded. She stood at the entranceway with her heavy-duty flashlight trained right on Chica's back. "I said now."

Chica finally straightened herself with a backwards stagger and twisted her head around to look towards Natalie. The blond flinched at the sight of her face and grimaced, but then quickly regained her no-nonsense look.

"That's it. Come back over here. Slowly," she guided.

The broken animatronic started to slowly step and turn, twisting her head as she did, eventually lining the two up. She took a few slow, labored steps towards the security guard. Her eyes remained locked onto the blond as she made her way towards her.

"Good, good. Alright… We're going to have to get you into Parts and Service ASAP. But don't worry, I'm sure we can get you repaired by morning, and if not then we can get management- hey, whoa."

Chica reached for Natalie who took a step back and raised a hand as though deflecting her. She couldn't help but be on guard with how Chica was eyeballing her.

"Don't do that, okay? I know you might be confused, but just trust me here- stop." Natalie had to physically push back Chica's hand when she reached towards her face. In that second, something in Chica must've flipped as she suddenly lunged forward and grabbed ahold of her by the shoulder and the wrist of the arm that held the flashlight. Natalie gasped and tried to push her off. "Chica?! What are you doing?! Get off!" she tried to get through to her. "It's me, Vanessa! Stand down, now!"

But like with Freddy before her, Chica seemed to hold no obvious recognition in her eyes. They focused on Natalie, but they had the glassiness of a malfunctioning robot more than a sentient creature. Her hands were burning hot and her grip as tight as a vice.

That was when Fritz threw himself in and started trying to help her force Chica off. He managed to pry her arm off of Natalie's as she kicked at the bot's legs and tried to pull her other arm free. It worked, sending her staggering into the wall, but Chica proceeded to swing that released arm and grab Fritz by the hair before pulling him in. He unhooked his taser from his belt.

"Fritz-!"

Then with one sharp shove in the chest so he could yank himself back, swung forward and landed the taser directly on the exposed metal of Chica's arm. Volts of electricity shot through her body, and she convulsed. Her broken voice box glitching and trembling before the taser was drawn back away. Chica staggered momentarily before falling backwards against the opposite wall of the tunnel, sliding down, and then landing on her side. Her beak falling loose of her face, only connected to her head by some wires.

She twitched a little before going completely still, silent, laying there on the ground before the two. Both in a state of shock.

It took Fritz a moment before he spoke, "I think… I think I might've overloaded her."

"What does that mean?" Natalie asked.

"Hopefully that she's staying down…" He turned to look down the tunnel and spotted Gregory. He made a hand gesture for Natalie to get back away from Chica before running over to the boy and crouching down beside him. "Hey. Gregory? Are you okay?"

Gregory was equally in shock at the whole thing. Here he was thinking he was about to die and then suddenly the mean security guard and some random guy shocked her to death, or at least knocked her back out. He didn't know how to feel.

He wiped his eyes off on the back of his hand. "I-I'm okay," he said.

"Are you sure?" Gregory nodded and while he didn't look great, Fritz decided not to press in this state. "Okay. Come on, let's get you up."

He helped Gregory to his feet and brushed some of the stuff off him. There was some sort of black dirt on his clothes and he looked at the wall, then around at their surroundings, only then noticing how weird they looked.

"What is this, some kind of garbage tunnel?" Fritz asked.

"It's like a garbage maze. There's a bunch of paths and stuff back there," Gregory quietly answered, still rubbing his face.

"…This is a very weird place you've got here," Fritz remarked.

"Thanks. Every time I walk through a door it's like walking into a completely different building," Natalie replied. She rubbed her hand over Fritz's upper back before resting it on his shoulder. "You're okay?"

"Oh yeah. Not the first time I've been grabbed by a broken animatronic. Remember, I worked with the Mangle," Fritz jokingly proclaimed.

Natalie turned her attention towards Gregory and he nearly shirked under her gaze, feeling just as cornered as he had with Chica. "Okay, Kiddo-."

"Gregory?!"

Freddy's call came from somewhere outside the tunnel. Gregory's head snapped over in its direction.

"Freddy! I'm in here!" he called back. He then made a run for him, staying as far away from Chica as he could as he ran out.

"Careful!" Natalie called after him.

The best he could do was slow down slightly over the bridge because once he spotted Freddy coming around the trash he all but ran full speed for him.

"Freddy!"

Freddy's eyes alit as he spotted the boy. "Gregory!"

He started to kneel and Gregory prepared himself to hop right into the bear's stomach hatch and back into safety. He raced up and went to jump in, but instead of climbing into his chest, he was caught by his arms and pulled against it. Freddy pulled him into a hug.

It took Gregory off-guard for a second. Any other time he might've been quick to remind Freddy that they were in the middle of all this and that he didn't need a hug like some scared little kid. But he made an exception, because right now he felt a whole lot like one. He leaned into the embrace and let Freddy hold him.

"I was so worried! I am so sorry, Gregory. Truly sorry. More than that! I may have let you down, but… I should have protected you…" Freddy quietly finished.

Gregory felt something welling up inside of him. He didn't know if it was a scream or tears- it was too late for one and he really didn't want to shed the other- and though he tried to fight it, it was all creeping up. He was afraid. He was beyond afraid of everything. Of what Chica had become, of the Security Lady finding out all about their nighttime visits, about Freddy finding out. The guilt of what he had done and what he was hiding; it was all too much.

"…I pushed her in!"

Freddy was a little confused. "What?" Into what, more like, assuming that Gregory had shoved Chica into a ditch or the like.

That was not the case, as shown by the dire look when he pulled back to face Freddy. His face pinkened and his eyes glossy. The thought that Gregory might've been crying both surprised and alarmed Freddy.

"I… I pushed Chica into the trash compactor… I turned it on too… I- I know it was wrong but they were fighting and I just wanted them to stop it, and Chica had been- and I didn't think about it, but then I saw her all crushed and I felt bad, but I was afraid if I told you that you would hate me and make me leave," Gregory rambled. Freddy stared wide-eyed at the confession. Gregory looked away, the burning returning to his eyes. "…I'm sorry, Freddy. It's my fault. I did all of this…"

He waited for the reaction and the longer it took the more nervous he was. He waited for a yell or a glare, which was why he couldn't look at Freddy right now. At worst he might get a shove, but he doubted that with Freddy. Freddy wouldn't hurt anybody.

So he waited, and waited, and waited, and then finally Freddy reacted.

Freddy slowly pulled him back into a hug.

"It is okay, Gregory," Freddy quietly assured. "It is alright. It will be okay. We can fix this together."

Gregory was utterly floored. He pulled back enough to look up at Freddy and, sure enough, he looked sad but not angry. Though sad was also pretty upsetting in its own way.

"You're not mad?" he asked in surprise.

"At you? Of course not. The only one I am upset with…"

Was Chica? Was Ennard? Was that Afton fellow?

"Is myself."

"You shouldn't be. I'm the one who did it. I knew it was wrong," Gregory insisted.

"Gregory, I consider you my dear friend and I think you are very brave and intelligent for your age… but you are still a child. It is not your responsibility to have to protect yourself," Freddy said. There was more that he didn't say, not wanting to seem like he was talking down to him, but he couldn't imagine that Gregory could've understood the repercussions of his actions. Even a scared adult might have done the same, and in the end it truly fell on his shoulders.

Their conversation was cut off prematurely by Ennard running up on Freddy so fast that he practically fell into him. Stopping himself with his hands on the bear's shoulders, then patting them.

"What's up?! Did you find her?!" he asked. Freddy nodded and turned back to look up at him.

"We found them both. Foxy is with Baby now, but she is stuck. Go down that path, walk the cement edge by the wooden bridge, past the open fence, and a left down the first tunnel. There will be a large room. Just call for Foxy and follow his voice to where she is."

"Bingo!" Ennard proclaimed. He then promptly turned and made a dash for it. Scott lingered a moment.

"You're all alright?" he asked.

"We're fine!" Natalie called. Her and Fritz crossing the wooden bridge. "Go on ahead! We're right behind you!"

So, Scott did. Nodding, turning, and hustling after Ennard. Almost bumping into Charlie and Marionette who arrived at the tunnel a moment later.

"They found Baby," Scott quickly repeated before hurrying ahead.

Charlie and Marionette exchanged a look before starting to go after them. However, Marionette stopped right afterward and sent a look back into the tunnel, towards the others. Charlie stopped and turned back to him and he silently waved her on. She nodded and hurried off after Scott as he headed into the tunnel to see to the others.

"We can talk about this more later, but for now, we should help Foxy with Baby. Then I can take Chica to Parts and Service," Freddy explained. He opened up his stomach hatch. "I think I can handle carrying you past the bridge if that is alright."

"Sure." Gregory eagerly climbed inside. Freddy patted his backpack as he did so and carefully closed himself up before standing. Then he looked to Natalie and Fritz, the latter of which gestured back.

"We'll come back for Chica?" Fritz asked. Freddy nodded in solemn agreement.

"You found Chica?" Marionette quietly asked. "How is she?"

"She's seen better days…" Natalie confessed.

"Better nights too," Fritz agreed.

Freddy turned to face him, and his eyes landed on the objects Marionette still cradled in his arms. His eyes widened and he audibly gasped. The Puppet only then realized his mistake but couldn't correct it before Freddy came up to him. He reached out and rested his hands on Marionette's folded arms, looking down at all the broken merchandise in his arms. His hands nearly shaking, his eyes filled with so much sadness.

Then he looked up to Marionette's face and quietly asked, "You found these down here…?"

Marionette's face softened with sympathy and even without explanation he suddenly knew all he needed to. He nodded apologetically.

Freddy looked devastated. His breath hitched, or he made the noise of doing so, and he lifted one hand to trace his fingertips across some of the merchandise. Then he closed his hand and drew it and himself back, holding it to his chest.

"…We need to go help Baby. She is stuck where she is… But please, do not lose these… I will explain everything later on," Freddy said.

Once again, Marionette nodded. He shifted all the stuff into one arm and laid a hand on the back of Freddy's as they made their way out of the tunnel. He sent a glance back towards Fritz and Natalie and could see that they shared solemn and empathetic looks. They knew too. They all knew just from the way that Freddy reacted. He patted the bear's arm and guided him along, keeping his hand there even when Freddy reached to take the plush Bonnie from him and held it in his hands.

Freddy traced his thumb over the star pattern and sighed before lifting his head and leading the way back into the basement.

…

…

Chica's body lay dormant just inside the tunnels. She had completely shut down, was entirely unresponsive, laying there in the dirt waiting to be gathered up and taken to parts and service. Not a movement. Not a sound.

Not from her.

Not even when the cables slide along the edge of her dislodged beak. Not even when they slid past and followed the wires inside, hooking themselves onto the voice box hidden inside. With one firm yank, it was dislodged from her head and dragged away.

Then it was silent once more, and this time it would stay that way.

Chapter 53

Chapter Summary

Everyone bands together to free Baby while Freddy deals with the aftereffects of all that has happened...

Ennard regretted not asking Freddy about the state Baby was in because the suspense was killing him. Even when he was running through the tunnels in the direction Freddy had pointed him in, he felt the worry creeping up. He barely stopped himself long enough to look back and check to make sure Scott was following, just to keep an eye on him after the run in with the Staff Bots earlier. Any of these dozens of suckers could spring to life at any moment.

Finally, Ennard made it to the bridge and dropped down from the short ledge and right in front of those wooden planks. He eyeballed them for a second, considering taking the plunge and running across it, but then found his better judgement winning over and got over onto the same ledge that Freddy and Foxy walked on. Right as he did, Scott came running out of the tunnel behind him.

"Hold on! Hold on! I'm coming!" he called.

Ennard waited for him to climb down and over the railing before locking their arms and pulling him close. He then began to cautiously walk down the ledge while kicking aside the trash so Scott could get through undeterred. The man in question keeping his eyes trained directly on the ledge beneath the to keep them from wandering into the drop.

That was when Charlie caught up and hopped down next. She glanced between the flimsy plank bridge and the concrete ledge the two were walking on before deciding to sacrifice safety for speed and darted across.

Ennard heard her running and quickly looked back, then raised his fist with, "Woo! There she go-!"

Which was promptly cut off by a loud crack as the wood at the base of the planks splintered and began to fold in like a house of cards. All while Ennard and Scott watched, the clown's mouth dropping open.

Charlie realized her mistake the second she heard that noise and had almost no time to react before the wood underneath her started tilting to the side. Before she could be thrown completely off balance, she leapt forward and towards the ledge on the other side. Only to hit it at chest height and barely catch herself with her arms before she could drop into the pit looming below. A hit that would've knocked all the wind out of her lungs if she still had them but still punctuated with an "Oof!" and a ring.

Scott watched her near fall with bated breath. Though her catching herself offered little relief when she was hanging precariously on the edge. He frantically pushed at Ennard's side, signaling to him that he was fine and to go to her, being the faster of the two.

Ennard must've taken this insistent poke a different way than intended because the next thing Scott knew his feet were swept out from under him and he was scooped into his arms. He could only go rigid as his fate was very literally thrust into Ennard's hands as the clown hastily sidle-strode the rest of the way along the ledge. Not putting the man down until he climbed over the fence still carrying him, then rather abruptly plopped him down on his feet and reached to help Charlie who was pushing herself up with her elbows.

"Congrats, Kiddo! You jumped the gorge!" he playfully celebrated. Then all but hoisted her up onto the edge and helped her to her feet.

"What happened?" Marionette called. Him coming through the tunnel with Freddy and then Fritz and Natalie on his heels. The bear took one look at the room and noticed a significant difference.

"The bridge fell!" he gasped. "I had a feeling that would happen. It was barely more than planks of woods. I am surprised Chica was able to get across it."

Marionette looked over the edge and could see part of the rather flimsy structure jutting up from how it collapsed in on itself. That alone revealing how shoddily it was crafted. He looked down at it for a long moment before turning back to Freddy.

"How on earth did she do that?" he asked.

"…Surprisingly good craftmanship?" Freddy guessed.

"You should've seen it, Mari! But I'll let her tell you about it!" Ennard hastily finished up. Then he turned and was continuing up the path, hustling with Scott and Charlie short on his heels.

Freddy took over leading Fritz and Natalie to the ledge while Marionette gave a quick spin and appeared instantly beside Charlie. She hesitated only momentarily before continuing to follow Scott and Ennard, with Marionette seamlessly keeping up alongside of her.

"You didn't really jump it, did you?" he asked. His voice held both shades of worry and excitement. A nice contrast to the consistent anxiousness since they had heard about Baby.

"He's exaggerating. It was more like half of it," Charlie said only half-joking. His brow raised a little; a little more concern, slightly more quizzical. "Don't worry about it. I'm here, aren't I?"

"I would be much more worried if you weren't," Marionette replied.

That seemed to be the end of it until a moment later when Charlie caught him slowly looking at her out of the corner of her eye. There was a change in his expression and that smile looked a lot more like a smirk. She looked back at him, but his head snapped away instantly, leaving her unable to catch him in the act. She returned him her own questioning look before slowly turning back ahead when it became clear he wasn't going to take the bait. If anything, she had taken his.

She had a hunch that look had something to do with Baby. Though she was certainly not biting on that hook by asking.

They followed Scott who was barely keeping up with Ennard as he passed the open fence and darted left down the first tunnel as instructed. Though he was just as eager to find Baby, and it wasn't long until they were in the large room Freddy pointed them towards.

"Baby!" Ennard cupped his hands and called.

"Ennard!"

Ennard bolted, suddenly breaking into a sprint that could've rivaled Foxy's. He pinpointed the voice and hastily climbed up the mound of trash he had heard her voice come from.

"Don't land on me! Be careful!" Baby frantically called.

He obediently moved over enough to be deemed safe before hopping over the top and sliding down into the pit. All but landing directly on top of Foxy and both barely stopping themselves before he could take them both into the grime.

"Whoa! Sorry, Bud! I didn't see ya there!" Ennard apologized, shifting back a little but still all but directly over top of him.

"For cryin' out loud, Ennard, look before ya leap!" Foxy snapped.

"Next time, I promise," Ennard assured. Then he leaned over top of Foxy and turned his attention fully to Baby. He reached for her with one hand while bracing himself on the trash with the other. "You okay, Babydoll? Gosh, you had us all scared shirtless!"

He gently petted the back of her head. That motion alone signaled how afraid he had been, and probably still was as his eyes briefly darted down to the grime she was wading in. The comforting touch was a reprieve from the stress her body was currently undergoing, and she slid her eyes partially closed as she accepted the touch.

"I'm fine… No, I'm not fine. I'm sinking," Baby quickly corrected. Snapping her eyes back open and readjusting her grip to not get too comfortable.

Ennard darted his eyes down to the grime again and stared, and with his stillness she realized he was moments from likely panic. So, she tried to defuse the situation she stirred.

"But I have a hold of myself. For now, at least. I can't hold on forever, but you have time to get me out."

"And that's exactly what we're gonna do!" Ennard chirped, snapping right back into character.

"Ennard, get offa me," Foxy grumbled.

"In a minute."

"Foxy? Baby?" Marionette quietly called as he peered down from above.

"She's here, Lad. We both are," Foxy replied. He gestured his head sideways towards her. "But she's much worse off."

"I'm sunk to my bloomers in filth in a smelly pit in the back corner of a garbage dump hidden underneath a mall," Baby grumbled out.

"Oh, Lizzie…" Marionette said softly. He already sounded like he could start crying at any moment.

"She'll be fine! We just gotta get her outta here fast, so if you guys could look around for something to tow her out with," Ennard suggested.

"Tow," Baby hmphed.

"Freddy was looking fer chains 'fore Chica showed up an' he ran off after her," Foxy suggested.

"Chains. Alright," Marionette agreed, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. "…Maybe I could find something in that parking garage. I could probably hop back there."

"Smart thinking! Go ahead, we'll keep 'er up!" Marionette was gone in the blink of an eye. With him gone, Foxy craned his head back to look up at Ennard. "Is Gregory alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, Freddy's got him," Ennard assured.

"Good. I would've gone after 'em meself, but I didn't want to risk climbing out of here and knocking anything loose."

Baby sent Foxy a quick thankful look for covering for her. Nobody else needed to know how frightened she had been.

"What about Chica?" Foxy asked.

"Not sure, but she's not a problem for now," Ennard said.

"Baby!" Scott called from the safety of the clearing. Only staying back because he knew putting himself in danger to climb over there would just get in the way. "Baby, I'm here with Charlie! We're going to get you out, I promise!"

"That's right! We'll have you smelling like birthday cake and kitten milk in no time!" Ennard chirped.

Freddy, Fritz, and Natalie arrived before Marionette returned. They, along with Charlie and Scott, began to search around for whatever they could use. Marionette got back with an armful of cables right around the same time that had pulled out yet another tangle of Christmas lights and they decided in the end to just use the cable. It was thick enough that it would likely hold her weight.

Marionette and Charlie climbed the mound first. Or Charlie climbed and Marionette raised to the top before feeding the cable down. Ennard was quick to hook it around Baby's middle, as she couldn't even let go long enough to do so. The Puppets then fed down their wires. They decided to weave them together to strengthen them, a decision made when Charlie's string got wrapped up in Marionette's. His four weaving in with her two and working together to lower down to Baby.

Baby noticed the wires and sacrificed her grip with her hand before reaching up to grab onto them. The strings immediately reacted, twisting around her hand and wrist and even sliding into her arm. She shuddered as she felt one wrapping into her armature.

Foxy watched the setup before giving Ennard a quick bump in the chest with his elbow.

"Oiy, go help them pull. I'll stay here and make sure she comes out smooth," he instructed.

Ennard rubbed his chest before tilting his head down to shoot him a grin. "Are you just saying that to get rid of me?"

"Now yer getting it. Off."

Thankfully, Ennard obeyed. He gave Baby one last assuring pat and then carefully scaled the wall and trash. A lot easier than he had, Foxy noted. A professional in scaling trash, he snorted at the thought.

Ennard grabbed the cable from Marionette on the way over and swiftly slid his way down to the bottom. Freddy released Gregory from his stomach hatch before taking ahold of the cable. Fritz and Natalie stood aside with him while Scott climbed up to the front to grab onto the cable, stretching his sleeves up over his hands to get a less abrasive grip on it. He was quite aware that his contribution to this one-sided tug-of-war was less much impactful, but any effort had to help.

"Ready to go, Captain!" Freddy called.

"Ya ready?" Foxy asked Baby. She simply nodded. "A'right, Hearties! Give it all ye got! Heave… Ho!"

With that, everybody pulled with all their might on the cable and twined strings. It started to uproot Baby out of the muck rather quickly. She was immediately pulled back up to the position she had slid from earlier, but then something grew heavy on her legs. She pulled her claw free and tried to grab higher above to assist in pulling as they gave another tug. This time there seemed to be an abnormal amount of restraint.

"Gabe, I think there is something caught on my legs," Baby forewarned. They group gave another pull and she gave a slight gasp as a tightening pain increased around her knee. A flash of heat in the chilly muck.

"Hold 'er there! She's caught on somethin', but don't let 'er slip!" Foxy forewarned. He then slid himself down further and poked his hook down into the muck.

He got it wrist deep but didn't feel anything and grumbled before sticking his arm further down inside. It was never pleasant to peel back one's own plushy flesh to clean it, but he would manage. He hadn't come this far to get prissy about a little muck.

He bumped something made of metal. It almost felt like there was something heavy laying against Baby's legs. He hooked the edge and tried to pull it back a bit. "Give a short pull! Real soft like, to see if I got it."

The others went along as told and gave another shorter tug. Baby slid further out of the muck but let out a low hiss of pain. Something still had her, and Foxy reached down to pull it away.

Only to have whatever it was tug back.

"Gah!" Foxy gave a short cry and barely caught himself before totally tumbling down into the muck. "Somethin's got me!"

"Captain?!" Freddy called in concern.

"Foxy, what is it?!" Charlie called as well.

Foxy couldn't answer. He could just struggle to pull off. Which he did until Baby twisted herself enough to get her claw on him and help assist in pulling him out of a muck.

A rusty metal hand was clamped tight onto his hook.

Suddenly the muck erupted in chaos. A faceless Staff Bot head with a broken eye and a grime filled speaker emerged from the water and reached out for Foxy with its other hand, which he promptly snapped his jaws down onto. Two more bots were crawling out, one of which was clinging directly to Baby's legs, and yet another set of arms reached out from the depths. A bundle of broken Staff Bots dragging them both down.

"PULL! PULL!" Foxy yelled.

The group obeyed and started to pull with all their might. By now Marionette and Charlie were both staring down at the nightmarish view, the former reaching down for his sister even before she was close enough to properly reach. She couldn't reach back, with one arm tangled in strings and her claw hooked onto Foxy- which was the only reason he was being moved at all because he was currently fighting off the whole mass himself.

It hurt to touch them. It burned with an uncomfortable heat, but that didn't stop him from shoving and soon kicking with all his might. His feet were still wrapped up tight and not holding back as he kicked one's head clean off. Disturbingly, that didn't stop its arms from grabbing at him until he was yanked up a little further. The Staff Bot who gripped Baby's legs still dangled off of her until she began to kick and then Foxy began to kick at it, finally shaking it loose.

From that point it was only a matter of time. Baby was pulled up over the edge and with a short cry ended up sliding down the other side. Her loose grip on Foxy, as to not hurt him, failed and Foxy almost began sliding back down into the still squirming pit of bots until Marionette grabbed him around the shoulders.

"I've got you," he said before pulling him back. Foxy kicking his feet to help push him up the rest of the way until they were sitting together atop the mound.

Foxy and Marionette stared down at the Staff Bots for a long moment. Then looked back at the scene to check on Baby. Charlie had started to help her up, but she only got as far as on her knees before Ennard had pounced and pulled her into a tight hug. Scott joined in, his leg sinking a half a foot into trash before he awkwardly fell on one knee, then hugged her as well. Freddy was watching the reunion with a contented smile and his hands on his hips.

Foxy looked back at the Staff Bots, Marionette followed suit, and then they looked to each other. They sat there silently for only another moment before Foxy buckled.

"What the hell was that?" he asked.

"I don't know… There's something very wrong down here," Marionette replied.

"Yeah. You're tellin' me," Foxy retorted. He lifted his legs over and slid down the trash heap and up onto his feet. He dusted himself best he could before looking back towards his brother. Marionette peered into the pit a moment longer before following him.

Freddy was currently in the middle of introducing himself to Baby. Leaning over and taking her hand and offering her an apologetic, "You must be Circus Baby! I have heard quite a bit about you. My apologies that we had to meet under such circumstances."

"Likewise," Baby agreed. Absentmindedly brushing muck off her skirt once her hand was free. "Thank you for your assistance."

"It was no trouble… Well, perhaps a little trouble, but that is due to the poor condition of this basement. If this situation did not require full secrecy, I would file a formal complaint… Oh! Please allow me to help you back onto steady ground."

It surprised Foxy how cordial Freddy was being with Baby considering everything that happened. Maybe he saw Ennard as being more at fault than her, or perhaps he put his feeling aside because of what they had just pulled Baby out of. Though Foxy then shot down both ideas. More than likely Freddy was just blaming himself instead of anyone else. Foxy shook his head.

Then he noticed Marionette picking up some stuff off the ground and piling it into his arms. It looked like dirty merchandise, but he had his back to him so he couldn't get a good look at it. He did see a plush toy though and he was struck by the disturbing thought that Marionette could've gathered a bunch of stuff out of the trash to clean up and keep.

He didn't know what was more troublesome, the thought that his brother would pick through trash to salvage toys, which he had never seen him do but seemed like a very 'Mari' thing to do, or the thought that he would do that for a bunch of Pizzaplex merch.

He strode over to him and crossed his arms. "Lad, what've you got there?" he asked flatly.

Marionette paused in place. Foxy thought this was because he caught him in the act, and that thought didn't change until the Puppet turned around and he got an eyeful of the merch. His less than enthused look turning to confusion as he saw what was very clearly a Bonnie depicted on it. That confusion turned to shock, and he then looked to Marionette in disbelief. He clutched the items a little tighter.

"Freddy said he would explain everything after we got Chica to Parts and Service…" Marionette quietly said.

Foxy turned to look at Freddy. He was now leaning over to let Gregory climb back inside and didn't notice the fox's stare until a few moments later. He then noticed, and it didn't take him more than a second longer to notice Marionette standing alongside him and the looks on their faces. His face fell, a look of hurt or guilt taking his eyes, and he turned away. Instead looking to Natalie who was making motions for them to start heading out.

"Maybe you should talk to him about it," Marionette suggested.

"Aye… Where'd ye find that stuff?"

"…In a massive pile further into the basement. There was so much of it, Gabe, I can't even begin to imagine…"

That was it. Foxy knew Freddy had been hiding something. He wasn't sure how he had the hunch, but he had. He just had a feeling that there was something Freddy was constantly dodging. The bowling supplies in his room but the entire lack of interest in going up to the bowling alley. The vague answers and anecdotes he gave about 'friends' without naming who they were. Now it was out in the open, and now Foxy would get to the bottom of it.

In due time. They had more important things to deal with first.

Before Marionette could pass by, Foxy grabbed his arm and gently pulled him in.

"We break it to the others later. We don't need to rile up a panic when we've got Chica half-maimed, so you've gotta try and keep it together," Foxy forewarned in a whisper. Marionette looked to him in confusion before Foxy continued, "Those bots that grabbed Baby were burnin' up with that same stuff you said was on that Scarecrow Baby. That hot, stinging touch."

Marionette's eyes widened and his head snapped over. "Do you think it came from Baby?"

"No. No voices, not a word, just a painful touch. I don't think she was down there long enough to do somethin' like that," Foxy said. Though he might've been guessing, the puppet couldn't help but agree. It wouldn't make sense for this to be different than last time.

Besides, there was someone else here who had that infection on them. Someone far detached from the emaciated Baby that had broken into Scott's house.

Vanny.

That was very concerning.

"I'm losing ya, Lad."

Marionette snapped out of it and shook his head.

"No, no. I'm fine. You're right, we should discuss this later. Maybe on the drive home when things are calming down."

"Aye. Get 'em all riled back up!" Foxy proclaimed. Marionette managed a smarmy look and then a small chime.

This really wasn't worth laughing about but he would take what he could. They let it drop as they regrouped with the others.

Getting back to Chica took longer than getting to Baby had, having to balance so many people getting across that cement ledge. As nervous wracking as Baby crossing in roller skates seemed, she actually got across it quickly and easily. Rolling along closer to the edge than Scott felt comfortable with to avoid as much of the garbage as she could, and to prove that she didn't need assistance after that embarrassing display that everyone present had witnessed.

Eventually they made it back to the tunnel. Fritz, Natalie, Charlie, and Ennard were the ones who headed in to look at Chica, with the others staying just outside the bridge to not crowd- and more importantly, to not break yet another rickety section of walkway.

Chica was laying in the same position that they had left her in. Fritz went to crouch down beside her while Natalie shined her light over her, and Ennard and Charlie stopped at the entrance.

"Wow," Charlie said in shock.

"Yeaaaaah," Ennard said tensely. His jaw tight and his eyes showing a sizeable remorse as he took in the scene. He nervously rubbed his hands together before clasping them tight. "Well, let's get this show on the road! Fritz, you roll her over and I'll tote her out."

"It's a deal. Just nice and easy…" Fritz had to use a little more strength than 'nice and easy' but got her more on her back. Which was when he noticed the massive hole in her face and started to look around. "Wait, where's her beak?"

"What?" Natalie asked. She shined her light at the hole and was surprised to see that the sunken-in beak was no longer there. Now it was just exposed endoskeleton, making her face look even more disfigured and sapping away the last ounce of approachability. Natalie frantically scanned the floor for the missing mouth. "It must have come off when she fell." Fritz was looking around as well and found nothing, giving Natalie a shrug. "It's got to be here. Could it have gotten shoved underneath her?" she asked.

Fritz rolled Chica and Natalie crouched down to hold her as he continued to look around and under her. Yet it still came out to the same result. Now Ennard and Charlie were looking too and Fritz was even looking in the wall, to no avail.

"It's not here. It might be hiding in plain sight, but I don't see it," Fritz said. "…Well, that's not good. Any chance they've got a spare?"

"They might. We were able to replace Sunny's plates on the fly," Charlie said.

"Freddy, do you know if they can replace Chica's beak?" Natalie called out of the entranceway.

"Of course! The Mega Pizzaplex is equipped with replacement shells for all their mascots. However, they seldom must replace the entire shell at once…" Freddy called back, voice faltering at the end. "But desperate times may call for desperate measures."

"Good enough. Let's get her up," Ennard said, and then just as quickly leaned down to hoist her up. He lifted her with one smooth motion and a slight grunt, but he managed her weight. She wasn't as heavy as he expected, it was her stiff plated body that made her awkward to lift. He had to turn to slide her through the entrance without bumping anything.

"Careful with the bridge," Natalie warned. She then went back to searching the ground with Fritz one more time to see if they could find the beak. There was a creaky thump from outside and she snapped her head back. "What was that?" she called.

"Ennard jumped the gorge," Charlie answered. She then followed him out.

"…So, I'm thinking this is where I lose my job and this experiment about how much we can get away with at Freddy's is over," Natalie said matter-of-factly.

"Well, you're always welcome at Foxy's. Though because you left us for our competitors, I'm going to have to dock your pay," Fritz joked. That got a smile out of her at least. He pushed himself up. "It could always be worse."

"True. We could be standing in a garbage tunnel looking at thousands of dollars in damages," Natalie quipped.

"It could've been one of our bots," Fritz reminded in a mumble.

"…Okay, yeah. That could've been worse. Not saying that I wanted Chica to get hurt, but at least we have the means to fix her."

Fritz admired Natalie's confidence because he didn't have nearly as much. He must've shown it on his face as Natalie stealthily pecked him on the cheek before leading the way out.

After Ennard scared everyone hopping over the wooden plank of a bridge, they were able to see the state that Chica was currently in. Freddy's remorse only grew as he saw her missing beak. With the damage she sustained he wasn't surprised she lost it.

Baby also came up to see for herself. Charlie watched her reaction with concern. The clown's eyes lowered and closed to nearly a sliver, to the point where her false lashes almost hid her eyes. It was not a look of shock or disgust but one of sympathy. One Charlie didn't often see from Baby. She must've noticed the security puppet staring as her next words seemed directed at her.

"I didn't want her to end up like that. Poor thing…" Baby said quietly. Her eyes lifted and returned Charlie's gaze. There was more than sympathy; there was guilt. "I don't take any joy seeing her like this."

She must've already seen her, Charlie realized. Of course she had, the two had been dumped down here together. She could only imagine how terrifying it would be to be trapped down in a basement filled with broken machines, sat right to Chica's broken body, alone.

"These things happen sometimes," Scott assured. He reached forward to pat her back.

"Careful. I'm covered in awful," Baby listlessly warned.

"Oh, I am too. Don't worry," he replied. "But don't beat yourself up about this. This, uh… This was bad. But you didn't mean for this to happen. She pushed you in, right?" Baby nodded stiffly. "Right… I'm not saying it should've happened to her, but you didn't do this."

"She did, but I am still responsible for the state she's in. That endless hunger is directly due to my actions."

"What do you mean?" Freddy asked. His eyes lighting up with curiosity at the suggestion.

"We have a history," Baby murmured.

"Baby means that a long time ago she took wires out of Funtime Chica and that's gotten into her programming. Lemme tell ya, I know the feeling. You get this hunger you can't control eating at you. Telling you something's wrong even when fine, telling you to fill yourself up even when you're not empty. I've lived with that monkey on my back and I wouldn't wish it on ANYONE," Ennard explained in much more detail. He looked down at Chica in his arms. "Soooo, yeah. I feel bad too."

As did Freddy. His ears lowering as he realized that there wasn't going to be a magically solution to Chica's hunger issue. He reached out to take Chica and Ennard began to hand her over before stopping.

"Actually… maybe it'll be better if I carry her. You already got one passenger on board," he suggested instead.

"I suppose, but I am sure I can manage them both…" Freddy said. Though he seemed to be considering it even as he spoke.

"Let me carry her."

Ennard looked to Baby in surprise. "You want to? Babydoll, I know you feel bad about all this, but you don't have to do that!" he insisted.

"Yes, I do. Allow me," she doubled down. He seemed even more surprised, but then went along with handing over Chica. Baby had to readjust her grip but didn't seem to struggle with her weight.

"Just be careful, okay? The skates, uh… Well, I don't need to tell you how to walk on your own feet," Scott said, cutting off his fussing early. Patting her back again before letting her turn around to head out of the tunnel.

Freddy very briefly lifted his hand like he was going to interject, but then hesitated and let it go. Charlie and Foxy both but Baby did not. Though even if she had she might've just shot him down.

Because carrying Chica's weight made Baby feel better. It made her feel a little more in control when she was so very confused of how she felt.

Against what she had said and even though she did feel regret in what she had done to Funtime Chica- it reminded her too much of everything that happened with Ennard, which was made even more clear when he directly compared himself to her- Baby wasn't entirely remorseful for what happened. That was, Chica most definitely threw her into a trash compactor with the intentions of smashing her to pieces. Fighting her was one thing, but that was a step too far.

That was a bratty move, because Baby was too much of a lady to use the other word she wanted to.

So yes, Baby was still soured on that. She would've been even more bitter if Chica hadn't been so damaged in the fall. That allowed her to put her feelings aside and commit herself to pity. Chica was an angry, broken creature. She would leave it at that and do the right thing, carrying her to safety in a slapdash attempt to make up for her initial crime. She started this, she had to end it. Be the better person and not just because everyone was watching; in this case, what they thought was the last thing on her mind.

It didn't take them too long to walk back up the basement garage. Up until that point things had been mostly silent. Everyone mostly focusing on the task at hand. Nobody wanted to stick around in that basement any longer.

They were in the process of heading through that garage when Freddy stopped and looked over at one of the carts. Foxy, who had been walking alongside him, stopped and looked up at him. Freddy turned back to the others.

"I have an idea," he announced. The others stopped walking and turned their attention to him. "We can take one of the carts and drive through the utility tunnels directly to Parts and Service. That will cut back on the time to walk over there ourselves and save us the struggle of carrying her up all those stairs. Officer Vanessa has high enough security clearance to operate the cart, so it would not be a breaking of protocol as long as she is present."

"There are how many stairs?" Baby discreetly asked Charlie.

"So many stairs," Charlie replied.

Baby gave an exasperated little huff. "Wonderful."

"That's… Not too bad of an idea," Natalie agreed. "And there's elevators from Parts and Service that go directly into Rockstar Row, so Scott, if you're still up to it we can maybe try to get that footage. We might have a little more time."

"Uh, sure! Unless we were just planning on taking off as soon as we got out of here. But if everyone's okay sticking around then I ought to do something… Maybe even see if it recorded any footage of what happened in the kitchen," Scott suggested. "…On second thought, we should probably stick around just so I can find that kitchen footage and… deal with it."

"You do that. We don't need this getting back to Fazbear Entertainment or we could all be in a lot of trouble. Save possibly Chica," Natalie agreed. "Just one problem: where's the keys?"

"That is not a problem! I know some of these carts start with only the push of a button. As the utility tunnels are blocked through security access, it is very unlikely that they will be stolen and much too likely that an employee may misplace the keys. At least, that is how I imagine they came to this decision," Freddy explained.

This seemed like a good enough plan that there weren't any direct objections. The next few minutes involved Freddy opening access into the utility tunnels and he, Fritz, and Natalie locating a cart that would work, unloading the supplies on the back, and then Fritz getting it on and backing it all the way down to the door into the underground garage.

The cart was rather basic, orange in color with a row of seats in the front and a flat open back to carry supplies inside. It might've been shaped more like a go-kart, but it drove rather smoothly. Fritz backed up as close as he could to the door before Baby rolled forward to lay Chica in the back. She laid her down as carefully as she could, but the motion still made her unfocused and half-lidded eyes roll around loosely.

Baby stared down at her for a long moment. So, this was how she was going to leave her, just as broken as she had last time. The best-case scenario being that they never crossed paths again.

"I'm sorry," she said, very aware that Chica likely couldn't hear her. Then she turned and quickly skated away, unable to look at her for even a moment longer. Chica's eyelid twitched.

"So…" Ennard began as he came up beside Freddy who was watching Baby leave. "Got any idea who's going to be working on her?" the other clown asked.

"I am not sure. Whoever is scheduled to come in at seven, I suppose. Other than Chaz, I do not know the technicians by name," Freddy explained.

"Gotcha…"

Ennard was handling this whole thing with Chica about as well as Baby was. Though he leaned much harder into guilt about the situation, being the one who put many of the events into motion. Especially since what happened to her clearly wasn't over. Now she had to go through the grueling process of being pieced back together by Fazbear Entertainment's technician team, and from what he heard secondhand about the last repair job done here, they likely didn't have a great bedside manner.

One look at her just showed the full extent of her work too. She would have to have most of her exterior replaced, a new beak put on, possibly have wires aligned, and hopefully they would fix her eyes properly while doing it or she would keep that lazy eye.

Ennard made a noise mimicking taking in a deep breath then portrayed that strain in his next question.

"How about the best technician in Hurricane?"

Everyone except Freddy immediately caught on to what he was saying and there were a few reactions of mild surprise at what he was volunteering.

"You know the best technician in Hurricane, Utah?" Freddy asked in surprise.

"You're looking at him!" Ennard chirped, pointing his thumbs at his own chest. He then beckoned Fritz, who was walking up, with one hand. Fritz took the bait and came over and once close enough Ennard yanked him in with an arm around the shoulders. Fritz didn't even jump he was so prepared for the clown to do something. "This guy's not too shabby either," Ennard continued. He tilted his head and winked at Fritz.

"That's a real compliment coming from you, Mister Clown," Fritz jokingly replied. Ennard giggled, a slightly forced but somewhat genuine little laugh. He pointed at the man's chest.

"He's the brains of the operation. I'm just the good looks and skill, ha ha! But- But all that aside, heh, whaddya say? Will you give us a chance?" he asked.

"How could I refuse? Foxy has spoken very highly of your repair skills!"

Once again, Foxy had been giving him unprovoked compliments behind his back. Something that made Ennard even more flustered by the fact that the pirate was currently watching him and this was the worst time for him to embarrass himself.

"And… if I may be honest, I would rather Chica not have to wait until morning to be repaired… Especially if they see this accident as something concerning enough to warrant additional correction," Freddy remarked worriedly. "Can you finish by opening?"

"We sure as heck can try!" Ennard agreed. He then shot a grin down at Fritz by his side. "So, what about you, Brother-in-Arms. You in?"

Fritz was already willing to say yes, but that vaguely pleading look in Ennard's eyes helped seal the deal.

"It's worth a shot," he agreed. "And Scott's sticking around, so it's not like we're leaving yet anyways."

"Ha ha, great!" Ennard agreed. He lifted his hand for a little fist bump, which Fritz returned.

Natalie was still a little uneasy about the idea or at least not entirely convinced that it was worth the risk. The risk of getting caught specifically, as she had no doubt Fritz could handle his own in a repair job.

"I'm not so sure about this. If anything goes wrong, how am I going to explain that some other technician and a clown were working on Chica?" Natalie asked, half-jokingly and half serious.

"Ohhh, I wouldn't worry tooo much about that," an unexpected voice chimed in.

Looking up and over at an obscure spot on the ceiling, Natalie and everyone else was able to spot the glowing form staring out of the darkness. He was perched on a frame of pipes up in the corner with his limbs twisted to hook onto it.

"Moon…" Freddy said quietly. He almost looked ashamed to have been caught by the jester.

Moon rolled his body to unhook himself and dropped to the floor with a flurry of jingles. Then he began to slink over towards the group.

"We already have clowns working on ussss…" Moon clarified with a sinister giggle. He slinked close by Foxy without acknowledging him, then paused and flipped his head back to face him. "Welcome back, Captain Foxy."

Foxy was too tired to come up with anything clever to retort with. Instead choosing to look as unenthused as possible.

"Took you long enough. Where were you when we were wading through trash?" Charlie questioned, a hand on her hip. Clearly not amused by his entrance.

"I've wasted enough of my life wading through garbage. That's why so many of them were replaced with Staff Bots," Moon remarked. He snapped his head forward and looked around at the remaining crew. "My, my, so many broken rules. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Where is Chica?"

"She is… over there," Freddy murmured. His eyes ghosting over to the back of the cart. Moon's red pupils followed over to it and while he could only see the edge of her body at this angle he caught on right away. He didn't show any surprise.

"So anyways," Fritz spoke up, turning his attention back to Natalie and retaking the conversation. "We can do it. We'll fix her, and we'll take the heat if something goes wrong. Which it won't. If we start finding stuff too big for us to handle, we'll leave it for the next crew."

Natalie gave a nod. "Then let's get packed up and start moving. You guys aren't going to have a lot of time."

By this point, Moon had started circling Baby. She had said nothing on it yet, refusing to give him the benefit of addressing it while watching him creep around her. Eventually he came to a stop alongside Freddy, still looking down at her dirtied legs and now clenching on of his hands as though just the sight of dirt was bothering him.

Baby finally addressed him, looking to him and giving a tired, "Yes, I am all too aware of the state of myself."

"There is a prop washing station in the basement of the Daycare Theater. Imagine it as an oversized shower for industrial uses. You are welcome to use it, though please try not to track. It irks me," Moon said. From the twisting of his hand and the wince to his eyes it was clear that it did more than irk him.

"Thank you," Baby said. She almost sounded relieved at not having to clean herself off with cleaning wipes.

"Are you going with her?" Moon asked the puppets alongside her.

"We are," Marionette said. Charlie agreed.

"Good. Then you can take thisss with you."

Moon suddenly spun his upper half around and without any warning he pulled Freddy's stomach hatch open in one smooth motion. Freddy lifted his hands in surprise, but didn't stop the Daycare Attendant from reaching into his chest cavity and scooping Gregory out.

Gregory was a little less on board. "What the crap?!" he cried.

"Language! Twenty-five for that sailor mouth of yours," Moon hissed.

"Ugh, you're doing that stupid point thing again?" Gregory grumbled.

"Not points, minutes. Minutes in time out. Now stop being fussssy and let me check you," the attendant fussed. He set Gregory down and began to turn him around. His grip was gentle but firm. It didn't hurt, but Gregory did feel like a little toy getting shifted around as some lanky clown guy hunched over him and looked over his body. He grimaced and made a displeased noise at his shoes, then pointed at them as he looked up to Marionette. "Throw those in a washer. They're in the basement too."

"I will," he agreed. He offered his hand to Gregory. The boy quirked a brow at it but then took it. To him it felt like squeezing a plushie's hand.

"I guess… I shouldn't go with you guys. In case Chica wakes up?" Gregory asked Freddy. It was clear from his tone to his look that he didn't want to be separated from Freddy again, but he also didn't want to stick around with Chica.

Freddy gave a remorseful nod. "That and I will need to tell Monty and Roxy about Chica. It will be safer for you to head to the daycare- but I will be with you as soon as I can. And if you need me for anything, message me. I will come for you, I promise."

"Yeah, okay."

"And one more thing. I have something for you…" Freddy knelt and opened his stomach hatch again before reaching inside. After a moment of feeling around, he found something that had slid down into the edge. Something that Gregory hadn't seen.

"What is it?" Gregory asked.

"It is a bag of dried fruit and peanuts. I meant to give it to you earlier," Freddy said. He held out the little bag of snacks on his palm.

"Uh… Thanks?"

"Sun in all of his good-natured smothering has left him something more substantial in the mini fridge," Moon discreetly said to Marionette. Resting his hands on Freddy's shoulders and leaning over him to do so. Marionette gave an understanding nod, after which Moon promptly hooked his hands under Freddy's arms and gave him a tug. "No more stalling, Freddy. We need to move."

Freddy nodded and started getting up, pausing to ruffle Gregory's hair on the way. This got a little smile out of Gregory and that got one out of Freddy as well.

While this was going on, Scott came up to Baby and discreetly pulled her aside. With Moon taking up most of the attention he was able to do so without creating a scene.

"Do you want me to come too? It's okay, we've got time," he offered.

"No, you don't. I'll be fine, you just worry about finishing what we came here for," Baby insisted. Her eyes flicked back to the others before returning to him, tilting her head in his direction. "And besides, I would rather not bathe with an audience." Her voice taking a lighter tone to signal that she was joking. A rare occurrence for many of those present.

"I'll keep an eye on her," Foxy chimed in, having apparently overheard the exchange. Which made sense considering he was standing closest. He pointed his hook at his eyes only to catch sight of his discolored arm and grumbling, "Ehh, a closer eye than I thought…"

Baby gave an either amused or agreeing little hum. Scott gave her an assuring half hug, as did Ennard who came up calmly and then nearly knocked her over by throwing himself on her. If only so he could beep his noise against her forehead. She swatted him off and gave him a non-serious eyeroll before pushing him off. The groups then finally began to split apart.

But not before Freddy gave one more comment.

"Captain?" he called. Foxy looked back to him. Freddy briefly hesitated, his eyes dropping and sweeping the floor nervously before he steeled himself. "If you would not mind staying until we finish, there is something that I need to talk to you about…"

"I ain't goin' nowhere. Not til six," Foxy said. Freddy gave a nod of agreement and went on his way.

Foxy didn't need to wonder what he wanted to talk about. He had an idea already, and if it was wrong then he wouldn't forget to bring it up.

Fritz got behind the wheel of the cart while Natalie and Scott squeezed in between him and Ennard respectively. Freddy climbed in the back to sit alongside Chica while Moon hopped in on the other side, crouched by their legs. Freddy wasn't entirely surprised he was coming too- with his security status he was likely obligated to come along and report, though he doubted Moon would do the latter- nor was he surprised when he pulled a small pack of cleaning wipes out and began to wipe him down, murmuring 'clean up, clean up' under his breath as he did. Freddy held out his hand to take the wipe, but Moon just pushed it back and continued working.

"So, Freddy. What do you think about maybe not telling the rest of your band until we're out of there?" Fritz suggested.

"I suppose I can get away with waiting for a little while, but they will find out on their own eventually once they notice our absence… But do not worry! Monty and Roxy do not know that you three work for Foxy's, so only Ennard will need to hide," Freddy said.

"This was a bad night to not come with your disguise," Fritz remarked to Ennard. "…Where are your clothes anyway?"

"Stuffed in a cabinet in the kitchen. Make sure I don't leave without 'em, they cost more than I do," Ennard replied.

"…Hey, wait a minute." Natalie snapped her head around to look at Freddy over the back of the seat. "You said 'you three'. You meant me?"

"Err, well, yes," Freddy said awkwardly. Only then realizing his mistake.

"Uh huh," Natalie said suspiciously. "And who told you I work at Foxy's?"

She was expecting him to say Foxy did it. In fact, she was downright counting on it. So when Freddy's eyes darted over and back from the other side of the cart she was surprised. She tightened her lips and turned around the other way, finding Moon looming over her. His grinning face propped on his hand, his elbow resting on the back of Fritz's seat.

"How peculiar that we have two Vanessssas on staff," he lulled.

"It's not that strange. It's a common name," Natalie replied. She crossed her arms and arched a brow in challenge. "I bet if I checked there were plenty of people with the same name working here."

"Is that so?" Moon asked coyly.

"It is! I went to school with three kids named Chris, two Katies, I'm friends with two Michaels, and I know at least three Jen's of the top of my head," she listed off almost defiantly. Moon tilted his head at her.

"Then why ooon earth did you choose this one?" he lulled. She gave him a very unenthused look and turned back ahead.

"Believe what you want to, Moon."

"I believe it's verrrrrry peculiar that our dear security guard let in a worker from Foxy's and a worker from the old Freddy's," Moon said, shifting to the other side of her. Leaning onto Freddy so he could lean in between her and Scott, who he then turned his attention to. His neck shifted and his face rolled to lean down and eye the man. "The last ten, oh, twelve years haven't been very kind to you, have they?" he asked.

Scott realized only then that Moon wasn't bluffing. He genuinely knew who he was, and that was the he that he was back at Freddy's. That filled him with unease.

Though before he could even consider saying anything, Ennard's around his back suddenly pulled him in close.

"Easy there, Tiger. Quit flirting with my man," Ennard quickly chimed in. He pulled Scott in closer to his chest so he could lean over behind him. "And quit badgering everyone like you don't have a name you're hiding under all that clown getup."

"I don't have a name anymore," Moon said cryptically. His eyes shifting from red to milky blue.

"I'm, uh… I'm sorry-," Scott began, only to get cut off.

"Come to think of it, you remind me of this kid who used to go to Freddy's! Used to launch pizza across the room and got a trash can dumped over his head," Ennard quipped, eyes narrowing smugly.

Moon reacted instantly. Blue shifting back to red as he shot upright onto his hands and stared Ennard down with what was surely a glare.

"Who told you that?!" he cried. Just like Scott did, he panicked at the mere implication of his past.

"Ooooh, a little birdie told me," Ennard replied. "I think he used to hang out at the dump."

Moon growled and tightened his fingers on the back of the seat before sliding into the back where he proceeded to cross his arms and grumble. Freddy leaned forward to pat his shoulder, getting another sour little rumble in return. He smiled despite the circumstances.

"This has been a real great night. Glad I came," Fritz remarked.

Ennard stealthily poked Natalie in the shoulder. She looked down to him holding out his hand. She gave him a quiet high five and the drive continued.

...

Some time had passed and the group had arrived at Parts and Service.

Freddy had carried Chica into the protective cylinder but was then required to leave to allow the repairing to begin. Fritz fumbled around with the computer for a few minutes, Scott helping him figure out how to manage it, before they ran a scan of her. After a few moment of considering the massive amounts of damage, Ennard and Fritz mutually decided to begin at the feet and work on seemingly easy casing replacement first before moving onto the mess that was her face.

Once they got settled into the cylinder and began to work on removing the feet, Natalie and Scott headed out through Freddy's elevator. Moon accompanied them, if only because his presence immediately opened doors for them instead of Natalie having to fumble with her keycard. Or maybe to show off in some attempt to regain his dignity after the little spat in the cart. Freddy thought that he was more upset at someone else getting the upper hand than actual discussion of the past, but he couldn't be sure.

Freddy couldn't be sure of a lot of things anymore.

With a sigh, he sat down at the bottom of the stairs and began to wait. He knew it was sure to be a lengthy wait too, but he couldn't leave Chica, even if he couldn't help her. At least Gregory was alright, so in this case he didn't have to choose one over the other.

It hurt to think that it was his indecision that might've led to all of this. Or perhaps his ignorant belief that the problem wasn't that bad. It was overwhelming to think about, and that was before Marionette had found those things in the basement.

What if they couldn't fix Chica? While Freddy a much better opinion of the employees at the Mega Pizzaplex than the others did, it was no secret that the turnover of staff had been a problem. Automated systems replaced people, automated systems that needed people to man them, and while he would've gladly stepped in to help Chica he wasn't allowed to. The system wouldn't even allow him to be in the protective cylinder unless he was on the table.

If she was too damaged for any of the technicians to fix… would she end up in that basement too?

The slide of a door and a soft jingling cut into Freddy's thoughts. He looked back to see that Moon had come through the door and was now coming over. Freddy turned forward and scooted over as best as he could in case Moon wanted to sit down. Though it didn't offer up really any space, even when he moved his arms into his lap.

Moon stopped behind him for a moment before suddenly dropping down onto the steps. Taking Freddy by the shoulders and guiding him back into the middle before resting his leg on either side. He then guided Freddy to lay back against him, somewhat cushion by the puff of his star dotted pants. Freddy looked up with a thankful but otherwise somber little smile. Moon leaned over him, folding his arms around the bear's neck and looking down at him.

"What's on your mind, Freddy?" he asked.

"There is so much on my mind… I do not even know where to start," Freddy said with a sigh.

"Would you like me to make all those bad thoughts disappear?" Moon offered. A tilt of his face and a glint in his eyes. Freddy knew what he was suggesting.

"…No. I need to be here and present for Chica and Gregory," he said. "But I do feel like I failed them both."

"Why is that? You did nothing wrong."

"It is not what I did, but what I did not do. What I saw and how I reacted to it… I knew something was wrong with Chica. I knew she was not acting normal and yet when Gregory told me how much of an issue it was becoming I… I was still so sure that Chica would never do what she did. And then by not stepping in, I allowed her to get hurt too! All because I did not see what was right in front of me… Am I really that naïve? That irresponsible? That idiotic?"

"Idiotic, tch. You are not stupid, Freddy. You are simply too trusting," Moon said. He reached up and tapped Freddy's nose with a squeak.

"What is the difference?" the bear asked dejectedly.

"One is caused by a big heart, the other is cause by a small brain," the jester proclaimed. Lifting and twirling his finger as he did before returning his arm to it previous folded position. "Keep your heart big, Papa Bear. You don't want to end up a jaded as I am."

Freddy looked downward, which was more looking at the far ceiling than anywhere at the floor. His fingers tapping on his leg, Moon's then tapping in return on his chest. Freddy then looked up again.

"…Was Ennard right? About what he said about you, that you used to visit a Freddy's?"

"Ugh, yes," Moon grumbled. He bent his arm to prop his faceplate on his hand. "But I don't know how he knows that. Unless he heard me telling Jake. He was constantly crawling about the junkyard we scavenged."

It wasn't until right after he said it when he realized his mistake in mentioned Jake. He wasn't supposed to bring up Jake, elsewise Freddy might find it weird that he was mentioning a Sun who no longer existed- if he even remembered his name. He peeked down at Freddy only to see him still looking up at him without any suspicion.

Moon drew back his hand to properly look down as he clarified, "I acted out as a child."

"It sounded that way," Freddy said. A glint of playfulness on his voice. His eyes darted aside and back. "What was your name?"

"Why are you suddenly so curious?" Moon asked, more tiredly than suspiciously.

"Oh, I was just wondering," Freddy excused badly. Moon continued eyeing him and the bear buckled. "…I think I may have been human, and I do not remember it."

Moon paused and tilted his head curiously.

"It would only make sense! Foxy, Mari, Baby, and you all used to be humans. You all have human memories, even if you forgot them for some time. Foxy said he knew others who could not remember who they were for a while, so… what if I am the same? What if I too was a human who became Freddy Fazbear and I just cannot recall it?" Freddy asked.

Moon was surprised at how excited he sounded. "Do you feel like a human, Freddy?" he asked.

"I feel like I feel too much to be a machine," Freddy said. "And while it is terrifying to think I could be anything other than Freddy Fazbear… Freddy Fazbear is an icon. He is the face of childhood and pizza. I want to be real."

"You're just as real as anyone else."

"I-… Perhaps."

Freddy seemed to be at a loss for words and Moon couldn't help but be uneasy. After a moment of sitting there in silence, save the occasional muffled sound of the automated voice inside of the protective cylinder, Moon spoke. His voice so soft the rasp was inaudible.

"You don't need to be human to be real, Freddy… but I believe you were human," he said. "…And my name was Andrew."

Freddy took his hand and brought it to his face to nuzzle against the thin silicone covering it. Moon gave a content hum and a chattering of ticks through his chest.

The conversation ended there and Freddy hadn't aired all his grievances, but he still felt better, and that was all that mattered.

Chapter 54

Chapter Summary

Scott and Natalie discover that something has changed while Marionette and Charlie find out an unexpected truth while looking for answers... But perhaps it's not too late to salvage the night?

Natalie and Scott walked into the security office to see that everything looked normal. Which was a relief, as Natalie half-expected to come in and see the monitors all smashed up.

"Alright, coast's clear. Back to work," she jokingly commanded.

"Yes, Ma'am. Right away, Ma'am," Scott replied. He was surprised he could joke considering what they just walked out of. Though once he dropped into the office seat, he let out a relieved exhale, as though finally shrugging off the pressures before going back to work. He leaned forward to click on the file he stopped on only to pause. "…This wasn't where I was," he realized. The numbers didn't match up to what he remembered.

By then Natalie had also noticed something else in the office had changed.

"And Smitty's gone…" she said. She looked around the other side before spotting him rolled into the corner. She dropped her arm in exasperation and strode over. "Never mind, he's over here. Smitty?"

The bot didn't respond at first. It wasn't until she tapped its shoulder that it suddenly straightened up, snapping to alertness. It then spun around.

Revealing a wicked grin stretched across his face.

Natalie gave a startled yelp and jumped back. Though almost immediately afterwards realized that the garish face that unexpectedly appeared on her assistant bot's face was drawn on with black marker. It was a wide wicked smile that almost somewhat resembled Marionette's with thick stripes scribbled down like tear marks, and little triangles on the sides of its eyes as though trying to replicate the Puppet's eye shape. On his chest were written the words, "Who's pulling your strings?"

It was clearly supposed to look like Marionette. Apparently, he had left an impression on Vanny, because Natalie had no doubt she was the one who did this. She didn't know her well, but this felt like a very Vanny thing, and it made too much sense considering what happened just the night before. Which was concerning as that meant she could've fooled around with more than just the security bot.

"Are you okay?" Scott asked.

"I'm fine. Someone just snuck in here and drew all over Smitty's face… Probably our friend the Easter Bunny," Natalie replied. She huffed and walked over to get some tissues out of a nearby box. "You're going to have to check and see if she deleted anything while she was in here," she forewarned before returning to the bot.

"She must've done something, because I don't even know what camera I'm on."

Natalie tried to wipe the marker off with the tissues, but it was a lost cause. It had already dried ages ago. She sighed wearily.

"Sorry, Buddy. I guess you're going to have to wear it until I can get some cleaning supplies," she said. He didn't even notice, and his confused noise suggested that he didn't 'understand the command'.

"So, uh, I need you to come over here and tell me if this is the basement," Scott said.

Natalie's brows raised and she hustled to him and looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, the image on the video seemed to be of a tight basement corridor. While she hadn't seen them herself, it matched the description Mike and Marionette had given.

"I think that's it. That looks exactly like what they described, a bunch of tight, dark hallways," she agreed. "But here's the million-dollar question: did she tamper with the footage?"

"We'll see soon enough," Scott assured. He began to fast-forward through it. Watching an unmoving and unchanging hallway depicted on a screen.

Then something rushed into the hallway. Scott reflexively clicked the pause button, and the screen froze on a small form. Both recognized it as Gregory, and it didn't take Natalie more than a beat to put two and two together.

"This is it!" she half-yelled into Scott's ear. "Because he was alone and then he ran into her! She put it right on the video!" She paused for a moment before adding, "…Which is concerning."

"Yeah. I'd say," Scott agreed. He took a deep breath and pressed the play button. "Let's see…"

They watched Gregory start to walk down the hallway before something shifted- the entire screen. Gregory stuttered and popped a step or two away. The screen tearing around his movement while the scene behind him seemed to remain still. Even as shadow movement showed that something was going on back there. Even the computer seemed to be struggling playing the video.

"Yup. Tampered," Scott deduced.

"Sort of. This is what she always does to the video… Look, he's looking at her!" Natalie pointed to the boy now turning around and staring at something at the end of the hallway.

The footage was still jittery and jumpy, but they could almost see the frozen square of the footage where she was supposed to be. Scott reached forward and traced it on the screen before tapping on the glass and pulling back his hand.

"This isn't even how Mari does it. It's like… It looks like she tampered with the footage, but I don't even know how you'd tamper with a video like this," he said.

"I know, and I'd believe it too, but this happens when she's on any camera. It's not usually this bad, usually it's just frozen, but she… And they're gone."

With little more than a blink, Gregory moved off from the screen and less than ten seconds later the footage suddenly cleared up. Now the hallway was empty once more.

"Fast-forward a little but stay on this camera. I know Mari confronted Vanny in one of these hallways," Natalie said. Scott nodded and did as told, fast-forwarding a little further. The camera briefly fuzzed over with static shortly afterwards.

"Mari," Scott said. Natalie nodded in agreement. Then the fast-forwarding continued.

It took a little longer but then the footage glitched out a bit like it had before only to then get fully obscured by static. This suggested that Marionette was there too. Then, out of nowhere, something drastic happened. The screen flickered in bright reds and flickering lines atop that static before the screen suddenly went black. Scott began to fast-forward further but from that point on the screen was black. The camera had shorted out.

"…It's dead," Scott said.

Natalie gave an exasperated huff. "Figures. I don't know why I was expecting anything else."

"…Well, hold on. We don't know it's a bust just yet," he said.

He clicked out of the video file and then onto the next one, quickly fast-forwarding to the same period. Nothing. He tried with a second video. With that one he saw static overtake the camera sometime before this confrontation. Marionette was passing through and, at his slower speed, likely with Mike and Gregory. Natalie leaned against one of the security panels behind him and watched as he continued looking for angles, scouring them, a man on a mission.

And then it happened. He wasn't expecting it, but he stumbled upon it while looking through one of the cameras out in the utility tunnels. He saw the static of Marionette coming in, the corruption of something following, the corruption of something leaving.

And then the corruption cleared up and at the very end of the tunnel, so far that he had to squint through his glasses to see, he spotted a figure in all white running away. He snapped his fingers and pointed at the screen.

"And there she is."

"What?" Natalie leaned in on the desk to look and gaped. "That's her. Scott, you got her! That's her!" she whooped in triumph. "I bet she didn't even think of these cameras! I can't even begin to thank you enough."

"Don't worry about it," Scott said a little distantly. He was staring at that little white figure before snapping out of it and sending her a smile. "Sorry, I just zoned out."

He then began to click around to save the video file to the floppy disc he had brought. It might've been a huge security system, but it was just a lot of show. It worked closely to a regular computer.

"No, don't apologize! I can't imagine what this must be like for you. You were around during the last time, and seeing something like this… It's got to be rough. I really do appreciate you coming down here to do this," Natalie sympathized and thanked.

"Don't mention it! Look, as insane as this all is, I rather be down here contributing to help stop the problem than hiding away at home waiting for something to happen. At least now I can say I tried," Scott assured. A tone of optimism on his voice, and though it might've been a little forced it didn't really sound like it. "…I mean, I wish the whole Chica crushing thing hadn't happened. Heavens knows if Fazbear Entertainment catches wind I was here then they're going to think I'm some kind of angry former employee who broke in and vandalized the place… And they technically wouldn't be wrong, but it's not that cut and dry, y'know?"

"Don't say that. First off, you didn't vandalize anything. I wouldn't even call what happened vandalizing. Secondly, you'll be protecting Freddy's in the long run with this evidence," Natalie laid out. "…And thirdly, don't act like you're just some irrationally angry ex-employee trying to get back at the company that fired you. You would have every right to be angry after what happened, and especially because they're not taking it seriously."

"They're not… and I am, but don't spread it around. I don't want the others knowing how upset this all has got me. I've let Ennard and Baby in on it, but even then, I try to downplay. Not to hide it but just because I don't want it hanging on me. It's just not in my nature."

"I understand," Natalie assured. Deep down she knew that she really didn't. She understood it in theory, but she couldn't in practice, because if what happened to him happened to her, she would've been unabashedly furious. She could only imagine she would be.

But Scott didn't want to be like that, and she couldn't help but respect that. Maybe that was something he learned from going through it.

"Okay!" Scott announced. He flexed his fingers and returned his hand to the mouse. "Let's get back to work."

Unfortunately, that wasn't the only cryptic note left to be found.

While Natalie and Scott had still been riding to Parts and Service, the small group of Foxy, Gregory, Marionette, Charlie, and Baby started making their way back towards the daycare. Foxy had plucked Gregory up and perched him on his shoulders, to no complaint of his, and did his best to fill in for Freddy's absence. It worked like a charm. Charlie and Baby walked together behind them while Marionette led the way.

As they entered the silo Baby let out an audible gasp. Her eyes slowly raising up to look at the number of stairs that lay between them and escape.

"Sooo many stairs," Charlie agreed.

"Why would they even put that many stairs without a lift?!" Baby cried with exasperation.

"That's… actually a good question, but it's not like this is the only questionable decision in this place," Charlie remarked. She turned to Baby and reached out to pat her on the shoulder with a playful smile. "Don't worry. We'll just take them one step at a time."

Baby slowly turned her head. Charlie could just feel the incredulousness from the look in her eyes.

"One more joke like that and I will make you carry me," she threatened.

"It might be worth it if I think of a good one," Charlie said.

"You aren't up fer that challenge, Lass," Foxy chimed in.

Baby snapped her head over with a look that could've struck him dead. From the look he sent back, paused and second-guessing, it was clear that he hadn't even considered what he was implying before he said it. Charlie was quick to jump back in and diffuse.

"You'd be surprised. I might not look like much, but underneath this plastic is a wall of muscle I've been building to take on any challenge," Charlie proclaimed. Then she quickly tacked on, "I've been doing sit-ups."

"Trying to get back your girlish figure?" Baby asked flatly. Her eyes sliding back over to the Security Puppet before giving her a noticeable once-over. Her voice shifted lower as she said, "There really is no point. You've still got it."

Baby began to roll ahead after Marionette leaving Charlie standing there with a bewildered look.

If she didn't know any better, she would've thought that was a flirtatious comment. From the tone to the look, to the little shifting sway as she sashayed away, it all read like a come-on. But Charlie knew Baby better. Maybe she just thought it sounded like that but in actuality it was likely that Baby was just tossing her a compliment because she had stepped in and made one at her own expense to shield her pride. That was the more likely suggestion.

…

…No, Baby had definitely just flirted with her, unknowingly or not. Charlie could just tell from the look on Foxy's face and how quickly he looked away- with a chuckle, as though it wasn't obvious enough. Charlie stood there- she would've been blinking if she could've- before following along so nobody got the idea that something was wrong.

Marionette had acknowledged part of the scene as he made his way to the stairs, but then found his attention diverted when he noticed a colorful piece of paper on one of the steps. It was a sticky note.

He had seen scraps of paper here and there amongst the trash. He had even saw another sticky note, though that one had been so soggy that it had been impossible to pick up, let alone read it. This one seemed mostly dry but what was odd was that it wasn't stuck to the stair but instead face down. A little bit of dirt collecting on the once sticky adhesive strip. This meant he had to pick it up and turn it over to see it.

He thought maybe that it had tracked from somewhere and had already been here when they passed earlier, that he had just missed it, but the writing on that quickly confirmed that wasn't the case.

They know you're here!

The ominous message almost chilled him. Just the way it was worded filling him with immediate discomfort. He looked out around the room as though for the leaver of the note, even though it was obvious they might've left ages ago. He saw no one.

"What's that?" Foxy asked as he trudged up.

"Warning message. Might be for us, might not. Might be from Jake," Marionette vaguely answered. He showed it to Foxy while trying to downplay it, not wanting to scare Foxy or Gregory, but the giveaway was that he was still looking out as he said this.

"That right? Hmm… Let's get movin' then," Foxy said. He scanned over the room before readjusting Gregory and calling back, "Lizzie, Lass, wouldja like to go first?"

"No. I would rather go last where people won't have to watch me," Baby replied, back to pouting as she looked at the stairs.

"Aye, then I be headin' up. Watch yer head, Lad. There might be a low ceiling."

"I'll watch out," Gregory agreed.

"Go on ahead," Marionette gently ushered. He then went back to looking out, tucking the note in with the stuff he had gathered and then resting that now freed hand on the railing. His fingers tightening around it.

Who was 'they'? Vanny was likely one of them, but who else? Wight, he guessed right off the bat. Wight's feigning ignorance could only go so far, and it was just a little too coincidental that all his shortcomings were in places that might've exposed the dark underbelly of the Pizzaplex. But were they working together? Likely not, he guessed. It seemed more likely that Wight was simply covering out of necessity. If this got out it could ruin Freddy's barely salvaged reputation.

Someone had been looking at him earlier. He had been sure of it; he had felt it. There was no doubt in his mind that it was whoever left this note. So, he continued watching as the others headed up, and only followed once he had to.

Baby had gotten a little faster on stairs, though that was because her new method of climbing them was to give up any pretense of normality and just climb on her hands and knees. Or that was, with her hands and the stoppers on her skates. Clearly it was something she didn't want anyone else watching, but she got up the stairs relatively quick. Though if anything it was much less embarrassing and instead borderline unsettling- or would be for anyone seeing it who wasn't used to the peculiar movements of animatronics.

Marionette made his way to the front so he could make sure the coast was clear, which it was. The chain length divider's gate was closed but when Marionette tried it, he found it unlocked. Likely Moon had shut it on his way through.

He pushed his way through to look around, feeling paranoid after finding the note, only to snap his head in the direction of unexpected movement coming out from a nearby doorway. Only to relax when he saw it was just Jake coming out of a hallway.

"Hey, it's just me. I just wanted to…" Jake's voice trailed off as he looked down at the clump of merchandise in his arms. He blinked for a moment before looking back up to Marionette's subdued smile. "…Oh. I guess the cat's out of the bag. Or the rabbit."

"He ain't the only one," Foxy suddenly chimed in. Jake looked over in surprise as Foxy all but strode up into the conversation and up to the masked animatronic. He stuck out his hand. "Ye must be this Jake I've been hearin' so much about. The name's Foxy, but I'm sure ya already knew that," he said with a friendly chuckle. "Thanks fer bein' quick on the draw with those directions earlier."

Jake seemed a little startled, but he put his control panel under one arm and shook his hand with the other.

"Oh, uh, hey! No problem. I'm just glad to help," Jake replied in a friendly tone. "I'm guessing it worked out?"

"We got 'em. Freddy an' some o' the others are shoving off fer Parts and Service with Chica and we're headin' for the daycare basement to spray down," Foxy explained. He pointed his hook up above his head. "An' get this one here some grub."

"Hey, Jake," Gregory greeted with a wave. He was a little more quiet than usual, Jake noticed, but that could've been from tiredness, hunger, or both.

"Hey, Gregory!" Jake replied. He tried to portray his smile through his voice. "And Charlie, Baby."

"Hello again," Charlie greeted wearily. "Let's roll."

Jake was about to ask about Baby when she suddenly climbed to her feet and quickly skated over, brushing down her skirt. One look at the gunk on her legs and he was genuinely surprised that Moon had gotten by without his programming kicking in.

"Good idea. Sooner we get back to the daycare, the better… Uh…" They just started to walk along, or Foxy was just starting to walk off in leading the way, when Jake quickly caught up with him. "So, I know you know about me from Charlie and Mari, but would you mind not telling Freddy about me? See, that would put him and us into a bad situation. It's just easier if he doesn't have to know. Normally I wouldn't even bring it up, but I know you two are friends and I don't want it to accidently slip out."

"Hmm. Well, if ya say so, Lad. I won't tell him," Foxy agreed. Jake was relieved only for a second. "But I think he already knows."

"Doesn't he visit you guys all the time?" Gregory asked in confusion.

Jake was still reeling when posed with that question. "Only Sunny in the daycare. The only time he's ever been up to our room was the other night and I don't think he saw me," he answered. He then looked back to Foxy and asked, "You didn't tell him already…?"

"Nah. Just call it a pirate hunch," Foxy said.

Marionette knew a 'pirate hunch' could've easily been code for, "Freddy told me," but decided to keep it to himself.

"Oh, okay. Good!" Jake said, relieved again. "Because that could be trouble."

"I'm no snitch, but I'm tellin' ya now I think he knows."

"Right…" There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before Jake suddenly changed lanes. "By the way, I saw that no-drugs commercial you did! That's really cool of you."

"Err, well, thank ye," Foxy said. Suddenly feeling about twenty times less cool remembering it.

"Can I see it?" Gregory asked. The edge of something, perhaps mischievousness, sliding into his tone.

"…Later."

For a while the walk was relatively quiet with just some small talk that turned into Charlie telling Jake about what happened in the basement, with Baby and Foxy chiming in every now and then. Marionette stayed mostly quiet. He was almost afraid that if he opened his mouth he would say too much, so he bided his time. Preparing to wait until after they got to the daycare and he tended to Gregory before asking about the Staff Bots or Bonnie, or the dozens of other red flags he saw strewn about.

They made their way through the kitchen and back to the elevator, and soon arrived at the door leading out into the Atrium. Foxy cracked the door open to peak out and make sure nothing was lurking about.

It was then that Marionette caught something in Charlie and Jake's conversation.

"I just don't understand how they're still able to move when they're that broken. It's crazy, first they come up with robots that cook and mop, and replace human staff entirely, and now they've made ones that can't shut down. They must be haunted by something."

"Maybe, but the Alpha Staff Bots were always on the strange side. They could last all day on the same battery," Jake replied. "They just couldn't stick to a job for that long."

Jake knew what they were, and he knew enough about them- and their behavior- that he had seemed largely unsurprised by how they were acting. Normally, this wouldn't be too surprising, but that could suggest that he had seen them while they were overloaded with whatever the crazed heat was. He had to ask him, he needed to take his chance while he had it.

"The coast is clear," Foxy murmured. He leaned down so that Gregory wouldn't bump his head as they went through.

"Foxy, if you don't mind," Marionette began as he quickly came up beside him. He lowered his voice to a whisper. "Would you mind going ahead with Baby? I need to speak with Jake in private… Semi-private."

"Going to get some answers outta him?" Foxy asked.

"Hopefully yes," Marionette replied with a little smile.

"Consider it done- Oiy, Baby! Wanna do somethin' stupid?"

"You mean other than falling into the garbage?" Baby retorted tiredly.

Foxy chuckled and then bent down in a running position on his knee. He reached up and pushed Gregory back, the boy giving a confused and startled noise before sliding down onto Foxy's back. The pirate holding him with his handed arm behind his back to catch him.

"Race ya to the daycare," Foxy challenged. His tone low and eager.

Baby was much less amused. "I am not doing that."

"Aww, come on, Lass! You oughta be fast on those skates," Foxy insisted. "Unless yer afraid I still be the fastest in the family. Don't worry, I'll give ya a head start."

Baby didn't take the bait. Instead, she narrowed her eyes questioningly before looking over at Marionette and bluntly asking, "Is there a reason he is provoking me, or has the stress finally gotten to him?"

Marionette returned a lopsided smile. "I'm looking to get Jake alone so I can ask him a few questions," he explained.

"Oh. That is a different story," Baby said. She looked back to Foxy. "…Must I race you or can we just walk ahead?"

"Where's the fun in that?"

Baby looked less than impressed at that answer. Yet she sighed and didn't protest it, instead getting into position herself. One skate turned in preparation to push off with.

"Just know now that if we get caught, I will be leaving you behind to deal with it," she warned.

"Fair enough! Charlie, ye want in? We'll see if those sit-ups be workin'," Foxy called over.

"What?" Charlie finally noticed what was going on as she came through the door and gave a confused look.

"We're racin'. You in?"

"No thanks. I think I'm just going to stay back," she said.

"Suit yerself. Barrelman Gregory, count us down," Foxy instructed.

"Okay, sure!" Gregory agreed, just glad he hadn't gotten dropped to the floor and out of the action. "Three… Two…"

"The fastest," Baby snuck in with a scoff. Just in time to return that challenge Foxy had presented. He accepted it gladly.

"One… Go!"

Both took off surprisingly quickly. Foxy with Gregory on the back running in a full sprint. It took Baby a moment to gain momentum on her skates before she was after him. The two zipping down the expanse of the atrium outside of the snack bars, closing in on Kids Cove. Marionette only realized now that they hadn't exactly gave themselves a stopping point. Perhaps the real challenge was going to be who could get through those security doors faster.

"Good thing Vanessa's not around to see that… Oh, wait… I guess she already has seen you all," Jake said warily. He looked back and added with an apologetic little sound, "That's a problem."

"It's not. The truth is she's a plant," Charlie admitted. Jake looked to her with a tilt of his head.

"A prickly desert plant. I believe they call them succulents," Marionette chimed in. Charlie now looked to him and fought the urge to groan at his sly smile.

"Wait, what do you mean? You mean she's working with you guys or she's like a spy for the higher ups?" Jake asked.

"She's our friend. She works at Foxy's with us, and she only took this job so we could keep an eye on what's going on here," Marionette explained more seriously. "With the history of these businesses… we had to take precautions." He hugged the merchandise tighter.

"That explains a lot. Or that explains why she's not reporting anything that goes down here. Not that even the real staff would want to get caught up in all this," Jake partially joked. They started to walk along. "But that's good to hear. Sunny was really freaking out about her. Got a bad feeling and started coming up with all these theories, but this? We can handle this."

"Jake, is it alright if I ask you something?" Marionette asked. His shift in tone, growing further quieter and serious, tipped him off to the change in subject. Jake stole a look down to the items in his arm.

"…Sure. Shoot," he agreed.

"I hate spring this upon you so suddenly…" Marionette tapped his fingers on the plastic mug in his grasp tentatively. He turned his eyes down towards them before lifting them to Jake's mask to pose his question. "What do you know about the Staff Bots in the basement?"

"Oh! I thought you were going to ask about…" Jake trailed off.

"Bonnie?" Marionette guessed, tapping on the Bonnie face. "We'll get to him soon enough. But first thing's first, do you know why they abandoned those bots down there? Was there something wrong with them?"

"Well, they were the first model, so they didn't have all the kinks worked out yet. They were called the Alpha Bots, or the Alpha Series; you might've heard me tell Charlie that," Jake explained. Now he shrugged a little as he looked between both puppets. "They had a few issues. Fazbear Entertainment decided they were a risk, so they dumped them and replaced them with a slightly newer model fresh off the factory line."

"Which doesn't make any sense. Maybe they couldn't fix them, but they could've at least recovered them for parts," Charlie pointed out. She had the same suspicion Marionette had, that it might have some connection to how they were acting.

"I'm not sure what they were thinking. I know they did try to fix them at first, but once things got too… They decided it was better to just scrap the whole thing and start over from the beginning," Jake struggled to explain.

Marionette looked to Charlie. Both shared looks of questioning and suspicion respectively. Jake looked between them before looking down at his feet. Just in time to avoid when they both looked back at him.

Marionette looped around to Jake's other side. "But what did they do? What was so concerning that they would discard the entire line?"

"There were a few things. They had trouble taking commands and had trouble sticking to them. They got lost all the time…" Jake trailed off.

Though Marionette's face didn't show it, he had a feeling the Puppet wasn't buying what he was saying. He certainly knew Charlie didn't since she had voiced as much earlier. He looked down at the floor, tracing a finger around a button on his control panel.

Charlie's mouth was a tight line. She knew Jake was holding back. She exchanged a quick look with the other puppet before her gaze slowly slid back to Jake, Marionette's own following.

"Jake," Charlie began.

"There was an incident," Jake confessed right away.

He tilted his head up slightly to peek at their reactions through his mask and saw surprise on both puppets' faces. Charlie was more surprised that he had just been so forthright while Marionette's fell to a grave look shortly after. Funny enough, his was the look that got him talking again. Jake sighed and took the plunge.

"So… There was a lot of little stuff. The Alpha Staff Bots had trouble taking commands that weren't direct. You know how you can tell these Staff Bots to clean an area and they'll do it? Those ones you would have to basically tell them what motion to do, give the exact area, and even then, they still might get lost and end up stuck somewhere. They also had trouble recognizing faces, so they would come up and just stare at people. So yeah, a lot of kinks to work out… Except one night there was some sort of 'failure in communication' and they, uh… Ended up taking apart an animatronic they weren't supposed to."

"What!?" Marionette blurted out.

"Yeah… Big mistake."

"How does that happen?" Charlie asked in equal confusion and horror.

"The Staff Bots are built to deconstruct animatronics, at least the alpha bots were. I think it was so if they had a malfunctioning animatronic, they could just pull the shell off, plant it on another endoskeleton, and move on."

"Was it Bonnie?" Marionette asked quietly.

"Ah, no…"

Charlie noticed his hand tightening on the edge of the control panel, and in looking down her eyes just happened to ghost over his leg. She suddenly put two and two together.

"Nobody's really sure what happened to Bonnie. I'll tell you what I know, but don't expect him to be hiding out in the daycare," Jake half-joked.

"It was you," Charlie suddenly guessed.

The suddenness surprised them both. Marionette looked to her with a start while Jake slouched a little before looking to her as well.

"…Yes. It was me," he confessed.

Somehow this hadn't crossed Marionette's mind as he looked shocked and utterly aghast by the revelation. He looked to Jake in surprise, looked him up and down, and then his eyes too landed on that endoskeleton replacement leg, and his face fell with sympathy. He wanted to say something, but Charlie beat him to it.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have just blurted it out like that. I wasn't even thinking," she quickly apologized.

"No, it's okay! It was a long time ago. I'm doing much better now," Jake reassured. "It's just, uh… Just don't bring it up in front of Sunny, okay? He took it a lot harder than I did."

"I won't, I swear," she agreed.

"That's why he's always so overprotective. I know you probably already figured that out."

"But Wight said you were vandalized," Marionette gently said. "Was he lying?"

"…No. Technically I was," Jake said, stretching out his words. He considered his words before saying more. "…The Staff Bots, even the Alpha Staff Bots, don't do something unless they're commanded to. They just got a bad command."

"That's terrible. I'm so sorry," he sympathized.

He couldn't imagine it… Or, he could. He started to put pieces together again.

"…Did you find out who gave that command?" the Puppet asked, his voice lowering a touch. Because he certainly had one suspect on his mind. A rabbit shaped suspect with similar motives to the last nasty rabbit who used to tamper with bots.

"It's a long story. It's old news, don't worry about it. What happened to me was just a lot of… bad timing is all," Jake said almost defensively.

He didn't want to talk, and Marionette resisted the urge to press at how desperate the other sounded. To know what happened so he could fix it or protect him.

After a long moment Charlie gave a noise that was a cross between 'throat clearing' and a ring.

"At least you have this now," she said. She tapped on the control panel. "Now you're the one in control. I know that doesn't change what happened, but you can make sure it doesn't happen again."

Jake was eerily quiet.

"…Right?"

"…No, I had this already. Sort of. The early version of this- the Alpha version if you get my drift, before I modified it to have all the extra stuff. Back then it was pretty much just a remote with a speaker and a button. Hold it down, give a command, release, and hope they follow orders… And they did that time. Funny enough, since they had such a hard time doing anything else," Jake said. His words so hurried that they ran together.

The anxiousness was a tipoff right away. In all the time that Charlie knew Jake and in all the times they have spoken, she had never heard him sound so nervous. He simply wasn't the nervous type. Even in the event where Moon was damaged and their confrontation in the daycare theater, he always kept a level head. Yet here he was, twitchy and tense. She could've believed that he was terribly afraid.

It wasn't until she saw the heart wrenched look on Marionette's mask that she suddenly realized she missed something. It was in that moment that she realized what it was, and it was only by looking past how Jake was acting and back to what he said.

Jake had control of the Staff Bots the whole time.

Including when they disassembled him.

Neither could speak, and Jake, becoming even anxious, started to rattle out more explanations and more excuses to cover up what he had just said. Though that didn't change anything. It didn't matter how many times he made empty comparisons between the Alpha Bots and current Staff Bots, it didn't erase what he had let them in on.

Though it wasn't until he suddenly tried to cut the conversation short that Marionette found his voice.

"But we should get to the daycare. The basement's huge, so I'll need to show them where to go," Jake raced out. He then started to hurry his footsteps but didn't get far before Marionette caught up to him.

"Wait! I…" He struggled for words for a moment. Pupils lit and darting down and around, trying to think of what to say, and finally just devolving into apologies. "I'm so sorry, Jake."

"Why are you sorry? I'm the one who did it," Jake fumbled back. He was trying to joke about it, but it came out strained.

"No, I don't mean-… I mean for pressing. For pushing you for answers."

"I'm the one who pressed. I'm the one who made that stupid comment about the control panel," Charlie apologetically interjected.

"No, that wasn't stupid!" Jake protested. He turned back to Charlie as Marionette's resolve broke. "You were just-."

His voice cut as a long arm suddenly hooked around him and pulled him back into a tight embrace. It almost knocked him off his feet. A few of the Bonnie-themed items dropped out of Marionette's grasp and to the floor, but he spared them no concern.

Just from Jake's posture alone it was clear he was surprised by the motion, but he didn't pull away. In fact, he patted Marionette's arm before resting his hand on it, taking in the comfort. Expecting the puppet to pull back, which he did not. At that point Jake looked to Charlie who gave a little smile and a shrug. She dropped her arms, only to lift them back up and step forward, making sure Jake was alright with it before joining in the hug.

It felt weird, but it felt nice. Jake couldn't deny that. It had been so long since someone had hugged him who wasn't Andrew. He hugged back, around the control panel as best as he could, accepting this temporary fate.

Marionette only drew back when it became apparent that if he didn't wipe the purple paint off Jake's cloak or coat it was going to drip down and get somewhere it wasn't supposed to. He wiped off his own tears with his hand, knowing it wouldn't stain.

Charlie gave a last squeeze and pulled back as well, and Jake did too, somewhat lost in the moment but quickly getting his mind back in place. Along with his mask that he readjusted.

"I'm okay. Now, I mean. I'm doing a lot better, so you don't have to worry about me. I just went through a rough patch," he assured them. Most of the anxiousness having left his voice and returning to his normal tone.

"You don't have to explain yourself," Marionette assured. He barely managed to even out his voice before saying so.

"This is the first time I've really been able to talk about it. So, don't feel bad about it coming out… But can we keep this between us? I don't want anyone feeling sorry for me. Well, anymore sorry than they already do."

"Nobody feels sorry for you! I mean, if they do it's only because you have to listen to that daycare music on a constant loop," Charlie lightly joked. Jake chuckled a little, loosening back up.

"Am I the only one who likes it?" Marionette asked as he bent over to gather up what he had dropped.

"Jessica does."

"That's because she's a woman of taste," he said, shaking a rolled-up poster at her while straightening up. He slipped it back into his stash before addressing Jake. "And of course. This stays between us… Though I should maybe mention it to Mike. He was very worried about you. He won't tell."

"That's okay. He doesn't seem like the gossipy type," Jake agreed.

"Thank you."

Jake gestured a hand down the way and Marionette gave a nod. They continued to follow along after Foxy and Baby. The mood was different now. Jake was feeling significantly better, but both Marionette and Charlie had a lot of feelings they were putting aside. Especially the former who realized that he had to put his feelings aside for the moment. He needed to be strong for Jake, Charlie, Gregory- practically everyone currently in the Pizzaplex. It could wait until he got home.

He wouldn't dare ask Jake why he did it. He didn't need to know; he was sure of that much.

"…Bonnie was going to be getting a big makeover."

Marionette turned to him instantly. Jake continued to explain.

"At best he was looking at a paint job to match the new design and at worst he was going to get fully replaced. It depended on whether they wanted the new Bonnie to be a girl or not. But he was confident about the whole thing. It seemed like he was looking forward to getting a fresh coat of paint. He said it would make his stars stand out. Which, no, it wouldn't. Yellow on white doesn't work like that," Jake laid out, then sighed. "And then one day he was gone, and nobody knew what happened."

"They took him to be renovated and never brought him back?" Charlie asked.

"No, he just disappeared. They really looked for him, but they couldn't find him."

"Do you think he left the Pizzaplex?" Marionette asked. He hoped that was the case.

"I don't think so. The Glamrocks have so many rules programmed in; I don't think they could walk out of the building even if they wanted to. Sunny maybe, because he's a security bot and he's got this protocol to escort kids out of the daycare if there's a fire, but everyone else? I think they're kind of stuck here… Which means Bonnie's probably still in here somewhere," Jake said. He didn't sound too terribly concerned; Marionette noticed.

"Do you think he's hiding somewhere?"

"Oh yeah, I'm sure of it. This place is huge. You could just get lost in Moon Bounce, not to mention all the tunnels under this place. He's around here, I'm sure of it…" Now Jake's voice fell. There was the uncertainty hiding underneath.

The conversation petered out shortly after that. Neither Marionette nor Charlie felt right pressing and even if they did, Jake didn't seem to know anything else. At least, he wasn't saying anything more, and considering he had boldly offered up that first amount it didn't seem likely that he would be withholding anything else. Things fell quiet as they made the rest of the walk into the daycare.

They headed through the Kids Cove entrance. The bouncy music of the daycare broke up that ominous silence and took a little of the tension away. As they approached the daycare, Marionette tried to slip himself into his caretaker headspace. Treating the daycare like if he was heading into the pizzeria.

He spotted Foxy, Baby, and Gregory waiting outside the wooden door into the daycare proper. Gregory no longer on Foxy's shoulders and now sitting at a table while Foxy and Baby stood nearby.

"What took you?" Baby asked innocuously.

"I dropped some things," Marionette excused. Of course, they were both pretending that they weren't aware. "Who won?"

"Ehhhh, Baby," Foxy said.

"Not really."

"What happened?" Marionette asked in confusion. Reading Foxy's groan alone, something clearly happened.

"We crashed," Gregory replied.

"Into each other?"

"No, it was- eh- I was comin' under that there door and I leaned down real far to get under faster, forgot me weight was shifted, and kissed the floor. Second time tonight if ye believe that!" Foxy explained.

"I didn't want to win like that, so we agreed to call it a truce," Baby said. "I want it to be very clear when I win."

Marionette chuckled and turned back towards Jake. "Do you know where there's any disinfectant cleaner or…?"

"Behind the security desk and the front desk," he replied.

"Perfect! Alright, Gregory." Marionette turned to the boy with a smile. "Why don't you give them your shoes and we'll head inside and see what Sun left you."

Gregory furrowed his brows. "We're not going into the basement?"

"I think they can handle it on their own," he assured. He looked to the others. Charlie nodded and Foxy gave an 'aye'.

Gregory slipped off his shoes and handed them over to Charlie. Marionette then took his hand and began to lead him to the stairs, which confused the boy further.

"Where are we going, up to the slide?" he asked.

"Yes!"

"But the door's right there."

"But the door's not as fun," the Puppet chirped. "I'm sure Sunny won't mind."

Gregory had a feeling that Sunny would mind, since he was technically still banned from the daycare and the only reason he was getting let inside was obligation. The idea to sneak and do it anyway was awfully tempting, so Gregory agreed.

Marionette waved to the others before leading him away while Jake led the others to the rounded doors leading into the daycare theater.

It wasn't until they were upstairs and heading past the party rooms to the slide that he noticed Marionette was still holding his hand. It was kind of weird. Not in an uncomfortable way, but it made him wonder how old the puppet thought he was.

Soon they made it to the front desk. Marionette finally released Gregory's hand and went around to the other side where he searched until he found some cleaning wipes. Leaving the merchandise he had found in the trash on the desk, he quickly wiped down his legs, arms, and hands while humming a little tune.

Gregory watched him as he did. "So… Do you work in a daycare too? A daycare at Foxy's place?" he asked. He guessed so because of how soft he was and the whole handholding thing.

"Close! I work in the Prize Corner where I exchanged tickets for prizes, but I also perform and attend birthday parties," Marionette explained.

"That sounds fun."

"It is. I make plenty of friend and get to be a part of many happy memories. Plus, I get to be around a lot of cake!" he said. He returned to Gregory and knelt down before beginning to use the child-safe cleaning wipes, he checked, to wipe down Gregory's legs.

"You can eat?"

"No, but I can taste and smell. A little dab of icing goes a long way," he said with a chime.

"…You know, I'm not a little kid," Gregory said, slightly perturbed at the treatment.

"Oh, I know, I know. I'm sorry if I'm treating you like one, I just don't want you getting sick from that mess in the basement," Marionette said. That wasn't all Gregory meant but decided he was too tired to go on about it when someone was being nice. "But you're never too old for the daycare! I love this place. If only we could have something like this at Foxy's, but pirate ship themed, with blue and turquoise balls in the ball pits and netting to climb. Maybe someday."

He quickly wiped off Gregory's arms and checked his clothing before throwing the wipes away. "Now that that's done, let's go see what Sun left you."

"We're not going down the slide together, right?" Gregory asked.

"Oh no. I'm going first," Marionette playfully replied.

He then all but pounced at the slide. Landing on the floor on his hands and transitioning into a summersault before promptly dropping down the slide legs first, spinning as he went down the tube.

Gregory had to admit that it was a little cool. He slid down after him and into the moat of balls. Just in time to see the Puppet burst out of the balls like he was popping out of his box. He let Gregory get out on his own and the two made their way to the kitchenette.

Inside the mini-fridge, Marionette found a takeout container with the words "Eat me!" and a smiley face drawn on the top. He pulled it out and opened it up to see that it stuffed.

There was a crustless bologna sandwich with cheese and mayonnaise cut in two triangles and wrapped in plastic, a juice pouch with a picture of a cartoony Sunny on it, a plastic wrapped fork, and three separate cups. One was a little cup of yogurt from the label, but the other two were unknown, with only the words "Heat me!" written on the side of one. Looking inside showed that they were a glob of potato salad and what looked like fried Brussel sprouts.

"Clever," Marionette thought with mild amusement.

He turned back to see Gregory dragging over one of the little plastic tables. He began to unpack the container on the table while Gregory dragged up two chairs and sat down. Sparing a quick thanks as he started to tear the plastic off of the sandwich. Marionette's face softened at how quickly he went at the food. It wasn't too strange to see children eating so ravenously, but it held a different meaning in this case.

"Now then, you dig in," Marionette began, poking the straw into the juice pouch and setting it beside him. He plucked up the Brussel sprouts cup. "And I'm going to go heat this up. I'll be right back."

"No, wait!" Gregory instantly stopped him. "I'll just eat it cold."

"Are you sure? Sunny has given me strict directions," he said, tapping on the cup.

"I'm sure. I don't care if it's cold," Gregory insisted. He tried to sound nonchalant but by then the Puppet had already figured out that he didn't want to be alone.

Marionette gave a nod and sat down. Now since Gregory had been kind enough to bring him a chair it only seemed polite to use it. Which was easier said than done considering that the chair was for a child smaller than Gregory. He was pretty much kneeling on it with his legs resting on the floor on either side of it. He was glad Mike wasn't here to see this.

But he did very much wish Mike was here right now.

But Marionette didn't show it. He folded his hands on the table and began with, "Has Foxy ever told you about the time-?" and went off into a variation of stories about his and Foxy's adventures together. Not their made-up adventures for the cartoons, Gregory would never believe those, but stripped-down real-life stories. Like the time he and Foxy went exploring and dove into a ditch running away from their own friends. Or how he and Foxy both fell into a kiddie pool full of plastic balls. Or how Foxy once fought an angry robot wolf.

It was a good distraction for them both and it didn't take long for Gregory to finish the sandwich and the yogurt cup. After which he attempted to put the rest into his backpack, only for Marionette to stop him, wrap them up tightly in the leftover plastic, and then carefully pack them into the lunchbox Gregory still had where they were less likely to get jostled and knocked over.

"There we go! That should be much more secure," he assured, zipping up the bag and setting it down on the table. "So!" He turned to Gregory, propping his head on his hands. "What would you like to do now?"

Gregory was sipping at the pouch when his eyes wandered off to the side towards the play structures. He considered it a long moment before releasing the straw to speak.

"Well… I kind of want to explore the tunnels. I haven't been up there since the lights were shut off and Moon was chasing me around. Before I found out he was just a big weirdo," Gregory said. Marionette gave a chuckling chime. "Do you want to come too?"

"Sure! I haven't seen the whole thing for myself," Marionette agreed.

He let Gregory go first and the boy wandered around a little before choosing his point of entry- running up into one of the slides. Marionette quirked a brow with a smile before following him inside.

He felt good. He felt like he was helping, like he was taking care of Gregory, giving him memories that might help cover up the horrors of tonight.

"And then when that gets boring, we can, uh… I don't know. Spin around in that desk chair. Sunny would hate that!"

That sounded significantly less safe. Hopefully Gregory would forget about that idea before they came down.

Washing up had taken a while. Largely because Baby had to be very thorough with both rinsing and drying while Foxy had to go at his arm with a scrub brush. Neither of which Charlie saw much of since she stayed out with Jake perched on the industrial washing machines as they waited for Gregory's shoes to go through a wash cycle. Something that took about as long as the siblings in the room.

Which was a good thing, because as much as both hated asking for help. It was easier asking for help from a sibling who for all intent and purposes was in the same boat. Two animatronics and only two truly viable arms to work with.

But once they were finished, they returned to the daycare. Foxy headed into the playground to join up with Gregory and Marionette while Charlie continued to hang out with Jake for a while. She wasn't just spending time with him because of what happened earlier, but it did encourage her to spend a little more one-on-one time with him. Then they got into talk about her robotics class and off-topic, and the next thing she knew she had spent nearly half an hour talking about classmates and teachers she would never see again.

That was when she had noticed that there was someone who had been noticeably quiet. So quiet that Charlie only noticed during a lull in the conversation that she had excluded herself from the group, and that was Baby.

"Have you seen Baby?" she asked.

She and Jake had sat at the same table Gregory did when they first came in. Not the most comfortable chairs, but Jake had expressed a sort of excitement hanging out in an area he usually wasn't able to without Sunny hovering over him.

"She's over there, in the gift shop," he said. He pointed past her, and she looked over her shoulder at it.

Sure enough, she caught sight of Baby in the back of the store looking at the merchandise on the wall. Normally she wouldn't think much of it, but Baby secluding herself made her take a little more notice. Especially when she noticed how sluggishly Baby was looking around. Likely not looking but just staring, thinking. She knew how lost in her thoughts Baby could get.

"I bet this whole thing was pretty rough on her," Jake sympathized.

"It was… I think I'm going to see if she wants to hang out for a while," Charlie said.

"Good idea. She really shouldn't be alone."

Charlie got up and started to head towards the gift shop. Now closer to her, she could see that Baby was looking at items on the wall while absentmindedly trailing her fingers across the merchandise. She hadn't noticed her approaching either; definitely lost in thought.

Charlie had almost reached the gift shop when she suddenly had an idea. One mostly inspired by how Baby was looking at the little trinkets in the gift shop. It was a mere pittance compared to what she knew would be up in the Prize Counter.

It would be a risk, but maybe it was worth it to pull Baby out of this assumed funk before she got in too deep. She was still thinking it through as she turned around and hurried back to the propped open wooden doors, meeting up with Jake who was heading inside.

"That was quick," he joked.

"I just have to run something by Mari," she replied then headed in.

She had heard Foxy and Marionette playing around with Gregory inside the daycare. Earlier she had seen Foxy diving into the ball pit and assumed the next progression was him trying to climb into the tunnels. Needless to say, they were having fun.

This wasn't the fun she expected to find.

There was Foxy and Gregory goading on the sidelines as Marionette spun around as fast as he could in an office chair behind the security desk. It was shocking that the chair hadn't tipped over yet, probably only held up by Marionette's will alone.

For a few seconds Charlie and Jake could only stare at it before a voice called out.

"Well, hello you two!" Marionette called. His voice surprisingly stable considering his position.

"'Bout time you two showed up! Come 'ere and watch this," Foxy invited.

"How long's he been doing this?" Jake asked. His voice somewhere between awe and concern.

"Eh, not that long. 'Least, not that long going so fast," the pirate said with a chuckle. He waved him over and Jake went to join him, funny enough, outside the counter like they were preparing to take cover.

"I just came by to ask you something, but if you're busy I can come back in ten minutes," Charlie quipped.

"No, no. Ask me! I can focus," Marionette assured.

"How?"

"Somehow."

"Oookay, anyways… So, I noticed that Baby's looking down. I'm sure she's still upset about earlier," Charlie began, her voice softening up. Though it then grew more determined as she announced, "I think I'm going to take her up to the arcade. Show her around where I got chased, just get her out of her head and somewhere else."

"You mean upstairs to- Hold on, I need to stop for this. Stay back."

Charlie would've quirked a brow at his warning if not for the fact that Marionette's chair almost tipped over the second he tried to stop it. It wobbled on its wheels before he spun out of it and into the air in front of her, leaving it spinning off behind him.

And then he promptly took a sharp dive into the screen on the right. She reached out to grab him by the shoulders as he started sliding towards the floor, feeling his levitation pulling in the wrong direction and watching his lit pupils repeatedly sliding to the side. Foxy quickly came around the counter right as Marionette gave up on the levitation and just slumped to the tile floor. His eyes finally starting to recalibrate themselves.

"You okay?" Foxy asked, hunched over with his hands on his knees.

"I feel fantastic! I didn't even know I could still get dizzy!" Marionette chimed. Foxy started to offer him a hand, but the Puppet waved his dismissively. "I think I'm going to stay down here until the room calms down."

"That's probably a good idea," Charlie agreed.

"But about the arcade. You two going up there alone after last time… Are you sure that's safe?" Marionette gently asked.

"Asks the guy who was just spinning around in a chair at warp speed," Charlie pointed out. He sent her a sheepish smile and she returned one. "We'll be extra careful. I just need to get her away for a while."

Marionette's soft smile shifted into something slyer. Something much more like what she had seen down in the basement. Still looking up from the floor.

"I don't trust that smile," Charlie remarked.

"Well, Lass, I be leaning into Mari's feelings, but if yer careful ya might be fine. Freddy's walked me all over this place and we've only ran across his friends, eh, once er twice," Foxy said. He pointed to her with his hook, "Just remember: if you hear anything, hide. It ain't worth tryin' to sneak around 'em, just let 'em move along."

"I will, but I'm not worried. Chica was the problem last time and… I don't think she's going to be this time," Charlie said, her tone shifting awkwardly. She gave a little wave to Jake and Gregory. "We won't stay gone long! I'll radio if anything comes up."

Jake gave her finger guns and she decided that it was excellent timing to get away for a while.

Charlie found Baby where she had left her, still moseying around the Lucky Stars gift shop looking as lost as ever. She only looked back from a wall of balloons when she heard the door opening and saw Charlie coming in, dropping her claw as soon as she did.

"Finally found me?" she guessed.

"Were you hiding?" Charlie asked in confusion.

Baby gave her a funny look. One hard to read.

"Never mind. Find anything good?"

"Mmm, in a sense," Baby half-agreed. She watched the puppet walk up beside her before looking back to the keychains. "So many pretty little trinkets with his… face on them. It makes me think."

"Of?"

"How many little trinkets my face must've been on at some point. Or I suppose not, we weren't open that long."

"Well, they make merchandise in advance, so maybe. We should look it up when we get out of here and see," Charlie suggested. Baby gave a half-hearted hum, too deflated to be that interested. "…Unless you want to see some real merchandise."

Charlie shift to a coy tone surprised Baby. She looked to her and tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"What do you think about taking a little adventure together?" the puppet suggested.

"It depends. Where?"

"To where I had my last daring exploit, El Chip's," Charlie joked. She then counted off on her fingers, "And the arcade, and the Prize Counter."

"…We shouldn't. Not after what's happened already," Baby declined. Though both from the way her tone and eyes fell it was clear that even she was disappointed saying it. She rubbed over her arm and freshly cleaned claw.

"Maybe not, but when's that ever stopped us before?" Charlie tried. Baby didn't reply, so she laid a hand on her shoulder. "We'll be careful, we'll take it one step at a time. Just you and me. What do you say?"

She removed her hand so she could hold it out to her. An assuring smile on her face. Her face and voice as sure as could be.

Baby's resolve snapped the moment she looked at her. She released her own arm and took her hand.

Just she and her. What a curious thought.

Chapter 55

Chapter Summary

Charlie makes an unexpected discovery while visiting the arcade with Baby. Meanwhile, Freddy DOESN'T make an unexpected discovery in the Daycare arcade, but it is time for him to reveal the secret he has been hiding from Foxy...

Chapter Notes

Happy Valentine's Day! Or, well, past Midnight so technically no longer Valentine's Day… Close enough, I suppose! ^_^ Enjoy!

"Charlie, please promise me something."

"What?"

"That under no circumstances will you ever bring Ennard here."

One look at the faux-fiesta decorations, the perpetual party music, and the knowledge of the liquid cheese dispenser and Baby knew if Ennard ever got in here that he might very well never leave.

Charlie jingled at the comment and smiled at the clown at her side.

"Promise, but if he finds his way up here on his own don't look at me. He seems like the type of guy who could sniff out a taco from a mile away," she joked.

"Thank heavens he can't. It's already hard enough keeping him in the house," Baby remarked. She gave a dismissive little wave of her hand and an eye roll.

That amount of sass dragged another snicker out of Charlie before she could stop it. Thankfully, instead of offended Baby simply gave a little 'Hmm' of contentment. Her eyes flickered over Charlie before slowly rolling back over the counter in front of her.

"So, this is where it happened? It must be, I remember this music playing in the background… It really is just as you described, and that alone is quite shocking."

"Are you calling me a liar?" Charlie asked in a joking voice, pointing accusatorily.

"Mmm, maybe…" Baby drew out. She folded her arms behind her back and rolled around back of Charlie before stopping on her opposite side. "Maybe you should prove yourself," she said.

"Prove what? How good of a hider I am or my phone dialing skills?"

"Show me how you popped over the counter," Baby requested. Swaying slightly as she shifted her skates slightly back and forth underneath her. "If you are up to it."

Charlie looked at her incredulously. She could tell from the look alone that Baby was not joking, she wanted to see her dive over the counter like a petty criminal who just nicked the contents of the register.

"It's never going to look as cool as it did the first time. You know that, right?" she asked. Her smile a little lopsided.

"I'll be the judge of that. It certainly can't be anything nearly as awful as sledding down a hill of trash on your face," Baby tutted. Baby only made jokes at her expense for Charlie's benefit or her gain. In this case, likely to take the pressure off and convince Charlie to go ahead and take the plunge.

"Well, okay. If that's what you really want," Charlie said with exaggerated exasperation. She walked over to the counter and hopped over. "Stay back. Once I get going, I can't stop," she forewarned. To which Baby rolled back into the clear.

The Security Puppet backed up nearly to the cheese dispenser and stretched her arms and legs. It wasn't that hard of a move to pull off when fleeing for her life, but when it came to doing it for show it was another story entirely. She never had that much trouble with stage fright, at least not since she buckled down and started performing at Foxy's, but this was another matter entirely. On principle alone she didn't want to screw this up.

Speaking of which- she took off her taser and radio and set them on the counter behind her, just in case she did. Then after one last moment to focus, she made a run for the counter.

It was all very quick considering how long she prepared for it. A quick jump and a dive over the counter, arms out to catch her on the floor, and landing into a roll- though unable to get back up on her feet with the momentum. She got one leg underneath her, so instead of ending up on the floor on her backside, she sort of rolled into a kneel on one knee. It almost looked purposeful, which was exactly what she was going for.

She wasn't sure how awkward it might've looked. Either way, Baby clapped her hand against her claw before offering it to pull Charlie to her feet.

"You are such a showoff," she teased.

"You asked me to do it!" Charlie pointed out with a smile.

"Maybe I did, but you still are," Baby said. She got that look again, lashes lowering. "Which is fine when you can prove it." She spun around quickly, her hand clamping on Charlie's to keep it from escaping. "This way, I assume? I cannot stand another moment of this music."

"See, when you deny it like that it makes me think you really like it and don't want to admit it," Charlie remarked. Baby gave a dismissive little scoff.

The two headed over to the security door to the arcade. Baby released her hand somewhere between that one and the next, bracing herself in case something sprung out with the lifting of the next one. Though instead, the door raised to reveal the east arcade. Baby gave a soft gasp and raised a hand to her mouth. Charlie had been watching for a reaction. She hadn't expected this much of one though, and her smile widened.

"And here we are! Welcome to the arcade. One of them at least."

"Oh!" Baby said in surprise. "It's not terrible!"

That was enough to catch Charlie off-guard and she burst out laughing. To which Baby looked startled and then gave an embarrassed little huff. Planting a hand on her hip, or on the plates of her skirt; Charlie took notice from the soft clink.

"Sorry, I just- that surprised me, is all," she apologized.

"It surprised me too," Baby remarked, brushing it off. She cast her gaze across the room and her eyes nearly glistened with intrigue. "I expected an arcade to be garishly bright and loud, but the lighting in here is quite nice. It must be different during the day though."

"It's not this quiet, that's for sure," Charlie said. Though it wasn't quite quiet now. Not with the soft spacey music and the chimes and sounds coming from the numerous machines that lay ahead.

There was only one Security Staff Bot patrolling around and it was directly in front of the wall with the door to the security office. There were a couple of Cleaning Bots currently wiping at the floor, but they were none-the-wiser to the two passing through.

As they made it past the bathrooms and deeper into the arcade, Baby admired the striped lights branching up into the ceiling like tree limbs. Her eyes trailing up them as she smoothly rolled down the tiled floor. Charlie kept looking back to her to see her reaction.

It didn't take them long to get around the corner to the section of photo booths. Baby took notice of them, eye flickering between them quickly as though she was quickly counting.

"Are those all photo booths?" she asked.

"Every one of them. That's the one Jessica and I hid in," Charlie said, pointing towards a closer one.

"I wouldn't think children would be this interested in photo booths," Baby said. Though it was less questioning and more factual. She hummed knowingly and started to roll up towards the booth Charlie pointed out and peeked inside. "But a good hiding spot nonetheless."

It was then that Charlie suddenly had an idea. Largely spurned by the realization that Baby would be able to fit into the photo booth. She looked at the controls and noticed that this one took tokens instead of money.

"Wait here," she said and turned back to hurry away.

Baby snapped upright and look back with a start. "Where are you going?"

"It's a surprise!"

"To you or me?" Though by then Charlie had ran far enough down that she likely didn't hear her. Baby returned to looking at the attractive neon surrounding her.

Charlie made it back to a counter in the center of the arcade lobby. One that faced El Chip's and that was right outside the bathroom. While the counter had some snacks and drink dispensers, it also had some shirts hanging up and merchandise sitting out. When she leaned over the counter, sure enough, she could see a large lump some of coin rolls in a basket. Though from how thick they were, and the nature of the arcade, she had a hunch they were tokens instead of money.

"Jackpot!" she whispered. She then unhooked her radio and lifted it to her mouth. "Hey, Jake. Do you think it would be okay if I took some tokens? I can pay it back later."

"Go ahead! We're allowed to give out tokens- or the animatronics- the animatronics who are on the floor can give out tokens, you know what I mean. I'm sure Sunny would be fine with it, so just grab fifteen or twenty and we'll say it's through him."

"That seems like a lot."

"You haven't seen the prices on the good games," Jake joked.

Charlie smiled. "Thanks, and tell Sunny thanks too if you see him before me." They said their goodbyes and ended the call.

She grabbed one of the rolls and unraveled it before counting out fifteen coins, thought on it, and then counted out five more and slid the little mound into her pocket. She then closed the roll as best as she could and returned it to the basket before heading back to Baby.

"I'm back!" she called as she jogged up. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a handful of tokens. "What do you say we get our picture taken?"

Baby looked down at the tokens and her eyes opened more to show her mild surprise.

"Charlie, really? Stealing? I am shocked. Utterly stunned… And yet once again modestly impressed."

"It's not stealing, I'm just… Alright, it might be stealing, but Jake said it was okay to take them since they're allowed to give out tokens to guests. Technically we're guests," Charlie excused.

"Technically we didn't pay entry," Baby reminded.

"Technically they're getting free labor through Fritz and Ennard," Charlie pointed out.

"Technically we broke Chica," Baby said flatly.

"Technically Chica threw you into the trash compactor first," Charlie reminded.

"…Yes." Baby's delayed reply was even quieter. "…But I attacked her first. She had every right to do what she did."

Charlie wasn't sure what it was, but something about that tone didn't sit right with her. It was a far cry from Baby's occasional somberness, sounding dour in a way she couldn't explain. Almost hopeless, but she knew better.

"No, she didn't. You both made mistakes," she defended seriously.

Baby stared a moment before she dropped her eyes. Just like she had done in the gift shop.

"Okay…"

Charlie reached out and took her claw- as it was on the side of her free hand- and gave the upper half an assuring squeeze. Then after a few beats, she held out the tokens to her. The clown gave a nod.

"Okay," she said more certainly.

Baby turned and got in first as Charlie popped a couple tokens into the slot and jumped in after her. It was a tight fit, but Charlie didn't mind bumping shoulders for a photo, and she wouldn't have to deal with sitting on Baby's skirt for long.

"We try to make different faces for each picture, right?" Baby asked, having likely seen it on television or something of the like.

"Sounds like a plan! Okay… Zombie!" Charlie said. She then stuck her arms forward and lulled he head in a stereotypical zombie fashion.

She was a little surprised when Baby didn't miss a beat. Loosening her arms to her sides, lulling her head to the side limply, and staring at the camera with an unfocused sort of gaze. One eye even open wider than the other. Come to think of it, it passed as a zombie but couldn't very easily also been the pose of an inanimate animatronic lying dormant. There was a quick flash.

Charlie had an idea already and reached down for Baby's claw before lifting and opening it.

"Here, claw me," she said. She lifted the claw up at her.

"What? No!" Baby tugged, to which Charlie tugged back.

"We're just pretending. It'll be funny," she insisted.

Baby huffed and planted her hand on Charlie's forehead and pushed her back, much to the Security Puppet's look of disbelief. The scene finally interrupted by the flash of a second picture being taken, and Baby snapped her head to attention.

"Diva," she suddenly proclaimed.

Charlie released her claw, and she smoothly pulled it into her lap while striking a pose. Resting the back of her hand against her head while tilting it back and shooting the camera a sultry look. It took Charlie a little by surprise, but she adapted quickly and thrusted a hand to her chest while turning her head away. Mockingly turning up her nonexistent nose at the camera. This was followed by another flicker of the camera shortly after.

The last one. This one had to be special. Instead of giving out any suggestion, Charlie tossed an arm around Baby's shoulders and smiled for the camera. Baby reacted immediately, tilting her head against Charlie's, her hand and claw resting in her lap together.

They waited for the flash.

And then the photo booth went dark. The sound of electronics powering down surrounding them. They sat there for a moment in the darkness, still in the same position, the wheels turning, until Baby spoke up.

"Please tell me that is the hourly recharge and that we didn't blow a fuse."

"It is," Charlie agreed. A quick check out of the curtain showed that all the lights and arcade machines were out. She sighed and sat back onto the seat again. "We should still get our pictures. If we don't, we can always go again."

Baby propped her elbow against the wall and used that to prop her head up. It was going to be a long five minutes, but nothing too unbearable. That was if being in a dark little closet didn't immediately close Baby in with her thoughts and no distractions.

Charlie was fiddling around with a token in her hand when she happened to notice the change in Baby's eyes. She rubbed the token between her fingers and considered it before taking the plunge.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Baby didn't want to talk about it, but as she sighed the words slipped out easily afterwards.

"Why is it so hard for me to be a good person? I thought I was doing better. Yet every time I start to get comfortable, something terrible that I've done comes back to haunt me, reminding me of what kind of person I was… or am. Have I even changed? Am I just acting good and fooling myself?" Baby asked. Before Charlie could interject, she continued, "Do you realize that I have now ruined that Chica's life twice?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Ennard and Fritz are working on her right now. If Sunny could pull through, she will," Charlie assured.

"But that will not change what comes afterwards. Ennard can't fix that. Speaking of Ennard, him, I ruined him as well. He pulled through, but I destroyed his life just as eagerly as I did Chica's. And the only reason I care now is because I love him. Her? I used her. I used her and it broke her more deeply than Ennard ever was. And for what? Wires I could have gotten from elsewhere. I hunted her down and ate her like some kind of wild animal. It's disgusting!"

It was the first time Baby's voice had raised through the entire explanation and it was punctuated with her claw snapping. She pressed it down harder into her lap to keep it still and quiet.

"That was a mistake, but you didn't know she was alive. Context is everything, Baby. It wasn't like you went there planning on eating someone. You went there to get parts out of what you thought was a lifeless machine. Maybe you jumped the gun with that decision, but you can't blame yourself with hindsight when you didn't know at the time," Charlie rationalized.

"Would it have changed anything?" Baby quietly asked. "Even now I don't feel nearly as bad as I should. I ruined her life. I made her into this."

"Now that's just not true. What happened to her was terrible and we can't blame her for being messed up after going through that, but her chasing and terrorizing Gregory is on her programming. That's something you had nothing to do with," Charlie reminded. She paused a moment before adding in a quieter voice, "You already proved that you changed tonight."

Baby looked over. "When?"

"When Gregory gave you the perfect excuse to go after Chica and you turned him down. The old Baby would've jumped on that, even if it was to defend my honor," Charlie said. Her tone shifting to slight playfulness at the end along with gaining a small smile. Though it returned to certainty and seriousness as she asked, "You did some terrible things without thinking of the consequences. Isn't the fact that you're upset about it now a sign that you've changed?"

Baby considered this. It didn't seem like much, or enough, but it was true. The old her didn't think twice about what she did. Even if she didn't feel as bad as she believed she should, wasn't her caring at all a sign that something had changed? It had to mean something.

"…Maybe you're right," Baby said. She looked back at Charlie. "Thank you…"

"That's what I'm here for," Charlie replied with an encouraging smile.

Baby's eyes didn't stay on he long. Soon drifting off towards the wall as she considered what she had said. Though her posture had changed. Upright instead of slumped on the wall; she really was thinking, not just wallowing in dreary thoughts. That was a good sign.

Admittedly, Charlie had seen a major change in Baby since they had met. She was genuinely attempting to be better, and to her that was all that mattered.

Besides, Chica wasn't the only person who had their lives forever changed by someone else's actions.

While she had forgiven but wouldn't blow off Baby's past actions, she couldn't in good faith blame all her actions on her own decisions. It was obvious that a lot of what Baby had been fighting through came from the situation she had been brought up in. Like Chica, it wasn't an excuse, but it did give credence to the fact that Baby was actively having to relearn everything. The sad truth was that much of what Baby had become was at the hands of someone else.

It made Charlie wonder what Baby would've been like if she hadn't had died and had been allowed to live a more normal life. It wasn't an unusual thought; Charlie had toyed with the same thoughts about her and Sammy. If he had lived, if their mother took them with her, if her father hadn't passed away, if Afton didn't exist or at least hadn't been a monster. Typically, these trains of thought would bum her out, but in this case, she hitched onto the idea.

She would've probably been in college just like Charlie had been. Maybe she would've studied robotics too, or perhaps she would've been so turned away from it that she went into another field entirely. She wasn't sure why, but the first thing that came to mind was criminal law. Baby was certainly the type who could be passionate and yet set raw emotions aside for later. Imagining her cracking down on crime kind of fit.

Now onto how she would've looked. Remembering how Marionette would've looked, or how he self-imagined himself while they were trapped in that nightmare, Elizabeth probably would've shared some of his features. A narrow face with soft accents, green eyes, hair pulled back in a low ponytail like it was now. Or maybe not. Maybe she would've grown it out. She probably would've been beautiful.

They might've been friends too. Or maybe not. Maybe circumstances would've aligned where they never met and, in that case, maybe some of what they had to go through was worth it. It was better than lamenting what had no chance of ever being.

It wasn't until Baby's radiant green eyes looked to her that she realized she had been staring again, and still was. Even with better night vision, the darkness accentuated their glow.

It was a stark reminder that Baby was not a human. Not on the outside. Not anymore.

But she was beautiful.

"What is it?" Baby asked.

That question suddenly shook Charlie out of her stupor and made her realize she was still silently staring like a creep- or at least she felt creepy just ogling Baby and thinking about her like she wasn't there. Like she was… Like she wasn't-.

"Nuh… Nothing!" Charlie got out. She snapped her head away. "Sorry, I just spaced out. Sorry."

But Baby must've noticed something by the way her eyes were shifting over Charlie's face in confusion. Of course she would notice without looking back after having been staring directly at them. Instead of returning that gaze, Charlie sat rigidly and looked at the curtain.

Baby wasn't convinced by her excuse. She turned fully towards her before speaking.

"Charlie," she began. She then paused, changed tactics, and started again. "Charlotte…"

Charlie lifted her head in surprise at the change of tone. Baby misread the motion and faltered.

"I have never asked if it is okay to call you that," she said apologetically.

"It is. I don't mind," Charlie quickly insisted. She then tested the waters. "…Elizabeth." Baby looked a little surprised. "Or Lizzie. Whichever you prefer, if it's okay with you."

"Only those near and dear can call me that… and I think you've more than met that criteria," Baby agreed.

"I'm glad. And same to you. To tell you the truth, there's only a few people I've heard call me Charlotte who didn't sound like they were patronizing me," Charlie admitted. Baby seemed to perk up at that.

"Alright then, Charlotte. May I ask you something?" she asked. Charlie gave her a bit of an amused look, considering she had been asking plenty already. Baby ignored it and went ahead. "You've seen me at my worst… What do you think of me now?"

"I think you've been through a lot, and I think you're a lot stronger than you or anyone else gives you credit," Charlie answered honestly. She was finally willing and able to meet Baby's gaze and met it with a returning smile. "And I think you're doing great."

"Thank you…" Baby said quietly.

"My turn. What do you think about me?" Charlie asked curiously.

Baby eyes seemed to glow even brighter. "I think you're wonderful."

The answer didn't exactly surprise the puppet but did fluster her further.

"I'm not sure about that," she fumbled.

"I am," Baby said surely. "I think you've brought out the best in me. Everything good in what I've become, I owe it to you. To wanting to be good enough for you."

Normally Charlie wouldn't have overthought a comment like that, even with Baby's soft-serve tone of voice. Except that it was on top of the comments earlier. The one she had made in the basement especially was staying in the back of Charlie's mind.

The thing that got her was that these little compliments and comments, these little moments when Baby didn't act like 'Baby', they weren't new. Baby wasn't acting too different. A little bolder, but her tongue tended to get loose when coming out of a stressful situation.

"Lizzie, are you…?" Charlie carefully began. She rolled her wrist in a sort of hand wave, trying to motion out the words. "How do I say this?"

"Yes."

Charlie looked to Baby. The clown was looking back at her, and their eyes locked once more.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Likely yes," Baby quietly confirmed.

And even though it was just vague enough that she couldn't confirm her suspicions, couldn't be sure that Baby was on the same wavelength as her, Charlie reacted as though she had. Her mask showing her evident surprise. A low ringing stirring in her chest and replacing the raging flush that likely would've spread over her face if she was a human.

"Oh," she said. It was all she could say. Oh.

Baby faltered and shirked only slightly into herself. Her gaze dropping down towards her lap as she buckled.

"Should we head back to the daycare?" she quietly asked.

Charlie wasn't sure how she felt about all this, but she knew how she felt about that. "No!"

Baby looked up in surprise at Charlie's outburst, and she rushed out an explanation.

"I mean, we just got here, and we've got tokens. We ought to play a few games while we have the chance. And this might be our only chance to see the Prize Counter together," she continued.

While it wasn't quite an answer to anything else, if Baby was expecting an answer, she seemed to relax a little at the suggestion. Her rigid posture releasing slightly, like releasing a sigh. Her fingers, digging into her claw, finally loosening up as well. It was going to be okay.

"…Once the power comes back on," Charlie added. Baby hummed in agreement. They returned to sitting there quietly, but more comfortably. Tense, but not stifling.

That didn't stop Charlie's mind from racing. She was trying to not overthink it, but different thoughts and connections crept up, and with them she felt her internal music box tightening as well. Like at any moment it would release and spill out a series of noises that sounded more appropriate coming from a doorbell than her. The only thing that could make her anymore awkward.

Part of her just wanted to get it over with and directly ask Baby, as embarrassing as it was, if what she was thinking and what Baby was implying were the same thing. Though she couldn't muster up the courage to do so, especially when she already believed they were.

The scary part was that despite what this would mean for them and their friends, and her friends, and their family, and all of the complications that would arise from this- complications Charlie had witnessed in her own friend group- she was flattered.

No, not flattered. She was excited. A realization that left her fighting with her wound up music box again, whatever that meant.

Thankfully, before she could delve into what that might've said about her, the power came back on. The photo booth kicked back on as well. Charlie packed up all her reservations and stood up before offering Baby her hand.

The flash went off.

Charlie froze there momentarily, expression undeniably tight, while Baby gave a huff.

"Oh, of course. It waits for the moment I'm looking down," she remarked. She then took Charlie's offered hand and stood, lightly bumping around the booth.

"On the plus side, we might get our pictures," Charlie reminded.

This turned out to be true as she stepped out of the booth to find the slip of pictures being spat out. She looked at them first and admittedly they did look good. Even the one where they were playing tug of war with Baby's claw, which in this context actually came off looking like a gag instead of an actual scuffle. The last picture wasn't nearly as bad as it could've been. She was standing, so the most that could be seen of her was some leg, some jacket, and her hand held out to Baby.

Except for one thing.

"Hey look! It got you with your eyes up. That's something," Charlie said. She held out the pictures for Baby to see.

She was right. Instead of looking down, the camera had just managed to catch her looking up at Charlie before reaching for her hand. Though Baby wasn't sure if it made the picture much better. She was still just sitting there cramped in a booth. Not nearly as impressive as the others had been, but still it was a nice picture. Maybe not for what it was, but for what it would remind her of.

It had been a lovely moment. A moment she was going to remember ever time she looked at this photo.

Charlie was still offering her hand. She always had; she still was.

"Do you want to divvy these up or should we take a second set?" Charlie asked. Still offering her hand, in a matter of speaking.

"I think… I want to keep these," Baby decided. After a tender pause, she glanced back to Charlie. "Which means if you're wanting any, we'll have to pop back in for a second set," she said with a playful edge.

"We can. We've got the time and I've got the tokens," Charlie agreed. She made a show of pulling one out and flipping it in her hand.

Showing off, Baby supposed but didn't comment on. She wasn't going to be the only one. Baby was determined to perfect this next batch of pictures- and hopefully that picture they missed out on due to the power going out.

Needless to say, Baby was feeling better.

It was surprising how strenuous something that was supposedly automated could be. On the whole Fritz had to admit that it was an efficient system. That is, he wouldn't have ever been able to do this many repairs this quickly without it, even with the tools and supplies. Yet it was still precise and exhausting. Especially when he was not used to staying up this late. As the hours crept on, he was beginning to have a little more trouble staying awake.

Thankfully, that's where Ennard's presence was a huge help. He was the safety net in case Fritz started to slip up, to stop him if his addled mind began to do something he wasn't supposed to. Though so far that hadn't happened. Most of the tasks were simple and routine; hard to mess up, but not helping in keeping his mind alert. That was about to change as they finished up in replacing the upper torso of Chica. Though it was hard to take credit for something that was largely automated.

As Chica was reclined back into the seat once more, Fritz and Ennard were faced with their last challenge. Something that would no doubt be their biggest challenge, Chica's shattered face.

While her plating had been utterly decimated, most of what had been underneath had been left untouched- save a quick relocation of her arm that required new bolts to be put in. That didn't count for her face. If the missing beak and voice box wasn't a giveaway that this would be a big job, the bulging unfocused eyes lulling around certainly did. Fritz couldn't help but grimace as he took another look at it before turning and heading out of the protective cylinder to finish off their last job.

Outside, Freddy and Moon were still sitting on the steps. They had been waiting this entire time.

"Alright, Freddy! We're onto the last step!" Fritz called over as he headed towards the desk. He slowed while rubbing his hands together absentmindedly. "…Course it's the hardest step and will probably take the longest to do, but hey, last one."

"Oh, I just love how optimistic you are," Ennard quipped from behind him. He leaned on the desk as Fritz sat down and finished up on the computer.

"That is great news!" Freddy exclaimed. He excitedly stood up from the stairs and looked through the glass, only to visibly recoil at the sight of Chica's still gruesome facial damage. "Oh dear…" he said. He sighed. "Well, she does look much better."

"Mmhmhm, that's not saying much," Moon darkly joked. He rolled his head towards Freddy and looked up at him, but the bear didn't take the bait. He sobered and straightened up. "Perhaps it's time to tell your friends."

"Yes…" Freddy agreed. Moon pressed a finger to where his temple would be preparing to send out a security alert before being stopped by Freddy's hand falling on his shoulder. "We should tell them in person."

Moon hummed and nodded, dropping his arm and turning to climb the stairs. Freddy followed suit, sending one last somber look towards Chica before following him up to his designated elevator.

Fritz ran one last scan over Chica's body to which it, understandably, picked up the momentum damage dealt to her mouth and head. Having locked on, he clicked to begin the procedure and started to get up. Though instead of the same cycle beginning yet again, he was surprised when he was met instead with an error noise.

"I'm sorry, but you are unauthorized to perform this repair. Due to the confidential nature of Chica's super party upgrades, repairs done on said upgrades can only be done with direct clearance from Dr. Talbert."

"What?" Fritz asked in near disbelief. He sat back down and looked, but the pop-up on the screen said virtually the same thing. Even with the upgrade possibly damaged beyond belief, they were barred from touching it. "That's just great," he complained, collapsing back into the office chair. He pointed a hand at the screen. "What now?"

"Well, well, looks like we're doing it the old-fashioned way!" Ennard said, rubbing his hands together excitedly. Fritz looked less than on-board. "Oh, come on! I know you've worked on worse than this! You worked on me once, right?"

"…You know, I don't think I did," Fritz said with mild surprise. Ignoring that, Ennard held up his fingers, showing the smallest inch between them.

"We're thiiiis close! I know it looks bad, but all we've gotta do is get Jake or someone to send for a new voice box and beak and BAM- we're done! As simple as that!" the clown encouraged. "So, what do you say, Fritz? Are you ready to get wrist-deep in a real job?"

Fritz considered that comment for a long moment. He might've even considered it, looking into the protective cylinder, but one look at Chica's ruined face deflated any optimism.

"I don't want to burst your bubble, but I don't think it's going to be as simple as that," he said with an apologetic smile.

Ennard dropped his head dramatically.

"Yeah, I know," he muttered. He lifted his head again with a much more defeated look over his constant smile. "We're done."

"End of the road," Fritz agreed, dusting off his hands.

"Dead end."

"Let's pack it in and get out of here," Fritz said, hooking a thumb back and then dragging himself to his feet.

Ennard sent one last look at Chica. At this angle he had the perfect view of both the gaping cavity of her mouth and the way her right eye was poked out. The latter specifically bothered him, to a point that he couldn't stand it.

"Not yet."

He strode back into the protective cylinder and leaned over her. He started down at her for a long moment, accessing the situation, and then started to reach up and into her gaping mouth. Slowly and carefully sliding his fingers and hand into the opening and angling them inwards and upwards, towards the back of the eyes.

Fritz came in behind him and stared at the scene.

"What are you doing?" he finally asked.

"I'm fixing her eyes. They never fix them right," Ennard explained. "I'm not gonna let her get stuck with the same eye problem I had. She's too cute to have a lazy eye."

"She's quite a looker- you used to have a lazy eye?"

"Oh yeah, real slacker."

Ennard slowly and carefully nudged the wiring back in, helping goad the eye back into place in the socket. Hopefully hooking it where it needed to be until her head casing was replaced. It wasn't a perfect fix, but the best he could offer without going in deeper. He drew back his hand in one smooth motion and looked at his work.

And his work suddenly looked back.

Ennard froze up as Chica's eyes suddenly focused on him. Both of them, even the one he had just repaired. The pupils responding only slightly but her gaze clearly on him. Not just a reflex, she was awake.

The way she looked up to him, staring directly at him, could've been confusion or fear. It was hard to tell which, or if she was alert enough to even recognize who he was. Likely she was, in which case she was dangerous in a new way. She could tell everyone everything. Or, at least, tell someone that he and Baby were in there. They probably wouldn't believe her, but if they did it would immediately put them, their friends, and everyone who helped them in jeopardy. Even down to little Gregory.

It was of the upmost importance that she stayed quiet. Normally in this situation Ennard could be a very persuasive person. Ignoring that he usually wasn't directly seen or purposefully kept himself hidden enough that the assumed target wouldn't be able to give a clear description, thereby discrediting them. Scaring them into silence was always a good backup tactic, because Ennard knew exactly what cards to play to show off how dangerous he could really be.

…But Ennard didn't want to do that. Not this time. Not when he was the reason for everything that happened. He made his bed and now he had to lie in it. So, he would have to fall back on something else, his silver tongue and his impeccable schmoozing skills.

"Oh! We-he-ell there, Bright Eyes! Look who's finally up!" Ennard greeted. Saying it loud enough to also warn Fritz, who quickly backed up out of the protective cylinder. "Don't be scared, Chickadee. I'm just putting you back together as best as I can."

Chica was watching him more like a hawk than a chicken, but it was still unclear how present she really was. Let alone if she was digesting anything he was saying.

"I'm- I'm sorry about what happened. I didn't mean for you to get hurt! I-I-I was just trying to scare you! And protect my pizza. That green stuff's so good. Dunno what it is, but oh boy, good pizza you guys got!" Ennard prattled, emphasizing the stutter when he usually fought to keep his voice projecting smoothly. He tried to sound assuring but nervous, like Scott. Though all of the guilt wasn't disingenuous. He just had to exaggerate, to make her see him as something less stable.

Yet still she stared. This was probably not working how he hoped. He decided to press a little harder, play further into that instability- use that budding panic to his advantage.

"But see, if they find out about me it's going to be really bad. For all of us! A clown running loose in Freddy Bear's Pizza Mall? That's grounds for closure! I should know, last place closed for the same thing. I was there, I always am. Haven't caught me yet! But tell you what- we keep this between us and I don't come, m'kay? Aaand, they don't think you had some sort of funky clown hallucination after your little accident and don't go popping your head open. Whaddya say?"

Chica didn't say anything. She didn't even have the faintest inkling of a response. She was just so deeply out of it that she could only stare at him and he couldn't tell if any of what he was saying was reaching her. Some plan.

Yet he did genuinely feel bad for her. Even with her trying to eat him, even with her almost killing his assumed sister, he still did feel remorseful for what he did. Especially when knowing that she was stuck with that same hunger he had been. That hunger had made him do plenty of things he regretted. He understood it better than anyone else.

"…Food doesn't fill it," he whispered. "That hole, that hunger. Food, stuff, it doesn't fill it. Sometimes wires help, but it's all- it's in here," Ennard explained, tapping his temple. "I saw a whole lot of inside you while we were fixing your plates and you've got different wires now. There's just, like, a pocket of them right in the middle. Your body wouldn't even know what to do with those old wires anymore, they woul- they wouldn't fit."

That time it was an unintentional hitch in his voice. "There's a thing inside of you and it's telling you to eat and it's telling you to chase kids, but all it's going to do is take away everything you've got. You've got to fight that beast because they won't give you a second chance if anyone winds up getting hurt. In the end, it's you. You get it under control or you get swallowed up by it."

She was still staring, but something changed. He wasn't sure what it was or how he could tell, but he knew she was listening. Whether or not she understood or cared to listen was another thing entirely. The ball was in her court now.

"But don't worry-!" Ennard continued. Only to suddenly be interrupted by the sound of distant footsteps echoing in a hallway. He jumped up as he listened to them coming in. "Whoops, gotta go!" he rushed out before turning and bolting for the door.

He could hear one of the doors opening and the footsteps running into the room, so he quickly ducked out of the cylinder, around the desk, and ducked under the window of the cylinder on the other side. Hiding just in time to be missed by Roxanne Wolf who all but blew past Fritz, who was still standing there, and into the protective cylinder. She was actually staggered by the sight of Chica's busted, beakless face.

"Holy skid marks- Chica!" she yelled. She stared at the unmoving body wide-eyed and horrified before her head snapped to the technician standing nearby. "Why haven't you fixed her face?!"

"I can't. I'm not allowed to. I tried, but because of some upgrade they won't let me do it," Fritz quickly defended him. His hands up in defense and him leaning back as she stomped up to him.

"Then what DID you do?! She looks terrible!" Roxanne snapped. Her teeth clicking with the swing of her jaw. Though before Fritz could get anymore worried, a voice spoke up in his defense.

"Sommmewhere between eighty and ninety percent of herrr plating," Moon interjected with a simulated click of his non-existent tongue. He came down the same steps she had, his ever-present smile seeming more sinister than ever. "Evvvveeerything except her face."

Roxanne looked back at him, at that smile, and then her arms dropped to her sides in an almost frustrated motion. She then looked back towards Chica and only then did her face soften the slightest bit. Fritz felt like he should say something but didn't want to rock the boat doing so, so he just stood there silently, dumbly, until another one of the four doors opened.

This time it was Monty's and he began to slowly thump his way towards the closer stairs. Ennard just barely managed to squeeze himself into a nook between the cylinder and the stairs to be entirely missed by the gator. Monty acknowledged Fritz with a nod as he passed by before standing alongside Roxanne and looking in. He then, in the fastest motion he had made all night, tugged down his sunglasses to stare at the state Chica was in. Only to then silently push them back into place.

Not long after this, Freddy thundering footsteps could be heard before he came through his door and hastily made his way to stand with his bandmates and Moon. The moment he reached them, Roxanne turned to him seeking answers.

"What happened?! Moon said she fell in the trash compactor?!" she asked.

"I am… not entirely sure how it happened," Freddy quietly said. He looked towards Chica and then down at the floor in regret. "…There was Monty Mystery Mix involved."

"They still got that stuff?" Monty asked.

"Why would they leave that stuff out?! They know how crazy Chica gets when she smells that stuff!" Roxanne yelled in frustration, totally ignoring Monty's little interjection. She lifted her hand like she was going to grab her face but caught herself at the last second and dropped in, instead choosing to toss her hair back. "They can't do anything right. Just a bunch of failures."

Seeing things getting heated, Fritz started to edge back towards the stairs behind him. "I've got to go see Vanessa and tell her what's up," he said. The animatronics turned to him.

"Mmm-hmm. I betcha do," Monty said. Fritz furrowed his brows at the implication until those shades were tugged back down and the gator winked at him. "Rock on."

Fritz decided to not even risk suspicion by arguing his case on the implication and instead turned and started to head up the steps. Moving briskly but not quick enough to seem suspicious. His eyes darting over to spot Ennard silently climbing up onto the platform and crawling over to Freddy's door. It didn't open automatically, but Freddy was already on his way.

"Allow me to let you out through my green room. It will give me a chance to escort Moon back to the daycare without leaving Chica alone," Freddy offered. Moon started heading up the stairs, but Freddy paused long enough to turn back to Roxanne. "Roxy, I am sorry."

"Not nearly as sorry as they're going to be," she growled. 'They' either being the technicians or whatever unfortunate worker came across her beforehand.

Freddy gave a solemn nod and started to head up the stairs after Moon, dragging his feet as he did. Not as sorry as he was, unfortunately. He couldn't bear to look at Chica again.

"She ain't gonna be up for showtime," Monty pointed out. "Think they're gonna bring down Beelora to fill in?"

"If she is, then she's going to have to replace me too. Nobody's replacing Chica," Roxanne grumbled through her teeth. A replacement was just an excuse to shove Chica in a corner somewhere and put off fixing her. She wasn't going to let that happen.

Monty wisely decided to stay silent.

After dropping Fritz and Ennard off at the door leading up to the security office, Freddy and Moon began the long walk back to the daycare. They stayed silent the entire time. Freddy felt like he needed to say something but every time he tried to muster up words he couldn't. His gaze looking out across the Pizzaplex atrium and thinking about what was coming in a few hours. They would likely be opening without Chica.

Once they arrived in the daycare, Moon turned back into Sun, though without the usual amount of fanfare. More so just a brief pause before they continued along to the daycare doors.

As they were walking up, Sunny noticed a sound that stood out as abnormal in the daycare. It sounded like music from a music box. Tilting his head and rolling his points curiously, he raised a finger to Freddy to stop him and then opened the wooden door.

He stepped inside and looked over just in time to see Marionette raising a finger to his closed smile. He was leaning back on a triangle shaped pillow on the floor. He then pointed down at Gregory who was asleep with his head resting on the Puppet's leg. One of the daycare storybooks was open in Marionette's other hand, so it was likely that Gregory had fallen asleep while he was reading to him.

Sunny's hands popped to his cheeks in delight and he excitedly waved for the puppet to stay put while silently sneaking back out and shutting the door quietly behind him. Marionette went back to petting Gregory's head with one hand while skimming through the storybook to pass the time. Reading about the current adventures of Freddy and Friends and smiling at the innocent stories they told.

Sunny turned to Freddy and excitedly whispered, "Gregory fell asleep listening to a bedtime story!"

"D'aww!" Freddy equally gushed. "That is a relief! I am glad to hear he is getting some rest. He must be exhausted."

Sunny hummed in agreement. They started to head towards the arcade, hearing someone playing games in there and assuming it was the rest of the group. Sunny wasn't quite skipping but there was a little bounce to his step, and Freddy wasn't nearly as sluggish as he had been on the walk over there.

"I do worry about him. Worry about his health, worry about his care," Freddy admitted.

"I worry he's been eating too much trash food. This place is full of junk! The only vegetables I found were deep fried, ugh. He probably ate around 'em."

"Gregory is very smart for his age. I am sure he knows the importance of the major food groups," Freddy assured. "But yes, that too is worrying. Though there are more immediate issues. Such as, after I return with Foxy and if Gregory is still asleep, would you mind helping me in fixing Gregory's hiding spot? The one in Kids Cove?"

"Mind? I'd love to! That's technically daycare space too, you know," Sun pointed out. Though then his voice slightly faltered as he tented his hands together. "Buuuut you know that we're going to have to figure something else out. It's a very nice hidey hole, yes it is, but it's not very hidden. Especially since Chica knows where it is."

"That is true. I was thinking that perhaps we could make him a few more safe spots. So that when he is feeling unsafe, he will have a place to hide nearby. I was thinking we could start by making one in the backroom behind my greenroom. We could use the boxes to block it off and it would be close to my charging station, so I could regularly check on him."

"That is a great idea! We could string up lights and maybe build him a little tent. Jake and I used to make little hidey holes all over the place so if we- oh…" Sunny trailed off, suddenly realizing his hiccup in mentioning Jake. He wasn't supposed to mention him anymore for obvious reasons. So he didn't slip up and say something wrong.

But Freddy didn't even bat an eye. "No, no. Go ahead. You used to build hidey holes?"

"…All over!" Sunny dared to continue. "We used to make little forts out of whatever we could scrounge up. Our little homes away from home! We'd put up lights and build tents, and drag in whatever blankets and toys we could find. Jake used to collect all sorts of toys and little doohickies."

"Just like you!" Freddy said warmly.

More correctly, just like Sunny still did for Jake.

"Right," he agreed, doing his best to cover the slight nervousness in his voice.

"Which reminds me, about your room-."

"I know, it's messy," Sun dismissed with a wave.

"It is not just that. It is not even furnished!" Freddy replied. Unintentionally easing the mind of the Daycare Attendant, who expected the conversation to go in a different direction. "I do not understand why they did not give you a couch and vanity like us. There is plenty of space. And the paint should really be redone, and in both of your proper colors."

"It's no big deal!"

"But it is, Sunshine. You are just as important as we are, you should have a room that reflects that. Perhaps we could talk to one of the workers. Is there a worker you trust?"

"…He quit," Sunny said solemnly.

"Oh… Well, we could talk to someone else! Not Chaz, of course. Perhaps Vanessa? She must know someone."

"Freddy, it's no big deal! Let's worry about Gregory first, then we can worry about me," Sunny insisted.

"If you insist. Well, you two are welcome to come spend time in my green room at any time. It can get lonely."

"Err, uh-us two…?" Sunny asked.

"You and Gregory, of course!" Freddy replied.

"Oh! Oh, certainly!" he agreed.

Freddy was happy with that answer and stepped into the arcade, walking towards the back-

-and promptly walking up on Foxy and Jake playing air hockey.

Foxy and Jake both looked over and Freddy instantly and suddenly jerked back and turned in the other direction, clasping a hand on his face and nearly striding directly into Sunny.

"Whoa! What's wrong?" Sunny asked. Smoothly stepping back in time to avoid the bear walking into him but having yet to notice Jake as Freddy was blocking his view.

"I- I must experiencing a malfunction. I… cannot see anything!" Freddy said, haltingly and very unconvincingly.

Sunny tilted his head a little in confusion. "You- what? You can't see?"

"No! I cannot see anything at all. It is very strange," Freddy insisted.

Sunny leaned over to look past him. "What are you- GAH!?" That's when he spotted Jake. His cry punctuated by his points jumping and his hands splaying.

Jake stared back, still holding the air hockey paddle and looking half-frozen, stuck in place. Looking to Foxy, he was just standing there looking a little surprised but less concerned. In fact, he didn't seem so at all, not with how he was leaning on the table nonchalantly.

Sunny's hands jumped to his head in horror, his fingers grabbing onto his points, and he stole a quick look at Freddy and back to Jake. Then a pause. Then a slow look back at Freddy.

Freddy was still standing there facing the door. He now had one arm crossing his chest so his elbow could rest on it, still rubbing- or covering- his eyes with his fingers. He wasn't asking any questions about Sunny's reaction; he was just silently standing there.

Slowly Sunny's shoulders slouched, and his arms dropped as he realized that Freddy already knew. He didn't even need Jake to tell him about Foxy's hunch. He knew Freddy knew. If that bad lie on the fly was any indication he likely knew for a while.

They all stood there in an awkward silence for a long moment before Foxy cleared his throat.

"Welcome back, Mateys," he greeted.

"Hello, Captain," Freddy replied.

Sunny groaned and straightened up his back with a roll of ticking clicks. Then he gestured a hand towards the pirate. "Foxy."

"Aye?"

"Why don't you take Freddy outside and see if his vision suddenly comes back?" Sunny suggested, clasping his hands together and pointing with them.

"Good idea. Sounds like the sort of thing ye can walk off," Foxy said dryly. He set the air hockey paddle down and strode over, lightly elbowing Sunny with what was likely a smug sort of look before heading by. "A'right, let's shove off."

"Right behind you, Captain," Freddy agreed. He reached back to pat Sunny's shoulder- without turning his head, notably- then followed him out.

Sunny listened to the two walking off before turning back to Jake.

"…He knows."

"Oh yeah."

"Ngh…"

Once they were a good ways away, Freddy turned to Foxy with a proposition.

"So, Captain, I was wondering if you could come with me somewhere. We will not be gone long, but I need you to… see something," Freddy vaguely explained. "…It will make sense once you see it."

"Aye, sounds like a plan. Lemme go tell Mari."

"There is no need… Or, perhaps there is, but Gregory is asleep so if you do not mind…?"

"He'll figure it out on his own then," Foxy agreed. Even if he didn't, he wasn't too concerned with Marionette not being able to track him down. "Lead the way."

Freddy did. He led Foxy upstairs and out of the daycare, and out into the atrium, and upstairs. During which he brought Foxy up to speed on the situation with Chica, but he didn't say where they were going.

Foxy eventually figured it out on his own when they made it to the third floor and began walking in the direction of Bunnie Bowl. He knew what was coming, but he had already had a suspicion that this was coming up. Freddy tended to keep his word.

He also clammed up as they approached the doors. Foxy could feel the tension creeping up but shrugged it off and pressed on. Patiently remaining silent and waiting for Freddy to be ready to speak. Noticing when Freddy looked up at the newly painted rabbit on the wall of the lobby with dismay, then turning away quickly and keeping his eyes leveled ahead. He didn't notice that Foxy had been watching.

The bowling alley was, regretfully, just as impressive as the rest of the Pizzaplex. Foxy hated admitted to how much this place had over his business, but by now he was no longer shocked and instead begrudgingly accepted it. This wasn't the time or place to dwell.

He heard the clatter of pins being knocked over. Following the noise led him not to the lanes themselves, but to the speakers mounted on the ceiling. It was ambience played over an otherwise still bowling alley. A quick glance across the lanes showed each one set in preparation for opening, aligned perfectly and untouched. His eyes then trailed over the screens at the end of the lanes, all of which depicted various advertisements.

Something felt off. Though it could've been from how Freddy was acting.

It wasn't until Freddy walked him into the dining area that Foxy saw the looming red-curtained stage. He stopped on the spot at the sight of it, but Freddy kept on towards the small stage, so he began to follow again. Soon finding himself standing in front of it alongside the bear. Freddy continued to keep his eyes trained on the ground instead of the display in front of him. His silence feeling heavier with every passing moment.

Foxy considered breaking that silence more than once, but he didn't. He waited until Freddy was ready and eventually his patience was rewarded.

"I do not come up here anymore," Freddy said quietly. Looking up at him, Foxy caught sight of the pain in his glassy eyes before he closed them. Still unable to so much as look at the stage. "…I miss him."

And in that moment Foxy had his answer to any question he ever had about Freddy.

Why he avoided the bowling alley even though he obviously enjoyed bowling. Why he never brought up the possible connection between this rabbit character and Vanny. Why there were some questions that he seemed especially dodgy with.

Why he always seemed so lonely even when he had so many friends.

Why he so eagerly accepted Foxy into the Pizzaplex. Why he so eagerly clung to him and this friendship that they had formulated.

It all made sense now. Foxy knew that look and he recognized that tone. Freddy wasn't missing Bonnie; he was mourning Bonnie.

Suddenly all that merchandise dumped in the basement held a new meaning, as did the repainting and renaming of the bowling alley itself. Something that was initially a quick cover for a possible lawsuit was hiding something much worse underneath.

Foxy didn't know what to say. There really wasn't anything he could. Condolences alone weren't going to make Freddy feel any better. He had likely heard them before, hopefully, and the options beyond that were limited.

So, instead, Foxy reached out and put an arm around his shoulders as best as he could. The height difference made it a little strange, but he managed to get his fingers on the opposite shoulder if he tilted Freddy towards him a little. Then he said nothing.

He was taken by surprise when Freddy suddenly turned and pulled him into a hug. It was so sudden, without any warning or telegraphing whatsoever. Freddy all but grabbed him and held him tightly, hunched over, head in his shoulder. At first Foxy gave Freddy an awkward pat on the back that turned into a rub, and then somehow that turned into him caving and putting his other arm around him, hugging him back.

Forget pride, Freddy needed this. He needed to give this to him.

The whole time it was still silent. Freddy didn't cry or otherwise make any noise like a whimper or such. He just hugged him, and Foxy hugged back. Listening to the distant clatter of bowling pins through a speaker, to the slight hum of Staff Bots mounted behind the counters of the diner. Staff Bots who looked concerningly like Baby- he would wonder about that later. Now was not the time.

Eventually Freddy drew back from the embrace and stood before him. He rubbed at his neck almost bashfully, but it was a relief to see that instead of the sorrow the proceeded it. Foxy reached out and gave him a firm thump on the arm in reassurance and the bear's eyes seemed to perk up a little. Into a smile, perhaps. A smile despite the lingering feelings.

"My apologies, Foxy. I did not mean to put that on you," Freddy apologized. Foxy was already shaking his head.

"Don't be sorry," he said.

Foxy was considering saying something more. It rested on the tip of his tongue, the "I know how you feel." There would be no assumption on his part either. He knew exactly how Freddy felt.

But before he could, Freddy beat him to it. What followed was the last question he expected to be asked.

"Would you… like to bowl with me?"

Foxy's ears perked in surprise. "Yer sure you're up to that?"

"Yes. I want to. Unless it will make you uncomfortable-."

"Nah," Foxy smoothly replied, cutting off that thought quickly. "Nothin' uncomfortable about. Except maybe rollin' with me weak hand."

Soon they were down on the lanes and Freddy was searching through the rental bowling balls for ones that would work. Technically the animatronics had bowling balls made especially for them to use, but he didn't want to sacrifice the time it would take to run downstairs, grab his and the other one, and return. Especially when it would likely make things a little uncomfortable given that one of them would have to use…

"Here you are! I think this one should work," Freddy said. He handed over one of the bowling balls to him.

Foxy couldn't fit his fingers into the holes all the way, but it was enough of a grip to satisfy him. Though he did notice that Freddy gave him a noticeably light ball.

Freddy chose a ball for himself as well and turned on the scoresheet screen, to which they put in their names. Then the game began, with Freddy stepping up to the bowling lane.

"It has been so long since I last played. At least, it feels like it. Truly it could not have been more than a few months," Freddy admitted. He held up the ball and lined up his shot. "I may be a little rusty…"

He took a step forward and rolled the baby blue ball straight down the center of the lane, rolling a strike on his first go.

Oh, Foxy begrudgingly realized, it was going to be one of those games.

"Perhaps not as rusty as I thought," Freddy said. Foxy couldn't tell if that was just cheerfulness or if there was the slightest hint of something smug in there.

"Good. That'll make it a fair game," Foxy proclaimed. He took Freddy's place- Freddy politely sat down- lined up and then rolled the ball.

He hadn't given his left hand much credit. After using it so much since he got his hook, he found that he was just as good with it as his right might've been.

That being said, apparently he wasn't quite as good at bowling as he was hoping he was. Taking out a good chunk of the pins but leaving a few stragglers- regrettably a split as well.

"Nice shot!" Freddy complimented.

"I'm just warmin' up," Foxy half-defended.

"Of course, but that was still an excellent roll." Knowing Freddy, he probably was being honest.

Foxy stood attentively beside the ball return and listened as it came up the shaft and watching it roll out in front of him. He started to pick it back up.

"Now Bonnie…" Freddy unexpectedly said. Foxy looked back to see him leaning forward on his knees, but there was still a smile and amusement in his eyes. "Bonnie was an awful bowler."

"No kidding?" Foxy asked.

"I am not! The first time he introduced me to bowling he missed his mark and only knocked down three pins on the first roll. And some nights Roxy could hear him from all the way down in the raceway, using some… not so family-friendly language. But thankfully, never around the workers," Freddy reminisced.

"Sounds like a trip," Foxy said, in a complimentary way. "Ye bowled a lot?"

"Oh, all the time! Bonnie was determined to get better at it before opening, and he did!... Somewhat. But he never gave up, and I admired that about him," Freddy explained. Foxy started to lift up his ball again when Freddy unexpectedly added, "You mentioned once that you used to have bandmates... What were they like? If you do not mind me asking."

That took Foxy only a little by surprise. He didn't expect Freddy to be so direct, but considering the conversation he wasn't shocked that it came out.

"Ain't no mind at all. Fer starters, there was a Freddy Fazbear. Classic Freddy, the stout teddy bear-looking kind. He was the brains of the operation up until we stopped usin' 'em and started pullin' a whole lot of stupid moves. T'was all in good fun- 'less we got caught," Foxy explained with a chuckle.

"I see! Was he like me? I suppose not exactly, we are very different models, but were we similar?" Freddy asked curiously.

"Nah. You two were very, very different."

"Oh."

"Which is a good thing. I loved him to death I did, but he was him and you're you, and that's how I like it.," Foxy added on. Not wanting Freddy to take the wrong idea from that. Apparently, he didn't as Freddy seemed to smile at that clarification.

"I am glad to hear it," he said. "You and Bonnie are also very different… But I think you two would have gotten along well."

Coming from Freddy himself, Foxy took that as a huge compliment. It even took the sting off when he wasn't able to get that split on the next go. He then went back to reciting some old 'pirate tales' about 'shipmates' long lost to time.

It felt good to talk about them again. He knew Freddy felt the same way.

Chapter 56

Chapter Summary

Scott and Ennard make another ominous discovery while Charlie and Baby broach a familiar subject. Though they're not the only ones...

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Fritz all but dragged himself into the main security office with Ennard in tow. Scott, who was still seated at the computer, and Natalie, who was standing behind him, both turned back to acknowledge their arrival.

"Hey!" Natalie greeted. "We've got her."

Regardless of how he felt, Fritz couldn't help but snap to attention at this. He hurried over to them.

"Let me see," he said.

Scott clicked into the files he saved and started to fast-forward to the appropriate part while Natalie and Fritz watched. Surprisingly, Ennard decided to stay back instead of crowding to get a look for himself.

It wasn't long before Fritz was seeing the same small, white blur that was Vanny in the back of the tunnel on the footage. He was nearly stunned.

"And there she is! I can't believe you got her on tape," he said.

"I can't either. Now, it's not the best view but it's just clear enough that we can probably use it… But expect Fazbear Entertainment to downplay it. Discredit it, whatever they can do," Scott remarked.

"That's not a woman dressed like a rabbit, it's an albino chupacabra. Very common in this part of the country," Fritz suggested.

"No, no. See, it's just the way the light's hitting the camera makes it seem like there's a person walking there, but it's really just a trick of the light giving the illusion of a person," Scott played along. Making a camera square with his fingers to line up the shot. Ennard snickered behind them.

Yet as they were joking around, Natalie noticed that glassiness in Fritz's eyes and the darkness already starting to settle underneath them. She waited until they stopped their back and forth before she dared to interrupt it.

"You look exhausted," she then said.

Fritz looked at her, somewhat surprised at being called out, and smiled.

"It's nothing. Just a little sleep deprivation is all," he joked.

She pursed her lips thoughtfully for a second before looking between Scott and Ennard. "Can you guys handle yourselves for a little while?"

"Uh, sure! We'll be fine," Scott said.

"I'll handle him real good, Officer Lady," Ennard said. Scott chuckled at that and the clown giggled, almost more at his response than the joke itself.

Natalie playfully rolled her eyes, waved Fritz to come along, and started heading back towards the door.

"We're heading to the break room. Radio me if you need anything," she said as they started out. Then calling over to the Staff Bot patrolling the other section of the room. "Come on, Smitty. Let's go."

Smitty wheeled around and rolled up to them, and Fritz was surprised by the scribbles all over his once clean face.

"What happened to him?" he asked.

"Vanny."

"Oh no, Buddy," Fritz sympathized.

Smitty didn't seem bothered, instead loyally following them out of the room and down the stairs outside.

This left Scott and Ennard alone in the office. The hum of all the surveillance equipment being the only thing breaking the silence.

Admittedly, Scott had been a little distracted when Natalie made the suggestion that they were leaving. He was trying to get back to where he was after deviating briefly to show off the footage and squinting at numbers so small that it was hard to make them out even with his glasses on. So, it was that silence that made him take notice. Ennard was rarely completely silent. Which was what reminded him that this was their first time alone since that little incident earlier, where Ennard found his little secret.

The tension in the room increased dramatically once Scott realized it was there. Now he was seriously regretting not telling Ennard beforehand. He had intended to, really. He had planned out different ways of bringing it up, but he had always put it off.

How was he even supposed to broach the topic? "Hey! So, I was thinking that even though Will's dead, he might possess someone and break in some night. Or just grab me on the street, whenever. So, I thought I'd get a gun, since I saw it used so effectively on you, and maybe I'll sleep a little more soundly." It sounded so much worse in the cynical playback of his thoughts.

Then the silence was interrupted by Ennard walking over and leaning on the back on his chair. Well, sort of. He rested his folded arms on it, but he didn't actually put his weight on it. Likely being able to see how flimsy this office chair was from a mile away. He didn't say anything though, just resting one hand on Scott's shoulder, tapping on it playfully, and looking overtop his head at the screen.

He had to do something. Ennard was practically on top of him; eventually he was going to realize that his clicking around was just pretending to be busy instead of really doing anything.

"…So, how'd it go with Chica?" Scott finally asked. It came out as remarkably casual sounding.

"Good! She's… Well, not good as new, but we got most of it done! Everything except the face, which is of course the one thing we should've done, ha ha! But no, they had some kind of protocol thing, red taped us before we could get anywhere near her head. Managed to de-wonkify her eyes a little, so not a huge loss. We'll let the 'professionals' handle the whole missing beak thing," Ennard explained. Other than the part where he said 'professionals' in a rather condescending manner, the rest of his explanation was a little tense.

The fact that this thing was hanging over them so obviously that even Ennard couldn't act like it wasn't said something. Scott took a deep breath and the plunge.

"Should we talk?... About, you know, it?" he dared to ask.

"Oh, we're definitely talking about that!" Ennard said with a genuine snicker. "But- But let's wait until we get home. Not here with all these prying eyes and listening ears."

That eased the tension immediately. Scott let out a breath he was holding and clicked on a video file, then began to fast forward through some security footage. Ennard tapped thoughtfully on his shoulder, still thinking, and then decided to change his mind unexpectedly.

"…Okay, but what made you get it? It wasn't Clay. I know that much," Ennard said matter-of-factly. He had to know. He couldn't stand hanging in the suspense of not knowing when he wanted to understand.

"It wasn't. It was, uh… Don't tell anyone," Scott requested. He looked back and Ennard gave a 'zipped lip' motion. "Alright, well… I had a nightmare that Jeremy broke in and tried to kill me."

"Oh…" Ennard was out of responses on that one. Usually quick to the draw with one, that answer itself pretty much sapped all the life out of any response.

"Not that I think Jeremy would ever do that! It's not that I don't trust Jeremy. I do! I know what happened was just… It could've happened to anyone. It happened to me. He's just, y'know, the one I thought of. I could've easily thought of Clay or just- you know…" Scott rushed out. He rubbed at his arm, pushing down his wrinkled sleeve. "Michael was there too. I think he was visiting when Jeremy showed up… and he was human. I mean, I didn't look like him, but I recognized it was him."

"What was he doing?" Ennard asked curiously.

"Really just standing there."

"Sounds like him."

Scott chuckled a little and Ennard rested his chin, or the chin of his mask, on the top of his head. Lightly pressing into his hair as he pulled back one of his arms to instead hook it around his front. Just high enough that he could still easily work on the computer.

Though for the moment that was the last thing on Scott's mind, him instead sitting there listening to the hum. Both from the machinery around him and the machinery directly above and behind him. He reached up to pat Ennard's arm, then felt over it.

"…You didn't lose your suit, right?"

"Nope! It's stashed in the kitchen. I'll grab it on the way out," Ennard chirped. He squeezed him briefly before turning up his head to look at the screen. "Now lemme see this rabbit lady. Fritz was hogging the whole screen."

Scott quickly wrote down the time he has fast-forwarded to and the number of the video before backing out and heading to that one clip of the woman in question. He had been going through every camera he could since, even figuring out the number patterns that dictated the cameras in the basement but wasn't finding so much as another shred of her. He did however notice at least one staticky camera that he was sure had been Marionette and caught a glimpse of Freddy walking around- specifically after the earlier incident.

It didn't take him long to get on the white speck that was in fact the deranged woman in a rabbit suit. He pointed it out.

"There she is."

"Oooh, she's tiny! Heh, I could snap her in half!" Ennard remarked.

A comment that might've made Scott's stomach tighten if he cared for Vanny's wellbeing, or rabbit people in general.

"I think she might look a little bigger in person," he pointed out.

"Not by much,~" Ennard said in a singsong voice. Though his eyes then latched to something on the screen and he straightened. "…What was that?"

The shift in Ennard's tone alerted Scott. "What?"

"That."

Ennard pointed out something against the side wall, far away from where Vanny was running off to. It looked like some loose wires to Scott.

Then he rewound and saw exactly what had gotten Ennard so alert.

It was a bundle of wires. Except it was scooting into either a hole or a vent into the wall. It was hard to see from this angle, but the tangle of wires couldn't be missed. Or cables, as they were more black cased cables that the wires he was used to- that being Ennard's.

"What…?" Scott asked incredulously, squinting at the sight as he rewound again. "What on earth?"

"I don't like that," Ennard said. His voice dropping out of its typical seconds-from-laughter pitch. Instead taking its less common but equally familiar 'uncomfortably fixated' tone.

"Me neither… I don't suppose you've got something to tell me," Scott joked.

"Who, me? I'm squeaky clean! No unaccounted-for children or anything!" Ennard replied with exaggerated defensiveness. At the very least pulling him out of the previous mindset. He rested his head on Scott's when he sat back in his seat again. "So, what do we do, Boss?"

"What can we do? Tell the others, I guess, but we're sort of limited on options."

"Think it was looking to snare a rabbit?" Ennard asked cheekily. Though Scott wondered if he was onto something. It did seem to start to disappear as quickly as she did.

"I have no idea."

…

Meanwhile, Fritz and Natalie had made their way into the back halls of the Pizzaplex and to one of the employee break rooms. It was exceptionally small. A tiny rectangular room painted teal with a table and four plastic chairs against the right wall, an equally plastic-y loveseat couch in the front left corner beside the door, and a kitchenette against the opposite wall. There had been a coffee vending machine outside the door, so there were no surprises that there wasn't a coffee machine on the counter.

Fritz immediately collapsed onto the couch and Natalie joined him a second later.

"Can you believe they didn't even tell me about the break rooms? I had to it myself," Natalie pointed out.

"Leave it to Freddy's to build break rooms and then not tell anyone they're there. They probably had a deal with the union," Fritz mumbled out. Just being off his feet already sapping away the last of his energy.

Natalie sighed and put an arm around behind him so she could pet his head.

"We probably should've prepared for this a little better," she gentle suggested, smiling sympathetically.

"Sure should've, but I can handle it," Fritz assured. He slid down and tilted his head until it was on her shoulder. He closed his eyes and let out a sigh and relaxed for the first time that evening.

Natalie was glad to see him resting. There had been times were she had to fight Fritz to stop and relax, and in a place like this she would've expected it to have been impossible. Slowly he had gotten better with putting his body before his projects and he was doing much better than he used to, but she was sure that part of this had to be from exhaustion. Staying up all night would've been one thing, staying up all night after the crazy adrenaline inducing escapade earlier was another.

Plus it gave her a reason to get off her feet and just be with him. It hadn't felt like this job was getting between them, but they hadn't had the freedom to plan nights together in what felt like ages. Just having him here felt nice. She might've considered inviting him to sneak in more nights if it hadn't been for how exhausted he was. A whole platoon of friends was one thing, but one Fritz could easily be squeezed into a closet if he needed to be.

She knew there was a good chance that the events of tonight would lead to a huge fallout. Even if Chica didn't talk, someone was going to wonder how this happened and she would no doubt get questioned about it. She would have to work out a story later, but at this point the easiest one seemed to be that she wasn't there, she just heard about it after the fact. She was sure Freddy would back her up, Monty could vouch that she was in the office, and she could likely squeeze another confirmation from Sunny.

As for the technicians who had come in, she thought they had been sent over to work on the security monitor. Tommy would vouch about their issue. They also fixed Chica- for the most part- which would back up them being technicians.

…This entire alibi of course being held together by tape. All someone would have to do is check the footage- if they could find it. If Scott hadn't found and got rid of it himself, or someone else had. The only thing she really had was her side of the story. Hopefully that would hold up long enough to figure out a better backup.

She tried to push the thoughts off and relax while she could. Eventually she would have to get up and do her rounds. Not just to look good in case someone did check the footage, but to make sure everyone was where they needed to be. Then she would get some cleaning supplies for Smitty. She looked over at him.

Smitty was stopped in the corner.

The moment Natalie saw it, alarm bells went off in her head. He had rolled himself into the corner where the refrigerator met the wall and had gone completely still, just like when she found him in the office. She stared at him for a long moment before slowly turning her head towards him. Only to then stop and go still again, staring silently at the Staff Bot.

Though while she was looking at him, her attention was on something else in the corner of her vision. Something standing in the doorway just past and over her right shoulder. She pretended not to see them.

Even though it was only partially visible in the farthest corner of her vision and slightly obscured by a wisp of her hair, she knew what it was. A white head with red eyes staring through the cracked door. She recognized that head even with the eyes dimmed.

Vanny was standing right behind her.

The costumed woman stood there and silently watched her. Her body almost as still as Smitty's was, with Natalie unable to detect even the slightest movement. She didn't just show up, Natalie knew that much. She must've followed them here.

This was a bad situation. Now, she could've jumped up right then and confronted her, but recently acquired knowledge made her a little less confident to do so. Something was wrong with Vanny, she wasn't right, and she was carrying around a weapon. One that she was willing to pull when confronted. They were technically cornered in this room too. Sure, the two of them could probably take Vanny out if she attacked, but one of them could get seriously hurt in the process. In a locked down Pizzaplex.

So, instead, Natalie waited for Vanny to make the move. She stayed still and on alert, turning her head a little further away but still able to see just the edge of the rabbit in her vision. She braced herself and was ready to push Fritz out of the way at any second and dodge if she had to, if Vanny was intending to sneak up behind and do something devious.

But Vanny was just standing there watching. As though she too was waiting for the other to do something, awaiting an unspoken cue to act. It was unsettling but also quite curious. The fact that she was waiting for Natalie to notice her before she did anything.

It was almost like she wanted to be seen.

Before last night happened and certainly before she saw that footage, Natalie had a huge hunch that Vanny was doing this for attention. While her actions had initially seemed sinister, her repeated teases but lack of doing anything significant gave them off as a scare tactic. That Vanny was purposefully taunting her. Some nights she had heard giggling somewhere out in the Pizzaplex or patters in the halls. Initially she followed but recently she had become more reluctant to do so.

Last night changed things. While part of her could've believed that Vanny might've snuck a taser on Marionette, she wasn't going to argue with his assertion that there was something else at play. Something was definitely off with Vanny. She might've just been a woman in a costume, but there was usually a weird feeling in the air when she got too close. Natalie couldn't feel it right now weirdly enough. Maybe it had something to do with her eyes being dimmed.

Was it possible that everything they were encountering with her wasn't something supernatural, but something technological?

Either way, Natalie didn't feel comfortable enough to confront her directly. Not when she was currently sitting at a disadvantage and the other woman had a knife. She would sit here and wait and see what she truly wanted.

A minute or so later she rested her head against Fritz's. She still had it turned enough to see if Vanny stepped into the room- though couldn't see her directly- but tried to give the impression that she really hadn't noticed.

A few more minutes passed. Then… she heard a click.

Curiosity won out and she turned her head back to look. She found the door closed and Vanny long gone. Smitty stayed parked in the corner like he was when she found him in the office.

She couldn't be too sure what Vanny was truly up to. Nothing good if the fact that she could dissuade Staff Bots was any indication- though explained how she hadn't been flagged by any of them. Though she was having this growing suspicion that she had been right.

Vanny wanted an audience.

It was for what that made Natalie nervous.

Sometime later, once most of the footage was gone through and it was getting closer to the time they had planned to leave by, Scott stood up from his office chair and headed with Ennard to the daycare. That was, after radioing Natalie who would pass the word to Fritz, who would pass it on to Charlie and Jake through the radio. With any luck, this would signal everyone to the daycare so they could leave, because Scott didn't want to be here anywhere near six.

It was clear that he was getting antsy, and he wasn't the only one. Ennard was clearly on alert. Moving cautiously and silently, snapping his head around anytime he heard even the slightest noise, and keeping a close eye as they made their way to the daycare. Thankfully, it was entirely uneventful. Both Rockstar Row and the Atrium were entirely abandoned- or at least, they looked to be. It always felt like they were being watched, but in this case it could've been paranoia.

Eventually they made it into the Superstar Daycare. To which Ennard finally loosened up by splaying his arms forward in an introductory, "Ta da!" Which got a long-needed smile out of Scott.

Though when they walked over to the wall to look down into the daycare, they couldn't see anyone.

"It doesn't look like anyone in there," Scott pointed out.

"Maybe they're hanging out back in Sun's room," Ennard offered. He looked to the balcony and listen. While he couldn't see in at this angle, the lack of any talking suggested this wasn't the case. "Or down in that basement Moon was talking about."

"That could be it. Or they're over there somewhere," Scott agreed. He started to head that way when Ennard hooked his arm.

"Not so fast," the clown said. He smoothly stepped in and closed the gap between them, a devious look to his already perpetually mischievous seeming features. "How about we take a short cut?" he asked with a wink.

"What, down the slide?"

"Now you're catching on!" Ennard chirped.

"I think I'm a little too old for that," Scott reminded with an amused smile.

"Oh, come on! You're never too old for a colorful corkscrew! Trust me, I took a quick trip down it earlier. It'll rock your world!"

"I've been on a slide before," Scott joked.

"Oh yeah? When's the last time?" Ennard cheekily asked.

That question caught him up for a second. If only because it suddenly dawned on him exactly how many years it had been since he was a kid playing in the playground. Ennard drew back his arm to instead hook it around his shoulders, shaking him encouragingly.

"It's no big deal, just a little trip down memory lane. Safe as can be!" Ennard reassured him. His eyes glowing with eager delight. "Whaddya say, Scottie? Ready to ride the slide?"

"Well, it's awful tempting, but…" He looked over at the slide and then back up at the amalgam's eager expression, thought about what he had said, and then came to his decision. "…You know what? Let's go check it out and make sure there's not something funny going on with how quiet it is, and if it's all clear then… I'll do it. I'll go down the slide. Might be my last chance, who knows."

"Ha ha, that's the spirit! Kinda gloomy, but whatever gets you to have fun," Ennard encouraged.

"But under one condition. If I get stuck, you've got to get me out before anyone sees me. This isn't how I'm getting back on the news."

"It's a deal!" Ennard eagerly shook his hand and steered them toward the turnstile. "So, this mysterious news appearance. Was it about Freddy's?"

"How could it not be? I was a one-man PR group for them."

"Great! That'll help me look it up when we get home."

Scott chuckled as they headed down the walkway. However, they didn't have to arrive at the end before they got their answer. Ennard caught sight of something monochrome while looking down in the colorful daycare and upon looking closer realized that it was Marionette on the floor. Gregory was with him and seemed to be asleep, but with Marionette's back to them- and propped up on a triangular pillow- it wasn't clear if he was too.

Ennard tapped Scott's shoulder and pointed it out. Then, as soon as the man got a look, he was turning them around and heading right back the way they came with a reasonably quiet, "Slide time!" and a triumphant fist pump.

Scott was slightly nervous, but he fought those nerves and the intrusive thoughts of what could go wrong aside. It was literally just a slide, that's all. He could survive going down a slide.

They were startled by a clatter on the railing to their left. Ennard reflexively yanked Scott to him and away from it and both looked over to see a pair of yellow hands gripping on the lower railing. They suddenly pulled up and a sun shaped popped up to peek at them.

"Oh, ho, ho! I thought I heard a couple of mice up here!" Sunny chirped. He pulled himself up in one motion, hopping onto and easily balancing on the railing, arms stuck out to keep that balance.

"You scared the ha ha out of us, Mister Sun Clown!" Ennard greeted, relaxing significantly and relaxing his arm around Scott's shoulders. Instead of the death grip he had a moment ago.

"Then that makes us even steven!" Sunny quipped. He wobbled back and forth, purposely so, spinning his head. "Where are you two running off to?"

"The slide! We'll catch up later, Buddy, but I've gotta get this one over and down it before anyone else shows up," Ennard explained. He began to move along, now much more concerned in Scott changing his mind than the other clown.

Sunny gave a flustered sort of noise and almost did lose his balance on the railing.

"What? But you're- You don't want to do that! Tha-That's for kids! And that ball pit is full of all sorts of germs. You don't want to go down there," Sunny suddenly changed tune. He sounded especially nervous and hopped down to begin wringing his hands.

Ennard looked over with confusion. "You didn't care when I came down earlier," he said.

"I DID care when you came down earlier," Sunny said matter-of-factly. Him planting his fists on his hips. "AND you hadn't been wading around in garbage earlier either." Sunny's head tilted up and down, looking Ennard over. "Or maybe you had- but you weren't bare-bottomed then."

"Just for that, I'm going to slide all over that rainbow plastic," Ennard replied. His teeth clicking mischievously.

Sunny gave a fussy 'tsk'. Scott considered offering not to do it, but by then he was at the top of the slide and Ennard was eagerly goading him on. The least he could do, and did, was take off his shoes and leave them beside the slide. He looked to Sun who gave an approving little nod before shooting Ennard a look with his frozen face, to which the clown took no notice. Scott started to sit down when Ennard suddenly pulled him back up under the arms.

"Wait, wait, I just thought of something," Ennard said quietly. His voice dipping even lower as he leaned in. "What if you go down and it goes off."

"Oh! Uh, no. It's fine. It's not… full."

Ennard gave a confused little noise. A small 'huh'.

"Loaded," Scott said under a cough.

"Are you sure? You said the safety was on earlier."

"I wasn't thinking straight. Trust me, I wouldn't walk around with it loaded."

"What's not loaded?" Sunny nosily asked.

"His taser," Ennard quickly replied.

"…'s not 'loaded'? You mean charged?" the Daycare Attendant asked incredulously. He crossed his arms. "And just so you know, weapons are strictly prohibited from the daycare."

"Uh oh. He's onto us. I better skedaddle," Scott joked, to which Ennard snickered.

"And please try to be quiet while heading through. Gregory's napping," Sunny requested. He still seemed relatively suspicious, though from the tilt of his face he was staring Ennard down, not Scott.

Ennard gave him a thumbs up and Scott a, "Sure thing."

"Thank you!" Sunny chirped. Then he skipped over to the counter, giving a dismayed little noise at the dirty Bonnie merch sitting there, and started pulling out a container of clean wipes. Preparing to climb in after them and wipe down the slide.

Scott pushed off and slid down the chute and into the ball pit below. It might've not 'rocked his world', but he did feel a weird sense of nostalgia that lasted as he stood up in the ball pit. He shuffled aside quickly, stumbling only slightly, and moved just in time to avoid Ennard careening down after him. Him either purposefully or accidentally flopping back and getting swallowed up by the balls.

Scott reached in and felt around until he got ahold on his hand, which he only found after accidentally thumping into it, and helped him up. The clown eagerly popping up to tower over him with eyes brimming with delight. That was worth losing his shoes for.

The two got themselves out of the ball pit and started to walk across the daycare together. Scott's hands in the hoodie pouch but his arm linked with Ennard's again. In a place like this- the Pizzaplex, not the daycare- he wasn't surprised that the amalgam wanted to keep close. Constantly engaging in affectionate squeezes to comfort them both from the overwhelming feelings that Scott chose to ignore.

To think they made this whole place without him. He didn't want to be a part of it, he dreaded the call to service, but he was also completely left behind. A relic of the old Freddy's forgotten to time.

"Sooo, what do you think of him?" Ennard unexpectedly asked.

It took a second for Scott to snap out of his thoughts and respond to the question. He must've meant the Sun, he was the only 'him' they had ran into recently. From that cheeky edge, Scott had a hunch what he was baiting for.

"He seems okay. A little high strung, I relate to that," Scott said. He smiled. "But he doesn't sound like you."

"What? Naw, he sounds just like me!"

"I detect a distinct difference in fluctuation and pitch. To the untrained ear it might sound the same, but when you're together you can't miss it. You're more like a… a less abrasive Funtime Freddy. In a good way! You pull it off way better. Now with Sun, he does sound a lot like you. So, I guess the question is…" Scott looked to Ennard with feigned seriousness. "Is there something you need to tell me?"

"Scottie, I swear. I never met zat woman!" Ennard pleaded, doing a dead-on copy of Vlad's voice from the Immortal and the Restless. "I've never even been to Vegas!"

"Oh yeah? What about that scorned taxi driver who crashed our wedding, huh? It said Vegas on his cab, and you never paid him," Scott played along. He poked Ennard in the chest, through his own jacket. "I know something's going on, Ennard. That's two kids- two kids who look like you. Not to mention those twins with triplets at the clown college."

"Dots and Spots? I've never seen them before in my life! And clown college? Why would I need to go to clown collage? I am a clown!"

"That's what I thought, but I've been calling birthday parties all over town and you're never there. As far as everyone's concerned, Chunky the Clown doesn't exist."

"Chunky was my father's name!"

"Chunky the Clown is dead, Eggs. He died in a boating accident twenty years ago."

"Zat's what zey want you to think!"

"Who, the twins?"

"Yes! Zey're evil! And those triplets? Bleh! Zey look nothing like me!"

"Oh yeah? Then why did you sign their birth certificates?"

"…I was very drunk."

The utterly deadpanned way the last line came out caught Scott enough to cause him to crack and snicker. Just in time too, as they would soon be walking past Marionette. They waved as they did. Marionette must've heard them coming as he was looking over and waved back as they passed by. They headed to the door and managed to get it open.

Though as they were doing this they noticed the noise of thumping closing in. It wasn't until the door was closed that Scott gave a conclusion, "Freddy", and Ennard an, "Oh yeah."

Sure enough, both Foxy and Freddy came running down the walkway towards the stairs. Foxy looked to be running as fast as he could while Freddy kept up behind him. It almost made them think something was chasing them, and it wasn't until Foxy slowed to a jog while coming up that it became at least a little more obvious that he was just trying to keep ahead of Freddy. He gave a little salute with his hook.

"Ahoy, you two!" he greeted.

"Well, ahoy to you too!" Ennard chirped.

"Hello to you two too!" Freddy said with a chuckle.

"Hello, hello," Scott tacked on. "Are the others coming?"

"They'll show up soon enough. How's about you? You find what ye were lookin' for?"

Scott carefully pulled the floppy disc out of his pouch, having made sure to keep it safe during the trip, tapped on it, and slid it back in. "We've got her."

"Yer serious?" Foxy asked in surprise. Scott nodded. "Well, I'll be hooked to a cannon and dumped in the ocean! How'd ya pull that off?!"

"You know how Mari can pretty much knock out any camera that sees him? She can't. She has to be in range, so all we had to do was catch her down a tunnel. It's not the best picture, but you can see her if you squint."

"Hah ha! I shoulda known! If anyone was gonna get that girlie on camera, it was gonna be one from the old Freddy crew!" Foxy congratulated. He sounded absolutely elated, and he was. "Finally! Some good news tonight!"

"Foxy, that was astoundingly morbid what you said earlier," Freddy said with slight disturbance.

"Why? I don't breathe."

"…Oh! Never mind. It is not nearly as bad in that case," Freddy said. Disturbance quickly returning to contentment. "Excellent job! Hopefully with that footage we can convince management to do something about this strange rabbit lady. Whoever she is."

Scott sucked air through his teeth doubtfully before giving a none-too-convincing, "We'll see…"

"You two seen where Baby went? She's not still scrubbing off, is she?" Ennard asked.

"Nah, she's up in the arcade with Charlie. She seemed down in the dumps- heh, in a matter of speaking. Charlie took her to take her mind offa things," Foxy explained.

"Aww, that's great! Scott, did you hear that?!" Ennard asked. He ruffled his shoulder and whispered excitedly, "It's finally happening!"

Foxy chuckled though it tapered off into a sigh at the end.

"I'm glad to hear she's doin' somethin' other than sulkin' around down here. She was real quiet earlier… I suppose it makes plenty'a sense, all things considered."

Both Ennard and Scott agreed, though especially Ennard. He still felt guilty dragging Baby into it, even if he hadn't intentionally done so. He should've been more careful, but how was he supposed to know that a disaster of that magnitude would follow. He reached under his jacket and rubbed at the still slightly loose wires. He really wouldn't be able to place them correctly until he relaxed.

Those wires suddenly sparked his memory.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Ennard interjected. "There's a bundle of wires walking around."

"I'm looking at 'em," Foxy remarked.

"No, not ME. Some bundle of thick black cables. And technically not walking. It kinda looked more like it was just scooting around."

"…Bloody 'ell, that might be a real problem," Foxy muttered. He turned to Freddy. "You see any of that?"

"I have not! That is very alarming. How can they even move on their own? -Oh, I was not trying to imply that wires couldn't move on their own-."

"I've got most of an endo under here," Ennard quipped knowingly and patted his chest. "And I know wires more than anybody else, and I can say for sure that they shouldn't be wriggling around like a bundle of snakes unless they're attached to something."

"Hmm… That is so very strange," Freddy admitted thoughtfully. His eyes narrowing as though in thought.

They fell into a silence momentarily, but it wasn't long before they were interrupted.

"You know what I'm thinking?"

Considering that Natalie had just gotten done telling Fritz about the strange encounter with Vanny, thinking about that was a safe bet. Natalie knew she still was, even as they walked their way through the atrium and into the hall outside the daycare.

"No, what?" she still asked.

"I'm thinking…" Fritz began. His hair still a little fluffed from his nap and his hands deep in his pockets. "That maybe we should ask Gregory if he wants to come home with us. At least for tonight. Just to get him out of here and maybe get a good night's sleep."

"Yes! I think that's a great idea! You'll have to be the one to ask him, he doesn't trust me. Or he thinks I'm going to rat on him," Natalie agreed.

"We've got the guest room set up, he shouldn't be afraid of Chance, and Chance isn't going to have a problem with him… What's that?" he asked. Furrowing his brows at noises nearby. Only once they stopped and listened did they realize it was a security door.

There was the sound of quick tapping footsteps further down the hallway, on the other side of the fountain, though due to their location they couldn't see who it was. They could hear them running back to the other security door before hearing a familiar voice.

"The coast is clear!"

"Charlie," Natalie answered. Fritz gave a nod and she prepared to call over.

She was promptly cut off by a strange noise coming off from the security door. It sounded like metal dragging on metal, a crisp and sharp grind like knives on chrome getting louder until it was suddenly cut off by a heavy thump on the tiles, along with short crash. There was a short shout from Charlie. Startled by the sounds, the two ran up to the fountain and caught a glimpse of something speeding by and up to the daycare security door.

It was in fact Baby and Charlie. Baby carrying Charlie in her arms and now doing quick short circles in front of the daycare door while the puppet jingled and laughed. The clown's much more subdued giggling only able to be heard by her accomplice with the sound it was up against. They continued circling around before the door got up high enough for Baby to slide underneath and continue skating for the gate.

Sun peeked out of the slide before quickly yanking back into the slide with a yelp as Baby darted up and hopped over the gate.

"Careful!" he called after them.

"Sorry!" Charlie called back.

Baby continued picking up speed down the last stretch, knowing it was likely her last chance to do so. Especially when she caught sight of the four standing out in front of the daycare watching her. Not that she slowed down, determined to ride this out until the end.

The end being when they came up on the stairs and she slowly braked into a stop only slightly past the closer ones. She then put Charlie back up on her feet, her still buzzing from the rush. In her hands she had a Freddy plush. One with large cutesy eyes, chubby limbs, and a little red onesie; baby Glamrock Freddy or something like that. She handed it over.

"Your Freddy," she offered.

"Thank you," Baby politely replied. She held it to her chest with her claw and gripped the stair railing with her hand.

Baby then began the task of slowly side walking down the steps. Charlie taking ahold of her arm as she did. Not that she could stop her if she fell- in fact, she would probably take her down too- but a sort of moral support. A trust that she wouldn't drag her down the stairs.

It wasn't until they were walking up to the group that both took notice of the looks on everyone's faces. Freddy and Scott seemed normal enough with welcoming smiles while Foxy might've had the slightest edge of slyness, something not too uncommon to him. It was Ennard's glowing eyes and open mouth smiled that looked utterly menacing at this angle. Baby recognized it as Ennard's excited face.

"Oh dear," she murmured.

"You see it too?" Charlie quietly asked back.

"I would have to be blind not to," Baby thought. Though she decided to simply give a short, "Yes."

"Weeeell, hello, hello, you two!" Ennard greeted. His voice bubbling out on that barely pent-up excitement. "I take it you two had a good time?"

"We did," Baby said.

"Much better than last time," Charlie agreed.

"And I see you made a new friend," Ennard added. He cocked his head and gestured his eyes to the little bear.

"That too," Baby said. By now she had moved the Freddy into her hand and held it up for the others to see. "Charlie won him for me from the claw machine."

"Oh, that's so sweet!" Ennard gushed. He grabbed at Scott's shoulder unsubtly and slightly shook him.

"Congratulations! I hear those are very difficult," Freddy praised.

"I wouldn't say difficult. It only took me, what? All of our tokens?" Charlie joked to Baby. She then quickly added on, "Jake lent us some tokens. We didn't steal them."

"Don't sell yourself short. That claw was exceptionally weak," Baby remarked.

Ennard shook Scott again.

"Those things be as rigged as a ship sail. Y'know Mari got stuck in ours once?" Foxy chimed in.

"Mike warned me. Speaking of, I noticed there was a character in the claw machine that I haven't seen before. He kind of looked like Moon with a clock face?" Charlie asked, looking to Freddy for answers.

"That is Grandfather Clock. He is a character from the Faz-Kids merchandise line, as is that plush of baby me. It is a very cute set!" Freddy explained. "Grandfather Clock is the character they made to replace Sun and Moon, as they too are young children in the line."

"That's right!" Sunny chimed in. Suddenly introducing himself into the conversation much to the surprise of the others who looked up to see him hanging overtop the wooden door. Holding onto the points at the top to steady himself.

"So, he doesn't actually exist. There isn't an animatronic of him running around," Charlie clarified.

"Not yet," Sunny said ominously. "…Oh, that is such a cute little Freddy!" He then proceeded to gush about the Freddy.

It wasn't long before Fritz and Natalie got down there and everyone said their greetings, briefly exchanged and congratulated Scott on his success to get Vanny's picture- even though he seemed even less convinced that it would help, and prepared to leave.

Which meant they would have to get Marionette. Which meant that Gregory might get woken up. Which meant it was time for Fritz and Natalie to make their offer.

"So, Freddy… We were talking and thinking and what do you think about us taking Gregory home with us tonight?" he suggested. Putting an arm around the blond to clarify who he meant.

"Taking Gregory with you? Where, to your home?" Freddy asked in surprise.

"Yes. Just so he doesn't have to be here when morning comes and whatever happens happens. He'll get a good night's sleep and we can bring him back tomorrow," Fritz explained. Even if bringing him back and dropping him off wasn't the safest idea, assuring him a safe place to sleep was the most pressing issue at the moment. Both he and Natalie were in agreement of that.

Freddy seemed at a loss for words. Completely blindsided by the question, perhaps. Foxy had become accustomed to picking up Freddy's cues, but he had no doubt that everyone there noticed Freddy's reaction to the suggestion. Including Sunny, who had straightened up in alarm at the suggestion and was now staring down at Freddy in surprise.

They all were looking at Freddy to make the call. Or that's how he felt. That he had suddenly been given a decision regarding Gregory's wellbeing and while the answer should've come to him immediately- he truly knew what the best thing for Gregory was- he had trouble agreeing to it. Tonight had made it very clear that the Pizzaplex was dangerous, that Gregory was exhausted, that he had nowhere to hide and wasn't eating enough/

It was selfish of Freddy to make him stay. Even if the idea of letting him go felt so wrong.

"I… I will ask him. It is his decision," Freddy finally stammered.

"You're right. I just wanted to run it by you first," Fritz assured him.

"…But he has had a very long night and is very tired. I am not sure if I should wake him."

"Well, Marionette's going to have to leave with them. So… I guess we'll see what happens. If he wakes up you can ask him, if he doesn't you can let him sleep," Natalie suggested.

Freddy nodded and turned back to the door, standing there momentarily as Sunny hopped down and opened the door for him. They exchanged a look as he passed by, Sunny remaining behind to hold the door open. Freddy slowly made his way over to Marionette, who had his head lifted at attention. He had heard the conversing outside. Gregory, in contrast, was still asleep. Marionette noticed Freddy's sorrowful look and sent a sympathetic smile.

Freddy crouched down alongside him and began to reach for Gregory only for Marionette to lift a hand to stop him. He then carefully caught a hand under Gregory's head and neck before slowly sliding out from underneath him.

Marionette too wanted what was best for Gregory, but while he agreed that the safest option was to get him out of the Pizzaplex, he knew it wasn't going to be that easy. For now, Gregory was safe and fast asleep. He would try to leave him like that.

Except that option was soon taken away from both him and Freddy when in the process of replacing a pillow under Gregory's head he started to rouse.

"What's going on?" he asked groggily.

"It is alright, Superstar. I am here," Freddy assured him. He ruffled over his hair.

"We're sorry to wake you, but I have to head home," Marionette quietly apologized.

"It's okay," Gregory slurred. He rubbed at his left eye. "What time's it?"

"Four-thirty in the morning. Much too early for you to be awake. Or late, depending on which way you look at it," the Puppet said with a light chime. He adjusted the pillow under his head before standing up. "I'll be right back."

Marionette went over to the desk and fetched a notepad and a pen to write something down. This left Freddy with Gregory and with the task he had been given.

"Gregory, I… I wanted to ask you something," he began.

"Yeah?" Gregory peeked out a crack of that left eye.

"…Fritz and Vanessa have invited you to come home with them tonight! If you would like, of course. They have a guest bedroom and it would mean that you would not have to be here when we open in the morning… When we will have to deliver the news about Chica," Freddy explained. He managed a cheerful tone despite the circumstances.

"Wait, what?" Gregory reacted immediately. He snapped somewhat awake and sat up. "You're not going to make me go are you?!"

Freddy was surprised by the reaction. "Err, of course not! It was simply an offer."

"Well, no. I'm not going," Gregory said stubbornly.

"No thank you. But that is more than fine! However, I do insist that you try to sleep as long as you can. Will you be alright staying here with Sunny and- with Sunny while I escort Foxy, Mari, and their friends out of the Pizzaplex?"

"Sure," the boy agreed. He promptly laid back down on the pillow, still tired enough to do so without much fight.

Freddy smiled and withheld his relief as he petted his head again. Marionette soon came back over and showed Gregory the note he had written.

"This is Mike and I's home phone number, our cellphone number, and the number for Foxy's. If you need anything at any time, you can always call us," he said. Gregory agreed and the Puppet pulled over his backpack and slipped the note into the pocket and zipped it up.

While this was going on, Sunny slinked over and tapped on Freddy's shoulder before dropping a folded blanket into his arms. Dark blue and dotted with yellow stars, nearly identical to Moon's pants. Once Marionette and Gregory had said their goodbyes, fit with a little fist bump instigated by Gregory, Freddy splayed the blanket over him and tucked him in as Marionette headed to the door.

"Would you like me to turn the lights down, Superstar?"

"No, then Moondrop will come out and watch me sleep," Gregory replied. Sunny might've been offended if not for the fact that was likely what would happen. "And I like it better with the lights on," Gregory added. "You're coming back, right?"

"As soon as I am finished," Freddy assured him.

"Okay, cool." Gregory pulled the blanket up over his eyes. "Night, Freddy."

Freddy stayed with him a few moments longer before heading out of the daycare and rejoining with the others.

"Gregory said no thank you… for now. Eventually there may come a time when… when he will need a place to go. But for tonight, Sunny and I can keep him safe," Freddy assured them.

Fritz and Natalie seemed disappointed by the news but not surprised.

"Sure. Just let him know the offer's always open if he changes his mind," Fritz said.

"For you too. This place ever goes under, we'll smuggle you out," Foxy nonchalantly added. Something that got Freddy to look at him with a borderline horrified voice. "Now let's get moving, boyos. We don't want to be here when the calvary rolls in."

…

It didn't take long for them to make it outside. Ennard now with his bundled-up suit and Marionette with a plastic Freddy's bag stuffed with his findings from the basement. Scott gave Foxy back his hoodie and got his jacket in return as they all piled into the vans.

Baby didn't expect to get another moment alone with Charlie, but Ennard was distracted getting his layers on and everyone else was doing their own thing. So, she took the moment she could, tapping on Charlie's shoulder and then beckoning her to follow to the other side of the van. Charlie was slightly confused by the stealthy approach but went along with it and met up with her.

"…I had a nice time tonight. I know that is likely inappropriate considering everything else that happened, but I had a good time with you," Baby quietly admitted. She almost sounded shy, and Charlie smiled.

"I'm glad. I'd rather end it on a high note than begin on one," she replied.

Baby squeezed her Freddy a little tighter in the crook of her arm as she crossed them, running her hand nervously over her claw and up her arm.

"About what we talked about earlier…"

Suddenly Charlie felt her own nerves start to kick in. There was that tightening in the music box again, but she did her best to not let it show. "Yeah?"

"How do you feel? About it, I mean. Not me specifically but what I told you," Baby asked.

It was funny how Charlie could get handed such a complex question and suddenly draw a complete blank. It was as though her mind had completely cut out. Weirdly, since she knew what she thought about it only a couple of hours ago and suddenly it was all gone.

Baby waited for the answer patiently. The only indication that she noticed the delayed answer being when she lifted her eyes from the ground back to Charlie. Those piercing green eyes waiting for something.

"I don't know," Charlie dumbly replied.

Baby too didn't seem sure how to respond to that. Likely because she wasn't sure what an answer that vague could've been leaning towards. Charlie quickly corrected herself.

"I mean, I'm not upset! I'm not uncomfortable or anything like that. I just… I don't know how I feel?" she tried to explain. She gave a both awkward apologetic smile. "I'm kind of weird like that. It takes me a while to process stuff."

"It's not weird. And I much prefer a delayed response to a negative one," Baby said. She still seemed uncertain. "…I don't want to drive a wedge between us."

"And it won't! I promise," Charlie insisted. "Are we still on for this weekend?"

"Of course. If you want to."

"Sure! Maybe Ennard will chill out by then."

"Don't count on it," Baby lightly scoffed.

Charlie jingled a little and offered out her hand. It wasn't until Baby took it that it suddenly dawned on her what this motion might be read as. Trying to cover, she shook Baby's hand, which the clown gave a slightly perplexed look at.

She then gave a sarcastic, "…Well, it was nice knowing you."

Charlie shot her a finger gun with her free hand and gave a sly, "I'll be seeing you later, Babydoll."

It wasn't until the words left her mouth that she realized that hadn't come out how she intended on it sounding. Which was especially notable from the way Baby stared at her afterwards. It came out sounding way more flirtatious than anything Baby had said.

"…I should go home and get some sleep," Charlie squeaked.

"Yes, you should," Baby replied. Amusement lacing her voice. She squeezed Charlie's hand and then released it, watching the Security Puppet hustle back over to Fritz's van, body rigid with flustering.

It was adorable.

Baby pulled herself into the back of Scott's van and shut the doors behind her before adjusting herself. She turned around to find Ennard still fixing his clothes and now sending her that accursed look again.

"So, how'd it go?" he asked. Fluffing up his bow as he did.

"How did what go?" Baby replied.

"Your date," he bluntly replied.

She rolled her eyes at him.

"It wasn't a date," she dismissed. She sat there a moment. "…But it was a lovely evening."

"Aww!" Ennard gushed.

"I told her how I felt."

"AwwWW?!" the clown half-blurted in surprise. She gave him a confirming nod and he smacked his hands down on his legs. "Well?!"

"She said… she didn't know," Baby said quietly. Despite her attempts not to, her voice betrayed her feelings all too well.

With Ennard's exaggerated reactions, Baby almost forgot Scott was there until he leaned over and looked between the seats and into the back.

"Did you just tell her? She might need time to digest it," he offered.

"Exactly!" Ennard agreed.

That was pretty much exactly what Charlie said and Baby doubted she would lie. Charlie was almost painfully direct at times. In a way she admired that, as she could usually tell when Charlie was or wasn't being forthright. Yet there were still complicated feelings.

"You might be right. She said as much herself… But I didn't just tell here. It was earlier, back when we were alone in the arcade. We were in a kissing booth- photo booth!" Baby choked and clasped her hand over her face, half wanting to tear it off with her own fingers. She snapped her hand down to send a warning look across the van. "Ennard, don't you dare."

"Not daring to do diddly-do," Ennard said.

He didn't take the bait, but that was almost worse than if he had. She straightened up and continued, putting on a show to not let it shake her.

"I was in the photo booth and we were talking about tonight… And it came up unexpectedly. That is, we were exchanging some admittedly heartfelt compliments when she caught on and asked. Somewhat. She couldn't really get the gest of the question out, but I understood and confirmed. She was surprised, but not upset, and we took another set of pictures once the lights came on and went to go play games. Like nothing had happened. Along with winning me this."

"You got pictures?" Ennard asked.

"Here." Baby passed them over. "I took the first set. The power went out between the third and fourth, explaining the last one's strangeness." She ignored Ennard's proceeding gushing and instead turned to Scott. "You really think that?"

"Yeah, I don't think you should be worried. It sounds like you two had a great time so it's not like she was scared off. Sometimes people need a little more time to process stuff, especially if there's a big decision there."

"What decision is that?"

"The decision if she wants to date you, duh," Ennard replied slyly.

"This is why I am asking Scott, not you," Baby remarked. She looked back to Scott and he was silent a moment. "…Oh, so that's what you meant."

"Not that exactly, but something like that," Scott agreed and slid back into his chair to start the van.

"Somehow, I don't think that's what's on her mind. More than likely she is unsure how to let me down, afraid it will cause the same split my confession could have," Baby said pointedly. She leaned back into the corner of the van. "Charlie and I make good friends. I'm not dumb or desperate enough to ruin that due to my own feelings. I cannot imagine how awkward things must be between her and John."

"Especially once he finds out she dumped him for a clown."

That got Ennard a cushion in the face. He still had that look after it bounced off his head. Of course.

Freddy stepped out of the elevator to find the light in the hallway on and someone waiting for him. He immediately brightened up at the sight of Sunny with a stack of blankets under one arm, pillows and a gym bag under the other, and a roll of Christmas lights wrapped around his upper arm and shoulder. He knew what it was all for, and the two headed straight to his green room to set up.

Rockstar Row was quiet. A glance towards Roxanne's room showed she wasn't there and certainly Chica wasn't, but with a careful listen one could detect the light plucking of bass strings further down. Monty was in his room but seemed distracted.

While Freddy would've much preferred to set up for Gregory in his room, he knew that wasn't possible when guests would be peeking in the window and coming in for a one-on-one visit with him. So, it had to be in the back room.

They moved out some of the boxes and then arranged them into a safe but unsuspecting little pyramid to block any prying eyes. Then they built Gregory's little hiding spot in the corner beside the recharge station. Since Gregory had mentioned he preferred the light, Freddy was sure the glow of the charging station likely wouldn't bother him.

Sunny had brought plastic clips, tape, plenty of supplies to mount a tent which was then made out of a dark green blanket. The only one he had on hand that wasn't patterned so it wouldn't stand out as much. The inside of the tent being a palate of folded blankets and pillows. A strand of Christmas lights was then run around the inside before plugging into the wall nearby. The few lights coming out of the tent having their bulbs unscrewed as to make them less obvious.

By time they were done they proudly looked upon their work to see a fully functional hidey hole. One close to Freddy, away from the workers and guest, and less likely to be spotted by any of the Glamrocks. With that finished, Sunny dusted his hands and led them back out into the green room.

"I cannot wait to see the look on Gregory's face when he sees it! I think he will be more than impressed," Freddy gushed. He then gave a semi-regretful sigh as he rubbed his hands together. "But I hated waking him up. Perhaps we should wait a little closer to six?"

"Agree! Nobody's going to show up until, oh, seven earliest? And they'll be right down to Parts and Service when they do," Sunny agreed.

"We should head back to the daycare. That is, unless you would like to play a quick game a StreetSkate Superstar. Hmm?" Freddy offered.

"Gosh, I would, Freddy-bear! But first I think there's something we need to talk about. Now what was it…?" Sunny tapped where his chin would be thoughtfully and hummed. "Oh, that's right- How did you know about Jake?!"

Freddy was startled by the sudden change of tone. He lifted his hands in defense, Sunny's own twisting up desperately as he looked to the bear for answers.

"Sunny, I-!" Freddy cut off for a long moment before his shoulders fell and he gave a defeated, "…I know about Jake."

"But how?! Did you- Did you see him or hear him or- what?!" Sunny frantically demanded answers.

"…I heard you two talking once, through the balcony. I recognized his voice," Freddy quietly admitted. Sunny dropped his arms and Freddy got a look of remorse, and then solemnly confessed, "But that was not the only thing I noticed."

"It wasn't?" Sunny asked in a tiny voice.

"No… For example, you and Jake had been so very close. When he was damaged you did everything you could to help fix him!… But then, once you replaced him as the sun, you stopped talking about him. And you seemed very upset, but not as upset as I expected you to be. Initially I believed that Sun and Moon- that you were both together, but then I caught you two talking and I realized that you had Jake with you. Though I swear to you that tonight was the first time I saw him."

"But you knew he was up there…!"

"Yes."

Sunny seemed overwhelmed. He clasped his hands over his face and staggered back until he fell against the door. He must've locked it as it didn't open automatically, instead catching his weight as he slid down, landing on his backside with his legs stretched out before him. He slouched forward with his arms falling into a listless shrug.

"I knew this was going to happen. I knew we weren't being careful enough- and that was loooong before Monty caught us!" Sunny bemoaned.

"Sunny, it will be alright. I would not tell a soul."

"It's not YOU I'm worried about. It's them," the Daycare Attendant hissed out. His points retracting as his fingers dug at the carpet. "Do you- Do you know what they'd do if they found out about him? They'd drag him downstairs and throw him in the garbage with all the other things they'd rather forget." His voice grew gravellier as he thumped a fist down on the floor. "And that's if he's lucky- if they don't throw him in the furnace!"

"Sunny, no. That is not going to happen," Freddy said firmly.

"Why not?! They already stripped him for parts!" Moon growled out. His eyes blotted with blue, and his points pulled in as far as they could with the lights on.

Only for them to suddenly release and pop out, his head falling back against the door with frustration. His eyes flicking back to white in an instant. He let out a frustrated little whine.

That was when Freddy finally stepped forward and knelt in front of him.

"Sun, listen to me," Freddy said sternly. A tone he very seldom took and enough to get Sunny to turn his head down to look at him. "We will not let anything happen to Jake. Nobody is going to take him; nobody is going to hurt him. We can keep him safe," he insisted. Sunny nodded stiffly and Freddy sighed, his face softening. "I wish you would have told me, Sunny."

"Yeah, me too," he murmured.

"But I understand why you did not. It is the same reason why I have not told the others about Gregory. It is to protect him," Freddy said quietly. A more determined look took his eyes. "But now that I do know, we can work together to protect them both."

Sunny gave a noncommittal little agreement. Lethargically agreeing to it all without much energy behind it. Only perking up when Freddy suddenly cupped the side of his head. His thumb rubbing a gently little circle over his cheek.

"It will be alright, Sunshine. You are not in this on your own," Freddy assured. His gaze just as soft as his voice was.

Then he did something he had never done before.

Freddy leaned in and pressed his mouth to Sunny's forehead in a small kiss. Or the closest he could give to one. The jolt Sunny felt shoot through his system had to be close to the feel of the real deal.

His internal mechanisms went into overdrive. He was skipping so fast he was ticking and he brightened so much that he was afraid something would short-circuit. Something exciting and warm bubbling up-

And then suddenly dropping like a cold ball of led. Jittery excitement quickly turned to panic, dread, and… and guilt. Sunny felt so good for a moment and then so horrible afterwards. He didn't even feel like Sunny or Moon anymore.

Freddy was none-the-wiser, pressing his head to Sunny's and closing his eyes. Content in the moment. Sunny held out as long as he possibly could before patting Freddy's cheek and then pushing him back by the shoulder.

"THANK You, Freddy! I- I feel better! Much better! But we should really, REALLY get back to the daycare now!" Sunny raced out. Suddenly the door opened automatically, him signaling it to unlock, and he rolled backward and right out of Freddy's grasp, popping up onto his feet and into a stagger as he immediately began to switch over into Moon. That didn't stop him from wobbling off on his way.

That was strange. Though Freddy mistakenly took the weird display as something much more innocent, embarrassment. It wouldn't be the first time Sunny fell into a tizzy when flustered. Chuckling deeply, Freddy stood there a moment, then looked to the vanity.

He found himself wandering over and looking at himself in the mirror for a long moment. The mirth falling from his face a little later.

What a long night. He was exhausted, Chica was still damaged, and Foxy was going to be 'laying low' for a couple of weeks, meaning he wouldn't be back for a while. And the situation with Gregory had only received a temporary reprieve. It didn't fix the big problem.

None of the big problems had been fixed, and yet tonight hadn't been too terrible. That was, Freddy kept trying to find the silver lining. Sunny, Gregory, Foxy yet again.

He looked over towards his couch and the bowling supplies beside it. Somewhere over there was a glittery red bowling ball hidden away. He almost considered getting it out, but then quickly turned back to the vanity. Slowly looking back up at his reflection before turning and heading out of the green room. That gave Moon a long enough head start; he needed to get back to the daycare and Gregory.

Away from this empty room.

…

Everything was strange. He couldn't tell what was happening. It was all just a blur of movement. Thoughtless, shuffling along like there were weights on his legs, staring at the blur of dark but colorful walls and dragging his feet on the carpet.

How strange. He knew where he was, he was in the Pizzaplex, but everything else was a garbled mess. Trying to focus through the haze proved useless. Trudge on and find something somewhere. He had to go somewhere, but he was getting nowhere.

He heard footsteps somewhere behind him and voices, though he continued dragging onward.

"See?! Look! He's just moving on his own!" a light and feminine voice clucked.

"Oh… Oh whoa, that's… This is big," another voice replied.

"Big?! This is huge! What do we do?!"

"Okay, you just sit tight and… Don't go anywhere."

"Be careful…!"

He could hear footsteps approaching from behind again, now slower, cautiously walking up. He was still trudging onwards when a voice interrupted him.

"Hey. Freddy? Hey, Freddy. Look at me."

He was confused. He didn't know if he meant him or someone else, but it was a voice behind him, and his mind cleared enough to take and awkward step and slowly roll his head to look back over his shoulder.

He stood there with his hands raised in defense and his mouth tilted into a smile, his eyes mixed between that and shock. Ears cocked alertly over his head and a pair of star shaped sunglasses pushed back on his head to meet them.

He didn't know who he himself was, but he knew who this rabbit was, grinning at him and coaxing him back.

Bonnie sounded as friendly as he looked.

"Hey there, Superstar."

Chapter End Notes

Gone, but not forgotten.

Chapter 57

Chapter Summary

After every long night is a day after, and as Mike uncovers what happened, Marionette recovers and deals with the aftershocks of such a night...

The van ride home was mostly uneventful. Foxy talked about bowling with Freddy to pass the time, Charlie talked about her time in the arcade with Baby, and both Marionette and Fritz mostly listened in. Marionette more content to listen to the highlights of the evening while Fritz was trying to keep focused on the road. Towards the end of the drive the conversation tapered off and had stayed that way until Fritz reignited it only a few streets away from home.

"I hope that kid's going to be alright," he said with a sigh. Obviously meaning Gregory.

"He will. Freddy's gonna keep a close eye on him fer now on," Foxy assured confidently. Him leaned back on a bunched-up tarp with his arms and legs crossed. "He might be a little too trusting, but he ain't stupid. Things'll be changing on how he watches the lad."

"And Gregory's quite the opposite. He's very smart and because of that very cautious of new people. Understandably so considering the circumstances. It takes him a while to warm up to someone, and you opening the door to him was the first step," Marionette said.

"Maybe. I just feel like I should've done more. Maybe I should've been the one to make the offer," Fritz said.

"Coulda, but it wouldn't've changed a thing. Seems like Freddy's the only person who might've convinced him into that," Foxy said matter-of-factly.

"Plus, if you would've pushed any harder Gregory would've only become more defensive. I think it was a great idea to offer though, because now he might be a little more open to it in the future. That is, if it comes to a point where there's no other choice."

Fritz did agree with this. Though it was clear that he still had a lot of thoughts. Thankfully it was then that they turned onto the road and soon pulled up outside the house.

"Here's your stop," Fritz announced.

"Thanks for the lift. And for putting up with the craziness tonight. I swear it's not usually this bad," Charlie said apologetically. He waved dismissively.

"It's my fault choosing to come in the same night the circus was in town," he joked. He looked into the rearview mirror and into the back. "You staying or going, Foxy?"

"Eh, I gotta head back to the pizzeria. It's gonna be an early mornin' tomorrow," Foxy said, making no attempt to move from his position.

"Are you sure? We can drive you over in the morning," Marionette offered.

"Believe me, I'd love to, Lad. But I need as much sleep as I can get, and I can squeeze out a few more minutes cutting out the commute," Foxy said. He reached out and gave him an assuring pat on the shoulder. Marionette smiled and chimed, returning the pat on his hand.

"Get some sleep," he encouraged. Then he grabbed up his bag of merchandise and whisked himself into the house. He got the door unlocked just in time for Charlie to come speeding in.

He closed the door quickly behind her and locked it while she pulled back her hood and walked over to the back of the couch. She looked over it and down to see Michael sleeping there. His head turned towards her, but his eyes closed, one arm across his chest, and Moppet curled up on his legs. She looked up at Charlie as she walked up but made no move to get up, and Charlie didn't dare risk stirring Michael by reaching for her.

Instead, she turned around and made a sleeping motion with her hands and head. Marionette caught the gest, stealing a glance over the back of the couch as he passed by and headed into the hallway, smiling contently as he did. He spared a wave in Max's direction, who still was awake, and Max acknowledged him with a shake of his arm. The remote still clasped in his hand.

"You should head on to bed too. I'm going to be up a little longer washing these off, so don't mind me," Marionette whispered, holding up the bag of merchandise.

"But you're not going to stay up all night, right?" Charlie double-checked.

"Not if I can help it!" he chirped. She gave him an unamused look and he chimed. "I'll be off to bed as soon as I'm done," he promised, laying a hand on her shoulder. He then gently guided her along. "Good night, Charlie."

"Night," Charlie replied. She patted his hand, almost how he had done to Foxy, and continued down the hall. She stole a look back once she was almost at the door, but he was already carefully closing the bathroom door behind him. She had a funny feeling about him but decided to give him his space and headed into her bedroom.

Marionette meanwhile opened the bag on the bathroom floor and quickly sorted what he could clean from what he couldn't. Paper goods were out of the question, but the mugs, toys, and even plushies could all be washed by hand. The bathroom was the perfect place to do this due to all the cleaners in the cabinet under the sink, which he turned and opened before collecting some bottles out of it. He even pulled out the spray to clean the sink out afterwards.

Marionette lined up a few things on the edge of the sink and prepared to get to washing. This was what he really needed, something to do to clear his head before bed. He picked up the mug first and began to wash it, only to notice a thin crack down its side.

That was a shame. It probably wouldn't be safe to use ever again. Then again, considering where he found it, it likely already wasn't. That was fine. He could clean it and put it somewhere instead. That was a fine alternative.

Just a single crack, nobody would notice. Not like the cracks across Chica's body. Many of them had been fixed from his knowledge, but not her face. Her face had been the most garish part. A broken pit in the center of her head. Her colorful and kid-friendly exterior broken apart to reveal the metal underneath. They would find her like that tomorrow. Just like they did back at Chica's Party World.

What had happened to her after that was a mystery. She was sold apparently, but had she been repaired beforehand or stuck in a warehouse unfinished until she was bot and refitted with her new casing? The same thing that had happened to his bandmates, the Toys, ones he thought he was protecting before Freddy's stepped in and showed them all how powerless they really were. Tools to be replaced and reformatted at will.

Would Chica be fixed or replaced, he wondered. It seemed like they had the means to fix them, but they hadn't fixed Jake. They tried to but he kept winding up broken- at his own hands- until they decided it wasn't worth trying any longer. Then they replaced him with the closest thing, and now Jake was stuck in a prison of their design and Andrew was stuck with the burden of the Sun and the Moon, and the programming to keep both in line.

Why would Jake hurt himself? Marionette knew it was a pointless question to obsess over, but he couldn't help it, and he couldn't ask it. Did his existence hurt that much? Marionette hadn't really thought about it, but there were plenty of animatronics he could think of who at one point or another were in a fate worse than death. Stuck with broken bodies and trapped in an impossibly hopeless situation.

He was so scared for Bonnie. Of what they did to Bonnie. He wouldn't just disappear- animatronics didn't just disappear. Fazbear Entertainment dealt with them, and Bonnie was a liability.

He should've looked better. He could still be down there in the garbage. Alone.

A glob of purple landed on the mug that he had been washing for the last five minutes straight. He stared at it, then lifted his head and looked into the mirror. He knew he was crying even before he saw how much was coming down his mask.

Marionette calmly set the mug down in the sink before turning and grabbing a towel out of the hamper. He then sat down on the closed toilet, pressed his face into the bundled-up towel, and wept. The towel muffled his sobs as he wept out every feeling he could. He cried for Chica, for Gregory, for Jake and Andrew, for Freddy and especially for Bonnie, until his ectoplasmic tears filled the fabric. He let out everything as quietly as he could.

By time he dropped the towel off his face and into his lap he was exhausted. He could feel the dampness all over his mask and slouched forward enough to catch anything left dripping off into the mask. He couldn't say he felt much better, but he at least didn't feel quite so overwhelmed. A physical manifestation of those feelings emptied into the towel below him.

He reached over and turned on the bathtub until it was filled a few inches and then laid out the towel in it to soak. Again, the tears seldom stained, but he didn't want to risk anyone by turning on the washer this late. This was the best he felt like doing right now. He made a mental note to come back and finish up before anyone had to use the shower and then shut the curtain.

But by then Marionette was too exhausted to do much else. He put the items back in the bag- save the mug that he dried and set aside- quickly sprayed out the sink, disinfected himself, and left the bathroom. He put the bag on the washing machine for tomorrow and then headed into the bedroom.

Mike was fast asleep, as expected. Marionette smiled a little as he drifted to the other side and slipped into bed. Quickly sliding in beside Mike and pressing his freshly cleaned mask against his warm shoulder.

Apparently, Mike wasn't in as deep of a sleep as he expected as he turned over and pulled him in. Marionette eagerly accepted and returned the embrace, snuggling in.

"You sure you don't want me to go with you?" Mike groggily asked.

Marionette gave a bemused smile and chime. "I think it's a little too late for that."

"You sure? I can get dressed pretty fast," Mike insisted.

"Mike, I just got back."

"…What?" He started to wake up a little more at that, turning to look over his shoulder at the alarm clock. "…Guess I must've slept then," he said. He turned back over and pulled Marionette in again. "How'd it go?"

"It didn't go as smoothly as I hoped," Marionette confessed.

He wanted to leave it at that, he truly did, but his body began to betray him. He started to feel it creeping up in his spools and at his eyes. All those thoughts he had come back in droves. He didn't know what to do. He didn't want to keep crying, but if he withheld and fought it back, he was at a risk of that heat flaring back up. He didn't want to hide in the bathroom and both options seemed to turn to that if he wanted to keep the peace.

"Mari?" Mike noticed he was starting to tremble a little. "…What happened?"

At his gentle voice, Marionette somewhat crumbled and buried his face into his shoulder. Clinging on like his life depended on it.

"It was just- it was just awful," Marionette said. His music box twanging and his voice hitching and dropping. Despite what he wanted; he began to cry again. Though nowhere near the heavy sobs from the bathroom.

That was all it took for Mike to change his mind and his tactic.

"Forget it. It can wait," he said. He pulled Marionette securely into his arms and tucked his head against his chest. "It's all over now, Doll. You're home and safe. That's all that matters."

Marionette wished that was true. He knew how lucky they had gotten to get everyone out and appreciated that, but it was hard to be thankful when there was so much else piling up. The big picture clouded up the little blessings.

But Mike was always a comfort. He always knew just the way to hold him and hum to him to make him feels safe and loved. It didn't take long for those assurances to take the edge off. Especially when Mike changed tactics again, his humming turning to soft singing.

"Stick with me and I'll stick with you, and there's nothing we can't do. No, no, I've got you. And I'm never letting go-oh no,~" Mike sung to him. Some sappy song that had been circling on the radio, one which he was sure he could've cracked a joke at, but it was the first thing he could think of that was somewhat fitting for what he wanted to say.

He could feel Marionette slowly starting to relax. Soon the trembling stopped and the slight dampness leaking past the neck of his t-shirt was just that, slight. It was helping but he wasn't there yet. He needed something better than a cheesy love song.

"…Pizza maaan! Pushing eighty-five in a thirty zone!~"

It caught Marionette so off-guard that he made a noise less like a chime and more like a hiccup. He pulled back to shoot him another bemused look even with his lower face stained with tears. Mike leaned in and caught his lips in a playful but impassioned kiss.

He could tell how much Marionette needed it by how quickly his hand caught the back of his head, petting his hair and holding him still a moment or too longer than initially intended. Not that Mike was complaining. He caught a breath and returned again, and again. Until his target wasn't just his lips, but his cheeks. Across his damp stripes and right in the center, where his mask lacked a nose. Everything he could reach he kissed and listened as Marionette nearly vibrated with trills.

He wanted to keep him distracted. He wanted to make him forget whatever it was that happened for as long as he could.

Eventually he drew back to wipe away the smeared tears and trace over the side of his mask. Marionette was finally smiling comfortably at least.

"You're very charming, Mike," he said. His voice still somewhat crunchy but no longer nearly as distraught.

"I know," Mike replied.

As relaxed as Mike seemed though, he was far from it. He was basically putting on a brave face for Marionette, but behind that smile and the playful glint to his eyes, he was inwardly panicking on how bad 'awful' was to make him cry with such little provocation. He wasn't exactly a stranger to seeing Marionette cry, but he had learned not to take it lightly. Whatever happened must've thrown him through a serious loop.

"…Thank you," Marionette earnestly continued. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to wake you up with this."

"You know that's what I'm here for," Mike said with much more affirmation.

"It was such a long night…" he said. His voice tired and drained.

"You can tell me in the morning. Don't worry about it tonight," Mike reaffirmed, back to tracing little circles around his cheek. A mild smile graced the mask.

"Mike, it is morning."

"Not until I have to get up it's not."

Marionette chuckled a bit and slid in once more. Arms wrapping tightly around Mike's back as he tucked his against his shoulder and the pillow, settling himself into a comfortable position. Mike continued to pet him a little longer before lowering his arm to hold him close.

And then proceeded to silently sit there going over every worst-case scenario of every person who went into that Pizzaplex until eventually the warmth lulled him back to sleep.

…

It felt like no time at all before the alarm went off. Mike remembered the night before as soon as he woke up still tangled with Marionette. He managed to free himself enough to reach back and hit the snooze, if just to get the alarm off as fast as possible. He then rolled back into place, pulling Marionette back against him with a comforting squeeze.

A low chime rung through Marionette's chest as he stretched his arms behind Mike's back, then tiredly dropped them back into a hug. Very cute; very heartwarming.

"Morning, Mari," he murmured.

Marionette returned with a greeting hum, perhaps too tired for a full response. Mike sympathized and kissed him on the temple.

"Get some more sleep. I'm going to get up and get ready," he assured him.

Marionette gave a fussy little twang. "Can't take the day off. Foxy needs me," he insisted.

"I'm not going to fight you, but you're going to at least sleep until we leave. That'll be three quarters of an hour at least. I'll come get you before I head out the door," Mike rebutted. To which Marionette gave a nod without argument.

Mike turned and shut off the alarm properly before laying back down with his puppet, deciding to sacrifice ten of those minutes to lulling him back to a relaxed state.

Then he slowly slid out of his grasp, carefully got out of bed, and grabbed his clothes for the day before heading out the door and quietly shutting it behind him.

It wasn't until Mike was getting dressed in the bathroom that he realized he was feeling a lot more rested than usual. He felt more awake and alert, to the point where the slight grogginess was barely noticeable, and probably a product of oversleeping instead of one of under. He could still do a cup of coffee, but today it wouldn't be because he needed it but because he wanted it. Coffee always tasted better as a choice instead of a quick chug to take the edge off a long night.

Though by time he headed into the kitchen he changed his mind. Maybe a healthier alternative was in order. There were protein shakes and orange juice in the fridge, and he headed in that direction instead of the coffee maker.

Jeremy was sitting at the table eating a bowl of cereal while Springtrap was standing beside the table, leaning over and talking to him. Mike greeted them with a simple, "Hey," and stepped behind Jeremy's chair to open the fridge and look around. He almost grabbed a soda by reflex, but then buckled down and grabbed the bottle of orange juice instead.

As he passed, Jeremy had looked to him and gave a muffled hum through a mouthful of flakes. He then pointed at Mike's back with his spoon. Springtrap, whose eyes had locked onto Mike's back, nodded and followed him to the counter, standing beside him.

"Good morning, Mike. Did Marion tell you what happened last night?" Springtrap asked bluntly.

Mike arched his brow questioningly while pouring his juice. "No, what?" he asked and then took a swig.

"That's what we're trying to figure out," Springtrap clarified.

He reached back towards Jeremy who handed over a plastic mug and then silently placed it on the counter beside Mike. He quirked a brow yet again, briefly looking at the mug he still rested his hand on, then up to Springtrap questioningly. The rabbit silently stared back, waiting for something. Mike shrugged and reached for the orange juice container.

"Well, okay. If you really want to try it," he quipped. He went to pour it into the mug but before he could do so, Springtrap turned the mug to face him.

That's when he saw the decal on the mug. That's when he saw the indigo rabbit staring back at him.

That was a mug from the Pizzaplex, and it had Bonnie on it.

Mike snatched up the mug and stared at it in disbelief, slowly setting down the carton with his other hand. All the while Springtrap said nothing, as he knew he didn't have to. If a picture was worth a thousand words, and the one on that mug could write a memoir.

"Do you know what this is?!" Mike finally said. Finally looking up from the one rabbit and to the other.

"It looks like the Bonnie that Wight said they didn't have," Springtrap said matter-of-factly, and bitterly to boot.

"Yeah, that exactly," Mike agreed with just as much viscera. He thumped the mug down on the counter. "I knew something was up with that whole Bunny Bowling Alley situation."

"We're still trying to figure out what happened last night. Did Mari say anything?" Jeremy asked.

"Not much, but I knew something happened. He was upset when he came to bed last night. Said it was an 'awful night', and considering our standards that must've been pretty bad," Mike answered. "Have you called Foxy?"

"I tried, but he didn't pick up. He's probably still asleep."

"Same with Scott. I called them a half-hour ago and only got a recording," Springtrap said. "Which either means they're all still asleep or something much worse happened."

"I don't think Mari would've come home and got into bed unless he knew everyone was home. I checked in and Charlie's here too, so I'm guessing they all made it," Jeremy said.

"Mari waved when he got home, so I'd say losing a man isn't what happened," Max called from the living room. "…Unless it was Bonnie. Poor guy never stood a chance."

"I'll call Fritz," Mike offered. He got as far as two steps before slowing to a stop. "…No, I shouldn't. Him and Natalie might've just gotten to sleep. I'm not going to wake them up."

"Did they say anything to you?" Springtrap called back to Max.

"Not a word, just a wave," Max returned.

"I might have an idea what happened last night."

Somehow in the calling and talking the three hadn't noticed Charlie wander up until she drew attention to herself. They all looked to her in an instant.

"Morning, Sunshine. Didn't expect to see you up so soon," Mike greeted. "We wake you up?"

"No, I've been up a few minutes. But did someone open my door earlier?"

"That was me," Jeremy said, raising a hand. "Sorry, just checking in."

"No worries. I was planning on getting up anyway," Charlie assured with a smile. One that soon after faltered a little. "Sooo, last night might've been a long one. Where do I even begin?"

"At the beginning," Springtrap said.

"With this," Mike said at exactly the same time, lifting the mug for emphasis.

The two then exchanging a look, Mike's rather nonchalant and Springtrap's less than amused.

"…I'll start somewhere in the middle. If we start at the beginning, we'll be here all day," Charlie said. "So, that is a mug from Glamrock Bonnie. We found a whole mound of Bonnie stuff when we were looking for Chica and Baby in the basement-… Scratch that, let me start at the beginning. So, we got there, and everything seemed to be going okay until we caught Chica tearing up Gregory's hiding spot. Baby and Ennard stayed behind to let Baby blow off some steam and Gregory must've heard her say she didn't like Chica, because he asked her if she would help him scare her and get her off his back."

"Oh, dear God. I see what went wrong," Springtrap muttered.

"Well, no, you don't. Because Baby turned him down," Charlie said. Springtrap looked mildly surprised. "…But Ennard took the bait." Springtrap rolled his eyes back into his head and closed them, making his feelings very clear. "So… From what I know, Ennard and Gregory got some sort of pizza flavored sauce, put it on a pizza, and lured Chica into the kitchen. Ennard tried to scare her, but little did he know that it wasn't pizza she was in the mood for."

Mike's brows shot up.

"She tried to eat him," Charlie clarified. They slightly lowered, still surprised but no longer that much. Springtrap looked a little startled by it and was biting at the bit to ask, but Charlie answered his question. "She didn't! He's okay… because Baby followed them and that's how it got out that Glamrock Chica is actually Funtime Chica, the Chica Baby ate back at Chica's Party World."

"She was alive?!" Jeremy asked.

"Yes, she was. Baby didn't know."

"Whoa. That's… That must've been bad," Jeremy trailed off. He stirred his cereal absentmindedly as he considered what that must've been like, and grimaced.

"It was, and there was a fight. In Baby's defense Chica sort of went in swinging, but also… yeah, it makes sense why she did. When they were fighting, Chica threw Baby into this giant trash compactor and then she fell in too. Well, sort of. I kind of got the impression that maybe Ennard was covering, and that Gregory pushed her in. I don't know how he could, but he was pretty outright with everything but then got weirdly quiet about how she fell in, and I don't think Ennard would've lied. He could've, but I don't know."

"And then?" Springtrap asked.

"And then… Chica got crushed in a trash compactor and both of them got dumped into the garbage," Charlie raced out.

"Oh, Christ," Mike hissed. Suddenly he got a very clear image of what awful was, and it wasn't Bonnie the Bunny. That's for sure.

Springtrap wasn't taking it much better, eyes wide and staring in shock as he processed it. Not Chica's fate, he would process the implications of that later, but Baby's- Lizzie's. "But Liz-?!"

"She's okay!" Charlie was quick to assure. "Baby wasn't hurt. I mean, she might've bruised her ego a little falling into garbage, but that's it."

Springtrap put a hand to his chest and made a slightly faltering motion, one almost like a sigh of relief.

"But that wasn't the end," Mike guessed cryptically.

"No, because then we got downstairs and found out that Freddy's has its own personal scrapyard garbage dump in the basement."

"Ennard must've loved that," Springtrap remarked. His voice then softened dramatically. "I'm joking, I'm sure he was torn up about all this."

"He was. We all were. So, we split up and started looking, and that's when Mari and I found the stash of Bonnie stuff," Charlie said, pointing to the mug. "And to answer all your questions: he was an animatronic and he was friends with Freddy, he was supposed to be redesigned into a new character, but then he disappeared before he could. Jake thinks he's hiding somewhere and after seeing that basement, yeah, I could believe it."

"Well, that just confirmed my worst fears," Mike said dryly. He looked down at the mug again. "I hope Jake's right. I hope they didn't do anything to him just because they were afraid of a lawsuit. I know it's not out-of-character for the old Freddy's, but…" He sighed as the last of any cynicism in his voice was replaced with concern. "No wonder Mari was upset…"

There was a solemn moment of silence. Perhaps for Bonnie.

"So, you found Baby. What happened to Chica?" Jeremy asked.

"She wasn't so lucky... She had a lot of damage to her shell, especially around her mouth. Her beak even fell out and… we couldn't find it," Charlie explained. To which Jeremy cringed and grimaced. "She was still able to get up and chase Gregory around, but Fritz had to tase her when she got rough with Natalie, and then he and Ennard tried fixing her up in parts and service."

"And how well did that go?" Springtrap asked.

"Not that bad. They got everything fixed except the mouth, which they couldn't fix because they weren't authorized too. Apparently, Chica got some sort of an upgrade to help her sing and they didn't want to risk anyone working on it."

"More like they didn't want to risk anyone seeing their prized upgrade and copying the design. How very business savvy of them," Springtrap said flatly. His voice softened up once more with a sigh. "Though there's our answers… I always found Freddy very suspicious. How he was so readily willing to go along with this plan of sneaking Gabe and us in and go against his own business to protect us… I suppose this clears up why he did," he said. His voice low and sympathetic.

Seeing how down he and everyone else was, Charlie felt the need to do damage control. Less they think the whole night was a total disaster when in reality it had ended much better than expected.

"But, on the plus side, we got her!" she announced with double thumbs up. They looked to her with varying degrees of confusion. "Vanny! Scott was able to get her on tape!"

"You're serious?!" Mike exclaimed. His dire expression broke into a grin. "Way to go, Scott! How'd he pull that one off?"

"He got her going down a tunnel. She was too far away to mess up the camera," Charlie said with an equal smile. "Fritz said it's not the best picture, but he was able to see her, so there's that!"

"So, it was worth it! Still sort of a disaster, but you got what you went in there for, and there's no way Wight's going to be able to ignore something he can see. He can try, but that's looking at a lawsuit too," Jeremy said matter-of-factly.

"Good on Scott, we needed some good news," Mike agreed.

"And the rest of the night wasn't too bad. We hung out in the daycare while everyone was working. I took Baby up to the arcade to help her destress and Mari took care of Gregory so Freddy could hang out with Foxy. I think that helped a lot for them both. Freddy was shaken up after everything and Mari… I don't know. I got the feeling that something was off, but he does a good job of hiding his feelings… Well, sometimes."

"He does that. As a matter of fact, I think I might go check in on him. You guys sit tight," Mike said. After all of this, he really needed to check in on him, and he all but hustled into the hallway to do so.

As he headed out, Jeremy caught Charlie rubbing the side of her mask. Resting her head on her hand in a tired motion, only to pull it away quickly when he spoke up.

"You don't have to go in, you know. Why don't you stay home and catch a snooze?" he suggested.

"I figured I could do that in my box," Charlie said. A playful tilt of her head and a jingle to replace a wink.

That was the last part Mike caught before he got too far down the hallway and too distracted to listen.

Truth was, he kept thinking back to Marionette through the explanation. Reacting to each piece of news before thinking about how Marionette must've reacted. He should've been there, he felt guilty that he wasn't. Yet he knew he wouldn't have been much help.

He could be there now though, and he slowly opened the door to peek in and see if Marionette was still asleep.

He was not. He was sitting on the edge of the bed slumped in on himself. His head was propped up with his arm and turned towards the door as it open. The two looked at each other a moment before Mike came in and shut the door behind him.

"Heyyy," he greeted as smoothly as he could. He ignored how phony it sounded and instead walked over and sat down beside him on the bed. "So, I guess that means you made up your mind."

"I did. I'm going in," Marionette agreed. He straightened himself up. "If Foxy could go through last night and still go into work then so can I. I owe that much to him."

"I don't know if Foxy would agree, but I'm on board with whatever you want to do," Mike said.

Marionette smiled briefly and they sat there in silence for a long moment. The only noise being the ceiling fan spinning above. Eventually Mike broke the silence with a sigh.

"So! I saw that mug you had out there," he began. Marionette's fell instantly. "And the band-aid approach fails again. Excellent job, Mike," Mike thought. He continued it with a simple and levelheaded, "Charlie brought me up to speed."

"She told you about Bonnie?" the Puppet quietly asked.

"Yeah."

"Did she tell you about what happened to Chica and Baby?"

"Oh yeah."

"Oh… Did she tell you about Jake?"

"No, what happened?"

"There wasn't a vandal. He was the one breaking himself. Just like our dear Mangle used to after becoming that sheep…" Marionette said somberly.

"What?"

"He confided in us about it while we were asking about Bonnie and the Staff Bots. There were so many Staff Bots down in that basement Mike. Broken and forgotten. I didn't think about it at the time, but if that's how Fazbear Entertainment treats their mascots-!" His fingers tightened on his legs and static rose in his chest, but he then relaxed, his music box releasing with a soft twang. "When they didn't want to keep putting Jake back together, they replaced him with Sunny."

"That's terrible… No wonder you were upset. Charlie didn't tell us about that," Mike said. Still somewhat startled by the information. It wasn't like this outcome was too unlikely- he must've expected it at least once- but the confirmation was another thing entirely.

"Jake asked us to not tell anyone else. Except you, he said I could tell you," Marionette said, looking towards him.

"Did he say why he did it?" Mike quietly asked, meeting his gaze.

"…Not exactly, but… He did imply- He said that he was doing better now, so… Take from that what you will," he answered in a hushed tone.

All this coming out on the night Mike wasn't there. He was going to be kicking himself for a couple of days after this one. He reached to put his hand on Marionette's shoulder.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

He noticed distinctly that Marionette had his normal amount of warmth. He wasn't overheating, there was no pain from the touch.

"I…" Marionette's eyes shifted shape like he was looking down and around in thought. His hands sliding together to wring his fingers. "…I think so… It's just all so much at once. I don't know what happened. I was fine until we got home."

"Putting on a brave face for the others probably," Mike half-asked.

"Perhaps…"

"But it makes sense. It's when everything's done and over with that you really get to stop and think about what just happened. Sounds like you didn't have a lot of time for that last night," he sympathized. Marionette gave a small nod of agreement and Mike pulled him into an embrace that he eagerly took. They stayed like that for a few long moments.

"…But it wasn't all awful. I did get some time with Gregory," Marionette said. This brought a tentative small smile to his mask, one that Mike could hear in his voice. "With Freddy busy with Foxy, I was able to take over caring for Gregory for the night. We played in the tunnels and on the slides, rolled around in the office chair behind the daycare desk, he even let me read to him! He is such a good kid, Mike. He reminds me a lot of you."

"Huh. Sounds good to me," Mike joked. He had already begun to smile himself during Marionette's colorful explanation. One more of relief than true amusement.

The Puppet chimed and almost reluctantly pulled back- aware of the time- leaving a small kiss on Mike's cheek as he did.

"I'm glad you stayed home," he said. Taking Mike's hands in his as he did.

"Yeah, well… I'm not," Mike admitted.

"Well, I am. I needed you here," Marionette insisted a little more firmly. He squeezed Mike's hands before lacing their fingers together. "Thank you for last night."

"Hey, you don't need to thank me."

"I know, but I want to."

Marionette lifted and cradled his hands to his chest with a much beloved trill. Mike didn't have the heart or much of the drive to tell him that he was starting to run late, but that wasn't a problem, as Marionette finally let him go before getting up and heading to the dresser to get his red ribbon bowtie.

"Fritz offered to take him home. Gregory, I mean," he said as he did.

"No kidding. I'm guessing he said no."

"Turned him down flat," Marionette said with a fitting hand motion.

"Eh, at least he tried. Not every day you get the chance to adopt a kid as great as me," Mike said. It got another chuckle out of Marionette, so he considered it a victory.

There was a lot more Mike wanted to say, but he decided that it could wait until after work at least. Let Marionette get a few more hours of escape during the vital hours of running their business before forcing him back to their other reality. He could withhold his own curiosity. If it got too bad, he could always call Scott; heavens knows he was going to have to anyway. He would only be waiting until lunch to make sure he slept.

Marionette fixed his bow and the two left the bedroom together, and they were all smiles as they headed into work.

…

…Unfortunately, as tender as that moment was and as better of a headspace as Marionette seemed to be in, it didn't manage to last through the day. Understandably as one heart-to-heart couldn't take away all those feelings. It worked for a while at least, with Marionette getting to the pizzeria in a good mood and helping set up. A nice contrast against Foxy's long-night crankiness. Not against him, but at one point against his own curtain.

It was before lunchtime, so Mike knew it wasn't his call to Scott that caused it, but he noticed that Marionette had started to slow down. He started to retreat into the Prize Corner more often and kept himself busy moving around merchandise. His delightful smile only seemed to last long enough to tend to the children before it lost its luster and returned to an emptier default. Mike could tell he was thinking, and it didn't matter how many time he brought him back out of the Prize Corner, he couldn't pull him out of his funk.

The truth was, there wasn't really a way to fix the problem. Everything Marionette was upset about- Bonnie, Chica, Jake, Gregory- either didn't have an obvious solution or they were left helplessly in the dark. Nobody was even thinking of going back this quick anyways. Well, except Mike, but he wasn't stupid enough to show up there the night after a major catastrophe. Even Foxy had stressed steering away from the place, and he was the one most likely to sneak back over there.

There wasn't a solution to Marionette's woes, so Mike had to think of other options. There was one that came to mind.

"I think I need to do something to help take his mind off things. It's not like there's anything we can do to change last night, so why not? He deserves some time away from it," Mike asked Jeremy, who he had been confiding in as the two bussed a table.

They had just closed up after the last family had overstayed their welcome and were trying to hurry through cleaning before Fritz could offer to help. He had come in sometime after lunch looking like he was suffering from jetlag and only just got the glassiness out of his eyes. They pounced on this table like their jobs depended on it and had it stripped and reclothed in a matter of moments- the previous family had really done a number to it.

"Sounds good to me. What were you thinking about?" Jeremy asked.

"I don't know. Getting him out of the house at least. The problem's where to take him."

"I'd say camping if you had a little more time to set up. Unless you just drove him out to Sand Hollow and slept in your car…"

"I'd sneak him into a movie, but I know they're going to be packed tonight," Mike said. The blond gave him a surprised look over the table. "It's not as risky as it sounds. You catch an early movie on the right day and the place is empty. You can smuggle in anything."

"I guess you can," Jeremy said with some disbelief. Though the disbelief that came from knowing he wasn't bluffing. "…You know it's not really important where you go. You could just rent a room at Bed4U and play video games all night. What matters is getting him away from the house. Then it's an adventure! When you do it at home it's just business as usual."

"…What're you two talkin' about?" Foxy asked lowly from the stage. Peeking out through the crack of the curtain, both men assuming he had been napping until now.

"Getting Mari out of the house to go take his mind off things," Jeremy answered. "Why, what did you think I meant?"

"…Didn't hear ya," Foxy said, that suspicion deflating to tiredness. Him looking away in embarrassment when Jeremy sent him a cheeky smile.

"That's not a bad idea. I think you might be onto something, Jere," Mike said. He thought it over a moment, tossing the damp rag he was holding between his hands, and then onto the table. "Mind taking over for me for a while?"

"No problem."

"Thanks. I've got to go get some things set up. If Mari asks, I'm running by the house, but I'll be back."

"Take this with ya," Foxy interjected. He shuffled around behind the curtain before tossing his balled-up sweatshirt at Mike. "And throw it in the washer. Least ya can do fer stinkin' it up."

"I did? You've been running this thing all across town for the last twelve months!" Mike pointed out.

"Aye, and it didn't reek til after ye wore it!" Foxy quipped back. Following it up with a rather devious chuckle.

Mike was less than amused, feeling like he had taken the bait. Which wasn't helped by Jeremy chiming in with an innocuous, "Stress sweat?"

"No, it was that funky elevator in the lobby. Smells like something crawled in it and died. We're just lucky it didn't stick to Mari," Mike muttered, trying to not give Foxy the satisfaction of seeing him rattled. "I'm off!"

"Okay, good luck!" Jeremy called after him. As Mike headed for the door, he looked back at the stage and Foxy. "So, what do you want to do tonight?"

"Sleep," Foxy groggily grumbled.

"I guess that means you're not coming home with us?"

"Didn't say that…" Foxy mumbled thoughtfully. "…Eh, we'll see."

Well, they had time to decide, and whatever Foxy suggested Jeremy was going to go along with. He was going to be taking Mike's example and keeping a close eye on him tonight in case he was stuffing down some of his own feelings. They'd make a night out of it.

…Hopefully a night that didn't involve an impromptu drive to Freddy's.

…

Marionette hadn't noticed that Mike left until he checked into the Prize Corner to say that he had gotten back. To which the Puppet stared blankly a second and then gave a smile and a basic greeting in an attempt to cover that he had no idea how long he had been gone. Having not left the little room once since whenever he had left and unable to remember if Mike had called in on his way out or not. He was lost in his own mind today, to the point that even he himself noticed.

There was just a lot of stuff to unpack, and not just in the Prize Corner itself.

Though he could say with some pride that the shelves had all been perfectly and fully stocked. All the plushies stacked or hung up, the shirts the same, the candy replaced with each piece pointing upwards, and everything where it needed to be. Spotlessly aligned.

His own little piece of the pizzeria looked perfect. At least that much he could control.

Mike asked him if they could leave early. That Jeremy would drive Charlie home, that he already talked to everyone, and that they could maybe use the time alone. Marionette agreed, unsure what he was intending but trusting in whatever his plan was. They got into the car and left Foxy's parking lot, and it wasn't long after that when it became apparent that they weren't going in the direction of home.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

Mike got a knowing grin. "It's a surprise."

"Oh!" While Marionette had been so listless all day, he sounded a touch excited at that. "Well then, I'll let you lead the way."

He tried to guess where they were going. Not the Pizzaplex, not this early. Not quite towards Fritz's or Scott's either unless Mike was trying to mislead him by driving an unusual route.

Marionette was surprised once again when their destination ended up being the big three-star hotel on the other side of town. They had driven past it a few times and Marionette might've given it a curious glance once or twice, but it had then fallen into the background of places he likely would never see. There really wasn't a reason to stay in a hotel when you lived in town, and when there were cheaper alternatives. Or that was what he thought before they pulled up and the curiosity sparked again.

Mike parked at the corner of the parking lot where they weren't in direct view of the front doors. Though they did have a nice view of the landscape, with distant reddened hills illuminated by the progressing sunset. He shut off the car before turning to look in the back seat, still wearing a winning grin.

"So, do I sling you over my shoulder and carry you in all smooth-like or are you going to shadow me?" he asked.

Marionette knew exactly what he meant by 'shadow'. Just the idea excited him.

"Let me shadow you. I'm up for it," Marionette insisted. Mike could hear the eagerness oozing though and was just as on-board.

There was something about skirting very closely to the edge of detection that was always so enticing. It had been ages since they had last risked getting caught by smuggling him into a movie or around a national park. In this case the location had both pros and cons, which Mike noticed when he scouted the location earlier. Plenty of corners and edges to hide behind in the hotel, but again, a hotel. By design a place where there would be plenty of people.

Mike strode into that lobby like he owned the place. Having already rented the room earlier, he knew right where he was going. He dangled the room key in his fingers, so he wouldn't have to get stopped with any questions and walked across the lobby. There weren't too many people currently but there was a family and a couple, with the latter checking themselves in. Enough people to take notice of when passing through while they were none the wiser.

He walked into the hallway that led towards the elevators and took a deep breath as he felt the movement. Indeed, Marionette was like a shadow. He hadn't even turned to look, so he couldn't tell if he was partially translucent or just blatantly popping around. Likely the latter, his preferred method to not tire himself out but also the riskier one. But perhaps that's what he wanted. While Mike would easily say Marionette was the more cautious one, he had started to take a joy in flexing his skills.

Though perhaps Mike had something to do with that. If so, he was proud to take responsibility for that.

He took the stairwell instead of the elevator- safer in these circumstances- and into the hallway. He passed by some people who too didn't notice, feeling the shift when Marionette caught up later, and made a straight line to the room where they headed in.

The room was much nicer than the ones they had split on the road. The bed was covered with white pillows and a puffy white comforter designed with embroidery in the shape of poppies. The walls and ceiling were white as well with a red accent wall behind the bed, topped with landscape pictures. There was an armchair over by the window, of which the heavy curtains were already drawn closed.

Once again Marionette was in for a surprise as he realized Mike had already gotten things together. The game console hooked up to the television clearly being theirs while the stack of VHS tapes beside it were in a plastic bag branded with the name of the video rental store they frequented. Mike's travel bag was also sat to the side, likely with whatever he needed for spending the night.

Marionette gave a happy trill at the sight. Just delighted enough to be rendered speechless.

"What do you think?" Mike asked. As though he couldn't tell by that excited sound alone.

"It's perfect! How long have you been planning this?" Marionette asked.

"About an hour," Mike admitted.

"Well, you did an excellent job! I love it. Thank you," he chirped. Then grabbed Mike's hand and eagerly pulled him into the room to get started on what would be another long, but much less awful night.

He could go back to worrying about the outside world tomorrow. Tonight it was just him and Mike, a stack of low budget horror flicks, and a stack of video games- of which only one made then truly want to tear their hair or strings out.

It was going to be a good night.

Chapter 58

Chapter Summary

Baby gets a chance that she never dreamed she would have again, but will she take it?

Chapter Notes

Happy late St. Patrick's Day and Enjoy!

Father Arthur Blythe was a master at raising money and never used a dime for selfish means. The closest thing to home he ever fundraised was for when the church's shuttle bus had broken down, and even then, he put a lot of his own money into it. Arthur could always find a good cause worth supporting. Usually, it was a hospital or a charity initiative for those in need, or for stocking up their food pantry that they had open for those who needed it, or even funding projects to clean the local park.

Arthur cared about a lot of people and Scott admired that greatly. In fact, he put a good portion of his early recovery after his accident on Arthur, being the driving force who kept him coming back even when he felt like he couldn't or shouldn't. There were a lot of people who had led to Scott's life turning around, some of which currently lived in his house, but Arthur had kept him from declining in the beginning. Arthur might've very well been the source of the confidence he had to send Mike and Fritz his first letter.

To describe him in better details, Arthur was an older gentleman with a warm smile and an overly fatherly demeanor. Which was peculiar to say considering that he couldn't be more than ten or fifteen years older than Scott himself. He certainly looked older than he was. Hardly old enough to be his father, but with just enough good advice and reassurances that he could look to him in replacement of one.

Though when it came down to it, Scott saw Arthur as a friend. A good and supportive friend who just happened to also be his priest. Who also had no idea about his living situation and never would if Scott had anything to say about it.

Arthur seemed to return these feelings as he equally ran ideas past Scott before going ahead with them. Scott had never been sure what made him think he was the best opinion about these things, but he always thought them through and gave his honest opinion.

Scott and Arthur were talking after the service, as they sometimes did, when the conversation turned to the fair. The fair was an annual event ran by one of the family clubs in Hurricane, but their church had volunteered and helped support it over the years. Largely because of the donations the club had offered to the church, it only seemed fair to help them in return. That's how Arthur saw it, and nobody argued with him.

"-but I was thinking that maybe we could ask Foxy's to perform. You know how much the kids love the singing robot animals. You're friends with the owners, do you think there's any way you could ask them for us? I know they must be busy but going to Freddy's is out of the question all things considered," Arthur said.

As far as Scott knew, Arthur wasn't aware of everything that happened at Freddy's except for the more notable missing children incident. Though what he did know was about what Scott had gone through, so 'all things considered' likely surrounded his accident.

Which was a relief. Scott didn't know how he would've felt if Arthur had suggested them using Freddy's.

"Sure thing! I'll call them when I get home," he agreed. Likely they would agree to do it for free just for the publicity. Though he wouldn't volunteer as such, that was their own decision to make. He couldn't imagine a better advertisement than this though.

The fair wasn't huge, but it was the biggest thing going on in Hurricane right now. It drew in a lot of families, plenty who didn't even go to the church, and it brought a lot of people together. Being the entertainment was a big deal, even if just for the city itself, and animatronic entertainers getting that honor was really a recent thing. Not that they were turning away normal musicians. There were plenty of hours to fill, too many to turn down acts if they were offering a free performance.

Scott wasn't sure at what point the idea cropped up. Somewhere in thoughts of Freddy's and Foxy's performing at the fair, the open door for him to invite the latter, and the reminder of walk-on musicians suddenly spawned it in the back of his mind.

He didn't mention it to Arthur, but he held onto it throughout the rest of their conversation and even once he was heading home. It was certainly an idea.

Scott walked in to find Baby sitting on the couch flipping through channels with a bored look and Ennard sitting in his armchair polishing Bonnet. Something that sounded odd, but in practice was much more endearing. With him holding her in one arm and buffing her back with a cloth with the other, like shining a glass. She was laying face down on his arm with her ears dangling overtop.

Ennard kept rubbing at Bonnet's back as he looked up towards the door and welcomed Scott with his typical gusto.

"Honey, you're home!" he greeted. Bonnet gave a muffled hello into his arm.

Baby gave a slight scoff at the joke. One both of disapproval at the cheesiness and reluctant amusement at his antics. Then she took her turn, "How was it?"

"Good! I stayed over a little to talk to Arthur about the fair. He's really putting his all into this one. He's already got a signup sheet full of volunteers," Scott said. He hastily unbuttoned his too-warm cardigan and hung it up like he would a jacket.

"What about you?" Ennard asked.

"Ooh, no. I won't be making that mistake twice," Scott declined with a chuckle.

To describe last year in few and direct words: it rained the whole night beforehand, it rained most of the day during, and the fairgrounds' only protection from the ensuing mud was a thin layer of hay. Which would've been fine if Scott hadn't found himself trekking across the fairground at least eight times, finding himself somehow delegated to gofer by everyone who wasn't Arthur and him without enough of a backbone to turn down any task, and all he had to show for it at the end of the day was two bags of leftover half-stale popcorn.

He just wasn't cut out for the carny lifestyle, ironically enough. He could offer his help in other much less messy ways.

"How does helping with the fair benefit the church?" Baby asked curiously.

"Well, not directly… but there's plenty of people from the church are planning on going. Plus, it's good for the town, so it's sort of like a civil service sort of thing. Giving back to those who've given to us in the past," Scott rationalized.

Baby hummed. Seemingly contented with the answer.

"And Arthur asked me if I could ask around and see if we could get Foxy to perform. I haven't called them yet, obviously, but I don't see them turning it down."

"Who would?" Ennard asked.

"Perfect segue," Scott thought. Elsewise he might've considered stalling longer. He clasped his hands together before starting with, "So! Baby. I was thinking and how would you feel…?"

"…About?" Baby finished.

"About…" Scott agreed. "…Performing at the fair too?"

Baby started at him for a long moment. With the lead up she was expecting this to be a joke, but Scott's expression, his still smile, seemed to be sincere. Though it was so startling that it took her a few seconds longer to realize he was really asking her that.

"What? Where did this come from?" she asked, startled.

"Well, I was thinking about Foxy and Mari performing and it made me think that maybe… you'd like to too."

"You didn't already agree to anything, did you?" Baby asked, her voice edging on growing panic.

"No, nothing! I wouldn't do that without asking you first," he reassured.

"Good. Because I am nowhere near ready to take the stage again," she said quietly. She averted her gaze to not have to see his expression.

"I'm not sure about that… Obviously if you don't want to, I'd never make you do it, but… I don't know. I just remember you saying that you'd like to someday perform again, and I thought this could be the chance for you to do that," he gently explained. He sat down on the other side of the couch. "But only if you wanted to. Only if you were doing it for you."

"You know wanting to do something and being able to are two separate things entirely," she said. Slowly she slumped on her elbow and the armrest, resting her head on her claw, and then tapping her claw closed. "This is part of the reason. The other is the other one."

"Oh, come on! We can work with those! You do," Ennard volunteered. At some point he had gotten up from the chair and circled around the back of the couch. Baby looked back at him, only for him to swoop around and kneel beside her, arms folded on the armrest. "We'd just play around with it and figure something out. That's what we do best."

"What you do, maybe, but how do you 'play around' with this? Nobody wants to play with this," Baby said, gesturing to her claw and then snapping it a few times. "Except you."

"I know! Lucky for you, right? Okay, let's see…" Ennard rubbed his chin and looked over the claw. "Hmm… We could cover it with a bag!"

Baby gave him an unimpressed look.

"We could put your arm back like this," Ennard offered, moving his arm to mimic the motion. "Hold it in place with a belt or something, and it would look like you've just got your wrist attached here, like your hand's on your hip!"

"…That could maybe work," Baby admitted. "But that's not the only hand I have a problem with. What about this one?" She lifted her under hand, which Ennard eagerly and playfully grabbed, lacing their fingers.

"We can fix that in a jiffy! Might even be able to just fit a snug glove over it- like mine!"

"I'm not saying it can't be done, seeing as that only encourages you to want to do it more," Baby said. Ennard playfully winked. "I'm saying, should we? Is it even worth the risk?"

"Of course it is! It's fun, and you get to sing in front of a bunch of people who think you're the best thing in the whole world!" Bonnet gushed. She hopped from the armchair to the couch, propelled by her arms, and paddled herself right into Scott's lap. Balancing herself there and splaying her arms excitedly. "Somebody once said that the best thing about being a bunny or a clown or a bear was being able to go out and make a whole bunch of people smile!"

"Who said that, Marion?" Baby asked.

"…N-No, I did," Bonnet said, voice faltering.

Baby gave a semi-blank stare and Ennard snickered. Scott gave her a reassuring pat on the head.

"I couldn't say for myself. It's been so long, I can't even remember what it was like performing for an audience of more than two…" Baby said quietly. This was almost a stretch of the truth. She could vaguely remember a few performances long past, including that one day, and she remembered it being delightful… but she had figured out long ago that she couldn't trust those memories. That she couldn't rely on what could've been programmed feelings. "Let's say I do go and perform, and it goes well. What then? Become attracted to the fame and spend all of my time longing for my next chance at a big break? Like some… cutesy oversized toddler looking to be a star?" She lightly scoffed at the thought. "How tragic. What's the point in subjecting myself to that?"

Scott could've answered a dozen ways there. He could've said so she could perform again, so she could sing, so people could see how lovely she looked with all the changes she decided for her body, and how much better she was doing. Even if it was only he, Ennard, and their friends who were privy to the real changes. So that she could do something that he knew she wanted to do and yet she so willingly denied to protect herself. That maybe it didn't have to be a one-time thing, and that he would help her do so.

He could've said any of that to her, but he knew he would only be saying what she already knew. So, he decided to swing for the fences and said the first thing that came to mind.

"I'll pay you."

That got sudden looks from both Baby and Ennard.

"What?" Baby asked flatly.

"I'll pay you to perform at the fair."

She seemed even more flummoxed. "But… why?"

"Because it's a real gig and you deserve to be paid for it, and you would if it wasn't for charity. So, since they won't, I will. I'll foot the bill. I owe Arthur that much for all the free food I've gotten from potluck."

"Scott, you're already giving me money to buy Charlie's gift-," Baby began to point out, only to have it suddenly click and her halt.

That's what he meant. He was offering an out to borrowing the money, which was something that she did regretfully have to do considering her circumstances. Scott had been fine doing so, which made it all the more embarrassing in her eyes, but it wasn't like she had any choice in the matter. Unlike her siblings who had a cut of earnings that they could do whatever with, she did not. She had to borrow- though it wasn't quite borrowing when there was no way to pay it back. Again, no choice.

Except now she had a choice. A stupid choice, she determined, but a choice none-the-less. A choice that would force her to take back everything she said and give into temptation.

"Enough to pay for the kit?" she dared to ask.

"If that's your price," Scott agreed with a smile.

Baby paused a long moment before making up her mind.

She turned to Ennard. "Can you get me stage-ready?"

Bonnet gave an excited little cheer.

"If I can't, I oughta be dead!" he chirped.

"Don't be dramatic."

Scott released a breath that he was holding. He wasn't sure if he made the right choice in tempting Baby, but he was going to see it through. He was going to give her this.

…

The following days were a sort of a blur.

Scott went over to Foxy's that evening before they closed and sure enough, they eagerly accepted the offer to work the fair. Foxy seemed especially fired up by the idea, pay or not. Likely because it was a job, he could snatch up away from Freddy's, one that would involve a sizeable audience to perform for and plenty of children. So, it seemed like a win-win for them.

At Baby's request, he had decided not to tell them about her intentions to perform at the fair. She said so that they wouldn't get nosy, but he had a feeling it was more to keep the stress off of her. After all, she still had a chance to back out. Even when Scott mentioned the addition of an extra animatronic performer, which Arthur was on-board with and likely ran by the club without pushback, she could still cancel at the last second. Foxy and Marionette were going to be there, so she technically didn't have to.

Yet she stuck with it. Even when it turned out to be more work than she bargained for.

It had been one thing coaching Charlie and writing songs for her. It was another one entirely doing both for herself with only a garage of space to practice. The acoustics weren't reliable, she didn't want to be loud enough to tip off the neighbors, and her music choices were limited. Scott was able to acquire background music tapes within only a couple of days, but it did limit her creativity to having to work with them. Something that hadn't felt like an issue when writing for Charlie but was now.

Because she only had one chance to get it right. Even if she would sing more than one song, it was that first song that would decide the show. Everything hinged on that first impression.

Baby could already feel the pressure, but she was in too deep to back down. She wouldn't tolerate it, so she stuck out and kept practicing.

In the meantime, they continued working out the other kinks to getting her ready for the performance.

The first job was on her normal hand. Initially Ennard offered his glove but after trying it on the fit was a little awkward. Instead, they opted for a cream-colored work glove. It was still an awkward fit, with the fingertips cut so her own would poke through, but at a distance it almost looked like a normal glove. It wasn't quite what Baby would've wanted, but she was willing to accept it because there were important matters to deal with.

All it took was one test of the arm-twisting thing before Ennard decided to scrap the idea, as it would involve bending Baby's claw at an angle so awkward that he became worried about damage, much to Baby's dismay. The other options were to either cover the claw with a cloth or pillowcase. Removing the claw being nowhere on the table as Baby had no intuition to maim herself for one night on stage. Thankfully, Ennard agreed without needed explanation.

Ennard and Scott brainstormed together and came up with an idea. They would buy a big stuffed animal, partially hollow it out, and fit it over her claw. Disguising her dangerous weapon with an adorable accessory. She thought it sounded downright infantile to dance on stage with a teddy bear, but at this point her options were limited and her carrying a big toy was less questionable than her with a giant hand hidden under a pillowcase. Her only request was that it wasn't anything too childish or abhorrent.

A few days later, Scott came up with a large pig plush dressed like a biker with a faux-leather vest and hat. As much as it clashed with her clown aesthetic, she deemed it better than she expected and settled with the pig.

The next problem being that neither Scott nor Ennard were particularly good with sewing, and it was clear that just hollowing out the pig wasn't the only thing that needed to be done for it to be wearable. So, Baby passed the duty onto Marionette. She had called him up herself and invited him over, offered him the pig, and made her plans for said pig clear. She didn't tell him why she wanted it to be refitted to fit over her claw. Concerningly enough, even though Marionette had some initially confused looks, he didn't ask.

It was at that point that Baby was certain that he knew. He had to. Everything lined up too perfectly for it to be exactly that, at least in her head. Yet she didn't budge on telling the truth and he didn't pry. Neither did Charlie, who during her next call had asked, weirdly enough, "So, what've you been up to?" all casual like. The fact that she asked like she expected an answer beyond what she normally did suggested she might know too, but Baby couldn't be sure if it was her paranoia lying to her.

Eventually she would know, she knew. Foxy and Marionette might even see it depending on when they and her went on stage. The thought didn't make her nervous, just more apprehensive. They were completely different things.

By the day of the fair everything was technically ready. The pig was wearable, the glove was ready, the songs were written and practiced, and all set for the big moment. Technically.

Baby wasn't nervous, but she did sit on her bed and stare across the garage for an obscene amount of time. Long enough that when Scott came in to warn her that he was opening the garage to back up his van into it, to prepare to leave. To which Baby finally got up from her bed and moved into the house, pacing around just inside the door until the van was backed up and ready for her to board. She steeled herself and headed out.

"Much ado about nothing. It's not like this is my first time on stage," Baby reminded herself. Drifting in and out of being lost in thought as she climbed into the back and waited for Ennard. Clutching the pig to her, having not slipped it on yet. "Even if it has been a while…It should come to me naturally, shouldn't it? I was never awful, so why would I be now?" She huffed to herself. "If I'm going to worry, I could at least worry about something more important. Like someone recognizing me as Circus Baby. Someone from Freddy's."

Now there was something to be concerned about. To go through all this for this performance and then have it fall through because someone remembered her as the clown from the pizza restaurant that lasted a day and closed due to 'gas leaks'. Heaven forbid whoever recognize her be from Freddy's and suddenly become curious to who really own the Circus Baby license. She sat there dumbly as her thoughts snowballed into a scenario where she was in the Pizzaplex basement, Scott was in jail, and Ennard was likely dead.

She was interrupted only by Scott getting into the driver's seat.

"Ready to rock and roll," he murmured. Now he sounded anxious, from those tense words to the way he rubbed his hands together. Then he turned and looked at her through the seats. "How are you holding up? Excited?"

"That is one word for it," Baby remarked. She blinked to pull herself back into the present and then looked at him. He gave her a sympathetic smile, one that didn't feel patronizing.

"I know what you mean. But it's going to go great. And if it gets too much just signal me and we'll stop after that song. Like, give me a little salute or point at me. Or just salute in case you can't see me," Scott said. He then tightened his mouth, realizing a second after he stopped how all of it just spilled out into wordy mush. He inhaled through his nose and exhaled with a simple, "A salute should work."

"…You sound like I feel," Baby remarked. A hint of amusement mixed in with genuine confusion. "What are you so nervous about? Surely this can't be from second-hand embarrassment when I haven't even gotten on stage yet."

"Embarrassment is the last thing I'm feeling right now, I promise," Scott assured her. "It's just nerves, the usual."

"I do know… I think I have performance anxiety. Which is so strange to me. I was built for this; I know exactly what I'm supposed to do. Why would I be anxious?" Baby asked. Half-asking him and half-asking herself, with him being the only chance of an answer.

"Because it's a big deal! It's hard getting back out in the world after being holed up for so long. It was hard for me too. I know our situations weren't exactly the same, but still, it's hard to go out and confront those people, even when you know you're going to be alright."

'Even when you know you're going to be alright.' Something about that comment stuck with Baby. She wasn't sure whether to agree or disagree, or what to think of it at all, but he sounded so certain when he said that it was hard not to believe him. Or at least believe that he believed that. Obviously, he wasn't having the same worst-case scenario Fazbear Entertainment daydreams that she was having.

"Maybe you're right," she finally agreed. "…Did you tell anyone I was Circus Baby?"

"I didn't. I just sort of described you and went from there," Scott explained. He turned and looked back between the seats. "Why? Were you worried about that?"

"Not quite worried. More concerned about the possibilities of what might happen if it came out that I was a mascot from a failed pizza chain that may or may not be related to Freddy's," Baby explained.

Scott didn't have the heart to tell her that, likely, nobody would remember Circus Baby's. Instead encouraging her idea to reinvent herself further.

"When you put it like that, a stage name might be a good idea. Did you have any in mind?"

"Not really. I hadn't really thought of it until now," Baby admitted. She glanced away thoughtfully and the two brainstormed for a few seconds. "…You know, with this hat I'm hardly a clown anymore. Yes, I still have the painted face, but otherwise I look much more… mature. Like a woman, especially now without the pigtails. Still a performer, but not a joke. Like a ringleader! That's it, a ringleader. No longer a member of the circus, but the one running the show."

"I like it! I think it suits you," Scott agreed. "So, Ringleader…"

"Something. Not Baby, and Babydoll too would be too obvious. Something else…" Baby said pensively.

"You could do something like Ruby or Emerald. Ringleader Ruby rolls off the tongue," Scott suggested. Baby gave a positive hum at the thought. "Or you could choose a more traditional name. Like Rhonda, Ringleader Rhonda. Or even your name! I don't think anyone would be able to connect the dots on that one."

"No, I think it would be safe. But I don't think it's flashy enough on its own," Baby began. Halfway through getting interrupted by Ennard hauling himself, and his toolbox and Bonnet, into the back of the van. She looked to him and gave a double take at the sight of him. "What are you wearing? I thought you were going to wear a disguise!"

"This is a disguise!" Ennard smoothly assured.

But it wasn't. It was his usually suit- which yes, in and of itself was a good disguise- but then topped by Funtime Freddy's head. With only a little bit of black mesh shoved into the eyerolls to barely disguise his eyes underneath. When he said he was making a mask, she assumed he was making a mask.

"You can't show up in that. Forget the fact that you look like Freddy Fazbear, but you also don't look like a human," Baby huffed.

"As a matter of fact, I look like a human wearing a Funtime Freddy head! Which is exactly what I'm going for. See, the disproportionate head makes all the rest of the proportions look normal. It's the big distraction that people stare at, and then they don't think, 'Wow, that guy's tall' or 'why's he squeaking when he moves'. They think, 'Wow, what kind of weirdo runs around wearing a mechanical bear head?' And I rather be a weirdo than tomorrow's headline."

"All it takes is one person snooping around or bumping into you and you will be both," Baby said. She shifted to put her hand on her hip as the scolding look remained.

"Scottie, back me up," Ennard half-laughed and half-pleaded.

"I really want to, Ennard, but I don't think I can. The idea's not half bad, but you're still walking around wearing a decapitated Freddy head, and I don't think I can support that," Scott said feigning seriousness.

"Not you too!" Ennard cried. Throwing his arm up dramatically, only to misjudge and have it clunk on Freddy's thick head. "Does anyone believe in me?"

He waited expectantly. Nobody chimed in.

He gave Bonnet a little nudge with his elbow.

"Oh! Oh, I believe in you, Ennie!" Bonnet chirped. "…But if you wanna go get a different costume, I think that's a good idea too!"

"Even your most staunch supporter thinks it's a bad idea," Baby remarked.

"I know! And he usually sides with me! But this lil gal just doesn't like looking at Freddy's metal mug," Ennard nonchalantly said. He turned the look at Bonnet, who subtly jolted as the head turned in her direction. "Right, Bon-Bon?"

"…Nope! I don't like it one bit!" Bonnet agreed.

"And trust me, after our little run in with what had to be the BIGGEST Funtime Freddy I've ever seen, yeah, I don't want to wear it either," Ennard agreed. He reached out and closed the back of the van. "But it's the best I've got to work with. Don't worry, I'm not going to be out schmoozing or anything. I'm just getting you up on stage, standing around back, and then back in the van before we go."

Baby wasn't entirely appeased but at least Ennard was taking this more seriously than he first let on.

"If you insist but do be careful. I don't want to have to worry about you on stage," Baby said.

Ennard was endeared by the sentiment. "No worries, Babydoll. I'm not blowing your big moment."

"You know that's not the only thing I'm worried about," she said softly. Letting that sit there a moment before adding quickly, "But if you cause a big scene, I will throw myself off of that stage and make that scene mine. You don't want that."

"…I'd love to see that on anyone else but me," Ennard admitted.

Baby gave a contented, if snarky, little hum.

…

This fair was already leagues better than last year's, Scott could tell just from pulling up. Largely due to the warm sunny day and cloud dotted blue skies. The fair itself was quite a sight with colorful carnival rides, including a Ferris wheel, and plenty of food and game stands. As could be expected with the weather and being the weekend, it was packed, but any nervousness was somewhat eased when he took the side road off to the staff area and found it much quieter back there.

He perked up at the sight of a familiar van. "There's Foxy! Or their van at least," he announced into the back. He pulled up and back in to park alongside it. He then turned the van off, braced himself with a deep breath, and got out.

"This is it, Babydoll! Showtime!" Ennard whispered, rubbing his gloved hands together excitedly. Though just in that exaggeration his own nervousness could be read loud and clear. He reached over to pat Bonnet's head. "Wait here, Lil Bit. All goes well and I might be able to sneak you out for a few minutes, but you've got to make sure nobody sees you."

"Nope! I'll be just like a prop! Motionless," Bonnet proclaimed. She then went still to prove as such, a statuesque for she continued even when he patted her ears again.

"That's the spirit! Alright, lemme get us out of here…" Ennard reached out and opened the back right as Scott was coming around, hopping out to join him in the grass before the helped 'move' Baby out.

For her part, Baby remained silent the entire time. Not out of nerves, but out of necessity. Ennard, even in this horrible disguise, could get caught talking and acting human, because he was supposed to be human. Baby knew better than to risk the same behavior. Though when she slid herself out and onto her feet, she got a look around and realized, thankfully, that they were partially obscured by the back of a building that could've been bathrooms. Foxy's crew knew where to park to be careful.

"I'm going to go find Arthur," Scott said. Ennard gave him a thumbs up and he was off.

The clown snickered a little. Baby hummed questioning, not even risking turning her head towards him.

"He's so twisted up. He's like a proud papa waiting to see his little girl's first recital. It's so sweet!"

Baby gave a less than enthused hum. An embarrassed hum.

"Oooh, come on. You know I'm not saying you're like a kid or anything. You're a proper lady. You're just his kid," Ennard clarified. "…Which is weird if we go along with the whole sibling thing between us. That makes me and Scott's relationship kinda funky."

Baby fought the urge to roll her eyes- a motion that human would definitely not be tolerated at a time like this. If Ennard was trying to distract her-… Oh, well done. She had been so fixated on his antics she had almost missed everything going on around them.

It was only a few minutes before Scott returned trailing behind an older man. From the way he was nervously rubbing at his neck and the faint explanations he was rolling out, this was likely Arthur and he was likely coming to see either Baby or more likely this friend Scott talked so frequently of. This was confirmed by the distant, "Don't be shocked by the head. He's, uh, wearing this old prop. It's-It's kind of strange, but the kids love it."

That was Ennard's cue, and he adjusted his bow before beginning to walk over. His motions much more subdued and restrained, and him greeting them in a voice that Baby was unfamiliar with but likely came from one of Ennard's soaps. She watched him work his magic and was impressed, but not surprised, at his amount of detail. Waiting for a greeting exchange before offering a handshake, and not thrusting his hand out, and eventually putting a hand on Scott's shoulder in a friendly way instead of hook and scooping him in.

Well done. She only hoped she too could still pull off an act so easily. That those skills hadn't dulled.

Baby's thoughts stilled at the subtle click of the other van's doors. They opened a small crack.

"Hey," a familiar voice whispered out. One that immediately shot a new form self-consciousness through. "Good luck out there! You've got this!" Charlie encouraged.

"Charlie? What are you doing here?" Baby asked, barely disguising her surprise. She quickly regained composure, "In the van. Obviously, you're here to perform… You weren't waiting for me, were you?"

"You could say that," Charlie whispered back. "But I'm not here to perform, I'm here for moral support."

She was here for her. The thought alone flustered her even more, but she forced that feeling down. Of course she was here for her. She was a good friend, supportive; it was best to not read too much into that.

"That is very kind of you. Foxy will need it once I upstage him," Baby said.

Charlie jingled a little. "I like your pig."

"He's not just a pig, he's my co-star," Baby replied deadpan. "Where are Foxy and Mari?"

"Still out there somewhere. I think they're-."

She only got that far before both caught sight of the three coming over and ended the conversation abruptly. Charlie whispering out another, "Good luck," before closing the doors. Baby returned to a stillness that could've rivaled Bonnet's and remained unmoving and unresponsive unless otherwise maneuvered by Ennard, who began wheeling her on her skates in the direction of the stage, casually chatting as he did so. That is, chatting as he struggled to wheel Baby through trampled grass.

Baby got a better look at the fairground as she was moved to the stage. It was beautiful. A weird thing to think, she thought, but they were. So colorful and alive with voices and people. In the back of her mind, she remembered something like this. Bigger and grander with a towering roller coaster above. An incomplete memory from her childhood that made her feel good. This brought back that nostalgic feeling she had long forgotten.

Any joy was quickly dashed at the sight of the amount of people hanging out by the stage. Then it was straight to business.

She half expected her performance programming to kick in, something that would've immediately taken much of the tension off. A crutch that would've kept her in line. Unfortunately, the programming did not kick in.

But of course it didn't, she thought begrudgingly. Fritz had spent ages trying to break that programming. Specifically, the dangerous kind, but that didn't mean he didn't tamper with something else. The first thing that tended to happen when she took stage was to count-up the children in the audience, but that did not happen- for the best perhaps, but no safety net was secured beneath her. She was on her own and she was going to have to do this all herself.

…She changed her mind. She was going to do this herself. She didn't need that programming. She didn't need him. She was going to do this.

"You got thiiiiis," Ennard excitedly whispered behind her as he helped her up the steps around back.

The stage was rather basic. Basically, a wooden platform built specifically to be taken apart easily once the fair was being packed up. Save that due to the events of last year, this year they had mounted a cover over it. Being a light blue tarp material held stretched out by a white pole frame, with colorful triangular flags hanging down in the front to add a little more of a festive feel to the relatively basic setup.

"We'll be right there watching, so just give the signal when you're done," he assured. When she was done, he had emphasized. She had an out for when she was ready to stop. Baby didn't respond but he knew she understood.

He got her up on the stage in front of the microphone stand, adjusted it for a few moments, and then reached around behind her. He gave a cheeky little 'click', and she straightened up like she had just been activated. He backed up and off the stage, leaving Baby on her own to do her performance.

She had only those few seconds to prepare. Any longer and the audience would start to question why she wasn't moving. She took in those seconds hyperaware of the swath of people before her, the most people she had been around in ages, and then went for it.

"Oh! Hello, hello! My, what a big audience we have today! So many smiling faces," Baby greeted in a bubbly voice that barely sounded like hers. Her had shot up, still in a stiff and controlled manner, and she waved her fingers at the crowd. "It's so nice to meet you all! My name's Ringleader Lizzie and I will be leading the singsong today, is that okay?... Mmm-hmm, sounds like it's a-okay to me! Let's get started!"

Thankfully, Ennard read her cue and turned on the music which began to play through the speakers. She looked at the crowd, at the homogenous mass of people that was her audience and thought of nothing but the perky persona she let flow through each motion.

"One, two, three- Somebody call a doctor! I need an ambulance- no, I can't handle this!~" Baby sung. Swaying slightly on her skates and bumping her shoulders to the beat. "This ba-dum, ba-dum, bump, bump, thumpin' pounding in my chest.~" She put her hand to her chest to emphasize the beats before dropping it to her hip, rolling them to the music. "Oo-OO-oo!~"

Scott was positively beaming with pride. No doubt Ennard was too from his position off by the side, but he had to get a front row seat. It was one thing to hear her quietly singing through the garage door, but it was another seeing her so alive and in this character. One that she had created herself, that she had willingly chosen to play. He was so proud of her.

Jeremy and Fritz had been guiding Foxy around the fairground to introduce him to the children. Or more accurately, the two were pretending to lead Foxy around so he could get away with walking through the fair without any suspicion. There hadn't been any so far, but a lot of people asking for pictures. He had been adamant about hanging out in the general area of the stage for when Baby showed up, and he was standing by one of the nearby stalls eyeing a suspiciously familiar knockoff pirate fox when he heard her voice.

He snapped his head back so fast that his neck clicked and caught sight of her on stage. To say he was shocked would be putting it lightly, and that was before she broke into song. It was the last thing he expected from her, and that alone left him in awe.

"My skin is heating up and my legs are shaking. My stomach's dropping and my heart's racing,~" Baby continued. She hugged herself, around the pig, continuing to twist to the beat. Then popped her hand up to press the back to her forehead, tilting back into her dramatic diva pose. "I think I might be sick. No, I can't handle this! I'm, I'm, I'm-!~"

She pulled her hand back into a little pose with a slightly kicked up skate and a little hop in her step.

"Heartsick! Over you. Running a temp and I don't know what to do. Heartsick! Heal me fast! My heart's in a broiler and I'm not gonna last!"

By now Mike and Marionette had finally made it to the stage. The former dressed in his painted-faced puppeteer outfit and wheeling the latter around on his stand. It was hot and the wheels of the stand struggled to get over even the smaller rocks, but when that music started- after a relatively casual, "Is that Baby?" and Marionette's resulting struggle to hold in his surprise and excitement- Mike made sure he got it back over there.

"And I don't know what to do… Because I'm so SICK of you…" Baby continued to sing. Switching quickly from the long lulls to popping back up in tone. "Under the weather and I'm not getting better. Heartsick! I need a doctor!… In here." She pointed to her heart with a wink, then tapped each of her cheeks. "I'll take my get-better kisses here and here."

Though she had shut out everything that wasn't total focus on her performance, she caught glimpses where she could see the people watching. Children especially looking up at her like she was a real life celebrity when most of them had probably already forgotten her name. It was such a bizarre mix of feelings that she felt. Nothing like she had felt on stage before. It was exhilarating.

Time didn't exist on stage. It was rolling through one song, thirty seconds of recited banter, another song, a quip or two, another song, slowly making her way through the show. Not once breaking character as she sung through each of the songs she had prepared.

Until the end of show crept up on her. Last song breezed by and then came the outro.

"Oh goodness! That was quite a performance, wasn't it? I wouldn't have been able to do it without you all! But now it's time for me to return to the big top, and for you to go have some fun! Ciao!" Baby finished with a little salute.

There was clapping- something she couldn't remember ever receiving before, but perhaps it was due to the differences in venue- and she gave a little bow. Though made sure to keep it from looking too lifelike. She was certain that she had pushed the envelope during the show, but nothing that would've made anyone suspicious. Ennard came back up onto the stage and reached up to her back to do the whole 'click' act again.

But Baby stopped him. Her arm still pulled behind her back, she shooed his hand with her ringers. Rolling with it, he forgo'd the shutoff and instead rolled her back and off the stage. This gave her one last chance to wave at her audience before she was out of their sight.

Ennard helped Baby down the few stairs. He was prepared to bring her all the way to the car when she suddenly slumped sideways a little, catching herself with a hand on the stage. All at once the act being over and her legs suddenly feeling very numb underneath her. It was as though all of the energy sapped out of her as she suddenly realized what she had just done.

She had just performed under a stage name while faking a personality as from her own as she could throw a rock. She wasn't sure why it waited until now to suddenly feel weird, but a delayed reaction was still better than a mishap on stage.

Ennard must've noticed she was having some sort of silent crisis as he pulled her into a quick hug before continuing to bring her back towards the safety of the van. Too many people around to do anything more than that and even that was pushing it.

They arrived at the van shortly after and Ennard popped it open only to find Charlie sitting inside with Bonnet. She waved while Bonnet stood there like a statue. He waved back before straightening up and keeping an eye out as Baby climbed in. Once she pulled her legs in, he leaned in after her.

"You did AMAZING!" he whispered ecstatically. His voice still the false one he had put on, but the sharp change in pitch ruining the illusion he had managed for so long. He gave her an assuring pat on the shoulder. "I gotta go get the tape. You sit tight and I'll be right back."

Baby nodded and Ennard shut the door. As soon as he did, Bonnet popped out of her own act and spun around.

"Baby, that was so good!" she chirped. Wobbling on her edge and catching herself to keep from toppling over, then popping her arms up in celebration. "SO good!"

"You did great!" Charlie agreed. She scooted down to join her in the back of the van, sitting across from her. "How did it feel?"

"It felt… strange. I don't know how I feel about it yet," Baby said. It was a partial lie. It had felt great, she just didn't want to admit that, commit to that feeling. "Wait, you were able to hear it? Did you open the door?"

"Nope! This." Charlie held up a handheld radio. "Fritz has the other one. He tuned us in when you started."

"Oh…" Baby said. Her voice faltering, her hand meekly fiddling with the pig attached to her arm. Charlie could read her self-consciousness just from that, so she doubled down.

"You were amazing," Charlie said, borrowing Ennard's previous compliment.

"Would you have still said that if I was bad?" Baby asked. A slight coy tone leaking into the words.

"Uh-uh! We would've said you were good, but like, sounded like we were trying to spare your feelings. But we don't have to, because you really were good!" Bonnet answered for her.

"Something like that," Charlie agreed with a half-smile.

They were interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. Baby raised a finger to her mouth in warning and Bonnet covered her mouth with her hands before slouching in place.

Though when the door unexpectedly opened, Foxy stuck his head through before they could so much as see anyone else.

"Scoot over, Lass," he said. To which Charlie did and he quickly took her spot. He then turned back to the door with a, "They were down by that stand that spelled doughnut wrong," answering a question they hadn't heard being asked.

"I'll go check. Good job, Baby! You did great!" Jeremy congratulated. All Baby saw of him was his thumb popping into the van.

"Oh, yes. Thank you," she replied.

He then shut the door and went off somewhere, and immediately Foxy turned to her.

"Lizzie, that was bloody fantastic! Where did that come from?!" he blurted out.

For some reason his reaction affected her greater than Ennard and Charlie's combined, warmth spreading through her chest and face. She turned her head away with a dismissive little noise.

"Don't exaggerate on my account. You do this on a daily basis."

"Maybe I do, but you don't! Ya just got up there and walked that stage like ya owned it, named it, and sailed its maiden voyage," Foxy continued to enthuse. "Ya gave me a run for me booty!"

Bonnet snickered a little, to which Foxy noticed her for the first time. She covered her mouth, then squeaked out a tiny, "Sorry."

"Don't let Jeremy see that one," Foxy murmured to Charlie.

"I feel like you're all putting me on," Baby interrupted. Perhaps it was good, she had made sure it was the best she could do, but the had trouble believing it was that good. That everyone was that awestruck by it. Nothing was flawless, there had to be a fault. "Tell me one thing I did wrong. Nothing's perfect. Tell me of one weakness and then I'll believe you."

Both Foxy and Charlie seemed a slight bit surprised at the challenge. Charlie tried to think of something to say to get through to Baby, while Foxy looked her up and down and spotted the only flaw he could see, and beat the puppet to the punch.

"Ya didn't implement the pig into the routine."

Baby gave him an unamused look.

"Lass, I ain't lyin'. I ain't puttin' on a front 'cause you're my sister. I just… didn't think ya'd do it. I thought ye were gonna rely on the stuff ya did back at Baby's," Foxy explained more honestly. "But ya didn't! Ya could've taken the easy way out, but ya went all in, and I'm proud of ya for that! Prouder than I would've been if ya went up there and went safe with it."

Baby looked back at him. All it took was his look and tone to know that he was being completely honest. He really had set a bar for her without telling her and yet she had managed to reach and surpass it. All because she hadn't wanted to do the old routines.

All because she couldn't do the old routines without her band and was unwilling to improvise.

"Thank you, Gabe. That means a lot coming from you," Baby thanked him.

"Ya don't have to thank me. Ya earned it," Foxy insisted.

Maybe she had. She had done a good job; she could acknowledge that much. Though she played an entirely different role she had done so well. She had barely recognized the voice coming out of her own mouth. She had thrown herself into the performance of a lifetime- ignoring that the venue was a meager fair that hired anyone willing to work- and it worked. She had been able to do it. No programming required. No instruction beyond her own and the suggestions she solicited on her own whim.

It had felt good. Too good. She belonged on that stage, and she didn't need Circus Baby to get there.

But she wouldn't be at the mercy of it. Never again. She could live with one day up on stage- at least this one ended on her own terms.

Meanwhile Ennard was getting everything ready to go. Which really should've just consisted of getting the music tape, grabbing Scott, and getting back to the van, but temptation had won over and he decided that he wanted some overprice popcorn for the road. Not willing to risk waltzing over to a concession stand to get it, he dumped a pocketful of change into the hands of Fritz and schmoozed him into going to get him some. Then he hung out beside the stage and watched the people passing by.

It was the closest he had gotten to normal people in ages. Not to mention meeting Arthur, who almost entirely bought into the ruse. Compared to his last run-in with a person not affiliated with Freddy's, which would've been that disaster behind the gas station, this time had went a whole lot better. Which it should've, because deep underneath this clown getup and this bed of wires, he was a completely normal person. He was just as human as any of them.

Ennard was feeling too good for an identity crisis.

It was a good time for a distraction to show up, and that came in the form of catching a couple of teenage girls staring at him. Ennard was surprised he hadn't noticed them watching before now but they were at a booth all the way over by the Tilt-A-Whirl. If they were so much as five feet further, they would've been blocked out of his view. It was confirmed from the awkward look the one got when he spotted them that it was him that they were staring at.

Not that they looked anywhere near threatening. The one with the admittedly goofy grin was a brunette wearing a pink blouse and matching lip gloss. The other girl was wearing blue, and her stand-out traits were her neatly done braids and her smartly shaped glasses. Just a couple of kids. Well, more than a couple. There was a third with them, but she had her back turned to him, instead turned towards and holding onto the counter.

Dark hair, dark clothes, and when the glasses wearing girl said something she finally looked back and-.

Oh no.

Oh no.

If Ennard had blood it would've all drained out of his face at that moment. Instead, he could practically feel his wires tangling up. Because he knew that face.

He would've been hard pressed to forget the girl he pulled out of Funtime Freddy's belly.

He waved, because it was the only thing he could do to keep from bolting in a very suspicious way, turned, walked until he was sure that he was out of sight, and then bolted in a very suspicious way. Scooting past some folks, all but ditching Fritz, and running for Scott.

Meanwhile, Mike had caught up with Scott and the two were talking as they walked back to the vans. Mostly Scott was talking and Mike was listening, as was Marionette who was still dangling on his strings with a smile on his face. Soft chiming occasionally making it out of his music box whenever Scott said something he agreed with or he shared the sentiments of. Which it was hard not to, because both were clearly thrilled at what had just happened. Mike was glad too, but not nearly to the level they were.

"I just can't believe she did it. I knew she could, but I just thought she was going to have second thoughts at the last second. Which I get, with the risk of being recognized or something going wrong, but I'm just so glad she went ahead and did it," Scott chattered to Mike. A mixture of leftover nerves, relief, and pride fueling his chattiness.

Mike liked seeing him so lively. It was about time something went well for him.

Which was right when Ennard nearly ran him down. Coming to a stop just before he could clothesline Scott and throwing an arm around his shoulders.

"Hey, we've got to get out of here fast," he whispered through his teeth. "I just caught the Fitzsimmons girl eyeballing me."

"The- Hold on, the girl from the Freddy?" Scott whispered back in surprise. Ennard nodded stiffly. Scott processed it a second before looking to Mike. "So, yeah. We're taking off."

"I bet. How did she look?" Mike asked. His concern was shared with Marionette, who still showed his constant smile but whose eyes were now faintly alit and looking over.

"She looked okay! I mean, I bet she was doing a lot better before she saw me, but ha ha, who doesn't?!" Ennard joked. The clown voice starting to creep back in.

"But hey, that means she's out of the hospital and doing stuff. That's good to hear. We were worried about her," Mike said. He switched hands on the stand to pat Marionette's back, receiving a light trill in return.

"Yup!"

Ennard was slowly picking up the pace and around that time he was all but carrying Scott away and leaving the two behind with their finnicky stand. He gently pushed Scott around to the front and popped open the doors before leaning in.

"O-kay! Anybody who's not coming with us needs to jump ship now, because we are outta here!" Ennard instructed.

Foxy gave him a sort of confused look while Baby looked less than enthused by that familiar tone. "What happened?" she sighed.

"That girl I pulled out of Funtime Freddy's here and she saw me, so we gotta skedaddle."

It took Baby a few seconds to process that comment before her eyes widened in alarm.

"Oh, for God's sake, Ennard, I told you not to wear that stupid decapitated head!"

"I know, I know! I never thought that she… Wait… Wait, hold on." Ennard leaned on his hands against the back of the van. After a long moment of thinking, he pointed towards Baby. "Maybe she didn't recognize me. Maybe she was just staring at be because of that stupid bear, not because she knew I was the clown who pulled her out of that stupid bear. That's it, we're in the clear!" he proclaimed. He let that sit for a moment before slouching down to rest on his hands again. "Gee, I really hope I didn't just retraumatize her from that."

"I would say it would need to take more than that," Baby dismissed. Charlie wasn't sure if she agreed but decided not to say anything. Baby looked Ennard over and then asked, "Are you okay?"

"What? Oh, heh, 'course! Just got spooked. You know," Ennard also dismissed. She scooted over and he took the invitation and climbed in beside her.

"I think we should play it safe and get moving. Because she still could recognize you. You were wearing most of your suit when you pulled her out of there and depending on how much she remembers she might put two and two together," Scott pointed out.

Ennard gave a wincing hiss. "This feels a lot like a lose-lose situation."

"Well, if ya need somewhere to hide out, how's about setting sail for Pirate's Cove? We're closed fer the rest of the day, so why not swing by and we'll celebrate Baby's big step into the spotlight. Beggin' yer pardon, I mean Ringleader Lizzie's step into the spotlight," Foxy suggested, giving the offer straight to Baby herself.

"I would like that. Scott?"

"Sounds okay to me." Admittedly, anywhere sounded better than hanging around until people started asking questions.

"Then we'll meet you over there," Charlie agreed.

She started to follow Foxy out as he nudged open the van door and was soon intercepted by Jeremy and Mike, who were already there.

Somewhere along the way an arm reached in holding a plastic bag of popcorn, punctuated with an, "Order up!"

"Ah ha! I almost forgot about you!" Ennard chirped. From the eager way he grabbed the popcorn bag, he might've been talking to it instead of Fritz. Though he did call out, "Thanks, Buddy!"

Bonnet crawled over to get into his lap as he fiddled with the plastic clasp holding the bag closed before freeing his prize. He pulled back one of the stiff, squeaky plates of the Freddy head and shoved a small handful of popcorn past his teeth like he was dying for it. Stress eating, Baby realized. He noticed her looking and offered her the bag.

"Want some?"

Baby had never been as gung-ho about shoving foodstuff into her mouth as Ennard was. Largely because of the amount of cleaning that it required afterwards. Popcorn was an especially insidious food because of how easily it could get stuck in small hard-to-reach spots.

But now after being drained by the performance and feeling so strangely good about herself, it seemed like such a small thing. Such a little annoyance. She accepted the indulgence and grabbed herself a small bit.

Just a taste.

Chapter 59

Chapter Summary

Natalie gets an unexpected offer to take a trip to the Pizzaplex during the day with Ness and Louise, to some unexpected results.

Natalie waited a few days before going ahead with reporting her findings about the elusive white rabbit. Just long enough that the security footage would've been written over and impossible to retrieve. Nobody would be able to double-check and risk catching something they weren't supposed to. Bafflingly, they didn't even do that to check for what happened to Chica. They just told her to and took her word for it. Likely because nobody seemed surprised or concerned for Chica.

That alone said plenty about Fazbear Entertainment's concern for their safety and wellbeing. She could only hope they took the paying customers into higher account.

So, Natalie marched herself into the office to see Wight. Alas, he was out. After considering whether it was worth waiting or it could be taken to one of his underlings, she found herself sitting across the desk of a very pointy woman. One not too far from Wight's age with a permanently furrowed brow which intruded upon what could've otherwise been pretty features. She kept her gaze down for most of the beginning of the conversation, filling out a form unrelated to Natalie's query.

"So, you need to file a security report. I'm assuming on Chica's recent accident," the woman offered. Natalie didn't even know her name. She never introduced herself and there was no name plaque.

"I already did. This is about something else. There's been someone trespassing into the Pizzaplex at night, a woman wearing a white rabbit costume," Natalie answered.

The woman gave her a dryly questioning look. She seemed neither convinced nor concerned.

"I know it sounds crazy, but I saw her with my own eyes. Twice, in fact," Natalie explained.

"You saw a woman in a rabbit costume. Do you mean like a playboy bunny costume?"

"What? No! Just a bunny costume. All white with red eyes."

"So, an Easter rabbit. You saw an Easter rabbit running around the Pizzaplex," she clarified doubtfully. It was clear now that she didn't believe her and was being obvious about.

"Yes."

There was a long moment of silence.

"I can tell you don't believe me-."

"Ma'am, if I can be honest with you, I don't know what game you're playing," the woman answered. "This is a very important time of the year for our business. You couldn't have chosen a worse time to start making outlandish accusations, which makes me very suspicious to why you would."

Natalie was startled and flustered by the accusation. With nowhere to turn, she was forced to play her only card.

"They're not outlandish accusations. I have pictures of this woman running around in the basement, and it looked like she had a knife on her," she said with exasperation.

That changed the look on the woman's face instantly. First to surprise and then to something much sharper. Her voice switched as well from dry and unenthused to sharp and direct.

"You are not authorized to remove security footage out of the Pizzaplex. You will need to hand those over immediately."

Natalie all but recoiled in shock at the comment. Then she narrowed her eyes at the accusation.

"How can I hand them over? They're in the Pizzaplex. In the computer," she retorted.

"You didn't remove any copies of the footage?" she pressed. To which Natalie lied and said she hadn't. "Good. Very good, then we don't have a problem."

The disbelief returned to the blond's face. "What do you mean, we don't have a problem? There is a woman in a rabbit suit running around the Pizzaplex with a knife! And she's come back at least twice."

"Isn't it your job to be dealing with that? It certainly isn't mine, and it's not Mr. Wight's. Now, I would recommend you figuring something out without getting law enforcement involved, if you want to keep your job," she hissed. "This business hinges on trust, and we will lose all of our goodwill if someone starts spreading accusations that remind the community of the rumors about Freddy's."

"They weren't rumors."

"They were."

"They weren't," Natalie snapped. She was barely able to keep herself in line and only did so for her own wellbeing. "Also, don't threaten my job. Mr. Wight's done nothing but sung praises about my work and he's the one who signs my paycheck. If you have a problem with it, you go to him. Or better yet, maybe I should go to him. We can see what he thinks about all this."

Now it was the woman who looked startled. Even lifting a hand to her chest as though she had just been personally attacked. Natalie didn't feel much victory as she turned on her heel and strode out of the office.

She had almost thought that Fritz had been exaggerating about how little Freddy's cared about safety, or assumed that was the old Freddy's, but no. A lack of concern for staff and patrons was very much still present at Freddy Fazbear's.

Natalie stormed out of the office with a sour look on her face, unsure if she should be relieved that Fazbear Entertainment seemingly didn't care or just outright offended at whatever just happened. Honestly, she was leaning towards the latter. She huffed out a very unkind word under her breath.

"I know, right? She's just such a pain in the neck."

And was promptly blindsided by someone waiting beside the door. Her head snapped over and her stomach nearly plummeted at the sight of Ness standing there. Like she had been listening, at least the closeness to the door suggested so.

"Did you hear us…?" Natalie dared to ask.

"What? Oh, no! I wasn't eavesdropping! I just meant I've run into her a few times and she's, yeah, she's a lot. Even Mr. Wight doesn't get along with her, and I mean, can you blame him?" Ness said. Her face broke into an excited grin. "Speaking of Mr. Wight, take a look at what I've got."

She lifted what looked to be a little coupon book with a Pizzaplex logo on it between her hands. She flipped through them in front of her, allowing Natalie to get a few brief glimpses at coupons inside.

"Coupons?"

"For the Pizzaplex! Wight gave them for me because I said I'd go to the retreat with him. Look! Seventy-five percent off mini-golf, twenty percent off a membership to Mazercise, free refills to all mega-sized mug drinks!" Ness listed off. She waved the coupons in her hand. "Okay, so, I don't really want to spend my life hanging out at the Pizzaplex alone like a weirdo, so why don't you come with me, and we like… blow through most of these in one day? What do you say?"

She sounded so excited about the prospect. So bouncy and thrilled at the idea of them hanging out.

Natalie only noticed now how Ness' eager little motions seemed to line up with Vanny's. She really hoped she was just imagining it, even though she was almost completely convinced that this was the white rabbit out of costume standing before her.

"You went on the retreat already?" she asked. Buying herself a little time to consider her answer.

"No, we're not leaving until the seventeenth. Just enough time for him to maybe change his mind? Hopefully."

"You don't have to go."

"I think I do. I took the coupons," Ness pointed out. "So, what do you say? Girls' night out? Or day. Afternoon."

What could've been such an innocent offer a week or two ago was suddenly much less safe. Ignoring the fact that Ness might've been listening in on her, but now she had reasons to believe Ness herself wasn't quite what she seemed to be.

It was like walking a tight-rope, and Natalie considered it for a second. Eventually she came to a decision.

"You know what? Sure! I've got nothing else going on," Natalie agreed. She had a bit of a bad feeling about this, but she had a worse feeling about giving Ness a reason to retaliate. Though she wasn't going to open herself up to that much risk without a backup plan. "Hey, do you mind if I invite someone to come with us?"

Natalie and Ness showed up to the Pizzaplex wearing business casual. Looking like a couple of ladies who had just gotten off work and were looking for somewhere to kill time.

Louise showed up in a hot pink pencil skirt with a sleeveless cream blouse like she came prepared for date night, hair pulled back in a high ponytail and lips a cherry red. That was one way to leave a first impression, Natalie supposed.

"Ness, this is Louise! Louise, Ness," Natalie introduced.

Now, Louise was aware of the situation with Ness. Not the whole deal about the possible possession and what happened with Marionette but knew at least that Natalie suspected that Ness was the woman running around the Pizzaplex dressed in a rabbit costume. And since Natalie hadn't had a chance to update her feelings since the whole possession idea came up, she still was on the train of thought that Ness was some oddball running around in said rabbit costume for attention or to spite Freddy's.

So, it was no wonder when she greeted Ness with the gusto of not knowing you were talking with someone who could potentially be a danger to other people.

"Hi! It's so nice to finally meet you! Nat's told me all about you," she greeted with a friendly smile.

"I didn't know there was that much to tell!" Ness replied with a significantly more nervous one.

"Don't worry, I didn't tell her about the freezer incident," Natalie whispered behind her.

"The what?"

"She's joking! Joke- We've got this running joke about my… empty freezer," Ness awkwardly discredited. "Let's get inside before the afternoon rush gets here when the kids let out."

"Sounds good to me. Where to first?" Natalie asked. To which Ness got out the coupon book and Louise's eyes popped open.

"Now there's a fat coupon book. Can I see?" Louise eagerly requested. She held her hand out and the brunette handed it over to no complaint. The redhead skimmed through it. "Seventy-five percent off?! Where did you get this?"

"From my boss. Our boss."

"All my bosses give me is free pizza," Louise lamented. "Monty's Gator Golf's mini golf, right? Let's do that! Something to break us in."

So, that's where they headed first.

Monty's Gator Golf was so much different during the day. The lighting was only a little brighter, so it still gave that foggy swamp feel, but now there were kids and people all over the place so it was much less intimidating. Ness had gotten them to cut the small line with a fast pass she had on hand. Natalie almost considered asking where she was getting all these perks but didn't have to. It was Wight, likely. Buttering her up for some reason.

It didn't take long to get in and get going. They picked up their supplies from the golf shop, including having to sign a paper that agreed to pay the full price of each golf club and ball if they didn't return them- with only some leeway if they could prove they hit their ball into the water- and then were on their way to the first hole.

It became apparent rather quickly that while Louise had suggested golf and was having fun with it, she wasn't great at it. Either this was her first time playing or she just couldn't get in the swing of it, Natalie didn't ask. Especially since Louise was still having a good time and didn't seem to care that she had gotten under par once or twice. Her focus was on the cutely designed greens and the ambience, not her little issue tapping the ball just a bit too hard.

Until the sixth hole. The sixth hole was basic enough in theory, but in practice was a little more complicated. Hit the ball past a group of gator heads, up a ramp, into a gator's mouth, and then when it pops out tap it into the hole. Seemed like an easy shot.

But Louise was having a slight amount of difficulty, and perhaps it was because she was still stuck in the gator heads on her par stroke, but she was suddenly taking the game a lot more seriously. On both next strokes she got it past them and up the ramp into the gator's mouth, only for the ball to roll back down and lodge itself back in the heads. Louise kept her mouth in a tight line and decided a new tactic was in play.

Right when Ness was about to offer a tip, Louise suddenly whacked the ball over the side of the track, intending to skip the gator and go straight into the green- and it almost worked. Unfortunately, she tapped it a little too hard and popped over the other side.

Her line mouth slowly dropped into a frown and Louise rolled her eyes back to the other women with a fed-up look.

"Just put me for five plus. I'm done."

Natalie gave a teasing little shrug and marked it down, and that was the end of it.

Or it should've been.

While coming down the stairs to the lower level of Monty Golf, Natalie had caught sight of Monty on stage. He was likely supposed to be performing, but instead he was just standing there, bass in hand, staring off into the distance. She might've thought he was looking at something if this wasn't Monty, who had drifted off into a blank stare in almost every one of their interactions.

She waved at him, and his head turned towards her. He acknowledged her with a nod and started to strum his bass like he might've originally been doing. Just a little exchange that she wouldn't have not thought twice about except for the heavy footsteps walking up.

By now Ness was already going and stole a look back before hastily whacking the ball up into the gator's mouth. She got herself out of the way right as Natalie and Louise turned back to see Monty walking up, quickly finishing up her go while they were distracted before fading off to the side. Louise mumbled an 'uh oh' under her breath and greeted the gator with a smile, expecting to get caught red handed.

Monty sauntered over to the two before greeting them with, "Someone having a tough time?"

Natalie pointed to Louise who gave a look of betrayed shock before putting back on a smile and raising a hand. "Guilty as charge! But it's no big deal."

"Mm-hm," Monty said. Natalie flashed him the bad, which he spared a glance at while pretending to adjust his sunglasses.

"Happens all the time. Mind if I give ya a few pointers?"

"Sure! I'll take all the help I can get," Louise agreed.

She offered him her club. His claws brushed over her fingers as he took it. He accepted Natalie's offered golf ball and dropped into onto the green, then got into position to swing.

"Just enough space to run it down the middle. Line it up, firm tap." He did so, did so, and knocked the ball through the heads rather easily. Then stepped past them under the head. "Knock it in hard on in. You'll need that force on the other side." One sharper hit had it up into the gator's mouth and after a few moments left it popping out into the boxy maze to the right of the hole. Monty stepped down into it and got into position. "Now just line 'er up and…"

One last hit bounced across a couple of walls before rolling it right into the hole. "There ya go."

"You make it look so easy," Louise complimented. "I just keep hitting it too hard."

"I hear ya, I've got the same problem, but ya can't hit it too hard on these ones. Gonna need that power behind the swing."

"Thanks, Monty," Natalie said with a smile. "It's nice seeing you outside of work hours. Well, my work hours."

"Any reason why you came in? I'd think this is the last place ya'd want to be," Monty pointed out. Partially leaning on the golf club, though more for show as the flimsy little thing likely wouldn't hold too much wait.

"We got a coupon book from Wight that we're taking advantage of."

"Old Wight or young?"

"Daddy Wight."

"Gotcha. Glad he's treatin' ya well. You deserve a few perks fer this job," Monty remarked. He then straightened back up. "I best be on my way. You ladies have a good game."

He flipped the golf club around and offered it to Louise. Though when she grabbed the handle, he tilted his head down and lowered his glasses to glance over the top.

"And if ya have any more trouble, just give me a holler," he said. His voice trailing off in a low rumble.

"Then don't go too far," Louise joked with a little wink.

Natalie pursed her lips at the distinct shift in the conversation. Monty didn't notice, even if he did he might've not cared, and then sauntered off back to the stage. Louise watched him go with a continuing smile.

"He's really cool," she said. Then, with the same smile, she leaned over and whispered out the corner of her mouth, "Is it just me, or was he…?"

"He was flirting with you."

"Okay, good! I didn't want to jump to conclusions if he's like this with everyone," Louise said. She wasn't even the slightest bit bothered by it. She turned around only to notice they were missing one. "Where'd Ness go?"

"Over here! I was just, uh, over here. Trying out the next one," Ness called from nearby. She didn't come back over though, instead lingering by the next hole until Natalie finished up and the two followed her.

It was obvious that she had been avoiding Monty. Natalie decided to not call her out on it, but she tucked it away in her head for later.

But that wasn't the last they saw of Monty, and not just because his face was peppered all over the golf course. They were in the final stretch of holes where Louise had finally hit another difficult one. She held out until she reached her fifth swing before she got a thoughtful look, then picked her ball back up.

"You guys go ahead. I'll be right back," she said.

Natalie quirked a brow at her, though without questioning. She knew exactly where she was going.

Louise found Monty back on the stage. Instead of staring off into space, he was leaning against one of the oversized speakers strumming on his bass. As she approached, he lowered both the bass and his sunglasses to peer over the top again.

"Hey, sorry to bother you, but if you're still giving golf lessons…" Louise began with an apologetic but also borderline pleading smile.

She didn't have to say a word more. He propped his bass where he once stood and hopped down from the stage before following her over. Once he saw the hole in question, he gave a low hiss.

"Yeah, this one gives everyone problems," he admitted. Something she believed as she watched Natalie slowly put around a bunch of glowing circle-shaped obstacles. "Ball likes to stick to those things fer some reason. Ruins the flow."

"Surely not a problem for you though," Louise hinted.

"Maybe not, but I'm not the one who's playin'," Monty quipped back.

"Then teach me. I still have a chance to win this," she proclaimed with a faux dramatic tone. She was also blatantly lying, as even if she made birdies for each holes she likely wasn't coming out on top this game. He gave a nod and hum of agreement.

Once Natalie finished, and since Ness had scooted off somewhere nowhere to be seen, Louise offered the club to Monty. He raised a hand in decline and instead beckoned her to follow.

"Y'mind if I get a little hands on?" he asked.

Her brows shot up and her mouth got a goofy little tug to the side. "It's fine with me! Show me what to do."

"Atta girl."

Natalie knew what was coming even before it did. She had seen enough movies to know exactly what was about to happen.

"Now, the important thing 'bout this hole," Monty began. He wrapped his arms around Louise from behind and took ahold of the club just above and below hers. "Is to look where yer goin'. Normally ya just gotta keep your eye on the ball, but this time you gotta keep the whole scope in play." He slightly rested his head on her shoulder, if only to focus while lining up the shot. He then guided her to putt the ball.

He continued this through the entire hole. Slowly guiding her in every put, his low murmuring only occasionally broken up by a tiny giggle here or there. Louise's face was slowly turning redder with every passing moment, but her grin never wavered.

Monty was playing the cheesiest game with a straight face, Louise was eating it up like it was dripped over a plate of nachos, and Ness was once again nowhere to be seen. Natalie felt like the straight man in a show she wasn't even getting paid for.

It didn't stop there though. Monty hung around for the next hole. Another 'difficult' one, pretty much a straight line with only a simple turn and basic obstacles. Louise had one wild swing and Monty was back to showing her how to hit it properly, and at this point Natalie was pretty sure the game was over. Spotting Ness putting at another hole, she walked over and joined her in the doorway of Monty's trailer- or the trailer obstacle for the hole. There wasn't nearly enough room for Monty to hang out in here.

"Hey," she said. Ness looked over a little quickly, only to relax and greet her with a little smile. Natalie smiled back, a bit sympathetically perhaps. "Monty make you nervous?"

"Something like that," Ness admitted. She looked down to line up another shot. "All of the animatronics do, really. Except maybe the, umm… The spider guy up in the arcade."

"There's a spider guy?"

"Oh yeah. Big guy."

Well, that was news to Natalie. "And he's the one that doesn't scare you?"

"Nope."

"…Freddy scares you?" Natalie dared to ask a bit more doubtfully.

"Oh yeah," Ness affirmed. Then she knocked the ball down the little slope to stop by the hole. Natalie didn't respond, and Ness look back to see her quirked brow and the twitch of a restrained smile. "…He's weird! He's… I don't know. Unpredictable? He could just show up anywhere," she quickly defended.

"Yeah, he does sort of do that," the blond agreed.

"I like my animatronics soft and plushie, without the claws and extra stuff. That's why-."

Ness cut off and looked aside to see Louise and Monty coming. Natalie looked back to see them as well, then looked back to Ness to catch a glimpse of her back as she nudged the golf ball in and disappeared around the trailer.

Funny, Freddy was starting to look like the normal one.

…

After golf wrapped up and Monty finally went off for good, the three moved on to the next attraction to see. It was Natalie's idea to check out Mazercise. Not to stop and hang out there or anything, but to see what it was like during the day.

It was about as dysfunctional as she expected it to be.

Half of the room was devoted to the workout area where a woman in gaudy pink and lime green spandex and a high ponytail led a group of people in a jazzercise routine. There were a few stragglers working out with weights or other equipment pieces as well. It all fit with what Mazercise was supposed to be, save that there was no sign of the so-called maze.

Then there was the other section of the room devoted to dining. Tables for people to eat, where plenty of people were eating, and a buffet ready with all sorts of recently made snacks. A pile of cookies, a warming tray full of French fries, a few slices of pizza left on two largely barren platters; it was a regular smorgasbord. Unfortunately, it was a smorgasbord only about twelve feet from a bunch of people working out.

The smell in the room was unbelievable. It was some weird blend of fresh sweat and nachos. Either of which could've been fine on their own, but mixed together was less than appealing to the senses. They didn't stick around long.

It was while riding the escalator down that Ness volunteered, "You want to go get something to eat?" Upon getting a peculiar look, she quickly added, "Not back there. I meant anywhere else. Down there somewhere."

So, they headed down into the food court to eat. It wasn't nearly as crowded as it would likely be later, so it wasn't a bad choice to enjoy what they could while they had the chance. Plus, it gave Natalie and Louise an excuse to scout out the competition's food.

The food was, as expected, expensive even with coupons, and unfortunately the coupons they did have were rather specific. So, unless they wanted to walk to some sort of diner or the Faz-Pad, most of it was coming straight out of pocket. Ness had nudged Natalie and discretely reminded her to tell the Staff Bot at the counter that she was an employee. After having to flash her card and having it study her face for a long time, it identified her as a worker and gave her a minimal employee discount.

With that discount she bought a pretzel stuffed with cheese and pepperoni. The quality was good, and the taste fit the bill, but there was a little bit of toughness to the edges. Like it had been cooked just a touch too long, though dipping the tips in its own leaking cheese made it easy to ignore the flaw.

Louise got something called a Burger Dog. It turned out to not be a Hot Dog that tasted like a burger, but a Hot Dog made of burger meat, covered in condiments, and wrapped in lettuce. No hot dog bun. Louise gave it a quizzical look and then went about trying to eat it.

Ness got two slices of pizza. The only peculiar part being her chosen toppings, a classic pepperoni and cheese styled pizza topped with broccoli and pickles. Natalie wasn't sure what kind of craving must've led to that combination, but it didn't look too unappetizing. She ended up buying her novelty mug as well, one with Glamrock Chica's face on it, and got it filled with something called a Fizzy Blast and asked at least three times if Natalie and Louise wanted to try some. Promising that she wasn't contagious with anything.

They got a table by the Fazer Blast sign and while sitting close to a couple of families, it wasn't nearly as loud as to be expected. Lunch went fine at first, but they had only gotten a little into it when Ness got a weird look at something past Natalie's back. A sort of deer in headlights look that instantly made Natalie guess that Monty was walking up behind her, so she was surprised when that wasn't the case.

"Thought I recognized that ponytail. What, you haven't gotten sick of this place yet?" Chaz joked as he walked up to the table.

"Not when I'm eating on Mr. Wight's dollar," Natalie retorted. She watched him come over and lean on the back of the unused chair, his beard especially frizzy today. "Are you still working on Chica?"

"Nah. Not until we get some parts in," he answered. He looked across the table at Ness and nodded at her. "How's it going, Ness?"

"Hey," Ness greeted with a smile. Though there was some nervousness in it. In fact, Natalie could tell Chaz seemed a little awkward too. There was something strange between the two.

Louise must've noticed too as she stuck out her hand and all but yanked the attention off the nervous looking Ness. "Hi! I'm Louise."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Chaz, head technician by technicality," Chaz introduced with a grin and a shake of her hand.

"So, what are you doing? Just on standby in case any of the Staff Bots go down?" Natalie asked curiously. Mostly to keep the conversation going.

"As a matter of fact, no. We… think we might've found that power leak," Chaz said, hanging on the words in anticipation. "We found this gnarly looking high voltage cable running from the downstairs cafeteria into the basement and haven't been able to source it."

"Huh, that's a weird place."

"You'd think so, but from where it's plugged in, we think it might've been left over from when the Pizzaplex was being built. It's running right off the line that powers one of the recharge stations and we know they were using those for construction before the stations were installed. Once this place closes up, we're going to cut the power and pull it loose."

"Good luck with that. That sounds dangerous," Natalie warned.

"Anytime the lights are out in this place we're at a risk of getting smoked. That Moon wants me dead. He already ran off Ray," Chaz said dryly. He didn't really sound to be joking, but he also didn't sound too concerned. "But we'll get the lights back on before your shift."

"Thanks. I don't think I could handle a whole night here in pitch dark. I'd die of boredom."

Something Natalie immediately regretted saying as soon as she remembered who was sitting beside her. She looked casually over at Louise and then Ness to see if there was any reaction on the latter's face without it being too obvious. Ness smiled back uneasily.

"Yeah, if you don't die of suffocation first," Chaz remarked. "You ladies enjoy your afternoon. And try to steer clear of Roxy Raceway, we've got some cracks popping up on the track again."

"Again?" Ness asked in disappointment.

"Again?" Louise asked a little more pointedly.

"Yeah, again," Chaz said with an almost fed-up shrug. "One thing or another. Alright, take care. See you around, Ness, Ness." He nodded at both 'Ness's and made his way off as they exchanged their own farewells.

"Well, I guess go-karting's out," Ness said with a sigh. She was crinkling up and tearing a napkin in her hands, still nervous. "We can still check out Fazer Blast, but they don't open their adult-only lobbies until three, I think."

"That's probably for the best. I don't really feel like zipping around right after eating," Louise offered.

"So, I guess bumper cars are out too?" Ness asked, getting a small, crooked smile. She got an idea and turned to Natalie, "You know what we could do-."

Just as suddenly Ness cut herself off. She looked at something behind Natalie for a long moment before looking back to the blond.

"Uh, hold that thought. I need to use the bathroom," she said. Then she got up from her chair and hastily hurried off.

If that wasn't enough of a clue, Natalie noticed encroaching heavy footsteps and the sound of kids in the general area getting excited. She looked back over her shoulder expecting to see Freddy Fazbear himself walking up.

Nope, still Monty Gator. Striding towards their table with the same saunter he had at the golf course. They had lost him for thirty minutes at max.

Natalie looked back at Louise intending to jokingly remark, "Can you believe this guy?" but caught sight of Louise's equally eager look and clammed up. Maybe the gator wasn't the only one on the prowl.

Monty walked up beside the table, standing behind Ness' empty chair, and greeted them with a cool nod.

"How're ya'll?" he asked. Less like a rockstar making rounds and more like a waiter dropping in to ask about refilling their drinks, regardless of how broadly he stood.

"Having a really good time," Louise remarked, resting her chin on her tented fingers.

Monty glanced down at her plate for a long second.

"Where's yer buns, Cher?"

"I'm sitting on them," Louise cheekily answered.

Natalie turned her head away before she slapped her hand over her face.

"I don't know. It's supposed to be a hamburger flavored hot dog, but I sort of assumed it was going to come with a bun," Louise said more honestly. Sending a furrowed and downright confused look down at the plate.

"That's real strange… Ya'll should've stopped on by Gator Grub before ya left. We've got buns," Monty said. "If yer lookin' to plan another round, I can getcha a free pass."

"That would be great, thanks! You're going to be there, right?"

"Not fer a couple of hours. I'm headin' back to Rockstar Row. I've got a meet and greet, and a party 'round two, but I'll get on back there, so drop in."

"We will! Before we leave, for sure."

Considering that Roxy Raceway was out, Natalie supposed she could give Monty Golf another go. She didn't mind playing wingwoman for Louise.

"Rock on. Make sure ya'll stick around for the show too, aight?"

"We wouldn't miss it!"

"Hi," a small voice said from somewhere behind them. Monty turned back to see a small kid waving from one of the other tables. "Hi."

"I'll see ya'll later," Monty finished. He sent Louise a quick look over his sunglasses before heading over to the table to greet the family there. Almost immediately getting swarmed with more children who suddenly decided this was confirmation to move in.

"Later gator!" Louise said after him.

"I'm guessing later could be anytime now," Natalie joked. She stood up from the table. "I'll be right back. I'm going to see where Ness ran off to."

"Good idea. I'll wait here and admire the view," the redhead said as she watched Monty start a mini meet and greet in the middle of the food court.

"You know, I didn't think you'd be into this so fast," Natalie remarked. Vaguely, but Louise knew what she was implying.

"I'm warming up to the idea," she replied.

With that little exchange, Natalie headed off to find the bathrooms. It didn't take her long to locate the ones that Ness likely went into, considering this was the direction she darted off in. She stepped inside and went around the corner and spotted Ness right away.

She was standing at the back of the bathroom facing the wall with her back towards Natalie. The sight of it made her stop in her tracks.

There was something wrong. Just something about how rigidly Ness stood there with her arms straight at her sides. It reminded Natalie of Smitty being wedged up into the corner. There was a low murmuring coming from the woman as though speaking under her breath, but it was too quiet for her to hear. Natalie stained to listen and stepped a little closer, further away from the door where the noise and music of the atrium spilled in.

Whatever Ness was saying, Natalie couldn't hear it and she didn't feel safe enough creeping up on her. So, she decided to make her presence known and cleared her throat.

Ness jumped in a rather dramatic fashion and spun around to look at her. Her eyes were wide, pupils wide, staring in shock before finally cracking into a smile.

"Heeeyyy, I didn't hear you come in!" she said. She straightened back up. "Monty's got me antsy. You know how it is- eh, you know how he is."

"He can be a little intimidating, for sure. It's not as bad once you've been around him a while," Natalie assured. "Is everything okay? You looked a little… spaced out."

"I'm fine. I just had a moment, that's all!" Ness dismissed. She turned towards the bathroom mirror and began to fix her hair.

"Well, I'm done and Louise won't take much longer. What was your idea before Monty came up?"

"That! Well, I was thinking…" Ness trailed off for a long moment. She squinted at herself in the mirror as though drawing a long blank, then snapped out of it. "Sorry, I lost my train of thought for a second. How about we go bowling? There's no animatronics up there."

Though the idea of going up to Bunnie Bowl raised some flags, Natalie noted that it would've been just as suspicious if Ness hadn't have brought it up.

"Sounds good to me. Louise and I have gone bowling a few times, so we're not too rusty."

"Good! And then once we break our nails doing that," Ness said with an almost mischievous grin. She pulled out the coupon book from her pocket and flipped through it to one of the coupons. "Bang! Twenty percent off hair or nails at the Glamrock Beauty Salon!"

"That's a steal! Wait, and or or?... Okay, maybe not as much of a steal, but still probably a deal. Where even is that? I've heard about it, but I've never seen it. Is it in Roxy Raceway?"

"It's kind of to the back and right of it," Ness said, making the motions with her hands. She looked at herself in the mirror again, briefly fluffing up her hair. "Maybe I should get my hair done. I've always wanted to do it. Why not?"

"Why not? You've got the coupon," Natalie said supportively. "So, what were you thinking of having done?"

"Highlights. Like… Like rainbow highlights, I… Uh…" Ness blinked a few times before rubbing her eyes with a low hiss. "Sorry…

"Ness, are you alright?" Natalie asked more worriedly.

"I've got a headache. That's all… the lights or the food or something. I'm okay!" The brunette perked up and smiled at her. Finally, it seemed a little more natural and less strained. "I'm good. Sorry about that. I'm just still a little out of it."

"Don't be sorry. Look, the coupons aren't going anywhere. Why don't we put a raincheck on this?"

"No! No, I'm fine. I promise," Ness insisted. "…Maybe I'll hold off on the hair care products for now?"

"Oh yeah," Natalie agreed. "Still up for bowling?"

"Sure!... Would you mind peeking out and making sure Monty's moved on?"

Natalie did. While she did, she could hear Ness turning the sink on and came back to see her splashing water over her face. Seemingly recovered, Ness had her typical bounce back in her step once they were on their way upstairs.

From that point on through the rest of the day, Ness never had another incident like that. She didn't act weird at all, save the almost comical reaction she got at the price of cupcakes at the Cupcake Shoppe. That didn't stop her from buying one.

She didn't go ahead with getting her hair done. She seemed to buckle under the idea almost immediately, but Natalie didn't blame her when it was Staff Bot running the salon, or Salon Bots. Some of which had scissors attached to one of their hands and circled around making clipping noises. Thankfully, getting their nails done was a different story. There were human employees to do that aspect, likely because of the precision it required that the Staff Bots simply weren't up to.

Fazer Blast was a no-go, overbooked, so the fallback ended up being bumper cars. Allowing Natalie to get a good look at Roxy Raceway's racetrack with the lights on. There were plenty of people in there, many still trying to get onto the racetrack, but it was closed. As became apparent when Natalie passed a man getting heated with a Staff Bot vocalizing the same thing. Natalie watched the altercation for a moment before Ness goaded her to come along.

The Staff Bots could handle themselves, she supposed. Something that was confirmed a little later when Natalie heard the same bot sounding an alarm, signaling a Security Bot to come and escort the man and his family away.

They also caught one of the performances. Louise took the plunge to disappear in the crowd while Natalie and Ness watched from the second floor. As soon as the show began, the absence of Chica was significantly more noticeable. Everyone remained in their own places, so Chica's spot was left open and empty. The sound of her guitar playing through a recording instead of being from her.

"Why's it taking so long to get Chica back up and going?" Natalie asked. More so asking herself than Ness, murmuring it under her breath. Though the other woman did hear her.

"It's that upgrade she got. You know, the one to help her sing? That was a really big deal. Some sort of prototype for something and it went missing when she got broken, and now they've just got her shutdown downstairs while they're waiting for… I guess a replacement."

"A replacement… Wait… Was it in her beak?"

"It was attached to her beak, I think,"

"…Huh." That suddenly made Chica's beak spontaneously disappearing awfully more suspicious. "Did Wight say anything?"

"About Chica?"

"Like when he thinks she's coming back."

"Oh, he doesn't know," Ness brushed off immediately. She slouched further onto the railing. "Mr. Wight might be the one running the place, but when it comes to the technology in it, he's not running the shots."

"What does that mean?" Natalie asked curiously.

"It means a lot of this stuff is like stuff being tested- experimental! The Staff Bots and stuff, it's all this experimental technology and Mr. Wight's doesn't really own it he's just borrowing it. At least, that's what I think," Ness explained. She sat there a long moment before quietly adding on. "Brad thinks so too."

"He does?" Natalie asked with mild surprise. "So, he's been to the Pizzaplex?"

"Uh, well yeah, but that's not- not a big shock since I work here and I- he's been here. He's not here right now, but he's came by and he agrees with me… probably because he always agrees with me. He's kind of like that," Ness said, tapping her nails on the railing.

"Why don't we bring him with us next time?" Natalie offered.

Ness got a small smile. "Sure."

The rest of the show went by as did more of the afternoon, until the point where everyone was starting to feel worn out from Pizzaplex 'fun'. Though Natalie was the one to finally voice as much.

"So, what do you guys thinking about leaving soon? I'm having a great time, really, but I'd like to get some time at home before I have to come back in for my shift," Natalie said. Get some time with Fritz too. Good thing he was at work for most of the day because elsewise she would've felt bad about missing time with him. That softened the blow.

"Oh! We can do that, sure! These coupons aren't going anywhere," Ness assured. She seemed a little caught off-guard, but she quickly recovered. She took a quick look at the top coupon and squinted for the expiration date. "…Until June."

"We'll be back by then," Natalie promised.

Louise made a hesitant sucking noise through her teeth. When Natalie looked to her, she gave an apologetic little smile.

"How about one more round of golf?" she tentatively asked. From her tone to her look, to the little shrug that accompanied both, gave off the impression that she knew exactly how it sounded and was aware that they were going to catch on.

"I know we said we were going to, but I think I'm going to have to pass. It's just so busy in there…" Natalie said apologetically. The fact was that the place was now packed and committing to mini golf would probably eat up double the time it normally would.

"Are you sure? We could just play half a game, nine holes," Louise suggested.

"Or… You could just go visit Monty," Natalie verbally nudged. "We'll just chill out in the lobby until you get back. Get Ness another refill."

Louise bit her lip thoughtfully. She didn't want to make Natalie wait for her, but she didn't really want to get left here either. It was a really cool place, no doubt, but the horror stories she had heard from Mike, Jeremy, and even Foxy left her with the heebie-jeebies.

"I'll be quick," she promised. She turned on her heel and hurried of in an instant, speedwalking her way back to Monty Golf.

Thankfully the Staff Bot taking party passes was distracted, and the human manning the desk inside- who didn't look to care either way- bought her on the fly 'lost my earring' excuse. Said missing earring carefully removed and currently hiding in her palm before she walked into site. They believed her- then again, they didn't seem to care- and she walked right in.

There were double the amount of people here. Probably all the families who were hogging the lobbies in Fazer Blast earlier, she guessed. She hustled around the families who were playing and made her way to the stairs and down beside the stage, but Monty wasn't there. Undeterred, she continued to make her way around the attraction along the walking paths looking for him. It didn't take too long before through the multitude of voices and faux gator hisses she heard the telltale sound of those heavy footsteps.

She ended up walking right up on him. His head snapping to her, his slouch posture straightening up, and him greeting her with a, "Back for more, Cher?"

"You couldn't keep me away," Louise remarked cutely.

He let out a contented little rumble. "Didn't even hear ya'll come in. Where ya'll at?" he asked, looking around.

"No, we're not playing. As a matter of fact, we've got to get going," Louise said with an apologetic smile. "Not my decision. Na-ess needs to get some time at home before she comes back to work."

"That's a shame but she's the boss… Unless ya wanna stay. Don't worry 'bout these folks. We can get ya squeezed in fer some one-on-one pointers," Monty offered, his voice dropping into a lower rumble. The suggestion alone heating up Louise's cheeks, regardless of the whole gator thing.

"I'd love to, but I'm the ride. But I'll be back! I could maybe squeeze in some time this weekend," she offered.

"I've got a better idea. Come on." Monty gestured her to follow and started walking away.

Louise followed him all the way back to the stage. Though instead of going directly to it, he led her to one of the first aid stations. He pushed back the curtain and leaned in, moving something aside before pulling out an envelope stamped with the Pizzaplex logo and handing it over.

"This'll getcha back in," he said.

Louise turned it over in her hands and noticed the message jotted on the back in green ink, along with his autograph punctuated with a little star. She quirked a brow with a teasing grin at the little message.

"The Monty Experience?"

"It'll rock your world," Monty promised. Dragging his sunglasses down to wink at her. "Aim fer Monday if ya can. It's a whole lot quieter."

"It's a date!" Louise agreed. "Well, not a date per say."

"Nah, it's a date," Monty doubled down. A chuckle rumbling through his chest at the sight of the flush spreading across her face. "Come back soon."

"You can count on it," Louise agreed. She then started off with a much more confident sway in her step. Clasping the envelope between her hands as she made her way out before stashing it in her purse.

This was so weird, but it didn't feel as weird as it probably should have.

It wasn't until after she met up with the others, left the Pizzaplex, and had gotten into her car that she opened the envelope, which had been folded closed but not sealed. She expected to find maybe a couple more golf coupons. There was a golf-specific party pass inside along with an entry pass, a photo pass, a meet-and-greet pass-.

Suddenly Monty's clarification made a little more sense. Not that she was complaining.

Though next time she was smuggling in her own lunch.

Gnarly was a rather tame way to describe this wire.

It was thick. So thick that it took two hands to wrap fully around it. A wire made of a bundle of other wires combined into one, leading back into a vent and, upon following it far enough, they had actually found it coming out of another vent and leading down the corner of one of the perpetually poorly lit hallways. It was following it this way that they found that areas where the wire was either duct taped or had a partially melted casing. It wasn't just a lengthy wire, but seemingly a bunch of wires tethered together.

It finally slipped through some fencing and disappeared into yet another vent. This shaft leading straight down, likely towards a lower floor. Tugging at the wire offered some slight give before it halted. It was plugged in somewhere, and wherever socket it was stuck in it wasn't coming loose from. Now, where it was plugged in on this side was a little more pliable as the wire ended in a crudely attached plug that was connected in right alongside the main line for the nearby recharge station.

It still wasn't safe to work on the wires leading into the recharge stations unless the power was cut. When the Pizzaplex routinely shut down to conserve energy for the hourly recharge, the stations didn't just stay on. They ran in a safer more energy conservative mode. This mode was vital when it came to working around them, making them safer and less likely to discharge. So, they shut down power to the Pizzaplex and went to work on getting the wire free.

Abe was watching the security cameras while Tommy had his boots kicked up on one of the desks looking through a copy of Screw, Bolts, and Hairpins. They were supposed to be taking turns but the time to switch hands had passed a while ago. Abe had just zoned out looking through the screens while Tommy was none the wiser.

Then, suddenly, the power died. Everything shut down and the entire Pizzaplex was thrown into darkness.

Abe straightened up to alert in a panic. Only to have his nerves eased by a soft click and the comforting glow of a flashlight beam breaking up the pitch black.

"Relax. They're just down workin' on the power," Tommy brushed off. He aimed the flashlight down at his magazine and continued reading.

"Is this safe?" Abe asked doubtfully. He slowly turned his chair to face the other man, who gave a shrug.

"Nah, but what are ya gonna do? Least it's still early."

Abe sunk back into his chair and tapped his fingers on his leg, which soon started to jump a little. He never had a problem with the dark until he started working here. There was just something spooky about this place at night. It was hard enough sticking around after it got dark, let alone when the power was out. It made him feel claustrophobic.

But just as quickly as it went dark, the lights kicked back on and the world was back to normal. Tommy clicked off his little flashlight and Abe sighed in relief and turned back to the screens.

And found that something was very wrong.

Suddenly the multiple screens showing off different scenes across the Pizzaplex where showing something different: a lot of static. Some of the screens looked smeared, some of them were stuttering, looking back he could see some of the others were on standby.

"Uh, Tommy?"

"Yeah?... What?"

Tommy's tone changed the second he lifted his head and caught sight of the screens. He scooted forward and tossed the magazine aside onto the desk as he leaned in to look at the images. He looked around at all of the screens, his head snapping to each one as his fast was struck with shock. Abe scooted forward and typed on the keyboard, trying to use the hotkey he knew would usually reset the cameras. It did nothing. The screens were stuck like this.

He then watched as Tommy's eyes slowly narrowed and knew this wasn't going to go well.

After a few minutes of yanking and plugging in cords, pressing buttons, and all but smacking down on the keyboards, Abe found himself hustling after the shorter man as he strode out of the security office, across the atrium, and in the general direction of where he knew the technicians had been working. Abe could already tell that this wasn't going to go well, but he wasn't about to stay back alone in the office while a disaster unfolded.

They ended up meeting a small group of technicians at the elevator. Not all of them, but Chaz was present, and since he was the current head of the squad Tommy had a bone to pick with him specifically.

"What did you guys pull loose?" Tommy asked. Him barely holding back his frustration.

"The nastiest wire I've seen in a long time. It was like this thick around." Chaz held up his hands to show the exact width. "Probably left over from construction. Don't worry about it, it's done. The lights are staying on."

"Well, apparently they ain't, because you're going to shut them back off and plug that thing back in," Tommy instructed. All the technicians looked confused; Chaz included. That look was enough to pop Tommy's top. "The security footage is dead! Kaput! Totally fried!"

"What? How did that happen?"

"How'dya think?! You pulled some kinda wire and busted the whole system!"

"There's no way. The security system is nowhere near this thing," Chaz denied.

"Then what do you think it was?" Tommy challenged.

One of the other technicians, his name was something like Mack or Malcolm, spared a glance in Abe's direction.

"No, don't look at him. He didn't do nothin'," Tommy quickly shot down.

"Okay, look, it's late and we've already got to move some junk backstage before we can take off. I'll take a look at it tomorrow," Chaz tried to compromise, or dismiss.

"The problem-," Abe started.

"Tomorrow?! What about tonight?! We can't monitor the cameras like this!" Tommy interrupted.

"Then I guess you're going to have to use those things holding your feet to your ass and actually do some rounds," Chaz said. Now much more dismissing of them and a little annoyed himself.

Abe blinked at the comment. Tommy might've inwardly erupted.

"You expect the two of us to walk this whole building ourselves?! That ain't happenin'! It's a huge waste of time!"

"How come? If Vanessa can walk this place alone at night, then the two of you can," Chaz argued back. He gave an expressed sort of shrug. "And come on, the place is closed. It's not like there's going to be anyone running around in here. Just hang out in the atrium and watch if anyone comes through until Vanessa takes over around eleven-thirty. It's as easy as that!"

"Actually-," Abe started to interject.

"Actually, Genius, the place might be closed, but those front doors are still wide open. And how're we even supposed to know everyone left if we can't even see inside the attractions?! If we go walkin' down there, whoever's there could just hop up and haul off somewhere else!" Tommy quickly finished. "And that means getting up close and personal with the night patrol of a half dozen robots that won't stay in their sections and won't take orders! How'd you guys manage to screw that one up?! At this rate the whole lotta them's going to end up wandering into that trash compactor, the one that you STILL have running on a generator for some stupid reason! Not to mention the generators in kiddie area at the daycare- who in the hell thought THAT was a good idea?! You're the one always going on about how crazy Moondrop- or whatever the hell his name is- is and you're giving him full access to the ONLY way for someone to turn the lights on! What's with that?! Why do we even HAVE this many generators- and here you guys are screwing around with one fat cord thinking that's going to save the electricity crisis- the hell it is! Here's a clue for ya: the lights are always on. Even when we close, there's overhead lights on all over the place! What, did you forget to set the timers or did that get budget cut too? Not like THAT wouldn't cut back on the constant waste of power. Also, hello, the robots! The robots blow through charge 'cause they're still up and moving! I know you can set a sleep mode- you did it for the other ones! And now we've got a show with three robots and it sucks! This whole place sucks, why in the hell are we cutting corners like this?! Someone's gonna wind up dead, and it sure as hell ain't gonna be me, 'cause I ain't walkin' around in the dark!"

With that, Tommy finally cut off from his tirade. Everyone was staring at him, having silently watched the outburst without trying to interject.

Finally, Chaz was given the floor. It took him a second to recover from the whole thing, and after such a lengthy diatribe he had only one reply:

"Are you done?"

Tommy was nearly shaking with frustration.

"I'm about to be," Tommy said through his teeth. He then reached down to pull his security badge off his belt.

Only for Abe to suddenly catch on and grab his wrist right as he pulled it free. Tommy sent him a still heated look.

"Come on, let's not do this," Abe pleaded. He turned to address Chaz. "We know you're just doing your job and I know you don't want to get stuck here any longer than you have to, but we're trying to do ours too. We count on those cameras because it's just not safe to go running into attractions when we don't know who's in there. You know what it's like..."

It was a good plea because Chaz knew exactly what it was like. He exhaled slowly.

"…Yeah, I do. Tell you what, we'll head up there and take a look at it. Probably what happened was that shutting off the power caused the system to glitch out. No big deal, we can reset it. Can't promise we'll get the system back up tonight."

"That's okay. If you'll just see what you can do, we'd really appreciate it," Abe said with a small smile.

The security guards stepped out of the way and let the technicians pass by. After a moment Abe looked back to Tommy, who side-glanced back. His jaw was clenched, and he was likely biting his tongue to let the pacified technicians pass. It was the closest he could get to literally swallowing his pride. Abe was still staring; Tommy lifted a brow questioningly. Abe gestured down with his eyes, to which Tommy rolled his away and almost reluctantly slipped his badge back onto his belt.

"Let's go," he muttered. He strode after the technicians while waving for Abe to follow. Which he did, shoulders sinking in relief.

Meanwhile, the remaining technicians were still following the cord looking to find where it led. They had got to the fence and one of them started to get it open while another tugged at the wire, and it was then that he noticed something strange.

"You tried to pull it out, right?" he asked.

"I did already. It's stuck."

"Not anymore. Feel, it's just dangling."

He moved the cord around to show that even though still the same bulky size, it was moving around without much trouble. Signaling that it wasn't anchored nearly as much as it was when he saw it earlier.

Stunned, he simply said, "Let's pull it up." So, they did.

It didn't take too long to reel in the cord from the depths of the vent. The latter half smeared in black grime and slick to the touch.

The end had been crudely cut.

They shrugged it off and headed back upstairs. It wasn't worth dumpster diving in the basement for a few cents of overtime. As far as Fazbear Entertainment would be concerned, the job they wanted done was finished.

Chapter 60

Chapter Summary

It's Charlie's birthday! Between gift-giving and dealing with the very heavy repercussions of the day, will Charlie, Marionette, and Mike handle what it has to throw at them?

Chapter Notes

Time for someone's birthday!... About a month early, but close enough. XD Enjoy!

Charlie didn't remember what day it was until she almost tripped on the little wrapped box outside of her bedroom door. Nobody had mentioned it the day before, though considering the surprise of a gift that might've been the point. She picked up the gift and stepped back in to sit on her bed and open it. Inside a bed of wrinkled up tissue paper was a pocketknife. One of those ones with the faux-wooden body and two unfolding blades, one smaller than the other.

She knew exactly who it was from even before she saw the note. Though the note got a little laugh out of her.

"See you at the party. -Mike"

Only Mike could leave such a cryptic little tag behind. She eagerly folded the knife back up and slipped it into one of her upper pockets. She could already tell that was going to come in handy someday.

Then Charlie stepped out of her bedroom and started down the hall and into the living room. Almost immediately being blindsided by a black shadow around the corner before smacking into her, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Morning, Mari," she greeted knowingly.

"Good morning, Charlie! And happy birthday!" the Puppet chimed happily. He pulled back with a smile. "Are you ready for the party?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Charlie joked.

Marionette chimed a little and finally released her so she could make her was into the living room. She looked around to see that some of the little ones were around, Max as usual, Michael on the couch, but no sign of Mike.

"Where's Mike?" she asked.

"Out running. You just missed him," Marionette answered.

"It doesn't matter how far he runs, eventually he will wind up back here," Michael remarked. He was sitting on the couch but totally engrossed in his sketchbook, scribbling away even as he spoke.

Marionette gave a half-amused and half-dismissive little sound and wave, then made his way into the kitchen to get ready for the day. There would still be a workday ahead of her birthday party, which was fine with her. She was taking the day off and didn't mind waiting around a while before being pushed into a different kind of spotlight.

She sat down on the other side of the couch, catching a glimpse of Michael's sketch as she did. It was a halfway finished drawing of what looked to be Lilium. She hated interrupting him but spoke up.

"Think you could spare a moment for the birthday girl?"

"Charlie, I would always spare a moment for you. Unless my show's on, in which case you will have to wait like the rest of the world," he replied.

"So… two requests," she began. He glanced up and saw her tilted smile.

"Oh Lord, I know what one of them is," he wearily said.

"Come to the party with us?"

"Must I?"

"You don't have to… But I want you to," Charlie said, her voice edging a little closer to pleading.

He sighed. "Very well. The other request?"

"I decided on the body modification I want, if you and Ennard and Fritz are willing to help me get it," Charlie said.

This took him completely off guard. Possibly Max too as his eyes flickered over to them. Likely because it had been a while since she last brought up her ideas of editing her body, but she had still been thinking about them and made up her mind.

"I need feet."

That confused Michael even more. As far as he was aware, most of Charlie's brainstorming had been about cosmetic enhancements. This was a much bigger upgrade entirely.

"What made you decide on that?" he asked.

"I just thought about all the fun Baby and Jessica would have dressing me up. I never was one of those girls who was really into shoes, but I could learn!" Charlie joked. Then clarified, "Because I was thinking about it and I'm walking on these points with no protection. Eventually they're going to wear down and reach my endo underneath. They already feel a little rough at the ends." Charlie bent her leg and felt over the end. "Legs or not, this body wasn't built with walking in mind."

"That is a good point. Sooner or later, that would have to be addressed, but are you prepared for an alteration of that magnitude?" he asked seriously.

"Not really. But I'm also not prepared to be running one day and having the end of this casing tear," Charlie admitted. "This comes before how I look."

"I think it is a wise decision. Alright, we can pull Fritz and Ennard aside and discuss it later. Does Mari know?"

"Yes," Marionette called from the kitchen.

"I ran it by him and Mike last night and won them over, but I know they're worried about something going wrong."

"Anything can go wrong when we're talking of welding an ankle joint onto the end of a leg, but we can make this work. Just try not to rough yourself up anytime soon. This may take some time to plan out," Michael said.

Charlie smiled back. "Sure. Thank you for doing this."

"It's no trouble. At least it's in my field of work," he replied.

Seeing a moment free, Daisy walked around the end of the couch flanked by Rose and Forget-Me-Not and offered a handmade card up to Charlie.

"Aww! Thank you, girls," Charlie said appreciatively.

She opened it up to see they had drawn a picture of her holding a bouquet and surrounded by a frame of flowers. For a bunch of tiny dolls who acted like little girls, they drew surprisingly well. Alongside the picture was a little poem:

If birthday wishes were flowers, we would pick a dozen for you.
We would plant you a garden and water it too.
Until a dozen sweet peonies and sweet pea filled the flowerbed.
Then we would weave you a crown to wear on your head.

She wasn't sure if one of them wrote it, or all of them, or even if it was Jeremy, but she found it endearing and her smile spread.

"Oh, girls! It's beautiful. I love it, thank you," she said. She then slid down to the floor and gave them all a little group hug. Daisy and Rose eagerly hugged back while Forget-Me-Not gave her a cool little pat on the arm, always the rebel.

The moment was nearly interrupted by another card being stuck in Charlie's face.

"Now look at ours!" Button cried. Bow reaching over her shoulder to hold out her own as well. Plushtrap and Lilium soon appeared with there's.

All at once she was swarmed by a small group offering up birthday cards. She took it in stride and began to look at and appreciate them one at a time.

Meanwhile, Michael felt eyes on him and looked over his shoulder to see Marionette leaning over the back of the couch and looming over him with an eager smile. He sighed and looked back to his sketchpad.

"Yes, I'm going," he affirmed.

"And I'm glad to hear it! It's going to be a lot of fun."

"You better have hired a clown," Michael remarked, which got a laugh and chime out of Marionette. The rabbit smiled on the inside.

Mike didn't really take lunch breaks. Since the pizzeria was constantly going and it was important to have everyone working to their fullest at the busiest time of the day, 'lunch' came down to Mike grabbing a slice of pizza and eating it wherever he could. In the Prize Corner, in the corner of the dining room, while breaking up two kids fighting over tickets, and he didn't have a problem with it.

Today Mike was taking a real lunch break, and he was taking it to go visit Charlie's Aunt Jen.

It was always a risk to show up at Jen's, but Mike was thinking about her and felt obligated to at least check in on her. In case she was alone, in case today was hard. It was a surefire plan until he pulled up to the house and recognized another vehicle alongside Jen's.

That was Clay Burke's car.

Mike had half a mind to suddenly spin the car around and high tail it out of there. He considered it for a long moment, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel, and then finally pulled up behind them. He knew if he left that he would regret it later when he was mulling over how she was holding up. Besides, it wasn't like things were bad with Clay. They got along alright enough; it was just always incredibly awkward.

But he could tough it out. No doubt Clay would do the same if in his situation. He got out of his car, walked up to the front door, and knocked.

It wasn't long until Jen answered the door. Much to his relief, she looked a lot better since the last time he had seen her. He could tell she hadn't cried recently either and she welcomed him with a subdued smile.

"Mike, it's good to see you," she greeted. She opened the door for him. "Why don't you come in?"

He noticed that she didn't question why he was there, but he didn't ask. Instead returning the greeting and coming in, being led into the dining room. Clay was already seated with a glass of iced tea, of which Jen herself had one at her seat too. He seemed a little surprised to see Mike's arrival. Or maybe a little more confused than surprised, but he welcomed him too without question.

Mike briefly considered making a joke about following the detective's trail, but quickly decided this wasn't the time or place. He could pull it out at the party; he was counting on Clay being there.

Once they were settled in and he was holding his own glass of tea, Mike broached the conversation gently.

"How have things been going?"

"Better. This is just a hard day for me," Jen admitted. "But I've been getting out again. I think Charlie would've been happy to hear that."

"I'm sure she would," Mike agreed. He considered his words over a sip of tea before going for it. "…I'm going to be going to college at her university."

"I didn't know you enrolled," Clay said. There was a tone in his voice. Not of suspicion, not confused, but surprised. Not police chief surprised either, it was almost sounded fatherly in a way. The surprise of a father who could've never expected his son to enroll in college. "When do you start?"

"This fall. It's not going to be easy juggling it and the business, but I think I can manage. I've got Fritz and Jeremy offering to help take up the slack."

"You don't strike me as the type to take the easy road. You'll pull through, and you'll come out of it for the better. A diploma can open a lot of doors for you," Jen said. Her usually somber features still showing supportiveness. A far cry from the worst-case reaction he prepared himself for.

"How are you paying for it?" Clay asked, always the realist.

"Barely. I'll make it work. Like she said, it'll open doors for me. Or keep our doors open," Mike said.

"What are you planning to study?" Jen asked.

"Mechanical Engineering. It goes with the job."

The conversation continued for a while longer. In meandered around, usually sticking to lighter topics after that. Mostly a lot of small talk, save when Clay decided to drop the bombshell that his wife and him were going to couple's therapy. Which made Mike almost instantly feel awkward, but he covered it up well enough. The conversation cooled for a while, but eventually the heaviness returned with one specific topic.

"I'm not sure what to do about the house," Jen finally brought up. Her eyes down-casting before she looked out at the window at the barren land just past her garden. "I was having a hard enough time selling it before the twister hit. Now I'm going to have to do major repairs just to get it back on the market."

"I'm surprised there hasn't been offers for the land alone," Clay remarked.

"…There have been, but I don't want to sell it just to have it bulldozed," Jen admitted. Clay didn't expect this answer from his expression, and she gave a slight shrug. "Maybe I'm getting sentimental, but I just… Maybe if Charlie was still here, but she loved that house. I could go the rest of my life without stepping foot back into it but getting rid of it after she fought so hard for it… But now it's not as easy as selling it and moving on. Now I'm going to have to make a tough choice either way, and I'm not getting any younger."

Clay tightened his jaw and looked down into his glass of tea. The ice cubes melting and bobbing as he swirled them around. The room uncomfortably quiet and stuffy as those words hung overtop the table.

"…I'll take it off your hands."

She snapped her head back and her eyes to him. All it took was one look at his face to realize that it wasn't just an offer to appease her feelings. He was considering it.

"Clay, you can't do that."

"I can. I want to. Like you said, you're not going to be able to sell it in this state and you don't need the hassle of dealing with repairs. I have the means and the time to do."

"What about Betty? What's she going to say?"

"Let me worry about that. Let me do this for you, and Charlie."

It was clear from his voice to his gaze that he wasn't backing down on this, so Jen did. She smiled a small, solemn but thankful one. After a moment she reached forward to lay a hand on his, and in that moment, it looked like she may cry.

"Thank you. I'll give you the information of the realty. We'll have to go through there, but I don't see any reason we can't," she said. Her breath hitched briefly before she managed another, "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Jenny."

Meanwhile, Mike sitting there processing the information. In a matter of seconds Charlie's house went from being unsellable to demolition inevitable to suddenly in the hands of Clay Burke. All the while he just sat there and listened with not much reaction.

Until he realized that Charlie was going to be pretty happy with the results, then he smiled as well.

They stuck around for a while afterwards chatting. There was a change in Aunt Jen, and not just because of the relief of figuring out what to do about the house. Mike could tell just from how she was talking the whole time that things were better. She was still in mourning, but she was at a stage of recovery. She was somewhere bearable.

Finally, he dismissed himself to leave, and Clay decided to take his leave as well. Jen walked them to the door and said her goodbyes.

"Mike, don't be a stranger. You're welcome to come by whenever," she offered.

"I will. I'll try. Thing have just been a little busy," Mike said almost apologetically. A sharp contrast against the fact that he almost didn't come today.

"…Charlie would be proud of what you're doing. She always knew what she wanted and took it when she could. Seeing you do the same… it would make her happy. Don't ever think otherwise," Jen assured him. He gave a sad smile in return.

"Thank you, Jen. She'd be happy for you too. I'm sure she'd be worrying about you."

"Well… she doesn't have to worry about me anymore. I'm finally finding peace," Jen said. "…I know you loved her, Mike."

"I do," Mike agreed. Then he realized his mistake. "I mean…" He caught himself again, considered his words, and finally clarified. "I do."

Jen smiled at that. "I do too."

"Take care, Jen. I'll see you around."

"You too, Mike. Take care of yourself."

Though everything had been said, Mike felt strange as he wandered back to his car. As though the conversation was still hung in suspension, as though he needed to spin around and quickly add an addendum of some kind, even though he knew nothing was left to say. He got into his car and sat there for a moment before starting it up and turning around, losing himself in his thoughts as he did. He soon deciphered what was bothering him.

All the pain that woman had to go through, and it could all be alleviated by one confession. Was it fair to let Jen continue to mourn when it would be so easy to reintroduce her to Charlie and have her see that she was still alive? Mike wasn't sure. So many people had been able to accept this whole 'living animatronic' state easily enough, maybe drawing the line here wasn't right when even his own mother knew of Charlie's fate.

Though that wasn't Mike's decision to make. In the end it was Charlie's, so either way he started to drive away from the house. It wasn't something he would bring up to her on her birthday of all days, but maybe someday in the future.

Mike wasn't even back to the highway when he unexpectedly heard a slight honk behind him. He looked into his rearview mirrors just in time to see Clay put his lights on.

"What?" he asked out loud. To no answer, save Clay's lights remaining on. Mike's befuddlement slowly dropped into an 'are you serious?' look as he pulled over onto the side of the dirt road.

Clay turned his lights off as he got out of the car and began walking over. Mike started to roll down his window only to catch sight of Clay crossing behind his car through the rearview mirror and rolled it back up again. Clay let himself into the passenger's side door and sat in the seat before shutting the door behind him. They sat there quietly for a moment. Clay looked to Mike, who quirked a brow questioningly.

"Thanks for coming out here," Clay said, answering the unasked question.

"It's no problem. I wanted to check in."

"That's good. Jenny doesn't get too many visitors. I'm glad she's getting out, but it's good for her to know that she has us in case she doesn't," Clay said. "She cares about you."

"I noticed." Mike smiled a little. "And she barely knows me… Well, maybe it's because she barely knows me."

"Maybe she looks at you and sees Charlie," Clay said distantly. Something he immediately snapped out of. "Sorry, I was thinking out loud."

"Thinking the same thing I was… Have you ever thought about telling her?" Mike asked. His voice growing quieter as he did.

Clay inhaled deeply and shook his head.

"No… Jenny's not the kind of person who would take it well. Because it wouldn't just be that Charlie's still alive. It would be that Charlie's trapped in a form that limits her ability to live, that she would have to learn the truth about Freddy's, about Henry, about her father, it would be too much for her to bear. It is easier for her to handle Charlie's passing, even if it means Charlie must live without her."

Mike wanted to argue, but he knew in his gut from the look on his face and the sureness in his voice that Clay knew what he was talking about. That wasn't the only thing that backed it up either.

"I think Charlie understands that. She's never said she wanted to tell her."

They sat in the quiet for a long moment. Well, quiet except for the hum of the air conditioner running. The beating May sun could turn his car into a sweatbox in a matter of minutes, especially out in Silver Reef.

"Are you coming to the party?" Mike finally asked.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world."

"Planning on showing all of us up with your gift?" Mike asked with a small grin.

"I was thinking it might be best to keep this under wraps until the deal goes through. Just in case something comes up."

"On your end? Because I'm pretty sure Jen wants this thing done and over with as fast as possible."

"Red tape can show up anywhere. No end required," Clay replied. Which Mike didn't argue with.

They said their goodbyes and he got out and started around the back of the car. Mike was about to pull off when he noticed Clay coming back up the side of his car and rolling down the window, the older man leaning down.

"By the way, this is technically a thirty zone. You wouldn't know from the lack of signs, so I'll let you off with a warning."

Mike didn't know what was worse. The fact that he sounded exactly like a cop or that he smirked exactly like his dad used to.

Marionette had gotten plenty of help setting up for the party. Not only from who was already there either. Marla and Jessica had made it to Foxy's nearly minutes after they closed and helped as well. They put up extra balloons and streamers, pulled a few of the tables together and laid out fresh tablecloths and table toppers, and prepared a separate table for gifts. Marionette himself laid down the first gift and from that point onward it began to fill up with every arrival.

Scott arrived sooner than he had expected and brought Ennard, Baby, and Bonnet in tow. To which Ennard immediately got a little too into the party planning and the decorations doubled tenfold. Poor Marla probably had no clue that her enthusiasm was able to get over-thrown by an overeager clown, but she handled it like a champ. In contrast, Baby was rather quiet, unsettled. It took Marionette's coaxing to get her to set down the gift she had brought, which she had nearly been clinging to- likely the source of her trepidation.

Unfortunately, the moment she did, and right as Marionette was assuring her with a brotherly pat on the arm, Carlton decided to insert himself into the situation.

"Hey, Baby! I saw you at the fair. You were really good!" he chimed up.

"You did not," Baby said reflexively. She stared at him with slowly widening eyes as reality sunk in. "…You all saw, didn't you?"

"Sure. All twelve of me," Carlton quipped.

"Thank you, Carlton. That's very kind of you to say. If you're not too busy, would you mind trying to get the confetti bag away from Ennard I'd do it myself, but I've got my hands full and have no time for shenanigans," Marionette dismissed in a friendly tone.

Carlton caught on and gave a thumbs up before heading off. No doubt to be sucked into whatever plan Ennard had cooking up. Marionette then turned back to Baby.

"Don't be embarrassed. You put on a fantastic show on stage! You can't blame him for taking notice."

"I just hadn't considered that all of her friends might see it," Baby murmured.

She looked around at the group, noticing that they were all here. John was trying to help Mike move a table into the back- she didn't know why, but it was because it was wobbly, and they were moving it to be looked at later. Lamar was over keeping an eye on assumedly Marla's brother who was playing a two-person game with a little blond girl, Jason and Chrissy respectively. Carlton was now as stuck with Ennard as Marla was while Jessica looked on in mild amusement.

Jessica looked as perfect as she had the night Baby met her, which stirred up an amount of self-consciousness and jealousy that was so noticeable that Baby was able to put it back into check. Jessica wasn't a rival for Charlie's friendship; she had to share.

"…Jessica's here, I see," Baby remarked, disguising her inner thoughts with an aloof tone. "You should keep a close eye on her. Ennard's going to try and set her up with Michael."

Marionette let that thought roll over him. Charlie's dear friend Jessica, a smart and sophisticated young woman with a mind as open as her heart, and Michael, who they nearly had to forcibly roll off the couch to agree to come to this party.

"…I'll keep an eye on that."

For a while, things continued like normal. Jeremy brought his mini-matronics to the pizzeria where they immediately began to run the place like they owned it. Somehow this was still a nice addition, giving the place a true birthday party feel.

But they weren't the only ones Jeremy brought. Marionette didn't notice at first, but Michael was standing off in the hallway, secluding himself for as long as he could. The Puppet discretely greeted his brother and then gave his distance, as to not encourage him to bolt out the back door- which was likely why he was hanging out beside it. Though it wasn't long before Scott paused his conversation with Clay long enough to point him out to Ennard who dropped everything and went to find him.

Ennard saw Michael haunting the hallway and practically lit up. "Hey, Bunny Buddy! I didn't think you'd show up!" He hustled over and pulled him into a hug, then drew back into a one-armed one. "Whoa, you smell like the whole forest today."

"Yes, well… I knew people would be eating," Michael mumbled.

"Ha ha, good! And good timing, because I've got someone I'd like you to meet," Ennard invited. He tried to pull the rabbit along, but Michael caught that tone and decided to stay rooted where he was.

"Let's put a pin in that for now and take a look at this," he quickly changed the subject. He held the sketchbook out for the clown to see his designs, to which he took instant interest in.

"Ooo, and this is…?"

"This is Charlie's late birthday present," Michael revealed. He traced the design of the possible ankle joint with his pencil. "And the fix of her only design flaw."

Ennard's eyes literally did glow in intrigue at such a suggestion. The job laid out before him stealing his full attention. "Oh, we can do that."

"We can do anything with enough parts, but we only have one shot and limited supplies. So, we need to make it work," Michael instructed.

Ennard hummed and both looked down at the sketchbook. Ennard's fingers tapped on his shoulder pensively, slowly, and then rolled one last time before he looked up at the bunny.

"…You want to come meet Jessica?" he asked excitedly.

"No."

But he wasn't the last to arrive. Natalie brought Chance in closer to go time. He helped hold open the backdoor for her as she carried in a big box, then proceeded to stop and stare at Michael for a long moment. Michael refused to look up, but Ennard matched the gaze and with his permanent grin seemed to challenge the black bear to do something. He didn't though and whatever was going through his mind was a mystery. Natalie's goading broke up the moment.

Though unlike Michael, Chance was surprisingly a little more social. He still parked himself off to the side, but he would engage with anyone who approached. Fritz did at first to bring him up to speed, then he briefly got in a conversation with Lamar when he walked over to watch the kids playing their game. They were uneased by him at first and his occasional cough but warmed up soon enough.

Once he was alone, Marionette decided it was only polite to approach and greet him.

"Evening, Chance. Thank you for coming. Charlie will really appreciate it," he said with a warm smile.

"Anything for that kid," Chance said. "But if it's alright with everyone, I'll be keeping to myself most of the night."

"Of course. Don't feel pressured to mingle, there's plenty of people to distract themselves," Marionette offered.

Chance nodded and looked around at the people. The lid lowered on his one good eye, and if the Puppet didn't know better it seemed to be a somber look. He tried to not look at the other eye, it tended to make his head buzz.

"Are you alright, Chance?" he asked gently.

"I'm just thinking. About birthdays, about today… About family and things," Chance said vaguely. That gave one possible clue.

"…About… Sammy?" Marionette dared to guess.

"How'd you figure it out?" Chance asked tiredly.

"It was a lucky guess."

"Don't tell Charlie that I'm sulking because of him. This is supposed to be her day. She's getting a chance to have a birthday after her day of death. People don't get chances like that, and I don't want to start planting ideas about Sammy in her head," he insisted. Though his firm tone faltered once more. "But I'm thinking about him. Where he is, what he's doing. If he's even still here… Have you got any leads?"

"We have a few…" Marionette said vaguely. "There are possessed animatronics at the Pizzaplex and at least one of them doesn't seem to recall who he is, so… We'll find him eventually. If we don't, we'll know he's moved on."

"…It's strange. I don't know whether to hope he's beyond this or hope he's still here so I can see him one last time," Chance admitted. "…But I suppose either would be better than never knowing."

This was a bad conversation to have, Marionette realized quickly. Conversations like this often led him to doing rash things he hadn't thought through yet. He suppressed it for the moment with the knowledge it would crawl back up.

But before anything could come of it then, Mike breezed in and laid a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

"I'm going to go pick up Charlie," he said. Marionette smiled and nodded, and Mike slid his arm around him and into a quick hug before going. Just from that motion alone he realized he had been watching. "Want to come with me?"

"No, you go ahead. It will give me a few more minutes to finish things," he said. Assuring him that he didn't need the out but appreciating the offer.

It did give him reason to excuse himself from Chance without him finding it suspicious. Though likely he wouldn't either way. It was just Marionette overthinking it, like he would continue doing so sporadically for the rest of the day.

It didn't take long for Mike to drive back home and pick up Charlie. Much to his amusement she had decided to wear her El Chip's Fiesta shirt under her jacket- to get in the 'party mood' as she put it. She was somewhere between excited and anxious, leaning mostly towards the former and feeling the tenseness of a ring constantly pressing in her chest. Like at any moment she might say something a little too loudly and have a jingle fall out with it. Which only intensified as they drove up.

The feeling nearly doubled as they walked in through the backdoor into a remarkably quiet and dark hallway. She knew what was coming just as well as Mike did, her leading the way down the hall as he followed with an anticipatory smile.

The moment Charlie stepped into the room the lights were flicked on and a chorus of voices called out.

"SURPRISE!" Along with a few variations or additions of, "Happy Birthday, Charlie!"

Charlie's face broke into a grin and there came the jingling without any chance of controlling it. "Aww, you guys!"

Marla made it to her first and pulled her into a tight squeeze, which Charlie returned. She only pulled back to give Jessica a chance. Baby started to roll in closer, but hesitation had her keep her distance, while Marionette popped up alongside Mike behind her, welcoming her with a quicker hug from behind.

From that point Charlie was basically just whisked away into a sea of voices and friends. Going with where the tide took her, which landed her in a seat at the head of the party table. Some of the others took seats around it but a majority of them were kind of just standing or sitting wherever they could manage. It was crowded in a remarkably pleasant way. For someone like Michael it was stifling, explaining why he kept as far out of it as possible, but for Charlie it was exhilarating.

Charlie wasn't exactly the type to reveal in being the center of attention. In fact, she had become flustered and self-conscious by such in the past, but being surrounded by so many friends and family members that were there for her made her feel almost giddy. Loved.

In that moment it felt like something that had been missing inside of her had been fulfilled.

That was even before the cake had been brought out. To which there was a cake, even though only a fraction of the partygoers could eat it. It was more the design and ceremony aspect that mattered. Which did hold up as it was a beautiful cake.

The cake was chocolate with vanilla icing. With wavy green stripes around the sides of the cake and the top ringed with little dollops of green, yellow, and orange which were topped with multicolored sprinkles. 'Happy Birthday, Charlie!' was written out in cursive in bright green frosting in the center. It was surrounded by a ring of birthday candles that was only broken by a two and zero candle at the top above the message.

The most unexpected request of the evening way when Chance sort of cornered himself at the kitchen door and silently confiscated the cake before Tabby could bring it out, much to the woman's relatively lukewarm confusion. Much to the immediate horror of anyone who realized that a bear with a semi-clumsy grip and a microphone in one hand was now carrying the birthday over by himself. Yet somehow, somehow, he pulled it off. As the lights were dimmed, he set down the cake in front of her.

She was one of the most surprised by him bringing the cake and looked up at him. To which he gave a stiff little pet to the top of her head.

"Happy Birthday, Kiddo."

Charlie wasn't sure why such a simple gesture made her feel like she could cry. She wasn't even sure how he could put aside so many of his feelings to act as though they weren't what they were. But he did, and she smiled without tears.

"Thanks, Grandpa."

It felt like Marionette's heart was clamping in a vice. Or more likely, his comb was getting stressed by the tension in his music box. Seeing the scene hurt, and the nostalgic glow of the candlelight wasn't helping matters. He too kept smiling until the feeling passed.

Charlie made her wish on those candles before waving out the flames. She wished for more birthdays like this, the first thing she could think of on the spot. In hindsight, it was a pretty good choice, and she smiled as she watched the cake get cut and divvied up.

The party settled into a casual buzz for a while after that. Considering that there was a good chunk of people in the room who couldn't stand each other, somehow they managed to keep far enough away that nothing came of it.

Eventually Marionette got the ball rolling again with a casually suggested, "Let's do gifts." Not even loud enough for everyone to hear, but picked up by those at the table and ran with. He pushed up and off his chair and headed to the gift table.

"Have her open this one first," Natalie suggested, moving a few gifts to uncover a larger giftbox wrapped with cloud and balloon themed paper. "Sunny dropped it off at my office last night, so it's likely from him and Jake, maybe Freddy too."

Marionette gave an agreeing, cheerful chime before picking it up. It was a little heavy, but he couldn't judge what was inside it from that alone. He carried it to the table and set it down in front of Charlie.

"This is from Sunny and Jake," he introduced.

Charlie was a little surprised they had gotten her a gift at all, but she eagerly pulled back the wrapping paper to see what was hiding underneath. She then used her new pocketknife to cut open the box on the inside, happily flashing it off to her friends before continuing to get the box open. Inside she was surprised to see a bunch of weirdly shaped small gifts tucked inside of a bed of tissue paper.

On top laid an envelope labelled 'Happy Birthday!' with a couple of sun, cloud, and smiley stickers. She pulled that out first and opened it up- it was closed with a sticker of a cartoon Sunny's face- and pulled out the card. Surprisingly, the card itself did not have Sun or Moon on it and instead was decorated with a towering birthday cake on the front. It read: "I got you a layer for every year!" On the inside was imprinted: "Hey, it's your Sweet Tooth's birthday too. Happy Birthday!"

Above and below the simple message were two entries with distinct handwriting, one by Jake and one by Sunny.

The above one read: "To Charlie: we know you like getting hands-on so we got you a gift you could put together yourself. Happy Birthday!"

The bottom read: "Happy Birthday, Jingle Bell! I hope this little guy brightens up your life as much as you brighten up ours!"

"Huh," Charlie said.

She set the card aside and picked up a present from the center top. It was mostly rounded in shape and a little weighty. It felt like it could've been made of some kind of metal, so her immediate guess was that they gave her a toy or statue that she could put together.

She was almost right, as she realized when she peeled back the wrapping paper and saw two dark eye sockets staring back at her. It was almost a little unsettling, like she was holding a skull. Jessica, who was seated to the right, shot her eyebrows up at it.

Charlie quickly finished unwrapping the object and realized it was a white head with pink circular cheeks and the upper half of a purple mouth with a little black nose. There were slots for ears, a hole on the top of its head for something to screw in, and the empty eye sockets. It was an entirely disassembled little animatronic from the looks and size of it.

"I think it's a Freddy. The shape sort of fits and I think this screw on the top is for a hat," Charlie said, turning the head over in her hands.

"That's definitely a Freddy!" Marionette agreed. He leaned over her, hands resting on the table beside her. "How peculiar! I didn't see anything like this at the Prize Counter. I wonder where they found it."

"Probably at our house," Mike quipped under his breath. Jeremy grinned from beside him.

"Did they wrap every individual piece?" Jessica asked in disbelief. She pinched a small gift between her fingers and lifted it out of the box before realizing from the shape that it was likely an ear. "Okay, yes. Yes, they did."

"Sunny's got a little too much time on his hands," Charlie joked.

"But not enough to put it together himself," John playfully added on.

While this conversation was going on, Ennard migrated his way around the table and alongside Baby. He gave her a little tap on the shoulder.

"Get your gift," Ennard whispered out of the corner of his mouth to Baby. Baby, who had been standing stiffly beside the table with her hand and claw resting before her, caught on and silently rolled off to do so.

While she did that, Charlie managed to find a differently wrapped gift hidden in the corner of the box. This one orange with lightning bolt shaped patterns on it and a blue ribbon. There was a matching blue envelope carefully taped to the side, which Charlie removed and opened up to revealed yet another birthday card. This one showing the Glamrock band posed to perform on a neon blue background, all in eager poses. It read: "Rock out on your birthday…" Opening it up revealed the second half: "Because that day a star was born!"

Like with Jake and Sunny's card, Freddy and Gregory had both signed it. Though they signed it underneath the wording.

"Here are birthday wishes from Gregory and Freddy Fazbear! I hope you have a super-cool day, birthday girl!" was signed with an autograph quality 'Freddy' following it.

Gregory's was less flashy but more telling: "Happy birthday! Freddy let me pick it out and I got you the cool one!"

With that promise, Charlie tore away the wrapped to reveal a box advertising a plasma ball on a lightning bolt shaped black stand. She had to admit it did look cool, and she was about to cut it open when Baby rolled up to the table with her gift. Marionette moved aside so she could take his place and Charlie moved the box of parts onto the floor beside her, turning her full attention to the clown and her multi-color dotted gift.

"This is from Scott, Ennard, and I," Baby introduced. Though from the fact that she introduced it alone and Ennard wasn't chiming in with any comments, Charlie had a hunch maybe she was the one who had chosen the gift.

Charlie thanked her and was eager to start peeling away the wrapping paper. Anticipatory anxiety balling up around her music box got her to start talking, "Any hints?"

"Every woman should have an accessory that matches them," Baby said coyly.

That almost cleared things up. Now Charlie was thinking it was going to be a purse or a handbag, something she had never really gotten into the habit of using but could've been useful. That is, Baby would know that she carried everything in her jacket, and she was also the one who was always flipping through magazines rife with handbags and other accessories, so it all fit that that was what she got her.

Charlie wasn't exactly sure how she would feel trying to carry a purse around, but she trusted that Baby would've picked out something sleek and elegant.

Or she thought that until she pulled back the tissue paper and saw what looked like a bright yellow plastic carrying case.

"Apologies about the color, but I knew you would care more about what's on the inside."

With that coaxing, Charlie reached in to pick the case up and out of the box, only now realizing the weightiness to it, and set it down on the table after pushing the box back and having it taken away. She unlatched the case and opened it up.

It was a soldering gun. The whole package with everything it needed tucked carefully alongside it. The full kit. Charlie audibly gasped at the sight of it.

"Whoa- Baby!"

"Do you like it?" Baby asked. Her voice hopeful, as though her reaction alone didn't give it away.

"Like it?! I love-!" Charlie paused momentarily to consider before getting up from her seat. "I love it! Thank you!" she enthused as she pulled Baby into a hug.

Baby gave the quietest squeak. So quiet that Charlie couldn't tell if it was from her speaker or a joint from her hugging too hard. After a hesitation, Baby hugged her back with her good arm.

"What is it?" Marla asked, leaning forward on the table to try to see.

"It's a soldering gun!" Ennard chimed in. "Basically, the thing that burns other things together."

"Ben, my God. You couldn't have been more vague if you compared it to a real gun," Michael muttered beside him.

"Where'd you get it? Stan's?" Fritz quietly asked Scott.

"Smiles and Servos."

Fritz hissed sympathetically. "That must've cost a fortune."

"Nah, we got the friend discount because I know the owner."

"How's Jack doing? It's still Jack, right?" Chance asked from behind them, making Scott jump a little.

"He's okay. He's, uh… He lost his two front teeth in a boating accident. So, he's got a little bit of a lisp now."

"Yeah, that sounds about right."

With all this going on, Baby tapped Charlie on the back.

"That's enough. They might start to get ideas," she warned.

"That what, I like my gift?" Charlie joked back. She did finally pull back though. "Which I do. I love it, and I'm going to use it so much you're going to have to get me another one next year."

Baby gave a little scoff and lightly shoved her shoulder to nudge her back down into her chair. She then watched and reveled in Charlie eagerly taking out the soldering gun to look it over. No putting on appearances, she genuinely liked the gift. Baby, who was very in control of her image, could barely contain her giddiness but did so to keep up appearances. Especially when it took Charlie a while to move on from it, mind already lighting up for what she could do with it.

Though this wasn't the only 'accessory' she got. Shortly after that, Chrissy got Marionette's attention with a little tap of her own and he accompanied her to get Charlie her gift. Like she had gotten for Marionette's last birthday, it was a large, pretty ribbon to make a bow out of. This one a satin pink color. Charlie knelt for her so she could tie it just above the bell at the end of her prong. Both showing it off and showing off her improving bow tying skills.

More gifts were exchanged. Jeremy had gotten her a video game, some sort of sci-fi platformer that she was genuinely intrigued with, and Lamar had gotten her fancy looking leather-bound journal. Slowly the gift pile was diminishing behind them. Mike half-expected Clay to whip out the information about the house, especially once he caved and pulled up a chair to sit down, but he didn't. He couldn't risk having to take it back later.

"Okay, so, uh… John. You want to go?" Marla offered. He quirked a brow but went along with it. He inhaled deeply and reached into his jacket pocket.

Baby caught one sight of the flat jewelry box he pulled out and could just feel her claw starting to clench. She wasn't sure if she wanted to role her eyes or panic.

"He got her jewelry. Of course," she thought. Scoffing inwardly at the thought. "And after she said she just wanted to be friends. What is he thinking?"

He came over to Charlie's opposite side with a slightly goofy smile on his face, which looked like it was perhaps turning the slightest bit pink unless she was imagining it.

"Maybe he's trying to win her back. A big grand gesture to leave her swooning," Baby considered. She swallowed back down that thought instantly. "Don't be stupid! And don't be jealous. I don't own Charlie. We're not even going steady. If he wants to try to double-down and get her back then he can go right ahead," she corrected herself. She sent a less than impressed glance down at the box. "…But he will have to try much harder than that, hmm?"

He handed the box to Charlie to which he thanked him. She was a little slow in opening it- Baby noticed, she was watching like a hawk- but she opened the lid and revealed what was hiding inside. It was a bracelet.

Though instead of a gold or silver bracelet studded with gems or other shimmery delights, it was a leather bracelet. It was comprised of a few woven strands that braided together and topped with a few turquoise beads and a bronze tree shaped charm.

"Oh no," Baby considered. "It's sentimental."

"Oh wow. This is beautiful," Charlie said. She lifted it in her fingers to study the charm.

"I know you were never big on jewelry, but I saw it and it made me think of you. It looked like something you might wear," John offered.

"A tree?" Charlie asked. There seemed to be almost a knowing tone in her voice.

"It's the tree of life," John clarified, rubbing the back of his neck as he did. That pinkish hue now a little more apparent. "You don't have to put it on."

"I want to! Here, let me just… Do you mind-?"

"I've got it."

John helped Charlie put it on. It was able to be tightened all the way to fit her slender wrist, with some beads dangling below and the bronze tree above her wrist like a clockface. She admired it before looking up to him with an appreciative smile.

"I love it, John. Thank you."

"Don't mention it," John replied.

"That looks really good on you," Jessica complimented. "You would think that the brown and black would clash, but that's just a dark enough shade that it still works. And bronze was a good choice with the material."

"What do you think, Baby?" Charlie invited her in.

"I think it looks lovely on you," Baby agreed. She then made a bold move. "And so does this-." She reached up and gently flicked Charlie's bell with a soft ting.

"Hey, quit it!" Charlie laughed.

Baby chuckled a little in her chest and rested her hand on the back of Charlie's seat.

Then she looked up and met John's gaze heads on and stared him down for a few very long seconds. John seemed surprised, then uneased, and then finally broke eye contact when Jessica started talking and looked away.

Baby wasn't jealous, she was just meeting the competition head on.

That being said, Charlie did continue wearing the bracelet, so she must've liked it to some degree. There was some sort of inside joke about a tree, but she could probably ask later. Once she could figure out a way to ask without it sounding prying or needy.

Eventually they got to the final gifts of the evening. Marla had a gift that she was so excited about that she kept hinting to it, but wherever it was it wasn't on the table. The only thing left on the table was the gift Marionette put there himself. He carried it to the table and set it out in front of Charlie. A flat box wrapped in simple white paper and tied with a red ribbon- a Freddy classic and a Foxy current.

"This one was a collaborative effort," Marionette offered. He looked to Jessica who smiled, lifting her cheek from her hand to raise it in admission.

"You two got a gift together? Now I'm curious," Charlie said. She began to draw the paper away as Marionette stood between her and Jessica, his fingers laced in anticipation as he waited for her to get the box open.

She lifted the lid and was nearly struck silent at the folded-up jacket peeking up from the box. She lifted it out and quickly noticed the similarities between it and the one she was wearing. The pockets, the hood, even the material felt very close to the real thing.

The notable difference being the coloring. Instead of dark green, the jacket was black with white accents. The flaps of the pockets were white, the bottom edge and cuffs of the sleeves were white, there were white stripes around where the elbow would be, and even the hood was white. The hood was bigger too, with an opening in the back. Clearly so she could put her prong through, but also big enough that she didn't have to. The only clash from the black and white color scheme being a horizontal green stripe around the waist.

"It's my… it looks just like my jacket," Charlie said in shock. She folded it open in her hands and studied the details closer. "It does! It looks just like my jacket! I can't believe this! How did you get this?!"

"Same place that did mine," Foxy chimed in. "And it was my idea to getcha a uniform, so count me in on that collaboration."

"You see, the only problem with your jacket is that you haven't been able to wear it into work. So, I wanted to get you one that you could. It's not a replacement! Just something that we knew would be you."

"And we knew the only way we were ever getting you out of that jacket was to get one exactly like it and pull the whole switcharoo," Jessica said with a wink.

"It's perfect! I'm going to try it on right now," Charlie gushed. She slid off her jacket- Baby offered up her hand and Charlie gave it to her- and slid the new one on. It was sized slightly differently and not as well-worn, but it was comfortable. It was nice. "I can't believe it, but it really is perfect. It fits great!"

Marionette gave a delighted chime. "Perfect! Now, don't feel pressured to wear it-."

"No pressure, I'm wearing this all the time," Charlie proclaimed. Hands on her hips, she looked down at the jacket with a wide grin. "How's it look on me?"

"It looks like it was made for you," Mike quipped. "Seriously though, it looks great."

"Ya see, Mari, I told ya to get one too. He blew off the idea like a foul wind. Money 'an all that," Foxy remarked to Jeremy.

"Because we've been making bank since Freddy's opened up," Fritz sarcastically agreed.

"We've been making more this month than last month. 'Bout time he stopped runnin' around naked."

"Aren't your pants painted on?" Mike asked.

"Of course ye'd be against it," Foxy retorted.

"There's kids here," Jeremy warned. "I should know. Most of them are mine."

"What else is in here?" Charlie asked. She had been so swept up by the jacket that she noticed there had been something folded underneath it and partially hidden under tissue paper. She started to peel it back to see what almost looked like a sleeveless something, long enough to be folded over itself. Marionette quickly crinkled the paper back down.

"Oh, you can look at that later. That's just a bonus," he waved off.

"Mari, was that a dress?" Charlie asked in befuddlement.

Marionette was silent with his static smile. Charlie looked to Jessica questioningly.

"Don't look at me," she declined.

Charlie looked back to Marionette to see a much more sheepish smile on his face.

"For special occasions! Like parties or… funerals," he attempted to assuage.

"Are funerals special occasions?" Charlie asked, amused.

"It depends on if we get to take the guest of honor home with us," Mike remarked. This got some funny looks. "Okay, yes. That's a little dark. But there's a big difference between a death and an extended afterlife."

"Aye. Ye might get a new crewmate out of it," Foxy chimed in.

"You two are singlehandedly killing this party," Max called from under the table somewhere.

With the distraction of that awkward conversation, Marionette hastily brushed up the box and closed it back up.

"W-Well, don't worry about it! It was just an impulse buy. I certainly wasn't trying to push you into anything," he fumbled out.

"No, wait. I didn't say I didn't want it," Charlie interjected.

Marionette looked utterly surprised by this, still clutching the box to his chest. She reached out for it and he handed it back over, and she lifted the lid to peek in again.

"I mean, I can't say I'll ever wear it, but… hey, you know, why not? Maybe someday," Charlie said with a shrug. She closed the box and held it under her arm. "Thank you, Mari. For them both."

Marionette trilled happily. "You're very welcome, Charlie."

"You too, Jess."

"Don't mention it," Jessica replied.

"That was the last gift, right? Okay, then it's time for the big surprise!" Marla announced. Carlton backed her up with a little drumroll on the table with his fingers. "We rented a cabin and we're whisking you away for the weekend."

"Because the best gift we can offer is getting you away from this place," Carlton joked. He sat there a moment before adding, "Just kidding, Boss."

"No, you're not," Mike remarked.

"It's okay, Carlton. We won't fire you. We'll just break your spirit through manual labor," Fritz joked. He then winced and turned away, muttering to Scott as he did, "And I probably shouldn't have said that in front of his dad."

"Oh no, don't worry. Clay's familiar with the Freddy's work ethic," Scott half-joked. Though it sounded tired enough to be fully true.

Though all that was ignored at the center of the party, by Charlie herself. The idea of going away for a weekend somewhere that wasn't just Scott's and with her old friends was both exciting and immediately panicking inducing.

"What do you say?"

Jessica looked on-board and John had a smile only a shade off the one he gave when he was handing over his gift. It felt like everyone was waiting for her answer, so she didn't even give herself time to think.

"Sounds good! I'm in."

She could think it over later- and she had a couple of days to do so- but for now, she wanted to keep the party going for as long as she could. She wasn't alone, she was surrounded and loved, and she felt more alive than she ever had on this day.

It was the best birthday she had ever had.

Chapter 61

Chapter Summary

It's time for Charlie's weekend with friends, but she's in for a surprise that she's not expecting. As is Chance, who gets an unexpected visit from Marionette...

Charlie was a lot more nervous now than when she agreed to go two days ago. Which she almost convinced herself was irrational because there weren't even going to be half the number of people as were at the party. But she couldn't fool herself; this was going to be the longest she had spent only with her friends in years. Technically, in ever, since the only one she really shared a room with was Jessica. So, it wasn't just a puppet thing this time.

Yet she wanted to see it through. So, she packed her things and waited for Jessica to come pick her up. She decided to wear her new jacket. She had worn it for work the day before, but she also wanted Jessica to see her wearing it and know she liked it, as opposed to going back to old faithful green who she had shoved in her bag. She briefly considered the safety blanket nature of the jacket, but then shrugged it off because the pockets were useful.

She also brought one of the gaming consoles. It took a while of convincing to get Mike to agree to part with it for even two days, but he finally agreed and helped her pack it up. It was almost funny how he didn't have a problem with a bunch of little toys running around it most of the day but the second it was at risk of leaving the house he became wary. Though he didn't put up enough of a fight to make her feel too bad about taking it.

It was sort of a backup in case things got too awkward or boring. She could just plug in a game and there would be an instant distraction. That was a win-win in a scenario where she was worried the two days would drag on forever.

She waited at the dining room table until she heard a car outside and peeked out to see Jessica's car pulling up.

"That's her!" she called as she scooted back her chair and got to her feet. Pulling on her bag with one arm and grabbing a rolled blanket out of the other seat with the other. She unrolled it in one smooth motion.

"I could come with you if it would make you more comfortable," Marionette offered, sitting across the table and propping his chin on his hand. "It would take the attention off you to have a complete stranger there, and you know I'm great at board games."

"I think I'm good, thanks," Charlie said. Though she then thought about it before looking to him questioningly. "Unless you want to come…?"

"Oh, no! No, no, no! I'm fine here. I wouldn't encroach on your bonding time," Marionette quickly denied. Maybe a little too quickly to not notice. "If I wanted to go visit friends, I could surely scare up a few."

"Are you sure? I don't think the guys would mind an extra person," Charlie offered with a knowing smile.

"I'm positively certain! You go have a fun weekend and don't worry about me," he waved off with his own smile. He couldn't intrude, he wouldn't. Even if he would love to.

"Okay, but if you change your mind the door's always open. Just call Jess and she can give Mike directions to the cabin to drop you off. Or he can stick around too if he wants! They're not just my friends. They'd love to have you guys there too."

While Marionette wasn't quite sure of that, he chimed happily at the offer. "Well, thank you! Who knows, perhaps we'll get a crazy impulse and drop in at midnight."

Before Charlie could react to the weird edge in his voice, somewhere between teasing and sneaky, there was a knock on the door. She turned and unlocked it, opening for Jessica to poke her head in.

"Well, come on, Grandma. Let's get this show on the road," she joked.

Charlie defiantly threw the blanket over her shoulders and backpack, bunching it up, hunching over, and wobbled out in the most geriatric-ly accurate way possible.

"My eyes aren't what they used to be, Dearie, so I'm going to have to take your arm," Charlie said, mimicking a granny voice. She hooked her arm around Jessica's. "There's a good girl."

"You're so weird," Jessica scoffed fondly.

"You two have a good time! Don't leave any garbage out," Mike called as he came into the kitchen. His hair still damp and tussled from his post-run shower.

"We won't!" Charlie agreed.

"Don't worry, we're going to take good care of her," Jessica confidently assured.

"Have fun, you two!" Marionette encouraged as he waved them out the door.

"We will! And remember what we talked about!" Charlie called back. Then she and Jessica hustled out to the car as he shut the door behind them.

"What did you talk about?" Mike asked curiously.

"Oh, not much. Charlie offered for me to come along. Said I could drop in if I changed my mind," Marionette brought him up to speed. He went over to the window and peeked around the curtain, making sure that Charlie got into the car safely. "But I already have plans for tonight…" he said cryptically. He watched them drive off before closing the curtain and turning to face Mike who had walked up behind him. He had an understandably confused look at the mysterious wording.

"Tonight, I'm going to go talk to Chance," Marionette answered.

"Uh oh." Just from that tone alone, Mike knew it wasn't going to be a friendly chat. "About Sammy?" he guessed.

"About my suspicions about him, yes," the puppet agreed.

Mike had a suspicion this was going to happen. The night of Charlie's birthday party, after they had gotten home, Marionette had mentioned his brief conversation with Chance and had clearly been shaken by it if he was still thinking about it. Though after a couple of days without further acting, Mike himself had almost forgot about it. But not Marionette; he knew that he thought about things a lot longer than that, and he could conceal those thoughts for a while before they made their second appearance.

"Do you want me to come with you? I can be quiet. Just there for moral support," Mike offered. Basically promising that he wouldn't pick any sort of a fight with Chance in a few short words, even if his reaction was as bad as they were expecting.

"No thank you. I think it would be better if I approached him alone. I'll be fine, but… Do you think… maybe you could convince Fritz and Natalie to go out to dinner with you? Maybe? I know asking this so suddenly is a big ask… maybe you could invite them over here?"

"Get rid of them so you can have a loud talk," Mike guessed with a slight smile.

Marionette returned it. "I hope it doesn't get to that, but… Yes, that."

"Sure. It's about time we went out and did something that wasn't breaking in entering. I'll talk to them at Foxy's. Maybe I can get Jeremy to tag along too."

The Puppet gave a happy but still slight nervous sounding chime, and Mike pulled him in to kiss him on his porcelain cheek. A silent assurance that it was going to be alright, even when both knew it was likely going to be a disaster.

…

"I wish I had friends like Charlie did," Marionette murmured.

"What do you mean? You have friends," Mike pointed out. "Strange, potentially dangerous friends, but they're still friends."

"Oh, I know. And I consider us friends too still, even if we're a bit more than that," Marionette said coyly, flashing Mike a little grin before it settled into a slightly wistful one. "I suppose it's just… I feel strange myself around my friends. Not like I'm out of place or that they are, but that there is some ever-present barrier always between us. Like… Like I never really got out of feeling like a protector for everyone, and it really gets in the way of being on equal ground."

"I never knew you felt that way," Mike said.

"I never felt it with you. I mean, I consider myself your protector now, but by time I started to protect you, you were returning the favor. And I suppose it's not fair to put that label on everyone else, save maybe Jeremy, Fritz, and Charlie, or my siblings, but it's… it's just that I sometimes envy the little group of lifelong friends Charlie has. I wish I could have that without all of my strings attached."

"I know what you mean. Fritz and Jeremy are my best friends- other than you- and I'm not going to downplay that for a second. But like that time I hung out with those collage kids when we were out camping, there's a totally different vibe when you're just one in a group just looking to have a good time. Especially if they don't know anything about you and just want to hang out. No strings attached."

"Mm-hm," Marionette hummed in agreement. He understood that exactly. "It's getting on summer break, isn't it? Why don't you call them up?"

That caught Mike by surprise and a brow shot up. "How's that going to fix your problem? Unless you're going to shadow me again." The shift in his voice suggested that he didn't mind the idea.

"Oh, I might, but I meant more for you than me," Marionette encouraged.

"…You know, I think I might. But not tonight… I already have plans for tonight," Mike said in the same cryptic way Marionette had, then sent him a sidelong smirk.

"You see, this is why we're no longer friends."

"You love me," Mike grinned. Marionette matched it.

"I know, and that's why we're no longer friends."

That deserved a kiss on the lips at least.

The cabin was a bit of a drive away. They at least had to drive past New Harmony and near Cedar City to reach the road they pulled off onto and front there it was a matter of snaking their way into the woods. They talked for a while, with it broken up by moments of listening to the music. Something bubbly and bright pouring out of the speakers of Jessica's car. It all felt so normal considering that Charlie was slid down into the passenger's seat with her legs bent up and her hood up.

The road was deserted once they got off the highway and the views were nice as they climbed up towards the cabin, eventually pulling up outside. The cabin itself was on the smaller side with a rustic theming but looked like it had probably been built in only the last few years. It sat on the edge of the hill where a wraparound porch faced off the slope and towards a view of trees, mountains, and a river farther down. The front door faced out towards them and there was a wooden welcome sign hung on it.

The area was rather secure. Though the trees didn't exactly make an impenetrable wall, there weren't any other cabins in sight and the only road was down a long driveway they had just come up. She would still have to be careful but in a place like this maybe she could take a few more chances than usual. The thought excited her more than it should've.

"Looks like Marla and John are already here," Jessica pointed out. Their cars already pulled up beside the cabin. She parked on the other side of the door before unbuckling and reaching into the back to grab her stuff. It was then that she noticed how quiet Charlie was, still slunk down and staring out the window as though lost in thought. "Everything good?"

"What?... Oh, yeah. I'm fine," Charlie said, snapping her head over. "I saw everyone two days ago. Why would it be weird now?" Realizing that she had just said too much, she waited through an awkward pause before hastily correcting. "It's not weird. I'm just a little… it's been a long time since I've slept away from home. The Pizzaplex doesn't count. I don't count three hours of funhouse music sleeping."

Jessica chuckled a little and gave an assuring smile. "No, I get it. Just know that if something comes up and you need me to, I can drive you back to town. Just as long as I get a head's up before two in the morning."

Charlie thought back to the conversation at the house and gave a nervous jingle.

"That made me think of something Mari said. He was joking about getting Mike to drive up and drop him off in the middle of the night… You had to be there," she dismissed.

"Did he want to come? He could've come with us."

"I asked him if he wanted to, but he kind of got like… embarrassed. I think he wanted to come but didn't want to be a third wheel. Seventh wheel."

"I wish I would've known. I would've loved having him here. It would've given me a chance to get to know him better, being that he's like your…"

"Mentor?"

"Something a little less old, but like that. Besides, if anyone's going to be the seventh wheel, it's Carlton. I know for a fact that he brought one of those stupid 'one hundred pirate jokes' joke books for no reason except to annoy me."

"I was hoping he'd forget to bring it," Charlie lamented.

"You've seen it?"

"Where do you think he bought it?"

Jessica groaned and got out of the car, now fully aware of what they were getting into. Charlie bundled up the blanket and rushed in just in case.

The front door led directly into an open concept living room on the right with a kitchen and small dining room in the back, along with a door leading out onto the back deck. There were two doors on the left wall. One was partially opened to reveal a bathroom and the other was likely a bedroom. On the far-right wall, between the kitchen and the living room, was another door leading into a short hallway.

It was a cute cabin, decorated in a southwestern rustic style and kept clean and neat. The TV was good sized, the couch looked plush, the dining room table had enough chairs; it already checked off the boxes necessary for what they needed.

Marla came out of the hallway when she heard the door open, and her smile broke into a grin.

"Hi! I was just thinking about when you'd get here!" Marla rushed over for introductory hugs before escorting them back into the short hallway. "Okay, so, you guys are going to be sharing this room," she said. She gestured towards the right bedroom, though both right and left looked almost identical save some color differences. "Carlton and I are going to take this room, and John and Lamar are going to duel for the third bedroom. Loser sleeps on the couch."

"It won't be much of a loss. That's a pretty-nice couch," Charlie remarked. Jessica gave an amused little grin. "What?"

There was an 'omph' from outside. The sound of someone landing pretty hard and all the wind exiting their lungs.

"…Are they dueling now?" Jessica asked incredulously.

"No, they're out there messing with the rope swing. There's one out back," Marla explained. "There's a firepit too! So, we'll get to have a cookout tonight," she said, rubbing her hands together.

It was an exciting and enticing idea. It felt like literally playing with fire.

Charlie and Jessica put their stuff away in their room before going to see the rope swing. Jessica had given her an out, had offered for her to take the blanket, but Charlie had stood her ground, pulled up her hood, and daring to walk out in broad daylight. Not that there was much of a threat in the middle of the woods. Still, Jessica stood beside her as lookout and watched with the eyes of a hawk, just in case somehow someone just happened to creep up on an unknown hiking trail.

They walked around the house to find their remaining friends out back. The backyard consisted of a little firepit on a gentle slope right beneath the deck. The slope then dropped a bit more steeply into some grass and down to the bushes and shrubs further down. The rope swing hung over this steeper slope, attached to the limb of a tree high above and with the grass worn away underneath it. The rope swing itself not being a 'swing' but instead a rope with some knots in it.

Lamar was sitting on one of the benches around the firepit watching as assumedly Carlton and John played around with the rope swing. Carlton was standing off to the side while John was swinging off the slope. He didn't notice Charlie and Jessica approaching until the rope turned and promptly reacted by releasing it in surprise, landing on the side of the slope in a slight stagger but saving himself from a faceplant.

He lifted his head and saved it with a smile. "Hey!"

Jessica returned with a much more amused one. Returning the, "Hey," but with a much more teasing tone.

"Hey, how was the drive?" Lamar asked.

"It was good! It was pretty quiet," Charlie replied.

"Did you get lost?"

"No?"

"Good. We did."

"We didn't get lost, we just made one wrong turn," Carlton smoothly defended.

"Yeah, one wrong turn that sent us circling around the mountain for an hour."

"Pfft, hour. It was like thirty minutes max."

"They've been just waiting to get this going again," John remarked to the two. Jessica gave a little scoff while Charlie got an amused smile.

"Think they'll reconcile their differences before the cookout?" the puppet asked.

"Sure! Nothing brings people together more than processed meats and gelatin byproducts," John joked. This managing to get a little chortle out of Charlie, the edge of a ring to her voice. "Want to take a spin on the rope swing?"

"As tempting-."

"Sure."

Jessica and Charlie shared a look at the overlapping answers. Jessica looking a little confused at why she would want to and Charlie challenging it with a little smile.

"Want to see who can hold on longer? Winner gets the bed."

Jessica gave a scoffy little snort. That on its own got a jingle.

…

They didn't wait until nighttime to start the cookout. It was more twilight with the sunset still on the edge of the hill. With the cabin angled towards it, it gave a nice view both from the deck and the firepit area beneath it. The group sat on the benches surrounding the little fire contained in the metal barrel at the center of the pit. Sticking sticks over it stuck with weenies and marshmallows and considering that dinner like proper adults.

It was funny how some of these adults showed shades of the children they were long ago. Marla, for example, loved marshmallows and yet couldn't stand anything sticky on her fingers. So, she kept subtly licking the tip of her thumb. Just like when she was a kid, and she would hate when the stickiness was left on her hands after eating a popsicle. Carlton, in contrast, had burned himself twice trying to bite in too quickly. His child-self had been overeager too.

Charlie had noticed these tiny details. It would've been too strange to bring up, but it was amusing to watch in action. They all had their own little eccentricities.

Hers was that she liked to keep her hands busy. Currently she was fiddling around with a little pinecone she had plucked off a short pinyon before sitting down. Just something to roll around in her hand and give her something to do while the others were eating. Something to do with her hands. Something that she would eventually toss off into the woods or into the fire.

During a lull in the conversation, she had started to roll it around her long dark fingers. Sort of like rolling it in her palm but with less palm to work with. She glanced down at it and watched it roll back and forth.

It made her think of the marbles Marionette had started using for her telekinesis practice. Pens and pencils, bottle caps and marbles, giving her a plethora of little objects to try and push around. So far there hadn't been much progress, save the last few times when she focused so hard that she gave herself a headache. With the birthday and everything going on they hadn't practiced since last week. Maybe she would do a little practicing on her own tonight.

Though she proceeded to get ahead of herself by looking down at the pinecone, stilling her hand, and beginning to concentrate. Recently when she started focusing too hard during practice her vision would ironically unfocused, and it did so now. A ring would fade around her sight as something homed in inside her. It never changed anything, but it was always a sign that she was getting somewhere, maybe.

A little further this time. She would try a little harder this time, in this short window she had to do so. Concentrating on the pinecone as though it was a marble or a pen and imagining a little push.

That's when Lamar launched a marshmallow off his stick and halfway into the woods.

She snapped her head up and cracked up just as readily as those who had seen what just happened. The part that got her was the hilarious nearly stunned look on Lamar's face. As though he couldn't even believe what just happened.

What a goof. What a wonderful night.

And she felt good. She didn't feel out of place at all. She felt normal.

She took another whack at the pinecone. Focusing in on it while jingles still hung on her voice and watched her vision fade and blur as she listened to the chatters of the others. Ignoring the tightening in her head and over her brow and pushing past that point.

The headache narrowed to a sharp point above her eyes and her vision flickered. Before she was able to process it and stop herself, it felt like something rolled through the top of her head. Pressing through and releasing.

Part of the pinecone's bristles crushed in with a small crunch.

Suddenly the world swiveled around her and before she could stop herself, she toppled back off the bench and landed flat on her back. Her legs still up on the wooden seat.

"Whoa, are you okay?!" Marla called. She could also see Jessica looking down in confusion and concern.

"OH YEAH, I'M FINE! DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT!" Charlie rushed out. She ignored the fading sting in her head and hastily got back up on the bench. "I leaned back too far."

Now everyone who was there assumed that what happened was she lost her balance while carrying on, so there was a little laughter, a little cheekiness, and they let it go without reading too much into it. Jessica might've noticed how quiet Charlie got after that, but just assumed it was embarrassment after her little capsize.

But in reality, Charlie was in utter shock. Still clasping the pinecone and stealing a look or two down at it. She had clamped it in her hand as she fell, but she knew what she had seen. It had been crushed before she fell. She had crushed it with her mind.

"I just did it. I can't believe it, I just did that. It was in my head and I just- I can't believe I just did that. I didn't just imagine it, right? I know what I saw."

Charlie slowly opened her hand and looked down and tried to focus once again. Only to be rewarded with a sharp sting behind her eyes. She barely winced and closed her hand again.

"Okay, not right now… but that proves it, right? I must've done it if I'm feeling this rough… I can't believe it. I did it. I DID it."

Her mask split in a small but eager smile, and she was barely able to restrain the desire to jingle. Or to scream to the treetops and show it off to all her friends. She might've been bold enough to do so if she had been able to replicate it; maybe once her headache wore off.

Marionette was going to be thrilled. Well, maybe he would be a little disappointed, but he was going to be so happy once he found out. It wasn't news she was delivering over a phone call, it would absolutely have to be a display.

That is, if she could do it again. That doubt crossed her mind for a moment before being pushed aside by sheer triumph. She did it once, she could do it again. She would do it again.

Charlie was sitting there in her own happy little world when Marla noticed her prolonged quietness and unlike Jessica who left her be, decided to angle the conversation towards her.

"So, Charlie! How're things at Foxy's? Have you started putting together that little bear guy yet?" she asked.

Deciding this was not the time to bring up her little victory, Charlie instead scooted forward and returned to the conversation. Her good mood masking the lingering soreness in her head.

"Still holding our own against Freddy's. So far, it's working out. We're still getting business," she began.

"I should know. If we weren't, I'm the first thing to go," Carlton quipped.

"Well, we'd probably cut back on freebies first, but sure," Charlie retorted. "And not yet. I've gotten him all unwrapped, I just haven't buckled down and started putting him together."

"That's going to be so cool!" Marla gushed. Likely mistakenly assuming he would end up more like the tiny toys that gathered around Jeremy rather than a statue that could move a little.

"What about you guys? It's been a while since we caught up. Any big plans for the future?" Charlie asked curiously. She crossed her legs to help stabilize herself.

"As a matter of fact- no," Carlton remarked. Marla nudged him with her elbow. "What?" Now John seized his turn to nudge on the other side. "What?!"

"What about the play?" the brunette hinted.

"Eh."

"Don't 'eh' that! It's a big deal!" she insisted. If he wasn't going to give the news, then she was. "Carlton's playing the lead in the community theater's production of Nine Lives in the Cat's Cradle!"

"What? Carlton, why didn't you say anything?! That's huge!" Charlie cried.

"It's not that big of a deal. Not that many people auditioned," Carlton brushed off. Though his grin showed that he was quite proud of it. He then coughed in to his sleeve, "Fourteen."

"Hey, congratulations! It's about time," Lamar chimed in. Everyone shared the sentiments.

Charlie wondered why Carlton hadn't said anything at the pizzeria. Surely their friends and co-workers would be just as supportive, though perhaps Carlton didn't know that.

"Now you just have to set us up with some free tickets," John suggested.

"Fat chance. I'm not taking any chances in ticking off Carlos. He's still got plenty of time to replace me," Carlton replied. He then nudged Marla back. "Your turn."

"Oookay, so I'm still working towards becoming an RN and I'm not sure exactly where I'm going to go from there. Still helping out at the hospital! But I'm sort of limited in what I'm allowed to do while still considered a student," Marla recited. "That's pretty much it! Who's next? John?"

"Hmm? Err, well…" John seemed a little surprised to be put on the spot. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly before admitting, "I'm writing a book."

"Really? That's great!" Jessica congratulated. All of them were very aware that John had been putting off writing for years. Occasionally coming up with ideas but never getting to the point where he got that deep into any of them. Especially not since he had gotten into the workforce. "What's it about?"

"It's just a thriller mystery. Nothing too original," John brushed off.

"Hey, no. Come on. You can't say something like that and then not give details," Carlton interjected. Jessica gave him a less than amused look.

"You don't have to give us details, but we'd love to hear them," Marla amended.

"I don't have that much done so there's not much to tell," John said. He looked around to see that everyone had some variation of a curious look, including Charlie and Jessica herself. He looked around at their faces and immediately bent to peer pressure. "…If anyone laughs, I'm stopping there."

This was agreed upon with some nods and a few short words.

"It's called Hung from the Chimney Tops. A series of murders have stuck Victorian London. Someone is breaking into houses without leaving any evidence of their entering except on upper windows. The suspicion falls on "Dusty" Culpepper, a local chimney sweep, and if he doesn't prove his innocence fast then he'll be hung for a series of crimes he didn't commit. He must team up with local detective 'Hoskins the Watcher' and solve the crime while using his selective set of skills to prove himself innocent and just possibly, worthy of a position above the one he was born into."

"…You know, I was tempted to say something right about the time you said it was a chimney sweep solving a murder investigation, but I'm glad I didn't. Because that doesn't sound half-bad," Carlton confessed. "It actually sounds like something Dad would read."

"Is that a compliment?"

"Yes! You don't know how picky he is when it comes to detective stories. He gets personally offended when they get stuff wrong."

"Then it's a good thing I've done my research. And that it takes place a century before Clay was born. I might get some leeway if he hasn't done his research," John said. He looked towards Charlie and Jessica. "What do you guys think?"

"It sounds cool! It sort of sounds like a Sherlock Holmes story- not that I'm saying it doesn't sound original. It does! It's an, uh… original take on the Victorian murder mystery," Charlie explained, just managing to pull it back around in her favor. "It's the rooftop angle. You can do a lot with that."

"That's what I was thinking," John agreed. "We see a lot of works on the streets of London, but it's like a whole different world when you get to the rooftops. And when you're following someone who's living in the gritty reality of Victorian times."

For there 'not being much to tell', John seemed to have a clear idea of what he was going for. Charlie wasn't the only one who noticed this either.

After a little more explanation on the details and characters, and receiving a positive response of both, he went to pass on the baton.

"Who's next?" he offered.

Jessica and Lamar looked between each other before the former took the plunge. Just from her sigh and her look, Charlie had a suspicion what she would be bringing up.

"I'm at that weird place where I have to decide if I want a career or not. So, I've been studying forensics for a while now, and it's something I could totally get behind doing, but…"

"…But?" John coaxed.

"But my heart's not entirely into it. The whole reason I got involved in Forensics was because I was into Archeology and that seemed like a good middle ground towards a future career. But the farther along I'm getting the more I'm realizing that it's just not clicking for me," Jessica admitted. "Now I'm ankle deep in a major that I'm only half-interested in and have a passion for something that's not going to pay the bills."

"Wait a minute, I thought archeologists made a lot of money," Marla said.

"They don't. Maybe if I was a bigshot who uncovered the find of the century, but that doesn't happen as often as TV makes it seem. Mostly it's just digging a lot and not finding much… But that's not the part that bothers me. The whole concept of uncovering these pieces of ancient history and putting them back together is just amazing to me. Even something as simple as finding and piecing together old pottery is a window into a world none of us got to see. It's better than a recreation, it's the real thing."

Jessica explained this with so much passion that all of them could feel it. Though that's when her face faltered yet again. "But pursuing archeology would be a risk. It's not the safest job in the world, as my mom's reminded me at least twenty times."

"I don't think it's as dangerous as they show in the movies," Carlton said with slight amusement.

"No, I mean in pay. It doesn't pay well and it's not exactly a job with a lot of positions to fill. It would be a risk," Jessica clarified.

"Well… maybe it's not! Your Mom's still thinking of living expenses in New York. Out here you can make it on a lot less," Marla reminded.

"And it's a real job. It's not like you're running off to join the circus or running off to Hollywood to catch your big break," Charlie added in. Her boldness is saying so making it apparent that she had said something along this vein before.

"But would I be able to find a job out here? I'd probably have to move up to Salt Lake," Jessica pointed out.

"I mean… I think we all sort of assumed we were going to leave some day…" Charlie quietly admitted. The thought was saddening, and she looked down at the fire almost guiltily to avoid Jessica's gaze. "It's not that big of a deal. It happens."

But it was a big deal, because Charlie had a suspicion that Jessica only stuck around as long as she had for her. If she had still been human, she might've been able to leave with her. She might've not wanted to spend her life in Hurricane, as Jen had suggested to her numerous times in the long distant past. Now that option was off the table, and somehow Charlie's friends who all had distant lives had wound up staying close to home because of it.

"I know how you feel," Lamar confessed, breaking the tension before Jessica could. "I picked the wrong school to go to. I've been wanting to transfer up to Salt Lake University for about a year now, but that means having to get an apartment and having to move to the middle of a huge city. Not to mention how my parents are going to react. I don't know what it is, but they really want me to stick it out with this one. Like it's some sort of challenge and not me trying to set up the rest of my life."

The frustration was evident in the usually cool Lamar's voice. Along with the fact that he was contesting something his parents wanted. Lamar tended to go along with their suggestions most of the time. Him pushing back meant that this was serious.

"If you're that miserable then you might have to just take the plunge," John suggested. "You could probably get aid with your scholarship."

"I'm thinking about it. Money's not the problem, but at this point I'd rather get a job at a gas station than spend another year there. I just don't want to go hassle of transferring in the middle of a semester."

"Sounds like you've got a plan," Jessica said. "Well, what do you think I should do? You've got a better grasp on the job market than I do. What do you think?"

Lamar was surprised to have walked himself into that. He considered it for a long moment.

"I think you've got a point with the whole job demand and salary part…" he began. He made little circles with the sharpened stick, more like a twig, that he had been using to cook food on, humming as he did. "…So, what's it about forensics that you don't like?"

"To be honest, I haven't really warmed up to the idea of spending the rest of my life surrounded by death," Jessica began. She suddenly realized what she was saying and almost corrected herself but caught herself before doing so. Knowing that Charlie would only read it the wrong way if she presented it like that. Instead, she went into further explanation. "It feels like if I stick with forensics I'll get stuck working in the criminal field, and I'm just not interested."

"But in a way, archeology's got a lot to do with death too," Carlton pointed out. "But I get it, it's different. It's like the difference between a graveyard and a morgue."

"That's a weird way to put it, but you've got a point," Charlie agreed. "Both hold bodies, but there's a big difference between what happens in one and what happens in the other."

"This is a bizarre conversation," John remarked.

"This was not the conversation I was planning on having when I said I was thinking of switching majors," Jessica agreed, a slight wrinkle to her nose. "But it's more than that. Archeology is about studying history and culture and trying to use that to get a clearer look into the past. Forensic archeology isn't about finding out how someone lived, it's about how someone died. I don't think I could stand that."

"I think you already made up your mind," Lamar gently pointed out.

Jessica was a little surprised by the finality in that comment. Though she then tightened her lips in silent, almost reluctant agreement.

"But hey, you have time! They've got to share a couple of classes. Why not stick with this a little longer until you're sure?"

"I guess I should. I don't want to rush into anything while I'm still on the fence."

A quiet lull fell on the conversation save for the crackling of the fire and the rustling of the marshmallow bag as Marla got one to poke on her stick. She then offered the bag to Lamar, who took it and got one for himself.

Reading the shift in the conversation, Carlton knew he had to do something. So, he straightened up, lightened his tone, and shot a smug little smile at Charlie across the fire.

"Sooo, Charlie, what's this I hear about you getting feet?"

He was lucky her head was hurting, or he would've been ducking out of the way of a pinecone right then.

It didn't bother Chance when Fritz and Natalie went out. It bothered him a little that he himself couldn't go out, but then again, he didn't choose to do so even when he had the choice. One of the hardest things about accepting this change in lifestyle was the inevitable realization that it wasn't that different to what he had been doing these last few years. At least, save that he would go out to work. He supposed this was one way to accept retirement.

But Fritz sometimes felt guilty about it. Chance could tell with how clingy the guy would get before he left. Not usually when he was going out alone with Natalie, but when he was going in some sort of group. In a scenario where he could've invited Chance along. Chance brushed this off and all but goaded him up the stairs and out of the house. Like earlier established, old Chance probably wouldn't have gone anyways.

Tonight, he had found a decent football game on and had his eye transfixed to the screen. It only shifting the slightest bit to give a dramatic call for someone who couldn't hear him about how bad or good they were playing. He was so distracted that it suddenly took off-guard when he felt that fuzzy shiver in his left eye and chest. The hazy magnet-like tug that he usually got when the Puppet was in the room.

"What was that?" he muttered. That was a weird feeling to have when he was completely alone.

"Chance?"

"GAH!"

Chance's body thrust up the couch with about as much grace as this clunky bear body could. He turned back to see none other than Marionette standing over by the stairs. He must've teleported in without him noticing.

"For crying out loud. Don't sneak up on me like that," Chance lightly scolded. He turned around and dropped heavily onto the couch, it creaking ominously under his weight. "What's going on?"

"Nothing much. I just stopped in for a visit. Mike's out tonight and Charlie's away for the weekend," Marionette excused. "…And I've been meaning to talk with you since the party. This seemed like as good a time as any."

"Oh yeah? What about?"

The Puppet looked away and lingered there silently in the hallway for a long moment. That was Chance's immediate indication that something was up but knowing him and everything else it could've been anything. Finally, Marionette turned back.

"Can I ask you about the night Sammy went missing?" he asked.

It almost felt out of the blue until he considered that 'since the party' comment. That was the topic of their last conversation, so it made sense. Chance gave a nod and beckoned him to come into the room.

"What do you want to know?"

"Well… What exactly happened, for starters. From what I know from Charlie, there was a party at the diner and she and Sammy were running around playing when he was taken. Were you there?"

"I wasn't. I wasn't even living in town back then," Chance revealed. "I know he was taken out of a costume closet. Probably smuggled out the back when nobody was looking. It was late, people were probably drinking; nobody noticed anything until Charlie started crying and they found her in there alone. By then it was too late to find him."

"That's terrible…"

"I always had a feeling Will was involved. He just acted real funny about the whole thing. He put on a show of helping with the search a couple of days later, but he just happened to not be there the night it happened. Now Henry blew it off, 'Nah, not Will. He's my best friend. He has kids. He wouldn't ever do that'. Bunch of bull… Ahem, you know."

"I do know…" Marionette said quietly. "And I do know that he took him that night."

That cryptic tone got Chance to look over and it was then that he noticed the look on his mask. The way Marionette was looking down, how he was almost nervously rubbing his arm. He knew something, that's why he was asking.

And he was absolutely sure that William took him. That got Chance to lift forward on the couch.

"You found him," he guessed.

Marionette's head snapped up in surprise and Chance shot up from his seat.

"I- I didn't say that," the puppet defended. He started to back a small bit as the bear came up to him, desperation in his eye.

"Well, you found something. What is it?"

"I don't want to get your hopes up."

"I've been waiting seventeen- eighteen years for anything. I'm ready to hear whatever you've got. I don't care if it's a hunch or some kind of vision, I need to know," Chance doubled down.

Marionette was startled to be put on the spot. He began to tick with nervousness, would've been sweating if he could. This was what he came here to do, tell Chance his suspicion, and yet now when he was asking him for it, he was reluctant to do so. Because he knew what he was going to say wasn't what Chance wanted to hear. He began to inwardly panic, trying to talk Chance down and yet having his quiet pleas easily overtaken.

"Marion, look. I know we've had our differences. Hell, that's putting it lightly. I almost set you on fire and damn it, I can't say I wouldn't have done it again if I hadn't died trying. You don't owe me anything, but please, I need this. I need to know what happened to him," Chance nearly begged. "Up until the day I died, I had one of his bottles still in my drawer. His bottle, Mari! He was a baby and that son of a bitch Afton-!"

"Chance, I think I'm Sammy!" Marionette blurted out.

There was a long pause.

"What?" Chance asked. Then his eye widened as the words suddenly sunk in. "What?! Why would you say that?!"

"I-I-…" Marionette buckled instantly. Pulling his arms in and all but shrinking under Lefty gaze and voice, "I-I mean- I just thought that maybe-!"

"Where did you get that idea?!"

"I'm sorry, it was foolish of me to even suggest such a thing-!"

"No, I need to know, where did you get that idea?!" Chance continued to pry. His loud voice somewhere between offended and baffled.

"This was all just a terrible mistake! I should just go-!"

"No, hold up!"

Chance grabbed Marionette's arm to stop him.

His chest hatch popped open.

The Puppet gasped and his music box broke into a frantic rendition of 'Pop Goes the Weasel'. He tried to wrench his hand back, but Chance held firm, looking down at himself in equal shock.

"Chance?!" Marionette cried, pitch rising into staticky panic.

Chance promptly responded by thrusting a first to his chest and slamming the hatch shut again. From the way his eye darted around to the silence, it was clear that he hadn't expected that either. That was, perhaps, the only thing that forced him to calm down.

Marionette finally yanked his arm back out of Chance's grip. To which the bear shot up his hands in defense.

"Wait, don't go. I'm sorry, I wasn't- I didn't mean to do that. Look, just- Let's settle down…" Chance all but pleaded. A coughing sound broke through his voice box. Nerves, he supposed. Considering the situation, it made sense. "Tell me why you think this. I want to know."

"I have no evidence…" Marionette murmured. The music had stopped, and the static was dying down, but he still seemed wary. He kept a few feet between them as he rubbed his wrist.

"But you have a hunch," Chance reasoned. "Work with me, Kid. I want to figure this out just as bad as you do."

After a long moment of considering it- especially after the initial reaction-the puppet steeled his nerves and went for it.

"…When I confronted my- William. When I confronted William at the Red Lake, I asked him how he could do this to his own son. A foolish question, I know, but he asked if I was sure if I was his son. Likely just a way to get in my head, but after that I saw Henry and he told me to not look into it… He didn't say he was lying or wrong, he just told me to let it go. That made me suspicious, and then I noticed how similar Sammy and I looked as children, and as you said I was always sick and then I got better. I just…"

Marionette trailed off and Chance let it sink in. After at least thirty seconds of silence, the puppet spoke again.

"But again, it could just be nothing. I just always found it odd that we never found him… What do you think?"

"I don't know," Chance admitted. "…Did Henry always talk to you in riddles?"

"No, but sometimes he kept things from me."

Chance hummed, and coughed, and then stepped back towards the couch.

"…I've got to sit down," he said. Then he dropped onto his seat again, it creaking once more. No doubt someday it would collapse beneath him, but that day was not today. He stared at the coffee table with his hands on his knees. "… I don't know, what do you think?"

"I think there's a possibility that Henry knew something and was sparing me by asking me not to look. Maybe Henry found out something once he moved to the other side."

"That you're Sammy," Chance clarified.

"Maybe," Marionette quietly agreed.

"And why would Will do that?"

"…I don't know," Marionette confessed. "I have some theories. Maybe the original Marion passed away and William took to replacing him. With Sammy, of course, because he was so fixated on Henry. Maybe he purposefully killed Marion to replace him with Sammy. Perhaps there was an accident. As it is, either of them could be somewhere out there and I don't know, and Henry didn't tell me." It was now the puppet who had that desperation in his eyes as he requested, "…Chance, what do you think?"

"I think Will could've done it, but that doesn't mean I think Will did do it," Chance replied.

"You don't?"

"It's a pretty asinine idea if you think about it."

Marionette scoffed a little. "Perhaps but he was full of asinine ideas. Need I remind you that his final grandiose idea was to plant himself in a computer tower and hope someone came along to wrangle ahold of? He was very fortunate that it all fell together just right."

"William Afton was a bastard who deserves to rot at the bottom of that hell lake or whatever it was, but he was cunning. He set himself up for success. It was the follow-through where he failed," Chance said matter-of-factly. "…And you can't remember enough to say for sure?" he asked.

Marionette shook his head.

"Figures."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have raised your hopes."

"No, I'm glad you told me. I didn't even know it was a possibility, but now… I'd rather know," Chance said.

That seemed to be the final word on it. Chance sitting there on the couch and Marionette looming nearby. Excited voices brought Chance's eye back up to the television. Marionette's gaze followed too, watching the screen for a moment before sliding closer.

"Can I… stay with you for a bit?" he asked.

Chance looked up at him. Marionette gave him a tentative smile back. The bear coughed and lifted his hand from his knee to pat the couch. Marionette lowered himself down on the other side, crossing his legs out in front of him.

They sat alongside each other for a long moment. There was a replay of the touchdown on screen. Chance coughed and broke the silence between them with a single question.

"Want me to tell you more about Sammy?"

"Please," Marionette requested without taking his eyes from the screen.

"Alright," Chance agreed. "…For starters, he loved to laugh."

Chapter 62

Chapter Summary

Charlie enjoys more time with her friends when she comes upon a surprising revelation... and they have an unexpected visitor.

While it would've been in their best favor to sleep in, Charlie and Jessica woke up at the crack of dawn due to the light coming in and the thin curtains. Charlie supposed that's what they got taking the eastward room. She could've probably slept through it, but waking up and hearing that someone else was awake got her excited to start the day. She slipped out of bed quietly- trying not to disturb Jessica, who slept atop the bed in a sleeping bad- she didn't trust the sheets- and made her way out into the living room.

She found Marla already wide awake and getting out the ingredients to cook up a big breakfast. She saw Charlie and greeted her with an eager smile. "Morning, Charlie!"

"Morning," Charlie replied. She leaned on the island counter to the right of her to watch Marla work.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Good! You?"

Marla nodded with a happy hum. Charlie looked around at the little cabin. Sunlight poured through the front window and warmed the dimly lit living room. She noticed the couch bare, and the blanket tossed over the back of it.

"Where's John?"

"Bathroom," Marla replied. "Lamar was up a few minutes ago, but he went to lay back down."

They were interrupted by John coming out of the bathroom. He was already fully dressed to begin the day, something surprising considering that he hadn't even eaten breakfast yet.

"Morning, John," Charlie greeted. He wasn't expecting her to be out there but smiled and returned the greeting.

"What are you dressed up for?" Marla lightly teased.

"I'm just going for a little walk. There's a trail that leads down to the river that I want to check out. Do you guys want to come?"

"I'm going to stick to breakfast, but I'll head down there later!"

Charlie thought about it for a moment. She knew it would be a risk to go walking around in broad daylight, but the idea of getting a little more time outside, especially out in the woods, was a tempting one. She could be careful. The likelihood of anyone else being out there especially this early in the morning was low. Though the other thing that worried her was what John would take from the walk. If he would misread the gesture.

No, she couldn't think like that. If she couldn't trust them to be alone together then they would never have a normal friendship.

"…You know what? Sure, I'll come with you," Charlie agreed.

Marla looked back in surprise. "Really? Isn't that a little… dangerous?"

"Well, it's early and we're pretty much in the middle of nowhere. I'll be careful," she assured. She turned to John. "Let me go grab my jacket."

She snuck back into the bedroom and retrieved her green jacket, knowing it would blend a little better than her black and white one. Jessica was still asleep. She snuck out without waking her, pulling the door shut before tugging the jacket on and heading out.

It was early enough that there was still a cool tinge to the air, something that would likely not last long once the sun reached its peak. The path John was talking about was by the side of the cabin close to the rope swing. A narrow trail that led through some bushes and sideways down the slope in the general direction of the river.

At first the path was too narrow for them to walk together, so John led the way. This gave Charlie some time to hide behind him and get used to the now unfamiliar sensation of being out in broad daylight. As the trail eventually widened, she became a little more comfortable and moved up to walk alongside him. She stayed a little hunched down, with her hood up and her eyes peeled, but so far it seemed like they were in the clear.

Grey clouds were moving in on the horizon, but it was far from a dreary day. As a matter of fact, it was downright beautiful out. She could hear a bird off in the distance along with wind and eventually the soft gurgle of the river once they got a little closer.

"It's really nice out," Charlie said. Her first to break the prolonged but contented quietness.

"It is," John agreed. "I'm glad we got out. I wanted to talk with you about something."

Charlie wasn't sure how she liked the sound of that.

"About your bracelet…" John began and trailed off.

Her bracelet that she wasn't currently wearing. She quickly rushed out, "I really like it! I just forgot to put it on."

"That's fine! I didn't expect you to wear it all the time," John said with a half-chuckle. "No, I just wanted to clear up about the tree. I didn't choose the tree because of that. As a matter of fact, I didn't even remember that until the day before the party, and by then it was too late to change it, so I just hoped you didn't remember," he confessed.

"Oh! No, it's okay! That makes a lot of sense. I'm surprised I remembered, but I saw the tree and… then said the first thing that came to mind without thinking," Charlie said apologetically. "This is why I don't have feet. If I did, I'd be putting them in my mouth."

"So, you didn't remember either?"

"Not until I saw the tree, then it sort of clicked," Charlie said. She fidgeted with her hands in her pockets. "Sorry I made it awkward."

"You didn't. I remembered it before you did, and then I just crossed my fingers hoping you wouldn't notice."

"Well then, I still made it awkward bringing it up," Charlie doubled down with a crooked grin. He tried to protest, but she stopped him. "Let me take responsibility for my actions. It helps build character."

He gave a playful little 'pfft' in dismissal and returned the smile. They walked a little further in silence before he continued again.

"You were a big part of my childhood, you know. So was that tree," John said fondly. No doubt reminiscing on the many memories surrounding the tree in question. Plenty more than the one that stuck out in Charlie's mind.

The tree being the one by her house. The one she played around as a kid. The one she had a swing haphazardly tied to the branches of before the rope snapped. The one that seemed so big to her when she was a little child.

The one she and John had played around a couple of times. The safe spot for tag and hide and seek, the source of shade on a hot day, shelter from an incoming rainstorm. The tree that stood as a staple of her childhood.

The tree they had almost kissed under.

Charlie couldn't remember all of the details except that they had been running around playing when they stopped under the tree to rest. That was when it happened, when they had almost kissed. But she was too shy, and it hadn't happened.

Now she wondered if it really was weird of her that all she had thought about was them almost kissing under the tree and not the sunny days spent playing around it. It almost felt like a betrayal to make something so innocent overly complicated. It changed her mind.

"…You know… I know it wasn't, but if you had gotten that bracelet because of that tree, I don't think I'd mind it," Charlie admitted. He looked to her and she explained. "I loved that tree. That tree was a huge part of my childhood before I moved out. Remember my swing? It killed me when it broke… And almost killed me, because I was all the way up when it broke," she added with a goofy grin.

"Didn't you break your arm?"

"No, I just hyperextended my elbow." It had been in a sling for only about a week, but it had seemed like so much longer.

He smiled back- more at the memories and less at the specific memory of Charlie flying off a broken swing. "Do you remember it used to be home base whenever we played hide and seek?"

"Yes! I remember this one time you hid behind the tree so when I ran up to try to tag it, so jumped out and got me."

"I did that a few times. Then you caught on and it didn't work anymore."

"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me three or four times…"

John chuckled and Charlie gave a playful little wave. The mood had completely shifted from tense to friendly once again.

Which was a huge relief. Charlie had hoped that tree incident, and her general awkwardness surrounding it, wouldn't get in the way of what had finally gotten to be a semi-normal friendship. She could willingly accept this as just a pleasant childhood memory.

The truth was, she had only thought about that almost kiss maybe a handful of times in her entire life. Usually when thinking about John himself. It was weird to think that it had been the closest she had ever gotten to being kissed. She considered herself a rather non-romantic person. Everything between her and John, even when they started going out on relatively low-key non-dates, had been on the mild side. She hadn't ever had an experience where she felt totally swept off her feet.

She couldn't think of a time when she truly felt that swooning feeling of romance that books and movies spoke so generously about. To her, romance was subtle. Barely noticeable. Especially when the most romantic moment in her life was a near kiss as a kid.

…

Except for those verdant eyes alit in a dark photo booth.

It was like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over her head the moment Charlie recalled the memory. Not only because it had popped up so suddenly, but because the moment it did, she felt the twisting and tightening deep inside of her chest. Just as alive as it had been that night. There was nothing subtle about what she had felt that night. She had felt very strange and more alive and aware than she ever had.

The telltale moment being that the childhood kiss memory filled her with soft nostalgia and the sudden memory of Baby filled her with instant butterflies. She had seen Baby since then and the thought of it still got her all twisted up inside. She couldn't keep ignoring it.

Baby was just so very much. So much of her, so much to be attached to, so much to be drawn in by. It was hard to sort out what everything meant when a moment like that had made everything so much more complicated. Because up until that moment, Baby was Charlie's friend who she felt a very special and close bond with. One on a different sort of level to her friendship with Jessica and Marla. It was different with Baby, especially recently. Especially once Baby had softened up enough to show her Elizabeth.

Here she was worrying about John misreading her comments on a bracelet when she had this ticking timebomb in her chest that just happened to start back up whenever she thought about Baby a little too hard. That had to mean something.

And it did. Charlie had just been pretending it hadn't, but she couldn't ignore what had been staring back at her since that moment in the photo booth. Or more likely, something that she just hadn't noticed until it stared her in the face in the photo booth.

Until Baby had looked her dead in the eye and might've said- no, absolutely said that she had feelings beyond friendliness for her. Charlie was just kidding herself pretending like that was what Baby was implying. They might've been friends at one time, but things had been changing. Touches had been softer, comments had become more playful and coy, Baby had always been noticeable but not it was even harder not to look.

Was it possible…?

All while Charlie was having this internal conflict, she stiffly walked along the trail beside John who was none the wiser. In fact, he had stoked up the conversation again, unaware that it was now one-sided.

"The other two designs were peace sign and anchor. I guess I could've gone for the anchor considering Foxy's, but I thought the tree looked the nicest. Especially with the rustic look of the leather, it kind of fits," John remarked. He rubbed his chin a little, feeling the slightest bit of stubble as he contemplated this. "What do you think?"

"I think… I think I might have a crush on Baby…!" Charlie choked out.

She hadn't even processed his question, it just spilled out without any restraint. Of all the people she could've blurted that out in front of, John was possibly the worst. To his credit he didn't look horrified. He just looked rather confused, his hand still resting on his chin.

She took a few seconds to process what just happened before it really sunk in. She covered her face with her hands and bent over with embarrassment. Unable to stop the flustered tickling and jiggling that discordantly poured from her chest.

"Oh God," she gasped.

John cracked a smile and held back a laugh. He reached out and patted her back.

"Yeah, I had a feeling," he admitted.

"What?!" Charlie shot upright and uncovered her face. "What do you mean?! Did Carlton say something?!"

"No, it was- so, after I gave you the bracelet, Baby was standing there…" John began to explain. His face starting to grow flushed with his own embarrassment.

"It was the flicking thing," Charlie meekly concluded.

"No… Okay, that sort of did it, but it was more like the look she gave me after she did it."

Charlie wasn't sure which stare down Baby did, but she had a mental image that she knew was likely close to the mark. Those piercing eyes could melt lead.

"I promise she's not as rough around the edges as she seems. She's just not used to being around people who aren't looking out for her best interest," Charlie explained. She returned her hands to her pockets. "As a matter of fact, she's not used to being around people in general. For years she was kept prisoner down in a factory on the outskirts of town."

"That's terrible," John sympathized.

"It is. All things considered, she's a whole different person to who came out of there. She's a whole different person to the one you guys met out at Freddy's Processing Plant… but she still has her vices," Charlie admitted with a tiny smile. "And she's sweet when she doesn't think anyone's looking."

"As long as she's sweet to you that's all that matters," John said. He then got a much more playful grin. "So, how long's this been going on?"

"I don't know," Charlie lamented. She sunk down into her hood in embarrassment. "I didn't even know it was a thing until it just came out."

"Or until you came out?" he asked. "…Sorry, that was a Carlton joke."

"That really was," Charlie scolded in a joking way. "Look at that. Isn't that beautiful?"

She was talking about the river, which they had just walked up on. Not only indulging in a sight she might've taken for granted as a human, but successfully managing to change the subject. Either John was just as swept up in nature or he noticed her thinly veiled attempt to change the conversation and went along with it.

Yet even though Charlie wanted to change the conversation, she couldn't deny that she felt better. It was like a massive weight was lifted from her, even with it came with its own amount of baggage. She could sort it off once she got home; for now at least she knew there wouldn't be anything getting between her and John to disrupt the vacation.

As a matter of fact, by time they got back to the cabin they had already started carrying on again. Dirt was sticking to her legs, which were damp from a short wade in the river, and the lower section of John's jeans were soaked through from where he tried to follow suit and had a foot slide out from underneath him. Though what cut their time short wasn't the slip but the distant rumble of incoming thunder. A clear sign that the grey clouds rolling in would open soon.

Charlie tried to kick off some of the dirt on the front mat and ended up having to wipe it off with her hand.

"Hey, are you going to take a shower or just change?" she asked.

"Just change. It's all yours!... If it's safe?" John half-asked.

"Oh, yeah. I'm just going to rinse my legs off. Unless you see a hose out here?"

A quick look around showed no hose, so the bathtub would have to do. Likely the safest option as well. They headed inside the cabin.

By now the rest of their friends had gotten up and it looked like they had already finished breakfast. Though they were still sitting around the table chatting.

"Look who's back!" Jessica greeted with a wave. "How was it?"

"Great! It's a lot more exciting up close. Well, as exciting as a river gets," Charlie joked. "I've got to go rinse off my legs."

"What happened?" Lamar asked, looking down at John's pants and her dusty lower legs.

"One wrong step in a river," John replied.

"Ah."

"Hey, Jess. Would you come with me?" Charlie asked.

Jessica quirked a brow but got up from the table and followed her to the bathroom. As they headed out, they could hear Marla asking if the river was deep enough to swim in. If the storm clouds were any indication, if it wasn't now then it would likely be later.

The bathroom was tiny but not too hard to fit both of them into. Charlie sat on the edge of the bathtub and stuck her legs in, turning the water onto a gently trickle and rinsing off her hand before working on her legs.

"So, what's up?" Jessica asked, leaning on the bathroom sink. Because she could tell something was up the moment Charlie asked for a private talk- and she knew that's why she asked her in there.

"Not too much…" Charlie began. The nervous edge to her voice giving away her hand early. "We had a good walk, and there was nobody out there so there was no chance of me getting seen."

"Uh huh," Jessica said. She had that knowing glint to her eye. "And?"

"And we talked. We cleared up the thing about the tree… Can I ask you something?" Charlie looked back, an unsure look on her mask.

The sudden question and look took Jessica by surprise. "Sure, anything."

"…But just by me asking you this, don't jump to any conclusions. It's just a rhetorical question."

"I won't. I promise," Jessica agreed.

"Okay… Would… Would it make you uncomfortable if I was… maybe interested in… other women? Not you, I mean. Or Marla. I just meant in general."

The question clearly surprised Jessica from the way her eyes widened. Charlie barely resisted the urge to snap her head forward and stammer out a retraction. The blond beat her to it.

"Of course it wouldn't! Charlie, you can be interested in whoever or whatever you want, and it wouldn't bother me at all! And it wouldn't change us at all," Jessica insisted. She came forward to lay her hands on her shoulders with an assuring smile, to which Charlie returned and dropped her shoulders in relief. Jessica patted them and then pensively added, "…In fact, maybe that would explain some things…"

"Like what?" Charlie challenged. Her dry hand moving up to rest on her hip.

"Like what's going on between you and Baby."

Charlie had no retort to that.

"I know you said you didn't know if that was the direction it was going in, but I definitely felt something going on at the party. It's the way you two act around each other… And the fact that she stood bodyguard beside your chair all night. No doubt to scare off John if he got too close," Jessica joked good-naturedly. "…Speaking of that party. Is Ennard looking for a girlfriend? Because he was asking me a lot of compatibility questions and then got cuddly with that Scott guy."

"Oh, he was asking for a friend. Ennard likes to play matchmaker. Don't worry about it," Charlie meekly rushed out. It was clear that she was flustered.

To this, Jessica sat down on the narrow edge of the bathtub alongside her, just facing the opposite direction. She gave Charlie a gentle and supportive smile.

"There's nothing wrong with having a different preference in who you want to date. Just as long as you're with someone who makes you happy, that's all that matters," Jessica assured her. "And there's nothing wrong with Baby. She's different. Not exactly the type I thought you'd go for, but I'm willing to be wrong. If you like her and she likes you- which it sounds like she does, considering the whole blackout incident- then why not?"

"She's not human," Charlie quietly confessed. "I know that sound hypocritical to say, because I'm not human anymore, but it's just so… strange to admit it. Not that I've ever seen Baby as just an animatronic, but now that I'm thinking about it-."

"Now you're thinking about it," Jessica finished for her.

"Right…"

"I think… So, it's different than dating women instead of men, but in way it's sort of in the same vein. It's just something you have to decide if you want to do. And only you, because you're the only one who counts in this decision. Baby's already on board."

Charlie sat there for a moment considering it. Only signaling she was done when she started to look up, to which Jessica held out her hand. Charlie gave it a little high-five slap before standing up.

"Thanks, Jess," she said. She held onto the metal bar over the soap dish to keep herself from slipping as she reached for the towel, which Jessica handed to her. "I still need some time to think but I feel a lot better. Thank you."

"That's what I'm here for," Jessica assured.

Charlie didn't ask her not to tell anyone else. She knew she wouldn't.

They headed out of the bathroom in time to catch the end of a conversation. Marla was standing at the back window with Carlton looking out towards the river. In the distance they could see a couple of rafts loaded with people paddling down the river. Or the one was paddling. The one in the back was more flailing than anything else, slowly falling further behind even as they spied on them.

Carlton watched with a smug little grin at the scene and Marla with a dismayed little frown. Not at the rafters, but at the sight of a light sprinkle starting outside.

"So much for another cookout," she sighed.

"It might lighten up," Carlton encouraged, putting an arm around her. They stood there for a quiet moment. "…Or start coming down harder the second I said that."

"Nice going, Carlton! You had one job!" Marla cried in pretend anger.

"It's not my fault! I never learned how to control my true power," he defended.

She lightly nudged him in the side and crossed her arms with an amused smile. Looking back out at the river as the rafters disappeared out of view.

In the meantime, Charlie headed to get her bag. Seemed like a good enough time as any to hook up the video games.

…

Most of the afternoon and evening consisted of staying indoors. The rain only letting up for a short window, not nearly enough to go out for a cookout, even if they could get it started with damp wood. Distractions were made with some old boardgames stashed in the hall closet, movies, video games, and socializing. It managed to salvage the day despite the rain, so there wasn't much of a feeling of being let down.

It was now nightfall, and they were all settled into the living room watching the screen as Lamar took his turn on the current video game, a horror game. It felt sort of like a scary movie night, except one of them was controlling how scary the movie got. Lamar and Charlie were sitting on the floor on a blanket in front of the couch while Jessica, Marla, and Carlton were squeezed behind them. John sat in the armchair, resting forward on his knees to see better.

Lamar went around the wrong corner and out from the darkness leapt a hideous monster with a quite notable design. Marla covered her mouth, Jessica winced a little, and Lamar started firing off bullets into it.

"Oh my God," Jessica muttered, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I know there's sort of a deep, interesting story going on here but every time I get invested, something like THAT shows up."

"Does that look like a-?" Lamar dared to ask. Still firing off at it without sparing a second to blink.

"YES," Jessica cut him off. "Carlton, stop smirking."

Carlton stopped biting his finger long enough to correct, "I'm not smirking. I'm over here dying."

"You should go back and pick up those bullets downstairs," John said, ignoring the conversation behind them.

"I'm about to switch to my knife. This gun does nothing," Lamar replied.

"I would love to see you take that thing down with a knife," John said with a slight smirk.

Jessica was looking over to the clock to check the sign when she suddenly noticed something moving at the edge of her vision. She snapped her head to the window and noticed the dark crack between the shade and the window.

It had been white a moment ago.

Suddenly on alert, Jessica shot up from the couch and strode over to draw the shade back and look through. The others took notice.

"What's up?" Charlie asked.

"I thought I saw someone's face looking in."

"What?!" the security puppet said with a surprised chirp. In an instant, Marla silently threw a throw blanket overtop her.

"It doesn't look like there's anything out there now…" Jessica muttered. She squinted into the darkness but couldn't see any sign of anybody in the porchlight. She shut the shade and adjusted it to be fully closed. "I don't know. Maybe I imagined it."

"You don't really have an active imagination," John pointed out.

"No, but this doesn't help matters," Jessica said, pointing to the tv. She stood there with her hands on her hips a second before striding off. "I'm going to double-check the curtains."

Charlie pulled back the blanket enough to see and Lamar unpaused the game to keep playing. There was a little uneasiness, but nobody was too concerned just yet.

And then a blaring alarm came from outside.

Everyone's heads snapped to the window, save Charlie who pulled the blanket over hers and doubled over. Jessica came jogging out of the room right as Carlton was springing up and going to the door.

"Don't open it! Don't open it!" Marla raced out.

"That's my alarm! Someone's out there trying to break into my car!" Carlton shouted back as he undid the locks. Jessica caught up and kept the door closed.

"Yeah, probably a bear! Did you leave food in your car?!" she asked.

"What? No! And how can it be a bear, you said you saw a face!"

"It could've been a bear's! I just saw it for a second, and if the light was shining on its fur and it was brown it could've looked lighter!"

John looked out the window and his brows raised. "Jess, it's your car. Not Carlton's."

"Did you leave any food in it?" Carlton asked her flatly.

"What is it, a bear?!" Jessica asked in alarm, totally ignoring him.

"It's not anything, there's no one out there. I can't see anything." Yet as he heard the door unlocking, he quickly threw out a hand to stop them. "Wait, wait! That doesn't mean there wasn't a bear! It could've run off after the alarm went off."

Because of that, the group sat there in a silence for a few long seconds. Then Carlton slowly unlocked and cracked open the door, him and Jessica peeking through to see her car's lights still going off.

"Let me go get my keys," she said and hurried off.

By time she returned, they dared to step out. John grabbing the flashlight by the door while Carlton grabbed a walking stick. The two crept out with Jessica close behind, shielding herself under some old newspapers that they intended to use to help start the cookout fires, and looked around. There was nothing there.

Jessica got to her car and turned the alarm off before looking it over. Nothing had been moved from what she could see. Nothing scratched on the outside of the car. If it had been a bear, it must've bolted the second the alarm went off. They headed back inside.

"Okay, so… could've been a bear," Jessica said with finality. "But it didn't get in my car, so false alarm."

"But just in case, this would be a good time for one of us to run out and get that axe over by the woodpile," Carlton remarked.

"…There's an axe out by the woodpile and you didn't bring it in?" Charlie asked in disbelief. To which Carlton and John shared a look.

"Let's hope that doesn't come back to bite us," Carlton muttered.

"With the bear's we've got up here, an axe isn't going to be much help anyways," Lamar chimed in.

"There's an unlockable axe in this game, y'know. You just can't find it until later on," Charlie quietly added.

"Does it work better than the gun?"

"Oh yeah. Somehow."

"Can we maybe switch to something else? This whole thing's kind of given me the heebie-jeebies," Jessica said. She dropped back onto the couch with her arms crossed, sending an uneasy look over at the window. Thankfully, John had made sure the shade was closed.

"Sure. Just as soon as I hit a save spot," Lamar agreed.

Charlie meanwhile scooted forwards and began to look through the stack of games.

"Hmm… Hey! Let's play some Oddworld!" Charlie suggested. She lifted the case from the stack.

"It's not creepy?" Jessica asked.

"No, it's more like a sci-fi movie."

"Sounds good to me! I'm going to make more popcorn. Anybody want some?" Marla offered. She had been planning to get up and make more a while ago, but she got rooted in place watching the game. Though the excitement of whatever just happened made her want to get up and move around. Both Jessica and Lamar took her up on the offer.

Carlton joined her in the kitchen. As she got a bag of popcorn out of the box and was unwrapping the plastic, Carlton grabbed another can of soda and cracked it open. Marla jumped a little at the sound.

"I hope that was a bear and not a creep wandering around outside… or, wait… you don't think a bear could break in, do you? I've heard of them breaking into cabins, but the door seems sturdy to me," Marla pointed out.

"I don't think so," Carlton shrugged off. He took a swig of soda.

Only for his eyes to catch something out the window and suddenly choke, heaving the soda back up with a choking cough. Marla noticed his look and spun around and gaped at a dark figure slipping out of view. She gave a startled cry and pointed out the window.

"There- There!" she cried out.

John raced over while Carlton was still hacking and leaned over the counter against the wall, but he couldn't see anything.

He turned back to Marla. "What did you see?!"

"Someone's out there-!" Carlton coughed out; voice croaky.

"I saw him! I saw him duck around the corner- he must've gone around the side of the porch!"

"What?!" Jessica blurted out. She got up and sped over to look, leaning over to look out of the window alongside John.

Charlie quickly yanked herself back under her blanket. This was bad. A bear was one thing, but if there was a person snooping around, a person who wandered up to the house and saw something, they were in serious trouble.

"YES!" Marla cried. "I saw, like, part of his arm as he went around the corner!"

"I'm going out there," John announced. Still carrying the flashlight, he strode to the glass door that led onto the porch. "Carlton, you go out the front and cut him off."

Carlton set down his can and went to go do so, still coughing as he did, only making a quick stop at the back of the couch to address Charlie while pointing a thumb back towards the kitchen.

"Does Mari know where the cabin is? 'Cause it looked like Mari," he got out.

"No, he didn't-."

Charlie cut herself off when it suddenly clicked.

He wouldn't.

She shot up to her feet and rushed for the back door. John was in the process of opening it when Charlie suddenly slid in beside him and leaned out of the doorway to look for herself, ignoring a concerned shout after her.

"Mari, is that you?!" she called down the deck.

There was a looming silence where the only sound was of rain pattering on the roof of the porch.

And then a white face peeked out around the corner.

John dropped his shoulders with relief. Charlie smacked her hand to her mask so hard that it resonated.

A much more guilty smile settled on Marionette face as he crept out of his hiding spot. To which Charlie beckoned him to come over and into the cabin. He quickly and obediently drifted over and into the cabin.

"That better not be Mari," Jessica said with exasperation and relief. She saw him coming up past the window and slouched onto the counter. "Oh my God."

"Hello, everyone! No need to be alarmed. It's just me, the local mime," Marionette greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Charlie asked firmly. At his slight wince she quickly corrected, but still held some firmness with, "By which I mean, why were you creeping around outside instead of, I don't know, knocking on the door?"

"I considered that! But then I saw you were all playing games together and I might've… lost my nerve," the Puppet admitted. Tapping his fingers together sheepishly and giving an apologetic smile. "And by then Mike had already left, so I was sort of stuck out there."

"Did you try to get in my car?" Jessica asked.

"I did, but I was just trying to get out of the rain. I must have triggered something when I popped inside," he confessed.

"So, how long were you outside?" John asked. Still sounding genuinely confused by the whole thing.

"Oh, not too long. An hour at most. I'm surprised you didn't notice me before now, I was at that window nearly the whole time," Marionette said. This got some weird looks and he darted between them. "I thought it would be intrusive to let myself in," he meekly added.

"He's like a vampire, he requires an invitation!" Carlton proclaimed.

"Yes, that!" Marionette played along.

"Aww, you didn't have to stand outside in the rain," Marla sympathized. Immediately forgiving the Puppet just on the grounds that she was soft towards him. "Wait right here, I'll go get you a towel," she said and hurried off.

"We're still glad to have you. If we didn't want to get a little spooked, we wouldn't have spent two hours watching Lamar fight monsters that came out of an anatomy book," John remarked. Charlie 'eh'd, Jessica scoffed, and Marionette chuckled knowingly.

Hearing his name being mentioned, Lamar turned and waved towards the kitchen with a, "Hey, Mari!"

To which Marionette returned the greeting and wave just before Marla was back and throwing a towel around his head and shoulders. She began to dry him off and he gave a contented trill before leaning down so she could reach better. Not above accepting a helping hand, especially one as gentle and caring as Marla's. He left the towel draped around his shoulders after he was done, and she was finally able to put her popcorn bag in to cook.

He looked to Charlie and she returned with an incredulous look.

"You'd rather sit out in the rain for hours and let us chase you around than come in like a sane person," she said.

Another apologetic smile. She buckled and smiled back.

"You're such a goof," she replied. Making it clear that she wasn't mad at him, but that didn't mean he was quite off the hook just yet. "What made you change your mind and come?"

"Well, I was just… I'm not sure what I was thinking, I just thought to seize the chance while I had it, but then lost my nerve on the welcome mat," Marionette confessed. He pulled the towel closer. "Speaking of Chance, I… spoke to him last night."

"About what?" Charlie asked. He was quiet, so she took a guess, "Sammy?"

"About me being Sammy," Marionette corrected.

"Oh…" Her voice betrayed her surprise. "How did he take it?"

"Well, at first very badly. But then he warmed up a little," he said. He rubbed the back of his head. "Then we sat together and watched a football game. His team won, then we watched some Family Rules until Fritz and Natalie came home."

"So, not that bad," Charlie tried to encourage.

"Not that bad…" Marionette sighed and slouched, head falling into a helpless tilt. "I feel like I might've gotten his hopes up if this whole thing turns out to be a mistake."

"That would mean us finding Sammy, so I think that would be the last thing on his mind," she assured. Though this did little to help assuage his feelings. Understanding that there was likely little that could, she reached up and sympathetically patted his back. "How about we go watch Lamar play a little?" she suggested.

"From inside the cabin? I would love to!" Marionette agreed. He regained his smile, even if it was notably smaller. She began to lead him back into the living room, the others following suit- pretending they hadn't been listening to the conversation.

But then she stopped in her tracks, stopping the other puppet by the arm as she considered something else that might cheer him up. Specifically, a particular piece of news.

"Wait. Before we do that, I want to show you something. In here." She pointed towards the bathroom door. He tilted his head but followed her inside, assuming that 'showing him something' was code for needing to speak with him in private.

Once they were inside and the door was shut, Charlie looked around for something she could use. Only realizing then that she didn't exactly have a pinecone to work with. A piece of balled up paper might work, but not toilet paper, and there wasn't much else in the bathroom except what they brought themselves. Even the mismatch-colored towels were likely brought by one of them.

Charlie's eyes lingered on a toothpaste tube for a thoughtful moment before she had an idea. She unscrewed the lid and sat it on the edge of the sink.

"Watch this," she said. She held onto the sink and leaned in. Marionette leaned to the side enough that he could see as well.

It wasn't a quick process, but Marionette was patient. More so than Charlie herself who tried to focus harder and reach that narrowing of her gaze faster. The tension grew like it had the night before and the ache centered behind her eyes. The only thing holding her back now being that she wasn't surely what had set it off the first time. What the trigger was or how to control it. So, like last time, she continued to focus and tried to wing it.

And just when she thought it wasn't going to happen, that last time might've been a fluke, it happened again. Something released and the rolling movement shifted across her head.

The toothpaste lid was knocked over and then rolled of its own accord. All of that resulted in the equivalent of a light flick, though a hands-off one.

She tightened her grip on the sink to keep her upright as she rode out the resulting short-lived vertigo. It went away quickly, leaving the same sore ache in its wake. She watched the cap bump against the lip of the sink and come to a stop.

"…It was a little more impressive with the-."

She was cut off by an explosion of music directly to her right.

Before Charlie could react to that, she was suddenly yanked into an excited embrace and spin, dizzily twirling in a bathroom barely bigger than a decently sized closet. Just missing hitting anything because of how closely she was clutched to the other puppet. A string of praises- "I knew you could do it! I knew it was only a matter a time! If only I was here when you- but I was!" -that were almost drowned out by some bizarre blend of 'Pop Goes the Weasel' and the Prize Box wind-up theme.

Charlie jingled and hugged back, just glad to be along for the ride.

All the while her friends heard the celebratory noises from the living room.

"What's going on in there?" Lamar asked, looking back towards the door.

"I think Charlie got some good news recently," John said vaguely. His little smile seemed to suggest he knew more than he let on.

Jessica shared that smile. Neither were aware that their shared suspicion was wrong, but neither were willing to spill about it either.

Never again.

Never again.

This vile, wretched thing.

Those words replayed in his head as he fought off the stuck life preserver- which he had warned was not clasping correctly and now wouldn't unclasp at all. Not that it helped much when they capsized going over the only slight section of rapids in the entire river. How they managed that he hadn't the foggiest idea, nor would he stick around long enough to ask, because the second they reached their stop he was off and on his way.

Now he had to sit in some ungodly cramped little bus until they made it back to camp. He should've driven up here himself, bonding be damned-.

"Mr. Wight!"

He stopped in his silent huffing and straightened himself up- as best as he could still soaking wet- and turned to face the familiar woman walking up to him.

"Kayla! I see you didn't have nearly as much of an adventure as we did," he jokingly remarked.

"I heard. Sorry about that. Umm… I wanted to talk to you about something," she said. Something seemed to be bothering her. Perhaps she was regretting this as much as he was.

"Of course! If it's about switching teams, I think we might be able to make a change," James joked again. Though this time it was much less of a joke. He waved for her to walk with him back to the meet-up. "So, what's on your mind?"

"It's about the cabin arrangements."

"Is there a problem? They're not written in stone, we could always change those arrangements," he offered.

Kayla got a weird look to her face. Something almost like a wince but not quite.

"No. Sir, it's… I saw that you were sharing a cabin with Ness."

"That's right. We were supposed to have Luis with us, but that seemed to fall through at the last minute."

She gave him a funny look. "Don't you think that's a little… inappropriate?"

James' reaction was quick. His eyes widened and he looked so offended that the woman wondered if she was about to be fired on the spot. She wasn't, but he broke into a flurry of sputters.

"What?! Certainly not! Ness is simply uncomfortable with strangers, and I feel an obligation to keep her as comfortable as possible considering that I was the one who convinced her to come," he explained. Kayla didn't seem to budge. "We have separate bedrooms, Kayla. All these cabins have separate rooms! The only thing different about ours is that two of those rooms are empty. You shouldn't throw around baseless accusations over nothing."

"Right. I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to imply anything. I just thought it was… strange," Kayla excused. It sounded sincere, but nearly in the same breath she added, "Would you mind if I took one of those rooms? Our cabin's a little cramped."

"You are more than welcome to," James agreed. He might've kept a smile, but he was aware that this wasn't an innocuous request. If it quieted her down, then it was worth going along with it.

"Thank you. I'll move my things in once we get back to camp," she agreed.

"Now if you excuse me, I need to find someone to cut this… oversized strait jacket off of me," he said. He then turned on his heel and strode off. Waiting until he was out of hearing range before huffing and puffing again.

Though this time less about the incompetence of a group of adults with paddles and instead about the gall of a one Kayla Stringer. At least he had something to take his mind off the dreadful rafting trip.

Chapter 63

Chapter Summary

Chica returns to the Pizzaplex, but things have changed at the Pizzaplex. Something is roaming the halls, and Freddy finds himself longing for an escape. Perhaps he has found one in an unlikely place?

Chica's ready. Just let her out of Parts and Service and take her to her room. Thanks! -Stanley

Natalie's brows raised the moment she found the note left for her and at the task she had been given. She wasn't sure why the technicians themselves wouldn't choose to do this, but when in doubt it was probably because they didn't want to. Considering that the note was from Stanley and not Chaz, who usually took charge, it was possible that he just didn't want to do so himself. Stanley was a bit on the timid side, at least that's the impression she had gotten in their few meetings.

Either way, it looked like Natalie was starting her shift heading down to Parts and Service. She brought Smitty with her. Since the incident she made sure to keep him close, and thankfully he was more than willing to be obedient.

She found Chica in one of the glass windowed holding cells off to the right in Part and Service. She was sitting in the corner with her head rolled against the wall and her arms limp at her side. Natalie frowned at the state they left her in and pressed the button to open the door. As she did, Chica's head snapped upright and she blinked, then looked up at the security guard. After a moment her eyes got that tilt and her lower lids raised to signal happiness, or more likely relief at being let out.

Chica was looking practically perfect. She wobbled a little when she pushed herself up, but there were no cracks in her body. Her beak had been replaced with one that might've been a shade lighter, though Natalie couldn't tell for sure. Other than that, it looked like good old Glamrock Chica walking out of that room, and even with her slightly slouched posture she seemed to remember her.

When she asked if Chica remembered that night however, Chica shook her head no and Natalie let it drop. Instead assuring that they were all worried about her and glad to see her back.

Chica hadn't been entirely untruthful. Things got fuzzy after the trash compactor. There were blips of people and things, but she couldn't make much sense of them. She thought maybe her friends came to find her, someone like that, and she vaguely thought Vanessa might've been there but couldn't remember what happened. She had seen a glimpse of Vanessa before someone had come up from somewhere and there was pain, and then nothing. A technician, likely.

But most of that night had been glimpses and sounds. She had felt so hot and tingly. Burning up inside and yet with no way to get that heat out, a buzz through her head and splotches of red on her vision that might've been warning pop-ups.

Chica couldn't ask the security guard; she instead just rode up the elevator with her and her accompanying Staff Bot.

They walked into Chica's green room, and she immediately noticed the smell of the place. Flowers, like that spray deodorizer with a floral scent, not the lingering scent of pizza she preferred. A quick look at the corner showed why this was. Someone had come in and cleaned up all her pizza boxes, her table, and got everything nice and tidy for her return. Including adding a plethora of cards and folded up papers onto her vanity.

She picked one up and unfolded it to see a drawing a child had made of her and assumedly them. Crudely drawn but endearing none-the-less. It was nice to know that somebody noticed her absence.

"Aww, are those get-well cards? That's really sweet!" Natalie enthused without a drop of sarcasm.

Chica opened a few of them and showed them off, occasionally laying a hand to her chest in endearment at drawings of her and children with cake and pizza.

Sunny must've been behind this. She and him didn't exactly get along great. Specifically, they barely spent time in the same vicinity unless Moon was bossing her around, but he could be sweet when he wanted to be.

There was one card that stood out. It was in a yellow envelope, one of the birthday-colored envelopes, and taped to the mirror. She had a suspicion that she knew who it was from and thus avoided showing it any attention.

Until suddenly Smitty started acting weird. He made a flagging noise and waved to Natalie before pointing his flashlight at the door, signaling that an alarm had gone off.

"Looks like we're starting early tonight," Natalie sighed. Unenthused that she was already getting skirted off to check something. "I've got to go check on that, but I'll be back later, okay? You just sit tight and relax."

Chica agreed and Natalie headed out behind Smitty who led the way. Once the door shut Chica was on her own again, but at least now in the comfort of her room. She felt weary, but not in a low battery sort of way. A different weakness entirely. Maybe she would go lay on her couch and see if that took out some of tiredness away.

That was, after she addressed the envelope.

She didn't want to, but she begrudgingly yanked it off the mirror and tore it open. There was a card covered in balloons inside and she opened it up expecting one thing and finding something completely different.

It wasn't from who she thought it was at all, if the unfamiliar handwriting and doodles at the bottom were any indication. Her narrowed eyes flew open as they scanned over the writing.

Hey, Chickadee!

I'm so, so sorry things went so wrong. I hope you're back in tip-top shape soon! If you need anything, just send a little paper boat down the sewers and maaaybe I'll come back to visit! Or just leave out some unbaked cookie dough. That's my real weakness, ha ha!

-The Hurricane Clown

Underneath the message was a little section of doodles. One was Glamrock Chica's head with a thermometer sticking out of her beak, one was of the clown's head grinning, and there was a little Mister Cupcake drawn beneath them.

Chica stared at the card for a long second. Her eyes settled on the face of that clown, his self-portrait. Her fingers tightened on the card so hard that it nearly bent, and her hands nearly shook.

He…

He DID care!

She nearly crushed the fragile card against her chest. Tossing her head back and bouncing on her feet in excited celebration. It was as though a hundred sparkler candles had been lit up in her heart.

Oh, he did care! But of course he did, with how gentle he had been. That much she could remember. The only thing she could clearly remember from that night, him gently pressing her features back into place with his clever wire hands, speaking to her with such concern and gentleness compared to earlier that evening- because that wasn't him earlier that evening. The real him was the delicious doctor who had been so kind as to put her back together.

She just wanted to swoon at the thought of him. Sure, he was tribute against every rule in the book. An unsuited endo running around with all those admittedly delicious wires exposed against all protocols. He was a bad boy, or the bad boys of animatronics, but he cared. Which meant that he had a soft spot for her and, oh, after that night, she definitely had a soft spot for him. She couldn't help but mentally squeal at the thought of him creeping up out of the sewers and sweeping her off her feet-!

Chica's vivid daydream was cut off by the sound of heavy footsteps racing through Rockstar Row. Her joyous eyes lost their luster, lids lowering, and she reluctantly stashed the card away under some stuff in her vanity drawer. She would admire it more later.

She leered at herself in the mirror as the door to her green room opened and Freddy raced in. His eyes brightening up at the sight of her and his mouth open in a smile of relief.

"Chica! Chica, I am so glad to see you! We were all so very worried!" Freddy gushed with enthusiasm. "We missed you too, especially during the shows. But do not worry, we did not have anyone fill in for you and still included you in the intro song."

Chica leered at him through the mirror. He didn't notice, instead continuing to ramble on.

"Roxy and Monty will be so happy to see you back! Roxy especially, she was very worried about you. She was prepared to fight tooth and claw to keep your spot open, but nobody could have replaced you. I know I looked over quite a few times expecting to see you and when I noticed your spot bear… but that does not matter now. What does matter is that you are here, and I am just so glad you are alright! I-!"

Until Chica couldn't take it anymore and smacked her hand down on the vanity, cutting the bear off. He stopped with surprise, only now noticing her posture.

"Chica?" he quietly tried.

She thrust her hands down at her sides angrily and turned to head for the door. Which Freddy noticed and looked startled at.

"Chica, wait-!" Freddy started to step forward only to have her hand suddenly shoved in his chest, pushing him out of her way.

Though Chica didn't move further. She stood there with her hand on his chest and her eyes on the carpet.

Then she lifted her eyes to him and revealed a look of white-hot anger and betrayal. He shirked back at her glare, totally taken aback by it. She kept her eyes on him a long second before finally walking off, letting her arm drop off his chest, and striding out of the room. She stomped off with the door shutting behind her with a clunk.

Freddy looked shock, but soon enough the expression softened to devastation, and then both his eyes and ears fell with sadness. Natalie had said she hadn't remembered anything, but that wasn't true. She remembered something.

Truth was, Chica could only remember bits and pieces of that night.

But too many of those bits and pieces involved Freddy. Freddy and that kid who pushed her into the trash compactor. It didn't take a genius to piece together that Freddy hadn't been helping her that night.

And where was he when she had been being repaired? The only person she had seen was the clown and maybe a technician. No Freddy. Nobody else.

It left her feeling hollow in a way that made her hungry, and though she knew it was useless she trudged through the atrium and up towards her Cupcake Shoppe. There was no point in stopping in to look for the boy. She didn't feel like, she just wanted…

It didn't take her long to get to the Cupcake Shoppe. She let herself in and looked around at the bakery wearily. Many of the displays were still filled with goodies of all kinds, goodies that would likely still be sold to hungry patrons the next day.

The place reeked of sweetness. A sugary scent that normally would send her into a frenzy of shoving all these leftovers down her gullet, but this time it couldn't be so easy. Her hands were shaking, and she rubbed at her hips and thighs trying to still them. Then she wandered to the nearest platter of cupcakes. Basic cupcakes; chocolate with pink icing, vanilla with yellow, pink with white and with some sprinkles on top.

She felt so empty. So hungry. She couldn't withhold herself any longer and snatched one, her finger sliding messily into the icing. She didn't care. Her other hand flying up to her beak to pull it open. To scrape over it desperately for hold.

She became more frantic as she felt the ridge, the thin separation between her upper and lower beak. She could feel it, she knew it was there. It was an opening. It should've opened, she just couldn't get ahold of it. Her smooth fingers unable to get a grip.

Desperation took hold and pride was thrown to the wind. That crack, she could still use the crack. She violently smooshed the cupcake into her face and splattered it across her casing. Trying to press it into the crack with her fingers.

But nothing went through. Not the smallest splotch made it through her beak. Almost as though the crack was just for show, built in to give the illusion of a real mouth. One that she couldn't and wouldn't open.

One that was working just as intended.

One perfect to hide the empty socket where her voice box used to be. The one they wouldn't replace. Too expensive, too much of a liability.

Chica slowly pulled her hands from her beak and stared at the colorful mess across her fingers. She could smell it, the hunger was prying at her stomach, but there was nothing she could do.

She wanted to scream, but she couldn't even do that.

She slammed her fists down onto the platter of cupcakes just hard enough to crack it and either smoosh or send the desserts falling. Then she shoved the mess off with a loud clatter to the floor. She then turned and grabbed a display holding little tea cakes and sweets and threw it across the shoppe. She smashed the glass on another display and tried to tear into a cake on display, but it was plastic, so she instead grabbed it up and threw it as well.

Chica continued to ransack the Cupcake Shoppe. She circled the displays kicking them in, sending large shards of glass across the tiled floor and crushing them under her feet. She snatched up and launched a Freddy shaped trashcan across the room. She threw over an ATM machine and was moving onto the next one in line when her tirade was brought to an unexpected halt.

At the sound of rapid footsteps, Chica turned on her heel prepared to confront Freddy, only to find someone else barging through the front door.

"What's going on in here?! I swear if that's- Chica?!" Roxanne raced inside and was struck silent at the sight of Chica standing there. She was the last person she expected to be the culprit, both because she was vandalizing her own attraction and because she was out of Parts and Service at all. Chica looked like a mess with icing smeared on her face and a wild look in her eyes, and a quick glance around showed the amount of destruction she had already evoked. "Chica, what are you doing here?! What are you doing?!"

At the question Chica seemed to suddenly sober up. Her wild look suddenly clearing up and her staring blankly at the wolf. Only for that look to dissolve into one of utter devastation, of unshed tears that didn't exist, and without warning she sunk to the floor and landed on her knees with a thump and a crunch of glass. Her head dropped forward, and her shoulders began to shake in silent sobs.

Shaking off her stun, Roxanne rushed over and knelt beside her without hesitation. She grimaced slightly at the mess on her face and attempted to wipe it off with her hand, holding her shoulder with the other hand to keep her from wobbling.

"Geez, you're a mess," she said with no insult. Her voice softer than usual and filled with sympathy. Chica said nothing, and Roxanne's hand stilled as she realized that she couldn't.

She stared at her momentarily before her shoulders slouched, her silently staring at the other Glamrock for a long moment and processing what was happening. And then, just as silently as Chica, pulling her into a sudden embrace, ignoring the icing mess entirely.

Chica slumped against her while still keeping her eyes down into her lap. Roxanne didn't push her to respond, she just gave her the support she could.

And to think they were planning to celebrate when she got released. Of course, it couldn't be that easy.

Freddy was still sulking when he entered his green room. He tried to cover before he headed into the back room, but he couldn't cover the sad look in his eyes. As he walked past the elevator and into the back, Gregory poked his head out of his hiding spot.

"Did you see her?" he asked.

"I did. She is over in her room. Or she was…" Freddy said vaguely.

"So, what's she look like? Did she get her face fixed?" Gregory pressed further.

"She did! She looks good. Very good, like there was no accident at all," Freddy assured.

There was something weird in his voice and look. Gregory wasn't stupid, he knew when someone was hiding something, and Freddy was holding in something bothering him. He pried a little further.

"Then… what's wrong?"

Freddy was about to protest when he saw Gregory's face and knew he couldn't lie to him. He certainly didn't want to burden the boy with his problems, but he didn't want to lie to him either. With a sigh, he wandered over and sat down on the floor beside him with his back against but not resting much weight on a stack of boxes.

"Chica is upset with me. I could tell as much when she stormed out while I was there. And the look on her face…" Freddy's eyes down casted with sadness. "I have… never seen her so upset. She would not even speak to me."

"Wait, does she remember what happened…?" Gregory asked. A low dread in his voice, one that doubled when Freddy nodded.

"I am afraid she may. At least, she remembers what I did."

"But you didn't do anything wrong," Gregory said defensively.

"I did not follow proper protocol. I also allowed it to happen by not being diligent. Perhaps that is why she is upset."

Or perhaps it was because he didn't let her get to Gregory. The fleeting thought upset him more than he thought it would, so Freddy tried to brush it off. No, she was probably more upset that he hadn't helped her as much as he should.

Freddy sighed and looked to Gregory. Upon seeing the uneasy look on his face, he was quick to change his tune. Perking up in tone and expression as he continued, "But she is alright and that is all that matters. She has every right to be upset with me, but that does not mean we are not friends. We will make up and be back to making music in no time. Err, well, we may be making music sooner than making up."

"Okay." Gregory seemed uncertain, but if Freddy believed that then he wasn't going to stop him.

It was then that Freddy got yet another security alert. He had been ignoring them with the upset going on, but he had been getting them back-to-back for a few minutes now. He hummed curiously.

"What?"

"There has been a security alert from somewhere in the building. It has been going off repeatedly for the last few minutes. Which is strange, normally the Staff Bots do not repeatedly flag an alert unless there is an active problem," Freddy explained. He reached up to his temple and checked its location: the basement. He tapped his claws on his head. "Officer Vanessa- I mean… Officer Vanessa should be on her way to investigate, but perhaps I should too."

"Do you think it's Foxy?"

"I hope so," Freddy admitted. His voice betraying how much he missed him.

"Then let's go! What are we waiting for?" Gregory said. He eagerly crawled out of his hiding hole wearing an oversized Freddy head orange shirt and dark blue pajama pants dotted with spaceships. Freddy looked to him with shock.

"I am sorry, Gregory, but it is too close to your bedtime. And you are already in your jammies! I would not be a sufficient caretaker if I allowed you down in that cold basement at this time of the night," Freddy declined. Gregory gave him a less than enthused look, appropriate considering that Freddy had taken him into the basement this late the night they met. Unable to see what the big difference was. "But I could call Sunny to come keep you company while I am gone."

"I don't need a babysitter. I just wanted to see what was going on," Gregory pouted.

"Well, I would be happy to tell you when I get back! Or tomorrow if you have already fallen asleep. For now, let us get you into bed. It is never too early to get a good night's sleep!"

Gregory grumbled a little and reluctantly scooted back into his bed. Freddy chuckled and leaned over to tuck him in, pulling the blanket up and around him, and carefully poking it in around his sides. While Gregory usually resisted Freddy doing stuff for him, he didn't mind the tuck-ins. This was their fourth tuck-in and by now Freddy knew exactly how securely he wanted the blanket tucked, how loose he wanted it at the top, and how he didn't like it tight at all around his feet.

Basically, he liked to be able to move but still wanted to feel surrounded. That Freddy could do!

"I should not be gone long, and I will check on you as soon as I return," Freddy promised. "Try to get some rest and first thing tomorrow morning we can get in a few games of Street Skate Superstar before opening."

"Yeah, okay," Gregory agreed. He tried to push down a little smile. "But what if Foxy's here? Can I get up and hang out with you guys?"

"…Well, I suppose it would be a special occasion… Maybe! But let us see if it is him first," Freddy partially agreed. He ruffled Gregory's hair fondly. "Good night, Superstar. I will be back soon."

"Night, Freddy." Admittedly, Gregory was only being so cooperative because he could tell Freddy was upset and didn't like it.

On the flipside, normally Freddy wouldn't stray too far when Gregory was heading to bed, but he was feeling awful about Chica and was really hoping that the alarm going off was Foxy or one of his friends.

Things had been rough at the Pizzaplex.

Chica's absence had made the employees antsy. They had been regulating the Glamrock's daytime schedule a lot more closely, even when there were only a handful of human employees in the building to do so. Which wouldn't have been a problem in and of itself as Freddy didn't mind sticking to a routine, but it had become more rigid in the last few days alone. He was encouraged to not approach customers- apparently Monty got too chummy with a group and handed out free stuff and now the higher ups were taking notice.

But it wasn't just that. Without Chica it was like the glue that held the band together had fallen apart. That is, Roxanne could seldom be bothered to hang out or practice with how distracted she was with Chica's situation and Monty wanted to spend all his time up on the catwalks. The only one Freddy regularly spent time with Sunny, but the daycare was absolutely off-limits during the morning and daytime hours.

Freddy had received two strict warnings to only go into the daycare for parties. That he would just be a distraction. So, Freddy avoided the area during the day, and tried to give Sunny enough space at night to get ready for the next one.

It was as though Freddy's world had been shrinking around him.

Which was why he was direly hoping that Foxy had finally returned. The two had stayed in touch on the phone- Freddy's calls had thankfully not been noticed by management- but it was different to having Foxy here. Foxy had a way of making the Pizzaplex seem like their own playground, and making such big problems seem so small in comparison. With Foxy, Freddy didn't feel guilty bending the rules.

Alas, Foxy had not returned since the incident with Chica. Which made sense, but lefty Freddy feeling especially lonesome. He wished he was here.

He wished Bonnie was here too. Bonnie would've been able to figure this all out.

But right now, it was just Freddy. Gregory too, but he couldn't count on him. He was his caretaker now; he couldn't put these problems on him. It just wasn't fair.

This brought his mind back to Gregory and as Freddy stepped out of his green room, he pressed his fingers to his temple. Since Chica stormed off, Rockstar Row was empty, but he still didn't feel comfortable leaving Gregory alone. Especially when he might not make it back for the hourly recharge. Sure, Gregory had his flashlight, but that wasn't enough to make him feel safe. He sent a call out.

"Moonlight, I need you," he rumbled lowly through his link.

He got a response almost immediately.

"HHSHSHHHZZWHWHWHATTT?!"

Oh, right. Odds were that it was still Sunny right now.

"Oh, my apologies, Sunshine. I knew there was a fifty-fifty chance of it being you," Freddy replied. No doubt his dire tone must have alarmed him from that flustered reaction. "My apologies for frightening you. I am sure my dire tone must have done so."

"THAT- That is not- That is NOT-!... Yes, that's it," Sunny finished in almost a meek squeak. "Whatcha need, Carebear?"

"Have you heard that security alert from the basement?"

"Tch, how could I not?"

"I am going to go see what it is. Maybe Foxy has returned… I have just tucked Gregory in. Would you do me a favor and come watch over him until I return? Or ask Moon to do so?"

"Sure thing! I'm on my way!" Sunny chirped.

"Thank you," Freddy said. He paused for a long moment before adding. "…Sun, Chica was just released."

"I heard. How's she holding up?"

"She is looking good! She has a new beak, and she is looking perfectly on-model. Better than ever!..."

"…"

"…"

"Buuut?"

"But I think she might remember what happened."

There was a long pause over the line. Freddy expected Sunny to be alarmed and frightened, but the response he was met with was instead calm. Maybe a little too calm.

"What did she say?"

That was definitely Sunny's voice, but it sounded like something that would've come from Moon. Eerily calm, perhaps the slightest bit threatening- to anyone who didn't know the Daycare Attendant as well as Freddy did.

"Nothing. She is not speaking to me, and she is very upset with me. From that alone I can only assume she remembers," Freddy quietly, somberly admitted. "But she has every right to be upset. I let her down."

"Accidents happen, Freddy. What happened that night was an accident. And I don't recall her being squeaky clean that night either! And, uh, me neither... None of us were looking good that night, but sheeee was breaking a whole bunch of rules that you and I weren't," Sunny defended. The further he got along, the more he sounded like his usual self and much less defensive. "Don't worry, Freddy. It'll be okay! Even if Chica remembers, I don't think she's going to tell- nope!"

"It is not her telling that I am worried about. I just… I wish it had not happened. I hate seeing her like this almost as much as I hated seeing her like that," Freddy said quietly.

"Give her time, give her space."

"I will, I will. And I am heading now to check on the alert."

"I'm leaving the daycare now! Say hi to Foxy for me!" Sunny chirped over the line.

"I will, and thank you again, Sun. I do not know what I would do without you," Freddy said. He got a smile at the resulting giggle that was broadcast between their connection before lowering his hand. Though with it his face fell as well.

He really wished he could do something more, but there was no quick fix for this. He would have to deal with the repercussions of his decisions.

He really, really hoped Foxy had come back.

Natalie had taken the stairs down from Rockstar Row into the depths of the basement with Smitty in tow. The basement was as muggy as usual and just walking the length of it was tiring in and of itself. Though more so because of the tediousness of it than the distance.

Especially when Natalie had to stop at every turn and have Smitty flag her in the correct direction. It would've been easier if he would've just led her himself, but he seemed either unwilling or unable to. He was also unable to specify how far the flag was. So, she was aware that at any point she could just waltz up on a catastrophe, or likely Foxy hiding in a crevice somewhere.

She couldn't say she was surprised when they walked up on the source of the alert and found a downed Staff Bot. Not just any Staff Bot either, as she realized when she saw the familiar little scuff and dent in its head. The Mop Bot notorious for falling down the stairs was at the bottom of the basement stairs, having fallen onto them, twisting its arms around and letting out repeated alerts.

"Alright, Buddy, we're here. We're going to get you right up," Natalie assured. She set her flashlight down, since between Smitty and the light from the stairs she didn't really need it and pulled the Mop Bot up onto its wheels.

But the flagging did not stop. In fact, Mop Bot kept trying to go up the stairs, only succeeding in knocking itself forward again. Natalie managed to pull it up a second time, getting between the Mop Bot and the stairs when it tried to tip itself again.

"Wait, wait. Stop that. We'll find you another way up," she assured. Apparently, it recognized the word 'stop' as it no longer fought to go up the stairs, but it soon became apparent that something else was wrong.

She had never seen a Staff Bot act like this. It kept twisting its head around, arms raising and flinching, and still it was flagging and alerting for help.

"What's going on, Buddy? What's wrong?" Natalie asked with concern.

She didn't expect it to respond. Staff Bots seldom did, with Smitty being the only exception. Yet suddenly the Mop Bot suddenly turned and pointed further down the hallway. Smitty turned as well and pointed his light down the tunnel.

"Is there something down there…?" Natalie asked warily. She picked up her flashlight and shined it down as well, but all she could see was a tunnel.

Against her better judgment she began to walk down the tunnel with Smitty at her side. The Mop Bot slowly rolled after them as they continued down the shaft until something came into view.

There was the Mop Bot's squeegee laying on the floor. Natalie picked it up and handed it to it, and it took it in its hand and gripped it tightly. It continued to stare past her into the hallway.

Smitty suddenly flagged. It was unexpected, but Natalie took that as a sign to suddenly turned around and grab for her taser. She didn't see anything coming at them, but there did look to be another downed Staff Bot.

It wasn't until she crept up further that she realized what she was looking at wasn't just a group of downed Staff Bots, but a massacre.

Three Staff Bots were spread out across the tunnel. Their chests had been gutted open and they were missing limbs and fingers. One of them had their head partially smashed and an eye broken in, but it was clear that most of the damage was from their chest wounds. It was as though something either broke or pried them open, and from how deep the light reached inside she could tell that their insides had been pulled out.

It was a harrowing scene. Suddenly Natalie understood why the Mop Bot had been acting so strange. He must've come up on the scene, if not having seen whoever did this before fleeing for the stairs.

"Who did this?" she asked in disbelief as she looked over the broken bots.

This certainly didn't fit in with Vanny's usual schemes. While it could've been her, Natalie had some doubts. Unless there was something she needed out of the Staff Bots it just didn't seem like her.

Maybe she could get some answers out of the Mop Bot. As limited as their communication ability was, they had shown they could answer easy questions, and Mop Bot itself had been able to point her in this direction. She turned back to question it.

When she caught sight of the scene behind her.

Mop Bot was standing there with its hands sort of folded together in a default position in front of itself with its mop in hand. Its head was down aiming its ever-unfocused eyes on the floor. That wasn't too peculiar. What was would be Smitty standing alongside it with his free hand resting on the Mop Bot's shoulder, as though he was lending comfort or his support. A strangely human gesture for bots who seemed unable to express even the most basic of emotions. This was the first time she had seen anything close.

She almost hated breaking it up with how endearing it was, but she didn't have much of a choice.

"Hey," she began. Both Staff Bots turned to look at her. "Did you see who did this?"

The Mop Bot pointed towards the wall. Natalie shined her flashlight over and noticed a broken open vent nearby. The cover was laying in front of it, with the middle smashed outwards. Something with an amount of strength behind it must have struck it.

It was becoming increasingly less likely that this was Vanny, and something about that uneased Natalie even more.

Though before she could even consider this longer, she heard the familiar thump, thump, thump slowly raising out of the distant tunnels behind her. Like a rumble slowly travelling down the line. She knew who it was even before he jogged up to the scene.

"Officer Vanessa, I was coming to- what happened here?!" Freddy's voice shifted immediately upon seeing the downed Staff Bots littering the hall. He looked around in shock at the carnage. "Who could have done this?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," Natalie agreed. She pointed over at the vent. "But it looks like it came through there."

"That is… Could it had been an Endoskeleton?" Freddy walked over and knelt to look at the vent. He supposed it could've been, but there wasn't a telltale.

"Would the Endos attack Staff Bots?" Natalie asked.

"They have not before, but I cannot imagine anything else that may be down here," Freddy replied.

Which was mostly a non-answer, but Natalie took his word for it. He knew from Mike and Marionette at least that the Endos were aggressive, so perhaps one just got set off by something.

Natalie sighed as she looked at the scene. "These poor guys. They were just doing their job, they didn't deserve this," she sympathized. She sent a look back at Mop Bot. He was looking around in constant alert now, more alert than even Smitty, as though expecting something to drop out of the ceiling and attack him.

"It is a shame… but we may be able to fix them!" Freddy suggested. Natalie gave him a doubtful look. "It is not as far-fetched as it seems! Staff Bots hold most of their servos and processors, the parts which make each one unique, in their heads. They are also made with easy-to-detach heads, and there is a facility up on the West Arcade for repairing these Staff Bot heads so they may be attached to a new body. We could take their heads up there, repair them, and then the technicians could affix them to new bodies!"

"They can do that? Then why didn't they do that for all those Staff Bots in the basement?"

"I am… not sure… Perhaps because most of them were Alpha Staff Bots. I am not certain if the Alpha line came with the easy to remove heads," Freddy said with a slight shrug.

"Then let's go for it. I rather that then them ending up down there too," Natalie agreed.

Freddy nodded and crouched closer to the nearest Staff Bot. He maneuvered something around the neck and clicked in a few specific points, and then off the Staff Bots head detached. He carefully tucked a few loose wires back into its neck before cradling it in his arm and moving to the next one.

"The West Arcade is that one between the bowling alley and Prize Counter, right?"

"It is! But I would be happy to take these up myself, if it is alright with you. I could use a reason to stretch my legs," Freddy offered.

Stretch his legs- more like walk off the disappointment that Foxy hadn't shown up.

"That would be great, thank you! I need to get this guy upstairs and start looking through the cams," Natalie said. She reached back to pat Mop Bot's shoulder. "He's been through a lot tonight."

"I cannot imagine, but at least he is safe. And soon his friends will be as good as new!" Freddy assured. "I will drop off the Staff Bot heads with you when I am done."

"Thanks. Remember, I moved from the Lost and Found to that security office right beside the lobby."

"I remember! Take care getting back."

"We will, you too." Natalie then turned to her Staff Bot companions. "Let's go, Smitty, Buddy." She waved them to follow and the two did, staying close as she turned around to head back to the stairs.

Freddy took a shortcut up to the atrium through a separate hall and staircase, and then began the long ascent up to the West Arcade. His features falling as he began to head up. As though tonight couldn't get any more ominous and dismal. What on Earth could've attacked those Staff Bots? Likely an Endo, as that would have been the only thing down there, but it seemed so senseless. The Endos weren't supposed to move on their own at all, let alone attacking innocent Staff Bots!

Freddy sighed deeply as he approached the West Arcade doors, passed the Staff Bot guarding the door, and stepped into the entranceway. A pillar surrounded by planted shrubs sat in the center of the entrance, with a hall leading off to the left to the Prize Counter while the security door lay ahead. He walked up to it and let it roll open, and the splendor of the West Arcade was revealed to him.

Unlike the East Arcade, which was large and overflowing with games, but all on a level playing field. The West Arcade was masterfully vertical. Even standing in the lobby he could see evidence of it, with a towering faux-gold statue of him and his band mates standing before him. Almost standing tall enough to reach the dangling lights hanging far from the distant ceiling. It was an impressive sight.

But there was a reason that Freddy did not come up here.

Freddy straightened his back and started to make a beeline forward around the fountain at the base of the statues. He kept his eyes down on the lime green floor before raising them up into the wonder of the West Arcade. Numerous arcade machines drenched in soothing neon in a circular room led up into by a spiral staircase, which he eagerly headed up. Even in a place as large as the Mega Pizzaplex, the West Arcade stood out in its size and design. Though Freddy kept to his work, quickly heading to the security office and fixing the heads.

It was on his way out that Freddy slipped up. So far so good, he hadn't felt any unnecessary tugs in any wrong directions. He was able to get in and out without a problem, and for that he had gotten a little too relaxed.

Until he just happened to look over past the fountain as he was walking by. The entrance was right there, he was so close to just walking right out the door, and he accidently ended up looking into the other doorway. Into a large room obscured in a light bed of fog. An archway of dimmed neon signaling the stage beyond it. The dance floor hidden just beneath it, currently unlit, waiting, calling for him.

He could feel the programming kick in as he suddenly flipped from dread to the unexplainable and irresistible urge to approach the dancefloor.

It was an order by design, and Freddy had no choice but to carefully set down the Staff Bot heads beside the fountain, apologizing as he did so, and make his way into the cloudy room.

It was a programming bug, they said. But Freddy had his doubts. He believed it was something much deeper, much more instinctual. He was born- built to dance.

As he stepped onto the dance floor it alit underneath his feet. Spotlights above shined down upon him and dimmed neon burst to life around him. It was as though he was standing at center stage, emphasized by an automated voice overhead.

"Now entering the dance floor: Freddy Fazbear!"

The ambience music was replaced with a striking riff that led into an electronic rendition of the Pizzaplex main theme. Freddy pointed to the sky as though standing on stage and prepared for the performance of a lifetime.

When suddenly the music shut off. There was a low hum and creak before the neon lights and floor dimmed to their previous state. Freddy's closed eyes popped open in surprise as though ripped out of a trance. He looked around and then towards the stage.

His answer came when he met the eyes of the DJ. Large and black empty discs staring out of the cave of a booth it hunkered down in. Standing twice his height with twice as many limbs, a massive creature with a tight row of teeth to emulate a smile.

It answered him not with words, but by lifting a large gloved hand and then sending him a point. A smooth, friendly sort of, "I've got you," kind of point. One that brought a sigh of relief from Freddy.

"Thank you, DJ. Something about the music and atmosphere of this place makes me lose all control of myself," Freddy thanked. He walked up to the DJ booth freely, feeling only a slight static on the bottom of his feet as he did. "My apologies for not stopping in to say hello. I came to repair a few Staff Bot heads for the security officer. She found then vandalized in the basement. Unfortunately, we are not sure who may have done it."

The DJ tilted his massive head thoughtfully. Its body groaning at the motion, but Freddy could've imagined a thoughtful hum.

"But I really should stop in more often to visit. It has been much too long," Freddy said kindly.

Considering that the last time he came in for a proper visit he was with Bonnie, it had indeed been much too long. Which was a shame, because the DJ was also so polite and welcoming to others. He was also typically alone as well. With the Hive Attendant restricted to the Hive Arcade and the Glamrocks seldom coming up here- Freddy was sure he was the only one who ever came up here- it must've left him lonely.

Which was a shame. He couldn't imagine why Chica, Monty, and Roxy wouldn't want to come up and play some arcade games, or sing some karaoke, or dance it out together. It was such a good idea that Freddy would've offered if not for the current situation. Though he doubted they would say yes. Even before this, his bandmates tended to like doing their own thing. Which he did not mind, but it was a shame. Especially since it was so incredibly cool up here, but also so safely secluded.

Nobody came up here and yet there was so much to do. He really should have brought Foxy.

In fact, he really could bring Foxy.

Like he said, the Glamrocks didn't want anything to do with up here. The DJ was friendly and didn't seem like the type to refuse company. There were plenty of activities to throw the most rocking get-together and still be totally under the radar.

Excitement swelled in Freddy's chest at the idea, but he couldn't get too excited yet. First, he had to run it past the DJ himself, who was now waving a large hand in front of his face as he stared off towards the wall.

"Oh! My apologies, DJ. I was lost in thought… And I was thinking… I know this is against protocol and many of our rules, but what would you think about us having a private get-together here at the West Arcade? And by us, I mean myself and a few friends of mine… friends from outside the Pizzaplex," Freddy began. The DJ tilted his head, and Freddy clasped his hands together and continued to explain. "I know my friends are not supposed to be here and due to these circumstances, I am not able to see them. However, if I brought them here, perhaps we could spend time together without them being discovered. And they would follow all the rules of the arcade and be very careful with the equipment, I am certain."

The DJ considered it for a moment. He even tapped his finger on the side of his headphones thoughtfully and tapped another hand of gloved fingers on the edge of his stage. Then he gave a firm nod of agreement.

"Really?! That is wonderful! Thank you, DJ! I will take care of everything, and if anyone finds out then I will take full responsibility," Freddy reassured. He was absolutely brimming with exhilaration now.

The DJ gave him a thumbs up. He didn't seem concerned in the slightest. He didn't even motion to ask further questions, either trusting Freddy's judgement or equally excited at the idea of company. Something worth rousing himself from his typical napping for.

"I will give you the details once I speak with them, but for now I should be going. Vanessa is counting on me," Freddy explained. He turned to hurry out, waving back at the DJ as he did, an excited little hop in his step. "Sleep well and thank you again!"

The DJ replied with an approving record scratch from one of his soundboards and another supportive point in Freddy's direction. It sounded encouraging to Freddy.

He grabbed up the Staff Bot heads and headed right down to drop them off at the security office. However, that pep in his step started to quickly wane, and it wasn't long before he was having second thoughts.

Specifically, when he arrived at the security office and dropped off the Staff Bot head. Initially the plan was to tell her then about the idea, but then he saw the survivor Mop Bot slowly wiping at the floor in the hallway, with Smitty following slowly behind him, and it reminded him of what had transpired earlier. Natalie was friendly with an appreciative and somewhat awed, "Good job, Freddy!" and he couldn't bear to tell her of his idea. Maybe later, maybe once he called Foxy.

Though as he started making his way back to Rockstar Row, he began to second guess himself. There was so much going on right now, and a significant chunk of it was caused by what happened the last time he had gotten too lenient letting people visit. He should've been watching, but instead he had been letting himself get distracted, and it ended up putting Gregory, Chica, Baby, and the entire Pizzaplex at risk.

There was a reason Foxy wasn't asking to come back, because it simply wasn't safe. Freddy squared this away with a sigh as he made his way into Rockstar Row.

And much to his surprise, he found Roxanne waiting for him. She was sitting on one of the circular benches. Or more like laid on it with her arms crossed and one leg up. She noticed the door opening and got up as he approached.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Roxy, hello. I did not expect to see you waiting for me," Freddy greeted.

"Where were you?" she asked. Only now did he realize how tired she sounded. She looked it too on closer inspection, with even her hair a little more ruffled than usual.

"I went to check the security alert. It turns out Officer Vanessa found three broken Staff Bots in the basement. They had been attacked by something that had broken out of a vent. It could have been a rogue endo."

"…I'm sorry, what?" Roxanne stared at his solemn nod before shaking her head with a huff. "Right, that's exactly what we need right now."

She seemed more upset than usual. He could only assume why.

"Have you seen Chica?"

"Have you?" she challenged back.

"I did a while ago," he agreed. "She is very upset with me. She stormed out without a word."

"Maybe because they didn't replace her voice box?"

Those words sunk in quickly and Freddy's head snapped up in surprise.

"What?!"

"And they sealed her beak shut. Or this beak's just for show and doesn't open at all,"" Roxanne explained. She crossed her arms again, resting her weight on one hip. "You didn't notice?"

"I-I noticed she was not speaking, but- but she was so angry that she stormed out-."

"And you let her go?! Freddy, she's not okay," Roxanne scolded.

"I know, but I… I did not want to make it any worse than I already have. I thought if I gave her space that I…" Freddy trailed off and like releasing a breath, his body slouched with guilt. It was clear that he had no ill intentions, and Roxanne gave a begrudging sigh.

"…No, you made the right call. If she left then she wanted to get away, not have you follow her," she agreed. "She's up in Mazercise blowing off some steam right now. I came down to tell you and Monty."

"How did he take it?"

"I don't even know where the hell he is. He's out of range, so he's probably up in the catwalks again," Roxanne vented with frustration. She planted her hands back on her hips. She couldn't keep them in place, and her leg was starting to twitch; she was clearly wound up. "Look, you're good with the human employees. They actually listen to you. You'll need to talk to one of the technicians about getting Chica's beak fixed. Really fixed, not just this duct tape-and-done thing. They can be lazy and stupid off the clock."

"I will see to it. It is highly irresponsible of them to not fix her properly and then still expect her to perform," Freddy said, notably upset as well. Roxanne gave a satisfied nod at the spark in his voice.

"Good. I'm going to go see if Monty's in the Atrium and check up on her. If you see him, tell him what happened."

"I will."

With that, Roxanne headed off on her way and Freddy started to drag himself towards his room. He felt even worse now. He had noticed her not speaking and barely acknowledged it- how oblivious could he be? He understood exactly why she was so upset.

And so was he. He was very upset. With himself, with the technicians, with this entire situation and the numerous others counting up. He froze in place for a long moment.

And then…

He turned around and started heading back out. Heading towards the nearest phone, knowing everyone would be too distracted to hear him make a call. He couldn't stand it; he needed an out, even if it was just for one night.

The only way he was going to get through tonight was if he had something to look forward to tomorrow.

Freddy hadn't gotten back as quickly as expected, but Gregory wasn't worried. On the contrary, he kept himself quite entertained on his own. Unable to sleep and still wide awake, he rolled onto his stomach, propping himself up over his travel pillow, and broke out his action figures. So far, Gregory had only collected two; a Freddy he had saved up a ton of tickets for- and got some freebies from Freddy himself- and the Roxanne he cleaned up from the sewer.

It was Gregory's goal to get his hands on a full set, but for now he was content enough with Freddy and one-legged Roxy as the stars, with some plastic Faz-meal toys to play the roles of bad guys they had to beat up or good guys they had to save.

Roxy was in the middle of using her nub leg to 'hi-yah!' kick some little mushroom looking guy when he suddenly heard a familiar ticking noise. He furrowed his brows and wrinkled his nose questioningly, before having that question by a red glow shining on the side of his tent. He heard tsking even before he poked his head out.

There was Moon halfway through the vent. His long arm hooking on the edge of the vent while his head hung down, face spinning and teasingly wobbling upside-down at the boy.

"Such a naughty moonwort," Moon scolded. Though he almost sounding delighted to have caught him in the act. "Here I was coming to read you a bedtime story and you're ssssneaking to stay up! Tsk, tsk."

"As a matter of fact, Moondrop, Freddy said I could stay up until midnight as long as I got in bed," Gregory said and crossed his arms. Which Freddy had said… a few days ago, but he had said it and it probably still applied.

"Tch, of course Freddy would go soft," Moon said. He rolled his eyes, his face, and then himself out of the vent opening. Still holding on with one hand, he lowered himself around the remaining boxes and slinked to the floor. Sure enough, Gregory noticed a couple of books clasped under his other arm. He stepped out into view and waggled a finger at him. "It is not good for you. Put down the toys, it's time for bed," Moon said a little more firmly.

Gregory rolled his eyes and disappeared back into his hiding spot. While he could've just ignored Moon, he was awfully tempted to with how he was bossing him around, he decided he rather not test him. He didn't exactly trust Moon to not turn on him like he had the night they met. So instead, he gathered up the toys and put them away into the little shoebox he had for them. The red glow falling over his shoulder signaled the jester peeking in.

"Listening tonight? Goood. For that, I think you deserve this bedtime story after all," Moon decided. He pushed aside a few boxes and plopped himself down outside of the entrance in a cross-legged position.

Gregory's brows furrowed once again as he noticed the glow from the Christmas lights reaching the clown's lap. "How come you're not turning into Sun? I thought light's what changes you into him."

"Indeed, but thisss is not enough light," Moon explained. The lights of his eyes half-lidded. "If you think Sun will be any more lenient on your bedtime, he will not."

Gregory looked just as unamused by this comment as Moon did. The clown straightened up and opened the book in his lap.

"Now then: The Fazbear went over the Mountain. It was a bright and sunny day. It was such a sunny day that Freddy Fazbear decided it would be a nice day to take a walk outside. He packed up a basket with pizza and other goodies and left the Freddy Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex to find a good place for a picnic. It didn't take him long to find a nice grassy hill underneath the blue, blue sky. Freddy sat down the basket to spread out the blanket when he heard a big whoosh from behind him. He turned around to see a light coming down from the sky and sucking up his picnic basket! It was a UFO! Before he could say so much as a word, it flew off into the deep, dark forest. Freddy got out his Fazer Blaster and bravely ran in after it…"

Somehow, Moon was a good storyteller. It surprised Gregory at least. Or maybe it was just because the story wasn't as boring as he was thought it would be.

"-The leader apologized for tricking Freddy and returned his picnic basket as thanks for helping them find their way out of the scary woods. Freddy was so glad to be out of the woods and to have his basket back that he forgave the aliens and even invited them to his picnic. Soon they were all sitting out on the blanket under the big blue sky. It was then that Freddy knew that the only thing better than a fresh slice of pepperoni and cheese pizza was sharing one with friends. The end."

Moon closed the book in his lap.

"Do you know what the moral of the story is?"

"Pizza's good?" Gregory asked. Moon wasn't amused in the slightest. "Don't steal stuff," Gregory corrected. The old tried and true, and the most predictable moral ever.

"Perhaps, but that is not all. It is also about forgiveness. Freddy forgave the aliens and because he did, he was able to make new friends," the jester explained. "Ssssometimess it is hard to forgive those who hurt us, but sometimes forgiveness can help take that hurt away. It can let new friendships grow."

"If this is about Chica, I don't feel like forgiving her. Not when she's being mean to Freddy," Gregory quickly turned down. He looked down at his blanket defiantly, a strange mix of guilt and anger welling up like a ball in his throat.

"No, it is not," Moon said. "But since you were so kind as to bring her up, I will be staying with you until Freddy returnsss."

"I'm not scared," Gregory quietly said.

Because she looked normal now. She wasn't scary anymore. He wasn't going to be afraid of her ever again, not like that night. That Chica only existed in his nightmares.

"I know you're not, but I cannot take any risks."

"Yeah, okay," Gregory acceded.

"Gregory…" Moon said quietly. He leaned his head in with a tilt. "Do you know what you did wrong that night?"

That took Gregory entirely off-guard. He looked up in surprise. Milky blue eyes stared back, which Gregory found weird but that was the least of his problems. Like with the storybook, Gregory knew what he had done wrong.

"I… I pushed Chica into the trash compactor. She got hurt because of me, and now she's mad at Freddy because of me."

"No. That was not what you did wrong," Moon disagreed. Gregory looked to him in confusion. The jester raised a finger and explained, "It was setting up the scheme to scare her in the first place. That was out of maliciousness. You wanted to get back at her. You wanted her to feel the same fear that you had felt. I understand how you felt, but what you did was wrong. Pushing her into the compactor… Mmm, it depends on if that too was out of anger or as self-defense, BUT you put yourself in that position."

"I know… But-."

"No buts," Moon interjected surprisingly gently. "Take care to recognize who you are hurting. Your actions effect many, Chica is only one of them."

The boy nodded stiffly, feeling thoroughly corrected in a way Freddy hadn't done. He wasn't sure what to feel about it. He felt like he needed to challenge Moon, but something held him back, and it wasn't just a fear of riling up the clown. It could've been because he knew Moon was right. Not in all those extra details, but he had known what he was doing was wrong before he did it.

He just hadn't realized how wrong it was until he saw Chica's battered body. Both laying broken in the gutter and getting up on its own accord to haunt him. He would never forget it and now- a look of fear settled on his face- she was back. Chica had returned and she remembered everything. She was going to come and get him for sure; even Moon knew it. That was probably why he was here. It was only a matter of time.

Gregory was startled by Moon reaching for his chin and lifting his face. He almost recoiled from it but was perhaps too shocked in place to do so. He waved a finger.

"…And if Chica ever, ever grabs you again, you will tell me. You can tell Freddy, but you will tell me, and I will put her in her place," Moon said. His voice fell into a sharper edge, his red pupils cut through the milky blue.

"You will? Even if she's just chasing me?" Gregory asked. To which Moon nodded. "Then I will!… I, umm, thanks."

"You're welcome, Moonchild," Moon drew back into his seat and switched the book out for the second one. "Now then… Another?"

"Okay!" Gregory tried to not seem too eager as he squirmed back under his blankets to get comfortable. "I'm ready."

Moon opened the second book and they disappeared into the next story.

…

He wasn't sure if he was, but Moon felt like maybe, just maybe, he could be forgiven.

Chapter 64

Chapter Summary

Mike, Mari, Charlie, and Foxy arrive at the Pizzaplex for Freddy's planned meet-up, but will it go smoothly? With surprise jester encounters and Freddy's crippling dance fever, only time will tell.

“I’ve got to be honest, this doesn’t seem like a good idea,” Mike said. In a surprising twist, he was playing the voice of reason for once.

Of course, he was currently driving towards the Pizzaplex with a car full of animatronics, so he knew good and well it was too late to even pretend that he was the reasonable one.

“Oh, it’s not,” Marionette agreed. “But I don’t see how it is possible that it can be any worse than last time.”

Foxy and Charlie agreed from the backseat.

“And by that I mean: under no circumstances will this end up like last time,” Marionette clarified.

The grumble and hum of agreement responded again.

“Because if it does, I am throwing whoever is the cause of it directly into the nearest dumpster to make an example out of them.”

“I would’ve loved to see you wrestle Ennard into a dumpster,” Mike said off-handedly as he turned off the highway.

“Yer just built like that Schmidt,” Foxy scoffed.

“I get my kicks on route six-six-six,” Mike replied. “Speaking of hell, we’re here.”

“Not counting the thirty minutes it takes to get inside,” Charlie quipped.

“Nah, we’re gonna be halfin’ that. Freddy’s got us on a tight schedule, and we got a double birthday before lunch. We’re going to be leggin’ it less we want to spend our whole time walkin’,” Foxy explained. He shifted his legs in the tight confines of the space behind the passenger seat, Marionette already scooted up as far as he could go. “Let that be yer warnin’ that if ya guys get distracted with Jake ‘er Sun, ‘er whoever, I be leavin’ you.”

“And what happens when Freddy gets distracted with Sun?” Marionette playfully asked. Pulling down the passenger mirror and peeking into the back with it.

“Then I’m grabbin’ the boy and leavin’ ‘em both,” Foxy said. As unamused as he sounded, everyone in that car knew he wasn’t kidding.

They pulled up towards the back of the Pizzaplex, further down past Natalie’s car and closer to the back entrance where they would be heading in. They got out of the car and hastily hurried around back to the exit door and found it propped open.

Foxy led the way into the loading docks where Freddy and Gregory were waiting. The bear anxiously pacing around while the boy spun back and forth in the office chair behind the loading dock controller desk. Then the doors opened, and Freddy looked up to see Foxy sauntering in, tossing his arms open in a silent proclamation of his arrival. Freddy perked up with his eyes glowing with excitement.

“Foxy, you came back!” Freddy cried. Then he lunged.

“Ya couldn’t keep me aw- Omph!” Foxy was cut off by Freddy misreading his gesture and taking him into a big hug. It would’ve knocked the air out of his lungs if he still had them. After a second he recovered enough to chuckle and pat Freddy’s back.

“I missed you so much!” Freddy finally drew back but kept his hands on Foxy’s shoulders. His mouth open in an excited grin.

“Blimey, Freddy. It’s only been a few weeks,” Foxy pointed out. His voice low in a mixture of confuse and concern.

“It has been a long few weeks,” Freddy answered. His eyes briefly giving away a melancholy look, only for him to quickly cover it back up. “But now that you are here, are you ready for the raddest night of your life?”

“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t,” Foxy proclaimed. He pointed his hook back. “Yar, I brought them too.”

Mike, Charlie, and Marionette greeted Freddy with two “Hey”s and an “Good evening”.

“Hey, guys!” Gregory chimed up.

“Ahoy, Lad!” Foxy greeted.

Mike walked up and tussled his hair. “How’re you doing, Kid? Staying out of trouble?” he asked.

“Kind of. Nobody’s caught me yet,” Gregory answered.

“That’s how you do it. You keep that up and you’ll be set for life.”

“Mike,” Freddy lightly disagreed.

“He knows I’m kidding,” Mike said, sending Gregory a playful wink. The boy smiled back, apparently won over by the ‘cool’ display.

“He knows you’re not kidding,” Marionette retorted. Gliding up beside him before smiling down at Gregory. “Nice to see you again, Gregory. I like your shirt!”

“Thanks! Freddy got it for me,” Gregory replied.

He pulled it out so it could be seen better. It was another Freddy shirt, but this one didn’t have Freddy himself but instead crisscross claw marks and a microphone, with a cursive autograph-grade ‘Freddy Fazbear’ in the corner. It was deep navy in color. Though the shirt wasn’t the only noticeable thing. Gregory seemed generally more put together, with brushed out- but still naturally tussled- hair and a face clean of band aids and lacking the sunken in marks that used to be prominent under his eyes.

Both Foxy and Marionette easily recognized the signs of a neglected child. Seeing those signs start to disappear off Gregory were both noticeable and filled them with joy.

Freddy perked up happily at Gregory’s showing off the shirt, then turned his attention to Charlie.

“Speaking of cool digs- Charlie, I notice your jacket! It is very cool. Did you get it for your birthday?”

“I did! It’s brand new,” Charlie said. Stretching out her arms to show it off.

“It’s a high-grade costume with everyday wearability. We had the ones who made Foxy’s coat make it,” Marionette explained proudly.

Both Freddy and Gregory looked at Foxy’s hoodie.

“Not this! Me pirate’s coat! The one back at the pizzeria,” Foxy interjected with a half-chuckle.

“Oh! Of course!” Freddy said. “It IS a good quality hoodie though.”

“Hasn’t died on me yet,” Foxy replied.

“Only smells like it has,” Mike quipped with a grin.

“That’s because of you-!”

“Hey Charlie, did you get our gift?” Gregory asked, ignoring the upcoming battle he had inadvertently cut off.

“I did, and I love it! I’ve got it set up on my nightstand and it makes for an incredible nightlight,” Charlie said thankfully.

“Gregory, we should get one for you! That way you will have a nightlight during the hourly recharge,” Freddy suggested. Gregory got a somewhat embarrassed look at this.

“Okay! But only because it’s cool, not because I need it. I’m not scared of the dark or anything,” he amended.

“I’m not either. I just like to leave a light on,” Charlie agreed to assure him.

“Usually, we keep the hall light on to see. There’s a difference between being scared of the dark and being scared you’re going to trip over something walking to the bathroom and chip a tooth,” Mike added on.

The mix of both statements making Gregory a little less self-conscious. The group started to make their way out of the loading docks and towards the elevator.

While on their way in, Charlie reached out to Jake through her radio.

“Jake, are you there?”

“Hey, welcome back! I heard you have a hot date up in the Fazcade,” Jake greeted with a cheery pep to his voice.

“Oh yeah? What’s it like?”

“I can’t tell you… That is, if I tell you, it will ruin the surprise. You just have to see it for yourself!”

“Oh, so that’s how it’s going to be,” Charlie replied jokingly. “Then I guess I can’t tell you how far I’ve gotten putting together your gift.”

“Uh oh. I didn’t foresee this possibility,” Jake replied. “Guess I’m going to have to bribe you with information.”

“Give me a hint and you’ll get the goods.”

“Okay, let’s see… Well, first off: If you’re expecting the West Arcade to look anything like the East Arcade, it doesn’t. Expect a lot of stairs.”

“In this place? I already do,” Charlie joked. “So, I’ve gotten the chest section together. The frame, I mean, but I haven’t even started on the wiring-.”

As she was talking with him, falling a little behind to do so, Marionette decided to catch up to Freddy’s side and start his own conversation.

“How is Chica?” he asked.

“She is… managing. I do not know if Foxy told you, but she did not have her voice box replaced. I spoke with the technicians today about replacing it, but they refused.”

“What excuse they give fer that?” Foxy asked.

“They said… due to the fact that her upgrade was such a valuable piece of equipment, and that they are not authorized to replace it with anything else, they will not be replacing it. Not until higher ups tell them to do so.”

“I’m sorry, Freddy,” Marionette apologized remorsefully. Foxy patted his shoulder sympathetically.

Mike was silent. That was the most he could do. Listening from beside them, there was a lot he wanted to say- and a lot that immediately sparked frustration- but venting those feelings wouldn’t exactly help Freddy. Especially when he started venting them himself.

“I do not understand how they can be so callous. I understand the thinking process, to stop this from happening again, but… it is ridiculous to treat us like this. Monty is right, they would not treat human employees like this.”

“Agreed, but if they’re anything like the old Freddy’s they don’t treat the human employees much better. That’s how many of them wound up being the next line of entertainers,” Mike said cryptically. Marionette nodded in agreement.

“Only reason the employees ‘round here got it so good’s ‘cause there ain’t more than a handful of ‘em,” Foxy scoffed.

“You’ve got a point about that. It’s easy to ‘lose track’ of one of hundreds of employees, but if it’s one of ten, you’d think people would ask questions,” Mike agreed.

“Sometimes…” Marionette ominously half-agreed.

“But we are supposed to be part of the new and improved Freddy Fazbear’s! How can they accept that same behavior of the old franchise if we are supposed to be doing better? Safety first, then service. What they are doing to Chica is just pure laziness,” Freddy said. He sighed and then perked up slightly, “But for now, she is at least no longer in Parts and Service. Chica will be at the salon with Roxy tonight, so we will not have to worry about her hearing us. They are having a girls’ night out, but in!”

The conversation lightened up and thinned out as they continued to the elevator and rode up. Then headed out to the atrium and rode an atrium elevator up to the top floor, barely able to squeeze everyone inside.

“There is something I should tell you before we get to the West Arcade. There is a possibility that you may lose me sometime tonight,” Freddy warned.

“What? When’d that happen?” Gregory asked in surprise, turning around and looking up at him. Foxy also looked over in surprise, nearly getting a mouthful of shoulder pad in the process.

“It is true. Regretfully, I will no longer be in control…” Freddy said cryptically. “When I step onto the West Arcade dance floor, I cannot stop myself! It is a programming bug.”

“Ugh, Freddy,” Gregory pouted. Freddy chuckled.

“I have the same bug. I do a mean macarena,” Marionette chimed in. He then proceeded to do a very brief demonstration- one Freddy could barely see over his shoulder and somehow managed to dodge hitting Mike and Charlie in the process.

“Yar, I be partyin’ with a coupla dorks,” Foxy said with some fondness and strode out.

“But all jokes aside, I do have to get in at least five minutes of dancing to stop the irresistible urge to return myself to the dance floor,” Freddy remarked.

Foxy sent him a weird look only to see Freddy smiling, dead serious. He decided to not even question it; it wouldn’t be the worst Fazbear mandated ‘quirk’ he had seen.

Freddy got them through the Party Bot, and they started walking through the entrance hall outside of the Fazcade. When they were suddenly interrupted by a long leg with puffy star-studded pants stepping out from behind a pillar. The rest of the jester body slinking after.

“Gooood eveniiing,” Moon greeted. The wicked grin on his face appropriately matching his tone.

As suddenly as he appeared, nobody was that surprised to see him. At least not beyond a second or two.

“Hey Moon,” Charlie greeted.

“And hello to you too, Jingle Bell,” Moon greeted. His face rolling in a display of fondness that showed Sun just beneath the surface.

“Ahoy,” Foxy also greeted.

Marionette gave a chime and a wave while Mike got a little grin.

“So, have you been waiting for us long or did you beat us up here?” Mike asked cheekily.

“My time is very valuable, Mr. Schmidt.”

There was a pause in anticipation for a further answer, but Moon didn’t give one.

“Did you change your mind?” Freddy offered, finally breaking that silence with a hopeful warmth to his tone.

“I’m afraid not. Here’s the deal for you all to hear,” Moon announced. He tented fingers, made a motion and sound like inhaling, and then began to list off his grievances on his fingers. “No setting off any alerts, no rousing suspicion with any of the Glamrocks, no entering into the Hive Arcade, no annoying the DJ, no climbing over the railing, running down the stairs, riding down the railings, using fake coins, tokens, or any inappropriate coin-shaped objects in any of the machines…”

He paused for dramatic effect, then pointed at Gregory.

“And he is downstairs and in bed before three.”

“What?!” Gregory cried.

“My only offer.”

“I think that is a very fair offer!” Freddy agreed. Gregory looked up at him in betrayal before huffing.

“You would say that,” he grumbled.

“Just fer me own curiosity, but when’d you start calling the shots?” Foxy asked. He sounded more amused than anything. Or perhaps not amused, maybe a little smug, a shred of mocking in his tone.

“I have been calling the shots since the first night you got here. I just haven’t put my foot down until now,” Moon quickly corrected. “Don’t like Misss Smith fool you. I am the night guard.”

“I don’t doubt that for a second,” Mike agreed.

“Then you best follow my rules, or I will be sure to escort you out,” Moon tutted. He then, finally, stepped aside and made a sweeping motion back with his arms. “Now then… Enjoy your stay.”

The group passed by- Freddy giving him a wink as he did- and headed through the security door and into the West Arcade proper.

That was when they were first able to see the wonders of the West Arcade, and for everyone who hadn’t seen it before they were almost blown away. The lobby alone, with its fountain topped with the Glamrock band statue and the towering distance towards the ceiling, gave away that this would be a far cry from any of the other arcades they had seen. Something that became even more apparent when they approached the fountain and were able to see through the three passageways surrounding it.

To the right was the dance floor, as dim and foggy as it was what Freddy visited the night before. A passage on the other side of the fountain led to a hallway which held the bathrooms and connected the dance floor to the main room. Then, finally, to the left the arcade opened into its first floor. It was quite a sight to behold.

The immediate view was a large spiral staircase leading upwards, but beyond that was a huge room with a plethora of arcade machines lined throughout it. Standup arcades, seated racing arcade machines, of all kinds and colors circling around to the back of the circular room where there was another staircase leading up.

The room was big on its own, but the amount of vertical space above it doubled that twofold. Looking up they could see the edge of what looked to be a second floor loaded with arcade machines barely out of view. The hanging neon lights bathing the location in a stage ambience too dim to be lit up but bright enough to see. The distant ceiling had a spiderweb pattern across it with large neon ringed hole in sight.

“Look at this place…” Mike said. Somehow finding himself again shocked by the Pizzaplex’s sheer size. “Remember when Hickory Dickory’s was the biggest arcade we had ever seen?”

“Indeed. This blows Hickory, Dickory, Doc’s right off their clock,” Marionette agreed. Mike barely withheld a snicker.

“You could fit that whole building in here if you just adjusted the square footage to make it work,” he remarked. He pointed to the spiral staircase. “And from the size of those stairs and that space up there, you could probably fit Foxy’s on the second floor.”

“Hey now, that’s goin’ overboard. Place be big, but it ain’t that big,” Foxy interjected. “Look, see- the arcade machines be further apart. Makes it look bigger!”

“He has a point. Hickory Dickory’s did fit a lot into a very small space. There could’ve been more machines,” Marionette offered. Mike couldn’t argue with that.

Freddy looked off towards the right. The DJ was nowhere to be seen, but no doubt he would be lured out once someone stepped up to the stage and activated the music. What better way to wake him up, then he could introduce him to the others. Then they could continue with their night without the constant tug coaxing him towards the dance floor. Before that, he popped open his stomach hatch and fetched a baggie of tokens from inside.

“Here you are! Mike, Marionette, will you keep an eye on Gregory until I am finished? Unless you would like to dance as well!” Freddy offered.

Marionette gave Mike a side glance and he considered it, but he wasn’t ready to get that comfortable yet. “Let’s check this place out first,” he offered.

The Puppet nodded and fondly laid his hands on Gregory’s shoulders. “We’ll keep a close eye on him!”

“Thank you both- and you too, Charlie,” Freddy smiled fondly. Then sent a determined look over his shoulder and back at the dancefloor. “If you will excuse us… Come, Captain! The dance floor calls!”

“What?” Foxy replied.

Freddy was already on his way out. Foxy looked to the others with a shrug, to which Marionette waved encouragingly. Foxy rolled his head with a silent groan and followed the bear. He had a bad feeling he was getting into more than he had bargained for. Nobody said anything about dancing- everyone there could tell he was thinking it without saying it. The Puppet then looked to Mike, once again inviting him with a look.

“I owe you one,” Mike promised.

“I’ll hold you to it,” Marionette promised back.

Mike offered his hand and Marionette eagerly laced his fingers with his and the two followed Gregory.

Meanwhile, Foxy caught up with Freddy who was waiting at the dance floor. Just beside it, as he knew once he stepped onto it then any conversation would be over. He was nearly bursting with excitement. Not at the dancing- though it had been ages since he had danced- but because his dear friend was here. Even as Foxy looked less than enthused about being on the dance floor, Freddy knew better. He had gotten used to Foxy’s ‘reluctance’ and had seen him warm up to things he pretended to not be interested in.

“Swanky place. Where’s this DJ I’ve been hearin’ about?” Foxy asked. Gesturing his hook towards the empty stage.

“Oh, he could be anywhere in the arcade, but he will be summoned once I step on the dance floor. I think you two will get along great! Try to not be intimidated by his size, he is very gentle.”

“…The fact ya had to say that makes me a lil nervous, Freddo,” Foxy pointed out. That, and Freddy had always been vague about what he was getting into with the DJ. So, ‘big’ wasn’t exactly assuring, and an assurance of gentleness made him worry about grabbiness “Well, get on over there then! Dance the Deadman’s Jig.”

“I plan to! Would you like to join me?” Freddy invited.

Foxy knew the offer was coming and yet he couldn’t resist the little hiss as he rubbed his jaw. “I ain’t much of a dancer…”

“You? But Captain, you must be! You are a performer, after all,” Freddy coaxed in a friendly way.

“I don’t do much dancin’. Me stage’s too small fer that. One wrong step and it’s off the plank!”

Freddy chuckled before offering, “How about I start and then if you want to you can join in? Or you can just watch from here.”

It was at this moment that Foxy suddenly realized Fredy was a little more clingy than usual. Freddy did tend to hover during visits, though it was usually because he was so eager to please. This was something different. From that earlier hug to his insistence that Foxy stay close- something was wrong, he could tell. He wouldn’t have been a friend half his salt if he didn’t.

“Freddy, is somethin’ up?” he quite bluntly asked.

“What do you mean?” Freddy replied, feigning ignorance.

“Somethin’s off. I can see it. Captain’s eye.”

He thought Freddy was going to deny it. For a second he opened his mouth like he was going to, but then he closed his mouth and quieted up. His face fell, or at least his eyes shifted to do so.

“I will not lie to you, Foxy. There has been… a lot on my mind…” Freddy admitted. He looked to the pirate with pleading eyes. “If it is alright with you, I would rather us talk about it later. Perhaps after Gregory is put to bed.”

“Aye. Fine by me,” Foxy agreed.

Freddy perked up once again. He was acting, that was it. Freddy wasn’t an especially great actor when something was bothering him and right now, he was laying it on thick.

“Thank you! Without any further ado, it is time to tear up the dance floor.”

Freddy turned and waltzed his way out onto the floor. He was greeted by the announcer as he was the night before as the lightshow kicked on around him. He then took his pose, feet braced, arms at his side, head down, dramatically preparing for something.

Foxy’s ears twitched at the sound of thumping and bumping from behind the stage, and he looked over at the large tunnel behind it. He could hear the slight rumble of something sizably larger than a typical animatronic making its way down the shaft. The slow thumps falling into line with the backbeat of the intro music that kicked on the moment Freddy took the stage and still looping overhead. Almost working to introduce this newcomer as well.

Though the grandiose entrance was all but thwarted the second an enormous, white gloved hand came into view. The room could’ve gone dead silent in that moment because the world seemed to stop.

The gloved hand was followed by another, and then a large pale-purple face followed out through the tunnel. Round black eyes stared out from the circle of neon, posed above a row of square teeth in a wide stretched mouth. If it was supposed to look like a smile it didn’t. The square head and similarly shaped mouth gave it more a grimace look than anything else. Thick blue eyebrows and cheeks didn’t make it look anymore personable.

Its head was topped with a big pair of headphones and planted on a big round body that matched the head in color and freed itself from the tunnel. Though it was the legs that were most noticeable. Or arms, as each one was ended with a large white glove. Six in total, long legs carrying its heavy body out of the hole. It might’ve had two legs too less, but it was clear it was supposed to be a giant spider.

No, worse. It was a giant Music Man.

Foxy vaguely remembered seeing a poster or something with a Music Man face on it sometime while he was here, but he hadn’t asked and now he really wished he had, because Music Man’s design was unnerving enough without being blown up and transplanted on the body of an anatomically correct animatronic spider.

Needless to say, Foxy was startled by the sight. It wasn’t often that he saw another animatronic and felt like slinking off, or bolting, before it noticed him was the best course of action, but that was a possibility here.

Alas, “What in the briny blue?!” still somehow shouted itself out of his voice box. That got the massive Music Man looking in his direction. Foxy was prepared to bolt, but the large animatronic merely tilted its head, nodded, and pointed at him. A friendly point.

Though a friendly point from a hand that huge was still rather intimidating. Its hulking body all but groaned with even the slightest movement.

“DJ,” Freddy greeted cooly. He only now looked up with a look of determination in his eyes and pointed to the massive animatronic before snapping his fingers. “Hit it.”

The DJ Music Man made a finger snapping motion back, with another hand clamping onto the side of his earphones while two others lifted to the control boards. Suddenly the music shifted with a whipping record scratching transition, wobbling for a moment on a steady pulse before suddenly kicking into a techno beat.

Freddy tapped his foot to the beat before thrusting a hand up and pointing to the sky, head down, waiting for his cue. That moment being when the beat dropped, when he suddenly broke into a spin before beginning to dance. Foxy’s jaw almost dropping open.

Of course, of course Freddy would be into disco.

Foxy didn’t know exactly how to react to the fact that a rockstar themed animatronic was doing exceptionally dated disco to electronic music in a neon themed arcade. Part of him wanted to laugh, but he was sort of too much in a state of shock to do so.

Freddy swayed his hips and crossed his legs and spun. Stopping in a clap and then leaning back and rolling his arms together. All with the most dead-serious look on his face. Like the look he got during Fazer Blast, like he was in a competition. Something Foxy only noticed once he got his eyes off his dance moves and the oversized spider taking up half of the room.

Though when their eyes met, Freddy’s softened into an excited smile. Instantly giving away how much of that intensity was a show and how much of a good time he was really having. He beckoned the pirate.

“Nah, Freddy,” Foxy declined. Freddy continued to beckon, that happy look in his eyes. “I told ya, I ain’t a…” Freddy gave a little spin midway through Foxy’s decline. He couldn’t tell if he was showing off, but it felt like it. At least, it seemed like he was having a good time even though he was dancing like he came out of a decade long past. “…Eh.”

And like he did frequently when Freddy was involved, Foxy caved. For Freddy’s sake, of course.

Foxy might’ve come out on the dance floor, but he didn’t necessarily dance. More so did a little shuffle in place, sort of like someone would do if they were primarily watching someone else dance and didn’t want to stand there as stiff as a board. Most of it was in the shoulders. Something to look cool without looking like he was trying too hard.

Music Man bounced his head and pointed to him in approval. Then he kicked the music up a notch, fiddling with the boards and pumping up the volume.

Freddy slid in beside Foxy so they could dance together- at a reasonable distance so neither got clocked during an errant spin. Slowly Foxy got a little more comfortable, eventually willing to do the ol’ ‘Foxy’ shuffle if just to show off a bit. He didn’t dance didn’t mean he couldn’t dance, and he always had trouble resisting peer pressure.  

While this was going on, Moon slinked into the West Arcade. His intentions were to keep an eye on things without anyone knowing he was in there. Just to make sure things didn’t again get out of hand. He heard music coming from the dancefloor and had a suspicion for who was there, which was confirmed by a quick glance into the room. One that got him stopping in his tracks to observe the display.

Moon couldn’t help but snicker to himself at the sight of Freddy and Foxy doing mirrored arm spinning. What a couple of- What good fortune that Foxy had been able to come. Freddy needed a night off and his bandmates sure weren’t going to give it to him. While Moon wasn’t sure what he thought of Foxy- he barely knew him, and the sight of him alone reminded him of some jerk he used to know a long time ago who wore a Foxy mask- he knew that he made Freddy happy.

Freddy needed this.

“Stop fighting it, Freddy! You just gotta let the music move you where it takes you!”

“I am trying. I just am not quite sure what to do…”

“You think you don’t, but let me tell you, Fredbear, you were BUILT for this! It’s in your lines. In your programming! Come on, Superstar. Show me what you’re made of!”

Freddy needed this.

Though it was a shame that they were going to spend a good chunk of their precious time glued to the dancefloor. Freddy could never resist the temptation of his own programming. Even if he could, he might’ve still given in to it.

Moon wasn’t nearly so under control. His programming was so mismatched and butchered that he could look at that dance floor and feel no enticement. No lines of code commanding him to dance when he looked. He had his own demons to make him a spectacle.

And stepping on that lit-up flooring would bring them all out to the surface with a pop of his retracted points.

The arcade was largely dark enough that he could walk around unburdened with shifting over. Moon wandered around for a short time, checking on Gregory, checking on the many obedient guests, and returned to the entranceway to peek through at the private dance party. He stood there for a long moment considering how far he was willing to deviate from his initial plan.

Then he made his decision.

Freddy was still deep in focus on what he was doing when the music suddenly lulled, the volume dipping. He looked up to Music Man questioningly.

“Now entering the dance floor: Moon.”
“Now entering the dance floor: Sun.”

Freddy looked back just in time to witness Sun cartwheeling across the dancefloor, still mid-transformation from his mixed glow. He came to a stop on his feet before Freddy and gave an inviting little bow.

“May I cut in?”

Freddy’s features brightened up excitedly; totally starstruck by the entrance. “Yes!”

Music Man cranked the music back up. The techno music rolling over them in steady waves as they began to dance together. Freddy’s the same disco funk while Sun’s was a little more eclectic. Sunny danced like one might expect him to based off how he looked. Goofy and clownish gestures broken up with spot-on moves when he was shadowing one of Freddy’s own.

Sunny threw out his hand invitingly. Freddy clasped ahold of his wrist, Sunny’s other hand quickly clasping to his, and then spun the jester around him and across the dance floor. His slippers sliding seamlessly on the smooth flooring as he dipped back, cackling with delight.

It was at this moment that Foxy decided to move off to the side just in case something went awry. As he was backing away, he felt a heavy poke to his shoulder. He yanked his body aside and lifted his hook defensively out of reflex.

It was, of course, Music Man’s hand that had poked him. He gave a waving motion as though assuring him to calm down and the beckoned him to the stage. As wary as Foxy was, he approached the DJ- if only to cover for his previous reaction. He kept his guard up.

Yet as he sat on the edge of the stage, more than close enough to be grabbed, the DJ didn’t do so. He instead started to make gestures with a free hand while controlling the music with his others, with one hoisting the side of his headphones and the other two resting on the ground and balancing his big body. With the free hand he made a question mark gesture and then pointed to Foxy, still slightly bumping to the beat. “Who are you?” maybe.

“Foxy the Pirate. Captain Foxy of Foxy’s Pirate Cove. We’ve got a place over in Hurricane,” Foxy introduced. DJ Music Man nodded and gave him a thumbs up. “So, ye must be this DJ I be hearin’ ‘bout.”

Another nod and the DJ tapped on the edge of a control board and then pointed up towards the speakers. “Yes, I am making the music.”

“Snazzy place ye got up here,” Foxy said. It was the closest he could get to a compliment. “Ya get a lot o’ people dancin’ up here or just him?” he asked, pointing towards Freddy.

Foxy wasn’t exactly sure what DJ Music Man said in the following course of vague hand gestures, but either he got a lot of dancers and Freddy wasn’t up her frequently, or he got very few dancers and Freddy was up here constantly. Foxy could believe either.

Speaking of Freddy, he was still totally immersed in his dance. Pulling Sunny back up to his feet and into a standing spin, and another, and another, Sun continuing to spin under his hand and not of his own doing. Slowly sliding further and further towards the floor.

Until Freddy had no choice to release him, to which Sun bent over backwards, palms flush to the floor, and spun his waist and legs above his head before shoving off and springing back up onto his feet.

Oh, so he was showing off. Well, two of them could play at that game.

With the faintest glint of slyness in his eye, Freddy literally danced over and began to reignite his routine. Feet keeping up with the ever-growing tempo of the beat, shifting and rolling underneath him as his arms shifted and locked, and rolled stiffly. Like a “robot”, one might say. Which Freddy found exceptionally comical, since a robot was about to tear up this dance floor.

Sun was eating it up, watching like a hawk, the only audience Freddy needed to make him want to let it all go. Sneaking a glance past him, he could see Foxy on stage chatting with, or at the listening, Music Man. The music drowning out most of what he was saying, but his posture was relaxed. So, it looked like they were having a good time. Plus, Gregory was upstairs playing games to his heart’s content while under the watchful eye of Marionette, Mike, and Charlie.

For the first time in a long time, Freddy was feeling pretty good. Good enough to throw his worries away and be in that moment.

…

“The good games are upstairs,” Gregory said before leading the way up the large spiral stairs.

Climbing those stairs, they got a better view and the sheer size and design of the arcade. Marionette looked upon it with a look of awe and envy, something Mike shared but with a little more cynicism as well. It was hard to not count up all the money Fazbear Entertainment had to make a place this spectacular and think about how they still hadn’t gathered enough to even consider a true expansion of Foxy’s. This was hard to compete with.

“So, you’ve been up here before,” Charlie said.

“Yeah, a bunch! Freddy gives me party passes to go play while he’s performing and stuff. I come up here because none of Freddy’s friends do and because there’s a lot of games,” Gregory explained. He hurried up the rest of the stairs and waited for them to catch up.

The stairs stopped at a sort of midway landing with some games before another spiral staircase led up to the true second floor. The stairs circling a large neon pillar of blue and white stripes, like an oversized glowing candy cane. The higher up they got, the closer they got to the neon hanging lights, which pulsed between blue and pink but never lost their luster. It truly was a sight to behold and to begrudge.

Marionette noticed the tense look on Mike’s face and squeezed his hand. It pulled him out of it enough to look back and the Puppet gave him a comforting smile. Mike managed to loosen up and return it.

“Don’t think about the bigger picture. This is about having fun. Whatever happened to this place being our playground?”

Somehow, the idea of them having fun at Fazbear Entertainment’s expense perked him up a little.

At the top of the stairs, Gregory started to hurry off to the right towards some rows of arcade games.

“Over here!” he called back.

Charlie hustled after him while Mike and Marionette kept up afterwards. Gregory had stopped at a machine close by labelled “Snack Masters”. The decals on it showed little figures carrying large pieces of food around.

“This one’s the one I got the highest score on,” he said proudly. He then pointed out his initials on the screen, comfortably seated in the third spot down. “I was in second place but then someone beat me, and I ran out of tokens last time so I couldn’t beat them back. But not this time!” He grabbed a few tokens out of the bag and popped them in before handing them back to Charlie.

“How do you play?” she asked.

“You pick up fruits and carry them to the baskets without getting bit by the bugs. And then after level five other guys come in and try to take the fruits, and the only way you can get rid of them is if they drop through the floor,” Gregory explained.

Mike’s eyes drifted to the machine beside the one they were standing at when he eyes locked onto a set of initials and his brows briefly raised in surprise before lowering just as quickly.

“Alright, who did that one?” he asked in a tone that suggested he already knew. He pointed out the offending initials which Marionette saw and straightened startled.

Gregory’s wicked grin gave him away, Charlie noticing it from beside him. She gestured with her eyes. The other Puppet looked dismayed at the back of the boy’s head.

“That’s not a very polite word, Gregory,” Marionette scolded flatly.

“Yeah, but it’s funny,” Gregory answered with a cheeky grin. “It’s no big deal. If they cared, they could’ve taken it off.”

“How long’s it been up here?” the Puppet asked, a tinge of concern tugging at his frown.

“Uh…” Gregory vaguely trailed off.

“The sad part is that if anybody does knock it off the rankings, they’ll probably just put it back up there. It’s like a communal obligation,” Mike chimed in.

“Someone could probably just reset the machine and erase it… if they ever notice,” Charlie added.

Less enthused with the way this conversation was going, Marionette turned away to take in the sights and that was when he noticed a doorway nearby. It led into a primarily white room with seats inside and a small step-up stage with screens behind it.

“What’s this room used for?” he asked and drifted over.

“People go in there and sing,” Gregory answered.

“Oh, it’s a karaoke room! What a clever idea,” Marionette complimented. He stepped aside and slowly spun to look at the room. That explained the speakers and the insulated walls.

Mike followed him in as he made his way onto the stage and looked at the control screen. There was both a slot for cards and a slot for bills to pay for sessions, with a little sticker beside the latter that proudly proclaimed, “5 for $5!” Mike whistled beside him.

“That’s a little steep,” he said.

“Mm-hmm. Very,” Marionette agreed. Already distracted by a list of songs on one of the screens.

He began to curiously click the button to scroll through the music selection. It really was a clever scheme Freddy’s had going here. Five dollars didn’t seem like much, but those five songs would fly by. Likely private karaoke rooms like this had to be rented as well. From a menu on one of the nearby chairs, they likely had the option to order in food as well, and in a white room like this there could easily be a cleaning fee.

At this rate, Foxy’s should’ve opened their own karaoke rooms and just charged by the hour. An idea that Marionette was quite taken with, started to think of the possibilities of, and was about to propose to Mike.

Until Marionette’s eyes landed on a song on the roster and suddenly changed his tune.

Most of these were Freddy songs evidently, but there was some music that were independent of the franchise. One of which caught his eye and sent a downright devious idea through his head.

“Mike, give me a fiver please,” he requested, sticking a hand out with a coy smile.

“It takes cash? What happened to tokens?”

“Tokens don’t apply here.”

“This better be the raddest experience of my life,” Mike said as he begrudgingly fished out his wallet.

“Oh, it will be,” Marionette assured.

He fed the dollar into the machine, let it process, pressed the button for the song, and plucked microphone out of the stand with an eager smile. Mike quirked a brow with a questioning look and an amused smile.

Though any questions were asked by the familiar music kicking in through the speakers. Mike recognized it and was all but befuddled to hear it in a karaoke room at Freddy Fazbear’s of all places. He couldn’t even get a word in about it before he was beaten to it.

“I spot you across the bar and, oh my dear, why must you sit so far?~” Marionette trilled. He offered his hand, but when Mike pulled it back out of his pocket- replacing his wallet, to offer it back, his black hand dodged his and instead playfully crawled up his arm. Planting itself on his shoulder instead. “I don’t bite- unless you want me toooo,~” Marionette dragged out as he dipped behind him.

“No, you don’t,” Mike slyly interjected.

“Yes, I do,” Marionette chimed back over his shoulder. Spinning around and appearing back at his side, on his other side.

“I’m not the kind for romancing, but I can take you dancing.~” He caught Mike’s arm for real this time, hooking around it and pulling him in chest to chest. “If it means pressing my body up against yooou.~” He pressed his forehead to Mike’s as his voice dipped. “Feel my heart beat, dar-ling. What do you say? What do you say? I say-.~”

Marionette all but unraveled him in a smooth spinout and was back at center stage. Somehow completely avoiding entanglement with the cord as he began to perform for an audience of one.

“Hey there, Lonely Guy. Sitting pretty in the bar tonight. Why don’t you come on down and take a seat by my side?~” he sung. The chiming of his music box backing his voice and following the tune of the music over the speakers. “Oh, what a thrill it’ll be having you here in my hot seat. Because you’re the one I’m dying to meet…~”

He held the microphone. “So, what do you say?” he quietly asked.

Mike would’ve had a hard time turning down an offer like that. He gladly took the microphone.

“Call me old-fashioned but when it comes to passion, I believe in that love at first sight,~” he crooned, eager to match that effort.

“What a night, but it feels so right,~” Marionette backed.

“What else can I do? I just can’t keep my eyes off you.” Mike made a show of looking Marionette over, grin becoming much more flirtatious. “How about you slide down my way? What do you say? I say-.~”

“Hey there, Lonely Guy. Sitting pretty in the bar tonight. Why don’t you come on down and take a seat by my side?~” The two’s voices bled together as they shared the mic between them. Marionette’s hand lapping overtop Mike’s and him eagerly hooking the puppet in with the other, hand sliding up his velveteen waist. “Oh, what a thrill it’ll be having you here in my hot seat. Because you’re the one I’m dying to meet!~”

“I think we lost them,” Charlie remarked. She was leaned over to peek through the doorway and caught sight of the two completely forgetting their plan of keeping a low profile.

“Good. I don’t want Mari seeing how many games I… got scores in,” Gregory admitted. His eyes glued to the arcade cabinet as he watched his little character carry an apple or tomato around.

It looked like they would be staying put for a while, so Charlie fished out a couple of tokens from the bag and started up the game beside Gregory. Something called Worst Wild which had a sort of generic picture of a blue deer on a green background on it. The game itself wasn’t too bad. It basically consisted of a deer running through a green maze while avoiding what looked like spiders, but she couldn’t really tell. Spiders which were unexpectedly fast compared to her sluggish deer.

It didn’t take long to end up dying and instead of wasting more tokens she decided to look for another game and started walking down the row down from Gregory’s game. Not planning on wandering far but wanting to find something more exciting than Bed Maker.

She stopped at an arcade cabinet to decide whether she wanted to play the game when she noticed something.

There was faint music coming from somewhere.

Of course, there was a lot of music coming from every which way, but this was different. It wasn’t the ambience arcade music or the electronic disco reaching from the dance floor downstairs, and it didn’t sound like the arcade machines. It wasn’t the music Mike and Marionette were singing either. It was something else, and it was surprising that the music managed to make it past all this excessive noise when it itself sounded so soft.

So weirdly familiar too.

“Do you hear that?” Charlie asked.

“What?”

“There’s music… Not this music I mean,” Charlie said pointing up. “It sort of sounds like a Freddy jingle. Do you hear it?”

“No, but all I can hear is this thing and those guys,” Gregory said, gesturing with his head to the machine and the room. “Maybe it’s one of the games?”

“Could be… I’m going to go check. Stay close to those two, okay?”

“Sure,” Gregory agreed. It was going to take Freddy himself to get him off this machine when he was on a roll.

Charlie wandered further into the arcade while listening for the music. Weirdly enough, while she seemed to be following the sound of the tune, she wasn’t making much progress in getting any closer. The karaoke music was fading behind her and the sound of the games were all around her as she walked through rows of them, but the music was always there. Just far enough away that she could barely hear muffled lyrics under the tune.

It led her back to a red door. A Staff Only door at that, but an unlocked one. She opened it up and peeked inside.

It looked to be some sort of large hallway that turned around a leftward corner at the end. To the direct left was a security door leading into an office, which she realized once she walked up and peeked through the window and open door. That’s not where the music was coming from though. The music was further on. With the Staff Only door having closed behind her, some of the ambience from outside was muffled by the wall, making it easier to hear the music.

She walked over to look around the corner and realized that the hallway continued onwards. She could see the end of it further down though. The hallway itself was rather large and tall and being used as an out of the way storage room for assumedly broken arcade cabinets. There were plenty of them back here and it didn’t look like any of them were on.

Charlie considered going back but there was something pulling her forward. There was something about that music that was more than just familiar. She knew that song from somewhere.

It reminded her of something. It was either a vivid mental image or a distant memory with cloudy details surrounding a rather clear premise. She was looking up at the window from the comfort of her car seat. A blue sky with the pink edged clouds of a coming sunset. A ride in the backseat of the family car, perhaps a childhood memory or maybe a figment of what she remembered from one.

“Look where we are! We’re in harmony~!” She could remember her parents’ voices mingling together at the end.

The song reminded her of that. Even as it played lowly from the back of a dusty oversized hallway. A distant echo like that memory itself.

“…Sammy?” Charlie hesitantly asked. There was no response.

She began to cautiously walk around the deactivated arcade machines clumped throughout the hallway, broken up by some shelves topped with and beside toolboxes. Many of the games were repeats of ones she had seen out in the West Arcade already. There was something eerie about this hallway. It wasn’t dark, the line of lights above alit the space well, but it still had a weird feel to it. Like being alone in an unfamiliar but somewhat furnished basement.

More than once, Charlie stopped and reconsidered continuing, but whenever she tried to turn back the music seemed to swell and she would realize the source was just nearby, so she would continue. Then it would seem further away.

Her head felt a little fuzzy. Steeped in depressing nostalgia she made her way through the maze of deactivated equipment searching for the source of the call.

There were large holes on the walls, weirdly enough. Including one at the very end of the hall. Off to the left midway down the hall was some fencing blocking a door, though where it led to was unknown. Charlie still continued to the end, where the hallway ended anticlimactically underneath one of those holes. This was when she finally found the source of the music.

There was an arcade machine against the back wall. Part of its exterior had been removed so she couldn’t make out what it was supposed to be. The screen was flickering with white lines across it as the music jittered from its speakers.

Then all of a sudden it stopped. When she was only a few feet away, the screen went black and the music died, and it was suddenly dead silent.

Charlie suddenly had an overwhelming feeling of dread. One that made her feel like she was in immediate danger, as though suddenly coming to her senses. Suddenly realizing that she had just wandered back her on her own and feeling unusually vulnerable. She turned around quickly planning on running back to the others.

That was when she saw what lured her back here. What had been hiding behind some arcade machines as she passed by and was now standing there, staring at her with large, unseeing red eyes.

It was the white rabbit. It was Vanny.

Vanny was partially slumped against the wall with her head angled towards Charlie. One arm bent up above her and her gloved hand resting on a lever sticking out of a breaker box. Her other arm dangling limply at her side.

Charlie silently stared at her. Something was different than their last encounter. Something felt different this time, and Vanny didn’t look right.

“What are you doing here?” Charlie asked. The words seemed to fall out on their own volition the moment she thought them.

Vanny lifted her limp hand to her masked cheek and gave a mock-gasp.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” Vanny cried. Her voice warbling with the same glitchiness that spilled from the arcade machine. She rolled her head, ears bumping the wall as she angled her eyes further at Charlie. “I thought you were someone else... Oh well! Since you’re here...”

She yanked down the lever and threw the hallway into darkness.

Briefly. Almost right after some dim emergency lights popped on. Specifically, one on the breaker box itself that cast an eerie red glow over her already glowing mask. The constant hum through the walls diminished, signaling that she could’ve cut power to the arcade.

There was a long moment of silence. Charlie knew that she needed to confront Vanny directly, but she couldn’t shake that feeling that there was something off.

“I know who you are,” Vanny said in a sing-song way. “Chaaar-lie. The Puppet’s little puppet. I see the family resemblance! That’s. That’s so sweet.” Her fingers flexed on the lever. “So sweet to see he’s still up to his little games.”

“You know Marionette?” Charlie asked.

“I do! But he doesn’t know me...” She pushed herself up off the wall and almost staggered as she straightened up. Her held slightly tilted, arms slack at her sides. “…But he will. He will. He will. He will.”

Vanny took a slow step forward and Charlie’s legs turned to the side as she braced to run.

“Don’t come any closer!” she warned. She still had her taser but using it required her to get closer than she wanted.

The woman barely acknowledged her warning. Charlie couldn’t tell what Vanny was muttering under her mask, but whatever it was she knew it wasn’t good. She knew something was coming.

Vanny lunged towards her.

And in that split second, Charlie very audibly heard her own thoughts.

“I can’t let her touch me!”

She obeyed that raw instinctual panic and ran around Vanny and bolted down the hallway. Weaving around arcade cabinets as fast as she could, hearing the pattering of Vanny’s bunny foot shaped booties as she raced after her.

But Charlie was faster than her and she knew if she kept up the pace, she would outrun her.

That was, before she heard the clattering of the fencing after she passed it and looked back to see Vanny already hoisting herself over. She did a forward roll over the top and dropped down from her hands on the other side. She turned back to Charlie, gave a playful little wave of her fingers, and then bolted through the Staff Only door and closed it behind her.

Which raised a new panic. Now that Vanny was out of sight, she could pop up anywhere.

Charlie turned and began to run like lives depended on it. She had to warn the others.

…

It was nearing the end of the song. Freddy could just tell from how pumped up the music had gotten, and he knew they had to end on a high note. He offered his hand again to Sun.

Sun eagerly accepted it, only to be startled by Freddy reaching out and catching him by the waist. In one smooth motion- and one “Eep!” from Sun- he lifted him above his head. Only releasing his hand when he was stabilized and balanced enough.

The giddiness returning, Sun stuck his arms out and straightened his legs as he was hoisted up. As Freddy looked and pointed off to a non-specific point in the distance, tapping his foot all the while. He held him there for a few beats before lowering him into both hands, and then tossing him up into the air. Sun throwing himself into a spin before landing in Freddy’s waiting arms and dropped down into a dip. The clattered of metal barely noticed through the rush of it all.

As soon as Sunny dropped, so did the music. It cut out with a last crescendo and faded back into the typical ambience of the West Arcade, signaling the end of the dance.

The excitement caught up to Sunny and he broke into a fit of giggles at the buzzy feeling spreading through him, kicking his feet with delight. Something that riled warmth and fondness through Freddy’s chest, along with a rumbling chuckle. One that fell on the wayside as his attention returned to the bright animatronic resting in his arms.

Even with the backdrop of the illuminated dance floor beneath him, Sun’s unique yellow flush stood out. Not bright enough to be harsh, just warm and comforting, just like he was. Freddy admired his dance partner through lidded eyes and felt the thrum of a cooling fan kicking on deep inside. He could smell the faint scent of lemon and oranges since the moment he got his hands on him and it hadn’t faded for a moment. He could hear the soft ticks and clicks underneath the coy little chortles.

“You’re quite the dancer, Mr. Fazbear!” Sunny compliment.

“Oh- err- thank you! But I am only as good as my partner,” Freddy replied. A little flustered and more than a little heated.

Sunny must’ve noticed from the coy little tilt of his head, of the way he crawled his fingers along his shoulder until his arm was hooked behind the back of his neck.

The lights went out.

Sun gave a squeak of surprise while Freddy’s eyes widened and he looked around.

It wasn’t an hourly recharge. If not from the time then Freddy would’ve recognized from the scattered emergency lights that kicked on in the hall and by the stage. There must’ve been some sort of outage or malfunction- something that was, unfortunately, not too uncommon in the Pizzaplex. Usually, it happened in Roxy Raceway or Fazer Blast though, not here.

“You’re going to want to put me down now,” Sunny forewarned.

“I should…” Freddy agreed, looking down like he was disappointed. Only to then side eye him with a playful, downright mischievous look in them. “But I do not think I will.”

That got Sunny ticking louder. His internal clicking and chattering now all the more evident without any music to cover it up. His hand sliding back along Freddy’s shoulders as the white glow of his eyes narrowed.

“Then you better hold on tight…~”

To which Sunny promptly bent over backwards and went limp and Freddy’s arms, with him having to readjust his grip quickly so he didn’t risk dropping him. He was concerned only for a second before that yellow glow faded and he heard the familiar sound of Sun’s points retracting. Then he knew it was alright, that Sunny was just putting on a show, and then he couldn’t stop watching.

Yellow faded to grey before illuminating in a vivid blue. It spread along his arms and to his legs, the fabric of his pants either reacting to the light or the change of temperature by reverting from the citrusy stripes to deep navy and dotted with stars. Freddy could only scour his eyes up and down and take in every last detail of the change.

A hand gently nudged his arm from underneath, and he slid down just far enough for clever blue fingers to dip into the hole on the Daycare Attendant’s back and drag out nightcap. He slid it on in the same smooth motion of lifting his head, revealing his soft white crescent face and the milky color that had replaced the whites of his eyes. Freddy was unabashedly staring, positively moonstruck.

“What are you staring at?” Moon lulled in a low rasp. His frozen features all but smirking back at him.

“You,” Freddy replied dumbly.

“Is that so?” Moon pulled up, resting his arm on Freddy’s shoulder and his head on his hand. “Liiiike what you see?”

“Yes,” Freddy said a little more sincerely, even breathily. “Always.”

Moon gave a coy little giggle and slid in further.

“You are so cute!”

Moon froze before dropping his arm with exasperation. “Ngh, Freddy.”

“It is true! No wonder so many Moon plush toys sell- I cannot imagine anyone who would not want to take you home to cuddle. Myself included.

The jester tugged his nightcap down, only succeeding in rousing another chuckle out of the bear. The bear who then started to lean in a little close.

Foxy’s voice cut straight through the moment.

“Oyi, look alive.”

The sharpness brought snapped both to attention and they looked back towards the stage. They instantly saw the source of the problem.

There was something wrong with DJ Music Man. He was hunched forward with his head low and his arms barely holding him up; two on the control boards, four flat on the ground. He almost looked like he was in pain, or perhaps was struggling to stay awake.

“DJ?!” Freddy called in concern. His voice was almost immediately drowned out.

“The Fazcade is experiencing some technically difficulties. There is no need for alarm. Just sit tight and we will be back up and running in no time. Initializing startup sequence,” the automated announcer said overhead.

A strange reverberating hum echoing through the DJ’s large body as his fingers curled and rolled. By now Foxy had retreated to stand by Freddy and Moon, who Freddy had sat down, and all three watched as the DJ lifted his heavy head.

Red dots alit in the back of his large black eyes.

“Anomaly detected within the system. Activating Bouncer Mode.”

Chapter 65

Chapter Summary

Mike, Marionette, and Charlie try to get the power back on in the West Arcade. Unaware that a much bigger threat may be getting in their way...

“Pizza Maaan! Pushing eighty-five in a twenty zone! And it’s gonna be a long, long night. Joint stays open til ten forty-five. I’m not a-.~”

Mike and Marionette’s belted duet was cut off by the room suddenly plunging into darkness. They sat there a moment before the emergency lights came on. The screens behind them kicked back on and into a white static.

The two looked to each other questioning who was going to voice their disappointment first. They were beaten to it by Gregory’s yell from outside the door.

Marionette all but dove over the karaoke equipment and raced out to find the boy at the arcade machine. Though his panic was quickly relieved when he saw the cause of his anguish.

“I was right there! That was like the best run I’ve ever had! And it goes out now?! It’s not even- gah!” Gregory punctuated his rant by kicking the arcade cabinet.

Marionette gently grabbed his shoulders and tugged him back. “Don’t do that. You’ll hurt your foot.”

Gregory grumbled and crossed his arms. Mike caught up with them, checking his watch as he did.

“It’s not the hourly recharge. Guess that explains why some of these lights are still on… sort of.” He looked around at the arcade machines. Some of them were on with screens displaying technical issues but many were blacked out. He looked back to Marionette. “So, your guess is as good as mine.”

“Well, we know Freddy’s has always had trouble keeping the lights on…” Marionette said with a sigh. He noticed their missing fourth and looked around. “We should get back to Freddy and Foxy. Gregory, where did Charlie go?”

“She went over there. She said she heard some weird music,” Gregory said, pointing down the way.

“Weird music?” Mike muttered. That didn’t sound right, and a quick look towards Marionette showed he shared his suspicion. He flicked on his flashlight to lead the way as they headed back after her.

They didn’t get even halfway there before Charlie ran up on them. They could tell from how she sprinted to the shift of her mask that she was shaken even before she spoke.

“Vanny’s here! She blew the power!” she blurted out.

“What?! She’s here?!” Gregory cried. Marionette grip on him tightened and he pulled the boy back against his legs protectively.

“Where is she? What did she do?” Mike asked, getting to the point.

“She ran off through a door back there! I heard some music and the next thing I knew I was back there in this hallway, and she was there, and then she shut down a breaker box- I think? I don’t know, but she just- she scared the heck out of me, that’s what!”

“It’s a good thing you got away from her. Just take it easy. You’re safe now. She’s not going to come up on a crowd,” Mike assured her. He put an arm around her to comfort her, ruffling her jacket covered shoulders.

“She could be anywhere,” Charlie lamented.

“Anywhere’s not here, and she knows we’ll find workarounds for the whole no-touch thing if she hangs around long enough,” Mike said. “The important thing is that she didn’t get her hands on you.”

“He’s right,” Marionette agreed.

“Let’s go check out this breaker and see if we can get the lights back on,” Mike suggested.

Charlie nodded and led them back towards the hallway. Marionette took notice of her comment on the music but decided to hold back on questioning for the moment. He couldn’t afford to get distracted, nor take his hands off Gregory for a second.

They got to the breaker box undeterred, and Mike tried to get it open, but it seemed latched into place. He even got his pocketknife out and tried to pry it off, to no avail.

“It’s not budging,” he said finally. “Let’s go check that security office we saw on the way in. Maybe there’s a release for the box.”

They started to walk quickly back the way they came to the office. Though halfway there the Puppet slowed to a stop, speaking up before the others- sans Gregory who stopped with him- could go much further.

“Is that the door she escaped through?” Marionette asked. He eyed down the door behind the fence and subtly nudged Gregory’s shoulders to pass him off to Mike. He planted a hand on his head.

“That’s it. I don’t know how but she jumped the fence. She couldn’t do that the last time I ran into her,” Charlie pointed out.

Marionette hummed and eyed the door before turning back to Mike with that look. That unusually blank stoicism Mike had recognized as a signal.

“Mari, forget her. She’s not going to go far. Let’s just work on getting the power on and we’ll jump her when she swings back through to start something,” Mike replied. He then slightly quirked a brow, Marionette gave a nod, and Mike smoothly turned on his heel and started to slowly head back down the hall. “Come on, Gang.”

Gregory was willingly led along when heard something and turned back to see that Marionette was no longer with them. He was instead now on the other side of the fence and fiddling with the handle of the locked door.

“Where’s Mari going?” he whispered.

“To check the door,” Mike replied just as quietly. “Just in case she’s chilling out on the other side.”

“He shouldn’t be alone with her,” Charlie warned worriedly. She crossed her arms and rubbed her hands over her jacket. “There’s something off with her. More off than usual.”

“But she didn’t get ahold of you,” Mike double-checked.

“No, but she tried… Or maybe she didn’t. Maybe she was just scaring me off so she could get away.”

“Could’ve. She’s bluffed with Natalie before.”

But even Mike wasn’t convinced that she was bluffing. He only said it to ease Charlie’s mind, knowing good and well that despite assurances she would know better than to get too close to Vanny.

They heard the door opening. Gregory stole a look back, but Mike continued to steer him ahead towards the end of the hall.

“How come you guys can see her when Freddy can’t?” Gregory quietly asked Charlie.

“We don’t know. She could’ve gotten into their programming or is wearing something to cloak herself,” she said.

“How’d she do that?”

“Freddy’s had the technology to do it for a while. Back at the old pizzerias, they used to use some sort of mix of programming and sensors to hide safe rooms from the animatronics. To the animatronics, it was like the doors didn’t even exist. They couldn’t see them,” Mike explained.

“But… you guys can still see her?”

“Our build’s a little older. If she’s set up the trick the newer models, she might not be able to trick our ancient hardware,” Charlie suggested.

“Oh. Got it!”

They walked around the corner and came face to face with Marionette waiting outside the security door.

“Wow, that was quick,” Mike said.

“She wasn’t there. The door leads into a hallway and down some stairs. It’s likely she’s gotten far away by now. Far enough that I can’t track her,” Marionette said, his disappointment evident.

“Damn. Well, I stand by what I said. Odds are she’ll show up.”

“Of course she will. She wants something,” Marionette said bitterly.

That reminded Charlie of what she had said. Her connection and knowledge of Marionette himself.

“There was something she said that was weird…” Charlie began. She hesitated before changing her tone, “We’ll talk about it once we get the lights on. It’s weird, but it can wait.”

Considering that Marionette still had the music comment in the back of his mind, a second topic wasn’t too much to swallow. He made a mental note and led them into the security office.

The office was a strange one. Instead of having a little office inside of a bigger office, something Gregory had become used to seeing, there was some sort of small repair station planted in the center. One with glass windows through which he could see repair arms hanging down from the ceiling, and a closed hatch on the side that said, ‘head deposit’. Freddy had told him he came up here to fix some Staff Bot heads, but he hadn’t given the details. This was almost what he expected.

Meanwhile the others scoured at the desks. Mike was the one to find a folded open manual off to the side and unfurl it to realize it was the operations manual for the West Arcade.

“Ah ha! Jackpot!” he announced. Mike flipped through it and narrowed down the page for the electrical system. By then Charlie and Gregory came over to stand on each side while Marionette leaned over his shoulder to peek.

“Here we go, power outage… In the case of a power outage, reset boxes one through five in order before pressing the system reboot button located in the security office. To reset a fuse box, make sure all fuses are switched on before pulling the reset lever. Fuses may switch off during an impromptu outage and must be switched on for a successful reset,” Mike read out. He laid out the book on the desk and pointed at the little maps of the arcade. “So, the first one’s down by the dance floor, the second is in the woman’s bathroom, the third’s in this corner over here by the games, the fourth’s upstairs over by these games, and that one down the hall is the fifth.”

“So, we just reset the boxes in that order. Seems simple enough,” Charlie said. “…Which means there’s a catch somewhere.”

“Yes. We have to run a few miles to get to them all,” Marionette almost joked.

“We could split up and meet back up here,” Gregory offered. Something that got a startled look from the Puppet in particular.

“Nooo. No, we can’t,” Mike declined. He reached back and ruffled Gregory’s hair. “Sorry, Kid, but you’re not losing us that easily.”

“If you’re afraid Vanny’s going to get me, she’s not,” Gregory huffed as he indignantly fixed his hair.

“That’s only part of what we’re afraid of,” the man admitted.

“It’s not just you we’re afraid for. That’s why we’re all going together,” Marionette interjected. Mike turned back to look at him over his shoulder. “Vanny’s made it clear that we are all targets, not just Gregory. We’ll all go downstairs together, flip the levers, grab Freddy and Foxy, come back up, throw the last switch, and wait for all this to blow over.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Mike agreed.

They started to make their way down to the dance floor. There was a weird eeriness over the West Arcade despite the fact that the power wasn’t entirely off. Perhaps that was what made it so uneasy on the eyes, the amount of emergency lights and static. The lack of the typical ambience music was also a little off-putting. Likely because of Vanny’s involvement, but it was almost more comfortable to be in a pitch-dark hourly recharge than this.

They started to hear heavy footsteps and assumed it was Freddy until Mike reached the top of the middle spiral stairs and caught sight of Monty walking in through the lobby. He quickly caught his arms out and corralled everyone back towards the wall of arcade machines to keep from getting spotted.

“Oh great, it’s this guy,” he muttered.

“Well, that makes things more difficult. I can distract him and you all can take the other stairs,” Marionette volunteered.

“Nah, you stick with Gregory. Let me handle this.”

With that, Mike started off towards the further stairs. Marionette tried and failed to tug him back with a flimsy grab to the back of his jacket, to no avail. He could only follow at a distance and watch with unease as Mike made his way down the further steps and announced his presence to the gator.

“Hey, what’s up?” he greeted casually. “Act like you’re supposed to be here. He bought it last time.”

Monty snapped his head in his direction before straightening up. That reaction made Mike immediately regret his impulsive decision, but he stood his ground as the gator strode over.

“Well, look who it is,” Monty grumbled back. He met Mike at the bottom of the stairs before crossing his arms over his chest. “You got a lotta nerve showin’ back up here, Daddy’s Boy.”

Mike blinked in surprise. “…Excuse me?”

“I know yer secret. Wasn’t too hard considerin’ how ya’ll threw yer weight around,” Monty snarled. He lifted his sunglasses to leer down at him. “Unless there’s two families of Wights runnin’ this joint.”

At this point Mike was so used to people thinking that he was Michael that he assumed that was an Afton comment. Confirmed that it wasn’t, he recovered from the shock.

“Guess it’s not much of a secret then,” Mike half-joked.

Monty didn’t seem amused in the slightest. He dropped his sunglasses back into place and crossed his arms once more.

“You know what I can’t stand?” he growled.

Mike caught sight of Charlie sneaking down the spiral staircase and passing the fountain.

“Bourre boys like yer daddy giving away jobs to friends and family instead of people who’ll get the job done. Where’ve you been fer the last couple’a weeks?! We’ve got Staff Bots gettin’ torn up all over the place!” Monty said. Then he paused, waiting for an answer.

“Usually I work the dayshift.”

“No ya don’t. I’ve met dayshift. It’s some short guy, some twig guy, and they ain’t you. Naw, I know the truth. Truth is, yer just on the payroll. Showin’ up whenever,” the gator huffed. “Meanswhile, us talent’s gotta be on that clock twenty-four seven. We ain’t gettin’ paid for it neither! I had a buncha yer daddy’s lackies come down on me for takin’ a couple of meet and greet passes. Takin’ them- you kiddin’ me?! I’m the one meetin’ and greetin’ these folks! It should be MY say when I want to throw out a few more passes!”

Whenever Mike dared to so much as open his mouth, Monty quickly interjected and shut him back down. At that point he realized it was just best to keep his mouth shut and let Monty go off. A distraction was still a distraction, even with the rows of teeth chomping in front of his face. Teeth that he only noticed now were significantly more threatening than Foxy’s.

But that wasn’t to say that Mike wasn’t listening. The teeth were distracting, but he could still hear what Monty was going on about, and it was becoming increasingly clear that there was some sort of divide between the human staff and the animatronic mascots.

With what he knew about the Daycare Attendant’s ‘updates’ and the workers’ dismissal of fixing Chica, Mike couldn’t say he was surprised. Though he was becoming increasingly concerned. He knew Marionette was listening too, he knew he too was noticing the red flags.

While this was going on, Charlie hurried into the dance floor. She was surprised to see that neither Freddy nor Foxy was in there. The whole place was empty, which made it easy to skirt across the dancefloor and to a platform on the other side. Mounted on the wall was a breaker box that resembled the one in the hallway, however this one easily popped open. She scanned through the switches inside and clicked on the few that had reverted to off before shutting the panel and pulling the lever.

The red emergency light on the box shifted to green, confirming that she had been successful. With a small fist pump, she turned and started making her way across the dancefloor again and towards the hallways leading to the bathrooms.

When suddenly she heard music and came to an abrupt halt. It wasn’t the music she had heard earlier but something different. A slow riding techno tempo, as though the intro into a dance beat. She might’ve been able to believe that the music had been activated due to repairing the panel if it had started the moment she had done so, but it hadn’t. It hadn’t started until she was making her way back.

That, and the music was coming from above her. She slowly looked up.

She let out a strangled ring at the sight of an enormous face peeking down from the second floor. Its legs bent up around its head, giving away its arachnid-based build. A wide maw of square teeth opened a few inches to reveal a swirl of colors hiding behind them. It stared her down with large black eyes illuminated with the faintest hint of red.

It had Music Man’s face.

Charlie had never found Music Man particularly intimidating. His face had always unnerved her and his obsession with her had always made her a little uncomfortable, but she didn’t tend to actively fear him.

But now Music Man was much, much bigger. Much scarier, much more threatening. Especially as it dawned on her that they walked right past there and he hadn’t been there. He had to have climbed up there himself, that easily.

There was no way to express the sheer panic Charlie felt when she realized she was going to have to run under him to get by. It was the quickest way through and the only way that wouldn’t risk her getting spotted by Monty, but again it meant crossing underneath that. She steadied her nerves and took a few cautious steps forward, just in case she was misreading the situation.

DJ Music Man leaned further over the edge. Two of his large, gloved hands resting flat on the wall underneath it. No doubt about it, he was preparing to make a grab at her.

Charlie considered her actions again. Considered her speed, considered his, and then without any warning to tip him off she bolted across the dance floor, leapt up the short ledge, and was dashing down the hallway in a matter of seconds. She could hear his heavy body groan and he moved but he was falling behind fast, and she barged her way through the men’s bathroom door.

She almost ran right into Freddy standing a few steps in on the other side.

“Whoa!” she cried and teetered.

“Whoa!” Freddy returned and steadied her. “Excuse me, Charlie!”

“It’s fine!” she excused and quickly slid out of Freddy’s grasp to get around him and away from the door. There was a wall blocking the bathroom doors from the actual bathroom itself and she didn’t feel even somewhat in the clear until she was on the other side of it. Only then did she notice Foxy and Sunny standing in the bathroom as well. “What are you guys doing in here?”

“The DJ’s lost his mind! Bloody crab chased us in here, ‘s been hauntin’ the doors!” Foxy exclaimed with obvious irritation.

“Is the crab the giant Music Man? Because he almost grabbed me on the way here,” Charlie said. Though before she could get distracted, she started looking around the room. “Wait, where’s the breaker box?”

“There’s a breaker box in here?” Sunny asked.

“Check the closet,” Freddy answered. He pointed to a janitorial closet.

Charlie hurried over and opened the door and, sure enough, there was the breaker box on the right door.

“Jackpot!” she said. She rushed in to fix the breaker box, with Freddy catching the door and holding it open and watching as she opened the panel and started flipping a plethora of switches.

“Why’s there a breaker box in the bathroom?!” Sunny cried from behind him. “That’s so unsanitary AND unsafe! Keeping the electrical equipment right by the water, tch.”

But Freddy had bigger concerns. “Where is Gregory?” he asked worriedly.

“With Mari. He’s okay.”

“Thank goodness,” Freddy sighed. A hand resting on his chest in relief.

“But don’t get comfortable just yet. I ran into Vanny again.”

“What?!” Freddy cried with a shock.

“Yeah,” Charlie said. She finished flipping the switches and shut the panel, pulling the lever and watching the light switch. “Alright, got it!”

“Where is Vanny now?” Freddy persisted. Sunny sputtering somewhere behind him at the mention of the name.

“I don’t know. She ran off down a hallway.”

“Hold on a tick. Sounds like he’s back out there…” Foxy muttered from the middle wall. His ears twitching as he listened. He had heard the mention of Vanny too, but they currently had a much bigger issue to deal with outside.

“What tipped you off, the floor shaking or the sudden addition of background music to this conversation?” Sunny asked, now wringing his hands.

Charlie dashed out of the closet and went to blaze past Foxy. He tried to put out his arm in time to stop her, but she kept by. “Wait! Wait, Lass!”

Between that call and the noise outside, Charlie stopped herself a few feet before the door.

Just in time for it to fly open and a large hand to come barging through.

Foxy caught Charlie around the middle and yanked her away in a quick turn an instant before she could get grabbed. Then pushed her towards the back of the bathroom and retreated after her. Both looking back to see Music Man’s hand now feeling around the bathroom floor. Eventually he retracted back his arm, but instead of leaving he nudged open the bathroom door and peeked in with a dark eye.

“DJ, please! It is me, Freddy! Why are you acting like this?!” Freddy called to him. There was no response.

“We’re long past the point ‘o parlay. You ever see him do this before?”

“Never! The DJ would never act like this! It-… It must be connected to that Bouncer Mode that was announced when the power went off,” Freddy deduced. He was a step behind Foxy in that regard, but at least he caught up.

“Then what’s the chances of turnin’ the lights back on stoppin’ this?” Foxy asked Freddy over his shoulder.

“I-I do not know. I can only assume that maybe… Bouncer Mode…” Freddy got an almost perplexed look. His eyes lowering and narrowing, darting around as he was thinking. “…Yes.” He looked up with more confidence. “Resetting the system should reset any programs that the DJ is running. The Bouncer Programming should reset, and if not, then I can get back on the dance floor and force the DJ back into performance mode. But only once the power has been returned!”

“Then we can’t hang out in here! Mike’s stuck with Monty and-,” Charlie started.

“Monty’s here?!” Sunny’s voice spiked. His points retracted as Charlie confirmed this, and then the white of his eyes halved in a narrow. “…New plan. You stand riiiight…” He pointed down to the other end of the wall. “There. Don’t let him see you.”

“Okay,” Charlie agreed. She already figured out the supposed plan and started heading down.

“Wait, Sunny. We do not need to engage the DJ. There is a vent right in the closet,” Freddy suggested, nudging the door open with his foot and gesturing to it. Sunny waved a hand in dismissal.

“That’ll take too long. Desperate times call for…?” Sunny tilted his head and grinned at Freddy, awaiting an answer.

“Risky moves,” Foxy answered.

“That’s right!” the jester chirped. He then promptly ran past Foxy and slid across the tiled bathroom floor and right up to the door and slammed it in Music Man’s face.

“Sun, move!” Freddy yelled.

“No wor-!” The door suddenly slammed open and the DJ’s hand thrust through, but in that split second Sunny dove out of the way and onto the wall. He clung to it for a second before springing off when the hand slapped at him, him landing on the floor on a roll. “-ries!”

Freddy was watching in abject horror as Sunny continued to dance and dodge around the hand. Meanwhile, Charlie darted to the other door and pushed through, running right into Music Man’s line of sight but running off before he could grab her.

She was forced to run past the stairs and almost right up on Monty when the DJ’s music suddenly kicked up. Becoming both louder and faster, the beat dropping into a heavy thump that nearly hid his heavy handfalls. Charlie was suddenly yanked aside and pulled behind an arcade cabinet, back flush against Marionette’s chest, his arms wound tightly around her. Both Puppets out of the way before Monty sent a lazy look back.

“What’s goin’ on over there?”

“Heck if I know,” Mike answered. Meanwhile trying to reach back and grab Gregory who snuck past while Monty had his back turned, failing to stop the boy.

The moment Marionette had left Gregory to pull Charlie out of the way, that split second, the boy decided to take the plunge and go for the third box. It was right in view and somewhat hidden behind the arcade machines as long as he stayed crouched down. So, he skimmed right past, ducking right under the man’s flailing and reaching arm, and snuck to the box.

That was fine, Mike decided begrudgingly. Not fine, but he could distract Monty and maybe he wouldn’t notice.

It was at that moment when he caught sight of a huge mechanical spider’s backend as it climbed up a wall and into one of the tunnels. He couldn’t see all of it, but he saw enough for his eyes to go wide and his stomach to drop.

“Look at the size of that thing!” Mike hissed through clenched teeth. Monty instantly rounded on him.

“Hey! He’s got a name!” he snapped. He adjusted his sunglasses. “…I don’t know what it is, but he’s got one!”

“Right, right. Sorry, it just sort of took me off-guard,” Mike excused. He casually stepped to the side and closer to the stairs to try and angle Monty further away from looking at the box. “Back to what you were saying, I don’t know much about unions myself.”

“’Course you don’t.”

“Right. So, how exactly would one work for Freddy’s? Everyone’s forced to sign waivers anyway, how would a union do any good?” He purposefully riled Monty into yet another explanation.

Marionette released Charlie once he was certain she was alright and then popped back up to the top of the stairs, only to find to his horror that Gregory was now missing. He spun around in a sudden panic thinking of rabbits and knives and her and HIM.

When his attention was drawn by a popping noise, and he looked back and down in time to see Gregory opening the panel. The tight grimace on his face showing that he didn’t intend to be that loud. His head also snapping back just in time to see Monty spotting him.

“HEY! Little guy!” Monty yelled in his direction. His fans kicked on and his pupils dilated under his sunglasses. “Ah see you!”

“I’ll get him,” Mike volunteered. He didn’t even have a chance to pretend to do so before he was roughly shoved aside so hard that he fell against and almost toppled over the barrier blocking off the stairs. Monty charged by and was after Gregory.

Gregory abandoned the control panel and began to run. An arcade cabinet suddenly capsizing behind him to block Monty, who easily stepped over it only to have a toddler stroller fly out of nowhere and crash into him. But Monty was shaking it off easily. Nothing could stop him, him huffing and grunting and shrugging off everything as he chased Gregory with animalistic desperation.

Unfortunately for him, that was when the Daycare Attendant staggered in. Still halfway through turning back into Moon, he looked across the arcade and caught sight of Monty pursuing Gregory. His points snapped in and his eyes went red.

“SECURITY ALERT! SECURITY ALERT!”

He then all but vaulted over the arcade machines and dove at Monty, the gator only catching sight of him for a second before crashing to the floor. A wrestling match quickly broke out.

“WHAT’RE YOU DOIN’?! GET OFF ME!” Monty bellowed.

Moon’s hand clamped around his jaws and twisted, forcing his head back as he did.

“Temper, temper- I am so TIRED of your temper!” Moon hissed back. “It’s pathetic.”

Monty huffed and grunted as hot air began to exhaust through the cracks in his plating. He shifted and got a foot up to kick Moon off, him only partially dodging and ending up upside-down on the wall. Monty yanking back enough to take a swing at him, with the jester moving aside in time that his fist clattered into the faux-brick wall.

Gregory looked back at the scene before suddenly being grabbed up by Marionette who then carried him under the arms and deposited him at Freddy’s feet. The bear dropping to a knee immediately and taking Gregory by the shoulders.

“There you are! Are you hurt?!” he asked.

“N-No, I’m fine! But they’re-!” Gregory heard the crash of a cabinet screen being shattered. “He’s gonna kill him!”

Freddy looked up wide-eyed and could only see some of the scene, but he knew from the noise that Monty and Moon were going at it. And remembering last time…

“We must hide you,” Freddy said. He got up and led Gregory aside. It didn’t take him long to find a closed-up food cart and he hoisted Gregory up to help him inside. “Wait here. I must stop them before somebody gets hurt!”

“Okay but be careful. If you’re not supposed to get between dogs fighting, I don’t want to know what’s going to happen if you get in between those two,” Gregory warned.

“I will. Keep quiet and still, I will be back,” Freddy said. He closed the hatch and raced over to Monty and Moon to try and break them up.

Meanwhile, Marionette looked past the scene to see Mike activating the control panel before shooting a random thumbs up behind him. Marionette almost smiled until he heard the familiar thump, thump and looked up in time to finally see DJ Music Man for himself. He was climbing onto the top of the spiral staircase, a massive beast of a machine, right in the way of Charlie who had run up the other stairs and was heading in that direction, unable to see Music Man around the corner.

The DJ did manage to give himself away long before Charlie could run up the second flight of stairs. She heard the increasing music and thumping and came to a stop at the foot of them, backing away as she watched him climb around the corner.

Suddenly Marionette popped up in front of her. Shielding her while staring down the DJ with lights alit in his eyes, silently threatening him.

Silently threatening him even though he had no chance of handling him on his own. The oversized Music Man was so big that the only option would be to shove him at the right angle and get lucky in him serendipitously not holding on well enough.

DJ Music Man still stopped at the sight of him. The red dots in the back of his own eyes growing, glowing brightly as he slinked around the corner with only a few steps and stared down the Puppet. Or stared through him, as it felt to the Puppet.

As though there was something inside looking out at him.

The DJ leaned in a little, cocking its head with a creak as it stared him down. He stiffly raised a gloved hand and shook his finger. “No, no.” He pointed to his chest. “I.” He pointed to his eyes with two fingers. “See.” He pointed at Marionette with those fingers. “You.”

He then lifted a hand and made a finger snapping motion. Of course, he couldn’t snap his fingers with such big, gloved hands, but the motion punctuated his music kicking off. He then spun his finger and a new track kicked in.

The last song either expected was an electronic keyboard rendition of Pop Goes the Weasel. A far cry from Marionette’s own music box trill but he could feel his spools tightening at that song. The familiar tune alone riled him up, energizing him, making him feel so wound up that he could spring at any second and activating his own music along with it. If this was an attempt to subdue him, it had the exact opposite effect.

And then the beat dropped. The music spiked into a techno flurry of Pop Goes the Weasel pumping through DJ Music Man’s own speaker. A nursery rhyme turned into a funky beat to dance to, loud and charged.

And suddenly those heightened sensations increased tenfold.

The world grew hazy and blurry as Marionette’s programming kicked up. His servos reeled, his spools tightened, his music box struggled to reflexively catch up with the tempo and he could feel each pluck of his comb. Too aware, too worked up, too much buzzing throughout his body. Instead of invigorated, he felt out-of-control.

He barely noticed Charlie’s hand on his shoulder and then Mike grabbing him from behind, momentarily flailing in the grasp not out of his own volition but due to his overwhelmed body’s overreaction.

“Shut it off!” Charlie yelled at DJ Music Man.

He gave an exaggerated shrug with two arms and then, bizarrely enough, he turned and started to climb the wall as though he was the one running from them. His music raising in volume to overcome the distance between them.

Then he was gone, leaving the three behind at the base of the stairs. Mike stared after him in disbelief.

“What the hell is going on tonight?!” he vented.

“I don’t know, just- Freddy said that turning the power on might stop him! He’s stuck in some sort of bouncer mode and the only way to reset it might be to override it!”

“Sure, makes sense,” he agreed. At this point he was willing to believe and try anything. “Look, I know Vanny’s still a threat, but this is getting out of hand, and we need to get these lights on. Let’s split up. I’ll hit the panel up there, you run down to the fifth box.”

Charlie gave him a thumbs up and started up the stairs.

“Mari, you need to stay here,” Mike said.

“I-I’m f-fine- I’m fine! J-Just- Let’s go!” Marionette’s voice stuttered. He was still twitchy, but he had managed to somewhat stabilize himself.

While Mike wasn’t sure about that, he didn’t argue. He hooked an arm through Marionette’s and pulled him along as he hurried up the stairs. He arrived on the second floor before looking around and then taking a sharp left past a counter and towards a narrow section of arcade games that wrapped around the walkway above the room below.

They had just sprinted past the circular counter when the music suddenly increased in volume and beat. So heavy that the vibrations could be felt throbbing in Mike’s ears. The obnoxious tune of a familiar jingle being thrown back at them and increasing in speed until it was a frantic frenzy.

That wasn’t the only thing pushed into a frenzy either. Marionette shuddered and barely caught himself against the counter as his levitation failed. Mike helping hold him up as he clawed at his chest and the music box inside. He could feel each twang through his fingertips and shaking his endo from the inside. He couldn’t stop it, his body betraying him as it instinctually obeyed the music.

Mike swore before letting him down onto the counter. “You’re going to have to wait here, okay? I’ll be quick!” he said. He then promptly bolted off into the arcade machines. He didn’t want to leave him, but he couldn’t afford to waste even a second.

There were a few tables with tall chairs and the games were crushed so tightly together that Mike couldn’t imagine playing games here to be anything beyond uncomfortable. He weaved between them quickly, his heart pounding almost as hard as the music was. He had mental images of what could be going on inside of the Puppet’s chest right now and it wasn’t pretty. He was imagining comb teeth breaking off and losing themselves into his fabric, stabbing through like needles.

Anything could be repaired, he knew that, but it was the process of having to cut him open and do work that was daunting. Especially since he knew exactly what he would be getting into after last time.

The passageway narrowed and Mike sped through before suddenly catching a glimpse of white swinging in above him. He flung himself back, landing heavily on his backside and skidding right underneath the DJ’s large, gloved hand, sticking out of one of the holes. Alas, not entirely past it, now instead lying flat on his back underneath an arm blindly feeling for him.

When suddenly a black form darted overhead and flung itself into the arm. It was Marionette, who slammed into the arm with so much force that it threw the arm back and against the wall. He then doubled over and sprung off before the hand could close on him.

Mike got back to his feet and made a run for it, continuing to search for the box that he knew was hidden somewhere amongst the arcade machines. Something easier said than done once he caught sight of what his puppet was doing.

Marionette was writhing and crawling over the arcade machines in a way so inhuman, so bizarre that it took Mike completely off-guard. Like he had been reduced to a flailing doll with spiderlike limbs, which wasn’t made any better when he regained levitation for a second. Just careening around in the air on invisible strings before getting caught up on another cabinet and back to climbing over it.

Finally, finally, Mike happened to spot the panel hidden behind an arcade cabinet on the wall. Unfortunately it was underneath another large hole, but at this point there was no other option except to be quick and get out before the DJ came out. A plan thwarted when he opened the panel to see a plethora of fuses that had flipped. He started to flip them with both hands, but he could already hear the DJ’s heavy movements echoing through the tunnel.

Suddenly something ran into his back and grabbed him by behind. Mike almost fought back before realizing a split second later that it was not Music Man grabbing him but Marionette in his overdrive state trying to grab something off him. He couldn’t even ask before the Puppet grabbed ahold of his taser and yanked it free of his belt.

Marionette staggered back before pushing himself up to levitate a little higher, so that he could confront the massive face coming through the tunnel. Something that would’ve been easier if the emergency lights weren’t trailing so much when he turned his head. Then when he locked onto a point he locked on. He had to focus himself on one of Music Man’s eyes as the world wobbled and programming crawled over his fabric and sputtered in his chest.

There was no fighting DJ Music Man. Not with his size, not with his inability to control himself. So, his only option was to ward him off with threats, and there was nothing more threatening than a malfunctioning puppet windmilling a taser in front of him.

Mike got the switches flipped and closed the panel before pulling the lever. The light switched, signaling that it had worked. “Got it!”

The DJ had groaned as soon as the light had switched. He couldn’t have seen it from his angle, so he must’ve felt it. He slapped his hand on the floor of the tunnel with agitation and made another spinning motion with his other hand, then waved.

The music kicked up again and echoed out of the tunnel. It wasn’t just so loud that Mike could barely hear himself think, but now more layered and detailed. Beats atop of electronic riffs atop of keyboard music sped so much that no human would’ve been able to play it.

The taser dropped to the floor and Marionette shortly afterwards. He barely caught himself on his legs, grabbing at his mask and chest at the overload, before his legs buckled and he fell sideways against the glass paneled railing.

And then he just kept going over.

Mike foresaw it a second before it happened, recognizing what happened to him with the barrier downstairs and dove for Marionette. He just barely managed to catch him around the legs, succeeding both in thumping his forehead to the glass and stopping Marionette from falling over the edge. He then yanked him down, the Puppet’s body coming back over the railing and falling into his arms.

Marionette grabbed and clawed at his head as he hunched down and tried to escape the music. Or the programming that the music was setting off. Mike yanked off his jacket and wrapped it over his head and hands trying to somehow suffocate the sound while wrapping his arms around him to somewhat restrain the thrashing. Though it was close to impossible to do either; the music had gotten so loud that Marionette was within reach, and he could barely hear his discordant sounds against the constant crazed music.

Until it started to quiet down. Punctuated by the heavy thump, thumps of DJ Music Man’s steps, Mike realized he was retreating into the tunnel. The further he got away the more the music reduced. Still echoing through many of the holes connected to the shaft the DJ was currently in, but slightly less powerful. To the point where Marionette’s writhing was less pronounced and he collapsed into Mike’s grasp shaking like he was heaving.

Any second now Charlie would get the lever, Mike remembered. To which he then realized why the DJ left. He knew when the lever was switched, he likely knew where the breaker boxes were. He was going back after Charlie.

“We’ve got to get to the security office,” Mike said. There was no chance of them catching up with Charlie, but they could get to the final switch. He started lifting and maneuvering Marionette to pick him up, having no intentions of leaving him here.

To his surprise, he gave a derogatory wave. Mike stopped, afraid that he was hurting him, but then Marionette put an arm around his shoulders and started to lift onto his legs. This took Mike equally by surprise, but he quickly stood and helped support him.

“Let me carry you,” he offered.

Marionette shook his head and raised his other hand to show how bad it was twitching. Mike wasn’t sure if that was an explanation or if he was just out of it and observing how badly he was shaking. He could clarify later. All he knew for sure was that he wanted to walk.

“We’re going to have to move quick,” he forewarned.

Marionette nodded and waved him forward as though telling him to hurry. His voice a mere crunching and clattery replica of ‘Pop Goes the Weasel’. Mike hoped it was more like hoarseness, fatigue, than any real damage.

Either way, he hurriedly picked up the taser and half-carried half-led back through the arcade. He hoped Charlie was already on the move.

Meanwhile, she was standing by the breaker box waiting for it to unlock, trying it every few seconds while keeping her back to the wall and looking around the dark hallway. This would’ve been as good a time as any for Vanny to try and sneak up on her.

That was when she heard a shift the distant music pouring through the massive hole at the end of the hall. It grew louder and stronger, signifying that the DJ was cranking it up another notch. She tried the panel again and this time it finally released and opened.

Many of the fuses had been flipped and she got work to switching them back on. Only to notice while she was doing so that the sound of distant thumping was getting closer, as was the music. She fumbled, closing the panel and flipping the lever to no result, and she was forced to open it back up and scour through the switches until she found the last one. She flipped it, slammed the lid, and pulled the lever, and this time the light switched to a positive result.

But by then she could hear nothing but music and movement, and as she spun around to leave, she caught sight of motion and looked up at the hole at the end of the hallway. She saw the red lights of his eyes before his hands slid out to grip the rim and pulled the rest of him out. Charlie ran for it as DJ Music Man pulled himself fully free and began to tail her down the hallway. His steps slower but much wider and covering much more ground than hers did.

But that wasn’t enough to catch up. The DJ twitched restlessly and scooped up an arcade cabinet before easily tossing it down the hallway. It flew over Charlie’s head and crashed into the floor in front of her. She staggered momentarily before taking a sharp left and running around a group of machines. Another cabinet came crashing down and took out a shelf, throwing bits of metal and tools out across the floor.

Charlie weaved back and forth, stealing a glance back to see that DJ Music Man was closing in. His long legs and dexterous hands easily finding footing around the same obstacles that blocked her way. He slung another cabinet past her, knocking over another and blocking her path. She vaulted over the lowest point and doubled down running with all her might. One last arcade cabinet flew past and smashed into the wall as she skidded around the corner.

Almost running directly into Mike and Marionette who were standing at the door. Mike practically holding up the Puppet who was back to twitching and overloading as music closed in. Charlie all but shoved them into the doorway with Mike hitting the door button on the way in and closing it behind them. Charlie ran over to the control desk to search for the final button.

“Where’s the switch?!”

“Here! Right here!” Mike yelled. He ran over with Marionette in tow and slammed his finger down on the button.

All at once there was the sound of electronics booting throughout the security office before the overhead lights kicked on along with the ambience music. All of which they didn’t notice until the eardrum bursting music blasting outside the door was suddenly interrupted by a record scratching noise and suddenly died. Mike’s ears were still buzzing even after it was gone.

The second the music stopped, so did Marionette’s programming. All at once it released him from its grasp and he was able to think clearly, along with having the unbearable pressure in his head and his music box suddenly gone. He dropped like a rock, with Mike catching him to keep him from hitting the floor before carefully lowering him down. He sat down alongside him with his back against the desk, his heart still racing. Marionette’s head balanced face down on his shoulder while the rest of his body went slack.

Charlie sat down on the other side of Mike equally exhausted. Her shoulders slouched and her arms draped over her legs. Mike looked to her for a second before suddenly scooping an arm around her and pulling her in. She gave a short ring of surprise before mimicking a sigh and putting an arm back around him. Her hand resting on Marionette’s shoulder on the other side.

The three sat there together for a while just resting. Waiting for whatever was going on downstairs to calm down, waiting for Marionette to recover a little more, waiting to make sure the coast was clear.

Eventually interrupted by a knock on the door.

“You know, it just occurred to me that we never heard Music Man leave,” Mike mused. Sure enough, a lazy look at the window showed a big black eye peeking in.

“His eyes aren’t red anymore. Maybe he’s out of Bouncer Mode,” Charlie offered. “…What should we do?”

“…Well, we can’t stay up here all night,” Mike rationalized. He cautiously got his taser out with the arm still around Marionette, keeping it somewhat hidden. “Let’s go check it out and see if he’s back to his senses.”

“Once we get that door open, we might not get it shut again,” the Security Puppet forewarned.

“I know… Maybe we can squeeze past him,” he said, trying to lighten a tense mood. He started to get up, turning to help Marionette as he did. “Want me to carry you or do you want to walk? Because I don’t mind carrying you. If anyone asks, I get a kick out of it.”

Marionette gave a weary smile at that and almost motioned to be picked up only to consider it longer, then change his mind and flittering his fingers in a walking pattern. Mike obeyed his wishes and got an arm under his before helping him up onto his exceptionally weak legs. Now even weaker with all the energy drained out of him. Charlie went to his other side and repeated the action, and they helped walk him to the door.

Mike adjusted the taser in his hand before bumping the door button with his fist.

DJ Music Man didn’t immediately reach in. Charlie considered that a good sign but kept it to herself. In fact, after a moment he backed away from the door, allowing Mike to cautiously lean and look out. The giant spider was sat back on his back hands, two more resting on the ground, and his front two clasped together in an apologetic or guilty way. His posture was completely different. The whole feel radiating off him was much more passive.

“Hello, hello,” Mike greeted.

DJ Music Man waved back with a back hand. Then he shook his front clasped ones apologetically.

“I’m sorry,” was read from the gesture. He gave a confused sort of shrug, pointed at his head with a swirly motion, and signed a question mark with the other hand. Either “What happened?” or “I don’t know what happened.”

Mike got something else from the exchange. “You didn’t mean to chase us, did you? It was the Bouncer Mode making you do it, right?” he guessed.

Surprisingly, DJ Music Man shook his head. He seemed confused with how he tapped his head thoughtfully before he started to motion again. He held two hands above his head and wiggled his fingers as though maneuvering puppet strings. “I was controlled.”

Mike didn’t like what those hand gestures imply. Especially since he had witnessed firsthand something that lined up with the implications perfectly.

“…Did you hear a song?” Charlie unexpectedly asked. Mike looked to her in surprise, Marionette even rolled his limp head to look at her. She shared a brief look between them before looking up towards the DJ.

He nodded and pointed at her in agreement.

“Did it sound like, uh… Da, da-da da-da. Da da-da da-da,” she tried to replicate, jingling along with the tune. The lyrics had been so muffled that she couldn’t recall many of them, but she did remember one thing. “Hmm-hmm, hmm-hmm. Forever and ever. Forever and ever and ever. Ah, ah. Forever and ever and ever…~”

She stopped when the DJ started pointing insistently in agreement. He nodded and pointed to his headphones. “Yes, I heard it!”

“Do you know where it came from?” Charlie asked. Beyond the rabbit, where it could’ve originated, because it was too familiar to be new. Unfortunately, DJ Music Man shook his head. “Oh… Well, at least we heard the same thing.” He nodded in agreement.

“Sorry about all this. There’s something, some crazy rabbit woman that’s been following us and she’s the one who cut the power. We’re sorry we brought it all up here. We’re just going to go get our captain and we’ll be out of your hair,” Mike offered apologetically.

But much to his surprise, the DJ had an unexpected reaction. He shook his head, he waved his hands, he totally dismissed the notion. Then he began to motion.

He pointed to them with both fingers of his front hands, then pointed at the floor. He then bobbed his body, arms and legs shaking to invisible rhythm in a vague mimic of Freddy’s dancing. He then made hand motions like he was playing an arcade cabinet. He pointed to himself then lifted a hand to his headphones while the other shuffled as though scratching a record. Finally, he clasped his hands together and shook them insistently.

“You stay. Dance, play games, I’ll play music. Stay, please.”

This took Mike entirely off-guard. It almost made him a little suspicious, but DJ Music Man seemed genuine- though he had fallen for similar ruses before. He glanced over at Marionette and Charlie and all three exchanged a look but neither puppet commented.

“Well… We’ll think about it. We need to see what’s going on downstairs first,” Mike replied.

The DJ seemed contented with this and, suddenly realizing that there may still be something happening downstairs, he turned and hastily headed off to a tunnel. They watched him go before going themselves.

Exiting back into the arcade proper, they saw that everything had returned to normal. The neon lights, the soothing ambience music, including the bouncier tunes from the arcade cabinets; everything was back to how it was. Mike and Charlie walked Marionette through the rows of games as they made their way back towards the stairs. They had almost reached the karaoke room when the Puppet between them unexpectedly spoke up.

“Th-Thiss isss s-so stran-nge,” he said. His voice was still staticky and echoey, sputtering as he spoke. Though not from upset. In fact, other than sounding weary, he sounded rather relieved. His head was slightly slumped, but he watched almost curiously as he used his own legs. Though not without an exceptional amount of help from his companions. He was more so being carried, but it felt very close to the real thing. “W-Walking. I-It feels so pec-pec-pecuuuliar.”

“It feels like we’re about to start skipping down the yellow brick road,” Mike joked. Marionette rolled out a twangy chime while Charlie scoffed a little. Mike petted Marionette’s side carefully. “How’re you feeling, Doll? Any pain anywhere?”

“Ti-irrred.”

“I can’t even imagine. But there’s no pain in your music box? You’re sounding a little crunchy,” he asked, making his concern more obvious.

“J-Just weak… I thhhink I’m ok-kay,” Marionette said.

He rolled his head over and pressed it to Mike’s affectionately, a gesture that was returned. They stayed like that a few moments before Marionette drew away. He mustered up the neck strength to lift his head and turn Charlie.

“Th-That sonng you ment-tioned, Char-arlie. It’s an o-o-old Freddy s-song. From a long, long, l-ng-g time ago.”

Her head snapped to him. “You know it? Where’s it from?”

“Cartoon.”

“Oh… Oh! Maybe that’s why I remembered it,” Charlie said. She was momentarily disappointed by the simplicity of the answer, but it made sense. “I had this vivid mental image of being in the car with my parents and hearing it playing. Maybe we had it on cassette?”

Marionette nodded in agreement.

“So, it sounds like Vanny’s got a bit of a history with Freddy’s. Assuming that she’s behind Music Man too,” Mike said with very little doubt. “Lines up with what Natalie said about Ness liking the old Freddy’s.”

This reminded Charlie of what Vanny had said. Though this wasn’t exactly the best time to bring it up, with Marionette and the situation of the others up in the air, she decided to do so. It seemed too important to put off any longer and risk forgetting to mention.

“That’s not all. The way Vanny was talking I think she knows you, Mari. She said something like… How you were up to the same games and how you didn’t know who she was, but she knew who you were and that you would. Know who she is, I mean.”

Marionette was too exhausted to show exactly how unnerved he was by hearing Vanny said that. Thankfully, he had Mike to speak for him.

“God, that’s ominous,” Mike remarked.

“You’re telling me,” Charlie agreed.

“So, does that mean she’s being possessed by someone who was around back then or that she’s from around back then? For all we know, she could just be some broad coming in now who thinks she knows Mari because she’s done her research.”

“That’s a good point. I didn’t think about that.”

“What do you think, Mari?” Mike asked. Both curious about what he thought and checking in on him.

Marionette wasn’t sure what he thought. He should’ve been more upset by the news yet after the initial shock he was feeling rather blasé. Maybe because Mike had raised a good point. Surely it wouldn’t be too hard to uncover the rumors of the old Freddy’s. Especially if she was related to someone who used to be involved there. Like one of the workers- hopefully not one of the workers. That could explain this as less a copycat and more of a vendetta, but that didn’t bode well.

Perhaps his reaction was muted because of how tired he was. Maybe because there were so many open avenues that he couldn’t properly react to one. Or perhaps there was another reason. One a little closer to home.

“As- As long as i-it’s not m-my fath-ther,” Marionette simply remarked.

There were no arguments with that.

For now, they let the conversation fall to the wayside and focused on helping Marionette down the spiral staircase. They could worry about Vanny after they got everyone back together.

…

Normally Gregory wouldn’t have been thrilled to get stuck hiding away in a metal box, but in this situation, he was more than glad to keep his distance from the action. He dared to lift the lid enough to peek out and watched as Freddy hopelessly tried to pull Monty and Moon apart. Neither of them were acting right. Monty was especially wound up while Gregory had never seen Moon fight back so hard. He was almost a little impressed, but he kept expecting Monty to suddenly get the upper hand like that night in Monty Golf.

It wasn’t like Gregory was worried for Moon or anything, but he didn’t want to see him get mangled up again. Freddy neither, but he had already gotten accidentally clocked once and had deflected the blow like it was nothing. Gregory had gone from genuinely afraid to admiring him in a whole new light. But of course Freddy could take a hit- he was Freddy! There was a reason he was the coolest guy here.

Yet he could get the two to stay apart. In fact, it was his attempt to do so that got him an elbow to the face. That didn’t stop him from trying and currently he had his back to Gregory, barely holding Moon back with one hand and Monty with the other, forcing them apart.

When suddenly Gregory had a weird feeling. That feeling like he was being watched. He peeked out through the sliver of the lifted lid and turned his head until his eyes landed on the form sneaking across the arcade towards him.

His blood ran cold. His heart leapt into his throat.

It was Vanny.

She shouldn’t have been scary. Ignoring the fact that she was in a mock-Easter Bunny outfit, the way she was sneaking over was over-the-top cartoonish, a slinking little tiptoe with her arms playfully swaying at her sides. But that almost made it worse, because she wasn’t looking for him, she was walking directly towards him. Her bright red eyes staring right back at him as she approached his hiding spot.  

Gregory desperately looked over towards Freddy only to see that he was still caught up between Monty and Moon. Taking one last look at Vanny, Gregory dropped back into the cart and let the lid close behind him. He was nearly hyperventilating as he pulled off his backpack and scrounged around for something, anything to defend himself with. He wasn’t finding a thing. He pressed the button on his watch.

“Freddy! Freddy!” he called. Though from the moment he pressed the button, all he could hear was static replying back. He didn’t know if the message even reached Freddy.

He could hear her just outside of the cart. Her booties softly tapping as she came up and stopped right beside it. Even if he hadn’t heard her he could just feel her, that sickening feeling that radiated off of her. There had to be something he could use to fight her off with. He popped open his lunchbox and caught sight of his only possible salvation. He yanked it out and fumbled it in shaky hands.

Suddenly the hatch opened his head. The interior of the cart was filled with a nasty red glow, and he looked up to see those bright eyes and stretched smile only a few inches away from his face.

“There you are!” Vanny crooned.

Gregory proceeded to crush his hands together and spray her with the contents of his juice box.

Vanny was caught by surprise by the shower of purple liquid and swung her head back from the hatch. Vanny staggered back a step and looked down at herself, at a line of stain sputtering from her neck down her upper chest. A small spill in comparison to the streak across her mask, but regardless she reacted with a crunchy choke and began to desperately rub at it with both hands, to no avail.

“No, no, no, no, no!” she muttered. Her voice fading into apologetic little pleas as she continued patting at the fabric.

Seeing her momentarily distracted, Gregory took his sole chance to climb out of the cart and make a run for it. Running blindly into the arcade, searching for anywhere to hide, to escape.

Foxy was currently hanging out in the bathroom hallway waiting for whatever was going on out in the arcade to cool down. He hated being stuck here hiding, unable to help anyone and wasting what little time they had. Looked like this night was yet another bust.

That was when he heard small footsteps running. His ears twitching as he hunched down and inched out of the hallway to look, catching sight of the backend of Gregory as he bolted off towards stairs. That caught his attention immediately. He had thought Gregory was still with Marionette and to now see him running for his life with the lights on, Marionette nowhere to be seen, and Freddy still wrangling ‘friends’ in the corner, it was understandably alarming.

And since he could still hear that situation going on in the corner, he knew exactly where they were. He listened to make sure nobody was coming before crouching lower and darting out from the hallway, hastily running behind a line of arcade machines and after the boy.

That was how he ended up at the golden door. Tucked away under the stairs in a small VIP section- not much of a section at all, if not for the barrier blocking it from the stairs and the flimsy faux-velvet rope partially blocking the front- Foxy came up on the door sliding closed and caught it before it could. Since he didn’t see Gregory going up the stairs he must’ve gone in here, wherever this was.

He looked up at the beehive shaped icon on the door before heading inside.

Chapter 66

Chapter Summary

Foxy and Gregory find themselves trapped inside the Hive Arcade and have to play a different kind of game to escape...

Chapter Notes

Sorry this chapter took so long, but I hope the size makes up for it! Enjoy!

See the end of the chapter for more notes

Natalie had been prepared to get an alert at the West Arcade, though what she hadn’t expected was what she walked up onto. She entered the arcade tailed by Smitty and Buddy and heard the ruckus almost immediately. She hurried into the next room just in time to see Freddy getting himself thoroughly wedged between Moon and Monty. Holding the former around the waist with his back to the latter, making himself a shield.

Upon seeing Natalie coming in, he very loudly announced, “Officer Vanessa! You are here!”

This did momentarily get Monty and Moon to freeze up. The gator looked over to the security guard like an animal caught in a spotlight. To which the jester immediately took advantage of his distraction and swung a leg back around Freddy to kick him in the side.

“Moon!” Freddy scolded. He then had to lean forward to dodge a clawed swing over his shoulder. “Monty!”

“HEY! You two, break it up!” Natalie called. She slapped her hands and strode towards them, though stopped a good few feet away. Not nearly brave enough to get between them like Freddy had. There was still a little more thrashing before it died down. Monty butting his chest against Freddy’s back and Moon flipping back his head to glare past his shoulder, limbs steadily reversing themselves. “I said, knock it off! Do either of you want a repeat of last time?!”

That at least seemed to finally snap some sense into the two and Monty backed off. Freddy than sat Moon down but kept a tight hand on his shoulder to keep him from making any moves. Now all three stood in front of the smaller security guard.

Smitty finally rolled up behind them. He approached Freddy’s back before giving Natalie a signaling wave, showing that he had identified the source of the alert. It was only then that Natalie realized it was Freddy who had flagged her. That made sense.

“Okay, so let’s take a step back. What happened?” Natalie asked.

“I’ll tell ya what happened! I saw that kid runnin’ around playin’ with the lights and I go to stop him when that psycho body slams me!” Monty explained. He turned on Moon, shooting daggers through his sunglasses. “And ah know why. He’s been hiding that kid!”

Monty gave an accusatory point towards him. Freddy’s hands flew up in defense out of reflex, but it was clear that Monty was pointing past him to Moon. The jester giving a dismissive ‘tch’.

“We all knew he was doin’ it, but now I know fer sure! That’s how come that kid disappeared the first night he showed up, when Sun was blocking up the daycare door. That’s why he was runnin’ around in Monty Golf same time that kid showed up there, actin’ all weird. And that’s why he’s up here NOW with this kid! It’s been him this whole time!”

“I was not hiding anything. I was simply protecting an innocent child,” Moon deflected. He tilted his head as his voice took a particularly nasty tone. “You’re not good with children. Are you, Monty?”

“You kiddin’? Comin’ from the so-called ‘thing they let around kids’, eh? Lemme tell ya somethin’, kids come here just to see me. The only kids comin’ here to see ya’ll are the ones who get dropped off in that plush prison ya’ll call a daycare.”

Moon growled at the name, the noise vibrating through his speaker as he ticked with annoyance. Freddy was equally started by the comment and struggled to continue not taking sides.

“Monty, please! There is no need for insults,” Freddy pleaded. He quickly turned to Moon and said, in a slightly softer voice, “And the same goes for you too, Moondrop. Please.”

“Tch.” Moon turned his head away and crossed his arms stubbornly.

“Freddy’s right. We’ve got more important things to deal with. So, that kid’s up here. Good to know. Freddy, you can watch the door- Oh my God.”

Natalie’s voice cut out as she looked up at the sound of thumping and caught sight of the giant DJ climbing out of one of the holes high on the wall. She staggered back in shock, craning her neck up to see him. Freddy mimicked the gesture, but his expression was of relief.

“DJ! You are back to normal!” Freddy called.

DJ Music Man nodded and slowly made his way down to their level. He stood over the rows of arcade cabinets with his long arms holding him up like stilts. Save one hand that it reached out towards Natalie as though offering for a shake, even though it was so large that he could’ve easily picked her up like a doll.

“Officer Vanessa, this is DJ Music Man! The DJ of the West Arcade,” Freddy introduced fondly. He certainly didn’t sound concerned by his appearance which helped Natalie feel a little more confident in reaching out her hand.

“Oh, h-hey. You scared me- startled me,” Natalie excuse with a shaky grin. “I’m Vanessa, nighttime security officer.”

The DJ very gently took her hand with two fingers and shook it daintily. He used another hand to rest against his chest and slightly tilted his body forward in a polite bow. She could imagine him saying, “It is a pleasure.”

Once the DJ took his hand back however, he turned on the three animatronics standing there. He swiftly pointed to Moon, then Monty, snapped his fingers with a record scratch noise, and then pointed a thumb back towards the entrance. “You two, out.”

No matter how angry or how much machismo Monty or Moon could put on, neither was going to argue with the DJ. With Natalie’s simple shrug and, “You heard the man,” they began to follow her out. The only one not on board with this idea was Freddy.

“Wait, but I…” Freddy tried to interject.

Moon noticed his hesitation and smoothly took a long step back, catching the bear’s hands in his own as he did.

“Stay. Enjoy your evening, Freddy-bear,” Moon encouraged. He squeezed his hands together. “I will be seeing you before three.”

Freddy’s eyes glistened as he smiled. “Before three. Yes, of course.”

Monty sent a look at the two before huffing and continuing on his way out with Natalie.

Moon finally drew back and turned on his heel to slink his way out. It was a good thing he was programmed to not be impulsive, Freddy thought. Elsewise he might’ve run right after him and tossed him into another drip. It was awfully tempting.

But he had more things to worry about. He noticed Buddy the mop bot mopping up something right beside the cart Gregory was hiding in. It made him nervous, but thankfully the Staff Bot seemed to take no interest in the cart.

“Come on, Buddy,” Natalie called. The Mop Bot proceeded to give one final swipe before following after her.

“That Wight guy’s here too, the kid. I think he might’ve got the lights on. I saw him workin’ on the box,” Monty muttered as they headed into the entrance.

“I know. He radioed me before he came up. I’ll make sure he stays out of your hair.”

Monty gave an appreciative nod before he, Natalie, and soon the slinking Moon disappeared around the corner.

DJ Music Man now turned to Freddy and gestured a thumb back towards the dance floor, waved, and then excused himself to return to his stage. This left Freddy free to go check on Gregory, which he hurried over to do immediately.

“Gregory, it is safe now. You can come out,” Freddy quietly assured as he opened the hatch. Only to see that there was nobody inside. “…Gregory?” Freddy looked around, expecting to see the boy running up from another hiding spot, but he did not. “Gregory?!”

There was still no sign of him. Growing increasingly worried but not yet at the point of blind panic, Freddy decided to send him a message through his Faz-watch. It wasn’t long before he received a response…

…

“Looks like the coast is clear,” Mike said as he looked over the lower arcade.

Normally he wouldn’t have been nearly so confident, but with the throwdown between Monty and Moon, he doubted it would be this quiet if one or both weren’t gone. He kept a careful eye out as they headed down the steps. It wasn’t too hard considering that they had to go slow for Marionette, letting him take each step as though he was supporting his own weight with them. Watching his striped legs tentatively lower down each step; there was something distinctly cute about it.

“There you are!”

Mike choked on a swear at the booming voice directly under and behind them. He looked back through the to see none other than Freddy standing at a golden door behind them, arms stretched and trying to wedge his fingers into the crack of the door.

“You almost gave me a heart attack! What are you doing back there?” Mike asked.

“I am trying to get the door to the Hive Arcade open. Mike, Mari, Charlie, we have a problem. Gregory and Foxy both ran into the Hive Arcade and the door has sealed behind them. They cannot open it from the other side, and neither can I,” Freddy explained. His voice heavy with concern and desperation.

Marionette spun his head around to look with a discordantly crunchy gasp.

“What?! How did that happen?!” Charlie asked.

“Gregory was running from Vanny. She must have slipped by while I was trying to break up the fight between Moon and Monty. But he got away! And she did not follow him into the arcade. Foxy was able to, but the door sealed behind them,” Freddy explained. He released his hands from the door and his shoulders slumped. “And I am afraid that the Hive Attendant might not be much help…”

“There’s an animatronic in there with them?” Mike asked. To which Freddy nodded. He had a sinking feeling as he dared to ask, “…So, what kind of situation are we dealing with here?”

…

Foxy wasn’t anticipating what he found when he ran through the door after Gregory. He was expecting an extension of the arcade naturally, but this was a far cry from even the one he just ran out of.

Past the entrance desk, the oblong room was packed full of machines. However, they were not the traditional arcade cabinets. There were coin pushers a plenty, spinning wheels of light and games of chance. There were even colorfully childish bee-themed slot machines. Foxy knew how to identify a token eater when he saw it and this arcade was full of them.

Other than that, the arcade had a funky sort of bee-themed design. The walls were alit with golden honeycomb patterns, though the lights were dimmed, the movie theater patterned carpet was dotted with shiny shooting stars on a black background. There was some sort of track leading around the floor and he made a mental not to be careful where he stepped.

There were posters of bees and aliens on the wall, along with advertisements for a Special VIP-only Fizzy Faz, Fizzy Faz Gold. Past the counter and further on down the wall was the open entrance into another room that looked to be designed the same. Behind the counter was a big honeycomb shaped mirror that Foxy could see himself in. It was through that that he saw how much he stuck out like a sore thumb in this flashy arcade. Even more so than the much bigger one outside.

This had to be the Hive Arcade. Freddy had mentioned it only once or twice and hadn’t given much of a description, but the theming along gave away what it was. He hadn’t mentioned that it was baby’s first gambling hidden behind a faux-velvet rope. No wonder people had to meet a certain bracket before they were allowed in here.

“Blow me down,” Foxy mumbled.

“Foxy!”

Gregory popped out from behind the counter and ran up to him. He was looking significantly more shaken than he usually saw him.

“There ya’arr, Lad! I was gettin’ a touch worried ‘bout ya,” Foxy greeted. He hooked his hand around his back and pulled him to his side. A protective gesture disguised as a friendly pat on the back. “What’re you doin’ runnin’ into this house of ill repute?”

“You didn’t see her?! Vanny was out there! She came after me!”

Funny how even in this predominantly yellow arcade Foxy was suddenly seeing red. “She still out there?”

“I think so! I sprayed her with my juice box and ran in here, but I don’t think that’s going to stop her,” Gregory warned.

Foxy agreed. The only thing that was going to stop her was something a little more direct, and that was something he could surely provide. He hooked the inside door handle and went to slide it open again, but it didn’t budge.

He snapped out of his on-the-prowl mindset and began to pull a little harder, then tried to open the door with both hands. Alas, it seemed to have been latched in place.

“Blast it all! The door’s jammed!” Foxy huffed. That was foreboding. He wasn’t naïve enough to assume the door just happened to shut and lock on its own.

“What?! What do we do now?!”

“Mari’ll be able to get us out,” Foxy said certainly. Though that would mean standing in this arcade like a sitting duck. “…But let’s see if there’s another door. Come on, Lad.”

Foxy led the way further into the arcade with Gregory at his side. They moved slowly and cautiously- Gregory expecting Vanny to spring out at any moment and Foxy keeping his guard up. The constant sound of music and ambience of spilling coins was hard to hear past as each machine tried its hardest to lure in takers. That wasn’t the only thing he heard either. There was another peculiar sound.

Foxy stopped Gregory and pushed him behind him as the noises got closer. Then, out from between a circular shaped arcade machine with rainbow spinning lights in the center, came a slow-moving object across the floor. Not in their direction, but through their path.

It looked like a little UFO, but it made noises like a small vacuum cleaner as it did little circles around the floor. Dipping underneath the machines as though it was searching for something, perhaps dust, trash, or loose change. What was more important was what was atop it. Settled into the center of the UFO base was a small bee driver. It had a round and fuzzy black and yellow striped body with a pair of small stubby black arms, with tiny fingers, and a yellow head with black oval eyes, a tiny open smile, and a pair of matching black antenna.

The face looked something like an alien’s, though to Foxy it also distinctly resembled a Minireena. It appeared just to be a prop at first until it started to wheel past their feet and the head turned to look up at them as it did so.

“Buzz-buzz!” it said. Then it continued its way to scout underneath some coin pushers. Sucking up a stray token with a little clatter.

Foxy hummed almost suspiciously and sidled away from the bee and further towards the doorway. Only to look through it and see he was walking up on a much bigger threat.

The next room was shaped in a large half circle. In the center was a spiral shaped stage with a round flat top, and a large spiral staircase wrapped behind the stage and led up to the second floor of the Hive Arcade. There were a few seating benches against the wall on either side of the doorway, evidently so that one could sit and watch the show on stage, which was lit by a lone spotlight hanging down from the center of the ceiling.

On the stage was an animatronic. Its upper body was folded over its lower as though in a resting ballerina pose, making it hard to make out more details than the blue-tinted plastic wings on its back and it’s bun-styled molded hair. It didn’t take more than the general shape of the body to recognize it as resembling a Ballora model, and the black and yellow coloring fit the bee theme of the arcade.

Both Foxy and Gregory clammed up at the sight of it. Gregory knowing better than to risk alerting an unknown animatronic and Foxy not wanting to deal with the hassle of a situation that could go very wrong. It was unfortunate then that the staircase looked to be their only way out. As far as Foxy knew, there was probably another exit on the second floor of the West Arcade. They had to at least check.

Foxy lifted a finger to his mouth to signal Gregory to stay quiet before crouching slightly and beginning to slowly inch through the doorway. Each step was slow, quiet, calculated and deliberate. Gregory kept close and followed his method as they made it halfway.

That was when the bee ballerina repositioned one of its pointed feet into a different slot in the stage before straightening up and revealing itself to the two. Foxy realizing at that second that it likely had been alert the whole time, just waiting for them to get close.

The animatronic stood about as tall as Chica but being up on the stage gave it the illusion of being much taller. From its casing to its general design, it fit in with the typical Glamrock style, save for some distinct difference.

Firstly, was the bee theming. Indeed, its hourglass shaped middle section was painted in yellow and black horizontal stripes, like a leotard. Its arms were yellow and ended in slender hands with fuzzy white cuffs around the wrist. It wore a ruffled two-tiered yellow and black skirt, one that resembled the Daycare Attendant’s.

Its legs were long and shaped more human-like than the Glamrocks. From its generous hips down to its ballet slipper shaped feet, which were drawn up into a permanent point. They were black, but there were honeycomb yellow patterns along her calves.

Her face was the same yellow of her arms and her molded hairline black and styled to look like an upright bun. The bun, or the ball sitting on top of her head, was black with a few thin yellow stripes through it. She had two short, black antennas on her forehead.

Then there was her face. She had a molded mouth, sort of like Sunny’s. Though instead of his widespread grin, hers was small and subtle. With black painted lips and only the smallest glimpse of white teeth between them. She had no nose, but there were some golden sparkles on her cheeks like freckles. Her eyes were strange. The closest thing Gregory could compare them to were alien eyes. Big, black, oval orbs with unmoving lids decorated in glittery black ‘eyeshadow’ paint and long lashes laying along the bottom rim.

It was a strange mix of beautiful and creepy, though Gregory leaned more towards being creeped out. Especially when she leaned in to get a better look at them. Foxy was much more alarmed at the fact that he had blatantly gotten caught by someone who wasn’t in on their arrangement. He went rigid underneath her dark eyes.

Both were taken aback by a rather enthusiastic greeting.

“Welcome to the Hive Arcade! Goodness me, it’s very late. But I suppose it’s never too late for a couple of VI-Bees to come play,” she said. “Let me introduce myself. My name is Queen Beelora and I will bee your hostess tonight. Are you ready? Let’s go!”

Foxy had noticed the sudden arrival of music to coincide with her namedrop. Not just ambience, but something lighter and bouncier, but still with the spacey techno backing that most of the music in the Mega Pizzaplex had. She began to shake her leg, her pointed foot tapping into one of the slots in the stage, and the moment he made a go at it to get a word in edgewise- not too hard, the last thing he needed was to poke a bee’s nest- she burst into song.

“So many coins that I can’t count. Come on, Honeybee, let me show you what it’s all about. It’s so easy a Ba-bee could do iiiit!~” Beelora began. Arms grooving and hips shaking to the beat of the music. “Take a coin and pop it in, pull the lever, and go for a spin!~” She mimicked using a slot machine before popping her hands onto her hips. She gave them a pop to the side, skirt crinkling and rustling. “Seven-seven-seven, triple combs, it’s time to wiiiin!~”

Beelora twisted into a rapid spin before stepping out of it and around the edge of the stage; hands on her hips, shoulders rolling.

“When you’re a VI-bee the payout’s high! Tokens and prizes pile up to the sky!~” She hopped back into the center and tossed up her arms. “And we’ve got all day all night to make it big! In the hive!~”

She shook her arms again as though waving non-existent pom-poms. Perhaps using her wrist cuffs in substitution.

“So HIT IT one more time! Gotta roll the dice, gotta pay the price to win big, big, BIG in the hive!~”

She gave one last spin and took a pose. Leaned back, head thrown back, with an arm stretched above her and the other to the side. Her legs crossed on the stage. Her stopping on the final note of music.

Gregory wasn’t sure if he was supposed to clap or what, so he just continued to stare. A long moment passed before Foxy finally broke that silence.

“That’s real nice, Lass. Sorry to, err, put a damper on it all, but we ain’t supposed to be in here. We took the wrong door, and it locked behind us.”

“There was a crazy rabbit lady running after us,” Gregory agreed.

Beelora’s head snapped up and she stared back with her large black eyes.

“…Oh,” she said simply.

“Aye,” Foxy returned.

“I suppose that explains why you’re here so late…” Beelora suddenly gasped and straightened back up on the spot, body clicking as she did. She brushed down her skirt before resting her hands at her front. “I’m sorry. I should have asked first.”

“Nah, don’t work yerself up about it. T’was a good showing,” Foxy assured, still feeling a little awkward about this. He finally stood up from his hunched position, seeing no use in it any longer. “If you’ll be a dear and open the hatch fer us, we’d be much obliged.”

“I would be happy to. Would you please bee so kind as to show me your- oh. Show me his VIBee pass?” Beelora requested.

“But that’s what we’re saying. We’re not VIPs, we just ran in here,” Gregory said impatiently.

“Oh, that’s… that’s not good at all,” she said quietly. For a split-second Gregory had a sinking feeling of dread, expecting a heel-turn from the bot. “The door only opens for VI-Bee, err, VIPs. I don’t know if we can open it without a VIP pass.” That fear deflated soon after.

“Great, so we’re stuck in here,” he grumbled. He side-eyed Foxy in silent questioning.

“Yar, looks that way. Maybe I can pry the door when the power goes out,” the pirate offered, just as disappointed as the boy was.

“Oh, umm, I’m afraid that won’t work,” Beelora quietly interjected. Her shoulders jumped a little as they both looked at her before settling again. “Due to the valuable and exclusive nature of the Hive Arcade and its prizes, when the power goes off the door, well, stays locked. So that no one can steal anything to resell outside of the Pizzaplex while the cameras are off,” she explained further.

“If yer sayin’ we’re stuck here til mornin’- nah, that ain’t gonna fly. Sorry, Lass, but we’ve gotta be out of here long before those front doors open. In case ya haven’t noticed, I ain’t from around these parts.”

“Oh, I noticed,” her voice lulled. He cocked her a look and she vocally corrected herself. “But I understand. It wouldn’t be good for me either. The Hive Arcade is very exclusive, only for VIPs. If it came out that someone snuck in… it wouldn’t be good. For us three.”

“Then ya have it. We’ve got to be out of here and on our way,” Foxy said. He started to look around at the at the room. “Suppose that means there ain’t another door upstairs.” Beelora shook her head. “We got any sizeable vents?”

“There is one, but… Oh. Oh! Wait! I have an idea!” Beelora literally buzzed with excitement. She clasped her hands together as her wings jittered slightly on her back. “I can’t open the door without a VIP pass, so why don’t you two win a VIP pass or two? Then I could easily open the door. And you would become VIPs, so technically you wouldn’t be breaking any rules being in here.”

“You can win those?” Gregory asked in disbelief.

“You can! VIP passes are offered in the prize exchange, so that VIBees can return to the Hive Arcade.”

“Can’t you just give us a pass?” he asked wearily.

“Oh… I… can’t. Do that,” Beelora quietly declined. Her fingers tightening together and her wings lowering once more. “I can’t give out prizes without Honeycomb Coins to exchange for them. The only way I could is if you won them…”

“Hmph…” Foxy considered the option for a long moment. Both Gregory and Beelora looking to him expectantly, watching him mull it over before finally asking, “Can we do that in, eh… two hours er less?”

“You certainly can! The Hive Arcade pays out the biggest winnings in the Freddy Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex. Now, do you have any tokens?” Gregory got his bag of tokens out from his backpack.  “Good! Follow me, please. Be careful to not trip over the Babees, and bee extra careful not to drop any tokens. They will suck them up in a heartbeat.”

Beelora stepped onto a track and glided down around the slope of the stage before continuing off into the arcade. Gregory and Foxy followed as she slid into the arcade, around some of the machines, and finally came to a jerking halt beside one of the coin pushers. The entire time remaining poised and proper, with her hands resting at her front to not risk hitting anything on her trip. She waited until Gregory caught up before turning to face him, Foxy getting held back by almost tripping over another UFO Bee.

“Now, here’s how it all works,” Beelora explained. “VIP pass costs one hundred Honeycomb Coins, which you earn by playing Coin Bumpers and the Silly Slots. You can also exchange twenty tickets for one Honeycomb Coin. Some of the games give out tickets, so you just have to play to win. If you run out of tokens, you can exchange one Honeycomb Coin for ten regular tokens, but you can’t exchange tokens for Honeycomb Coins. You can also exchange a dollar for four tokens in the coin exchange by the front counter. You can also win super-rare Crown Crystals. If you win five crystals, you can exchange them for a VI-Bee crown. With that, you will be able to exchange tickets for tokens and tokens for Honeycomb Coins. Or you can exchange the crown for a two day VI-Bee pass. Bee-utiful!”

“…So, I play games and win stuff,” Gregory clarified.

“That’s right. At the Hive Arcade, even the smallest bee can win big,” Beelora said. She gave a delighted little spin, Gregory leaning back out of the way as she did. She stopped facing him and clasped her hands together in delight. “Go ahead. Give it a try.”

Gregory turned toward the coin pusher and got out a token. He wasn’t sure how to play the game. There were three slots to put the coin in and they would roll down three separate chutes onto the two-tiered levels inside, which were covered in a bed of various tokens. Most were normal Pizzaplex tokens, but a few were bigger, a shinier gold color, and hexagonal shaped. Those had to be the Honeycomb Coins. He identified the closest one and dropped a token into the closest slot to it.

The token dropped onto the higher platform and was pushed by a moving wall into the cluster of tokens where it now sat. Gregory stood there a moment, watching nothing happening, and then looked up at Beelora.

“Now what?”

“Now you try again.”

All at once Gregory understood the scheme going on. He was less than impressed, giving Beelora an appropriate look.

“Shoot it in this one, Lad. That side’s about to drop,” Foxy encouraged. Bumping his back to get his attention and pointing at the slot on the left.

Gregory wasn’t so sure, but he went ahead and did it. Foxy’s inkling had been correct, and it did manage to knock a few tokens free that clattered down into the prize hatch. Though he could tell none of them were the elusive Honeycomb Coins.

“Win!” Beelora suddenly cheered behind and beside them, making both flinch. “Now you have even more chances to play. Cha-ching!”

Gregory spared her a flat look and instead just gathered the few tokens out of the hatch. Only to be interrupted by a new voice, one coming from his watch.

“Gregory?! Where are you?!”

“Freddy!” Gregory hurriedly pressed the button. “Freddy! I’m… stuck in the Hive Arcade,” he finished much less enthusiastically.

“What? How in the world did you get in there?! That section is only accessible with exclusive and very expensive VIP birthday packages!”

“Through the door,” Gregory flatly replied.

“But where is Foxy?!”

Gregory held his arm out towards Foxy.

“Ahoy,” he chimed in.

“Oh, hello, Captain! What a relief! I am so glad to hear that both of you are okay. When I could not find you in your hiding spot, I became very worried.”

“Keep bee-ing worried, Freddy. I’m stuck in here until I can get enough coins to drop to get a pass to get the door open. Or win a crown or something,” the boy sighed.

“Have you spoken with the Hive Attendant?”

“She’s standing right behind me,” Gregory warned lowly.

“Err, uh. Hmm… Well, I suppose… You mean playing arcade games, do you not? You are excellent at those! Why not try a few games and see if you can get those coins? In the meantime, I will… look for, perhaps, an alternative,” Freddy offered.

Gregory didn’t really want to be stuck here playing the world’s most boring arcade game, but it didn’t sound like Freddy had an immediate alternative. “Okay… Just, don’t do too far.”

“I will not! You can be sure of that.”

With that, Gregory went back to his ‘game’ and Freddy went to try and pry the door.

…

“And that is our problem,” Freddy finished. “Beelora cannot open the door herself until Gregory wins a pass, but the Hive Arcade games… The odds are not in our favor.”

“They’re not the kind of games where skill matters,” Mike guessed. To which Freddy agreed.

“Gregory always has a chance to get lucky and win a jackpot. He has been very fortunate so far… However, I do not think one jackpot alone would pay out enough for him to get the VIP pass.”

“And it’s not consistent. Games like that only pay out once enough people have tried it beforehand. So, Gregory could lose his winnings searching for a machine close to paying out,” Charlie pointed out.

“It’s a shame they don’t have a Blackjack table. The kid strikes me as a budding card shark,” Mike off-handedly remarked, still thinking of a solution.

“As a matter of fact, they do! Unfortunately, Montyjack cannot be played without a dealer, and I am not certain the Dealer Bot will be active this late…” Freddy said hopelessly.

“That’s great. The one game I might win and it’s stuck in the VIP lounge,” Mike remarked to Marionette.

“Can we short circuit the door?” Charlie asked. Freddy shook his head. “Maybe we can shut the power back down and get the door open. We’ll have to go through it with Music Man again, but it might work.”

“I… Don’t think we should risk it,” Mike said with a surprising amount of uncertainty. He subtly pulled Marionette a little closer. “Besides, some of these doors lock up when the lights go out.”

“A-And I’m n-n-not up to f-f-orccing the d-doorr,” the Puppet said apologetically. “I’m s-sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Charlie assured.

Freddy suddenly turned heel and started across the arcade. A look of determination in his eyes and certainty in his steps.

“You’ve got an idea?” Charlie asked.

“No, but perhaps the DJ does.”

They followed Freddy back to the stage of DJ Music Man where he recited their problem to him. The DJ thought on it for a few short seconds before mimicking snapping his fingers, holding up a finger to wait, and then backing up into the tunnel behind his stage. He came back a few minutes later with something in his hand, though they couldn’t see what it was before he stepped off the stage and made his way into the hallway.

He led them right back to the same bathroom some of them had been trapped in earlier and pushed the door open with one hand. He then pointed with another, directing Freddy towards the closet.

“The breaker?” Freddy guessed.

The DJ shook his head and made an opening motion.

“The vent!” Charlie said.

The DJ nodded and pointed to her, then reached out his other hand to reveal that there had been none other than a miniature wind-up Music Man inside. It was much cleaner than the ones that had spotted in the vents without a shred of damage. Its pinkish paint fresh and both its exteriors and metal unchipped. The DJ made a winding motion, a crawling motion with his fingers, and then handed it over.

Charlie took the doll carefully into her hands as Mike sized it up over her shoulder. Then she followed Freddy into the bathroom with a quick thanks.

“I remember a couple of little guys that looked a lot like this one back in the vents over in the other arcade,” Mike said, not mentioning how they had ganged up on him. “Are those yours too?”

The DJ shook his head. He pointed at the little doll and then at himself. He pointed off in the direction of the other arcade and then pointed down, using a free hand to knock on the floor.

He only seemed to now take notice of Marionette partially slumped at Mike’s side. With Charlie heading into the bathroom and no longer holding him, it was even more apparent how much he had been relying on both his companions to hold him up. The DJ sympathetically offered a hand. Marionette considered it a long moment, staring at the gloved hand almost warily, before finally accepting it- silently reaching and laying his hand on the DJ’s.

DJ Music Man took the invitation and moved his hand in to fully replace Charlie. It was large enough to cradle Marionette’s side and back fully in his grasp. Marionette gave a light and crispy chime.

“Thanks, big guy,” Mike said, his smile returning.

Regardless of what happened earlier, he had a feeling he was going to warm up to this new Music Man.

Meanwhile, Freddy easily pulled off the vent cover leading into the bathroom wall. Charlie twisted the key on its back until it began to stir to life and kick its feet, then carefully reached up and set it into the opening.

“Please, help us find Gregory,” Freddy encouraged. “He is a lost child with brown hair and eyes and light skin. He is currently in the Hive Arcade. Please, we may not have much time.”

The Mini Music Man clasped his cymbals and did a big loop in the vent before scuttling off. A music box rendition of the Pizzaplex theme coming from his speaker and fading the further he got into the vent until it was a distant echo.

…

Foxy didn’t consider himself a patient person. While he could have barrels of patience for children, that didn’t necessarily extend to all scenarios. Especially ones that tested that patience and toyed with his valuable time.

He must’ve been mistaken. Only the patience of a saint was holding him back from thrusting his fist straight through the glass window of this gluttonous coin devourer. Well, that and the risk of losing his only versatile hand.

On the first go, Foxy had dislodged and won six tokens. Six, on his first go. He had mistakenly accepted this as a sign of smooth sailing. It wasn’t. Save another three-coin win, those six tokens were dumped back into that machine without much fanfare. Nothing was budging and the Honeycomb Coins in this machine and all the others seemed somehow weighted in place. Getting swallowed up by tokens and then left behind when they eventually spilled over.

He hadn’t checked in with Gregory’s winnings, but he was almost certain that they were making absolutely no progress.

Foxy was so close to trying to shake the machine and see if he could force a few of those tokens free when he heard Beelora sliding over to him. Maybe she caught a glimpse of how hard he was gripping the cabinet and had the foresight to break it up. If that was the case, she didn’t give any indication when she arrived.

“How is your luck tonight?” she asked.

“Not sure. I’ll tell ya when it shows up,” Foxy replied. He tried his hardest to hide his growing irritation with the game.

“I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe try another machine? That one right over there seldom gets used. I’m sure it is ready to pay out.”

“Nah, I’ve put too much into this one,” Foxy doubled down.

Beelora gave a nod, and he expected her to return to Gregory, but she didn’t. She continued to silently stand and watch over his shoulder. She must’ve suspected something, he realized. Which was correct, since he was still considering the brute force idea.

“I don’t think I caught your name,” Beelora inquired.

“Never heard of Foxy the Pirate?” Foxy asked. Somewhat curious, somewhat joking.

“I have, but I didn’t want to assume that just because you are a rugged fox… I didn’t want to assume,” the bee answered. Before he could react, she cut in with a sudden, “Mind if I stretch?”

“Err- Arr, go ahead.”

Even with the warning, Foxy didn’t expect Beelora to suddenly snap back and hike her leg up on the next machine over. She gave a relieved sigh as she leaned back further, stretching out her waist, arms folded behind her head which tipped back into them.

From the motion of her head and the slight twitch of her eyelashes, Foxy knew she had stolen a look to make sure he was looking. He was looking, but instead of enticement he sort of had a deadpanned realization that Beelora was flirting with him.

“I don’t get many visitors,” Beelora sighed. She leaned back up and forward to rest against her still mounted leg. Resting her head on one hand and looking at Foxy longingly- or that was what he got with the frozen smile and blacked out eyes. “What Mr. Fazbear said on the phone? That’s very true. The Hive Arcade is very exclusive. So exclusive that I am exclusively the only person who’s ever in here. All by my lonesome…”

“Well, ya got yer bees,” Foxy pointed out. He turned back to the game and popped another token in, trying to subtly show that he wasn’t taking the bait.

“Yes, I do have the Babees, true. But they can’t… replace a human connection. Or as human as we can bee,” Beelora said.

“I know whatcha mean. Me first mate has a whole buncha lil terrors. He loves ‘em to death, but sometimes ya need another adult to get up to tomfoolery with. That’s where I come in,” Foxy remarked.

“Oh, that’s very sweet!” Beelora buzzed. “And your first mate is-.”

“Named Jeremy. We’re an item.”

“…Oh.”

That was a hint she did not miss, if indicated by how she slowly lowered her leg and returned her foot to the track. Her shoulders slouching for a moment before popping back up at the sound of a clink.

“Oh! Big win! That’s three more chances towards a jackpot, if I heard correctly,” Beelora remarked. She had switched back to her cheery tone like the previous conversation hadn’t happened.

Unfortunately, that meant at least three more tries at this hopeless machine.

Gregory wasn’t doing much better. Not only was he not making progress, but he was beginning to get bored too. It wasn’t exactly the most interesting game in the world after all. Gregory would’ve argued that it wasn’t even a game. It was then that his sulking was interrupted by a low voice over his faz-watch.

“Come in, Gregory.”

It was Freddy. Gregory stole a look at Foxy and Beelora who were farther down the room before backing up and crouching behind a coin pusher in the middle of the room. He didn’t trust Beelora enough to let her listen in.

“I’m here. What’s up?” he whispered back.

“We have a plan. The DJ has leant us one of his smaller selves and we released him into the ductwork. There should be a vent that leads into the Hive Arcade. Can you find it?”

“I will! Give me a second.”

Gregory lowered the watch and back further away from the machine. Keeping his eyes towards Foxy and Beelora, he began to look around the walls. He wasn’t seeing a vent of any kind. Once he ruled out the first floor he began to creep out of the room and up the steps to the second floor, going completely unnoticed. He noticed the track followed up through the center of the wide stairs so Beelora could come up here too, a daunting thought. As friendly as she was acting, Gregory simply couldn’t trust it.

The second floor of the Hive Arcade wasn’t much different from the first, but it had two noticeable additions. First was the Prize Counter back on the far-left wall. It was a small one, but it was stacked with exclusive golden colored merchandise that Gregory hadn’t seen anywhere else. Including golden plushies, honeycomb patterned hoodies, display figurines, and even a small cooler touting cans of Fizzy Faz Gold. There was even a Babee in a glass case, but it wasn’t moving or looking around. It was just for display.

On the opposite side was arranged like a photo shoot, with a yellow chaise covered in black honeycomb patterns. Likely used to take pictures with Beelora. He wondered if you would have to pay for one in Honeycomb Coins.

It was shortly after that when he spotted the vent in the back corner. Only noticing it because of the weird way the two machines beside the corner were tilted, like they were trying to block something. He hurried over and looked inside.

“Freddy, I found the vent! But there’s no Music Man guy in here,” he said into his watch. He noticed something and pressed his ear to the cool vent covering. “But I can hear music. Is that Mari?”

“That is the little DJ! He makes music as well,” Freddy explained, sounding quite relieved. “Foxy can get the vent open for you. He is quite proficient with his hook.”

“Right. Hold on a sec.”

Gregory decided to not tell Freddy he had ditched Foxy- he knew Freddy would be disappointed at that- and instead started to head back. Before he could even get down the stairs, he heard a call from the arcade below.

“Gregory?! Oiy, Lad! Where are ya?!” Foxy called out. His quick footsteps could be heard darting around looking for him. No chance of being discreet.

“I’m over here!” Gregory called.

Foxy ran into the stairwell and immediately all of the wild panic relaxed as his arms dropped to his sides.

“There ya are, Lad! Ya scared the barnacles off’a me!” he scolded. He came up the stairs to collect him. “Don’t go wanderin’ off like that.”

“Sorry… But I was talking to Freddy. He’s got a way out!”

That caught Foxy’s interest immediately. He cocked and leaned his head in, volume dropping considerably. “That so, eh? Where?”

“Is everything alright?” Beelora interrupted as she entered the room. Still riding along on the track, which Gregory noted again led right up the stairs.

“It’s alright, Lass. Lad here was just lookin’ around-.”

“And I think I found a game we can beat! Come on!” Gregory rushed out.

He grabbed Foxy’s hand and all but dragged him up the stairs. He ran as fast as he could and Foxy was quick to follow suit, knowing that Beelora would likely be shortly behind them. Only slowed by the dignified pace she had been taking when following the two around.

Gregory got Foxy back to that corner and lo and behold, spotted through the tightly set slats that there was a tiny version of Music Man standing in the vent. It looked more like a toy than an animatronic, and upon seeing him it smacked its cymbals together with a few short clatters. Gregory waved his hands and shushed him as Foxy scooted around the machines and crouched down beside him.

“That a little Music Man?” he asked.

“Yeah! Freddy said that the DJ sent him in and that he’s going to lead us out to the arcade,” Gregory explained almost excitedly. “All you’ve got to do is open the vent and we’re free! No more coins or anything.”

Foxy was really considering it after seeing exactly how fair the machines were, but something held him back. It didn’t take him long to realize what it was. He sighed in defeat.

“…We can’t, Lad.”

“What? Why not?”

“’Cause it wouldn’t be right. Ditchin’ Beelora after she’s been kind enough to strike this deal with us. She could’a called security on us the moment we got in here, but she didn’t, and fer that we oughta respect her deal and see it through.”

“But there’s no way we’re going to get that many of those stupid coins!” Gregory protested.

“Yer right about that, but we oughta try a little longer. We owe her that much,” Foxy said. “As much as this all is, she’s bein’ a whole lot nicer than she could’ve been. Seems lonely too. We ain’t getting her those coins without a miracle, but we could give her a few more minutes of company fer her trouble. Arr ya with me?”

“I guess you’re right…” Gregory said with a disappointed sigh. He really didn’t want to be stuck in here, and he didn’t exactly trust this weird bee woman, but what he said made a lot of sense. It seemed like something Freddy would’ve suggested to do.

“We’ll count up at the hourly recharge. If we’re makin’ no ground by then, then we shove off through the vent, aye?”

“Aye-aye.”

The two then somewhat reluctantly walked away from the vent. Foxy just as much as Gregory, but he wasn’t about to burn a bridge with an animatronic. Not when so many in the Pizzaplex were hostile. He was somewhat surprised that she hadn’t followed them up.

The reason why she hadn’t became apparent as soon as they walked through the doorway and up to the stairs.

Beelora was only about halfway up the stairs. Her feet in the track, but her bent over with her hands on the railing, slowly walking herself hand over hand to slide herself up the track. She heard them approaching and snapped her head up to see them, freezing up.

“Oh, I am… Mm…” She slid her hands together quietly. “…The track mechanism that helps me get up the stairs doesn’t seem to be on.”

“I’ll help ya,” Foxy said.

He really hoped this wouldn’t give her the wrong idea, but from her buzzing and wing fluttering he was almost certain it did.

So, Foxy and Gregory went along with the plan. Gregory relayed the plan to Freddy while Foxy had Beelora distracted, hoping that he would push back against it and then they wouldn’t have to feel guilty in splitting immediately. Unfortunately for him, Freddy jumped at the idea even more readily than Foxy did. He certainly sounded worried, a little distressed that Gregory wasn’t coming immediately, but agreed with Foxy’s way of thinking.

Though it wasn’t too long until Foxy was somewhat regretting this decision. He stood by it morally and that’s why he didn’t give up, but there really was no progress whatsoever. It was only nearing the hourly recharge when they finally got their first Honeycomb Coin. It shined and felt like real gold, but a tap and scratch of Foxy’s hook betrayed that it wasn’t. Though it was a better-quality token than he was anticipating.

“Alright, Lass. What can we get with this?” Foxy had asked sarcastically. Holding it out between his fingers like it was some big prize even though he expected a swift nothing.

“Well… you are only nine coins away from an icy cold can of Fizzy Faz Gold. Or nineteen away from a brand-new Freddy Fazbear and Friends mini figure!” Beelora encouraged. Less swift but equally nothing.

“On the bright side, I think I’ve got enough tickets for another coin,” Gregory said. Dryly, just as sarcastically as Foxy had.

Before Foxy could really start to mope after that, the hourly recharge kicked in and the power went out in the Hive Arcade. He quickly scooped Gregory in close and kept a hand on his shoulder, even as his eyes quickly adjusted to the change of lighting.

There was a purple-pink glow underlining Beelora’s blackened eyes, but other than that the room was incredibly dark, and the sounds of humming died down to only a distant groaning.

“Oh dear. It looks like it’s time for the hourly recharge. Looks like we have a few minutes before the games can continue,” Beelora remarked.

“Aye… We’ll be fine iff’n ya need to go recharge,” Foxy said. That could buy him a moment to get the vent open in case he had to bolt after breaking the news that they couldn’t stick around any longer.

“No need. I’m always getting a top off,” the bee chirped. She bent a leg up and tapped a finger on the bottom of her foot.

“Ah, now that’s a lucky break,” Foxy remarked. Seamlessly covering up his disappointment. “Explains why there’s no recharge station in here.” He gave Gregory a gentle nudge on the back. “Got any ideas on how to pass the time, Lad?”

“Huh?” Gregory asked in confusion.

“Ya know, ideas on what we can do while the lights be out.”

“…Oh! Uh, yeah, umm… Hey, Beelora, can you show me the prizes and stuff? Since we can’t do anything else.”

“I would be happy to! If Foxy would be so kind as to help me back up the stairs again?” Beelora requested coyly. The back of her hand brushing up her cheek.

Considering that Beelora had peeled back her efforts to flirt dramatically after he mentioned his first mate, Foxy decided to play along and give her this flimsy thrill. Apparently, she didn’t get out much- or that was the impression he got from how she giggled and buzzed when he ‘escorted’ her up the stairs.

After that, she slid over to the prize counter and retrieved a battery-operated hive shaped light and turned it on before beginning to show off the rest of the prizes to Gregory. She was too distracted to notice Foxy shuffling off.

He made it to the vent where the Lil Music Man was still waiting on the other side. It had gone quiet but riled up and began to emit music again once Foxy approached. Until he held a finger to his mouth, to which the little bot quieted down somewhat.

Foxy crouched down and began to pry off the vent. Carefully, as quietly as he could, but as quickly as he could as well. Knowing that if Beelora caught him there was a chance this could all go rapidly downhill. He heard a vacuuming noise edging closer and hastily worked even when a UFO bumped into the back of his foot. It soon scooted around him, trying to squeeze between him and the vent, its head craned up to look at him.

“Bzzzz, Mama!” the Babee unexpected called. It continued to run itself into Foxy’s leg and poked at him with its stubby arm. “Mama! Mama!”

There was the telltale sliding sound of Beelora riding along her track. Hearing this, Foxy gave one sharp yank and managed to pull the vent open with a clatter. The cover partially falling on the Babee, who let out a louder buzz and quickly drove itself out from under him. It then steered itself towards Beelora who slid up to and stopped right outside the turned machines, circling her feet as she tried to look for what Foxy was doing from her track.

“What are you doing?” Beelora asked in confusion. Not with suspicion but more with concern. Likely afraid that he was breaking into something.

“Err…” Foxy wasn’t sure how to excuse the vent cover now in his hand and hook. He looked towards the Lil Music Man only to see that he had retreated into the vent, ditching him. “…It’s like this, Lass-.”

“Hey, you found a way out! Cool!” Gregory called. Feigning innocence even as he sprinted over with the glowing hive, around the machines, and right up to Foxy’s side before setting down the hive and ducking into the vent. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

“Wait, where are you going?” Beelora asked startled. Her wings fidgeting as she leaned forward, hands out to her sides to balance herself. “No, wait! Don’t go in there! That can’t be safe.”

“Desperate times call for risky moves, Lass. Er somethin’ like that,” Foxy muttered. He propped the vent cover against the wall. “We’ll halfta find another way to pay ye back. Don’t worry, I’m good fer it! I just, err, would rather not get caught by security. ‘Specially not them bots they got on stage. Save old Freddybear, the rest of ‘em look mighty fierce,” Foxy said with a friendly- nervous- chuckle.

“I suppose you haven’t been to the salon- but wait! I, oh…” Beelora fidgeted in place. Looking down at the track and then after Foxy, becoming restless. “There’s no need to get that desperate. How about… I know! How about a major discount? Fifty Honeycomb Coins and I will open the front door for you. Surely you can collect that many coins before morning. You already have two, if we count your tickets being exchanged.”

But Foxy caught something in that comment. He was shaking his head and about to give a nonchalant dismiss when he noticed it, head snapping up to her and staring.

“What’s wrong?” Beelora asked.

“Ya locked the door. Didn’t ya, Lass?”

“What?” She leaned back startled.

“Fifty coins and you’ll open the door?”

“I only meant- I still meant with a VIBee pass, of course. I could change the exchange rates. A discount, like I said.”

Foxy didn’t buy it. He gave a hum expressing as much and narrowed his eye at her. Beelora stared back for a long moment before raising a hand to her mouth.

“Well, I…  The truth is that I did… technically shut the door, but I wasn’t intended to lock you in here. I truly thought you were VIBees and that maybe you would stay a while. All the games for yourself, and they still are. The whole Hive is your playground,” Beelora tempted, spreading her arms out to the many machines. “Won’t you stay a little longer? Please?”

Taking pity on her, as he was unsure if she was being truthful or not, Foxy tried to let her down easy. “You know we ain’t supposed to be in here. If we get caught here, there’s gonna be a lot worse than a trespassin’, and there’s already been some sorta madness going on around here with the power dying and the DJ losin’ his head. This is fer the best.”

“I… I suppose you are right,” Beelora quietly agreed. “…Will you come back someday?”

“Will ya shut the door on us if we do?”

“I promise I will not.”

“Then we will, and we’ll repay ye in full,” Foxy promised as well. “Ya take care, Lass.”

“You too, Foxy the Pirate…” Beelora said quietly. Her shoulders slouching and her head falling sorrowfully at his resolve.

He felt remorseful but that resolve was strong enough to have him continue into the vent. He would pay her back. Perhaps he could even speak to Freddy about getting his friends to come keep her company. For now, he knew he was making the right decision. After all of this the best thing he could do was get Gregory to safety, pack up his crew, and take his leave.

Lil Music Man led the way through the vents with Gregory close behind. He used his watch to somewhat light the way, even once the power kicked back on and the occasional emergency light helped him see his way through. Foxy was close behind him.

It was a shame this night had gone so south so quickly. Foxy really was having a good time even with the short time they had, and Freddy clearly needed to loosen up. Yet it was looking like he wasn’t even going to be able to stick around long enough to figure out what was up. As much as he wanted to tempt fate, this was a wake-up call yet again. It wasn’t that he brought the others- without them he would probably still be stuck in the bathroom, or crawling through this same vent the other way- it was just the Pizzaplex.

With a regretful sigh, Foxy ran through how he was going to break the news to Freddy.

…

Thumping and bumping echoed through the vent as something raced through.

Coming from directly behind Foxy.

He just managed to squeeze himself in the vent enough to turn back and see what was rushing up on him. His hook bared in preparation to defend himself.

He came face to face with Beelora herself as she hastily crawled up to him, stopping only when he turned to face her. Her hands turned in, her wings folded back to squeeze through the shaft, and her legs somewhat turned to help propel herself through the vent after him.

In a split second she had become one of the scariest things he had ever seen in a vent.

“I just had a bee-rilliant idea,” Beelora said. She pushed herself up on her hands until her bun bumped the ceiling. “Forget the VIBee passes. How about- why don’t you stay a little longer and play, and then I will just open the door when you’re done? You said you were afraid that security would come, but the door is still shut. I can keep them out. So, you can come back and play a little longer and it will be safe.”

The fact that Beelora had reeled back into a cheerful tone despite their previous conversation plus a generous step back in the conversation, along with her sudden arrival in the vent, gave Foxy a foreboding feeling.

“Lass, ya know we can’t do that. Like I said, we can’t be in there,” Foxy replied. His voice gentle, his gaze wide and suspicious.

“But who gets that say? I’m the one in charge of the Hive. Please, come back.”

“Look here, Lass-.”

“Please.”

Foxy thought Beelora’s eyes were big black orbs staring straight through him. Alien eyes not just in design but in their uncanniness. That was, until that moment when they opened. When he realized the darkness was merely her eyelids and reveal alit mauve eyes underneath. Almost human in size but glowing eerily. Eyes wide and pupils shrunk, looking almost as alarmed as he did.

“Please come back. I can give you whatever you want. I can change the payout rates. I can make sure you win,” Beelora begged. “A few hours. A few minutes. A few seconds more. Come back, please.”

He had a hunch she wasn’t going to let them go so easily. Reasoning with her wasn’t going to work. There was only one way to pull his foot from the snare.

“Gregory, now!”

And though he didn’t clarify what he wanted him to do, that tone alone screamed ‘RUN’ and Gregory took off down the vent as fast as he could crawl. Foxy was quick to scramble after him.

“No, wait! Come back!” Beelora called.

She crawled after him and caught up within seconds, grabbing ahold of the back of his hoodie and tugging. He rolled over and twisted it free, shoving her back with a foot, to which she gave a startled squeak. She backed away and he wildly kicked his legs to make sure she stayed back. It lasted only as long as him turning over and hastily crawling on, and then she was following him closely again. Pleading for him to come back, apologizing, offering goods and gold and grabbing for him again.

Gregory charged ahead in the vent after Lil Music Man when suddenly the small animatronic all but disappeared.

“What?!” Gregory called.

That was, until he rushed up on what looked to be the end of the vent and found that it abruptly dropped. His eyes widening as he caught sight of Lil Music Man climbing down the side of the vertical vent, suction cup feet keeping him stuck to the side.

Gregory wasn’t sure how far of a drop that was, but it was too far for him to drop down. He turned back and called, “Foxy, problem!”

Foxy caught up to him quickly before hastily maneuvering around him, nearly squishing the boy against the edge of the vent in the process. It was after they switched positions that Gregory caught sight of Beelora coming up. She was a little more hesitant to get close, but as Foxy started putting his feet down the vent she hastily crawled up.

“No, wait! Come back!” she cried. Her voice cracking as she reached out for Gregory.

Gregory lurched back, hitting his head on the vent and feeling Beelora’s fingers graze his shirt. In a split second afterwards, an arm looped around and yanked him back and down the vertical shaft. Gregory cried out in shock, being held above Foxy who slid himself right down the chute and landed on his feet with a resounding clatter. He all but caught Gregory and pushed him into the vent in front of him.

“Keep movin’!” Foxy instructed. Though he was almost certain that this was the end of the chase he didn’t want to risk slowing down.

Which turned out to be the right idea when they were halfway down the next shaft and heard a resounding thud from behind them. Gregory looked back and saw nothing but Foxy, Foxy looked back and saw Beelora’s twisted up body at the bottom of the shaft.

“Bloody ‘ell, Lass! Ya alright?!” Foxy called, despite the situation.

“I’m- I’m fine. I’m fine,” Beelora forced out. Her voice labored in strain as she unfurled herself back into the position to crawl after them.

“Good,” Foxy affirmed. He then promptly turned and took off after Gregory who had already started to leave him. Sure enough, Beelora’s now slowed crawling continued behind them, but she was picking up speed quickly.

Gregory finally saw the literally light at the end of the tunnel and crawled as fast as he could to it. Lil Music Man fell out of the end of the vent first and was caught by Charlie. Gregory called for Freddy and flung himself out without hesitation and was caught by the bear.

“Gregory!” Freddy cried with joy and relief. Gregory anticipated getting set down, but instead he was pulled into a tight- but not painful- embrace. His legs still dangling off the floor. “Gregory, I am so sorry. I should not have left you alone!”

“You- omph, Freddy- I’m okay, I’m okay!” Gregory insisted. Freddy loosened his grip a little, but he still did not release him, holding him in his arms. “…I missed you too,” he admitted, resting his head against his shoulder.

“I missed you very much! It is one thing when you are visiting friends or it is during daylight hours, but when I cannot reach you… it frightens me,” Freddy solemnly admitted.

Any further sentimental moment was cut off by a call from the vent.

“Freddy! Turn around and back up to the vent!”

“What?” Charlie asked in confusion.

Freddy didn’t question it and instead did as he was told. A moment later Foxy came headfirst out of the vent, catching his hand and hook on Freddy’s shoulders and using that leverage to grab himself and land feet first on the floor.

“Shut the vent! Quick!” Gregory called.

There wasn’t a chance to do that. There was barely a chance for Foxy to step aside before Beelora came spilling out after him. She tried to stop herself and ended up grabbing Foxy’s hood, yanking him back and onto the floor after she met it head over heels. Just barely managing to get her arm underneath her head to shield her face from cracking into the tile floor.

“Beelora!” Freddy gasped in surprise. Gregory pulled at his stomach hatch and he willingly opened it and let him inside, closing it securely, and then turned back to Beelora and Foxy. “Are you alright?!”

Beelora made a confused garbled noise as she pushed her upper half up from the floor. In the process releasing Foxy’s hoodie and allowing him to scoot to the side of the tight closet. Beelora didn’t notice, she was too busy looking up to Freddy in surprise with eyes open wide and glowing, pupils pulsing and darting around as she quickly took in the scene around her. She almost looked frightened.

She was harmless, Foxy realized. He had gotten spooked by nothing. That was enough to deflate him the rest of the way.

It was then that she seemed to almost come to her senses. She went rigid in place before finally closing her eyes, returning them to their previous alien look. Though in this light Foxy noticed he could faintly see her eyes through the black lids, perhaps explaining how she could still see. Though in his staring her head turned to look up at him and he quickly looked away.

“There be more adventure than I signed up for,” Foxy remarked nonchalantly. He pushed himself up from the floor and was offered Freddy’s hand, which he accepted and was pulled to his feet.

“I guess you’re not coming back now…” Beelora murmured sadly.

Foxy gave an awkward and noncommittal noise and shrug. Everyone in that room recognized a no when they saw one. Beelora slouched into her lap.

“Err, uh, where’s Mari?” he simply asked.

“Waiting at the Hive Arcade entrance with Mike,” Freddy answered.

“Lemme go tell him we’re out,” Foxy said. He didn’t direly need to, no, but he direly wanted to get out of this room. He started to hurry out before stopping at the doorway and spinning around. “Wait, where’s Gregory?”

Freddy knocked on his chest. Gregory knocked back.

“Ah. Keep him in there,” Foxy said. He then turned and headed out through the bathroom, opening the door and seeing a massive face staring back in.

Foxy leapt back with a yelp and let the door close. He stared at it suspiciously, hook lifted, and posture guarded.

“He’s okay! He’s back to his senses,” Charlie called from the closet door.

Foxy dared to edge forwards and push the door open with his foot. This time he didn’t see DJ Music Man until he started to lean out and caught sight of him standing behind the door. He peered up at him warily, to which the DJ gave a wave back.

“Ya really lost yer head back there,” Foxy remarked. DJ Music Man nodded apologetically. “Eh, no hard feelings. Ya had to watch me dance.” He let the door shut and headed off.

As soon as he had left the closet, Beelora dropped her face into her hands. She sat there slumped over, looking like she could start crying at any moment, and that was when Freddy noticed her left wing cocked upwards at a weird angle.

“Beelora, your wing…” he said gently. He then noticed movement above and shot his hand out to catch the Babee that suddenly fell out of the vent above her. He caught its fuzzy round body easily in his hand, its UFO base lost back in the vent drop. It buzzed, nearly vibrated in his hand, and he awkwardly switched it to his left hand while offering his right to Beelora. “We should take you to Parts and Service.”

“Is it that-? Oh.” Beelora finally looked back over her shoulder and caught sight of her wing. She reached back and pushed it down with an uncomfortably loud snap, one loud enough to get a gasp out of Freddy, but she seemed unaffected by the motion. Instead testing her wing and when it moved, albeit a little fidgety, she turned away from it. “No, I need to return to the Hive Arcade… I… can’t climb back up.”

“I insist that you do not!” Freddy insisted.

“I- I will need some help walking where there isn’t carpet, so I won’t slip…” Beelora said quietly. Only to then perk a little and look up at the bear. “Unless… Freddy, will you… carry me?” she asked. A buzz in her chest. The purple hue peeking from the bottom of her eyelids reflecting off her upper cheeks and glittery freckles like a blush.

Freddy’s face fell. “I cannot. I am with child.”

Even without a change in expression, he could tell that she was disappointed. But just then he had an idea.

“But there may be someone who can!”

Foxy made his way over to the Hive Arcade door and found Mike and Marionette sitting on the stairs just outside the VIP section, the ones that led to the staircase leading up. At least, Mike was sitting there. Marionette was laying across the top step with his head resting in Mike’s lap, one arm across his chest and the other up above his head. A rather dramatic posture, but that’s all Foxy assumed it was as he walked up. Mike noticed him and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Ahoy.”

“Boy, am I glad to see you,” Mike replied. Marionette turned his head in Foxy’s direction and gave him a lazy wave. “Gregory’s with Freddy, right?” Mike guessed.

“In Freddy, where he won’t get into mischief. Ya wouldn’t believe where we’ve been. Nothing but a sea of slot machines as far as the eye can see. Had a run-in with the Lass runnin’ the place. She followed us down a vent tryin’ to get us to go back and play more, and now she’s sittin’ in the bathroom over with Freddy. Lost all our tokens, all we got left is this piece o’ junk.” Foxy pulled out the Honeycomb Coin. “Which I’m keepin’ ‘cause it took me half an hour to get it.”

“Sounds like hell,” Mike sympathized. “What’s the deal with the Hive Attendant? Was she like Music Man or…?”

“Nah, she’s just lonely. I sorta feel sorry fer her,” Foxy admitted. He gave a small sigh and thrust his hand and hook into his hoodie pouch. He looked around at the arcade. “Where’s Monty an’ Moon?”

“DJ threw them out and then Nat hauled them off.”

“Good.”

“Y-You should invi-vite her to stay. Th-The Hiiive At-t-ttendant,” Marionette interjected. Both Mike and Foxy looked down at him in surprise, though for different reasons.

“Mari, yer voice! What happened?!” Foxy asked, quickly hustling up to the stairs, and up the stairs, to look down at him.

“D-Did you hearrr the P-Pop g-g-g- the music?” Marionette asked.

“Aye?”

“That. I-I was overloaded,” the Puppet said with a lopsided smile.

“Blimey.”

“W-Why not inviiite her t-to visit with us-s?” he offered again. He didn’t go into the clarification- he couldn’t do so easily right now- but Foxy’s wording had made it clear that she wasn’t exactly a threat.

“We’re not leaving?” Mike asked in disbelief. A question and sentiment that Foxy shared.

“Not yet. Later.”

Normally Mike wouldn’t question Marionette’s judgement this hard but the nonchalant floatiness to his suggestion made him wonder if Marionette was perhaps a little too tired to consider the elephant in the room.

“What about Vanny?” he asked a little lower.

“B-Because of Van-nny,” Marionette replied. “She coo-ould show up at any tiiime, and I want t-to be herrre when that-t happens. In case she was tryiiing to sc-carrrre us off.”

That was a point, but…

“This is risky,” Mike reminded.

“Th-This is downrrri-ight idiotic, but tha-at’s never stopped-d us beforrre,” Marionette playfully batted back. He looked up at Mike with that goofy smile before it softened. “Sh-She knows me… Shhhe may be some-someone whom I o-overlooked.”

“There somethin’ I’m missing?” Foxy asked.

“We’ve got a hunch that Vanny’s either related to someone involved at the old Freddy’s or she’s possessed by a victim from the dark ages,” Mike explained.

“We’re standin’ in a two-story arcade inside o’ Freddy Fazbear’s giant supermall. These be the dark ages,” Foxy flatly corrected.

Any further conversation was cut off by the heavy thumps of DJ Music Man crossing the arcade. He wasn’t alone either. Charlie and Freddy were leading the way, with Charlie now carrying the Babee and Gregory still in Freddy, while the DJ carried Beelora in front of him, cupped carefully in two hands. Seeing her again reminded Foxy of Marionette’s suggestion, especially since the window for leaving the door open was slowly closing in.

She might’ve given them some problems but compared to many of the real threats they had seen, Beelora wasn’t one of them. She was desperate and needy, not malicious. It would be cruel to offer helping hands to those with a history of downright rancid behavior and not her, regardless of how awkward it was going to be to hang out with her after all that.

He made up his mind. As DJ Music Man came up towards the door, preparing to set Beelora down near it, Foxy spoke up.

“How’s about you stay out here with us fer a while, Lass? We don’t have more than a couple’a hours, but it’s better than getting cooped up back in there,” Foxy offered.

Beelora, who was tentatively stepping down from the DJ’s hands, snapped her head up to look at him. That alone giving off her surprised. She began buzzing, her wings fidgeting, before all of it quickly deflated.

“Thank you… but I can’t.”

“Says who? Him?” Foxy nodded his head to Freddy, which cued him to step in.

“Beelora, we would be happy to have you with us tonight! If tonight is continuing…?” Freddy looked back to Foxy questioningly.

“Aye.”

“Then we would!” Freddy perked up significantly after that as well. “And it is my say. My face is above the door, my name is on the sign, and I want you to have fun with us tonight.”

“Freddy…” Gregory gave a quiet warning whisper inside of the bear.

“I insist,” the bear warmly offered, heeding Gregory no mind.

Beelora seemed equally surprised by this. She blankly stared at Freddy for a moment before the buzzing returned.

“Then… Then I accept! I would love to,” she agreed. Though she still seemed equally uncertain, both from her hesitant tone and the way her hands tightened and tucked together.

She wasn’t the only one who was, but she was the least of what Foxy was concerned about. Something about agreeing to stick around longer left him feeling a little wary, regardless of his disappointment in having to leave early. He trusted Marionette’s judgement, but he equally had a gut feeling that they could be leaving themselves open to another attack.

Though then again, maybe there was still a chance to salvage the night. Packing up and shipping off with their tails between their legs certainly wasn’t going to do that, and they already managed to dodge one obstacle.

But maybe that’s what Vanny wanted. Maybe this whole stunt was a way to drive them out and give her a clear pathway to waltz right up to Gregory. If there was one thing he agreed with his brother on wholeheartedly: he wanted to be here if she showed back up.

He would be happy to give her a taste of the classic Freddy’s experience.

Chapter End Notes

We’re not quite done with Monty and Moon yet… but that’s for another day. I hope you enjoyed!

Chapter 67

Chapter Summary

Monty and Moon's fight spills over and accusations are thrown, with both having their own ways of coping after the fact... Meanwhile, Foxy finally gets to the bottom of what's going on with Freddy.

There was an eerie silence as Natalie walked Monty and Moon out of the West Arcade. Even though the two were spaced apart, she could somehow feel the tension between them like static rolling on her arms. She was probably the only thing keeping them from going off at each other again. Smitty and Buddy certainly weren’t, continuing to wheel beside and behind her innocently, unaware of that ominous pressure in the air.

They only got a few steps into the atrium when Monty suddenly turned towards Moon.

“Hey, hey-,” Natalie started to interject. She went completely ignored.

“Ah know what yer up to,” he hissed, interrupting the blond’s plea.

Moon’s red pupils rolled to Monty. His face as static as ever, but the motion giving off disrespect and disinterest.

“Ya know, ever since that kid showed up, weird stuff’s been going on. We’ve been gettin’ unexpected blackouts and funky issues with all the hardware, and accidents. A whole lotta serious accidents started happenin’ since that night that kid came up in here,” Monty said suspiciously. Though his gaze was locked firmly on Moon. Those red eyes staring right over the top of his shades and locking with Moon’s own.

Moon responded by turning to Monty and lazily planning his hands on his hips. “And what on earth could you be getting at, hmm?”

“I’m talkin’ about Chica,” the gator grumbled. He broke his gaze to look towards Natalie, to make it clear that he was telling her as well. “How’d Chica get in that trash compactor? She ain’t dumb enough to go crawling around in there where there was open trash and leftover pizza halfa room away. Then the compactor just up and turns on all of a sudden. Even though the button’s ‘bout, what, five feet away from the door? Behind her. No, we all know that ain’t what happened. That was no accident. I think someone pushed her in.”

“Tch! Are you suggesssting a child pushed Chica into the trash compactor?” Moon asked incredulously.

“Naw…” Monty stepped forward and jabbed a claw into his chest. “I’m suggestin’ you did!"

Moon flinched back in surprise, not expecting the accusation. Natalie’s eyes popped open at it, but her mouth stayed shut.

“Are you insane?” Moon threw back.

“It allll lines up. Chica’s been on that kid’s tail since he’s been in here, yer the one built to wrangle kids, and then one night somethin’ pushes Chica into that compactor and gets back fast enough to press the button before she gets out. That’s you. Yer that fast.”

“That is ridiculous!”

“And I know why ya did it too. Not because of that kid, but because of Freddy,” Monty growled. “Ya’ll hate how the Pizzaplex pushes those two together and ya couldn’t stand that she’s up on stage with him and yer stuck in some little daycare-.”

“That is insane!”

“And ya might have Freddy fooled, but here I noticed that ya didn’t seem shocked or all that concerned when Chica got broken up. But you were there, weren’t cha? ‘Course Freddy would be down there if our girl got crushed, but why were you?”

Moon was so infuriated, so offended by the mere suggestion that he lost his tongue and lost his mind and suddenly it all came out.

“Where’s Bonnie?!”

Monty recoiled at the question Moon shoved into his face, along with his own face as he bowed up on the gator. “Wha-?”

“You’re going to stand here and point fingers at me, then I’ll point them right back! Where’s Bonnie?!” Moon repeated. He smacked the gator’s already withdrawn hand aside and poked him roughly in the sternum. “We all know, we ALL KNOW, where Bonnie was when he went ‘missing’! In Gator Golf, hmm? How odd for him to wind up there. And odder still that YOU didn’t see him, as you said. And impossibly odd that you then REPLACED him so seamlessly!”

“That wasn’t my fault! They needed a bassist, and they chose me!” Monty defended. He shirked back from the jester in a way he hadn’t all throughout their fight and hid his wild eyes behind the safety of his sunglasses. Those sunglasses.

“You loved it! You LOVED sucking up all that limelight on stage, Monty! You LOVE filling in his role! And you LOVE wearing his shades!”

“Oh yeah?! Well, ya’ll ‘loved’ yer technician! Where the hell is he?!”

Moon shrunk at that. “What…?” His voice was impossibly quiet.

“You heard me! How funny izzit that this tech boy is all cuddly with the sun and you hate him and then he suddenly ups and disappears. Leaves- ya’ll know none of them employees who ‘leave’ really leave, so spill! Where’d ya hide the body?!”

“SHUT UP!”

Moon lunged at Monty and nearly had his hands on him when Natalie suddenly threw herself between them. Monty threw his hands down out of reflex while Moon clenched his own and leaned right back.

“That’s enough, you two! You’re just trying to rile each other up so you have another excuse to fight! Well, knock it off! Neither of you are going down to Parts and Service tonight! And if you are, so help me, I’m going to have Mr. Wight do the repairs!” she threatened. She looked between the two as though challenging them and somehow, unbelievably, she must’ve been scary enough that they decided not to risk it.

That or scared of Parts and Service. That could’ve worked too.

After a moment of silence, she took a deep breath. “Okay, now here’s what we’re going to do. I am going to personally walk both of you to wherever you’re going and you’re going to cool off. Then you can go do whatever, but if I catch you to pulling this again, I’m going to get Roxy out here and she’s going to help me figure out team building exercises. So, unless you two want to be spending a lot of time together, I suggest you stay away. Got it?”

Monty muttered an agreement and adjusted his glasses. Moon gave a ‘tch’ and turned away with his arms dropping to his sides.

“Okay then. Let’s go.”

Because it was closer, Natalie opted to go to the daycare first. Largely because she assumed that Moon would cool down the second he stepped into the light and slid down the slide. Though she felt more comfortable with him than Monty, specifically because of what they knew about each other, she thought it would be safest to get the two apart as fast as possible.

Monty stopped by the fountain as Natalie walked Moon into the daycare. He quickly shifted back to Sunny once he stepped through the doors, though she noted that he was unusually quiet through the whole process. He wasn’t skipping or prancing either, he just had the same tense walk that Moon had- which was already a far cry from his usual slink. She followed him to the slide.

“Are you okay?” she asked gently.

“I’m fine,” he replied tensely. Moon’s voice from Sun’s body, and he then dropped himself headfirst down the slide. He popped out in the ball pit and she watched him climb out and get towed by his wire up to the balcony before turning and heading out.

The jester stormed through the balcony door and hopped over the railing, landing into the room with a deft thump. The suddenness caught Jake off-guard, and he looked up from control panel- currently sitting cross legged on a rectangular foam pillow off to the side.

“That was quick,” he remarked. It took him only a second to notice the rigidness in the jester’s movement, his hands clenched tight at his sides as he walked over to the tunnel that led into their hideaway. “Did something happen?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Andrew said lowly. He then threw himself into the tube just as easily as the slide and pattered off.

If everything else had been red flags, that lone comment was a billboard announcing that something bad had happened. Something serious enough to knock Andrew loose from both of his alter-egos.

Jake sat there a moment considering whether to give him his space or follow him, and finally he sat his control panel aside and headed over to the tube.

He climbed through the tube to find Sunny laying out on his belly on the pillows. His legs bent up behind him, feet crossed, but more in stress than relaxation. He watched as Sunny pinched a Freddy hand puppet out of the box and slipped it on his hand. Manipulating the little Freddy’s arms with his fingers, making them waggle and pat together. Jake came over and sat on the blankets beside him.

“So, what happened?” Jake asked again.

“Monty,” Andrew grumbled.

“Oh…”

Well, that explained it.

Jake sat there for a second. Taking the moment to size up the other and make sure there weren’t any injuries that he was trying to ignore. It didn’t look like it, so he assumed it was less of an altercation and more something Monty said, unaware that it was a little of both.

He scooted closer and reached over the other to pluck the Monty puppet from the box and slipped it on his own hand. Andrew side glanced towards him as he held it out beside him.

“Mah name is Monty Gator and I’ve got a whole lotta issues, and sometimes ah do stuff ah don’t think through. But that don’t mean nothing’s wrong with you,” Jake mimicked.

Andrew gave a partially amused little ‘tch’ sound. Though there was a cynicism to it as well. He brought the Freddy puppet over to meet the Monty one and did a rather close interpretation of his voice.

“What do you mean ‘Moon pushed Chica into the trash compactor’?!”

Jake’s hand paused in surprise. “He said that?”

“He said that,” Andrew hissed. “And that’s not all he said.”

“Uh oh.”

“He said he believes I’m hiding Gregory here in the daycare. And that was after he took a swing at me,” Andrew grumbled.

“Oh no!”

“I would’ve handed his tail back to him on a silver platter if Freddy hadn’t pulled us apart,” he hissed with a little twitch.

“Andrew! I told you to stop engaging with him!”

“He was running after Gregory! What else was I supposed to do?!”

“…And that’s why he thinks you’re protecting him,” Jake deduced.

“Yes.” Andrew looked back down at the puppets again. Fiddling with puppet Freddy’s hands and making it wave at him. He rumbled despondently in his chest. “If he goes and tells that I was the one who shoved Chica, there will be problems.”

“But Freddy knows that’s not true. He’ll defend you,” Jake pointed out.

“Freddy’s defense only goes so far. The employees are out to get me. Monty will certainly be out to get me now.”

“Like the employees are going to listen to Monty. They don’t exactly like him either.”

Andrew gave an indecisive hum as he thought back to what else Monty had said. A creeping chill of panic crawled up his back at the thought of bringing up Monty’s second accusation. He couldn’t. He wouldn’t.

“So… what did you do?” Jake asked.

“I asked him what happened to Bonnie,” Andrew muttered.

Jake was struck silent for the second time that conversation.

“Ohhh…” He trailed off on that note for a moment, watching the other fiddle with the hand puppet. “…Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. He didn’t lay a scratch on me. Not this time.”

“No, I mean: are you okay?”

Andrew sat there for a second as though considering it, considering even the stuff that he hadn’t told Jake. Then he suddenly slumped down and planted his face into the pillow underneath him. Burying his head into it as he hooked arms underneath it and squished it tighter to his faceplate. That said all that it needed to.

Jake knew Andrew well enough that he had a hunch there was something he hadn’t said. He also knew well enough that pushing him was not going to work, especially with him this upset. He moved in and, when given no indication to stop, wrapped his arms around him in an assuring hug. He had to lean on his back to do so, but he knew he wouldn’t mind.

They stayed like that for a few minutes. Content to just stay together in their little corner of the daycare, hidden away where they couldn’t be reached, amongst the familiar comfort of pillows and blankets, and trinkets and toys collected over their time here. It made it easier to relax when he felt so wound up. Andrew could feel his points sliding further out as the tension let up.

“I danced with Freddy,” he murmured. The hoarseness had eased up in his voice.

“You did? How’d it go?”

“It was…” He thought back to it and felt a giddy buzz in his chest, interrupting himself with a little snicker. “…It was incredible! He tossed me up in the air like a pizza and, oh ho, I was SO sure he was going to miss me on the way down- but he didn’t!”

He was overcompensating, but Jake gladly played along. He wanted to hear all the juicy details, especially the ones that didn’t concern Monty.

“I wish I could’ve seen that! What else?”

“Then…! Well, then we got stuck in the bathroom for a while,” Sunny lamented.

“You did? Wink.”

Sunny flipped back his head with a dismissive scoff. “Foxy was there.”

“Wink, wink.”

 Sunny reached back and smacked a hand lazily over Jake’s mask. Not enough to push him away, but enough to instigate a swat away. Which devolved into a brief slap fight before ending with Jake flopping back onto the pillows and propping his legs up on Sunny’s back.

“So, what was going on with the bathroom?” Jake finally asked.

“So, it was like this-.”

To which Sunny lapsed into his story proper, more than willing to recite the while sordid affair. From the moment he ran off that dance floor to the moment he walked out of the West Arcade, and every sordid detail in between. Even the fight with Monty, even all the craziness that surrounded it. Like he was nostalgic for an event that happened only a little while ago, building it up as though telling a story to a group of wide-eyed toddlers.

Anything to keep his mouth racing and his mind quiet.

Forget Monty. He didn’t know anything.

He didn’t know anything.

…

These restraints were new. Clever, but Moon wasn’t going down without a fight. He kicked the scrawny technician trying to come at him directly in the chest and even at this poor angle knocked him right back into the wall of the repair capsule.

Panic erupted around them. Everyone just so shocked that the restraints didn’t magically stop him from lashing out. Yelling back and forth about what they were supposed to do now, if they could authorize a controlled shock. Moon had been shocked before, but he was too wound up to be pacified by a vague threat passed around by people outside of the repair module. They were prepared for him to be a problem, so that’s what he was going to give them.

They overrode the lockdown procedures and a couple of other men tried to step in and subdue him, to no avail. He continued to lash out in every direction. They sent a female technician in assuming he wouldn’t fight a lady, but a quick kick in her general direction made it clear that regardless of gender, age, or threats, Moon wasn’t going down without a fight.

He didn’t agree to this upgrade. He didn’t want it. He didn’t want them to touch him.

“What’s going on?!”

He caught a familiar voice past the others and for a moment he was alone in the repair capsule. The door shut behind them, but he could hear the conversation outside the windows as he took a moment to rest.

“I told you: I’m the only one who works on Sun and Moon. Especially Moon. End of story.”

It was the first time he ever sounded this upset.

“If the update was that important, then you should’ve called me first. I’m here until seven!”

There was more discussion before the door opened and someone walked in. Moon caught sight of a familiar face and turned his head away defiantly, trying to cover his embarrassment. Especially when the technician leaned down beside him- on his opposite side- as though trying to stoop down to his level. Patronize him, like Moon was expected to do to children once the daycare opened.

“I’m here, Moon. Don’t worry, I’m not going to do anything, and they’re not either,” the technician assured him. “We’re going to get Sun down here and then we’ll take it from there. How’s that?”

Hearing that Jake was being brought down both terrified and assured him. He didn’t want him being led around by these humans, but also it hurt being away from him. It made him feel entirely alone, vulnerable. Empty on the inside.

Moon didn’t answer but the technician didn’t seem surprised. He sat there a little while, patting his hands rhythmically on the side of the chair, and eventually tried some small talk.

“You would not believe the size of the scorpion I found in my kitchen last night. It was about this long; it had a stinger this big.”

Moon gave a dismayed side glance as the technician’s hands posed over his body, separated fingers showing what he deemed an insignificant length between them.

By the grace of something, Moon was able to withhold through the mindless chatter until a familiar yellow face appeared in the window. Jake waved at him on the other side of the glass, and he subconsciously leaned back towards him.

He vaguely noticed the technician talking to the others.

“Is this a mandatory update? Can we do this later?... I can bring him back myself, I just need to know if upper management’s going to let me… Alright! Let’s get you back home, okay?”

He could’ve lashed out the second the restraints came off, but he didn’t. Not just because he didn’t want to risk it either. He didn’t know why. Maybe out of exhaustion. Maybe out of some sort of reluctant appreciation not being withheld by his pride.

The technician took his arm to help him off the chair. Moon snapped his head towards the man with irritation, only to see the technician giving him a beaming smile and snapping his head right back away. He didn’t like the weirdly self-conscious and small feeling a smile like that made him feel. Weak, pitiful. He felt downright pathetic as he stepped out the chair and slipped out of the module behind the man, soon afterwards reuniting with Jake.

He should’ve been happy; he had gotten what he wanted.

Yet instead, he just felt weird.

---

The walk back to Monty’s green room was an awkwardly quiet one. The only exchanged conversation being when Natalie asked the gator whether he wanted to go to his room or Monty Golf. Monty chose his room and off they went. Once they arrived, he slinked inside and Natalie was able to catch a limited glimpse of how it looked. Largely because the lights were off, but she could make out at the least a cracked vanity mirror.

“Thanks fer the lift,” Monty muttered.

“Don’t mention it. Umm… Can I ask you something?”

“Yer gonna ask me ‘bout Bonnie. Well, forget it. Moon’s full of it,” the gator growled. Just barely holding back a snap he might’ve directed at anyone else.

“Actually, I was going to ask you about this missing technician I never heard of before.”

“…Oh… Yeah, ah can see why that got yer attention.” Monty dropped back onto his couch in the semi-darkness. It creaked under his weight but remained largely invisible, with Monty only still in view because of the light reflecting on his casing. “Whaddya wanna know?”

“Anything you know. I heard there were some employees that quit unexpectedly.”

“And that’s a whole lotta bull. I’ve heard them talkin’ when they don’t think I’m listenin’. That techie who was workin’ with Sun and Moon went missing. Nobody knows where he went. The higher ups say he quit, but nobody under then heard or seen a word of it.”

“That’s… extremely suspicious,” Natalie quietly agreed.

“And that ain’t the worst of it. Don’t go talkin’ ‘bout this or yer gonna get fired, but there was a big ol’ construction accident when this place was being built. Scaffold fell. Buncha people got hurt an’ one of the foremen disappeared. Didn’t even get to search for him before it was called off and said that he had been let go or quit or somethin’,” Monty explained lowly. He leaned forward as he added in, “It happened down under Roxy Raceway. Where you can hear all that noise.”

“Roxy Raceway?” Natalie asked in confusion.

“Yeah. Ah think they’re hidin’ somethin’ down there. Funny enough how that’s where the accident went down.”

Natalie was reeling from this rather upfront information from the last person she expected. “And you just heard this?”

“People think I’m stupid. They don’t watch what they say around me,” Monty explained.

“This is insane… Not that I don’t believe you, but Wight- Dad Wight- Wight said that people were leaving. And he’s an awful liar because he totally fumbled the ball trying to convince me that Bunnie Bowl wasn’t Bonnie Bowl.”

“A lotta people can look ya in the face and lie here. All they care about is what they get out of it,” Monty replied. He slid down his shades to look over the top at her. “Speaking of which, how’s about you do me a small favor for telling ya a story?”

Natalie quirked a brow. Monty didn’t elaborate. She crossed her arms, “You could’ve just asked me for something, you know. But okay, Mister Informant, what’s your price?”

“Ah need some passes,” he replied. He pushed his sunglasses back on. “They stopped givin’ me ones to hand out to the guests. I need as many as ya got.”

“Well, I don’t have any. Got any idea where I could ‘borrow’ some?”

“I like the way ya think. Don’t worry ‘bout the pass machine. I know they got some hidden at those check-in kiosks, I just can’t risk tryin’ to break in there. They’ll know it’s me.”

“I’ll take a look. You sit tight,” Natalie said.

As she left, Monty laid back on the couch and kicked his leg up on the back, turning himself enough to allow his tail to stick out beside it. He still felt hot and itchy after the fight with Moon, but his fans had finally kicked off. Sometimes just hearing his own sounds irritated him so this was the best time to get in a nap. He didn’t expect the blond back for a while.

If she pulled through, he was going to owe her big. It would be worth it though to get that bombshell redhead back.

It didn’t take long before he began to zone out.

…

Monty was roused out of his nap by voices outside of his trailer. Half-awake, he lazily moved his legs to the side and off the green directly in front of him, propping one up on the fake counter to the right of him. This was perhaps the worst place to take a nap, but beggars couldn’t be choosers when it came to the golf course. Especially when he wasn’t lucky enough to get some sort of luxury green room to snooze in.

It was better than the treehouse at least; too small to squeeze into and even then, it was just a flat wooden floor. At that point it would’ve been better to just sleep in the fake plants. Compared to either of those, at least the trailer was a little less degrading.

Monty was just about to fade back out and leave the others to their game when a voice suddenly cut through the trailer.

“Eh, what’s up, Croc?”

Monty slid open an eye and rolled it to the open door to see a familiar head sticking in the doorway. Ears cockeyed and sunglasses slid down to his nose to reveal pink-red eyes tilted with smugness. His mouth open in a playful grin.

Monty gave a low grumble of, “What do you want?”

“Me? I have no idea,” Bonnie replied sarcastically. He stucj his golf club through the doorway and poked Monty’s leg, the one still on the hole carpet. “You’re sleeping on the green.”

“Ya just noticed? Shoot around me.”

“Can’t you hold your foot up?”

“I could. I ain’t.”

“Ooookay,” Bonnie stretched out. He slowly pulled himself back out.

Monty huffed and readjusted himself. He was barely squeezing in here as it was. They were lucky he wasn’t blocking the door.

When all of a sudden, a golf ball flew in, pinged off something, struck him in the snout, and flew off somewhere. Monty’s eyes shot open. That was on purpose. With a budding bellow, he rolled over onto his knee and looked out the door- ready to yank that golf club out of Bonnie’s hands and thump him right between the ears with it.

Or he would’ve if it wasn’t Freddy posed like he had just shot the ball in and was currently staring aghast. Bonnie stood innocently by his side with a smug look- scratch that, Monty still wanted to thump him.

“Monty, I am so sorry!” Freddy gasped in apology. He quickly pulled the golf club up to his chest with eyes filled with remorse. “Are you alright?”

Monty might’ve shredded through Bonnie, but not Freddy. He was fresh. Still awkward and clumsy, and new. No amount of programming fixed the brain fog of waking up and being alive, just time. Monty could forgive that if only because he sympathized with him.

Monty himself hadn’t already been expected to walk around and learn the ropes when he woke up. He hadn’t even had his shell on yet.

“Nah, yer good. But don’t do it again. Ya watch before ya swing,” Monty corrected. He then readily turned to Bonnie, “Mouth closed.”

“Yes, Sir,” Bonnie saluted.

Monty finally got out of the trailer. It took a little effort, but he had done it a few times before and knew just the right way to twist and slide his body through that doorway.

“Where’s Chica an’ Roxy?” he asked. Specifically Roxanne, she was the one with the most braincells of the group.

“They are still over on hole one. Roxy has decided to get a hole in one on each hole and she… has been having a little difficulty,” Freddy admitted.

Good ol’ Roxanne still fighting programming itself to be the best as something she wasn’t even supposed to do. This fiercely competitive side of her was going to lead to a lot of unneeded do-overs.

“She’s gonna be here a while.”

“Well... Perhaps.”

“Roxy ain’t built to be hitting hole-in-ones. Good on her if she does, but she’s here to race. She’s built for speed, not fer slowin’ down to line up shots,” Monty explained.

He held out his hand. Freddy handed over the golf club. He held out his hand again to Bonnie, waited, then tapped his fingers impatiently. Bonnie rolled his eyes and handed over his golf ball.

“Never practiced a day in my life,” Monty remarked as he stepped into position. He dropped the golf ball and positioned it onto the mark with the club, then leveled out in preparation to swing. “And I never lose.”

He knocked the ball into the trailer, bonked it across the edges of the hole, and stepped aside to watch it roll in for a perfect hole-in-one. Monty wasn’t surprised and gave no cheer of victory, instead puffing up his chest- in theory- and turning back to the two.

“Golfing, racing, shooting lazers; we’re all built with that one trick,” Monty explained. He then waggled the golf club at Bonnie. “Except Gutter Ball here.”

“Ha ha ha ha. Funny,” Bonnie said humorlessly.

He then reached in to grab the ball out of the trailer before following suit and hitting it just as Monty had. It hit the edge a little too hard and went over into the trailer.

“Hold on. Do-over,” Bonnie requested. He hurriedly picked the ball back up and aligned it back at the beginning. Then he gave it a more careful whack.

The ball bounced around a bit before slowing to a roll and slowly, inch at a time, slowly rolled itself into the hole. Another hole-in-one.

“Ha!” Bonnie cheered in victory. He elbowed Freddy with an eager grin. “Not that tough.”

“It’s easier when ya got walls to bump off’a,” Monty replied.

Bonnie sent him a look which Monty snorted at. He handed Freddy back the golf club, offering the handle to him.

“Finish up, Fazbear. Sooner ya’ll get done with this hole, quicker ya’ll get out of here.”

“Aww, come on, Monty. You know I only come to see you,” Bonnie said with a coy little waggle of his fingers and a wink. “I dig the whole bumpkin thing.”

Monty gave an impatient huff at his antics. Bonnie only grinned, still as smug as ever.

Monty huffed, wheezed on the heat building up underneath his casing. The panic setting in as his fans struggled to fight back the fever pressing at his metal and pulsing in his head, a dull ache. He turned over on his belly and rested his head on the arm of the couch, but there was no escaping the feeling crawling inside of him. He could see the warnings popping up behind his eyes, garbled and glitched.

He dragged his claw down the couch and felt the fabric tear under his claws, releasing some of the tension but very little. He turned his head into the couch and was rewarded with his sunglasses pressing into his eye. No, not his sunglasses. Bonnie’s.

With a swing of his arm, Monty launched them halfway across the room behind him and continued to thrash and claw at the couch. Working out the heat pounding in his head and through his eyes and waiting for the fans to do their job. Then laying there with his mouth ajar feeling the heat rolling out over his tongue. The fit was over just as it had begun, leaving him in a distant fog. The edges of his vision still corroded.

He wasn’t sure how long he spaced out before he heard a knock on the window. He pushed himself up off the couch and onto his feet and made his way to the door before Natalie did. It opened automatically to reveal the blond in question, and she brandished four passes. They weren’t golf coupons either, they were meet and greet passes. He nearly snatched them out of her hand in disbelief.

“How’d you get these that fast?” he asked in shock.

“I stopped by the check in counter on my way out- the one over there that comes into Rockstar Row- and what do you know? They had a ton of them. I didn’t take all of them so they might not notice, and if anyone does, I’ll fess up to it,” Natalie said proudly.

“Ah really ‘ppreciate it,” Monty said thankfully. He looked down at the passes for a long moment, feeling tired and hazy, and then looked back up to her. “Ya know, yer too good fer this place.”

“Don’t say that. I’m not…” Natalie bit her lip as she considered her words. She exhaled and gave a much more adamantly, “You guys deserve better.”

“That’s real sweet of ya…” Monty trailed off. After a moment he began to stare off at the floor like Natalie wasn’t even standing there.

Realizing that he was zoning out again, she took the opportunity to try and lighten the mood.

“Then you can make it up to me by showing Louise a good time,” she offered with a smile.

“Don’t have to ask me twice,” Monty snorted.

“In fact…” Natalie held out her hand. “Give me one back. I’ll give it to her.”

He did and she slipped the pass into her pocket. Then she looked back up to Monty.

“I guess I’ll be moving on. I should probably start looking around for that kid,” she said.

“Keep a close eye on the daycare.”

“I always do,” she replied. This roused an amused rumble out of him, and she turned to leave. “See you later, Monty,” she called back with a wave and then walked off with Smitty and Buddy.

Monty didn’t reply but she could hear the squeak of his nod before he hid back into the darkness of his room again. He eyed the leftover passes in his hand before stashing them away where no visitors would be able to find them.

They meant more than just a visit; they were ticket to the only freedom he had. A taste of the outside world wrapped up in pretty dresses and batting its long lashes. He would hoard them as long as he could, those glimpses of something beyond the routine.

Because when he was looking at Louise, he couldn’t see Bonnie. He needed more of that.

He didn’t pick up the sunglasses until the Pizzaplex opened.

---

Somehow the rest of evening went without a hitch. Something that Freddy was quite relieved over. No signs of the dancing rabbit lady, no more blackout except for the hourly recharges, and he, Foxy, and Gregory had gotten plenty of time to explore the arcade.

But Freddy was a bear of his word and packed it in before it got too late. Gregory tried to work in a little more wiggle room, but Freddy wouldn’t budge and soon the two of them and Foxy were heading back to the green room while the others headed to the daycare. They got there unimpeded and Foxy stayed in the green room while Freddy walked Gregory into the back room. They were almost at the recharge station when Moon sidestepped out into their path.

“Jussst in time,” Moon remarked as he looked between the two before beckoning. “Come along, it’s time to get ready for bed.”

Gregory was slightly peeved that Moon was intending on treating him like a child- a far reach from Freddy who didn’t feel the need to ask him to do so like a little kid- but he didn’t put up a fight. Largely because after hearing Moon’s brawl with Monty earlier, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to test pushing his buttons. He wouldn’t go so far to say that he felt nervous around Moon, but he preferred patronizing Moon over angry Moon.

He gathered up his pajamas, lightning bolt decaled toothbrush, and Freddy branded bubblegum toothpaste and climbed into Freddy, who then carried him out to the nearest restrooms so he could change and brush his teeth.

A little while after they left, Foxy got bored and turned his attention to the only remaining person and headed into the back to see Moon. He found him trying to fix Gregory’s messy blankets into a somewhat neat pocket.

“Natalie letcha off the hook?” he asked.

“Of courssse. She knows I only do what is… necessary,” Moon remarked. He twisted his neck back and looked at Foxy with a tilted face. “Wrangling wild animals.”

“I saw it fer meself… Heh, saw ya wranglin’ in Freddy too,” Foxy said slyly. Moon straightened abruptly. Foxy didn’t know if it was out of surprise or offense, so he raised his hands. “Easy. I’m just yankin’ yer anchor.”

“Tch. I appreciate you keeping an eye out for him,” Moon replied sarcastically.

It was now that Foxy noticed that he had been carrying books under his opposite arm as he sat them down on the floor. He came over and crouched down beside him, lifting one up to look at the cover. It was a Freddy’s themed storybook titled ‘Roxy’s Big Spill’ and depicted Roxanne Wolf snapping on a pair of yellow rubber gloves and wearing a purple bandana standing over a racetrack covered in oil. Far behind her Freddy and Monty could be seen watching with comically dumbfounded looks.

“He likes Roxanne?” Foxy asked.

“He does. She’s very popular with the kids, and she hasn’t been very active in searching for him,” Moon explained.

Foxy gave a hum of understanding. He looked over the cover of the book before giving an amused little chuckle.

“They used to have these back at the old Freddy’s. My brother had a stack of ‘em. Our father used to bring ‘em home from work,” Foxy remarked. He hummed thoughtfully. “Wouldn’t take much to write one of these. Maybe it’s time I penned some ‘o my many adventures and had ‘em printed up all pretty, stuck ‘em in the Prize Corner and sell ‘em at a discount. ‘Er hand ‘em out to kids who I catch readin’ ‘em.”

“You should. It is important that children are encouraged to start reading young. Pity that many of my naptime nightshades are too young to read on their own, and they hardly listen to me,” Moon murmured out the end. “Your father worked at Freddy’s?”

“Not just that, he owned Freddy’s.”

“How very-.” Moon cut himself off abruptly. He tilted his head towards Foxy with his eye lights narrowing as though he was thinking. “Did you… Which Freddy’s did he own exactly?”

Foxy could see the gears turning in his head- he could practically hear them- and he knew this was the point where he was either going to blow it off or be bluntly honest.

“Yar, the same one ye went to.”

“Is that so?” Moon inquired. “Do you remember a naughty teenage boy in a Foxxxy mask who might’ve- oh, I don’t know. Picked on a few kids, gotten himself into trouble, perhaps hmm?”

“That depends…” Foxy dragged out. “Do ye remember that time I dumped that trash o’er yer head?”

“So that WAS you!” Moon shouted and shot up to his feet. Hands thrust down at his side, voice shooting up back into Sun’s range instead of Moon’s typical grovel. That might’ve explained the little points edging out of his shuddering faceplate. “I knew it! From that moment that clown was making all those weird comments, I knew something was up! You’ve got a LOT of nerve!” Moon hissed. Or perhaps he had fully turned into Sun now, looming over the pirate.

“Hey, take it easy! I might’ve been a little screw-up, but ye weren’t all sunshine and rainbows neither!” Foxy defended. He had to lean back on his haunches to get a little distance between them. “Matter o’ fact, I put that garrrbage can over yer head ‘cause ya slapped me brother in the face with a greasy slice of old pizza! And ya picked the cheese off first!”

“Oh ho ho, you were way worse than- did you say brother?” Moon pulled back. The gears were turning again, his ticking stilling and then picking up with realization. “...Was that Mari?” he squeaked.

“Mm-hmm.”

“But he couldn’t possibly remember-.”

“He does.”

Moon sunk further back into himself, to which Foxy gave a dismissive wave.

“But don’t go get twisted up ‘bout it. It’s all water under the bridge! Just don’t bring it up.”

“How very soothing,” the jester muttered. “And who exactly told him who I was, Charlie? Jake?”

“Coulda been either. Iff’n I be so bold, how’d ya end up in here? In that?” Foxy gestured up and down to his self.

Moon tsked but decided to let his question go. He crouched back down and continued fussing with Gregory’s things as he explained.

“Fazbear Entertainment came to reclaim what they owned in a warehouse Jake and I called home. They found us bound in one form, lying broken and forlorn, and planning to scrap us they brought us here. Far from freedom and the home we held dear. And down in the basement, in the dark and the gloom, we found the bodies of the Sun and the Moon. Our souls were sewn to the bodies two and our lives were born anew, and now here I am.”

“I see,” Foxy said. “There a reason ya said that in rhyme?”

“I’m getting back into character,” Moon dismissed.

“Jake from the old Freddy’s too?”

“He’s is not. Though Jake’s story is not mine to tell… They’re here.”

“Aye, I hear ‘em,” Foxy said. He stood back up as Freddy and Gregory came in once more. Gregory now in his pajamas and ready for bed.

Foxy walked back out while they continued their nightly ritual with Gregory. Which involved Freddy sitting in for one of the bedtime stories, playing off Moon as the inquisitive listener since they both knew Gregory wasn’t going to let himself seem that interested. While Foxy could only vaguely hear their voices through the wall, it was nice to hear. Very quaint, very assuring in a weird way. Like when he saw parents playing with their kids at the pizzeria.

In the meantime, he sat down on the couch and kicked his feet up on the table. Arms crossed, legs crossed, relaxing in the green room and reminiscing on a little of tonight’s events. It was weird to think that it felt so long when it was still so early. Or at least, earlier than his usual nighttime romps with Freddy.

Speaking of Freddy, it was about time he got to the bottom of what was going on. After some consideration, he deemed that they had enough good times to balance out the near disaster earlier and decided to go along with asking him about it.

It wasn’t too long before Freddy returned, leaving Moon to continue reading in the other room. He turned his attention to the pirate on his couch.

“Now then, would you like to play some Street Skate Superstar?” Freddy asked. Rubbing his hands together before gesturing one to the arcade machine.

“In a bit. First thing’s first: is there somethin’ ya want to talk about?” Foxy asked.

Freddy caught on quickly. He sighed a little, bringing his hands back together and rubbing them slowed, almost nervously.

“We don’t hafta,” Foxy offered.

“No, no! I… do want to. That is part of the reason I invited you here. Not for me to worry you with my problems but to perhaps get your… opinion on some of my thoughts,” Freddy explained. He came over and sat on the couch beside Foxy. Almost immediately slouching into himself, his hands resting on his knees, his ears drooping. “I do not think Gregory and Moon will hear us…”

“Nah, doubt it. Go ahead, Freddy. Floor’s yours,” Foxy offered.

Freddy made a noise like a deep breath along with mimicking the motions of doing so. He looked down at the bowling ball to the left of his foot for a moment, a decal of his own face staring back.

“Foxy…” he began quietly. “…Something is wrong.”

“With you or here?” Foxy asked.

“Me. There is something wrong with me,” Freddy clarified. He slouched down even more with a guilty look. “I am not entirely… happy. With how things are at the Pizzaplex.”

Foxy’s eye widened a little in surprise. It was such a simple comment that he shouldn’t have been shocked and yet hearing it felt so out-of-character. He slid his legs off the table and planted his feet back on the floor.

“Everything is going fine. Yes, Chica is still upset with me. I do not know how much she remembers of her accident, but she is still upset with me. She has lost her voice too… It is terrible, but she is here with us. They could have replaced her, but they did not, and I should be happy for that. I am also glad that Gregory is here with me now. I do not have to worry about when he eats or if he is taken care of, because I have been taking care of him to the best of my abilities. He has been eating more, he has clean clothes, and he has a place to sleep where he does not need to worry about being found… And yet still there is something wrong with me. I feel like there is something wrong.”

“How so?”

“I cannot explain it, but… it is like the weight of the world is pressing down on top of me. I am fighting to keep it up, but there is also this… emptiness inside. Like I am missing something, or that I want something, but I do not know what it is,” Freddy explained solemnly. “It is also becoming more apparent with Chica and Sun and Moon that there are some fundamental flaws at the Pizzaplex. Perhaps it was naïve of me, but I always thought of us as the stars of the show. That we were celebrities- that we were equals to the human staff at least… But I am beginning to notice that the way the employees treat us are not like the ways your employees treat you, Captain.”

“What do you mean?” Foxy asked quietly, uncharacteristically gently.

“They… I am sorry to say this, but I do not think they care about us as much as I originally thought they did. At least, they do not care whether we are comfortable or doing well. Their only concern is that we are able to perform. Elsewise they would have cared about Chica’s feelings instead of giving her a beak that could not open. I understand their way of thinking- if she cannot open her mouth then she cannot eat, and then she cannot risk getting hurt again- but it seems… cruel! Is that wrong?”

“That ain’t wrong.”

“And Monty. Monty borrowed some passes to hand out and they were very harsh with him, and then when he, erm, when he began to use some inappropriate language at a rather substantial volume, they became afraid that he was going to do something and discontinued meet and greets for the rest of the day. That seems awfully unfair. It feels like a punishment more than for his or their protection.”

Freddy trailed off for a long moment. Foxy reached out to give him a firm and assuring pat on the shoulder and it ended up encouraging Freddy to continue.

“They have also… corrected me a few times,” he admitted.

“What does that mean…?” Foxy asked.

“Corrected my behavior, I mean! I was not implying that they did anything else, like an, err, update of my… being,” Freddy awkwardly defended. He soon gave up on that and explained. “Recently there have been complaints that I have not be present for enough games of Fazer Blast or have greeted enough customers in my assigned area. Perhaps I have been distracted with everything that is going on. There was also an embarrassing incident a few days ago. I know I should not have, but I went off of schedule and visited Sun at the daycare. I distracted him from his work and overexcited the children, and all it succeeded in doing was disrupting the birthday parties taking place in the party rooms. Including stealing the spotlight away from Roxy.”

Realistically, Foxy shouldn’t have been getting worked up at this. For years he had been treated like just a tool in a pizzeria. That’s just how it was. To normal humans they were just robots set to sing for kids. Though perhaps it was the fact that Freddy’s had put on so much of a ruse with the green room and the animatronics being allowed to freely walk around that someone- he- could’ve easily bought that they were treating them better than Freddy’s used to. Hearing this shouldn’t have made him angry, but it did.

Freddy was so obedient, there was no reason to not be patient with him. It hit a raw nerve.

“But that is not all that is on my mind… the employees have become a little more aware of Gregory’s presence. That is, he has told me that he has gotten recognized. If they found out that he was staying here in the Pizzaplex, they would…” Freddy cut off with a sigh.

“Aye, they would take him away,” Foxy finished for him.

“They would… I know what I am doing is wrong, but the thought of Gregory being taken from me and put back into whatever situation he came here to escape… It terrifies me. I am less worried about my punishment, though it will no doubt be no less severe.”

Foxy noticed that ominous tone. “What would they do, Freddy?”

“They would replace me,” Freddy quietly admitted.

“With who? The DJ?” Foxy scoffed.

“No, I mean… hmm…” He considered how to explain it, rubbing his chin before lifting a finger as though having an idea. “Imagine I am a pizza. Chica, Monty, and Roxy too. We are all different kinds of pizzas. I am pepperoni and cheese, Chica is the Barbeque Special, Monty is the Meat Lovers, and Roxy is Veggie Pizza… Or perhaps Monty should be veggie since he is green- That does not matter. The point is that we are all pizzas. What makes us unique is our toppings. Whether it be meat or cheese or vegetables or sauce. Underneath all of that, there is a crust underneath. You could take any crust and make it into any pizza. It is the same with us and our endoskeletons.”

“…Freddy, I don’t know what yer tryin’ to tell me,” Foxy bluntly stated.

“My toppings make me Freddy. Underneath I am the same base as all the others. You see me as Freddy Fazbear, I see me as Freddy Fazbear, but the truth is that I am not. If they remove my casing and enhancements and put them on another endoskeleton, he will become Freddy and I will be an endoskeleton once again. I was long ago, though I do not remember it.”

All the humor was sucked right out of the conversation, along with Foxy’s stomach if it was still there as he listened to Freddy very casually depict how easy it was to replace him. He made it sound so normal that it gave him whiplash.

“…You think they’d do that?” Foxy asked, his voice flat and his eyes wide. His patch popping up somewhere amidst his realization.

“Erm, well I would hope that they would not. It is standard protocol that they only change out an animatronic when their endoskeleton is too damaged to function properly, and with our state-of-the-art Parts and Service center that is very unlikely to happen!... Unless they deemed me too dangerous due to my own actions. With the history you have spoken of, and the guests have whispered of, I do not think they would react well to finding out that Freddy Fazbear is hiding a child. They may think I kidnapped him.”

“They ain’t gonna think that, but… Yer right. It’s too dangerous to take the risk. Ya can’t give ‘em the chance to pin nothin’ on ye,” Foxy doubled down. His voice growing as his neck twitched subtly.

“I will not. Not just for my sake, but for Gregory’s as well…”

“It ain’t gonna happen, Freddy,” Foxy said sternly. As though attempting to shut down even the idea of it.

Freddy could tell Foxy was upset. He couldn’t help but feel guilty for it, like he had spoiled their visit, even though he knew he had wanted honesty. So, he decided to give him a little more honesty.

“I missed you,” he admitted heartfeltly.

The pirate was almost caught off by it, but he covered with a cool chuckle. “Don’t get soft with me, Fredbear.”

“I mean it! It felt strange not having our weekly visits,” Freddy insisted with a smile. “I realize that I have not said it before, but… I am so glad you came to the Pizzaplex, and I do not just mean coming back tonight. I enjoy spending time with you. Every visit is an adventure! Err, even if tonight was a little more adventurous than we intended on getting. Despite that, I have been having a wonderful time! I always do, whether we are dueling in the Fazer Blast arena or just setting high scores. It is always worth the many, many rules we break in the process. Largely because we were not caught.”

That roused a chuckle out of Foxy, one that Freddy briefly echoed. His face fell slightly. He was still smiling, but a soft sadness filled his eyes.

“It was only once you were gone that I truly realized how much our friendship meant to me. How dull my life would be if I had not met you… Foxy, you are my best friend.”

Foxy was surprised by that one too, but he caught himself quickly. “Now that ain’t true. What about Sun?”

“Sun and I have a, err, different kind of relationship…” Freddy replied while gently tapping his claws together. Then interlacing his fingers, or doing so as best as he could, and smiling down at Foxy. “But I mean it, you are my best friend. You have a way of making me feel like I am right where I want to be.”

Freddy continued gushing about their time together as Foxy briefly retreated into his own thoughts. It had taken a few seconds to really digest what Freddy had said.

His best friend. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been or had been a best friend to anybody. Even in his closeknit grip he had always felt like the odd one out, the fourth wheel who had to step it up to prove himself. Definitely a complex that came from growing up in the Afton household, he was aware of that now and yet that feeling of distance still tended to remain.

Sure, he was close to Jeremy, but they had that different kind of relationship. When it came to friends who weren’t his siblings or directly adjacent to his siblings, there was usually comradery, but he would be lying if he ever got close enough to any one person to be good friends with them. The fact that he was broaching that grey area with his competitor, Freddy Fazbear, nearly his opposite in every definable way, was so bizarre to him. It felt good, but it felt weird too.

“I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

Freddy’s comment reminded Foxy that he was still there.

The fox blinked a little and looked back at him, considering it momentarily, and then shrugging it off.

“You didn’t. I was just thinking is all.”

Freddy all but gasped in surprise. “Foxy, your voice!”

“Weird, eh? This is what I sound like when I’m not feeling much like Foxy,” Foxy lightly joked. He slouched a little and looked down at his feet. “…You know, I haven’t had a real friend in years.”

“Foxy, I… Wait, that cannot be true. What about all your friends who you work with? Mike and Natalie? Charlie? Those technicians who helped Chica?”

“Alright, alright. So, I’ve had friends but… its been a while since I’ve been close with someone. Not counting Jeremy, he’s one of those ‘different kind of friends’,” Foxy explained, making air quotes with his hand. “This is different.”

“It is different, I agree,” Freddy replied. He gave Foxy a gentle, playful little nudge of his shoulder. “Doesss that mean I am your best friend too?”

“Ehh…” Foxy drew it out before giving an exaggerated sigh. “I guess it does.”

Freddy chuckled and tossed an arm around Foxy’s shoulders, pulling him into an unexpected one-armed hug, nearly knocking him over in the process. Foxy still sort of thunked his head on Freddy’s side, but he recovered fast. He snickered and pushed Freddy’s arm off.

“Alright, get off me,” Foxy said. He straightened his hood and stood from the couch. “Let’s go shred some street,” he offered. His voice starting to slightly slip into his pirate brogue but not yet committing to it.

“Aye-aye, Captain!” Freddy chirped. He got up as well and went to follow, but then slowed and stopped standing in front of the couch. Stuck there staring for a few beats before reaching out after him. “There is one more thing…”

Foxy caught the shift in tone instantly. His ear twitched at it. Before he could respond, Freddy lay a hand on his shoulder and turned him around. Foxy looked up in confusion at the bear looking down with guilt.

“Foxy… I know it is selfish of me, but I am going to ask that you… keep coming back. Please,” he quietly requested. His tone just short of a plea. “I know there are risks, but I do not want to lose you and I cannot leave to follow you. We can find a way to make it safe.”

That was what all of this had been leading to, Foxy realized. Even if Freddy didn’t realize it, all the confessions about what was going on at the Pizzaplex and how he felt about it, about how much he missed Foxy and how he was his best friend, it was all leading up to this very moment. A moment that Foxy suspected to be coming from the moment he was invited over.

Well, either that or Freddy ending the evening with the revelation that he shouldn’t come by anymore. Foxy had started to suspect that one towards the end and that was why he was so quick to get back to the games. He wasn’t sure which put him on the spot more.

This was the sort of thing he really needed to discuss with Jeremy, Marionette, and the others before giving an answer on.

“I will,” Foxy agreed almost immediately. “But we’re going to have to be more careful.”

Freddy brightened up with relief and happiness. “Of course! Of course.”

“Now quit stalling and let me beat you at Superstar.”

Freddy chucked again and joined his side at the arcade machine. Foxy went first, booting up the game and soon watching Freddy’s cool, teenage counterpart zipping down the street. It was then that he spoke again.

“Does this place ever close for more than a day?”

“It has not so far. Though I suppose that if we had to enter a period of maintenance, we could perhaps be closed for a few days,” Freddy answered.

“Next time that happens… Next time that happens, tell me. I’ll take you over to my pizzeria.”

Freddy was visibly startled. “What?!” he quietly shouted.

“Aye.”

“But Foxy, I… I cannot leave the Pizzaplex. It is in my programming and for my and the public’s safety,” Freddy tried to rationalize.

“I think you can beat it,” Foxy replied. He didn’t draw his eyes off the screen. He didn’t sound swayed at all by the bear’s denial.

Freddy started at him dumbfounded for a moment before giving an unsure, “Well… We can certainly try. I would love to see your pizzeria for myself… Then it is a plan! I will try if you will help me.”

“I’ve got your back, Fazbear,” Foxy swore.

Contented with this, Freddy smiled and turned his attention back to the screen. Excited for an event that would probably, likely, perhaps never happen.

Foxy was a little more certain that it would.

Because Foxy knew better than to risk letting go. He had lost friends to Freddy’s before. He had lost friends to just not holding on tight enough. With how the Pizzaplex was fairing, he was going to have to hang on tight if he wanted to keep ahold of Freddy.

Because one of these days Freddy was going to up and disappear. Foxy was going to make sure of it.

Chapter 68

Chapter Summary

Mike and Marionette make their best effort to salvage the night while Foxy seeks advice and looks to make a change (as does Jeremy). Meanwhile, Charlie has to break some news to Baby and gets an unexpected offer.

Somehow, the night had been salvaged. Foxy and Freddy took Gregory under their wings for most of it, playing games and scouring the arcade. Foxy catching sight of a couple of inappropriately named scores and laughing so hard he bowed over. Freddy was much less amused, pondering how it was never noticed by staff while Gregory shrugged and gave suspiciously quick answers.

Beelora accompanied them for a while but couldn’t keep up. That was when Charlie decided to step up and offer her own companionship. While Beelora initially seemed more interested in the bear and fox duo, it wasn’t long before she warmed up to Charlie. Charlie initially got the impression that she wasn’t around a lot of other girls, but it became eventually clear that Beelora simply wasn’t used to being around anyone outside of being a tour guide in a casino.

Because Beelora had a little difficulty getting herself around- she promenaded across the arcade well enough on the carpeted floors, but the tiled floors were almost impossible for her to tackle alone- Charlie had convinced her to get into one of the racing arcade cabinets. Beelora was surprisingly taken by being behind the wheel. Her eyes inching open a sliver to watch the road on screen, excitedly swerving all over the road. They had a surprisingly good time, even if Charlie would have an awkward story to tell Baby.

Thank goodness the Babee on her lap didn’t look like Baby.

Finally, there was Mike and Marionette. They had moved to one of the more comfortable square shaped couches where Marionette finally succumbed to his exhaustion and fell asleep. Mike wasn’t disappointed. In contrast, sitting in a corner relaxing while keeping a eye on the main room, watching for if anyone or anything else tried to slip in, made him feel a little better about sticking around. Someone needed to stand guard while the others had fun, why not an actual security guard?

The reminder that he was technically a pizzeria owner and yet couldn’t even get a job as Freddy’s newest security guard swung past again. Briefly deflating his ego before he shrugged it off. Not like he wanted the job anyway, he told himself without much conviction.

But his thoughts didn’t stay there long. Most of the time he was just zoned out listening to the ambience. The comfortable weight and warmth of Marionette curled up beside him, head in his lap and arms loosely around his waist, was soothing for a stomach still in knots.

Then after a while and out of the blue, Marionette raised from the couch like a vampire rising from a coffin. He then turned and faced Mike with smile, both looking still worn out and like he was up to something. Mike quirked a brow at it.

“Are you up for that dance?” the Puppet asked. To Mike’s relief, his voice had cleared out. He couldn’t say no to that.

“Always am.”

Mike passed on lookout duties to Charlie, and they headed to the dance floor. It took a little effort to rouse the DJ- Mike had to go so far as knock on his stage to get a response- but then he was up and eager, and the beats began to flow.

Despite Mike’s initial concerns, Marionette seemed to have somewhat regained his energy as he quite literally glided around the dance floor. At times spinning around him before swooping in to join their arms together, pulling Mike out of his groove and into his own. Not that he was complaining at all. He could keep up.

They got through the techno blitz and a few rounds of macarena before Marionette started to lose his second wind. His movements growing slower and languid. To which Mike pulled him in close to help him continue through a slower dance. He signaled the DJ with a wave down and he got the gest and switched to a song to match the change in speed. It was still faster than typical slow dance music, still techno, but the pulse was lowered to fit the change of mood.

He noticed that Marionette was a slightly shorter than usual, but he didn’t realize his legs were touching the floor again until one brushed his foot. He glanced down and watched the other’s pointed legs carefully step around his. From his ability to do this while struggling earlier, it was clear that he was relying somewhat on his levitation still, but the effect was noticeable. At least Mike noticed how gracefully he took each step. How controlled each movement was of his usually free-floating striped legs.

Marionette took notice of Mike’s gaze and smiled coyly before lifting his chin with a finger. He leaned in to nuzzle his mask against Mike’s face. Mike grinned and pulled him in around the waist, pulling him directly into a kiss. A trill rang through Marionette’s chest as he kissed back, gently caressing over his cheek as he did.

That moment was worth any before it and would outlast any other from that evening.

They weren’t sure how long they danced. It must’ve been for some time as they were interrupted by voices from the nearby arcade; Freddy, Foxy, and Gregory have coming back downstairs. Marionette lifted his head from Mike’s shoulder where it had rested through the last song and finally they separated. Not too far, their hands still held fast together, as they went to check on the others.

It wasn’t too long after that when Freddy had announced that it was time for Gregory to head to bed. Gregory tried to talk him out of it, but the bear didn’t budge, and Foxy decided to accompany him as they headed out.

That left them with Beelora, who had to be settled before they could drop in on Jake. Thankfully, Beelora didn’t seem nearly as needy as earlier. She offered twice to have them come in for a few minutes, promising she wouldn’t sealing the door. She asked Charlie specifically especially, having warmed up to her company. Charlie politely declined, but promised they would come back when they could.

Then she got an idea.

“I need a pen,” Charlie said. She looked to Mike.

“Fresh out,” he replied.

“I can get you one,” Beelora volunteered. As eager to please as ever, she headed into the Hive Arcade to get one. Charlie, who decided to smartly wait at the door, called for her to bring a scrap of paper too.

Beelora returned with a pen with a Freddy Fazbear Mega Pizzaplex label on it and a little sticky note. It was used, already having a ‘refill the change machine!’ note on it. Charlie turned it over and wrote their home phone number on the back.

“Don’t show this to anybody else. The DJ’s fine, but not any of the employees, okay? This is our phone number. If you need anything, call us,” she told her.

Beelora took the paper and held it in her folded hands like it was treasure. She thanked them and let them leave without any fight. The two Babees at her feet watching them leave.

They then made their way out of the arcade, stopping by the dance floor to say goodbye to the DJ before they left. Unlike Beelora, the DJ seemed much more nonchalant about them going. He waved and went back to working with his soundboards.

“How’s Baby going to feel about you giving out your phone number to other ladies?” Mike jokingly asked as they made their way through the entrance lobby.

“One step at a time. I’m still trying to think of how I’m going to break it to her that there’s a Ballora clone in here,” Charlie replied.

“I should’ve asked her who she was,” Marionette said distantly. Mike turned back to see him staring at the floor, pupils alit. “Or if she could remember who she had been.”

“Eh, not on the first date,” Mike jokingly remarked. It could’ve sounded like a brush-off, but both knew it wasn’t, and it was followed with an assuring squeeze of the hand. Though he did have a point hidden in that joke; blindsiding an animatronic as fragile as Beelora with a question that heavy could’ve been a bad idea. Marionette nodded in agreement and freed himself from his thoughts.

They headed off to the daycare and met up with Jake in the back room. They got about an hour of visiting with him and Foxy got one more hour with Freddy before they packed it in and left the Pizzaplex.

There was a misty rain coming down as they left the Pizzaplex. Not hard enough to get them soaked, but heavy enough that Mike ended up having to put the windshield wipers on. It was a quiet drive but not forebodingly so. Foxy might’ve been steeped in his own thoughts, but the quiet ride was a nice change of pace after a charged night. Marionette sunk down into the passenger’s seat and fell asleep; Mike tried to keep himself from getting lulled by the empty highway before them.

It didn’t take long before they got home. The roads were empty, as was the neighborhood around the house. Mike pulled up into the driveway and shut off the car before looking to Marionette, who had roused and started to sit up. Getting an idea, Mike took off his jacket and handed it over to him.

“Put this on,” he said.

Marionette accepted any invitation to slip into Mike’s warm well-worn jacket. He took it and all but rolled himself up into it as Mike got out of the car. He then came around and opened the door, then leaned over beside it while pointing a thumb on his back. Marionette caught on and instead of pointing out that he was certainly awake enough to pop himself inside, accepted the free piggyback ride. Another invitation he would’ve had trouble passing up.

Mike carried him to the door and unlocked it, smiling as he listened to and felt him chime through his back. He stepped inside and held the door open as Charlie and Foxy both sprinted inside. The former barely getting out of the way before the latter darted through on her heels. Foxy nearly came to a skidding stop on the carpeted floor as Mike quickly shut and locked the front door behind them.

It seemed at first like no one was awake from how dark the house was. The television being the only source of light and turned down to a mere murmur. That was, until a voice spoke up from the couch.

“How was it?” Michael asked groggily. He gave no effort to sit up or look over the back of the couch.

Marionette slipped off Mike’s back and peeked over the back of the couch. Michael was looking up at him through squinted eyes.

“It was a very good evening,” the Puppet replied. He slumped onto the back of the couch, resting his head on his arms. “We only had one disaster and still finished the night on a high note.”

“What was the disaster?”

“Music Man showed up,” Mike answered. He came up and leaned on the couch beside Marionette. “He had a growth spurt since the last time we’ve seen him.”

“…Freddy’s must be more desperate than we thought,” Michael muttered.

“They have a Ballora too,” Charlie added in.

Michael’s eyes snapped open at that.

“In a new, totally original character. Completely different from the Ballora we know,” Mike insisted sarcastically. He paused a beat, then tagged on, “Her name’s Beelora.”

“That’s bad.”

“I think it’s rather cute,” Marionette remarked.

“No, that’s bad. Because Fazbear Entertainment wouldn’t have gotten that close to a character unless they had the rights,” Michael pointed out in a foreboding tone.

Marionette seemed less than concerned and made a brushing off motion with his hand. “You worry too much. I’m sure they’re skirting this close to the rights because they know they’ll get away with it. That is a very Freddy’s thing to do.”

“…It is, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have them.”

“It doesn’t mean they do.”

“Go to bed, Marion,” Michael said flatly.

The Puppet laughed a little and dragged himself upright off the couch. Mike took that as a signal to follow.

“We’ll bring you up to speed the rest of the way in the morning,” he promised. To which Michael gave a nod. “Alright. Night.”

Marionette chimed in a ‘goodnight’ as well while Charlie took their place at the back of the couch for a moment.

“If it’s any consolation, I’m pretty sure Beelora isn’t the Ballora we ran into down in Afton’s. She’s completely different,” she assured. She said it with certainty too.

“Not sure if that’s a good thing,” Michael remarked cynically.

“Sure, it is! It means I gave our phone number to a complete stranger instead of someone who tried to kill us. Just letting you know if she ends up calling. She seemed lonely,” Charlie said. After a moment she noticed Michael give her a suspicious look.  “…What?”

“Is this a setup?”

Charlie gave him an unenthused look.

“Sorry,” he immediately retracted.

“If I was planning on setting you up, I wouldn’t make it this obvious. Give me some credit,” Charlie said with mild amusement.

“Of course.” Michael’s voice then softened up a bit, “Get some rest. You’ve had a long night, I can tell.” Charlie gave him a quizzical look and he clarified. “Marion.”

“Oh.” She knew what he meant. Marionette’s fatigue was very visible. “I will. You should too. Goodnight, Michael.”

She turned to leave, looking to Foxy who passed the couch and headed into the living room. He noticed her gaze and waved her down the hall.

“I’ll be off in a bit, Lass. Go on, Mari’s waitin’ for ya.”

Charlie nodded and headed into the hallway. Marionette, and Mike, were waiting for them both but heard the exchange and headed on without the pirate. The three stopped at the end of the hall and said goodnight- and checked in on each other one last time- before heading into their respective rooms.

Foxy waited until they had left before dropping back into the armchair with his arms over his head and his feet stuck out. He sat there for a long moment before he could hear the shifting of Michael sitting up on the couch.

“What happened?” he asked.

“Not much,” Foxy muttered through his sleeves. “The staff ain’t treatin’ Freddy right and I’m his best friend.”

“He must be terribly lonely too.”

“Aye, he is… Wait, what does that mean?” Foxy asked suspiciously.

“It means he’s not getting along with his bandmates?” Michael questioned.

Foxy noticed the slightest glint to his eye but decided to not take the bait and dropped it, like he dropped his head back and his arm over his eyes again.

“Aye, he ain’t. This whole Chica thing’s put a big wedge in the whole band. Or between the whole band an’ Freddy. Not that they were gettin’ along all that chummy, but Freddy and Chica were and now they ain’t, and that’s all on me.”

“You didn’t push Chica into the trash compactor. Gregory did, and he had every right to do so. She was attacking Elizabeth, she had been hunting him for days- under those circumstances, anyone might’ve made a rash decision.”

“But that decision wouldn’t have been made if I’d been there to break it up,” Foxy pointed out. Then realizing the fallacy in the comment, quickly tacked on, “Or wasn’t there distractin’ Freddy, who could’ve put a stop to the whole thing.”

Michael looked at Foxy for a long moment. It soon became apparent that this was likely to rouse himself enough to formulate his words.

“Gabe, Chica was damaged in a walk-in trash compactor that was left open and active with no failsafe to stop itself if it sensed a person or animatronic inside. There were also no deterrents to guises or ward off animatronics even though we know Freddy’s was using that king of programming system nearly ten years ago and they’re aware that Chica herself has an issue with eating trash. Forget the fight between her and Elizabeth. If that compactor had been closed, Baby and Ennard would have eventually subdued Chica and all three would’ve escaped relatively unscathed.”

For a moment Foxy was rendered dumbfoundedly quiet before giving a quiet, “…Yeah, you got a point there…”

Michael hummed in agreement.

“She ain’t doin’ so well. Chica. Freddy said they didn’t replace her voice box and they sealed her beak shut. She can’t eat, can’t talk, and that on toppa them gettin’ on them fer handin’ out passes or not meeting some sorta meet-and-greet quota,” Foxy explained.

“That is… terribly tragic,” Michael sympathized. His firm voice finally softening up. “I can only imagine what she must be going through.”

“Can you fix her?” Foxy asked.

Michael looked to him like he was insane. Foxy gave a sort of shrug in response.

“Not without the parts,” Michael answered.

Foxy returned a nod. “Figured as much. I’ll let Freddy know… Speaking of Freddy, they split up.”

“No.”

“Now ya didn’t even hear me out.”

“I heard that Freddy is blissfully unaware and very taken and that Chica is a trash-eating child-chaser. I don’t need to hear anymore.”

“So, it’s both lad and lasses, is it?” Foxy questioned, rubbing his chin.

Michael balked at that. “I did not say that.”

“Y’know, Charlie’s got this friend named Jake. He’s real into tinkering and he’s got this big handunit that he built himself. I know you’ve into that sorta stuff.”

“Goddamn it, Gabe.”

Foxy choked on a laugh and slouched back in the armchair once more, though now much less rigid as he did so. Michael rolled his eyes and laid back on the couch once again.

“Back on topic: these things happen sometimes. Not all humans are going to be as trusting and friendly to animatronics. I wasn’t,” he said. Quick to get the conversation back on track.

“Ya had reason to not be. These boyos at Freddy’s ain’t like us. Err, us bein’ me and me old crew. They ain’t dangerous to anyone but themselves, save Chica and that was bad luck with a longstanding grudge,” Foxy replied.

“Still.”

“Aye, still.”

There was a long pause of silence in the dark living room. Michael staring up at the ceiling, Foxy staring off towards the wall, and the drone of the low volume TV mixing with the ticking of the clock. Eventually broken by a scoff from the off-yellow rabbit-suited animatronic.

“Frankly, I don’t know how you can stand continuing to return to that place,” he muttered. “After all this trouble it’s put you through, I can’t see what keeps drawing you back. Not to watch that crazed rabbit woman. She seems, if I may be so blunt, harmless if not downright incompetent. She’s been there for weeks and all she’s done is played games with you all and run off at any pushback. Is it to protect Gregory? That’s a fair reason, but that cannot be the only one. Elsewise you would bring him here.”

“Elsewise I wouldn’t bring him here. Gregory ain’t goin’ anywhere he don’t want to. That’s the whole reason he ain’t over at Fritz’s right now,” Foxy pointed out. “And me? Eh, I love the place. I love usin’ all their machines and eatin’ their food, and them bein’ none-the-wiser. It’s like I’m pullin’ one over on Freddy’s. Gives me a little more control than iff’n I was just hidin’ away at the pizzeria, wonderin’ and worryin’ ‘bout the stuff I didn’t know.”

“Just be careful,” Michael said. His concern making it through. “I don’t want you getting in so deep that we can’t get you back out.”

“That’s… That ain’t gonna happen,” Foxy assured.

“Good.”

There was another sort of pause between them. Then Foxy leaned onto the armrest and broke the silence with a rather direct:

“Now that Beelora’s a real sweetheart. Might be a lil on the clingy side, but she’s just pretty lonely.”

“You should go for it, Mikey,” Max said. Announcing his presence from the corner of the living room. “Desperation is the one thing you’ve got in your favor.”

Michael defiantly rolled over and all but ignored Foxy’s snickering.

…

It was a typical quiet morning before work, which suited Jeremy just fine. He didn’t find anything hiding in the bathroom or left out on the counters, which was already a good sign. Michael had very little news to deliver as well, which suggested to him that the night before had gone well. Jeremy was relieved and made himself some breakfast. He considered making Mike some too, but then decided to wait and let him sleep in. It wasn’t like it took very long to fry up eggs.

Jeremy was halfway through his meal and watching the Minireenas practice today’s routines on the kitchen floor. They had decided to wear their sailor dresses today, or little white dresses with sewn-in handkerchiefs that Jeremy called their ‘sailor’ dresses. Each one’s handkerchief matched their signature color; yellow, pink, and blue.

They also had their own accessories; Daisy wore a little faux-straw hat with a fake sunflower on it, Rose wore a fake rose like a necklace with the bendy wire stem around her neck, and Forget-Me-Not had laced and tied dark blue ribbons around her feet and up her legs, and around her wrists. Which Jeremy had helped her tie- something she initially fussed against but eventually accepted the help once it became apparent that she was having trouble tying it alone.

They were ready for the party today, as was Jeremy. He just had a feeling that today was going to go well. Likely because he had a good night’s sleep devoid of any dreams, let alone any nightmares. That was more than enough to put him in a good mood.

He heard footsteps and looked to the hallway in time to see Foxy shuffling out, much to his surprise. A pleasant surprise though and he grinned broadly.

“Hey! I didn’t expect to see you up!” Jeremy greeted. He tossed an arm out invitingly and Foxy walked into it and the hug it offered. Returning his own around Jeremy’s back and leaning down to rest his chin affectionately atop Jeremy’s head, nuzzling into his blond locks.

“Mmm, didn’t think I’d be, but got the party,” Foxy muttered. Jeremy could tell he wasn’t entirely awake and snickered a little, rubbing at his back sympathetically.

By time Foxy pulled out the chair across from Jeremy and sat down sideways he was a little more roused. He was still slower than usual, but it made sense, and there was little doubt he would perk up long before the party.

“How was last night?” Jeremy finally asked.

“Long night. Real long night,” Foxy said with a sigh. He rested his arm on the table and leaned onto it tiredly.

“Want to talk about it?” Jeremy invited.

“Yar, I should… Alright, strap in.”

With that, Foxy began his story. It was quite a story too. There wasn’t much else to call a story that began with an arcade “bigger than their pizzeria” and somehow arrived at “trapped in the bathroom with a giant Music Man shoving his hand in”. That certainly had Jeremy’s attention, as did the brief mention of Vanny, but he paid especially close attention towards the end. When Foxy started to talk about his conversation with Freddy.

“He asked me to come back and like the rash fool I am I said yes without thinkin’ ‘bout the greater picture,” Foxy admitted. He looked up across the table at Jeremy. “What do ya think I should do?”

“Well… What do you want to do?” Jeremy asked.

“I don’t know,” Foxy grumbled in defeat. He slouched down and rested his head on the table. “What keeps drawing me back?”

“Well, for starters, you’ve got friends there. It’s a pretty cool place too. I mean, it would be a lot cooler if they weren’t trying to put us out of business or strongarm us into selling out but ignoring that, it’s cool. It’s like a big indoor amusement park,” Jeremy said. This was something he would’ve never voiced to Foxy before, but hearing his mixed feelings it seemed like an appropriate time to do so. “It’s new, it’s flashy, and it’s sticking it to Freddy’s whenever we sneak in there.”

“Aye. Good point,” Foxy agreed. He peeked up at Jeremy with one eye. “Would ye ever go back?”

“Me?... I don’t know.”

“’Cause we could go back together,” Foxy continued. He sat up onto his folded arms. “Letcha see those lil Babees, get to know Freddy’s, make off with about thirty bucks worth’a junk food.”

“I mean, maybe sometime. I don’t know, I have to think about it first,” Jeremy said hesitantly. Just the thought of going back there made him nervous. He didn’t want to disappoint Foxy though, he wanted to cheer him up. “…But there is something else we could do tonight,” he offered. He leaned forward on the table and lowered his voice. “But it’s going to be risky.”

“Riskier than runnin’ around with Freddy and friends?”

“Way riskier. This would be a lot more out in the open.”

“…Now you’ve got me curious.” Foxy lifted his head. Ears perked up from their sorrowful slouch to show his intrigue. “What’s the plan?”

“So, I was going to go look at a few apartments today… but how about I skip that and take you out tonight to look at them together We’d only be able to really get a look in the windows, but it might be fun! And I could really use your opinion.”

Foxy hummed curiously at the thought. Now that would be more than a little risky, but a different sort of risk compared to visiting Freddy’s. They would be able to escape the scene a lot quicker, but there was always the chance someone would notice them loitering and call the police. In which case he would have to either bolt from the scene and hide in the bushes or play dead in the back and pretend like it wasn’t abnormal that Jeremy was driving an animatronic fox around.

This should’ve filled Foxy with more trepidation than excitement. Unfortunately, it didn’t, especially with the temptation of getting to help Jeremy with such a domestic decision. A decision that Jeremy clearly wanted his input on.

“I think I might take ya up on that offer,” Foxy agreed.

Jeremy broke into a grin. “Great! How about ten o’clock? Late enough to be dark, less people going around, but it’ll look less suspicious than us creeping around at one in the morning.”

“It’s a date,” Foxy said with a sly glint in his eye. When he got that excited little grin in return, he knew he had made the right choice.

The day went on as usual. The party had been bigger than usual but went off without a hitch. There was something rejuvenating for both Foxy and Marionette to be surrounded by and tending to happy children. It certainly made Freddy’s feel like it was a dozen miles away.

There was always a chance that the kids came here because they couldn’t afford Freddy’s, that they would’ve rather gone there. Foxy acknowledged that, but to see them having fun despite that was enough to ease his mind.

They couldn’t be Freddy’s, so they would be Foxy’s. He couldn’t be Freddy, so he would be Foxy, and someone would appreciate that Gabriel realized.

The day went by steadily and after closing, and after night fell, and once the place was cleaned up and everyone was heading home, Foxy took off his head and put on his mask and he and Jeremy were off.

The first apartment they visited was sort of a duplex. Four apartments built into two separate buildings. Each apartment looked to have two floors but the windows on the first floor were barely covered with partially drawn blinds. Jeremy pulled up close before they got out and snuck up to look inside. Using the side windows, hidden behind a few scraggly bushes, to remain inconspicuous.

From here they could see the square living room, the kitchen and dining room combo, and the stairs that separated the two.

“It’s got two bedrooms upstairs, which would be great. Good sized kitchen, I like the carpet; the only problem I see is how close it is to the other apartment. You could probably hear us through the wall,” Jeremy explained.

“Prob’ly’s a funny word, Jere. It implies they might not hear ya.”

“They’ll definitely hear us.”

“Aye… But it’s a cute lil place. There a backyard?” he asked, pointing his hook towards the kitchen and the back door.

“Yes! Sort of. It’s a little small, but it’s fenced in,” Jeremy said. He beckoned Foxy and began to lead him around back.

Indeed, it was sort of a backyard. A little too small to fit anything too spectacular and the grass was shallow and worn away in places, but a nice addition. Especially since it had the protection of a wooden fence instead of a chain length one.

Foxy scrutinized it from a safe distance with a hum, peeking over to the back door as well and mumbling a remark about the safety. Jeremy leaned on the fence and looked out at the distant mountains visible far behind the apartment. That would be a nice view to step out the back door and see. Or to see from the second smaller bedroom that had its windows facing that view. A much better view than from his old apartment.

“You know my old apartment building rebuilt and they’re renting out again,” Jeremy remarked. Foxy looked to him in surprise.

“Blow me down, really?!... Wait, why didn’t they offer you one of those apartments?”

Jeremy smiled a little at Foxy’s huffy tone. Like he was about to be offended on his behalf. “They did. I turned them down.”

“…Oh.” Foxy almost sounded disappointed. “Might I ask why? Lookin’ fer an upgrade or just ain’t ready to head back?”

“…Yeeeah, that’s kind of it right there. We could use a little more room. The living room’s smaller but the bedrooms are both bigger than what I used to have. And having a complete second bedroom, I could make it into a playroom or get some little beds and section off parts of it into a bedroom for everyone so we’re not always sleeping on top of each other. No more accidentally knocking someone else at night, and gives them a little more room to space out if things get tense… But also, I just… I don’t see myself feeling safe back at my old apartment. Or an apartment that looks like my apartment but is on the other side of the building. I think it’ll be better for all of us if I can just find a bigger place and not have to unpack all those feelings again.”

“Anything ya wanna do, I’m behind ya all the way,” Foxy assured him. He hooked his arm around his first mate and pulled him in close. Leaning to nuzzle his cheek, misjudging the distance, and leaned closer before finally bumping his head against Jeremy’s. “For what it’s worth, I don’t know if I’d ever feel safe with ya stayin’ in that shoddy building neither.”

“What about this shoddy building?” Jeremy jokingly asked.

“Ain’t half bad. The sound problem might be somethin’ worth thinkin’ about. Then again, might be one of those things ya have to settle on with an apartment,” Foxy elaborated.

This felt as good of time as any to say what he wanted to say, but at the last moment Jeremy lost his nerve. He clammed up before the words could come out, so they instead remained in a comfortable quiet.

Those words finally returned when they returned to the car after thoroughly checking the back and side windows again. Upon hearing something- what was likely a car driving over a pothole a street away- the two speedily got back into the car preparing to check the next place. It was there while pulling on his seatbelt that Jeremy decided to take the plunge. He grabbed the steering wheel, took a deep breath, and turned to Foxy.

“What would you think about moving in with me?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“Moving in with me. But only if I got a new place with enough room. I know it’s sort of cramped with everyone stuck in one room,” Jeremy raced out. He gave Foxy an out but didn’t want him to take it. “What do you think?”

Foxy mulled it over for a few seconds before giving a conclusive, “Cramped doesn’t bother me.”

“It doesn’t?” Jeremy asked hopefully.

“Nah!... Err. Well, there be a big difference between a whole apartment and one scrawny bedroom. We get us a wall in between some of us and I could live with it.”

“So, is that a maybe?”

“That be a yes.”

Jeremy was surprised but thrilled. “Uh- great! That’s great!”

“Ain’t gettin’ nervous already, are ye?” Foxy teasingly asked. He side-eyed him through the holes of his fox mask.

“Try stunned. I really thought I was going to have to fight you on leaving the pizzeria.”

“Yeah, well… I don’t need to sleep there. Maybe shuttin’ meself off there’s the whole reason I got into this mess with Freddy. So stuck in me own head and squirreled away, breathin’ in me own fumes.”

“Having trouble with the exhaust pipe again, Gabe?”

“If I was, you’d know,” Foxy cracked back.

“But you’re right. Not that I’m saying there’s anything wrong with you and I don’t think you’re just friends with Freddy because he’s there, but I think maybe it’s time you took the plunge and stepped out of your comfort zone. With me! We’ll do it together.”

“We’re gonna quit after a week,” Foxy predicted.

“I don’t quit anything after a week,” Jeremy proclaimed. Grinning like a fool and as happy as a lark. Foxy watched him turn on the car with a newfound pep, a flourish in his movements. Just that excited at the prospect of them moving in together.

And while Foxy wouldn’t deny that the thought of permanently taking up residence with Balloon Boy and the small squad was daunting, he couldn’t help but be excited too.

“I love you,” he said.

“Love you too, Gabe,” Jeremy returned. That smile angled back at him. “There’s another place over by the railroad tracks that’s all on one floor. Want to check it out?”

“We better. Halfa those lil minnows of yers are too small to use the stairs.”

“Good point! I trip on someone coming down the stairs and it’s game over.”

This got a snicker out of Foxy and Jeremy beamed as he backed out of the parking space and began to drive off to the next place. To their next choice of their future home.

And as gut-wrenchingly terrifying as it was to leave the safety of Mike’s, to leave that little support system and try to make it work on his own again, he found himself a little more okay with it. Much more okay with the idea of not going at it alone, of having a reward at the end of the tunnel drawing him through. That was enough to keep him going.

As for Foxy, he had been feeling a lot of confusing and conflicting feelings for the last night and day. Though he couldn’t say he hadn’t considered the idea of moving in with Jeremy permanently- only if he had made the offer- but he never thought it would come so suddenly, nor that he would agree to it. But if this thing with Freddy had taught him anything, it was that he needed more out of life than hiding away in the pizzeria.

Because Foxy’s could be just as lonely as Freddy’s, but he had the choice. He wasn’t going to squander it.

…

Charlie expected a little awkwardness from this visit. After all, she was primarily coming by to break the news about Beelora. To lighten the blow, she had suggested that she stay over afterwards. Which shouldn’t have been anything too abnormal.

That was, until she realized that this was going to be her first time staying over with Baby since she had her little talks with John and Jessica. She had seen Baby and talked to her on the phone with only a little awkwardness in the beginning, but this was a bit different. This was spending a whole night with Baby, a significantly more amount of time when that little realization hung over her head. She tried to shrug it off as they arrived at Scott’s.

While Mike and Marionette stayed back to break the news to Scott and Ennard, Charlie knocked on Baby’s door. Apparently, Baby had been waiting directly inside the door for her as she opened it so quickly that Charlie’s hand was left hanging in midair.

“Charlie, hello. You couldn’t have chosen a better time to come by,” Baby remarked as she closed the garage door behind her. “There is something I have been wanting to discuss with you.”

“Sure thing. That’s what I’m here for,” Charlie said. To her it sounded like she was trying too hard to sound normal, but apparently Baby didn’t notice.

Though Charlie did notice something new. There had been a corkboard mounted to the wall of the garage that was covered in a plethora of pinned papers. Some were pages or scraps of notes or working lyrics. A couple were covered in twisting arrows that made little sense until she realized it had to be choreography. There was a list of dates, magazine cutouts, and on the bottom right there was even a washed-out poster of Circus Baby’s Pizza World- which looked to have been printed out on a regular piece of white printer paper. 

It looked a lot like a conspiracy board. Or something a detective would use when solving an elaborate murder mystery. Though from the words she spotted it became clear that this was more accurately an idea board for future performances.

“Looks like you’ve been busy,” Charlie said, impressed.

“Indeed, I have been.”

“…Wait, does this mean you got another gig?!”

“Not yet,” Baby admitted. She tapped her fingers on her skirt. “…But I will very soon.”

Punctuating that borderline-ominous comment, Baby pushed off and skated forward, spinning around to stand in front of the board. She lifted her hand and tapped on a date on her list.

“On the Fourth of July, there is going to be a barbeque in downtown Hurricane. By all accounts it should be the biggest event of the year… save the Christmas Pageant, the Easter Egg hunt, Halloween, and such. This barbeque will have live entertainment and I will be one of those entertainers. Scott is already sewing the seeds through his congregation, and we should have the police chief himself in our pocket what with my brother employing his son. And being your friend, of course. With all this, I may just have a chance to be hired.”

“Baby, after your performance at the fair, I don’t think you’re going to have to convince anyone that hard,” Charlie reminded.

“Maybe not, but I can’t be too certain.”

“But this is great! You killed it last time, I know you can do it again,” the Security Puppet assured her. “Have you written a song for it yet?”

“That is part of the reason I wanted to speak with you…” Baby’s voice grew quiet, and her confidence waned momentarily. Though she then recovered- more quickly than Charlie expected- and replaced her hand onto her hip. “I know it is a conflict of interest- it is likely Foxy’s too will be hired if the option is open… but I wanted to ask you… would you like to perform with me? In a duet?”

Charlie was surprised. It shouldn’t have been that surprising with the lead up, but she never really expected Baby to offer to perform together. At least, not this soon after she started performing again. Baby had an admittedly unhealthy relationship with the spotlight and had only just regained enough of her self-confidence to return to the stage. To then willingly offer up half of the stage to someone else, it was again surprising. It was willingly giving up that center of attention that she had so hungered for.

“You want to perform with me?” Charlie asked dumbly.

“Of course. You’re the only one I would,” Baby affirmed. “And not just because we’re friendly. I believe our voices would play well off each other, and our singing styles should complement one another.”

“WHAT?!”

Ennard’s voice forced itself through the wall and barged right into their conversation. “No, no! You- You’ve gotta be wrong!... Or kidding?! There’s no way.”

Charlie and Baby stood there a moment before the clown’s eyes slowly rolled back to the puppet’s.

“What was that about?” she asked suspiciously.

“Oh, it’s nothing. Just, uh… We ran into a few new animatronics last night. One of them was a pretty big Music Man,” Charlie excused.

“Oh?” Baby’s head snapped fully to Charlie. Now fully invested in what she was saying. Charlie had a suspicion that she knew why.

“Don’t worry, he’s not the one we know. And he’s nothing like him either. He’s just a big… guy,” Charlie assured.

There was an awkward pause.

“You do know that I can tell when you’re nervous, don’t you?” Baby asked bluntly.

“Of course she can,” Charlie thought with defeat. Realizing she was going to have to fess up to something, she tried what she assumed was the lesser of two evils. “…Okay, full disclosure: I did have a one-on-one run-in with Vanny last night- but nothing happened! I got away from her, she hopped a fence, and we didn’t see her again. That’s all. I even had my taser on me, so if something did happen, I could’ve stopped it.”

“She didn’t touch you, did she?” Baby asked with noticeable concern.

“No, she didn’t. She just spooked me,” Charlie assured again. She thought for a moment and then gave a rather direct. “…And yes.”

“Yes, she touched you?”

“No. Yes, I’ll perform with you.”

“Oh!” Baby’s eyes opened wide in surprise, and she straightened up abruptly. The uncharacteristic squeak was the followed by an unusually demure, “Are… Are you certain? You haven’t had long to think about it. I don’t expect an answer right away.”

“Well, we can wait until later, but my answer’s going to be the same,” Charlie said playfully. She noticed Baby start to rub at her own arm and reached for her wrist, cutting short the self-conscious gesture. She gave her arm an assuring- friendly- pat.

Baby’s eyes dropped to her hand before flicking them back up to her face, to her smile. She gave a soft sound, almost like a little breath and nearly a tiny hiccup, but a delighted little sound nonetheless. Her eyes began to glow brighter as well.

“Well then… I suppose you’ve made up your mind,” Baby said simply. She tried to withhold her elation even as it leaked into her voice, “Though if you do change your mind later, try to do it early enough that I can come up with a backup routine.”

“I’ll give you two weeks notice,” Charlie joked. Though she then followed up with a much more serious promise of, “Don’t worry about that. I won’t let you down.”

“You seldom do. But that’s beside the point- that’s wonderful news,” Baby said. Her permanent smile sounding like it was appropriate. “I can have the song finished by the end of the week. Unless you would like to write it with me?”

“I’d love to. I think I’ve sung enough of your work to know what you’re into.”

“Perhaps, but we will need to do better than that if we plan to outdo our competition. We will need something new and bold, but not quite experimental and still in our range,” Baby listed off as she made her way to the bed.

“It’s not a contest,” Charlie reminded, amused.

“Please. My life is a contest,” Baby tsked. She then sat down on the side of the bed, fishing a notebook out from under it, and beckoned the other to join her.

Charlie sat down beside her. As she was doing so, her hand just happened to fall on Baby’s claw. Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal at all, but when it shifted under her grasp Charlie immediately overreacted and pulled back. “Sorry.”

“Hmm?” Baby hadn’t even noticed. She had been too focused on flipping pages with one hand. It took her a second to figure out what she meant. “Oh.” Once Charlie was seated beside her, she tilted up her claw from the bed. “May I?”

“Sure,” Charlie said. Unsure of what she was going to do until the claw suddenly leaned on her leg and gently clamped onto her wrist. “Oh, that’s what you mean,” she said almost absentmindedly. She slid her hand further into her grip, unconcerned about the points.

“What did you think I was going to do?” Baby asked, a tinge of amusement in her tone.

“…Good question!” Charlie replied with a goofily embarrassed grin.

Baby laughed quietly and presented the notebook to her. For a few seconds Charlie was able to scan through a couple of verses while Baby began to explain her inspiration.

“Considering the nature of the holiday, I thought something like this may be appropriate. It’s about childhood days and adult nostalgia and peering through the looking glass to see…” Baby trailed off.

Of course Baby trailed off, because Ennard was now talking outside the door and both she and Charlie very clearly heard him say, “Does she know? Is Charlie telling her, because-.” Before trailing off into a further muffled ramble.

He knew which meant that Charlie couldn’t play around any longer. If she didn’t come clean about it, then Ennard would barge in and do it for her.

“So, Music Man wasn’t the only person we met last night. Foxy got stuck in another arcade and we wound up meeting the bee animatronic who runs it. She was friendly,” Charlie explained.

Baby was paying half attention, clearly trying to listen to the quieted conversation outside the door. When something suddenly clicked, and she looked back to the puppet quickly.

“Is that the bee we saw posters of in the prize counter?”

“What?”

“There were headshot posters of a cartoon bee at the prize counter. Was that her?”

“That’s her,” Charlie said. She gave Baby an almost apologetic smile. “Her name’s Beelora.”

“…Is it her?” Baby asked quietly. Her posture rigid; her eyes no longer wide with shock, but with dread.

“No! No, I spent long enough with her to know that she’s a completely different person. She doesn’t act anything like Ballora did… not that I knew her very well.”

“What you saw wasn’t far from her usual behavior… If you believe it’s not her then I trust your judgement. Besides, the chance of her coming back is… very unlikely,” Baby said. The fear left her eyes but was replaced with a somberness. “…What is she like?”

“She’s nice. I don’t think she gets a lot of visitors or leaves the arcade much. She had these little UFO bees with her that she called Babees, but they weren’t based off you. So, you don’t have to worry about that.”

Baby nodded as she listened. “…Is that what has Ennard so worked up?”

“I’m afraid so.”

“Then let me see to him. Read over this and tell me what you really think,” Baby said, pointing down the page before releasing Charlie’s hand and standing from the bed.

She headed to the door and opened it up. Ennard was standing in the doorway with his hands tight on the frame, as though barely holding himself back.

She chose to indulge him and asked, “What is it?”

“TWENTY-FOOT-TALL FULLY FUNCTIONAL ANIMATRONIC WORKING AS A BOUNCER!”

Baby blinked at the exclamation. She then looked past the door and back at Charlie. Then said in a rather deadpanned voice, “That better be the Music Man.”

Dead serious or not, Charlie couldn’t help but snicker.

Later, when everything calmed down- specifically Ennard- they returned to planning the performance. Going over possible song ideas, choreography routines, and even the possibility of additional accessories to go with the holiday.

Once again, Baby had nudged Charlie’s leg with her claw and opened it invitingly. She kept her eyes on the notebook and continued with her conversation, but silently requested Charlie’s hand, which she willingly gave. The points carefully laying across the top and bottom of her hand with no pressure and no pain. Instead, all she could feel was a buzz of warmth tingling on her skin. She closed her fingers around her claw as best as she could.

This was nice, she thought. It really was.

Chapter 69

Chapter Summary

An unknown child is noticed at the daycare and between a friendly social worker and an unhelpful Daycare Attendant, Tommy and Abe have their work cut out for them. Also, Monty has plans of his own...

Nobody wanted to work in the daycare. It was a loud, messy, and uncomfortable place to be stuck in for half of the day, and it only paid the same rate as working in the food court. Unfortunately, food court jobs were getting harder to secure as more human workers were replaced with Staff and Server Bots. They could cook, they could clean, they could take orders, and they could dispense change with their semi-automated registers.

Many of the jobs in the Superstar Daycare were still held by humans, with the check-in desk being run by two people and the Lucky Stars giftshop being managed by someone else. The daycare itself though was run by yet another bot, but in this case a human worker was required to supervise. Two, specifically, but they had been unable to fill that second chair. They had barely filled the first one.

Nobody wanted to work with the Daycare Attendant. Unlike the Glamrock Animatronics, who were much easier on the eyes and much less unpredictable, the Daycare Attendant was a bouncy and borderline annoying bot who could at any moment flip into his unfriendly naptime form. The biggest problem with him being that he was too absentminded to take orders and that he got too close and social with the staff, which had led to the implementation of various fail-safes to keep him away from the counter.

The woman currently working at the security desk in the daycare didn't mind the kids but very much did mind the Daycare Attendant- who was likely the real reason many people were driven off. He tended to get too chummy, too close, and the way it was programmed to act like a person was a little unsettling. As was its garish face. Which was fine, since her job was just to sit there all day watching him watch the kids. She didn't have to deal with him at all.

Until there was an issue, and unfortunately there was an issue sitting underneath one of the slides.

There was a boy in the daycare who stuck out like a sore thumb. Not because he was dirty or disheveled- he was dressed in so much Freddy merchandise that his parents must've paid a small fortune- but because he was too old to be in there. Most of the kids running around and playing were young kids, barely over the age of toddlers. This boy, while small, still stood taller than most of them and from how he dressed to how he acted it was clear that he was an older child.

That alone would've been weird but fine. Why someone would subject anyone older than five or six to the daycare was beyond her, but maybe that was just a decision they made while they went to work. Maybe they even worked here, or one of them did. Curiosity won out and she contacted the front check-in desk to ask about the child and double-check that he was supposed to be in here.

Now, one of the women at the front desk was very diligent. Unlike the in-daycare workers who were regularly cycled out, she had been here since the place opened and took her job relatively seriously. She kept a close eye on the kids who came in and made sure they went down the slide one at a time. It would've been hard to remember every child, but this boy stood out enough that she should've remembered him, but she didn't. After a few minutes of looking through the guest profiles on the check-in computer, she couldn't find him.

This was bizarre. This likely meant the boy somehow wandered in and went down the slide without anyone noticing.

Someone was going to have to check his guest profile manually and figure out who he was, which meant, unfortunately, Sun was going to have to get involved.

The worker waited as long as she could until Sun had skipped over to the front of one of the slides and crouched down beside the side of the opening.

"Sun!" the worker called. "Can you come here?"

"Just a second~!" Sun singsonged back. He held out his hands under the slide. "Oookay, I'm here! Come on down!"

A little girl slid down the slide and right into Sun's oversized hands, to which he eagerly swooped her up into the air. She squealed like she had just come careening down a rollercoaster.

"Oh, oh, you did it! I knew you could! That wasn't so scary, was it?" Sun chirped.

"Nope!" she replied.

"You wanna go again?"

"Uh huh!"

"Sun!" the worker impatiently called again.

"I'll be right there~! Okay, Sunflower, why don't you climb back up? Do you remember which way to go?... Yup, it's up, up, up! And I'll be back in a jiffy to help you come doooown, whoosh!"

The very little children, like this one, ate up the Daycare Attendant's "overbearing" behavior. He sat her down and she ran off to climb up again. Another little boy had wandered up obviously wanting the same treatment and Sun scooped him up, gave him a quick spin around, and then led him over to show him where to climb up.

The worker gave an impatient huff, expecting Sun to get entirely distracted with the children- it was already ridiculous that he didn't come over when she asked- but eventually he skipped to the counter with his ever-constant grin. She tried to not cringe as he popped up on the other side. The Nanny Bot must've mistakenly thought it was being called as it rolled up to the desk too.

"Mister Sunshine, reporting for duty!" Sun chirped, giving her a playful salute.

"Uh, yeah. Sun, who's that kid over there?" she asked. She pointed over towards the older boy under the slide.

The Daycare Attendant turned his entire body to look. He stared off across the daycare towards the cluster before turning back, pressing his hands flat together.

"That's Dennis!"

Dennis was over there- she recognized him by the big grape juice stain on his shirt that Sun had thrown a fit over earlier- but that clearly wasn't the kid she was pointing at.

"No, not Dennis. That older kid. The one in in the Freddy shirt. You gave him colored pencils."

"Oh, th-that sunflower! Oh, that's, umm… I'm not quite sure?" Sun squeaked. His hands pressing tighter together.

"Then can you go scan him? Apparently, he wasn't checked in," she said. "Even if he was, he's way too old to be in here."

"Nobody's too old for the daycare! Why, we have room for all kinds of kids both big and small-!"

"Sun, scan. Please."

"Oh! Right, right. Sorry."

With that, Sun skipped over to the boy in question. The boy looked up from his drawing as the Daycare Attendant leaned over in front of him, resting his hands on his knees. From the way his head was bobbing and points were swaying it was clear that he was talking to him, but not scanning. Likely Sun was just forewarning him before he did so he wouldn't have a screaming child on his hands. At least, one screaming with fear- save when naptime rolled around.

Except Sun was still not scanning. There was a moment when the boy stole a look at the counter before looking back at the Daycare Attendant. Then… he bolted. He shot to his feet, turned and ran, and dove into the play structure at the first chance.

This wasn't too much of a problem as the Daycare Attendant was usually quite quick and more than adept in moving through the playground. That was, usually. Not now as he gave a lackluster attempt to run after the boy and then instead of easily rolling into the side of the structure, he turned around and simply walked back to the desk hurriedly.

"He ran! Oh goodness, I hope I didn't scare him…" Sun said worriedly. He laid his hands on his cheeks and shook his head with concern.

"It's alright, just go in and get him. He'll be fine."

"I can't."

"What? Why?"

"Becauuuuse." Sunny straightened back up as though all those worries rolled through his head and right back out. "I have to go catch Ashley when she comes down the slide! Did you see her? Oh, she's such a brave girl! Just last week she was afraid to even climb up that high and now she's coming down the slide all by herself!"

"…Are you kidding me?" the worker asked.

"Oh ho ho! I wouldn't kid you, Ma'am. You're the boss!" Sun said. Maybe it was her imagination, but his voice sounded a little tight or hollow. It sounded ingenuous, though Sun was hardly a believable caricature. "Just leave it to me! As soon as I'm done with Ashley, I'll squeeze in and find him in a jiffy!"

With that, Sun skipped away to tend to the children and the worker was left staring almost baffled. She briefly wondered if she was going to get stuck crawling in there, but quickly decided that she didn't get paid enough to do that.

She noticed someone watching her and looked over to see the Nanny Bot staring. It quickly turned itself away and wheeled off across the playground to return to watching the children, preparing to flag Sun if it noticed any issues.

Apparently, this random unknown child didn't classify as an issue.

With a sigh, the worker decided that she was fed up and going to stop trying. It wasn't like she was getting anywhere. So, she just reported it in and expected that would be the end of it.

But it wasn't. It was the end of her side of the event, but the moment the report of the boy reached some of the other staff- staff who had seen him before as well- it got passed around that this was the recurrent child wandering unattended who at least some of them had seen seemingly swiping food off tables and who had no known guest pass.

During an event of a similar caliber a few days ago, a report on the child had been sent to a manager who had decided that it would be in Fazbear Entertainment's best interest to get the authorities involved. Not the police of course, but an outside party who could take the boy out of their hands so they could wipe them clean and no longer have to deal with it. That would be sparing them of the liability of a wandering child getting hurt.

Said outside party had seemingly found merit in the inquiry and by time this second appearance was reported, they were prepared to send a social worker. Which they did, and with the hour there was a car pulling up outside of the Pizzaplex while the boy in question was still holed up in the play structure of the daycare.

On the near other side of the Pizzaplex, the two daytime security guards- Abe and Tommy- were holed up in the surveillance office watching cameras like they usually did. It had been a remarkably quiet day, even for a place as loud as the Pizzaplex. No reports of shoplifting, no rowdy customers, and the animatronics seemed to be behaving themselves today. All was well in the Mega Pizzaplex.

Abe had gotten back from his rounds a little while ago and was eating a bag of nacho cheese flavored tortilla chips while staring at the screens. Tommy was stationed nearby, slid down in his office chair with his legs crossed in front of him and his arms crossed, also watching the cameras with a glazed look. Occasionally he would spot something interesting, or amusing, nudge Abe, and then point it out while making a crack. Sometimes Abe would do so, though with Tommy still providing the crack.

This was interrupted by the office phone beginning to ring. Tommy turned the chair in its direction and walked himself back to it without getting up. He answered the phone with a brief, "Security. What's up?" Aware that it was from somewhere else in the building.

Abe's shoulders sagged tiredly, and he hastily shoved a few more chips into his mouth before rolling up the bag.

"Uh huh. Where's that?"

Abe sat it on the desk. The bag tried to unravel. He sat a stapler on it to keep it pinned closed with a sigh. Then he looked up at the screens and tried to spot the issue.

"Gotcha. We'll head up there."

Abe took notice of that 'we'll' and looked back in confusion. Tommy was in the process of hanging up the phone and stood up before gliding his chair under a desk.

"Okay, let's move. We've got a social worker we've got to take to the daycare."

"Both of us?" Abe asked.

"We've got a social worker we're taking to the daycare. Yeah, I'd say there's a chance they'll need us," Tommy said with a grin. The grin he usually got when watching a disaster unfold on a security screen.

Abe was a little less enthusiastic at the possibility of breaking up a traumatizing scene in front of a bunch of little kids, but maybe their presence would help things move smoothly.

Tommy led the way through Rockstar Row, the Atrium, and into the elevator. They survived a particularly crowded elevator ride before exiting out into the lobby where they headed towards the fountain.

"That's gotta be her," Tommy remarked.

Abe lifted his eyes from the stairs they were heading down and caught sight of a nicely dressed woman standing alongside the fountain waiting. She wore a thin apricot-orange half-jacket with white capris with a matching white undershirt. Her hair was styled in a brunette bob which framed a slightly pointed but also sweet looking face.

Abe knew better than to trust first appearances, but she looked so gentle that his heart nearly skipped a beat. This had to be the social worker, but she reminded him instead of a teacher he had in first grade. One who had been exceptionally nice to him, who had helped tutor him when he needed help. If looks could be believed he would've been convinced that she was just as compassionate.

He was so lost in that moment that he was nearly left behind by Tommy who strode up to the woman and stuck out his hand.

"You must be Mrs. Jeanie. Tommy Franks, security."

"It's nice to meet you. It's Ms. Jeans, but call me Sasha," she said in a friendly tone.

Tommy grinned in amusement, eyes crinkling. "Ms. Jeans?"

She gave a good-natured smile in return. Apparently, she was used to people remarking on it.

"Well, it's nice to meetcha, Ms. Jeans. This here's Abe and we'll be escorting you over to the daycare," Tommy finished introducing.

Abe stepped forward and offered his hand. Her small hand fit right inside of his and he felt almost tingly at the mere touch. That being said, she had a firm grip.

"Abe Thayer. I work here," he introduced.

"No kidding?! Small world!" Tommy chimed in and clapped him on the back.

Abe stumbled forward slightly and for a moment he found himself almost standing over the small woman. He looked down in surprise. She looked up, surprised momentarily, but then gave him yet another friendly smile. His heart could've skipped a beat.

If not for Tommy smoothly grabbing him by the shoulder and yanking him back. "Alright, enough chitchat. We gotta get down there, in and out before naptime," he said.

Suddenly realizing that he had a very good point, Abe hustled along with him. Sasha kept up to, maybe even keeping up better than Abe himself did.

Tommy led them up the stairs and straight down the daycare hallway. By some miracle it was on the quieter side in the hall. Though it made sense. Most of the traffic for the daycare surrounded when it opened and shortly before it closed. Elsewise, there wasn't much enticement to hang out in a hallway where the only attraction was to stare at the fountain. It was a nice place to sit, but it didn't exactly compete with the attractions or food court.

Since it was quiet, Abe decided to get up the nerve to talk to the pretty woman walking alongside him.

"So, have you been here before?" he asked, trying to break the ice.

"Only once right around when it opened. The go-kart track wasn't even finished," Sasha explained. "But I did go to one of the original Freddy's a long time ago. All I can remember is playing whack-a-mole, so I'm assuming I had a good time. Or was letting off some repressed anger. Who knows," she lightly joked.

"Oh, we've got a lot of that here," Tommy said, sending her back a playfully devious grin. "I've been trying to quit this place for two weeks. Abe's been fighting tooth and nail to keep me here."

"Someone has to watch the cameras while I'm out looking for shoplifters," Abe said. Covering up the slight anxiousness at Tommy's flippant admission with a smile and a semi-joking tone.

"I can't even begin to imagine," Sasha sympathized.

They headed into the daycare and walked through the gate and down the long walkway towards the stairs leading to the first floor.

"This is incredible," Sasha remarked, waving a hand out towards the playground area.

"It's somethin', alright," Tommy said. He stepped back to walk alongside Sasha, which caused Abe to step back and trail behind them. "You got any kids?"

"Just a couple dozen," Sasha playfully returned. "I'm kidding. I don't have any kids of my own, but I work with a lot of kids. They might not be mine, but they're mine. If you get what I mean."

"Gotcha, gotcha."

"As a matter of fact, I work with a little girl who goes to this daycare."

Tommy stared at her for a long moment before giving a blunt, "She comes here?"

"Once a week. She's homeschooled by her grandmother so it's a good way for her to socialize with other children her age. She has a wonderful time here. She is a little scared of the moon character, but that could be because he's the naptime character and she's afraid of the dark. Though it's not uncommon for children to get nervous once the many distractions of music and playing are interrupted for downtime," Sasha explained.

Abe was silently begging that Tommy didn't say what they both knew he was thinking. The man even gave him that look over his shoulder. That mix between something mischievous and the borderline nervousness that might precede a "Who's going to tell her?".

"I can understand that," Abe interjected, cutting Tommy off before he could be anymore tempted. He even all but stepped up between them. "A place like this makes it easy to forget everything else. There's so much going on you can't even hear yourself think."

"Sometimes that's a good thing. You can't ignore your problems forever, but it's good to have an escape every now and then," Sasha agreed. She looked up to him with a newfound interest.

"It is in my case. Helps me keep my mind off work," he joked. He even threw in a wink, and she gave a little snicker. He wasn't usually this bold, but he soaked up her attention like a sponge.

Tommy noticed too. In fact, he noticed that once again he had become pushed aside as the third wheel. He decided to cut his losses and walk ahead rather than fall back or get trampled by a couple of folks walking by.

They made it down to the front of the daycare where after a few knocks on the wooden door, the assigned worker inside opened it and stepped out to speak with Sasha. She brought her up to speed on the situation. Apparently, the boy they had called in for was hiding away in the play structure and the Daycare Attendant wasn't able to find him. Though from how she put it, it was largely because he was getting sidetracked with anything and everything else.

"Sun!" she called inside.

After a few moments, the tall sun faced animatronic skipped to the wooden doors, followed closely behind by his Nanny Bot assistant.

"Yessss- oh! Oh, h-hello! New guests- visitors!" Sun sounded nervous once he spotted the two men wearing security caps. Not to mention the nicely dressed woman accompanying them, who he sniffed out right away wasn't a normal patron.

"Sun, this is Mrs. Jeanie. She's a social worker and she's here for that boy who snuck in here. So, please go get the kid. He's in the top of that one, right in those tubes. Please go get him," the worker pleaded with exasperation.

Sasha didn't correct the naming mistake. She was already picking up vibes from the two's body posture alone. Even though it was a robot, she noticed right away how anxious the Sun seemed to be. As weird as it was, she felt the need to try to smooth the situation.

"It's nice to meet you," she greeted. She held out a hand towards him to shake.

"Hi," he returned, giving a polite little wave. He then began to wring his hands as he looked back to the worker. "But do we really have to do that?! He's just having fun! He shouldn't be in trouble…"

"He's not in trouble," Sasha assured him. "I'm just going to talk to him and we're going to see if we can get him back to his parents."

"…YOU'RE TAKING HIM?!" Sun all but shrieked. The Nanny Bot hurried turned around and wheeled off to comfort some children upset by their caretaker's outburst. "But he didn't do anything wrong!"

"He's not supposed to be in here. We don't even know who he is since you didn't scan him," the worker pointed out. "He needs to go with Mrs. Jeanie where he can be taken care of. He can't stay here."

"No, no, why?! He's fiiiine! It's almost naptime- it's almost snacktime too- it's not anywhere close to pick-up time! Whhyyy would we do something like that?!" Sun rambled out.

He sounded panicked. He stepped a little closer and the worker stepped back and pointed down. "Sun, line. Three feet."

"Oh! Sorry!" He stepped back and returned to his panic. "He's safe here! The daycare is a happy and safe place a-and he should stay here where I can take care of him until his daddy shows up. We shouldn't- it's- it is against the rules to remove him from the daycare without a parent present whose been lifted on his guest profile AND an appropriate pick-up pass. Nope, we don't have neither."

"Sun, get the kid," the worker repeated.

"No! I- I can't! It's against my programming," Sun denied. He crossed his arms defiantly and turned his head away.

The worker's jaw nearly dropped in exasperation at this point. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before sending a pleading look at the two security guards, who proceeded to look at each other. Abe raised his brows, Tommy dropped his shoulders.

"You climb in, and I watch the bottom?" Tommy asked.

"You're shorter than me," Abe reminded.

"You're skinnier," Tommy pointed out.

"You've been in there before," Abe doubled down.

"…Ah, crap. Just make sure the kid don't squeeze out while I'm in there."

"Wait, guys. Let's not do that. I think forcing him out would be too much for him. He's not in trouble, but if we chase him down and drag him out, he's going to think he is," Sasha explained. "I have nowhere to be. Let's just sit down and get comfortable, he'll come out when he's ready. We'll just leave it to Mr. Sun."

Sun gave a startled jolt at the suggestion and looked to her in surprise. Then his points whirled with delight.

"Thank you, Ma'am! I won't let you down!" he chirped. He then skipped back through the doors without another word.

The worker gave a weary look after him and dismissed herself to head back inside, almost running into the Nanny Bot who suddenly skirted through the doorway and came out to seemingly patrol the outer daycare before parking itself nearby unnoticed.

Abe pointed to one of the tables and offered, "Let's sit down."

Tommy was all on-board with this idea. Any excuse to get him away from the desk but not required to do anything more than sit around and chat. He could live with that, especially when it was with a pretty dame.

This came back to bite him very quickly. Because there was a chat going on, but he wasn't part of it. He was sitting at the same dinky little table, but Abe and Sasha were way more invested in each other than to pay even the slightest attention to his occasionally chime ins. Too busy talking about work and Freddy's, and their favorite attractions and classic arcades, and randomly branching into other topics when he couldn't even get a work in edgewise.

Suddenly the security office wasn't looking quite so bad.

"I love Freddy's, but the prices are just… unreasonable. Many of the kids I work with come from situations with a tight budget, so Freddy's isn't realistic in their situation," Sasha was explaining. "So, any group outing would have to be funded by us. We've only reached half of our goal, but the kids are really looking forward to it. Just a nice day to have fun and not have to worry about anything. It's trying to pull it together that's a big job."

"And a big bill," Tommy chimed in.

"Maybe you could talk with Fazbear Entertainment? They're always looking for good PR. If you send a call out to their office, they might work out a deal," Abe suggested.

"You think they would?"

"Sure!"

"Well, money's not the only thing. We would also need some chaperones. Someone who's attentive and good with kids," Sasha explained. She flashed him a smile. "What do you think, would you be up to it?"

"Me?... Sure! It would have to be a day I'm off, but I'd love to."

"Good, because I want to see these racing skills of yours."

Tommy scoffed a little under his breath. He went entirely unnoticed again. This time not even Abe looked over. If Tommy wasn't so secure of a person, he might've been a little offended by this.

"So, what's the deal with this kid?" he asked loudly, purposefully to make it impossible to be ignored and to cut short the grade school level flirtation. "What's the skinny, 'cause we didn't get it."

"Well… It's complicated," Sasha answered vaguely.

"I'm real well-learned," Tommy said with just a tinge of dryness.

"I've seen him do a word search," Abe tacked on. To which Tommy promptly sent him a look so tight that he nearly slouched down into the uncomfortable little seat to avoid it.

"Okay. I can't say much for privacy reasons, but… the boy matches the description of a child we've had issues with in the past," Sasha cautiously explained.

"A real problem child?" Tommy asked.

"No, not that. He's been in and out of the foster care system for most of his life and is a frequent runaway. We usually find him quickly but a few months ago he disappeared, and we couldn't find him. I'm hoping this is him, because if it's not… We need to bring him home."

"I hope it's him then," Abe said. He sobered up quickly, catching onto the seriousness of the situation.

"Me too."

"But if… You know, never mind," Tommy waved off. He was going to ask how a runaway child could get to the Pizzaplex when it sat on a highway, the closest town being St. George, but he then decided this wasn't the time to ask that question.

There were a few quiet moments where they took in the constant noise of the daycare. Sasha heard some thumping and excited voices and looked up at the upper walkway to see a familiar face walking down the way, carefully stepping around and politely greeting the children that had caught up with him from one of the party rooms.

"Is that Freddy?" she asked. Abe looked back and smiled.

"The one the only! In case you didn't notice coming in, those rooms up there are party room where they have birthday parties. You can get your favorite animatronic to deliver the cake and spend a little time with the kids- Uh oh. Tom, he's coming down here."

Tommy's eyes popped open, and he twisted his head to look back over his chair. Sure enough, there was Freddy Fazbear walking up to and beginning to come down the stairs.

"Oh, no dice," he muttered. He shot up from his chair and sprinted over, meeting Freddy at the bottom by just blocking his way. "Freddy, we ain't doin' this again. You just turn around and head right back to your room or wherever."

"Oh! Officer, I was just- I was not planning on disrupting anything," Freddy said. He seemed surprised to be stopped the way his eyes darted around. "I was… simply coming for a visit!"

Tommy gave him an incredulous look. He then sighed and leaned in.

"I know, Freddy, but…" He lowered his voice to a whisper. "I can't have you flirting with the Sun in front of the parents. It weirds them out."

The look on Freddy's face shifted to shock before falling into one downright sad. Tommy wasn't sure how much these robots were able to feel and how much was simulated, but he actually felt a little bad at how hurt he looked.

"Hey, it's not up to me. If it was up to me, I'd let you guys do whatever the heck you want. But I don't want the higher ups cracking down on you and pushing their weight around. Wait til closing, Big Guy," Tommy encouraged.

"I suppose I have no choice," Freddy lamented. His gaze lifted above Tommy towards the daycare, widened momentarily, and shot back down. Then up one more time before returning to Tommy. "I- I should be leaving now."

Getting a hunch, Tommy looked back but didn't see anything. Shrugging it off, he turned back to the bear. "Thanks. Good luck on stage later."

"Thank you. You too… Not on stage, of course, but in doing your assigned position. Have a good afternoon."

Freddy turned and, remarkably, headed off without any arguments. Of course, what did he expect? Freddy was the most docile of the animatronics, the most willing to follow orders without any arguments. It was a breath of fresh air compared to the others.

Tommy returned to the table and sat down. "So, where were we?"

"What happened?" Sasha asked.

"Freddy's been getting a little too chummy with the Sunman and the higher ups have been telling us to knock it off."

"…Wait, what?" Sasha looked utterly aghast. She looked between him and Abe. "So… all of the animatronics are like Sun. They act like real people, not robots."

"Right. They've got some sort of special AI in them. I don't have all the details," Tommy answered. "All's I know is that it's very expensive and it don't matter how many times they try to fix them, the kinks are still there."

"That's… horrifying," Sasha said. Her eyes widening in realization. "So, they act and feel like people, but they're being treated like robots. That's awful. Imagine having someone tell you who you can't see or what you can't do. No wonder Sun was acting so guarded."

"Eh, don't overthink it. At the end of the day, they're just smart robots. Smarter than mosta the guys running the place at least," Tommy said with a shrug.

"See, I don't know about that. When we were talking with Sun, I noticed that he wasn't behaving like you'd expect an animatronic to act. His posture, his mannerisms; he acts like a real person," Sasha explained. "He became nervous, he became defensive- that's not something that can be replicated. The technology doesn't exist."

Tommy tried to stay unphased but a quick glance over to Abe showed a pensive look on his face. Then he really started thinking and it dawned on him that maybe the animatronics did act a little too human.

Then again, it wasn't like he knew what Talbert was putting in these things. With how the higher ups raved about him and everyone kept him hush-hush, he was probably using something dangerously experimental. It would explain the many hiccups.

Sasha was prepared to continue when there was a call from inside the daycare.

"Hey! The kid's up at the front desk!" the worker called over the wall.

Tommy and Abe shot up from their chairs with a "Let's go" and "Be right back" respectively before hustling off to the stairs. They hurried as fast as they could do get to the front desk, but by time they got there they saw only some people and kids sitting in the waiting room and the two workers who were manning the check-in. One of the women pointed towards the entrance.

"He just ran out. Freddy ran after him," she said.

The two bolted out of the daycare to catch up. There were a few more people in the hallway, but no sign of either the boy or Freddy. Abe looked between the possible exits while Tommy's face fell into unenthusiasm.

"You take lobby, I'll take atrium?" Abe asked.

"No point. We lost him," Tommy said. Abe looked to him in disbelief, giving him a questioning shrug. "We'll have to check the cams," he clarified.

Abe couldn't argue with that. "Maybe one of us should start patrolling and the other should head back to the security office and radio in when they see him. Give us a bird's eye view."

"Now that's a faz-tastic idea, Ace! You head back and radio when you spot him," Tommy agreed.

He wasn't expecting that level of enthusiasm, nor for him to leap onto that specific role. Tommy never wanted to do patrols, and in this specific instance Abe didn't want to get cooped back up behind the screens.

"Great, but I was, umm… Thinking maybe you'd want to watch the cams and I could look around."

"I don't think so." Tommy sent him a slow, sly side-eye. "You'll get distracted."

He was onto him. Abe clammed up instantly. Noticing that sudden meekness, and the look on his face, Tommy gave him a faux-sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

"But first, let's go see Miss Pants. Bring her up to speed."

Abe nodded and the two headed back into the daycare. By time they returned, everyone was staring at them. Tommy returned them a weary look as he approached the check-in and addressed the worker who had directed them a few minutes beforehand.

"So, what happened? Did he come up the slide?" he asked, leaning on his elbow on the counter.

"He did. I almost didn't see him. Freddy was greeting some kids right by the gate when he climbed out and then he made a run for it."

Tommy blew through his lips before shooting her a lazy grin. "If he comes back, just call it in. The sooner we find this kid-."

All of a sudden, the lights grew dim. The music was quieted with owl hooting and cricket chirping effects. The cloud decals were retracted and the neon lights on the wall began to glow. Naptime had begun.

"…The sooner I can get far, far away from this daycare," Tommy finished. His smile dropping.

He dragged himself off the check-in counter and started making his way to the gate. He was almost there when Abe grabbed him by the shoulder and yanked him back. He almost questioned it, but at the same time he noticed nearby jingling and looked over to see the dreaded sight of red eyes peering out of the daycare slide. Moon rolled out of the slide and up onto his feet.

"Naptime hasss begun," he hissed lowly. His faceplate twitching and his grin especially wicked. "I sssuggessst you two go."

"We're on our way out, Moon. Just have to drop in and tell the little lady that the kid took off," Tommy tried to casually brush off. He hooked an arm around Abe's shoulders, yanking him down in the process, and all but dragged him through the gate.

"You should forget about chasing that boy. I will find him myself as soon as the daycare is closed," Moon promised. His ticking and clicking rumbling in his chest. "Naughty children will. Be. Found."

"We would, Moon, but Sun already had a little trouble getting ahold of him."

"Forget Sun. I will get him myself."

With that, Moon spun on his heel- his head staying trained on them as he did- and he hopped down the slide feet first. The red glare of his optics trained on them until he disappeared down the slide.

"…We supposed to forget that the second he walks outta here he's back to Sun?" Tommy asked. Clearly unamused by the display, but not about to provoke Moon any further. He beckoned Abe to follow. "Let's go. In and out."

At they walked down to the stairs, Abe looked out towards the playground below them. Sun must've moved quickly because the naptime knapsacks were already laid out in neat rows. All out in the open where they could be easily watched by their caretaker. Some of the children had willingly got into them already- likely not out of obedience or tiredness, but because they were too afraid to invoke Moon's wraith. Both kids and adults were terrified of Moon.

Well, except one little boy who had been waving and yelling, "Hi Moon! Hi!" since the moment he came down the slide. Moon made his way over to the boy and picked him up, proceeding to then stalk around and get things together with the child on his hip.

They found Sasha close to the table where they had been sitting at, but instead of still sitting there she was standing at the wall peering in at the daycare. Watching as Moon did his little rounds and put the children to bed. She turned to Abe and Tommy as they walked up.

"We lost sight of him. We're going to have to head back up to the security office. Or, one of us is, and the other's going to keep looking," Abe explained. Barely making an effort to hide his disappointment, Tommy thought.

Sasha disappointment stemmed more from losing sight of the boy. "That's a good plan. I guess I'm going to be sticking around here for a while if you find him. And if you do find him, try to be patient with him."

"Don't worry about it! We've seen much worse than this kid, lemme tell you that," Tommy remarked. "I'll swing by and drop him off when we find him."

"Thank you," Sasha said with a smile. She then turned to Abe, "I hope this isn't too presumptuous of me-."

"No," Abe prematurely cut her off. She looked amused and his face heated in embarrassment. "I mean, go ahead."

"Since we just met and you might be a chaperone, we should get to know each other better. Just to make sure you're up to it. Would you like to have dinner sometime?" Sasha offered.

Abe's heart leapt into his throat. "Yes! I'd love to. Could I have your…?" He cut off as she began to dig into her purse and soon presented him with a business card. He accepted it gratefully. "Maybe we could get together this weekend…?"

"I'd love to," Sasha agreed.

All the while Tommy witnessed this scene with a tight line of a mouth and a glazed look that resembled the one he had while sitting there watching the two flirt at the table. It was a look he kept even as they were walking out of the daycare. He remained silent until they were far enough away that he doubted anyone in that daycare would be around to hear, and then he spoke up.

"You're really into that broad, huh?" Tommy asked.

Abe noticed the weird doubtful tone in his voice. "What do you mean?"

"I mean how chummy you two were getting."

"We just met?"

"I know. That's why it's weird you two were crawling all over each other." He aimed a slightly smug smile towards his partner.

Abe couldn't help but notice how odd Tommy was being about the whole thing. Specifically, him bringing it up this long after they walked away. Before he had been too distracted with her, and her with him, to even notice if Tommy was acting off at all. Though now he wasn't, and he was. He had a quick revelation.

"Are you… jealous?"

All of the color drained out of Tommy's face, and he snapped his head fully towards him. "What're you saying?" he asked defensively.

"…Not that! I meant jealous of me! Asking her out!"

"First of all, she asked you out. Second of all, if I wanted a girl that bad, I could pick one up on my own. And I'd look for one who wasn't such a big Freddy's fan. I already spend too much time down here," Tommy quickly corrected, clearly offended.

"Right, sorry," Abe said, flustered.

"Try to not get a big head 'cause you asked a girl out," Tommy continued, shoving his hands into his pockets. Apparently, Abe had hit a raw nerve in his rather innocent question.

"I'm not." Seeing that Tommy very much was offended, Abe decided that maybe a little honesty might help smooth over the situation. "The truth is, it's my first time."

"…It's what?"

"Asking someone out. Or them asking me out. This is my first time."

Tommy was utterly floored. As gawky as Abe was, he wasn't a teenager. Though he acted like a rookie, they were virtually the same age, and this wasn't either's first job. To hear that this serendipitous meeting and slapdash flirtation was a first-time thing was baffling.

"Never?"

"I just never had time."

"Never?"

"Or the nerve…"

It took a few more seconds before that look of shock was replaced with a sly grin. Abe's face burned with embarrassment even before an arm was thrown around his shoulders.

"Okay, that almost makes up for the fact that you two were snubbing me this whole time," Tommy said cheekily. "Tell ya what, let's go get some tacos."

"Weren't we supposed to be doing something?" Abe asked rhetorically.

"The kid's not going anywhere fast. Come on, I'll buy you lunch."

That offer was quick to shut Abe up.

Soon enough, Abe found him seated at another table though now in the atrium. Since they were skimping on their job it seemed fair to at least try to watch the atrium while they were doing so. Just in case the kid wandered back through. He had to eventually.

But Abe was more than a little distracted. Now that he was alone and listening to the drone of music and voices, he found his thoughts starting to wander. To the lovely lady actually willing to give him a chance, to this possible date. He had been squirreling away money, so he had enough money for a good date. A good date.

But what if she wanted to do more than dinner? What if she wanted to swing by the Pizzaplex and try out some of the amenities? His employee discount wouldn't get far in this place. Though even that was short-term thinking. If it went really well and they started going steady she would eventually notice something odd. She might even ask to go to his apartment. Be honest and risk losing a her already or hide it and lose her later; lose-lose.

Abe pulled out of his thoughts as Tommy dropped a heavy bag of tacos onto the table and took a seat. He fished out a taco and began to unpeel the wrapping off it, with Abe following suit and dipping into the bag.

"Okay, so the first thing you've gotta know about women-."

"Why did you get so many tacos?" Abe asked.

"'Cause I'm hungry and you're scrawny. Plus, employee discount. Half off if I eat day old stuff."

As unappealing as likely left out day-old tacos were, beggars couldn't be choosers. A bite into one showed it tasted about the same is normal.

"First thing's first, there's no one trick to women. Every chick's different and you've gotta keep an eye out for what they're into or you're gonna blow it before you know if you two'd make a good match. Ya pretty much get one mess up during your first date. One mistake that you can make up for. Any more than that and ya done for. At least, that's the way I see it. And remember this: 'You look great'," Tommy emphasized.

"Thanks."

"No, not you. Her. Ya tell her she looks great and you see how she takes it. She's not into it? Cut the compliments. She is into it? Throw a few in later on. Not all together, then it'll sound phony."

"Do you date a lot?" Abe ventured to ask. Not doubtfully, just curiously, as Tommy sounded like he had experience.

"I make my way around. Hear things, see things, get a good vibe going."

As confident as he sounded, Abe noticed that the wording sounded like a no.

"Trust me, I know what I'm talking about," Tommy waved off. "So, got any ideas where you're taking her?"

Abe had been thinking about it when he got sidetracked by price. "What do you think… if I brought her here? To play games and get dinner."

Tommy got an amused smile. "I think that's a mistake waiting to happen."

"Oh…"

"This ain't exactly a date site- Oh, hello." Tommy had stolen a look around to emphasize his point only to lock his eyes onto something and not let up. His grin shifted. "Look at that fox. Over there, standing outside Gator Golf."

Abe turned back to look and saw the woman in question once a family passed by. Normally it would've been easy to lose anyone in the constant churning crowd, but she stood out. From her red hair pulled back into a neat ponytail to her little yellow dress, dotted in an especially soft yellow print and with a matching pair of strappy yellow pumps. She looked too dressed up to be hanging around in an indoor amusement park.

"The one in the yellow dress?"

"That's her," Tommy confirmed.

Seeing and hearing his interest, Abe very nearly suggested he go talk to her. Only to catch himself at the last second when he noticed- "It looks like she's waiting for someone."

"Maybe a date," Tommy offered. He mulled over what he was going to do for a few seconds before getting up. "I'm gonna see if she wants some company."

Abe gave him a thumbs up and bit into a slightly soft hard taco. It tasted like he wasn't going to have hunger pangs this afternoon but could possibly have cramps tonight.

Tommy strode up to the woman with a welcoming smile. She had been looking in the doorway at the entrance to Monty Golf, so she didn't notice him until he was all but standing alongside her.

"Excuse me, Ma'am. I just happened to notice you standing over here and was wonderin' if you needed some assistance," he began politely.

She looked to him in surprise before returning the friendly smile with one of her own, framed in glossy pink lip balm.

"Oh, I'm not lost if that's what you're thinking! I'm just waiting for somebody," she replied in a peppy tone.

"Boyfriend?" he asked.

"No, no. Just a friend," she quickly denied with a wave of her hands. It was cute, and that amount of denial seemed to suggest that there wasn't a boyfriend in the picture.

"Gotcha! Didn't mean to snoop," Tommy replied. "But since I've gotten this far, first time here?"

"No, but it's all still new to me. I'm surprised that I'm not getting lost in here. There's just so much stuff going on," she said. She took note of his uniform and then asked, "So, you're the daytime security guard! Do you know Vanessa?"

"As a matter of fact, I do."

"Me too! She's pretty much my best friend," she said.

Now that was a lucky break. That could very well mean guaranteed future visits. This was perfect. He hoped Abe was watching.

"Really? Small world! Sweet gal. Too good for this place," he joked with a wink. He stuck out a hand. "Name's Tommy."

"I'm Louise. Nice to meet you!" Louise eagerly shook his hand without any hesitation. "It must be incredible to work in a place like this."

It wasn't, but he wasn't about to say something that negative when trying to land a good first impression. So, he chatted about Fazer Blast, since that was the one attraction he could really say a lot of positive things about without really forcing it. Apparently, she was familiar with the attractions, having swung by with Vanessa at some point. Why Vanessa would willingly come back to hang out was beyond his comprehension. Maybe seeing it with the lights off tempted her to hang out with the lights on.

But that aside, the two were having a downright quaint conversation. He inched ever closer to the eventual suggestion of them hanging out. He was even going to use Abe's idea and offer to show her around and hang out here. An easy way to secure a first date.

But then, right when he was about to go in for the kill, he heard the footsteps. He thought it was Freddy coming through at first, maybe to interrupt what he was doing to update him on the kid. Except no, they were coming from the entrance to Monty Golf, and a quick glance over revealed a familiar gator strutting out into the golf lobby. Tommy shrugged it off and turned his attention back to Louise, who had also noticed Monty's appearance and gave a friendly wave.

Tommy only had a second to process that it was going to draw him over before Monty walked right up and stood over them.

He didn't have any issue with Monty. He knew he had a temper, but he hadn't seen it for himself. So, he wasn't usually intimidated by him. Usually. Though right now Monty was acting rather unusually. Maybe Tommy was imagining it, but Monty seemed to be staring him down through his sunglasses.

"What's up?" he asked gruffly.

"Yeesh, I could ask the same thing!" Tommy thought. Though before he could answer, Louise spoke up.

"Oh, wow! You're Monty Gator! You won't believe this, but…" She brandished a pass with the gator's face on it. Tommy hadn't even seen her get it out. "I've got a meet and greet with you," she said with a wink.

"Ain't that somethin'. I've got some time free, let's get to it," Monty said. Something that got Tommy to double-take as he knew for a fact Monty wasn't usually that cooperative.

"I'm all yours!" Louise agreed eagerly. She looked back to Tommy and gave him another pretty smile. "It was really nice to meet you, Tommy."

"Yeah, you too…" Tommy said in disbelief. He watched as she started to head off with the animatronic. "See you around?" he called after them.

"Sure. Look all ya want," Monty chuffed back. He clasped his hands above his head and posed like a bodybuilder flexing his muscles. That is, the muscles alluded to by the curves of his casing.

This got a goofy little giggle out of Louise, and she waved back to Tommy. "See you later! I'll tell Vanessa you said hi!"

With that, Tommy had lost her. Not to a friend or possible boyfriend, but to one of the animatronics. Not just any of the animatronics either, but the one who he couldn't reasonably follow after because he was eyeing him since the second he walked up.

"Just beautiful," Tommy mumbled. Worse still, a look back at the table showed that Abe had seen the whole thing, regardless of how he snapped his head away. How embarrassing. He sighed and started to meander over.

So, what about this friend of hers? Monty couldn't have been that friend, it sounded like they only just met. From the nice clothes to the meet and greet- and photo- pass, Tommy realized that she must've dressed up nice to come get a picture with Monty Gator. She just said she was meeting someone because she was embarrassed to say she came to get a picture with an animatronic, more than likely.

That raised his chances and for a second he perked back up, only to deflate quickly afterwards. He hadn't gotten her information at all. Sure, he could made approach Vanessa about it- surely her number was on record- but that might come off a little too strong. So, unless they just happened to show up in the same general area again, he just lost his one chance to make a move. Maybe Vanessa would put in a good word for him, even though she barely knew him. Maybe.

He made his way back to the table and plopped down in his chair.

"Where were we?" he muttered.

"You were giving me advice on how to pick up women," Abe said.

Tommy leered at him for a long moment before sighing and pulling down his security cap.

"…Just take her to the movies."

…

It was weird to see the Pizzaplex so quiet after how loud and active it had been earlier. Though then again, that was partially because she was hiding out in a bathroom, listening to the automated messages playing overhead. First warning that the Pizzaplex would close soon, then telling all guests to leave and wishing them a good night, then reminding them to leave, then reminding them again, and for a while since then it had been quiet.

Louise turned on her cell phone to check the time and saw that it was a little after eleven o'clock. Time for her to leave the bathroom. She placed it back in her purse, quickly fluffed her hair in the mirror and smoothed down her dress, and then quietly snuck out of the bathroom. She pushed the door open a crack and peeked around outside to see that nobody was around. She took a deep breath and stepped out.

There was plenty of time for her to still walk out the door before it sealed up. Even if she didn't and she was stuck in here, Natalie would help her out. She would just have to pretend she didn't know her. Admittedly, if Natalie ended up catching her in here afterhours she would know exactly why she was here, and in that case Louise wished she didn't know her.

She came down the hallway and stepped out into Monty Golf. Even though closed, the lights and music were all on, so there wasn't the eerie feeling she was suspecting. She was still losing her nerve even as she stood there, yet she made her way through the golf course.

"Over here, Little Lady," a familiar voice called across the golf course. Boomed more like, even though the words weren't forceful. Both a mix of trepidation and excitement flittered in her stomach as she hurried over to find Monty waiting by the stairs. "The coast's clear."

"Good, I would hate having to explain why I spent thirty minutes camped out in the bathroom," Louise said. That roused a laugh out of him. She could nearly feel the rumble through her own chest, along with a swell of giddiness. Though she kept a clear head. "But the doors don't actually lock until midnight," she half-clarified and half-questioned.

"Nah, we've got plenty of time. Even if we didn't, there's more than one way out of here," Monty assured her. He offered his arm. "Come on. I've got something to show ya."

She took his arm and the two began to make their way through the Pizzaplex. It was like a whole different experience walking around in the dimly lit building without the constant drone of crowds. Instead, the ambience music playing overhead was now clearly audible.

Monty's casing was warm. She had noticed already, but she especially noticed it now. The warmth felt more akin to what she would expect from a human. It was more assuring in a way she couldn't put her finger on.

It wasn't long before she was led up to the loading platform for a coaster. The alligator shaped carts gave away exactly which track it was.

"Oh, this is where the coaster is! I always wondered where it was," Louise remarked. "Why isn't it in the golf course? Because of the risk of getting hit with a stray ball?"

"Never stopped 'em before. Nah, it's all about building structure… What there is of one." He muttered the last part with an adjust of his sunglasses. "Wanna live dangerously?"

"And go for a ride on a gator? Sure! But aren't you going to get bored sitting around waiting for me?" Louise asked.

She was answered with a low chuckle.

Her brows raised and her interest piqued. "Apparently not. Got a plan?"

"Y'know, they're always tellin' me to get more up close an' personal with the guests," Monty said coyly. He drew back his arm with a cocky glint to his grin- or that's what she read the expression as- and began to stride over to the nearest cart docked at the station.

"Wait a minute," Louise tried to interject. She knew what he was about to do. "Whoa, hold up! I don't know if that's-!"

Monty stepped a foot into the gator cart.

"You're a pretty big guy!"

He started to lean in. The cart groaned a little and swayed almost ominously.

"Weight limit!"

"Relax, Cher. I've ridden on one of these before," Monty brushed off. He then all but fell into the seat, barely. The cart rocked as he readjusted, having to hang one leg off to the right and bending the left, resting his foot on the security rail just alongside the mounted ball shooter. He rested an arm across the back of the seats- bent to fit- and looked at her over crooked sunglasses. "Whaddya say, Little Lady?"

Louise's better judgement said that this was an accident waiting to happen, but somehow it was still a tempting offer. Up close and personal would be a major understatement too. After mulling it over for a short bit, she made her decision.

"…Well, I don't weigh that much…"

"Atta girl. See that panel over there? Press the stop button and then hop on in."

"Okay… Did you say the stop button?"

"Yeah."

There was definitely something off with how things were run around here. Regardless, she pressed the butter and heard a beep signaling that the ride had responded. She then hustled over and climbed into the cart. The fear of being half on the ride when it started to move outweighing the fact that she had to hastily squeeze herself in beside him. it was much, much closer than even taking photos together. She wondered if he had been planning on that.

Monty lifted his leg to pull the safety bar back into place. This made Louise feel much more secure, though Monty looked slightly more twisted up trying to take care not to put weight on said bar. Or perhaps was trying to maneuver around his tail. He had to lean more over her, arm behind her seat and over her shoulder. She didn't mind one bit, flashing him an excited but slightly nervous smile.

There was another loud beep and the cart started jolted and started to move. Slowly winding its way into the darkness of the track.

It became clear rather quickly that the coaster was actually a dark ride. It steadily moved into the darkness, alit by dozens of tiny lights like fireflies hanging in the air. It was charming. Though something about the darkness made her unusually wary- likely the midnight deadline getting to her, she knew this building wasn't safe- and she found herself slinking closer to that warm casing. Monty moved his hand onto her shoulder.

The darkness was broken up by an illuminated Monty's Gator Golf sign. After another corner dotted in the firefly lights, they rolled up on a scene of a young, scruffy, cartoon Monty standing beside a fake campfire and before a sign that read 'Monty's One Man Jug Band'.

"Aww, cute! Are these your humble beginnings?" Louise asked playfully.

"Nah, it's all made up," Monty brushed off. "Don't let 'em fool you. I've always been this cool."

"Oh? So where do you really come from, Mister Gator? I've just gotta know," she said, clasping her hands together pleadingly.

"Since ya asked so nicely, I can let ya in on a little secret. I come from a magical place down under," Monty introduced with a grandiose wave. "They call it… the basement."

She gave him an unenthused look, her lips pursed.

"Ah never said it was glamorous," he quipped.

"Sure, but what kind of magic are we talking about? Like, the miracle of birth or leprechauns?" Louise retorted. He gave her a blank look and she returned with a teasing little grin.

"More like a miracle I got outta there. The place is a dump."

"…Oh right. Vanessa told me about the weird thing with the trash in the basement," Louise said. This got a chuckle out of Monty.

Louise looked up at a cutout of the Glamrock band and her eyes widened at an unfamiliar rabbit replacing Monty in the band. He kept his eyes on her, not daring to spare even a look at the characters.

"So, what's yer story?" he asked.

"I told you, I live with my crazy mother," Louise said.

"Ya gotta bring her by. I gotta see this woman."

Louise blew him off with a 'pshh' and a dismissive little brush of her fingers.

"Naw, come on. There's gotta be somethin' more," he pressed. "Ya got a history with Freddy's?"

"To tell you the truth, I hadn't even heard of Freddy's until a couple of years ago. We moved here to get closer to family and there weren't Freddys here by time we showed up," she explained. She tapped her nails on the security bar thoughtfully. He tapped his claws rhythmically on her shoulder. She gripped the bar in resolution and asked, "What do you think about, umm… competition?"

"I think that security guy ain't got a chance, but sure, he can try," Monty replied.

"No, not that kind of competition. What kind of girl do you take me for?" Louise asked. Though her small smile gave away that she was more amused than anything. "I meant like business competition."

"Not much. Ain't my place to worry about it."

"Okay, well… I work over at Foxy's."

"Foxy's?"

"The pizza place- but before you think I'm over here spying or anything, I'm not. I just like hanging out with you."

That got another one of those contented rumbles out of him. She wasn't sure if it was coming from a speaker or what, but she could feel the vibration through his arm. If he was going to have any reaction to her working for a competitor, that quickly smoothed it over.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Darlin'. I know yer not," he affirmed. He didn't even sound surprised. "I was just tryin' to figure out…" he trailed off distantly. She waited for him to continue, but he didn't.

His eyes caught on a cutout of Montgomery Gator posed rocking out on stage and for a split second he forgot who he was. He felt like an imposter in a suit.

"Figure out…?" she coaxed.

"Huh?"

"What?"

Monty shook his head as though snapping out of a daze and adjusted his sunglasses accordingly.

"Ya know, kids love us. Adults ain't so keen on getting close. 'Specially not this close," he said. The way he worded it could've given the impression that the comment came completely out the blue, but she realized what he was asking her.

"Oh! Because I'm not- Because even though you're, uh… That didn't sound right. You know what I mean. It doesn't bother me."

"I don't get why it don't," Monty said. "Not that it bothers me none. I don't mind having a gator groupie." He lowered his shades and winked.

Louise guffawed. "I am NOT a groupie."

"I don't know. You get real giggly sometimes."

"That's just because I'm ticklish and you can't keep your hands off me," Louise flirted back.

Monty snorted a little. Subconsciously or not, he moved his hand back from her shoulder onto the seat. She reached back and put it right back on her shoulder.

"It doesn't bother me," she said more insistently. "It's a little different, but I'm not worried about that. I'm way more worried about getting caught and arrested. Or worse, Vanessa finding out. She wouldn't let me live that down."

"Ah won't tell if you won't," Monty promised. He then, rather boldly, pulled her in a little closer. Her heart stuttered at the encapsulating heat- "Ya better hold on. We're about to pick up speed 'til we get to the targets."

Louise looked ahead. They were coming out of a tunnel and into a large room that might've been over the golf course.

"I don't see a drop. Is it around the… corner?!"

Louise's question was cut off by the cart suddenly picking up speed as it chugged down the course, zooming around and making its way to the aligned targets. All the while swaying in a way it probably shouldn't have from the unexpectedly heavy weight load. She grabbed onto him for dear life and he soaked up every moment as he held the safety bar and hoped to anything listening that the cart didn't tilt enough to roll him out of it.

As far as he was concerned, it was worth the risk of breaking a couple of legs to live for a little while. For as long as she stuck around.

Such was the life of a real rockstar, he supposed.

Chapter 70

Chapter Summary

Moon has some unexpectedly good news for Freddy. Meanwhile, Foxy and Jeremy arrive at the Pizzaplex on a mission and meet Beelora... with some unexpected results.

It wasn't long after midnight when Sunny let himself into Freddy's greenroom. Initially he found it empty, though he did notice that the arcade cabinet was running, with the Freddy on screen hitting a pothole and losing a life right after he walked in.

"Helloooo?" he called inside.

Suddenly Gregory darted out from his hiding spot between the couch and the window's curtains. He bolted over to the cabinet and quickly grabbed onto the controls, rescuing the virtual Freddy from another death, and continuing to play.

"Hey. I thought you were somebody else coming in," Gregory explained. Something that Sunny could've figured out on his own.

"Sorry to scare you, Sunspot! We should have a secret- oh, oh! We should have a secret knock! I could tap, tap, tap on the window and you'll know it's me," he offered.

"That might work," the boy agreed. Though it was clear that he was very focused on his game and only half paying attention.

The Daycare Attendant was far from offended. After what happened today, he would have to be pretty petty to be offended by something so small. Today had been a total disaster. Just thinking about it made his points twitch down like the wilting petals of a flower.

"Umm… Gregory, a-about those people who came in today… I'm sorry," he quietly apologized.

"Why are you sorry? It wasn't your fault."

"No, but the daycare is supposed to be a safe place, and it wasn't today. We had to break so many rules just to get you away from them," Sunny pointed out. He tapped his fingers together nervously. "Do you want to talk about it-?"

"No. It's nothing, they're just mad because I got in without a pass," Gregory said quickly, defensively.

"Well, I'm still sorry. We missed out on all the fun we could've had… Oh, I have another idea! Why don't we have a true-blue slumber party? We can play games and eat snacks- oh, and we can even watch a movie in the theater! Aaaand because the daycare will be closed, I'll be all yours! Oh, it could be so much fun~! Whatcha say, Sunspot?" Sunny gushed excitedly. Clasping his hands together and waiting expectantly for an answer.

Gregory knew exactly what a sleepover with Sunny would entail. Probably a lot of kiddie games, if he didn't just break out the hand puppets, juice boxes and those little rainbow marshmallows he always handed out at snack time. The movie was probably going to be something for little kids too, and without the other kids present, all of Sunny's attention was going to be totally on him. Sunny was going to be fully attentive on him just like when Moon was tucking him in-.

"Yeah, okay," Gregory agreed. Not half-listening as he had been earlier but fully agreeing. "But not tonight. I want to hang out with Freddy. And you, if you want to stick around."

"Oh, I would LOVE to!" Sunny replied with an excited spin of his points. He tilted his head. "Where is Freddy? Charging?"

"Yup."

That made sense. The next designated charging- a short charging during the hourly recharge- was nearly an hour away. Freddy was probably exhausted from the worry of the day and needed a quick boost before whatever the evening invited.

"Then I'll just leave him to it and keep you company. Can I watch you play?" Sunny asked.

"Sure, come on over here," Gregory invited.

Sunny shuffled over and was soon watching the screen alongside him. Gregory didn't notice that it no longer felt weird to stand this close to Sun, to let his guard down around him, but Sunny definitely did. He kept it to himself, waving his points happily.

…

Freddy stepped out of his recharge station eager to get back to Gregory. He didn't like leaving him alone for even a moment at night, but this charge would likely last him through the next few hours, so it was needed.

What he didn't expect was to step out and turn his head to find Moon waiting for him. He was perched on a short stack of carboard boxes and hopped down to greet him. Freddy brightened up at the sight of him.

"Moonlight, what a delightful surprise!" Freddy greeted warmly. "I hope you have not been waiting long."

"I've been with Gregory, watching him play SSStreetsssskate," Moon answered. He gave a dismissive flick of the wrist. "But that's not important. If I may have a moment of your time in private…" He stepped in quite close. Freddy leaned in as well but was rewarded with a boop on the nose to show that wasn't the intention. "A little birdie told me something verrry interesting," Moon clarified.

Freddy's eyes went wide. "Chica?!"

"Erm, no. Jake," Moon almost awkwardly corrected. He recovered quickly. "He said that the woman who was here, the social worker, said something very interesting about a little boy who went missing."

At the comment about a missing child, a boy nonetheless, Freddy quietly gasped.

"Did she mean Gregory?" he whispered.

"She did not say, but she said a little boy, a chronic runaway, went missing a few months ago."

"It IS Gregory. It must be," Freddy gasped again. "How could it take his parents this long to notice he was missing? Shame on them! I feel much less guilty about keeping him here."

"Oh no. You see, Freddy, if this IS Gregory, then he has been moved from foster home to foster home," Moon explained. "Which means he may be an orphan, he may have been removed from his home, but regardless, it means that there are no parents. He has none."

Freddy's heart clenched. He knew there was a chance that perhaps Gregory didn't have parents, but it was so sad to think that he didn't have them. "That is terrible…"

"No, Freddy. That is wonderful. For us." Moon eagerly giggled and clasped his hands together. "Because it means, Freddybear, that Gregory does not have parents to return to. He does not have a home."

"That is…" Freddy was interrupted by a finger pressed to his lips.

"Perfect," Moon corrected. "Because now our conscience is clean. There is no moral obligation to return him, Freddy. WE can keep him ourselves. You." He tapped the bear's cheek. "Can be his father."

The words alone unfurled something in Freddy's chest. Something of warmth and hope, as though a weight had been taken off it. That the worry of Gregory being taken away was suddenly vacated. Though his better judgement soon caught up with him.

"I… That would be… I cannot assume that role without Gregory's agreement," Freddy said. "He must have been moved from home to home without his say. That must be terrifying for a child. I cannot simply label myself his parent unless he wants me to be."

"Freddy, if I may direct your attention to his bedroom directly to your right," Moon replied with a guiding hand in that direction. "Along with the clothes and food and toys you have given him. But that is not why he stays. Gregory could have chosen to stay in the daycare. He chose you," he explained. His voice then lightened considerably. "But I find your concerns… very charming. Always the most caring."

"But if I push Gregory…"

"We don't need to push him. We don't need to do anything, except no longer worry about a couple of parents who are not in the picture."

Freddy thought about this for a long moment. Then he lifted his head as he took notice of something.

"You said that we could keep him. As in you and I. Does that mean you too want to be his parent?"

"Me providing basic child caretaking is a far cry from me being his parent. Besides, he has made it very clear how he feels about me, ugh, 'mothering' him," Moon remarked. His hands planting defiantly on his hips.

But Freddy wasn't convinced. He said as much with a mock gasp.

"I think- I- I think you might… LIKE Gregory! That you want to also, gasp, adopt him!"

"Not so loud! He'll hear you and get the wrong idea," Moon fussed in a very Sun-like way. Though he recovered enough to add, "Tch, and don't patronize me, Freddy."

"I am not. I think you would be an excellent mother," Freddy replied cheekily.

"Freddy- my dear, sweet, silly bear- I know where your center of gravity is. Don't make me sweep you off your feet," Moon replied coyly. A very flimsy and properly inaccurate threat. "In any case, I am more… like an uncle. Sun and I both."

"Moonlight, if I am the father and you are the uncle, then I fear we have a very inappropriate relationship," Freddy said.

The deadpanned delivery caught Moon off guard. So much so that he choked and then broke into a fit of laughter. Not exaggerated giggling or maniacal snickering, but true laughter that shook through his body and made him rattle.

Freddy could've beamed at the reaction, elation building in his chest. He laughed as well and then, while Moon was defenseless, he scooped him into a hug. The jester having to stand on tiptoes to stay on his feet but after a moment to recover, wrapped his long arms around the bear's shoulders. Resting his forehead on his shoulder as his laughter died down to snickers.

"This is why we can't have a serious conversation," Moon pointed out. Freddy chuckled again and bumped his mouth to the side of Moon's head, sort of like a kiss but not nearly direct enough to be considered one. It still got a shudder out of the Daycare Attendant.

They stood like that for a minute more and then Moon went to pull back, but Freddy's arms were locked in place. He was almost surprised when they didn't give. He gave Freddy little tap on the shoulder, expecting that he had just gotten lost in the moment.

Freddy hugged him tighter. Suddenly the silence from the bear seemed much less comfortable.

"Freddy?" Moon asked.

"Oh Moony…"

Freddy's voice had become somber once again. No, not just somber, sad. He was upset about something. Moon didn't like hearing such a tone in Freddy's voice. Practically trapped in the bear's grip, he bent his arm to rub over his shoulder pad.

"What is the matter? It can't be about Gregory, no, no. You know he's not going anywhere," he coaxed.

"No, it is not that. I just…" Freddy sighed. "Somebody said something earlier that upset me. I just thought about it again."

"What was it?"

"I… do not wish to say."

"It was what that fake nightguard said, isn't it? About how we are disturbing the guests?" Moon guessed.

Freddy's silence answered his question for him. Moon easily twisted himself back enough that he could face him and reached to pat him on the cheek.

"Freddyyy, who cares what they say?" he lulled soothingly.

"I do…" Freddy meekly answered.

Moon didn't consider himself a weak person, nor an especially sentimental one. Yet something about how timid that baritone voice could sound was enough to break his heart. Or at least cause a few cracks.

"Oh, Freddybear," Moon soothed. Both hands coming up to cup and pet at his face. Tracing over his ears and the back of his head, as though trying to use his fingers to chase out all the bad thoughts. Freddy moved his own hands to loyally rest on Moon's middle.

"I… do not understand why they are uncomfortable with us," he softly admitted.

"It's not us, Freddy. It's me."

"That is even worse! If it was simply that they do not condone overly affectionate gestures in the daycare, as to not confuse small children, then that would be one thing. The idea that it is because of my image or their unfair biases against you… it hurts."

Moon should've expected this from Freddy and yet somehow the passionate plea still took him off-guard. Freddy had pulled him in as well and now they were chest to chest, but it was clear from the dismay on his face that he was too distracted by this to notice. Not like Moon did, feeling his ticking starting to increase as the heat spread through his inner mechanisms. It wasn't just from the position, he realized quickly. It was that defiance. It was that concern in his voice.

Freddy believed it, didn't he? He truly believed everything. That he was wrongly misjudged. That there was nothing wrong with how he acted or how he looked. The fact that he believed it with so much conviction made Moon almost feel like it could be true.

Save the fact that Moon knew that he was the reason Freddy had to go through this.

He didn't care what people thought of him. He was used to them always thinking the worse, and he lived up to those expectations. Yet somehow Freddy had him feeling small and meek, but not in a helpless sort of way. Moon snapped out of his reverie.

"It doesn't bother me if it is any consolation. I hear what they say, and I don't care what they think. All I care about is keeping you and that little brat safe," Moon assured him.

Freddy wasn't exactly content with this answer, but Moon had a way of catching his gaze and keeping his attention fully on him without any hypnosis necessary.

"Let's go give you a distraction, hmm? We have a long night ahead of us," Moon promised. At that, Freddy's eyes brightened up.

"Indeed, we do. Foxy is coming by!"

"Oh," Moon said. His voice deflating.

"What? You like Foxy!"

"I enjoy Fizzy Faz too, but that doesn't mean I drink it every night. Mostly because of the clean up, clean up it requires afterwards," Moon returned.

"Ah. Well, I will be the one cleaning up tonight. I promise, Fazbear's honor!" Freddy promised. He even lifted his hand to give a two-finger salute. "I will do everything in my power to keep tonight lowkey and filled with as much faz-tastic fun as one can fit into a night!"

"Didn't you have band practice?" Moon asked.

"…I do not believe I do," Freddy answered. But he also didn't think Moon spawned that out of the blue. He recalled that he discussed practice with his bandmates one of these nights, but surely it was not tonight. He rubbed at his chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps we did… But Roxy would have wanted to start by now, and I have not seen her all evening."

"Hmm…" Moon tapped on his own cheek. His face jittering a little under the motions. "True."

"Sooo… There is no problem! We can take a raincheck until tomorrow, when I do not have to be a good host."

"Oh? Who's coming over tomorrow, the clown?" Moon asked dryly.

This roused another rumble of a chuckle from the bear. So enticing, so endearing, so much so that Moon barely caught himself from falling back into the trap that was Freddy Fazbear. They had already stayed back here long enough; Gregory was waiting.

"Come along," he beckoned. He turned to leave the backroom when Freddy stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait," he said. He turned Moon towards him by the shoulder. His eyes softened once more, still glowing in the dim light of the backroom. "I just want you to know that… they are wrong. You are an excellent caretaker and performer, and you deserve better than to be misjudged… and we deserve better than to be treated like our feelings do not matter," he murmured. He looked away almost longingly before righting himself again. "That is all I needed to say. I will not keep us any longer."

"That's not all that's bothering you," Moon realized.

"I have a lot on my mind… but we should spend what time we have with Gregory before his bedtime. We owe it to him after the day he had to endure."

"Him? He wasn't the one with troublemakers parked outside their daycare all day," Moon tsked. "And I can't stand the girl they have manning the daycare desk now. She hates me and not in a funny way."

Freddy didn't like the sound of that. Protectiveness swelled in his chest, and he spoke before he thought, "I could… Perhaps I could talk to someone about getting her a position elsewhere?"

"Oh, would you? That would be wonderful!" Moon gushed. He bent over backwards and clasped his hands together so he could look up at Freddy with glistening eyes and a pleading posture. "Please do."

Freddy didn't think he would agree. Moon was tempted to see if Freddy would go through with it.

"Erm… I… I would be happy to-."

"I'm kidding, Papa Bear. I wouldn't ask you for that."

"You could."

Freddy must've regretted those words with how tight he clamped his mouth. The glow in Moon's eyes halved, mimicking an unenthused look when he was still very much amused.

"If you want to dig yourself deeper, at least use a shovel," he quipped. "Hmhmhm. Now then, come along. We can pick this up later." He snapped back upright and beckoned again before hustling along, jingling all the way.

Freddy wasn't sure what part of their conversation Moon was implying to continue later, but he silently agreed and followed him out. He instantly brightened at the sight of Gregory playing the arcade cabinet, while Moon brightened and shifted into Sun.

"Hey, Superstar! How is it going?" Freddy asked.

"I can't blink," Gregory replied. "But I'm almost there. I've got, like… I don't know. I can't look, but I'm almost there."

"Let me see." Freddy came over to watch over his head. He gasped as he saw the score. "That is the highest you have ever gotten! Keep going! You are almost there!"

With that encouragement, Gregory began to tap the buttons even faster than before. He pushed through the last bit of the run, darting up and down across the street as the Freddy on screen moved faster than he had ever seen before. He hadn't ever gotten this far, this high of a score, this long of a run, and with Freddy and Sun's overeager encouragement goading him on he kept going.

He held out for a while longer before his last two lives were whittled away, along with a third he picked up between losing them. It was a fight to the bitter end of an endless game, but eventually his game was over.

Gregory gave a disappointed groan as he rubbed at his tired eyes and blinked away the burn.

"Great job, Superstar! You were very close! And you are still very high on the leaderboards!" Freddy congratulated.

He looked at the screen through squinted eyes and saw that Freddy wasn't putting him on, he had gotten the fourth high score. In this game, up against Freddy and Foxy's scores, he considered that a victory. "Heck yeah!"

He went to put in his initials, pausing for a long second before putting in G-F-F.

"Jeff?" Freddy asked in confusion.

"Aww!" Sun gushed. His hands on his cheeks, a step ahead of the bear.

"It's for Gregory. I- I just thought that if I put in FF, everyone would think it's for you and wouldn't know it's me," Gregory said, almost defensively.

"What a clever idea!" Freddy said proudly. "But now that you are finished, are you ready to go see Foxy?"

"Sure! Is he- Whoa, it's like the room's still moving." Gregory looked around and watched as everything slightly moved to the side. He tried to blink it away and looked up at Freddy. "Is he here yet?"

"I am not sure. Let's go see," Freddy invited. He popped open his stomach hatch and leaned down to let Gregory inside. "And off we go!"

"Ready for takeoff! Please keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times," Sunny chimed in.

"No flash photography or open juice pouches. Thank you!" Freddy added.

Gregory rolled his eyes to himself. They were a couple of dorks, that's for sure, but they had a way of making him feel special.

They arrived not at the Loading Dock door, but at the usual vent spot. Foxy had said he wasn't coming alone but had decided to be more discrete tonight and come in the less noticeable way. Freddy wasn't sure if that meant their dear security guard didn't know they were there or if Foxy was just still a little paranoid from the events a couple of nights before. It could've been either.

It wasn't more than fifteen minutes of waiting before they heard something coming down the vent shaft. Freddy warned Gregory that he would be leaning forward before slowly doing so, holding a hand to his stomach hatch to make extra sure it didn't open, and peeked into the vent. Sun leaned over, leg stuck out, and looked in beside him. His points pulling in on the side of his head to not bump Freddy.

It wasn't long before Foxy looked around his corner. He almost flinched back at the sight of two faces blocking his way before recovering.

"What?" a voice whispered behind.

"Nothin'. Freddy spooked me. Ahoy!"

"Ahoy, Captain!" Freddy greeted back.

"Hey, Foxy!" Gregory's muffled voice called out. Freddy straightened up so he could open and let him out. He got out and Foxy climbed out of the vent and ruffled his hair.

Foxy then turned back to the vent expectantly. There was the sound of shuffling inside, someone turning around in the vent with some struggle, and then none other than Jeremy lowering himself feet first out of the vent.

"Jeremy! Foxy, you did not say you were bringing Jeremy! It is very nice to see you again, welcome!" Freddy greeted, his excitement palpable.

"Hey," Gregory chimed in.

"Oh, hello~! I remember you!" Sunny chimed in.

"Hey, guys! It's good to see you too. Sorry it's been a while…"

"There is no need to apologize! I am just glad to have you join us on a night of fun instead of one of, erm, less fun," Freddy assured him. "Now then, where to first? Captain?"

"Off to the West Arcade. I need to show Jer'my Bee," Foxy announced. He tossed his arm around the blond's shoulders as he did.

"I heard she's got one of the little bees on display and I'm going to see how much it'd be to buy it outright," Jeremy explained.

"Adding another dolly to your collection?" Sunny asked.

"Hopefully! There's always room for one more in the Fitzgerald house."

Neither Sunny nor Freddy, nor even Gregory caught the hint. Though Jeremy wasn't confident enough to start the evening with anything more direct than that.

"Then let us not wait any longer. To the West Arcade!" Freddy proclaimed with a dramatic point. He then helped Gregory back into his stomach hatch and they began the walk to the atrium.

As nervous as Jeremy was, frequently looking over his shoulder and checking around for anyone lingering nearby, but the mood was upbeat. The atrium was quiet as they entered in and began to head for the closest elevator.

Only for Freddy to suddenly receive an unexpected message.

"Freddy, we've got a problem."

It was Roxanne. A tired sigh could be heard through her message, but Freddy still grew worried. He stopped in place and quickly replied.

"Roxy, what is it?"

"Monty's holed up in his room and he won't come out."

By now the others noticed he had stopped and looked back, including Sun who flipped back his head to look.

"Just a moment," Freddy requested. He turned his head and pressed a finger to his temple, closing his eyes. "What is the matter? Is it a malfunction or is he upset? Should we try to take his elevator and check on him?"

"No, he's fine. He's just being a big loser about this. He won't even say what's wrong, he just won't open the door and he says he's not coming to practice. These songs enter the rotation on Saturday. If we don't practice now, chances are we're not going to get to before then, and I'd rather not sound like we don't know what we're doing. Monty didn't get the memo."

Freddy felt a wave of guilt and disappointment as Roxy confirmed his earlier suspicions.

"So, we were supposed to practice tonight. How could I forget? Here I am, the lead vocalist, and I could not even remember when we were scheduled to practice! What am I going to tell the others…?"

"Freddy, you're still on," Roxy messaged back.

"…Doh."

"Look, if you can't help us convince him to come out, then you're going to have to be the one to break down the door. I can't risk chipping my paint," she messaged back a little more impatiently.

"Well, I… Err, if Monty is not feeling up to it then perhaps, we can postpone. We have a few days left."

"No more postponing. We need to work on the new songs."

Before he could argue anymore, another message suddenly caught him off-guard. Giving him a glimpse of a voice he hadn't heard in some time.

"Freddy, just get down here!"

Hearing Chica's voice was gut-wrenching. Especially since this was the only way he could hear her voice now. This was the first time she had messaged him since her accident and hearing it, he knew he had no choice.

"I will be right there."

Freddy lowered his hand and opened his eyes to reveal a regretful look.

"There WAS band practice tonight," Sunny guessed.

"I am afraid so."

Gregory gave an overdramatic groan as the stomach hatch was opened. "Can't you just do it later?" he asked.

"That would not be fair to my bandmates. Besides, in the long run it would be better to do it now and then have the rest of the evening open than to put it off any longer."

The boy sighed, almost like Roxanne had, and hopped down to the floor. Freddy handed him a bag of tokens from tucked inside his stomach hatch.

"Blimey, Freddy. Ya could've told me. We could've made this fer another night," Foxy pointed out. "I ain't gonna get between yer bandmates and ye."

"No, no! That is not what happened at all! I was simply distracted today and forgot about these plans. We should not take long, go on ahead without me and I will make like a condiment and ketchup later."

"Freddy…" Gregory groaned yet again.

"We'll keep an eye on things, Freddy," Jeremy promised.

"I know you will! I hear you are a very dutiful father yourself… Oh, umm, I mean- I- I should hurry. I will be back soon!" Freddy ruffled Gregory's hair again before turning and all but sprinting across the atrium.

"Roxy must've messaged him to hurry up," Gregory said flatly.

"Oh, that reminds me!" Sunny chimed in. He leaned in close beside Jeremy. "Did you bring any of your little ones today?"

"I'm afraid not. After last time I was just… I'll bring them back sometime." Sunny seemed content with that answer. "How many kids does that daycare pass cover anyways?" Jeremy asked.

"Oooh, thinking of bringing more?" Sunny asked excitedly.

"If it's alright with you. They could use a little time out of the house. We're planning on moving soon and they could use a little fun."

"Aww, of course they can come! Oh, your little dollies are so precious!" the jester gushed. Arriving at the elevator and poking the button before lacing his fingers together in delight. "They're always welcome in my daycare. All I need is a little notice to get ready."

"Thanks," Jeremy said with an almost relieved smile as they boarded the elevator. While he still had a little trepidation being here, he wanted to give his Minimatronics a nice night to hang onto in case moving was as stressful for them as it was going to be for him.

"How long's Freddy known 'bout this band practice?" Foxy asked. He was growing more suspicious that he might have inadvertently distracted Freddy, with him putting everything aside to accompany them. If that was the case, then he wasn't going to feel great about it.

"Not long. Moony reminded him earlier but we couldn't figure out if there was practice or not, and Roxy never showed up, so we just guessed not," Sunny with a little shrug. "But don't worry about it! It won't last long."

"Aye. It just bums me out takin' him away from his band."

"Oh, don't worry about that. I think Freddy could use some time away from his band…"

"That so?"

Sunny didn't elaborate further.

As the elevator doors opened, he went to lead the way out. Only to be cut off by a hand clutching a map shoved through the doorway. Sunny yelped and fell back into Foxy, who had already swiped out his arms and pushed Gregory and Jeremy back. Both reactions revealed to be overreactions as they saw what was standing on the other side of the doors.

"Hi. Please take a map," the Map Bot said. His hand offered out to Sun.

"Ngh…" Sunny reached out for the map. The Map Bot's hand quickly circled around his, map just sliding out of his reach.

"Take a map."

"I'm trying." His hand continued to chase the map. Map Bot's hand continuing to dart around.

"Take a map."

"Jake, I know it's you! Quit it," Sunny huffed.

Map Bot tapped his head with the map before finally handing it over. "You're no fun! You should really lighten up," Jake cheekily replied. The Map Bot's voice switching over to a projection of his own.

"Ha ha har," Sunny said, tossing his head back and forth sarcastically.

"Hey, Jake!" Gregory greeted. He perked up quite a bit hearing Jake's voice, having not seen him in a while.

"Ahoy!"

"Yo."

Foxy and Jeremy greeted respectively. Both with friendly tones and smiles, at least more apparent in Jeremy's case. Sunny was having none of it.

"Put that thing away," he said in a continually huffy tone. "And come back in a better one."

"Can do, Chief," Jake replied. He made Map Bot salute and then began to wheel off into the atrium.

Sunny watched him go suspiciously before beckoning the others, assuming he would catch up with them later.

The group continued into the West Arcade entranceway and into the lobby outside of the arcade. The lighting comfortably dim compared to the atrium which had its overhead lights left on tonight- likely Sun had a hand in that. It was just bright enough that he hadn't rolled over into Moon until he stepped into the entrance. He allowed it to happen and shifted smoothly into his alternate persona before pulling on his cap, beckoning the others, and continuing inside.

Until Jake stepped out from behind the pillar rooted in the middle of the entranceway. Stepping out right into Moon's path.

"Better?"

"DAH!" Moon hopped back in surprise, aghast, beginning to tick deep in his chest at the sight. "What?! What are you doing here?!"

"Well, at first I was coming to keep Foxy company but now it looks like I'll be keeping you company," Jake lightly joked.

"You're heading back to the daycare right now. What if someone sees you?" Moon demanded. Crossing his arms with frustration, digging his fingers into his arms with anxiousness.

"No, come on. I'm already up here and nobody's seen me."

"No, come on. We both know exactly what's going to happen."

"He's no more at risk than any of us," Jeremy pointed out. He clammed up quickly when Moon snapped his head back towards him, though mostly because the snap of his neck looked and sounded painful. Moon shot him an entirely unreadable look.

"He's right, Boyo. Iff'n someone's close enough to see Jake, then they're gonna see this dashing pirate, this equally charming ex-employee, and that there wanted children. Heh, all things considered, I think Jake there'd be the last thing they'd notice," Foxy pointed out.

Moon gave him the look now, accompanied with a disgruntled little noise.

"Nobody will see me. I'll be careful," Jake promised.

"Freddy saw you the last time," Moon reminded. Tilting his head back to him in exasperation.

"That's different. I didn't have to be on my guard with Freddy. Sure, we got a little comfortable, but… It'll be fine. I just… I can't hide in our room forever. I need to get out," he all but pleaded.

Moon stared at Jake for a long moment. Jake returned the look, and though the expressions were entirely frozen there seemed to be a silent disagreement exchanged just through that look alone. Red eyes meeting the lone blue one.

Until finally Moon dropped his shoulders and his head back.

"Tch, fine," he caved. "But be careful. There is no getting comfortable anymore. Monty has made sure of that."

"Believe me, nobody knows that more than me. But if we're lucky, his bandmates will keep him busy… If they can get him out of his green room."

"What's the deal with that?" Moon muttered.

"I think he's got a girl in there," Jake quietly replied.

"Oh, how quaint," Moon scoffed. He waved for the others. "Come in, come in. Before we're all caught."

With that, they headed into the West Arcade. Jeremy went through the full range of emotions. Awe at the sight of the arcade, dread at the sight of Foxy's direct competitors two storied twenty plus times bigger arcade, and then near panic upon seeing the massive animatronic stationed on the stage. Who Foxy was sure to introduce him to as to not sneak him around without his knowledge. But Music Man was as welcoming and friendly as ever.

"Ahoy, DJ! This here's me first mate Jeremy," Foxy introduced. He made sure to keep his arm around Jeremy to assure him. "We've come to see the bee and shoot the breeze. Freddy might be up later."

The DJ gave him a thumbs up before leaning far off the stage and offering his hand to the blond. Jeremy reached out, freezing when the hand moved the slightest bit, and then taking it. Or more just laying his hand on his open palm. DJ shook his hand- shaking his own hand to simulate shaking the human hand on his enormous white glove. It was hard to not notice how gentle he was, and Jeremy smiled at him.

"How's it going, DJ?" he greeted.

The DJ gave him a thumbs up. "Good." He drew his hand back and then pointed down at his soundboard with it, pointed at the dancefloor with a second and twirled it, then held side of his headphones with a third and bounced his head as though to music much livelier than the current techno ambience. "Would you like to dance?"

"Are we gonna dance? Nah, we're hittin' the games," Foxy brushed off.

"We're not really the dancing type," Jeremy excused with an apologetic smile. Hoping to not unintentionally offend the DJ.

Foxy side-eyed Jeremy with the edge of a grin. "Now I wouldn't say that," he said playfully. He leaned over a bit and murmured a low, "But he's prob'ly doesn't watch much TV."

Jeremy figured out what Foxy was implying right away and gave him a barely subtle nudge while giving the DJ a slightly more embarrassed smile.

DJ waggled his finger at Foxy and pointed at him. Then he pointed the finger up and off, then down and across, and a few more times until it was apparent that he was mimicking a disco move instead of pointing off into space.

"You did disco?" Jeremy asked, looking to Foxy with tangible surprise.

Now Foxy was the one who was flustered. "That was Freddy! He's the disco bear. I was just, err, doin' some shuffle thing sorta nearby."

"Was it the Foxy shuffle?" Jeremy teasingly asked. Foxy's eyes lidded in an unamused fashion. "Well, come on. Let's see it. It can't be any worse than whatever I was doing."

"I'm not about to-."

Foxy's objection was promptly cut off by a rather abrupt beat drop before the music dipped into a lower but still thumping electro groove. He snapped his head back to the massive spider who was now bopping his head to the music, having been so quick on the draw that it seemed suspiciously like he was gearing up for it. There was only one way out now.

"Tell ye what, I'll do it… But only if you do yer Pizza Bear dance," Foxy challenged. "What ye say?"

"I say I don't think you realize how much I want to see you do this dance," Jeremy said. Immediately breaking into the classic Freddy's faux-cabbage patch. Knowing without a shred of doubt that Foxy wasn't about to let him down.

And he didn't. He looked absolutely dumbfounded, but he then began to almost defeatedly start to shuffle. After a few seconds he committed to it and stopped dragging his feet, instead buckling down and beginning to break out the dance moves. Putting the effort while attempting to look while he wasn't trying too hard.

Jeremy too fully committed to the pizza bear dance, the Freddy Shuffle, and Foxy shifted gears and dipped into the complementary Bonnie shuffle. The two dances both barely went together and looked like perfect companions in out-of-date mascot jigs.

Gregory snickered at the sight of them. Jake and Moon stared silently before exchanging a look and still no words.

Somewhere along the way Jeremy decided to break the routine and reached out for Foxy's hand and tried to pull him into a spin. Foxy jigged a stumble to the side and joined in, pulling the blond around him in a wide circle. It wasn't the most graceful display but that wasn't the point of it.

It was all for fun. By the end of it both were laughing and falling against each other after eventually tripping over each other. Coming off the dance floor with their arms around each other's shoulders. Staggering like they had been kicking back bottles of rum.

That's when the night truly began. The plan to visit the Hive Arcade was sidetracked immediately once they got into the arcade proper and "Just one game first" soon turned into at least a dozen. While there were plenty of games at Foxy's, this was a chance to play things they didn't have, such as the racing cabinets and the plethora of Freddy-themed clones of popular games from the last decade. By now Foxy had warmed up to the idea of playing their competitor's games so Jeremy had little guilt in joining in.

But it wasn't just them. It was clear from how eagerly Jake inserted himself in and how lively he chatted that he was starved for both socialization and entertainment. Sun and Moon could only do so much, having two new people to tell stories to and break the ice with was a lifesaver. Gregory almost could've been counted as a new face too. They knew each other well enough, but this was really one of the only times they had to hang out with each other without something else going on.

Even though Freddy absence was felt- especially by Foxy and Gregory- they made up for it.

The hourly recharge is what finally reminded them that time was a factor and once the lights kicked back on, they got back on track.

"We're headin' into the Hive to see Bee. Ye comin'?" Foxy invited their companions. Specifically Gregory, who he leaned over on his knees to address in a friendly fashion. "How 'bout you, Lad?"

"No thanks! She's okay, but I don't want to get 'accidentally' stuck in there again," Gregory declined.

"Uh, same. I don't know how she's going to react to this," Jake remarked, gesturing a hand over his mask and self-consciously pulling down the edge of his hood. "But we'll keep an eye on him."

"Four, in fact," Moon added in. He rested his hands on Gregory's shoulders. The boy quirked a brow, almost challengingly, but he neither made an attempt to pull away nor showed any sign of discomfort.

"Then off we shove alone, Captain," Jeremy said.

"Aye. Me crew abandoned me at port," Foxy tsked as he turned to head off. "Keep an eye out fer rabbits an' gators. We'll be back faster than a shark to chum."

"Speaking of rabbits and gatorsss, we'll be heading up to the second floor. Easier to watch for intruders," Moon remarked. He took Gregory's hand, his own wrapping around his hand and wrist easily.

Now while Gregory had gotten accustomed to Marionette doing this, Moon doing this in front of other people- especially Foxy- instantly embarrassed the boy. He could feel his face burning at the thought of everyone thinking he was some little kid.

"You don't have to lead me around like a little kid," Gregory said loud enough for hopefully Foxy to hear and acknowledge it as well.

Moon looked down at him almost in surprise at the outburst. He seemed to consider it for a moment before giving a shrug, a roll of his face, and releasing Gregory's hand.

That is, only to promptly hook his arm around the boy's waist and hoisting him up at his side. Leaving him dangling in the air with his legs kicking and his hands grabbing onto his arm and pants to brace himself.

"This is not what I meant!" Gregory cried. He kicked his legs a little more in defiance as Moon toted him over to the stairs, giggling like a menace as he did so. Eventually Gregory gave up and went limp with an exaggerated groan.

"I'll keep an eye on both of them. Tell Bee we said hi! Or, uh, Sun. Tell her Sun said hi," Jake clarified, then hurried to catch up with them. Stumbling a little on the carpet before following up the stairs.

Foxy and Jeremy watched them go before heading towards the entrance into the Hive.

"Should I be careful in here?" Jeremy whispered.

"I don't trust this Plex fer a second, but Bee seems to have her head on right. But if she gets clingy then we shove off and back in the arcade we go," Foxy replied.

"Shove her off?"

"That too. But not too hard. She's a dame, not a wench."

They arrived at the door to find it closed, but as they approached it opened automatically. The muffled music became much clearer, along with the ambience of clinking coins and jovial chimes from the numerous cabinets. Jeremy stuck his head in and looked around.

"Is this a kiddie casino?"

"Aye."

"That's nice."

He wasn't even surprised to see Freddy's introducing children to gambling early. It was too blatant to even be blackmail material at this point. He let Foxy go first and followed in closely.

Those thoughts aside, the Hive Arcade looked rather neat. The neon honeycomb decals illuminated the semi-dark room and gave off a very techno-futuristic vibe. It both fit in with other parts of the Pizzaplex and yet stood out uniquely. Though the cramped space and numerous machines also made him a little wary. It left for plenty of hiding spots and not much of a window to see something before it jumped out.

Though what jumped out- or slowly rolled out- was something much smaller and less threatening than any rabbit. It was one of the Babees, and Foxy quickly pointed it out to Jeremy who instantly kneeled to greet it as it rolled up to them.

"Hey there, little guy," he welcomed.

"Buzz-buzz!" the Babee replied. It tilted its head back to look up with its big, glossy black alien eyes.

"Aww. Hey."

He offered his hand out to it, then his index finger, waiting to see what it would do. It stared at his finger for a long second before it lifted its stubby arm and poked the tip of his finger with it. That alone told him there was some amount of awareness, he assumed, but his face broke into a wider smile just at how cute it was.

"Ain't that precious," Foxy said. Only half meaning the Babee when he saw Jeremy's giddy smile. "Now don't get too attached yet. If yer getting one, yer gettin' the one she's got fer sale upstairs."

"Are you sure? I could fit this little guy under my shirt," the blond teasingly suggested.

"With me already in the hole? Ye better not."

"I'm pretty tempted. He's really cute," Jeremy gushed. He tapped the stubby arm with his finger, listening as the bee buzzed in a jittery way, like a buzzy giggle.

"Aye, he really is."

Jeremy got back up to follow Foxy back to the stage, with the Babee trailing behind them at a languid and unbothered pace. They found Beelora posed up on her stage the same way she had been when Foxy and Gregory first walked up on her.

"Ahoy, Lass!" Foxy called.

Beelora straightened up out of her pose immediately. She clasped her hands in delight as she peeked through her dark shaded eyelids.

"Foxy! You've come back!" she greeted excitedly. She promptly stepped out of her slots and onto the railing, descending rapidly around the spiral of the stage and spinning while she did so. Her hands still gracefully poised together.

"Said I would, didn't I?" Foxy asked. He watched her swirl around down the railing before stepping back so she would have enough room to stop on the railing in front of him, which she did.

"Well, yes, but I didn't expect it this soon!" She rested her hands in front of her before finally taking notice of the human standing a little behind Foxy. "Oh, and you brought a guest! Who is this?"

"This be me first mate I told ya about," Foxy introduced. He reached an arm back to wave Jeremy in and then put it around him as he stepped up beside him. "Bee, this be Jeremy. Jer'my, this be Beelora."

"Hey, how's it going?" Jeremy greeted. He offered out his hand.

Beelora stared at him.

Jeremy's hand started to slowly slide back.

"Bee," Foxy said a little more firmly. Now staring back at her, not quite liking that sudden fixation.

But suddenly Beelora snapped out of it with a shake of her head.

"Oh! M-My apologies, I was… I must have frozen up, my apologies. It is a pleasure to meet you." Beelora seemed flustered by how quickly she attempted to excuse her actions. She did offer her hand though.

"No problem," Jeremy assured. He took her hand before he could reconsider it, but she simply shook it in a dainty and polite way. He smiled equally politely and stole a look at Foxy, who was still watching Beelora like a hawk.

Beelora tilted her head thoughtfully. "…Have we met?"

"What?" Jeremy's eyes shot back to her. "Us? I don't think so… I've never been up here before."

"Oh. My mistake, you just look familiar to me," Beelora said. She pulled her hand back and rested it at her front. "…I just can't shake the feeling that I've seen you before somewhere. Are you an employee here? Or have you ever worked at Freddy's?"

That question was enough to get both Jeremy's and Foxy's eyes widening and excuses spilling out.

"No, I've never-! I work at Foxy's."

"Nah, ye must be mistaking him fer someone else."

Both answers would've been much less suspicious if they weren't belted out at the same time.

Yet Ballora didn't seem suspicious, just apologetic. "Oh, then I really am mistaken… Sorry! I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I just thought I recognized you."

"Don't worry about it! It's no big deal, uh…" Jeremy cleared his throat and tried to change the subject. "I-I just met one of your Baby Bees."

"They are wonderful, aren't they? They are such hard workers, keeping the Hive Arcade spotless," Beelora said.

"Ya still got that one fer sale up in the prize counter?" Foxy asked.

Beelora motioned her arms like she was surprised before eagerly clasping her hands together again, the sound of buzzing growing in her chest and betraying her excitement.

"He is, and is still waiting for a home," she said. "Does that mean you will be staying and playing in the Hive tonight?"

"Fer a lil while. At least til Freddy finishes up with band practice," Foxy replied. He turned to Jeremy and gestured a nod towards the stairs. "What say you, Lad? Want to go see the bee 'er will it be waintin' until we've got the coin?"

Jeremy could tell from the fact that he was asking this at all that he was giving him an out. Understandable considering what had just happened, and Jeremy was awfully tempted to get out of there as fast as he could- paranoid that something would end up coming out- but he really didn't want to go. Especially since Beelora wasn't being confrontational but seemed as genuinely sweet as she was made out to be. She had already seemed to shrug it all off.

But Jeremy couldn't help the paranoia creeping up. She recognized him. Was she someone he knew or was his face in Fazbear Entertainment's extensive facial recognition system? He could've been analyzed by the facial recognition software of the Toy animatronics and that was carried over to here, where the Glamrocks were capable of scanning faces and some of them were even refurbished from the old franchise. These didn't have to be the Toys to get the same information.

And since they were supposedly not hiring former employees, they might have the records of someone they let go to make sure they didn't get back in. They could know who he is- it wasn't like his records were entirely secret.

"Not you too. Jer'my?" Foxy quipped.

Jeremy suddenly realized he had been doing the same thing, standing there and staring, and quickly shook it off.

"Sorry, I just was thinking about what cash I brought… But sure, lead the way!" he covered.

"Wonderful. This way!" Beelora gestured to the stairs before riding the rails over to them. "And there's no need to worry! We have change machines both upstairs and down, and they will exchange one, five, ten, and twenty dollar bills for plenty of quarters."

She then stopped at the bottom of the stairs. She stared at them for a long moment. Jeremy felt a sinking feeling at the thought that it was happening again, but that loosened up when she reached for the railing and began to slowly pull herself up the steep track.

"Ya need help there, Bee?" Foxy offered.

"No, no. I do this all the time! But I thank you for the offer," Beelora assured. She gave a little wave over her shoulder before continuing to pull herself up. Jeremy and Foxy exchanged a look but let her do so, patiently and slowly ascending beside her.

Once they got to the top- and nobody brought up the stair climbing once they got there- Beelora guided them over to the prize counter. There Jeremy saw the Babee in the case. It looked just like the one that had been scooting around, but it wasn't moving.

"So, he's just like the one downstairs, right? He's a real animatronic?" Jeremy clarified.

"He is. He just hasn't been activated but will be if you do win him. Though I would suggest taking him home before activation so there is no confusion to where he will be staying," Beelora suggested. "Now then! There are token exchange machines here and downstairs, so you can get started right away. The path to big winnings starts with the first spin!" She did a little spin to punctuate this.

"Sounds good. How much does he cost?" Jeremy asked.

"You can't put a price on luck!" Beelora said with a kindly titter. "Though this Babee can be exchanged for either five hundred Hive coins or for three sets of rainbow crystals, which can be collected from the games as well."

"But if you could put a monetary price on that," Jeremy pressed further.

"It all depends on luck," Beelora assured.

"But let's say I had the worst luck possible."

"Then ya'd never get it," Foxy volunteered.

"Never say never, Captain Foxy! It requires persistence and timing, but anyone will win eventually," the Bee assured. She then rested her hands together almost unsurely. "Now let's see… With the worst luck? With tokens and payout rates as they are… Mmm… I couldn't… imagine it being more than a few hundred… tries!"

Jeremy had a slight suspicion that a few hundred dollars could very well be the total even with reasonably good luck. He sighed and looked at the deactivated Babee sitting in the case. He thought about how the one had acted downstairs and how it might get along with the rest of his little dolls. It was awful cute. He wasn't entirely convinced it was haunted, it likely wasn't, but it could make for a good companion for his group.

He sighed. "Guess I better get started then."

"Wonderful! Let me at least start you off with a few complimentary tokens. It is the least I can do for repeat players," Beelora chirped. She got some from behind the prize counter, wrapped in a very short sample sleeve, and handed it over.

Foxy suspected that she was bribing them to stay, but he wouldn't turn down free stuff. He pointed his hook over to one of the coin pushers. "We'll start with that one. It paid out on me twice."

"Wouldn't that mean it'll be less likely to pay out?" Jeremy asked.

"I ain't entirely convinced any of the others pay out at all."

Jeremy blew him off, literally blowing out through his lips, and headed over to the coin pusher with him. Where they promptly got into an intense analysis on which slot would be the best to drop the token into, especially to get the Hive coins that were almost at the edge.

Beelora rode the track over and stopped behind them to watched. Her hands were raised and clenched with eagerness, waiting for her moment to celebrate even the slightest victory. Things had definitely lightened up and Jeremy was ready to bankrupt himself trying to secure a robotic bee as cute as the one downstairs.

He couldn't shake the weird feeling, but he chose to ignore it.

Chapter 71

Chapter Summary

Freddy finally confronts Chica and Moon and Jake get an unexpected, and unwanted, visitor.

Chapter Notes

Are you ready for Freddy? Well, he’s down there somewhere! XD Enjoy!

Freddy showed up in Rockstar Row to find Roxanne and Chica standing outside Monty’s closed door. The wolf with her arms crossed and the chicken with her hands on her hips as both stared down the door. Roxy’s ear twitched when she first caught wind of heavy footsteps and twitched again before she looked over her shoulder and their arriving bandmate.

“Took you long enough,” she remarked. She then turned back to the door, “Alright, Monty, Freddy’s here. Quit stalling and let’s go.”

“I don’t feel like it,” Monty called back.

The sentiment might’ve not been too strange, but the fact he was yelling it through a closed door certainly was. Roxy rolled her eyes. Freddy stole a glance at Chica, but she wasn’t paying enough attention to notice.

“What’s going on? Did you break your bass again? We’ve got backups. Most of the bass is on the backing track anyways,” Roxy called back. Purposefully trying to rile him up, to challenge him, to provoke him into proving himself, but this ended up backfiring.

“Sounds like ya don’t need me,” he dismissed.

“That is not true! You are an essential party of the band,” Freddy protested. He could faintly hear the gator making a dismissive noise through the door. Dismayed, Freddy turned to Roxy for answers. “What is going on? Why will he not come out?”

“He ‘doesn’t feel like it’,” Roxy replied, making quotations with one hand before crossing her arms again with a scoff.

Freddy didn’t like the sign of that. He leaned forward between his two bandmates and gave a gentle knock to the door.

“Monty, what is wrong? You do not want to practice tonight?” he asked.

“Nope,” Monty replied.

“Why not?”

“Don’t feel like it.”

Chica’s shoulders slumped and her arms dangled while Roxy rolled her eyes. The reason they weren’t as concerned as Freddy was about Monty’s refusal to come out being that they had gotten this answer themselves only a little while ago. Before that they had thought something might’ve happened, but further elaboration- while not clarifying anything in the process- had assured them that Monty just didn’t want to perform tonight. So, to them, they assumed he was having a tantrum.

This was not the first time Monty had refused to do something. Just recently he had to be coerced by employees to come down from the catwalks and to the performance when he was upset over them withholding his passes to hand out. Freddy remembered that well.

“Did they take your passes again?” he asked empathetically.

“That implies they gave me anymore,” Monty grumbled lowly. “Ah don’t need to practice, I’ll learn it when I get on stage. I’m a rockstar. Rock on.”

“That is the dumbest- ugh.” Roxy pinched at her temples, being very careful to not scuff up her freshly painted claws as she did. “We’re just wasting time going in circles with him. Forget it, we’ll start practice without him. If he wants to go in blind, then he’s the one who’s going to be embarrassed when he sounds bad.”

Freddy seemed fine with this idea and while Roxy wasn’t a quitter of any kind, she knew when to stop wasting time on a lost cause, and she especially knew how stubborn Monty could be. When he didn’t want to do something, it would take no less than a forklift to get him moved and even that didn’t guarantee cooperation once he was dumped on stage.

But Chica wasn’t ready to give up. She decided that maybe they were going about it the wrong way and, closing her eyes, reached out to him with a heartfelt message stressing on how they were bandmates, friends, how they needed to do this together, and how this would reflect badly on them too if he acted like this- and having to rush it all into the allotted message length limit.

She then sent the message and waited, and after a few moments Monty gave a confused, “…What?”

Chica’s eyes widened before she stamped her foot in frustration. Words wouldn’t work, but undeterred she tried to think up another plan. She looked down at her feet and then to the door and got a thoughtful look to her eyes as she remembered something Roxy had said. She waved her hand out to her side to get Freddy’s attention, pointed to the door, and gave a little air kick.

“You want me to… kick the door down?” Freddy said uneasily. That seemed like a major violation of privacy, he thought.

“I was joking about that,” Roxy clarified to Chica. Eyes lidded and expression unenthused.

“Ya’ll better not!” Monty barked through the door.

“I am not sure that I can. If not due to the statistics of my legs not being built to kick anywhere near as high as Monty’s, then due to the possible damage if the lock release fails,” Freddy whispered behind his hand to her.

Chica shook her head and started kicking again, but this time not making full kicks. Only starting to kick before stopping before the end of the follow through. She then decided to just give up with the charade and pressed a finger to her temple again.

“We’re just pretending!”

“Oh! Well then… I suppose if the rules allow us to break down doors if there is an emergency, then I have no choice,” Freddy said. Purposefully getting louder at the end so Monty could hear.

“You wouldn’t dare,” Monty almost snarled back.

“I could very easily kick this door down, Monty. The lock releases when applied enough pressure to avoid any damage to the frame,” Freddy reminded.

There was a long pause between them, through said door.

“Then go fer it, Fazbear,” Monty challenged.

Yet another long pause lingered between them.

“I’m waitin’, Freddy.”

Freddy’s jaw was tight and he exchanged a look between Chica and Roxy. Chica promptly strutted right over to the door and gave it a little kick.

“Did ya just kick mah door?!” Monty cried. He sounded more shocked than angry. “Ya really did it! Ya kicked my door!”

“It was not me! It was…” Freddy looked to Chica who giving him an almost challenging look of her own. “…It was me, Monty. And I will kick it harder if I have to.”

“Well, yer gonna have to kick it a lot harder than that, that’s fer damn sure!” Monty tossed back.

“…He’s right,” Freddy sighed. He looked between Roxy and Chica. “Our best option to get the door open is to use a higher security clearance to override the lock, if you insist that we should. I could go get Vanessa to help us or perhaps I could message Moon as he-.”

“Whoa, hold up!” Monty suddenly interjected. The three looked to the door. “…Alright, ya’ll win. I’ll open the door- but I ain’t comin’ out!”

All three straightened up to attention as the door slid open. Monty promptly filled the entirety of the doorway, arms up on the frame and head slumped to the side as though he had just woken from a long nap. Though it was pretty obvious that he was actually just trying to block the doorway. Not that there was any reason when his green room was mostly dark on the inside, save a lone neon sign on the far wall.

Though there was one thing he couldn’t shield, and that was the smell. Roxy picked up on it immediately and sniffed the air. Chica noticed and tried to smell as well, but she wasn’t able to catch the faint scent that Roxy could. She looked to her questioningly, but she didn’t clarify, instead getting a shocked and then much more exasperated look. She leaned against the wall beside the door.

“Since when did you start wearing chick’s perfume?” Roxy asked.

“…They sprayed my couch,” Monty replied.

“Who did? The employees?” Freddy asked in confusion.

“Right on.”

“Okay, here’s what’s going to happen. We’re going to give you the night off and whatever’s going on in there, fix it,” Roxy said with authority. She then faked snapping her fingers, clicking her teeth to punctuate it, and beckoned Freddy and Chica to follow.

She led the way, striding away with her tail waving behind her as she went. Freddy followed along quickly while Chica paused to give Monty a curious look, then got a mischievous tilt to her eyes before waving and continuing off, having apparently caught on.

Monty stayed there in the doorway, listening as Roxy and Chica got their instruments before all three headed towards the backstage and to the recital room. He waited until he couldn’t hear their footsteps anymore before sighing and stepping back in.

“Looks like we lost ‘em,” he mumbled. He turned to look towards the photo op corner, or what there was of one, and caught sight of a face poking out from being swaddled in the curtains.

“How long does practice take?” Louise quietly, almost frantically, whispered.

“Could be an hour. Maybe more depending on how many songs they’re learnin’.”

“This is bad. This is so bad. I’ve got to get out of here before they get back, they totally know I’m in here,” Louise hastily rushed out.

She started to climb out of the corner only to knock over one of the still standing photo-op lights. She made a desperate swipe for it but missed. Thankfully, Monty grabbed it before it could fall.

Louise breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”

“Don’t sweat it. They ain’t gonna do nothin’ if they see you,” Monty assured. “They ain’t gonna find out neither.”

“I hope not. If they tell anybody I’ll never get back in,” Louise said. She took his hand and stepped out to the cleared floor. “You said something about a loading dock?”

“Yeah. It’s straight on out through the…”

Basement.

“…Back?” Louise guessed.

Monty was eerily quiet for a long moment. Staring blankly off into the corner. She tapped his hand, and he snapped out of it with a little shudder.

“Tell ya what, how about this?” Monty said. He fixed his sunglasses before asking, “What’s the rush?”

Louise looked at him in confusion.

“Ah mean, why go lookin’ fer a way out and risk gettin’ caught? Stay here fer the night and I’ll help ya out at six.”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’m pretty sure they know I’m in here,” Louise pointed out, her voice lowering into a whisper. “…Please tell me you weren’t fibbing about the whole way out thing.”

“Nah, nah, Cher. There’s always a way out… But it’s down in the basement. Ah didn’t think it would come to this, but… yer not gonna want to go through that basement,” Monty admitted apologetically, still dodgy.

“Isn’t it full of garbage?” Louise guessed. She then snapped her mouth shut. She supposed she wasn’t supposed to know that, but before she could tack on an excuse about ‘Vanessa’ telling her that, Monty continued. He hadn’t noticed her slip.

“…Yeh, there’s a lot of real garbage down there. It ain’t safe, fer you or me. I can walk ya out of here at six on the dot. You can even crash on my couch… we can find ya a place to crash if you get tired.”

He seemed nervous and that immediately made Louise nervous. Upon his friends appearing, Monty had seemed much more bothered by being interrupted than being scared of anything. He didn’t seem that worried about them, but something about the basement spooked him. She hadn’t known him long, but that long pause was hard to miss.

While Louise hadn’t gotten all the details about Baby’s rescue, she knew it had been a dangerous one. Nothing she wanted to wander up on alone or with a worried gator.

“You could’ve told me this before a started doing the whole ‘five more minutes’ thing,” Louise pointed out with a frowning purse of her lips. “…Okay, how about this? I’ll stay, but I get something in return.”

“Uh huh? Name yer price, Little Lady,” Monty said. He already seemed to relax.

“I get a special one-on-one photo-op with the big bad bassist, your treat.”

He slid down his sunglasses. “You gonna show anyone?”

“Everyone I can! They don’t have to know how I got it. Show and don’t tell,” she replied with a cute little wink. If he hadn’t been on-board before- he was- then he would’ve been now.

“Rock on.”

He easily grabbed up the standing light, unplugging from the wall, and toted it over towards the torn-up couch. Louise followed him over eagerly and waited by the couch as he turned on the light and went to get a stashed Fazcam out of the back room. He tossed it over before dropping onto the couch with a heavy thump, kicking a leg up onto it bent at the knee, and tapped down his sunglasses to peek over the top with an inviting look.

Louise adjusted the standing light’s angle just a little bit before dropping her purse aside onto the table and dropping herself very eagerly into his lap. She hooked an arm back around his neck to pull herself up, grinning broadly as he hooked one of his own around her waist and tugged her in. He then balanced the Fazcam in one hand and tried to somehow angle it to get them both in frame. A weird way to take a photo, no doubt it would be a little off kilter, but it was going to be a great one.

She had to live big while she could, especially since Natalie wasn’t going to let her live this down.

…

“Burning rubber, feel our thunder, rumble down the roooad! Going hard or going home!~”

Freddy’s voice belted across the empty practice hall. His foot thumping to the beat, microphone stand clutched in his hand, wire between his fingers, as he hit that last note. Roxy’s finger flew over her keys before sliding down in a flair, clashing against Chica’s final shred before the song faded out. Or would’ve if they had their backing music. It had gone perfectly, and Freddy sent his bandmates a thumbs up.

“Excellent work! I think we have that one in the bag,” he said.

“That one? Where were you, Freddy? We killed it,” Roxy corrected confidently. She slid her keytar to her side before fluffing her hair.

Chica nodded eagerly and gave her an excited thumbs up as well. It had been so long since Freddy had seen her acting like her old self, even if she was still as silent as ever. Even if it seemed like she was still avoiding his gaze. That tension was still between them, Freddy knew it, and because of that it almost hurt to see good old Chica and know she was always out of his reach.

“And we’ll kill it tomorrow too, as long as Monty gets his head in the game…” Roxy added. Somewhat under her breath, somewhat in thought, shaking her head. “Okay, Freddy, you’re off the hook. Go play with your little buddy,” she said, hopping down from the stands. “I’ve got to go count the cracks in the raceway. We’ve got more of them showing up.”

It took Freddy a second to snap out of his thoughts to acknowledge her. “That is… not good.”

“That’s putting it lightly. It’s all that cheap concrete. It’s not good enough to build a barbeque pit, let alone a racetrack,” she scoffed. “What about you, Chica? Are you tagging along?”

Chica considered it with a tap to her chin, then shrugged and nodded. It wasn’t like she would get much fun out of the bakery or El Chip’s like she used to, at least this would be a distraction. She held out a hand. Roxy caught the gesture and took off her keytar.

“Both hands,” she requested. Chica gave a less than amused look, fit with one hand on her hip, before complying. Roxy handed over the instrument and the chicken began to dutifully carry it off. Again, she didn’t spare even a glance at Freddy.

That was when he decided to be brave and take a chance. Before Roxy could follow Chica out, Freddy stepped out to stop her.

“Roxy, may I speak to you for a moment?” he requested. She stopped with her arms comfortably crossed on her chest, weight shifting to one leg. “I know we have not spent much time together as a band and that is my fault, but… may I get a moment alone with Chica?”

Roxy seemed to consider it for an extra second before sighing. “Just don’t tick her off too bad, okay?”

“I will try not to. That is the last thing that I want to do,” Freddy said somberly.

“Then go for it, Slugger.”

Freddy nodded and thanked her before turning and striding off. Moving with unwavering determination as to not risk backing down. It could’ve been so easy to walk away yet again, but this time he knew that he couldn’t.

He was partially across Rockstar Row when Chica strolled out of Roxy’s room and caught sight of him coming. Her upbeat demeanor flatlined and she tried to walk the long way around him. Freddy took a sharp turn and followed along after her.

“Chica, please wait. I need to speak with you,” Freddy pleaded after her.

Chica stopped but didn’t face him, even with the peeved look set upon her face. She waited for him to catch up before tapping her finger to her head.

“Don’t you have to run off to your ‘friend’?” She managed to mentally project her disdain rather well.

Freddy was taken aback by the accusation. “I- no! I would always make time for you and Roxy! And Monty too if he would want to. You are my friends too. I may have forgotten that we were practicing tonight and I… may have more distracted recently, but that does not mean that you are not as important to be as you always were. Our friendship means more than that.”

Even though Freddy sounded certain of this, Chica was not. She continued to keep her back to him, looking around the room at anything that wasn’t him. She was still upset, that much was clear, and it wasn’t just because of her missing voice box.

It took her a few seconds of clenching her hands while Freddy waited patiently before she dared to reply.

“All you do is just hang out with him all the time. Why do you want to talk now?”

Freddy was startled yet again. He had no idea she felt this way about his closeness to Sun, he had never noticed. Then again, with Moon’s contentious disputes with Monty, it wasn’t as though the Daycare Attendant was ever invited to hang out with them. Something that used to make Freddy feel bad, even though now the situation had been reversed and he was neglecting his friend for him- and of course, Foxy.

“That is not true, Chica. I… I just…” Freddy gave a weary and guilt-ridden sigh. “I have been avoiding you… but it is not because of you. It is because of me,” he confessed. His voice growing heavy with his remorse. “I feel terrible about what happened to you… and how the Pizzaplex employees have been treating you, and how they have been with Monty, and Sun. It is unfair and I have been… confused about how I feel about all of this.”

Chica’s shoulders slumped but she kept his back to him and the irritated look steadfast.

“I miss you… and I miss our friendship, how it was before I let you down… Please, Chica. If there is anything I can do to make it up to you, anything at all, just ask me and I will. I just cannot bear to have this between us any longer. Let me do something.”

Chica could’ve blown this off with a finger wag and a ‘too little, too late’, and sauntered away with her dignity and a sour taste in her stomach. It wasn’t like one little favor could make up for all the frustration, the fear, the absolute and utter-.

When suddenly she realized there was something that she could ask for. Something that made her upset feel so small in comparison. The idea shot through her head like a lightbulb flicking alight and changed her mood entirely.

She turned around on her heel and immediately pressed her finger to the side of her head, desperately seeking that one request.

“DAILY LIMIT REACHED.”

Chica closed her eyes in agitation at the automatic response. She knew she shouldn’t have gotten so careless when chatting with Roxy earlier. She had only just got her voice back, or some echo of it, and already it was barred from her when she needed it most.

But that wasn’t about to stop her. Chica waved Freddy to follow and hurried off to her room, all but running and with Freddy having to pick up speed to a light jog to keep up. She hurried to her vanity, hastily snatched out the get-well card she had hidden inside, and all but shoved it up into Freddy’s face eagerly as he came in the door behind her, nearly walking right into it.

Chica tapped on the picture of the clown.

“Th-That is…!” Freddy carefully took the card and read the contents of it. Then looked to her in surprise. She nodded in agreement to whatever question he had.

She then pointed to where she was addressed and pointed to herself. Then she pointed to the clown and flipped her hand in an inquisitive fashion. She wanted to know his name.

“…That is Ennard. He was the clown who repaired you,” Freddy admitted. “He is not from the Pizzaplex, but I am not entirely sure where he comes from.”

She waved it off and took the card back, looking at the little clown drawing with fondness. So that was his name, Ennard. That’s a funny name- she caught the pun in her thoughts immediately and shook with silent giggles. She felt giddy. Ennard the technician clown.

She then noticed the curious look Freddy was giving her and quickly composed herself. She then pointed at Freddy.

“You.” She pointed two fingers at her eyes. “See.” She pointed at the clown. “Him.” She made a talking motion with her hand. “Tell.” She pointed to herself. “Me.” She clasped her hands together pleadingly, without crumpling the card. “Please.”

“Err, okay, Chica. If he returns,” Freddy agreed somewhat hesitantly. “But I do not think it would be wise to tell any of the employees…”

Chica shook her head in agreement. No, the employees would just make him leave. Even Vanessa was a risk to tell, even if she was much more friendly than the technicians. Ennard was intimidating, easily misunderstood. Anyone who saw him would surely assume that he was bad news, like she mistakenly had. She couldn’t put him in jeopardy. Even at best he would never come back again.

“I did not think you remembered him. Do you remember anything else?” Freddy asked.

Truth was, very little. Splotchy moments. Freddy was there, Vanessa at one point, that kid. Crawling through trash, getting tased, wires in her mouth. The most vivid thing she remembered was the clown leaving over her talking to her.

Chica started to make a so-so motion, but then ended up shaking her. Freddy could’ve read it as, “A little… No, not really.”

“I see. Perhaps that is for the best…” he said quietly. He looked away guiltily. “…You were in a fight. I am not certain of the exact details, but you fell into the trash compactor, and then down into the basement. We went to search for you, but there was something… wrong. You were not acting like yourself. Perhaps it was due to the damage you received. I called for you, but it was as though you could not see me. You got ahead of me and ran into Vanessa and the technician with her… who then administered a controlled shock.” His voice caught a little at that point, but he recovered to finish, “I sat outside of repair capsule with Moon, and we watched as the technician and Ennard repaired you…”

That cleared up some things, like how she remembered him being there, but Chica had a feeling that there was something he wasn’t telling her. Something she couldn’t remember, something important.

Though he really did seem remorseful. As upset as Chica was, she was started to get tired of the constantly being mad thing. Especially when it was likely that her behavior was encouraging him to go hang out with his new friend instead of them.

With a sigh, or the motion of one, she began to gesture to him again.

She pointed at herself. “I’m.” She shook her head. “Not.” She made a comically cross glare. “Angry.” She pointed at him. “At you.” She looked down at the card longingly in her hands. She didn’t signal it, but Freddy detected the, “Anymore.”

Freddy looked immediately relieved, but he wasn’t naïve enough to believe that it was all over just that easy. Likely she was more trying to forgive him than fully doing so.

“Thank you, Chica. I still want to make it up to you though, so if there is anything more that you need, please tell me,” Freddy encouraged.

She nodded, but then raised a finger. “But.” She looked up at him apologetically. “I’m sorry,” it seemed to say. She pointed between them. “We’re.” She made a slicing motion with her hand. “Through.”

“…We were formally going together?” Freddy asked.

Chica gave a somewhat pensive look to the side. “Well, I suppose we weren’t.”

“But that is okay! We can still be friends?”

Chica nodded and hid the get-well card in her vanity again. She then turned to Freddy and after a moment of looking at him, hands resting on her hips, she pointed to herself and made walking fingers towards the door before holding the two up. “I’m going to.” She pointed to her eyes and then mimicked driving with her hands. “See the raceway.” She pointed to him questioningly.

“Me?” he asked.

Seeing him confused, she made the walking motion again but now added in her second hand to have both walking together. Two people walking together. “Do you want to come with me?”

“I would love to!” Freddy agreed. He supposed Foxy and the others could distract themselves as he spent a few extra moments with his band.

The two walked out of Rockstar Row and started to head to Roxy Raceway. Things were still a little tense between them, but it was better. Even if it felt so weird to walk in complete silence alongside Chica.

They got to Roxy Raceway and met up with Roxy herself, who was relieved to see that things hadn’t gotten dramatically tense in the time they were gone. They then walked into the raceway and down to the concrete paving by the track. It was there that Roxy pointed out the cracks, much to both her friends’ shock. Freddy’s eyes going wide and Chica’s hand shooting to her cheek. Cracking wasn’t too unusual, but these were fresh and leading away from already formed cracks.

Freddy knelt to look closer at the cracks. Not that there was much to see from up here. The concrete didn’t seem thin, and this didn’t seem to have been caused by something heavy being dropped, so he deduced it had to be something under the surface.

From the interior mapping of the Pizzaplex, Roxy Raceway had a huge section devoted to its basement, but it was entirely inaccessible as far as Freddy knew. They weren’t even privy to the layout for it, with the closest thing to it being the utilidors and tunnels nearby. Perhaps there was an unstable foundation. It would explain the inaccessible basement and the sinking of the structure. It was a shame Monty wasn’t there with them or Freddy would’ve asked him about it since he knew so much about it.

For now, all they could do was take note and report it to the employees tomorrow. Though he had a feeling that filling up the cracks alone wouldn’t keep them from coming back.

With Roxy and Chica heading over to the office, so Roxy could leave a note before Chica could coerce her into squeezing into the much-too-small bumper cars, Freddy went on his way. To his relief Chica didn’t seem jealous or upset, and he made a mental note to spend more time with her and his bandmates. He could make it work around his time with Gregory and his visits with Foxy. He was Freddy Fazbear, he was built to multitask in an effective manner.

Freddy hurried through the atrium and made his way up the elevator and into the West Arcade. He briefly stopped by to wave to the DJ, who wake awake and actively working tonight. Which explained why the normal techno ambience had been switched out by an upbeat groove. The DJ returned a wave of his own and then pointed towards the direction of upstairs. Catching the hint, Freddy took the spiral staircase up to the second floor of the arcade. It didn’t take long before he walked up on Gregory and Moon.

Much to his surprise, the third standing with them wasn’t Foxy or Jeremy, but Jake. It was enough to make Freddy stop in place. The three were facing away from him, both animatronics standing on either side behind Gregory and watching him play on an arcade cabinet. So, none of them had taken notice of him yet. They apparently hadn’t heard him yet either, likely because he was walking and because of the thumping music overhead.

As elated as Freddy was to see Jake out and about, he was completely torn on what he was supposed to do. He could just walk up and welcome Jake, tell him he was glad to see him again after so long, and assure him that he wanted to stay. Then they could spend the night catching up and having fun. Though his worry was that being so bold would end up scaring Jake off.

But he decided to go along with the plan anyway and began to slowly walk up. Preparing to get into a comfortable range before alerting them with a gentle throat clearing- or a mimic of one. Though he held off on that when he took note of something peculiar.

It was how the two were standing. From what Freddy could see and hear, Gregory was playing the game as he usually did. Hands tight on the controls and muttering under his breath as he steered his character around, in this case trying to avoid falling sandwich pieces. Yet Moon and Jake’s posturing was much more rigid. Jake had one hand on Gregory’s opposite shoulder and the other arm holding his control panel underneath, talking softly now and then.

Moon was the dead giveaway. He had one hand clenched tight on the edge of the machine with another reached around Jake’s back to have his hand on his shoulder. He was remarkably still and silent, listening more than watching.

Perhaps Freddy was jumping to conclusions, but it almost looked like Moon and Jake were shielding Gregory. Protectiveness swelled in Freddy’s chest, but he quickly assured himself that it must have been a precaution. If something had happened then Foxy would have never left for the Hive Arcade, he would’ve stayed with Gregory. As would Jeremy. Moon must’ve been nervous about having Jake out here, something that Freddy sympathized with. He made a throat clearing sound.

Moon snapped his head back and it flipped over to face Freddy so quickly that it almost gave him whiplash. It was also a dead giveaway that Freddy’s initial hunch was correct. Moon was on edge.

“Freddy,” he said with surprise and relief.

“Heeyyyy, Freddy,” Jake greeted. Nervously but trying to sound like he wasn’t, which made it more obvious that he was.

“Jake, hello! It is good to see you,” Freddy said. He gave him a friendly smile and tried to assure that he knew he was welcome before walking up to them.

“You too, Freddy. I was just… dropping in for a little while.”

“Hey Freddy. I can’t look back, sorry,” Gregory said. He sounded glad to see him but equally focused on what he was playing. Freddy peeked over his head to see.

“That is quite a high score. Excellent job, Superstar!” Freddy congratulated with a light ruffle of his hair. Though then he noticed how close the boy was leaning forward. With a hum he gently tilted Gregory’s head back, to which the boy went along with it. “A little further back from the screen. There you go!”

“Freddyyyy, come aside with me. Give me the details on your little prac-tice sessssion,” Moon said. He hooked his arm through Freddy’s and started to pull him back. Freddy looked to him quizzically.

“Can’t you do that here?” Gregory asked. The flatness of his question showed that he already knew why they wouldn’t.

“I coooould without the risk of nosy eavesdroppers,” Moon replied cheekily.

“Takes one to know one,” Jake teasingly retorted.

“Tch,” Moon dismissed. He gave Freddy a tug, but he resisted.

“Just a moment, Moonshine. Jake, will you be sticking around for the fun? I hope so!” Freddy invited with a friendly smile.

“Uh, sure! I was considering it,” he agreed. He subconsciously adjusted his mask a little, making sure it was on securely and wouldn’t sporadically fall off. “It’s good to get out.”

“Oh ho ho. Speak for yourself,” Moon cracked. He then gave Freddy another tug and led him away.

Jake watched them go and felt a foreboding feeling return. His hand clenching on his control panel as he started to look around.

“Don’t worry, they’ll be back soon,” he said. He almost sounded to be more assuring himself than Gregory.

“After they’re done whispering about me and being weird about it,” Gregory muttered. It didn’t usually bother him but after today and Sun’s questioning it made him very suspicious, like they were hiding something. Not that he would’ve admitted it.

“Oh… Well, I’m sure they’re not trying to be so obvious about it. It could be about Freddy’s friends too,” Jake suggested.

“Maybe… Okay, I’m dead. Want to try?”

Jake popped his fingers. “Let me at ‘em.”

Meanwhile, Moon led Freddy over around the corner and past some particularly noisy arcade cabinets. Far enough that they wouldn’t be heard, close enough that they could still easily peek and see them.

It was then that Moon let his cover drop and his voice lower. “Did you see anyone when you came in?”

“No. Only the DJ, who I waved to and who pointed me in your direction- wait, was Vanny here?” Freddy guessed.

“…Yes…” Moon’s red eyes scanned around the arcade uncertainly. “I did not see her, but I knew she was here.”

Freddy’s chest filled with dread, and he looked around as well. Eyes glowing as he swiftly checked every nearby nook and cranny. His hands clenching as he thought of what might have happened if Moon and Jake hadn’t been close by.

“That is not good… This is the third time we have encountered her here. Perhaps she is hiding somewhere nearby,” Freddy said lowly.

“I doubt she left that easily,” Moon muttered.

“No, I mean that perhaps Gregory is not the only person staying overnight in the Pizzaplex,” the bear suggested. The jester looked up to him, and Freddy’s eyes slid away to continue scanning with a protective gaze. “There are so many unaccompanied rooms. Ones inaccessible to both mascots and human staff. Vanny having a hidey hole nearby would explain how she appears so suddenly and without being detected by Natalie.”

“A bunny burrow,” Moon suggested.

“Though not nearly as cute as the name would imply,” Freddy agreed.

“That very well could be. Oh, how I would love to get my hands on him,” the jester hissed. His own hands clenching up.

Freddy noticed and became notably concerned. “Not alone you will not. Please. She is very dangerous.”

“And I’m not?” Moon tsked.

“In these circumstances- Wait.” Freddy snapped his head forward and looked towards the stairs. “Someone is coming.”

Indeed, both could the footsteps of someone making their way up the steps in a light jog. It was clearly a human from the lack of heaviness, and both tensed up and braced themselves to see who it was.

Only for it to be Jeremy. Freddy’s shoulders slouched with a sigh and Moon’s arms dropped to his sides almost disappointedly. One the man spotted them, Freddy waved.

“Ahoy, Jeremy!” He then gasped as he noticed the rounded shape of a UFO riding bee tucked under his arm. “You already won your bee?! Congratulations! I have not heard of anyone winning a major prize from the Hive Arcade before! How did you do it?!”

“I didn’t. I’ve just got this guy on loan,” Jeremy replied. He set the Babee down where it began to scoot around. “I was just carrying him upstairs for Beelora. Music Man might be bringing her up.”

They had only gotten seven honeycomb coins before Jeremy made the wise decision to quit while he was ahead. Anymore and he would be cutting into his savings for his rent budget.

“Ah, my mistake. Though I am sure you will win one very soon,” Freddy corrected. “Where is Foxy?”

Jeremy pointed a thumb back down the stairs. “He took Beelora over to see if Music Man could bring her…” He trailed off as he heard the distant tapping of quick metal footsteps up the stairs. “Sounds like that’s him… Running. That’s not ominous.”

Freddy and Moon braced themselves again, but as Foxy ran to the top of the steps and slowed to a stop at the top, it was apparent that there wasn’t actually anything he was running from. He noticed the additional bear immediately.

“Ahoy, Freddy! Thought you were gone fer the night. How’d it go?” Foxy asked. He gave him a little fist bump, which Freddy naturally returned.

“We rocked it! Monty did not join us, but Chica, Roxy, and I were able to get a good feel for the new lineup. But more importantly, Chica and I are finally on speaking terms again. Err, that is- Well, we are communicating again in the ways that we can, but she is doing much better! Maybe we will be able to repair our friendship… Though she said in no uncertain terms that we are through as far as any further relationship goes.”

“So, you were dating,” Foxy clarified. Jeremy was more curious at Foxy’s reaction than Freddy’s, and Moon all but went rigid at his side.

“In a sense.”

“Ya had no idea, did ya?”

“…Well, no. I assumed it was simply for marketing reasons. But it is okay! We have split amicably. I have a hunch that Chica may already have feelings for someone else,” Freddy hinted coyly.

Foxy assumed he was hinting towards Roxy, Jeremy assumed he was hinting towards Monty- maybe something about why he wasn’t around, and Moon was still processing the earlier bombshell.

“Unfortunately, Foxy, it seems that we have a problem…” the bear continued, his voice softening.

Moon, suddenly catching onto what Freddy was leading towards, snapped out of it, and sprang into action.

“While Moon was-.”

“Not anymore we don’t!” Moon suddenly interjected. All but bouncing up in front of Freddy and cutting him off fully. He gave a flippant flapping wave of his hand. “It’s all taken care of.”

“Uh huh,” Foxy said, entirely unconvinced. He leaned to the side to look past Moon and directly to Freddy. “That so, Fazbear?”

“Well… No. Not really,” he admitted honestly. Moon gave an exaggerated slouch and looked back to the bear. Freddy did not budge on that.

Just then there was some heavy creaking- timely, Moon thought- as DJ Music Man came climb up to the second floor. He was carrying Beelora in two hands and helped her onto the floor. Jeremy gave Foxy a pat on the shoulder and went to go check on her, giving the Babee an encouraging little, “Come on!” before leading him along around the arcade cabinets.

“Well, when you two ‘er done figurin’ out whether or not this be my problem, you’ll know where I’ll be,” he said knowingly. He started to follow the blond. “Yer comin’?”

“We will be right there,” Freddy assured.

Foxy then quickly got out of the way in case there was some sort of proceeding spat between the two. There wasn’t, but Freddy did look to Moon with confusion and concern.

“Moon, we should tell them about Vanny. They need to know she is here.”

“She’s not here. Not anymore,” Moon disagreed. “It’s best for them if we don’t get them involved. Our little bunny wants attention more than anything else, but we cannot give it to her. We’ll handle it later.”

“But what about now? She may try to come for Gregory again,” Freddy said worriedly. His eyes narrowed at the floor in thought. “What could she possibly want with Gregory?”

“I don’t know…” Moon said. His voice faltering, uncharacteristically small.

They stood there silently pondering this. Freddy spared a look overtop an arcade cabinet and caught sight of Gregory waving Foxy over to watch Jake play one of the games. He smiled at the scene.

“Jake and Gregory really do get along well,” he remarked.

“They do,” Moon fondly agreed.

“I did not expect to see him. I am so glad you brought him.”

“Eh… Yes. Me too.”

“Perhaps…” Freddy’s voice quieted to a whisper. “Perhaps he could watch Gregory tomorrow evening… Perhaps we could…”

“We could…?” Moon coaxed.

“Go find the burrow.”

The sudden seriousness in Freddy’s voice was almost startling. If Moon was shaken, he recovered quickly.

“Freddy, that’s dangerous.”

“It does not have to be. Together we could find Vanny ourselves, incapacitate her, and call the authorities,” Freddy pleaded.

Moon met Freddy’s gaze for a long moment. His gaze flickering blue before growing an increasingly bright red.

“…We should.” Moon growled. His hands tightening together to the point that his arms were almost trembling before all at once releasing and eyes dimming to normal brightness. “But not tonight.”

“Not tonight,” Freddy agreed. “…Should we call this off?” he asked hesitantly. Not wanting to, but willing to.

“No. There’s enough of us to keep watch. And I owe Jake at least one decent night out of our room.”

“We will give him much more than that! How do you feel about karaoke?” Freddy asked, finally perking back up again.

“Very poorly.”

“How would Sun~ feel about karaoke, hmm?”

Moon let that question sit there for a long second before tilting his head in a way to empathize the ever-present grin.

“Heh. Would you like to ask him yourself?”

Freddy couldn’t look any more excited than that. He eagerly pointed towards the others with both hands invitingly, to which Moon nodded and loyally followed as Freddy headed off to play host again. Both prepared to keep their little secret for now.

Besides, it wasn’t like Vanny could sneak up on them if they were all crammed into a dinky little karaoke booth. Especially with the DJ’s face pressed up into the doorway.

Needless to say, what followed was an awfully good time. Freddy and Foxy were pretty much passing the mic back and forth until someone was bold enough to snatch it up for their own turns, such as Beelora. As quiet as she seemed, eagerness took hold and she wobbled her way over to take the mic for herself, where she proceeded to sing some variation of the Hive Arcade song with semi-changed lyrics. Possibly a variant for private parties, as one of the lines emphasized ‘it’s just you and your friends in the Hive tonight’.

Eventually the atmosphere and possibly the stuffiness and fluorescent lighting got to Jeremy, and he started doing the bear dance again. This time accompanied by Jake who stumbled over the edge of a chair and got a frightened cry out of Sunny. He got himself righted quickly and Sunny went back to goofily jigging like he wasn’t trying to ignore his problems. Forgoing any breakdancing and just outright spinning his legs above his head once he got tired of being on his feet. Everyone taking care to steer clear.

Gregory didn’t want to sing himself but was more than happy eagerly clicking through the song lists and making suggestions for Freddy, who was just as happy to take suggestions. At one point Foxy and Freddy tried to duet with a song that they thought was the same song but what actually wasn’t. Foxy, unwilling to back down and look like a fool, just continued on as though the lyrics matched, despite Freddy’s furrowed look now and then.

It was the highlight of the night. Not that the rest wasn’t good, but it was the cherry dotted icing upon everything else. They were going to remember that night. If not, Jeremy secured a strip of photo booth pictures to keep the memories fresh.

It was still a few hours until sunrise when Jeremy and Foxy snuck back out of the Pizzaplex, and it wasn’t long before they were on the highway driving home.

Jeremy was feeling a little groggy but was still more than alert enough to drive home and to engage with some small talk about the evening. After a night like this, he could see why Foxy kept coming back. The Pizzaplex was a blast when things weren’t going wrong.

All seemed fine and dandy until Foxy made an unexpected off-handed comment.

“Whaddya think ‘bout what Bee said?” he asked.

Jeremy hadn’t thought about Beelora’s peculiar comment for most of the night. Once they all met back up, he had been too distracted to dwell on it. Being reminded of it caused that unease to resurface.

“It’s weird. That’s for sure,” Jeremy remarked. He sighed through his lips to keep from chewing on one.  “…I don’t know, what do you think?”

“Could be nothin’. Could be a cute blond workin’ there who she mistook ya for. Could’ve been some guy who came in and played the slots.”

“Gabe, come on. What are the chances that anybody else has visited the kiddie casino?” Jeremy joked. He sent him a grin that Foxy snorted at. “But… I don’t know, maybe. I hope so! I hope it’s not like her recognizing me because Freddy’s has my face on file due to the whole facial recognition thing Mari and the Toys had,” Jeremy rambled out.

“…Bloody ‘ell. I didn’t even think of that…” Foxy muttered.

That reaction didn’t help quell Jeremy’s nerves. “Or I don’t know, maybe she’s someone I used to know at Freddy’s.”

“Is that much better?” Foxy distantly asked.

“Uh… No, that could be a lot worse,” Jeremy admitted.

“Hmm… Then let’s narrow ‘em down. How much of the Freddy’s crew were you on a first name basis with.”

“Not that many people really. Especially not girls. The only one I can remember who I knew-knew was Bree.”

“Might’ve not been a lass. Ol’ Chica was a lass but her soul sure wasn’t.”

“Good point… I don’t know. The closest thing would be Bree. They have similar patterns of speaking, but then again maybe I’m just equating Bree and Bee, and I know she’s far away from Freddy’s now. She’s still working in game development.”

“Hmm. Have ya talked to her recently?” Foxy asked suspiciously.

“Not recently, but I still don’t think it’s her. Maybe I’ll call her tomorrow and check in.”

“Aye, good plan,” Foxy agreed. His suspicions fizzling out once Jeremy dismissed the suggestion. “’Nother option on the table is that somehow she saw ya the night ye came in and Moon was dinged up.”

“…You know, you could be right. I hung out in the atrium for a little while. That’s pretty far off from the casino, but if she was getting all those alerts then she might’ve come out and saw me. And since I was just chilling out, she might’ve thought I was a worker.”

“Aye, could be,” Foxy agreed.

“Maybe I’m just being paranoid. It could be nothing! I’ve just been so on edge since this whole… y’know, the bunny thing. We could be reading way too much into it.”

“Aye, that too,” Foxy agreed again. “…Still made me a touch nervous.”

“Yeah, I’ll be thinking about it for a while,” Jeremy said.

“If it ever gets to be too much, just hold onto that image of Freddy stumblin’ of the steps and hittin’ that real high note,” Foxy reminded. Which got a half-snicker out of Jeremy.

“Freddy’s a trip. We’ve got to hang out more.”

“That mean yer on board fer future parlay parties?” Foxy asked. There was an edge of hopefulness to his voice despite knowing of the risks. The thrill kept outweighing the risk and shockingly, it almost was starting to with Jeremy.

“Might be. We’ll see.”

He would see how exhausted he was the next day, then he could decide.

…

Louise’s lips were tight, and her face was burning so brightly that it could’ve been mistaken for a little too much rouge. Yet she stood there silently with that sucking lemon face listening to the sound of the shutter slowly sliding up and out of the way. To her direct right stood Natalie, now changed out of her uniform and into her street clothes- a pair of sweatpants, a tank top, and one of Fritz’s oversized flannels.

Louise dared to glance in her direction as they were heading out the automatic door. Natalie looked back and in that second her stoic face once again broke into a grin. The redhead fought the urge to puff up her cheeks and strode out through the front doors with the blond following close behind. She unlocked her car door and got inside and, seeing Natalie still coming, she rolled down her window in preparation for what was coming.

Natalie leaned in the window and slyly asked, “Should I tell the guys you’ll be in late tomorrow?”

Louise looked to her and said with no uncertainty-

“Yeah, that’d be great.”

…

…

…

..

.

It was a dark and stormy night. The distant groans of thunder rumbled through the castle walls as the princess rose to her feet. She could hear music coming from somewhere. Curious, she ventured out of her tower and onto the long steps into the castle further.

She walked through winding halls and dark corridors. Glowing paintings guided her way and the occasional crack of thunder and flash of lightning soothed her. The princess thought that the rain was beautiful and how fortunate that it did so often, but she was safe inside of her castle. She walked and walked all the way down to the nearby wing where she found the source of the music.

It was coming from the ballroom. There was a party in the ballroom, which had the princess curious. Who could the party be for? She went to explore, as quiet as a mouse as the big band boomed through the high ceilings. She did not want to get caught or she would be returned to her room. She sneaked around peeking and peering and looking for somebody else.

That was when she found the Court Jesters. How curious! The jesters were the castle’s performers and could be found doing summersaults and singing to entertain the masses. It looked like tonight they were entertaining someone else. It’s that kid again.

The squire. Squire to one of the knights in the castle. A little squire with a big mouth on him, and the princess was surprised to see that for some reason the court jesters- one of which used to hate this kid- was suddenly watching him like a hen looking over a bad egg.

It is just so adorable it could rot your teeth right through. Faster than those little hunks of sugar they hand out to the kids at the daycare. Moondrops, oughta call them Moonrocks. Rot those baby teeth. Spoil this little brat rotten from the inside out.

But the princess found this arrangement so curious. She hid behind a colorfully painted statue and peeked out to see where the three were standing before another statue, admiring a lovely tapestry. The boy was playing with the tassels on the bottom while the jesters stood and stared and admired the fine detailing on the stretch of fabric.

The princess crept closer. She wanted to see a little more, but she was afraid. Afraid that they might see her, even though she knew it was safe and sound. The jesters were harmless! They were all talk and joke cracking. She couldn’t see if she didn’t get closer.

She stood there in the middle of the hall and watched the jesters’ backs, but they did not notice. They were so busy entranced with the tapestry- and their little f̶r̵i̷e̵n̵d̶- that they did not notice the dainty woman standing behind them. They were simply too distracted with what they were doing to notice anything else. The princess too found it curious, but she also found it dull. She wondered when they would notice that she was standing there.

But then, much to her surprise, the boy spoke up.

“What’s going on…?” he asked in confusion. He furrowed his brow as he tugged and twisted the tassels. “Why’s it getting all glitchy?”

“Just keep playing. It’ll stop. It’s probably just an electrical thing,” the dark robed jester assured him.

Despite the fact that something was amiss, the jester didn’t seem to notice. He just continued to stare at the tapestry without so much as sparing a glance around the ballroom, upon which he would’ve surely noticed the-

…Oh. They HAD noticed.

For right after that, the same jester put his arm around the boy’s shoulders, his tattered cloak blocking his back. The other put his arm behind the first one’s back. They crossed their arms like they were forming a human shield- Well, not human. A shield to protect against any danger that might come. Any creeping monster that may crawl out of the bowels of the castle stinking of sewage and spewing out trash.

But they were only a couple of clowns. What could they do? N̸o̷t̴h̷i̵n̶g̴.̷ If push came to shove, they would be on their backs in a heartbeat. Weighed down by those heavy hearts. It was almost quite comical, but doesn’t that make sense? You’re supposed to laugh at clowns.

…

…

The princess crept closer but still, STILL, they refused to turn around. They refused to look at her. They refused to face their fears and instead-

There was the sound of someone downstairs.

…It’s Freddy.

It was time for the princess to leave. It was a shame as she hadn’t figured out what was going on, but she knew better than to be spotted.

She hurried off into the castle halls once more, where she was soon comforted by the romantic flickering candlelight and could listen to the rain that always fell atop the castle. She returned to the safety of her tower where she knew she would always live in comfort.

She drew a lovely picture. She peered through her magic mirror. Then she laid down in her soft bed and closed her eyes for sleep.

Good night, Princess.

Chapter 72

Chapter Summary

Charlie and Baby finally perform their duet. Also, Mike and Marionette decide to celebrate a special day by doing something a little unexpected. Will Mike pull through or will Mari have to give him a little help?

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

"Are you sure about this? You don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"I do want to. Trust me, I know what I want."

"Good, because I would hate to think you were only doing this for me."

"I mean, I would. But I want to too. So, no biggie."

Baby had slightly giggled at that. A momentous feat considering that she was likely nervous.

Baby kept a cool face under pressure, but this was her second time on stage, and it would be for a much bigger crowd. It made Charlie herself nervous and she had been performing for dozens of kids a day at Pirate's Cove. It was a much bigger scale for them both.

But Charlie wanted to do it. If she hadn't, what happened next might've convinced her- Baby looking to her with those shining emerald eyes and giving a sincere and surprisingly vulnerable-

"Thank you, Charlie."

Charlie kept replaying that moment in her head as she sat in her box and listened to Fritz and Mike struggling to get it to roll through the grass. She couldn't help obviously, and she didn't want her nerves to catch up with her, so she settled with a distraction. She let her mind wander and it went back to that conversation. She wasn't sure why; she didn't regret what she said. Though in hindsight she could've maybe done more to assure the clearly tense Baby.

At least she got a laugh out of her. Baby had a nice laugh. It was a shame she covered it up so frequently, but that was Baby. Always trying to be the serious one in total control of herself. Not wanting to betray that beneath all that metal she was a softie at heart.

…

"So, we're in agreement. I'm crushing on Baby in the most embarrassingly cliché way possible," Charlie mentally confronted herself. Her music box tightened, and she began to heat up. She would've been blushing if she physically could, so instead she just had a feeling akin to getting tingly while sitting in a relatively warm car. Then again, that could've been being stuffed in her box. "And now I am going to take that knowledge and I am going to sing with her on stage. And I am not going to screw this up."

Her box was tipped to assist in getting her up some short steps, with Mike and Fritz swearing and snickering respectively as they got it up onto the stage and rolled it into position. Mike gave a couple knocks to the top of the box, Charlie quietly knocked back, and then listened as their footsteps retreated.

It was almost immediately after that when she heard some thumping in movement back towards the steps of the stage. She had a suspicion what it was, but it was only confirmed when she heard something getting wheeled up beside her. Baby.

"You've got this! You've GOT this!" Ennard whispered loud enough that she could hear it. Baby gave a near silent hum of agreement- one that Charlie did not hear- and Ennard was off the stage as fast as he had come on.

Baby only waited long enough for the audience to not be as suspicious when she suddenly came to life and then went straight into character. Her voice light and bubbly.

"Hello, everybody! My name's Ringleader Lizzie and we're going to be having a singsong in just a moment. I hope you will join me! My, there's so many happy faces out today!... And so many stars and stripes!" Baby gasped. "It must be… The Fourth of July! I love the Fourth of July! Is there going to be fireworks? Oh, I should've brought sparklers- Oops, I'm getting a little off-track."

Charlie could hear her wheeling her roller skates back and forth to emphasize. "But I'm not celebrating alone today. I've brought a friend with me!" She knocked on the top of the box quickly. "Wake up, Sleepyhead."

That was her cue. Steading herself one last time, Charlie got into character and popped out of her box. Though took care not to lose her flag printed visor and taped on sunglasses in the process, a few Fourth of July themed accessories to replace her too-hot jacket. Baby's only additional accessories was her plush pig covering her claw and a cluster of red, white, and blue star-studded balloons that had been tied to her back and bobbed in the air above her as she moved.

It was also only now when she caught sight of the Fourth of July celebration in the middle of Hurricane. The parade had been earlier in the day, but the crowd still hung around for the food stalls, carnival games, an oversized bounce house, and the impending fireworks once it got dark. It was still a long way from dark though, with a bright blue sky dotted with clouds stretched above the town. The smell of fresh cut grass and grilling meat hung on the air. It was the perfect summer day for a holiday like this.

Charlie rose from her box in a stretch, yawning like she had roused from a nap. Baby presented her with a wave.

"Lottie the Puppet, everybody! Give her a round of applause."

While they clapped, Baby rolled back just a little bit so she would be able to lean forward without bumping heads while they were exchanging banter. Much to Charlie's relief, she still remembered the lines they had written together even now that she was out of her box and under the gaze of a couple dozen onlookers and whoever decided to pass by in the meantime.

"Have a nice nap, Lottie?" Baby asked. She leaned forward and cocked her head cutely.

"It depends. Where are we?" Charlie asked. She looked around and tilted her own head in confusion.

"We're at-! Umm, I'm not sure. But there's a lot of people here just dying to meet you!"

"Oh, okay." Charlie fanned herself with her hand. "Yikes. Did we have to do this on the hottest day of the year?"

"Mm-hm! Besides, you could use a little sun. You're looking a little pale."

Charlie looked off stage at the audience.

"But it's supposed to be sunny! And that's because… it's the Fourth of July!"

"Oh, Boom Boom Barbeque Freedom Day?"

"No! Hot Dog and Family Time Day! And the freedom to stuff your face and spend as much time with your family as you can stomach. But not just family, friends too!" Baby turned her attention to and addressed the audience. "Lottie and I are best friends! We go back a long, long way. We've known each other since we were babies!"

"In pigtails and onesies, daycare days," Charlie agreed.

"We spent so much time together. When we were kids, we used to have sleepovers every weekend for the whole summer!"

"We didn't get much sleep."

"But we had plenty of fun in the sun!"

"I wasn't so pale back then."

"So, we wrote a song about it!" Baby chirped. "And you all are going to be the first ones to hear it!"

"Maestro, hit it!" Charlie called.

Maestro Ennard heard his cue and turned on the music. A light popish music began playing from the speakers, something that could fit well enough with the summery themes.

"Summer nights and pillow fights, starry skies and fireflies~," Baby began. Her hips swaying and skirt tilting to the beat. "And a couple dozen days spent by your side.~"

"Pretty plastic dollhouses, teddy bears, and puzzle cubes,~" Charlie joined in. Jingling along with the music a little while singing. "Overflowing toy boxes and diving to the bottom with you.~"

"But then you had to go and grow-up, and now I don't know what to do,~" Baby sung in a pouty tone. Only to quickly perk back up with, "But I'm not going to give up! Because I miss spending all my days with you. So…~"

They exchanged a brief look. A signal from Baby, a cue to gear up, and there was no way Charlie was going to miss it. They hit the mark at the same moment, voices melding together.

"What about our Fridays? When we were best friends forever and it couldn't be better. No worries, no cares, I'd rather be there, and I'd go back if I could. And maybe we should. So, are you going my way?... Because I'd love another Friday with you.~"

There was an instrumental pause. During which Baby continued her bouncy little motions as she scanned the audience. Charlie did as well and readied for the next verse; so far so good. She looked back to Baby as she began the next line and was almost immediately surprised when it wasn't the line she was expecting.

"I wasn't always quite so nice. I came with a little sugar and spice, but on the whole the sweetest days of my life were with you,~" Baby sung in a softer tone.

That wasn't the line they rehearsed, but Charlie went along with her own.

"Playing hopscotch on the street. Messy hands and lemonade stands, and popsicle treats.~" This was the same line they rehearsed, but all of a sudden Charlie decided to impulsively improvise on the fly for the last part. To try and match the tone of Baby's previous line. "Life was never too sweet when it was just me and you, and you and me.~"

Baby very slightly tipped her head, noticing the change in lines as well. Charlie could almost imagine the hum she might've gotten if they weren't on stage.

"But then we had to go and grow-up, now what're we going to do?~" she continued. Forcing her smile to not shift and grow as she grinned at Baby. "Well, I'm not gonna give up, until I'm hanging out with you! So-.~"

"What about our Fridays? When we were best friends forever and it couldn't be better. No worries, no cares, I'd rather be there, and I'd go back if I could. And maybe we should. So, if you're going my way, then I'd love another Friday with you.~"

"We lived big 'til the sun went down and now we're going 'round and 'round looking for another day to be like we used to,~" Baby sung, the song briefly dipping to a softer tune and her voice following suit. Her hand clutched to her chest in a hopeful looking way as she turned from the audience to her partner. "And I just can't forget you… So maybe next Friday you'll be here too?~"

"You can count on it," Charlie said sincerely.

Baby gave a pretend giggle. At least, Charlie assumed it was for the audience. Baby seemed so deep into character that she couldn't tell where Lizzie ended and she begun, but she knew for a fact that was what she wanted. Because even if Baby didn't say it, Charlie knew that the more she pretended to be someone else, the easier it was for her to cut lose in a performance. They wrapped up the song together.

"What about our Fridays? When we were best friends forever and it couldn't be better. No worries, no cares, I want to be there, and we could. But if you're going my way, then you better get here soon! Because I don't want to spend another day without you.~"

With a final flourish of music and a spin from Baby, the song ended with a one-armed bow from both. They were rewarded with clapping and only once it died down did Baby go right back into her routine.

"Thank you, thank you! But we're not done yet, nope. That was just the warm-up! Speaking of warming up, Lottie, what's hot and sweet and fits perfectly with a Fourth of July extravaganza?"

"Hmm… A melted ice cream cone?" Charlie asked.

"Close! I'm talking about… barbeque!"

Which eventually led into the bafflingly catchy barbeque song. They went through three more additional songs afterwards; one about fireworks, a variation of Crème de la Crème, and a duet of Heartsick Fever. It continued to go well and without a hitch. The closest thing to it being when Baby's skate briefly got caught on the microphone cord, but she gave a firm yet subtle tug and detached herself with the audience none the wiser. It was going amazingly.

By time they were at the end it felt like time had flown by. There was only one song left, a 'surprise' song. Not really a surprise for Charlie who knew about the plan but hadn't been privy to the song- Baby hadn't decided quick enough to tell her.

"But before we go! I think we have time for one more special song for one more equally special guy. I want to wish a happy, happy birthday to my little brother!" Baby chirped.

"You have a brother?" Charlie asked.

"I have four of them! And since his big day's coming up soon, I wanted to give him my birthday present early!"

Baby looked out into the audience, shielding her eyes with her hand as she peeked out. She saw Mike towards the back in puppeteer garb and face paint, Marionette mounted on his standby his side, far enough past the audience to watch without disturbing the crowd. Both no-doubt resting up from their earlier performance which she had listened to from the van through one of Scott's handheld radios. It was much more important that he saw her show than her seeing his in this case.

"…Even if he's not here. Oh dear. Well, maybe my new friends could listen and tell me how it sounds?" Some of the younger kids in the front agreed. "Wonderful! Now this is a song that's very special to him, and it goes something like this…"

Charlie was expecting a birthday theme, so the sound of calmer music coming over the speaker was a mild surprise. It sounded like Baby was maybe gearing up for something a little softer.

"Come along…~"

Charlie felt a tremble go down her spine.

"Will there be sunshine shining, will we find a silver lining? Come along,~" Baby softly sung. "Sing a song. When today becomes tomorrow, will we find joy or sorrow? Sing a song.~"

This was different from any of the previous songs. Not just because it wasn't one they had written- she heard Marionette chiming the tune once, so that explained why she chose it- but because Baby wasn't doing it in her Lizzie voice. Though the audience wouldn't notice, Charlie noticed the smoothing and softening of her voice until it was virtually identical to how it typically was. In fact, unless she was imagining it, she heard an emphasis on certain syllables that sounded distinctly like a subtle accent.

Almost as though the real Lizzie was coming out.

"We'll paint the grey clouds with pretty rainbow hues. And we'll brush the gloom away, and save it for a rainy day.~"

That was when Baby spared a look Charlie's way. Her eyes half lidded with her thick faux lashes hanging over them. The viridescent glow still as sharp as ever even in the light, drawing her in. It was mesmerizing and Charlie was inwardly panicking.

"Rainy day. Oh, today.~"

The tingles were back. Suddenly Charlie was very aware of her lack of a heartbeat because she knew it would've been racing if it was there.

In Baby's perspective, Charlie was just standing in her box as rigid as a statue. From this angle it looked like her eyes were glowing too, but she couldn't really tell through the thick shades that were already reflecting sunlight. She looked back to the crowd and found Marionette again in the back of the audience. His hands were now clasped together, a gesture so quiet and unnoticeable that anyone else could've overlooked it. She didn't, she knew that he was happy and gladly continued singing.

"Tomorrow is another day. How I hope you'll always stay…~"

The song ended and there was more clapping. Though it was less than Charlie thought was deserved. Baby had nailed the song, at least in her opinion. It took everything in her to not break character and clap, deciding not to risk it.

"Thank you, everyone! Well, it looks like it's time to say goodbye, Lottie. I wish we could stay, but I don't think roller skates will roll or skate on all this grass," Baby said.

"And I think it's time for another nap," Charlie agreed with a stretch. "Too much fun in the sun."

"We'll be back soon! We're only halfway through the year, there's plenty more parties waiting for us! I hope to see you there." Baby gave a friendly wave to the audience. "Goodbye! And have a happy Fourth of July!"

It wasn't long before Ennard was on stage and wheeling 'Lizzie' off, all while she was still waving at an unsuspecting crowd. The clapping, the praise, the excitement had all left her with a pleasant buzz that continued to linger as she was rolled down the makeshift plank ramp and off the stage. She didn't get any further than that before Ennard stopped and hugged her from behind.

"Fourth brother, aww!" he gushed and squeezed.

"I never said it was you," Baby retorted.

Ennard merely giggled and 'beeped' his nose against her cheek affectionately.

Fritz and Natalie walked past collect Charlie and her box off the stage. Mike likely still with Marionette.

"Hey, good job," Fritz congratulated with a pat on Baby's shoulder and a thumbs up.

"You did great!" Natalie agreed.

"Thank you," Baby replied. There was a shakiness in her voice that she hoped they didn't notice. They continued past and Ennard patted her shoulders before continuing to wheel her.

It wasn't more than a few steps before Scott showed up to join them, giving her a side hug and helping lead her to the van. All while giving her quiet words of encouragement. He sounded so proud.

Baby was soaking up the attention like a sponge. It was as though she was in a blurred fog of giddiness. Last time she had spent so much of the aftereffect reeling from the performance, but this time she just took in the rewards.

"You were great. Better than great, you were perfect! They'd be crazy to not have you come back for the festival, y'know. I can ask around if you want, but I think you're a shoe-in."

"She sure is! She's already had two greatshows! That's waaay more than Freddy's ever been able to pull off, ha ha. Least not without a major lawsuit."

"You think you're joking, but, yeah, you're actually right. Freddy's could've never pulled off two shows without something going wrong in one of them. Usually something falling off."

"We've got a sturdy lady here!"

That comment was enough to pull her only briefly out of her high long enough to scoff.

While she was getting taken to and loaded into the van, Charlie was wheeled off the stage and taken to the Foxy van, which was parked close to Scott's. Both parking beside a nearby building with the wall shielding them from most onlookers. It was quite a walk but was worth it for the additional safety. Charlie's box was slid into the van before she climbed out.

"Hey," Fritz said. She looked to him. "Want to go see Baby?" he offered.

"Sure," she agreed.

She scooted over to him, and he carefully took her into his arms before carrying her over to Scott's van. She went limp as soon as he picked her up, head falling back and arms dropping at sides, only regaining mobility when she was set inside.

Baby was already inside and sitting against the wall, against one of the cushions. Charlie pulled the back closed a little to drown out the talking outside- Fritz, Natalie, Scott, and Ennard- and moved to sit alongside her.

"How're you feeling?"

"Good," Baby replied.

"You should, because we nailed it," Charlie said with a grin.

"We did! I'm- I'm not surprised, but also I am. I just kept expecting a disaster. Sabotage, something," Baby semi-rambled. Even she was surprised at the state of her voice, how wired she felt. Like Ringleader Lizzie was still taking ahold of her.

Charlie could hear the happiness in her voice, but also took note of the trembling in her hand with a little more concern.

"Liz, you're shaking," she noted, looking at her hand. It clenched in response, trying to still itself.

"I know. I'm not sure why. It wasn't any more strenuous than last time?" Baby said questioningly. "…It went perfectly. I'm just coming down from it," she decided. She started trying to get her pig plush off when Charlie stepped in.

"Here, let me help," she offered. She crouched on one knee and began to gently pull the pig plush off Baby's tightened claw.

It was then when the van doors unexpectedly opened.

"Hey, I saw the show!" a familiar and cheerful voice remarked. Jessica's familiar and cheerful voice.

Charlie only had a second to process her position and what Jessica could be thinking seeing only her back and immediately panicked.

"Hey! I'm just helping Baby take her pig off!" she shouted. She continued working the pig up before stealing a look up at Baby.

She was giving her an incredulous look. If Charlie had looked back at Jessica, she would've seen a similar one on her face too, though hers with pursed lips as well.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious, but I can take it from here," Baby remarked without bitterness. She lifted a lid in exchange for raising an eyebrow and took over pulling the pig off the rest of the way.

"Uh, no problem," Charlie replied with a grin. She sat back and looked to Jessica whose face shifted back to a smile before she did.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to fly in here. I just wanted to catch you before you left. That was great! You guys were incredible," Jessica congratulated.

"Thanks!" Charlie replied. She finally took off her visor and sunglasses.

"Thank you," Baby said as well. She appreciated the compliment regardless of her quietness, and absentmindedly rubbed her sore wrist. Her claw having clamped up so tight during the performance- and at the sight of the young kids- that it felt like a cramp. "I couldn't have done it alone. Or I suppose I could have, but it wouldn't have been nearly as entertaining without the banter."

"I'll say. Did you rehearse that?" Jessica asked. She sat down in the back of the van, crossing her arms across her chest.

"For hours. I'm not that good at improv," Charlie admitted. "Where's everyone else?"

"Floating around outside," Jessica replied.

"Caught in Ennard's orbit, no doubt," Baby quipped.

"They do want to come congratulate you guys if it's alright," Jessica asked.

With Baby shaky and always very aware of her image, Charlie wasn't so sure if she would be on board with visitors so soon after the show. Yet when she looked towards the clown for a signal or a look, she offered neither. Instead focusing on rubbing at the wires that connected her claw to the rest of her arm.

"Think you can stall them for a few minutes so we can sort of…" Charlie made a vague gesture down at herself. "Shake off the performance?"

"You've got it," Jessica promised with a wink. Something in that look suggested she was suspecting something else.

Charlie returned something unenthused and watched her hop out and close the back again. Then she turned back to Baby.

"I don't want my friends to crowd you. I can take this over to Fritz's van and come back before we leave."

"No, it's fine. I can handle them. If I could handle an audience of that size, I can surely handle your friends," Baby affirmed. Finally starting to sound like her old self. Charlie scooted a little closer. Baby looked up at her with a questioning, "Hmm?"

"Can I?" Charlie asked. Holding out her hand in reference for Baby's arm.

Baby offered up her claw with little hesitation. Charlie took it in both of hers, resting it partially on her bent leg, and began to feel over the wires checking for any looseness. Her clever fingers carefully feeling and manipulating the wires without pain. There was no discomfort, and Baby couldn't help but watch her work with interest. Appreciating the feeling of being doted on, admiring the technician at work.

"Just a little tense," Charlie finally concluded.

"The understatement of the day," Baby remarked.

Charlie chuckled a little and continued to gently work her claw joint in her hand, trying to work out the lingering tightness.

"You were amazing today," she said sincerely.

Baby felt butterflies in her belly.

"Thank you. You were too…" Her voice was significantly meeker than it had been moments before. She laid her hand on top of Charlie's. "Thank you for doing this with me."

"No problem! You're my best-…"

The last word hung there without being said. Charlie caught it at the last second and she didn't know why at first. Suddenly there was a ticking clock in the back of her head, bearing down and daring her to finish the sentence. To make a sudden impulsive decision.

"We sang a song about it," Baby reminded with mild amusement.

Charlie smiled awkwardly. "You're my girl."

There was a brief pause as Baby processed the words. Then they suddenly sunk in, and her eyes popped open.

"…What?" she finally squeaked.

Charlie instantly lost any nerve she had. "My girl! My- My best friend, my number one lady," she fumbled out, trying desperately to smooth it over.

"…What?" Baby repeated. She was only slightly less flustered than Charlie was.

The Security Puppet give a nondescript slew of noises that might've been a raced-out excuse and turned to desperately open the back. Waiting for Ennard to finish gushing over Carlton and Marla's match novelty hats before beckoning them in.

Baby was even less prepared now to face her friends, but she still had her head stuck on the stage, so she was able to pretend nothing happened without anyone noticing. Even if she hadn't, Charlie was still acting odd enough to draw attention away from her.

Good old Charlie, dredging up questionable feelings during times she really needed to focus.

Her best friend… Her girl.

…

As Baby and Charlie were removed from the stage, Mike tried to discreetly move Marionette away from the audience before he could draw any attention and get them stuck with a crowd of their own. He was guiding the frame back across the grass to the closest pavement when Marionette reached back and stealthily laced their fingers. In seconds his voice began to flood into Mike's head.

"That was beautiful. She sings like an angel," Marionette remarked. Even though only thoughts, he sounded like he was on the edge of tears. Choked up by his sister's early birthday gift.

"Runs in the family. Want to drop in and thank her?" Mike offered.

"…Let's give them a few minutes. They need to get in the van. I don't want to draw any extra attention while they do," Marionette suggested. He certainly wanted to go after and congratulate her, but he couldn't crowd her. At least not when they were still out in the open.

"Sounds like a plan. Want to take a look around?"

"I would love to."

Mike got the frame out of the thicker grass and began to wheel them past the stalls where he could get a better look at the celebration. He naturally attracted attention but none that would arise suspicion. More than a few kids came up to say high and Mike 'made sure to have his puppet greet every one'. A few people took pictures but whether or not Marionette was relaxed enough to show up in them wouldn't be known until they were developed.

One of the people who took pictures was a teenager with pink hair who worked for her high school paper. One who seemed at least somewhat aware of the old Freddy's regardless of their attempts to detach. Though she wasn't as intrusive as she was curious.

Which was fine on its own until the girl showed off her Freddy's knowledge by dropping an unexpected comment.

"He's a Freddy's original. Circa nineteen eighty-seven. Don't tell Freddy's. They might try to come back for him, and I only have one bat to beat them off with and no cash to bail myself out afterwards."

"That's so crazy!... Wait, eighty-seven? Isn't that when that kid got bit?" she asked. He hesitated and she took it as him not knowing what she meant. "Okay, so, there was this kid who stuck his head into the mouth of one of the robots and it like, clamped down and he had to get emergency brain surgery. But here's the spooky part! They never said which of the robots did it… But I'm guessing it wasn't this guy." She pointed towards Marionette.

"Nah, this guy's got a pretty tight alibi," Mike remarked. He proceeded to kick himself for making what sounded like a joke but it was the kneejerk reaction.

Marionette chimed but Mike made an effort to detach from the conversation after that, not sure how the Puppet was really handling that unexpected confrontation. It turned out he shrugged it off rather quickly.

"Well, that came out of nowhere. Are you okay?"

"From that? Of course! I've always found irony funny," Marionette replied. It didn't sound like he was covering and there was no spike in temperature, though he did glance towards Mike with a sly, "A pretty tight alibi."

"Tighter than Fredbear's teeth?" Mike dared to joke.

"That's awful, you know that?" Marionette said, the clear amusement in his voice showing that he took no offense.

"I know. I just have no impulse control."

"I know that very well."

They figuratively laughed off the encounter and moved along.

Mike continued to wheel Marionette around the celebration. For someone like him, this festival wasn't much to look at. Just a basic get-together in the middle of town. Yet with Marionette there, with the idea that he was stealthily giving him yet another outdoor experience that he could hang onto, it made it much more special. Not to mention the giddy feeling that accompanied that slight skirt of danger. Parading their little secret around town who no one was the wiser.

But that wasn't the only thing in Mike's mind. Baby's song had reminded him once again- as though he had forgotten- that Marionette's birthday was coming very soon, at the end of the month.

Considering all of what he had to put up with this year and last, Mike wanted to make it a special one. That's why he had gone all out with the gift, though that wasn't enough in his opinion. A gift could only go so far, but a memorable birthday was something just as, if not even more special.

When it came to communicating through telepathy, it wasn't a matter of just thinking something and it being transmitted. Mike had to make up for the fact that he wasn't telepathic in any way. He had to effectively think hard and loud. It was weird to describe, but he had become accustomed to it. His hand still discreetly resting on Marionette's back, looking like he was holding him to keep him from swinging, he forced more thoughts through.

"What do you want to do for your birthday? The party thing's got to be getting old after, what, ten a week?"

"Parties are eternal. Though yes, I do feel old," Marionette joked. "But I'm not sure yet. I would love to do something special, but I wouldn't want to get in the way of anyone else's plans."

"It's your birthday, it's your choice. Besides, I think we can manage more than one event a day. We crank parties out faster than that."

Marionette chimed a little. From an outside listener it might've just sounded like random music, or maybe a ringtone.

"I'm not sure. Let me think…"

Marionette trailed off as he looked off towards the bounce house. That too brought back some memories, though sneaking into the Pizzaplex to fool around in a bounce house was a risk. Though not entirely off the table. The Puppet continued to stealthily look around and think and Mike strolled along with him, taking in the ambience.

"You know what I want to do for my birthday?... I want to live dangerously!" Marionette finally proclaimed.

"Bounce house it is," Mike thought. That time unintentionally projecting the thought. Marionette inwardly chuckled and outwardly chimed.

"Not that. Although that is an excellent idea. Let's keep that one on the table," he agreed. "Why don't we go spelunking? Like you did with Fritz and Jeremy!"

Wherever that had come from it caught Mike completely off-guard. He was about to break into a sweat, and he couldn't tell if it was just the thought of spelunking again or the smoky heat blowing past from a large grill.

"Where did THAT come from?" Mike asked.

"Well, first I was thinking of the bounce park, and then I got to the daycare, then into the plastic tunnels, and somehow that became cave diving in a real live cave. Mike, that would be incredible! Could we do that?" Marionette asked. It was Mike's worst fear: Marionette sounded excited about it.

But that shouldn't have been a problem. His last spelunking trip was pretty uneventful- if you ignored the panic-stricken elephant in the room. Not to mention that if he got Marionette into a cave, likely he would be able to hide him well enough that there wouldn't be much risk. He wouldn't be at a risk of getting trapped, and if he did, Marionette would probably be helpful in getting him out. If not, he could likely get to the car and call Fritz who could then call for help.

When Mike thought about it like that, it wasn't anymore risky than taking Marionette camping.

But Mike was definitely sweating now. He moved them further away from the wafting smoke.

"You sure that's what you want to do?" Mike asked. Trying to sound as casual as possible.

"I am! Unless you don't want to. I wouldn't drag you underground unless you were a willing participant," Marionette playfully added.

He was getting an out. Any smart person would've eagerly taken that out while they could, but Mike didn't always choose his brain over his heart when it came to Marionette.

"I'm in if you are," Mike said. Brushing off his concerns and exactly what he was 'in' with that decision.

Marionette was delighted and that was the end of it for then. They continued wandering around until they went to go visit Baby.

Over the next couple of weeks, Mike got together the stuff to go spelunking- the stuff he really should've had last time- and the two used the office computer afterhours to do a little research on possible caves. They ended up finding one that was supposedly easy and safe- as safe as an underground cave could be. The only catch being that it required a permit, which Mike was able to acquire before the planned excursion without much trouble. There wasn't even a fee.

But that didn't mean they were going to do it. The week before the big day, Mike had checked the forecast and noticed there was going to be rain for a chunk of the following week. There was supposed to be rain directly on Marionette's birthday. As excited as he was, and he was excited, Marionette wouldn't go caving in the rain. Flash floods were all too common and both were very aware that it wasn't worth the risk.

This probably wouldn't cancel the trip for good, just postpone it. It took the weight off Mike's shoulders as he became comfortably convinced that he was off the hook.

Fate always did its best to fool with Mike. Not only did July 28th fall on a Wednesday, meaning that Pirate's Cove was closed- which would normally be great but not as much today- but it also happened to fall on a bright and sunny day despite the warning of rain earlier in the week. Those clouds cleared up days ago and it was nothing but blue sky for Marionette's birthday.

Which, again, would've been great if this didn't also fall on the day that Mike agreed to go belly crawling through a cave. But he was a man of his word and was determined to get in and out of that cave before the party, without Marionette noticing anything amiss.

They drove up to the cave mid-morning. This time Mike showed up prepared. He wore clothes he was prepared to get scuffed including boots, work gloves, and had even bought a headlamp hardhat in advance, and brought a spare backpack from the Prize Counter to carry some spare supplies.

He also made sure that everyone who knew them knew exactly where they were going. Not that he was too concerned. While he had a chance of getting stuck, Marionette did not, and he was the only person bendable enough to help pull him out.

"Okay," Mike said with an exhale. He patted his hands on the steering wheel and looked over at Marionette in the passenger's seat. "You ready?"

"More than ever," the Puppet confidently responded.

"Then here we go."

Taking one more deep breath, Mike got out of the car and made his way over to the cave. It was close enough that he could walk over there, make sure nobody was there, and signal Marionette before beginning to climb down inside.

It was a low cave filled with loose dirt, one that almost immediately opened after the entrance into a wider room. Though it had a low ceiling it was already leagues better than the tight tunnel he was expecting. Unfortunately, he didn't get far before he found himself face to face with a metal gate held closed with a sturdy padlock. He quirked a brow and checked the padlock, but it was closed tight and the gate wasn't budging.

"It's locked?" Mike questioned. Marionette came up beside him to see and Mike cracked a smile, barely holding back a snicker at how comically the Puppet was bent forward to fit into the cave. With his legs lifted to not touch the dirt, he looked like he could tip over.

"How strange. How do people get in?... Didn't you get the permit?" Marionette asked with an edge of suspicion, side-eyeing the man.

"I did, but the guy didn't say anything about needing a key," he assured. He released the lock. "Well, this has been fun. Looks like it's time to head home."

Marionette gave him an amused smile and Mike returned it, then watched as the Puppet took the lock in his hand and made short work of it.

"There we are!" Marionette proclaimed. He pushed open the gate and hung the padlock on the latch it once sealed. Then he led the way further inside.

"…I'm starting to wonder if the locked gate is a sign," Mike remarked, shining his headlamp and flashlight around to illuminate the space.

"It's a sign nobody else is in here," Marionette coyly answered.

"Good point."

For a while they could make it through just walking and though the ceiling was low, Mike found himself much more comfortable with this arrangement. But it couldn't last forever and soon the room led to a rocky, narrow passageway down further into the caves.

Marionette all but dove in headfirst, using his hands to climb down the rocks as he looked wide-eyed at his surroundings. It was all so new. Even without much to look at it felt so interesting to him.

Mike followed down feet first, carefully climbing over the lodged rocks. It was now a little harder to see, as his lights were restrained by the small space, and the air was growing thick and stuffy. With the ceiling steadily lowering to meet him closer and closer, Mike decided it was a good time for a distraction and spoke up.

"So, if I may ask, what made you choose caving?" he asked.

Marionette laughed, his chiming reverberating in the small space. "You waited until now to ask?!"

"Yeah, I'm a real standup guy," Mike said with a slight grunt as he worked himself further down.

"Curiosity. I've never seen the inside of a real-life cave before. It's about time I did. Have an adventure; live a little!" Marionette said. "I am quite content where I am, but recently I've been a little more… intrigued by the outside world. I'd love to see a little more of it."

"You know what we could do? Sometime, not now. I need to go visit my grandparents. I could take you with me," Mike offered.

"Really?!" Marionette was downright ecstatic at the news. So much so that he spun his head around to look back at him. "I would love that! I would love to see them! Even if they can't see me. Do they still have the barn?"

"As far as I know," Mike answered with a grin.

Marionette trilled, a comforting sound in the otherwise quiet cave. "I'd love to see it."

They continued making light small talk as they edged further into the cave and Mike was starting to feel like he was getting a handle on the unease. The adrenaline spike he was expecting hadn't quite kicked in yet, but he was in shape enough that he wasn't getting winded either. It was nothing like last time. The cave was a lot less overbearing- though longer, but he brushed that thought off. They followed the sporadic green flag markers deeper into the cave.

"Oh, Mike, look!" Marionette said. His voice breaking a momentary silence. He had gotten a little ahead without noticing it. "Shine your light over here."

Mike scooted over and did as requested, and much to his surprise the ceiling glistened under the bright lights. Not exceptionally bright, but a noticeable sparkle from minerals dotting the stone.

"Take a look at that," Mike remarked. "The guy I talked to at the office said something about crystals. These don't look like that, but it's still something."

"It's beautiful," Marionette enthused.

"Hold on…" Mike slid off the black and white striped backpack, unzipped the puppet face pouch, and fished out the camera stashed inside. After unwinding a layer of bubble wrap, he scooted back and got into place. "Smile!"

The Puppet snapped his head towards him with a smile and tossed up a peace sign. Mike eagerly snapped a couple of pictures of him and the wall, though more of him. Afterwards, Marionette held out his hand, silently asking for the camera. He scooted further down the rocks and reached to hand it to him, only to feel a light tug and have the camera jump out of his hand and right into Marionette's fingers, to which he eagerly lifted it to his eye to return the gesture.

"Your turn."

"Hang on." Mike readjusted his headlamp a little and brushed some of the dust off his pants before reclining back onto the rocks with his arms behind his head and a devilish grin. "Ready."

"Oh, very good~," Marionette trilled. He took the picture. "Definitely going into the album." He took another one.

"What album?" Mike jokingly asked.

"The pile of photos I have stashed in the nightstand."

"Oh, THAT album. Right."

Marionette chuckled, chimed, and reached out to plop the camera back into Mike's hand. "Let's keep going. There might be more farther in," he encouraged.

Mike felt a noticeable clench in his lower gut but ignored it and got up off the uncomfortable rocks to continue down.

The cave tightened up a bit more. Still not to the point of belly crawling, largely because it was at a downward angle, but noticeably. Enough so that his breathing sounded louder, and his lights were much less reliable for distance.

As it grew a little too tight to float through, Marionette began to crawl. Limbs eagerly twisting to propel him along, body smoothly contorting to pass through the narrow space. The way Marionette climbed and maneuvered around on the rocks could've been terrifying to the untrained eye, but it was always fascinating to Mike. Though his full attention wasn't on it, especially once they got a little distance between them and he only caught flashes of black fabric and stripes around the rocks.

That was when it started creeping back up on him. His jaw held tight as he tried to ignore it. Because at this point it wasn't even the cave that was causing the anxiety to swell, it was the dread that an attack would creep up on him. That he would have up with it- and not just the symptoms either, but having it happen in front of Marionette on the one day he didn't want to throw off his vibe. He wasn't going to let that happen.

He was so distracted that he almost missed the other's voice.

"It looks like the path splits up here. Can you imagine having to come all the way down here just to find the appropriate tunnel?" Marionette remarked. Mike's answer was delayed. "…Mike?"

"Sorry, I hear you. I was just focused," Mike assured. It could've been believable as he was currently getting him down and through an awkwardly low section of ceiling.

But the Puppet had noticed that his usually wise-cracking other half had been rather subdued. Most noticeably after they had stopped to take pictures. He turned back, only now realizing how much distance had come between them as he was exploring ahead. He quickly climbed back to him.

"Mike, if I may, you've been unusually quiet," he softly prodded.

"Just trying to keep the dust out of my mouth," Mike casually deflected.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah." Mike exhaled as he squeezed past a rock and then looked up from the floor to come almost face to face with Marionette. He flinched a little. "Whoa! Give a guy a warning. I'm only sitting in a cave in cougar country."

"Oh, sorry! I was just checking for this dust. I wouldn't want you filling up before the party," Marionette apologetically joked.

But he noticed that something was amiss. Not only was Mike distracted but he was also uncharacteristically jumpy. A far cry from the sturdy rock he was used to, especially when he was somehow startled by him.

Mike noticed Marionette's staring- it would've been hard to miss with him now right in front of him. "What's up?" he asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," Marionette replied. The slight concern in his voice sanded over as he gently continued, "What's got you so tense, hmm? If you're worried about all this, don't be. You know I'll keep you safe."

"There's nothing to worry about. I'm just… Okay, I had a slight panic attack last time I was down in one of these, and sometimes that puts me on edge. I don't know, I've done plenty of stuff more dangerous than this. I don't know why getting mildly jammed up in a hole in the ground's the one that stuck with me," Mike admitted. At this point it was better to just be out with it than hide it and risk putting Marionette through more worry.

That wasn't to say that Marionette wasn't concerned by the confession. His eyes widened in surprise.

"You didn't tell me about that… Mike, I wouldn't have made you come down here if knew that! Why didn't you tell me?" he lightly scolded.

"I didn't think it was going to be a problem. It's not a problem, I'm just a little tense. I'll be fine once the adrenaline kicks back in," Mike excused. "It's no big deal. You wanted to come down here and I wanted to do something special for your birthday. Win-win."

"It's not a win-win when one of us loses…"

"Eh, I'll lose when I'm dead."

"…Do you want to turn around?" Marionette offered. He reached out and took his hand, squeezing it affectionately. "We can. I won't be upset."

"No, I can handle it. We're already halfway through if we're hitting the other routes," Mike said. He squeezed back and took a deep breath. "I'll tell you if it gets any worse, but I don't want to be and the mercy of this thing."

"Okay… Okay, then we'll finish up. Together. If you're sure," Marionette agreed. He leaned in and pecked him on the cheek. "I love you."

"Love you too, Birthday Boy," Mike said genuinely.

"Call me that again and I may seriously consider ditching you in here," Marionette jokingly threatened.

"Got it, Boss. I'll save it for the party."

With the following scoff and chime, things seemed to lighten up. Mike still felt a little off, but Marionette stuck close and that gave him a little more grounding every time something began to tense or tighten.

He still had that feeling like something big was about to go down. That any second now they were going to have a close encounter with danger, and he was prepared for it. Standing on that edge waiting to jump back if something reached out.

…But in this case, Mike's hunch was wrong and he knew it. He didn't slip and break his leg on a loose rock. Marionette didn't lose his grip and crack his porcelain on the stone. All of the things he expected in vivid detail were not coming, and even though he shouldn't have been surprised- he knew all of this was in his head- he was still relieved when he caught sight of sunlight. They had reached the end of the route in one piece.

"And there we are! We've made it!" Marionette cheered triumphantly. He turned to Mike with a beaming smile. "How are you feeling?"

"Not too shabby," Mike said with his own grin. As a matter of fact, he was feeling a little proud of himself.

"Good!" Marionette chirped. He pulled him into a congratulatory hug, relieved and delighted himself.

Mike was feeling pretty good. Maybe it was the confidence of pulling through, of spiting his own irrational reflexes, or maybe just the triumph of successfully clearing the cave. Or it could've been the adrenaline that was finally starting to give him a slight buzz. He felt good enough that he was tempted to take another risk, maybe not yet ready to pack up and leave.

"So, how far are we from the car?" Marionette asked.

"Not that far. It should just be around that way…" Mike pointed. "…But." He dropped a hand on Marionette's shoulder with a cheeky grin.

"Oh no. That look," the Puppet remarked. "What are you thinking?"

"Want to take a whack at one of the other tunnels while we're here?"

It was the second time that Mike has taken Marionette aback today. He almost didn't think he was serious at first, but that smile said too well that he was considering the idea. But with everything in consideration, the Puppet was a little more hesitant.

"I'm not sure if that's such a good idea… We might not be ready to tackle a more difficult cave. Someday, I'm sure! But maybe not today?" Marionette suggested with an apprehensive smile.

Mike knew why he would be a little hesitant. If not out of worry for Mike pushing too hard, then perhaps concern that they really would get stuck.

"Good point," Mike agreed. He tapped his fingers on his leg and considered their options. "…Want to go back the way we came? Might give us a new perspective, or at least a workout."

"Are you up to that?" Marionette asked tentatively, a little more intrigued.

"I'm good to go. The high's kicking in and I'm ready to go ride it out," Mike insisted.

"Hmm… Well then." A much more natural smile spread across his porcelain mask. "I'm in."

So, they turned around and headed right back into the cave. This time Mike was determined to get threw it without even a single hiccup.

Unfortunately, Mike didn't entirely consider the fact that since he spent most of the time going down in the cave that turning around would mean going back up. It was significantly more of an effort to go up than down, but not enough to make him turn back. Though the number of times he bumped his head on the low ceiling was making him almost consider it. At least he was getting his money's worth for the impulse hard hat purchase.

There was a moment when he was squeezing through one of the narrowest sections when he came through and found Marionette's hand waiting for him. He eagerly accepted it and got a helpful tug up to where he needed to be. He didn't think about it at the time, but he reflected back on it later, how perfectly it summed up the experience. Him fumbling around in the darkness and suddenly a gentle hand helping him through.

And somehow, driving home covered in dirt while an equally dusty Marionette sat curled up in a tarp looking like a wrapped body, Mike fell in love all over again.

…

Mike and Marionette stopped by the house to change and shower off some of the dust before heading over to Foxy's. The house was empty when they got there with everyone having already left. Despite the temptation to take advantage of the time alone, likely by relaxing on the couch and watching some television together, they kept their time there brief. Just sticking around long enough to get themselves looking presentable.

Marionette hummed happily as he tied on one of his red bows on his neck. It was such a far cry from the first birthday they celebrated together, one where he spent so much of it afraid of his Happiest Day that he could barely celebrate the day happily. Until he was absolutely sure that it wouldn't be his last one. Now here he was ecstatic, eager to get to Foxy's and join the party. It was such a difference.

And the bowtie was an excellent choice. It was going to fit perfectly with his gift. Not that Mike was going to dare tip him off this close to showtime, instead tossing him a compliment and leaving it at that.

They drove over to Foxy's and pulled around back to find the vans parked close to the backdoor. Just seeing both Fritz and Scott's vans was a dead giveaway that everyone was already here.

"Last chance to back out," Mike offered.

"Not without my cake," Marionette declared. He looked to him with a playful glint in his eye. "I'll see you inside."

Then he vanished from the car and Mike was left to catch up. Not that Marionette got far. He teleported into the hallway just beyond the backdoor only to find all the lights off. It would've been a little eerie if he didn't catch the distant murmur of voices.

He knew exactly what was coming, and it was a good thing he seldom got stage fright because he knew he was about to be the center of attention. His music box tightening and lowly trilling in excitement as he waited for Mike to let himself in, which he did a few moments later. They exchanged a look but not a word. Mike gestured for him to go ahead, and Marionette led the way, eyes alighting with excitement as he peered into the darkness.

He paused and braced himself for a moment before heading out into the dining room. He didn't get a chance to see through the darkness before the lights flicked back on.

"SURPRISE!"

A chorus of voices calling out slightly ahead and behind of one another, the sound of a couple of plastic noisemakers, and the distinct thump from Michael bumping his head on a table. So many people popped out of hiding and yet they were all friends and family who he knew so well. Marionette tossed up his arms in exaggerated surprise but was quite happy to see all of them.

Foxy hopped down from his stage- Jeremy, Louise, and Plushtrap following out behind him, with the last one getting scooped up on the first's shoulders as they did- and hurried over to his brother before anyone else could get a chance.

"Happy Birthday, Marion!" he greeted. He sent a questioning shrug past at Mike. "What's the deal, Schmidt? I thought ya were visiting the cave, not settin' up shop in it."

"Turns out you don't crawl through a cave as fast as you think you will," Mike replied.

Foxy quickly swooped in for a hug that Marionette eagerly embraced. He patted his back, then felt over his back, and then pulled them apart and shot him a questioning look.

"Why're ya wet, lad?"

"I had to clean up a bit before I came in. The cave was extremely dusty."

"What did ya do, spray yerself down with a hose?"

Marionette laughed and decided to not inform Foxy that he could handle a few seconds in a shower. Mike just grinned to himself and kept his mouth shut.

"Eh, it's fine. Stand under the lights, they'll dry ya out," Foxy said. Hooking an arm around his brother, he led him over to the others. More specifically gunning to lead him towards their other siblings and Charlie, who quickly came up to meet them on the way.

Mike decided to stay back and give Marionette some time with everyone else. He had more than enough time already- a quick glance at his watch reminded him that they were over an hour late. Not that anyone was really going to push a schedule onto a birthday party- save Foxy, of course. Fritz walked up from the table he had been hiding beneath.

"How'd it go?" he asked

"Good up until I decided it was a good idea to climb back up the cave," Mike replied. He took a deep breath and gave a more honest, "Better than I thought. Almost flared up about halfway through, but we made it."

"That's good! We were thinking about you," Jeremy added in as he walked up. Plushtrap still straddling his shoulder and resting on his head while Jeremy held his back. "Not enough to go after you. You couldn't pay me to go back in a cave."

"Actually, it was way better than the cave we went into. Most of the time it was open, pretty much no crawling, and the hardest part was just keeping my head down."

"…Okay, you might be able to pay me to go into that."

"Don't tempt him. He will save up the money to get you down there," Fritz warned. Mike audibly shushed him.

All the while Marionette started to mingle with the party guests, greeting his siblings and friends and welcoming them to a party he himself only just arrived at. Only briefly sidelined by getting blindsided by Ennard and nearly taking Carlton down in the process. Not long after he spotted Chrissy standing nearby, wanting to come see him but hesitant to walk up with the crowd surrounding him. So, he instead went to meet her and kept her close by for most of the party, which she appreciated.

The party started off great. Someone brought Pin the Tail on the Donkey, a rather standard game. It started off well enough until Marionette tied on the blindfold and, right before he was about to spin around, got an idea and requested someone bring out the office chair. Which resulted in what was sure to be his staple party trick from now on: spinning around in an office chair at lightning speed while Foxy and Ennard goaded him on.

Charlie had warned him about last time and when that didn't work, made sure to stand in front of Chrissy. Pretty much everyone else who was watching was doing so from a safe distance.

"Someone ought to slow that thing down before he flies off," Fritz warned, likely hinting for Mike to do so.

Unfortunately, this prediction came a little too late. Not long after he said that Marionette also got the idea to slow himself down before getting up. He tried to slow himself with his legs and was pulled forward, causing the chair to teeter and wobble. He reflexively fell back onto levitation to stabilize himself and it promptly flung him in a random direction. He careened into Balloon Boy who gave a resounding "OOF" before falling back in a heap with Marionette's tangled limbs.

Partygoers rushed to their aid only to realize very quickly that the two were fine. Save for Marionette having to ride out the dizziness on the floor and Balloon Boy's bruised pride- he only gave one complimentary laugh at the incident and then no more.

The cake went much more smoothly. Tabitha had baked it and brought it out herself, seemingly not ready to give up credit. Nobody could blame her; it was clear she had gone out of her way to make it special.

The cake was small since Marionette couldn't eat it himself. It was easier just to make a small one that looked nice and throw in a sheet cake for the humans and the few animatronics who were willing to sacrifice their dignity for some delicious empty calories. It had white frosting with red piped edges and a matching 'ribbon' around the middle. Marionette admired the cake with glee for a good while before waving out the candles.

It was the first year that Mike hadn't noticed a hesitation before he waved out the candles. He wasn't sure whether to read that as Marionette already knowing what he would wish for or him having no fear of what may happen if he got it. Or if he was just so distracted by the jovial scene around him that he didn't even spare the thought. Any of those options were perfectly fine by him.

Then it was finally time for the gifts. Which was announced by Mike sweeping aside the cake just in time for Foxy to drop a giftbox on the table.

"I regret sayin' this, but this be a team effort," Foxy confessed.

"Oh? I wonder what it is," Marionette said thoughtfully. As though the fact that it was a flat box that looked similar to the one they used for Charlie's jacket wasn't any indication. He carefully peeled back the balloon dotted wrapping paper.

Soon he had gotten down to the box and lifted the lid and peeled away the tissue paper to see what waited inside.

If he could breathe his breath would've caught at the sight of dark purple inside of the box. Though any questions were answered as he lifted the fabric and it unfurled and revealed its true form.

It was a coat. One who's length could've perhaps resembled a pirate's coat but lacked the costume details to denote it as such. He guessed it would likely reach his knees.

Its main color was that vivid purple, but it was also accompanied by red accents. Such as a red band around the middle that resembled a belt. The cuffs were also red with two additional, horizontal, matching stripes above them on the sleeves, resembling Marionette's arm stripes that would be hidden beneath them. The red distinctly matched the usual color he preferred for his cheeks and lips.

There were three golden buttons on the chest that disguised the fact that the coat had a hidden zipper that kept it closed. The inside was soft and silky, and he could tell from touch alone that it would chafe against his own velveteen texture. It wasn't a heavy jacket either, feeling light enough that it wouldn't get cumbersome during work.

The most intricate and important part of the jacket was the back of it, and as fate would have it that was the last part Marionette had revealed to him.

The red band circled around the back of the waist and overtop a matching vertical stripe that went from under the collar all the was down the back to the split of the coattails. The red band and striped purposefully resembling the ribbon of a present. To punctuate this, on the upper back and laying over the vertical stripe, there was an embroidered decal of a gift box- white with a black ribbon.

It was beautiful. It was so beautiful in fact that despite the fact he was expecting it- Mike randomly taking measurements of him while getting Charlie's jacket done tipped him off- it knocked him off his feet seeing it in person.

"So, what's the verdict?" Mike asked. His smile giving away that he already had an idea what it was.

Marionette expressed his delight for the jacket with a slew of exclamations that were all but lost under the trilling and chiming that also spilled forth.

"It's so pretty!" Chrissy chimed in. It was a rather good summary of Marionette's own thoughts.

"Well, try it on, Lad! Let's see how it looks!" Foxy encouraged with a soft thump on the back.

Marionette promptly rose from his chair and slid on the coat. It fit perfectly and he spun around to further show off the jacket and feel it in motion. He then looked up to the others excitedly.

"How do I look?!" he asked. Finally getting some words past his own musical joy.

"You look like a magician!" Chrissy gushed as she looked over the jacket. "And kind of like a present too!"

"Mike?" Marionette looked to him expectantly.

"Stunning," Mike replied sincerely. He quickly got the camera ready again, the one he had used in the caves, the one he used a few minutes ago for the cake. "Alright, grab Chrissy and give me a smile."

Marionette eagerly did so, resting his hands on her shoulders and smiling happily above her. She sent the camera the widest smile she could muster. Foxy squeezed himself in at the last second, getting his arm back around his brother before the picture could be taken.

Mike wasn't smiling for the camera and yet he couldn't have had a broader grin as he snapped that photo. Picture or not, he was going to remember this party.

Especially if he was going to outdo it next year.

Chapter End Notes

Quick note here! The song "What about our Fridays" was originally imagined and suggested by my bud Hourglassradio. ^_^ I wrote the lyrics myself, but they were the person who planted the idea and started the lyrics, so consider the song a tribute to them!

Chapter 73

Chapter Summary

A day in the life of Roxanne Wolf as she deals with a near disaster, meets a new friends, and confronts a familiar foe...

Chapter Notes

Sorry this one took so long, but I’ve started work on The Broken Circus again. ^_^ Plus, this one wound up being a little longer than expected- but I don’t think you’ll complain. Anyway, Enjoy!

Nobody expected a raceway to be quiet.

The sound of clattering go-karts barely made it over the rev of their engines, the laughter of the drivers, and the plethora of onlookers, both kids and adults. The ambience music playing overhead peppered with the atmospheric sounds of revving and skidding from the mounted speakers. Automated announcements luring patrons to stop by the line of snack bars or announcing birthday parties in the party garages. It was so much that one couldn’t hear themselves think, let alone hear anything else.

It was a busy day at the raceway. Being the Pizzaplex’s arguably most popular attraction it often was packed, but today those numbers had doubled. There were people everywhere, and the line to get on the racetrack was backed up nearly to the door.

Though strict guidelines meant only a limited number of racers could be on the track at once. While this should’ve been for the safety of the racers, it was more for the safety of the brand.

A couple of rowdy teens were leading the way around the track, taking any chance to try and push each other out of the way like it was a game of bumper cars. This was strictly not allowed, but with the cutbacks on human staff there wasn’t anyone to stop them. They whizzed by on the track, causing a scene and catching a lot of attention from onlookers.

Until one of the karts bumped and shuddered as it ran over something. The teen driving it acknowledged the occurrence for a second before returning his attention to his race with his friend.

Neither realized how fortunate they were. His tire had caught on a rough, cracking section of track and if he hadn’t been going as fast as he was, the concrete could’ve easily caved under his wheel. They had gotten away by the skin of their teeth.

The next kart was not nearly so lucky.

Driving slowly and staying on a steady track, there came a younger boy steering a kart with help from a Driver Assist Bot, a Staff Bot mounted in the kart to help children drive on their own. These karts were heavier, these bots were programmed to drive slower, and they could recognize and avoid other drivers, but they could not see nor recognize more insidious dangers. Such as the deceptively shallow cracks spiderwebbing out across the track.

The kart drove directly over those cracks when they suddenly failed.

All at once the track failed and the track collapsed in. The kart’s front-left wheel was sucked down into the hole, tipping the kart over so far that it nearly fell over but was still lodged upright. The boy cried out in surprise at the sudden motion and soon found himself staring at a tilted world and the crumbling concrete. He struggled against his seatbelt, but it was locked into place, and he couldn’t release it, and the Driver Assist Bot could do little more than request for him to return them to the track.

The kart was still revving, trying to free itself but only succeeded in wearing away more of the broken pavement.

“Mom!” the boy screamed. He tried to yank himself out and the kart lurched down further, now teetering at the point of no return. Burying itself deeper into the track, which was coming up to meet him. “MOM!”

All at once another small portion of the cracked track fell in. This was enough to drop the kart in further and send it falling over. The boy looked up at the road coming towards him with the weight of the bot and the kart trapping him underneath.

A clawed hand caught the edge of the kart, saving the boy mere seconds before being crushed.

The kart was hoisted back up and a familiar face peered underneath, her yellow eyes aglow and illuminating the underside of the vehicle. It was Roxanne Wolf.

“Help me!” the boy yelled in a panic.

“I’ve got you, kid,” Roxy promised. Her tone cool, her eyes determined, and she reached under to try and release the seatbelt. When it didn’t, she grabbed ahold and ripped it free from the kart. The boy fell out and across her arm and she pulled him out.

By now there was an audience watching. Both onlookers from beside the track and other go-karts that had stopped to watch the scene. She had already sent out a warning to stop all the Driver Assist Bots, so now all she had to worry about was this one and this kart, which had stopped peeling at her command but was now sitting in this hole. She switched out her hand for her foot and flipped the kart with her leg. It landed back onto its wheels with a crash, the motion pulling its front tire free of the hole.

Roxy didn’t spare it a second glance as she strode past the kart with the boy still in her arms. She looked around for any sign of his mother amongst the slew of onlookers and instead caught sight of an employee running up- too little too late, in her opinion.

“Roxy! Roxy! You’re not supposed to be on the track! We’ve been through this!” the man scolded.

Her head snapped to him in offense at his chastising- like someone was scolding their dog. To think that a kid almost got in a serious accident and this joker showed up to lecture her on stepping in. She was about to chew him out, wring him out and hang him to dry, but she didn’t have a chance to do so.

“There’s a hole!” one of the older kids in the stopped karts cried out. “That kid drove into a hole, and it flipped the kart over-!”

“It’s right there! Look! There’s a hole!” This girl pointed down the track towards the hole.

“It fell!” another called.

A chorus of more kids called for Roxy’s defense and finally the employee climbed up onto the edge of the track to see what they were talking about. It took him only moments to spot the roughed-up kart and the sizeable hole in the track and went pale.

Roxy took only the slightest bit of joy in his expression. She would’ve loved to smirk at him, but this was barely a victory.

“Mom!”

She looked down at the boy and followed his eyes and forward lean right to a woman sprinting up to the track, struggling to get past the crowd that had formed. Clearly the boy’s mother, likely having been waiting at the kart boarding and unloading zone.

Roxy ignored the worker and carried the boy to his frantic mother, who was so worked up by the whole thing that she hugged him tight and peppered out apologies like Roxy was a person and not animatronic. She gave a cool nod and headed off towards the register.

Unfortunately, there were a few humans running the register for the raceway, largely to help mediate the large flow of visitors. Staff Bots were effective but could get tripped up and slow down a line. These employees were more startled by Roxy coming in to grab merchandise out of the back than the fact that the raceway had just caved in- word spread fast, they had to know. Not that they were doing anything about it.

One especially feisty woman was trying to corral her, to no avail. Roxy walked right past her and collected a box of keychains and a child sized raceway-themed shirt. One she was sure would match the size of the boy. She then strode out without even offering a word.

It didn’t take her too long to locate the mother and son again. By now the medical crew had arrived, which consisted of two people who looked too young to have any form of medical degree- in Roxy’s opinion- the two security guards, and some of the on-call technicians. The group both checking on the boy and trying to get details.

“I’ll tell you what happened,” Roxy announced as she strode up. She then promptly ignored them and turned all of her attention on the boy standing alongside his mother, crouching down to his level.

She made sure he knew how much of a ‘brave little man’ he was as she gave him his new shirt and a keychain for good measure. The boy still seemed shaken, but he ate up her attention, and she made sure to give him the VIP treatment.

Then she started passing out keychains to any children she could reach. In her opinion it was better to keep guests happy, even if a little trinket wasn’t even a band-aid solution. What was Fazbear Entertainment going to do, stop her? One of the technicians tried, all it took was a sharp look to get him to back off. They might’ve gotten away with pushing Freddy and Chica around, but she would be a dead-last loser before she let them tread on her toes.

There was at least one technician who was willing to hear her out about what happened without any antics, and that was Delilah. Of course it was Delilah. She was one of the only female technicians and the only one who Roxy ever let work on her, when given the choice.

Though once Chaz showed up everything defaulted to him but by then Roxy had already spoken her peace and went to placate the crowd as they called for guests to leave the raceway. A good decision in Roxy’s opinion. She would rather have the raceway shut down than have it open with the main attraction barred off. That would just be embarrassing. It was all or nothing in her eyes. At least her presence, mingling with the crowd, gave the kids that one-on-one experience.

But once they were gone, or mostly gone, Roxy headed downstairs and secluded herself into an empty party garage. She needed a minute alone to recollect herself and couldn’t risk getting attention crossing the Pizzaplex when she wasn’t at her best.

She combed back her hair as she walked into the small party room, walking around in a circle between the tables before stopping at one, resting her hands on it. It was crazy to think that a kid almost got hurt and that her own raceway had a collapse.

…

…

…A collapse from the same cracks she had reported DAYS AGO.

With a frustrated snarl, Roxanne slammed her fists down on the flimsy table. She didn’t expect it to buckle and collapse at her feet. She looked down startled at it. Was everything around here so cheaply made? No wonder Monty kept breaking stuff.

Having let off a little steam, she gave a small sigh, groomed back her mane once more and shook it out, and then turned to head the party garage. It was fine. They came for her, not just the go-karts. She would just have to work harder to keep the customers happy. She could do that, and maybe then the technicians could get off their asphalt dragging backends and fix her raceway.

She pushed her way past a Staff Bot investigating the sound of the breaking table with a deflated, “Move,” and walked off to finish off an already exhausting day.

…

The raceway was going to be shut down for a few days. It was the biggest fiasco that had hit the attraction since opening, though due to waivers they easily skirted a lawsuit. What they didn’t skirt was that the track was going to need significant repairs, on and under, to stabilize it enough to be safe for drivers again. That stopped all guest traffic into the raceway.

Though Foxy wasn’t any guest. He was getting the chance to see the Pizzaplex’s dirty laundry once again like he had signed up for a tour. It was also his first time in Roxy Raceway and if he didn’t have the knowledge of the fiasco that occurred there, just the sight of the enormous attraction might’ve turned him green with envy. Or at least boiled him from the inside out.

Roxy Raceway was a huge canyon-themed raceway. This side of the huge room consisted mostly of food stall from the moment you came in until you walking down the big stairs that led into the raceway proper, with the party garages stationed directly under those stalls. The register was to the far right of the entry and the direct right of the stairs, and in front of it was a ‘road’ that led towards the Beauty Salon. The racetrack was planted in the center of the gymnasium and most of the other side consisted of bleachers.

They walked down to the ground floor and then up to the edge of the track closest to the small sinkhole.

“There it is,” Freddy announced. He popped open his stomach hatch so Gregory could climb out and then lifted him up onto his shoulders to see.

“It’s not that big,” Gregory said. He sounded disappointed.

“Aye, it doesn’t look that big from here, but that’ll suck a little kart in faster than yar whirlpool,” Foxy pointed out. He pointed at the cracked. “Ya see those cracks? Those be a disasters waitin’ to happen. They’re lucky it stopped where it did.”

“And it only stopped where it did because Roxy stepped in,” Freddy said. His eyes were lidded with sympathy. “It is such a shame. She takes so much pride in her racetrack. She alerted the technicians over a week ago, but there was nothing they could do…”

“There was somethin’ they could do, but it meant shuttin’ down the racetrack and that meant taking a hit to where it really hurts: the treasury,” Foxy said grimly. “Bloody cheapskates cutting corners.”

“Well, not anymore! The construction crew will be coming in and be reinforcing the entire track in only a few business days. It will be safer than it ever was!”

Neither Foxy nor Gregory was as convinced but neither felt like breaking that naïve optimism.

“Not that it was not already safe. The karts are very sturdy and younger guests can only drive under the tutelage of a Driver Assist Bot. Thankfully, the child who was in the kart that got stuck in the hole had a Driver Assist Bot on board to help-.”

“Hey! Who’s down there?” Roxy’s voice echoed from the second floor.

Freddy gasped and quickly helped Gregory down, intending to let him back into his stomach hatch. But when Foxy looked around and bolted, Gregory decided to follow along with his lead, hustling off for a hiding spot nearby. Freddy straightened up and tried to look casual, hand folded behind his back trying to twiddle his thumbs as he waited for Roxy to arrive, which she did shortly afterwards.

“Freddy?” she asked in disbelief.

“Oh, hello, Roxy! I was just… taking a look at the track!”

“Taking a look at the scene of the crime,” Roxy said in understanding. She leaned against the barrier and looked at the broken track. “It’s ridiculous that it came to this. Kid almost got seriously hurt, the raceway’s shut down- I’ve been seeing cracks popping up for weeks and nobody’s done anything about them.”

“I know. I am sorry,” Freddy said sincerely.

“I see a lot of what goes on around here. Even before I got these upgrades. It’s not easy to hide something from me.”

“I suppose not…”

“And that includes your boyfriend over there. Hey!” She turned her head and called back. “You can come out. I already saw you.”

Foxy and Gregory were both currently parked behind a forklift carrying some supplies, which had been brought in shortly before closing and made for the perfect hiding spot. Or so it seemed, as apparently even though crouched behind it, she still knew he was there.

At first Foxy didn’t know how to respond. He looked to Gregory who was still staring wide-eyed in equal surprise before realizing that if he didn’t come out, she might come over here. He made a gesture for Gregory to stay put and then slowly began to stand up.

He leaned just enough to peek out from behind the forklift, still not entirely convinced that Roxy hadn’t mistaken him for Sun. He saw Freddy standing there as stiff as a board, eyes wide, mouth tight, looking like his battery was about to drop out his bottom.

Meanwhile, Roxy looked… absolutely unphased. A glazed look in her lidded eyes.

“This isn’t the first time she’s seen me,” Foxy realized. That alone had him swearing inwardly as he stepped out and clearly into view.

“…Ahoy.”

“Oh, hey. It’s Captain Foxy. What a surprise,” Roxy said, making her lack of surprise abundantly clear.

Freddy looked to her in shock. “You know who he is?”

“How could I not? He’s our competition. Of course you wouldn’t know that with how often he’s hanging out here,” Roxy remarked.

“Ya knew I was here?” Foxy asked, inching over. Every time they looked over at him he was a little closer.

“What am I, blind and deaf?”

“Roxy can see through walls,” Freddy said. Distantly, as though he was suddenly realizing it for himself. Foxy’s head snapped to him.

“She what?”

“In a sense,” Roxy replied. Flipping her hair back over her shoulder.

“How in the bloody ‘ell can you see through walls?” Foxy asked in disbelief. Finally getting the nerve to storm over demanding answers.

“I double as security, so I can see Staff Bots and animatronics on the grid. You’re too outdated to spot, but I did see Freddy walking around talking with you. And heard him. And you. You two weren’t exactly subtle,” Roxy explained unphased.

“Why… did you not say anything?” Freddy dared to ask.

“Because after three days of you two screwing around, I realized he wasn’t going to do anything.”

“But…”

“Normally I’d care, but I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there’s a lot of crazy going around,” Roxy explained. “Monty’s sneaking in girls, Chica’s in love with some… clown, Sun’s hiding the other Sun up in his bedroom, and my hairdresser’s been hearing noises coming from under the salon to the point where he’s about to have a major breakdown. Frankly, Captain Cashmere here is the least of my worries.”

Foxy didn’t even know how to react to that comment other than a somewhat confused scoff. “Well, fer yer info, I ain’t the only animatronic from the outside who’s got in. I’m sure Chica told ye about the lass she chased.”

“The striped mime girl. Yeah, I’ve seen her,” Roxy replied. “She’s pretty slippery.”

“It runs in the family,” Foxy remarked, thumping his fist on his chest with pride.

Roxy shot him a sly grin. “I’m sure it does. I’m sure you can slip through a lot of cracks when you’re your size.”

Foxy was taken off-guard by the quip and narrowed his eye. “That a crack at my expense last, Lassie?”

“No, Sir,” Roxy replied in a way that somehow still seemed smug. “But how is the business doing?”

“Bloody fantastic! We’ve got just as much work now’s we had before this joint opened, and that was already a whole lot,” Foxy bragged.

“That’s a shame. I was hoping we’d throw a little work your way,” Roxy said. “Guess pirates are a little outdated.”

“No more than cowboys. Or whatever theme yer goin’ for here,” Foxy muttered. Sending a scrutinizing look around the room.

“Desert racing. Burning rubber on a sunset highway with high-speed motor mayhem,” Roxy recited.

“Ah, Coyote vs. Roadrunner, the old classic! I knew I recognized ye from somewhere- ya just tossed a wig on.”

This finally hit a nerve. The smugness dropped off Roxanne’s face and her leg twitched a little. Foxy returned a ‘foxy’ grin and Freddy took the moment to try and break up the dispute.

“But, yes! The Pirate Cove is doing very well!” Freddy said, trying to smooth it over. “Roxy, do Chica and Monty-?”

“Aye, verrry well. See, not all kiddos be able to dump their parents’ paychecks fer a couple’a bun-less burgers and mini-golf in a steam room,” Foxy seamlessly batted back.

“That’s a good point. For every top-of-the-line brand there’s usually a more affordable model. Might not be as state-of-the-art, but you’ll get your money’s worth,” Roxy replied with a swish of her tail. She then answered Freddy, “Chica does, Monty doesn’t.”

“Least my place’ll be open tomorrow.”

Roxy shot daggers at Foxy and he returned a nasty little chuckle.

“It doesn’t matter. The people come for me, not for go-karting. They could do that a lot cheaper somewhere else.” She then tossed and flipped her hair. “And this is all real.”

“Aye, so is mine,” Foxy replied, mockingly pretending to fluff a non-existent coif. “But that’s great!... Fer a side-character.”

“I forget, when exactly did you get dropped from the lineup?” Roxy asked a little more sharply.

“When I got a big enough name to open my own place and get me own cartoon,” Foxy cockily replied.

“…Funny, you look taller in it.”

“Aye, and I looked damned good in it too. Prob’ly why it’s raking in the booty.”

“The only booty you’re getting is whatever you dig up yourself.” Freddy gawked at this.

“Why go diggin’ when there’s already a big hole right there?” Foxy pointed over towards the track. “Looks just big enough to sink someone’s career.”

“That hole is tiny. The only thing fitting in there is you.”

The whole time this exchange of barely disguised insults was being slung back and forth, Freddy stood there mouth agape and tried to both process the information and figure out how to stop this possible disaster.

Meanwhile, Gregory had taken this distraction to sneak away. He didn’t want to take the risk of getting spotted and resulting in another chase that would no doubt lead to that social worker sniffing around tomorrow. So, instead he crept all the way to the register and let himself inside. The little building him giving him a much safer hiding spot while allowing him to still peek out the service window to see what was going on.

There was even some candy sitting out. Gregory nearly swiped it up before the thought of Freddy crept up on him- “Gregory, that is stealing! It is one thing to take what you need, but another to take what you do not.” Freddy had never actually said that to him, but it sounded like something he would say. Though it was against his nature, Gregory pulled off his backpack and went digging into his own candy stash. It was a little easier giving up free food when he knew he’d get more.

As he was unzipping his bag, he thought he heard something. He looked back over his shoulder and saw nothing, he peeked out of the window and saw a very offended Roxy pointing her finger at Foxy who had his hands up in defense, Freddy separating them.

He watched the scene with furrowed brows for a second before hearing a soft knock. He jolted and snapped his head back to looked over his shoulder. He stared at the wall behind him, dividing the middle of the register office, with unease.

Then a pair of white ears slowly slid out from behind the wall. Followed by a pair of glowing red eyes. A black nose and long whiskers about a long-stretched smile of a mouth.

It was Vanny. Gregory spun around quickly and clutch his bag like he was about to beat her off with it. She stuck out a white and pink-pad gloved hand and waved at him. He did not return it. Then she flipped her hand and beckoned him towards her.

“Fat chance,” he muttered. A bit of defiance even with how much she creeped him out.

She leaned further out with a dramatic cock of her head, one that made Gregory cringe inwardly a little. Her hands gripping at the edge of the wall and arms bending until…

She sprung. She all but leapt out and dashed up to him in a matter of two seconds. Gregory swung his bag at her to no success as she grabbed him by the shoulder and shoved her gloved hand over his mouth. He tried to twist out of her grip and for a moment he did, but then she grabbed him from behind and snatched him off his feet. She labored with his weight as she dragged him back away from the door. He dropped his bag and began to grab at her hands, not daring to yell, knowing he couldn’t risk attracting Roxy too.

He continued thrashing as she started to drag behind the corner. Giving a defiant, “Let go of me!” and trying to lurch out of her grip. He kicked a shelf in his efforts which clattered loudly and some stuff fell and rolled off of it. The noise was louder than he had anticipated and Vanny went rigid, sitting up at alert like an actual rabbit listening for danger, and then yanking him back against her. One arm wrapped around him and trapping his arm to his body, her hand tightly pressed back over his mouth.

She stepped back into a dark corner behind some shelves with a mocking, “Shhhhh…” Then she waited.

It wasn’t more than a few seconds later when the reception door was shoved open, and Roxanne stepped inside. She looked around the reception suspiciously before heading further inside. The heavy footsteps following her to the door signaled that Freddy too was there.

He could see Roxy’s shadow and make out some of her form through the shelves that separated them as she looked at stuff on the floor.

“Here’s what fell,” Roxy said suspiciously.

“How odd. Perhaps it simply was not stacked effectively?” Freddy downplayed. He sidestepped past her and over to some lockers in the corner.

Now Gregory could see him, but he couldn’t see Gregory, as his back was to him while he tried to peek into the slates of the lockers. Likely assuming that Gregory was hiding in one, totally unaware of the situation going on behind him.

Gregory tried to wave for his attention and then grab for the closest shelf, but Vanny easily twisted him aside, so it was out of his reach. Just out of his reach, as though baiting him. Watching him through those glowing red eyes as he desperately tried to get attention.

He couldn’t grab his watch and he couldn’t flag Freddy. He could walk away and leave him, and they were right beside the back door. He couldn’t see Vanny and maybe he wouldn’t see him with how she was holding him. She felt wrong, she smelled like oil and dust, her suit burned his skin, and he was starting to hyperventilate because Freddy was still not seeing him. Even though it was seconds it felt like hours.

Gregory had to decide right then and he did the second he grabbed Vanny’s gloved hand, pulled it down as much as it would go, and bit down on it as hard as he could.

Vanny gave a staticky gasp and wrenched her hand back. Gregory then threw all his weight on her other arm to escape, and her grip had loosened just enough that he was able to rip free. He stumbled over his feet and landed heavily on the floor.

Freddy spun around and gasped at the sight of Gregory seemingly falling out from behind a shelf. Before he could do anything, Roxy skidded in around the corner beside him and saw as well. Gregory stared at her with wide eyes and clenched teeth.

“HEY!” Roxy barked. She darted forward.

“Roxy, no!” Freddy cried.

Gregory dropped his head and covered it with his arms.

Roxy ran in with her claws and teeth bared-

straight past Gregory-

and grabbed Vanny by the shoulders and all but slammed her back against the wall.

“There you are! Did you think we weren’t going to find you?! You’ve got a lot of nerve showing up here!” Roxy snarled as her claws dug into the shoulders of the woman’s suit.

Vanny gave a frightened noise warbling through distortion. Her fingers clawing at the wall as she slid down meekly under Roxy’s gaze. The wolf rolled her eyes in disgust and released one shoulder to instead grab her by the front of her suit, mostly by the bow, and then press her firmly back to the wall while freeing up her other hand to press a finger to her temple.

“Security alert! Vanessa, I found psycho running around in the rabbit costume! I’ve got her pinned down in the registration office of Roxy Raceway!”

During this, Foxy had charged in thinking that Roxy was talking to Gregory. Something that was quickly disproven when Gregory darted out between him and Freddy, who ushered him past and then followed to scoop him up into his stomach hatch. Foxy was left standing there watching Roxanne manhandle the elusive rabbit lady.

Except what she had pinned up against the wall didn’t look like a person at all. It was more a distortion of staticky space. The walls seemed to be bleeding into the center of this misshapen space. His own vision grew staticky and warbly just looking at the center of it.

That’s why Freddy couldn’t see her. She was wearing some sort of cloaking device to disguise her from animatronics, just like with those old safe rooms. Only difference was that this one didn’t work on her. He couldn’t see her, but he saw where she was supposed to be.

That was when something shifted. Roxy noticed Vanny twist up under her grip and the eyes of her mask flickering and glowing brighter. She lifted her hands as though in defense, her fingers shaking and wiggling. Roxy gave her a warning look.

Vanny suddenly clapped her hands down onto Roxy’s arm and all hell broke loose.

“WhAT?” Roxy’s question turned into a scream as she thrashed, wrenching back from the grip like it had just shocked her. But it was apparent that it hadn’t, it was something else that sent her into convulsions and pained, panicked babbling. She released Vanny and collapsed to her knees, and after a moment Vanny released her as well. Roxy was still twitching and malfunctioning, words stringing together and jaw snapping open and shut. Her eyes rolling around lost.

“ROXY!” Freddy cried, witnessing the whole scene from behind Foxy.

Vanny’s stoic confidence suddenly shifted, and she stumbled aside and back against the other door. She turned and threw it open before running through. Foxy’s eyes jumped from Roxy to the blur now disappearing through the doorway and he made the rash decision to bolt after her, charging through the doorway, slamming open the door in the process, and racing after the blur.

Freddy knelt down alongside Roxanne, making sure not to shift Gregory but also concerned at her state. Her shoulder was hot to the touch and her fans had already kicked on full blast.

“Roxy, are you okay?! What did she do to you?!” he asked with worry.

Roxy struggled to shake it off. Her eyes finally began focusing but she still seemed to be in some sort of pain. Yet she did pull herself together enough to speak.

“Go… Get… Her…” Roxy snarled through her seizing.

“But what about you?”

“I’m fine… Just… GET HER.”

Freddy nodded and got up before striding out the door after Foxy. His eyes narrowing as he approached the stairs. “Gregory, hold on! There will be turbulence.”

“Got it,” Gregory agreed. He held onto Freddy’s endoskeleton and wall and locked himself into place. He still was painlessly jolted as Freddy bounded up the stairs.

Meanwhile, Foxy was swiftly catching up to Vanny. Darting around the equipment left outside of the entrance to Roxy Raceway and closing in on the blur.

He knew that what happened to Roxy was the same thing that happened to Marionette, and he knew that touching her was risking him going through the same thing. His only chance was to incapacitate her. If she was trapped underneath him then it didn’t matter how much she ‘jolted’ him, she would still be stuck there until everyone else showed up. He could take her out in one well timed leap.

She took the long way around a stack of wooden pallets and Foxy took the short, leaping up onto it and steadying himself on it before fixing his eye on the inversion of space passing in front of him.

“I’ve gotcha now!” Foxy yelled. He leapt down off the pallets and onto the floor before pushing off to dive at her.

In that split second something had caught around his ankle, and he found himself crashing to the floor. His hook just missing Vanny as it swiped through the air and ended up stabbed down on the tiles.

Vanny fled like a frightened animal, or to Foxy, like a singularity blur sliding away from him. Not yet willing to give up, Foxy fought against the wires caught around his foot, reaching down to untangle them.

“Foxy!” Freddy called as he ran up, seeing his friend on the ground. “What happened?!”

“Got caught up by some bloody- and now she’s gettin’ away! That’s her right there!” He pointed to the vague distortion in the distance.

Freddy’s ears twitched reflexively as he listened. Then he got up and continued to sprint after her. “I will take continue pursuit.”

“But Freddy, you can’t see her?!” Gregory called out of his stomach hatch.

“I cannot see her, but I can surely hear her!”

Freddy thumped along into the lobby above Fazer Blast, struggling to listen and hearing the clattering against a chain length fence. The employees had already mounted a gate to block Roxy Raceway’s entrance from the stairs that led down to Fazer Blast’s, and coincidentally enough the chains on it were still shaking when he ran up. He could hear footsteps that he couldn’t see and shortly afterwards the automatic door into Fazer Blast.

He tried the gate with all his might, but wouldn’t open, and with Gregory inside he couldn’t risk ramming or kicking it in. He would have to take the long way and began to run again, heading out the security door into the atrium and towards the escalators.

While he did, he lifted a finger to his temple. Eyes narrowed and focused on where he was going, he started sending Sun a warning. “Sun, the dancing rabbit lady is here! Vanny! She attacked Gregory and Roxy and now she-!”

“-s headed towards the daycare. I think.” He puffed out as he continued to run across the atrium. He could barely see her on the far side before she skirted through the security door towards the stairs. His heart leapt into his throat at the thought of her-

-at the visions that were dancing behind his eyes. Freddy had never had something like that happen before. Like a vivid daydream, where he was still here and present, but he also suddenly had this reflection or recollection on a completely different event.

“Freddy?” Gregory called from inside.

Freddy could hear him but for the moment he was so detached that he couldn’t properly respond. It was as though he was in shock, still reeling from what he had seen.

He vaguely acknowledged the rapid footsteps behind him before Roxanne came bolting out from under the security door, coming to a stop with a wobbly stagger as she flung her head around searching for Vanny.

“Where is she?! Where did she go?!” she asked. Freddy was silent, which she noted and approached. “Freddy?” He looked to her distantly. She naturally assumed he too had been attacked and had just managed to stay on his feet. “I’ll go after her. Just point me in the right direction,” she requested.

“…F-Fazer Blast,” Freddy quietly said.

“She jumped that gate, didn’t she? I knew it. Alright, just stay here and sit tight. Ride this out. Don’t go trying to be a hero,” Roxy instructed. She then turned around, with another slight fumble, and ran back into the entrance.

Freddy could then hear a brief exchange.

“Of course a slimy little rat like that would slip through here. That’s right! Sneak away, you coward!... I’ve got to get down there.” There was some clattering on the fence. “Ugh, I can’t jump like this. You’re going to have to give me a boost.”

“Wha? I can’t do that!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means I got one workin’ hand! There ain’t a boost balancing on a hook.” A brief pause. “I can jump it.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it. I’m taking the long way.”

“Just have Freddy boost ya then!”

“I can’t! He’s messed up now too!... Forget it, I’m just going to-.”

There was some heavy thumping from inside the Fazer Blast lobby, some cracking, and obscenity from Foxy, and then Roxy’s footsteps as she ran into Fazer Blast.

It was then that Gregory felt like they were alone enough to speak up.

“Freddy, what happened? Why did you stop?” Gregory asked.

Freddy finally felt stable enough to speak. He had to be; Gregory deserved an explanation.

“I had a… a dream,” he said.

“A… dream? Did you fall asleep?”

“N-No, I was just going after her and then… I saw this image in my mind of someone chasing her. It was very strange.”

“Like a daydream?”

“I suppose so… Hold on a moment, I need to tell Sun.” Freddy returned his finger to his temple.

During this entire time since the moment he had sent his unfinished message, Sun had been sending non-stop messages.

“What?! What is she doing?!”

“Freddy?! Answer me! What’s going on?!”

“I’m coming down there, just hang on!”

“Or up there!”

“WHERE ARE YOU?!”

“I’m coming. Don’t move.” That time it was Moon’s voice.

Not wanting to worry him any further, Freddy lifted a finger to his temple.

“I am here. My apologies, I did not mean to cut off like that… I will explain what happened later, but for now Roxy and Foxy are in pursuit of Vanny,” Freddy sent. Within a few seconds he received an answer.

“Look to your left.”

Freddy turned his head.

There was Moon perched on the nearby railing.

“Oh, Moondrop! I did not see you there, or even hear a jingle.”

“Where is shhheeee?” Moon growled out.

“In Fazer Blast. Roxy has already gone in after her- but! Wait! You cannot touch her,” Freddy quickly added. Lifting a hand to stop Moon the moment he hopped down from the railing. “When she touched Roxy, something happened to her. It was like she was electrocuted!”

“Electrocuted?... But she got up?” Moon inquired.

“She did,” Freddy agreed. He gave a slightly stressed smile. “She is a hard one to keep down.”

Moon hummed and readjusted his footing. “I’m going to join her hunt.”

“I planned on doing so as well, but with Foxy having followed Roxy into Fazer Blast, there is no one left to watch Gregory.”

“Ahoy.”

Freddy looked back to see Foxy standing at the still open security door.

“Oh, there you are! I thought you went after Roxy. How long have you been there?”

“Feels like damn near twelve years now.”

“Language,” Moon warned.

“Ye and I both know the lad knows much worse than that. We’ve seen what he’s put on the high scores up in the arcade,” Foxy waved off.

“….That was you?!” Moon choked so hard that Sun’s voice started coming out.

Even without seeing his arms thrust down at his sides and his red eyes leveled at Freddy’s stomach, Gregory knew it was aimed towards him. “Uh…”

“This is no time for getting sidetracked. Roxy may already be dealing with Vanny alone,” Freddy insisted with growing concern.

“Yer okay?” Foxy asked. That was why he stayed behind, to check on Freddy. The bear assured him he was. “Then aye, we’ll go after her. I can see her too. Somewhat. Looks like a blur, but I know where she is.” He looked to Moon. “You?”

“I will see her,” Moon promised.

“An’ that leaves you to keep Gregory safe.”

“I will guard him with my life, just… Please, protect Roxy and find this rabbit lady if you can,” Freddy agreed.

Both Foxy and Moon shared a cryptic nod and look towards each other before heading through the security door and to the gate. Both climbed it quickly, Moon a little easier but Foxy held his own, and then headed into Fazer Blast.

In the meantime, Freddy walked almost aimlessly down the escalator and into the atrium. Eventually he sat down on the steps near the bottom with a sigh, being sure to be careful as he did. He sighed as he sat down, his look thoughtful and his mind filled. Though he made sure to keep an eye and ear out for anyone who might come up.

After a few moments of uncharacteristic quietness, Gregory spoke up from inside him.

“Are you really okay?” he asked. Even though he tried to hide his worry it still came through.

Freddy weighed whether to be honest or to try and spare Gregory from concern, but he finally decided the former route was better. Gregory would know if he was fibbing.

“I am not sure…” he admitted.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Perhaps…” Freddy sighed again. “Gregory, I have never discussed this with you, but… I believe at some point I might have been human.”

“I sorta figured.”

“Really? How?” Freddy asked with surprise.

“Well, Foxy was a human and so was Sun and Moon. And Mari and Charlie, and Jake, and probably Ennard. They were all humans before they became robots, so… I thought maybe you were too,” Gregory explained. “Is that what the dream was about?”

“Maybe? I was a- or more or less, I was seeing through the eyes of a human as he chased after Vanny. He said she was heading towards the… daycare…” He looked off across the atrium with a hum. “Perhaps I could ask Moon.”

“Or Jake, maybe.”

“Perhaps. He does seem to keep an eye out with his Staff Bots…” Suddenly, Freddy gasped. “…Gregory! Are you alright?”

“What?” Gregory asked in confusion.

“I am so sorry. I was so distracted by Vanny and myself that I did not stop to make sure that you were safe. Did she hurt you? I saw you fall,” Freddy fussed worriedly. He barely fought the urge to open his hatch, pull him out, and look him over for any bruises or wounds. He thankfully couldn’t detect any blood, but that didn’t mean that he might not be hurt.

“No, I’m okay! I just tripped after I got away from her,” Gregory assured. He smiled a little at the concern.

“Good. But on earth did you get away? Vanny is very crafty.”

“I bit her.”

“Gregory!” Freddy gasped.

“What? She was grabbing me!”

“Yes, and you had every right to defend yourself, but that is very unsanitary!” Freddy lightly scolded. Gregory rolled his eyes but smiled a little. “But I am relieved you are safe. I should not have let you go alone.”

“I was fine on my own until she showed up,” Gregory said bitterly. The unfortunate side effect of Vanny’s appearances meant that it looked like he couldn’t take care of himself. He hated that.

Freddy laid a protective hand on his stomach hatch and looked out over the atrium. This truly wasn’t as safe of a place as it should’ve been for kids and adults alike. That was disappointing.

But he could be here. He just had to be even more careful, even more diligent, and even more aware of Gregory’s health.

Speaking of which, it was time to have the talk.

“…Gregory, I must ask you a serious question. It may make you uncomfortable, but I need you to be honest, please.”

“Okay?” Gregory said questioningly.

“…How recently was your last dental check-up?”

…

It was a dark and fearsome night. The wind was howling like wolves outside and a fierce blizzard of ice and hail beat down on the windows. It was awful outside and inside as the Princess fled through the castle.

Up the winding staircase and down the long bridge she ran. She could hear ghouls and goblins roaring in the dungeon far below and knew that she mustn’t look down. She ran as fast as she could and right into the safety of her chambers, shutting the heavy wooden door behind her. Now she was safe. Here in her room where no monsters-

No, no, leave that on, Honeybunny. I can’t tell you the story of the world’s most beautiful princess if you take that off. Keep it on. Good.

The dear Princess collapsed into her throne in tears. She had just had a terrible fight with her ugly stepsister. Well, not quite ugly on the outside, but hideous on the inside. On the outside she wasn’t much to write home about either. With her long dog snout and her goofy teeth, and the way she could run so fast and still waddled around like her pants were full of applesauce. She woofed and woofed until the Princess got so fed up that she ran away.

And for your information, the Princess had the most beautiful smile. It could light up a room like that. Isn’t that right?

But the Princess knew deep in her heart that it wasn’t what was on the outside that mattered, it was on the inside. She knew that someday her ugly stepsister would look just as hideous on the outside as she did on the inside.

Because fairy tales always had happy endings, and this one wasn’t any different.

…

…

…

They never did find Vanny. Roxy and Foxy had scoured the entirety of Fazer Blast’s maze on their own. Moon spent most of his time darting between and haunting the entrance and exit, making sure she didn’t slip by, but they hadn’t found her. Roxy had a hunch she had escaped through the inaccessible spiral staircase.

There was also a staff only door that led to the servers underneath Fazer Blast. It seemed like they led to that spiral staircase, but the door had been reinforced with a high security clearance and while Roxy could get it to open for her, and likely Moon could’ve too, there was no way the rabbit could’ve. Besides, the low temperature high humidity atmosphere of the room would’ve ruined Roxy’s hair.

So, they walked out of there empty-handed. Roxy felt like a disappointment. She continued to stalk up and down the atrium all night waiting for her to eventually come out of either Fazer Blast or Bonnie Bowl, but she never did.

After last night, Roxy could use a distraction and normally birthday parties offered than and more. Unfortunately, with the raceway closed and the party garages having to be maneuvered and rebooked, Roxy wasn’t feeling much like partying. In fact, she wasn’t feeling much like entertaining crowds at all. Which was notably unfortunate as, without her raceway to escape to, she was stuck walking the atrium until it was time for the next Rockstar Row photo shoot or meet and greet.

It felt like everything was coming up roadkill today. But Roxy still pulled herself together for the party. She wouldn’t be caught dead looking anything less than perfect. Hair combed and tail fluffed, she strode to the party room- stewing internally but cool on the outside, save her twitchy leg acting- and stopped in front of it posed with her hands on her hips.

She nudged out her foot to activate the automatic door, still in her pose as it opened. She was ready to be adored by a room filled with excited children.

What she found instead was an empty room. At first, she had thought there had been a mistake and she had been assigned the wrong one, because it was decorated for a party but there clearly wasn’t one going on. The table was set with paper plates and party hats, there was a cluster of freshly filled balloons, but there were no children.

Or that’s what she thought when she first looked in. In reality, there was a single child sitting in a chair at the opposite end of the table. Her legs were pulled up to her chest with her resting on the seat, and her face buried into her arms that rested on her knees. It wasn’t until she lifted her head that Roxy even noticed she was there.

Her eyes were red with tears. Smeared black and glittery purple makeup stained her cheeks.

Oh…

It didn’t take more than a second to read that room.

Roxy immediately got to work, starting with getting back into character. She looked around nonchalantly.

“First one here? Well, they call me the fastest for a reason,” she bragged. Though it was more playful than her usual self-compliments. She walked down the table and knelt beside the girl’s chair. “You must be the birthday girl, right?” she asked. The girl nodded. “I had a feeling. Love your makeup.”

“Th-Thank you.” She carefully, barely wiped her eye with the back of her hand. Unaware how much the makeup had already smeared. “I don’t think anybody’s coming.”

“I’m sure they’ll show. Better late than never, right? We’ll just have to get started without them,” Roxy assured her. This rewarded her with a tiny smile. “What’s your name, Birthday Girl?”

“It’s Cassie,” she replied. She looked a little embarrassed as continued to try and cover up her tears. “I’m sorry…”

“Don’t be. I’d cry too if I had to wait for a bunch of slowpokes to show up before I could celebrate my birthday,” Roxy assured her.

Even though her wording seemed to brush off the idea that the kids weren’t coming, her sympathetic tone gave away too well that she was apologetic.

Cassie was an adorable girl. Her short, wavy brown hair was pulled back into two low buns held with hairbands with little plastic purple balls on them. Her hair matched well with her darker complexion, as did the sharp purple of her lipstick and eyeshadow- not that she needed it. Not that a kid her age should’ve been wearing such heavy makeup, but Roxy could tell that she applied it herself so she wouldn’t hold it against her parents.

Though she would definitely hold the fact that her parents weren’t here against her parents.

Cassie wore a lilac shirt with short puff sleeves, a dark purple pleated skirt, and light and dark purple and white sneakers dotted with red stars on the side. Those Roxy recognized of the bat as being part of the Pizzaplex’s line of shoes.

With a sweet looking face and a fashion style that got Roxy’s typically hyper-critical pass, it didn’t make sense that she would get ditched for her party. At least, not to Roxy. Kids could be so fickle, though it was also very possible that some of them just couldn’t afford the cost of admission. Surely not all of them though. Laziness, Roxy decided. A couple of kids too lazy to show up for what was pretty much free cake. Probably a bunch of brats.

So, Roxy made sure to make up for every one of them. After all, the most important guests were already here.

For example, she only gave them a five minute ‘last chance’ to get there before she was coaxing Cassie into whacking open the wolf-shaped pinata. Sacrificing her mini-self for the grape flavored candy hiding within.

Roxy didn’t usually get a chance to have a true one-on-one experience with many children. Birthday parties usually consisted of a mass of kids that made up ‘the party’ and thus involved a strict schedule that couldn’t easily be deviated from.

But with one kid that same act wouldn’t work. Cassie would know if she was adhering to a routine, and at this point she deserved better than that anyways. Roxy managed to talk one of the daycare desk girls into heading over to her green room and getting some stuff for her. As much as she didn’t want anyone rooting around in her things, it spared her from having to leave and risk getting held up on the way back.

First thing first was to fix the makeup. As soon as Roxy suggested a touch-up Cassie got a downright nervous look, only then noticing a smear on the back of her hand and cringing. Roxy downplayed how rough it looked and showed her how to remove the makeup with one of her cleaning wipes- the same sold at the salon, so safe for human skin.

Like her shoes, her cosmetics had also come from the Pizzaplex’s own line. While Roxy didn’t have the exact sparkling shade on hand, she did have a very similar one in solid color. She applied it much lighter than Cassie had but still a little darker than she might’ve recommended, so it wouldn’t look too dramatic of a toning down. Birthday Girl wanted to look glamorous, Birthday Girl was going to look glamorous. But just to be safe, no mascara.

Then it was time for nails. Roxy had never had the chance to paint a guest’s nails before. She had the perfect glossy purple to go with the girl’s ensemble and Cassie sat still and watched eagerly as she painted each nail. Some casual chatting accompanying it, like two girls at the salon instead of performer and partygoer. Cassie seemed to be enjoying herself though, not even getting too upset as she admitted that she had invited her entire class- not one showed.

She was on her second hand when the door opened. Cassie’s head snapped over and Roxy glanced out of the corner of her eye, and both were let down to see it wasn’t at least one kid but one of the technicians, Chaz.

Roxy was about to question his appearance before she was answered by Cassie.

“Hi, Uncle Chaz.”

“Hey, Sweetie. How’s it hanging? Having fun?”

“Yes! Roxanne Wolf is doing my nails,” Cassie said. There was a fangirlish edge to her voice that Roxy hadn’t detected earlier. It was a nice little boost to her ego.

“They’re looking good,” Chaz complimented. He set down the armful of gifts he was carrying down on the table one by one. “I was just in the neighborhood and thought I’d drop off some gifts.”

Cassie looked over them curiously. Two medium-regular sized presents, one narrow and rectangular one, and a small one. It was the small one that she locked her eyes onto, along with the label slapped on the top of it.

“From Dad?” Cassie asked in surprise.

“From the man himself.”

“Is it really from Dad?” she asked doubtfully. Her voice falling a little.

“I promise. He had that thing squirreled away in his closet, right between the Christmas lights and a box of old gym shorts,” Chaz exaggerated. He crouched down with the slightest grunt. “I’m sorry I had to work today. Aunt Leah is too, but we’re going to take you out for dinner tonight to make up for it. You’re going to eat so much pasta you’re going to explode.”

Cassie laughed a little. “Eww.”

Roxy was getting a better read on the situation and things were finally starting to make more sense. She also noticed Chaz look around at the room twice and not once ask where the other kids were. He picked up quickly and ran with it as fast as she had. Good. Between this and the daycare fetch girl, it was good to see some of the staff keeping up with her. 

“It’s okay. I know you’re busy,” Cassie assured him.

“You’re a good kid, Cass,” Chaz said. “Before I get going, Roxy, can I talk to you for a second? I’m not going to break up the fun it’s just a quick thing about Monty. We’re having a little issue.”

This was strange. Not the Monty thing, Monty had been acting out a lot more recently, but the fact that Chaz wanted to speak with her. When it came to employees, they either treated the animatronics like they were freakishly deformed staff members or brainless robots. Chaz was in a whole different category; he didn’t trust animatronics and he very rarely spoke to them on a personal basis.

Weird. Probably something about the party, she realized. She played along.

“Is he sulking because of the passes again? Ugh, alright. Just let me finish up.”

“What’s wrong with Monty?” Cassie asked.

“He kept handing out passes that he’s not supposed to.”

“Oh… That doesn’t sound that bad.”

“It’s not. He’s just being a big baby about it,” Roxy said with no maliciousness. She finished up the first coat of Cassie’s nails. “There you go. Gorgeous,” Roxy appraised her own work. “Just blow on these a little. I’ll be right back.”

She stepped out the door with Chaz and let it shut before looking to him expectantly, arms crossed across her chest.

“So, I know this is against the rules, but since the party stated a little late why don’t you throw in an extra ten, fifteen minutes. You’re not booked again until two,” Chaz tried to casually nudge.

Unfortunately for him, he had chosen the wrong wording and Roxy was now shooting daggers at him. “I wasn’t late,” she nearly growled.

“No, I mean… ‘The party started late’ so ‘give her a few more minutes’,” Chaz clarified. “And if anyone gets heat for it, it’ll be me.” Now he was speaking her language.

“You’ve got it,” Roxy agreed. She then sent him a much less enthusiastic look. “Though a please would be appreciated.”

“I’ve never heard a customer say please,” Chaz remarked. “But thanks. I owe you one.”

Roxy didn’t need to be bribed to take care of a guest, but she would keep that favor in the back of her mind.

In the end she had gotten what she wanted, the go-ahead to stick around longer. While Roxy liked to be punctual and could’ve easily managed twenty parties a day without breaking a sweat, this was a special situation. This girl needed more time and attention, though even with the allotted extra minutes she couldn’t be sure she would.

She headed back into the party room to see Cassie holding the smallest gift between both pointer fingers and thumbs and studying it. She put it down quickly as Roxy came in, like she was caught in the act, much to the wolf’s amusement.

“Do you want to open it? It’s your birthday,” Roxy offered.

“Sort of, but…” Cassie held up her hands, showing off her still damp nails. “It’s not going to happen.”

“I could help.”

“You would? Yes, please!”

Roxy stood beside Cassie and opened the gift on the table in front of her so she would be able to see it as though she was the one doing so. She peeled back the paper as to reveal the gift in one flourish. It was a video game box, one with a blue turtle on it. Upon seeing it, Cassie’s mouth all but dropped open with a gasp.

“Oh my gosh!” She snatched it up. “Oh my gosh!”

So, she was a gamer too. Roxy was impressed, chuckling a little to herself as Cassie continued to gush.

But then it unexpectedly stopped. Cassie trailed off, still staring down at the game laying on the table.

“What’s up?” Roxy asked. She knelt by her chair again so she could see her face. Thankfully, it didn’t look like she was going to start crying again, but something was wrong.

“It’s nothing… It’s just that… it… it IS from my Dad. I thought Uncle Chaz was lying, but it has to be. I told him I really wanted this, but I didn’t get it for Christmas, so I thought he forgot… but he didn’t.”

It sounded like this should’ve been a happy occasion, but her voice was still steeped in melancholy. Roxy put a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, I’m not going to cry again,” Cassie said. She sounded determined not to.

Roxy proceeded to slide another gift in front of her. “Want to go for another?”

“Yes, please.”

So, Roxy helped Cassie open the rest of her gifts and they did not discuss her father again.

Halfway through the gifts the birthday cake was delivered to the room by a Staff Bot. While Roxy didn’t appreciate the intrusion, she rolled with it, lit the candles with her pinkie, and carried the cake to Cassie to blow them back out.

By some cruel twist of fate, whichever of her parents ordered a birthday cake had gone out of their way to order a large sized sheet cake. Which made it even more apparent when there was only one person there to eat it. Even more cruel fate that Chica wasn’t able to eat anymore because Roxy could’ve gotten her in and out with half of the cake in only a matter of minutes, making it much less apparent how much was there.

Roxy was going to regret it when she had to clean herself out later, but she went ahead and ate a piece of cake. Technically, Chica was the only animatronic built with the capability of eating- it was her gimmick- but Roxy could smell and taste, so it wasn’t a horrendous experience. Just as long as she didn’t think too hard about where the food was getting shoved into and what would happen if it wasn’t cleaned properly.

That aside, good quality carrot cake.

Problem was, cake and gifts signaled that their time was running out. Even with the extra minutes, eventually someone would come in here and drag her out for her next required gig. Like a show dog being handed from trainer to trainer and show to show. Roxy knew she couldn’t stay even though she wanted to, but she wanted to make sure Cassie was going to be okay. That she wouldn’t be dropped into the Pizzaplex alone and with nothing to do.

So, she reached out for her bandmates.

“Guys, I’ve got a problem. I’ve got a birthday girl here whose friends were a no-show and I’ve only got a few more minutes left with her. Any of you know about another party who might take her in, or maybe one of you can watch her?”

It wasn’t long before she received her first response.

“I could! Once I finish,” Chica eagerly agreed.

“And I have some spare Fazer Blast passes! Perhaps she could join a game and meet other children,” Freddy offered.

“That’s a good idea, Freddy. Where can you leave them?”

“I am in Fazer Blast now, so I can deliver them to the front desk… Hmm…”

Roxy noticed the pensive hum. Specifically, because Freddy decided to broadcast it. “What?”

“Oh, nothing! I was just thinking. I will need a few minutes to get ready.”

“Then send her on over here first!” Chica chirped.

“Or here. I’ll give her a free golf pass,” Monty added.

“I thought they stopped giving you passes.”

“They did. Didn’t stop me from getting ‘em.”

There was a pause.

“…She didn’t hit her limit already, did she?” Monty asked. “Yo, Chic.”

There was another pause.

“Yeah, that was her limit,” Roxy agreed. “Okay, if you can all still here me, I’m going to send her to Chica, then…?”

“Send ‘er on over here,” Monty said.

“And by then I will be ready!” Freddy agreed.

…

“Freddy, I don’t know about this…”

“I know, Gregory, but this is a very good thing you will be doing. And you will be having a lot of fun!” Freddy whispered through his Fazwatch. “Go on, Superstar. Go make a new friend!”

Gregory heard what sounded like a door opening and Freddy getting swarmed by kids before the message cut off. With a sigh, he dropped his arm to his side and started over towards the girl standing outside of Fazer Blast.

Gregory didn’t really hang out with other kids unless he had to. Other kids were a liability, and nowhere was that more true than here in the Pizzaplex where getting too close to anybody outside the loop could get him caught. The only time he really interacted with them was if he was getting a high score and some other kids noticed or if he had to team up in Fazer Blast. He never actively sought them out.

He just hoped that she wasn’t a snooty rich kid or something, especially if her parents were rich enough to get her a big party at the Mega Pizzaplex.

On the flipside, Cassie had been getting the special treatment even though her party was over.

Firstly, on her way out of the daycare she had been caught up to by a Nanny Bot who had offered her a Prize Box. There had been a little sun-shaped sticker on the top with ‘From Sun and Moon’ scribbled on it. Winding and popping open the box revealed two small Sun and Moon plushies smooshed together inside. She eagerly accepted them, told the Nanny Bot to thank Sun and Moon for her, and then continued off. It waved before leaving as well.

After dropping off her presents at her dad’s locker, she followed Roxy’s instructions to head to Chica’s Cupcake Shoppe. There she met up with Chica who was waiting for her and let her pick out a free cupcake from the display. Chica was as perky as she was depicted to be on the posters, but weirdly enough she didn’t say anything. It was like she couldn’t speak. Odd, since her voice did come over the loudspeaker at one time.

After that, she headed to Monty’s Gator Golf where Monty was waiting for her and proceeded to challenge her to a round of minigolf. Though by a ‘round of minigolf’, he didn’t mean nine of the holes, or even all of them, but a random selection of whichever holes weren’t currently being used by the groups heading through. Not that Cassie minded; she was just glad to be able to play.

Finally, she was sent to Fazer Blast. She walked up expecting Freddy to be waiting for her, but he wasn’t. She supposed he could’ve been inside, but Monty had specifically told her that Freddy said to meet him outside by the snack bar. She guessed that maybe he got caught up with something and decided to wait. It seemed like the better idea with how packed it was.

She almost jumped when a voice suddenly popped up beside her. “Hey, uh… Are you waiting for someone or just scared to go in? ‘Cause it’s not as bad as it looks.”

She looked towards him to see a boy who looked to be about her age, one with brown hair and eyes wearing a Freddy Fazbear themed T-shirt, Gregory. She was surprised to have another kid come up to her. All the other kids had been ignoring her up until now.

“What do you mean, as bad as it looks?” she asked.

“All the people. A lot of people go in at once because the teams are big, so you don’t get stuck waiting that long.”

“Oh! That makes sense. But I’m not nervous or anything, I’m just waiting for somebody,” Cassie said. She looked around, but there was still no Freddy. “…But it doesn’t look like he’s coming.”

“You can come with me. I’ve got two tickets,” Gregory invited. He then pulled the tickets out of his shorts pocket.

“How did you get those?” Cassie asked in surprise.

“My Dad gave them to me. He works here.”

“That’s so cool!…Wait, did my uncle tell your dad to tell you to come hang out with me?” Cassie asked suspiciously.

“Yeah.” Gregory smiled, Cassie looked a little less enthused. “But I’m not doing anything anyway,” he continued with a shrug. “And I know this place like the back of my hand. I can show you all the cool stuff. Like the stuff that’s against the rules but you can get away with.”

Cassie wasn’t exactly a rulebreaker by any means. If anything, she was a rather obedient kid, especially when it came to her dad and uncle’s place of employment, but the way Gregory said it made her curious. He sounded confident enough to make her believe that he might get away with it. And with Freddy not showing up- come to think of it, maybe Freddy wasn’t going to show up. Maybe it was a setup to hang out with another worker’s kid- it was awful tempting.

“…Okay. I’m in,” Cassie agreed. “I’m Cassie.”

“I’m Gregory,” he introduced.

Then side-by-side the two headed into Fazer Blast together. Maybe, they both thought, this wouldn’t be so bad.

“So, what’s your dad do?”

“He’s, uh- a technician.”

“Oh, cool! So’s mine.”

Chapter 74

Chapter Summary

Jake and Andrew try to save a piece of themselves...

Chapter Notes

Every story begins somewhere...

There was another major energy leakage in the basement. This time it had moved to underneath the daycare but once again was hard to pinpoint down. By now protocol had changed. Realizing that the active leak was moving around- likely a sign of numerous issues instead of one fixed one- the idea was to reroute power away from the basement until the leak either ‘moved’ or could be located.

As ineffective as this was, none of the technicians would argue with a quick solution over scouring the basement for something that simply wasn’t there. All they had to do was reroute the power.

Unfortunately, the problem was located under the daycare. Which meant that they were going to have to get into that storage room behind the balcony. Which meant they were going to have to deal with the notable uncooperative Daycare Attendant.

They waited until the daycare had closed for the day before heading through the daycare towards the theater. They had not alerted Sun in the hopes that they could slip in and out without him noticing, but that was not the case. While he was in the middle of cleaning up, he still noticed the team of technicians tromping around the playground. He hooked onto his wire and lifted himself above the wall to spy.

That stealthy tactic lasted only a few moments before Sun’s curiosity won out. “Yoohoo! Ahoy, fellow workers! Where are you off to?” he inquired. His delightful greeting covering up his suspicion.

“Someone answer him,” Chaz requested. The other technicians either gave him a weird look or otherwise kept their mouth shut, leaving him to deliver the news. “Thanks, Crew. Alright- Energy leak in the basement, Sun! We’re going to reroute the power!”

Sunny flinched and his hands clenched. “Y-You mean from my room?” he asked nervously.

“From the backroom!”

Which meant his room, yes. Or more accurately, his and Jake’s room. That could not happen.

“What?!?! But- But it’s messy! You didn’t give me any warning! How am I- You’re just going to have to wait until I clean up, okay? I’ll be really quick, pinkie promise!” Sunny desperately pleaded. He swung in on his wire until he was grabbing and climbing the netting. His nervousness showing through on how he manhandled the net.

Chaz had learned from experience that it was best to not play along with Sun.

“Sorry, Sun, but the sooner the better. We’ll be in and out.”

“But all my stuff’s probably in the way, y-you won’t be able to get by, I’m sure!”

“We’re not going to touch your stuff, Sun,” Chaz said with an exasperated sigh. It was like talking to a fussy kid sometimes, one who wouldn’t listen to reason or accept no for an answer. “We’ll be quick.”

“…OKAY! Well, that’s gooood!” Sunny said tensely. He released the netting and swung all the way back to his balcony before hopping off onto it. “I’ll- I’ll just tidy up a little while you’re letting yourse-self in!”

Sun promptly dove into the balcony, vaulted over the railing, and nearly landed directly on top of Jake who had been standing there listening. He grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him in a frenzy.

“They’re coming in! They’re coming in right now rightrightnow!”

If Jake’s mouth could’ve dropped open it would’ve, because this wasn’t good at all. He grabbed Sun’s arms to stop the shaking and the two stood there momentarily before, without a single word, they bolted away from each other.

What came next was a frenzy of moving stuff. Sun was snatching up boxes and stacking them in front of the door to buy them time while Jake was gathering up his things in his arms. He couldn’t let the technicians see his experiments- his control panel, his wrench, his bits and bobs- if they saw the pieces of Staff Bots, they would only pin the worst on Sun.

“It’s fine, it’s fine! They just want to get to the breakers!” Jake whispered in a panic. Mostly to himself as Sun was ticking way too loud to hear him.

The Daycare Attendant rushed over to assist Jake and soon they were both carrying armfuls of stuff to the tunnel. They shoveled it into their private room as fast as they could. Parts, spare parts, spare heads, spare blankets; anything they didn’t want the technicians to get their hands on. In the short time they had they managed to whittle down the mess of stuff.

They were down to the last of it when Sun yanked away a tarp and they saw the one thing that they had to hide more than any other.

An old endoskeleton. It was largely intact, save its missing lower leg, which was currently attached to Jake’s own, but entirely unresponsive. Jake and Sun shared a panicked look before attempting to move it.

They were halfway across the room when they heard the poster door into the theater open.

“Hurry!” Sun hissed.

“I’m trying!” Jake replied. “Don’t panic!”

“IT’S TOO LATE FOR THAT!”

They reached the wall and Jake started to line up the endoskeleton to push it through the tunnel. Sun’s head snapped to the door as he heard the footsteps in the hallway and he then reached out, yanked Jake aside, and all but shoved him into the tunnel instead. Leaving the endoskeleton to slump with a heavy thump.

“Ow, ow, ow!” Jake whispered as he was pushed through. He righted himself enough to crawl through and fell out the other side.

Sunny shushed him before trying to get the endoskeleton through the hole. He quickly changed tactics and hopped into the tunnel legs first, turning himself around to pull the endoskeleton in after him.

The doorknob turned and the door opened a smidgen before thumping into the stacked cardboard boxes. It thumped it again.

“Sun, did you block the door again? Come on, unblock the door. We’ve got to get in there,” Chaz called in. “…For crying out loud.”

“What now?”

“Just push,” Chaz said.

With them forcing their way in, Sun was running out of time. Unfortunately, the stiff and uncooperative endoskeleton fought any effort to fit through. Though it could’ve also been Sunny’s panicked movements and otherwise impatient tugging that had its shoulders repeatedly bumping the edges. The bumping of the tunnel coinciding with the bumping of the door.

With no other options, Sunny dropped the endoskeleton and slid back through the tunnel and into safety. He hastily put a blanket up to cover the hole, holding it tightly to the wall with his hands and bent knees. He and Jake listened through the wall as the men struggled with the door, unintentionally wedging it further up against the stack of stuff used to block it.

Sure enough, the technicians were finally able to force the door open. Sunny was kicking herself for not taking more time with the endo but knew that likely they would’ve seen him through the crack in the door. He should’ve thrown a blanket over it, hid it in the crawlspace under the balcony, something. Now all their hopes rested on the team somehow not noticing the unrecognizable endo laying outside of their hidey hole.

The technicians shuffled in and looked around at the room.

“I thought this was going to be like a green room,” someone said.

“Nah, it didn’t get finished,” another said.

“What a dump! Ray would’ve never let this go.”

“Hey, enough,” Chaz swiftly shut down. “Panels over in that corner.”

“What’s that?”

Footsteps came closer and Sun cringed. Jake, who was sitting behind him holding his shoulders, leaned in a little more to listen.

“What is this? Chaz, you need to take a look at this.”

They were right outside the tunnel. Sun’s shoulders dropped in defeat.

“Do I really have to? Because I’m sort of doing something here,” Chaz said. Though he said it while coming over, and then stopped before he reached the tunnel. “…Wait, what?”

Jake and Sun tensed at that shift in tone.

“What is that doing here?” Chaz asked.

“I guess someone was storing it back here. You’re good at this sort of thing; what character do you think it was?”

“I don’t know, but I know where it came from. Me and Ray found that thing over at that old Freddy’s factory.” He sounded downright befuddled. “I thought that was burned months ago. I can’t believe it got up here!”

“You don’t think…?”

“Sure, probably.”

Sun could tell they were talking about him and grumbled a little to himself. Jake patted his shoulder.

“Okay, let’s get this done. I don’t want to hang out here all day.”

So, the technicians got to work messing with the electrical. They had to move more stuff around, including moving some boxes and the table closer to the tunnels. At one point the power went out and the technicians began to talk in panicked, whispered voices- save Chaz, who kept trying to shush them so he could fix the issue. Though Moon came out, there was no chance of him going anywhere with Jake’s warning death grip on him.

Eventually they finished after a little longer.

“Alright, Sun! We’re getting out of here!” Chaz called.

“Gooood~!” Sunny called back.

“Bring that table back,” Chaz said to someone. Then he gave a subtle mutter of, “Grab that too.”

Some stuff began to get moved around outside the tunnel. Sun could’ve sworn he was hearing them fiddling with the endo, but it was masked by the moving of cardboard boxes and the screech of someone dragging the table. Something that immediately caught both his and Jake’s attention because it was sure to leave big drag marks across the wood.

But finally, finally they left. Sun waited until they were past the poster door and shut it behind them before dropping the blanket and hurrying out.

He was met with a horrific sight and gave a flustered cry, hands flying to his head.

“No, no, wait! What?!”

“It’s okay! It’s okay. We’ll buff it out,” Jake assured.

“We can’t BUFF it out!” Sun cried. “Because they TOOK our BODY!”

“Wait, they did?!”

Sun rolled out of the tunnel and onto his feet before gesturing his hands down at the empty space where the endoskeleton once was. “Our body! It’s GONE!”

Jake stuck his head out and looked down and much to his horror saw that the endo was moved. He looked around quickly to see if it had just been moved, but no. It was gone.

He knew he had a bad feeling when Chaz mentioned it was supposed to be burned. He hastily climbed out of the hole.

“Don’t worry, we’ll just get it back! They’re probably taking it downstairs.”

“Yeah, to the FURNACE!” Sun lamented. His head then snapped to the balcony. “Maybe I can catch up with them.”

“No! If you do that- We can’t risk them finding out about what it is, or connecting us to that, or you know…” Or Sun and or Moon getting in a fight over the endoskeleton and getting himself shipped down to the furnace. “They only run it during afterhours, right?” Sun nodded in a panicked and frenzied way. “Then they’ll probably do it at eleven tonight. If we can get over there, we can wait them out and then go in and grab it before it burns!”

“Yes! I can do that!” Sun agreed.

“Not alone, you can’t,” Jake insisted. Sun’s shoulders dropped with dismay as Jake crawled back into the tunnel to grab his control panel. “They’ll probably take it to the furnace under the atrium. It’s closer, it’s smaller. I can get us maps, I can open doors, I can get us down there, and then we bring it back together.”

As much as Sun wanted to fight it, after his utter failure to move it alone earlier he knew it was better to take the risk and accept the help. He couldn’t have another slip up and not get it through on his own. He was kicking himself for that.

They agreed: they were going to get it back.

That endoskeleton meant more than those technicians would ever know.

…

..

.

..

…

Today he didn’t feel sick.

It had been getting worse. The weakness, the sickness, the pain spreading from head to limbs that could only be treated with pill upon pill, injections, and bitter liquids. But today he woke up in a daze, feeling so detached and weak that he could barely lift his arms and he couldn’t really feel his legs. But he wasn’t sick. He was just tired. Tired and weak.

His ever-present caretaker, Margie, was at his side from the moment he woke up. Petting his head and giving him sips of water, crying when he wasn’t looking. He could see how blotchy her face looked from stealthily wiping away tears. He knew that she was crying for him and maybe something was going on that he didn’t realize, but he was too tired to even worry about it.

He wanted to sleep, but something told him to stay awake.

Afternoon came and with it arrived a clear head. He looked out the window at the sunny day outside and considered asking to be taken outside, but he was almost too tired to speak. He kept nodding off right when he had the gumption to do so.

Then Jake woke up and decided that he wanted something.

“Si… Simon?...”

Margie was there, and she sprung up to get him Simon.

Simon was his best friend and favored companion. Well, since his father had gone and he had become so confined to his home. He couldn’t play with kids his age. He couldn’t really play much anymore recently, but he had Simon.

But Simon wasn’t just an ordinary doll. Dad said he was magic. Which Jake hadn’t really believed at first until he discovered Simon’s special secret: he could talk. Every night before bed, when Margie wasn’t around, Simon and he would talk and make up stories about the adventures and fun he couldn’t have. Simon always knew what Jake wanted to do and how to make it sound so vivid and wonderful.

Jake loved Simon. He loved their little stories and he loved to get lost in the adventures he couldn’t have. And he loved his dad. He loved how sometimes Simon would say things that sounded like something his dad would say.

He wished he was here.

He would’ve wished for his mother too, but she had passed when he was very young, and he couldn’t remember her well. Margie had always taken her place since then. She had been the one to take care of him, help clean him up, keep his father company. She was here now and that was all that he needed. Her and Simon, they would keep him company.

He was surprised how heavy his arm was when he put it around Simon. He couldn’t even pick the doll up, just hold it against him.

“Th-Thank you…” he said. “…Margie?”

“Yes, Sweetie?” She smiled lovingly with big sad eyes.

“Thank you… for taking… care of me.”

Every word felt so heavy that they barely made it up and out of his mouth.

She couldn’t help it. Her eyes swelled with tears. She choked a little before recovering enough to pet his head.

“I love you so much, Jake,” she told him. She gave him a kiss on his forehead and continued to pet his head.

“I love… you too…” Jake said. “And… Simon too.”

“And Simon too.”

Simon didn’t reply of course. He wouldn’t until tonight and Jake only wondered if he would be able to talk back. Maybe he would just have to listen. He could listen. Like now, listening to Margie’s humming as she continued to pet his head.

He laid there for a little bit longer before deciding that he would sleep for a while. Only a little while. He closed his eyes and felt himself drift. Everything felt fuzzy but pleasant.

He held tightly onto Simon.

Jake went quietly, surrounded by love.

…

He had never been so afraid.

His head hurt, his body hurt, but nothing hurt more than the wounds. Digging deep into his stomach and chest and oozing out heat across his body. He was feeling colder and colder with every passing moment. Though whether that was from the bleeding or because of where he was, he didn’t know.

The trunk offered no warmth. And it was open, so the chilly air was still making it in.

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t even get out if he wanted to.

Everything felt like too great of an effort, so he could only stare out at the back of dirty building- at the dumpster, at the brick wall- and hope someone would eventually come out the back door and find him here. Except they wouldn’t because Freddy’s was closed. As the man with the sickening grin had reminded him when he showed up. The only people who knew he was here was him.

Maybe the janitor would come back. The janitor was the one who caught him. The janitor was the one who left him with him, so maybe he would come back to investigate. Someone would have to eventually come by.

His stomach hurt. He felt like he was going to be sick, but he just couldn’t. He was lightheaded and dizzy, but it was slowly fading overtime as his head ached and his heart thumped harder and harder. He was so cold.

And what was worse was that this was all his fault. He knew he was going to get in trouble trying to sneak and stay the night here. He just didn’t think this was going to happen.

For the first time in his life, he wanted to go home.

That was when the backdoor opened. He felt a moment of hope, but it was very faint. Too disoriented to celebrate or even speak, and hoping they noticed him, whoever they were. As long as it wasn’t him.

But what came out of the building was something much more unexpected.

It wasn’t a person at all, but a long, lanky, familiar form.

It was the Puppet from the Prize Corner, and it was floating. As though it was dangling on invisible strings it slipped out the door and out into the rain. It was a frightening sight. Or it should’ve been, but after tonight he didn’t feel much of anything.

Maybe it was a smart robot. He heard about how some of the robots were supposed to be able to protect kids, the plastic looking ones that didn’t sing as good as the old ones. Maybe this Puppet thing was like them. Maybe it could tell someone that he was here and then they could come get him. He didn’t care who, he just needed help.

But the Puppet was looking the other way. It floated over and then began to look in the dumpster.

Andrew mustered up all the strength he had to lift his arm, only for it to become too heavy and land on the edge of the trunk, his hand dangling out.

The Puppet spun around and stared directly at his dangling arm. Its eyes white dots, its usual smile twisted up into a sorrowful frown. Andrew didn’t even think about it, he wasn’t thinking of much. The Puppet came over and opened the trunk and looked down at Andrew’s body shoved into the back. It shuddered and purple paint stuff poured out of its mask’s eye holes.

It hunched over him and carefully slid its arms underneath him before scooping him up into them. Andrew briefly roused from his dazed state by the motion, but any efforts to move were in vain. He was helpless. Yet as he was cradled into the warm fabric arms and against its chest, it didn’t seem too bad. He felt like he could drift off to sleep right then.

He vaguely noticed being carried inside. He barely noticed he was being taken into the back. He saw a funny, squat dog animatronic that he didn’t recognize before his vision faded too much for him to make out anything.

He barely felt himself being put in.

Andrew went in fear, but he was not alone.

…

Jake felt like he was drifting in a slumber. He heard things as he slept and he felt himself getting moved, but only in the lightest ways. It felt like being rocked in tepid bathwater. So distant and separated from him.

Until the voices had grown louder. The voice, a man’s voice- a doctor’s? Was he asleep in the hospital? Sick in bed? Had the tumor taken away his sight and ability to move? He didn’t understand what was going on and though he felt lucid and relaxed, away from any danger, he was starting to grow more scared. A muffled man’s voice. He had to pay attention. He had to focus.

Slowly the words untangled itself.

“-ine specimen. The first fully active remnant carrier that I have found. I read a report on a spotting of a feral dog that attacked a man last week- bit his finger off! I am assuming this is that dog and will be taking any precaution possible to avoid the same fate. Now, let’s see what you’re hiding… Hmm… The battery is unusually warm and corroded. Perhaps this is where its remnant is localized.”

There was a squeaking noise as something was moved. Then a clatter and clicking, shifting, and banging of something thrashing. There was a growl and whine that sounded almost doglike.

The man sighed. “Resistance. Unfortunately, it seems we will have to administer an electrical current to subdue it. It really is a shame, but I cannot risk it with these teeth. Flesh easily gets caught in metal. Now, if I do not cross three or more shocks, we shouldn’t see any damage in the body. The remnant, regardless, will stay intact. Though without a proper body we cannot see the full extent of its spread. Which is why we will be moving the localized remnant into body B. But first we must get there.”

Jake didn’t understand nor like what he was hearing. He tried to focus and see, unsure exactly what was being strained to do so. He couldn’t feel his face and couldn’t blink, but his head suddenly felt notably heavy and then he started to see movement. Shadows and lights, a sharp light and a moving shadow, and he tried to focus and see more.

It was then that he realized that there was no way he was at home or at the hospital. He had no idea where he was.

“We will begin electrical sedation now.”

There was a crackle of electricity and a howl that sounded like a dog. Jake felt immediate horror. It sounded like someone was shocking a dog.

“Still active. Here goes a second round of electrical sedation.”

Hearing it howl and wail filled him with shock and worry, and it continued to build as he tried to fight himself to do something. To wake up, get up, and save the dog. He wanted to scream, to howl just as loud as it did, but he had no mouth.

But he did have a voice. He screamed and yelled and tried with all his might before something popped in his chest and it flowed through on crackly static like water.

“Leave him alone!”

The sound of the electrocution immediately stopped. A shuffling somewhere in the room.

“Who said that?” the man asked in surprise. His footsteps came closer. “…Was… Was it one of you?”

It sounded close by and while Jake didn’t really feel safe, he spoke up.

“I’m here.”

His voice sounded so weird. It sounded like he was speaking through a phone, and the phone wasn’t where his mouth was but from somewhere further down. Maybe he WAS in the hospital, and they gave him weird medicine that was making him confused. He had that happen once before surgery, when the walls were wobbly and kindly nurses looked like aliens.

He could hear someone walking up, but he couldn’t see them. Then the world shifted a little. He was being moved but it was all still hazy so he couldn’t make heads or tails of what was happening except someone might’ve picked him up.

“Was that you?” the man asked. His voice so close and so loud even in quiet disbelief.

“Yes,” Jake said quietly.

“You… You spoke…” He gasped deeply and sputtered afterwards. “Could it be a prank? Someone speaking through a connected radio… But no, it couldn’t be. No signal could reach. A prerecorded message? If you can understand me, repeat the following phrase: a broken bulb blinks brilliantly.”

“A… A broken bulb blinks brilliantly,” Jake replied. He was becoming more frightened. “Where’s Margie? Where am I?”

“I don’t believe this… I cannot believe my luck!” The man gave another gasp, though now one filled with joy and excitement. “This- This is astounding! I knew eventually one would- I must document this!”

Jake was jarred and shook as the man ran somewhere nearby. He heard the click of a button.

“This is incredible! I’ll document the time later, but I have just discovered the first known reported case of aware remnant! Non-feral, responsive.”

Jake was jarred again and then released from the man’s grasp and sat down. The only reason he realized as much was the lack of movement and the faint feel of a firm surface beneath him.

“Beginning the interview now.” The man set something down beside him. “Now then, can you hear me?”

“Y-Yes. Where am I?”

“Good. Now then. What color is the sky on a sunny day?”

Jake was confused. “…Blue?”

“Slight hesitation but still capable of answering the question through recollection alone! Let’s do another repetition exercise…”

The asked him so many questions, asked him to repeat so many phrases, and didn’t answer any of the questions Jake asked. He could hear scribbling so likely the man was writing down his answers and observations too, but he seemed unwilling or unable to really listen.

“I want to go home,” Jake had half-begged.

“If you heard that, that must have been a recollection of the moment before the initial transference of remnant. Incredible! Terribly sad, but still: incredible!”

The man never answered. He asked and asked until he was done, and then he got up. Jake could hear him walking around and talking but was helpless to do anything but lie there.

“We need a more secure vessel. The remnant will not survive in a structure so lacking in pliable metal elements, but body B would be perfect. Using both sources of remnant I may be able to stabilize an intelligent entity out of them yet!”

Jake didn’t understand what the man was talking about, but he had a bad feeling.

The next thing he knew, the man was putting something very close to his face. He heard the creaking of metal and yanking, peeling, the popping as something came off him. His face burned momentarily, the first thing he had truly felt since he had woke up down there. As though someone had popped his face off.

And not too long after that but he was carried somewhere loud and hot. He felt a sudden movement and saw nothing but a bright light and heard the crackling of fire around him.

And then suddenly Jake felt the whole world fade and shift, rolling him around like he was swirling in a whirlpool, drifting down the drain, and then dropping him heavily into a weighted body. It was a frightening, jarring feeling.

The scariest part being that he didn’t know how long had passed. It almost felt like waking from a dream. It could’ve been mere minutes or a few hours and he wouldn’t have known the difference.

But there was one big difference though and that was the shadows. Faint foggy shadows dancing across his vision. He could just barely make out something. He couldn’t rub his eyes and they wouldn’t open wider, so he just tried to focus intensely on one spot as long as he could. Slowly his vision started to edge in. The center opened and he was staring at forms in front of his eyes.

He could see the man walking around in the basement, recognizing the silhouette of a man and hearing his footsteps. Eventually the man came over and crouched down before him. He looked to be an older man in a white lab coat- he looked like a doctor, but this didn’t look like a hospital. The walls were grey and faded. Just like the man’s grey faded hair, though his facial details, while close, were hard to specifically make out.

“Can you hear me?” the man asked. “Answer if you can.”

Jake was too afraid to respond.

“Hmm… No! No, I’m sure the transference was successful. Perhaps a trickle charge on the battery may help. A small jolt to get everything moving.”

The man wheeled over some sort of black box and unhooked two cables from it before reaching for him. Jake braced himself to be electrocuted, only to have the man reach and clamp the wires onto something on his chest. Jake’s gaze edged down to see what he had done, and it looked like he had attached them to the battery lodged in his chest.

“There we are! We’ll see how it handles.”

The man got up and putzed around some more, excited and jittery, asked Jake another question that he didn’t answer, and then finally left.

Finally, Jake was alone. Except that he wasn’t alone.

Almost immediately after the door shut and the footsteps on stairs faded away, the machine’s arm leapt up and swung around. It moved in a disjointed and confused fashion before thumping onto and patting the chest, finding the wires. It yanked at one of them.

“Wait, wait! Stop!” Jake cried.

The arm paused. There was a lingering pause.

Then Jake heard a very quiet voice. It sounded like it was coming from inside his head or just behind him.

“What?” it asked. It sounded like another kid, a boy.

“Don’t mess with that! I- I don’t know what it does. I don’t want to get shocked.”

“What?!” the other voice asked again. Though before Jake could explain, it clarified its question. “Wait, that- you’re that kid who yelled earlier! Where are you?!”

“I’m right here. Where are you?”

“HERE. WHERE ARE YOU?”

“Uh… I think I’m in some sort of robot… Wait, but you’re controlling the arm, right?”

The arm dropped instantly.

“Right?”

“I was. You can see me?”

“No, I can’t. The arm you were moving is the arm of the robot I’m in.”

“…We’re both in here?”

The boy’s unease made Jake equally anxious, but he didn’t have time to even ask before the other blurted out.

“Ugh, come on! That’s not fair! How can we both be in the same robot?!” he vented. “First the stupid dog and now this thing and I can’t see, and I’m stuck in some wacko’s basement! What’s going on?!”

It almost sounded like he wasn’t surprised by the whole robot thing. Jake wasn’t entirely convinced he wasn’t still asleep, so he just went along with it tentatively.

“I hope that dog’s okay…” he said worriedly.

“I WAS THE DOG!”

There was a long pause as Jake processed that.

“The dog was a robot too!” the other boy explained. “I was stuck in it and then he started to take me apart, and then… that’s when you yelled.”

“Oh…” Jake was becoming more convinced that this couldn’t be real. “Who is that man?”

“I don’t know, but he’s a real creep.”

“His name’s Taggart. He’s some sort of doctor who works on stuff like us.”

The endoskeleton lurched at the unexpected voice. Its head started to shift around. It was almost disorienting as it moved, especially since Jake wasn’t controlling it. Andrew was. He looked off towards the wall.

“Up here!” The voice called again.

“Look to the right a little,” Jake said.

“What?” the other boy asked.

“It’s coming from that shelf over there.”

“Wait! You can see?!”

“Yes? I told you, I saw the arm move.”

“You didn’t- ugh- Why can you see and I can’t?!”

“Because he’s got the face, Smarty-pants.”

The other boy’s voice clammed up at that explanation and he jerked their head a little to the right, back towards the shelf. That was when Jake finally saw the source of the voice. It wasn’t a human at all.

There was a rabbit plush sitting up on the shelf propped up against a box.

It looked to have been a light yellow once, but a buildup of grime gave is a dull, almost greenish splotchy hue in some places. There was a big brown stain around its left eye. It would’ve looked like a patch if not for how it was shaped, like it had oozed down its face. Like it had been dipped in the mud or chocolate sauce, some sort of viscous liquid. It had round pink cheeks, one was notably scuffed, and an unraveled blue bowtie with the strands sticking out of its neck. Its pink eyes stared ahead blankly.

“Who are you…?” Jake asked warily.

“Just call me… Bunny!” the doll answered. It didn’t move though. “Don’t sound so spooked. I’m no different than you guys! Have you guys seen yourself?”

“No,” the other boy said poutingly.

“We’re… We’re in some sort of robot,” Jake explained to him. “It’s made of metal and has long arms and legs, and there’s a… car battery in the chest?”

“That came out of that stupid dog I was in. Good riddance, the dog sucked. And it was starting to smell like hot glue.”

Or burning plastic, perhaps.

This was all rapidly becoming too much for Jake.

“How did we get here? What- What are we doing here?!” Jake asked. He started to become more panicked. The robot’s voice box starting to make hazy and crunchy noises instead of the panicked sounds he wanted to make.

“Calm down, it’s not that bad!” Bunny called. “And I can tell you that. That Taggart guy gathered us all up and brought us here. He’s got tons of machines and toys that he’s collected and done science experiments on.”

“But how did I get here?! I was home! In bed! I-I’m not supposed to be here…”

“…Me neither,” the other boy added quietly. As though he wasn’t as convinced.

“Huh. Well, depends. What’s the last thing you remember?”

“I was…. I was in bed, going to sleep…” Jake quietly said. “Margie, she’s like my Mom, she was with me and she gave me Simon, he’s my doll, to me. Then I fell asleep and I woke up and couldn’t see, and that’s when I heard the dog and yelled.”

“…You sleep with a doll?” the other boy asked in disbelief.

“Simon’s special. He’s not just a doll,” Jake explained.

“Well, we’ll see! What’s he look like?” Bunny asked. Jake was about to answer when Bunny added on, “And I mean his face. What’s his face look like?”

“Uh… He had a big smile and big eyes, but one was scribbled out because I got a black eye… And he’s got stuff on his mouth, like pizza sauce. He’s all white, by the way.”

“Okay, so a white roundish face with a scribbled-out eye and a big smile. Yeah, I’ve seen it.”

“You have?”

“I’m looking right at it.”

“…What?”

“Yeah, what?” the other boy asked as well.

“That’s the mask that’s on the robot you’re in. It’s like attached to the face. It doesn’t look like it goes to it at all, so… that explains why.” There was a pause before Bunny quietly added, “Sorry, but I think you must’ve died.”

Even stuck in this body, Jake could feel the shock. He just couldn’t feel any physical manifestations. No racing heart, no sick stomach, just dry shock and no way to express it.

“What are you talking about…? What do you mean?! What do you mean I died?!” Jake cried.

“You die and you go into robots or toys or whatever,” the other boy said. “It happened to me too. That’s how I ended up in that dog.”

Jake was still in a state of panic. He was waiting for something to jump out and startle him so he could wake up and realize this was all a bad dream, but it wasn’t happening. The longer he sat in this body, the more it felt real.

“…Were you sick or something?” Bunny asked.

“…Yeah. I had a tumor in my head. A tumor’s like a ball of stuff and sometimes... it grows somewhere where they can’t take it out.” Jake tried to take a calming breath like Margie had once taught him only to realize that he wasn’t and couldn’t breathe. He didn’t even feel like he had to. “…I think I did die…” he realized. “…But what am I doing here?”

“You held onto Simon. When you were talking to Taggart- do you remember that? You were IN your doll. And now you’re in this end-o-skeleton and he’s attached your doll’s face to its. So, yeah, he put you in the end-o.”

It was enough to send Jake reeling. He had so many questions but couldn’t ask any. He wanted to freak out, but he had no heartrate to speed up or lungs to hyperventilate with.

“You guys should introduce yourselves. You’re going to be really close for a long time!” Bunny suggested. An awkward pause followed. “…Sorry, bad time.”

At least it gave Jake something to focus on. “O-Okay, uh… What’s your name? Not Bunny, I mean you in the robot too?”

“You can just call me Dead Meat, because that’s what we are. That or “Creepy Guy’s Science Experiment”.” Jake was silent at the resistant and the boy made a huffing noise. “It’s Andrew.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Is it?” Andrew challenged.

Jake was a little taken aback by the abrasiveness. “Uh, I guess not. Sorry. I was just being nice.”

Andrew paused and then gave a tiny huff.

“…It’s okay,” he mumbled.

“There you go! Okay, now we all know each other and we’re kind of friends…” Bunny interrupted. His voice fell to a whisper just loud enough for them to hear it. “How about you start getting us out of here?”

“What?” Jake asked.

“Taggart’s going to come back and test you to see if you’re still alive. He’s going to do all that stuff he did before, shocks, pop quizzes, and there’s nothing you can do. Unless we escape! I’m ready to go. I’ve been stuck on this shelf for so long there’s dust building up around me!”

“Getting out of here sounds good to me,” Andrew agreed. “You see a way out, Jake?”

“There’s the door he went out of. It sounded like he went up some stairs too.”

“Then we’re not going up there! Look around. Here.”

Andrew began to almost wildly swing their head around to look, which was more disorienting than helpful. Though then Jake spotted something.

“Wait! Over there, to the left! There’s a little window!” Jake pointed out.

It looked like a little basement window. High towards the ceiling and covered in metal bars, but still a window.

Andrew began to try and get up. It was an awkward motion, and it became apparent quickly that his arm was the only limb he had full control on. Yet he managed to crawl in the direction of the window, the endoskeleton body squeaking with every motion, and Jake’s quiet directions leading the way.

They reached the wall and Andrew used it to get them on their feet. It wasn’t until they were up on unsteady legs that Jake realized he could feel them. He could feel the pressure on the legs, he just couldn’t figure out how to move them. It was almost like the feeling of his legs being asleep.

Their hands made it to the window and Andrew felt around the circumference of it.

“I think we can fit through,” he said. He blindly patted over his body. “Yeah, we’ll fit.”

“There’s bars on the other side though,” Jake warned.

“Urk- What?! Why did you tell me to go to the window if there’s bars?!”

“I thought maybe we can pull them off. We’re a robot, right? We should be strong!”

This body was much sturdier and taller than his last one…

“…Good point.”

Andrew balled up his fist in preparation to break the glass.

“Don’t forget to grab me on the way out,” Bunny said from the shelf.

“We won’t-,” Jake assured.

He was cut off by the cracking of glass as Andrew punched the window into pieces. He then speedily pulled out the rest of the glass before feeling for and tackling the bars. He grabbed them in his hands and pulled, wedging his boney metal knees on the wall, and hearing them grind as he pulled with all his might.

There were dull footsteps upstairs.

“He heard you! He’s coming down here!” Bunny warned.

Jake began to panic as well. He felt so helpless, only able to watch as all of this went down. Or perhaps not.

Like with his vision, he focused all he could. He made every effort to move his arms and hands, like trying to shake out uncooperative limbs. Trying his hardest to mimic and contribute to the gestures Andrew was making.

With that extra surge of strength, one of the bars was pulled loose and was then slid out. It was tossed aside and both hands were used on one to try and pull it free, but then the door was thrown open.

Taggart took sight of the endoskeleton actively trying to escape the basement and was filled with shock and awe.

“By Gods, it’s awake. It worked! You’re- Wait! Stop that!” Taggart looked around and ran to a nearby table. “Will need to- begin electrical sedation- immediately!” he said as he scrounged through the buildup of items.

“He’s going for the shocker! Now’s your chance!” Bunny yelled. Taggart looked back in surprise at the unexpected new voice.

With Taggart aside, the path to the door was open. Jake shoved the body so hard that it lurched.

“That way! The door! Run!” he cried.

Andrew didn’t need to be told twice and started a clumsy run towards the door, bumping into the shelf Bunny was on in the process.

But there was Taggart, quick with his taser and running back to block the door. His eyes still wide with awe but now also with fear. Afraid to let them get away, afraid to get hurt, it was unclear.

“Stop! STOP! He’s blocking the way!”  Jake warned.

The body staggered to a stop before Andrew began to back away, head turning and moving as he struggled to see and Jake having to fight to keep his eyes on Taggart.

“Please, calm down. I mean no harm!” Taggart assured them. But after all he had put them through it was hard to believe it. “Come here, please. Jake? Jake, if you can understand what I am saying, then please stop. This is a safe place!”

It was impossible to believe him, and his use of Jake’s name only made him more fearful. Their shoulder bumped the shelf.

“I-I don’t know,” Jake whispered.

But Andrew did. He heard the panic, he heard the pleas, he heard Taggart getting closer, and he felt the shelf.

He grabbed the shelf and with one yank brought the whole thing down on Taggart.

Taggart screamed, Bunny screamed, the shelf crashed down, and Jake was struck by horror at the scene.

“Andrew?!”

“Help me!” Andrew yelled over him. “Tell me where to go! I can’t see!”

“To the right! More- stop! Turn left and then it’s straight to the door!” Jake directed.

Andrew began to run for the door, slamming into it and slamming it shut before grappling for the knob.

“Wait, what about- what about Bunny?” Jake asked.

Andrew wasn’t paying attention. He threw open the door and into the stairwell, hitting them and landing on them on his knees. He began to crawl up them like an animal, like a dog.

“Andrew!”

“NO! COME BACK! COME BACK! YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME HERE WITH THIS NUTCASE!” Bunny yelled.

With that cry fueling him, Jake grabbed ahold of the body in some way and held. He forced those limbs to stop, he forced those hands to tighten, and he held on even as they feel forward and crashed face-first into the stairs.

“What?! What?!” Andrew cried out from inside.

“We have to go back and get him!” Jake yelled back. He held on tightly, refusing to budge.

“Okay, okay! FINE! Just tell me where he is!”

Andrew pushed back and turned, and Jake released, and they were falling back out the door in a frenzied stagger. Jake looked around before spotting the rabbit plush half pinned under the shelf.

“OVER HERE! DOWN HERE!” Bunny was yelling.

“Do you hear him?!”

“Yes!”

“He’s right in front of us, sort of to the right, under the shelves!”

The endoskeleton dropped to its knees and felt around. Jake using his effort like on the stairs to pull Andrew in the direction of the rabbit, and soon they pulled up the shelf enough to grab it.

“We’ve got you!” Jake said.

“GOOD, now let’s get out of here fast! Go, go, go!”

The endoskeleton staggered back out. Neither of them spared a look at the man trapped under the shelves. Neither wanted to see for their own reason.

At the top of the stairs, they found themselves in some sort of lived-in warehouse filled with all forms of machinery and equipment. They were all running blind, nearly crashing into anything that got in the way of their fleeing body, and eventually escaped to the outside. It was a sunny day and the land around the warehouse was mostly barren, but they were exposed.

“We’re out?!” Andrew asked.

“We’re out!” Jake said. “But… But I don’t know where to go.”

“Where ARE we?! What do you see?!” Andrew pressed.

“It’s a lot of desert…”

“We’ve got to hide somewhere someone’s not going to find us. Like that shed over there! Wait this out. Then when it gets dark, I know where we can go.”

With nowhere else to turn, they did as told. They hid out in that old shed despite whatever they heard outside. Jake watched the light through the crack in the door until the sun went down, and then they left and went to this place.

After a walk that took hours- during which they lost their way more than once- they ended up finding the place. It looked like an old, derelict factory. They let themselves in.

“What is this place?” Jake asked.

“Some sort of old factory where they dump stuff. I got dumped off here before I got dumped off with Taggart.”

“Wait! So, this is the place where that creep found you? What if he just comes back?!”

“IF he comes back, then I’ve got you two to help move me to another room, right?” Bunny suggested.

Jake looked around at the building. It was cold and dusty. Empty except for boxes of stuff. One was tipped over and spilled broken toys out across the floor.

“Look at all these toys…” Jake murmured.

“I can’t,” Andrew muttered.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t expect them to talk back like I do,” Bunny remarked.  

Jake always had a soft spot for toys, and since the rest of the place was so desolate, he preferred to keep his focus on them. Think about what it might be like to clean them up and play with them.

He didn’t want to think about home.

Because he knew- he didn’t have to ask, he knew- that he wasn’t going back.

…

Jake wasn’t sure how many days they had been in the factory. Long enough that he wasn’t so numb anymore. Probably about two or three, but sometimes it was hard to tell unless they were by the windows.

In this time Jake had started to get a little more control over the endoskeleton, though it still paled in comparison to how much control Andrew had. Not that he really fought for it. Andrew spent a lot of his time sulking and there wasn’t much to do, so he let Jake do whatever.

Jake had taken to collecting toys from the boxes. He didn’t really have the means to clean or repair them, so he just stacked them on shelves and tables until sometime when he could. At least it got them off the floor.

Currently he and Andrew were an object on the floor. They had sat down in the corner to rest while Bunny was propped up on another shelf. Things were quiet, which Jake both appreciated and found sort of depressing.

Being in the robot was weird. Late at night he would suddenly get a burst of energy and want to run and move, but really couldn’t. Sometimes in the afternoon he would get tired, like now. He didn’t have to eat or drink, but he could still feel tired, and somehow, he could still sleep. He could even dream.

He had a dream about his dad last night. He had been working really hard today to find and put up toys, so much so that he didn’t have to think about the dream. Now that he was stopped and sitting it crept up on him.

While Margie took very good care of him, there was nobody Jake loved more than his dad. He was the best. He was funny and smart, and always came up with fun things for them to do. Even when Jake couldn’t go out and play like he used to. When he was home, they were inseparable. When he was gone, Jake spent most of his time waiting for him to come back.

The problem was that Jake’s dad was in the army and sometimes they had to send him off to faraway places. His dad had told him plenty about it, but he still felt like he didn’t know much about what he did or why he had to leave. All he knew was that someday he would come back. Jake’s dad promised and he never broke a promise. Never. Even if plans had to change, he found a way to pull through.

The thought he would never see his dad again made him hurt deep inside.

He felt weirdly alone here. He wasn’t alone, especially with Andrew wedged up against him, but he felt alone. Bunny was chatty but Andrew got annoyed if they talked too much, and Jake didn’t know what to talk about anyways.

Jake’s life had shrunk so much before this happened. His only stories to tell were the ones he made up with Simon. His only memories were too sad to think about. He felt trapped. A crushing trapped feeling-

“Jake?!”

Andrew’s cry snapped him out of his thoughts. “What? What’s wrong?”

“What do you mean, what’s wrong?! I said your name like twenty times! That’s what’s wrong!” Andrew snapped.

Jake hadn’t even been paying attention. He heard Andrew start talking but just hadn’t… he hadn’t been thinking of much else beyond that crushing ache.

“Sorry! I was just distracted.”

“Well get un-distracted!”

This was weird. While Andrew seemed to be a little harsh, he seemed unusually angry from that alone.

“What’s wrong? Why are you so upset?” Jake asked.

“I don’t like to be ignored,” Andrew huffed.

Oh.

“Oh.”

…

…

“I don’t know, I thought maybe you… left or something,” Andrew unexpectedly continued. “Because we’re both in here. Maybe you just went away.”

“Oh… I’m sorry,” Jake said in surprise.

“Don’t say it like that. It makes me sound stupid,” Andrew muttered. “Just forget it.”

“Okay,” Jake agreed, “…But I’m not going anywhere. Even if I did, I’d tell you first. And take you with me since we’re in the same body now.”

“…Good.”

There was another uneasy pause. Jake expected it to last but again Andrew broke it.

“…Sooo, you like toys?”

This was the first time Andrew had shown any real interest in him. It was unexpected, but a distraction much appreciated.

“Yeah. I couldn’t go outside so I had a bunch of toys, but Simon was my favorite. We used to make up stories together.”

Jake trailed off and they sat there in silence for a beat.

Then a second.

A third.

“Are you going to tell one?” Andrew asked.

Jake was surprised. “You want to hear one?”

“Sure, I’m bored. There’s nothing else to do. No TV.”

“Count me in too! I’m about to go crazy up here. Watching you two walk around’s all I’ve got,” Bunny added.

“O-Okay! Well… Once upon a time, there was a kid named… Simon. He liked to play baseball. One day his dad took him to a game, and he watched all the players playing and decided, ‘I want to do that too!’ So, he signed up…”
…

Arguments weren’t unheard of. Even when they were one-sided arguments between Andrew and usually Jake.

What was a little less expected was what came after this argument.

“Look, I don’t mean to boss you around, it’s just…” Andrew paused for a moment before asking, “Have you ever been so angry you just wanted everyone to know it?”

“Not really,” Jake admitted.

“YES! Now you’re speaking my language!” Bunny chimed in. “First of all, you may not have noticed, but I’m a Bonnie doll. I can’t move, I can’t walk, I can just sit here and hope someone moves me, but ask? Nooo. Nobody’s going to touch a talking doll. Except you two, but when are you going to get the chance to take me somewhere fun?”

“Well, yeah, that’s bad. But that’s not what I meant,” Andrew said with exasperation. “I just meant… Look, I… Ugh.”

The endo dropped its head into Andrew’s controlled hand. Jake let him do it, waiting patiently for him to continue. Bunny more or less waited on the edge of his seat.

“I’m sorry, Jake… For yelling at you,” Andrew quietly apologized.

“I forgive you,” Jake assured him.

“…And I’m sorry you got stuck with me.”

“What?” Jake was taken aback. “No, don’t say that! It’s okay to get upset.”

“It’s not just this time! It’s all the time. I’ve always been a jerk to you, and you’ve always been nice to me… I don’t deserve it.”

Jake’s heart ached at Andrew’s weak tone. “Yes, you do.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re my best friend.”

Andrew gave a humorless laugh, like he didn’t believe him.

Jake continued, “And you’ve been protecting us since we got here.”

“We wouldn’t BE here if it wasn’t for you,” Bunny added in. “You got us out of that basement. That took a lot of guts!”

“Eh, maybe…” Andrew murmured.

“He’s right,” Jake insisted.

“…Am I really your best friend or are you just saying that because we’re stuck together?” Andrew asked.

“You’re my best friend,” Jake said honestly.

“…Thanks.”

He could tell Andrew was smiling from his voice.

“Yeah, THANKS GUYS.”

He could tell Bunny was not.

…

It was cold. Even in a cold, metal endoskeleton it was a cold night.

Jake took them over to the shelf and grabbed for a messily folded, stained, and abandoned blanket. It was small and super soft to the touch, even if it desperately needed a wash. It was a soft blue with ducks on it.

Jake draped it over their shoulders with his arm only to have Andrew yank it off with his own.

“There’s no way.”

He sighed. It looked like Andrew was going to be difficult again. “Come on, please? I’m cold. You’re cold.”

“No! I don’t want to snuggle up to that gross old baby blanket.”

“It’s not gross! It’s just a little muddy.”

“Ugh. How old are we, four?”

“Come on, Andrew. There’s nothing wrong with liking little kid stuff. It’s warm and comfortable. Feel!”

He pressed the blanket to their chest, the one place where they both fully felt together, and rubbed the plush fabric against them.

“Feel?”

“I feel,” Andrew muttered.

“Then you feel how soft it is.” Jake managed to get it around their shoulders with little help from Andrew, tucking it in around them. “There! Better?”

Andrew muttered unconvincingly.

Shortly after that, he and Jake started to collect more blankets, and he no longer griped about their color or pattern.

…

Over time Jake and Andrew had started wandering around outside of the factory and closer to distant houses or an even further town. They had to walk for near hours to reach anywhere and it was dangerous, but Andrew was restless. So, every once in a blue moon Jake would indulge- that was how they eventually discovered a dump and scrapyard technically within walking distance.

A few times they had walked past or through a local park, but tonight something caught their interest there. Someone left a backpack on the bench. Andrew almost immediately taking the liberty of snatching it up and ducking behind cover.

“Andrew, that’s stealing!” Jake scolded.

“At most we’re stealing, like, school supplies. They’ll get more,” Andrew brushed off.

“But…”

“Looks like a kid in elementary school, right? They practically give them supplies!”

Jake hadn’t been to school in years, but he was pretty certain that parents bought the supplies. It was clear that he wasn’t going to get anywhere with him as Andrew unzipped the backpack and began to rifle through it.

There was a pencil case, some crumbled up papers, work books; just random school stuff. Nothing they would take interest in, except for a book that Andrew spotted and pulled out to see the cover of. It depicted a group of kids with bindles and old timey clothing standing in front of a caboose, all looking around in surprise as though something exciting was happening outside the border of the pictures.

“The Caboose Kids?” Jake asked.

“You’ve never heard of them?” Andrew asked.

“No. You?”

“I read them in school. Or the teacher read it to us. They’re pretty dumb.”

Though he said that, Andrew seemed to be keeping their head down staring at that book for a long time. He made no attempt to put the book back or anything. Jake couldn’t help but take notice.

“…What were they about. Kids riding a train?”

“Pretty much. A bunch of kids with no parents run away from an evil orphanage and go live in a caboose. Then they travel around with the train and stuff happens.”

“That sounds cool, not dumb.”

“Meh.”

Andrew still wouldn’t put down the book.

“What’s wrong?” Jake quietly asked, setting any pretense aside.

“I don’t know… I guess it’s the first time I thought about my old life in a long time. Back when I was a real kid,” Andrew confessed. “…I actually liked these books. A lot. I didn’t tell anyone, but I used to think about them a lot. I’d wish that I could run away and hop a train or something… I guess I kind of did. Except the train’s a lot smaller and has legs.”

Jake couldn’t help but snicker a little at that. Though instead of being offended, something tense in the body lightened a little. As though Andrew too was relaxing.

“You know… We could probably read through this book in one night. We could stay awake and just push through the whole thing. I want to read it! I want to get on the train too,” Jake said.

“What? Wait, what happened to not stealing? That sounds a lot like stealing,” Andrew said, almost teasing him.

“It’s not stealing if we read it in one night and get it back here before morning. What do you say?”

“Eh, okay. But only because we don’t have anything else to do.”

They took the book and hiked the long way back out to the factory, sat down, and immediately began to read- taking turns reading out loud so Bunny could hear. At first only Jake read out loud but eventually Andrew began to do so as well, taking over rather abruptly- much to Jake’s surprise and delight.

It felt like the first time he had seen, or heard, Andrew happy. It made him happy too.

…

At some point dumpster diving became a favored pastime. Not in dumpsters though, but in the actual dump. They would sometimes find toys and other neglected things to bring back to their home. Such as right now.

“Look at these!” Jake proclaimed. He reached under some stuff and grabbed a tangled bundle of Christmas lights, freeing them with a quick tug and knocking over some stuff in the process. Though his attention was more on the lights. They were tangled up, but they didn’t look too old. “It’s shame they’re broken,” he sighed.

“…Well, maybe they’re not. Come on.”

Andrew took the lead, and they went to a small building located by the back of the dump. There wasn’t much in the building except some trash and what looked to be a barely used trash compactor.

He must’ve had a hunch as he led them straight to the nearest outlet and plugged the lights in. Half of them lit up.

“Good enough?” Andrew asked.

“Yes! How’d you know they’d work?!”

“I figured someone just threw ‘em out because they were tangled up or half dead. It’s a little of both, but beggars can’t be choosers.”

“That’s so cool,” Jake agreed. “I wish we had power back at the factory. We could bring them back with us and put them around our hidey hole.”

“Yeah…” Any of Andrew’s previous interest quickly deflated, but only for a few seconds. “…You know, if we’re going to start hanging around her more, maybe we should make a hideout here too?”

“That’s a great idea! We could make it in here and just hide it in the back where no one can see it.”

“I don’t know. Someone might walk in and see us. That’d be like setting up shop on the side of the highway.”

“No, we could make it work! We could… We could take a tarp and make it into a tent and then block it with trash so it’s camouflage,” Jake explained. Andrew gave an unconvinced noise, but he was about to change his tone at Jake’s next statement. “And then we could fill it up with blankets and camp out in it. It would be like the hideout the Caboose Kids had! We wouldn’t have a trapdoor, but… Who knows! Maybe we could make one.”

“…Okay, maybe,” Andrew agreed. He led them over to look around at the back corner. “Maybe over there?”

“That’ll work!”

“And we could string these lights up in the inside. Wait, hey, this is great! These are only half lit up and it’s THIS side, the plug-in side. The ones outside of the tent won’t be glowing so nobody will see them!”

“Right!”

“Oh man, I think we’re onto something.” Andrew excitedly tapped his fingers onto the bundle of lights as he looked around. “This’ll be way cooler than the factory. Just as long as we don’t get caught.”

“Oh yeah, that would be bad,” Jake agreed. “…There’s just one thing…”

“What? Andrew asked.

“Well, being under trash and hidden in the corner… I think we’ve got no choice but to call it a hidey hole.”

“I’m not calling it a hidey hole,” Andrew said flatly.

And he didn’t… for a while.

...

Years passed.

…

Bunny had a delightful wakeup call to having an old, smelly teddy bear dangled before him. He couldn’t even so much as shirk away.

"Ugh. Where did you find that thing?" he asked.

"We just bought it from a toy store. Where do you think we got it? The dump,” Andrew replied.

"Looks like it should've stayed there," he quipped with disgust. "Looooks like a Tag-Along Freddy."

"So, you know what this is?” Jake asked.

 "...THIS is a Tag-Along Freddy?!" Andrew asked.

At the same time. There was a pause as the two voices quieted to process what each other said. Unable to even look at each other.

"Wait, you know what this is too?" Jake asked in surprise. "Why didn't you say something earlier?"

"I've never seen one or anything, I just heard about them. Get this: there was this kid who had one and it told him to jump off a cliff, and he did,” Andrew explained.

There was a doubtful pause between half of the endoskeleton and the haunted plush.

"Trust me, it happened. It's a long story."

"O-kay... So, what's a Tag-Along Freddy? Just some sort of toy that talks?" Jake asked.

"They’re just little dolls that lazy parents gave their kids to babysit them. They could talk and had a little camera in them to tattle on what they did. They were connected with those security bracelet things- ask me sometime to tell you about the Puppet. I don't feel like it now."

Andrew didn’t want to ask about the puppet.

"They just left this to watch their kids?" Jake lifted the rancid doll and stared at it with scrutiny. It didn't look like it would be much of a babysitter, even if it was just supposed to sit in a room and record a child's movements. "Huh... Okay."

"Until it all went wrong," Andrew began in a theatrically cryptic voice.

"Andrew..."

"Come on. You know you want to hear this."

Jake expected that he wasn't going to believe the story and from their Bunny’s groan it didn't seem like he was looking forward to it either... Though Andrew was right in the sense that he was curious. He caved. "What's the story?"

"Once there was this kid who got the Tag-Along Freddy doll. He loved this doll and took it everywhere with him, but then one day he disappeared. They looked for him all over but couldn't find him. Days later, they found the Freddy at the bottom of the cliffs outside of town and when they checked the recordings, they could hear Freddy telling the kid to jump off the cliff- and he did!... But they never found the body. All that was left was the doll, and that final recording telling him to jump."

"Oh..." Jake wasn't sure if he believed it.

"But the weirdest part? The recording wasn't in Freddy's voice..." Andrew's arm took the bear from Jake's and raised it up, slowly inching it towards their shared mask. "It was in the voice... Of his dead grandmother..." The doll sat in front of their view to emphasize the reveal. It was followed by a long pause. "...Or maybe his dead dad. Or mom. I can't remember who, it was just someone dead."

"That still doesn't explain why he would jump. I loved my dad, but I don't think I would've jumped off a cliff unless he was at the bottom to catch me," Jake rationalized.

"It's because little kids are too dumb to think for themselves. They'd throw themselves off a cliff for a piece of candy- or go with a stranger as long as he was dressed up like their favorite character. They're worthless."

That tone took both Jake and Andrew completely off-guard. It was so cold and aggressive, like he was actually offended by the story. Then a strange feeling of twitching heat started to spread through their body and Jake realized that this was not going to go well.

"Maybe if some of those lazy parents were watching their kids, they wouldn't get a chance to go wandering off with strangers. Or maybe they'd no not to go do stupid things. It's not the kids' fault, it's their worthless parents'," Andrew hissed.

Now, at this point Jake knew exactly why Andrew was upset, what with his past. Something that had slipped out in secret some time ago. Unfortunately, this past had not been related to their third friend, who seemed almost oblivious to the shift in mood, and he kept digging that hole.

"I'm not going to argue with you. Parents who think that a little, tiny doll is going to protect their kids deserve to have their kids taken away, but the kids always walk into it. They always walk away and leave themselves open to whatever's out there. They walk themselves off the cliff because they're too stupid to look down."

"I think you're stupid," Andrew said unwittingly. This must've caught their friend off-guard because normally he would've pounced on a comment that childish. Andrew followed up quickly, "If you're going to say some little kid is responsible for itself at all then you're either a complete idiot or you've never seen or been a kid."

"Guys," Jake warned.

"You just told me that lame story about the kid jumping off a cliff because his toy told him to. You can't act like that's a smart kid. That's an especially dense kid."

"That's like a three-year-old! What do you expect?!" Andrew lashed out. "How are they supposed to know better?! It's a talking toy! Those kids still believe in Santa Claus, of course they're going to trust a toy!"

"But they don't just trust toys, do they? They trust anything offering to butter them up with candy. They're greedy, they'll go with a stranger in a heartbeat and then wonder why oh why it hurts so badly when they do."

"What- Where- Where did that even COME from?! You're talking about kidnapped kids- Are you really going to sit there and tell me it's not the maniac who kidnapped them's fault, but it's the kids' fault they died?!"

The endo now stood dangerously tall over the unseeing plush toy. Its body, especially its one arm, were twitching violently as it stared down in half-hearted anger. The plush didn't move, but it decided to answer.

For some reason he chose the worst possible answer.

"...Yes."

The endo shrieked and Andrew reached for the toy, only for his arm to get caught by Jake, who forcibly turned their body away from the doll. He desperately tried to defuse the situation.

"Would you guys stop? It's just a story! It's not even real!" Jake protested. "Andrew, please-!"

Suddenly Andrew got control and turned them around, snatching up the doll and hoisting it up threateningly. His fingers dug into his neck.

"TAKE THAT BACK!" Andrew yelled. He shook the doll aggressively. "TAKE IT BACK, NOW!"

"I think you're taking this a little too personally. I didn't say you were stupid. You said I was stupid."

"YOU ARE!"

"Guys, would you two just stop?!" Jake yelled. He began to fight Andrew for the plush again. "Andrew, he's not talking about you! He doesn't know about what happened!"

"...This whole thing wasn't a long way of telling me that you were the kid that jumped off the cliff, was it? Because if it was, whoops."

Andrew gave another frustrated cry and threw Bunny down on the shelf. He turned his back on it and tightly balled his fist- as much as he could- in steaming anger. Jake patted his arm comfortingly, silently assuring him that he did the right thing. Then, after a moment to calm, he turned his head and spoke.

"You shouldn't say things like that. You don't understand what those kids go through... That's what happened to Andrew."

"Ugh, just don't..." Andrew hissed.

"It wasn't his fault that he was attacked. That wasn't any of those kids' fault. Even if they knew better, who's to say they could've stopped it?"

There was a long and extremely uncomfortable pause. Andrew ran his hand over his side of the mask as Jake stood there awkwardly, feeling the tension in the room. When all of a sudden-

"Was it a man in a rabbit suit?"

The question took them both off guard. The endo looked back at the doll, laying on its side with its back facing them. It hadn't budged from where it had fallen, as expected. Though that was the only thing expected by the moment.

"...Uh..." Jake started awkwardly.

"No," Andrew said suspiciously. "...Why?"

There was a long moment of silence where they waited for an answer that never came. Instead, the voice from the plush suddenly changed tone.

"I'm sorry, Andy. You know I don't think you're stupid, or that it's your fault you're. If it makes you feel any better, I don't think you'd ever walk off a cliff on purpose," he assured soothingly, as though talking down a wild animal. "...I just get mad sometimes."

"Mad?"

"At things. Maybe I say things I shouldn't. When you're stuck in a little toy like I am, sometimes you don't have much control over what you say. It just comes out, but I shouldn't take it out on you. You two are my best friends. I don't think you're stupid, I think you're both great."

Jake could feel Andrew calming down a little but could tell that he was still upset. Which was probably why he kept trying to pull their body's gaze away from the toy.

"Forgive me?"

Now on the spot, Andrew gave a huff- which came out of the endo sounding more like sizzling.

"Whatever," he snapped. He then looked down at the bear on the floor and picked it up. "Jake, can we do something about this thing? I'm tired of looking at it."

"Sure. Let's just go put it on the shelf with the others."

And they did. That conversation went forgotten after a few weeks, what with Bunny being very careful with his words, and it wasn’t brought up again.

But it was sometime later when on a whim Jake had decided to take a plunge and ask a question he hadn’t ventured.

“Hey, Bunny? Can I ask you something? You don’t have to answer…” Jake asked. Andrew stayed silent and listened.

“Yesss?” Bunny replied willingly.

“…How did you die?”

The tone shifted immediately. It was as though a cloud suddenly hung over the room.

“…I don’t want to talk about it,” Bunny muttered.

“Oh. I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”

“Nah, it’s okay,” Bunny said. “…I didn’t really die. I just became something else. As far as I care, I’m alive and well! Just… changed.”

Jake couldn’t say he didn’t agree. He didn’t press on the question, assuming that he would tell them when he was ready.

Eventually he did.

…

More years passed. It had been at least ten since they met.

…

The endoskeleton tore into the factory and slammed the heavy door before hustling into the large room where they had set up their homestead. Bunny watched them hustle in impatiently.

“What happened to you two?” he asked. More so asking why they had been over an hour late.

Instead, he received a much blunter answer.

“We saw a clown!” Jake exclaimed.

Over the years Jake’s voice, like Andrew and Bunny’s, had aged and deepened to match his current age. That was the highest it had gotten in ages.

“Wha-?”

“THAT was not a clown! THAT was a wire monster with a clown’s head stuck on top!” Andrew corrected.

“Excuse me, but what the hell are you two talking about?” Bunny asked bluntly.

“We saw a clown at the dump! It was scrounging around; it almost saw us!” Jake explained.

“It ripped open a car door like it was nothing!” Andrew explained. “And then in like- like it slithered inside! All its wires just- ugh!”

“Sorry we’re late, but we had to hide.”

“There’s no way we could let that thing see us.”

“Huh… Well, at least you two aren’t the scariest thing in town… If that’s a good thing,” Bunny mumbled. “I would’ve liked to see it for myself.”

“Trust me, you wouldn’t. I’m going to have nightmares from that,” Jake assured him.

Bunny would have to take his word for it, because he didn’t see much from the inside of this room- Jake realized this and added.

“Next time we’ll take you with us,” he assured.

“There is no NEXT TIME. We’re never leaving this factory again. Forget the dump, the clown can keep it,” Andrew interjected.

They went back next week.

…

“They’re coming in. What are we going to do?” Jake whispered fearfully.

Andrew’s hand tightened. He knew what he was thinking of doing.

“You’re not going to do anything, okay? Pull that tarp over us and play dead.”

“But what if they find us?”

“That’s why you’re covering us up.”

“I’m not letting them take us,” Andrew insisted. “I don’t care what happens.”

“You’ll care when you’ve got a hundred-watt volt going through you. Don’t try anything. Just play it cool.”

The metal door slid open with a loud clatter. Jake helped Andrew pull the tarp over them.

“Play. It. Cool…”

And they did.

And they were helpless as the technicians wheeled them out of their home and took them somewhere else.

…

This place looked more like a maze than any sort of mall, though maybe that was because they were stuck in the endless tunnels sprawled out underneath it. They had wandered aimlessly looking for their friend and a way out.

They found something else.

“Look… Look at these!”

“They’re cool, but we really need to find a way out of here.”

“They’re not just cool.”

Andrew hesitantly reached his hand out and lifted the drooping head of the animatronic strung up on a hook. A frozen, downright mischievous grin started back at him. While its body was a basic nude frame, unfinished, its face was fully done up. Pale grey with a pointed nose, white eyes, and again that wide-stretched grin. It looked like some sort of creepy moon. Andrew soaked up every detail of it. He then reached down and lifted its limp hand.

“Look at this! Look how detailed its hands are. They’re just like human hands!” Andrew said. Jake went along with it by reaching forward to carefully rotate the thumb.

“They’re so advanced…” he said. He looked up and down the body.

“Jake, this is it. They’re perfect!” Andrew gushed.

“For what?” Jake asked, having a feeling he already knew. “For us?”

“Yes! Think about- Imagine having our own bodies again. Ones that we don’t have to worry about rusting or breaking down!”

“They’re a little fragile looking though. We’d still have to be careful- What am I saying? What are you saying, Andrew? We can’t steal a couple of animatronics!” Jake protested.

“It’s not stealing! Not really. We’re just… We could become them! Bunny’s the one who always goes on about souls and bodies and stuff. If we find him, maybe he could help us out of this one and into those two,” Andrew explained. He sounded so excited by the idea.

And no wonder, it would be a major upgrade. Their endoskeleton was old before they even got into it, but these were brand new. They looked more advanced than Jake had ever seen, but the thought of it made him uneasy.

“This is wrong.”

“What part of it?” Andrew asked.

“The whole thing! First of all, yes, we would be stealing. And we’d be switching bodies? That seems… wrong.”

“It’s no worse than what Taggart did.”

“That’s why it feels wrong.”

“It would be different. We would be switching because we want to!... Because we have to.”

Andrew’s tone fell as did his arm to his side.

“Jake, we’re not as… fast as we used to be. Or as strong. The battery crackles, there’s a spot in my eye, everything squeaks- it’s only a matter of time before our body breaks down on us! Then what are we going to do?” he asked.

“I don’t know… Move on or something?” Jake guessed.

“I… I’m not ready to do that.” The suggestion alone filled Andrew with fear, and with them so close Jake too could feel it.

“Me neither,” Jake quietly admitted.

“Then let’s do this! Let’s become these creepy looking gangly sun and moon bots and LIVE! Its not like we’re getting out of here any other way,” Andrew insisted. He reached over and grabbed Jake’s hand, the endoskeleton effectively holding its own hand and then giving a stern shake. “Come on, Jake. We’ll do it together.”

Jake considered it for a long moment, and he considered it so long because despite him knowing it was wrong… it was so very tempting.

The thought of having a new, clean body- one less cumbersome than the endoskeleton they were stuck in- was so enticing. After all these years they had never found any tossed animatronic or machine of any kind even worth using for spare parts, let alone a full intact body. If they could find Bunny and he could get them in, then suddenly their prayers would be answered. They would be safe for now.

Because the other option was getting caught and broken down for parts like the technicians who brought them here wanted. As far as they were concerned, the endoskeleton was Fazbear Entertainment property and to be used to feed the business. They really were slowly getting cornered, and the only option was to run into a trap or hide in plain sight.

Running had worked for so long, but now it was time to hide.

“…Alright,” Jake agreed. Before Andrew could get excited, he quickly added, “But ONLY if Bunny can do it! We don’t even know if he can do that.”

“He better with how much he goes on about it,” Andrew dismissed. He cupped the moon’s face and turned it towards him. “I call dibs on the moon! This is a smile I can get behind.”

“You can have him.”

“Tch, don’t sound so torn up about it,” Andrew said. Though his voice had a touch of nervous amusement in it.

While he was distracting himself with his new body, Jake tried to become acquainted with his own. He lifted its head and looked at its yellow face. It’s smile more subdued, a little gap between its teeth, and grey blue irised eyes. It looked so cheerful, holding none of the mischievousness that the moon’s had. He supposed it made sense, being the sun. It was much warmer and more approachable.

Something about it reminded him of Simon. Maybe he could learn to become attached.

…

Waking up without Andrew didn’t feel right. He was confused and disoriented, but he knew how to focus his eyes and he put all his effort into doing that. He could hear something ticking and moving from close by and had to see what it was.

Then all at once, his vision came in. He was dangling in that dark basement workshop, staring down at a pale-yellow body hanging underneath him.

“It worked!” he thought. He couldn’t speak yet, but he could see the change. But soon his concerns shifted. “Andrew? Is he okay?”

A hand moved in the edge of his vision. Then again. It was a grey and blue color; he recognized it as the one on the moon animatronic. It was feeling around blindly, desperately reaching for something.

Jake tried to lift his hand to meet it, but his arm was still too week. He had control to see but not yet the control to move. But perhaps if he focused really hard…

The speaker in his chest crackled as he focused…

“…And…rew…?”

Suddenly the moon’s hand swung out and found him, patting over his chest before finding his arm and sliding down it before grabbing his hand. He squeezed it desperately, but Jake was too numb to squeeze back.

“I-I’m he… here…” Jake assured him.

Andrew squeezed his hand tighter. He was there too.

They hung there long enough that eventually Jake was able to squeeze back.

It was a while before they truly had control of the bodies. It could’ve been the entire night, perhaps even a day or two. Jake had heard voices around at some point, but nobody had come in. Though he could’ve imagined them, nodding off into a dreamless sleep once or twice. When he woke up, he would check on Andrew and then check on himself, working with his joints until he could lightly swing his feet.

Until at one point Andrew reached behind him and grabbed the line that hooked him. He finally detached his hand from Jake’s and reached back with that one two, tightly gripping the line with both hands and lifting himself off the hook.

Andrew landed on his new legs, and they immediately buckled, landing on his hands and knees in a semi-crouch. He didn’t stay down long, trying to right himself and then doubling over backwards. Apparently, the bodies were a little more flexible than they anticipated them to be.

He looked up at Jake with milky blue eyes.

“Hey, what’s up?” Jake jokingly asked.

“Nooo-t m-ch,” Andrew replied.

He rolled himself over onto his knees again and started to get up. First onto one knee and pausing to rest, then onto the other. He staggered forward and right into Jake but managed to stop himself with his hands on the floor. Jake waved his hand down at him, offering it, and Andrew took it as he began to slowly rise onto his feet again. Now using Jake’s grip to balance himself.  

He steadied himself on his feet and made sure he could let go of Jake and stand momentarily. Then he looked up to Jake, then wrapped his arms around him, and finally started to lift him off his hook. With a few staggered steps back, Jake’s weight was freed, and he came down heavily on his own feet. His legs weren’t so prepared and he fell forward, but Andrew was still holding on and quick to catch him.

Andrew gave Jake a few seconds to stabilize himself and get his bearings. He took Jake looking up to him as a silent confirmation to release him, and instead moved his hands up to cup Jake’s new face.

It felt so weird to touch Jake, and it felt so weird to be touched by Andrew, and for them to be entirely separate. Jake gave an almost overwhelmed chuckle.

Andrew took this as a go-ahead and swooped in for another embrace. He nearly pulled Jake up off his feet and would’ve if his own wasn’t so unsteady. His own laugh, those partially muted, making it through his unfamiliar voice box.

The two celebrated in their clumsy little dance. They had done it. They had found new bodies and had secured their future for the time being. They were free of the endoskeleton they had been trapped into.

But they were still together.
…

“We’re almost there. We’re practically above it,” Jake assured.

Moon was willing to believe him, but he couldn’t see for himself. The vent shaft was tight, dusty, and the broken wind-up Music Man was still tailing them. Every now and then it caught up and squeezed past Jake to reach its initial target, Moon, and tried to clap its little cymbals on his arms and pants to pull him back. It very nearly yanked his pants down twice, which Jake snickered at.

And while normally Moon would be glad that Jake was having a good time out of the room, this was the one time they couldn’t fool around.

Jake was still monitoring the control panel as they inched along, before patting Moon’s back to get his attention.

“It’s right beneath us, but the only vent that leads past it is this one over here. Look.” Jake held out the control panel and on the small screen he could see the layout of the vents. Upstairs Moon knew the vents quite well, but down here in the basement the ductwork was a mystery. Sure enough, the vent they were in- Jake pointed it out- went over the edge of the furnace room, but the one that went directly over the furnace room was nearby.

Which was good because this vent was sturdy and there was no hatch downwards.

They were pulled out their map searching and a creaking and heavy metal thump from down below. They both snapped their heads down in shock at the sound. They knew it was the conveyor being loaded up.

“Hurry!” Moon hissed. He turned and began to frantically crawl down the vents, his legs turned around to propel him faster. Jake couldn’t do that anymore and fell behind, weighed down by the control panel.

Moon could hear the systems shifting. The clattering clacks of what sounded like clamps locking into place, the loud squeak before the system kicked in- it was all old down here, recycled from older establishments- and then the echoing beeping forewarning of the starting machine before the sound of the conveyor turning followed it. Moon could only hope they had found something else to burn before the endo but knew that likely wasn’t the case.

He frantically banged through the rest of the shaft before finding the narrow opening down into the furnace room. He kicked through it and tried to squeeze in, but the space was too small to easily fit. His head had to be angled just the right way and even then, it was tight enough to rub the sensitive edges where his points were hiding.

He was twisting and contorting himself through when he caught sight of the conveyor nearby. His heart could’ve stopped.

There was their endoskeleton body inching along one of the conveyor belts towards one of two boxy openings into the furnace. It had been secured on in the other room and carried into the furnace room, where nobody was there to stop it except for him. Likely the workers had already left. Even if they heard him breaking in, they would be powerless to stop him or the machine.

The endoskeleton’s foot crept closer towards the superheated maw. It looked like a constant broiling fire waiting inside. A churning hell trapped in a metal box.

“No, no, NO, NO!” Moon hissed.

He twisted and forced himself through, foregoing sacrificing the time to right himself and instead landing on his hands and knees. He then sprung up onto the conveyor and grabbed onto the endoskeleton before it could reach the end.

Except that it was latched on. Claps had been aligned alongside the conveyor to securely lock in any machine destined to burn, and they only released at the end where the belt looped around again. There was a clasp on the leg, two clasps on the lower arms and torso and two on the upper section, and none of them would release until they passed that mark. The highest ones wouldn’t give until it was already largely in the furnace.

Moon immediately went to work on the upper locks. He didn’t have enough time to fool with the leg one- he could sacrifice the foot. Except the clasps resisted his efforts. Not only were they locked on tightly, but his fingers struggled to get a grip onto them, making it difficult to exert a true effort.

Jake made it to the vent opening and was trying to get himself through. Moon spared a look to him and then towards the furnace where to his horror he saw the foot starting to edge in.

“Jake! Help! Help! I’m LOSING IT!” he cried desperately.

With a burst of energy, Jake forced his way through and crashed to the floor. He was up in a heartbeat and beside the belt where he tried to help Moon pry back the clasps. He was startled to see them, not expecting them, and not having the effective tools. Even if he did there was barely any give to pry and no screws to unscrew. He still tried. He tried with all his might just as Moon did.

The leg was halfway into the furnace and the first clasp released.

Moon changed tactics. Instead of focusing on the clasps, he got his arms around the endo and tried to lift it off. Trying to forcibly pry it out of its binds or break it in the process, but there was too much being held down. He fought on.

At this point though, Jake turned and looked into the fire, feeling the heat through his mask, and knew there was no chance. And there was now a much bigger problem than their endo burning.

“It’s not working! You’ve got to let go or you’re going to go in!” Jake warned.

“No!”

“Andrew, you’re going to burn!”

“NO!”

Andrew slid his hands up to the shoulders to avoid some of the head radiating from the furnace, but it was still warm on his face as he slid every-closer. It got so hot and bright that his programming kicked in and his points slid out, his nightcap dangling off them as his face and chest started to turn yellow.

He kept a vice-like grip on the endoskeleton though, fighting both its binds, himself, and now Jake trying to pull him off the conveyor belt.

“Andrew, it’s just a body!” Jake cried desperately.

“NO, IT’S NOT! IT’S US!” Andrew argued.

It was where they first met. It was their first home. What they used to explore and to live for so many years. Every memory they shared together before coming into this accursed Pizzaplex was in that body. It had been so much of them both, it was everything that had kept them together for so long.

To give up on it was to give up on the past. He couldn’t let go. He didn’t want to let go.

His hands were sliding into the furnace as he stared down at the empty face of the endoskeleton staring up at him. He hadn’t looked at it much since they removed the mask from it for Jake to wear. Without it, it looked so unspectacular. Like it could be any other old endoskeleton destined to be melted down for scrap metal, but it was so much more.

It had been him. It had been Jake. It had been them.

And now it was about to be gone, and there was nothing he could do.

But let go.

…

What had he done?

He didn’t want to think about it. He shook it away and hurried back towards the daycare, rubbing his arms until his fingers burned. The only sound in the quiet Pizzaplex being his own ticking and jingling.

What had he done?

“No, no, stop,” he hissed. He dug his fingers into his faceplate with a huff. He straightened himself and pressed on. He had to get back to Jake.

Soon he was in the daycare and heading down the slide. The lights were still off, as they should’ve been, and just the same there was no music. The room was ominously quiet.

“Jake?” he called. He climbed out of the ball pit and looked around. He could be anywhere, hiding in any of the structures, though he suspected he might also be at the desk.

And then he noticed that the daycare door was still propped open. Maybe Jake had forgotten to shut it.

With a heavy whine, he began to make his way across the daycare to close it. He stole a glance over the desk as he passed, but no sign of Jake, so he went to the door to move the trashcan blocking it.

Except as he approached, he saw through the open door and noticed stuff on the ground. It didn’t look quite like trash but spilled bits, pieces of something, though it could’ve very well been spilt trash. He could deal with it later.

Except he couldn’t, as there was so much of it. He pushed the door open more and stepped around the trashcan to see more stuff littering around. There was a screw that he bumped aside with his foot. Yellow and orange pieces- maybe some sort of destroyed Sun-themed merch. Maybe Jake was upset enough to go ransack the gift shop.

He stepped around the door and started to go over there when he stopped in the process.

One of the pieces lying on the floor nearby was an orange triangle. Dread slowly crept up as he released the door and walked over to it. That couldn’t be- it looked like one of Jake’s points, but there was no way it could be.

In that second his eyes looked past it to another nearby object.

It was a finger.

A yellow finger.

Jake’s finger.

All of these pieces were pieces of Jake.

Andrew was alone and pieces of Jake lay everywhere.

The panic set in immediately. He gave a horrified cry and spun on his heel reeling and looking at all the pieces, the bolts, plates, hinges, parts of him everywhere and expected to see a body. He ran around screaming and searching for his body, but he could not find it. He wasn’t here.

He turned on his internal messaging system. He had manually closed it off earlier, but now he desperately opened the channel like he was opening his own brain and started to send out messages.

“JAKE! Where are you?! What happened?!” he frantically sent. He continued in a panicked string of words that meant little as he looked around at all the leftover pieces.

A reply interrupted him, but it was not from Jake.

“We’re down in Parts and Service. Get here NOW. It’s not good.”

The next while was a blur. Andrew was running as fast as he could through the Pizzaplex. His heart grabbed by fear. He couldn’t be gone. He said ‘we’re’. Jake was there. Jake had to be okay.

He knew Jake wasn’t okay, but Jake had to be okay.

As he raced into Parts and Service he was immediately accosted.

“Where in the HELL have you been?!”

“Where do you THINK?! Where is he?! Is he in the cylinder?!” He tried to look past and soon saw, and barged by as he raced over and forced his way into the protective cylinder.

There was Jake lying on the repair chair. Or what was left of him. His casing his almost been entirely pulled apart, he was even missing some endoskeleton pieces. His points were half pulled out, his faceplate, his legs, his body…

Andrew staggered over to him. His hands were shaking, and he couldn’t go much except react with terrified gasps every time he noticed a new detail.

“No… No, no, no, no, Jake!” He reached for him, but stopped, his hands hovering over his shoulders. Afraid to touch him, afraid to break him even further. Some of his parts not even connected but simply laying on the chair. “Oh Jake, no, no. No, no, please, this can’t be hAppENinnng…”

Jake’s head moved slightly on the chair.

“Jake?!” Andrew grabbed the chair and leaned in over him. He could see his eye flickering. “I-I’m here! Jake, please, can you hear me? Give me a sign, I need to know-!”

He cut off when Jake’s voice box began to static and hum. Andrew could see the speaker; it was barely hanging on inside of his shattered casing. He wanted to tear out his own wires at the sight and rid himself of the deep ache.

“-NNnnd…” Jake’s hazy voice came through. “Annnnddddrrrr…”

“I’m here! I’m here, I’m here, I’ve got you,” Andrew assured him. He took the plunge and laid his hand on his more intact shoulder. Jake didn’t wince in pain, so he didn’t remove it.

It was then that his despair flipped and he felt bubbling white-hot rage growing inside of him. He kept his grip on Jake soft and clawed the chair with his other hand.

“Who did this? Who- Who did this to you?” he demanded.

But Jake’s answer was not a name. It was,

“I-I’m… s-rrrry.”

“No, no, don’t be sorry! Just- Just tell me who did this!” Andrew insisted. Jake gave a pitiful and weak whine. “Jake, please.”

“Andy… He did it. He got the Staff Bots to do it.”

It took a second for him to process it, then the weight of it crashed down all at once.

Andrew let out a wail and dropped his head on the edge of the chair beside Jake’s battered body. His fingers clawing into its frame to not risk hurting Jake any further.

Because he had already caused him enough pain.

Because this was all his fault.

And there was nothing he could do about it.

…

Jake all but yanked Andrew straight off the conveyor in one big heave. Thinking he was still holding on; he used a little too much strength and the two tumbled back and onto the floor amongst some scrap and refuse. They sat up quickly- Andrew did and Jake did to stop Andrew if he was going to climb back up on the conveyor, but he didn’t. He just sat there and watched as the endo slid in the rest of the way and was gone.

They sat there on the floor helplessly as their old body was consumed by hungry flames and writhing wires.

There was a long, shocked silence. Jake was still reeling. Now that Andrew was safe, he could truly feel the loss of their body. He heard a jingle and looked to Andrew in time to watch him pull his legs up to his chest.

“Andrew…”

With a heaving sob, Andrew began to weep into his starry patterned pants. Now away from the furnace his colors turned to Moon’s own, but the persona was long gone. It was just him.

Jake moved over to kneel beside him and put his arms around him in a secure hug. Rubbing his back soothingly as he pulled Andrew to his chest.

He was surprised how much this hurt. Not just out of empathy, but the actual loss. He felt it too.

“It’s okay, Andrew,” Jake assured. His voice sounded choked up, heavy with tears he didn’t have. “It-It’ll be okay. It’s just a body. That’s all.”

Andrew still wept and soon Jake joined him in soft, dry sobs. At which point Andrew threw his arms around him and they clung to each other just as tightly as if they were still in one body.

They had gotten through worse. They would get through this.

Together.

…

..

.

..

…

Both Jake and Andrew were awoken by sudden ear-splitting screaming. They scrambled upright awkwardly. It didn’t matter how many years they had been using this body in tandem, there was no waking up to that without a little awkwardness.

“Do you hear that?!” Jake asked.

“Am I deaf?!” Andrew answered.

It was hard not to hear it. The screaming was coming from nearby. Frenzied screaming, like someone was getting torn apart, shrieking and wailing that never stopped. They pushed up off the floor, fumbling control of their shared body back and forth before both realizing where it was coming from.

The endo looked across the room. The screaming was coming from the speaker of the rabbit plush, from their friend.

Jake took control and dashed over to pick him up. “Bunny?! What’s wrong?”

Bunny’s body was burning to the touch.

“Why’s he so hot?!”

“He could be overheating,” Jake deduced.

“But he’s not ON. He’s not like an animatronic, he shouldn’t be heating up at all!”

Jake realized quickly that Andrew was right. They could barely hear each other over the screaming.

“Hey! Wake up!” Andrew shook the doll. “Bunny, it’s us! We’re here! Stop screaming!”

“Careful! He’s small, we could hurt him,” Jake warned.

“What do you think’s wrong with him?!”

“I… I don’t know.”

They didn’t have the means to repair him if he was broken, not really. He couldn’t stop screaming to explain what was wrong.

After a few moments of holding him, Jake took the initiative to sit down on the floor with their back to the shelves. Andrew assisting in getting them down there. They sat on the cold floor, far away from their blanket and toy nest, and held the rabbit doll cradled in their arms. They rocked him like a baby, and he screamed and burned up.

And then all of a sudden, the screaming stopped. Instead, there came gasping and choking noises from his speaker. Almost like he was gasping for breath or running a mile, and it ended with a shaky-

“Where am I? Where am I?” Bunny choked out.

“Thank goodness!” Jake gasped. He lifted and hugged the doll to them. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“What happened?” Bunny repeated.

“You woke us up screaming and you only just stopped,” Andrew clarified. He then gave a firmer, “What was that?”

“Oh.”

Bunny was quiet for a long few moments before forcing a strained chuckle.

“I guess I had a bad dream,” he said.

“That was a long-ass dream,” Andrew pointed out.

“Andrew, shh.”

“How long was I out?” Bunny asked.

“A few minutes? You started screaming a little under five minutes ago.”

“Oh…” Bunny sounded off. “Heh, sorry guys! I just, uh, felt like making a big scene for no reason. It’s all good. I’m cool.”

“You are quite literally burning up,” Andrew flatly remarked.

“That’s okay. We live in a freezer.”

There was a long, uncomfortable silence between the three. One that Jake eventually broke with a question.

“What was your nightmare about?”

There was another tense silence before Bunny answered.

“I was drowning in a lake.”

There was something so ominous about the answer that Jake couldn’t find it in him to press harder. He just coddled Bunny closer and the three of them stayed like that for the rest of the night.

…

..

.

Chapter 75

Chapter Summary

Sunny agrees to babysit Jeremy's orphans for the night, unaware that he might've just made himself a target. Meanwhile, Jake finds an escape of his own as he decides to sneak out of the daycare with Marionette and Jeremy.

“Are you sure you’re up to this?”

Maybe not but between getting stuck with his thoughts and having a distraction, Sunny would eagerly choose to throw himself back into caretaking and forget he existed. Especially since he was in for a treat tonight.

So, not even two days after the disaster that they weren’t going to talk about anymore, Foxy came by on Jeremy’s behalf and asked if Sunny would be up to watching his little group of animatronic children. Including the adorable Minireenas.

Freddy had noticed that something was off with Sunny that night. He had even asked, but Sunny didn’t want to open up about what was bothering him. He didn’t want to think about it.

But Sunny had eagerly agreed and assured Foxy to pass on the news to Jeremy. Tonight was the night and any minute now Jeremy would be coming in with his slew of little mechanic tots. He was ready.

“Sure am!” Sunny said with that confidence he only had when covering.

Jake didn’t press. He knew that they needed this tonight. The last few days- the last few quiet nights- had been practically unbearable. It was good to see Sunny a little perked up, even if some of it was acting.

Then the moment arrived. Marionette entered the daycare in an elegant purple and red coat and helped lead along a large laundry cart that Jeremy and Natalie were pushing from the back. Sunny took some amusement seeing that the blond had dropped most pretenses and was now actively assist in smuggling in their playmates. They wheeled it up as close as they could to the slide.

“Alright. If you need anything, just buzz me,” Natalie affirmed, tapping on the radio on her belt. She then hurried off back to the lobby before anyone could wander up and catch her in the act.

Jeremy waved after her while Marionette gave a chime of farewell before pulling out the first of Jeremy orphans- a small rabbit animatronic who stuck his arms and legs out while being lifted.

Just the sight of the little guy filled Sunny with reignited excitement, and he plunged into the ball pit. As he did, Jake stepped out onto the balcony to take his place, noticing the arrival of the others.

“Hey, guys!” he called with a wave.

“Hey!” Jeremy returned with a wave as well.

“Good evening!” Marionette called back. He came over to the wall to see him better, still toting Plushtrap cradled in his arms. “Thank you for having us.”

“No problem. Cool jacket!”

“Thank you!”  Marionette chimed with delight.

Plushtrap fussily patted his arm and pointed towards the slide. His teeth chattering with anticipation.

“Oh, alright, alright,” Marionette said with a tinkling chuckle. He then leaned down and set Plushtrap carefully into the slide. “Brace yourself. There’s a little drop into the ball pit,” he forewarned.

Plushtrap nodded, and Marionette gave him a gentle push, sending him down the colorful slide.

The little rabbit was fully expecting to plop down into a ball pit. He was not expecting to drop into a large pair of hands. Or be swooped up in front of a wide grinning sun-shaped face.

“Helllooo! What’s your name, lil guy?” Sunny asked cheerfully.

Plushtrap’s teeth began to chatter as he stared up wide-eyed.

“Careful! Careful! He bites when he’s nervous!” Jeremy called down.

“Oh, no worries! So do a lot of my Sunflowers, eheheh!” Sunny chittered as he reached to set Plushtrap down over the low wall. “Off you go! But not too far,” he said and patted his ears.

“Who’s next?” Marionette asked. Button gave a little wave. “Very good. Both of you?”

“Yes. Me too,” Bow agreed.

He scooped up the Bidybabs from the cart and carried them to the slide. They weren’t wearing their dresses today as to not have them get in the way, and the lack of clothing caused them to shoot down the slide frictionless.

Sunny caught Button and got cutoff mid-greeting to catch the second, holding one in each hand.

“Oh, HI! What’s your names, lil cuties?” he greeted excitedly, already gushing on how small and doll-like they looked.

“I’m Button and that’s Bow,” Button said. She sounded a little wary.

“You’re funny looking,” Bow said. She sound confused but curious.

“That’s because I’m a clown!” he chirped, then set them down alongside Plushtrap.

Jeremy gathered up the Minireenas himself to send them down. All of them, especially Lilium, were eager to go.

“Mike didn’t feel like coming today?” Jake called, directed to Marionette.

“Not tonight! Mike’s at home resting… Err, hopefully,” Marionette explained. “He had a big day today running errands.”

…

“You know, you’d think with our own printed napkins that we wouldn’t go through paper towels this fast,” Mike remarked as he dumped a large twelve pack of paper towels into the shopping cart.

“You think that’s bad? This has got to be a mistake,” Fritz said. He was leaning on the cart handle and looking at the shopping list Tabitha scribbled up for them. “Seventeen bottles of ketchup.”

“What’s she doing, bathing in it?” Mike asked flatly.

“Maybe. I just don’t understand why she didn’t make it an even twenty.”

“I guess it’s cheaper than bathing in blood to get that nice youthful skin. Alright, where to next?” Mike said, rubbing his hands together in lukewarm anticipation.

“The toilet cleaning stuff should be on this aisle somewhere,” Fritz said looking around. Mike grimaced a little at the thought. “That spray stuff’s not cutting it. We’re going to have to get in there with something strong. So, grab some gloves too.”

“Good thinking. I don’t want to go anywhere near that toilet on the end after last week.” He almost shuddered at the thought. “I think Carlton’s been avoiding it too because there’s still skids all over it. On the walls-.”

“I don’t want to think about that when we’re going to be getting our hands in it.”

“Do you want to think about how we’re going to have to clean under arcade machines we haven’t moved in about a year?”

“I don’t want to think about that either.”

…

“You’re not going down the slide, right?” Jeremy asked Max.

“Buddy, if you send me down that slide, I’m going to kill that Sun,” Max forewarned.

Jeremy didn’t know if he meant with his weight flying down the slide or just in general, so he shrugged and left it at that.

“BB?”

Balloon Boy gave a nondescript laugh.

“…I’m taking that as a no unless you tell me elsewise,” Jeremy warned him. He then carried the Minireenas over and helped them down.

Sunny caught them one at a time, easily collecting them in his arms- save Forget-Me-Not who freed herself immediately and dove off into the ball pit. Sunny tried to feel around for her with no success.

“Oh well!” he shrugged off. He looked to the Minireenas he had caught. “Hello again, my little friends!” he greeted.

Daisy gave a giggle and wave while Rose just giggled, and Lilium tilted her head.

Oh, we’re going to have so much fun tonight!” Sunny promised. He carried them to solid ground.

“That’s all of them! I’m heading around to the doors!” Jeremy called past the wall.

“Okey-dokey!”

Jeremy and Marionette led the cart the rest of the way to the stairs. After some considering, they decided to bring the cart down. Jeremy and Marionette both moving to the top to keep it balanced and from tipping down them.

Once they were at the doors, Marionette teleported inside and pressed the button to release the doors before pushing one open and holding it for Jeremy to push the cart inside. It became significantly more difficult once they got onto the padded flooring, but he managed to get it inside the doorway with a little effort.

Sunny skipped up to them as Jeremy was lifting Max out of the cart. He had the Bidybabs in one arm, Plushtrap in the other, and the Minireenas hanging off him. Dasy on his shoulder, Rose and Lilium climbing up his sides, and Forget-Me-Not unseen but having climbed back aboard and was currently hanging from and swinging around on his back hoop.

Sunny spotted Max and his points spun. “Oh ho! Well, hello there!”

“Yo. What’s up, Sun Man? Hahaha,” Max replied. His voice being a dead giveaway showing that he wasn’t even pretending to be a little kid, his delivery assuring that he wouldn’t appreciate being treated like one.

Sunny caught on quick. “Oh, umm, not much more than the ceiling! I’m Sunnydrop, or Sunny, or Sun. Buuut I don’t mind Sun Man neither. Nice to meet you, Mister…?”

“I’m Max,” Max introduced. His voice lightening up a little more. “Consider me that dad who sits on a bench watching his kids run around a playground to make sure the boogeyman doesn’t grab one. I’m an onlooker.”

“Oh, o-okay! Well, I’ll try to keep you entertained too! I’m sure I can scare up something a little more age appropriate… do you like magazines? I could scare up a magazine in a jiffy!”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Great!”

Marionette came up to Sunny’s side and waited patiently until he looked to him before speaking.

“I should warn you-.”

“I LOVE the jacket,” Sunny interjected to gush. He reached out to feel the material of the sleeve. “Oh wow, it’s high-quality too! I saw such bright colors and thought it’d be costume flimsy.”

“Thank you! It was a birthday gift from Mike, Foxy, and all my dear friends!” Marionette gushed. He did a little turn to show it off, especially the gift box patch on the back. “If I wasn’t so worried I’d ruin it, I’d never take it off!”

“I’ve got to get on the gift list. My birthday’s, eh… October?... Gosh, I can’t remember.” Sunny gave a blank stare for a moment before snapping out of it with a shake of his head, spinning his spins. “But warn me about what?”

“Oh! Yes, see Balloon Boy is going to try and put you through the wringer tonight. He’s the one that looks like a short Pinocchio, wooden puppet sort of thing. You didn’t see him get out, but I doubt he’s still in the basket.”

Jeremy checked in the laundry cart. Unsurprisingly, Balloon Boy was long gone.

“Don’t let his childish laughter fool you, BB is our age in spirit, but he gets up to plenty of childish mischief. You’ll have to keep an eye out for him,” Marionette forewarned.

And while this WAS a true warning, Balloon Boy himself was the one who cooked up the idea of the Puppet directly warning the Sun. After Marionette expressed concern about him being too hard on a caretaker who was ‘actin’ a little extra neurotic’- Foxy’s words, not his- Balloon Boy gave him the enthusiastic go ahead to give Sun a head’s up.

But Sunny simply waved it off. “I’m sure he’s no too much to handle!” he said, ignoring the light chime of Marionette’s amusement. “I handle plenty of fussy faces. If I can handle a rulebreaker like Gregory, I can handle him!”

“How’s Gregory doing anyway?” Jeremy asked.

“Good! He’s spending some one-on-one time with Freddy tonight. A little bonding time without little ol’ me in the way.”

That was the truth, but Sun was purposefully leaving out details.

Gregory had noticed that Sunny was acting weird. Since ‘Moon’ was a better actor, he was the one who informed Gregory that ‘Sun’ was upset because the technicians invaded their room. Gregory, who by now realized there was little separation in personas, had been rather sympathetic. He didn’t know what it was like to be an animatronic babysitter, but he DID know what it was like to have some authority figure barge in and mess up their stuff- not Freddy. Freddy wasn’t an authority figure, he was like a dad.

“That’s good! Good time for it too, since Foxy couldn’t make it,” Jeremy said.

For Foxy’s sake he decided to leave out the part about him being so worn out that he passed out behind his curtain, and nobody woke him up after closing. He knew Jeremy was coming tonight- he was intending on coming too, downright insisting upon it- but he was just too exhausted for his own good. Just like with Mike, pulling day and ‘night’ shifts were just starting to run him down. It just took longer for Foxy to show it.

“Which is why I came instead. Jeremy and I don’t get enough time to hang,” Marionette said.

Sunny took notice of Marionette’s lingering smile. It looked perhaps a little too coy, like he knew something- and since it had been around since he blew off Balloon Boy, it didn’t bode well.

“Well, good! I hope you two have fun with Beelora. Just know that I have everything under control! Trust me, I do this for a living. I was built for this! And little ones who don’t need naptime? That’s perfect!” Sunny overcompensated. “Just keep an eye out for any rabbits. A little birdie told me that both of you’ve had some run-ins with her. And nobody wants that, no Sir!”

“We will be extra careful!” Marionette assured.

“And if we’re not, I’ve got my secret weapon,” Jeremy added. He patted the back of his belt. “Pepper spray. Mask or not, this’ll knock you on your butt faster than a baseball bat.”

“Just be careful where you spray that! Anywhere in the daycare and I’ll have to clean it up myself,” Sunny forewarned.

“Then we’ll leave you to it.”

“Be good, Guys. Go easy on him,” Jeremy said. He reached out to pat as many heads as he could reach. “And try to stay in the daycare. This place is huge, you can get lost really easily.”

“You hear him, kids. If you step out of line, you’re getting the pepper spray, hahaha,” Max joked.

“No, worse. Then I’ll have to break out the airhorn, and then you’ll have to watch Dad get in a boxing match with Monty Gator.”

“Oh ho, you could just leave that to Moon,” Sunny said slyly. “But don’t worry! I’ll keep a close watch on ‘em all.”

Jeremy and Marionette finally stepped back out the heavy door only to be approached by none other than Nanny Bot. Much to their surprise, the typically silent Staff Bot spoke up.

“Why don’t you come by the theater? I’ve got something to show you,” Jake said through Nanny Bot’s speaker.

Marionette tilted his head and eagerly followed, with Jeremy waving through the crack of the door one last time- Sunny waving back- before following the Puppet and Staff Bot with his hands in his pockets.

They met up with Jake outside the open poster door at the top of the theater stairs. He waved at them as they came over.

“I think I’ve got something that’ll go with that coat. Come on, we’re going to the basement,” he said.

Jake then led them down the stairs into the theater and behind the stage, then down more stairs into the oversized basement. He led them back into a sectioned off area filled with makeup mirrors and curtained dressing rooms. He let them to the back of it and to yet another laundry cart overflowing with clothing and costumes lazily tossed in.

“These are the theater costumes,” Jake introduced, waving an arm back towards some clothing hanging on a rack. Then he patted the edge of the laundry cart. “And THESE are the costumes that are probably going to be replaced soon.”

Jake dug into the open cart only to not find what he was looking for. He looked around in confusion before giving am ‘Ah ha!’ and stepping into an open changing room. He then brought out a costume top hat. One fit for a human to wear that was worn on the brim and a little at the top, even so much as having some of the fabric scuffed.

“This is the hat they used for the Freddy the Frostbear Christmas in July show. It’s just a little roughed up, a hand-me-down,” Jake explained.

He looked over it in his hands before holding the hat up above his head.

“Happy Birth-day!” he said in a fake-Freddy voice. He then spun the hat around and handed it to Marionette. “It’s yours!”

Marionette was surprised by the offer. “You’re sure it won’t be missed?” he asked, hesitant to accept the hat.

“I’m sure it’s going to get replaced by the other top hat, so I don’t think it’ll be missed. It’ll save it getting thrown away,” Jake insisted.

Reassured, Marionette took the hat into his hands with a happy trill. “Well, thank you! This will go perfect with my coat- after a little refurbishment, of course.”

“Definitely. Sorry it’s a little beat up.”

“No, no, it’s perfect! I love a good project to work on,” Marionette assured. He was already thinking up ideas for how he could make it look. He gave Jake a wide, appreciative smile. “It really is. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome!” Jake replied. His voice brightening up. “And again, we’ve got another gift but when Sunny’s ready. He’ll probably be distracted for a while.”

“He’s going to have his hands full for a while,” Jeremy said almost apologetically. While he didn’t doubt Sunny’s capability with children, he could tell that he wasn’t prepared for what he was getting into. Especially with Balloon Boy acting up. Seeing Jake looking, he gave him a smile and a thumbs up. “They’re good kids. Err, teens.”

“I’ll help keep an eye on them,” Jake promised.

“You could…” Marionette drew out. He popped the hat on his head and swooped in with his arms behind his back, dropping down onto his legs beside Jake. “Or you could come with us. We’re just heading to the West Arcade so Jake can work towards winning his Babee and to visit Beelora. We would be happy to have company!”

“…Well…”

Jake tapped his hands on his control panel, which he had hanging at his side from a strap around his shoulder. He looked back towards the stairs, though could only barely see them over the wall of the changing area. Not that he was really looking at them but more so looking somewhere while he no-doubt thought about how Sunny would react.

“You don’t have to, but we’re not going to be taking any risks tonight. We don’t want to stir anything up,” Jeremy assured. “You could say we don’t want to poke the bees’ nest.”

“Except we’re going to see the queen bee, so there may be some minor stirring,” Marionette chimed in.

“But at the first sign of a white rabbit, we’re out of there. A wise man once said you don’t have to run faster than your enemies, you just have to run faster than your friends.”

“It was Mike,” Marionette reminded him.

“…Yeah, it probably was Mike,” Jeremy agreed. “Couldn’t have been Foxy. He only runs at, not away.”

“That’s how he lost his eye, you know,” Marionette joked to Jake. Jake turned back to him, and he gave him a kindly smile. “But like Jeremy said, you don’t have to. Not if it’s not a good time.”

“Actually… it would probably be a great time. Yeah, I’ll go with you. Sunny’s going to be busy anyway, so… why not?” Jake gave an almost nervous little chuckle. “Why not?”

He didn’t exactly sound confident. Jeremy stole a look at Marionette, but the Puppet only acknowledged the obvious hesitation with encouragement.

“Excellent! Let’s be off!”

“Sure! But, uh…” Jake’s voice fell to nearly a squeak. “…Don’t tell Sunny.”

And even though Marionette’s smile briefly faltered, and even though he and Jeremy noticed the red flags in the request, they didn’t.

Meanwhile, Sunny was totally distracted with his new charges.

“Okay, new friends! What would you like to do first? I have crafts and puzzles, toys of all kinds, puppets- Oh! I could give you all a puppet show. I’ve been working on a new one!”

Daisy clasped her hands together and gave a delighted nod. Rose then nodded too, but Lilium shook her head and pointed to Plushtrap, who eagerly pointed at the play structures.

“You wanna go play in the fun tunnels, little guy? We can do that! We can do a puppet show too! Oh, we have the whole night to do all sorts of fun things!” Sunny gushed, bouncing on his heels.

“Laying it on a little thick there, Sun Man,” Max remarked.

Daisy gave him a scolding, “Uh!” and shook her hand at him.

“Can we have candy?” Button asked.

“Wait, you guys can eat?” Sunny asked excitedly.

“…Well…” Button said.

“We can chew…” Bow finished.

“That’s fas-tastic! We can have snacktime! We can even have a tea party!”

Both Button and Bow gasped.

“I love tea parties,” Bow said.

“Me too. And with candy,” Button agreed.

“Then a tea party it is!”

When suddenly something tapped on one of his points. He carefully turned to look and watched a Minireena climb out from under his shoulder. It was Forget-Me-Not, and she gave an insistent point towards Plushtrap. Daisy and Rose then both nodded along with her.

“They’re saying we should go in the tunnels,” Bow translated. Plushtrap’s teeth chattered in excitement.

“Then we can go play in the fun tunnels first! Then a puppet show, then a tea party, or then a puppet show during a tea party, or a tea party during a puppet show- Oh, this is going to be so much fun! Let’s go!”

Sunny eagerly carried the lot over to the closest entrance and started to let them inside. All while Max watched like a hawk.

This guy was a little too good to be true. At least, he acted too in-character for it to be real. There was a guy underneath that suit and Max would’ve much preferred to be familiar with him than this act on the outside. Foxy had said he was some kid from the old diner- some kid who threw a piece of pizza at Marion- but the question was, which one?

He could figure it out later. He didn’t really feel like going for it yet.

He heard a mischievous laugh from the edge of the desk and looked over to see Balloon Boy sliding out from behind it, legs bent like a crab’s, already looking like a menace. Too bad Sunny wasn’t around to see it.

“We’re still going to have a little fun with him, right?” he asked. “Foxy said he was one of the old bullies?”

“Something like that.”

Balloon Boy gave a deviously deep laugh. “Oh, how the mighty have fallen. You in?”

“Eh, count me out. He seems a little unhinged,” Max dismissed. He rolled his eyes over towards Balloon Boy. “But don’t let me stop you! Hahaha!”

He certainly wouldn’t. Sun Man wouldn’t know what hit him.

He wouldn’t know that Jake was sneaking out either. Well, it wasn’t so much sneaking than him, Marionette, and Jeremy heading out without drawing any attention to themselves. Jake keeping close to the wall to lessen his chances of being spotted.

It was such a rush to sneak away without Andrew with him. Not that he didn’t like spending so much time with him, but it was freeing to be able to go out on his own. Even when he wasn’t exactly alone.

It wasn’t until they had made it past the security door out of the daycare that he realized he had made it. He was finally able to ease up- well, only about getting caught by Sunny. He had to be very much on guard out here.

“You know, I’m glad they leave the lights and music on here and night, but don’t they have a problem with the electricity bill? You’d think they’d turn some of this off. Not that I’m complaining. This place isn’t nearly as family-friendly with the lights off,” Jeremy remarked.

“It’s the neon. It gives off a false sense of security,” Marionette added.

“You’re joking, but yeah, it really does. It makes the place still seem open. Like, that hallway? Spooky.” Jeremy pointed down towards the lobby. “But the atrium looks like a toned-down Vegas.”

“True. Now I much prefer the classic Freddy aesthetic, but… there is something refreshing about how lit up it all is. Much warmer and inviting… Oh!” Marionette gave an excited chime and hooked an arm around Jeremy’s shoulders. “If we get time, I must take you up to see the bounce park. It’s incredible!” he said, pointing up. Jeremy’s brows raised in interest.

“So, how long have you two known each other? Since you saw the same Freddy’s,” Jake guessed, not aware that his guess was correct.

“Years! As a matter of fact, I knew Jeremy for quite some time before I met Mike, though we weren’t friends until after we met again a few years ago,” Marionette explained. He pulled Jeremy into a one-armed hug as he explained, chiming happily at Jeremy’s light chuckle. “He was the security guard hired to watch me and I thought he was the murderer and tried to kill him,” he explained.

“It was the uniform. We wore these super tacky purple uniforms. Customers and kids would take swings at us any chance they could too,” Jeremy played along.

“…What’s scary is that I can’t tell if you’re joking or not, because you kind of sound like there’s a kernel of truth in that,” Jake pointed out semi-awkwardly.

“It’s the whole cob. Trust me, Freddy’s used to look a lot better with the lights off,” Marionette said with a playful laugh.

“It still does. You’ve seen our bedroom.”

Marionette laughed and Jeremy gave a, “It’s no worse than mine.”

Jake could’ve very well left it like that without any issue. Nobody was prying for answers and he didn’t need to air any grievances, and yet he was tempted to. He found himself volunteering information.

“Sunny and I’ve been together for a long while. It’s got to be ten… more than ten years now!” he said.

“That’s incredible. It’s fortunate you two were able to stay together,” Marionette said. Maybe Jake was imagining it, but he almost sounded relieved.

“It was. We practically grew up together. I don’t know what we would’ve done if we didn’t have each other to lean on,” Jake explained. He paused a moment before taking the plunge. “So, uh you might’ve not noticed that something’s off yet, but…” Marionette looked to him with a slight head tilt. “I shouldn’t really be talking behind Sunny’s back, but he’s… we’ve been having a rough time.”

“Did something happen?” Marionette asked worriedly. Jeremy also got a look of concern. Jake nodded.

“A couple of days ago some technicians came in to work on the power and they found our old body, the endoskeleton we used to share. They, uh… took it down to the furnace.”

Marionette stopped as a startled look struck his mask. The furnace.

Jake was still walking and talking. “And we tried to get to it in time, but we couldn’t. We just stood there and watched it burn.”

“That’s horrible, Jake,” Jeremy sympathized. A little exasperation edged into his voice, “I don’t understand. Why would they just burn it?”

“Theeey tend to burn anything with a risk attached to it. One of the technicians recognized bringing us- bringing it in and doesn’t really like Sunny anyways, so… That kind of sealed it for them.”

This answer made sense but was understandably unsatisfying.

While Jeremy really did feel for Jake and Sunny, his inward outrage was less at their loss and more at the now very likely possibility that Fazbear Entertainment could and would just burn any ‘broken’ bot they found lying around. And since most animatronics tended to play dead when confronted by more than one person…

Jeremy glanced at Marionette and his horrified look spoke volumes as did his silence. Jeremy spoke for them both, “I’m really sorry.”

“Thanks… but don’t worry about me! It’s just a body,” Jake assured.

That snapped Marionette out of his silence.

“It’s not just a body, it’s a part of you! You become close with a body, not just being inside of it but bonding with it,” he sympathized. His voice softened, “It’s still a loss. I’m sorry you two had to go through that, and to be so close-… be so close to it when it happened.”

Jake seemed a little surprised by this insistence. He let his own emotions slip through.

“Yeah… Yeah, it really was. I still have the mask, but it’s… It’s weird to lose it. It’s worse that it had to happen like that too. And to know that we won’t have it as backup anymore,” he said.

Marionette moved in and held his arms out, offering a hug. Jake moved his control panel to his sign and returned the gesture, and Marionette moved in and pulled him into a comforting embrace. He hugged back with a soft sigh. He had been trying to stay strong for Sunny so he wouldn’t have to carry as much of the emotional baggage, so it felt good to get that assurance without having to feel the secondhand guilt of putting it on Sun.

The Puppet’s arms stretched far enough around Jake that he was actually able to stealthily beckon Jeremy over with his hand. The blond shrugged to himself and came over to join in.

The three separated after a short while and then continued into the atrium.

Jake fell back and allowed Marionette to enter the atrium and make sure that it was empty.

“The coast is clear, come along,” he said. Which Jake and Jeremy did, catching up and following.

It was at this time that Jeremy asked a question that had been on his mind for a few minutes. “Hey, how hard is it to switch bodies?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure. I’ve never done it,” Marionette admitted.

“Wait, really?” Jake asked in surprise. “You? That’s crazy! I would’ve thought you’d have gone through at least one or two by now.”

“Nope! This is the same body I was first bonded to. I was pulled out of it once, nearly, but I clung to it and reattached myself. But I haven’t done it myself and really haven’t heard of doing it, save through accidents,” he explained.

Accidents such as the peculiar creation of Ennard and whatever happened to the Molten animatronics.

“Huh… Well, Taggart was able to do it by attaching a part of our current body to the new one and then burning the old one. At least, I’m pretty sure that’s how he attached us to the endo, since he took the mask off my doll, the one I was in, and stuck it on the endo and that’s how I connected to it. Our friend was sort of just able to grab on and move us.”

There were two strangers mentioned there that Marionette was curious about. He made a choice on which to address first, the much more interesting one.

“You haven’t told us much about your friend.”

Jake’s voice betrayed audible nervousness. “He, uh, he was something. He was in a doll too, but Taggart must’ve never noticed he was haunted. He just left him up on a shelf until we met and escaped together. He wasn’t able to move on his own, but he was sort of the brains of the operation.”

But hearing about a living talking doll guiding them around piqued the Puppet’s interest, and perhaps even his suspicion.

“A talking doll… Wait, does he mean Goldie? Henry?... No, what am I saying. It sounds like him, but it wasn’t him,” Marionette thought. “How peculiar. Please, tell me more.”

“There’s not much more to tell. He was a little, uh… Bonnie, I think. A Bonnie doll.”

“Oh! What model?” Marionette asked, his inner toy collector coming out.

Jake’s inner technician, former toy collector met him halfway. “About this big, with a bowtie and round cheeks. Kind of heavy, might’ve had something mechanical in it, but it didn’t work anymore. Ever see one?”

“Well, it could either be a personal Freddy Friend, such as Plushtrap, or perhaps even a model like Charlie’s. Or even an original from Fredbear’s Family Diner… I would have to see it for myself.”

“Right, well, uh… I’ll keep you posted,” Jake trailed off awkwardly.

“Maybe you could take a look at Plushtrap when we get back to the daycare? See if they’re the same model?” Marionette gently requested.

“Oh yeah. Sure.”

The two stepped into the elevator by the escalators, the one closer to the West Arcade. Jeremy came in behind them and was then standing in front of them by the doors as they rode up.

“It must be easier to possess toys. I mean, that’s not an educated guess, but look at my little group. They’re technically animatronics but they’re pretty much just advanced toys… Don’t tell them I said that,” Jeremy tacked on.

“Well, if you think about it, animatronics in general are pretty much oversized toys. If you take the robotics aspect out. And hey, people were possessing animatronics back before they had all these new-fangled systems… Wow, that made me sound old,” Jake lamented. Marionette laughed a little at that.

“And here’s to angling for another one,” Jeremy said with a sigh. “Only a couple hundred more hive coins to go.”

“You’ve got this,” Jake said with a thumbs up. Alas, he knew deep in his heart that Jeremy was not walking out of here with a Babee tonight.

The doors dinged and opened, and Jeremy led the way out. Leading the way towards the West Arcade entrance. Jake got up his control panel and began priming to hook into the Staff Bot guarding the entrance doors.

“Where is your friend now?”

Jake’s hand hesitated over the control panel.

The question landed heavily, even though Marionette’s tone was filled with curiosity and concern. It wasn’t intrusive, yet his response was almost like it was.

“He’s… out there somewhere,” Jake answered vaguely.

“Somewhere?”

“…He’s… Don’t go looking for him, but…” Jake paused like taking a breath and turned around to face the Puppet head on. “He’s down, uh… He’s out there somewhere.”

“I see…” Marionette voice lowered with further concern. “Should we go look for him?”

“NO!”

The Puppet recoiled and Jeremy jumped at the sudden outburst. Jake put his hand up apologetically, trying to mend his mistake.

“Sorry, I’m just a little on edge.

“No, no. Don’t be sorry,” Marionette assured.

“Well, I am. Just… Just trust me on this. He won’t want to be found.”

“Alright.”

And with that it was dropped, for the most part. Marionette didn’t ask any further questions and reassured Jake with a pat on the back before leading him inside with an arm around him- once Jake got the Staff Bot to move.

Yet that reaction and all he had said about his friend lingered in the back of Marionette’s mind.

Once inside the West Arcade, Jeremy and Marionette stopped in to say hello to the DJ, only to find him fast asleep on his stage. His head resting on his crossed arms and bobbing softly. It was surprisingly cute for a machine so massive.

They then continued to the Hive Arcade, where Jake stopped before they arrived.

“I’m just going to stay out here if that’s alright. Better to be safe than sorry!” he said.

“Do you want some tokens? We’ve got extra?”

“No, I’m good. I can hack the machines and get free plays. I’m still kind of an employee, so it’s not really… Yeah.” Jake decided just to let it trail off there.

“Alright. We’ll meet back up in a little while. Oh, and maybe then we can head up to the bounce park!” Marionette chimed.

“Sounds good,” Jake agreed. He sounded happy at least, and their last glimpse of him before heading inside was him looking around for an arcade game to play.

Once they were in and the door was shut, Marionette murmured to Jeremy, “That was probably for the best. I’m going to be asking Beelora a few questions. After our conversation, it might’ve made Jake uncomfortable.”

“Gotcha,” Jeremy agreed with a nod.

They had already discussed this before they came. Jeremy’s job was to keep things casual and fill in any gaps if it turned out he did know Beelora. He’d leave the rest to Marionette, like he had done with Jake.

They found Beelora at her stage and she straightened to greet them only to gasp and place a delicate hand on her cheek.

“That is a beautiful jacket!” she gushed.

“Why, thank you!” Marionette did a little spin.

She gasped again. “And the embroidery on the back! Oh, somebody loves you.”

“Somebody does,~” he agreed with a trill.

“The hat though…” Beelora lamented. “…It… It goes well! It just doesn’t match…”

Which was a nice way of saying that the hat looked like it had come off a scarecrow.

“It was a gift too. I’m going to patch it up myself.”

“Oh, okay! I’m sure it will look lovely once you’re done.” She eagerly slid down the spiral track and right up in front of Jeremy and Marionette. “I was supposed to have a coat to, you know. Before they finalized the Beelora design, they made a few drafts of a design with a big, fluffy golden coat, but it didn’t make it to the end of development. It’s a shame though. I think it would’ve looked nice.”

Beelora’s casual mention of herself and Beelora the character as separate entities suddenly made this whole broaching the human subject a lot less daunting. But Marionette still waited until the appropriate time to do so.

“So, Jeremy, are you ready to spin?” Beelora asked with a little spin.

“Sure am! I’m ready to bring this Babee home,” he agreed with a confidence that didn’t reflect his belief that he probably wasn’t getting even close to winning one today.

“Beeeautiful! You’re going to have good luck today. I can just feel it!” Beelora insisted. She then slid down the track beside him, beckoning him along with a graceful wave of her hand. “I’ll show you which machines haven’t paid out today. They’re your ticket to big winnings! Just keep with it and don’t lose hope. Even the smallest victory is still a step in the right direction.”

“It’s another coin in the piggy bank,” Jeremy added.

“That too!” Beelora agreed. Her wings clicking as they fluttered on her back.

She waited at his side until he decided on a machine- one of the coin pushers that had three Hive Coins moved about halfway down- and then began to cheer him on.

Marionette let things settle for a few minutes before speaking up.

“Beelora, can I ask you for a favor? If it makes you uncomfortable at all then it’s no problem, forget I even asked,” he requested.

“It’s no problem at all! Whatever you need, I would bee happy to agree!” Beelora cheerfully replied.

“You don’t know what the favor is yet,” the Puppet playfully pointed out. “I was wondering if I could look into your eyes?”

“My… eyes?” Beelora asked in quiet confusion.

“The long and short of it is that I have this quirk where I can look into the eyes of another animatronic and see their liveliness. I was wondering if I could check yours.”

“You can do that? Well… Well, sure you can! I don’t see any problem with it… Oh! I don’t see any problem with it,” Beelora emphasized. She gave a tiny almost nervous chuckle and leaned forward; her hands folded at her front. She then opened her eyes. Her sunshade like eyelids raising to reveal the glowing mauve eyes underneath. “It won’t hurt, will it? They’re a little sensitive.”

“It shouldn’t. Though I have lights in my eyes, so tell me if it does and I’ll stop.” Marionette lifted his hand towards her cheek. “Can I touch you here?”

“You can touch me anywhere,” Beelora replied. She then gave a downright panicked sort of flustered noise. “I-I mean-! That did not mean to come out like that!”

Marionette gave a friendly chuckling chime. “I know, don’t worry. And I will just be touching your cheek and chin to hold you steady.”

“Okay.”

He gently held her face and looked deeply into her eyes. His own pupils illuminating as he searched them for something. For more than just movement, he saw that plenty, but some sort of glimmer of life inside of them. A soul staring back.

Maybe he was imagining it because he knew about her déjà vu moment with Jeremy, but he was sure he saw something there. Even if he couldn’t put his finger on what he saw that said she was alive.

All the while she was practically buzzing as she stared back. This was very strange, but the physical touch, the closeness- if only he wasn’t already taken. He might’ve not been her usual rugged type, but she couldn’t deny a soft touch and a soothing voice. Even if it was for a short while.

She was snapped out of it as Marionette drew back.

“Thank you,” he said.

“You’re welcome,” she said. Her eyelids closing again. “Did you see what you were looking for…?”

“I did, and you passed with flying colors. But would it be alright if I asked you some questions? Again, if any make you uncomfortable then you don’t have to answer,” Marionette offered with a soft smile.

“Sure! Happy to oblige,” Beelora agreed again.

“Beelora, do you remember anything… before Beelora?”

Her eyes darted over towards Jeremy. Marionette took notice.

“Well… There is something,” Beelora quietly admitted. Her voice trailing off to a whisper. “But I don’t know if it means anything…”

“I’m sure it does if you remember it. What is it?”

“I think it was a dream. I’m sitting in a big bubble bath, and I hear this beeping noise and I try to turn my head, but there’s something bunched up right here and I can’t,” Beelora said. She gestured beside her neck. “…It’s very strange… I think- I wonder if it could’ve been from when I was downstairs with the endos. Maybe I was dreaming while I was being built?”

“That’s possible,” Marionette agreed. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Anything else?”

“I’m afraid that’s it. Except Jeremy, but I can’t even recall what I remember him from,” Beelora explained. “I’m sorry I can’t be more help.”

“You have been plenty help! Thank you,” Marionette assured her. He decided to end it there. “That will be all for now, but if you remember anything else then please tell me. I’m just trying to get a timeline of events for the Pizzaplex.”

“Then you should probably ask Chica. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think she might’ve been the first to have been, err, ‘awake’.”

“I may…” Marionette said pensively.

Which Chica would seem like the worst option due to her previous run-ins and willingness to turn on intruders, such as Charlie, she was the only animatronic who they knew for certain had been awake and aware before the Pizzaplex’s creation. Unless she had been fully deactivated for her upgrade and not reactivated until closer to release, she might’ve seen some of what was going on.

Marionette gave a little wave. “But that’s for another day! Again, thank you. And thank you for letting us in here. We’re all crossing our fingers for Jeremy to get this Babee.”

“I know he will! Maybe not today. Maybe not next time or the, umm… but I’m certain one of these days he will be taking a little one home with him,” Beelora assured.

With that, the two began to watch Jeremy playing again. Him having continued to work at dropping tokens in while listening to the conversation behind him. Marionette watched over his shoulders as the tokens slowly trickled down.

…Or he would’ve, except after about five minutes of watching coins edge forward, Marionette was finding it increasingly difficult to not want to nudge it along. He could very well give the smallest bump with his telekinesis and send a cascade of coins raining down, including the coveted Hive Coins. Except that he couldn’t. He couldn’t cheat; not because of programming, but out of a moral obligation. He wouldn’t want cheating in his pizzeria either.

Unless it was very clever cheating that took enough time and effort that it might warrant being commended. Marionette might’ve given a child that cunning a trinket for the attempt. He couldn’t offer the same leniency to himself.

“Jeremy, I’m going to go check on J-… DJ Music Man. If you too don’t mind,” Marionette said.

“Fine by me. I’m probably going to be here for a while,” Jeremy agreed.

“Please tell him I said hello! I haven’t seen him today,” Beelora requested. “In fact, if you could, tell him I’ll drop in for a visit later.”

“Can do!” Marionette agreed. With a short spin he disappeared.

Beelora stared at where he once stood. If her eyes had been open, she might’ve blinked in disbelief.

“I wish I could do that,” she murmured.

“Yeah. Same,” Jeremy chuckled.

She turned to him quickly, delighted by his reaction, and eagerly stood at his side and continued encouraging him as he continued to play.

In the meantime, Marionette did stop in with DJ Music Man. He was still asleep, so he made a mental note to return before they left to deliver the message. Then he went to seek out Jake. He found him playing an arcade game called Dinoshock not too far from the Hive Arcade entrance.

“Jake?” he said. Not wanting to surprise him by sneaking up behind him. Jake spared a look over his shoulder.

“Hey, Mari! I didn’t expect you back so fast.”

“Well, Jeremy will be buszzzy for a while and I’ll be too tempted to help him out if I stay and watch. I thought maybe you would like some company,” Marionette offered.

“Sounds good to me! Give me two seconds to die and then I can start us up on two player.”

“You don’t have to die on my account.”

“Trust me, I won’t.”

But it was a relief to Marionette to hear that Jake was back to seemingly high spirits. After a few minutes- a few seconds longer than Jake was expecting- his run ended. He used the control panel to bypass the request for tokens and got them started on a two-person game. It wasn’t long before they were somewhat immersed into it.

This was nice. It certainly made him feel better about making Jake so uncomfortable earlier, like he was making it up to him by showing him a good time. Or at least a better time than sitting out here alone.

But it also worked both ways, because the game was a fine distraction away from the thoughts that Marionette would prefer to put off for later. About mysterious doll friends and dreams that might’ve been memories.

Just like with Sunny, sometimes a band-aid solution worked best.

Chapter 76

Chapter Summary

Sun finds himself face-to-face with a terror unlike any he's ever known. Meanwhile, Marionette finds himself in a peculiar situation that might lead to something unexpected.

Chapter Notes

Sorry this chapter took so long! You've probably noticed that I was writing some The Amazing Digital Circus fics and I got a bit distracted in the process. XD Hope this is worth the wait!

The soft tapping throughout the tunnels and echoes of giggling tipped Sunny off to exactly where all his little charges. He eagerly pursued after them, smoothly crawling along the tunnels but moving slow enough to give them plenty of berth. Sure, they had a generous twenty second head start, but they were tiny, and tiny things got a little extra time. It was only fair.

He peeked out of the tunnel and caught sight of Plushtrap’s ears as he ran by on the level above. The giggles had been closer though, so he would let him go hide and continue searching for the smaller and speedier playmates. He climbed out of the tunnel fully before calling through the play structure.

“I’m gonna getcha!” Sunny called. This was rewarded with a nearby laugh. “Oh ho! Ready or not~!”

He darted after the voice and around a corner before down a slope. Hastily propelling himself with his turned around legs as he zipped though a passage and then down through another tunnel on the bottom floor of the structure. He was gaining on them. Any second not he would snatch one of them up and they would be switched to his side of the game.

He creeped up on the tunnel opening before popping out the other side, points springing, hands spread wide beside his face.

“Peek-a-boo!”

But what he found himself face to face with was not one of the little munchkins he had been chasing for the last while. It was someone he didn’t recognize at all, save that they vaguely looked like Max.

It was a puppet styled like a little boy with gangly limbs wearing molded-on black shorts and a blue and dark blue striped shirt and hat. It had a wide smile and large blue eyes and sat slumped against the opposite barred wall as though it had been waiting for him. Eyes and smile both trained on right where he was coming through.

Sunny tilted his head at it. It sort of looked like a dummy or a wooden doll. Maybe this was the Balloon Boy he heard so much about. He climbed out of the tunnel and turned his legs around so he could crouch on hands and knees.

“Oh, a new friend! Hello there!” he greeted cheerfully.

The animatronic boy gave a downright devious laugh back. It almost sounded like a recording more than a laugh.

Sunny wasn’t exactly creeped out by the display though. He just spun his points and cocked his head. “What’s your name?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” the boy retorted.

Though that wasn’t the voice of a boy. Well, half of it was. The half overlaying a matured voice hiding underneath. Two tones twisting into one voice which, admittedly, was a little off-putting. Though in this case, Sunny was much more wary of what else he heard: sass. He could handle a creepy kid all day, but some edgy adult with something to prove always ended badly.

“Yes, I would like to know! Thank you very much!” Sunny continued playing along. He propped his head up on his hands. “Weeeeell?”

“They call me the terror of Freddy’s. But nah, you can call me Balloon Boy. Everybody does!” He punctuated it with another resounding laugh. “What’s yours?”

“I’m Sunny Dee! But you can call me Sunny, Sun, Sundrop-.”

“I mean your real name. The one you used to use back at the old Freddy’s,” Balloon Boy asked cheekily.

This was what finally threw Sunny off. “I-I beg your pardon?!”

“Ha, I’m just pulling your leg! What I’d really like is to play a game.”

“Well, err, we’re already playing a- but, uh, sure! What would YOU like to play, little guy?” Sunny asked.

Balloon Boy made an irritated huff that sounded almost like blowing up a balloon.

“Don’t patronize me clown. I’m probably older than you,” he said.

“Maybe! But you’re much, much smaller than me,” Sunny pointed out. It was supposed to sound naïve and innocent, but the cheekiness underneath wasn’t missing by Balloon Boy.

This poor sun-shaped fool.

“I want to play hide and seek. And not rinky-dinky little kiddie hide and seek. I want to play real hide and seek,” Balloon Boy challenged.

“Oh, that sounds great! I’m the champion of hide and seek, you know, so don’t think I’ll go easy on you!” Sun tutted with a waggle of his finger.

“Ha ha, good.”

Suddenly, Balloon Boy crab walked sideways and out of sight. Sunny could hear him shuffling along but made no attempt to follow him. He considered it a head start but it was more to give him some space, just like a fussy child who didn’t want attention from Mr. Sun. Maybe it was Marionette’s warning and Jeremy downplayed pleas for everyone to be ‘good’ but this whole thing made Sun uneasy.

But that deep unease inside of Sunny wasn’t fear. At least, not fear for this strange wooden puppet who looked remarkably like the Freddy’s character named Balloon Boy but didn’t seem nearly as innocent, but a fear for what exactly he was about to do. Because Sunny could spot a rulebreaker from tone of voice alone.

Though anyone with a good ear could’ve heard how malicious that request to play sounded.

Sunny twisted and turned himself around with a sigh before climbing back through the tunnel. Balloon Boy could wait, there were a bunch of little Sunflowers waiting to be found before him.

Sun busied himself for the next while crawling through and collecting little ones. He found Plushtrap first. Poor little guy was so overexcited that he chattered whenever he got close and even though he was rather quick, Sun eventually scooped him up. Then he plopped him on his back as he continued to search for the others.

It took a while to find them all. Unlike normal kids who Sunny had to go easy with, these small animatronics were built to move. They gave him a run for his money, and he loved it. He loved not having to be so careful when he rushed them. He loved knowing that there wasn’t someone watching him like a hawk from the security desk. It was all so freeing.

The remaining two who couldn’t be caught were Daisy and Forget-Me-Not. Even once Sunny insisted they don’t climb on the outside of the structure- once he realized they were doing it- they were just so quick to mover through the holes in the structure that finally Sunny had to forfeit.

“Time’s up! Let’s see… One, two, three…” Sunny pretended to count the slew of tiny animatronics currently hanging off of him. He gave a dramatic gasp with his hand to his cheek. “It looks like we have TWO winners today!” he gushed.

Both Minireenas peeked their heads in before giggling and climbing down to his level.

“Well done, you two! I think you guys oughta choose what we play next! What do you think, friends?” Sunny asked the others.

Plushtrap gave a chattery nod.

“Yeah, alright,” Bow agreed.

“Do we still get candy?” Button whispered to her.

“I think so,” Bow whispered back.

“You sure do! Oh, I’m just so proud of you all! No tears or fusses or musses or anything!” Sunny delightfully lavished. He offered his hands to Daisy and Forget-Me-Not and both climbed on, the former more eagerly than the hesitant latter, and lifted them up behind his head so they could climb on. “Time for the big slide!”

Plushtrap clapped eagerly.

“It’s just a slide. We came in on one,” Bow pointed out. Plushtrap waved her off and otherwise ignored her.

Sunny then carried them to the tallest slide in the play structure. On the way he very briefly looked for Balloon Boy, but he was nowhere to be found. In fact, he hadn’t seen him since he scuttled away. He probably hid somewhere outside in the playground and in that case, he wasn’t a top priority of his. He didn’t want to get treated like a little kid, so Sunny wouldn’t dote on him like one.

At the top of the slide, he twisted his arm around and made sure to get a good grip on Plushtrap and the Bidybabs. The Minireenas were more than capable of clinging on.

“Hold on tight!” he warned. He then hopped down the slide headfirst. Or hand first, catching himself with it and doing a quick turnover where he untwisted his body, pulled the little ones to his front, and was back upright in seconds. Plushtrap chattered and he gave an excited giggle as he carried them towards the middle of the room, past Max who was watching.

But he wasn’t the only one watching.

“Oh, Mister Sunnn~!”

Sunny froze up when he recognized where that voice was coming from. He slowly turned his head to see Balloon Boy’s peeking out from behind the desk.

Sunny reacted accordingly.

“GYAH?! Wh-WHAT ARE YOU DOING BACK THERE?!”

“Better question! What’s this button do?” Balloon Boy teased.

He heard the sound of the naptime button getting uncovered. His point pulled in tightly as he stared in shock. His twitching faceplate shaking his frozen smile.

“Moon’s the one with the mean streak, right?” Balloon Boy asked.

“DON’T YOU PUSH THAT!”

“Whoops! My finger slipped.”

There was a click and the lights shut off, punctuated by Balloon boy’s mischievous laugh.

Sunny gave a startled shout before he felt all his programming starting to kick in. He held back, resisting despite the discomfort so he could safely set down his small charges before giving in and letting the process take over.

Yellow switched the blue, points pulled in, and stripes turned to stars only in a matter of a few moments. The Sun went down, and the Moon came up to meet him. His pupils alighting red as he leveled his gaze on Balloon Boy.

…But he wouldn’t lose his temper. Despite the stress, despite the sheer naughtiness, Moon would not bite the hook. After a few seconds of stare down, he broke his gaze from Balloon Boy and looked to the small dolls around his feet.

They didn’t run and scream. They didn’t seem afraid at all- good. He wasn’t going to ruin that. He crouched down before them.

“Hello, my little Moonflowers. I am Moon, or Moondrop. Stay calm and close, and I’ll have the lights back on shortly,” he said. He reached out and booped Plushtrap’s nose with a soft squeak, then the two Bidybabs’ in rapid succession.

“Oh, he’s not too bad,” Button remarked.

“Maybe only towards Foxys,” Bow suggested.

Moon chuckled and stood back up, only to crouch again and then hop into a backflip. He was caught by his carrying cable and swung over to the top of the play structure- where he would flip on his first generator. Putting on a show purposefully as he did so.

It didn’t take him long to activate that generator, then he smoothly crossed the daycare, dipping through shortcuts in the play structure, and made it to one of the generators on the lower levels of it. Then he began to climb to a higher one.

He was just about to flip the generator on when he noticed a light shut off nearby. Being as sensitive to light as he was, he noticed it immediately- it was the floodlight that came on when he turned on the lower generator. There were mounted lights on the structure that came on with the generators, largely for the benefit of the technicians who were never even in here. The one he just turned on went off.

Which was fine unless it meant the generator had shut off too. Moon hummed suspiciously and turned on the generator beside him before heading back down to check.

He got to the last generator he turned on to find it off. He turned it back on before crawling away from it, listening carefully.

There was a scuttling from somewhere nearby. Moon’s fingers tightened on the plastic floor with a low growl and darted ahead and outside of the climbing structure, scaling the exterior, and squeezing in at the top.

He rushed towards the other generator he had already activated and crawled in on the perpetrator in the process of trying to shut it off. It was easier said than done with his cupped little hands, but he managed the first time.

Moon was both infuriated and unsurprised to see it was Balloon Boy.

“You!” he hissed. “Haven’t you cause enough trouble already?!”

“Just having a little fun with you, Moon Man,” Balloon Boy cheekily replied.

“Well, I am already fed up. Sun can deal with you when I get the lights on. Until then, stay out of my way.”

“Aww, you have to leave already? You just got here!” Balloon Boy jeered. “I think I’d have a whole lot more fun playing with you than Sun Man.”

“Sun will be sad to hear that.”

“I don’t think he will,” Balloon Boy challenged. “Because I think you’re just one tough guy hiding between two voices.”

“Hah! Funny, coming from you. Which one of those is real again?” Moon retorted. Finger waggling at him as though pointing between two.

Balloon Boy made another one of those irritated balloon puffs.

“And I think you’re a little brat who won’t act his age,” Moon finished with a wicked grin in his voice.

“Well, I also think you’re a little too old to be a kid’s toy, Creepo,” Balloon Boy said a little more bitterly.

Moon growled. “Little punk.”

“Freaky clock clown.”

“Smug smart-sasser!”

“Oversized happy meal toy!”

“Knock-off Pinocchio!”

“Bi-!”

“Will you two mental patients get a grip? This isn’t half as funny as it should be,” Max called in.

Moon figuratively snapped his mouth shut at the reminder that all his little buddies were currently listening in on this feud. He huffed and snapped his eyes back to Balloon Boy.

“I’m not in the mood for games, little puppet. Stay out of my way or else there will be consequences.”

“You sound like a Saturday morning cartoon villain,” Balloon Boy said unphased. “Hey, if you’re going to act like a toon, let’s settle this like a couple of chumps. How’s about we race for it?”

“I am NOT racing you!”

“Too late.”

Balloon Boy promptly scuttled around the corner and down a nearby tunnel. Moon was hot in pursuit and kept up for a good while, but Balloon Boy was simply too slippery to catch.

It soon became apparent that Balloon Boy was leading him on a wild goose chase. As if the nasty childish laughter didn’t give that away. Then he realized what Balloon Boy meant by a race and split from behind him to go turn on the next generator. All he had to do was get to them all before this little mosquito shut them back off behind him.

Max and the little ones could only watch and listen as a blue glow darted around, some thumbing and scuttling, and the occasional loud laugh and frustrated growl. Back and forth, up and down, and around and around. Generators kicking on and off and on and off in a seemingly endless cycle.

Until finally, finally, Balloon Boy was reaching to turn one off at the same moment Moon was reaching to turn the last one. Unfortunately for him, his clumsy hands guaranteed who would be the winner.

The overhead lights kicked on and even when Balloon Boy shut the generator off, they didn’t go back out. Well, that was disappointing. It looked like the fun was over.

Something that he knew for certain once he heard the frenzy of thumping, ticking, and jingling that was the Daycare Attendant coming to find him. He didn’t feel like running, so he just hung out and waited for him to show up.

By time the jester stuck his grinning face through the door he had turned back into Sun. He didn’t seem any less annoyed.

“I guess you’re faster than I thought,” Balloon Boy said- with the smugness of someone who had gotten exactly what he set out for. “So, what’s next on the agenda? Are you gonna break out the coloring books?”

Sun responded by snatching Balloon Boy up in his large hands and crawling out of the play structure, his smaller captive laughing all the while.

Soon they both popped out of the structure, with Sunny climbing to his feet while carrying Balloon Boy as far away from him as humanly possible. He carried him back to the others and then plopped him down on the padded floor.

“Don’t. You. Move,” Sun commanded with a firm point. “I’m going to go get my tea party and puppet show supplies and I am NOT having you break up the fun again. And if you do, I’m going to do something not very nice…”

“You gonna ground me?” Balloon Boy asked.

“Even worse. I’m going to get my fingerpaint supplies and let all my new little friends draw pretty little pictures all over you!”

“Ha! They wouldn’t.”

Balloon Boy waited for someone to say something, or even giggle or chatter. He was answered with dead silence. His eyes darted back and forth.

“…They would?”

“You get in the way of our candy, and we won’t play nice,” Bow said.

“We will have a tea party on your head we will,” Button added.

“Then we’re all in agreement! I’ll be riiiight back, Sunflowers!” Sunny chirped before skipping away again.

Max waited until he was out of earshot before speaking up.

“You know, that could’ve been a real disaster if we were humans. Who knows what kind of programming he’s got,” he said. It was a partial scolding but way too nonchalant to be seen as one.

“Eh, we could take him,” Balloon Boy dismissed.

“I hate to break it to you, but you’re on your own. Ha ha ha! Nobody wants to mess with that clown! He might be carrying something.”

“Other than me?”

“I meant something dangerous.”

Sunny dropped onto his balcony and headed inside and through the tunnel to start gathering his stuff up, muttering as he did.

“Did you see that?” he grumpily asked. He got no response. “Jake?” Still nothing.

He came back out of the tunnel with two boxes of things and looked around. Only now did he notice that he was entirely alone. If Jake wasn’t here and he wasn’t in the small room, then that meant he wasn’t here at all.

“Jake?!” Sunny gasped and dropped the boxes.

He did a quick circle of the room before heading through the door and down the hall. He found the poster door cracked and barged through into the theater.

“Jake?!” he called through a cupped hand. It echoed through the empty theater.

Nothing.

He bolted down the stairs and down the stairs and into the theater basement. He cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled again.

“JAAAAKE!!!”

But there was still no response.

“ACK!” Sunny grabbed his head in horror before bolting back up the stairs again.

He barged right back into his room and began to search for the spare radio. If he could find that then he could contact Jake’s control panel- which was gone too?! -but it didn’t take long for him to realize that this too wouldn’t work. As he had no idea where the radio was after so much frenzied packing.

He must’ve gone to the West Arcade with Jeremy and Marionette. Without saying anything, without leaving a note, without him. Sunny didn’t know if he was more annoyed or worried or- No, Andrew was definitely ticked off. To do something so dangerous, so reckless- He would have to go after him. Had to make sure he was safe.

Yet the moment Sunny hopped back onto the balcony and prepared to dive off, to climb up the slide and tear out of the daycare, he found something grabbing him and holding him firm on that platform. Not his cord, not someone’s grasp, but something much more firm- his own programming. He sent a wary look over towards the little animatronics across the daycare.

He couldn’t leave children unattended in the daycare.

“But these aren’t normal kids! Th-These are little robots! Most of them aren’t even kids anymore- and that Max guy sounds old enough to handle ‘em! Right? Right. No big deal! Nope!”

They’d be fine! They were little animatronics, they could take care of themselves. He knew this.

Except there were kids in the daycare and they couldn’t be left unattended.

He could hear his ticking growing louder as the stress weighed on his internal components. He could do it, he really could, but without a security call, without a command, without a reason to leave, that programming was putting up a fight. Those deep seated feelings telling him he had to watch the kids. HAD to watch the kids.

Besides- Besides! He had promised Jeremy he would watch them. If he left them, they could try to follow, or get out, or that little monster Balloon Boy might sabotage the generators and have the technicians in here tomorrow.

Sunny realized with defeat that he just couldn’t leave. Not right now.

But that didn’t mean that someone couldn’t go get Jake. He mulled it over for a long moment before guiltily sending out a message.

“Freddyyyy? I know you’re hanging out with Gregory, but umm, could you do me a really quick, tiny, little favor?”

…

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Jeremy asked.

“…Yes.”

“Then do it. You’ve got this.”

Jake braced himself.

“You’ve got this!” Jeremy repeated.

“You can do it!” Marionette cheered. “Do the flip!”

Jake gave a tentative bounce and then in one motion tucked in and did a backflip. He had almost forgot that his body was built for this. Acrobatics almost felt natural.

He landed on his feet on the trampoline ground before he was suddenly reminded of his replacement leg by its stiffness throwing off his footing. He lost his balance and fell onto his backside painlessly.

Despite the landing, this received a triumphant “Woo!” from Jeremy and congratulatory clap and laugh from Marionette.

“I can’t remember the last time I did something like that!” Jake said with a semi-giddy chuckle. “I know it wasn’t here. It was down in the daycare. I landed a lot better.”

“You still landed better than I did,” Jeremy offered. He sat down beside him to take a short break of his own.

“And Mike. Though don’t tell him I said that,” Marionette added. He chuckled at the memory; his voice edged with a fond trill. “And you saw how fast my legs buckled. At least you landed.”

“Yeah, on my butt,” Jake joked.

“Better than on your face,” Jeremy said.

Marionette laughed to himself.

Though then he abruptly straightened and snapped his head towards the entranceway into the bounce park. Which, since they weren’t within the inflatable walls of the castle itself, meant they were in full view.

“Someone’s coming,” he warned. Though he sounded more curious than concerned. “I think it might be Freddy.”

But Jake couldn’t take that risk. He sprung to his feet, darted over, and dove behind an inflated pyramid like someone who wasn’t running with a stiff leg.

Jeremy looked to Marionette questioningly and started to get up, but he just shook his head and waved him back down.

Sure enough, in through the entranceway walked none other than Freddy Fazbear himself. He spotted them right away and waved before calling through cupped hands.

“Hello!”

“Ahoy!” Jeremy called back. “Foxy’s not here tonight if you’re looking for him.”

“Oh, no. That is a shame, but he is not who I am looking for,” Freddy explained. He stopped at the edge of the floor, not daring to step out on the trampoline with Gregory inside. “I am looking for Jake. Is he with you?”

“Uh… Y-Yeah! Back here!” Jake wobbled his way out from behind the inflatable pyramid. “Hey, Freddy.”

“Jake! It is good to see you. Sunny sent me to come check and make sure you were safe.”

“…D’oh.”

That noise alone gave Jake’s guilt away instantly.

“Perhaps you should’ve left a note?” Marionette quietly suggested with a sheepish smile. Sheepish because he knew he was partially to blame for whisking Jake off without a word.

“Yeaaaah, but I didn’t expect him back in our room before I got back. He must’ve went up to get something and saw me gone.”

“I can send him a message if you would like,” Freddy offered.

“…Yes, please. Tell him I’m okay, but I’m not coming back just yet. Not until we finish here.”

“Consider it done!”

Freddy lifted a finger to his temple to message Sun. As he did, Marionette came over to him, his arms folded behind his back. Eventually Freddy lowered his hand and opened his eyes again.

“That is a very smart jacket! It gives me… classic rock vibes!” Freddy complimented. “And your hat is very vintage. In a good way, of course.”

“Thank you. Is he…?”

Marionette pointed towards Freddy’s stomach.

“Oh, yes! Excuse me.” Freddy opened his stomach hatch. “Gregory, say hello to everyone!”

Gregory ducked his head down to peek out. “Hey guys!”

“And hello, hello to you too!” Marionette said. Jeremy waved, but Gregory could only see him for a second before Marionette’s white, smiling face was blocking his view, the Puppet bent over to see him. “Would you like to join us?”

“What do you say? We can always head down to the snack bar after,” Freddy offered.

“Ehhh, for a few minutes,” Gregory said. Not wanting to sound too eager about playing in a kiddie bounce castle.

That reluctance only lasted a few minutes itself, and they stuck around a little while longer.

Marionette had taken over as Gregory’s primary playmate while Jeremy joined in, and Freddy sat on the edge of the flooring and watched. Jake joined in as best as he could, but he kept thinking back to Sunny, and he was feeling guilty.

That being said, he stubbornly couldn’t go back before he was ready. He just needed to get away from that room for a while. The walls were getting too tight, and his leg was too stiff from being cramped up in it.

But eventually it was time to leave. Once everyone was worn out and after a few more hard flops onto the trampoline floor. Gregory climbed back into Freddy, and he escorted them all the way down to the daycare. All the while both Marionette and Jeremy kept a careful lookout, making certain no white rabbit was watching from the shadows.

Once they got to the daycare, Freddy headed downstairs, and Jeremy checked his watch.

“Yeah, we should probably start packing it in. We can’t really rush out of here, so that’ll give us enough time to be out of here before anyone shows up,” he said.

“That’s for the best. Heaven forbid someone sees me swiping costume props- my reputation would be ruined!” Marionette joked. Trying to lighten the mood as he noticed how quiet Jake had gotten.

“Oh, you wouldn’t be the first person that helped themselves to the five-finger discount,” Jake played along. He gave the Puppet a little nudge with his elbow. After tonight he finally felt comfortable being a little chummier.

“It’s good to see the Freddy tradition is still alive and well,” Jeremy said with an approving nod.

“When did you steal anything?” Marionette asked with disbelief. He then realized what he said, eyes widening and sputtering. “I mean- I meant at Freddy’s! -Not that I was implying anything else.”

“I was grabbing tokens by the handfuls and shoving them into my pockets at the end of my shift. Then I used to sell them out back behind the dumpster to the day shift,” Jeremy exaggerated. His good-natured smile showing that he took no offense, and Marionette looked relieved.

“I did notice once or twice you jingling as you walked by,” he played along.

Still just playing around and having a good time. No discomfort whatsoever, at least from Jeremy. He might’ve been uneasy about a possible rabbit spotting, or Glamrock spotting, but he felt totally comfortable alongside Marionette- regardless how much they chatted about the distant past. When he was a faceless nightguard and Marionette was that puppet thing that was always thinking.

“Not to sour the mood, but…” Marionette’s voice grew tentative as he looked to Jeremy. “…Do you ever think about those old days?”

“Sometimes. When we bring ‘em up mostly,” Jeremy answered. Those weren’t the days he still had nightmares over. He looked back. “What about you?”

“Occasionally. So much has changed! It’s a little jarring sometimes. We’ve come so far. Not just all of us in general, but even the two of us.”

“I know, it’s crazy,” Jeremy agreed. “I blame Mike.”

“I do too,” Marionette said fondly. “What would we do without him?”

“Well, we’d be out of business for one. I don’t think Fritz and me could manage the place alone… Come to think of it, we probably wouldn’t even have a business without him. It was his idea.”

“I remember that. He twisted your arm.”

“Not as much as he twisted Fritz’s. Me? I just go with the flow. See where the seas take me.”

“I can’t think of a more untrue statement,” Marionette said with a coy smile.

“…Okay, yeah. Maybe not. But I did then! And I don’t regret it. I might regret Freddy’s, but I don’t regret Foxy’s,” Jeremy said sincerely.

Something about that comment stuck out in Marionette’s mind. He agreed, he was happy to hear it, but it lingered a bit longer.

“I don’t either,” he agreed.

“You know what? Me too,” Jake agreed. He noticed the questioning looks. “…Not with Foxy’s, I mean, but coming here. We shouldn’t have come here and a whole bunch of stuff went sour when we did, but I wouldn’t take it back. Eventually you have to just… Seize the opportunity! Get out of that dark place you’re stuck in and make something of your life. If you don’t then you’re not living.”

Marionette smiled, nodded, and chimed in agreement.

“…And by the dark place, I mean the old warehouse we used to live in. Not our room! I’m not saying- Uh… Ugh…” Jake fumbled over his own words. “Something like that…”

“I couldn’t agree more. I felt the same way when my brother Michael left the warehouse he was staying in to come live with us.”

“He was in a warehouse too?”

“We’re animatronics. At one point in our lives, we all end up in a warehouse,” Marionette playfully dismissed. His eyes narrowed slightly with a glint. “But you should meet Michael. I think you two would get along swimmingly.”

Jeremy gave Marionette a dumbfounded look, but Jake was too out of the loop to understand what it meant.

“Err, sure! Send him my way if he ever drops in.”

“He may. He’s looking for parts for Charlie.”

“Charlie? Wait, is she okay?” Jake asked in concern.

“Oh, no. Not like that! He’s just- It’s for a project. I won’t bore you with the details,” Marionette assured. His nonchalance easing Jake’s worries.

Everything was alright again. Smoothed over and done with.

Yet something was still bothering Marionette. Like an insignificant little itch that he couldn’t find the source of. Something still nudged at him.

As they approached the security door that led out of the atrium and to the daycare hallway, he made a decision.

“Why don’t you go ahead? I could use a second to think,” Marionette said.

This took Jeremy by surprised.

“Is everything okay?” he asked.

“Oh, yes. Everything’s fine. I’m just having a melancholy moment is all. Just want to unpack some things before Max sniffs them out.”

“He has a way of doing that,” Jeremy agreed. He was a little concerned, but the openness about it made him a little less so. “But if you want to talk about it before we go inside, we’ve got time.”

“Oh, no, no. It’s not something worth talking about. I just need a second of quiet is all,” Marionette reassured.

“Well, you’ve got it then. But if you need to talk, you know where I’ll be… In your brother’s bedroom. Less than twenty feet away.”

Marionette chimed in amusement. Jeremy turned and noticed Jake staring at him. He cleared his throat.

“It’s his brother’s old bedroom. It’s really a guest room,” he explained.

“Yeah, I was wondering,” Jake added.

That was the last thing they said before heading through the security door and down the steps. Marionette could hear them talking but wasn’t close to make much of it.

Besides, his thoughts were elsewhere.

Marionette headed back to the second-floor railing and peered out over the atrium with a sigh.

He knew these feelings were eventually going to crop up. There was only so much of talking about the past, thinking about Bee, discussing Andrew, and being inside a Freddy’s before his mind wandered back to those distant days. The days that he didn’t long for and didn’t often think about until now, when things seemed to continuously remind him of them.

They were joking around. They were talking about Freddy’s and laughing it off. It didn’t make sense that it would still find a way to creep on him. Best to unpack them right now while he was alone.

“So, Marionette, what is bothering you?” he asked himself. “It’s not the popularity of this place, not anymore, and it goes deeper than just Beelora alone, or Jeremy.”

He approached the railing and rested his hands on it, tapping his fingers thoughtfully.

“…I never used to ask who’s who. Nightguards or animatronics, I knew who everyone was. Or at least I thought I did. Now there’s so many faces without names attached. Even if I did have names, I doubt I’d recognize them.”

He was entirely out of the loop now. He wasn’t the one bringing them back and he wasn’t the one protecting them. He was just a visitor in a place he didn’t quite belong.

But was he ever their protector, or just the one to assign their prison cells? No, he was a protector. That’s what he tried to be when he would wander Freddy’s as a lost soul. Watching them, singing to them, putting them back together.

He felt so small here. Protector no more. He protected nobody. He wasn’t part of Freddy’s any longer.

He should’ve been happy about that, and yet here he was staring down at someone else’s stage feeling hollow.

Maybe it was because he had not gotten that closure he had expected. To go out in one big bang after stopping Afton and saving everybody, and then accepting Happily Ever After as the end of the story. Life didn’t work out like that, so here he was left feeling like there was something he had missed and knowing there likely wasn’t. Even though this was, by all accounts, the happiest he had been- well, save this whole Pizzaplex debacle.

Or maybe it was because he felt so alone. He had a wonderful family, so many friends, Mike, everything he could’ve ever wanted and yet he still felt like he was so separated from them. Like there was a void distancing him from everyone else. Those who he was distant from because they were human and those he was distant from because he was the reason they weren’t. They stood on the shores, and he drifted in the lake.

And that distance was so insignificant that he hadn’t really noticed it until now. Always the odd one out. The wailing spirit haunting Freddy’s. Silently watching and thinking. Violently sobbing and singing.

And there were so many songs.

But one of them was on the tip of his non-existent tongue. The growing humming deep inside rose until his music box activated and the soft, somber chimes sung for him. The simple tune. One, two. One, two.

“Give gifts, give life. Give gifts, give life,~” Marionette began to softly sing. Just speaking the words stirred a programming deep inside, irritating and agitating. “Give gifts, give life. GIVE. GIFTS. GIVE. LIFE.”

He shook his head, knocking away what had almost grabbed ahold of him. Then he sighed, slouching onto the railing once more.

“You can’t save them any other way, just give them another day,~” he murmured.

He could’ve left it there but by now he had stirred something deep inside. He pushed off the railing and began to drift down the walkway.

“These rusty metal bodies don’t make good beds for sleepy, scared children to rest their weary heads,~” Marionette sung a little louder. “But my choice is gone, and my strings are pulled. I have no other option that to do what I’m told. I’m so sorry my little friends…~”

He stopped at the top of the escalator. Reaching out and resting his hand on the railing, tightening his hand onto it with a somber pang from his chest. Opening the old wounds hurt and yet he couldn’t stop himself.

“Because when it came to it in the end. I didn’t want to make you just like me, but the voices and the begging never cease.~”

The thumping in his head preemptively began as he drifted down the escalator. His hand tight on the railing to stabilize himself as his eyes began to glow.

“Give gifts, give life. Give gifts, give life.~” His music box grew louder and he was nearly shouting the words that forced themselves out. “GIVE. GIFTS. GIVE. LIFE. GIVE! GIFTS! GIVE! LIFE!~”

He shoved himself forward off the escalator, spinning out onto the atrium floor and letting his legs catch some of his weight. Swaying on them but standing on his own for the first time in ages, but perhaps only fueled by the programming causing his body to twitch and his spools to pull tight throughout his body.

But he was standing on his own. He shook his head again, a hand resting on his head, and lowered his voice once more.

“You can’t save them any other way, just give them another day,~” he lulled. He lifted his head and pushed off the floor, making his way across the enormous atrium. “Tomorrow is another day…~”

His music box continued to chime and clink the tune and filled his head with music that was lost in the large expanse of the Pizzaplex. A tiny music box could do little to fill the space, especially when fighting against the drowsy overhead music, the groans of distant machinery, the hum of the neon.

Oh, that was it. He used to feel so big in Freddy’s, but he felt so small here. Especially when he rose onto the stage and turned to look out at the atrium.

He used to be an important piece of the puzzle and now he had been left behind. Freddy’s had moved on without him. New animatronics filled the places of his old friends. He was estranged. Forgotten.

Then he realized what he was thinking and was struck by guilt. To even consider importance- there was nothing glamorous or admirable about what happened at Freddy’s. Maybe he had saved lives, but he had doomed them just the same. He had wanted freedom from that cycle. He didn’t ever want to go back. To even consider regretting that choice was a slap in the face to all those he held dear and to all the progress they had made.

He suddenly felt very self-conscious. Very small and self-conscious, and warm, and frantic. Drowning in his own conflicting feelings on the middle of a massive empty stage.

He found his voice again.

“I never asked to be some would-be shepherd! Someone’s failure turned protector. And I never asked to be like this!~” he shouted- he sung to the empty space.

His spools tightened and his music box twang, and his head and voice fell.

“And I never wanted to hurt you… I should’ve let you rest…~” His pupils glowed and his stripes grew damp. “…But I couldn’t let you rest.~”

The memories started to come back with the song. He remembered words he had sung so long ago that he could barely remember he had spoken them. If he had, if this wasn’t some hazy hallucination.

“And you can’t understand what we’ll go through together, and I can’t promise you that it will get better. But I swear that I will try to save you. There’s only one way.~”

He looked down at his extended arms and in an instant, he could remember every child who he had cradled in them, even Gabriel and Charlie. His hands were shaking until he tightened them.

“This will have to do.”

He remembered Gabriel left for him to find. He remembered his friends scattered at his side. He remembered Andrew in the trunk, and Charlie in the alley, and Joe in the gutter.

He remembered that tuft of hair sticking out of the Fredbear suit.

He remembered what Goldie had him do so many times over.

“Give gifts, give life. Give gifts, give life.~”

Hands shaking and tears pouring, and frustration welling up at the guilt and shame, and the pride and fulfilment, and the thought that it was all not because of a desire to help but some deep-set command.

“Give gifts, give life. Give gifts, give life.~”

Protector puppet. Purposeless puppet. Strung-up savior. Mad machine. Forgotten by Freddy’s.

It was agony!

“GIVE! GIFTS! GIVE! LIFE!”

His voice echoed across the atrium.

He stood there in silence and listened. He could feel the building heat finally starting to cool down. His head began to clear as the swirl of thoughts stilled once more. His music box had fallen quiet, but his voice rose again.

“I can’t save you any other way… So, until the balloons carry you away…~” He sighed. “Tomorrow is another day…”

He dropped his head in defeat. Staring down at the large picture of Freddy’s face depicted on the tile floor before the stage. For the first time in so long, he didn’t know how he felt about it.

Such a great idea to delve into his own feelings and see what was down there. It hadn’t unsurfaced anything concerning at all, didn’t lance any old healing wound. Though if it was healing, then why did it feel like a pressure had been released?

He clasped a hand over his face and sighed again into it. His mask was sticky, but it was already starting to cool down. Perhaps that wasn’t so bad of a call-

All of a sudden, he came back to his senses with the recognition that there were eyes on him.

Clarified when he heard a clapping and snapped his head up, focused across the auditorium, and spotted a familiar blond security guard up on the second floor. It was Natalie.

“Sorry! Not trying to creep, I just thought it was good!” Natalie called through her hand.

Marionette got a little smile.

“I agree! That was very, very impressive! Especially for an impromptu performance!” Freddy called from somewhere by the snack bar.

Marionette’s smile became more flustered and embarrassed. Of course, Freddy was still in here. Which meant Gregory heard it too. A whole audience watching his musical breakdown.

“Err, Stranger! I… You should definitely try out for the, erm, band!” Freddy added in.

Now that was odd. It sounded distinctly like Freddy was covering. Recognizing another set of eyes, Marionette turned his head.

And there was Glamrock Chica standing up outside of the hall towards her Cupcake Shoppe and the bounce park. Her leaning far over the railing that her hands were gripped tightly on, her eyes wide and one even noticeably twitching.

Oh.

Well, that was an accident.

He almost disappeared on the spot before he realized that this was perhaps an opportunity he could take. He wanted to talk to her anyways; he needed to know what she knew. And if she was willing to keep quiet about Ennard, maybe he could convince her to do the same for him. He had a job to do.

In an instant, he vanished.

Chica blinked and snapped her eyes around searching the stage and floor in disbelief. He had just disappeared into thin air. It had to be a trick, the same technology that hid the doors only Roxy could see.

“Excuse me,” a voice came from behind her.

Chica spun around in surprise and fell back on the railing with her legs bent in awkwardly.

“Oh, my apologies! I didn’t mean to scare you. I was hoping I could get a moment of your time,” Marionette introduced. The lingering shakiness in his voice quickly covered up.

Chica blinked at him in shock before her eyes narrowed. She pushed herself up off the railing and stood tall, her fists tight at her side, and then strode forward angrily. With only that as warning, she took a swing at him.

Marionette ducked back out of the way. After how she stormed over to him, he couldn’t say he was surprised, save a little that she didn’t outright charge him.

“Not happy to see me. I understand. You might recognize me from somewhere?” he asked. She took another swing, and he ducked the other way. “Or perhaps you recognize me because you recognize my sister? She has a bell on the back of her head? She’s the puppet girl you chased through the arcade,” Marionette offered.

Chica paused momentarily to process this. But in that moment, he noticed her eye twitching and a vaguely distant look in her eyes. Yes, she was very mad at him, but that wasn’t the only thing driving her to attack.

“Programming. Perhaps we can break through that,” Marionette said thoughtfully. “…Follow me.”

He then turned and began to dart down the hallway behind him. As expected, she ran after him. Instead of returning to the bounce park he headed the other way towards Chica’s own cupcake shoppe.

Marionette beelined right through the front doors of the Cupcake Shoppe with Chica and a handful of random Staff Bots tailing him. Her having to push past them to get in. He headed into the back blindly, plotting as he went. Picking up another curious Staff Bot as he went, drawn to him like a moth to a flame.

Chica pushed past and staggered into the kitchen. She looked around feverishly before noticing the door to the bathroom closing. She stormed over and shoved her way inside, looking around with her hands on her hips.

No sign of him, but the stalls were closed. She strode over and shoved the first door open. Nothing. She shoved the second only to find it latched.

“Occupied!~”

Chica’s eye twitched at the singsong voice. He was in there, and he was being smug. Forget that constant need to pursue and apprehend, that just made it personal. It woke her up just to tick her off.

She swung her arms up and brought her fists down on the door, preparing to break it down like Monty might’ve done.

Only to reflexively slow herself to a useless but loud bang of her fists. In the last second a nagging little voice in the back of her head reminded her that she was already on watch for destruction of property. She got marked up trashing her own cupcake shoppe and all it would take was one more before action might be taken. She already couldn’t talk or eat, what could they do next?

Kick her out of her own attraction, maybe. Maybe ground her in her green room before and after shows. Or worse, just get another Chica who could still greet the customers with a friendly hello.

She thrust her arms down at her sides in frustration. Tossing her head back like she would’ve been yelling in frustration if she could’ve.

That’s when she caught sight of the smiling white face peeking over the top of the stall. His head and hands darting back inside in an instant.

She had to get in. She dropped her head and dropped herself to the floor and began to crawl under the stall. Once she got her head through, she spun it around to look up at the Puppet, who was standing on the closed toilet lid. He gave her a friendly little wave. She narrowed her eyes and continued trying to squeeze under the door.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Marionette warned. Diminishing the playful tone for a slightly more concerned one.

Chica wasn’t dissuaded in the slightest. She continued trying to contort herself under, sliding further underneath the stall.

Until the bottom of the door slid snugly against her back and Chica could move no further. She couldn’t move back either, not that she was trying that hard to move back. She kept trying to push further until she got herself completely wedged in.

Soon it got to the point where Chica couldn’t move any which way. She was completely stuck. Her angrily narrowed eyes widened as she realized what predicament she was in.

“Oh dear,” Marionette said. “…Well, maybe now we can talk.”

He crouched down onto the toilet lid. His arms resting on his long, bent legs. His smile back to its typical fullness.

“Let me introduce myself. I’m Marionette. I used to be the protector of Freddy’s, but… not quite anymore.”

Chica looked away almost stubbornly and crossed her arms as much as she could.

“Hmm…” He tilted his head. “Do you already know who I am?”       

Chica rolled her eyes in a way that silently screamed “Obviously.”

“So, do you know about Foxy’s? Or perhaps you knew me from back before the Pizzaplex?”

She side-eyed him with irritation.

“Believe me, I’m not trying to humiliate you. I’m just trying to figure out some things. That’s only one of them,” Marionette said a little more gently.

Chica rolled her eyes again and then held up one finger.

“Once?”

She shook her head and held up that finger again.

“Hmm… The first one? Foxy’s?” She nodded. “Ah, I see. That makes sense. But you’ve never seen me before in person?”

She shook her head. He thought for a moment before getting drawn to attention by Chica tapping on the floor. She drew a little question mark in the air, still looking just as annoyed.

“Oh, my apologies. So… I came from the original Freddy’s. I was there when all of this first began, and I only just recently found out that Freddy’s is… Let’s say, up to its old tricks. I’m trying to piece together a timeline.”

She squinted at him. Confused? Suspicious? Marionette couldn’t tell.

“Do you remember… Afton Robotics?” he dared to ask. Chica eyes popped open in surprise. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to unearth bad memories. I’m all too aware of some of the horrors that took place down there.”

At the mention of Afton Robotics, Chica’s eyes took a clarity that they hadn’t before. He knew that she remembered.

“But I’m trying to make sure that the Pizzaplex isn’t just a carefully disguise Afton-…”

Marionette cut off as he heard heavy footsteps coming. Just in case his recognition was wrong, and it wasn’t Freddy.

It was, in fact, Freddy Fazbear once more.

“Chica! I- Oh no. Chica, not again,” Freddy said with disappointment.

Chica turned her head away and propped it partially on her arm. She looked annoyed or huffy, but one could feel the embarrassment radiating off the motion.

Marionette could sympathize. Being stuck under a bathroom door was just as embarrassing as getting stuck in a claw machine. The trade-off being the more humiliating location of the bathroom to a dining room full of people. Weighing them they seemed equal enough.

“Oh, Chica. Here, let me assist you.”

“Just a moment, Freddy!” Marionette called.

“Mar- Er- You! I… Umm, hello.”

Marionette peeked over the top of the stall again.

“Hello to you too, Freddy. We just need a couple more minutes.”

“Err, of course. Take your time,” Freddy said awkwardly.

Chica didn’t even question it, not when Freddy was so obvious and with Foxy already getting namedropped. She just watched as Marionette bent back down, eyeing the strange animatronic.

“Chica, I heard you were the first animatronic awake here. Is that true?” he asked.

Everything considered, Chica decided to just go along with this. If he was really from back then… Well, it wasn’t like she had anything to hide anyways, and this was pretty much her first chance to gossip in ages.

She nodded.

“So, you’ve been here a long time. Do you know if anyone went missing here? Any staff members or customers?”

Chica shook her head. Either she didn’t know, or she simply hadn’t heard.

“Well, that’s good to hear. How about accidents? Have there been any of those?”

Chica thought, looking up to the corner for a second, and then nodded nonchalantly.

“Really?” Marionette asked in surprise- dread. “What happened?”

Chica shrugged again.

“But the details, what do you know?”

Chica shook her head again. She then bent her arms to make bunny ears above her head. She couldn’t possibly mean Vanny.

“…Bonnie?” Marionette guessed.

Chica nodded. She then made a talking motion with her hand and pointed to herself.

“Bonnie told you?” he asked. “How did he know about it? Did he say?”

“Bonnie had excellent hearing. He often heard things he wasn’t supposed to, and often repeated them right back to the technicians. He thought it was funny, but…” Freddy trailed off.

“That’s… concerning to hear. Considering Bonnie’s… What do you think happened to him?” he quietly asked.

He didn’t expect it, but Chica got a sad look to her eyes. She shook her head solemnly. She didn’t know.

“None of us know what happened to him,” Freddy somberly said.

“I’m so sorry. I’m going to try to find out what happened to him. He must be here somewhere,” Marionette said, recalling what Jake had said on the matter.

“If you do then please tell us. Even if it is not what we want to hear. We just… need to know,” Freddy said.

That ‘we’ sounded an awful lot like an ‘I’.

“I will, I promise,” Marionette swore. Then he sighed. “But if I could ask an unpleasant question… Do you know about any… deaths here at the Pizzaplex?”

“What? No! Nothing like that has ever happened at the Pizzaplex!” Freddy vehemently denied.

Marionette looked to Chica for her answer. Her lack of surprise at the question was rather telling. She shook her head, paused, and then gave another shrug. She didn’t know, she didn’t think so.

“That’s a relief to hear,” Marionette said.

That was somewhat of a lie. It was good to hear, but he knew it wasn’t true. He knew what he had smelled in that elevator, and he knew Freddy wasn’t a fluke.

“Is there anything else you can tell me?”

Chica gave him a funny look.

“Sorry, that’s a little too broad of a question, I guess. But thank you for helping me. I hope someday I will be able to return the favor.” Marionette reached for the door. “Let me start by helping you get free.”

He pulled at the door handle expecting to jiggle it loose and free Chica. Only to find it wedged so tightly that even a firm tug did nothing to dislodge it.

 “…Oh… Well, it seems to be, ah, wedged?” Marionette said sheepishly. “…Let’s try something else.”

He leaned down towards her with his hands out. She pulled back with a questioning look, looking between his face and his hands. He gave her an assuring smile and gestured his hands down towards hers, wiggling his fingers.

Still suspicious, Chica slowly reached up and touched his hand, recoiled quickly with a shudder, and then got her nerve to reach out again. His soft fingers lacing into her hard ones.

“Freddy, can you pull her legs, please?”

“Of course. Just give me a second…”

There was some movement outside of the stall. At one point Chica turned her head abruptly and narrowed her eyes, but the noise wasn’t enough to distinguish what had happened.

“Alrighty! I am in position!” Freddy called.

“And I am going to push in three, two, one…”

Marionette pushed back against Chica’s hands as Freddy carefully pulled at her legs. With minimal effort they were able to push her free from under the door.

She quickly got up and brushed off her belly of any invisible grime while Marionette opened the stall door.

“It might’ve helped if I had unlocked it,” he casually tossed out with a smile.

Chica didn’t look amused. Freddy just looked downright awkward.

“Well, I really should be off.” Marionette clasped his hands together before offering one to Chica. “Chica, it was a pleasure to meet you. Hopefully next time we meet it’s under better circumstances.”

Chica just seemed confused by the gesture. Specifically, why he was acting like this had been some sort of pleasant visit. Her ‘are you kidding me’ look said it all. Yet perhaps out of reflex or humbling, Chica dropped her hand limply onto his. He did all the shaking.

“Just one more thing…”

She quirked a brow- or quirked an eyelid- at his change in tone. His smile was still frozen on his face.

“I know about your… interest in chasing children who are alone.”

That startled her.

“It’s not your fault. Afton Robotics… they did terrible things. Those impulses are not your fault,” Marionette sympathized. “…Though I should warn you. If I ever see you attack a child while I am present, I will retaliate. I know you cannot control yourself, but neither can I. So please, for us both to sleep better, resist.”

Normally Chica wouldn’t have taken kindly to a threat like that from some trespassing mime who was siblings with the doll that had been running around giving her and Roxy headaches.

It was the fact that he said something virtually identical to what Ennard told her that was so eerie. Like they knew something that she didn’t, and that she hadn’t even noticed.

“But I am sorry. I know some of what you’ve been through. I was a child at the old Freddy’s too…” Marionette explained. His fingers wrapped around hers and squeezed. “If you ever need anything, please, I will be around. I’m also good friends with Ennard, so I could-.”

Chica suddenly grabbed his hand and yanked him in. Her eyes wide with excitement at the drop of that name.

A more genuine smile returned to his face. “Yes, that Ennard.”

It was like night and day. All at once Chica went from aloof and frustrated to as bubbly as she was depicted to be on her posters. Both onlookers were well aware that if she could speak, she would certainly be talking now. Alas, Marionette was more than aware of the clock, and he knew that by now Jeremy was likely ready to go.

“But that will have to wait for another time. I’m sorry, but I must be going,” Marionette said. Him gently pulling his hand back from hers.

She got a disappointed look but knew he was right. It was creeping ever closer to opening and if he was caught- well, that would be bad for all of them, not just him.

“But I will see you both again. Freddy, Chica, have a good night and good luck with tomorrow’s shows,” Marionette said.

He began to turn into a spin only to stop short.

“One last thing. About my sister.” He tilted his head to look over his shoulder at Chica. “Please, don’t chase her again.”

It didn’t hold the same weight behind it as his previous warning, or veiled threat, had. Yet Chica still felt a little unnerved by it. Everything about this weird Puppet creature made him uncomfortable.

…But he knew Ennard. Even if he didn’t, she didn’t trust the human employees enough to tell them. Not after what they did to her.

Marionette gave a spin and vanished into nothing. Chica hadn’t the slightest clue where he was gone, but it felt like he had disappeared. Not just visually but his whole being- poof- gone.

She still reached out to make sure and waved her arm into nothingness. Not just a trick, he was really not there.

“Well, that was something,” Freddy said.

She looked to him with her hand on her hip and an unconvinced look in her eyes.

“Err, umm, I should… I suppose I should be going,” Freddy said. He started to shuffle back towards the door.

Chica brushed her hand at him, a dismissive “Go ahead.”

“I will see you later,” Freddy promised. Then rushed off- to get back to Gregory, but she thought to avoid any questions.

She had plenty of them herself, but they weren’t ones he was going to answer. Ones about that weird Marionette guy, darling Ennard, and what they knew that she didn’t.

That was going to stick with her for a while. Though in the meantime, she had to get out of the shoppe. Just the smell of food in the other room was killing her, bathroom crawling or not.

She felt so confused.

…But she also felt a little clear headed. How weird.

Chapter 77

Chapter Summary

Balloon Boy has unexpected repercussions when a few choice things spill out into the open- but he's not the only one who will make unexpected connections.

It wasn’t easy to read Jake’s expressions.

Now, it wasn’t the first time Jeremy had been around an animatronic with no way of emoting facially. In those cases, body language was what you had to go on. Some animatronics purposefully exaggerating their motions to get their points across. Jake was a little more subtle, a little more relaxed, so Jeremy hadn’t initially picked up on him being lost in thought until Marionette made it clear.

Since it was just the two of them walking back to the daycare, Jeremy had to go off his own feelings, and he felt like Jake was feeling pretty good. He didn’t detect a hint of nervousness as they quietly chatted on the way to the daycare. It was so much like chatting with just another worker.

Then they stepped through the daycare security door and somehow, Jeremy just felt the nervousness pouring off Jake. He didn’t notice anything distinct to note, except maybe his silence, but he could just feel it.

They headed through the gate and started down the walkway towards the stairs. Jeremy looked down into the daycare and brightened up as he spotted Button and Bow sitting on the soft mats by the check-out desk. It looked like they were working on a puzzle- or fussing on where to put pieces from how their hands were moving.

He didn’t go unnoticed though as he caught sight of Daisy suddenly prancing into view, stooping on pointe and waving up to him with both arms. He knew it was her just from how she moved.

“Looks like we’ve been spotted,” Jeremy said. He waved back at her with a smile and Jake looked over as well. “Hey! We’re back!”

Button and Bow looked up and Max turned his head to look over.

And suddenly Sun leapt out of the nearest play structure and onto the netting right in front of them. His fingers tight in the loops, his points jittering and head twitching.

Jeremy didn’t need any extra cues to know that Sun was upset.

“Heeey,” Jake greeted with a stiff wave of his own. “We’ll be right down, uh…” He began to softly nudge Jeremy in the back muttering, “Go, go,” under his breath.

“Not so fast!” Sun hissed. His voice melding into Moon’s as he did.

Jake could only watch as he clamored up the netting to the top and then jumped down from it onto the railing, and then hopping down from it onto the floor.

“Or we could just talk here. How’s it going?” Jake awkwardly asked. Yanking his hand from Jeremy’s back to rub his own neck.

“Don’t you dare “Oh, hey! How’s it going, Buddy?” me! Where have you been?!” Sunny scolded. He planted his hands on his hips and tapped his foot.

“I went with Mari and Jerry to go see Bee and hang out.”

“Oh, and you didn’t think of, I don’t know, TELLING ME?”

“Well… Yeah, but I… Yeah, that was a bad call,” Jake quietly agreed.

“Maybe. Just maybe it was. I was worried sick! And I couldn’t LE-EAVE because I had kids in the daycare!” Sun vented. “I’m down here fighting a losing battle and I’ve gotta worry about you getting shredded by Monty out in Pizza Land!”

“…First off, what?” Jake asked.

Sun was now outright shaking with pent up frustration.

But that one comment he made hadn’t flown over Jeremy’s head. He winced at it.

“They didn’t give you a hard time did they?” he dared to ask.

“What?! Oh- wait, no. No, no, no! They were perfect little angels!” Sunny clasped his hands together and rested them on his cheek, almost identically to how Moon did in his candy posters. “…And then Satan showed up.”

Jeremy knew that Balloon Boy was Satan.

“…Yeah, he does that sometimes,” Jeremy sighed defeatedly.

“So, thanks for the warning… Mari?” Sunny looked around with his hands still poised, then dropped them onto his hips. “Now, where did he run off to?”

“He’s just taking a breather out in the atrium. No biggie,” Jake assured. He then turned to assure Jeremy. “He deals with this all the time. Kids acting up. He’s just a little-.”

“ANGRY. YEAH, I THINK HE NOTICED,” Sunny interjected.

Jake sighed and slowly turned back to him.

“I know I messed up. I left without telling you where I was going and that scared you, and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that, but leaving… I know it was taking a risk, but-.”

“A huge risk,” Sunny muttered.

“But I had to get out of that room for a while.” Jake lowered his voice. “It’s suffocating me. I had to take the chance; this might be my only night to do it. I just… I HAD to.”

All at once, all the heat deflated out of the Daycare Attendant and his arms slouched at his sides.

Jake also slouched as well.

The three stood there silently for a good ten seconds.

Then, as much as Jeremy didn’t want to, he broke the silence.

“Sorry, but I’ve got to… I’ve really got to get going. We’ve only got a couple of hours left until daytime,” he carefully explained.

“OH! Oh riiight, the pick-up! Mm-hmm. Do you have your pick-up pass?” Sunny chirped. His tune changing immediately. Still ticking loudly and a little twitchy but trying his hardest to cover it up.

Jeremy started to reach for his wallet to grab it when Sunny put up his hand.

“Save it! This one’s on me,” he chirped. He gave an arm sweeping wave, “Follow me!” and turned on his heel. He very quickly regarded Jake with a flat, “We’ll talk about this later,” and then began to march off towards the stairs.

Jake looked to Jeremy, and he gave a lopsided and sympathetic smile then quickly followed as to not get on Sun’s bad side.

In the meantime, Max and Balloon Boy were catching wind of the scene down in the daycare. Well, technically all of them could hear the exchange, but they were paying close attention.

“Did you catch that hissy fit up there?”

“What am I, deaf? Ha ha ha, you ought to be proud! You know you stirred that fire.”

Balloon Boy was looking at him intensely. Max knew what he wanted.

“You’re really going to make me do it, aren’t you?”

Balloon Boy laughed cheekily.

“You better be keeping count of all these favors,” Max swore.

He then fell silent as Sunny scaled the beside the door, squeezed through the netting, and dropped into the play area.

“Ooookay, my little Munchkins! Your Papa’s here to pick you up!” he announced.

The little ones started to hurry towards the door. Forget-Me-Not eyed Max and Balloon Boy as she passed by, obviously catching on but deciding not to rat them out. Instead giving them a warning stare for whatever they were plotting.

Though Max had no plans of giving Jeremy any headaches. He really needed a break. No, this was going to be much quieter. He spotted Sunny scooping up Plushtrap and called for him.

“Hey, Sun Man. Think you could do me a favor?”

Balloon Boy had moved out of view by time Sunny slowly looked over. The Daycare Attendant’s frozen smile held a wary sluggishness to it. Perhaps he was giving him the same warning Forget-Me-Not had.

“Yesssss?” Sun asked. He sounded suspicious.

“Could you tote me outside? I don’t want Jeremy to have to do it.”

“Oh. Oh! Certainly! One moment, please!”

Sunny skipped back to Jeremy, who was kneeling greeting his excitable pack, and handed off Plushtrap. Then he pushed the laundry cart through the door- which Jake was holding open- as it was easier to get it over the bump while it was empty. He then skipped right back to Max.

“Here we go! All aboard the- wait, where can I touch you?”

“Wherever doesn’t get me dropped.”

“Thank you. All aboard the Sunny Train!”

Sunny scooped Max up from under the arms before immediately falling forward and partially dropping him again, not expecting that amount of weight. It was nothing though and he just readjusted his grip and hoisted him up before carrying him towards the door.

He felt funny. Max’s body had this weird feeling- like a magnet effect but without the pull. Tingling along his hands and up his arms.

All of a sudden, he was reminded of the old Freddy’s. The one he used to go to as a kid. He could remember it like it had just happened- remembering the pizza slinging incident, the other children, the animatronics, that time Spring Bonnie kept stumbling all over the place and almost fell off stage, that time some employee tried to lecture him about acting out, that time the power went out and everybody really freaked out-.

He couldn’t stop thinking about them. Like something was squirming through his head remembering stuff he had forgotten ages ago. It almost made him feel floaty, like he did before he had switched bodies. When Bunny-.

Suddenly realizing that something was very wrong, Sunny dropped Max with a start and recoiled his hands. He took a wary step back.

“What was that?” he asked uneasily.

“Oh, sorry! I should’ve warned you, ha ha ha. I’ve got these scary psychic powers and sometimes they just drift. No worries, no worries. It’s not like you’re asleep or anything.”

As smoothly as Max brushed it off, Sunny felt exceptionally more wary. He started to slowly reach down again.

“I’ve got him!” Jeremy volunteered.

Since Sunny had made it to the door, he heard the exchange and was able to lean in and hoist Max up before putting him into the laundry cart.

“Not to be difficult, Jere, but how are you going to get this cart up those stairs with me in it?” Max asked.

“…Good point.”

Jeremy promptly pulled him right back out of the cart and set him on the floor.

Sunny watched the scene uneasily, rubbing at his arms awkwardly. When suddenly Balloon Boy came scuttling past him, causing him to jump and hike his leg up in surprise. Though that surprise quickly turned.

“Ngh…” His eye lights narrowed before he turned and headed inside. “I’ll be right back.”

“Sure,” Jake agreed. He knew that tone and he was standing clear of it.

“So, Mari’s not back yet. I can probably move the cart myself. Then I can carry Max up and whoever can hold on,” Jeremy brainstormed.

“Why don’t you just take the elevator?” Jake asked.

Jeremy’s head whipped to him. “There’s an elevator?”

Jake pointed to it and Jeremy stared for a long moment.

“I really wish I would’ve noticed that when we came in,” he murmured. He then leaned down to pick Max up again. “Well, back in the cart!”

“Not so fa-ast~!” Sunny chirped as he came back through the doorway. He had something hidden behind his back. He waltzed up to the little ones and bent over to address them. “Since you’ve all been such wonderful little Sunflowers, you deserve an extra special treat!”

“Is it more candy?” Button asked.

“Nope! Even better!” He whipped his hands out, revealing two sheets. “STICKERS!”

Plushtrap was chattering in excitement as Sunny crouch to his level.

“Which one do you want, little buddy?” he asked.

Plushtrap pointed to a Monty sticker and Sun piped out the square holding it and handed it over. Then he started to do it for the others, making sure to get each one before popping up and unexpectedly showing off the remaining stickers to Jeremy.

“Now you! For taking care of my little runaway,” Sunny said. There was an edge of concern or upset on his voice, but he covered it well.

“I’ll take… Freddy.”

“Ooh, good choice!” Sunny chirped. He pipped it out and handed it over. “Would you- umm- Max- would you like one…?”

“Sure. I’ll stick it on the remote. Give me whatever.”

“Hmm… Here! You can- You can have a Freddy too! He’s, heh, very photogenic.”

Sunny held out the sticker by the tips of his fingers, afraid to directly touch Max after earlier. Eventually the magician realized that Sunny was not going to cave and was forced to take it. The whole motion stiff and reluctant.

Then Sunny slowly turned towards Balloon Boy. His ever-present smile looking a little less welcoming as he towered over him.

“I’ve got a sticker for you too!”

Balloon Boy gasped in an exaggerated and mocking way.

“That’s riiight. All for you,” Sunny replied. He leaned over with his hands on his knees. “A reward for that little game you played with me, hmm? Yup, yup! And here you go…”

Sunny peeled a sticker off a smaller slip that he had hidden until now and promptly stuck the sticker smack to Balloon Boy’s forehead.

It was a red no entry symbol.

“BANNED! You are BANNED! Out! Vamoose! Do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars!”

“Aww, BB, what did you do?” Jeremy asked. At his side Daisy put her hands on her hips discouragingly and Plushtrap stared mouth agape.

“I had too much fun,” Balloon Boy said.

“Way to go,” Max chimed in.

“Sunny, I’m so sorry-,” Jeremy tried to apologize.

“No, no. Don’t be sorry! It’s not your fault,” Sunny said cheerily. He then snapped his head back to Balloon Boy with a growl. “It’s HIS fault.”

Balloon Boy laughed.

Jeremy dropped his head into his hand.

“BUT him aside, I would love, love to have your little dollies drop in any time! Just give me a ring and a head’s up if you ever need a babysitter!”

“Thanks, Sunny. I really owe you.”

“They’re not exactly babies. Most of these fellas are older than you are,” Max chimed in again.

“But that’s a long story and we’ve got to get out of here,” Jeremy interrupted. The last thing he needed was another argument coaxing someone else in here. “Thank you again, Sunny. Jake, we had a great time. Hope to see you again. Hope you two have a good night. Come on, girls- guys, we’re leaving. Let’s go,” he rushed out.

“Bye-bye!” Sunny waved at the little ones.

“Goodbye Sundrop.” “Goodbye Sunshine.”

Button and Bow said at the same time. They looked to each other.

“No, no. His name is Sundrop, like the candy,” Button whispered.

“No, he said the candy was named after him,” Bow whispered back.

Jeremy scooped both up and put them into the laundry cart as they continued to go back and forth on which was the more appropriate name.

There was really only one right answer.

“See you around!” Max called after him. “Andrew.”

Sunny froze in place and stared at the short magician. Psychic powers, he said. Had he seen- he had definitely seen- he knew exactly who he-.

“S-Same to you, Buddy!” Sunny shouted, flustered, and stepped back through the doorway and yanked the door shut behind him. Leaving Jake standing there with his hand still up and no door in it.

Sunny and Jake weren’t the only ones who were surprised by the scene.

“That was Andrew?” Balloon Boy asked. His voice deflated to something much meeker. Both child and adult voices quiet. “…Do you mean the kid with the curly black hair? He used to wear a crocodile mask?”

“Yeah, that’s him. Lines up with Foxy’s pizza story too,” Max said. “Oh, you haven’t heard that one? Let me fill you in.”

“Guys, I asked you to be on your best behavior,” Jeremy said with exasperation. He gestured down at the little ones circling his feet and climbing his legs. “These guys got it. What happened?”

“I kind of got my lines crossed. I thought he was one of those jerks who use to hang out around Gabe,” Max admitted.

“Well- okay, I get that, but Sun’s been having a hard time just working here. He doesn’t need any more trouble. Especially not for stuff he might’ve done ages ago. Kids and teens do stuff they regret. Trust me, I know from experience.”

“You’ve got a point there… Okay, Jere. You win. You’ve got me feeling a little bad for that sunny sucker. I mean, he was a real pain, but he was just some little punk with an attitude problem. No different than us. Isn’t that right, Beebs?”

Balloon Boy was weirdly silent.

“He agrees.”

“Then let’s get out of Sunny’s hair before something a whole lot scarier shows up,” Jeremy offered.

“Who, the clown?” Max asked.

“Worse. The morning crew coming to open the place.”

Max couldn’t really argue with that.

Jeremy got them loaded up, including the still eerily silent Balloon Boy, said goodbye to Jake, and pushed them into the elevator. Jake waved them off before turning his attention to the wooden doors.

Sunny dropped onto his backside on the other side of the door. His arms crossed tight and his legs stretched out in front of him. To think that little weirdo had seen all of that- “Ugh.” He shuddered at the thought.

There was a knock on the heavy door. Sun dropped his head back against it.

“Whaaaaat?” he groaned.

“You locked me out,” Jake called back.

“Oh, NOW you want in.”

“Sunny…”

Sunny reluctantly dragged himself up and pressed the button before pushing open the door, letting Jake into the daycare. Things were still tense, and both could tell.

“What was that?” Jake asked.

Sunny instantly cracked.

“I don’t know! He got inside my head when I was carrying him out!” he vented. Grabbing his points with exasperation and frustration. “And now I gotta spend all night wondering who he was- UGH!”

He wandered over to the pillowed area, where the Bidybabs had been doing their picture, and dropped to the floor. Turning himself as he did to land on his back on one, draped back over the curve with an arm over his eyes in an overdramatic display of exhaustion. Though considering the night he had it probably felt appropriate.

Jake sat down alongside him.

“I guess I should’ve been here. Not hiding up in our room, but down here helping you,” he sympathized. “…Maybe next time?”

“Ehh… If you want. If there IS a next time,” Sunny lamented.

“There probably will be. They looked like they had a good time,” Jake said.

Sunny peeked out at Jake before lowering his arm. He contemplated his words for a little while, tapping his fingers together almost anxiously.

“Did… Did you have a good time?” he finally asked.

Jake was surprised by the initiative. “Sure!... Do you want to hear about it?”

“Ehhh…” Sunny made a so-so gesture before nodding, folding his hands together on his chest. “…Mmm, okay. Might gimmie a few laughs.”

“Well, first off, we headed up to the West Arcade…”

Jake began to retell the night in extensive detail. While Sunny was still not keen on this whole splitting without leave a note or warning, it was nice to hear Jake so excited about something that wasn’t about Staff Bot stuff.

That alone started to make Sunny feel a little better.

Meanwhile, Jeremy and the cart barely fit in the lift together but managed enough to ride to the second floor. He then he began to push them back towards the entranceway. He didn’t realize until he was doing so how much having a second person pulling helped the process. It wasn’t impossible, but after a long night it was tiring.

“Hey!”

Jeremy’s head snapped up to see Natalie waving at him from beside the gate. Smitty and Buddy were both standing at attention nearby. Forget-Me-Not peeked out of the cart as well and spied ahead as Jeremy wheeled them to the other blond.

“Change of plans. Mari’s held up by Chica, so I’m going to be your escort for the evening,” she said.

She grabbed the other side of the cart and helped him guide it through the gate.

“Thanks,” Jeremy said. “When you say ‘held up’?”

“She caught him singing in the atrium and chased him down the east hall- down towards the bakery.”

Jeremy gawked at her.

“Yeah, it was a little messy,” Natalie agreed with a knowing smile.

“That Mari. Always the showman, ha ha ha!” Max complimented.

Natalie gave the cart a tug and Jeremy went back to pushing, assisting as they turned the cart in the direction of the security door.

“Here’s the deal though: if anyone does see us, you’re my brother,” Natalie added.

“Won’t that get you in trouble?” Jeremy asked.

“Not as much as if you were some guy off the street. Or, worse, the man they thought vandalized Rockstar Row. They still think that’s you.”

“… Wait! They do?!” Jeremy sputtered. “They’re not still planning on pressing charges, are they? They couldn’t! There’s… There can’t be enough evidence to pin it on me…” His voice trailed off as he recalled that Freddy’s didn’t exactly need evidence.

“No, don’t worry. It sounds like Wight’s letting it drop to not mess things up with Foxy’s. Ness told me,” Natalie assured him.

“Great! That’s good to hear. Really good to hear,” Jeremy sighed with relief.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it,” Natalie assured. She paused thoughtfully. “…But then again it DID come from Ness, and I don’t know what game she’s playing. But I don’t think- No, don’t worry about it. I don’t think she was lying,” she quickly tacked on, noticing that fear creeping back onto Jeremy face. “Now come on. Let’s get you all out of here.”

Now there was something he could agree with.

She helped him move the carts from elevator to elevator until they reached the basement and then helped him lead it into the loading dock. Smitty followed along loyally, though they had lost Buddy halfway through the atrium when he spotted something on the floor by the food court and wheeled over to start mopping it up.

By time they got into the basement they had gotten turned around with Jeremy pulling and Natalie pushing- and she insisted that she didn’t need to switch places- and there still wasn’t any sign of Marionette. They made their way into the loading dock and to the exit door before stopping beside it.

“We’ll just leave the cart here and I’ll carry them out,” Jeremy said.

“Good, because we’re not getting this up those stairs,” Natalie said, slightly winded.

Jeremy gathered up all the Minireenas onto his shoulders and arms where they held on, then managed to scoop up both Bidybabs and Plushtrap. He walked over to the exit door and pushed it open with his arm.

“Just wait here with them and I’ll be right b-.”

Only to come face to face with a white mask peeking through the doorway.

“ACK!”

He hobbled slightly and Marionette quickly reached out an arm to steady him.

“Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you,” he apologized. He slid in through the partially open door.

“N-No problem. I’m just a little jumpy. Basement and all, uh… How’d it go with Chica?”

“You heard it too?” Marionette asked in surprise. His smile becoming much more flustered in an instant.

“Nat told me she saw her chase you off,” Jeremy explained. He gestured a thumb to Natalie.

“Hey,” she said with a wave. “Everything go well?”

“For the most part. Thankfully, Freddy was there to help us get her out from under the bathroom stall.”

Natalie scrunched up her face questioningly.

“Heard what? Did Chica do something?” Jeremy asked.

Marionette gave a flippant wave. “Oh, nothing! Something like that! I headed straight to the daycare once I was off the hook, but you had already left by time I got there. How did things go with Sunny?”

“As a matter of fact: bad.”

Marionette looked over at the cart and at Balloon Boy who was peeking out. Balloon Boy laughed proudly.

“Good guess, and yes. But I meant about the whole Jake sneaking out thing,” Jeremy clarified. He made a light hissing noise. “He didn’t like that.”

“Wait, Jake was out?” Natalie asked in surprise. “That’s like spotting Bigfoot. How’d you pull that off?”

“Oh, we just dragged him up and down the Pizzaplex, encouraged some risky behaviors, nothing that we don’t usually do,” Marionette joked. As he did, he acknowledged Smitty who rolled up beside him and was currently shining his light on him. He smiled at the Staff Bot with amusement. “Hello to you too! Goodness, everyone’s so eager to say hello to me tonight.”

“Smitty, heel,” Natalie said.

Much to their surprise- and even her own- Smitty obeyed that unserious command and rolled back over to Natalie’s side. He lowered his flashlight and looked to her expectantly. She smiled back at him before turning back to the others.

“I need to head back upstairs. Think you’ve got it from here?”

“No less than usual,” Jeremy joked, readjusting his grip around the animatronics in his arms.

“We are actually very good,” Bow disagreed.

“Yes. Sundrop told us so,” Button added.

“No, no. His name is not Sundrop, it’s Sunshine,” Bow argued.

“You keep saying that, but it’s not true.”

“I’ve got to get out of here before this gets ugly. Stay safe driving home!” Jeremy said. He started to push open the door with his arm before Marionette got it for him. “Thank you.”

“I could say the same to you. Take care!”

With that, Natalie went on her way and they went on theirs. Her safely returning to her office while they got out into the car and were soon driving out of the parking lot.

It was while Jeremy was carrying Max to the car that he started to notice something was up with Balloon Boy. He had let himself into the passenger seat- something very like him- but with no laugh once he was noticed. He was silent, staring ahead at the dashboard as Jeremy got in. Dead silent- though Balloon Boy was frequently eerily silent it was weird to have him silent AND stiflingly still.

Especially since it lined up with that banning at the daycare. The sticker was still on his head. Was it possible that he felt bad for teasing Sun? Or got his feelings hurt by being banned?

Well, there was only one way to find out.

“What’s up, BB? You’ve been pretty quiet,” Jeremy said.

Balloon Boy didn’t reply.

Marionette peeked over the shoulder of the passenger seat and down at him. He tilted his head.

“What’s that sticker on your head?” he asked.

“He got himself banned from the daycare,” Max chimed in.

“Uh oh.”

“Yes, that.” Max’s eyes snapped to the rearview mirror. “What’s bothering him is that Sun guy. Now that we have a name for the face and a face to put back on the name, we get to remember all the fun stunts he pulled.”

“He was that bad?” Jeremy asked, looking in the mirror.

“Not as bad as Gabe, ha ha ha! But oh boy, he was something alright. Always acting out and throwing little fits when he didn’t get his way. Just a real snot-nosed brat, and he wasn’t even that much younger.” Max’s eyes rolled to Marionette and he asked, “He clocked you with a pizza slice, right? That was the deal?”

“…Yes.” Mari said quietly.

“Totally on-brand for him. Worst part is that after all this time he’s just-.”

“He’s my brother.”

A tense silence fell over the car as everyone processed the weight of that interjection.

Jeremy looked over to Balloon Boy in the passenger seat. “He is? Are you sure?” he asked in surprise.

“As sure as I am that I had a brother named Andrew. Who went missing.”

There was a tense silence in the car. Only interrupted by the car itself and by the soft, anxious chattering of Plushtrap’s teeth.

“…Oh.” Even Max sounded uncharacteristically awkward. “…You could’ve told me that before I started going off on him.”

“What’s the point? You were right. Andrew acted out for attention, and nobody liked him because of it.”

“That’s not true. I’m assuming you… liked him?” Marionette asked. A little unsureness edging into his voice by the end. Balloon Boy’s matter-of-fact retelling was having him second guessing butting in.

“I didn’t always like him, but I loved him. He was my brother! Half-brother, but still my brother... But our parents weren’t in on the whole family thing.” Balloon Boy let out a deflating balloon noise as a sigh. “Dad was never around and Mom… she had this stupid idea on how to raise kids. Andrew was always being bad, so she would give me special treatment to encourage him to be better. It didn’t work.”

“I think my parents did that too,” Jeremy quietly sympathized.

“It doesn’t do anything but turns kids against each other. Andrew thought I was their favorite and I knew what she was doing, so I knew all the gifts were just to get back at Andrew. But I didn’t do anything about it.”

“You couldn’t,” Marionette said. He knew that feeling well.

“I could’ve stopped him. He told me he was running away and I didn’t do anything because I knew he’d get in trouble. And I thought he was going to come back, but he didn’t… I’m pretty sure he went back to Freddy’s.”

“I’m so sorry…”

“It’s not your fault, BB. You didn’t know what was going to happen. You were just trying to look out for him,” Jeremy said.

“No, that was on me. But I know they wouldn’t have gone after him anyways. I could’ve, but… I don’t think that would’ve changed anything.”

“How’d your parents take that?” Max asked.

“They were still thinking he’d just show up whenever when I disappeared… I bet they’re happy wherever they are.”

Balloon Boy laughed darkly, bitterly, and slumped into the seat. His head thumping against the car door.

Jeremy looked to Balloon Boy and back to the road, and then glanced to Marionette who was now looking at him. He looked just as concerned as Jeremy felt. There had to be something he could do.

“We’ve still got time. I can turn around right now and we can go back into the Pizzaplex,” he offered. “You can talk to him! Forget the banning thing, you should tell him the truth.”

“Yes! I agree! This changes everything. It won’t matter what happened tonight,” Marionette chimed in.

“No. It’s better we don’t. He’s got a good thing… He’s got a thing going for him. All that telling him is going to do is remind him about all that junk. I didn’t even remember it until now…”

“Are you sure?” Jeremy asked doubtfully.

“I sure hope he doesn’t remember anything about that old life.”

Jeremy frowned and let the matter drop. He wasn’t sure if he agreed, but it really wasn’t his place to say. If this was what Balloon Boy wanted, then he would go along with it and let it drop for now.

“I understand… but he, well, he remembers the pizza slice incident too unfortunately,” Marionette finally said.

“…God damn it.”

…

Mike woke up and found himself staring at the office ceiling. His head half-wedged in between the arm of the office couch and the back of it.

“Must’ve fallen asleep,” he thought. He checked his watch and swore under his breath. He grabbed the back of the couch and pulled himself upright. “Fritz, you were supposed to wake me up.”

He looked over to see Fritz slouched in the office chair with his head tilted back as far as it would good.

“Fritz,” Mike called again.

Fritz jolted awake only to grab for the back of his neck with a hiss.

“That was a mistake,” he muttered.

“You can say that again,” Mike agreed. He wasn’t exactly feeling so hot either with a couple hours of sleep on a short couch.

“That was a mistake,” Fritz doubled down. Head still cocked as he tried to massage the soreness away.

“Did we finish?”

“Pretty much.”

Fritz sat forward again, running his hands through his hair and scratching his head, and squinting down at the paperwork. He stared at it for a couple of long seconds before straightening the stack and setting it aside.

“Good enough,” he said. He leaned back in the chair and stretched with a sigh.

Mike leaned back on the couch.

“Feel up to driving home?” he tiredly asked.

“I would, but I really shouldn’t be driving when I’ve already got whiplash.”

“I’ll drive,” Mike offered.

That is, Mike offered as he was slumped into the couch and making no move to get up.

“…Or we could just hang out here for twenty minutes and open,” Mike added.

Fritz half-laughed. “I don’t know if want the sort of customers who’re going to be looking for pizza at four am.”

“Funny you say that, because that sounds exactly like something we’d do.”

“Open at four am or go out for pizza at four am?”

“Both.”

Mike sat there for a moment before checking his watch again.

“Jere and Mare have got to be home by now,” he mumbled.

“Think it went alright?”

“Sure. They would’ve called me if it hadn’t.”

“I thought there wasn’t any cell service,” Fritz reminded.

“Their landlines work.”

“Right. I’m not all awake.”

“Yeah,” Mike agreed. His lack of a more cohesive answer giving it away.

After a long minute or two of them just sitting there in the office half awake, Fritz started to fiddle with his own wristwatch. Unlike Mike’s it was digital.

“Okay, here’s the plan. I’m setting my alarm for two hours,” Fritz said. He clicked at his watch a little bit. Then stretched out his arm. “Throw me that little pillow down there.”

Mike tossed it over to him. “Knock yourself out.”

Fritz then crossed his arms around the pillow and laid his head on it, on the desk, still sitting precariously in the office chair.

Mike watched him with mild amusement before settling back into the couch, kicking his shoes off as he did. He pulled the other throw pillow over his face, not feeling like getting up to turn out the light. It’s not like it stopped them from falling asleep the first time.

He was almost about to fade out again when he heard a shuffling and the office door creaking open. He peeked out from under the pillow to see Foxy’s head poking in.

“The bloody hey ‘er you two still doin’ here?”

“We’re going to take a two-hour nap and head home,” Fritz said, not even lifting his head to address Foxy.

Foxy looked between the two men, one sprawled on the couch and the other sleeping at an office desk, and shook his head.

“Workin’ with a couple’a weirdos.”

He left and shut the door behind him. A few long seconds later, Mike dignified it with a response.

“Takes one to know one.”

“Zing,” Fritz agreed.

…

He had to find her, but where could she be? She was in the house somewhere, but where? He had to ask someone.

Charlie was out visiting in the living room, so he checked Jeremy’s room, but there was nobody there. Not even any of the little Mini-matronics. He would have to know so that meant finding him, and since he wasn’t here he had to be on the other side of the house.

Which was a huge problem because Charlie’s family was out in the living room. Sammy, their mother, and a bunch of other unidentified people were all mingling out in the living room.

But he had to find Jeremy. He got halfway down the hall before crouching down and beginning to shuffle along the floor like an inch worm. Slowly sliding into the edge of the living room.

The moment he breached the door alarm bells went off. People rushed over and saw him and began to panic and scream.

Which was a seeming overreaction. Michael, Springtrap, was currently laying on the couch with Charlie and Sammy sitting in front of his legs and nobody had a problem with him. Charlie was disguised as a human, as she did when visitors came, so nobody knew that she was a puppet too.

It was a weird first impression to leave on the family, Charlie’s mother screaming and freaking out while the other family members kind of just congregated around staring and pointing. One man in sweats and a heavy jogging coat looked familiar. Sammy looked VERY familiar. He almost looked identical to Carlton.

But he couldn’t waste time, so he got up and ran as fast as he could- like a speeding bullet, zooming through the kitchen and through the door into the other hallway that led to the other side of the house. The groovy orange wallpaper trailing along beside him as he zipped past open guest room doors, like hotel rooms, searching for Jeremy.

He found him at one of the rooms towards the end of the hall laying on a bed like he had been napping. He woke up as he ran in and sat up to greet him.

“What’s going on?”

“Don’t worry about it. But where’s your friend? I want to ask her about Breelora,” he asked.

He couldn’t remember her name, but thankfully Jeremy knew exactly who he meant.

“She’s using the bathroom,” Jeremy replied.

Of course, there was only one bathroom in the house. Goodness, this many guests and only one bathroom. He needed to make sure they had toilet paper. As he ran back through the house, he stopped by kitchen to dig through the groceries left on the dining room table and managed to open a new package and pull out a roll. He then continued to race for the bathroom, trying to get past everyone before one of them tried to catch him.

But now everyone was standing in front of the hallway. Thinking fast, he dropped down and slid underneath and through their legs, the momentum carrying him all the way into the hallway before he ran to the bathroom door.

The door wasn’t opening so he knocked on it, and much to his surprise it teetered and fell into the bathroom. How did that happen? The wood must’ve rotted from the humidity- that would be a major repair.

The bathroom was certainly humid. It was downright foggy and hot, and he could hear splashing inside, from somewhere beyond the closed shower curtain.

He fumbled into the bathroom on unsteady stilts for legs and grabbed ahold of the edge of the shower curtain. He had a feeling that something was going to jump out when he opened it, but he found himself stuck there with his hand grabbing the sticky shower curtain. Water splashing out of the tub and down onto the tiled floor, soaking into the bathmat and splashing up on his legs.

He yanked the curtain aside and stared down at kicking legs in an overfilled bathtub.

He pushed the curtain and it slid all the way open and revealed the sight in full. A woman fully submerged in the bathtub, it large enough to swallow her whole, thrashing and seizing. Water spilling over the edge but constantly filling in through the faucet that her head was stuck underneath.

There was something locked around her head and eyes, some kind of helmet or headset. Locked down, weighing her down. All he could see of her face was her mouth stretched open in a stifled scream. She was drowning.

He tried to pull her out of the tub, but he couldn’t. She was too heavy, he was too weak, and something was holding her down. He couldn’t even lift her head to save her because her head was somehow wedged underneath the faucet.

The water smelled weird. Smelled like chemicals. Smelled foul like fetid lake water. Reddish. Filling her lungs.

He grabbed for a towel and yelled for help. Charlie ran up with everybody else, but they couldn’t get past the door on the floor. So, he grabbed a towel and tried to cover the woman’s mouth with it. Soak it up, soak all the water up.

But there was too much and then-.

And then it was over.

…

..

.

..

…

Mike flopped down onto the couch with a fresh cup of coffee. He was feeling surprisingly awake considering his bizarre night before, half sleeping at the office and half sleeping at home. Managing to get a few more hours of sleep once he got home before detangling himself from Marionette and dragging himself out of bed and getting ready for the day. He let Marionette sleep a little longer.

Michael was sitting on the couch beside him staring intensely at his notebook. He acknowledged Mike with a glance and a hum before studying that notebook again. Tapping his pencil against the edge of it.

“How’s it going?” Mike asked.

“Slow,” Michael replied.

Stealing a glance at the notebook, Mike realized he was drawing up schematics. He more boldly sat up to look and scooted closer.

“Are those for Charlie?” he asked.

“They are. Well, almost. Just putting down my thoughts to see them better.”

“They’re cool. I say as someone who doesn’t understand what I’m looking at.”

“Yes, you do. Here.” Michael held out the notebook and began pointing at the pieces. “Leg. Spring. Ball joint. This is my imagined joint to attach the ankle to the leg.”

“Okay, I see it now. And the spring replaces the muscle?”

“Exactly.”

“Does Charlie have springs in her legs now?”

“It feels like she does. Many of the newer models have them. For example-.”

Michael went off into an explanation of various animatronics’ mechanics that was both impressive and daunting. For someone who wanted to get into the business like Mike it was eye-opening. Interesting- he tried to soak up as much of it as he could, sponging up Michael’s schooling and experience- but it reminded him how far out of his league he was.

At some point Balloon Boy appeared and neither of them would’ve noticed if not for the short animatronic suddenly clamoring up into the armchair and then going limp.

Mike and Michael stared at the baffling flurry of legs.

“Hey, BB,” Mike greeted, assuming he wanted acknowledgement.

Balloon Boy gave a small ‘eh’ noise.

Mike looked back to Michael. “What’s up with him?”

“I’m not sure.” Michael stole a look of his own. His eyes narrowing questioningly, like he only just wondered himself.

“He had a little family reunion last night,” Max tiredly said from the corner. His eyes still fixated on the television screen.

Michael sighed. “Yes, that can do it.”

“With who?” Mike asked Balloon Boy. Even without an answer, he quickly pieced together what must’ve happened. It wasn’t too hard to guess.

“Sun Man.”

“Huh, I can see the family resemblance,” Mike said.

It wasn’t sarcasm either. Sunny had at times acted like little more than an oversized Balloon Boy. If anything, having the two be related made too much sense.

“And then he got banned for tinkering with the equipment.”

Mike raised his brows.

“No, not that equipment, you freak.”

“You can’t use words like that without raising a few eyebrows,” Mike retorted. “But that’s good to know. I can take my coffee without a whisky chaser.”

The conversation gave Michael an unexpected idea- at least, the discussion of the Daycare Attendant reminded him that he existed. From what he knew he was a more lightweight model…

“The Sun… What size is he? If you could make a comparison,” he asked Max.

Max snapped his head around. “Looking to make a salvage, ha ha ha?”

“I’m looking to score a free replacement part if it’s possible. I’ve heard of their replace and dump formula they use at the Pizzaplex.”

“We were able to replace half of his chest pretty quickly after Monty football tackled him, so I’d say that warehouse is probably stacked with parts,” Mike said. While he was getting up, and he walked over beside the armchair to pat Balloon Boy on the head. “Sounds like a hell of a night. Did you tell him?”

“No.”

“Well, your secret’s safe with us. Sorry it had to come out like that,” Mike sympathized.

He heard doors and movement in the hall and looked down it. He caught a glimpse of a familiar form at the end of the hallway darting into Jeremy’s room and then back out again. The long, dark form of Marionette. Charlie at the same time was coming out of her room and hurrying over to him.

“Morning! What’s- Mari?”

Mike’s voice caught in surprise when Marionette turned to face him and he saw his face twisted in anguish. Purple tears pouring down his mask from glowing eyes.

“Whoa, what happened? Are you okay?” Mike asked with concern. He set his coffee down on the side table and went to him.

Marionette met him at the entrance of the hallway looking almost frantic. He looked around for someone, and Mike laid his hands on his shoulders to brace him.

“Hey, what’s going on?” he gently probed.

“I had a bad dream. A terrible, terrible dream,” Marionette choked. “Where’s Jeremy?”

“He’s taking a shower. He’ll be quick, don’t worry.”

Mike rubbed his shoulders attempting to soothe him, but the Puppet was too tightly wound to calm down.

Charlie had followed and now Mike could see that she looked concerned too. Marionette acknowledged her as well.

“I-I didn’t wake you up, did I?” he asked shakily.

“No! No, no. I was just messing around in my room,” Charlie assured. She patted his back affirmingly. “Want to talk about it?”

“Not yet. I need to tell Jeremy first. I need to know if what I saw… If it was just a dream or if I saw… I need to see him. How long has he been in there?”

“A while, but unless he’s deaf he probably hears us hanging out out here,” Mike said. He squeezed Marionette’s shoulders again. “Easy. It’s okay. We’ll get this all figured out.”

“I hope I’m wrong,” Marionette said in a tiny squeak. “I hope it was just something horrible I concocted in my head…!”

Now he was getting a clearer picture of what happened, and it was concerning. Because Mike knew from experience that Marionette had nightmares, but he also had plenty of dreams that weren’t just dreams.

Without any more delay, Mike pulled Marionette into a protective hug. He rubbed up and down his back, feeling the ticking of his music box. Anxious, upset, but not overheating. Good. Mike didn’t like seeing Marionette upset, but there was nothing more frightening than feeling that fever and not knowing what it was or how to fix it. He might’ve not been able to fix this, but at least he could do whatever he could to help.

Mike held on tightly and only pulled back once the bathroom door started to open. Bumping into Michael who had come up behind him. He heard and smelled him coming but hadn’t realized he was all but on top of him until then.

“What’s going on?” Jeremy asked. From the concern on his face and how quickly he came out, likely he heard some of what was going on, as Mike predicted he would.

Marionette rounded on him quickly and Jeremy’s eyes widened at the look on his face when he did. Especially when the Puppet took him by the shoulders almost like Mike had done to him, though more out of desperation.

“When was the last time you spoke to your friend? The girl who worked at Freddy’s? She was at Animatronicon.”

“Bree?”

“Yes!” Marionette sobbed unexpectedly. “When did you call her last? When?!”

And in that one second, Mike and Charlie were up to speed. Michael was still behind but catching up.

“I-I haven’t called her. I meant to after the Pizzaplex-.”

“I need you to call her. Please. Now. Please.”

“O-Okay, I will. Right now. First thing,” Jeremy stuttered. He pointed down the hall. “I’ve got to go get her number.”

Marionette nodded and let him go, watching the blond hurry down towards his bedroom door.

In the meantime, Michael turned and headed back into the living room, gesturing as he did for them to follow.

Mike hooked an arm around Marionette’s shoulder and steered him into the living room and led him to the couch. On the way he grabbed his coffee mug and took a quick gulp. He’d surely need it. Then he sat back down, Marionette now between Michael and him, and prepared to wait it out.

Charlie started to climb into her chair, over the armrest, when she spotted Balloon Boy at the last second and slinked back off. Eventually taking a seat on the living room rug. She noticed Max looking and looked back. He gestured to Marionette with his eyes, but whether he was asking or saying something in that motion she wasn’t sure.

“I’m calling from your bedroom!” Jeremy yelled down the hall.

“Go ahead!” Mike replied.

“I know this is a godawful time, Marion, but about how big is the Sun?” Michael murmured. Side-eying him as he got his notebook back in his lap.

Marionette stared back with a dismayed expression.

“For Charlie,” Michael clarified.

“Oh! Umm, he’s… About this tall on me, but he’s often hunching over-.”

Mike almost cracked wise, but he was glad that Marionette had a distraction. He didn’t know if Michael did it on purpose, but he appreciated it regardless.

It wasn’t long before Jeremy shuffled back down the hallway.

The look on his face said it all.

“She didn’t pick up?” Mike asked.

“She didn’t…” Jeremy said awkwardly.

There was something else obviously, though Jeremy was having trouble spitting it out with how Marionette was looking at him. Already panicked, and Jeremy himself didn’t look far behind.

“…Her phone was disconnected.”

Marionette shot up from the couch with a startle crackle.

“But maybe I have the wrong number! I- I could’ve written it down wrong, she could’ve changed phones, it doesn’t mean that she’s not… there. Bree wouldn’t have gotten involved with Freddy’s, and-and they weren’t hiring former workers anyway!” Jeremy said.

There came the panic. Jeremy could say anything but that wasn’t what Marionette was hearing. He was hearing his fear and that along with his nightmare painted an image he couldn’t get out of his head.

That image of a woman drowning in a bathtub, Beelora telling him she remembered a bathtub, and him unable to tell if it was a vision or something his mind cooked up on its own.

“It’s her,” Marionette decided. Panicked music beginning to tumble and twang out of his music box. “It has to be. And she’s not the only one! First that technician who disappeared, and now-!”

He began to flitter around in place. Mike got up to try and assure him, but this time it was easier attempted than done. Marionette was too worked up to calm down.

“That technician… It’s either Freddy or Monty. I know it. Freddy isn’t- he must be human, and you said yourself, Mike, Monty knows too much about how the Pizzaplex was built to be a mindless machine,” he said through shaky sobs.

Mike knew he was right, and he wanted to give the benefit of the doubt on this spontaneous vision, but-

God, the smell in the elevator.

Marionette grabbed at his head until Mike pulled his arms away. Instead giving him his own hands to hold onto. Mike’s eyes widened and darted between the Puppet’s arms and mask as he realized that he was once again heating up. It wasn’t too noticeable yet, but his hands were too warm.

Within seconds the went from noticeably warm to feverish, and Mike could feel something just beginning to scrape at the back of his head. He had to do something or say something.

But what was he supposed to say? “At least if they’re animatronics they’re not truly dead?” “There’s still time to help them?” “We should’ve known Freddy’s would pull a stunt like this-.” Nothing was assuring and ‘it’s going to be okay’ wasn’t going to cut it.

Nothing. Not a damn thing.

Because as much as Mike wanted to think that he knew this was coming and that he wasn’t surprised- ‘That’s our Freddy’s!’ Somehow, he had convinced himself that maybe it was different this time around. Maybe it wasn’t so bad.

But it was worse. He felt like a sucker even getting his hopes up- like one of those people who lambasted the old Freddy’s but eagerly threw money at the new one. A fool, a chump.

The worst part was he didn’t know how much of this was him and how much was Marionette bleeding into the back of his mind. It could’ve easily been a little from both of them.

Mike finally spoke, but all he could say was a defeated, “I’d put my money on Freddy.” After all, he knew that Staff Bot trick. No average joe would’ve known that.

Marionette gave a solemn nod.

Mike didn’t release Marionette’s hands even though they were starting to grow uncomfortably hot.

“Did you- Did Beelora say something?” Jeremy asked.

“He had a dream about her,” Michael clarified.

“I had a nightmare about Bree,” Marionette corrected. His voice shaky and staticky. “And it was just as real as if I saw it with my own eyes! It must be her! Freddy’s is killing their-!”

With a loud POP the living room bulb burst above his head.

Jeremy jumped, Michael flinched, and Marionette reflexively lurched forward for Mike and grabbed him like he was shielding him from a bullet. The sheer heat caused Mike to inhale sharply, though one could’ve believed that it was just the pop and motion that caused it.

“What… just happened?” Charlie asked, startled.

“The bulb blew,” Max said matter-of-factly.

Charlie gave him a look. “Really? I had no idea.”

Marionette looked up at the light fixture. Of the three bulbs only one had been screwed in for use- most of the guests haunting the living room preferring a lower light- and only that one had popped. Its jagged base left in place.

“Did I…?” Marionette asked quietly. “…Did I do that?”

“Maybe, but it could also be those cheap-ass bulbs I’ve been swiping from the restaurant,” Mike said, carefully dusting Marionette down in case any glass got on him. “Nobody tell Foxy.”

“Foxy would probably be doing it too if he needed the bulbs,” Jeremy said with an anxious chuckle.

It did little to ease the mood.

“Maybe I’m just overreacting. If I could get ahold of the company she worked at I could ask… Scott!” Jeremy snapped his fingers. “Scott was working with the same company that Bree worked for! I could- I’ll call him and get the number for him.” He turned to go do so.

“Excellent idea but give it an hour. Scott won’t be up yet,” Michael forewarned, stopping Jeremy in his tracks.

“Oh. Good idea. Thanks.”

Jeremy stood there awkwardly for a long second before shuffling off into the kitchen. He started to make himself a bowl of cereal, already feeling a gnawing at his stomach that he wanted to smother.

Charlie moved to the couch to sit with Michael while Mike led Marionette out from under the light before getting the dust broom to sweep it up. By time he was done, Jeremy was sitting at the dining room table eating and Marionette was sitting across from him. Mike joined them, grabbing his mug and sitting alongside Marionette. He put his arm around his slumped shoulders. In return, Marionette laid a hand on his.

“How’d it go last night?” he dared to ask, expecting the worst.

“It went wonderfully. One of our best visits by far,” Marionette said with a still teary voice.

That was the last thing Mike was expecting.

“It was. Jake even tagged along, and we hung out for a while,” Jeremy agreed. “We went to the arcade and hung out at the bounce park.”

“I got a hat,” Marionette added.

“He got a hat.”

“I’ll bring it out and show it to you in a bit,” Marionette said. “Also, Chica and I are now on speaking terms.”

“How’d you pull that one off?” Mike asked in surprise.

“She heard me singing in the atrium and chased me into her bakery, then she got herself stuck under the bathroom door and we had a lovely little chat. We’re not friends, but she let me leave willingly,” Marionette recounted.

“So that’s what happened last night! I was wondering about that,” Jeremy said. He managed a smile despite the tenseness.

“Sounds like a pretty good night to me. Wish I could’ve joined you, but duty called.”

“How’d things go with Fritz?” Jeremy asked.

“We cleaned the stall last night.”

“Oh, Mike. I’m so sorry. Is that why you’re not eating?” Marionette asked. The edge of a joking tone there.

“No, but it’s why I didn’t bring any leftovers home,” Mike replied.

This roused the faintest chime, one that ended in a soft twang.

He was trying, that much was clear. He was trying so hard to put on a brave face when they both knew the wait was killing him.

The only consolation for Mike was that despite whatever happened with the lightbulb, Marionette had cooled back down. As a matter of fact, he had cooled down almost instantly afterwards. Like he had released all of it and it just happened to blow the bulb- maybe through some sort of telekinesis or unseen overcharge. Mike didn’t know and while he was curious, that would have to wait for a better time.

But he still felt like he needed to say something.

He knew what he wanted to say.

“Hey.”

Marionette looked to him.

“I love you.”

Marionette barely managed a little smile. A glossy purple tear sliding down one of his stripes.

“I love you too.”

And that was all that needed to be said.

…

…

…

“I tried both numbers and got nothing. I think they must’ve shut down or, more likely, they got absorbed by Fazbear Entertainment. I know they were working closely with them last time I asked. I don’t know. Let me email my man on the inside and see if he knows anything about this. I’ll call you back as soon as he answers.”

“Sounds good. Thanks for doing this, Scott.”

“No problem. And uh, drop on by if you want to, you know. My door’s always open.”

“I might take you up on that. Tell Ennard and Baby I said hi.”

“Will do, and same to your bunch.”

It wasn’t until Jeremy hung up the phone that the hollowness crept in. That was all he needed. He knew now. Even if Scott was unsure, even if it could be nothing, he knew it wasn’t. This was his confirmation.

He wouldn’t tell Marionette until later. By then maybe he would have the nerve to do so.

Jeremy took a shaky breath and continued getting ready for work.

Chapter 78

Chapter Summary

Michael and Ennard make their way into the Pizzaplex for parts, but neither is prepared for what they find there...

From the moment it opened, Michael knew that he would eventually end up at the Mega Pizzaplex. The plan to secure spare parts and the knowledge that staff was dying on-site just sped that process up.

But that didn’t mean he had any intention of rushing over there. No, this was the sort of thing that would take strategic planning and timing to get right. The others could go over there and virtually disappear in the massive mall, but Michael was Springtrap once he walked out of this house. He couldn’t just blend in or easily hide. He was a walking, hulking creature who struck instant fear into those who saw him.

Even he got startled glancing in a mirror every now and then. Needless to say, he didn’t do that often.

The plan was to go over to Scott’s to make a plan with Ennard as talking over the phone wasn’t cutting it. Michael wasn’t as good with verbal descriptions as he was with his drawing. It would take him a good twenty minutes of talk to get across the same image that a sketch could in only a few seconds.

So, that was the plan. Mike and Marionette even drove him over. It had been a couple of days since the nightmare incident and Marionette was finally starting to do a little better.

Michael wasn’t sure whether to be proud of Marionette’s resilience or lament how comfortable he was with death. Either way, it was good to see him feeling a little better.

Neither he nor Jeremy had returned to the Pizzaplex- yet. Foxy had yesterday and, having been brought up to speed, had went with the intentions of asking Beelora himself about herself. Or at least hinting to it. Michael wasn’t surprised when he was unable to go through with it. It was the same reason Marionette and Jeremy hadn’t, they weren’t certain and they didn’t want to scare her without reason.

Or perhaps, Michael suspected, they didn’t want to hurt her. Ignorance was bliss. To be suddenly, forcibly reminded that you were a person with a life and that it was over would shake anyone. That was why nobody had directly come out and said it to Freddy, Michael suspected, and he understood that too.

Truth was that if Michael had the choice, he might’ve not wanted to remember who he was. At least then he wouldn’t have to know what he lost.

But that wasn’t the point of the matter. The point was, Michael didn’t intend to rush over to the Pizzaplex, and he certainly didn’t plan to sneak over there without telling anyone.

Ennard really was a terrible influence. He couldn’t imagine how Scott got anything done with him in the house.

As soon as Mike and Marionette were done visiting with Scott and Baby respectively, Ennard jumped him with the idea.

“Aww, come on. It’ll be fun! A little midnight adventure.~ A teensy little taste of danger. A little secret we keep ‘til our graves!”

“You mean the mass grave will be dumped into under the Pizzaplex?” Michael had dryly retorted.

“Exactly! We’ll find the parts a lot quicker that way.” Ennard then gave him a gentle nudge with his elbow. After he almost set off his springlocks last time, the clown had resolved to restrain himself.

Baby had even warned him against this.

“This is a terrible idea, and you know it too.”

He had given her an, “I know,” as a response.

“And you’re still going to do it?”

“Yes.”

She tossed her clawless arm.

“Why do I even bother? You’re just as bad as him, you know,” she said, gesturing to Ennard. “Well, go ahead. But at least keep your head on straight. Lord knows he won’t.”

Which translated into “Be careful and keep an eye on Ennard” from someone who certainly didn’t want to approve of this plan. Michael appreciated the concern and agreed.

The plan wasn’t to sneak over to Freddy’s without telling anybody except Baby, and yet that was what they did. Michael knew better but at this point he was almost willing to take the risk to keep from waiting around. It didn’t take much convincing at all.

The building was much larger than he expected. Not jarringly so, but it would dwarf many malls with its size and general flashiness- and that was just from outside. They pulled up around back and Scott let them out directly beside Foxy’s secret vent. It was raining and they couldn’t afford getting those springlocks anymore moist than they were from the general humidity of the suit.

“Try to keep a low profile tonight. I don’t know what’s going on, but it sounds like things have been a little… tense,” Scott warned.

“Ooo, sounds juicy! Hold that thought until we get back,” Ennard playfully chirped.

“I’m serious-.”

Scott started to double-down, turning his head to continue when Ennard swooped in between the seats and pressed the mouth of his mask to his in an awkwardly clunky kiss. One that still managed to spark the same warmth as a pair of normal lips might’ve, maybe even more so.

“We’ll be careful. And back in a jiffy! Trust me- the less time we spend hanging around, the less chance I get cornered in a bathroom by Miss Trash-Mouth,” Ennard said.

“And you choose to call her that even though you’re such a prolific dumpster diver that it’s become part of a local legend. People think that dump’s haunted because of you,” Michael pointed out.

“Yeah, there’s that…” Scott agreed. Ennard looked between them.

“Oh, come on! I’m just kidding around! I know what she’s going through. Heck, I kicked the habit myself! Part of the fun’s getting to joke about it afterwards.”

“Exactly how far did you kick it?” Michael asked doubtfully.

“And I’ve eaten waaay worse than trash,” Ennard defended with a snicker.

“Oooh yeah. Yeah, there was that dryer mayonnaise,” Scott agreed again, nearly gagging on the memory of it. Thankfully, now with Baby in the garage, stuff didn’t get shoved behind the dryer anymore.

“Yet you still kiss him,” Michael pointed out.

“Well, yeah. But I keep up to date on my tetanus shots now,” Scott joked.

He knew that was going to tickle Ennard and smiled when he got a rousing laugh out of the clown. Who then leaned forward and beeped his nose against Scott’s.

“That’s not the only reason…~”

Michael really, really wished that he hadn’t heard that.

Scott must’ve realized that he would’ve as he began to fumble and stutter out some form of an explanation. “You- He’s just- You shouldn’t joke like that. We haven’t- It’s not like we- We couldn’t possibly-!”

This failure of communication was eventually cut off by Ennard snickering as it grew into another borderline hysterical laugh. He ruffled Scott’s neatly combed hair like he was a little kid.

“Don’t you worry about us! You just sit tight and don’t talk to any strangers, don’t get into any other suspicious vans, and if someone does show up then just floor it and we’ll go camp out in the desert. But that won’t happen! Because we’ll be back lickety-split!” Ennard swore, shooting him double finger guns. He hung there for a second. “But if we don’t get back here by six, we’re probably crashing in a vent or something. So, just head on home, get some sleep, and swing on by tomorrow to get us!”

“…Sure, but how about you don’t do that and just maybe try to get back by six?” Scott tried.

“I mean, if you insist then maybe we can try to do that,” Ennard teasingly said. “But you gotta pay the fee.”

Scott patted himself down for show. “Sorry, but it looks like I’m all out of bribing candy. Will you take change?”

“HA! Come ‘ere!” Ennard then swooped in once again.

At this point, Michael could’ve believed that this was an elaborate ploy to show off and follow up with, “See how fun this is? Come on, let’s getcha a squeeze toy!”

Of course Ennard would call it a squeeze toy.

Or at least, Michael was considering calling Scott Ennard’s squeeze toy- a thought that immediately made him want to throw himself into the nearest puddle.

To think that he was actually relieved when Ennard gave his enthusiastic, “Alright, Pal-y-o! Let’s get in there!” Along with a firm but not hard pat on the back.

Time to return to Freddy’s once again.

As prepared as Michael- Springtrap thought he was, he wasn’t. Not just for the trudge through the vent, which was brutal enough as it was, but to come out the other side into a back room that didn’t reek of oil and decay. To walk into a hallway that looked like it would exist in any functional business and eventually step out into an oversized atrium.

The Pizzaplex was everything that the original Freddy’s wasn’t. Instead of a cramped dining room it was a huge dining hall and show stage. Forget mall, he was certain that there were plenty of airports smaller than this. Even with the lights dimmed the colors, the neon, the signs, it was all so flashy and reeked of a decade that had already passed. It was harsh on the eyes, and the low elevator music did nothing to shake that mall-like impression.

His father would’ve hated this. Springtrap took a sadistic sort of pleasure out of that. He preferred smaller locations with less eyes, where a man bouncing around in a bunny suit was both uncanny and perfectly expected. Here someone like him would’ve been seen as odd and outdated as his main means to lure in potential victims. Too many characters, too many lights, and his franchise totally ripped from his hands.

It was almost a shame he wasn’t here to see this, but Springtrap preferred to have him dead and buried. That was the more satisfying revenge. Everybody won when William lost everything.

It didn’t take long for Springtrap to start noticing some of the more advanced technology. It put the Handunit in his grasp to shame, but he still clung to it the same. Even if he wouldn’t be able to use it for anything. Having it made him feel better, a little more grounded.

They moved quickly and quietly. Shockingly, Ennard limited his explanations on the building to pointing things out and making various hand gestures in between sneaking. It wasn’t too hard to pick up the general idea of what he was trying to convey. Maybe. He could always double-check later if he remembered and was that curious about it.

Eventually they arrived at the daycare. The security door lifted open as they approached. Springtrap instinctually stepped to the side to shield himself in case someone was coming through on the other side, but no. The only thing coming through was bouncy, cartoonish music.

“I was hoping you were lying about the music,” Springtrap mumbled.

“So was I,” Ennard said. His mask’s grin seeming extra cheeky. “Come on, we gotta see a guy about some directions.”

“This better not be the Sun guy-.”

“You know it is.”

It was the daycare’s size that really took Springtrap by surprise. He remembered hearing it was big, but he was thinking school gym sized. This was much larger, having multiple play structures inside instead of squeezing in a few tunnels like they did at Freddy’s. He looked around and took it all in, shielding his eyes from the piercing lights above.

“Just wait. He’ll show up any… second… now…” Ennard said.

They had to wait a little longer than that, but eventually he heard jingling and looked into the play area to see the Daycare Attendant coming out onto the balcony. A little larger than he expected- even with Marionette’s recounting- but he recognized the design from the little Sun doll that he occasionally saw one of the Minireenas toting around.

The Sun dove into the ball pit before exiting it into the entrance slide. Shortly after he clamored up and into the tunnel in front of them.

“Hellloooo~!” Sunny greeted. “Now there’s a familiar-…”

Sunny trailed off as he caught sight of the unfamiliar rabbit standing alongside Ennard. He stared blankly at him. His gaze piercing, and only partially blocked when Ennard bent over in front of the jester, his arms behind his back.

“Well, well. Hello, hello! A little birdie told me you had a run-in with Pinocchioh-heck-no,” Ennard joked.

This seemed to snap Sunny out of it, but his once welcoming- and slightly suspicious- tone became quickly filled with nervousness.

“Heh, yes. He was a little terror. H-He’s banned from the daycare, by the way. S-So, don’t get any ideas! Heh, heh,” he fumbled.

Thankfully, Ennard wasn’t nearly as oblivious as he pretended to be. “This is my best buddy, Michael!” he introduced.

“Hiiiiii,” Sunny greeted with a slow wave.

Springtrap was a little more blunt. “Hello, Sun. It is good to finally put a face to the name… I take it from your reaction that you recognize this suit?” He gestured at himself.

“Uh, sorta! I’ve heard some spooky bedtime stories about it. Heh heh, uh, y’know the golden bunny suit. Not looking so golden though, oh no. Never saw it myself.” Sunny’s voice faltered to something hollower. “But I do know the guy who wore it is the one who put me in a trunk.”

Springtrap’s eyes widened at that. “…That’s horrifying. I am so sorry.”

“Wait, no, IT’S NOT HIM!” Ennard insistently denied. Seeing as his earlier introduction flew past Sun. He gestured his own arm at the rabbit. “This isn’t that guy! That Purple Guy! This is Michael! Mari’s brother!”

“O-OH! I recognize that name! That’s GREAT! I mean, I guess I shoulda figured you weren’t him. Marionette said he’s gone, sooo…”

It seemed like what Sunny was baiting was that he was still uncertain about the rabbit, so he spoke in his own defense.

“He is gone, but his suit remains, and here I am stuck in it,” Springtrap explained.

“How’d that happen?”

“Sheer stupidity.”

“Oh, come on! That’s not what happened,” Ennard defended.

“I cornered myself in a back room and thinking it would save me, I hid in a dry rotten, moldy and wet suit filled with sensitive springlocks,” Springtrap recounted dryly.

“…You’re not making a good case for yourself there.”

Springtrap gave him a look.

“…Ooookay, I stand corrected. But hey- we all do stupid stuff!” Ennard assured.

“Oh! Like that little prank on Chica! Mm-hm, that wasn’t too smart,” Sunny chimed in. Purposefully feigning innocence to guise the edge of smugness.

“Ha ha, oh Sunny boy.” The clown grinned down at him. “Don’t you make me follow you down that slide. I’ll do it!”

Of course, Ennard was only playfully threatening him- he knew what he was doing, Springtrap decided- but Sunny’s points retracted like he expected the clown to tackle him. The worst case scenario being him getting tangled up and stuck to this menace, and after he was tethered to a walking problem child mere days ago.

“Well, I know you two must be awfully busy. Speaking of which, whatcha doin’ here? I’m hoping- I’m guessing not to hang out in the daycare,” Sunny said.

“We’re looking for spare parts for Charlie. We gotta get her some feet before she wears her points down,” Ennard explained. “As a matter of fact, we’re looking for your spare parts!” He pointed at Sunny.

“Mine? Why- Why on earth would you want MY spare parts?”

“I thought they may be the closest we can get to Charlie’s body type.” Springtrap sized up Sunny’s form. He currently had one of his legs bent and the foot resting on the roof of the tunnel, giving him a slight look at his ankle and heel. He could at least see the sizing and guesstimate the rest. “And it looks like it may work with some adjustments.”

“Pffft, what? No! There’s a huge difference between Jingle Bell’s legs and my- Hey, wait a minute! Are you saying you two are gonna STEAL from the warehouse?”

“I consider it a severance package.”

“That’s right! Neither of us got our last checks. Heh, or a proper burial,” Ennard whispered the end behind his hand.

“Wellll, I guess that’s a reason. Between you and me, IIIII haven’t exactly NOT borrowed things that I can’t return,” Sunny admitted. Tapping his fingers and rolling his points. He then put his hands on his hips, an odd gesture when he was still in the tube. “But borrowing paint’s a lot different than going into the warehouse and snatching parts. It’s pretty dangerous down there! And the whole thing’s a maze, you’ll get lost!”

“Listen here, Mister Sun. The scariest thing in this place is me without my clothes on, and the most dangerous is me without my clothes on. All we gotta do is find a map and we’re home free!”

“…Please keep your clothes on in the daycare,” Sunny requested with uncharacteristic seriousness.

“HEY!”

Sunny looked back towards the other side of the daycare before raising a finger.

“One moment, please!”

He then disappeared down the slide as quickly as he appeared. Ennard watched him return to the balcony shortly after.

Then he snapped his head to Springtrap. “Does he really sound like me?”

“Yes. Did you really imply you were the scariest thing here while there is a giant spider who looks like Music Man somewhere in the building?”

“Oooo, I forgot about that…” The way his voice lowered tipped off that he was getting another idea.

“Did you forget about the terrifying muppet who you were telling that to?”

“Oh, please! He’s scared of me.”

“He’s scared of me…” Springtrap lowered his voice to a somber whisper, “What he said about the trunk… That’s awful.”

“It is.” Ennard’s voice dropped and his ruse briefly broke, but he pulled it together quickly. “Yeah, but he’s doing better now! Sometimes ya gotta look on the bright side or the dark side’s gonna eat you up.”

“...That was surprisingly deep all things considered.”

“Hey, so am I!” Ennard replied with a thumbs up.

This managed to get a chuckle out of the rabbit, much to the clown’s delight.

They clammed up by time Sunny returned. He hopped into the ball pit and climbed up the slide again before offering Ennard, who was closer, a radio. It looked like a kid’s walkie-talkie and had Freddy’s face on it.

“Here you go!”

“Well, isn’t that cute!” Ennard gushed as he snatched it up. “D’you got a pair of these? I’d love to give one to Scottie. All we’ve got is this boring one that barely works in here.” He tapped the spare radio hooked to his belt- one he was borrowing from Scott, that was hidden under his jacket. Virtually useless inside the Pizzaplex but could possibly come in handy if Scott either came inside or they went out.

“Nope! You just get one- and it’s on loan, so I’m going to need it back once you’re done!”

“What is it for? For you to give us directions?” Michael guessed.

“To get in contact with me. Hello!” Jake said through the radio. “My name’s Jake and I’ll be your guide for the evening. At least until you get into a dead zone in the basement. Then you’ll lose me.”

Ennard perked and brought the radio to his mouth. “Hey, Buddy! How’s it holding up?”

“I assume you mean the good ol’ leg, and barely,” Jake joked back.

“Ha ha, funny,” Sunny mumbled. He didn’t seem quite so amused. “I gotta go scrape some tempera off something. Bye-bye for now!”

He pushed off and went sliding down the slide and back into the ball pit. It was clear that he wasn’t entirely on board with this plan.

Ennard pressed the radio to his chest and leaned towards Springtrap to ask, “What is that, shrimp?” 

“It’s paint, but yeah. People regularly dump food in the daycare,” Jake answered.

There was no way he should’ve heard that. Springtrap sent Ennard a quizzical look and pointed to his ear- the side of his head where his real ear would be. Ennard pointed towards the balcony and Springtrap looked over in time to see a white face disappearing behind a curtain.

Well, that was a little suspicious. Springtrap held out his hand for the radio, which Ennard plopped into his palm, and he raised it to his mouth. His eyes still trained on the balcony.

“You must be Jake,” he said.

“That’s my name, don’t wear it out.”

“Well, I’m Michael. I’m assuming Charlie or Marion told you about me.”

“She did! She, uh, left out the part about you being a- Well, I could’ve assumed since Foxy, Baby, and Mari are all animatronics… I’m just going to stop right there.”

Springtrap gave a half-chuckle before returning to business.

“If I may, why are you helping us? Sun seemed reluctant in letting us take things from the business.”

“He still is, but not for why you think he is. Freddy’s is pretty, uh, guarded when it comes to parts and repair. And if somebody finds out you’re swiping Daycare Attendant parts, they’ll blame it on him. They blame a lot of things on him… Oh! But to answer your question, it’s for Charlie.”

“I can relate. You two are close?”

This was more a testing question than an actual one. He knew from how often Charlie brought him up that she believed they were. He was curious about Jake’s take.

“Sure! We’re pretty good friends. We don’t really get to hang out much, but I think we are,” Jake replied.

“She seems to feel the same way. At least that’s the impression I got.”

It was only then that Springtrap noticed that Ennard was eyeing him with that look and decided it was time to get moving.

“I’ve also heard that the basement is a maze. What’s the quickest way to the part storage?” Springtrap asked.

“That would be down through the main stage, through Parts and Service, and then down a couple of hallways. But you’re going to want to take the longer route if you want to get far without getting spotted or stuck behind a locked door… Well, that and I know the longer route a lot better. If you don’t mind?”

“Not at all. Where do we start? Not the stage, I’m assuming.”

“Nope! Okay, so go downstairs and you’ll find these little half-circle security doors. You’ll go through the right one and we’ll pick it up from there.”

Springtrap headed through the gate and headed down the walkway alongside the daycare. He got about halfway down when he realized something; Ennard was being uncharacteristically silent.

“You’re awfully quiet,” he said.

“I just didn’t want to interrupt,” Ennard said with a cheeky glint in his eyes.  

Springtrap just sighed and kept walking.

They had gotten to the stairs when Jake spoke up again.

“Speaking of Charlie, has she started building her Helpy Bot? The little Freddy we sent her?”

“She has. She’s still threading the wiring into the endoskeleton, but she is making progress.”

“That’s great! I’ve been holding onto that one for a while. Just in case we needed a spare little body or something. Charlie’ll give him a better home.”

“Sooo, Jake, since I know you and Mikey here doesn’t, let’s bring him up to speed. How’s about you tell him about yourself? Oh, but we don’t have much time! How about you just lay it all out matchmaker style. Y’know, likes, dislikes, pet peeves- all that good stuff!” Ennard asked.

In the process of Ennard asking, Springtrap tried to muffle the radio on his chest, but Ennard fought his arm for it, keeping his thumb on the button, without even a shred of strain in his voice.

“My…? Well, okay. Let’s see… I like long walks on the beach. Or I think I would if I could take long walks or go to the beach. I like going to the movies, since they’re in walking distance. I’m a scorpion…”

“You mean a Scorpio,” Springtrap corrected.

“…Yes. But maybe not. I hang out in a dark dusty attic all day in the middle of the desert. Could be a scorpion.”

Ennard laughed a little too hard at that one.

“Good one! Okay, okay, but seriously,” he directed. “I hear you like tinkering with stuff. Well, Michael here’s a real Bonafede technician!”

“Really? That’s incredible! I consider myself a little bit of a technician too. Or not an actual technician, but I tinker around. Well, not really build anything, I sort of just experiment. Just stick things together and see what works… So, not a technician at all.”

“That’s about as much training is required to work at a Freddy’s,” Springtrap remarked.

Jake snickered a little. Ennard grinned excitedly.

They headed down the stairs and to the door, which opened for them.

“We’re in a hallway now,” Springtrap recited.

“Do you see a door to the right? Says Staff Only? Go through there. That’ll lead you to the back hall. Then you just keep going that way until you reach the staircase.”

Springtrap tried the handle only to find it wouldn’t budge. “Locked.”

“Oh. Yeah, I should’ve figured. Okay, there’s another way around if you’re willing to go through Monty Golf. I can get Monty out of there and then you can-.”

“Need a hand?” Ennard offered. Jake still talking in the background.

“I think I can handle it,” Springtrap said.

He tightened his springlocks and then gave one hard shoulder shove into the door. The simple door lock caved, and the door swung open into the hallway.

“There we are.”

“…Did you just break down the door?!”

“DID YOU JUST BREAK DOWN THE DOOR?!”

Jake and Sunny asked at the same time. One through the radio, the other through the still open door behind them and loud enough to be heard from the daycare.

“Technically no. It’s still on its hinges,” Springtrap replied.

“Like some scrawny hunk of metal could get in the way of the Entrapment Duo!” Ennard said proudly. “Good job!”

“Thanks.”

“I’ll go first! Try to keep up,” Ennard lightly teased and stepped through. Springtrap staying close behind.

The hallway reminded him too much of Afton Robotics. Sure, it was painted better, not nearly drenched in as much chrome, but it had that same chill and that same sterilized smell.

It didn’t help that Ennard had gone silent again. This time not to encourage his chatting with Jake, but to discouraging luring anybody else in there. There went his distraction to combat the uneasiness. Jake too had gone quiet, though it was unclear if that was for the same reason as Ennard or if he was struck silent by the door thing.

Ennard took each corner carefully, peeking around before going ahead. Springtrap followed closely and kept an eye and ear out. Eventually they came up on the stairs leading down into the darkness.

“We’ve reached the stairs,” Springtrap recited.

“Great! So, just head down to the bottom. I might cut out when you get there, so if you do, head on straight down the tunnel and hopefully we’ll get a connection.”

“Oh ho ho, I could sense a-!” Ennard cut off suddenly, his eyes darting around. “…Do you feel that?”

Like an animal sensing an approaching earthquake, Ennard managed to notice the heavy footsteps before Springtrap could even hear it.

“Heh, that better be Freddy!” Ennard chirped. A slight edge of nervousness creeping into his voice. He listened to the thumping in the distance before suddenly rounding on Springtrap. “That’s not Freddy. Get around the corner, quick.”

Said corner was a good twelve feet behind them and even though Ennard grabbed him by the arms and started to nearly drag him, there was no way they could possibly make it before the footsteps arrived. Or perhaps he could’ve with anyone else, but in this lumbering suit Springtrap was at the mercy of its constant encumbrance. There wasn’t even a point in trying.

So, when Monty Gator himself came barreling down the hallway he spotted a ragged rabbit and a circus clown standing there in plain sight.

“What the?!” Monty shouted. Stopping in place and rearing back, startled at the sight.

Though that could’ve been because of Ennard. Like a switch flipping, he went from anxiously trying to escape to staring Monty down like a predator. Like he was about to crack him open and gorge on his insides. Something that Springtrap knew Ennard was physically capable of doing. A small head twitch emphasizing how unstable he could be if tested.

Yet even with that, Monty lowered his gaze and stared at the tool clutched in Springtrap’s hand.

“Show me that,” he suddenly said, pointing firmly at the Handunit.

Springtrap simply held it up.

“Turn it on.”

Springtrap opened an eye wider, his form of quirking a brow, and smoothly flipped it over in his hands. He turned on the Handunit and bypassed some of the automatic text to type in his login before showing Monty the screen. It was a basic background but confirmed that he had logged in.

“…You a technician?” Monty asked.

“I used to be,” Springtrap answered.

“Ha ha, we both were!” Ennard volunteered. Straightening up with a full-body shiver and sounding a little more normal, even if he was still staring with unblinking eyes.

In an instant, Monty’s body language shifted. He straightened up and adjusted his sunglasses, guarded but not defensive.

“What’re you doin’ here?” he asked.

“Searching for parts. It’s the least Freddy’s can offer their former employees,” Springtrap said bitterly.

“Amen. Don’t even get that ‘round here,” Monty muttered. He turned his head to look at Ennard once again. “And yer that clown Chica’s been talkin’ ‘bout, yeah?”

“I sure hope so!”

Monty looked between the two for a long moment, considering what he was going to do. His tail swaying behind him as he considered it. Then he lowered his head with a puff through his nostrils.

“Lemme give you two a piece of advice. Find yer parts somewhere else. Ya’ll don’t want no part of what’s runnin’ around down there,” he warned.

“The woman in the rabbit suit?” Springtrap guessed.

“Nah. I’ve heard of her, but she’s just some chick. There’s somethin’ else down there. Somethin’ that ain’t all there. If it sees you, it’s gonna getcha.”

“But just so we’re one hundred percent sure we’re on the same page… There’s no chance we’re talking about me. Because under this costume I’m nothing but wire noodles,” Ennard joked. “I’m the scariest thing Freddy’s ever seen.”

Monty looked to Springtrap. “Ya gonna take that?”

“Looks can be deceiving. This clown has decapitated two bears with his bare hands,” Springtrap said.

Monty narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “What bears?”

“None around here, don’t you worry about it!” Ennard brushed off. “So, what are we really talking about down there?”

“Nothin’ I’m gonna talk about. Just keep it brief and don’t go biting anything too big to swallow, if ya get my meaning.”

“Eat the monster. Got it!” Ennard replied.

“And fer cryin’ out loud, go see Chica. That gal’s been messaging ‘bout ya non-stop fer days. Throw her a bone!”

That got Ennard’s mouth shut and an awkward chill down his back.

But that didn’t stop Springtrap. As Monty turned to leave, he spoke up.

“If I may ask… Did you work here too, Monty?”

Monty turned his head to look back and adjusted his sunglasses.

“It don’t matter no more,” he cryptically replied.

Then he turned and walked off the way he came. The coolness of his swagger only slightly dampened when his tail swatted a carboard box while rounding the corner. Leaving the rabbit and clown alone in the hallway again, almost reeling from how fast they were let off the hook.

“So, that was a yes,” Ennard clarified.

“Yes,” Springtrap agreed.

And that was probably the only reason Monty didn’t hunt them down. Programming was such a fickle thing. It could convince someone to do unspeakable things, but then flip over under the slightest prodding. Just the reminder that they had been humans too… Unless programming wasn’t the reason for Monty’s bouts of aggression.

“Good. Just making sure we’re on the same page,” Ennard said with a strained chuckle. He rubbed at his neck. “Oh boy, I don’t like the sound of that whole ‘something in the basement’ thing. He’s probably talking about that wire thing Scott and Natty saw.”

“Ben, you will have to promise me that if you see this thing you don’t throw yourself at it and try to eat it,” Springtrap said tiredly.

“I’m not THAT desperate! I’ve got a frozen pizza and a halfa’ three layer dip at home, thank you very much.”

“And of course, Scott’s always on the menu if you get bored,” Springtrap mumbled.

Ennard crackled in laughter and side-eyed him knowingly.

“You know you wouldn’t be so quick to judge if you had a little someone-someone to squeeeeze at night.”

“Don’t be so sure. I do appreciate you and Mari and Foxy looking for someone to complete me, to fill me with love or whatever, but that’s not going to fix my problems. As long as I’m stuck in this suit, I can’t be fixed. I can’t live, I just exist,” Springtrap explained.

He realized his mistake as soon as he said that. Just as soon as Ennard’s cheeky little expression shifted into one of deep concern. How he could pull that off was impressive, but it still made Springtrap instantly self-conscious.

“Let’s just get through this and get out,” he mumbled. He eyed his Handunit like it was the most interesting thing in the world. “…If we get out early enough, maybe you can come into Mike’s and we can catch some late-night informercials with a little television between them.”

“Sounds good to me!” Ennard said encouragingly. It got that mask back up, and then Springtrap didn’t have to see that worry painted on his face any longer.

“Also, stop shoving me at Jake. He’s going to figure out what you’re hinting at, and if he does, I am ditching you in the daycare.”

“Ouch. Yeah, okay, I know I might’ve pushed it a liiiittle too far, but can you blame me? How often do you just happened to run into someone who thinks what you do is really cool?”

“It’s too late, he’s already seen me.”

“Well, consider it done!” Ennard agreed. Probably only so eagerly to placate him.

“Speaking of which…” Springtrap lifted the radio to his mouth. “We’re at the stairs. We just had a run-in with Monty,” Springtrap said.

“Yeah, I know. Sorry, I didn’t mean to overhear but you had the button pressed.”

Tonight just kept getting better.

“But, anyways. Well… Monty wasn’t entirely wrong. He’s right about being careful down there. If you… run into anything unusual, just… run away, okay?”

“You sound like you know something.”

“There’s… issues in the basement. The endos are pretty aggressive and just… so… So, Mari had a run-in with a woman in a rabbit suit down there. Her name’s Vanny. If you see her, run.”

“I’ve heard of her,” Springtrap said lowly.

“Oookay, I take it from that tone that you are not planning on running away, but uh… Don’t go crazy. We’ve got to live here, you know.”

“Of course,” Springtrap agreed, snapping out of it. He stared down the stairs. “We’re heading into the basement.”

“Careful on the stairs! They can be slick.”

“You sound like you’ve had experience.”

“Oh yeah. Way too much.”

Ennard didn’t push but he grinned to himself. It was just good to hear his friend talking with someone who wasn’t just him or his family members.

It died down as they made their way down the stairs and into the darkness of the basement. There the mood shifted once again. The air was heavy and dank, resembling a sewer tunnel more than one for transporting supplies.

It somehow felt even more like Afton Robotics. Ugly and filthy underneath the surface.

Jake continued to direct them though, leading them down one of the tunnels and through a thankfully unlocked fence before continuing on. Each dreary passage resembled the one before it. Without Jake they would’ve gotten lost immediately, because even though Ennard had been to the Pizzaplex he hadn’t so much wandered through these tunnels. Let alone enough to learn his way.

And unfortunately, their guide was starting to petter out on them.

“You’re breaking up,” Springtrap warned.

“I wzzz afrrrrd thaat mii haaeeneen,” Jake’s voice fuzzily came through.

The radio became more staticky before it became entirely incoherent. Springtrap sighed and turned the volume down a little.

“We’ve lost him.”

Ennard didn’t have anything witty to say. In fact, he was uncharacteristically quiet. Springtrap looked back to see him eyeballing a door they had passed.

“What?”

“I heard something,” Ennard said. His eyes focusing on that staff door.

Springtrap didn’t have to ask when he was giving that door the same stare he gave Monty. Finally, Ennard turned back to him.

“Let’s pretend I didn’t. Let’s keep talking and having a good time,” Ennard suggested. He looked to Springtrap with a knowing look and a smile appearing in his eyes. “Fun, fun, fun!”

He couldn’t have heard the “Just play along” any louder unless Ennard had blatantly said it.

“Just don’t get distracted,” Springtrap replied, feigning annoyance.

He quickly turned ahead and continued along, with Ennard following alongside him. The clown lapsing into a conversation about weird pizza toppings to cover the fact that he was listening for their follower.

They got down another tunnel when he noticed a forklift parked alongside some crates on the side of the tunnel, taking up a good chunk of space. He could make out a thin gap between it and the wall that would almost make for a hiding spot. He considered it for a moment before turning back.

He checked to make sure nothing was watching from behind Ennard before he spoke.

“I’m going to scout ahead. You follow at a distance,” Springtrap said. He pointed to himself and then at the hiding spot behind the equipment.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea? Every time people die in horror movies, it’s because they split up!” Ennard pointed out. Very subtly hiding a thumbs up in front of him as he did.

“I’m sure. Perhaps I can sneak up on whoever else is down here,” Springtrap said.

“Well… okay, but don’t go too far, young man!” Ennard pretended to scold.

Then, with an impressive amount of accuracy, Ennard began to mimic Springtrap’s footsteps exactly with his voice alone.

Springtrap handed off the Handunit and radio to Ennard who hid them into his jacket. Then he quietly shuffled out of the way and hid on the other side of the crates before Ennard started to have the footsteps fade off. He began to start walking too, to mask when he finally trailed them off.

Springtrap watched as Ennard made his way off and stayed at alert, listening as closely as he could for anything that may approach.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before he heard the quiet footsteps. So soft that it was hard to hear them through his own suit. He watched like a hawk as the form edged past the crates and equipment, following Ennard.

She was exactly as they had described her; a slender woman in a patchwork rabbit costume. One with large, glowing red eyes and its mouth twisted into an eager grin. She wasn’t skipping or gallivanting around though, instead sneaking along carefully. Watching ahead and waiting for any signal to duck around the corner, perhaps into the same hiding spot he was currently squeezed into.

Just the sight of her made his blood boil. Blood that had long soaked into and dried up in the cracks of his own horrendous rabbit suit. To think that someone would idealize that monster enough to dress as her own version of him.

There was no coincidence in her suit resembling one of William’s non-springlock backups. That hideous yellow one with the purple vest that made everybody sick just looking at it. This one was just a different color and style, but a knowing eye could pick up some similarities between the two.

He felt an anger with intensity that he hadn’t felt in years. Disgust, anger, rage.

He quietly stood up and began to stalk after her, knowing that it wouldn’t be long before she noticed. His goal wasn’t to hide from her any longer than he already had.

It didn’t take her long to notice the subtle shuffle, the feeling like she was being watched, and she stopped. She slowly turned back to look, as though anticipating something was there.

She hadn’t expected it to be the dry rotten rabbit suit. The walking corpse of an animatronic standing in the darkness and staring her down with glowing dotted eyes. The slightly lighter coloring of its teeth more visible in the dark and formed into a menacing grimace left behind from years of wear.

She stood just as still as he did. Frozen in place, staring at him through flickering red eyes. She was barely moving, but he could see when her chest began to heave with shaky breaths.

She was scared of him.

Out of the corner of his eye, Springtrap noticed Ennard slowly lean around the corner for an offshoot hallway he had headed down. His eyes to were aglow as he stared down the oblivious woman.

“Psst! Hey!”

Vanny’s head slowly turned a few inches in his direction, but she refused to take her eyes off Springtrap. He wasn’t addressing her anyways, even though he still stared her down.

“Guess what?” Ennard asked. He crackled with menacing laughter, eyes narrowing as he did. “I don’t think she knows we can see her.”

Springtrap took a lumbering step forward.

In that instant, Vanny spun on her heel and bolted down the tunnel. Springtrap took after her without hesitation.

This body wasn’t built for speed, it wasn’t built to run, but by God, he was going to run. He ignored how each step jostled his springlocks and only focused on keeping up with the white form.

Ennard overtook him in a matter of seconds and was using those Funtime Foxy legs to run at Vanny’s heels, all but breathing down her neck. He could’ve easily caught her, but he didn’t, and Springtrap didn’t know it if was out of restraint or because he knew what may happen if he touched her. They all knew what she had done to Marion.

“Scurry, scurry, little bunny! You can run, run, run, but you can’t hiiiide!~” Ennard gleefully mocked.

How disturbing. Apparently, legs weren’t the only things he had inherited from the Funtimes.

Vanny didn’t look back. She continued striding down the tunnel until her way was blocked by a fence. In a surprising amount of agility, she boosted herself off a soggy box and grabbed the top of the fence. With a few frantic kicks of her legs she crawled herself up the chain-length fence, Ennard trying to grab at her kicking legs but with the steadfastness of someone preparing to grab a hot poker.

She got herself over and landed heavily on her side with a staticky gasp. She started to push herself up, only to have Springtrap slam into the fence door and she crawled back across the damp floor. She got to her feet with a few staggers before turning and running again, now favoring an obvious limp.

All this time Springtrap was shaking the door to no avail, his eyes following her as she went.

This seemed like an appropriate time for Ennard to lean in and whisper, “We’re screwing with her right?”

“Yes,” Springtrap said through gritted teeth.

“Great.”

In a heartbeat Ennard was up on the fence and reached a hand down towards Springtrap, who didn’t notice as he rammed himself through his second door of the day. He stumbled through and broke into another sprint, Ennard hopping down alongside him and quickly taking the lead.

“I’m going to scout ahead!” Ennard called back.

He grinned over his shoulder before picking up speed and disappearing around the far corner.

“WHOA!”

Ennard’s shout was punctuated with a clatter of metal.

Springtrap’s eyes widened as he ran as fast as he could and came around the corner, almost running right into Ennard who was leaned back. The clown holding back a pair of metal arms by the wrists which were trying to grab, or clamp, at his precious mask. It was a Staff Bot, one with a fake hardhat and a yellow construction vest.

Its eyes glowing an ominous red. As did the eyes of the cluster of almost identical Staff Bots rapidly crowding in and grabbing at Ennard.

After all that Springtrap had heard about Staff Bots- about how they were mostly inept, mostly harmless, busy little workers- it was quite a first impression.

Springtrap introduced himself by taking a swing at and clocking one of the bots coming up on Ennard. Its head clunked and lung back, and it wheeled a little aways before recovering and coming back a second time. This time Springtrap just gave it a heave and shoved it over. Ennard followed suit by twisting the arms of the one grabbing at him and tossing it aside.

Their numbers were the problem. They were weak, flimsy things that couldn’t get up on their own, but there was just so many of them. Not to mention that they couldn’t afford to do any serious damage without the risk of it catching attention as another case of vandalism. Knocking them over seemed to work good enough, where they could only grab around blindly.

It was when shoving over one of the Staff Bots, which took down another one, that Springtrap’s eyes met with a pair of red ones down at the end of the next shaft.

Vanny was standing there watching, her eyes glowing brighter than they were before- because she was controlling them, he realized. Somehow, she had to be controlling them. The red eyes gave her away.

Transfixed on his target, Springtrap shoved past the Staff Bots, pulled his leg free from one’s grasp, and strode after her. He watched her turn and flee slower than she had earlier. It wouldn’t be hard to keep up.

“What- No, no! Don’t worry about ME! I can take it from here, no problem! HA HA!” Ennard called after him sarcastically.

Though from his exasperated cry, Springtrap knew he had it under control. Annoyance, not fear, not dread. He could handle himself.

He couldn’t let her get away.

He heard the creak of a door before he caught the tail end of it closing behind her. He broke into a sprint and tried to catch it before it could close. He didn’t but the door wasn’t locked, and he swung it open so hard that it slammed into a rattly shelf. The room was full of them, a small storage room trying to carry more than it could.

He looked through the shelves and could see Vanny trying to circle them to another door on the other side. He shoved the shelves and they toppled over, knocking down the next and the next in a domino effect, with the third crashing in over the door. Not fully blocking the door but making it impossible to open it all the way.

Vanny backed into the corner before the shelves could fall and before she could figure out any further escape route there was Springtrap.

She backed herself up into the brick wall before leaning down and frantically trying to grab for something on her leg or in her boot. Something under her costume that her clumsy gloved fingers couldn’t grip.

A knife, perhaps?

“It will not protect you,” Springtrap warned.

Vanny’s head snapped up and she stared at him again. Silently, as to not tip off if her surprise was out of recognition or because he was suddenly talking. She might’ve not heard his low murmurs earlier, following Ennard’s boisterous voice- which travelled despite his attempts to tone it down. But now she heard him loud and clear.

He stared her down and she seemed to shrink under his gaze. He tilted his head.

“What’s the matter? Isn’t this what you wanted? The classic Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza experience?” Springtrap asked. “Well, here I am.”

Then with a vigor he thought all was dead, he began to shuffle. His broken legs and clunky arms swiftly dancing to the non-existent beat in a way that would’ve put his father to shame in the same, but at the time much more intact suit.

Even with his organs in the gears, he could make that rabbit dance.

The tilt of Vanny’s head signaled that she was looking him up in down. Her posture showed her fear, like a frightened rabbit frozen underneath a larger animal. She was afraid of him. Good.

He stepped forward and she pressed back tight against the wall, staring up at him with flickering red eyes.

“It’s him,” he heard her saying under her breath. “It’shimit’shimit’shim-nononocan’tbe.”

“It is, I assure you. You may not recognize me, but it’s me.”

He reached up for his head.

“Let me show you…”

He forcibly loosened his springlocks on his neck and wrenched open his mouth as wide as it would go, revealing the remains of his head left mangled into the metal workings underneath.

Vanny shrieked and dropped to the floor. Before he could so much as get his mouth closed, she crawled around his legs and back to her feet. She made a mad dash for the wedged door and opened it as far as she could, barely squeezing through the opening and disappearing.

Springtrap let her go. He couldn’t exactly chase her with his head still open and the springlocks had tightened up, giving him trouble in shutting it. Even the smallest thing- This body really was good for nothing. Everything always breaking.

That was when Ennard finally caught up and caught Springtrap’s struggle as he ran in.

“What happened? What’d she do?” he asked with concern.

Springtrap turned to face him and Ennard gave a short, startled shout of his own.

“CRIMENY! How’d she do that?!”

“She didn’t. She- Mmph.” With a struggle, Springtrap finally snapped his head down into place. Fake teeth thumping together as he sealed himself away once more. “If we’re going to scare this woman straight, then we need to show real consequences for what happens when you go chasing rabbits. Now back into crazy clown mode and let’s go.”

Springtrap got up under the shelves and just managed to shove them up and the other way. His body tightening and aching under the weight, but he was too driven to stop. He threw open the door only for it to be slammed shut by Ennard’s palm.

“Hey, whoa, whoa. Let’s stop and think this over a second,” he said, still leaning on the door. His earlier eagerness now replaced with trepidation. “Now I’m all on board with this whole ‘Let’s scare the psycho rabbit woman’ thing. Keeps us from getting our hands dirty, right? And gets her outta here and away from any kids! But this…” Ennard made a hissing noise and looked away only to look back. “This feels like the point where we’re starting to cross a line. Like… Like we’re juuuust on the verge of accidentally doing something we’re gonna regret.”

“If you think I’m really going to hurt her, you’re sorely mistaken. I can control myself, no matter how infuriating it is to see her parade around like my father- like a child dressing up like him on Halloween. It’s ridiculous and we must put a stop to it. If not by scaring her then by scaring whomever is tugging her along.”

“Yeah, but the last time I tried scare tactics on someone, I ruined her life and spent the next two hours digging our sister out of a bunch of trash,” Ennard pointed out.

“We’ll just have to be more careful. I’m the only thing she has been even remotely afraid of. We’re the only ones who can scare her straight.”

“Except for maybe that twenty-foot-tall spider crawling around here,” Ennard tried to joke. He was met with unenthused silence. “Ha ha…?”

The only noise from Springtrap was the clicking of his overworked springlocks sliding into proper place.

Ennard knew that they were on different wavelengths. To Springtrap, this was someone purposefully trying to replicate his father, and for Ennard it was a woman of average height and slender build with fragile bones and what looked to be little muscle tone. She wasn’t a threat, she was just some weirdo who got whisked up in being a bad guy… maybe, if she wasn’t possessed. If she was possessed, then that was definitely not something they were equipped to handle.

It felt wrong to treat her with the same intensity that he would towards aggressive animatronics. But this woman was actively chasing children, or at least Gregory. Maybe Springtrap had a point about turning up the heat.

But maybe this also felt like a really bad idea and Ennard was only tempted to say yes because he knew he couldn’t say no.

“…Okay. Okay, okay. But let’s hurry this up. Just a quick scarring for life, swing by the warehouse, and get out of here,” Ennard said with a sigh. He dragged himself off the door and let him open it.

“We won’t be here any longer than we have to be,” Springtrap promised.

Because despite all of this, he didn’t want to do this. He didn’t want to play games like his father did. He didn’t want to pretend to be his father.

But he would.

The door let out into a hallway and led them along for a while before leading them into a grimier hallway.

They continued onwards until the first fork they could find. A technical fork. A slightly wider hallway that led towards another fence, beyond that was a larger room, and a door between the fence and them.

“You take the fence, I’ll take the door,” Springtrap suggested.

“What’s the chances she took the fence again?” Ennard asked doubtfully.

“Toss a coin, you’ll get a better-.”

Springtrap cut off as he started to open the door only to find it locked. He sighed with disappointment.

“She took the fence,” he said with finality. “I’ll find a way around.”

“Y’know, I can boost ya right over.”

“It’s not getting over that I’m worried about, it’s landing without setting the suit off.”

“Ha, yeah that would be really bad. What with all this humidity and being what, five miles from the exit? Tell ya what, I’ll hop the fence and check out the room and then I’ll come back, and we can check out there together.”

“Ben, we’ll lose her,” Springtrap said with exasperation.

“If I can’t tell if she’s been in there or not, then we already have,” Ennard pointed out. At the look Springtrap gave him, he lifted his hands in defense and exasperation, “I mean: sure thing, Boss! Ahahahaha!”

With that kooky killer clown laugh, Ennard waltzed over and climbed the fence.

He was nervous to split up, Springtrap realized. Maybe nervous that one of them would find her. He had been so eager to do this earlier but there was no denying now that he was having second thoughts.

He wasn’t the only one, but Springtrap had to do something.

He rammed the door and the lock gave. Though instead of swinging open, it opened a few inches before slamming into something heavy. He peeked through the crack of the door and noticed the edge of a laundry cart blocking the door. That was curious, suspicious, and he silently forced it open. The cart only giving as much difficulty as it was because its wheels refused to turn.

Soon he got into the room and what he found was immediately concerning.

It looked like a small workshop of some kind, but the Staff Bots scattered around the floor were far from repaired. They lay in a variety of positions- some broken up and others intact- with their chest plates pried off and something taken out of their core. One of them had a battery left behind in its chest, but it almost looked partially melted. He couldn’t imagine what could’ve caused that.

That wasn’t the only thing he noticed either. There were no other doors in the workshop.

She was in here.

He considered getting Ennard but after his reluctance he didn’t want to force him to get involved. He didn’t want him to feel guilty about this, or to be in harm’s way, so he simply shut the door behind him and slowly wheeled the cart back in front of it. That way she couldn’t make another run for it.

There really weren’t many places to hide. Some lockers, a hiding spot between the workbench and the wall, and… an open vent.

Springtrap saw that open vent and his eyes nearly glazed over. The last thing he wanted was to squeeze back into a vent and go crawling after a rabbit who would have a much easier time moving in there.

That alone made him consider giving up and letting her go. He had already gotten a scream out of her, if she was willing to squeeze into a vent to escape then he really had done what he needed to.

But something didn’t feel right. He sent a slow look around the room.

This could just be a trick, just like the one he played on her. Because if she was currently in the vent, he likely would’ve been hearing it, even if she was far down. That sort of noise traveled. It was dead silent, so either she was hiding in the vent and staying very still, or she was still in this room.

He began to slowly stalk around, checking the corners and under the workbench. Checking every possible nook and cranny before moving onto the lockers. The lockers being the most likely candidate for what she could’ve hidden inside. They were just big enough to hide a woman of smaller stature.

He threw open the first one.

Nothing. Stuff. Useless stuff.

He opened the second one.

Junk. Things shoved in here to be forgotten.

He opened the third-

and had a white fist come down on his chest. A sharp but still numb pain shot through his chest as something tore though the fabric of his suit. Metal clattering upon metal deeply inside him.

Springtrap looked down at surprise at Vanny’s fist hovering above his chest and noticed the handle it was grasped around. The handle for a kitchen knife.

She had stabbed him. The knife was currently buried deep into his suit. It did nothing of course, nothing but hurt only as much as a slice on the skin might, but he was stunned. He couldn’t help but just stare at that knife.

Vanny smacked her other hand on his chest and held it there. Nothing happened, and she smacked it again, frantically hitting his suit like she thought it was going to do something. Her dull red eyes reflecting on the edge of the blade sticking out of his chest. But whatever she wanted to happen wasn’t happening, and she looked up at him with that disturbed smile tugging her mask.

If he had been a human, he would be dead right now.

He could’ve been anyone. Ennard, Natalie, that little boy wandering the Pizzaplex- she came out swinging. She would’ve killed someone right then.

Thankfully, he was already dead.

He shoved her aside and off him. Vanny stumbled and fell over the workbench, her knife left jutting out of his chest. He stared at it, carefully wrapped his fingers around it, and started trying to work it out. With one firm pull, he freed the knife from himself, now looking greasy. He hoped that hadn’t come from his suit. He tightened his shaking hand on the handle and looked to Vanny.

She dove off the workbench and towards the vent. He was hot in pursuit, stabbing the knife into the workbench as he passed. A little too hard too, as the handle broke off the blade, which he then threw to the floor before diving into the vent. He just managed to grab one of her ankles and slid her right back out, ignoring her kicking and fighting and depositing her between the open vent and the workbench.

Vanny was cowering again. She scrambled back into the corner created by the wall and the bench. It was pitiful, but it wasn’t so easy to sympathize now that she had torn open his chest, leaving another ugly tear.

He crouched over her, his eyes aglow once again.

“You should be more careful who you draw a knife on,” Springtrap warned dangerously. “I know what you did to him. The Puppet. I know you were able to overpower him with just a touch… and yet.”

He slowly reached down and nudged at her foot.

“Nothing. You could do nothing to me. I’m almost disappointed.”

Vanny was just staring at him. Her dimmed eyes barely dissipating the shadows creeping on her mask. She lifted her hands up in defense, shivering into her self-made hole.

“Do you know what I could do with just a touch? I could… snap your arm.”

He leaned in further.

“Snap your neck.”

She lifted her hands over her head to shield herself and he stopped.

“I thought this was what you wanted.”

She shook her head.

“No? How unfortunate.” He lowered his voice to a bitter growl. “It’s all fun and games until you’re the one under the knife, isn’t it? Making a mockery of the tragedy at Freddy’s. Children died. They suffered. Employees too, and family members, and here you are pretending to be part of it. How pathetic.”

Vanny was still shivering, only to suddenly go rigid as Springtrap reached for her. She ducked her head, unknowing that this was what he wanted. He grabbed one of her mask’s ears roughly.

“You won’t keep hiding behind a mask. I want to see your face.”

He started to tug it off, the mask slowly sliding off as the hood slid up her neck.

A red glow lit up beside him. Springtrap turned his head, but there was no time to see before something slammed into him. Instantly shoving him to the floor. He still had a grip on Vanny’s freed mask, but he couldn’t see her any longer.

Suddenly it was a blur of metal cracking and clattering. Him fighting off whatever slammed into him and had him pinned to the floor and was currently coiling around him with thick wires.

Wriggling wires and burning, and noise, and then…

…

..

.

.

..

…

…Where was he?

Michael suddenly opened his eyes- or suddenly started to see- and found himself staring up at a popcorn ceiling with colorful streamers hanging about.

He was somewhere completely different. He felt detached, like he had just woken from a dream and yet was still lodged into one. Everything blurry and lucid, but there was no pain.

Confused and disoriented, he pushed himself up off the ground. He felt numb and his mouth tasted like metal and chemicals. He felt something tighten in his chest and he reached to pull it away but felt nothing there to remove.

And then he got a look at himself. He looked down at himself and found that something had changed.

He was human again.

He couldn’t believe it. Michael thrust up his hands in front of his face, wobbling as he did, and he saw normal human hands. Normal, healthy skin, his familiar bone structure. These were his hands, and a look down again made it clear that this was his body. His human body from before his accident, still wearing those same technician overalls from that dreadful night.

This couldn’t be real. He had to be truly dead or at least hallucinating.

One look around was all it took to confirm this, because he recognized the little restaurant he was inside. If not from the gaudy coloring and the prominent smell of subpar pizza, then from the old- but looking brand new- posters of a familiar bear and bunny on the walls.

He was in Fredbear’s Family Diner.

He very well might’ve been dead then. He couldn’t understand why he would suddenly appear here, and he was having a little trouble thinking straight. Everything felt muttered and fuzzy and when he tried to think of what happened- something happened, hadn’t it? Yes, he was chasing that rabbit woman in the Pizzaplex and then…

…Something had jumped him? Perhaps he was knocked out. Or killed. That was possible, but he didn’t exactly feel dead. Not that he would know, he thought.

Michael pushed himself off the floor and teetered on numb but sure legs. He looked to his hands again and flexed his fingers, watching them move and only barely feeling them.

Or maybe after so long in that suit, his human body wouldn’t have felt like much at all. Likely he was dead. Had a massive springlock failure that sent his soul catapulting into the underworld.

It must’ve been hell too, because Fredbear’s Family Diner wasn’t his idea of heaven.

Yet here he was in his old body. That was some amount of comfort and an equal amount concerning. He looked around and began to step further into the diner.

All the lights were on and kept the place fully alight. Almost painfully so, but these eyes didn’t burn under those lights. What was eerie was that the windows were pitch black. Not even the faintest reflection or streetlight could be seen outside of them. It was like an empty void out there. Perhaps he was in that fake diner Marion, Mike, and Charlie had seen when confronting his father. That would explain the dreamlike feel.

Nothing was happening though. It was just the diner. Confetti littering the floor and decorations mounted like a party had just commenced. He wandered further into the diner, looking around at it before his eyes landed on the stage.

That was not the right stage. It was too big, significantly larger than the one at the actual diner and surrounded by a ring of thick red curtains. He was somewhat surprised he remembered it well enough to spot the difference.

Then before his eyes, the curtains began to draw open. They revealed two familiar suits standing on the stage. One was a yellow bear suit while the other…

The other was the suit he was currently trapped inside. Though clean and refurbished, as brand-new as the day it was first built. It looked like an entirely different suit, but he knew it inside and out and that was it.

Michael had a foreboding feeling sink into his gut and took a wary step back.

Spring Bonnie lifted his head.

In an instant he had replaced Vanny as being the one stared down by the suit. Though he wasn’t so much afraid of it as he was what was about to happen.

Spring Bonnie took a staggering step closer, clumsy and awkward. Then another, like a toddler wobbling on its own feet. Slowly thumping towards the front of the stage before taking a step too far and dropping off. It landed heavily on its feet, staggering once more before barely regaining its balance.

It now stood tall feet in front of him, swaying in place, staring him down. It raised a hand slowly in his direction.

And then…

It clapped its hands.

All of a sudden Spring Bonnie broke into a jig. With a wiggle of its arms and a kick of his leg, overhead music kicking on the moment it did.

And then he opened his mouth.

“Hey everybody, put the radio on! Time to throw our troubles away-hey-hey!~”

It bounded towards him, and Michael tried to back aside, but it met up with him, stopping to dance in front of him. Rolling its arms and kicking out a foot, and winking with its stiff, lifeless eyes.

“We’re turning up the music, we’re having a ball! This band keeps rocking-!” It stretched its arms out wide as though in a hug. “Forever and ever!~”

In a second it grabbed for him. Michael went to move out of the way, but it followed him. Like he hadn’t moved at all. It grabbed him by the shoulders and wrenched and roughly spun him around. Michael staggering over his feet and turning around to find himself face to face with the backdoors of a van. The red Freddy Fazbear logo on the back resembling the one for the Pizzaplex.

When Spring Bonnie came tumbling out of the backdoors and stopping on a knee in front of him. It hopped eagerly to its feet.

“Into the jalopy, gonna go for a ride. To the pizza shop with our frie-heh-iends!~”

The doors had closed behind them. It tossed them back open and moved aside, holding out his arms towards the Sun that now stood in the darkness of the open van. But he was wrong, he looked different from Sunny- the old Sun, Jake, Michael realized. He had a little gap in his teeth and blue-grey eyes.

“We’re jumping and a rockin’ ‘til the sun goes dooowwn…”

The Sun slowly leaned forward before collapsing to the floor. It broke into dozens of pieces that scattered across the floor. In its place out of the darkness stepped the Moon, red eyes glowing bright as its face spun.

“-And the moon is shining- forever and ever!~”

The Moon covered its face in dismay, as though in mourning of the Sun, but Michael only saw it for a second before Spring Bonnie spun in front of the doors and slammed them shut. Then twirled around to face Michael again, only to then lunge in and grab him. One of its hands clamping onto Michael’s and its other arm hooking around his waist.

“Forever and ever and ever!~” it sung and pulled him into a clumsy dance.

“Get the hell off of me!” Michael finally shouted. He tried to push the rabbit off, shoving at its face, to no avail.

“Forever and ever and ever!~”

Panicked, he shoved his hand in at the neck and tried to feel for a way to deactivate or set off the suit, but much to his horror and very little shock he found nothing. The suit was almost hollow inside, an empty coldness.

“Forever and ever and ever and ever.”

Spring Bonnie stopped on a dime and began to lean in. Its thick, fake teeth snapping in front of his face as it leaned in close. So close that he was sure it would bite into his flesh.

“Forever and ever and ever and ever-.”

Its mouth spread and he saw another wicked grin hiding underneath. It was wide and inhuman, like a suit inside of a suit, cast in a red glow.

“LET’S GO!”

With a sudden yank, Michael was sent spinning and careening. Tossed into the back of the van and tumbling through the darkness before falling out the other side and landing on his back.

Back in the diner again, but completely disoriented, and with no time to recover before he was yanked back to his feet.

“We’re rockin’ and a-rollin’, our friends are all here!~” Spring Bonnie gleefully introduced. One arm wrapped crushingly tight around Michael’s shoulders as it gestured a hand up at the stage.

Freddy, Chica, Bonnie, and Foxy stood up on stage. They looked like their classic versions, though something was off about them. Maybe their sizing or coloring, but Michael could tell they weren’t the same. He quickly looked around and he had no idea where he was. Some other restaurant or diner, but not any Freddy’s he had ever seen.

“Got our ice cream sundaes and flo-ho-oats!~!”

Spring Bonnie slammed its fist down on the bar directly on its other side. A slew of milkshakes, sodas, and various plates piled high with food slid down the way only to disappear over the other side and no doubt fall to the floor, though he couldn’t hear any crashes. Spring Bonnie slapped its hand down on a basket of chili cheese fries.

“We’re diving into pizzas and burgers with cheese-.”

It dug its fingers into the food before lifting a messy handful. It dripping down its hand as it swung it over, shoving the mouthful sloppily onto Michael’s mouth, forcing the mush past his lips and teeth and fighting with him to shove it in. His jaw eventually pushed open as he felt something cold sliding around inside of his mouth sliding around inside of him.

“Keep the French fries coming- forever and ever!~”

Spring Bonnie swung its hand away, food slinging off its hand and splattering elsewhere. Michael heaved and choked, trying to get the filth out of his mouth but it was still slithering inside. A heavy thump on the back and a shove sent him stumbling to his feet into the middle of the dining room.

Back in the diner, except now there was a large spotlight hanging high above and casting sharp light down onto the stage, with its curtain closed again, himself, and the floor in between. Spring Bonnie doing a sideways jig out onto the floor between him and the stage.

“We’re bringin’ all our buddies, it’s time for a jam!~” Its dancing had become much more confused and strange, like it was a doll yanked on strings. Its head bobbing as its legs fumbled and rolled underneath it. “Gonna play til our worries are go-o-one!~”

It gave a clumsy spin and stagger. Like it was intoxicated. Like his intoxicated father was piloting the suit, but no human limbs would move like these did. Not even his own would. It teetered towards the stage, shuffling in a sharp lean.

“Picking up the music and rockin’ along! We just keep playing…”

Spring Bonnie finally lost the battle and began to fall. Its hand grabbing for the red curtain and yanking it down with it. It hit the floor heavily, mouth cracking and gaping open, its eyes rolling into the back of its head. The curtain covered it completely when it fell.

And as that curtain fell away, there was revealed something else standing on the stage.

It was a patchwork rabbit with cockeyed ears. A blue bow rested on its throat, along with a matching coat. A wicked grin was stretched wide on its face.

“FORVEVER AND EVER!”

 It hopped down from the stage, using the covered up Spring Bonnie as a stepping stool. It crunched underneath its padded bunny feet. “Forever and ever and ever!~”

As uncomfortable as Michael had felt through this whole disgusting display, the sight of the rabbit made him the closest he had felt to sick in years. He tried to take a step back, but he was frozen in place. He couldn’t move.

“Forever and ever and ever!~” The bunny continued to sway and dance. Little jigs and spins, and shuffles and twirls, as it slowly made its way closer to him. “Forever and ever and ever and ever!~”

Michael kept trying to fight but his springlocks were tight and locked and he couldn’t get away. He was entirely tangled and couldn’t even look away.

The bunny finally seemed to notice him. Head snapping in Michael’s direction and ceasing all dancing, instead stalking towards him with slow certain steps. Its head cocked and its gleeful grin framed by the ominous red glow from its eyes.

“Forever and ever and ever and ever. For-.”

It grabbed Michael by the head. One hand then another, gloved fingers digging into his skin and hair.

“-ever and ever and ever! Forever and ever and ever a̸n̴d̸ ̶e̵v̸e̸r̶.̵~”

It pulled them close together, forcing their forehead tightly together. It felt too real- but it felt like cold metal, not fabric. Slithering deep inside of him, inside of his suit.

“F̶o̶r̵e̷v̸e̸r̷ ̴a̷n̷d̴ ̶e̸v̵e̴r̴ ̴a̸n̵d̴ ̴e̴v̸e̶r̷ ̸a̶n̶d̴ ̸e̷v̷e̷r̴.”

The glowing red eyes encapsulated all his vision until they were all he could see overtop that toothy grin and he wasn’t thinking or feeling of much of anything except wriggling wires and diners and the yellow rabbit.

Static building in his ears as its voice cut through.

“F̵̤̏o̴͔̎r̵̩̔e̶͙̔v̸͙̌ě̸̫r̴̠͑ ̵̬̓a̷̤̕n̴̝̄d̶̥̃ ̷̠̔è̶̡v̴̰̈́e̷̤̽ṙ̸͎ ̴̣͌a̶̲͂ǹ̴̙d̷̠͛ ̶̫́ḙ̵͝v̷͇̀e̵̢͝r̵̼̆ ̵̪̓ȁ̷͚ň̷̟d̴͇̈́ ̶̦͗e̷̡͛v̴̫̍e̵͒ͅr̷͆͜.̵̮̊ ̴̥͑L̷̡̒e̷͇̚t̴̟̀’̸̨̈́s̴̜̄-̷͓̓ ̷̲̚

A loud bang broke through the song. The sound of something slamming into something- the door. The sound of something slamming into the door.

All Michael could see was red and static. His body was useless and numb, save the wires coiling deep into his endoskeleton underneath his suit. He couldn’t think straight, he couldn’t comprehend what was happening, but he could make out a voice calling from outside the door.

“MICHAEL!”

It was Ben. He was coming for him.

The red lights finally left his vision, but his eyes were still unfocused and blurry. His head was angled back, and he couldn’t tell if he was looking at the ceiling or the wall. He couldn’t think straight. He couldn’t feel his fingers.

A mass shifted above him and disappeared into the vent alongside him, with him helpless to stop it, or to even consider stopping it.

Ennard finally shoved the door open just in time to see a tangle of wires disappearing into the vent. Some of them still stuck inside Michael’s suit and unravelling as it fled. Ennard saw red.

“Oh no, you don’t,” he hissed.

He sprung over and reached into the vent, grabbing a handful of wires and trying to tug some back. They resisted. Holding on with one hand, he took his glove off with his teeth with the other, and electricity sparked at his fingertips. He grabbed a chunk of the wires and sent a shock straight up them, around the corner, and into whatever creature they belonged to.

But instead of subduing the creature, it only caused it to hesitate for a few seconds, and then it seemed to get a second wind. It ripped it tail of wires from Ennard’s grasp- well, except the ones that tore off and stayed with Ennard- and scuttled off into the vent before landing with a heavy clunk as it dropped to a lower floor.

Ennard had half a mind to take off after it, but one look at Michael showed this was the last thing he needed to do. Some of the wires he ripped from the creature were currently stuck in Michael’s suit and he quickly pulled them free.

“Michael? Buddy? Can you hear me? Hey, come on, I see your eyes moving. Come on, I need an answer,” Ennard encouraged. Michael’s eyes continued to drift, him confused and disoriented. “Stay with me. I’m gonna get you out of here in no time! Just stay with me, okay? Focus on my finger… Okay, just… I’ve got you. Let’s getcha out of here.”

Ennard’s endless babbling wasn’t registering, but his voice promised safety.  

Michael blacked out, but this time there was no diner waiting for him. Just darkness.

Chapter 79

Chapter Summary

Michael makes a few new friends and finds out a few new secrets... and is haunted by a monster who he cannot escape.

Chapter Notes

Sorry about the wait, and hope it's worth it!

The first time Michael awoke, his body was being carried. He heard Ennard muttering above him to someone who was down by his legs. The two carrying him along, but he couldn’t focus and could barely feel much.

The world went dark again.

The second time he awoke he was staring at a dark red wall stretching above him. He eyed it for a long moment before closing his eyes again and fading out once more.

He briefly roused for a third time at the sound of nearby footsteps.

Sometime between then and when he finally awoke, he felt someone maneuvering him and reaching into his suit. In the back of his mind, he knew it was Ben, so he didn’t panic. He just let him do whatever and faded out once more.

Finally, Michael roused enough that he could think. He was staring at the dark red wall again, but this time he recognized the Freddy insignia on it. He was still in the Pizzaplex. He twitched his fingers and found that he had gotten full motor control back, even if he still felt eerily lethargic. Hollow too, colder on the inside.

“Ben?” he asked. His voice was lower than expected and he had to strain to get the volume up. “Ben.”

He heard some quick footsteps and Ennard’s head popped into view.

“Michael?!” he asked.

Michael rolled his eyes to him and replied with a barely cohesive mumble.

“Michael! Ha, thank GOD!” Ennard gushed. He turned Michael’s head to look at him dead on, currently hunched over top of him. “And welcome back to the land of the living, ha ha! Follow my finger.”

“Must… I?” Michael gargled. Though he asked this while obediently following Ennard’s finger back and forth.

“Don’t sass-mouth the doctor,” Ennard playfully said. Though it was clear from his tone that he was overwhelmingly relieved. He must’ve been worried.

Considering that Michael didn’t know where he was or what time it was, they could’ve been here for a while. Considering how hard he blacked out, he could’ve believed he was out for days, but doubted he was.

“Wha…t happ…ened?” Michael asked. His voice catching and low.

“Remember that wire thing I was talking about and those ‘something’s’ Monty and Jake were talking about? Well, ‘something’ tackled you and knocked you out cold. THEN it tried getting into your suit, but it didn’t get far! I already checked, there’s no stragglers. You’re good to go.”

Well, that explained why his insides felt so strange. At least he didn’t have to be away for the checking.

“Where… are we?”

“Sun’s room. Moon showed up and helped me carry you up here.”

“You’re welcome!” Sunny chimed in from somewhere. “And don’t worry, it was no trouble at all! You weren’t even as heavy as Freddy.”

“You regularly tote Freddy around?” Ennard cheekily asked.

“Only when he forgets to charge. We’ve had some close calls,” Sunny said tiredly.

“Freddy likes to live on the edge,” Jake, who was also there apparently, chimed in.

“On the edge of a dead battery,” Sunny tsked.

All Michael got from this was that he had an audience. He tried to sit up, but Ennard quickly pushed him back down.

“No, don’t get up! Heh, not until we make sure you’re good to go,” he insisted. He gave Michael a pat on the head. One that felt patronizing even though he knew it wasn’t.

“What are… What are we going to do about the parts?” Michael got out.

“…Well, uh… You know what? I’ll go get ‘em! I can get someone to come with me. Moony!” he gestured off towards the daycare attendant.

“What?! There’s no way! Nope! Not gonna happen!” Sunny vehemently denied.

“That might be a good idea,” Jake offered. There was an audible clatter as Sunny swung his head to look at him. “I mean it! You could lead him right there, and you’re the one with security access.”

“I didn’t want to send them down there in the first place,” Sunny huffed, planting his hands on his hips. “No means no!”

“Why do you have to make this difficult?” Jake whispered.

“Because I’m the one taking the fall if something goes wrong,” Sunny whispered back.

Of course, both Michael and Ennard heard this. The clown rolling his eyes back before snapping them forward thoughtfully.

“You know who’d probably know his way around Parts and Service? Freddy! I’ll go ask him, see if he’s up to a little exploring,” Ennard offered.

To which both former and current daycare attendant looked to him in surprise.

“Wha-WHAT! No, no! That would be a TERRIBLE idea! You can’t- He’s very busy- he’s a single father! And- you can’t just- uh- UGH, fine! Fine, I’ll take you down there! FINE!” Sunny exploded with exasperation.

Ennard gave a sly side-eye and a subtle smirk. “Thought so,” he said under his breath.

“Do you really want to… want to go down there after that. After… whatever that was. That rabbit woman is still down there,” Michael warned.

“Yeah, but I would really love to get a one-on-one with that rabbit woman again. Something tells me I won’t get cold feet this time,” Ennard said, his voice dipping lower with every word.

Michael laid his head back tiredly. “Don’t. I don’t want you going anywhere near her.”

“But what if I’ve got no choice? She’s got Scott hostage and my twin brother Iron Guts is trying to gnaw off Sun’s face. What then?”

Michael’s tired eyes became a little more alert as he stared distantly at the ceiling.

“If she ever lays a hand on Scott, you break it,” he said sharply.

That was a clear answer if Ennard had ever gotten one. Leave her alone, don’t pursue, and if she pursues then make her regret it.

Meanwhile Sunny had a finger poised as he was prepared to chime in only to be struck silent with that sinister comment. He looked to Jake who gave a sort of unsure shrug.

“Oh boy…” Sunny mumbled and dropped his head in his hand.

“You’ve got it, Boss,” Ennard said with a wink. Though he followed with a secure pat to the shoulder. “Don’t worry about me, I’ve slithered my way out of worse. And I’ll be with Moon Man! I know I can outrun him if things go south.”

“Gee, I can’t wait to get down there,” Sunny muttered flatly to Jake.

“And you’re safe here. There’s a bunker door right down that hallway keeping you safe and sound, and we’re pretty far from the basement. The most dangerous thing in here are the cobwebs.”

Michael didn’t care about his own safety. He felt too hollow to give himself a second thought.

“Are you going to be okay if I go?” Ennard asked.

“Of course I will,” Michael insisted. “But if you can just wait, I can come with you.”

“Mikey, even if you could spring up- spring up right this second, I wouldn’t drag you back down there. There’s no way.”

Michael knew this and yet he still decided to sulk. As though he even wanted to go back down there. He didn’t, and he didn’t what Ennard to either but just couldn’t put up the effort to argue. He just felt so worn out.

“Juuuust take it easy. Oh! And hold onto these for me. Don’t want to lose ‘em.” Ennard handed over the radio and the Handunit.

Busy work, Michael assumed. Both to keep the electronics safe and to make Michael feel like he was doing something.

“Okay!” Ennard pushed up from the floor and rubbed his hands together eagerly as he turned towards Sunny. He snapped his fingers- mimicking the snap with his voice- and pointed towards the door. “Let’s get a’moving! We’re burning nightlight!”

“Ngh…” Sunny was clearly second-guessing this, but he dragged himself to his feet and led the way. Ennard followed him out, briefly stopping to look back at Michael, second-guessing his own decision.

But he ended up leaving. Which was fine by Michael. If he stuck around, he would’ve just felt more self-conscious about all that had happened.

Laying here helpless in this rotten carcass from Freddy’s. Michael sighed and lifted a hand up to rest on his head, only to then find himself staring blankly at it. At the old suit hand that was his.

After seeing a human hand in its place, seeing it made his heart drop. Made his heart break all over again. Breaking him all over again.

Michael scoffed at the thought and dug the heel of that palm into his eye.

“God, I’m pathetic,” he muttered.

“No, you’re not.”

Michael yanked his hands back and paused, then turned his head to look in the direction of the voice.

Sitting on a square shaped pillow with one leg crossed, the other an endo leg that didn’t match his frame, and with a makeshift control panel resting in his lap was masked animatronic with a flimsy black cloak. He could see the similarities between his build and Sunny’s, though the fact that he knew they were there made it easier to spot.

It had to be Jake, who hadn’t headed out with Ennard and Sunny apparently.

“I’m guessing you didn’t know I was still here,” Jake said.

“You guessed correctly.”

“Sorry. I wasn’t trying to sneak around. I just live here,” Jake lightly joked.

Michael rolled his head back into place and stared distantly at the ceiling. He didn’t answer.

“But you’re not,” Jake continued. “What that was… Whatever that was, you couldn’t have fought it off.”

“That’s not it. Though having to get dragged back up here certainly doesn’t help my confidence,” Michael muttered. “This whole plan was a wreck the moment I got down here. I should’ve known better. My sister herself called it before I walked out the door and I still walked right into it.”

“You can’t beat yourself up about this-.”

“I can and will.”

“Uh… Well, I guess you can do anything you set your mind to…” Jake said awkwardly.

What followed was a very awkward silence. Though Michael was too exhausted to acknowledge it. Jake rubbed the back of his neck and readjusted the panel in his lap to the side.

“Soooo, I heard what you and Ennard were talking about earlier,” Jake gently began.

“…I forgot all about that,” Michael mumbled.

“It’s no big deal! In fact, I was thinking about it and… you know, we kind of hit it off. I don’t meet a lot of new people here who I can really talk to. There’s Sunny, but other than that I have to stay hidden most of the time unless someone visits, and they spend more time with him than me-.”

Michael had turned his head suddenly, unnoticed by Jake, and was staring wide-eyed. He couldn’t possibly be suggesting what he thought he was suggesting.

“-and there’s Charlie, but she’s got a life. Not that you don’t have a life! But maybe we could try to be friends. Sure, we just met, but I think we could get along. We could exchange technician tips! Or you could give me some.”

Oh, he wasn’t. He was suggesting a completely innocuous friendship. Thank goodness.

“That might not be such a bad idea. I barely know you, but what have I got to lose?” Michael asked. He studied Jake for a moment, his eyes lowering to his panel. He struggled to sit up. “What is that?”

“What? Oh, this! Here, let me show you.”

Jake got up and hurried over before sitting down beside him, or above him, and setting the panel back in his lap. He angled it toward Michael.

“This is my personal workstation. I use it to look through the cameras and hack into Staff Bots on the grid.”

“How?” Michael asked.

“I’ve got some leftover equipment on hand.”

Jake reached up and opened the panel on his arm before plugging it into his oversized Handunit. The small screen lit up, as did Jake’s eye as he uploaded himself into the panel.

“And now all I do is find a nearby Staff Bot who’s on the grid and hook in. Easy as that!”

“Fascinating,” Michael said with no exaggeration.

It really was. For the first time since he had gotten to this monument of consumerism, he was truly curious in the technology being displayed to him. The idea that an animatronic could attach to the security system- astounding.

“Thanks!” Jake sounded genuinely giddy at the chance to show off. “Here, watch me load into the Nanny…”

Meanwhile, Sunny and Ennard were making their way through the theater. So far things had been quiet- that was, until Sunny suddenly rounded on Ennard and stared him down. Ennard stared back.

“What’s that look?” he asked. His eyes narrowed in amusement. “And by that I mean, what look are you giving me that I can’t see because of those radiant pearly whites?”

“Don’t butter me up now, Mr. Lemon-Lime. I want to know what you’re planning with Jake.” He pointed to himself and then poked Ennard in the chest. “I heard YOU talking about some sort of scheme with him and Jake, and I want to know what it is right now, or you can say bye-bye to those parts!” Sunny said and crossed his arms.

Ennard jokingly winced. “Ooo, you’re gonna do Charlie dirty like that?”

Sunny kind of froze up for a second before turning his head up. “It’s your choice, so my hands are clean!”

“Okay, okay. I give,” Ennard said with a light chuckle. He put his hands up in defense. “There’s no scheme. I was just trying to set them up.”

It took a second for that to sink in, then he jolted in surprise.

“Wha-but-EXCUSE ME?!” Sun sputtered.

“Yup! I know you’re not with Jake, you’re with Freddy. So, he’s free! And Mikey’s free, and here’s the kicker- they’re both into this whole tinkering with stuff thing. Small world!” Ennard grinned in a way that seemed too mischievous for a matchmaker. He held up a finger on both hand and slid them together. “So, I just thought if I gave them a little nudge, maybe something would happen~.”

Sunny stared at him silently. Then he clasped a hand over his face and laughed lowly.

“Ohoho, you are banned from the daycare. Soooo banned.”

“Aww, come on! Wouldn’t it be just a little cute,” Ennard offered, pinching his fingers together.

“NO! As a matter of fact, no it wouldn’t! Because Jake’s-… Jake, and you’re trying to set him up with some weird guy in a dirty, old Bonnie suit!”

“Hey, that’s just the suit! Underneath that suit, Michael’s a heck of a guy! He’s smart as a whip, courageous to a fault, and when he cares about someone, you better believe he cares with his whole heart!” Ennard laid out.

“Then why don’t you date him?” Sunny mumbled and huffed. He spun around on his heel and crossed his arms again like he was pouting.

Ennard couldn’t help but grin wickedly and lean in over his shoulder.

“You’re only making me want to do it more.”

“Ugh!” Sunny tossed his arms with exasperation before thrusting his fists down at his sides. “Let’s just get this over with!”

“Now that’s the spirit! Let’s go get some feet.”

Sunny begrudgingly led Ennard all the way downstairs and into the dregs of the basement. Ennard was expecting to catch sight of Vanny tailing them or hear just the faintest sound of slithering, taunting him from a distance. But it was silent, there were no followers, they were alone.

Ennard would never let Moon know that he was still hunting the rabbit. He scanned each hallway eagerly, awaiting a glimpse of her, but she didn’t show. Even though he knew it was better that she didn’t, he was disappointed.

But he was never that great with impulse control. He wouldn’t have been able to handle the temptation of hunting her down and giving herself something to be scared of.

He shook those thoughts off when he started to get twitchy. He had to keep a clean head. The last thing he needed was to put himself in danger- with the mutant, not the rabbit chick- when the only one here to rescue him was the daycare clown. Sure, he looked like he could put up a fight, but so did Michael…

Eventually they passed the hallway that they had split off into while chasing Vanny. It reminded him, and he broke the looming silence.

“You know, we ran into that rabbit chick right back there,” he said, pointing his thumb back behind them. “She jumped the fence and came down this way.”

Moon hummed in response.

“There were a bunch of those bots clogging up the way and… Wait a minute… Those Staff Bots can’t get up on their own, can they?”

“No,” Moon said. His red eyes darted around the hallway.

“…Well, that’s not creepy! Ha ha, let’s keep going,” Ennard said.

But in reality, the feeling itching at him wasn’t fear. Sure, this thing- whatever it was- was definitely a threat. It was pretty much just another him, down to the handling electrocution like a champ thing. Down to the forcing itself inside-…

“It was so sudden, y’know,” Ennard continued. “We were just runnin’ around chasing rabbits and BOOM, something crawls outta nowhere and jumps Michael. And I was in the other room, so I got there late to the party and just barely yanked the thing off’a him before pulling him out. Rabbit chick had split, I had only a guess of where I was, and then you showed up. Which, thanks again. There’s no way I could’ve carried him out alone without dragging him.”

“It’s my job to keep things in order,” Moon cryptically said.

“Uh huh. By the way, how’d you know where we were?”

“Mmmnh, those Staff Bots set off security alerts when they were tampered with. I was the nearest security bot, so I handled it myself.”

“Gotcha! Makes sense.” Ennard slowed a little more. “I just… I don’t get it. What that thing is. Is it another me? Or not ME, but like some kinda amalgam running around down here? Was it from Afton Robotics? Why the- what was it doing to Michael? It had him down and- I thought I lost him. Again!”

“I warned you about coming down here,” Moon said matter-of-factly.

“…Yeah, you did.”

Moon glanced over to watch as Ennard’s eyes slowly rolled onto him.

“What?” he asked.

“That’s what I’m wondering. What?” Ennard mimicked. “Is it, and how’d you know it was down here?”

“It’s another one of Fazbear’s dirty little secrets,” Moon grumbled. He turned his head to look ahead again.

“Yours too.”

“What are you getting at?” Moon snapped.

“What I’m getting at is that both you and Monty know there’s something down there, and you know what it is, but you keep being dodgy. And all I know is that some hunk of wires tried to strangle my friend to death- it was INSIDE him! And I want to kn-knoww what-t it iss sso st-stop playi-ing around and tell me.”

Moon wasn’t prepared for the change in voice, and he certainly wasn’t prepared for the change in demeanor. All that frustration that Ennard had kept neatly tied up spilling out like wiry guts through his teeth. He stared down the jester with no joviality and dead seriousness. He was angry and he wanted answers.

So, Moon sighed and caved.

“It used to be an animatronic. Now it just haunts the basement, disassembling Staff Bots and consuming their power. Hooking itself up and draining whatever power it can before the technicians can cut off the supply.”

“How do you know that?”

“…A friend told me.”

Ennard’s eyes widened curiously. “Oh?”

“But keep it between us. You and I both know that if someone- say… Marionette- finds out about this, they will come to look for him. Try to help him. But there is no helping him. Not anymore.”

There was a long pause.

“Okay, so, to summarize: you know exactly what it is, where it came from, and ya still didn’t think to, I don’t know, tell us?”

“I- wh- y- I warned you before you ran off down there!”

“You told us the basement was dangerous! At this point there’s a rabbit chick who can fry bots, a bunch of rabid Staff Bots, a bunch of rabid endos- pick your poison! None of those are a problem for Mike and me, but THIS is!”

Moon’s hands tightened and were shaking, and it was at that point that Ennard realized there was something else going on. There had to be.

“Just tell me who you’re protecting,” he said with exasperation.

“Jake!”

“Okay,” Ennard sighed, dropping his arms and shoulders.

“Always Jake. I am the only one who will,” Moon muttered. After a tense pause he sighed. “And Freddy. Fool hearted Freddy and his rule breaking bridge troll.”

“…Who, Foxy?”

“No, the child.”

“Gotcha. Yeah, I was thinking that was a weird nickname for a pirate.”

So quickly Ennard went back to his own casual speaking, but Moon wasn’t entirely convinced now that he could see how well Ennard could cover. If anything, his sudden passiveness was very concerning.

“Listen… You must keep this between us, and maybe Michael if he insists. The others cannot know. Not Charlie, not Freddy, and especially not Mari. If they find out they will try to go find it and nobody else needs to get hurt.”

“Consider my lips sealed... For now. But eventually someone’s gonna find out that there’s something busted up running around down there. You gotta put a leash on that thing! And I say that as a thing that needed to have a leash put on,” Ennard said, an edge of annoyance starting to slip into his tone. “I don’t get why it’s gotta be a big secret. Keeping it a big secret’s just going to get more people hurt. You know that, right?”

“…I am aware.” Moon turned his head away. “Let me handle it for now.”

“Sure.”

“And let’s get these parts and get out of here. This place is filthy,” Moon grumbled. He looked down at the dirty floor that his slippers had been hiking all over. “Ugh, disgusting.”

“Oh, I have been in way worse,” Ennard said almost proudly.

He let it drop. Not necessarily to let it go but because he knew he wasn’t getting anywhere with the Daycare Attendant. Instead, they focused on getting to the correct warehouse.

Ennard then killed a clean twenty minutes watching Moon scuttle and climb searching for the correct box. Even the most casual attempt to peek into a box with immediate correction. Though instead of offended, Ennard couldn’t help but be more amused than anything. Watching how comically anal-retentive Moon was reminded him that this was still Sun.

Might’ve done a little to smooth over the little disagreement from earlier. Or maybe that was just Ennard coming to terms with the fact that the only person to blame for what happened was himself. But he wouldn’t dwell on it; he would get the job done, get back to Michael, and make up for the disaster best he could. Well, he would if Moon wasn’t taking his sweet time.

Eventually he found the proper box and Ennard dove in to find deconstructed pieces of Daycare Attendant legs. Michael’s hunch turned out to be right because just from one look alone, Ennard knew they matched up pretty well with Charlie’s own legs. Making them work would be the hard part- and the fun part.

“Ha, PERFECT!” Ennard said as he admired a foot in his hand. He put it back in the box and closed it up before hoisting it under his arm. “We have to go back, Moony. Back to the daycare!” Ennard said, pointing off triumphantly.

Normally Moon would’ve seen this as Ennard the kooky clown being as oblivious as ever, but now he knew there was something hiding underneath. Underneath that insincere smile Ennard had to be thinking, wondering.

Wondering why he didn’t get the parts for Jake. Moon knew he had to be thinking about it, silently judging him. It ate at him until he lost his patience and spoke impulsively.

“Aren’t you going to ask me something?” he asked sharply.

“…Nooo?” Ennard asked confused.

“About Jake,” Moon clarified.

“Oh yeah…” Ennard tapped his chin thoughtfully before casually asking, “What kind of flowers does he like?”

Moon grumbled and decided that he preferred possible silent judging to any question like that. That was just asking for trouble.

By time they had made it back to the daycare, Moon had swapped out for Sunny yet again but still trailed behind Ennard who jauntily made his way into the theater. He let himself into the propped open poster down, holding it open for Sun who pushed the trashcan propping open aside with his foot and closed it behind them, and then they continued down the hall.

Ennard reached for the doorknob only to stop and round on Sunny with a wicked smile.

“Now we go in to find out that the Bunny Man and the Phantom of the Daycare fell in love while he we gone,” he said. Eyes gleaming with mischief.

“Ah ha ha. Ha. So funny,” Sunny said with no amusement. He opened the door and strode in. “We’re ba-ac-ack!?”

Jake was sitting alongside Michael showing him his control panel. Michael had his Handunit hooked up to the control panel with a cord wrapped in duct tape.

Michael was, in fact, leaning against Jake’s shoulder with his head slightly tilted to see the screen, but from this angle- from what Sunny was seeing- from what that silly clown had been saying-!?

“OH ho, that’s gotta sting,” said clown whispered in his ear.

“Hey,” Jake greeted with a wave.

“HEY!” Sunny returned. “W-We got the paRTS!”

“Good job! I knew you could pull it off,” Jake complimented. He then subtly whispered to Michael. “He’s upset about something.”

“How could you tell?” Michael asked dryly.

Ennard came over and opened the box to show him. “I’ve got the goods, Boss!” he said in an igor-ish voice.

“Good. Yes, I think these will work. We can make them work,” Michael said. He still sounded tired as he shuffled around the parts.

“When’s her upgrade?” Jake asked.

“We’re not sure yet. We won’t be doing it until we can put the legs together outside of her body confidently enough to put them inside.”

“Makes sense to me.”

“Well, I bet you two need to get going! It’s been a long, long night and- oh gosh- there’s only- let’s see- a few more hours before opening! Well, we had fun seeing you! Bye-bye!” Sunny raced out as he swung back open the door.

Michael and Ennard just stared at him for a long moment. Michael with tired exasperation and Ennard with a little too much smugness. Obviously trying to kick them out or not, he did have a point, and Michael started to push himself up. Ennard hopped onto his feet in a second, shoving the box back under an arm and using the other to help him up.

“He’s right. We’ve already cut it close enough as it is,” Michael agreed. He reached a hand to Jake, silently asking for his Handunit that was still plugged in.

“Just two more second left on the download. And hey, in the meantime- can I get your phone number?” Jake asked.

“JaKE?!?!” Sunny asked, the words coming out like through his tight teeth.

Michael could just feel Ennard’s expression and chose to ignore it as long as he could.

“Of course. Is there a pen I can use?” Michael looked around for something of the like and caught sight of Ennard with that look, again, though much worse- dilated pupils and all. “Stop that and help me find one.”

“It’s no big deal. He’s not… him,” Jake whispered to Sunny with an edge of exasperation.

“But- he- ugh!” Sunny turned his head towards the rabbit and caught sight of Ennard’s look. “UGH!”

“We’ve got markers around here somewhere. I can at least scare up a crayon,” Jake said to Michael, totally ignoring Sunny and starting to set his control panel aside.

Sunny rolled his head, like rolling his eyes but even more dramatic, waved for Jake to sit back down, and scuttled around collecting a scrap of paper and a navy-blue marker for him to use.

“What download? Software update?” Ennard asked.

“Maps! Well, some of them. I’m not sure how you’re going to pull them up, but they’ll be there,” Jake answered.

“I’ll figure it out. I know that thing better than I know myself,” Michael remarked as the market and paper were handed to him. He quickly scribbled down the number. “This is Marion and Mike’s home phone number, but I’m never further than five feet away. Save when I get the outlandish urge to run down to some godforsaken mall in the middle of the night.”

“Throw in hobo-ing in a daycare storage room and, yeah, welcome to my world,” Jake joked. Though far from cynical he sounded much more playfully amused. He took the paper with a ‘thank you’ and regarded the panel again. “Almost done.”

“Sooo, what did you two get into while we were gone?” Ennard asked coyly.

“Did you know Jake can remotely control a Staff Bot?” Michael asked.

“Well, yeah. You knew that too.”

“Yes, but I didn’t know he could manually plug himself into a Handunit and jump onto their security drone grid.”

“…Oh ho, now that IS interesting,” Ennard said, his interest piqued and switching quickly onto Jake.

“I could show you,” Jake offered. He patted the blanket where Michael had been laying. “Park it here!”

“Jaaaaakke, the time,” Sunny warned, tapping on his wrist where a non-existent watch would be.

“Eh, go clean up some shrimp. I want to see this,” Ennard brushed off. He plopped down beside Jake. “Show me the whole thing.”

“It all starts with this little cord,” Jake said faux-dramatically.

“Ooh!”

Despite Ennard’s little show, Michael could see the excitement in his eyes. He was genuinely curious, and he surely would be impressed by the end of the display. Michael knew that he was.

But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. Maybe it was the huffiness that Sunny was giving off. He decided to poke the bear and approach him.

“Thank you for these. And for keeping an eye on him. I know he can be a bit enthusiastic,” Michael said.

“Oh yeah, he’s a real bundle of energy,” Sunny mumbled to himself. From the motion of his head, he seemed to check and make sure that Ennard hadn’t heard him.

Intimidated by him, likely. That at least explained the defensiveness. The guarded posture wasn’t just for him then.

But something else must’ve happened.

“Did something happen while you two were gone?” Michael asked. His voice grew low. “…Did you run back into her?”

“No, but I’m finally up to speed on this little plan of yours. The one that involves Jake,” Sunny whispered just as lowly.

Oh. Well, that explained the defensiveness as well.

“His plan, not mine. I just met him,” Michael pointed out tiredly.

Sunny tilted his head and slumped his shoulders. “Wait, so you’re not…?”

“I just met him,” Michael repeated.

Sunny continued staring questioningly.

“Which means, no. I’m not.”

“Whew! What a relief! I mean, no offense, but you’re not exactly his type. He needs, uh, err- well, I don’t know! I’ll know whenever I meet him or her or whoever, but right now Jake is completely happy right here.”

Michael could just hear the denial and strain in that voice and decided he was much too tired to deal with it right now.

Especially when he could understand exactly why Sun would be so against it. He gave the Daycare Attendant some space after that point, knowing he likely wasn’t comfortable with him.

It didn’t take too long for Jake and Ennard to finish up and for the Handunit to finalize its download. Jake sat aside the panel and got up to lead them out, carefully cradling and handing over the Handunit. He then escorted them out of the loft, signaling for Sunny to stay back, which resulted in another huff.

“Feel free to drop in at any time, guys! Don’t worry about Sunny either. It takes him a while to warm up to people, but I appreciate the company. So, door’s open,” Jake said apologetically.

“Thank you for everything. I wish there was some way to repay you, but I feel like getting out of your hair is payment enough,” Michael remarked.

“Aww, come on. You heard him! He said he had a blast!” Ennard said. He reached out and gave Jake a friendly pat on the back.

The bot, unused to being touched by anyone other than Sunny, jumped a little but he recovered fast. Just in time for the clown to lean his masked face in.

“Hey, can I ask you something?” Ennard asked.

“Ben, don’t you dare,” Michael warned.

“Uh, sure?” Jake agreed.

“Ben,” Michael warned.

“So, that wirey guy in the basement. He’s your bud, right?”

That was the last question Michael or Jake expected. It caught them both off-guard.

Jake visually flinched in surprise. “My… what?”

“Yeah, so I was having a chat with Moonman about that thing that jumped Michael downstairs and he said it was some busted up thing, said some friend told him it was some old, busted thing, and I just wanted to go ahead and put those two and two together before I walked out. Ya know, so I don’t get all the way home and have an “ah-ha!” moment and nothing to do with it. So, yeah, friend of yours?”

Jake looked between him and Michael. Even with his eye glowing so fully there was enough movement to give it away. Then he lowered his head.

“…Yeah… He was a friend of ours.”

“Tough breakup?” Ennard asked.

“I don’t… I don’t really want to talk about it. If it’s okay...”

“You’ve got it, friend! Thank you for taking good care of my buddy here,” Ennard chirped, gesturing over to Michael. “And if you ever need ANYTHING, I owe ya one!”

He mimicked a click of the tongue, shot Jake a wink, and thankfully let him go.

“Sure thing. Or no, I- you don’t owe me anything. I- I had a good time!” Jake fumbled. Clearly trying to change the subject, but his voice genuinely perked up when he turned to Michael. “Call me! Oh, uh, wait. Scratch that. I’ll call you.”

“But not tonight,” Michael affirmed.

“Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow?”

“Assuming I wake up, yes.”

“Same time tomorrow!” Jake agreed. He started to head back to the poster door, tripping up a little on his way in and waving at them. “Take care! And be careful- the Glamrocks were out in the Atrium last we checked!”

“You got it!” Ennard chirped. Michael simply nodded.

The poster door shut. Ennard turned towards Michael and held his arms out proudly.

“Well, you restrained yourself,” Michael said dryly.

“I really did. I could’ve dragged him right back in there, sat him and Sunny Boy down, and got all the juicy details from them both, buuuut I think we got what we needed,” Ennard said.

Indeed, he was holding back. But that was largely because he knew if he kept prying then he was going to get them both totally blocked out.

Michael considered walking himself back in and asking, but he was so tired, and Sunny was so obviously going to gatekeep if they pressed to hard. The babbling Sun managed to stay relatively tight lipped. He had Michael fooled that the only thing bothering him was the matchmaking attempt.

“What do we know about this friend?” Michael murmured.

“Well, we know things didn’t end so nice. Miiight be working with Vanny. This is the second time we’ve caught ‘em together, because the first time I saw it on the cameras, it was scooting around with her.”

“Might be possessing Vanny, more like,” Michael said. “When that thing grabbed ahold of me, I had some sort of vivid hallucination of the diner and- God, just… so many things. And one of those things was Vanny. Or I believe it was Vanny. It had her eyes, but I think it might’ve been wearing a jacket. And more of an off-yellow color.”

“I’m sure she was too after you gave her the scare of her life,” Ennard said with a snicker. “What else didja see?”

“…I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Yeesh. Nobody wants to talk about anything,” Ennard said.

Dismissive or not, Michael knew he was concerned because he let it drop. He didn’t continue prying or asking. At least, for the moment.

They watched the theater’s security door raise up and reveal the bright, bouncy atmosphere of the daycare.

“…I think Marion mentioned a friend, but I can’t remember,” Michael admitted. He rolled his neck to little relief. “We’ll discuss it when we get back. We can’t be too certain who may be listening.”

“Give ol’ Sunny a break, eh? Sounds good to me!”

“And before I forget…” Michael reached into the side of his suit before handing over the radio. “Here.”

“Where’d you have this stashed?” Ennard asked.

“You know where.”

“You and I both know it wasn’t stashed where I think it was stashed,” Ennard said playfully, bumping him with his shoulder. Michael rolled his eyes and the clown giggled before eagerly hooking him into a one-armed hug. “Oh, I’m just so happy you made a new friend!”

“Ben,” Michael warned.

“No, no, no. I mean it! I’m happy you made a friend,” Ennard doubled down. This time his voice not sounding coy at all, just so very excited.

While it made Michael a little self-conscious, it did feel good. He didn’t get the impression that Jake was just hanging around out of sympathy but that he too needed the company.

“He is very interesting,” Michael agreed.

He wasn’t sure if Jake was ever going to call him after he walked out of this Pizzaplex. Odds were that Jake would soon forget all about him, but maybe not.

Michael was still hooked under Ennard’s arm as they walked up to the security door. It rolled up to let them out into the Pizzaplex.

And revealing a familiar band of animatronics hanging out right outside waiting. It was so sudden and unexpected that there was no attempt to flee. Ennard could just gawk while Michael got a wearily exasperated look.

Freddy and Roxy were sitting on the planter bench at the base of the column right outside the daycare door. It was comically close to the floor for them, so Roxy had one leg bent and the other stretched out beside her while Freddy just had them bent in front of him, hands resting on his knees making him look like he was crouching. Monty was laying on the other side of him on his belly, his head resting on his own arm beside Freddy, the other dangling to the floor.

Chica was standing in front of the three facing them, her hands on her hips, her fingers tapping on her plating. Eagerly awaiting something, or someone.

As she heard the door opening, she looked back over her shoulder and her eyes landed directly on Ennard. They widened, and then she threw her arms into the air with delight and ran to him, a little skip in her step, and threw herself directly into Ennard’s arms. Michael caught the faintest hint of dread in Ennard’s eyes before the clown caught the chicken in his arms like it wasn’t just a reflex.

“He-Hey, Chickadee! Oh wow, you’re all put back together again! I can’t bel-lieve it!” Ennard congratulated. Nobody except Michael noticing the stutters in his voice were more than just little ticks- anxiety ticks, maybe. He still gave her a friendly hug like they were old friends before pushing her back by the shoulders. “Lemme take a look atcha.”

Chica was eating it up. Making the motion of ‘fluffing’ her feathers with one hand while resting the other on her hip. Posing to be admired.

“You look great! They did a great job! Heh, almost as good as I did,” Ennard cheekily said. He took one hand off her shoulder to bump it with it.

Chica gave a little “Oh you!” wave. She then pointed to her mouth and made a talking motion with her hand before shaking her head and zipping her beak. “I can’t talk.”

“Yeah, I heard about that. I’m sorry,” Ennard said, genuinely sympathetic. His eyes tilting with sadness and remorse before perking up. “But hey, they’ll get around to fixing that! And it could be waaay worse. Heh, believe me.”

“Yes. You could look like me,” Michael said deadpanned.

Only now realizing there was someone else there, Chica leaned over to look. Upon seeing Michael her eyes widened again, though this time her pupils shrunk.

That was a look of fear. Michael recognized it instantly and knew what it had to mean. Like Sunny she had recognized the suit, but not from secondhand recounting. She was a former victim.

Chica ducked back behind Ennard, grabbing his arm and pulling him to try and shield herself behind him. Ennard looked to her in surprise, but Michael was far from it. He was instantly hit with a wave of self-consciousness and dread.

“It wasn’t me. I was just trapped in his suit,” Michael almost desperately explained. “He… He used me, he fooled me, and then he sealed me away in his place.”

“He’s telling the truth!” Ennard added, catching on quick.

Chica looked up at Ennard questioningly.

“Yeah, look, I knew this guy before he was in the suit and I met that guy, the Purple Guy, waaaay AFTER he was in this suit. He was hanging out at a red nightmare lake before he drowned.”

“Did… Did you say red lake?” Sun asked quietly. Both Michael and Ennard looked back to see Sunny peeking out of the top of the slide, having followed them to eavesdrop.

“That’s the part you found weird?” Roxy asked. She walked up, sizing up both of the new animatronics as she did. “What are you two talking about?”

“Chica recognizes the suit- me. She recognizes me as… being someone very vile. A monster. But that is not me. I was simply confined to this suit after my… unfortunate ‘accident’,” Michael explained.

Roxy’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. “So, you’re not him?”

“I am not.”

“He is telling the truth!” Freddy vouched. He stepped past her and Monty and came up to him. “This is Michael! He is Foxy’s older brother. Michael, it is a pleasure to finally meet you! Foxy has spoken about you often- all good things I assure you.”

“He has?” Michael asked in mild disbelief.

“He sure has! He’s been singing me praises too,” Ennard said. By now Chica had moved to his side and was clinging to his arm, but he made no move to push her off.

Michael hesitated before he took Freddy’s hand. His grip was firm but not nearly as stiff and robotic as he might’ve expected from his build.

“I’ve heard quite a bit about you too. It’s good to finally put a face to the name.”

“I hope I lived up to your expectations!”

No wonder Gabe was so fond of him. He practically oozed this father-like charm that he and his siblings were deprived of. Though it was probably best to not tell either of them that.

“This is Roxanne Wolf, but we call her Roxy for short, and that is Montgomery Gator, but we call him Monty for short,” Freddy introduced. “Roxy, Monty, this is Foxy’s brother Michael, and that is Ennard.”

“Said they were a couple’a technicians,” Monty chimed in. He was finally getting up from the bench and pushed his sunglasses back into place. “That Handunit doohickey checks out.”

“Ha ha, guilty as ch-charged!” Ennard said proudly.

Michael held the Handunit up instinctively when his attention turned back to Freddy, who was looking at the object. Perhaps it was worth killing two birds with one stone, he assumed, and he held it up to him.

“Freddy, do you know what this is?”

“Of course I do! That is a handheld controller unit. It is an older model; they do not use those in the Pizzaplex, but much of the technology is the same. It may be compatible with some of our devices. Err, with a few software updates.”

Well, if that didn’t answer his question then nothing would.

In fact, it was so obvious that someone else took notice. Chica blinked at Freddy and then looked between him and the Handunit and then Michael and Ennard and got a look of realization. She stepped forward- pulling Ennard with her and up to Freddy’s opposite side to put him in between her and Michael- and then she pointed to the Handunit, between Michael and Ennard, and then to Freddy.

“I am not sure what you are saying? Do you… Oh! Are you saying I should help them update the Handunit? I would love to! However, I think that is a little out of my expertise. Perhaps we could get Ja- ahem- umm… James, the worker! Yes, I am almost certain there… MUST be a James. It is a very reliable name.”

Well, that confirmed Michael’s theory that Foxy was the brains of the operation.

Chica shook her head and pointed at him again. Only to get an idea and touch her temple instead, looking at him through narrowed, focused eyes as she sent a message. Nobody else heard it, but Freddy spelled it out for them.

“Me?! A technician?! Oh no, I could not have! I have been Freddy Fazbear for my entire life! Plus, I have been… unsuccessful in any repair attempts. Such as with the door.”

Chica, maybe a little exasperated, bent over to look past him and Michael and pointed almost accusatorily at Sunny who had climbed out of the tunnel and was creeping over. His arms shot up like he had a gun aimed at him.

“W-Why are you looking at me like that? I-I don’t know anything about technicians! I don’t LIKE technicians!” he fumbled.

Chica’s eye twitched and she ran a hand down her face.

“Figures,” Monty muttered.

“You’re certain?” Michael pressed.

“I… am as certain as I can be,” Freddy vaguely answered.

“Because there was a technician who went missing here.”

Freddy was surprised. “There was?!”

Roxy’s eyelids raised like she was lifting her brows. “And how do you know that?”

“Leave this to me,” Ennard cut in. “Okay, here we go…” He rubbed his hands together and then rushed out, “Michael’s brothers, Foxy and Mari, work at Foxy’s Pirate’s Cove and are real tight with the owners of Pirate’s Cove- you could say they’re in bed with them-.”

“Ben.”

“Anyway, the owners got rung up by the guy running this place, Wight. Freddy, there’s the James you were lookin’ for.”

“Ah yes! That was who I meant!”

“And Wight wants to make this deal with Foxy’s that’s pretty obviously a way to buy ‘em out, but he gets loose lipped and says that a couple of his workers quit. Poof! Didn’t even take their last check and disappeared off the face of the earth.”

“He said that?” Monty grumbled.

“That’s right! And nobody’s buying it, but then a little birdie starts spreading around that this technician guy just poofed away! Didn’t quit, just amscrayed, and considering what we know about what happened to the last- what- four technicians who disappeared? Yeah, we’re taking a guess that this guy’s probably floating around down here somewhere. Heh, we ALL float down here, if ya get my drift.”

“I haven’t the foggiest idea what that’s supposed to mean, but I get what you’re saying. The technician disappeared and he’s probably one of us. And you’re right, he probably is,” Roxy agreed.

Freddy snapped his head towards her. “Roxy?!”

“Come on, Freddy. You know we don’t just appear out of thin air,” Roxy scoffed and turned her head away. She then nodded in Monty’s direction. “Monty used to work here.”

“Thanks fer that,” Monty grumbled again.

“Please. Like you don’t make it so obvious,” Roxy retorted.

“And you?” Michael asked.

“I can’t remember,” she said shortly. “So, is that why you’re here? To snoop around? Because it looks like you found something. Mind sharing it with the class?” she asked, her eyes leveling on the box Ennard was toting.

“Oh, this? No, no, no! These are replacement parts for my adopted brother’s adopted sister. See?” Ennard got his arm back from Chica to open the box and fished out a foot. Her peeking into the box as he did. “See?”

“Wait… She’s one of them?” Monty asked, pointing a thumb over towards Sunny.

“Close enough,” Ennard said with a shrug. He dropped the foot back into the box and folded it up. “But we were just on our way out. Nice to meetcha all though! And good to see ya again, Chickadee.”

He gave Chica a friendly pat on the back. Her eyes widened again with disappointment before she turned to him, shaking her head and waving her hands, trying to tell him not to. She made a few unreadable gestures around before finally getting an idea, lifting a finger as she did. She then pressed the finger to her temple and sent a new message to Freddy, which he received quickly.

“Chica would like to take you on a tour of the Pizzaplex!” Freddy said. Chica nodded eagerly.

“Really?! Oh, that would be so much fun!” Ennard enthused. Michael nearly butted in when Ennard beat him to it, “Buuut we’re cutting it a liiittle close as it is. We get stuck here after six and we’re gonna be spending a long time parked in Sun’s room, and I know he doesn’t want that.”

“No, I don’t,” Sunny said flatly.

“So, we really gotta skedaddle.”

Chica sent another message to Freddy. He translated, “Then how about a small tour through the atrium? You will be able to see many of the attractions from there, even if we do not go inside.”

Chica punctuated with a little shrug before clasping her hands together in a plea. Her eyes big and glassy, giving off that same begging appearance.

It wouldn’t have been nearly as effective if she wasn’t mute. Especially if he wasn’t the direct cause of her becoming mute.

Ennard never did handle guilt that well.

“Ooooohhhhwwwwhat the heck! Sure, ha ha! But just a small one, okay?”

If Michael’s eyes could’ve popped out of his head, they would’ve launched right out of his suit. He should’ve expected Ennard would cave, but he couldn’t believe he actually caved.

Chica gave an excited clap and eagerly hooked her arm around his before hurriedly pulling him down the hallway towards the door they had come through earlier.

“You can head back to the car. This won’t take long!” Ennard said back to him.

“I’m fine,” Michael replied.

“Are you sure?” Ennard asked, still being led away.

“Yes, I’m sure. I’m fine.”

To prove it, Michael was quick to follow but did so begrudgingly.

Curse Lizzie for mutilating this chicken.

Roxy and Monty followed after them, with the former quick to match Michael’s stride while the latter took his time bringing up the back. Freddy was the lone man out remaining back at the security door. He heard a jingling and looked to see Sunny trying to discretely climb back into the slide without being noticed.

“Sunny, wait!” Freddy called.

Sunny dropped his head in defeat at the bear’s clunking footsteps running up. He sighed and flipped his head back to look at him. “Yes, Freddybear?”

“Why not join us? It will not be a long tour, you will have plenty of time to continue getting ready for opening! Though knowing you, I am sure you are already very prepared,” Freddy offered.

“Oh, umm. No, I don’t think so. But thank you for the offer!” Sunny said unsurely.

“Are you sure? Chica has her hands full, so it will not be, err, awkward.”

Sunny knew what he was getting at, as though the little was Freddy was twiddling his thumbs didn’t give it away. But after that talk about technicians earlier, with all of them out there and Ennard running his mouth about stuff, Sunny was reluctant. He found a quick excuse.

“Monty doesn’t want me there…”

“But I do,” Freddy said fondly.

“Freddy, i-it’s just gonna be… weird, okay? I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Sunny insisted. “I’m sorry, Papa Bear, but no.”

“That is alright. Perhaps some other time.” Freddy was disappointed but understanding. “Then would you do me a favor and watch Gregory while I am gone?”

“Sure! I’ll head right over,” Sunny said, perking right up. Now that was something that he could do and that needed to be done. He stepped back out of the slide and began to skip before Freddy lifted a hand.

“No need!”

He opened his stomach hatch and revealed none other than Gregory holed up inside.

“Sup,” Gregory said.

Sunny sputtered dramatically. “Wh- the- hu- Freddy, you can’t carry him around with your bandmates! He’s get caught!”

“No, no. Gregory is the hide and seek master! He could hide in any spot as long as he needed to without making a peep- and thankfully this hiding spot is fully monitored and has manual locks if need be.”

“Manual locks. Yeah,” Sunny said unconvinced. His hands on his hips.

“Now he is already in his faz-jammies and has brushed his teeth-.”

“Freddy,” Gregory said in a reminding tone.

“I am just letting Sun know that you are ready for bed!”

“Yeah, thanks,” Gregory said, clearly embarrassed.

Sunny snickered a little, rolling his points and ruffling Gregory’s hair- much to the boy’s dismay.

“I’ll take good care of him, Freddy! Now get going before your friends come back to get you,” he assured.

“Thank you, Sunshine. I know this is short notice,” Freddy said apologetically. He pulled a small pillow and blanket out of his belly and handed them to Gregory. “And you can still come if you would like!”

“Nope. No. I’m happy here,” Sunny said.

“Be good for Sunny,” Freddy reminded.

“Define good,” Gregory replied. Looking back and up at Sunny with a purposeful smirk. Sunny’s eyes half lit, unamused.

“Pretend Sunny is me and do not do anything you would not do with me!” Freddy replied. He took his turn to ruffle Gregory’s now totally tussled hair. “Be safe. I will be back shortly. And Sunny, thank you again.”

“No problem, Freddybear.”

With that, Freddy turned on his heel and bolted out of the daycare as fast as possible. Both to catch up and to keep his friends from venturing back.

As soon as the security door rolled back down, Sunny let out a menacing laugh.

“Ahahaha! You’re MINE now, you little rulebreaker!” he cackled like a cartoon villain. He tapped his fingers together as though plotting the most horrible of schemes.

Despite himself, Gregory slipped a smile. “You’re such a dork.”

“Would you call Freddy a dork?” Sunny challenged. Then after a long moment of silent consideration, of which both knew the answer. “…Don’t answer that. Down the slide you go.”

Freddy caught back up with the others shortly afterwards and they continued into the atrium, heading off in the rightward direction.

Chica pointed down into the little Kids Cove area, unaware that Ennard had previously caught her searching for Gregory in it. She didn’t notice his rigidness at all.

“That is the Kids Cove playground! That is where I officially met Foxy,” Freddy volunteered. 

Chica pointed to a walkway behind a security door leading over and beyond the play area.

“And that is the way to Chica’s Cupcake Shoppe and the Over the Moon Bounce Park!”

“And down there’s a dead end that don’t go nowhere,” Monty said, pointing down to the end of the atrium level. “Just looks over the way into Gator Golf.”

“Mikey, we’ve gotta come back and play Gator Golf,” Ennard playfully whispered, giving the rabbit a little nudge with his elbow. Michael gave him a less than enthused look. Ennard got a more apologetic look in his eyes and tight smile.

He was tugged along by Chica who excitedly led him up the escalator to the next floor. Michael followed behind with Roxy behind him. He heard a subtle sniff but received no comments, thankfully. He was very aware of the constant smell of decay haunting this suit, he had just become somewhat blind to it. It was always something.

Chica started to drag Ennard down past El Chip’s and tower Mazercise when Ennard caught sight of a menu board outside of the restaurant.

“Would ya look at that! Hold up a second.”

He came to a sudden halt, easily tugging Chica’s arm and nearly knocking her off balance in the process. She looked back in surprise, but he was already eyeing up the bulletin board, his eyes scanning the choices.

“That is the menu for El Chip’s Fiesta Buffet! There they serve Mexican-American styled cuisine,” Freddy explained as he stepped up off of the escalator.

“Is that so? Shocking,” Michael remarked.

“It really is. That this slop is considered cuisine, ugh,” Roxy said with mild disgust. She then muttered a quieter, “They ‘slow simmer’ the black beans for weeks.”

“I’m surprised they’re still beans at that point.”

Roxy gave a mildly amused scoff.

“Gee, you know for fast food this stuff costs more than the ritzy stuff. Even the tacos- the taco platter’s a hundred bucks?! And they’re mini tacos! I could eat that whole plate in ten seconds flat!” Ennard said in disbelief. “Michael, tell ‘em!”

“Apparently he once ate a jar of molded mayonnaise he had stashed behind a dryer,” Michael murmured to Roxy. She gave him a downright startled look.

“Not that! But regrets, yeah, I’ve got a few,” Ennard confessed. His shoulders slouched. “There goes my plan to send Scott up here for tacos.”

Chica looked curious and made a question mark in the air and pointed to the restaurant. Ennard had no idea what she was asking. She wasn’t asking about Scott, but that was his opening.

“Oh, Scott? He’s my boyfriend! Or, well, not really a boy. He’s my manfriend,” Ennard winked. “He loves this stuff! Or he brings home a lot of stuff like this from his church potluck. We’ve got this five-layer dip in the fridge that’s outta this world. And you wouldn’t think that a potluck is gonna have a lot of that good old fashioned tailgating food at it, but this stuff has a layer of sour cream and olives that’s three inches thick. Lemme tell ya-.”

And Ennard continued to tell her without stop. All the while she got a look of shock, then stared ahead in realization, and then her eye twitched the slightest bit. At that point Ennard started to notice.

“Ah ha ha, yeah… But th-that’s okay right? I-I know it’s a little, uh, it’s kind of funny. Ha! Y’know, funny, because I’m a clown?” Ennard gave her a downright desperate smile. Then broke all pretenses with an abrupt, “But we can still be friends!”

That line snapped Chica out of her trance, and she slumped dramatically in defeat. Her head dropping and her arms dangling.

It was a crushing feeling. Not horribly crushing but a ‘major bummer’ to be so totally into this guy and just suddenly have him throw that out there.

It was very disappointing, and it used to be that Chica dealt with disappointment by ripping open a bag of chips and chomping down. She couldn’t do that anymore, so she had to deal with it her own way. She had to decide exactly what she was going to do now.

“Yoooou okay?” Ennard asked. Inwardly preparing to make a run for it. Michael too, he was already making sure nobody was blocking the stairs.

Chica suddenly straightened back up with her eyes closed and made a motion like taking a deep breath.

Then she gave a firm nod, hooked her arm back around Ennard’s, and then began to pull him along again. Her pointing to Mazercise to make her intentions clear. Because no chance or not, she wanted to keep going.

“O-Okay, great! Ha ha, lead the way!” Ennard said. His voice still catching but him sounding genuinely more relieved.

“She took that better than I expected,” Michael murmured. Mostly to himself but it didn’t go unheard.

“This isn’t the first time a guy she’s been chasing turned out to be swinging for the other team,” Roxy sighed. “Isn’t that right, Freddy?”

“I… We are on the same team, Roxy,” Freddy fumbled.

“Yes we are, Fazbear.”

Chica pointed up at the Mazercise sign before pumping her fist like she was working out, rocking her heels to pretend to do so to an unknown beat.

“D’you do the workout with them?” Ennard asked.

Chica made a so-so motion. “Sometimes.” Specially since she had lost the ability to snack. Sitting in on a workout section was a good distraction to pass the day.

Ennard opened the door a crack and peeked in to see what he assumed was a normal workout area.

“Where’s the maze?”

Chica pointed over and forward, like she was saying ‘in the back’.

Ennard got an eager little grin. “Can I see it?”

Chica agreed with a nod and strode into the Mazercise like she owned the place.

If you had told Michael an hour ago that he would be standing in a dark workout room that smelled of stale food and faint sweat, underneath a bunch of neon lights, getting chatted up by Freddy Fazbear while Ennard and Chica scuttled around a little maze built for children- he wouldn’t have believed it. Of course, he wouldn’t have believed most of tonight happened, but this was especially unbelievable.

As luck would have it, the person Ennard wanted to make amends with just happened to be, at her core, yet another Ennard.

After a while, they came out of Mazercise and went right into El Chip’s where Michael gifted them a few extra minutes despite how weary he was. He didn’t want to show it, he didn’t want to deal with it, instead moving to the railing of the atrium and leaning on it, staring down at the distance to the floor.

That was the sort of drop that would shatter a body, he considered.

While Roxy shadowed Ennard and Chica, Michael found himself still saddled with Freddy and Monty, much to his confusion. Or no, he understood it completely. Freddy said it himself; Foxy had told him all about his older brother and that made Freddy eager to connect. Even now he was pretty much keeping up the conversation himself, pointing down at the various attractions and explaining them, with Michael nodded when expected.

He appreciated it in a way. Appreciated that Foxy had a friend who was so invested that he was willing to strike up a friendship with his brother because of it. Freddy had passed the test with flying colors. Appreciated that he had a brother who was willing to talk about him and leave such a good impression that he, bluntly, didn’t deserve. Or he didn’t feel like he did.

Meanwhile, Monty was leaning against the railing on the other side on one elbow. Staring back and off at the floor like he was dead to the world, entirely checked out of the conversation. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one zoning out at Freddy’s longwinded but enthusiastic verbal tour of the entire Pizzaplex from this singular walkway.

“-except for on Faz-Fridays where you can get two games for the price of one. It is a very good deal! I could go on for ages, but I believe it is about time for you to get going.”

“It is?” Michael asked distantly.

“You said you were planning on leaving at three, yes?”

“Yes. Is that what time it is?”

He lifted the Handunit and clicked it on. It read… twelve thirty-seven. That couldn’t have been right. It must’ve reset the clock when Jake did the update. He could fix it later.

“Two-fifty in the morning exactly. That will give us ten minutes to get you downstairs, but there is no rush of course. You are welcome to stay as long as you like,” Freddy assured. “And, if I may… you appear to be tired.”

“I am,” Michael admitted.

He didn’t expect Freddy to be bold enough to touch him, so he was downright startled when Freddy laid a hand on his back. It didn’t help that Michael was so sluggish that he didn’t notice it coming. He quickly tightened his fingers on the Handunit to keep from accidentally dropping it. From this high up there would be no salvaging it.

It wasn’t like nobody touched him. Ennard was very physically affectionate and really, he was the only one Michael truly allowed to be that way. Except for maybe Marion, but he had learned that Michael didn’t like to be touched.

Or no, it wasn’t that Michael didn’t like to be touched. It was that he didn’t like the feeling he would get when someone would try to offer affection only for him to not be able to receive it. There was always a layer of metal, fabric, and filth blocking him from everyone, including Ennard. So, it always took him off-guard when someone went through the effort of trying.

“Let me go get them,” Freddy offered.

Michael nodded. “Thank you.”

Freddy gave him a pat and headed into El Chip’s to inform them. Monty finally snapped out of it when Freddy walked by and pushed himself up off the railing, cracked his neck, and sauntered vaguely in direction. This was fine by Michael as them being alone together might’ve been awkward if he didn’t say anything, even if Monty seemed fine with long periods of silence.

Freddy walked into El Chip and walked in on Ennard eating corn with a spork while Chica ducked and weaved around, doing a reenactment of her encounter with Charlie- who Ennard had wisely chosen to stay tight lipped about. Freddy told him the time and Ennard blew out of there like Freddy had just informed him that the van was currently on fire. Michael dragged himself off the railing in time to meet him outside and they began to head out.

Though Chica quickly caught up. Michael was prepared for her to fight it, but she didn’t. She just came along to walk him out, with the rest of the Glamrocks accompanying them.

“You two are welcome back anytime! Feel free to come along with Foxy if you would like,” Freddy eagerly invited.

“And tell the little hot head to drop in sometime. Monty and Chica are just dying to meet him,” Roxy added.

“Yar,” Monty agreed.

Michael’s naturally distrusting nature made him reflexively think it was some kind of trick, but he knew that it wasn’t. They were just curious about Freddy’s friend, just like Michael himself had been inquisitive about Gabe’s.

It was almost inspiring to see that despite the would-be competition between them all and the rocky history they shared, that these animatronics- these people were able to put their differences aside and start afresh.

They embraced Ennard- at least Chica did, but the others were equally responsive to him. Maybe for Chica’s sake, maybe because Ennard was that intoxicating form of extrovert who just sucked people in. Michael could’ve believed either.

They wanted to meet and know Foxy. Something that Foxy certainly needed. He hungered for more friends; anyone could see that. It would be good for him if they truly welcomed him in.

And then there was Michael.

He had been in a room filled with people who knew they had been human and had gone through similar experiences to get trapped in the bodies they currently inhabited, and yet somehow Michael felt completely alone. Entirely singled-out.

Michael went on autopilot through the goodbyes and was ready to leave.

On the way out, a random map-toting Staff bot swung by to wave at them.

“That’s gotta be Jake!” Ennard said with an eager grin.

Michael scoffed at his enthusiasm and waved back. It felt… hollow.

Maybe the night had tired him more than he thought. It was almost a relief to return to the van, or it was until it sunk in that it was back to the couch for the time being. He adored his couch, but after tonight returning to it was so anticlimactic. At least it welcomed him with open arms.

“Don’t tell Scott about what happened in the basement,” he said as soon as they were in sight of the van. Ennard’s head snapped to him in surprise. “Not tonight. You can tell him tomorrow, but I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

Ennard agreed. He certainly didn’t want to hide anything from Scott, but keeping it hush for one night as to ease Michael’s burden was more doable than hiding it forever. That much he could do. Worst case scenario, he could tell him once they dropped Michael off to ease his mind.

When they walked up to the van, both quickly realized that something was missing: Scott. Ennard briefly panicked, rushing up to the van and looking through the windshield, only to immediately relax his shoulders and knock on the glass. After a few seconds, Michael could see Scott climbing out from between the seats. His normally tidy hair ruffled up, signaling that he was probably sleeping in the back.

Michael considered telling Scott that sleeping in a Freddy’s parking lot was possibly the worst decision he could make beyond sleeping IN a Freddy’s, only to remember he had a gun and let it slide.

Scott must’ve gotten spooked with how long they took as he got out of the van and met Ennard halfway around the front of the van to hug him. To which Ennard hugged back and nuzzled his hair, maybe longer than Scott intended but he wasn’t complaining. Michael went ahead and gave them their moment while letting himself into the back of the van.

Finally, Ennard and Scott got in, the former joining him in the back and the latter getting in the driver’s seat, and soon they were off on the road.

“So, how’d it go? It took you a while.”

“Oh yeah, we ran into some familiar faces! Ha, get this-.”

Ennard set aside the box of parts and went on to recount his night into Scott’s ear.

Michael slouched against the wall of the van and listened to the conversation. Zoning out once more before fading back in when a question caught his interest.

“So, how are you going to break it to Baby that you and Chica are buddies now?” Scott asked. He was sounding relieved himself, more so that Ennard hadn’t gotten himself eaten.

“…Ohh, I didn’t think about that. Heh heh, eh… I’ll figure something out.”

“Break it to her gently?”

“There’s no gentle about this. No pillowy words are gonna block this sledgehammer of a shocker.”

“Yeeeah, I think you’re right about that. Maybe just break it to her slowly?”

“Maybe rip it off like a band-aid like I did when I told Chica about you,” Ennard fondly purred. Him sliding around the seat to hug an arm around the man.

Scott hugged back with one arm while keeping the other hand steady on the wheel. “…Hey, uh… You didn’t give them my real name, right?”

“…No?”

Michael chuckled a little to himself. They both slipped up on that front, hadn’t they? It would probably come back to haunt them, but then again, what wouldn’t?

He felt so tired. So deeply tired and weak, and tightly wound and heavy. He longed for that couch. To sink into that couch with the only sound being the low drone of the television, volume so low he could barely make out the words.

But he wouldn’t truly be alone, would he? He would be with Max and perhaps Marion if he was waiting up for him. Maybe Mike and Jeremy would be up for no particular reason. Charlie could certainly be up. Though likely it was just Max.

Michael didn’t find Max’s presence unpleasant. He found his blunt and dry cynicism to be rather amusing under the right circumstances, but… not tonight. He didn’t feel like he could stand even one more crack about what he was.

It was at that moment that Michael made up his mind.

“Scott, if you don’t mind… would you please drop me off at the warehouse?”

“What?”

“What?” Ennard asked in surprise.

“I-I mean sure! But are you sure?” Scott asked worriedly.

“I’m sure. I just need a night to think, and to rest. I’m not staying longer than that,” Michael assured.

“You could think and crash at our house! Scott and I’ll hit the hay, Baby’s probably asleep or songwriting in her room, and you’d have the couch all to yourself! And it’s a nice couch. Waaaay nicer than that two-cent hunk of duct tape at the warehouse,” Ennard tried to tempt. He turned fully towards him. “Then when we get up tomorrow, we can watch game shows. Whaddya say?”

“It’s tempting, Ben, but I need to be alone for a while.”

Ennard’s eyes filled with worry. Michael knew the moment he said those words he was going to worry, but he didn’t have the willpower to continue assuring him right now. He was fine, he just needed some quiet time.

“Okay, Mikey. Okay.” Ennard reached out and squeezed his shoulder comfortingly. “Anything you want, you got it.”

“Thank you,” Michael replied.

It was a good ten minutes before Ennard started talking again, recounting more of the night. Now sitting alongside Michael as though he was afraid to be away from him. Like he knew something that Michael didn’t. Maybe he was worried he was faking an injury, Michael considered. Maybe he was injured and wasn’t aware of it. Well, it was nothing he could fix tonight.

After what felt like much longer than it was, the van pulled up outside of the warehouse. Scott got his warehouse key off his keyring and handed it back to Ennard who gave it to Michael, who was making his way out the back of the van.

“Want me to walk you in? Or, hey! How about I stay over? It’ll be like a sleepover! You, me, a tv, and nowhere to be!” Ennard offered.

“As good as that sounds- and I really do mean it- I don’t think I would be much company tonight. Perhaps tomorrow. I’ll call you first thing tomorrow,” Michael promised. He slid out the back and onto his feet heavily.

“O-Okay, Bud. Whatever you say. I’m just a call away, promise!”

“I know. Good night, Ben. I’ll be fine.”

Michael wasn’t sure why he said that, but Ennard sounded like he needed to hear it.

“Good night to you too, Scott.”

“Yeah, uh. Good night, Michael. Call us if you need us,” Scott said.

With that, Michael closed the back of the van and headed inside, leaving Scott and Ennard in an uneasy silence.

Michael closed the heavy door to the warehouse behind him and began the long, cold walk back to that office. He spared Candy Cadet a look as he passed by, but the bot was currently dormant, so he left him and headed into the office.

It looked, and smelled, just as he remembered. A little stuffier than it had been though. With a sigh, he kicked the door closed behind him and clicked on the fan, aiming it towards the couch.

Then he set down the Handunit on the office desk. Its comforting weight wasn’t doing much for him right now, but maybe clicking on the television he could just zone out and forget why he wanted to be alone.

It wasn’t too late to have this be a normal night. He would feel better in the morning. Marion would likely come by to retrieve him, and he would go with him. Settle back in on their couch and begin to draw with clumsy fingers that no matter how much he tried, were never as good as his human hands.

To have one moment back in his body only for it to be ripped away. It was maddening.

There was a couch to sink into and a television to numb his brain away while the fan blew around the stagnant air of his own decomposition. He could rot away watching old soap operas that took him to a better time.

But eventually he would catch sight of himself, and the deep sickness would return. The disgust at what he was. It had always been there, but tonight had been the point where he realized exactly how awful it was. It wasn’t bad enough to be a freak of nature, feared and unloved by all, but he also had to look at himself and remember what held him back. And for what purpose? Eventually it would all break down.

Now, if he had a body like the Glamrocks’ or even like Ennard’s, it would’ve been different. No, he could never be human again, but at least he could stand existing like that. Looking in the mirror and seeing something that wasn’t him was better than looking in the mirror to see the monster he now was.

And maybe it was possible. After all, how easy had it been to secure those parts? Securing a new shell couldn’t be that hard, then he would just have to bolt it onto his endoskeleton. It would never feel natural, but at least he would feel something other than the constant clench and release of his springlocks.

What a crazy thought. Perhaps he could discuss it with Ennard. Perhaps they could remove him from this suit. Perhaps, perhaps.

Perhaps for tonight he would sink into the couch like he planned. He would watch soap operas and sitcoms while pretending he wasn’t thinking of that feeble hope of escape from this. Drifting into daydreams of better times- remembering how good it felt to for a moment be a person, even if in a bitter hallucination. He could. He could.

…

But he couldn’t.

Couldn’t.

Couldn’t stand.

One more day in this suit.

All at once, Michael knew what he was going to do.

He grabbed the Handunit and tossed it onto the couch. He swept off the desk and only slightly flinched at the clatter. Hoisted a toolbox up from the floor and scoured through before finding a screwdriver that looked thick enough to handle the job he needed doing. His fingers clamping tight around it as he looked down at himself for where to start.

Eventually he settled on his left arm. Something small where if it went wrong, he could stop- well aware that it would take more than discomfort to stop him.

Because under this hulking, rotting suit was an endoskeleton, and maybe it wasn’t his body, but anything was better than this. Even if he had to pry off each piece one at a time.

It wasn’t like he had many options with a suit so broken. The crank barely kept the springlocks retracted, making it impossible to go through the complicated maneuver of removing the endo from the plush exterior. This was the only way.

There were parts of a wolf suit in the warehouse if he got desperate, but he could clothe an endo. He could hide under a mask and layers of clothing and be free of this and he didn’t care what he had to sacrifice to get there.

He wanted out. Tonight.

"Please, God, let my luck be in,” he muttered. He set the screwdriver into his wrist, wedging it under the plate for his forearm. “Just this once.”

He took a breath- no, he made the noise of a breath without lungs. His springlocks tightened as he braced for pain, and then he began to pry up the suit. Remarkably, he felt very little. Maybe because he wasn’t doing much of anything.

He was going to break himself. He knew it, but he didn’t care. Himself? No. This suit wasn’t him. It was a prison. No, it was him, and if he did enough damage there was no going back from it. He had to stop. He had to.

Michael realized only then that the thoughts weren’t his own. He could hear them calling for him, trying to grab his hand and yank it away, but he was steadfast. There was a tearing noise- part of his fabric suit tearing as it was pulled up from the endoskeleton. It hurt a little, but not enough to stop him. He couldn’t stop.

He didn’t want to stop. It was fighting him, but he didn’t want to stop. He didn’t care. He didn’t care. He didn’t care what it said, what it begged, what it screamed. The tear of his fabric and the yells of Candy Cadet pleading for him, Michael, to stop. He was going to hurt himself. He was going to break something. The tear of fabric and his fingers tight around the screwdriver- so close to being out- and the banging of the door.

He was so lost in it that when the screwdriver was grabbed, he fought back for it, refusing to let it come free of his arm. His fingers so, so tight that they ached and his springlocks in his neck tightening as he fought.

Frantic, desperate. He would have control for once in his life and he didn’t care at what price.

The screwdriver was wrenched from his grip and yanked away, and Michael snapped his head up intending to get it back at any cost.

And his eyes met Ennard’s.

It startled him. He hadn’t even realized he had come in. He had just been fighting with him over that tool and he didn’t realize he was there.

He had never seen so much fear in those yellow and blue eyes. He hadn’t seen it back when they were dark brown either. He was shaking just as badly, if not worse than Michael was. Breathing, staticky gasps echoing through his chest as his wires trembled and tightened under his suit- Michael could hear them.

Met with the same panicked franticness in his gaze, Michael snapped back to his senses, and then immediately submitted. He dropped his hand to the office desk. After a moment of staring, his eyelids started to drop tiredly and his eyes too lowered to the desk, to his arm which he realized was now pinned by Ennard’s other hand.

All that effort and barely any results.

Ennard set down the screwdriver on the desk. He started to reach for Michael only to suddenly change his mind, grabbing the screwdriver and proceeding to launch it across the room behind them. It fell behind some junk where it likely wouldn’t be found for a good while.

Then he went to looking at the wound, his hands shaking as he studied the slight tearing. The metal frame easily popped back into place.

He started to look over him now. Looking for other wounds and other injuries that Michael could’ve done to himself. Michael intended to stop him and explain when his eyes zeroed in on the other tear in his suit. He pointed at it.

“Did you do this?”

His voice was low. It didn’t sound quite like Funtime Freddy’s voice at that pitch.

“Vanny stabbed me.”

“…What?” Ennard choked. His voice cracking and exasperated. “Wh-Why did-dn’t you t-tell me?!”

“It wasn’t important.”

“The HEL-LL IT WASZZN’T!”

That was loud enough to get a jump out of Michael. He looked to Ennard as though he had lost his mine. The clown’s eyes were wide and twitchy before he dropped his head into his other hand. His fingers running over the plating and across the back of his head before snapping back forward to point at Michael.

“I-I donn’t care if y-you don’t thiink it’s imp-portant,” his totally busted voice barely hiding the edge of a sob in his throat. “You t-tell me.”

“…Okay,” Michael agreed.

“H-How long- How long werrre you pl-planning this?”

“I wasn’t.”

“Don’t lie t-to me, Mi-Mi-Michaeel! III want-t-t to know!”

“I’m not lying! I swear, I… I don’t know what happened. I just… lost control of myself.”

Ennard let out a shaky breathy whine. He knew Michael was telling the truth. He didn’t know if that was better or worse, and Michael was currently so in shock that he wasn’t feeling much except reeling at everything.

There was the slightest squeak and both snapped their heads over.

Scott flinched in the doorway as they both looked at him. He hadn’t just walked up, he had likely been there the whole time and Michael simply didn’t notice. Just seeing the man standing there made him feel a wave of shame.

Ennard acknowledged him briefly before snapping his head back to Michael.

“Grab- Gruh- Grab your things. We’re taking you home,” he said with finality.

Even with his voice returning to the faux off-Freddy, it was clear that he was upset. Between that and Scott watching, Michal had no will to argue, and instead nodded stiffly. He pulled his arm back from Ennard and shuffle to the couch to grab the Handunit. It was all that he had that he wanted to bring.

Ennard then led him out, the clown twisting an arm behind him to keep a hand tight on Michael’s shoulder like he was expecting him to try to flee. Scott followed up behind them, though that was likely just to let them go first.

They were both acting like he had done something much worse than he really had, Michael thought. Though he also thought that it felt like he hadn’t done it at all. Like a distant memory even though it just happened. That feeling that it couldn’t have happened. He wasn’t even disappointed, he just felt… empty.

It was as they were at the end of the shelves when a voice suddenly spoke up from behind them, causing Scott to jump.

“Return to Candy Cadet and maybe I will tell you a story?” Candy Cadet suddenly said. Its body shuddered and the rainbow ring of lights around its head flickered like it was waking up.

Scott stared at it for a second wondering whether to go back. Considering that the last time he truly talked to it he had received a warning about William, it seemed like a mistake to walk away when he might be being called.

“…I’ll go check,” Scott said a little unsurely.

He took a few uncertain steps before quickly but guardedly approaching the Candy Cadet. The lights softly flickered as he approached, welcoming his arrival, but it said nothing. He looked back to see Ennard still watching him before finally continuing to leave, taking Michael out with him.

“Now I will tell you a story…”

Scott quickly turned back to the Candy Cadet.

“A story of a man on a phone. He would listen all day. He would listen even now.”

Candy Cadet’s voice shifted into one much more familiar to him.

“Don’t take your eyes off of him. Please. I couldn’t stop him. If he tries it again, I won’t be able to stop him.”

“Y-Yeah. Don’t worry, I didn’t plan on it,” Scott agreed. Just barely managing to keep a casual tone. “Uh… How long have you been in here? Since the last time we… talked?” he whispered.

“I am not here. I am just watching,” it said. “Please, don’t tell anyone else. They know I’m watching and that is for the best.”

“I won’t, I won’t. But just for my peace of mind, that was you who turned on the radio, right?”

“Yes.”

That was what caused Ennard to come back inside. The radio in the van had been off through the entire trip and right as they were starting to pull out of the parking lot it suddenly clicked on at full blast to a station with nothing but garbled voices. Either Ennard somehow understood it or was biting at the bit for a ‘sign’ as he launched out of the van and bolted for the warehouse before Scott could even back up all the way.

Once again, another warning from him. He really was watching.

Scott could only wonder with slight unease how much he could see. He didn’t want to think about it; he had enough to think about tonight.

“Thank you for telling me. Or us… We should be going. Are you going to be… I don’t know- okay in here? Just sitting in here?”

“I am not sitting in here. I am thousands of miles away, pulling at a little string, watching through a rippled screen.”

“Ah…”

“…Which means, yes. I’ll be fine.”

For the first time during the whole conversation, the stoic voice sounded slightly humored. It almost startled Scott as much as his voice had period.

“Oh, okay. Good… Well, it was good talking with you again and I guess I better get going,” Scott said, trying and failing to make it sound natural. He took a few steps to the side. “…Good night, Henry.”

“Take care of yourself.”

Scott began to turn away when Candy Cadet began to make a crunchy static sound. He turned back slowly and watched as it flickered and hummed until its voice reverted.

“Take a candy. Take a candy and have a story? I am Candy Cadet, come get your candy here. Candy, candy… candy…”

With the robot still muttering and twitching, Scott inhaled deeply and shuffled back down the shelves and out of the warehouse.

Then returned and walked past Candy Cadet, headed into the office, grabbed the left behind office key, walked past Candy Cadet again- shooting him a, “Night again,”- before heading out the warehouse door and locking it again.

During which the Candy Cadet fell dormant once more.

The van was deathly silent as he entered it. He spared only a quick look into the back seat, meeting Ennard’s gaze and managing a smile before turning ahead and putting his seatbelt on, then starting the van once again.

Not a word was exchanged, but Michael felt like there was a conversation going on between them through looks alone. Looks he only saw out of the edge of his vision as he refused to look anywhere except for a random spot in the back of the van. His gaze focusing on a crinkled blanket pushed off to the side. It had been folded earlier, he believed. Scott must’ve used it when he was napping in the back.

Lord, how Michael wished he could go back to that earlier van ride. This felt so much more uncomfortable, sitting here like a guilty child caught stealing candy at the gas station.

But that was not what had happened, was it?

It was hard to place a finger on what exactly that episode was- it was him, through and through. A desperate, wild animal trying to wrench its limb out of a trap and only hurting itself in the process. That fit his situation very well.

He was caught doing something risky, but he wasn’t aiming to hurt himself, as Ennard seemed to believe. It was quite the opposite of that. He wanted the hurting to stop. He wanted a real chance out of this trap.

Though now that he thought about it, in that moment, had he really cared if he had gotten injured in the process? He didn’t think he did and even now, looking at the tear on his arm and the stab wound on his chest, he had trouble caring about the damage that he would be wearing for… for the rest of his life.

He had tried one last-ditch attempt to get out of this body, and it had failed. There really was no way out.

Michael was ashamed. He was embarrassed, more than ever. More than he usually was being seen as this. This horrible disgusting thing that everyone feared that he was because of his own decisions. He made the coffin he laid in.

And there was no human body left underneath. He would never get out. He could never escape.

It was as though everything he had been pushing back suddenly came crashing down upon him. All that weight hanging over him like a perilously roped sword finally fell free and dug straight through his heart. The organ long gone but the ache as fresh as a new wound. He was instantly overwhelmed with grief.

He was gone. Michael Afton was dead, and nothing would bring him back to life.

Michael broke down into sobs. So suddenly, so violently that it was startling. He couldn’t remember the last time he wept, let alone so hard that it made his entire body and the always present springlocks tremble.

Ennard immediately clamored to him and pulled him into a tight embrace. Michael didn’t care about his pride, he clung onto the clown for dear life, trying his hardest to hide into his shoulder.

“It’s okay. It’s okay, Buddy. I’ve got you,” Ennard said. His voice was cracking, choked up, holding not a shred of the frustration of earlier. Like he had forgiven everything that quickly. Or like he had never been angry at all.

He hadn’t. He had been scared.

“Ben, God.”

“N-No, it’s okay. You can- You can just call me Ben,” Ennard forced out.

That was a horrendous joke and an awful time to do it, coming from the only person who he would ever let get away with a joke like that at a time like this.

Michael had thought that after he got Ben back- that if he could just get Ben back that everything else would be fine. That nothing mattered except getting back the one he lost. And true, it did matter more than the world to him, but the world was still waiting. It didn’t go anywhere.

Ben was silent after that, just holding Michael through the rest of the drive. Scott was mercifully silent, watching the road with misty eyes. It wasn’t until he backed the van up to the garage door that he wiped his eyes on his sleeve and got out the driver’s side. He tried to quietly open the garage door, hoping by some miracle that Baby was asleep and somehow wouldn’t wake up while letting them in, to spare her from this.

Alas, one look inside showed that neither option was true. Baby was nowhere to be seen, meaning she was liking in the living room waiting for them with Bonnet. Scott swallowed thickly and hurried back to the driver’s seat to back up.

Once inside, Scott opened the back of the van doors for them.

“Come on,” Ennard said. He pulled back only a little and gently tugged Michael to home along.

At this point his was shaking, and because of that his springlocks were chattering so hard it reminded him of Plushtrap. He climbed out into the garage and stood there staring distantly at the bedroom Baby had made of it.

Little Lizzie. He really didn’t want her to know about any of this.

Yet the will to ask them not to tell her was all dried up. He could stare somberly but he knew that if he said anything he would just break down again. He couldn’t tell if Ennard noticed or not, but he led him to the garage door as Scott hustled to close the van and get it moved to shut the garage door.

Ennard slowly opened the door and peeked in. Much to his dismay and no surprise, Baby was sitting on the couch with Bonnet beside her and both were looking directly at the door. Not even the cats, who were curled up in Scott’s chair, were as aware as those two were, watching like a couple of hawks. They weren’t sneaking by. He’d be lucky if they got through without an interrogation.

Ennard put on a front and stepped through, “Heh, hey! Look who’s up!”

“Ennie, you’re home!” Bonnet chirped. She crawled off the couch and scuttled along the carpet up to his leg. “Was it fun? Was it BIG?... What’s wrong?”

She could tell. It took her all of two seconds to see right through him. He must’ve been losing his touch.

“Nothing, Pinky. We’re just… We just had a little run-in with some funky stuff,” Ennard assured. He crouched down. “I’ll tell ya tomorrow, okay? I’m gonna be hangin’ with Michael tonight.”

“…O…kay…” Bonnet said unsurely. She could tell something was off.

He patted her head and scooped her up before depositing her onto a couch pillow. She shuffled down to hide behind it as Michael came in, still so hesitant around strangers- and Michael still very much was a stranger.

Baby had silently watched him the entire time, only waiting until then to give an inquisitive, “You were late.”

“Heh, define late at four in the morning,” Ennard joked.

Michael’s dead silence was a dead giveaway and he knew it, but he just didn’t have it in him to feign pleasantries. He didn’t want to tell her with words, so he would let her know without having to.

Ennard steered Michael around the back of the couch- giving Baby a not-so-subtle salute and wink as he passed- and led him right into the master bedroom before pushing the door mostly shut.

She had half a mind to get up and go listen at the door, but she realized quickly that she didn’t need to resort to such desperate measures for answers. Not as she heard Scott closing the garage door.

“I think something must’ve happened,” Bonnet said quietly.

“I do too,” Baby agreed.

She rose from the couch as Scott came through the garage door.

“Oh, uh. Hello, Baby. I’m glad we didn’t wake you up. Hello, Bonnet,” he greeted oddly.

“Hi!”

Scott tried to hustle past the back of the couch towards his bedroom, but he didn’t make it. Scott knew that falling behind meant a risk of being pulled aside by Baby. Baby failed to disappoint, and when that clawed arm carefully closed on his arm, he let it willingly guide him back behind the couch.

“What happened?” Baby whispered.

“It’s no big deal. We- We just-.”

“Don’t hide it from me,” Baby interrupted. Her voice almost pleading more than demanding. “Please.”

That cut Scott’s excuses short. He couldn’t lie to her. Not when she was looking at him like that, when she was counting on him to be upfront. He took a deep breath to steady his nerves and tried again.

“Michael had a… incident. When we got out of the Pizzaplex we dropped him off at the warehouse and he tried to… I think he was trying to take his suit off.”

“Oh…” Baby said quietly, her eyes wide. It didn’t take her long to read the situation.

“And we’re just going to just… We’re going to take it easy and ride out the night.”

“Why did you take him back to the warehouse?” Baby quietly asked. It was not accusatory but probing. She was unsurprised by his answer.

“He asked me to.”

“I was afraid of that…” Baby looked away and at the muted TV for a long moment. “…Should I call someone?” she asked, still looking away.

“Not yet. I don’t think it’s really our place to tell anyone. I mean… Not yet.”

“I don’t understand. Why would he do that?” Baby asked a little more desperately.

“I don’t know… I know they had a run-in with the Glamrocks, but it wasn’t a bad one. Yeah, they met Freddy and got the parts. I… I don’t know. I…” Scott looked back at the door before quietly admitting, “There might be something Michael’s not telling us. Maybe.”

“Tell me if you find out.”

“I will. I mean, unless Michael wants to tell you himself. I- You know.”

“I know…”

Scott started to turn and leave, only to stop and turn back, giving Baby a quick one-armed hug to assure her- and possibly himself, and then headed to the bedroom.

Baby watched him leave before rolling in a backwards arc and dropped on the couch with a sigh, propping her head up on her hand.

“Do you think I hurt his feelings hiding?” Bonnet asked.

“No.”

“Oh, good…” Bonnet patted her hands together anxiously. “…Can I sit on your lap?”

“Yes. Give me your pillow.”

Bonnet clamored over the little throw pillow and pushed it to Baby who used her claw to nudge it onto her lap.

“So needy,” Baby sighed, but without any true weight to it.

Bonnet didn’t mind. She climbed onto the pillow and laid out on her belly; her arms spread out on the pillow to keep herself from falling off. Baby went back to propping up her head with her arm as her glassy eyes stared blankly at the tv.

This would be an excruciating wait.

Meanwhile, Scott let himself into the bedroom, finding Springtrap standing there stiffly with his head dropped and Ennard trying to maneuver him towards the bed. He caught the end of a conversation.

“-I’m not destroying Scott’s bed.”

“No, wait! It’s fine! Don’t worry about it,” Scott said. In a few short tugs he pulled the comforter off the bed. The top sheet coming with it. “Lay down. I’ll cover you up,” he instructed.

“I appreciate the offer, but I can’t… This is just not going to work,” Michael defeatedly said. His voice just as fragile as those flimsy sheets.

“It’s just lying down. I think we can make it work,” Scott said. He gave him an encouraging smile.

Defeated, Michael decided to get it over with and dragged himself onto the bed, having to turn his head to keep his ears from bumping the headboard. Then having to just lay as a full diagonal to fit on the mattress. A mattress on the floor might’ve sufficed better, but it was at least more comfortable that the firm mat in the daycare’s loft.

Scott tossed the comforter over him and started to tuck him in, Ennard stepping in to join him on the other side.

“There you go! All tucked in like a…” Scott trailed off for a moment. “I keep wanting to say pizza pocket, but I don’t get why.”

“S-Somebody hungry?” Ennard asked.

“Somebody ate an entire bag of cashews while waiting for you guys to come out. I think I’m good.”

Ennard chuckled weakly and sat on the edge of the bed beside Michael’s legs, resting his arm on them. Scott sat on the other side of Michael, fingers laced, hands resting in his lap. He took a deep breath to steady himself.

They sat there for a few long moments before Ennard gave an awkward laugh.

“You know- You know they’ve got a hundred-dollar taco platter?”

“Really? Huh. I’m not shocked. They used to upsell birthday cakes for thirty bucks a pop. Ones that were like this big.” Scott held his hands apart.

“You’re kidding!”

“I wish. Y’know, when we had employee birthdays there was a rule about not bringing in outside cakes. You had to buy a cake from Freddy’s if you were going to have any kind of celebration. But a lot of the guys working there weren’t working there as a choice, they were working there because they were broke. They couldn’t waste half of their paycheck on a cake. So, what they’d do is get a cake that looked exactly like a Freddy’s cake- and I mean exactly like a Freddy’s cake- and they’d bring it in and hide it in the fridge, so it looked like they had already bought and stored one the day before. Management never noticed and they got to have a little party during their break.”

“Clever! But weren’t you management?” Ennard asked coyly.

“Well… Not when it came to cake. Y’know, the coffee machine wasn’t always guaranteed. When it went out, a midafternoon sugar rush was the only way to get through the rest of the day.”

“Oh, that’s so devious,” Ennard said with a playful narrowing of his eyes.

“Yeah, well… I was broke too,” Scott admitted. He returned a little smile.

Ennard forced a giggle. He could tell it was forced; they had lived together long enough that he knew the way a natural laugh would fall out of the clown. This one was shoved out.

Sympathizing, Scott laid his arm onto his, his fingers pushing to lace into Ennard’s gloved ones. The clown untangled them to turn his hand over and properly tangle them again. Metal and fabric squeezing his skin softly.

Scott looked down at their joined hands with a somber smile. His eyes locked onto a little spot of brownish stuff on his sleeve and his heart spasmed at the thought of it being blood. Only to realize quickly that he was overreacting, scratching at it to reveal it was some sort of dirt or, he didn’t know, some sort of sauce?

“There’s something on your jacket,” he mumbled.

Ennard glanced down and shrugged nonchalantly.

“Eh, prob’ly tempera.”

“That’s like, uh, fried shrimp, right?”

“Sorta. That or El Chip’s corn sauce.”

“You two don’t have to sit in here and watch me. I’m not going to do anything.”

Scott and Ennard both froze up at Michael’s sudden intrusion into the conversation. He was still laying unmoving under the comforter, face crammed into Scott’s pillow to black out the world around him.

“That’s not why we’re staying in here!” Ennard brushed off casually. “We’re just… avoiding Baby!”

“Right! Well, I mean- No. But… We’re just being good hosts. It would be weird to leave you in here alone,” Scott added.

“That’s right! It’s almost like that slumber party I was talking about! Ha ha, except we’re all depressed.”

Scott stared at Ennard in disbelief. The clown gave him a strained grin and a little shrug.

Michael knew they weren’t telling the entire truth. It was a very stretched and manipulated truth.

But the truth was that he didn’t want to be alone. He didn’t want to sit with himself and his thoughts. He would rather listen to the two small talk and babble all night that hear himself think.

“Alright…”

He accepted it and closed his eyes, pretending they were the steady hum of the TV. Pretending that this was his bed and his pillow that he was trying to suffocate himself in. Pretending that he was someone else.

And then, unbelievably, as vile as it was, he thought about that hallucination he had faced at the hands of that broken, red-eyed monster.

And he longed for its nightmares.

…

When neither Scott nor Ennard came out of the bedroom by mid-morning, Baby went in to check on them. The bedroom door wasn’t locked so she let herself in, quietly looking inside.

It was a strange sight for sure.

Michael was bundled up on the bed, under the comforter, but weirdly lying across is diagonally. He looked to be pulled into himself, but he was just a big lump under the blankets with bunny ears sticking out.

Behind him, Scott was laying in the small space between Michael and the headboard, laying flat on his back with his head on a sideways and smooshed pillow. He looked like he fell asleep unexpectedly, but he must’ve had some foresight as he had taken off his prosthetic. That leg was resting on the bed while his intact was sticking off it.

Finally, Ennard was sleeping on the floor. His head on a pillow, with Scott’s sweater over his face and his own Christmas sweater being used as a blanket, and him partially unraveled under both.

Baby sighed and quietly closed the bedroom door before going to feed the cats. Questions could wait after they got some sleep; whatever happened, they surely needed it.

Chapter 80

Chapter Summary

Jeremy has a little get-together to break in his new apartment and Michael must decide how long he is going to hide the truth about what happened to him from the rest of his family.

Michael knew that Ben was a good friend.

But he didn’t realize how good of a friend Scott was until he was woken by him getting off the bed and realized the man spent the night at his side. It took Michael a moment to piece it together, but once he did it was both endearing and embarrassing. Embarrassing that he had given them a reason to watch him, endearing that Scott had put aside everything to go through with it.

Michael had held a needless grudge against Scott for years because of his connections with his father. He had outgrown it after seeing Scott being so good to Ennard and Baby, but this was the moment when he realized that maybe he had been entirely in the wrong.

The man laid beside his moldy corpse just to keep him from feeling alone; he certainly felt like he owed him an apology. Though he stayed silent, not tipping off that he was awake.

Scott put on his prosthetic, stretched, and then quietly made his way out of the room. Michael peeked at him, unnoticed, and could see him stepping over and watching something on the floor before carefully shutting the door behind him. Once he was gone, Michael leaned a little further over the edge of the bed to look and caught sight of Ennard on the floor.

Michael laid back down on the bed for a little longer. This gave him a quiet moment to process the night before.

At the very least he was thinking a little more clearly. Just thinking back on what transpired the night before left him aghast. How he could be so desperate to do something like that? He remembered doing it, he remembered why he had done it, but he somehow felt detached from it now. Like he hadn’t done it at all. Like it was something he merely thought of doing.

And yet the thought of being in this suit for the rest of his existence still turned his stomach. Or it would if he even had one. What a way to find out that there was simply no hope.

Michael wasn’t sure how long he sat there stewing in his thoughts before he heard the squeaks and creak of Ennard sitting up. He promptly closed his eyes and pretended he was asleep, not ready to face him either.

He couldn’t see what Ennard was doing, but he could hear him moving around. He could feel him watching. He could feel him laying a warm sweater over his upper half and carefully tucking it in as to not wake him.

Despite himself, Michael sighed at the touch and began to relax again. It had been a long time since he had gotten tucked in by someone, except for technically last night. To be treated so carefully and in such a human way. He hadn’t realized how much he needed it, but now he hungered for it, though still dare not ask.

Ennard stayed with him a little longer, patting his head and waiting to see if he would wake up. Though also he might’ve known Michael was faking. If he did, he didn’t say anything.

Eventually he stepped back and quietly stepped out of the bedroom with the same cautiousness that Scott showed, and pulled the door closed to a crack behind him.

This left Michael on his own again, but it was a more contented loneliness. Part of him might’ve been tempted to stay in this bed as long as he could, but eventually he dragged himself up and out of the human comfort. Its welcoming warmth calling to him even once he was freed from it. He folded up the sweater on the bed, a sign of his appreciation, and resisted the urge to hide and huddle again.

He must’ve done a number on himself last night because he felt sore and out of sorts all over. Like he was taking his first unsteady steps as he left the master bedroom and faced the aftereffects of his actions. Or intended to, but he entered the living room to find it empty. The kitchen light and standing lamp between the couch and armchair were on, but nobody was there.

It wasn’t until he neared the office door that he heard Scott and Ennard’s voices. He listened briefly to their whispering.

“-And I couldn’t find her again.”

“Good.”

“Well, yeah, good, but also she’s a menace and somebody’s gotta do something!”

“Yes, but it doesn’t have to be you. If you got caught alone with her…”

“Moon would’ve beat the holy heck out of her and then chewed me down to a nub.”

“…Well, there’s that. That’s sort of the best-case scenario, really. But if you were alone with her and this, uh, other wire creature, who knows-.”

Michael walked off at that point. He was impressed that Ennard kept his word to wait until morning to tell Scott what happened, but also terribly disappointed that he was still here when it happened.

With a sigh, he walked around the couch and sat down heavily, then reached for the remote. He briefly froze up as he caught sight of the tear on his arm- of course it would be that arm that he had to use. He picked up the remote and clicked the television on. A gameshow was on, and the volume wasn’t too loud, so Michael set the remote aside and just zoned off into the mindless guessing of answers.

Or he did until the garage door clicked open. His ear slightly twitched but he didn’t look back, instead sort of going stiff like that would save him from being noticed.

It did not. Baby rolled right around the couch and directly up to him.

“Good morning, Lizzie,” Michael said. His voice wearier than he intended it to sound.

“A little too late to be a morning,” Baby remarked. Not harshly, but matter-of-factly.

She sat down on the couch alongside him. He was surprised that the couch held their weight. He was even more surprised that the plates of her skirt had hinges to allow them to lift, so the skirt didn’t dig into his side.

Her knees were together, and her claw and hand rested on them in her lap. It was a rather withdrawn posture for her. She was looking at him with glowing, probing eyes, and Springtrap knew there were questions there.

She knew she didn’t have to ask them. She could just wait, and the answers would come, and that was more favorable than prying them out. So, finally, she looked to the TV as well, scoffing a few seconds later at a poor answer given by a contestant.

“Saffron,” she scoffed.

“She’s overthinking it,” Michael agreed.

“I would say that that you’re being very generous with that assumption.”

Now it was Michael’s turn to scoff, though more out of dry amusement. It was fleeting though, considering the situation. He watched the show as long as he could- for thirty seconds that dragged on like thirty minutes- and then caved.

He couldn’t bear the silent tension any longer and had to break it. Because he knew she was waiting just like he was.

“…How much do you know about last night?” he dared to ask. His voice low and edged with shame.

“I know you tried to remove your suit,” Baby answered.

Michael processed that for a moment before sighing and dropping his head into his hands.

“Don’t blame Scott. He knows I don’t take well to being left in the dark,” Baby added.

“Yes, I know,” Michael murmured. Scott didn’t want to lie, Ennard didn’t want to lie; nobody wanted to lie except him, and that was because he was ashamed. “It was nothing It was just a small lapse in judgement,” he tried to brush off.

Baby almost snapped at him but caught herself. She reminded herself that he wasn’t trying to be difficult, and he wasn’t trying to deceive her. He was upset and confused.

“…Why did you do it?” she asked. Her voice sounding small even to her and not purposefully.

“Because I wanted out of it.”

“But why would you think that would work?”

“I don’t know.”

There had to be a better answer than that, Baby was certain. A deeper reason, a reason that would explain such a risky decision, but whether Michael was holding out or simply didn’t know what it was wasn’t clear.

“Don’t tell Gabe and Marion. Please,” Michael half-begged.

“I won’t… But someday you might need to,” Baby reminded. “…But not now.”

“I’ll put it off as long as I have to. I won’t be the thing that derails their business.”

“You are more important than them feeling bad at work, and I say that knowing they would say the same,” Baby remarked.

They sat in an eerie silence. Both looking away at something else in the room. Baby towards the table by the front door, Michael to the floor by Scott’s chair, and neither anywhere near the TV.

This awkwardness was interrupted by the sound of scuttling across the carpet behind the couch and beside it. Michael watched as Bonnet’s pink head peeked out from beside him.

“Hello, Bon-Bon,” he greeted.

“Oh! You recognize me!” she squeaked excitedly.

“Yes, I do.”

“My name’s Bonnet. Oh, but I guess Ennie already told you,” Bonnet introduced herself. She slid out a little further. “…I’m sorry I hid. Everybody’s scary when you’re as small as I am!”

“It’s alright,” Michael assured.

He was used to people being wary. At least Bonnet’s reason was something much more innocuous.

“There’s…” Bonnet trailed off at the squeak of a door and looked towards the office.

Michael very quickly switched his gaze over to the TV, catching Baby in the act of watching him out the corner of his eye. He glanced to her briefly in acknowledgment before resting his head on his hand, partially hiding his face.

Scott was coming out first and caught sight of Michael and stopped. Ennard was close behind and managed to spot Michael too before he could say anything. They both stood there silently for a moment, with Scott turning back questioningly, trying to silently ask how to go about this. Ennard took the plunge and put on a phony grin under his smiling mask.

“Hey, look who’s up!” he said with much less volume than he usually had. He stepped forward and leaned on the back of the couch. Michael looked back over his shoulder, noticing that he wasn’t wearing his jacket right now.

“Barely,” Michael replied.

Ennard gave a good-natured chuckle and looked to the TV. He gave a sympathetic hiss.

“Gee, I wonder who’s gonna win,” he said.

“Not that woman wearing glasses. She’s absolutely awful at this game,” Baby added.

“She’s not well versed in history either,” Michael said, almost in her defense.

“Then why does she keep choosing it?”

Michael didn’t have a good answer for that one.

The mood was still overwhelmingly uncomfortable. At least, it was for Michael. Having everyone circling him, knowing what he did, and he could so much as move without his springlocks telling on him.

“Heeeyyyy,” Ennard began.

Michael did not like that nervous tone.

Though Ennard did not finish it. He tried to, lifting a finger and opening his mouth like he would continue, but faltering once, then twice. An almost defeated half-lidded look creeping into his eyes. He looked between Michael, the TV, and Baby who was now blatantly looking back at him with a subtle ‘Go ahead and say it’ vibe.

But he couldn’t. He rubbed his neck wires, smoothed down the ones on his shoulder, and then turned to Scott with pleading eyes and a tight-teeth smile.

Scott blinked and vaguely gestured between the clown and the rabbit. Ennard looked a little more defeated but continued to silently beg, apologetically. Scott looked momentarily overwhelmed before blowing through his mouth and going ahead to take the plunge.

“Michael, uh… Would you like to talk about last night?”

“No.”

Michael didn’t even think about it. The response was all reflex.

“Okay! That’s no problem. No pressure, you take all the time you need. But just know we’re all here for you and if you do want to talk about it then we can,” Scott said. His tone starting out with feigned optimism and slowly becoming more sincere the further along he got. In the end he was genuinely reaching out.

Once again, Scott was offering out a hand to him. And this was after the man gave him his bed.

“Yup!” Ennard agreed. Him too. They all were.

Michael wasn’t surprised that they were being supportive and yet it felt so odd to be surrounded by the support. Not that he hadn’t received support from his siblings or at Mike’s, but this amount of attention- it was unfamiliar. It didn’t feel natural. Part of him almost felt ashamed of seeking it, even if he didn’t, like he had purposefully done all this for attention, which he didn’t. He wanted to disappear into the background again.

…It felt so good to know they cared. He had known they cared, but now he knew they really did care. He might’ve felt singled out, but he didn’t feel alone. Lord, how he needed this.

“I know… Thank you,” Michael said quietly. After a moment of consideration he added, even quieter, “…Later. We can discuss it later… Maybe.”

“That’s great! And we’ve got your back no matter what- we’ll be here!” Ennard assured him. Clearly acknowledging the step Michael was taking.

Michael had a habit of not committing to something unless he intended to do it- something that made Ennard inwardly cringe when thinking in the context of last night. Michael was leaving the door open and that was what mattered, that he wasn’t shutting them out.

Ennard was so pleased that he hopped over the back of the couch and in between Michael and Baby. Or, at least, that was the intention. He more so hopped over directly atop them and then slid down in between once they moved apart enough to allow him to.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” Baby muttered and shoved Ennard off her, pushing him half onto Michael. The other clown merely giggled in response and threw his arms around both of them, resisting when Baby fussily tried to detach him and eventually gave up.

In contrast, Scott very politely picked up Cleo the Sphynx out of his armchair and sat down before setting her in his lap. She got up and walked around the chair, atop him no less, and stood on the armrest before hopping down and wandering off to the food bowl. Seeing her opening, Bonnet tapped Scott’s legs and held her arms up, and he set her in his lap instead.

Everything seemed to ease up, but Michael was still a little on edge. He leaned on the armrest, closer to Scott and murmuring low.

“Have you… talked to anyone?”

“Just Mike. He called this morning, so I was called him back. All I told him was that you and Ennard had a long night and you decided to stay over.”

“Technically not a lie!” Ennard chirped.

Technically it wasn’t, but it was a stretch of the truth. Not that Michael felt too terribly awful about lying. In this case it was better if it didn’t get out.

“If he calls back… Tell him that we’ll be working on Charlie’s project.”

Ennard turned to him in surprise. “You sure you’re up to that?”

“Yes. I need to get out of my head, and work does that. Trust me, it’ll be good for me,” Michael assured. “But once I wake up.”

“Does that mean you’re staying the night?” Scott half-asked and half-offered.

“…We’ll see.”

“I’m taking that as a yes!” Ennard proclaimed and rubbed his arm.

More like he was putting a yes in Michael’s mouth. Which in this case was fine with Michael, as it took away the need for him to say it.

“No problem! I’ll call him back a little later and bring him up to speed,” Scott said. He had a subtle relieved smile.

Everyone was happy to have him there. Even Baby, who shortly after was huffing about her newest target, the trivia player who somehow slid her way into a very slim victory after someone else bet it all and lost everything.

Michael had made quite a few bad choices in the last few days, but he knew this wouldn’t be one of them.

…

So, not only did Michael sneak off to the Pizzaplex, but he proceeded to not come home or call to report in either. Needless to say, Marionette was none-too-pleased with this development. However, a call with Scott around noon the day after quelled his concerns momentarily. Well, most of them.

While the answer given was more than satisfactory, Mike seemed to pick up on something that Scott hadn’t said, and Marionette picked up on his suspicion secondhand. Marionette considered popping over to take a look for himself, but he was determined to not intrude. The last thing he wanted was to give Michael the impression that he couldn’t leave without there being an uproar.

A while after Scott’s call, Michael himself called and clarified things. He was tired, he had apparently had an encounter with the Glamrocks that was friendly but exhausting, and he had gotten back to Scott’s late. Now he was just spending some time with Ennard. In fact, he explained, Ennard was the one who insisted he stayed over. Ennard, who was in background, chimed up to agree.

It all made perfect sense.

…But Marionette got off the phone with a worried frown. He knew something was up, but he couldn’t be too sure that he wasn’t overreacting. He voiced these concerns to Mike who assured him.

“You could just ask him about it. You’re the last person he’d get mad at for asking. Or he’ll tell us when he’s ready. For now, he’s where he wants to be. He’s got Ennard, he’s got Scott, and he’ll have us whenever he wants us there. So, don’t worry about it. Or don’t worry yourself sick.”

“I won’t, I won’t,” Marionette assured. He sighed, “I think I’ll wait then. I don’t want to force him.”

“Good call. He’ll come back when he’s ready.”

“If you’re sure…”

“Oh, I’m not.”

That had gotten a smile out of Marionette.

Neither of them voiced it, but both had a suspicion that Michael might’ve seen something in the Pizzaplex. They were right, but it wasn’t in any way they expected.

It had been a few days and Michael was still crashing over at Scott’s. Nobody had returned to the Pizzaplex yet- well, except Natalie- and so nobody had anything to report about anything amiss. Assumedly, it was all fine.

Funny enough, but the one who noticed Michael’s disappearance the most was Mike. He had gotten used to just dropping onto the couch or armchair and striking up a conversation whenever. Not that he couldn’t talk to Marionette or Charlie or Jeremy, obviously, but Michael had his own perspectives and there were quite a few more anecdotes Mike hadn’t used on him.

It was sort of lonely without him. Coming out to an empty couch- not counting Max as he was in the zone with the television- just felt weird. But he would take what he could get, and he dropped onto that couch and stretched out to take up as much space as he could, crossing his socked feet on the opposite armrest. The couch smelled a little stale, but Michael had created a remarkably comfortable groove.

Left his mark on the place, Mike thought with a half-chuckle.

He really hoped that Michael was just having a good time with Ennard and there wasn’t any other reason he had left. The timing was very suspicious with it happening the night he went to the Pizzaplex, but maybe it was just the vessel to get the two together. At least, Mike really wanted that to be the case. He knew Marionette was worried and honestly, he was a little too, but also it was good to get him off this couch for a while.

Though a distraction for him soon came in the form of Jeremy stepping in front of the couch after having been on the phone in his bedroom for a while. Mike raised his brows curiously.

“So!” Jeremy began, smacking his hands together and rubbing them. “As of right now, today, I’ve got an apartment.”

“Wait, really? You got the place?” Mike asked, sitting up on the couch in surprise. “Hey, that’s great! When do you move in? Or when can you move in?” He corrected quickly, not wanting to pressure Jeremy when he knew he was nervous.

“Today!” Jeremy replied. His voice slightly catching as he continued, “Well, I mean. It’s my apartment now. I could move in TODAY if I really wanted, but there’s not really anything in there.”

“That was fast.”

“They must’ve gotten desperate or something,” Jeremy excused.

But that wasn’t entirely the truth. The truth was that Jeremy had been going through the motions of applying for the apartment and even paying for it without really thinking about or discussing them. He just didn’t want to stress out, so he went through the motions, and now here he was with a new apartment paid for and nothing in it, and no plans on furniture to put in it.

“Guess so. So, I expect you out by noon or I’m going to have to charge you for an extra month,” Mike said.

“For one day? That’s highway robbery!”

“Yeah, but how else am I going to keep my beanie baby in beanie babies?”

Jeremy ‘pfft’d him off and sat down beside him, with Mike sitting up to give him room.

“Guess you’re going to have to start moonlighting again,” Jeremy joked back. He then sighed and admitted, “I don’t even know where to start.”

“Relax. You don’t have to rush into it.”

“Mike, I’m currently renting the apartment. I think it’s a little too late for that.”

“I didn’t move into this place the second I got it. I kept my old place and then just spent all my time screwing around here until I got around to moving my stuff over,” Mike explained.

Jeremy did partially remember this one he brought it up. That memory alone took a little bit of the weight off.

“Yeah?” he asked.

“So, why not just do that? You’ve got a new apartment. That’s great! We’ll spend the next couple of weeks, couple of months putting stuff in it. You sleep here.”

“That kind of feels like a waste of rent,” Jeremy said. Though from his little smile he was clearly already onboard with the idea.

“Think about it as paying to keep people out of there. People rent storage lockers,” Mike said. Then he snapped his fingers. “Hey, I have an idea. How about we go over and hang out at the apartment tonight? You, me, Fritz, Mari, Foxy- the whole gang. Go waste a perfectly good evening in an empty apartment to break it in.”

“That’s… not a bad idea really.”

“Thanks. I got it from a sitcom,” Mike admitted.

“It could help me get a little more used to the place. Maybe we could even take some of my stuff with us. I’ve still got those curtains we can put up… Let’s do it! We’ll call Fritz and head over there after dark.”

“There we go! We’ll make a night out of it,” Mike agreed with a grin. Funny how spending a night in an empty apartment was suddenly a good time once they got a bunch of people involved.

“Let me go ask Charlie and Mari,” Jeremy said. He then headed off to ask them if they wanted to join. Mike was pretty confident that they weren’t going to turn him down.

He would call Fritz, he would be up to coming over. He probably wouldn’t be able to stay all night, but then again likely neither would they.

Mike himself wasn’t sure if he wanted to commit to sleeping on the floor, so likely they’d get back around midnight. Nothing too long, nothing too stressful for Jeremy, just breaking in the apartment. Sounded like a plan!

He sat there for a moment, thinking.

Then he got up and went straight for the phone. But it wasn’t Fritz who he called first. It was Scott. He offered him the same invitation before asking for Michael. With only a short delay, he passed the phone on to Michael.

After a few seconds, Michael spoke.

“Hello.”

It sounded like he had aged twenty years in three days. It nearly startled Mike, and that concern returned.

“You sound terrible,” Mike said. Almost without thinking but that concern outweighed courtesy in this case. No wonder Marionette was worried.

“Thank you,” Michael replied dryly. “What else?”

“Sorry, that came out wrong,” Mike admitted. He pinched the bridge of his nose. “What I was actually calling about is that Jeremy got his new apartment and we’re going to go over tonight and hang out. Him, me, Mari, Charlie, and probably Foxy. Want to come?”

“Me?” Michael seemed a little surprised. Then he asked quietly, suspiciously, “Why…?”

“Because Mari misses you and I thought, what the heck, I miss you too. In a weird, non-romantic way,” Mike said attempting to lighten the mood.

“Thank you for clarifying.” Michael paused for a long moment, considering it longer than Mike would’ve expected to. Then he sighed and quietly asked, “What about Ennard?”

“I only miss him when I’m throwing stuff at him.”

“I meant inviting him.” He knew Mike was being purposefully cheeky.

“Sure! I invited Scott too. And hell, ask Baby. Charlie’s probably coming,” he offered. He waited for a beat of silence before asking, “Does that mean you’re in?”

“Yes,” Michael said begrudgingly.

“Good! Mari will be glad to hear it,” Mike said. Truthfully, he was too.

Mike was definitely the type who knew to stay out of other people’s business and never did, but this time he at least had a reason beyond wanting to know what was up. Michael sounded like he hadn’t slept in days. He probably had been hammering out the details of Charlie’s upgrade with Ennard since he got there.

“I already gave Scott the directions so just show up sometime after dark and we’ll be good to go.”

“Alright… Until then.”

Mike didn’t miss the hesitation in his voice. “See you later.” But he didn’t probe. Not after that fantastic show of his hand right before.

But that was fine. The important part was getting him to check in with Marionette. He chose optimism- or perhaps ignorance- and assumed whatever it was would get ironed out with a night off.

Or at least he hoped so.

…

Jeremy’s new apartment was a considerable upgrade from his old one, even with the slight increase in rent. It was the one he had checked out with Foxy- a living room in the front with stairs in the corner heading up to the second floor. With a landing up three steps, turning, and then continuing up. There was an open doorway into a short hallway that led to the dining room and kitchen in the back, with a bathroom seated between it and the living room.

As soon as they got there, Mike gave Marionette a tour of the upstairs. He had seen the place when Jeremy was browsing, but Marionette had not and he was eager to explore. There wasn’t too much to show off though. No furniture for one, and upstairs there were simply two bedrooms- a guest and a master that were virtually the same size- and a bathroom between them. There was also a closet at the top of the stairs.

Mike and Marionette had currently wandered into the empty master bedroom. Mike was looking around with his hands in his pockets while Marionette was soon drawn to the window.

“Look at that view!” Marionette said.

Mike looked for himself and, admittedly, it was something. The window out of the master bedroom faced off behind the house and towards the railroad track, but there was a pretty good shot at the distant mountains.

Mike whistled. “Probably makes for a pretty good sunset,” he said. If it wasn’t overcast and a little too dark, they might’ve still seen the remains of one.

“I’m sure it does,” Marionette agreed. He leaned back and called through his hand. “Foxy, come see the view!”

Soon afterwards they could hear the semi-clunking of Foxy’s footsteps up the stairs. There was another hidden benefit; Foxy could get up these stairs without too much effort. They were a little shorter than he would’ve preferred, but he wasn’t at a risk of teetering backwards if he paid attention. He came in and came up to the other window, ears lifting as he did.

“Huh. Didn’t see that walkin’ ‘round outside,” Foxy remarked. He sounded a little impressed as he looked out. “But thank the seas it ain’t pointin’ east.”

“Oh yes, that would be awful,” Marionette agreed. “And look at the little backyard!”

“Ain’t much to look at, but the fence is high enough that the little ones can run around out there. At least, iff’n their careful of ye old neighbors. Whenever they show up.”

That was a temporary highlight of the location too. The next apartment over was also for rent and hadn’t been filled yet. Though Jeremy chose this one as it was on the end. Even then with how the fence and yard was set up, the only way they would be able to see was if they were on the second floor. They would just have to be careful. Maybe invest in an awning or a decent sized tent. With this place there was plenty of opportunities.

“Hey! Fritz is here!” Jeremy called from downstairs.

“I’m coming!” Mike called back.

“Didn’t notice those tracks were this close…” Foxy mumbled. Him narrowing his eyes at the offending tracks while Mike walked out. “Gonna be a great view fer watchin’ the train blazin’ by.”

“You say that like a joke, but I would love watching a train,” Marionette said. Yet Foxy wasn’t so on-board.

As Mike was coming down the stairs, he saw Jeremy opening the front door, then quickly stepping aside as a green and yellow blur under a tarp raced in. He could tell it was Ennard even before he pulled it off his head. Fritz was coming in backwards behind him, trying to squeeze around him and Jeremy while toting a couple of pizza boxes.

Once he noticed Mike he called, “Hey! Look what I found out in the parking lot!”

“Fritz, what gives? You were supposed to be bringing a pizza!” Mike said with fake aghast.

“I did! But I thought, hey, what’s a party without a clown?”

“Ha! Oh Fritz, you’ve gotta pay extra for that!” Ennard cheekily chimed up.

He let Fritz get by, eyeing the box of pizza as he helped through another figure under a tarp. This time under one of Fritz’s; Mike recognized it from use. He also recognized the lower half of Michael’s body as he walked in.

Ennard disrobed his tarp, revealing a notable lump in his jacket, and tossed it back to Scott who was on his way in. It half made it, and he gave an amused little apology as he pulled it back off of Michael, who removed his own and began to fold it up in a bundle in his arms.

That was when Foxy and Marionette were making their way down the stairs and caught sight of their older brother.

“Oy, where’ve you been?” Foxy asked.

He was just playing around, that much was obvious, but Michael felt a rising panic at the thought that he might have to go ahead with explaining himself.

Thankfully, Ennard stepped in. Both figuratively and literally.

“Working on Charlie’s upgrades! We got the parts a couple days ago and we’ve spent this whole time trying to put ‘em back together, ha ha! Where is she anyway?”

“She heard you guys were coming and split,” Mike remarked. “Nah, I’m just kidding. She got her friends to come over to the house to visit, so we cleared out fast, so we didn’t scare them off.”

“Aww, what a shame! Baby’s gonna be disappointed.”

“Baby’s here too?” Marionette asked delightedly.

“Oh yeah! She’s still out in the van.”

“I’m about to go get her,” Scott added from the door.

“Need any help?” Mike offered.

“No thanks. Baby sort of, uh… Baby would prefer as little help as possible, you know?”

They did know. Other than Marionette, every Afton in that room was the same way- and he didn’t come out of a box like that.

“But you could run out to the van and grab the paper plates,” Fritz offered, and made his way into the kitchen.

Mike gave Marionette a pat on the back and a, “I’ll be right back,” and went out to get them.

“Please tell me there is a couch or at least a reasonable sized bean bag hiding somewhere in this house,” Michael remarked. He looked around at the empty living room, which was unfortunately smaller than Mike and Scott’s.

“Nah, but that’s what the carpet’s for!” Foxy said with a hearty if exaggerated pirate laugh.

“Ennie, I’m sliding!” a tiny voice whispered out of Ennard’s jacket. The lump on his chest slowly starting to slide down until it was caught by his gloved hand at his belly.

Marionette noticed and gave an inquisitive little chime.

Foxy noticed and immediately called him out. “Hey, Jere! Ennard brought his lil bunny with him.”

Ennard’s jaw clenched so hard that Michael was able to hear the click. Within seconds Jeremy, the serial adopter of small things, had taken the three or so steps to reach Ennard eager to see the bunny.

Ennard gave an awkward, strained laugh and brought Bonnet out from underneath his jacket and into the crook of his arm. Bonnet reacted to the sudden appearance of semi-strangers with a soft squeak. Though wasn’t nearly as withdrawn and shy as she had been when Ennard brought her to Charlie’s party.

Marionette swooped in with a friendly, “Well, hello there, little one!”

“Hi!” Bonnet replied. She recognized the Puppet from the party but still kept herself close to Ennard and guarded. He offered her a single finger and she stuck out her hand, and they gave a small little shake pressing them together.

But apparently Bonnet wasn’t the only little friend who got invited to the party. Because while Ennard was standing there on guard, like someone was going to snatch his rabbit and take off with her- he was way more afraid that Jeremy was going to charm her into going with him- he spotted a tiny white head peeking up from behind Jeremy’s shoulder. He didn’t notice if she had been on his back the whole time or snuck and climbed up.

“Aww! Hey there, little dolly!” Ennard greeted.

The Minireena hissed back. Much to Jeremy’s surprise.

“Daisy!” he exclaimed. It was the last thing he expected from his most docile doll. “Oh, come on, Daisy. You know Ennard.”

The way that Daisy slinked down when Ennard looked at her made it clear that she was wary of him. Her hiss was a warning. He didn’t take any offense all things considered.

“Watch out, Ennie! If they get in you, you won’t get ‘em out!” Bonnet warned.

“I can attest to that,” Foxy scoffed, scratching his chin absentmindedly.

Mike held open the door as Scott went to help Baby in. Knowing that she wouldn’t want attention on her until she was good and ready, Marionette decided to turn the conversation back to Michael, with a question he had been dying to ask.

“So, how was your trip to the Pizzaplex?” Marionette asked, clasping his hands, and tilting his head curiously.

“Yeah! I heard from Freddy that ya got ambushed outside’a the daycare,” Foxy added.

Michael was immediately hit with dread.

“You’ve already spoken to Freddy?”

“Aye. He called me the day after ye went. Told me ‘bout how ye met allll his bandmates and how I oughta bring ye back with me some night.”

Michael silently processed what else Freddy could’ve said. Or what Freddy could’ve even knew. What Sun might’ve told him. What could’ve gotten around.

Once again, Ennard stepped in.

“I’ll tell ya how it went!” he volunteered. He even switched Bonnet to his opposite arm so that Jeremy and Marionette could see her better, using her as his cute little decoy. “It went great! You’ll never believe who I became buddies with? Glamrock Chica!”

“Oh, so did I!” Marionette replied with a chime. “I helped her out from under a bathroom door. You?”

“I crawled around in a maze for kids under five.”

“I hit her with a golf club and now she hates me almost as much as Monty does,” Mike chimed in. “I think I went the wrong way about this whole making friends business.”

“Oh, don’t be like that. You were protecting Gregory. Anyone would’ve done it,” Marionette brushed off. “Did you see him, by the way?”

“No, but the rest of the band was around, so odds are that Freddy had him hidden,” Michael explained. “We didn’t see Natalie either.”

“Well, she saw you. She caught you two going through to the daycare,” Mike said. Jeremy agreeing with a, “Yup.”

“I can’t say I’m terribly surprised,” Baby asked as she rolled up to them. Scott letting her go before heading into the kitchen at Fritz’s beckoning. The two began to talk as Baby inserted herself into the conversation. “The ship sailed the moment you decided to party with the main talent.”

“Ahoy, Baby! Welcome to the housewarming,” Foxy greeted.

“I ‘m sorry for not bringing a gift. It didn’t even cross my mind until I saw the desolate living room,” Baby said.

“You being here is enough of a gift for us,” Marionette assured. He wrapped his arm around hers and laid his hand on hers.

If she was surprised by the motion, then she didn’t show it. Only showing a slight hesitation before taking his welcoming hand in hers.

“I have to take what chances I can to get out,” she said. Her eyes slightly down casted with disappointment. “I heard Charlie didn’t come.”

“I’m sorry,” Marionette said apologetically.

“No, I’m fine. I want her to spend time with her friends. They may not be here forever, but I will be.”

“Whew, that was a little dark,” Jeremy said.

“I find it rather optimistic for me,” Baby replied. There was a faint edge of amusement in her voice.

Deciding to change the dark subject matter while he could, Mike stood alongside Jeremy and turned to Ennard. “So, you met all of them?” he asked.

“Yup! Monty blindsided us on our way to the basement first off. Picked up on us being a couple of technicians and made it very, very clear that he ‘has a history with Freddy’s’, if you get my meaning.”

Mike found that very interesting. They all had a hunch that Monty was hiding something when it came to all that rights and union talk. Monty came off much more like a disgruntled employee than anyone else.

Now he had to decided whether or not to risk interrupting the family reunion to keep asking questions.

Fritz answered for him.

“Plates!”

“I’ve got ‘em!” Mike called back. He pulled them out from under his arm. “I was wondering what this stack was under my arm.”

“I’ll take them in. I’m going to grab some pizza. Want any?” Jeremy offered, playing the role of good host. He took the plates in one hand and got Daisy off his back and toted her in the other arm.

“Not just yet, but thanks,” Mike replied.

“YES!” Ennard enthused.

He decided to take that as a sign and hold off. He wasn’t going to forget, but he didn’t feel like risking what was currently a pleasant moment by prodding about the Pizzaplex. He could be patient and pull Ennard aside later.

Besides, he had noticed how quiet Michael had gotten after they started talking about the Pizzaplex. Maybe because he had been watching him a little more closely since he came in, but something was off.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Fritz was opening the pizzas. Scott instantly furrowed his brows at the one, which was topped with curled noodles and cheese.

“What kind of pizza is this?” Scott asks.

“Macaroni and cheese! It’s a new recipe we’re trying out. This one’s just a normal meat lover’s though,” Fritz pointed out.

“Huh… Y’know, I’ll try the macaroni. I’ll try anything once.”

“Good, because this thing’s not hitting the menu until at least three people tell me they like it,” he said.

Jeremy brought in and tore open the paper plates, handing one out to Scott and Fritz and taking one for himself.

Scott got a slice of the macaroni pizza and took a bite. He hummed thoughtfully as he processed the taste and texture. Then gave a decisive, “This’ll sell.” He grabbed a few more slices and piled them on the plate.

Fritz raised his brows. “You like it that much?”

Scott’s mouth was still full, so Jeremy volunteered an, “Ennard.” Scott nodded and took the plate out.

“I don’t know if we should count Ennard as a teaser since he likes everything,” Jeremy suggested.

“…Baby would give a blunt answer,” Fritz suggested. His brow quirked again.

“Do you think you can get her to try it?”

“No, but that’s what Ennard’s here for.” He got out another slice of each and piled it on a plate for Mike. “Oh hey, before I forget. If you need a couch, you can take mine.”

“What? I can’t take your couch!”

“I mean the upstairs couch. We barely use it! We mostly watch TV in the basement.”

“Let me at least drop by the Scratch and Dent first,” Jeremy said. His smile showing that he appreciated it, his amusement showing that he wasn’t sure if it was necessary.

“That’s fine but just know that Natalie agrees with me. So, if you can’t find one, you can take mine. Or borrow it until you can get one.”

“…Okay, borrowing it is another story,” Jeremy said, tempted.

Fritz chuckled and thrust a plate of pizza into his free hand.

The evening continued mostly without a hitch.

There might’ve been some complaints about the lack of seating, but once everyone was on the floor- on tarps or the pillows they brought in from Scott’s van- that became the last thing anyone was thinking about. The room of people broke into a couple of separated conversations that occasionally crossed into each other. It was relatively lively, and not just because a few choice fellows- Ennard and Foxy- were so boisterous.

Despite Jeremy’s initial nervousness, the plan seemed to go off without a hitch. Foxy was entirely on-board with this new arrangement and even Daisy started to relax, though stayed seated in Jeremy’s lap for most of the night.

Mike was laying on his side propped up on a pillow with Marionette leaning back against him. One of his arms resting on Mike like he was lounging back on a couch. Baby was trying to recline on the stairs with a folded-up tarp taking some of the edge off. Not that it did much. Not that stairs would bother her much with her thick plating.

Scott was sitting on the other side of Ennard. He frequently shifted and changed how he was sitting. For a while he had sat on the stairs but decided that he preferred the floor. Eventually managing to find a comfortable enough position leaning back on the wall with his legs stretched out and somewhat crossed. Ennard’s hand went back and forth from resting on Scott’s leg, fingers tapping, to gesturing expressively.

Everyone was talking and carrying on.

Everyone was having a good time.

Everyone except for Michael.

But it wasn’t because of the crowded nature of the room or the many voices. In this case he might’ve been comfortable with it, as everyone currently in this room was on a comfort level with him. It wasn’t feeling alone in a group of people.

It was holding a deadly secret that felt like it could slip out if he so much as opened his mouth. That was Michael was so quiet. Not just the shame of it, which yes, was still very much there, but that paranoia that it would somehow come forth. In front of everyone, all his siblings and their friends, giving him away.

What would they think if they found out what he did? Pity, likely. Embarrassment. Maybe some anger, demands to know why and him without a good excuse. It weighed heavy on his mind.

It didn’t help when the conversation stumbled back to the Pizzaplex. Even if it was just Foxy going on about Freddy, it was a bitter reminder of a few nights ago. He took care to hide it, but he felt obvious, especially alongside Ennard.

“Speaking of Freddy and Friends! Foxy, I think you’re gonna have a nice surprise when you go in next time,” Ennard said slyly.

“What, Freddy make me a monument?” Foxy scoffed.

“No, Silly!” Ennard snickered. His eyes narrowed with amusement. “Because Freddy said he’s gonna introduce ya to all his friends.”

“…His bandmates?” Foxy asked.

“Yup!”

“Blow me down, he didn’t tell me that!” Foxy got a look of sheer panic, punctuated with his eyepatch popping up.

Just the thought of being cornered by Freddy and his entire lot of high-tech rockstars was intimidating for even the boldest of pirates. Jeremy got an arm around his shoulders and gave him a little shake.

“It won’t be that bad! You’ve got Freddy there, and you already met Roxy. And apparently Chica’s a whole lot of fun if you get her on a good day,” he encouraged.

“I must’ve caught her at the worst possible moment then,” Baby remarked with a small scoff.

“She ain’t who I’m worried about. I’m worried about… Meh, mostly Roxy,” Foxy muttered. “Maybe ye old rabbit wench if she rolls on through.”

“Yeah, about that…” Scott said with a sympathetic hiss. He paused on that a moment before deciding he needed to come clean. “They, uh, they ran into her while they were there. Y’know, Vanny.”

There was some surprise, especially from Ennard who was gaping at Scott in disbelief. But that quickly turned to defeat, because as much as Ennard didn’t want to bring it up, he knew that he had to. They were obligated to.

“Heh, yeaaah,”

“Wha- But- Why didn’t ya say anything?! What happened?!” Foxy sputtered.

“We tried to scare her off and it backfired,” Michael said lowly.

“Hey, whoa, it didn’t backfire. We scared the hidey hades outta that rabbit chick! Sh-She just, heh, uh, she’s squirreled away,” Ennard explained. His anxiousness starting to creep out with his stutter.

Michael was aware that he could’ve let it drop there. It was enough of the truth to let it go, but like it or not he owed them the full truth. They needed to know what may happen if they were caught in that basement.

“But she wasn’t the real problem…” He cryptically warned. He looked around between the many eyes of is onlookers. “That wirey… thing we saw in the basement- or that someone saw in the basement- that thing attacked me.”

Mike audibly swore and sat up on his pillow in alert. Marionette sitting more upright and looking towards Mike as the man asked, “Did you get a good look at it?”

“I didn’t. All I saw was its red eyes and static, and then nothing…”

Again, Michael had a chance to let it drop.

“…And then the old diner.”

A strange mood fell over the room. One wary and nervous, especially when it came to Mike and Marionette, who Michael chose to turn his attention on. After all, they knew the implications of a hallucinated diner. Plus, they were sitting mostly in front of him.

“You saw the diner?” Marionette as quietly, fearfully.

Ennard was silent. The only person aware of parts of what Michael was about to say and he wouldn’t dare interrupt him. Michael wondered if he knew that he hid details from him too. Well, they were coming out now. Michael couldn’t stop himself.

“It looked very real, but it felt very… numb. Like a dream, but not exactly. Like if you were drugged perhaps. I was in the old diner and I was human again… I didn’t see much of myself, but my God, it was an exact replica of what I remembered. My hands were the… the same hands I died with.” Michael’s voice caught briefly as he looked down at his hand and flexed his fingers. “It was so surreal. And yet it only lasted for minutes.”

Everyone had some degree of shock and horror. Even Fritz who was shoveling in pizza and listening intensely. Because they were all reminded of an incident very similar to that.

“So, just to get this straight… You were in the old diner and you were a human,” Mike laid out. “Were there like… locations bleeding together? Like you’re in a hospital, then you’re in an old Freddy’s, and then somewhere else?”

“Yes.”

“…You didn’t by any chance happen to see that Red Lake, did you?”

“No, but good call on bringing it up, because Sun knows what it is,” Michael said matter-of-factly.

“Hey, wait! You’re right! When you said- We were telling Chica that Michael wasn’t the Purple Guy and we mentioned the lake, and Sun acted like he’d heard of it before.”

“And I know why. Because his friend told him, likely.”

“You didn’t mention a friend,” Baby quietly probed.

“It didn’t come up.”

“Did you see him there?” Marionette asked, desperately, fearfully. “Was he there?”

Michael knew he wasn’t asking about the friend. He was asking about their father. Yet while everything in the event reeked of his father’s meddling, Michael couldn’t say he ever felt like he was there, as strange as it was to say.

“No. It was not him. I’m sure of it… mostly. But there was someone there. It looked like Vanny, but it was dressed differently. No, first it was Spring Bonnie- This, this suit, but back from a decade ago,” Michael explained, pointing to himself. “It was back in working order and it was dancing around mocking me and singing old songs from the diner and just… Yanking me around. One moment I’m in the diner, then I’m in a Freddy’s, then I’m running around some van and Moon’s there for whatever reason-.”

Mike’s face was slowly becoming more alarmed as he sat up straighter. Marionette’s face slowly fell further along with his shoulders and drooping head.

“And finally, after all of this, Spring Bonnie yanks down a current and there appears… Not Vanny. It certainly looked like her, but it wore a jacket- like Peter Rabbit- and it had this large brown patch or smear around its eye. It comes up to me and grabs me, and I- and then…”

Michael’s hands clenched as his glowing eyes darted around. So wrapped up in his story only to reach the end of the vivid hallucination. He dropped his arms and his head back against the wall with a clunk.

“And then it was over. I woke to Ennard finding me and was in and out of consciousness. Ben, you can tell them your half.”

“G-Glad-Gladly!” Ennard briefly fumbled. He slapped his metaphorical mask on and turned back to the others. “I come in and Vanny’s GONE, and I catch sight of wires wiggling off into a vent. This thing was trying to get INTO Michael!”

“Which means it was likely trying to possess me,” Michael said dryly.

“I shock the thing and that makes it mad, and it just tears outta that! And I mean tears. I’m standing there holding a bunch of half-melted slimy ol’ loose wires. So, I grab Michael and start carrying him out when Moon- who might I say, was pretty much no help until right then- helps me pick him up and we tote him up to Jake’s room. So, once he’s up, I head down with Moon and get the feet, come back up, grab Michael, and that’s when we got blindsided by the whole cast of Freddy’s Neon Circus.”

“And that was what happened,” Michael finished with a sigh.

“Oh wow…” Jeremy said. Unsure what else to say, staring wide-eyed by a very rigidly alert Foxy. “That’s…”

“You didn’t mention that either,” Baby said quietly.

Neither Michael nor Ennard knew which detail she meant or who she was referring to, but it could’ve been both and all of them, and neither felt good about her somber tone.

“So, wait. Was it like…?” Mike began to ask something, but he couldn’t pin down what to ask. Eventually he settled on, “Christ, that’s… crazy. How are you holding up?”

“You checked him, right?” Fritz suddenly interjected, looking to Ennard.

“Oh yeah! He’s okay. I checked- I poked through all his insides. No more wires, nope, he’s good,” Ennard assured. He was shaking very subtly. Scott patted his back to help calm him down, to some success.

“About as well as can be expected,” Michael asked vaguely. He wouldn’t make eye contact.

Marionette took notice and leaned over as though to insert himself back into Michael’s vision, which he did.

“How are you feeling?” he asked. His soft voice filled with concern.

He knew already that something more was wrong, and Michael knew that no placation would satisfy him. Ennard could try to play it off- or perhaps he couldn’t. A quick glance in his direction- away from the Puppet’s attentive gaze- revealed that shaking. He wasn’t handling this well either, because that night had been just as gutting and terrifying for him too.

It wasn’t his responsibility to cover for Michael. It wasn’t fair that he had been expecting him to.

It was had to lie to his siblings. Especially now, because though Marion was the one probing, Gabe and Lizzie were watching and listening. Lying to one was lying to them all, and changing the subject without lying would be near impossible.

Maybe he needed to just get it over with and tell them. Maybe he owed it to them.

Maybe he wanted to tell them.

Michael huffed and clasped a hand over his face as best he could. As though trying to hide behind it.

“I tried to pry my suit off with a screwdriver that night.”

Marionette’s eyes widened. “What?”

“What?” Foxy echoed. His significantly louder but not a shout.

“After we left the Pizzaplex.” Michael couldn’t stand to look at any of them, even out of the corner of his eyes, so he closed them. “I went back to the warehouse and I just… I had a lapse in judgement… And I took a screwdriver.” He made the motions with his hands to demonstrate. “And jammed it into my arm and tried to pry myself open. It didn’t work. Even if it would’ve, Ennard came in and stopped me. Sparing me from seriously injuring myself.”

“A-Anytime!” Ennard assured. Him waiting for a signal, any sign of faltering, and then he would swoop in and begin to comfort like he did in the van.

Marionette was devastated.

“Why would… Why did you do that?” he asked softly.

“I just wanted out of this suit. It didn’t matter what I had to do to get there,” Michael insisted.

At the time it had felt like the soundest thing in the world. It had seemed so clear then and now he couldn’t even trust his own judgement.

Michael finally stole a look at his siblings, seeing each one at a time. Marion sadness, Gabriel’s shock, and Lizzie wasn’t even able to look at him. She instead was eyeing the floor like when he had first told her the truth.

He owed them all the full truth. Part of him wanted to explain himself, to get this out to them, to get this weight off his chest. He was ready to shed this burden.

“The truth is, that I’m not… happy, like this. It’s nothing any of you have done or haven’t done. I know you’ve all been trying to help me, but there is no helping me when I look like this. This… This rotting husk. This corpse that I am constantly fighting. It’s wearing me down. I am… deadlocked in this suit in every sense of the word. And after seeing that, seeing myself as I was before all of this… I snapped. I couldn’t take it any longer. I just wanted out.”

Michael’s hands tightened and his voice lowered. “…But there’s no way out.”

“Oh, Michael…”

“B-Buddy-.”

“I don’t want to die, but being in this suit is not living,” Michael said with finality.

Those words alone would’ve been enough to demonstrate the weight of the suit. Even as they ironically seemed to lighten Michael’s load. They were bitter poison to speak, but it was a relief to get them out instead of hearing them inside.

Marionette gave a discordant little noise from his music box. His eyes beginning to well in purple tears.

“I didn’t know you were hurting like this,” he said. His voice hushed and cracked with a twang. It sounded like a sob. “Michael, I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be. I did this to myself.”

That did little to ease Marionette’s concerns. He sat the slumped like a listless doll for a few long seconds before closing in and grabbing Michael in a tight hug.

By then Michael was expecting it. He closed his eyes and rested his hand on his younger brother’s back. He was then blindsided from the side by another tight hug as Ennard joined in to also embrace him. Both of them holding onto him for dear life, as though they were still at risk of losing him.

Scott offered his support by leaning and reaching to put a hand on his shoulder, showing he was still there. After a moment of consideration, Baby got up and rolled over, laying her hand on Michael’s head. It was the only place she could reach but it meant all the same. He could feel it, he could tell she was there.

He had never felt so equally embarrassed and relieved at the same time. The urge to cover this up was still there even now, but he couldn’t find much of an urge to listen to the voice in the back of his head telling him how pathetic he might look. He needed it too much. He needed to know he wasn’t alone, even if this suit was always between them.

Jeremy and Fritz didn’t entirely know what to do or say. They were still reeling too- especially Foxy, who was still processing everything. His patch still lifted and his eyes lowering to the floor where he seemed to be lost in thought. Jeremy got his arm back around him to offer support. Daisy also seemed bothered, with her little hands resting on Jeremy’s arm as she stood beside him.

Bonnet too also seemed uncertain what to do. She slid out of Ennard’s lap when he turned to hug Michael and now stood there watching with her arms to her sides. Not really certain what to say or do.

Then there was Mike, who felt his heart pounding in his throat through the whole explanation and now sat there with a sour stomach and a dry mouth once it settled.

Because he had naively believed that getting Michael out of the warehouse and getting him around family, encouraging outlets and giving him projects to work on, that expanding his life would help pull him out of the pit he had sunken into. And only right now did Mike realize that it hadn’t.

He had just been kidding himself when he thought Michael’s cry for help had been answered just by putting him in a better situation. He had made it very clear that the isolation was only part of it. The source of his pain, both physical and mental, came directly from the suit.

Mike had been scared that Michael was going to do something drastic. It turned out that he had reason to be afraid. That was a hard thing to come to terms with.

He noticed Marionette turning his head away from Michael while still hugging him. At first Mike thought he was trying to signal him, but then he realized that he was just trying to keep his tears from getting on Michael.

Mike grabbed a napkin and went over to crouch beside him and gently wiped away his tears.

Marionette murmured a low, “Thank you.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” Mike almost said. He didn’t though, instead simply responding with a hummed ‘mm-hm’. He didn’t feel nearly as helpful as he usually did.

He stayed crouched there a moment considering what to say. There had to be something they could do. Other animatronics had swapped bodies, so why not Michael? Once he made his mind up, he turned towards him.

“Michael… Look, we’ll- There’s a way out of that suit. Henry had two bodies, Sunny and Jake switched bodies; if all of them found a way out, then we will find you a way out. There’s a way,” Mike swore.

Marionette looked a little more hopeful and dared to perk up.

“You’re right... He’s right, it is possible! Sunny and Jake were able to do it, why not you? All we need to do is figure out how…” He tapped his fingers thoughtfully on Michael’s shoulder before lifting one with an idea. “They said they had a friend who helped them, so maybe if we could find him, or at least find out how he did it, then we might be able to get you out of this suit. For good,” he said with equal determination.

Michael didn’t even bat an eye. “Good luck with that one. That friend of theirs is the thing that attacked me in the basement.”

Marionette stared at him for a long second. His pupils briefly alighting and the lowest hum of static raising in his chest before cutting off with a sigh. Instantly his whole body slouched in defeat.

“Of course he would be.”

“Then forget him. We’ll figure something else out. The point is, we know it can be done,” Mike said. He looked to Michael, his fiery gusto faltering as he took in how… overwhelming exhausted he looked. “Just… don’t… give up on us.”

“…Thank you.”

Michael highly doubted he could get out, but what he needed more than ever right now was hope. Mike was quite the opposite, feeling absolutely determined to see this through and somehow unyieldingly hopeless.

But if there was one thing Mike was good at, it was keeping his resolve against improbable odds. If there was a way out of this then he and Marionette were going to find it, likely with Charlie and Ennard playing back-up if need be.

Foxy was still silently listening from his seat when he suddenly gestured his hook towards Jeremy’s plate, which was sitting on the floor on the other side of him. Jeremy, thinking Foxy was going to stress eat, quickly picked up the plate and offered it.

Instead, Foxy lightly swatted at the edge of the flimsy paper plate and knocked the slice off and onto his leg.

“Shoot! Here, I got that,” Jeremy offered. Still thinking that it had been some weird little accident. As he was grabbing a napkin, Foxy hastily got to his feet.

“Nah, Lad, I’ve got it. Just gotta go wash it off. No big deal, just a lil spill,” Foxy said in a very raced and hollow tone. He then gave a blunt, “Mari, come along” Then turned on his heel and strode off to the bathroom without another word, leaving Jeremy to lean over and watch him go. He looked back to Fritz who shared a look of agreement at how odd that display was.

They weren’t the only ones who noticed either.

“Oh, that was incredibly subtle,” Baby remarked.

A very unsubtle cry for help perhaps, both Mike and Marionette considered.

“I’ll go help him,” Marionette said. He pushed up and off Michael and Mike’s shoulders and followed after the fox. The bathroom door could be heard clicking closed a few moments later.

Michael sighed and looked up to Baby. “Will you go check on him too? I’m in no position to get up.”

“Yeah, and I’m not moving,” Ennard added.

Normally Baby would’ve turned down being sent off to fetch someone, but not under these circumstances. Instead, she patted Michael’s head and then wheeled her way off to her brothers.

Now seeing his opening, Fritz got up and came over.

“You said you started prying up the, uh… can I see it?” he asked with concern. Michael averted his gaze and offered up his arm. “Thanks. I just want to make sure everything’s looking good.”

Normally Ennard would’ve balked at the idea that Fritz felt the need to check something he already had, but like with Baby, this was a special case. He had no desire to intervene and just watched as Fritz and Mike checked the new wound. Giving Michael a few assuring rubs on the back as he could tell how self-conscious he was.

Meanwhile, Baby opened the bathroom door only to have it thump into Foxy. He moved aside with a mutter and allowed her to come in. She found both him and Marionette cleaning themselves with damp toilet paper. Foxy rubbing a little ball of it onto his shorts which was leaving little piece of wet paper stuck in its wake. Marionette trying to wipe away his tears and having pieces of paper stick to his eyes. Neither having much success.

“Did that come with the apartment?” Baby asked with mild disgust, shutting the door behind her.

“Why didn’t you tell us?!” Foxy snapped as he rounded on her. He just barely managed to keep his voice low.

She wasn’t surprised, not even flinching at the suddenness of it.

“Michael told me not to. It was his secret to share, not mine.”

“It shouldn’t have been a secret at all!”

“I agree,” Baby admitted. “And I think the only reason I know is because Scott told me. Once he had, Michael couldn’t keep it secret.”

All at once that fuse fizzled out and Foxy dropped his arms just like Marionette had earlier. Utterly defeated, and with nowhere to vent. He turned to face the sink like he was going to keep cleaning himself but then just stared at it.

“I know. I wanted to get angry to, and part of me still is, but anger is not going to help. I realize that,” Baby sympathized. She turned to look at herself in the mirror, her arms crossed uncomfortably.

Marionette at down on edge of bathtub, now dabbing eyes and picking off pieces of paper. Baby briefly looked over to him and then back to the mirror.

“Well, this brings back memories. You and I whispering and him crying,” she said.

Foxy gave a hum of acknowledgement.

“…The truth is that I did try to convince Michael to tell you. I could have told you myself, but I was afraid of what may happen if he found out.”

“You did the right thing,” Foxy begrudgingly agreed.

“Did I?”

“Nothing else you could’ve done.”

Marionette straightened up with a sigh. His hands gripped on his knees and his tears finally stifled.

“What’s important is what we do now. Michael needs to know that he’s not alone. That we’re here for him,” he said.

Foxy and Baby stood there momentarily considering this. Foxy suddenly had a thought and turned, squeezed past Baby, opened the door, and headed out.

“Gabe?” Marionette asked. He stood and headed to the door and looked out to catch sight of Foxy going into the living room.

He looked back to Baby questioningly and then turned to follow out the door. He got only halfway into the hall before a hand grabbed him and pulled him back in.

“Not yet you don’t,” she said.

She started grabbing- mostly shredding- a wad of toilet paper off the roll. Then she set it down on the counter, turned on the faucet to a small dribble, and then grabbed the wad of paper again and lightly wet it under the faucet.

Marionette watched her with a quizzical look until that dampened lump was brought up to his face. She began to dab at the drying smears of purple and the flecks of leftover paper, both of which started to come off under the careful patting down.

“This is driving me insane,” Baby admitted.

Once the surprise wore off, Marionette smile finally returned. It only briefly threw off Baby’s work, but she was able to make short work of the mess.

“There,” she declared. She tossed the soggy paper into the empty trashcan. “Presentable.”

“Thank you, Lizzie,” Marion trilled.

“It’s the least I can do,” she simply said.

In this case, at least, she could do something. No matter how small.

In the meantime, Foxy headed into the living room. As he expected but hadn’t hoped, everyone was still there, but he wasn’t one to back down from a challenge.

He marched right up to Michael, who was currently being examined by Fritz, and promptly sat down in front of him. Michael had his head down but turned it enough to look at Foxy.

“I know what yer goin’ through,” Foxy said. He rubbed the heel of his palm into his leg anxiously but none of it showed in his voice. There was no turning back now. “Back at Freddy’s I used to tear meself up.”

Michael’s eyes widened as he lifted his head.

“I used to tear me own suit up. Mostly with me hook. Towards the end it’d be to keep me outta service, but in the beginning… I don’t know what I was wanting. Just out of it all,” Foxy admitted.

Mike already knew. He couldn’t remember when it was, but at some point, Foxy had thrown out that he used to break himself on purpose. Though at the time the context had felt different- he had done it to assert his own control. It was long before an incident like this that had him rethinking the comment. Fritz might’ve known too, or at least didn’t seem shocked.

Nobody noticed how unsettled Scott looked from the confession.

“…That was why you were broken for so long,” Michael realized.

“Aye. Out of service was my ticket outta the spotlight. One way of the other…”

“Does… Marion know?”

“Aye. He knows.”

“Does Jeremy know?”

“….Bloody hell, I knew I was forgettin’ something,” Foxy muttered. He turned to look back towards Jeremy almost with dread.

Jeremy had a sad look but not a shocked one. “Yeah, you told me. You said it was just to get off stage though.”

“That was most of it. Captain’s honor, I just in a bad state fer the beginning,” he swore. He turned back to Michael. “But, uh… I wanted ya to know that it wasn’t just you. Yer not alone- You wouldn’t be alone even if I hadn’t, but in this case we’re… in the same boat. If that’s anything…”

“It is,” Michael said.

He moved over beside Foxy, detaching himself from Ennard momentarily to sit alongside his brother, ignoring the weight of his cumbersome body. He glanced back at Marionette who was reentering the room with Baby behind him, then continued on with putting a weary arm around Foxy’s shoulders.

He couldn’t remember the last time he did this to Gabe. It could’ve been back when they were humans. In his foggy state he couldn’t recall, and he didn’t really want to think about it.

It was hard enough thinking about what Gabriel went through at that Freddy’s. It wasn’t a matter of comparison; they had fought two entirely different but equally monstrous beasts.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that alone,” Michael murmured.

“I didn’t. I had Marion and I had me friends,” Gabriel said. “…Makes it harder that they ain’t here anymore.”

He wasn’t vying for sympathy; he was offering a shred of his own regrets and remorse. It exposed those same wounds that Michael bared and for the first time in ages, he truly felt close to his brother. He held him securely.

Or he did up until Ennard scuttled over and grappled them both into an embrace. Silently, no exaggerated giggles or otherwise gushing, just an awkward but sincere hug.

Foxy was not taking that sitting down.

“Fer cryin’ out loud! Didn’t ya get enough huggin’ with Freddy?” he fussed.

“Is Freddy a hugger?” Ennard asked with an edge of cheek.

“Ya know he is,” he huffed.

Mike disguised a small exhale of relief of his own. Foxy really came in clutch. It wouldn’t be the first time.

It was almost relieving to have this little bit of levity, for everyone involved. Jeremy smiled, as did Marionette with relief, and even Bonnet managed a quiet giggle.

And then Scott suddenly got up. Somewhat clumsily, but not because of his leg.

“I left something in the car. I’ll, uh, I’ll be right back,” he excused and let himself out.

Mike noticed right away, and he was likely not the only one. Ennard would’ve picked up on it right away if he wasn’t currently distracted clinging to a fox and a rabbit. Something was up.

Mike watched Scott head out the door before soft hands rested on his shoulders.

“You should go after him,” Marionette quietly suggested.

Mike looked up at the Puppet leaning over him. “You noticed that too?”

Marionette gave a hum and nod of agreement. Mike patted one of his hands and pushed himself up off the floor. “I’ll go see what’s up.”

By time Mike got outside, Scott had his driver’s door open and was starting to get in. He couldn’t tell if Scott was making an attempt to flee or not but more likely he was just escaping to his van. He noticed Mike coming out.

“Oh, hey.”

“Hey,” Mike returned. “Everything okay?”

“Uh, well…” Scott gave a sort of shrug. Then he gestured over towards the passenger side. “Why don’t you just…?”

Mike nodded and got into the passenger’s side, shutting the door behind him. Scott got in as well and for a second the two sat in silence. The only noticeable sound being from Scott rubbing his hands on his pants. Mike waited patiently until he was ready to talk, looking out the window in the meantime and watching a car drive past in the distance.

“Ennard’s not coming out, is he?” Scott finally asked.

“He might, but he was sort of engaged when I left.”

“Good. There’s a lot of traffic. I don’t want to risk someone spotting him,” Scott said.

They sat there again for a few seconds. Before Mike could dare to ask, Scott took a deep breath and began.

“I just- I sort of had a moment back there.”

“About Foxy?”

“Right.”

Mike nodded and confessed, “I already knew… Though the story when I heard it was that it was just to get off stage. It made sense, but so does this.”

“Mike, do you ever just… realize that the monsters who used to chase you around and try to kill you are really your friends and family?” Scott asked. “Like, somehow you separate them so much and then you remember and suddenly you’re looking back on that time differently… And it’s a wild ride.”

To say Mike was taken off-guard by the question was an understatement, but in hindsight he should’ve expected it considering when he ran out. He thought on it a moment.

“Yeah, I’ve had that happen. Not recently, but back when I first met Mari and Foxy came into the picture. Foxy especially since he was the one always trying to kill me.”

Scott gave a try chuckle. “Yeah… Y’know all that stuff they went through, it’s weird to think we were there for it and that we were- well, not you, but some of us… Some of us were directly responsible for it. Like, we were putting them on stage, and we were cleaning up the backrooms and telling people to be quiet, y’know?”

And just like Michael, just like Foxy, Scott suddenly laid it all out in the open.

Mike immediately jumped to his defense.

“It’s not your fault, Scott. We didn’t know.”

“No. I did know. I just didn’t care. I cared more about my job than the people getting hurt by it. Not just the animatronics- take Fritz and Jeremy. Both of them worked under me. Heck, Mike, I did the paperwork for Jeremy’s accident! I was the one covering up for the business then too! I…” Scott dropped his gesturing arm onto the window edge. “I mean, we all talk about how evil Freddy’s is, but look at me. I managed there. I was the one pushing all those same things we get on Freddy’s for. If you’re looking for the face of Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, here he is.” He pointed at his face.

“Come on, you know it’s a lot more complicated than that,” Mike rationalized.

Scott’s head slumped into his hand.

“You were just doing what you were told to do, just like they were. Foxy was banging down doors just because some mustard yellow bear was telling him we were murderers, meanwhile the murderer himself was telling you to clean up afterwards. Sure, there’s some culpability, but, come on, you changed. I changed, they changed. The important thing is that it’s over and we know the truth.”

“That’s sort of letting me off the hook,” Scott said.

Mike didn’t know what to say to that at first. He gave it a thought before adding, “Hey, that’s Foxy’s call. Not mine.”

It took a second for Scott to get the pun, to which he got the slightest twitch of a smile. “Yeah, well. Maybe.”

“I’m being serious here. Foxy, Mari, even Fritz and Jeremy, they’ve all let it go. You can’t beat yourself up on their account. Not this long after the fact.”

“I guess not…” Scott sighed. “But if I could do it over again, I’d do a lot of it differently.”

“Hindsight’s twenty-twenty. Believe me, I’ve had a lot of that tonight,” Mike said, voice trailing off.

Scott gave him a questioning look. “Did… you know about Michael?”

“I knew he wasn’t happy, but I thought all he needed… Hold on.”

The sound of the Toreador March rung out from his pocket. He reached in and fished out his cellphone, thinking there was a possibility that it might be Marionette or someone else inside. He answered the phone.

“Hello?”

“Hello! This might be a little weird, but I heard that Michael was with you?” a slightly awkward voice said on the other side. Mike’s brows shot up. “It’s Jake, by the way.”

A slow smile crept across Mike’s face.

“I knew I recognized that voice from somewhere. Give me just a second.” Mike covered the receiver and shot that grin at Scott. “It’s just Jake calling for Michael.”

Scott’s brows also lifted.

“Sit tight. I’ll be right back,” Mike said. He got back out of the van and jogged inside.

He found everyone pretty much where he left them, save that Marionette and Baby were sitting down again and Jeremy had moved to Foxy’s free side. Ennard was no longer clutching Foxy and Michael, but he was still crouched in front of them, a hand on each of their shoulders. Mike strode over and offered the cellphone to Michael.

Michael looked at the cellphone and up to him questioningly. “Who is it, Charlie?”

“Jake.”

Michael narrowed his eyes downright suspiciously as he took the cellphone. He pressed it tight to the side of his head.

“Hello?”

“Oh, hey! Sorry to bother you. I didn’t realize you were hanging out with friends, but I just wanted to check in since I haven’t heard from you for a few days. I tried to call last night but you weren’t home, sooo… That doesn’t sound too stalkerish, right?”

He had been so convinced that Mike was making a poorly timed joke that he was actually taken aback to hear Jake’s voice. Perhaps because he didn’t really expect him to ever call. He recovered quickly.

“No, of course not. Sorry, I’ve been spending the last few nights with Ennard. It’s a long story, I won’t bore you with the details.” Michael turned to the others and gave a brief, “I need to take this. I’ll be back in little while.”

He hastily got up from the floor, detaching himself from Ennard- and ignoring the look he was giving him- and made his way off into the hallway and into the kitchen.

“How are things holding up on your end?” he asked as his voice trailed off.

“Oh my God,” Baby said. She snapped her head towards Ennard. “What did you do?”

“Me? Oh, I didn’t do anything. Heh, it was all Jake’s doing,” Ennard said with an uncontrolled little cackle.

“Oh, bloody ‘ell. Ya didn’t,” Foxy muttered.

“Jake did! He even asked for his phone number!”

Marionette gave an excited little ring.

“That is not how it happened,” Baby said flatly, knowingly.

“Well, noooo- but close enough! Ha ha!” Ennard gave Mike’s leg a nudge, knowing from his look that he would get it.

Mike did regain his grin as he turned on his heel and headed back to the front door. His silence saying enough. It would’ve been swallowed up by Ennard’s following gushing anyways.

He started out the front door and almost walked into Scott who was coming on the step coming in.

“Whoa,” he said.

“Sorry about that. You want to-?” Mike pointed to the van.

“No, I think I’m good. Thanks,” Scott said. Mike wasn’t totally convinced, but Scott rubbed at the back of his neck and the tender spots there and continued. “And I mean thanks. Thank you, Mike. I needed that.”

“Anytime. I’m always just a phone call away,” Mike said sincerely.

“And that goes two ways. If you ever need anyone to talk to. Y’know, other than Mari or somebody, I can always lend an ear.”

Mike would be considering it. Especially after all that had happened tonight. There was plenty that Mike would’ve loved to unload, but right now he was feeling pretty alright. He stepped back in with Scott and hoped he really had helped. Even if he knew better than to trust in the significance of a single conversation.

But there was still more of the night to go. And if there was one thing he could take from tonight it was that sometimes it was best to live in the moment.

Chapter 81

Chapter Summary

Foxy spends a night out with the Glamrocks, but when tempers boil over it's time for him and Roxy to settle the score.

Chapter Notes

Sorry this took so long! I had a bit of a rough patch with a writer's block, but it should be all uphill from here!

Foxy knew that Ennard wasn’t above teasing him just for giggles, but somehow, he knew that he wasn’t. He knew when he went to that Pizzaplex that he was going to be biting off more than he could chew.

But he still went back anyways.

Truth was, he could use the night out. He was still upset about this whole Michael thing. Even if they had bonded more over that than they had their entire lifetimes, finding out something like that was hard to swallow. If anything, it was eating at him, gnawing at him when he least expected it.

That’s why this night out was so important because he needed to let off some steam. Thankfully, Freddy was more than happy to welcome him.

“Foxy! Hello!” he called through the vent the moment Foxy came into sight.

“Ahoy, Freddy!” Foxy called back. He hurried through the rest of the vent and climbed out. “Ya seem to be in a chipper mood.”

“Of course! I am always in a good mood when my best friend comes on down for a visit.”

There was something so sincere in the way Freddy said that. So utterly corny and shmoozy, but completely sincere.

“Now don’t go gettin’ soft on me,” Foxy said with a warm chuckle.

“What, me? Never! I am made of too much metal to be soft,” Freddy joked back. He beckoned him with a hand. “Come with me to my green room and we can get this night started!” he chirped.

He began to eagerly lead the way down the hall. A little too eager to get going, which Foxy picked up on right away. Though instead of asking directly, he decided to test the waters.

“How’s Gregory?”

“He is doing great! Although he will be staying with Sunny and Jake tonight. Which is good! They are finally starting to get along.”

“Sounds like that whole joint custody thing’s workin’ out.”

Freddy chuckled happily. Foxy found his silence somehow telling.

It occurred to him then that Freddy was up to something, and it likely involved his bandmates since Gregory was out of the picture. Ennard might’ve been onto something.

Which meant that the following walk to Freddy’s green room was especially tense. Foxy did his best not to show it- the moment Freddy asked about work he went right into a spiel about the business, about the new pizza, about a kid who managed to almost reach his Sit ‘n Survive high score, and virtually anything else that came to mind. It sounded like his usual friendly bragging but if he could’ve, he would’ve been sweating bullets right now.

He barely gave Freddy room to speak but Freddy wasn’t bothered. He saw Foxy’s chattiness as a sign that he was in a good mood, and thus his own second-thoughts were quickly dashed.

They soon arrived at Rockstar Row. The curtains to Freddy’s green room were drawn as they usually were, but Foxy found himself eyeing them carefully as he followed the bear up to his door. Freddy stopped just out of range so that the door wouldn’t automatically open and turned to look at Foxy.

“Would you like to go in first?” Freddy offered. His eyes nearly glowing with excitement.

That’s when it became a little too hard to ignore.

“Freddy,” Foxy flatly.

“Yes, Foxy?”

“Is yer band sittin’ in there?”

Freddy seemed startled at the question. His eyes darted between the pirate and the door. After a long pause his ears drooped, and he drooped, and he gave a defeated, “Yes.”

“…A’right.”

Foxy made a motion like taking a deep breath and after a long second of considering, he spun on his heel. But instead of bolting off- which was his natural reflex- he instead yanked his hoodie up and over his head and tossed it onto the red velour rope. He checked himself over with hand and hook before turning back to Freddy.

“How do I look?”

Freddy perked up instantly. “Excellent! Very cool!”

“Ya should’a warned me, Freddo. I woulda brought me good coat.”

Freddy’s eyes down casted apologetically. “I know, I was just… afraid that you would not come.”

“Do they at least know I’m comin’?”

“Of course! I wanted to make sure in advance that it would be a completely safe situation. I would never arrange a meeting between you and my bandmates unless I was absolutely certain that nobody would tell on you. They will not, they just want to meet you.”

“Chica included?”

“Chica especially! Now that she knows you and I are not… well… together.”

“We ain’t?! Freddy, I be shocked!” Foxy gasped.

“What?!” Freddy gasped.

“Freddy,” Foxy said flatly.

“Oh! Oh, hmm-hmm, my apologies,” Freddy warmly chuckled. He turned towards the door. “Now then, are you ready to meet the Glamrocks?”

“Ehhhhh.”

“I believe in you! Let us head in!”

This was it. Foxy wasn’t sure why he was so nervous about this- lest the animatronics suddenly flip due to programming and start assaulting him. No, he was more intimidated than anything. After all, the only one he had met was Roxy and she was less than impressed by him. He just wasn’t in the mood to have a whole band look down on him like he was some relic of the past, some outdated fox-shaped dinosaur.

But Foxy wasn’t going to high tail it like a coward either. He was going to confront that band with the confidence of someone who owned his own business. He stepped forward and the door drew back.

Chica was standing directly on the other side. Leaning in like she was intending to listen without trying to trigger the door. She leaned back quickly as the door opened, startled.

“Ahoy, Chica!” Foxy greeted. Putting on a brave face- or a friendly tone.

Chica gave him an excited two-handed wave. She then looked past to Freddy, shaking like she would’ve been squealing, and held out a hand before bringing it down. Foxy picked up the motion instantly.

“He’s so tiny!”

Apparently he wasn’t the only one who picked up the gesture either.

“Larger than life is less of a figure of speech and more of a warning for Foxy,” Roxy remarked from inside the room.

Freddy gave a good-natured chuckle and planted his hands on Foxy’s shoulders, patting them playfully.

“Oh, he is not that small. In fact, he is an original model from the original Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza! And he has his own business! And his original hook! Foxy, please, show Chica your hook.”

Foxy sticks out his hook with a less than amused look. Chica poked the tip and blinked in surprise at it being metal instead of plastic.

“It is, err, a little hazardous- but Foxy is an expert with it! He has not poked a single child.”

“I admire yer restraint,” Monty chimed in.

He was lounging on the couch but got up and sauntered over. Roxy, who had been sitting beside him, turned and stretched her legs across where he had been sitting. Monty adjusted his sunglasses with one hand and stuck a hand out with the other.

“Montgomery Gator. You can call me a-err…” He quickly switched hands and offered the proper one for Foxy to grab. “You can call me a fan.”

“Really?”

“That’s right. Foxy was my favorite back when I was a kid. Yer keepin’ him alive,” Monty said. They shook hands and then he crossed his arms over his chest again. “Plus I heard ‘bout yer deal with yer employees. Yer really runnin’ the joint?”

“I’m the captain everywhere but the paperwork,” Foxy affirmed.

“Good deal.”

“And small world, Foxy was my favorite too! The character really came to me,” Foxy added.

“I did not know that!” Freddy said in surprise. “But… forgive me if I am wrong, but did you not say Freddy was your favorite?”

“I was shmoozin’ ya, Fredbear.”

“Oh! Well, I am flattered regardless then!”

“Important part is-.” Monty dropped his sunglasses down his nose to peek over them. “-Who’s yer favorite now?”

Foxy chuckled. “Yar har har! I ain’t fallin’ fer that one.”

Chica gestured her arms out to everyone and then pointed with both hands towards the door. Then made little shooting motions with her fingers.

“Good idea! We should get going. We have plenty to do tonight and only a limited amount of time to do it!” Freddy chirped. Monty nodded and Roxy got up from the couch.

“Wait, where we goin’?” Foxy asked. He made sure to sound casual and not suspicious or uneasy at the quick change of plans.

“You are in for a treat tonight, Captain- our treat! We are going to party like real rrrockstars, and our first destination is: Fazer Blast! Then up to the West Arcade, East Arcade, Monty Golf, Roxy Raceway, and if we have enough time, perhaps swing by the daycare.”

“And if we have enough time, we’ll pick up Freddy’s boyfriend,” Roxy translated. “Or, sorry, his other boyfriend.”

“Don’t go that much time,” Monty added, fixing his sunglasses.

It sounded like fun. Well, actually, no. It sounded extremely daunting, especially with said rockstars now standing around him. Foxy positively refused to feel like the odd one out. He had every right to be here.

“Yer on, Fazbear! Just as long as yar payin’ the tab,” Foxy agreed.

“Of course! Or, well… They can take it out of my salary,” Freddy said with a little chuckle.

Chica grabbed Foxy by the hook and began to lead him out, waving over her head for the others. This was almost baffling to him. It was a far cry to how he anticipated her to act, but he decided to not look a gift horse in the mouth and went along with it.

He had a hunch he was in for a long night.

…

Roxy bolted down a ramp and hopped down from the landing before ducking behind a glowing wall. Fazerblast maybe wasn’t her favorite activity, but she wasn’t planning on losing. Not to Freddy, certainly not to the new guy.

She was about to make a move for one of the lower rooms with a lot of cover when she spotted part of an orange foot as someone hid nearby. Suspecting it was Freddy, she made her way over, slipping around and through the maze before ducking down and leaping, landing on one knee and aiming the Fazerblast up.

Chica shot her hands up like they weren’t on the same team.

“Wait, what are you doing here? You were supposed to be over in green,” Roxy asked, lowering her blaster.

Chica gestured a hand off repeatedly and then made a running motion with her fingers. Either she was running from someone or after them. She looked back to Roxy, her exasperatedly lidded eyes suddenly popping open as she pointed at the red dot currently on Roxy’s ear.

“What?!” Roxy turned her head only to have the red dot swipe past her eye, down her nose, and then have a flicker of a laser zap on her chest.

“Ya-har! Tagged Roxy!” Foxy proclaimed. Pumping his fazerblaster holding fist from the safety of the bridge that Roxy had just come from.

That little sneak! He had been following her! She whipped her blaster out and aimed it back at him.

“Oh, you’re dead, you little-!”

A dot and flash of red light landed on her extended arm with a light zapping sound. She knew the cause and groaned before snapping her head over.

“Ugh, FREDDY!”

Freddy didn’t even call his shot, he just turned and bolted. Chica was quick to take off after him. Roxy nearly did too, but she saw Foxy running across the bridge and made him her target. He ducked and skirted just before she could get a shot on him- getting it lined up but not having a chance to pull the trigger, and too good to lie about it and cheat.

Roxy raced after him, bounding up to the highest platform in Fazerblast and ducking behind a wall as Foxy tried to open fire. This time he missed, and the two took turns popping out and exchanging fire. Back and forth and back and forth, neither willing to back down.

Likely Freddy and Chica were doing the same elsewhere, though not nearly as intensely.

And there was Monty. Now, to make things fair, they broke the teams into three on three. Chica and Roxy were on one team, Freddy and Foxy on the other, and Monty on both. He even had two fazerblasters and just shot indiscriminately, to make up for the fact that he was just sauntering around at his leisure instead of aggressively hunting.

So, Monty charging into the scene and planting himself in the center before boldly holding a fazerblaster on both was totally unexpected.

“Well, well, well. How the mighty have fallen. How the fast have gotten too slooow,” Monty cackled. “Zap, zap.”

He zapped them both. Roxy rolled her eyes.

“Good job. You just erased your own contribution playing for both sides,” she pointed out. Foxy bolted to the other bridge and exit. “And there goes the courageous Captain Foxy.”

“Yer just jealous ‘cause I got ya,” Monty cockily retorted.

“You only ‘got me’ because I was distracted with him!” Roxy retorted, pointing her fazerblaster after Foxy.

Monty promptly zapped Roxy in the chest.

And then turned heel and bolted at the sight of the look Roxy was giving him. Any smugness quickly replaced with fear as he high tailed it with Roxy short on his heel.

…

It was somewhat into three in the morning and yet they hadn’t stopped going. Somewhere between laser tag, mini-golf, and arcade dance machines the concept of time had sort of just lost meaning. Foxy wasn’t thinking about it; he left that to Freddy, he knew he could count on him. He was just going to have a good time.

And Foxy was having a really good time.

All earlier trepidations were gone and Foxy trust himself into the center of attention, and he loved it. It made him feel ten feet tall. It made him feel like the jolly pirate he was only pretending to be when the evening started.

It felt like he was with his old band- or how he wanted them to be.

It felt good. Maybe a little too good.

Chica was much bubblier than she seemed in second-hand anecdotes from others, which was a huge relief. She, though silent, was the one who had been steering most of their evening. Despite Monty’s reputation, he was very friendly, and hadn’t showed even the slightest edge of having a temper despite Foxy being aware of his antics. Freddy was just thrilled his friends were getting along, and Roxy…

Well, Roxy was sort of just over it.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like Foxy. He was cocky as all get-out and his overly pirate act didn’t help his boisterousness, but she didn’t mind that. She just couldn’t say she was thrilled at how much of the spotlight he was soaking up.

Roxy was not threatened by Foxy. Sure, he had his own restaurant, but it was a fraction the size of the Pizzaplex. Likely not even as big as her salon, let alone her raceway. So, it wasn’t worth feeling intimidated by. Especially when she was his replacement. She knew her character was, it wasn’t that hard to put two and two together when they were named Foxy and Roxy. It didn’t bother her, no, because she had proven that she was way more than that.

She was built for perfection, there was no doubt about it. No competition.

It was just that he was acting like he owned the place. Like these were his bandmates she was the fifth wheel trailing behind because she wasn’t going to suck up or let loose. She always thought Foxy was amusingly cocky, but that was a downright awful personality to have when she was feeling like this.

But, at the very least, she was about to get eyes back on her as they finally headed towards Roxy Raceway. Chica had suggested bumper cars. Roxy had no doubt that only Foxy himself would fit into a bumper car, but if it got her back into her own environment- gave her the advantage of the home front- then she was fine walking over there.

Roxy insisted on the second-floor entrance so they would step out and immediately be able to take in the full scope of her raceway. Sure, Foxy had seen it before, but she wanted to remind him.

She passed the others and strode through the security door with confidence. Resting one hand on her hip she waved the other out and gestured out at her raceway.

“Welcome to my raceway,” she introduced.

Foxy’s response was sudden and entirely unexpected.

“Blimey, what’s that smell?!”

Roxy snapped her head to him. She did notice the slightest scent now that he mentioned it, but there was no way he did. Even if he did, there was no way she was copping up to her raceway having a smell.

“Smells like low tide on the seaside.”

“There is no smell,” Roxy snapped, annoyed at the intrusion. “The only smell is burning rubber: the smell of speed.”

“Nah, he’s right. There’s a smell,” Monty agreed. He started craning his head around. Freddy started to wander off, Chica was moving her head like she was smelling for it.

Roxy was starting to get just a little bit annoyed- not embarrassed, annoyed. She couldn’t help but believe that Foxy pointed this out on purpose, cheeky little thing that he was.

“My raceway is spotless. It’s probably one of the trash cans that nobody dumped out. More people eat here than even in the atrium, the sushi is to die for.”

“I believe you are onto something. I believe it is coming from this trash can,” Freddy announced. He peeked and hummed in discontent, “You are correct, Roxy. It looks like this one was missed.”

Chica was eyeing that trash with her hands up to her chest and fingers tightening like she was barely holding back from racing over there.

Monty noticed. “Aww, no. Come on, girl. You don’t want that.”

She gave him the ‘yes, I do’ look.

“Freddy, stop poking around in there. I have the best nose of all of us and I couldn’t smell it until you stirred it up. Just lazy workers, as usual. Nobody wants to do their job,” Roxy growled.

Freddy sat up abruptly and looked to her, only now noticing that she was upset. He wasn’t the only one who noticed but he was the one who spoke up.

“Oh, Roxy. It is no big deal! It is like you said, plenty of guests eat in here and the staff is, err, understaffed. Foxy did not mean any offense.”

“Er… Aye-yarr,” Foxy awkwardly agreed.

Roxy sent Foxy a suspicious look at that amount of nervousness. Notably, Foxy had decided now to look around instead of her, which she took as an admittance of guilt even if it wasn’t one.

She huffed and turned back to Freddy with her hands on her hips. “I don’t need a critique on my raceway from an animatronic that looks like a teddy bear, sounds like a chain-smoker, and smells like his brother,” she dryly remarked.

That got Foxy’s eyes right back onto her.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he snapped.

Roxy rolled her eyes back to him. “I’m just complimenting you on your authentic pirate smell.”

Foxy straightened up like he was puffing himself up before giving a dismissive scoff.

“Ya mind yerself when ya talk about me brother like that,” Foxy growled. He pointed accusingly at her. “Ya know the only thing that stinks here’s yer attitude. You’ve been sucking a lemon all night,” he said. He then shot her a much cockier head tilt and grin. “Arr ya sour ‘cause I beatcha twice?”

“You didn’t beat me at minigolf. Monty did. I know you have trouble counting on the fly,” Roxy retorted.

“Aye, I do. Let’s count up together how many times I beatcha. One… Two… Threeee…”

“I won Dance Dance Rebellion and don’t you forget it! You’ve got the moves of a drunken sailor- but I suppose that’s on brand.”

“Heh, now who’s havin’ trouble countin’? ‘Cause I seemed to recall one little number. One extra number on that scoreboard that ye didn’t get!”

It was because her feet were a little too big to trigger the floor and unlike Chica she wasn’t practiced enough to work with it. Roxy wouldn’t dare admit it though, but she would use it.

“I’ll admit it, you did get more points than me. Maybe because it’s a kid’s game and you’re the only one who’s under the height requirement,” she said. He was about to retort when she quickly interjected, “But that must be useful for your business. I know kids that age get scared easily.”

“My business be boomin’!”

“Hey, no offense here. I think it’s so great that there’s somewhere kids can go after the daycare. Now they can practice for when their ready for the big leagues,” Roxy said, flipping her hair.

Foxy growled and locked his eye onto her hair, and spat out, “Ya got Styrofoam lookin’ hair!”

Chica raised her hands to her mouth, Freddy gasped, and Monty gave a sucking hiss and slowly turned his head away.

Roxy looked to Foxy like he was completely insane.

“Excuse me?!”

“Ya heard me!”

“At least my fur was manufactured this decade!” Roxy snapped back. “Bite me.”

“I could! Mine ‘er real!” Foxy snapped, tapping his teeth with his hook.

“That must be why they’re so discolored,” Roxy scoffed. “That or your age. Face the facts, Foxy. You’re old news.”

“Roxy, Foxy, please! There is no need to fight! You are both great!” Freddy interjected, trying to break them up. Even when he tried to physically step between them he went ignored.

“And yer just MY replacement!” Foxy snapped.

“And nobody’s ever looked back!” Roxy snarled.

“Don’t flatter yerself! I’M Cap’n Foxy, the classic! Yer just the scruffy wench they-!”                                                    

“WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!”

“I CALLED YA A SCRUFFY WENCH!”

“…That’s only slightly better than what I thought you said, and you better thank God you didn’t say that or I would be dragging your goofy child-friendly face all up and down my racetrack!” Roxy threatened, pointing down at him. “Stay in your LANE, Little Man!”

“Oh yeah? Well’s how about this Miss Hot-Shot with yer tacky makeup and yer roadkill hairdo! Why don’t put yer money in that big mouth’o yers!”

“It’s money where your mouth is, Captain Crankshaft! You can’t even get that straight!”

“I don’t care! I CHALLENGE YA TO A RACE!”

Roxy’s narrowed eyes widened in surprise and once again Freddy gasped and Monty hissed. Foxy doubled down.

“I’ve beaten ya twice over at least, and I’ll beat ya at yer own game!” he proclaimed.

Roxy’s eyes narrowed again. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“You heard me! Or are ya chicken?” Foxy challenged. He then turned his head and added, “No offense there, Chica.”

Chica might’ve taken offense if she wasn’t totally invested, so she just waved it off and watched the ordeal.

Roxy looked less than impressed.

“Have you even driven a go-kart?”

“Have you?”

She narrowed her eyes. “You know what, I don’t even care if you haven’t. You’ve got a deal. Winner takes all.”

“Aye.”

“Looks like we’re gettin’ some action tonight,” Monty mumbled, sounding a little more curious himself.

Freddy was standing there dumfounded with his mouth agape. Roxy pointed at them.

“I’m going to get the karts. You,” she pointed at Freddy, “show him how to drive. You,” she pointed at Monty, “go get a camera, and Chica,” she pointed past them to Chica, “go get everyone else. I want an audience. And you.” She pointed now directly at Foxy. “Be ready to mop up your dignity.”

Foxy considered taking another shot at her hair, but in the end decided to let his confidence show without more petty potshots. Especially since at this point it was sinking in that he had probably made a terrible mistake.

He had in that instant rationalized that he didn’t know how she was built, so it occurred to him that he probably couldn’t take her one on one in a foot race. As much as he hated admitting it. Yet it somehow didn’t occur to him that if she did say yes to a go-kart then he was still in trouble because he would be totally out of his league. He hadn’t even gotten a license to drive before he became a captain, let alone touched a go-kart.

All to defend the honor of someone who wasn’t even here.

This was going to go great.

Shortly afterwards everyone had split up. Roxy leaving to get the go-karts, Monty sauntering off to get a camera, and Chica racing off to spread the word- ironically, being the one person who would have the most difficulty doing so. Something that nobody really thought about, not even Chica herself as she hurried off to do so.

This left Freddy and Foxy alone. Foxy pacing in little circles by the track while Freddy stood there awkwardly. Freddy made a few attempts to speak up and stopped short each time, before finally broaching the subject.

“Foxy, you do not have to do this. What if I suggested another round of Fazerblast? Or perhaps a marathon of Dueling Dragons! Or… something else!” Freddy offered.

“Don’t think I’ll win?” Foxy asked. Not suspiciously, not agitatedly, but bluntly.

“Err, well… I believe that this is your first time in a go-kart, since you have not said otherwise, so… it would be very fortunate for you to master it in such a short amount of time- but that does not mean you do not have a chance!”

“Nah, yer right. I’m gonna lose,” Foxy admitted. He stood there pondering it for a little bit before shrugging it off. “Too late to back out now.”

“Actually, this would be a very good time to back out! I could message Chica and Monty to stop them, and then message Roxy with my idea. I will even tell her that it is all mine, so she will not know you had second thoughts!”

“I appreciate the offer, Freddy. I know yer lookin’ out fer me… but this be about more than a game. This be about my pride.” Foxy planted a hand on his hip and laid his hook on his chest, as though preparing for a solemn swear. “I’d rather lose fair than back out like a lily-livered coward.”

“That is quite a noble stance,” Freddy complimented.

But that didn’t mean Foxy was going down without a fight. That relief in Freddy’s voice made him a little too aware of what the bear was thinking, and he was quick to correct.

“But if I’m gonna lose this- which I ain’t sayin’ I am! But by some very slim sliver of a chance I fall behind, I’m given her a run fer her booty.”

“That’s the spirit!”

A part of Foxy was still holding onto the thin hope that Roxy was bluffing and hadn’t ever karted before, and that Freddy just didn’t know. That was the only way he could win here if neither of them had ridden on one. But right after Freddy’s confident cheer, as though fate was spiting him, he heard the hum of a motor and both looked to see Roxy peeling up on a go-kart.

She looked awkwardly oversized in it, but she drove it like a pro. The kart was dark blue with yellow stars on it and the number five on its front, and she parked it before climbing off.

“You’re taking Moon’s kart. Both because it’s the lightest weight bracket and because it’s the only one other than mine that has a full tank,” she said.

“Thank ye for the consideration,” Foxy flatly replied. He eyed the kart warily. Looked alright, didn’t look like it was built for a bot to ride though.

“Now I know your ego gets bruised pretty easily, so I’m going to let Freddy teach you how to turn it on.”

“Bah, get out of here,” Foxy dismissed with a wave.

Taking that as a victory, Roxy headed off to get her own kart from wherever it was parked, leaving them to work. Foxy studied the kart with a hum.

“Shouldn’t be so hard,” he said. He climbed onto the cart and fidgeted until he was seated in it, now very thankful that he didn’t have a tail. “Show me the works.”

“Certainly! Now this peddle on the right is the gas and that peddle on the left is the brake,” Freddy explained, pointing to the two.

“Aye. Got it.”

“And that little lever right there is the clutch.”

“…Pardon?”

“Normally it would be another pedal if it was in a car with a manual transmission, but in this case, it is an easy to reach lever- and fortunately, on the side of your hand! Now, the go-kart has three basic speeds that can be cycled through. To make it simpler, we can equate each speed and gear with what action you may be doing, as this kart does not have a functional speedometer. When you speed up you should shift into a higher gear, but then you may want to downshift when going around corners as you may slow down. If you find yourself stuck and want to reverse, you must pull back the clutch, pull up the break pedal with your left foot, and give light gas with the right pedal.”

If Foxy had any weak hope it was quickly dashed at this point. He found himself sitting there like a chump, shoulders slouched, while Freddy kept rattling out directions unaware of the pirate’s preemptive defeat.

Eventually though Freddy had gotten enough directions out that he felt confident enough to get Foxy moving.

“How about we start with something simple, hmm? How about driving up to that space?” Freddy pointed to one of the allotted spaces beside the raceway. “Just take it slow and steady.”

Foxy flexed his fingers and took a firm grip on the wheel before applying some gas. The kart jerked and he pulled off quickly, before applying it again. His feet were made for running, not for subtle movements, but after a few more jerks he managed to make it to the spot and stop mostly on it.

“Very good! You are a natural!”

“If ya mean I drive like a first-time driver, aye, I am a natural.”

Freddy chuckled.

“I’m going to drive around the track a few times. See how she handles.”

“That is an excellent idea. I will be right here if you need me, watching you,” Freddy assured.

Despite the jerking to get to that spot and the continued jerking to get to the track, once Foxy got on he began to slowly make his way around. It took him a full, slow ride around the track before he had somewhat of an idea about when he was supposed to shift gears, but even then it was either a matter of revving too high or lurching and nearly driving into a corner.

Freddy considered it progress and was yelling encouragements. Foxy was swearing like a sailor under his breath.

Chica had finally returned with none-other than Beelora, two of her Babees, and a mini-Music Man. She pointed them off towards the bleachers for visitors who wanted to watch the races and then to the stairs that led to them. They started to head over together. Beelora moving slowly and carefully on crossed feet while the little Music Man following at her heels. Chica came back over to stand with Freddy who was watching Foxy still practice on the track.

Freddy welcomed her back before looking back out at Foxy and sighing.

“Do you think that maybe we should stop this?” he quietly asked.

Chica tilted her head in an exaggerated way to show she was asking him ‘why’.

“I have a bad feeling about this… We were having such a good time together. What if this race only drives Roxy and Foxy further apart?” he asked.

Chica made barking dog hands towards each other, showing them go back and forth, before bringing them together in a shake. It seemed she believed that maybe the fight would somehow bring the two together. 

“Well… Perhaps you are right.”

Yet Freddy was still unsure and found himself lost in his thoughts. He was really regretting not breaking it up before it came down to this. Because while working through their differences seemed like a surefire way to get them on good terms on paper, he wasn’t so sure about it right now.

Freddy, the overwhelming optimist, was feeling a little too realistic about these odds.

He was dragged out of his thoughts by Chica patting his shoulder. He looked to her and she pointed towards the stands. He followed her finger to see none other than Sun waving at him. Him sitting in the front with Nanny Bot standing beside him- who was likely a literal stand-in for Jake and Gregory.

Freddy eagerly waved back. Sun lowered his hand and poked a finger onto the side of his head and sent a quick message.

“How’s it going, Papa Bear?”

Freddy didn’t want to lie but he also didn’t want to stress Sun out when he probably had a tiring day as it ways. So, instead of elaborating with a real answer, he simply gave him a thumbs up.

Sun returned with a double thumbs up as well before turning them over and pointing his fingers and shooting Freddy a heart with his hands.

Oh.

Oh.

He was going over there.

“Excuse me for a moment,” Freddy said. He then proceeded to jog right to the stairs and start heading up.

Sun seemed a little surprised by Freddy’s sudden bolt in his direction, a little flustered, covering his face with one hand and watching with the others side for Freddy to make it up to the bleachers.

It took him a few moments more as he helped tote Beellora and the Mini Music Man up the stairs before setting them down and continuing right up to Sun’s seat. He leaned on the railing in front of him.

“Good evening, Sunshine. I did not expect you to come, but I am very glad you did,” Freddy said thankfully.

“Oh ho! I wouldn’t miss this for the world!” Sunny replied with a cheeky spin of his spines. “How’s he doing?”

“He is doing great! Why, for someone who has never been on a go-kart before, he already drives like a pro!” Freddy looked back at the track just in time to see Foxy driving very close to the wall, and currently fighting with the clutch lever as he did so. “…But of course, one cannot just master go-karting in one night.”

“Oh, of COURSE not! Not at this rate at least,” Sunny agreed. Him still sounding just as cheeky. He gestured his hands towards Nanny Bot. “You might remember my dear old friend, Nanny Bot.”

“That I do. Hello again, Nanny!”

“Nanny wanted to come see the show. And since Nanny was had been on such good behavior- err, helping me. I thought that it would be a-okay for Nanny to stay up a liiittle longer to watch the race,” Sunny explained. His left eye began to blink on and off.

“I think that was an faz-tastic idea! They- being Nanny Bot- would certainly not want to miss it! But Sunny, there seems to be a minor malfunction in your left eye,” Freddy said.

“I’m winking, Freddy.”

“Hello Winking, I am Freddy Fazbear.”

Upon realizing that Freddy had actively baited him into that Sun sputtered in indignation. Freddy had a rather playful look in his eyes, looked Sun up and down and took in his adorable little mannerisms, and then turned his attention to Nanny Bot. His eyes brightening up for a different reason now.

Freddy then gave Nanny a friendly wave, waving through her more than at her, and quickly sent out a message.

“Hello, Gregory! I am assuming that you are watching this. Have you been having a good time at your slumber party?”

He got an answer right back: “Yup! Jake let me control the Nanny Bot and I drove it all the way over here! Wish we could see the race better though. The screen’s almost as small as my watch is.”

This relieved Freddy. He hadn’t been afraid of leaving Gregory with Jake and Sun, but he had certainly felt a little bad about sending Gregory off so he could play around with his friends. He knew deep in his heart that it was alright, but he still felt like there was something missing, and that missing piece was Gregory. He would be sure to make it up to him tomorrow night.

Perhaps after he made it up to Sun. Perhaps he could do that sooner than later. Perhaps…

“Perhaps we can find Jake a better screen! The Pizzaplex does tend to dispose of plenty of equipment that could surely be refurbished with only some minor adjustments. It may be against standard procedures but being that it is for a good cause and is repurposing electronics in an environmentally friendly way, we can surely make the exception,” Freddy sent back.

“Okay! Just as long as I don’t have to get into the garbage again.”

“Oh, no. That would be very unsafe and unsanitary. Consider that whole area off-limits… Unless you fall in there by accident. It is very unlikely to happen, but it… very well could.” Freddy made a throat clearing noise and pointed out towards the raceway. “But, err, just look at Foxy! He is a natural!”

Nanny Bot looked over. Sunny turned his head too only to have Freddy catch the edge of his faceplate and smoothly turn him back to him.

Before Sunny could react, Freddy nuzzled against his cheek. Carefully, gently, soft enough to feel the tingles of touch but not enough to risk even the slightest scuff on Sunny’s face. His mouth just on the edge of the jester’s grin and regardless of the feathery contact it was felt. He could feel Sun’s little shiver and the squeak that caught on his voice and chuckled, but less like a laugh and more like a low rumble.

“I am very glad you came, Sunny,” Freddy murmured. He pressed tighter once more before drawing back, his eyes filled with adoration. “I apologize for not greeting you when you came in. I was so caught up in the thrill of the race that I missed the star of the show.”

Sunny was at full glow and his fans were buzzing so high that anyone could’ve heard them. He gave a nervous, flustered little chuckle.

“Me? Oh, no, no! I’mmm not tha-ha-hat.”

“Are you certain? Because I cannot keep my eyes off you. You light up a room,” Freddy said. Him boldly running a claw down the edge of Sunny’s faceplate.

Sunny gave an eager little giggle. Nanny Bot looked over before very quickly looking away again, either Jake trying to be modest or Gregory grossed out by the sappiness. Freddy took the opportunity to lean back in, only to pause when he heard the hum of an approaching engine. It was Roxy bringing her kart around.

“There comes Roxy. I should get back down there,” Freddy said. He reached down and squeezed Sun’s hand. “I will see you after the race.”

“O-Oh, sure! Yup! I hope so~,” Sunny said with a little giggle.

“You too, Nanny Bot,” Freddy said- with his own little wink. Nanny finally daring to look back and waving. “I hope you enjoy the show!”

“I’ll enjoy the view a lot more,” Sun said in a very Moon-ish tone. His head resting on his laced fingers.

Freddy chuckled, a little ruffled himself, and gave Nanny Bot one last smile and thumbs up before heading back to the stairs. Sunny watched him go, reaching up to feel over his cheek.

It was so wrong. It was so wrong, wrong, wrong and Andrew knew it. He knew he was crossing a line that he shouldn’t and there was that sick little feeling in his gut that rose up to try and sour this experience.

But he was buzzing a little too high to take notice. To his guilt, or to the one sidling up behind him.

“I wish I had something like you two.”

“GAH!”

Sunny snapped his head back and spotted Beelora who had somehow crept up behind him. Likely because she was slowly and carefully tiptoeing around. The Mini Music Man hopped up onto the back of the chair behind him alongside her.

“O-Oh hI!” Sunny greeted anxiously. “How long’ve you two been there, heh heh?”

“Oh! Sorry! I didn’t mean to surprise you. Or to spy, I was just coming to sit down. It would be weird to be sitting too far apart, wouldn’t it?” Beelora offered. She sounded a little embarrassed, especially so when her foot slipped as she was lowering herself and she flopped into the seat with a quiet squeak.

“No, no, no! It’s fiiiine! We were just- but- fuh- Freddy’s just being nice,” Sunny excused.

Mini-Music Man clanged his cymbals lightly. It was indecipherable.

“He’s very sweet,” Beelora said longingly. It was hard to not notice how quietly she had become.

“Ngh…” So much for tiptoeing out of this conversation. Sunny reluctantly turned his upper half around to face her, waving Mini Music Man aside before resting his arms over the back of the seat. “Is something the matter, Miss Bee?”

“I-It’s nothing, but… I wish I had someone like that.”

“Aww, Bee, you don’t need someone to make you happy! You’ve got your little bees, you’ve got your own classy arcade- you’ve got your whole life ahead of you!”

Beelora gave a solemn little “Mm-hm”.

“Okay, not enough. Well, let’s see… How about… Oh!” Sunny snapped his fingers and pointed to the Mini Music Man. “What about the DJ? He’s tall, dark, and hand…sssy? Plenty of hands! Could probably carry all of your Babees in just one! That could be useful.”

“He’s not interested. I tried once to catch his attention, but he wouldn’t even look my way,” Beelora lamented. “Which is a shame because he’s just so… passionate! About music- we both like music! But he doesn’t like ME.”

The miniature Music Man turned its head to her abruptly, surprisingly since it was pretty much more a walking toy than a sentient animatronic- as far as Sunny was aware. Sunny was a little less startled by the revelation.

“Hmm… Wellll, how about… Monty?”

“He’s with someone. A lady.”

“A human lady! Who say’s she’ll stick around?”

“I… Hmm… No, wait! I don’t want to think like that! That would be terrible,” Beelora insisted.

“Oh yes, it really would,” Sunny said. The slightest sly edge to his voice, but he covered it quickly. “Uh, hmm… Mmm…” He tapped his fingers on the edge of the seat. “There… could be this one guy, buuut.”

“But?” Beelora tilted her head up.

Sunny gave an unsure hum before unsurely asking, “So, uh, how important are looks and, uh, smell?”

“…I guess not that important? I just want someone who I can be close to.”

“Oh boy, then have I got a guy for you! His name is Michael and he- hey, hey, quit it!” he whispered back as he tried to push off the Nanny Bot’s hand that started swatting at him. Sunny swatted back and kept chatting, Beelora watching the scene with a mix of confusion and interest. “He’s really lonely and looking for someone to look past that dark and brooding pain and see the softness underneath!”

Beelora seemed intrigued now. The Mini Music Man could only look between her and Sunny with unexpressive, large eyes. Watching every moment of it.

Nearly on the other side of the raceway, Freddy jogged back in time to watch Roxy ride in on her own go-kart. One sized and shaped to fit with the same red, purple, and green color scheme as many did in Roxy Raceway. She parked in the slot Foxy had pulled into earlier before getting off and flipping her hair dramatically. Freddy watched her with a growing anxiousness as he approached Chica and Monty.

“This is it…” he warned. Glamrock Chica nodded, significantly more excited than he was.

“A’ight, I got the camera. But when I say ‘cheese’, ya’ll better blink ‘cause the flash on this one’s killer,” Monty warned. He looked down at the little camera between his claws like he hadn’t seen it before in his life.

Chica cocked her head before pointing to Monty’s sunglasses and then her own eyes.

“I’d love to Chi, but I gotta keep up the image, and I don’t got any more spares,” Monty said and fixed his sunglasses. 

“Well, if you need spares, I remember that-…”

Freddy caught himself. He had been so close, so close to saying that Bonnie had spares. That they were probably up in his green room. That maybe they could find a way in even though it had been sealed off. It could’ve been so easy to slip and bring up Bonnie, and then ruin the night. Even Freddy felt the devastation at the thought.

“…Ya havin’ a moment, Freddy?”

“What? Oh! My apologies, I was just… looking over there. Ahem. I remember that there is a gift shop here with apparel. Perhaps they would have adult-sized sunglasses.”

Chica pointed at him like she was agreeing with the idea and hurried off to the registration office to check, leaving Freddy and Monty to watch as Roxy and Foxy met up, expecting more bickering to break out.

Meanwhile, Foxy finally pulled up alongside Roxy with a semi-jerky stop. He looked to her as though he hadn’t rolled up like that, one arm thrown over the back of the seat as he sized her up.

“Arrre ya ready?”

“Let me check.” Roxy turned and looked out across the raceway. Over at her bandmates, up at the stands, and sighed. “Not exactly the turnout I was hoping for, but an audience is an audience.”

“Hmm. Might be better this way. Just in case ya aren’t as lucky as ya expect,” Foxy said.

“Says the guy who’ll be lucky to get across the finish line with how hard you’re grinding those gears,” Roxy retorted. She was ready to show him up and turned back towards her group, seeing Freddy and Monty standing there. “Did Chica get back yet?” she called over.

“She did! She went to get sunglasses, but she will be right back!” Freddy called.

“Looks like everyone’s here then. Okay, Geargrinder, pull it up to the line and let’s get this show on the road. I’m feeling generous, so we’ll start with a practice race.”

“Aye.”

Foxy pulled up alongside hers, only obeying so readily because he was ready to show her up. Roxy got onto her own kart and waited until Chica returned- now wearing a pair of adult sunglasses that she spread wide and secured with a few stickers- and she, Freddy, and Monty went up the stairs and to the second floor railing to watch. Roxy gave them a fist pump and Foxy did a similar pose with his hook before grabbing the steering wheel tight.

“Three laps around, first one across the line wins, no slamming into each other!” Roxy called.

“Aye-aye!” Foxy agreed.

“Countdown starts now! Three… Two… One… GO!”

Both hit the accelerator and tore off onto the track.

At first, they peeled off at the same speed, but it didn’t take long for Roxy to get ahead. Largely because Foxy was back to struggling with the clutch- now without the luxury of slowing down and trying to keep speed while shifting, which ended up making it worse. He got only halfway around the track, slowly falling behind, before he wound up driving on the edge of the wall.

Foxy began to swear like a proper pirate and pull himself off the wall, to little avail, as he continued to slow down struggling and fighting with this nightmarish vehicle.

He didn’t realize that the race was truly over until Roxy drove up beside him, giving him an incredulous look. Foxy continued fighting the lever and taking out his frustration on it.

“I’ve already lapped you,” Roxy pointed out.

“Why the bloody ‘ell does a go-kart have a clutch,” Foxy muttered.

“Hell if I know.” Roxy looked him over before sighing and pointing down at the lever. “Here’s what you do. Start driving and listen. When it starts riding rough, you’re going too fast for your gear. You have to bump it up. Whenever you start dropping speed, bring it down. Not all the way to here, but down one level. Do that around corner’s too.”

Foxy mumbled a, “Erm, eh, thanks.”

“Don’t thank me. When I beat you, I don’t want there to be any doubt that I did it on skill alone.”

“Yer so generous.”

“Not that generous. I’m still a lap ahead of you.”

With that, Roxy peeled out and soon Foxy was on her tail. A little faster than before but still an edge slower. Though there was no lapping her at that point, Foxy knew that.

They eventually pulled up to the finish line. Roxy stopped on a dime and stood up, planting a foot up on the kart, and flipped her hair with her hands on her hips. A victory pose. Freddy and Chica clapped. Foxy rolled up with a much less amused look in his eye. She looked back at him.

“Was there any doubt?” she asked.

“Don’t get cocky now. That was just practice!”

“You’re right about that. This was just practice,” Roxy agreed. A glint in her eye. “It’s never too late to back out.”

That managed to get a rise out of him. “Belay that an’ sit back down. We’re goin’ again.”

“Not yet. We have ten minutes until lights out and I’m not driving around in the dark. We’ll give the karts a fifteen-minute cooldown and pick this up once the recharge’s over, just in case Moon’s kart hasn’t been getting maintenance. Which, seeing the state of the garbage around here, I would say it isn’t.”

As puffed up as Foxy was, he wasn’t about to argue to drive in the dark and got out. The two headed to the stairs where they met up with Freddy, Chica, and Monty.

“That was a great job, you two!” Freddy complimented. Chica was making eager gestures to emphasize that she would’ve been saying the same thing.

“Everyone say ‘rock on’,” Monty said. He was still standing on the stairs when he lined up the camera for a shot and clicked the button.

The resounding flash blinded everyone standing in front of him.

“ARGH!” Foxy shouted. Him ducking his head and shielding his eye.

“I can’t see!” Freddy also cried. Him rapidly blinking and reaching for his face.

Chica planted her hands on her hips and glared at him, blinking rapidly under the glasses- apparently they weren’t that thick.

“I coulda sworn I just turned the flash off… Yeah, it’s off! Cheap-ass piece of junk,” Monty aimed the camera towards himself and posed, snapping a quick photo. Once again there was a blinding flash, but he was entirely unbothered due to his sunglasses’ reflection. “What’s the point of a button?!”

“I swear, if you do that during the real race, I am going to drive my kart off that track and straight up your snout,” Roxy huffed. Her still rubbing at her eyes and blinking it off. “And now I’m seeing a kaleidoscope.”

“Least yer seein’,” Foxy mumbled.

It took a few minutes to work off the flash, with Foxy sitting on the steps and Roxy leaning on the railing. Chica was helping poke at the camera with Monty while Freddy blinked off the rest of the flash, then turned to Foxy and Roxy.

“You two did excellent. Congratulations, Roxy, and you too did very well, Foxy,” he began. His cheer then started to waver, “But, err, are you two sure you want to race again? Why not leave it at this and we can go hit the West Arcade for some karaoke and dancing.”

“Freddy, if yer thinkin’ we’re gonna brawl, that ain’t happenin’. Iff’n she wins, I’ll accept that an’ move on,” Foxy said. His brief period of blindness helping in loosening his tongue.

Roxy was a little surprised by that amount of humbleness. Foxy built himself up as a puffed-up hothead with a huge ego, so that pragmatic take wasn’t expected. It was much less annoying; maybe even a little relieving.

“Same,” she said. There was no way she was going to lose, but she thought it was worth being a good sport and saying it.

This assured Freddy. “Oh, well… then the race is on! I just wanted to make sure that you two would still be having a good time,” he said honestly.

Foxy wasn’t sure if him losing the next race would be him ‘having a good time’ but he was willing to go along with it.

Then came the hourly recharge. The lights unexpectedly going out and leaving the raceway in pitch blackness. Freddy headed up the steps and out into the atrium to recharge while Roxy headed into one of the party garages to charge. Foxy, Monty, and Chica stayed on the steps. Foxy and Monty chatting and Chica sulking as she was all but cut off with her allotted messages for the day ran out.

Sun shifted to Moon up in the stands and recovered in time to see Freddy heading out of the raceway. He gave a sneaky little snicker before standing and stepping over the railing.

“I’ll be right back,” he said. Then he slinked off.

Mini Music Man watched him leave before turning his attention to Beelora. She was leaned over to pat the Babees, who’s soft glow illuminated the floor around her feet. He clanged his cymbals lightly and she looked to him.

“Hmm?” she asked. She opened her glowing mauve eyes to peer at him. He reached out with a leg. “Oh! Here.”

She stuck out her arms and carefully let him step out between them before moving him into her lap. He looked up to her attentively and she patted his head.

“Thank you for keeping me company,” she said. It made her feel much less lonely. He raised up a little with a tilt of his head.

There was a clang from somewhere. It sounded like a metal door.

Beelora turned her head attentively and looked around, but she couldn’t see anything in the area around them. Nanny Bot too had looked around but didn’t seem to see anything either. The others were still talking on the other side of the room, so they shrugged it off.

Meanwhile, Freddy had made it out into the atrium and let himself into the closest recharge station. The door closed and he shut his eyes to ride out the next while.

It was such a relief to hear that there were no hard feelings! Sure, he knew either would still be disappointed with the outcome, but this made him much more confident that it wouldn’t devolve into a disaster. Perhaps Chica was right; maybe this could bring the two closer together. Maybe this night could still end on a high note.

There was a tap on the window of the recharge station. Freddy opened his eyes to see Moon peering in, waving before easily sliding open the door.

“Helllooo~.”

“Moon, hello! I did not expect- you to-?”

Freddy was confused and surprised when Moon pushed him back and slid himself into the recharge station with him. Freddy was forced to press to the back of the station as best as he could, but even then, it was a tight fit. Moon used his feet to climb up above him, filling up that space and peering down with glowing eyes and his hands tight on Freddy’s shoulders.

It was entirely against any rules and regulations involving the recharge stations. Moon enforced rules, he didn’t break them. To see the exception was both startling and exciting.

“What’s wrong, Freddy? You seemed so eagerrr to get your hands on me earlier, mm-hm-hm,” Moon teased.

Him referring to Sunny as ‘me’ instead of ‘Sun’ didn’t slip past Freddy either. That too was exciting, another broken little rule.

“Oh no! Nothing is wrong, no. In fact…” Freddy boldly fit his hands around Moon’s slender waist and pulled him down a little closer. “This is much better.”

He knew from Moon’s little ‘tch’ and slight turn away that he had embarrassed him. Freddy chuckled a little, almost apologetically, and rested his forehead against his chest. Moon was quick to welcome him with open arms, hugging him around the head and neck. His fans kicking in again, his bells jingling softly with each movement; it was music to Freddy’s ears, welcoming and familiar.

“Stay,” Freddy requested.

“Mm-hmm,” Moon agreed, gently tapping his fingers along his ear as he did.

There was something going on here. Neither was entirely sure of what this progression meant except that things had gotten a lot closer in a very short amount of time, and neither had the chance to shop and chat about it. They were just willingly letting this happen, whatever this was supposed to be.

Dangerous, Moon knew. Deep inside he knew this was very, very wrong, but Freddy was convinced that it felt very right.

That was a dangerous combination for anyone’s better judgement.

…

Once the lights came back on, everyone regrouped in the raceway. It was time for the race.

Roxy came striding out of the party garage with the confidence of someone who had the place named after her. She made a line towards the karts, with Foxy quickly catching up and matching her pace. Monty and Chica headed back up to the second floor to watch. Freddy and Sunny scurried back in- distinctly pretending like they hadn’t come in together- and rejoined their individual groups.

Everyone’s eyes were on the raceway. Including Natalie’s. Little did the rest of them know, but she had caught wind of what was going down- she caught on enough when she saw security footage of Foxy driving around in a kart- and had taken up residence in the secluded windowed booth on the wall towards Roxy’s Salon that looked out towards the racetrack. She had arrived shortly after the hourly recharge finished.

She had dragged up an office chair but couldn’t see through the window sitting, so instead she was leaning forward on the window eating a bag of tortilla chips and watching as Smitty stood beside her and Buddy mopped at the floor. It wasn’t the best view in the house, but she could see well enough to make sure nothing got out of hand. That was her job, really.

Roxy and Foxy mounted their karts again and turned them on.

“This is it. No more help,” Roxy called. Foxy gave a determined nod. “Three laps, just like before. On your mark… get set…”

His hand tightened on the wheel. Her fingers flexed on her own. Her eyes narrowing, his locked onto the track. They were both ready to…

“GO!”

This time when they peeled out Foxy didn’t fall behind right away. He kept up, only slacking a little but finally knowing what he needed to do and taking care to do it. But the second rounded turn, Foxy was slightly behind Roxy, but he was keeping up with her kart. There was no lapping this time, but still, it might not be enough.

Foxy could only give it all he had and through his hand between the wheel and the lever as he followed behind her. But Roxy was making every right move, every correct turn, all with the perfect timing. He would need a miracle to win.

That miracle came in the form of Roxy falling behind just the smallest bit. With this, Foxy was able to ride up beside her and with their ‘no bumping’ rules, this mean Roxy couldn’t strongarm him out of the way. He had secured that slot much to his and Roxy’s surprise.

It was then that she realized this wouldn’t be as easy of a race as she expected. She would have to overtake him, so she hit the gas and made the effort to blaze around him as they approached the next turn.

That was when Roxy started to notice how hard it was getting to turn the kart. It was starting to slow more too and it was clear that something was wrong. She was briefly horrified by Foxy overtaking her in the race before that switched to the horror at the realization that her kart was starting to tilt.

“What’s going on? Did my tire go flat?!” Roxy begrudgingly pulled aside in the track’s tunnel before leaning over to look. Her eyes went wide when she realized her back left tire was largely deflated. “You’ve got to be-!... Wait… Wait, what?”

Hearing a hissing, she looked to the front tire and realized it too was deflating. Not as quickly as the back one had, but quickly catching up with her weight leaning on it.

“What?!” she blurted out. She jumped off and began checking the others, and it soon became apparent that every tire was deflating. “Are you kidding me?! What is this?!” she shouted.

She began frantically searching for an answer, and it didn’t take her long to find it. On the back tire she located a small round hole in the tire. A puncture mark. One that looked suspiciously like the mark a hook might make.

“Ugh, that dirty cheater!” Roxy hissed. No wonder he was so nonchalant about the possibility of him losing, he was planning something sketchy the whole time. She shouldn’t have expected less from someone who’s whole image was that he was a thief, pirate coat or not. Now he was thinking he would just steal the race.

She snapped her head back towards the entrance of the tunnel with a sharp glare. Well, if he was going to play dirty, then he wasn’t going to be finishing this race. Not on her watch.

Meanwhile, Foxy was blissfully unaware that he hadn’t just overtaken Roxy and proved himself the better driver in some fluke. The only way he had a chance of winning was if she messed up and he was banking on it. Now he had only one lap to go. He didn’t dare look back to see how close she was as he was so focused on the road. She had to be there though, even if he couldn’t hear her kart’s motor.

Or that’s what he thought until he started coming up on the tunnel only to find Roxy running up to stand in the middle of the road. She had him blocked, and if looks could kill he would’ve detonated on the spot.

“Fer cryin’ out-!” Foxy huffed and hit the brakes.

But he didn’t slow down.

It was an instantaneous realization as he shoved that pedal down as far as it could go that it wasn’t working. It wasn’t braking. He wasn’t slowing down.

He was driving right at Roxy, and she wasn’t moving and he wasn’t slowing down.

In a last second of desperation, Foxy wrenched the steering wheel to try and swerve and the kart yanked to the side before the world suddenly spun. The weight of the kart crushed him and released as it tumbled over itself, him stuck inside and forced to tuck in as he couldn’t escape. He couldn’t hear anything but the sound of crunching metal and banging as the kart skidded down the track.

Roxy’s eyes widened as she watched the kart spiral out and fly towards her.

She was the fastest bot in the Pizzaplex and there was no way she could’ve gotten out of the way of that. That was the sole thought that passed her might before metal crashed into her face.

Roxy was carried, shoved, trapped beneath the kart as it continued tumbling and broke through the flimsy wall in the side of the tunnel. Foxy registered that they were falling for a split second before he hit the ground.

And then it was over.

Chapter 82

Chapter Summary

Damaged and lost, Foxy must find a way out from underneath the raceway and get help for Roxy... but a familiar face is about to pose an unfathomable threat.

The tournament was already underway when the Princess crept down from her tower to see. She carefully opened the door and snuck in on tiptoes, peering around at the enormous tournament grounds.

She could hear voices from somewhere, but she wasn’t scared. She knew that they couldn’t see her. The Princess was as safe as could be.

But she needed to find the chariots. Carefully making her way around the stands and the jousting area, far around away from the voices, she looped around to where the chariots were parked. One was red and green, one was starry blue.

The red and green was her evil stepsister’s. She needed to make it so it wouldn’t go far. The starry blue one belonged to one of the court jesters, but it was being used by the pirate captain who had challenged the stepsister to a race. She couldn’t let it stop.

It wasn’t sabotage, it was a test. A test for her evil stepsister. Like the test in the Princess and the Pea, where a girl who said she was a princess was tested on if she could feel a pea through a dozen mattresses. Any princess worth their title was both delicate and strong, and beautiful and brave. Just like the Princess. She had passed every test.

But her stepsister? No. But she could prove it with this test. Could she feel the pea through all the mattresses? Does she still run in front of karts? I bet she does.

The Princess got her knife out and got to work.

…

Foxy didn’t truly black out. The world might’ve gone dark, but in an instant it returned.

The first thing he registered was that his hand didn’t feel right. It hurt, but it also felt aligned weirdly, but he couldn’t see it because of how it was trapped back and underneath him. He had to use his hook to pull himself up, hooking onto the kart and trying to slide himself free of it. Alas, the seatbelt still held, and it took a few digs of his hook before it finally came loose and Foxy slid out and fell face-first onto the floor.

“Foxy! Roxy!”

Freddy was calling from somewhere high up. That distance alone signaling how far they had fallen. Foxy was dreading what his injuries were going to look like.

He turned over to sit on his backside and pulled his legs the rest of the way out of the kart. They looked okay. His ankle felt off, but it didn’t look broken- maybe dislocated. One of his ears hurt but a quick tap with his hook showed it was still there, just bent in. Fixable, replaceable, annoying but survivable.

But it was as he was pulling his legs free that he caught sight of Roxy. Her head was turned away and her mane of faux fur blocking his angle of the damage, but he could see that she was pinned by the kart. He could see that there was plating broken where it pressed into her chest and spotted what might’ve been an endoskeleton rib sticking out.

“Blimey, Roxy-!” Foxy gasped. His voice hoarse and crackly. That might’ve gotten knocked loose too, but likely his voice’s change was due to the ache his whole body was in.

Foxy went to push himself up when a sharp pain shot up his arm. He recoiled it and finally got a good look at his hand. It was a gnarly wound- two of his fingers had been bent all the way back while the metal of his palm itself had been crushed in and bent, forcing even his unbent fingers to bend in towards his thumb.

This was going to require a replacement. They had the parts to do it back at the warehouse, he knew this wasn’t a disaster… yet. He popped the fingers back into place. It surprisingly didn’t hurt more than a little- in fact it gave a little relief- but the fingers were now especially loose and trying to move them revealed delayed results. Especially with how the fingers were now crammed together by their angle.

There was no way all of this could be fixed before Pirate’s Cove opened tomorrow. He would have to either really cover up or step out and let Marionette cover for him. Maybe he could cover his hand and still work around it.

Except then it dawned on him that opening the pizzeria wasn’t the problem. The problem wasn’t tomorrow morning, the probable was right now.

Now he was trapped somewhere in the basement with Roxy trapped under a kart and him down his only working hand.

“ROXY?! FOXY?! CAN YOU HEAR ME?!”

Freddy was still calling, and that last loud call finally caught Foxy’s full attention.

“WE’RE DOWN HERE!” Foxy called back up.

“ARE YOU OKAY?”

“I’m uh… I’M PRETTY BANGED UP! NOTHIN’ TOO BAD, HAND’S JUST A LITTLE…” Foxy looked at his broken hand. He decided not to finish that sentence.

“THAT IS GOOD TO HEAR! WHAT ABOUT ROXY?!”

What about Roxy? Foxy turned back to her and looked at the damage he could see. It was going to be worse, he knew that much, but he had to check on her.

“HOLD ON!” he called up. He then started to stand up.

He didn’t realize his ankle was dislocated until his foot popped into place as he stood. He flinched more at the noise than the discomfort, but in a way, it was better that he didn’t know. It was way easier than the fingers.

Though he knew Roxy wouldn’t be walking this one off. He shuffled to her before stopping dead in his tracks as he saw past her frayed hair. If he had a heart, it would’ve dropped right through him.

Roxy’s face had been massacred. That was the only way to describe it. It had been smashed in with the eyes bulged out and barely hanging on. Her plating was cracked across her face and broken in on her chest.

She looked way worse than Chica had when she had gotten smashed. Just looking at her filled Foxy with enough dread that he nearly felt lightheaded. So gruesome enough that he might’ve fainted from shock even without the appropriate organs and circulatory system to do so. She just looked that mangled.

In an instant it brought her down from a person to a broken machine, and that was a sickening thought. The only small relief was that she didn’t seem to be conscious. Either the severe damage or shock had forced her to shut down.

“Oh, Lass…” Foxy started to reach for her but stopped. He then very carefully touched her hand. Part of the arm above it had lost its casing. He dared not touch it.

He couldn’t understand how it could happen so quickly. Had he messed up? He tried to use the brake, but maybe he was in the wrong gear. Maybe there was a trick he was forgetting- he noticed the kart had felt a little funny around corners but he had been so focused on the race that he didn’t pay attention. But why was she on the track? Did her kart mess up too?

This wasn’t the time to worry about it. He turned up his head and called.

“Roxy’s in a real bad way…!”

“SHE IS WHERE?!”

“SHE’S IN A BAD WAY! SHE’S BUSTED UP!” Foxy yelled back. The panic edging into his voice before he shook it off. “WE GOTTA GET HER TO PARTS AND SERVICE!”

Freddy gasped and looked back to Chica and Monty. Chica had her hands over her mouth, almost gripping her beak in shock, and Monty pulled off his sunglasses to clasp a hand over his face in dread. They were as helpless as he was. He looked the other way to see Sunny. His points pulled in with dread, him looking back to Freddy with worry in his frozen face.

His points sunk in further as he saw Freddy look to him. Freddy looked to him with pleading desperation. Sunny caved instantly and tossing aside his better judgement began to climb into the hole, Freddy thanking him repeatedly as the jester slowly slinked down- only to recoil and quickly scramble back up.

“Nope! Wires- they knocked out the wires right there, I can’t- there’s no way…” Sunny said. He pointed down towards the wires and while Freddy couldn’t see them, he could see the flash of something sparking. Eyes widening, he hooked Sun around the middle- Sunny giving a ‘yip!’- and smoothly pulled him out before setting him on his feet.

“There must be another way down,” Freddy said. Chica nodded and started to look around but didn’t know where to start. Neither did Freddy.

That was until they heard a loud flag from above. They looked up towards the stands to see Nanny Bot waving at them. She then pointed back down the stands.

“Nanny knows, let’s go!” Sunny cried. He bolted off in that direction with Freddy and Chica on his heels.

Monty stayed behind to lean into the whole. “ROXY, WE’RE COMIN’! DON’T MOVE!” he yelled. Then he ran off after them.

This left Foxy alone with Roxy. He initially planned to stay with her until they got there, but after a few minutes he started to become antsy. He looked around and spotted what looked like a doorway blocked with some wood. He lifted his patch and squinted, double-confirmed it was a door, and looked back to Roxy.

“I’m gonna go find a way out. I ain’t goin’ far, Lass,” he promised. He doubted she could hear him, but it helped deal with the guilt of leaving her.

He slowly pulled away and started to head over to the doorway. He soon realized that it wasn’t so much boarded up as someone had placed a section of heavy boards over it to replace a door. He gave it a firm shove and it collapsed into the room, and he stepped inside.

He couldn’t see or hear the wires sliding out of the darkness and into Roxy’s broken face.

Foxy looked around at what seemed to be a little storage room. There wasn’t a lot of stuff shoved in here, save an ugly hole in the wall, but there was another door. So, likely that meant there was another way out. He was on the right trail to meet up with wherever Freddy and his friends were heading to, he suspected.

He started to approach the door when he heard a squeaking. He cocked his head and looked back towards the hole in the wall. For a split second he had seen a red glow.

“What the…?” He took a few steps to the side and, still at a safe distance, crouched down to look through the whole. “Someone there?”

His good ear perked at another metal creak. His broken one stayed stuck.

“I hear ya. Oughta just come out now. I ain’t gonna fight ya,” he coaxed.

Something fell onto his shoulder.

Foxy dove to the side on his hands and knees, not doing any favors for his busted hand or sore foot and snapped his head back to see… just a wire. A thick wire had fallen loose from the ceiling and was now dangling where he once stood.

Watching it sway made him uneasy.

“My face…”

His head snapped towards the door.

“Roxy?!” he called.

“M-My face!... MY FACE!”

“ROXY!”

At that wail, Foxy darted out of the storage room and back out to the exposed basement in time to see Roxy shoving the kart off of her and staggering onto her feet. Still managing to get up despite her broken body.

“Roxy!” Foxy shouted for her. Shocked that she had just gotten up and shoved the heavy, broken vehicle off like it was nothing.

Her head snapped up and his jaw snapped shut. Her hollowed-out face was even emptier now than when he left her.

Her eyes were gone.

He couldn’t tell if they fell out or fell in, but they were gone.

“You… You CHEATER!” Roxy roared at him. She staggered in a few stumbly steps, nearly tripping over her own feet. “Y-You DID THIS! H-How could you DO THIS TO ME?!”

“Roxy, lass, I didn’t mean fer this to happen!” Foxy defended, nearly pleading with her. “I couldn’t get the kart to stop!”

“DON’T LIE! YOU HIT ME DEAD ON! You didn’t even TRY!” she roared accusatorily.

She grabbed at her head and face, feeling the damage, and gave a howl of anguish as she realized the state she was in. She immediately began to sob loudly. Foxy’s heart clenched at her reaction, and he took a step closer.

“Roxy, I promise I didn’t- mean to!”

She turned on him with an enraged cry and broke into a sprint. Her claws slashing through the air trying to grab him before she lunged for him in a pounce. He started running backwards before diving out of the way before she pounced, landing in a clatter beside the hole in the wall. She went past and slammed into a wooden crated with paint cans stacked up on it. They tumbled over in a clatter.

Foxy stared up in shock at the beauty turned beast before him. She was terrifying. Her gutted face to her guttural wails, she was terrifying.

Roxy slammed her hands on the crate and her exposed claws eagerly sliced into the wood.

“GIVE ME BACK MY EYES!”

“I DIDN’T TAKE YER EYES!” Foxy shouted back.

“YES, Y-Y-YOU DID! I FELT YOU PULL THEM OUT!”

She turned herself towards him and braced to pounce off that very crate. In that moment Foxy realized there was no reasoning with her. Before she could leap at him, he dove into the hole and clamored through. He pulled his leg in right before she slammed into the wall on the other side.

“Yer just gonna hurt yerself! You’ve gotta listen to me, I didn’t do this!” Foxy shouted back.

Roxy gave a frustrated cry and dragged herself up, still wailing and shouting blames. Though at this point her cries were almost incomprehensible when blending with her sobs.

This wasn’t just her not getting the message. She had gone mad. She had every right to go mad with how severely damaged she was, but at this point he realized that there was no talking her down. No reasoning with her in this state.

Maybe if he could get back to the kart he could look for her eyes, but he suspected they had sunk somewhere into her and heading back would just get him cornered. He was too damaged to take her on one-on-one. Even if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t. Not with her in this state. It was a miracle that she was up and walking around- or perhaps not in this case.

She lurched up and fumbled off somewhere. Foxy watched her go before hastily getting to his feet.

“I can h-hear you!” Roxy yelled.

He froze momentarily before looking down the brick hallway he was in. It looked old and barely finished at the same time. He bolted down it or tried to with his limp.

“I can STILL hear you!”

Foxy turned the corner and was sprinting down the next when a metal door slammed open in front of him and threw it barreled Roxy. He froze on the spot, hunched, and braced to leap or duck or defend himself.

He couldn’t imagine himself ever being as terrifying as the wolf that stood before him. Her darkened face leveled at him as she stared, growling, twitching, and cocking her head. Foxy watched her, waiting for her to strike.

But instead, she grew impatient and snapped, “Where ARE YOU?!”

That was when Foxy realized she was blind.

This wasn’t a given when animatronics lost their eyes. Some older models had eyes beneath their eyes which they could see with. Such as Bonnie, who could still see perfectly fine with half of his face missing. This wasn’t the case here; Roxy was very much blind and that was his only way out of this. Sure, he could lunge back through the hole, but then she would still catch up with him again. He had to be crafty.

He got an idea. It would have to be a oneshot go at it and it really banked on getting through that other doorway in the hallway, but it was his one chance to lose her. He could only hope his ankle would hold out.

Who was he kidding. He would run without a foot sooner than he would risk damaging anymore of his suit. He was going back to out-of-service this soon.

He bolted back down the hallway.

Roxy let out a yell and raced after him, banging into the corner as she came around it, disorienting her. It stopped her just long enough to hear Foxy scurrying back under the hole. She ran up a few more steps before giving a frustrated cry and turning to run back the way she came. Her claws scraping on the brick wall as she felt her way back down the halls.

But as soon as she was around the corner and moving, Foxy pushed himself back through the hole again. He got up, stumbling, and tried to quietly run back down the halls. Trying to being quick without being loud enough to hear over Roxy’s own shouts and stomps.

“Where are you?!”

As he approached the other doorway, he slowed and started to creep. He could hear her crashing through the room across the hall, but the doorway was right here, and if she heard him then she would be right back out.

He carefully stepped up to the door and reached for the handle with his hook. He slowly pulled the handle down, having to be careful to do it with his hook. Steady. Steady. He slowly turned it and then gave a careful pull to not lose grip.

The door creaked open. With a very noticeable creak.

In the other room, Roxy’s head snapped to alert. She rushed the door.

Hearing her coming, Foxy threw caution to the wind and wrenched open the door before charging through into a small, almost closet, and almost into another blocked up doorway.

“Fer cryin’ out LOUD!” he yelled and rammed himself into it. Unlike the last one, this one was either heavier or perhaps even nailed in. No good. If he kept ramming it all he would do is damage himself further. He had to find another way.

He turned around to find Roxy in the doorway and barely had time to duck to the side before she launched herself at him and broke straight through the boards blocking the way.

Foxy quickly hopped over her and bolted into the next storage room- this one looking a little tidier and more often used- looking around blindly and going for a heavy metal security door to the right. Thinking it was a security office, he ran over and slammed his arm on the button before tearing through. Only to freeze in place steps inside.

It wasn’t a security office. It wasn’t a storage room either. There was stuff shoved into it- trash, boxes, and some spare metal and parts of which some were visibly broken. But those too were trash. All the junk in here was trash.

But the floor was a grating over an eerie space in the flooring, and the metal walls were… familiar. A solid, glossy, cold metal that reminded Foxy of something. The room was smaller, a slightly different shape, but those walls reminded him of a box he had been shut in before. It filled him with immediate panic.

This was a walk-in furnace. It was just hidden under a go-kart track instead of inside of a fake pizzeria.

Freddy had said that there were furnaces. This one was built too big to be for trash alone.

Foxy staggered back out of the room as quickly as he had gone in, half expecting the door to slam down on him. Instead, the crushing weight that hit him was Roxy herself, and he found himself slammed to and slid across the floor.

She had him by the shoulders, her claws digging in and loose wires and stained strands of hair hanging down into his face. Her empty eye sockets piercing down into him.

It was the first time in a long time that he had been genuinely afraid of any of the Glamrocks. Sure, Monty was a loose cannon up until tonight, and Chica had her incident not so long ago, but otherwise Foxy had become comfortable with the humanity of the band. They didn’t act like animatronics, they acted like humans.

It was her grip that reminded him of how much of an advantage she had over him. She could break him. He would fight until he was in pieces if he had to, but not without significant damage, and he could no longer risk fighting until he was in tatters. He had too much on the line to lose it all.

“Roxy, Lass, ya gotta listen to me,” he tried to talk her down.

“LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO ME!” Roxy barked down at him. She let go of his shoulder to slam her claw down on the floor beside his head, much to close to his face. If he hadn’t had turned, she would’ve clipped his fabric.

“It was my fault, but I didn’t do it on purpose! The kart wouldn’t stop! The brake wouldn’t work!”

“I KNOW YOU DID IT ON PURPOSE! I KNOW YOU DID!” Roxy yelled over him. Her jaws snapping over his. “You popped my tires, you CHEATED, and then you ran me over and RUINED MY FACE!”

“If I was trying to run you over, why did I swerve?! Why’d I try to stop?!” Foxy challenged.

“Then what?! You cheated and accidentally HIT ME?! You RUINED me!”

Roxy pulled back onto her haunches so she could grab at her face. Her claws digging into the edge of the gaping opening and exasperating the cracks.

“ROXY, YOU’VE GOT TO CALM DOWN! YOU’RE GONNA HURT YOURSELF!” Foxy shouted.

“Oh, th-th-thaaa-t’s rich coming from YOU!” In an instant she swung down and grabbed him by the neck, slamming him back to the floor. The sheer power of it shook his spine. “HOW COULD YOU?!”

“Argh- FEEL THIS!”

Foxy had to sort of wrestle a bit, trying to get her hand off his neck and then when that didn’t work pushing forward and making a bold grab for the other. Strong enough to push back her grip far enough to hook her wrist and pull it closer and forced his injured one into hers.  

“Ya feel this? Ya feel this?!”

“WHAT?! WHAT, YOUR HAND?!”

“YES, MY HAND! MY HAND IS BROKEN!” Foxy shouted. “Why would I hurt myself?! Why would I purposefully hurt you?!”

“I saw the tires!” Roxy accused.

“I was with Monty and Chica! I couldn’ta done it!”

“You’re LYING!”

Roxy slammed him down again and his reflexes kicked in and all of a sudden, he slammed a foot into her chest, kicking her off onto her back. She landed on the concrete with a crash. Foxy hadn’t meant to do it, he didn’t want to hurt her, but he clamored to his feet with every intention of bolting. Yet still he stayed and tried to plead his case.

“Now you listen here! I DIDN’T cheat! And if I did, would I have-?!... Wait, wait, you said- you said I popped yer tires?”

“I saw where you used your hook!” Roxy accused. She sprung to her feet and started to storm in, reaching for him. “WHEN I GET HOLD OF YOU-!”

“Someone fooled with my brakes!” Foxy both realized and shouted in the same instant.

Roxy stumbled to a stop. If not for her knowledge of the karts she would’ve brushed this off as a lie, but she knew how those karts worked. She knew that he flew at her with the speed of someone who hadn’t touched the breaks- even the automatic breaking had lapsed, causing him to go too fast.

She processed this for a second. “…You’re lying,” she said. Yet now she didn’t seem entirely convinced.

“I wouldn’ta hit you. I hit those brakes with all me might and they didn’t engage! Why’d ya think I swerved and flew outta control?! If I wanted ta hit you, I would’ve ran ya down!”

“But… But, no… No, what? You… You had to! Who else would’ve done that?!”

Foxy immediately knew who he expected. The person behind all the screwy stuff that went down at the Pizzaplex.

“…That freak in the rabbit suit! Vanny! The bunny lady!”

“Why would SHE care about our race?!”

“It’s got nothin’ to do with racin’, Lass! She’s been gunnin’ fer us all!” Foxy explained. “She wants that kid who’s been runnin’ around. She attacked me brother tryin’ to get him and she might as well’ve been behind Chica’s accident!”

Foxy wasn’t lying. He knew Ennard and Baby were the cause of the accident, but he had now become all but convinced that Vanny had a hand in it. That she had a hand in anything that went sour at the Pizzaplex.

“She attacked Michael too. My brother, the rabbit that was in here with the clown. She attacked him in the basement. Messed him up, and she’s gettin’ more bold.”

It didn’t make sense to Roxy… at first. At first, she thought he was making excuses, but once she started thinking about it, she recalled the last and only time she had encountered the woman.

“…She-She could be getting back at me. For catching her in the r-raceway… You were there, you saw it!”

“Aye, I did! Yer-!...” Foxy trailed off. A long pause followed as he stared at her.

“What?! I-I’mm what?!” Roxy snapped.

“…You’re the only one who can see her.”

There was a heavy silence as Roxy processed that. The weight of those words falling on her as hard as they fell from Foxy.

Then she gasped. A slow, shaky, sob of a gasp.

“Sh-She did…” she realized. “She did. She knew. She knew I could see her.”

“It had to be her,” Foxy growled out. “I wouldn’ta cut me own breaks. And I sure as all hell wouldn’t have popped yer tires.”

“This can’t be happening…” Roxy grabbed at her head only to feel her frizzed and clumped up oil-streaked mane. She patted over it in dismay, trying to comb it back. “My hair is RUINED!”

“Lass, I think ye have bigger problems.”

“Don’t you DARE!” she snapped with an accusatory point. Foxy put his hands up in defense.

“I ain’t, I ain’t! Nothin’ we can’t fix. Look at Chica, she was trashed and looks good as new!” he assured.

“…R-Right… R-Right… I just… need a little work done.”

“We’ll worry ‘bout that once we’re out of here. Freddy and friends are lookin’ fer a way down here. If we can find a way back up-...”

Foxy heard something. At first it had sounded like a dull thud coming from somewhere and he thought it had been Freddy, but as he turned and cocked his head to listen, he quickly realized it wasn’t his heavy footsteps. It wasn’t Sun or Moon’s either. The gait was strange. Step, drag. Step, drag. Sliding metal, like a limp.

It was coming from the other metal door. The one in the other corner of the room, which he hadn’t taken notice of when he bolted for the security door. He eyed that door as he heard the footsteps come closer.

“Somethin’s walkin’ ‘round over there,” Foxy warned.

Roxy sniffed a little. Mostly because she was crying, but then she began to sniff more, and soon she gave a disgusted sound.

“It smells like- Ugh, like- li-like burnt plastic… What if it’s my hair?!”

“It ain’t yer hair! It’s from all these wires hangin’ a-.” There was the creak of a door moving. Foxy’s ears went up in alert and he pushed back against Roxy and moved them back behind the shelf. “Shh!”

He watched through the shelf as the door slowly slid open. Through the crack he could see glowing red dots staring back at him. Foxy felt those eyes burning into his own.

A metal hand shot out of the darkness and grabbed the edge of the door before pushing it open. Allowing the room’s light to fall on the figure as it took a lurching step out of the darkness. Shuffling out into the room in a stagger.

It was an endoskeleton. Not one of the endos from the basement but an older model, flimsier, partially melted in spots with its metal reformed into bent shapes. Tangled around its chest, over its shoulders and loosely into its limbs were wires. The same thick wires he had seen hanging from the ceiling or connected in places in the basement. A web of them clung to the endo’s metal and shifted and moved with each struggling step.

A large portion of them hung around its hips and weaved into one of its legs. They seemed to be holding it on, with the lower portion of it not matching the opposite leg. This directly caused its limp, though there was a lot of melted structure on its other leg too. It looked like a clumsy, frail thing, but the sight of it struck a deep fear into Foxy.

Largely because of its eyes. Its much newer eyes, glassy and white with yellow irises, barely being held in its sockets.

Those were Roxy’s eyes.

Foxy swore under his breath.

“What is it?!” Roxy whispered.

“It has your eyes!” he blurted in a shocked whisper.

“WHAT?!”

Had he been thinking straight he might’ve realized how tactless it was to say this in Roxy’s state. As soon as he realized his mistake he tried to reach out an arm to stop her, to no success. She shoved past and ran for the endo.

“Lass, no!”

She ran in its direction with an enraged cry and her arms and claws swinging. It stumbled drunkenly out of the way, and she crashed into the wall. Before she could recover is swung itself at her and was on her. Its wires slither like snakes and wrapping into her.

Immediately she began to scream in pain. Foxy, thinking she was being electrocuted, leapt into action and tried to get between them. Trying to wedge his shoulder into Roxy and shove back the endoskeleton with his leg to pry her away.

But he soon realized it wasn’t shocking her. The moment he touched that endoskeleton and its wires he was hit with a sizzling, burning heat. He knew what it was just from that alone and he could hear the crackle and static of music crawling up the back of his head as he fought to get it off Roxy. Eventually twisting his head and sinking his teeth into the cords and managing to chew through them quickly with only a short shock.

Finally, they released enough that Roxy slid free and fell back to the floor, Foxy landing atop her, the endo staggering above. Foxy looked up and raised his hook in defense as its eyes rolled around loosely before focusing on him.

“Are you having fun yet?” it asked mockingly. It had Vanny’s voice, but that voice was quickly covered up by another and they melded into each other in a unsettling harmony. “Let’s have some real fun.”

“Roxy, run!” Foxy shouted.

“NOT WITHOUT MY EYES!” Roxy yelled and went to lunge. Foxy used all the strength in his legs to buck back and force her against the corner.

“FORGET THE EYES! THEY’RE GONE! WE’VE GOT TO GO!”

Roxy wanted to keep fighting but something about the panic in his voice- and the sudden deviation of his classic accent- snapped her out of her frenzy and made it more apparent how wrong this all was. Very wrong, something was very wrong here, and she had to get out. Now.

She got up, grabbing Foxy by the shoulder, and wrenched him to his feet with her. Her eyes went forgotten for the moment- that familiar burn was enough to send her fleeing like her life depended on it- but her lack of vision was still a problem.

“Be my eyes! BE MY EYES!” she yelled.

“RIGHT, RIGHT! BACK THROUGH THE DOORWAY!”

Roxy clipped the edge of the doorway and fell into it, but Foxy grabbed her and pulled her along. The two of them racing back into the first room and slamming the door shut, throwing their weight on it. Roxy holding it with her shoulder and Foxy with his back, both frazzled.

“Wh-Why was she covered in wirrres?!” Roxy asked.

“She wasn’t. It was like some sort of endo covered in wires. They were holding it together,” Foxy explained. He tried to steady himself, looking around the room. “But that was her, no doubt about- oh, bloody hell, the hole.”

“Oh God. What hole?”

“The hole in the wall! Right there!” Foxy hissed. “Thing could just slide right in!”

“Well, good for it-t! I don’t know where in the hol-ly heartland we are right now-now, but there’s no going out this way- obviously!” Roxy ducked her head down in frustration only to have her hair fall into her face and she whined.

“What’s that?” Foxy whispered.

“The sound of my entire image being shattered!”

“Not that! Outside the door. Listen.”

She thumped her head to the door and they both listened. They could hear the lumbering steps of the endoskeleton wandering into the hall, but not just that. It was also singing. Or that is, projecting an old music recording, one crunchy and glitchy. Barely comprehensible as it echoed through the empty hall.

“H̴e̸y̵ ̸e̸v̸e̸r̴r̸r̷y̶b̴o̶d̶y̷,̵ ̵t̸u̵R̶n̸ ̸t̸h̸e̴ ̸r̶A̵D̷i̷o̷ ̴o̶n̸n̴n̶.̸ ̷G̴o̷n̶n̷a̴ ̵t̸h̴r̷o̷o̶w̷ ̷o̴u̴r̶ ̴t̷r̷o̷u̴b̶l̸l̵L̸l̴e̸s̷ ̷a̷w̸a̸y̸-̴ ̴h̴e̴e̶e̵y̸-̷h̸e̸r̶r̴r̶r̸y̶y̸y̴.̷”

Foxy felt a sudden drag in his head. A pull, a yank, making him fuzzy and loose. Like something was soothing and grabbing at him. Sort of like when Marionette sung- not on stage, but to the animatronics as a call to arms back at the old pizzeria. It felt like that, but less soothing and comforting. It felt deceptive. Like a shiny hook on a fishing line.

Something grabbed the door handle and started to turn it. Foxy quickly caught it with his hook and stopped it. Not that it would’ve been able to push through both of their weight anyways. After a moment it released and he heard it shuffling down the hall. The music followed with it.

“Do you feel that?” he muttered. He didn’t receive an answer. “Roxy?”

She was frozen in place with her head against the door. Completely still and silent save the low eerie hum of a fan.

Foxy nudged her arm. “Roxy!”

“What?!” she snapped. Shaking off whatever happened and pushing him back.

“Sorry. I thought I was losing you there. Spooked me,” Foxy mumbled. He looked around uneasily then watched the hole on the wall. “…It came through another door. That’s got to be the way out.”

He listened as the music started to shift around the corner of the hall, heading towards the hole he was watching so intensely.

“The second it starts coming in, we make a run for it,” Foxy said. “I’ll give the signal.”

“I swear if you d-ditch me here-.”

“I can’t. I’m yer eyes,” Foxy assured, slowly slipping back into character. “Any second now…”

He saw the slightest glow of red appearing in the hole and braced himself, starting to pull off the door. Roxy felt him and straightened up as well. They were ready to throw the door open.

And then red eyes peeked through the hole.

“I see you!”

“Now,” Foxy hissed.

He yanked open the door and was blindsided by a load of wires dumping upon him from above. A clump of thick tangles dropping through the same opening that singular one fell through earlier. They wriggled like a bed of snakes and burned to the touch. Foxy yelped and tried to shove them off, feeling them squirming into a tear in his back.

“AUGH!” Roxy yelled. She ripped them off herself, and Foxy in the process, and angrily tore them out of the ceiling in handfuls. Her claws tearing through the casing and shredding into the core, and barely feeling the dull sizzle of electricity. “You’re DISGUSTING! Get off me!”

With a roar, she tossed a bundle of them at the direction of the hole and all but shoved Foxy out the door. He stumbled and almost fell, and almost fell again when Roxy ran into him, but then began to run. Driven by Roxy’s, “MOVE!”

Foxy bolted into and across the storage room and for that door the endo came out of. Having closed itself, he wrenched it open prepared to throw himself in.

And came face-to-face in a hall that ended in a cluster of rancid Staff Bots. Big menacing grins drawn on their faces. The tear marks drawn above them giving away that they were supposed to look like Marionette. They all unanimously lifted their arms towards him as their eyes illuminated in red.

“Bloody ‘ell. We’re gonna halfta go through the walk-in oven,” Foxy realized.

“The what?!” Roxy asked. 

He shoved her back. “That way!”

Foxy guided Roxy through the security door and snapped his head over to see the endoskeleton skulking into the room. Hoping to slow it down, he stepped into the furnace before risking reaching out to hit the door button and yanking his back in. The door came down fast enough to knock into his arm but didn’t do any significant damage. He rubbed it with a hiss and looked around for a way out.

The other security door was shut and there was a panel beside it that looked like a covered vent. The only other option were two chutes connected to conveyor belts, though they had been partially blocked by lowered grating. That seemed like the only possible option, prying back the grating and squeezing through. He hastily limped to it.

In the meantime, Roxy felt the grating on the floor with her feet and sniffed at the room. She could smell a sooty scent wafting from beneath that grate and she realized where they were.

“Wait, are we in the furnace?! Wh-What were you thinking?!”

“I was thinkin’ of getting out of here!”

“W-Well that’s one way- letting it burn us to death!”

“Belay that! We can pry one’a these off!” Foxy hurried over and grabbed the bars covering one of the conveyors. Knocking against it with his hook to bring it to her attention.

Roxy’s broken ears twitched and she started over, kicking past a box of trash, and made it beside him. He hooked his hook on the metal and started trying to cry it. But it alone would do no good. The bars were thicker than his hook.

“I’m gonna need to borrow yer hands,” he said.

“Move,” she agreed.

She got her hands on the grating and started to pry it back, shuddering at how the strain affected her damaged body. It didn’t stop her though. She readjusted her footing and kept trying.

That was when they heard a bang on the opposite metal door.

…

While Foxy and Roxy had been making their way through the basement, Freddy and the others had been led to a door that led to a stairwell that descended under the raceway. There they found another door that led to a hall that led to a security door without windows. ‘’Furnace-RR” was plastered in white lettering over the door.

Freddy tried the door button under the keypad but only received an error noise. He hummed in discontent.

“It must be under lockdown for safety purposes,” he said. He looked to the keypad. “There is no way we could guess the password.”

“Start at all zeros and work up from there,” Monty suggested.

“That’s not going to- Freddy, stop that- that will not work,” Moon said flatly. He pressed two fingers to his temple. “Allow me…”

It was right then when Freddy heard some voices in the distance. It was hard to hear through the door, so he pressed his ear to it and listened, and gasped.

“I hear Foxy! A-And Roxy!” he said. He strained to listen. “Are they… Are they fighting? No, they cannot be. They must be fighting something else!”

Chica was shocked while Monty looked very uneasy, and finally Moon started to shout out numbers given to him by Jake. Freddy began inserting the codes in, but none of them were opening the door.

They continued trying until Foxy and Roxy could be heard entering the furnace.

…

“Now what?!” Foxy bitterly thought. He held out hope and called, “Freddy?!”

“Foxy! It is us!”

Indeed, it was Freddy, much to Foxy’s relief.

“What are you doing in the furnace?! Foxy, you must get out of there immediately! Many of the systems are automated!”

“That’d be the least of our worries! Can ya open it on yer end?!”

“We are trying, but we cannot find a code to get the door open!”

It was at that moment when Chica suddenly had an idea. She ran back to the stairwell to check before returning, grabbing Freddy by the arm, and pulling at him. He looked to her with a start.

“You saw something?!” Freddy called.

She nodded and let him go to start running, with Moon and Monty shortly behind her.

Freddy turned and yelled through the door. “Chica might have found something! We will be right back!” He then turned and followed the three.

“He better of found another door ‘er we’re done for,” Foxy remarked.

“That’s easy f-for you to say when I’M doing all the hard work!” Roxy finally got fed up and punched the grate, barely bending it in. “UGH! OF C-COURSE THIS WOULD BE THE ONE THING THAT C-CAN’T BREAK!”

“Ya just dented it in! Yer almost there!”

“Almost there?! I’m almost completely BROKEN, my eyes are GONE, my face- my hair- RUINED! I DON’T NEED YOU PA-PATRONIZZZING ME!”

There was a thump as a security door slid open.

Roxy lifted her head instantly and listened, knowing where it came from and still holding out that same pitiful hope that Foxy had.

“Freddy?” she asked.

“No…” Foxy said.

He found him staring eye to eye with the endo as it stood in the doorway. It took a staggering series of steps in. Clumsy and awkward, like it truly was only being pulled around by the wires. The door shut behind it, but Foxy couldn’t see who or what pressed the button.

Foxy wasn’t sure where Freddy ran off too, but he was sure even he could hear his explosive curse.

“Keep going with that! I’ll fight ‘em off!” Foxy then yelled to Roxy. He ran over to the pile of junk and hoisted up a box over his head before throwing it at the endo, causing it to stagger back. The pain in his hand went ignored as he forced it as best as he could to pick up another box and launch it over, only to then dart and dive aside when the endo charged it in its pitifully disheveled gait.

It wasn’t that strong. It wasn’t that fast. It wasn’t that dangerous unless it touched him, and Foxy wouldn’t let that happen.

He didn’t even consider it until he stole a glance in Roxy’s direction and caught sight of wires sliding down from above.

“Roxy, LOOK OUT!” he shouted. She shirked and back up. “ABOVE YOU!” he added.

She stepped back in time to have a slimy wire slide along her muzzle. She made a disgusted noise and tried to wipe it off with the back of her broken hand before lashing out, seizing the wire, and ripping it out with a furious cry. She swatted blindly and tore and ripped down whatever she could, clenching her teeth in pain with the lighter shocks but not backing down.

With her distracted though, the endo turned its attention on her. It began to stagger at her with an arm outstretched, only to be thwarted by Foxy diving into it and taking it to the floor.

While this was happening, Chica led the others back to the stairs and pointed out a vent near the floor. She then easily kicked it in with a relatively small kick. The moment she did, Moon lunged in, flipping his legs, and crawled into the shaft.

“Be careful!” Freddy called after him.

Moon crawled down the shaft and around the corner and came face to face with a secured hatch closed over the end. He crawled up and felt it, and quickly realized it was not a cover but a miniature security door itself. He grumbled a little and sent another message.

“Jake, can you get this vent open?!”

A few seconds later he received a response.

“Hang on, let me try!” There was a pause. “Okay, I found you! Hold on. Let me see.” A little longer. “Working on it… no password! I can get this one open. Just… two… seconds…”

Jake continued fiddling around on the control panel while Moon waited until there was suddenly a loud pop and a low whoosh from somewhere in the wall.

The noise made a chill run down Moon’s spine. “What did you just do?!”

“I had to deactivate the security measures to unlock the vent- I’m almost done!”

“Jake, that is not- that is not what you did…” Moon stared at the metal panel as he heard the rising shouts from inside the room. “Jake, hurry.”

“I’m trying! I think I activate some sort of failsafe- I’m almost there! Just have to- Just…!”

Moon could only helplessly wait in suspense.

Because he knew exactly what had happened when Jake triggered whatever failsafe was in that room.

Foxy had gotten up, a foot planted on the endo’s chest as he tried to pull himself free of the wires trying to sink into his suit.

He could hear noises, screaming and wailing, and music. Music from the diner. Music he remembered from yesteryears at Freddy’s that still haunted him as much as the image of a golden bear and a yellow rabbit dancing on stage did. He wasn’t able to break that image until he finally ripped himself free and staggered back on unsteady feat. The heat lingering and leaving his body both pulsing and numb.

He pulled free just in time to hear the WHOOSH that signaled the furnace kicking on. He shook his head out and looked and his heated body ran cold at the flames lighting near the walls. Just like they had in the phony pizzeria.

All those terrible memories resurfaced and washed him over with cold, sucking fear. Dragging him down into an immediate panic. Him snapping his head around and backing away like a cornered animal.

“ROXY! ROXY, THE FURNACE IS ON!”

“YEAH, I NOTICED!” Roxy called back. Having just yanked her hands away from the wall with a yell when the fire lit up beneath them. She stumbled away, pulling in her tail, and trying to get her bearings.

And then, suddenly, there were two loud clanks and one error noise as the security door and vent hatch on the back wall opened. The one they had come through stayed locked closed, but now they had an open way out. This did not turn the furnace.

But it did free Moon who was finally able to see out of the vent. He looked out and immediately the world stopped.

“Did that do it?!” Jake asked. “…Andrew?! Are you there? Hey!”

But Moon could not reply. He could only stare in aghast at an endo he never thought he would see again, now tangled in wires and mutilated by melting- and moving on its own. Piecing together very quickly what was really happening.

It was like the world stopped in that moment.

But Foxy didn’t waste a second. He snapped his head to the newly opened beacon of hope that was the exit.

“THE DOOR’S OPEN! Roxy, quick, get out! It’s right behind you! In the corner!” he yelled to her.

Roxy didn’t need to be told twice. She turned and tried to right herself, trying to narrow in on the door at Foxy’s instruction, feeling the heat radiating from the floor as she staggered to the door.

Roxy didn’t get afraid. She wasn’t supposed to. She was the brave one, the tough one, the unflinching image of perfection. Now she was filthy, broken, and blind. Deafened by the multitude of sounds and only able to smell the noxious odor of the gas fueling the flames. She was more disoriented than ever and trapped in a room heating up like a sauna.

And then she heard it. It cut straight through the chaos and reached her ears.

“̷S̴n̴e̶a̷k̶ ̵a̸w̷a̵y̵,̴ ̵y̵o̸u̶ ̴c̵o̶w̶a̵r̷d̸.̸”̷

It cut straight through her.

Roxy couldn’t control herself. She was busted and angry, and she couldn’t see- because of her. Because of that sick, vile woman running around in a knock-off Bonnie costume. Even though blind she was seeing red.

She turned and threw herself across the furnace and collided with the endo head-on, tackling it into the pile of trash. Boxes fell against the wall and began to burn, plastic containers began to sizzle, and the endo cackled underneath her.

“SHUT UP!” Roxy screamed.

She swiped for its face and felt her claws clatter against the glass of what used to be her eyes. She was filled with disgust and dug in her claws in around them, trying to pull them free. They were tightly pulled in.

Wires quickly encircled and climbed her arms. They burned and clenched, and she shouted. Her grip tightened against her own accord. The glass of the eyes cracked underneath her claws.

“Not so pretty anymore, are ya? Now your outside matches your inside,” the voice whispered at the base of her skull. She tried to fight it; the eyes crushed further in her grip with her efforts. The menacing voice shifted until it was the rabbit lady’s, “G̵̜̪̒͌̽̓̕͜ͅO̴̺̿̑̏̊Ǫ̶̛̼̣͍̀D̴̺͕̲̈̇̊.”

Roxy howled and yanked herself away, trying to twist out of the hold. By now no longer to feel her eyes crunching under her fingers or even the heat of the flames she was inadvertently leaning in towards trying to get away. She could only feel the sharp agonizing pangs spreading through her systems.

She didn’t realize Foxy was pulling her back off the endo until her hands had been detached from it- now twisted and clutched close to her chest- and the wires were starting to tug free. She became defiant, disoriented, and angry- thrashing against both.

“LET GO! I-I’VVE GOT- I’VE GOT-!”

“I’m not leavin’ ya in here to burn!” Foxy yelled back.

“I-I-I CAN’T LET HERRR WIN!”

“She’s not even here! Yer not burnin’ yerself over some metal puppet- THAT’S WHAT SHE WANTS!”

She knew he was right. She knew he was right, and she couldn’t stand it. Because this was the closest, she was going to get to her when she couldn’t see her. Letting her go was admitting defeat, but staying was letting her win.

No matter which way she chose, she would still come out of this looking like this.

With a frustrated cry, she kicked out and smashed her foot into the endo. It had been pulled up by the wires and when it was struck it was slammed back to the floor. The wires pulling tight, its arm twisting up, and something snapping inside of it. It looked so deceptively frail, Foxy thought. It became clear to him then that his assumption that it was a tool to the wires was correct, whatever it was.

But that kick freed Roxy further and she finally started clawing herself up, assisted by Foxy who got her by the arm and led her to the security door. By then it was growing intensely hot in the room, even with the door and vent open. Nothing like the pizzeria’s inferno but close enough to remind him of the burn.

He noticed Moon in the vent as they passed. He had been watching the whole thing shirked into the vent and was staring at the endo. Foxy didn’t blame him- he wouldn’t have turned his back on the thing if not for having to get Roxy out.

Unfortunately, with the furnace still on there was a low wall of flames blocking off the bottom of the door. Foxy was almost certain that this was a purposeful design choice.

“The floor’s spewing! You’re gonna have to jump over it!” he warned.

“How far?!”

“Yer about three feet out, give ‘er take. It’s about a foot high. I’ve seen ya jump higher, ya just can’t stand around in it!”

Roxy took another step forward on her own, crouched, and then sprung over the flames. For the most part. Her feet dragged through it a little, but it was so quick that there wasn’t really time to do real damage.

Foxy could’ve maybe made that jump with both legs at full condition, he might’ve been able to do it now with minimal singeing, but he couldn’t so much as consider getting anywhere near that fire. It paled in comparison to the fire at the pizzeria and yet it could’ve been the walls of flames surrounding him that he had seen then.

“Keep going! I’m going through the vent!” Foxy called. Then he went for the vent.

Unlike the door, there weren’t flames burning under the vent- elsewise it would’ve been impossible to get through without severe burns- but they were close enough that he had to keep his arms tucked in. He sprung into the vent and began to clamor inside, Moon retreating once startled by Foxy’s leap.

Foxy was just in the vent shaft and watching Moon start to climb backwards around the corner when something snagged around his ankle. In an instant he was dragged back, sliding on the slippery interior of the vent, and back into the furnace. The heated air engulfing him once more.

“GaBrIeLLllll…” the endo mockingly singsonged. “I thought you liked bunnies!”

“Get off!” Foxy swung a hook back and managed to slap off the wires slithering down from the endo standing above him. It mockingly giggled down at him before going dead silent.

Foxy didn’t notice but it had just locked eyes with Moon.

Then without warning, Moon rolled out overtop of Foxy into a handstand, spun his legs, and kicked the endo directly in the chest. This knocked it back and in that second, he dropped on all fours, grabbed Foxy around the middle, and all but shoved him into the vent. Foxy didn’t need to be told twice and crawled on hands and knees.

Moon spared one look back at the endoskeleton. It stood there staring at him. He glared, forced in the points that were trying to come out due to the light and crawled in after Foxy.

No matter how much it hurt he refused to look back.

Foxy clamored down the vent and around the corner, and soon came up of Freddy crouching in front of the vent peeking in.

“Foxy, thank goodness! Where is Roxy?! Where is Moon?!”

“Present…” Moon called from around the corner.

“Roxy came in the door! Someone’s gotta go get her, make sure that thing don’t get in!” Foxy warned.

Freddy looked to Chica and Monty who didn’t need to be told twice. They both hurried off, with Chica quickly leaving Monty behind. Freddy reached a hand out to help Foxy and he reached back with his hook. Freddy was a little confused but took his wrist securely and helped pull him out and to his feet, gasping as he noticed his ear.

“It ain’t that bad. I can get a replacement,” Foxy said, thinking he meant his hand and holding it up.

Freddy’s eyes popped open at the sight of the hand and he gasped. “You are hurt!”

“Eh, ain’t that bad. Just a couple’a scrapes,” he brushed off. He stared at the floor. “…But…. brace yerself for Roxy. She… She ain’t lookin’ so hot.”

Freddy’s ears tilted with worry. Moon, who was standing from the vent with slumped shoulders and his gaze too on the floor, reached out and put a hand on Freddy’s shoulder. A comfort and a foreshadowing of how bad it was about to be.

Chica almost ran up on Roxy who was making her way down the hallway. She saw her and raised her hands to her beak in shock with her eyes wide, unable to make a sound.

Roxy had heard her footsteps though and lifted her head.

“Who’s there?!”

Chica reached out and knocked on the wall with one hand. Though it was entirely nondescript, Roxy knew it was her.

“Ch-Chica? Don’t… Don’t look at me. I look- I look disgusting…” she choked out. She turned her head away and tightened her dirtied and roughened hands, and then began to softly cry once again.

Chica crept up to her right as Monty came thumping around the corner. He yanked his sunglasses off and looked at her with shock, not believing what he was seeing.

“DAMN!” Monty bellowed tactlessly. “You okay?”

“Do I look okay?!” Roxy snapped.

Chica carefully put a hand on her shoulder and tried to lean in to see her chest. Roxy tilted her head up and it was only then that she realized that her eyes were gone, having not being able to see it beforehand. She jumped back startled.

Roxy felt her reaction and read it without seeing it as she quickly covered her face and began to cry. Chica covered up fast and went back to patting her shoulders.

“S’cuse me,” Monty said gruffly. He squeezed past and thumped to the door before looking into the furnace at a safe distance. It was empty- save some trash- and the other door was open. “….Somethin’ attacked cha, right?”

“S-Something- Something covered in wires- and that PSYCHO in the rabbit costume was controlling it! Look at me, she TRASHED ME!” Roxy vented. She cut herself off with a frustrated cry and punched the wall. Chica grabbed her arm and yanked it back. Unable to show her emoting, she tapped the back of her hand in a scolding sort of way. “I’m fine… I… I’m fine. I just- I need to go get fixed.”

“Well… it’s gone…” Monty said uneasily. He noticed some wires hanging out of the ceiling and quickly put on his sunglasses before rushing back. “Let’s get outta here.”

Roxy was led back to the stairwell by her two bandmates. That was when Freddy was able to see what had become of her. He gasped again and Foxy lowered his head once more. Moon’s never lifted.

“Roxy!” Freddy boomed in alarm. “I- you- We must get you to Parts and Service immediately!”

“That’s where we’re headin’,” Monty agreed. Then muttered, “One we get up twenty flights of stairs…”

“Ugh, whe-where ARE we?” Roxy choked out.

“Underneath the raceway… You fell a long way…” Freddy said lowly.

“Did ya see where that thing ran off to?” Foxy asked.

“Nah, but the other door was open. Must’ve run off,” Monty replied.

“Of course it did,” Moon hissed.

Freddy watched them help Roxy up the stairs and felt utterly useless. Like this had been his doing as he had been the one to not step in when he had his feeling. He could’ve never imagined a race could’ve turned into this.

Moon followed them and then Foxy behind him, but Freddy caught him by the shoulder before he could sulk up the stairs.

“Foxy, what happened during the race?” he asked.

There was no judgement in his voice, no suspicion, and it almost made Foxy feel worse. Both because Freddy expected the best from him and because he was stuck delivering the bad news.

“Vanny happened. She popped Roxy’s tires, cut me brakes… I didn’t have a chase to swerve.”

Freddy gasped and Foxy lowered his head further.

“I… I am so sorry. I could never have expected… Oh, Foxy…” Freddy drew back his hand to look at the wound on his back, lightly grazing his fingertips by it. He looked down at his hand too. His damage wasn’t as severe as Roxy’s, but it was still noticeable. “I am… I am so sorry.”

“Tis a flesh wound. I’ll live. She’ll live too, but… she’s gonna need a lot more work than I am,” Foxy lamented dryly. He sighed and shrugged. “Let’s just get her to Parts and Service. See what you can do. Worry about me later.”

“I will worry about you now. But yes, I agree. We need to focus on Roxy first,” Freddy agreed.

He gave Foxy a gentle push towards the steps. Foxy didn’t need more encouragement and began to head up. Freddy waited a moment before following behind him, taking a step up onto the stairs.

…

“Fr…dy…?”

…

Freddy’s head snapped up and he looked back suddenly.

“Hello?!” he called. Foxy looked back at him as he continued looking around. “Is… Is someone there?”

“Freddy? Ya hear somethin’?” Foxy asked warily.

“I… I thought that I did…”

But he couldn’t tell if it had been something he heard externally or internally, like a message sent to him. Or even if it had been some sort of intrusive memory like before. It filled him with a mix of unease and sadness.

“Freddy?” Foxy asked worriedly.

This snapped Freddy out of it for the moment. He reached back for the railing as he took a few steps back to the stairs.

“It is nothing. We need to get Roxy to Parts and Service as soon as possible,” he said.

Foxy nodded, but waited until Freddy came up the stairs and accompanied him in following the others, making sure not to leave him behind. Which Freddy wouldn’t do. Roxy needed his undivided attention until they could get her stabilized.

And then…

…

…And then he could come back and make sure it was just a memory.

Chapter 83

Chapter Summary

Mike, Marionette, and the others come to Foxy's rescue to repair the damaged Roxy. In the meantime, Freddy lets his guard down and searches for the mysterious voice...

Jake and Beelora were both left in limbo out on the raceway- or up on the stands in Beelora’s case- waiting to see what had happened.

What happened came staggering out from the door flanked by Chica and Monty on either side. Her hair dirtied and stuck in her gaping face. Jake couldn’t help but stare, or the Nanny Bot he was controlling did as he reeled from what he was seeing. He knew she was damaged, but this was bad. Worse than Chica’s, maybe.

Roxy must’ve heard the whir of the Nanny Bot as she turned on it with a growl. “Wh-What are you looking at?!”

“It’s a Staff Bot, Rox. It ain’t lookin’ at nothin’,” Monty assured her. He continued to coax her along. “Let’s getcha down to Parts and Service.”

“R-Right…” She lowered her head and followed along. Chica patting her arm as she went.

Jake continued to watch until Moon suddenly grabbed the Nanny Bot by the shoulders and turned it towards him. He was currently in the process of turning into Sun, but his voice was distinctly Moon’s.

“We need to talk now!”

Jake didn’t ask questions and instead piloted the Nanny Bot after the Daycare Attendant as he hastily speedwalked out of Roxy Raceway, restraining himself so the bot could catch up.

Foxy and Freddy caught sight of him leaving. Neither asked, both assumed he was going to check on Jake and Gregory. They looked to each other before Foxy nodded after his bandmates and they continued following them. Foxy almost jumped when Freddy put a hand on his back, but then soaked up the comfort. His body was too busted and his pride too flattened to turn down the reassurance.

When they stepped out into view, a quiet voice from above spoke up.

“Freddy?” Beelora quietly called down. “Is… Is she alright?”

“She… Roxy is very damaged, but we will be taking care of her. Err… Would you like me to accompany you back to the Hive Arcade?”

“Oh! No, no. That’s okay! I can make it,” Beelora assured him, waving her hands. Normally she would jump at the chance for some company, but in this case, she knew better than to get in the way. “I’ll be careful. Tell Roxy I hope she feels better! Or gets… better? Umm… Tell her I’m sorry and that I will be thinking about her.”

“I will. Thank you,” Freddy called back. He was appreciative, but not feeling very chatty.

Beelora gathered her babies and the Mini Music Man and headed back to the West Arcade while Freddy continued after the others with Foxy.

Soon they were down in Parts and Service and Roxy was seated into the repair chair. She looked exhausted and had collapsed on it while the rest figured out what they were going to do.

“I don’t trust the technicians. They’ll leave her eyes out,” Chica said in a message to Freddy and Monty.

“That is true… They are… unreliable,” Freddy admitted in defeat.

“What?” Foxy asked.

“The technicians. Chica is worried that they will not fix Roxy all the way, like they did with her.”

“Hmm.”

“Th-This can’t wait until morning anyways. We’ve got to get that clown in here or-r something!” Roxy called out, exasperated already.

As thrilled as Chica would be to have Ennard swing by, she suddenly had an idea. She remembered something that they had talked about when Ennard was here, and someone else who might be able to help. It came to her suddenly and she turned towards the only known technician on hand-

And pointed directly to Freddy.

“Me?” Freddy asked in surprise.

Chica nodded vigorously.

“But I do not have the proper training. I would not know the first thing about animatronic repair!”

But Chica shook her head and continued pointing to him, then to the cylinder, then to the computer.

“…Might have a point,” Foxy said.

“Not you too!”

“Ya don’t have to know nothin’ ‘bout repairs. The machine does the whole thing! Err, most of it,” Foxy insisted.

Freddy seemed uncertain and his eyes lowered to the floor as he lost himself in his thoughts.  

He wanted to help, he really did, but was he capable of doing this? He didn’t even remember if he was a human, let alone a technician! When he tried to remember or think about it his mind would draw a blank. The only time he really remembered tricks or tips a technician would know was just out of the blue, randomly, things he was sure he could’ve remembered from hearing technicians working on him talking.

And yet part of him truly wanted to believe that maybe he was some technician. That he too was a human like the others, and not just a human, but one capable of helping his friend. That he could make up for his hand in Roxy’s accident.

He looked at Roxy and thought about it and what it would take to fix her and…

…He did have a good idea of what it was going to be like. Of what plates would need to be fixed, which parts needed replacement, and how to go about it. And he didn’t have the same clumsy claws as when he first awoke. He knew that he could count on himself for precise movements, and he knew already what he would need to do.

Freddy wasn’t sure if he was a technician, but maybe for tonight he could be Roxy’s technician. 

Maybe he could. Just maybe.

Foxy noticed the lingering silence and looked to Chica and noticed the steadfast confidence in her eyes had changed to concern. Realizing the position they were putting him in, Foxy reached out and nudged Freddy’s arm.

“Eh. On second thought, lemme just call Fritz. I have faith in ye, Freddy, but I ain’t gonna make ya work on your friend. There’s a reason they don’t let doctors cut open their loved ones, yeah?” he said.

Chica nodded and made a shooing motion at Foxy for him to go to the phone. He patted Freddy’s back on the way to the desk.

Freddy stood there a moment longer, his eyes shifting as he thought, when he suddenly came to a decision.

“Wait.”

“Hrm?” Foxy asked. Currently trying to figure out how to pick up the phone with a busted hand and a hook.

Freddy turned back to him with determination in his eyes.

“I will do my best.”

Both Foxy and Chica perked up, the latter pumping her fists in a cheer.

“That’s the spirit, Freddy!” Foxy congratulated. “We’ve got yar back.”

Freddy nodded and strode into the repair capsule like he was walking into battle.

“Ya got this, Fredbear,” Monty called in after him.

They all seemed so confident in him. The only one skeptical of him- except for maybe himself- was Roxy who shifted uneasily.

“Are you sure you know what you’re doing?” she asked.

“I believe that I will once I get started,” Freddy gently assured her. “Like Foxy said, the entire process is automated. It just requires a worker to guide it through the basic work. I can certainly do that much.”

“Just… if you get stuck, just stop. Don’t guess, stop.”

“I will, I promise.”

Monty and Chica leaned in at the desk and figured out how to activate the machine, with Chica clicking on the correct button on the screen to start the repair.

This was it, Freddy thought. He remembered being repaired here. He remembered watching Sun and Moon and Chica get repaired here. He knew what needed to be done.

He could do this. He wasn’t built for this; he was born for this.

“For best results, only one animatronic may be allowed into the safety capsule during repair procedure. Please remove Freddy Fazbear from the control module.”

“Never mind, Freddy,”

“D’oh…”

So, back to square one. Save that Freddy now felt even more useless. He quietly moped to himself as he stood back alongside Foxy, who tapped him with his hook.

“Hey, you were gonna do it. Ain’t yer fault they locked us out,” he said.

“W-Well, someone has to fix me! I can’t st-tay like this all night!” Roxy called out.

“…Tell ya what!” Foxy thumped Freddy’s arm with his hook to get his attention, mostly ignoring Roxy. “I’ll call me brother. Get him, Mike, an’ Charlie down here. She’s a technician.”

“That would be great. Thank you, Foxy,” Freddy said solemnly. His ears still lowered and his eyes sad.

Foxy turned to go to the desk when Chica stopped him with a hand and began to make various gestures towards Freddy.

“What about Ennard?” Freddy asked for her.

Ennard was the more skilled choice, but Foxy didn’t want to call him. Foxy didn’t want to call him because then he would be telling Michael, and then this would become Michael’s nightmare as well.

“I’ll… I’ll call him- but Charlie’s very good! An’ Mari’s our safety net. I’ll call, uh, I’ll call Fritz too. He’s the other guy who worked on Chica.”

Chica tilted her head before nodding, vaguely recalling that someone else might’ve been there. She gave a thumbs up and Foxy went to go make the call. This time Monty picked up the phone and held it for him.

The others continued standing around the safety capsule watching their broken friend lay there with despair.

…

Mike wasn’t unused to waking up to phone calls in the early hours of the morning. It wasn’t the best way to start the day, but regardless of how tired he was he would answer the call, even if he wasn’t awake yet. His eyes were still trying to stick together as he grabbed his cell phone off the nightstand and brought it to his ear.

“Hello?” he asked groggily.

“Ahoy. It’s me.”

“Foxy?” Mike rubbed his eye. “What’s up?”

He was assuming that Jeremy had overslept and hadn’t showed up. At least, he hoped that was the case. Foxy’s dour tone was concerning.

“I, uh… I need ya to wake up Mari and Charlie and bring ‘em down to the Pizzaplex. We’ve got a problem.”

“Oh hell, what happened?” Mike asked. He woke right up at that. That tone, that tone gave it away.

“I’ll explain when ye… Eh… I’ve been in an accident. Roxy too. It’s a long story.”

Mike shot up from the bed and flung his legs over the side to start putting on his shoes.

“Where’s Jeremy?”

“Outside, prob’ly. If I call him, he’s gonna blow in here and we’ve had a rabbit sighting… I don’t want him comin’ in here alone. I’ll call him now, tell him to wait.”

“Yeah. Good idea.” Mike reached back and shook Marionette awake. He shot up like he was rising out of a coffin aw Mike leaned forward to tie his shoes. “We’ll be right down there.”

“Thank you, Mike. You’re a good man.”

Oh, that was bad. That amount of solemn appreciation was a huge red flag if Mike had ever heard one. Foxy only got sentimental when something was going down.

He was hurt, Mike realized. That was why Foxy didn’t mention going out to see Jeremy. He was damaged in some way. His quick hang-up managed to make that very clear.

Mike swore under his breath.

“What’s wrong? What happened?” Marionette asked, equally concerned.

“Some sort of accident down at the Pizzaplex. That was Foxy, he said it was with him and Roxy. We’ve got to get down there.”

“An accident?! How bad was it?!”

“He didn’t say.”

“How bad did it sound?”

Mike paused for consideration, then shook his head and muttered a, “Not great.”

Marionette was up and off the bed in a second. Mike was shortly behind him, and they headed out of the bedroom and into the hallway.

“Did he say where Jeremy was?” Marionette asked.

“Out in the parking lot. He hadn’t called him yet, so we’ll pick him up on the way in,” Mike said to which Marionette agreed. He headed off down the hall as Mike approached Charlie’s door.

Mike gave two light knocks before opening the door. “Charlie?” he quietly called in.

Charlie lurched upright in bed. Her hands resting on the covers on her legs. Her large eyes weary slivers and her mouth a tiny and agape frown; she barely looked awake.

“Oh, good. You’re up. Listen, we need to get down to the Pizzaplex. Something went down and Roxy and Foxy got into an accident of some kind, and we might be looking at another Chica situation.”

That woke Charlie up instantly.

“I’m up! I’m coming!” she said.

“Thanks. Sorry to wake you up like this. I’m going to go get ready to go.”

Mike pulled her door to and continued down the hall.

He stopped into the bathroom before heading into the living room where he found Marionette bringing Max up to speed. He could hear the Puppet’s ticking as he entered the room, and even if he hadn’t the way he was wringing his hands would’ve given away his worry.

“But we’re not sure how bad it is,” he finished.

“Only Foxy,” Max remarked.

Marionette sighed. “Only Foxy…”

“Only at the Pizzaplex… Hey, what about Jeremy? He’s down there.”

“Foxy didn’t tell Jeremy because he was afraid he would go in on his own. We’ll bring him in with us and bring him up to speed…” Marionette turned to Mike who came to stand beside him. “Is she coming?”

“She wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Mike assured, and he put an arm around him. Marionette’s ticking was briefly interrupted by a light trill.

“Hey, there’s no funny business going on between Foxy and Roxy, is there?” Max suddenly asked.

Marionette gave a bemused guffaw. “I’m pretty sure Foxy prefers the company of single dads,” he replied.

“Oh yeah. He has been hanging around Freddy a lot.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Marionette said flatly.

“Freddy’s already got his hands full. Sun’s sort of a two in one deal,” Mike added.

“…I almost forgot about him.”

There was a clatter from the hallway and all three looked over in time to see Charlie hustling down the hallway with her toolbox in one hand and her soldering kit in the other.

“I know they have all the tools in the repair tube, but I’m bringing my toolbox just in case. And my soldering gun,” she explained as she wobbled in, balancing the weight between them. “Are we ready?”

“Just about,” Mike said.

He grabbed his jacket on the way and pulled it over the T-shirt he slept in. Nothing he could do about the drawstring pajama shorts, but at least they were blue instead of plaid. They’d stick out like a sore thumb but not that badly.

Soon they were in the car and driving through Hurricane. They pulled off onto the highway and then it was a straight shot down the abandoned stretch. Marionette has sat slouched in the passenger’s seat, but the road was so empty that he felt confident enough to sit up. Though not confident enough to not his fingers wrestling together in his lap and his back rigid.

Mike had that same antsy energy. There was something exhilarating about flying down the highway in the middle of the night with somewhere to go. Even though it was rushing to the scene of an accident at the Pizzaplex, involving his friend and Marionette’s brother, with a countdown hanging over their head for when the Pizzaplex would open.

Action got the adrenaline going, adrenaline got the anxiety going.

The phone call hadn’t helped. He kept thinking back to how Foxy sounded and it worried him. He had just sounded so defeated. Foxy was the type to roll with the punches and make anything work in his favor. When he lost out, he flared up not died down. That more than anything else forewarned Mike that something else was up.

Charlie was in the back looking into her soldering kit, so he wasn’t concerned about her right now, but a glance at Marionette showed that he was just as wound up as Mike was. He looked back to the road and reached over to grab and squeeze Marionette’s hand. Marionette responded by lacing their fingers together.

The rest of the ride was quiet. Once Charlie broke the silence to ask about the phone call, during which Mike brought her up to speed, but then it fell quiet again. Soon enough, they were at the Pizzaplex.

Mike parked next to Jeremy. He couldn’t see him in the car at first and wondered if he had taken off into the Pizzaplex to find Foxy. It wasn’t until he walked over with Marionette that Mike realized he was still there, asleep, with his seat partially reclined and his glasses on the middle console.

Mike tapped on Jeremy’s window, and he shot up with a start. He looked up at Mike with fear, but that quickly turned to confusion, and he opened his car door.

“What are you doing here?” he asked. Before Mike could even answer, a look of panic returned to the blonde’s face as he realized the implications of Mike, Marionette, and Charlie being here.

“There was an accident on the raceway. Roxy’s pretty banged up and Foxy called us to come down so Charlie and Fritz can help clean her up,” Mike explained solemnly.

“…There was a what?! An accident?!” Jeremy shouted in shock. He grabbed his keys and all but threw himself out of the car. “Why didn’t Foxy call me?!”

“He was supposed to. He called us first because he said Vanny’s lurking about and he didn’t want you going in there alone. Might’ve not been the best way of going about it, but I get where he was coming from.”

“I would’ve waited! I just- I wish he would’ve told me. Unless I slept through it… No, I think I would’ve woke up,” Jeremy said. He knew there was a chance he might’ve still tried to get in, but he trusted Foxy’s judgement.

“We’re not sure, but… we think Foxy might’ve been injured too,” Marionette quietly admitted.

Never mind. Promise or not, Jeremy would’ve waltzed right into that Pizzaplex.

Mike patted him on the shoulder. “He’ll be okay. He didn’t sound too bad on the phone, so I think Roxy’s the worse case. Not that that’s a good thing, but we’ve got to take what we can get,” he said.

He noticed Charlie starting to lug her toolbox out of the car and went to help her. Marionette took his place at Jeremy’s side, putting his hand on his opposite shoulder like Mike had.

It was then that another car pulled into the parking lot. Everyone was at attention until they were certain it was Fritz pulling in, just in time. He parked on the other side of Mike’s car.

As he got out of the driver’s side, Mike came around the front and stuck out his free arm. “About time! We’ve been waiting for a good, what, thirty seconds?” he asked Charlie.

“At least. Maybe even thirty-two.”

“Very funny. I’m guessing nobody went in yet?” Fritz asked.

“Not yet. But we’re ready.”

“Then let’s get in there, inspect the damage.” Fritz hadn’t brought his toolbox but had brought his toolbelt and notably, his taser. Which was an excellent decision as Mike realized- with an inward swear- that he had forgotten his own. “I hope Natalie’s already. I tried to call the lost and found number, but she didn’t pick up. I don’t have the number for the security office she’s been in.”

“I’m pretty sure Foxy would’ve said something if she got hurt. The only one he’s dodgy about is himself,” Mike assured.

“Well, that’s not exactly a good thing, but… I’m going to leave it at that,” Fritz said. Taking one look between Jeremy and Marionette and deciding not to sound uncaring by saying anything more. “Are we going in through the loading dock?”

“Sure. Mari’ll get it open.”

Marionette agreed with a nod, and they hurried towards the back.

Fritz’s concerns about Natalie were alleviated very quickly as when they arrived at the loading dock door, they found it propped open and Natalie waiting there with Smitty and Buddy just inside. Fritz walked up with his arms opened and she dropped any act- nobody was around to see it anyway- and gave him a tight hug.

“Hey. Sorry you had to get up so early,” she said.

“No problem. Any reason to come see my girl,” Fritz shmoozed. This got a snicker out of Natalie, and she gave him a playful thump on the back.

“Knock it off. You’re on the clock.”

“More like we’re on a timer,” Mike chimed in as he walked past. Immediately Smitty started coming for him. “Hey, whoa!” But the Staff Bot wasn’t coming for him, he realized. It was going for Marionette who was following him in. Mike reflexively blocked the bot with his arm and got a shoulder in between him and the confounded puppet. “Whoooa.”

“They always do this for some reason,” Marionette said warily.

“Maybe’s it’s got something to do with the face paint. You sort of look like them,” Mike pointed out. He gave Smitty a light push and the Staff Bot did willingly roll back, but tried to come back in. Mike had to keep holding him at arm’s length.

Marionette suddenly got a look of uneasy realization. “Oh, I hope that doesn’t mean anything…”

“Normally I’d think something funny’s going on, this is Fazbear Entertainment after all, but they’re probably just trying to rip you off,” Mike assured.

“…That is a good point. Yes, that’s probably it,” Marionette agreed. He sounded relieved, but then moved directly behind Mike, his hands on his shoulders. “But just in case, let’s keep you in between us.”

“What am I, a human shield?”

“Of course not!” Marionette insisted. “You’re my flesh and bone bodyguard! It’s much different, I assure you.”

“Uh huh. Do I get a raise?”

“You get all the cupcakes you can eat,” Marionette promised.

“Deal! Alrighty, Smitty, take it outside. Go on, back to Vanana.”

He shooed Smitty off, but the bot only really let them go once Natalie called him back.

“Come on. Let’s go find Foxy,” Jeremy said, trying to hurry them all up. They didn’t need to be reminded twice.

“They’re in Parts and Service. Let’s go, and stay close,” Natalie agreed.

They headed out of the loading dock and down one of the lengthy hallways. It smelled stale but it looked relatively clean, if a little cluttered in places.

“Did you see what happened?” Jeremy quietly asked.

Natalie considered her words for a moment before delivering it to them straight.

“Foxy slammed into Roxy with a go-kart.”

“What?!” Jeremy gasped.

“On purpose?!” Marionette added. Loud enough to make Mike jump as he all but lurched over his shoulder.

“I don’t think so. I didn’t hear much of what went down, but I’m pretty sure Vanny was behind it. The second after the accident I started getting flagged back in the lobby and she ran me on a goose chase around the Pizzaplex.”

Everyone there was already suspecting Vanny but the revelation that she was there only cemented it. Though the actual accident was surprising.

“So, that’s what he meant by ‘accident’,” Mike realized. His concerns about Foxy’s condition, which he had been shoving down, crept right back up. Now he was a little less certain that Foxy was walking out of this one.

Marionette had slid out from behind him and was now leading him by the hand, their fingers laced again. His eyes were alit, and he was on alert, waiting to access the damage.

He had to wait longer than he would’ve liked. Even with the quick pace, the basement was a lengthy maze of hallways that eventually walked them up to Parts and Service. Natalie stood aside so they could go in, but Marionette gestured for Charlie and Mike to stay back as he went to look in and see who all was there.

He could see Foxy sitting on a flimsy looking chair. Freddy was sitting on the stairs while Chica was in the repair capsule, so he couldn’t see Roxy, and Monty was standing by Foxy looking in the window.

The Puppet called out to Foxy in a tone that made every animatronic in the room flinch and react. With Freddy and Chica both looking around, Monty hunching in, and Roxy could be heard asking, “Wh-What was that? Did you hear that?”

Foxy did, but he was familiar to the noise and instead of it startling him he looked to the doorway to see Marionette peeking out, being the only one able to pinpoint the noise. He sighed and somberly beckoned him.

“Come on in, Lad. They already know.”

Taking that as his only cue, Marionette started coming in with Mike shortly behind him and then the rest, with Natalie staying back to keep attention off her. The Glamrocks took notice immediately, with Freddy standing to greet them.

“What’s he doin’ here?” Monty muttered. Foxy didn’t have to look to know he was talking about Mike.

“Eh, he works fer me.”

“Wight’s kid?” Monty asked, surprised.

“Not Wight’s kid. He’s me security guard, co-owner, ehh… brother-in-law, sorta. He’s been spyin’ fer me,” Foxy admitted.

“…Huh…”

Foxy got up to greet Marionette, trying to hide how sluggishly he did so. He expected him to pounce on him, but Marionette resisted, instead reaching for his shoulders, for his head, quickly looking over and spotting injuries that could’ve been subtle but were all too obvious to him. He focused on the hand, gently taking it as he let out a plethora of worried twangs and ticks.

“Now, it ain’t that bad.”

“Foxy…” Marionette said. A sorrowful lilt to his voice.

“It’s just the hand. I’ll walk off the rest.”

“You’re going to have to have Charlie and Fritz look at that ear too,” Mike pointed out. His voice also filled with concern. “Foxy, what happened? We heard there was a kart accident?”

“Ya got that half right. It was a kart, but it was no accident,” Foxy said bitterly. Then he caught sight of Jeremy standing there wide-eyed and mouth tight and that fire fizzled out. “Yar. Ahoy, Jere.”

“Gabe, what- Foxy- Gabe,” Jeremy finally clarified. He took a second to look him up and down, with his eyes locking on the injured hand currently cradled by Marionette’s two.

It wouldn’t look that bad in the grand scheme of things, but Jeremy knew how serious this was. He knew how much it would kill Foxy to not be able to perform, to have to struggle with a broken limb. Even now he seemed so defeated- Jeremy had learned how to read Foxy as well as any other person and he could tell that he was torn up about all this.

Jeremy softened his voice and started again. “I’m glad you’re okay- Well, I mean. Not ‘okay’, but… okay.” Foxy’s eyes might’ve brightened a little at that. Jeremy stepped in and put an arm around him. Foxy slumped his head onto his shoulder and Jeremy rested his hand on his hand, careful to not bump his injured ear. “Why didn’t you call me?”

“I did,” Foxy mumbled into his jacket.

“…You did?”

“Yeah, yer phone’s dead.”

“My phone’s…” Jeremy pulled out his cellphone with his free hand. His face went a little paler. “…Dead.”

“Aye.”

“I’m so sorry.” He hastily shoved the phone away and turned his attention fully to Foxy, hugging him with his other arm. “I usually keep it charged; I don’t know how I let that slip!”

“Nah, don’t worry about it. I, uh… I only called ya ‘bout four ‘er five minutes ago,” Foxy mumbled. “Ye would’ve already been on yer way.”

“Your back’s torn up too,” Jeremy warned in a whisper. Marionette leaned over Foxy’s shoulder to look and gave another hurt twang.

“Yeah, I know. Ain’t that bad…”

“You’ve been through a lot worse. This? We can get this fixed up in no time,” Mike reaffirmed. Really, he was relieved. He was imagining Foxy in a much worse state on the way over here so seeing him with his limbs intact took a weight off his chest.

A weight that slowly returned as he heard footsteps thump up beside him. He slowly looked up at the gator now breathing down his neck.

“Oh hey, Monty. I didn’t see you there.”

“Well, well, well. Look who it is,” Monty said. There was a smugness in his voice.

Mike slowly looked back to Foxy with an arched brow.

“He knows,” Foxy said.

“How’s it feel workin’ for one of us? Not so high and mighty now,” Monty said.

Mike sort of caught onto what Foxy must’ve told him, or what Monty must’ve taken from it. He put on a somewhat rigid smile.

“You kidding? Any day I’m not working for Freddy’s is a good day for me. No offense, Freddy.”

“None taken, Mike.”

“Doesn’t stop ya from struttin’ around like you own the pace,” Monty said.

He lowered his sunglasses and shot a look at Mike, not noticing the disapproving frown Marionette started sending him, still while holding Foxy’s hand who was draped on Jeremy like his batteries had already run out.

While this tense exchange was occurring, Charlie tried to scoot by to see Roxy- with Fritz right behind her- and ended up coming face to face with Chica. Both looked surprised, then Chica’s eyes narrowed.

“Ohhhhhheey,” Charlie stretched uneasily, with a similarly stretched uneasy smile. “You’re looking great!”

Apparently, this sounded as unhandy as it felt saying it. Chica’s eye lids raised a little in confusion, but she still looked annoyed. Charlie kept up a dumb grin.

Fritz coughed and hooked an arm around her, pulling her to his side by the shoulder. “Crossing our fingers that Roxy’s goes as well. We’re going to take good care of her!” he assured.

Chica suddenly looked to him in surprise, her eyes widening. She tilted her head questioningly and pointed at him.

“Oh, me? I’m Frrrrrrank. I uh, I’m a technician. I worked on you!”

Chica nodded and pointed at him, suddenly looking a little excited when she did.

“She remembers you,” Freddy said, a sad smile in his eyes. “Chica, let them by so they can see Roxy, please. They are going to work on her together.”

After giving Charlie one last suspicious look, Chica complied and stepped aside. Fritz’s mouth dropped open, Charlie’s eyes went wide, and Chica caught sight of Monty cornering Mike and sauntered over to join him.

Mike had decided it was time to give up the bit and apologize now that he could. The last thing he wanted was to have Monty as an enemy when it was over an act. He was doing so as Chica walked up.

“Look, I’m sorry for acting like a tool when I ran into you. I didn’t want to blow my cover. I’m an ex-employee and if they found out I was here, there’d be trouble,” he said sincerely.

Monty opened his eyes more like he was raising his brows. “That so?”

“It is, but I won’t blame you if you don’t believe me. I worked as a security guard back at one of the old Freddy’s. You know, one of the ones that Fazbear Entertainment swears up and down didn’t exist. We’ve been coming by to keep an eye out and make sure there’s nothing funny going on, but when that happened, when you caught me, I got spooked and lied through my teeth. And I only know Wight because he’s been trying to buy out Foxy’s since this place opened.”

“Huh…” Surprisingly, Monty seemed content with this answer.

Chica wasn’t so much. She leaned in front of him with her hands on her hips, fingers tapping her casing, and her eyes narrowed at him. Mike hissed a little.

“And I’m sorry about hitting you with a golf club,” Mike added with a sincere but awkward smile, scratching the back of his head tensely. “I saw you chasing that kid and I didn’t know what I was getting into.”

“He came from a pizzeria where the animatronics were very aggressive towards the workers, and where upper management was using them as bait to appease them,” Marionette explained. He came over to Mike’s side protectively but not aggressively. “I was there before and after and saw plenty of it myself.”

“Hey, w-wait a minute!” Roxy called. She sat up on the chair and called out through the door. “I’d know that voice anywhere! You’re that creep who had his fingers in my hair!”

Marionette got a blank face before giving a rather timid, “Oh yes, I did that too.”

Mike quirked a brow at him before grinning and running a hand through his hair.

“I know what you mean. He can’t keep them out of mine either,” he said. Marionette gave him a look and Mike shot him a smile before looking back towards Roxy. That smile dropped on a dime. “…Oh.”

Marionette noticed that reaction before Charlie tapped on his back. He turned back to look, and he got an eyeful of what Mike had just seen: Roxy’s terribly mangled face. Or the crater that sat where it once was.

Suddenly it didn’t matter that he didn’t know her. He knew her enough to rush to her side, standing over her chair. Mike hastily followed behind, stopping in the doorway.

“Good heavens!” Marionette gasped. The sound of his voice suddenly beside her without any leading footsteps made her jump. Realizing then that she truly couldn’t see him, he slowly and carefully touched her hand. She recoiled at it, and he quickly drew his own back to his chest. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you… Are… Are you in pain?”

“Ugh, the only thing that hurts is my image. L-Look at me! If anyone saw me like this, I’d be ruined!” Roxy vented, gesturing the same hand at herself before using it to shield her face.

“Well, nobody’s going to see you like this. We’ll make sure of it,” Fritz insisted, leaning in beside Mike.

“You really think you two can handle it?” Natalie whispered.

“No, but the claw does most of the heavy lifting,” he said, pointing to the tools mounted on the ceiling above the repair chair. “Worst case scenario, it stops us when we hit the face like with Chica.”

“NO! We- You will NOT stop at the face!” Roxy snapped. She took a second to calm herself and continued, “I-I don’t care what eyes you use. I don’t even care if they work. I just need… to look like I do on my cutout before morning. Okay? I can’t afford to be b-busted.”

“Yeah! Ya don’t need those upgrades! All they do’s make ya hot an’ itchy,” Monty called over Mike’s head. Marionette turned his head around to look at him. Monty looked back and then started to scratch his forearm. “Ah don’t think they’re put in right.”

“Well, if you need anybody to take a look at that, the best guy for the job is right here,” Mike said, pointing a thumb to Fritz. Though in the motion he got close enough to notice the heat coming off Monty. He looked back in confusion then held out a hand to feel without touching. “You okay? You’re burning up.”

“Nah, I’m just hot stuff,” Monty brushed off, unconcerned.

But something clicked for Mike. He thought quickly and then casually shrugged and patted Monty on the arm, a friendly sort of pat, before turning back towards the repair cylinder. Monty was none the wiser.

But Mike recognized the burning heat on his palm even from that moment. No voices or immediate headache, but that magnetized heat felt familiar. He would have to bring it up later after Roxy was squared up.

Right on cue, Fritz chimed up again. “We should get started. We’re going to be cutting it close as it is.”

“Right,” Charlie agreed. Mike stepped aside to let her enter and then followed, setting her toolbox down off to the side where it wouldn’t be tripped over.

As he was sitting up, Fritz patted him on the shoulder.

“Hey, why don’t you sit in with us? We can count this as like extra credit towards that engineering degree,” he offered. The pat signaled more stress than his voice did, so even though he doubted he would be helpful, Mike decided then to sit in for support.

“Sounds good to me,” Mike said. He gave Fritz a joking smile. “I haven’t even started school yet and I already got homework.”

“Four days left, Mike,” Fritz said in a fake ominous tone. “We’ll save the pop quiz for the walk back to the car.”

He was joking, but Mike wouldn’t put it past Fritz to start quizzing him once he did get into school. He slid off his jacket, unsure of how warm it might get, and carried it to Marionette where he draped it over his shoulders. Marionette gave a soft trill and a quiet, “Thank you,” but kept his sad gaze on Roxy.

Fritz stepped out to turn on the machine and Marionette followed, turning to Mike, taking his face in his hands, and giving him a quick kiss before slipping out the door and standing at the window to watch. The procedure started right afterwards, with Fritz hurrying back into the repair capsule before it all started.

“You’re sure you know what you’re doing? I-If I’m out of your paygrade, just…” Roxy sounded unsure.

“You’re fine! I worked on Chica, she’s worked on Sun and Moon, and we’ve both been taking turns working on Foxy’s crew. Trust me, I’ve seen a lot worse than this,” Fritz said. It technically wasn’t a lie. He had seen the Mangle after all and had attempted to work on it, but it seemed better to leave out the details.

“…Wait… Who’s she?”

“Uh…” Charlie stared for a second. “…Novice technician.”

“Nobody mentioned a novice technician,” Roxy said suspiciously.

“I’m, well… Do you remember that puppet that you chased around?”

“…Of c-course you are,” Roxy sighed knowingly, sounding defeated. “Don’t mess this up.”

“I won’t!” Charlie reassured. It just seemed best to keep up the pleasantries and begin to work.

Which they did, starting with the lower legs- Fritz was worried they would get barred out once they reached the face, so he decided to hit everywhere else first. Some of the lower body would only require a casing replacement, so it would go a lot smoother.

Monty and Chica watched at the windows alongside Marionette. Jeremy tried to look past them but kept alongside Foxy to offer his support, still holding him, and patting his ears, and mentally going over how they were going to get Foxy himself back in service as fast as possible. Foxy could take a few days off, but he wouldn’t do so sore and injured. Especially with that nasty hand injury.

Then there was Freddy. Freddy who didn’t try to watch from the window because he couldn’t stand watching. Freddy who looked at Foxy with regret as he saw the state he was in. He was thankful for Jeremy, because he was in no condition to offer Foxy, or Roxy, any assistance.

Eventually he found his voice.

“I… will be right back… I need to check on something,” he told Foxy.

Foxy, assuming he meant Gregory, let him go without complaint. He considered going with him, but he felt a duty to stay by Roxy until she was fixed up. Besides, he didn’t want to leave Jeremy either and he didn’t want to risk separating him from the group and getting him anywhere near Vanny.

“Be careful, Freddy. She’s still out there,” he warned.

“I will. I may not be able to see her, but I will surely hear her if she comes near.”

With that, Foxy let him go. Which relieved Freddy as omitting the truth on where he was really going made him feel more guilty than he already did.

Because Freddy wasn’t going to the daycare. Not yet, he would after he checked on something first. It would give him a little time to figure out what to say to Gregory. There was no shielding this; Gregory was too smart for that. Besides, he needed to know of the danger.

That was what got him the most. The danger of the Pizzaplex.

Freddy always saw the Pizzaplex as a sanctuary for fun and pretend adventures. The risks were relatively low even in the action attractions. The biggest risk of all was Gregory getting caught, because then they would take him away and perhaps back into foster care. Freddy knew it wasn’t his right to keep them from finding Gregory a home, but he was adamant that he could provide a good one.

Gregory kept running away because of something they were doing. Gregory needed more. More support, more love, more security. Freddy wanted to provide him with all of that. He wanted to be the best father he could be, even if he wasn’t biologically or recognized by the state as one. Freddy wanted to be that person.

But it was becoming more and more clear that having Gregory being taken away wasn’t the biggest danger here. In fact, it was now becoming the safest option.

What if Gregory had been in that cart? What if, instead of racing Roxy, Gregory and Foxy had been riding around the track. What if Gregory’s brakes had been cut and he drove into Foxy. Or Foxy’s brakes again and he drove into Gregory! It didn’t matter which, the fall into the basement would’ve surely injured Gregory severely.

Seeing Roxy injured was a wake-up call because it was terrible that it happened to her. It would’ve been terrible if it happened to any of the Glamrocks, or Foxy, or Moon.

It would’ve killed Gregory.

Just thinking that made Freddy’s chest suck with pain. He tried to push back the thoughts, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t ignore it anymore. Children died at Freddy’s, and so easily Gregory could die too.

If only he was a person. A human, a technician. If he could’ve met Gregory and took him in, away from this place. He could imagine it now; he could’ve enrolled Gregory in school, given him a backyard with a swing set, given them bunkbeds in the room next to his- so if there was an upset in the night, he could come in just as easily as he could now from his green room. He could be a real father.

But as he was, he was just buying time.

That thought was still haunting him as he walked up to the door leading to the stairwell under Roxy Raceway. Sighing, he opened it up and headed inside.

As he thumped back down the stairs, he listened carefully for anything. Any voices, any footsteps, anything friend or foe. The voice had sounded like a friend, but Vanny was crafty. She could be luring him out here alone.

But Freddy had to know. Even if it was all a trick, he needed to know.

He arrived at the bottom of the stairs and looked around at the small, empty room. There was nobody there. Nothing there. Just an empty room.

Sorrowful and desperate, he called out for the voice. His voice echoed through the open doorway and into the hall past it.

Nothing. Nothing at all but an empty room.

Freddy sighed and let his ears droop, his eyes drop, his heart fall once more. He didn’t keep trying at that point, he just turned and started back up the stairs.

…

“Fr….dy…”

Freddy’s head shot up and he spun around so fast that he tripped and stumbled off the stairs. He snapped his head around wildly as though he could see through the walls like Roxy could, listening, hoping. He couldn’t have imagined that.

“Where are you?!” Freddy called. He placed a finger to his temple and sent a message back, despite it claiming it had failed to send. Sending it and calling at the same time, “Where are you?!”

He waited for a response. He looked around frantically in distress and waited, and hoped that it wasn’t a trick, wasn’t a hallucination or a memory. That it was real.

His heart started to sink.

And then-

“…ven…. B….. sev…. B…. 7…”

B-7. Freddy processed that quickly. B-7; basement sector seven. Without any delay, Freddy bolted up the stairs once more.

While it seemed counterintuitive to go up when he needed to go down, Freddy only knew parts of the basement. He knew where B-7 would be by guesstimation, but the easiest way to get there without the risk of getting blocked would be to take the route that he knew, to basement sector three, and then feel out his way to basement seven.

So, that’s what he did. He rode the elevator deep into the basement and began to jog down halls, and then through utilidors, from where it was cluttered to where it was full of overflowing trash from the dump. It wasn’t nearly as horrendous as where Chica had fallen into, but it didn’t look or smell quite right. There was water damage and even the painted B-7 on the wall had started to wash away.

“I am here! Where are you?!” Freddy called. His voice echoed down the shaft, and he shuddered.

This did not feel safe. This felt like a trap.

But Freddy pressed on. The garbage crushing under his feet as he looked at a pile of disassembled Staff Bots. Their chests were broken in, and his hand rested on his own. He pressed on more warily.

He called his name. He felt a ping in his head. He hurried over a mound of forgotten things and slid into an empty doorway, into another sizeable but smaller room filled with forgotten refuse.

And then in the darkness, Freddy spotted something. Something tucked into the back of the room behind rubble and trash, knocked against the wall, slid down into and seated on the mess.

It was a grimy recharge station, and the signal was coming from that.

“He-… Hello?” Freddy called quietly.

There was a loud thump on the inside of the station. A shift of metal a dragging across the interior before grabbing the door and sliding it open in one harsh shove. Broken fingers holding on tightly onto the door and more joining on the side of the station to brace itself as it hoisted itself upwards with a squeak and groan of shifting metals. Its upper body lurching out of the station and into view, rising from its metal coffin.

Its broken ears bobbing above its head as it twitched and turned to face Freddy with glowing eyes.

Freddy’s heart stopped as it looked at him.

Its mouth dropped open into a broken smile of loose wires and broken shell.

“H-Hey there, Superstar.”

“B… Bonnie?” Freddy asked. “B-Bonnie?!”

“Th-That’s my name, don’t-tcrtz wear it out!”

Freddy staggered forward before breaking into a sprint, crushing and stumbling over trash as he raced towards the station. Bonnie leaned back in anticipation for what was coming before Freddy all but slammed into the station and shoved his arms in to wrap around his shoulders.

Bonnie winced a little but then… he laughed. He laughed and hooked his arm around Freddy, the other still bracing himself and keeping the door open.

“Heh, I missed you too, big-g guy! You have- you have no idea. Oh wow…”

He rested his head on Freddy’s shoulder, going slack into his arms, but Freddy held on securely.

Freddy held Bonnie silently for a long moment. He had always dreamed of this moment. When he would finally find him, when he would hold him and never let him go. He had tried to hold out hope, but part of him had begun to believe that it would never happen. That Bonnie truly was gone for good.

Yet here he was!... Terribly broken.

Freddy finally pulled back, but still held onto Bonnie as he did. He couldn’t bear to let go.

“Bonnie, what happened to you? Where have you been?!”

“Where do you think?” Bonnie asked. He knocked on the side of the recharge station.

“But…”

Freddy looked over Bonnie and only now noticed the full extent of the damage.

It was devastating. It might’ve been just as bad as Chica and Roxy’s injuries; they just wasn’t focused on his face. His exterior cracked, dented, and splintered. An enormous hole broken into his chest where a few loose wires spilled out and his insides were little more than a jumble and tangle of his own remains.

His ear was chipped. His tuft of blue hair was dirty. The yellow star he liked to paint on his face had worn away long ago and now just left a yellow smear. Finally, last but not least, there was a big hole in the side of his face. It exposed his skull and his eye almost seemed to be slipping into it. ‘

Yet, despite all this, it was Bonnie. He looked just as happy to see Freddy as Freddy was to see him. But those injuries…

“Bonnie, what happened?” Freddy repeated solemnly. He looked to Bonnie with large sad eyes.

One of Bonnie’s eyelids narrowed- though the other got caught up and stayed hiked up, giving Bonnie a quizzical expression.

“Monty happened.”

“What?”

“Yeah, that psychchchc- krtz! That psycho Monty knocked me off the catwalks!” Bonnie choked out. He gave a frustrated growl. “That slimy son of a-!”

“But- But Monty said- he never said-!”

“What? Never said he skewered me like a freakin’- ugh. No shock there. Just covering his ass,” Bonnie muttered. He gestured an arm. “He put his hand, like, straight through me. Right here! Straight through!”

Freddy looked to that wound in shock. It couldn’t be, he thought.

But then he noticed that the shape of the wound did resemble a claw mark at the edges. There were even some scrapes leading in, as something must’ve stabbed into his chest. Freddy tried to look in deeper, but Bonnie fidgeted uncomfortable and Freddy stopped, watching Bonnie casually but self-consciously cover the chest wound with his hand.

“I’ve been stuck to this thing since I got down here, and I couldn’t tell anyone I was down here b-because they were planning on axing me anyways,” Bonnie muttered.

“Why… Could you not contact me? I would have never turned you in if Fazbear Entertainment was intending on disassembling you, but I could have been with you. Maybe I could have helped you.”

“No service,” Bonnie admitted. He gestured around his head. “So, I’m all scrambled from the fall, but you got close enough that I like p-picked up your signal? Thennn I messaged you.”

“It was quite fortunate that I was underneath Roxy Raceway then…” Freddy said sadly.

“Don’t beat yourself up. Beat up Monty,” Bonnie joked. “Th-Then beat up the dingus who made these things so small.” He tapped on the side of the recharge station.

It was still hard to not feel guilty. Bonnie had been down here alone for so long, for so many months.

But he didn’t have to be anymore.

“I may have not been able to help you then, but I can now. I can take you somewhere better, and perhaps we can get you repaired!”

“I would love to, but ehhh, I think I’m gonna be here a while. This is pretty much my metal coffin,” Bonnie said, knocking on the edge of it.

“Do not say that!” Freddy said. Loud enough that Bonnie’s ears twitched. “We can get you upstairs. We can take you somewhere better. Let me go get the others, they can help. We can move the entire station if we have to!”

Freddy shot up from his kneel and Bonnie grabbed at him, missing his arm, and ending up clawing at his leg.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! We can’t tell anyone,” he said fearfully.

Probably afraid of Monty, Freddy deduced.

“Then let me get Moon. He has been hiding Jake for months. He surely will not tell a soul! We could move you into the safety of the daycare.”

“Freddy, stop. Okay? Let me… Let me show you.”

Bonnie pointed down before beginning to use both arms to lift himself up in the recharge station.

Much to Freddy’s horror, his lower waist and legs didn’t follow. It only connected to his top by a thick bundle of wires. He had been bisected.

It was worse than Chica and Roxy’s injuries combined. It filled Freddy with immediate horror, and then instant hopelessness. The simple solution to moving Bonnie upstairs dashed in an instant.

“Oh Bonnie…”

“This station’s keeping me going. But that’s okay! Look, I’ll figure something out, just…” Bonnie paused a second before looking up with pleading eyes. “Freddy, you can’t tell anyone you found me.”

“What? Why not?”

“Just… trust me. Okay? If the wrong people found out, then they’d… Let’s just say I’d lose waaay more parts than this. This place is a hunting ground, and I’m the bunny with its foot in a snare. So, yeah, I’ve got to keep a low profile.”

“I will not tell any of the workers… But Chica? Sun?” Freddy asked. Pleaded, more like. He didn’t want to hide this, but Bonnie shook his head stiffly.

“No, not them either. It’s… complicated. Okay, truth is, Freddy. There’s… So, like… Every time you send a message, there’s somebody listening. There’s someone out there watching us and waiting for us to get broken, and then they pilfer parts off us.”

“Vanny,” Freddy said in a low growl.

“You know about her?” Bonnie asked in surprise.

“I do. I have not seen her, but I have seen what she is capable of.”

“Stay away from her. You hear me? She might look like- well, you said you didn’t see her. She looks like a chick in a rabbit costume, but she’s not. She’s way more than that, and she’s got the means to take anybody out! She could’ve done this to me herself!... She might’ve had a part in it,” Bonnie muttered. He lowered his head. “So, just… be careful. I don’t want you ending up like me.”

That hurt to hear. Freddy knelt back down alongside him and took his hand.

“Is there anything I can do? I cannot just leave you here, Bonnie!”

“I know you don’t want to, but that’s what’s going to have to happen, Freddy,” Bonnie said. He clamped his hand on Freddy’s. “But y-you don’t havvezzt to go yet! Stick around! Relax! Tell me about the big, beautiful world up therere.”

Was that all he really could do? He couldn’t take him upstairs, he couldn’t fix him, he could only be with him… If that was what Bonnie wanted then how could he argue with it?

“I would be happy to,” Freddy said, his voice perking up and a smile in his eyes.

“Heh, great! St-Start with Chic. How’s she doing?”

Maybe Freddy couldn’t help him as much as he wanted to… yet, but he could at least give him a distraction. And he got a few more minutes- no- he had gotten a new future with his dear friend. Someday he would have him fixed up like Chica and Roxy, and he would introduce him to Foxy and Gregory, and it would be like he had never left.

Freddy had never felt so hopeful and heartbroken at the same time.

But at least he had Bonnie.

Chapter 84

Chapter Summary

Roxy's repair hits an unexpected snag and Mike, Mari, and the others step in in an unexpected way.

What a night. She hadn’t even been involved in the race or rescue afterwards and she felt worn out. All that was left now was to return to the Hive Arcade for a quiet, lonely night until opening.

Beelora dragged herself back to the arcade. Nearly literally, with her often relying on railings and elsewise to help move herself, and then having to take careful but quick steps between carpets. They looked more graceful than they truly were, but that was a result of the way her body was built. If she wanted to regain balance, it was easiest to throw a spin in to recalibrate.

But she finally arrived at the West Arcade, and she carefully stepped through the entranceway only to be taken by surprise to see that there was someone waiting for her.

There, beside the fountain, was the large form of DJ Music Man. He is waiting there expectantly, lifting himself up to alert as she came through, standing on three hands and using a fourth to wave. His second pair of arms rested in front of him, his hands tightly clasped together.

Beelora was surprised but expected that he was coming to retrieve his little doppelganger. She quickly straightened herself and took care not to fall as she stepped out of the lift.

“DJ Music Man, what a surprise! It’s good to see you though. It’s been a crazy night, and I could use a friendly face… Oh! But you’re probably here for your little buddy. Go on, dear.”

Mini Music Man didn’t need any further encouragement and rushed over to the DJ. He picked it up with his once waving hand and stuck it to his back. Beelora found it endearing, not noticing how the two didn’t address nor acknowledge each other at all.

DJ Music Man tilted his head questioningly, but the way he had his hands together seemed to be either out of anxiousness or worry. He must’ve heard that something happened.

“There was an accident on the raceway. I’m not sure what happened, but Roxy was injured…” Beelora lowered her head somberly. “I’m not sure what happened, but I know they were taking her to be fixed. Hopefully they can fix her.”

The DJ made a tone. The heavy rumble of a bass that was hard to pinpoint but distinctly sounded concerned. She snapped her head back up and noticed his posture matched.

“Me? I-I’m fine! I’m very lucky, really. But… it’s a shame that it had to happen. I was looking forward to it- Not that I don’t care about Roxy! I do, I just wish we could’ve had a good time. We had plans to celebrate afterwards and it’s hard to pass that up. You know how quiet it gets- OH!”

Not paying attention, Beelora had started stepping in place when she lost traction on one foot, and it slid out from underneath her. She fell onto one bent leg, the other stuck out, her arms poised at her sides- if not for the suddenness of it, it might’ve looked like a dramatic ballet move. She would’ve breathed a sigh of relief that she pulled off that opposed to falling on her face.

The DJ quickly unclasped his two hands and offered them to her, and she held onto them- a hand on a finger of each- and used them to pull herself back up.

“Thank you. I’ve been doing that all night if you can believe it!” Beelora said with an embarrassed little giggle. “Maybe it’s for the best that I get back to my track.”

The DJ held up a third hand as though to tell her to, “Wait.”

Beelora was surprised he stopped her. “Hmm?”

DJ Music Man pointed to her. He then pointed to his eyes and made a forward motion, like he was seeing something. Then he pointed to her.

“You need to see me?” Beelora guessed. The DJ shook his head and continued motioning. “There’s… something I have to see?” she guessed. He nodded and then pointed to his headphones and to her. “Something I need to hear?” He nodded again and she got the picture. “Oh, umm, certainly! Let me just send the Babees back to the hive.”

Thinking that it might’ve involved that possible intruder into the arcade from before, Beelora spun herself and leaned down to address her Babees, who looked up eagerly.

“Go on home, Darlings. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be back later,” she assured them.

They took the command and gave little goodbyes.

“Bye-bye, Mama!”

“Bye-bye, buzz-buzz!”

Before they zipped off towards the Hive Arcade. The door would open for them, she knew, so she was certain they would make it on their own.

She then turned her full attention to the DJ before looking down at her feet, remembering her stumble only a few minutes before.

“If you don’t mind… Would you mind…?”

The DJ offered his hand.

“Thank you,” Beelora said appreciatively. She sat herself in his hand like it was a regular seat and he easily lifted and carried her away.

He took her back to his dance floor and climbed up onto his stage before, to her surprise, carrying her into the tunnel behind it. He easily made his way through the tunnel maze before eventually coming out high on the wall above the arcade.

Beelora was glad that her distance vision was weak when her eyes were closed, or she might’ve gotten spooked. A fall from this height would irreparably break her, but the DJ’s grip was steady, and his hand turned to always keep her upright. She still held on just in case.

Soon they were back into the tunnels and finally they arrived at their destination. While Beelora didn’t recognize the room, she knew that it had to be the private music hall. It was a tall, closed in room with some seating around the borders and the center largely comprised of a dance floor-like stage. Across from the stage was a DJ pedestal for guests to use. For what, Beelora wasn’t certain.

The walls had a spiderweb pattern and were decorated with Glamrock character posters, and the seating ranged from couches to small tables with chairs. One of the couches looked out of place. It sat in front of the stage, between it and the guest pedestal. DJ Music Man carefully set her down in front of it, gesturing a hand for her to sit down. She gladly did and looked up expectantly.

“Thank you again. So… what did you need to hear me? Or, no! Need me to hear. Sorry, excuse me,” Beelora fumbled out. She was a little flustered and it clearly showed, much to her embarrassment.

DJ Music Man didn’t seem to be bothered at all. In fact, the vibrating hum he made seemed to echo fondness. He must’ve been amused.

But that mood shifted quickly as he suddenly raised his hand. His eyes illuminated with pixel images. One of a victory crown- reserved for a birthday boy or girl- and one of a bee- one of the icons likely used for directing to the Hive Arcade. But tonight, Queen Bee was a direct call out to her.

Then he snapped his fingers and, in that instant, the dark room was illuminated in the neon glow of the stage. The checkerboard pattern flickering between yellow, orange, and pink. Lazer lights illuminated from behind the couch and reached above it, surrounding her, a matching pink color as well. It was so mesmerizing that Beelora couldn’t help but open her eyes to see the extent of the lightshow, and it was magnificent.

But it was only the beginning. The DJ grabbed his headphones with one hand and began to motion like DJing with the other, and as he did the room filled with music.

It started with a basic electronic beat backed with a twinkling that reminded her of stars, but that quickly rose, backed by a thrumming bass that she could feel in her chest. Glowing tunes seemed to rise from around her, pumping through the room. The checkerboard floor continued to flicker to the beat as the laser lights pulsed between yellow and pink.

It wasn’t just magnificent, it was magical. Beelora had never been so swallowed up by the beat. Swept up by the lights, the performance, and DJ Music Man himself who continued to perform. His eyes occasionally flickering with icons of music notes, hive coins, flowers, and bees. So many bees. So many neon symbols for the lyrics he couldn’t sing.

It was very apparent that it was a song about her. Or at least, a song for her. She was audibly buzzing, a hand coming to her mouth in surprise and her eyes wide and watching, glowing the same pink as the lightshow around her. She couldn’t believe it! Here she was just thinking today that the DJ didn’t even notice her in the same arcade and here he was playing her music.

The ending came too quickly, with one last explosively musical flourish before fading into a soft lull of the twinkling. The lights faded as well, but the stage floor lights remained on. Just reverting to a smooth white that kept the DJ aglow.

Beelora immediately gave unprompted applause, even risking a possible stumble to stand up. Her hands clattering together.

“That was amazing! Oh my goodness, that was the most incredible performance I have ever seen!” she gushed truthfully.

DJ Music Man seemed delighted, with starry icons appearing in his eyes and spinning in them. He then gave a bow. During which, there was a low hum from the top of his head and his hat popped up a small amount with a clink, a CD sticking out underneath it. DJ Music Man carefully retrieved the CD- it was a wonder he could be so gentle with something so fragile, Beelora thought- and handed it to her.

She carefully took it, making sure to only touch the edges, even when his large fingers rested on the backs of her hands and nudged them towards her.

“For me?” she asked, still in shock.

He nodded and it took all she could to not clutch it to her chest.

“It’s wonderful! I’ll listen to it all the time- I’ll even play it in the arcade! If that’s okay?” she asked. Again, he eagerly nodded. “Thank you. I-I know you can’t play the same song twice. It would’ve been such a shame to never hear it again,” she said. The glow of her half-closed eyes illuminating her cheeks and framing her face.

Heart icons flickered in the DJ’s eyes.

Beelora nearly squeaked at the sight. Did that mean what she thought it meant? No, they had to be friendly sort of hearts. That was all. Though she certainly wanted to believe it meant more, maybe it meant more?

She really hoped it meant more.  

This was the part where she was supposed to thank him and leave for the arcade. After all, it would be greedy to ask for more, and he couldn’t play it again. And as fantastic as the CD likely was, it wouldn’t be anything like the amazing lightshow she had just experienced. She just wanted more.

“I know this is a lot to ask, but umm…” Beelora fiddled her hands together as she looked up to him. “W-Would you mind playing me another?”

The DJ nodded without hesitation.

He had already made nearly a dozen waiting for her to get back, and he wanted nothing more for her to listen to every one.

…

Fritz had a feeling that they were going to get cut off right before they could touch that face. They got close. They had gotten the ears done; that close to those eyes had gotten his hopes up.

And then they got shut down trying to initiate the face and eye reconstruction. Barred out unless they got clearance from a one Dr. Talbert, someone who none of them had even heard of beyond this and the previous request for him, and perhaps a singular namedrop from Wight in Natalie’s case. He was a mystery man who was, unfortunately, not standing in the room with them and thus a glorified key hanging somewhere else.

Fritz gave a remorseful hiss as he looked at the pop-up. Mike exhaled over his shoulder, leaning on the desk with one arm.

“What do we do?” he asked.

“What can we do?” Fritz replied. After a second of sitting there, he started to stand up. “We give her the bad news.”

“We?” Mike asked.

“Freddy,” Fritz spoke up.

“He ain’t here,” Foxy spoke up. They looked back questioningly, and he awkwardly fumbled. “He, uh, went to check on somethin’.”

“He went to go play around in the daycare,” Monty said flatly. Chica lightly punched him in the arm. Monty didn’t even flinch, but he did give a nonchalant, “Ow.”

“Oh…” Fritz sat there for a second, lamenting his way out.

After a long second, Marionette spoke up, “I’ll do it.”

Fritz considered it, but then sighed and started getting up again. “No, I should do it. I’m the one who told her we were going to get it done.” Mike patted him on the shoulder sympathetically.

“I’ll come with you,” Natalie offered, standing at his side.

“Yeah, me too,” Mike agreed.

“We’ll all go!” Marionette proclaimed, mildly humored.

Fritz then marched inside with the small gang in tow, joining Charlie who was inside the capsule already. Since the door had automatically closed when he and Mike walked out, the sound had been muffled enough that neither Charlie nor Roxy heard their low voices. Though Charlie immediately recognized Fritz’s look, along with the fact that he and Mike gained two followers.

“Oh…” she simply said.

“What?” Roxy asked.

Fritz took a deep breath. “Sooo, Roxy-.”

“No,” she interrupted. “Don’t you say it!”

He dropped any pretenses with a sigh. “I’m sorry, Roxy.”

Roxy let out a frustrated roar and slammed her fists onto the armrests. They made a cracking noise under her blows but didn’t falter. Charlie gave a small, startled ring despite bracing herself for the outburst. Marionette leaned and twisted his neck to look over Mike’s shoulder and check in on all that was happening.

Meanwhile Fritz flinched but he didn’t back down. In fact, he suddenly found himself rather talkative.

“How about this? We can get someone to call in some eyes and I can plug them in. They won’t be perfect, but you should be able to see. And if you can’t you’ll have the security of having them in there,” Fritz offered.

“Why would I want to SEE?! I’m hideous! I look DISGUSTING!”

“No, you don’t! Does someone with a bruise look disgusting? No. They look wounded. But wounds heal and this can be fixed. Look how quickly they fixed Chica!” Charlie chimed in encouragingly.

“But they didn’t give her back a voice box. What’re they going to do, leave out my eyes?! How am I supposed to stand on stage and perform with empty eye sockets?!”

Charlie decided the smart decision was to not bring up what Roxy said about not wanting to see herself two seconds ago and instead kept a calm tone.

“If they do, those we can replace easily. Like, ten minutes flat. They just have to fix the… structure of the eye.”

“But that’s not going to happen anyway, because I’m going to stay over and meet them when they come in, and make sure they work on you first thing,” Natalie said with determination.

Roxy let this sit for a moment. It was unclear if any of this was truly comforting her, but the assurances were at least calming her down. She was still twitchy though.

“Y-You’re right… They wouldn’t. They couldn’t afford to screw up any more than they have. People come to this place for me, they couldn’t afford to let me stay like… like this,” Roxy muttered to herself. She reached up to her head and flinched as she felt her grimy hair, yanking back her hand and starting to get up on her own accord. “But I’m not staying like this all night. The salon- Snippo can clean me up. That… That can buy me time.”

“Okay. We can do that. Here, let me help you.” Charlie offered her arm before realizing again that she could see it and taking Roxy’s.

“I don’t need help,” Roxy growled lightly. She tried to pull her arm away, but Charlie was steadfast.

“I know, but it makes me feel better about not being able to fix you all the way. At least let me do this,” Charlie asked.

Roxy sat there for a second before sighing.

“…Fine.”

While Charlie assisted Roxy in getting to her feet, Fritz turned towards Natalie and Mike.

“I’m not sure this is such a good idea,” he whispered to that.

“I heard that,” Roxy grumbled.

Fritz mouth clamped shut for a moment. Then he turned to her and elaborated.

“Oookay, uh… I’m not sure this is such a good idea. With you know, the exposed… with all that exposed.”

“I don’t care about what’s going on with the inside, I need to clean up the outside. It’ll be fine. I’ve- I’ve done it before. I just- it’ll make it better. A little makeup can cover anything up.”

Nobody was convinced, maybe not even Roxy herself, but nobody was going to argue with her. They would just have to keep and eye out and make sure nothing got in the wrong spots.

Everyone moved so Roxy could come out and immediately Chica was at her opposite side to offer support. Monty looked her over and gave a nod.

“Yer lookin’ a lot better,” he assured.

“Ugh. That’s not saying much about how I looked going in,” Roxy sighed. Monty chuckled a little.

With her taken care of, it was time to take care of the other patient. Mike hadn’t forgotten about him and walked over to where he and Jeremy were sitting on the steps. Foxy no longer draped on Jeremy and instead resting with an arm around his shoulders, Jeremy hooking one around the middle to help keep him up.

“Alright, Foxy, what about you? We can’t really work on you here, but we could take a look and see what’s up,” Mike offered.

Foxy looked away from the mostly fixed up Roxy, relieved to see her better but still down, and back at Mike.

“What about Roxy? She can’t go over there alone,” he murmured.

“She won’t be. Chica, Charlie, and I can go with her. In the meantime, why don’t you let Fritz take a look at you?” Marionette offered gently.

“…I can wait til we get to the warehouse. Mike, you go with him,” Foxy said, nodding at the Puppet. “Me an Jer’my are going to have a little chat.”

Jeremy raised his brows curiously but didn’t argue.

“Are you sure?” Marionette asked. He got a worried look when Foxy nodded.

But Mike had both of their backs. “No, he’s right. Fritz can poke around but he can’t start any real work until we get to the warehouse. No point in slicing him open at the wrong hospital, right?” he suggested.

Marionette nodded in understanding. “I guess that’s a good point… You’re not in much pain, are you?”

“Trust me, Lad. I’ve been through way worse than this. I’m just glad to sit down and rest me legs,” Foxy reassured him. It was the truth too; he just wanted to sit there for a while.

“That’s… only a little assuring, Foxy,” Marionette admitted.

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Jeremy promised.

“Ye better keep an eye on them, Schmidt. She’s loose,” Foxy warned, pointing his hook at him.

“Well, she better hope she doesn’t run into us, because we’re getting pretty tired of this bunny schtick,” Mike said. He exchanged a look with Marionette in the middle, who nodded in agreement. He looked back at Foxy with full seriousness. “So, yeah. I’m not letting her get anywhere near us. Over my dead or undead body.”

“Real optimistic of ya there, Schmidt,” Foxy said with the slightest scoff or half-snicker.

“Just keeping it real.”

“Mike will keep us safe, and I’ll keep him safe,” Marionette agreed. His face softened, “I’m more worried about you two being left alone. When’s Freddy supposed to get back?”

“Anytime now. He’ll prob’ly come runnin’ down here once he hears Roxy’s off the table.”

“Good.”

While this conversation was going on, Chica tried to beckon Monty to come along.

“I’ve got somethin’ to do. I’ll meetcha’ll later,” Monty dismissed. That something to do was to pick his camera up from the desk, turn to Natalie, and offer it to here. “I heard somewhere she don’t turn up on cameras?”

“She doesn’t, but you can tell she’s been there,” Natalie said. Her brows raised and her lips pursed thoughtfully as she eyed the camera.

“What about one’a these?”

“She might. Can you get these developed in the Pizzaplex?”

“At any kiosk er photobooth.”

“Let’s roll.”

The two started to stride off together with Smitty in tow and Buddy lagging behind, in the middle of cleaning grime in the corner. Fritz watched them leave and suddenly, he had a bad feeling. He had a feeling that Vanny would be happy to take advantage of the fact that Natalie was running around with only Monty and two Staff Bots.

Especially when she was carrying around possible evidence. Especially when Monty, who was a near stranger, offered that evidence out of nowhere.

“Hey, guys. I’ll catch up in a little bit. I’m going to go with them,” Fritz said. He then jogged off after them.

“Watch your six!” Mike called after him. Then he remembered something- “Hey, wait!” He bolted after Fritz, catching up right as the man turned back and hooking an arm around him, leaning in close and whispering. “Monty’s hot to the touch. Not like overheating hot, like the same thing that’s going on with Mari.”

“Are you sure?” Fritz whispered back.

“I don’t know. Pretty sure. It doesn’t burn like Mari’s does, but he wasn’t as hot as Mari gets.”

“Mike, stop telling me the Prize Puppet’s hot,”

“No,” Mike flatly refused. “Point is, be careful.”

“I will. Maybe I can ask him about it.”

“Maybe poke around, pull back if he looks like he’s going to bite. Want my pocketknife?”

Fritz raised a brow. “For Monty?”

“No, for Vanny.”

“No thank. You keep it. I’ve got my taser.”

“Then you’re set. We’re going to the salon, we’ll meet up before sunrise.”

With that in agreement, Fritz hurried off through the doorway and Mike returned to his little group to head out.

As Fritz was coming out, while Natalie and Monty were waiting for him, Monty brought up the elephant in the room- or the one he noticed.

“Don’t look now, but I think that techie’s been checking you out,” he mumbled.

She cracked a smile. “You think?”

“Mm-hm.” The gator adjusted his sunglasses. “Want me to scare him off?”

“No, don’t. He’s kinda cute.”

He gave her a nod. “Rock on.”

Fritz caught up and they headed off to get the pictures developed.

Finally, after checking with Foxy one last time, and giving him a careful hug, Marionette went off with Mike, Chica, Charlie, and Roxy towards the salon.

This left Foxy and Jeremy on their own.

“Jer’my… Let’s talk.”

Jeremy wasn’t sure why that tone immediately made him think of a breakup, but that kneejerk panic was quickly replaced when he realized that wouldn’t make any sense. Jeremy patiently waited for Foxy to begin, watching him shift anxiously.

Then finally, Foxy sighed.

“After the accident, me an’ Roxy fell down into the basement. Not that far down, but a lotta this- er this-.” Foxy gestured to his foot. “Was caused by the fall.”

“Wait, your foot’s broken too?” Jeremy asked startled.

“Nah, popped outta place. It be fine now, just sore,” Foxy brushed off. Jeremy wasn’t so eager to overlook it, but Foxy continued so he let it go to listen. “We got attacked by somethin’ down there. An endo all covered in wires. It stole Roxy’s eyes, it knew MY name, and it chased us around… had that heat on it. That burnin’ heat getting into everything. And it chased us… into this room…”

Foxy fidgeted uncomfortably. His eye was wide with unease, his twitchiness was acting up. Jeremy could tell something was wrong. Unable to take his hand- he was afraid to touch it and cause any excess pain- he rested a hand higher on his arm for assurance. This seemed to finally propel Foxy along to get it out.

“We ended up in the furnace.”

Jeremy’s eyes went wide. “You did…?” he squeaked.

“And it got turned on.”

And despite the fact that Foxy was standing here not burnt, Jeremy’s heart dropped and panic rose. How did that happen? How COULD that happen so easily?

“How?” Jeremy ended up asking.

“Moon said it got flipped on opening the door. Dunno how that could’ve happened, but I didn’t ask.”

Freddy had asked while they were climbing the stairs. Not Moon directly, but out loud. That was probably the only reason Moon has fessed up to it. Though whether it was a guess or covering so the other Glamrocks wouldn’t ask about Vanny, Foxy didn’t know. At that point Foxy hadn’t really cared.

It didn’t matter whether that thing turned it on, Vanny, or anybody else. It was a walk-in furnace and it had been on. Foxy had seen the flames. He was seeing them again just thinking about them.

He ducked his head and clawed at the back with his hook. Almost using his hand but Jeremy’s hand on his arm stopping him.

“I didn’t think I was still torn up about that fire,” Gabriel admitted.

“Hey, don’t say it like that. Of course you’d be torn up about that. That was horrible, you almost died! Why wouldn’t you be torn up about it?”

“Because it didn’t happen,” he muttered.

“It almost did. You thought it was going to. Heck, you just said that, and I felt like I was about to throw up even though you’re sitting here. Just the thought of it makes me sick,” Jeremy confessed. This at least got Gabriel to peek a look at him, and Jeremy slid in to hug him. He rested his chin on his head. “Don’t beat yourself up about it. Not about this.”

Gabriel accepted the hug gladly before giving a weary sigh.

“That’s not what I’m beating myself up over. I’m beating myself up because all of this happened because of me.”

“Come on, Gabe. You can’t blame yourself for what Vanny did. And don’t say you shouldn’t have been here. Freddy wanted you here, and even if you weren’t here, that wouldn’t have stopped Vanny from doing whatever.”

“Yeah, but I gave that window. It was my idea to race, all because I lost my temper over something stupid.”

“Oh yeah? What was it? Let me be the judge on how stupid it was.”

“…Roxy made a crack about Michael.”

“…Oh.” Jeremy didn’t have much to say at that. That was probably the worst possible thing Roxy could’ve done at the worst possible time.

“It wasn’t even a bad one. Something small and stupid, but I just… I lost it. I had to show her up. I had to knock her down a peg.”

“So, you two decided to race?”

“So, I challenged her to a race.”

They sat there quietly for a second as Jeremy considered what to say, but Gabriel beat him to it.

“I could’ve called him to come fix her too, but I didn’t want to tell him. Not because of the comment, he’ll never knew. Roxy doesn’t even know that’s what set me off, we were taking jabs all night. But… I didn’t want him down here. It feels like one night here erased everything we’ve gone through. Getting out of that fire, him meeting back up with up Ben, us taking out our father… It’s like none of that matters anymore.”

“That’s not true, Gabe. Michael wasn’t thinking about any of that when he did that… I don’t think he did. I think it really was just a sudden thing.”

“I’ve done a lot of stupid, sudden things but… I don’t think it was. I might’ve, but after he told us about it… I don’t know what to think.” Gabriel pulled tighter against Jeremy, holding on tight despite how much of his body was still sore. “I don’t know if I can trust him. He can say all he wants that he was trying to get out of that suit. I know it was more than that… I think he’s going to try it again.”

“I don’t think Michael’s going to do it again. I don’t think he meant to do it. I mean, he was fine! Or, uh, not fine, but… He just seemed so normal that day. We talked and I didn’t notice anything,” Jeremy admitted.

He hadn’t. He had thought back to it a few times, trying to see if there had been anything he missed, but Michael had seemed fine. He had only planned on going to Scott’s. Nobody knew about the Pizzaplex trip. Or the warehouse trip.

“Michael… I love him, but he… he runs away. He always ran away when he needed an out, and whereas I tried to run and always got stuck right where I was, he found a way out. This time there’s nowhere to run and I’m afraid what he’s going to do if…”

Gabriel’s voice slowed as he slowly turned his head towards the door. His body was rigid. Jeremy looked over but he couldn’t see anything.

There was a tinkling noise. The second Foxy detected it he pulled back from Jeremy, careful not to hurt him, and shot up to his feet.

“Who’s there?!” he barked. His body twitching and his stage voice back in full forth, the threatening drawl of Foxy the Pirate.

But to both of their surprise, the voice that called back was one they didn’t expect but made sense considering the sound they had heard.

“I-It’s just me!” Sun shouted. He sounded flustered and peeked his head in, waving them off awkwardly. “Sorry, I-I wasn’t trying to listen in! We’re just, uh… We’ll be back later. You two just go on ahead!”

Sunny’s jingling could be heard as he bolted away, and Foxy huffed and dropped heavily back onto the steps.

“Eh, course it’s Sunny,” Foxy muttered. “Which means Freddy prob’ly heard too. He’s prob’ly right down yonder.”

“I think Freddy will understand,” Jeremy assured. He quickly put an arm back around the grumbling pirate.

“Aye, but Freddy’s been dealing with the lot of it all night. I don’t need him beating himself up ‘bout this one.”

“You don’t need to beat yourself up either. It’s not your fault that this happened to Roxy,” Jeremy assured. He paused, took a breath, and added, “And what happened to Michael wasn’t your fault either.”

Foxy processed that for a second before silently dropping his head against Jeremy’s shoulder again, then pulling him into another hug. He needed it. They both did.

…

Anyone who thought being blinded would slow Roxy down was sorely mistaken. She practically dragged Chica and Charlie after her as she hastily made her way straight to her salon, the Glamrock Beauty salon.

She pulled her arms back from both animatronics to shove open the doors.

“Snippo! I need hair and makeup- stat!”

There was a loud clatter and crank from above before a hatch slid open on the ceiling and a form slid down though it and along a track looping around the ceiling- it reminded Mike of Marionette’s track, but much more complex.

What lowered through the ceiling was, surprisingly, a Staff Bot. That is, an upside-down Staff Bot hanging from the ceiling instead of riding around on a wheeled lower half.

It had four arms as well. Two primary arms that looked like normal arms except instead of hands it had three stout, round fingers on each end- sort of like Marionette had as well but not as slenderly shaped. The other two lower arms were more like the arms attached to the top of the primary control module, one tipped with a pair of built-in scissors and the other with something that looked like a buffer.

As for its design, it had a typical head, save that it had a pair of cream yellow and ruby red sunglasses seemingly bolted onto its forehead. It also had matching yellow and red streaks from its eyes down to its chin, purple round cheeks, and a small triangular red mouth. The first Staff Bot they had seen with a mouth painted on- save the ones that were vandalized.

Its chest was painted almost like a bowling shirt, also in that red with yellow pinstripes. There was also a purple bow stuck to its upper chest. It locked eyes onto Roxy and kept them on her as it zoomed up.

“Welcome to the Glamrock Beauty Salon. Oh, look who it is. It is my favorite customer: Roxanne Wolf. A superstar in my salon? Wow! Only at Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex! Please sit down at a makeup station and we will get you ready for your upcoming show,” the Staff Bot said in an automated-sounding voice. “Will the additional guests sit in the waiting area? Roxanne Wolf deserves my full attention.”

“Just come with me, he won’t care,” Roxy said. Which was her way of avoiding asking for assistance getting to the makeup station. She knew exactly where it was, but she was too prideful to risk being seen knocking anything over.

Charlie and Chica led her down the way to a larger station towards the back- her station obviously as the ones lined down the center of the room had seats designed like elevated racecars which she had no chance of climbing into- while Mike and Marionette followed. They then quickly got out of the way as two summoned Staff Bots carried out a rolling tray with a large makeup case on it and another with a rack of accessories on it. The one opened the makeup case- which came with a screen instead of a mirror- before both hurried off.

“Very efficient,” Marionette remarked.

“That’s one way to put almost getting run over,” Mike thought. He then caught himself. “…Better not say that out loud.” Instead choosing to hook an arm around Marionette’s in case one of them had to yank the other out of the way.

Roxy settled onto the stool of the larger station. Her leg was twitching so badly that she could barely stay seated.

“I just- I just need you to get me presentable so that I can just stand myself until the technicians finish my repairs,” Roxy laid out. She started to reach for her hair before dropping her arms. “Be honest… how bad is it?”

Charlie started to speak only to get a look from Chica and clammed up. Chica simply shook her head and pointed up, then looked up, then looked around in confusion.

Marionette felt something looming above him. He tilted his head up to see that Snippo had parked himself over him and was now staring down at him. He simply lowered his face again.

“…Snippo? Snippo!” Roxy snapped.

Chica finally looked above Marionetted. Mike and Charlie followed her eyes and found Snippo currently hanging overtop a very uneasy looking Marionette who seemed to adamantly refuse looking up again.

“Snippo, come over here!”

Snippo slid over Marionette only to suddenly stick his face directly into the Puppet’s as to get a better look. Marionette flinched back, raising an arm defensively in preparation to shove it back- Mike preparing to do so as well. However, the Staff Bot kept rolling along. Marionette frowned warily and waited until Roxy was distracted with the bot before leaning in to whisper to Mike.

“Is this what it felt like when I used to follow you around the house?” he asked.

“No way. You were way scarier,” Mike said.

Marionette dropped his arms and gave Mike an incredulous look.

“You were cuter too,” Mike added, giving him a little grin.

Marionette broke into a mischievous smile, his eyes narrowing cheekily.

“How hot IS the Puppet, Mike?”

Oh, so he had heard that. Not that Mike was hiding his finding. He just hadn’t had a chance to bring it up. From Marionette’s coy tone, he didn’t sound upset so he must’ve believed as much.

Mike grin edged into a smirk as he matched his tone.

“Hotter than the gator for sure.”

Marionette pulled him in by their joined arms while leaning in just as closely as the Staff Bot had to him. Though in this case there wasn’t the slightest effort to push him back. If anything, Mike smiled a little wider.

“You’re such a charmer,” Marionette trilled.

“Yeah, well,” Mike said. Then boldly stole an easy kiss while he could, instigating more trills.

Chica stared at them in surprise before looking to Charlie, then back to Marionette, pointing back and forth between them with both hands.

“I’m his sister. Err, well, sort of,” Charlie explained.

Snippo dropped down in front of Roxy with a loud creak of his waist joint. His eyes now totally fixated on her as he lifted a hand. The end of his finger opened and a small brush tip came through.

“We will begin with eyeshadow. Color. Color. I am thinking… red.”

“Snippo, I don’t have EYES,” Roxy huffed. Snippo seemed confused, but unsure if he understood, she simply huffed again and gave a direct, “Sk-Skip the eye shadow. Start with blush.”

“You are the boss,” Snippo agreed. He switched fingers to another brush and lowered it into the box of makeup. “Is that a yes for red?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Excellent choice. You will look stunning.”

He dabbed the brush into the red pallet shaped like Glamrock Freddy. Considering that there was no separation between it, the eyeshadow, and the lipstick, it seemed to be all in one. Making the different makeup brushes useless, perhaps, but likely something heavier that would stick to Roxy’s shell like normal makeup would to human skin.

He then began trying to trace the edges of the stripes on her cheeks. His motions were quick and precise, but even though some of those cheeks remained, the bigger problem was what was leftover on her skin. They hadn’t replaced that part- they couldn’t- so the oily substance in her hair and on her face was still there. The brush swiped into it, leaving a sludgy, semi-red but mostly blackish brown marking behind.

“Oh Honey. There is an unknown residue on your perfect shell. It is interfering with the blushing process. Uh huh.”

“What?!” Roxy reached up and touched the substance, feeling it on her fixed fingers. “Ugh, what is this? Is this grease?!” She brought it to her nose to smell and recognized it instantly. “Oh my God!”

“We can wipe it off! There’s got to be napkins or something around here,” Charlie assured. She began to sort through the makeup supplies on the vanity, realizing quickly that most of them were props.

“Is my hair covered in it too?!” Roxy reached up and began to claw at her hair and noticed that there were still patches of stickiness.

Overwhelmed and at the end of her rope, Roxy broke down and began crying again. Chica looked startled before patting her back and shaking her shoulders reassuringly.

Snippo made a beeping noise before proclaiming, “You are the best! You are a winner! You are Roxanne Wolf, and nobody beats you!” in Roxy’s own voice. It must’ve been a recording as it ended with a beep as well.

Somehow this seemed to calm Roxy. She let out a low whine and a sigh, sucking up her non-existent tears and swallowing her sobs. Her leg bouncing anxiously.

“This isn’t working!” she choked out. Her voice filled with frustration.

Watching this was painful. It was as though any progress made in repairing Roxy was being stripped away by this backwards automated process.

Marionette squeezed Mike’s arm and his voice flowed directly into his head, “There must be something we can do to help. Maybe there’s cleaning wipes behind that counter over there?”

Mike was feeling the same way, but he had something else in mind. Doing makeup couldn’t be much harder than painting Marionette’s mask for him.

“I’ve got an idea,” he thought. He squeezed Marionette’s arm back, unhooked his, and walked over. “You know what? Let me help.”

Roxy snapped her head up towards him. “What do you know about it?!”

“I do Mari’s paint all the time. I can’t say I’m an expert, but I can stay in the lines,” he assured.

He looked back at Marionette expectantly to see him already heading for the counter. Charlie also headed over to help, but just as she reached the counter his arm shot up from behind it, proudly holding a container of cleaning wipes. He then whisked back over with her in tow and passed them off to Mike, who had already pulled a rolling stool over and was sitting down in front of Roxy.

Roxy still seemed skeptical, but it wasn’t until Chica nudged her shoulder, provoking an answer out of her, that she finally gave one.

“Snippo, stand down. We’ve got a makeup tech here,” she said in a sigh.

Snippo moved aside without fuss, instead lowering himself beside Mike.

“Welcome to the Glamrock Beauty Salon. Is this your first time filling in as a makeup tech and do you require instructions to do so?”

“He’s not a novice,” Roxy said. Mostly so they could skip the instruction process.

Mike took that as his cue. “No thanks, Snippo. I’ve got it covered.”

“Of course. Only the best for Roxanne Wolf. I will monitor your progress and step in if required.”

“Don’t get huffy,” Roxy said.

Mike pulled out one of the wet wipes and scooted closer on the stool.

“Let’s just clean you up here...” He carefully wiped down her face, taking care to avoid the exposed upper half. “You know, you got pretty lucky. We comb your hair down the right way, and nobody’ll notice.” Roxy scoffed. “Until morning, I mean. Then they’ll get you fixed up.”

“I don’t trust them,” Roxy muttered. “Besides, my hair is horrible.”

“I have an idea!” Marionette interjected. He looked to Charlie and Chica. “Why don’t we do Roxy’s hair? There’s a washing station right over there. We can give it a good scrub and style it while Mike paints.”

Chica pounced on the idea, nodding quickly, and giving a thumbs up. Charlie agreed with a, “Uh, sure!”

“Yes! -I mean, you can do that. Yes,” Roxy said, trying to not sound too enthusiastic but regardless shot to her feet.

They got her over to the washing station and, not wanting to trust the chair, she bent forward and turned her head to the side. Resting her head on the sink and allowing most of her wild hair to fill the basin.

“Now, Charlie, your hands do better in full submersion. Do you mind?” Marionette asked.

“Course not! I think I can handle a little hair. I used to have a little of it myself,” Charlie said. He chimed happily as they switched places, and she turned the sink on.

“Wait, I need- I can’t be washed with normal shampoo. My hair’s… synthetic. I have a special kind for it,” Roxy interjected.

Chica patted her arm and turned to go check the back for it only to have Snippo whizz up and thrust a bottle at her. She didn’t flinch but simply narrowed her eyes, keeping one hand on her hip and slowly grabbing the bottle, not appreciating the jump. She turned around and passed the bottle off to Marionette, who looked at it.

The white bottle had a little bear face on it and read ‘Fazbear Grade Mascot Hair & Suit cleaning shampoo- do not use on humans or animals’. He curiously turned it over to look at the back label and to little surprise there wasn’t one. Yet another mystery of Freddy’s apparently.

Charlie started rinsing out Roxy’s hair with the sprayer, combing down the wet tresses easier and saturating them. She could feel the grease, both slick and yet making the hair feel tacky and stuck. Once thoroughly wet, she drew her hands back.

“Could you squirt a little of that in?” Marionette nodded and popped the top before pouring a generous amount over Roxy’s hair. Following Charlie’s instructions of, “More… Little more… That’s good. Thanks.”

She began to work the shampoo in. It had an overwhelming cherry scent, once that had Chica silently swooning as she thought of deep-fried cherry pies and all the other good food she was missing out on. More importantly though, it was doing wonders to separate the grease from her hair and from Charlie’s hands.

“This stuff is great! We could use some of this back at Foxy’s,” she complimented.

“But I take it from the bottle that it’s not sold in the gift shop?” Marionette guessed. Chica shook her head while Mike curiously took the bottle and looked at the back, raising his brows at the lack of any back sticker.

“It’s not. It’s just for my hair,” Roxy said with an edge of a bragging tone. One that sounded much better than the broken one from minutes earlier.

“So, slipping you a twenty wouldn’t do any good?” Mike semi-joked.

“Make it two hundred and we’ll talk,” Roxy shot down.

Once Charlie finished up, Chica plugged in a hairdryer left in the salon and dried her hair. Once that was door- and her hair was clean, puffy, and mostly dry- they moved her back to her vanity.

There Mike sat on the stool in front of her and finished cleaning up anything he missed while Marionette perched on the vanity behind her and began to brush out her hair.

“Do you still want red?” Mike double-checked.

Roxy agreed, and using a makeup brush he confiscated from supplies at a separate vanity, he began to apply it to her cheek marks, which were no longer hidden by grime. Slowly and carefully, he traced over them, tongue slowly sliding out between his teeth as he focused on the narrow ends. It didn’t take long to get both done.

“There we go. Onto the lips.”

As Mike patted the brush into the palette, getting it nice and rosy, Roxy tilted back her head so that Marionette could get more of the top. Her ear twitching as she brushed it evening out the hair behind it.

She could tell Snippo was still sitting there obediently, waiting for something to do, so she spoke up, “Snippo, give us some gossip.” At least it would get her mind off her own problems.

“I have all the gossip and I am happy to share it. I heard: Lilly came to the salon last week. She asked to have her hair dyed midnight black. We do not have midnight black. We have midnight blue and moonless black. She did not want either color and wanted to combine both colors. She was informed that Fazbear Entertainment does not recommend using more than one color of dye due to the risk of hair damage. She wanted to combine colors. I applied both midnight blue and moonless black to her hair and there was significant hair damage. She then informed the manager.”

“Ugh, of course she did,” Roxy groaned. Chica, who was poking around some nail polishes, rolled her eyes in agreement.

“So, who is this Lilly? I take it not a friend of yours,” Marionette asked.

“Repeat customer and major brat. I think her parents work for Fazbear Entertainment, because she always uses the employee discount and acts like she owns the place,” Roxy vented. “What else, Snippo?”

“I heard: Limited Edition Roxy Cola flavored Fizzy Faz will become a permanent menu item under the name Rockstar Cola.”

“About time,” Roxy remarked.

“You ready?” Mike asked.

She answered by leaning back forward, leaning forward with her mouth closed- like she was trying to pucker her lips- inviting him to paint them. Which he started to do. The makeup went on surprisingly smoothly.

“I heard: sounds from the basement. Again. Again. Again. Underneath the raceway.”

Roxy sighed. “That was probably me, Snippo,” she said. Thankfully able to project it without opening her mouth, just leaving her voice a little muffled.

“Patient Zero is in the building. Patient Zero is in the building.”

“Snippo!” Roxy snapped. Literally making the motion with her hand but not moving her face to effect Mike’s painting. “Relevant gossip, please.”

“I heard: James Wight is having an affair with one of his employees.”

“That’s all? You’d think by now they’d have details,” Roxy said.

“And who on earth is Patient Zero?” Marionette asked. Still brushing her hair and smiling as he did, sounding more curious than intrusive.

“So, a patient zero is the first person who gets sick in a large group of people. Like let’s say a kid came in sick and spread chicken pox to the rest of the daycare, he would be Patient Zero,” Charlie explained. She paused and waited for Snippo or someone to clarify, and when they didn’t, she looked at him warily. “…Or I hope that’s what he meant.”

“Probably that guy who wiped out half of the human employees with one disgusting stomach bug. Ugh. And he was working on the food. He should’ve been fired,” Roxy said.

She sounded convinced of this, Marionette didn’t sound that concerned either, but Charlie felt a little uneasy. She couldn’t read Mike’s response either because he had his eyes on Roxy’s lips, and Chica’s expression was still neutral.

Something about that phrase just didn’t sit right with her.

She noticed Chica looking at her again and looked back, now with an eye open and the other squinted, as though quirking a brow. It wasn’t a glare at least so Charlie shot a somewhat unsure smile back.

“What’s this about Wight sleeping around?” Mike asked with a cocky little smirk.

“It’s one of the more popular rumors. Employees come in here right around the end of the month before the employee discounts rollover and get their hair done, and talk trash about upper management,” Roxy explained. She flicked her tail behind her. “It’s a lot of cattiness for a business built around a bear.”

Mike chuckled at that and finished up. “Done,” he announced, dropping the brush back into the makeup box.

“Really? Is it even?” Roxy asked, turning her head so he could check both sides. “You have to be my eyes. It has to be perfect.”

“It’s even. Don’t you worry,” Mike said. He double checked just in case, but it was as even as he could possibly get it. “I don’t mean to brag, but this might be some of my best work.”

Roxy scoffed, obviously not buying it. “It better be.”

Marionette hummed and spun the accessory stand to look through the options. “We’re missing something…” He found a pair of sunglasses and plucked them up, feeling the magnetic pull and judging the size, and then handed them over Roxy’s shoulder to Mike. “Try these.”

“There we go. That’s what we need,” Mike agreed. He took the sunglasses and went to fit them on. It was weird, no doubt about it, but they were magnetized so they managed to at least stay on, resting on her muzzle. “Perfect!”

“Does- Does it cover it up at all?” Roxy asked hopefully.

“Oh yeah. This and bringing the hair down a little, it covers most of it,” Mike assured. He got an insistent tap on his shoulder and looked up to see Chica offering him a bottle of red nail polish. He took it. “Thanks. Hey, you want me to do your nails to match?”

“Thank you. That would be… Wait, no.” Roxy was reaching her hand out to start when she pulled it back. “Thank you, but no. My biggest fan comes in on Saturday and we can get them done together.”

Chica clasped her hands and tilted her head in an ‘aww’ing sort of way.

“That’s very sweet of you,” Marionette complimented, getting back to brushing her hair. “I have a special little friend too. What’s yours like?”

“She’s a sweetheart, and such a cool kid. But I don’t know what’s wrong with her parents, but they’re never around. They didn’t even show up for her birthday party.”

“That’s awful!” Marionette sympathized. “My little friend had trouble with her parents too. It took until a scare for them to start paying more attention, but they have gotten better.”

“Well, I’m not waiting around until a scare for them to get their act together. Her uncle’s one of the technicians here. I might just have a word with him after he fixes my face.”

“I think that would be an excellent idea. One last thing.”

Marionette gently guided Roxy’s head to turn and then leaned over at an angle that would’ve been unsustainable if he wasn’t capable of levitation and finished up with the front. Keeping the green bang the same, he brushed forwards from tresses to hand in front of her ears and frame her face. It wasn’t perfect, but it covered some of the major damage.

“Done!” Marionette proclaimed.

“How… How do I look?” Roxy asked unsurely. She turned to the others, unable to see for herself.

“You look great!” Mike assured.

“…You’re just saying that.”

“I’m not, trust me. I’ve seen animatronics in perfect condition that look like they’ve been tossed around in the back of a truck. You look great. The parts that don’t don’t take away from that.”

“…Thank you.”

“And your hair is wonderful,” Marionette gushed. He started combing the back down again. “I thought it would be like doll hair, but it’s so soft!”

“Now you’re kissing up.”

“No, no. I love hair!”

“He loves hair,” Mike added.

“That explains some things… Thank you,” Roxy said. She then flagged for Snippo. “Snippo, grab me a couple of bottles of my shampoo.” Snippo nodded and zipped away. “You can have them. They manufacture them here at the Pizzaplex, so I have plenty to go around. My thanks for helping me clean up.”

“Oh, thank you! That would be wonderful!” Marionette chimed.

“Make sure to use at least one of those bottles on that boss of yours. He’s got a fabric body, so he’s got to be as greasy as a garage floor right now.”

“We’ll make sure to,” Marionette said with a soft chuckling chime.

“We’ll put it to good use,” Mike agreed. He could smell that stuff from a good two feet away and it wasn’t bad at all. Which was good because from the Puppet’s excitement he knew he likely too would want to use it.

“He can thank you too. Here he comes,” Charlie said. The others, save Roxy, looked to see Foxy hobbling across the fake road outside with Jeremy as his side. “Here he comes slowly.”

Jeremy got the door and Foxy hesitantly stepped inside, spotting the group who was waving him over. He straightened his back, getting an affirming pat from Jeremy to get him going, and walked over to them.

“Hey, guys,” Jeremy greeted, receiving a few ‘hey’s in return.

Foxy was relieved to see that Roxy had been cleaned up. A little confused at the flaming red lipstick and sunglasses, but whatever made her feel better. At least she looked cool doing it. Foxy couldn’t say the same for himself.

“You clean up nice,” Foxy complimented.

“Even at my worst I look good,” Roxy bragged. A confidence that she certainly didn’t have at her actual worst.

“Heh heh. Ah… Aye…” Foxy shifted awkwardly, then sighed. “Roxy… I’m sorry about all this.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Roxy deflected.

“It sorta was.”

“It was as much my fault as it was your fault, and since it wasn’t my fault, screw it, it was that rabbit witch,” Roxy sharply corrected, shutting down the train of thought. “I would love to make a skid mark out of her.”

“Ye and me both,” Foxy agreed.

There was a tense moment. Everyone else felt it and silently waited for Foxy to say whatever he was going to say, but he didn’t.

“I’ll letcha be,” he finally said. He turned on his heel with the intention of hurrying off.

“Hey, wait!” Roxy reached blindly for him to stop him. He stopped on a dime like he had been grabbed. “…Thank you for not leaving me. I don’t know what that thing could’ve done to me if I was stuck down there.”

“Aye… yer welcome. Least I could’a done.”

“What thing?” Marionette asked.

“Endo wrapped in wires, possessed by something evil. Vanny, eh,” Foxy brushed off. Then continued with Roxy while Marionette and Mike shared a couple of horrified and confused looks respectively. “I wouldn’ta left ya.”

“I appreciate that. I was so ticked I might’ve left you,” Roxy admitted.

“I don’t think you would,” Foxy disagreed. He chuckled a little. “If anyone was gonna whoop me it was gonna be ye.”

“You say ‘was’ like I didn’t,” Roxy retorted.

He chuckled again, a little more honestly now. He could feel the weight starting to lift a little and he shuffled back up to her and put his hook on her shoulder.

She looked up at him, almost like she could see him even though she clearly couldn’t. Both of them still broken in one way or another but still holding it together- it was like he was seeing her for the first time.

“Roxy, Lass.”

“What?”

“…Yer hair looks better like this.”

“Oh, shut up. You’re such a weirdo,” Roxy said and shoved his arm off. This time he laughed a little more honestly and staggered a little.

Jeremy breathed a silent sigh of relief. Chica had a happy look in her eyes and clasped her hands together.

Marionette chimed happily and then turned his head and gave Mike another borderline panicked ‘what was that about a wire thing?!’ look, but that was a disaster for another time, it seemed. Mike assured as much as he put an arm around him and held him close.

They’d have to tackle it one step at a time. It looked like Foxy and Roxy were off to a good start, at least when it came to picking up the pieces, so they would give them their moment.

Charlie smiled for them. She was glad to have helped. She was glad that it seemed like Chica was warming up to them, maybe more the others than her.

But just the sight of Snippo returning reminded her that there was something very wrong. What it had said still lingered in the back of her mind.

She kept it to herself… for now.

…

“Yup, she was definitely here, alright,” Natalie said as she looked through the photos again.

She, Fritz, and Monty had gotten the photos developed and currently were in the Lost and Found office. Her and Monty looked at the evidence while Fritz flipped through the cameras- looking between the basement and Roxy Raceway for any sign of a funky signal or a freaky suit.

“What tips ya off?” Monty asked curiously.

Natalie showed him one of the pictures, and he lifted his sunglasses and leaned in to look.

“See that weird glitchiness around the edge right here?” she asked. She traced the glitchiness with a lilac painted nail. Monty gave a nod. “That pops up on the security cameras sometimes when she gets on them. They’ll freeze up or the picture will jolt, and this’ll start popping up when it straightens itself out.”

“Huh… Case closed, ah guess.”

“Oh yeah. I didn’t need this to prove it, but it does cement it.”

“What’re you gonna do?”

Natalie tapped her thumb on the picture as she stared at it. “…I don’t know.”

What could she do? Vanny had been running rampant for weeks and any attempt to initial bring it up had been rebuffed. It was at the point now where she doubted any form of evidence would convince them to do anything.

“But if I report it, I know they’re just going to cover it up. The last time I did they started pulling rank on me. I’ll probably lose my job.” And lose their only way into Freddy’s.

“They will. They’ll fire you,” Fritz said. His tone uncharacteristically bitter. So much so that Natalie looked to him in surprise. “And then they might turn it around and try to pin it on you. Pretend that you were the problem and now that you’re out of the picture, everything’s going to be just dandy.” Fritz inhaled deeply before sighing. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. You ain’t wrong,” Monty huffed.

Natalie didn’t say anything. Instead, she went over to Fritz and came up behind him, laying her hands on his shoulders and giving him an assuring squeeze. Fritz reached up and took her hand.

“This whole thing just has me on edge. Just thinking of you being stuck in here with her…” Fritz trailed off.

It wasn’t like there was anything more to say. Anything he could say she already knew and would just be reminding her of the danger she was already well-aware of. But a place like this? It was slowly becoming more dangerous. Vanny was becoming more bold, strange occurrences and ‘accidents’ were piling up, and Fritz was regretting this plan to get her into Freddy’s. It felt like he put her on the chopping block to save his own neck.

Natalie leaned over to hug him around the shoulders while leaning over him to kiss him on the temple.

“I understand,” she assured him. She didn’t have to elaborate; he knew that she did. He sunk into her arms, his own going slack into the office chair.

Monty watched the scene before putting two and two together.

“Hey, wait a minute…” He stared for a minute longer, until Natalie looked back at him, and then it finally clicked. He crossed his arms with a smug chuff. “And here I was wonderin’ how we got a technician down here so fast.”

“It’s a conflict of interest, but we like to live dangerously,” Natalie admitted with a guilty smile.

“Rock on, Little Lady.”

Of course, Monty would be on-board with that sort of conflict of interest, though he probably didn’t know it unless Louise tipped him off.

Natalie gave Fritz another squeeze before letting go and heading back over to Monty and the pictures. She looked down at the ones left sprawled on the table. She cracked a smile at the one of Foxy and his new friends getting their picture taken- and from everyone’s startled look or the red dots in their eyes it seemed like Monty accidentally left the flash on. She was going to have to save that one.

“Whoa, hold up! Was that a van?!”

“What?” Natalie snapped her head over towards Fritz, as did Monty. “What’s going on?”

“A van just blew out of the basement!”

“Are you serious?!” Natalie raced over to look but only caught sight of what looked to be a garage. One of the doors was open. “Someone just drove a van out of here?!”

“Yes! An alert popped up and by time I figured out how to get down there, I caught the tail end of it driving out.”

Natalie could only stare with her mouth slightly agape. That was the last thing she expected.

Monty hmphed and adjusted his sunglasses. “Guess Bunny Girl threw herself out.”

“There’s no way,” Natalie said. “There’s no way she would’ve actually left. And if she did, she wouldn’t steal a van. She probably has her car sitting in the parking garage somewhere.”

Indeed, there was no way Vanny would’ve left. Especially considering that she had won. It had to be someone else.

Natalie squinted her eyes suspiciously. “Time to do a head count.”

Chapter 85

Chapter Summary

Jake gets some unexpected news that sends him, Moon, and Gregory on a risky trip outside of the Pizzaplex. Little do the three know, but this trip may be much more eye-opening than they could've ever anticipated...

Chapter Notes

Sorry this took a while, but hopefully the length makes up for it! Enjoy!

They had to tell him. Andrew thought it was a bad idea; Jake doubled down that they had to do it despite knowing it would come back to haunt them. They agreed, they had to tell someone, and that someone was going to be Foxy. Decided upon because he was currently alone and currently the possible target of Vanny, so he would be the easiest to tell. Then he could pass it on.

Which meant, actually, Moon would be telling him. He hiked all the way back from the daycare to Parts and Service while taking none of his shortcuts to save time. Mostly because he was accompanied by Nanny Bot, but also because he didn’t want to rush into this. He wanted to drag his jingling slipper-clad feet all the way down to that room and hope nobody was there when he got there.

Unfortunately, there were only two people in there, Foxy and Jeremy. Which made it a perfect time to deliver the news. The lights were on outside of Parts and Service, so Moon paused to switch into Sun, and it was in this moment that Jake, through Nanny Bot, heard a familiar name get brought up: Michael.

Now, Jake wasn’t proud of being a shameless eavesdropper, but hearing the concerned voices made him too worried to care. He listened in, and then Sun listened in as well once he had stopped clicking enough to do so.

“-Michael wasn’t thinking about any of that when he did that… I don’t think he did. I think it really was just a sudden thing.”

“I’ve done a lot of stupid, sudden things but… I don’t think it was. I might’ve, but after he told us about it… I don’t know what to think… I don’t know if I can trust him. He can say all he wants that he was trying to get out of that suit. I know it was more than that… I think he’s going to try it again.”

Moon and Jake- or Nanny Bot- exchanged a shocked look. Or the motion of one, with neither able to express it facially.

“I don’t think Michael’s going to do it again. I don’t think he meant to do it. I mean, he was fine! Or, uh, not fine, but… He just seemed so normal that day. We talked and I didn’t notice anything.”

“Michael… I love him, but he… he runs away. He always ran away when he needed an out, and whereas I tried to run and always got stuck right where I was, he found a way out. This time there’s nowhere to run and I’m afraid what he’s going to do if…”

Sun had been leaning onto the doorway when the bell on his wrist jingled. He grabbed it instantly, clamping it under his hand to try and suffocate the noise but the deed was already done.

“Who’s there?!” Foxy barked.

Realizing the jig was up, Sun called back, “I-It’s just me!” He leaned over and looked into the doorway, seeing Jeremy and Foxy, and waved tensely. “Sorry, I-I wasn’t trying to listen in! We’re just, uh… We’ll be back later. You two just go on ahead!”

He then turned on his heel and hurried off, practically leaving the Nanny Bot behind. Which was fine, because he knew he had to get back to the real Jake as fast as possible.

He got to the daycare in record time and swooped up onto the balcony before hurrying inside, only to be blindsided by Jake standing directly inside behind the curtains, waiting for Sun’s return, almost blindsiding him.

“I knew something was wrong!” he whispered in panic.

“Whoa, whoa! We don’t even know if that’s what happened,” Sun anxiously argued. “I’m sure this was just a… a miscommunication! We didn’t hear the whole story.”

“We heard enough. What else could it be? You heard what he said!” Jake said. He was trying to keep his voice low and began to pace in a little circle. “The way they were talking? That’s the way everybody talks about me. Or everybody would if they knew. Like you’d talk about me.”

“Hey!”

“It’s true!”

Sun sputtered. “W-Well- eh- you- maybe. But that doesn’t mean that this is the same situation!”

“…Are you saying that because you don’t think it is or you’re just trying to keep me from freaking out?”

Sun’s silence matched with his anxious ticking answered loud and clear.

Jake huffed and began to do his little circle again.

“You don’t hear the way he talks about himself sometimes… He just- he’s always taking little jabs at himself. The first night we met he was doing it before he even realized I was sitting there! But I thought he was getting better. He stopped doing that, we started talking more and he seemed happy. I-I just don’t understand… how I didn’t notice.”

“Nobody noticed. You heard what Foxy said, it came out of the blue for him too.”

“But I should’ve seen the signs!”

Even though he didn’t say it out loud, it was clear what he was implying. Why he should’ve been the one to notice. The continuing dancing around the topic made it all the more important until they were forced to address it.

 “Jake, your… our… your situation is- was a lot different than Michael’s is,” Andrew quietly reminded.

“I… Yeah,” Jake agreed. Awkwardly fidgeting with his cloak as he did.

An uncomfortable silence followed.

“Where’s Gregory?” Sun asked.

“In our room,” Jake said. Realizing they probably needed to get back to him, he headed to the ladder only to pause. “Never mind, he’s standing right there listening…”

Sun whipped his head over the railing and saw Gregory standing just under them, still in his pajamas but as wide-awake as ever.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“O-oh… Nothing!” Sunny chirped with phony cheer.

Gregory looked unimpressed. “I’m not dumb. I heard you talking about Mike. So, what’s going on?”

Sun’s façade dropped as quickly as his shoulders did into a pout. “First of all, we’re talking about Michael, Foxy’s brother, not Mike the guy. Secondly, that’s on a need-to-know basis and you, Sunspot, are not in the need to know.” He hopped over the railing and landed on the floor beside him with a jingle and a shrug. “Them’s the brakes, Kiddo.”

“There you go treating me like a little kid again,” Gregory huffed. Sun spun his points and shrugged again, and Gregory rolled his eyes. “Fine. Then I’ll ask Freddy.”

“Whoa, whoa. You will not ask Freddy. He’s gone through enough tonight, he doesn’t need to have this whole Michael situation dropped onto him,” Sun disagreed. Gregory quirked a brow in an ‘are you kidding’ manner, and Sun backpedaled hard. “Not that there IS a situation!”

The two continued going back and forth-

“Can’t you just tell me? I won’t tell anyone!”

“If I told you then I would be telling someone!”

“So, there’s something to tell.”

“I- uh- ngh- don’t get smart with me.”

-while Jake was left to his own thoughts. Thinking about Michael, replaying all their most recent conversations, totally caught up in himself and thinking of calling. He needed to talk to him, but he didn’t know what to say.

Talking to him on the phone wasn’t good enough. He wanted to see him and talk to him and tell him it was going to be okay. But he couldn’t, because it was too close to morning to call him and invite him over, drive him over, get him to the daycare without anyone noticing- it wouldn’t work. There was no way it would work.

…Unless.

Unless.

“…I’ve got to go see him.”

Both Gregory and Sun snapped their heads up to look at Jake.

“What?” Sun squeaked, voice and heart dropping.

“I’ve got to go see Michael,” Jake affirmed. He stepped onto the ladder and slid down it, ignoring the friction on his fingers as he smoothly stepped off. “It’s too close to morning to invite him here and this can’t wait. This time right now is critical. He needs to know that he’s not alone and that someone understands what he’s going through.”

“But that’s crazy! Why can’t you just call him?!” Sun sputtered out.

“That’s not good enough. We’ve been talking on the phone every day, and this still happened without me noticing! I’ve… I’ve got to at least make sure he’s okay,” Jake said with finality.

“Since when did you start talking to him every day?” Sun huffed.

“Since he started picking up,” Jake retorted.

Sun dragged his fingers down his face in exasperation.

“Will ANYTHING I say stop you?”

“…Probably not.”

Sun stood there silently for a long second before giving a weary sigh. “Then I’m going with you.”

“You don’t have to-.”

“Yes, I do. Let me call Freddy and tell him pick up time is early tonight,” Sun said firmly, any amount of clownish dramatics wiped away. He strode over into the corner and rested his fingers on his face like he was pinching the bridge of his nose but was likely using that to send Freddy a message.

This left Jake and Gregory standing there. Seeing Jake as a little more forthright, Gregory turned to him for answers.

“What’s going on?” he asked with a little more impatience.

“Michael… was injured. Somehow. We’re not exactly sure what happened, but I need to check on him,” Jake tried to explain.

“Was he hurt as bad as Roxy was?” Gregory asked in surprise. That was the impression he got.

It took Jake a moment to answer and even then, it was a non-committal, “I’m not sure…” He mimicked a cough. “Is Freddy coming?”

Sun lowered his hand from his head and continued staring into the corner.

“Sunny?”

Finally, he snapped his head back, staring blankly at Jake. “Wh-What?”

“Is Freddy coming?”

“…No. He’s… He’s busy,” Sun said in a hushed voice. Only to get an idea and suddenly, he was feeling much more confident. He spun fully towards the two. “Which means that if we’re doing this, we’re going to have to take him with us,” Sun said, pointing a thumb at Gregory with a hand on his hip. “Looks like we’ll just have to give Michael a phone call from the safety of the daycare, hmm? We can even bring the phone up here! That would be waaaay easier, safer, faster, and about twenty other ‘er’s that I know you’ll figure out!”

He thought this was the ultimatum he needed to make Jake see how crazy this was.

“Uh, well…” Jake looked towards Gregory, equally worried, and sighed. “…I can survive on my own for one night. It’s probably less risky if we both don’t go anyways.”

Sun’s balloon of confidence deflated quickly.

“What?! No! Th-That’s not what I meant!”

“Can’t I just go back to Freddy’s room?” Gregory asked, unamused by the continued theatrics.

“No, no, no. We’ve had a Vanny spotting. You’re not leaving my sight,” Sunny said, waggling his finger. Before recoiling the hand back. “Especially with… Freddy being so busy…”

“Then… why don’t I just go with you?”

“Wha- There’s no way! You’ll get lost out there!”

“Lost? Yeah right. Don’t you know how I got to the Pizzaplex? I biked here, all by myself, on my own.”

“Down the highway?!” Sun choked and grabbed his chest.

“Yup!”

“And nobody stopped you?” Jake asked in milder surprise.

“Not really… Yeah. Someone called the cops and a cop pulled me over, but I told him this story about how my parents said I could go to the Pizzaplex but then they got too busy at work to take me, so I tried to ride my bike there myself, and I got him to take me to the Pizzaplex and then pretended to call my parents at the payphone outside and told him that they told me to wait inside and that I was in trouble. He bought it and then all I had to do was get with a group of kids and I got inside. Do you think some helpless little kid would pull that off? No, I did it all by myself.”

“And you lied to the police! Rulebreaker? No, no! LAWbreaker!”

Gregory gave a proud smile. “Yup!”

“I’m sort of shocked he didn’t ask to speak to your parents,” Jake said.

“I really played it up how bummed I was about my parents. And I had a bunch of change, so I showed him and told him it was my allowance, and he bought it.”

“Ughhh,” Sun groaned as he grabbed at his head. “Are there any responsible adults in charge anywhere?”

“Freddy, but he’s busy with Roxy and Foxy. I’m not going to run off or anything. I live here!” Gregory doubled down. “Pleeeease let me come with you?”

“Oh, don’t beg.”

Gregory clasped his hands together defiantly.

“Ngh.”

“…You know what? Why don’t we take him with us?” Jake offered. Sun snapped his head to him in surprise. “We can’t get caught anyway or it’s game over. An extra body won’t be that much of a difference. In… fact… it would sort of by like it used to be. You, me, and… him.”

Jake gestured his head to Gregory, who didn’t get what he meant. Sun did though. Sun did and after a rigid pause, he slumped forward overdramatically, his hands thumping on the ground as he groaned.

“It’s your choice, Sunny. I’ll be okay on my own. Or we can all go together... But I can’t just sit around and wait for something to happen. It’s not… It’s not enough. I know it doesn’t make sense, but I have to see him.”

“You have to save him,” Sun interrupted.

“Uh… Heh, uh. Maybe. I want to try,” Jake awkwardly agreed.

With another groan, Sun flipped his face around to look at Jake even with his body still folded over.

“And how exactly are we going to make it allll the way into Hurricane?”

…

Next thing they knew, a grumbling Moon was leading them downstairs. He wasn’t slinking or stalking, he was striding with the effort of someone who was fed up and wanted this over with, all while Jake and Gregory hustled to keep up. Thankfully, once they arrived at the garage, the lights were turned back on, and the muttering Moon was turned back to a sour Sun.

This garage had a couple of work vans and similar vehicles stored inside. Other than that, it looked like a one-floor, less-impressive parking garage.

Jake started to search around and it didn’t take him long to sleuth out where they kept the keys to the vehicles, in a locker with a padlock that was neither locked nor shut all the way. Nothing surprising to Jake. He grabbed one of the keys to one of the vans before walking over and using the attached beeper to locate which one it was. Thankfully, it wasn’t too far from one of the garage doors.

Jake used his control panel to bypass security lock on the door- a relatively easy feat since it was a low security clearance- and then set it aside as he and Sun opened up the garage doors together.

They started out at a drizzly night. They had been so deep in the daycare that neither realized it was raining but here they could clearly see the light sprinkle and hear it on the asphalt.

“Are you sure you want to do back out there?” Sun quietly asked.

“Yeah. For Michael… It’s not that bad. We probably still know those roads like the back of our hands.”

“Well then, are you sure you want to borrow a van? Why don’t we just pile up on Gregory’s bike and peddle our way to town?” Sun asked sardonically.

Gregory snickered at the mental image. Sun looked to him and Gregory pretended to cough into his fist.

“We could try, but someone probably took it by now,” he said.

“Should’ve locked it up,” Sun tutted.

“Yeah, about that… I kiiinda borrowed it.”

“Wait- you- you STOLE the bike?!”

“…A little.”

Gregory gave a guilty little smile as Sun stared at him with his points tucked in from shock. Then they popped out as he smacked a hand over his face and dragged it down with a groan.

Jake gave him a sympathetic pat on the back. “It’s okay, Sun. You still have time to teach him all about right and wrong after we’re done stealing this van. I mean borrowing. Yeah, borrowing.”

Sun tsked and turned, swatted off Jake’s hand. Jake swatted back. They proceeded to get into a miniature slap fight that ended with Jake hurrying to the van and Sun dragging himself after him, and Gregory quickly caught up after watching the whole thing.

Jake unlocked the driver’s side and opened it, started to climb in, and hesitated.

“Wait, wait.” He dropped back down. “I can’t drive.”

“You just remembered that?!” Sun choked.

“No, I mean I can’t drive.” Jake gestured down to his endoskeleton leg. “With this.”

Sun looked down at his leg with an understanding little hum. He then sighed and lifted a hand, about to begrudgingly volunteer himself.

“I know how to drive!” Gregory interrupted. Sun and Jake could only stand there as Gregory slipped between them and climbed up onto the driver’s seat. “It’s not that hard. Even a kid can do it.”

Sun sputtered again. “You’re not going to DRIVE! You’re too young, you don’t have a license, and- and- and no.” He stepped up, picked him up, and leaned to plop him into the passenger’s seat. “You’re lucky you’re riding in the front at all, but I doubt the back has seatbelts. Speaking of which, Jake, you’re going to have to stay in the back and keep your head down.”

“Story of my life,” Jake remarked.

He started climbing in as Sun hopped into the driver’s seat and shut the door.

“Seatbelts!” he announced. He pulled his on and secured it in, then watched Gregory expectantly. Much to his relief, Gregory didn’t put up a fight and instead put his seatbelt on.

“Hey.” Sun suddenly had his view obscured by Jake’s mask and cloak being held out between the seats. “Wear this!”

“Oh yes. That’s the perfect disguise to be wearing while driving around in a van, in the middle of the night, with a child,” Sun said flatly. “Ehhh… I-I’ll take the cloak.”

While Jake replaced his mask, Sun tugged the cloak on as best as he could, quickly realizing that he would have to get outside into the darkness if he was going to be able to actually wear it. He held out his hand and Jake dropped the key into his palm, and then he shakily put it into the ignition.

The van wasn’t nearly as oppressive as his nervousness would’ve led to believe. A pair of fuzzy dice hung from the mirror and a Roxy bobblehead was stuck to the dash, and a crumpled up fast-food bag sat in the floorboard under Gregory’s feet. There was the faintest smell of cigarettes- which of course Sun could smell, considering that he could detect a dirty pull-up halfway across the daycare- but it wasn’t overpowering.

…He couldn’t believe he was actually going to do this. But he would be lying if he didn’t say it was sort of exciting that he still could. No programming held him inside like it held some of the others.

With that in mind, Sun squared up and turned on the van. It couldn’t be too difficult. Gas, brake, reverse… the other gears. At least it wasn’t a proper stick shift, surely he could figure it out on his own!

So, he adjusted the mirrors, put it in reverse, and then slowly- incredibly slowly- backed up the van in the garage. Paused for a long moment.

“Put it in D.”

Put it in “D” and then inched forward, and then reversed, and inched forward, and reversed, and slowly turned the van before putting it in drive and driving out of the open garage door. Or that was, peeling out way faster than he intended before hitting the brakes almost immediately outside, causing Gregory to get lurched by his seatbelt and Jake to hit the back of the driver’s seat with an ‘omph’.

“Sorry,” Sun hissed out as he went through the process of switching back into Moon.

“No problem. I had my head down.”

With his points in, Moon tugged on his nightcap and then was able to pull the cloak hood over it. Then he gripped the steering wheel tightly. Sun might’ve been flighty and anxious, but Moon didn’t get scared. He just did what he had to.

…Unfortunately, whether Sun or Moon, this was still Andrew so he sat there for a long few moments trying to convince himself to either go or back out. The same voice nagging him that they were going to get caught, that this was stupid, as before the change even occurred.

“Are you going to go?” Gregory asked.

Moon snapped out of it. “Yesss,” he dragged out.

He then slowly lowered his foot on the gas and began to carefully drive the van forward. He took it around the Pizzaplex and across the parking lot, and along the way he started to somewhat get his bearings with it- though was still driving rather slow. Once he got onto the empty highway he sunk further into the seat and started to speed up a little more, but only out of necessity. If they got pulled over, they would be in serious trouble.

Out here it was fine as the highway was mostly quiet. One car drove past, but it was so far on the other side that he doubted that he would’ve been noticed through the van’s partially tinted windows. It would be an entirely different story once they reached Hurricane.

“Do we even know where we’re going?” Moon muttered.

“We’re going to Foxy’s warehouse. Michael said he used to stay there and that he was only temporarily moving around, so chances are he’s back there. Don’t worry, I know where it is.”

“…You know, you could’ve called him first,” Moon said with exasperation.

“He would’ve told me not to come.”

“Gee, I wonder why…” Moon grumbled under his breath.

The van continued to slowly inch down the highway. Moon clenched his fingers on the steering wheel and released them.

Jake, noticing his distress, tried to come up with a distraction.

“Hey, Gregory. Want to play a game or sing a song or something?” Jake offered.

“Okay, what kind of game? But I don’t want to sing, that’s weird,” Gregory agreed.

Moon- amused, anxious, and impish- decided at that moment to chime in with a song.

“The wheels on the bus go- the wheels on the van go round and round. And round and round again. And again, and again, and again. Nggggh.”

At that point Moon just gave up. Slowly sinking further down until he was barely peeking over the steering wheel. Jake leaned between the seats to give him some assurance before turning to Gregory.

“Sooo… What about I Spy?”

“Sure.”

And then they proceeded to play I Spy with whatever they could spot in and outside the van. It wasn’t much but at least it seemed to relax Moon a little, and eventually they arrived in Hurricane. Other than a few times of accidentally lurching on the brake when he was just trying to brake a little, Moon managed to get them into town and keep them away from the few cars out on the road.

Jake had indeed managed to find the correct warehouse on an online map. It matched the description he had heard from both Michael and Charlie. When Moon drove up, Jake hopped out of the back and hurried to the door, knocking feverishly. There was no answer. He continued knocking to no avail, and then hurried to try the garage doors. They were locked, there was no answer, and he hurried back to the van.

“No good! He’s not here!”

“Oh, wonderful. Let’s go home,” Moon flatly replied.

“We can’t give up yet!”

“What’s the alternative?”

“…Drive to Foxy’s. It’s over that way. We’ll see if someone’s there.”

They drove to Foxy’s. There was nobody there.

“Okay, one last idea,” Jake proposed as he climbed back in.

By now Moon was sunken all the way into the driver’s seat with a hand dramatically posed over his face. Gregory was stifling a yawn so that Moon wouldn’t hear, which Moon did hear and almost commented on before Jake got in.

“Is the last idea we go home and ask Mari where his brother is?” Moon asked flatly.

“No, but that’s the backup. I promise, one more place and if it doesn’t work then we’ll go back to the Pizzaplex,” Jake agreed apologetically.

Moon sighed and dragged himself upright, watching out the windows to make sure there were no witnesses, and started to drive out of the parking lot. “Where?”

“The junkyard.”

Moon grumbled.

“I know, I know. Just… It’s our only chance. It’s a gamble, I know, but if Ennard’s there then he can take us right to Michael.”

“IF he’s there.”

“It seems like he goes there a lot…”

By now even Jake sounded uncertain. He gave a quiet sigh.

“Just one last place, please.”

With that plea, Moon caved yet again.

“Which way? I’m turned around.”

“That way.” Jake gladly pointed between the seats. He then pointed somewhere else. “The park’s in that direction, the school’s over there-.”

“I know where we are,” Moon said. He began to drive towards the dump while Jake settled into the back again. “I am only doing this because I’m curious to see if our old stomping ground’s still there.”

“Your what?” Gregory asked with a funny look.

“We used to hide out at the junkyard. There, the old factory, the abandoned house off on Center Street- we made numerous hiding places in case one of them was found out.”

“Wow. And you two were just… you were like in the same body, right?”

“Correct.”

“When we were only a few years older than you, we got stuck into the same body by a mad scientist who lived in a creepy old warehouse outside of town,” Jake explained, leaning carefully out between the seats, and keeping his head low. “We just barely escaped, and we had nowhere to go. So, we hid out in the factory. But we couldn’t stay still and soon we were travelling all over town.”

“But then how come you don’t know where you are?” Gregory asked, arching a brow.

“Because we were on the north side of town, and this is dead in the middle. We never came here. It was too in the open,” Moon explained.

“I get it. Like when I’m in the Pizzaplex I sometimes hang out in the atrium, but I don’t stick around where I’ll stand out. Or the lobby! I don’t go there at all if I don’t have to.”

“It really is a lot like what we did,” Moon said. There was a soft smile in his voice.

Gregory thought so too, but he didn’t realize the full extent until they were at the junkyard.

Moon drove onto the road behind it and parked out of the way, close to a rickety little building. He then removed Jake’s cloak and passed it back to him before starting to get out.

As he opened the door the light came on and he had to leap from the van quickly to save himself from shifting and shifting back again. Gregory put his backpack back on and started getting out behind him.

“Wait.”

Gregory frowned at the held-up hand, expecting Moon to say that he was staying behind. Instead, Moon pulled off his slippers and held them in one hand before turning away and tucking the other arm behind his back.

“On my back.”

Gregory wasn’t about to turn down a free ride, so he climbed aboard, and Moon pushed the door shut with his foot. By then Jake had gotten out and headed over to the chain length fence closest to the building and squeezed through a narrow section between them. Moon followed closely behind, and Gregory was able to get a better few of the junkyard.

Full of trash and old cars and built up like an industrial playground; Gregory thought it was incredibly cool.

“I’m going to look around for Ennard. Why don’t you show Gregory our place?” Jake suggested, pointing at the building.

Moon seemed hesitant, humming unsurely, and looking between the building and around the junkyard cautiously. Jake decided to help him out in his decision.

“It’s going to be a lot less noticeable if I’m the only one walking around. This is pretty much garbage bag camouflage,” he said, lifting the edge of his cloak. “And it’ll keep you from getting too dirty this close to morning.”

“…Fine. But stay close, and don’t talk to strangers,” Moon agreed.

“I don’t think there’s anyone stranger than Ennard,” Gregory said.

Moon snickered a little and loosened up a bit more, still on guard but eager to see if their hideout was there and to show Gregory. He waited until Jake headed off before heading into the building.

There was trash in there, a little more than he remembered, and the old trash compactor. He headed into the back corner and much to his relief he found one of his and Jake’s hidey holes still intact. It looked like it has collapsed a little in the back, but it was still there as were the toys around it. He made sure to plug in the lights before crouching in front of the entrance, letting Gregory off his back.

“This is one of our little homes,” he explained.

Gregory peeked inside. It was mostly a tarp tent with some old blankets and toys inside. Looked like something he might’ve cooked up before he got to the Pizzaplex. Needless to say, he was sort of impressed by it.

“So, you used to live here?”

“That’s right. This wasn’t our main home, but it was a home.”

“So, you guys just lived on the road. Like a couple of hobos?”

“That’s right…” Moon said, a little more unsure of where this was going.

“That’s so cool!”

Moon chuckled, appreciating the sentiment. “As cool as homelessness gets… Have you ever heard of the Caboose Kids?”

“Isn’t that a book?”

“Yes, it is! It’s about kids escaping an orphanage and living in a caboose where they travel the country and go on adventures.”

“Huh. That is pretty cool.”

“It is,” Moon agreed. He considered his words very carefully. “…But perhaps not very realistic. As someone who has lived on the streets myself, it wasn’t nearly so fantastical-.”

“Hey, what’s this?” Gregory asked. He plucked a paper out from underneath a porcelain doll that had fallen over in the entranceway to the hideaway.

Moon hummed and held out his hand. Gregory scanned over the paper and raised his brows before handing it over, and then Moon read the message.

“Hello, my name is Scott Caldwell. I don’t want to intrude but if you need any help here’s my phone number and the phone number of Father Blythe. He’s a good friend of mine and he had plenty of resources and is more than willing to lend an ear and a helping hand. You don’t have to go it alone.”

Underneath the message were two phone numbers with the names ‘Scott’ and ‘Father Blythe’ beside them.

“Scott Caldwell…” The red glow of Moon’s eyes halved as though he was squinting. “…Correct me if I’m wrong, but Scott is Ennard’s special friend, isn’t he?”

“I think so. I know his name was Scott… Wait, when you said ‘special friend’, do you mean like you and Freddy?” Gregory asked, wrinkling his nose. He could smell the mushiness.

“Oh ho ho, no no. Nobody is like me and Freddy,” Moon remarked mischievously, chuckling at Gregory’s resulting deadpan look.

But then he looked at the note again. There was no way Scott could’ve known that they had been here unless Ennard told him. Perhaps he thought they were some random person living out here, sleeping in a tent and surrounded by toys… No, he had to have known. Ennard knew they lingered around the junkyard and likely heard from someone that they used to collect toys.

This was all very perplexing. If Moon didn’t know better, he would say this was some sort of sign. He resigned himself that it was a coincidence instead and folded the paper back up. He would have to show it to Jake, who knew what he would take from it. He sighed and looked to Gregory, who sort of shrugged.

Moon considered some things for a moment. Then he took the plunge.

“Gregory… May I ask you a question? You don’t have to answer. I won’t be upset if you don’t,” Moon asked.

Gregory got an uneasy look. “Oookay. What?”

“…Where are your parents?”

The boy looked surprised for only a second, but then uneasy.

“They’re… gone.”

Moon tilted his head in silent questioning.

“They’re dead.”

It figured considering that Gregory was in foster care, Moon supposed. He didn’t ask further, but Gregory kept talking.

“But I didn’t know them anyway. I don’t even know if they’re dead, but I guess they are since I didn’t have parents. I’m an orphan,” Gregory said matter-of-factly.

That got an amused scoff out of Moon. He quickly apologized, “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it. Anyway… So my ‘parents’ were actually not my parents but my foster parents, and they switched out every couple of years. And sometimes I’d go stay at this house with a bunch of kids. Like an orphanage but they didn’t call it that… So, like, this one time I got taken in by a really nice mom and dad and they really treated me like I was their kid, because they couldn’t have kids… But then she ended up having a baby and they said they couldn’t keep me. They couldn’t afford to have two kids. I think it was a load of crap.”

“Language.”

“I’m not in the daycare!” Gregory protested.

“Truuuue… Fine but keep it within reason.”

“Thank you. Anyways- yeah, then there was this other family and I always got picked on by the other kids and the dad would say, ‘Don’t be a baby’ all the time. So, one day I punched one of ‘em. They ditched me back at the orphanage that day. And after that… There was a lot of them, so I decided that I was done getting tossed around and I’d just go off on my own. That’s why you’re asking, right? Because that lady who came told you I was an orphan.”

“She did, but that is not why I am asking. I am asking because I’m curious,” Moon replied. His voice much gentler than it was moments ago.

Gregory sat there for a long moment stewing about it. Not about Moon, but those ‘stupid’ parents and the dumb reason that they kept wanting to send him back to other parents who would just dump him off somewhere. None of them had ever been like Freddy and yet he knew there’s no way they would let him stay with Freddy.

Though now he was curious about Moon. He was always so fussy, like an overbearing parent. What was his like? He was a human after all.

“Did your parents suck?” he asked.

“Yes.”

Gregory’s head snapped up in surprise. Mostly at Moon’s bluntness than his answer.

“Really?”

“Really,” Moon said. “Would you like me to tell you?”

“Well, yeah! I told you how my parents sucked. It’s your turn.”

The jester chuckled dryly and lulled his head back and rolling his face. Then he sighed and began to explain.

“My home did not feel like home to me. My parents loved my brother more- not because I was a naughty child, but because he was their son. I was only my mother’s son, and my father made sure I didn’t forget. I saw him as my dad. But he didn’t. Whenever I had a problem, whenever I got in trouble, he would tell my mom right in front of me ‘he’s your son, deal with it’. And my mom was fed up with my behavior. I acted like a brat and instead of punishing me, my mom would ignore me. She would pretend I wasn’t there. She wouldn’t talk to me at all, and she would be sure to give my brother as many gifts as she could. Candy, toys, whatever she could afford…”

“Wow,” Gregory said in surprise. “That’s way worse than those losers I was stuck with.”

“Tch. It’s not a competition,” Moon said with a dismissive wave. “The point is… What was the point here?”

“Our parents sucked.”

“Yes, yes, that,” Moon said, shaking his finger before stopping and pointing at Gregory. “But more importantly that not everyone is cut out to be a parent. It wasn’t our fault; we were just unlucky.”

“Right…” Gregory said unsurely.

“And now you have Freddy!” Moon said more confidently.

“…Yeah.” Gregory got a little smile at that. He did have Freddy. Freddy was more of a parent than any of those people, and also…

Gregory looked up towards Moon and gave an embarrassed sort of smile. “And I’ve got you!”

Moon looked to him in shock. “What?”

“Nothing!”

The boy looked away quickly, the slightest dusting of pink settling on his cheeks from his embarrassment. Pretending he hadn’t said anything at all.

But he had already said it. Gregory had said that he had Moon, and he said it like he considered him just as important as Freddy. Warmth and endearment bloomed across the jester’s chest.

“I- No- I was just a little surprised that you…” He trailed off and then decided instead to lay a hand on Gregory’s back reassuringly. “You have me.”

Gregory finally dared to look back and got a little smile. Moon gave a pleased little cackle and hooked him around the shoulders, pulling him into a hug. It was a little awkward, with Gregory sitting and Moon crouching and them both having to work around the excess pants poof. It was a little embarrassing too, being hugged by the Daycare Attendant but… Gregory liked it. It was a lot like being hugged by Freddy, not the same but still pretty good.

But Gregory had to keep up appearances. “Okay, don’t get mushy on me.”

Moon ruffled his hair and then pushed him away. “Don’t get smart,” he retorted.

“And I guess we’ve got Scott and his father too.”

“No, Gregory. That would be a priest.”

Of all the times for Jake to suddenly wander in. In fact, it was so timely that Moon wondered if he had been listening in from outside- not that he would’ve minded if he did. He intended to tell him about this later anyways. Likely as Sun, where he could ramble and gush like an endless faucet. Either way, Jake covered.

“So…” Jake began as he wandered over. “Ennard’s not here.”

“But he was here. Or at least, Scott was,” Moon said.

Before Jake could ask, Moon passed him the paper and he read it. Jake pulled it away in surprise.

“Wait, this was from Scott? Our Scott?”

“If you mean Ennard’s Scott, I suspect so.”

Jake looked down at the paper for a long moment before sighing.

“Maybe this is a sign that I should’ve stayed in the daycare and called…”

As much as Moon should’ve encouraged that and stood by his opinion of such, the defeat in Jake’s voice made it hard to even muster a ‘I told you so’. Like neither of them won in this situation.

“Why was it so important to speak with him face to face?” Moon asked.

“Well… There were things I wanted to say that I couldn’t over the phone. Things I wanted to… show him. So that he would know that I understood. Maybe he wouldn’t feel alone… Maybe he would listen to me.”

And there was Andrew again caving due to Jake’s pitiful little explanation. He knew exactly what he had wanted to show Michael- it didn’t take a mastermind to figure that out. He knew that they were continuously playing with fire- no, they were outright lighting their shoes on fire and trying to dance.

And yet they hadn’t get burned yet. Moon sighed and looked at that note again, looked again at their hiding spot, and Gregory who quirked a brow questioningly. Moon sighed again and slowly rolled his head back to Jake.

“Let’s see how helpful Scott really is.”

…

Scott’s peaceful slumber was interrupted by his ringtone blaring from the nightstand. He woke up and instantly regretted not shutting it off. Of course, the whole reason he didn’t keep it off was in case of emergencies, so he should’ve been anticipating the eventual late-night call. He leaned forward- feeling the wiry arms wrapped around his waist trying to tug him back- and grabbed and answered his phone.

“Hello?” he asked groggily.

“Uh, hey. This is Scott, right?”

That was a kid’s voice. That woke Scott up faster than his cellphone ever could. He sat up on one arm, half noticing when Ennard shuffling up closer and pressing his mask into his

“Erm, yes. That’s me. Who is this…?”

“This is Gregory. I know this is weird, but we need your help. I’m at the payphone outside of a gas station with Moondrop and Jake and we need to find Michael. Or Jake needs to find Michael. How do we get to your house?”

There was a noticeable squeak as Ennard suddenly turned his head. Now he was listening. Good to see they were on the same page, because Scott would’ve snapped awake too if he wasn’t already listening.

“OH! Yeah, umm, sure. Of course! Can you maybe just give me like a vague sort of- well, not vague, but a description of which gas station it is. Or what’s the name of it?”

“It’s the Gas and Go in the middle of town.”

“The one with the- with the payphones on the side and there’s an alley around with the bathroom?”

“I think so. Unless they all look like this.”

Ah yes, the Gas and Go. The Gas and Go Ennard almost died behind. Scott knew exactly where it was.

“Okay, I know where you are! Just give me a few minutes to get dressed and I’ll come get you.”

“Don’t bother, we have a van. Just tell me how to get to your house.”

Scott proceeded to give him the best directions he could.

“-And then take a right onto that road and drive down until you see the house with the van outside.”

“Then take a right onto that road and look for the house with a van!” Gregory recited to someone else. Scott had a hunch maybe Jake or Moon were hiding out of sight nearby. “Got it! Thanks.”

“No problem. I’ll unlock the door for you,” Scott said.

“Okay! We’ll be there!”

“But before you-.” Scott’s request was cut off by the phone hanging up. Gregory probably hadn’t even heard him continuing. Then he just sat in the bed, reeling and still trying to wake up. “Huh…”

And then the bed started shaking. Or at least, the wire body flush to his back did. It began trembling even before the excited little giggles started tumbling out. That quickly progressed to full-blown laughter. Ennard’s excitement was adorable but also just the slightest bit concerning.

Then he booped him with his nose on his shoulder- a quick smooch with his masked mouth- and swiftly untangled himself before all but leaping out of bed and scrambling for the door.

“AH HA HA HA- I’ll be ri-hee-hee-ght back!”

“Are you going to tell-?”

“It’s finally happening~!” Ennard nearly squealed.

“What’s happening?” Michael asked groggily. Half-asleep, half in a zombified state from starting at the TV, still watching it as Ennard came strutting up behind the couch. Michael stole a look at the clock. “What could possibly be happening at five in the morning?”

“Oh, nothing muuuuch,” Ennard stretched out. He had an eager grin- well, grinning in his own way. “Exccceeept.”

“Except?”

“Jake’s on his way,” Ennard revealed. Leaning over the back of the couch, fingers digging into the back of it, eyes glowing giddily.

Michael did a double take. “He’s what?”

“He’s driving here right now!”

“He’s what?!”

The garage door swung open to reveal a pair of emerald eyes glowing from the darkness of the garage.

“What on earth did you do?!” Baby demanded.

“Oh Baby, I’m sorry. Did I wake you up?” Ennard asked cheekily.

“You could’ve woken the dead with that display. What do you mean, Jake’s driving here? With who?”

“With Moonpie and Gregory, apparently!”

“Is that true?” Baby called towards Scott’s open door.

“It’s true! Gregory just called me! They’re driving over here right now!” Scott called back.

“How could they do that? It is…” She looked at the clock. “It’s very nearly six and they are- did you say, driving? Driving what?”

“A van! Didn’t clarify where they got it. Might be Fritz’s,” Ennard said with a shrug.

“Oh. So, we should assume it’s stolen. A small child and two animatronics driving around at the stroke of morning in a stolen van. I cannot see that going wrong,” Baby huffed. “…I should call Charlie.”

“You do that, Babydoll, but don’t tell anybody else to swing by until they get here! Gregory said SPECIFICALLY that they’re here to see Michael.”

Michael, who had been silent until that moment, felt like someone stepped on his grave from that comment. Why on Earth would any of them need to see him? Why hadn’t Jake just called? Was he or Moon damaged and they simply hadn’t said so on the phone? If that was the case, why was Gregory there? Where was Freddy? There were so many questions.

Why? That was the biggest one. Why? And the possible ‘why’s snowballed quickly once he started thinking them up, and it always led to an uneasy outcome once he factored himself in. Ennard must’ve noticed his silence, or at least his head in his hand, and reached out to give him a pat on the back.

Scott finally made it out of his room, having to put his prosthetic on first, and turned on the standing lamp by the chair. Bonnet, who was curled in the chair, jumped with a yelp when it clicked on.

“Oh, sorry! I didn’t see you there,” Scott apologized as he turned the light away. He gave her a little pat between the ears.

“That woke you up, but he did not?” Michael asked in disbelief. Jabbing a thumb back in Ennard’s direction.

“Of course not. She’s too used to being around him and this is his normal volume,” Baby remarked. Her arms crossed, her claw tilted upwards and resting partially on her shoulder.

“What’s goin’ on?” Bonnet asked groggily. Her squinting eyes peering around. Ennard came over to get her and she reached her arms up needily, asking to be picked up. Which he did. “Where’s your clothes?” she asked.

Ennard snapped his fingers and mimicked the sound. “That reminds me. I really should throw something on.”

“Yeah, maybe. Only if you feel like it,” Scott replied with a little smile. Ennard snickered and went back off into the bedroom, now toting Bonnet with him.

With him out of the way, Baby wheeled herself up to Scott. “Did they really say they were here to see Michael?”

“They did. Or Gregory did. He’s the one I talked to. Get this, they called from the Gas and Go.”

“Don’t tell me it’s the same Gas and Go.”

“It’s the same Gas and Go.”

Baby sighed and lifted her hand to her head, sort of like Michael had been previously doing. “Well, let’s hope someone is not nearly dead this time.”

“Heh, yeah…” Scott said with little confidence that it wasn’t the case. He cleared his throat. “Could be, seeing as they’re coming here. Let’s hope it’s not Moon because Mike said they had a heck of a time trying to repair him the last time.”

Jake wouldn’t have come by without calling unless it was an emergency. Then again, even then he would’ve called. The idea of him rushing over her- the only thing Michael could think was…

“Maybe he was caught,” he said, breaking the silence. Both Baby and Scott turned to him. “Jake’s out of service and has been hiding in the daycare, but if someone saw him… this may be his attempt to escape being repurposed.”

Baby’s claw tightened at the word ‘repurposed’ and from Scott’s look he seemed to know exactly what he was implying. He coughed again, anxiously.

“Well… Hey, well, they got out! So that’s… that could be it,” he agreed. He looked towards the window before walking over to it and peeking out around the curtains, watching for the van to arrive.

“It makes sense,” Baby said. “…And what will we do if that’s the case?”

“Whatever is necessary,” Michael mumbled. He was already bracing for the worst.

Ennard returned wearing some sweatpants and his jacket- which wasn’t buttoned due to a noticeable lump on the back and a pair of pink ears sticking out of the back of his collar- and went to go stand with Scott. More specifically behind Scott so he could hug him from behind and peek through the window at the same time. A few minutes later he perked up.

“A Freddy’s van just pulled up,” Scott warned. “Either it’s Jake or someone coming to repossess Baby,” he lightly joked. Ennard cackled, Baby wasn’t amused.

Scott watched for a few seconds more before hurrying to get the door, nearly tripping over the shoes beside it, and unlocked it and opened it a little. Only to then have it fling open. He barely stepped back- running into Ennard who was right behind him again- as Moon barreled through pushing Jake ahead of him with one arm and Gregory being carried around the middle under the other. Once they got in he released Jake long enough to shove the door closed behind him and fall back onto it.

“Uh… Good thing you found the right house,” Scott joked again with an awkward little cough.

“We nearly didn’t,” Moon mumbled. His points starting to come out and colors changing from the light. “Until I saw your head in the window.”

“And the van. Which, thanks for the heads up,” Jake added.

He seemed especially jittery, trying his hardest not to blatantly stare at Michael- which he was doing the moment he walked in and stopped as soon as Michael started staring back.

“But umm, hey everybody!”

“Hi!” Bonnet’s muffled voice came from Ennard’s jacket.

“Hello, Jake, Moon, Gregory. Good evening to you all. Or should I say good morning?” Baby said, an edge of weariness creeping through.

“Either or. I-It’s about fifteen minutes either way, give or take,” Jake said with a nervous little laugh.

“So!” Ennard rubbed his hands together eagerly. “Who was the driver?”

The now fully shifting Moon-Sun lifted a weary hand.

“I could’ve drived. I know how,” Gregory casually mentioned.

Before anyone could ask, the jester on the floor started getting up.

“WELL,” Sun began. He pushed himself up to his feet, swaying on them as his points finally popped out and then made a chopping gesture towards Michael. “There he is.”

“Thanks for telling me. I didn’t notice,” Jake mumbled.

“Oh, I think you did,” Sun muttered right back.

This was Michael’s cue, he supposed. Seeing that they were both seemingly alright alleviated his concerns a little.

“Evening Jake, Sun, and you too Gregory.”

Gregory had only just then saw him and was staring wide-eyed.

“Whoa… Are you, like, some kind of Bonnie?”

“I wasn’t, but this suit was. But that was a very long time ago,” Michael answered honestly. “I am Foxy and Marion’s older brother. I don’t know if they’ve mentioned.”

“No, no. They did! Foxy’s talked about you a couple of times, and Freddy said you came by and hung out with Chica that one time.”

“Actually, I hung out with Chica. I just forced him to come with me,” Ennard corrected.

Sun elbowed Jake in the back, and it was enough to get him to finally start going ahead.

“Can I talk to you? Talk with you, in private? Somewhere like…” Jake looked around and spotted the garage door. “In there?”

“That’s Baby’s room. How about you go in my office? Or hey, the bedroom’s right there. It’ll be a lot less cramped,” Scott said. He pointed towards his bedroom door and briefly met eyes with Michael, and quickly back peddled, “If, uh, that’s alright with you, Michael. Sorry, didn’t mean to put you on the spot.”

“Who’s putting who on the spot? It’s not like we showed up on your doorstep in the middle of the night in the pouring rain,” Sun said with a shrug and tilt of the head. This got an amused ‘heh’ out of Ennard.

Michael knew good and well that he could shoot down the idea, but there was absolutely no way he would be getting to the bottom of this with Ennard and Sun in the room, and in the same room. So, he got up quickly. As quick as he could, staggering a little on stiff legs from being on the couch.

“I will be taking you up on that offer. Thank you, Scott,” Michael said. He turned to Jake and beckoned him. Jake hurried over and followed along behind him into the bedroom.

Michael made sure to make direct eye contact with Ennard before shutting the door, silently requesting that he not run over and start listening through the door. Ennard wasn’t planning on it anyway; he would simply imagine the best.

“First off…” Sun said, tenting his fingers. He aimed them towards Scott. “I would like to thank you for your note.”

“My note?”

“The one you left at the dump. That hidey hole was Jake and mine back when we lived out there.”

“No kidding!” Ennard said. “Which of you was collecting all the toys?”

“That would be Jake… buuut I started pitching in. You don’t really get a lot of options on hobbies when you’re, well… you know.”

“You know I do. I’ve been making my own fun for years now!”

“And I’m a witness to that,” Scott said. Ennard cackled and hooked an arm around him, then hooked an arm behind himself to stop Bonnet from falling out the bottom of his jacket.

Baby watched Jake and Michael head into the room and knew something was amiss. Jake was acting peculiar, and it wasn’t lovestruck dreamer deciding to risk his and others’ life to come proclaim his feeling. He seemed genuinely shaken when he walked through that door. Something must’ve happened.

“If you will excuse me, I need to make a phone call.”

Sun snapped his head to her. “Who are you calling?!” he asked with panic.

“Charlie,” Baby replied briskly.

“Oh… Oooh! Okay, sure, mm-hmm. You go ahead and do that.”

Baby narrowed her eyes suspiciously at his sudden change in tone. How eagerly he went from panicking to plodding over to the couch and fixing it up, propping up a throw pillow on the armrest and pulling down the blanket from the back.

“And what does that mean? Who did you think I was going to call?” she asked.

“Oh, I don’t know, but I get worried all the same. In case you haven’t noticed, heh, I shouldn’t be here. So there’s thaaat.” He fluffed the throw pillow. “But don’t be surprised if she doesn’t answer. I’m thinking she’s still at the Pizzaplex.”

Baby was confused. Charlie hadn’t said she was going to the Pizzaplex. She nearly asked but Scott beat her to it.

“Charlie’s at the Pizzaplex? Mike didn’t say anything about them going down there- or, I mean, I assume he and Mari went too.”

“Wellll heh, funny story! You see-.”

“Foxy and Roxy were having a race and something went wrong with his go-kart and he ran her over,” Gregory answered matter-of-factly.

“WHAT?” Ennard reacted. “How’d THAT happen?!”

“I don’t know, but he hit her and then they both crashed through a wall and fell this huge drop into the basement! And then they got stuck in a furnace and Moondrop had to get them out! Roxy’s whole face was smooshed in! I didn’t see it, but the way everyone’s talking about it, it must’ve been really, really bad,” Gregory continued. No amount of Sun waving his hands behind him getting him to stop from spilling all the dirty details.

Scott brought a hand to his head in shock, Ennard’s jaw dropped open, and Bonnet wiggled herself out of his jacket and peeked around his head.

There was a heavy pause for a few long seconds. Then-

“For the record-,” Ennard suddenly broke the silence. He pointed towards the floor. “I was here ALL NIGHT. I had no hand in this disaster.”

“That’s not good,” Scott said, hissing through his teeth. “That’s-That’s really not good, and… Yeah, this was probably a bad day for you guys to come by.”

“It wasn’t my idea!” Sun said defensively.

“It was Jake’s. He was worried about Michael- Mmph!”

Gregory wasn’t going to say more than that, but a hand clasped over his mouth regardless.

“That’s enough story time, Sunspot. You’re going to give these two a panic attack! Eh, or at least me…” he mumbled the last part. He uncovered his mouth to grab his shoulder and steer him towards the couch. “Besides, besides! Take a look at-!”

“You said Foxy was in the fall too? And in the furnace… How is he? Was he hurt?” Baby interrupted. Her once apathetic and suspicious tone now soft and filled with genuine concern.

“Oh, no, no! He’s fine! Just a little shook up is all!” Sun eagerly swept off with a sweeping hand motion. Only to stop the motion with a clench of his fingers. “But Roxy, uh… She had to get a little work done.”

“How much work is a little?” Ennard asked with a nervous little chuckle.

“Oh… Uh… Well-.”

“She didn’t have any eyes,” Gregory said cryptically.

“Okay, that’s all, folks! Enough doom and gloom for tonight! Charlie or Mari or Mike or Foxy can give you the details tomorrow, but this little firecracker’s gotta get snuffed out!... In a sleep sort of way,” Sun quickly tacked on. He spun on his heel and began patting the little bed he made on the couch with both hands. “Time for bedtime, Sunwort!”

“I’m going to sleep here? Aren’t we leaving before morning? Which is like… now?”

“Eh, depends on how long Jake takes- BUT you need to get as much sleep as possible! We’re already way past your bedtime and if Freddy found out he, uh, he’s- he’ll probably be disappointed…”

Sun’s uneasiness crept back out. He hadn’t even thought about what Freddy would think once he found out that he took Gregory outside the Pizzaplex without telling him, drove him without a license, and brought him to another town. Really, Freddy being disappointed about him not keeping up with Gregory’s bedtime would be the least of his worries.

But the mention of Freddy got through to Gregory. He sighed and got on the couch and under the blanket.

“This sucks,” he muttered.

“Wait until you get my age,” Sun sympathized and covered him up.

“Does that mean we can’t watch TV?” Bonnet whispered.

“’Fraid not. But hey, I didn’t see you watching TV anyways,” Ennard said cheekily. He gave her a playful little poke with his finger.

“I-I was just resting my eyes while the commercials were on!” Bonnet defended.

“Suuuuure,” Ennard said with a little chuckle. He looked back to Scott and that’s when he noticed his hand still on his forehead and staring down with a hundred-yard stare, still reeling. Ennard rubbed Scott’s arm to get his attention. “Why don’t you go sit down?

“No, it’s okay. I’m alright.”

“No-ho you’re not. Come on, sit. Take a load off,” Ennard encouraged, leading him over to his armchair.

“…You know, I think I could sit,” Scott finally agreed and sat down.

“You need anything?” Ennard asked as he stood above Scott, combing and petting back Scott’s still somewhat bed-ruffled hair. “A really late late-night snack? Maybe some juice? Maybe something else?”

Ennard purposefully didn’t mention his medicine out loud, and Scott appreciated that. Even though he didn’t think he needed it yet. His nerves were fine enough, and his stress wasn’t nearly high enough to worry about it triggering a spasm in his neck or anything.

Ennard comforted him a little longer before moving around to Baby. She was guarded- as she usually were when there were visitors in the house- but she didn’t shrug him off when he put an arm around her like he had with Scott and rubbed over the plates on her back.

“Foxy’ll be fine! He’s been beat up by a whole lot worse,” he assured.

She hoped he was right, because she wouldn’t know until someone picked up the phone, and if they were still at the Pizzaplex that could be nearly an hour from now. She would start calling by then, call around and get the full story on what happened. For now she would stay put and keep watch. Eventually Michael would return and maybe then they would get some answers as well.

While this was going on, Michael shut the bedroom door before turning around to face Jake.

“Let me start by saying that I’m mildly impressed you drove all the way here considering that I doubt you’ve driven before,” Michael started.

“I- heh- well, I haven’t but Moon drove. He hasn’t either, but he’s not as much of a lead foot,” Jake joked. He gave a nervous chuckle and looked around the master bedroom.

It was weird to realize this was the first time he had been in an actual bedroom, inside of an actual house, in years. It was a nice place, and the windows were all safely covered. He even spotted a cat laying in a pet bed in the corner, watching them with a lazy look in its eyes. It didn’t seem to care at all, though he would bet money that it would run if he stepped close enough to pet it.

“What happened?” Michael asked quietly.

Jake turned back to him. “Huh?”

“At the Pizzaplex? I know you wouldn’t just risk your life on the road just for a friendly visit.”

“Oh, right. I… Well, something DID happen. Before you get worried, everyone’s fine! Roxy and Foxy just got into a little… accident while go-karting, but they fixed up Roxy and Foxy was only a little scuffed up. From what I heard, I think Fritz is going to fix him up at the warehouse once they leave the Pizzaplex, so he’s in good hands! Roxy was way worse off, but they got most of her back in working order.”

“Oh, dear God. Was this another Chica situation?” Michael asked. He didn’t sound even surprised, just exhausted.

“…Well, yes.”

Michael pinched the bridge of his nose, or what might’ve been it. “Why didn’t he call us?” he muttered.

“Because he didn’t want to worry you… Actually… that’s sort of why I’m here.”

Michael looked out from under his hand. That stare was disarming even without the current situation at hand, but that didn’t make it any easier.

Jake tilted his head down meekly and fiddled with the edges of his cloak. He never knew what to do with his hands in situations like this.

“I overheard Foxy telling Jeremy that he didn’t call you because he didn’t want to worry you and how he felt bad about what happened to Roxy. He blames himself because, I don’t know, I think he might’ve been the one who challenged Roxy to a race. It doesn’t matter, it’s not his fault,” Jake explained. He lifted his greyish blue eye to meet Michael’s own. “But…that’s not all that I heard…”

Michael could feel his springlocks tightening up. “What did you hear?”

“I heard about- I think I heard part of what happened with you… I know about the warehouse. And what happened the other day in it. Most of it.”

Due to his suit, Michael couldn’t emote easily. He could look bored, and he could look surprised easily enough because of his still-functional eye lids. Smiling required opening his mouth and because that Michael either didn’t do it or made sure to angle himself when he intended to.

But that look in his eyes when he heard that was undeniable and recognizable fear and nothing less. And with it, Jake’s feeble hopes that Foxy had been mistaken were dashed.

“I’m sorry,” he blurted out. “I know I shouldn’t have been listening but… It’s a hard habit to break.”

“Gabriel… Foxy was talking to Jeremy? Alone?” Michael asked stiffly.

“Yes. And nobody else heard except for Andrew, but he understands. He’s gone through something like that. That’s why I’m here, I needed to, uh…” Jake made a noise like a breath and took a few steps back. He boldly offered a hand towards the bed. “Michael, sit down.”

Michael was intrigued enough to do so, sitting on the foot of the bed, and listening to it creak underneath him. He still felt weird touching the comforter, but he had been wiped down so many times that he knew there had to be less of a chance to taint it with any of the leftovers soaked into his suit. Jake stood before him, his fists tight at his side. Michael looked down at them and then back up to his mask.

“I know that life’s not been good to you. I understand- not what you’ve gone through, but that life’s unfair. But that doesn’t mean it’s worth giving up. You should know that, you’ve been through so much horrible stuff, but you keep living. You keep living and surviving because you want to. I know you don’t want it to be over! We can make it better, you don’t need to go it alone anymore,” Jake sympathized.

Now Michael got it. He knew exactly what Jake thought was happening.

“And I’m sorry… I’m sorry I didn’t realize during our talks that something was wrong. I should’ve been there for you…” Jake finished quietly.

But Jake didn’t know when it had happened.

Michael dropped his head into his hand with a heavy sigh. “Jake, thank you for saying that. I truly appreciate it, knowing you care enough to come down here, but you don’t need to worry about me… Because that incident didn’t just happen. It happened the night we left the Pizzaplex.”

“…What?”

Jake’s weak voice alone almost broke Michael, but he remained steady.

“I had a lapse in judgement and when we got back to the warehouse… I became desperate to get out of this suit. I didn’t set out to hurt myself, but I knew I was. I just wasn’t thinking. I tried, and failed, to remove my suit. Ennard stopped me and he and Scott brought me here… I didn’t tell Foxy and the others about it until days later, once I had gotten over it for the most part. Before you ask, no. I don’t intend to do it again. And no, it was not your fault or anyone else’s… I did it because I was desperate.”

Jake was floored. He hadn’t anticipated that Foxy was talking about an incident that didn’t happen only a few days ago. Since Michael visited the Pizzaplex- that was a while ago. They had talked plenty since then.

But that meant it was over, and that he had misunderstood Foxy. It hadn’t been an attempt to end things. It was an accident and he had accidentally hurt himself trying to get free from his situation-

That was worse.                                                                                                

That was exactly what he did.

Now Jake knew there was no choice but to go with the initial plan. His hands were shaking before he tightened them into fists again.

“Did… Did Charlie or Mari ever tell you how I got this way?” Jake quietly asked.

Michael was a little surprised by the change in topic.

“I heard you had been vandalized,” he said. “I didn’t believe it for a second, but that’s the word going around.”

“Technically I was! Was vandalized… But I… I did it to myself. I broke myself.”

Michael straightened out of his slouched posture. His eyes widened; his right ear lifted attentively.

“Something happened at the Pizzaplex, and I lost someone I really cared about, and I couldn’t handle it and I thought the best thing I could do was put myself out of service. So, I used the Staff Bots to tear myself apart. And then I did it again. And again. And I did it until they stopped fixing me and instead fixed up Andrew to replace me. And now… See for yourself.”

Jake reached up and pulled back his cloak off his head. Then he hesitated as his hands touched the edge of his mask.

Michael saw his hesitance. He gently started, “Jake, you don’t have to-.”

In that moment Jake got the nerve and shoved the mask up and off his face.

Michael was expecting damage, but it was still hard to look at.

Jake’s face was all but split in two. On one half, part of the Sun’s mask remained. It was cracked in places, especially with chipped teeth and a broken nose. The little gap in his smile barely noticeable beyond being another crack. It was on this faded crescent where his blue eye rested.

The other half was gutted like it had been pillaged for parts. Much of the metal skeleton beneath was exposed, including a row of flat teeth under his teeth, which moved as he spoke- which Michael soon realized. That eye was a foggy whitish grey with a strange pink-blue line through the center. Likely malfunctioning, as it flickered from time to time.

Upon removing his cloak and mask, a few of his remaining sun points slid free. Half not sliding out all the way, a couple more chipped. While the damage on his body was easily covered up with a fake leg and said cloak, this exposed exactly why Jake was out of service. All the damage that couldn’t be seen was shown on his face.

“I did this to me,” Jake said.

That solemn confession sent a chill through Michael.

“Breaking myself didn’t fix anything, and it didn’t take back what happened. All it did was leave me like this,” Jake continued. “I know I make it sound easy, but… it’s hard living behind a curtain. Knowing that if I get caught, I’m going to be treated like a… like I’m just a broken robot. There’s no begging for my life, there’s no convincing them I’m a real person. I’m going to be taken apart and melted down. There’s nothing I can do, and I did this to myself… And I regret it. I regret it and sometimes… I feel like a burden.”

He looked down at his mask, tracing his thumbs over the material. Once the face of his dearest companion and now his, forever. He didn’t hate this fate, but it wasn’t easy. He wasn’t under the Pizzaplex’s thumb like Andrew was, but he was nobody now. Like a ghost. He finally knew what it felt like to truly haunt something, or to feel like he barely existed.

And yet…

“But… I’ll live. I’ll live! And I’ll live because I’ve got plenty of things left for me. I’ve just got to count my blessings and remember the things I can’t afford to lose. I know things seem hopeless, Michael, but don’t take for granted what you have. You’ve got a family who loves you, and friends! And you’ve got a chance. And I know that it’s hard, and it’s unfair and cruel, but I don’t want you to… I don’t want to lose you. And I don’t want you to lose you either.”

There was a heavy silence over the room as Jake waited for Michael’s response, looking to him expectantly.

Then Michael suddenly stood up. Jake looked to him with mild surprise, only notable through his motions.

Despite everything, despite what he was, despite the situation, Michael reached out his arms. He didn’t touch him, he waited for a sign.

Jake’s sign was to step in a little. Michael responded by pulling him into a tight embrace. Pulling him in as close as he could and not thinking twice about his suit. It was just about Jake.

Because Michael took a lot out of that speech, but there was one thing that rang out above all else. Michael had a family who loved him and understand- even a brother who was still so concerned about it, which both made him feel loved and guilty. He had a best friend who snapped him out of it, dragged him home, and was doing his best to get him on his feet. He had Scott’s compassion, Ennard’s care, Baby’s quiet concern, and so many others.

Jake didn’t.

Jake had Andrew, that much was certain, and he had a few good friends outside of the Pizzaplex, like Charlie and himself… but it wasn’t enough. Maybe he was putting his own feelings into Jake’s words, but it didn’t feel like enough.

It was hard enough going through that without the weight of a corporation pressing down on you, and without a crew to lift you up. After going alone for so long, Michael knew how devastating it was. Yet here Jake was.

“You shouldn’t have risked your life coming here,” Michael said. His voice grew softer, lighter. “But… I’m glad you did.”

“Thanks… I started thinking it was sort of stupid,” Jake admitted.

“Oh, it was very stupid, but I’m glad you’re here.” There was a small pause. “Have you… been able to talk to anyone else about this?”

“…Not really. I sort of sugarcoat it most of the time, because I’m not like that anymore and I don’t want to worry Andrew about it. He spends too much time worrying about me.”

“I can take over,” Michael said with no hesitation.

Jake fumbled a little. “That wasn’t the plan here.”

“Let’s not kid ourselves, the plan went awry when you decided to wake up Ennard.”

Jake laughed a little. He pressed his face into Michael’s shoulder and hugged on tightly.

“You’re plushier than I thought you’d be,” he admitted. “You said this was an old suit, right?”

“Older than me, perhaps,” Michael answered. Though was only not remembering the suit between them. He had almost forgotten about it. “Apologies for the rancid smell.”

“What rancid smell? You smell like…” Jake silently ‘smelled’ through the sensors on his broken face. “You kind of smell like carpet sprinkle,” he said. After silence from Michael, he quickly added, “It’s good carpet sprinkle!”

Michael chuckled despite the situation.

They stood there for a long while holding each other. It was a little strange. Very different for them both. It was nice, that was for certain, and they needed it.

Jake didn’t even realize that he wanted it until he had it. He didn’t get this close to anyone except Andrew and…

He had to tell him. Not just had, he wanted to tell him, but he waited as long as he could before doing so. Which was a while. Michael didn’t seem eager to let him go, and Jake passed the time poking around and feeling the arm of his suit, trying to study it as best as he could from this position. Mostly just feeling over the worn plushness that Michael took little notice of. Though he did trace his fingers gently over some of his broken points.

Eventually they split apart. Slowly, almost hesitantly. Then they were just standing there for a moment before Michael leaned down and reached for Jake’s mask. Jake hadn’t even realized he had dropped it.

“You don’t have to. I can get that.”

“I’m already down here,” Michael assured. He handed the mask to Jake, but then hesitated in letting it go even after Jake started to take it. “You don’t need to wear this around me.”

Jake would’ve smiled if he could’ve, so he made sure it was apparent in his voice. “Thank you, Michael.”

“Thank you for coming… but next time, let me take the risk. It would be a much easier to mitigate disaster if I was caught in the Pizzaplex than if you were caught out here.”

“I know, but it was worth it. Hey, this is my first time getting outside in months! We even went and saw one of our old hiding spots.”

Michael’s eyes softened. “Have you ever considered coming back out? For good, considering your situation.”

“I… have, yes. But I can’t leave Andrew and he can’t leave Freddy, and we’re all sort of stuck in the same box for now.”

“I understand. Just know that the offer is always there. The warehouse has a space in its basement that is large enough to make for an apartment. It wouldn’t be as much as the Pizzaplex offers, but it is much more than your room does.”

“That sounds perfect! Why haven’t you taken it?”

Michael didn’t expect to have the question flipped on him. “…I suppose I never considered it. I was just staying in the office.”

“Well, I think you made a good choice coming here. You’ve got a whole support system here! And with Ennard? I guess it doesn’t get dull.”

“It doesn’t,” Michael agreed with mild amusement.

Jake’s points bobbed a little, happily, before he looked down at his mask and they began to sink in with unease. He used that awkward silence- on his end- to venture the subject he didn’t want to bring up.

“There’s something else I have to tell you.”

“Yes?”

“It’s about Vanny.”

Michael had never been so at alert as he had in that moment, and yet strangely a little disinterested. Like Vanny’s arrival had interrupted their time together.

“Her name is Vanessa.”

Michael held back the ‘obviously’ on his tongue before Jake continued.

“…And his name is Bunny.”

…

There was a knock at the door.

It startled everyone. Gregory sat up on the couch, Ennard looked up from his position on the floor- stretched out on his side, and Scott looked in from the kitchen where he had started a light breakfast.

“I hope that’s not Fazbear Entertainment,” he said before thinking.

At hearing that, Baby speedily bolted her way into the garage while Sun hopped over the back of the couch before grabbing up Gregory and dragging him over the top, with Gregory giving a startled, “Hey, watch it! Geez…”

“Shh!”

Scott took a steadying breath and turned off the stove, assuming that he was going to be away from it for a while. He then made his way across the living room, catching sight of Ennard sliding behind his chair, and went to the window. He flinched a little at another round of knocks before peeking out. As soon as he saw who it was, he hurried to the door, unlocked it, and threw it open.

There stood Natalie on his doorstep in the now pouring rain. She was still in her security guard uniform and had a slightly perturbed look.

“Natalie! What a… what not a surprise to see you here,” Scott admitted. He stepped aside and let her in. “Sorry, I was in the kitchen.”

“No problem. I’m just lucky you’re awake,” she said.

“What brings you here? It couldn’t have been the, uh, stolen van sitting in my driveway, could it?”

“The one parked in the street? That’s no big deal. No, actually I was trying to investigate an accident at the Pizzaplex when all of a sudden, Fritz noticed a van leaving through the basement. So, I checked around, and what do you know? There’s a few animatronics unaccounted for. And that’s why I’m here.”

She looked between the closed doors and the couch and chair. Scott even looked over and waited, and after a few seconds Ennard peeked out. Then a few seconds after that, Sun peeked out as well.

“H-How did you find out where we were?” he squeaked.

“You’re not going to believe this,” Natalie said, mostly to the others. “Max told us.”

“What?! H-How did he know where we were?!” Sun said, hopping up in surprise.

“Oh, ho, you sweet summer child. Maxamillian the all-seeing knows everything~!” Ennard chirped as he finally stepped out of hiding and took a seat in Scott’s chair. Crossing his legs and folding his hands innocently, with Bonnet sitting in his lap.

“Fritz and I were checking around Foxy’s when Mike called and said that Max said you were here. And, lo and behold,” Natalie said. She put her hands on her hips. “So, where’s the others?”

Sun slumped but he wasn’t the one who gave a sigh. That was Gregory who stood up and came around the couch with his hands up.

“You’ve got me, Officer,” he said.

“Uh huh,” Natalie replied flatly. “And the others?”

“Jake’s in the bedroom,” Sun mumbled, pointing towards the door.

“And Freddy?”

“Freddy?” Gregory asked in confusion. “Isn’t he with his friends?”

“His friends haven’t seen him since he went to check on the daycare. Foxy hadn’t either, he was the one who thought he must’ve left with you,” Natalie said. She was confused too and looked to Sun for answers.

“He’s… He’s okay… He’s… He’s in the basement,” Sun murmured.

Gregory whipped around to face him. “What? I thought you said he was busy. What’s he doing down there?”

“…He was looking for Bonnie again,” Sun said quietly.

Natalie’s face softened with sympathy. “Oh…”

“Oh…” Gregory copied. His voice growing quiet as well.

Gregory thought it was weird that he couldn’t contact Freddy on the Faz-Watch earlier. When Sun said he was ‘busy’, Gregory assumed he was with his friends. If he was in the basement then it explained the loss of signal.

“That’s one mystery solved then,” Natalie said lowly. “As long as he shows up before six.”

Sun snapped his head toward the clock and reminded himself how close it was to morning before all but darting to the bedroom door and rapping on it quickly.

“Oh, Jake? S-Sorry to interrupt, but Vanessa’s here and we need to go.”

“What?!”

Sun didn’t expect that, or for Jake to suddenly yank over the door. Which is why he stumbled in and nearly crashed into him. Jake stuck his head past to look, holding his mask on with one hand, and looked out.

As soon as he saw Natalie, he relaxed significantly.

“Natalie! I thought… I didn’t think you’d show up! How’d you find us?”

“Max ratted you out,” Ennard recited.

“Max strikes again, I see,” Michael remarked.

“You had your mask off…?” Sun mumbled suspiciously.

Jake gave an awkward, if entirely guilty little laugh as he affixed his mask correctly.

“Good to see you. Sorry to cut the visit short, but we really need to get you back to the Pizzaplex,” Natalie said. She was now a little more apologetic once she noticed Jake and Michael together.

“No, I understand. We were supposed to leave a while ago. My fault! I lost track of time, sorry,” Jake said. He started to walk over when Michael caught his arm.

“Before you go, I can tell Marion what you told me, but it would be better coming from him. Call him tomorrow. Call me tonight as soon as you get to the Pizzaplex.”

Jake gave a sheepish little chuckle. “You can count on it! Yeah, I’d guess you’d want to make sure I got back.”

“Of course,” Michael agreed. He moved his hand from his shoulder to his upper back. “But again, thank you for coming.”

“Thank you for helping me,” Jake countered.

“He helped you?” Sun mumbled.

“Hey, where’s the keys?” Natalie asked. Sun fished around in his pocket before pulling them out and handing them over. “Thank you.”

“Wait, you’ve got pockets?” Gregory asked in mild surprise.

“Yes, I have pockets. They’re for keeping candy in,” Sun said matter-of-factly. Gregory held his hand. “What’s the magic word?”

“Abracadabra?” Gregory guessed.

Sun gave him that look he did when he was getting grumpy, and Gregory shot him a beaming smile.

“…That was a Freddy joke, wasn’t it?” Sun asked. He didn’t need an answer, it sounded like one. He dropped a Moondrop candy into Gregory’s hand. “Don’t eat this until you’re in bed unless you feel like sleeping in the van.”

“You can pull your car up and leave it here. Or I can drive after you and pick you up,” Scott offered Natalie.

“Thanks, but Fritz drove me. He’s got Foxy in the back and he and Jeremy are heading to the warehouse. My car’s still at the Pizzaplex.”

“He’s in the van right now?” Michael asked. Natalie nodded. “Then I’ll be going with him. Ben?”

“Count me in!” Ennard chirped. He shot up, passing Bonnet over to Scott.

“What about Mari?” Jake asked.

“He had to head home and get some sleep. He’s opening tomorrow,” Natalie said.

Jake thought for a second. Sun’s points pulled in uneasily, knowing he was planning something.

“I gave you the warehouse number, didn’t I?” Michael asked.

“I think so, maybe?”

“I’ll give you Fritz’s number just in case.”

Which he did. By time Jake was in the Freddy’s van, in the back with Moon and Gregory, he was clutching the paper with Fritz’s and the warehouse’s numbers on it. A direct line to Michael, even if they probably wouldn’t see each other for a while. It was sort of sad to go back, but he was feeling better.

After they left, Fritz backed in and let Michael and Ennard get in. First thing Michael did was take some unintended advice from Jake and threw aside any pride to hug Foxy, who was just as surprised at the suddenness as he was. At least he wasn’t too dinged up; they could get him fixed up.

For both Jake and Michael, the long night wasn’t nearly over.

…

It had been an extremely long night.

After taking care of Roxy, Mike and Marionette had gone down together and checked the section underneath Roxy Raceway where they had encountered the ‘thing’. At Marionette’s insistence, wanting nobody else put at risk. Fortunately, or not, they didn’t end up finding this elusive endo covered in wires. Just loose wires here and there, a few statuesque vandalized Staff Bots, and most disturbingly- a pair of crushed eyes on the floor of the furnace.

The furnace made them both uneasy already, but those eyes sent a chill down their spines as Marionette spotted them- scanning the furnace for clues- and pointed them out to Mike. Mike crouched down for a better look and made the conclusive decision that they had to be Roxy’s. It looked like they had been smashed underfoot, maybe during the struggle. They agreed then to not tell Roxy about their finding. They were too broken to be repaired anyways.

It wasn’t until they got to the place where the kart had fallen through that Marionette became emotional. Trying to smother off-tune twangs as he looked at the distance Foxy had fallen and the wreckage of the kart. Marionette’s wellbeing came first, so Mike pulled him into a hug and assured him. Making sure to wipe away the watery beginnings of tears. They always stayed away longer when it was Mike who wiped them away.

Then they looked around the wreck together. Mike was hoping he would spot a smoking gun on the kart itself, but there wasn’t one. This wasn’t the one that had its tires slashed and the tinkering of the brakes was hidden under the general damage.

“I’m surprised Gabe walked away from this…” Marionette quietly admitted.

“That’s Gabe for you. He could be missing both legs and he’d still find a way out. He’d walk on his hands if he had to,” Mike said. He tried to joke around a little, but it was hard in these circumstances. It instead came off half-hearted.

Marionette gave a light chime regardless. “That’s our Foxy,” he agreed.

Walking away from a miniature car accident; that was their Foxy. Tougher than he looked and always full of surprises, Mike thought. But he could still tell it bothered Marionette to see it.

It bothered him too, but what bothered him more was that there was no sign of a rabbit costume-clad woman, no sign of some wire-laden endo, no trace of the actual perpetrators. Vanny had high tailed it out of there.

It was a somber, frustrating moment, but it offered a little closure at least. It let them see where it happened and assure that whatever was going on had truly stopped, for the moment. For the moment it was quiet.

The usual amount of insanity reared its ugly head when they got back upstairs, and they found out about a stolen Freddy van escaping out of the basement. After a little searching and Foxy yelling around the daycare, it soon came out that Freddy, Sun or Moon, Jake, and Gregory were all missing. It seemed most likely that they were in the van. Or Vanny, possibly. Mike considered it but Natalie seemed certain it wasn’t her.

It wasn’t until Mike, Marionette, and Charlie got home that they got any answers. It was a simple conversation that spawned it; Max asked how the night went, Marionette gave a brief explanation, Mike vented at him for a short while, and by time he went to the fridge, swigged some bottled water, and came back Max recounted to him that Sun and Jake were at Scott’s.

Mike didn’t even need to ask; he just called Natalie and sent her that way. He considered calling Scott but decided not to risk tipping off Sun and Jake and having them split into the night.

And then, even though everything was still going on, he went to bed. He and Marionette would have to be up to go to Foxy’s in only a few hours. It would be rough enough with little sleep, it would be borderline impossible with none.

Mike hit the pillow and went right back to what he was doing before he got the call after only a few short minutes. During which, Marionette curled up to his chest and Mike petted his head until he drifted off, lulled to sleep by the Puppet’s warmth and soft trills.

Then there came a knock at the bedroom door.

It could’ve been two minutes later. It could’ve been two hours. Mike didn’t even check. The important part was that it wasn’t long enough, so Mike detached himself gently from Marionette and rolled back out of bed as slowly as he could

He stood up, sighing audibly as he did, and headed to the door while scratching his head and tussling his hair further. He opened the door not caring how he looked.

And came face to face with Moon.

“Hellloooo~,” Moon greeted.

Mike stared in disbelief before giving a groggy and confused, “Yes, Satan?”

Moon gave an unamused “tch” but Jake laughed. Jake who was there too, apparently, as Mike realized at that moment. His brows shot up as he looked between them.

“What in the world are you two doing here…?” he asked, still not entirely certain that he was awake.

“We were just in the neighborhoood and thought we’d, mmm, drop in,” Moon said.

“Through what, the chimney?”

“If you had a fireplace, perhaps. But in this case, we had a key,” Moon said.

Mike stared at him blankly as he processed that loaded comment. They had a key?

“Actually, Natalie had the key. We were just borrowing it,” Jake clarified.

Mike nodded like he understood and silently wondered how Natalie got the key. He realized Fritz must’ve given it to her once his head caught up.

“We needed to talk to you, and Mari too. Is he awake?” Jake asked.

“If he’s not, he will be any second now,” Mike said. He rubbed at his face, trying to wake up faster. “What’s up? What happened?”

The act was dropped then and both Jake and Moon fell into an uneasy silence. The latter turning to the former as though inviting him to begin, and Jake’s voice quieting as he spoke.

“We know… more about Vanny than we let on.”

Marionette seemed to simply apparate into the darkness behind Mike. Mike noticed and leaned on the opposite doorframe with his arms crossed, letting Marionette slide into the conversation.

Maybe it was his mask framed in darkness or their own guilt, but both Jake and Moon shirked under his gaze. Moon looked off towards the floor, Jake kept eye contact but began to nervously tap his fingers together.

“So, Vanny… She’s sort of… working under someone else,” Jake explained.

“A puppet for someone else,” Moon quickly corrected.

“Yes, that.”

“For who? That thing in the basement?” Mike guessed.

“Not… really...” Jake and Moon looked to each other. Moon began to stare at the floor on the opposite side as Jake looked back. “He was a friend of ours, the one who’s working with Vanny.”

“Your friend who helped you move into your bodies?” Marionette asked.

Moon pointed at him with a click. “That’sss the one.”

“He used to go by Bunny back when we knew him,” Jake explained. “Because he was haunting this bunny- Bonnie doll. It looked a lot like what Vanny looks like now.”

“He told her to build that suit. I’m surrre of it,” Moon hissed.

“He… probably did, yeah, but back then it wasn’t so… Things aren’t the same as they used to be. A lot’s happened and we’re not… exactly on speaking terms with Bunny anymore.”

“But you were still protecting him,” Marionette said.

That caused Jake’s shoulders to drop with guilt. Andrew immediately rose to their own defense.

“When you owe your lives to someone, it isn’t so easy to rat them out. Back when we met back up, you and I, you were just the person that stuck me in my suit. That’s different now, but when framed against Bunny being the one who put me in my current body, it’s clear where my loyalties would lie…” His voice too grew quiet, “But then Bunny changed and Vanny became a problem.”

Marionette couldn’t help but be a little hurt by the sentiment, but he didn’t show it. He understood, he had been a stranger. Bunny had been a friend. That truly did make Bunny a problem.

“How did he change?” Marionette asked.

Andrew was silent, so Jake took his turn again.

“It’s a long story but it’s sort of… Bunny always wanted a body. He had his heart set on this… one, but things happened and now he doesn’t have one and it’s leading him to getting desperate and angry.”

“And Vanny’s only fueling it,” Andrew added. “She is his worst influence.”

“I thought you said she was a puppet,” Marionette interjected.

“She is, but that doesn’t mean she has no hand in what’s going on here,” Andrew grumbled.

“But take that with a grain of salt. He’s never really liked this whole Vanny thing,” Jake added.

“Is he possessing her? Because I’ve had friends get possessed by rabbits before, and they start doing things they don’t want to do. There’s no influence about it,” Mike defended. He couldn’t help it, remembering what Jeremy had gone through. It struck a nerve. But he covered, lifting his hands in defense, “But what do I know? The guy we were dealing with was a professional manipulator. The situation could’ve been different.”

“…Who were you dealing with…?” Jake asked quietly, suspiciously.

“My father, William Afton,” Marionette answered. “The Purple Man.”

“Oh, okay! Phew. You had me worried for a second,” Jake said with an uneasy chuckle.

So, he seemed to not think it was William. Mike was awake enough to pick that up and likely Marionette did too.

Though Marionette was more concerned with how he was supposed to broach this. Vanny was a threat, he knew this. She hunted Gregory and targeted his brother and friends. Though if she was possessed then it was Bunny to blame. Dealing with Bunny was a different matter entirely. He wasn’t sure whether to approach this with compassion or as the threat he was.

“So, you’re saying that Bunny is lashing out. Maybe there’s a way that we can help him and convince him to stop?” Marionette asked neutrally. Mike looked to him in surprise but didn’t question him. From Marionette’s guarded tone he wasn’t as on-board with offering help as his words would lead to believe, he was just looking for possible outs.

Mike felt the same way, honestly. It was hard to feel bad for their friend when he was currently stringing some woman around attacking people.

Andrew’s answer was quick and shot any attempts down.

“You cannot go after him. And that is emphasis on you.” He pointed at Marionette’s chest.

Marionette’s default smile flickered away to a look of mild offense.

“I wouldn’t hurt him, if that’s what you’re implying. Yes, I might’ve attacked Vanny, but I was protecting Gregory from her.”

“And I can vouch for that. This crazy broad pulled a knife on Jeremy. Jeremy,” Mike defended.

“You could be bringing him flowers and chocolates for all I care. If he sees you, he will lash out at you. Bunny has very sore feelings towards puppets.”

Oh no. Marionette went rigid as he processed what that loaded line could mean. ‘Sore feelings’ could mean that it was another child he put in a suit, just like Andrew.

“You told him about me?” he asked, he hoped.

“I did, but he already knew who you are,” Andrew explained. “Bunny always knew things he wasn’t supposed to.”

“Bunny used to like, pick up memories from things and he’d have visions- it’s a long story. The point is, he knows who you are and if you go after him, he’ll get defensive and then things with Vanny will get worse,” Jake explained. “In fact, the best thing we could probably do is just… try to keep some distance away from him AND Vanny. I know that’s easy to say when she’s been coming after us, but I don’t want things to get any further than this. It’s bad enough that Roxy and Foxy got pulled into some petty squabble between Vanny and, well, okay, probably Vanny.”

Needless to say, Mike wasn’t exactly on-board with this plan. Maybe the possession stuff was really sitting badly with him, or maybe it was the memory of Gregory running to him in the basement, or all the other sketchy details that he had picked up in his years working around Freddy’s. It just didn’t sit right at all. It felt like the sort of decision that led to kids dying in the first place.

“So, what’s the goal here? You told us the truth about your friend and Vanny and to warn us about them, just to tell us to stay away from them and let them do whatever the hell they want?” Mike asked, barely hiding his frustration.

Jake and Andrew fumbled, and before they could interject, Marionette beat them to the punch.

“Thank you for telling us. We do appreciate it. Honestly, we do…” he said.

A strange silence fell between them. Like he was leaving words hanging, but there was a notable pause before he finished them.

“…But why are you telling us?” Marionette quietly added.

“For… For Gregory,” Andrew confessed. “Bunny doesn’t like kids. That is why Vanny is targeting him.”

“And I’m doing it- heh, funny enough. I’m doing it for Michael,” Jake confessed.

Marionette’s look of fear and worry very suddenly bloomed into a beaming smile with just the edge of smugness to his eyes. Despite how upset Mike was, he cracked a smile at that.

“It’s all innocent! We’re just friends, you know?” Jake quickly excused. His nervousness more damning than anything else. Andrew slapped a hand over his face.

“Don’t worry, that’s just his poker face,” Mike remarked, voice edging on smugness.

“Well, this has been a fun visit, but we are needed back at the Pizzaplex. If I am not there at opening, there will be trouble,” Andrew said, fully returning to his Moon persona.

“Yes, of course. We understand,” Marionette agreed, his expression sobering up again. “…And I’m going to let you go trusting that if things take a turn to the worst that you will tell us.”

“We will, I promise. You have our word,” Jake swore.

“Crosss our heart,” Moon agreed, making an x across his chest.

Mike took a step back and looked back at the nightstand to check the time and realized, begrudgingly, that time was not on their side. The willing interrogation had to end here, or they wouldn’t make it back to the Pizzaplex. Despite the very serious circumstances he knew Freddy’s wouldn’t be nearly so understanding if they found out what happened.

“And we’ll pick this up some other time,” Mike added. “You two be careful getting back. I’m guessing you have a lift, but do you need any tarps or anything?”

“We’re good, thanks,” Jake said. “Night, guys. Sorry to wake you up.”

“You’re welcome here anytime,” Marionette said sincerely.

With a few more goodbyes, including a downright menacing ‘Good night’ from Moon, the two finally left. Mike and Marionette watched them walk around the corner into the hallway before the latter retreated into the bedroom. Mike followed him in and shut the door shortly afterwards.

He found Marionette standing beside the bed, staring down at it with his posture slouched.

“Think you’ll get back to sleep?” he asked.

“I have to. We have work tomorrow.”

Marionette dragged himself to the bed and then onto it, curling up like he was folding into his body right on the warm spot that Mike once occupied. Mike didn’t mind, he just climbed in on the opposite side and scooted into the middle to reach him. He went back to holding him like he had when they first fell asleep and, sure enough, perhaps due to comfort or exhaustion, they both drifted off quickly.

Neither felt like discussing Bunny yet. They’d do it in the car, or after work, but not now.

Meanwhile, Jake and Moon were making their way down the hall when one of the bedroom doors opened. They froze at the same time, and then both relaxed- or deflated in Moon’s case- when Balloon Boy stuck his head out.

“Hello,” he said in that echoey artificial child recording.

“Ugh. Hello, Troublemaker,” Moon replied, not nearly as enthusiastically. He hoped that would get his feelings across.

Instead-

“I need to talk to you. Follow me,” Balloon Boy added in his more authentic and much less wholesome voice, and then proceeded to disappear right back inside, leaving the door cracked.

Moon scowled with a low mutter. Jake knew from it that he wasn’t budging.

“You should maybe go see him,” a voice added in.

Jake turned around and Moon snapped his head back to see Charlie standing in her partially opened door. She raised a hand apologetically. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”

“Jingle Bell,” Moon regarded.

“Hey, Charlie! Hope we didn’t wake you up,” Jake greeted.

“Don’t worry about it. I was just… you know.” Eavesdropping. She was eavesdropping, that’s what she was doing. But if either realized it neither had a leg to stand on in faulting her. “But Balloon Boy really does want to talk to you.”

“And why should I?” Moon asked difficultly. He was rewarded with an elbow nudge from Jake.

“Come on, don’t be like that. Maybe he’s going to apologize for what happened at the daycare,” Jake offered.

“Please. Even you don’t believe that,” Moon said with a brush off of his hand.

“…Maybe he’s going to apologize because he wants to get unbanned,” Jake added, more realistically.

Now that sounded a little more likely. Moon hummed as he considered it. Not unbanning him, that was, but perhaps seeing if that was the case just to tell him he was still banned. That would be satisfying- as long as he watched his feet. Balloon Boy could be plotting something.

“Nobody’s making you do it, but I think you should hear him out,” Charlie encouraged.

Between that and Jake, and the possibility of revenge, Moon was finally persuaded. With another huff- like this was all a huge exhaustion for him- Moon strode off to the room after him while Jake headed back to talk with Charlie.

Moon strode into the room and looked around. It looked like a child’s bedroom with plenty of toys, including an oversized toy box in the back that almost looked like a giftbox.

“And who’s room is this?” he asked, crossing his arms.

“Mari’s old bedroom. The tots use it as a playroom when Mari doesn’t,” Balloon Boy explained.

“Cute. What did you want?” Moon asked briskly.

“…I’m sorry.”

“…What?”

“For messing with you. I was just fooling with you, but I got carried away. It was dumb, I’m sorry.”

Moon knew Balloon Boy might try to thrust an apology on him, but he didn’t expect it to sound in any way sincere. Maybe he was a good actor, that had to be it.

The jester crossed his arms. “And what made you decide this?”

“Everybody telling me I was being a jerk,” Balloon Boy lied.

Moon seemed unconvinced, rolling his face in a patronizing way.

“…Maybe I thought you were someone else and because of that, I played a little dirty. Then I found out I got the story wrong, and now I’ve got mud in my teeth.”

That seemed a little more believable, but the change of heart was still very sudden.

It was a hard thing for Moon to believe. Balloon Boy didn’t seem to care while they were in the daycare at all, even when Jeremy showed an amount of exasperation about it. It could’ve been that someone, maybe Jeremy, sat him down and straightened him out. Maybe Marionette cleared his name, but even that was weird.

Why anyone would care that much about how he was treated alluded him. Nobody cared about the daycare’s walking talking punching bag.

“You don’t have to forgive me, I just wanted to catch you while you were here,” Balloon Boy clarified. “So, don’t go overthinking it.”

“I’m not, I just… I will need to think about it,” Moon finally said. He shifted awkwardly, tightening his hands on his arms. “About forgiving you, that is. I will need time to consider it.”

“We’ve got nothing but time so take plenty and call me in the morning. Ah ha ha, kidding. It’s already morning,” Balloon Boy said with zero amusement.

Moon mumbled and shifted a little more, before starting to turn away.

“Then I should be going…”

There was a tense silence between them. Balloon Boy watching him, Moon ticking uncomfortably, and he reached for the door to get out of the suffocating room only to stop. With a huff, he turned on his heel and raised a finger.

“I will give you one last chance,” Moon said. He then pointed that finger at Balloon Boy. “BUT you are on probation. If you try to fool me again, it’s night-night forever on any forgiveness.”

“Got it,” Balloon Boy agreed. He gave an unwholesome laugh, which got Moon to start reconsidering his offer immediately. “Sorry. That’s a reflex.”

“Yes, I know,” Moon said, then punctuated it with his own reflexive but otherwise unamused cackle. “Come by the daycare the next time Jeremy brings in the tots and we’ll see if you can keep your word.”

“I’m unbanned?”

“No. Not yet.”

“Fair.”

Moon turned on his heel again and threw open the door and stepped out.

“And-…”

Moon turned back to see Balloon Boy silently staring at him. “…And?”

“…Nothing. Good night, Moon Man. Sorry I acted like a rat.”

There was something… strange about the way his voice shifted in that last line. It sounded sad, remorseful, and even… a little familiar. The youthful part, that was. It made Moon feel an unexplainable deep panic. He forced himself to stay rigid as he gave a brief, “Gooood night, little Troublemaker,” and then stepped out.

He was still processing that conversation as he rode in the back of the Pizzaplex’s van, half-heartedly listening to Natalie and Gregory chatting about Roxy and Foxy. Jake noticed Moon was quiet and tried to ask him about it, but Moon insisted he would tell him later. Part of him hoped Jake and he himself would forget. For now, Jake had an arm around his shoulders, and they were heading back to the daycare.

Back to the safety and comfort of the daycare. Back to the warmth and colors of their secret hideaway. Back to their room, to their home. To their only home now.

Neither would admit that a small part of them didn’t want to go back. But it was too late for that.

…

For the last few hours, Freddy had been entirely distracted in storytelling. Retelling tales of him and Foxy, anecdotes of them and the others, of Sun and Moon and Jake, and of Gregory all to Bonnie. Using one arm to gesture and direct as he retold the tales with the fondness of someone seeing them as more than memories.

Meanwhile, he supported Bonnie, who laid back on his shoulder with his arm help holding him up. His eyes partially lidded, not in boredom but fully relaxed. In his hands was his bass- which he had pulled out from beside the recharge station earlier- and he was gently strumming the strings along with Freddy’s story. More to keep his hands busy than as a distraction.

It was a wonderful few hours.

Then Freddy got a staticky alert and tapped his temple only to gasp.

“It is six! I have been here all night!”

“Really? Huh, time flies when you’re having fun,” Bonnie said groggily. He shuffled a little and set his bass aside. “Guess it’s time for you to head back to the stage, Superstar.”

“I… I suppose so…” Freddy said sadly.

He looked to Bonnie with big, blue, sorrowful eyes that Bonnie didn’t notice until he was starting to shift his weight back into the recharge station. Bonnie sent him a crooked smile.

“Hey, come on. Don’t be like that! The place can’t open without you.”

“But what about you? How can I perform in front of an audience when I know you are down here alone?”

“I’ll be fine! I’ll just sleep! Like, just zone out. I close my eyes and I can imagine I’m thousands of miles away. In Fazbear Hills playing catch with all my friends,” Bonnie explained, spreading his hands out as though picturing the rolling hills. He then dropped his arm to pat Freddy’s. “Hey, I’ve been here this long. What’s a couple more hours?”

“I know…”

“And it’s safer this way!”

“I know. I just wish it didn’t have to be this way.”

The two sat there for a long moment before Bonnie sighed.

“You could come back tonight, maybe? You can’t tell anyone, and you’ve got to make sure nobody follows you, but… we could do this again, maybe?” he quietly offered. His voice quieter than it had been moments before.

Freddy brightened at the suggestion. “I would be happy to!”

“Then it’s a plan!” Bonnie agreed, giving him a thumbs up. His thumb rolling a little more than it was supposed to. “You meet me down here at, like, what, three-four o’clock and I’ll tell you about all the dreams I had.”

“I would love that,” Freddy said sincerely. He held Bonnie’s hand, resting the other atop it and patting it. “Sleep well, my friend.”

“Eh, as well as I can in a tube.”

Freddy chuckled and carefully reached out to pat his hair. He had done so earlier without thinking and panicked when Bonnie had squeaked, but he had assured him that it was out of surprise instead of pain. This time Freddy was more careful, and Bonnie tilted his head into the touch eagerly. Bonnie had always been so animated and affectionate; it must’ve been torture being down here.

Yet finally, Freddy had to leave. He dragged it out as long as he could and even stood beside the recharge station as Bonnie tugged it closed.

“See you tomorrow, Superstar.”

“I will see you then. I promise.”

Then the door closed, and he felt alone again.

Freddy’s chest ached as he reluctantly turned away and began to step over the trash. A lot of it was old Glamrock Bonnie merch, which made his heart break once again. He stopped at the entrance before turning back, getting one last glimpse at the recharge station.

“Sleep well, Bonnie,” he said quietly.

He then turned away again and walked out.

Only to be alerted to the sound of the recharge station sliding open again and hear a call of, “I’m sleeping like the dead tonight, Fredbear!” In Bonnie’s usual jokey manner.

That got a light back to Freddy’s eyes. He chuckled to himself and began to head out.

The basement didn’t matter. The garbage didn’t matter. The Pizzaplex didn’t matter. Freddy found his friend; that was worth everything else. This had been a miracle. He had another chance to fix things.

Why, just a few hours with Bonnie and he was already sounding better! Even his crackles and stutters had mostly gone away! Maybe this really was helping him. Freddy could only hope.

But he got his head back in order as he headed upstairs. First thing he sprayed himself down with disinfectant at one of the cleaning supply closets, then he went to check on Roxy in her green room.

Anything Roxy might’ve said about Freddy not being present for the makeover was cut short when Freddy’s first reaction was to enthusiastically shout, “Roxy, you look great!” Then everything was forgiven.

Then he headed back to his green room. He opened the door and was in for a pleasant, if somewhat adorable, surprise.

Sun was sprawled on his couch with his head under his bowtie pillow, face down, while clutching one of his oversized plushies. Freddy chuckled and quietly made his way in. It was times like these that he wished he had a spare blanket- perhaps Gregory had one he wasn’t using. He dared not touch Sunny or risk waking him and instead headed into the back room to check on Gregory.

He peeked around the recharge station to see that Gregory was asleep in bed, facing the wall. He smiled to himself and turned to leave.

But his heavy footsteps were distinct, so as he turned his head so did Gregory, blinking as he looked past the blue glow of the recharge station.

“Freddy?”

Freddy looked back in surprise.

“Gregory! My apologies, I did not mean to wake you.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Gregory said. He rubbed his eye and looked up. “Is… everything okay?”

“Oh yes. Roxy is looking much better! She has some… minor repairs still required, but I am certain that the technicians can fix them in the morning. I suppose Foxy has already left as well. I should call him and apologize for my absence…” Freddy rubbed his neck guiltily before turning his attention back to Gregory. He came over and crouched down beside him. “How was your night in the daycare? Did you have fun?”

“Oh, yeah. We… Well, we played some games and then there was this… sort of… We played I Spy! And then Moondrop carried me around and told me about this book about kids living in trains and, uh, that’s pretty much it.”

“That sounds like a very pleasant evening!”

“Yeah, it was kinda cool… Hey, Freddy. Where were you?” Gregory quietly asked.

Freddy’s ears drooped a little guiltily as his eyes widened.

“I tried to message you earlier, but it didn’t go through. But I was fine! I was just, y’know, trying to see where you were after this whole crazy Roxy thing. That’s all.”

“I apologize, I had no idea! It… must have been because I was… in the basement…”

There was a long pause between the two. Gregory silently asking with his eyes what was going on. He knew what Sun said, but he wanted to make sure it was true. Freddy, meanwhile, remembered his promise to Bonnie. He couldn’t tell anyone at all. Someone- Vanny- was listening. She could be sneaking around listening in, or even hijacked the messaging system so she could hear them too!

Freddy could not tell any of his bandmates, or his Sunny Moon. Or even Foxy, now that Vanny was targeting him. He couldn’t tell anyone.

…

…

But…

Gregory was not in the systems. Gregory did not trust too many people. He was smart! Very smart for his age and very careful. He trusted Freddy and Freddy too trusted him.

“Freddy? What’s going on?” Gregory asked worriedly.

That sealed it. He made a promise not to tell anyone, but Gregory wasn’t just anyone. He was his child- all things considered. He deserved to know. He would surely understand.

“Gregory, there is something I would like to tell you, but for now we must keep it a secret. Nobody can know except for us,” Freddy whispered lowly.

That was weird, Gregory thought, but he nodded. “Sure, I won’t tell. What’s up?”

Freddy’s eyes grew happier and his voice lower. “I found Bonnie!”

“Wait, what?!”

“Shhhh.”

“Sorry. But you found your friend, Bonnie? Where?! In the basement?!” Gregory whispered.

“Yes. He has been hiding in a recharge station deep under the Pizzaplex. He’s badly damaged but still functional. But we cannot tell anyone because Vanny is after him. I am not sure why but after what she did today, I am not surprised, just disappointed,” Freddy said with a shake of his head.

“So, what do we do?” Gregory asked.

“For now… I am not sure. I suppose we wait until we can come up with a plan. But until then, we cannot tell anybody else. Nobody can know that I found Bonnie.”

Something about this didn’t sit right with Gregory, but Freddy didn’t seem to be lying. Freddy was an awful fibber. He hated doing it and he was no good at it, so likely he wasn’t lying. But something was up.

Despite that, maybe because of Freddy’s somber look, Gregory decided to go along with it. “Okay. If you’re sure…” He gave him a smile. “I’m glad you found your friend.”

Freddy’s eyes brightened. “I am too. Perhaps once it is safer, I can take you to meet him!”

“Maybe after you get him out of the basement. Bleh!”

Freddy chuckled and offered his arms out, requesting a hug. Gregory scooted down his sleeping bag bed and hugged Freddy back, not even considering leaving him hanging.

“And do not worry, Gregory. I disinfected myself, so I am very clean!”

Okay, he might’ve considered it if he remembered he had been rolling around in trash, but he took his word for it. For now, it felt pretty good to be home again. It really hadn’t felt like it until Freddy showed up.

Freddy had a way of making things feel like they’d be okay. So, maybe they would be.

Maybe Roxy would clean up fine and Foxy would come back sometime, and they would have a rematch race and it would go better. Maybe Foxy would even win!

Maybe Michael would come by to visit. Maybe with Ennard! Or maybe Moondrop would take him out to see another hiding spot someday.

Maybe this time things would be different.

…

Maybe this time his parents would stick around. Because this time he wasn’t going anywhere.

Chapter 86

Chapter Summary

Mike and Marionette return to Hickory Dickory's and make a startling realization. Meanwhile, Charlie has a realization of her own when she stays overnight with Baby...

By all accounts, Mike had grown up too fast. It didn’t really bother him much, he had been making up for it over the last few years, but it was an undeniable fact. He had to hit the ground running when he didn’t even have his footing yet.

Because of that, Mike’s first stint in college had been unfortunately short. He had gotten a scholarship that carried him through the first year, but money got tight quickly. Soon he had to get a job, then two, and the struggle continued even after he stopped schooling. He hadn’t ever expected to go back, especially once he found himself at Freddy’s.

He just wasn’t cut out for it, he thought at the time. Just got dealt a lousy hand; it happened. He got over it and moved on and had been pretty happy with how life turned out. 

Now here he was back in a classroom, and this time it was going to be different. This time Mike had a support system, savings, a well-paying job, and a reason to stick around. He wasn’t some kid who just left home and was trying to blindly stumble into adulthood like last time, he was just a guy looking to work on some robots.

Confident was a strong word. He couldn’t say he was confident about how this would turn out, but he was damn near determined to make it work. He had to for Marionette, Charlie, Fritz and Jeremy, and their business.

This wasn’t his first class of the day. This was actually his second, but it was his first robotics class. He had barely managed to finagle his way into this class, but he was eager to see what it had to offer. By all accounts this was the main reason he was here.

A few minutes after he got settled in amongst his new classmates, trying his hardest to disappear off to the side and not draw much attention to himself, the professor came in to begin. She looked to be middle-aged, perhaps in her fifties, with auburn hair highlighted with a few lighter or greyed hairs. She had an angular face with rounded glasses, was dressed nicely, and strode into the room like someone who had done this thousands of times already.

“Good morning, Class. I am Dr. Treadwell and I teach robotics. So, if you’re not here for that, you’re in the wrong class,” she joked in a very curt sort of way. Like she had already said it that morning, Mike noted. “So, let’s get right into it. First question, and anyone can answer it: what is a robot?”

A young woman towards the front who Mike couldn’t see very well politely raised a hand. Dr. Treadwell pointed her out, offering her the floor.

“A machine that’s programmed to do work.”

“Correct. What else?”

“A computer?” someone else blurted out.

“I’ll take that. Anyone else?”

“It’s a bear that likes pizza,” someone jeered from the back.

Mike inwardly cringed at the namedrop. Somehow managing to feel secondhand embarrassment considering that Freddy Fazbear just happened to be the reason he was there.

Dr. Treadwell wasn’t nearly as impressed. “Cute, but correct. In a matter of speaking.”

She then went right into the speech she had been gearing up for.

“When you hear of the term ‘robot’, you probably expect something out of a science-fiction movie. A person made of chrome manning a spaceship or trying to take over the world. But that’s just fiction. In realty, ‘robots’ are just machines that perform a task, whether that task be assembling parts on a conveyor line or calculating numbers, etcetera. While studying robotics, you will not be studying ‘robots’. You will be learning about the stages. The process of building the machine, the mechanisms that perform the task, the programming that outlines what the task is, and maintaining that delicate process. That is robotics. Not the machine, but the men, and women, who man the machine and how it is done.”

She shot the class an almost lopsided smile beneath a pair of nearly exhausted eyes.

“If there’s anything you will be taking from this class, it will be that robotics go beyond the robots you see on TV. Sorry to burst your bubble if you’re expecting to build the next Freddy Fazbear.”

There came that wave of embarrassment again. This time because in a way Treadwell was directly calling Mike out, but in a way her words were also reassuring. This wasn’t going to just be a training video for Freddy’s, he was going to be learning a real skill and getting a real degree. That’s what he wanted. He wanted to be good enough to earn that place as a viable technician.

This was the first step.

…

…After a few days it became apparent that he was in it for the long haul.

It wasn’t that the charm wore away. Mike was still relatively proud and excited to be back at college, but he was already starting to feel the burn after a few days of classes.

The routine was this: Mike would take morning classes and then head to Foxy’s around lunchtime, upon which he would work until closing. Fritz, Jeremy, and Louise could manage the mornings and by time Mike got there Natalie too was usually showing up. Though nobody had pressured her to work considering her second job. Mike on the other hand felt obligated to work to take some of the edge off Fritz and Jeremy who had been incredibly supportive.

Though the most supportive was Marionette. Mike had felt a little guilty spending so much time away from Marionette and regretted having to give up their comfortable morning routine, but he had been nothing but elated about all of this. He was always happy when he came in at lunch, he was curious about what he learned, and he was just the comfortable sort of clingy. Where he was extra affectionate but not in any distress.

Marionette had been doing his best to coerce him into a better sleep schedule as well, which Mike wasn’t complaining about. He had even got into the habit of stealthily reminding Mike to take a break at work if he got overwhelmed, and making sure he got quiet time in the evening to study and do any homework. So far there hadn’t been too much of a workload, but Charlie had forewarned him that it would likely sneak up eventually, to brace him for that.

Speaking of Charlie, he and her had gone ahead and began their study pact. He would bring the work home and they would learn together. Since she had taken a chunk of the class already, it was more like a refresher course for her. But they were learning it together regardless, and it helped Mike from feeling like he was already in over his head.

They also had plenty of quiet time to work with Jeremy’s efforts to break in the new apartment. He hadn’t moved fully in- he was still collecting furniture at this point- but he often took his little gaggle over to the apartment to become more comfortable with it. Due to his current lack of neighbors, he was able to move them in and out pretty easily, under the guise of fixing up the apartment.

They were adjusting fine enough, largely he was the one who was still hesitant about fully moving in. Though the promise of Foxy moving in had made him significantly more comfortable.

Foxy himself had gotten repaired and cleaned up after the accident at the Pizzaplex. He had gone back once since then, a few days ago, and from what Mike had heard it had gone well. They made up for the ruined night with another one, but without the go-kart racing. The way Foxy put it they spent most of the night in Chica’s green room.

Mike was very happy to hear this. He knew from experience what it was like to just want a night out with a group of new friends; Foxy deserved at least one good night.

All in all, things were going relatively good in the week after the accident. Nobody reported any signs of Vanny, no secret pop-ins, no disasters, just embracing the college lifestyle as a working man.

Today was the first day that Mike had gone to his college classes and didn’t have to heads to work afterwards as Foxy’s was closed. So, he headed straight home. He let himself inside and turned to shut the door before being ambushed from behind.

“Why, hello there!” Marionette trilled. He wrapped his long arms around him and rested his head on his.

Mike instantly cracked a smile. “Hello, hello. You must be the monkey on my back.”

Marionette gave a chiming laugh and coiled a little further around him. Squeezing him like an oversized teddy bear.

“Excuse me, but I am a sock monkey, and I am all over you.”

That roused a laugh out of Mike, and he twisted around to return the hug. Marionette easily sliding around him while only barely loosening his hold to do so, and then promptly squeezing him in again. At first Mike hugged back with full effort, but after about a minute he started relying more on Marionette’s hold to keep him up. Eventually slacking off altogether and just slouching on him, exhaustedly giving into the grasp.

Maybe he was a little more tired than he thought.

Taking notice, Marionette guided him over to the couch where Mike kicked off his shoes and collapsed onto the couch, kicking his feet up onto it. Marionette dropped onto the couch, sitting on the edge in front of his legs. One elbow resting on the back of the couch to prop up his head with as he watched Mike lay there with his eyes closed.

Mike held out his hand and Marionette offered his own into it. They sat there in a peaceful silence holding hands for a few minutes. He didn’t fall asleep, but Marionette could hear his breathing slow as he relaxed.

Once he was certain he got a little bit of rest, Marionette spoke up.

“Are you up to some fun tonight?” he asked.

Mike’s eyes opened and his brows shot up.

“Don’t look too excited yet,” Marionette trilled. “You have tomorrow off, yes?”

“Yes.”

“Great! How about we drop in on Hickory Dickory’s?” Marionette suggested. Mike noticed his eager smile.

“Huh… I guess that’s on the table. Any particular reason why we’d want to go there?”

“It’s been a while, and I’d like to check in on how they’re doing. What with all that’s happening at the Pizzaplex,” Marionette suggested. He rested his head in one hand. “Charlie’s staying over at Scott’s tonight, so it would be a good night for it.”

It wasn’t that big of a job. They had dropped in a little before the Pizzaplex opened and had managed to get out before midnight, so it wasn’t like they were signing up for an all-night project. They’d be spending more time in the car than there. Though it was curious that Marionette was suggesting it now.

“Any other reason you want to go?” Mike asked, wondering if he had a hunch or a feeling.

“I’m bored.”

Well, that was a feeling.

“Unless you’re too tired. I would be fine with a night in,” Marionette offered, not a shred of disappointment in his voice.

“Me? Tired? Nah.” Mike stretched for emphasis. “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.”

“Don’t joke like that. We’re about to go visit Music Man. That’s a very likely possibility.”

“The last time we went, we played rummy with Orville,” Mike said matter-of-factly.

“Yes, but we disappeared faster than a white rabbit in a megaplex once it neared midnight.”

It was comments like that that reminded Mike that Marionette was still dwelling on the Bunny thing.

“We blew out of there faster than a tornado through Hurricane,” Mike joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Marionette smiled and leaned further over, playing alone. “We popped our top faster than a bottle of soda.”

“We canned that joint faster than a can of tuna.”

“We swam out of there faster than a salmon springing upstream!”

“We sprung out of there faster than a jack-in-the-box with a rusty spring up the back end!”

“Mike, that one was horrible!” Marionette choked, breaking into immediate laughter.

Mike laughed- more at Marionette’s reaction than his joke- before shooting a cheeky grin. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

“That was very wrong,” Marionette half-agreed.

Mike snickered a little more before stretching and asking, “But not until later, right?”

“Right!” the Puppet agreed. “Not until tonight.”

He tilted his head a little, signaling that he was curious to whatever Mike was suggesting. Mike didn’t suggest anything, he just spread his arms to welcome him in. Marionette gave a delighted chime and fell forward, all but diving into his arms and quickly getting cozy on the house alongside of him. Not having to worry about Max watching and just being able to be together.

Mike found it to be a nice reminder of what he was doing this for. For Marionette. He was worth all of it.

…

Up until this point, Scott had pretty much been getting Baby work. He had used connections to spread the word on getting her places at the Fourth of July celebration and otherwise. Baby was aware that he was doing this but wasn’t bothered; work was work. A stage was a stage. Scott wouldn’t agree to anything that wasn’t worth her time or risked her in any way, and they almost always came through his church. Through people looking for someone like Foxy.

This was the first time someone reached out looking to hire on “Scott”, or Baby, to perform at their private function, a family reunion. In fact, a family reunion with at least fifty people. Someone looking for a cheaper alternative to Foxy.

This was, of course, a huge deal to Baby. Bigger than any appearance beforehand. This was a stage all to herself in front of an audience paying specifically to see her. It was a lot of pressure all at once.

Needless to say, she called Charlie and had her brought over within the hour.

Soon they were squirreled away in the garage writing and planning new songs and a routine to match them. Progress started off strong at first. Both had ideas they had been hanging onto for a while that they now brought to the table, and the collaboration hit the ground running.

But once it got around evening time the steam started to petter out. They were starting to struggle for the next song. Baby rolling in little circles in her form as pacing as she obsessed over the perfect lyrics while Charlie sat at the little table and tapped at a piece of paper with unfinished lyrics on it with her pencil.

Charlie remembered hunching over her desk working for hours. It used to ache a lot more afterwards than this body would, but that body healed, and this one wouldn’t. She didn’t want to get a permanent hunch or crick though, so she straightened and stretched her back and neck.

“How about we take a break?” she offered.

“This is no time to procrastinate, Charlie. We have a budding disaster on our hands.”

“We’re not going to procrastinate, we’re just going to take a break,” Charlie insisted. She got up, showing she was determined to do so, and stretched her arms over her head. “How about a movie?”

“That is a little more than a break,” Baby said with a small scoff. “…Which movie?”

“We’ll have to look. But hey, might give us a little inspiration.”

“That seems a little like cheating.”

“That’s like saying talking a walk for inspiration is cheating because the sky already exists,” Charlie rationalized.

Baby narrowed her eyes in befuddlement at the jump in comparison, but Charlie smiled, and Baby gave up any further protesting. She simply rolled up over to her.

“A short break,” she agreed. Charlie agreed with a thumbs up and opened the garage door, letting Baby step in first before following in.

The TV was free since Michael and Ennard were at the dining room table playing a game. Bonnet sitting on the table beside them watching them go. Scott was holed up in his office working as well. This really was the best time to do this, Baby supposed, and though it felt like giving up to stop, she could tell that they weren’t getting any further unless they reset.

She sat down on the couch, pulling one leg up onto it and resting her back and claw on the armrest. Charlie went over to look through Scott’s selection of VHS tapes.

“What are you in the mood for?” she asked.

“Nothing painfully dramatic,” Baby replied.

Charlie agreed, and she looked for something a little more lighthearted. Or at least something that wouldn’t require too much brainwork to process. Something feelgood.

“Babe?”

Baby blinked and tilted her head. There was a nickname Charlie hadn’t used before. “Hmm. Yes?”

“No, Babe. The Pig. Want to watch Babe?”

Oh. Baby tried to not sound disappointed- well, except about the movie choice. “Aren’t we a little old to watch a movie about a pig?”

“No! Not Babe the Pig, it’s great! Have you seen it?” Charlie asked. Baby gave her a lidded look, like ‘of course I haven’t. “We’re watching it,” Charlie said with finality.

“Fine.”

“YAHTZEE!”

“Goddamn it.”

Good to see that Ennard and Michael were still nice and distracted. Baby would hate to have them think that she was willingly watching a children’s movie.

Charlie put the movie in and fast-forwarded past the commercials before racing over to sit down beside Baby cross-legged. Said clown started to move her leg only for Charlie to push it back. “No, no. You’re good.”

Baby was a little relieved honestly and adjusted to get comfortable again before looking to the screen. It wasn’t long before the movie started.

“It’s not a cartoon,” Baby said with mild surprise.

“Nope!” Charlie affirmed.

Perhaps this wouldn’t be so bad then. Or at least not so embarrassing if Ennard and Michael walked out.

Then the pig started talking. Well, she would trust Charlie and keep watching.

…

Hickory Dickory Doc’s looked about the same as they remembered it from the outside. By time they arrived there was no cars there either, so either there wasn’t a security guard, or he had someone drop them off. Not comfortable enough to go barging in without checking, Mike stood outside the back door as Marionette headed in to check.

He returned shortly afterwards and unlocked and pushed open the door from inside. The primary security system didn’t kick in until midnight, so this didn’t set off any immediate alarms just yet, unless there was a silent alarm.

“I don’t think security guards will be a problem,” Marionette said mysteriously. He beckoned Mike in. “Come see for yourself.”

That got Mike curious, and he followed him inside.

It looked like there had been a slight overhaul to the building. There were more tunnels- the best example being the fact that there was a tunnel leading immediately above the door. But more than that, some of the machines had been taken out and replaced with new and clean ones. There were even some basketball and ring toss games that Mike didn’t remember being there last time.

But the biggest change was the security office. The office, which initially looked like a refurbished prize counter, had been refurbished back into a prize counter. A multitude of prizes hung from the ceiling of the cubical and on the walls and were stacked in the counter. It was impressive, almost as impressive as Marionette’s own.

Marionette must’ve noticed too as he tapped his fingers thoughtfully and scanned all the trinkets.

“It’s about time they got one of these,” Mike remarked.

“And I for one think it’s a major improvement,” the Puppet added. “You?”

“I think it works a lot better as a prize corner than a dead end,” Mike said with a little grin.

“Was that a pun?”

“You know it was.”

“Are those voices I hear?” a kindly older voice called from nearby.

Both turned back to the stage to see Orville pushing through the curtains.

“Evening, Orville!” Marionette greeted with a smile.

“Oh ho, good evening to you both! I was wondering when you would come by for a visit again,” Orville greeted cheerfully. He gestured to the arcade around them. “Have you seen the renovations?”

“We’re taking a look at them right now,” Mike said. He got a quick look around, starting to notice the big and subtle changes from when he worked here. He pointed a thumb back at the prize counter. “I take it there isn’t a night guard anymore.”

“No, no. No more. The last one quit and the powers that be decided that a security system would work better than hiring another one. Have you noticed the new cameras? See if you can find one, they’re hidden very well!

Mike looked around for the cameras and spotted one on the ceiling tucked in the corner of the climbing tunnels.

“There’s one,” he said. Then shot the camera a finger gun and a wink, knowing that all it saw was static.

“It’s no trouble at all! I distort any camera footage I’m in, so as long as we stick together nobody will notice a thing,” Marionette explained to Orville while hooking his arm around Mike’s.

A good excuse to keep him close he supposed and Mike guessed.

“Speaking of soulful musicians, where’s ol’ black eyes?” Mike asked.

“I am glad you asked. Follow me!” Orville stepped down from the stage with a soft ‘oof’ and started heading towards the dining room doors. Mike and Marionette followed after him, still linked together.

Right before they got to the door, Mike got a chill like someone was watching them, but before he could voice it Marionette turned his head around to look. All he caught was a glimpse of something before the curtains fell back together. Mike caught even less, only seeing the rustling curtains. Both knew someone had been watching.

“Who was that?” Mike asked.

“Oh, that is… Well, a friend of mine,” Orville explained.

“They bought a new animatronic?” Marionette asked, still watching the curtains. “One like us?”

“They did. I’ll see if I can introduce you, but he is very shy,” Orville simply said. He sounded more concerned than nervous, so it seemed worth taking his word for it.

Marionette stared for a moment before turning back ahead. Mike and him exchanged a look, if only to double-check that they were content leaving it be, and then they headed into the dining room.

The dining room had already been getting cleaned up in recent time, but since last time it had gotten a complete makeover. With a new paint job, extra tables, and tablecloths stylized in a casual family dining theme.

“Welcome to our new and improved dining room! Now fit for dinner and a show!” Orville proclaimed.

Mike whistled; Marionette chimed.

“Wait- is that?! Could that be?!” Music Man’s voice echoed from the far right of the room.

The stage too had been cleaned up, now with fancy blue curtains with golden edges. Something was pulled behind them, likely a rope, and they drew open to reveal Music Man himself standing inside. He looked about the same as usual, save that someone tied a blue scarf around his neck. It looked a little out of place, but it matched the curtains well enough.

“My Silver Bell?!” he called, looking around wildly.

“Sorry, Man. Your princess is in another castle,” Mike replied.

“…Oh. Well, I suppose it is good to see you two too.”

Mike raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Of course! For now, you can see my brand new stage!” Music Man replied. He began to eagerly, but rhythmically, clash his cymbals together. “Look at this place! And all for me?! Now this is what my talent deserves!”

“It’s very nice. Much nicer than the last time we were here. Oh! Mike, look! There’s a buffet now,” Marionette chimed, pointing out the tray lined table.

“And I don’t have to compete with the arcade games anymore! The guests come here, they sit down, and they must listen! I am the distraction to help them digest and encourages seconds and thirds! My services are a vital part of keeping this business afloat.”

Everyone, including Orville, knew he was exaggerating but nobody felt the need to shoot him down.

“Now that being said, I would appreciate you two not setting me off if you plan on staying after midnight. If I break anything in here, I may lose my very important position! You understand.”

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll be taking off before then. No trouble tonight,” Mike said.

“We may go explore the arcade a little more. Would you like to join us?” Marionette offered.

“I’m afraid not. I need to get in at least six hours of shutdown time to be fresh for tomorrow’s opening! Perhaps next time. Come on a Sunday night, Monday’s are closed.”

“We may take you up on that offer! Best of luck to you, Music Man. It’s good to see you getting the treatment you deserve,” Marionette said kindly.

“It truly is!” Music Man agreed.

It wasn’t clear if Marionette was wary of the dining room due to his sorrowful memories of what happened there or was just fed up with the constant cymbals. Either way, Mike wasn’t going to argue. Music Man made it clear that he wanted to rest and there wasn’t too much else to look at here unless they yanked open the fridge.

So, he turned to lead the way out, with the Puppet and the Elephant following behind. Orville giving a call of, “Good night, dear friend!” as they headed out.

Mike pushed his way through the dining room doors and came to a dead stop so suddenly that Marionette, who was looking back at Orville, ran right into him.

“Oh, sorry,” Marionette apologized. “Is there-…?”

He cut off as soon as he saw what had caused Mike to stop in his tracks.

There was an animatronic standing on the edge of the stage. One just about Orville’s size with a relatively similar build, a padded purple body, a nearly matching flower on his chest, and large blue eyes. And fingers twiddling together at his front almost nervously.

But it wasn’t the fact that it was a new animatronic that caused Mike to stop. It was the fact that it was an animatronic he recognized.

“Ah! There you are, my friend!” Orville greeted. He hurriedly shuffled his way to the stage and stood alongside it. “Mike, Marionette, allow me to introduce you to our newest performer and my dear friend, Mr. Hippo!”

“Wait,” Mike said. He blinked in disbelief. “Wait, whoa. You’re the hippo from Magictime.”

“Correct! He was part of that band just as I was,” Orville explained. “Say hello, Mr. Hippo.”

“Let me say a little more than hello. Let me say that it’s a real honor to see you two again. I’ve- I’ve heard of all the good you’ve done for my friend Orville here. Or at least, how you helped those poor bots that were here before us. There’s not a lot of people who would see walking talking bots and not only assume that they were real but would see them as a real person and offer that helping hand. And, you know, we all need a helping hand sometimes. Especially you, Mike. Not the needing a helping hand part, but the seeing bots and assuming they’re just as real as people are. Let me tell you, that’s not something you see every day.”

If his design didn’t seal it, then that ramble would’ve been a dead giveaway.

“…When did you wake up?” Marionette asked. Almost distantly, almost meekly.

“Not too long ago all things considered. But, eh, what is waking up? I was already awake, you know. Well, of course you know. You used to be awake too. We’re all awake and then everything stops. I guess it could be seen like a dream, but I don’t know. It’s less like waking up and more like… like the moment you get sober. Now you might not know that comparison but believe me, it’s something.”

“But you weren’t alive when he, uh… borrowed your body?” Mike asked, gesturing his head towards Marionette.

“Oh, no. I wasn’t.”

So, it was a recent death, and Mr. Hippo’s lack of a ramble seemed to suggest that he wasn’t interested in chatting about it.

Marionette recovered somewhat, regaining his default smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you here then, under better circumstances,” he said. He floated up to offer his hand in greeting.

Mr. Hippo noticeably hesitated before he took it, but then he shook it. Eerily quietly until they parted. “It’s a pleasure, let me tell ya.”

Marionette lowered again and Mike took his place, offering up his hand, waiting to see if Mr. Hippo hesitated for him too. He did, but this time it wasn’t as obvious, and could’ve also been because he had to bend over without risking his balance to fall off the stage.

“Mr. Hippo and I are preparing for our own show! We thought it might be nice to have something between the Hickory, Dickory, Doc performances. They do repeat the same jokes,” Orville said with a wink.

“Think anyone’ll notice if you start using new material?” Mike asked.

“Perhaps, but I don’t think anyone will be able to tell if we weren’t programmed to or not. They know we are part of a set.”

“Good point.”

Silence.

Mike cleared his throat.

“I guess it’s about time for us to get moving,” Mike said. He looked at his watch. It was still pretty early but still late enough to leave. He looked to Marionette next and found him staring at Mr. Hippo again, in that spaced out existential thinking sort of way. “Oh yeah, definitely time to get moving.”

“Are you sure? Why, by my accounts it shouldn’t be midnight for another forty minutes or so! Why not try a few of our new games before you go?”

“Well… Huh.” Mike considered it for a moment.

They had driven all the way out here and if they left now, they would just spend the whole drive thinking about the elephant in the room- the one who wasn’t literally an elephant. It seemed like a waste of a drive to not at least do something before they left.

“You know what? Sure. I saw you had air hockey.”

“Help yourself! There should be some tokens in the Prize Counter, use as many as you’d like!”

“Come on, Stripes. Let’s go knock some plastic around,” Mike said. He put an arm around Marionette and began to lead him away. The Puppet quickly snapping out of his trance and eagerly accompanying him.

Thankfully Orville and Mr. Hippo gave them space. Getting into some very wordy conversation about Magictime Theater- Mike had slowed a little bit to make sure they weren’t talking about them, and they weren’t.

After getting some tokens, they arrived at one of the air hockey tables. Even with the renovation it was a little on the cramped side. Enough elbow room but little more than that, and with, again, new tunnels leading overtop. A whole maze of new tunnels. Mike toyed with the idea of suggesting he and Marionette go check them out, but he didn’t want another situation of time running out after they got lost in them.

“Something on your mind?” Marionette asked, noticing where Mike was looking.

“You mean other than the tunnels scraping the top of our heads? Not a thing,” Mike joked back.

“There are quite a few of them. Maybe even more than at the Pizzaplex, just packed together more tightly,” Marionette remarked. He got a playful smile. “I’m up for it if you are.”

“There’s no way I’m sleeping in a plastic tube again.”

“But it’s so fun though!” Marionette chimed. He gave a teasing wave and took his place at the other side of the air hockey table, watching as Mike put some tokens in to start the machine. “Fun fact but I heard once that either Michael or Gabe hit an air hockey puck so hard that it flew off and hit the other in the face.”

“No kidding, really? Which of them had the arm to do that?”

“I’m not sure. Gabe wouldn’t say and I didn’t remember until right now, so I haven’t asked Michael. So, either Gabe’s covering for an little oops or he doesn’t want anyone to know he got struck by a puck.”

“Hey, knowing Foxy it could’ve been either,” Mike said. He slid the second paddle across the table to Marionette. “Have you played before?”

“I don’t think I have.”

“Then I’ll go easy on you.”

Mike set down the puck and, despite knowing he should’ve fairly put it in the middle, knocked it across the table. To his credit, he knocked it slow enough for anyone to hit it.

“Mr. Schmidt, I think you forget that my reflexes-.” Marionette smoothly reached out and knocked the puck back. “-Are quite sound.”

“No, your arms are just long. Gives you an advantage.”

“I don’t hear you complaining.”

“What part of ‘gives you an advantage’ didn’t you hear?”

Marionette chimed and hit the puck sharply to the side, causing it to bounce erratically back and forth towards Mike’s side at a rapid speed. It made a beeline right for his goal.

Only for at the last second Mike to suddenly shoot his arm out, not that far at all, hit the puck with one firm clunk and send it zipping right across the table and straight into Marionette’s goal.

The Puppet looked down in surprise.

“Oh.”

Mike had a smug grin but didn’t say a word.

“Well then!” Marionette lifted the puck out with his telekinesis and a twirl of his finger. “I guess it’s time to put those advantages to use.”

He dropped the puck back into the center and the game was on. It was a fierce game too. Not a friendly spar, but a spontaneous battle between two people with competitive streaks that just decided to show up.

The winner was, much to Marionette’s amusement and dismay, Mike. Best out of five and Mike managed to secure the final victory by one point. Marionette was a gracious loser, congratulating him with a smile. Though both knew if it wasn’t for the time constraints that he would’ve been the first to suggest another game.

Speaking of time constraints, Mike checked his wristwatch and Marionette his internal clock and both decided it was time to go. They weren’t cutting it that close, but neither was looking forward to another situation where the door locked on them right as they were heading out.

They returned to the prize corner to find Orville and Mr. Hippo now standing there, with Mr. Hippo having not paused once in his talking until they came up around the corner. Mr. Hippo fell silent, and Orville noticed and turned to look, gesturing a hand to them.

“There you both are! That was quite a game, wasn’t it? Why, we could hear your clatters from all the way over here! Who won?”

Marionette gestured to Mike who raised a hand.

“Excellent work, my boy! Where to next?”

“Home. Sorry to bail so soon but we don’t want to get stuck overnight. Already promised Music Man we wouldn’t get up to anything,” Mike explained.

“Is it that late already? Well, we were glad to have you. But before you go, I have something for you. One moment, please.”

Orville stepped behind the counter and started scuffling around. He could be heard clattering and dropping something, but before anyone could offer to help him, Mr. Hippo spoke up.

“Hey, before you go, I just wanted to say… C-Come over here for a second.”

He beckoned Mike towards the stage, briefly looking at Marionette to signal he meant him to, and then stepping over the no more than seven steps to the stage. Mike and Marionette followed, one with his guard up and the other with his head slightly tilted. Mr. Hippo was fidgety as they stopped in front of him.

“I just wanted to say… look, we all make mistakes. Sometimes our whole lives are just one giant mistake after another. But you don’t always regret mistakes. Sometimes a mistake turns out alright and then you call it luck or something like that, but my point is… That I regret a lot of my life. I made a whole bunch of mistakes, and I can’t really say any of them were all that good,” he began.

Marionette slowly straightened his head and listened intently. Mike was listening and trying to figure out what exactly he was talking about. What happened at Magictime? What happened here?

“I-I wasn’t a good person and I don’t want to be that person anymore. In fact, from now on, I am committing my life- well, that is, my afterlife- to being a better person! Starting with being Orville’s friend. And that doesn’t change what I’ve done, but maybe, just maybe, someday I will make up for all I have done. But it has to start where it ended, with you two.”

Somehow the plush hippo with limited facial expressions looked truly remorseful. “I’m sorry.”

Mike was still hanging on his words. That was a confession if he had ever heard one.

Where it ended, with them… He must’ve been one of the haunted animatronics who attacked the nightguards. One Marionette brought to life. That had to be it, because otherwise he sure wasn’t Dave. Couldn’t be him.

Mike forgoed properly processing the rest of that and spoke up to break the silence, “Don’t beat yourself up about. It wasn’t anything in your control. Just like with him, when it reaches midnight something else takes over. You can’t blame yourself for that.”

Marionette looked to Mike in surprise but didn’t say anything.

“We all have some amount of control in what we let ourselves become, Mike,” Mr. Hippo said defeatedly.

“Maybe… You’re right, we do. But I think people can change. I know people can change, I’ve known people who changed. So, I don’t think there’s an end all be all. You’re not too far gone until you’re not willing to come back, you know?” Mike rationalized.

Mr. Hippo seemed surprised. Or at least his eyelids raised like he was. “You are very smart for your age, Mike. Thanks. Maybe it’s about time I learned some of that myself.”

As if waiting for his cue, that was when Orville stepped in.

“Marionette,” he began. The Puppet turned towards him and he held out his hand, a silly little Orville head keychain in his palm. “Please take this keychain as a symbol of our appreciation for your protection.”

Marionette’s eyes started glowing at that. Mike could hear the subtlest gasp from deep inside of him. Not one of surprise but almost one of relief, like someone gasping in their breath after holding it for so long. It was an odd response, but Mike knew Marionette’s body language enough to know he wasn’t upset. Marionette reached his hands out and graciously accepted the keychain, clasping it between them.

“Thank you…”

“You are very welcome! Good show and keep up the good work!”

With a few more casual goodbyes, Mike and Marionette were heading out towards the back door. Sending one more wave back at the jolly elephant before they disappeared behind the arcades and headed outside.

Soon they were getting into the car. Mike was in the process of pulling on his seatbelt when Marionette held out the Orville keychain.

“Can you put this on your keyring, please?”

“Sure, but don’t you want to keep it?” Mike asked, taking the keychain.

“I do, so I figured I’d put it somewhere close where I can see it all the time,” Marionette replied.

“Fair point.” Mike started to work the keychain onto his keyring. “So, what was that back there with Mr. Hippo?”

“A man with many regrets,” Marionette said with a sigh.

“I don’t want to try dredging it out tonight after how open he was being, but sometime we need to find out how exactly Mr. Hippo came to life. There’s got to be a story behind that.”

“Mike…” Marionette said quietly. “…That was Dave.”

He knew it.

Mike wasn’t even shocked. He knew it, he was just holding out hope that he didn’t. He sighed through his nose, almost in defeat.

“Are you sure?” he asked. Knowing from Marionette’s tone that he was sure and giving away from his own resigned tone that he knew that.

“As sure as I can be. He said he wasn’t a good person. He was apologizing to us.”

“…That sure sounds like Dave,” Mike mumbled. Not the Dave they knew but one who was set free of Afton’s control and, for lack of a better term, ‘sobered up’. Mike got the keychain on the ring and put the key in the ignition but didn’t start it yet. “What do we do?”

“What can we do?” Marionette asked.

They exchanged shrugs and Mike started the car before backing up and quickly driving out of the parking lot. Within moments they were back on the road heading home.

“I suppose… I’m glad he’s in a better place… Mentally, I mean. Not Hickory Dickory’s,” Marionette continued.

“Hey, Hickory Dickory’s cleans up pretty nice. Especially for a place where Music Man’s working the dining room.”

Marionette chimed with a little laugh. Then he sighed.

“I hope he means what he said about changing.”

“He sounded pretty convincing, but who can tell?” Mike said. After a beat he added, “He didn’t have to tell us and went out of his way to do it, so that must mean something.”

“That’s true. Dave had problems, Scott said as much… but what he did to us and those children, that wasn’t him. That was William.” Marionette turned to look back at Mike. “For that we owe him a second chance.”

Mike, usually the cynic of the two, gave a rather optimistic, “Then he’s going to get one.”

Marionette smiled and Mike glanced back and returned it. The mood in the car lightened up again.

Or at least, Mike thought it did. But then Marionette spoke up.

“I don’t want to dwell on this, not when we’re having such a good night, but I must get this out before I start getting hot again,” he suddenly admitted.

“You’re already hot,” Mike reflexively added.

“Yes, I am. But beyond that,” Marionette said, getting an amused smile that then became worried. “Do you know why Bunny makes me so nervous?”

And with that the rabbit returned to the conversation, but this time the Puppet was trying to open up about him. Mike eagerly eased that door of communication open before it could slam shut.

“Why’s that?”

“Because, well… It’s been bothering me, but if what Jake and Sunny say is true, he can do something that even I can’t do, move souls. That’s something that only Henry could do. That’s what Henry did during our altercation at the warehouse. He pulled me free from my body- momentarily, but he still did it. That’s a scary power to have.”

Mike felt his heart clench. “Do you think Bunny could do that?”

“Perhaps, but I would just get back to my body. That’s not what I’m worried about,” Marionette said. His voice quieted, “I’m afraid he might be the reason why there are so many living animatronics in the Pizzaplex.”

Despite Marionette’s assurances, Mike felt a sinking feeling in his gut. That familiar twisting and churning sickness that crept up whenever the panic was soon to follow. He didn’t want to overreact to this but all he could think about was what Jake and Andrew said about Bunny, their warnings about how he would lash out at Marionette. That was an extremely dangerous combination.

It wasn’t going to happen. Vanny and her little buddy would have to get through him first, and Mike wasn’t going anywhere.

Unfortunately, it didn’t settle his stomach any.

“Why were you thinking about that? Because of Dave?” he asked.

“Oh, I was thinking about it long before we got here, but talks about Dave and the purple monster under the bed we’re trying to not bring up reminded me,” Marionette brushed off. “But again, I don’t want to fixate. Let’s do something else, something fun.”

“Something fun?”

“Something to pass the time, get our minds off of this.”

Something fun. Something distracting. Mike could get on-board with that right now.

Mike patted on the steering wheel for a few seconds before glancing to Marionette. “We’re almost home,” he said.

“Yes,” Marionette agreed.

“And we’re making pretty good time.”

“That too,” Marionette agreed again.

“…You want to pull over and take this into the backseat?” Mike asked.

The Puppet looked to him in surprise as a sly smile crept onto his own face. Marionette’s own expression becoming much more flustered.

“Why, Mister Schmidt! How very bold of you,” he said.

“I know.”

“…Well, maybe we could spare a few minutes.”

The car veered as Mike immediately pulled off.

“Of course, you know this is very dangerous. Middle of the night or not, someone could come by!”

“I know. That’s what makes it fun,” Mike said with a wolfish grin.

Apparently, that was the only encouragement Marionette needed as he easily slipped back between the seats and into the back, pulling the blanket halfway over his shoulders in case he had to quickly hide.

Mike squeezed between the seats. His right foot catching on something and him falling through, barely catching himself on the backseat and the passenger’s seat. His face still falling into Marionette’s soft chest. The Puppet’s trill vibrated against his cheek as he hooked his hands under Mike’s arms and helped pull him up into place.

In this lighting, or lack of it, Marionette looked downright ethereal. The soft shadows caressing his mask and his smile filled with adoration. He was something incredible, he always was.

Mike leaned in and started to kiss along his chin up towards his cheek. His fingers sinking into the Puppet’s soft, warm fabric.

“Miiiiiike,~” Marionette chimed as he wrapped his arms around him and held him close. Nuzzling back against him and indulging in this moment of warmth and comfort.

Getting kissy and cuddly in the back of his car with a human-sized plush toy who just happened to be the love of his life.

Mike was truly a lucky guy.

…

Charlie woke up to something heavy falling on her chest. Her eyes alit and darted around as she struggled to sit up under the weight.

It only took her a couple of seconds to realize the heavy thing that landed on her was Baby. If the gasp from the clown was any indication.

It took the equally startled Baby a few seconds more to push herself up from where she had fallen, giving Charlie a little time to piece together what had happened. She had a blanket draped over her while Baby had Scott’s jacket tucked around her shoulders, with it falling as she straightened up.

They had watched a couple of movies and had been talking and watching TV for a while, and at some point they must’ve nodded off. Charlie didn’t remember it, and she was surprised Baby too had fallen asleep. And considering the time, surprised Baby kept herself upright for that long.

“We fell asleep,” Charlie said.

“Yes, I figured,” Baby agreed. She noticed Scott’s jacket and pulled it back up onto her shoulders, noticing the television screen in the process. “…What on earth is on TV?”

Charlie looked over. “…I think it’s an infomercial.”

“Fitting,” Baby remarked. Saying it more like a cover than actually commenting on something.

She searched for the remote before grabbing it off the floor and beginning to flip around. She hummed at the lack of anything of interest and stole a look at the clock. That explained it, it was in the early hours of the morning. The only thing on right now was informercials, soap operas, and the occasional sitcom rerun.

“Well, we chose the worst possible time to wake up,” Baby remarked. Still refusing to meet Charlie’s gaze.

Charlie stretched. “Maybe we should just go back to bed.”

And then she suddenly had an idea. An idea so intriguing that she froze mid-stretch. It was a peculiar idea, a risky one. One that she should’ve been ashamed of if she had any shame. A curious little idea.

“I suppose you’re right. Perhaps if we wake early enough, we can get more work done with fresh minds before you leave. We do our best under a harsh time limit, don’t we?” Baby asked.

“Yeah,” Charlie agreed. She gave a weird little laugh and went quiet.

Baby finally looked to her, if only to give her a questioning look. That was the push Charlie needed to go for it.

“I mean, sounds good… But would you like to- I don’t know…” She got an embarrassed little grin and gestured between them. “…You know.”

“Know what?”

“You know.” Charlie gestured more, now gesturing between them and down towards the couch.

Perplexed and intrigued, Baby coaxed her with, “You have to be very specific because unless you tell me I will not guess.”

Charlie dropped her arms with exasperation. Baby was really going to make her spell it out- and from that look in Baby’s eyes, yes she was.

“Would you like to maybe just… lay down here together on the couch?” Charlie offered. “…Okay, that came out wrong. What I meant was-.”

“Alright.”

Charlie was surprised by Baby’s quick agreement. Even Baby herself was startled by it, seeming to freeze up after she said it.

“Really?” Charlie asked.

“…Really. Yes.”

Baby doubled down and that was all the confirmation Charlie needed. She fought back the urge to start ringing, but not the goofy smile, and began to readjust the blanket.

“Okay! Let’s just get a little padding here so we’re not bumping around too much… Okay, ready!”

Baby started to lean forward. Carefully, slowly, like a timid cat more than a person. She hesitated before she could make any contact.

“What if I crush you?”

“Baby, you’re not anywhere near that heavy. And the last I checked I don’t need to breathe anyway.”

Baby gave a half-amused little ‘hmm!’. She reached up and unwound her little hat from her wire hair before setting it aside. Then she began to cautiously settle in.

She rested her head sort of between Charlie’s shoulder and her chest, slowly releasing her weight until she was comfortably resting there. Charlie put her arm around her back as encouragement and in return, Baby tucked her claw in underneath Charlie, between her and the couch cushions. Until they weren’t just laying together but shamelessly holding one another.

It was different. Both could tell that much right away. It was pushing of a boundary that so far they hadn’t so much as nudged very hard.

The living room was almost painfully quiet- for Charlie, who was still fighting back the ringing and jingling that wanted to bubble out. She had to keep it cool. One wrong move and Baby might leave, and she wanted to keep her right here. So close that her chin was resting atop her wire hair. Focus, don’t act strange.

“I liked that movie,” Baby said quietly.

“Which one?”

“Babe. It was sweet. Borderline tooth-rottingly so, but there was something so… honest about it,” Baby confessed. She sighed a little. “If I am being honest… it reminded me of Scott.”

“Really? Why’s that?”

“I’m not sure… It was just the way that man never gave up on Babe, even though he was… by all accounts, a completely burden at times.”

“Babe wasn’t a burden. He just was out of his element. He never gave up either… Well, except for that time he went into that depression- but that’s where friends and family come in.”

“I know. Scott taught me that,” Baby said. Charlie petted her head reassuringly and the green light of her eyes dimmed. “But you taught me that too. I won’t discredit that. You were and are my first and best friend.”

Charlie’s hand stilled as she processed that. She knew that, Baby must’ve said it before, but it felt different now. Maybe because of their position. It felt like it meant more. It felt like her insides were melting.

She became bolder again, returning her hand to Baby’s head but now trailing her fingers through her wire hair. Almost combing it down. The lights dimmed further, and Charlie realized Baby must’ve been closing her eyes. It was so rare to see her with her guard down; it felt special.

“This feels strange…”

Charlie immediately pulled her hand back. “We can stop if you want.”

“No, it’s not that strange. Not hardly.” Baby closed her eyes and tilted her head back more, silently requesting more. When Charlie returned to petting her head she sighed and hugged her a little tighter, turning her face further into the blanket and into Charlie’s chest. “Thank you for this.”

“Why are you thanking me? This is as much for me as it is for you,” Charlie admitted.

“Is it now?”

The lilt to Baby’s voice immediately got Charlie ringing, and it wasn’t like Baby couldn’t hear it this close to her chest. Charlie struggled to get it under control arm bent and hand on her face, feeling a blush that wasn’t there.

The green glow returned, and Baby tilted back her head to peek up at her. Charlie shot her a flustered smile. Baby gave a small laugh- an actual laugh- and lowered her head before returning to her previous position.

Charlie felt that embarrassment fade away, but the soft jingling couldn’t be stopped. She wasn’t making much effort to fight it anymore, just listening to it growing quieter the more she relaxed into the warmth, the gentle compression around her, and she herself started to drift back off.

This was nice. This was really nice.

…

Charlie woke up to the garage door opening and Michael muttering and shuffling out of it. Or more specifically, she woke up to Baby waking up and shooting upright. The clown quickly fixing Charlie’s blanket in the vain attempt to cover up that she had been laying there. Not that Michael noticed, staggering in.

“Morning, Michael,” Charlie called. Michael mumbling the greeting in return.

“What were you doing out there? Surely you weren’t working all night,” Baby inquired.

“Sleeping,” he muttered.

“Oh.” It didn’t take a genius to deduce that he hadn’t had good luck with Baby’s bed. “My condolences.”

“So, where’s Ennard?” Charlie asked.

Michael pointed and Charlie tilted her head back only to come face-to-face with Ennard silently grinning down at her.

“Gah!” Charlie shouted and fumbled and fell right off the couch and onto the floor with an, “Oof!”

Baby gasped and was quick to help pull her up, sending Ennard a small glare. He didn’t mind one bit. He trembled with budding excitement.

“Oh ho ha ha SORRY, Charlie! I didn’t mean to scare you- I was just peeking in at what you two were getting into down there!” Ennard leaned on an elbow on the back of the couch, eyes narrowing mischievously. “Looks like soooomebody had a little sleepover last night~!”

“Yes, it was me. And I regret it,” Michael said. Currently trying to stretch out his back to no avail.

“What gave it away, the fact that Charlie did, indeed, sleep here last night?” Baby asked dryly.

“Ha ha, got me! But I thought you guys were gonna be working. Imagine my surprise coming out to find my sister and my adopted sister fast asleep like a couple of kitty cats!”

“Ennard,” Baby warned.

“You know, when they get all curled up together?” Ennard continued, lowering his voice and narrowing his eyes impishly.

At this moment Scott passed by and gave Ennard a gentle slap on the back and a mildly amused but mostly sympathetic, “Stop.”

“Okay, okay! I’m done!” Ennard lifted off the couch and threw his hands in the air before following Scott into the kitchen. Though not before giving Baby a very unsubtle thumbs up that he barely hid in front of him and away from Charlie’s gaze. Baby looked away quickly and shooed him.

Needless to say, everything was very awkward. Baby finally managed to look Charlie in the eye and all she got was an extremely guilty smile. God bless it, Ennard. She grabbed her hat and affixed it again in the most dejected way possible.

It was then that Baby and Charlie took note of Michael still standing over them and it became clear that he was silently waiting for his turn on the couch. Seeing this as a way out, Charlie sprung to her feet.

“Hey, let’s go see if we can get some work done before I’ve got to go!” she suggested.

Baby nodded with a hum of agreement and got up before following her to the garage, only briefly stopping to give Scott back his jacket and exchange one last glare and smirk with Ennard. Then she headed into the garage and shut the door behind her.

And only then did Charlie realize maybe this wasn’t the best idea as now they were standing in the garage together alone and that was even more awkward.

“So!” She turned away as she fiddled with the edge of her jacket. “I think we can say for sure that Ennard definitely saw us.”

“I know. What a tragedy.”

“Well, uh… Maybe we can get some work done!” Charlie suggested. She leaned on the edge of the table and stared down at the lyrics with fresh eyes. Trying her hardest to get her brain to start working.

Baby watched her for a moment before steeling her nerves and rolling up to her.

“Charlie…”

“Hmm?” Charlie didn’t look up.

Until Baby took her hand off the table. Charlie looked up in surprise as Baby switched Charlie’s hand to her claw, gently holding it in the tip without any pressure to cause pain. She then took her other hand in her hand, and raised both towards her chest.

“I want to thank you for last night. I was getting… a little fixated on this performance. Trapped inside of my own head, and I may do that again once we are back to work. I wanted to tell you now that I very much appreciated it,” Baby softly said.

“Oh, uh, don’t worry about it! You know that’s what I’m here for,” Charlie said with a smile. The jingling creeping onto her voice again. She squeezed Baby’s hand and even her claw back. “It was my pleasure.”

Baby’s eyes were nearly glistening, and her perpetual smile looked more real than ever. Her wires framed her face like multicolored locks of hair, the blue and red highlights contrasting so vividly against that sharp green. Charlie found it almost impossible to look away.

It felt like that smile wound up her music box heart.

And it was then that she realized how serious this was.

…

This was a weird time to broach a conversation, but it really was the best time to do it. Being that they were completely alone in the dining room, Mike and Charlie, with no distractions other than their textbooks.

“Hey, can I ask you something?” Charlie asked.

“If it’s about any of this, you’re on your own,” Mike replied, waving a hand over the books and papers between them.

Charlie rolled her eyes. “No, not that. Something else.”

“Shoot.”

“Let’s say… so, there’s someone I want to get closer with.”

Mike’s eyes raised to look at her over the textbook. “You can say Baby. I’m not going to get that look you’re dreading.”

“What look?” Charlie replied flatly.

He lowered the book and sent her a wolfish grin.

“Oh, okay. The Ennard look.”

“It was called the Mike look before he showed up,” Mike said. He then dropped the jokey tone and asked, “What are you worried about?”

“Well… So… I’m not really built for relationships. I tried before and we never really got past the ‘are we dating’ stage? And even then, I was always just… sort of tapping out.”

Mike knew that feeling but didn’t interrupt.

“So, like, what if we get into a relationship and I get caught up with work and start neglecting her, and then we drift apart? Then our relationship AND friendship is ruined.”

“I don’t think you’d get that lost in work. Even if you did, Baby knows you take your projects seriously. I’d bet money that she likes that about you.”

“Yeah, maybe. But…”

Charlie paused for a long moment. Mike let her take all the time she needed, not returning to the textbook and instead waiting patiently. Watching her mental war on whether she was going to say what she was thinking.

Then finally she did.

“I’ve been warned my whole life to not turn out like my dad…”

Now that was a loaded sentence if Mike ever heard one before. He didn’t even know how to reply to that at first, but after a silent pause, he went for it. Not sure how this entirely related to Baby but knowing what she needed to hear- or what he wanted her to hear.

“Charlie, look. I knew your dad briefly and I can tell you with no uncertainty that you are nothing like your dad. The buck stops at you two having similar careers, that’s it.”

Charlie nodded.

“And to be fair to him, your dad wasn’t a bad man. He had some serious screw-ups along the way, but it sounds like he was a good guy before whatever went down at the diner. I know he went through hell and he might’ve handled it badly, but who am I to judge? The only thing I can judge him on is what he did to Mari and me, but he wasn’t a complete monster, and last I heard someone told me that he straightened his act out.”

She had, in fact. She and Marionette had both told of their encounters at the red lake and while it wouldn’t change what he remembered; it did sound like he was making an attempt to right his wrongs. Mike had to give him credit on that front.

She nodded and looked to him, still listening. By then Mike knew what he wanted to tell her.

“If you want my advice… you already know what you want to do, so why not just go for it? It’s better than letting it hang over your head for the rest of your life. Or worse, not getting a chance to and spending the rest of your life regretting missing out.”

“Is that why you said to Mari when you two got together?” Charlie asked knowingly.

“Something like that,” Mike answered with a little smile. “What’ve you got to lose?”

“…You’re right.” Charlie straightened up and determinedly thumped a fist on the table. “You’re right! That’s exactly what I did with John, I sat around and didn’t take the risk because I was afraid it wouldn’t work out. I’m not doing that again. I am going to march right up to Baby- Okay, no. This probably calls for some tact. But I will tell her how I feel, what I want to do, and then… I’ll see what she says. Worst thing she can do is turn me down.”

“She won’t turn you down.”

“Worst thing she can do is not turn me down and then it doesn’t work out.”

“I don’t see that happening either, but if it did it doesn’t mean you’ll stop being friends. You just suck it up through the weirdness and eventually it’ll get back to how it was.”

Charlie couldn’t tell if Mike was being genuinely optimistic or just trying to assure her. She smiled regardless.

“I guess you’ve got a point. Okay, totally decided, going to do this.”

“Great!”

There was a lingering pause.

“…So, when were you thinking of doing it?”

“Uh, soon.”

Fair.

“Well, if you need help setting anything up, I’m your wingman,” Mike promised. Charlie smiled thankfully.

Then it was back to the books. Mike looked back at the section he was supposed to be reading and stared at it for a little more than five seconds before closing the book.

“Alright, I think we’re done here.”

“Mike, you barely studied.”

“I know, but I’m taking a ten-minute break. I had a long night last night.”

“Speaking of which…” Marionette came into the room. “There was something that happened last night…”

“Please don’t tell me Vanny showed up here.”

“No, no. Nothing like that… but someone did show up…”

With him hesitating, Charlie looked to Mike. He sighed and laid it out for her.

“Last night we found out that Hickory Dickory’s has a new animatronic on staff. It’s that hippo from Magictime Theater, and… it’s Dave. Now we’re not afraid that he’s going to pull anything, he really can’t in the body he’s got now, but we wanted to let you know that he’s still here. Just in case something happened and somehow you got roped into going over there,” Mike explained.

“Oh…” Charlie looked down at the books and processed it. Her eyes went wide. “My God.”

“We will never bring him here and you never have to meet him, but we thought it was only fair to let you know,” Marionette explained. He put a hand on her shoulder reassuringly.

“No, thank you for telling me. I’d rather know,” she rushed out. She still looked to be reeling but laid a hand on the other puppet’s. “Was he any different?”

“He seemed remorseful. He apologized to us, but I doubt he’s aware that you’re… aware,” Marionette explained.

“Maybe that’s for the best,” Charlie mumbled.

“Bottom line is, between him and Music man you need to steer clear of Hickory Dickory’s, and we’re going to do everything in our power to keep you safe,” Mike insisted. He reached out for her hand on the table.

Charlie squeezed it back and Marionette’s too and processed the information for a little longer. Then she nodded, her signal that she was alright, and smiled at them both.

“Thanks, you guys. I’m not worried, I know you’ve got my back,” she said.

“Always!” Marionette promised. He leaned down and gave her a hug.

Once he drew back, Charlie looked back down at her textbook before sighing and closing it.

“You know what? You’re right. Let’s take a break and go play some games.”

“Now that’s the spirit,” Mike encouraged.

As they got up, he reached out to pat her other shoulder. While Marionette headed into the living room to set up the video games.

Charlie did a double take towards him when something suddenly clicked. Before Mike could turn away, she grabbed his arm and pulled him in.

“Wait a minute, was he out there the whole time?” she whispered.

The same realization dawned on Mike and he looked out at the living room, seeing Marionette already crouching down to tackle the wires.

“If he was, he has one heck of a poker face about it,” Mike replied.

Charlie dropped her head with a groan. Mike gave her another sympathetic pat on the back and led her out of the kitchen.

And by time they made it out there and Marionette turned back to face them, he had gotten his elated smile under control once again.

Chapter 87

Chapter Notes

They were going to find out eventually.

After last night, Natalie was surprised she was awake at all. It had been a rough one. No disasters, but there were flags all over the building that Natalie had to jog to. She caught Vanny’s glitchiness on the cams twice but was never able to truly narrow it down to being her. Yet she knew it was her.

So, Natalie was in the middle of making breakfast for herself at lunch when her cellphone rang. She hadn’t woken up to see Fritz off that morning- save the vague recollection of him kissing her before he left- so she fully expected it to be him. Without even looking, she answered.

“Yo.”

“Hey, Nat!”

Somehow, she never anticipated that it could be Ness.

If there was any doubt in her mind that Ness was Vanny, it would be right here, right now. Because there was no humanly way that Ness had stayed up all night skipping around and sounded this chipper.

Natalie tried to cover up any hesitation. “Oh, hi! Sorry about that, I’m half-awake right now.”

“No, you’re cool. And if this is a bad time just say the word and we’ll do a raincheck, but I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the Pizzaplex is closed today for repairs and they’re letting employees come in and do all the stuff that’s not getting worked on for half. Off. I thought, I don’t know, we could have another girl’s day! We could probably sneak Louise in too, nobody’ll notice!”

Well, that wasn’t what Natalie was planning to do today. She was a little wary too, but she didn’t want to pass off the opportunity. Both to not risk invoking Vanny’s wrath and to be Ness’ friend which, despite her obvious suspicions, she did genuinely believe they were friends. If Vanny was a cry for help, maybe spending more time with Ness would help.

“That sounds great! It’s probably going to be just you and me this time though, since Louise is at work. I’ll meet you there?”

“I’ll come pick you up! I’m at the laundry mat right now so there’s no reason to make you drive all the way here when I can swing by!”

And now Ness was wanting to know where she lived. Natalie panicked momentarily.

“Are you sure? You’ll have to drive all the way into Hurricane. I can just meet you there!”

“I’m sure! It’ll give me a reason to go highway cruising for a few minutes! How do I get to your place?”

By then Natalie had hatched a plan and gave Ness an address. The address was, in fact, to a bus stop a couple of streets away. So, after telling Ness the address and planning to meet up in about forty-five minutes, Natalie hung up and rushed through getting dressed, grabbed a granola bar and a water bottle, and bolted out of the house.

Despite running around the whole night, Natalie speed-walked her way all the way to that bus stop.

On the way she called Fritz and brought him up to speed.

“So, we’re heading over there now. Or whenever Ness shows up. I’ll let you in on all the dirty details of what’s going on once we get there.”

“Alright, just… keep your guard up. I don’t think she’d pull anything in front of a lot of people, but you never know.”

“Well, I hope for her sake she doesn’t, because I would hate to have to body slam her in front of all our co-workers.”

“Hey, wait, if you’re planning on doing that then definitely call me. I can be there in ten minutes, and I’ve got a newish battery in the camcorder.”

Natalie snickered a little. “We’d have to send that to my dad. We’ll just nix the part where I’m a disgruntled employee.” She sighed, “Okay, I’m at the bus stop.”

“Need me to keep you company?”

“Sure, but I’m going to be eating, so you’ll have to do all the talking. Tell me about your day.”

“It all started with a child getting his sleeve caught on Foxy’s hook-,” Fritz dramatically began. Natalie smiled and started to bite into her bar.

By time Ness pulled up, Natalie had been finished for a few minutes and lounging on the bench. She quickly ended the call with Fritz.

“I’ve gotta go. Love you.”

“Love you. Be careful!” Fritz warned.

With that, Natalie hung up the call and tucked her cellphone away. She got up as Ness rolled her window down, the brunette waving excitedly and the blond waving back.

“Hey! I thought I was at the wrong place. You don’t live here, right?” Ness joked.

“Hey, hey. Don’t knock it until you try it,” Natalie retorted. She went around the car and got in before gesturing off vaguely. “I live right down there, I just didn’t want to get stuck behind the cars.”

“Ah, smart! Yeah, I’d prefer that too. I’m what you’d call an anxious driver. Or a frantic driver,” Ness said. “I tried to call but I guess you were on the phone.”

“Yeah, it was Sam. He’s at work so we were catching up.”

Ness gave a fond, “Aww.”

“Speaking of, how’s Brad?”

“He’s… good,” Ness hesitated a long second. “We’ve been sort of busy and haven’t gotten to spend much time together.”

“It happens,” Natalie sympathized. “But it’ll get better. Trust me, Fri- Freddy’s takes a lot out of you. Sam and I went through periods where we too exhausted to say more than a few words to each other.”

“How’d you survive?”

“I slept through most of it.”

Ness laughed and Natalie smiled, and they headed off towards the highway.

“Sooo I was thinking… that I’m going to go ahead and get my hair done,” Ness said.

Natalie’s brows raised. “The rainbow highlights?”

“The rainbow highlights,” Ness repeated with a growing smile. One both of excitement and nervousness.

“Go for it! You’ve been planning on it this long. Why not?”

“I’m just a liiittle nervous that something might go wrong, and I’ll have to shave my head.”

“Pfft! I don’t think the Staff Bots will mess up that badly. Worst case scenario they just don’t get the highlights even and we have to take you to a real stylist.”

“Oh God, real people. I can’t handle that!”

Natalie snickered honestly at that. Despite her suspicions about Ness, she was pretty fun.

They got to the Pizzaplex a little later and walked in to find a swath of workers circled around the lobby elevator. Natalie didn’t recognize any of them except for Chaz.

“Finally looking for the source of that smell?” she called as she and Ness headed towards the stairs.

Chaz turned back and raised a hand in greeting.

“That’s the plan. And we’ve got a replacement carpet on standby just in case it’s mold,” he said.

“What if it’s a gas leak?”

“Then we’re all dead.”

One of the other workers gave a quick, “He doesn’t mean that.” Natalie brushed him off regardless, Ness quietly waved, and they headed out of the lobby.

It was quiet in the Pizzaplex. There were some people and some families, but they were all workers or related to those employees, so it was a smaller turnout. There wasn’t even anyone else at the Glamrock Beauty Salon when they arrived. A Staff Bot approached them when they first arrived.

“Hello. Welcome to the Glamrock Beauty Salon. Please take a number from the dispenser and our world-famous stylist will be with you in a moment.”

“Oookay…” Natalie said, taking note of the empty salon.

“This is normal,” Ness clarified.

They sat off to the side and waited to be attended. Natalie skimmed through a hairstyle and makeup magazine, basically a menu for the beauty salon, while Ness sat there with her heel jumping. At one point Natalie gave her an assuring pat on the back and that seemed to help ease her nerves. Only for them to spike again as the salon bot rolled over- hanging from the ceiling, surprisingly enough.

“Hello. Welcome to the Glamrock Beauty Salon. I am Snippo and I will make you fabulous. How would you like to look fabulous today?”

“I want to get rainbow highlights,” Ness said slowly and clearly.

“What color?”

“Uh, rainbow.”

“Rainbow consists of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. Is this correct?”

“Yes.”

“Excellent choice. It is a good color for you,” Snippo complimented. “Permanent or temporary?”

“Per-Permanent,” Ness said.

“Would you like to include nails and makeup?”

“I don’t know,” Ness admitted.

“Let’s pass for now and we can add on later,” Natalie suggested.

“Yeah, that.”

“Understood. Come over to stylist chair three so I can begin your transformation into the new you.”

Snippo led Ness off, who looked back at Natalie one last time who gave her two thumbs up. She then went over and got seated into one of the chairs that wasn’t a racecar.

Surprisingly, the actual hair treatment didn’t take long at all. Especially not for what was supposed to be a permanent dye-job.

“And finished. Admire your new self in the mirror. You are fashion,” Snippo ‘gushed’.

To which she did, Ness turning her head and pulling her hair around to try and see the back. Natalie grabbed a mirror on the way over and assisted, allowing her to see the highlights. They were faint, but colorful, peeking through her dark hair evenly.

“They turned out great!” Natalie complimented.

“You really think so?”

“I do. Brad’s going to love it.”

Ness looked surprised, but then gave a flustered smile.

“You really think so? I mean, he should! He’s always telling me to get out of my comfort zone.”

“Well, you did. And you look fabulous,” Natalie said, mimicking the Staff Bots. Ness snickered a little while Natalie looked at the highlights. “…In fact, they look so good I might get some of my own.”

“Wait, really? You want to?” Ness asked in surprise.

“I think so! But I’m going to probably go for the temporary stuff. I can’t keep ‘em in forever, but I could go for, what, a week of color? It’ll probably take a few washes to come out.”

“Still! Oh wow, they’re going to look amazing. Like, you can barely see them in my hair, but you’re blond, so they’re totally going to pop out-.”

There was a jingling sound as the front door opened and both women looked over to see none other than Roxanne Wolf herself walking in.

“Roxy, hey!” Natalie greeted with a wave.

Ness sunk in her seat.

“Vanessa?” Roxy looked in her general direction, squinting, her ears twitching. “I didn’t expect you to be back so soon.”

“Neither did I. How’s it going? Did the technicians take a look at your eyes yet?”

Roxy scoffed. “Of course not. Here I am supposed to be the frontrunner for the raceway and I’m as nearsighted as a bat. I can’t even see myself in the mirror unless I’m standing ten inches away!”

“I’m sorry about that,” Natalie sympathized softly. Then gave a more upbeat, “But hey, you look great.”

“Thank you. I just had my makeup redone,” Roxy said, running a claw through her hair. “I just came by to pick up some nail polish. I have a one-on-one appointment with my biggest fan later. What about you?”

“We’re getting rainbow highlights.”

“Whoa. That’s pretty bold,” Roxy said, impressed. “Well, you came to the right place. Snippo does the best highlights.”

“I know, my friend here just got them done,” Natalie said.

Roxy came over and leaned in very close to the back of Ness’ head, squinting and struggling to see the colors while Ness started sweating bullets. But eventually Roxy pulled back with a satisfied nod.

“Snippo has done it again. The softer colors really contrast with the darker hair tone,” she said.

“That’s what I was thinking,” Natalie agreed.

“But if you’re getting this done, take my advice. Your hair length? Get it done on the ends and fade into the top.”

“I’ll take your word for it!”

“Good. You two have a good time, alright?” Roxy said. She then went to look through the nail polish and eventually left right around the time Natalie was getting in the chair. Ness breathed a sigh of relief once she did.

Soon, Natalie’s highlights were done as well. Unlike Ness’ that streaked through the whole length, hers focused on the lower half of her hair, but the color still came out vibrant. They walked out of the salon together, Ness with a huge, excited smile and Natalie with a much more relaxed one.

Since Natalie had only had a granola bar for breakfast, the two swung by the food court for lunch. Natalie taking the plunge and getting some sort of pizza burrito, and then proceeding to debate over how to eat it.

“Look at this, it’s huge! I don’t get how someone’s supposed to eat this,” she said. The Pizzarito so heavy it was hard to lift and the dough so thick that the first bite would be nothing but dough. Eventually she took the plunge- and a plunge it was. Of dough. A bunch of dough with sauce and cheese leaking out.

“You know what I don’t get,” Ness said. She popped a fry in her mouth and chewed it up before pointing and continuing. “Why someone gets meat and fake meat on a pizza. What’s the point of getting fake meat if you’re getting real meat anyways? And who comes to Freddy’s for chicken alfredo?! There’s this brat Lily, she’s the daughter of some guy on the board of directors, and she came in and threw this big tantrum about chicken alfredo and somehow-.”

“Don’t look now-,” Natalie warned through a mouthful of dough.

“Well, who are these two lovely ladies?”

Ness’ mouth slammed shut and Natalie covered hers as she chewed as fast as she could, swallowing to greet the new face. “Hey, Mr. Wight.”

There came James Wight, dressed in business casual making a line directly for their table. He stopped beside it with that big cheesy grin that he got whenever he was talking up the Pizzaplex.

“Why, it’s the two Vanessas! I barely recognized you. Ness, your hair looks beautiful. And Vanessa, let me get a good look at yours- fantastic!” Wight exaggerated, and chuckled. “I take it you’re both having fun?”

“Oh yeah, we’re having a blast,” Natalie said.

“And I see you’re trying the Pizzarito! It’s our most popular menu item you know. What do you think?”

“It’s… great! Very cheesy,” Natalie said, deciding to not voice any of the complaints she voiced to Ness minutes ago.

Ness just sat there awkwardly smiling. Giving a hum of agreement and nodding.

“That is excellent to hear! I’ll be getting one for myself once I finish up upstairs. I’m famished! I was so eager to get here that I walked right out of the house without a breakfast- beyond a toast point or two.”

Ness offered her cup of fries.

“Oh, thank you!” Wight grabbed a couple. “But I hope to see you both at the theater tonight. We will be screening the new Freddy and Friends movie.”

“Wait, there’s a Freddy and Friends movie?” Natalie asked in surprise.

“Yes! And this is just the newest one, ‘Freddy and Friends in the Universe 2000!’ A delightful science fiction romp. Though we have a slew of others. ‘A Freddy and Friends Christmas Carol,’ ‘Chica goes Hollywood’, ‘Rocking on the Raceway’…” He snapped his fingers. “What am I forgetting?”

“The Faz-Babies straight-to-video line,” Ness added.

“Ah, yes! That.”

“Wow,” Natalie said. Though she was more wowing about how much there was in such a short amount of time. She was waiting for someone to mention a cartoon, but neither did.

“Today the Fazbear Theater, tomorrow the big screen!” Wight proclaimed. He then gave a dismissive wave like he was playing even though Natalie was pretty sure he was being serious. “Well, I won’t stand here gawking all day. You two have a good time and we’ll catch up later,” he said.

“Okay,” Ness said. She gave him a smile and Natalie waved as he headed off.

She watched him go while Ness popped another fry into her mouth.

“…Was he flirting with us?” Natalie asked.

Ness almost choked on her food.

That joke aside though, Natalie found herself still thinking about it even as they returned to eating. And a few minutes later, after one more bite of the Pizzarito, Natalie dared to ask.

“Hey…” she started quietly. “Is there something… going on between you and Wight?”

“What? No! He’s just- he’s like a dad to me,” Ness said.

“Just double-checking. Just keeping an eye out for you. Making sure Wight isn’t doing anything sketchy.”

“I appreciate it. And I’m glad you asked me instead of whispering about it behind my back,” Ness said, trailing off at the end.

Natalie quirked a brow. “Sounds like you’ve had experience.”

“Just be lucky you’re not part of the office staff. They get way too into everyone’s business,” Ness added.

“Just give me a name and I’ll take care of ‘em.”

Ness got her smile back at that. “I’ll keep you posted. I’ve got a few people who could afford to be arrested.”

The mood returned to normal for a short while, with Ness even running to the counter to grab Natalie a knife and fork to go at her food with. Which she did.

And then Natalie caught sight of someone running across the atrium, and then a second person racing behind them. She realized right away that it was the two daytime security guards, Tommy and Abe.

“Hey, what’s the fire?” she yelled over toward them.

Abe gave a wave but kept running. Tommy actually stopped, hand on his hip and hunching over a little before calling back. “Something’s going down in the atrium!”

The first thing Natalie thought was that someone had gotten hurt in the elevator. Either that or someone found something. Either way, she sprung up from her chair.

“Let’s go,” she said.

It didn’t matter that it wasn’t her shift, she hurried after them. Ness was a little startled but quickly caught up and all four ended up heading into the lobby together.

…

With a loud clatter, the hatch hidden in the bottom of the elevator shaft was finally popped open. It took a crowbar to do it, but it flipped open and revealed the dark hole. Out of which a rotten smell wafted out. The thick armed technician that had popped it open gagged and covered his mouth.

Then he looked up to the next technician and pointed down into the pit.

“Alright, Grady, get in there.”

The technician, Grady, had his eyes almost pop out of his sockets.

“Me? I’m not going down there,” he said pointing to himself.

“You’re the best fit. You’ve got to go down there,” Chaz said.

“What about Stanley?”

“Stanley’s not fitting down there.”

“What about you?”

Chaz silently gestured to his own stomach.

“Flynn!”

Flynn was over by the stairs last time he checked but had now mysteriously disappeared.

“Relax, it’s no big deal. The crawlspace is only about three feet deep. You just climb in, flash the light around, and see what died down there,” Chaz encouraged.

Grady did not want to do this. He looked up at the elevator, which was parked at the actual landing on the second level of the lobby. They had to remove the glass wall of the tube to get in here so, by all accounts, the elevator shouldn’t lower. It shouldn’t drop. Yet he was increasingly nervous that it would.

Chaz must’ve noticed where he was looking.

“It’s fine. The power’s cut, the elevator’s not going anywhere,” Chaz assured. “And if it does, with how slow this one moves, you’ll be out and eating a sandwich before the thing touches ground.”

“And if it drops?”

“You’re stuck in the crawlspace for a little while.”

Grady sighed and reluctantly took the flashlight that Chaz held out. Then he stepped down into the shaft and to the edge of the hatch. Then he crouched down and went to lower himself in. Ronan, the other technician, taking his hand and helping him lower inside.

The smell in that crawlspace was wrong. Something nasty and decayed. Not as powerful as he was expecting but definitely the source of the elevator’s stench. Maybe that woman who said it was gas was right.

“If I pass out, pull me out quick,” Grady warned.

Then he crouched down onto his knees and shined his light around the crawlspace, fully expecting that he was going to really have to look for the source of the smell.

But there really wasn’t much there. It was a crawlspace either right above or beside one of the basement production lines, so it made sense that there wasn’t a lot of useable room. It had just gotten closed up and forgotten about. Made sense.

What didn’t make sense was when his flashlight fell on a starry pattern tucked into the back corner of the crawlspace.

It was the only thing in the crawlspace.

Grady already had his suspicions, but he couldn’t look away. He called up, “I… I think I see something! Hold on, let me check…”

He began to crawl through the small space. It wasn’t three feet like Chaz said. More like two, maybe even less. It was terribly claustrophobic, especially with the flashlight bouncing from his movements.

Yet the beam stayed ever stuck on that starry patterned lump. It was a bundled-up blanket. One of those starry blue twin comforters from the daycare. The smell was coming from it.

It eventually got so strong that Grady wrinkled his nose and went to block it with his arm. In that motion he shined the light to the side and his heart stopped.

He saw a shoe sticking out from the bottom of the blanket. No, not a shoe. A foot, a leg. A person, it was a person. It was a-

He swore loudly.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“Body! There’s a- Holy hell, oh my God, it’s a- There’s a body wrapped up down here!”

“Somebody?” Ronan called, thinking he heard wrong.

“A corpse, man! A CORPSE!”

…

By time the elevator doors opened there was a chaos erupting in the lobby. A cacophony of panicked voices from below. Abe didn’t wait and ran to the steps, bolting down them so fast that he stumbled.

“What’s going on?! Did somebody get hurt?!” he shouted.

“There’s a body down there!” one of the technicians yelled.

Abe mouth nearly dropped open. “Wh-What?! Where?!”

“In the crawlspace underneath the elevator! Right there!” He dry-heaved.

Grady crawled back out of the hatch with a sickened look and turned up to face Chaz. His face taking a new stony expression.

“I think it’s Ray,” he said.

“Bullshit,” Chaz instantly shot down. He gestured for Grady to come out. “Move. Let me see.”

Grady quickly got out and Chaz climbed down into the crawlspace.

“Did he say there was a body?!” Tommy asked.

“Yeah…” Abe said. His eyes wide and distant.

Tommy wasn’t so convinced. “Are you sure there ain’t some prop down there that you’re just thinking is a body? Some broken up Staff Bot or something?”

“It’s a body. I don’t know who it is, but it’s somebody. And they’ve been down there a while…” Grady said. His voice shaken but sure. He looked to the two, and to the women coming down the stairs behind him, focusing on Ness. “Ness, I think it’s Ray.”

Ness’ eyes widened and she froze on the spot on the steps. Like a deer in headlights.

She wasn’t the only one either.

Tommy went as pale as a sheet. Then suddenly ripped off his badge.

“I quit,” he said. Eyes wide, he threw the badge to the floor and turned and strode to the exit. “That’s it! I’m done! I quit! I’m outta here!”

“What?!” Abe snapped his head between him and the ordeal in front of them, then rushed after him. “Tommy, wait!”

“I’m done!” Tommy shouted back.

He strode out the front doors and towards his car, with Abe quick on his heels, still pleading with him to stop.

“Tommy, wait.”

“You’re not getting me back in there, Abe!” Tommy spun on his heel and began walking backwards, hands up as though in defense. “A dead guy?! A dead body?! That’s where I draw the line! Screw this, I’m not- I ain’t getting caught up in all this!”

“But they need us! Or, I… I need you. I can’t do this alone! ‘Specially not now!”

“You’re staying?!”

“I’ve got no choice!”

“Abe…” Tommy turned and grabbed him by the shoulders, looking him dead in the eyes. “You can find another job. This job ain’t that important! A guy’s dead in there!” he shouted, gesturing a hand at the Pizzaplex.

“I… I can’t. I need this job,” Abe meekly admitted.

Tommy looked unimpressed and let him go, turning away and continuing towards his car.

“Well, I don’t. Life’s too short to get your name listed in a murder investigation.”

“It could’ve been an accident…?”

“Fat chance.”

Abe was scrambling as Tommy finally got to his car and unlocked the door.

“Call me if you wanna get a drink sometime, but other than that, I ain’t comin’ back,” Tommy swore. He dropped into his seat, shut his car door, and started it up.

He caught sight of Abe standing outside his car door looking devastated and took pity, rolling his eyes and rolling down the window.

“Last chance to come with me,” he offered.

Abe stared at him, overwhelmed and panicking. There was a dead guy inside, a dead guy, and likely the place was going to close. He could lose his job, and if he didn’t, he’d be here alone without Tommy. He couldn’t be here alone. Not this place, not with the noises and the way the Staff Bots looked at him. He couldn’t lose this job; he couldn’t do it alone. He needed help.

Tommy held out a hand in a sort of questioning shrug. Finally, Abe answered, but it wasn’t the answer he was expecting.

“I’m living out of my car.”         

Tommy stared at Abe for a long second before his brows furrowed in confusion. “What?”

“I’m living out of my car, Tommy. I need this job, I don’t have any other options.”

There was a long silence. Tommy now just as blindsided as Abe was. After a few more seconds he turned the car off.

Abe’s shoulders slouched with a sigh. He stepped aside and sat down on the ground beside the car, his back to the sun-warned metal, trying to slow his pounding heartrate.

Tommy opened his door and leaned out. “You said you’re what?”

Abe took a shaky breath and explained.

“My mom’s sick. Like… she has to be taken care of. She needs round the clock care, and her insurance doesn’t… Almost every cent I make goes to her. Everything else goes into my gas tank…”

“Oh geez…” Tommy said. Suddenly understanding the gravity of the situation Abe was stuck in.

Abe covered his face with his hand.

“I can’t leave,” he mumbled into it.

There was that tense silence again.

Tommy had been so prepared to blow out of here and leave this all behind, but now here he was just as stuck as Abe was. Who could drive off after something like that?

Especially since… Tommy had a hunch something was up. He thought it was really weird how Abe was so eager for overtime work, how he would wrap up stale food that was supposed to be thrown out and take it with him. Sure, he did it too, but Abe did it a lot more often and didn’t care how old the stuff was. Sometimes his uniform was wrinkled like it hadn’t been washed either, not that Tommy cared but…

But that explained some things. Especially why he was so afraid to leave the job. Tommy might’ve not known Abe was homeless, but he did know he had trouble finding a job. The only reason he scraped into this one was because the Pizzaplex wanted security guard fast and weren’t too picky on who they chose.

It would’ve been one thing if he was just living paycheck to paycheck, but with a mother with medical bills- if the Pizzaplex had any perks it was that it paid better than any other place in town. That was one of the reasons Tommy stuck around. That and… Abe.

Tommy stood from the car, finally doing something other than sitting and staring and took only a step closer, shut the car door closed behind him, and sat down on the ground beside Abe. His legs crossed, Abe’s bent in front of him, and both sitting there like a couple of chumps who had gotten canned, not a couple of chumps who were stuck with jobs.

Eventually Tommy spoke up. “Can’t you get help or something? Like food stamps? Anything?”

“She gets a little help. It doesn’t really cover much.”

“They should cover your mom getting taken care of!”

“They do… but the place they had her wasn’t great. I had to pay myself if I wanted her somewhere that’d make sure she was really taken care of.”

Tommy hissed sympathetically. “Yikes.”

There was a brief pause.

“Wh-What about family? You got any family somewhere that’ll pitch in?”

“I’ve got a brother, but he’s not really in the picture…”

“Do you got anyone? Anyone at all?”

Abe looked at Tommy.

Oh.

Oh.

Well, that made things a whole lot more complicated.

There was another, somewhat longer pause until Tommy sighed.

“Abe, if this is going down, you know this place ain’t gonna be open much longer.”

“I… I don’t know,” Abe admitted. Answering the question that Tommy had only implied.

Honestly, Tommy didn’t know either. Didn’t know what he was going to do, because he was all prepped and ready to go at any time and now something was holding him back. The same something that convinced him to stay this long. What was he supposed to do? Leave Abe and risk him ending up shoved in a crawlspace somewhere? Stay and end up in the crawlspace with him?

Tommy had the luxury of going back east if things went sour. Join up with his uncle’s handyman company and have a relatively cushy life if he wanted to. He didn’t want to, but he could. Abe was stuck.

Tommy knew what he was going to wind up doing and dropped his head back against the car. Clunking it louder than he intended.

Abe looked over at him. “That sounded like it hurt,” he mumbled.

“Yeah…” Tommy admitted. He sighed deeply. “…Go back in and get my badge, would ya?”

Abe’s head snapped up; eyes as wide as saucers.

“Really?!”

“But tell anyone who’ll listen that I’m taking the night off. You too, we’re getting out of here while they straighten this out.”

“What if they need us?”

“I don’t care.”  

“Tommy…” Abe’s face broke into a smile. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Tommy managed a smile of his own. “Yeah, well. You’re gonna have to figure it out. ‘Cause I ain’t stayin’ here forever.”

“Got it,” Abe agreed with a thumbs up. “Be right back.”

He jogged back to the Pizzaplex while Tommy dragged himself to his feet, opened the car door, and collapsed back into his seat. His head dropping into his hand. Somehow, he knew he would regret this.

He was such a sucker.

Abe headed back into the lobby about two seconds after Wight arrived, and since attention was focused on that arrival more than his own, he grabbed the badge, discretely told the closest technician that they were leaving but not quitting- said technician didn’t even ask or try to stop him- and then hustled back out. He and Tommy left together in the latter’s car.

Meanwhile, inside the building the ordeal continued without them.

“What’s going on?!” Wight shouted in surprise as he bolted out of the elevator.

“There’s a dead man in the crawlspace down here!” Grady shouted.

“…Dear GOD!” Wight all but screamed. “WHAT?! No, there’s- How?! What happened?!”

“We don’t know! He’s just down here!”

“Are you sure?!”

“What do you mean am I sure?!”

“Are you sure it’s a person it’s not a Staff Bot they look the same in the dark lighting?!?!”

“It’s not a Staff Bot! It’s a- He’s Ray! We think he’s Ray!”

“JESUS!”

As shady as Wight was, his panic seemed genuine. Though Natalie could understand why. He looked to Ness who looked down quickly, and then to Natalie, and then to anyone else waiting for someone to say it was a mistake, a joke, anything.

That was when Chaz came out of the crawlspace.

“Was it him?” one of the technicians who Natalie didn’t know, Ronan, asked.

Chaz didn’t answer, he didn’t stop. He walked about ten feet away from the elevator with his back towards them and covered his face with one hand. He started to shake a little. He was crying.

Natalie took the initiative and walked over to him, putting an arm around his shoulders. He didn’t brush her off, instead softly crying. It was almost strange to see him crying, it told her all it needed to about who Ray was.

“Alright, ALRIGHT! N-Nobody move! Nobody touch him, the body, I mean! I… I am going to call Dr. Talbert and I will be back with you shortly. Nobody call the authorities yet until I… until I get back.”

Wight seemed utterly frantic. Grabbing and squeezing Ness’ shoulders as he passed by and all but bolted back upstairs and over into the café to find a working landline.

“I can’t believe he’s going to make us wait to call the police. You know what that is? That’s a cover-up,” Grady said.

“I don’t think you can cover this up,” Ronan said.

“They’ll try.”

“Chaz, I’m so sorry,” Natalie said quietly.

“I brought him to this job. I told him to take it,” Chaz choked out lowly. “He would’ve been working at the gas station right now.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” she assured, knowing what he was getting at. “You were close?”

“He’s my brother-in-law. He’s my best friend.”

Oh, they were very close.

“I’m going to have to go home and tell my wife-.” He choked up, unable to finish the sentence.

Natalie continued holding him, supporting him all she could.

Finally, Wight returned. He was rubbing his hands together anxiously as he came down the steps, with Ness choosing to follow him down.

“I would like to have everyone’s attention!” he called. The technicians and Natalie looked over, Chaz didn’t. “I just got off the phone with Dr. Talbert. He is going to come take a look at everything before calling the authorities to make sure he can collect what evidence he can. You know how the police can sometimes miss things and… given the circumstances, we need to know exactly what happened here.”

Wight’s voice grew more solemn. “This might have shaken us, but this will not ruin us. We will stand together through this troubling time, stay the course, and keep on. This, I promise you.”

Chaz turned his head so fast Natalie could’ve heard it snap. She let him go as he turned on Wight.

“You can’t promise us shit! Where do you get off acting like this is some sort of- A man is DEAD! He’s DEAD! And you’re acting like this is some PR stunt!” Chaz snapped. “Ray’s been missing for months, and you covered it up!”

“I-I didn’t even know he was there!” Wight fumbled to defend himself, startled at the attack aimed at him.

“Well, we sure as hell would’ve known sooner if you wouldn’t have told everyone, including the police, that he left! He didn’t LEAVE, Wight! He DIED and YOU covered it up!”

“I did not-!”

“Really got the real Freddy’s experience! Down to the people disappearing and dying, and some slumlord stuffed shirt telling US to be quiet! That why you kept telling everyone those dead kids were rumors?!”

“Chaz, please, this isn’t- this is not the same thing. Those WERE rumors-.”

“Oh yeah? Why don’t we go find William Afton and ask him what happened to all those kids who disappeared?!”

“Don’t bring him into this!” Wight snapped back, finally finding his fire. “This is not about him, this is about Ray, and us!”

“No, it’s not! It’s about his family! He has a kid, Wight! What am I supposed to tell her?!”

That cut off any of Wight’s arguments. He floundered, looking like he had been slapped in the face. Utterly speechless.

Chaz took that moment to turn towards Stanley who had faded into the background until address.

“Get your taser. You, you, and you. Let’s go. We’re heading to the daycare,” Chaz instructed. None of the technicians argued.

“The daycare? Why?” Natalie asked. She put two and two together. “What, do you think Sun did this?”

“He’s wrapped in a blanket from the daycare,” Chaz answered coldly.

“…That doesn’t mean that it was him?”

“No, it doesn’t. The fact that Ray was his personal technician does,” Chaz said bitterly. “Now that thing is currently watching a bunch of young kids. So, until I find out what the hell happened to Ray, we’re taking it downstairs and putting it under containment.”

No amount of convincing from Natalie swayed Chaz’s decision and soon she found herself following him and the other technicians towards the daycare. Ness stayed behind with Wight, who had a hand on her shoulder and was still looking gob smacked.

Natalie had no radio on her. She had no way of warning anybody and no time to do it.

But someone else did.

The Superstar Daycare was moderately busy today. There were only fourteen tots that had been brought in, all children of the employees who were called in to work. Or close enough relatives to qualify for the free daycare services today.

This meant that Sun didn’t have to bounce around as much as he usually did. So, this was a good day for arts and crafts. He circled around the tables and watched the kids finger paint pre-printed pictures of Freddy, Chica, and Roxy. Most of them getting the colors wrong, but he admired the effort.

One of the little girls even drew a tiny sun and pointed it out with an excited, “It’s you!” He couldn’t even comment on her being outside the lines, he just rewarded her with as many stickers as he could afford to stick.

It was a surprisingly delightful day! Though he was looking forwards to the brief reprieve that would be naptime. When he could get off his feet for a while. He had a feeling the kids would be quiet today.

And then a voice suddenly spoke up. Not from beside him or behind him, but from directly inside him. A direct warning inside of his head.

“Don’t freak out but they found the… the smell under the elevator.”

The moment Sun processed what that meant he was filled with an overwhelming terror. His points pulled in, his fans kicked in, he panicked. He was filled with growing, overwhelming panic.

No. No, no. No, no, no, no.

And then- everything stopped. The panic rose to a crescendo and then released, and the world went black.

Sun shut down. His body tightening up before he collapsed back onto the cushioned floor. His glowing white eyes going dark and his arms falling at his side. One leg bent up, held up only by positioning alone.

The kids noticed immediately and some of them even came to his aid, trying to wake him up. He did not stir. One of the attendants at the front desk noticed and reported that Sun had collapsed but stayed back at the desk.

Up in his and Sun’s private nook, Jake was watching the cameras through the control panel and having a meltdown of his own. He had noticed some sort of panicked call over the radio earlier and started watching the lobby, and sure enough it didn’t take him long to figure out that something terrible had gone down.

Even with the messages over the radio silenced and unable to hear through the cameras, Jake was seeing something happening there. It was like they had found something in the elevator- that one with the distinct smell. Jake had a bad feeling that they might’ve truly found something terrible. He was tempted to hook into a Staff Bot to go see, but… he almost didn’t want to. He didn’t want to know.

And then suddenly, the radio built into his control panel came to life. He didn’t even press any buttons, the voice just spilled through.

“The Sun has gone down! The Sun has gone DOWN!”

Jake suddenly straightened to alert.

“What?! He- Hold on!”

He scrambled out of the tunnel and up onto the balcony platform. He peeked out from behind the curtains and much to his horror, there was Sun completely fainted on the floor.

That was bad. That was really bad. If the technicians got ahold of him, who knew what they could do. There were probably months of backlogged updates waiting to be installed if he was taken downstairs. That couldn’t happen. That couldn’t happen and Jake wasn’t able to help him with so many witnesses.

He needed help. He needed-

He all but jumped down into the loft and threw himself through the tunnel. He got to his control panel and went straight to work.

There was only one person who could help Sun now.

…

Freddy had just gotten out of a one-on-one photo session with one of the women who worked at the Fazbear offices and her little boy. It had been a pleasant experience through and through, with the boy reminding him of Gregory, who was currently up playing at the arcade with a friend of his.

This gave Freddy some time to himself. Being that the Pizzaplex was technically closed, Freddy didn’t have any shows he needed to do. He just needed to stay out of the way unless some employee, like the woman, showed up with a picture pass. That was fine by him, though it did get a little boring being cooped up in here.

Little did he know that this peace won’t last.

Suddenly, he received a message. Not from one of his bandmates or even Sun or Moon, but from an unlikely sender.

“Freddy, I need your help! Sun passed out in the daycare, and I can’t reach him! If the technicians come up to get him, he’ll be taken to Parts and Service!”

It was Jake, and his words were haunting. Sun never collapsed; that either meant that he was severely overworked, or something went terribly wrong. But if he was taken down to Parts and Service, Freddy couldn’t trust that they would repair him. He knew about their sinister updates and was also very aware of how they ‘fixed’ Chica and Roxy.

No, Sun could not fall into their hands.

Freddy’s eyes narrowed with determination.

“I am on my way! Sit tight and stay out of sight!”

With that, Freddy blew out of his green room and ran at full speed towards the daycare.

He breezed through the atrium, thundered up the escalator stairs, bolted through the back hallway, and made his way into the hallway outside the daycare when he saw someone else heading in that direction.

It was a slew of technicians! Including Chaz, the one Sun wasn’t fond of, and even Natalie was there in civilian clothes.

They must’ve been called to come get Sun. Freddy pushed himself to keep running for the daycare as fast as he can.

“Freddy? Freddy?! Where are you going?!”

Freddy ignored the call and continued into the daycare. He raced down the walkway to the stairs, nearly bumping into a worker and hastily apologizing as he continued past. He made it to the daycare doors which had been left open, likely to let the technicians in, and waltzed right in. Only slowing down because of the risk of children being underfoot.

He gasped as he spotted Sun’s collapsed form past the play structures. He raced over and knelt, taking care not to bump any of the young children now clamoring around him.

“Sunshine!” he gasped. He gently shook his shoulder, to no avail. With time running out, he pulled him into his arms.

“Is Mr. Sunflower okay? Is he sleeping?” a little girl asked worried.

“He is- yes! Sunflower has just gotten too excited and missed his earlier nap. He needs to be taken to a doctor immediately!”

The kids started to look a little more concerned, but Freddy was quick to try to soothe. Even while carrying an unconscious Sun.

“He will be fine! He just needs a little rest and a check-up. Why not make Sun a get-well card? I am sure that will make him feel much better.”

While most of the kids seemed concerned, one boy gave a rather enthusiastic, “Okay!” and returned to the table to do so. So, Freddy took that as his cue to get moving. Some of the young children kept asking questions and trying to follow. Freddy politely answered them while he could, calling back assurances as he left them behind and ran towards the daycare doors.

“Freddy, what are you doing?!” the woman manning the security desk blurted out.

“Taking Sun to Parts and Service,” Freddy lied.

He strode out the doors and looked to his left and his eyes went wide as he saw the technicians on the upper steps, led by a fortunately slow Chaz.

A fortunately slow Chaz who looked downright distraught. His face red and his teeth in a tight grimace. Freddy suddenly understood why Sun was so afraid of the technicians, and then he turned and bolted towards the lower theater doors.

“Freddy, get back here, god damn it!”

“I am taking him to Parts and Service!” Freddy called back.

But he wasn’t, of course. He took him into the theater and ran around to the stairs leading down into the basement. Much to his surprise, he got down the first flight to see Jake waiting for him.

“Oh, thank goodness! Come on, this way! There’s a way into the utilidors down there!” Jake exclaimed. He began to hobble quickly down the steps with Freddy quick on his heels.

But Jake was going marginally slower than Freddy and soon they could hear people entering the upper basement. Now there were numerous voices calling for Freddy. Realizing they were going to get caught, and standing on the landing, Jake pushed Freddy along.

“Go!” he whispered. “I’ll hide, just get him somewhere safe!”

Freddy nodded and began to hastily thump down the stairs, making as much noise as possible to draw attention on him as he descended them. Jake darted over to the basement ball pit, used for cleaning and circulating balls, and tried to somewhat quietly slip inside. Only avoiding being noticed because of how loud Freddy was being.

Using his built-in mapping system, Freddy located the door leading further into the basement and made his way down into the utilidor tunnels. Running deep into them until he thought he got far enough away and then stopping around a corner, his back resting against the wall. Not quite catching his breath but trying to get his thoughts together.

Until Sun groaned. Freddy looked down with a start.

“Sunshine?”

Sun tensed up and trembled in his grasp before his points began to pull in. His emission kicked back on with a low flicker, flashing yellow briefly before melding into blue. Moon was coming out, but his eyes were still dimmed.

“Oh, Moonlight…”

Now Freddy was worried. Not just by the delay but by how under Sun, now Moon, really was. Something must’ve happened, he couldn’t have just failed like that, could he? All Freddy knew for certain was that he couldn’t risk taking him to Parts and Service or handing him to the technicians. He would have to call Foxy! Foxy would know what to do.

Freddy was contemplating this when a Staff Bot wearing a hardhat rolled around the corner. Freddy looked to it in surprise, and it stiffly looked in his direction, and then down at the animatronic in his grasp. It pointed at Moon and began to make a flagging noise.

Freddy straightened from the wall and started to back away when more of the worker Staff Bots came rolling around the corner. Their eyes focused on Moon and continuing to flag.

Someone, a technician likely, had activated some sort of Staff Bot protocol that put them on watch for Moon. To find him and flag as to lead the technicians right to him. But that wasn’t all they were planning to do.

They started to come in with their arms raised and their hands reaching out. They were coming for Moon.

Freddy turned and bolted into the utilidors in a panic. His eyes darting around as he raced through the semi-darkness. Every now and then the lights from his eyes alighting the face of an approaching Staff Bot. There were so many of them and they were all under the same command: find the Daycare Attendant, retrieve the Daycare Attendant.

There had to be somewhere safe. Freddy couldn’t run forever; even if he could, he didn’t trust that he wouldn’t be tracked by some of the Pizzaplex’s systems. He had to put Moon somewhere where he wouldn’t be found, where the Staff Bots couldn’t go, where he couldn’t be tracked.

Suddenly Freddy knew where he could take him.

He exited the utilidors and took a detour until he found himself in mounds of trash, pushing past half buried doors that hadn’t been used in ages, and continued on until the only Staff Bots he could see were broken ones.

Moon would hate to be down here, but this was the safest place for him. A place where nobody would find someone.

Freddy raced up to a familiar busted-up recharge station. It was shoved open and Glamrock Bonnie stuck his head out as he thumped up to it, the rabbit’s good eye going wide.

“Whoa, whoa! Freddy, what the hell?! What happened to nobody can know where I am?!” Bonnie sputtered.

“I know, I am sorry, but Moon needs your help! He collapsed in the daycare and now the technicians and the Staff Bots are both after him!” Freddy gasped out.

Bonnie seemed to grimace and sunk down into his station. “Ooooh God.”

“It is very bad.”

“So, when did bringing him in here become pa-part of the pl-plllerzt-plan?!”

“The only place Moon will be safe in this state is if he is somewhere where nobody can find him… and they… well…” Freddy awkwardly fumbled his words. “They… never found you.”

Bonnie shot an unimpressed look- cockeyed but clear. “Real smooth, Fazbear.”

“Erm, true. But this is a matter of… perhaps of life and death, Bonnie. Please. You and Moon used to be very close, you are the only one he can trust,” Freddy begged.

Bonnie, mouth agape, looked between him and the Daycare Attendant, before giving a staticky sigh and dropping back into the recharge station.

“Put him in.”

“Thank you! I will call Foxy tonight about how we can get him repaired. He may be deactivated until then, but hopefully he will stir in sometime.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Bonnie said flatly. He laid there as Freddy attempted to tuck him into the recharge station. More so laying him on top of Bonnie, so eventually he started to have to adjust to work Moon into a comfortable position. “Where’s Jake?”

“He is hiding in the basement of the Fazbear Theater. I will try to contact him as soon as I leave, but I am afraid if I go search for him the technicians will find me.”

“Bullseye. They’re probably tracking you now. Huh, and they’re not the only ones…” Bonnie looked away uneasily. “Just be careful. You’re going to make yourself a target getting involved with Fazbear Entertainment’s wacky backwards busin-in-sinin-business strategy. Sorry, that one got a little stuck.”

Freddy patted and ruffled Bonnie’s hair. The rabbit closed his eyes contently. Then Freddy petted Moon’s head, only to notice something missing and gasped.

“His nightcap!”

Bonnie made a tried noise of acknowledgement as Freddy reached in and gently tucked his fingers into the hole in Moon’s back, reaching past his hoisting hoop and touching fabric. He hooked and pulled free the nightcap before carefully sliding it overtop Moon’s head. Freddy sighed and rested his chin on his head, sat there a few moments, and then pulled away.

“I will return once it is safe.”

“Be careful out there, Freddy. Once this ship starts sinking, we’re all going down,” Bonnie warned.

“Not if I can stop it,” Freddy said with sworn determination.

Bonnie perked up at that and gave a stiff wave as Freddy slowly walked away. Then shut the recharge station, closing himself and Moon inside.

Freddy took the longest way he could to get back upstairs, forgoing even the Parts and Service lift and instead taking the kitchen one. As he was passing through the atrium, he saw some people there and heard the ghost of a conversation. They had found something. He didn’t know what and honestly, he preferred not knowing.

He had a bad feeling that Bonnie’s warning carried more weight than it was supposed to.

With a shake of his head, he returned to his greenroom, and waited for the technicians to eventually arrive.

…

The second Chaz and the others took off into the daycare basement, Natalie found it best to fall back and instead go check the poster door. Surprisingly, it was left partially open, and she went inside to see if Jake or Sun were in there. To her dread and relief, neither was. So, likely both had escaped, hopefully.

Then Natalie dared to head down into the basement. Slowly making her way down the steps, and not getting far before she heard a voice.

“Psst!”

Natalie looked over to see the edge of a mask peeking out of a tank of balls. She breathed a sigh of relief and walked over.

“What’s going on?” Jake asked.

“Well… Brace yourself, but… they found a body hidden underneath the elevator, and they’re blaming it on Sun. Or Moon.”

Jake gasped, his hand tightening on the edge of the tank. “No…”

Natalie nodded apologetically.

“No, he- You’ve got to believe me, Natalie, he would never do that!”

“I don’t think he did. I think Chaz has a chip on his shoulder and is going off that,” Natalie said.

She chose to briefly ignore the evidence implicating Sun since she knew there was screwy stuff happening at the Pizzaplex. A crazed woman in a rabbit suit possessed by something, a living mound of wires, random possessed endos and Staff Bots- there was a lot going on and this being an incident of framing wouldn’t be entirely out of left field.

Jake sunk further into the tank, his head drooping despondently.

“Are you going to be okay?” Natalie asked.

“Me? Oh yeah, I’ll be fine! I-I’m just worried, uh… I’m going to hide out here for a little while and then find somewhere to hide. Probably up in the Prize Counter, maybe. Gives me a quick escape off the roof.”

“Just be careful and I’ll check on you later,” Natalie assured.

Jake nodded and she reached out and patted his hand. To which he briefly held her hand before sinking back into the ball pit. Making a noise like he was holding his breath, then calling out, “Force of habit!”

Natalie smiled a little and started out of the basement.

She could help Jake relocate tonight. Likely Sun too, and likely that relocation was going to be out of the Pizzaplex.

They had been preparing for this, honestly. While Natalie didn’t want to steal animatronics from Freddy’s, they couldn’t stand aside and watch people get mistreated because they were animatronics.

She couldn’t let that happen. Not to those guys. They were already becoming younger siblings to her; she felt a responsibility to protect them.

She was so distracted that she went around the corner into the theater and almost walked directly into something, coming face to face with a Staff Bot. She shouted in surprise and nearly hopped back onto the stairs, but stopped herself as she realized who it was.

“Smitty! You scared me!”

Smitty must’ve followed them from wherever he was patrolling. He was looking at her attentively, waiting for orders even though she was off the clock. She patted his shoulder and steered him around.

“Come on, Partner. Let’s get back to the lobby.”

Smitty obediently followed her back through the daycare and towards the lobby. He seemed a little hesitant to entering the lobby directly for whatever reason, but at her coaxing he followed after her.

She expected the lobby to be largely empty since all the technicians followed Chaz out. She wouldn’t have been surprised it there were police out there either though. Instead, she found neither to be the case.

There was a slew of new workers taking the technicians’ place. A group of five people in coveralls with thick gloves and boots, but no head or mouth coverings. She didn’t recognize any of them, and the only reason she realized that they worked at Freddy’s was because their dark blue jumpsuits had the Pizzaplex logo on the back.

Wight was still there. Ness too but standing on the mid-stair landing while he was in the lobby proper, standing with a striking out-of-place man.

The man was tall with broad shoulders and dark toned skin. He had bushy black hair that was edging with grey, and a long solemn face. One lined with weary creases and with a pair of skinny browline glasses perched on his nose. He was wearing a lab coat, which made him stand out like a sore thumb.

Natalie wasn’t sure why the man caught her attention so much. She stood alongside Ness and stared at him for a second.

“Hey,” Ness greeted.

“Hey…” Natalie lowered her voice to a whisper. “Who is that?”

“That’s Dr. Talbert,” Ness said quietly.

“He showed up fast,” Natalie remarked.

“He was already here.”

Natalie wasn’t sure why she found that so cryptic. Likely he was just somewhere here with the rest of the employees, but Natalie had the mental image of him lingering somewhere in the shadows.

“I’d, uh, just leave them be… It might be a while,” Ness said quietly, assumingly taking the blond’s staring as her considering going down there.

But Natalie wouldn’t dare do that. She was undercover, making herself a target- when there was currently a body nearby- would’ve been a really bad idea.

She finally looked away from Dr. Talbert and to Ness.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Uh… yeah. I think so, but I’m kind of still in shock.”

“Want to leave? I don’t think they’ll stop us.”

“We can’t. Doors are locked. They won’t let us leave until we sign a waiver or something.”

“…Okay, I stand corrected.” Natalie tried to ignore the unease at them getting temporarily locked in.

Ness seemed just as nervous, taking a shaky breath and turning to her.

“…Want to- I-I know this sounds weird, but umm… Want to go… get our nails done? Or go finish our food or just something to get us out of here, please?”

Natalie recognized that desperation and nodded. She took Ness’ hand and gave it an assuring squeeze before leading her away, not sure if she was acting or not. Maybe she was behind it, maybe Bunny was, maybe she was and didn’t know it. She also waved for Smitty to follow, which he willingly did.

She had a bad feeling about all of this, but somehow as shocked as she was… she also wasn’t shocked.

It was as though she knew this was going to happen, and that frightened her.

She had a bad feeling that the cops weren’t going to be called.

Chapter 88

Chapter Summary

Freddy finally decides to stand up for himself and what he wants while news of the finding makes it back to Foxy's...

Chapter Notes

Before we begin, I have news! Some friends of mine have been making an Audio Drama Adaptation of Can’t Go Home Again! Here's the link to the first episode if you'd like to check it out- there's already three episodes finished!

https://youtu.be/_jXgNE_RaBc?si=XCog6Z7gWbMGhUq3

Freddy was waiting for them to show up. He knew they eventually would and paced his room waiting. Occasionally he peeked out through the curtains, saw nothing, and returned to pacing.

But eventually he heard footsteps outside of his door. He straightened himself up, shaking his fists in a silent pep talk- “You can do this!” – and approached the door.

It opened to reveal even more technicians than were heading into the daycare earlier. Some faces he didn’t even recognize in the back, but Natalie- Vanessa was not with them any longer.

But Chaz was, leading the pack to his door. The man’s face flushed and his expression deadly.

“Is he in there?” Chaz asked.

“Sun and or Moon? He is not.”

“Where is he?”

Chaz’s voice grew harsher. Like he was right on the brink of losing his temper. Normally Freddy might’ve been intimidated, but not today. Today he felt frustrated himself.

“I told you. I took him to Parts and Service,” Freddy said matter-of-factly. He crossed his arms. “He should be down there lying on the repair chair as we speak.”

“He’s not.”

“Oh, then he must have gotten up and left. Well, that is great! That means that he does not need repairs.”

“This isn’t about repairs, Freddy. This is about containing a dangerous animatronic,” Chaz growled.

“Well, then you are wasting your time. Both because he is not here and because Sun is not dangerous. Nor is Moon.”

“We’re getting nowhere with this,” one of the technicians muttered. “Isn’t there a manual override?”

“Not unless he’s on the chair,” Chaz snapped back. Then glared back at Freddy. “Don’t you do this, Freddy. I’m not asking you, I’m telling you. Tell us where he is or so help me, you’re not seeing that stage again.”

Freddy was taken aback by the threat. They were serious, he realized. Very serious.

“Sunny was just overwhelmed. One fall in the daycare should not be held against him. Especially since he did not fall on any children!” he defended.

“This isn’t about him falling down, goddamnit! This is about him killing someone and hiding their body! I’m not putting up with this today, Freddy! I just found my best friend rotting in a crawlspace; I’m not going to sit here and have you blow smoke up my ass!”

In a split second it was as though Freddy’s world had come to an abrupt halt.

He couldn’t have said that they found… they couldn’t have found… it couldn’t be…!

“Why don’t we just lock the room-?” one of the technicians started to interject.

“Shut up! I’m handling this!” Chaz quickly shot down. “You stand there and look like you’re doing something.”

“Somebody… Somebody was killed?” Freddy quietly asked.

“Yes, Freddy. Somebody was killed,” Chaz relayed. Finally starting to get his anger under control.

“But it- it could not have been Sun?!”

“He was the only one who could’ve done it. The only one who would’ve done it.”

Freddy was utterly shocked. He stood there, mouth agape, staring blankly ahead. Chaz began to quickly lose his patience again.

“Okay, Freddy. Here’s the deal,” he said. “We are locking this room. We are going to go check the cameras and if I find out you did what you said, fine, you’re good. If I found out you’re lying, then we’re going to have problems. And if you see him again, you better tell us. I swear to God, Freddy, if you cover for him- you better not cover for him. You better not if you know what’s good for you.”

This could not be happening. He had heard of the history of deaths at Freddy’s, Foxy had made him aware of that, but here? Now? And Sun was behind it? No, he couldn’t be! But they didn’t care. They didn’t listen.

What was good for him… that was a threat. That was a promise that if he got involved again that he would be dealt with accordingly. Freddy recognized what that threat could mean. They could shut him down. They could replace him.

Yet instead of being fearful, Freddy was suddenly filled with something else: anger.

“…No,” he said. He stood to full height and glared down at Chaz.

“No what?”

“You will not speak to me like that! I am Freddy Fazbear! My name is on the building, my face is above the door, and I deserve respect!” Freddy proclaimed, thrusting a finger in the air.

Some of the technicians looked scared and some confused. One guy actually snickered, baffled. Chaz’s face steadily grew redder.

“You sealed Chica’s mouth closed, you replaced Roxy’s eyes inadequately, you never found nor repaired Bonnie, and now you unjustly accuse Sun and Moon without even knowing if they are truly guilty! Now I am deeply sorry for your loss, but I will no longer tolerate being threatened. And I will certainly not tolerate you threatening the ones I love! We are people too!”

The technicians, Chaz included, were rendered silent for a long moment. Freddy almost thought he had gotten through to them.

But then one of them spoke up.

“You’re not- Freddy, you guys are robots,” one of the technicians at Chaz’s side said. Likely because Chaz was stewing. “Any of us could go in with a computer and change what you feel about anything. You’re just… You’re a robot. You know that, right?”

He sounded like he was talking down to Freddy. That ruffled Freddy more than if he would’ve started yelling.

“That is not true. I know how I feel!”

“No, it is true. That’s why you think you’re Freddy Fazbear when you’re just an Endo wearing a Freddy shell. You’re not the real Freddy Fazbear. T4here is no real Freddy Fazbear, you’re just… you’re an animatronic. You perform for kids.” The technician paused before continuing, “Now, we’ve got reason to believe that the robot pretending to be Sun hurt someone-.”

“He could not have!”

“Freddy, we know he did.”

“He was wrapped up in a daycare blanket and shoved in the- hell, we’ve all been chased around or threatened by Moon!” another, Grady, said. “He’s been threatening us since before we opened! Nobody can work with him, and the one guy who did is dead.”

“We can bring back the Sun,” another technician tried to gently talk down. “There’s just something wrong with this Sun. You’ll have your friend back, okay?”

“N-No! That is not okay! This is my Sun! I love him!”

“Freddy,” Chaz said. “I’m not putting up with this shit today. You help us or you’re out. Suits coming off, Endo’s in the furnace, total replacement. I am not screwing around.”

“You cannot do that,” Freddy interjected, almost fearfully.

“We’re going to do that.”

“LIKE HELL YOU ARE!”

A look of fear hit some of the technician’s faces as Monty came storming up. He grabbed the velvet rope and yanked it and the poles aside, nearly hitting Grady in the process, and took a stand beside Freddy’s side.

He crossed his arms tightly. “Ya’ll think ya can get away treating us like this?! We’re the whole reason you lot have a job! And you listen loud and clear, I ain’t some robot.” He pointed a claw threateningly. “I. was. A. HUMAN!”

“God, not this again,” Chaz pinched the bridge of his nose. A couple of the other technicians looked equally exasperated while many others were becoming increasingly anxious.

“Yeah, this again! See?! Ya don’t control us as much as ya’ll think you do! But you’ll know someday. Ya’ll will.” He lowered his head, glaring overtop of his sunglasses. “When you die on the job, we’ll see what ya’ll wake up in.”

“Was that a threat?”

“That’s a promise,” Monty growled. “And don’t think about shuttin’ me down. My pinkie finger’s worth more than any of ya’ll!”

“What’s going on over here?!” Roxy yelled as she came storming over, Chica on her heels.

“These chumps are threanin’ Freddy!” Monty called.

“They are threatening Sun too! They plan on shutting him down!” Freddy chimed in.

Chaz was looking like he was about to lose it. The technicians behind him were looking increasingly nervous.

“What do we do now?” Stanley muttered to some of the others.

“Just sit here and screw around for twenty minutes. Make sure Sun gets a chance to hide somewhere where we can’t find him,” Grady sarcastically remarked.

“What about the built-in trackers?” the nicer technician asked.

“They don’t work on him. They always say the daycare even when he’s not in there.”

“This is ridiculous! You’re over here harassing us like common criminals when we’re the headlining act! What do you do?!” Roxy accused.

Chica nodded defiantly with her hands on her hips.

Things were about to boil over if the look on Chaz’s face was indication. He looked like he was about to snap. He was at his limit.

When suddenly, a Staff Bot rolled up on the scene.

“Alert! Alert! The Daycare Attendant has been located in: Monty’s Gator Golf.”

“What’s he doin’ in there?” Monty muttered.

“Freddy.” Chaz turned back towards Freddy, pointing a finger at him. “I want you in your room, and I don’t want you coming out or letting anything in. Do you hear me? All of you, back in your rooms.”

“You can’t talk to us like that! We’re the stars!” Roxy snapped.

“No, Roxy. It is fine,” Freddy interjected. She looked to him in surprise, and he looked to Chaz. “We will stay in our rooms. Go find Sun. If you can.”

Chaz didn’t appreciate the challenge but was preparing to leave with the technicians, a few even preparing to standby in Rockstar Row to keep an eye out.

Freddy was banking on the Staff Bot being a ruse by Jake and, sure enough, once the technicians were in the process of leaving the Staff Bot waved before wheeling off.

His pride and feelings were hurt, but provoking the technicians further would be useless. Instead, he welcomed his bandmates into his green room. They, catching the drift, followed inside.

Soon they were seated and arranged in the room. Freddy was sitting on his couch with his head in his hands. Monty was lounging on the couch beside him with a hand on his shoulder but was otherwise leaned back chilling, his arm hanging over the other armrest. Chica was sitting on the floor with some of the pillows, hugging the big bowtie shaped one, while Roxy was standing and pacing a little. Her leg twitch acting up.

“And that was when Monty heard and came over to assist,” Freddy finished his recounting.

He had told them everything… with only one exception. Instead of telling them he had left Moon with Bonnie, he simply said that he had hidden him in the basement where he couldn’t be tracked. It wasn’t entirely a lie.

“Ah heard ‘em all the way from my room,” Monty said. “Buncha twig-armed meatheads.”

“Do you think Moon actually did it?” Roxy asked.

Freddy shook his head.

Chica got a confused look and pointed toward Monty questioningly.

“Ah did until they came up and started pushin’ us around. They wouldn’t care about a worker like that unless there was somethin’ to hide. Forget it, I think it’s an inside job.”

“I think I must be- Or one of us may have been…” Freddy began.

“What?”

“One of us may be that technician,” Freddy said grimly.

His bandmates stared. Chica lowered an eye lid so it looked like she was cocking a brow.

“…Okay, fine. I must be that technician,” Freddy said defeatedly. “I… I never told you all but… Recently I have remembered memories of chasing Vanny, that rabbit woman, to the daycare. But I cannot remember ever doing so, or ever truly seeing her.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?” Roxy asked.

“It was hard to even know what I was seeing…”

“Well, that changes things. It was that sick psycho, Vanny! She’s got to be behind this!” Roxy proclaimed. Chica nodded with determined agreement.

“But nobody will believe me if I say anything,” Freddy said.

“They will if we drag her right up to them. I might not be able to see her anymore, but I’ll be able to smell her. Trust me, running around in that cheap patchwork suit’s going to work up an odor. I narrow her down, we Faz-pile her, and we hand her right over to the police! And not the technicians, because they suck and she’ll just sneak away again.”

“You sure that’s a good idea?” Monty asked. Then he twitched a little and got up. “Forget that, that’s a damn good idea. Rabbit season’s comin’ early tonight!”

He heaved himself up from the couch before giving Freddy a more firm pat on the shoulder.

“Hey.” Freddy looked at him and he pointed back. “Don’t let ‘em get in yer head. You’re as real as any of them.”

“Thank you, Monty…”

“Are you going to be alright while we go hunt?” Roxy asked.

“I believe so. Do not worry about me. I am much more worried about Sun taking the fall for this.”

Chica stood up and pointed to herself and then to the couch and Freddy. She would stay with him.

“Alright, then let’s move.” Roxy turned and strode towards the door. Until she tripped over the edge of the steps and stumbled. “OWW! Stupid-!”

“Watch that first step,” Monty said.

“Ugh, shut up.”

The two headed out, leaving Freddy and Chica on their own. Her taking Monty’s place at his side as he sunk into his hands again.

What a dreadful situation. He hoped that wherever Gregory was, he was far away from this.

…

Cassie groaned as the claw slid off the Roxy plush and returned to the chute with nothing in its grasp. “This sucks.”

“Yeah, they do,” Gregory agreed.

Him half watching her try to beat the claw machine and half fiddling around with his brand-new Sun and Moon action figures. He really had to save tickets to get them both at once, but it would’ve been weird to only get one. Now all he needed was Chica and he’d have a full set. He did his best to look nonchalant about the whole thing.

“Want to go play some Asphalt Crashers?”

Cassie gave an indecisive hum, eyeballing that Roxy plush. It was one she didn’t have, with a Roxie Cola mini-plush stitched to its hand.

“Ooor do you want to try again?”

“One more time,” Cassie swore. She fished more tokens out of her sparkly change purse and dropped them in.

It went as well as expected.

“GAH!”

“You know, you could stick your arm up in there and maybe grab it,” Gregory hinted.

Cassie sighed. “That would be stealing.” Sighing like she lamented that fact.

“You probably paid more on the tokens than the plush costs anyway… Wait, hold on. Someone’s coming.”

Gregory caught sight of man in Pizzaplex coveralls and quickly hurried off somewhere. Cassie looked over to see the man approaching and recognized him immediately as Uncle Chaz.

“Hi, Uncle Chaz!” she said with a wave.

At first, she planned on asking him for help with the machine. Maybe he would know a special trick to winning or something. But the grim look on his face changed her mind. Even when he smiled it seemed fake; he looked like he could cry at any second and she had never seen him cry.

“Hey, Sweetie. We’re going to have to head home, okay?” he said.

“But what about Roxy? I was supposed to hang out with her,” Cassie asked, clearly disappointed.

“Some other time. But she knows and she’s not upset. There’s just some… stuff going on and we need to head home.”

“…Oookay…” Cassie said unsurely. She could tell something was up but decided to go along with it, if only because Chaz seemed sad. She waved off towards Gregory, “Bye, Gregory! I’ll see you later!”

Gregory, who was hiding behind a basketball machine, reached out an arm to wave. “See ya!”

Okay, so everyone was acting a little weird. Cassie shrugged that off as well and followed along with her uncle out of the arcade and down the long way to the parking garage.

She noticed what looked like a stretcher being wheeled across the atrium with something covered up on it. Maybe someone got hurt during the repairs? She wanted to ask Chaz, but something about how solemn he was made her decide against it. Maybe she didn’t want to know.

Unaware that eventually she would have to.

…

“And then that werewolf looking guy came in and told her they had to go.”

“That was definitely Chaz,” Freddy rumbled. He tapped his chin thoughtfully and looked up towards a corner. “He must have paused his pursuit of Moon to get the girl out of there without making her sign the waiver. But I am sure that Casey will return!”

“It’s Cassie.”

“Oh, my apologies. I should have remembered; it is very common name. And very familiar! Is she a frequent guest?”

“I think so?”

“Ah, that explains it. But just in case, please make sure to remind me again before you introduce us.”

“Why were they chasing Moondrop anyway? And what was everyone freaking out about?” Gregory asked.

Freddy looked away guiltily. “I am… not sure.”

Gregory was unamused. “Freddy, you’re lying. You always lie bad.”

“That is not true! I will have you know, I lied easily and effectively today when I was carrying Sun out of the daycare. I told them at least twice that I was taking him to Parts and Service!”

“Did they believe you?”

“…No… Well, they might have. They simply did not care.”

Gregory gave him an unimpressed look and Freddy sighed.

“Very well, Gregory. I should tell you the truth. Even if you may be too young to hear it, I do not want to keep something like this from you,” he said.

He knelt in front of Gregory and looked him in the eye with sadness in his own. Gregory had a confused and borderline worried look.

“Gregory, there was, umm… There was a man who went missing at the Pizzaplex some time ago. Everyone thought he had quit, or that is what they were saying, but nobody knew where he went. Today they found his remains hidden underneath the elevator,” he said grimly.

“Remains? You mean like a skeleton?! Cool!”

“Gregory!”

“Oh, sorry. Not cool,” Gregory said apologetically.

Freddy was both mortified and endeared. To be that young to not know the true horrors of death, and Freddy here, having entirely forgotten if he had even died at all. There was something ironic about that, but Freddy didn’t really have anyone nearby to muse to about it. Maybe he’d call Foxy later-

Oh dear. He had forgotten about Foxy. He surely wouldn’t take this news well…

“But, uh, what’s that got to do with Sunny and Moondrop? Do they think he did it?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Moon has had a… strained relationship with the technicians, and the one who went missing was his personal attendant. Worse still, they found him wrapped in a blanket from the daycare…”

Now that Freddy was saying it out loud, it did seem awfully suspicious. Perhaps he had been too quick to-.

“But there’s tons of blankets in the daycare! How are they sure it was him? It could’ve just been someone who stole a blanket from the daycare, like Vanny,” Gregory said.

Hearing Vanny’s name again instantly reassured Freddy.

“You are right, Gregory! And the daycare is the closest place to get blankets to the lobby, and perhaps the easiest in the Pizzaplex!... But how did Moon not see them?”

Gregory hummed and thought for a long moment before snapping his fingers. Or trying to, it was more just the motion without the snap.

“Maybe it was somebody who works here and they scrambled his mind! Erased his memories using some sort of machine!”

“Perhaps the Parts and Service machine! Yes! And that would explain Moon’s great fear of it! Gregory, you are a genius!”

“Eh, I learn from the best,” Gregory said with a shrug and a smile.

“D’aww!”

“So… what do we do?” Gregory asked. “We can’t let them take Moondrop.”

“We will not. He is safe with Bonnie for now, so all we can do is hope that Roxy and Monty can find the real perpetrator, Vanny.”

“Do you think Vanny’s the one who kidnapped all those kids back at the old Freddy’s?” Gregory asked.

Freddy’s eyes lowered with worry. “I… am not sure. She was not, but she may be connected to him…”

There was an eerie silence before Freddy perked up.

“But we should not worry about it now. Show me your new action figures! I would love to see them.”

Gregory knew Freddy was looking to change the subject and, in this case, decided to let it slide since it seemed to be more for him than trying to shelter Gregory.

“Okay, but uh… So, remember that I only heard about this Moondrop thing right now,” Gregory forewarned. He then slipped off his backpack and got out his two new figures.

Despite everything, Freddy took one look at Gregory’s new Sun and Moon action figures and gave a rousing laugh.

Gregory’s cheeks turned a little pink.

“Oh Gregory, congratulations! I know it must have taken you ages to collect all those tickets,” Freddy said proudly. He reached out a hand and Gregory gave him Sun, which he began to carefully maneuver in his hands. “It is a very good likeness! Very high quality.”

He made the little Sun wave with a small chuckle, and a slightly sad look in his eyes.

“You wanna… I don’t know,” Gregory began hesitantly. “Do you want to… play with me?”

Freddy’s eyes alit with surprise. Gregory and he had played many arcade games in the Pizzaplex before, but when it came to Gregory’s toys, he was usually private about it. Almost like he was embarrassed to have anyone see him playing with them. Freddy recognized this as a huge sign of trust.

“I would love to!” Freddy said gleefully. “Who should I play?!”

“How about you play you and Sunny?”

“That I can do! I do a very good Sunny impression,” Freddy said. He made a throat clearing sound. “Ho ho ho!”

Funny enough, other than the pitch, Freddy actually did a pretty good Sun impression.

“Here, hold Moondrop and lemme go get the others,” Gregory requested. Freddy took Moon and he hurried into the backroom to get the others.

He tossed his backpack into his little tent and scrounged up his action figures before going to run off, only to catch a glimpse of a reddish glow up in the open vent.

He came to a sudden stop and stared at it, thinking maybe it was Vanny. Dreading the thought of her creeping out until he noticed the light fading back, and the soft sound of something moving. And jingling.

“Moondrop?” he called.

There was silence.

“Moondrop, I know it’s you,” Gregory called. Though he didn’t, which was why he still stood within running range.

It was the low grumble from inside the vent that finally caused Gregory to let his guard down and step forward. There was a light patter and some shifting inside the vent before Moon’s head all but rolled free.

“Shhhh. Quiet, Moonwort. It’s just me,” Moon said. He kept his voice especially low. “We don’t want Freddy knowing I’m here.”

“Uhh…” Gregory said guiltily.

Moon tilted his head before dropping it at the sound of Freddy’s thumping footsteps approaching. Moon then lifted a hand in exasperation to which Gregory defensively gestured to the Fazwatch and shrugged.

“Sorry, it was kind of a reflex. I didn’t know you were hiding.”

“I’m not hiding, I’m just…” Moon sulked further as he heard the door clunk open. “Lying low…”

“Gregory?” Freddy came waltzing in and spotted Moon half out of the vent. He gasped, “Moon!”

“Yes, it’s me,” Moon said. He side-eyed Gregory. “Such a quick trigger finger, no wonder- omph!”

In an instant Freddy bolted up and pulled Moon out of the vent and into a crushing hug before he could even find his footing. He almost shoved himself back out of reflex before stopping himself and instead just dropping his arms, giving into the hug. Eventually even returning it for a long silent moment.

“I was so worried about you, Moon. Are you alright? What on Earth happened?” Freddy asked.

“I’m fine. I was just… overwhelmed. Overloaded and I must have shut down. The last thing I remember was being in the daycare and then… waking in the basement.”

“With Bonnie,” Freddy finished.

“Yes, that was an experience,” Moon said. “It was good to speak to him again… There were many things that needed to be said.” He sighed, “But I couldn’t abandon Jake… Or you two.”

Freddy didn’t pry. There were more important questions to ask.

“Gregory… could you give us a moment alone?” Freddy asked.

“I mean, I could. But I already know what’s going on, so you don’t have to hide anything,” Gregory said.

Moon shirked in a little as he realized that Gregory likely knew exactly what was going on. Freddy was a terrible liar, and he hated lying to Gregory.

“…Very well then,” Freddy said.

He then took Moon by the shoulders, much to his surprise, and looked into his eyes.

“Moonlight, I am about to kiss you,” Freddy said in a low, sultry voice. “Please prepare yourself.”

“W-What?” Moon choked.

“Okay, I’m going!” Gregory immediately turned and strode right out of the back room. “Go nuts!”

Freddy watched him go and waited for the door behind him to close before turning to Moon.

“We need to talk.”

“…Freddy, that was downright devious,” Moon said, genuinely impressed.

“I cannot lie so I must get creative,” Freddy brushed aside. “I would never hide anything from Gregory, but I need you to be honest with me now. I need you to tell me the truth.”

Moon’s heart could’ve dropped to the floor and smashed into millions of pieces. Then he might as well have rubbed them into his non-existent tongue for good measure with how painful the words would be to get out.

“I will… tell you everything I can,” Moon swore.

“Andrew,” Freddy begged. “Please.”

“What do you want to know, Freddy?”

Freddy hesitated for a moment to think of where to begin, and steeled his nerves with a sigh as he got straight to the point.

“Did you hide that body?”

There was a painfully long pause. Every second of if hanging heavy, punctuated by the growing ticking of the Daycare Attendant’s mechanics. He was nervous.

And then the answer came.

“Yes.”

Freddy’s heart might’ve joined Moon’s on the floor. The devastation in his eyes were clear and Moon turned his head away with shame. 

“Did you… kill him?” Freddy whispered.

“No!” Moon vehemently denied. He snapped his head back to look him in the eyes. “Freddy, I… I can’t tell you what happened that night, but you must believe me, I would’ve never-!”

He was cut off by another tight hug. Moon squeaked under the motion, returning the hug with a desperate cling of his own. As though he was frightened that Freddy would suddenly rip away and storm off.

“That is all I needed to hear,” Freddy murmured.

“Will- Will you turn me in?” Moon asked. His voice shaky and uncharacteristically fearful.

“Of course not! You are my Sunshine and my Moonlight. I trust you. I believe you.”

Moon gave a sigh of relief and exhaustion and squeezed the bear tighter.

They stood there for a few minutes just holding each other.

Then Moon eventually patted Freddy’s arm and drew back.

“I need to go.”

“Where are you going?” Freddy asked worriedly.

“To find Jake. He went to hide up in the Prize Counter. We may be able to make ourselves a hideout on the roof.”

“Good. You could escape if you were cornered,” Freddy said. Though he seemed more than a little distracted. Though Moon was too.

There was still tension in the air. Moon wondered if it would ever feel normal again after this.

No, he realized. It wouldn’t. Every time they were together, they would feel it. Every time they were together, Freddy would think of the fallen technician.

Just like Moon did.

He couldn’t bear it any longer and turned back towards the vent.

“I have been taken offline so we will no longer be able to exchange messages. If you call for me, I won’t hear you, but I will be back later to check up,” Moon explained. “…I… I will slip into the daycare after closing to gather our things, but I don’t expect to… ever go back.”

“Oh, Moonlight…”

“It’s fine.” Moon forced himself to recover. “I’d rather live.”

“Be very careful. I am sure they expect you to return to the daycare,” Freddy warned.

“Tch, of course. But little do they know that there’s more than three ways into that daycare. I can count off seven off the top of my head alone,” Moon said with feigned confidence. He waggled his fingers at the bear. “Take care, Papa Bear. Watch our little Star.”

Freddy was silent, pensive.

Moon started to climb up when Freddy grabbed his ankle.

“Wait.”

Moon slid back out of the vent to look at him. “Yes?”

Freddy beckoned him down. Moon tilted his head questioningly before dropping back down. He looked back expectantly, and Freddy looked uncertain for a moment, considering his actions.

He closed his eyes and nodded, goading himself along, before opening them again. Then he reached out and took ahold of Moon by the upper arms.

“I would feel terrible if I lied to Gregory.”

And before Moon could question what he meant, Freddy pulled him in and pressed his mouth to his and kissed him.

It was a clunk of plating on plating punctuated with a spark like static between them. It shouldn’t have felt warm. It shouldn’t have felt so overwhelming, or inviting, or alive, but it did. It felt real, even with it not being what someone would consider a real kiss.

Moon’s points popped out. First being a faded and colorless before flickering yellow. His whole body flickering its colors as he mentally malfunctioned. He felt alive. He felt good.

Freddy finally drew back and opened his eyes to see the show of colors dancing across the jester’s body. He was concerned for a moment, but then brightened as he realized it wasn’t another true glitch.

“Andrew,” he begins. His voice low and warm. “You are the most important person in my life other than Gregory. You are my guide in the darkest of nights. I would be lost without you, and nearly losing you today made me realize how truly important you are to me… I need you. Gregory does too.”

Moon managed to get control of himself. Or at least get his colors to stabilize- even if they were glowing at full brightness.

“I-I need you too…” he murmured.

Freddy’s eyes softened sadly. “…But you may need to leave the Pizzaplex to survive, and if that is the case, I want you to. I would rather let you go than lose you.”

Moon looked down somberly, his points slowly drawing back in.

“I don’t think things have gotten that dire just yet,” he said. He looked back up at Freddy. “I will be in the Prize Counter or the basement, and if I go anywhere else it will be here.”

He reached out and took Freddy’s head in his hands, guiding him down so he could press his grin to his forehead. It tingled the same way the kiss had.

“I won’t leave without you.”

Freddy wasn’t sure why those words sunk in so harshly. Without you- Freddy knew he couldn’t leave the Pizzaplex. It frightened him to think that he was holding Moon back when he could. When Jake could. When Gregory could. But he didn’t express his fears.

He caught Moon’s hands as they left his face, giving them a final squeeze before letting Moon go and watching him climb into the vent. Moon gave him one last quiet wave that he returned before crawling away.

Freddy watched that vent for what felt like ages before trudging out into his green room. Gregory was waiting on the couch, but he could’ve easily been listening.

“Moon has left to find Jake,” Freddy said with a sigh. “He may not be back tonight. If he is not, then I would be happy to step in as your bedtime storyteller.”

“Okay, but I don’t need a story. It’s not like I’m a kid who can’t sleep without one,” Gregory added.

“Of course not. But it is very relaxing.”

There was a long moment of tense silence. Gregory could tell Freddy was upset and fiddled with his one-legged Roxy action figure, trying to think of what he could do to make it better.

“So… can we still play?” he tried. It had made Freddy so excited before, maybe it would again?

He was relieved when Freddy perked up a little bit.

“Of course! Now, where shall we begin?”

Freddy sat down on the floor across the little coffee table attentively, ready to lose himself in a game of make-believe.

It almost felt familiar.

…

Natalie shuffled into Foxy’s right as it was closing. She had been playing along with Ness up until then, having kept them both distracted while trying to keep an eye on what was going on in the Pizzaplex. As far as she was aware, the authorities were never called, but the body had been removed so perhaps they had been there while they were back at the salon getting their nails done.

She walked into Foxy’s with rainbow highlights, electric blue nails, and a thousand-yard stare that she hadn’t been able to shake since the confrontation in the lobby. With a plastic bag dangling from her fingers.

Fritz had been cleaning by the doors after he locked them and noticed her as she walked up and opened them for her.

“Hey!” he greeted. He looked her over. “Oh wow, you look great! Let me see.”

Natalie smiled and turned around, posing and flicking her hair so he could get a good look at the colors.

“Thanks, but don’t get too used to it. It’s only temporary,” she said.

“Better enjoy it while it lasts then,” Fritz said.

He playfully scooped her into a hug from behind and gave her a kiss on the neck. Right on her ticklish spot. She laughed despite everything, uncontrollably, and gently bumped him in the middle with her elbow to get him off. He let her down, largely reluctantly, and got another kiss from her. Now on the lips, which she returned.

But once he let her go, still with an arm around her, he realized that something was off. She was smiling but there was obviously something amiss. If her out-of-it look as she was walking up wasn’t any indication. It was a look like something had spooked her.

Considering that she spent the day with Ness, that was a notable look.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” he asked with concern.

Natalie inhaled with a hiss and patted his arm. “Let’s sit down.”

“Oh no.”

“You’re going to want to sit for this,” Natalie warned with a little smile.

He escorted her to a table in the middle of the room, right where everyone else could listen in. Which was Natalie’s intention as well, this was an announcement that everyone was going to have to hear and, sure enough, moving to the center of the room caught their attention.

Mike was wiping down the claw machine glass to get the greasy prints off when he saw them coming over and somehow, he knew just from that silent walk that something was about to go down. He slowed his work and turned his attention fully towards them.

“Hey,” he signaled Jeremy who was using an old toothbrush to clean out some buttons on an arcade cabinet. When the blond looked up, he nodded towards the table. Jeremy leaned around the cabinet to look.

Even Charlie lifted open her box to listen in, looking over with concern.

“So, what happened?” Fritz asked as he pulled out the chair for Natalie.

She sat down with a heavy sigh, setting the plastic bag down on it as she waited for him to sit down. Then turned to him once he had and dropped the bombshell.

“They found a body at the Pizzaplex.”

She heard and barely felt the faintest woosh past her. She knowingly looked up to see Marionette now standing above her. His eyes alit with little pinpricks. Beating Mike to the table by a good few seconds.

“Where?” the Puppet asked.

“Under the elevator.”

Mike swore under his breath. Of course. Of course Marionette knew that smell.

“He was wrapped in a blanket from the daycare. They think Moon did it,” Natalie explained. “Because it was his technician. The one who went missing.”

“The one from that tape I found in the basement?” Mike asked.

“Probably.”

Marionette briefly looked downward as though considering it.

“And he’s been missing for months…

Marionette looked to her again.

“Which means he probably is Freddy,” Natalie added.

An uncomfortable silence fell over the table, save for the low hum of static coming from the Puppet himself.

And then… Marionette dropped.

The thump of him landing on the side of the table got Natalie’s head shooting up and Mike shouting a concerned, “Whoa!”

But Marionette hadn’t entirely collapsed, he had just suddenly and violently landed on his knees. His head landing on the crook of one bent arm on the table while the other dropped limp at his side.

Mike was quick to his side. He initially hooked his hands under his arms to lift him up, but then after a second decided not to. Instead, just moving his hands up to rest on them.

“Are you okay, Hun?” Natalie asked gently.

Marionette gave a listless nod into his arm.

“We knew this was a possibility,” Mike said. Like this wasn’t the absolute disaster that they both had been dreading from day one. Inwardly panicking and outwardly struggling to keep a cool composure because this wasn’t about him, and he couldn’t make it about him.

“I knew the second I stepped into that elevator,” Marionette hollowly said.

“…Yeah, me too,” Mike solemnly agreed.

He squeezed the Puppet’s shoulders, and Natalie reached out and patted his head.

The fact that she hadn’t even mentioned the elevator didn’t go over her head. The fact that she didn’t correct them didn’t go over theirs.

That was when Foxy came walking up. In an unexpected twist he, the one who often flew off the handle at any of the Pizzaplex’s disasters, was remarkably calm about the whole thing. And entirely unsurprised.

“It’s all good. Least ya ain’t under the table,” Foxy assured.

“You don’t seem shocked,” Mike remarked.

“Neither do you,” Foxy lightly retorted. There wasn’t much fire in either’s voice. He sighed. “It’s Freddy.”

“You’re certain?” Marionette quietly asked, barely turning his head to look up at him.

“Aye. Freddy’s been having memories pop-up. Knows a few technician tricks. Has to be him,” Foxy said firmly. He trusted Freddy’s gut instinct and this timing; it made too much sense. He nodded towards the plastic bag. “What’s that?”

Natalie started pulling out tapes and listing them off. “A Rocking Christmas Carol, Faz-Babies Hit the Big Screen, Freddy in Space: Blast Off, My Day at the Pizzaplex starring I don’t know-.”

“Sounds like they tried to pay you off,” Fritz half-joked.

“It was Wight who pawned these off on me, he might’ve been.”

“How’d he take all of this?” Mike asked, a little suspiciously.

“A wreck. Remember Chaz? The technician was his brother-in-law. He tore Wight a new one.”

“Good,” Foxy said gruffly.

“What about Ness?” Fritz asked.

“She seemed a little spooked, but I don’t know…” Natalie trailed off as the phone started to ring.

Everyone’s head snapped to it and stared warily at the ringing phone. Finally, Jeremy started to walk over to it.

Only to have Tabitha push through the kitchen door and answer it, oblivious to the tense conversation in the dining room.

“Foxy’s Pirate Cove! How can I help you?” Tabitha greeted in her cheery phone-voice.

She paused and arched a brow, scrunched up her nose, and listened in utter befuddlement.

“Alright, I’ll get him.” She pressed the phone into the crook of her neck and called over. “Foxy, it’s for you. It’s Freddy Fazbear.”

The way she said it she both sounded befuddled and totally over it. Foxy headed over and took the phone to answer as she returned to the kitchen.

“Blimey, that’s some good timing there, Fredbear. Ahoy!” he answered.

“Good. I wanted to make sure you were closed first…”

Freddy’s voice was much more solemn than usual. Foxy sighed and matched tone.

“What’s on yer mind, Freddy?”

“Foxy, they found a body in the Pizzaplex…” Freddy lowered his voice. “And I believe it may be mine.”

And Foxy had called it.

“A’ight, stay calm. First and foremost. Deep breath- er, whatever. Ya know.”

“I am alright. I feel much more calm that earlier.”

“Aye, that’s good.” Foxy made a noise like a sigh. “…Freddy, there’s a good chance that is yer body.” Freddy was silent on the line. “How’re you feeling?”

“Honestly? I know it is terrible to say, but… relieved.”

It took a weight off Foxy’s shoulders too. “How’s that?”

“Well, I had a hunch. I knew that I could not be a mindless machine alone!... Also, earlier today I got in a fight with some technicians. I did just as you said and stood my ground, you would be very proud! But… they were insistent that I am, well, not a person. Despite knowing that they were wrong it still bothered me…”

“Forget them. They don’t know nothing except how to be Freddy’s lapdogs… Err, the business. Not ye. Yer somebody, Freddy. Ya were and ya still are,” Foxy said firmly.

“I am. I know I am. I must be!” Freddy said with determination. “That must be my body, and Moon did not kill me!”

Well, that outburst of confidence took an unexpected turn.

“They think Moon did it?” Foxy asked. Remembering what Natalie said but wanting to hear it from him.

“Unfortunately, yes. They have been searching for him, but he is alright. I helped him escape.”

“Good. What did Moon say?”

“He said that he… he hid the body. But he did not kill the technician, and I believe him! There is something he is not telling me, but I know from the bottom of my heart that Moon would not do this!”

“He’s coverin’ fer someone else,” Foxy said without a doubt.

This took Freddy by surprise. “…You think so?”

“I know so… Freddy, there’s somethin’ I never told ye. Not because I was hiding it, but because I, err… Well, I forgot.”

It was the truth. He meant to tell him in person, but then the next time he showed up the Glamrocks wanted to hang out and it slipped his mind. Something that important slipped his mind- specifically because he just hadn’t wanted to think about it. It never seemed like a good time. Next time, he would think. Next time never came. Until now.

“The night Jake, Moon, an’ Gregory snuck out o’ the Pizzaplex they dropped by here comin’ back from Michael’s. They said-.”

“They- They did what? Jake, Moon, and Gregory snuck out of the Pizzaplex?!”

“Erm, we’ll get back to that. Stay with me, Freddy. When Jake and Moon swung by here, they told Mari an’ Mike that Vanny ain’t workin’ alone. She’s got some sort of spirit hauntin’ her, one that goes by the name ‘Bunny’. ‘pparently Jake and Moon go back real far with him. He gave ‘em their bodies. If Moon’s coverin’ fer anyone, it’s the Bunny.”

“Moon did not mention Bunny... He has never mentioned a Bunny.”

“Don’t hold it against him, Freddo. I’m thinkin’ he might have reason to be afraid,” Foxy said. “Where’s Moon now?”

“Up in the Prize Counter with Jake. But I am hoping he will return to hide with Bonnie once morning comes. That is where I hid him so that the technicians and Staff Bots wouldn’t find him.”

“Wait a minute, hold the phone. Did you say Bonnie?”

There was a painstakingly long pause as Freddy realized what he had said. So much for not telling anyone about Bonnie. Now he had told three people- Gregory and Foxy directly, and Moon by carrying him down there.

Well, there was no point lying about it now. “…Yes.”

“Bloody ‘ell, Freddy! Ya found Bonnie?! When were ya gonna tell me that?!”

“I wanted to, but I promised Bonnie that I would not. He is in a very damaged state. If anyone found him, let alone anyone unsavory, he would be in danger. They could take him to the furnace…” he whispered the last part.

Foxy couldn’t very well be upset with him two seconds after admitting that he forgot to tell him that Jake and Moon had previously warned about some shady Bunny fellow.

Wait a second.

“…Freddy.”

“Yes?”

“What’s the chance we’re talkin’ ‘bout the same person? That Bonnie’s Bunny?”

“He could not be! Bonnie warned me about Vanny. He said that she has been searching for him. I believe him, as he is… he is in a very broken state. He cannot move from the recharge station he is in.”

“Why’d ya take Moon down to be with Bonnie then?” Foxy asked.

“Because nobody can track Bonnie. The Staff Bots had been programmed to seek out Sun and Moon, and Bonnie’s current location is the only entirely blacked out zone that I am aware of.”

Well, that made sense, but Bonnie suddenly showing up at the same time this Bunny character became a problem was downright suspicious. Maybe he was just judging it on the rabbit thing, but still.

Foxy stole a look back. Jeremy was standing nearby and gave him an almost apologetic smile when he saw him. The others were still at the table, with Charlie joining to offer her support to Natalie and Marionette. No chance of asking him to come over and chat with Freddy. Not much of a point of it.

“Foxy?”

“Still here,” Foxy said. “…Think you could introduce me to Bonnie one o’ these nights?”

“I… Hmm…” Freddy considered it for a long moment. Bonnie was afraid of being caught, but Foxy wasn’t attached to the Pizzaplex’s system. He wouldn’t expose him unintentionally or not. “…Perhaps I could! I am sure Bonnie would appreciate meeting you. I have told him all about you!”

Oh, that could either be a good thing or a very, very bad thing. But at this point he had to see him for himself.

“Aye, it’s a plan then. As soon as things cool down over there.”

“It may be a while before things return to normal…”

“Eh, not as long as ye think.”

Foxy would be surprised if the Pizzaplex wasn’t reopened by next week. He wouldn’t say that to Freddy though. He already had enough to think of.

Apparently, Freddy thought so too as he suddenly changed the subject.

“In lighter news, you will not believe what Gregory and I did tonight!”

“What’s that, Fazbear?” Foxy asked, voice softening up a little.

He listened as Freddy told him all about Gregory and his action figures, about them playing together, about how proud he was of Gregory opening up more to him. Despite the catastrophe today, Freddy sounded so happy, and Foxy couldn’t help but be thankful for that little tyke giving him something to hold onto. Something to live for.

No wonder Freddy wasn’t afraid of his own death. He saw it as a validation. Foxy didn’t know if he was ever that strong and he admired Freddy for that.

He really cared about him.

…And he was terrified for him.

But between him trying to cheerfully chat on the phone and everyone looking distraught over the news, he would keep a stiff upper lip and not say a word. Just accept Jeremy’s one-armed hug and listen to the bear on the other side of the phone.

…

Abe kicked off his shoes and stretched out on the couch. It was a little short, but it was nice and plush. Way more welcoming than any of the couches at the Pizzaplex, or his car seat for certain. He almost fell asleep right then until Tommy interrupted.

“Hope this is enough,” he said. He was bringing a blanket from the bedroom and tossed it to him.

“Are you kidding? I’ve been sleeping in my passenger’s seat. This is way more than enough!” Abe assured. He spread it out over him and huddled up underneath. It felt super-soft, though maybe he was a little biased.

Tommy gave him a cocked grin as he leaned on the back of the couch. “Well, here’s a little more. Fridge’s open for business if you want a late-night snack. Have all ya want.”

“Thanks.”

It was a tempting offer, but he felt bad taking food from Tommy. It was enough giving him a place to crash. He’d maybe take something small, but he wasn’t going to empty his fridge.

It had been hours since they left the Pizzaplex and most of the evening had been not talking about or thinking about it, and he hoped that would continue once Tommy went to bed. He watched him leave with a call of “Goodnight!” before rolling onto his side and sinking into the pillow.

This was so much better. He didn’t have to worry about anyone catching him. About someone peeking on him through the windows or waking up to a cop tapping on one. He could just relax and sure enough, he soon fell asleep.

Only to wake up some time later to a noise nearby.

Abe cracked open his eyes and shot upright, only to slump against the couch again when he remembered where he was. He rubbed his eye and looked around in the dark for a clock, eventually spotting one on the wall above the television and seeing that it was about one in the morning.

He heard something in the kitchen.

Abe could’ve assumed it was Tommy, but looking over at the doorway he found the lights off and immediately grew paranoid. He slowly got up from the couch and snuck over, leaned in, and flicked on the light.

And there was Tommy sitting at a small table eating a sandwich. He jumped and whipped his head back to see Abe standing there.

“Abe, yeesh! Warn a guy!”

“Sorry! I-I was just… thought I heard something.” Apparently, that was Tommy. “…Why were you eating in the dark?”

“Didn’t want to wake you up. And not much to see except the wall,” Tommy shrugged. He pushed a chair out with his foot, gesturing for Abe to come over and sit down.

Abe walked over and sat down across from him.

“Sorry for waking you up.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m a light sleeper,” Abe assured. “…What about you? What’re you doing up? Other than eating a sandwich.”

“Eh, I couldn’t sleep.”

“Did you have a nightmare?”

“No, just thinking.” Tommy took another bite of his sandwich- it looked to be a baloney sandwich with lettuce and cheese- and chewed and swallowed before holding it out. “Want one?”

“I don’t want to put you out.”

Tommy took another bite of his sandwich before setting it on his plate and getting up. He headed over to the fridge and quickly got out the ingredients to throw together another sandwich.

While he watched him work, Abe started to feel guilty. Tommy returned with the second sandwich on a paper plate and handed it off to him.

“Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“…Y’know, I’m sorry I put you on the spot.”

“Don’t worry about it. It ain’t that hard to throw one of these together.”

“No, not this. I meant about staying at the Pizzaplex...”

“Oh… Eh, don’t worry about it.” Tommy shrugged it off. “I didn’t want to leave you behind anyways. You get stuck in a room with someone for a couple’a months, next thing you know you’re a little attached.”

Abe smiled at that.

“And before you ask- eh, again- you can stay here as long as you want and it ain’t a problem. I don’t have a girlfriend, I’ve got no prospects; a roommate’s the highlight of my year.”

Though Abe had gotten the message loud and clear earlier, it was nice to hear it reiterated again. It was okay that he stuck around, he wasn’t cramping on Tommy’s life.

Though that brought up questions of its own, mostly about Tommy himself. Most of their friendship was based around their job. In fact, Abe wouldn’t have been able to confidently call it a friendship until now. Before today it was just a work partnership. Abe knew some of Tommy’s food preferences, watched him fail flirting a few times, and knew his opinions of any topic that came up in conversation, but nothing of his life outside of the Pizzaplex.

Well, if they were going to be living together it only seemed fair to fix that.

“How’d you start working at Freddy’s?” he asked.

“I bounce around. My uncle owns a handyman company out east and pretty much the whole family works some part of it. But not me. I wanted something more than to waste away at a shop that wasn’t mine. So, headed out to Cali, things don’t work out, started wandering around, and ended up at the Pizzaplex because they pay bank.”

“Wow.”

“Eh, I wasted my youth.”

“Me too…” Abe muttered. Then he realized what he said and quickly fumbled. “No, wait. I don’t regret helping Mom. I just, you know…”

“Believe me, I know,” Tommy sympathized. “You’re a brave kid.”

“Tommy, I’m pretty sure we’re the same age.”

“I’m pretty sure I’ve got a year or two on you.”

“I’m pretty sure I’ve got a few inches on you.”

“Now you take that back. You haven’t seen me with my boots on.”

Abe chuckled and Tommy gave a dismissive noise and continued eating. Abe smiled, and then that smile started to falter, and the worries crept up.

“What, uh… What are we going to do if we lose our jobs? You’re not going to lose the apartment, right?”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ve got money squirreled away.”

“Good… Not that I’m saying- I mean, I’d get a job as fast as possible. I wasn’t trying to say that I wanted you to support me. I just… this is a big deal.”

“Eh, not that bad.”

“This is really bad,” Abe admitted, running his fingers through his russet hair.

“Eat’cha sandwich and stop askin’ so many questions,” Tommy said. A small grin showing that he was joking around, but there still being a firm insistence.

So, Abe put an abrupt halt to the chattering and picked up and bit into the sandwich. Maybe it was just because he was hungry, but it was the best sandwich he had in a long time. Definitely because he was hungry.

“And don’t worry so much,” Tommy tacked on once Abe had his mouth full. “Things’ll work out. After all, you’ve got me in your corner.”

Right. He wasn’t going this alone anymore. Even if it was just a couch to sleep on and a sandwich, it meant a whole lot more than that.

It meant that he could count on Tommy. And if that was the case, maybe he was right. Maybe everything would be okay.

…

He had never seen Leandrea cry like that. She would’ve still been weeping so hard that she was heaving if not for Cassie, who she turned all her attention on comforting. Cassie was still in shock; she didn’t believe it. Honestly, Chaz didn’t either. Seeing is believing, he supposed.

Though part of him wished he had stayed overnight with the clean-up crew to look for the Daycare Attendant, he was glad he was here. Well, not glad, but this was where he needed to be. Even if he was currently on his phone down the hall, he was there. He was with his family. That’s what Ray would’ve wanted.

He knew it was a risk to tell them before they identified the body, but… he knew that was Ray. Even decomposed as much as he was, that was Ray.

And he hadn’t heard a peep out of Fazbear Entertainment, or even from the police, since he left the Pizzaplex.

“You need to record everything you can now. Trust me, they’re already trying to erase everything that happened,” said the voice on the phone.

Chaz knew he was right. He rubbed his eye with one hand while holding the phone with the other.

“I don’t even know where they took his body.”

“…Oh.”

“Oh, what?”

“Nothing, just… keep on them about that. You don’t want his body mysteriously going missing again. You might not see it again.”

“They wouldn’t.”

“They would. Trust me, if it’s anything like the Freddy’s I knew, they’ll do anything they can to make the situation disappear.”

He didn’t want to believe that either, but he knew he was right. He had a lot more experience with the company than he did.

“Did they make you sign anything?”

“Not yet. I got out of there before any of that went down… But I won’t be surprised if they show up on my doorstep shoving papers in my face.”

“Remember, you don’t have to sign anything. No matter what they say. Just don’t.”

“I won’t,” Chaz sighed, his voice catching a little. “I should get back to Leah and Cassie. Thanks for your help.”

“Don’t mention it. If you need anything, just call me… And Chaz… I’m really sorry.”

Chaz was too. He was the most remorseful man in the world right now and there was nothing he could do. Nothing but hold on for the rest of the family and get to the bottom of this.

No matter what he had to do to get there.

Chapter 89

Chapter Summary

A girl who wants to be beautiful finds a doll who wants to make her happy... by any means possible.

Chapter Notes

I'm so sorry this chapter took so long! There's a few reasons for this, but I don't want to get into them right now. I just hope that the length of the chapter- 28,000 words! -helps make up for the delay. ^_^ Sorry again and I hope you enjoy!

This was a huge mistake. She knew it, she knew it was a bad idea, and yet here it was. Here she stood in the dark with a flimsy flashlight in her hand that barely lit the pile of junk lying in front of her.

The dump. The junkyard. The so-called prowling grounds of the Hurricane Clown.

But she wasn’t alone. Thankfully, elsewise she would be incredibly nervous standing in the middle of this dump.

Back when the clown and bear incident happened, Millie didn’t have a friend in the world. Now she had three.

First was Abigail, called Abby by her friends. Abby was as smart as a whip and the type who’d do extra credit work without the extra credit. The typical ‘nerd’ stereotype perhaps but she had a good heart, she was very outspoken, and she had an interest in the environment that Millie could get behind. She was a skeptic, a realist, but otherwise was much more optimistic than Millie tended to be.

Abby had neat braids that went to her shoulders and wore gold frames glasses. She was currently wearing an oversized dark grey jacket with the hood up in an attempt to disguise herself in case someone caught them. Though Millie didn’t know why. Sure, wandering around the dump in the middle of the night was sketchy, but she didn’t remember it being illegal. Maybe she was worried her parents would find out.

Then there was Sarah. Sarah was nice but a little quiet and withdrawn. Largely because she was so self-conscious of herself. Anyone could see it, with how often she was attempting various beauty techniques or spouting off things she read from magazines. She was the sort of person the old Millie would’ve found shallow and self-absorbed, but now she saw past that. She saw someone who was lonely and wanted friends.

Millie understood that feeling well. She wasn’t going to let either of them fall into that same trap. All it did was help get you alone, and then people would take advantage of you.

Sarah was also wearing a hoodie, but instead of for a disguise it was a hoodie she usually wore. It was a baggy dark fuchsia one that she often wore to hide herself in. Along with a pair of baggy jeans. Her hair was shoulder-length brown and unremarkable, as per Sarah’s own words on it.

Finally, there was Mandy. Many was the oldest of the group and only just became part of it. She was new to their high school and because of that she didn’t know anyone or have any friends, and that wasn’t helped by her colorful personality.

Apparently, Mandy had come from some sort of stifling preparatory school, one of those kinds with uniforms and strict decorum. Somehow, she got away with dying her hair and even now still dyed it. She was excitable, outspoken- the type to walk around with a three-ring binder with a tie dye alien throwing a piece sign and not caring when people told her it looked tacky.

Her hair was currently dyed a somewhat uneven turquoise color and was pulled up into a high ponytail before they left the car. She was wearing a simple red t-shirt and jean shorts over plaid leggings along with a thick pair of brown boots. She was definitely not dressed to be out here.

Millie looked down at her t-shirt of a logo for a rock band she had never heard of that just happened to have a disturbing grinning clown on the front of it. That made two of them.

Now, it was Mandy who spearheaded coming down here, not Millie. She aspired to be a would-be journalist and the idea of catching video footage of this supposed Hurricane Clown was too good to pass up. Even if they were all sort of sure it was a hoax.

Abby thought it was a rumor meant to creep people out, Sarah thought it was a running joke, and Mandy was convinced that there was a guy actually dressing like a clown who was running around freaking people out.

Millie was the only one who knew the clown was real, that he was the one she saw at the fair, that he was the one who pulled her from the bear, and that it had to be him that was said to crawl around the junkyard.

She also knew it was a stupid idea to look for him, but she found herself a little too eager to agree.

She hadn’t told many people about her experience with the clown and even her closest friends got an abridged version.

Days trapped inside of a tight coffin with a snide voice laughing at her suffering, telling her about all the things he could’ve done to her. What was her favorite method of execution? She looked like the type of girl who died a long time ago, he said. Up until she got inside that bear, she believed that too. That was part of the reason she was dumb enough to climb into that thing in the first place.

The hunger, the thirst, the humiliation of it all. The thought that she would die there, alone, with nobody the wiser to where she had gone. She was sure of it.

And then the clown came.

This clown- this clown who sort of sounded like the bear and then ripped it apart and pulled her out. She had been so out of it, but she remembered that clown, she remembered his face and his voice. It was like a robot, it had a white mask with a red nose, and glowing blue and yellow eyes.

In that moment it was like seeing a real-life Leprechaun, and then having it drop a pot of gold in her lap.

She had been frightened and confused. It wasn’t until the days following in the hospital that she really processed what had happened and who had helped her. It was crazy, she should’ve been even more traumatized, but she wasn’t. She was curious, intrigued.

Then she heard the rumors of the Hurricane Clown. It had to be him. She had been rescued by Utah’s version of Bigfoot apparently.

Since then, things had changed. She had attempted a new lease on life. Which really meant to stop shoving people away. So, when she returned to school, overshadowed by the rumors swirling about what happened to her, and it was Abby and Sarah- two virtual strangers- who approached her with concern and care, she didn’t shrug them off. Then when Abby suggested the offer a hand to Mandy, she didn’t shrug that off either.

How insane that it almost took dying to get to that point.

She wanted to see him again, to prove it wasn’t a hallucination from dehydration. To prove to herself that something so unexplained existed somewhere out there.

“Ugh, this place is gross,” Sarah mumbled.

“And a breeding ground for tetanus and dysentery,” Abby agreed.

“We should come here more often,” Millie added sardonically.

“Hey, is this your clown?” Mandy called.

Millie shined her light around to look for her and spotted the top of her head, then carefully walked around the trash to reach her. Sarah and Abby following in a single file line to make sure it was safe.

They came around the corner of an old car to see Mandy shining her flashlight down on what looked to be a body. Millie’s eyes widened and she hastily rushed over, only to quickly be disappointed.

It wasn’t even really a clown, but some kind of old mannequin looking thing. The material of it was plasticky and sort of slick, likely having picked up oil or grease from the garbage around it. Its ‘skin’ was stark white, if a little dirty, and it had faded round pink cheeks and a delicately painted but faded pink lips.

It had red hair pulled up into two pigtails. What was odd was that while the body looked old, paint worn, and even the plastic rubbed down along the joints, the hair looked to be in pristine condition. Almost like it had gotten a new wig just before getting tossed into the dumpster.

It had a long neck that led to a slender body that was rigidly straight. Its only clothing was a pink tutu around its waist- one that looked small for even it, like a child would wear. Its feet were shaped like wide wedge heels and the pink on them too was scuffed and fading.

The only thing of value on it seemed to be a silver heart shaped pendant resting on its chest. There was a shiny blue jewel on it, but the design made it look like it could be costume jewelry, and it probably was.

Sarah stared at it with wide eyes. Millie looked on with disappointment.

“No.”

Mandy pulled it up onto its feet with a heave. It was heavier than it looked, but she managed to balance it on the uneven ground. She hooked an arm around it to hold it up and popped a hand on her hip.

“You know what this looks like? Have you ever seen those life-sized dolls that kids dress up and do their hair and stuff?” Mandy asked.

Abby and Sarah both agreed. It certainly looked like that. If a little tall, being taller than even Mandy, the tallest one there.

Millie had another idea. She took one look at those pigtails and knew who it reminded her of.

“I think that’s Circus Baby.”

“Who?”

“There used to be a place like Freddy’s called Circus Baby’s Pizza World that closed down like Freddy’s did. Circus Baby had pigtails just like that, except she was small and looked like a kid,” Millie explained. She sized up the doll. “On second thought, never mind.”

“You might want to put that down,” Abby pointed out.

Mandy was about to when Sarah stepped forward and, seeing her interest, she let her take a closer look.

“It’s actually kinda pretty in a weird way,” Sarah said. “…You know what? I think I’m going to take it home.”

“No, really?” Abby said with aghast instead of sarcasm. “A big doll? No, scratch that. Some kind of… animatronic, maybe?”

“Animatronic, eh?” Mandy said thoughtfully.

“I don’t know, I kind of like it. Maybe we could clean it up and make her look good again. It seems like a major waste just leaving it here.”

Millie gave a derogatory sound and nudged its leg with her foot. It wasn’t responding to any of their movements, though the bear hadn’t either until she was in it.

“You know who’d probably know about how to fix her up?” Mandy declared. “Shelly’s brother.”

“Who?” Millie asked flatly.

“Pickle,” Abigail replied just as flatly.

Oh, Pickle.

Pickle was one of the smartest kids at their high school. That is, book smarts. He could read a dozen books and understand every word, but he couldn’t read a room if his life depended on it. Of course they’d get stuck hanging with Pickle.

But Sarah was determined. It just had such a pretty face. It was a shame to see it go to waste.

So, with that resolve, they took the doll with them. Sarah and Mandy having to work together to carry it to the car. Millie stayed behind to keep looking around for a little while, with Abby following at her heels.

There was no clown.

Disappointed but unsurprised, Millie eventually decided it was time to leave. But she knew she would be back.

The doll was left in Mandy’s car overnight, stretched out between the seats in the middle of the car. The next day was Sunday, and they found themselves showing up at Shelly and Pickle’s house.

Shelly and Pickle were a couple of twins who both looked similar and yet looked leagues different. Same height- short, same hair color- dark, same smarts, but where Shelly was on the cute side, Pickle was pretty awkward. The personality didn’t help. At least when Shelly was acting odd it was usually her chewing her hair or her nails, or her eraser off her pencil. Pickle just gave off oddball vibes.

Though that wasn’t why Millie wasn’t jumping through hoops to drop in. It was because Pickle’s unsolicited opinions were never kept to himself.

Yet they toted that doll in and it was currently laying out on the floor of Shelly’s bedroom with a cluster of teens staring down at it.

“So, what do you think? Think you can fix it?” Mandy asked.

Pickle did a double take. “Wait, you wanted me to fix it? I thought you just wanted me to see it. ‘There’s something you’ve got to see’?”

“Okay, that might be what I said, but this is what I meant. Come on, aren’t you curious to see what it does when it’s on?”

Pickle looked down at it for a long minute.

“…Not really.”

“Can’t you just take a look at it, please? You know a lot more about animatronics than we do,” Abigail asked.

“Yeah, you build robots every day!” Mandy encouraged.

“I don’t build robots, I build… Stuff. You know. Like, I build RC cars and stuff like that. Not actual robots!”

“Might be fun to crack it open though,” Shelly murmured out of the corner of her mouth. That got his scruffy brows raising and she knew she had him, giving a little smile to the others to show she was on their side.

“…Okay, but this isn’t a ‘you break it, you bought it’. If anything gets broken, oh well,” Pickle declared.

Within a few minutes he had grabbed a couple of little screwdrivers and was trying to get a panel on its back to open. He was knelt on the floor with Sarah, Abby, and Mandy standing over him to watch. Shelly sat on the bed with Millie, having quietly assured her it was okay to do so.

Finally, Pickle managed to pop the panel open with a funky cracking sound. It got a wince out of Sarah, but it didn’t look like anything was damaged. Pickle shined a light into the opening and peeked inside.

“It looks like… Do you know what those look like?” he asked. He pointed at something that nobody could see past his head.

“No, what?” Abby asked.

“Battery terminals. Like, there used to be a battery inside that was taken out,” Pickle explained. He thought long and hard before snapping his fingers. “I’ve got it,” he said. Then he hurried out of the room.

“What?” Shelly asked.

“I’ve got it!”

They had to wait a good five minutes before Pickle returned with ‘it’. Pickle lugged in none other than a car battery and some jumper cables.

“This is going to tell us how broken it is. We attach a battery and see if it comes on. If it does, all good! If it doesn’t, it’s busted,” he explained.

“Where did you get that?” Millie asked.

“That’s what I want to know,” Shelly agreed.

“Ladies, don’t sweat the details! Just know it’s going right back wherever it came from when I’m done,” Pickle brushed off.

He attached the car battery to the doll and waited for a response. There was none.

“We’ll have to wait a little while.”

A little while passed and he checked it again. Except the animatronic still didn’t respond.

“Okay, so, there’s is a problem,” Pickle said.

“There sure is. This means there’s more wrong with it than just missing a power supply,” Abigail agreed.

Sarah was a little disappointed but strangely enough, mostly relieved. A pretty statue was definitely less creepy than one that moved around.

“It’s okay. Thanks for trying. I guess I’m just going to use it as a mannequin to plan outfits with,” she said.

“You’re still keeping it?” Millie asked in mild disbelief.

“Why not? I didn’t really think it was going to work. Besides, it’s kind of cool.”

Honestly, Millie did find herself warming up to it, but she blamed this whole clown situation. And she certainly wasn’t warm enough to it to keep it in her house.

They didn’t hang around for much longer before leaving Pickle and Shelly’s. They loaded the doll back into the car.

“Anybody want to go get some pizza?” Mandy offered.

“Sure,” Millie agreed.

“I already ate. Sorry,” Sarah said.

Millie had doubts about that but decided it wasn’t her place to embarrass her.

So, they dropped Sarah off at her house and helped her move the doll inside before taking off. Though only once they were sure Sarah was certain she didn’t want to come.

With her mom still at work and likely not to be home for hours still, Sarah decided to focus her attention on cleaning up the doll.

First, she wiped it down with some cleaning spray and a wad of paper towels to get the dump germs off it. She removed the somewhat ugly tutu and threw it away before dragging it into the bathroom and propping it against the sink so she could wash its hair. The pigtails were a little stiff, but she was able to take them down and brush the hair out before washing it.

During this she noticed that it had a dark painted scalp hiding underneath. A closer inspection showed that the top of the head, and the texture of it, felt very much like a fashion doll and there were a few dark stragglers left amongst the red. Someone had switched out the hair. But why go through the effort if just to throw it away?

She could only assume that they must’ve been trying to refurbish it when they realized it was too broken to fix, and then chucked it out. What a shame. What a waste.

When it came to people, all they had to do to be useful was be pretty. A pretty face would never get thrown out, or that’s how she saw it.

Once she was done, she dried the hair with a hair dryer and then replaced the ponytails. They looked a little childish but keeping them down made her hair sort of crooked, so she kept them in. She then searched her closet and found a tank top that looked like it would fit and a skirt that she always wanted to wear but never looked right. She used a thin belt to secure it on.

Then she propped it in the corner of her bedroom by her closet.

It really was a beautiful doll. Girls, women, people would kill to look like her. Her slim build and perfectly symmetrical face, with a tiny nose and full lips. Sarah would kill to look like her. Even if the doll didn’t have the curves that would be preferable, she looked just like a model. She had the perfect physique, in Sarah’s opinion.

Just looking at the doll made her a little more self-conscious about her own form. But what else was new? What didn’t? At least in this case, she had a sort of model that she could go off of. If she really worked on it, she could get that skinny. She could use makeup to contour her face. She could use this as inspiration for who she wanted to be.

Except the nose. This was her “deformity” to bear until she got old enough and rich enough to explore plastic surgery.

All of this was making her feel itchy. Like that sort of wriggling itching feeling of being in the wrong skin. Being stared at by her corkboard laden with various pictures of models, fashion, and hairstyles didn’t help.

She decided to go browse on her mom’s computer for a while. She headed to the bedroom door.

She heard a slick snapping noise.

She didn’t realize it was the head of the doll turning in her direction until it spoke.

“Hello there.”

Sarah screamed and jumped, head whipping towards the tall figure in the corner of her room. It was looking at her. Its eyes glowed a pale green.

“Oh my God,” she choked. “Did you just say something?!”

“Hello there. It’s nice to meet you!” the doll repeated.

“You’re alive?” Sarah backed herself into the corner beside the door. “H-How are you alive?”

“I was brought to life with magic and electricity!” the doll cheerfully replied.

Then it started to try and lift itself off the wall. It took two attempts, with its arms seemingly stiff and its legs rigid. It teetered onto its wedges before standing upright and then turned its waist to face her again. It took an equally robotic and careful step.

“Stop!”

It stopped. It stood there unmoving but watching her.

Sarah bolted out of the room and locked herself in her mom’s room, and there she stayed for nearly ten minutes. During those ten minutes she listened for the doll, waiting to hear it coming for her.

…But it didn’t. It was still standing silently in her room.

Sarah considered her options. She didn’t really want to call her mom. Even if she did believe her then she would have to come clean about prowling the dump. She would never trust her again. Calling the others was a better idea. Abby always answered her cellphone so she would pick up.

Problem was, Sarah did not have a cellphone. Due to the tight budget, she didn’t have one- she was lucky they had a computer, though it was old and usually for her mom’s work. Which meant she would have to leave the room to get to the phone. Which meant she would have to walk past it, in a matter of speaking.

After a long while of waiting, she decided to go for it. She carefully opened the door and started to creep past, listening carefully.

She dared to peek into her bedroom to see if it was still there. She could see its shadow on the floor and realized that it hadn’t actually moved. It was still standing there.

She watched it for a long while expecting it to suddenly move and scare her, but it didn’t. And when it didn’t curiosity started to win out. She inched closer and peered in through the edge of the doorway.

The doll was still standing exactly where it had left her, even in the same position. Though it was watching her as she came in, which she did. She stood close to the door and prepared to run at any time.

“W-What are you?” Sarah asked.

“I am here to take care of you. I can help you with anything you need help with and play with you. I hope we become best friends,” the doll said. “What is your name?”

“Uh… Sarah.”

“That’s a pretty name… Sarah.”

The lingering pause gave the impression that her name was filled into a blank more than the robot was actually saying it.

“What’s your name?” Sarah asked.

“You can call me whatever you like! My last assigned name was Eleanor and Sissy.”

“How about we stick with Eleanor?” There was no way she was calling this thing ‘Sissy’. “What were you doing at the dump?”

“I don’t understand.”

“I found you at the dump. Why were you there? Did somebody throw you out?”

“I don’t know.”

Sarah scrunched up her face. Was it playing dumb with her?

“What is a dump?” she asked.

“A- dump- is a- place to throw away trash.”

That was definitely automated.

“I found you at a dump.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Do you know how you got there?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where did you come from then?”

“I was created by magic and electricity to take care of you.”

“…What’s my name?”

“Your name is… Sarah!”

Sarah was starting to get it now. At first, she thought it truly was a living doll, but now it seemed like it was some sort of advanced robot. It couldn’t answer certain questions because they weren’t part of some pre—designed conversation she was made to have. It just didn’t understand that it had come out of the garbage.

If anything, that made Sarah a little more comfortable knowing that it wasn’t some haunted doll or anything.

“You’re very pretty,” she said.

“Thank you! You are pretty too!”

Sarah gave an incredulous, stressful laugh. “I don’t think so.”

“What’s wrong?” Eleanor asked.

“What?” Sarah processed a second before being a little more honest. “No, I was just saying… I’m not really like, pretty. I’m plain at best, but you know.”

“I can make you pretty,” Eleanor volunteered.

Sarah felt a mix of curiosity and uneasiness. “How?”

“We could: do your hair in a new style, pick out a lovely outfit, pick out matching shoes, and even put on matching accessories. You will look just like a princess!”

Oh, okay. The oversized doll wanted to play dress-up with her. That was… nice, she guessed.

Though one of those options suddenly appealed to her a little more than it should have.

“…You can do hair?”

“Yes, I can.”

“Could you help me do my hair?”

“I would be happy to do your hair!” Eleanor finally stood straight again, like she was given permission to do so. “Would you like your hair done in braids or in puffs?”

“What? No, I was thinking… Hold on.”

Sarah snatched up a hairstyle magazine off her dresser and flipped through it, then another, and then found a dog-eared page with a pretty but feminine bob-ish cut. A much more mature style, and it would draw attention away from her head shape and nose. It would be perfect.

She showed the picture to the doll.

“Can you do this?” There was a long pause. “…Eleanor?”

“Processing.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“…Yes! We will need to straighten your hair first. Your hair is already straightened. Excellent, now we can begin!”

With a rattling creak, the seam down Eleanor’s belly opened and the plates separated to reveal a shallow cubby.

Inside were scissors, wraps of gauze, and even what looked to be a scalpel hidden in the back- though she couldn’t tell because there was a plastic cover on the top.

“What are those for?” Sarah asked uneasily.

“This is my first aid kit. I can take care of you if you get hurt.”

“That’s a lot of stuff.”

“It is in case emergency surgery is required due to an accident or spontaneous heart failure.”

Who exactly was this doll made for? Must’ve been someone very young and sick if this was any indication.

Eleanor reached in and pulled out a pair of scissors. “I will need: one hairbrush and one comb. Can you find one hairbrush and one comb?”                                                                                                

Sarah quickly got her a hairbrush and a comb, and Eleanor got to work.

The process took an excruciating amount of time. Sarah was sitting on the edge of the bed perfectly still out of fear that the bot would make one wrong cut and clip off a big section of her hair. In hindsight, it might’ve been a dumb idea to trust a random robot from the trash with her appearance, but she was desperate. Even a disaster would look better than plain, dull Sarah.

“There. Take a look and see the new you!”

Sarah swallowed thickly as she got off the bed. Her legs stiff and her heart pounding as she walked to the mirror on her wall, and she was surprised to see that her hair looked very close to what was shown in the magazine. Not perfect, but close, and much better than her old hair.

“Wow… Thank you!” Sarah broke into a smile. “It looks like it could’ve come from a salon! Thank you!”

“You are welcome! It makes me happy seeing you happy,” Eleanor said.

She teetered over to her with steps, somehow both wobbly and somewhat graceful and rested her hand on Sarah’s back.

“Whenever you want to be beautiful, tell me and I will grant your wish.”

Sarah got a somewhat embarrassed smile at the childish phrasing.

“Well, thanks.”

“I have a present for you,” Eleanor said unexpectedly.

“You did?”

Eleanor stiffly reached up and removed her necklace. The claps at the end seemed to be magnets as they easily pulled apart. She held it out.

“This is a magical friendship necklace. As long as you wear it, I will be able to do anything you wish!” Eleanor said.

Sarah highly doubted that, but it was a pretty necklace. Even if it was likely fake.

“Okay,” she agreed.

Eleanor put it on her. It was a little heavier than it looked, but certainly not enough to detract from how much the blue jewel glistened in the light. Sarah admired it in the mirror and it actually, maybe, sort of kind of emphasized her blue eyes. For once in a long time, she almost felt pretty.

Her hair looked so nice; she couldn’t wait to show it off tomorrow.

“I need to start planning my outfit now,” she said.

“I can help you plan your outfit!” Eleanor volunteered. 

Considering the work she had done, Sarah wasn’t about to turn her down.

She stayed in her room for the rest of the afternoon, only coming out in the evening when her mom came home. She asked Eleanor to stay in her room and she did.

Her mom was shocked at first, but Sarah quickly lied and said that she had gotten her hair done with her friends. While her mother didn’t appreciate her going behind her back and making a major change, she was supportive of what she saw as Sarah ‘coming out of her shell’ and having an encouraging friend group.

She had no idea how right and wrong she was.

Sarah considered telling her friends about Eleanor then but then decided to wait until the next day. Going to sleep with Eleanor in the room was… odd, but with her in the corner and the lights and her eyes dimming as the lamp was turned off, it wasn’t too hard to pretend that she wasn’t even there.

…

Until she awoke to her alarm going off, pressed the snooze, went back to sleep, and then woke up again preparing to hit the snooze only to find Eleanor standing beside her bed.

Sarah gasped and jumped back, rendered wide-awake instantly.

“Good morning, …Sarah!” Eleanor greeted. She gave a sort of little curtsy bow. “It is 7:05AM. Would you like to sleep for another five minutes?”

“Uh, no thanks…” Sarah shuffled to the other side of the bed and got up. “I’ve got to get ready for school.”

She reflexively started to scratch her head only to notice the amount of bedhead and gasp, “Please tell me I didn’t ruin my hair sleeping on it!”

“You did not ruin your hair sleeping on it,” Eleanor said. She picked up the brush that she had used the night before. “Please let me brush your hair.”

Sarah didn’t argue. She was too close to panicking about ‘ruining’ it, but within a few minutes of styling they managed to get it back in order. Then Sarah was able to start working on her makeup.

“You look beautiful without makeup, Sweetums.”

Sarah cringed a little bit. “Thanks, but do you mind maybe… not calling me that?”

“I apologize… Sarah. Would you like another nickname?”

“…Let me think about it.”

“Okay! Until then I will keep calling you… Sarah.”

“Also, don’t say anything to my mom. Just pretend you’re a statue, and don’t do or say anything until I tell you to, okay?”

“Okay. Have a good day!”

Eleanor retired to the corner and seemingly turned off as Sarah was driven to school by her mother.

…

Millie was getting her stuff out of her locker when she first caught sight of the new Sarah. She shut the locker door to find her standing behind it and jumped.

“You hate it,” Sarah guessed.

“No, you just scared the hell out of me,” Millie said. But now she got a look at the new hair style. Wasn’t what she would wear, but it looked nice. “You look good. Did you get that done yesterday?”

“You really like it?”

“Yes. Honestly. It looks good.”

“Thank you!” Sarah got a little smile. “I got it done last night. I just thought it was time I made a change and actually, uh…”

She trailed off as she noticed something down the hallway. Millie glanced back.

Coming down the hallway were four girls in matching expensive clothes. The girl’s hair and skin couldn’t be anymore different, but they matched in what they wore, and the aura of dignity and confidence that followed them. They were the most popular- and if you asked Sarah, most beautiful- girls at the school. They acted like they owned it, and really, they did.

Sarah referred to them as ‘The Beautifuls’. Something that took Millie all of her willpower to not roll her eyes at.

They were about to pass by. Sarah straightened up and tried to look as tall and slender as she could, hoping they would spot her new hairstyle and acknowledge her if even for only a second.

…but they walked right past. Just as usual.

But of course, she thought. It was just a new haircut in her old, dull color and with her dull, old face underneath. She needed more than just that.

So, she decided to take it a step further.

When Abby and Millie offered to hang out after school, Mandy was busy with her club, Sarah declined and instead chose to head straight home- and then head straight to the store.

She convinced her mother that she needed to buy some personal items and got a little while alone, and then she bought a few things here and there. Flashy red nail polish, a new bottle of volumizing mascara, concealer… and a box of blond hair dye. She knew her mother wouldn’t agree with it, so she would do it that night and by tomorrow it would be too late to take it back.

Because her mom was there, Sarah waited until late that night after she went to bed before beginning with her plan.

“Eleanor?”

Eleanor, who had been standing in her corner silently, immediately stirred to life.

“Good evening, Sarah. It’s past your bedtime.”

“I don’t have a bedtime as long as I get up in the morning. So… Tonight I want to dye my hair with this and restyle it so it looks like this, and then I got more makeup so that tomorrow morning we can fix my face. We’ll start with the dye. Let’s see…”

“I can’t do that.”

Sarah snapped her head up. “What?”

“I will need permission from your daddy before I can do that.”

This startled Sarah. Largely because ‘daddy’ had never been brought up- specifically because ‘daddy’ wasn’t in the picture. Save when he called twice a year.

It filled Sarah with a mix of sadness and anger, but she held back her emotions. “I don’t have a dad.”

“Oh! I am sorry. Did daddy go away?”

“Yes, he did,” she said through tight teeth. “…Mom said it’s okay though. She bought it for me,” she lied.

“Oh! Okay, then I have permission to continue. Can you read the directions to me?”

With that little convincing, Eleanor began to help her with her hair. They headed into the bathroom, and she helped her do her hair in the sink. Surprisingly, even though she was a robot, she was able to put her hands into the water. She also had some sort of built in timer as she was able to call thirty minutes exactly before rinsing it out.

It came out a soft blond color that was a little uneven in places but leagues better than what she had before.

But that’s not where the transformation ended.

Sarah got up two hours early the next day to get ready. She got out the magazines and showed them to Eleanor, allowed her to process them, and then handed over every piece of makeup she had. Even ones that she had swiped from her mother’s makeup bag in the bathroom. It took almost the entirety of those two hours to get herself ‘presentable’.

This included wearing her nicest clothes- and then a jacket to cover the bulges that Sarah swore she could see- and getting Eleanor to paint her nails.

By the end of it she could look in the mirror and say that she was dressed well. She couldn’t necessarily say that she looked good, but she looked significantly different than she had a few days ago, and that was perfect.

Sarah slipped out of the house quickly while her mother was in the bathroom, calling that she was leaving. Her mother offered her a ride, but Sarah would rather walk than risk getting caught. Besides, she could afford to burn the calories.

…

Millie caught sight of Sarah in the hallway before her first class but didn’t get a chance to approach before the bell rung. It was almost like she was avoiding everyone, and no wonder. It looked like Sarah went through yet another radical makeover the night before.

Millie wasn’t entirely shocked Sarah dyed her hair. She often complained about how ‘boring and plain’ it was, which she understood that feeling too. It was the fact that Sarah changed so much overnight… it was a little concerning.

Apparently, Abby agreed, because she looked almost stunned when they sat down together at lunch. She looked at her with her mouth slightly agape.

“Sarah, wow. You dyed your hair,” Abby said.

“Bleached,” Millie corrected.

Sarah turned away self-consciously before flicking her hair in fake confidence.

“There wasn’t much point in changing my hairstyle and keeping the same old, mousy dull brown. So… My mom helped me dye it last night.”

“You guys did a good job,” Millie complimented.

“Y-Yeah! Sorry, I didn’t mean to make it sound like I thought it was weird. I was just surprised. It looks good!” Abby added.

Sarah smiled.

They began to eat. Sarah had got a salad and wasn’t so much eating it as she was picking around and pretend the food was disappearing. Half-heartedly listening to Abby talk about some sort of vacation or something while Millie listened and ate steak nuggets.

It was normal. Too normal for her major transformation.

Then she saw the Beautifuls sitting down at their preferred table in the off-center of the lunchroom. They were all wearing red shirts and white shorts. Deceptively basic, as they were probably designer clothes.

They hadn’t noticed her. Of course they hadn’t. How could they when she was fading into a sea of people? It disappointed Sarah, after all this work she was almost- maybe almost…

Maybe if she made them notice…

“They look like a bunch of ketchup packets,” Abby said.

Sarah gave her annoyed side-eye.

“Nobody thinks that except you.”

“Let me check,” Millie said. She turned around and looked, and then turned back. “I see the resemblance.”

Sarah huffed a little and looked away. They didn’t understand, what did she expect?

The Beautifuls were loved for a reason. Everyone in school looked up to them as the pinnacle of perfection- or at least, that’s what Sarah truly believed.

She wasn’t as pretty as them, but maybe if they noticed her, maybe they could help her become even more popular. Maybe they’d see her improvement and offer her tips, or a makeover. Maybe they could become friends, and she could be the newest Beautiful member, the ugly duckling who was able to beat the odds and become a swan.

She made up her mind, she needed their attention. But she couldn’t just walk up…

But she could walk by.

“I’ll… I’ll be right back,” Sarah said.

Then she got up, with her tray, and began to walk. Millie and Abby both looking surprised, noticing where she was going.

“Is she really going to try and eat with them?” Abby asked. She didn’t sound offended but confused by the sudden boldness.

Millie looked back quickly before looking back at her food quickly. She didn’t want to see how this was going to go.

Sarah wandered across the lunchroom in a daze. Trying to focus on walking perfectly. No stumbles, no fumbles, poised like a model, making sure everything was perfect.

She started to walk past their table- a table away, of course, so it wasn’t weird or obvious- keeping her eyes straight ahead and holding her tray tight. She flipped her hair back just a little and kept on.

They were going to notice her. They were going to see her progress. And then-

And then-

And then she walked into the edge of a table.

She hadn’t been paying attention, too caught up in trying to walk like a normal person that she didn’t notice where she was walking. It resulted in a noticeable thump and a painful jab in the side, which she could’ve still recovered from if she didn’t drop her tray. In her struggle to keep ahold of it, it landed on the edge and soon her salad was tossed up onto her shirt.

It clattered to the floor loudly and she stood there like a deer in headlights.

And then the laughing began. Across the cafeteria, echoing in her head louder than it really was, it felt like everyone was laughing.

She looked to the Beautifuls and saw two of them snickering too, though in their repressed elegant sort of way. One of them had her lip wrinkled in disgust, and the last one just looked sad. No, sympathetic.

No, pity. That one had to hurt the worst. Pity. Pity for the dull little mouse who tried to get their attention and made a big fool out of herself.

Sarah wanted to curl up and die.

But before she could, Abby was at her side. She could vaguely hear her asking if she was alright and starting to try and clean her up. Millie arrived too to help, but by then it was too overwhelming.

Sarah suddenly turned and walked stiffly across and out of the cafeteria. Abby followed her, leaving Millie in the center of the cafeteria.

She hated this. As dumb as Sarah was acting- dumb was an understatement, this whole drastic change thing was very alarming to someone who went through a mental break of her own- she hated that it hadn’t worked out. That she hadn’t just walked by. That it had to become a big scene that everyone was going to be talking about. Sarah couldn’t handle that.

…But Millie could. And Millie was fired up enough that she thought, “What the hell, why not?” and turned towards the Beautifuls’ table.

She didn’t really have anything against the Beautifuls… That was a lie. She used to hate them for how shallow and phony they were, but therapy following the bear incident had helped her see that these feelings were more so just based off appearances. She was no better calling them shallow than they were calling her a freak, even if she knew they were pretty shallow.

The bear incident showed her that life was too short to be picking fights with anyone or worrying about high school drama.

But picking fights for a good reason? That was totally on the table. Everyone already whispered about her anyways, time to give them a reason to.

She looked directly at the Beautifuls, focusing mostly on the two still snickering, and put on a big clownish grin.

“Heey, sorry to interrupt the skank convention going on over here,” she said.

The girls looked offended. One especially puffed up with a sharp, “Excuse me?!”

What would the clown say?

“You’re excused. It’s all good,” Millie said. Wasn’t enough though. She needed more. What would the clown say? “Also, I toootally love the matching shirts! I always thought that matching clothes were the sort of thing you grew out of after kindergarten, but you guys are really bringing it back!”

All except for one girl, who still looked shocked, got very offended. The pretty blond who Sarah idolized the most shot up in her seat. Her hands slapping onto the table with her pointed, red-painted claws.

“We’re not going to sit here and take that from Bozo’s beyotch,” she snapped. That got one of the others snickering and another looking smug.

“The word is bitch. You should know since you are one.”

The blond evidently did not expect this as she got a look of utter offense. Like she never expected it, even though Millie considered it a long time coming.

“Ms. Fitzsimmons!”

Of all times for there to actually be a teacher in the lunchroom paying attention. Thankfully, she sounded to be clear on the other side of the lunchroom, and rather than risk getting chewed out like a child in front of everyone-

“Looks like the circus caught up. Time to split,” Millie said. She then turned and quickly hustled off towards the door to the lunchroom, purposefully not looking towards the direction of whoever yelled at her.

Well, at least she got the last word in. She liked to think Mr. Clown would’ve been proud.

Meanwhile, Sarah had made it out into the semi-empty hallway and soon into the nearest bathroom to try and clean herself off. She tried to resist looking in the mirror, she didn’t want to know what everyone saw. Abby followed in shortly behind her.

“Are you okay?” she asked. She already started to get some paper towels out and wet them.

“I can’t believe I just did that,” Sarah choked.

Now she dared to look at herself. Her almost professional makeup, her nearly perfect hair, her utter flawed face now punctuated by salad drenched in low-fat vinaigrette all down her front.

“I blew it! I ruined everything! Now they’re never going to see me as anything but some clumsy ugly geek! They’re going to start calling me Salad Girl!”

“Hey, no. Don’t think like that. So, you dropped a salad. Big deal! Remember when Olive Peterson threw up on the teacher in second grade? Sure, she got picked on for a while, but then her mom brought in cupcakes for the class for almost a whole month and then she became ‘that girl who brings in cupcakes all the time’. One good thing will always cover up a bad one!”

“This isn’t second grade, Abby! I can’t just bring in cupcakes and make people forget that I’m a screw-up!” Sarah shouted back. “I don’t know why I’m even trying to explain it to you! You don’t care! You’ve never even liked them!”

Abby was taken aback by the harsh tone. “No, but that’s because they’re just a bunch of girls who dress up like a bunch of fashion dolls, and then act like they’re better than everyone.”

“They ARE better than everyone!”

“Why?! Because they can match clothes and strut around like they’re on a runway?” Abby challenged. She did a mocking little waddle with her hands on her hips.

She didn’t get it. She was too immature to get it, Sarah thought. Everyone around her was immature and here she was a mature mind trapped in an undeveloped body.

Abby gave an impassioned plea, “You don’t need them, Sarah!”

“That’s easy for you to say! You don’t care how you look!” Sarah snapped.

Abby was startled. “What do you mean?”

“You’re wearing overalls!”

Abby looked down and back up. “They’re comfy!”

“They’re something a broke toddler would wear!”

Abby scrunched up her face, unsure if she was offended or confused.

“Millie’s a goth and Mandy dresses like a space cadet! None of you are ever going to be anyone like that, but you don’t care! You don’t care that you’re totally singling yourself out as freaks!”

Now Abby was offended. “Hey, just because we’re not dressing up in designer clothes and putting on a bunch of makeup doesn’t mean we’re nobodies! OR freaks!”

Sarah scoffed and started to storm out of the bathroom. “You keep thinking that.”

“You’re the one acting like a toddler, Sarah!” Abby snapped back.

“You keep thinking that!” Sarah yelled. She then shoved open the bathroom door, almost walking into a wide-eyed Millie that almost got hit. Sarah looked away, still with a peeved expression, muttered a “Sorry” and stormed off down the hallway.

Millie looked after her with a confused look, and then looked to Abby as she came out of the bathroom.

“What happened?”

“She told me I dressed like a broke toddler,” Abby said.

“What?”

Abby just looked down at the floor. They stood there awkwardly a second.

“Aren’t most toddlers broke?” Millie asked dryly.

“That’s what I thought.”

But it was clear that Abby was upset. Sarah had just unloaded on her and while she understood why, it still hurt.

Millie wanted to be angry. She wanted to cut her loses there and just let Sarah act like this all on her own, but she forced herself to see it from her point of view. No matter how wrong it was.

“She’s just upset. She didn’t mean it,” she said.

“I know… I should’ve stopped her before she got up. I knew it wasn’t going to go well.”

“I could’ve stopped her too.”

“It’s just she’s always had a problem with obsessing over the popular girls,” Abby said.

“Ugh,” Millie groaned. “I know a lot about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“My ex-best friend was a popularity leech. She used to obsess over what the cool kids were doing and decided one day that I wasn’t cool enough and went to become a popular kid.”

“Did she?”

“No. She just followed them around all the time, but she wasn’t ever part of them. That was in sixth grade and I think she moved because she didn’t come back to school the next year.”

“Ouch,” Abby sympathized.

“But I don’t want Sarah doing the same thing. It doesn’t matter how much she makes herself change; they’re not going to care.”

But she already had, hadn’t she? Sarah appreciated the friendship of those ditzy dolls more than her actual friends. That was hard to swallow, but she was better coming to terms with it now and not getting hurt later.

“Ms. Fitzsimmons.”

Millie looked over her shoulder to see one of the teachers halfway stepped out of the lunchroom. He had a stern look on his face, beckoning her back with one finger. It might’ve not been the lady who called her out originally, but she knew it wasn’t going to be good.

She sighed. “They’ve come for me.”

Abby furrowed her brows. “What did you do?”

“Called a Beautiful a bitch.”

Abby’s brows then shot up.

“It was worth it.”

But what the two didn’t see was that Sarah didn’t simply rush off to another bathroom or go pacing the hallways. No, she made a beeline to the exit.

The exit out the back of the gym had a faulty fire alarm that didn’t trigger when the door was opened. Usually some of the older students would use it to sneak outside and smoke, but today Sarah used it to escape the school and began the long hike through Hurricane back to her house. She didn’t even have her backpack. It, like her studies and concerns of getting caught, were left back at the school.

The hike under the warm sun made her sweat and between it and her tears her makeup had run everywhere. Her hair felt exceptionally hot due to the amount of hairspray she had applied to help it keep from getting messed up. She probably looked terrible. Not even the hot type of terrible either. Just a hot mess. No, a cold mess.

She finally made it home. She had left her key in her backpack at school, but she used the spare to let herself in. She slammed the door closed behind her, knowing her mother wasn’t home yet.

“THAT’S IT!”

She broke down sobbing instantly and stormed into her bedroom. Eleanor was already alert and waiting for her. Her eyes were glowing brighter than they usually did and her head kept tilting, like a confused dog trying to hear something.

“…Sarah? Is everything alright… Sarah? Are you hurt?”

“My life is OVER!” Sarah choked out.

“Oh… Sarah. No, no. It will be okay. Did somebody pick on you?”

How was it that a robot who was treating her like a young child managed to hit the nail on the head? But she wouldn’t fess up to it. She dropped her arms to her sides, her back rigid, shaking with sobs.

“I-I try. I try SO hard and it just doesn’t matter! I don’t understand, everybody else- effortlessly beautiful- even Abby! She doesn’t eVEn care! But I have to look like THIS! And I’m poor, and Mom doesn’t care! Nobody cares but they ALL look better than me?!” Sarah vented. “And all Dad left when he left is my stu-stupid potato nose! UGH!”

She dared to look in her partially covered mirror and saw her smeared makeup, and bland face, and the nose that looked like Dad’s, and she broke down again.

She felt Eleanor’s hands resting delicately on her shoulders. She dared to glance up and saw her face above hers in the mirror. Even she was beautiful. A robot prettier than her.

“Oh… Sarah. You are beautiful! You should not be trying to grow up so fast. You don’t need makeup. You should only wear pretty dresses when you want to,” Eleanor affirmed. “But I will be here to help you no matter up. Allow me to clean you up and you will look more beautiful than ever. There is a pretty girl hiding under all those tears.”

No, there was a pretty girl hiding under a misshapen face. Trying to hide under a bunch of makeup, but there were some things that couldn’t be covered. They had to be fixed.

The thought that she would have to live like this forever was overwhelming, especially when piled onto what school would be like now that she embarrassed herself in the lunchroom. Ugly and clumsy, flat and fat, sheepish little Sarah, the frumpiest girl in school.

She could fix it! Dye wouldn’t work, makeup couldn’t cover, but if she got plastic surgery- if she could afford plastic surgery she could totally fix everything. She could be trimmed and shaped all over her body until she looked just like a model. Especially her face. Maybe it would cost less if she would do one piece at a time.

But who would do surgery on a teenager without her mother’s permission? And at a price she could afford, with her having blown through most of her money just for her makeup?

…

…

She noticed the pretty face above hers. The pretty robot who would do anything for her.

Eleanor could do surgery. She said so herself, she even had the supplies to do it. She did hair well and that took a lot of skill to style it. She had to have the hand control to do so, she was a robot! Elegant and precise.

…A nose job would be an easy surgery, right? To start with, at least. All you do is cut in, fix the inside, and then wrap it up and wait for it to heal. After a few weeks you unwrap the bandage to see a brand-new face.

She could tell her mother she broke her nose when she tripped, and someone drove her to the ER. That they bandaged her with instructions to not remove them until it was time. The new nose would just be a happy accident caused by it healing the right way. She would never have to know.

It could be the first step to replacing all the unsightly parts of her. One piece at a time.

“Eleanor…”

“Yes… Sarah?”

Sarah stared at the pretty pictures from the magazine for a long moment before solemnly asking. “You can do emergency surgery, right?”

“Yes. If you were in an accident I could perform surgery.”

“What if I am an accident?”

“I don’t understand.”

“I need you to- Look.” Sarah pulled away and ripped one of the magazine clippings off her clipboard, knocking down others in the process and not caring. “I need you to fix my nose and make it look like this. And make my cheeks thinner too… Okay actually, let’s just start with the nose.”

“How?” Eleanor seemed confused. She tilted her head. “I don’t understand.”

“It’s not that hard. You just cut into the nose and take out all the fat and the bone until it’s small, and then you fold the skin so that it doesn’t leave a scar.”

Eleanor seemed to finally process what she was saying. “I cannot do that.”

“Yes, you can! Look at the great job you did on my hair, and you’re built to do surgery!”

“I can only do surgery in case of an emergency.”

“This IS an emergency! If I don’t- If I can’t get myself… I need this or I’m going to die.”

Or more so, her life would be over as she knew it. But she would say anything to get this, and Eleanor reacted.

“You will die? Oh no! We should take you to a hospital immediately. I will contact your daddy.”

“NO! The hospital won’t work on me! Please, Eleanor, I need you to help me! If you’re thinking I’ll change my mind, I won’t! I NEED this!”

Eleanor stared at her for a long moment.

“…Eleanor?!”

“Processing.”

“Oh…”

Eleanor stared at her for a long second before her eyes flickered.

“Request confirmed. I will perform your emergency because: the hospital will not perform the surgery. Your daddy will be notified- rejected. Daddy is not accessible. Your mother will be notified. Error, cannot approach mother.”

“It’s okay. She… She already knows,” Sarah lied. “Can we do this now?”

“No. You will need to fast for at least eight hours before the surgery can be performed. You will have to stop all food intake at midnight and clear fluid intake two hours before we perform the surgery. The surgery will be performed tomorrow morning.”

“Okay,” Sarah said. Somewhat disappointed but realizing it would be best to do it once her mother was at work. “But no backing out. Promise me.”

“I promise… Sarah. I will take care of you.”

Eleanor proceeded to help Sarah clean up. Sarah herself didn’t care so much anymore, mostly just sitting around in her room.

It wasn’t until her mother came home that she started to get nervous that she would find out about her leaving school. Nobody had called, had nobody known? Of course, nobody would notice her.

Except for her mother, who noticed her silence and came knocking on her door.

“Sarah, honey? Is everything okay?”

Eleanor went quietly into her corner while Sarah called out, “I’m fine! Just not feeling good…”

“Can I come in?”

“No! Uh, I’m not dressed! Give me a second, please…”

Sarah raced to grab her hoodie and tugged it on, pulling the hood up to try and hide her hair.

“Okay…”

Sarah’s mother opened the door and let herself in. She was one of those naturally beautiful types, the ones that were pretty inside and out- despite the fact that she didn’t wear makeup. Her only flaw being that she refused to wear enough makeup to cover up aging. Sarah pointed it out in the past, but her mother shrugged it off. She was pretty enough to shrug off efforts to make her look even better.

She was a kind woman, one who was always supportive of Sarah and managed to keep a sense of normalcy even after their family dropped from three to two.

…But they weren’t as close as they used to be. Sarah grew up and because of that it was harder for her mother to understand her. You would think being a counselor that she would understand why it was so important to fit in, but instead she was more focused on Sarah not meeting a calorie quota.

Oh, and also, she never okay’d her dying her hair. Sarah never even asked.

Her mother came in and sat on the bed beside her. She had a little smile, but concern was etched on her face, and Sarah sort of sunk into herself.

“How was school?” she asked.

Did she know? She couldn’t. There was no way.

“It was okay…”

“That’s good.” She gave her a softer smile. “Can I see your hair?”

Sarah looked up in surprise. “You know?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“I’m sorry. I know you didn’t want me to do it…”

“I didn’t want you to do it without telling me, no.”

Sarah pulled down her hood and let her mother briefly fiddle with it, looking it over.

“You did it with your friends?” she asked.

“Millie and Mandy,” Sarah half-answered.

“Alright.” Her mother sighed and switched to petting her head. “I’m disappointed in you for going behind my back and doing this, don’t get me wrong, but I think I’ll let it slide today as long as you promise to ask me the next time, you’re considering something so drastic.”

Sarah was surprised by this. “Really? I’m not in trouble?”

“No. And that’s because I said we could talk about you getting your hair done and we never did, and I’m sorry about that. Work got in the way, but I don’t want to lose these lines of communication.” She grew a little firmer. “That being said, you’re not totally off the hook. I’m just pardoning you this time, but you need my permission before you start making major changes like this. What could’ve happened if something went wrong?”

“…I would’ve had to shave my head?” Sarah guessed.

Her mom laughed a little. “Well, maybe not that, but it could’ve ruined your hair.”

Sarah forced a little bit of a smile, but it wasn’t convincing.

“Is something wrong, Hun?”

“No… I tripped in the cafeteria today and embarrassed myself in front of everyone. That’s all.”

“Ouch. I’m sorry, Hun, that must’ve been awful. But it happens to the best of us. I’m sure it’ll blow over quickly, and until it does, you have your friends. They’ll have your back.”

Maybe not now that she screamed at Abby. She had forgotten all about it until now but now that she thought about it, she really did feel bad about it. But she couldn’t do anything about it now.

“Do you want to come out and watch a movie with me?”

“…Okay, Mom.”

She was feeling guilty and needed to waste some time, so she agreed. They got up to go and when her mother turned back towards the door, she finally caught sight of Eleanor out of the corner of her eye.

Throughout the conversation, Eleanor had been watching the two with glowing eyes. Sarah caught sight of them out of the corner of her eye, but they dimmed just in time to be missed by her mother.

“OH!” She jumped, a hand on her chest. “Oh my goodness. What is that?”

“That’s, uh… It’s a mannequin!” Sarah quickly said. “I- I got it from Abby’s friend Pickle. He was trying to fix it but couldn’t so he said I could keep it.”

Thankfully, her mother seemed to buy the explanation.

“Well, that’s nice of him. It just startled me a little.” Her mother regained her smile, brushing it off as nothing but a weird doll.

She would no doubt ask more about it later, but Sarah was prepared to stretch the truth like taffy if she had to.

Eleanor was silent and her eyes dim. But as Sarah looked to her as she followed her mother out, she noticed her head slightly turning. She was still watching.

Sarah didn’t know why, but it creeped her out a little. She hurried out quickly and told herself it was nothing.

…

The next day was the day. Sarah got ready for school but didn’t put on as much makeup- there was no need, she wasn’t going to get there.

The plan was to pretend she was going to school and then skip and return to the house as soon as her mother left for work. That would give her plenty of time to have IT done and to recover.

Just thinking about IT made her squeamish, so she kept trying to not think about it. Just reminding herself that this was how it had to be. That it would be so much better when it was done.

She tried to say she wasn’t hungry to keep fasting, but her mother wouldn’t have it.

“You have to eat something. At least have a banana and a cup of yogurt.”

She ended up having a cup of yogurt. That was pretty much liquid, it would probably be fine. It was better that her mother didn’t get suspicious. Besides, it helped soothe her clenching stomach.

“How about I drive you to school today?” her mother offered.

“Why?” Sarah asked, a little paranoid.

“I’m going to be working late tonight so I was hoping to squeeze in a few more minutes. I’m also going to leave pizza money on the counter in case you want some.”

“Pizza?” Sarah scrunched her nose.

“A slice of pizza isn’t bad for you. You’re too young to be on such a strict diet anyways,” her mother kindly reminded.

That’s what she thought, and Sarah wasn’t feeling up to correcting her. So, she let her leave the pizza money on the counter with no intention of using it.

Then she drove Sarah to school. The whole time Sarah’s stomach was churning, and she didn’t know if it was spoiled yogurt or her anticipating the surgery.

She had to remind herself that Eleanor was a robot. A robot couldn’t get a surgery wrong, and a robot would do it without pay. She had been tending to her well already, she knew she would take care of her again.

It would be fine. This would be fine.

Sarah was dropped off and waved before making her way towards the front doors. Her mother waited until she was with some other teenagers, ones she didn’t necessarily recognize, before driving off. Then it was time to slip off. It surprisingly wasn’t hard as the two girls were chatting and barely noticed her, and the guy just looked spaced out. Guys had a way of not noticing her, she rationalized.

She began the long walk home. Thankfully it was still morning, so the air was cool, and the sun wasn’t bearing down. She took her time walking though to make absolutely sure her mother would be gone.

She arrived home to find the car gone and knew she would be alone with Eleanor. Taking a deep breath, she used the spare key to let herself inside.

This was it. This was what she wanted. By the end of today she would be on her way to being beautiful.

And by next week she could work on something else. Maybe slimming the cheeks. Maybe fixing eye shape. Maybe making her ears smaller. Someday she could even get a tummy tuck. Maybe she could use the fat from her belly to plump her curves. Every week she could be a step closer to a better her!

And then she walked into her bedroom.

Eleanor had stripped all her bedding off the bed except for a singular pillow and covering it and the bed was the shower liner from the bathroom. Her first aid tools were lined up on the corner of the bed, along with a couple of syringes already filled with clear liquid.

And suddenly Sarah didn’t care how she looked. She couldn’t do this. Something inside of her snapped and all the fear she had been withholding filled her entirely. She couldn’t do this.

“Oh… Sarah! You are just in time,” Eleanor greeted. She sounded just as cheerful as she would preparing to do Sarah’s hair. It should’ve assured Sarah, but instead she was a little creeped out.

“Why’s the shower curtain in here…?” Sarah asked. She knew, but she still asked.

“For sterilization purposes. I cleaned it thoroughly last night while you were sleeping,” Eleanor explained. “I also picked out a set of clean undergarments. Why don’t you put those on and lay down on the bed? I will then cover you with a towel for modesty. Then we can begin.”

Blood. She was worried about blood. If it wasn’t obvious, which it was to Sarah.

Funny, it wasn’t until she thought about the blood that she realized that a surgery would involve her being cut open and bleeding and bleeding a lot if the liner was any indication.

“…M-Maybe this is a bad idea,” Sarah muttered. She stared at the glistening sharp scalpel and made her decision. “Let’s not do this.”

“We must.”

“…What?”

“You said that we needed to do this, no matter what. We must, or you will die,” Eleanor said simply.

Sarah felt her heart start to raise. “I was lying.”

“You were not lying. I could tell that you meant it and now I can tell you are afraid, but there is nothing to be scared off! I know how to perform emergency surgery. I will not hurt you; I will make you beautiful.”

Sarah was beginning to hyperventilate.

“I can give you something to relax you,” Eleanor offered.

She reached down and picked up one of the filled needles and Sarah felt her stomach lurch.

“What is that?!

“Calming medicine. This will make you feel better. Then I can change your clothes for you and we can begin.”

Eleanor took a step forward and reached for Sarah’s arm, but she quickly fumbled a few steps back.

“Wait, no! I don’t want that!”

“It will make you feel better. And besides, I cannot perform while you are awake. This will help you sleep.”

With another step, Eleanor’s shadow was cast over Sarah. Her eyes were wide, and her heart pounded, and her stomach was churning. She felt like she was going to be sick…

Wait, the yogurt!

“WAIT! Wait, I ate something!” Sarah shouted.

This stopped Eleanor in her tracks.

“What?... Sarah, you were supposed to fast.”

“I know, I’m sorry, but my mom made me!”

This seemed to change Eleanor’s tune immediately. She set the syringe back down on the bed.

“That is a shame. We will now have to wait until three o’clock to be safe. Please do not eat again. You may drink clear fluids until one o’clock.”

That bought her some time, but her mother still wouldn’t be home. She had to get out of her and away from Eleanor.

“I’m feeling sort of bored. I think I might go take a walk?” she rushed out, her voice squeaky and panicked.

“Outside? I am sorry… Sarah, but that may compromise your health this close to your surgery! I can suggest indoor activities. I could brush your hair again or we could watch a movie like you did with your mother. Or we could look at magazines-.”

Eleanor continued to list off ideas, but the message was loud and clear. Sarah wasn’t going anywhere, and when that timer ran out that shot was coming back.

She needed help. Maybe her friends? She could call her friends and get them to come by! Eleanor had instructions to not move around anybody- if she didn’t, Sarah could tack them on- and that could give her an out! But would Abby come after everything she said?... Of course she would. Abby a good friend, she would never abandon her. Which made her feel even more guilty for how she acted.

“H-Hey, I have an idea,” Sarah began. She swallowed thickly. “I’m really nervous about the surgery. Is- Is it okay I invite my friends over? I need them here with me! I can’t have surgery without them. I need them here.”

“Oh, of course! You need your friends,” Eleanor said simply.

“RIGHT! My friends are in school until like three-thirty. I’ll call them then and they’ll come by and can help me calm down for the surgery. Is that okay?”

“That is okay! I can postpone the surgery until after they arrive. Can you wait until then?”

“Sure. It’ll give me time to, uh, l-look at my… magazines.”

“Let us do that.”

The next few hours were grueling. Eleanor was monitoring Sarah carefully. She brushed her hair and looked at magazines with her, but the mood had changed. She was no longer Sarah’s magical robot friend but her captor. She let her leave for the bathroom but would now follow her. As though she knew Sarah would make an attempt to escape.

The bathroom window was too high and too small to fit through, giving her no option but to wait.

The hours crept by until time finally ran out.

“…Sarah, it is three-thirty. When will your friends be here?”

“Uh… I should call,” Sarah said. “Let me go get the phone.”

“I’ll get it for you. Wait here.”

She waited until Eleanor left and got up, hurrying over to the doorway and trying to skirt out before she returned. Alas, Eleanor returned too quickly. Having a cordless phone meant she was able to grab it and return quickly. Soon Sarah was stuck in her bedroom again.

She tried to call Abby first, but she wasn’t there. Unless she was purposefully ignoring her call, but that wasn’t like her. Though then again, she hadn’t ever yelled at and insulted her before…

Mandy was no doubt at one of her after school clubs, so that meant the only one left was Millie. Sarah dialed her number and waited… and waited…

And she answered.

“Hello?”

Sarah nearly choked. “Millie! Thank God, I need your-... I-I need to talk to you.”

“What? Want some fashion advice from a broke toddler?” Millie asked flatly.

“Oh… you heard that.”

“Some of it.”

And Millie was not happy

“I know I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t mean it. I don’t mean a lot of the stuff I say,” Sarah fumbled. “I need you to come over. I know you’re mad, but please.”

“Why?”

“I’ll- I’ll explain when you get here.”

“I’m not driving all the way over there unless you tell me why. What’s going on?” Millie snapped.

Sarah didn’t dare even look at Eleanor. She could feel her eyes on her but didn’t want to look suspicious. She was listening though. Anything Sarah could say might tip her off.

“I can’t tell you why unless you come over here. Please. I’ll explain when you get here. Please.”

While that was still not an answer, Millie picked up the tone right away. Something was wrong, and it wasn’t just fashion disaster.

What did she do? That was the first thing that passed Millie’s mind. Sarah did something she regretted. Millie just had a hunch.

“Fine. I’ll be over there in a few minutes,” she agreed.

“Thank you!”

Then the call abruptly ended. Something uncharacteristic of Sarah.

Millie walked over to her grandfather’s study and called in.

“Grandpa, I’m going over to Sarah’s! Can I borrow the car?”

“Sure thing, Girlie! Just make sure not to lose it!” he joked.

“I’ll try!”

Soon she was driving over to Sarah’s house. Something felt weird about this already. Maybe it was having come home to relax only to have to leave right afterwards, but something seemed off in Sarah’s tone.

She had gotten herself into something, that’s for sure.

She pulled up to Sarah’s house. As expected, her mother wasn’t home. Millie walked up to the front door and tried it. Locked. She knocked.

Sarah heard the knocking and shot up from her seat on the bed.

“That’s Millie! Let me let her in.”

“You should stay in bed,” Eleanor reminded dotingly.

“But I’m the only one who can answer the door. Don’t worry, I’ll be right back.”

Sarah all but ran to the front door and unlocked and yanked it open, somewhat surprisingly Millie. Especially when she began shout-talking.

“Millie, you came! Thanks. Uh, why don’t you come in? Let’s- do you want to- L-Let’s go get you a snack! I can’t eat, but you can!”

Sarah grabbed her by the arm and all but dragged her into the kitchen. At this point any of Millie’s remaining annoyance had been replaced by confusion. This was not normal.

“Where’s the fire?” Millie asked. She then immediately cringed. That was one of her grandpa’s sayings and it didn’t sound any better coming from her.

“Uh. Ha! Yeah, umm… Snack food’s in there!”

Millie looked in the pantry to see rice cakes, little bags of mini-muffins, granola bars; a bunch of sweet stuff and nothing salty. She helped herself to a bag of croutons, ripping it open and popping a few in her mouth. That got a weird look from Sarah to which Millie retorted with-

“So, what’s up?”

Sarah tried to think of a way to say this without tipping off Eleanor. She could hear her movement in the hallway- Millie must’ve too as she looked back out of the kitchen- so she was probably listening.

So, she had to be careful. She took a deep breath, eyes wide and fake smile gone, and began.

“I have made the decision, me and nobody else, that my face is a problem, and I need to get surgery. So, my friend ELEANOR is going to perform SURGERY on me. And I wanted YOU to come here and HELP ME, by being there for me during my surgery,” Sarah said stiffly.

Millie was understandably surprised. “…Are you joking?”

“No, I’m being serious. Eleanor is in the other room waiting and we’re going to start my surgery soon,” Sarah said.

Her face gave it away. That fearful look on her face.

Millie, meanwhile, was having trouble coming to terms with what she was hearing.

“Sarah, that’s insane-!”

Sarah shook her head quickly and placed a finger on her lips. She tapped on her ear, signaling that Eleanor was listening.

And with that, Millie realized that this wasn’t something Sarah truly agreed to do. This was something she somehow got stuck into.

And that begged a new question.

“Who’s Eleanor?”

“My new, umm, best friend sort of? She takes care of me, does my makeup and hair. You remember! I- We found her at the dump together,” Sarah said. Her eyes big and pleading.

And Millie’s went wide too as she suddenly connected the dots on what was going on here.

It was just like the bear.

She had to act quickly and be smart. She processed it for a long second before muttering a low, “…Follow my lead.”

Sarah was surprised but nodded.

“I mean, are you sure? I think you look fine as you are. Are you really sure about surgery?” Millie asked in an almost theatrical way.

“Uh… sure! Why not? I only have one, uh, life.”

“Yeah, true. Alright then, I’m sold.” Millie took another bite of crouton trying to sound casual. “Hey! You know what? I’ve got a first aid kit in my trunk. That might help.”

“Really? That would be great!”

“But you’ve got to help me get it out. The trunk only pops if someone’s lifting it while I’m pulling the release.”

“Okay! We have to be quick because I can’t be outside long,” Sarah rushed out while she was rushing out.

She noticed Eleanor now standing in the doorway to the hallway and paused but kept going when Millie brushed past. She followed her to the front door and outside, expecting Eleanor to stop her, but she didn’t.

They walked over to the car and Millie, still carrying the bag of croutons, immediately got in the driver’s side. “Alright, let’s go.”

Sarah looked back towards her house. She could see a shadow standing in the window.

“Wait!” she said. “…Pop the trunk.”

“What?”

“Pop the trunk.”

Millie went ahead and got in the driver’s seat, and Sarah pretended to lift as she popped the trunk. She then looked around inside.

“I don’t see it back here! Did your grandpa take it out?”

“He could’ve.”

“We’ll go get it, hold on!”

Sarah bounded back up to the front door, Millie whispering a frantic, “What are you doing?!” after her. But Sarah opened the door and looked in.

Eleanor was standing in the corner of the living room, her eyes glowing ominously.

“Hey, I’m just going to run to Millie’s and get her first aid kit,” she said.

Eleanor didn’t seem enthused. In fact, she was surprisingly quiet.

It took her a few painfully long seconds before she spoke.

“But… Sarah. You are not supposed to be outside in this state…”

“I’ll be fine! I’ll- I’ll be back.”

Silence.

Sarah began to slowly shut the door. “…Bye.”

“Goodbye, Sarah.”

Sarah slowly shut the door, stood there for a long second, and then turned and stiffly walked to the car and got into the passenger side.

With her head turned down she plugged in her seatbelt and gave a quick and quiet, “Go. Go. Go.”

To which Millie promptly backed out of the driveway and began to drive away.

“Okay, now you can tell me what in the hell’s going on,” she said.

To which Sarah did. She recounted the entire story of Eleanor waking up, about doing her hair and makeup, about the pleas for the surgery and the eventual realization of what she had asked for, to now.

Millie kept her eyes on the road and her face neutral, but on the inside, she felt her anxiety slowly creeping up.

It was just like the bear. Sarah had been trapped with that mannequin thing while it whispered in her ear, plotting to torture her. And Sarah fell for it. It made Millie feel sick.

Thank goodness she only had detention yesterday and not today too. Thank goodness grandpa was chill enough to let her off the hook once she told him what happened yesterday. If she couldn’t have come, Sarah would probably be laid out on a bed sliced to pieces by now. She didn’t trust any robot that looked like a bandmate of the bear to stop at a nose…

“Hey.”

Millie realized Sarah had been asking her something and looked at her.

“What should we do?” Sarah asked again.

Well, what could they do?

“We’ll go to my house and hang out there. When’s your mom coming home?”

“Late. She has to work late.”

“Does she know about Eleanor?”

“No. She’s seen her, but she thinks she’s just a doll. I told Eleanor to not show herself to Mom and she usually does what I say…”

There was a long pause. Millie gave a little exasperated huff.

“How could you-?”

“Would you’ve believed me?” Sarah interrupted.

“Yes, I would! How could you trust some random robot? I told you what happened with the bear!”

“Oh…” Sarah sunk into her seat a little. “I don’t know…”

“I just don’t-!” Millie interrupted herself with a huff. Anger was just a reaction; it wouldn’t get them anywhere. Deep breath and process. “What we’re going to do is go home and I’ll ask Grandpa if he knows those guys who got me out of the bear. As soon as your mom comes home you call her and have her come over, and we tell them what happened.”

“She’s not going to believe this.”

“Maybe not, but I bet those guys who were with the clown will.”

Sarah gave her an almost exasperated look, but didn’t say anything. Instead, they slipped into silence as they drove back to Millie’s.

The plan ended up falling apart almost immediately as Millie’s grandfather did not have the contacts of the specific ‘men’ who helped her. And because she asked about them under the excuse of wanting to thank them, not that there was a wannabe robot surgeon running around, she couldn’t really press. He said he would look around and she could only hope one of his many papers had the right number on it.

In the meantime, he was fine with Sarah staying over. They even had dinner together, with Sarah managing to nibble a little despite nervous her stomach still was.

She was just waiting for something to happen. For Eleanor to suddenly show up and run in to grab her. Or for her to call her. Or to get a call from her mother, or from the police telling her that something happened to her mother. She was just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Finally, it started to get dark out. Sarah tried to call home, but nobody answered, meaning her mother wasn’t home yet- not that’s she expected her to be. She had no idea what she was going to tell her…

She was sitting on the couch watching a reality TV show. Millie was also sitting on the couch, but she was doing her homework. With her cat curled up beside her. Her grandfather had headed into his study for some reading- likely to let the girls have their slumber party, as that’s what he thought was going on. 

It wasn’t much of a slumber party, but it was nice to not be alone. And for a while, Sarah convinced herself that maybe it was over.

But what would she do now? Her only option to become the new her was out the window. She would still have to return to school tomorrow, face everyone with this face, but… maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.

…

Tap, tap, tap.

Sarah had sort of zoned out so she didn’t notice the soft tapping until it started growing louder. It made her nervous and instead of looking towards it, she looked to Millie, about to voice her concerns.

Millie was staring past her with her pencil clutched in her hand and her eyes wide.

Sarah swallowed thickly, her throat dry and stuck, and slowly turned her head in the opposite direction. She located the source of the tapping at the window.

It was Eleanor. Standing outside of the window tapping on the glass with a delicate finger.

Sarah didn’t scream. She just leapt up from the couch and ran for it, running into the bathroom and locking herself inside. Not meaning to abandon Millie but unable to think of anything but getting away.

Until Millie rapidly knocked on the door with a frantic but low, “Let me in. Let me in!” Which Sarah did.

Unlike Sarah’s bathroom with the too-tiny window to escape out of, Millie’s bathroom didn’t have a window at all. This meant they were safe from Eleanor trying to climb in, but they were technically cornered.

“Oh my God, I knew it! I knew she was going to find me!” Sarah babbled with fear. “What do we do?!”

“We hope to GOD Grandpa found that number!” Millie hissed back. She listened at the door for the sound of breaking glass, but there was none. “Okay. I’m going to- I’m going to run into Grandpa’s study and tell him what’s going on. Lock the door. Don’t open it until I get back.”

With that, Millie skirted out and ran into her grandfather’s study, pushing open the door and coming in to find him…

…Asleep on the futon.

Millie was about to get very panicked and annoyed when she noticed his notebook set out on the table nearby. She looked in and saw a list of phone numbers. Various family members and people he knew. There was a creased but unfolded piece of paper on it with two phone numbers, one for someone named Clay Burke and one for someone named Scott Caldwell.

Were these guys connected to the clown? She couldn’t be sure. She could start calling, but with Eleanor waiting right outside- well, it was worth a shot.

Millie crept into the other room to call. Thankfully, the windows were clear of any signs or sounds of Eleanor. Then she dialed the first number, and someone answered after a few rings.

“Chief Burke speaking.”

Chief Burke? Like a cop? This must’ve been the phone number for the police officer who her grandfather had called. There was no way a cop was going to believe her about this.

“Sorry, wrong number! I, uh, my grandpa has this book of numbers, and I got a few of them mixed up.”

“Not a problem. You have a good evening.”

At least the man sounded friendly. They hung up and she dialed up the next number, hoping it wasn’t another cop.

This one took a little longer to answer, but just before it could go to voicemail someone picked up.

“Hello! Uh, hello?”

“Hey, umm, who is this?” Millie asked.

“Oh, sorry. Scott Caldwell speaking! Sorry, I’m half-awake over here.”

Well, there was no point in continuing to beat around the bush.

“Uh… What do you know about clowns?” Millie blurted out.

“…What?”

“Y’know, clowns… A clown. Living at the dump?”

“I uh… Can’t say I know what you’re talking about.” Scott sounded a little confused, maybe even a little nervous.

“The Hurricane Clown! I’m looking for the Hurricane Clown!” Millie hissed as quietly as she could. She watched the kitchen windows, waiting for something to walk by.

There was a pause, the Scott quietly asked, “Are you okay?” He sounded concerned.

This had been a mistake, Millie realized. She tried to back out quickly.

“Not really. Umm, never mind. Sorry.”

“Wait, if-.”

Millie hung up immediately.

Of course it couldn’t be that easy. Her only chance to find that clown was to prowl the dump, cross her fingers, and hope that she really hadn’t been hallucinating when she saw him. She couldn’t have been!

She had to get Sarah away from the house, Eleanor was obviously following her. Maybe if she went back to the junkyard- it wasn’t that late though. Would he even be there? Would he ever be there?

Well, there weren’t any other options now. Millie headed back to the study, planning to wake her grandfather. But once she got there, she hesitated.

If anyone, he would believe her. He believed her when she told him about the outburst in the lunchroom, even let her off the hook with a warning- a joke warning to not get caught, perhaps. She didn’t know if he believed her about the clown, but he had always listened, and hadn’t ever told her she was just imagining things. He would believe her.

Heck, he would believe her as soon as he saw Eleanor standing outside the window.

He was loyal. He was so loyal that he would’ve fought off Eleanor himself, and likely would get hurt in the process. He couldn’t run that fast if she chased him. He wasn’t in the best of health, so what if the start gave him a sudden heart attack? Or just made him a target for her.

This thing was after Sarah… Millie could handle it. She checked the window to make sure it was locked and nobody was outside before drawing the curtains. On the way out she turned the door lock from the inside, so he could easily get out but nothing could get in. She could only hope Eleanor would be too distracted in following them to even notice he was there.

She left a little note on the desk. “Grandpa, driving Sarah back home. I’ll explain later. Love you.”

Then Millie returned to the bathroom. Giving a curt knock and a, “Let me in,” before Sarah did.

“We have to drive back to the dump,” Millie said.

“The dump, what- wait, are you talking about the clown again?! Millie, this robot’s going to cut my face off and you’re still thinking about that stupid clown?!”

“That stupid clown’s the only chance we have! And I know how dumb it is, but we’ve got to go somewhere anyways, we can’t stay here!”

Sarah didn’t believe in this plan for a second, but getting far away from Eleanor sounded good to her. “What about your grandpa?”

“He’s asleep. I locked his door, so she won’t get in to him and left a note. But we’ve gotta get out of her. Got to get you out of here.”

Sarah nodded stiffly. The idea of leaving the safety of the bathroom being a frightening one, but she was equally afraid of getting trapped in here.

The two carefully exited the bathroom and Millie edged towards the living room and looked inside to check the window, only to find that Eleanor was gone.

“Shoot!”

“What?!”

“She’s gone,” Millie said. “She’s got to be trying the other windows or hanging out outside the door.”

“What do we do?!”

“…Okay… Okay, I have an idea.”

Soon, Millie was creeping out the back door and trying to sneak down the end of the house and around the corner.

She had just gotten past the tree when she saw something shaking in the darkness in front of her. At first it almost looked like a trembling tree branch until it suddenly ran up to her, the gangly body breaking straight through the bushes as it staggered to her on legs like posts.

Millie tried to scramble back and tripped over the ridge in the dirt caused by rain spilling from the gutters. She might’ve not fell entirely if not for Eleanor flying up on her, in which case Millie had to fall just to avoid her. The mannequin bent over with its neck twisting around as its face swiveled and stared down at her.

“…Sarah? Sweetheart?” Eleanor asked.

She leaned in closer. Her head tilted sharply with a low creak.

Millie’s heart pounded in her chest as she stared up at the towering clown. She almost lost her nerve, but barely managed to call behind her, “Sarah, run!”

Eleanor shot straight over her. Her long spindly legs stepping close to her arm and head as she hastily staggered past and around the back of the house to find Sarah.

Millie scrambled to her feet and made a dash around the house and for the car.

Right as she ran past the front windows and up to the driver’s side, Sarah, who had been actually waiting by the front door, came running out of the front door with the car keys and tossed them to Millie, who quickly unlocked the car. They got in, peeled out in reverse, and were soon zooming away from the house.

Millie could only hope that Eleanor’s willingness to ignore her for Sarah meant that her grandfather was safe.

The drive to the dump was extremely tense and deathly silent. When they arrived, Millie pulled up beside the front. Likely nobody would be there to question them this time of night.

“I’m going in,” she said. “Wait here.”

“Okay…”

Sarah didn’t want to be alone, but hiding in the safety of a locked car was much more appealing than running around the junkyard. Millie got out, locking the doors behind her, and ran inside. Sarah watched her leave before locking the doors and sinking into the passenger seat, wrapping her arms around herself.

She sat there for a while in silence, alone with her thoughts.

All of this was so unreal. She thought she could trust Eleanor- but why? Why did she think that? Because she brushed her hair and did her makeup? She was a robot. She could only do what she was told to do.

And Sarah told her to perform surgery without thinking of the repercussions. How stupid.

The sad part was that part of her still wanted the surgery. Part of her was severely disappointed that her idea to save her face had fallen apart. But she didn’t want it like this, bleeding out on a shower curtain on her bed. Alone with Eleanor.

She was yanked out of her thoughts by a van peeling by. She peeked out to see it driving down the road leading around the back. She wondered what that was about…

She sighed and sunk back into the seat again. She wanted to disappear into that seat. She felt like she ruined her whole life.                                                                                                

She sat there in an empty silence stuck with herself.

Until something slammed into the window.

Sarah jumped and her head snapped over, and her eyes went wide.

There was Eleanor with her hands on the window, her nose nearly touching the glass.

Sarah couldn’t scream, her throat tightened, and nothing more than a squeak could make it out.

“…Sarah? Please don’t run from me. You scared me running off like that. Please come home with me, it is not safe out here this late at night.”

Sarah started to hyperventilate immediately. She wanted to run, but she knew the car was the only thing holding Eleanor back. She was trapped.

“Just go away! I told you; I don’t want the surgery anymore! I lied! I’m not going to die!” Sarah yelled.

“…Sarah, I know you are scared, but I will take care of you. I am here to take care of you. Please, let me inside so I can take you home.”

“I’m scared of YOU! I don’t want to do it anymore! Aren’t you listening to me?! Don’t you care?! I said NO!”

Something changed in Eleanor’s eyes. There was that hesitation she got when she was processing something, and for a second Sarah thought maybe she was finally grasping it.

“…Sarah, if you keep acting erratically, I will need to sedate you for your wellbeing. However, I may not have enough sedation remaining for the entirety of the surgery if I do. So please, come out and let’s go home so I can fix you.”

But she didn’t understand anything.

Sarah covered her ears and closed her eyes, and screamed at the top of her voice, “Shut up! SHUT UP! LEAVE ME ALONE!”

Silence.

Of course, she had her ears covered so she couldn’t hear anyways, but there seemed to be silence.

She was afraid to look so for what felt like ages she sat there with her eyes tightly closed and her hands on her ears, frantically wondering how Eleanor caught up to them. Had she ran after the car? Had she been fast enough to run the whole way here? How did she even find the place, had she heard them talking through the window? All these thoughts were racing as she sat there, feeling Eleanor’s eyes on her.

Finally, Sarah couldn’t stand it anymore and she dared to look.

But Eleanor was gone.

She whipped her head around to see if Eleanor had just gone to another window. No, she couldn’t see her. Could she had really given up? No, there was no way. She had to be out there somewhere. Waiting.

Or she was going to find Millie. Would Eleanor hurt Millie? Maybe, if it was to lure her out of the car. That sounded like something she could do. Or maybe she was looking for something to break a window with.

Sarah swallowed thickly and carefully unlocked her car door. Her only chance was to make a run for it into the dump and find Millie, or maybe run for the front office and see if someone was there. Somewhere other than here. Before Eleanor got back.

She stuck her head out and looked around. Then carefully peeked up onto the roof. Nothing. It looked like Eleanor had truly run off… but she would be back.

Taking a deep breath, Sarah stepped out of the car and stood up.

And a cold hand grabbed her ankle.

Sarah screamed and jumped away, trying to rip herself free but in one sharp yank being pulled to the ground.

Eleanor crawled out from under the car, twisted and contorted, her head upside down turning back upright as it poked out from under the car. She clawed at the ground with her free hand to help herself out.

“…Sarah, please! Don’t be difficult!”

Sarah shrieked and kicked at the dirt, scrambling back until she was all but dragging Eleanor out underneath her. She brought her foot down on the doll’s head. Eleanor made a staticky noise and her eyes flickered, and Sarah scrambled up onto one foot-

Only to be yanked roughly to the dirt by a painfully tight grip on her ankle. She screamed as she fell and was yanked back roughly.

She looked back at Eleanor to see that something changed. Her eyes were now smaller, irises glowing yellow, and seemed to shake as she squeezed tighter and began to drag her towards the car.

Sarah began to frantically kick at Eleanor’s arm and hand, pulling and fighting until finally she got free, turned over and climbed to her feet. She broke into a sprint towards the entrance to the dump.

She could hear the cracking of Eleanor’s joints as she untwisted herself and began to run after her, but once she got past the fence and into the piles of junk it became harder to tell how close she was. Sarah didn’t dare to look back, instead screaming for Millie and running blindly.

She didn’t get far.

Suddenly Sarah was grabbed in a strong hug from behind. She yelped, but her scream was silenced with a hand over her mouth and shushing.

“It’s okay… Sarah. I’m not angry with you. Everything’s going to be okay. You need to calm down. You are going to hurt yourself.”

Sarah managed to turn her head enough that her mouth was freed. “GET OFF OF ME! GET-!”

The hand clasped over her mouth.

“I’m sorry… Sarah, but your blood pressure is much too high. I am going to have to sedate you. Take deep breaths. One, two…”

The needle sunk into her thigh, and she cringed at the burn of fluid filling into her muscle. She was panicking, thrashing, trying to fight even harder until Eleanor had to hug her with both arms, rocking her and shushing her until the world started to shake and spin.

For a few terrifying seconds Sarah realized she was slipping before suddenly she wasn’t thinking of anything at all. Still partially awake but no longer aware, groggy and loose in Eleanor’s grasp.

And that was when something swung in and clattered against the side of Eleanor’s head.

Sarah couldn’t see, but it was Millie standing behind them with a piece of metal pipe clutched in her hands, having heard her screams and coming just in time to see what was happening. She snuck up and swung with all her might, and it easily knocked Eleanor’s head aside.

But it didn’t do much else.

Eleanor’s dangling head turned to face her. Millie gritted her teeth and held up the pipe threateningly.

The mannequin’s eyes locked onto the pipe. Then its neck straightened and lifted its head once again.

Eleanor’s eyes changed again, now for Millie to see. Its green irises flickering out and smaller yellow ones replacing where its pupils once were once more.

“Violent threat detected. Warning, warning. Entering self-defense mode. Stand down.”

“Yeah, right,” Millie hissed. She swung again. This time it stepped forward and the blow fell harmlessly on its back.

Eleanor stumbled a step before straightening back up. She then carried Sarah to a nearby car and laid her on the truck. Millie was still in pursuit, planning to take another swing when Eleanor turned on her.

It was in that moment that she realized she was in trouble. When it looked at her like that- this slender robotic thing that barely resembled a human- Millie felt no safer than she was in the stomach of the bear.

And then Eleanor rushed her. And Millie swung the pipe, only to have it caught in the animatronic’s hand. Eleanor pulled it out of her grip in one sharp tug.

Millie decided she could keep it and instead turned and ran for it.

She darted into the piles of trash, trying to outmaneuver her. She dared to look back over her shoulder and saw that Eleanor was somehow keeping up. Her wobbly legs so loose and clumsy, wedge heeled feet twisting in ways that would’ve broken a human’s ankles, and yet moving so fast that she staggered after her. Her arms stiff at her sides, her yellow eyes locked onto Millie.

Millie looked ahead and ran as fast as she could, but she could hear Eleanor catching up. Her arm outstretched and reaching for the back of Millie’s neck.

She could feel the fingers brushing through her hair and tried to knock it away only to have the cold fingers clamp tight around her wrist and yank. It was so harsh it sent Millie spinning and staggering. Her shoulder wrenched, her wrist aching under the firm grip. Eleanor’s fake molded nails digging into her skin as she reeled her in.

She looked up at the towering mannequin with wide eyes and watched it lift its other hand. Finger seams split apart to open and let pointed tips like darts slide out. Her head twitching and her yellow eyes glistening menacingly as she pointed her fingers together preparing to stab.

Only to get clocked by a car rim that flew out of nowhere. It hit her head so hard that her neck buckled, and her head fell back and clunked against her own back. Millie took this moment to yank and just managed to slip free, with Eleanor’s nails leaving shallow cuts down her skin.

A deafening clattering noise came from the mound of junk to her right as she pulled free and then came a heavy thump behind her. She turned back and saw a white face and green clothing-

And then she saw the world tilting as something hooked around her legs and suddenly, she was thrown over a shoulder and watching Eleanor fall into the back and disappear as she was carried around a wall of garbage.

Millie tried to struggle free, but it was no good, with an arm tight around her waist holding her in place. But the panic receded as she looked down and saw a green suit and looked back at the back of his head.

The exposed metal of the back of his head, the edge of his white mask, his party hat.

It was a clown. It was THE clown. She hadn’t seen his face, and the details were fuzzy, but this had to be him! THE CLOWN! He was real!

And said clown ran as fast as he could to a shed hidden in the back of the dump and shoved his way through, breaking the flimsy little lock on the door, and swinging it shut behind them.

He then bowed over in a smooth swoop and set Millie down before recoiling back quickly, leaned back with his hands up defensively. As though he was trying to show that he wasn’t any sort of danger.

“Shh-shh-shhh…” the clown shushed. Him waving his hands for her to keep quiet.

Millie could only stare at his face with wide eyes because it had to be him. She recognized his mask instantly.

There was a noise outside. The clown’s eyes shot to the door and back, and then he kept them on Millie- squinting as though smiling- as he leaned over and nudged open the door with a finger.

He peeked out, and then noticed the broken latch and the padlock hanging off it.

“Uh oh,” he mumbled. He poked at it a little and it slid down even further, dangling. He winced and slowly shut the door back.

The clown looked to her again. Millie opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn’t figure what to say. Part of her was afraid- he was so much taller than her and clearly a robot too- but she didn’t want to run. She just stood there, mouth agape.

His sharp toothed mouth opened as though in a grin before he beat her to the punch.

“Say, do I know you from somewhere?” he whispered. He tilted his head coyly, blue and yellow eyes glowing almost curiously. “Maaaybe the inside of a nasty ol’ bear?”

That was the voice she remembered. The one that sounded like the bear’s but different. The tone, the inflection, it was just like she remembered…

It WAS him.

“It’s you…”

“It’s me!” he chirped. He gave her a double thumbs up.

“I… I can’t believe this. It’s- It’s actually you. I… I didn’t think you were real.”

“Ha, ha! Unfortunately for us both, the Hurricane Clown is very real! But don’t believe all the stuff they say about me. You can rest assured that I have eaten zero dogs or children that I am aware of.”

He then waited. Apparently, that was a punchline, but Millie was too in shock to laugh at that joke. If that was a joke? The clown eyes skirted around awkwardly before he continued.

“What’re you doin’ out here getting chased by Cider-hell-a?” he asked, sounding justifiably alarmed.

Millie matched his tone. “Look- Looking for you! I need your help. My friend, Sarah, took that thing home with her and asked it to fix her face-.”

There was a rapid tapping on the door. Millie immediately backed up, remembering Eleanor at the window, but the clown snapped his head towards the door with familiarity.

“One sec!”

He crouched down and opened the door a crack, and then a little more. A small, pink, animatronic rabbit without legs quickly crawled in and the clown shut the door behind it.

“You almost stepped on me!” the bunny squeaked in betrayal.

“Aww, sorry, Bon-Bon! You okay? No scuffs?” He picked her up and began to turn her over.

“No, but that scary Baby didn’t even notice me when I tried to distract her. I couldn’t see where she went!”

“Well, she’s not he-re. That’s what counts.”

The Clown held the rabbit like a baby and began to pet it like a cat before looking back to Millie.

“Okay, so you said something about your friend trying to fix its face?” he asked.

“No, not it’s face. Her face. My friend- Sarah- she has this thing… It doesn’t matter. The point is, she asked that thing to make her beautiful and somehow that turned into it agreeing to do surgery on her nose, and she said no but it’s not taking the hint, and I took her home. It followed us there. I brought her here. It followed us here. And now it’s drugged her up with something and could be dragging her off or cutting her open right now!” Millie rushed out.

The Clown stared for a long second. His hand stilled, and Bon-Bon too gawking at her.

He broke the silent stare with tense laughter.

“Oh ho WOW, that is way worse than I was thinking! Heh, YIKES!” His eyes were wide, and something seemed to be twitching and flinching under the arms of his suit. “Oh geesh, we’ve gotta get rid of that thing lickety-split or we’re gonna be looking at a real big disaster. Uh… B-Bon-Bon!”

“Here! Whatcha need, Ennie?” Bon-Bon asked, looking up at him.

“Are you up to a little sneaking?”

The bunny nodded eagerly.

“Go find the Easter Bunny and the Great, Big, Beautiful Doll and tell ‘em we’ve got another Scarecrow Baby on our hands.”

Bon-Bon lifted her arm in salute and the Clown set her down, opened the door a little carefully, and nudged her through. Millie could hear her scamper off.

The Clown shut the door and stood up as he looked back as Millie.

“Alright, kiddo, you just hang out in here and sit tight! We’ve got some trash we’ve gotta take out,” he said. He winked and opened the door.

Millie could’ve let him walk right out and had it out of her hands, maybe. But she couldn’t, and she didn’t know if it was out of loyalty to Sarah or the thought that the Clown might walk out of this shed and disappear again. She had to hold onto both.

“No.”

It came out as firm as she hoped it would. Firm enough that he looked back in surprise.

“I want to come with you. She wants to kill me, so if anyone needs to be bait to keep her away from Sarah, it’s got to be me,” Millie said.

“Oh, don’t you worry!” the Clown assured. “You’re still going to be bait.”

Millie blinked in surprise when his voice suddenly shifted to hers.

“But without putting your neck on the line! It’s bad enough your friend’s face is on it, eesh.”

He was about to slip out again, but still Millie protested.

“Okay, but… I still want to come with you. I can’t just wait here. Please.”

The Clown stared momentarily, just as confused as she was to why she was fighting so hard.

“You sure about that, Kiddo? I’m positive I can tick her off enough to get her gunning for me.”

“I’m sure.”

The Clown stared a little longer, as though trying to read her reasons. But then finally caved.

“Well, okAY! Ha, stay close and let me do all the talking,” he said.

He propped open the door. Millie came over, still a little hesitantly despite her protests. He slipped out first, making sure the coast was clear, and beckoning her along.

They exited the shed and started to creep into the junkyard. The Clown, despite wearing a lime green and yellow suit, kept low to the ground. Crawling along with the dexterity of someone willing to break their bones to not get that suit dirty. Inhuman yet not entirely as creepy as Eleanor had been.

He found the wreckage of another car and took cover behind it, waving Millie in. She hurried over and ducked down, nearly cutting her jeans on some jagged metal. She looked at the Clown questioningly and he was tilting his head listening, but she couldn’t hear anything. Probably Eleanor was back with Sarah.

What was that thing he said earlier? Scarecrow Baby? He apparently knew about Circus Baby… wait.

“Hey,” she whispered. He turned his head towards her, though he was still looking around. “You said another scarecrow. Was there another one?”

“Eh, sorta. Long story. But this one-.” The Clown gave a sympathetic hiss. “You found it here, right?”

“Right…”

“Yeah, that’s the one. Somebody dumped it off here ‘bout a week ago but I got a weird vibe, so I’ve been steering clear.”

“You got a weird vibe off of that?” Millie asked doubtfully. He caught her looking him over and snickered.

“Ha ha, I know! But who wouldn’t? But something was buzzing on it. I’ve had a weird history with humming basements and zinging pizzerias. They either catch on fire or the spawn of Satan crawls out! So, yeah, not touching the knock-off Baby.”

“But… you can stop her?”

“Suuuure,” the Clown stretched out. Tapping his fingers on the car as he did.

“…You don’t sound sure.”

“Oh, I’m very sure. I just don’t wanna touch it,” the Clown assured. “Trust me. Everything’s got a weak spot, my lil crouton!”

Crouton? Why would he- Oh God, her breath.

She didn’t know what was worse, the fact that he said that with so much certainness or that he was somehow able to detect croutons on her breath alone. She covered her mouth with her sleeve.

“Hey, wait a minute…” The Clown’s head snapped to her again. “You said her name was what again?”

“Eleanor.”

“Eleanor? Are you sure it wasn’t Elizabeth?”

“Uh… No? Sarah said it was Eleanor.”

“Thaaat’s weird. Huh.”

The Clown had a distant look in his eyes like he was processing something, though it somehow looked much more human than any of Eleanor’s stares. Though maybe it helped that he wasn’t staring directly at her.

Suddenly there was the sound of voices. The Clown must’ve heard better as his eyes widened and he shot up and began to rush off.

“Showtime!” he called over his shoulder.

Millie was quick on his heels behind him.

Meanwhile, Sarah was still on the brink of consciousness. She couldn’t really move and everything she saw was blurry, but there was still part of her mind awake. Awake enough to be afraid of Eleanor returning. Not awake enough to comprehend that she would’ve been half-conscious for the entire surgery if she had gone along with it.

But then she heard voices.

“…get her to the van before it gets back.”

“Can you carry her?”

“Yeah, sure. No problem.”

“Thank you. She’s been through enough as it is.”

“Stop that.”

It sounded like two men and distinctly not like Eleanor.

Sarah tried to struggle and yell, but instead could only shift a little and groan. She felt trapped in her body, scared. She wished her mom was here.

One of the men rushed over and she could vaguely see him but couldn’t make out much detail except he had brown hair and maybe glasses.

“It’s okay! I’m going to help you. We’re going to get you out of here and get you some help,” he assured. His voice was gentle and comforting.

He took off his coat and covered her up before starting to pick her up. She groaned a little and tried to move, but her body was limp. She couldn’t have fought back even if she wanted to.

“Here, uh, grab my phone and call Clay,” he said to the other man. She couldn’t see him but heard something shuffle around to get the phone from his pocket.

Suddenly there was the sound of quick, crunchy footsteps rushing up from around the trash.

Scott knew he was in trouble when he looked up and saw what looked to be another fake Baby. His eyes went as wide as saucers when he realized how much it looked like the one that had broken into his house- twice. But it wasn’t the same one. That was clear enough from how it was designed, details were different.

And Ennard and Baby were nowhere to be seen.

But thankfully, he wasn’t alone. As he and the girl were suddenly blocked by Michael stepping in front of them.

“…Sarah?!... Sarah!” the mannequin cried. Her head twisting loosely and swiveling until she could see part of her feet.

She hobbled in quickly before coming to an abrupt stop and going rigid, straightening her back and standing tall. Her green eyes turning yellow as they leveled on Michael.

“Abduction in process. Warning, warning. Entering self-defense mode. Stand down. Release the child. Stand down.”

“Get back to your stage. Now,” Michael hissed back.

He hoped from the Funtime-like design it would back down, but the thing didn’t even flinch.

“Entering self-defense mode. Stand down. Stand down. Stand down.”

She lifted her hands and her fingers split for little points to come out of their tips. Michael recognized them as taser darts and swore under his breath. This was going to hurt.

This was when Ennard and Millie made it there. Millie caught sight of the scene- trying to ignore the giant rabbit standing there- and instead focused on what Eleanor was saying. It was the same warning she had gotten. She was about to attack again.

Well, it wouldn’t be the first time she almost died tonight, she thought. In a rush of pure adrenaline, Millie suddenly ran out into the open, ignoring the Clown’s efforts to stop her.

“Over here!” she yelled. “Here! I’m here!”

Eleanor’s head spun on her and those eyes went yellow again.

But that was all Millie saw before she was blocked by green, and then shoved into that green as the Clown reached behind himself pulled her tight to his back.

“Yeesh, Crouton. Trying to get yourself killed?” he muttered over his shoulder.

But he kept his eyes locked onto the slender animatronic before him. His unwavering stare holding an amount of silent warning that his voice did not. Waiting for any wrong move to pounce.

But that’s when something peculiar happened. The strange, Circus Baby-like robot stared back before twisting her body to face him. And then…

“It’s you!”

The glow in Eleanor’s eyes filled in until her iris were large and doll-like, doe-like. She took little steps in place and reset her wedge feet, and one of her hands closed up before she clasped them together.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you! I knew there was someone out there like me,” Eleanor said with a saccharine innocence.

“Ha ha, you, uh- you were looking for me?” Ennard asked uneasily.

His eyes briefly passing her to dart between Michael and Scott’s. Both looked alarmed. Mille, who was still behind him, looked confused.

“What?” she whispered.

“Yes!” Eleanor said. She took a teeter step towards him, swaying as she walked. “I’m just like you! I too am a person trapped inside of an animatronic. Long ago I was a caretaker for a little girl but an evil man tried to take her away and I lost my life. I was put inside of this body by a black and white doll with a white mask. I heard that you were here, so I came to look for you, and here you are!”

“And here I am!” Ennard repeated with strained emphasis.

Everything she said checked out, but something about it didn’t feel right. He knew it, Michael knew it from the way he was staring, and even Scott knew it- who was currently inching further away with Sarah in tow.

“The hell? Sarah didn’t say any of that,” Millie mumbled.

This didn’t feel right. Didn’t say anything before? The way she was speaking and looking at him… He decided to take a little risk.

“So, uh, whaddya think about my friend here?” Ennard turned and hooked an arm around Millie before pulling her forward.

Yellow flickered in Eleanor’s eyes.

Ennard blocked Millie with his other arm protectively.

The yellow returned to full green once more.

“Oooh, that’s some nasty programming there,” Ennard muttered.

There was something very wrong with this one.

“I’m sorry! I don’t know what is wrong with me. I think I might be broken,” Eleanor apologized. “But maybe you can fix me? I need help, please. I know where there are others who need help too. If you come with me, I can show you.”

“Go with you where?”

“It’s not far. There are others like me who are trapped and broken and need help. I was looking for you so that you could help me save them and then I wouldn’t be alone,” Eleanor explained.

A strange pitch filled the air. One that made Michael shudder and Ennard’s wires twitch. It was intrusive and sharp.

“Please. I need your help. There are children there too who need our help. Maybe if we work together, we can save them.”

“Huh. Really? I dunno, I’m sort of needed here.”

Ennard knew right then that it was a trap. If the strange pitchy noise making his wires crawl wasn’t an indication. She was trying to lure him off- and in front of a group of people! Nobody would buy it.

But as long as Ennard could keep playing along and keep her eyes on him-

Clink.

It was, unfortunately, not Scott who made that noise. It was Bonnet, who had been trying to crawl over the rubble nearby. She took a corner, and a jutting metal sheet got shifted and just barely tapped her on the head. So subtle, so innocent that anyone could’ve noticed it.

Yet despite where the sound came from, Eleanor’s head pivoted, and she ended up looking dead on past Michael and at Scott who was now almost out of sight with Sarah.

That was when the jig was up.

“…Sarah?! …Sarah! Warning, warning, ssssarah STAnd down! Come back! Stand down! Sarellllle Abduction in processarahsarah!”

Eleanor’s eyes flickered between yellow and green until both illuminated at once and she made a lurch and sprint towards Scott.

One that was unceremoniously stopped by Michael running and body slamming into her, catching his arms around her to subdue her.

“Get out of here! Get her to the car!” he called back. As she resisted, he squeezed her tighter to keep her under control.

Instead, her body fell apart.

Or at least, that’s how it felt. Limbs detaching and loosening, going limp momentarily only to suddenly coil around him. In reality the limbs hadn’t dropped off but simply popped out, and hidden coils and wires took their place. Allowing her to squirm and slither around him.

And from those metal coils came a searing heat that was very familiar. That burning pain that climbed one’s arm and sunk into their soul. But no mutters, no screams, no feeling like it was someone else’s pain being sucked in. Just a pain without any semblance of humanity. Soulless.

It wasn’t like that thing in the basement. When that thing in the basement grabbed him, it was as though he was pulled into another plain of existence. This burned, but it was a low burn. Dull, faded.

But then his springlocks seized and suddenly that burning was the least of his problems.

Michael shouted, his voice crunching and catching as his body lost control of itself. Ennard was on them in a second, ripping Eleanor away by the arm, only to have the plates sheer off and spill out the wirey mechanisms inside that immediately latched to his wrist and tried to climb under his cuff. He twisted and wrenched his arm to yank free, but her limb stretched and followed.

Ennard bit his glove and yanked it off with one sharp tug before grabbing her around the flimsy neck with his hand. Then he delivered a sharp jolt of electricity. He knew there was a risk of him getting hit by his own controlled shock, but he was willing to take that risk.

And he took that jolt right back up his arm within seconds. Eleanor shook from the shock, fake teeth chattering, eyes glowing, but it had done nothing to subdue her. If anything, her coils grew tighter so Ennard could free his snared hand as the electricity went right back into him. It hurt- not as much as a controlled shock, but it certainly didn’t feel right.

And from the way Michael seized either it went into him too or his springlocks were still going off.

And that wasn’t the only thing going in, as Eleanor twisted herself and contorted around, and suddenly her free hand was crawling up under Ennard’s jacket. He reached down and grabbed her forearm, and her hand and wrist slid forward free of it and embedded her sharp tipped fingers deep into the wires of his belly.

He felt gutted, gutted, feeling himself begin to reluctantly heave and digging into his wires trying to get out the prongs she was leaving behind. She began to tase him, but the panic of having her grabbing his guts somehow won out over the pain. He wrenched her head away and it detached back and dangled.

“GOD!” Michael choked. He grabbed at her leg and yanked and had it come undone into wires. “G-G-GOD DAMMMNIT-T!” He ripped her foot free and it did little to stop her.

And then proceeded to get smacked in the back of the head by something. “UGH!”

“OH, CRAP! SORRY!” Millie yelled. She was swinging a short piece of rebar to no success.

She started trying to stab at her, only to have the rebar lodge into something and start getting sucked in. As it was pulled out of her hands, Ennard released Eleanor’s neck and pushed Millie back out of the way.

If he said anything then she didn’t hear it. All she and them could hear was Eleanor. At first her voice had been skipping commands and begs for Sarah, but it fell apart as quickly as her body had. Soon it just became a shrill warble of screams and noises, beeps and shrill rings and tones.

Both Ennard and Michael recognized those noises from the tape recorders in the interview at the false pizzeria. It had been so long, but both remembered those warbles instantly.

But they weren’t the only one. It wasn’t until Millie stumbled back from the Clown’s push that she realized they weren’t. Across from her, past them, stood another form lying in wait.

She could see glowing green eyes and an enormous claw-

“Everyone, get down!”

Millie and Ennard both looked up and saw the end of a gun aimed at them. Millie darted out of the way and dove behind the trash. Ennard grabbed up Eleanor’s head and stuck it out as far as he could.

There was a sharp bang and suddenly half of the plating on Eleanor’s face shattered. The pieces of her cheek falling away and revealing a metal jaw and porcelain teeth. Her mouth forced open as wide as it could go and stayed gaped open as her head was blown to the side.

Her eyes flickered before suddenly going fully into stark yellow. The warbling crackled before amping up into something like a scream. Her head snapped back and her eyes leveled on Scott, still holding the gun.

Suddenly she lurched right out of Ennard and Michael’s grasp. Her wiring pulling loose, shedding her shell like it was useless. Ennard tried to catch her as the pieces pulled free and only held her back by the taser progs still left in his belly, her hand’s wiring and coil laden endo left stretched between them as she stepped over Michael and staggered at Scott.

One leg a metal post below the knee snared with ribbed wiring, the other twisting to compensate, and her head bouncing as she raced for him. Through her slurry of noises, he could hear her mechanized voice shouting out warnings, dipping into lower octaves.

“Dang-g-g-gerrrrous weaponnn waaarrrrning warrrrningwarningwarning deaaaddly forcccezzzzt.”

She was just held back in her unraveling. She pulled her shoulders back before swinging them forward, her loose head lurching forward. Coils of wires shot from her mouth and caught the gun and over his fingers, to which he hastily fired another shot into her chest which ricocheted off of her remaining plating and into the trash. The wires tightened into his skin.

Ennard raced forward and sprung towards Eleanor and would’ve thrown himself upon her if something hadn’t smashed into her first: Baby.

Baby strode in with three long strides and caught her around the neck with her claw and with one somewhat clumsy, somewhat elegant spin threw her like a ragdoll onto the trunk of the car. Her claw tightening like a vice to hold her still.

Ennard fell over the two and rolling on the ground, snatching at the wires now grabbing at Scott and yanking with all his might, giving him enough leverage to pull free before diving back into the fray.

Baby was trying to keep Eleanor pinned, but she wriggled and resisted under her grip. The slender animatronic gave a graceful kick and threw her leg wires into Baby’s wire hair and began to weave into it before yanking, pulling it back. Baby fought against it, the heat of the wires burning up her body, tugging at her neck and forcing her head back.

And then she spun her claw and twisted up Eleanor’s neck until her head popped free and dangled from the loose wiring. It didn’t stop her, she still kept fighting. Almost like her head too was a disposable object.

Baby’s free hand dug at her chest panels and started to try and pull them loose. No good, so she threw her weight down on her elbow and cracked open Eleanor’s chest.

Deep inside she could see a mechanism at the center of the coil of wires. They were evenly laced together and set into spools, fed out into the limbs and mounted in a makeshift ribcage sealed against a metal spine. And in the center of that mechanism was a core. A red light started to flicker on it and a loud beeping began to screech from inside, burning into Baby’s head just as the wires burned her metal.

She needed to let go. She needed to let go. Let go. Let go. Let go. Let go. Let go. NOW. NOW. NOW.

She nearly screamed and pinned Eleanor with her claw while snatching the wires of her half-broken arm in her free hand and shoving it down to pin it open. Leaving the broken open middle spread before her.

“ENNARD!” Baby shouted.

And Ennard came in over her arm with the piece of rebar Millie had previously been wielding and stabbed it right through the mechanism.

“B-BEGONE YE F-FOU-LL DEMON!”

And then he was promptly electrocuted by it but managed to dislodge his hands from the bar. His singular glove burned and his other hand smarted in a way only slightly worse than earlier.

The box at the core, likely some sort of battery, sparked and short-circuited sending the mannequin body and her multitude of coils shaking in malfunction. A dull orange glow appeared deeper in her casing, indicating something had caught fire.

The noises rattling out of its chest were joined with Eleanor’s now slurred and slowing voice. She sounded like a toy whose batteries were running out, or currently on fire.

“ERRRRRWAR-R-R-RNNNINNNG FAI-I-I-crtz-URRRE ACTiiiivaaaate backup-backup-backup baaatteeeeerrrr….”

The voice faded out before the shaking slowly stopped. Now only twitching when its guts sparked.

Baby and Ennard stood over it staring down at it, waiting for it to say something or spring back up. But it didn’t. The strange false Baby was down for the count.

The real Baby looked to Ennard.

“A bit overdramatic, wasn’t it?”

“M-Maybe a little, ha ha!” Ennard agreed. His compulsive laughter betraying his anxiety.

“Apologies for stepping in late. I needed a clear shot and couldn’t have either of you caught in the crossfire.”

Ennard waved it off with a dismissive, “Eh.”

Scott hustled over to check on them both.

“Are you both okay? No burns? What about your stomach?” he asked.

“What about your hand?” Ennard said, looking at him attentively.

“It’s fine. Just a little squeezed, but it’s okay.” Scott started pulling up his jacket to see the damage, considering that part of Eleanor was still dangling from him, but Ennard stopped him.

“Wait, wait, wait. Michael? Buddy?” Ennard asked. Scott looked over as well. Baby might’ve but couldn’t afford to take her eyes off Eleanor in case she was faking.

Michael was lying on the ground. He groaned.

“Michael?!” Ennard rushed to his side, laying a hand on his shoulder. Michael tiredly shrugged him off- not that Ennard let go.

“I’m fine,” he mumbled.

“Yeah, you look fine.”

“Just let me lie here.”

“Yeah, just- just stay there, okay? Don’t try to get up yet. Just sit tight,” Scott assured. He picked up his gun and crouched beside them, putting his gun back in his holster as he did. He patted Michael’s arm as well.

“You came in clutch with that.”

“I’m just shocked it worked. Or, well, sort of,” Scott said with a dry chuckle. “I’ve got to go move the girl. I’ve got her sitting over there on a bunch of- bunch of… You know, stuff. I’ve got to, uh, move her into the van, call Clay, and I’ll be back,” Scott fumbled out. He was clearly on edge, and Ennard lent him a shoulder to help him up. Only to then catch his hand.

“Hey, Sc-Scottie,” he said. He gave him an adoring look. “Would you be a peach and go get the gasoline?”

“Oh yeah, that too. Thanks. On it,” Scott said with a wag of his finger. He gave Ennard a quick one-armed hug before racing off.

It was as he jogged away that Millie began to finally step out of hiding. She was still reeling, silently staring, looking between the plethora of peculiar characters. The Clown, some sort of funky Bonnie… and Ringleader Lizzie. Millie recognized her from the fair and yet seeing her here was unexpected.

Were they all alive? Were all the animatronics in town sentient beings with thoughts and feelings?

Well, there were at least three of them. Four when counting the little legless rabbit who came hastily crawling up to the Clown’s side.

“Ennie, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to ruin everything!” she apologized frantically. She covered her face with her hands. “I thought I was being so careful and BOOM! I blew up the whole plan!”

“Aww, don’t worry your little, pink head,” Ennard assured, patting her head. “It wasn’t like we were getting out of here without a scuffle anyways.”

“But your belly!”

“It’s fiiiine! I’ve been through way, WAY worse, Little Bit!”

Michael’s eyes snapped open, and he started to lift himself onto his elbow. Groaning a little through his teeth as he beckoned for Ennard to lift his jacket. “Let me see.”

“Hey, hey, what happened to sitting tight? You had a huge springlock failure a good two minutes ago!”

“And yet somehow I am still alive,” Michael muttered. He gestured again.

“Okay, yeesh. Always gotta worry about me,” Ennard tsked. He started to unbutton his jacket.

“I have good reason for that- Oh dear God.”

“It’s not that bad. Just a little ehhh.”

“Not that. Her. She’s still here, watching us,” Michael hissed. He had spotted Millie standing there staring and stared right back like a deer in headlights. Millie held her hands up in defense.

Ennard snapped his head back. “WHAT?! Oh. Oh! Her! I thought you meant Skelenor over there! Ha ha, everybody, this is Crouton! Crouton, this is everybody!” Ennard briefly introduced.

“Crouton?” Baby asked, eyes narrowing doubtfully.

“Uh, Millie,” Millie clarified.

“Millie, this is Michael and Baby! You’ve already met Bon-Bon,” Ennard properly introduced. He then quietly added in, “Don’t worry. She’s not gonna tell.”

Millie heard this and quickly added, “R-Right! I’m not going to tell anyone…”

She couldn’t be too sure that his friends were as friendly as he was. Not with how Lizzie- wait, did he call her Baby? -was eyeing her… Baby. Circus Baby? Was that Circus Baby?

“I’m not concerned. You’re a teenager, who would believe you?” Baby said matter-of-factly.

“Babydoll, your abrasive side’s showing,” Ennard chimed up.

“Ben, there’s a dart in your stomach,” Michael said.

Baby turned to them with a start. “What?”

“That explains why I’m dragging around half of that thing’s guts around with me, ha ha,” Ennard said, then sighed as he fiddled with it. “Oookay, this isn’t coming out.”

“Let me try.”

“No, I’m not having you poke around live wires after you just got fried. Let me just…”

Ennard fiddled with it a little longer and managed to get the other ones free, but this one had somehow pierced the metal wires and stuck itself in. It tingled when he touched it, almost like something inside of it was on. It wasn’t just a taser prong, he realized, but something much more worrying.

“The whole wire’s gotta go. Can’t trust it anymore. Give me a second,” Ennard said. He then called back, “Don’t look, Kiddo, or those croutons are coming back up.”

“What?” she asked.

He proceeded to retch and the exposed wiring on his stomach shifted around. Slowly working the darted piece of wire in and up and out.

At this point, Baby seemed to decide that she didn’t like Millie starting and walked over, her skates sinking into the dirt as she did, to stand blocking him. She kept her eyes back on Eleanor’s broken remains.

“What happened here?” she asked. Her eyes briefly darting to Millie to signal she was addressing her.

Michael too leaned up attentively, and Bonnet, who was now holding Ennard’s hand, swiveled her head around to look.

So, Millie had no choice but to explain. And it wasn’t a little explanation either, it was the full explanation. She couldn’t stop- even after the Clown hacked up a section of wire and started listening fully too.

Finally, Millie could unload everything and now hearing it back, it was nightmarish. It was shockingly similar to her encounter with the bear, Sarah had been lured in, trusted Eleanor, and then agreed to something crazy. That wasn’t entirely the same as her situation, but Millie could imagine the moment Sarah hid Eleanor to herself as the moment she herself climbed into that bear.

By time she was done, she was shaking. Baby’s eyes were open wide as she listened before closing solemnly, and then directing her gaze back on the broken bot with a pointed gaze.

“How terrible… I can imagine how it would feel to desire something so much and only lose what you have in pursuit of it. We have gone through something similar,” Baby said.

“You have?”

“I suppose there’s not much risk to telling you. Nobody will believe you and those who would know it is best to keep all this hidden… We were humans once. Human beings who lost our lives and bodies in one matter or another.”

“Wait, all of you?” Millie asked in surprise.

“That’s right, Kiddo! Turns out that the Hurricane Clown here’s a big fraud. I-!” Ennard pressed a thumb to his chest. “Am actually an animatronics technician.”

“I was just a child when I died, but not anymore,” Baby said.

“I went into the wrong room,” Bonnet quietly added.

“I would rather not say,” Michael dismissed, instead busying himself in studying the dart Ennard coughed up.

“We were all, in one way or another, victims to machines. And then we became them,” Baby continued. “And we are not all created equally. There are some of us who would do anything to survive, but there are others who would do anything they could to cause suffering. I know about the bear who tried to murder you. I knew his kind well.”

“Oh…” That was enough to send Millie reeling. That made sense, she guessed. They weren’t just super-smart living robots but… ghosts? It was enough to leave her second-guessing a lot of this, but it made a little more sense. But Eleanor… She looked over towards her remains. “So, she was a human too once? Is that why she was doing this to Sarah?”

Baby looked over at Eleanor again almost warily. Almost second-guessing herself for a moment. That thing HAD said she was a person too, she had even mentioned Marionette, but was she?

“…No. She was lying,” Baby decided. “About being alive, I think. It sounded like a lie. And had she truly been one of us, I doubt that rod alone would have stopped her.”

“There’s nothing in there,” Michael remarked.

Baby tilted her head at him. “You know for certain?”

“Call it a hunch.”

That’s all it really was, but he stood by it. From how it acted to how it felt, it didn’t feel real. He would clarify it later in the back of the van.

“Speaking of which! Mikey, I’m starting to think this might, ha ha, be a different doll,” Ennard said. He gave Michael an uneasy smile. “Which is crazy because that would mean that we’ve had a total of two dolls who look like Baby who came creeping on us now. And THIS one fessed up to being here to look for me.”

Michael stared at the ground for a long second…

“And this-.” Ennard held up the wire he rejected, tapping his thumb on the dart. “Sounds like it’s on.”

Then he swore under his breath, or lack of one.

“This is crazy…” Millie mumbled to herself.

Before Baby could assure her that this was very real, Scott cleared his throat, revealing that he was there. They all looked at him.

“I called Clay. He’s calling an ambulance and they’re going to take it from here. At least, with the girl- your friend. He told me to go ahead and burn the fake Baby. Just in case something is in there. But before that…”

He stuck a hand in his jacket pocket and fished out a necklace that he dangled from his fingers. It was a heart shaped pendant.

“Doesn’t this look familiar?”

“That certainly looks familiar,” Baby said. She took it in her hand and studied it close. “It looks different than the other one, but it has the same weight. The same soft buzzing.”

“Let me see it,” Michael requested. Baby dropped it into his hands and he began to turn it over. He held it out to Ennard. “Same sound?”

Ennard leaned in, listened, and nodded. “Same buzz.”

Michael swore again and started to pinch at the pendant. When he couldn’t force it open, he held it up to Baby. “Pop this open, would you?”

She stuck out a claw. Michael carefully placed it in, and she easily cracked it open.

“Thank you.”

“You are welcome.”

Michael opened the pieces up in his hands and shifted through them before noticing a little chip. Pulling it out he studied it close. It was impossible to notice anything from the chip itself, but there seemed to be some sort of logo printed on it. He would have to study it when they got home. For the moment he kept it clasped in his palm.

Scott noticed the small bundle of wires that Ennard was holding and stepped over to him.

“You lost wires? Are you okay?” he whispered with concern.

“Oh this? Nah, this is nothing. In fact, I feel way better with it out,” Ennard reassured. He leaned into his side, still crouched but giving and getting another half-hug. “I’ll top up when we get back home.”

“Okay, good. Do that. And, uh…” Scott looked back towards Millie. Ennard let him go so he could approach her. “The police are coming. The same guys who dealt with your… situation. They’re going to come and they’re going to get your friend to a hospital. Why don’t you come with me and we’ll wait with her?” He paused a beat and then added in, before she could answer, “And I know you’re probably a little nervous trusting someone you just met after all of this. If it makes it any better, I’m the guy you called. You know, when you asked about the clown?”

“Wait, you are. I recognize your voice,” Millie said in surprise. But then she grew suspicious. “Wait a minute. You said you didn’t know anything about a clown.”

“Right, that. I was lying. Sorry about that but I’ve got to protect these guys- but we came as quickly as we could. It sounded like something was up so we just… packed up the whole circus and raced down here to see what was going on. You mentioned the dump so that was a lucky break.” Scott paused his ramble to clear his throat. “So, yeah. That’s what happened.”

“Oh.”

“So, uh. I guess let’s go wait for the cops and let them take care of the rest.”

“The rest of what’s left of her,” Bonnet remarked.

“Ha! Cute,” Ennard complimented.

“Not cute, but mildly clever,” Michael corrected.

So, that was it then. That was the end of the battle. Now it was time to deal with the fallout. Wait for the cops, explain the situation, and go home.

But for some reason, despite not wanting to be stuck in this situation in the first place, Millie didn’t want to leave. And she knew that was because of the Clown. Because she knew she wouldn’t see him again.

She had to do it right this time. She had a second chance.

“Alright, but before I go. Can I just- I just need to say something. Please,” Millie said awkwardly. They were looking at her expectantly, so she looked to the Clown pointedly, and made a sort of ‘get up’ gesture.

“Oh! Yup, here I go.” Ennard got up, cracked his back, fixed his jacket, and strode over. He hooked an arm around Millie and led her off. “We’re going to mosey on over there so you guys can pretend to not hear us. Maybe someone could find my glove before I get back? That would be great.”

“On it!” Bonnet chirped back.

Ennard didn’t take Millie far, but he had gotten the direct impression that she wanted to talk alone. So, they stopped in the middle of some trash, just beside an old refrigerator that looked like it had been sitting there for twenty years.

“Well, well, well. Looks like somebody was right about having everything having a weak spot!” Ennard chirped. “Gotta admit though, I was really banking on it being the head. Not some boxy battery sitting there like a square meatball in a mound of metal spaghetti.”

Millie got a tense half-smile.

“Oh, come on! I know that was bad, but surely, I can get a bigger smile than that!” Ennard vocally nudged.

That got a much more honest smile out of Millie. It was weird, he was VERY weird, but she couldn’t help but like it. She had always imagined he would be nice.

“Okay, but don’t call me Shirely,” Millie answered.

That took Ennard totally off-guard if his choke-like laugh was any indication. An almost hysterical laugh that would’ve been off-putting if it was anyone else. He got himself together and pointed at her.

“And you can call me Ennard! In case those guys didn’t bring you up to speed,” Ennard replied. “So, whatcha want to talk about?”

Millie rubbed her arm and looked at the ground.

“It’s just… okay, I know this is weird, but I just wanted to thank you for saving me.”

“Aww, you’re welcome, Kiddo! But I can’t take credit! It was really a group effort. ‘Specially once Scottie brought out the firepower.”

“That’s not what I mean. I mean, thank you for that. You saved my life and Sarah, but I meant… back with the bear.”

It was hard to notice a change in Ennard’s facial expression. His mask was stuck in a constant smile after all. But it did seem like his eyes softened a little when she dared to look up at him.

“I heard that if I had been in there another few hours, I would’ve been dead. I don’t know if that’s true, but I know you saved my life and if it wasn’t for you I… I don’t think I’d be able to be normal. Not normal, but okay. It’s hard to get out what I mean, but knowing that you tore Freddy apart- it sort of gave him less power? I think I would’ve been afraid of him forever, and I still sort of am, but you… Thank you for killing Freddy. That’s what I’m trying to say,” Millie forced out.

“Thank you for holding out long enough for me to getcha,” Ennard said a little more sincerely. “You’re a pretty tough girl, you know that?”

“I don’t know about that…” Millie admitted. She smiled a little. “I was too out of it to know what was going on. I didn’t even know if you were real, but I believed you were. Everyone was telling me you were a hallucination and I guess that made sense, but I believed that you were like some sort of guardian angel. The only reason I came here was to prove you were real… I guess that sounds dumb.”

“It doesn’t! Don’t worry so much.”

“Thanks. And thank you for saving my life. Twice.”

“I’d do it a third time.”

“I really, REALLY hope you don’t have to,” Millie admitted. “…But I hope I see you again.”

“Yeah…”

That was the non-committal ‘yeah’ of someone who knew they’d probably never see each other again. Millie felt her heart sink, but she kept that little smile up. That was okay. She got her second chance.

“…You know, I’m not entirely against being pen pal buddies! Only catch is that it’ll have to be our little secret.”

Okay, never mind. Apparently, this wasn’t goodbye.

“I won’t tell anyone. But how would I send it? Do I just, I don’t know, leave it here at the dump?”

“Got an email?”

Even easier and less need to drive back and forth to the dump. Millie gave him her email and he said he would remember it- she hoped he wasn’t just placating her. He really hoped she would keep this hush-hush.

“Alrighty, Crouton! Then let’s getcha back to Scott and back to the van so you can be there when the cops get here,” Ennard said. He started to usher her back out. “And really watch your step. Whatever THAT is is really slick.”

“Uh, right. Sure. I’m going,” Millie fumbled. She considered one last thing.

Ennard looked at her questioningly.

Oh, what the hell. She almost died tonight.

Millie stepped in and hugged the Clown. He must’ve been a little surprised as he jumped and lifted his arms for a second.  

She was hugging the Clown. It was almost like hugging the bear really. Just hugging this tall robot clown until his arms fell on her back and he returned with a tight, but not painful, squeeze. It was so bizarre, but it felt safe.

Her guardian angel was a haunted robot clown and she was fine with that.

Scott, who had been spying on the encounter, smiled a little and returned to the others. He couldn’t say he wasn’t nervous- this meant another person knew about Ennard, and a teenager at that- but he had a feeling that maybe this wouldn’t totally blow up in their face. He came back in time to assist Baby in helping Michael to his feet.

“Do you think we can trust her?” Baby asked.

“I think so. She seems like a good kid. I think it’ll work out alright,” Scott assured.

Michael teetered to his feet and held out a hand to signal that he was good to stand on his own. Scott leaned down to pick up Bonnet into his arms, along with Ennard’s glove.

“I’m going to go sit with the girl until Clay gets here. Think you two can handle things back here?” he asked.

“Yes. Worst case scenario, we set ourselves on fire and use it as an excuse to get a better body,” Michael remarked.

“We’re in a trash dump. I don’t expect we’ll find anything that constitutes ‘better’ here,” Baby remarked. She looked back at Eleanor for a long moment before sighing. “Wait here for a few minutes, Scott. There is something I must do first.”

Scott raised his brows. “Alright. What’s that?”

“Is the van locked?”

“Yes.”

“Then hand me the keys.”

Laying in the back of the van situated on cushions and the like, Sarah was slipping in and out of consciousness. Never to the point where she was in danger of suffocating, but more just falling into a light sleep before waking herself up. She didn’t know where she was. She didn’t know what was going on.

Then the back of the van opened and there were a pair of glowing green eyes staring down at her.

She thought it was Eleanor. She groaned but couldn’t make any effort to fight or escape.

“Calm down. You are safe now. She’s gone.”

That was a different voice. She was too out of it to consider whether or not she could trust the voice, she just took it at face value. Eleanor wasn’t here.

“You were lucky this time. If she had gotten her way, you would have been ruined. Maybe you made that decision yourself, but I know you did not understand what you were asking for. I know you didn’t want this.”

The figure leaned forward. She couldn’t make out much of her face except something didn’t seem normal. Was she a doll?

“I need you to listen to me. You will never be perfect. Nobody can be. Nobody is perfect to everyone, and nobody is beautiful to everyone. But what you have now is a beautiful thing. You have a living body. You have your own hair, your own eyes. You can grow up as you are supposed to, and when you decide to change you have the chance to change yourself. You almost lost all of that today.”

She felt her hair being pet. For a fleeting second, she mistakenly believed her mother was there, but no, she couldn’t be.

“We don’t choose the bodies we are given. We must learn how to live with them. How to make ourselves happy, because chasing the dream of beauty is exhausting and pointless.”

The hand stilled.

“But for the record, I do think you are a beautiful person. There was a time that I would’ve killed for a body like yours.”

The hand pulled away. The eyes lowered and the voice softened.

“And that is why I had to learn how to be happy with what I am.”

With a sigh, the figure moved away and began to shut the back.

“Go to sleep, Sarah. This is all a bad dream.”

And she did. And she only awoke once she was being taken out by paramedics shortly afterwards.

And finally, finally, the ordeal was over.

…

The days and weeks following the incident were rough for Sarah. She had remembered everything before she was drugged and a chunk afterwards. Blurry memories of some men finding her and a woman coming to see her. She remembered what the woman said, but not too much of what she looked like. She thought she had glowing green eyes, but it wasn’t Eleanor, so it couldn’t have been.

She even asked Millie if it was the clown. She had awkwardly gave a no, but did discreetly tell her the clown had been there. This time, Sarah choose to believe Millie. I mean, why not? Could’ve been anything.

But she remembered what the woman had said. Not everything, mostly the gest of it. Nobody is perfect. She was lucky. She was beautiful. So much more. It stuck with her.

Recovering from the sedation was quick. By time she woke up at the hospital she was able to see straight, if with a massive headache and some wobbling. Within the next day the medicine fully left her system.

But recovering from the ordeal itself took so much longer. The first night home her mother slept alongside her in bed. The second Sarah assured she was fine, but found herself checking the corner so often that she barely slept. On the third night she snuck out and slept on the couch, which somehow felt safer. It took a while before she felt safe in that house, and it was always worse at night.

She lived in fear for a while, and it was no wonder that she found herself under the care of a therapist, which turned out to be a step in the right direction. She began to open up about her feelings of insecurity. They were still there, but now she was able to see for herself that something wasn’t right.

They had also stumbled across her disordered eating. Despite her feelings about her weight, Sarah had begun to make an effort to start eating more. Her mother had even been going out of her way to make extra nutritious meals to help her make up for what she was lost. They were baby steps, but Sarah was genuinely trying.

Because now Sarah knew something was wrong and it wasn’t just how she looked.

Of course, she couldn’t tell the full truth. Largely because she knew she would be labelled as crazy since Eleanor seemingly disappeared- Millie said that she was supposedly burned, but Sarah couldn’t be so sure.

The story they stuck to was one very close to the truth. Sarah met a new friend who helped her do her hair and makeup. The new friend tried to perform surgery on her and wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was outlandish but she had the fact that she had been drugged to back her up, as did whoever it was that found her. She didn’t know and she didn’t ask.

It was probably for the best that her mother didn’t know the full extent of what almost happened. Instead, she thought it was just some maniac who befriended her daughter and tried to cut her open. Throwing in the fact that she was a living robot probably would’ve been too much.

There was one thing she had trouble dealing with though, and it was something she really couldn’t talk to anyone about. She had guilt.

She knew that Eleanor was the monster here. That Eleanor did this to her and would’ve done so much worse… but part of her blamed herself. Wondered if only she had been happy just having her as a helper if she would’ve never done that. It was, after all, a command she had given Eleanor. She told her to do it. She made her into that monster.

She brought it up with Millie once shortly after the incident, but Millie assured her that Eleanor would’ve eventually turned. That the whole thing was a trick. Sarah wasn’t entirely sure…

On the plus side, Abby and Mandy visited her in the hospital- Millie was already there when she first woke up. She apologized to Abby and the two reconciled. Abby didn’t care about the fight anymore once she wound up in the hospital, but it still bothered Sarah, and soon the four of them were back to normal as far as friendship was concerned.

Maybe even more so. Due to Sarah trying to eat more and not wanting to go back to the house, she would often hang out with the group whenever they offered- and they offered more now. It was nice.

It was two weeks before Sarah returned to school. She was dreading it, remembering the incident in the lunchroom and expecting to receive a few cracks at her expense, but that didn’t happen. No, instead most of the kids seemed awkward around her. The story on the news had been that a girl was kidnapped and somehow it got out that it was her, so she became popular for the worst reason.

Some came up to offer their support, many avoided her, but thankfully nobody was asking too many questions. And when they did, Mandy would usually shut them down or insert herself in to deflect the conversation.

A couple of people sent her cards. Specifically Shelly and Pickle, but also one of the Beautifuls, the one who looked at her with sympathy. She had hoped that maybe the other Beautifuls would reach out, but they didn’t. Sarah still sometimes longed for the attention of the Beautifuls, but now she sort of hoped it would go away.

She didn’t want to be beautiful. Or well, she did. She still did somewhere in her mind. It was still there haunting her, but now there was a new voice too. One telling her that she really just wanted to be okay. Okay with herself. Okay with who she was. She didn’t want to BE beautiful, she wanted to FEEL beautiful- though maybe that was just the therapy talking.

She had at least come to the agreement that despite what she saw, she was prettier than she thought. And she kept telling herself that. And maybe eventually it would make a difference.

But she wasn’t the only one who felt like things had changed.

Millie felt different. She had a new lease on life after her near-death experience and now finding out about the Clown- Ennard, and all of the living animatronics in Hurricane… It should’ve scared her, but it didn’t. In fact, it was almost like she had seen a unicorn in the wild. It was like the world had some magic left after all.

A weird thing to say about dead people stuck as animatronics, but it just added a sort of mystery to the world that she didn’t think was in it. To think that her parents were travelling the world seeking adventures and she had snagged one here in the town they dumped her in. It was almost vindicating, but more so reassuring.

And she had gone ahead and emailed him. She didn’t expect him to respond, but he did. She knew it was him because he typed like he talked, randomly using all caps to emphasize various words and randomly sprinkling in ‘ha ha’ throughout the message. He also used a lot of code names- Baby was always ‘Sis’, Michael was always ‘Mike’, Bonnet was always ‘Bon-Bon’, and the only one referred to properly was Scott.

Also, apparently him and Scott had a thing going on. That explained some things. She was happy for them.

He checked in on Sarah too, and Millie kept him up to speed on her recovery- the things that she knew Sarah wouldn’t mind her saying, not the things told in complete confidence.

In his third email Ennard had thrown in an odd suggestion. He suggested that after she finished high school she should get a part-time job at Foxy’s Pirate Cove. At first she thought it was a joke, but then remembering the amount of animatronics who had been there that night… now she wondered if it was a hint.

Maybe she’d take him up on that offer. Someday. She could always use a little more magic.

…

“What do you know about Talgart Industries?”

“…I’m sorry, what?”

Michael would normally be frustrated to reiterate but seeing that it was Jake he found patience easier. He readjusted the phone in his grip, holding Scott’s magnifying glass in the other. Gesticulating with it now that he was done looking at the chip.

“Talgart Industries. Looks like something that may have been found in Afton Robotics, but the name is unfamiliar to me. You?”

“Uh… Well, sort of. Remember that scientist who I mentioned? The one who trapped me and Andrew in our endo body? His name was Dr. Taggart.”

“Interesting. And I am aware that there is a man named Dr. Talbert working at the Pizzaplex.”

“Do you think they’re working together?”

“Perhaps… But the similarities in name suggest that they may be a bit closer than that.”

“You mean?”

“The same man under two different identities.” Michael looked at the chip again, making sure he hadn’t been wrong with what he saw. “It would not be a first for Freddy’s.”

“I guess. But if so, that’d be a really bad choice of name for the company. It blows the cover!”

“My father, the murderer, went as Fredrick Fazmann.”

“…I… Okay, I stand corrected.”

Michael chuckled, but then paused. He pondered for a long moment.

“…The doll had been left in the dump and said it was looking for Ennard… That doesn’t bode well.”

“Do you think someone made it to spy on Ennard?”

“Taggart was your mad scientist and you lived at the dump for how long?”

“…Oh, that’s seriously creepy… But I’m- I’d be shocked if Taggart’s still alive. He wasn’t exactly spry and then we threw a shelf down on him. We sort of panicked.”

“You don’t have to explain a thing to me, Jake. I understand,” Michael assured, his voice warmed. “But be careful. Especially with Andrew on the run. There is something very wrong here.”

“You don’t have to tell me. I’ll be sleeping with one eye open from now on. The good one.”

Michael chuckled dryly and crunched the chip between his fingers. He’d have to get rid of it properly after he was off the phone.

He had a hunch this wasn't over yet.

Chapter 90

Chapter Summary

Fazbear Entertainment hires a counselor to discuss some recent events with their employees. Unfortunately for everyone involved, Ness doesn't do well when it comes to confrontation.

Chapter Notes

And thus we begin the finale! Hope you're excited! :) I know I am!

The phone rang at seven in the morning. A while before Fritz would get up, a while after Natalie finally got to bed. She remained in a dead sleep as he sat up in bed and answered.

“Hello?” he asked groggily.

“Is Ms. Smith there?”

“Yes, but she’s asleep. Who’s this?”

“Mrs. Monica Styles with Fazbear Entertainment. I hate to be a bother, but could you put her on? It’s very important.”

That woke Fritz up immediately.

“Uh, sure! Hold on just a second.” He gently shook Natalie’s shoulder, and her head lifted with a half-snort. “Babe, it’s Freddy’s.”

She reached back and got the phone before bringing it to her ear.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Ms. Smith. This is Mrs. Styles with Fazbear Entertainment. I’m sorry to have to wake you up, but we need you to come in for some mandatory paperwork and a meeting with our counselor.”

“Oh. Okay… Wait, now? I just got off my shift like… an hour ago?”

“Oh, no, no. You don’t have to come in until noon. Can you make it?”

“Yup, I will. Thanks.”

“Thank you! We’ll see you then! Bye, bye now.”

The call ended and Natalie handed back the phone which Fritz put back. Natalie then buried back into her bundle of blankets.

“I don’t have to go in until noon,” she clarified.

“Good. What do they want?”

“They want me to sign some paperwork. That’s all.”

Fritz started to lay back down when it hit him, and he suddenly shot back up in bed.

“They’re going to have you sign an NDA,” Fritz realized. He turned to her, wide-eyed. “That’s what they’re going to do. They’re going to have you sign an NDA, a bunch of waivers, all sorts of stuff.”                                                                                                

Natalie turned over and cracked her eyes open. “That’s not good.”

“No, it’s not.”

“What do I do? Refuse to sign?”

“If you can. It’s Freddy’s, there’s a good chance they might not give you any options…” Fritz said. “I think… IF you use your fake name, it might not be legally binding, but you’ve got to try to avoid signing anything. Don’t even refuse, just sort of… skirt out of the way.”

“So, dodge ‘em.”

“Yeah.”

Natalie yawned. “I think I can do that.”

“Yeah… You go back to sleep. You need as much as you can get,” Fritz assured. “I love you.”

She gave a tired ‘mmhmm’ and turned back onto her side again with a quietly yawned ‘Love you’. Fritz sat there for a second before scooting up next to her and hugging her from behind. She lovingly petted his arm around her waist before falling back asleep.

Fritz couldn’t help but be worried, but there wasn’t much he could do except warn her, and really hope the Fazbear Entertainment of today was at least somewhat different from the one he worked at years ago.

He left for work about an hour later and Natalie continued sleeping until getting up and heading to the offices a little after noon.

Apparently, she wasn’t the only one who arrived at this time. She stepped out of the elevator to see a few familiar faces standing nearby talking; Luis, Aiden, and Dan. She walked up to them.

“Hey guys,” she greeted.

“Vanessa, hey! Glad to see you. Well not glad to see you, all things considered, but you get what I mean,” Aiden greeted. She could tell from that exchange alone that he was a little shaken. “Did you hear about what happened?”

“If you mean what they found at the Pizzaplex, yes. I was there when they found him,” Natalie said.

Luis gave a hiss and both Aiden and Dan looked sympathetic, though Dan was as stern as always.

“Did they tell you what he died from?” Luis dared to ask.

Natalie almost looked surprised. “No, they just found him. Why, did someone say something?”

“Sort of. Q was in here earlier and he was saying…” Luis lowered his voice. “That there was something wrong with his neck.”

“Like, he was strangled?”

“No, like he crick.” He made a motion like he was cracking his neck. “But I don’t know. I don’t even know if Q was there.”

“He could’ve just made the whole damn thing up. He came in raring to gossip about it,” Dan readily dismissed. “And of course, Fazzy E’s is tight-lipped on the whole thing. Guess we’ll never know.”

“Well, they’ll have to do an autopsy, right?” Natalie asked.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean it’ll get back to us.”

“We don’t know that. I’m sure I could weasel it out of Mr. Wight. He’s been very open-mouth policy about this whole thing,” Aiden remarked, then took a sip from his travel mug.

Well, that was all pretty disturbing. Natalie had bigger concerns though.

“How’s Chaz?”

Luis’ face softened. “I don’t know, he hasn’t been in yet.”

“They shouldn’t make that poor sucker come in. He already had to find him, now they’ll want to grill him,” Dan said. He looked at Natalie. “Speaking of, brace yourself. They’re going to have you talk with a therapist.”

“I’m sorry, what? I thought we were signing paperwork,” Natalie asked in surprise. Totally forgetting the mention of a ‘counselor’.

“Something about trying to help us process all of this. It’s a lot of bull, I think they’re fishing for information.”

“Well, obviously. They’re trying to see if any of us knows more than we let on. But maybe it’ll be good for some people. Chaz could probably use the support, even if it’s an in-house hire therapist,” Luis said.

“I think it’d do best for Chaz to be with his family. Maybe look for a new job while he’s at it. But what do I know?” Dan said.

Inwardly, Natalie was beginning to get significantly more nervous. It wasn’t that she was afraid of therapists, she wasn’t, but being grilled in any way was always a risk. All she would have to do is slip up on her name and it would show that something was off with her story.

Speaking of. “Hey, is Ness here?”

“She is! She’s just hanging out in her cubicle,” Luis said. He gave a sympathetic sigh. “She’s upset about this whole thing. I tried to talk to her, but she just wanted to be alone…”

“I’ll talk to her. We were hanging out when it happened, so we were kind of in the thick of it together.”

“She said you two had been there. Speaking of which, I like your hair.”

“Thanks. It was sort of a spur of the moment thing,” Natalie said with a smile. “I’m going to go check in on her.”

“Good idea. She could really use a friend right now and she’s not letting me in…”

“Ah, it’s a girl thing,” Natalie brushed off. Then with a small wave, she headed off to find her.

As she got around the corner, she caught the beginning of a conversation she probably wasn’t supposed to hear.

“Either of you notice that Ness’ been acting strange?” Dan asked.

“What do you mean, strange? She saw a body. Of course she’d be acting strange,” Luis defended.

“Not that! I meant before that. She’s just… been acting weird for a while. You’ve seen it.”

Luis sighed.

“I think we’ve all seen it. Remember the Halloween party?” Aiden offered. He gave a dismissive noise. “It’s got to be all that pressure Mr. Wight’s putting her under. It’s hard to go from a desk job to suddenly taking on so much extra attention.”

“Maybe he needs to back off a little then. She’s not his assistant,” Luis said in a slightly snappy tone.

Natalie heard Aiden’s thoughtful hum but didn’t see how he raised his brows at Luis, and at that point she walked off.

Though it did leave her with some things to think about. Wight had been pretty handsy with Ness during that whole ordeal, but she didn’t exactly get secret lover energy from the two. It felt a lot like Wight trying to live vicariously through Ness, though looks could be deceiving. Maybe she’d ask Ness about it sometime when it wasn’t so obvious that she was looking for info.

She found Ness sitting at her cubicle. Her hands on her knees and that dead-eyed stare of someone who knew they were about to get interrogated by a Freddy’s brand therapist. She didn’t notice Natalie at first.

“Hey,” Natalie said. Ness snapped her head up, then got a tense smile.

“They got you too!”

“They did! Called me at seven in the morning to make sure I came in.”

“Ugh, I hate that. They didn’t even want people coming in at the same time, why call everybody at the crack of dawn?” Ness said. Her voice was a little stumbly.

“So they don’t have a chance to come up with a good excuse to not come,” Natalie said. Her smile softened. “Everything good?”

“Yup! All good. Just a liiittle nervous. But, like, you know, who isn’t?” Ness fumbled.

Natalie started to answer when she heard footsteps and looked to see Luis walking over. He waved and came around the other side of the cubicle.

“Ness?”

Inadvertently startling Ness who jumped in her office chair.

“Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to sneak up on you. They, uh, they’re ready for you.”

“Oh…” Ness said quietly. She stiffly got up from her chair. “Then, uh… Showtime! Heh,” she said nervously.

“It’ll go fine. Just tell them what happened yesterday, and they’ll leave you alone,” Natalie assured her.

Ness nodded and started to go, with Luis catching up at her side.

“But you know, if there is anything you’d like to talk with her about, this might be a good chance to do it,” he said.

“What do you mean?” Ness asked in surprise.

“Nothing bad! I just meant this is sort of like a free therapy appointment. Maybe just to get out anything stressing you out.”

“Maybe…” she said in a non-committal way.

Both Luis and Natalie walked her to the office before offering her good luck as she headed inside. Then it was just her, a nicely dressed woman, and a desk in between them.

“Hello, Vanessa. Is it okay if I call you Vanessa?”

“Vanessa’s fine. Nice to meet you, Mrs…?”

The therapist gestured to the chair across from her.

“Why don’t you have a seat?”

Ness shuffled over and sat down. Her hands squeezed between her legs, clearly anxious.

“How long have you worked at Fazbear Entertainment, Vanessa?”

“Uh, about a year? Maybe a little more. I haven’t been keeping track.”

“That’s fine. And who recommended you?”

“Mr. Wight.”

“Mm-hmm.”

There was a long pause as the therapist made a note of something on her clipboard. Ness sat there awkwardly for a long moment until she continued.

“Would you like to talk about yesterday?”

“Not particularly, no,” Ness said with a tense smile.

“Good, then we can move on to matters concerning you. Vanessa, your co-workers are worried.”

Ness was taken completely off-guard. She blinked in surprise and grew increasingly nervous.

“About me?”

“About you,” the therapist repeated.

“Oh…” Ness got out her keys and began to fiddle with them. “What about?”

“About how you have been behaving and some… concerning reports Fazbear Entertainment has received about this behavior,” the therapist explained. She gestured with her pen. “What’s that you have there?”

“Oh, uh… Lucky rabbit’s foot,” Ness said. She got an embarrassed smile as she clutched the little yellowish object in her hand. “It’s like a good luck charm.”

“I see. Do you tend to gravitate to morbid things such as that?”

“…No?”

“Well, that’s not quite what I’ve been told. But let’s start from the beginning. I heard that you’re seeing someone.”

“Th-That’s right. His name is Brad. He doesn’t work for the company.”

“Yes. But that’s not what I heard from some of your co-workers. They’ve been telling me that this boyfriend is something you’ve made up. Which I can understand-.”

“I didn’t make him up!” Ness interjected.

The therapist waited a few long seconds before continuing.

“Which I can understand when it comes to office politics. Sometimes you just don’t want to feel left out of couples’ discussions. Or sometimes you want to shut down a conversation that might make you uncomfortable, such as a co-worker’s advances. But the things they’ve told me are quite frankly disturbing.”

“I-I’m not… No, wait. They’ve got it all wrong,” Ness tried to reason.

“They said you sent a bouquet of roses to yourself that said, “Flowers for your grave” on the card.”

“No, it said “Flowers for our grave, til death do us part.” But- But Brad’s just got a dark sense of humor.”

“Luis said that you sent them from your work computer.”

“Luis says a lot of things. Did he tell you that I’m the only one he checks the search history on? That’s his job, right? Why’s it only me?”

“Luis is concerned about you.”

“Luis just wants to get in the pants of any chick he thinks is desperate enough to let them in- let him into them!” Ness snapped.

“Now this is an interesting side of you, Vanessa.”

“My name… is Vanny,” Ness hissed.

“Is that the nickname you prefer?”

“Yes,” Ness muttered. Her teeth tight, her hands clutched on her knees. She slightly tilted her head, almost sarcastically. “But tell me, please, what else has Luis been spewing because he was ‘worried’ about me?”

“Well, he also mentioned that you have recently exhibited some changes in behavior. You’ve been withdrawn. You changed your hair color unexpectedly. He even mentioned you looking up some… let’s say, questionable things in regards to Fazbear Entertainment’s past.”

“Oh, yeah. Real concerning. I’m avoiding him, I changed my hair, and I was looking up on the business I work at. Big deal!”

“They have also expressed some concern-.”

“Say ‘him’, I know it’s Luis.”

“It was not just Luis. Your other coworkers expressed concerns that you have an inappropriate relationship with your boss.”

Ness’ mouth flapped open and closed for a few second before her face went red. “BULLSHIT!”

“Language please.”

“How could he say that?! He could get me fired saying things like that!”

“Again, it was not just Luis. As a matter of fact, some of your coworkers mentioned a situation that happened during the Halloween Party that had concerned them. Luis didn’t bring it up at all.”

“What happened during the Halloween Party?!” Ness asked in disbelief.

“From what they said, you became upset and locked yourself into a supply closet where they heard you crying.”

“I was drunk!”

“They didn’t mention that you were intoxicated.”

“Because we’re not supposed to be drinking on the job! But you better believe all those guys were knocking back shots of peppermint schnapps just to stomach the cheap Freddy Party Punch.”

The therapist hummed in understanding and jotted something down before continuing.

“And as for Luis, it’s his job to keep an eye out for other employees, especially once exhibiting such alarming behavior. Think of it from his perspective. You, his good friend, are pulling away from him, and you are telling him that you have this boyfriend who has made numerous threatening comments to you, whether they are jokes or not. To me I read this as a cry for help. A need to be acknowledged as a victim, perhaps because your life isn’t going the way you want it to?”

Ness looked at her with a cross of confusion and disgust.

“Are you following what I’m saying?”

“Yeah, sure. Loud and clear,” Ness said.

“And what do you think about this?”

“I think you told me to watch my language.”

The therapist didn’t seem too happy with this response.

“This is how I see things, Vanessa. Either you are in a bad situation, or you are pretending to be in a bad situation. I just want to find the root of that reason so that we can help you.”

Ness was silently annoyed.

“One of the possibilities could be that you are lonely, and this is a way to attract attention. That would explain why you would do something as bold as to send yourself flowers. But you can be lonely and still try to push others away if you’re afraid to get close. And it is that clash that could be leading to this… peculiar situation.”

Her face softened with what looked like empathy.

“I am aware of the… circumstances with your mother.”

Ness’ face went blank. Uncomfortably stoic.

“But I haven’t heard the entire story. I know that you two were close and that you aren’t in contact anymore. What happened?”

Ness stared a minute longer before finally muttering.

“Oh, he’s a dead man.”

The therapist’s brows raised. “I’m going to assume that wasn’t a threat.”

“No, it’s a figure of speech! It means I’m pissed!” Ness shouted. “This guy just decided to air ALLL the dirty laundry, didn’t he?! He better be fired for being a stalker! I’m done! DONE!” She shot up from her seat. “Where is that slimy son of a bitch?!”

“Vanessa, please. This is a private session.”

“Apparently it ain’t if you’ve been talking to EVERYONE about me! My mom’s my own business!” she snapped. “And for the record, I am NOT sleeping with Mr. Wight! Ugh, it’s like that guy wants me to lose my job!”

“I know you’re upset. Luis may have overstepped boundaries, I won’t deny that, and I can understand that you feel betrayed in having all this spilled out to a stranger. But please, I’m not here to judge you.”

“Yeah, sure, great, okay. You did. You really helped me see the light. Thanks for that. I have something to take care of.”

As Ness strode towards the door, the therapist called after her. “Wait, please sit down. We’re not finished.”

“No, I think we are. And if we’re not you can take it up with Mr. Wight when I’m not in BED WITH HIM!”

Ness slammed the door behind her and stormed off on the hunt, stalking past Aiden and Dan and making her way to Natalie and Luis. They were standing at the soda machine, with Luis trying to get a Fizzy Faz while Natalie was leaning on the wall.

They looked over as she walked up. Natalie saw her face and her brows shot up. Luis caught it a second later.

“Hey, Ness! That was- uh…” and that was the moment he saw her face twisted up.

“YOU!” She pointed a finger in his face. “What’s wrong with you?!”

“What-?”

“Don’t play dumb now! The fake boyfriend, the flowers, the having an affair with my boss?!” Ness accused. She held her arms out. “You told her about my MOM?! What the HELL were you thinking?!”

“I was just worried about you! I didn’t know she was going to say anything! She said it was all confidential!” Luis explained. “Ness, I am so sorry-.”

“You can shove your sorrys up your ass!”

Despite the tense situation, Natalie had to smother a snort of laughter.

“Where do you get off telling people I’m crazy?! You told a THERAPIST that I’m sleeping with my boss, sending myself threatening messages- are you trying to get me committed?!”

“No! I was just trying to help!”

“I don’t need your help! I don’t need help! I’m fine!” Ness shouted.

Something about that made Luis finally tip over the edge and he stood his ground.

“Well, I’m sorry I’m worried. I’m sorry I care about you, Ness, but I do. And I know it’s none of my business what you do or how your imaginary boyfriend treats you, but this-?! This isn’t you! And I feel like I’m the only one who notices something is wrong, but Ness, something is really wrong!”

“Look at this guy. Reads all my private information, now he thinks he’s an expert,” Ness mockingly remarked to Natalie. Which got her brows raised again, but Ness quickly turned on Luis. “Get off your high horse, Prince Charming. I’ve got a boyfriend.”

“Ness, I know for a fact you sent yourself those flowers!”

“Yeah, I sent those! And you still didn’t take a hint!”

That managed to catch Luis off-guard.

“Of all the- you’re such a- augh! YOU, Luis, you’re going to back off. You’re going to stay the hell away from me and if you don’t- oh ho- I’m going to show you how crazy I can get. My imaginary boyfriend’s going to come down here and start yanking out your teeth one… by… one,” Ness said lowly.

Natalie’s stomach dropped at those words.

Ness took a step closer to Luis and leaned in, a slack grin spreading across her face as she did.

“And then he’s going to break all of your fingers so you won’t get to write your little reports anymore, will you?” she whispered.

“Ness…?” Luis asked uneasily. He leaned back as she leaned forward.

“What’s wrong, Luisss? I thought you just loved your little Nessie-Nessie honey bunny. Or maybe you just love when she’s quiet. That’s okay.” Her voice grew low and harsh. “Because she’s not going to be saying a damn thing to you anymore. I’ll make sure of it.”

With that final hiss, she turned on her heel and strode to the elevator. She pointed back as she went.

“AND STOP TELLING EVERYONE I’M SLEEPING AROUND!”

She barged past someone coming out on her way in and slammed her finger on the button. The doors shut, and everyone was left standing there staring, shocked and awkward.

“Dear God, what happened?!”

And apparently Wight was one of those ‘everyone’s.

Luis fumbled. Natalie thought fast and tried to defend him.

“Apparently the therapist was grilling Ness on some of the things she heard about her. About her job, and… I’m going after her. I’ll be back,” Natalie said.

She waited at the elevator and got in, seeing Wight now talking with Dan as the doors closed.

That whole thing had been a disaster, but it told Natalie so much. She was almost left reeling as she replayed those last few moments back in her mind.

Because Luis had been right, that wasn’t Ness.

She knew that inflection. That mocking tone. It might’ve been straight from Ness’ mouth, but had it been through a distorted it would’ve been recognized instantly.

That was Vanny.

And it really wasn’t shocking. Natalie knew that Ness was Vanny. There was too much that pointed to it and too many similarities. She knew she was Vanny, but this was the first time the actual Vanny changed Ness into a different person without the costume on.

But that wasn’t important now. Despite knowing the risk, Natalie took after Ness. Both because she was worried about her and because she was worried about what she might do.

Ness had already made it outside and it took some searching before she found her in her car. She sat in the driver’s seat with her elbows propped on the wheel and her head in her hands. She was clearly crying.

Natalie tapped on the window. Ness froze up, turned away momentarily to wipe at her eyes, and then dared to look up. Natalie gave a little wave before pointing towards the other door and then walking around the front. Ness unlocked the passenger’s side door for her, and she sat down inside and shut it behind her.

“Are you okay?” Natalie asked.

Ness shook her head- and this was definitely Ness, not whoever was stringing her around upstairs.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Ness shook her head again.

“That’s okay… Well, if it’s any consolation, I think it was pretty trashy to get called out like that during what’s supposed to be a private therapy session. What even was the goal of that?”

“I’m so sorry…” Ness squeaked.

“Don’t be, I’d be angry too… Maybe the language was a little extreme, and the finger breaking thing was a little ehh…”

Natalie tried to make it sound like she wasn’t walking on eggshells, but surely Ness could hear the crunches with every word.

But Ness didn’t care about that. She had her mind on other things.

“I shouldn’t have done that… I’m going to be in so much trouble…” she said, hiccupping a little.

“No, you’re not! It’ll be okay,” Natalie assured, reaching out and squeezing her shoulder.

Though now Natalie was wondering who exactly Ness would get in trouble with. Her job, Wight, or someone else? She had a bad feeling that it had less to do with the yelling and more about what happened.

But she wasn’t in a place to ask. Maybe she could do that later.

“Let’s get out of here. We can go back to your place or go hang out somewhere,” Natalie offered.

“I’d like that…”

“Then let’s do it. Let me just run in to tell someone I’m leaving, and we’ll get out of here.”

Natalie started to get back out when Ness quietly murmured, “You don’t have to…”

“No, I want to! Besides, it gives me an excuse to get out of therapy,” Natalie half-joked. She gave her a smile and headed back inside.

It was probably dangerous to be alone with Ness, but… she still wanted to help her. Vanny or not.

The truth was, it reminded her a lot of Jeremy and his situation, what he was forced to do even though he had no control. But Jeremy had someone to lean on, a full support system, and Ness… might’ve just shoved everyone away. Maybe it wasn’t even Ness who did it.

Natalie waited at the elevator door until they opened and let out a nicely dressed woman who looked like she was trying to withhold her frustration. Natalie stepped in after her and sent the elevator up before stepping back out into the office and right into the buzz of muttering and whispers.

She ignored it and sought out Wight, who was standing by the open office door where they were having therapy. He was whispering to Mrs. Stringer and gesturing like he too was barely holding in his anger.

“Mr. Wight?” Natalie carefully interjected.

“Oh Vanessa. I didn’t expect you back so soon. I hope you didn’t see all of that.”

“No, I just walked in. Did something happen?”

“…No,” Wight said with a downright tense smile. “Now then, what did you need?”

“Is it alright if I take Ness home? I know I still need to talk with the counselor, but she’s still pretty upset and she needs to get away from this.”

“Don’t you worry about that, we decided to… cancel the therapy sessions early, so there’s no need. You’re free to go enjoy your day, and I think that’s an excellent idea,” Wight encouraged.

Something happened, Natalie realized. All it took was a look at Mrs. Stringer, who noticeably pulled a face at ‘cancel the therapy sessions’ to know that much. But she didn’t pry.

“Thanks. I’m heading out, she’s already waiting in the car.”

“Oh, and- two things,” Wight said, stepping after her. He paused and then pointed at the elevator, signaling that he would walk with her.

They walked together, with his hand on her upper back as they did.

“Firstly, thank you for being such a good friend to Ness. She needs someone to be there for her,” Wight said thankfully.

“No problem.”

“Secondly, and more importantly, I want you to know that anything you might have heard about Ness and I being in a ‘relationship’? It’s not true.”

“Oh, I figured. I think Ness would’ve said something if that was the case.”

“I don’t know where anyone could get the idea! Yes, we shared a cabin during the company retreat, but those cabins had two bedrooms at the least! And we weren’t the only co-ed cohabitation,” Wight vented. He sighed and patted her back. “But don’t let me keep you.”

“Don’t worry about it, Mr. Wight. It’ll blow over. There’s bigger things to worry about.”

“Indeed, there are,” Wight said solemnly. He watched her walk into the elevator. “Thank you again. And make sure Ness knows she’s not in any trouble. I would go tell her myself, but… I think I’m the last person she wants to see right now. But let her know that.”

Maybe not in trouble with him, Natalie thought. She kept her mouth closed, gave him an appreciative smile, and rode back down to go see Ness.

More than aware that this was probably the beginning of something more than the end.

…

As soon as Natalie’s shift started, she first went to check in on the Glamrocks before heading up to the Prize Counter, leaving Smitty and Buddy in the lobby so they wouldn’t get in the way.

There was a different feel in the Prize Counter when she walked in- through the atrium, the elevator was entirely blocked off with caution tape now. She couldn’t say what that feel was, but she could tell she was being watched from somewhere.

As she stood there in the middle of the floor and looked around, she heard a faint jingle of bells.

“Hey, Sun.”

After a second, a blue-clad figure side-stepped from behind one of the toy displays.

“Oh, Moon. Good to see you,” Natalie corrected. “How are you guys holding up?”

Moon grumbled a little as he slowly slid to sit at the base of the mountain of toys, his back against the display.

“Hanging on. We will live,” he replied. He scoffed a little, “I’m surprised you came alone. I almost expected you to bring Mari here with you.”

Natalie was silent.

Moon looked up again.

Marionette was standing alongside Natalie.

“Oh.” Moon was barely surprised. He looked away again. “Where’s Mike?”

“Out in the car. He wanted to come in, but… I don’t think it would be a good idea. If he was spotted by one of the cameras this soon after the discovery… it would be suspicious,” Marionette explained.

Moon hummed.

Marionette looked at Natalie who, seemingly getting a signal, nodded and walked off behind a nearby counter. Likely to go check the security cameras. Marionette sat down on the carpet beside Moon.

“It’s also a school night for him but keeping him out of this is the most important matter. Mike already has too much suspicion levied against him,” he continued. “As much as we love to skirt danger, this is a risk we can’t afford to take.”

“It’s for the best. Nobody should be here. It’s not safe for any of us,” Moon muttered.

Marionette rested his head back on the plushies and their stand, looking at the stars on the ceiling and the pink glow illuminating the room. What a wonderful Prize Counter. Sure it was less cozy than his own, plastered in glitz and glamor, but right now the soft music and matching lighting was almost soothing.

It would be peaceful if these were any other circumstances. What a shame that their playground had turned into yet another Freddy’s.

And he had known it was going to happen. He had said so without wanting it to be so, only worrying about the effect it would have on Foxy’s and nothing else. Now it had come true and though he wasn’t surprised, he was sorely disappointed. He felt responsible for it. If not for not being here, then for somehow willing it to be.

He tilted his head in Moon’s direction with a tired expression.

“Can I ask you something?” he asked.

“I know what you’re going to ask, so just come out and do it,” Moon snipped.

“Very well…” Marionette considered it a few seconds before getting right to the point. “Will you please tell me what happened?”

Moon pulled his legs tighter to his chest.

“I won’t judge you. You know I won’t. You know all that I did,” the Puppet quietly continued. “I just want to know so that… Because I wasn’t here.”

The jester sighed and dropped his head onto his knees. A painfully long minute passed before he spoke.

“Somebody died. That’s what happened,” he said. “He was a technician here. A good one. He was responsible for Jake and I back when we were Sun and Moon. He was… different. He wasn’t cold, he wasn’t bitter, or callous. He was young. He was enchanted by the idea that we, these oversized toys that we were, were alive and able to feel. He would bring us gifts, reward us… He treated us well, but I didn’t realize that until once he was gone. I was so caught up in being treated like a piece of machinery that I didn’t notice him treating us better than the others.”

“He sounds kind.”

“He was…” Moon sighed, his bells jingling as he shifted. “…Once when I was being worked on, he held my hand through the procedure.”

Marionette gave a fond little chime.

“I thought he liked Jake more because he was always doing what he asked without bribes, without fuss… but now I realize that he showed me so much more favoritism.” He sunk further into himself, legs and limbs slouching like he was boneless. “He didn’t deserve what happened…”

“What did happen?”

“…I can’t talk about it.”

“I know it was an accident.”

“It was an accident,” Moon said defensively.

Marionette’s eyes began to glow.

“Was it Bunny?” he asked.

There was a pause. He almost took that pause as an answer, but to his surprise-

“…No,” Moon said quietly.

“Oh.”

“That wasn’t a yes,” Moon snapped. “That pause. It wasn’t a yes. It was a no. Bunny didn’t do it.”

“Oh! Of course. I didn’t think you were lying.”

But Marionette did think he was covering. Now he wasn’t quite so certain.

“But he was there.”

And now Marionette was even less certain.

“After… After, I had to hide him away where he couldn’t be found. If they found him in the daycare, then they would come for us and I would lose Jake… So, I did what had to be done. I put him somewhere…” Moon’s voice crackled and choked. “Somewhere he couldn’t be found…”

Marionette could imagine Mike tacking on a, “But could be smelled,” on the end of that.

…No. He couldn’t. Mike wouldn’t at a time like this, and because of that Marionette had no reprieve. He just had to bear the hurt. The hot burn in his chest.

“I’m so sorry.”

Moon shook his head, unable to look at Marionette and unable to speak.

The Puppet scooted closer and pulled him into a hug. Moon didn’t hug back, but he fell sideways onto his chest and accepted the comfort limply.

Marionette began to play soft music from his music box, a gentle chiming rendition of his own song. Like a lullaby to soothe and remind him that he wasn’t alone. For a long moment they sat there together. Marionette could hear the anxious ticking in Moon’s chest starting to slow.

But then, Moon spoke.

“What was it like… What did you think when you found me?”

Marionette didn’t need clarification; he knew exactly what Moon was asking him. It still felt like his heart stopped, but he pulled past it and explained.

“I was devastated. It had been so long since the one before you… Maybe not that long. Maybe it only felt long because there was a gap at all. Then came the night where you stayed after closing. I searched for you once I was told you were there-.”

“Who told you?”

“My friend. His name was Goldie.”

“The Golden Bear?”

“You remember him?”

“I was told about him.”

…He knew he meant Bunny. How did Bunny know about Goldie? He supposed it wasn’t important right now.

“When I found you, it was… horrifying. You were still alive, but I knew you wouldn’t make it. I could tell that you were barely holding on,” Marionette squeezed Moon tighter, clinging to him. “And then… the programming took hold. Like many times before and fewer times after, I was compelled to take you and give you a gift, give you life. I didn’t get a chance to choose your body. That is why you ended up in that dog, Sparky.”

“Fetch.”

“Yes, that. It was the most stable one of what was left. I’m sorry it was so uncomfortable.”  

“You could’ve put me in anything, and I wouldn’t have been happy… And yet.” Moon looked at his hand. “Somehow this one fits so well.”

“I know that feeling.”

“And that programing. That shutting down and needing to do something, I understand that,” Moon said. “…But that was not what happened that night. To me, with him. At first, I just did what I had to, but it caught up to me… once I was alone with him…”

He trailed off before sighing, turning, and hooking an arm up and around Marionette.

“I’m sorry I treated you the way I did. I was just so afraid that you would take Jake from me.”

“It’s alright. You didn’t even know who I was. I was just a stranger,” Marionette assured. He lowered his head and voice. “The stranger who made you into this. Or that.”

Moon hummed.

“Speaking of, where is Jake?”

“Watching us from behind that curtain,” Moon said. He lifted an arm and pointed off somewhere.

“I’m not-! I’m just… I’m here,” Jake called back, defeatedly. He eventually shuffled over.

Marionette beckoned him to sit down alongside them, and Jake shuffled over before awkwardly sitting down. Only to get caught in a one-armed hug by the Puppet.

Jake looked at Moon with a little surprise and Moon gave a slack, one-armed shrug.

“I wish I could’ve found you three earlier,” Marionette admitted.

“You- Oh…” Jake trailed off.

“We wouldn’t have gotten these bodies,” Moon said.

“Perhaps.”

Marionette gave a staticky sigh and pulled back, leaving a hand on each of their shoulders.

“I know you two don’t want to hear this, but the Pizzaplex isn’t a safe haven for you anymore. You’re both wanted criminals as far as the employees are concerned,” he warned. He squeezed their shoulders. “I don’t want to take you away from your home, but you can’t stay here. We have plenty of places where you can stay where Freddy’s won’t be able to find you, if you would like. Please.”

“That would… probably be a good idea,” Jake said.

Both looked at Moon who looked away.

“…I can’t leave Freddy or Gregory.”

“Well, good news! Because I will be delivering the same message to them as soon as I leave here. Along with the other Glamrocks, Beelora, the DJ- everyone needs to know,” Marionette said.

“I don’t know how you plan on getting the DJ out of here,” Jake chuckled.

“I dare say who’s going to stop us?” Marionette joked.

Moon tsked and rolled his face.

“You two tell me when you’re ready and I can have you both out of here and to freedom in a heartbeat. And perhaps better sooner than later depending on how Fazbear Entertainment handles the recent… finding…”

“They won’t care,” Moon bitterly dismissed.

“Thanks. We’ll keep you posted,” Jake said.

Marionette got the answer loud and clear. That wasn’t a no. Not even Moon’s denial was a no. It was a request for more time. They were both clearly aware that it would eventually run out. So, he didn’t feel the need to stress the importance more than he had.

He simply hummed in understanding and pulled them back in for another hug. One that took both off-guard as they weren’t expecting another one.

“You must’ve been worried about us,” Jake lightly teased.

“I am- Was!... Am,” Marionette clarified. He finally unwound from them and rose from the floor. “But I’ll stop clinging. I still have plenty of others I need to check on, but I will come back through before I leave. If you two need anything, I’ll be back shortly.”

Then with a little spin, Marionette disappeared. Whether he popped right in on Freddy or off to find Natalie was unknown.

This left the two alone together. With Jake scooting to take Marionette’s spot sitting alongside Moon.

Just them alone in the Prize Counter, like it had been since they fled the daycare. It wasn’t the same as their daycare, it didn’t have the same comfortable feel that they had formed there. There was barely anywhere to hide, with Jake having to manually override the door locks on the fire escape and hide out on the roof while the employees were here.

Starting over wouldn’t be fun anywhere, but doing it here was a ticking time bomb. They knew the only options were to find somewhere else to hide out, perhaps in Bonnie Bowl, or leave.

It would be hard, but they would be fine. The two of them had been through worse.

…Or was it the three of them?

“…Andrew,” Jake began quietly. “We need to tell him.”

“About what?”

“You know what.”

“Which him is the what?”

“Bunny’s the what.”

“…He already knows.”

“He doesn’t know.”

“He knows,” Andrew argued. “He’s brought up Bunny too many times to not know.”

They sat there for a long second in tense silence.

“If Freddy and Gregory agree to leave-.”

“We go,” Andrew finished. “But we need our stuff.”

“Especially if we’re going back to the dump.”

Andrew shot him a look.

“I’m kidding! Just trying to lighten the mood.”

“Well, at least you didn’t do any sun puns,” he mumbled. Momentarily getting a very ‘Sunny’ tone.

“I’m saving that for Freddy. You know he’ll probably come running up here the second Mari leaves.”

True. Hopefully Marionette would keep his word and keep their conversation in between them. There were some things that Freddy didn’t need to know.

What a mess.

Moon sighed. “I’ll sneak back to the daycare tomorrow and gather our things.”

“Want me to come with you?”

“No, it’s better if I go alone. That way I won’t have to feel obligated to turn around and go back once I outrun you.” Jake half-chuckled. “Can you puppeteer Nanny from here?”

“I think so.”

“Then you can do that. We’ll take what we need.”

They would gather their things and prepare to start their new life. One that Moon still refused to begin without Freddy and Gregory. He wouldn’t leave them behind.

And as for Bunny…

…

He left them behind long ago.

…

It was a dark and stormy night. The kind that would leave any fair princess cowering in her castle. But not this princess. She was too brave for that, and instead roamed her castle soothed with the comfort that it would hold for her. She was more powerful than she knew. She had all the control.

Yet something bothered her. There was a stirring in the back of her mind as she climbed the spiral staircase towards her bedroom. Walking down the bridge above the fighting arena that lie below. She looked down at the dizzying heights but steadied her nerves and pressed on to the grand door of her bedroom.

Here she would be safe, protected from the cruel, cold world outside. It was a grand bedroom with a curtain bed and a mahogany writing desk. It was lightly lit by distant candlelight. Warm and comfortable.

“Welcome home, dear Princess,” it seemed to say. “You are safe here. You are loved here. This belongs to you.”

The Princess was pensive and doubtful, but she knew she didn’t need to be. She knew that here she was always safe. That even though they didn’t understand, this was where she needed to be.

Away from the world. Away from them. Lost in her beautiful dream come true. The Princess was a princess, after all. She deserved to be adored.

The Princess sat on her bed tiredly. It had been a long day, but all true heroes and heroines went through one occasionally. She was safe here. Safe to be who she really was. I see the real you, Princess.

The Princess sat there, and sat there, and sat there.

And reached up for… her crown… and pulled it off.

And for a moment everything was the same. But then things began to shift and suddenly once where a dreary but lovely tower bedroom sat was replaced with a security office. Illuminated by the Pizzaplex logo bouncing on the nearby monitor and the dull glow of neon reaching through the window overlooking Fazer Blast.

The only notable thing in the room other than the thin cot she was sitting on being a dirty arcade machine. One with a princess on the side that was nearly hidden by grime. An old arcade machine that didn’t come on.

The game didn’t work anymore, but she was still playing it.

The chill of the air was creeping into the seams of her thin suit. She scratched at her arm, taking a shaky little breath. The room smelled stagnant. The air was heavy like it hadn’t circulated enough.

Nobody had been up here except her. Nobody came up to her tower. No handsome prince, no kindly king, not even a dragon. It was just the princess on her own.

Because she wasn’t a princess, and this wasn’t her tower. It was a dingy little office above the laser tag arena. The glow in the windows wasn’t colorful fairies or distant lightning but the constant drone of neon.

But without the game, the Pizzaplex looked so empty, and she felt so alone.

But she wasn’t alone! She just had a bad day. She met some monsters out in the world today. But she was safe here. Safe in her castle, even if she couldn’t see it.

But it wasn’t a castle. That’s the problem, it was a big, dirty pizzeria megaplex. She wasn’t the princess of anything here. She wasn’t anybody.

The lifeless red eyes of the rabbit mask stared back from her hands. Such a perfect face. Shame it wasn’t hers. It was her crown, but it was a mask anyone could wear.

It was so tempting to put it on and go back into the bliss of the world she wanted to be in, but she couldn’t right now. Even with it on she could get invested in the story. She couldn’t stop thinking about everything else going on.

She didn’t feel like a strong princess, she felt like a trapped princess. Stuck in a birdcage that was slowly closing in. There was no way out anymore. Nowhere to run. She didn’t want to go home. There was no home.

There was no way out. No way out. No way out no way out no way out no STOP.

She was a princess. She was my princess. And she was very real.

She wanted it to be real. It was. It wasn’t. It didn’t count if she had to close her eyes and plug her ears to pretend. It didn’t count if the adventure was her constantly searching for someone who was never there.

It wasn’t real. It didn’t feel real- but it was real- but it wasn’t real enough. There were no subjects, it was just her alone.

Always alone. Even before this. Maybe there really was something wrong with her. Maybe they were right. Maybe Luis- Mom- Dad-

Vanessa.

…

…

C̶o̶m̴e̷ ̶d̶o̵w̴n̴s̶t̸a̷i̵r̴s̶.

Chapter 91

Chapter Summary

The Glamrocks discover a conspiracy at the Pizzaplex and find out a truth about what Freddy has been hiding from them...

Chapter Notes

The beginning of the end begins… Enjoy! :)

Roxy was hunched over at her vanity with her face as close to the magazine opened on it as possible. There was no chance of reading the super-small print, but at least she could look at the pictures.

Ugh, so it came to this. Whatever. The pictures were the most important part anyways. Who cares what someone said about something when you could see it with your own eyes? Somewhat.

It was then that she heard footsteps outside of her door. She turned her head towards the door to listen, expecting whoever it was to either knock or let themselves in, as it was clearly another Glamrock.

Yet there was nothing. After a few long seconds she called, “Who’s there?” but received no answer. With a sigh, she got up and walked to the door, opening it up.

And was blindsided by how close Monty was standing.

“Whoa!” She reflexively took a step back. “Geez, Monty. You’re going to get skid marks on your nose like that.”

“Ah need to show you somethin’,” Monty said. He had a surprisingly solemn voice.

“What?”

“You’ll see.”

With that, he turned and started to walk off.

“No, I don’t think I will, Monty,” Roxy scoffed. “That better not have been a pun.”

Monty paused. “Oh, uh… Nope. Come on.” Then he kept going.

Roxy rolled her eyes and followed him, and he led her to a nearby door on the other side of Rockstar Row. They then climbed up a lengthy staircase and it was then that Roxy realized they were heading into the main security room. She kept up, and they walked into the monitoring office together.

Monty led her to underneath one of the largest screens.

“Try to squint, yer gonna want to see this,” Monty said. Then he clicked a few buttons.

“Since when have you been able to work this stuff?” Roxy asked.

“I’ve been workin’ when nobody’s been lookin’,” he explained. He clicked something and a video came up. “Take a look at this.”

Roxy squinted and strained to see, but it was hard on the screen. Colors blurred, but she saw what looked like people moving. A white form. A kid?

“What is this?”

“That’s Vanny,” Monty said. “…And that’s that kid.”

“That kid who keeps sneaking in?”

“Yeah.” He took off his sunglasses, flicking them in his hand. “They’re together.”

“…Wait, do you mean together-together or she’s chasing him around?”

“Nah, they’re together. Lemme tell ya what’s going on on the screen. She ran after him into a room, then he stopped an’ waved at her, then she skipped off after him. They’re workin’ together.”

“What?! Wait, no, that can’t be right. I came in on her grabbing that kid!”

“It’s all a scam. An’ y’know why?” Monty clicked a few buttons and revealed another image. “’Cause he’s been playin’ Freddy.”

“What…?”

Roxy leaned in and squinted and this time the footage was clear enough that she could see as Freddy knelt and let the kid climb inside.

“Oh my God, FREDDY!”

“Yup.”

“This whole time we’ve been chasing this kid and he’s been hiding him?! What a load of asphalt! I am going to kill him!”

“Don’t blame him. Looks like this kid’s been playin’ him like a fiddle. An’ not just him, Sun’s been coverin’ for him too.”

“Well, anyone could tell you that.”

“But it’s worse than you think. Him and Vanny are workin’ together. Both of ‘em were runnin’ around the raceway when someone tampered with Foxy’s brakes. An’… the kid’s the one who pushed Chica into the trash compactor.”

Roxy looked at him in shock. “What?”

“Yeah. I’ve got that on tape too. Both of ‘em. Not the brakes, but him runnin’ around right before yer accident.”

Roxy was reeling. “I don’t- What does this mean? Are you telling me some kid’s behind us getting trashed or that Vanny’s making him do it?”

“Ah think it’s both. Vanny’s got a few screws loose, but this kid, Gregory, he’s a real psycho. He’s been turnin’ Freddy against us, he’s been breaking us up one by one, and worst of all… Nah, that’s pretty much the worst of it, I guess.”

“This is insane! How could some KID do this?!”

“I dunno. I just know what ah see, and he’s the one pullin’ the strings.” He turned to leave. “Wait here, I’m gonna go get Chica.”

“I’ll message her.”

“No good. The comms are down cause’a that kid.”

“He took down the messaging network too?! How could he have done that?!”

Monty shrugged and headed out.

Roxy continued standing there, leaning in to try and see the repeating footage. It was stuck on the kid, Gregory, climbing into Freddy’s stomach.

Could this kid really be behind everything going wrong at the Pizzaplex? Roxy had some doubts, but maybe he was working as a pawn for Vanny. That certainly would explain some things.

But not what happened in Roxy Raceway. Unless one was covering for the other. Unless she misread the situation when she ran in, somehow, but still…

But still, it looked like Freddy had played them all for fools. But that wasn’t like Freddy. He had to be the one who was fooled, but by some kid? Roxy still wasn’t convinced.

Shortly later, Monty came thumping back in with Chica on his heels. She looked confused- though Roxy couldn’t see it, but she did tap on her shoulder as she walked up to signal that she had arrived.

“Hey, Chic,” she said.

Chica tilted her head and shrugged at Monty, asking him without words why she was there.

“I’ll bring ya up to speed. To recap, an’ you can ask Roxy ‘bout it, we’ve got real evidence on these screens that the kid who’s been runnin’ around is working with Vanny and has been playing the whole ‘widdle kid’ card to get Freddy hiding him. That’s right, Freddy’s been hidin’ him. And so has Sun and Moon. He’s got ‘em all fooled.”

Chica was startled, looking between him and Roxy. She made little round ears above her head.

“That’s right, Freddy.”

Chica tapped Roxy’s shoulder frantically, questioningly.

She sighed. “Yes, Chica. He’s been hiding him. I can’t believe it either.”

“And that ain’t all. I gotta show ya somethin’ else…”

Monty poked at a couple of buttons and keys until another piece of footage popped up on the screen. Glamrock Chica’s eyes widened as she saw the kitchen. But not just the kitchen. What was happening inside of it.

A brawl between her and Circus Baby. With Ennard standing there as well.

But then, the trash compactor started up. She shoved Baby inside and watched as Ennard tried to pull her out, and she genuinely felt bad. Maybe not for Baby, but for poor Ennard, trying to rescue his sister.

And then… she saw him. The little boy she had been chasing through the Pizzaplex for months. Coming up behind her, out of wherever he was hiding in the kitchen, and shoving her from behind.

Right into the trash compactor.

She had forgotten about that. Between the damages and the repairing, shutting down and booting up numerous times, and the big black blur that was whatever happened in the basement, she had forgotten that he had been the one who pushed her.

And that anger came back twofold.

“What’s going on there? Who’s that?” Roxy asked, pointing towards the blur that was Ennard.

“It’s Ennard. Y’know, the clown,” Monty said.

“He’s working with Vanny too?!”

“Naw, that’s- just wait a sec. Chica, can you tell us what you… Oh. Uh.” Monty trailed off awkwardly, then cleared his speaker. “She sees the kid pushin’ her into the trash compactor.”

“What?!” Roxy shouted.

“It’s true. Tell her- Ugh, ah mean- take my word fer it! It’s that kid again!”

Roxy turned towards Chica and she could see her make a nodding motion, and while she could squint hard enough to see she believed Chica and Monty both. She knew it had to be true.

“…Oh, he is going down. He is in so much trouble for this,” Roxy growled. “And I bet it’s that rabbit bimbo who put him up to this! I know she was behind what happened at the racetrack. You can’t tell me she wasn’t.”

“Well, I got one more thing fer… Fer me to read out to ya,” Monty said.

He tapped at the buttons again, with Chica tilting her head. Mildly surprised that Monty was able to work these security systems when he couldn’t even get their issues straight.

But then he managed to pull up a list of texts between two parties. A chat history of some kind. Chica tilted her head the other way, slightly bumping Roxy in the process.

“What is it?” Roxy asked. To her the words were blurred beyond comprehension.

“They’re secret messages between someone named V-N-Y, that rabbit chick Vanny, and G-G-Y, Gregory, the kid. Ah know it’s him ‘cause he’s been cheatin’ at the arcade cabinets and leavin’ that name everywhere. These are the newest messages I found. Listen to ‘em,” Monty said. He then began to read.

“GGY says, ‘It worked! He doesn’t suspect a thing’. VNY says, ‘Good. We don’t need him pokin’ his nose around.’ Then she says, ‘What now?’ And GGY says, ‘All we’ve gotta worry ‘bout now is Monty. Once he’s out of the way, we’ll be free to go ahead with the plan!’ And VNY says, ‘Easier said than done. How are we supposed to deal with Monty?’ GGY says, ‘Mont-… Monty’s gonna have a little accident…”

Monty trailed off. His voice suddenly more breathy and anxious. His internal fans whirring so hard that hot air eked out of the cracks between his plates.

“’We need his- his upgrades to get through the gate anyways. Better just to kill two bears with one knife.’… Ah think he meant two birds with one stone.”

“Is that what it says?!” Roxy asked, looking to Chica. The chicken nodded her head, that much Roxy could see. She put her head in her hand. “I can’t believe this. A kid? How could a kid… Vanny got into this kid’s head, there’s no doubt about it. Kids don’t do this.”

But Chica wasn’t so convinced. She trusted her eyes and she knew what she saw.

“We gotta nip this in the bud,” Monty said. “We gotta track Freddy down and get this kid away from him before he makes him do something he’s gonna regret.”

“…You’re right. It doesn’t matter who the one in charge is if they’re working towards the same goal. Where’s Freddy?”

“Beats me. Lemme check.” He began tapping at the keys again.

“But I don’t feel good about this…” Roxy muttered. She unexpectedly had a hand on her shoulder.

Chica squeezed it and despite her features being blurry, she could see the intense look in her eyes. That was enough to snap Roxy out of it.

“Right,” she said with a nod. “We’ll take care of this.”

It was all a matter of tracking him down…

…

Meanwhile, Freddy was entirely oblivious to what his bandmates were up to. In fact, he had more important things to take care of.

Such as the load of laundry piled up inside of him. Which Gregory was currently sitting on as he rode along in Freddy as they made their way to the daycare. With their destination being the theater’s basement, where they could do the wash without much risk of anyone else hearing and finding them.

Freddy looked up at the distant balcony sadly. The daycare had been closed today. Apparently, none of the daycare workers were qualified to take care of the kids as they closed the daycare as soon as the Daycare Attendant himself disappeared. He heard that there had been a few arguments with angry parents wanting to drop off their children and being told they couldn’t.

Chaz had come by Freddy’s green room to ask him about Sun and Moon again. Despite his usually warm nature, Freddy kept their conversation brief and chilly and told him nothing about where he and Jake were hiding.

And though he knew they were still in the Pizzaplex, up in the Prize Counter, seeing the daycare empty and knowing his Sunshine and Moonlight or good friend Jake wasn’t there made his heart ache.

“It is not the same without Sunny here…” Freddy murmured.

Gregory pushed on the stomach hatch and Freddy opened it so he could stick his head out to look. It looked the same to him, but the feel was a little different.

“Yeah. And it’s kinda creepy with the music off,” he said. “We could go to the Prize place and see him.”

“That is an excellent idea. We will do that once we have the laundry done,” Freddy said. He looked at the balcony with a sigh. “But still… I hope things go back to normal soon. I cannot imagine a daycare without Sun…”

There was a clattering from the balcony.

Freddy’s eyes widened. “Hmm. I can still hear him.”

“Uh, yeah. So can I. Unless that’s not him.”

Freddy hummed before gently pushing Gregory back in and closing his hatch. Then he began to walk towards the theater with a determined stride.

Either A: Sun had come back, or B: Chaz and his cronies were searching his room. From the sound of it a lot of stuff was getting moved, at least from what Freddy could hear once he entered the left open poster door, so he was leaning towards employees. In which case, he was about to be very cross with them.

Except then he opened the cracked door and stepped in and heard soft muttering and jingling bells. Immediately a fond warmth washed over him. It was his Sunshine, of course.

Within a few moments, he saw Sun’s legs crawling out of the tunnel leading into the smaller room. His upper half was twisted around to carry out an overflowing cardboard box.

“Sunshine!”

“YEEP!” Sun dropped the box the back of his feet and snapped his head over, then covered his face. “Ugh, don’t sneak up on me like that!”

“My apologies. What are you doing?”

“Just… getting some of the stuff we left behind. Y’know, in case they clean this place out…” Sun said, spinning his upper half around and then turning back to check the box and pick up the hand puppets that fell off.

“For the move,” Freddy finished knowingly.

“Mmmmyes.”

“Are you going back to the dump?” Gregory asked, pushing open Freddy’s stomach hatch.

“I sure hope not. Worst case scenario, yes, but best-case scenario we get rehomed into an actual home,” Sun chirped hopefully. Instantly taking on a lighter, almost phonier tone once Gregory popped up. “But hey, since you’re here, I’ve got something for you.”

“Me?”

“That’s right! Come on down, Sunspot!”

Gregory hopped down from Freddy and came over, only to be handed a carefully cradled action figure of Sun himself.

“Here you go!”

“Thanks, but I already have a- wait. This isn’t one of the Sun action figures.”

Now seeing it in his hands, Gregory realized the eyes were different and there was a little gap in the teeth. It was like the Sun on the candy posters.

“Not the ones in the Prize Counter, no. THIS is a limited-edition prototype Sun figure! One of the few that were made before the Pizzaplex opened. Technically-.” Sun rested a hand on Gregory’s shoulder as he leaned over, pointing at the mini-Sun. “That’s Jake.”

“Oh, sweet!” Gregory said. “That means this is super rare, right?!”

“That’s right! So don’t blow it up with a firecracker or anything,” Sun mumbled the last part. “But thank Jake when you see him again, it was his idea!”

“I will!”

“Or- wait, hold on.”

Sun darted over and dug into a box, then another, and soon pulled out a Freddy walkie-talkie. He checked the batteries and made sure it worked before pressing a hand to his head and mumbling under his breath, listing out numbers lowly. He must’ve been sending a message to someone, likely Jake.

Then he pressed the button on the walkie. “Hellooooo?”

“Well, hey there! Welcome to the Pizzaplex. Can I take your order?” Jake joked back.

“Lemme check with my little friend here,” Sun said. Then he half tossed the radio to Gregory, who caught it in his arm. He then steered him by the shoulders towards the door. “Now you go out into the hallway where it’s quiet and tell Jake thank you!”

“Are you getting rid of me?” Gregory asked suspiciously.

“Getting rid of you?! Of course not!”

“…Are you going to smooch Freddy?” Gregory asked bluntly, with a small smirk.

“You wanna stick around and find out?” Sun asked flatly.

Gregory, with an equally flat look, turned and walked into the hallway. He lifted the radio as he went. “Hey Jake! Sun said you told him to give me this action figure of you, or the old you. It’s so cool! Did you-?”

Sun gently nudged the door closed as he kept his eyes on Freddy. Then he tented his fingers together.

“Freddy, let’s chat.”

“Oh dear.”

“Yes. That sort of chat.”

Freddy’s shoulders slouched and he looked towards the floor, at another box already packed up by his feet. Reminding him that this room would soon be emptied out.

They hadn’t even got a chance to fix it up into a proper green room.

They hadn’t gotten a chance to do a lot of things.

“Freddy… we need to talk about Gregory.”

Freddy closed his eyes with finality. He knew it was coming, but it was devastating that it did.

“Gregory… he can’t stay here forever. Not now. Not that it’s like this,” Sun said gently.

“…I know.”

Sun sighed, his own shoulders going slack, and walked up to the bear. He reached out and patted his back.

“I know you don’t want to hear it, and I know you tried. We both tried to make it safe here, but we… we can’t fix this place, Freddy. It’s not ours. We’re just employees who don’t get paid. And now I’m wanted. I’ve got no choice but to go…”

“And I do not blame you! Sun, I do not… I do not want you to stay knowing what may happen if you do. Even if you were not caught, you would be hiding forever, and that is not living…” Freddy said. He looked at Sun sincerely. “You have my blessing to go.”

“Thank you, Freddy…”

There was a tense silence. Sun began to tick; he was anxious, Freddy realized. He reached for him when Sun suddenly spoke up.

“Sometimes you just have to cut your losses and go with the safe route, even if you know it means giving up everything you’ve got. Otherwise, you’re just going to lose it later. Maybe even more. Because- Because you can’t hold onto something that you’re going to lose anyway,” he babbled.

Freddy stared at him for a long moment, then quietly asked, “Sunny, are you suggesting that… Gregory goes with you?”

“Actually, Freddy…” Sun stepped to the side and grabbed his hands. Holding them tight, pleadingly so. “I’m suggesting you come with us.”

“What?” Freddy gasped in surprise. “You mean leave the Pizzaplex? Me? But I could not!”

“And why not? Freddy, think about it! This place isn’t going to stay open forever, and what’s going to happen when they close? You’ll just get shipped off somewhere else! At best. At worst they’ll scrap you for parts and rebuild you into something else- Freddy, you CAN’T stay. Not now that the body’s been found. This place has a big death clock sitting over it! I need you, Gregory needs you, and we need you to get out of here!”

“I would! You know that I would, but it is by my design that I cannot leave the Pizzaplex. I cannot so much as take more than a few steps outside of its doors without being alerted to return,” Freddy said regretfully.

“That’s not true! You can fight it!”

“But the hourly recharge-.”

“We can find a way to charge you! Heck, Jake and I’ve split power through wires at least a dozen times! Look-.” Sunny grabbed one of his shoulders to pull him in. “If I have to physically BE your battery to get you out of here, then so help me, Freddy Fazbear, I am going to be.”

Freddy looked at him wide-eyed. He was serious, wasn’t he? He really meant it, he really was determined to convince him to leave. And Freddy would in a heartbeat if he…

…Could he?

Stepping away from the stage would be hard, but nowhere near as hard as stepping away from Gregory, Sun, Moon, the life they had made together. To leave the Pizzaplex- to go to Foxy’s- could he go to Foxy’s? What would Foxy say? It was silly to ask. Freddy knew Foxy would say yes. But to leave his bandmates? But what if they left too? Could they all just leave?

He didn’t know how Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex could survive without its star, but…

…But they replaced Bonnie so easily. Couldn’t they replace him?

Could he take Bonnie with him?”

“So, what are you going to do?” Sun asked.

“I… I do not know…” Freddy’s thoughts were still racing. “…I need some time to think.”

“Well, you’ve got about twenty-four hours,” he said, patting his shoulder. Then squeaking as he was pulled into a tight hug.

“But you cannot wait for me.” He sighed as he tucked Sun’s head under his chin. “But it certainly will not be the same without you in here...”

“I know…”

The two stood there in that embrace for what felt like an eternity, but in reality, was only a few minutes. Not enough time but too much with Gregory in the hallway.

Especially if this would be one of his last nights, Freddy thought solemnly. He patted Sun’s back and pulled away. Sun quickly caught him by the chin.

“Think about it,” he said.

“I will. I promise.”

“Good.” He tapped Freddy on the nose. “And come see me once your done downstairs. You can help me move my boxes, and then Gregory can spend some quality time with Jake.”

Only with-? Oh.

“I think that can be arranged…” Freddy said with a wink. “Stay warm, Sunshine.”

Sunny gave a cackly little giggle, his points spinning, and finally let Freddy go.

“Alright, Gregory. Time to rock and roll!” Freddy said as he opened the door into the hall.

He stole a look back at Sun who waved. He waved back and then shut the door, and the moment he did Sun drooped like a wilting flower and went back to work.

The conversation with Sun lingered in the back of Freddy’s mind as he headed down the basement stairs. Eventually the butterflies Sun left were gone and now there was just a pit of emptiness, barely filled by Gregory and the mound of clothes bulked up inside of him.

Once they made it to the washing machines, Freddy unloaded Gregory from his stomach hatch. Gregory was currently wearing a Freddy Fazbear themed pajama-onesie that Freddy had gifted him. The only thing left of his that wasn’t getting washed. Though he was still wearing his sneakers with it, along with his backpack.

Freddy took out all the clothes and dumped them into the washing machine before pulling something out from the bottom of his hatch that had been covered up.

“There we go! Now we will just need to wait. But I brought just the thing…” Freddy pulled them out. “A coloring book! And crrrayons!”

Gregory looked less than amused. “Freddy, how old am I?”

“You are eight years old, Gregory. Much below the estimated outgrowing of coloring: never.”

Gregory mumbled some sort of begrudging agreement and took the coloring book like it was the biggest chore in the world, despite the fact that Freddy and him both knew he was going to willingly color. He drew, after all, and Freddy was always so encouraging of his comics. Even if that meant whipping out a coloring book.

Freddy went and got some cushions for them and they settled into the corner by the stairs. Freddy on his side propped up on a moon shaped one and Gregory laying down a wedge and coloring on the floor.

It didn’t take long before the conversation changed from colors- “What do you think, Toytime Blue or Deep-Sea Navy?” “Hmm. I would choose the navy.” “Got it.” -to what happened up in the balcony.

“So, what did Sun want?”

“Oh… Not much…” Freddy looked away awkwardly.

Gregory got a suspicious look.

“…Hey, Gregory. Do you know what I was thinking about when I went to get the cushions?”

“Was it about what Sun was talking about?”

“Erm- no, I just realized that you never told me when your birthday is!”

“…O-Oh. Yeah…”

Gregory had purposefully not told anyone what his birthday was, or even what his old last name was. It kept him safe because nobody could track him down without those. But he could trust Freddy.

“It’s December 16th.”

“Ah, wonderful! Then it has not passed yet,” Freddy said with relief. “Which means that we can plan your eventual birthday party!”

“Yeah, if I don’t get kicked out by then…” Gregory mumbled. “What are we going to do now that Sun and Moon are leaving?”

Freddy’s face softened. Though Gregory kept up a tough wall, he could tell he was worrying about losing him just as much as Freddy did.

“We will find away. After all, you are my Superstar, and I will not let you down,” Freddy assured. He reached out and ruffled his hair. “And I promise that we will have a birthday party together. It does not matter where it is, we will have one.”

Gregory smiled appreciatively. “Thanks.”

“It is no trouble.”

The boy almost returned to his coloring before he suddenly noticed something.

“Wait…” He looked back at Freddy. “Was Sun talking about, like… us leaving too?”

“He… suggested it. Us leaving. Together.”

“Maybe we should,” Gregory mumbled.

Freddy looked to him in surprise. “Is that what you-?”

Suddenly the basement doors opened with a loud clatter. One so loud that it echoed across the large room below.

“Yo, Freddy!”

Both Freddy and Gregory looked up suddenly at the sound of Monty’s bellow. Freddy could just spot him coming down the stairs- and he wasn’t alone. Roxy and Chica were tailing him.

“Freddy, where are you?!” Roxy called.

Freddy gasped and got up on one knee, opening his stomach hatch so Gregory could climb inside. There was simply no time for him to run without getting seen. He then stood up, plopping his cushion atop the coloring book and crayons, then walked towards the stairs to hopefully pull attention away from the washing machine.

“Oh, hello! Chica, Roxy, Monty- I was just down here looking around. What are you doing here? Did I miss practice?”

“Yes, but that’s not why we’re here. Freddy, we need to talk,” Roxy said.

Freddy felt an uneasy chill through him. Did they know? They couldn’t know. It must be about something else. The body, Sun and Moon, something else.

“About the Pizzaplex being closed? Yes, that worries me too. But I am sure that we will be able to reopen soon,” Freddy called.

“It ain’t about that,” Monty called.

The comment wasn’t finished until they made it to the bottom of the stairs and came down to meet Freddy head on. Monty in front with Chica and Roxy flanking his sides.

“It’s about that kid who’s been runnin’ around,” he finished.

“You mean the boy?” Freddy asked. “What about him?”

Chica decided it was worth sacrificing one of her allotted messages and put a finger to her temple, her eyes narrowing in focus and then staying so after it sent.

“Cut the cake, Freddy. We know about what’s going on.”

“I-I’m sorry?”

“We know about yer deal with the kid,” Monty said. “And that ain’t all we know. We found messages between him an’ Vanny. They’re workin’ together!”

“What?! That cannot be! That- I am aware that Vanny is chasing that boy, and she has been causing problems for us too! Roxy, she sabotaged your race with Foxy, and she has hounded Foxy’s friends plenty of times!”

“I had trouble believing it too, but the evidence was right there. And it explains why that day I ran into that freak I was chasing that kid. He led me right to her! And here I thought she was harassing him, what a blowout,” Roxy muttered with a shake of her head. “She’s got him tied around her little finger.”

“Or her ‘round his.”

Chica gave a frustrated point, a shove, and then gestured to herself. “He pushed me!” Then she made crushing, smashing hand gestures. As though mimicking a big crocodile mouth. “Into the trash compactor!”

“That...I…I see. Well, if that is the case… Where is he now?”

“That’s what we’d like to know,” Roxy said cryptically.

Chica pointed at Freddy before shrugging questioningly. “Where is he?”

“Me? How would I know-?”

“Ya must think we’re real dumb, don’tcha Freddy?” Monty asked.

“I do not-.”

“Freddy, we’ve seen you with the kid! We saw footage of you putting him into your chest- which is disgusting, by the way. That’s where you’re supposed to be putting food, and you have a kid climbing around in there- and sneaking him around. So, where is he?!”

“We ain’t gonna hurt him, we just want to talk,” Monty said.

Chica thumping her fist into her palm didn’t exactly give the same image.

“I-I cannot… You all must be mistaken. A child doing all of this? It is Vanny! Surely she is setting him up! But for what reason? To turn us against each other!”

“Good point. Make with the kid,” Roxy said. “He’s going to Vanessa and then to the police, and then we’ll track down his little rabbit friend.”

Freddy fumbled with his words, trying to think of a way to stall or signal Sun. Anything! But his silence was telling.

“I always figured you’d choose that kid over us,” Monty growled. “Good thing Bonnie ain’t here to see this…”

Roxy mimicked an exhale. “Don’t bring up Bonnie,” she said calmly.

“And why not?! Forget hoppin’ mad, he’d be downright pissed if he was here, and Freddy chose some two-faced brat over him!”

“I said, drop it!” Roxy snapped.

But this must’ve stirred something in Chica as she turned on Freddy and gave him a shove. Not one to push him over or hurt him, but one to get his attention and tell him to do it. Give them the kid, NOW.

And inside Freddy’s stomach hatch, Gregory was feeling the pressure. It sounded like they were closing in all around them. He wanted to shout at Freddy to run, but he couldn’t, and for some reason he didn’t run on his own. Was he listening to them? Did he believe them?

It wouldn’t be the first time that someone believed another adult over him. But would Freddy?

“I…” Freddy sighed. “…I will tell you where he is.”

Gregory’s blood ran cold. Freddy wouldn’t really do it, would he? Could he? No, he couldn’t!

But he would. Freddy would tell them exactly where to go.

“He is hiding in the security office above Fazer Blast. The one that is connected to Bonnie Bowl. You will find him there. Just, please, take Vanessa with you. She can take him to the authorities,” Freddy said. “I am sorry, but… I cannot go with you.”

Chica turned on her heel and started to hustle to the stairs only for Monty to catch her arm.

“Hold it,” he said. He stared Freddy down through his sunglasses. “…Ah think yer bluffin’, Freddy. I think he’s a lot closer than that…”

“…You are right, Monty. I am lying to you… He is in the back room.” Freddy stepped aside, gesturing a hand back towards the double doors by the washing machines.

“Don’t play us like fools, Freddy! We ain’t the fools- Yer the fool! Lettin’ some kid steer you around like a compact van!” Monty snapped. He stepped up to him. “And if I had to guess…”

“Monty…”

“He’s right… here!”

Suddenly Monty swung out. Freddy gasped and stepped back, but the claws caught him.

But instead of getting swiped, Monty hooked his claws into the crease of his hatch and forced it open. Even if Freddy had forcibly activated the locks, he wasn’t sure it would’ve stopped Monty from yanking him open.

There was Gregory pressed into the back wide-eyed.

“There you are!” Monty bellowed with an accusing point.

“God, Freddy! Why?!” Roxy yelled.

“I had no choice!” Freddy defended.

“Roxy, you go left, I’ll go right! Chica, grab the kid!” Monty barked.

“No!”

But in an instant Monty and Roxy were on top of him and had him by the arms, holding them back from shielding his open stomach hatch. He tried to close it, but it wasn’t fast enough, with Chica able to yank it back open and reach inside of him. Gregory pressed into the back of Freddy, trying to avoid the white and green hand reaching for him.

She grabbed him by the leg and started to drag him out. He began to kick and scream, “No, no, no! Let me go!”

Something snapped in Freddy at that moment. In a second something shifted, and suddenly it wasn’t like he was surrounded by his bandmates. No, they were strangers. Strangers coming for his child.

He reared up his leg and kicked Monty’s shin so hard that it knocked his leg back and caused him to stumble. In the next beat, arm freed, Freddy rammed his shoulder and all his weight into Roxy, knocking her on her back. Then he grabbed Chica’s arm to wrestle with it and when she let go of Gregory in shock, he shoved her back, causing her too to stumble and fall.

Gregory fell out of the stomach hatch in the process, but Freddy caught him. He tried to climb back inside, but for some reason Freddy closed up quickly, pushing his hatch closed, and instead decided to carry him.

“You cannot have him!” he yelled.

He then barged past and began to run for the basement stairs.

Roxy climbed onto all fours and with a grunt launched herself at Freddy, tackling him in the back of the legs. Freddy began to fall, turning himself in time to land on his shoulder instead of Gregory who was safe in his arms.

He quickly pushed him up onto his feet and up the steps.

“Gregory, run! Get to the daycare!” he cried.

That’s why he didn’t put him back inside. He was planning on this to happen. To hold the others back while Gregory got away.

Gregory started to run up the stairs, getting up to the second flight before looking down and seeing Freddy standing on the stairs with his arms outstretched, blocking his bandmates.

“Freddy, move or we’re going to move you!” Roxy shouted.

“I will not! Have you all lost your minds?! I will not let you pass! I will not let you do this!” Freddy yelled back.

Chica, thoroughly inflamed by getting shoved and now looking especially twitchy, got up from the ground, spun her head around, and ran for him. But instead of tackling him, she changed tactic and swung her hip, spun on her heel, and kicked him dead in the chest.

This was enough to send Freddy crashing down onto the steps with a pained yelp.

“Freddy! NO!” Gregory shouted.

He began to hyperventilate as he saw Chica and Roxy moving in, and he yanked off his backpack and tore into it. There had to be something he could use.

Freddy looked up in shock at Chica who glared back. It was as though he was staring at a stranger. Just a dangerous machine.

That feeling, that feeling of being trapped with a dangerous machine.

Red eyes. Crackle. Crackle. Moon?

Stop.

He turned. Pale face.

Crack.

He saw it in the back of his eyes, the fear of her reminded him of something he had long forgotten. And now- And now-

“HEY!”

Chica and Roxy both looked up and Freddy looked back to see Gregory leaning around the corner of the stairs. In his hands was clutched a Faz-Cam.

“SAY CHEESE!”

With the click of a button, a flash blinded all three of them. Even Roxy’s compromised eyes weren’t spared. She roared and covered hers, Chica stumbled back, and Freddy gave a, “Gah! I cannot see!”

Roxy suddenly began to charge up the side of the stairs, fully blinded and forcing through by stumbling up the steps. Gregory didn’t want to leave Freddy, but he had to turn and run for the stairs.

Only to have Monty somehow leap over the side of the railing and land right in front of him, blocking the way up. His body wheezing out hot air from the strain.

“Nice try, Kid! But that don’t work on me!”

Gregory backed away before turning around and hopping onto the stairs railing and slowly sliding down. Just managing to miss Monty’s grab and being too far for Roxy to reach. He hopped off the end and raced off.

“Keep going, Gregory! Run!” Freddy shouted.

“Roxy, keep him down! Chica, help me get this kid!” Monty barked.

Chica nodded and rushed after him while Roxy sighed and planted a knee on Freddy’s chest, forcing him back down onto the stairs when he tried to stand up. Monty squeezed by and stalked after Chica too.

“Roxy, please! You know this is wrong!” Freddy protested.

“I can’t trust anything, Freddy. Or anyone, apparently,” she growled.

“What’s going on down there?!” Sun called down.

Freddy gasped and looked up. “Sun, thank goodness! Help me!”

“Stay out of this, Sun!” Roxy shouted.

Sun did decide to stay out of it.

Because it was Moon who suddenly came swinging in and landed himself directly on top of Roxy, which only succeeded in tackling her onto Freddy. The two immediately getting into a wrestling match, with Moon flipping his head back to avoid Roxy’s swipes, and Freddy trying to break them up from beneath them.

Meanwhile, Gregory escaped into the back room and hid behind some unused cut outs. Some for various productions, even some of Foxy, likely to go with that Foxy plush stand and food stall in the atrium. He crept along before hiding behind a Freddy cutout when the door suddenly banged open and Monty came stomping in alone.

He started pushing over cutouts and searching for the boy, who used the noise to quietly sneak around behind him. His heart was pounding as he made it back to the door he first came through. He watched Monty clobber a cutout of himself before sneaking out.

He got back into the main room and caught sight of a scuffle between Roxy and Moon, with Freddy involved. He decided it would be best to stay out of it and get out of here and slipped into the dressing room door.

Only to suddenly get grabbed and yanked inside by the arm. He yelped and tried to pull away, but her grip was like a vice. She yanked him right back in and away from the door.

He tried to lift the Faz-cam and she snatched it out of his hands and tossed it to the floor before smashing it under her foot. Just the force of it caused Gregory to panic.

“No! Let go of me!” he shouted. He kicked at her legs and tried to twist and pull, but her grip wouldn’t release.

To think this was the child that ruined her life. He took away every sweet treat she had ever eaten, he took away her voice, he ruined everything! And for what?! To help some crazy bunny woman skip around?!

She was starving. Always. Always hungry, always wanting to bite into something. She could’ve eaten a horse. She could’ve eaten a child. She was so hungry that dough and flesh could’ve melded into one and the same, and she would’ve kept eating until she was full. Never truly full, but full enough to exist without wanting to constantly eat.

It was as though a pit opened up inside her and she could’ve stuffed Gregory into it and crunched him down to little bite-sized pieces like the garbage he dumped her into. Child, children. Nobody was watching.

She knew what she needed to do. She could crush him like he crushed her, like she smashed that faz-cam, like he kicked her beak and broke her face. She could, nobody was watching, silence him before they come.

She was so hungry. She threw shoved him to the floor, still holding his arm. She was so hungry. She stood over him. She was so hungry. So empty.

She wanted to break him into pieces.

…

No. No? What, no. No! She- She didn’t want to hurt a child, did she?

In the back of her mind, a reflex stabbing in her gut, told her that yes. She needed to do this. Before anyone saw, while they were alone. One child. Nobody was watching.

He looked up at her with fear and suddenly she too was filled with panic. Because something inside of her was telling her to do this, to break him and take the remains somewhere else, but she didn’t want to. It wasn’t her, it was this all-consuming feeling telling her that she needed to. That this was what she was supposed to do.

She was so, so hungry.

“There's a thing inside of you and it's telling you to eat and it's telling you to chase kids, but all it's going to do is take away everything you've got. You get it under control or you get swallowed up by it.”

Ennard said that. He had been warning her- saying something was telling her to chase kids. But she was only chasing Gregory! And he was working with Vanny!

But she had been hunting him since the beginning, hadn’t she? Why had she been so desperate to find him? Why did searching make the hunger so much worse that she resorted to garbage to fill it?

She could remember when the hunger began. The moment Circus Baby found her and ate her alive. She had been aware, but unable to do anything to protect herself. She laid there like a buffet of candy being gorged on by dozens of kids. A candy person being eaten alive by the inside out, unable to so much as scream.

That was when the hunger began.

But that wasn’t when she started noticing when children were alone. That wasn’t when she started paying attention when parties thinned out.

And that was the moment that Chica realized that Ennard had been right. He knew. But of course he did, because he had been a Funtime too.

It took every ounce of strength in her body just to release Gregory’s arm. He immediately scrambled back into the wall, and she too quickly backed away. She couldn’t trust herself to be near him.

And the worst part was that even now as she willed herself away, something was still trying to goad her on. It didn’t have a voice, it just prodded at her guts and reminded her that nobody was watching, don’t let him get away.

Her back bumped the wall as she stared at Gregory wide-eyed. She would’ve been shaking if her body didn’t seem to stiffen up. He stared back at her, not trusting her to not charge at him.

And then Chica suddenly dropped. Sliding down the wall and landing on her backside with a thumb, one knee bent, eyes still wide as she stared at him. She couldn’t look away until she forcibly covered her eyes and looked away from him. Finally beginning to shake with exertion and dread.

Gregory took this moment to leap to his feet and run back out the door, only to immediately run into a green and yellow brick wall.

“Gotcha!” Monty shouted. He snatched Gregory up around the middle and promptly stuck him under one of his arms.

“Let me go! Freddy! FREDDY!”

“Gregory?!”

Moon and Roxy’s fight was promptly halted by Freddy shoving past them, pushing them apart in the process, and bolting across the room. He caught sight of Monty toting Gregory under his arm before he disappeared.

“MONTY!” Freddy shouted. He bolted after him with Moon on his heels. Both catching up to Monty as he made it to the doors leading to the tunnels.

Monty turned on them and lifted Gregory, pointing something threateningly at his face.

Of course, by time Freddy came to a screeching halt and Moon slammed into the back of him, they realized what Monty was pointing was, in fact, just his finger. But that didn’t change the threat involved.

“Ah-ah! Not another step, Freddy! You neither, Moon!” Monty barked.

“Monty, please, let him go! This does not concern him! You have been tricked!” Freddy pleaded.

Moon stuck his head out from around him with a deadly red glare. “You better drop him if you know what’s good for you,” he hissed through his teeth.

“Yeah, fat chance! You two might be brainwashed by this brat, but I ain’t! Ain’t nobody gonna make a fool outta Monty,” Monty snapped back.

“Okay, fine. We’ve got the kid. Now I’ll go get Vanessa, we’ll get this straightened out,” Roxy said. By now she was thoroughly done with the whole thing. Nobody was moving though. “…Monty, come on. Get over here. Freddy, Moon, you two don’t touch him. We’re taking this kid to the security guard just like we’re supposed to before that psycho in a skinsuit gets down here.”

“We ain’t takin’ this to Vanessa.”

Roxy looked to Monty with surprise. “What?... What, you think Vanessa is Vanny now? I told you, they’re not the same. I could tell the second I grabbed her.”

“Vanessa is not Vanny. Her real name is Natalie,” Freddy said.

Roxy huffed. “Anything else you’ve been hiding from us?” she asked matter-of-factly.

Freddy looked guilty but stayed silent.

“There’s plenty,” Monty growled out. He hoisted Gregory up, who hissed a little at the tight grip. “Plenty of things he tells this kid. Things he ain’t supposed to. Things that could get people hurt.”

“Monty, put him down,” Roxy snapped with exasperation.

Monty pushed back his shades. “Can’t do that.”

It was at that moment when Roxy finally realized that something was very off. She blinked and straightened up, looking at him in confusion. “Monty…?”

“If ya want to see this kid again, ya better come find ‘im… Fazbear,” Monty said coldly.

“No, no, stop! FREDDY!” Gregory yelled.

Monty pushed through the doors and slammed them closed before Freddy could reach them. He tried them only to find that they had somehow instantly locked the moment Monty closed them, and it was with an extremely high security clearance.

“Monty! GREGORY! STOP!” Freddy yelled.

Moon came up to his side to try and deactivate the locks on the door to know effect, startled by the high clearance until Freddy pushed him back.

“Step aside! I will get them open!” Freddy promised.

He then took a few steps back before ramming his shoulder into the door with an almighty bang. They shook but did not open. He tried again, and again.

Roxy pressed a finger to her temple and tried to send a message- “Monty, what the hell?! What happened to turning him in?!” -but the message failed to go through. All she could hear was static.

“ShhhOOT,” she swore. Dropping her hand from her temple, she looked up only to have Moon’s face in hers.

“What were you thinking?! Attacking a child?!”

“Attacking a- Get out of my face!” Roxy shoved him back. “We weren’t attacking anybody! Monty found footage of that kid hanging out with Vanny, pushing Chica in the trash compactor, and there being messages between them, and all we were supposed to do was turn him in to Vanessa since YOU and Freddy weren’t doing anything about it! You’ve been hiding a kid here for months! Do you realize how dangerous that is?!”

“It was FINE before all of yooou got involved! HAH, you want to talk about dangerous?! Her!” Moon pointed accusatorily at Chica who was coming out of the dressing room. Her hands shot up defensively. “Leaving bruises on a child because she can’t control herself!”

Chica’s eyes went wide before softening with guilt. She had done that, hadn’t she? She probably just left more too. She looked down meekly as Moon now pointed at Roxy.

“And where were you?! Hmm?!”

“Quit shoving things in my face!” Roxy smacked his hand away. “And you did so much better, right? What have you been doing, hiding him up in your room?! I’m sure that’s healthy! Haven’t been keeping him away from that rabbit creep though, have you?!”

“Wh-What?!” Moon sputtered.

“VANNY! He and her have been working together! Aren’t you listening?!”

“He- WHAT?!” Moon’s voice gained so much height that it reverted into Sun’s. “What- You- What?! Why would you think that?!”

“We saw footage of Gregory running around with her and messages of him plotting with her! Isn’t that right, Chica?!”

Chica, who still looked very shaken, nodded stiffly.

“We even saw messages of them planning to have Monty have an ‘accident’ and take his upgrades.”

“What the BASS PLAYING CLAWS?!” Moon cried in exasperation.

“No! That is not true. Gregory would never work with her!” Freddy proclaimed with a grunt.

Seeing as the hits on the door weren’t working, he decided to take a cue from Chica. He pulled back and in one sharp sweep, kicked the door in. With the locks loosened from his assault, the doors slammed open.

Freddy didn’t wait, he barreled inside and began to quickly descend the staircase into the tunnels. Though by now he couldn’t hear any of Monty’s footsteps.

“Gregory! GREGORY!” Freddy called as he made it to the bottom and began running down the tunnel. It wasn’t long before the tunnel broke into three passages. One straight, one right, and one to the left that ended in a gate. He looked down the two possible passages before calling through his hands, “GREGORY!”

But there was no answer.

Freddy looked around at the passages in panic before pressing a finger to his temple. He tried to contact Gregory’s Faz-watch, hoping he could at least locate him. But there was no response. It was either out of range or in a dead zone, and down here in the tunnels either was likely.

Freddy was almost stumbling over himself in panic. He started to go one way only to turn around, unable to commit and risk losing him.

By then Moon and Roxy caught up, with Chica following up at the stairs. Freddy turned to Moon with a frantic panic in his eyes, grabbing him desperately by the shoulders.

“Moon, what are we going to do?! They could be lost in the utilidor maze by now! How will we find them?!”

Moon had never seen Freddy so panicked- understandably so. The only reason he too wasn’t freaking out was because Freddy was and it snapped Moon into ‘take charge’ mode.

“We’ll find them,” he swore. He looked back at Roxy and Chica. “And you two are going to help us, or so help me-!”

“No, we were planning on letting Monty go rogue and run off with some kid,” Roxy said sarcastically. “What’s the plan, split up?”

“Split up.”

“Roxy, Chica, you two take the straight path! Moon and I will go right, as it leads back towards the atrium!” Freddy said.

He and Moon began to run down the tunnel-

“WAIT! WAIT! COME BACK!”

Before a voice called out from behind them. Moon stopped in a heel turn while Freddy slowly to a stop, both looking back towards the corner.

Chica, still near the stairs, turned back and looked up to see none other than the Comedy Bot, the comedian themed performing Staff Bot, waving an arm out at the top of the landing. Though the voice didn’t sound like a Staff Bot’s. Chica almost recognized it.

Roxy did not. “Who’s there?!” she called.

“The Comedy Bot!” Jake called back. Then clarified, “It’s me, the Old Sun! Long story, doesn’t matter- Monty’s heading back towards Gator Golf! He was like, following the exact signs on the wall. Chances are he’s going there, but there’s no point in taking the tunnels, because he’s probably heading to the catwalks!”

“The catwalks, of course!” Freddy said. “We must find a way up there!”

It was then that Chica suddenly perked up and waved for attention. She then did some exercise steps in place.

“Mazercise?” Freddy guessed.

Chica nodded and pointed. Then she made a square with her fingers, then a box with her hands, and then looked around before noticing a vent nearby and pointed at it eagerly.

“A vent in Mazercise? That leads to the catwalks?!” Freddy asked. Chica nodded eagerly. “That is perfect! We need to hurry!”

He started to rush by when Chica held up her hands to stop him, shaking her head. She gestured at him, held a hand up to measure his height, then brought it lower, and shook and crossed her arms.

“Do you mean… I am not going to fit?”

Chica nodded again. Then she pointed towards Moon.

“But I will,” Moon realized. “Take me there. Freddy, you and Roxy can take the long way.”

“We will, but I am not sure the way onto the catwalks. They are a restricted area, so I do not have access to the maps.”

“We’ll have to catch a lift on the dark ride,” Roxy said.

“I see. Then we will! You too go ahead; we will meet you there!” Freddy said.

He then turned and began to run as fast as he could down the tunnels, preferring to take them as a shortcut than lose speed on the stairs. Roxy didn’t waste a moment before following him, catching up quickly.

“You want to tell me now what going on?!” she asked.

“It can wait! First, we must find Gregory!”

“No, it CAN’T wait! I need to know before I get any deeper into this!” Roxy snapped. “Why didn’t you tell us you were hiding that kid?”

The guilt returned to Freddy’s eyes. He knew eventually he would have to own up to hiding so much from his friends, and in this case it led to something as terrible as this. Freddy hadn’t told them the truth and because of that someone else- Vanny, no doubt- filled their heads with lies.

It was time for the truth.

“I was… afraid that you would convince me to turn him in,” Freddy admitted. “He is not working with Vanny. He ran away from an orphanage and his been living inside of the Pizzaplex with me caring for him. Vanny does have an accomplice, that much is true, but it is certainly NOT Gregory. And as for why she has been hunting him, I am not sure, but I have been protecting him the best I can, as has Sun and Moon.”

“…Freddy, that’s crazy,” Roxy said. Her voice losing much of its power. There was no venom, just the blunt truth.

“I know… But we can deal with it later. We need to deal with Monty first.”

“If by deal you mean pull his head out of his own cheeks, I’m way ahead of you!” Roxy said. In fact, she would’ve overtaken him by now if it wasn’t so hard to see in the dark tunnels. “I knew something was up with all of this, ugh. Warn me if we run up on anything.”

“I will!”

They continued down the tunnels towards the Monty Golf sector.

“Do not worry, Superstar. We are coming,” he thought, knowing it was pointless to send a message.

Freddy could only hope that Monty was especially careful with Gregory up on those catwalks.

Chapter 92

Chapter Summary

Something's wrong with Monty.

Chica and Moon blew into Mazercise, across the workout area, and straight into the back.

“It’s in the maze?” Moon asked.

Chica nodded and pointed into the open doorway, and Moon ran in while she rushed into the control room to her right.

Only to stop on a dime when she realized someone was already in there standing at the controls. Not an employee, not even Monty, but some sort of animatronic in a black bag cloak and a scribbled-on mask. Like the Phantom of the Pizzaplex. Her mouth would’ve dropped open if it could’ve, and his probably would’ve too with how he jumped.

They stared for a second before he gave a quiet, “Uh, hi.”

Okay, so that was the Old Sun. Chica, still surprised, slowly waved at him.

That was when Sun popped up behind her.

“I found the vent, but it’s blocked up by the walls- GAH?! THAT’S NOBODY!” He shouted.

He grabbed Chica around the head, covering her eyes. She swatted him off before glaring at him with her hands on her hips.

Sun was exuding anxious energy, ticking and tapping his fingers, waiting for a reaction. Only to realize that Chica wasn’t asking questions- in any way she could.

“…Wait, did you already know about him?” he asked with exasperation.

Chica nodded.

“Wait, you knew?” Jake asked. She looked back at him. “You knew about me? How? Did Freddy tell you?”

Chica got a somewhat peeved look and shook her head.  

“Gee, it must’ve been one of those times you sneakily crossed the Pizzaplex without being noticed by anyone,” Sun said dryly.

“Yeaaah,” Jake stretched out with a small hiss, rubbing his neck.

He then quickly stepped out of the way as Sun rushed up to the controls, which consisted of a line of round buttons with two arrow shaped buttons on one side and a screen showing the maze on the other.

“This flips the maze?” Sun asked.

“It does. These buttons shift the- Hey, don’t just go pressing buttons! I’ve been working on this for five minutes now!”

“Well, there’s a big pizza wall blocking off that vent and we’ve got less than five seconds before I go yanking it down! We need to be quicker or Monty’s gonna- he’s gonna- wha- what’s wrong with this?! How do you work this thing?!”

“Maybe you should’ve figured that out before you started pressing a bunch of buttons!” Jake said. He shoved himself back in to try and regain ahold. “For Pete’s sake, Sun! I work on this sort of stuff all day!”

“Really?! A giant maze shaped Rubix Cube?!”

“It’s delicate!”

“It’s a children’s maze! All you’ve gotta do is move that back wall!”

“If it was that easy, I would’ve done it! You have to move entire sections and then check the screen!”                          

“WE DON’T HAVE TIME FOR METHODICAL PUZZLE SOLVING! THERE’S A CRAZED GATOR ON THE LOOSE, AND HE’S STOLEN MY CHILD!” 

By now, the two were pretty much wrestling for control over it. Sun in a panicked frenzy thinking Jake was being unneededly slow, and Jake trying to solve the puzzle and getting thwarted by Sun.

At this point Chica had enough of the squabbling and marched up. Getting a hand on each of their waists she smoothly pushed them apart. Sun teetered, Jake stumbled, and Chica motioned to crack her fingers before beginning to poke at the buttons and arrows.

The two watched as she went to work.

“Do you-?” Jake was cut off by a finger. He clammed up.

“We don’t have-!” Sunny too was cut off by a finger. He growled a little.

But within twenty seconds or less, Chica had moved the maze until she deemed it ready. Then she stepped back and pointed to the screen.

“Did you get it? I can’t see it,” Jake said.

Chica nodded confidently.

“GOOD, LET’S GO!” Sun said. He started to race out, calling back with a, “THANK YOU!” to Chica who was on his heels.

Within moments he was climbing over top of the colorful maze- a box of a room with random walls decorated in cutesy designs to corral and distract kids whose parents were exercising- and dropping down into the corner. There was the vent. Sun struggled to get a grip before peeling it off and tossing it aside.

Then he kicked off his shoes and removed the bells at his wrists and then squeezed inside.

…

Monty rode in on one of the gator carts before hoping off and landing heavily onto the catwalks. They groaned and creaked under his weight. Gregory, still held tight under his arm, gave a small ‘oof!’.

There was no getting out of Monty’s grip. With his arms trapped at his sides, Gregory was carried along without any way to fight back. Sometimes Sun and Moon carried him like this, but it was totally different when it was a big angry gator in comparison to some gangly jester guy who smelled like lemons and blueberries.

Not to mention how hot Monty was. His casing was burning up! Gregory was practically sweating getting stuck next to him, only sometimes soothed by Monty’s internal fans kicking on and off.

If Freddy was here- and wasn’t pounding Monty’s face in, Gregory thought- then he might’ve made a joke about Monty needing to chill out.

Monty took him across the catwalks to a place by a giant hanging bucket. Painted on it was “Hole-In-One Hurricane” and above it was some sort of strainer catcher with a picture of one of those Monty targets from the dark ride on it. He stopped near the bucket and sat Gregory down.

But before Gregory could attempt to escape, Monty had tied his arms to the tailing pole with a plastic tie around his wrists. Keeping him stuck there sat on the floor with his arms behind him. Gregory pulled tight at the plastic but it didn’t budge, and pulling harder just caused the catwalk to rattle.

Monty then walked away, a few steps down the catwalk. Gregory watched him go before looking around for a possible way out.

On the other side from where he was secured was a panel with a button on it. Beneath it was a metal plate that read, “MANUEL DUMP: do not press button unless bucket has been moved into position.”

Gregory might’ve snickered at that if he wasn’t currently being held hostage.

Monty was starting to pace, and his heavy footsteps made the whole catwalk shake. Looking down, Gregory suddenly became very aware of how far the ground was. He never thought he was afraid of heights, but this was way too high for him. It made him feel dizzy in a way.

He had to get out of here. Maybe this time he could talk to Monty and convince him to let him go. It sounded stupid, but Freddy must’ve talked about talking it out once before. It sounded like something he would say.

“Hey, Monty!” he called.

Monty turned his head towards him and stopped in place. He looked a lot bigger from Gregory’s spot on the floor of the catwalk, but he still pled his case.

“L-Look, I know I’ve broken a lot of rules. I snuck in, I’ve taken stuff, and maybe… maybe it was my fault that Freddy lied to you about me. But that doesn’t mean I’m working with Vanny! I’m not!” he cried.

“I know ya aren’t.”

“I would never help that creepy- Wait, what?”

Monty lowered his shades, looking over them and winking.

“Wait, you know I’m NOT working with Vanny? Then why did you tell everyone I was?! Are YOU working with Vanny?!”

“You kiddin’? This is bigger than that little lady,” Monty said, pushing his shades back into place. “This is about claiming my rightful place under the spotlight.”

“What does that mean?”

“Lemme tell ya somethin’, Kid.” Monty came over and took a knee. “There’s this thing about rock bands. Yer only as big as your star. The one singin’ the solos puts a shadow over everyone else, and Freddy’s shadow casts all the way back from the old diner. There’s no way out from under it unless someone new takes his place as head of the band. You feel me?”

“So what, you’re jealous of Freddy?”

“I’m not jealous. I just know that I should be headlining, not that soft little Papa Bear, Big Daddy Freddy. Y’know how many of our practices he’s missed out on? He hasn’t even learned any of the new songs! He’s been spending all his time with you. They’ll be replacing him anyway. Or they would, if he wasn’t the big head honcho of the joint.”

“But- But that’s not true! Freddy cares a lot about the band. And I don’t even see him during the day!”

“That’s just because you’re over there letting Andy mother hen you to death. Face it, Kid, yer just like me. Yer a taker. Ya take and take. Take food, take time, take friends and families.”

“No, I’m not! I’m nothing like you!”

“Ya, you are.”

“No, I’m not!”

“Ya, you are.”

“NO, I’M NOT!”

“Kid, don’t make me pull out the Bugs Bunny routine here. I swear to God I will,” Monty threatened. He then stood up and turned away dramatically, standing beside the button. “Yer just like him…”

“Who, Bugs Bunny?”

“No.”

“Then who, Freddy?!”

“Bonnie,” Monty said cryptically. “He got in my way too. That’s why I got rid of him.”

“What?” Gregory blinked in surprise. “Wait, YOU got rid of Bonnie? What did you do to Bonnie?!”

“I pushed him off this catwalk,” the gator dramatically revealed. “Pressed this button here…” He tapped the Freddy shaped button. “And then shoved.” He made the gesture. “Watched him crack into pieces on the way down. Then I drug him off and dumped him in the basement. Where nobody’d find him.”

Gregory was utterly flabbergasted. “Why…?” he quietly asked, now more meekly.

“Because I should’ve been the bassist. He was always the favorite. With his stupid candies and buck-toothed smile. Couldn’t even bowl and it was the one thing he was built to do. He’s- was- No! He wasn’t- NO!” He reached up and clawed at the side of his head. “No, that ain’t right! Wasn’t like that. Wasn’t…”

Suddenly Monty shook his head and began to pace a little, muttering to himself as he did, looking insane. Especially when he suddenly bellowed and slammed his fist down on the railing, causing it to bend downward.

“HE MADE ME DO IT!” Monty shouted. His body wheezed as his fans struggled to fan out the heat. “He- He made me! Ah didn’t have a choice, I-!”

He lurched and stumbled and teetered around before grabbing ahold of and leaning far over the railing halfway down the catwalk. His shades slipping down his nose as he stared far at the ground. He was panting now, grunting like he was struggling even though he didn’t need to breathe.

He stared wide-eyed down at the golf course and stage below. His eyes wide. His hands clutching tightly to the railing.

His jaw clenched closed before opening again, causing his shades to slide further.

“Look at that drop…” he muttered. “All it’d take is this railing to go out and I’d be down there with him… All the way down…”

He gave a full body shudder. His arms twisting and hands wringing on the railing.

“Ah feel ‘em squirmin’ ‘round inside...” he groaned. His claws dragged on the railing with a screech. “Feels hot. Huff. Burnin’ up!”

He seemed entirely unaware of what was going on, lost in his head.

All the while, Gregory was watching this whole scene silently and mouth agape.

Oh great. So not only was Monty plotting against Freddy and beat up Bonnie, but he was completely insane. Good to know. Great if he would’ve known earlier.

Suddenly Gregory felt something brush his arm. He almost screamed when a hand clamped over his mouth. He recognized the color- it was Moondrop!

Moon lifted a finger against Gergory’s mouth, shushing him, and then removed his hand to start freeing him. Much to his dismay, Monty had used zip ties. Not only were they terrible for use on skin, but they were insanely hard to break silently while wrapped around fragile smaller wrists.

He fiddled with them and Gregory realized the problem. He leaned forwards and gestured back with his head, to his backpack which was on his back. Moon reached inside and fished around until he found the pair of scissors stored inside. Then he went to clip the plastic strap. Then tried again. Then continued to try sawing at it.

The worst part was that he knew Gregory was going to give him a, “See?! I told you they sucked!”  later on and no amount of, “They’re for safety!” would convince him elsewise.

But finally, he snipped through the zip tie and Gregory was freed. Though before he could even try to get up, Moon hooked an arm around his waist and pulled him off the catwalk.

Gregory gasped a little as he looked down past his feet at the long fall below, but Moon held him secure as he climbed down the walkway and around.

Monty finally got ahold of himself. He straightened up, rather suddenly, and stared ahead blankly before giving a dry chuckle. He turned around while pushing his sunglasses

“Naw, I’m kiddin’. I did it cause I wanted to… What?” He stared at the empty spot where Gregory once sat. “Where the-?!”

“Overrrr herrre.”

Monty snapped his head over to see Moon climbing up and perching on the railing, holding Gregory up around the waist. The boy looked rather dizzy.

“Oh, you’re kiddin’ me…” Monty muttered. “Et tu, Moon?”

“It’s true,” Moon retorted.

“Hmph. Always getting in where ya don’t belong- well, you listen here, Moon. I don’t care who ya are. If you get in the way of my big moment-.”

“MONTGOMERY GATOR!”

All three were taken aback by a bellowing voice from across the room and looked over.

There came none other than Freddy himself, riding on one of the gator shaped coaster carts- along Roxy who was barely fitting with him- with the restraints released and one foot stepped up onto the front of the cart. He pointed across the catwalks at the gator with eyes narrowed in anger.

Monty gave a dry huff. “This oughta be good.”

“We have come to stop you!” Freddy announced, hopping out of the cart and onto the catwalks. Roxy followed suit and easily landed beside him. “Release Gregory this instant!”

“Huh. You heard the man, Moony. Drop the kid,” Monty said.

“What- Moon!” Freddy gasped as he saw Gregory in Moon’s grasp. “Gregory!”

“Freddy!” Gregory called back.

“Well, whatcha gonna do, Moon? Gonna take him his kid?” Monty asked.

“Ohhh, you would like that, wouldn’t you?” Moon jeered. He smoothly took a few well-balanced steps on the railing. “I don’t trust you, Monty. I know you’re up to something.”

“Lemme rephrase that. Don’t move that kid from that spot or I’m pressing this button and takin’ us all downstairs real fast-like.”

That was a clear threat, but Moon found the random proclamation of such to be rather strange. He studied Monty with eyes at half-glow, narrowed, and noticed that Monty was having trouble looking directly at him.

“Monty, let them go! We will settle this between us!” Freddy called. “Just you, Roxy, and I!”

Bang, bang, bang!

Freddy and Roxy looked back to see Chica stuck halfway through the vent on a little catwalk ledge.

“Oh, erm, and Chica as well,” Freddy said awkwardly. “Roxy, help Chica. I will confront Monty.”

“What are you going to do? If you try fighting him up here-.”

“I will not. I just want to talk.”

“Just watch your feet. If you go over the edge it’ll be a blowout.”

More than that, Freddy realized. It could be the end of him if he fell the wrong way. Steadying himself, he started to march down the catwalk while Roxy went to pull Chica free.

Freddy silently walked his way down the catwalk to face Monty. He stole a glance at Moon and Gregory before steadying his eyes ahead and taking a left, walking through the maze of a catwalk before coming around the corner on the other side of Monty. He stopped there, standing tall as Monty turned around to face him.

“Well, well, well. Look who showed up!” Monty jeered. “’Bout time.”

“Monty, you have this all confused. Gregory is not working with Vanny, and he is certainly not manipulating me!” Freddy said firmly.

“He knows!” Gregory called.

“I already know, Fazbear. This has got nothing to do with any of those rabbits and everything to do with you and me.” Monty pointed a claw at him. “I’m sick and tired of standing in yer shadow, Fazbear! This is it, one-on-one, you and me. Only the winner’s gonna rule the Pizzaplex!”

“Rule the Pizzaplex? Monty, what on Earth are you talking about?! I do not want to fight you!” Freddy said in utter confusion.

Once again, Gregory gave him context. “This isn’t about Vanny! Freddy, he wants to take your spot as the leader of the band, and HE broke Bonnie!”

Freddy should’ve been more surprised than he was, but he wasn’t after what Bonnie had told him. He was more so surprised that Gregory knew, and that Monty would tell him. It felt surreal.

“…You broke Bonnie?” Freddy eventually asked.

“What? You trust some kid’s word over yer bandmate? Some kid who you’’ve been lying for over me?” Monty challenged back. “Could’ve come up with it on the fly.”

“I’m not lying! Freddy, he just told me he pushed Bonnie!” Gregory cried.

“But he told ya that he pushed Chica into the trash compactor too. And that he was hiding out in here. Bet he’s always been a real angel, hasn’t he?”

Freddy’s gaze grew firm. “I suppose you have a point. If it was Gregory’s word alone, I would have to take some consideration.”

Gregory was shocked by this. “Freddy…”

“Freddy-,” Moon interjected.

“But it is not just Gregory’s word. It is not between him or you. It is between you and Bonnie,” Freddy said. His eyes narrowed and his voice lowered. “Bonnie already told me what you did.”

“Huh. You found him?” Monty asked nonchalantly, adjusting his sunglasses. “Good fer you. Where is he? You didn’t just leave him down there, didja?”

“I… It was not… You knew where he was!” Freddy gasped. “You knew where Bonnie was and you never told us!”

“’Course I didn’t. What would’ve happened if ya’ll found him? It would’ve been down to Parts and Service, back up on stage, and I would’ve had a one-way ticket back to this dump. I needed him outta the way.”

“Is that why you-?”

“That’s right,” Monty said. No shame, no regret, nothing. Nothing at all.

Freddy’s heart ached. “Why him? Why not me?” he asked sadly.

“Because I felt like really knocking ya down a peg.”

In an instant then sadness switched to anger. An amount of anger that Freddy wasn’t used to. He clenched his hands and glared sharply at his bandmate.

“If you want a fight, Monty, then very well. I will give it to you.”

“That’s what I wanna here!”

Freddy raised his fists. Monty did the same.

“Let’s hope you put up a better fight than Gutterball.”

In that instant, Freddy took a swing at Monty. Monty dodged before diving in. Soon the two were taking swings at each other, and they weren’t all being dodged. A heavy blow on Freddy’s shoulder sent him staggering but on the next swing he dodged and popped Monty in the bicep. Enough to cause a bang but not enough to do any serious damage or leave any dents.

Despite everything, Freddy didn’t want to hurt Monty. He just wanted to knock him down a peg.

Just thinking that hurt. It was overwhelming.

“How could you do this, Monty?! How could you do that to him?!” he shouted.

“Yeah, I did it. But yer one to talk! You got rid of us. Replaced us all with some kid! What leader does that, eh, Freddy? Was he worth that much?”

“Monty, you do not understand! Gregory needed a home, needed me to help him; how could you expect me to turn him away?!”

“Make him somebody else’s problem! What, we weren’t enough for you?!” Monty swiped at him. Freddy barely dodged.

“Monty-!”

“And neither was Bonnie!”

Freddy shielded himself with his arms right as the claws made contact and sliced across it. Shallow cuts left in Freddy’s shell, revealing grey metal underneath the orange exterior.

“GRAH!” Freddy shouted.

He stumbled back. Monty did so too, seemingly in shock. Staring at the wound he had created.

Before getting blindsided by Moon slamming into him from behind. Quickly wrapping his legs around his waist and his arms around his neck and head, wrestling him for control.

“Moon, wait!” Freddy shouted.

“ARGH! HEFF, RAUGH!” Monty bellowed and snuffed as he began thrashing. “GET OFF!”

“And let a dangerous animatronic like you walk free? Hmmhmm, I’m afraid not,” Moon threatened dangerously. He tightened his limbs, twisting Monty’s arm back behind his shoulder nearly to breaking point.

And then something peculiar happened.

Monty’s limbs suddenly contorted in a way they never had before. Reversing themselves as his body wriggled and twisted. Spine popping, waist turning, neck loose and rolling. By all accounts, he should’ve broken something.

But all he broke was Moon’s hold on him when he managed to suddenly bend his twisted arm to force his midsection back. Then it was a matter of grabbing and overpowering, wrenching Moon’s limbs off him. Moon was quick to fight back, but Monty’s grip burned. The heat soaking into him and making it hard to think past static and muffled murmuring in the back of his head.

Monty gained the upper hand and pulled Moon over his shoulder, turned around, and tossed him down the catwalk right where he had come from. He landed on the catwalk, skidded, and almost fell between the railing and the platform if it wasn’t for his back and head hitting the former and him grabbing the latter.

“You stay out of this, Moon! This got nothin’ to do with you!” Monty bellowed.

Only for him to suddenly receive a firm stomp in the back of the knee, causing him to fall onto it. Freddy was on him in an instant, his own knee on Monty’s back and grabbing his arms to pin him to the catwalk.

“No more, Monty! This is where it ends!” Freddy commanded, wrestling with the downed gator. “No one else will be getting hurt!”

“You keep telling yerself that, Fazbear!” Monty bellowed. He kicked a leg back managing to literally boot him in the backside but Freddy only started to fall for a moment before all but sitting on him. “GET OFF!”

“I will not!”

All the while, Gregory ran back up to Moon.

“Moondrop?!” he asked. But Moon simply lifted a hand. Gregory got the gist and stepped back, expecting something big about to happen.

Moon cackled darkly, catching both Monty and Freddy’s attention again. His eyes glowing bright as he shakily pulled himself to his feet with the railing.

“Oh ho ho. Oh hoooo. What a deplorable creature you have become,” he said. “Just trying to take out others to get yourself ahead and not caring who you ruin in the process.”

His voice lowered to a bitter mutter.

“Isn’t that right, Honeybunny?”

Monty looked up at Moon with his sunglasses half fallen down his snout and his eyes glowing an unwholesome red. A silent warning that Moon regarded with a glare in return.

“Honeybunny…?” Freddy asked in confusion. He then grunted as Monty thrashed underneath him, very nearly getting free enough to roll before Freddy regained his hold. “Monty, stop! There is no point to continue fighting me! I will not be moved.”

Monty suddenly went very still. It looked like for a moment he had genuinely broke free, going limp onto the catwalk. Freddy watched him thinking he might’ve given up.

But then-

“Hey. I want to show you something real quick.”

Freddy felt a chill race down his spine at the sudden change in Monty’s tone. How empty it suddenly sounded. He watched as Monty’s head turned around to face up at him.

“Let’s see if this works.”

His arm rolled around and his hand twisted and his claws dug back into the metal slots that he had made in Freddy’s arm.

Suddenly a burning heat shot through him like fire and swallowed him up. Searing him with agonizing pain, but he couldn’t pull away. He was locked to Monty, feeling himself get swallowed by the sensation.

“FREDDY!” Gregory shouted, but Freddy couldn’t hear him. He didn’t even see him run off.

He could hear noises. He could see things flickering in the back of his eyes. Projecting in quick succession. Distorted with the sounds of cheering children and screaming, murmurs, yells, and static.

Metal collapsing. A dark gaping pit. Hands holding the railing as it plummeted. CRACK CRUNCH Bones breaking furniture tearing through upholstery. Smashing the neon light that said Monty Monty Monty.

It burns it hurts the ache. Fans wheezing and spewing heat as fluid fills his mouth and he stares up at the light hanging on the dangling platform. It wasn’t secure. S̴t̷a̶r̷i̶n̸g̶ ̶u̷p̸ ̶a̴t̷ ̶t̴h̵e̸ ̴c̷a̴t̸w̵a̵l̵k̶s̸.̴ ̵

Don’t look at your legs. Don’t move.

A pit. The closet. Mascot suits. Hey everybody turn the radio on gonna throw our troubles

Freddy was roughly shoved off Monty by Moon. Toppling onto his backside with a gasp and a yelp, quickly crawling back to pull away from touching the gator. His body still burned and error messages obscured his vision.

Moon hissed as well, recoiling back his hands and twisting up at the burn. His eyes growing redder as his face turned. Only to suddenly be blindsided when Monty gave him a firm thump in the belly with his fist and sent him clumsily falling back into the railing. The lingering burn and suddenness almost knocking the wind out of him.

Monty shoved himself up to his feet with his own awkward shuffle. His joints realigning themselves as he cracked his head forward again and reset his shoulders. And then smoothly turned to look back at Freddy, lifting his sunglasses to reveal pulsing red eyes.

“Havin’ fun yet?”

And for the first time since the fight began, Freddy was afraid of Monty. He knew there was something terribly wrong with him.

But with one look at the state Moon was in, Freddy knew he couldn’t back down. He pulled himself up and tackled Monty around the middle. This time the burn was dull and thus the fight began again.

All while this was going on, Roxy was still trying to get Chica out of the vent. She could hear the scuffle though, and Gregory running and leaping into a gator cart, and she was losing her patience. She gave a firm pull.

“Come on, Chic! We need to get over there! Put some backbone into it!”

Chica tried to pull herself through with one big heave, and only succeeded in making her head literally spin.

“Just stretch or something! What was the point of all those garbage exercise routines if you can’t even get through a vent?!” Roxy challenged.

That succeeded in lighting a fire under Chica. She snapped her head forward, cocked her body, and forced herself through. Roxy grabbed her and helped tug her out, finally freeing her from the vent.

“Good job, now let’s get- WHAT?!”

There was a hideous face in the vent right behind Chica. One that was blurry from Roxy’s vision and thus looked even more gruesome from its distortion.

“No, wait! No, wait! I’m the broken Sun!” Jake shouted quickly.

Not wanting to waste time explaining, Chica quickly got between them and held hands up to them both. Then began to insistently point towards the noises that were Freddy and Monty.

“Right! Deal with that first!” Roxy agreed. Chica charged by and hopped down onto the catwalks. Roxy started to follow before turning back and pointing to Jake. “You wait right here.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Jake awkwardly agreed.

Roxy then hopped down, skirting another Monty coaster as she followed Chica’s footsteps. Both coming around the corner Freddy had taken and caught the two wrestling.

“Freddy, we’re here!” Roxy yelled.

“NO! Stay back!” Freddy warned. “Let me handle this!”

“Freddy, what are you-?!”

“Don’t touch him!” Moon hissed from the other side of the railing. “He has the Agony in him!”

“What does that mean?!” Roxy called back. Moon refused to explain. She gave a frustrated huff and slammed her fist down on the railing. “I KNEW something was wrong here!”

Freddy looked over for an instant, catching sight of Chica waving her hands frantically and trying to warn him. Inadvertently distracting him long enough for Monty to get the upper hand again and, in reverse of Freddy’s earlier maneuver, hook his heel behind his leg and pulled Freddy’s leg out from under him.

Freddy fell on his backside again with Monty now above him, hands and fingers locked, each fighting to overpower the other.

“Are you having fun yet, Fazbear? Are you having fun yet? Are you having fun yet?”

But before he could answer, there was a loud pop and an instant later something cracked against the side of Monty’s head.

He shouted in confusion and shook his head and then looked over only to get another hard ball to the snout. His head was knocked back with another grunt and he snapped it forward and narrowed his eyes, looking over his slid down sunglasses and spotting the source of the barrage a second before another golf ball whizzed by.

Not all the gator carts were made the same. Some of them were special, with golf ball shooters attached. For a mere fifteen bucks more, guests could upgrade their party pass and join in on the shooting gallery elements of the dark ride by getting to board one of the shooter carts.

Gregory didn’t pay anything, he just helped himself and was currently shooting at Monty.

“You little shhhhUGH BRAT!” he yelled. He hunched down like he was preparing to jump, even though Gregory was halfway across the catwalks.

“Ugh, that’s it!” Roxy shouted. Then she crouched down as well and sprung for him.

But Monty was a second faster and leapt into the air startlingly high and grabbed ahold of a passing cart. Roxy, meanwhile, crashed right into Freddy and the two tumbled together.

“ARGH, WHY- YOU- stop it, STOP IT!” Moon screamed in frustration. He hopped up onto the railing and sprung off onto a cart behind Monty’s. “THIS STUPID SHOW HAS GONE ON LONG ENOUGH! DROP THE ACT, STOP THIS RIGHT NOW OR I SWEAR- I SWEAR-!”

But Monty wasn’t listening, and he knew it. He knew there was no threat that was going to reach him and that he wasn’t strong enough to physically stop him. He could remember last time he tried.

So, he sprung off to the closest cart, and then the next, racing him to Gregory instead.

Gregory was still trying to gun for Monty and making a few body shots with the golf balls, resulting in a few “Oww!”s that made him grin. How did he like that payback? Nobody messed with Freddy and got away with it!

But Monty was getting closer. Dropping down from the cart and barreling down the catwalks. And unfortunately, it was getting harder to hit him the faster he went, and he was going to catch up once the cart circled.

Gregory looked over the edge at the far drop as he went over a section without a catwalk. Even landing on the catwalk was going to be painful, but at least he wouldn’t splat when he landed. He couldn’t jump like this.

Right then, Moon suddenly sprung out of nowhere and landed on the front of the gator car. Gregory cried out and shieled himself out of reflex, but Moon landed more on the ball shooter than him. Though his landing caused the whole cart to rock in a way that made Gregory’s stomach twist.

“Gregory-!”

He was cut off by an almighty bang as Monty leapt off the catwalk and onto the side of the gator car, causing the whole thing to swing under his weight and creak in protest.

“What’s your DEAL?! YOU DON’T EVEN LIKE HIM!” Monty bellowed.

“YOU’RE OUT OF CONTROL!” Moon snapped.

“YOU’RE ONE TO TALK!”

Moon growled and swiftly leaned in and scooped up Gregory. Monty grabbed him by the leg to stop him, but Moon swiveled his upper half and suddenly tossed Gregory down towards the catwalk.

Gregory screamed before landing in someone’s firm arms. He looked up and was shocked to find-

“Chica?”

She gave him a little wink and, twitching as she resisted any programming clawing at her, quickly set him down and pushed him to start running. There was a loud crash as Monty dropped down behind her and began to stalk forward. She glared at him and held her arms out to block him.

“Outta the way, Chica! Don’t make me- aww, forget it.”

Monty ducked low and ran right into her. Catching her over his shoulder and dumping her behind him as he continued charging after Gregory. She scrambled up and sprinted after them.

Gregory ran as fast as he could down the catwalks. Zipping through the maze and trying to get away. He had to do something, but where could he go? What could he do?

The button, he realized. That was the only way. He could press the button, just like Monty said, and drop him down into the golf course below. With Monty nipping at his heels, that didn’t seem like a bad idea.

Roxy was running in at his right down an adjoining catwalk and for a second he thought that she was going to grab him. He ran with all his might and then slid right under where she could’ve grabbed. Though she didn’t grab, she kept going and launched herself onto Monty where they got in a tussle. Not that Gregory saw much of it before Moon dropped down on the catwalk, snatched him up around the waist, and began running.

Considering that Moon was pretty fast, Gregory was along for the ride until he took a sharp right and started heading towards Jake and, unknowingly to Gregory, the open vent behind him. Away from the button.

“Stop, stop! Wait! I have an idea,” Gregory cried.

He squirmed and fought until he forced himself out of Moon’s grasp and began to run down the short platform and right up to the button. Moon following close behind with quick successions of ‘Where are you going?!’ and ‘Stop! Don’t!’.

But he made it, and not a second before Monty came around the corner at the other side of the walkway, having successfully outmaneuvered the slimmer Chica and half-blind Roxy.

Upon seeing Gregory, he slowed down and began to threateningly stalk towards him, even with Moon standing over him. The gator giving a triumphant laugh as he did. He wasn’t laughing long as Freddy came thumping around behind him. He spun around and caught Freddy’s hands, wrestling with him once again.

“Moon, take Gregory and run!” Freddy cried.

But Gregory couldn’t leave him. He looked towards the button and reached out, planning to press it-

but then he hesitated. Freddy was on top, he could probably get away, but what if he couldn’t? What if everything fell and everyone got hurt? It wasn’t just about him; everybody was up there. He didn’t want them to end up like Chica.

He didn’t even want Monty to end up like Chica.

As much of a jerk as he was, and as much as he deserved to get beat up for kidnapping him and what he did to Bonnie and Freddy, something seemed wrong with him. All that pacing and arguing with himself.

He just kept thinking of Chica’s broken body down in the sewer. About how he felt, about how upset Freddy was, about the repercussions of those actions. What if it didn’t just stop Monty, what if something worse happened?

He pulled his hand back. He couldn’t press that button.

But he didn’t have to.

Because Moon pressed it for him.

“Wait!” Gregory shouted. Though a second later he was snatched off his feet and thrown to the side. “AHH!”

Jake caught him just as securely as Moon had. “I’ve got you!”

Gregory looked back in time to see what transpired next.

There was a loud creak and both Freddy and Monty looked up to see the Hurricane Hole-In-One Bucket starting to tip over. But since it wasn’t moved into position, it was instead about to crash down on top of them.

In that instant Monty could only stare frozen and Freddy looked up in horror before using all his strength to shove the gator aside and then rush back. He didn’t get far before the bucket and torrent of balls inside hit the catwalk, flooded it, and overwhelmed it.

An alarm went off from somewhere above as the bucket pressed further into the catwalk. The only warning before the whole section gave way and collapsed as the animatronics were attempting to flee.

Freddy yelped and leapt for safety, but the entire section collapsed underneath him. He was falling, but then in the last second a hand caught his. Then another grabbed at his other arm.

It was Roxy and Chica. Roxy was holding Freddy’s weight better with a crouch and a grunt while Chica was practically on the platform pulling with all her might. They just managed to pull him up to where he could scramble onto the shaky but still connected catwalk.

Moon fell with the catwalk as well, but unlike Freddy, he caught himself with one hand underneath and climbed up beside Jake and Gregory while they were still watching where he fell, both relieved to have him pop up.

And then there was Monty. Monty, trapped in the corner on a falling catwalk, shoved out of the way and now with no ground beneath him.

He leapt for his life and just barely managed to grab onto the only thing in reaching distance, the Hurricane Bucket itself. He grabbed onto the edge with one hand, managing to hold his weight on it even as it creaked under additional weight.

His sunglasses had slid down his nose and as Freddy turned around, he could see the look in his eyes.

The red glow had faded, his pupils returned to normal, and he looked terrified. He looked like he barely knew what was going on.

Freddy realized in that horrible moment that he didn’t.

“Monty!”

Monty’s eyes met his just as there was a loud crack and bang. Then one of the arms of the bucket released and it swung down, swinging the gator with it, and throwing him off. His claws leaving deep gashes in its rim.

It felt like the next moment lasted a lifetime. Monty hanging in mid air as he plummeted into the golf course below, the rafters and beams rapidly approaching, staring up at the remains of the platform.

A creeping sense of déjà vu filled him the instant before he hit the first beam with an ear-shattering CRACK.

He felt his body split apart.

BANG.

His head cracked into a beam, and he stopped feeling anything.

THUMP.

And then the ground.

But Monty didn’t know that. He didn’t feel it. His body twitched of its own accord, his hands, his jaw- broken and hanging loose. Bonnie’s sunglasses fell to the stage beside his head.

His legs fell a few feet away from his body.

Everything was quiet.

Freddy looked over the edge, Chica trying to stop him to make sure he didn’t get too close, and gasped as he saw the state of Monty. Chica saw it too and covered her mouth and then made a full body heaving motion like she was going to be sick. Roxy couldn’t see Monty, but from her own accident she could recognize the sounds of cracking and shattering.

For a second, Gregory saw Monty’s shattered body lying on the stage far below, his eyes widening as he noticed his lower half laying away from him, but then Jake grabbed and pulled him in to shield him. He tried to push him off to see again but Moon stepped in front of him and held him behind him, not letting him peek past his puffy, starry pants.

The stunned silence was broken by Freddy pushing past Roxy and Chica and running across the catwalks. They followed behind him.

He raced up to Jake and Moon with thumping footsteps, opening his stomach hatch along the way. Gregory didn’t even need to be told, he eagerly climbed inside before Freddy closed himself and continued to the gator carts. He boarded, Moon throwing himself in beside him and then tugging Jake in, and Roxy and Chica hopping into the next cart in line.

The ride seemed to last for an eternity until they could disembark and continue into Monty Golf.

They found Monty on the stage, right where they had left him. Severely broken, his casing shattered and cracked, and missing everything from the waist down. Just a trail of internal wires were left spilling out.

Roxy could finally see Monty and she quickly turned away with a hand on her forehead, silently processing it. Unwilling to show any further reaction.

Gregory started to push Freddy’s stomach hatch open before Freddy caught it and gently pushed it back.

“Gregory, it is best if you do not look,” he said quietly.

“I… Okay.”

Gregory wasn’t a little kid. He could handle seeing it… but he really didn’t think big, bad Monty was going to break in two like that. He didn’t fight any harder to see him.

“I… do not think that was Monty…” Freddy quietly confessed.

Chica turned to him with a confused look and cocked her head questioningly.

“It was not Monty in control, was it?” he continued. His eyes slid over to the jester on the other side of him. “…Moon?”

Moon straightened up with a start.

“You called him Honeybunny, did you not?” Freddy asked. Moon nodded stiffly, as though he had been caught doing something wrong. “…How did you know it was Vanny?”

Roxy snapped her head in his direction. “It was Vanny?!”

Moon stole a look at Jake before quickly looking away. Even without expressions he could tell he too was shocked and questioning, and would soon reach the same sinking realization he had.

“Hey!” Gregory knocked on Freddy’s interior, unintentionally taking the attention off Moon. “When Monty tied me up earlier, he was freaking out and saying stuff like how there was something in his head and acting really weird. Like he was fighting himself! It could’ve been Vanny controlling him the whole time!”

“And planting doubts into our heads,” Freddy realized. “Moon, how did you know?”

Moon shrunk further under Freddy’s desperate gaze. His arms going slack in front of him as he looked away.

“I just had a feeling. The things he was saying did not add up…”

But it was Moon whose explanation didn’t entirely add up. Yes, Monty was acting very strangely, but how could he connect that to Vanny?

Freddy didn’t miss the fact that Moon’s body language looked very anxious, much more resembling his Sun side. Something was wrong, clearly. He was afraid, but of what?

“I should’ve known…” Roxy muttered. She turned her head away and returned her hand to it. “There’s no way Monty could’ve gotten all that footage alone. There had to be security clearances and passwords… The whole time it was just that hideous rabbit loser screwing with us. And for what? Huh?”

Nobody could answer her.

For Freddy it made even less sense. It had to be Vanny, she was the only one with such control and the glowing red eyes would certainly match- Hadn’t Moon’s glowed like that once? He couldn’t remember well.

Was that why he was nervous?

…But why? Why would Vanny want to use Monty to kidnap Gregory? And then fight them? Perhaps the fight was simply a distraction, and she intended to take Gregory while they were distracted. That made sense.

But there was something that didn’t. It involved extensive damage across Monty’s body.

Freddy recognized where he had seen this damage before. This was the same damage Bonnie had. The hole in the chest, the broken face, the broken spine- the same exact injuries. He even has his lazy eye.

Which meant Monty had pushed Bonnie off the catwalks.

…But now, after everything he had seen, Freddy couldn’t be so sure that Monty pushed Bonnie off the catwalks.

“Gregory, please hold on,” Freddy forewarned.

The boy grabbed ahold securely as the bear crouched down beside his downed bandmate.

“Oh, Monty…” Freddy crouched down and lifted his head. “I am so sorry…” Chica quietly patted his back.

Gregory felt that sinking pang of guilt that he had felt when he had seen Chica in the basement, laying in the trash. That strange feeling where someone hurt you and then got hurt, but you still felt bad about it.

“I-I didn’t press the button,” Gregory quietly spoke up. “I didn’t, I swear. I was going to, but I didn’t.”

He didn’t press it, so he didn’t have to feel bad, but he did.

…

“I did,” Moon said.

Roxy raised her head slowly before shooting him a glare. If it had been Gregory, she might’ve given him a little leeway. But Moon knew exactly what would happen if he fell, and a little more than that apparently.

“You pressed the button? You KNEW he was being controlled by that psycho, and you still pressed the button?!” she snapped. “What were you thinking? Were you trying to completely destroy him?!”

“I was saving him,” Moon clarified. “The only way to get the rabbit out of him was to give it what it wanted.”

“…And I guess this is what it wanted,” Jake finished quietly.

Moon gave him a one-armed hug, which he returned. Moon’s other hand landed on Gregory’s head, assuring him with a comforting pat.

“There could’ve been a better way than this that didn’t involve totally smashing him!” Roxy huffed and reined herself in. “What do we do now?”

“We try to patch him back up in Parts and Service. His upgrade’s just the bass claws, right? We can probably fix the rest of him without it flagging, and we’ve got the time to do it,” Jake said.

“Do you know anything about animatronic repair?” Roxy asked doubtfully.

“Look at me,” Jake said, gesturing to himself. “Plus, it’s in the repair capsule. What’s to know?”

“…” Roxy sighed. “Then let’s get him down there.”

“Freddy, take Gregory to bed. We will handle this,” Moon said. “This is our mess to clean up.”

“Right. Also, uh, Roxy, Chica? Can you two take Monty down to Parts and Service? I’ve got to grab some stuff from upstairs and we’ll meet you down there,” Jake said.

“What sort of stuff?” Roxy asked suspiciously. At this point she was too fed up with the whole night to not ask questions.

“I’ve got this control panel that I can use to hack into the Pizzaplex’s mainframe, but I left it upstairs. It’ll only take a few extra minutes.”

Well, that and he needed to pull Andrew aside to discuss this rapidly growing problem.

“Just hurry it up,” Roxy said. She then crouched down. “Alright, Monty. Let’s get you up.”

She began to carefully lift his torso with one arm under his back and another under his waist and the wires spilling from it.

“Chica, put his arm around my neck.”

Chica nodded and started to do so.

“I can help. Let me help, please,” Freddy begged.

“I’ve got him, Freddy. You just get the kid out of here before Vanessa shows up.”

“I can go by myself,” Gregory called out.

“No!” Freddy’s sudden interruption took Gregory off-guard. “No, I… I do not think you should be alone. I want you to stay with me.”

He could hear how afraid he sounded. Once again, Gregory decided not to fight it. Not that he really wanted to.

“Okay… Hey, Moondrop? Can you hear me?”

Moon sort of winced when his cautious sneaking- as slow as possible to not jingle a single bell, as he had unfortunately put them back on along the way- was interrupted by his name and Freddy staring directly at him again.

“Ngh. Yes, Moonwort?”

“Just… thank you for coming to get me.”

Moon stared for a moment before putting aside his feeling and going back over. He walked his fingers up Freddy’s stomach hatch before hooking it and smoothly opening it. Then darted his hand inside to ruffle Gregory’s hair.

“Always,” he promised. Then closed it again. “Get some sleep, Troublemaker.”

He could hear Gregory sort of scoff inside and turned to leave, only to have Freddy catch his arm. He went rigidly still, not looking back at him.

“When you and Jake are finished talking and Monty has been repaired… we need to talk,” Freddy gently but firmly said.

“Of course, Papa Bear,” Moon said quietly.

Freddy’s eyes softened with sympathy, and he let him go. Moon let his arm drop to his side before giving a half-hearted wave and then heading off without another word. Jake waved too before going with him.

He knew Moon was hiding something. Freddy might’ve been naïve, but he wasn’t oblivious enough to not notice this. Moon knew more about what was going on, and he needed to figure out what.

And how he knew what that agony was.

“Hey, wait a minute…” Roxy looked around. “Yeah. What the hell. Where’s his legs?”

Freddy spun around quickly, apologizing to Gregory when he slid around inside of him, and began to look around. Sure enough, Monty’s legs were nowhere to be seen.

“That is odd. They fell right there, did they not?” he asked.

Chica started to look around at the ground and props around the stage and shrugged when she still found nothing.

“If some Staff Bot swung through here and grabbed them while we were making are way down here, he’s hot asphalt when I’m finished with him,” Roxy growled. “Keep looking, Chic. I’ve got him.”

“Let me help,” Freddy offered.

Chica waved a hand back over her shoulder as she bent over and continued to search behind the props. She still couldn’t see them.

She didn’t see the red eyes watching them from the vent on the back wall either.

“We can handle it. Just get the kid to safety,” Roxy said.

Freddy sighed and nodded and then turned to leave. He went slow, giving them plenty of time to call him back, but they did not.

Monty’s words weighed down on him now. Even if they weren’t his words, they held some merit. Not specifically about him choosing Gregory, of course he would choose his child first, but how he had ignored his bandmates. Even now they were stuck picking up the pieces of their broken bond, and bandmate, without him.

Gregory needed him, but so did his friends. They needed him to be there and yet he couldn’t be. He hadn’t been when Monty told their friends those stories about Gregory, he wasn’t there when Monty took Gregory up to the catwalk, and he wasn’t there when Vanny got her hands on Monty. Or however she took ahold of him.

What to do. What could he do? Nothing.

Freddy was so distracted that he almost walked into Natalie as she came running down the stairs from the entrance.

“Whoa!” she said, barely stopping herself on the steps.

“Nat- erm, Vanessa. My apologies, I… was distracted.”

“That’s okay. What happened? There were alarms going off that I’ve never seen before. Are you okay?”

“…I am okay,” Freddy said distantly.

Natalie picked up on that clarification quickly. “Freddy, what happened?”

Freddy looked back sadly.

Natalie looked between him and where he looked and then squeezed past him- “Excuse me. Sorry.” -and started to speedily walk in that direction.

He watched her go before turning away and continued up the stairs.

“Oh my God!”

Freddy winced.

“What happened?! Did he fall?! Where are his legs?!”

Freddy closed his eyes and continued up the stairs to the entrance. He was silent. Gregory was too. Neither feeling ready to talk about it.

Maybe, Freddy mused, that was why Moon wanted to leave so soon.

He himself had never wanted to disappear so badly.

Chapter 93

Chapter Summary

Let's go.

Freddy and Gregory arrived back at the green room and Freddy let Gregory out of his stomach hatch.

“Here we are. You are safe now.”

Gregory wasn’t so sure about that, but he was glad to be back in the safety of the green room. He turned around to face Freddy, who knelt on one knee.

“Gregory, I… I am so sorry. I should have never let you get into that position. I do not want you to think that I cannot keep you safe! I promise, as long as I am here, I will never let anyone hurt you.”

“Freddy, it’s okay!”

“It is not okay, Gregory. You are my son. I am supposed to protect you from anything or anyone that may want to wish you harm, and today I did not do that. And for that, I am sorry,” Freddy said sincerely.

“…I’m your son?”

“Well… Yes, I believe so. Does that bother you?”

“No! I-I want you to be my dad,” Gregory said. “I’ve had a lot of dads but… nobody’s really been my dad, you know?”

Freddy did know. He knew Gregory had gone through a few families, including his own. He didn’t know what they said or what they did, but he knew that there was a reason Gregory had been so hesitant to try again.

Freddy would not mess this up. He wouldn’t let him go.

He reached his arms out without a word and when Gregory stepped in, he pulled him into a warm hug. The boy hugged back, slumping into his shoulder pad. Both were exhausted from the night they had.

The events of the night hadn’t truly caught up with Gregory yet. He was thinking of them, but not really mulling over them like he probably would later. It was going to be hard trying to sleep after all of that.

But at least he knew he was safe. His dad was here, and he was going to protect him. And Gregory genuinely believed that no matter what, Freddy would come for him- even if Moon beat him there by a minute or two.

Gregory finally pulled back. “What do we do now?”

“All we can do is wait. Jake will attempt to fix Monty and, if we are lucky, he will succeed enough that the technicians can finish in the morning. Chica and Roxy could not be fully repaired because of their special upgrades, their voice box and eyes, but Monty’s upgrade are claws designed for bass playing, which he was given after… after Bonnie’s retirement. But this will mean at least that Monty’s legs should be able to be repaired without interruption. In the meantime, you need to rest, and I will be here to watch you.”

Gregory nodded. Then remembered, “What about the laundry?”

“…D’oh.”

That got a smile out of Gregory, then a small chuckle out of Freddy.

“Perhaps we can call in a favor with Natalie,” he offered.

“Did you hear her-?”

Gregory was interrupted by an unexpected tap on the window. He and Freddy both turned to look.

“…That sounds like Foxy?” Freddy murmured with confusion.

“What’s Foxy doing here?” Gregory asked.

“I do not know…”

Freddy stood up and went to the curtains before peeking through. If it was Foxy, he would be waiting outside of the glass, waving at him. But he wasn’t. There was nobody there at all.

Freddy had a bad feeling. “Gregory. Go into the backroom.”

“Who is it?”

“I do not know, but I intend to find out.”

Gregory inched towards the door into the back, hesitating to see if Freddy would answer with him close enough to watch, but he did not. Freddy waited, gesturing for Gregory to go. It was only after he headed into the back room and the automated door shut behind him that Freddy dared to approach the other one.

He stepped up with his fists tight and his gaze stern, preparing for either a fight or a simple misunderstanding. Much to his surprise the doors opened to reveal that there was nobody there.

“Hello?” he said. He squared up. “Whoever it is, come out and face me.”

To which they did, hopping out from around the corner of his green room.

“Hey, hey, Superstar!”

It was Bonnie.

Glamrock Bonnie, his dear friend. He was here! Stumbling a little after his semi-hop, but in-person and on his feet. Freddy’s eyes lit up with surprise and delight.

“Bonnie, you are-!...” His eyes, voice, and heart dropped. “You- You are wearing Monty’s legs…”

Indeed, unless Bonnie had gotten a sudden paint job, the broken legs that Bonnie stumbled out with were Monty’s. The ones that Roxy and Chica had been searching for. Still broken and cracked with too much endoskeleton exposed, and looking more than a little wobbly under Bonnie’s weight.

Thankfully, Bonnie had a simple explanation.

“Guess what I found a Staff Bot carrying around? I’ll give you one hint, they look great on me,” Bonnie said. He then gave an awkward chuckle. “He’s going to have to get new ones anyway, right? Heh, these are almost as busted as mine! Should be okay.”

“Erm, I suppose so. When they repaired Roxy, they disposed of much of her casing, so I would expect the same for Monty’s…” But Freddy’s face alit again. “I am so glad to see you.”

“You too, Freddy.” He rubbed the back of his head. “So, uh… How’s it going?”

“Tonight has been… a trial. I know you must have figured it out, what with you wearing Monty’s legs.”

“Yeah, that was sort of a dead giveaway,” Bonnie said awkwardly.

“Well, first off. The rest of our band found out about Gregory in the worst possible way. Tricked by Vanny! She convinced Monty- or, perhaps, puppeteered him- into convincing the others that Gregory was manipulating me and out to get us all. And then, he took him to the catwalks! We caught up with him, but while we were- erm, Bonnie?”

“Yeah?” Bonnie was looking a little fidgety. Sort of rocking a bit and finally leaned on the wall. “Go ahead, I’m good.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Keep going.”

“But while we were attempting to stop Monty, something terrible happened. In an attempt to stop Monty, Moon pressed the button that dropped the Hurricane Hole-In-One button and it tore down a large part of the catwalks! Monty leapt onto the bucket and- and- Bonnie, you do not look ‘good.’”

Bonnie was getting a little shakier against the wall. He was starting to make a noise like he was panting and his head twitched to the side. One hand coming up to scratch at the hole in his chest.

“Are you alright?”

“Uh, heh. Uh… Nnnnooot really,” Bonnie stretched out. His eyes suddenly flickered. “Oh hell.”

“Bonnie?! What-?”

Suddenly Bonnie shoved Freddy aside and ran into his green room, stumbling and staggering over clumsy, unfamiliar legs. He went straight to and through the backroom door.

Freddy gasped and raced after him. “Bonnie! Stop!”

On the other side of the door, Gregory had been listening from as close as he could when he heard the heavy footsteps suddenly coming in his direction. He turned and bolted for the back of the room, zooming around the corner and into his hidey hole.

But Bonnie was right behind him and as he came around the corner- and Gregory was able to see his broken remains for the first time- he regretted not heading for the vent. He pressed back to the wall.

Bonnie stumbled right towards him-

“Bonnie, no!” Freddy shouted.

-and threw himself into Freddy’s recharge station.

Freddy came to a startled stop as the door closed and then gave a rather obvious sigh of relief. He looked towards Gregory who peeked out of his hidey hole long enough to give a dramatic arms-up shrug.

Bonnie stayed slumped in the recharge station for a few seconds ‘catching his breath’ before he reached out and slid open the door, still receiving charge as he did.

“My battery’s fried,” he simply said.

“Oh, Bonnie…” Freddy said sorrowfully.

“Yeah, that’s why I’ve been sleeping in that metal coffin downstairs. Not just because of the whole sliced through the middle thing,” Bonnie continued. “Believe me when I say that the walk over here was a… what did you say, a trial? A trial.”

“I am so sorry, Bonnie. I truly am. I never meant for you to stay down there alone so long…”

“Nah, don’t worry about it.” Bonnie waved it off before swaying and grabbing the side of the recharge station to stabilize himself. “Okay, wait, I’m… Look, Freddy… I didn’t just come for a visit. I need your help.”

“Anything! What is it? Do you need me to replace your battery? We can do that!”

“Heh. At this rate I think we’ve gotta throw the whole thing out and start over,” Bonnie said dryly, looking away. He rested his head on the edge of the recharge station, letting one of his arms go limp. “I know where the Pizzaplex is keeping the animatronics who don’t make it out of the basement. There’s a warehouse underneath Roxy Raceway and they’ve got bodies down there like you wouldn’t believe. And I need one.”

“You are going to replace your body?”

“Yeah. Just going to take the insides out of this one and dump ‘em in a new one,” Bonnie explained, lazily gesturing as he did. “I don’t have a choice. The Pizzaplex isn’t going to last forever and now we’ve got nuts-o workers hunting down Sun and Moon- there’s no future here. I can’t keep wait; I’ve got to get out.”

There was a long moment of silence.

“You are right. It is not safe any longer…” Freddy quietly admitted. “We will find you a new body and make a plan to leave the Pizzaplex. I have been… considering it a lot recently.”

Bonnie finally looked up. “Wait, really? You’re really going to take me?”

“Of course! I will do whatever I can to help you. I have missed you too much to lose you again.”

Bonnie stared at him for a long second before breaking into a broken smile.

“Thank you. Oh stars, Freddy, you don’t know what this means to me. God, I’ve just been-…” He wiped at his busted eye, leaving a little blackish oily fluid on his finger. “I-It’s been rough.”

“I know, and I am sorry I was not there for you then,” Freddy solemnly apologized. He reached in and put a hand on Bonnie’s shoulder. “But I will be here for you now.”

“Thanks, Papa Bear.” Bonnie reached up and put his hand on his, holding it. “…But just a quick warning. The second I step out of this recharge station we’ve got to start booking it to the next one.”

Freddy’s face softened.

“It’s cool! I made it here.”

“How on Earth did you?”

“This.” Bonnie reached into his chest and pulled out an old Staff Bot battery, tossing it into the air and catching it. “It’s pretty fried now though so worst-case scenario, I’ll need you to drag me.”

“And I will gladly do that!”

“Glad to hear it. Let’s get a move on.”

Bonnie, now charged as much as his busted battery would allow, lurched out of the recharge station and began to lead the way out.

Freddy held back a few seconds longer. He looked at Gregory and held up a finger, then tapped his wrist, clearly meaning Gregory’s Faz-watch. Gregory gave him a thumbs up. Freddy started heading out. Gregory followed at a distance and heard when they left, peeking through the curtains as they passed by the window.

Then he went over to sit on the couch and waited for Freddy’s message.

That was weird. The whole thing was super strange, and Gregory noticed. How Bonnie just suddenly showed up and just happened to have Monty’s legs that mysteriously disappeared.

Gregory just had a funny feeling about Bonnie. Maybe it was the Monty leg thing, but Gregory couldn’t blame him for that. If Monty really did shove him off the catwalks and broke his legs then maybe it wasn’t too weird that he took Monty’s. Animatronics had to scavenge, right?

But just something about Bonnie himself made Gregory uneasy. Maybe it was just jealousy that Freddy had this best friend who wasn’t Foxy- though Gregory wasn’t sure why he was getting jealous on Foxy’s account- but something just didn’t seem right about this whole thing. Maybe he should’ve followed just to make sure…

The Faz-watch alerted as he got a message from Freddy.

“Grrregorzzz…”

And then it was nothing but static except for a singular ‘just in case’ in the center.

Just in case what? He should wait here or he should go get Moon just in case? He should go call Foxy just in case? He wanted to say goodnight just in case Gregory fell asleep before he got back?

Gregory should follow them just in case?

No, Freddy wouldn’t have said that. Gregory reluctantly admitted that to himself. It was probably either stay in the greenroom or go get Moon.

But Gregory was thinking of slipping out that door and following behind them. They probably wouldn’t hear or see him, he could hide if he needed to, and then he would know exactly what was going on.

That was it, he decided. He was going after Freddy. That was his dad, he wasn’t leaving him alone with some sketchy rabbit guy. Best friend or not.

Gregory hopped up and marched to the green room door. Pulling his backpack straps tight as the automatic door slid open.

He came face to face with a grinning white rabbit.

“GAH!” Gregory jumped back. Then he stumbled over his feet to get some distance. “What are you doing here?!”

“What’s wrong, Gregory…?” Vanny asked. Her head tilting and her voice staticky. She matched his steps through the door. “I thought you might be lonely without your daddies here. To watch you…”

“Stay back!”

“It's been such a difficult day for you. I know it has. I know. Why don't you come out, and we can play a game together? We never get to play,” Vanny said. Her large, red eyes digging into him. “I promise I’ll play fair… this time.”

“What? No! Get away from me!” Gregory yelled.

He turned and ran into the back room and quickly rushed to his hidey hole. He had to escape, but in his efforts to make said hiding spot the boxes underneath the vent had been partially moved. He frantically began to stack them back up.

The door to the green room opened and a red glow filtered into the room. He could hear the pattering of her footsteps as she skipped inside, the ominous crimson glow bouncing with her movements. He looked back over his shoulder just as she came peeking around the corner with a falsely innocent wave.

Gregory quickly climbed up the boxes. Half-falling into one that was opened and struggling to get himself up. His heart pounding in his ears as just barely got up to the vent and looked back to see Vanny looking up from underneath him. Watching him with her hands behind her back and her head tilted.

She was planning something. If not to climb into the vent after him, then something else. Gregory turned and began to hastily clamor into the vent to get away.

He brought his watch up as he continued to crawl. “Freddy?! Freddy! I need help! Vanny’s here, she’s after me again! Hello?!”

There was a little crackling but nothing else. He couldn’t hear his call for help, no doubt due to something Vanny did. He kept moving forward but now he was growing increasingly nervous as he realized Vanny wasn’t following him into the vent.

“She’s probably going to block me off at the vent… Wait, is it even still open?”

Gregory felt the panic rising and he sped up to the end of the vent shaft and was devastated to find the vent secured at the other side. He pushed on it and banged on it, but it was secured tight.

“No, no! Come on!” he whispered. He tried to kick it out to no avail. It wouldn’t budge, and since he couldn’t climb upwards anywhere- “I’m trapped… Maybe one of the other vents will open?”

He begrudgingly began to crawl back through the vent. He tried the vent into Chica’s room desperately, hoping it would be loose, but no. He trudged further, starting to lose hope.

When he had a lucky break. Monty’s vent was dented in like someone had thrown something heavy at it. This had caused the top bolts to pull free. Gregory started to kick at it and pushed with all of his might before it suddenly pulled off the wall, his legs falling through and him barely stopping himself before falling in. He recovered before dropping himself down, landing heavily and falling onto his knees unhurt.

The lights were out, and Gregory had to fumble through the pitch-dark room to the curtains before peeking out. He couldn’t see any sign of Vanny.

“She’s probably still waiting for me back in Freddy’s room. But she’s going to figure out something’s up when I don’t go back and start looking. I’ve got to get out of here!”

He snuck out of Monty’s green room and bolted down Rockstar Row, making it to the door leading back into the backstage area. Thankfully it was unlocked, and he slipped through, soon finding himself in the room where Freddy went to practice with his band.

He was running through and heading to two more doors off to the side when his Faz-watch went off.

“Gregory, where are you?”

“Freddy?!” Gregory whispered frantically. “Freddy, Vanny’s here!”

“Tell me where you are. I will come get you.”

“I’m in the band practice room! Hurry!”

Not sure when Freddy would get there, Gregory hid under a nearby table and waited. But he couldn’t hear the bear’s heavy footsteps.

He didn’t hear anything until the door to the band room opened and a red glow spilled between the shelves blocking it from the rest of the room.

Vanny had found him.

Gregory climbed out from under the table and snuck to the left door on a whim, before carefully opening it and slipping through. Watching Vanny creep into the room the whole time. Not seeing her look over the second the door shut.

Now he found himself in a dark, tight back hallway. Stuff littered the hall and he had to bump past it just to get away from the door. His breathing seemed so loud in the closed-in hallway.

“Gregory?”

“Freddy, where are you?!” Gregory whispered desperately.

“Stay where you are, and I will come get you.”

“I can’t! I-!”

Gregory’s mouth slammed shut as he heard footsteps approaching the door. He hastily ran ahead, trying not to bump into anything and running into the first door he saw.

It led into a small room. There was a workbench, some supplies, and even a couple of lockers, but otherwise it was a dead end.

He tried to figure out what to do. What if Vanny heard the door? She’d check in here for sure. He could hide in the lockers, but that was the only place to hide- she’d know he was in there. He could try to hide behind the door and run out as she came in. Something, anything.

“Gregory?”

“Freddy,” Gregory whispered back.

“Where are you going…? Come back…! I thought we were friends…”

A chill rushed down Gregory’s spine. Freddy’s voice sounded weird. He sounds slowed down, sluggish. Almost like a zombie.

Almost like it wasn’t Freddy.

It wasn’t Freddy, he realized.

Gregory didn’t answer. He just listened as the footsteps crept down the hall and then hid.

A moment later the handle slowly turned, and the door opened. The red glow filled the room as Vanny stepped inside.

Her eyes immediately leveled on the lockers across the room. She took a stiff step, then another, creeping up in an almost comically cartoonish way if it wasn’t for how jarringly human her movements were.

She peeked in the crack of the locker.

“Superstaaaar…”

She raised a shaking hand before grabbing the locker handle tightly.

“I found you.”

And she wrenched the locker open.

Gregory wasn’t there.

Vanny gave a staticky gasp and looked around quickly, catching Gregory trying to sneak out the door. He immediately bolted and Vanny dropped the ruse and sprinted after him.

He ran as fast as he could down the crowded hallway. Diving and ducking around the stacked-up clutter and with the only light to guide him being the light bouncing from Vanny’s eyes.

She was going to kill him, he thought. He was going to become one of those missing children.

He hit his side on a laundry cart and stumbled into a door, throwing it open and running across the backstage area towards the closed off entrance to Roxy Raceway. Finally, he had a little light, and an empty expanse to run at full speed. For a second he thought he’d easily outrun Vanny.

And then the lights turned off.

“No!” he cried.

Now he was running in pitch dark. He looked at his watch- hourly recharge, it wasn’t coming back on for a while- and then tried to use it to light his way. It didn’t help any more than the red glow of the chasing rabbit’s eyes did. He barely saw the door before he shoved through it.

He was now running through Roxy Raceway’s entrance. He barely dodged the cones and crawled under the caution tape, feeling Vanny’s gloved hands briefly grab his backpack before losing her grip.

His lungs were starting to hurt as he ran blindly through the entrance to Fazer Blast. He was stumbling around, desperately pressing on his watch to keep the light on to try and see as he ran into the atrium.

That was when he spotted a singular ray of light on the other side of the atrium. It looked like a flashlight.

“HEY! I NEED HELP!” Gregory yelled.

The light snapped in his direction.

“Gregory?!” Natalie shouted.

“SHE’S AFTER ME!” Gregory cried.

Only for him to then run up on the steps and miss his footing, landing painfully at the bottom of a couple of steps. He scrambled to turn over, planning to fight off Vanny with kicks, punches, and anything else he.

But she wasn’t there. It was as though she disappeared. He looked around frantically, searching the shadows, knowing that she was there somewhere.

Natalie sprinted across the length of the atrium and bounded up to him, crouching down beside him.

“Are you okay? That was a hard fall.”

“I’m fine, worry about Vanny! She’s here! Somewhere- she was chasing me! She was RIGHT behind me!”

Natalie quickly shined her light around, searching the same shadows Gregory did but now uncovering them. There was no sign of Vanny but that didn’t mean she wasn’t there.

He held Gregory up and he hissed and grabbed at his knee. Natalie gently brushed his hands away to look, seeing a light scrape and a round red mark that would surely become a bruise.

“Ooo, that’s going to hurt. We’ll get some ice for that,” she said.

She stood up and started to scan around again, putting a hand on Gregory’s shoulder and pulling him close to her legs. He didn’t resist. In fact, he pressed his back to her legs and continued to look around for Vanny.

“I know you’re there. Either come out or take off. We’ve had enough problems tonight,” Natalie called. Her voice portrayed that she was not in the mood for Vanny’s antics, hiding all fear.

Nothing.

And then the squeak of a padded boot on tile.

Natalie spun around and shined her light. The beam of her flashlight landed squarely on Vanny’s wide stretched smile.

She barely contained her gasp, swallowing it as she pulled Gregory back behind her. Vanny waved with both hands before tucking her hands behind her. She toyed with something, and then her eyes alit to full glow.

“If you wanted to play too, all you had to do was ask,” Vanny said. She bobbed her head back and forth, her ears swaying. “There’s always room for one more.”

“I think I’ve chased you around enough for one lifetime,” Natalie retorted. “And show me your hands.”

Vanny brought her hands out from behind her back and wiggled her gloved fingers mockingly. No knife, thank goodness. That only made Natalie feel slightly safer.

“Okay, now here’s the deal. You’re going to run off to wherever and you’re not coming back. Because if I see you get anywhere near this kid again, I will turn you in,” Natalie threatened.

“You’re not going to turn her in now? Why not?! She’s trying to get me!” Gregory spoke up. “And she’s the reason Monty was trashed too! She’s crazy!”

“She can’t. Nobody will believe her. And if they did, oh, they would check the footage. We wouldn’t want that. They might see all her special friends,” Vanny half-mocked and vaguely threatened.

“Doesn’t the footage delete after twenty-four hours?” Natalie asked.

“Did you really believe it did?”

Natalie kept her mouth in a tight line. She had, but in retrospect she shouldn’t have.

“I think my house is getting a little too small for you, Alice. And no big Bill to smoke you out! Oh dear, oh dear,” Vanny said in faux-cutesy voice. She put her hands on her cheeks. “But that’s what happens when you fit yourself in other people’s homes. They become a prison.”

“I’m not the one who’s about to go to prison. Get out of here. This is your last warning.”

“I can’t do that,” Vanny cocked her head to noticeably leer at Gregory. “Not when he’s getting in the way. Again. And it doesn’t matter how many times we run him off, he stays.”

Vanny took a swaying step forward. Natalie stood her ground

“Don’t come any closer. I mean it.”

The bunny put her hands on her hips and cocked her head.

“Or what? What can you do?” Vanny slowly dropped her arms to her sides. “What could I do?”

Anything she wanted to, Natalie realized.

She decided at this point that she had enough.

“Ness, I know it’s you. I don’t know what you’re thinking doing this, but this has to stop. You’re going to get yourself killed. Someone is going to kill you.”

“You?”

“No! One of the ten bears you’re poking with a stick every time you come in here! Why are you doing this?!” Natalie snapped.

There was a long pause. Heavy and totally silent.

Vanny seemed to tense up. Her head straightened up, her act dropped, and then-

“There’s more going on here than you realize…”

Her voice was so strikingly small that even with the synthesizer it immediately gave away her identity. It was Ness. It absolutely was.

“What does that mean?” Natalie asked.

“You don’t notice something’s… wrong? Something’s- when you saw that body- they took that body downstairs. They didn’t turn it in to the police. Did you know that? I’M not supposed to know that,” Ness fumbled.

Natalie stared back, her disapproving scowl switching to shock, and then a look of dread.

“I didn’t know that…”

“And after tonight, when they find out what we’re going to do, there’s… there’s no going back from this. But I know what I’m doing. I’m not being manipulated or- or controlled. I WANT this.”

Natalie’s dread turned quickly to horror.

“Ness, no. You don’t. I don’t know what this Bunny guy is telling you-.”

“It was my idea to scare you the first night. I thought- I thought if I did, you’d leave. But then you didn’t, and you still won’t even though you know they’re going to ruin your life. Do you know how many lives Freddy’s has ruined?! They don’t want anyone to know about what’s going on here! And they’ll pin it on you.”

“Only because you’re using my name!”

“You used my name first!”

“It’s not THAT uncommon of a name!”

“It’s-… It doesn’t matter. They know who you are already. And me, and him, and everyone else. They know all about all of this, and after tonight they’re going to come looking. But we’ll be gone where they can’t find us.”

“Don’t do anything you’ll regret,” Natalie begged.

“The only thing I regret is waiting so long. It’s time to go. I’m tired of dreaming about better things. I’m ready to leave the castle and start my own adventure.”

Natalie had absolutely no idea what she was alluding to but it didn’t sound good. It made her feel sour in her stomach.

“…I’ll let you go. Take him and go. And don’t follow me, and don’t come back. And if you do, you’ll- you’ll be the one poking the bear,” Ness swore. She met eyes with Gregory for a long second, him trying to square up but still obviously unnerved, and then turned to walk away.

Just like that, she walked away. Natalie caught her pressing something on her wrist and the lights on her mask went off, and shortly afterwards she disappeared into the atrium.

Natalie tugged Gregory. “Let’s get to the Prize Counter.”

“Moondrop’s in Mazercise, I think,” Gregory said.

“Good. There then.”

They started to hurry to the frozen escalators. Natalie felt like she should explain herself, but she didn’t. She knew both Gregory and Vanny were right. All her threats were empty.

Gregory didn’t ask anyway because he figured out the why- for Foxy, likely. And Gregory didn’t want to rat out Foxy and get him in trouble. Maybe his hands were tied too.

The power came back on while they were making their way up to the third floor. Emboldened, Gregory began to sprint the rest of the way. Natalie breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at the atrium to see if she could spot Vanny, but she was long gone. Then she ran after the boy and caught up with him on the way inside.

The door leading into the back hallway was open and a light was on inside. Gregory could hear voices talking and recognized them immediately as Jake and the Daycare Attendant.

“You and I both know the whole thing’s a load of-!”

“MOONDROP!”

Sun suddenly ducked into the doorway.

“Gregory?!”

“SUN!”

Gregory ran to him and Sun dropped into a crouch to catch and hold him tight. He was taken aback when Gregory clung to him like a child half his age, his heart rate so high that it was setting off sensors in Sun’s palms.

“Oh no, what happened?” Jake asked, right there on the other side of the wall.

“Vanny happened,” Natalie said.

“AgAIN?!” Sun choked.

“No, not just Vanny! She-!” Gregory pushed himself back so he could speak more clearly, looking up at Sun in panic. “Freddy went with Bonnie to find something in Roxy Raceway and I was going to follow them, and then Vanny was RIGHT THERE outside the door! And I went through the vent, and she chased me down this dark hallway and the power went out, and then I was running through the atrium, and I ran into her and Vanny was still there! She got into my Faz-watch and pretended to be Freddy- she had his voice!”

“Wait, wait, wait, did you say- did you say Bonnie? Freddy went with Bonnie?” Sunny asked. His voice shaken with growing panic. 

“Yes! Bonnie showed up, he had Monty’s legs on! He said something about having a bad battery and Freddy went to take him to get a new body at Roxy Raceway!” Gregory said.

Sun twisted his head to look at Jake and their body language showed equal shock.

“Bonnie’s a problem, isn’t he?” Natalie guessed.

“Bonnie is a HUGE problem. We- We’ve got to- We have to do something. Now. I’m not putting up with this anymore, Jake! We’re dealing with this now!” Sun snapped, his voice blending into Moon’s by the end.

“We will! We just need… We’re going to need help. Natalie, there’s a phone right behind the desk in there. We need you to call Marionette and get him over here. Foxy too, if he can. We’re going to need all the help we can get,” Jake explained, managing to keep calm.

Natalie stared at him for a second as it suddenly clicked that Bonnie was in on it, but she snapped out of it quickly. “Got it.” She turned and ran to the desk to start calling.

“What about Freddy? Is he going to be okay…?” Gregory asked.

“He’ll be fine!” Sunny said with the flustered tone of someone who wasn’t as sure as they were trying to sound.

“We’ll find him. They couldn’t have gone far, we just need to get some backup,” Jake assured.

Normally Gregory would’ve called them out on their phony pleasantries, but in this case, he was too concerned with Freddy to do so. He started to make calls of his own, sending messages through his Faz-watch.

But none of them made it through.

…

Freddy hadn’t spared a second glance towards the fence blocking the north-west corner of Roxy Raceway. He assumed the door it blocked led under the bleachers. Even when they walked up to it, he just expected that to be hiding underneath, and to be where these elusive extra bodies were hiding.

The fence was pulled open and the door was, surprisingly, unlocked. They stepped through and Freddy was surprised to see a metal staircase leading downwards. It almost looked more like a scaffold than an actual stairwell. Freddy was a little hesitant, but Bonnie strode in without any. So, he followed behind him.

They headed down a few flights before reaching another fenced off area. This one was closed and wrapped in chains, though they were not locked in any way.

“Here, let me,” Freddy volunteered.

He took up the chains and unwound them, freeing the way and pushing open the creaking fence. He doubted anyone had been down here recently, but the chains had been closed as though someone came down here frequently enough that they didn’t feel bothered to secure them. Perhaps just a lazy employee.

They continued further on past some abandoned building equipment. There was even a crane down there, branded with the Fazbear Entertainment logo. What had they been building down here?

They arrived at another gate- though this one was locked. There was a electronic box attached with buttons and a speaker. Almost like an intercom that someone would speak through to be buzzed in.

“It is some form of voice scanner.”

“Lemme see if I can overload it,” Bonnie said.

Freddy was expecting Bonnie to physically poke and tamper with the scanner. What he did instead-

“AIIIIEEEE!”

The sudden scream caused Freddy to jump with a shout, briefly having his circuits scrambled by the shrill noise. He hadn’t been shaken like that since Chica’s voice box malfunctioned.

But somehow, it worked. Bonnie proudly thrust his arms in the air as the gate lock popped open.

“I’m a genius!” he celebrated. Then he yanked open the gate and charged through. “Oh man, this is it. Freddy, this is it. We are so in right… ugh. Oh no.”

Bonnie swayed a little bit before going rigid, trying to keep himself from both locking up or collapsing.

“Bonnie?!” Freddy rushed to his side and saw that his eyes were dimming again. “Oh no. We need to get you to the recharge station.”

“Yeah, sounds good…” Bonnie said. Freddy started to put an arm around him. “Hey, no, wait. Can you just like…go find me one of those Staff Bots Roxy’s been smashing up on the track? I’ll just sap some off of that,” he said, pointing back with his thumb.

“Bonnie, no. You need to be fully recharged.”

“Freddy, I just got out of that recharge station. There’s no way I’m making it far on that charge. All I need you to do is bring me a headless Staff Bot. I’ll just tap into it. Like a portable battery.”

“Could you tap into me?” Freddy offered.

Bonnie was silent for a long moment.

“…Yeah, I could do that,” he said quietly.

“Then let us do that! I received a battery upgrade some time ago and now hold double the charge that I used to. Even with lending you half, I should have more than enough to keep going.”

“…You’d do that, Freddy?” Bonnie asked quietly. “You sure about that?”

“Absolutely! Now, what do we need? If we need to get a cable from Parts and Service, you can wait in the recharge station over there and I will go get one. Then we can continue onward together.”

“No… No, I don’t need one. Just… Here, let me show you how I do it.”

Bonnie reached into the large hole in his chest, much to Freddy’s dismay. After a few moments he pulled it back out with a handful of wires, pulling them free of his body with a wince.

“Is this safe…?” Freddy asked worriedly.

“Oh yeah. I do this all the time,” Bonnie assured. “Pop yourself open for me.”

Freddy opened his stomach hatch. Bonnie came in close until they were almost totally chest to chest. He put his arm in Freddy’s chest and the wires were soon wrapped up in his endo. Freddy couldn’t tell where they went, but he could feel when they were wound inside as instantly, he could feel something pulling, sapping at him. It was a strange sensation but nothing too powerful or unpleasant.

Bonnie’s eyes stopped flickering and he gave a relieved sigh as he leaned on Freddy, who put an arm around his back to steady him.

“Better,” he said. “God, Freddy, I owe you one.”

“It is no trouble… Do you do this often?” Freddy asked sympathetically.

“Let’s just say that unless I want to end up passed out in piles of trash, I’ve got to improvise. This is how I do it with any hot spots. Y’know, fuse boxes, wires, forklifts.”

“You have been through so much…”

“Eh, don’t worry about it. Let’s just get down there.”

“Down…?”

That was when Freddy finally acknowledged what lay past the fence. He had seen it before, of course, but only now did he take true note of it.

It was an elevator. Two metal doors closed tight and flanked by mounted lights to illuminate the area. Bonnie hobbled past the gate, leading Freddy with an alarm around him since they were still connected and pressed the button. The doors slid open to reveal a basic service elevator with green, somewhat dingy walls.

Freddy hesitated at the door.

“Bonnie, I have a strange feeling about this elevator. I do not think we are supposed to be here.”

“That’s your programming and better judgement speaking, Freddy, but that’s where we have to go,” Bonnie said. “They’re down there.”

“Are you certain?”

“That we have to go or that the bodies are down there? Because it’s a yes to both.”

“Very well…”

The two entered the elevator. There was only an up and down button on the panel, but the upper button was dim. Possibly because they were already at the top. After a pause, Bonnie pressed the down button, and the doors shut before the lift began its slow descend. Going down, down, down into the depths of the basement.

It was eerily quiet.

“…This elevator could use some music,” Bonnie remarked.

“Yes. Or at the very least a catchy jingle.”                    

Bonnie looked to Freddy with a sad smile. “You ever sing our song?”

“On stage? No. It would not feel right to sing without you,” Freddy said warmly. “But I do find myself humming it often!”

“Sometimes I’d sing it down in the basement. Great acoustics! Garbage aesthetics,” Bonnie joked.

Freddy chuckled. Bonnie bent his free arm and began to do a little jig at Freddy’s side.

“Hey everybody, put the radio on! Time to throw our troubles away-ay-ay!~” he began to sing. “We're turning up the music, we're having a ball! This band keeps rocking- forever and ever!~”

“We’re hopping into the jalopy, going to go for a ride. To the pizza shop with our fri-e-ends,~” Freddy began to sing along. “We're jumping and a-rrrocking until the sun goes down-!~”

“And the moon is shining- Forever and ever!~” they sung together.

“Forever and ever and ever!~” Bonnie sung wholeheartedly.

“Forever and ever and ever,~” Freddy rumbled along.

“Forever and ever and ever, and ever. Forever and ever, and ever, and everrrr- Ha!~”

Bonnie did a makeshift little air bass motion with his free left hand- the right still holding to Freddy- making the noises of the shredding solo he would’ve performed if he still had his bass. Freddy thought it sounded very impressive. Then he cut in at the next chorus.

“We’re rocking and rolling, our friend are all here. Got our ice cream sundaes and flo-o-oats!~” he sung, playfully chuckling midway. “We’re diving into pizza and burgers with cheese. Keep the French fries coming, forever and ever!~”

“We’re bringing all our buddies, it’s time for a jam! Gonna play ‘til our worries are go-o-one! Picking up the music and rocking along-!~” Bonnie’s eyes began to glow brightly. “We just keep playing, forever and ever!~”

“Forever and ever and ever!~” they sung together again.

“Forever and ever and ever!~!”
“Forever and ever and ever…~”

Freddy was starting to feel strange. Something was prickling on the edge of his vision. His head began to feel fuzzy.

“Forever and ever and ever and ever!~”
“Forever and ever- I… I feel strange…” Freddy interrupted. “Something’s wrong…”

“Forever and ever, and ever, and ever!- Just a little longer, Freddy- ForEVER and ever and ever!~”

Bonnie sounded sad and Freddy wanted to force himself to sing, but there was something wrong. The static increased and this overwhelming feeling sucked him down.

“Forever and ever and ever- You’re my best friend, Freddy. I mean it. Just a little longer, just a little longer.”

Freddy looked to Bonnie. His vision shuddery and nearly as red as Bonnie’s glowing eyes. He noticed the oil leaking out through the crack in his face again. It looked like tears.

“Forever and ever and ever and ever- I’m sorry, Freddy. I’m sorry.”

It was at that moment that Freddy stopped being able to feel his limbs. He was going to collapse just like he did on stage, and all he could do was stare at Bonnie.

“Forever and ever, and ever, and ever-.”

-and then watch as the world tilted and shifted right before everything went to black.

"̵̧̽L̴͖̆e̶̟̚t̶͕͊'̶̪̒s̵͎̓ ̴̤̚g̶̠̊o̷͑ͅ.̷̱̾"̷̧͘

…

..

.

.

..

…

Bonnie dragged Freddy’s body out of the elevator and outside of it. He carefully slouched it against the wall on the floor as best as he could with his broken middle. Then he extracted his wiring from the bear’s chest.

Freddy’s battery was entirely tapped. He wasn’t broken, nor was the battery itself fried, but he would be sitting here until someone found him. But Bonnie knew they would. After what was about to happen, there would be people flooding down here tomorrow, looking for answers.

But they sure as hell wouldn’t find him.

Still, he looked down at Freddy with guilt. This wasn’t how he wanted this to go, but there was no other way now. Freddy would be fine- physically, but he would never trust him again. Fitting, really.

“I’m so sorry, Freddy,” he said, knowing Freddy couldn’t hear. “I don’t have any choice. They’ve got my hands tied, and if I don’t… do this then I’m done for. This is my last chance to get out of here in one piece.”

But of course, Freddy couldn’t hear him and wouldn’t remember any of this. Bonnie just sighed.

He was so distracted that he didn’t notice the unlit red eyes creeping up from behind him.

“You’re my superstar. Yeah… Still…”

Freddy just laid there, unmoving. Like an empty suit. Like a soulless husk. Left for Fazbear Entertainment to find.

And at that moment, the form of another rabbit stepped up behind him and leaned in close to his shoulder. Her hushed voice whispering to his ear.

“Peek-a-boo.”

“AUGH!”

Bonnie jumped so hard that he nearly pulled himself free of Monty’s tethered-on legs. He spun around to see a familiar woman in a white rabbit suit standing right behind him.

“Ho sheez, you scared the HELL out of me!” he choked.

“Oh, I’m sorry! I just wanted to try and- I don’t know- lighten the mood?” Ness squeaked apologetically. “Okay, that was really bad timing, I’m sorry.”

“Nah-nah, it was a good one. I’m just, uh…” Bonnie reached out to pat her arm. “Going through some stuff. Don’t worry about it…”

They both looked down at Freddy’s body.

Until Bonnie suddenly looked back to Ness.

“Hey, hold on. How’d you get down here?” he asked.

“There’s a maintenance elevator over there. But it’s small! Too small to fit you. You… You didn’t have any choice.”

“You really think that?” Bonnie asked, side-eyeing the downed bear.                                                                                                

“Yes! This was the only way… He’ll be fine. They wouldn’t hurt Freddy, he’s too valuable!”

He stared at the bear unreadably for a long minute, then gave another breathless sigh.

“Right. That’s… totally right. Yeah. No point in standing around anyways. Only one thing left now… But… There’s just one thing I need to know. Before we do this…”

“What?”

Bonnie suddenly turned on Vanny. She squeaked as he grabbed her and pulled her in tightly. An excited grin showing in his glowing red eyes.

“Are you ready to see your new man?”

“Yes!” Vanny said breathily.

“Then let’s go find him!”

Bonnie leaned in and nuzzled his nose to her mask’s. The slightest smearing of black wiping onto her white fur, but she didn’t care. She giggled and clung to him until he was willing to let her go.

As they drew apart, she eagerly slid her gloved fingers into his broken ones and began to lead him along. Pulling him away from Freddy and willingly walking deeper into the unknown hidden beneath the Pizzaplex.

It wasn’t too late to make their last memory of this place a good one.

Chapter 94

Chapter Summary

Help is on the way to deal with the Freddy and Bonnie situation, but nobody's prepared for how deep the rabbit hole goes...

It had been a long day. Not for Marionette, who was used to hosting multiple parties and gladly did so with a smile, but for Mike.

It turned out that this simple schedule of his was a bit bigger than he expected.

He got up early and got ready for school, heading out for the university before he would’ve left for Foxy’s, attended back-to-back classes and whatever he could crunch in that time, came into Foxy’s shortly after lunch- once or twice missing lunch and having to eat pizza in the kitchen in between tasks, and then would work until the end of the day.

At first Mike managed with the energy of someone determined to succeed, but now he was starting to exhaust that pep.

Exhausted, that was a good word for it. Mike was exhausted. Why else would he come home and fall asleep at seven o’clock? And slept all night, save a brief stirring around eleven when he got up to scour the fridge. The first time all day that Marionette had gotten him alone save sleeping.

That part Marionette didn’t mind. Sure, he missed having Mike so available, but he was willing to make do. It was the slowly burning himself out part that he wasn’t so keen on.

But he was getting help. Charlie was still studying with him and helping around the house a lot, Tabby made sure that when Mike came into the kitchen that he got something to eat, and Fritz and Jeremy had been very supportive with both encouragement and taking over the morning tasks.

Really the only problem was that Mike was still pushing. Instead of taking the help and taking a break, he would use it to keep trying to work harder. Marionette wasn’t sure what he was trying to accomplish, except perhaps he was trying to make up for the time he wasn’t at the pizzeria. Something he didn’t need to do when there were plenty of hands on deck.

But that was Mike for you, and what he really needed now was a good night’s sleep.

And then, in the middle of the night, the phone started to ring.

Marionette woke instantly and his first and only thought was to get it and answer it before it could wake Mike. Unfortunately, Mike had taken over the role as the clingy one tonight. His arms were wrapped around the Puppet, and he was out like a light. To the point where the cellphone hadn’t managed to wake him.

He had to get to the phone. Normally he would just grab it with his telekinesis, but he was still half awake and didn’t want to risk any accidents. So instead, he began to carefully slide up in Mike’s grasp and climb over him with patient, spider-like movements. He reached a long arm out for the cellphone.

And then Mike suddenly rolled over and reached for it, causing Marionette to be thrown off-balance and land on his chest with soft thump. Mike’s barely disguised little grin showed this was completely on purpose.

Marionette gave him a playful glare as Mike answered the call.

“Hey,” he croaked.

“Hey, sorry to wake you up but you need to get down here with Mari.”

Nothing like that tone to wake Mike up. Worked better than a bucket of ice water.

“Uh oh.” His smile slipped, and Marionette tilted his head. “What happened?”

“Vanny’s insane, Bonnie’s evil and he took Freddy somewhere, and Monty lost his legs.”

Mike processed that slowly before starting to sit up. “Wait, Bonnie did what?”

As he sat up more, Marionette shifted to rest his hands on his shoulders and tilted his head in beside his to listen. Mike pulled the phone back from his ear so he could.

“It’s crazy, Mike! I don’t know what happened tonight. Monty fell off a platform up in the golf course and Vanny showed up and started chasing Gregory, again, and apparently Bonnie showed up and took Freddy somewhere, and Sun and Jake are very insistent that you and Mari get down here. So, yeah, I’m thinking Bonnie and Vanny are in cahoots.”

“And Monty lost his legs?” he repeated. Marionette got an almost comical look of shock, but Mike was nowhere near laughing. “We can’t fix that,” he thought, his throat tightening as he swallowed with a dry mouth.

“Yes. He’s down in Parts and Service right now. From what Roxy said, Vanny made him kidnap Gregory or something. I don’t know the whole story yet.”

“Keep grilling them, we’ll be down there in ten,” Mike said. Natalie agreed and he hung up. “Did you get that?”

“All of it,” Marionette said. Then he all but darted off the bed.

That suddenness encouraged Mike to match speed as he tore the covers off and got up out of bed.

“Here.”

He looked up in time to catch a pair of pants tossed his way. He almost made a snarky comment about going in his boxers but then decided this wasn’t the time or place.

Soon they were out the door and into the hallway, and then outside of Charlie’s door. Mike almost threw it open before catching himself.

“Should we?” he asked.

“…Yes,” Marionette said.

Mike opened the bedroom door. “Charlie?”

Charlie shot up in bed with a start.

“I’m up!” she reflexively said. Then she noticed Mike standing there in the doorway. “Oh, uh. Sorry. I just need a minute. I had the weirdest dream.”

“Well, it’s about to become a nightmare,” Mike sighed. “We’re heading down to the Pizzaplex. Freddy’s in trouble and Bonnie’s evil, and Nat said Monty lost his legs. Here’s hoping she finds them in one piece or someone’s going to get screwed, and it might be me.”

“Oh, it’s most definitely you,” Marionette chimed up behind him.

“Sounds about right.”

Charlie was already clicking on the lamp and hopping out of bed. “Just give me a minute!” She was pulling on her jacket and going for her toolbox as Mike hurried down the hall to get ready to go.

By time he had his shoes and jacket on, Charlie was coming down the hall and Marionette was float-pacing with his head in his hand, propped up by his other arm wrapped tightly around him. He lifted his head to them.

“We should go get Foxy too. He needs to be involved,” Marionette said.

“Yeah, you really should go get Foxy,” Max chimed up from his spot in the living room.

Marionette looked over with a start. “Wait, what do you know? What have you seen?”

“Just call it a feeling because that’s all it is,” the magician said, much to the puppet’s dismay.

“Thanks, Max. Being as helpful as always,” Mike said flatly as he grabbed his keys.

“Don’t mention it.”

They hurried into the car and headed over to Jeremy’s.

Jeremy still hadn’t fully moved into his apartment, but he had stayed over there tonight with Foxy. Laying on a air mattress in the living room, one that had sunken under Foxy and he was unwilling to get up and do anything about. The TV was on low, and the apartment was quiet and, surprisingly, starting to feel a little more welcoming.

And then a car peeled up outside. Foxy’s eye opened but he waited to see if it was coming to them. Then came the knock on the door.

Jeremy dragged himself upright and started to feel around for his glasses beside the mattress. Foxy reached up and caught them with his hook and slid them towards Jeremy, the sound alerting the blond.

“Thanks,” he said groggily. He put them on before looking down at Foxy, who was practically on the floor. “…What happened to the mattress?”

“It couldn’t handle Captain Foxy,” Foxy replied.

The knocking started again, a little harder this time. Jeremy got up and got over to the door, opening it with the chain lock in place and making sure to block the crack with his body, so nobody would see Foxy.

But it turned out to be Mike, and the look on his face instantly gave away that something happened.

“Hold on.” Jeremy shut the door, unlocked it, and opened it again. “What happened? Is everything okay?”

“No. It looks like something went down at the Pizzaplex,” Mike said. “Monty had an accident, and Bonnie went rogue and took Freddy into the basement.”

“Bloody ‘ell, I KNEW IT!” Foxy groaned. He sprung up from the floor and then hobbled to the door with a mix of anger and jetlag. “Can’t catch a break with these bloody rabbits!”

“You knew about Bonnie?” Mike asked, unsurprised by his reaction.

“Aye, an’ did nothin’ ‘bout him,” Foxy muttered. Then, with no further explanation, he peeked out and then bolted through the door.

Mike watched him go before turning back to Jeremy.

“Sorry to wake you up, but we thought Foxy might want to tag along. You want to come?”

“Uh, yeah, just- let me grab my shoes.”

“And a jacket.”

“And a jacket.”

Marionette opened the back door and in an instant Foxy had dove into it, pulling it closed with his hook. Charlie barely moving up to the passenger’s seat to dodge. A few moments later, Mike and Jeremy came back. He came up to the passenger’s side door before realizing Charlie was there. She gave an apologetic smile and gestured to herself and pointed a thumb back, offering to move. This was answered by Foxy, who opened the back door again and gestured with his head, and Jeremy got in the back beside him.

Then they were off again.

“I bloody knew that rabbit was trouble,” Foxy growled. “Y’know, he told Freddy not to tell anyone he found ‘im.”

Marionette snapped his head to Foxy.

“I forgot. But I knew there was somethin’ fishy ‘bout the whole thing. It’s one thing to not want to be caught by Freddy’s. Bonnie didn’t want to be caught by anyone.”

“He’s probably working with Vanny,” Jeremy offered. “What happened to Monty?”

“He fell off a platform and lost his legs,” Mike recited.

“A-AGAIN?!” Foxy choked.

“He’s done this before?” Marionette asked in disbelief.

“Aye! Freddy said he fell off while back an’ broke both legs! Had to be locked up in Parts and Service for a week!”

Marionette dropped his head into his hand and Jeremy gave a sympathetic hiss.

“Is Fritz coming?” the blond dared to ask.

“I don’t know. Probably. We’ll see when we get there,” Mike said.

Foxy groaned and bowed over, his hand and hook holding his head as he processed all of this. More specifically, what he was currently pinning on himself.

Freddy was too trusting. He knew that and yet he didn’t do enough to warn him about Bonnie. Even with the vague details, he knew it was going to be something awful. That’s why he didn’t ask, he knew it was going to be a catastrophe, and he placed that not on Freddy but entirely on himself.

And if he lost Freddy because of this, he would never forgive himself.

Jeremy patted his back and began to gently rubbed his fabric in soothing circles. Marionette laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. Both helped assure him he wasn’t alone but didn’t assuage his guilt.

An uncomfortable silence permeated the car. Mike considered turning on the radio to break it but couldn’t shake the feeling that it would just make this all a lot more awkward. Especially since the only thing airing at this time of night was polka music.

So, instead. He turned to the puppet in the passenger’s seat.

“So, how’d the dream go?”

“What?”

“Trying to kill a few minutes.”

“Oh! Right. Okay. So,” Charlie began. “I dreamed that I was in my old bedroom looking for my old stuff and that Sammy was there with me. And I opened up my closet and it led into a secret room that looked like an attic except it was filled with all these blocks of Styrofoam. And there was this framed poster on the wall of, I think, Elton John. And Sammy’s like, “We can sell this and save the house!” Because I guess we were losing the house. So, I ran to get a nail prier out of the workshop and I run in and fall through this BIG hole in the floor and I wind up in this big cave- it looked like Oddworld. And I see this thing in the distance.”

“What was it?”

“I don’t know, you woke me up,” Charlie said with a playful shrug. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

“I wish my dreams were that cool. Last night I dreamed I was at your place and got locked out of the bathroom,” Jeremy said. “Speaking of which, I’ve need to use the restroom when I get there.”

“Yeah, and I could use some coffee,” Mike tagged on jokingly.

“What’s crazy is that I was with Sammy the whole time and I don’t know what he looked like. He was just a guy, but I can’t remember any details.”

“I do that sometimes. It’s like your brain fills in the blanks.”

“I guess. It’s like Dr. Treadwell once said…” Charlie hung on that moment for a long second, then slumped defeatedly. “I don’t really remember the punchline.”

“Welcome to my world,” Mike mumbled. They exchanged a smile, and the drive continued.

They arrived at the Pizzaplex a little later and found another car already parked there. It was Fritz’. It was almost weird seeing him driving something other than the van.

As Mike parked beside it, Fritz popped his truck and got out of his car and came to greet them. He seemed much more awake than Jeremy.

“So, Natalie called you too?” Mike asked as he got out.

“No, I just felt like driving down here in the middle of the night,” Fritz joked. Though his tone betrayed his nervousness.

“No van?”

“Too close to morning, didn’t want to risk it getting seen if we’re stuck past six fixing Monty. And I didn’t want to have to stop and get gas,” Fritz explained. He lifted his trunk to get his toolbox. “Let’s hurry.”

“Aye. We need to get to Freddy before Bonnie pulls somethin’,” Foxy agreed, climbing out of the back behind Marionette.

“Bonnie?”

“Natty didn’t tell ya?”

“She told me Vanny showed up, but… yeah, okay, she did say something about Bonnie.”

“He’s evil,” Mike clarified.

“Or at the very least, heavily influenced by Vanny,” Marionette added.

“Or she’s possessed by him. Which would explain a lot,” Mike tacked on.

Marionette looked to him in surprise. “Do you think Bonnie could be…?”

“I think we’ve got a lot of rabbits acting squirrelly. I’d be shocked if Bonnie wasn’t one of them,” he said. He then added more seriously, “I don’t have a good feeling about this.”

“Bonnie’s Bunny,” Foxy announced.

Marionette swiveled on him but then deflated. “But you don’t know for sure.”

“I do. Trust me. Call it a hunch.”

“Well, between you and Max, we almost have a complete explanation,” Marionette said with mild annoyance. He turned forward again. “Let’s get inside.”

Fritz hoisted the toolbox out of the back and started to walk with them. Upon seeing Charlie with hers he gave her a thumbs up. Then he overtook the others to lead the way.

They made their way to the back door that was propped open. Natalie was leaning in the doorway with her arms crossed, but she looked up as they approached and looked relieved to see them coming.

“Thank goodness,” she said. She pushed both doors open for them and then caught Fritz in a hug. He held her tightly with one arm as the others stepped inside.

Marionette came down the stairs and just made it into the Loading Dock when he was rushed with a flashlight shoved in his face. It was a familiar Staff Bot blaring out alerts. Mike pushed it back by the chest and got it at arm’s length, but it still persistently pushed against him to try and get to the Puppet.

Natalie rushed over and when she gave him a push he finally stopped pushing back.

“Smitty, stop that!” She then had to hold a hand up to stop the Mop Bot. “Buddy, you too.”

Even though they had stopped, both Staff Bots were transfixed on the striped animatronic. It almost made him a little uneasy, and it caught Mike’s attention. They always did this but tonight he was more on guard.

Not on guard enough to prepare for Sun to blindside them both, sprinting in out of nowhere, and grabbing them by the shoulders to yank them in.

“Oh, thank goodness you’re both here,” Sunny said breathlessly. “We’ve got a HUUUGE problem! All of us BUT ESPECIALLY US!”

“It’s alright, Sunny. We’re here-.”

“Where’s Gregory?” Foxy interrupted, barging in beside Marionette.

“I’m here!” Gregory said. He and Jake were over by the security desk. Foxy ran over to him and crouched down to pull him into a hug.

Marionette caught one look at him before looking at Mike with a sad look.

“Look at his Freddy onesie…” he whispered.

Mike saw it too. It was a stark visual reminder than no matter how mature Gregory tried to act, he wasn’t even ten years old. He was just a kid dragged into all of this.

Mike wasn’t feeling good about this already, but that was an every bigger wakeup call than anything else.

“Yes, it’s very cute, but we have a BIG problem here!” Sun interjected.

Marionette shook off the expression and returned to a neutral smile to cover.

“We do. I need you to start from the beginning and explain everything.”

“There’s no time!”

“There’s plenty of time. You can do it as we walk.”

“We NEED to start RUNNING!”

“We can walk fast but we need to get moving. They’re probably in Roxy Raceway by now,” Jake explained.

“Then quit jabberin’ and start shovin’ off!” Foxy said. He leaned sideways beside Gregory and pointed to his back. “It ain’t Freddy’s cake cubby, but it’ll getcha off the ground.”

“Cool, thanks.”

He climbed up onto his back and then shoulders and then Foxy led them out of the loading dock, knowing the way to the atrium by heart. Mike and Marionette following closely behind, then Jake and Sun, and the rest grouped up with the Staff Bots tailing at the back.

Everyone seemed fine enough with the ‘Get to Freddy first, ask questions later’ plan, but Sun couldn’t stop venting about the events of the night. About Monty, Gregory being kidnapped- to which Foxy checked in with him “Ya alright, Lad?” and Gregory returned a “I’m fine. I just want to find Freddy” -about the whole sordid ordeal. And then-

“I just didn’t think it was going to get this far! I knew he was COMPLETELY LOSING HIS MIND but I never thought he’d pull this! How could he do this?!” Sun vented, grabbing and pulling at his points.

“Hey, stop that,” Jake said. He reached over to pry his hands off. “We’ll get him back.”

“Getting Freddy back doesn’t fix the bigger problem!” Sun hissed.

At that point Marionette stopped in the hallway right in front of them.

“Andrew,” he said.

The sudden, quiet calmness of his voice betraying that he was listening the whole time. And more importantly, gave away that he understood what they were talking about.

“Yesss?” Sun replied, sinking into himself at that tone.

“Is Bunny Bonnie?”

“…Yes.”

“Has there ever been a time when Bunny wasn’t Bonnie?” Marionette asked. Turning back to face him, his glowing eyes landing on him.

“Well, umm…”

“No,” Jake answered. “Bunny’s always been Bonnie.”

“Oh.” Marionette looked ahead again. “…That explains plenty.”

“You know, that’s something you probably should’ve told us,” Mike said, shooting an irritated look between the two.

“Yeah, well-.”

“Ya shouldn’t have told US,” Foxy snapped. “Ya should’ve told FREDDY. Ya let him pal around with that Bunny creep?!”

“Bunny wasn’t always like this! He- He’s just… I don’t know what he’s thinking,” Jake quietly finished.

“He’s thinking about himself, that’s what he’s doing!” Sun snipped.

“So, wait a second, Bonnie’s been working with Vanny the whole time?!” Gregory cried.

“Oh ho ho, no, no. He’s not working with Vanny.” Sun clasped his hands in a mocking swoon. “He looooovvves her. She’s his Honeybunny sweetie pie who makes him do stupid, stupid, selfish things.”

“Oh my God, Bonnie’s Brad,” Natalie said. She slapped a hand on her face, causing her hat to get shoved up.

“Didn’t cross your mind at all to tell us that?” Mike added sarcastically. “Just thought ‘eh, it’s not a big deal! Let the rabbit lady run around swinging a knife at people’.”

“I couldn’t say anything! She’s… Vanny is trouble. The last time she was at the daycare, something happened…” Sun’s voice lost any of its fire as he started to hug himself.

Somehow, they all had the same hunch about what might’ve happened in the daycare. It was Marionette who intended to ask- only to be interrupted.

“We’re going so slow. We’ve got to hurry up and find Freddy!” Gregory said, mildly irritated by the whole thing.

“Here, here! Keep up, Landlubbers!” Foxy agreed.

They quickened up the pace and the others followed. Marionette exchanged a look with Mike and could tell he had the same suspicion. Likely they’d have to have a tag team talk to get the information later.

The silence was worse than in the car.

“This is tense,” Charlie whispered to Jeremy.

“Yeah. Hey, maybe you should tell them about your dream.” She gave him a look. “It’s a good ice breaker! Makes you think, kinda.”

Sun muttered something lowly. Charlie heard her name get said but couldn’t tell what he said, but did catch Jake’s quick shutting down with, “Later.”

She didn’t have the moxie to call him out and ask what he said. After they found Freddy, she thought, then she’d ask.

The group continued on out of the halls and into the Atrium. They were briefly joined by Moon before returning to Sun once they got into the lit Roxy Raceway.

“Where to?” Natalie asked.

“This way,” Jake said. He took the lead and led them back to an open fence and door in the back corner. “They already got in… Let’s hurry. Watch your step, it might be dark.”

Natalie came up to the front and she and Mike used their flashlights to light the way, with Smitty’s light doing a good job of keeping the group and floor around them illuminated. Unfortunately, they almost immediately hit rickety metal stairs, so Natalie had to tell them to stay back. They did so but almost seemed resistant, likely wanting to continue following Marionette.

After that, the glow of Moon and Jake’s panel helped keep the group from tripping on the stairs. Jeremy’s tiny keychain flashlight wasn’t very helpful but made him feel a little more useful.

Soon enough, they arrived at an open fence and an elevator.

“That’s where they went,” Jake said cryptically.

“Where’s it go?” Mike asked.

“All the way down.”

“Huh… Yeah, I seem to remember that,” he said. He looked to Marionette. “Y’know, when the place was just concrete and frames. This is where that giant drop was.”

“It was…” Marionette agreed pensively. “They must be hiding something down there.”

“Animatronic building factory?”

“Something much worse. Why hide a factory that builds the animatronics you present on stage?”

Noted. Something else was down there, not that Mike was surprised to come to that agreement.

“Does the elevator work?” Charlie asked.

“Only one way to find out…” Mike stepped forward and pressed the button. He could hear the elevator coming up. “Sounds like it works to me.”

“Then down the hatch we go!” Foxy proclaimed. He started to take Gregory down from his back and placed him alongside Jeremy before putting his hand on the blond’s shoulder. “Wait fer me here, Jer’my. I don’t want ya anywhere near that bunny.”

“Foxy, I can handle a knife.”

“I can’t,” Natalie said with a weary sigh.

“And I don’t think this elevator can handle the whole gang, so somebody’ssss’ are going to have to wait here,” Moon, who was currently shifting colors in the bright lights before the elevator, said. Leaning sideways on one leg, his upper half now still in enough darkness to stay blue while the kicked out leg shifted yellow.

“An’ that needs to be you,” Foxy reaffirmed. He took his hand. “Look, I’ll be back. An’ I rather know I’ve got ya here to come back to if I ain’t lookin’ so hot.”

“You? Impossible,” Jeremy joked. He managed a smile. “Alright, I’ll wait here. But just… Watch your six?”

“Aye, Lad.”

Foxy yanked him in by the arm and pulled him into a tight hug, one which Jeremy eagerly returned. He clutched to Foxy’s copper faux fur like he was going to race out of his grasp, but instead Foxy rested his head on his shoulder.

“You two should stay here,” Jake said, pointing between Fritz and Natalie. “You too, Mike. Bunny’s not… Bunny’s got a way with humans- we don’t know what he could do.”

“I’ve got a good idea what he can do. Don’t worry about it, I’ve been through it before.”

“Mike-.”

“I’ve had a rabbit try to possess me before. I can handle it,” Mike said a little more clearly.

Jake must’ve balked but due to his mask it looked like he stared and then leaned back a bit.

“I’m going too!” Gregory said.

“Over my dead body, and I lost that a long time ago,” Moon said.

Gregory shot him a look. “Yeah, well if you would’ve told Freddy that Bonnie was evil this wouldn’t have happened in the first place!” Moon noticeably slouched. “I’m going with you. If I wait up here, Vanny’s just gonna show up anyways!”

“Moonwort-.”

“You can come, Lad.”

Moon shot up, his body splashing yellow. “WhAT?”

Foxy ignored him, pulling back from Jeremy and kneeling in front of Gregory.

“Look, Lad. We might run into some bad stuff down there. I need ya to promise me that if things go down, I can tell ya to run and hide and count on ya to do it. No fighting.”

Gregory gave a serious nod. “Aye-aye, Captain.”

“I’m not about to let-!” Sunnymoon sputtered.

“Moon, boyo, take it from me.” Foxy looked up and pointed his hook at him. “Yer on thin ice here. Careful which hill ya plan to die on.”

That painfully blunt wakeup call snapped him to attention.

“…Fine. Gregory, you can come. I will protect you down there.”

“Thanks,” Gregory said.

He wasn’t necessarily mad at Moon. He just felt frustrated. Frustrated about someone he trusted not telling him the whole truth. Normally he would lose trust altogether but he couldn’t do that with Sun and Moon. They reached Freddy’s status of partial parent, Other Dad sort of thing. He could be upset but he didn’t think he could shut them out.

But the avoidance of a shouting match did help things.

“Should I bring my toolbox?” Charlie asked.

“I… I don’t know. I don’t think Freddy will be- at least, I hope he isn’t… No. We’ll have to move him into the elevator anyways. Any less extra weight is probably a good thing,” Jake said. “Just… be careful. I know you’ve had a few run-ins with her…” He lifted his control panel. “Now this I have to bring. Just in case we get stuck I can jumpstart the elevator… in theory.”

“Well, if not, at least I can escape,” Marionette said, trying briefly to lighten the mood. His stressed smile giving away his inner feelings exactly. He watched Natalie hand Mike a security walkie. “Oh, thank you.”

“I don’t know if they’ll work that deep in, but it’s better than nothing,” she said. “Goodspeed Schmidt.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Mike replied with a little salute. Then he took a deep breath as he stepped into the elevator.

His skin almost burned from the electricity in the air. He knew whatever lay at the bottom of this lift was going to change things forever. Even if it was just another part of the basement, something was being stashed down there and he was finally going to see it.

The others squeezed in around him, leaving the elevator feeling claustrophobic. Mike was practically face to face with Marionette, which he didn’t mind but it did allow him to hear his anxious ticking.

His ticking, Sun’s jingling, Charlie’s jingling, Foxy’s grumbling, and Jake’s fingers tapping on his control panel.

Gregory bumped into him with a light ‘omph’ and Mike reached down to ruffled his hair, which Gregory quickly fixed afterwards.

Then there was just another silent wait as the elevator slowly descended into the basement.

“I hope Freddy’s okay. This is going to kill Foxy if he isn’t,” Jeremy said. Now that said fox was gone, he allowed his true fears out.

“Anything that’s broken we can fix,” Fritz said, almost like a mantra. His thousand-yard stare said plenty. “We’ll tackle Monty once they find him.”

“You’ll have your work cut out for you,” Natalie warned.

“Yeah, but I’ve got nothing better to do.”

She put an arm around him, and he returned it, holding each other reassuringly. Jeremy was already feeling antsy, and he had a feeling that wouldn’t go away for a while.

All they could do was wait.

…

Two rabbit costumed beings stared at the large warehouse doors. This was it. By all accounts, this is where they had to be.

In perfect synchronization, both looked over at the keypad card reader mounted on the wall beside the double doors. Standing there as a reminder that there were two other layers of protection besides the doors.

“There’s always a catch. Ah well, leave it to me. I’ll crack this baby open,” Bonnie said, cracking his fingers. The already cracked plating around them came off in his hands. “Oh… Whoops.”

“Oh my gosh!”

“No, no! It’s okaaay! Look, see? All good!” Bonnie flapped his hands, more plastic pieces falling off with a clatter. “…Just ignore that! I’m one door away from a brand new me. It’s all good!” he said, flashing her finger guns and a grin. “Out with the old, in with the new!”

“Does it hurt?”

“Like a bitch!”

Despite herself, Ness snickered. She tried to cover the mouth of her mask and then her eyes, mortified. Bonnie just slid up beside her with a sly look in his eyes and hooked an arm around her waist.

“I’ve still got it.”

“I’m sorry, just the timing-.” She took his other hand in her gloved one and brought it to her mouth. She barely lifted the mask and kissed it with an audible ‘mwah’. “Better?”

“So much better, Nessie,” Bonnie murmured. He leaned in to nuzzle into her neck, getting a squeak out of her.

He missed this. She missed him.

“Let’s get that door open! I can hack it easily.”

But hacking a keypad in a place this restricted would probably lead to some sort of alarm going off. There had to be another way.

Ness looked around before noticing a closed vent beside the door behind her.

“Maybe you don’t have to…”

She pulled out of his grasp and walked over, crouching down in front of it. There was a trick to these vent covers; for some of them the bolts were shallow and they could be easily popped off. She pulled her knife from her boot and worked it under the cover, tugging and working, trying to see if this was one of the ones that would come out.

To her thrill and amusement, it did. A huge castle door kept under lock and key and then they don’t secure the vent big enough for someone to crawl through.

She hummed happily and slipped the knife back into her boot and then began to crawl inside. It was a tighter squeeze than she was expecting, and she had to keep her head down to not catch her ears.

Bonnie, meanwhile, sidled up behind her and took in the view.

“Honey, you look sooo good in your bunny costume,” he complimented.

She gave a little shake of her hips before continuing into the vent.

“You’ve got this, Princess!” he cheered.

He waited there obediently as he listened to her work at the cover on the other side. He grinned as he heard her pop it open. She then moved around on the other side and made her way back towards the other side of the warehouse door. Bonnie followed her, straining to hear her movements and cringing a little as she made it back to the keypad. Apparently there was no magic button to open the door.

A message came through.

“I’m going to try to hack it from this side.”

“Go for it!” Bonnie encouraged.

He waited a few seconds.

Then he shuffle-bolted to the keypad and quickly ripped it open. After breaking open so many old Staff Bots, this was a piece of cake, revealing the fragile circuitry beneath. He reached into his core and pulled out a bundle of wires and shoved it into the keypad.

“Come on. Come on…”

The wires shifted and dug in before suddenly connected. The tips heating and burning themselves into the mechanics beneath. He lost himself to a system of binary and checklists, brute forcing his way in and tearing at what he could until it did exactly what he wanted to.

There was a loud beep and a click before the warehouse doors started to slowly drag open. Bonnie hastily pulled the now partially wires back off, leaving some of the residue behind on the keypad. He ignored it as he shoved them back into himself and positioned himself beside the door so it would open up looking like he had been there the whole time.

Ness was waiting on the other side.

“Booyah! You nailed it, Nessie,” he congratulated.

“I did?” Ness asked coyly. She stepped in with her hands behind her back, but then quickly reached out and cupped his cheeks. Avoiding the large hole in the side of his head and instead flicking at his crooked whiskers. “Because it looked like I got a little help.”

“Heh. Well, maybe a little…” Bonnie admitted. Just as he was about to trap her hands under his, she pulled away.

“You have to see this.”

She stepped aside and he stepped in and took in the view.

What lay on the other side was a large warehouse stuffed with all sorts of bodies of all sizes. Unfinished animatronics, half-complete Staff Bots, stacked and huddled by the walls like they were just pieces of furniture instead of equipment. There were boxes too, stuffed with various pieces and parts. Dangling arms, random heads, the occasional metal pole or post.

But instead of feeling successful, Bonnie completely deflated.

“There’s no way they’re hiding those bodies in here. This is just where they shove all the extra stuff.”

“You never know. They might be somewhere in the back.”

“Ehhh, guess we should check. Look for a capsule of a tube or something. There’s no way they’re leaving them out in the open.”

The two split up. One to one wall and the other to the other, searching through the forgotten characters in darkness only illuminated by red glow. Bonnie still slouched with disappointment, but Ness bouncier with curiosity. She spotted something that caught her eye.

There was a mask on the floor stuck under a cardboard box. It looked like a Glamrock Freddy mask, but it was painted with red, white, and blue face paint. It reminded her of the classic Freddy masks, and she knelt down and pushed the box aside. She picked up the mask and turned it over in her hand.

“Cute,” she mused. She tucked it under her arm and began to look through the box. Nothing of interest. She stood up and looked around again.

Hidden off to the right beside what looked confusingly like a Glamrock hippo sitting on the floor was an oval shaped white pod. It looked to be one of the sensory deprivation tanks, but being shoved aside like this it couldn’t still be in use. It looked more like they were trying to hide it.

A failed project, possibly, surrounded by junk and backed by a pile of unfinished animatronics. Alternate bees, part of a backup Chica with yellow skin instead of white, a dog with a fluffed-up afro, even the half-finished form of Glamrock Foxy could be seen tucked into the way back corner. She stuck to the topic at hand.

She wanted to make sure the pod was what she thought it was. She stepped over the legs of the hippo and pushed past an old elephant suit propped up beside it. It slumped over with a thump, shooting up a plume of dust, and she pushed it aside with her boot before stepping over it and reaching out for the pod. The smell of bleach growing stronger.

The lid was cracked so she took hold and started to lift it-

When a hand shot out of the darkness from beside the pod and grabbed onto her wrist.

Ness screamed and quickly stumbled back, having to yank her arm out of the desperately tight grasp. She stumbled over the Glamrock Hippo’s leg and fell directly into Bonnie who thumped over fast enough to rival Roxy and pulled her tight to him, his eyes glowing a dangerous red.

But in a second that budding fury switched to confusion, and then uneasy as he saw the white gloved hand that had reached for her. Five watches of various times climbing up its arms.

“Crrrtzzneas…?” a hoarse older voice called. The arm reached out blindly. “Where… Where…?”

“Oh… Oh wow…” Bonnie looked him up and down. Then he started to back away, pulling Vanny with him. “Sorry. We can’t… help you. Sorry…” he said softly.

The hand continued to reach for a moment longer before dropping, seemingly more out of exhaustion than defeat. Bonnie kept leading Vanny away.

“Let’s go, come on. We can’t help him.”

“W-Who is he?”

“Beats me. But… H-Hey. Hey, come look at this.”

Ness was still very unnerved as Bonnie led her back to the other side of the big warehouse.

There she was shocked to see another rabbit animatronic. This one propped up and bungie tethered to a holding rack. It was shaped like a recolored Glamrock Chica, with pink legwarmers and a yellow painted-on leotard with multicolored speckles. Its wrists and ankles had fluffy white faux-fur on them.

She had a rounded head with pink eyes and lips on her bunny shaped mouth, a little black nose, and long eyelashes. She had paint on whiskers of neon pink and blue, which clashed some with the rest of the coloring.

But the most important part was the pattern on the face. Only there did it have brown spots painted on, specifically the large one around its eye. Just like Ness’ Bunnie design, just like Bunny true form.

This was Bunnie, the supposed replacement for Bonnie that had never come to pass. Though now both knew why; it looked like she was just in the final stages of being made. Intact Endo, no soul.

“Take a look, Nessie! It’s a girl!” Bonnie joked. “We finally became parents.”

Ness, still shaken, tried to play along. “Th-They grow up so fast! It seemed like just yesterday it was- she was just a painting on the wall!”

“Wait, wait. This isn’t even the best part. Just come right over…” Bonnie started to sidle, leading her along before stopping at another downed rabbit. “Here.”

This one was perhaps the exact opposite to Bunnie. Bonnie too. It was a dark indigo color, bordering on purple, with smaller, lifted ears with chips taken out of them- from the mold of the shell this was clearly on purpose. It had broad shoulders that sloped down to a narrower waist and then widened into the legs, giving it a lanky appearance.

It looked more than a hare than a rabbit, Ness noted. Its eye sockets were square and its eyes round bulbs in them, topped with rectangular brows. Its nose was flat and its jaw was chiseled, leading down to a toothy grin. It didn’t look like the broad teeth could open, but it did look like they could slide in to close the mouth.

There were lines throughout its body that looked like they would glow when activated. Down the top of its head into its eyes, and down its shoulders and chest, where it served for the lines on his painted-on, short sleeved, dark fuchsia bowling shirt. Its legs were painted black to resemble black pants, and its feet were styled like large bowling shoes that matched the shirt.

It looked like a villainous bowler. Which was, by far, only slightly less weird than the Glamrock Mr. Hippo.

“Is that supposed to be the new you?!”

“No, I’m pretty sure that is,” Bonnie said, pointing a thumb over at the girl bunny. “This must’ve been… Geez, I don’t know. My demented twin brother?” He nudged its foot with Monty’s. “Or he’s her twin and he’s the evil one.”

“Or maybe she’s the evil twin and is just putting on an act.”

“A true evil genius couldn’t pull off pink and baby blue. Besides, look at this guy. He’s chiseled! That’s a villain if I’ve ever… What in the absolute hell is that?”

Ness looked up anxiously and then off where he was looking, further towards the back of the warehouse. She looked as well and soon spotted a familiar green face.

“Is that… Monty?”

“That’s like seven or eight Montys. Hold on.”

Bonnie squinted his eyes and leaned in, almost losing his balance on his waist. Vanny turned up the lights in the eyes of her mask and leaned further in as well, illuminating the scene.

There was a duplicate Monty body standing near the wall with its shoulders slouched and head lowered, giving away that it had already been suited onto an endo. Though likely hadn’t been fully activated considering that it didn’t respond when they walked in. Endos were always twitchy; they would’ve had to have specifically shut this one off.

But that wasn’t the only Monty there. There was the upper portion of a shell on a rack, a box with multiple head parts, random legs and feet, the bottom end of another unfinished gator, and even more they weren’t seeing. Bonnie’s remark had been accurate, there were enough parts to make at least five other Monty Gators.

Though the entirely complete one didn’t bode well for the current Monty Gator.

“Oh buddy, you were totally screwed even before I came in and messed things up. Yikes,” Bonnie mumbled. “That could’ve been a Bonnie right there.”

Ness nodded. It could’ve been. They could’ve tried to replace him… Well, apparently they did, if the two rabbits were any indication.

Honestly, she wished they had made a backup Bonnie. They could’ve had a fresh slate just through that. Though they would’ve never gotten the amount of freedom this chance was going to give them. Between Bonnie or Brad, Brad was the one she’d be able to take to the beach, or to the bowling alley, or to the other side of the country.

If it was the same Bunny underneath it didn’t matter what he looked like.

“What’s on your mind, Baby?”

“What? Oh, nothing! Just a little creeped out. Don’t worry about it!” Ness chirped, doing a playful little sway.

“No, come on. I see something’s up.”

“I’ve just got a lot on my mind…”

“Then take it off your mind and lay it on me! That’s what I’m here for.”

“Well…” Ness sighed and fidgeted with her gloves. “It’s just that Natalie found out. She knew it was me.”

“Ouch. What’d she say?”

“It doesn’t matter what she said, I know how she feels… She thinks I’m a freak. My first real girl friend and she hates me.”

“Hey, hey. She doesn’t hate you.” Bonnie took up her hands in his own and lifted them, making sure to get her eyes on him. “She hates me. Let me take the fall for this. I’m the reason we got into this mess.”

He pulled her in and tucked her head under his chin in a comforting squeeze. Her fabric suit helping cushion his amount of broken plating.

“…Actually Monty is the reason we got into this mess. And god, Foxy’s,” Bonnie tacked on.

He was cut off by her returning the hug. Lifting up on her tiptoes to almost reach his height.

“Never mind that. The point is-… The point is that if she’s such a good friend she’ll find her way back to you. But right now, we can’t worry about her or anyone else. We’ve gotta just stay the course, get this hunk of plastic and polymer, and get out of dodge. So, let’s find this thing and then we can grab Jake and Andy and hit the road!”

“Do you really think they’re going to go with us after everything?”

“…N-… No? But I can’t leave without ‘em. Freddy?... He’ll be fine without me. He’s already moved on.” Bonnie squeezed her one more time with a sigh before pulling back. “If I have to drag their asses into that van and dump them off at the nearest junkyard then so help me, I will make that happen.”

Ness sounded a little amused. “I’m not sure if they’re going to be happy with…”

A beeping from her wrist cut her off. She pulled down her glove to see her Faz-watch and started to click on it, with Bonnie letting her go so she could work. In a few short seconds she jumped a little.

“Please tell me that’s a good flinch,” Bonnie said dryly.

Ness shook her head stiffly and audibly swallowed- though that could’ve just been Bonnie’s heightened hearing.

“They’re coming...”

“Oh, that’s just fantastic,” Bonnie huffed. “Just let me handle it. I’ll straighten out Andy, maybe we can patch things up because, God, if they try to stay here, they’re just as screwed as Monty.”

“No, it’s not just them,” Ness said nervously. Bonnie looked at her confused. “I think they, umm, brought ‘him’.”

Bonnie’s eyes glowed a sharp red. “They didn’t…”

“They did, he’s, uh, I see him right here.” Ness looked down at the feed on her Faz-watch. “I mean, I see the static. I can’t see really anything. It’s either him or the camera’s funky.”

The sudden heat that radiated off Bonnie was so intense that Ness could feel it through her skinsuit. She looked up at him and could see him starting to shake. His fans were creaking as they tried to kick on to deal with the rapid increase in temperature. His fingers were cracking in his tightly clenched hands.

This wasn’t good. They couldn’t afford to have him burn himself out now. That was exactly how they got in the battery situation to begin with.

“Honey, please, it’s okay,” she said. She tried to reach for him, but he hobbled back, raising a hand to signal her to stop.

“No, don’t. I’ll burn you. I’m- I’m good. I can handle this! I’m just, heh heh, so F̵̗͒I̷̮̍Ņ̶̾E̵̳͝ with this right now,” Bonnie said through his teeth. He clutched his fist with a loud crack, then relaxed it. “I’m cool, really. I’m fine, I just can’t believe how they could do this- I know it was them- how they could bring in that GOD, that worthless strung-up doll! Of course he’d come down here, the CLOWN FACED FU-!”

Bonnie turned and kicked over a box of spare limbs, nearly falling off his borrowed legs in the process. Ness grabbed his arm top stabilize him, hissing a little and pulling her hands away once he had steadied. The gloves protected her, but he heated up so fast-

She noticed he was silent. Silently staring at those spilled parts.

“Honeybunny?” she asked gently.

His eyes flicked to her.

“…I’ve got an idea.”

Ness perked up at that change of tone.

“Ooo, tell me,” she played along.  

Bonnie started to dig into his chest cavity as he turned back towards her. She lifted her hands to stop him when he pulled out a crumpled piece of paper and handed it over.

“I need five minutes. Think you can put on a show and buy me a little time?” he asked. His eyes glowing brightly, his grin felt through his broken face. He was up to something diabolical.

Vanny eagerly took the paper in her hands and unfolded it, realizing what it was.

“Wait, do you mean… You mean you want me to show them this?”

“Show them everything. That’s gonna kill him,” Bonnie agreed. “And then straight back here. Don’t let them corner you.”

“They never have,” Vanny assured. “Leave it to me.”

“I’m counting on you.”

“I won’t let you down.” She crinkled the paper in her hands, her eyes only on him. “It’ll be fun.”

“It’s going to be faz-fzzzting-tastic,” he promised.

Vanny bounded out the door with a life to her unlike any other and a skip to her step. She stopped at it to blow him a kiss and he played along and ‘caught it’ with his hand. And then she slipped around the corner and was gone.

But she wouldn’t be gone for long. This, all of this was for her- and him. This was it. This was his last chance. This was his only chance to fight for himself.

His body was broken, but he was surrounded by dozens that weren’t.

Bonnie grabbed tightly ahold of the waist of Monty’s legs and started to hoist himself up, sliding his innards out of it and letting them spill down the legs. The oil-slickened wires falling out of him in bundles, writhing with life as he tilted over and tumbled to the floor, catching himself with one hand.

The wires spilled out by the heaps and began to tangle into the remains of a discarded dog animatronic. It had no life in it and thus had no objections as the wires slid inside and took hold.

None of them did.

Chapter 95

Chapter Summary

Mike and Mari find out the terrible secret of the Pizzaplex. Along with a terrible truth from a diner long forgotten...

The group braced themselves as the elevator squeaked to a halt and the doors slid open. None of them knowing what to expect on the other side.

It was the last thing any of them expected, especially Mike and Marionette.

Because it looked like the doors opened right into Afton Robotics.

They were greeted by a small lobby room that immediately led into a sterile grey hallway that would’ve belonged better in a factory or laboratory. Cold tile on the floor, tight popcorn ceiling, and the only door they could see in the hallway before it turned around a corner was an automatic one.

It wouldn’t have been too shocking normally, but it wasn’t what any of them were expecting at the bottom of a hidden elevator in the corner of Roxy Raceway.

The lobby had no furniture in it, it was simply a docking station for the elevator. But that didn’t mean it was empty, as there was one noticeable thing slumping against the wall to the far left.

“Freddy!” Gregory shouted.

He pushed past everyone and ran over to his side, Foxy hot on his heels and soon kneeling at his other side.

Gregory tried to shake him awake with little success. “Freddy?! Can you hear me?!”

“Oiy, Freddy!” Foxy thumped his arm to no avail. “He’s out.”

“What’s wrong with him?!”

“If my suspicions are correct- Moon, open his arm up,” Jake said.

Moon had been standing there staring at Freddy, a hand clutched to his chest, when Jake’s voice snapped him out of it. He stepped over Gregory and leaned over him to get to Freddy’s arm, where he pressed and turned his spikey armband before pressing into a barely visible panel. As he released it opened up, revealing a few ports inside.

Jake knelt on one knee, balancing the control panel on his other endo one, and handed Moon a cord attached to his control panel which he plugged in. Within a few seconds, Jake was able to get an assessment.

“Just as I figured. Battery’s drained.”

“Can we just put him in a recharge station, or do we have to take him to Parts and Service?” Gregory asked.

“A recharge station should work. If there’s not one down here, we’ll have to take him back up to Roxy Raceway.”

Charlie looked between Mike and Marionette.

“So, what do we do now? Let Bunny go and take Freddy back up?” she asked.

Mike knew what his answer was, but he looked to Marionette for his. The Puppet’s expression was incensed and his answer delayed.

“You intend to still go after them,” Moon correctly guessed.

“Are you against that?” Marionette asked.

“Oh no.” Moon’s hand tightened on Freddy’s arm. “I insist.”

“Mike?”

“I’m in.”

“I thought you might be. Foxy?”

Foxy took one last look at Freddy before sighing and starting to stand up. “Aye.”

“But what about Freddy? We can’t just leave him here!” Gregory said.

“Honestly, kid, this is probably the safest place he could be right now. Bonnie already got what he wanted from him and he’s right beside the elevator to pick up on the way out… Besides, we’re going to need a dolly or something to move him,” Mike said.

“I’ll get ‘im moved,” Foxy reaffirmed.

“Okay… But if we hear something going on, we’re not waiting around. We’re coming back,” Gregory said firmly. He wasn’t happy until he got nods or agreements from most of them. Then he turned back to Freddy. “Don’t worry, Freddy. We’re not going to let them get away with this.”

In the back of his mind Gregory knew Freddy wouldn’t have been happy with the idea of them chasing Vanny down, but this time Gregory was sure that it was the right thing. Vanny was behind everything, her and Bonnie, and it was time to stop them and save the Pizzaplex once and for all!

They started to head into the hallway, with Jake unplugging himself and catching up and Moon gently caressing Freddy’s chin and squeezing his hand before following. Freddy did not stir.

“It looks like there’s only one way in here. If we check every room, nobody can get by,” Charlie said, perhaps still on the topic of Freddy.

“An’ nowhere to run,” Foxy added dangerously. “Starting with this ‘in.”

As though right on cue, the automatic door in the hallway abruptly slid open. Though it was far enough away from them that it didn’t seem possible that they could’ve triggered it. Foxy slung his arm out instantly, across Marionette and grabbing Mike’s shirt, blocking them both from moving another inch.

After a painfully long ten seconds or so, it became apparent that nothing was coming out through the door. Foxy began to inch ahead. Mike and Marionette tried to come up with him and he continuously swatted back to keep them at bay before peeking into the room.

It was a computer room. There was a circle of desks against the walls and some stationed in the center, all topped with top-of-the-line virtually identical computer monitors. An office chair pulled up neatly to each.

Well, except for one. A straight shot from the door, there was a computer that was on, casting a white glow across the dark room. The only light in the room. The chair was pulled out too, and it looked like there was a crinkled up piece of paper sitting on the seat.

Someone had left it like that on purpose.

Mike shined a light over his shoulder, and he promptly smacked it off out of principle.

“Looks like a trap,” Foxy grumbled.

“Or someone leaving us a message,” Marionette added, peeking into the room over his head.

“Hmm…” Foxy looked back and waved an arm to come. “Moon, go check it out.”

“What? Why me?”

“Ye’ve got security clearance. Ya won’t set off any alarms an’ you’ll dodge any traps.”

“Only half of that argument holds any water,” Moon retorted.

“Here, I’ll do it-,” Jake started.

“No.” Moon quickly caught his arm to stop him. “I’ll go.”

With that, he pushed past everyone and cautiously stepped into the room. His head tilting and face spinning as he listened carefully for the slightest noise, able to completely tune out his own ticks and jingles.

It was once he made it about three steps inside, slow cautious steps, that he realized there was no trap set to sprung.

He huffed and planted his hands on his hips. Not even caring to continue acting like Moon and just instantly reverting to Sun behaviors out of general annoyance.

“There is absolutely nothing in here,” he said. He walked over and snatched the crumpled paper off the chair. “Except this,” he mumbled and began to read.

The others started to file in, with Foxy staying close to the door to watch out for if someone tried to creep by and get to Freddy, leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed. The others migrated towards the on and open computer.

“Jake,” Moon said.

“Yes?”

“Jake, get over here.”

“Wait, what is it?”

“Just get over here.”

Jake hustled over to see the paper. They studied it together, bent over. Mike tried to get a look but was thoroughly blocked out, so he instead dropped into the abandoned office chair and looked at the screen.

There was a file explorer open on a folder called Pizzaplex and in it were a dozen or more files. Each one with a very basic name. Freddy’s Mega Pizzaplex, Glamrock Freddy, Glamrock Chica, ect. It got to some interesting ones towards the bottom that he noticed. Patient Zero, Protocol Zero, the Mimic, and more that he browsed with his eyes.

Marionette had no luck with Moon and Jake’s huddling either. In fact, Moon pointedly pulled the paper tighter in when the Puppet tried to hover above him. Getting the message, he turned his attention to the computer screen, resting a hand on Mike’s shoulder.

“What’s all this?” he asked.

“Looks like someone lined up a bunch of files,” Mike said. That much the puppet could see for himself, he realized. “It doesn’t look very professional. I think someone set this up for us to come find it. Look, there’s one about the Pizzaplex, each of the Glamrocks-.”

“Does that say ‘Afton Amalgam’?” Marionette pointed out. His mask shifting as though he was raising his brows.

“Huh. I guess it does,” Mike said blankly.

They sat there silently as he rolled the mouse over onto the file but hesitated in clicking it. Moon and Jake’s low conversation kept him hesitating, and he looked to Marionette before both looked back as they subtly listened in.

“This can’t be real, right?” Jake whispered.

“I don’t know, but thisss is exactly what’s he’s after. You know it is,” Moon said.

“Probably…”

“Not to mention he- or she- drew all over it.”

“Okay, definitely. Definitely this.”

“It’s definitely what?” Charlie asked.

They both looked back at her at the same time. She gave them a questioning shrug, and they looked at each other for a long second. Then Jake handed the paper over.

“It could be fake or it could be, I don’t know, a trap or something? I don’t think there’s any way… any way this can be legitimate,” he forewarned.

Charlie unfolded the paper and found it to be some sort of short, official document. In the space underneath it, someone had doodled a couple of rabbit faces and a somewhat atomically correct heart. Along with a rather unintentionally unflattering picture of Freddy’s head in the corner.

But it was the actual words on the paper that were the most important. She scanned them with her eyes before reading most of it out loud.

Talgart Industries has been revolutionizing the robotics industry for years. Making progress of human evolution through endeavors such as robotic Staff replacement, Human-to-Animatronic Simulation Tanks, and their research into life elongating technology. Nowhere is that technology used more than in the ABRP program.

The ABRP program has been investigating the key to human life and transmission of said life into a physical replacement body that perfectly resembles a natural human on the outside while being made of durable synthetic materials on the inside. The prosthetic body would, in theory, feel as natural as a healthy individuals and could add years, if not decades onto the patient’s life.

Testing with the ABRP program is currently underway-
Body Prosthetic #1 – Testing Completed
Body Prosthetic #2 – Testing Completed
Body Prosthetic #3 – Testing Underway
Body Prosthetic #4 - Pending

Further details on the project are restricted to workers on ABRP program and have signed the disclosure agreement.

“They’re building robotic bodies for humans to possess,” Marionette said in disbelief.

“Or trying to. Who knows if they had any real success,” Jake said.

“Perhaps not, but at least now we know what is so important for them to hide a lab down here. This… There is no possible way this experimentation is anything less than dangerous. There may be a freezer full of corpses down here!”

“And that’s the best-case scenario,” Foxy cryptically added.

“I wish I could say I’m shocked, but I’m not,” Mike remarked. They looked at him and he shrugged. “I mean at this point why not? We know something’s going on here, they’ve got what looks like Afton Robotics hidden down here. Them secretly researching androids doesn’t shock me at all…” He paused a moment, tapping his fingers on his leg. “What DOES shock me is that this is the closest we’ve got to any Freddy’s admitting that there’s hauntings going on. They’ve got to know something about that if they’re talking about humans becoming robots.”

“We need to keep looking,” Charlie said.

“Yeah, and I know just the place.”

He turned back to the computer.

“Let’s see what Vanny wanted us to find.”

He started to pull up the first file, the one on the Mega Pizzaplex.

“This is what Bunny wants,” Moon clarified as he did, taking the piece of paper from Charlie and holding it up between her and Jake. “He’s always searching for a body. This is it. He wants his ticket back to humanity.”

“And what happens if he gets it? What’s he going to do?” Charlie asked.

“Anything he wants. Just like he always does,” Moon vocally sneered. “Only cares about himself.”

“I don’t care if Bunny wants a body. If he does then I would be happy to assist in moving him into any animatronic he would like, but I draw the line at giving him access to one that looks human. None of us should have that. It’s too dangerous,” Marionette solemnly explained.

“Sure, but- if you could, would you? You know, move into an android?” Jake asked.

“No,” the Puppet said with no hesitation.

With a break in the conversation, and his eyes still glued to the screen, Mike began to read out what he had found.

Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex-

Talgart Industries and Fazbear Entertainment’s first active collaboration. Being spearheaded by Dr. Talbert and Dr. Taggart.

“Taggart?! He’s-?!” Jake started.

“Alive?! The old fool!” Andrew finished.

“You know him?” Charlie asked.

“Yes!” both shouted together.

“He’s the one who put us together in the first place!”

“And tore us apart to do so!”

“And wouldn’t listen to me when I told him I was a real person, not a toy!”

“He’s a monster! Even more than Bunny could’ve ever become,” Andrew hissed. “Who knows how many souls he experimented on trying to prove his theory on Agony.”

Now Marionette was nearly staticing up but he swallowed it as much as he could.

“Mike, keep reading, please. We need to know what’s going on here.”

So, Mike did.

“The Pizzaplex aims to be an open environment for the creation and collection of remnant while also doubling as a business venture to fund further studies moving forward. Due to the amount of frequent guests, including children- who have been noted as the most successful candidates to leave Agony infused objects after death- the Pizzaplex will cultivate new opportunities for research and development moving forward while Fazbear Entertainment will cover any legalities that may get in the way of progress.”

“And there it is, the mark of Taggart. It oozes all over this,” Andrew hissed out, gesturing a frustrated hand towards the computer.

“I can’t believe he’s still alive... I mean, I’m glad we didn’t kill him, but I can’t believe he’s here!” Jake said. Charlie gave him a funny look. “It’s a long story, but we accidently pushed a bookcase onto him.”

“You might’ve accidentally pushed it, but I didn’t,” Andrew swiftly corrected.

“What’s ‘Agony’?” Gregory asked.

“It’s this hot burn. This overwhelming animatronic fever that fills your mind with screams when it flares up,” Andrew explained cryptically.

“Creepy.”

“Taggart believed in the power of emotions. He thought it wasn’t souls that would haunt animatronics, but memories and feelings,” Jake explained, mostly directed to Charlie. “That’s why he’s so dangerous. I actually spoke to him, and he didn’t believe I was real. He just thought I was some sort of living memory.”

“Then what’s all this talk ‘bout remnant. That supposed to be us?” Foxy asked.

“I think so. Unless we’re supposed to be the Agony-infused objects.”

“I think it’s both,” Charlie spoke up. “I think they’re trying to make sense of the hauntings. Remnant has to be like a ‘remnant’ of a person. The souls that are left when a person dies, the spiritual remains. At least, that’s what it seems like.”

“So, lemme just rephrase this-,” Foxy said. He pointed at the screen. “It says they built the Pizzaplex just so they could farm haunted animatronics.”

“It seems like-.”

“And they said right up there- where’s it? Right here that children are the successful candidates.”

“And over here-,” Mike started to add, but was cut off by the continuing Foxy.

“An’ you two said this Taggart fella knew somethin’ ‘bout these haunted animatronics, but he thought they be haunted by ‘feelings’.”

“Something like that,” Jake agreed.

“An’ here? Says Fazzy’s coverin’ the legalities. The lawsuits.”

“The lawsuits,” Marionette echoed, it finally clicking for him.

“So, lemme straighten this out fer all’a ya, because I’m thinkin’ I’m the only one who got this straight,” Foxy said. He thumped his hook onto the desk, it lightly stabbing into the table. “The Pizzaplex was built so kids would die here an’ they’d become haunted robots fer them to study.”

There was an eerie silence across the group.

“That’s exactly what it’s saying,” Mike said.

“That… That can’t be what it’s saying,” Jake said.

“That is what it’s saying. Isn’t it?” Andrew asked. More of his Sun persona slipping into his voice as the anxiousness crept up. “That’s what they meant.”

“That is what they meant,” Marionette said with completely clarity. “That is exactly what they meant.”

“Bloody ‘ell that explains so much…” Foxy mumbled.

And it did. It seemed so matter of fact at first but after a moment of thinking Mike suddenly got the repercussions. Was that why there were so many risks? ‘Unstable’ animatronics? Unfinished rides? Were they purposefully riding the risk in the hopes that someone would die so they could use it for their work.

Is that why the footage automatically erased every night?

…Did they know about Vanny? Somewhere in his gut Mike had a suspicion that they did.

Charlie leaned over his shoulder to see more. He pulled up the files for her and after a moment she pointed one out.

“There! Click on that!”

“Patient Zero,” Mike read.

“We heard something about a Patient Zero, right? Well, let’s see what this thing is.”

Mike agreed and eagerly clicked on it and the others closed in around him to see. Charlie at his right, Foxy at his left, Gregory trying to push in in front of Foxy and Moon and Jake over Charlie’s shoulders.

Marionette was standing behind him with his hands on the back of his seat peering overtop his head. Mike felt him jerk as the file opened. He had reacted to it faster than anyone else had.

He gave a sharp, staticky gasp.

…

Patient Zero-

Manifesting in a 1980s-centric model Fazbear Prize Puppet, this embodiment is the creator of other remnant constructs seen throughout the history of the phenomenon. Ergo the name Patient Zero, as it is believed to be both constructed of the Agony created by the victims of the original Freddy’s and has spread it through other machines. It is to date one of the only known consistent creators of remnant and is capable of manipulating the substance to create synthetic life. Due to its multitude of unexplained paranormal abilities, it is believed to be a hivemind similar to the Afton Amalgam.

It is currently homed in Foxy’s Pirate Cove where it is kept in stability. It is docile towards children and adult caretakers and currently not seen as a threat. Moving forward- our hope is that Patient Zero will be coaxed into the Pizzaplex facility due to the surplus of emotional auras where we can study its effect on replicating false life.

Final call is to leave Patient Zero active in the wild to encourage the production of more remnant constructs. Protocol Zero is prepared if there is need of quick capture.

…

“It’s me.”

The picture above the passage, which was what everyone instantly reacted to, was one of Marionette himself mounted at the Prize Counter from the old Freddy’s. The one Fritz and Jeremy worked at.

“WHAT?!” Foxy barked. “WHAT?! DO YOU- ARE YA SEEIN’ THIS?!” He turned to the still stunned Marionette. “THAT’S YOU! THEY GOT- THEY’VE GOT ME LIL BROTHER IN HERE!”

“They know about us,” Marionette said quietly.

“E-Everyone just calm down. Maybe this isn’t what it looks like,” Jake tried.

“Then what is it then?! You read it! What’s that-?!” Foxy leaned in to read and then pulled out to recite, “LEAVE PATIENT ZERO ACTIVE IN THE WILD?!”

“They know about us…?” Marionette repeated. His voice growing more fearful.

“Mari,” Mike said and grabbed his hands. He didn’t know what he was requesting, just holding him there, eyes wide in the same dread and shock that took the Puppet.

“This better not be another trick by Bunny- I swear if it is- I swear if it is-!” Andrew rambled.

“I’d maybe believe that if there wasn’t THAT WHOLE PARAGRAPH ‘BOUT THEM MAKING THE PIZZAPLEX FER COLLECTING DEAD KIDS!” Foxy waved frantically. “AND MARI’S THE HARVESTER!”

Marionette was taking this just as hard, but on the opposite side was deathly quiet. Slowly reeling as he stared at the screen. Mike quickly closed the file, returning to the list so he didn’t have to see it, and turned back to him, taking his hands once again.

“It’s going to be okay. We’ll figure this out,” he said.

There’s no way he could promise that, but he still was adamant in doing so. It was all he really could do.

Because it was clear that he was internally freaking out just as much as Marionette was. He didn’t swear, he didn’t shout, he just instantly went on autopilot- that alone showed that he knew how serious this was.

Because there was a huge difference between knowing about the hauntings and knowing about him.

Marionette’s pupils flicked between him and the screen, locking onto a familiar name under the files. He locked onto it, the ticking and static slowly growing in his chest.

“Wh-Whose the Afton Amalgam…?” Marionette timidly asked.

Mike looked back over his shoulder at the screen.

“Christ, it’s probably Ennard,” he muttered in realization.

Charlie took the initiative to grab the mouse so that she could click on and open the file for the Afton Amalgam.

The picture supplied with the file was unfamiliar, but able to be dated instantly. It was Ennard, but he was wearing a weird Freddy mask and sitting in a dark room at a desk.

“Bloody ‘ELL that’s the-! The-!? Pizza- FAKE pizzeria, bloody mother of Mary- That be taken by Chance!” Foxy sputtered out.

Something about this was what finally tipped Foxy over the edge. He then proceeded to start to spasm and shake, letting out disjointed noises as he twitched and sputtered.

“Foxy!” Gregory shouted. “What’s wrong with him?!”

“He’s just haywiring, he’ll be okay,” Mike hastily answered. He got up from his chair and grabbed Foxy by the shoulders. “Hey! HEY! Foxy? Can you hear me? We’ve got this! We’ll fix it! I need you to try to reel it in, okay? Just ease it down.”

Marionette snapped out of his haze at Foxy’s predicament and rushed in to assist, reaching for his arm. But much to his shock, Foxy flinched away from his touch reflexively. Almost like it burned him.

He thought he was just overwhelmed at first. It wasn’t until Marionette yanked his arm to his chest that he realized how warm he was, feeling how cool his buttons were compared to his fabric.

The overheating had come back, just like it always did when he got upset. Except this time he had a name for it.

The Agony. Could that be what was inside of him? Where did it come from, that Skinny Baby? No, earlier than that. That overwhelming heat and noise, there was only one place that even sounded close.

The Red Lake.

The burn they mentioned, the burn he felt when he grabbed Vanny, it felt too much like the sensation inside of that Red Lake. Like he had somehow brought it out with him.

As Jake quickly toted a chair over and got Foxy to sit down, with him finally starting to get control over it without shutting down all the way. Mike still had to help him sit down though with how rigid he was and nearly got kicked in the shin by Foxy’s twitchy legs. Jake tried to help assure him as well.

This left Moon open. Marionette turned towards him.

“Do you… know anything about a red lake?” he quietly asked.

Moon tilted his head in confusion. “No…?”

Maybe he was wrong. Maybe he was mistaken.

“But…”

Or maybe…

“Bunny did. He mentioned having a dream about it once.”

Oh no.

What did that mean?

“Is it real? Have you seen it?” Moon quietly asked.

“I have,” Marionette whispered back. “I drowned my father in that lake.”

Dull unlit points popped out of the side of Moon’s head, the only sign of his shock. He quickly shoved them back in with one hand.

Charlie was leaning over the desk finishing the file on Ennard. It was alarming, to say the least. With the picture being the least of the issues.

…

Afton Amalgam-

This construct of pure Remnant is believed to have been created through the fusing of the Circus Baby band located inside of Circus Baby’s Rentals/formerly Afton Robotics. It is unknown how it came to be but from a journal entry written by the late Chauncey Evans, it may have been an experiment of William Afton’s.

The Afton Amalgam is capable of shifting its body into any form and mimicking voices it has heard. Due to this, it may have also consumed the initial Mimic Prototype, of which the current location of is unknown. It is known to cannibalize other animatronics to reinforce its body and through this likely holds a surplus amount of Agony.

Due to the danger the amalgam poses, attempts to have made to locate and trap it to little success. Eyewitnesses have reported seeing it near the Hurricane City junkyard and further attempts will involve the surrounding area.

Decoy has been dispatched in the Hurricane City junkyard.

Decoy was dismantled by unknown sources and confiscated by local law enforcement. Efforts for retrieval are underway while second decoy is primed for release.

…

“Geez, Ennard. Quite a reputation you’ve got here,” Charlie mumbled. Though there was nothing comedic about this situation. She turned back towards Marionette and Moon. “They’re trying to find Ennard…” she spoke up. “It says something about them leaving decoys to try and find him, and they know he hangs out at the dump. No surprise there though, half of town knows.”

“Oh Ennard…” Marionette said somberly. He slouched for a second before straightening quickly. “You said decoys?”

“A decoy that was dismantled and confiscated by the police,” Charlie said cryptically. “Maybe that fake Baby that attacked that girl in the junkyard?”

They shared a concerned look.

“It had a chip that said Talgart Industries inside of it,” Moon revealed.

“How did you know that?” Charlie asked in surprise.

“Michael told Jake and Jake tells me everything.”

“Could they have sent the other one too…?” Marionette asked distantly.

“The one that broke in? They couldn’t have. Baby said they found it at an amusement park.”

“But it had the same heat! The same- The Agony we were just talking about!” he said, gesturing to Moon beside him. “It cannot be a coincidence!”

“You’re right, and you know what? I bet there’s a file here that’ll tell us all about it,” Charlie said.

With a look of determination, she closed out the file and began to scan through the list. That’s when she found another title of interest hidden in the codenames of various animatronics.

“Hey…” she said quietly. “They have one about Protocol Zero in here.”

Marionette leaned in beside her. She looked down at his arm in surprise.

“You’re very warm…” she said.

She was a clever woman, Marionette thought. He knew she had already figured it out when she looked up at his mask questioningly. He just stared at the computer screen, at that file was labelled ‘Protocol Zero’.

“Open it. Please.”

Charlie did, and within seconds the world came crashing down again.

Mike was alerted to something being wrong by the ringing tone that suddenly invaded his ears. A high-pitched sound, almost like the ringing in your ears you might get from a cold. Except Foxy heard it too and was shuffling uncomfortably because of it before leaning to look past Mike at the source. Mike followed his gaze and looked over his shoulder.

He found Marionette shaking with a look of absolute horror on his mask. His arms up and hands grabbing his head as he stared at what was on the screen. The pitchy tone was coming from him.

Mike rounded so fast he almost made himself dizzy and leaned in on the desk to speed read whatever was opened up.

And what he found was absolutely devastating.

Protocol Zero - procedure for capture and containment of Patient Zero.

The Glamrock band has been formatted with specialty parts for use in Protocol Zero with necessary programming to be downloaded upon initiation. As programming may become unstable, updates to the software will not be released until the protocol has been confirmed with both Dr. Talbert and Dr. Taggart.

Upgrades are as followed:

Chica- Voice box, for luring and disruption of music-based programming.

Monty- Claw enhancement, for quick nullification of wire string mechanism.

Roxy- Enhanced eyes to detect nearly invisible apparitions and track paranormal hot spots.

Inactive upgrades:

Freddy- Reinforced stomach hatch for containment. (Interior and latches have not been installed)

Bonnie- Audio Receptor to detect paranormal frequencies and track. (Out of Service)

They didn’t just know about Marionette. They had plans to capture him.

They had purposefully lured him here and had the means to contain him if they decided to. Luring, stomach hatch containment, that picture of Ennard-

They knew about Lefty. They knew what made Marionette tick.

Mike was about to have a panic attack.

It crept up on him, but it was there now. With him breaking into an instant sweat and it starting to feel watery under his tongue. He was nauseous all of a sudden, and the room seemed to be crushing in around him. All hot and suffocating, and him struggling to get it under control fast because he couldn’t freak out at a time like this.

Then Marionette said in a surprisingly calm tone, “I think I’m about to explode.”

“Just- Just give me a second,” Mike said. He pinched bridge of nose, trying to calm down. Only a second later having his brain process enough to remember that he needed to be there for him, not himself.

He finally dared to look at Marionette. He was in the same pose but now looking at Mike with a devastated look. Not missing a beat, Mike pulled him into a tight hug.

“I’ve got you,” he promises. His throat is tight as he spits out a low, “They’re not going to lay a goddamn finger on you, you hear me? Not a finger. I swear to God,” in an unfiltered ramble.

Marionette could only squeeze him back. His eyes still wide with fear as he did so.

“What’d it say?” Foxy slurred.

“Uh,” Charlie started only to see Jake shaking his head and making x’s with his hands. “It’s talking about how if Patient Zero, Mari, got out of control they’d try to capture him.”

She assumed a gentle half-truth would be better than a lie.

“…IT BLOODY SAYS WHAT?!”

Apparently not.

“Calm down. Relax, okay? You’re going to burn yourself out,” Jake forewarned Foxy. He squeezed his shoulders, giving him a small shake to try and bring him back down.

“IT SAID-?!”

“I know what it said, but you can’t do anything if you’re on the verge of sputtering out,” he affirmed. “Nothing’s happened yet, right? We’re alright.”

“Oh, sssomething has already happened…” Moon said cryptically.

“What’s happened?” Gregory asked. He had been uncharacteristically quiet through the whole thing, watching the grown-ups in the room panic and breakdown over stuff that he didn’t even know about.

“They found out about us,” Moon continued. He leaned over to look at the screen while reaching to corral Gregory in closer with his arm, feeling threatened by the whole ordeal. He pointed at the file list box half covered up. “Find the one for Glamrock Bonnie. We need to know how much they think they know.”

Charlie pulled it up. She was rightfully stunned. “Oh! Okay. Glamrock Bonnie. Currently possessed by the entity believed to be the shadow of William Afton.”

Marionette’s face twisted up into something between disgust and rage. He wasn’t about to explode; he was about to engulf in flames.

He very quickly pushed himself back at arm’s length of Mike, holding him by the arms but trying to not burn him, and twisted his head around to glare at the computer. Then snapped the rest of the way to look at Moon.

“That better be wrong,” he warned. His voice echoing underneath layers of static and twangs.

“It is,” Jake said. Marionette glancing at him out of the corner of his eye. “You’ve got every right to be suspicious, there’s… there’s a lot we haven’t told you. But not that, you would’ve known.”

“Bunny had his life ended by him,” Moon said with upmost sureness. “He hated him almost as much as you do.”

“And you believe him?”

“I don’t believe anything Bunny ever said to me, but I know it was true.”

Marionette’s features softened up but he still looked concerned and confused. “But the Red Lake…”

“What about the lake?” Mike asked.

“Bunny has seen the lake.”

Marionette turned his head back to explain more and that’s when he finally noticed that something was wrong with Mike. He had a somewhat unfocused look in his eyes and he was running his fingers through his hair almost obsessively, trying to quell the panic and focus. All it took was a second of attention to notice how high Mike’s heartrate was getting too.

That snapped Marionette out of the overwhelming, intense feelings long enough to recognize what was happening. He came to his aid quickly, putting an arm around him and starting to turn and guide him to the door.

“Let’s step outside,” he coaxed gently.

Foxy started to get up. “Lad-.”

“I’m fine. It’s Mike,” Marionette assured.

“Yeah, throw me under the bus,” Mike joked. Or tried to joke through clenched teeth. He accepted the out without hesitation. “Just give us a second. We’ll be back.”

“Aye. Careful,” Foxy agreed. He let himself sink back onto the office chair and watched them leave.

They stepped out into the cold, sterile hallway once more. Marionette pressed the Freddy head button on the outside wall, closing the door and giving them privacy. Then he turned to Mike, wrapping his arms around his middle and pulling him close. Mike hugged back. He could feel how warm his fabric had gotten but was relieved when there was no burning, stinging, or auditory hallucinations.

Just a warm puppet holding him in a cold hallway.

“Deep breaths,” Marionette said.

“Yeah. I’m fine. I’m fine,” Mike assured.

“No, you’re not. But that’s okay. I’m not fine either.”

They stood there for a little bit. Eventually Mike’s heartrate lowered and the rush of panic was replaced with a post-adrenaline crash. He felt alright. He felt like he made an ass out of himself, but he felt alright.

Now time to check on Marionette.

He drew back to see his face. It was pointless to ask if he was okay, he clearly wasn’t. That too-wide smile gave him away.

“What’re you thinking, Stripes?” he asked.

“Oh, nothing much,” Marionette said.

A beat. That expression started to break, the smile growing tense and the eyes growing soft and sad.

“It looks like I have more fans than I realized!” Marionette joked. Strained, with a laugh that twanged behind every chime.

Mike just pulled him back into another hug. He held the slender doll tightly in his arms.

“I meant what I said. They’re not going to get you,” he promised.

“That’s not what I’m worried about…”

There were dozens of things to worry about. The pizzeria, their customers, the others, the other animatronics- them. That’s what Marionette was likely thinking about. Them and Lefty, and Glamrock Freddy.

“Christ, he was in his stomach,” Mike realized. The panic started to rise again, but he put a stop to it. He forced himself to reign it in and stop thinking about it. Later, not now. “Sorry I freaked out. I just got spooked, I know his isn’t about me.”

“Of course it is. This is about both of us. All of us,” Marionette said. “And I’d rather you freak out than me.”

“Thanks.”

“Well, at least then I can do something about it!” he chimed. Emphasizing by giving him a tighter hug.

For a second it almost felt like normal. Like the whole world as they knew it hadn’t just spiraled out of control.

And then Mike just happened to get a feeling. That sort of feeling that makes you check over your shoulders and make sure someone wasn’t there. He didn’t even get that far, just turning his head enough to see the end of the hallway.

A white rabbit head was poking around the corner. It was Vanny.

Marionette felt Mike tense up and hugged him tighter, nuzzling his mask into his cheek with a soft trill. Trying to assure him, entirely oblivious as Mike blankly stared at Vanny, expecting her to bolt. She didn’t.

“Don’t look now-,” Mike started.

Marionette promptly snapped his head around and instantly locked his eyes onto Vanny.

She had been somewhat cartoonishly peeking around the corner. Her ears bobbing and her fingers hooked around the corner. But when Marionette looked at her, she flinched upright in alarm, still staring but looking like she was preparing to run.

There was a long silent pause where she stood there with Marionette staring her down. Neither making a move.

Until Mike took a step and leaned forward around Marionette to press the button for the door. It opened with a clatter that echoed in the silent hallway.

“Hey, she’s out here,” he called in.

An instant later Foxy came tearing into the doorway. Vanny saw him, turned on her heel, and bolted off.

“OIY! You come back here right now an’ give us some answers!” Foxy barked and sprinted after her. Ignoring any calls to stop him as he sped around the corner.

Vanny didn’t go far. She bolted down the length of the hallway and stopped halfway down at a large open doorway that led into a big, dark room. She didn’t go in though, nor did she pay attention to the reinforced double doors at the end of the hall or the closed security doors on the opposite side of the hallway.

She stopped right before that opening and spun around. Pressing something on her wrist as she did, which made her eyes alight in their normal glow. Then she stood upright with her arms tucked behind her and her heels together, watching as Foxy skidded to a stop. She shuddered a little seeing him, no doubt uneased by how close he got before he stopped.

But Foxy wouldn’t dare get any closer than five feet. Not when she turned to challenge him like that. It became clear that this was some sort of a setup, and he held an arm back as the others came around the corner behind him, signaling them to stop too.

He stared her down. They all did, waiting to see what she was going to do. A whole swatch of animatronics, all of which were faster than her- except possibly Jake- a man, and one angry child.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, tilting her head. “We’re you looking for little old me? I’m right here.” She waved her hands tauntingly. “Don’t be afraid. I’m just a woman in a costume, aren’t I?”

“A sheep in wolf’s clothing, maaaybe,” Moon hissed. His own head cocked mockingly. “Where is he?”

Vanny just stared back.

“What’s wrooong, little rabbit?” Moon continued to jeer. “I asked, where is-?”

An arm reached out of the dark entryway and clawed at the tiled ground behind her. It looked like an endoskeleton arm.

Jake came forward with a start to see, caught by Moon who kept him back. “Bunny?!” he called worriedly.

The endoskeleton arm slid along the floor before grabbing onto Vanny’s ankle. She didn’t even flinch. Then another arm came out of the darkness to grab onto the doorframe. This one green with black tipped claws.

The third arm was a dark purple color, as was the fourth, and when they pulled together out lurched a half-incomplete torso with a flower on its chest. There was a dog animatronic laced to its back by oily black wires mixed with its own internal wiring. A matted mess of electronics wiring the bodies together.

And even more flowed out amongst them. So many torsos, random legs and arms, and occasional heads sticking out of the mix. No less than three Monty Gator bodies, a dog, what looked to be Mr. Hippo, a large boxy machine with a broken smiley face on the front, several Staff Bots, an orange arm with a purple wrist guard and a hook at the end like Foxy’s, what looked almost exactly like Glamrock Chica except she was yellow-.

It was a mountain of animatronics. A massive amalgam that nearly filled the entire hallway, crawling with its many arms and less legs.

And one stood at the top. He grabbed onto the top of the doorway with his sharpened bass-playing claws, now freed from any casing, and ducked underneath to full reveal himself.

Glamrock Bonnie, merely a torso himself, with the mound beneath him replacing the legs he had abandoned. His shell cracked in broken and black oil stain down the side of his face from his broken left eye. His ears bumped the ceiling, and he had to keep his head tilted forward just to fit, which only succeeded in allowing him to look down upon them.

His eyes glowed in an ominous red that perfectly matched Vanny’s own, and his mouth was agape in what was no doubt a beaming smile.

“You the guys giving my girl a hard time?” he asked.

His eyes locked onto someone and glowed even brighter.

“Hey, look who finally showed up!”

Vanny sidestepped to the wall, their only warning before the mound of limbs and animatronics suddenly lurched in. Careful not to hit her but crashing against the floor and walls as it rushed them.

The group reacted quickly. Moon grabbed Gregory and spun around, pushing him out of the way, Jake grabbed Charlie from behind and yanked her away, and Foxy leapt in front of the lot and raised his hook threateningly.

Only to be promptly shoved aside and into the wall, pressed in by a cluster of hands.

Marionette only had a second to duck in front of Mike before Bonnie’s face was shoved into his own.

“About time you got here,” Bonnie said.

He was talking to him. Marionette’s surprise was short-lived, Bonnie’s challenge not slipping by unnoticed.

“Oh, our meeting was definitely overdue,” Marionette replied. He boldly gave a bow, pupils glowing up at the rabbit. “I am Marionette, you may know me as the Puppet. Or I know you certainly do.”

Bonnie didn’t look impressed. His mouth starting to close, closing up that smile as his eyes narrowed.

“I know you by a lot of words I’m not allowed to say in front of kids,” Bonnie spat back. The grin returned. “I’m going to take a guess and say Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumbass over there didn’t tell you who I am. No doubt to protect themselves, considering they brought you down here to beat my ass. Well, guess what?! I don’t HAVE an ass to beat anymore! Frrrrrztkn Monty Gator made sure of that,” Bonnie spat, pointing down at the Monty down at his base.

“Monty…?” Jake asked in quiet horror.

“One of the seven Montys held up in that room. All of which would’ve been a better Monty than he was,” Bonnie clarified. He looked at Marionette now, giving him an unenthused look. “And they’re all empty, so you don’t have to come in here and try to save a bunch of souls or whatever those idiots who run the place think you do. He saw the files, right Honeybunny?”

“They saw them,” Vanny agreed. She now stood beside the wall, carefully framed by limbs to keep from getting crushed. She didn’t seem concerned in the slightest.

“Oh, we saw them alright,” Mike added.

“Good! We can cut back on a whole lot of explanation.” A whole new glow took to Bonnie’s eyes as he spread out his arms- his real arms. “I’m BONNIE THE BUNNNY! The classic, the original! Coming to you live from where fantasy and fun come to life!” he boasted.

Marionette smiled blankly back. The slightest edge of confusion tightening his brow.

“Familiar, isn’t it? That tagline. You remember it. The old place.”

They were interrupted by Foxy grunting. He shoved back an arm only to have the hand smack onto his muzzle, sliding between his teeth to silence him.

Of course, that didn’t work when he had an internal speaker.

“Get yer hands off’a me!” Foxy snarled.

“Please let my brother go,” Marionette requested.

“No, he’s mine now,” Bonnie said non-seriously. “I’m doing something here. Pay attention.”

Mike subtly tried to step up to Marionette’s side, but he blocked him, gave him a firm push back to keep him behind him. Bonnie acknowledged him only with a glance.

“That your boyfriend?” he asked.

“He’s much more than that, but yes.”

“Huh. Cool,” Bonnie dryly answered. Almost as though he already knew. “Looks like we share one thing in common… Oh wait, there is that other thing. Y’see, you and me? We go way back, and you don’t even know it.”

“What do you mean by that?” Marionette asked. He then interjected before Bonnie could answer. “I was the one who put you in your original body,” he guessed.

“No, but good try,” Bonnie replied, unimpressed.

Then he grinned again, though now there was something ominously threatening in it. Maybe it was the way the arms attached to his mass twitched and clenched into fists. He was trembling too.

“You came from the same diner, you and me. We’re like brothers! Except no, we are not.”

“Well, of course. My brother is-,” Marionette started to gesture towards Foxy.

“Our dads worked together,” Bonnie interrupted.

Marionette’s eyes widened.

“They… did?” Charlie quietly asked.

Bonnie momentarily glanced at her before quickly glancing away.

“Yeah, that’s right.” He gave a shaky shudder, all the limbs beneath him twitching in reflex. “My dad really, really loved Bonnie. Like, really loved Bonnie. I think he loved him more than me. Scratch that, I know he did. He didn’t love anybody as much as he loved Bonnie.”

His eyes narrowed. “Except for you.”

“What are you saying?” Marionette quietly asked.

“You. The only thing he loved more than that piece of shzzzzt,” Bonnie spat. “You getting it yet?”

“Are you talking about-?”

“Let me phrase it in a way that’ll get through that thick porcelain of yours,” Bonnie said. His voice lowering dangerously. “You are N̵O̸T̷H̸I̸N̷G̷ but MY r̸e̴p̵l̸a̵c̴e̶m̷e̵n̵t̵.”

Marionette’s mask morphed into shock. His heart might’ve dropped and shattered at the implications. He knew, he knew what he had to be saying.

Replacement. Rabbit. Their fathers worked together. His father loved Bonnie, and he chose him.

“He chose YOU,” Bonnie spat. “Bet you feel real proud of that dontcha? Or I bet you don’t, since you don’t even know my c̴r̸r̸r̴r̶c̸k̷-ing name.”

But Marionette did know. At least he was certain that he did.

He knew that one of them was Sammy.

And he was starting to believe it was himself.

“Well, come on. Say something.”

Marionette struggled for words. He looked at Foxy to see his reaction and saw him still trying to pry the arms off. Maybe he hadn’t realized it yet.

He then looked towards Vanny and Bonnie quickly leaned to the side to block her.

“Don’t look at her. Look at me.”

“I… No, that can’t be,” Marionette forced out. His eyes began to well with purple tears. “It can’t be…”

“Oh, it is,” Bonnie assured. He cracked a grin. “You gonna cry?”

“Screw you. You’re taking this pretty damn well,” Mike spat.

“Sure I am. That’s why I’m like seven Montys right now! I’m handling it all real f̶a̵z̶t̷a̵s̵t̷i̴c̴!” Bonnie snapped back.

Marionette didn’t know what was worse, the true horror of what he just realized or the fact that Mike too had already seemingly figured it out. He stole a look back at Charlie.

She looked utterly shocked. Almost comically so, mask’s eyes wide and typical grin flipped, but there was no laughing in this situation.

She was reeling. All this time she had been searching for her twin and here he was unceremoniously dumped into her lap. She looked to Marionette in shock and he quickly turned away, back to the grinning Bonnie.

“And now that you finally get it, here’s the deal. You’re going to tell all your little friends here- including those two flip-floppers-.” Bonnie pointed back towards Moon and Jake. “To head right back up where they came, and then you and me are going to settle this.”

“And how exactly are you going to do that?” Mike asked suspiciously, already having a good hunch of what he was suggesting.

“Do you think I just wear twelve bodies all the time? I know you all showed up for a fight, so guess what? It’s going down. Now. You and me, Puppet,” Bonnie hissed. “And nobody else. So, you don’t get to play the hero.”

“Yeah, that’s not happening,” Mike said.

“Yeah, you say that. But look.” Bonnie gestured over at Foxy. One of the disembodied endo limbs swung back and then forward to get Foxy a patronizing pat, or uncontrolled thump, on the head. “He stays right here until we settle this. And how’re you going to open that cheap little Fredbear’s wannabe without the star on stage?”

“Yer lucky ya got the drop on me, Bunny, or I’d’a gouged yer bloody eye out fer what ye did to Freddy!” Foxy barked.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Freddy’s best friend.”

Something about Foxy getting threatened flipped a switch that hadn’t flipped when he himself had been threatened. Marionette’s eyes lit up again and those half-formed tears were the only ones as he snapped his gaze back up to meet Bonnie’s. Bonnie’s eyes widened in surprise at the sudden change in intensity.

“I will not go easy on you,” Marionette warned. “I am willing to let you and her leave if you will, but if you make me fight you, I will break you down.”

“That better be a promise,” Bonnie said. His grin returned almost excitedly. “You know how many times I’ve been busted up? You really think you’re going to do anything worse than what he did?”

“I know I can,” Marionette promised.

All Mike needed was one look at Bonnie to not like their odds.

“Whoa, whoa! Wait a second-.” he interjected.

“I know what I’m doing, Mike.”

“No, I don’t think you do. Look at him,” Mike whispered. He stepped out to address Bonnie, fighting against Marionette who kept trying to slide in front of him. “Look, we already said we’d let you walk out of here. Just drop Foxy, grab your bunny, and go. There’s no point in you two tearing each other apart.”

“Gee, I don’t know. I could think of a few good points,” Bonnie said dryly. “For starters, I hate him. He stole my life, he chased my girl, he turned those two against me- Honeybunny, what am I forgetting?”

“He let that, umm, him- the yellow rabbit? Let him in.”

“Oh, YEAH, I forgot all about that! What’s the deal with that?!” Bonnie snapped. He pointed towards Gregory without looking at him. “You’ll bring a bunch of clowns in here, but you won’t take the kid on your way out!”

Marionette ignored the comment. He addressed Mike while still locking glares with Bonnie.

“There’s no point in bartering. If he wanted to leave, he would’ve already done so. This is personal.”

“See, he gets it! This is between him and me,” Bonnie said. His voice dropped lower, “Where’s your yellow bear now?”

In that instant, ‘Pop Goes the Weasel’ began ringing out from Marionette’s music box. Quick and agitated.

“I think we’re done talking,” he said.

And that was when it happened.

It happened in a split second. Marionette was preparing to pounce, Bonnie looming over him, and then-

Charlie yelped and Vanny screamed, “Bunny!”

Marionette had his head shoved down as something sprung over him and Bonnie looked up in time to catch only a glimpse before Moon crashed into him.

Bonnie didn’t have much time to react as Moon clawed and clamored over him. Digging his feet into the mound beneath him and forcing the rabbit’s head back, wrestling with him.

The multitude of limbs flailed around them. Vanny pressed tightly to the wall staring up at the scene while Foxy was finally able to overpower one limb, twist the one in his mouth to break the wrist of the other, and then clamor, climb, and hop over the last barrier and to freedom. Mike pulled the still off-balance Marionette back out of the way, and Foxy rushed to their side.

The fight was quick. Crashing and thumping against the walls and ceiling. Bonnie tried to push Moon down into the bed of parts where loose wires caught around his ankles. But Moon wasn’t done, he twisted his upper half to free up his arms and lurched in. He grabbed Bonnie by the hands and overpowered him, forcing him to bow back.

Then Moon wrenched one of his hands free and lashed out for Bonnie’s chest, grabbing the edge of the hole torn into it and pulling, yanking loose a large section of remaining paneling and leaving him gaped open.

“BUNNY!” Vanny screamed. She helplessly clawed at his limbs, trying to climb up them but helpless as they moved too erratically. Nowhere to grab, nowhere to step. “NO, STOP! STOP! PLEASE!”

Moon shoved his arm deep into Bonnie’s depths. He reached up and felt with his fingers.

He found his prize at his core. Tucked high into the back of his belly was the old rabbit doll, worn and oily. Missing an ear and a leg, losing stuffing through various holes stuck through with wires.

His fingers grazed stained fabric and he tried to grab it.

But he couldn’t.

To his immediate horror, Moon realized that the wires had been able to pull the plush up just enough that he couldn’t reach it- and the various limbs holding him down made sure of it, as did the hand grabbing his arm.

Moon snapped his head up to look at Bonnie.

Bonnie stared back. Not in anger, but in shock. Eyes wide and mouth agape.

“You… You just… Were you just…?”

And then came the devastation. A newfound flow of black plasm oil oozing through the crack under his eye. Moon’s non-existent heart clenched with brief regret.

And then, finally, came the anger.

And with it came an insurmountable amount of heat. Burning at his ankles, on his arm, everywhere that they were making direct contact. It was like he was touching liquid fire.

Bonnie’s eyes glowed brightly and narrowed, and he exploded.

“You son of a BITCH!”  

Bonnie shoved him back, forcing his arm out of him, and then before Moon could recover, he rammed him into the wall. Not enough to damage him significantly but enough to have him fully ensnared in seconds, grabbed him by his own hands, and then shook him like a ragdoll.

“After EVERYTHING- First you chose THAT KID over me, and now you’re choosing the Puppet?! The guy who put you in that stupid worthless little dog thing?! After all I did for you- You’d be sitting in that garbage heap under the Pizzaplex if it wasn’t for me! I had your backs AND YOU STABBED MINE!” Bonnie babbled. “Just a two-faced, no-good BACKSTABBER! That’s all you are, Andy! A BACKSTABBER!”

Moon tried to twist himself out of his grasp. “You’re out of control!”

“I’m out of control?! You just tried to kill me!” Bonnie spat. “I KNEW this was coming! I knew you were going to stab me in the back!”

“Well, PERHAPS I wouldn’t have stabbed you in the back if you wouldn’t have TURNED IT ON US!” Moon yelled.

He took a swing and smacked Bonnie in the cheek, to which Bonnie yelped and thumped him back.

An arm swung out and one of the wires connected to it lashed across Foxy’s leg. Just the slightest touch was searing, if the stifling heat filling up the hallway wasn’t any indication. Bonnie was overheating with that poisonous infection, whatever it was.

So, when Marionette prepared to spring to rescue Moon, Foxy tackled into him and caught him around the middle. The Puppet fought against him, his voice drowned out by his music.

“Not now! He’s hot!” Foxy shouted.

Mike was feeling that radiating warmth too. He needed to know if it really was the same thing that had been happening to Marionette. This could maybe be their only chance, with Bonnie distracted by Moon.

“Well, no time like the present,” Mike thought.

He waited until he had an opening before ducking in under a kicking Monty leg and pressing his hand to the purple torso stuck under it.

He was instantly overwhelmed by internal sound and images shoved into his mind, though he couldn’t make heads or tails of the flashes. It was like he was having stills popping before his eyes. He thought he saw a stage, maybe a bar, a door. All backed by a distorted blend of music and voices screaming in a discordant chorus.

He ripped his hand away and staggered back quickly to avoid getting hit and into Charlie. A painful throb briefly settled over his right eye. “Oh whoa...”

“Are you okay?!” Charlie asked.

“Yup,” Mike said with strain. He gave her an unconvincing thumbs up as he tried to blink his vision back to normal. “Good.”

She didn’t believe it for a second, but she couldn’t do much other than brace him and watch the scene unfold. She noticed Jake suddenly rush past and get close to the amalgam.

“Jake!” she called. Her voice largely drowned out by the noise.

But Jake did hear her. He just didn’t stop.

“Bunny, please! Don’t hurt him!” he cried.

Bonnie snapped his head to look down at him with eyes narrowed in disdain.

“I’m not going to hurt him! Actually, scratch that- I am going to beat the ever-loving HELL out of him, but you can drop the whole ‘oh whoa is me, BuNNY is so BAD such a bad, bad guy he’s gonna hurt my best fwiend! Where’d it all go so wong?!’ bullshit, buddy boy! You let this guy run around harassing EVE-RY-BODY! That glass house is full of holes!” Bunny was shuddering like he was panting, then spat- “I’M NOT THE BAD GUY!”

“You’re not making a great case for yourself!” Charlie shouted back.

“Oh GOD, you too?!” Bonnie cried, rolling his head back in exasperation.

All the while, Vanny was standing there off to the side, her hands over her mouth. She just watched the scene but made no effort to stop him.

This was only noticed by Gregory, who was standing there waiting for someone to do something more and not sure why they were holding back. Maybe they knew something he didn’t, but Moon was in trouble. He could tell from how desperately he was thrashing. He looked like a toy being held by a kid, and Gregory knew how easily toys could break.

Bucking up the courage, he ran right up to Jake’s side.

“Stop! Let him go!” he yelled. Jake tried to reach out for him but he sidestepped to not be caught.

Bonnie looked down at him now and ground his jaw in irritation.

“You want him, kid? Why don’t you come over her and get him?!”

“Gregory, don’t! He’s lying!” Moon yelled.

“The only liar here is you, Andrew! You’ve been playing us all!” Bonnie swung an endo arm out in front of Gregory, poised to strike. “LAST WARNING, get rid of that kid before I send him flying!”

Foxy suddenly ducked in, still with Marionette around the middle and half over his back, and pushed Gregory away from Bonnie.

“Lad, get out of here! Get back to the elevator!”

“But what about-?!”

“We’ll get him!” Foxy promised.

He then proceeded to toss Marionette into Mike, who only barely and half caught each other, turned on his heel, and sprung into the amalgam of tangled limbs. Unlike Vanny, he easily climbed it, hooking onto whatever he could and crawling up toward Bonnie at the top. The burning and agony ignored through a mixture of concern for Moon, anger on Freddy’s behalf, and spite.

Bonnie turned his attention on Foxy and made a grab for him too, which turned into a battle in and of itself as Foxy swiped at Bonnie and Bonnie tried to snare and shove him back. The two yelling at each other so loudly and with so much colorful language that it was impossible to get any word in edgewise.

Taking that as an opportunity for distraction, Marionette tore out of Mike’s arms despite his efforts to hold him at bay, and sprung at the only opening he had. Up onto the ceiling and then down upon him.

It turned out however that Bonnie had been keeping an eye on him the entire time. Despite still shoving Moon to the wall and fighting back Foxy, giving no indication that he was paying attention. It was a split second shift, with Marionette pouncing down and Bonnie suddenly twisting his body and slinging his arm, bringing it down on the Puppet and knocking him on his back onto the mound.

Normally a blow like this wouldn’t do much, but Marionette was quickly engulfed by the searing agony. The tangle of a body beneath had been one thing, but actual contact with Bonnie was so much worse. He struggled to keep his head clear but managed to grab that arm in a vice grip and started to wind his wires inside.

Bonnie gasped and started yanking back, “Get off! GET OFF!”

The mass rolled and Foxy, who was just about to swing for his broken open chest, was suddenly forced down through the amalgam before landing belly down on the floor, held down by the entirety of the broken dog body. Jake ran over to try and pull him loose. He managed to grab his hand and tugged with all his might while Foxy clawed with his hook, but he was too pinned to make much progress.

Marionette too was sucked down, oily wires sliding out of the busted bodies and wrapping him up. Each one hurt, but he pushed through, forcing his strings inside even as he was pulled down.

Bonnie looked like a frightened animal. The panic was etched all over his cracked face. Then he steeled his jaw and suddenly yanked his shoulder back.

His arm broke off without much resistance. The plates falling into pieces and Marionette’s strings left tangled around the abandoned endo arm, leaving only a flood of the same dirtied wires hanging out of Bonnie’s arm socket. Vanny screamed, and then Marionette was suddenly pulled down into the pile of bodies.

Now it was all over him, overwhelming and consuming him. The wires tight on his joints and sharp metal and plastic digging into his fabric. He fought against it, twisting and contorting his body, but it was like he was fighting against the ocean. Or a lake. The lake.

It felt like the Red Lake. Sucking him in. Swallowing him down. But this time there was no Yellow Bear, nobody casting the line to reel him back out.

Before he could entirely disappear into the chaos of noise and pain, he reached out desperately for something or someone to grab onto. Right when he was almost lost to it, someone grabbed back.

In one firm pull, with one foot up on a Monty and his whole weight into it, Mike managed to pull Marionette out from the mess. Freeing his arm and head from the slithering wires. Charlie joined him then and they reached into the wires, fighting through the burn to pull them off and pull him free.

Bonnie watched the scene with disgust and frustration but instead of stopping them he turned his attention towards Moon. He pointed at the hanging cluster of wires where his arm once was.

“I’m blaming you for this!”

“Lie in the grave you dug yourself!” Moon hissed.

“Oh yeah, real cute, Andy. You think of that yourself? Doubt it. You couldn’t think your way through a freaking CROSSWORD PUZZLE unless Jake was feeding you letters! You snively little bast-.”

In short, it was a disaster. Any semblance of control was quickly lost by everyone involved.

Gregory found himself obeying Foxy’s previous order and running down the hallway, around the corner, and sprinting back towards the elevators. There was only one person who could stop this.

He ran into the elevator lobby and right up to Freddy.

“Freddy!” He dropped to his knees beside him and began to anxiously shake him. “Freddy, wake up! Come on, I know you can! Get up! I need your help!”

Freddy was still unresponsive. But Gregory believed he could hear him. Somewhere in there was Freddy, and he didn’t need a battery to be alive. He could wake up. He had to.

He needed him to get up.

And every second he didn’t Gregory lost more and more hope. Yet instead of giving up, he just shoved harder and even banged his fist on Freddy’s chest. As though it would jumpstart his dead battery.

“FREDDY! Freddy, come on!” He frantically shook his heavy arm. “Fred- Dad! DAD! Get UP!”

As though that magical word would somehow reach him.

He tried everything he could. Every desperate cry and frantic shake, but Freddy still remained motionless.

“Freddy, wake UP! PLEASE! We need you!”

…

…

..

.

“Fr…”

“…ake up…”

“…need your help…”

He stirred within his own body. Everything feeling heavier than it ever had. He felt cold, frozen in place. There was no loading screen, no booting page, just a dark void.

“Dad! DAD!”

Was that…?

“Freddy, wake UP!”

It was Gregory. He sounded like he was right beside him.

“Grr… Gre-e-egorrry?”

“Freddy?! Freddy!”

Freddy forced his eyes to open and though they felt heavier, he slowly focused his vision. There was no bootup screen, no hud display issuing warnings, just clear vision.

He spotted Gregory out of the corner of his eye to the left and forced his head to turn. Everything was bizarrely heavy. As if he wasn’t moving his own body but pulling everything on ropes leading it to cooperate.

Gregory’s face lit up with a smile despite the glassy near-tears look in his eyes. He dove in to hug Freddy. It was a little awkward with the angle, but he didn’t care.

Freddy struggled to lift his arm but managed to and laid a hand on his back. Or more so, dropped it on Gregory’s back, causing the kid to grunt.

“Oh, sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it! I’m just glad you’re okay!”

Freddy could tell something was wrong right away. Gregory wasn’t usually so clingy- not that he minded getting a hug at all, but he seemed almost fearful.

What had happened? All he could remember was being in the elevator and now… where was he? He could hear distant yelling.

“Where is Bonnie…?” Freddy asked.

Gregory pulled away and pointed back at the hallway.

“He turned into a big monster, and he’s got Moon and Foxy!”

“…What?!”

Now Freddy was entirely alert. Though his body was still lagging behind, sluggishly sitting up from the wall.

“Yeah, and they’re all fighting right now!”

So, that explained the yelling, and the banging and clattering echoing down the hallway. It certainly sounded like a bunch of animatronics were fighting, but Bonnie? A monster?

Freddy started to push himself up more. “Take me there, if it is safe for you. If not, tell me where I must go.”

“It’s, uh… I’ll be fine.”

Gregory stepped back and let Freddy get up, noticing how much he was struggling. For Freddy it was as though his body weighed a true ton. Maybe it was a low battery, but there weren’t any alerts. In fact, nothing at all still, and when he tried to run a diagnostic there was still nothing.

None of his electronic components seemed to be working. His body was functioning properly enough, but his scanner, his messaging system, all his internal systems that connected him to the Pizzaplex were entirely non-responsive. It didn’t make any sense. It was almost like he was off, and yet here he was still able to move, though with some difficulty.

Gregory noticed him struggling to get up.

“What’s wrong? Is it because your battery’s low?”

“My battery… My battery is not low, Gregory. I believe it is entirely empty.”

“What? Then how are you moving?!”

“I do not know…” Freddy couldn’t understand it either. But seeing Gregory’s concern, he tried to brush it off. “Consider it a second wind.”

“Okay… Maybe… Maybe you shouldn’t go. Not until we get you into a recharge station.”

“No, I must. I must confront Bonnie. I will be fine, but please do not stand behind me. Just in case I fall.”

“That’s really assuring…”

“We will just need to take it one step at a time. Please, take me to them.”

“Okay…”

Gregory began to lead him to the hallway, watching Freddy sort of shuffle and limp with a hand resting on his stomach. He started to wonder if he was making a mistake. A feeling of dread and protectiveness crept up, but there was no other options. Freddy was his only chance at saving Moon and Foxy and stopping Bonnie and Vanny once and for all.

Freddy got up with a dead battery. As far as Gregory was concerned, he could do anything.

But in the hallway, the situation continued to spiral out of control.

Mike was trying to hold back Marionette who was shaking off a sort of feverish delirium from the contact with the ‘Agony’. He kept trying to pull free to throw himself back in almost mindlessly, but Mike held firm.

“Hey.” Charlie caught his arm and attention. She held up her taser. “Think it’s time for a controlled shock?”

Would that even work on something the size of Bonnie? Maybe if they hit the loose wiring.

“Worth a shot,” Mike agreed. He reached for his taser where it was normally hooked to his…

Belt, which he wasn’t wearing, and found no taser, which he also didn’t bring.

He really hoped that wasn’t a mistake that was going to cost them.

His quiet swear tipped off Charlie whose mask edged into a small, dry smile.

“I’ve got you covered,” she said. “Stand back and hold him tight.”

Mike did both and Charlie stepped ahead to approach the mound, nearly getting punched by flailing limbs undulating and gesticulating along with Bonnie’s ranting. She stole a look up and Bonnie wasn’t looking at her. The smeared oily substance on his cheek made it look like he was crying but only out of one eye. She wondered if it was true oil or some sort of ectoplasm like Marionette’s were, or hers.

She steadied her nerves, stepped in, and drew back an arm to strike in between the bodies and into a thick coil of wires.

Only to have her wrist caught and yanked. She stumbled and spun around to find herself face to face with Vanny. She hadn’t even heard her coming due to all the noise.

Vanny pulled again and before Charlie could balance on her pointed legs, she was kicked in the middle by a bunny foot shaped boot. She fell backwards right onto and over the endoskeleton torso and into the mound. The burn spread across her back and she could hear familiar, distorted music like a song stuck in her head.

Vanny gave her a sinister little wave before getting blindsided by Mike. She tried to shock him with the taser but hadn’t gotten her thumb on the button all the way. They fought briefly before Mike got ahold of it and ripped it out of her hand as he shoved her back.

She stumbled but didn’t fall. He waggled the taser at her mockingly.

Then had a mound of metal slam into his side so hard that it knocked him off his feet.

Bonnie had finally noticed, if the fact that he had crawled down his own tangled body to tackle Mike was any indication- shoving off Charlie into the barely standing Marionette in the process. Holding himself up with the extra arms, he grabbed Mike’s ankle with his remaining original one and pulled him back to him.

Mike fought past the growing audio hallucinations and turned over on his back. He held the taser up in defense, but he knew he had no chance. Bonnie grinned at Mike’s wide-eyed dread.

“Those things don’t even work on me,” he chided.

He grabbed ahold of Mike’s shirt and hoisted him close. To which Mike suddenly shot his taser toting arm into the hole on his chest, to which Bonnie got a look of panic and slammed him back onto the tiled floor so hard that he felt it through his lungs. He could feel a Monty hand clawing at his leg and burning.

He looked up and saw-

He saw a grinning golden rabbit staring down at him. Broad teeth and a round head. Sunken human eyes staring out through the holes. Breathing heavily as it reached out and-

“BONNIE!”

The booming voice cut straight through it all.

Bonnie looked up with a start and his pupils shrunk as he saw none other than Glamrock Freddy standing there in the hallway, Gregory at his side. Neither looked pleased.

“Freddy!?” Foxy called in surprise.

Vanny took a few unsure steps back.

Moon gave an almost relieved, and somewhat bitter, chuckle at the sight of him.

Still holding Mike by the shirt, Bonnie yanked him to one side before firmly sliding him towards the other, to Charlie and Marionette. Marionette grabbing ahold of Mike while glaring at Bonnie, his crackling music picking up speed. Him refusing to break that glare as he patted Mike down to make sure he was unharmed.

“Freddy, this- this isn’t what it looks like!” Bonnie fumbled out. He scrambled to pull himself back onto his mound of bodies. “We were just- uh… Okay, so, funny story-.”

“Bonnie…” Freddy looked over the amalgam of bodies with growing horror. His eyes darting back and forth as he slowly climbed it, briefly darting to Foxy and Moon, and then to Bonnie himself. “What have you done…?!”

“This isn’t what it looks like! These are all storage bodies! They weren’t being used! This was just-.” He noticed Freddy looking at Moon. He looked too and then pointed accusatorily. “He tried to kill me! And I have a history with this one here!” He pointed at Marionette.

“And you also have history with that one there!” Freddy accused, pointing at Vanny.

Vanny put her hands up as though Freddy was aiming a gun at her.

“Bonnie, how could you do this?! Chasing Gregory?! Trying to take him from us?!”

“Hey, I tried to get that kid to leave-!”

“And attacking your friends, our friends, and this?! This! Is this what you meant when you said you wanted a new body?!”

“No, no, no-!”

“I promised to help you, and you… I do not understand!” Freddy limped a little closer. Bonnie cringed as his wobbly gait. “Explain it to me! Explain this!”

“I… I can’t!” Bonnie tossed up his arm with an exasperated smile. “The whole thing’s kinda wrecked, Freddy!”

“Then tell me the truth! You lied to me, Bonnie. How much? How much of it was lies?!”

Bonnie opened his mouth and said nothing. He couldn’t. He didn’t know what to say, and that broke Freddy’s heart even more.

He couldn’t believe this. Here he had always saw Bonnie as his goofy but delightful friend who he almost lost forever, who he barely found alive, who he had a second chance to save and bring home.

But that wasn’t true. None of it. Bonnie had been working on the other side the entire time and Freddy had just been a fool, blind to it like he had every horror in the Pizzaplex.

And yet every time Freddy found out the truth it hurt like the first time. Over and over again.

“You were my best friend…” Freddy said, his voice choked up.

Bonnie dropped his arm defeatedly. “Was?”

Freddy looked away and Bonnie did as well.

“Let Moon go,” Freddy solemnly said.                                                                                                

Bonnie looked towards Moon. He was looking at Freddy but that mocking smile was always there. He knew that Moon was taking some joy out of this. He just knew how Andrew was. He hated seeing Freddy sad, but he was glad to see his enemies get their comeuppance, and he was now his enemy.

He had lost both of his best friends in one night.

…

But…

There was something Freddy didn’t know.

Just as quickly that sadness turned to anger, and that anger led to a wicked grin showing through his eyes. Any relief Moon had was quickly washed away at that look.

“Yeah, Freddy. I’ll let him go- but first!” Bonnie raised a finger, then slowly looked around at the group of onlookers. “I didn’t mean for this to go so bad, right? You guys heard me. I wanted a one on one, with him.”

He and Marionette shared a stare down that lasted a few seconds until Bonnie conceded.

“Anybody here know the difference between an accident and an on-purpose?”

“I do!” Vanny played along. She got right back into character, waving a hand.

“What are you getting at?” Moon hissed. The wires tightened roughly around him.

“I’m doing something, okay?” He glanced back at Moon with those brightly glowing eyes. “You’ll thank me later.”

That was when Moon realized something terrible was about to happen. Bonnie turned back to the others.

“An accident is like when you accidentally lock your car. Or you accidentally step on someone’s foot. Or that time the girl at the concession stand accidentally put nacho cheese on our popcorn instead of butter. Remember that, Honeybunny?”

“Ugh, yes. How could I forget? That was so- ugh.” Vanny gave a little shiver. “So, so, so, so slimy.”

“But so, so, so good. Like, that’s an on-purpose sort of good,” Bonnie remarked. “But an accident. Or like the time Freddy accidentally nailed Foxy over here with a lazer shot to the eye. That right, Foxy?”

He pulled back the dog animatronic to free Foxy up a little, with the pirate quickly crawling out from under him, kicking the body off for good measure.

“Get off’a me!”

“Yeah, whatever. Bad example.”

Bonnie tapped his cheek and then his eyes brightened with an idea.

“Oh, hey! I’ve got a better one!” Bonnie looked at Moon and bumped him as a nudge while gesturing elsewhere with his hand. “Or like that time Jake killed that technician.”

All the oxygen could’ve been sucked out of the room.

A crash broke the silence and everyone looked to Jake. The control panel once under his arm now laying at his feet, his hands shaking as he stared up at Bonnie in shock.

Charlie’s eyes widened as Bonnie’s words sunk in. “Jake?!”

Jake looked to her, still shaking, sputtering out, “I-I didn’t mean to! It was an accident, I didn’t-!”

“It was her fault! She led him to the daycare! She made this happen!” Moon shouted, pointing accusatorily towards Vanny, who put her hands back up again.

“Uh huh, yeah. I guess I did. I did. I let it happen,” Bonnie said. There was a somber remorse there, but it was brief. He turned to Moon again with a heated glare. “But you did something too, didn’t you? And yours was on purpose...”

He grabbed him by the waist with his remaining real arm and swung him forward in front of him. His wires and extra limbs holding him despite his attempts to wiggle free, twisting him around. Moon didn’t realize what he was doing until Bonnie released his waist and grabbed him by the side of the faceplate, forcing it up to look towards Freddy.

“So why don’t you tell Freddy where you hid that body before you stuffed it down the elevator shaft?” Bonnie hissed.

Freddy’s eyes widened in shock. “M-Moon?”

Moon was forced to stare back, unable to look away. Bonnie forcing him further forward.

“You look Freddy in the eyes and TELL HIM WHY HE’S ALIVE!”

He couldn’t. He could just stare back, the guilt in his silence. Watching as Freddy’s world crashed around him once more.

And it did.

“And THEN you tried blaming it on ME!” Bonnie snapped. He tightened his grip, causing Moon to gasp and twist in it. “But I am DONE. COVERING. For YOU TWO! Now they alllll get to see what you two are capable of! Here you go, Freddy! He’s yours!”

In one awkward motion, Bonnie slung Moon with the various limbs and wires, tossing him forward. Freddy gasped and rushed forward to catch him, having the jester careen right into his arms.

But any relief was short lived. The effort must’ve jolted Freddy’s battery to life just long enough to fill his screen with error messages. Warnings for a dangerously low battery flickered in his eyes as he felt a numbness spreading down his fingers and up his arms.

“Freddy?!” Gregory cried.

“Battery… low…” Freddy warned.

It was so much. So much to bear all at once.

His teetered back and his vision went black.

“Shutting doooowwwwwn…”

And with another deafening clatter, Freddy collapsed to the floor and his eyes lulled shut.

Moon, who had collapsed on top of him, shot up in a panic. Grabbing his head for points that weren’t there. “FREDDY!”

“Freddy, no!” Gregory also cried.

“Oh, for the love of- Freddy!” Bonnie cried with exasperation. He gestured an arm in his direction. “Well, good. Now he won’t have to see this shitshow.”

Marionette rounded on him. Bonnie glared back.

“Yeah, that’s right! What, you thought I was just going to let you off the hook because Freddy hates me?! He can get in line with the rest of you!” Bonnie shouted back. “It just- just means I’ve got nobody left except her!” Bonnie pointed towards Vanny. She waved. “And she’s all in!” She nodded. “So, what the hell else do I’ve got left to live for?! What do I got to lose next?!”

He slammed his fist down on one of the upper torsos and there was a sickening crack. It wasn’t immediately clear if it was from the torso or his own hand. His body was breaking down.

“N-Not long. Y-You can’t keep up for-rever,” Marionette cryptically forewarned. His voice still marred with static and twangs.

“Hey, forever and ever, BUDDY! Do you know who I am?!”

Bonnie spread his arm wide in mocking grandeur.

“I am the original! I was THE FIRST!”

He cackled almost hysterically.

“I̸ ̷A̵M̷ ̶T̶H̵E̵ ̷O̸N̷E̴ ̷H̶E̸ ̵S̴H̸O̸U̴L̴D̸N̶’̸T̴ ̶H̶A̷V̶E̵ ̷K̷I̵L̶L̸E̶D̵!̸”̴

His eyes glowed bright as he loomed over his onlookers.

“SO, OOON WITH THE SHOOOW!”

Chapter 96

Chapter Summary

Marionette, Foxy, and the rest find themselves pushed to the edge when Bunny shoves back… But he might’ve taken on more than he can stomach.

“SO, OOON WITH THE SHOOOW!”

The situation had reached a boiling point and now it was spilling over. Bunny grinned down at Marionette eagerly and leaned in. Marionette braced himself for the worst.

But then Bunny quickly drew back. He tried to snap his cracking fingers.

“But first! I think we need a little background music,” he said. The tone in his voice made it clear he was plotting something.

“Oh no…” And Jake’s concerned squeak assured that.

There was a soft thumping coming from the core of the amalgam. A built-in bass thumping to life along with the shift of wires and the tapping of hands and feet. Bonnie rhythmically tapped his fingers down the closest body’s back in perfect tune with the music, swaying. He gave the group a wink and began to sing.

“Hey everybody, turn the radio on! Gonna throw our troubles away-ay-AIIIIEEEE!~”

The sharp noise cut through all the animatronics like audible knives. It instantly threw Moon and Jake into convulsions while causing Foxy to full-body twitch. The humans weren’t spared either. Gregory shouting and covering his ears, Mike grabbing his own with a “What the…?!” that he could barely hear through the ringing, and Vanny had her hands tight on the sides of her head. He must’ve signaled it was coming.

Marionette’s tremble was something only slightly more forceful than Foxy’s. It almost left him confused for a moment, as though he suddenly lost all special awareness. Bumping into Mike was the only thing that grounded him.

And Bonnie just kept singing like he hadn’t just screeched to the heavens.

“We're turning up the music, we're having a ball! This band keeps rocking- forever and ever!~”

Marionette recovered from the sound only to notice a creeping feeling. He couldn’t explain it, but it was like something was worming into his head. For a second, he thought it was just him but then he heard Foxy grunt.

He looked to his left and saw him twitching and rigid. It was almost like he was trying to keep himself from haywiring, and the flickering light in his eye was certainly not Marionette’s doing. He was resisting the influence. Charlie wasn’t much better off as she grabbed her head and had vivid flashbacks to forgotten memories of the diner.

Marionette recognized what was happening and looked downright offended more than frightened. Bunny was trying to possess them. To control them.

Well, two could play at that game, and Marionette already felt his strings sliding loose.

Then he sprung.

Bonnie noticed and took a swing at him, which Marionette quickly spun out of the way of. Bonnie didn’t notice a loop of his strings getting tangled in one of his lower endo limbs, which the Puppet was banking on. Another swing and he spun back into the wall and then proceeded to crawl up it easily.

“We’re hopping into the jalopy, going to go for a ride. To the pizza shop with our fri-e-ends.~”

Bonnie aimed for him only to have Foxy come swiping in. He backhanded him so hard it almost knocked his head off, but like every time before Foxy quickly shook it off.

Bonnie was growing frustrated. Good. He guarded his chest with his good arm and turned back to the Puppet just in time to see him leap for him. He pulled out of the way to dodge, only to realize a second later that Marionette had purposefully gone past him to the other wall.

“We're jumping and a-rocking ‘til the sun- Omph!”

Marionette’s strings tightened painfully around him. He changed tune immediately.

“Oh, you wanna play? You greasy little mime, I’ll play!”

He wrapped his arm up in the strings and grabbed them tight before swinging his whole body. Singlehandedly yanking Marionette off the wall and throwing him to the floor in front of him, the Puppet catching himself in a little tumble.

“Ha!”

“You left yourself open,” Marionette said matter-of-factly.

This comment was clarified by Foxy slamming into Bonnie’s side, and now with his primary arm wrapped up he had to fight him off with the multitude of extra limbs.

Though by now it was clear that the two had seen his weakness, if Marionette keeping his arm at bay was any indication. The lower the limbs got, the harder they were to feel and control. He was stretching himself thin through too many bodies as he fought them back, and they weren’t the only one noticing that he wasn’t keeping up.

“Bunny, let me help!” Vanny shouted.

“Stay back, Sweetheart! I don’t want you getting tangled up in this!”

“Then let HIM help!”

Bonnie wondered who she meant and got his answer when he shoved Foxy off just in time to have Moon throw himself at him. This time Bonnie was somewhat more prepared to guard himself, shoving him away from his chest, overpowering him with many arms, and tossing him to the tiled floor in a heap. He watched as Moon contorted himself back on his hands and feet, scuttling like a spider just as much as the Puppet was.

A solid reminder of whose side he was on.

But what Vanny was implying… he was unsure.

Vanny must’ve noticed his hesitation. She continued to call up to him.

“He owes you one! He’s the whole reason we’re in this mess in the first place!” Vanny reminded. “He would’ve given you over to them- he did! He already did!”

He wasn’t sure if it was because it was coming from Ness or because Marionette suddenly sprung into his back before ducking away before Bonnie could hit him, but he flipped. He changed his mind.

“Yeah, okay. Okay! You- Get the hell off me- You got it, Honeybunny!”

The amalgam flailed his numerous limbs to get Marionette and Foxy back off him, not wanting to get pulled under the burning mass, and in the moment where they didn’t realize what was going on, he pressed a finger to his temple and his eyes flickered rapidly.

They heard a groan and both looked back to see that Moon had stopped in place and was grabbing at his faceplate.

“Moon?” Jake rushed up and grabbed his shoulder. “Andrew?!”

Moon twisted up on himself before suddenly slumping while still standing. Jake shook him once, only to have Moon suddenly shoot upright. He stood straight upright, staring ahead through blazing red eyes. Not just the pupils any longer, they had fully been consumed by the red.

It matched Vanny and Bonnie’s eyes.

“He’s all yours!” Bonnie shouted. “And the Moon is shining, forever and ever~!”

Foxy knew exactly what that look meant. He’d seen a snake bite victim before and he knew exactly what was coming.

Moon gave a sinister little giggle, one that was echoed by Vanny, and then darted in and threw himself directly onto the pirate.

Foxy, for his merit, ducked in time to catch him on the shoulder and attempted to throw him over the back. It nearly succeeded, and would’ve worked on anything that wasn’t Moon, who twisted his legs around him, got his hands on the floor, and flipped Foxy to the ground with a twist of his waist.

“ANDREW! STOP! STOP!” Jake cried. He desperately looked up to Bonnie, who was back to tussling with Marionette. “Bunny, stop him!”

“It’s out of my hands now, Jake!” Bonnie retorted.

He gestured his head back towards Vanny who gave a coy waggle of her fingers before putting them back on her fazwatch. The eyes of her mask glowed and flickered with every sudden movement and shift Moon made, making it clear that she was the one currently in control.

Marionette, hearing this, climbed around Bonnie’s body and went to spring at Vanny. She looked up in time and threw herself back out of the way. He landed on the wall and went to spring again, but Bonnie grabbed his strings to hold him back, both of them struggling against each other but him keeping Marionette just out of reach.

“WHOA! No, you don’t!” Bonnie shouted. “Slippery sonuvabitch!”

The Puppet fought the strings, releasing more and reaching his long arms out towards Vanny. She suddenly felt herself yanked in by his telekinesis and fell forward. His fingers dug into her shoulders like a vice, eye to eye with her- though she could barely see him past the static obscuring her vision and filling the inside of her mask.

Momentarily succeeding on breaking Moon’s hold too, with him suddenly thrashing and fighting to get off Foxy, swinging wildly.

But it didn’t last long, as Marionette was suddenly seized by an arm around his waist and a spillage of wires and ripped away from Vanny, causing her to stumble and struggle to catch her footing. He tried to push himself away from Bonnie’s burning grasp, turning back and planting a hand on Bonnie’s forehead. Trying to keep the rabbit back as he tried to get in much too close.

“̶̞͑D̵͚̀Ŏ̷͈N̶̜̎’̴͙̿T̷͚̅ ̷̯̊T̴̥̉Ȍ̴̡U̷̦͂Ċ̵̘H̷̛͓ ̴̪͋Ḧ̵̪́E̷̩͝R̸͔͂!̸̟̈”̶̮͂

Marionette took the initiative to boldly shoot a hand into his chest. Bonnie yelped and threw him into the wall, this time catching the Puppet off-guard enough that he didn’t stick the landing and instead slammed into it on his back. But he recovered quickly, twisting out of his strings now tangled around him and kept going.

All the while Mike was watching with his jaw clenched so tightly that he could feel it through his neck and teeth.

This was bad. He couldn’t keep standing there watching Bonnie throw Marionette around, knowing that it still hurt with every touch. He had to get involved. He had to do something.

But his options were limited. He still had the taser, which he knew he probably should’ve been using against Moon but thankfully Foxy and Jake seemed to have him covered for now. But it wouldn’t work on Bonnie. With that show he made earlier, Mike had no doubt that he hadn’t been lying with that assertion. Too cocky, too sure.

So how could he, the only one who couldn’t take as much damage and live, find a weak spot? Where was Bonnie’s weak spot?

That’s when Mike noticed Vanny hiding behind Bonnie’s sprawling body. Standing there smacking the side of her mask, as though trying to knock away the lingering static.

In the moment that Marionette had gone after Vanny, Moon had suddenly faltered and gave Foxy the upper hand. Either because she wasn’t focusing or because she stopped giving him direct commands through the watch, however she was doing it. They had to stop her to stop Moon.

And she was the one thing Bunny was protecting, save his own chest. The only way Marionette even got close enough to reach in was ticking him off by pursuing Vanny. Even glancing at her enraged him. It was the only diversion tactic that had worked.

So, if Mike could get to Vanny he could turn Bunny’s attention to him and stop her hold on Moon. Two birds with one stone.  

But he needed a plan because Bonnie could and would crush him. Or worse, get ahold of him and start using him as leverage against Marionette. No, he needed to be discreet. If he climbed over that chunk of his body-

“Mike!” Charlie called. She held up her hand asking for something. Mike understood and tossed her the taser.

Okay, now he was down a weapon. He could still make this work though.

All he had to do was slip around Bonnie and get to Vanny. Then once he grabbed her, maybe he could get her watch off while he did, he would hightail it down the lengthy hallway to those double doors at the end with the words ‘caution’ and ‘level ten security clearance’ plastered on them.

It was either going to work like a charm or fail spectacularly, but it was the only chance he had of getting them out of this stalemate.

Without making himself too obvious, he slinked his way to the wall and waited until Bonnie was thoroughly distracted and climbed over a decapitated animatronic torso and into the open warehouse door.

That moment of attention lapse on Vanny’s part gave Foxy a second to get an upper hand against Moon, but the second she righted herself he was going again, cackling manically before dropping into a spin and sweeping Foxy’s legs out from under him. Foxy managed to jump the legs but stuck the landing flat on his back, and Moon was looming over him in seconds, his knee pinning his hooked arm.

“WhAT a shhaaaame,” Moon hissed with a cock of his head. “Big bad fox won’t be able to ssssing on stage once I’M done with him mhmhmhaha!”

His voice was heavy and echoey. No, it wasn’t echoing. He just could faintly hear the words being whispered by someone else as he spoke them- someone standing in a white suit farther down the hallway.

Moon pulled back his hand to take a swing only for Charlie to come up on Foxy’s other side with the taser lifted.

“I’m sorry, Moon! I have no choice!” she cried.

Moon snapped his arm around to try and grab it but Charlie had learned since their first encounter and yanked it back right as he did, leaving him completely open to be tased.

“Do it, Lass!” Foxy shouted. Aware he would get tased to but willing to take the blow.

But just before she could-

“NO!”

Suddenly Jake tackled Moon from behind, right off Foxy and to the tiled floor. Charlie having to quickly step aside to keep from getting hit too. Moon twisted his arms around to fight Jake off, but Jake was quick. His arms matched his, locking hands and forcing Moon down with all his might. Using his heavier endo leg to hold down the back of his legs.

“I’ve got him! Worry about Bonnie!” Jake said.

Moon’s head flipped backwards to face him. His grin seeming even more deranged even though his face hadn’t changed.

“You NEVER loved him as much as IIiiiI doooo.”

That bitterly spit line sent a little chill up Jake’s spine, but he didn’t budge.

“Andrew, if you can hear me, you’ve got to hold on! I know you can pull out of this!”

Moon scoffed and kicked a leg out, getting it free before twisting it around and hooking Jake’s back to pull him in close.

“Acting sssso innoccccent but YOU’RE the murderer, mhmhm,” ‘Moon’ rumbled cruelly. “You’re the one who draaagged us ALL down with yooou.”

“…O-Okay, but I’m not running around dressed like the guy who killed my boyfriend, right?! Screw you!”

“What’s going on over there?” Bonnie asked, looking over.

“Why are you letting her do this?!” Jake cried.

“Why’d you let your new friends pile on me?! I don’t know, it just happened!” Bonnie shot back.

But as he turned his head, Marionette caught a glimpse past him and noticed a familiar face standing in the dark warehouse doorway, hiding just around the corner.

Marionette spotted Mike and panic immediately sunk in. “What are you doing?!” he thought, but he couldn’t say a word or show any reaction or Bonnie would know. So instead, he pulled and moved himself to the wall, acting like he was preparing to do something while keeping Bonnie’s back to Mike. And when Bonnie even made the motion to look back, towards Vanny, he dove at his chest and kept those red eyes on him.

Mike was at the other side of the warehouse door, preparing to climb out. Vanny was less than ten feet away lost in her own little world, murmuring to herself words that then came through Moon’s voice box. He waited until she was partially turned before stepping over an endo arm, and an unrecognizable animatronic torso stained in oil and worn by time. His shoe almost slipping on the slime it left on the floor.

She still had the knife. It was clutched in her hand even as her gloved finger tapped around on the fazwatch, the little pink pawmarks working just as well as an uncovered fingertip. It was a distracted hand, but that knife only needed to swing once for him to be in a lot of trouble. So, he couldn’t let it.

Just like the taser. Run in, grab, twist and yank, and toss it away.

She turned slightly. Go time.

In a few quick steps he got over a broken Monty leg and closed in on Vanny. She must’ve heard him as she started to turn towards him, but he leapt onto her before she could. He grappled her and went for the knife but missed the handle and grabbed the blade instead. The sharpened metal cut into his palm with a burning sting but it was numbed by adrenaline enough that he kept going, twisting it out of her hand.

Now she became desperate, trying to fight and get it back and it wasn’t until Mike got her into an awkward headlock, both bent over, that he was able to get control of the situation.

“BUNNY!”

That was when Bonnie’s head swung around and they were both bathed in two violent-red spotlights.

Mike yanked Vanny up in front of him and continued holding her as a human shield between him and Bonnie. He readjusted the knife in his hand- not to use it in threatening Vanny but to get a better grip and not risk losing it- and she stopped fighting. Simply grabbing his arm as though the knife was aimed at her instead of pointed at the wall.

The handle burned as pressed it to his side to readjust his grip. He got a brief look at his hand; didn’t need stitches but was going to be hurting later. Blood was already making his grip on the handle slick.

He saw quick movement out of the corner of his eye and snapped his gaze back to Bonnie, who had suddenly leaned in two more feet. He stopped like a statue, but his lower body continued shifting and rolling.

Mike’s throat tightened and he swallowed thickly.

“Let’s not do anything crazy,” he said. His voice shakier than he would’ve liked. Less than the assertive tone he needed.

“Yeah, no. Let’s not do something we’re gonna regret,” Bonnie echoed.

Suddenly he seemed to roll his body and tightened his wires and then yanked himself to the side. Yanking Marionette by the strings down into the mass of limbs at his hip. The hands grabbed at his legs, but Marionette was quick to shove back out of them, trying to pull away through telekinesis alone as his weak legs struggled to keep himself out of the tangle.

In a kneejerk reaction, Mike yanked up the knife. Still not aiming it at Vanny but now presenting it to Bonnie.

“Hey, don’t pull anything, Bunny! I can put him back together. I don’t think she’s going to be so lucky.”

A look of faint panic seemed to race past Bonnie’s features, then a furious glare. The arms grabbing Marionette still held firm but stopped trying to pull him in.

“Good!... Good…”

Mike’s heart was pounding in his chest and his thoughts racing as he mentally prepared himself for what he was about to do, trying to stall for time to figure out the exact plan.

First, take the knife off the playing field altogether.

“Jake! Charlie! Head’s up!” he yelled.

He then threw the knife over Bonnie’s mass. He tried to catch it out of the air, but his missing arm made it impossible. Instead, it clattered to the floor clear on the other side of him. Charlie scrambled to snatch it up before passing it to Jake, who had Moon fully pinned as Vanny’s control loosened.

Bonnie never took his eyes off Mike. He was waiting, buying his time to see what he would do. Marionette was watching as well, waiting to get any sign of a signal. He knew there was a plan.

Now the tricky part…

“Okay,” Mike said. “Here’s what we’re going to do-.”

And in a split second, Mike shoved Vanny forward while hooking his foot around her ankle, successfully tripping her up and causing her to crash to the floor. He had grabbed her ear too intending to yank her mask off, but instead it just pulled it up until the fabric of the neck was covering her face. Which at least succeeded in causing her to lose her balance.

This was a gamble that paid off as Bonnie instantly dove for her instead of Mike. With him not just doing so to keep from trampling her but also hastily helping her up and checking her over before those red eyes were locked on Mike’s back as he bolted down the hallway towards the double doors.

He could hear the clashing of metal behind him as he made it to the doors and slammed into them, hands pressing onto the push bar to shove through.

But they didn’t budge. The bar to push them gave in but the doors themselves were locked in place.

And in one instant the whole plan had unraveled and his luck ran out. He turned back in time to see Bonnie hastily getting Vanny into the warehouse opening before crawling after him. His upper torso leaning forward and clawing at the roof with his good hand.

He was coming in hot and Mike hurriedly got into the corner and braced himself for the worst.

But yet another gamble paid off as Bonnie was so focused on Mike that Marionette was able to detangle himself quickly and in two short springs came flying in towards the double doors and hit them hard. His hands feeling over the push bar and feeling at the mechanism inside.

In the last second, right before Bonnie closed in, Marionette got the door to unlock and shoved through the doors. Mike raced out after them and they ran through a small corridor with hazmat suits lining the walls before reaching another double door and getting through. Bonnie was right behind them, slowed down as he got caught up in the doorway and struggling to get through.

Vanny was left in his wake. She yanked down her mask into place and turned on the remaining animatronics intending to use Moon to shield herself.

Only to come face to face with Charlie who slammed into her and began fighting with her over the fazwatch. She grabbed it with both hands, one only using the tips of her fingers as she was still holding the taser and tried to pry it off while Vanny took a few swings at her.

But the watch wouldn’t so easily come off and Charlie couldn’t be precise while Vanny was raining weak but constantly blows into her shoulder and arm, as she tried to shield her head.

Thinking fast, she grabbed Vanny’s arm and held it tight before shoving the taser into the watch. With a quick shock it burned it out, with only a small residual making it into Vanny’s arm. She looked back quickly to see Moon standing rigid jittering in place. His hands swiveling and his eyes flashing.

“Got it!” Charlie thought.

Only to then have Vanny grab her point, yank her down, and knee her in the face. Charlie gave a startled chirp and stumbled, pulling the taser away where the rabbit couldn’t reach it. But Vanny didn’t do anything more than shove her away and sprinted into the open warehouse door, disappearing into the darkness.

Foxy rushed to Charlie’s side to check her.

“Ya alright, Lass?”

“I’m fine! She just- augh. She kicked me in the face.” She shook it off and looked to him. “We’ve got to go!”

“We ain’t gettin’ far.”

“Wha- Oh.”

Charlie looked ahead to see Bonnie’s lower mass still crawling through the doorway. It might’ve seemed like a vulnerable position but those many flailing limbs didn’t give any form of an opening. They could hear him crack through the next set of doors before sliding through. They were about to pursue-

When a hand tightly grabbed Foxy’s arm and spun him around. Foxy rounded on him with his arm raised, preparing for another fight only to find that it was Moon, and it became clear quickly that he was of his own free-will, if him not trying to throttle him was any indication. His eyes’ glow had softened not to its usual red, but to a gentle blue.

“W-Wait! Wait. There’s only one way to stop Bunny,” Moon said. Though his voice had begun to shift into Sun’s as well. Charlie suspected it had to do with programming confusion from the possession.

“Aye, in his chest,” Foxy said.

“What’s in his chest,” Moon clarified. He turned his head briefly to look past Foxy and make sure Charlie was listening as well, which she was. “Bunny possesses a plush rabbit doll. It is tucked inside of Bonnie’s chest, up far and deep into his depths. By now Bunny is spreading himself thin between him, the grafting, and her. If you tear him loose, he should lose his grip.”

“Ya sure?”

“I am almost positive,” Moon affirmed. “Bonnie is just a body, but he will not leave Vanny.”

Foxy gave an understanding nod and Moon looked past, seeing the way clear, and then released him.

“Go.”

Foxy didn’t need to be told twice but Charlie lingered a little longer.

“What about you?” she asked.

“It is too dangerous for me to be near Bunny. He’ll just do the same thing, if she doesn’t do it first,” Moon warned.

“She’s still here,” she said gesturing to the doorway.

“All the better that you hurry along. But be very careful. You’ve seen what tricks he will pull.”

Charlie was hesitant but nodded and rushed after Foxy.

Moon watched her leave before turning on his heel and stalking back towards Freddy, Jake following.

“So, what’s the plan now? Do we go look for Vanny?” Jake asked.

Moon was staring ahead.

“Andrew?” Jake looked back.

Gregory was still kneeling beside Freddy. He hadn’t moved, either out of fear of making himself yet another target or an attempt to protect Freddy. He looked frightened and then confused when the two looked at him.

“What?”

“He’s the only one who can stop Bunny,” Moon said lowly. “…Freddy, not Gregory.”

“I figured,” Jake agreed.

“I can try, but I think he’ll smoosh me into a pancake,” Gregory remarked.

“You,” Moon pointed at him, “Will stay as far away from both of those rabbits as humanly possible. As for Freddy… His battery is dead.”

“We can probably give him a charge somehow. If there’s not a station down here, we can carry him upstairs,” Jake suggested.

“We don’t have time,” Moon muttered.

“Then, what? We jump him?... Actually, that might work. There’s plenty of bodies in there-.”

“There’s a body right here,” Moon said, slapping a hand over his chest. “One with more charge than any others in there.”

“Andrew, that’s nuts-.”

“When she comes back-,” the jester pointed sharply at the doorway, “-she will pick up where she left off, won’t she?”

“We don’t know that. Bunny’s not even-.”

“Let me do this,” Moon hissed. “If not for Freddy, then for the fact that Freddy’s the only one Bunny will let get close enough to snatch that rancid little rabbit doll out of him!”

That was when Jake got it, and when he got it he knew that Moon wasn’t going to budge.

“…Okay.”

“Thank you.”

“What are you doing?” Gregory asked. “You’re going to give your battery to Freddy?”

“My charge, and hope Freddy’s battery is intact enough to accept it,” Moon explained. He crouched down on the opposite side of Freddy.

“What’s going to happen to you?”

Moon looked to him in surprise, not expecting Gregory to worry about him when he was giving an answer to getting Freddy back up on his feet. But he was, just from that look on his face. One he’d expect Jake to have.

“…I will be fine.” He reached out and ruffled Gregory’s hair. “I can live with losing my charge.”

“Okay… But you better not be lying to me. I just want you to tell me what’s going on,” Gregory said.

He noticed the hesitation, evidently. Well, time to be honest-

“There’s a little risk involved. See, we have rechargeable batteries that self-charge instead of needing to go into a recharge station. They’re not built to take in or use as much energy as the Glamrock batteries, so drawing enough energy out of Moon’s to fill Freddy’s upgraded battery could cause a burnout.”

Or time for Jake to be honest before Moon even had a word in edgewise.

“We don’t need charge though. I haven’t been charged in a long time, but since Moon’s going from relying on a battery to nothing, it could be… the most likely case scenario is that we’ll be looking at him getting knocked out like Freddy did. But there is a small risk that we could burn out his battery in the process…” Jake finished. “…But we’ll cross that bridge when we get there?”

He was asking Moon. Another wording for a ‘Are you sure?’.

“Yes, and by then this should all be over,” Moon agreed.

Jake sighed and got the charging cord unwound. He had it wrapped around him like a belt, hidden under the edge of his frayed pants. He made quick work of opening Freddy’s arm and hooking to a different port inside than he used before, then he opened Moon’s upper arm through similar methods.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked one more time.

Moon nodded.

“Okay.” Jake made a noise like he was taking a deep breath- something Gregory didn’t really understand but got since he too was sort of holding his breath. “It’ll start draining instantly. It’s going to feel weird, trust me. Just don’t fight it or you might break the wire and then we’d have two half drained batteries on our hands, and then-… sorry. I’m stalling. Here we go!” He plugged the wire in.

It was a weird sensation. An instant full-body exhaustion that made him feel almost numb. He had the wherewithal to shift from a crouch to sitting, feeling more of the energy drain from his battery. He started to slump and almost fell over if not caught by Jake.

“Moondrop?!” Gregory cried.

Moon wanted to assure him, but he was slipping and didn’t feel quite like responding. Jake slowly lowered him to the floor, holding his head up with one hand.

“He’s okay! He’s okay…” he assured.

He was okay. He would be fine. He wasn’t even worried, he didn’t feel stressed out or anything.

Though when he tilted his head to look at Freddy, he felt a pang of guilt return. Separated from his body but always present, like Ray’s face in the back of his mind every time he looked at Freddy.

But it didn’t last long. All of that grew more numb and the energy left body, slowing his mind.

It felt a lot like bleeding out, Moon realized. Then the world went black. His eyes went dim.

And then only moments later, before Gregory or Jake could really react, Freddy’s alit. They could see the soft glow as he blinked them open in confusion.

“Where… Where am I?” he asked. Unlike before, his voice was much clearer.

“Freddy!”

“Gregory!” He started to push himself up, Gregory helping pull at his shoulders, preparing to ask more questions when he looked around and saw where he was, and remembered what happened. “A-Are you hurt? Foxy? Mari? Moon?!”

“No, he… uh… he’s right there.”

Freddy followed Gregory’s point and turned his head and gasped when he saw Moon laying on the floor unresponsive. Something was wrong, he could tell. His glow was gone, his eyes empty, and they were strung together by a wire.

“Moon…?” Freddy reached out and gently lifted the side of his face. “…M-Moonlight?!”

“He’s fine! He’s-!... He’s not fine, but he’s okay,” Jake explained. “We used his battery to charge you.”

“My…?” Freddy laid his other hand on his chest in disbelief. That explained the wire. “But how…?”

“He used a cord,” Gregory explained.

“But we can talk about that later! Freddy, we need your help. You’re the only one who can stop Bunny! B-Bonnie…” Jake interrupted. “The others are fighting him now. Foxy and Charlie just ran off and he went chasing Mari and Mike through there.” He pointed to the doors.

“Yeah, and Vanny’s still running around too! She took control of Moondrop and used him to attack Foxy!” Gregory added.

“What?!” Freddy got up quickly at that. “She was able to do that?! Is that why he gave me his battery?!”

“Sort of, it’s a long story- short story, it’s Bunny. Everything Vanny can do is because Bunny gives her that power. He’s able to hack anybody he gets too deep into,” Jake finished.

Freddy’s eyes were wide with surprise until they narrowed.

“Where is Bonnie?”

“That way, like I said!” Jake pointed to the doors. Freddy started to stride by when Jake stopped him with a hand on his chest. “Wait, before you go you need to know, it’s in his chest. The doll- this- him. There’s a doll inside of his chest. That’s how he’s connecting with the body! The only way to stop him is getting the doll out of him!” he explained.

“Then that is what I must do. Gregory, wait here with Jake.”

“I can come with you. I’ll stay out of the way,” Gregory said.

“I am sorry, Gregory, but you must wait here. This is between Bonnie and myself, and he has shown that he will use any tactics. No matter how heartless they may be. Please, stay in this hallway and wait for us to return.”

“Fine…”

“And… Jake…” Freddy looked at Jake. He quickly looked away, and it was only then that Jake remembered exactly what Freddy now knew. He looked towards the floor as well, right as Freddy looked back up at him. “If Vanny returns… deal with her. Do not let her take Gregory.”

“I won’t. I’m… I’m not letting her get away with anything else,” Jake quietly promised.

With that, Freddy nodded and strode ahead down the lengthy, oil slickened hall towards the open doors at the end. As he stepped through them, he leaned and grabbed both of the doors before shoving them shut behind him. They looked seriously dented in but still managed to close with a noticeable gape between them.

Jake’s shoulders slouched as he dejectedly returned to Moon and Gregory, sitting down on the other side of him across from Gregory.

“So… what do we do now?” Gregory asked.

Jake just shrugged. But then he snapped out of it and gave a real answer, “Wait. That’s all we can do. Bunny can’t hold out forever. Either they’ll get his core…”

“…Or?”

“Or he gives up. I really, really hope he just gives up.”

They sat there together with Moon for a little while. Gregory could hear stuff going on down the hallway but couldn’t make out what was actually happening. He turned to look-

That’s how he spotted Vanny in the doorway. She had been dead silent, and her mask’s eyes weren’t glowing so it was only out of pure accident that he noticed her. Right there, creeping up on them in mid-step.

“Jake, it’s Vanny! She’s here!” Gregory frantically whispered.

Jake turned back and his eye locked onto her, and he felt his bloodless body run hot. She hadn’t even waited for five minutes and here she was again. Coming back to make another grab at Gregory- to use as leverage, no doubt.

And Jake was tired of it.

“You know what?! You know what?! I’m done with this! I’m done!” he shouted.

His hands were shaking as he tossed down his panel and grabbed up the knife left on the floor. It was time for her to see how it felt to have a knife waved around at the people they loved, and all she loved was herself and Bunny. He stood up and turned on her, pointing the knife at her like a sword. Vanny’s hands shot up in defense.

“N-Now do you see how it feels?! I’ve had it up to here with you two! It ends right now, give me that mask!”

Vanny responded by turning tail and disappearing into the warehouse.

“Gregory, stay here with Moon. I’m counting on you to keep him safe,” Jake instructed.

He then turned and bolted into the warehouse doors so fast that he didn’t see the wide-eyed salute Gregory gave him.

This was crazy. This whole thing was crazy. Bonnie was insane, Vanny possessed Moon, Moon was lying on the ground like a skeleton, Jake was whipping around a knife, and now Freddy and Foxy were about to have this big brawl with an evil rabbit monster, and he wasn’t even able to see it.

And crazy enough, he kinda didn’t want to. Or, no. He wanted to see it. He wanted to see Freddy kick Bonnie’s butt. But he didn’t want to get any closer to Bonnie, and he sure didn’t want to see Freddy lose…

But he wouldn’t. Gregory was determined on that. Freddy’s wouldn’t lose. He couldn’t, he was Freddy.

He was going to win.

Gregory looked towards the crack between the doors.

And he was going to see it.

…

With Bonnie getting caught up in the first door, it gave Marionette enough time to unlock the next set of double doors and lock them behind them once he and Mike got through. He was so focused on the task that he didn’t notice where they had ended up.

But Mike had. He looked around at what the doors opened up into, and down into, with a look of shock and growing horror.  

“What have they been doing down here…?”

It was his quiet, solemn tone that got Marionette looking over his shoulders and he too witnessed what was buried under the Pizzaplex. He drifted up to his side, on the edge of the platform they stepped out onto, and they looked out upon it all and were left in silent shock. The threat of Bunny left behind them as they stared at something much more daunting than his structure of bodies.

What lay beyond the doors was a set of catwalks not too different to the ones up in Monty Golf, save that they weren’t as sprawling and were simply designed in a cross with a square through it. They stretched to the walls of the large, round-ish room where three more sets of double doors led off somewhere. Each was labelled, but only one was big enough for Mike to read.

Assembly and Activation.

Was this where the factory was where they were building animatronics? There was a Staff Bot head insignia beside the door, so that seemed like the case, but that was less important than what lie beneath them.

Underneath the walkway was a large pit at least fifty or more feet deep. A big cavern cut into the earth, deep beneath even the depths of the original basement. And in the bottom of the pit was a pool of coppery water illuminated by a few mounted spotlights, and in it lay dozens of bodies.

Not human bodies, but machines. Staff Bots frozen and rusted, some reaching up from the water. The broken and partially melted remains of what looked to be a large Funtime Freddy, a few skeletal ancient endos sticking out from where they had been dropped. All of them dropped strategically from the catwalk so they were all soaking in the pool.

The room smelled overwhelmingly of metal and chemicals. Likely whatever was turning the water a rusty red- if not the iron from the submerged machines.

This was done purposefully, but for what reason eluded both Mike and Marionette. Neither could even make much of a guess at what it could be used for.

“What even is this? Some kind of… fake red lake? How would they even know about that?” Mike asked.

“I don’t know…” Marionette leaned over the railing to look. “…No. No, it’s red from the rust, I think. Maybe that’s a coincidence.”

“Maybe but I don’t trust coincidences when it comes to Freddy’s,” Mike said cryptically.

He stood by him on the catwalk, still close to the initial platform and looked down into the abyss. The smell was even more powerful here. Definitely chemicals.

“Maybe they’re trying to break them down?” Mike suggested.

“I’m not… sure… Hmm, but that is a good guess,” Marionette agreed.

“Trying to clean out that overfilled basement.”

“Perhaps.”

“Except if that was it, I think they’d be doing it in drums or a pool. Not a big hole in the ground. Not with all these lights set up. I don’t think that’s what’s going on here.”

“…Me neither,” Marionette quietly admitted.

Was this what Bunny had been looking for? It didn’t make any sense that it would be, but this was absolutely the big secret hiding under Freddy’s. A giant rotten cesspool filled with degrading animatronics.

Speaking of the rabbit, he started banging on the door while they were still standing there looking into the pit. Hitting it with heavier and heavier blows until it was shaking on its hinges.

Mike quickly got in front of Marionette. Marionette tried to pull him aside with one arm, only tearing his eyes from the pool for a second as though he was afraid to look away, but Mike stood firm. Him pushing back on the Puppet’s arm as though saying ‘I got this, I got this’.

Something he certainly didn’t have when Bonnie finally got the doors to give and came barging through. His torso first and his mass of bodies struggling to fit through afterwards. Arms breaking off, torso’s getting lost and abandoned behind him, and with a sickening crack he forced through and onto the metal platform leading onto the catwalks.

Bonnie fell forward, his lone hand catching the railing and hunching over it while his bulging amalgam body followed up behind. His glowing red eyes locked onto Mike and if looks could kill, he’d be dead on the spot.

But then Bonnie looked down, and back up, and then quickly looked down again, and like the two before him he stared down at the scene below in disbelief. After a few long seconds he spoke.

“What… in the absolute hell… is THAT?”

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out,” Mike replied.

Bonnie spared him a look before looking down into the cavern.

“You didn’t know about this?” Mike asked in confusion.

“No…”

For two people previously ready to beat the daylights out of each other, Marionette and Bonnie seemed fine standing there gawking at the pit a few feet apart. Mike noticed but didn’t comment.

“Don’t know if you’ve seen a ripped open Staff Bot before, but they’ve got this reddish looking water in a tank inside of them. Right up in the head, underneath all the chips,” Bonnie remarked. “So either this is the brain juice of a lot of dead Staff Bots, or they’re putting this junk in them.”

Mike knew the former was unlikely as this would take tens of thousands of Staff Bots to fill up, but he really hoped that was it. The idea that they were somehow harvesting this weird rusty liquid to fill the Staff Bots filled him with unease. More unease than actually seeing the pit itself.

Because that would explain why it was here, but it did little to explain what the point of it was. It sure wasn’t any kind of recycling he had ever seen.

“Mari said Bunny knew about the lake, right?” Mike thought. He turned towards the enormous rabbit carefully leaning onto the catwalks. “…It looks like the Red Lake,” he ventured.

Bonnie gave an exasperated huff and rolled his head towards Mike. “Okay, wiseguy. How do YOU know about the lake?”

“He’s seen it. As have I,” Marionette answered for him. “And I know you have too.”

“Seen that lake? I’ve been IN that lake.”

Marionette’s head snapped to him. Mike gave a blank, “What?”

“Yeah, I’ve been in there. Long story, you don’t care, I don’t care, whatever,” Bonnie blew off quickly. “They’re doing some real sick stuff down here.”

He looked back to see the two staring at him.

“Hey, I warned you to get out while you still can. You chose to come down here.”

“What, with the computer?” Mike asked.

“Nah, I left a letter.”

“A letter?” Mike’s brows furrowed but Marionette shot upright.

“Wait… Wait! The letter in the basement? That was you?!” he cried.

“Would’ya look at that, he figured it out! And all it took was me to spell it out for him,” Bonnie said with a cracked grin.

“But you said they!”

“Talbert and Taggart,” Bonnie explained. His eyes narrowed in amusement. “You thought it was me and Nessie, didn’t you? Still didn’t keep you away, did it?”

He did. He had assumed it was someone warning him about Vanny and her other half, not two demented scientists observing him from a city away. His shock quickly turned to frustration.

“If you knew about all this- how could you just stand here and let this happen?! If you came from the diner?! If you KNEW they were setting up all your friends to be tools just to hunt me?!”

Bonnie recoiled a little, not expecting the callout. He then steadied himself.

“Don’t get pissy with me, Mari… Okay, no, I’m not calling you that. Mars? Listen here, Mars, you’re supposed to be the “Guardian Angel” here, playing god and all. And what a great job you did! You’ve got kids stuck at the dump, clowns running around all over the place-!”

“I’m not playing god! I was just trying to save lives, and it wasn’t even by my own decision that I started doing it! Do you think I want to force souls into suits?!”

“-Coming in here acting like you own the place. Who’re you, the Yellow Bear? Nah, just his little hand puppet. His little hand puppet who ruined a bunch of lives!”

‘Pop Goes the Weasel’ started to ring loudly from the Puppet’s music box. Bonnie burst into laughter and Marionette gave a frustrated cry and slammed his fist onto the railing. The jolt stopped the music short.

That was when Mike decided to take his turn to speak up in his defense.

“It’s the pot calling the kettle black, Bunny. I can think of a couple of lives you ruined standing right in that hallway, and one of them NOT standing down in Parts and Service.”

That sobered up Bonnie quickly. “Hey, I messed up, but I didn’t- Oh what, you didn’t know?” He pointed towards Marionette. “He put Andy in his first body, and it sucked.”

“Like you’ve done so much better. What about Ray? You’re telling me that went smoothly?”

“I didn’t do that to Ray,” Bonnie said through his teeth. “That was all on Andrew.”

“And where were you?”

“My baby comes first.”

“I can see that. Is she stuck in there somewhere or did you just leave her in the hallway?”

“Don’t you dare- No. Nuh, nuh. No. I’m not going to lose my cool. Totally good,” Bonnie said. He pinched his fingers and mocked a meditative exhale. “’Cause when I lose it, two slimy little eels literally take me to hell. Not gonna freak this time.”

He leaned in, resting his chin on his remaining hand.

“This isn’t about me anyways. Where do you think Andy learned where to put a body? It wasn’t me! What about you, Mars? My dad teach you that? I wouldn’t know I barely knew him.”

Marionette flinched. The blow wasn’t supposed to hurt as much as it did but the wound was still fresh. Which father? Whose father? The panic he pushed down earlier crawled back up as he remembered what he had said.

Just like what Afton said. “Are you sure?” Just to hurt him, and oh did it hurt.

“Consider yourself lucky,” Mike remarked.

To his surprise, Marionette whispered a reply.

“And yet you turned out just like him…”

Bonnie pulled back a little. “What?”

“And you’re turning out just like him!” Marionette shouted.

There was an eerie silence. Bonnie stared at him, processing what he said, blinking in surprise.

Black oil began to bubble out of the crack under his left eye. Then began to ooze and leak from both, staining the glass white optics with ink.

Then he snapped. His eyes went stark red as he reared up on them.

“̶I̴’̷M̶ ̸S̸U̷R̵E̵ ̸Y̴O̷U̴’̴D̴ ̶K̴N̸O̸W̴ ̶A̶L̶L̸ ̶A̶B̵O̵U̷T̷ ̵T̴H̴A̴T̷,̷ ̴W̸O̴U̵L̶D̵N̴’̸T̴ ̷Y̸O̴U̴?̴!̵” he roared.

And then he dove at them, throwing his entire body onto that shaky platform with abandon.

Mike saw that mound of parts rolling down towards him and made a run for it, pushing Marionette quickly. “Go! GO!” Marionette didn’t need to be told twice.

They began to flee across the catwalks. The sound of Mike’s footsteps echoing ominously through the pit below, soon overwhelmed but the clatter and groan of Bonnie’s body struggling to fit between the railings.

Suddenly Marionette fell back behind him. Mike frantically reached back. “Mari?!”

“Go ahead! I’m behind you!”

He had a suspicion that Marionette was going to break away and go after Bonnie, so he kept a tight grip on his wrist and kept running. He focused on a pair of double doors ahead.

“We’ll go through those doors and find a way to loop around!” he called back. “There’s probably a way through to the- the- Mari?!”

Suddenly Mike’s hand closed in on nothing. The velveteen fabric underneath it disappearing. He stopped on a dime and spun around. “Mari?!” he called.

He knew even before he spotted the Puppet now far back on the catwalks staring down Bonnie. In an instant the striped figure dipped between the railing and platform and disappeared underneath. Bonnie started to frantically look around trying to see through the grating as Marionette crawled underneath him.

“I saw that! You’re going to have to try harder than THAT!” he spat. Though he quickly began to lose his cool. “Quit screwing around and get UP HERE!”

Marionette obliged, coming up on Bonnie’s opposite side and climbing up onto and springing off the railing and onto Bonnie. He got him from behind, grabbing ahold of his back and immediately working his strings into him. Bonnie tried to knock him off with his good arm- many of the others trapped under or against the railing- but Marionette was prepared and with a quick flourish of his got a string on it and had it pulled back.

And while Bonnie swore and spat venom as he struggled to get him off, Marionette’s voice rose above his. But instead of shouting, though he was somewhat shouting, he began to sing just as Bonie had previously.

“I never asked to be some would-be shepherd! Someone’s failure turned protector! And I never asked to be like this!~” Marionette sung.

He swung around to his front, legs planted on his chest as he leaned in close.

“And I never wanted to hurt you~.” He yanked Bonnie in by the strings, pulling them face to face. “But this will have to do.”

The panic returned to Bonnie’s eyes and he threw himself forward against the railing to try and strike Marionette. The Puppet hopped out of the way just in time but was still there, landing, standing, and balancing himself on the railing. Bonnie began to lash out with his other limbs, clattering into the railing they were stuck up against. Marionette smoothly stepped over them. Ducked around them and spun in a perfect pirouette.

“And you don’t understand what we went through, and I CAN’T save you, but if it comes to this, you and me on the precipice.”

Only to then suddenly spin sharply and tighten his strings. Bonnie suddenly felt how deep they were into him, past the safety of his shell and burrowing in deeper. His lower half growing numb as he felt control slip.

Panicked, he grabbed back control and rammed his full weight forward. Slamming into Marionette and knocking him off the railing, knocking off the railing that fell towards the water after him, with Bonnie struggling to hold himself on.

Mike ran to the edge and looked under just in time to catch a glimpse of Marionette swinging underneath the catwalk. Then looked up in time to see him swinging back over the top, leaping over the railing, and back onto Bonnie where they began to wrestle and fight again.

It didn’t take long before Marionette subdued Bonnie again. He already had him wrapped up and pulled towards the platform, and all Bonnie’s struggling did was give Marionette access to his chest once more. The Puppet now the one staring down at him.

“Then there’s only one way through…~” He began to reach deep into Bonnie’s chest. “And I will stop you- forever and ever and ever.~”

As he reached inside the violent heat and pain shot up his arm and through his entire body, but this time Marionette was braced for it. He forced himself through, just like with the lake. Pushing forwards into the depths, and the further in he got the less Bonnie could feel.

He could feel Marionette holding his whole body. Slowly slipping into each socket and strangling control until all he could feel was that empty chest and the plush waiting inside. He felt so incredibly burning hot.

He saw images of the diner.

He saw them dancing on stage, the bear and the rabbit.

And then he saw the-

“NO!” Bonnie started to tug and twist, trapped in this oversized body. “Get off, get off, get off-!”

He felt fingers close around the plush at his core, the center of his being, and he snapped. In an instant he ripped his arm free and blindly grabbed Marionette and threw himself forward. His whole body tilting and falling with him as he shoved Marionette away and forward towards the rapidly approaching catwalk floor.

Marionette landed facedown with Bonnie’s weight atop him and his hand still painfully tight on the back of his head. The whole catwalk shook and swayed.

There was a loud crack.

Within seconds Bonnie felt control return to most of his body. He felt the strings slacken too and he was able to use most of Monty and half an endo to push himself up off the catwalk. Somehow it had still held.

Marionette was lying limp on the floor. Bonnie slowly drew back his hand, the strings wrapped around it pulling the puppet up with him. He could see deep cracks running through his mask. The lights in his eyes were out.

“Oh… Oh whoa. Mars?” He lifted him up more to get a better look. “Ooooooh my god.”

Well, that wasn’t the plan. It worked, but he couldn’t argue with the results.

…Unless he killed him. He shook him on his strings, trying to get a response.

Then he heard rapidly approaching footsteps and looked up in time to see Mike coming down the walkway and throwing himself into a dropkick. Him landing his target and crashing into Bonnie. Getting a good hit on his head and shoulders before landing onto the catwalk beside the downed Marionette, catching the railing with one hand to keep from falling through.

“Gah!” Bonnie recoiled quickly and got himself up and away. “Are you crazy?!”

Normally Mike would’ve had a snappy comeback prepared for this moment, but this time he was more concerned with turning over, hastily gathering up Marionette in his arms, and making a run for it. Though he soon found himself held back.

Marionette’s strings were still wound in Bonnie and while they had released their hold he had to tug and twist to yank Marionette away. He was unintentionally helped by Bonnie who was trying to pull the thin wires out of himself as fast as he could. Soon he was freed enough that Mike could start to run again.

He took a sharp turn around the crisscrossing walkways to get around behind Bonnie so he could head back towards the way they came in, with Bonnie slowed down by his difficulty turning around. It was on the way back to the platform that he came up on Foxy running down the way towards him.

Instead of grabbing for Marionette, Foxy hopped up onto the railing for a split second to let Mike by before hopping down. He then sprinted the rest of the way and threw himself onto Bonnie before he could even think of pursuing.

Bonnie went to shove him aside and Foxy nearly fell over the railing, but had gotten his hook locked into his broken body and harmlessly reeled himself back. Then he lurched forward, spread his jaws, and bit down hard on Bonnie’s remaining arm.

Meanwhile, Mike had gotten Marionette back to the platform by the door and set him down just in time to have Charlie dart past with a, “I’m tagging in!”

He shot her a thumbs up over his shoulder but his gaze and full attention stayed on Marionette.

“Mari? Hey, can you hear me?”

Marionette’s mask was completely shattered with deep cracks spreading from the right cheek across the rest of his face. They weren’t deadly, the shattering of his mask never was, but Mike could recognize from the depths of those cracks alone that they would take a long time to close. Longer than Bonnie’s expiration date at least.

His eyes started to flicker at Mike’s call, showing that he had regained consciousness but the most he could do was a shudder.

“Just give me a sign you’re all there,” Mike said. “If you can. Only if you can.”

Marionette gave a gasping sort of twang, a mix of clanging music box notes and a breathless human voice. Mike thought that was the sign until Marionette cocked his arm to the side, still laying on the metal floor, and forced up a single finger into a thumbs up.

Somehow even in the worst of circumstances Marionette always got a smile out of Mike, even when his own was currently shards of porcelain.

Back on the catwalks Foxy was still facing Bonnie alone. He was kicking and flailing, kicking into his massive form when grabbed up by him, and came running back whenever he was tossed off.

“I swear to GOD, Foxy, I’m throwing you OVER THE EDGE!” Bonnie shouted in between frustrated swears. He never did though. Foxy hooked on the one time he almost capsized and after that Bonnie just started to launch him down the walkway.

“I’ll be prying that smirk off yer face one broken piece atta time!” Foxy shouted back. He lunged forward, only able to clatter against the edge of Bonnie’s chest as a pair of broken endo hands grabbed his ankles from the bottom of the mass and yanked him back.

“You’re a real one, Gabriel,” Bonnie replied. He shot him a cock-eyed cocky glint. “A tiiiny bit short on the upswing though.”

Foxy proceeded to sucker punch him in the side of the wrist which resulted in a painful sounding crunch and yet another swear.

By now Charlie had made it onto the catwalks. With Foxy still wrapped in Bonnie’s grasp, sucking up all his attention, Charlie knew this was her only chance to blindside the bunny and grab the plush hidden inside him.

She broke into a sprint. The tips of her legs continuously slipping into the little holes of the metal flooring and both giving her more grip and threatening to trip her up. She ran as fast as she could, her eyes locked onto that broken open chest, and then she sprung for him. Her hands reached out braced to grab.

Bonnie looked over just in time to see her flying at him and barely managed to lean back in time to dodge her. Charlie went careening past and over the railing, which she grabbed onto, spinning over the top and hitting the edge of the walkway with her back.

It shook her arms and loosened her grip instantly. The railing was slippery with condensation too. She struggled to hold on but soon enough it slipped, and she found herself dropping towards the reddened water below.

When in the last second, she felt something catch her wrist and pull tight. Her whole body lurched, and her wrist wrenched as she was caught and dangled above the false lake, staring at the bodies poking through the water below and feeling a mix of panic and relief.

Of course he would catch her. Marionette would always catch her. She could feel the wire looped around her wrist and knew it had to be one of his strings.

It was a strange moment because all at once the conversation from a few moments ago caught up with her. Marionette, the replacement, her father, his, theirs, Sammy…

She should’ve known her twin brother would be nearby. She had felt his presence for so long and searched for him fruitlessly-

And then there was Marionette. There to bring her back and help her stand on her own two feet again, adopting her like his own sibling, taking care of her, assuring her, giving her all the love that she desired from a family that had been broken long ago.

Here he was reaching out to catch her before she could fall once more. Him holding her wrist tightly like the last time they held hands in that closet at the diner. The day he was ripped away and disappeared forever.

She could remember it vividly if she really thought about it. She tried not to but now it forced its way into her mind’s eye, and she could see it as clear as she ever had.

Everyone was in costumes. Candy was aplenty. They went to play in the closet, or explore, or hide. He and her. They did everything together.

They were there when the rabbit appeared. The looming, distorted form of ghastly yellow that reached down and plucked Sammy up from the floor and right out of her grasp. She couldn’t hold on tight enough.

Maybe she blamed herself a little for not holding on tighter, even if she knew she couldn’t. What she wanted to have done and what she could have done were two far reaching narratives.

She wanted to have held him as tightly as his wires held her around the wrist. Maybe she could. Now that she found him, now that she knew the truth, maybe she could hold on to Sammy.

And maybe she wouldn’t lose him this time.

Charlie looked up at the wire holding her above the lake. It was tightly wound around her wrist before leading up a few feet of tangles over the railing of the catwalk.

Where they entered into the broken hole where Bonnie’s arm once sat.

Her green eyes locked with his red ones.

It wasn’t Marionette. It was Bonnie. Bonnie had caught her, and he now stared down at her with an expression that might’ve matched her own if it could’ve. He looked just as stunned as she did.

She thought it was…

Silently, he began to reel her up towards him. Pulling in his wiring with each almost painful looking motion. Each lurch tugged her up another short section until she made it all the way to the catwalk.

The mood was strange. It felt extremely awkward, as though both had stepped over a line they weren’t supposed to. Charlie couldn’t help but stare at Bunny while Bunny kept looking away from her and back.

“Umm, thanks,” Charlie said.

“It’s cool,” Bunny said.

They continued to just linger there. Almost like he was going to say something more and she was about to ask-

“Put ‘er down slowly, Bunny,”

Charlie and Bonnie looked over at the same time to see Foxy standing there. Bonnie must’ve shoved him off again and he stayed back only to not interfere with him pulling up Charlie.

Bonnie looked back towards Charlie. He stared at her for a second. Then he slowly got an excited grin.

“Oh no…”

“Hey!” he shouted. He grabbed her up in his many arms and turned back towards the pirate. “Foxy, go long!”

“No, no, no- AHH!”

Charlie was underhandedly tossed in Foxy’s direction. Right over the walkway so she wouldn’t fall, but right through the air. Foxy started to run back for her, tripping over the wires still hooking onto one ankle and crashing to the ground.

Thankfully, Mike heard the commotion and was watching when Charlie got tossed in his direction. He scrambled to his feet and ran the few feet-

“I’ve got you! OMPH!”

Charlie collided hard with his chest. To his credit, he did manage to successfully catch her but then continued to crash onto his back so hard that he’d probably have bruises on his tailbone. Conked his head on the floor too- not hard enough to be concerned but enough to sting.

“Th-Thanks,” Charlie rattled. Her music box giving off a low buzz.

“It’s what I’m here for,” he said, grunting as he sat up.

“Strrrrrrike!” Bonnie proudly shouted with a little fist pump. One that was cut off by something flying into him. Foxy, knocking back his arm and swiping his hook into his open chest. “Hey! Whoa!”

“Ya’ve gone farrr enough!” Foxy spat. “This is it! This is where it ends!”

“Or this is where I ruin your whole day,” Bonnie retorted.

He flung his armless limb of tangled wires and hooked them around Foxy just as he had to Charlie, just like Marionette had done to him. Then he wrenched them back and Foxy in.

Which turned out to be a mistake as Foxy came in swinging.

“No, no, wait I take it back!” Bonnie shouted.

He wrestled him with his one good arm, trying to keep him back even as Foxy got the upper hand. Though not for long, as the lower limbs of the amalgam reached up to grab onto the pirate. They ripped him back away. Foxy kicked downwards and managed to smash Monty’s arm, forcing it into a broken direction. He kept kicking, smashing into the mass with his twitchy legs.

Up until this point, Bonnie had been largely numb to the damage his extra bodies were taking. It hadn’t been much, really. A crack here, a crunch there, but the violent smashing was starting to hurt. He could feel the phantom burn of his legs spreading up to his spine.

He lashed out, ramming his arm into Foxy’s chest and shoving him down onto the railing of the walkway so hard that it bent in and pried away from the platform. Foxy was tilted back, only held on by Bonnie’s arm pressing to his chest.

“Last chance, Foxy! Shove off or go to hell!” Bonnie warned.

Foxy retorted with another sharp kick. A slam of his foot into Bonnie’s chest. Neither expected it to smash through the remains of his belly plate, ripping them out as he pulled his leg back. It broke him wide open.

Bonnie recoiled and Foxy started to fall backwards only to catch himself with his hand and hook, but he was still teetering precariously. He looked up in time to catch Bonnie rounding on him with those burning red eyes.

For a second he wondered if it’d be a better fate to let go and fall. But he didn’t, he held firm as Bonnie lurched in.

“BONNIE!”

Bonnie caught himself and both he and Foxy turned their heads in equal shock to see none other than Freddy striding through the door and onto the walkway. This time he wasn’t limping and had a narrowed fierceness in his eyes.

“Freddy!” Foxy called with pure joy.

Freddy responded by lifting a hand and pointing firmly at Bonnie.

“Oh no, what’s that supposed to mean?” Bonnie muttered.

“Means he ain’t playin’ games with you no more,” Foxy whispered darkly.

The worst part was that they both knew he was right. That glare, that fierce determination in his eyes; Freddy was done pleading, he had come to put a stop to this, and he very well looked like he could.

He then raced in. Bonnie babbling out, “Freddy, Freddy, Freddy!” to no avail as the bear closed in. Knocking aside the extra limbs with heavy swings of his fists and boldly stepping over the wires stabilizing Bonnie to the platform. He closed in quickly, Bonnie pushed back.

“Freddy, stay back! I don’t want to hurt you!”

“You already have.”

Bonnie faltered. Foxy took the moment to pull himself up and pull himself along the railing to get behind Bonnie. They had one shot at this, he knew. One chance where Bonnie’s eyes were on Freddy, not noticing him.

He knew he was probably going over the edge after this, but at this point it was personal. No more Shadow of Afton. No more dancing rabbit lady.

Time for a keelhauling.

Foxy leapt onto Bonnie’s back and pulled him back with him. Hooking his legs on the railing and whatever he could and yanking at him, his arm tight around his neck and his hook catching into his broken plating, holding tight when Bonnie struggled to get free from the headlock. He twisted his arm back, cracking it in the process to grab ahold of Foxy, but Foxy was quick to elbow it down and trapping it close.

“He’s wide open, Freddy! Go fer it!” Foxy yelled.

“No, DON’T go for it, Freddy!” Bonnie shouted.

Freddy knew this was his only chance. He boldly leapt up onto the mound of bodies, climbing it with heavy footfalls that slid and struggled to regain grip as he got up close enough to Bonnie’s chest that he could reach inside. He nearly got knocked down, but he caught ahold of the opening Foxy broke through and hoisted himself up.

Now he was face to face with Bonnie. Bonnie was staring at him in horror and despite all that had happened, Freddy’s tense expression softened into one of guilt and regret.

Then reared back and punched his fist straight through what remained of Bonnie’s chest, straight through to his core. Bonnie gave a strangled cry.

“I… I am sorry. I did not want this…” Freddy admitted.

His eyes closed tightly as he felt for and found himself grabbing around something rounded and made of soft fabric.

“I am so sorry.”

“No, no, don’t-!”

Freddy pulled with one smooth motion and felt the fabric rip out of its mounted spot. He fell backwards with it, staggering and stumbling down Bonnie’s amalgamated body and barely landing on his feet, barely dodging the arms weakly grabbing at his legs. He looked to what was still clutched in his hand.

It was the head of a rabbit doll.

Bonnie made a crunchy staticky noise as his eyes flickered. No screaming. No fighting. He simply shuddered and twisted up almost like how Moon did when Bunny and Vanny had first taken hold, and then-

He started to fall back.

Foxy just barely got out of the way before the full weight of Bonnie’s body fell back onto the railing. It groaned and broke free under his weight, sending him plummeting towards the pool. Foxy might’ve dodged Bonnie but he couldn’t escape the mass underneath him, hooking on and dragging him off the platform as well.

He gave a panicked shout as he clawed at the platform with his fingers and hooks. He was going over the edge. He was going down, falling towards the depths.

When a hand suddenly grabbed ahold of his own.

It was Freddy’s.

“I’ve got you!” he said. He pulled him up without much effort at all and they hurried down the catwalk together towards the platform, just in case it collapsed. It didn’t.

Now a safe distance away, both looked down to try and see Bonnie. With Foxy leaning over the edge to look at the wreckage sinking into the false lake while Freddy looked at the plush head clutched tightly in his palm.

Bonnie’s eyes were flickering before they darkened out. Then he was just another body sitting in the water. The fading ripples being the only evidence that he had moved at all.

Freddy made a shaky sound. Something between a gasp and a sob, one filled with remorse. Foxy understood exactly how he was feeling and turned to him, putting his hook on his shoulder.

“Freddy… Eh.”

He stepped up and pulled Freddy into a hug. Freddy returned it with his free arm, squeezing Foxy tight against him like he was afraid he would be taken away too. Foxy patted his back and stood with him there for a few moments before drawing back. The remorseful look had changed to a heartbreakingly saddened one as Freddy looked down at Foxy.

Foxy patted his shoulder reassuringly.

“Took ya long enough,” he joked dryly.

Freddy’s eyes popped open and for a second Foxy wondered if he had overstepped, but then he began to chuckle. A low rumbling chuckle that quickly built into a full laugh. Freddy threw his head back laughing while Foxy patting slowed with concern, his patch quizzically raising.

But it snapped back down as Freddy’s hand landed on his shoulder.

“Oh Foxy, I am not okay,” Freddy confessed, wiping a nonexistent tear from his eye.

Foxy chuckled. “That’s alright. Ain’t no one really is.”

He knew there had to be more to say. He didn’t want to make this any weirder than it had to be, but after all they just went through- “And uh… thanks fer choosin’ me.”

Freddy sobered up quickly. He looked to Foxy in surprise, who gave a half-hearted shrug. It must’ve clicked a second later as his eyes softened.

“Oh Foxy…” Then darted around a little awkwardly. “Well, erm, technically I did not choose you as I did not have a choice,” Freddy sheepishly admitted. “But if I had a choice, I would have chosen you.”

“Good enough fer me, Fazbear.”

Freddy smiled before solemnly looking down at the plush head left cradled in his hand. He sighed as he prodded it with his thumb, tracing his claw around the stain on its eye.

Foxy looked down at it too and scoffed a little.

“All this over a dirty little bunny doll that looks… Err, suspiciously like me brother’s,” he said, lifting his patch with his hook. “Must’ve been from the diner.”

“It must have…” Freddy said quietly.

Charlie took interest in the doll and started to walk over to them before looking back. Mike took the cue and began to start picking Marionette up again, only to have a weak hand pressed to his chest.

“N-No,” Marionette forced out. His voice crackly and muffled. “I wa-waaaant to stand-d.”

Mike raised his brows, “You sure?” Even Charlie stopped and looked back in surprise.

Marionette’s face hadn’t even begun to seal together again but he just barely managed to nod. While Mike wasn’t sure if it was a great idea, he wasn’t about to argue with him after taking on Bonnie like he did. If he wanted to walk, then he would get him up on his feet.

Mike hooked him around the waist and pulled him up easily. Marionette’s long body limp and slumping almost uselessly against his shoulder, but him being light made it easy to hold most of his weight. While Mike was getting a striped arm around his shoulder the hand suddenly closed on his wrist, and then turned it to see the messy smearing of blood inside, hiding the slice underneath.

“Y-You’rrre ble-leeding,” Marionette said worriedly. “D-Did m-my-?”

“No, no, no. Vanny’s knife. Grabbed it the wrong way. Your face couldn’t have done this.”

The Puppet gave a worried hum, one just as crunchy and crackly as his voice. Mike simply pulled him close and started to lead and partially carry him along onto the catwalk. His eyes scanning it for any sign of weakness.

Charlie walked up to Freddy’s side and looked at the head in his hand. “Is that…?”

“Bonnie? Yes. I believe it is,” Freddy said.

“Can I?”

Charlie held out her hand and Freddy handed it over. Despite the metal sticking out of the base of its neck, the plush didn’t have much weight to it.

“Careful with that. All it takes is a touch,” Mike warned.

“It’s okay. I don’t feel anything,” she said.

It looked to be a yellow-green color, but likely it had been pure yellow long ago. Having gained a green hue from years of wear and a buildup of grime. It had pink cheeks, one a slightly different color, and a blue piece of ribbon stuck out from a chunk of fabric dangling off from its neck. It must’ve been part of a bowtie before ripped free from its body.

One part that stood out was the big, brownish stain around its eye that leaked down its cheek. In the back of her mind she realized that it was likely dried blood, but she refused to entertain those thoughts for long.

The rabbit doll looked remarkably familiar to Charlie. It might’ve just been the head, but she recognized the style.

There were plenty of toys that came from the diner. Hers were only unique in that her father made them for her, but he had made others too that sold for a pretty penny to lucky children. She learned this as soon as she realized that Marionette had one too. Fredbear’s Family Diner had its own line of toys, not exactly like hers but close. Plenty of rabbits too.

This doll looked exactly like Theodore.

Ignoring the coloring, it had the same head shape. Ignoring the big brown stain around one eye it had similar eyes though was missing an ear. It was unclear when it could’ve come off, during Freddy’s grab or long ago.

This doll looked exactly like Theodore.

“What’s on your mind?” Mike asked, noticing her lengthy silent stare.

“It looks like Theo.”

“F-Fingertr-rap too…” Marionette said.

She knew he meant his rabbit plush with a recording of his mother’s voice on it. Or, well, Afton’s wife… No. His mother. Maybe. She kept her thoughts to herself and studied the rabbit.

“Be carrrefull,” Marionette said. “He m-might-t be ins-side.”

“…I don’t think so. Maybe, but I think I’d be able to feel him?” She turned the rabbit head over in her hand. “It feels empty.”

“Perhaps he… moved on?” Freddy asked quietly.

“Ta someone else perhaps, but not to the great beyond. Not that fast,” Foxy said with certainty. “Not that angry.”

He began to thump his way down the walkway towards the platform with a determined stride. They had to get back and check on the others, see what became of Vanny. Only Bonnie had been dealt with, Clyde was still lurking about out there.

But he got no further than Mike and Marionette when a hand reached out and grabbed him, and with it a tall mime proceeded to collapse on him. Foxy and Mike began to choir ‘whoa’s as they tried to get him back upright, back onto unsteady legs that couldn’t hold weight on a good day, but Marionette was determined to hold onto Foxy. Even with his face so cracked that it made Foxy’s teeth itch.

“F-Foxy…” Marionette choked. “Ab-About wh-what Bunn-ny said-d.”

“What?”

“Wh-What Bunn-n-ny said.”

“Wha, now?”

Foxy looked to Mike, then Charlie, the Freddy who shrugged, and back to Marionette. Broken or not, he looked determined. Like he wasn’t going to budge until they addressed this.

Just as stubborn as he was, Foxy figured. He sighed and held him up by the waist.

“A’ight, Mari. We’ll handle it now.” He squared up and looked him in the eye. “Yer me brother.”

“I-I G-Ga-a-a-…” Marionette was clearly upset, only worsening the cracking in his voice. “I-I’m not…”

“Marion, look. Look at me.” Foxy tilted his body back enough so that Marionette’s drooped head was angled towards him. “You ARE my brother. I lived with you. I gave you hell. You forgave me. We made up. We made a business. We’ve got a life. You’re my brother. What does it matter if it ain’t by blood? We don’t even have any anymore.”

Just like that. No doubts, no second guessing, no conversation. Simple as that.

Marionette’s eyes overflowed with purple tears that began to fill his cracks.

“Oh G-Gabe…” He limply dropped forward and hugged him as best as he could. “I l-l-love you.”

Foxy held him tight. “I love you too.” And held on as tight as he did when hanging over that abyss.

He wasn’t letting him go. He didn’t care what the rabbit said, or what anyone else said. He was his brother, that was it.

The three others watched without interrupting, save one curious bear who leaned closer to the remaining two.

“Did something happen…?” Freddy asked quietly.

“It’s a long story but nothing worth worrying about. I’ll bring you up to speed later,” Mike promised. “…How’re you holding up, big guy?”

“I do not know… I…” Freddy trailed off unsurely.

Mike thumped him on the back and then hissed and shook out his hand, swearing at himself under his breath. Turns out the adrenaline didn’t last forever. Freddy didn’t notice and continued.

“I knew I may be human. It is quite a relief to know that I was and am a real person, but… I never thought that it could have been… I must find out the true story. Jake said it was an accident and Moon said Vanny was involved. We must find out how this happened,” he said with sworn adamance. “How all of this came to be.”

“Yeah, there’s a couple of answers we need to wring out of them.” Mike knocked his now closed fist on his arm. “Maybe with Bunny out of the way, if he is out of the way, they’ll tell us the rest.”

“I hope so. And thank you, Mike, for asking.”

“No problem.”

Foxy noticed Mike’s ‘if’. Apparently he wasn’t the only one thinking this ended a little too abruptly. Sure, Bonnie fell into the depths, but this was a man- or what was left of one- who had been able to possess people on a whim and switch possession targets in seconds. Yet all it took was pulling out the rabbit plush to stop him?

But how, when he wasn’t even in the-…

…He wasn’t even in the rabbit plush.

“Bonnie is just a body, but he will not leave Vanny.”

“Oh, bloody hell…” Foxy said cryptically.

“What?” Freddy asked.

“Oh no, what now?” Charlie added.

Foxy handed Marionette back to Mike and broke into a sprint down the catwalk.

“Belay that an’ follow me! They’re on the move!”

Chapter 97

Chapter Summary

One rabbit down, a second to go… or so everyone would like to think.

Jake ran into the warehouse blindly. It was dark inside and animatronic body and suit parts lay strewn about the floor, including various bodies that hadn’t made it into Bunny’s amalgam.

Jake’s eye wasn’t built to see in the dark, an unfortunate side effect of being the daytime daycare attendant, but he still saw a little better than a human did. He began to scour across the room with Vanny’s knife grasped tightly in his hand.

He wasn’t sure what he was going to do when he found her. The best-case scenario would be to have her back down immediately and let him steal her mask, which he was sure was her primary tether to Bunny. Worst case, she fought back and he might have to start swinging this thing around. He truly and honestly didn’t want to do that though.

Like she had said through Moon, he already had blood on his hands. It made him sick just to think about it.

He heard a shifting sound and suddenly turned towards it before hurriedly heading over, where he found something that looked like a deprivation tank. An animatronic that had been standing behind it had slumped over it, one that looked a little bit like an unfinished frog- probably to go with the Glamrock Mr. Hippo that never took off. Something must’ve bumped it.

At first, he thought Vanny must’ve been hiding behind the tank, but then he noticed something sticking out of the slender crack of the closed lid. The tip of a familiar white ear. It was Vanny’s ear.

Jake’s hands were shaking as one grabbed the handle to the tank and the other clutched the knife. He steadied himself before yanking the lid up.

But all that lay inside was Vanny’s mask.

Suddenly he felt a firm shove from behind. Something caught his foot, and he tumbled forward into the tank. He was quick to turn over and try to scramble out but before he could he caught sight of messy brown hair and wild, frightened eyes before the lid came down hard on his arm.

Jake gasped and tried to pull it free, but the lid was firmly pressed down on the hinge of his elbow. He tried to push up, but Vanny was holding it down with her own weight and he was cramped in a way that gave less room to push back. He was trapped.

“I…” Vanny’s voice sounded unsure for a second, but then she began again with much more power. “I can activate the locks from out here. It’ll shut all the way if I do, crushing anything stuck in it, and I’ll do it.”

Jake knew exactly what she was implying.

“Give me the knife.”

“No.”

She pushed more of her weight down onto the lid. It shoved tighter into Jake’s elbow joint.

“Do you really want to lose another limb? But oh no! I don’t think you have one to replace it this time!” Vanny said with short-lived mocking concern. It grew firm again. “You can live without an arm. Give. Me. The. Knife.”

“I can’t. I can’t!” Jake shouted. “Bunny, don’t do this!”

“Bunny isn’t here. Please, leave a message after the beep.”

Jake was beginning to panic as the lid pressed harder into his elbow. He couldn’t survive without an arm, he didn’t think. His body was already so broken and he couldn’t manage his panel with only one- the ports in that arm- trying to get around without it- the agony of having his limb crushed and broken off-

He was scared. It seemed so silly to be scared about his arm when he had been torn apart before, more than once, but he remembered that pain and didn’t want to face it again. And he knew that Vanny was right. This time there wouldn’t be a way to fix himself. Their spare body was gone, Andrew was on the run, Parts and Service was off limits-

The lid pressed tighter against his joint.

“On the count of three. One… Twoooo…”

Jake released a sound akin to a choke and a sob as he shoved the knife through the crack in the lid.

In an instant the lid was yanked up enough for her to grab it and Jake yanked his arm in and pulled it tightly to his chest. He hadn’t considered trying to overpower her then, and once he did it was too late. The lid was slammed shut and something was twisted on the outside that activated the locking mechanism.

Those weren’t electronic locks. He wasn’t sure if she would’ve been able to close the lid and active them on her strength alone…

Vanny gasped dramatically.

“Oh, THANK YOU! It’s just what I always wanted!” she gushed. “That was a smart move. A selfish move, but a smart one too.”

She tricked him, he realized as he clutched his arm to his chest. At every avenue she had fooled him, and he was too blind to see it until he was stuck in this empty tank.

“But you’ve had such a long day. Why don’t you take a little nap while the grown-ups clean up?” she suggested. She waggled her fingers as she began to back away. “Bye-bye.”

“He’s just going to turn against you too.”

Vanny stopped in place.

Jake wasn’t sure why he felt compelled to say it, but it came out. He waited for an answer but didn’t get one. She was still standing there, listening. So, he continued.

“Everybody Bunny’s ever loved has loved someone else more. At least that’s what he believes. Now he doesn’t know how to love more than one person at a time. And if you do something that hurts him, even if it’s something he started, even if he hurts you first, he’ll turn on you. If this backfires and he gets cornered on it, Bunny’s going to let you take the fall.”

“You’re wrong. What he and I have is special. You two are the one who turned your backs on him.”

“Oh yeah? We were his friends for years, for our entire lives, and the moment you came into the picture he threw us over. When the accident happened, he left US to run after you! But who says he won’t do the same thing to you the second someone new shows up with something he wants?! What makes you so special?”

“You’re wrong,” Vanny said. Her voice meek. “He loves me...”

“Bunny loves himself a lot more. Whose idea was it to start dressing you up like him?”

Vanny didn’t answer him. She stood there silently before he could eventually hear her soft footsteps as she began to leave.

It was right at that moment when he realized where she was going. Jake banged his fist on the lid of the tank and tried to kick it open.

“Wait, come back! Please!” he said. He hoped at first that maybe his begging would lure her back, but it didn’t. He continued with, “Don’t- Don’t you touch Gregory! You leave him alone and get out of here while you still can, or I swear- I swear!”

But it was no good. She was already out in the hallway, staring down her target.

Gregory had left Moon’s side to go peek through the crack in the door, desperate to see what was going on and if Freddy was okay- no, to see Freddy kick Bonnie’s butt. He was certain of it, and he had to make sure.

Vanny could’ve left then but she hesitated. She knew what Bunny would suggest- if she walked out of here like this she was just a sitting rabbit waiting for the hunter. Leverage was always required, especially now that they were currently breaking apart Bunny. She could hear the battle in the next room and her heart ached.

She could hear his frantic yells in her ears and her heart broke.

She could still hear what Jake said echoing in her head.

Bunny needed her to be strong. They were equals, and equals made decisions to benefit them both.

She began to slowly step towards Gregory. Her footsteps- and Jake’s shouts- masked by the sound of the battle out on the catwalks.

Gregory didn’t hear a thing. He felt it. A hand resting on his head causing him to go rigid because he knew immediately that it wasn’t Moon.

The gloved fingers slowly, almost gently, grabbed him by the hair and held him in place. She gave a low, “Shhhh,” and he noticed the pointed tip of the knife out the corner of his right eye.

She tugged him back and he stumbled over his feet, thoughts racing as he considered whether to try and make a break for it and whether she would stab him or not. She continued leading him by the top of the head and started to turn him when Gregory suddenly twisted out of her grasp, ripping his hair free, and ran for the door.

“FREDDY!” he yelled. He tried to shove open the door only to have Vanny’s arm grab around him and try to cover his mouth. He fought back, peeling down her hand to scream past it. “FREDDY!”

But that was when the knife returned and was now pointed directly into his face. He clammed up with fear even as he internally told himself to keep going, begging himself to get over it and put up a bigger fight, but that blade had him frozen like a statue.

“Ah-ah. Not another word unless you want me to get VERY grumpy,” Vanny whispered. “Come with me and I won’t do anything. Cross my heart.”

Gregory didn’t believe her for a second, but he didn’t have much choice. He didn’t even willingly go with her; she got that hand over his mouth and began to practically drag him down the hallway.

As they passed Moon, Gregory desperately kicked him in the side, hoping that it would somehow wake him up. Like how his pleading had woken Freddy up. But it didn’t. Moon lay motionless, unaware as Gregory was taken through a side door and dragged away.

Vanny took the boy to a hidden alternate elevator. One that was so narrow that barely more than one person fit inside. Unfortunately for him, Vanny was planning on keeping him close anyways. Her gloved hand still tight over his mouth. It smelled oily and weird, like Bonnie did. Some of the black stuff was smeared on her suit.

Gregory also noticed a significant blood spot on her arm and his racing heart only quickened, unaware that it was left there from the cut on Mike’s palm.

Soon the doors opened, and the rabbit woman pulled him through and down a tight hallway passage. One that was much more finished than the stairs underneath the stands in Roxy Raceway. And to his dismay, nowhere near it either, so there was no chance of Natalie, Fritz, or Jeremy hearing them.

That didn’t mean that Gregory didn’t try. After some twists and turns, he found himself getting dragged through Roxy Raceway towards the entranceway. He tried to call out again, voice muffled by the glove. He even kicked at the construction equipment they passed, succeeding in making a loud bang before Vanny yanked him aside so fast that his head spin.

But it was no good. They were clear on the other side of Roxy Raceway and the others were still likely by the elevator. There was no chance of them hearing, and that allowed Vanny to continue on her way out.

She needed to get back to the safety of her tower. Hidden away where they could recollect and figure out the next plan- he would be okay, she knew he would. He would know what to do next, and she was supplying him with the leverage he would need to get them there.

She was protecting him now. And he loved her for it, she knew it. She was sure of it.

And then she went around a corner of equipment and almost walked right into a familiar blond, but not the one she was expecting.

Jeremy looked absolutely gob smacked. Here he was a strung-out, half-awake, anxious mess coming back from the bathroom and walking up onto a rabbit-dressed woman with a knife and currently manhandling Gregory.

Maybe Scott had the right idea to buy a gun. If only he didn’t have that prior felony on his record.

They stared at each other for a long second with the only sound being the raceway’s ambience and Gregory’s muffled shouts. Then Jeremy squared up.

“Let him go.”

Vanny tilted her head and gave a very forced giggle. “Y-You want to come over here and make me?”

“No, but I will,” Jeremy said.

“No, you won’t.”

Vanny turned the knife around in her hand and pointed it specifically in Gregory’s direction. Jeremy put his hands up.

“Okay, I won’t! Just move that- get that away from him, okay? I’ll step back.” She nodded and he took a few steps back. “Don’t do anything to him.”

Vanny began to slowly sidestep around him, her knife never leaving its mark.

“Don’t follow me. I’ll know if you do, I see eVeRyTHING.” She held up her other hand like she was showing off a watch that was hidden by a big burn stain on her sleeve. “And then I’ll have to give Gregory a boo-boo. You don’t want that.”

Gregory gave him a pleading look, begging for him to do something, anything, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t risk her seeing. So he continued to stand there until she left Roxy Raceway and only then was he on the move.

Vanny tried to move quickly. Seeing Jeremy had emboldened Gregory to start fighting again and it took the knife being pressed into his cheek to get him to stop. She had to get to her tower.

She knew he wouldn’t just leave. He had to be following her.

And she was right, but Jeremy took her threat very seriously and as such had taken the long way. Sprinting to the upper entrance, down the long hallway, and coming out upstairs in the atrium. He had to cover his mouth to suppress the sound of his panting as he looked through the fencing.

Thankfully, Vanny did not see him. She was too busy dealing with the Staff Bot at Fazer Blast, which despite all its advanced features seemed unable to recognize the child in distress right in front of it. Vanny had to lean over Gregory so that she could tap at something on her wrist and when that didn’t work, she gave a frustrated little stamp of her foot.

Then she grabbed at something near her neck. Gregory tried to get away, but she quickly yanked him back in, holding him around with one arm and the knife now pressed against his belly. She messed with something at her neck again and her eyes began to glow red, and then she leaned into the Staff Bot’s face.

Its eyes flickered red and it rolled out of way, letting her pass through the automatic doors into Fazer Blast. Dragging Gregory along with her. The doors closing behind them.

As soon as they were out of view, Jeremy pushed open the gate and squeezed through before hurrying down the stairs. He knew it was dangerous to follow alone but he couldn’t risk letting Vanny disappear.

But as he ran up to Fazer Blast’s entrance, the Party Bot watching the doors quickly rolled in front of him.

“Welcome to Fazer Blast! Please deposit your Party Pass, VIP Pass, or Fazer Blast Ticket and begin your space adventure!”

“Uh, no. Hold on a second,” Jeremy mumbled.

He gently pushed past the bot and went up to the doors, but they were closed tight. He tried to pull them open with his fingers to no avail. They were stuck tight.

“Shoot!” he swore under his breath.

“Please do not touch the automated staff.”

“Yeah, yeah, sorry. Uh… Gotta go.”

Jeremy turned and began to bolt right back to and up the stairs. He had to get back to the others, warn them, and get Natalie’s clearance to get into Fazer Blast.

He could only hope there was only one way in and out.

…

Foxy and Freddy led the way through the doors and back into the hallway, only to find Moon laying prone on the ground and both Gregory and Jake missing.

“Gregory?” Freddy called. He bounded up to Moon’s body and began to frantically look around, even leaning into the warehouse. His eye lights cutting through the darkness. “Gregory?!”

There was a muffled voice and some loud banging from the back. Freddy gasped and followed Foxy who immediately charged inside. Which instantly resulted in a cacophony of crashes and clanks as they all but barged through any leftover bodies and kicked any remaining parts abandoned by Bonnie.

“Over ‘ere!” Foxy shouted back to Freddy as he located the tank. He tried to yank it open to no avail. “Locked tighter than Blackbeard’s chest!”

“There’s a manual lock! Out there- on there somewhere- there’s a manual lock!” Jake called out.

Foxy began to yank and poke around at the controls until Freddy came stumbling up over someone and took over, quickly deactivating the manual lock and allowing the tank to be opened.

Freddy’s heart sank when he found Jake inside alone. He hadn’t heard Gregory, but he had hoped that he would still somehow be there.

“Blimey, Lad! What’re you doin’ in there?!” Foxy asked.

“Vanny pushed me in and locked me in, and threatened to break off my arm, which was a bluff that I fell for,” Jake grunted as he got up and out. “Wh-Where’s Gregory?” he asked nervously.

“If he ain’t with you, then-.”

“Vanny has taken him,” Freddy said. “We must hurry! She has a head start on us!”

They didn’t need to be told twice, and the others heard from the door so they didn’t need to be told at all. Freddy went to pick up Moon only to have Jake stop him.

“I’ve got him! You worry about Gregory,” he assured. He quickly, and surprisingly easily, rolled Moon onto his back and shoulders. “Oof. Charlie, can you grab my panel?”

“Already got it!” Charlie said, holding it up.

“Want to move onto my back?” Mike offered to Marionette, who he still had an arm around and was leading along. Marionette shook his head, the crackling static making it clear that he was upset about this turn of events but not wanting to struggle with his stuttering voice. “Then mind if I pick up your legs?”

Marionette rolled his head towards Mike in exasperation, clearly catching on that there wasn’t much difference between carrying and carrying. But then he nodded.

“I’ll put you down when we find them,” Mike assured, having a hunch on why the Puppet was suddenly so desperate to stand on his own. He started to lift his legs.

“W-Watch yourrr han-nd,” Marionette gently warned.

“Ah!” And at that very second Mike grabbed his leg. He readjusted. “Noted. Thanks.”

“You really need to cover that up,” Charlie warned.

“As soon as I get a chance… What about that?”

 He nodded towards her hand and the rabbit doll head that she was still holding onto. She looked at it.

“Well… I think I’m going to hang onto it for a little while.”

“Alright, but don’t let Vanny see it and drop it if she does. We don’t know if we’re playing by Old Man Consequences rules here.”

Charlie tossed the head into the air and caught it. “Consider it done.”

But then the conversation was abruptly cut off so that they could hurry after the others back towards the elevator. Freddy leading the way until Foxy overtook him and dipped inside first. Everyone piled in quickly afterwards.

“I hope this elevator can hold!” Jake said with a huff as he squeezed in.

“Do not worry. The elevators at the Mega Pizzaplex have been guaranteed to hold the weight of at least two tons in case of an emergency situation-!” Freddy’s assurances were cut off by a loud groan as the elevator began to lift. “…Though on second thought, we are… technically not in the Pizzaplex… Perhaps we should not talk about it.”

“Aye, we can discuss it at the bottom of the shaft when we’re picking up our legs,” Foxy added on.

“I’ll be totally screwed. I’ll be dead and the only thing in here I can possess is that head,” Mike said, gesturing towards the doll head.

“You can always share with Mari,” Jake said, chuckling tensely in a clearly forced way. “Worked for me and Andrew!... For a while, at least.”

The rest of the ride was tense and silent, both because of the ominous sounds of the elevator and the looming dread of what they would find at the top of it.

What they found was Natalie and Fritz waiting, oblivious to what had been happening below. They got up from their seated positions on the floor as the ground disembarked.

“How’d it go? Uh…” Fritz noticed Marionette’s cracked mask. He hissed sympathetically and looked to Mike. “That good, huh?”

“Would’ve been better if we’d gotten them both,” Mike cryptically said. Though before he could explain, Foxy took over.

“Vanny’s got Gregory, Bunny’s still lurking, look alive we’re shovin’ out!” he barked. He started to stride out with everyone on his heels.

“You were here the whole time?” Mike asked.

“The whole time. She didn’t come through here,” Fritz confirmed. “But it wouldn’t shock me if there’s a stairwell or an escape hatch somewhere. I doubt they’d have only this one elevator in case it broke down.”

“But she’s still coming up the same way, so she couldn’t have gotten far,” Natalie offered.

Mike noticed someone missing. “Where’s Jeremy?”

At that second Foxy rounded on them. Unfortunately, Freddy didn’t get the warning that they were stopping and walked right into him with a quiet ‘excuse me’.

“Where IS Jeremy?” Foxy asked.

“Bathroom,” Fritz answered.

“Which one?”

“Whichever’s closest?”

“We can collect him along the way,” Freddy assured then somewhat insistently pushed Foxy along. “But we must catch up with Vanny.”

“Aye, let’s move.”

While they headed out, Natalie took notice of both the downed Marionette and the limp and glow-less Daycare Attendant lugged on Jake’s back. She too could tell that it went poorly.

“Is he okay? Do we need to take him down to Parts and Service?” Natalie asked.

“…We’ll see, but for now he’s just low power. Or no power, really. Freddy had his battery drained and Moon gave him his charge,” Jake quietly explained.

Natalie wanted to ask more questions but given Jake’s tone and the current circumstances she decided that prying could wait until later.

Instead, Natalie caught up a few steps and reached to put a hand on Freddy’s shoulder. The bear looked at her, worry heavy in his eyes.

“I’m glad to see you’re okay,” she said sincerely.

“Oh, I am not okay. But thank you for asking,” Freddy replied.

She couldn’t help but quirk a brow at that. Foxy didn’t turn around, but he reached back and tapped Freddy’s arm with his hook as a sign of comradery, and perhaps a reminder to stay focused.

Once into Roxy Raceway they quickened their speed to a run. Rather abruptly too, with Foxy blowing past Smitty and Buddy and beginning the trek towards the upper entrance into Roxy Raceway. Freddy was on his heels, Charlie close behind, and the rest grouped up further back trying to keep up.

While at the automated door, Foxy heard footsteps nearby. Heavier, not Gregory’s. His ears twitched and he ducked under the opening door and sprinted into the hallway, crowded with equipment, and right up onto the approaching person.

And almost ran right into Jeremy. The blond gave a startled shout before heaving in a breath of air in relief.

“Foxy!”

“Jer’my, thank God! I was startin’ to worry ya-.”

“Vanny’s in Fazer Blast!” Jeremy interjected. Relieved too to see him but too distracted by panic to think of anything but that knife and the boy it was aimed towards. “I just- Just ran into her! She had Gregory! She’s got a KNIFE; she headed into Fazer Blast!” he explained between pants.

Freddy had bounded up by then, having lifted the shutter with an almighty heave- and matching shriek of metal- and chasing Foxy’s non-existent tail.

Jeremy noticed and pointed at him. “Hey, you found Freddy!”

“There’s no time fer that now! We’re shovin’ to Fazer Blast!” Foxy interrupted. He grabbed Jeremy’s wrist and began to run for it, half-dragging the blond behind him.

By some miracle Jeremy had enough adrenaline to keep up- though more than likely Foxy was pacing himself somewhat for his and the others’ sake. That was why Freddy was able to overtake him, becoming the leader as they raced towards Fazer Blast.

They arrived shortly afterwards where Freddy tried to barge past the Staff Bot with only an, “Excuse me.” Normally this would work as this was his attraction, but he found his way quickly blocked by it. It signaling and alerting and its eyes glowing bright red.

“Alert. Alert. Unauthorized user detected. Entering lockdown mode.”

“I am not an intruder!” Freddy protested. “I am Freddy Fazbear, this is my starring attraction!”

The Staff Bot didn’t budge.

“I think Vanny- did something to it when she went by. She couldn’t- She couldn’t get the door open and she flashed it with her mask,” Jeremy explained through more panting.

Freddy’s eyes narrowed at the Staff Bot. “So, she did. It is no matter; I can still get us in.”

That was when Charlie stepped up beside him. “Before we do that, we’re going to need a plan. Trust me, I’ve gone in headfirst plenty of times and it only barely works out,” she interjected. “First thing’s first, is there any other way into Fazer Blast-?”

“Freddy, Lottie, look alive!”

Foxy’s shout got Freddy looking back right before he had a flashlight shoved in his face. An aggressive, red eyed security Staff Bot started to gang up on him. Which wasn’t much of a threat but was concerning for other reasons entirely.

“Whoa, whoa, Smitty!” Natalie shouted.

It was Smitty. The moment he got too close he flipped on a dime.

She grabbed him and physically pulled him back. He rounded on her, eyes now red as well and began to alert. Though after a moment the redness went away and it relaxed, then stared again and he seized up his arm with the light, then relaxed again. His visible confusion was clear.

“It’s Vanny,” Jake said.

“Oh yeah, it’s her alright,” Natalie agreed. She led Smitty back some ways until the red lights stopped period. “Okay, here’s the range!”

“Hmm, this could be a problem once we get inside. But it is not our problem now. I can deactivate the Staff Bot,” Freddy informed the others.

“Need my flashlight?”

“No need. I have on built in.”

“Freddy, the plan,” Charlie reminded. “Is there any other ways into Fazer Blast? Any that Vanny would know about?”

“…Yes. One that she would absolutely know through Bonnie,” Freddy said cryptically. “Or shall I say, through Bonnie Bowl. There is a security office that connects both together.”

“That’s where she is…” Jake quietly agreed. “She has a little hidey hole up there. And if she’s there it’s hard to reach from both here AND Bonnie Bowl.”

“Then that is where we are heading. However, if she is heading through Fazer Blast then hopefully she has not reached it yet. She would need to hack through every security door to get there. Someone should head up to Bonnie Bowl to make sure she cannot escape through there.”

“I’ll do it,” Natalie volunteered. “And I’ll take Crazy Eyes with me.”

“That’s my cue,” Fritz half-joked. “We’ll head up and block the way.”

“Think that’s enough? She’s got a knife,” Jeremy warned.

“The door to her office is blocked. She may not get through. Someone just needs to be there to make sure that nobody gets through,” Freddy explained. He then quickly tacked on, “Erm, workers were often sneaking in and watching Fazer Blast games from the catwalk connected to the Bonnie Bowl security office. It was a matter of security- and because they had not paid for a Fazer Blast pass.”

“Bleedin’ ‘em dry at every turn, Freddy, I respect that,” Foxy remarked. Then he turned to address the others, cutting off Freddy’s protests. “Nat, Fritz, ye both head on up to Bonnie Bowl. We’ve got it covered down here. We’ll go on in and catch up with her- except you.” He pointed distinctly at Mike. “Ya stay close enough that Vanny can’t get the drop on ya, and far enough away that she can’t pull ‘nothing.”

“She’ll have to pry him out of my hands,” Mike swore. He wasn’t going to let anything get too close.

Though that was immediately challenged by Buddy bumping his arm. Staring down at Marionette but thankfully not having the red eyes.

“Buddy, you too. Come on,” Natalie said and whistled. The Mop Bot wheeled itself over to her where it instead began to stare at Smitty who was still a little twitchy. Smitty made a flagging noise that Buddy returned.

Freddy turned to the Staff Bot and leaned down to look it in the eyes. Then he clicked his eye lights on, and off, and on, and off again, rapidly until the Staff Bot’s eyes blinked and suddenly lost their redness. It reverted into a sort of prone position, standing there with its arms at its sides. Activated but no longer functioning.

“And now…” Freddy pressed a finger to his temple and tried to see if he could override the Fazer Blast entryway using his security clearance. Within seconds the doors opened for them. “There we go! Vanny cannot keep us out any longer!”

“Then let’s go yank her off the plank!” Foxy proclaimed. He strode inside, pointing back at Mike again, “Ye stay in the lobby.”

This got Freddy to stop and he paused in the open entranceway before turning back to look at Jake, who wasn’t far behind him.

“Jake.”

“Yes?”

“You two should stay back as well. She may target you and Moon again,” Freddy warned. He looked down at Moon solemnly.

“…She’ll have to pry him out of my hands,” Jake answered. Almost unsure of what to say.

Freddy seemingly accepted that as he simply nodded, turned, the look of determination in his eyes again, and hurried into Fazer Blast.

All the Staff Bots who would’ve normally been stationed in the lobby were missing, but the eerie feeling was shortchanged by the typical ambience music playing. Freddy wasted no time in taking the lead and opening the door to the hall that would lead back into the arena.

“Foxy, come with me! The rest of you, wait here for us to return!” Freddy called back before suddenly thundering down the hallway.

Foxy was quick after him, and shockingly so was Jeremy with only a, “Wait, I’m coming too!” and running behind him. He only caught up because after the introduction theater, Foxy stopped at some tables lined with equipment for the laser tag game. Freddy had just kept going, none the wiser.

“Here, take this!” Foxy said. He handed Jeremy a Fazer Blaster and took one up himself.

Jeremy looked at it incredulously. “What’s this for?”

“They do somethin’ real nasty when they get in the eyes. Better than nothin’!”

That was a good point. So good of a point, in fact, that Jeremy grabbed a second one in case the first ran out of charge. The two continued after Freddy into the arena, forced to wait through the automated doors to get to him.

Charlie nearly ran after the three, but Jake must’ve foreseen this and caught her arm.

“Hey, wait. I think there’s another way up there. I’m not sure, but I think so,” he said.

“Up in Bonnie Bowl?” she guessed.

“No, in here! This way!”

Jake looked to be following Freddy, Foxy, and Jeremy but at the last second he went another way and down to another door.

“Hold out my panel, please.”

“Got it!” Charlie held it for him as he clicked around on it, manually overriding the door and opening it. He led them through and into another room.

The room was small and round with windows pointing out across the Fazer Blast arena. There were three orange benches lined up under the windows and two matching couches on the walls on each side of the door, with a circular futuristic table in the center with a fake planet in its center and a pizza box and snack wrappings spread across it. A large rocket ornament hung from the ceiling.

But the most important thing in the room was the poorly disguised vent on the left wall between a couch and a bench.

“That?” Charlie guessed.

“That,” Jake agreed. Charlie put down the panel on the table and went to try the vent while Jake continued, “Guesstimating the maps, it should lead up by the walkway. Or at least close enough that someone might be able to jump.”

“Mike, do you have a quarter?” Charlie asked. He set down Marionette’s legs long enough to fish out his wallet and got one out before tossing it to her. “Thanks!” She began to unscrew the vent cover.

“Be careful up there. Just because you can’t die don’t mean you can’t break something if you fall… In fact, let me come up behind you,” he offered.

“Let’s make sure I can get up there first,” she said, but partially agreeing. She pulled the vent cover off and set it aside. “Got it! Alright, I’m going in!” 

“Be careful.” “Careful!” Mike and Jake warned in quick succession.

But Charlie was beyond being careful. There was a life at risk and she had to step up- along with seeing if she could get some answers. She began to crawl through the cold vent quickly, getting to a bend and then-

She heard music. It sounded like music box music, and it was quickly closing in on her. She knew what it was even before she saw it.

“Oh no. Not again…”

A small spider animatronic came pattering into view. Its suction cup feet not quite sticking securely to the floor. Its broken cymbals held up before it. It was one of those little Music Men, and make no mistake, she knew instantly that it wasn’t one of the ones that the DJ kept for himself. This one was older, dirtier, broken-

And it had small red dots in its eyes.

“That’s new,” Charlie thought in passing.

Then it lunged at her. She smacked it back.

“Hey, stop that! Stay back!”

It kept running back in and at one point slammed its cymbals down onto her hand. It didn’t do any real damage, but it did hurt. She shook it out with a hiss, then snatched him up and tossed him down the vent. Hoping that would get the message across.

It got a message across, because as it righted itself she spotted a red glow reflecting on the vent. Then another one came around the corner, this one with a big chunk of its face missing. And then another one with its nose missing. And then another behind that.

And suddenly this little problem became a whole lot bigger.

Charlie tried to grab her taser but it was missing from her jacket pocket, having fallen out- but of course, because the bunny head was apparently more important to carry in-hand than the taser. If she lost it for good, then she would be kicking herself for years.

But for now, she was kicking in another direction as she began to start quickly crawling back in the vent. Her prong wedged up, making her duck her head. Her bell was ringing, the Music Men were deafening with their cacophony of various music boxes. All playing the same music but none of them in sync.

And she wasn’t the only one who heard it. Mike and Jake were back in the room when the altercation with the singular Mini Music Man began and it was obvious when three more joined the fray.

Marionette gave a panicked garble and Mike hastily put him on the couch and reached into the vent, grabbing Charlie’s legs, and pulled her out in one smooth motion. Her lost taser clattering to the floor. The second she leaned back to try and get some distance with the vent, Mike snatched up the taser and started going in.

“Mike, wait! There’s a bunch of them!” Charlie warned.

“Yeah, but they’re small,” Mike grunted, already starting to swing at the little bots.

He made contact with the one in front, jolting it and causing it to freeze up with its cymbals spread and its head cocked back. The others learned fast. They scuttled forward clattering their cymbals and jumped back into each other to dodge every one of Mike’s swings. This became a frustrating stalemate as Mike crawled further in, pushing back inch by inch.

It was at that moment, while Charlie and Jake watched- and Marionette too who half slid off the couch so he could get a better look- when the speaker on Jake’s panel cracked to life.

All three turned their heads as a voice came through…

…

Gregory had no idea where Vanny was taking him. First they were going through Fazer Blast, then they went through a door and through a bunch of weird, cold rooms with all this futuristic looking tower stuff in them. By time they reached the giant, glowing staircase Gregory was half-convinced that it was somehow going to lead them outside.

But it didn’t. Instead, he was dragged off the steps and found himself on a walkway high above the Fazer Blast arena. It had to be higher than the catwalks in Monty Golf and looking down made him feel almost as nervous as he did with the knife getting waved around in his face. All she’d have to do was push him off and he’d be in for a very painful fall.

Well, unless he could land on one of the walls for the upper section. Maybe he could pull away and hop down and-… no, that fall was going to hurt. He’d probably break a leg and then she’d come down and get him.

At the end of the catwalk was a security door with a window in it leading into an office. Gregory only had a brief look inside before the door was opened and he was yanked into the room.

It was clear that this was Vanny’s hideout.

And it was kinda sad.

It was a dark room with dark blue walls and dirty white and black checkerboard flooring. There was a desk in the corner with a monitor and a wall mounted screen, along with a stack of pizza boxes, cans of cherry Fizzy Faz, and other various snack wrappers. They overflowed the little trash can sitting beside the desk. Chip bags and crumpled up papers were scattered underneath the desk as well. Guess she did a lot of eating up here.

Sleeping too, as she had a bed in the other corner beside the desk. It looked like just a frame sitting on the floor with a puffy striped comforter laying on and in it, with a simple white pillow. It looked comfortable, but only by the standards Gregory had from sleeping wherever he could.

There was a singular old, dirty arcade cabinet too. It looked like it said ‘Pri…ss… uest’. Maybe Princess Quest? It looked filthy. Gregory didn’t even mind dirt and it looked so grimy that the buttons would be sticky on his fingers. It didn’t look to be on either. Maybe it had just been being stored in here when Vanny set up shop.

And Vanny had certainly set up shop, if the big “VANNY” spraypainted on the wall was any indication. Gregory wrinkled his nose at it for a second before being shoved forward.

She grabbed something off the desk, and it wasn’t until she was actively wrestling with him that he realized it was another zip tie. He fought back, yelling and hitting, even when the knife was getting waved around again. He fought with all he had, but in the end, he found himself shoved to the ground and had his arms yanked behind his back before they were secured with the tie.

Vanny pulled back, her bunny boot had left some of a dark smear on the back of his shirt and pulled him up. She planted him in an office chair and, despite his kicking and her need to start pressing the knife into his cheek, she managed to zip tie his wrist tie to another zip tie that she zip tied to the back of the office chair.

Then Vanny stepped away. Gregory was now secured to the office chair and bleeding from a shallow cut in his cheek. She stared at him.

“Wh-What?” he snapped. His cheek stinging but unaware it was oozing blood.

She turned away quickly and then began to pace around. Her hands tightening into fists and releasing as she did so. Her stumbling over her own big bunny feet. It was strange and frantic.

Until she stopped on a dime. She stood there by the desk staring at the door. Not the door they came through but the closed office door. She stared at it.

And then she spun around and rushed to the bed. She pulled up her blanket and pillow and tossed them into a pile on the floor. A couple of Glamrock Bonnie plushies hidden underneath followed suit, then a glittery pink journal with a couple of cute puppies on the cover, frantically piled aside before Vanny grabbed the bedframe and began to drag it across the room. She then hoisted it up and pushed it against the door, blocking it off.

Then she began to stumble around before grabbing up a large cardboard box. It was heavy and she gave a staticky huff through her mask before lugging it out. Gregory noticed a little head sticking out. Was that the little DJ that the DJ used to help him and Foxy? No, it looked too banged up, but what was Vanny doing with them?

He saw her crouch down outside of the door and heard her pull off the cover for the vent out there. Gregory had noticed that as a way to escape, but now- he tried the zip tie- that wasn’t happening.

It sounded like she was putting stuff in the vent. He heard cranking and then music box music, but it was all faint from where he was sitting. Though it was over quickly.

Vanny came back in to set the now empty cardboard box down before walking out onto the catwalk once more. Just far enough that Gregory could only see her if he wheeled over a little and leaned. She was just standing there with her hands tight on the railing, staring down into the arena, muttering to herself. It reminded him a whole lot of what Monty was doing.

He couldn’t really make out what she was muttering…

“Come back to me. Please. I know you’re there. Please, please. Come to me. I’m here. Bunny, sweetheart, darling…” she desperately and frantically whispered. She grabbed at her mask. “I’m here. I’m here! I’m…”

Vanny gasped sharply and grabbed the railing. The light from her mask surging for a few seconds and then-

She screamed. She gave a frustrated yell and slammed her gloved fists onto the railing.

“NO! NO! OF ALL THE- GOD F-!” She swore very loudly. “-ING DAMN IT!”

She broke into dry exasperated sobs and continued thumping her fist on the railing.

“I was THIS. CLOOOSE! AUGH! FFFFREDDY, UGH!” She grabbed at her mask and ears. “He ruined everything! He- He RIPPED my heart out- freaking LITERALLY- and tossed me into the pit!”

Vanny’s strange, out of character tantrum was cut off by her suddenly yanking down her arms to hug herself, shushing herself.

“It’s okay. It’s okay! You made it out. You’re safe… But we’re not SAFE.”

She strode further down the catwalk, grabbing ahold and looking down over. She looked around frantically, trying to detect any sort of movement. There were some Staff Bots moving around, but it was clear they weren’t any danger.

“They’re going to come looking for me. They’re gonna know I’m not down there, that useless little mime’s gonna tell them- I cracked open his face and you better believe they’re not gonna let that happen to their golden boy, that mime messiah mother- …not sitting down. No way in hell!”

Vanny was pacing on the catwalk before charging back inside, entirely ignoring Gregory, and going to the computer. They clicked it off standby mode and onto some sort of program to look through the security cameras, though Gregory couldn’t see much past her large plush head.

“Okay… Okay, okay. They’re not here yet. But they will be! They’re going to charge up here and coming right through that-…” Vanny turned to see the bed propped up on the door. “….What?” Then they noticed Gregory sitting there looking very uneasy. “What?! What is he doing here?! Ah forget it, doesn’t matter. We’ll deal with- Did you hear that?” Vanny cocked their head and then charged out of the office.

They grabbed the railing and leaned over to look, searching for anything… but there was nobody there. Another thump made it clear that the noise was coming from the vents.

“I-I put out the wind-up toys…” Vanny said quietly. “I thought they’d keep them from coming up there. Yeah. Yeah! Good idea, Honeybun. They’re going to try that. You know Jake knows about that vent. He’ll, uh, he’ll send someone up that way.”

Their body shuddered and they grabbed tighter at the railing. Nerves rising through their body and stomach as the pressure closed in. They were coming. They would be here. No way out.

“Don’t panic, we’ve got this. We’ll just… We’ll use the kid. Get out, jump the state line, take off,” Vanny said. They shrugged. “Yeah! Find another Freddy’s or whatever, see if we can get a new body there. Or come back once this place implodes. I can live with that! Hell, I can live with anything if we get to LIVE.”

Vanny heaved and clasped a hand over their mask’s mouth.

“I… I think I’m going to be sick…! What? Oh sh-.” Vanny gulped and choked. “I’ve got you, Babe. Lemme take it. Lemme take it.”

Vanny came running back into the office and knelt beside the trash can. She tore up her mask and then-

Gregory cringed and looked away, then peeked again once it was over. Vanny was wiping her- their? Mouth off with a crumpled of piece of paper. They gave a full body shutter and chucked it in the trash, and then noticed Gregory watching.

“What are you looking at?” Vanny snapped.

That was Bunny. It wasn’t just Vanny acting insane, it was both the crazy rabbit lady AND the crazy rabbit.

“A-Are you okay…? Oh yeah, I’m good. Really feeling the rockstar lifestyle! Heh, ugh.” Vanny spat into the trash and pulled their mask back on. “Okay.” They stood up and took a wobbly step to turn. “Let’s do something with the kid.”

Gregory felt an icy dread grab his heart as Vanny sauntered to him with an almost intoxicated sway. They crouched down in front of him and cocked their head.

“Hey, kiddo. Question time! You like scary stuff, right? Course you do. You’re Andy’s biggest fan.” Vanny leaned in, their eyes glowing brighter as they did. “…How many stabs does it take to make someone bleed out?”

That felt like a trick question. Gregory didn’t answer until it became clear that Vanny wasn’t going to move until he did.

“Uh… I don’t know…?”

Vanny suddenly poked him in the arm and popped their hidden lips. “What?” The rabbit did it again, now on his leg. “Hey, stop!”

It continued. Poke, pop, poke, pop. On the arms, the legs, the shoulder, the foot, the ears, and the belly. Until they reached a spot on his upper right stomach, right under his ribs. Their finger hovered there.

“Trick question.,” Vanny said. They jammed their finger in there. “It only takes one.”

That chilly feeling returned again. Gregory tried to pull back away from the crouched rabbit. “H-How do you know that?”

“First-hand experience, long story. Relaaaaax, Kiiiiiid. We NEED you! You just be good and we’ll dump you off somewhere once we’re done,” Vanny said, cocking their head the other way lazily. “…Like the other side of the Utah border. What’s state’s below us?” Vanny looked away to start talking to themselves.

“Ariz-.” An audible gulp. “Arizona, sorry. Don’t be sorry, Princess. You’re doing great. But Arizona’s sort of… desert. I mean Utah’s desert too and so is Nevada. I guess no matter where we go- wait, wait. We’re by Nevada? It’s the state beside us. Ah ha HA!”

Vanny hopped to their feet and clapped their hands once in victory. It was muted by their gloves.

“Bingo, there we go! We’re goin’ to Vegas! Forget about the whole body situation, let’s just take THIS body and go have some fun! I’m ready to get out of this place!” Vanny strode to the window before suddenly slowing into an unsure gait and then peering out.

“But what about after that…?” she asked. “After that… We figure that out after that,” he replies.

They turned back towards Gregory.

“But he’s the key to getting there. Little field mouse’s worth more than I expected. Let’s scoop him up and find a way… out…?”

An alarm started to beep from the computer. Vanny stared at it for a second before suddenly lunging over onto the desk. Gregory going entirely forgotten.

“No, no, no…” They started flipping through the feed and gave a panicked cry as they noticed Freddy passing through the lobby and hurrying towards the Fazer Blast arena. “God, it’s FreDDY!”

Gregory perked up instantly, filled with a sudden surge of hope. Freddy was coming! Not only was he okay, not only did he beat up Bonnie, but he was on his way to save the day! He knew he was going to.

“It’ll be okay! We can still get out, we have Gregory. He wouldn’t risk any- Nessie, you don’t understand! My body’s gone. Bonnie, my plushie, the whole thing. I’m gone. THIS is my last hold. You are my last tether. He knows that, he’s the one who ripped me out in the first place!” Vanny’s hands tightened into fists. “If he figures out a way to pull us apart, I’m done for. It’s game over forever.”

She wasn’t used to hearing him panic. She wasn’t used to hearing him sound scared.

But he was, because he knew just as well as she did that he didn’t have many lifelines and he had lost every one except for her. Everybody, every body. This was his last shot and then it was into the void.

Or worse. The lake.

She was all he had left. This filled her with a fierce determination, because for the first time since they had met, since she cleaned up that abandoned plush rabbit and took it home, he needed her to protect him.

And after so long of being pushed around by everyone- her coworkers, her so-called friends, the animatronics- she was ready to push back.

“Let me take care of it,” she said. Her voice no longer shaky and now firm with resolve.

“What? What do you mean?”

“Do you trust me?”

“With everything I’ve got,” he answered her without hesitation.

“Then just close your eyes and hold on tight. Your princess can be a hero too.”

Vanny brushed aside some papers on the desk and picked up a remote. One with a little Staff Bot insignia on it. It had a simple speaker and a Freddy head shaped button on it. So deceptively simple, but very important.

“Are you sure?”

She tightened her grip on the remote and her resolve.

“I’m sure.”

And then stepped out onto the catwalk.

“It will be fun.”

Chapter 98

Freddy sprinted out into the Fazer Blast arena before slowing to a stop. He listened for any signs of Vanny or even the patrolling Arena Bots, but there were none. It was ominously quiet.

Eyes narrowed, he began to carefully step into the arena when he heard automated wheels. He looked around at the walls surrounding him before he saw the first Staff Bot roll out. It was dressed like an alien.

It had red eyes, and it was coming right for him. Its arms lifting almost in a zombie-like manner. Freddy backed away only to have a second grab him from behind.

And before he knew it, he was surrounded. Staff Bots coming from every direction and from around every corner. Some dressed for team play, some dressed as aliens, some not dressed in anything at all but instead smudged and dirtied like they had come from somewhere dark and dank.

Fear set in. Freddy elbowed the bot grabbing his back and pushed at the ones at his front and ran up the nearest ramp.

“Foxy! Foxy?!” he called behind him. But he received no response. He topped at the top of the ramp and tried to look, but there was no sign of him. He had to still be outside the arena, meaning Freddy was on his own.

Well, not exactly alone. For as he ran across the platform and began to cross a bridge, he noticed a spot of white in his upper vision and look up to see Vanny standing on the catwalk. He petered to a stop.

Vanny was just standing there watching the scene. Staring down at him. He narrowed his eyes with suspicion.

“Vanny!” he shouted. “Where is Gregory?!”

Then like a wind-up toy whirring to life, Vanny suddenly took a pose. Her arms stretched above her head.

She began a short, swaying dance. Rising onto the toes of her boots and twisting her arms to music that wasn’t there. All while Staff Bots closed in around him. He pushed another one back and looked up towards the dancing woman. Suspicion quickly turned to frustration, and anger.

“Answer me!” he roared.

And she did.

She finished her dance by presenting a remote to him, one with a Freddy head button and a speaker. Her finger circled the button teasingly before pressing it down.

She brought the remote to her mouth an whispered a command that hollowly echoed through the numerous Staff Bots tailing him.

One that reached his ears and stopped his heart.

“Disassemble Freddy.”

“No…” Freddy whispered.

He knew what that command would do. He knew what they would do.

And he wasn’t the only one. Gregory’s eyes went wide, and his head shot up from the chair he was trying to squirm out of. His heart racing as he realized what was going to happen.

“FREDDY, NOO!” he screamed.

“Gregory?!” Freddy could hear his cry. He looked around desperately for any sign of him, but all he could see were the glowing red eyes closing in on his position. “No, please! Do not do this! Bonnie?! BONNIE?!”

Vanny pulled her hand from the remote and waggled her gloved fingers at him. It was already done. The order was already given.

And he knew exactly which bots were built to do the disassembling.

At that moment, the red eyed Staff Bots swarmed in faster. He started to run up the bridge only to get cut off by more of them. Now he was trapped between them, forced to start swinging and knocking them off the bridge, but there were more ready to replace them. They didn’t stop coming.

In the distance, Jake could be heard slamming his fists on the glass of the window. He and the others had heard her command too through the panel, and he knew from experience what was about to happen.

“No, no, no! Wait, no, stop!” Jake yelled. “Bunny! Don’t let her do this!”

“There’s got to be a way to stop it! Can you override it with your controller?!” Charlie asked.

“I can’t! If she has higher permissions-!”

He suddenly had the panel pushed into his hands by Mike.

“Try!” he said. “I’ll keep trying on the vent, see what you can do!”

“O-Okay! I’ll try!”

Jake plugged himself in while Mike returned to the vent, Charlie joining him.

Neither of them seeing Marionette crawl off the couch, across the floor, and up onto the bench to see through the windows. Tears flowing down his mask and through its cracks as he watched Freddy fight with everything he had.

But it wasn’t enough.

Freddy was fighting with all he had, but they were overwhelming. They ganged up on him and he found himself literally and figuratively pushed to the edge. Too many to counter against. Too much to fight off.

And then he was shoved. He couldn’t tell if it was by just one or many, but it was enough to knock him off balance and he found himself falling off the bridge and landing heavily on the lower floor of the arena. He could feel it rattle his internal mechanisms, sending a painful jolt throughout his entire body.

He gasped in pain, and then gasped again when he looked up to see a swarm of Staff Bots closing in. Their eyes glowing the same stark red as Bonnie’s had been. As Vanny’s currently were as she leaned over the railing and watched Freddy crawl backwards on the floor, trying to get away from their reaching hands.

He remembered this feeling. It frightened him how familiar it all was. Him scooting backwards on the padded flooring as those red eyes swayed in closer and closer.

“Ehehehehahahaaaa…” Moon cackled. His face spun menacingly. “Naughty boy, up so laaaate.”

“Wha..What are you talking about?” he asked in confusion and fear. Moon was coming closer. “Moon, stay back! You’re not thinking right. You’re glitching out!”

But Moon paid him no heed. He didn’t stop. There was something wrong, this wasn’t him. He wasn’t like this. It had to be a malfunction.

There was no choice. Ray knew he had to use his taser-

The memory was jarring. Blurring in with the present. Moon’s grinning face reaching for him melding with the empty faces of the Staff Bot in front. Coming to tear him apart piece by piece.

And he could do nothing but helplessly stare as they circled in around him.

And reached for him.

And then…

“AVAST YE, DEVIL’S SPAWN!”

Freddy looked up in time to see Foxy leap from atop a wall to his left and dive at the Staff Bots. He took out the whole lot with that one pounce, knocking all four of them over. Even knocking a couple onto Freddy, who pushed off one and kicked off the other before scooting back out of their flimsy reach.

“Foxy!” Freddy cried.

But there were more Staff Bots coming. Foxy was prepared. He raised up on one knee and began to fire off shots with the Fazerblaster. In only a few shots the approaching Staff Bots were stopped in their tracks.

“Foxy!” Freddy cried again, this time in utter joy.

“Aye! Look alive, Fazbear, they’re comin’ in hot!”

“Freddy!” another voice called.

Freddy looked to the wall to his left, the one Foxy just jumped off of, and found Jeremy holding himself up on the top. He held up a fazerblaster before tossing it over to him. Freddy caught it.

“I’ve gotta go, but I’m here! Can’t be seen!” Jeremy raced out. He dropped down and disappeared, hopefully before Vanny could see him.

Now with his own fazerblaster in hand, Freddy got to his feet and poised himself for a coming battle. Foxy backed up to his side, gaining some ground on the still incoming Staff Bots as his blaster recharged.

“What took you so long?” Freddy joked.

“Got stuck behind an automatic door,” Foxy explained. “Oiy, Jer’my!”

“Still here, gotta run!” Jeremy called back from somewhere. From the fact that his voice was moving he was, indeed, running.  

“Then it’s down to us, Freddy,” Foxy said. He lifted his patch and looked at Freddy out the corner of it. “Looks like all that shootin’ practice ain’t gonna go to waste after all.”

Freddy chuckled before lifting his Fazer Blaster in a pose. “Yes. This is where all our training pays off Foxy. Let’s finish this.”

“Aye.”

The Staff Bots were closing in, but they were ready for them. Taking turns firing off as they slipped into the maze of walls, trying to get away before they recovered enough to follow. There were more around each corner, but this time Freddy confronted his fear head on.

Not just for Foxy, but Gregory, Moon, everyone, and then himself.

Foxy, meanwhile, was just trying to keep the Staff Bots off of Freddy’s back. It only took him a few seconds of hand-to-hand combat to realize that the bots only returned his aggression when he attacked them. Otherwise, they were honed in on Freddy. Which Foxy wasn’t about to let happen. He emptied the fazerblaster’s charge and rammed into them as he waited for it to reload.

In one especially desperate moment Freddy went around a corner and was ganged up on. He fought them off, but one was coming up behind him and grabbed at his arm, wrenching it back with a shocking amount of strength. Something flipped in Foxy, and he dove in, not realizing what he was doing until his jaw was clamped around the Staff Bot’s head.

He didn’t realize he still had it in him. With a quick snap he popped it off and tossed it to the ground like a dog rejecting a sour steak. Then he wiped his mouth of non-existent saliva and pressed on.

Freddy kicked one in the base and knocked it on its back. Foxy caught one around the neck with his hook and threw it to the ground. Staff Bots fell in droves as the duo pushed through the maze. But to where?

“We must get to the door that leads to the stairs! Follow me, I know where it is!”

“Aye-aye, Cap’n!”

Freddy charged further through the walls. There was no point in hiding from them, they knew where he was, but he got a moment of cover from the seemingly constant glower of Vanny high above. He ended up running up on Jeremy who had been taking shelter in the same spot.

Foxy came diving in a moment later and Freddy shot at the Staff Bots on his heels.

“How’re they so fast?!” Jeremy shout whispered.

“Heh, compared to what, Lad?” Foxy asked confidently. He then stopped him before he could keep moving. “Wait, wait, stay close! They don’t notice ya unless ya throw fists. They just want Freddy.”

“Which is very unfortunate for me. But we cannot rest, we must reach the door!” Freddy told them. He jogged past. “Stay close! It is not much further!”

Foxy and Jeremy stayed close as they continued across the maze. Both of them covering Freddy as he guided the way to the other side and the maintenance door.

The door was open, leading into a dark hallway lined with a few, dull, white striped standing lights. It led down to some stairs under and behind Fazerblast.

“Jeremy, we will hold them at bay. You go,” Freddy said.

Jeremy did a double-take. “Me?”

“Him?!” Foxy added

“Yes. Vanny has now taken control of both Moon and the Staff Bots. Who knows which of us may be next!... Besides, I am not allowed up on the catwalk,” Freddy admittedly sheepishly.

“Well, that may be so, but him goin’ up alone? Belay that! She’ll be wavin’ that lil fish gutter in his face in no time!”

“Then you should go with him.”

“Freddy, all’s ya gotta do is walk through a door. If ya can’t walk through this one, how’re ya gonna walk out of here?!”

Freddy got a startled look at that. It wasn’t clear if it was from him realizing that Foxy had a point or if he was still surprised by the suggestion of leaving the Pizzaplex. Either way he didn’t clarify, and didn’t answer.

But Jeremy sensed a stalemate coming and saw Staff Bots on the horizon.

He could go up a flight of stairs alone. He wasn’t that scared of Vanny.

“Foxy, if he can’t, you stay here. I can go,” he rushed out.

Foxy looked to Jeremy with a start. “But that wench up there-?!”

“I’ve got a few inches over her. If she starts swinging at me, I’ll just… kick her in the shin and knock her off. I’ll be fine! Freddy’s going to get swarmed if he’s down here alone,” Jeremy insisted. “I’ll just- I’ll get- I know what I’ll do, I’ll get up there and block this side, and then when Natalie and Fritz show up, we can corner her and figure it out.”

“Jeremy, I have a bad feeling about this plan of yours…” Foxy mumbled. He lowered his voice and slipped out of character to get the point across. It did, but it didn’t change Jeremy’s decision.

“Trust me. I can do this. I’m not going to let her stab me.” He reached out and squeezed Foxy’s wrist. “I can do it.”

“…Alright, Lad. A’ight. Yeah, yar. Go fer it,” Foxy finally agreed. “She pulls anything, you run down here. I’ll take those stairs like a track star, take ‘er out meself.”

“I know you will. I’ve seen you do it!”

Foxy chuckled at that and leaned in only to lean right back and start firing upon a Staff Bot creeping around a wall. Jeremy took that as his cue and quickly ducked into the doorway before he could lose his nerve.

“Good luck and godspeed, Jeremy!” Freddy called.

“Watch yer six!” Foxy added.

“I’ll try!” Jeremy called back as he continued to run.

He hustled down the stairs and through another door and found himself in near pitch darkness. There was a glowing Freddy box on the wall that he used to reorient himself as he fumbled through a small, tight storeroom and into another hallway. This one with more lights but low and dull. The air was strangely cool.

At the end of the hallway, he headed through another door and was hit with a wall of icy air. It was almost refreshing with how heated he was from running around. He hurried inside what looked to be a large server room, even darker than the hall before it. The only reason he guessed there were servers, and didn’t run straight into them, was because of the dozens of tiny lights lining the walls.

He was speedwalking through with his arms out, trying to make sure he didn’t walk into anything. It didn’t stop him from slamming his lower half into what felt like a laundry cart.

“Omph!”

CLICK.

Jeremy straightened up instantly and whipped his head in the direction of the sound. His ears straining against the constant hum of equipment to make out what he had heard.

CLICK CLACK.

There was a whirr as something moved in the darkness.

Then a pair of red eyes glowed to life.

And then a half-dozen more pairs of eyes appeared behind it.

And they all came for him at once. He knew they were Staff Bots even before he felt them clawing at him as he turned and ran. He was back to running blindly in a blur of blackness and beady lights. Fumbling in the darkness, circling around and nearly running straight into the group of bots before making a sharp turn away.

After a few frightening moments he managed to find his way into a separate hallway and started running through, only to catch sight of another, lone Staff Bot coming towards him. And by then the gang was already closing in behind him. There was no way to go back now.

He briefly considered what Foxy would do-

And then rammed his shoulder into the Staff Bot and knocked it over, falling over it in the process before scrambling to his feet and continuing to run.

Foxy would be impressed! Though he’d be feeling that in his shoulder tomorrow. If he lived long enough to feel it.

He got through and was back to blindly fleeing until he came up on what looked to be a blue spiral nearby. It wasn’t until he got a little closer that he realized it was the spiral staircase leading up through Fazerblast.

He could hear the Staff Bots seeming to multiply behind him and racing to catch up by time he started to run up the steps. He kept running up the stairs, faster, faster, until he tripped up and just barely caught himself with the railing. He looked back to see if they were right behind him with the dull blue light… but they weren’t.

Their noises had faded. Still present but further beneath him. He looked over the railing and between a gap in the wall and saw red dots far beneath him, searching around in the darkness. They couldn’t follow him up the stairs, maybe because of the same programming that kept Freddy from climbing them.

His heart was still pounding as he continued climbing the steps. He could see all the surrounding neon as he broached through the floor and headed up further towards the catwalk.

There was no turning back. The only way out was through.

…

It didn’t take long for Natalie and Fritz to make it up into Bonnie Bowl. Natalie coerced Smitty and Buddy to stay by the escalators as Fritz did the flashlight trick on the Staff Bot blocking the bowling alley. Its eyes too glowing red until it was reset and turned docile. Then the two headed in alone.

They made it down the hallway and through the security door into the main room and then hid behind the counter at one of the bowling shoe rental kiosks as they tried to scout out their next move.

The Staff Bots were acting strangly already. They were twitchy and agitated. The one security bot they could see was going in circles with its arms at its sides and the Circus Baby styled ones behind the counter were rolling around bumping into the back of the counter. It was as though the mere presence of Vanny stirred them into a frenzy.

“They look rowdy. I don’t think one flashlight’s going to be able to stop all of them,” Natalie whispered.

Fritz hummed and looked over her shoulder, trying to see if there was any other way past. There wasn’t. He looked back down the hallway they came from and towards the arcade.

That’s when he spotted a coin-operated rocket kiddie ride in the corner.

“Maybe we can sneak past if we stay close to the counter,” Natalie suggested.

“Maybe. But look over there. See that rocket ride over there?” Fritz whispered.

Natalie looked back. “Yeah?” and then, “It looks a lot like ours.”

“You bet it does, and a I bet it’s as loud as ours too. I’m going to go drop some quarters into it and maybe it’ll lure these guys over there.”

“Good idea, but what about you?”

“I’ll just duck around the corner and come around through the arcade.”

“Be careful. They’re faster than they look,” Natalie warned.

“I will… Okay.”

With a deep breath he ducked out from behind the counter.

Thankfully, there weren’t any Staff Bots skulking around the rocket, so he was able to slip over to it. Thankfully still, it had both a token and a coin slot, meaning that he could dump in a couple of quarters and didn’t have to go scrounging for tickets. He dropped in four and pressed the button, and the rocket came to life with music and movement.

Then he promptly booked it into the arcade and around a row of cabinets, peeking out to watch. It worked like a charm. More Staff Bots than he expected rushed out of the woodwork- and even out of the other side of the arcade- to congregate around the kiddie ride. Agitated and confused when they found themselves staring at nothing.

Fritz started to make his way through the arcade towards the bowling alley, only to freeze up when he heard heavy footsteps and the whirring of something bigger than a Staff Bot. He ducked back behind some cabinets and crouched behind them, peeking between them.

And watched slack jawed as a towering endoskeleton began to make its way through. Its arms stuck out in front of it as it thumped along. It had to be a Glamrock Endo, but what was it doing up here?

He waited until it was further out of sight before he dared to skirt past, knowing that the ride likely wouldn’t be a distraction much longer. He saw it’s back as he passed and shuddered.

And then he looked the other way, across the bowling alley, and saw one climbing up from behind the pins. With nothing but flimsy railing to hide behind, he began sprinting and hoped it hadn’t taken notice.

He got to the diner area before he saw the stage curtains open to reveal Natalie already inside and beckoning him in. He joined her and the curtains were closed to conceal them right as the kiddie machine stopped.

“I thought there might be something back here,” Natalie whispered. She reached out and patted the wall behind the stage. “But nothing. BUT there’s a door right over there that leads behind the counter. Maybe the stairs are back there, and it’s a clear shot since the bots left.”

“That’s probably our best bet. Unless… Wait, wait. There might still be something here. Let me look.”

Fritz felt over the wall. His fingers feeling along before noticing a nearly invisible slit along the sides.

“Yeah, they covered up a doorway,” he said.

He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his Swiss army knife and made short work of cutting through the flimsy paper covering the door and then popping out one of the plaster panels covering the doorway. The cheapest option, he noted that he probably could’ve punched through the thing if he tried.

They slipped through and found themselves in a dark, short hallway. There were a couple of stairs leading down into it that led to a deactivated recharge station, off but still looking functional. The hallway then went to the right. They went around the corner and found some junk shoved into it. Boxes, props, anything that needed to be stored.

“This must be the way Freddy was talking about,” Natalie said. She moved aside some stacks of chairs by the wall and that made enough of a space to climb through. “Careful, it’s a tight squeeze.”

“How’d Ness move all this on her own?” Fritz asked. Though it didn’t sound like a question, but a statement.

“Maybe some employees moved the stuff? Wait. Oh, come on! You’ve got to be kidding me!”

“What? Oh.”

The fence. There was a chain length fence gate blocking them, with the door being in the middle.

“Here, I’ve got it,” he said. He started to squeeze by. “Lemme just-.”

“Oww!”

“Sorry! Here, let me just…”

He tried to push over some of the stuff only to have a tower of it collapse on top of the already cluttered pile, making an almighty crash but somewhat clearing the way.

“Good job, He-Man,” Natalie said.

“By the power of Greyskull-.” Fritz grunted as he shoved the stuck but unlocked fence door open. “I have the poweeeeer!”

It creaked loudly and they stepped through, and he shut it behind them.

“There. That should keep them from following us. Well, that and all the garbage.”

“Yeah, they’re not too good with getting derailed off-course.”

“Hey, who is?” Fritz said with a playful shrug. He then took a deep breath and readied himself as Natalie grabbed the doorhandle. “Maybe I should go first?”

“No, I’ve got it. But you stay right behind me. If she jumps out, I’ll hit her with the flashlight and you shove her over,” Natalie said. There was a playful tinge, but it went serious quickly. “Okay… Here we go…”

She turned the handle and slowly opened the door.

The first thing they saw was a deactivated Staff Bot across the room. It was standing in an area that looked to be behind the lanes, where the pins would be set up. There was an old workbench too, and a bunch of dusty old pins in a big pile.

Natalie pushed the door open the rest of the way and found something she didn’t expect. First of all, no Vanny, but secondly some sort of vanity.

It almost looked like the ones from the Glamrocks’ green rooms. Though it was just the vanity desk with a star-shaped blue mirror over it, studded with lights.

On the wall were two notable things. A big Freddy poster, and a blue neon sign in the shape of Glamrock Bonnie. Even with his star shades on.

“Is this Bonnie’s green room?” Natalie asked in disbelief. “…No, wait, it can’t be! He had one downstairs.”

“They must’ve just moved the stuff in here… And then someone set it up to look like another green room,” Fritz said. He pointed to what looked like a makeshift bed on the floor in the corner. “Look at that.”

“I guess she was sleeping in here. Or someone was. It had to be her if Bonnie was in the basement. Maybe a backup hideout?”

They walked over to get a better look, with Natalie clicking off her light as the room was properly lit by the mirror. On the vanity were a few scattered items.

There was a tube of yellow paint sat beside a little plastic dish that had dried paint in the bottom, with a couple of dried out paintbrushes propped up on it. There was a small Glamrock Freddy statue that almost looked like a trophy, along with a small plastic trophy with a tiny bowling ball on it and the word “Strike!” molded into it. There was also a Glamrock Freddy plush laying off to the side.

Natalie started to go through the drawers on the right while Fritz went through the ones on the left. In the top right drawer, Natalie found two small Sun and Moon plushies squeezed inside along with a set of Pizzaplex action figures crammed inside. The Sun looked very strange, but upon closer inspection it was actually a repainted Moon with Sun’s color scheme.

The second drawer down was basically a junk drawer. A rubber band ball, a couple of guitar picks, some paper clips, and at least a dozen crinkled up chip bags that were shoved into the back.

On Fritz’s side, the upper drawer housed a notepad made up of stylized slips for autographs. There was also a stack of Bonnie glam shots, likely for the same reason, and a couple of oversized pens.

As he was shutting the drawer though, something caught on the bottom, and he looked to see a thick, square envelope that had been taped to the bottom and fell loose. He pulled it out, some of the envelope being left behind on the tape and opened it up.

Inside were small, square pictures taken from a Fazcam and developed at one of the kiosks around the Pizzaplex, and they were damning.

“Check these out,” Fritz said.

He held them out so Natalie could see them under the soft glow of the mirror lights.

They were pictures of Glamrock Bonnie. A picture of him with the Glamrocks- Freddy, Chica, and Roxy. A picture of him pointing at a cutout of himself. A picture of him hugging Sun and Moon to his sides. That is, Jake and Andrew before Andrew became both and Jake was retired.

The rest were all pictures of Glamrock Bonnie and a familiar face, Ness. No bunny suit, no mask, just Ness. And despite the entire lack of Vanny, it seemed to be the last piece to affirm without a doubt that Ness was and always had been the woman in the rabbit suit.

In one of them Glamrock Bonnie was hugging her from behind and winking at the camera. Ness had her eyes closed, like the picture had been taken while blinking, but she looked so happy. Happer than Natalie had ever seen her before.  

“I guess she was spending a lot of time at the Pizzaplex even before it was open…” she mused.

“Something like that,” Fritz agreed. “…We should take them. If anyone else finds these it could expose them.”

Natalie nodded. The last thing that needed was for Fazbear Entertainment to find out Ness’ connection to the animatronics in the Pizzaplex. Stopping her was one thing but getting her under their crosshairs was another. Besides, it would be dangerous for Jake and SunnyMoon too.

She was still protecting her, she noted. She turned away with a sigh as Fritz started trying to fit the pictures into one or any of his pockets. She shined the light around and noticed the poster on the wall.

It was a poster of Glamrock Freddy with a message scribbled on it: You & Me, Forever & Ever! Love, Freddy. A gift from Freddy. That with the plush and statue showed a surprising amount of adoration for Glamrock Freddy. It was crazy he could switch so easily to kidnapping him. Demented or desperate?

Did it matter when the results were the same?

“If this is the room Freddy was talking about, I guess he’s wrong because I don’t see much of a chance of those shutters in there leading to Fazerblast,” Fritz remarked.

“I think you’re right… Let’s go check behind the counter just in case.”

She took one last look around the room before following him out.

Fritz led the way through the short hallway, around the stuff, up the stairs, and to the red curtain that he pulled aside.

To reveal the endo standing outside.

He quickly shut it back.

“Wait, wait! Don’t!” Natalie yanked the curtain back open.

Now the endoskeleton was directly outside the curtain, within reaching distance but frozen under their gaze.

“They can’t move when you look at them,” she whispered.

Fritz hissed as he sized up the large endo. He had heard of these ones, but he wasn’t expecting to run into them up here.

“What’s the plan? One of us keeps watch?”

“That’s it!” Natalie whispered. She stepped down off the side of the stage. “Follow me.”

Natalie led Fritz along to the counter and door while Fritz kept his eyes trained on the endo. The Staff Bots were still swarming over across the room and by the bowling lanes, so they were able to make it into the back without any trouble.

This led into a back hallway. To the left the hallway ended a short ways away, but to the right it continued onwards. Natalie led the way down it and to another door and opened it to find a flight of stairs.

“Bingo!” Natalie pushed through the door and hustled down the steps.

“Careful, careful!” Fritz whispered after her.

She slowed down a little and shortly afterwards arrived at the bottom. There was a small dingy room with some junk inside, along with a door blocked by stacks of boxes and tubs.

“This is it!” she whispered too, not wanting anyone inside to hear. “Let’s be really careful moving this stuff.”

Fritz and she made short work of the boxes. Largely because they could hear thumping around in the hallway upstairs and were all too certain that something was probably looking for them. But the door was unblocked, and Natalie was able to crack it open. Only to promptly come face to face with a bedframe propped up against it.

“I guess locking the door was too hard. Had to get creative,” Fritz remarked.

“Hey!” a familiar voice whispered from nearby.

Natalie ducked under the tilted cot and looked out to see Gregory tied up in an office chair.

“She’s out there!” He nodded at something past the cot.

Natalie carefully squeezed out and leaned to look out of the doorway that Gregory had gestured to. Slowly she leaned, prepared to yank back at any second, and looked out the door and down the walkway.

There was Vanny. She stood some way down the catwalk, leaning over the railing and staring down at something. Her head bobbing around and her stalking further down and up the walkway. She looked like an agitated animal watching prey dance on the other side of prison bars. Likely Freddy and the others had already gotten inside.

The important part was that she was distracted.

“Tell me if she starts coming,” Fritz whispered as he passed.

He went straight to Gregory and used his Swiss army knife to cut off the zip tie, being extremely careful to not cut him in the process. Once he was free, he took his arm and began to lead him back towards the door, with Gregory making only the mildest attempt to pull away- he didn’t want to seem weak or something.

Fritz slid under the cot and into the open doorway, only to look up and stop on a dime as he noticed what was waiting for him.

There was the Glamrock Endo frozen on the stairs.

Fritz stared at it for a second before reaching out and pulling the door closed. Now cramped between it and the cot, he turned to see Gregory looking up at him in shock.

“You led one of those things up here?! How?!” he whisper-shouted.

“It climbed up through the, uh… It doesn’t matter. Let’s get away from the door.”

They got out from behind the cot and into the corner where Vanny couldn’t see them, and Fritz noticed that Natalie had moved. She now stood directly in front of the open doorway, in plain sight. Where Vanny could and would see her.

“Nat, you’re too close,” he warned.

She stared out for a long second, watching Vanny pace and mutter to herself.

This was it, she realized. This was the moment she finally confronted the rabbit.

She tightened her hand on her flashlight, clicking it off at her side, and then strode through.

Vanny didn’t notice her coming. She was too distracted in watching everything fall apart right in front of her.

Bunny had always been her protector. She could think of countless times when he stepped in to save her. Whether it be with the Puppet, Roxy, the dilapidated Spring Bonnie suit- whether physically or spiritually he threw himself full-heartedly into saving her from anything that would wish to harm her.

After so long of him being her knight in shining armor, it was time to take up the mantle and prove that she could protect him. Thereby proving to herself that she deserved his unwavering adoration.

So, she took over, and Bunny let her. He gave her full control of what came next.

And then Freddy walked in.

And she knew what needed to be done.

Bunny would never fight back against Freddy, and they knew that. That’s why they sent him. He was Bunny’s weakness. The best friend. The father he never had. But Freddy was as two-faced as everyone else.

Freddy was the one who did it to him. Freddy was what was holding him back. Freddy had to be out of the picture.

“Disassemble Freddy.”

It came so easily. It was solely her decision. It could’ve only been her decision.

And then Foxy got involved. And then they were running around shooting fazerblasters like something out of a low-budget Superstar Theater cartoon. Where friendship saved the day and stopped the bad guys.

Unfortunately, she just happened to be the bad guy, and she could only watch her meager control slip through her fingers. It didn’t matter how many times she repeated the command; the Staff Bots were a useless force. Overwhelming and yet held back by children’s toys. And there was nothing she could do.

And Bunny didn’t shut it all out forever. Eventually he started looking, she felt the moment he did. She felt his eyes tug her to look around. She knew the exact moment when he saw the disaster of her foolproof plan.

She could feel his shock and hastily tried to explain herself.

“This isn’t supposed to be happening!” she babbled in frustration and anxiety. “I don’t know how to fix this… I don’t understand what went wrong? What’s wrong with them?! What’s wrong with ME?!”

And then just as hastily had his words fall from her lips, trying to butt in. It blurred together in a frantic state of mutters on both sides.

“Nothing ever works like it’s supposed to! The plan- Nothing EVER goes right! It doesn’t matter what we do, they always win! Honey, Sweetie, Nessie, it’s fiiine- No, it’s not fine! We’re about to lose EVERYTHING!”

Culminating in a frustrated shout as Vanny brought her fists down on the railing. So hard that her fingers hurt through her gloves and the remote cracked against the metal.

Ah yes, the remote. She then wound up to launch it across the arena.

“Hey!”

And then Natalie announced her arrival with a shout.

Vanny froze in place. The remote dropped from her fingers and clattering onto the walkway, almost falling off the edge. She cocked her head back so sharply it almost looked painful and stared at Natalie with glowing red eyes. Her arms dropping at her sides limply but still clutching her knife.

It was very creepy, the way she cocked her head. Her entire body language shifting on a dime from panicked person to well-strung puppet. Standing still until she suddenly straightened.

“Goodness me, look who it is! Alice has come to play!”

She turned towards Natalie, dragging her knife along the railing as she did. The grinding and finishing shhhhink drawing more attention to the large blade.  

“I think she’s going to find that she’s too big for my house.”

Vanny had never looked so intimidating. She looked like a real threat.

But Natalie couldn’t let her know that. She couldn’t give her that upper hand.

“Cut the crap, Ness. I know it’s you,” she said.

Vanny tilted her head again, almost thoughtfully.

“Tired of all the nonsense?”

“You could say that.”

“I did say that, and I will again. Alice is done with walking backwards and talking in rhymes. She wants to go back to the real world,” Vanny tsked. Then her head straightened, and her voice shifted. “Well, I can’t. I can’t go back and play pretty daughter anymore. This is my home, and I can’t leave it.”

“At the rate you’re going, you’re going to be leaving in the back of a police car. Or worse! You know what Fazbear’s will do to cover up a problem. Do you think for even a second that they’re not going to pin you for everything going on in here? They’re going to pin that murder on you, Ness, and I know it wasn’t you.”

Even if it was her body, Natalie thought to herself. Though she wasn’t ready to say that.

Vanny gave a mocking little giggle. One that sounded as phony as her fabric grin.

“That’s funnnnyyy. You think they’ll pin it on me? I think you’ve found yourself going backwards, Blondie, because I’m not the one who’s going to get smoked out when this whole place goes up in flames.”

Natalie narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. “Uh huh. How much of that did he feed you?”

“What?” Vanny asked flatly. Her tone had changed; it wasn’t her.

“I know he’s in there. How much of that was him talking? Or better yet- Hey, Bunny. I know you’re in there. You come out and talk to me.”

“He’s always with me.”

“Like he was when he wrung out Luis? I’m not stupid, Ness. I know that wasn’t you.”

“But I wanted it.”

“Since when did you start hating Luis?” Natalie asked, not satisfied with the one-line answers.

“Since the moment I met him. Don’t you hate a man who won’t take no for an answer?” Vanny spat. “He had it coming. You know what he did, telling that woman that she- that she thought I was crazy all because Luis cooked up some story about whatever garbage he tells himself to keep trying to get that coffee date. Thinks he’s owed something, because what? Because she smiled at him a couple of times? Because she’s too good to tell him to get lost? Screw Luis! She’s mine!”

“Your servant or your body?” Fritz asked, daring to step into the doorway behind Natalie.

“You, shut up. You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Vanny snapped. Only to then straighten and take a step back. “Wh-Who are you to talk when you brought him? Hmm?” She pointed at Fritz with her knife. “Maybe HE’S controlling YOU.”

Fritz reflexively put up his hands. “Careful with that knife. We don’t want anyone getting hurt.”

“The only one who’s going to get hurt is you. This is a part of me.” Vanny lifted the knife and admired her reflection in it or made a show of doing so. “Just as much as she is.”

She lowered the knife slowly to her side, still primed to strike but no longer pointed at her targets, and turned towards the railing-

Revealing Jeremy sneaking down the catwalk towards her. He was about halfway there and had stopped on a dime when Vanny started to move, staring at Natalie with eyes wide as saucers. Natalie and Fritz had similar looks. They were all holding their breath.

But Vanny didn’t notice. She was too lost in her own thoughts. Staring out vacantly over the neon arena while gripping the railing with one hand.

“When I first found him, I was… we were alone. We were both small, and helpless… we were nothing on our own. But now, together, we are so much more. I’m alive! More alive than I’ve ever been.”

She slowly turned her head towards Natalie.

“You don’t know what it’s like to feel so alive when everyone wants you dead. It’s us against the whole world, it’s always been. Us bunnies have always been prey.” She tapped her knife against the railing. “But not anymoorrre~.”

Natalie stepped forward. Fritz tried to pull her back, but the blond stood firm and resolved, and Vanny merely dragged her knife off the railing and let it hang at her side in a thinly veiled threat.

“Ness, please. Just quit with the Vanny thing and talk to me like a real person for five seconds. Please,” Natalie begged.

Vanny stared at her for a long second.

“Why?”

“…Because I don’t have anything left,” Ness quietly admitted.

“That’s not true.”

“IT IS! He’s my everything! I love him! I can’t- I can’t lose him like this!” she cried. “Everybody’s let him down, I’m not going to be the next one who does that!”

“Ness, listen to me. You think you’re equals in this, but you’re NOT. He’s not the one who’s going to lose everything if this gets out. He’s not the one who goes to jail, he’s not the one who takes the heat, he’s not the one that has to live with being in the spotlight as some girl who dressed up as a rabbit and kidnapped kids at the Pizzaplex!”

“…Only if we’re caught…” There was a long pause. “Will you let us go?”

“I don’t even think I can anymore, Ness. Not unless you give up the knife and take off the mask. I don’t trust you anymore,” Natalie admitted regretfully.

Vanny just stared. Silent.

“Ness, you know why I can’t!” she all but pleaded. She was nearly in tears from frustration. “You know why I can’t.”

“I know… and you shouldn’t… But you can’t keep us here. Two on two doesn’t work when one side has a marked advantage…”

Vanny slowly, almost mockingly-dryly waggled the knife in her hand.

“Better in my hand than in my back, isn’t that right, Honeybunny?”

Vanny’s only response to herself was another eerie pause.

Natalie steeled her nerves.

“We’re not going to fight you, Ness. But it you’re making a go for Gregory, you’ll have to get through us.”

“And me too!”

That was Mike.

Natalie and Fritz both looked down and to the side towards Mike’s disembodied voice. It was traveling up through an open vent to their right.

“Mike?!” Natalie called down it. “Are you down there?!”

“I’m over here! Down here fighting off spiders!”

The voice was definitely coming from somewhere else, maybe another platform nearby, but they couldn’t see him. Though Vanny turned with a start and stared at something like she could.

“Mike, we’ve got way bigger problems than spiders right now!” Fritz yelled down.

“Say that when you have them slamming broken cymbals in your face!”

And all the while, Jeremy was slowly making headway towards Vanny.

His heart was pounding so hard that he could see it in his vision. At any time, she could see him and the jig would be up. That knife would be pointed back at him again.

He swallowed thickly. Steady, steady. She was distracted still. By Natalie and Fritz, by Mike. Mike probably didn’t even realize that him swooping in was just the distraction he needed to get close.

Just like Foxy would do. Just like the Staff Bot. Rush in and overpower.

So, he did.

Jeremy lunged and grabbed Vanny from behind. One arm wrapped around her middle and the other grabbing and latching into her forearm to control the knife.

And the world all but shifted. He could hear screams and music. He could see blips of a castle and a diner, a yellow suit and a princess in gold, a door, a ditch, a bunny with its face in his and its red eyes burning into his own.

But all he could feel was Vanny in his grasp, and he already had practice fighting an invisible force. This time the rabbit wasn’t going to win. This time, he could overpower it.

Vanny was fighting Jeremy, kicking back at him and twisting out of his grasp even as he struggled. She almost got free, and Natalie raced in to try and stop her, dropping her flashlight and trying to go for the knife.

Jeremy got ahold of it just like Mike had below. Vanny wrenched it free and swung her arm, hitting him in the face, knocking his glasses askew. Natalie tried to push in, and Fritz was behind her, and Jeremy got the upper hand grabbing the knife again. She swung and clipped his fingers and swiped and shoved and turned-

And stabbed.

And sunk deeply into flesh.

The feel, the resistance was unexpected. It still went straight in, cutting through skin and blood vessels and lodging itself deeply.

Fritz watched it happen in what felt like slow motion. In a moment he would remember for the rest of his life. In a moment he would see in his dreams and nightmares, and restless thoughts.

Natalie gasped involuntarily until there was no air left in her lungs. It felt like she had been kneed in the gut, but she knew that wasn’t what happened. Not when the pain kept growing.

She looked down and was stunned to see the end of the knife sticking out of the left side of her stomach.

Ness stabbed her. That was her knife. In Natalie’s stomach.

It was almost unbelievable, but it felt too real to not be.

She stumbled back against Fritz as it grew more intense. The pain was deep and sharp, taking a few seconds before it grew and spread into a radiating, screaming ache.

It wasn’t the only thing screaming either.

It was Vanny. From dead silent to a blood curdling screaming. She tossed her hands up and grabbed at her mask in a panic, stepping back and bumping into Jeremy who was staring in equal horror.

“No, no, NO, NO! WHAT DID YOU DO?! WHAT DID YOU DO?! Shit, oh GOD, I didn’t mean to! I wasn’t trying to hit her- I DIDN’T WANT TO! I’m so SORRY!”

She sounded hysterical, breaking into choking sobs as she devolved into an anxiety attack.

“Don’t move, don’t move, don’t move,” Fritz was frantically sputtering like a mantra. He had her from behind, holding her still as he tried to keep from panicking. Trying to think straight, trying to know what to do.

“Don’t pull it out,” Natalie said.

She was starting to have trouble breathing, but she didn’t know why. It didn’t feel like it hit her lung, she didn’t think, but something just felt wrong. Maybe it was the pain?

It was weird how matter of fact everything seemed when she was staring at that knife.

“I’m not. We’re going to leave it right there. It’ll be fine,” Fritz said.

But the warning fell on deaf ears elsewhere.

“Get the knife,” Vanny muttered. She shook her head wildly. “Listen to me. Get the knife. We need it. Get the knife. No, no, no, no! She’ll be fine, get the knife.”

Two frantic fearful voices slurring together through frantic sobs. Jeremy looked her in abject horror, watching as she clawed at herself and her mask.

“Get it. Get it! N ̴̔ ̣o ̷͈̓ w ̷̥̆ !”

Vanny wrenched her hands off her head and lurched forward. She made a grab for the knife, trying to get back their only means of defense.

Jeremy reacted instantly. He threw himself at her, slamming into her side and shoving her out of the way with as much force as he could muster. Knocking her right off her feet and causing her to fall against the railing and onto the catwalk-

And then straight between the railing and the catwalk.

She scrambled and grabbed frantically as she plummeted through, just barely managing to grab ahold of the edge of the flooring with her gloved fingers. All her weight was held on her fingers as she was left dangling over the arena. Nothing below but a far drop to the nearest floor.

Jeremy gave a wordless shout and dove down for her. He grabbed ahold of one wrist before suddenly her grip failed and she was falling again, pulling Jeremy after her.

“GAH!” he screamed and was cut off by his head thumping the railing and then going past. He caught it with the other hand and hooked his feet on the catwalk’s other side.

He was now staring down at the long drop into the Fazerblast arena. His grip on Vanny’s wrist being the only thing keeping her from falling all the way down. Her frantically shouting something up at him.

But he couldn’t hear her. All he could hear since the moment he grabbed her was Bunny screaming in the back of his head.

D̵o̵n̴'̵t̶ ̶l̴e̵t̸ ̴h̸e̸r̸ ̴g̶o̶ ̸d̵o̸n̵'̶t̴ ̸l̴e̴t̶ ̷h̴e̸r̶ ̵g̷o̷ ̴I̴'̵l̸l̷ ̸d̶o̴ ̷a̶n̸y̶t̴h̸i̷n̴g̴ ̷I̴'̵l̷l̷ ̸g̸i̷v̷e̶ ̸a̷n̴y̸t̸h̴i̷n̶g̵ ̴h̵o̶l̷d̵ ̵o̸n̴ ̷h̷o̵l̴d̷ ̶o̷n̶ ̷H̸O̸L̴D̶ ̶O̸N̶!̶

“Hold on! MIKE! MIKE GET UP HERE, QUICK!” Fritz yelled.

Mike scrambled to get up the rest of the vents, banging through them with a speed unlike any before.

But Jeremy couldn’t hear them either.

He couldn’t hear the tearing of fabric either, but he could feel it under his hand as the stitches holding her glove to her sleeve tore away. The handstitched seam pulled away easily and Jeremy tightened his grip to compensate, holding on as tightly as he possibly could.

D̴O̴N̷'̵T̸ ̷L̷E̶T̴ ̷H̴E̸R̶ ̸G̴O̴!̸

The fabric slid right off her fingertips and she slid right out of his.

V ̴̩͚̈́ A ̵͗ ̀ ̩̜ N ̴̗͂̑͝ E ̵ ̀ ͎̞̈́ S ̷͋ ̀ ͋ ̣ ͙ S ̷̛̹͍̹͆ A ̵̺̍̊ ! ̷̻̭̈́̍

And then she fell. And the voice went quiet.

There was no moment where she remained hung in midair, where time stopped and he could watch as she slowly plummeted like a clip taken out of a movie. Nothing so romantic, nothing pensive or thoughtful.

She fell.

And then she hit the ground.

And then she lay there. Unmoving. Her mask’s eyes still glowing as they stared blankly up at him.

Jeremy stared, panting, heart pounding. He was pulled up a second later by Mike where he joined him in staring, swearing under his breath. A moment too slow- but no, there was no way they could’ve pulled her up.

Not when her glove was still tightly clutched in his hand.

The blond looked over at Fritz and Natalie and saw them looking with equal shock. Natalie, who had a knife sticking out of her belly and was fully leaning back on Fritz for support, looked more fearful now than when she was stabbed.

And that made Jeremy all the more aware of what might’ve just happened.

“I’ve- I’ve got to GO DOWN AND CHECK!” he shouted, his voice steadily rising in panic. He scrambled to his feet and started to run down the walkway from where he came from, Staff Bots be damned.

But he still stopped himself midway down the catwalks and started to turn back. “Wait- Wait do you- do you need me- do I need to stay and help?!” he called back.

“I… I’ve got her! Go check on her!” Fritz called after him. Jeremy turned and kept running. Fritz then turned to Mike, who was still crouched gawking at Vanny, his hand buried in his hair. “Mike, I need your help.”

Mike ripped himself away from the railing and turned back towards him. “I’m here. What do we… Oh hell, Nat…” That was when he saw the knife. “Christ.”

“Stay calm,” Fritz said, barely staying calm himself. He helped Natalie down to the ground, maneuvering her to lay down. “I need you to go in the office and call for help. The phone should work-.” Fritz was cut off by Gregory sliding by. “Gregory? Gregory, wait!”

Gregory ignored him and snatched up the ignored remote that Vanny had dropped. He pressed his thumb down on the button and began to desperately shout.

“Stop! Stop! Don’t disassemble Freddy! Do NOT disassemble Freddy! Shut down!”

There was a sort of clicking from inside of the remote and a change in the humming from below. Gregory looked over the edge, gasping a little when he saw Vanny lying there on the ground. But there was no blood, so he wasn’t sure how bad the damage was and if she was just knocked out.

What he did notice was that the swarming and patrolling Staff Bots came to a halt. They stopped in place, eyes flickering, before they went into a sort of standby mode. Still activated but not moving and instead just waiting for commands.

Gregory breathed an exaggerated sigh of relief as his shoulders slouched. He stepped away from the edge, not wanting to see Vanny, believing for a second that she had been stopped, and everything could be okay now.

Then he looked over and only then did he see the knife sticking out of Natalie’s stomach. He paled instantly. His eyes wide and fearful.

“I-It’s okay, Gregory,” Natalie choked out. It wasn’t on blood or anything, but the feeling of the knife still stuck inside her. Every movement made it more apparent. “I’m going to be okay. It’s okay.”

“Right. You’re going to be fine. Just- Just stay calm, okay?” Fritz assured.

Gregory was quiet. He nodded a little, but he couldn’t stop staring.

By now Mike was already in the office. It took him a minute to find the phone hidden under trash and other items but once he did he dialed 911, and they picked up shortly after.

“911, where is your emergency?”

“We’re in the Mega Pizzaplex off of I-15. My friend’s been stabbed and someone fell off a… a- a walkway or like a catwalk. We need an ambulance here quickly, she’s bleeding out. We’re in the Fazerblast Arena… No, they’ll have to come around back to the Loading Dock doors. I’ll let them in.”

“We’re sending them right now. They will be there very soon, just stay on the line. What’s your name?”

“Who cares about what my name is!” Mike thought. Though lost all fight to protest. “…Mike.”

It wasn’t like the people who ran this place didn’t know who he was. No point in lying anymore.

There were more questions. About where the wound was, who fell, how far they fell, so many questions. Mike was only able to get off the phone when he said he needed to attend to Natalie, but only on the grounds that he didn’t hang up, just walked away from the phone because he ‘couldn’t reach’. Really, he wanted to get to her without a third party listening, and stealthily covered the phone with the abandoned pillow.

Then he came back out of the office and crouched down, putting his hands on Gregory’s shoulders.

“Gregory, I need you to do something for me. Okay? It’s a little dangerous, but I know you can do it. See that vent right there? I cleared it out all the way through. Go down through the vent, it lets out on top of a walkway. Walk along it and then there’ll be another vent, go through it, and then you’ll be with Charlie and Jake. Think you can do that for me?”

“Yeah, but… should I stay?”

“No, you don’t want to be here when the paramedics get here,” Mike reassured. He patted his shoulder. “We’ll take care of her. You just get to safety.”

Gregory nodded and Mike stood and led him the few steps over to it, watching him get inside and start to climb down.

“Be careful. There’s a couple of broken little Music Men in there at the bottom.”

“Got it.”

“I know you do.” Mike sent him a smile before turning back towards Fritz and Natalie, and staring at that knife again.

He snapped himself out of it and crouched in front of Natalie before lifting her legs to his sides and holding them. Fritz gave him an incredulous look.

“Mike, we can’t pick her up!”

“I’m not picking her up, I’m lifting her legs. Keeps the blood where it needs to be,” Mike said.

“…How do you know that?”

“I got paranoid after that time I got stabbed down in ARI,” he said, managing to give Natalie a smile. “It’s going to hurt like hell but you’re going to be fine.”

Natalie gave him a tired smile back. She seemed almost half-convinced.

“In exactly five minutes I’m going to start heading down and let them in through the loading dock,” Mike explained. “I’ll bring them up and then we’ll take care of it.”

“…You’re going to get caught,” Fritz warned. “Maybe… Maybe you can watch Nat, and I’ll go down and get them. I’ll tell them I said I was Mike. Then you can get down the vent before they come in.”

“No point. They already know we’re in here,” Mike said defeatedly. “…Besides, I’m not leaving you alone on this. If we’re going down, we’re going down together.”

He exchanged a look with Fritz who returned it with a thankful smile, though a regretful one. Then he went back to holding and assuring Natalie.

Meanwhile, Gregory made it down the vent and was coming out onto the walkway Mike had talked about. He was expecting a catwalk or a balcony or something, but no. It was actually a makeshift walkway made of random wooden boards lined up behind some of the elevated cutouts for the arena. He carefully made his way down them only to hear some heavy thumping.

“Freddy!” he gasped. He carefully approached the edge and looked down to see Freddy and Foxy running through the maze, coming across one of the bridges while pushing past the now stilled Staff Bots. “FREDDY!”

Freddy stopped with a start, catching Foxy with his hand and looking around wildly before looking up and spotting Gregory.

He had a look of pure relief and joy seeing him alright.

And then just as quickly had a look of abject horror.

“Gregory! What ARE YOU DOING?!” Freddy yelled with the candor of a frightened father. Grabbing his head with his hands as he stared. “HOW DID YOU GET UP THERE?!”

“I came through a vent! Don’t worry, I’m okay!”

“Stay back from the edge! I will find a way up to you!” Freddy called.

“Where’s Vanny?!” Foxy added.

“Over there! She fell, and Nat got hurt, and now the police are coming!”

“She… fell?” Foxy looked over and tried to see, and when he couldn’t he squeezed past Freddy and started to run over for himself.

They had heard something thumping from where they had been, but they had been pinned by the Staff Bots and unable to see from where they were. It certainly sounded like someone had fallen.

But he couldn’t believe it. Not until he saw it, and saw her.

She was laying prone on the floor, having somehow missed the walls and instead landed either on her legs or back. Her costume hid any sign of injury. There was no blood, no twisted limbs, but no doubt something had to be broken.

Freddy came running up behind him and when he saw her over Foxy’s head, he gasped.

“Oh no… Vanny…?”

“Bloody hell…” He crept a little closer, cocking his head and listening closely. “…She’s still breathin’.”

Freddy stepped closer, but Foxy stopped him with his hand.

“But don’t touch ‘er. She’s gotta be busted up. We move her and we might break somethin’ worse. Like her neck.”

Freddy felt a familiar tightness in his neck. He grabbed it reflexively, wincing at the phantom feeling.

After a long second, Foxy turned to look up at Gregory. “Where’s Jeremy?”

“He ran that way!” Gregory pointed down the walkway. “He wanted to go check on Vanny.”

“Then he’s comin’ back down the stairs.”

“Foxy, go to him. I will stay with Vanny,” Freddy said somberly.

“Ya sure?”

“Yes. This is my attraction, when the authorities arrive, I can simply explain that I received a security alert and came to see what was happening. It is a lie, but in this case, I believe it is safer for all of us than the truth. Go to him, I will be fine.” Freddy dragged his eyes back to Vanny. “She should not be alone. Nobody deserves to be alone when they are… like this.”

“Aye. We’ll catch back up,” Foxy promised.

He turned and began to jog off, but before he could get far Freddy turned and called for him.

“Foxy!” Foxy turned back. “When you find him, there is a service door down there that leads to stairs, and then to the utilidors. I know you know your way around. If you can, find your way to Parts and Service and meet us there.”

“Aye-aye!” Foxy said with a quick salute. Then he was off again.

Freddy called up to Gregory through cupped hands. “Gregory! Tell the others to meet us in Parts and Service!”

“I will! Don’t get caught! And if you do, don’t tell them anything!”

“I will try not to…”

He watched Gregory disappear, listening to his footsteps until he entered what sounded like a vent. Then Freddy was alone- or at least, he felt alone.

He slowly turned back to Vanny. She was still laying there. Like a doll, almost. Like the rabbit doll he had plucked out of Bonnie’s chest.

Except for her hand. Her glove was missing, so he could see a human hand hiding underneath. One with prettily painted nails. Just like Roxy’s, they could’ve been done at Roxy’s salon. She could’ve been anyone.

It was sad to think that there was a person underneath that suit. It was even sadder to think that someone he cared for so deeply could’ve created that monster.

Freddy shook his head and started to crouch, preparing to sit on the floor and wait. Full battery or not, he felt genuinely tired and could use a moment of rest.

But then he heard her groan. He stood up quickly and stared at her with a start, waiting to see what she would do. She shifted very slightly, groaning groggily, then rising into soft whines of pain.

Putting aside his feelings, he quickly came over and crouched alongside her.

“Can you hear me? It is I, Freddy. You are not alone, and help is on the way!”

“Ngh. Nghhnghnghh…” She writhed only a little, barely able to so much as tilt her head. “Nooonooono.”

She continued babbling like that for a few more moments. That’s all she would say and seemed oblivious to any of Freddy’s assurances.

Eventually she went silent. He could still detect her breathing, but it was faint.

He stayed by her side, and despite all she and Bunny had done, he truly hoped that the authorities made it in time.

Nobody else needed to be lost…

Meanwhile, Gregory finally made it down the vent. He was met with Charlie and Jake both looking inside, almost like how Mike predicted.

“The cops are coming!” he called to them. “Freddy said to get everyone down to Parts and Service!”

“Got it,” Charlie agreed. She hurried over to get Marionette.

“What was all that screaming? Was Vanny pushed?” Jake asked.

“I don’t know, but she was screaming because she stabbed Natalie! I saw it! There’s a knife sticking out of her right here!” Gregory cried, pointing towards the spot.

“What?!” Jake choked. Charlie too whipped around with a startled ring and a matching, “What?!” of her own.

“There’s no time! We’ve got to get out of here! Mike already called 911 and they’re coming right now!”

“O-Okay. Okay! Yeah, we need to get down there,” Jake agreed. He hurried over to pick up Moon onto his back. “Gregory, can you carry my controller?”

“I’ve got it… Uh, don’t freak out. But Vanny fell too.”

“I know, we saw. That’s why I was asking if she was pushed.” Jake hoisted Moon on with one heave. “You ready, Charlie?”

“Almost!” she answered. “Alright, Mari. Let’s go.”

Marionette was kneeling on the bench with his hands and forehead pressed to the glass of the window. He was staring out towards Vanny and now Freddy, glowing eyes locked on the downed woman, a low garbling deep in his chest. Charlie ducked her head under his arm to pull it around her shoulders and pull him up, since he was still clearly damaged, and started leading him out.

Only to suddenly have Marionette pull right out of her grasp and snap back to the glass. His still marginally cracked mask clunking against the window and his hands pressing to the glass. His glowing eyes locked on Vanny once again.

“Mari…?” Charlie asked with concern. She didn’t even think he was capable of doing that in his state.

“Is he okay?” Jake asked.

“I don’t know… Go on ahead, we’ll catch up.”

“Are you sure?... Well, okay.”

“Mari, hurry up! 911’s coming right now!” Gregory called before bolting out the door. Jake was clearly hesitant, but he was quick to follow the boy, not wanting to risk losing sight of him. Leaving the two Puppets alone.

“Mari, what’s going on? Do you see something?” Charlie asked. He didn’t answer. She started over to him. “Hey…”

She reached for his arm with the intention of pulling him back again, but this time she got a very different result.

All at once she heard a voice forced into her mind. Almost like what happened back with Bonnie. Just as harsh and overwhelming, but instead of a blur of sounds there were very clear words.

“GIVE GIFTS. GIVE LIFE. GIVE GIFTS. GIVE LIFE.”

She recoiled momentarily and long enough to get her bearings, and by time she did she realized what was happening. She knew what those words meant and why Marionette was suddenly so fixated on Vanny.

That… certainly didn’t bode well for Vanny’s chances.

There was no telling of what state Vanny was in, and no bodies anywhere nearby that could be used if the worst came to pass. Especially since help was coming. If they came and saw an animatronic trying to force her into a suit- if Vanny was alive but severely injured and Marionette tried to shove her into a suit-… There wasn’t anything they could do now. Nothing except get to safety.

She braced herself and grabbed his arm again. The words came back with a vengeance but now she was ready. She winced and stood her ground against the ache and continued trying to pull him from the window.

“Marionette, come on. We need to go. She’ll… She’ll be alright once the paramedics get here…”

Marionette was still stuck to the window. She wrapped her arms around him, jamming one hand over his eyes to block his line of sight while wrapping the other arm around his chest and lifting him up.

She had no doubt that normally this wouldn’t work but in this case she was actually able to pull him away. Even as his hands stayed stuck on the glass, and then reaching for the glass as he was pulled away, she was able to carry him to the other side of the room. And slowly, with every step, the voices became more bearable.

Marionette was still in his trance for a while longer. It wasn’t until they made it halfway down the narrow neon hallway leading out to the lobby when his pull suddenly released. Charlie stumbled forward from it, and his body limply draped back over her. She had to stop and readjust to keep from dropping him.

Or she tried to until she was suddenly wrapped up in a tight hug. His arms winding around her and holding firm. He gave a forlorn twang as his tears began to drip on top of her head.

Charlie decided to stop trying to move him and instead returned the hug.

“Hey, it’s not your fault. They’re going to get to her, okay? None of this is our fault.”

He squeezed a little tighter and she knew he still was upset. At the very least he calmed down enough that she was able to turn herself around and pull him up onto her back. A little better than the fireman carry she almost had to do. Then she continued down the neon hallway. She would reassure him more when they reached Parts and Service.

Because it wasn’t his fault. And it wasn’t hers, even if she felt a rising guilt over something she couldn’t have stopped and a responsibility she didn’t have.

She could confide in him about that later, for now she had to run.

Back upstairs on the walkway, Mike was checking his wristwatch. It had been five minutes and taking a breath, he began to gently set Natalie’s legs down.

“Alright, I’m heading downstairs. Do you need… anything?”

“Bring me- back a- pizza,” Natalie joked, taking little shallow breaths through it and giving a pained swallow at the end.

Mike gave her a point and a wink and, after getting a nod from Fritz that he was good, continued over to the door. He pulled aside the cot and shove it against the other wall before opening the door.

Fritz had his back to him so all he heard was a “Are you kidding me?” and the crackling jolt of the endo getting tased. He whipped his head back in time to see it drooping into a shutdown position. Mike gave him a thumbs up before heading up the stairs.

“I guess- he got- out,” Natalie said.

“He’s good, he took care of it. Does it hurt to talk?”

“A little.”

“Then don’t. You don’t have to say anything. In fact, here, let me move down and hold your legs up.”

Natalie didn’t exactly want to go from laying against Fritz’s warm chest to the cold ground, but if it was helping… she couldn’t even be sure. She had been trying to move as little as possible and still she imagined that blood was pooling inside of her.

He started to move when she stopped him with a hand on his arm.

“Stay. I think- I think I’ll be okay,” she rushed out. The following inhale made her abdomen hurt worse but she rode through it.

“Then I’m staying put… Does it still hurt?”

“It hurts. A lot,” Natalie admitted. “Pain’s good, right? I mean…”

“Sure! We’ll be worried if you go numb. Pain means… means everything’s working right.”

“Right…”

Fritz took off her hat and put it aside before gently running his fingers through her hair. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the gentle scratching at her scalp, but it was impossible not to think.

Tears began to well up in her eyes and a few rolled down her cheeks, but Fritz couldn’t see them from the angle. He didn’t even realize she was crying until she spoke again.

“Do you think- she’s going to- make it?” she asked. He wasn’t used to her sounding so meek. “I can’t- hear her.”

“She’s probably in a lot of pain right now. She might’ve been knocked out… But it’s not that far of a drop. It’s not a good drop, but I- I think she can pull through.”

His voice catching gave away his uncertainty. He swallowed thickly. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” she said. She choked up a little. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Everything’s going to work out. We’re going to get through this,” Fritz promised her. He reached down to get her hand and held it in his. “You’re doing great. Fantastic. And once the paramedics get here and get you hooked up, you’re going to be feeling a lot better. Just like that.”

He knew that wasn’t what she was worried about, but it was what he was worried about. Her. Even just holding her like this felt like him struggling to keep her from floating away.

I’m sorry.

She wasn’t the one who should’ve apologized.

Fritz was still thinking about that after the paramedics reached them, and once he was sitting on a bench in the upper atrium with Mike, just outside of Bonnie Bowl. The paramedics needed their space, gently asking him to move out of the way. Then he was bumped a little further by the police who arrived with the ambulance and started treating it like the obvious crime scene it was.

Smitty and Buddy were stationed nearby. Apparently they recognized the two men enough that with Natalie gone they just migrated to them, with Smitty just standing there shining his flashlight around and Buddy trying to mop little sections of the carpet. Their hums and the chatter of voices making for an uneasy ambience.

Both were lost in their thoughts, Fritz hunched over with Mike’s arm slung around him. When an unexpected person began to walk up. Mike noticed him first and lightly shook Fritz who then looked up.

It was Clay Burke. Despite it being the middle of the night he was dressed in his usual work attire. Mike was hardly surprised. Clay was definitely the type who could get a call at four in the morning, roll into his clothes, and stride into a crime scene like he just downed a pot of coffee.

And yet, somehow, seeing him was a comfort. Just a little reassuring from a familiar face.

Clay got straight to the point. “Neither of you were hurt?”

Mike sort of shrugged it off and Fritz gave a somber, “Natalie. They’re with her right now…”

“I heard. They’re going to take good care of her,” Clay said. He took a deep breath. “I’ll be asking you two about what happened here later… But I have my suspicions already.”

“Not that I don’t love seeing you, but I thought the Pizzaplex was in St. George? Why’d they call you?” Mike asked.

“It has a Washington County zip. Go figure.”

That was when Clay, ever the detective, spotted something. He pointed towards Mike’s lap and his hands resting in it. Mike looked down at them and noticed the exposed wound on his hand.

“You’ll need to get that checked out,” Clay almost gently affirmed. More like a worried father than the police chief.

Unfortunately for Mike, and he recognized this immediately, but that was the one way to get him to do whatever he wanted. Unfortunately, Clay followed that by gesturing for him to stand up, likely to go with him.

Mike started to lean forward to get up when they all heard a voice cut through the atrium from below. One punctuated with a clear, “Dear Lord, what is going on here?!”

“Sounds like Wight got the memo,” Fritz said.

Clay hummed in agreement. “I need to go have a word with him. Sit tight, I’ll be back. Don’t go anywhere.”

Then he started back off towards the elevator again. Mike knew he wasn’t off the hook yet though. Clay was diligent; he would follow him home if he had to. No point in even trying to dodge him when he would end up at a walk-in clinic anyways.

“We got lucky. If this wasn’t the Hurricane PD we could be looking at a lot of trouble,” he said.

And despite everything, that got a laugh out of Fritz. A full belly laugh, dropping his head in his hand as he did. Mike cracked a smirk at him.

But then they were both thrown off-guard by a loud voice from below. It sounded like Wight’s again, but they couldn’t quite hear what was going on.

“Is that Wight?” Fritz asked.

Mike looked questioningly at him and pointed towards the railing.

“You go. But don’t let him see you.”

Thumbs up and Mike headed over to the railing to listen.

He missed most of the exchange. From this angle he couldn’t see Wight either, but he did catch the very end.

Wight’s night had been a bit of a trainwreck to say the least. He had gotten roused out of a dead sleep only to be told that there had been a break-in. No, actually, there was a fight. No, actually actually someone was attacked. The details kept changing and all Wight knew was that he had to get dressed and get to the Pizzaplex, had to come in through the back door, walk an ungodly ways to the elevator, ride it up, and here he was and he STILL didn’t know what was going on.

And then when he attempted to enter Fazerblast, where the police had congregated, where all of the answers lie, they wouldn’t let him through! As though he was some gossipmonger who wandered in from the street looking for something to ogle at and NOT the owner of this establishment.

What didn’t help was that he had heard Vanessa had been injured. That someone broke in and attacked her, and he couldn’t even check to see if she was alright since he was being blocked by some young cop who didn’t even seem to know where he was, let alone what was going on.

Finally, Wight had to get firm with him.

“Now you listen to me. I am the owner of this establishment, and I insist on knowing what in the world is going on,” he announced.

Thankfully for everyone involved, there was one other worker at the Pizzaplex who had shown up so far, Chaz. Upon hearing Wight’s browbeating he came over, caught his boss by the arm, and was quite easily able to pull him over by the Snack Space stand.

“Boss, it’s cool. Just let them do their thing,” he said.

“But they won’t tell me anything! What have you heard?”

“…They didn’t tell you about Ness?”

“…Ness?” Wight blinked owlishly. “Ness? No, they didn’t. Ness? You must mean Vanessa, the other Vanessa. I did hear that she was attacked but I have not been able to get a straight answer-!”

“No, Ness. Ness was in here too. She…” Chaz took a deep breath. “…She fell off a catwalk in Fazerblast.”

“Wh- WHAT?!”  

“She’s alive! But she fell. They think she might’ve jumped, or that’s what I think,” he explained.

Wight felt his heart drop. Stop. Freeze up in place.

Ness. Fell. Jumped.

She wouldn’t. She couldn’t…

Wight stared at him for a long few seconds. Then all of a sudden he shoved past him and started to run towards the entrance of Fazerblast where he was almost immediately blocked by the same cop.

“Let me through! I have to see her! Vannessa!? Sweetheart!? Where is she, is she in the lobby?!”

“Sir, calm down. We’re doing everything we can to stabilize her right now.”

“HOW CAN I CALM DOWN?!” Wight became inconsolable instantly. “I have to see her, please! Where is she?! Is she awake?!”

“I’m not sure, the paramedics are working on her right now in the back. You can’t see her until they get her stabilized,” the cop calmly explained.

“Stabilized?!”

“Mr. Wight,” Chaz tries to grab him but Wight resisted.

“Sir, please. We’re doing the best we can. She’s in the best hands she could be,” the cop assured. “Are you a friend or family member-?”

“SHE’S MY DAUGHTER!”

…

Those words hit Mike harder than a baseball bat. After hearing that he couldn’t even hear or pay attention to the rest of Wight’s frantic sputters. They were too messy, streamed together in pleas and yells.

Because Wight could’ve easily been lying… but Mike knew that he wasn’t.

He slowly turned back to Fritz to see if he had heard, and evidently, he did by the look on his face. Mike walked back and sat down beside him.

“That explains so much…” Fritz muttered.

“Think he was lying?” Mike asked.

“No. You?”

“No. He meant it.”

It explained a lot. So much had been tonight. It was exhausting and overwhelming.

Mike sat back down beside Fritz and got an arm put around him like he had around Fritz earlier. They went back to sitting in unease.

Both in disbelief at all that had transpired.

But neither in genuine shock.

Chapter 99

Chapter Summary

Eventually the truth must come out...

Jeremy was ashamed to admit that he was utterly lost. Blindly feeling his way through the dark as he tried to make it back to the Fazerblast Arena. Yet he continued to find himself back at the stairs instead, as it was the only thing he was able to see enough to get back to. Which drove him insane because he knew he was losing time.

The dull humming was broken by the sound of quickly approaching footsteps. He didn’t panic because he knew who it was. He was very familiar with those rapid footsteps. He knew it was Foxy.

He couldn’t see that it was Foxy, but he did know it was him.

“Jer’my?”

“Over here!”

He heard the quick clatter as Foxy ran up to him, likely able to see a lot better than he could. Or at all.

“Are ya alright, lad? No bumps or bruises?” Or stab wound, Foxy didn’t say. He circled Jeremy to quickly check for any wounds. He could see well enough, but it was harder to spot injuries in the dark. He couldn’t smell any blood though.

Jeremy stopped him with his hands on his shoulders. “I’m fine, I’m fine… Did you see Ness?”

“Aye, saw where she fell. We found her out there.”

Jeremy swallowed thickly.

“Let’s move into the light,” Foxy offered.

Jeremy nodded. He assumed Foxy was going to take him to the hallway out of here, but instead he led him right back to the same glowing stairwell. He just couldn’t get away from it.

He protested weakly. “We can’t leave Ness alone.”

“She ain’t alone. Take a moment to breath, a’ight?” He took Jeremy by the shoulder and led him along. “Let’s sit down fer a moment.”

So, she wasn’t alone. That was something. It wasn’t like he could help- he didn’t really want to see her. He was looking for any excuse not to see her.

Hopefully Marionette recovered enough and was with her. Maybe he could keep her alive.

Jeremy dropped down onto the stairs harder than he intended and sat there rigidly. Every one of his joints tight and on guard. Foxy must’ve noticed as instead of sitting down beside him, he planted one foot on the steps and leaned on that leg to stay close but also stay alert.

“The Staff Bots stopped?” Jeremy asked.

“Aye. ‘Least the ones out there did.”

“The ones in here did too. See all those ones over there? I can’t, but I walked right into them. They were chasing me earlier.” Jeremy pointed to them in the darkness.

Foxy’s ears raised. “That’s a lot more than I was expectin’…”

“How many were you expecting?” Jeremy asked with an unsteady smile.

“None.”

Jeremy chuckled, though it was certainly forced. His hands were still shaking and his throat felt too tight. Too wound up and not enough energy to blow it off.

Foxy noticed again, once he was done eyeing the Staff Bots, and counting up the numbers of them. But he was impressed more than concerned. He knew Jeremy could handle his own and this proved it- though he wouldn’t have ever chosen for him to come in here alone.

He put an arm around him and pulled him in. “What happened up there?”

“Well, uh…” Jeremy scooted closer so he could rest against him. “So, things went bad.”

“How bad?”

“Bad.”

Foxy pet his head. “Gregory said she attacked Nat.”

“She stabbed Nat.”

“WHAT?!” Foxy sat up with a start. “Is she alright?!”

“She’s okay!... Well, I mean… Fritz is with her. She was still awake and talking when I left. They didn’t take the knife out. The w- The wound’s right around here.” Jeremy pointed to the spot on his belly, or around it. “I don’t think that hits any organs. Except maybe the colon…”

Foxy slumped again. “Blimey… Thank God fer that at least. An’ Gregory said the police be comin’. Here’s hopin’ they bring some medical backup.”

He went back to petting his head. Jeremy tilted his head into his grasp.

A few seconds of an easy silence, but it couldn’t last.

“What about Ness? How did she look?” Jeremy dared to ask.

“Freddy’s with her,” Foxy affirmed. “She’s alive. Barely.”

“Do you think she’s going to make it?”

“…I don’t know.”

Jeremy’s heart sank.

“But I’ve seen sailors live through a whole lot worse,” Foxy continued.

Jeremy nodded.

“What about Freddy?” he asked.

“He wants us headin’ down to Parts and Service ‘til this all blows over. Might take two or three… weeks.”

Jeremy gave a dry little chuckle.

But things were still strained.

“Ya don’t halfta feel bad, Lad.”

“Gabe, I’m the one who pushed her.”

“Oh…” Foxy stared for a moment. “…Maybe a little...?”

“I wasn’t trying to push her off! I-It was an accident, I swear. She was trying to grab the knife, and I pushed her, and she just fell under the bars! And then I had her, but her glove ripped off and… she fell…” A beat. “I… I still have it. Here.”

Jeremy pulled the glove out of his pocket and held it out in his hand.

He could see the frayed stitches that were torn as the glove ripped from the suit. A grim reminder that he had no chance and that he should’ve held on tighter.

Foxy noticed that stare in his eyes and pulled him back in securely once more.

“Hey. Ya didn’t mean fer it to happen.”

“I know, but if she dies… That’s all on me.”

“Lad, look at me.” Foxy pulled back again just to lift Jeremy’s chin towards him. “Knife was in Nat?”

“Yes.”

“If she would’ve pulled that knife out, Nat’d be dead right now. Or a lot closer than she is. You were stoppin’ a murder.”

“I don’t think Ness wanted to hurt her.”

“I doubt she did. I saw what Bunny’s capable of. And I know what it’s like to get so wrapped up in all this anger that yer willin’ to snap out at anyone who gets close.” Foxy paused for a long moment, then murmured, “…I hurt a lot of people that way.”

“I know, but that was different.”

“I could’a killed you,” Foxy said bluntly.

“Foxy, you couldn’t even get down the hallway,” Jeremy retorted.

“Yes, I could’ve,” Foxy said huffily. “I just had me servos all knocked up.”

“Your servos what?”

“We’re gettin’ off track. The point is this- how’s it any different stoppin’ humans killin’ ya or animatronics possessed by humans? You ain’t intendin’ on killin’ either of ‘em, but they will hurt you, and it doesn’t matter what excuse they have for it,” he explained. “Ness made herself into an animatronic. She was playin’ with fire and she got burned. It would’ve been no different if she stabbed ya, ya pushed her off, an’ then she fell, would it?”

“I guess not…”

“Then what’s really going on?”

“…Well… I know exactly what it’s like when you’ve got a voice in your head making you swing a knife around,” Jeremy said. “She was telling Bunny that she didn’t want to grab the knife and that she didn’t want to hurt Natalie. She wasn’t his partner in crime; she was just some… reluctant follower who was pulled along because she loved him. Even if she didn’t, she would’ve still been forced to do it.”

“Aye…”

There was a tense pause.

“I hope she lives,” Jeremy said.

“Aye. Same.”

Foxy wrapped his arms fully around him in an assuring hug. Pulling him tightly against his red plush body, speckled with black patches leftover from Bonnie’s ooze. Jeremy held onto his arm for dear life.

“…By the way, you were really cool out there,” he added on.

Foxy chuckled, his laughter rumbling through his chest around his internal speaker.

“Yar, what’s a good pirate without a pistol on his hip an’ a trigger finger?” he asked.

Jeremy managed a chuckle too, keeping his head resting on Foxy’s shoulder.

“Good thing it wasn’t a real gun?”

“Damn straight. Might’a shot someone’s eye out!” Foxy said. He almost seemed to be bragging about it.

“Good ol Gabe,” Jeremy thought.

“Ah’, it’ll be a’ight,” Foxy assured him, as though having heard him. “I’ve gotcha, Lad.”

And it was comforting.

But it was also about to be an excruciating wait. One that he wasn’t sure he wanted to end, and risk seeing what fate waited on the other side of it.

There was nothing else yet.

…

It had been a rough night for the Glamrock Band. They were down another member, one who was now entirely bisected, and their leader had been proven to be a target of a big conspiracy instead of leading on himself.

Needless to say, Chica and Roxy weren’t feeling great about everything that happened. Especially not what was currently happening.

Due to the possession, they couldn’t risk Monty being out and about. Even in his current bisected state. So, they were forced to put him inside one of the containment cells on the east wall of Parts and Service. They stayed with him though, waiting outside the door with Chica sitting on the floor and Roxy leaning on the wall beside it.

When all of a sudden, the doors into Parts and Service opened, and there were plenty of footsteps coming in.

Chica stood up with a start, seeing who was coming in, but didn’t have a voice to tell the shortsighted Roxy.

“What?” the wolf stood as well. “Who’s there?”

“It’s us!” Jake called. “Me, the old Sun, Moon, Charlie, Mari, and Gregory.”

“Whoa, hold up. Charlie and Mari?” Roxy asked in surprise.

“That’s us!” Charlie called. Marionette still drooped over her, giving a lazy wave.

“When did you two show up?” Roxy asked, cocking her head with her hands on her hips. She started to walk over to try and see better. “Good to hear you again, but you chose a bad night to hang out.”

“Oh, believe me. This wasn’t a social call,” Charlie said with a dry laugh, but no honest ring. “I’m guessing you didn’t hear what happened with Vanny?”

“Vanny?” Roxy’s ears perked alertly while Chica’s eyes widened as though she was lifting her brows. “You mean what she did to Monty? Wait, what happened to him?” She pointed to Moon.

Jake sighed and turned towards the wolf and chicken. “No. She means what he did to Freddy. And the rest of us…”

Chica’s hands jumped to her mouth and she came over to check for herself. Looking at Moon and then Marionette, and lifting his limp arm for good measure. Marionette waggled his fingers but let it drop when she did.

Roxy picked up immediately that something serious had happened. And with Freddy unaccounted for…

She narrowed her eyes with seriousness. “Spill it.”

“Where do we even begin…” Jake said somberly.

“Well, let’s start with- Glamrock Bonnie was working with Vanny this whole time,” Charlie admitted. “And not only that, not only were they doing all their craziness together, but this whole Pizzaplex was built by some company as a way to farm haunted animatronics, BY luring in Mari and using him to put people into suits when they’re killed here!”

“What?! That can’t be true!... Wait, did Vanny tell you this?” Roxy asked.

“No. We saw it in some files down in this secret laboratory under your raceway.”

Roxy still seemed doubtful, but then she suddenly got a look of realization. Her narrowed eyes widening.

“…Is that what he was hearing?” she muttered. She shook her head. “I noticed they were taking a lot of equipment down there in the beginning… and a lot of people were passing through. They said it was to repair the sinkhole under the raceway.”

“I guess the sinkhole’s from all the work they did down there,” Charlie said.

Chica agreed with a rapid nod and pointed to Roxy, like she was saying ‘I told you so’. Because Chica had been telling her, when she could talk, that there was something very fishy about how the raceway kept cracking.

Roxy turned on Charlie and pointed to her. “Okay, start from the top. The whole story, don’t skip any details.”

“Sure thing. Hold on, let me just…”

She headed to the office chair that Jake pushed away from the desk outside of the repair module and carefully half-lowered and half-dropped Marionette onto it, having to steady it so it didn’t fall over. His arm dangled to the floor, and she lifted them and folded them on his lap. Then crossed his legs for good measure- it got a crackly chime out of him.

She heard the module opening and looked over in surprise to see Jake carrying Moon inside of it. He must’ve truly been shut down as he didn’t switch to Sun in the light, instead remaining in his glowless Moon form.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” she asked.

“Don’t worry, it’s not on, and I made sure it wouldn’t kick on automatically. It’s just for him to lay down without putting him on the floor,” Jake explained. He set Moon down on the worktable and looked down at him, sighing. “Oh Andrew, what have we gotten ourselves into this time?” he mumbled. He adjusted his night cap and patted his arm, holding his hand reassuringly.

Apparently, she wasn’t the only one concerned as Gregory was standing in the doorway watching. He thought if he stood there that there was no way the automatic doors would shut, since they seemed to sense when someone was standing there. He watched Moon’s limp body and frowned.

“Come on, Moondrop…” he whispered under his breath.

Charlie gave him a sympathetic look and took Jake’s example, putting her hand on Marionette’s folded ones. Unlike Moon who remained limp, Marionette’s fingers wrapped around her hand and kept it stuck there.

She didn’t mind, and it didn’t stop her from turning to Roxy and Chica, and vaguely in Monty’s direction, and explaining the entire story. From receiving the call, to coming to the Pizzaplex, to what they found downstairs. There were no interruptions, save Chica’s exaggerated gestures of shock while she listened to each twist and turn, reacting animatedly.

Roxy just looked grim, soaking in the disturbing implications.

“And now there’s an ambulance coming, Mari’s still out of service, and Moon’s battery might be fried,” Charlie wrapped up. She gave an exasperated sigh. “On the plus side, I might’ve found my long-lost twin brother.”

Chica and Roxy stared.

“Jury’s still out on it though,” Charlie awkwardly added with a smile.

And then Monty started laughing.

“Heh… Heh heh heh ha ha ha!”

“That wasn’t a joke, Monty. Yeesh,” Roxy scoffed.

 “You kiddin’?! All this time makin’ me look like the bad guy, then he goes and rats himself out!” Monty sounded nearly hysterical.

“I t-take it Bonnie’s fal-ll wasnn’t entirely an a-acccident?” Marionette asked tiredly. His voice soft and defeated.

“No… Wait, yeah! It was! Ah wasn’t lookin’ for a fight. Bonnie showed up one night, an’…”

Monty trailed off at the sound of heavy, thumping footsteps. They all looked over in time to see Freddy come pushing through the doors, sounding like he had jogged for quite a ways.

Gregory spun around at the sound of a door and lit up when he saw Freddy. He boldly ran to him.

“Freddy!”

“Gregory!” Freddy returned with pure joy.

He dropped onto one knee and pulled the boy into a tight embrace.

“Gregory, I was so worried! When I found out that she took you… I am so sorry, Gregory. I should not have left you alone…”

“Don’t worry about it. You had to kick Bonnie’s butt,” Gregory said. He was squeezed a little tighter. “Fr-Freddy, you’re crushing me.”

“Oh! My apologies. I am just VERY happy to see you.”

Freddy released him.

“Yeah, it’s okay…”

Gregory hugged him back, and Freddy returned with a gentler hug. Holding him securely, as though he would never let him go, after he almost lost him. A sentiment shared by Gregory.

Freddy looked over his head and around the room.

“Did Foxy and Jeremy arrive yet?” he asked.

“No, but there’s going to be a lot of people out there so they’re probably hiding… Or lost, but we can go find them once the coast is clear,” Charlie said.

“We heard you’ve been having a fun night,” Roxy added. Chica nodded in agreement.

“There are many words I could you to describe it, but fun is not one of them,” Freddy confessed. “Even with the heroic shootout between Foxy and I and dozens of mind-controlled Staff Bots.”

Chica’s eyes did that raise thing again. Roxy blinked a bit and looked to Charlie questioningly.

“I kind of got a little held up on the Vanny falling thing,” she admitted with a sheepish smile, rubbing her neck.

“Where is Monty?” Freddy asked.

“Yo.”

Freddy looked over to see Monty on the other side of a glass wall, his usually loud voice muffled by the scratchy speaker.

“Oh, Monty!”

“We were thinking just in case something came over him again,” Roxy explained. “Guess it was a good thing we did.”

“Monty, I am so sorry…” Freddy apologized.

“Nah, we’re cool,” Monty muttered. He suddenly seemed much less amused, slouching into himself. Though maybe his arms were just getting tired from holding his broken body up.

And he was still very broken. Either Chica or Roxy gave him his sunglasses back, so his somewhat misaligned eyes were covered, but the busted everything else was very apparent. His hands were entirely degloved, both figuratively and literally. His shell was cracked all over. He looked like a mess. He looked as bad as Bonnie did.

“Does it… hurt?” Freddy dared to ask.

“Eh?... Oh. Nah. A lil bit. Maybe a whole lot, but I’ll deal,” Monty dismissed. “Ah ain’t hearin’ the voices in my head anymore. No burnin’ skin. No itch. No guilt. I’m feelin’ fine.”

“You are taking all of this very well!” Freddy complimented, surprised.

“Heh, speak fer yerself.”

Freddy managed a smile in his eyes but underneath that there was a storm that Monty couldn’t see. A growing tension which led him over to the repair capsule. Still holding Gregory’s hand, Freddy looked inside and saw Moon’s current state. His entire body loose, limp, and dim.

“Moon…”

“Yeah…” Jake agreed. “We knew there was a chance of his battery getting fried. It’s fixable. Maybe he’ll wake up without it.”

Freddy knew he might, but he also knew how tiring it was to maneuver a body that was depleted around in their state. He was able to get back up, but what if Moon couldn’t?

“Would a replacement help?”

“I mean, maybe, but… You know with how hard it was getting him out of here last time, and with us not having clearance…”

“And we cannot ask Fritz for assistance this time. Not with what he is going through… He is needed elsewhere…” Freddy agreed.

It seemed like they were at a stalemate. Moon needed work done and they hadn’t the means to safely do it.

Except, maybe they did.

“Hey, Freddy,” Gregory said. Freddy looked down at him. “You remember what Bonnie said, right? You used to be a technician. Maybe you can do it!”

Freddy looked surprised. “Me?! Gregory, I have not performed any repairs in… I-I cannot be qualified any longer!”

“Why not? Charlie was able to do it, and she’s not a technician,” Gregory pointed out. Charlie sort of shrugged in agreement. “And you know more about all this stuff at the Pizzaplex than anybody else!”

“Yes, but…” Freddy trailed off.

Gregory was right. Somewhere in this handsome bear body there was a human. One who knew how to fix bodies just like his. One who knew how to get past the commands in this capsule and repair on his own accord.

He just had to find him. He had to remember who he was.

There was a way.

“Jake…” Freddy turned to look at the masked bot once more. “I can repair him, but you must do something for me. Please.”

A chill went through Jake at his dire tone.

“Whatever you need…?” he asked hesitantly.

“I need you to tell me what happened the night of the accident. I need to remember my last moments as a human,” Freddy requested.

Somehow, Jake knew it was coming. Yet he still stared at Freddy like he asked for his own soul.

“…Are you sure you want to know that?” Roxy asked. Not Jake who was still silent, but the friend now standing at his side. “It sounds like dragging up painful memories for no reason.”

“There is a reason. It is the one way I can remember who I was,” Freddy explained. “And through that, I can remember what I knew.”

Jake shrunk into himself a little. He knew this was coming. He knew Freddy was going to ask.

…

He knew he had to do it.

“Let me just- Yes, I’ll tell you everything. But I need to get something.”

“Of course,” Freddy agreed.

Jake stepped out of the repair capsule- Freddy stepped halfway in like Gregory had to keep the door from closing- and headed out of the room entirely.

“…What stops him from just not comin’ back?” Monty asked bluntly.

Inexplicably, that got a crackly, chimey laugh out of Marionette, whose neck and head was still hung awkwardly over the back of the office chair. That sort of exhausted laugh that came when you were so worn out, so emotionally drained that the silliest thing may strike a chord.

It didn’t help when Monty tacked on, “Ah mean it! He could make a run for it!”

Chica gave him a somewhat exaggerated shrug. Sort of like, “Where’s he going to go?”

“Well, he’s not going any further than the daycare,” Roxy said matter-of-factly.

“He’s coming back,” Charlie said to Freddy reassuringly. Just in case that look he sent after him was one of worry. “If he was making a run for it, he would’ve taken Moon with him.”

This got another even more hysterical sounding laugh out of Marionette.

“You said he had head trauma, right?” Roxy asked dryly.

“Well… More like face trauma. It’s been a long night.” She patted Marionette’s arm, and he sighed and mumbled something like agreement.

It wasn’t too long before Jake returned. Honestly, Freddy thought he WAS going back to the Daycare, but expected it was to get something. A picture? A video tape? Maybe a forgotten relic from his past life?

But no. Jake came in with a landline phone, which was very surprising.

He was able to hook it up at the desk despite there not being a phone there. He then dialed a number and waited for someone to answer, which they did.

“Hey. You don’t know how glad I am that you answered… I need you to do me a favor. I’m going to put you on speakerphone, and I just want you to listen. Don’t- Don’t say anything, just… hear me out.”

With that, Jake set the receiver to the side and pressed the button for the speaker. Then he turned back around and faced the others.

Seeing them all staring at him, especially Freddy, he buckled. He dropped his head and then lowered himself down, sitting on the floor in front of the desk, his arms resting on his good knee.

“…You weren’t just any technician, Freddy. You were the head technician. But you only really got the role because there was nobody else to do it… I think you said your boss really liked you, but you never explained how it happened. But since you were the highest up, they put you on the hardest challenge, and that was getting us to work right. Nobody wanted to work with us, and Andrew didn’t want to work with anybody… Except for you. You and him- he wouldn’t ever admit it to me or you or anyone, but you started to grow on him. You were always so friendly with us…”

“I don’t believe this,” Andrew grumbled.

Jake was lying on his back nearby with one leg kicked up over the other, looking up through a hole in the sheet roof they had strung on the play structures and looking at the edge of a glowing star decal, lost in his thoughts. He tilted his head back to look.

“What?”

“It’s him.”

Jake shot up. “What?!”

“Raaay.”

“Oh. Oh! I thought- Geez, talk about being overdramatic.” Jake turned and crawled over to peek out. “Where did you see him?”

“Just up there. He’s heading to the staaairs…”

“Why do you always do the scary voice when Ray shows up?”

Andrew pointedly didn’t answer that question.

Sure enough, Ray let himself into the daycare and came over towards the tent. He must’ve been distracted as he got almost halfway to the fort before he noticed it. He stopped in place, blinking, and then continued coming over.

The two inside barely noticed. Andrew tried to crawl off into the play structure, but Jake grabbed him by the ankles and began a tug of war that ended with Andrew trying to smack him off, losing his grip, and the two landing in a painful heap on the padded floor.

“Look at this!” Ray complimented from outside. He came up to the closest opening and peeked in. “Can I come in?”

“No.”

“SURE!”

Either Ray ignored Moon or Jake’s shout totally drowned him out as he crawled in. He looked around at the setup inside of the fort, the pillows and barrel stacks holding up the roof where the bridge didn’t. He whistled.

“This is some setup you’ve got in here! How’d you tie it up?” he asked.

“Oh, uh, we just used a lot of stuff we found around!” Jake said.

Which was code for stuff he and Andrew stole out of the supply closet and backroom.

“We’ll take it down before morning.”

“No, you don’t have to! If anyone gives you trouble you just send them to me. I’ll set them straight,” Ray reassured.

He laid down on his belly, propped up on his elbows as he looked around at the fort.

“I used to build these with my sister. Except they were a lot smaller and made out of couch cushions.”

“Really?”

“All the time! We’d set it up on Saturday morning and take it down before church on Sunday.”

Jake wanted to ask more questions about his childhood. Ray hadn’t really said much about his home life, except they knew that he and Chaz were ‘brothers’ from overhearing conversations, despite them not looking anything like each other. Sure, the scruffy facial hair was there, though nowhere near as wild as Chaz’s, but the completely different skin color suggested they weren’t actually related by blood.

But it sounded like he had a pretty nice childhood, and considering that Jake hadn’t really gotten a chance to be normal, he wanted to ask and learn more.

Except, Andrew beat him to the punch by steering the conversation in a different direction.

“And what are yooou doing prowling the daycare so laaate?”

“We were supposed to run some reflex tests tonight… But I think this more than counts. If you’ve got enough finger dexterity to tie these up, then I’d bet you’d be great at pressing buttons.”

“Yesss, but isn’t that YOUR job? What on earth would you do then? Except intrude where you’re not needed,” Andrew hissed.

“He doesn’t mean that,” Jake was quick to interject.

“He’s just pushing my buttons,” Ray agreed. He had a little smile of amusement. “That’s what I’m here for, Moony!”

Andrew groaned at the nickname and turned his head away, refusing to get involved after that point.

Jake and Ray talked for a while before Jake took his previous position and Ray- always the suck up, Andrew thought- emulated him by rolling onto his back and stretching out. Staring at the sheet too, no doubt.

A little later Andrew started to grow antsy and started to get up, decided to pointedly leave the tent so that Ray would get the message. Ray being here meant he had to be in constant character. No slipping, he had to be Moon twenty-four-seven and it was getting exhausting. He started to crawl to the opening when he looked at Ray.

His arms were folded behind his head and his hat had tipped down, but he was definitely and undeniably asleep. On the job. In THEIR hidey hole.

“Ngh…”

“Okay, what now?” Jake asked.

“He intrudes on our space, on our home, and then he falls asleep!”

Jake turned his head back to look. “Huh… Guess he’s tired.”

“He’s working.”

“He’s been working for like eighteen hours. Give him a break,” Jake said, turning back over. “They’re making him stay all night. This is probably the only time he’s got to sleep.”

And the fact that Ray hadn’t woken up through their barely whispered conversation showed how exhausted he was.

Jake thought this whole grudge Andrew had on Ray was crazy. Sure, he knew he had trust issues, but Ray had been nothing but nice. He had been all for when they showed that they were more aware than everyone thought. He started treating them like humans, or as close as he could. He was friendly, he was polite, never had a bad bone in his body.

Maybe that’s why Andrew didn’t like him. Andrew didn’t trust smiley men who were more than happy to help. He knew they could easily be hiding a switchblade behind their saccharine smile.

Jake sighed a little and turned back to say something to him, sympathizing with him, but then stopped when he saw what Andrew was doing.

Andrew was crouched beside Ray and staring down at him. His blue eyes scanning over his face and his head tilted as though he didn’t quite understand what he was looking at. One hand rested on his own knee, the other hand poised in the air by his chest. His fingers tightening and loosening, occasionally shifting his hand as though he was considering reaching for Ray and holding himself back.

That hand was his tell. It showed that he was lost in thought. And for someone he supposedly hated, he stared at him very intently. His posture didn’t display anger though. Jake knew him well enough to know that he was… nervous. Anxiously looking down at Ray as though he was doing something wrong just being so close.

That was the moment when Jake realized that Andrew’s ‘grudge’ with Ray was a lot more complicated than he initially expected.

“I knew Andrew cared more than he let on. It was so weird to have someone… just… be there? But it meant a lot more for Andrew. You were the first person he trusted in a long time. He really, really cared about you…”

There was a long, painful pause.

“One night you caught Vanny sneaking around somewhere. I don’t know where, but you chased her into the daycare.”

No, Freddy recalled. That brief vision he had before. He recalled chasing Vanny-

The white figure darted across the Atrium walkway, sprinting in the direction of the corner security door. The one that led to the daycare hallway.

No, he hadn’t chased her there. She led him there.

“I was up in the balcony but And- Moon. Moon was still downstairs. He was arranging things and- I don’t know. He was busy. Vanny came in down the slide and ran through, but Moon didn’t stop her because we KNEW her. She was Bunny’s beau. And then Ray- you… I didn’t think he going to get involved…” His fingers tighten on one of his arm. “But then Vanny got him involved.”

And suddenly, Freddy was back there. He was still there, listening to Jake’s story, but in the back of his brain he was a thousand miles away. Or thousands of hours behind him.

He had no idea how she managed to lock the daycare doors. It was as though they latched the second she got them closed behind her. Thinking it was an automatic response, he pressed the button to open the door, only to get an error buzz.

Likely the naptime mode locks malfunctioning. He turned and hustled over to the security desk. If he could get the lights back on, then likely the doors would unlock.

But he was stopped midway through his search by the sound of a guttural groan. He snapped his head up as he recognized the voice.

“Moon?”

There was another pained noise. A growl along with a loud clicking and clattering.

Eyes wide, Ray raced around the desk and began to hurry down between the play structures. His flashlight sending looming shadows through the colorful shapes.

“Moon?!”

The noises were getting closer. Ray whipped around the edge of the slide and stopped short at a very eerie sight.

It was Moon standing there. Except he was bent over backwards. As though his upper half slumped over, but instead of buckling forward like expected it went back. But he was dexterous so it could be expected.

But Moon standing there slumped shouldn’t have been expected at all. He was twitching a little. His body jolting and shuddering but somehow staying on its feet.

“Moon, are you-?”

Moon’s head suddenly snapped in his direction. His eyes no longer their usual glowing blue but a sinister red.

Just like the glowing eyes on that woman’s suit.

“I don’t know which one of them it was, but they had him.”

Moon turned over backwards. His limbs rolling and twisting as he turned over on the padded floor and rose to his feet again. He began to sway in place in an awkward little dance. Jingling, ticking, and giggling as he did.

“Ehehehehahahaaaa…” Moon cackled. His face spun menacingly. “Naughty boy, up so laaaate.”

“Wha..What are you talking about?” Ray asked in confusion and fear. Something sounded noticeably off in Moon’s tone.

The jester started to creep close with a few loose steps. Half-dancing and half stumbling towards him.

Something was very wrong.

Ray quickly stepped back. “Moon, stay back! You’re not thinking right. You’re glitching out!”

But Moon paid him no heed. He didn’t stop. There was something wrong, this wasn’t him. He wasn’t like this. It had to be a malfunction. It had to be that woman who did it.

Ray turned on his heel and started to run back for the security desk. Moon was a lot faster, but he was also stumbling and struggling with himself. He fell to the floor and transitioned into a roll, springing back up onto his heels and soon back on Ray’s own.

But just before he could reach him, Ray dove over the security desk. Crashing to the floor and knocking over a computer in the process. He regained his bearings quickly and squeezed underneath the desk.

His breathing echoed through the small space as he strained to listen for Moon. He could hear the jingling, but he couldn’t tell from where. It could’ve been pacing behind him, taunting him.

Sun and Moon weren’t supposed to be allowed around the counter. There was even an update to their personality chips that was supposed to keep them from crossing around the desk… but Ray had never uploaded it into them. He had overrode it with his master code and bypassed the update, twice in fact. It had just seemed cruel to force an update that would limit something- someone who was just like a human.

Now he was starting to regret that decision, because Moon could hop over at any time.

Something was terribly wrong with Moon. This wasn’t normal. It wasn’t him trying to scare him. It had to be connected to that rabbit woman, and it had to be connected to how funny Bonnie had been acting too.

He really didn’t want to… but he got his taser off his belt. Normally he used it for protection in case the screwy endos wandering the basement got a little handsy, and he would’ve never used it on Moon, but-

But then Moon’s hand suddenly reached under the desk and grabbed him by the shirt, easily dragging him out.

Ray gave a startled shout and reflexively swung out with his tazer and tagged Moon’s arm.

Moon gave a garbled scream and released him, falling back and over the counter. Ray had felt the burning tingle of electricity licking at his skin, but adrenaline numbed it. He hastily scooted back under the desk.

“Moon, I’m sorry!” he shouted.

Silence. Silence that stretched past the point it was supposed to.

Ray dared to stick his head out.

“Moon?”

Still it was silent.

Taking a shaky breath, Ray cautiously stood up before leaning and looking over the counter. Worry twisting in his gut at what he would see.

Nothing. Moon was gone.

Ray’s heart skipped a beat, and his mouth went dry as he became very aware of something swinging and jingling just above his bent over back.

He threw himself forward to try and clear the desk, with limited success. He instead flopped onto it, clawing at the side as he tried to get over and to the floor. But a pair of long fingers caught his collar and wrenched him back, dragging him back onto the counter. The corner digging into his stomach as he knocked everything off the counter.

“Naughty, naughty, naaauuuu—uggh-ughtyyy,” Moon hissed. He was dangling upside-down from his support line. His fingers dug past Ray’s clothes and into his skin. “Take. Your. Nap! Take! Your! NAP!” 

Panicking, Ray turned himself partially over and took a swing with his free arm. Moon, anticipating the taser, yanked himself back and released him, causing Ray to plummet off the counter and crash to the padded floor. Ray tried to crawl back away only to have the jester unhook himself and drop down above him.

Moon’s face rolled around. His glowing red eyes almost trailing in the darkness as his body swayed in a weirdly, wobbly dance. Before he suddenly lunged forward and grabbed Ray by the neck.

“Shhhould’ve stayed homme toniiight. Should’vvve mindeded your OWN bussssinesss…”

This wasn’t Moon. This wasn’t Moon! This wasn’t Moon digging his fingers into his throat.

And then Moon released him, and in that second he stabbed his taser towards Moon’s chest. Moon caught his wrist, but Ray pushed up and overpowered him, forcing the taser against his shell for a second jolt. Moon screamed louder and writhed before falling back against the counter and then slumping to the floor.

Ray got to his feet and stumbled back, staring at the downed jester. This time he had gone as limp as a ragdoll.

But that didn’t mean he was going to stay down. He got up almost immediately after the first tase, and the second might not be any different.

And right as he thought that, Moon started to twitch. His red eyes flickered as he began to twist against his own body to get back up. It was like he was possessed by some sort of unnatural force.

Ray had to think fast. He couldn’t get the door open behind the desk. He could keep trying, he could try the doors, he could go for the slide- but as Moon’s limbs began to twist around to get in position to push himself up, still loosened from the second shock, he knew there was no time. He was running out of it.

He had to tase him again, but he couldn’t.

There was a rule of thumb with the Fazbear animatronics. The tazer had a three strikes policy. Two tases would do no damage, but the third would. It would start to damage the servos.

It would keep him down, and he knew he needed to. He could still feel the bruising touch on his throat. Moon was going to kill him, or whatever had taken hold of him was going to.

He could repair him. He could fix anything he broke.

But.

He couldn’t do it.

“He was going to do it.”

He couldn’t do that to Moon.

“I didn’t know what was going on. I got there late- I heard it happening but I couldn’t use the line and I was afraid to jump so I was up on the netting but- and I got there as fast as I could, but I wasn’t as nimble as Andrew, and when I got there he was standing over him and- It’s three strikes, you’re out. One more shock and he could’ve broken him.”

Moon lurched his body forward, his upper half twisted garishly. He clawed at the padding, fighting his own body to reach for Ray’s legs. Ray took a step back and raised the taser threateningly.

But he couldn’t do it.

“They already didn’t like him. Moon- Andrew couldn’t get along with anyone. He could’ve been- I knew if Moon was damaged that they were going to get rid of him. I couldn’t- I couldn’t let that happen. I…”

He heard the clattering of something up on the play structure behind him. The heavy thump of something tripping on the bars and landing heavily against the top of the blue slide.

“No, no, NO! STOP!”

Ray turned around just in time to see Sun’s face as he leapt off the top of the play structure and dove at him.

The full weight of the jester’s body hit him, and they landed, limbs and metal, and-

SNAP!

Freddy and only Freddy heard the sound echoing in his ears. His hand slowly lifted to his neck and grabbed at it. He could remember the sound, but funny enough, he couldn’t recall if it had hurt.

He couldn’t breathe, he remembered. It didn’t hurt, but he couldn’t breathe. But then- it was as though a black blur sucked up the rest. All he could remember next were the foggy moments when Bonnie and Chica found him wandering out in Rockstar Row. Nothing before that moment, nothing after the snap.

How strange it was that Jake told such a short story about an event he didn’t witness and yet Freddy’s own mind easily pieced together the details. It was uncanny.

He hadn’t even realized they were standing in silence until Charlie spoke up.

“Then what happened…?”

“…I tried to bring him back.”

Jake got off of Ray quickly, but the deed had already been done. Something terribly wrong had happened. His head was angled wrong- his eyes were still moving at first, but it didn’t last. He wasn’t breathing. Jake tried to feel for a pulse by pressing a hand on his chest and at first it was there, but then it was gone.

“W-Wait… Wait, wait, no! Ray?! No!”

He tried to do CPR. He had no breath to give, so instead he could only do chest compressions. He didn’t even know if he was doing them right, but he tried with all he had, pushing on his chest until his ribs almost broke.

Jake’s voice broke. He was silently, dryly crying into his knees. “But I couldn’t…!”

This whole time Moon had been staring at the scene. Before he suddenly made a choking noise and seized up before collapsing onto the padding. But he was up just as quickly again, shoving himself up with his hands and looking back again to see Jake knelt beside Ray’s body, trying desperately to keep his heart pumping.

His eyes were still red, but Jake knew this time that it was Andrew staring back. Staring at him.

Jake finally slowed to a stop, his hands still pressing into Ray’s chest. He didn’t look at him, he couldn’t, but he could feel and he knew what he didn’t feel, his heartbeat.

Gone. Just like that. Within minutes. Gone. All because they landed wrong. Gone.

“J… Jake-ke…?”

Jake yanked his hands away and skidded back, slamming into the side of the slide and clinging to it to keep himself up.

“I-I didn’t… It was an accident, I didn’t-!...” he sputtered out.

Andrew looked at Ray now. He stared at him, then crawled towards him, straightening out his body as he did. He noticed his motions were labored and his body felt strange, but everything for the last few minutes had been a blur. He pushed past it and pulled himself up to look down at Ray.

It was his neck. He could tell immediately that something was wrong there, and that he was gone.

He felt numb. He didn’t feel anything at all.

But he had the sense to rush to Jake’s side. His hand clamping onto his shoulder as he crouched beside him, them both staring at Ray until Jake slumped into himself. Andrew knew there was little that he could do.

He couldn’t even think straight enough to consider what to do.

“Then Bunny showed up…”

The heavy footsteps signaled Bonnie’s arrival even before he skidded onto the upper floor. His red eyes widening as he saw the body lying on the floor of the daycare.

“Oh shit…”

Andrew’s hands tightened with anger as he heard his footsteps coming and his now read eyes flashed at the doors. Within moments, Bonnie was trying to get the doors open and swearing when he couldn’t.

Andrew sprung up and charged over to them, slamming his hand on the button. The doors, no longer glitched up, opened with only a little lag delay. Bonnie helped yank them open as he rushed in.

His eyes immediately landed on the man lying on the floor.

“Ho-ly SHIT! What the hell happened?!”

“SHUT UP, BUNNY!” Andrew snapped back. Rounding on him and blindsiding him, causing him to flinch back as he got into his face. “WHY DON’T YOU TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED?!”

“She was just scaring him off- Wait, why are your eyes still…? Oh my God, where’s Ness?” Bonnie snapped his head around to search. “NESS?!”

He was blindsided again by a firm shove from Andrew.

“Forget about her! Look at him! LOOK AT HIM!”

Normally Jake would’ve broken up the arguing, but he couldn’t bear to even lift his head. And yet he did, as if commanded to by Andrew, and stared at Ray. At what used to be Ray.

“Believe me, I see him…” Bonnie mumbled. He stared at the body wide-eyed. “What happened?”

“What happened?!” Jake finally spoke up, half hysterical. “I KILLED him! That’s what happened!”

“You what? How’d the-?”

“Ignore him, he’s not thinking straight,” Andrew quickly deflected. “What do we do now? We need to do something.”

“Yeah, I’d say. Uh… Give me a second…”

“We don’t have a second!”

“Give me a second, alright?!”

“And then Bunny said-.”

“Here’s what we do. I’ve got to find Nessie. I’ll get her to get rid of the security footage and you, you’ve got to hide him.”

“Hide him…” Andrew echoed. “…Where?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe in the ballpit. I’m sure nobody will notice- Where do you think?! Somewhere else! Somewhere nobody’s going to find him!” Bonnie said. Andrew started to turn, but Bonnie turned him back quickly. “BUT nowhere near ANY animatronics. We know what’s going to happen if you put him near a Staff Bot or Map Bot or something.”

“I know that,” Andrew hissed. He yanked his arm away. “…Never mind. I’ll figure it out on my own.”

“Maybe somewhere in the basement?” Bonnie offered a little more helpfully.

Andrew gave a non-committal noise as he went to get a blanket to wrap Ray in.

He was still numb, still in shock, but he knew to grab the softest one, and wrapped him as though he was swaddling a child. He didn’t look at his face as he did.

Meanwhile, Bonnie looked at Jake and then walked over to him, crouching down beside him and putting an arm around him.

“Hey, you okay?”

“N-…No.”

“Yeah, I figured that,” he admitted with a sympathetic hiss, rubbing his neck.

He wasn’t even sure what to say in this situation.

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“But it was. If I had just… done anything else, it wouldn’t have happened.”

Jake didn’t dare look up at the others. He couldn’t imagine what they thought- well, yes he could. It was everything he thought and worse. But he pressed on, because he had to get to the end. They needed to know.

“A-And they left… And I was alone there in the daycare, and I got some time to really think about what I did and… I realized something. I realized that I couldn’t trust myself. I just killed someone. Someone who had been our friend because I was afraid that he was going to hurt Andrew, but all he was doing-! …All he was doing was protecting himself from Andrew. And Bunny, and Vanny… But I was the one he should’ve been protecting himself from.”

He stared down at his hands in his lap, watching them tighten.

“I… I don’t really remember much after that…”

He pressed the button and spoke clearly.

“Disassemble Sun.”

Then he closed his eyes and waited as the Staff Bots rushed in to meet him.

“I don’t know why I did it, but I was just thinking that if I could hurt him so easily… how could I trust myself around anyone else? Kids?” Jake confessed. His voice caught and he pulled in again, hiding his face on his knees. “Bunny was right. He was right. All this time acting like he a-and Nessie were murderers and it was me!” He gave a humorless chuckle. “And I was the Daycare Attendant they weren’t afraid of!”

A heavy silence fell over the group. Especially over Freddy, and Gregory who went from staring wide-eyed at Jake to staring up at him. Freddy was unreadable. He just looked shocked, like he had been struck.

Unsurprisingly considering the tension, it was the voice on the phone who broke the silence.

“Jake…”

Of course he had called Michael.

“Jake, listen to me. It was an accident. You can only blame yourself so much.”

“I have all of the blame.”

“That may be true, but it also is not. You were put into a situation that none of you were prepared for, how could anyone expect you to know exactly what to do?” Michael said. His voice uncharacteristically gentle, as though talking Jake off a ledge

Jake turned his head a little, listening but still clearly upset. He was shaking.

“And now that you’ve come clean about it, now you can start healing. Trust me, since that night you have been nursing a wound that is only starting to heal now.”

“It feels like I just pulled the scab off of an already healing wound…” Jake admitted. He groaned and covered his face. “What am I saying? I’M not the one who’s supposed to be healing! It’s- It’s Ray! It’s Freddy!” He pulled his hands down and looked up at him. “Freddy?”

“It’s both of you, Jake,” Michael said firmly. “You didn’t want this to happen. It’s okay to mourn.”

“Freddy?” Jake asked again. He was listening, but he needed Freddy to say something, anything.

But Freddy was just sort of staring out into space.

“Freddy?” Roxy asked, a little louder.

Freddy jumped, only then realized how many people were staring at him.

“Oh! My apologies, I was… lost in thought… I need some time to process this. I do not blame you for what happened, Jake. Michael is right, it was a terrible accident. I know you did not mean to hurt me. I just…” Freddy paused to put two and two together. “…It was Moon who put me into my body?” Like Bonnie had said.

“Yeah, he… I don’t know how he did that.”

“He-e hid your-r body close to Fr-r-Freddy,” Marionette whispered. His voice still staticky, him staring up towards the ceiling with purple oozing out the top of his eyes and up his forehead. “A-And it took.”

“Hmm… Then the body must have been in my green room.”

Chica nodded and gestured for attention, then pressed a finger to her temple, sparing one of her few messages.

“Oh! You are right! Chica says that the night she and Bonnie found me I wandered out of my green room, which I remembered. My body must have been hidden near… well, my body. And then I walked out on my own. Moon must have… hidden the body in the elevator after that…”

“That’s crazy,” Gregory said. “So… you really were a human too.”

“That is right, Gregory. I was a human. A technician…” Freddy’s eyes lit up. “And I had a master code that I could use to bypass all updates and treatments without any trouble! It was the master code.”

“Really?! Do you still remember it?”

“I may not, but-.” Freddy lifted his hand and looked at it. “These hands do. These fingers typed it in more than once… Jake, if you could please scoot aside.”

Jake shuffled aside without another word, still sitting on the floor. He even reached up and pulled the phone into his lap for good measure, holding onto it like a lifeline.

“I’m sorry, Freddy…”

“I know,” Freddy assured. He reached down and patted his head. “And I forgive you.”

“Already?”

“How could I forgive Bonnie and not you?”

“Wait, you forgive Bonnie?! But he’s a maniac!” Gregory spoke up.

“Yes, but… he is gone now. And I do not want to hold a grudge when I know he too was battling so much…” Freddy said sadly. He began to tap away on the terminal. Carefully using the tips of his claws.

Jake slowly lowered his head and stared at the floor in thought.

“Wait, he’s like really gone?” Monty asked.

Chica made a cut motion at her neck to signal him to drop it fast, which Monty did.

After a few moments of tapping away, the repair terminal activated.

“I… I think I may have bypassed the updates. It will ask for them at the end again, but I can try again. And now to tab ctrl enter shift to bypass the limit of animatronic occupants in the repair capsule… and done!” Freddy stepped back and then strode into the capsule. “Gregory, please wait out here. Just in case something goes wrong.”

“What could go wrong? You fixed it.”

“Well, I had to deactivate some of the safety protocols. If something goes wrong… Let us just say, if there was a lockdown under effect, I would rather you be out here than in there.”

He ruffled Gregory’s hair and stepped inside, the doors closing behind him. Gregory could only watch as Freddy took to Moon’s side and began the repair procedure. The animatronic having not flipped to his Sun side due to his total loss of power. Within seconds, the automated machine, controlled by a few button presses, had his chest chassis open.

A soft tap on his shoulder interrupted him. Gregory looked back to see Chica standing behind him.

“Oh… Hey, Chica…”

Regardless of how they had sort of teamed up earlier, Gregory still felt a little uneasy getting singled out by Chica. Especially with Freddy distracted, Foxy missing, and Mari all loopy.

But Chica had sad eyes and her hands folded together almost nervously. She looked regretful.

“What’s up?”

And then she began gesturing. Pleading hands, pointing between them, crossing her heart, raising a hand in swearing, pleading fists, cocked head, all trying to say something without any words.

Needless to say, Gregory was struggling to keep up, and when Chica tilted her head as though waiting for a response, he didn’t have one.

“Uh… Yeah! Sure?”

Chica waved her hands. “No, no, no!” And then was trying again, going on until she stamped her foot a little in frustration at herself.

“She’s trying to say sorry,” Roxy finally translated.

Chica gave her an exasperated “Why didn’t you say that sooner?” look. Roxy, mildly amused, shrugged it off.

Gregory smiled a little, relieved that that was all it was, and maybe a little relieved that was what it was. He considered whether he could forgive her though.

…Well, it wasn’t like she hurt him on purpose. There was something inside of her that made her act crazy. She didn’t seem so bad now.

“I forgive you, and I’m sorry too. For, umm… forpushingyou,” Gregory rushed out and mumbled.

She got a smile in her eyes and gave him a cheery wave like it was nothing. It seemed like she accepted his apology, and soon both were watching as Freddy removed Sun’s old battery. Gregory grimacing and Chica covering her mouth as they stared inside. Roxy was watching too.

Jake was still off to the side sitting where he was left. By now he had lifted the phone receiver to the side of his head, still trembling as he did.

“He’s working on him now… I should be in there, but I… I can’t…”

Charlie walked up to Jake and squeezed his shoulder before sitting down alongside him, putting an arm around his. Jake switched hands that he was holding the receiver with and held hers.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you everything…”

Charlie couldn’t hear Michael’s response, but she noted that it was softer than she had ever heard him before. Gentle and assuring. She wished he was here.

Soon enough, a Staff Bot arrived to deliver the new battery, and Freddy came out to get it before heading back inside and finishing the installation.

It was weird. Freddy had never felt a drive to repair on his own, but here he was doing it and it felt natural. He was right, his fingers did remember the buttons even when he didn’t, and the less he thought the more distant memories took over, allowing him to seamlessly transition into the technician he once was.

There was no doubt in his mind now, he was that technician. If the memories coming back to him hadn’t sealed it, then his natural ability did. Freddy Fazbear was not programmed to repair. This all came from within.

And soon enough, Sun was being closed back up. As the battery activated and restarted the Daycare Attendant, he postured some before switching to Sun in the chair. Freddy put his nightcap aside and called out.

“Jake, I need you to switch the lighting and check the degradation on the battery,” he called.

“He’s talking to you,” Roxy said.

“Oh! R-Right, sorry,” Jake fumbled to set the phone aside, trapped behind its wire. He couldn’t get righted before Charlie got up and faced the terminal.

“Just walk me through it,” she offered.

“Thank you. Okay, umm… You start by pressing the-.”

The battery was then checked. The lights were turned off and on a couple of times while the cord connected to the Daycare Attendant’s arm measured how much battery power was being used, and how it was replenishing. All the while Sun, and then Moon, and then Sun roused a little more and more. Still confused, but waking up.

When it was deemed to be in the perfect range, they stopped.

“No degradation on the battery?” Freddy asked.

“Nope! It’s good on this end,” Charlie said.

“Good…” Freddy sighed. “Keep the lights on, please, and I will tell you how to deactivate the procedures.”

They did, and soon the module was shut down without demanding updates, yet again, and Freddy was left inside of the repair capsule with Sun. The door opened and Chica and Gregory peeked in, but Freddy raised a hand to stop them. Getting the gest, Gregory waved for Chica to go with them and they stepped out far enough that the doors automatically closed again.

“Sun…?” Freddy asked quietly.

Sun groaned and shifted a little on the chair. His opposite arm came up and draped over his face to shield him from the bright lights. He was clearly disoriented, but aware.

Freddy reached out and took Sun’s closer hand. He squeezed it. After a moment, Sun squeezed back, though it was a twitchy squeeze with his reflexes still a little off. But he was at least awake.

He knew what had to come next. Freddy swallowed down the growing dread and spoke.

“…Jake told me everything.”

Sun’s uncomfortable shifting froze up. His arm still tight over his face plate.

“About how I… About what happened at the daycare… How I died… And I want you to know that I- I do not blame you for what happened. I know that what happened was an accident. You were not in control.”

Sun’s rays were slowly pulling in. Freddy recognized that motion; dread, nervousness. Normally he would be quick to assure him but in this case, he couldn’t even assure himself. That look of guilt just twisted his heart more. He tried to speak, his voice hitched, and then he continued.

“I just-… I do not understand why you did not tell me.” His voice caught again, but this time it was with a soft but very audible sob. “I do not understand why you could not just tell me what happened. I… I thought you… I thought that we were- that you trusted me enough that you would confide in me about everything, but…”

He was cut off by something that was no less than a whine coming from Sun. It sounded almost pained.

“Sun?”

And it was pained. Sun turned over onto his side, away from Freddy. He still held his hand, only because Freddy wouldn’t let him go. Freddy wouldn’t let go and Sun couldn’t bear to look at him.

Because he always saw him.

In their tender moments, when they were totally alone, when Freddy was his whole world, he always saw him.

Andrew forced open the doors of the elevator after it arrived at the upper floor. He looked down through the shaft, at the panel at the bottom. That was it, the one place where he could hide it where no one could find it. He hopped down and forced the grate open before climbing back up to get the body.

And this entire time that was all it was. A body. A thing he had to get rid of.

It wasn’t until he started moving it into the elevator that the blanket started to fall and tripped him up and resulted in it getting largely uncovered.

It wasn’t a body. It was Ray. There was no ignoring it when he was staring it straight in the face.

He didn’t like Ray, certainly not. He was frustrating, whether it be his dumb, innocuous jokes or how he treated the two of them like he actually cared about them. Like he thought that he knew them, and him. Andrew knew that Ray thought there was some good in him. That his pushing back, that his venom was all a disguise and that under that was some softie with a heart of gold.

Always trying to crack his exterior. But no, Andrew knew what he was deep down. An angry, dangerous thing. He could do real damage now. He wasn’t a child anymore, he was a adult, only a touch younger than Ray himself. He would never be anyone’s victim ever again.

Someday he was going to tell Ray the truth just to see his reaction. To see what he would think if he knew that he had been human too.

Someday would never come now. There was nobody to tell.

And that’s when the grief finally started to creep in. Because no matter how much Andrew tried to assuage his guilt with reminders that he couldn’t trust anybody, the truth was Ray was gone. Ray was dead.

He would never hold his hand again.

He never had a chance to say goodbye.

He never had a chance to tell him how sorry he was for every horrible thing he said. And how he didn’t mean it.

Never, never, sleep forever.

That was when Moon hunched over and began to weep. It was sudden, and agonizing, but so was holding Ray’s body and knowing that he helped do this.

Ray was the only one who cared.

He was so good.

S-So good…

…

There had to be a way to take it back. Anything, there had to be something. He couldn’t go on unless there was a way to fix it.

And there was. The only way he knew of, the only reason he couldn’t drop him down that elevator shaft.

And that’s how he found his way into the backroom behind the green room prepared for Glamrock Freddy Fazbear, the only Glamrock who had yet to awaken. The one Moon was sitting across from, staring at.

Freddy had been sat up against the wall and his chest had been pulled open. Ray would’ve never fit inside, but his head and upper half had been wedged in as much as he could. He hadn’t been truly nauseous since his death but seeing the broken nature of his neck as he squeezed him inside made him dry-heave, or something close to it.

Now Ray’s body lay out, resting against Freddy’s open front, legs stretched out between Freddy’s.

Freddy’s empty eyes were wide open, staring back at Moon almost judgmentally and he wondered momentarily if he was making a mistake. But he didn’t wonder long, because yes, he knew this was a mistake.

And yet never considered taking it back.

And never considered that it would actually work.

Or that every time Freddy smiled at him that he was going to smile just like he used to. Or make dumb jokes like he used to. Or straddle that line between friendly and foolish like he used to.

And here he was, holding his hand just like he used to.

By now Sun was sobbing. The shame and guilt eating at him as easily as the grief for someone who was still here. Someone he had broken, not because he killed him but because he selfishly brought him back. And would do it again too.

And Freddy was there watching the whole thing with eyes wide in shock and sympathy. He couldn’t tell what it was that Sun was going through, but he could hear the pain.

“Sun?” he asked a little more insistently, trying to get a response, an explanation, something.

Sun just shook his head. He didn’t even look back.

He had never cried like this, and when Freddy squeezed his hand to show his support instead of comforting him he began to nearly wail, to the point where Freddy desperately put a hand on his shoulder, trying to offer some assurance. Though it did little to ease him.

Freddy just hung his head, and Sun continued to cry, and everyone else kept their distance both out of sympathy and discomfort, in Gregory’s case. Seeing his stand-in parents so upset made him feel deeply wrong.

Freddy and Sun never got to have that conversation. Freddy didn’t have the heart to try again, and Sun was virtually inconsolable. He just let him ride it out and sat with him through it.

When Sun finally calmed down enough that he was only quietly crying, Freddy finally stood up. He noticed that the moment he released Sun’s hand it recoiled up to his chest, allowing him to huddle even more into himself. Freddy sighed, not wanting to push him further but knowing he had to, and then reached down to pick him up.

The second he got his arm under Sun’s legs, he suddenly reached back and planted his hand to the bear’s chest with a dull thump, silently signaling him to stop. Freddy did, pulling his arms back. Sun, still silent, lurched upwards on the chair, face still angled away, and started to get up. Having gotten the message.

His first step was unsteady, and Freddy almost grabbed him, but he stopped himself and allowed Sun to get up on his own. The jester was wobbly as he approached the door and stepped through when it opened.

As he stepped into the darkness, Sun’s coloration and glow shifted into Moon’s. Normally this would’ve been fine but whether it be his own exhaustion or the new battery his legs gave in and if he hadn’t caught the edge of the capsule doorway he would’ve crashed to the floor.

This time Freddy didn’t hold back. He quickly gathered him up into his arms, walked no more than three steps, and set him down alongside Jake who was midway through getting up when Moon was suddenly set down.

Moon was still a little disoriented coming out of the switch. Freddy handed him his nightcap and Moon accepted it and then placed a hand on the floor like he was planning on getting up. He was really steadying himself, but Freddy put a hand on the top of his head, as though telling him to stay put.

Moon looked down at his nightcap in his lap with shame. Freddy drew back and turned, walking away, sadness still filling his soft blue eyes.

Without a word, he went over to the containment room where Monty was and opened the door.

“Monty, it is your turn.”

“What?” Monty asked blankly.

“In the repair module. I cannot promise that I can fix everything, but surely I can help a little bit,” Freddy said. He began to second-guess himself right afterwards. “If that is alright with you-?”

“You kiddin’?! Take a hammer to me, I’m busted!” Monty dragged himself over. “Can’t do any worse.”

Freddy sized him up and clamped his mouth shut unsurely.

“Com’mon,” Monty said.

“Very well! Allow me.”

Freddy knelt to pick him up, but Monty stopped him and instead took the liberty of climbing onto his shoulders. It was a little awkward, but Freddy easily carried his weight.

“Time to rock and roll!” Freddy proclaimed and strode out the door.

Monty responded with a grunt as his head hit the top of the door.

“Erm, my apologies… Monty, if you do not mind. I need you to do something for my,” Freddy explained as he walked through the room and into the module, nobody stopping him.

“’S long as it ain’t anything that requires walkin’,” Monty replied, rubbing his head and fixing his mohawk.

“You two need any help?” Roxy offered- for both her and the gesturing Chica.

“No, no. I have it covered. But thank you both!” Freddy said.

He sat Monty on the chair but then, instead of going out to start the process on the monitor, he stood there and waited for the door to close. Once it did, he turned to Monty with an apologetic and grim look.

“Monty, if you would… could you tell me what happened the night when Bonnie fell?”

“Freddy-.”

“I am not interrogating you, my friend. I have now seen what Bonnie was capable of…” His voice and eyes fell sadly before lifting again. “I just need to know everything.”

“…If’n that’s what yer after.” Monty adjusted his sunglasses, seemingly more uncomfortable by the question than his own injuries. “It all started one night after closin’. Bonnie came and found me on the catwalks. He wanted me to-.”

“-Help me break open those gates and then I’m home free, you don’t have to worry about a thing!”

“I told ya, I ain’t doin’ it!” Monty snapped. “I’m already gettin’ wrung out for snappin’ the clubs.”

He was trying to out-walk Bonnie around the maze of catwalks, but the bunny was right on his heels, never letting up. Desperate and pleading.

Anything other than this and he would’ve agreed at this point. If not because he considered himself a decent being, then because Bonnie was so persistent.

“But they’re not going to know it’s YOU. I just need your fists, not your claws!”

“Then why don’tcha just knock yer way in?”

“I caaan’t. I’ve got these stupid bass playing picks!” Bonnie lamented. “Why does a Bonnie play a bass anyways?! I’m supposed to be the guitar man! This wouldn’t fly at the diner!”

As usual, Monty was lost halfway through Bonnie’s rantings. This time he finally turned on him though.

“Whaddya even want with back there anyways? Y’know there’s nothing back there except a long drop, don’tcha?”

Bonnie lifted an eye lid like quirking a brow. “No, I don’t know that. How do you know that?”

“Lucky guess.”

“Ugh! Look, Monty, Buddy, I’m kinda in a jam-.”

“And yer gonna be in a whole lot bigger one if ya’ll start poking around where ya ain’t supposed ta!”

“We were goin’ back an’ forth like that fer a while. He just wouldn’t drop it, and I was gettin’ fed up. That’s when ah decided to do somethin’ I woulda never willingly done…”

“I’m goin’ to my trailer!” Monty spat.

“Wait, wait! Don’t go! Look, I just need you for a second…!”

“Then he grabbed me.”

Monty was suddenly grabbed by Bonnie. He looked at him in disbelief and started to wrestle away, though barely. It was clear to him that Bonnie wasn’t going to be able to move him, no matter how hard he struggled, so he was more so watching in confusion than anything else as Bonnie grappled at him.

“I just need you for a second, okay? It’ll be over quick, I promise. You’ll never have to see me again.”

And then something happened. It crept up into his head, a dizzying burn and tug. Like something forcing itself inside and beginning to vacuum itself out. The tips of his fingers were turning numb.

And for some reason, Bonnie was singing.

“Hey everybody, put the radio on. Gonna throw our troubles away- hey- hey! We’re turning up the music, we’re having a ball. This band keeps rocking- forever and ever!~”

It was all so bizarre that Monty didn’t fight back at first, and once he had the hunch that he should he felt invisible coils catching around his limbs and burying up into his head.

The catwalks changed. He heard music and laughter, and he saw golden blobs dancing at the edge of his vision in a yellow spotlight, and distant thunder and rain. Stone walls melting into checkered floors.

And Bonnie’s face shifted. It melted away and something else was in its place. Something with glowing red eyes and a tight grin.

It was the scariest rabbit Monty had ever seen, and it kept leaning in closer and closer. Trying to get forehead to forehead.

Stop… Stop. Stop! He couldn’t yell but he said it with every fiber of his being, fighting and struggling against the hold.

“Hey, hey, buddy, buddy. It’s going to be okay. It’s almost over.”

But he couldn’t reach over, he knew that. A fierce mix of desperation and anger seized him, and he knocked the rabbit back and when it came back in, he swung again. He uppercutted with as much strength as he could.

He wasn’t thinking straight. If he wouldn’t have been blinded by the melting walls and distorted music he would’ve realized there was only one bunny standing in front of him.

Instead of when his claws was stuck deep inside Bonnie’s chest.

In that second all the tendrils and noises were peeled away and a fuzzy, blurry reality set in as Monty stared down at his arm sticking out of a big hole in Bonnie’s front.

Bonnie was staring down at it too in shock.

“O-Oh… Whoa…” Bonnie simply said. His eye winced a little in pain and growing fear. “Oh… my God. You…?”

“What…?” Monty said He shook his head as he stared down at it. “Ah- Ah didn’t mean to! What- What was that?! Was that you?!”

“You…”  Bonnie swore under his breath as he gaped at it.

“I’m sorry, but ya wouldn’t- I wasn’t- Ya know I wasn’t!”

Then he looked up at Monty with a look of shock and fear. Frightened like a rabbit under the teeth of an alligator, about to be snapped up into its mighty jaws.

Monty never forgot that look.

Or how it slowly changed. Those wide eyes narrowing in betrayal in resentment, and his gaped mouth cocking into a dry, empty smile.

No more fear, just pure anger. So red hot that it burned right up his arm.

“It’s cool,” Bonnie said lowly.

He grabbed Monty’s arm and he expected him to yank it out,

But instead, he yanked it in. Shoved it in so deeply that Monty’s claws buried into something soft and cottony.

“Ì̶̙'̴̢̚m̴̰̅ ̷̺͊a̵̡͒ḽ̸̀r̴̝̉e̷͖̽ạ̶͆d̵̰͂ẙ̸̦ ̸̤̂í̴̜n̸̹̍ṣ̴̈́ị̵̀d̷͇͒e̷̮̿.”

And all at once it was back, crawling inside of him. But this time it was different. It was forceful, it burned, it was all over his skin and deep in his soul. Watching as Bonnie’s angry smirk blurred in with the Bunny’s bitter grimace. It was burning into his eyes.

Monty tried to rip his arm back, but Bonnie held on. Not just by his hands, wires in his belly tangled around his wires and started to hang on him. Monty tried to push him off, tried to fight away as he felt it began to take over him. That red-hot burn. That otherworldly pain.

He pushed. He shoved. And he kicked, and it was the kick that did it. Just managing to lean back enough to shove Bonnie off after struggling and fighting against him. Bonnie’s back hit the railing and it-

Buckled.

Monty was wrenched forward by his trapped arm before having it pulled free as Bonnie fell off the catwalk and to the floor far below.

That image was burned in his memory. Watching Bonnie hanging in the air before violently crashing into a support beam. The loud crash as he hit the floor, and then the silence.

But it was never truly silent after that. In quiet moments Monty would still hear the echoes of voices in the back of his head and feel the sensation of something crawling through his brain.

He hid on the catwalk for hours. When he finally went to check on Bonnie, he was gone.

“Ah knew he was down in the basement, but I couldn’t go down there. He did somethin’ to me. I knew there was somethin’ wrong with him an’ it was in me,” Monty confessed.

He had removed his sunglasses by then, now staring at them in his grasp before giving a frustrated huff and throwing them onto the floor.

“Sorry I didn’t tell ya, Freddy.”

About what? About what happened to Bonnie? That he was alive? About his secret other side? Freddy supposed that it didn’t matter really.

“I forgive you. Though there is little to forgive. It was self-defense.”

“It was stupid,” Monty corrected. “Fer both of us.”

“For the record, when I put my arm through Bonnie’s chest it was on purpose,” Freddy admitted. “But I did not want to do it either.”

“It was self-defense.”

“It was.”

They sat there for a long second. Monty didn’t say it, but Freddy wondered how long Monty had been fighting Bonnie’s influence. If it had been the same thing that happened to him.

It was so hard realizing that Bonnie had been a stranger the whole time.

Freddy cut off the train of thought by standing up.

“Thank you for being honest with me. Now then, you get comfortable, and I am going to begin the procedure. It should not take any time at all,” he assured.

Monty shifted to lay back on the chair, as much as he could.

“You sure you know what yer doin’?” he asked.

“No, but it should come to me after I start.”

“…That’s awful confident of ya, Freddy.”

Freddy gave a small chuckle- more because it seemed like he should than feeling like he wanted to. He gave Monty a thumbs up and headed out to get the procedure started.

“How’s he holdin’ up?”

Freddy looked over in surprise at the familiar voice and was relieved to see Foxy standing there alongside Marionette. Marionette had pulled his legs up onto the office chair and was hugging himself, his head resting on his knees, and Foxy standing over him patting him on the back. His hook resting on Gregory’s shoulder. He realized Jeremy was there too, sitting at the end of the line made up of Moon, Jake, and Charlie.

“Foxy, you made it!”

“Yar, barely. Got the fuzz creepin’ ‘round all up and down up there,” Foxy said.

“And got just as many employees trying to wrangle up the fuzz and keep them away from the security offices,” Jeremy added. “That one security guard, with the red hair, he looked like he was going to throw up.”

Chica patted her hip to get attention and then held her stomach and tilted her head tiredly. Either saying something like “Me too,” or “Who doesn’t?”

“I see ya already got Moon up,” Foxy said.

Foxy realized he slipped up when Moon twitch-cringed and Freddy quickly looked away.

“Erm… But how be Monty?”

“He will be doing a lot better in a short while. I am going to begin the repair procedure now. Feel free to watch!”

“Don’t mind if I do. Beats starin’ at the wall,” Foxy said with a chuckle.

His sounded much more genuine than Freddy did, but he knew him well enough to know it was a bit pushed.

But Foxy’s presence was a comforting addition, even if Freddy only had a few moments of it before he had to go back into the capsule and continue his repair work.

Work on Monty was much lengthier than it had been on Moon. Staff Bots brought in parts and new pieces of his chassis to be replaced, and it was all going well enough.

…But Freddy noticed while he was switching targets on the monitor that he couldn’t lock onto Monty’s nonexistent legs. He had a bad feeling that was a sign of things to come, but he didn’t voice it yet, instead continuing with the procedure. To Monty’s credit, he handled it well. Freddy recalled how afraid the Staff was that he was going to lash out-

Had it been Bonnie the whole time?... Maybe it was best not to know the answer to that.

It had just crested 6AM when Freddy finally reached the legs. By then, Monty’s upper half had been fixed right up- save his hands, which due to his claw upgrades weren’t allowed to be worked on. Freddy’s workarounds didn’t do squat either, leaving Monty with a vibrant mohawk, a clean and shiny chest, two brand new arms, and then endoskeleton claw hands at the end. At least he still HAD his hands.

The others had moved around a little bit in the time that he had been working. Chica moved to the floor and had her head slouched against the wall like she was falling asleep. Roxy was stretching her legs on the stairs, determined to not slow down.

Foxy was sitting on the floor between Jeremy and Marionette’s office chair with one leg stretched out and the other bent up, talking animatedly to anyone who would listen, still wired. Jeremy was too, upright and alert, but his glasses were starting to slip down his face. Marionette was half turned around in his chair with his arms folded over the back and his head resting on him.

And then there was Gregory, laying sprawled out on the floor using Moon’s puffy pantleg as a pillow. His eyes were closed. He must’ve been sleeping, d’aww- Freddy thought it was very responsible of him.

In actuality, Gregory was not asleep and just trying to make the effort since Moon seemed sad. For understandable reasons. He had been hanging around with Foxy until he started to get tired enough to make the effort, and then he scooted over and took the liberty of stretching out on his leg.

There weren’t any words exchanged, but Moon started patting his head so that told him that it was fine.

Freddy stepped around everyone with clunky steps that made the former daycare attendants duck for cover and got to the monitor. After a few moments he gave a disapproving hum.

“What’s the problem?” Roxy asked knowingly, having followed Freddy over.

“I cannot replace his legs.”

“What?! But they’re nowhere near his upgrades!”

If anyone was nodding off, they were roused by that little outcry. Including Chica who sprung up, and including Monty.

“The what?! They ain’t replacin’ my legs?! Why the hell not?!”

“It has nothing to do with the upgrades at all. It is due to a lack of parts,” Freddy explained. “We would need detached endo legs to reattach before replacing his shell, but it says that there’s none in inventory that are compatible with Monty. Because of that it will not even let me pull them from storage.”

“What a rip! How could they not have any Monty parts?!”

“Do not tell Monty this…” Freddy whispered and looked at Roxy seriously. “But I noticed a surplus of extra Monty bodies down in the underground labs.”

“Bodies? You mean casings?”

“No.”

“…Those psychos,” Roxy huffed. “We can’t use those?”

“They are currently stuck to each other at the bottom of a pit. So unfortunately, no.”

Chica made a desperate gesture and sent a message to him. “But there’s got to be something you can do!”

“I think I can. If I can tuck his wiring inside and make a makeshift cover then that will at least protect his exposed wiring for the time being, until we can convince the technicians to fix him tomorrow.”

“And how to you expect to convince them?” Roxy asked.

Freddy got a stern look. “By any means necessary.”

Roxy was surprised but very much approved, as did Chica.

“If we can find Fazbear B-Grade electrical tape, we can wrap them up and it should protect them from any humidity damage,” Freddy continued to explain.

A door opened somewhere. Marionette spun around and Foxy’s head snapped over. Roxy looked over as well, which drew Freddy’s and Chica’s attention.

“Look alive! Someone’s coming!” Foxy hushedly warned.

At that, everyone started getting up at once. Jeremy staggered on stiff, half-asleep legs and Moon grabbed up Gregory with one arm and Jake’s arm with the other.

But just as quickly as Foxy’s ears lifted in alarm did they drop back down.

“Never mind, it’s just Mike.”

The others started to slouch again. Charlie dropping her head back tiredly. Jake sighing and saying into the phone, “False alarm, it’s just Mike…”

Except for Marionette, who found his first genuine smile in what felt like hours. Though it was one filled with trepidation.

He rose from the chair, managing to get himself levitating and went to meet Mike as he came through the doors.

Mike looked like a man on a mission with a stern look that could’ve matched Freddy’s, but it lightened up instantly upon seeing Marionette with a pristine mask floating over on his own.

“Now there’s a sight for sore eyes,” he complimented.

“Yes, you are,” Marionette retorted. “Any news?”

“Something like that.”

Mike turned so that he would be addressing everyone and clapped once for their attention as he walked over.

“Here’s the deal. They took Nat and Vanny to the hospital, they’re both alive. Fritz took my car and is heading there, and I moved the van around to the front. Things are quieting down up there, but they’re not going to stay that way. This might be our only window to slip out.” He checked his watch. “Since all the emergency vehicles are around back, we might be able to slip out the front before they get moved over there, but we’ve got to move fast.”

“Agreed! Chica, if you can find the tape, and Roxy, if you can keep Monty company, I will escort them to the entrance,” Freddy said. They agreed.

“I’ve got to go. Thank you…” Jake whispered and hung up the phone. He set it on the desk as he got up.

“Are you sure it’s clear?” Marionette asked.

Mike made an unsure noise and a so-so gesture with his other hand.

“That doesn’t bode well.”

“It bodes a lot better than it will when the masses move in.”

“I can’t argue with that. Worst case scenario we may have to make a run for it.”

“I’d like to see that redheaded walking stick try an’ chase Cap’n Foxy out of here,” Foxy remarked.

“Actually, I kinda wouldn’t mind seeing that,” Jeremy joked to Charlie. Foxy scoffed a bit.

They all congregated together and started to head out and towards the kitchen lift. It was riskier than the green room elevators, but it would carry all of them at once and put them closer to the front, so it seemed like the better option.

It was as they were heading down the hall that Marionette began to fall back. Mike looked towards him curiously, thinking he might be getting tired.

“One moment,” Marionette said simply. He drifted to the side and Mike realized he was planning to ambush Jake and Moon. Him getting in front of them was evidence of that.

But before Mike could consider falling back with him, Charlie popped up at his side.

“I need to talk to you,” she said.

Now that was ominous.

“Not now, later. About Bunny, and what he said about Mari…”

Mike studied her face and suddenly it clicked. He knew exactly what she wanted to talk about.

“Sure thing. As soon as we get home.”

“Unless you need to sleep,” she said.

“I’ll sleep at work.”

That got a half-laugh and a jingle out of her. He smiled back, then pointed a thumb back and started to fall back to catch up with Marionette, bumping Freddy in the process, both apologizing.

Moon and Jake were sulking in the back when Marionette drifted in front of them. They exchanged a look, knowing something was coming.

“I don’t want to overstep…” Marionette eventually said. “But I think you two need to start considering your options.”

“What options?” Jake asked.

“For where you will be staying once you leave.” He turned to face them, ignoring any surprise. “We have plenty of places for you. With us, with Fritz, even at our warehouse. It has a furnished office and an open basement that could very easily be turned into an apartment.”

“Thanks, but… we’re not sure what we’re going to do just yet,” Jake awkwardly declined.

“I know, and I don’t mean to push, but I’m becoming increasingly nervous that you both are in real danger staying here,” Marionette said worriedly.

Something in that statement must’ve hit a raw nerve in Moon as he clenched his fists and stared the Puppet down.

“I don’t see how it would be much better out there. And besides, the true danger is gone, isn’t it? He’s gone. And he’s what you were worried about, wasn’t it? We should all be celebrating.”

“Moon-.”

“Ding, dong, the witch is dead! Flying off to Neverland! And leaving US to pick up the pieces.”

“I didn’t mean-.”

“You must be pleased as punch that Bunny doesn’t have to be your problem anymore, but for US-.”

“Don’t-,” Marionette cut in sharply. “You dare bring up Bunny with me.”

The change in tone startled Moon to the point of silence.

“Frankly, I’m tired of even thinking about Bunny, let alone hearing all of the terrible, terrible things he did. I don’t want to know anymore. I don’t want to hear about our fathers, or the diner, or how many people he possessed, or hurt, or anything else he did.”

That was enough to get everyone stopping and staring, including Mike who was mid-step walking backwards behind him. Marionette didn’t take notice. He was still returning Moon’s stare, and he was tearing up again.

“I did my best, Moon. Despite what you think, I didn’t want it to end like this. I couldn’t have done anything else. I tried everything I could.”

And from that definite statement everyone in the room knew he didn’t believe it.

And his arm was warming up too, Mike noticed as he grabbed for it.  He pulled him in and slung an arm around him, and then turned to Moon and Jake.

“There’s no point in thinking about what could’ve happened now. We need to focus on what we’re going to do next.”

The fire left Marionette instantly. He slouched a little.

“Frankly, I think getting out of dodge is the best idea for you both with how crazy things are going. So, just know the options on the table if you change your mind,” Mike offered.

Marionette sighed and ran a hand down his mask.

“I’m sorry, Moon. I’m so, so sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. It’s just been such a terrible night…”

“…” Moon looked away, defiantly silent for a long pause before conceding. “…You are right anyways.”

“And of all the things I’ve been wrong about tonight, what a time for the broken clock to strike its second chime,” Marionette lamented.

He turned to see everyone watching and waved them on.

“My apologies, everyone. Let’s keep moving. The sooner we’re out, the sooner we can get news on Natalie and Ness.”

They continued their trip now a bit more awkwardly, with Marionette and Moon sulking again.

But there was someone who had taken a little more from the exchange, and they were thinking about it through the entire elevator ride. It was when the doors opened, and they were stepping out that they spoke up.

“Sun… May I speak to you for a moment?” Glamrock Freddy quietly asked. He pointed towards the far corner. “Over there?”

Unfortunately, Moon had swapped into Sun by then so any of his backbone has slipped away with that persona. He gave a forcibly cheery, “Of COURSE, Freddy,” and then dragged his feet after him.

“Everyone just wait right here. This will only take a minute,” Freddy assured. “You too, Gregory.”

“Wha- I wasn’t even following you.”

“Yes, but do not be tempted.”

Freddy put his hand on Sun’s shoulder- Sun shivered a little- and gently led him across the room and around the corner. They disappeared around the edge.

“They’re talkin’ ‘bout you,” Foxy whispered to Marionette.

Marionette sighed. “I know…”

“Foxy,” Jeremy whispered. Foxy looked at him and he shrugged back, exasperatedly.

“What? He prefers honesty.”

“I’ve had too much honesty tonight, honestly,” Marionette said tiredly.

His mask had never looked so exhausted, and Mike pulled him in closer to try and assure him. Marionette rested his head on his shoulder and hid into his neck.

Only for both to stiffen up when they heard the not so hushed whispers.

“What?! No, you can’t do that!”

“Sun, please. They’re hear you-.”

“But- you- if- then LET THEM!”

Freddy shushed him and the voices dropped to mumbles.

But apparently Foxy picked up on what they were saying. He covered his face with a hand.

“Oh, bloody bay…”

“What?” Jeremy asked.

Charlie hummed an uh-uh and shook her head, subtly pointing towards-

Oh.

Jeremy and Mike exchanged a look. Mike lifted his brows, and Jeremy exhaled through his lips.

“What?” Gregory asked. “What? What is it?”

“…Nothin’, Lad.” Foxy patted his head. “Freddy’ll tell ya.”

Gregory scrunched up his face suspiciously and then started to get a little uneasy. Everyone knew something that he didn’t.

Well, expect Jake.

“What is it? I can’t hear back here?” Jake whispered to Charlie from the back. She gave him a familiar response.

“If this is about what happened between us?!” Sun could be heard.

“It is not. Sun… We knew this was coming after… We knew.”

“I didn’t?! I- I-!...”

Sun suddenly cut off. There was an eerie amount of silence. Everyone was straining to listen.

All they heard was a clunk, unsure of what it was-

It was Freddy hugging Sun.

-and shortly afterwards the two returned. Sun looked absolutely defeated and Freddy looked rather sad as well. His eyes barely rose from the floor while Sun’s shoulders were slumped and his face was angled down.

“Sorry about that, everyone,” Freddy said. He made a noise like clearing his throat.

Gregory furrowed his brows. Was Freddy crying again? Oh no, he hoped they didn’t break up or something. That would be really weird to have adopted animatronic divorced parents. A funny thought that almost covered the growing dread that something was really wrong.

His stomach was in knots as they made it the back way into the, thankfully, empty lobby. He rode in Freddy’s stomach hatch, he insisted, and only got out when they were in the lobby.

While Mike and Jeremy headed to the front doors to scan for any onlookers and start funneling the animatronics out- Mike had the foresight to back the van to the front doors- Sun crouched down and pulled him into a tight hug.

“We’re gonna head on up and hide before someone sees us,” he said. He squeezed Gregory tighter. “But it’s going to be okay, okay? It’s going to be okay.”

“Uh, okay…” Normally Gregory would point out that he could barely breathe, but something about the exchange was off. “Is- Is everything okay?”

“Oh yeah, everything’s fine. Mm-hmm.” Sun patted his back. “J-Just want you to know that this is all just- it’s just a bump in the road.”

Oh, something bad was happening here. Sun was sounding like he was going to start crying again, just like Freddy. He wasn’t going to walk him to Freddy’s green room and tuck him in either. Weird.

The biggest red flag was when Jake hugged him too. It wasn’t that Jake wasn’t affectionate, but it seemed so weird.

When Sun hugged him again, Gregory hugged back tightly. Just in case.

Sun and Jake headed up through the elevator. Freddy watched them go with sad eyes.

“Do you think you guys are going to be okay?” Gregory asked.

Freddy looked down with a start. “What?”

“You know. Your fight.”

“Oh… Yes, we will. I just need some time to… Deconstruct my feelings.”

“Are you mad at him?”

“Oh, no. I meant what I said. I do not blame either of them…” He looked up at the glass elevator with a sigh. “…It is just a lot to take in at once…”

“Oiy, Freddy, we shovin’ off!” Foxy called.

“Come along, Gregory.” Freddy patted the boy’s head and then led him towards the stairs.

It was only when they were at the bottom of the steps that Gregory started to get a weird feeling. Foxy hadn’t headed out to the van yet and was instead still standing in the Pizzaplex. Weird. Mike was standing there too. Double weird. Jeremy would’ve probably been there too if he wasn’t jogging around the Pizzaplex to get his car.

They stopped at the entrance doors. There was an eerie silence.

“Uh… Freddy?” Gregory looked up. “What’s going on? Whoa. What’s that look?”

That was, in fact, the look of Freddy’s heart breaking in two again.

“Gregory…”

Gregory felt the uncharacteristic nervousness creeping back up. Them standing by the door and that look on Freddy’s face.

“I… I want you to know that I love you.”

“Freddy, what’s going on?” Gregory asked more insistently.

He looked to the open doors and Foxy with his head down and then snapped back. They hadn’t been talking about their relationship. They hadn’t been fighting. They had been talking about him.

“Wait, are you going to tell me to leave or something? Is that what’s going on?”

Freddy’s eyes widened with even more hurt, and Gregory had his answer. His mouth dropping open in shock.

“What, but- no! I’m fine, I don’t need to go! Vanny and Bunny are gone, it’s safe now!”

“Gregory, please.”

“Why, because of what Mari said?! He was talking about Moondrop, not me!” Freddy knelt down and reached for his shoulders. Gregory tried to pull away, but his grip was too secure. “Stop it! I’m not going!”

“Gregory, listen to me,” Freddy said firmly. Gregory gritted his teeth, wanting to push away and shut out any of his excuses but he couldn’t. Freddy looked at him with somber resolve. “It will never be safe. It does not matter if it is Vanny or Bunny, or Fazbear Entertainment, or anyone else. It will never be safe for you, and I cannot allow you to be put in any more danger.”

“Then… Then you’ve got to come with me!” Gregory said. “It’s not safe for you either! They could tear you apart at any time!”

“I truly wish I could, Gregory, and someday I hope I can… but my bandmates need me. And without a recharge station, my systems would shut down within an hour. It is… my design.”

Freddy lowered his gaze sadly before looking back up at Gregory.

“This is where I must stay.”

“But that’s stupid! Can’t we just use a car battery or something?! Foxy, tell him something!” Gregory shouted.

“I tried, Lad. He ain’t budgin’,” Foxy said. “Believe me, I’m willin’ to try.”

“Foxy has been offering to help me escape the Pizzaplex for some time, but the truth is that too many ties hold me here, Gregory. I am sorry, but I cannot go with you. But you must go.”

Gregory’s mouth opened and closed in shock. He didn’t know what to say. He had to say something, but he knew Freddy was digging his heels in the sand. There had to be something, anything!

“But what about my stuff? I can’t leave without my stuff! At least give me another day to get my stuff!”

And then he could sneak and hide, maybe. Weasel away somewhere, just long enough that Freddy would change his mind. Or convince him in that last night. But Freddy knew him too well and had the same idea.

“I can pack up your things and we can get them to you. Not tonight, but soon,” Freddy assured.

No, no. There had to be a way to convince him. Gregory was starting to panic as he thought about what was coming. He wanted to stay with Freddy; he didn’t want to get passed around to a bunch of people who wanted to pretend to be his parents. Freddy was his dad now, it wasn’t fair!

“I’m NOT going back to the foster home! I’M NOT!” Gregory stubbornly yelled. “If you give me back to them, I’m just going to run away and come back!”

“Gregory,” Freddy mildly scolded.

“Gregory, no. We’re not taking you there,” Mike finally spoke up, gently.

“Aye, Lad. Yer comin’ with us! Yer gonna be stayin’ the night at Mike ‘n Mari’s til we figure all this out,” Foxy said calmly. He came over to them, but wouldn’t encroach on their moment. “And we will get this figured out. Mark my words, cross me heart.” He even did so with his hook.

“Yeah, and you can still talk on the phone until we do. We’ll work it out,” Mike added in.

Gregory was momentarily calmed by the assurance of going with Foxy instead of being handed over to the state. Freddy noticed and he took this moment to turn him back towards him.

“I know this is difficult, Gregory. Believe me, letting you go is the hardest thing I will ever do, but I know this is best. I need you to trust me, and I need you to be brave for me.”

The boy’s big brown eyes softened with sadness. Losing all their defiance as he realized that there was no getting out of this.

Because he did trust Freddy.

“This is not goodbye. It is simply… a goodbye for now,” Freddy assured him. “…But I will miss you.”

“I… Umm…”

Gregory gave up on trying to say anything and just threw himself forward and hugged the bear with all his might. Freddy hugged him back, holding him like it was the last time he ever would, and knowing it could be.

“Goodbye, Gregory. You are my…”

Freddy caught himself. He considered and corrected.

“You are my son. No matter how far apart we may be, you will always be my son.”

This was when Gregory finally broke down. He started to cry softly onto Freddy’s shoulder, and Freddy held him as long as he could before gently passing him to Foxy. Gregory wiped his wet, splotchy face and hiccupped as he caught his breath.

“See you later… Dad.”

Freddy wasn’t expecting that word to hurt as much as it did. It was like a knife stabbing in his soul, one that twisted as he watched Mike walk Gregory outside- Foxy ran for the back of the van- and turned as Gregory waved for him. He waved back, watching until Mike let Gregory into the driver’s side, and the moment the door closed he turned away. He couldn’t bear to watch them drive off.

So, instead, Freddy wandered back into the Pizzaplex and back to his green room, dragging his feet the entire way. He momentarily forgot about returning to his band, he was just thinking about gathering up Gregory’s things so that they would be ready. Because that was what he was supposed to do.

He stepped into his green room and caught sight of himself in the mirror. Suddenly Freddy Fazbear didn’t look like him, even though it was the only him he could’ve recognized.

With an overwhelmed groan, he dropped into his vanity chair and put his head in his hands. Now that he was alone, he couldn’t help but think of all he had lost.

He lost Bonnie. No, not just Bonnie, but the entire concept of Bonnie. Their memories were forever tainted. He didn’t know him, and he would never get him back.

He lost his bandmates. Sure, they had largely forgiven him, but how could they put all of this behind them? How could any of them ever overlook what he had done?

He lost his Sunnymoon. What if he never wanted to speak to him or look at him again? All this time he thought he was getting closer and now he put the biggest divide between them.

He would lose his Pizzaplex. He already lost it. It wasn’t his anymore. It was tainted, wrong. It all was.

And now, worst of all, he had lost Gregory. He lost his son. His child.

And then it came, suddenly and violently. The thing he should’ve been preparing for.

Memories. Memories of how he and Gregory first met. Memories of when he first mentioned the Rabbit Lady. Memories of when they baked their first pizza, of Fazer Blast with him and Foxy.

Memories of all the times he tucked him in, and played games with him, and helped with homework, and pushed on the swing, and- and-

In the incubator. So small, too small. A hand no bigger than the tip of his thumb.

Her.

Her.

Freddy gasped and clasped a hand over his mouth. He began to shake as it all clicked into place at once. How could he have forgotten her? He didn’t even remember her name, but he remembered her.

In one horrible realization that he had not just lost one child, but two.

He had lost everybody. He lost his best friend, the trust of his friends, the person he loved, the place he admired, all gone. Everything was gone.

Freddy was gone. He didn’t exist. There was no Freddy Fazbear.

It was just Ray. But even he was gone too.

And he was alone.

…

..

And then there was a tap on the window.

Freddy looked back slowly at the drawn curtains. He got to his feet and stumbled over, drawing them apart, and his eyes went wide.

Foxy waved back.

Freddy rushed to and out his door and met Foxy at the corner.

“Ahoy, Freddy.”

“F-Foxy,” Freddy’s voice cracked. “You’re… You’re not supposed to be here.”

“Eh, I ain’t gonna leave ya like this,” Foxy said with a shrug. “Jeremy’s gonna head to the hospital anyway’s. I ain’t needed nowhere and there’s no point in me sittin’ back at the apartment- Omph!”

Freddy closed in with three heavy steps and took him into a tight hug. It took Foxy a little by surprise, but he recovered quickly. He stretched his arms around his friend and gave him a firm pat on the back.

“Yer gonna get through this, Fazbear. An’ it’s gonna be a lot better on the other side.”

And for what felt like the first time ever…

Freddy didn’t believe him.

Chapter 100

Chapter Summary

As Natalie recovers at the hospital, everyone else hangs on in their own way as they deal with the aftermath of their last night at the Pizzaplex...

Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Mike hadn’t slept. He went home just long enough to get Gregory settled- though Marionette did that mostly- and talk with Charlie before he found himself up at the hospital, seated right beside Fritz, waiting for any news on Natalie. She had been taken back to surgery, and it was a while before she got settled enough in a room that they could see her. By then Jeremy got there.

Due to the circumstances, Natalie was being kept in the ICU after surgery. St. George’s hospital, which Natalie had been taken too since that’s the county the first responders arrived from- save Clay, had a two-visitor maximum when it came to ICU patients. Even then they didn’t seem too keen on having two people in there with there only being one chair until they asked for another.

Which meant that Mike and Jeremy regularly switched out. Fritz stayed there at her side while his two closest friends took turns in being by his side, and when they weren’t they were stretching their legs and trying to stay awake elsewhere.

It worked well until Jeremy fell asleep in his chair and Mike didn’t have the heart to wake him, knocking on the wall to get Fritz’s attention and waving before going out before the nurses could get on him again for lingering.

Then it was pacing around the hallways by the waiting room, though avoiding the waiting room at all costs.

Natalie’s family had arrived a while ago and they just kept coming.

Fritz called her parents and they showed up. Then some of her siblings arrived, driven by Olive who had just gotten her license. Well, her permit, but they let it slide because of the situation. Then an uncle and aunt showed up, and grandparents, and suddenly Mike was realizing that Natalie had this extensive family hiding in the woodwork. Especially when a blond guy who he recognized as one of the cops who was at the Pizzaplex showed up. One of Burke’s guys, his name was Dunn or something.

Mike couldn’t bear getting spotted by them. They’d have too many questions, and he wasn’t awake enough to be able to tactfully explain why their daughter was at the Pizzaplex under an assumed name working as a security guard and was stabbed by a rogue intruder. Who they may or may not know was a woman in a rabbit costume.

He knew he was pushing off the inevitable, but he was just too tired to address it now and without any backup.

He also felt like he was being watched. More than once, he turned and thought he saw a shadow at the corner of his vision. Squeezed beside the vending machine, behind the tall potted plant. His eyes playing tricks on him he assumed, and he tried to rub the tiredness away.

As soon as he got good news on Natalie he was heading straight out to his car and taking a nap. He just needed to know she was going to be alright first.

So, he was lingering in the hallway down from the waiting room, at the cubby where the vending machines were sitting on an uncomfortable bench. Not as uncomfortable as being stared down by Natalie’s dad would’ve been though. Only problem was that the lack of any distraction was making him groggy, and the soda he was nursing was only partially helping.

Crazy to think that he used to be so good at staying up all night. Maybe he really was pushing a little too hard juggling school and work.

He heard someone hastily coming down the next hall and looked towards the corner, expecting another relative to be showing up. Instead, he saw Wight.

And when Wight saw him he knew he was out for blood.

“Mike!”

Mike shot up from the bench and immediately began to speedwalk in the opposite direction, now much more awake. It was a hospital; he could probably dodge him if he moved fast enough.

“Mike!”

Wight was trying his best to both shout and keep his voice low, making a very forceful bark in the process. Once that made the originally soft and jolly Wight seem a lot more intimidating.

Well, if it wasn’t for the noise his loafers were making as he speedily stormed after the younger man.

As Mike sped up on the waiting room, Natalie’s mom stepped up into the doorway to greet him. Her face was splotchy, and she had a somewhat weak smile. Like she was planning to ask him something or tell him something.

Instead, Mike gave her a wave and tight smile and breezed right past. Continuing his escape down the hall. She looked after him with confusion and then startlement as Wight whizzed by as well.

Mike was hoping he’d lose him around the corner or at least come up on someone who would stop Wight, but alas it was the hall beside the bathrooms and nobody else was there. Giving Wight more encouragement to catch up.

“Mike, you stop right this instant!” Wight hissed out, barely keeping his voice level.

It was at that point that Mike accepted his fate. He couldn’t outrun this guy. Or, well, he could, but Wight would follow him. And he’d rather confront him in a hospital than out in the parking lot, at least this would force Wight to stay somewhat reigned in.

He took a deep breath and turned around, facing the man as he stormed up and jabbed a finger into his chest.

“I know you were there. A little birdie told me- and that birdie was half a dozen cops!” Wight hissed out.

“I know it looks bad-,” Mike began, but he was quickly cut off.

“One moment everything is fine, the next I find out that my daughter is being accused of stabbing her best friend and fell off of a walkway and barely survived! And I know you’re involved with this, Mike! And not just because you were there tonight, I have reason to believe that you have been actively sneaking into the Pizzaplex and tampering with the animatronics!”

Mike’s eyes went wide.

“That’s right, Mr. Schmidt, my business associates caught you on camera!” Wight tutted.

“Who, Dr. Talbert or Dr. Taggart?”

“Does it- Both!” he snapped. “And another thing, I’m starting to think it wasn’t JEREMY who vandalized the Rockstar Row before opening.”

“It WASN’T Jeremy.”

“So, you admit it?!”

“I’m not admitting to squat, I’m telling you that Jeremy didn’t do it,” Mike spat back. “And speaking of Talbert and Taggart, do you even know what they’re doing down there?”

“What are you talking about?!”

“I’m talking about that giant pit of garbage and broken bots they’re brewing down under Roxy Raceway. And all the labs and offices they’ve got down there,” Mike said, gesturing in a circle.

“…What?!”

“The secret lab built DIRECTLY under Roxy Raceway,” Mike spelled it out for him forcefully. “Or what? You haven’t heard of that either?”

“Are you completely insane?! Secret lab- there is no ‘secret lab’! I am very aware of the work they are doing, and there is nothing shady going on!”

“Oh please. They’re running sick experiments so big that it’d put William Afton to shame.”

Wight seemed struck for a second, sputtering in place, staring at Mike like he had begun speaking in tongues.

“How dare you,” he finally choked out.

“How dare me?! You’re the one whose been spreading that pack of lies about all the kids that disappeared being hoaxes! What, you think everyone just FORGOT about those dead kids?! Why’d you think there were people setting up a protest in the parking lot?!”

“The missing children were not the hoaxes, Mike! Obviously, the assumption that it was some man in suit from Freddy’s was! And that Freddy’s was behind it, something you seem to be very dead-set on! VERY dead-set for a former employee- and yes I found that out too!”

Wight stepped in close with a dangerous glare, lowering his voice.

“And let me tell you, Mike, if I find out that you’re the one whose been filling MY daughter’s head with all this- this then I promise you this, Mike. I and all of Fazbear Entertainment will do everything in our power to set the record straight about you.”

And for the first time since the fight began, Mike felt real dread crawl up through his belly.

It wouldn’t be the first time Fazbear Entertainment tried to pin something horrendous on someone. He couldn’t even tell if Wight’s threat was really to disclose some dark secret he believed he had- and Mike had enough suspicious things piled against him to validate that- or if he was being outright with his intention to scapegoat him.

It didn’t even really matter. Wight was right about one thing, Talbert and Taggart knew everything about him. They knew about Marionette, and they knew if Mike was out of the way they could get to him- and that was the part that made the dread turn to panic. They told Wight all of this for a reason.

They wanted Marionette, and they were going to get rid of Mike to get to him.

And as that threat hung in the air-

The light above them flickered with a low crackle. Then an ominous hum as they lowered. Wight stole a look up at them before looking back to Mike.

“Now you listen here-.”

POP!

“GAH!” Wight ducked down, shielding his head as the fluorescent light above them burst. Not that there was any glass since the bulb itself was above a thin sheet of it. But it did cast an eerie shadow over them.

Mike looked around quickly to see if he could see anyone. That had to be Marionette, or hell, maybe even Golden Freddy back from the lake, spawning himself to start playing the poltergeist again. But no, there was nothing. He was alone… seemingly.

But the motion helped him regain his backbone, as though reminding him that there was a little power backing him up.

“Before you do that, how about you set the record straight with Ness. Why don’t you ask her about her boyfriend when she wakes up.”

“…Luis?” Wight asked.

“Brad. You ask her who Brad is.”

“I don’t care about who Brad is! I want to know right now what’s going on here and what happened to her, and where YOU are involved! Don’t think I didn’t notice that Vanessa looks an awful lot like Fritz’s fiancé, who just happened to be there as well!”

“Well, it took you long enough! She’s been working for you for months now!”

“So- So it was her,” Wight gasped in shock.

“Yes!”

“So, this was- what, what- this was some sort of elaborate plan you and your goons cooked up to sabotage my business?!”

“Buddy, you had a dead body in your business days ago,” Mike hissed back through gritted teeth. “I don’t NEED to sabotage your business.”

“…She told you?” Wight mumbled

“Heh, well, funny enough,” Mike said dryly. “She didn’t have to.”

Wight furrowed his brows.

“Don’t give me look. I’m not saying I killed the guy, I’m saying I know you’re covering it up-.” Mike countered, jabbing Wight in the chest just like he had done to him.

Wight smacked his hand away. “Don’t you dare touch me!”

“Hey, hey. Break it up.” And suddenly there was Natalie’s dad coming around the corner and up on them. He looked exhausted, unshaven, and much bigger than both men. “What’s going on here?”

“That’s what I want to know!” Wight shouted exaggeratedly. “My daughter nearly died last night, and I have THIS MAN throwing accusations at me when HE is the one who broke into MY establishment!”

“…Your daughter was the one who stabbed mine?”

Now there was this thing about Natalie’s dad. He was gruff but over time Mike had realized that it was really just around anyone attached to Freddy’s. Elsewise, he was apparently a pretty alright guy.

But he had this deadly look that could change in a split second, and it just did. And it wasn’t clear if it was the ‘my daughter’ or ‘my establishment’ that did it.

Wight stared back like a confused deer in headlights, one who recognized danger but couldn’t tell what kind.

But Mike reluctantly knew he had to deescalate the situation and patted Natalie’s dad’s arm.

“Wait, you’re right. We’re in a hospital. Let’s cool it and settle it later.”

“Oh ho, yes. We will be settling it later, Mr. Schmidt,” Wight threatened.

Mike shot him an equally poisonous glare. “You worry about Ray, alright, Willy? Then we’ll talk.”

As expected, the mere mention of William’s name got Wight sputtering, and that only doubled when Natalie’s dad chimed in.

“I’m going to see you earlier than later, so don’t go sneaking away while my back’s turned,” he said firmly.

“Of course not,” Wight agreed without faltering but he seemed uneasy.

Then he turned on his heel and strode down the hall.

Mike and Natalie’s father stood there in an awkward silence for a moment.

“Who’s Ray?” the older man eventually asked.

“A technician who got killed. It’s a long story.”

“I can’t believe they’re still doing this,” he grumbled.

“Me neither…” Mike said quietly.

None of this boded well for them. Especially after what he found out last night. He had a bad feeling that their troubles with Fazbear Entertainment were nowhere near over.

Natalie’s father sighed. “Well, I don’t know what’s going on between you and him, but… I want to apologize.”

Mike was completely blindsided. He looked to him genuinely surprised.

“You do? Why?”

“I’m not going to sugarcoat it. I’ve never trusted you, and I’ve been an ass to you… but you did right by Natalie last night. Fritz said you were the reason she got help and hearing all of that, I can’t say she would’ve gotten it if you weren’t there.”

He nodded after Wight, and only then did Mike realize that the man must’ve heard more than he expected. He was squaring up to ask when he was blindsided again by Natalie’s father putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Are your folks coming?”

“My mom lives out of town. I didn’t call her and tell her anything about this, so she’s probably not going to show up.”

“I see. Then come sit with us. Sue wants to see you.”

Sue, Natalie’s mom. That must’ve been why she tried to stop him as he rushed by.

“Alright. Thanks, Mr. Peterson.”

“Call me Steve.”

He could’ve sworn his name was Stan. It went to show how cozy they had gotten over the last few years.

But Mike followed along with Steve back down the hall and to the waiting room. He wasn’t necessarily nervous to see the family, but stepping into a room with so many people staring at him was a little daunting. If largely because he couldn’t risk saying something stupid now that he and Steve were on a first name basis.

It didn’t help that Sue was on him in seconds. Hugging him, thanking him, lavishing him with attention that reminded him of his own mother. It actually made him start to reconsider leaving her out of the loop.

“Thank you so much. If it wasn’t for you, what could’ve happened…” Sue said. She shook her head. “I don’t even want to think about what could’ve happened.”

“She would’ve-,” Steve began.

“She could’ve been killed!” Sue blurted out. As though it suddenly hit her again. She covered her face with one hand, continuing to shake her head, looking like she was about to start crying.

Mike reached a hand for her but hesitated before he made actual contact, not knowing if he was pushing it despite her already hugging him. He then patted her shoulder.

“Hey, she could’ve been, but she wasn’t. She’s going to be alright,” he assured. “I’d do anything for Natalie. I would’ve jumped in front of her if I could, all of us would’ve. But the truth is that I barely did anything. It was Jeremy who saved her. All I did was call for help, he was the one who kept the girl from pulling the knife out.”

Natalie’s mom gasped and the grandmother gave a startled, “Oh, good heavens! She did?!”

Oh, they didn’t know.

“Of course they didn’t know,” Mike mentally scolded himself. “Who would’ve told them? Fritz?”

He cleared his throat a little. “She tried to… But that didn’t happen. Nat’s doing a lot better than you’d expect. She never passed out or anything until they were getting her ready for the surgery.”

“Good. Good…” Sue said. She tried to pull herself together, Steve putting an arm around her.

“Where is Jeremy?” he asked.

“He’s back with Fritz in the room with her. We switched out.”

“Make sure he doesn’t leave before we get to see him,” Steve said. Add that to the list of people he had to check up on. “Take a load off and sit down.”

“Thanks, but I should probably-.”

“Oh, no, please. Sit down. You must be exhausted,” Sue added.

“Sit down, sit down! There’s more than enough seats,” the grandmother chimed back in again.

Then someone- an uncle maybe? -started to wave him in and the next thing he knew he was sitting there in a massively crowded waiting room with Natalie’s family slinging questions at him as fast as they answered them for each other, with Mike only occasionally chiming in.

By now his nerves were so fried by the night before that he just zoned out and went on autopilot, and somehow made a better impression on her family in his zombie state than he had in any meeting beforehand.

It was overwhelming but also comforting. Being so crowded in and surrounded that he couldn’t hear his own thoughts or worries. He was able to let his guard down for a while, let his eyes glaze over.

Sometime later, Mike separated himself long enough to go use the restroom and splash some water on his face. Really, he just needed a moment to get his bearings and try to wake himself up.

He pushed open the door to the men’s room and started to step in.

“When you’re done, meet me in the stairwell,” Marionette whispered over his shoulder.

Mike’s reaction was to reflexively jump forward like a bullet whizzed past his head.

“HO, SHHHhhhhhh…” Mike caught himself and looked back, but by then Marionette was gone.

But he hadn’t gotten far. Mike finished up in the restroom and made a beeline to the stairwell, thankfully not having to pass the waiting room and risk getting pulled back in.

The stairwell was empty when he stepped inside, but the moment the door clicked shut behind him Marionette came drifting out of the corner behind him. Joining him on the stairwell landing.

“First off, you scared the hell out of me,” Mike said matter-of-factly.

“Oh, thank you!” Marionette replied.

“Secondly, I thought you were going to stay back with Gregory,” Mike half-asked.

This seemed to fluster the puppet a little. He held onto the stairs railing and peeked over to look down the shaft.

“Yes, well… Charlie is with him… Normally I would stay but Natalie’s my friend too. I wanted to be nearby.”

“In case?” Mike gently offered, leaning forward on the railing beside him. Precariously perched on the edge but not minding a bit.

“Oh no. Once she was here, I was sure she’d be alright. I just wanted to keep an eye out.”

Mike cracked a smile. “I guess you’re feeling better then?”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve been following me around the whole time, right?”

“Well, not the whole time.” Marionette leaned back and hung from the railing coyly. “…But most of it, yes.”

“I had a hunch,” Mike quipped.

Marionette chuckled and chimed softly, pulling himself back up.

“You still got it though,” Mike added. This getting a small warble out of the Puppet instead.

“I try! Can’t risk getting out of practice in our line of work.”

He sighed, and this got a slightly more disturbed look. He still had that default smile, but there was a troubled annoyance in his eyes.

“And before you ask, yes, that was me with the lights. I couldn’t help it, hearing him go off at you like that,” Marionette said. “I can’t believe the gall of that man. Wight. Who does he think he is?”

“He thinks he’s in the right, that’s for sure. If he’s in on it, he doesn’t act like it.” Mike took a deep, weary breath. “Think I made a bad call cueing him in on Talbert?”

“I don’t think he listened to a word you said. And that’s the problem! He’s so blind he can’t see the writing on the wall. In some cases, quite literally!”

A low static began to build in the Puppet’s chest as he gestured out then dropped his arm at his side with frustration.

“Don’t feel bad for him, Love. You warned him. You did your part.”

“Yeah, but… I can’t help but feel bad for him. Knowing now that Ness is his daughter changes a lot of what was going on there. I get why he’s angry, even if he’s shooting at everyone except the guys running ghost experiments out of his basement,” Mike sympathized.

“I’m sorry, did you say Ness was Wight’s daughter?”

“…Oh, I forgot to tell you that part.” Mike clenched his jaw, holding back the swears threatening to slip out and looking at Marionette with a very Wight-in-headlights expression. “…Whoops.”

“…You know, that changes very little. For me at least,” Marionette said grumpily. “I don’t feel guilty about it.”

“You shouldn’t.”

Marionette almost seemed to ignore him as he continued going off, turning to pace in irritation, his arms tightly folded behind his back.

“You see, I wanted to blame myself, for being the root cause- the ‘Patient Zero’- but now that I think about it, HE’S the one that wanted to rebuild Freddy’s. HE’S the one who went along with Talbert’s insane plan. Yes, I’m part of it, but I can’t- I can’t blame myself when there was yet again more people in charge who simply refused to step in and stop this. If Ness is Wight’s daughter, then he should’ve been protecting her. I can’t protect everyone. I can’t save everyone… Especially those who don’t want to be saved...”

Marionette was never this defensive. Usually, he accepted any and all blame for things that he hadn’t even been responsible for, but here he was defiantly pleading his case.

Which Mike knew meant he blamed himself now more than ever. That last line was the telltale too. It was Bunny. He was taking the loss of Bunny much harder than anyone could’ve expected.

Mike couldn’t say he didn’t feel bad for Bunny and Ness. Especially for Ness. He got it, he understood that feeling of loving someone so much that you’re willing to do insane things just to keep everything together. He couldn’t say for sure that if he wasn’t in the same situation with Marionette that he wouldn’t have made the same choices.

But Marionette couldn’t start blaming himself for Bunny’s bad choices. Not when there had been so many outs. Had he just slipped away with Ness they wouldn’t have gone after them, but he or she chose to get Gregory involved. They chose, one of them, to start swinging that knife around. And now one of his best friends was lying in a hospital bed with a nearly fatal wound in their belly.

Mike felt for them, he really did, but he was also angry. He was a lot more frustrated with them than he was sympathetic.

“Bunny didn’t help matters,” he simply said.

“Bunny was a symptom, not the cause,” Marionette reminded.

Mike nodded.

“Let’s not forget what he told us. I don’t think for a second he was lying, not with how certain he sounded,” he quietly continued. “…He was the REAL Marion Afton.”

“Are we sure?”

Marionette’s head spun around towards him. Him looking startled.

“What?” he asked quietly.

“Are we sure he’s Afton’s kid? He could’ve been wrong... Between you and me, it kind of sounded like he was saying he was Sammy,” Mike said, gently offering up the idea.

“Oh. No, I’m sure he is the real Marion. It would answer so many questions.”

He drifted back over and leaned on the railing beside Mike again. He looked as exhausted as Mike felt, and he was using that same railing as a pretty big crutch. Just the thought of last night sapping out the rest of their energy.

So, Mike shifted the topic.

“Still, sneaking into a hospital full of people undetected? I’m impressed.”

Marionette gave an almost relieved chime. “I’ve still got it!”

Mike put his arm around him and pulled him in, pulling his jacket around him as best as he could. The stairwell was cold enough for it, and Marionette gladly pressed into the warmth.

“This may sound crazy, but I find hospitals soothing,” he murmured.

Mike wanted to ask how in the world he felt that, but then he had an idea for why.

“Remember that time you snuck in and visited me?” he asked with a knowing smile.

“I maaaay.” Marionette smiled back and tilted his head against his. “Which time?”

“Hey, it was only like three times.”

“Do we count the times you should’ve gone to a hospital?”

“The first time,” Mike smoothly deflected.

Marionette hummed and warbled, reaching out to take Mike’s hand in his own.

Funny how back then it had been such a tense time and here it was being reflected on as a fond memory. Maybe someday this would become one too. That time Natalie was in the hospital and Mike and Marionette stole away into a stairwell to comfort each other. A stealthy cuddle session just down the hall from Natalie’s entire family.

Yeah, maybe it could be. Someday.

They stood there for a long while. Mike wasn’t sure how long, maybe ten minutes at least. Before they were interrupted by the sound of a stairwell door opening on the lower floor. Both straightened and listened, hearing the footsteps coming up the stairs two floors. Right as they started to move back, preparing to step away before whoever it was came up, the individual headed through a door and was gone.

Mike begrudgingly checked his watch with a sigh. “I’ve got to head back out there. Where are you going to be?”

“Oh, you know.” Marionette detached himself and leaned back on the railing. “Out of sight, in mind.”

“Just be careful. There’s a lot of folks out there.”

“I know, I will. If it gets too crowded, I’ll hop back into the car until the coast is clear.”

“Good. I’ll be around.” Mike gave him one more hug and a kiss on the cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Marionette wrapped his arms tight and squeezed. “Always.”

They pulled apart and Mike headed to the door.

“Oh, and if you run out of change, come find me. I could lend a hand,” Marionette added in.

Did he mean by teleporting back to the car to get change, or did he mean a literal hand by reaching up inside and grabbing something? Mike gave him a thumbs up regardless.

“I’ll keep you posted.”

He stepped out, followed by the sound of Marionette’s soft chiming, and when the door fell closed and it was cut off it felt so much more sterile. The chilly hospital sucking all the warmth back out.

Taking a deep breath, Mike made his way back to the waiting room. If he needed any evidence that Natalie’s family had adopted him in, then her grandfather’s, “Didja fall in?” surely would’ve cinched it.

Then it was back to waiting for a while.

Then an unexpected face showed up in the waiting room doorway. It was Scott, looking as anxious as ever. He got a somewhat confused look as he scanned the room full of unknown faces before he saw Mike waving for him. He walked over.

“I came as soon as I heard. Are you okay? Is everything okay? Uh… as okay as it be?” Scott asked.

“For the most part. Nat’s out of surgery, we’re just waiting for her to wake up,” Mike explained.

“You the father?” Steve asked, gesturing a nod back towards Mike. Apparently not aware that Scott wasn’t even ten years older than him.

And despite that-

“Oh, uh. Sort of! I kind consider myself to be like that…”

Well, that was news to him, but Mike wasn’t going to turn that down. He grinned and patted the open seat beside him.

“Come on down, Pops! Take a seat.”

He did. Scott must’ve caught onto exactly what he rambled out as he sort of awkwardly cleared his throat and fumbled through his words to ask about what happened. Like with Natalie’s family, Mike gave a somewhat watered down version, knowing that Scott would be able to fill in the rest of the details himself.

Then it was back to waiting. Now nursing a new soda and watching a tiny TV play some sort of house remodeling show. Scott at his side gnawing at his second granola bar since he had got there.

Before they could get any news, another visitor made an appearance. Though this one wasn’t so familiar.

It was Luis, though Mike couldn’t have recognized him since Natalie had never described him. All he knew about him was that he had some sort of fight with Ness. So, seeing him walk in with a bouquet of pink roses and Baby’s Breath in one hand and a ‘get well’ teddy bear in the other was bizarre.

Though he could’ve been coming for someone else.

“Is, uh… is Vanessa’s family here?”

“Yes!” Mike shot up from his chair and strode past the visibly confused parents. He stood in the doorway before Luis as though blocking him from them and them from him. “What’s up? Is that like a…” He snapped his fingers a few times. “A delivery from downstairs?”

“No! No, no. This is from me… This one!” Luis gave an awkward chuckle and handed over the bear. “I’m Luis. Vanessa and I work together. Sort of, she works at the Pizzaplex, I work at the offices, but we’re friends.”

“Oh hey! Thanks!” Mike accepted the bear and tucked it into the crook of his arm, hands moving into his pockets. “She’s not up yet, but I’ll give it to her as soon as she does.”

“So, she’s okay?”

“She’s doing good. The surgery went well.”

“Surgery…” Luis got a distant look of realization. He struggled to swallow. “I, uh… Good.”

They stood there for a silent pause. Luis looked between Steve’s piercing stare from the chair and then Mike’s questioning look, noticing him gesturing his eyes to the flowers.

“I’m here to visit… someone else, but I wanted to give Vanessa something, so she knows we’re thinking about her. Or I am,” Luis explained.

Then those were for Ness, Mike deduced.

“She’ll be glad to hear it. Thanks, man,” Mike said. He reached out and gave him a firm pat on the shoulder. “How’s Ness?”

“I don’t know yet, but I’m going to find out.” Luis got a tense smile. “Wish me luck.”

Mike gave an assuring nod. “Let her know we’re thinking about her too.”

“I will.”

And then as soon as he arrived, he left. Off to find Ness and no doubt run right into a still steaming Wight. Mike almost wanted to warn him, but he decided it was best to keep his mouth shut.

“Vanessa…?” Sue asked Steve quietly. Steve furrowed his brows and looked up at Mike as he passed.

“What was that about?” he asked.

“Oh, uh… Natalie’s been working under a fake name,” Mike admitted.

“What? Why?” Sue asked in shock.

“Because who wants to admit to working at Freddy’s,” Mike weakly joked. Scott gave a half-laugh sort of forced scoff noise.

Sue got a weird look. One between confusion and maybe even a little horror, and Mike knew he needed to give a better explanation.

But Olive beat him to it. “I don’t think she wanted them to know her real name…” she said quietly. “She told me to only use my nickname when I signed up to do laser tag.”

Steve and Sue had matching looks of concern and suspicion, clearly wondering what it was Natalie had been up to. But they didn’t ask Mike, so odds were that they were going to ask her.

Back to sitting for several minutes.

Then, out of nowhere, another arrival. This time not another visitor but someone who had already been there since the beginning, Jeremy. His big smile was a dead giveaway that he had good news.

“Natalie’s awake!” he announced. He briefly looked over all the people before settling on looking at her parents. “The nurse said that two people can go in, so if you want to go ahead she’s sort of woozy but awake.”

“Thank goodness!” Sue said with an exhausted sigh. She got up from her chair, stepped forward, and boldly hugged Jeremy. “Thank you, thank you.”

“Oh, uh, no problem! But I just- I’m just the messenger,” Jeremy said sheepishly.

“You stopped her from pulling the knife out?” Steve asked, getting up as well.

Jeremy looked nearly blindsided by this. “Yeah, but I didn’t- I couldn’t stop it going in. I tried, I swear. I was trying to get it out of her hand-!”

“It’s okay.” Sue shushed him. She pulled back and looked him in the eyes. “You did your best, and that’s all you could do.”

This felt like the last thing he expected. The last kind of response he would’ve anticipated from concerned parents.

“You just sit down and get some rest. We’ll go see her,” she assured.

She finally let him go, just in time for Steve to come in a one-armed hug- one that got Mike and Jeremy to exchange a look of shock- and then both headed out. Jeremy awkwardly shuffled over and sat down beside Mike, where Natalie’s mother had been sitting.

“…Hey Scott,” he said.

“Hey. How’s it-… How’re you holding up?”

“Okay.”

“You saved her life, you know,” Dunn chimed in. He looked almost apologetic for interrupting when they looked at him but then got up and came over to sit beside Jeremy. “If that knife would’ve been pulled out… I’m not a doctor but I know she wouldn’t have made it this far.”

Jeremy took a steady breath and managed to smile. “I’m glad that didn’t happen then.”

Dunn nodded in appreciative agreement.

“You’re a good kid,” Natalie’s grandmother volunteered. “Where’s your family? Are you married?”

Mike couldn’t bear to look at Jeremy’s face after that question, he could feel the secondhand embarrassment creeping in. He gave Jeremy a supportive pat on the arm and slid further down into his chair to ride it out.

…

Natalie woke up slowly. She could hear before she could get her eyes open, and she felt very tired and foggy. But she wasn’t in pain. Nothing hurt and she couldn’t really remember much at first.

She groaned weakly. Not out of pain, but out of questioning, calling for someone.

In only a second her hand was taken, and someone was leaning over her.

“Natalie? Nat, baby, can you hear me?” Fritz asked.

She groaned and nodded stiffly. She shifted on the bed.

“No, no. Don’t move. Don’t get up. You’re okay, you just got out of surgery a while ago.”

“Sur…gery…?” Natalie grumbled out.

Surgery, of course. She had been… She had been stabbed! It came back all at once, her memories catching up to her. Unfortunately, her body didn’t follow suit. It was still taking its sweet time.

“Hey, she’s awake,” Jeremy’s voice could be heard flagging down a nurse. The nurse came in to check her vitals, Fritz holding her hand the entire time, but Natalie couldn’t get her eyes to stay open.

“Natalie, can you hear me?” the nurse asked.

“Uh huh…” Natalie answered groggily.

“Do you remember where you are, Hun?”

“Uh… hospital?” she guessed.

“Yes, good. That’s excellent.” The nurse turned her attention to Fritz. “It might take her a little while to fully wake up from the anesthesia, but her vitals are fine. If she falls back asleep, that’s okay. The important part is to keep her from twisting herself, m’kay?”

“I will.”

“Alright, Hun. You just sit tight,” the nurse told her in a comforting voice. She started to head out when Jeremy stopped her.

“Can I go get her family?”

“Wait until she wakes up a little more. Are her parents here?”

“They’re waiting out there.”

“When she wakes up you can send them in, but only two visitors at a time, alright?”

“Uh… sure, but her parents are out there. Her mom and dad, and he’s not going to want to leave her…” He gestured to Fritz.

The nurse considered it for a moment. “I’ll give an exception, but just this time,” she said raising a single finger with a glossy polished nail.

“Just this one time,” Jeremy agreed with a smile.

The nurse left- though she didn’t go far, only heading to check on a nearby patient. Jeremy stayed in the room and waited for Natalie to wake up more.

Which she did. She could feel Fritz petting her head even before she could see him.

Looking up at him with glassy, sunken eyes, he thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world.

“Hi,” she said.

“Hey,” he shot back.

She smiled, feeling a little loose and not too worried about anything. It must’ve been medication because she knew she should’ve been worried about the Pizzaplex and all of that.

“What’d they do to me?” she asked. “Did I get a… robot… stomach…?”

“Almost! But I pushed and got you a human one and a bunch sutures in your colon,” Fritz joked.

“Oh wooow, it did get my colon…” Natalie said. She looked at the ceiling vacantly for a second before looking back. “…How’d it go…?”

“It went great. Doctor said you’re going to be fine, but you’re going to have to stay here for a few days.”

“Okay.”

“But I’m going to be with you.” He squeezed her hand.

“What about Foxy’s…?”

“It’ll be fine. The guys can take care of it.”

Natalie gave a hum of agreement. She trusted him, and them, and that they could handle it.

But there was something else bothering her. Something bothering her enough that even though the sedation still weighed her down it pressed her to ask.

“How’s- How’s Ness?”

Fritz’s face momentarily fell.

“I don’t know. They won’t tell me.”

“Oh… Right.”

Maybe that meant she was still alive. If she wasn’t then he would know. He would tell her, she knew he would.

Right now, he was combing back her hair. It was no longer in a ponytail, now trapped beneath her and the bed, but he ran his fingers through her hair in soothing combs.

She might’ve nodded back off but she didn’t know for how long, only interrupted when Fritz spoke up.

“Your parents are here.”

She opened her eyes and turned to look, and there was her mom coming in. Even though her vision was still shaky and cloudy she could tell that she looked like she was going to cry.  

“Hey, Mom…”

Her mother came to her side and then carefully but surely leaned down to somewhat hug her, trying not to move her too much. More just hugging her head, which Natalie thought was pretty funny right now. Her mom’s pointed chin resting on her forehead. If she was more awake, she might’ve snickered.

“Natlie, Honey, why?” Sue mumbled.

That took away any humor from the situation.

“Mom. Shh, shh. It’s okay…”

“It’s not okay. Why were you there?”

Why was she there?

“I was… trying to protect a friend…”

And in the end, it wasn’t a lie.

It was the truth.

It was for Ness.

…

Mike and Marionette finally made it back to the house around eleven o’clock. By then both were quickly running out of steam, but thankfully due to Mike almost falling asleep in the waiting room, and Sue noticing, he was encouraged to head home and didn’t have to feel guilty about it. He did get to see Natalie one last time before he left and by then she was lucid enough to also assure him that it was alright to go.

Of course that could’ve also been because she knew Gregory was at their house. She had asked about him earlier and Mike told her he was, and she was surely worried about him.

But he wasn’t alone, he had been with Charlie. And keeping himself busy, apparently, as Marionette blipped into the house to find him playing a video game while Charlie sat on the couch behind him watching. She sat cross legged with her arms folded in her lap-

And her family photo album sitting on the couch beside her. Marionette noticed it right away.

“Hey, we’re back,” Mike announced as he came in.

“Hey,” Gregory called. He sounded tired and he looked back with a cock-eyed look. “Is everything okay?”

“It will be. Natalie had surgery and now she’s resting, but her family and Fritz are with her,” Marionette assured.

“Good! I was getting worried,” Charlie said relieved.

“I’m surprised you two are still awake,” Mike said.

“I’m fine. I’m not tired,” Gregory brushed off.

Mike looked to Charlie, and she gave a little shrug. She wasn’t about to force Gregory to go to bed, and Mike would be hard pressed to either. With how he stared at the screen, roughly tapping the controller buttons, it was clear that he was going through something right now. Nobody wanted to push him.

Well, Marionette probably would, but he found himself drawn back to that photo album and the question of why Charlie had it out.

Was it because of the conversation she and Mike had? That one Mike had told him about but didn’t give the details of? Marionette appreciated Mike’s willingness to be both honest and keep Charlie’s promise of secrecy, but he couldn’t deny that a weird mix of worry and curiosity was spreading through his chest.

“You were looking at the photo album?” he tentatively asked.

It was apparent from the subtle widening of her eyes that she had forgotten that she had the album out in plain sight.

“Just for a second, but I was just about to put it away,” Charlie said, springing from the couch and grabbing the book while she did. She turned to face him. “Just old memories, you know.”

“I do…” Marionette felt compelled to say something, but it was until she turned away to leave that he dropped his head and murmured a low. “I’m sorry…”

Charlie looked back with a start, clearly confused. Marionette didn’t clarify or look up at her. After a moment she set down the album on the back of the couch and stepped up to him, pulling him into a hug.

“Hey. Don’t worry about it,” Charlie reassured him. “You were my brother the day I woke up here, okay? You always were.”

Marionette eagerly and tightly hugged her back. “Thank you. And same.”

They held that hug for a few more seconds.

“Is everyone always this mushy?” Gregory asked.

“Yeah, but you get used to it,” Mike said, sitting down beside him. “Want to play something that doesn’t make you want to pull your hair out?”

“Sure.”

Mike switched out for a racing game, and they started it up. As Marionette and Charlie separated, sharing smiles, he lifted himself over the back of the couch to sit on it and watch while Charlie headed to her room to drop off the photo album.

But as she got inside, she found it hard to just set down that book on her dresser and leave. She carefully nudged the door almost closed and then opened the album on her bed, leaning over it as she quickly flipped through. Through pictures of her once happy family. Her dad, her mom… and Sammy.

She landed on a picture of the two of them as newborns, with pink scrunched faces. Back then you couldn’t even tell the two apart and if not for the caption she wouldn’t know which of the two was her.

Momma’s Boy and Daddy’s Girl was inscribed on the page in their parents’ respective handwriting.

To think that only a few years after this he would be gone.

She flipped to the next page and it stared back at her, and she quickly shut the book. Then stood there in silence for a moment.

Before she knew it, her vision was growing cloudy with blue, and she quickly stepped back and lifted her face to keep the blue paint tears from running down. She wandered around like that until she located one of the dirtied rags that she used while she was working on projects down in the basement and used it to wipe off her face. She would have to check in the mirror to make sure there were no blue or oily smears.

She forced herself to hold back the tears even when they oozed free until the whole rag was drenched in blue.

Then, once she had regained composure, she tossed it into her bedside nightstand to deal with later.

It still hurt. It hurt even more now than ever before, and she wanted to scream and cry just like she did in that costume closet. She wanted everyone to rush in and comfort her- they would. Marionette and Mike would be at her side to hug her and tell her she was alright, that it would be alright. She wanted to run off to Lizzie and find solace in her soft words. She wanted someone, anyone.

But she couldn’t. She couldn’t fill the hole that was left inside of her. The numb tingle in her hand where his hand once held on tightly.

…She would be okay, she assured herself. But not today.

She tucked the photo album under her bed and made a quick trip to the bathroom to check her face before joining the others in the living room.

Tomorrow was another day.

…

“Yeah, I don’t know. Jeremy said we’re probably going to try to open tomorrow.”

“With Natalie still in the hospital?!”

“Yup.” Carlton popped the ‘p’ with his lips. “But I get it. The business is sort of their livelihood; they’ve got to keep it afloat. It’s probably going to be me, Tabby, and Louise pulling most of the weight though.”

“Have you heard from Charlie?” Marla asked over the phone.

“Not yet. I’ll corner her at work tomorrow.”

“No, you will not corner her at work! Yeesh…”

Carlton snickered a little and continued clicking around on his computer screen.

It had been a weird day. Waking up to learn that Natalie was in the hospital and that something big was going on was jarring, especially when he learned it from his father who returned home in the morning when he didn’t even know he had left. He was gone now too, having only stopped home a few times for a few minutes during the day.

Carlton didn’t envy his father. This was exactly why becoming a cop hadn’t been nearly as appealing as he might’ve hoped. Then again, if things went sour, he might be looking for another job.

He really, really hoped that didn’t happen. Not for his sake, but Charlie’s, and everyone else’s who worked at Foxy’s. But he brushed those thoughts aside. If Freddy’s didn’t put them out of business being there then their bad business wasn’t going to sink them now.

At least, he really hoped it didn’t. But Carlton was trying to really not think about that. Everything was going to be fine.

But then he heard something.

Carlton furrowed his brow. “Are you crying?”

“What? No.”

No, it wasn’t her, but he heard crying coming from somewhere. He leaned back in his chair and listened and noticed it seemed to come from outside his door.

Was it dad? It didn’t sound like his voice, but maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t.

“Hold on, I got to go check on something. I’ll call you back.”

“What’s going on? Are you okay?”

“I think Ennard’s trying to mess with me again.”

It wouldn’t be the first time the clown made an impromptu visit to his house. The last time Clay heard them in the kitchen and came out to them trying to make fluffernutters by toasting marshmallows on the stove. He clearly didn’t approve of the random drop-in, but he didn’t stop them either, instead dragging back off to bed and just leaving them to their own devices. Scott probably got a call about that later.

It wasn’t the first time, and it wouldn’t be the last. Ennard just went where he wanted to and somehow did so without getting caught.

Funny, Carlton spent all those long nights staking out Ennard and now he was just dropping by his house like it was no big deal. Like a buddy, sort of. No, actually, it was weird. It was kind of like how an older brother would’ve acted, down to purposefully trying to rile up his dad and bum junk food from them.

It was kind of nice. The house felt a little too big without Mom there, and Dad was busy. Having some sort of weird robot clown wanting to hang out wasn’t the worst way to fill the emptiness.

Maybe that’s why Ennard showed up, to ask about the whole Pizzaplex thing. If that was the case though then it was really tacky that he was trying to pull some sort of prank. Unless he didn’t know anything.

“I’ll call you back when I figure out what’s up,” Carlton assured.

“Okay! Don’t go crazy!”

“Oh, I will.”

She gave a hum that signaled that she was giving him that mock disapproval and he grinned in response, knowing she felt it without seeing it. They ended the call, and he headed out of his room.

He followed the quiet noise to the basement door. Weirdly, it never seemed to get closer. It led him in a direction without telling him how far it was. A lure, maybe.

And he only knew one person who could do something like that. He opened the basement door and called down.

“Ennard, that better not be you! We had a deal on the whole acting creepy thing!”

But there was no answer. That didn’t mean it wasn’t Ennard though.

Carlton grumbled a little and started down the steps.

The crying was faint now. It seemed to only be audible when the stairs creaked under Carlton’s footsteps. He couldn’t tell much about it. Was it even crying? It could’ve been snickering. It was too muffled to tell.

It was coming from around the corner where some of the old animatronic parts were.

Carlton stopped on the last step and considered if he wanted to go any further. He inhaled deeply, leaned forward, and then peeked around the corner. He couldn’t see anything but the tarps. He started to step down- and promptly tripped over himself and landed on his feet on the concrete floor, making a loud thump that he winced at.

The tarp didn’t move. He swallowed thickly.

“Ennard, I swear to God.”

But then he noticed something. The sound, the crying turned tinkling tone, was coming from further to the right, up against the wall of the stairs. He took a cautious step and looked over.

It was coming from the safe.

Clay’s basement safe used to hold passports and important papers along with some family heirloom jewelry of Betty’s. That was part of the reason Carlton held out hope that his mom would eventually come back, since she hadn’t taken all her stuff. She still had some of her clothes and knickknacks around the home and hadn’t made any mention of wanting to get them during his visits.

Carlton only knew about the safe because it was there, and now there was noise coming from it. There was a box sitting on top of it too, and the sheet that had been covering it was gone, which he noticed as he could see the safe.

“Huh…” He walked over and peeked into the box on the top, and his brows shot up. Inside were the passports, papers, even the jewelry- or at least, the jewelry box. He didn’t look inside to see if the jewelry was there.

So, his dad had cleared out the safe. That was weird.

He pressed his ear to the safe and sure enough, he heard something. Except it wasn’t crying or laughing, or whatever. It sounded like music now. Soft chiming, like music box music. Was there a music box inside?

He considered if it was worth trying to open it up. It was a four number lock so he could probably guess it, but he didn’t know if he should. Obviously, Clay didn’t want whatever was inside getting out.

But the safe wasn’t big. It couldn’t fit an animatronic inside. Maybe one of the Minireenas, but only if they were crouched or balled up. Besides, it didn’t sound like a bot. It sounded like music. The chiming soft but clear- but not crying? Maybe the crying he heard was just this weird chiming. Maybe it was a music player, and it played some voices.

He really knew to leave it alone. He didn’t know why he felt so stuck to it. Just lifting the padlock made it almost magnetize to his hand.

Okay. He had to see whatever it was. But just in case, he made sure to grab a short spade from nearby just in case he needed to… garden it to death. Heh, he had to remember that.

He tried his father’s birthday first. No. His birthday. No. His mother’s, their anniversary, lucky numbers, one-two-three-four, nineteen eighty-seven, eighty-five, anything! Nothing worked.

…Until he tried the last four digits of his father’s social security number, which he figured out at some point from some paperwork. Didn’t need it for anything, but he did remember it for whatever reason.

The music had stopped on a dime with the click of the lock, and he pulled it out before holding onto the edge of the safe door. He considered if he really wanted to do this. What if this was a mistake?

He swore he could feel someone standing behind him. He rounded to look and found nobody, nothing, just a dark basement filled with old parts and trash covered up by tarps. There was nothing down here.

But there was something in there. Holding the spade up close, he threw the safe door open and grabbed it with both hands, preparing to bash something.

But nothing jumped out. The door swung open and then halfway closed again, and when it did he locked eyes with the face of a rabbit. He caught the door and pushed it back open again.

It was a rabbit mask. A white mask with big red eyes and bent ears to fit into the safe. A fringe of fabric made to cover the back of the head and neck was clumped behind it.

Carlton knew right away that this had to be Vanny’s mask.

“Whoa…” he said in disbelief. “What’s that doing here?”

He reached in and poked the mask’s nose, disappointed when there was no squeaker. He set the spade down and picked up the mask, turning it over and studying it. He pulled back the fabric to see the inside of the mask, and his brows raised.

“Whoa.”

There was some sort of mechanism on the inside. The eyes were almost shaped round screens, reddish but dim, and there were a couple of little round, grey circles scattered around. Thin wires connected the circles to what looked like a flat box or something mounted above and between the eyes. It looked like it was just glued in with a glue gun, he recognized the clear-ish hard residue around it.

Maybe the circles were censors, and the box was some sort of battery pack? There was something that looked like a speaker on the mouth portion too.

This was definitely the mask of the crazy rabbit lady, no doubt about that.

Carlton started to lift the mask up so that he could see through the eyes, trying to see what the woman might’ve seen that whole time. He brought it close to his face, closer, maybe he could put it on really quick. Clay wouldn’t notice if he tried it on for a second.

He pulled the loose fabric up until the mask interior was fully revealed and lifted it to his face.

And then immediately yanked it away before it could make contact.

“Wait, what am I doing?! I shouldn’t be touching this thing,” he muttered. He tossed it back into the safe and shut the safe again. “I’ll probably just get possessed or something…”

He lifted the lock to the latch before hesitating. Something caught him for a second and he started to reconsider it, but he pushed through, locking the safe back and snapping it closed.

He no longer heard any music. Suddenly the safe made him feel a little more uneasy and the shadows on the walls felt like they were looming overhead. He quickly hustled to the stairs and headed up, shutting the door behind him.

All at once Carlton felt like a heavy weight had been pulled from his shoulders. Something was wrong with that mask, he realized. He wasn’t sure if he could confess to his dad that he had been snooping, but he would have to ask Charlie about it. Maybe that thing shouldn’t be in the house. Probably shouldn’t show it to Ennard.

He headed back to his bedroom, his curiosity satiated for the moment. If only because he was thoroughly creeped out.

Maybe it was a good thing that all of this was over. No more crazy rabbit lady. No more Pizzaplex.

The end.

…

..

.

And he opened his bedroom door-

And there was a rabbit standing at the foot of his bed.

It wasn’t a person in a suit. It wasn’t an animatronic. Almost animated, sticking out like a sore thumb, like it was layered overtop of reality. Like it was printed on top of his eyes. He could see all its details.

It stood as tall as he did with its ears hanging over top nearly a foot more, bent at the ends. It wore a blue Peter Rabbit jacket with a darker blue ribbon tied in a bow at its throat. It had white cartoon gloves. No pants, no shoes, bunny feet that looked more like foot-shaped boots than actual animal feet.

Its fur was white. Off-white. A cream sort of tan. Yellowing on the edges, patched with brown. A brown spot on the ear, a brown tuft of bangs hooked between the ears, a big brown patch around the eye that drizzled down into two points under the eye. They looked look the bottom points of a star, or running eye makeup, or dripping, old, dried blood.

But its face. Its face.

Its irises were bright red, almost glowing under the bedroom light. Its eyes wide and staring right through him above a little black nose, and a wide, beaming smile. Its jaw so tight that its white teeth could’ve broken.

That wasn’t a smile of joy.

It wouldn’t matter if it was with the way it was staring at him.

All the sound in the room was sucked out as it opened its mouth and spoke.

“Hey, Buddy.”

Carlton screamed and spun around, lurching out of his room while yanking the door closed behind him.

He held it tight, his heart racing in his throat as he held the knob tight. He waited for it to run over and start fighting to get through, but it didn’t. No footsteps, no hand trying to turn the doorknob, just an eerie silence that stretched on.

And the unnerving feeling that something was standing directly behind him.

Carlton slowly turned his head and his heart could’ve stopped.

The rabbit was standing right there. The same distance it had been in the room, as though it had never left his vision only shifted in position.

It raised its hands defensively and began to step closer. Carlton pressed his back to the door but didn’t make any attempt to open it. It was as though he was frozen in fear, or if something was willing him to stay.

“Hey, hey. Slow down, it’s cool. I’m not going to hurt you,” the bunny assured him.

He reached out and pressed both hands to the door on either side of him, leaning in until they were nearly forehead to forehead.

“And there’s no point in running off now.”

Carlton’s face burned under the red glow of the rabbit’s eyes.

"̵̣͐Ï̸̩'̴͓͆m̴̜̽ ̸̲́a̵͑͜l̸̜̍r̴̭̉è̸̗a̵͇͑d̴͖͝y̴̧̍ ̸͇̂i̷͇̋n̴̹͗s̷͕͠ī̴̥d̴̫͐e̷͚͆.̷͕̓"̶͍͗

I̸t̷'̶s̴ ̷N̵o̴t̵ THE END

Chapter End Notes

Chapter 100 out of 110.

Chapter 101

Chapter Summary

Ness finds herself with an unexpected roommate when she brings home an old rabbit doll from work...

Life? What life? He lost that a long time ago.

He didn’t LIVE anymore. He just watched. He just existed.

But it was better than being forgotten.

For years he had been tossed around like trash. Trophy room to storage room, to garbage, to yard sale, being passed around like a disease until he wound up in the hands of some mad scientist with an axe to grind. One that though he held some sort of emotional bond or whatever. What a scientist; studied the paranormal and couldn’t even tell that there was a bona fide ghost hiding in that old bunny doll.

But that was how he met Jake and Andrew, and that was how they became a team.

Bunny considered himself the brains of the trio because it was better than being the burden.

They holed up in a warehouse for years. Jake and Andrew keeping themselves and the place somewhat together as Bunny watched and occasionally gave instructions. They listened and went along with his ideas. Didn’t know until a long time in that he was younger than them both or they probably wouldn’t have listened so closely.

But Bunny knew what he was talking about. He had seen it all. Well, he had seen the worst of it. Point was, he knew his stuff.

Not that he could do anything with it. Stuck in this useless little doll he was no better than the toys Jake collected and stacked up on the shelves of the warehouse. It almost felt like they were mocking him- the toys, not Jake. Jake was too good for that. Andrew? He would probably do it. Andrew had a bitter side to him.

Needles to say, Bunny considered Andrew his best friend. Jake was a close second. He understood Andrew’s edge a bit more, they saw more eye to eye, but without Jake the two of them might’ve torn each other apart. Or no, Andrew might’ve torn him apart. Again, useless bunny doll body.

If it wasn’t for them, he would have nothing. He would be totally helpless. Which he was every time they left.

Then he would sit there and wait. And watch. Wait and watch until they got back.

Or, no, that’s not the only thing he would do. He would also visit Fredbear Hills!

Fredbear Hills was the real life world of Freddy Fazbear and friends. He and ONLY he could visit it in his dreams, and had been for years. He would tune out the world and be right there with Freddy and Friends.

He met the Freddy gang when he fell out of the sky one day and wound up in their town, and they were surprised to meet him. But he was quickly taken in as one of the gang.

There was Freddy Fazbear, the friendly but smart leader, Bonnie, the cool wise-cracking bunny, Chica, the sweet but hot-headed chicken, and Foxy, the cunning pirate who was always trying to thwart Freddy. They and a bunch of other characters lived in Fredbear Hills, and Bunny would go on adventures with them.

When he started it was childish adventures, like trying to stop Foxy from kidnapping Chica to make her bake him cupcakes, or trying to find the magical rainbow stone that granted wishes.

But the years passed and Bunny grew up, and then it became bigger journeys with higher stakes. Trying to uncover the mystery of Freddy’s missing father, Fredbear. Starting a rivalry with an evil robot duplicate of Bunny, who framed him and then he ran away with Foxy and Bonnie who were the only ones who believed him. Stuff like that.

But when he was in Fredbear Hills, he wasn’t him, he was Bunny. He was this chosen one hero who had special powers and the whole plot always circled him. He could go anywhere and do everything.

And though it was far from reality, there were days where Bunny preferred to spend hours in his imagination than staring at the cold warehouse ceiling.

He considered showing them those daydreams, or telling them about them, but he didn’t. He couldn’t. It was the only thing he had that was his own. It would’ve been like breaking the sacred nature of his world.

Once he let them in it wouldn’t be his alone anymore. Or worse, they would think he’s weird and start looking at him like he was the odd one of the group when that was clearly Andrew. Or maybe Jake. What with the toys and all.

But it didn’t feel fair to be woken up out of his fantastic adventures only to realize that nothing was waiting for him. But he would always be there to help Jake and Andrew. Because he wasn’t that worthless.

And that wasn’t just a day, or two, or a week. That was years. Years until he met Jake and Andrew. Years after they made it to the warehouse. He grew up in that warehouse. Doing nothing.

But that was life, and he would rather live it than let go. Just him, Jake, Andrew, the warehouse, and a lot of time to kill.

And then the workers showed up. 

After all those years of silence, one day a van pulls up and in come workers to start poking around looking for what they could use.

Of course they found Jake and Andrew. Their body was the only functional animatronic in this trash-filled warehouse. Bunny knew they would be found, he just had a hunch. Their luck was never that good.

But he didn’t think they were going to drop him. But they did. They couldn’t move to grab him, the worker’s did notice him, so he tumbled to the concrete floor. The cold, unforgiving floor. Where he would remain.

Alone forever.

Trapped forever.

In this warehouse.

He started to panic, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t risk yelling. He couldn’t move. He was stuck in this body, useless, worthless.

Watching pathetically as his best friends were dragged away.

End of the line.

And then…

He saw her.

She was the only girl of the group, but that wasn’t the only reason she stood out. Whether it be her shoulder-length, brown hair or her big blue eyes as she looked around at the room. She was very pretty. Had to be the same age as him, she had to be.

And she was looking right at him. She leaned over and picked him up from the floor. Her grip was gentle. Her hands smelled sweet- maybe from lotion?

“Don’t drop me,” he inwardly begged. “I know I’m gross just don’t drop me. Come on, come on…”

She smiled a little and then tucked him into her arm before carrying him out with the others. The relief was immediate- though short-lived when it became clear that he wasn’t going wherever Jake and Andrew were.

That’s okay. He could find them. Or, well, they’d find him. The important part was not getting abandoned in a wet, dingy warehouse all by himself, former home or not.

He could only hope she didn’t pass him off to someone’s kid. Or wait, maybe he could work with a kid. He didn’t LIKE kids, but he could pretend to be a talking doll and maybe get them to do stuff for him. Not that some kid would be very useful for anything. They seldom were.

He was completely at this woman’s mercy.

And she took him home.

And then she cleaned him up.

He watched her the entire time she cautiously cleaned his fabric body with a toothbrush and a mix of baking soda and something else. Trying to get out stains from over a decade ago, especially the one around his eye.

“What is this, chocolate?” she mumbled.

He could’ve laughed. Oh Girlie, that was not chocolate.

“Maybe I’ll call you Spot,” she mused. “Or Cadbury.”

She was planning on keeping him. That could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on if he played his cards right. He just had to bide his time and figure out a plan. In the meantime he was placed into a pile of plushies on the bed and would slip into daydreams whenever he needed to kill time.

Or that was the plan, but it turned out that he just couldn’t stop watching her. Whenever she was home, he was watching her. Listening to her hum as she did stuff around the room, watching TV with her from the bed’s vantage point, just couldn’t help himself.

There was just something about her. He couldn’t look away!

Except when she was changing. He wasn’t enough of a creep to start peeping. It was weird enough when he was stuck staring at her at night, when he was laying there on the bed right beside her.

Truth was, he hadn’t exactly had any experience with women. They were like some creatures from another planet. Heard of in fiction but seldom spotted in reality. He couldn’t count Chica in this case.

Her name was Ness.

He figured that out one day when her father came by. She had frantically cleaned up her messy apartment and let him in, where he spent a lot of the visit talking about plans for something called a Pizzaplex. No doubt where Jake and Andrew had been taken. He would have to figure out a way to get there.

He would have to do something because as exciting as it was watching Ness dance in front of her microwave as she reheated leftover pizza, it wasn’t getting him anywhere.

There was… one option. It was a risky one, but one.

So, Bunny had learned a little trick after living with Jake and Andrew for so long, and that trick was that he could grab onto people if he really tried to. He couldn’t exactly possess them, but he could get a hold on them. He used to enter Jake and Andrews’ shared dreams like that.

It was like dreaming while wide awake. Or making someone else dream while they were wide awake. He would make a new friend.

Not as this stupid doll but as his true self, Bunny.

He had already taken hold, she picked him up all the time, so it was only a matter of time.

And then one night Ness came out of the bathroom after her shower, hair still damp and wearing her pajamas, and she found a rabbit on her bed. Not a toy, but a yellow and brown patched mascot Bonnie the Bunny-esque rabbit stretched out on its side looking up at her with a devilish look and a sweltering grin.

“Hey there.”

She screamed.

Which he should’ve been expecting, actually.

“Hey, hey, wait-!”

She slammed the bathroom door.

Exactly what he should’ve been expecting.

New plan: smooth this over. But how? Baby steps, maybe. Reach out- he wasn’t bold enough to project himself inside of the room and he couldn’t actually do anything when his body was that stupid doll, so all he could do… was talk. Just like with Jake and Andrew, all he could do was talk.

He called out to her. “Hello?”

“DON’T COME IN!”

“I’m not. I’m not. I can’t! Can’t open the door on my own,” Bunny explained. “And I can’t hurt you either, so don’t worry about that.”

There was a pause.

“W-Who are you?!”

“I’m Spottie,” he replied. “But actually, the name’s Bunny. Nice to finally meetcha!”

“Finally…? Wait… WAIT, are you-?!...” She trailed off for a long few seconds and he impatiently waited for her to finish. “A-Are you…?”

“The rabbit doll sitting on your bed? You better believe I am! And lemme just say, you did a real good job cleaning me up. You got at least ten years of warehouse and another six years of shed off of me.”

“This can’t be real…” he heard her muttering. She sounded almost hysterical. “Oh my God! I-!... I’m hallucinating?”

“I’m going to level with you, this is sort of hallucinating. BUT I’m real, okay? I can probably prove it too, but you’d have to be out here for that.”

There was a long wait before Ness started to open the bathroom door. She looked out, then quickly hid behind the door again when she found the rabbit not where she left him, but now standing at the foot of the bed.

“I-I thought you said you were on the bed!”

“I am on the bed!”

Ness peeked out and he pointed back towards the doll still stuck between her pillows and peeking out between them.

“This is just a sort of projection of myself,” Bunny explained, waving his hands at her. “An illusion~.”

“What… are you…?” she asked stiffly.

“Don’t freak out.”

“I’m already freaking out!”

“Okay, don’t freak out, but the truth is…” He waggled his fingers. “I’m a ghOOOooSt.”

“A-A ghost?”

“Yes. Of somebody who owned that rabbit,” Bunny explained. “And that’s why I look like the rabbit.”

After a long moment of standing there, Ness dared to push open the bathroom door. She took an inching step closer. Bunny held out his hand for her and she recoiled, and he put up his hands defensively, silently assuring that he wasn’t going to do anything. She took another cautious step closer, and another, and then she reached out with a shaking, pointing finger.

She poked at his chest and her finger went straight through it.

“See?” Bunny said, shrugging with his lifted hands. “Ghost.”

“I don’t- I don’t understand…” Ness looked wildly between the apparition and the plush toy on the bed. “So, you’re possessing THAT?”

“Yeah! You’re getting it!”

“And you’ve been… alive the whole time? You’ve been- been watching me the whole time?”

“Yeah- NO! I’ve been- no! I can turn it off. I haven’t been peeping on you, I swear. I’m a ghost, not a creep,” Bunny vehemently denied.

“This is crazy.” Ness grabbed her head, looking like she was about to start panicking. “If I’m going nuts-.”

“You’re not going nuts. I’d prove it but there’s not much I can do except stay with the doll,” he reassured.

“Okay…”

There was an awkward pause before Ness pointed towards the bathroom, backing up a little.

“I’m going to just…” she trailed off.

“And I’m going to fade out and let you simmer,” Bunny finished.

“But you’ll still be here…?”

“Lucky for us both, yes.”

Bunny gave her a wink and Ness looked more than a little uneasy.

But… she didn’t throw the doll out.

…

“I’m home,” Ness called in.

“Hey, welcome back!” Bunny called back.

As soon as she shut the front door and turned around, she found that he had appeared before her, leaning on the counter grinning at her. She immediately shirked into herself, trying to hide the way she jumped when he suddenly popped in.

It had been a couple of days, and she still wasn’t entirely used to this whole living arrangement. But she had started to believe him on the whole ghost thing. If only because he didn’t follow her out of the apartment.

He might’ve been safe, but he was very, very creepy.

“How was your day?” Bunny asked in a cheesy, schmoozy sort of way.

“It was okay… I, uh, I got invited out to hang out with some coworkers, but I left early…”

“Boring?”

“I’m not boring, I just don’t like to drink. If anything, they’re boring! All they want to do is go to a bar, and not even one with like darts and pool tables… And I don’t want to give Luis the wrong idea.”

“No, I meant- Well, guess it answers my question anyways,” Bunny brushed off. He laid his hands on his chest. “Aww, but you didn’t have to leave your friends on my account.”

“I don’t really have any friends… Around here! I used to have a bunch before I moved, but… it happens.”

“Same. Y’know that robot you guys picked up from the warehouse?”

“That was your friend?”

“That was my friends. Two in one.”

Ness seemed surprised while Bunny turned around to lean on the counter, even though he wasn’t really leaning on anything. The lack of sound from floor or counter backed up how weightless he really was.

“Do you know what happened to them?” he dared to ask.

“I don’t, sorry… But I can find out! They couldn’t have gone far- probably over to the Pizzaplex for research and development!”

“I’d prefer that over a furnace, yeesh,” Bunny said.

He said it lightly, but it was really weighing on his mind. Ness could tell, because the projection gave away the furrowed look of worry even when he didn’t intend on it.

“I’ll find them. I promise,” she said.

He sent her a smile over his shoulder.

“Thanks. You’re a good kid.”

A good kid? Wait…

“Hey, uh. That reminds me. I wanted to ask you… How old are you by the way…?” she stretched out.

“Whyyy?” Bunny equally stretched out.

“Because I noticed you look like- you’re kind of colored like the original Bonnie.”

“It’s the doll.”

“I know, but… How old are you?”

“About twenty. You?”

“About?” Ness asked in surprise.

“I’ve been dead a long time! Now come on, you?”

“Twenty-two.”

“Huh. I expected a little younger. What with all this fairy tale stuff you got around.”

He vaguely waved a hand towards the dragon and castle statues on her shelf. Ness flushed at the comment.

“Hey, fairy tales are timeless! You’re the one who’s a giant bunny!” she accused.

“Hey, I take mild offense to that!” Bunny huffed back. “Why’d you ask anyways?”

“It’s just that… I thought you’d be older. When did you… die?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“Why not?”

“It’s the same reason I can’t tell you my human name. You’ll go look it up and find my… y’know, the newspaper clip they publish when you die.”

“Your obituary?”

“That!”

“But you didn’t die recently,” Ness pieced together. “So… Ghosts age?”

“Funny enough, but in this case I do.” Bunny spread his hands out dramatically. “Finally got a real chance at reaching the big one-oh-oh!”

Ness snickered.

“FINALLY! I’ve been trying to get a laugh out of you since I showed up,” Bunny said. His face lighting into a still off-putting but lovably excitable smile.

“You’re a little goofy,” Ness said in her defense.

“I’d rather that than dull. But anyways, since you’re not doing anything how about we hang?”

And despite herself, Ness agreed.

And despite the weird situation, she enjoyed herself.

…

Ness didn’t like zombies, so a movie called Zombies vs. Zombies 2 obviously wasn’t up her alley. But she was watching it anyways, because there was nothing good on. At least so far it hadn’t been too scary.

Well, until the zombie bear showed up. The survivors had hunted a bear for food and then buried its remains some ways from camp, and here it was climbing out of the ground to hunt them down. All rotten and gory in all its glory. It was a good thing she finished the popcorn already because that would’ve soured her stomach.

She watched the bear lurch towards a man backed against a tree, who foolishly decided to continue trying to load his shotgun instead of run. She hugged her couch pillow tightly.

She had a feeling and looked to her left.

Bunny was watching her from the other side of the couch.

“That’s cute.”

“GyAH!” she screamed.

Bunny’s hands shot up. “Sorry, sorry! I thought you knew I was here!”

She should’ve, he was always there.

“I didn’t take you for the horror movie type. ‘Specially not the really cheesy stuff.”

“I like horror! I just don’t- ugh- it’s really gross. The bear is seriously disgusting.”

“Yeah, that is a nasty bear,” Bunny agreed. “Gonna get nightmares of getting stuck in that thing’s hollowed out belly.”

“Why would you- OH GOD!” Ness’ face twisted up in disgust as the bear lurched onto the tree and promptly did just that, grabbing the man into its belly. Its ribs like teeth. “Oh- Oh my God, that’s sick. That’s so gross.”

Bunny snickered at her expense and scooted over. “Aww, Nessie.”

“Don’t ‘aww Nessie’, it’s gross!”

“It is pretty sick.”

“I’d be sick if I hadn’t ate the popcorn like an hour ago, ugh.” Ness moved the empty bowl, with only some unpopped kernels and salt in the bottom, to the side table just to get it away from her.

“It wasn’t an hour, it just feels like it because this movie sucks,” Bunny said slyly.

“It’s not… good,” Ness finished in defeat. She turned the television down and shieled her face with her hands, unable to watch anymore of the digestion on screen. “And y’know, the first one wasn’t that bad!”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah! It was dumb, but it wasn’t like THIS! It was just a lot of people doing really stupid stuff and a lot of zombies coming out of everywhere, but the most disgusting part was this scene with a dog- Okay, I’m not going to tell you what happened to the dog, but I bet, I bet, that the dog’s the reason they made this bear scene. Because the dog blowing up- Oh, uh… The dog blows up. But so, that dog scene was really the only part of the movie that wasn’t just mindless zombies, and I bet someone said, ‘Hey, what if we did the dog, but REALLY gross?’”

Bunny was somewhat dumbstruck. He had never seen Ness this animated. It was like she was a completely different person when she had her guard down.

No, that was it. She had gotten comfortable. This was the real Ness.

The real Ness was pretty interesting. Bunny couldn’t help but keep listening.

“And this was made by the same people who made Vampires vs. Werewolves, and that one was a lot better! The romance plotline was so good. It was one of the best low-budget movies I’ve ever seen.”

“Would you believe THIS is the first movie I can ever remember watching?” Bunny eventually chimed in.

“Wait, really?”

“Yeah, everything from my childhood is real splotchy, and then I lived under a rock for years.”

“Oh, right. That makes sense… So, if you were in that warehouse for years, what did you do? How could you stand it, just sitting there all the time?” Ness caught herself. “Oh, uh, no offense!”

“What offense?” Bunny asked with honest confusion.

“Just, you know.”

“Eh. I got bored a lot. I used to daydream. I came up with these, like… elaborate stories. They were dumb,” his dismissed.

“That’s not dumb. I used to do that too. Not that much, but… okay, this might sound silly, but I used to pretend that I was a long-lost princess that ended up in now times and that I was preparing for like… I don’t know, an adventure to return to my world of magic and stuff. At first, they were just dreams and pretend but when I was a kid… sometimes I’d imagine it in school. Like, I’d spend my whole recess pretending I was the princess stuck in this school like a commoner who had to fit in, or some dark wizard would come and catch me.”

Ness trailed off as she noticed Bunny staring.

“I know that’s weird.”

“That is so cool,” Bunny disagreed. His face splitting into a smile. “I do the SAME thing! Except it’s like, y’know, all the time since I sit around all day. And mine were always Freddy-themed. I was Bonnie’s long-lost brother, and I’d do dumb little kiddie adventures with them, and then at some point I decided to up the ante, and then we were doing crime stories, and I became a pirate for like a month. Stuff like that.”

“Okay, that is so much cooler than my princess daydreams.”

“Really?”

“Yes! I want to know all about them, if it’s okay.”

It was okay. It was better than okay. Nobody else had ever heard the whole story of Fredbear Hills and his not-real-but-felt-like-it friends who lived there-

And…

“…Do you want to see them?” he offered with a grin.

Ness looked confused. “I can see them? How?”

“Y’know, projection! The same thing we’re doing right now. The only difference is that you’d be seeing a lot more.”

“Is…” She bit her lip and seemed unsure. Bunny’s excitement deflated as he watched her close back into her shell. “Is it safe?”

“Sure is! Just don’t go thinking its real and run off on me,” he said. “You want to do it on the bed or here?”

She gave him a funny look.

“Oookay, we’ll do it here.”

He scooted closer.

“Close your eyes, and I’ll work my magic.”

So, she did. She closed her eyes.

“…Actually, turn off the TV too. The bear’s killing the mood.”

Ness smiled a little and, without opening her eyes, grabbed the tv remote and turned it off. The apartment fell quiet.

“Okay… Just relax...”

She felt pretty relaxed already. Sure, there was a little anxiety but that always came with Bunny. After all, he was supposedly a ghost! It was hard to not get a little antsy.

But then she noticed something. She heard something. Was that wind? The chirping of crickets and night bugs too, like she had just stepped outside. But the temperature remained the same.

“Alright, take a look! But remember, remember, you’re still in your house. It’s all just a daydream.”

So, Ness dared to open her eyes.

And was shocked to see that her apartment was gone. She could feel the couch underneath her but suddenly she was outside sitting on a grassy hill under a pink and orange sunset sky.

Except it wasn’t real. It was almost cartoonish, animated, sort of how Bunny broke that line between mascot and looking sort of like a cartoon. He was beside her too, sitting on the grass.

“You see it?” he asked.

“I’m seeing it,” she said, wide-eyed.

“But what are you seeing? Tell me about it.”

“We’re on a… hill.” She looked down the grassy slope and in the distance realized she could see some quaint houses clustered together, like a little village. “And a town?”

“Bingo! Alright, you’re seeing it!” Bunny said excitedly. He hopped to his feet and offered his hand. “And there’s a whole lot more to see.”

Ness started to get up-

“No, no, don’t get up. Just imagine yourself getting up. Think about it.”

So, Ness did. She thought about it like it was a daydream and then imagined herself getting up, and taking his hand, and she rose from the ground while sitting on the couch.

And yet when she took his hand to stand, it felt real. She could feel his fuzzy gloved hand on hers. It felt as real as the wind on her face.

“Now, let me give you the grand tour!” he said. Then he began to pull her down the hill.

They didn’t walk far- the world shifted like a jump cut and suddenly they were entering into the town she had seen from the hill. And it was amazing. Some of the details were vague and fuzzy, but the homes looked almost like little log dollhouses, and there were so many shops with windows filled with all sorts of delicacies. Smoked meats, candied fruits, handmade toys, trinkets…

Like a dozen dioramas looking out through a warm, orange-tinted glow. Everywhere looked so welcoming.

And it wasn’t empty either. Beside one of the large wooden cabins in the distance, there was an anthropomorphic beaver in green overalls and a backwards baseball cap cutting logs on a stump. His eyes almost entirely obscured by a fridge of dark brown hair, but a smile on his mug. He looked like a Freddy’s character, but Ness couldn’t recognize him.

There was another, much less detailed lady who was either a mouse or a shrew walking down the street. She wore a long, light blue dress and a sunbonnet, but her face looked generic. She was the definition of a background character, but she was still there.

The town had people in it. It almost felt alive.

“Welcome to Fredbear Hills! A bustling little town located between the Sapphire Sea, the Wild Woods, and a whole lot of grassy plains. This place started out as a diner opened by Fredbear, opened in the middle of dead nowhere until places started opening around it and now it’s literally the center of the universe,” Bunny explained.

“Oh wow, this…” Ness’ eyes lit up as she found herself embracing the dream world. “This is so cool! Is that Chica?!”

She pointed at the glass windows of a nearby, white-painted shop. One with a sign out front that read ‘Sweet Tooth Bakery’ in big pink lettering. Through the glass she could see a plump chicken refilling the dessert displays with a fresh batch of cupcake.

It was clearly Chica, but this version was unknown to Ness. She was wearing a frilly pink apron and her three feathers were long and curly, hanging down her back like a ponytail. Her eyelashes were longer too. In fact, if anything, this looked almost like an older version of the chicken. If Chica herself was a sort of ageless character, this Chica gave a distinct mom feel.

“That’s her! She runs the local bakery, as you can see. She’s a really sweet chick!” Bunny introduced. “We’ll stop in and see her on the way back, but FIRST! Gotta take you to see the big bear.”

“Freddy?”

“The one and only!”

They continued walking down the street, through places that were so well detailed that they looked like the real world and blips of spots that faded out. Unimportant, unnecessary, until they arrived in the center of town. Ness could tell without asking because of the enormous fountain surrounded by park benches and some flowerbeds and planters.

Sitting at one of the benches was a familiar bear reading a book. It was clearly Freddy Fazbear but like with Chica his design had been tweaked. In this case just with him wearing a green plaid flannel.

“Hey, Freddy!” Bunny called.

The bear looked up from his book and smiled, and got up to greet them.

“Well, hello there! Bunny, who’s your friend here?” Freddy asked warmly.

Now, Ness had seen most of the old Freddy cartoon series. Not all the episodes, but she could remember the typical Freddy voices. This didn’t sound like them- but of course, Bunny must’ve come up with the voice himself. Not that it bothered her. He had a warm, fatherly voice. Young enough to play games but old enough to have authority.

“This is Vanessa. As you can tell, she’s a human,” Bunny introduced. He leaned over and whispered behind his hand. “We don’t get a lot of humans.”

“Now that’s not entirely true! You forget about Max and Mitzi, and the Sorcerer,” Freddy reminded him.

Bunny gave Ness an unenthused look. “Sorry. Good humans.”

Ness smiled a little. Freddy gave a good-natured but disagreeing hum and closed his book before stretching out his hand.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Vanessa! Welcome to Fredbear Hills!” Freddy greeted.

She cautiously took his hand and shook it. Funny, it looked just as real as Bunny did, and she could feel fuzzy warmth, but it didn’t feel nearly as precise as Bunny’s own. Like shaking the hand of a teddy bear.

It actually wasn’t too bad.

“I’m… I’m glad to be here!” Ness said.

“We should have a welcome party!” Freddy suggested.

“You get started without us. I’m going to take her to see the diner first.”

“The diner? Are you sure? It pretty overgrown out there…”

“Ah, Freddy, Daddio, we’ll be fine!” Bunny brushed off. He threw an arm around the bear. “Worst case scenario, it looks real ugly and we get covered in dust.”

Freddy chuckled and rubbed his chin.

“Well, it’s not too pretty to look at, but if you insist- at least take a walking stick!”

“I’ll pick up a stick on the way over,” Bunny somewhat shrugged off. “We’ll be back before dark.”

“Then you better hurry!” Freddy chuckled.

He waved as Bunny waved for Ness to follow and started leading her away. She waved back, watching him as long as she could, as he eventually turned and started heading off towards Chica’s bakery, likely.

He felt so real. Even if he didn’t FEEL real.

“Do you control what they say?” she dared to ask.

“Yes and no. Like, yeah, I control all of this, but I keep them in character. I don’t think about what they’re going to say, I just… y’know, let it come to me!” Bunny explained. “Hope it doesn’t kill the mood.”

“No, it’s great! It’s all so real,” Ness complimented. “And I’m… I’m still on the couch?”

“You’re still on the couch. AND I can prove it.”

“How?”

He grinned. “Let’s go for a run.”

She looked visibly confused.

“We’re going to run all the way to the diner, yeah? And you’re going to notice something pretty funny, but I’m not going to tell you what it is until we get there.”

This should’ve unnerved her. She did feel a little nervous every time he suggested anything, but… by now she had started to trust him a bit more. If he was planning something devious, he had waited a long time to get there.

“But I should warn you, I’m the fastest rabbit in a town made up of about twenty rabbits,” he said.

“So, it’s not a race?”

“No, it’s still a race.”

“It can’t be a race! You’re a rabbit and I’m stuck on a couch!”

“Yeah, I know,” he said cheekily. “Threetwoone, go!”

Suddenly he was off and she was on his heels if only because she didn’t know what would happen if he left her behind.

It was like a strange rendition of Alice in Wonderland where Alice was chasing a yellow rabbit through a Freddy’s-themed wonderland. Lacking all the general kookiness but still having that whimsy of being in a whole different world.

And yet still being just a dream. Maybe that’s why she kept up as best as she could, because she felt like if she fell behind, she would wake up on the couch and the adventure would be over.

They ran out of the village and through the fields, and in the distance she could see snowcapped mountains poking up into the sunset. A darkened border to the brilliant colors.

The world shifted shortly after and suddenly it seemed there was a building in the distance, blocked by overgrown weeds. A non-descript building truly, with a half-fallen sign that read ‘something-something’ diner, but the somethings were so dirtied that it was impossible to make out what they originally said.

“Here we are!” Bunny announced as they slowed to a stop. He turned around to face her. “How’re you feeling?”                                                                                                

“Uh, okay,” Ness said, half questioning it.

“Not like you just ran a mile, right?” he clarified.

“…Hey, you’re right! Oh wow, yeah, no, I feel fine!”

It had felt like she had run but now that she stopped it felt like she hadn’t even moved, not even winded.

“That’s crazy,” she mused.

“I know! Just like the real thing! Speaking of…” He stepped aside and stretched an arm out. “Welcome to the old diner!”

It wasn’t a very impressive building. Not just because of the faded sign, but the faded paint, the gnarled tree out front, the boarded-up windows, the ugly yellow bear standee faded out front-

“Yeah, it looks real ugly,” Bunny agreed.

“I don’t think that! I just… I guess I kind of expected it to be like the rest of the town? Why’s this one so abandoned? Oh, wait, because you said Fredbear disappeared.”

“Nah, that’s just a part of the story to explain him not being here. Truth is… Well, you’re about to find out. Let’s get inside.”

Bunny waded through waist-high weeds as he headed to the front steps, going much slower and continuously stealing looks over his shoulder to make sure she was following. She hesitated at first in case of snakes, before deeming it silly and catching up. It was clear that Bunny wanted her to see this more than anything else for whatever reason.

He opened the faded red double doors and led her inside, and Ness was struck by an unexpected sight.

The inside was completely different from the outside. It wasn’t worn down and abandoned; it looked just like new. It looked like a real restaurant.

Most of it was made up by a dining room, with tables topped with red-checkered tablecloths, congregated around an empty stage off towards the wall. There were other doors and areas, but they had fallen mostly into shadow while the dining room was illuminated by a couple of non-descript covered lights. There was music playing, it almost sounded like lullaby music.

It smelled lived in. There was the edge of pizza that had been cooked a while ago, but also a woody scent. It was very distinct because up until this point nothing had smelled like anything. This smelt real.

But something was… off. She couldn’t explain it, but things seemed especially blurry in the corners of the room. Not just because of the shadows but something seemed a little… fuzzy.

Then there were things that looked inexplicitly clear. Like the bear standee by the door, almost matching the one outside. It was as clear as day.

Also-

“Is that a bar?” she pointed off to the side.

“Yeeaaaah.”

Bunny cleared his throat.

“This place closed after Fredbear disappeared. Or that’s the story.”

“What really happened then?” Ness asked.

“So, here’s the thing about this dump,” he began. He walked over and lifted himself onto the stage. “The reason this place looks like garbage is because I didn’t make it. THIS!” He did a little hop and splayed his arms. “Is what the real Fredbear’s Family Diner used to look like in its prime.”

“Wait… WAIT! You mean THE Fredbear’s Family Diner?! The original Freddy’s?!” Ness shouted in surprise.

Bunny seemed pleased. “You’ve heard about it.”

“Of course I have! I mean, I’ve never seen it and I don’t know a bunch except about them having Fredbear and… I think it shut down because a kid went missing?”

“Nah, I think it shut down because a kid got bit. Who cares about missing kids, am I right?” he asked a little bitterly.

But Ness was still caught up on what he said. “A kid got bit? By who?!”

“Ehhh, jury’s out,” Bunny shrugged off. “Not important. Point is, this place was a real big deal back in the day. Everything you know about Freddy’s comes off of this! THIS is where it all began!”

He knew she would appreciate that considering who her father was and what he was trying to do with that new Freddy’s of his, or whatever it was.

“Back then there wasn’t a Freddy Fazbear, oh no. There was Fredbear.”

With a clap of his hands the lights went off and came back on, and suddenly there was a Fredbear animatronic standing beside him. Or not entirely an animatronic. They had a mascot too, right? One that someone wore? This one definitely looked more like an animatronic, with fake yellowish fur and big glassy eyes. Wearing only a bowtie and a top hat.

He was a little intimidating, but also pretty cute. And didn’t have the weirdly realistic bear look of some of the posters she had seen.

“Hi, Fredbear.” She waved.

Bunny chuckled and gestured a hand over his shoulder. “Then there was Bonnie.”

He snapped his fingers and the lights flickered again, and a second animatronic appeared on the stage behind his back. It resembled the Fredbear a lot, with then yellowed color scheme and a purple bowtie at its throat. Its silver eyes staring dead ahead and its blocky white teeth spread into an open grin.

It was a Bonnie. It was a yellow Bonnie.

Oh God no.

“Gotta be honest. Not sure why Bonnie was here. Of all the animals to pair with a bear, a bunny? Guess it’s got a ring to it. Can’t say he’s my favorite, but he’s the one I got stuck with,” Bunny explained, pulling his jacket out matter-of-factly. He then pointed his thumbs at both animatronics. “These guys used to dance on stage while people ate and got drunk, and not always in that order.”

With a sudden jerky moment, the two animatronics sudden sprung to life and began to dance just how they were supposed to. Not with the stiff robotic movements, but their real movements, when people were inside. So fluid that you’d swear that they were the real thing, the real Fredbear and Bonnie dancing their hearts out on stage.

Fredbear bouncing his hands in a little shuffle, Bonnie shimming and kicking out his leg, both dancing separately but totally in sync.

And Ness…

…

…Something was wrong with Ness.

Bunny locked onto that expression instantly. Somehow, he hadn’t felt it through her, but he could see it on her face and now it was very clear. She was upset. Maybe afraid? Okay, the dancing bots were a little creepy in hindsight. He stopped them instantly and hopped down off the stage.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay! I’m making them do it, remember?” he reminded her.

“No, it’s great! I think they’re re-ally cool!” Her voice caught despite herself.

“I think cool’s pushing it,” Bunny said with a chuckle. “…Buuut?”

Ness’ mouth squirmed and she looked back towards the stage uneasily.

“Look, if you’re not feeling it, we can get out of here. We can go back to town, or we can just call it quits altogether. We’ve been in here a while.”

“No, that’s not it…”

This reminded her of things. Things she wasn’t supposed to talk about. Things she was supposed to forget but couldn’t help but remember. Those sorts of things.

Maybe she wanted to tell him. Maybe she could tell him since he knew about Freddy’s, or maybe he would get upset when she brought it up, like her parents did. Just like mom said, it was her own fault for wandering off. She was apologetic at first, everyone always was, but then they reached the threshold where they didn’t want to hear any more and she had to clam up.

Would Bunny be any different? I mean, he brought her this far. He showed her all this…

And Bunny was insanely curious. It took all his willpower not to pry, but he held back.

And in a way, that helped Ness come to her own decision.

“Something… happened… to me once.”

Bunny looked surprised. “At Freddy’s?” he guessed.

“Sort of…”

Bunny’s look changed instantly. From one of concern to one of dread, and his ruby eyes briefly flickered to the stage before popping back to her.

“...Can I see it?”

He wanted to- Could he? And did she really want to show him? Nobody else had seen it before.

It wasn’t that big of a deal; she should’ve just gotten over it. Everyone told her she was so lucky, that she should be thankful, but they didn’t know what happened.

Maybe he would understand.

“…O-Okay. How?”

Bunny took her hand. “Tell me about it and think about it as you do, then I’ll work my magic and bring it out here.”

She wasn’t sure if she wanted to see it again, but she nodded. She thought long and hard about what she remembered.

“We were at Fall Fest…”

“What’s that?”

“It’s this carnival that happens every year. I don’t remember where though. There were rides and game booths where you could win prizes, and pumpkins everywhere…”

Slowly, the diner shifted and instead of seeing a stage she could see the banner for Fall Fest, and the more she remembered it the clearer it was. She even started to remember things she had forgotten over the years, like all the pumpkins carved to look like Freddy and friends characters.

“Hey, there’s Freddy!” Bunny added. “This was a Freddy’s thing?”

“I don’t know… Maybe! There was a lot of Freddy stuff there. There was this shooting game with an animatronic bear, but I can’t remember his face…” Suddenly she saw the stall, and the bear standing in a booth beside it. His face was marred and darkened. “That’s kind of creepy…”

“It’s just like a black spot in your memory. Don’t worry about it,” Bunny assured. “Where are you?”

“I’m…? Oh, you mean where I was! I was… hmm…”

Ness looked around at the things she remembered, and then it clicked where it had started.

The scene pieced together in front of them with some effort as Ness tried to remember and imagine at the same time, recalling what she would’ve looked like. She was wearing a pink sweater and a pair of overalls, but the sweater was on over the overalls so it just looked like a pair of jeans. She had on her favorite bright pink sneakers too, and a pink headband with little rhinestones on it.

She was looking around at the stuff at the food stall. The smell of popcorn and corndogs made her hungry, but the freshly spun cotton candy was also tempting her. There was so much candy.

The sound of music and ambience was interrupted by muffled voices arguing from nearby. Ness didn’t have to look to know who was there, but since she could imagine it so easily Bunny could see them clear as day.

“Those your parents?” he asked.

“Yeah…” Ness licked her lips uncomfortably. “They always fight like this… Used to, I mean. Before they got divorced.”

“Yikes. Sounds like that might’ve not been a bad idea,” Bunny mused.

“It was my fault. They were happy and everything was fine. Then I said I was hungry, and Dad started trying to buy me something, and Mom said I’d spoil my dinner, and then they’re off again.”

“Doesn’t sound like your fault.”

“It was, because I shouldn’t have asked. I wasn’t really hungry; I just wanted fair food…”

Bunny was picking up on something. He wasn’t sure what it was, but he noticed it.

“Who goes to a place like this and doesn’t try the food?” he asked.

Ness looked at him and smiled, he grinned back.

Then she got a sudden look of dread. She was looking past him, and he turned to see what she saw.

There was a man standing at the counter beside Ness now. As Bunny turned to see him, he began to speak, though his words were muffled. Just like the parents’ fighting.

Almost like Ness was blocking them out.

“What’s he saying?” Bunny asked.

“He’s, uh…”

The man smiled warmly and pointed at the stall, and Ness nodded and said something. Then the man talked to the person manning the stall, their face entirely obscured and ended up getting two candy apples. One he handed over to younger Ness, who got a big, thankful smile on her face.

Bunny was able to read his lips and pit them and the muffled words together.

“Here you go, Little Lady. Now be careful where you bite!” He made a mock biting motion and young Ness giggled.

“Huh, nice guy… Wait, wait a second.” Bunny squinted at the man’s blurry face. “That guy…” he mumbled.

“So-,” Ness interrupted. She couldn’t stop now. “So, I, uh… I ate my candy apple, and my parents were still busy, so I went off on my own to explore.”

The scenery changed and moved, and Ness wobbled as it did, taken off-guard by how it did even though it was her thoughts controlling it.

She saw the merry-go-round, it slowly filling into place. It was huge though she couldn’t tell if it was always that big or if it was a trick of her memories from remembering it as a little girl. There were three sections of rideable characters spinning around each other. Bears and bunnies, chickens and cupcakes.

“Oh wow…” Bunny said. His eyes alit with wonder. “Did you ride that?”

“Yup! The man running it let me on even though I didn’t have any tickets or money. I think he felt bad for me,” Ness said.

“You want to ride it again? I bet I can take your memories and cook us up a, uh…”

Bunny trailed off as he noticed Ness staring off again. She snapped her head back to him quickly, almost like she didn’t intend to get caught. He couldn’t help it; he had to look.

It was the man again. He was standing off beside the carousel watching the kids ride.

He looked a lot like… He looked so much like…

“I shouldn’t have waved…” Ness whispered.

Bunny looked for himself and sure enough, little Ness passed by on the back of a Chica and waved at the man who waved back.

Then, out of nowhere, the scene seemed to unravel before them. The carousel melted away in a blend of colors as Bunny caught up with the intrusive memories filling Ness’ mind. She looked around, startled, not realizing that it was by her own thoughts that the Fall Fest had shifted so drastically. Bunny creating it as it came to him.

Both worked to spawn it and yet both stared in shock and confusion as the scene opened before them. By the edge of the carnival, where the grass gave way to gravel and the sights were less glamorous.

Where there was no one…

Except Ness and the man. He was crouched forward talking to her, and Ness was looking up with full attention and worry. She seemed upset about something.

“What’s he saying?” Bunny asked.

“He said…” He could hear an echo of the man’s voice that started to speak up alongside hers as she explained. “He said he lost his puppy… And that he needed somebody to help him find it… He even showed me her collar. Her name was Daisy.”

“Oh God,” Bunny choked.

He already knew. But Ness couldn’t stop.

“And I went with him because I wasn’t thinking. It was so, so stupid. I just felt like I should help him because he was nice to me. My parents always taught me that it was good to show your appreciation, especially from strangers. Because the world- Th-The world’s not so nice…”

Her breathing quickened as she watched the van slowly appear in view. Worn paint. Smelled like exhaust. She didn’t see what was written on the side, so it was blurred out.

Ness covered her face and momentarily the world went dark. Bunny could feel her trying to block it out, and HIM out in the process. He didn’t fight it, he just held on, trying to figure out what to do. What to say.

She was breathing heavily still. Just on the borderline before hyperventilation.

“Hey, we can stop,” he started.

“No, I’m okay! I-I’m just… A-Are you uncomfortable?” Ness dared to ask.

“Am I uncomfortable?” Bunny asked in disbelief. What kind of- “No, I’m just kind of creeped out. By him! Not you. No worse than what was going on with the bear.”

Was that the edge of a smile or a grimace? He couldn’t tell. Ness swallowed thickly.

“O-Okay… I’m going to look again… What does it look like?”

“Looks like darkness. You closed me out.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry! It’s not something to be sorry about. I’m the one poking around in here.”

“Well… I’m going to look again… Am I going to be inside of the van?”

“I don’t know.”

“You’re a lot of help,” Ness mumbled.

“Thanks,” Bunny said with a forced grin.

She took a deep breath and peeked out through her fingers. It was darkness, like he said.

She remembered peeking through her fingers in that place… and as she did, the place filled in. The painted walls depicting a blue sky alit by fluorescent lights, the green grass replaced with thin carpet, and a swing set and slide.

She remembered this place but now seeing it as an adult made it so much creepier.

“Is that a playground?” Bunny asked, squinting his eyes in disbelief.

“I don’t know,” Ness squeaked.

“What the heck is this?”

“I don’t know.”

She regretted snapping at him instantly. After an uncomfortable silence she spoke.

“I’m sorry.”

“No problem.”

“I know you told me not to say sorry-.”

“I’ll accept it this time,” Bunny said. It was almost like he was trying to lighten the mood, but unfortunately it didn’t budge.

The room was too overwhelming. Even without knowing what it was it held a sort of disturbing aura. Unwholesome. Painted like a daycare but felt and smelt like a damp basement.

She remembered swinging down here.

She saw herself swinging.

“…I swung a lot. When he didn’t need me,” Ness explained.

She almost told him that for a while she had stupidly seen this as a good thing. All the swinging she wanted, no school, no fighting, and she got candy. Those feelings only lasted the first day before things changed.

He had told her every day that her parents were coming and would be there tomorrow and were late or busy. She believed him. Not because she was naïve- though she was- but because she was sure that they were too busy to come get her. Maybe they decided not to get her at all.

Maybe she would stay there forever.

“What did he need you for?” Bunny dared to ask.

She knew it was coming fast from how the scene peeled away and she fought them but also allowed them, making sure to control exactly what was coming through.

They were in a bedroom. There was a bright pink bed surrounded by sterile grey walls, only broken up by a big picture of a flower on the wall. There was a nightstand too with a lamp. It felt very fake and empty.

Bunny grew more uneasy as he looked around the room. He recognized it. Not this room exactly, but this same scene. Another one just like this, with a blue bed in the corner, tiled floor, and toys piled up for him to play with when he wasn’t making himself useful.

Thankfully the room still stayed hers and didn’t fade into his.

“I stayed here. Sorry, I’m just trying to not make it jump to… stuff,” Ness explained.

“You don’t have to show me anything you don’t want to,” Bunny said vacantly. She didn’t notice his shift in tone.

“I want to! I’ve never had a chance to tell anybody. The police-… it didn’t work out.”

“Uh-huh,” Bunny said distantly. “You can tell me…”

“So… It was only a few days, I think, but I can’t really tell? Sometimes he’d… he-he’d want me to play hide and seek in these big dark rooms with… robots. He told me I was teaching them. And sometimes I was in a hallway- I don’t remember it all…”

Ness took a steadying breath. “But after a couple of days… something changed and he… I don’t remember what happened, but he was mad about something, at me, and he put these things on my fingers- Ah!”

Ness cried out when she stole a look at her hand and noticed it had changed. There was metal wrapped around her fingers. Metal bars clamping onto her fingers with posts sticking through them, holding them together, and two screws on top to tighten the bars until they crushed the bones trapped between them.

And they worked. They crushed bones easily, especially little girl bones.

She began to hyperventilate when suddenly Bunny grabbed her hand, lacing his fingers in with hers, hiding or erasing the metal. She couldn’t feel it while his soft fabric fingers were between hers.

“Hey, listen to me. It’s not real. All of this is just stuff that happened a long time ago. It can’t hurt you,” he affirmed.

“You’re sure? Everything feels real!”

“Yeah, but I control it, remember? I’ll just take them off.” He tapped the top of her hand. “And now they’re gone.”

“I don’t want to look.”

“That’s okay.”

He squeezed her hand. She couldn’t feel the metal at all anymore, but she was still unsettled.

Bunny dared to ask, “Did he…?”

She nodded stiffly. “Both hands.”

“Holy shit…” It was weird hearing him swear, it almost seemed unwholesome in a way. “Nessie, I’m so sorry.”

She wanted to tell him that she was fine, but she just whimpered a little. It sounded pathetic. She felt pathetic.

But when he squeezed her hand, she could actually feel it, and it gave her a comfort she needed.

“Let’s stop,” he suggested.

“N-No. It’s okay. It’s almost done. I can’t remember most of it…” She licked her dry lips. “Th-There was another time where he made me sit in this suit and he told me if I moved at all that it would crush me…”

“You believed him?”

“He showed me scars- he’d been in an accident in one once and it left all these scars all over him.”

“Oh GOD it was probably one of those wearable suits,” Bunny muttered. “The one’s on stage, right? That’s why you got that look.”

Ness’ mouth was tight. She seemed uncertain about something.

“That’s why you were upset, right?” Bunny asked.

She looked down, shaking her head a little.

“There’s a reason- why I’m telling you this. It’s- It’s not because I’m broken or weird and I can’t function or anything like that. I’m fine! I haven’t thought about this in years!” She put up her hands defensively. “But in that diner… Okay, I’m going to show you.”

Something about her only now saying she was going to show him something, as though the last ten minutes-

Bunny’s thoughts cut off sharply at the squeak of an opening door. The bedroom door, which was now in front of them, was slowly opened and a pair of yellow ears stuck through, and then a head.

A very familiar rabbit’s head. Though its metallic silver eyes were now replaced with the sunken eyes of a human being, looking wild through the holes of the suit.

Ness gave a little squeak and resisted the urge to cover her face and block him out, instead keeping her arms firm to her sides.

“That’s him…”

“Ohhhhkay. Oh okay…”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to ruin the diner and Bonnie, but he was wearing a suit that looked just like that one,” Ness explained.

“…I knew I recognized him somewhere.”

Ness was confused. “What?”

“I know him.”

“Who…?” Ness trailed off when she heard a sound.

She couldn’t tell where it was coming from, but it was there. In her ears.                                                                                                 

“Do you hear that?” she whispered.

Bunny was still locking eyes with the rabbit frozen in the doorway. Both as still as statues.

Ness felt something creep up in her. It was a sickness, a sort of fear that turned her stomach. Different from before, different from reliving her memories. It wasn’t the same as facing the horrors of what she had seen, it felt like she was somewhere she wasn’t supposed to be, hearing something she wasn’t supposed to.

It was crying. Like a little kid crying, but it didn’t sound right. Drawn out and dragged out, low and weak.

And gurgling.

“M omm a… Mo mma…”

Not babbling, gurgling.

And she turned her head slowly to see what had changed behind her.

And the second she did-

Bunny grabbed her and rounded her back. He looked panicked and distorted. His cartoonish design looking both too real and not real enough at the same time with his wide eyes.

“Don’t look, don’t look!” he raced out. “It’s nothing! Just this place playing tricks on us, y’know, like nightmares. I’m thinking, you’re thinking, and it’s blurring together, and we’re getting out of here right now.”

He thrust a hand over her eyes, repeatedly telling her, “Don’t look. Don’t look.” As he yanked back control and went to fix the world.

And by time he uncovered her eyes again- for a split second she saw her apartment again and it made her feel light-headed- but then they were back in the field. Standing in the grass together where they first started.

Bunny looked haggard. It was all in his expression too, nothing else had changed. He gestured for her to sit down, and she nodded and sat with him in the grass. And for a long moment neither of them said anything.

She wanted to ask him about what happened, but she couldn’t muster up the nerve. He beat her to it anyways.

“So, uh… how’d you get away?” he asked.

“He let me go…”

“He let you go?” Bunny asked in disbelief.

“I know! I know… I know there were a lot of kids who disappeared and weren’t found. I’m the lucky one…” Ness said, almost sourly. “…Maybe because my parents were on the news? I think that’s why he was mad at me. I remember him telling me the day he did the… you know.” She waggled her fingers. “I kept thinking they were going to show up after that, but they didn’t…”

Bunny looked sympathetic, and sad.

“He just dropped me off the side of the road and then somebody found me. And I saw my parents at the police station.”

“Well… at least they showed up.”

Despite the horrendous memories, Ness found that comment funny enough to snicker a little. Though she quickly suppressed it. She looked at Bunny, remembering what she saw.

“How did you know him?” she gently asked.

“Oh… yeah.” Bunny turned away, his arms resting on his knees. “He’s the reason I’m a rabbit.”

That confirmed her suspicions entirely.

“Oh… Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry!”

“Don’t be! I’m fine!” Bunny quickly interjected. “It happened to you too!”

“I know, but what happened to you was so much worse-!”

“Don’t. Don’t ever say that. Don’t even think that. It’s not a competition,” Bunny said firmly. He then put on another smile. “We’re in the same boat. Just like you, I came out the other side and I’m doing great. Okay, maybe I’m possessing a doll and look like a bunny. Not super great, but I’m all good in here.” He pointed to his head. “And that’s where it counts.”

Ness managed a smile. “Yeah.”

“And trust me, THAT doesn’t usually happen,” Bunny assured, pointing a thumb off somewhere. “This is my happy place. The only weird rabbits are me, Bonnie, and Uncle Bucktooth.”

“Who?”

“Ah, you’ll love him! He’ll probably be at that shindig Freddy’s throwing!” Bunny seemed to sink into himself a little self-consciously. “If you still want to go…?”

He wanted to go, and he didn’t want to go alone.

“You know what? Sure! I don’t want to go home,” Ness agreed.

“Me neither!”

So, they got up together, Bunny whisked them into town, and they went into Freddy’s house where he threw a party with a bunch of goofy cartoon characters, only half of which Ness recognized as Freddy’s characters.

It was warm, friendly, everything both needed to forget the cold hard reality they had to face.

She never told him that she had seen his body.

She never told him that she had seen the bloody stain around the bunny doll’s eye.

.

It was tense.

Ness was almost nervous to see Bunny the next day. It just felt awkward now that he had seen all of that, even if he had comforted her through it. Even if they spent so much longer in his dream world.

It was such a weird feeling to want to be comforted by him again and yet being so embarrassed for showing such a vulnerable side of herself. It was almost like she had broken a rule. Like she had done something terribly wrong. She was almost too embarrassed to face him, but eventually she had to.

“Good morning, Bunny,” she said to the unusually empty apartment. He hadn’t been there when she had woken up, but she knew he was there.

And as soon as she called him, he appeared.

“Hey.”

She had to turn to find and face him, and she was instantly startled when she noticed something had changed.                                                                                                

Him. He changed. Specifically, his coloring. His yellow fur had shifted color and was now an off-white, with the brown patches remaining the same. He just had turned from yellow to white.

“You changed color!” she said almost tactlessly. She then slapped on a quick, “I like it!”

“You do? Good. Great,” Bunny said. He chuckled a little, sounding relieved, and rubbed at the side of his face. “I just thought, you know… Maybe we’ve had enough of yellow rabbits.”

And in that moment, somehow, Ness was assured that he did understand. That they weren’t so unalike. In fact, they were a lot more similar than she could’ve ever considered.

In that moment, they became something more.

…

“I want to tell you something, Ness, but you’ve got to promise me it stays between us.”

“Sure! Okay, what is it?”

“It’s my name.”

“Oh… wow. Okay please.”

And he did. And she never forgot it.

…

It was a normal afternoon at the apartment. Ness had just finished up some paperwork she had to bring home, which had taken a needlessly long amount of time with Bunny being a distraction.

But one part of their conversation had made her curious and she just had to ask.

“Hey, I was wondering. This might be a stupid question, but could you possess me?”

He gave her a startled look, almost as though he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“I kinda am,” he admitted.

“I know, but I meant like with the doll. Could you get inside of me? N-Not forever! I just meant for, you know, if you wanted to go somewhere with me, like work.”

“Oh, heck yeah, work? I’m in,” he said sarcastically. That being said, he seemed uncertain. “IIII think I could, maybe? I don’t know, I don’t think I’d be able to stay in there full time. And I don’t want to do anything that’s going to weird you out.”

“I’m the one who asked! Do you, uh…” She wrung at her sleeve a little. “Do you want to try?”

This had the means to backfire spectacularly.

But what the hell. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

“Let’s take a shot at it. Here’s how we do it…” Bunny cut off as he tried to think of how to do it. “…Okay, pick up my doll.”

Ness nodded and got up, reached over, and grabbed the doll off her bed.

“And sit down.”

She sat on the side of the bed. He stepped in front of her.

He held up his hands, face furrowed as he tried to figure out how to do this. It seemed so easy to jump into a body in theory, but this was a human body. This was going to be different; it had to be.

But he latched on, so he had to be able to do this.

“Here we go…”

Ness took a deep breath and closed her eyes, and Bunny took that as his cue to grab fully ahold. Reaching fully out of the doll and taking hold. There was some resistance, but not much. Ness was letting him in.

When Ness opened her eyes everything looked the same, but Bunny was gone.

“Bunny?”

“I’m here,” she answered herself.

No, that wasn’t her. That was Bunny talking through her.

“Oh, wow. It worked…” he said in disbelief. She could feel her mouth moving, her voice speaking, but not by her own will. “Ohhh WOW everything feels so…” He ran her hand over the bedding beside them. “Real.”

She could feel his excitement bubbling up inside of her.

“Can I stand up?” he asked. “Sure!” she spoke up.

He very slowly and carefully started to stand from the bed, still holding the plush body in the crook of his arm. Every motion was cautious, as though he would do the wrong thing and break Ness’ body in two.

It felt so weird to be in a living person. It felt so warm and comforting but also terrifying.

“Okay, here’s what I’m going to do…” Bunny said. Though saying it through Ness’ mouth instead of in her head. “I’m going to go into the kitchen.” He pointed at the kitchen with both hands. “Okay?”

“Okay,” Ness agreed.

Her body shifted and moved. She could feel all of it, it felt like she was doing it herself, but it wasn’t of her volition. But since she wasn’t fighting against him it felt as natural and walking.

They stepped into the kitchen together, standing in front of the fridge.

“I’m going to reach up.”

“Go ahead.”

He reached up and grabbed ahold of the box on top of the fridge and pulled it off. The packaged food inside all slid out and fell to the floor.

“Well, shit.”

Ness giggled and it made it out of her even with Bunny in control. He snickered a little too.

“Brace yourself, I’m bending down!”

He boldly crouched down and shoved the packages back into the box before putting them on the counter, stealing one and trying to pull it open. After some brief fighting, he pulled the plastic apart and freed the treat inside, and pulled out a sweet and spongey Twinkie out of its packaging.

“Alright, here we go…”

And then he shoved it in their mouth.

He bit off more than he could chew and choked on the first bite, but then managed to make his way through it, moaning at the sugary taste.

“Good, right?” Ness thought.

“Soooo good,” Bunny said through her.

“I’m taking you to Fry Me Taco tonight. You are going to LOVE it,” Ness promised.

Bunny loved that idea, giving an agreeable hum through his mouthful of twinkie.

She tried something without considering it.

Ness lifted her other hand. Bunny slowed in his chewing and watched her movements, not concerned but curious. Ness reached up to her opposite shoulder and petted her upper arm. He hummed pleasantly at the touch.

She could still touch him even out of the dream world.

She couldn’t hug him, but she could hug herself and he would feel it.

And she wanted to. He was adorable.

…

To say things escalated suddenly would be a bit of an understatement.

The idea of romance never crossed Ness’ mind. Well, maybe for a fleeting moment, but nothing serious. Bunny was like this weird magical friend in a way- or friendly ghost, more correctly. The strange roommate from a sitcom. The talking animal companion from a fantasy movie. He was Bunny.

But then something happened.

They were dancing, believe it or not. Not in Fredbear Hills, but in her apartment. They spent so much time there now that it was a little weird to have a night in, but it was never boring. Tonight was no exception.

It started with him showing her the difference between the Freddy and Bonnie shuffle, and her replicating it. Then it devolved into them just doing a bunch of random dances.

She was having a lot of fun. So much so that she almost missed when Bunny suddenly started looking at her funny. Eventually she noticed and looked over questioningly.

Maybe she did something really dorky, she thought. A dance move so unabashedly retro that it went past his love of the 70s-80s feel and left him utterly dumbstruck.

She got an awkward smile and that was what sealed his resolve, even if she didn’t know it. Because before she could ask, he started to lean in. Her heartrate quickened as she realized what he was doing.

He was leaning in to kiss her.

He was going to kiss her.

And then- he suddenly pulled back. He whipped back so fast and wide-eyed that it was as though he had just avoided kissing a hot stove. His hands yanked up in defense.

“Sorry! Sorry. I don’t know what happened there. Just got caught up in the moment.”

Ness had never felt so equally off-guard, disappointed, and startled by her disappointment than she did in that moment. It was a rush of unexpected emotions that left her flushed and weightless.

“No! It’s okay! I wasn’t-…”

She made a few hand gestures towards herself in an encouraging motion. Beckoning him to continue. Giving her okay for him to continue with whatever he was planning on doing.

And he almost did. He started to step in again-

And then backed off.

“No, I made it weird. I’ll go for it some other time.”

Some other time… He was going to try again?

“Okay, what I mean is-,” Bunny tried to correct, but the deed was already done. Even if he didn’t know it.

Though he probably considered it when Ness suddenly took up the reins and stepped forward instead. Because if he wasn’t, but he wanted to, and did she want to-? She wanted to. Because it was Bunny.

She leaned in slowly. Slow enough that Bunny could’ve pulled back, giving him plenty of time to second-guess it. She couldn’t close her eyes, so she narrowed them to a squint, just enough to see him past her lashes in case she went right through him.

She expected to feel nothing.

And… she almost didn’t. But then as she reached him, as he suddenly closed in, as they met together, she felt it.

She could vaguely feel the tingle of him. Like walking into a fine mist, prickling along her skin. It had to be the hold he had on her more than anything else, filling in the space where he was supposed to be like when they were dreaming together. Almost real, just on the verge of being real.

It almost wasn’t enough. So much and yet not enough. Just like dream.

A romantic, almost tragic thought.

If she could even think. Her mind didn’t catch up until they pulled apart once again and that was when everything rushed to catch up with her. When she found herself looking at him again, looking so close to real.

He was beaming almost in disbelief. His brown bangs fluffed askew, making him look handsome. For a rabbit. Despite being a rabbit. A rabbit with a human soul. Human, but different, like her.

That was the moment Ness first realized she was falling, and she did nothing to brace for impact.

…

“So, if you want to maybe go catch an early dinner, I’m free! Or maybe just snag that coffee.”

Ness barely kept a straight face at the irritated groan that only she could hear.

“Sorry, Luis. It sounds fun! But I’ve got to go grocery shopping after work.”

“Okay, no problem! Maybe some other time. Hey, but where are you going? All-mart?”

“For crying out loud, Luis, that was a NO, not a YEAH COME JOIN US,” Bunny grumbled in the back of Ness’ head.

Now that Bunny was witnessing Luis firsthand, he wasn’t nearly so keen on joking about him anymore. The guy was annoying.

No, worse. He was competition.

He was the opposite of everything Bunny was. He was too grounded in reality, to focused on work, and in a disturbing twist of fate, his favorite Freddy’s character was the NEW Monty. Not the old Monty, the one with the mohawk, ugh.

He made Bunny want to grind his teeth, and Ness found it pretty funny. The only highlight of this exchange.

Bunny just didn’t like Luis. He didn’t like how much he was pushing on his girlfriend.

…Whoa, wait. Was it too early to say that? Sure, they kissed, and there was that sleepy love you, but did that mean they were dating?

…You know, he thought so. They probably were! At least they were more than she and Luis was. Just because they talked sometimes didn’t mean they were dating, even if Luis was always trying to hang out and throwing little gifts Ness’ way. A random candy bar, some specialty coupons- they weren’t anything compared to the gifts Bunny gave her.

Then again, the gifts Bunny gave her weren’t real. They were trinkets in their fantasy world. It wasn’t like presenting her with something real.

But maybe he could. He’d have to borrow a little cash off her for it, but he could make up for it by taking over her shifts for a few days. That alone was a gift in and of itself, but not good enough.

And he already had an idea in mind…

So, once Luis wandered off, Bunny went for it.

“Hey, I want to buy something. Can I borrow your credit card?” Bunny asked.

This sort of surprised Ness. It wouldn’t be the first time he asked if he could buy something- though usually that was impulse buys that they both wanted in the candy and chip sections of whatever store they were at.

This was new, but intriguing.

“Okay, but nothing crazy!” she mock-scolded. She pulled up her purse from under her desk and sat it in her lap.

“Yes, Ma’am! Now I need you to close your eyes.”

“…I don’t think that’s going to work.”

“Y’know, I don’t either. Alright, I’m going to cover your eyes and do it quick, okay?”

Ness considered it, but agreed. “Okay, but hurry. I’m at work!”

She could see his hand sliding around her head and covering her eyes, but that wasn’t what was happening she knew. He was borrowing her eyes and blocking her vision out, like he did when they went to Fredbear Hills. It made her feel claustrophobic all of a sudden, and her heartrate briefly increased, but it steadied itself at the familiar sounds of the office and quick clicking on keys.

Bunny was a man on a mission. Mumbling under her breath as he did.

“Jussst clicking here. Looking, looking… Click! Okay, on website. Just browwwsiiiing… Bingo.”

Ness could only listen with suspense as he clicked away at the keys to go through with the purchase, hearing him hum to himself and… the sound of approaching footsteps. And she had a hunch who they belonged to.

“Bunny, I think he’s coming back.”

“Ugh, of course he is…” he mumbled under his breath.

“Don’t say anything I wouldn’t say!” Ness reminded.

“I won’t. Ngh, come on. Minimize.”

“Hey, I forgot to tell you. We just got in a case of some of the new Fizzy Faz flavors they’re going to be launching. I’ll be breaking it open later so if you want, I’ll save you a couple of your choice. No more than two though or Dan will wring my neck,” Luis joked. He noticed the computer screen. “What’s up?”

“Nothing!” Ness’ hand tried to cover the screen as the mouse misclicked around the minimize button. Bunny was never great with computer mice.

“Are you buying some-?”

“NO!”

Luis’s brows raised. Ness’ eyebrows knitted apologetically, in an almost genuine way.

“…It’s a gift.”

“For Kayla?” Luis guessed.

“Yeah, don’t tell her. Don’t say it out loud or anything.”

“That’s a great idea! Here, let me pitch in-.”

“No, no. You don’t have to. I’m already ordering it, so uh… you owe me!”

Bunny regretted that instantly. There was nearly a sparkle in Luis’ eyes, as though reading his brush-off as genuine playfulness and accepting the challenge head-on. He only gave him a reason to ask for coffee.

“Well, I need to go back to work now. See you later!” Bunny said. Being cordial just to get rid of the guy so he could finish up.

“Sure! I’ll see you around. And hey, if you change your mind, you know where I am.”

“Ha, ha. Yeah…”

Luis finally wandered off, and Bunny was able to finish up and hand control back to Ness.

“There we go! All done! Thank you a ton.”

“Thank YOU for not exploding on Luis,” Ness whispered. She could see again, and she saw that the computer screen… was back on the spreadsheets. “What did you buy?”

“You’ll see.”

And Ness wondered about it, and asked, a few more times. Wondering what it was and when it would come.

It came the next day. They delivered them directly to the office.

It was a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Roses of red, white, and pink with a few scattered baby’s breath poking out in between. They were beautiful, and the fragrance matched.

There was a little card too, and Ness checked what had been written on it.

“Flowers for our grave.”

Ooo, that was awful. It was a joke, obviously, but…

…It felt very romantic to her. Like a ‘til death do us part’ but without the parting. Like a little secret only between them.

And when her co-workers asked, she decided to take the plunge and say that her boyfriend bought them for her. A tingly warmth enveloped her chest, and she couldn’t tell if it was her or Bunny, but it felt good.

It felt right.

…

Bunny couldn’t say that he liked being left out of the loop. Knowing what he did about his surroundings was his only advantage in an existence when he had to borrow bodies just to keep hanging on.

His only form of control was keeping tabs and knowing what was going on, so the idea of a surprise for him was a little… less appealing than whipping up something for Ness.

If it had been a surprise that lasted for a few hours or a day then that would be fine, he could handle it. But whatever Ness had been planning to surprise him with was taking a long time. And not just time, but time where she explicitly asked him to not watch what she was doing in the apartment. Which was excruciating.

But hey, if he could hold out from peeping on Ness when she was walking around in her underwear- something that he might be able to do now that they were dating, he would have to ask- then he could keep his eyes closed on this, whatever it was.

Now this was it, the grand reveal. Ness was pulling together the final touches of whatever it was in the bathroom while he stayed with his dull doll body until he got the go ahead.

“Oookay, are you ready?” Ness called out.

“Ready!” Bunny called.

“Are you suuuure?”

“Oh, Honeybunny. Don’t you tease me.”

He could hear her giggling. She sounded so excited; it made his non-existent heart leap with his own excitement. He wanted to see; he wanted to know what had her so giddy.

“Come on, Nessie! I’m ready!”

“Good! Because here I come!”

The bathroom door swung open, and Ness came twirling out before spreading her arms and giving a little bow.

And that was when Bunny got to see what it was that Ness had been devoting so much of her time to.

It was a costume- but not just any costume. It was a rabbit costume, with long cockeyed eyes and pink, soft fabric. All stitched together lovingly with a few patches of grey and pale fabric mixed in, hugging her body and covering every inch of skin. Ending in a pair of booted feet, or a pair of pink padded gloves.

All topped by a rabbit head mask. It had feminine features; large red eyes with noticeable lashes, delicately curves whiskers, and a stretched dark smile dotted with a couple of buckteeth.

Finally, a dark blue bow sat at her throat. Something that was very telling. As telling as the white and patchy color scheme.

She wanted to be a bunny like him- No, it was more than that. She was trying to look like him. No, not that either. She made a real, physical, tangible way for her to be his perfect other half. Putting on the rabbit guise just as eagerly as he had, willingly, happily. Accepting him as he was and matching it with the same desire.

It was mind-blowing.

“Ta-da! What do you think?” She kicked back her foot while poking her fingers into her mask’s cheeks. “…Well?”

She glanced around to see if any apparition was going to appear but no, it was like she was alone in the apartment. She looked back to the doll on the bed and tilted her head questioningly.

But he was still unusually quiet.

She deflated a little bit, suddenly self-conscious about the suit and wondering if she had stepped out of line.

It was really silly, wasn’t it? He was the rabbit, not her- Wait, what if she offended him? That was exactly what she wanted to avoid. Maybe he thought her labor of love was some sort of sick mockery.

“It’s alright if you don’t like it-.”

“You…” Bunny interrupted. “Look amazing.”

Suddenly he was in front of her. So suddenly that she jumped a little but then was more than happy to turn in place to show off more of her costume to his eager red eyes.

She recognized that tone; it wasn’t disappointment, it was awe. He loved it!

“Thank you! I was afraid maybe I went a little too far, but I thought wouldn’t it be cute if I had one too? I could use it for Halloween or, I don’t know, I could just wear it around the house. It’s pretty comfy!” Ness somewhat rambled as she twisted around. “I’ve got a tail too!”

“I know, and I can’t keep my eyes off of it,” Bunny purred.

Oh, if he had real, tangible hands they would be all over her right now, and it killed him that he couldn’t so much as hold her like this.

But it was hard to get disappointed when she looked THIS good.

“You look soooo good, Nessie,” he said lowly. In a tone she was less familiar with but nonetheless thrilled with.

Ness sputtered and fumbled out something giggly and embarrassed.

She was never taking it off! Or, well, she’d at least be wearing it a lot more often.

Maybe more often than she could’ve ever realized…

…

She had made so many changes for him. Couldn’t he do the same?

…
This would be a huge risk, but it had to be worth it. If it went right, then… everything would change forever.

Bunny might’ve been afraid of change, but nowhere near as afraid as he was of stagnation. It was time to take the next step. It was time to become someone again.

So, he willingly let her slip from his grasp. Ness too did the same as she reached inside of the open panel and put the rabbit doll into the depths of the machine. She wasn’t sure how to do it, but she tried to tangle and tie it up in the loose wires around the back. Somewhat securing it but mostly having it dangle.

The doll almost looked sad hanging in there so forlornly. Now missing an ear and a foot; one sewn into her mask for a tighter bond and the other for insurance if anything went south. There was a backup in case anything went wrong.

And yet it was still so hard to let go.

But she did.

There was silence for a moment.

“Bunny?”

Nothing.

“Honeybunny…?”

And then Bonnie suddenly shuddered. His eyes alit in a bright red glow, half-closed eyelids opening entirely as though in shock. He twitched, jaw clenching and teeth chattering, and his hands flexing at his sides.

Ness watched the struggle with her fists at her chest, poised to do something but not knowing what else to do except wait.

There was a crackly noise through the speaker as Bonnie’s arm lurched upwards. Ness flinched back reflexively but refused to move any further.

Bonnie’s eyes finally locked onto her, blinking out of sync, and his mouth opened a little bit as though in a smile.

His arm slowly started to move towards her with a hum until…

His hand was pressed against her masked cheek. Then his fingers coiled in to hold her. Stiff, unfamiliar, but him.

She giggled with relief and stepped in, throwing caution to the wind and her arms around him, hugging onto the much larger body.

And in that moment, he was truly real. And they were truly together.

…

“Hey, Ness!”

Ness’ mouth went tight with sudden anxiety, and she snapped her head over to see Luis bounding up.

Of course he would be here. All the employees had gotten the day to test out some of the functioning attractions of the Pizzaplex- and work on whatever was busted. She just didn’t think he would find her over here in Rockstar Row, tucked away outside one of the green rooms with a photo pass clutched in her hand like a permission slip.

As he came over with an excited smile, she felt her own excitement deflating. It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate him, but this was the worst time for him to show up.

“What are you doing hiding over here?”

She felt called out.

“Meet and greet! Going to get a picture with Glamrock Bonnie,” Ness explained, flashing the pass.

“Wait, they have the animatronics working already? I thought Freddy was down.”

“I think he is? I didn’t see any Freddy passes, and the Roxy ones were already snapped up.”

The ONLY reason they were getting anything for free was because Fazbear Entertainment wanted to test the stuff they had finished so far, in a building that was only half-finished. The raceway hadn’t even been completed, and yet there was already a line of eager employees wanting to get pictures with Roxanne Wolf.

And Ness liked Roxy, sure, but there was only one choice. This was the only chance she had during the daytime.

“Bonnie’s my favorite,” Ness remarked.

“He’s a classic,” Luis agreed. “Mine has to be Monty. If he counts since he’s not in the main band.”

“He’s cool too,” she agreed. “Sooo, what are you going to go do?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, what are you doing now?”

“Coming to see what you’re up to! Hey, maybe after you get your photo session we can go try the Fazpad. Finally get that cup of coffee we’ve been talking about!” Luis offered.

Ness considered how to answer.

Though she lost the need to when the automatic door behind her suddenly slid open with a clang.

Luis looked up at the towering figure standing behind Ness. It was Glamrock Bonnie.

Something about how it looked at him filled him with chills.

“Well, hi there! I hear there’s a special friend here with a super cool party pass!” Glamrock Bonnie greeted. “Why don’tcha let me scan your pass and we can get started on your one-on-one meet-and-greet!”

“O-Okay!” Ness agreed.

She held up the photo pass with the back facing him. His eyes alit and he scanned the code quickly.

“Thank you! Looks like you’re all set for the photo op. Come on in!”

“Thank you, Mr. Bonnie.”

“For you, Miss, Bonnie’s just fine,” he said with a wink.

Ness gave an embarrassed giggle.

He stepped aside and she headed inside the indigo and cyan themed greenroom. Luis started to follow, only to suddenly have Bonnie sidestep behind Ness and stand right in front of him. Luis looked up in confusion.

“Ah, ah. Sorry, friend,” Bonnie said. He tilted his head down, his eyes compensating for the shadow by the irises gleaming red. “But this is a one-on-one party. Sorry!”

Then the automatic door slammed shut.

Luis had a weird feeling from Glamrock Bonnie, but he assumed that it was just because it was a robot. That must’ve been it.

Ness watched Luis walk off from behind the curtain, only to feel Bunny sidle up behind him to watch. Luis sat down on a bench near the other side of Rockstar Row.

“He’s really going to just sit there and wait for you to come out, isn’t he?”

Ness turned and mock-punched him on the abs a few times. Despite it hurting her knuckles and him barely hearing it at all, he gave an almost reactive.

“Oww!”

“Don’t be mean,” Ness barely scolded. “He’s just being nice! It’s not his fault that he has really bad timing.”

“Yeah, nice. Suuure,” Bunny said with a little eyeroll. He cocked his head towards the curtains. “What’s the chance of him getting bored and wandering off?”

“Slim to none,” Ness admitted.

“Then let’s give him something to hear,” Bunny suggested.

He offered her his hand and she eagerly took it, despite slight confusion about what he meant. She couldn’t help but be curiously excited for what he had planned though.

They hadn’t been together as much. Sure, they were always together, but recently Bonnie’s attention had mostly been at the Pizzaplex due to Jake and Andrew. Which was exactly why Ness had been spending so many nights there. But still, sometimes it was like two ships passing in the night.

Bunny guided her by the hand to his couch and got her to sit down before hurrying back to the vanity, where he had left his bass propped up against it.

It seemed weird to make a song only of bass notes, but at least it would give a good backup beat. He steadily strummed his fingers along the strings as he built up to the moment.

“This is…” he began. “For the princess in the tower.”

Three. Two. One.

“To the princess in the tower, the girl waiting right outside my reach. I watch her sit and while away the hours, trapped in a castle of her dreams~.”

He looked to Ness with a wink. “And all I want to do is make her my queen~.”

She instantly got that big, goofy grin that he adored with all his heart.

“But first she’s got to hear me, and so I’ve got to sing~.”

He began to cross the room towards her, strumming as he did but keeping his eyes on her.

“To the princess in the tower, with eyes of ocean blue. I’ve been waiting my whole life to find a treasure just like you~.”

He stopped to strum. “So, I’ll climb, climb, climb~!” Along with the beat. “If it means that I’ll get through~.”

She was smiling so wide that it hurt. “And I’ll try, try, try~!” She felt so flustered, almost embarrassed but in a good way. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do- for you~.”

He knelt on one knee, looking up at her with wide eyes filled that same love. She was nearly bubbling over in her spot, almost shaking with excitement, buzzing with it.

“To the princess in the tower, the queen of my dreams. I would stay awake and fight the dragons just for a chance to go to sleep, and see yooou…~” He strummed slower. “’Cause I need yooo-oo-ou~.”

Ness shivered, and Bunny noticed.

“To set me free~…” he purred.

She tried to suppress a giddy giggle. She even kicked one of her feet a little but quickly stopped as to not accidentally kick him. Not that he minded any.

“You liked it?” he asked.

“YES!” Ness nearly exploded. “I LOVE IT!”

“You do?!”

“I do!”

She eagerly hopped forward to hug him, peppering kisses across his brow and down his face before meeting his mouth. No lips, but still warm, still tingly. She could feel the haze and feel her real Bunny under Bonnie.

And Bunny? He felt like a real rockstar. He dropped his bass aside and swept her up into his arms, and he felt alive.

…

The Pizzaplex never quite felt like home, but Ness never complained. She put on a smile and slept on whatever couch, whatever cot, whatever she could find where she wouldn’t get caught while Bunny watched over her.

But it didn’t feel like enough. Seeing her curled up under that dull little comforter on a cot in the corner of the bowling alley’s security office was heartbreaking. She deserved better than that.

So, one night he started working on something new, and for days he would plot and plan whenever he had a moment. Until it was perfect.

Then, one day, Ness went to sleep at the Pizzaplex…

…and she woke up in a castle.

…

She couldn’t breath. She couldn’t think. She could just huddle under the desk with shaking hands as she processed what happened.

Maybe he was okay, she tried to tell herself. Maybe he was just knocked out.

That snap didn’t sound okay though. She had never heard a neck snap but somehow, she identified it instantly. It was so loud that it broke through the haze of her suit and mask, bringing her out of her reverie and back to harsh reality. The illusion shattered, the castle gone, and her alone… until she wasn’t.

She thought Bunny was being awfully quiet. She assumed he was in shock, and it wasn’t until she heard the heavy footsteps rapidly approaching the office that she realized he was coming for her.

Bonnie slammed into the office door, apparently assuming it was going to automatically pop open. Then, once he regained his bearings, and knocked heavily.

“Nessie?!”

Ness was already in the process of getting to her feet and diving at the door, slapping her hand on the button to open it up. The moment the way was cleared she all but threw herself into his arms.

“I gotcha. I gotcha. It’s okay,” he assured her. He caught her and held her close and tight.

“What about Ray? Is he okay?” she choked out.

“I, uh… I don’t know. Jake and Andrew are with him now.”

Somehow, she knew that meant no. She knew he was gone.

She didn’t ask any more questions. She just held on for dear life while Bunny unsuccessfully tried to convince her, and himself, that everything would somehow end up alright.

People disappeared at Freddy’s all the time. Who would notice one more?

And the funny part was… they didn’t really.

…

“How in the actual F- ugh- HECK, HELL, how in the HELL does Freddy Fazbear’s not own Bonnie the Bunny?!”

Bunny was furious, that much was clear. Ness hated to be the bearer of bad news, and she especially hated the horrible ramifications of what this could mean for them.

Would they destroy him? Would they reformat him into a new character? Sell him off? Would he half to leave his new body?

Could he even leave his new body…?

Bunny finally noticed the state Ness was in, sitting with her knees pulled to her chest on her little cot, hugging herself. Looking just as shaken as she had on the day Ray died. He rushed to her side.

“Hey, hey, I’m not mad at you, okay? It’s not your fault. Stuff like this happens,” he assured her. He knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his. “We’re going to figure this out, Honeybunny. There’s always a way.”

“I-I know. Worst case scenario we just go back home, right?”

“Right! Heh, sharing a body with you again ain’t the end of the world,” he said.

Though while he said this, she still wished there was something she could do. There had to be something she could do.

…

She pulled some strings. She found out more than she was supposed to.

About the testing in the basement.

About the bodies down there.

But in the end, she would wish she had never told him. After where he ended up.

…

Ness almost screamed. She had to cover the mouth of her mask with both hands to suffocate it as she watched Bonnie’s broken body lurch upright in the recharge station. He looked to her in shock and stuck up a busted-up hand in assurance.

“It’s okay!” he cried.

His voice sounded crackly. His voice box was busted too. EVERYTHING was busted.

That’s when she saw the busted state of his left eye and choked on a sob, her eyes filling with tears as she looked at how much had been broken and ripped apart.

She couldn’t imagine how something this terrible could’ve happened, but she could easily imagine how much it must’ve hurt. And then to find him down here, surrounded in trash- he was surrounded in garbage! Had they thrown him out?! How could this happen? How was she not here when this happened, the one time he truly needed her?

Meanwhile, Bunny tried desperately to put out a growing fire. Waving his arms and trying to grin and pretend like he hadn’t just lost the first body he had owned in years only to get stuck in another coffin.

“Baby, baby, n-no! It’s good! I’m f-fine!” he assured.

“What happened?!” she choked.

“I fell, no big-iggie! Happened like, y’know, tha-at!” He tapped his broken fingers like he would’ve if he could’ve snapped them. “Over in an inst-tant.”

She started to cry. He could hear her soft sobs and see her body shake even with her face hidden by Vanny’s constant smile.

“Ness, really, it’s okay. It’s just a body!”

“I don’t CARE about the body, I care about YOU!” Ness cried.

“I didn’t feel a thing! Like- Come here. Come over here, just be careful wher-re you step.”

Ness was quick to cross over the trash and drop to her knees at his side, all but falling forward onto him and hugging on- only to quickly sit upright and pull back.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry, did I hurt you?”

“Are y-you kidding? After the uh-…” Bunny’s brain just barely caught up with him in time to remind him that maybe bringing up him slam into the scaffolding wouldn’t be a good idea. “Y-You’re good, Nessie.”

For emphasis, he hooked his arm around her and pulled her in close, until she was practically on top of him. Just so he could rest his head on hers.

Only then did it really dawn on him what all he had lost because of that stupid stunt…

But those thoughts of regret were quickly dashed as Ness reached for his chest and started to open him up. His glowing red eyes flickered between her gloved hands and her. “What are we doing?”

“Getting you out and going home,” Ness said firmly. She reached in and felt around for his rabbit doll. “Or finding another body. Or something. We’ll figure it out.”

She was having trouble locating the doll and was then surprised by Bunny catching her wrist. She didn’t dare push past with how broke he was, not wanting to risk hurting him. If she wasn’t already.

“Wait… Let’s just slow down. Let’s not do anything hasty,” he said.

“But you’re broken. I mean, no, this body is broken. And I don’t think the technicians are going to repair it…”

He knew they wouldn’t either, but…

“…You don’t think you could call in a favor?” he dared to ask.

“They’re trying to replace you, Sweetheart. If they find out you’re… They’ll just… If they take you downstairs-.” She was starting to cry again. She pulled free her hand and covered her masked face with the other one. “I’m sorry, I don’t want to scare you. I just- I don’t know what to do…”

“And that’s why I’m down here,” he said. “Nobody’s going to look for me down here. I’m totally off the grid.”

“But then what? You’re just going to live down here? In the garbage?” She gestured out with exasperation. “Look at all the trash!”

“I know, b-but I’m staying. But not for long.”

Bunny pulled himself upright enough to fully sit up. He leaned on his elbow and took her hand with his, and reached into himself with the other, finding and pulling his doll to the opening where she could see it but where it was still densely tangled up in his internal wiring.

“We just keep with the plan. Find the bodies, get me in one, and get out of here. If I leave now, we’re going to lose our window.”

“Are you sure? If they find you…”

There will be no second chance.

“Yeah,” Bunny agreed. “I’m sure.”

But he wasn’t.

But it was okay, because he had Ness to keep him strong. He couldn’t run back to her apartment to hide because he needed to be more, for her, and her cuddling up on his arm only solidified this decision.

Because it was just a body, but it could mean so much more. Because it was worth the risk, because his life was so empty without it, because she needed him to be better.

But no matter what happened he was sure that she would be by his side forever.

…

..

Until she was ripped away from him.

Well, no. Technically it was he that was ripped away from her. Torn away with her mask as it was removed by the paramedics. The mask was his tether; there was no chance of choosing to hold fully onto her once it was so callously ripped away to clear her airways.

At the time it was fine. He could live with it. As long as she lived, he didn’t care what happened to him. He had told her that while he was begging and pleading for her to hang on as he held her on the Fazer Blast floor. Feeling the excruciating pain in her hips and back, and trying to numb it away as she laid there broken on the floor. Waiting desperately for help to arrive and tear him away from her.

And now he was truly along. He didn’t even know where she was or if she was alright. IF she lived. If she died… If he would ever see her again either way.

It wasn’t supposed to end like this.

And he found himself worse off than ever. Back to square one: no friends, no family, heart empty and hollow.

Forgotten.

And worthless.

And useless.

He had lost everyone and everything once again. The message was clear: there was no happily ever after. There was no way out of that suffocating coffin. The door was locked tight, and the walls were closing in.

No way out. Nowhere to run. Stuck suffocating in the dirt. Bleeding out on the floor. It didn’t matter where it was or what it was, it was death through and through. The slow and torturous kind.

He understood now. He knew that this was how it was going to be.

And if this was how it had to be. If he had to die like this…

Then he was taking everyone down with him.

Starting and ending with Fazbear Entertainment. Killing Daddy’s precious company.

He wouldn’t go quietly. He would go out of this world kicking and screaming, like he should’ve all those years ago.

And this time, n̷o̷b̴o̶d̷y̵ would forget.

Chapter 102

Chapter Summary

Bunny puts his plan into effect, but he can't do it alone, and soon unfortunate accomplices are dragged along for the ride. But in the end, only one can take the fall...

When Carlton first woke up, late, sprawled out on his comforter staring at the ceiling, he thought for a second that it had all been a dream. He hoped that it had all been a terrible nightmare.

“Good morning, Sleepyhead.”

That lasted a grand total of twelve seconds.

Carlton slowly turned his head, and his eyes went wide as he saw the rabbit sat at his desk. Reclined in his chair, but with the chair stuck firm in place as though there was nothing in it at all. Bunny cracked his knuckles.

“Let’s get to work, eh? Sooner we get this done, sooner you can get back to sleep.”

Suddenly Carlton’s body wasn’t his own. He was sitting up and getting off of the bed NOT on his own accord and getting to his somewhat wobbly feet. Bunny was gone from the desk and Carlton took his place by falling heavily into the chair and scooting up close to his sleeping computer.

If Carlton thought that Bunny might need him to do something on the computer, then he was sorely mistaken. Bunny knew exactly what he was doing, pulling up the internet explorer and then an email website that he didn’t use and logging into an account that he didn’t know about, and then typing up a mass email that it took him a good few minutes just typing up the names for.

The final product:

From: _pizzaplex
To: James Wight, Fazbear Entertainment Office Staff, Pizzaplex Technician Staff, Fazbear Finance Depa… +7 more.

ALL STAFF MEETING AT 2PM. ATTENDANCE IS MANDATORY.

We will be discussing recent situations in and around the Pizzaplex followed by a light lunch. There will be cake!

The meeting will be held at 2PM sharp at the subfloor Employee Cafeteria in the Mega Pizzaplex.

Thank you.

T.

“There we go!” Bunny cracked his- now Carlton’s- knuckles again and then quickly shook them out when it hurt. “God, drink some milk sometime.”

“What are you doing?” Carlton asked uneasily.

“Oh, this is just all part of my glorious plan to expose Freddy’s for the cesspool it is. Step one’s complete, now we gotta move onto step two- and I’ll need you for that too. But first! How about we get a late breakfast?”

Carlton didn’t exactly disagree with breakfast, maybe it’d buy him a few minutes to stop and think, when his body lurched upright and they started out of the bedroom and into the living room and then into the kitchen.

Bunny scoured through and around the fridge for something to eat.

“You don’t have anything sweet, do you?” he asked. “Y’know, cake, cookies, churros?”

“Uh… Banana?”

“Eh, banana. Where?”

To his shock, Carlton was allowed to sit upright and point at the counter where the bunch of bananas was sitting.

“Thanks.” Then Bunny took over to grab a banana, awkwardly peeling it open and beginning to eat with surprisingly careful, tiny bites.

He was used to eating for Ness. Ness needed tiny, careful bites so that she didn’t choke or hurt her stomach. Carlton could’ve probably downed the banana in one gulp if he tried hard enough.

It was weird, Bunny mused. This should’ve felt right. This guy had to be his age just about, so this body would’ve felt like his own. But it still felt foreign and awkward- then again, carrottop here WAS awkward.

While he chomped at the banana, Bunny made his way into the living room and started looking around the fireplace. It was cool, kind of like the one that Freddy had in his cabin.

And for a split-second Carlton saw a strange den that wasn’t his. It looked rustic, with a big fireplace covered in picture frames filed with photos of… Freddy characters?

“What?” he choked through a mouthful of banana.

“Don’t worry about that! I’m just thinking,” Bunny brushed off. He wasn’t talking though. His voice was deep in Carlton’s head, like his own thoughts. “We’re on the same wavelength now, Friendo.”

He could hear his thoughts.

“That’s right.”

Oh no.

“It’s your own fault. You think loud, if that makes any sense.”

How could he even stop thinking? He tried. He tried to blank his mind and not think of anything, but the thoughts edged up wondering if he was doing it right, wondering what was going to happen next.

Before Carlton noticed his eyes leveling on a familiar picture on the mantle. His hand reached up and pulled it down to look as he took another bite out of the banana.

It was a picture of him and his friends taken when they first reunited a couple of years ago, before he, John, and Charlie had snuck into Foxy’s after closing. Marla was in the middle with an arm around Charlie on one side and Jessica on the other. John was close over Charlie’s shoulder while Lamar stood by Jessica’s. Carlton was standing behind them shooting two thumbs up. They were all smiling, happy to be together again.

They had taken that photo down after Charlie died and only put it up again after she came back. It had been too painful to look at until it wasn’t anymore, and now it was just a reminder of the girl she used to be.

…Wait, why was he thinking so much about Charlie?

…Because he was looking at her. Bunny was staring at Charlie with his, Carlton’s, eyes squinted like he was trying to figure something out on his own. And once Carlton figured that out, Bunny called him out.

“What’s the deal with Charlie?” he asked.

“Why…?” Carlton dragged out.

“She’s Mars’ little partner, right? His ‘protégé’ or whatever. What’s her deal?”

Carlton had to be careful. He couldn’t tell him too much. In fact, maybe he could deflect and get out of it altogether.

“Why? You got a crush on her or something?” he asked.

“I’ve got a girlfriend,” Bunny hissed bitterly. “Why, do you?”

Of course not. Charlie was one of his closest friends. He hadn’t had feelings for her since they were kids-.

“Well damn, you DID, didn’t you?” Bunny asked slyly. “And you’ve got a girlfriend, you sly dog.”

“I didn’t say that! That was a long time ago. I was just a kid,” Carlton deflected. Though then he noticed what he had said. “Wait, how did you know I had a girlfriend?”

“Because you just thought it, genius! What did I say about me poking around in your thoughts? You’re an open book.”

He knew everything a second before he could even say it.

“Well, not everything. So, do me a favor, yeah? How about you tell me what I want to hear, and I’ll stop poking around for it, m’kay?” Bunny suggested. “You keep your privacy and I get what I need.”

Bunny sat the picture back on the mantle and turned away, stepping over to the couch and plopping down on it, kicking his feet up on the coffee table.

“So, let’s skip the puppet talk and get down to business…” Bunny said. He took a bite of the banana and thought out the rest, “So, who’s the scariest animatronic y’know? And by scariest, I mean the most powerful. Who do you know who’s a real threat to mankind?”

Carlton didn’t want to answer that question, but something prodded him and it was suddenly like he couldn’t stop his thoughts from racing out.

Maybe Marionette, he thought. He was mobile. He took out that fake Freddy that tried to eat Charlie that one time WHAT no keep going- not Foxy. Foxy was tough but he couldn’t be the toughest. That Moon guy was pretty creepy no he’s just a total pushover give me something good to work with. I know you’re holding out on me. Give him up.

Carlton remembered that time Ennard ripped the head off of that fake Foxy in one sharp movement. He remembered him faking the voices and what he told him about that Funtime Freddy he took apart-

“BINGO. Thanks, Bud! You’ve been a H-UGE help!” Bunny complimented. “Let’s finish up here, go get my mask, and go find him. Whaddya say?”

“Oh crap…” Carlton mumbled through a mouthful of banana.

“That’s the spirit!”

He turned on the TV to some cartoons to watch as they finished the banana, then they put on their shoes, and they went down to get the mask. Bunny pried some sort of disk off it with a butterknife and shoved it in Carlton’s pocket, then carried the mask under his arm as they left the house and headed to his car.

Carlton desperately hoped his father would show up before they left. That he could somehow figure out that something was wrong. He would, he had been possessed himself and knew what to look for, but he didn’t show. Then Carlton had to face the dreaded realization that Bunny was about to drive him across town.

Thankfully, Bunny was capable of driving. He didn’t drive well, he was swerving a little too much around corners, but he at least wasn’t going too fast. But every uneven turn made Carlton’s stomach lurch.

“Hey everybody, get the hell off my lawn. Wanna shoot myself in the fa-a-ace!~” he sung.

Any other circumstances and that might’ve gotten a snort out of him. Here Carlton could only watch in terror as the world moved past. Knowing that Bunny was picking up his unintentional cues and driving himself right to Scott’s house.

And at Scott’s house, the household was none-the-wiser at the approaching threat.

It was a quiet afternoon. Baby was in the garage writing out lyrics for her next song, but she had her door opened so instead of feeling locked away she still felt like part of the home.

Michael was lying on the couch reading with cats and Bonnet curled up around his body. Why they wanted to get so close to his suit he didn’t have the slightest idea. Though all the cats took off the moment they heard the cracking of a can of cat food.

Scott was in the middle of making lunch, accompanied and helped by Ennard who stopped midway through to feed the cats. One pull tab crack later and suddenly there were meowing cats circling his feet crying like they hadn’t been fed in weeks. Scott grinned to himself- better Ennard than him, he thought for a second. Especially since he was working with tuna.

Unfortunately, Ennard got halfway through spooning out the cat food into one of the bowls when he decided, eh, he was just going to start feeding the cats directly. Scott was wondering what was taking so long and stole a look over his shoulder only to double take when he saw Houston chomping a mouthful of beef bites out of the spoon Ennard was holding out to him.

“Y’know, that’s a good way to make them really needy,” he warned.

“I knooow. You spoon-fed me once and now look where it got us, ha ha!” Ennard teased back.

“Hey, I didn’t start spoon-feeding you until once I was good and sure you weren’t going anywhere.” Scott grinned down at him. “Plus, you’re pretty cute when you beg… I mean, uh. Wait, that didn’t sound right.”

“Ha! Since when have I ever had to beg?” Ennard asked, resting his head against his hip, peering up at him.

“W-Well, I’m just- Heh, uh, that sort of came out wrong. That was a joke!”

“Mm-hm,” Ennard hummed. He hooked his free arm around Scott’s leg and leaned in to kiss him on the side of it. “Mwah!”

Scott chuckled a little, still flustered by his supposed slip-up. “Love you~.”

“Love you too~ Mwah!” he kissed his hip. “This is as far as I can get unless you bend down. The kitties need me.”

“Give me twenty seconds.”

Scott hurried to finish one of the sandwiches and cut it in two, handing half down to Ennard before lowering himself to sit beside him. He then caught the clown by the back of the head and guided him into a gentle peck before he could get in his first bite. Ennard giggling happily as he pulled him in closer, beeping his nose against his before resting his head on his.

And for a while they sat there feeding the cats and eating the sandwich, having a good time.

“Seriously though, you’re going to make them needy.”

“Yeah, but they’re just so cute~.”

Neither of them knowing that it wouldn’t last, and that something was about to tear through like a hurricane.

It wasn’t until they were both up and Scott was finishing the second sandwich- and Ennard was trying to wipe off the crumbs of the old one off his suit- that there was a knock at the front door.

“I’m coming!” Scott called.

He set everything aside and went to check it. Ennard leaned back over the counter to be out of sight. Michael rolled off the couch with Bonnet under one arm and strode into the garage to see how Baby was doing and avoid being spotted, pushing the door mostly closed behind him.

Scott peeked out the window and saw Carlton standing outside. He wasn’t too shocked to see him, though he was a little confused at why Carlton parked directly on his lawn. Maybe he was in a rush to get here.

They were all aware of what happened to Natalie. Not all the details, but the fiasco at the Pizzaplex, and had been making a point of trying to have a normal day. Save Baby, who he was certain was writing a song for someone, but whether it was Charlie or Natalie he wasn’t aware yet. He would know when she tried it out on him.

Either way he answered the door.

“Hey there, Carlton. Come in,” Scott greeted.

Carlton gave a little wave and walked in. He was carrying something at his side, like a white bag. Scott shut the door behind him and turned to face him.

“What’ve you got there? Whoa!” At this angle he saw the red eyes and realized that there were folded bunny ears- that was a rabbit mask. That had to be Vanny’s mask. “What are you doing with that?”

“I think the question isss…” Carlton pulled a pocketknife out of his pocket and smoothly flipped it open with a flourish and a wicked smile. “What am I doing with this?”

Scott’s mouth dropped open. He already knew; he saw it in the glint in Carlton’s eyes, in his evil smirk.

“Yeah, that’s a pretty good question,” Ennard chimed in, having just walked out of the kitchen and only saw the knife and nothing else. It wasn’t until Carlton’s head turned and he saw the look on his face that it clicked that something was very wrong.

And in little more than a beat, there was a shift to Ennard’s demeanor as well. He went quiet, and his stare became a lot colder. Like he peeled back the clown coverage and became a Funtime once more.

“Buddy…” he said, his voice dropping an octave. “Scott doesn’t like knives. Put that down.” A sort of distortion hung over the back of his sentences. “We don’t want to have another accident, do we?”

He already figured it out and he hadn’t even seen the mask yet. It made Carlton AND Bunny’s stomach squirm in an uneasy way.

But not as uneasily as when Michael suddenly lurch-leaned out of the garage door, right in front of them.

“What are you doing here?!” Bunny spat. He turned the knife towards the rabbit and then just as quickly yanked it back and pointed it at Carlton’s face. “Don’t try anything funny or I make this pasty redhead even pastier and redder in one go.”

“God almighty,” Michael mumbled as he stepped out. He stared at Carlton wide-eyed. “…It’s you, isn’t it? Vanny?”

“Half right, actually.” Bunny lifted and shook the rabbit mask. “Looks like I’m on my own. Well, no, actuallyyy I’m NOT. You see, me and Carlton here have a little deal going. He poked around things- How many people live in this house?!” Bunny shouted as Baby came out from the doorway as well. “Okay, look. I’d love to shoot the breeze with you freaks, but I’ve got a two o’clock appointment and I need YOU.”

He pointed at Ennard. Ennard didn’t flinch, he didn’t even respond. He just stared him down.

He was planning to jump him, Bunny deduced. Not that it would do any good. In fact, direct contact might make this a lot easier.

“That is out of the question,” Baby said simply.

“You would think so, but again, I’m holding a knife and I’ve got a hostage right here- and hey, don’t try anything funny back there. You so much as grab me, and I’ll get ahold of you two. Two birds and whatever.”

Scott was somewhat considering the idea of trying to disarm Carlton, but considering how he was turned partially towards him, there really was no opening to do so. It turned out that was the better move.

“What do you want with us? If you blame us for what happened at the Pizzaplex, that was all on you,” Michael said.

“That disaster was all on your sweet little brother-.”

“Jake doesn’t seem to think so.”

That one took him off-guard. It was like a sucker punch, and it landed its mark. Bunny brushed it off quickly.

“I don’t care what Jake thinks. He had his choice and he made it, end of story,” he deflected. “And don’t think any of you are special. I don’t even WANT you. I-.”

… “&@$& #$%.” …

“What?” Michael said.

Bunny wasn’t sure what strange noise poured out of Carlton’s mouth as that flashback blipped across his vision, but he brushed that off too.

“I need HIM.” He pointed the knife towards Ennard. “Since you all won’t do it, I’m going to take out Fazbear Entertainment myself. And since you’re not going to help me, I’m taking that by force. Carlton already ratted out that he’s the toughest animatronic you’ve got. He’s coming with me to the Pizzaplex. And hey, this all works out? He goes home fine! Carrottop too. I dump them both out back and you go on fine and dandy.”

“Wait, is this about the- that- that meeting?” Scott asked.

“And how do you know about- y’know what? I don’t care. Yes, it involves the meeting. Now if everyone would shut up, Ennard, whaddya say? Want to help the cause and help out your little friend here?”

“Ha ha, ooooh you really, really don’t want me to think about it, do ya? Because if I think about it, something tells me that you’re not gonna be stupid enough to seriously hurt your new body,” Ennard said matter-of-factly, his tone chilly and phony.

Bunny felt a challenge coming on.

“Well, okay. If you’re going to make me a liar-.”

He lifted his hand and angled the knife towards it.

“Don’t,” Scott started.

Then he stabbed at his palm.

“DON’T!”

And the split second before it made contact he veered the knife out of the way. Though it became apparently quickly that it wasn’t him who did it, as Carlton’s expression suddenly shifted to panic.

“No, no! Stop!” he yelled. “Dude, what the hell?! You said you weren’t going to hurt me?!”

And then in an instant his tone and demeanor shifted back.

“Hey, you can pin that on your little clown friend over here!” Bunny retorted. He regained control entirely. “Which, by the way, I don’t have to hurt him to use him. I could just keep the body myself!”

Ennard was silent. He twitched a little bit but he mostly just stared, shaken by what he had seen.

Though it was less the threat of injuring Carlton and more the fact that Carlton was clearly aware and watching that had him so disturbed. It wasn’t like Carlton was in a trance, he was witnessing all of this. He was being strung along through every single motion.

“It’s your choice, except it’s not. Because either you come out the door with me now, or I hurt this kid in a way that won’t kill him, but he’ll never recover from. Trust me, I learned from the best,” Bunny said.

Ennard continued to stare.

And then…

He broke eye contact. He looked down, eyes shifting to the left and right as he thought, his humanity rearing its head once more.

And Bunny knew that he had him.

“Wait! You don’t have to do this. You don’t need Ennard to take down Fazbear Entertainment, or Carlton,” Scott spoke up. He raised his hands in defense and tried to sidle around Carlton, trying to block Ennard. He wasn’t the only one, Bunny noticed Michael and Baby were also right in the way. “Look… I’ll help you, okay?” he offered, slapping his hand on his own chest.

Ennard looked at him with a start.

“No, you will not,” Baby snapped.

“I have more access than Carlton will have, and I know someone at the Pizzaplex who can get me in. I can get into that meeting. Swap into me,” Scott continued.

“No, you will not,” Baby repeated. She glared back at Carlton’s body with cold, glowing eyes. “If you need a body then fine. Take mine. I have more raw strength than Ennard. I have been used before by a monster. Take me and I will perform your acts.”

Bunny sized her up. She could maybe- no. Not with that claw. She couldn’t fit in the truck either. “Nah, I really need someone who can fit in the car.”

“You leech-.”

“Then take me! Leave Ennie alone and take me!” Bonnet cried as she scuttled across the floor. Coming out of the garage and coming up on Carlton’s feet.

“Stay back!” Bunny warned.

“I can fit anywhere! And I’m a bunny too, I’ll work!”

“If I wanted a toy, I’d go find wherever the heck my old body’s laying. Now back off before I kick you.”

“Coward,” Bonnet spat.

Vicious little thing.

“Listen to me,” Michael began. His voice rumbly and dangerous.

Only to swiftly be interrupted.

“Whoa, whoa! Okay! Time out! I don’t need anybody else offering to go in my stead,” Ennard chimed up. His voice back to it’s incredibly fake chirpy demeanor. He put a hand on Scott and Baby’s shoulders and squeezed them. “Ya know what? I think I might just take him up on his offer and go with him.”

“No…?!” Scott started

“Ennard, I swear to God-,” Baby did as well.

“Well, we’ve got two options. One, I go. Two, Carlton gets cut up and bleeds all over the carpet, and THEN we still gotta skin the rabbit. This way, nobody gets hurt!” he chirped. “Until someone dooeeess.”

That wasn’t a threat, that was a promise. Bunny knew that, but at this point he was too far in to give up. It’d be over before Ennard had a chance to get to him anyways.

“Cool! Now see, that’s what I like to hear!”

“Ben, you better have a-… good reason for this,” Michael hissed. ‘A plan’ he was asking.

“Nope!”

“Ben, goddamn it.”

“Enn, don’t do this,” Scott was pleading. He leaned in, grabbing ahold of his shoulders. “There’s other options. We can get help! I’ve got- We’ve got bargaining chips?!”

He had a gun, he meant, but both of them knew it wasn’t going to help matters bringing in another weapon.

“Hey, hey, shh. I got this,” Ennard assured him. “I’ve got no choice, but I’ve got this!”

“You just said you didn’t,” Baby accused. “We outnumber him.”

“That’s just going to hurt Carlton. He’s awake in there and seeing all of this!”

“Carlton can survive a couple of broken legs if it means stopping him from taking you.”

“Please do not break Carlton’s legs or I WILL have to jump into that guy,” Bunny said, pointing towards Scott. “And you seem pretty cozy towards him.”

“Ha ha, don’t even joke like that…” Ennard said. He pulled in Scott tight to his chest. “You don’t want to hurt anybody else.”

“Oh, I plan to ruin a bunch of lives today. You all are just accomplices, not targets,” Bunny remarked.

“I am going to kill you,” Baby promised.

“Aww, but that might make Charlie sad. We wouldn’t want that,” Bunny mocked. He grinned wide at her. “Y’know,” he tapped Carlton’s own chest. “He used to have a little crush on her.”

“I know.”

“You know? How the- Oh.” He grinned with realization. “Oh, Carrottop, Carrottop, she knows. I wonder who told her that? Tough luck, friend.”

“You’re taking a sick amount of pleasure out of this.”

“Don’t even think any of this is fun for me. This is all just party prep; I’ll have fun at the meeting. So, Clown, you in?”

“I’m in,” Ennard agreed.

“Good! Then all we- Hey, don’t get any closer!”

The first real glint of amusement Ennard had gotten through that entire ordeal was from watching Bunny stumble back over Carlton’s feet, genuinely unnerved by the clown. But that was short lived as Bunny pulled something out of Carlton’s pocket and tossed it to him, which Ennard caught.

“Eat that.”

Ennard looked at the little disc. “…What is this, a battery? Bunny boy, if you think this is gonna hurt me at all, you don’t know half of the junk I’ve eaten!”

“What is that?” Michael muttered, leaning to look.

“It’s a transmitter. Or something like that, I don’t know. Ness was the technician wizard. Ask Jake, I’m sure he’ll be able to tell you,” Bunny said bitterly. “Point is, that’s going to make sure you don’t back out.”

Ennard didn’t need more than that to know that swallowing this little piece of warm, misleadingly simplistic metal bit was probably going to result in an immediate possession. Now he wasn’t just handing over his freedom, he was handing over his body.

“Can’t you just tell me what to do? Come ooon, I’m gonna be good! I don’t want anyone to get hurt,” Ennard said cheekily. It getting increasingly hard to keep the act up.

“No way. I don’t trust you for a second. You’re going to try and screw me over and botch this whole deal in the process and get someone killed.”

“Ha Ha! That’s really funny! ‘Specially coming from Afton’s backwash.”

“The hell’d you just call me?” Bunny said with genuine offense. “Just swallow the stupid thing. Deal still goes. You hop aboard the crazy train and I dump you off as soon as we’re done. Easy-peasy. Cross my heart.”

It was clear that Bunny wasn’t about to budge. Ennard figured that out.

He hated it. He hated the idea of giving his body over when he knew what it felt like- he knew what it felt like to lose control. To have your body mercilessly ripped apart and puppeteered around without your control.

…

But better him than Carlton.

“Can’t we just make a- Wait!” Scott’s pleas were cut off by Ennard popping the metal piece in his mouth and swallowing it down like it was an unwrapped candy. “Ennard, why?” he choked.

“Because maybe this means I can black out for most of it,” Ennard joked, giving him a playful little nudge.

He didn’t want to see Scott panic or see him panic as he felt the metal disc slide into his wires. It got stuck inside of them, held back by the layers of wires and layers of clothing, sitting there like a little rock. He was hyperaware of it weighing him down.

“There! That so hard? I’m going to go get the car- and FYI, don’t think about spitting that back out. I’ll know if you did and next time you’re eating an ear.”

With that, Carlton turned and hurried out and left the group momentarily alone.

“I hope he means the mask ear,” Ennard said. Though this dry joke was cut off by Baby rounding on him. “Babydoll-.”

“What are you thinking?! Handing yourself over to him?!”

“I have to protect Carlton,” Ennard affirmed.

“How on Earth did that protect Carlton?! Now he has you both!”

“Because if he has ME, he doesn’t need to use Carlton!” Ennard said, hands on his chest. “I’m the useful one here!”

“And you gave him that usefulness!” Baby shouted.

“Lizzie, stop yelling,” Michael interjected.

“Don’t pretend you are fine with this!”

“I am certainly not, but I know yelling at him won’t change anything. Not now that that THING is in control, again,” Michael spat.

“Hey, hey. Let’s not do this. Let’s just calm down…” Scott put his hands forward in case he had to separate to deescalate, putting a hand on Michael’s back and Baby’s arm. “Fighting won’t help.”

“Right! It’s already done. Nothin’ worth yelling about now,” Ennard said.

Scott huffed a little. “Ennard, if I wasn’t scared to death, I’D be yelling right now.”

“You? Yelling? I’ll believe it when I see it!”

“Ennard-!”

“I know what I’m doing,” Ennard said more seriously. “Look, look, if it’s between me, you, and Carlton, I’d rather it be me. All this stuff has happened to me before. What can that Bunny guy do that the Funtimes didn’t already do to me, eh?”

“I think the question is, what will he make you do,” Michael said.

“No clue. But I rather me be doing it than him getting Carlton killed making him do it. He’s a kid, Michael! D’you know how lucky we are that he isn’t already scarred for life?! I can’t let him get killed because I was too scared to put my own body on the line.”

Michael looked away silently.

“You’d do the same thing,” Ennard said.

“I would not,” Baby denied.

“Wha- Now Babydoll, ya almost just did! And Scottie too! All of ya’ll were willing to throw yourselves in front of me, and I wouldn’t have let any of you take the fall ‘neither! Now look, I’ve got a plan.”

He got a cunning glint to his eyes. “Bunny Boy’s not thinking this through. You all saw it, how he just ran in here and waggled a knife. This plan? Probably bad, not thought through. Which means somewhere he’s going to lower his guard and THAT’S when something he doesn’t want inside gets in. And then he’s at its mercy.”

“This is a terrible plan, but you have a point. Albeit it doesn’t help that your plan is no different than the one you criticize,” Baby said matter-of-factly.

“Yeah, but I’m a lot better at moving on my feet… D’you hear that?” Ennard squinted and looked around. “What is that?”

“What’s what?” Scott asked.

“I think he’s out there singing!”

Scott turned and looked towards the door, straining to listen, but he couldn’t hear anything. “M-Maybe it’s the TV, it’s not entirely muted.”

“Huh…”

“Ennard.” Scott turned back towards him, quickly taking his hand in his. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this… But you know I have your back. We’re going to be right behind you and whatever happens, we’ll figure it out.”

“I don’t want you to get yourself killed trying to save me, Scott. I’m already dead, I’ll live!” Ennard said sadly.

“I’m not- Well, I don’t want you to get yourself killed again trying to keep me alive!” Scott retorted.

Ennard cracked a sad smile, his eyes showing it. Scott replicated it reluctantly.

“I can’t make him think I’m okay with this,” Scott thought. “But what else am I supposed to do? Scare him to death? Chew him out and have that be the last thing he remembers before he goes.”

The fact that he already accepted that Ennard was going made him sick.

Baby and Michael were whispering amongst themselves.

“You haven’t seen what he is truly capable of. When he grabbed ahold of me… I had no chance,” Michael warned.

“All the better to stop this while we still can!” Baby protested.

“I agree, but at this point we cannot do that alone. We will need to get the others. Marion, Jake, someone who knows what we are working with.”

“Maybe we can stall. You can stall, and I can call Foxy’s and ask for help. Or Mike’s house. Do you recall if they opened today?”

“No, I didn’t ask.”

“I just…” Scott began, cutting off to a long silence. He took a deep breath. “I just don’t want to stand by and let this happen.”

“You’re not. You’re not,” Ennard assured him. He squeezed his hand. “My choice.”

“What choice?”

“No choice, but it’s still mine.”

Scott smiled a little and looked down at the floor.

“I know, but… This isn’t exactly the kind of choice I think you should make so quickly. I know it’s for Carlton, but maybe there’s another way?”

Ennard squeezed his hand.

“…Okay, I know you’re right. You’re right! I would’ve done the same thing,” Scott admitted. “I just… I guess I really wish it wasn’t you making the choice. I don’t get it, why would he want you? Wait, let’s think about this.”

He covered his eyes with one hand to process.

“There’s a staff meeting this afternoon, something that usually doesn’t happen at Fazbear Entertainment, and he wants you and Carlton to take down the company. It sounds like he’s planning on using you to attack them, but if he said he wasn’t going to hurt anyone-… but he didn’t. He just said he wouldn’t hurt you or Carlton. That has to be what he’s planning. To... do that.”

Ennard’s hand squeezed tighter. His glove was very hot.

“But how are you planning on getting out of that? Do you think you can resist him at all?” Scott asked, looking up at Ennard for confirmation.

Ennard had a vacant stare in his eyes. He looked a little frightened.

“Do you think you can?”

It looked like a no, but…

Ennard twitched. His eyes suddenly yanking left and back forward again. Not like he was looking at anything, but like something was glitching out inside. He wasn’t looking at anything anymore, just staring right through.

“Ennard?!”

Ennard suddenly yanked back his hand and stumbled back against the wall, thumping into the shelves and grabbing onto them. Twisting up into himself as he clawed at the wall behind him. Blinking, eyes rolling up and around before they began to glow, but instead of being blue and yellow they had shifted and instead were a purplish-black and a reddish-orange.

“Ben?!” Michael reached to grab for him and instantly recoiled. Something sharp tried to crawl up his hand, something painful and familiar that made him instantly see a flash of the white rabbit behind his eyes.

Baby tried to go for him, but Michael grabbed her and held her tight.

“Don’t!” he warned.

“Ennard, can you hear me?” Scott called. Ennard held up a hand as though telling him to stay back. “We’re not coming any closer,” Scott assured, but as the hand twisted and writhed he realized maybe it wasn’t Ennard who made that motion.

The clown began to claw at his mask. Like he was trying to pull it off for some reason but couldn’t manage to do so. One hand shoving it on and the other peeling back a plate to expose his endo.

“Ennie, stop!” Bonnet cried.

“That’s not him doing that that’s not him,” Scott fumbled out.

And it wasn’t, because then Ennard opened his mouth and someone else’s words came through.

“Don’t fight me, don’t fight me, don’t fight me, Don’T FighT-T-T mee.”

Ennard’s chosen voice peeled away until his broken one was all that was left as he thrashed and clawed at the walls. A shelf of tapes was pulled loose and fell to the ground with a crash, and with it- Ennard suddenly straightened up.

He twitched, and blinked. Flexing his fingers as his own wiring writhed underneath his disheveled jacket. For a moment Scott thought that Ennard had gotten back in control.

But when Ennard looked between them they knew it was something else there. Something wary and cautious but disconnected to them. Looking at them like they were the monsters in the room.

He edged to the side, stepping on a tape that broke under his shoe. He flinched, straightened again, listening but not looking, and then dragged his foot to the side, sideways stepping around the couch.

The four stared at him silently. Scott in visible horror, Baby with anger, and Michael with that cold stare. Bonnet looked sad before she was no longer visible at Scott’s feet. That wasn’t Ennard slipping towards the door, and as he got close Baby yanked herself free of Michael’s grip and faced him.

Bunny pointed back at her.

“DoN’t ma-ake me do annythiiing you g-guys arrre goING to regre-et-t. He’sss real-really DangERous an-nd he’s goooing to feel real-ly-lyy BAD about it-t-t, I cannn tell,” Bunny warned. He hesitated and blinked momentarily. “The Fzzzt is thisss vv-v-oice?!”

“Hush up,” Baby hissed. “Don’t speak with his voice. Don’t pretend to be him.”

Bunny made a stuttering noise like he was about to retort but then struggled so much with it that he just gave up.

“Please, PLEASE, just- keep your side of the bargain. He gave you his body! Don’t- please don’t hurt him,” Scott begged.

Bunny squinted a little. He couldn’t tell out of confusion, irritation, or even amusement, and that caused something to flip. Scott’s desperation switched to growing anger.

“But… you’re making a mistake, though. Taking on Fazbear Entertainment. There’s a reason they’re still around. Whatever you’re planning isn’t going to change anything,” he warned. “You’re just going to get yourself hurt.”

Now Bunny’s expression, Ennard’s expression, seemed a little more perplexed, maybe? It was still equally hard to tell.

But it was cut off by a screech and suddenly they looked over to see Carlton’s car veering in reverse and barely stopping itself before hitting the house. The trunk popped.

Just as suddenly, Ennard ran for the door and in one quick motion he shoved open the trunk and rolled inside, pulling it closed behind him. Scott ran up to the door right as Carlton’s head stuck out the driver’s window.

“One last request,” Bunny called. “Give me about a ten second start before you tear out after me. I’ve got to stop by Charlie’s first.”

Baby gaped and shouted past Scott’s shoulder, “What do you want with her?!”

But Bunny didn’t answer. He laid on the accelerator and tore off the lawn, digging up the grass and peeling down the road.

And with that, he, Carlton, and Ennard were gone.

Scott didn’t need a second to think.

“Get in the van,” he said calmly. That false calm that came when he was resolved in doing something.

He could hear the others rushing into the garage and he grabbed his keys before slamming the front door and following after them.

He would make up for those ten seconds.

…

Nobody was having a great time after yesterday, but they were pressing on. Foxy’s opened right on schedule, given the go-ahead by Natalie who was still in the hospital, and all things considered Foxy and Marionette had been holding it together pretty well. They had already attended their only birthday party of the day around noon, and the birthday boy seemed satisfied with the attention.

Now it was a matter of coasting throughout the day. Marionette trying to keep his head empty and Foxy with his head full, both making regular rounds to check on Gregory who had been glued to the arcade cabinets.

It had become clear quickly that Gregory too was not handling this shakeup well. He had become uncharacteristically quiet, retreating into whatever games he could play whether it be on the TV or in the arcade.

It was silly things, like knowing Freddy wasn’t there. Like not having one of Sunny’s packed lunches. Tiny things that he hadn’t become used to because he never had parents. It would’ve been one thing if he was visiting Foxy of his own volition, but to effectively be kicked out… it hurt. And frustratingly enough, unlike all the other times when he could’ve blamed his foster parents, he couldn’t muster up anger towards Freddy.

Maybe because he knew that unlike all of the people who said they wanted what was best for Gregory, Freddy actually meant it. Sunny too. They really did care. That made it so much more unfair.

Both Chrissy and Jason tried to approach him about playing together. Chrissy without much provocation and Jason with a little nudging by Mike. Gregory mostly brushed them off, upon which Chrissy went back to Marionette until her mother took her home, and Jason played on another cabinet nearby. Keeping company while doing his own thing.

But mostly it had been a quiet day. There was even talk of closing up an hour or two early if there weren’t many guests at the time.

That’s when Carlton came in.

It had been noticed that he was late, but considering that he was Clay Burke’s son, the son of the man currently involved with the crime scene at the Pizzaplex, everyone just assumed there was some sort of Clay-related reason that Carlton hadn’t shown up.

The only ones who took extra notice were Mike and Charlie, who were on edge after everything- Marionette was too distracted with work to notice much else. Mike had gone into the office to call Carlton and hadn’t gotten a response, and then he called Marla. Marla told him that Carlton said he planned on coming the night before and, coincidentally, maybe he was running late because of something involving Clay.

Mike wasn’t entirely sated with the answer, but he accepted it, told Charlie, and then went back to work with the intention of calling again later.

Honestly, Charlie was a little relieved when she spotted Carlton coming in from her box. She assumed that he just got held back and would have some whacky story about how Clay accidentally woke him up coming in and then he overslept and yadda, yadda. A Carlton tale.

Until Carlton knocked on the top of Charlie’s box. She peeked out and he bent over and leaned in. There was a weird look on his face, he seemed uncomfortable but was smiling.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Charlie whispered in confusion.

“I need a favor.”

“Okay?”

Carlton leaned in closer with an eager smile, like he was thinking of a punchline before he even said the joke.

“When you get a minute, go tell Mars to meet us in the alley out back. We’ve got something we’ve got to do.”

Charlie looked confused for a second. Where had she heard-

Mars.

And then it clicked. Her eyes glowed as she slowly leaned back in alarm.

Carlton winked at her and pulled back from the box before turning on his heel and striding back out the front door.

That wasn’t Carlton, that was for certain. She waited for the opportunity to flag down someone.

And Carlton went to stand outside and wait. He moved the car first, backing up into the alley behind the business. Thankfully, the tall fence kept it largely private, and the laundromat on the other side looked to be closed. He hopped and peeked over the fence to check and make sure. It was pretty secluded- unless cars drove by the back, but there was a dumpster and trash cans blocking on that end.

Funny that he was so concerned about being found out considering what the big plan was. Probably just a reflex of living with Jake and Andrew.

Just thinking about them hurt and he struggled to force those thoughts away. Thankfully, the back door flung open and Mike came all but sliding out before shutting it behind him.

Bunny turned towards him with a flourish and a grin. Mike sized him up, noticing the entire change in demeanor instantly.

“Christ, Carlton, what did you do…?” Mike muttered.

“Something stupid, as usual,” ‘Carlton’ tsked. “Alright, where’s Mars?”

Mike muttered a swear. He knew exactly what that ‘Mars’ meant. It meant Charlie was right; not that he doubted her, but he hadn’t had the time to ask her how she knew it was Bunny in his body.

This was a very dangerous situation to bring the Puppet into.

Unfortunately, right then ‘Mars’ appeared beside him, in the shadow cast by the wall. A long figure that usually inspired some amount of protection, but now it was Mike fighting the urge to fling himself in front of him.

“Bunny?” he asked. His voice quiet and gentle, which made Mike’s stomach clench even harder. He still had a bleeding heart over that rabbit, and no doubt a predator would smell that blood.

“In the flesh! Well, someone’s flesh,” Bunny dryly answered. “Nice to see you guys went right back to work.”

“We didn’t have much of a choice,” Mike replied. “Natalie’s for it.”

“Well, that’s just dandy. How’s she doing?”

“Still in ICU, but alive. You hit her pretty good but she’s a tough chick.”

“Yeah, well Ness got hit pretty good too, didn’t she?”

“We know…” Marionette said quietly.

And suddenly Bunny felt very disconcerted. He looked between the two- that tone, what did they know about Ness? She was still in the hospital, right? She was alive when she left the Pizzaplex, she was alive-

“Alright, let’s cut to the chase. What do you want for him?” Mike asked directly.

“Thank you for asking! I’m on a bit of a tight timetable here. I’ve got a party at two that I’ve gotta drop in for, main attraction and all, but here’s the deal- hold on, going to step up to the front.”

He walked up to the still open driver’s door and popped the trunk. It opened partially before the two, only for a wire hand to push it up further to peek out.

“Ennard?” Marionette said in surprise.

Ennard’s eyes gleamed an ominous ruby hue as he stiffly waved under Bunny’s guiding.

“Oh, Ennard…”

“So, as you can see, I currently have two- count ‘em- TWO hostages. Both of them fully under my control. Neither’s in pain and both of them I will gladly set free if I get what I want,” Bunny announced, walking back and leaning on the trunk that Ennard was still holding up, hands in his pockets.

“We’re listening,” Marionette said.

“But barely,” Mike added.

“Yeah, I know. The traffic around here sucks. I can barely hear myself think.”

Mike furrowed his brows, and Bunny ignored him.

“Alright, here’s the deal. I’m on a one-man crusade to take out Fazbear Entertainment and I need your help to do it. Same rules as these guys, once the job’s done you walk free and I never see you again. So, you’re either going to come quietly and climb in this trunk with this scary clown or I’m pulling that scary clown out and using him to beat up your boyfriend.”

“Don’t listen to him, Mari. I can take him,” Mike said. He whipped his taser off his belt. “I’ve taken Ennard out once, I’ll do it again.”

“Do you just carry that thing around?!” Bunny gawked. He wasn’t even afraid, just baffled.

But just as eagerly as it came up, Marionette was pushing his arm back down.

“No, wait…”

Mike had a dreadful feeling in his gut as he looked at Marionette out of the corner of his eye. Unwilling to take his gaze fully off Carlton’s body but now much more worried about what was happening beside him.

Marionette’s pensive expression was a lot scarier than any possession. It was almost like he was considering it.

And it was when the Puppet looked at him with a look of concern and regret that Mike knew he made up his mind.

“I’ll go with him,” he said.

“No, you’re not,” Mike instantly shot down.

“Mike, we’re open. We can’t have a scene out here. Besides, he said he would let me go.”

“Okay, first off, that’s bull. Secondly, over my dead body.”

“That’s exactly what I’m trying to avoid,” Marionette said flatly.

“Mari, I mean it. You’re not going with him. I swear to God-.”

Mike was cut off by Marionette lunging in and giving him a tight hug. Pulling him in until he was entirely enwrapped.

“It will be okay, Mike. I know what I’m agreeing to,” Marionette said quietly.

But that was just a cover. Because as he hugged him, he telepathically spoke to him, telling him the real plan.

“I need to know what he’s planning. If I go with him, I’ll be on the inside, I’ll be able to stop him… this might even be my last chance to change his mind. I may have a second chance to help him.”

Of course, that was it. Marionette wasn’t just thinking ahead, he was taking his innate ability to think ahead and turning it against himself by still holding out hope that he could save Bunny. It was a disaster waiting to happen.

And the worst part was that Mike knew from that alone that there was no way to stop this. He still tried.

“Mari, I’m begging you to not do this,” he whispered through the corner of his mouth. “This is not going to go well.”

“I know, but you have to trust me. It will be alright,” Marionette said out loud. “Because I’m not letting him take Carlton and Ennard alone. If they’re going I have to go. It’ll be three against one.”

“It better be,” Mike mumbled.

Meanwhile, Bunny was having his own telepathy connection with Carlton, that was going-

“I asked you to give me your toughest animatronic, and you gave me some clown that got beat up by Mike? Really dropped the ball on that one. How in the absolute – did this thing bust up Chica?”

-about as well as to be expected.

Though he refocused his attention when Marionette slid off his long purple and red coat and handed it over to Mike before turning towards him.

“Very well, Bunny. I’ll go with you, but only under the agreement that you will let Carlton, Ennard, and myself go. And that nobody gets hurt. No children, no adults,” he said.

“Physically hurt,” Bunny clarified.

“Yes, I suppose this is all very traumatizing for Carlton and Ennard. Not that that’s important at all,” Marionette said, narrowing his eyes.

“Heh, maybe,” Bunny brushed off. He clearly meant something else then- “Well, get over here.”

The Puppet started to drift closer to the trunk, only stopping when Ennard sat up a little. The clown was currently wearing his pants but had removed his jacket, which was now pinned beneath him, and a good deal of his chest wiring seemed to be unraveled. It didn’t look to be from a fight.

Marionette edged closer, Mike started to reach for him but held back, but only barely.

Much to both of their surprises, Ennard suddenly started to make sound. No, not sound, music. He began to mimic music, the familiar tune of ‘My Grandfather Clock’ though instead of sounding like the music box, it sounded almost like a recording from a toy. It must’ve been something Bunny had heard and was projecting through Ennard’s knack for mimicry.

Unfortunately, despite sounding nothing like his music box, Marionette knew it was going to work. He gave a staticky sigh, one of exasperation and bubbling frustration, and continued approaching the trunk.

He didn’t want to drop and have Bunny physically put him inside. If he was going, he would go by his own volition, even as the energy was quickly sapped from his body.

He had reached the trunk when he felt the world closing out, and in his final motion before he fell unconscious he fell forward into it. Mike saw him faltering and ran up to catch him, but Ennard was quicker, grabbing him up into the trunk and wrapping him up in his wiring. Them sliding tightly around Marionette like a makeshift rope.

Mike felt his heart drop at the sight of Marionette getting coiled up like that by a brainwashed Ennard. A dead-eyed clown and his helpless puppet getting dragged into it.

No, he couldn’t let him do this. He couldn’t let this happen.

As Bunny went to shut the trunk, Mike lunged in and caught it to stop it from closing.

“I take it back, give him back!” he cried frantically. He tried to pull up the trunk, which Ennard had a firm grip on.

“No take backs,” Bunny said. “Besides, it’s not your deal to break.”

“Bunny, I swear if you don’t let him go-!”

“Mikey, I’m going to shut your fingers in the trunk,” Bunny warned. Then he threw Carlton’s elbow down on the trunk. Mike barely pulled back his hands in time, Bunny barely pulled back Ennard’s.

He then turned to head to the driver’s side door, only to break into a short sprint as Mike ran after him and cornered him inside. There was a tussle as Mike started to pull Carlton out of the driver’s side, only for his foot to hit the accelerator and peel off, leaving Mike behind and Carlton half out of the car. He pulled in and yelled out.

“Feel free to follow in your car if you’d like.”

“You bet your ass I will!”

There was a bang and slam as someone came out the door, and the thumping footsteps rapidly approaching gave away it was Foxy, who was still in full pirate garb. He saw Marionette’s coat and Mike’s stare and put two and two together.

“Mari better not be in that car!” he said, struggling to keep his voice low.

“He is, and he went willingly to try and save Carlton and Ennard,” Mike cryptically answered, picking up the jacket.

“Ennard?! Bloody ‘ell, how did he get ENNARD?!”

“Probably threatened Scott- doesn’t matter. I have to go after him. You stay here, don’t get seen.”

“Like bullocks I’ll stay here!”

Mike ignored him as he sprinted to his car and tossed the coat in the back and got in. Only to then spring back out and run into the front, trying to keep his composure as he did, and picked up Charlie out of her box before hurrying back outside. Jeremy saw him by then, but Mike couldn’t stop to explain. He tossed her in the passenger’s side and got in the driver’s, starting up the car and peeling out.

Only to notice instantly that something was wrong. The car wasn’t driving right.

“Mike, stop! Something’s wrong with the car,” Charlie warned.

Mike immediately did and leapt back out of his car, having a suspicion from how it felt and, sure enough, his tires had been punctured. He only saw the two on his side, but he knew all four had been hit.

“Gosh darn it son of a freaking BEAR!” Mike shouted, just managing to hold himself back from cursing but barely. He kicked one of the deflated tires. “Ugh, FUN! GOD!”

“What?!” Foxy called around the corner of the building.

“He slashed my tires! The little bunny bitch-!”

“Watch YER LANGUAGE!”

“I AM!”

“I’ll flag Jeremy!”

“Thanks!”

But before Mike could do anything, there came a familiar van careening into the parking lot and coming to a skidding stop beside him. Scott looked out of the passenger window with skewed hair and panic in his eyes.

“Did you see Carlton?!”

“Yeah, and he took Mari!” Mike said. He kept his voice low and came over to the window. “He had Ennard with him too,” he whispered. “It’s Bunny.”

“We know,” Scott choked.

“Where is Charlie?! He said he was going after Charlie!” Baby called from the back. Mike couldn’t see her though, but he did notice Bonnet sitting in the passenger seat. Her eyes half-closed with worry and giving him a little wave that he reflexively returned.

“She’s in my car. He told her to tell us to meet him outside, but he didn’t take her.”

“Then- He was fooling us. He misled us, he said he was going to Charlie’s so we went to your house and he didn’t show up and there wasn’t any sign of him being there when I went inside- I used the spare key, sorry, but uh. Where did he say he’s going next? The Pizzaplex?”

“The Pizzaplex,” Mike agreed.

“He’s planning something big. I got a call from my mole earlier; there’s this all-staff meeting planned. He’s gathering everyone at the Pizzaplex to do something.”

Mike’s eyes widened at that and he muttered a dull, “Sheeze,” under his breath.

“Was he okay? Ennard?” Scott asked worriedly.

“He’s in the trunk with Mari. He wrapped him up, didn’t seem all there,” Mike said.

“Good,” Scott said, but it was clear that he didn’t mean it. Just that confirmation ‘good’ that someone says when they hear an appropriate thing is being done in a terrible situation. “We have to get to the Pizzaplex.”

“Hey, wait, my tires were slashed. Can we catch a ride?”

“I’ve got it!” A voice called from behind. Mike and Scott looked over Mike’s shoulder to see Jeremy currently running across the parking lot with Charlie in his arms and shortly afterwards dumping her in his backseat.

“Thanks!” Mike called.

“Do you want to…?” Scott offered.

“Yeah, since I’m standing here.”

Mike opened the van door and climbed in, scooping up Bonnet and placing her in his lap, and buckled up. Within seconds, Scott was pulling out of Foxy’s parking lot and barreling as fast as he could without getting pulled over. His eyes glued to the road, searching desperately to see if Carlton’s car was up ahead.

“How did he get Marion?” Michael asked worriedly.

“He told him to come with him and Mari did. He said he has a plan, I think he’s going to try and flip Bunny before he does something stupid.”

“Of course…” Michael muttered.

“Ennard thought he had a plan too,” Baby said bitterly.

“…Oh.”

Maybe trusting Marionette’s instinct on this one wasn’t a good idea. No, scratch that, it was a bad call then and it was a worse call now.

“Did he possess Mari?” she continued.

“No. He just had Ennard play music, like the music box music, to put him to sleep. Then he stuck him in the trunk.”

“…He can play music?” Michael asked distantly.

“Yeah, he just, uh… Doesn’t do it much,” Scott said. “It’s, y’know, it doesn’t sound right. His words, not mine.”

“You learn something new every day,” Mike mused.

“Not fast enough,” Michael half-agreed.

The ride then grew silent. Save the clattering of Baby’s twitchy claw and the bumping of Mike’s jumping leg, bouncing Bonnet like he would a small child. She didn’t seem to mind.

Meanwhile, Jeremy backed up his car into the alleyway so that Foxy could get in the back, which he did. Awkwardly squeezing in beside Charlie who took off his hat, threw a random jacket over his head, and then slid down as far as she could. It wasn’t much of a disguise until Foxy leaned his head stiffly on the window and then went as still as a board, making himself look deactivated.

“I already told Tabby some of what’s going on. Kind of. I said it was an emergency, they’ll handle things. The girls will handle everything,” Jeremy explained. The girls being the Minireenas, who eagerly hoped on stage and began to perform in Foxy’s place. Well, after Jeremy had to wrangle Daisy out of his shirt, she tried to hitch a ride with him- leading to giggles from a couple of kids watching.

He jumped in the driver’s seat and was startled to see someone already in the passenger’s side. “I don’t think so.”

“I’m going,” Gregory said firmly. “I heard what was going on, this is about Bunny. Then it probably has to do with Freddy, so I’m going.”

“Gregory, it’s not safe.”

“It’s not safe anywhere. I’m eight!” Before Jeremy could protest, Gregory huffed. “Okay, look. Either you take me with you and I promise I’ll be careful, or I steal a bike and I peddle there myself. I’ve done it before!”

“Ya better let him come, Jer’my. He knows how to drive,” Foxy warned.

Jeremy inhaled deeply and faced ahead, shaking his head as he started up the car.

“But!” Foxy peeked between the seats. “Lad, you stay close and you don’t do nothin’ dangerous. I promised yer pops I’d keep both me eyes on you.”

“Got it!” Gregory promised with an assuring smile.

Jeremy was much less confident as he pulled out of the parking lot, but he was going anyways.

And he really, really hoped this was the last time he had to go back to the Pizzaplex.

…

It didn’t take long to get to the Pizzaplex. The front doors were open, and the place was closed, save the meeting.

Bunny just walked in with Carlton and Ennard in tow, snuck across the atrium to Rockstar Row, and made his way up into the primary security room. The usual daytime security guards weren’t there, likely already downstairs waiting for the nonexistent cake.

After blocking the doors, Bunny had Ennard pry open one of the undersides of the consoles and pulled out a heap of wires. He released Marionette and then began to tether him up in them, still lowly playing ‘My Grandfather Clock’ to keep him good and asleep as we worked.

He then had Ennard remove his clown suit, gloves, and shoes, and tossed them in a pile by the door before partially unraveling himself and using his own wiring to tether Marionette into the console. The whole time, Ennard was silent, zombie-like. As though in a trance.

“Why can’t Ennard talk?” Carlton dared to ask.

“I’ve got to keep a tighter leash on him. Don’t let that quietness fool you, he’s a coiled snake about to leap at the drop of a hat. BUT he knows better than to do that.”

Well, Ennard must’ve been a great actor, because his eyes were glassy and vacant.

That look made Carlton feel sick to his stomach. He felt responsible, he brought Ennard into this. His friend, his sometimes brother figure.

“Are you going to hurt him? Because it looks like you are,” he accused.

“Didn’t I just- NO. Not unless I have to, so don’t go getting any funny ideas,” Bunny said firmly. “I don’t got beef with you or him. All I want is to destroy the lives of everyone at Fazbear Entertainment and thoroughly use that wiggly mime-face curtain rod to do it.”

“…Wow.”

“Yeah, I know. Impressive plan,” Bunny said dryly. “Let’s wake him up.”

Ennard went silent and shortly after he did Marionette began to rouse. Twitching as he woke, his limbs strung up and back by the wires and him pulling at them half-heartedly. Finally, he fully awoke enough to look at his arm, see his binds, and then look back and the other and down at himself, and then looking up at his captors.

His eyes briefly scanned the office, and it didn’t take more than a few seconds to realize where he was. He was at the Pizzaplex; the glimpses through the camera screen revealed that much if the distant ambience music of Rockstar Row and that spray floor deodorizer scent it was drenched in didn’t tip him off.

“Welcome back, Mars. Time to get this party started,” Bunny said.

Marionette checked his internal clock; it was almost two. The screens on the wall behind Carlton too were showing a lot of people, likely already downstairs waiting for the meeting to begin. Whatever he was plotting was about to go down.

“…So, what’s the plan then?” Marionette asked.

“I’m glad you asked! Soooo, as you notice, you’re pretty wired up right now. Some of those wires being donations by dear old Ennard here. That Afton wiring conducts real well,” Bunny explained. “And before you ask, I actually probed that one out of him. Carlton’s an open book but Ennard’s just a big walking clip show. Probably the whole me controlling him thing.”

“I suppose…” Marionette said, unenthused.

“SO, here’s the deal. See all these people on the screen? They’re allll workers at Freddy’s. Including big boss James Wight. All of these people are compliant in this, this whole let’s capitalize on all the deaths at Freddy’s and cover up REAL murders and make money off them. I hate that, don’t you hate that?”

“More than you could know.”

“Great! Then you and me are going to get along fine. Y’know, other than the whole I hate you thing. But lucky for you, this isn’t about you! This is about showing these guys the errors of their ways. And what better way to do that than showing them a first person perspective of the horrors at Freddy’s? Including all of the horrendous, gruesome, violent murders at Freddy’s? Just one problem…”

Carlton’s body crouched in front of him. He was just out of reach. Though Marionette could’ve pounced if he really wanted to, though testing the wiring showed it holding pretty firm, and Ennard’s wires… was that a light current running through them? It burned a little when he pressed too hard against them.

Marionette simply waited and observed, watching the show Bunny was putting on in his Carlton costume.

“The only murder I got a got look at was my own. But you? You’ve been handling bodies since the beginning! Aaand, I know you have possession powers, projection powers, AND you got some sort of recording thing in your brain, right?”

Did he mean his facial recognition technology?

“Yeah, you know what I mean. You are the perfect tool, and you and me? We’re going to be bringing the truth to light, broadcasting the real Freddy’s to all those guys, making them live with the company they’re keeping alive. We’re bringing on the revelations! And by tonight, we’re going to have dozens of witnesses watching bunny man slaughter children- and then Wight doesn’t get to pretend ol’ Willy was a saint anymore. And then we break him. So, are you in, or am I going to have to tug some strings?”

He seemed to take a glee out of the idea, but hearing it instantly filled Marionette with horror. His annoyed look turned into a dramatic frown, one that Bunny couldn’t help but snort at. Not that he was laughing long.

“Are you insane?! You can’t do that!” Marionette protested.

“Oh, what? Might ruin your little business? I mean, yeah, maybe. Not the goal, but it happens,” Bunny said with a shrug. “That why you’ve been playing by Freddy’s rules? Because you’re scared of losing your little pizza place?”

“No, it would ruin everything! Do you realize what would happen if hundreds of people found out that we were alive?! It would put every single living animatronic in danger- including you! And including all your friends!”

“Yeah, well… I’m tired of living in the dark. If I don’t have a choice except lay down and die, then I’m taking out as many bystanders as possible! Screw Freddy’s! And screw James Wight! I’m taking the whole place out, like you should’ve done- but oh no, couldn’t do that! Golden bear didn’t want that, did he?! He was a selfish bastard who only cared about one thing, and that was himself! And you-!”

Bunny jabbed his finger into Marionette’s button. “You’re just as bad! You sold out all of those kids that got killed the second you decided to play around in a pizzeria!”

“And you didn’t?!” Marionette snapped back. “I recall that you don’t even like kids! Why would you care?!”

“Did it look like I had a choice?!” Bunny retorted, throwing his hands up. “We’re not all lucky enough to be gifted with the ability to phase around like a freaking phantom! Phantom of the Freddy Comedy hour, and the only one laughing are all those big wigs and pencil pushers downstairs! Well, forget it! I’m taking it all out, and you’re going to be helping me whether you like it or not!”

He lifted up Vanny’s mask, pulling back the neck flap to expose the opening.

“Now put this damn thing on!”

That would not be happening willingly.

Marionette jumped into standing upright. He had attempted to teleport, but something was holding him back- the wires. While he was able to pull from the Pizzaplex wiring, Ennard’s held tight.

He stood over Bunny though, staring down with glowing white eyes and anger at his audacity. But Carlton held a mostly vacant look- Marionette caught on a moment later and snapped his head towards Ennard to see his eyes at full glow again, his unraveled body standing there like a partial skeleton.

Ennard grabbed at the bunches of wires stringing them together and then there was a loud crackle, and suddenly Marionette was hit with a very strong jolt of electricity. He gave a startled shout, as did Ennard, who made a staticky pained noise. The real Ennard’s voice making it briefly past Bunny’s control.

And both crumpled to the ground. Ennard collapsing into himself and Marionette dropping like a limp doll, leaving him writhing on the floor whereas Ennard stayed unmoving. Carlton perked up, the annoyed look returned.

“Okay, now that you made me a liar, since I promised I wasn’t going to hurt that thing, let’s get this over with.”

But if he thought that shock would make things easier, he was very wrong. Marionette began thrashing and throwing his head, writhing and pulling away from his grip. Weakened but determined, wiggling from his reach.

“Stop FIGHTING me! I’m not going to give up!” Bunny snapped. He got ahold of Marionette’s head and turned him towards him, getting a sinister smirk. “I’m just going to take over your body, steal your powers, and ruin the image of Freddy’s forever in one fell swoop. Y’know, be a hero and all.”

“Th-Thi-Thh-Thisss-,” Marionette struggled to speak.

But as Bunny raised the mask, it became more obscured by defensive static and the out of tune twanging of Pop Goes the Weasel. He started kicking Bunny in the chest with weakened legs with jabbing, pointed tips. Hitting him in a very familiar spot near the liver, which made him flinch back before doubling in and forcing the mask on.

“Missstake! Mistake!” Marionette shouted.

He was right, it was, and Bunny couldn’t stand that he knew that.

So, he shoved the mask over his head and pulled it on securely. It was a tighter fit than with a human, but it still swallowed up and covered his mask inside.

Now it was just a matter of taking hold, and like Marionette’s strings Bunny now had the perfect conduit to do it. He was tethered to the security system, to the possessed Ennard, and now wore his mask. There was no chance that he couldn’t get ahold of him now. This time Bunny had the upper hand.

He grabbed the Puppet by the shoulders and pulled him in, pressing Carlton’s sweaty forehead to the Vanny mask, and for a second, he remembered the fond feeling of doing this while Ness was wearing it.

Ness would be so…

…Ness would forgive him for this.

He began to focus and shift into the new body and could feel his grip on Carlton slip as he hung onto something different. Something more all-consuming, sucking him in.

And suddenly…

…

..

He was back in the diner.

It was a little jarring, but here he was. Bunny looked around at it, marveling in how real it looked. It didn’t look like how he remembered it to though, so it must’ve been the memory of the diner at a later date. There were more tables and posters, and even fancier streamers hanging from the ceiling.

“Huh…”

This was weird. He was seriously hoping that he didn’t somehow misjudge Marionette and get himself lodged in some sort of elaborate dream of his, in which case he might get stuck here and the whole plan would be over. Then again, he never really tried possessing someone with real psychic powers. So, maybe this was an inevitable issue.

“No! I don’t want to go!”

The unfamiliar child voice caused Bunny to jump and round in the direction of it.

Much to his surprise, he found an approaching group of four teenagers half-carrying and half-dragging a younger boy. The four teens wore various Freddy masks- a Freddy, a Bonnie, a Chica, a Foxy; the gang was all there. The boy was without a mask, instead his only notable piece of clothing was his striped shirt.

Wait, was that supposed to be Marionette? He was putting up an equally flailing little fight to what the Puppet did a few minutes ago.

“You heard the little man! He wants to get even closer!” one of the teens punctuated with a laugh.

They dragged him over towards the stage, which Bunny turned to see was topped with Fredbear. Just like he remembered, except he stood dormant. He wasn’t even singing.

Bunny stepped aside as the teenagers walked over and stopped at the stage, at Fredbear’s feet. Bunny watched with a hand on his hip. Being in this dream world or whatever it was, he was able to visually show his confusion with a squint. Not that the kids acknowledged him at all.

“Hey guys, I think the little man said he wants to give Fredbear a big kiss!” the leading teen, wearing the Foxy mask, continued. “On THREE! One… two…”

All four of the teens hoisted up the boy and shoved his head, and a good chunk of his shoulders to boot, unto the mouth of the large animatronic. It took a bit of a struggle to squeeze him inside, but they got him far enough inside to get him stuck.

Now he dangled out of the bear’s mouth. Shouting, frantically kicking, trying to get himself free from the tight hold all while the teens watched on and laughed. Bunny watching with cocked head and genuine confusion.

If that was Marionette, then why was he showing him this? Because he mentioned the diner? Because he-

CRUNCH.

Oh. Bunny’s eyes went wide. Ohhh.

The laughing had stopped. The teens were frozen, assumedly in shock. Then were so still that they were like statues. The ambience music slowed to a crawl and a halt. Everything seemed to stop.

And that’s when it clicked. There were Marionette’s last moments. This was the accident that killed him.

That was why Marionette was showing him this, showing him the horrors at Freddy’s.

Bunny raised his hands to his cheeks, his mouth open in shock, eyes still popped open.

He gasped.

“Was that the Bite of 87?!”

Bunny’s shock was broken with a grin.

“C’mon, Mars. That’s a good trick, but you’re going to have to try harder than wheeling out your sob story. Heck, you might’ve just given me more ammo!” He gestured forward towards the still dangling body. “Look at this, another tragedy at Freddy’s that went forgotten. Did you know that they joke about the big bite at the theater? They’re laughing at you, Mars. They think it’s HILARIOUS that you died here.”

The swinging body didn’t say anything. The room was ominously quiet, almost speechlessly so.

Trick or not, it was effectively creepy. If anything, it made Bunny more determined to fill the silence.

“They don’t care about you, or me, or any of the other brats who died at Freddy’s. All the kids they cleaned the blood up of. And yeah, maybe you’re right, maybe I don’t care about the kids. But at least I’m going to do something! If not for… Ness, or Andrew, or even myself, me not taking YOUR death lying down is damn near an act of mercy considering we’re not on speaking terms!” Bunny shouted. “And what, you want me to quit because your business might get hurt? Because a few animatronics might have to hide? We-heh-hell, let them sit in a warehouse for what- fourteen years? Just like I did!”

Still nothing. He shoved aside one of the teenagers and it didn’t stumble, it just seemed to slide to the side. Like a prop, like a toy. He scoffed at it.

“Some little trick. You know what, Mars? You might’ve laid down and died, but I’m done being quiet. Starting today everyone’s going to know about what went down here in this diner. They’ll ALL see what was hiding in our fathers’ dirty little closet. And you know what? I think I’ll start with the Bite of 87. So, farewell, Kid!”

He gave a sweeping bow.

“’Cause after all this is said and done, there’s not going to be a Freddy Fazbear’s! And I for one welcome it.”

With that, he turned on his heel.

..

..

“What is that doing here…?”

It was a door. The wall had climbed up behind him and in the center was a door. That wasn’t supposed to be there.

Bunny blinked and looked back towards the stage, towards the frozen teenagers and the blood-covered statue that was Fredbear. Nothing had changed, but-

He looked forward again. The door was here.

Bunny was still, staring at the door, turning his head a little to listen and trying to catch the trick before it happened. This had to be a trick, after all child Marionette’s body was missing now. This was a stunt of some kind.

“That’s real cute, Mars…” Bunny muttered. He straightened back up. “What, there’s something spooky hiding inside?”

He strode the few steps towards the cracked door.

“Ooo, real spooky.”

He pushed open the door with his foot, revealing a dark void inside. Sucking at him. Ominously calling for him.

“But there’s no way I’m going in there.”

An arm shot out of the darkness and a hand clamped around his throat.

In seconds he couldn’t breathe. He hadn’t breathed in years, but he couldn’t breathe. He clawed at the arm, choking, feeling bits of padding and fabric coming off underneath his fingertips. He stumbled over his feet as the arm pushed him back.

Out of the darkness was a very familiar golden rabbit. Now rotted and worn with age, flesh and viscera oozing out between the teeth and through its eye holes. Wild eyes staring out of the holes either hysteria or severe pain. Harsh breathing rattling through its clamped teeth.

Bunny was pushed across the floor until he couldn’t keep his footing any longer. His legs dragging and kicking on the slick tiled floor as he tried to twist away. Held up only by the hand on his throat, which refused to budge.

He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t breathe.

His back hit the stage before he was hoisted up. His eyes locking with Spring Bonnie’s, who never once looked away. It stared at him with that hollow gaze. No anger, no delight, just blank staring as it lifted him high above its head.

His back bumped Fredbear’s stomach, then his mouth, then he felt the teeth pressing on the back of his head.

All at once, Spring Bonnie stepped up and shoved him in. The mouth swallowed his head in seconds and pulled him into the dark abyss beyond it.

And everything was swallowed by the void.

Chapter 103

Chapter Summary

Bunny can't run forever.

Darkness collapsed in on him. He was suffocating in it. He couldn’t breathe. Choking, he began to claw at it, forcing through it and digging his way out. Wet and cold, sucking him down.

Until his hand broke through. He grabbed at the world outside and started to drag himself up through the mucky voice. His head broaching through the slurry and him finding himself sitting up out of the sludge.

No, not sludge. It was mud, dirt. He had just pulled himself out of a shallow grave- a metaphor for his entire life so far. He groaned as he pulled clods of dirt off his head and dropped them aside.

And only then did he notice his hands. His bunny hands, pale with pink spots on his fingertips and palms, looked more real than they ever had before. It looked almost as real as the real world, but he was still himself so that meant that he had to be inside Marionette’s little mind prison, or whatever it was. It felt like his own dream world.

“Guess Mars has nightmares,” he muttered. He pulled himself up with a grunt. “Okay!” He huffed and kicked mud off his legs. “Let’s see what’s so important that you had to… to…”

Bunny looked around at a familiar dark forest surrounding him. Lines of blackened trees that stood so tall that they almost reached the blackened, starless sky.

This was Fredbear Hills. He recognized it instantly and deflated on the spot.

“Oh, that’s real nice, Mars. Probing into my mind now? Pot and kettle, you black and white broomstick!” Bunny yelled. Then he began to stride down the way, through the line of trees along the mucky path.

Now normally Bunny could just pull out of his dreams because he was in control, but obviously he wasn’t in control right now. If he was he certainly wouldn’t be here. This had to be Marionette’s doing.

Maybe he should’ve kept him asleep while he possessed him.

It started to rain almost immediately after he got out of the hole and was currently lashing him with sheets of chilly water. Further blocking out the world beyond the trees. He tried to will Freddy’s house to appear, but it didn’t, just continuing into a stretch of trees.

Until he saw lights in the distance. Lights standing high up. He recognized them and began to run, his padded feet sliding in the mud, causing him to swear as he regained footing and continued at a slower pace.

Slowly the source of the lights faded into view: it was an enormous castle standing high into the sky. The lights were the warm glow from many torch-lit windows.

It wasn’t any ordinary castle either. This was Ness’ castle, the one he made for her. One of his own constructs.

“Thank God,” he mumbled. Maybe he just got displaced, had to wander his way back to the Pizzaplex castle, find the security room, and take hold of Marionette once again.

He walked up to the looming front gates and found them open a crack. Swallowing back his feelings, he pushed them open and stepped inside.

Something was off immediately. This was the castle he made but something had bled through. There was a long, regal, red carpet stretching into the torch-lined hall, like it was supposed to be. But also, there was a Freddy poster on the wall. That was not in Ness’ Castle. Weird, but not unexpected. Something’s things got in that he didn’t want in.

And since he knew he was at the Pizzaplex, he could be subconsciously letting that affect his image.

“Okay, so every room had its own alternate. Atrium was the dining hall and throne room, basement was the dungeon, so… the security room would’ve been what?”

Had he even made a parallel for the security room? He didn’t think so, but Ness had changed stuff around. Never without him though but maybe he was forgetting.

“…Eh heck, I’ll just go to the highest room in the tallest tower. I bet that Puppet Princess is hiding up there somewhere,” he decided. He continued down the hall. “You hear that, Mars? I’m coming!”

There was no response, not that he expected one.

He made his way down the hallway and through the next, watching the torchlights flicker beneath strips of orange neon that lined the edges of the ceiling. They directed him down a turn, then another, and another, and to a grand staircase that he began to climb. The lobby staircase, but fit for a royal palace instead of a Pizzaplex.

But then when he passed through the doors at the tops of the staircase paths, he found himself immediately in another staircase. A winding spiral up through a stony tower.

This was absolutely not supposed to be here, but then again Bunny wasn’t sure where he was going anyways.

“Y’know, this makes a lot of sense…” he thought as he climbed the spiral. “If Mars is doing this. He’s probably seeing bits and pieces of my memories like I saw of Ennard and Carlton’s. So he remembers parts of the castle, but he doesn’t know all the maps Ness and I made.”

Realizing that pushed away some of the creeping uneasiness that had been building up on him. It was just Marionette playing with things he didn’t understand.

The winding staircase came to an abrupt end at a heavy wooden door. Bunny pushed it open and stepped inside.

There was a familiar bedroom. One with an antique desk and pretty curtained bed- a security office he was very familiar with but not the one he was looking for- and a window looking out above the castle.

He stopped short as he saw the back of a familiar rabbit standing at the window and staring out into the rain and darkness. Her form briefly illuminated by a crack of lightning, ominously lighting up her off-white body.

“Nessie?” Bunny dared.

She turned around to face him. She might’ve been decked in full Vanny garb but he knew it was her, and it was only clarified when she whispered out his name. Not Bunny, his real name.

“Holy- Nessie!”

Bunny ran to her and swept her into a tight hug. It felt as real and secure as when he was a Glamrock and she felt a little softer than usual but was equally real. He held her tight while she stood there somewhat confused. He then pulled back to look her in the face.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she answered. “What are you doing here?”

“I don’t know!” He gave a shrug with his almost carefree smile. “I tried to go ahead with an expose the Pizzaplex plan and it just didn’t work out.”

“Did I die?”

The suddenness of the question took Bunny entirely off-guard. He blinked at her. “What…?”

“Did. I. Die?” she repeated slowly.

An ominous silence passed through them. Ness’ glowing red eyes staring emptily into Bunny, and him suddenly wishing she wasn’t wearing her costume. He wanted to see her, not the suit.

He wanted to see her and be sure she was okay. But he couldn’t will himself to reach for it, instead staring at her statuesque body for a long moment.

“…I don’t know. You don’t?” he asked.

“I think I’m dead,” she said. “Why didn’t you check?”

“What do you-?”

“Why didn’t you check, Bunny? Why didn’t you check on me?” Ness’ voice dropped into a sad, almost pouty octave. “You left me behind…”

“Hey, whoa. I didn’t leave you willingly. I promise.”

He reached out and cupped her cheeks, turning her face up a little so she was looking at him instead of staring through him.

“And I… I don’t know why I didn’t check. I was just swept up into all of this…”

He didn’t want to see, that’s why. If he didn’t see it, if he didn’t hear it, he didn’t know it.

Because he knew she had to have died. That’s why Mike and Marionette were talking like that. That had to be it, and once he accepted that then it was all over.

But maybe it didn’t have to be. Because she was HERE. She was here with him, still. They could make this work, he could fix this.

“It’s going to be okay, Ness,” he promised. “It doesn’t matter if you’re alive or dead, you’re here. With me. We’ll make it work. As long as we’re together-.”

“I’m dead. How is that ever going to work?” Ness asked. “It’s over… You made the mistake, and I paid the price.”

“O-Okay, yeah, I did…” Bunny felt that unease begin to grow. “But I’ll fix this. We can get fixed!”

“How?”

“A new body! Like, those androids. We’ll still find them! They can’t have gone far. I promise, Nessie, it’s going to be okay.”

He leaned in, pressing his forehead against hers and smiling at her lovingly.

“It’s just a body! It’s JUST a body.”

Something hit him in the stomach.

A firm thump followed by a slow spreading and horrendously harsh pain that swelled around it. Bunny looked down to see what had happened.

And found Ness tightly gripping her knife, which was now lodged deeply into his stomach.

He staggered back in surprise, her releasing the knife and leaving it jutting out of him. Blood quickly began to spread from the wound but instead of dripping out it filled the fabric skin around it like it would a suit.

But it still hurt, and it was bleeding a lot. Almost as much as the last time he had a knife stabbed in there. She had hit the sweet spot dead-on.

He looked up in shock and suddenly something had changed. It was still her standing in front of him but it was like his eyes had been opened to something he hadn’t noticed before.

“N-Ness…?”

That wasn’t Ness.

“I’m sorry,” Vanny said. She cocked her head cutely. “I-It was just a glit-tch!”

“Nessie…” Bunny started to back towards the door.

“It’s okay, Honeybunny. It’s okay. I’ll make it all better,” Vanny promised as she began to gracefully step after him, as though she was about to break into a dance. “I’ll make the pain, pain, go away~.”

“Ness, you’re scaring the hell out of me…” Bunny mumbled. He was starting to pass through the doorway.

“Are you leaving me again?” Vanny asked, choking her head much less cutely. Far enough that her neck should’ve popped.

“Noo. No, no. I’m just… Just going to head downstairs…” He had his hand around the wound, holding the knife between his fingers as the blood oozed into his glove- on his hand. “Get something to clean this with…”

“I don’t believe you. You’re a liar.” She made a choking sob noise, it almost sounded fake. “You lied to me! You said I would be okay! And you killed me! And you left me!”

Bunny’s felt something bubbling up in his throat as he watched her wide-eyed. The way she moved, staggering towards him with broken legs and a shattered pelvis, making her gait awkward and ghoulish.

She reached towards his cheek with one hand- her eyes locked on his- and her knife with the other.

“Til death do us part…”

She reached.

And Bunny spun and bolted down the stairs.

And promptly stumbled and fell, falling head over heels down the entirety of the stairwell. Trying to stop himself but finding it impossible, as though the stairs were slicked and the force was too strong.

He leaned flat on his back at the bottom with his feet propped on the steps. The knife still stuck into him somehow, having apparently not gotten bumped or jarred loose in the fall. It hurt though, and his head did too.

But he didn’t get further than lifting his head before he froze up as he saw a familiar form slipping around the corner with each shaky step. Almost like a zombie.

“How’d she get down here that fast?!” he thought. He dryly wondered if she fell down the stairs afterwards and somehow landed on her feet. Ness was always pretty agile, probably from the gymnastics she used to take years ago.

But then again, this wasn’t Ness.

Bunny scrambled to his feet and began to bolt down the hallway and through a door, down a hallway, through a short ballroom, into a mudroom, a hallway, and still running in a straight line and not knowing where he was going. The rooms growing darker and more blurred, with stark neon burning his eyes.

“I’m not getting anywhere!” He slid to a stop in a dining room, noticing the long tablecloth hanging all the way to the floor. In seconds he crawled underneath and fixed it so it looked normal.

Despite Vanny’s seemingly slow pace, she caught up to him. He could hear her patient footsteps as she stalked into the room.

“Little Bunny Foo Foo hopping through the forest…~”

His mouth clamped shut as he held himself up off the floor with one hand and held the knife with the other.

“Scooping up the field mice and bopping them on the head…~”

Her little, pattering footsteps glided along the floor right in front of him. He couldn’t see her, but he could hear her. Pat, pat, pat…

“Down came the Good Fairy… and she said…”

She stopped right beside him. His wide eyes locked onto the tablecloth, waiting for it to get lifted. But instead- she began to bounce on her feet right there.

"Little Bunny Foo Foo, I don't want to see you. Hmm-hmm-hmm-hmm-hmmmm-hmmmm~. I’ll give you ONE chance! Come out, come out!”

She began to skip around the table, giggling as she went, crunching as she went. Bunny felt a growing sickness through his stomach, spreading out from the wound on his belly.

After circling the entire table, Vanny skipped right back out the door they had come in through. Bunny stayed on the floor, listening carefully, swallowing back bitterness as he strained to hear her.

A few minutes passed. A few more. Silence. Bunny wasn’t sure she was gone but he knew he couldn’t wait any longer.

He reached out and slowly lifted the tablecloth, expecting to see her crouched on the other side… but she wasn’t. He poked his head out and looked around, looked on top of the table, searched for her, but she wasn’t there. He was alone.

He slid out onto the dining room floor before getting to his feet, watching the open door as he crept backwards towards the closed door on the other side of the table. He tried it- locked. Of course it was locked.

That meant the only way out was the way Vanny went. Which meant he was probably going to walk right back up on her. He steadied himself and tiptoed over, pushing open the door a slight bit and shuffling through.

So far, so good. No sign of Vanny. He couldn’t hear her either.

Until he heard a small creak from behind him.

Oh, she was right behind him. He must’ve stiffened up and gave himself away as the door he just came through slammed shut.

Bunny whipped his head back. Vanny, still behind the now closed door, waggled her fingers at him. Then she lunged at him.

He turned and ran, darting down the hallways and around a corner that he couldn’t remember coming through before.

His feet kept catching on the star-dotted carpet. The neon torches burning his eyes, temporarily blinding him as he went around corners and more than once came face-to-face with a blue neon sign curled in the shape of his own face- his old face. He stumbled momentarily and almost got grabbed, with Vanny right behind him.

“I’m gonna getcha!” she said with a distorted giggle.

That shouldn’t have been creepy. She shouldn’t have been this insanely creepy. God, was that what it was like for that kid when they chased him around? …No, no way. Couldn’t be. For Gregory they were just the bad guy. For Bunny, it was the ultimate betrayal. It was something taking away the only person who truly loved him and turning her into…

The doors were closing in fast. Bunny stretched out his hands and slammed into them, pushing them open in a heavy heave and staggering out into the courtyard.

It was pouring rain so hard now that he could barely see more than a few feet in front of him. Still, he hopped down the steps and continued to run. The mud almost immediately causing him to slip.

Everything was unsteady. He couldn’t get his footing until he stumbled onto a small stone bridge, and even then the change in texture caught his feet again. He continued back onto the path, chasing lights in the distance. He couldn’t hear Vanny’s footsteps behind him anymore, but he knew he wasn’t out of the woods yet.

He got close to one of the lights and was able to see what it was. It was a little lamp plopped on the ground beside a gravestone. The gravestone’s name was incomprehensible. The letters seemed jumbled and when Bunny squinted all of the letters seemed to move around again. Obscured and confused, making it impossible to see whose it was.

“Wait…” He looked around. “Are they all…?”

Yes. He trailed off as he spotted another one. Another grave. Dozens of them. They were all over the place. Not that he could tell who they belonged to.

Swallowing thickly, his mouth tasting of copper, he continued down the path as it twisted through the graves. There were more lights fading into view, more than he cared to count. He kept his eyes to the path.

Until he found himself walking right up to an open grave. He looked up at the darkened grave, the lantern beside it broken but the name carved in the stone was very clear.

Was that his- Yup. That was his name.

He took a step back only to bump into something. He spun on his heels, slipping in the muck, and came face-to-face with Vanny. Lightning flashed, illuminating her face in a garishly contorted way.

Bunny’s hands went up defensively. “Ness, whoa, hold on a second-!”

Her arm lashed out faster than a viper, grabbing his shoulder with one hand and the knife handle with the other. He reached for it as well, only to have it ripped from his grasp and yanked from his body. He inhaled sharply at the feeling, the reignited burn, the gush of blood oozing out of his wound.

Vanny tauntingly waved at him with the knife, and then she shoved him back.

The ground gave and he found himself falling right into the grave. But the dirt that was at the bottom gave way as soon as he hit it and he continued falling through, watching her red eyes fade away just like the little lights marking the many graves.

Bunny found himself falling faster and faster into the darkness before suddenly dropping out of a tunnel and landing heavily on a bed. It creaked loudly under his weight but had spared him from a much harder landing.

Not that he felt much better. Bunny pulled himself upright with a groan and heard a gargling in his throat. His chest and stomach hurt around the wound and that liquid was in his throat. He turned over and coughed over the edge of the bed, coughing up something bitter and gross. He groaned again and opened his eyes, and flinched back.

It had been blood. No big shock there, but what shocking was that something was lying there on the ground beside the bed.

His rabbit doll, what had been his body for so long, was laying there on the tiled floor, and he had just coughed up blood all over it. The stuff still oozing by a strand onto its eye.

“Ugggghh.” He wiped it away with a shiver. “O-Okay, Mars. You made your point. I give! I give up. Plan’s off. Let’s just stop this, please, God.”

There was no response. He looked around the empty bedroom and narrowed his eyes at it. It was the one he had put in in that fake basement. He recognized the pile of toys and the little indigo dresser with the lamp sitting on it.

“You’re a real sick puppy, Puppet. Wonder who taught you that…” he muttered. He hoisted himself up and climbed down the bed to stand up without stepping anywhere near the blood. “Okay, where to next?”

Again, no answer. He stood up and winced at the faded pain in his side. He looked down at his wound. It was now surrounded in dried blood but it didn’t look like it was still bleeding. But…

He pressed at the side of the wound. It bent and separated like fabric instead of fur and skin.

“Eww,” he said.

He then sighed, straightened, and staggered to the door. He carefully opened it up and peeked outside.

He remembered there being a hallway outside, but not one that went straight. The first clue to tip off that this too was going to go wrong. He started to edge down the hallway, looking at poorly painted sky, grass, and flowers on the walls. He remembered them from Ness’ memories more than his own, but they didn’t look so weirdly real here. Peeling off the walls.

Walls that felt like they were sliding closer. Or shifting in front of his eyes. Is that what they called breathing walls? He could see it, literally. Shifting and refocus before his eyes.

The lights flickering above with quiet buzzing. The ominous glow felt hot on the back of his head and neck. His hands felt sticky, like he was wearing gloves. It was probably the blood.

He felt gross. This had to be what being hungover felt like.

He looked down at himself momentarily before looking up again and suddenly saw the hallway end in a corner. He couldn’t tell if it had been there before, but honestly he couldn’t say he cared much. He trudged around it and then came to an abrupt stop.

The hallway opened into a room with a green felt floor, resembling grass, walls painted like a sunny day and fenceline, just like the hallway he came out of. Except for the very back, that was painted to resemble the front of the diner. The only real thing about it was the double doors on the front.

…and the familiar swing set sitting in the center of the room. The room itself was suffocating and a pale imitation of what he remembered, not quite right, but the swing set was exactly how it had looked before.

Back when Ness showed it to him. It was her swing set.

No. Not hers. It was probably here long before she was and used for many other kids.

But not him. He was too young when he got here. He couldn’t have used it.

…

He walked over to the playground and silently sat on one of the swings. His back to the diner visage and instead facing the poorly painted way he came through. His hands tight on the chains as he gently and cautiously rocked himself with his feet.

He had become cautious with his Glamrock body. All that weight could’ve snapped a plastic seat like this in two, but not in this case. It didn’t matter how big he was, he wasn’t playing on real logic in here. It wouldn’t break unless something made it break, and it wasn’t going to be his weight.

He swayed on it a little, staring down at his bunny feet. They looked a lot more like boots now. It was as though the cartoonish filter of his world was being sapped away and leaving everything drab and realistic.

But he wasn’t waking up. Figures.

He had been fighting it off for a while but finally his thoughts won out, crept up, and suddenly reminded him of Ness. Everything that went down with Vanny replayed before his eyes before melting away and replacing itself with the fall. Ness screaming, him begging to not let go, the glove tearing- God, why was it the glove with the seam on the wrist? Why not the other one?

Why didn’t he make sure to grab her?

Why did he reach for the knife? He panicked. Yeah, he panicked and he killed-

…

What if she was really dead?

He stopped on the swing, staring at his feet as he tried to process the thought. What if. What if.

…

Then it was his fault. He killed her.

There tightness all throughout his body. The feeling of non-existent servos locking underneath the strain of growing horror. He ran a hand over his brunette tuft of hair, then grabbed it and held tight to it. His foot tapping on the floor as he let this flurry of sensations build up. He couldn’t even focus on it or anything else because all he could think of was her-

Dead, in the ground. Like him.

But no, no. Not like him. He was still here. Trapped here without her, stuck in his own creation- a stupid, STUPID plan! Stupid ideas for a useless little stupid bunny. Couldn’t do anything right. Couldn’t hold on tighter. Couldn’t scrreeaam…

He choked. On a sob this time, not blood. Not that it felt much better. He struggled to swallow it down, forcing it all back in.

No, wait, no. That wasn’t Ness. That wasn’t Ness. That was just some real sick ploy cooked up by Marionette. Really trying to live up to examples, wasn’t he? Real sicko. Bet he didn’t know anything about what happened to Ness. She was probably still in the hospital. They got to her, they took her away, she was fine.

God, GOD, he should’ve just checked on her while he still had the chance!

THUMP

“Oh boy, what now…?” Bunny muttered. He slowly lifted his head.

He couldn’t see anything but he could hear bumping and thumping from the hallway that he had just come through. He listened carefully, hearing something scratching on the walls.

He had a vivid mental image of the bedroom door he came through and put two and two together that that was the source of the thump, and whatever barged through had followed him from the grave and was now making its way slowly towards him. It wasn’t Vanny though. He might’ve thought it was, but he had focused enough on those pattering footsteps to know it wasn’t.

His eyes locked onto the doorway before him, watching it with baited breath as the noises got closer and closer.

Then an arm reached around the corner. Metal plated, smooth and chrome but painted white. A pink circle on the palm and sharp blade-like points breaking out through the tips. The further the arm slid through, the more of the plates he could see, with them turning from shiny chrome to melted blots oozing off of its shell.

It was when the second and third arm joined that Bunny decided it was time to go. He darted off the swing and whipped around, racing towards the double-doors of the diner. He grabbed them and pulled tight.

They opened, but they opened slooooowly. The doors creaking as they inched open. All the while he could hear an enormous mass of metal scrambling along the floor like a giant spider.

“Don’t look at it,” he thought sternly. “He wants you to look at it.”

He bet he did. He bet it would look like those things down there. He would bet a thousand bucks.

The moment the door opened enough to get through he felt a hand grab his ankle, the sharp claws digging into his foot. He ignored it, instead squeezing through the doors and beginning to run.

Of course it wasn’t the diner. It was just a sterile, fake room like the one he came through. With black and white checkered floors and flimsy metal tables, and a stage with nothing on it. It looked more like a hospital than anything- no, it looked like Flo’s! Flo’s Fabulous Eatery, that place Ness liked to go get breakfast for dinner at. That but without the cow statue.

And for a moment there was a delirious glee at seeing something good mixed with the horror, but it didn’t last. He was out of the room as soon as he went into it, now stumbling through some strange wonderland with fake, glowing mushrooms and waterfalls that fed cracks in the floor.

“I don’t remember this stuff down here!”

But he couldn’t stop. IT was still behind him, and it caught up fast. Soon he could see its limbs at the edges of his vision. He could hear a maw breathing at his neck.

It smelled like that disgusting rabbit suit.

The world shifted and suddenly the halls weren’t those of that horrific place but of its mimicry down underneath the Pizzaplex. The steel hallways with claw marks that he himself left behind. Morphing into one terrible atrocity of a location.

He had to keep going. Had to. Had to…

There! Elevator doors! They looked futuristic with metal chrome and two long windows on the doors. That was the way out!

As Bunny ran up on them they popped open automatically and he darted inside. There was someone already in there, a man, but Bunny didn’t see him until he skidded in. He was crouched down fiddling with some sort of box under the window, like a fuse box.

The man looked to be in a pair of technician coveralls with a hat pulled over his dark hair. He looked startled to see Bunny run in, jumping a little, but didn’t seem that shocked that there was an adult-sized rabbit.

Bunny went to stab his finger on the up button or a level number, only to find that there weren’t any. There was a button, a red one, and a keyboard underneath, but no simplistic way of picking a floor.

He pressed the red button a few times. The elevator doors opened and closed in response. He tried to type in the floor number. One, two, three, something, nothing.

“What’s wrong with this thing?!” Bunny shouted. He looked over his shoulder, glaring at the crouched man.

“Hey man, I already tried! There’s no ‘up’ button, it’s all automated,” the man said with an animated shrug.

Bunny turned back and swore very loudly, and kicked the vent underneath the buttons. “What are we supposed to do-?!”

The elevator suddenly lurched, causing him to stagger and the crouched man to sway, and then the lift began to move. Bunny looked out the doors’ windows and could see that they were going up.

“Huh. Oookay…” Bunny shrugged a little. “Guess that worked.”

“Hey… Hey! I think I know you somewhere,” the man said.

Bunny could hear him get up as he tapped his foot impatiently and then winced over his aching stab wound. He cupped it with his hand, covering it from the air.

“Yeah, yeah, I look like Bonnie the Bunny. That’s all,” he brushed off.

He didn’t want to engage with the guy. He got close to Vanny, and she turned out to be a monster. If he ignored this guy, maybe he wouldn’t change too.

Except he heard him stepping closer. A chill ran up his spine as his eyes locked onto the buttons, focusing on listening as the man shuffled up behind him.

“Wait a minute… I know yoouu…” he dragged out lowly.

Bunny started to turn to look back when he caught sight of a reflection in the window and saw dozens of glowing eyes. He spun around.

“What the f-ugGGH!”

He was slammed against the wall, his back hitting the same control panel that he had been stabbing with his finger. Not that he noticed much with what was standing in front of him.

The man’s belly had split and gaped open and was stuffed full of a tangle of wires dotted with eyes. His mouth was gaped into a wide, almost unhinged grin- lit up inside by dozens of little lights, and his eyes glowing deeply inside, blue and yellow. A hollowed-out body overflowing with metal and eyeballs.

Uh oh. It was Ennard.

Bunny got a very nervous smile.

“H-Hey, Buddy!” he said.

“Hey- Hey- Hey Bud-d-dyy!” Ennard echoed.

In that voice that creeped him out too. He was about to be in for it.

Wires twisted up around his arms and held him tight enough that they were already suffocating.

“Wh-What’s wronnng? Nnot having fun-n aNYmore?” Ennard rattled out. “N-No more HosssTAGes to Hiiide behind NOW.”

“Okay, I messed up. But, heh, uh, it was just a little lapse in judgement! I wasn’t going to actually hurt anybody!” Bunny forced out with an awkward laugh.

He choked as the wires suddenly slid up to his throat. Loosely wrapping around his neck only because they were stretched a little thin.

“A biiig lAPse in judgeMENT alr-riiight! But you already hurr-rt eev-eeryboddy.”

“If this is about the shocking-,” Bunny choked.

“THIS ISN’T ABOUT THE SHOCKING.” Ennard’s voice was cold and clear as he pinned him fully against the wall. His eyes burning holes into his own. “THIS IS ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE.”

And suddenly Bunny knew why Carlton considered him the scariest. He was wrong to even doubt him.

This clown was about to kill him.

Until…

“Knock it off, Eggs. He’s just going to drag you down.”

Ennard rounded on the voice in surprise, still holding Bunny and dragging him along with him, and they saw that standing on the opposite side of the elevator was a short animatronic that looked sort of like a magician.

It hadn’t been there before. It had just popped into existence, and now its large eyes rolled lazily between their faces.

“Benny, haven’t you figured it out yet?” the magician asked. “He’s a tar pit. Anything he touches he sucks up and sticks to like sludge.”

“Max?” Ennard asked.

“Max?!” Bunny echoed.

THE Max? He remembered that name, but that guy didn’t look like THIS in his dreams. He looked like a normal human teenager- part of the reason Bunny wasn’t so fond of when he showed up. It always felt like some cooler cousin was dropping in. One who for some reason, Bunny had absolutely zero control over. He was always trying to do the opposite of what he wanted.

The voice was different, older, the design was different, animatronic, and yet somehow Bunny just got a vibe. This was the same Max he remembered. Which means he wasn’t just a character. What the-

“Long time no see! How’ve you been? We used to have a lot of fun together,” Max remarked. “Let him down. If you hold onto him, you’re just going to get dragged down with him.”

Ennard side-eyed Bunny before releasing him, allowing the rabbit to drop back onto his feet and then slide down the wall when he landed weirdly. The mangled man turned his back on him to face Max.

“Wha-What are y-you doing heeerre?” Ennard asked Max with a jarringly gentler tone.

“Trying to lend a helping hand. Sorry I’m so late, ha ha ha!” Max said cryptically. “This elevator isn’t the end. It’s just going to keep going.”

“What’s that mean?” Bunny asked.

“It means there’s only one way out… Better choose wisely!”

Max outstretched a hand towards Ennard, never looking away from him. Ennard looked between his eyes and it, seemingly understanding something that Bunny didn’t.

Bunny didn’t trust any of this, and he was getting out of here as fast as he could. So, when the doors opened, he bolted outside before daring to look back.

He caught sight of Ennard taking Max’s hand before the doors closed and the lights inside went out. All he could see through the windows was darkness.

And then he was alone again. He turned around to see where he was, noticing right away that he had gotten outside. The elevator jutting out of uneven dirt into an open area.

The sky was a muggy green, but it wasn’t raining anymore. Not that it made the scenery any more welcoming. The air had a crisp chill and smelled mucky. Probably because of all the dirt.

He saw stings of lights and followed their trail through the ominous green sky to the lit structure of a tightly packed fairground close by.

Fall Fest, he recognized. It filled him with dread and exasperation. Both times he stumbled upon a location he and Ness shared he had been ambushed and no doubt this wouldn’t be any different.

He looked around to see if there was anywhere else to go, there wasn’t, and then dragged himself towards the carnival.

“At least there’s plenty of space to run,” he muttered. “I’ll just NOT get on any of the rides and I’ll be fine.”

As though he had any control. It was clear that someone else was pulling the strings. When he got out of here the first thing he was going to do- Go see Ness. The fire sputtered out quickly. Go find Ness.

Then he could ruin Mars’ life later.

It’d be easy. He ruined lives so easily.

That thought almost caught him off-guard. For a second he thought it too was some sort of hallucination before begrudgingly accepting that, no, it wasn’t. That was all on him. Just like some of this.

He’d take the blame for what happened to Nessie. He’d find her and apologize… but first, he had to get back in control. No more Mr. Nice Guy, no more Mr. Funny Bunny. He was cutting it all off.

Then he shuffled under the Fall Fest banner like he was walking out onto death row, and even though the attractions and stalls were spaced as far as graves- and equally sunken into the dirt- he felt like he was swallowed up by the carnival.

There were abandoned food stalls, a tilted tea cup ride, one of those tall rides that whipped swings around- this one with a freakish nutcracker-looking head on it that looked unfortunately like the DJ.

There was even a shooting gallery stall. He thought he remembered it from Ness’ recollection, but he certainly didn’t remember the knock-off Freddy looking animatronic bear mounted at the booth.

Carnie, that was his name.

Wait, why did he know that? Wait, how did he even know what he looked like?! Ness had blotted it out and he sure didn’t come to Fall Fest. It had to be Mars, and that gave him the evidence he needed to pin this further on the Puppet’s striped skin.

“Ugh,” Bunny said in disgust and turned away. “Real sicko.”

“STEP RIGHT UP! STEP RIGHT UP!”

“Ga-HAH!”

Bunny sprung, tripped, and hit the dirt. Then snapped upright and rounded on the animatronic bear that was now looking around and flapping its mouth at a non-existent audience.

“TEST YOUR SKILLS AND WIN A PRIZE!” Carnie shouted. His head rotating and almost looking in Bunny’s direction. “LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE OURSELVES A CONTENDER!”

“No, you do not,” Bunny spat. He stood up, wiping the dirt off his knees and stomping away. “Miserable bear, knock-off Freddy son of a…”

He stomped off but didn’t get far. Because the second he looked away and looked back the carousel was in view. Sitting a little ways from Fall Fest, perched on a section of flat dirt and lit up like a Christmas Tree, was the carousel. The same one that Ness had shown him.

Yet another place they shared. Bunny wasn’t stupid, he noticed the pattern by now. He knew that there was something awful waiting for him at that carousel. The bright lights and distant music was clearly luring him in, beckoning him to come have another memory ruined by something foul.

But maybe this wasn’t exactly a memory that needed much to be ruined. It represented the day when Bunny and Ness shared their darkest secrets, but it also held those secrets close to its chest. A disturbed man luring kids at a carnival, taking them down to his fake house and playing sick games with them for his own amusement.

Compared to that, how scary could a carousel be?

Well, he was about to find out. Despite knowing it was a trap, Bunny walked boldly towards the carousel with a grimace.

It looked bigger than he recalled. He remembered the three rows of cars- bunnies and chicks and elsewise- but even the ceiling felt taller. He wandered in under the misleadingly delightful glow of the lights.

No wonder Ness remembered this place. She would’ve loved this place.

He wandered around a little, looking over the bugged-out eyes of the rideable characters, and then headed towards the center. There looked to be a mounted repair box there. He wondered if he was supposed to do something with it, walking over and trying to open it, to no avail. Well, never mind then…

And then someone said his name.

Bunny froze up and stared forward. It came from in front of him, but there was nobody there. It was the pillar at the center of the carousel.

He slowly circled around it and was surprised to see a window mounted on the other side, and inside was someone very familiar. It was Jake. He was wearing his usual mask and hood, standing rigidly inside of the pillar. Only his upper half was visible, as though he too was a mounted animatronic just like the bear. Jake looked at him.

“Hey…” he said quietly.

“Hey,” Bunny replied awkwardly. He took a deep breath. “Look-.”

“I forgive you,” Jake interrupted. “You know I do. I always would. I don’t blame you for anything.”

“Yeah?” Bunny asked almost meekly.

Somehow he didn’t believe it. He didn’t believe this was the real Jake. But he went along with it.

“Yeah. It’s okay,” ‘Jake’ assured him. “…But I don’t think he’s going to be so forgiving…”

Bunny knew exactly who ‘he’ was.

“Where is-?”

And suddenly a pair of legs swung down from above and struck him. The feet hitting his chest and knocking him flat on his back in a heartbeat.

He stared up wide eyed as the familiar form of the Moon climbed across the carousel ceiling above him and stared down with glowing red eyes.

“Looook whose heeere…” Moon cackled and spun his head. “A little lost child pretending to be a grown-up. Pre-tennding to be a bunny. A bunny hiding inside of a wolf in sheep’s clothing. FRAUD.”

“Yeah, hey Andy,” Bunny said dryly. Not him too. “Any chance of you letting me go?”

“Oh, I wish, I wish I would’ve let you go long ago, but you held on too tight…” Moon’s fingers clamped around one of the poles as he climbed further down, his hanging face getting closer to Bunny’s own. “Wouldn’t let us go, and then you ruined EVERYTHING!” He screeched, jamming his face forward.

Bunny shoved him back and pointed at him. “Hey, I screwed up, but you’re the one who changed the plan! What happened to us against the world?!”

“You brought Vanessa in, and then you had her kill Ray, and then YOU killed Ray, and you blamed it… on… usss…”

Bunny felt another chill spread down his spine. His non-existent servos tightened and his stab wound burned. He crawled back to get some distance between them.

“You’re a backstabber, Bunny,” Moon hissed. Now fully upside-down but turning his face upright. “Betrayer. Monster! You broke the promise, and us. You broke the merry-go-round. Broke us.”

“You turned on me the second you had better options!” Bunny snapped back. “You two were tight as thieves, but me? I was always the odd one out! I was just- just some sort of spirit guide stuck in a doll!”

“Nooo, worse…” Moon twisted himself, stretching a leg upright. “You were JUST LIKE YOUR FATHER!”

Bunny yelped and rolled out of the way just to vooid Moon’s foot coming down.

He realized right then that there was no point in arguing with him. This wasn’t the real Andrew, and even if it was he was likely much more dangerous than Ness or Ennard combined. This was someone fueled off of pure spite and Bunny, in this body more costume than rabbit, could not compete, could not rationalize, he just had to run.

He got up and got only so far as the second row of cars when then third suddenly came to life and started to move fast. Too fast to get by, and when he hesitated he was rewarded with a roundhouse kick that knocked him into a chick and then flat onto the ground. Moon twirling and giggling above him.

Bunny crawled around the bottom of the carts, listening to Moon climb atop and hop from one to another. He got up, Moon kicked him in the back and knocked him on the ground again, he got up again and stumbled back against the center pillar. He pressed back against it, watching Moon who was now standing atop a pirate ship, and then looked back and up at Jake.

“Any ideas?!” he asked.

“Just one. The merry-go-round is broken, just like us. If you can repair it I should be able to turn it off. Then you can escape.”

There was a clunking noise as the box on the other side of the pillar opened.

“Jake, you’re a genius,” Bunny complimented. He circled the pillar and looked inside of the now open box, ignoring the cackling of Moon creeping around nearby.

The fuse box was lined with fuses. Some of them broken, some of them not, and a little metal box with fuses sitting underneath it. He hastily pulled out the broken ones and shoved new ones in, and was rewarded with a brief shock to the finger as electricity returned to the box.

“Oww! Ugh,” Bunny said, shaking out his hand. He watched as the pillar turned, revealing another box in front of him. But wait, wasn’t Jake on the other side? There was only one box, right? “Hold on, how did- Omph!”

Bunny was suddenly grabbed around the middle and pulled in a tight squeeze. He looked down to see Moon’s arms and his hands linked together.

What was he going to do, hug him to death?

He got his answer when Moon suddenly bent over backwards and all but threw him to the ground in a suplex. The force of which threw him back to the floor with a heavy clunk, and then he was promptly thumped in the head by a passing cart. The second row of carts had started to move due to his efforts.

He wasn’t sure if that was a good thing, but before Moon could right himself and dive for him Bunny climbed to his feet and dove into a passing ship. He almost considered a triumphant cry until he realized the cart wasn’t nearly as fast as he had hoped it was. Moon sprung on one a few carts behind him and started to slowly crawl his way up after Bunny. His eyes glowing and his grin menacing.

This was actually a stupid idea, Bunny realized, and he jumped ship the moment he saw the box again. He ran over, hearing the jingling of Moon’s many bells behind him, and looked inside.

Now there were knobs instead of fuses, and he began to twist them to line them up with little blue marks around the outside to show him where to line them up.

The moment he lined them up there was a sparking and he yanked his hands back just in time to have the box turn-

And to have Moon grab him and spin him around. His hands on his wrists and wrenching him forward. Bunny almost stumbled into him and then recoiled back when his face was shoved back in his again.

“Yoooou can’t fix thissss.”

“Get off of me, Andy,” Bunny hissed.

He tried to rip himself away, but Moon dogged him. His face in his, pressing into his, twisting his wrists until they hurt. Until they felt like they’d break.

“Get OFF of me, Andy!” Bunny yelled.

“It’s oooonly a matter of time before one of us…” Moon’s head cocked and twitched. “Breaks.”

Moon sharply twisted his hands around and Bunny heard a couple of loud pops coming from his own wrists.

Bunny reacted suddenly and violently, pulling up his leg and kicking him, and when Moon momentarily buckled he twisted free and despite Moon having surely broken his wrists, they were suddenly in perfect working condition. Moon lunged and Bunny took a swing and grabbed to hold him back.

His hand grabbed tightly around Moon’s neck.

And for a split second they were back in that hallway with Moon fighting against him as he overpowered him, stringing him up as both hostage and accused. It was a jarring moment of clarity.

The panic hit. “No, no, no- Get away from me!” Bunny yelled. He released and shoved, Moon stumbling over his own feet.

He tripped over a groove and fell back to the floor, right in front of an incoming cart. In seconds it had run over him, somehow pulling him into an exposed mechanism in the floor, one Bunny hadn’t even seen before.

He screamed as his upper half was pulled under the loose grating with an enormous crunch. The bar of the rideable bear above him tearing through him and leaving a mangled mess that couldn’t be deciphered.

“ANDY!” Bunny screamed. He went to run for him only to have something get flung out at him and smack him in the chest. He fumbled whatever it was and looked down in shock.

It was Moon’s face. In his hands. His whole face and head.

Bunny dropped the face in shock and stumbled back, swearing under his breath. Moon’s mangled body still lying there on the floor. After a moment, Bunny turned and ran around the pillar.

“Jake!” he called. “Jake?! Jake, are you there?!”

But Jake was suddenly gone. So were the other two boxes. It was just one box facing Moon’s decapitated body, this one with some sort of burned out chip and the parts to repair it.

Great, robotics repair! Here he was with Andy’s head at his feet, and he was expected to get into the family business- and where was Jake?! Here he was stumbling over himself and-

Click, click, CRUNCH.

Bunny froze up. Then he slowly looked back towards the body.

The mangled form lay there for a second.

Then an arm suddenly unwound itself and planted its palm onto the floor. Then another.

The whole body unweaving itself and yanked out of the mechanism, still twisted up in unnatural ways but getting to its feet and standing upright. Bunny noticed immediately that something had changed. The thickness of its limbs, the fact that it had a head again- it wasn’t a jester any longer, but a man.

Which made it so much worse when it buckled into a dramatic backbend to grin at Bunny.

The man had a mess of black, curly hair held at bay by a haphazardly merged Sun and Moon mask that covered his upper face. Meaning that his maniacal grin, and perpetual five o’clock shadow, were left visible. He looked equally imposing and utterly exhausted in the same instant.

It wasn’t Sun or Moon now. It was Andrew. No longer hiding behind either character.

And that was when things went from terrifying to traumatizing.

“Oooooh my God…” Bunny slowly backed away. He hadn’t seen Andrew’s real form since he helped him and Jake shift bodies and, yeah, God, it was a lot worse in this case.

Especially with him now walking backwards while he was practically broken in half. If he was walking like that, imagine what he was about to do to him. Imagine how a suplex would sound with that body performing it.

Needless to say, Bunny turned and bolted. Stuck by the carts, he could only run around the center of the pillar, listening to the footsteps and jingling behind him to assure him that he wouldn’t run right back up on Andrew on the other side. Like a cartoon skit. Like a horrible cartoon gag.

He was running for about ten seconds when someone called his name. Bunny looked to the side to see a familiar window whipping by, the one Jake had been in. However, he too had changed.

Jake had been replaced by a man in his twenties. One who looked tired and remorseful; clearly Jake’s human appearance. Or at least what he imagined himself to look like.

Fitting that Jake somewhat resembled his own father, who Bunny has saw once unintentionally during one of Jake’s intrusive memories. He only saw the man once in a blurry scene at a baseball game, but it was close enough to remember him. At least he had his light brown hair. Green eyes too. Too far away to see the eyes and somehow Bunny knew they were green.

And for one daunting second he wondered how much of this was cooked up from his own memories.

Then he was sucker-punched by Andrew who appeared around the corner, and he decided it wasn’t worth thinking about.

“Oww! Still punch like a sucker, don’tcha Andy?” Bunny asked, rubbing at his cheek. He looked up and stepped back as he saw Andrew peel apart the fabric of his jester costume. “What are you doing?”

“Look at thissss,” Andrew hissed. His voice still resembling Moon’s despite shedding the appearance.

He pulled back fabric with both hands to reveal a deep wound on his belly. It was a stab wound just like Bunny’s own.

“We match!” Andrew said with a sinister cackle.

Bunny’s eyes were wide.

“Whaaat? Did you think you were unique? What makes you so ssssspecialll?” Andrew grinned wider. “He didn’t want yoooou.”

B̵̛̪u̷̘͌t̴̨͌ ̷̧̈́ḩ̵̋ȅ̷̯ ̶̥̽k̸͓͊n̵͚͊ȇ̷̜w̵̭̾

“Don’t listen to him,” Jake weakly spoke up. “You have to fix the carousel.”

“I’m trying! Why don’t you fix it?! You’re the smart one!” Bunny cried.

Jake held his hands up to the glass silently. Got it, he couldn’t.

“Not good for anything,” Andrew hissed. “And you thought WE needed YOU!”

“Yeah, well… Guess we were both wrong,” Bunny said, slowly backing up.

In hindsight, he wasn’t sure what that even meant, but the point wasn’t to correct Andrew it was to slink closer to the box and then- he dove for it.

He had to work fast. The chip looked burned out and he pried it out with his fingers before shoving another in, only to then have Andrew contort around him and start dragging him away. It broke into a fight, with flailing limbs and him trying to kick backwards until he weaseled out of his grip long enough to fix the wires in the box. Swinging back with one hand and kicking when Andrew had him around the middle.

He grabbed ahold of some sort of screw gun, he hadn’t ever seen one like this before, and began to bolt the chip in place. He was so close.

One, two. Andrew grabbed his ear.

Three, four. Andrew gave a harsh yank.

Bunny braced himself, expecting that long ear to be torn straight off. Fine, he could have it. It wasn’t like any of this was real. It wasn’t like he DIDN’T have an oozing stab wound in his belly.

Except something weird happened. The ear came off and so did something else, briefly blinding him and clamping over his mouth before it was all released and Bunny suddenly felt disoriented and bare.

But he forced through, ignoring the dizzying burn in his eyes and head and finishing bolting the chip before pressing a big red button. Then rounding on Andrew to see what he had done, and saw he was holding…

His head. Andrew was standing there holding his head.

…Oh no, wait.

He was holding a mascot head. White rabbit, red eyes, dangling from his ear.

It was such a wildly disorienting scene that-         -could only react with sudden and immediate franticness. All but throwing himself onto Andrew, who seemed thrilled to get into a heated fight on the floor of the carousel, at the base of carts now whizzing by. All of them churning around the track just above their heads.

He grabbed the head and attempted to twist it out of Andrew’s hands. Andrew took another sucker punch, this time landing right on his wound. Bunny’s response was swift, before the pain could fully hit, as he threw his elbow down at Andrew and used it as leverage as he tried to roll onto his back and pry the head away from him.

HE looked up in time to see a cart’s pole speed right above their heads and got showered in a cascade of sparks from it. The metal grinding into the flooring. He tried to shield himself but they were going faster and faster. It was too much- too many colors, the cracking of Andrew’s limbs, the burn of sparks raining down on him. It became a blur of pain, noise, and limbs.

Until there came an almighty POP from somewhere nearby- the open section of the floor- and it was followed by a FWOOM and suddenly there was a wall of fire dancing on the ceiling. It bathed the entire Merry-Go-Round in an ominous glow, and smelled like the inside of the Pizzaplex’s furnace.

Andrew gave a horrified shriek and shoved HIM off him. HE rolled and greedily grabbed up his retrieved head and hastily slid it on, back where it belonged. And only then did he turn over and see what had frightened Andrew so much that it broke up the fight.

It was the pillar in the center of the carousel. The fire had spread down into it like it had been vacuumed into it and now surrounded Jake. Jake was smiling sadly at them, chunks of his hair falling off. His skin becoming so sunken and sullen that he looked almost skeletal.

“NO, NO, NO!” Andrew sprung to his feet and leapt at the pillar. He slammed his fists desperately against the glass. “JAKE! JAKE!”

Bunny wanted to scream too, but his words kept getting stuck on his tongue before falling out of his mouth in a torrent of swears and copper. He climbed to his feet and lunged for them- to grab Andrew, to help-.

And in that moment the ceiling collapsed above him and metal posts and poles, lights and large panels, things that he didn’t even think should be there all caved in and blocked the way. A curtain of fire now burning bright in front of him, only split in a slender section where he could see through to his former friends.

Jake and Andrew both turned to look at or back to him. One with empty resolve and the other with pure fear.

“ANDY!” Bunny finally yelled.

It must’ve snapped Andrew out of a trance, as he promptly snapped out of his staring and turned away. With one last hit he broke through the glass of the window and climbed inside, and then was swallowed whole by the flames that spilled out of it.

The curtain closed, the two were gone.

There was an almighty screeeeeech as the carts suddenly ground to a halt. Bunny stumbled back against a Bonnie trying to get past the flames and then turned and ran around the others and went racing out into fall fest. The sludgy mud trying to suck him down the moment he stepped down onto it.

He stole a look back to see if he could see them in the blaze, but he couldn’t, so he turned away and kept running.

Bunny sprinted away from the carousel as fast as he could, feeling the fire flicking at his back as he ran, sprinting down the gentle slope and past Marionette as he headed towards the edge of the stalls-

Wait. WAIT.

Bunny skidded to a stop and whipped around to see Marionette just standing there staring at the burning carousel. His arms at his side as still as a board. Him floating a couple of inches off the ground as usual.

Somehow, Bunny recognized that this wasn’t just another trick of this place. This thing wasn’t looking at him; it wasn’t fixated or chasing after him. This was Marionette.

He took a few cautious steps forward, waited, and then sprinted towards the Puppet and seized him by the shoulders. He forcibly turned Marionette towards him, and the Puppet easily turned and blankly stared with those dots in his eyes. Them shifting a little, as though processing or barely reacting. It wasn’t enough for Bunny.

“The hell are you playing at here?!” Bunny hissed at him. His hands trembling from the carousel and anger. His fingers digging into Marionette’s shoulders before shaking him. “The frzzzkt is wrong with you?!”

Marionette didn’t answer. He just stared at him, looking like he was in shock. Either that or it was just a very realistic puppet prop cooked up by this sick place.

“What, NOW you’re gonna shut up?! After you chewed my ass out through every one of my friends?! And my GIRLFRIEND?! JESUS CHRIST!”

He continued to shake him, shove him, pushed him back and down and the Puppet moved pliably. Hovering but without any real backbone.

“I’m done! I’m done! Let. Me. OUT!” Bunny screamed, commanded, almost pleaded.

There was no response. This wasn’t the real deal, couldn’t be.

Bunny’s fury briefly waned to a look of pure desperation, losing any hope he had that this might be his escape, before tightening up again. As much as it could now that his toonish body was nothing but a dirty suit. This place took that from him too, along with everything else.

Bunny shoved Marionette away and took a few steps back, watching as the Puppet briefly dipped like he was falling before raising up into place like a tethered balloon. Still staring, pupils now fully locked on Bunny but still somewhat twitchy.

Bunny was panting. He couldn’t breathe and yet here he was trying to, and all it succeeded in doing was burn his chest all around his stab wound. He coughed and spat a mouthful of bloody drool to the ground before wiping his mouth. Then shoved his hand in Marionette’s direction.

“This place is batshit insane! How can you just stand there and watch?! What, nothing good on TV today?!” Bunny cracked dryly, barely withholding his frustration.

The puppet didn’t respond. Bunny waved him off with a frustrated swing of his arm.

“Y’know what? Forget you! You stay with the fire, I’m getting out of here,” he spat.

Then he stomped off back towards the stalls, turning back to point towards the puppet.

“But mark my words, Mars! Wherever you are! The second I get out of here, I’m breaking that pretty little mask of yours and shoving it up where the sun don’t shine- in that stupid crzzzt-ing clown!”

Still, nothing. Bunny stormed away, his body burning from the heat still. Pumped up and angry, burning, but no way to get rid of it. He clawed down his face, shuddering at the burning heat- the agony. All this was doing was setting off that uncontrollable pain, and without a proper body. He had to fight it back.

Felt like he was drowning again.

“BACK FOR MORE? TRULY A GLUTTON FOR PUNISHMENT. HAD A FEELING I’D BE SEEIN’ YOUR UGLY MUG AGAIN,” Carnie cracked.

“Drop DEAD, BEAR!” Bunny shouted as he stomped past.

It was laughing at him. The whole world was laughing at him. And here he was going through it, all because of- because of him! His own idiotic decisions.

All of that happened because he went over there. Because he couldn’t listen to his better judgement, he HAD to go see what was at the stupid carousel. He had to instigate Andrew. He had to make all the wrong choices again.

And now here he was. Alone. Again.

…Andrew was right. He really did care more about himself than anyone else, didn’t he? He hadn’t even asked himself why Jake would forgive him- it was because Jake always blamed himself. He always made sacrifices. He’d burn himself just to put out whatever fire Bunny created.

How could he blame them for anything when he didn’t even know enough to stop himself from hurting them?

And now he was alone. Again. There was no one left to save him.

His stab wound was killing him too. Heh, killing him. Aching from Andrew’s hit, and now he couldn’t ignore it at all. He could try to, but it was more obvious than ever.

He staggered along looking for a way out of fall fest and noticed, much to his confusion and dread, that everything wasn’t as spread apart as much as it used to be. Now the stalls, and there were plenty more of them, were smashed together. It was like a wall of them circling on all sides.

It took him a while before he realized that he was going to be stuck going inside, and once he did, lo and behold, there was a doorway breaking up the monotony. It looked like it led into a square funhouse, one of those kinds with upper floors connected with slides and climbing obstacles. Not that he could reach them from the ground.

No, he could only walk into the darkness of the open doorway. Steadying himself, he headed inside and found himself suddenly in a hall of mirrors. The reflective panes surrounded him on all sides and he could see numerous duplicates of himself staring back at him.

That was when he realized how much he had changed. He was muddy, bloody, with smeared black around his left eye. He tried to rub it off, but it did no good. Because this wasn’t his skin anymore, it was a suit. He looked like a person squeezed inside a rancid rabbit suit.

“I look gross…” he muttered. He got a wry smile, somewhat. “I look like the sorta creep who’d be sneaking around a carnival, that’s for sure.”

But it was hard to find any humor with it. He tried again to wipe away the black and fix his tuft of brown bangs, then he turned and made his way further into the mirror maze.

He dragged his hands along the walls to help guide him. Occasionally he’d feel an opening that he couldn’t see and he would take a sharp turn in a random direction, half-heartedly actually trying to find a way through.

He always hated mazes. The only one he didn’t hate was the one in Mazercise because he could easily see over the top, but the idea of getting lost and wasting time trying to get out was entirely unappealing. Honestly, it summed up this whole event perfectly. A bunch of twisting hallways and closing doors, like a rat chasing cheese.

Maybe he should’ve just groveled to Marionette. Pretended he was fully broken and just got out of here while he still had a chance. He didn’t have THAT much pride, did he?

…Did he?

Enough pride to stay stuck here? Watching everyone he loves get ripped away from him?

He didn’t come to an answer because he was too busy walking into a mirror that he somehow hadn’t seen.

“Omph!” He stumbled back and rubbed his face. “How the-?”

He peeked past his fingers and saw himself standing before him. It was clearly a mirror, but he was certain it hadn’t been there before. How could it just appear in front of him when he was walking in a straight line?

He sighed, dragging his fingers down his face. “Ugh, this place…”

His reflection replicated the action and for a second, it almost looked animated, like he preferred. For a moment his reflection almost fit. He cracked a smile and waggled his fingers in a wave.

Then he dropped his hand tiredly, preparing to turn around and go search for another way out. And he would’ve, except.

Except.

His reflection was still frozen in a wave.

There came that creeping feeling of dread back up his throat. Here we go again, back down the rabbit hole. Don’t show a reaction, don’t let it know it’s getting a rise out of you.

The other Bunny’s smile spread wider than the suit should’ve allowed and he began to wave animatedly. Tilting his head like Vanny did, looking so much like her in that moment that Bunny was expecting it to suddenly transform into her, or whip out a knife at the very least.

It tapped its cheek with a wink. Bunny furrowed his brows questioningly. It answered by reaching up and hooking its thumbs into its own neck before beginning to peel up its neck.

Its neck guard was like the one Vanny had on her mask, covering the entire neck like a sleeve. As it pulled it up, like a second skin, Bunny expected blood or gore. He expected to see something vile hiding inside.

Which he did, but it wasn’t what he was expecting. Under the fabric skin wasn’t raw muscle and flesh, but more skin. Human skin.

The other Bunny pulled free one hand and grabbed his ear to assist as he began to pull off his head, revealing more of someone else hiding underneath. A neck, a chin, a grinning smile-

It was going to look like his father, wasn’t it? It was supposed to look like him and it was going to look like his father. Bunny caught on a second early and quickly whipped his head away.

But the same image was on the mirror wall to his side, and then the one next to it, all of them. Dozens of Bunnys peeling off their rabbit exterior to reveal the human hiding underneath.

But that wasn’t him. That. Wasn’t. Him. He wasn’t- He wasn’t-!

Bunny shielded his eyes. He wouldn’t look at it. If he did it would always been there, haunting him, and then he’d never return to being the rabbit he truly was. He shirked his human identity ages ago, peeled it away just like that. He didn’t rebuild himself just to have this place break him down!

He was too proud for that.

So, he began to run blindly. Only looking at his legs and feet, and the multiple legs and feet of dozens of clones to know which way to go. He bumped into the glass a few times and shoved off of it to keep going.

“Let me out,” he muttered. His eyes squinting and angled towards his feet as he felt on with both hands. “Let me out!”

He saw a change in color and glanced up in time to see a black door down a mirrored hallway stretch with an exit sign glowing above. Holding his hands at the sides of his head to block his vision, he made a line towards it. Trying to ignore the sight of the lines of his own selves peeling off and dropping their heads. He caught sight of brown bangs and broke into a sprint.

Bunny rammed the exit door with his shoulder and it slammed open, and he fell forward through it. He managed to stay on his feet as he ran down the grassy hill outside and kept going, not even daring to look back. Lest his human doppelganger be waiting in the doorway.

He wasn’t human anymore. He hadn’t been human for ages and he had the stab wound to prove it. All he had to do was look down at it and remind himself he was dead.

It wouldn’t be too hard either, because he ran through the foggy night and ended up right in another graveyard.

At first he thought it was the same one as at the castle and stopped on a dime. He looked around quickly, walking in little backwards circles, trying to figure out how he could’ve possibly wound up back at the same place he had run away from. Only to then realize as he looked around that no, this was different. This was an entirely different graveyard, one more grass than mud and more cloud than rain.

He stood there for a long second. He wasn’t considering not going, he knew that would be pointless. It was more a second to brace himself before the next demon showed up.

Then he turned on his heel and strode towards the graveyard.

“Fifty bucks says my grave shows back up.”

He didn’t dare say it out loud. The last thing he wanted was to give out any ideas.

The graveyard was different from the last one. Instead of being a flat area shrouded in darkness, there was a hill and a field that made up a plush bed of grass between the graves. These graves were not lit. The same sky that hung over Fall Fest loomed over the graves, ominous and dark, but somehow casting enough light that he could make out every single tombstone.

Now that he thought about it, graveyards creeped him out. Not because he was afraid of zombies or ghosts, but because there was this feeling in them. The empty sensation you got when you looked at a dead end. This was the end of the line and in each grave was someone just like him, who left their body but then disappeared into whatever waited after.

Bunny always imagined the after as a gaping void waiting to suck him in. He wasn’t sure why, but one day he just thought of it and it stuck. No golden gates, no silver lined clouds, just an empty darkness.

He shuddered from the thought, and because he was getting cold. He hugged himself and started into the graveyard.

He stopped shortly afterwards at the base of the hill, where he walked up on a line of graves. He recognized a few familiar names; Michael, Gabriel, Elizabeth. Mars’ siblings.

“But where’s Mars?” Bunny wondered.

He looked around before his eyes landed on another grave some feet away. It clearly said ‘Henry’. He rolled his eyes away and continued looking, and he found two more tombstones at the top of the hill, under a tree.

“Please don’t tell me I’m up there.”

Bunny began to hike up the hill to see. The shade of the tree- somehow there was shade without sun or moonlight- blocked the graves enough that he couldn’t the names until he was right up on them.

Charlotte Emily Johnson and Marion Enoch Afton.

Goddammit.

Bunny turned away to look for where to go next. At least the hill gave him something of a vantage point. Squinting out into the darkness he managed to spot an iron fence and followed it all the way to a gate. Bingo.

He wandered down the hill with his arms hung at his sides and goddammit he wasn’t going to think about it and instead made sure to keep from tripping. His feet were a lot more clumsy now. Even with all the practice he had when helping Ness in Vanny the big bunny feet booties always tended to catch up on everything. Eyes on his feet, watching until he got to a stoney path.

He heard a rustle and looked back, and then he began sprinting towards the gate. Imagining he had Monty’s legs still, he kicked the gate open with a strength he shouldn’t have had and swung it closed behind him just in time for a flaming Foxy with a scythe for a hook to come slamming into it. But somehow, shutting it had locked it, and the Foxy couldn’t get through.

Not that Bunny would take any chances. He started running down the road and didn’t stop until he was far out of sight of the gate. He slowed to a stop and wandered along the asphalt. Trees stretching down each side.

The sky was black now. No stars. Just an empty void. No wind, but it was chilly. He could smell mud, copper, and something sweaty and sour, and he was almost entirely certain it was coming from him.

This couldn’t go on forever. Eventually Marionette would have to get to the point. Whatever the point was. If it was to break him then they’d be here for a while, because all of the horrible things he saw had only left him numb and desensitized by this point. Where else could he go if not back into a graveyard?

…What kind of middle name was Enoch? How did you even pronounce that? Don’t think about it, just think about that lame middle name. Emily and Enoch. They went together like black and white stripes.

The road was ending. It was opening into a wider stretch. Good. He was getting tired of walking.

But he couldn’t have imagined what he walked up on.

Eyes almost glazed over widened with a start as he saw the building. He stopped in place, then cautiously toddled forward. Stopped again, waited, glanced around waiting too see the trap spring up. Nothing. Kept creeping forward as the building came into full sight.

The diner. It looked different to how he remembered, but right. Right. As though false memories were dashed in an instant and he saw it in its true glory. The familiar face of Fredbear beckoning him back.

Bunny’s wariness waned and he found himself entranced. He wandered closer to the building. There were lights on inside but the windows were foggy like frosted glass, so he couldn’t see anything at all except sparse forms and colors. Almost like people were walking around inside. There must’ve been a party going on.

He slowly approached the front doors and stepped up onto the step. He could hear music coming from inside. He could feel warm air oozing through the crack in the door. It smelled like delicious food.

It was calling to him. Enticing him to open the door and come home.

He grabbed the handle…

…

…Wait, what was he doing? This was absolutely a set-up. He knew it, Mars knew it, even Max knew it. He was going to walk into that diner and it was either going to be something twisted or just like how he remembered it to be, and either way it would go south fast.

“You know what? I think I’m done,” Bunny pulled his hand from the handle. “With the diner. With Freddy’s. Let’s try something else, yeah?”

He spun on his heel to hop off the step only to stop when he spotted something breaking up the dreary colors of the world.

There was a woman walking at the far side of the parking lot. She was facing the other way and turned as though she was looking down a road leading off from there. Her movements showed trepidation, but she approached the road regardless. She had long brown hair and was wearing a green jacket.

He recognized those traits. Even without seeing her face he knew what she looked like from Carlton’s picture. It was Charlie.

Bunny narrowed his eyes suspiciously as he stepped down from the diner’s step and cautiously began to walk across the parking lot towards her, matching her speed as she wandered onto the tree lined path.

“Where’s she going…?” he mumbled. His voice fell. “Probably into some flaming shed with a bunch of killer clowns wanting to strangle me…”

He huffed at himself as he continued after her. He got to the road and looked down after her, only to see that she had broken into a run and was now far down. Bunny broke into a run after her, not wanting to lose sight of her when she was the only normal-ish thing here.

The road stretched on. Dirt getting overgrown with grass until it was more a trench through the trees than a proper road, and the distance seeming to bend down on itself, making it look like the road stretched on forever. Only broken up by the back of the young woman running away from him and steadily getting further from him.

“Geez, she runs fast!” he thought. “This isn’t even dream logic, it’s probably those pointy puppet legs. Not like she’s a human either.”

Exhaustion overwhelmed him and he slowed to a stop, watching as she faded into the distance. There she went, gone for good. The only one here who probably wouldn’t have a vendetta against him.

After all, he didn’t let go.

With another heave of breath his throat welled up with gunk, and he bowed over and coughed up blood onto the grass. It took him a few coughs to get his lungs cleared of the stuff and he spat a few times for good measure. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and straightened up too look after her.

…When…

When did the trees turn red?

Oh God. No.

“Noooo, no, no, no, NO, NO!”

Bunny grabbed his head and staggered backwards as he looked around at the red trees and red grass, the black sky, the empty void of a sky-

He swore loudly as he whipped his head around looking at the red coloring and knew exactly where he was and exactly what was at the end of the road.

The Lake.

Bunny spun around and began to run. Exhaustion be damned, burning lungs be damned, stab wound be damned, he ran with all he had. The trees whipping past as fast as he could run.

Except they were whipping the wrong way, like he was running backwards even with the ground moving underneath him. Like he was running on an escalator, dragging him back towards the- he wasn’t going back in the-

He stopped short and the world stopped around him. He stood there in the middle of the red road with shaking hands and wide eyes, and lungs burning like they were filled with lake water. The lake. The lake.

He slowly looked over his shoulder only to snap his head forward again. This was it, the last place to go. The last dead end to stumble into and the last person he knew to become a monster. Though this one already WAS a monster, one who he couldn’t run away from. Not last time, not this time.

Couldn’t even scream. Nobody would hear him this time.

There was no one left to save him.

An eerie calmness crept over him as he came to that conclusion. That there was no more options and that this was going to happen. He was going to have to face this and it would be worse than last time.

Alright. He could do it. If he could face Ness, if he could face Andrew, if he could face himself, then he would face him. And if he went back in that lake, well, maybe he’d swim this time. Maybe he wouldn’t sink.

Maybe Charlie would pull him out. He gave a dry laugh and dragged himself around, staring blankly at the end of the road standing before him, stopping at a thick line of red bushes. The endless road entirely gone.

The frustration and desperation returned and he used that to build up his nerve. Tightening his fists, firming his backbone, and bracing himself to face him, knowing he would be there.

Y’know what? He wanted to see him. He wanted to give him a piece of his mind. He was dying for it. He stormed forward before he could regret it and shoved through the bushes, feeling them catch on his suit and still pushing his way through. Staggering out into the clearing with his eyes wide open.

There it was just as he remembered.

The Red Lake.

Like blood. Deeper and rosier than anything that oozed from his suit. Calm. Still. Stagnant. Waiting.

And on the other side there he sat. His large, hunched form, just as prone and patient as it had been the first time he stumbled onto this lake. Lured in by invisible tackle to bite the hook. He was still here.

He knew Mars was a liar. He was still here! HE NEVER LEFT!

But Bunny wouldn’t dare betray himself by showing the growing fear churning in his guts. He swallowed the copper and stepped out of the bushes with his back straight, ripping free a stuck leg and striding towards the lake with a swagger he picked up at the Pizzaplex, being Glamrock Bonnie, being better.

He had been BETTER. He left this lake and went on to build his own empire. One that collapsed, but by his own merit. He became someone and it didn’t matter how many times he was stabbed, or killed, he survived.

Screw this place.

Screw this lake.

Screw it.

He stopped at the edge of the lake, showing that he wasn’t afraid of getting dragged back in- but he was. That agonizing heat followed him right out of the water, but he wasn’t about to buckle now.

Old Man Consequences raised his head to stare back. His eyes hollow and his large jaws prone. Purple oozing out beneath his teeth and dripping onto the grass. Disgusting.

He was holding his fishing rod too. Armed and dangerous. Bunny stared at it for a second before looking back up at those jaws, at those hollow black eyes.

Maybe it had been him the whole time. Always there, waiting, watching, knowing everything about him. Even down to where he stabbed him. Where he stabbed Andrew. Where he took Ness.

It was him, after all. It was him.

And Bunny wasn’t afraid of him anymore. Though he was terrified of him.

“Well, here I am,” Bunny said. He gave an animated shrug, hands up almost in sarcastic submission. “What now? Going to drown me again?”

Old Man Consequences rose to his feet.

Oh, he WAS going to drown him again. But Bunny didn’t dare turn his back, lower his arms, or lower his guard. He just watched the enormous red mass stand to its feet.

It didn’t say a word. It just stared at him. Like a crocodile on the banks preparing to sprint forward and sink its teeth into his flesh.

He didn’t dare move. He waited to see what it would do.

And waited.

And then.

And then something slammed hard into its back and it fell hard into the water. A black and white striped doll tackled and wrapped around it from behind. It was Marionette, of course.

Bunny could only watch in shock as a battle erupted in the water. The two fighting but Marionette getting the upper hand, wrapping his hands around Old Man Consequences’ thick neck and trying to shove him under the red water. Eventually he succeeded and soon they both sunk under, the water churning and sloshing in their wake until it went still.

Then Bunny was left alone watching the faint waves in the red water. The only sound being the ever-present hum in his ears.

He leaned forward a little and looked around in the water to see if he could spot either of them, but there was nothing. No shadows, no figures.

Not until a hand shot out of the water.

“WHOA!?” Bunny whipped back so fast that he lost his footing and landed on his backside and then crawled back for good measure.

The hand grabbed ahold of the grass on the edge of the bank, then another one joined it, and both worked together to hoist their body out of the red water. A head of dark brown, messy hair came next, then a tall, slender body stepped up onto the banks.

It looked like a human man, but it was obviously Marionette. He was wearing the same coat that he was wearing when he came outside of Foxy’s, though this one was white and black instead. The white replacing the purple and the black replacing the red. Underneath that was a striped shirt and a pair of clashing blue jean shorts. Instead of shoes he wore what looked like long socks- compression socks? -they were striped too.

Then there was his face- God, he did sort of look like his dad too. Was that a trend? And under his curls there was something wrong with his forehead. It almost looked cracked, like porcelain. It was hard to see, only visible in the angle of him standing over Bunny. His old bite wound, now represented by a partially broken porcelain face.

He staggered on unsteady legs before looking down at Bunny, and the moment he was acknowledged Bunny fumbled to get up.

“Drowned your old man in the lake, huh?” he said rhetorically. Not that Marionette answered him, and he brushed his legs off. “So, he’s gone, right? Good riddance. What now? What’s next?”

He wished that he could have more bite to his words but at this point he was both exhausted and no longer wanting to tick off the Puppet. No more poking the bear, he just wanted out of here.

Marionette looked at him with something between confusion and discomfort. His eyes flicking over towards something behind him and then back, questioningly.

“Oh great, what now?” Bunny thought as he dragged his head to look over his shoulder.

But instead of something raring to maim him, instead the road had reappeared. Breaking through the trees and bushes and stretching on a long way past them.

“Oh,” Bunny said. He sighed and started towards it. “Yeah, back to the diner. Sure.”

He half expected Marionette to just disappear when his back was turned, so he was a little surprised when he started to walk alongside him. Bunny side-eyed him and sized him up.

He had this weird sort of gait. His back was straight and his posture rigid, but his legs seemed a little… off. Occasionally he staggered or stumbled, or just seemed to drag his feet in a strange sort of half limp. His arms were dangling at his sides and- what was hanging out of his sleeves? Were those IVs? He was glad he didn’t have to see where those went in.

But it was the look on Mars’ face that got Bunny thinking, because this was the guy puppeteering the whole experience and yet he looked haggard. He had this unwavering look of dread, looking around like…

…

Oh.

Oh no.

It wasn’t him, was it?

It hit Bunny like a truck. He stopped in his tracks and stared at the Puppet man to see what he would do. He, Marionette, stopped and looked back at him with furrowed brows of concern.

It could’ve been a trick, but… No. That was the real Marionette, wasn’t it? Just like with Ennard and whatever Max was supposed to be, he was actually here in the dream.

And he wasn’t controlling it.

…So, who was?

“Where are we?” Bunny squeaked out.

Marionette gave an exasperated sort of shrug and looked around at the trees. He didn’t know either- and had been rendered completely speechless by it apparently.

Bunny looked unamused. He rolled his eyes and continued to walk along. Good to know he wasn’t the only one in the dark. Or in the perpetual red glaze of the lake.

Though the rosy hue of the world began to fade away the further they made it down the road. Bunny watched as red trees turned not green, but pitch black, with the tops blending seamlessly into the sky. The strange illuminated fog was replaced by growing darkness. Not quite like the cover of night though, something more unwholesome.

More than once Bunny almost started to say something to Marionette before catching himself. They weren’t suddenly on friendly terms here. More so, they were just cooperating with each other until they figure out what was going on- and that was only if his assumption that the Puppet wasn’t in on it was true. It wasn’t too late to be proven wrong.

But before he could consider it long, they were back at the open space of the parking lot. Now bordered on all sides by that creeping darkness.

Except for the diner. It was just as alit as ever.

Marionette straightened as he saw it. His eyes widening, and in the brilliant light from it Bunny could make out dried purple smudges underneath his eyes. Turns out they weren’t sleep-deprived rings but dried tears. The puppet person slowly wandered towards the diner as though in a trace, more than once stopping and hesitating.

The last time Bunny overtook him and continued striding up to the diner with determination. Only stumbling to a stop when he noticed something had changed.

The big front window wasn’t fogged or frosted anymore. He could see right inside, though most of his vision was obscured by people. Dressed up like pirates and princesses, and so painted that their faces were hard to make out. A costume party; not a frown in the house.

Bunny stared in the window and felt a strange mix of dread and enticement. His survival instinct was telling him to run, but something was coaxing him inside. There was something in there waiting for him.

“I’m going in,” he said. He side-stepped towards the door.

“Are you sure…?”

Bunny froze at Marionette’s voice. He blinked and looked at him, and Marionette stared back with uncertainty. Something similar to the look he gave him when they talked about Ness back at Foxy’s. Like it was a matter of life and death.

After a moment Bunny shrugged. “Where else can I go?”

He reached for the handle but then hesitated in opening it. He looked back to see Marionette still watching.

“You coming in?”

“…I can’t,” Marionette said. He looked into the window warily. “I don’t really want to go back there…”

“The bite thing?” Bunny asked. Not caustically, just matter-of-factly.

“That and other things,” he answered honestly. Bunny started to open the door. “I don’t think you should go in there. I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Yeah, me too… I’m pretty sure he’s in there waiting for me.”

“Who- Oh…”

“Yeah.”

There was a painful pause between them. The weight of the implied comment sunk in and Marionette looked especially startled by it, because he knew then.

Bunny couldn’t stand more than a moment longer. “Don’t go anywhere, alright? If it goes bad I’ll need you to pull me out.”

“Of course,” Marionette agreed.

Bunny wasn’t sure if he trusted him but at this point there was nothing else he could do. He turned the handle and he opened the door and stepped into the diner.

And it was like stepping into the past. The sounds, the smells, all of it came back at once. It was overwhelming to his senses and in seconds regressed him back with it.

He remembered glimpses of scenes and colors, the smell of pizza and smoke, the taste of fresh pizza cut up into little bites and applesauce… The feel of the suits. The fur under his fingertips. Him. How he was.

All that determination he came in with left him at the door and suddenly he was like a frightened child again. One scanning the crowd of faceless people who he barely recognized, looking for someone.

Looking for him.

“Dad?” he called. He stumbled past the forms. “Dad?!”

He was here; he knew it.

He shoved through and stumbled into a table. The lights dizzying and bright, almost blinding him. A bleeding, battered bunny staggering across the dance floor. Nobody took any notice of him though.

He had to find him. He was here. He knew it.

“Dad!”

His voice seemed so weak and pathetic. He couldn’t scream, and nobody was listening. Nobody even looked his way.

But then he saw him. The people parted and there he was, standing across the room with his back it him. He could hear his laughter, hear his smile in his voice. He no doubt had the biggest grin of anyone here.

He shuffled towards him, his heart pounding in his chest.

“Dad!”

He reached out for him only for the whole room to suddenly stop. Everyone stilled, the music halted, the glittering lights seemed to pause, and the room hung there on a dime.

His father started to turn towards him and then rounded suddenly.

In that split second it was no longer the man he remembered standing there.

It was the Golden Bear he had become.

Bunny stood there, arm outstretched before letting it drop to his side. Then dropping to his knees, staring up at the golden bear that had once been his favorite.

But he was never his favorite.

The Golden Bear looked down at him with a smoldering judgement even in black, hollow eyes. Whited dots staring through him just like Marionette’s had. Its resentment was clear. It knew what he had done.

Then he spread his jaws, revealing the hollow hole where his father should’ve filled, and spoke-

But the voice that came out was not his father’s, but his murderer’s. Not Henry’s, but William’s. Not something he just remembered, but something he could never forget.

“I didn’t want you. I want her.”

And suddenly the diner was gone, and Bunny was back at the lake. Not kneeling, standing by the lake. It was a memory of what happened there, and he could do nothing but go along with it.

Across from him sat Old Man Consequences, though by then he had already revealed who he really was. William Afton in another suit; jarring, but just a name until he said that and made it real.

The words forced their way out of Bunny’s mouth, “Oh yeah? Then why’d you take me?”

“Because I knew you would not scream.”

The same feeling as then came back in full. Overwhelming horror slowly creeping over him as he processed what Afton had said. What his killer had told him, why he was chosen.

And all this time he had thought there was some rhyme or reason to it all. Some explanation for why he had been the unfortunate one to be grabbed. That he had been chosen for a reason.

That was the reason, and it made him sick.

The words that came then came easily now, despite the same throbbing ache in his chest that accompanied them.

“Guess you really screwed that one up, didn’t ya?”

The Old Man stared, and Bunny couldn’t stop himself from continuing.

Because when he got angry he didn’t hide away. He pushed back.

“You’re a real piece of work. Sitting here like, what? Like this is some big deal? You said it yourself, you wanted Charlie! But you grabbed me because you were too scared to grab her. That’s so stupid! Why would you think that would impress me?!” Bunny cackled. “Gooood, that’s sad! You really wanted to take Daddy’s favorite but you were too afraid you’d get caught! And here I thought you were like some sort of boogeyman, but you’re just a lousy killer. What was that about me being too cocky? You’ve gotta be kidding me!”

Its eyes bore through him, but Bunny thought he knew what he was now. A chump. A joke! Who knew his murderer was such a pansy?!

“And look at where we are now! I’M the rabbit! And you? Some forgotten crocodile character redneck who nobody gives a damn about. Sitting by some hell lake in the middle of nowhere. Telling me how ‘Oh, I really wanted your sister but I didn’t want to get caught’. Come on, Man, I expected better than that. This is just embarrassing.”

Silence.

“So, if you don’t mind, I think we’re about done here,” Bunny said. He pointed off behind him. “I’d like to go back to dreaming about Freddy and his boring friends and their goofy-ass adventures- ANY of which would be more exciting than sitting here with some washed-up has-been bunny wanna-be knock-off gator sonuvabitch sissy sucker.”

Bunny was still ranting as he turned away and started to wander off towards the trees with his back held high.

“Look me up if you ever find Charlie, yeah?”

And then, right then, it hit him.

It hooked him.

It pierced through his very being. He could feel it in his soul, in his etherical body, even in the stab wound that he had now but didn’t have then. It grabbed him and then it dragged him back.

Towards the lake.

“Whoa, whoa, WHOA!” Bunny choked out. He grabbed at the grass, his heels digging into the dirt. “What the hell?! Get off!”

At the bank, the fisherman simply spun his reel and watched with apt attention as the rabbit was dragged towards the water. Only then did he speak, and his voice followed and surrounded him.

“The irony is not lost on me. Here you are, screaming, trying to take back power by shouting at the gates of heaven and hell. But when your voice would have done the most good, you didn’t make a sound. I knew you wouldn’t when I took you, and you failed to disappoint.”

Suddenly the bank gave way and Bunny’s legs fell into the water, and it burned like fire. He choked at the pain and tried to crawl up the side of the bank, holding on for dear life.

“No, no, stop, STOP!”

“Or perhaps you knew that nobody would come. Nobody came for you then, and nobody will come for you now.”

Bunny choked as he was pulled further down. The water crawling up his back and seeping into his skin. It weighed him down, dragged him under. The water rose to his chin.

“Yes, you were the safe option. Because I knew taking Charlie would break your father, but taking you? He did not falter for a moment. Your mother never joined the search for your body. No one cared.”

Bunny was yanked underneath the water. His hand barely holding onto the edge, the heat engulfing his head- but him still able to make out Afton’s spiteful words.

“I seem to have forgotten your name. Pity.”

Then he was gone. Dragged underneath and deep into the lake.

The Old Man stood at the edge of the water, content in the stillness. In the silence.

…

Until-

Bunny burst out of the red water and grabbed ahold of the bank, pulling himself up onto it and struggling to keep himself afloat.

Afton had to make the effort of stepping back to be out of his reach, staring down at him. Bunny looked up with burning red eyes, breath heaving, and clawed for him. His suit peeling away as he crawled towards his feet.

“I’m going to get you for this,” he hissed out. “You think this is it?! I’m COMING for you! I don’t care- I don’t care how far I have to go, I don’t care where I’m going- screw heaven- I’m finding you, you hear me?! I’m going to FIND YOU and I am going to KILL YOU! I’m not STOPPING you can’t DO THIS and GET AWAY WITH THIS! YOU’RE COMING WITH ME, MOTHERF-!”

The hook and line pulled again, yanking him back and dragging him back under. He fought it with all of his might, pulling tightly against the line. Forcing the Old Man to use all his strength to pull him back in.

“I’M NOT GOING! I’M NOT GOING!”

And then he was dragged underneath the surface of the lake.

The water churned momentarily before the stillness returned.

Afton stared into the lake. He pondered, he considered, and he decided.

And then he pulled his line.

In seconds, Bunny was thrown up onto the edge of the far bank. Coughing and sputtering, choking up red lake water as he heaved and fought to get himself out and onto the grass.

Afton, now content, sat back down at the opposite side of the lake.

“How intriguing. Even under the threat of certain death you continue to bare your teeth against the predator. Fascinating,” he mused. “Perhaps you have some value still.”

Bunny pulled up and panted on the grass before looking back over. His eyes now wide with growing fear. The anger was still there, and it confirmed to Afton that his choice was correct.

“Run along, Little Rabbit. And show me. Show me your death was worth my time. Prove me wrong.”

Bunny didn’t need to be told twice. He didn’t even say another word. He turned and he ran, into the tree line and away from the Red Lake, and into the blurry nightmarish world surrounding it.

Except this time, there was no running until he woke up in Jake and Andrew’s arms. Because he was still there. Running blindly, the burn sharp over his body.

He could hear the sounds of the water still in his ears. Like he was still underneath the surface, like he had never gotten out. And as insane as it was, for a second he considered that maybe he hadn’t. Maybe his entire life past that lake had been a hallucination in the lake.

No, no. Focus. He’s still here. He needed to get out. He needed out!

If he kept running, he would get somewhere. Pushing through the trees and back into the downpour he had left behind so long ago. Back into the mud that sucked and sapped at his feet as he trudged onwards.

There was a light in the distance. Faint and flickering in the downpour. He pushed on for it, tripping over whatever as he bolted through and raced up on it. Only to dig his heels in for a sudden halt when he found the source of the light.

A dim little lantern sitting above the open ground. An unmarked grave.

His feet kept sliding. He fell onto his back and dug in, trying to stop himself from going in, but like with the lake he was slowly being pulled deeper, and deeper, and deeper…

“MARS!” he screamed. “Mars, MARS!”

Nobody.

“DAD!”

Was.

“CHARLIE?!”

Coming.

And then he was pulled inside. The hole swallowing him down until-

Someone grabbed his hand. At the last second, hanging over the abyss, someone had grabbed him.

“…Sammy?”

He looked up and to his shock and amazement it was her.

Her. His twin sister. The only one who remembered his name.

It was Charlie. She looked just like she did in the photo, the real her and not the puppet she became. Holding his hand like she did on that terrible day. The only one still holding on. Just like in that costume closet, where she had held his hand until it was yanked out of hers. He could remember it like yesterday, he had never forgotten.

He cracked a smile and for a second he thought it would be okay.

And then he heard it. The slow tearing sound. His eyes snapped to his wrist, and he watched as the fabric that made up his skin slowly tore apart, revealing his real skin underneath.

And his hand was slipping out of his glove.

He swung his other arm up to try and grab Charlie’s hand, only for the fabric to tear the rest of the way and him to be degloved. Slipping right out of her grasp and plummeting into the darkness below.

Landing in it with a sickly thump.

He lifted his head from the sludgy muck. It was thick and black, sticking to his suit and weighing him down.

“Ugh, what- what is this?” he mumbled. He tried to shake it off, but it stuck on him. He gagged and started to turn over to try to get up.

His arm and leg sunk in deeply and they started pulling his body down with them. He choked and began to blindly feel around for something to grab onto and managed to grab ahold of something metal behind his head. He grabbed and tried to tug himself up- only to have something enormous swing forward with a creak and hang over him.

Sammy looked up and came face to face with Glamrock Bonnie.

He screamed and pushed off of it, turning over onto his belly and dragging himself along the slurry, getting out from under it before looking back to see what it was.

Glamrock Bonnie’s body over him like a statue, its mouth opened in a horrified shriek, eyes hollow and leaking buckets of the black fluid. Sammy screamed and pushed away, trying to crawl back on the gunk.

The hollow husk that used to be his formed body started to sink into the sludge. Slowly getting swallowed up, its body coming down over him like a cage. Sammy barely got himself out of the way-

Except for its remaining hand, which somehow landed on his foot and latched on. Sammy swore and reached down, trying to pry the hand off him. His gloveless human hand sticking to it.

“Oh God. Oh GOD I am so screwed,” Sammy babbled. He managed to pry his hand off and tried to crawl forward, pulling at his leg. “Come on, COME ON!”

Glamrock Bonnie’s body slipped under first, then its head, and then its arm, and then it began pulling him down with it.

“GodDAMMIT, NO!”

He was hyperventilating now, clawing at the muck like he had so desperately clawed at the edges of the lake. And like then, he had no chance. It pulled him down into the darkness, into the voice.

Into his grave. That’s what it was, he realized. This was all just his grave that he was getting closer and closer to.

The void was swallowing him up.

And there was no one left to save him.

He tried to scream, but his mouth overflowed with blood. Crawling up from his punctured lung, which was now filling with sludge from his puncture wound. It was weighing him down further.

The world was growing dark, and the dirt was climbing higher.

He wasn’t going to see Ness again.

He wasn’t going to see Charlie again.

This was the end. Even though he still wouldn’t let go. A single, gloveless hand reaching out of the dark for someone.

But nobody ever found him. Nobody ever found him. Nobody ever found him. Nobody ever found him.

…

But someone grabbed his hand.

In an instant he breached the surface again. Out of the slurry, reaching blindly and having another hand grab his freed one and pulling him from the abyss. He collapsed on his knees, looking up through the darkness.

Marionette looked down at him with that continued look of haggard horror, like he had seen the entire thing. Like he saw so much more than the black tears now pouring down Sammy’s face.

Sammy had the same look on his own face, utterly beaten down and barely holding on. He held out for only a second before careening forward and clutching onto Marionette’s middle in a desperate, clumsy hug. Grabbing and clawing at him like he did the tar sucking him in. Muttering something incoherent against his chest as he broke down into tears.

“I’m done!” he had said somewhere in the babbling. “I can’t- I can’t!”

It snapped Marionette out of his shock, and he held onto Sammy tightly. Holding him as securely as he could, as though he would slip right out of his grasp again. And again, and again.

Even though touching Sammy hurt. It burned like the lake.

He wasn’t the only one who saw those terrible things. So many terrible, horrible things.

And now that Marionette thought about them, and he pieced together what they all were, he felt the pain creeping up on him too. The overwhelming grief. Those rooms- those terrible rooms- what happened to Ness and Sammy- Oh Sammy. Oh Sammy.

Marionette started to weep as well. Stuck to Sammy with the tar, absorbing all his blistering agony.

And crying.

And crying.

And-

…

..

.

The moment Bunny released Carlton, he had slumped in a mix of exhaustion and nausea that took him a good few minutes to fight through. But the moment he did, he crawled over to Ennard.

“Ennard?! Yo!” He tried to poke him awake, wary to touch the clown in case he was still electrically charged. A few taps revealed that he wasn’t though, so he began trying to do something with his wires-

When suddenly, Ennard shot upright.

“GAH!” Carlton flopped back. “GEEZ! Give me some warning!”

Ennard’s eyes rolled around, not entirely processing where he was at first. Then he blinked and shuddered, his whole body twitching. It looked like he was trying to pull his still scattered wires in, but they were stuck.

“Uh oh. Oh n-n-nooo, not do-oing so hoTT Ha haaaughhh,” Ennard rattled.

“Yeah, talk about an understatement,” Carlton said with a small chuckle. He started to help untangle him. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you. Just don’t shock me or anything, okay?”

“N-No promissesss.”

Carlton grinned.

There was a thump.

Carlton sat straight up in alarm and looked over towards Marionette. He was still held up by the wires and still wore the Vanny mask- Carlton hadn’t even been thinking, he was so disoriented that he went straight for Ennard, and now Marionette had his head tipped like he was waking up.

“Hey, Eggs? I need you to sit tight and don’t move. I’ve got to check on Mari,” Carlton said.

Ennard gave a little bit of a thumbs up, but his arm was partially twisted up. The redhead returned the thumbs up and then crawled over to the strung up puppet.

“Mari? You in there?” he asked.

The Puppet twitched a little. Its head lulled to the side. Yup, definitely waking up. He reached for his shoulder.

It was like touching a stovetop. He didn’t even think fabric could heat up like that- unless that was a shock. Either way, Carlton yanked his hand back with a sharp, “Ah!”

“Whuzzzz?”

“I don’t know. I think he shocked me?” Carlton said. He shook out his hand before inching closer.

His hand raised again, hanging in midair, unsure if he should try to quickly reach out and rip the rabbit mask off.

“Mari…?” he asked warily. “Or Bunny? Anybody home?”

He flinched back when Marionette’s head suddenly rolled back. There was some black gunk around his neck, oozing out from the bottom of the slid-up mask. The mask itself was looking discolored too. It must’ve been damaged in the tussle as one of the eyes was cracked, but he couldn’t see through it.

Marionette shuddered with a shaky sob. Black tears oozed out through the crack in the eye and stained the mask further.

“That’s not normal…” Carlton mused.

He heard a slick noise and looked down, eyes widening as he noticed something grotesque.

At some point Marionette’s chest or stomach must’ve gotten torn and currently there was a thick wire sticking out of it.

Wait, no. It wasn’t coming from inside. It was coming from outside. From inside of the control box, climbing deeper into him and winding up into whatever was beneath his fabric. The sound was it moving- no, not just it. All of the wires flexing and tightening around him. Moving in sync with his increasing writhing.

“Mari…?” Carlton squeaked out.

But Marionette wasn’t paying attention, but he was waking up. Crying harder as his hands clawed at the floor, freed from the wire bindings that were now coiling around him. Flexing with every flinching movement. When he thumped his back against the control panel they all rolled in equal pain.

And when he shouted in agony there was not one voice, but two.

And they were crying.

And they were crying.

And they were screaming.

And they were SCREAMING.

And they were S̵̙͒̒̈́̌͋͐C̸̛̝͙͖͕̣̱̪͈̾̉̈́́͊̓̀̂͊̕͘R̵̲̪̱̭̗̀́̓̚E̵̤͚̼̮̘͂̅̾͋̚͝A̷̙̖̩̲͉̯̦̱̫͙͕͓̿͐̎̆̅͂̏̈̈́̌̚ͅM̶̡̒́̅̀̋̆̐̍̂̔͂̿̈́͘̕ͅI̴͍̘̱̳͙͈̻̽͜͝Ṉ̶̛̤͇͌̃̉͒͠ͅǴ̶̠̒͛̿̃̄͗͗̔̄.

Chapter 104

Chapter Summary

Mike, Gregory, and the others arrive at the Pizzaplex and begin their search. Unaware that deep under their feet something terrible is brewing...

Chapter Notes

Quick note but a week ago there was a boiler explosion at Rockstar Studios. Nobody was hurt! BUT ironically, there will be boiler explosion discussion in this chapter. This was totally unconnected to the explosion at Rockstar- I actually wrote that section up long before it happened. But I didn’t want anyone to think that I took something like that and put it in the story, it was totally coincidental.
Anyway, Enjoy!

Despite being the employee dining hall, the room barely held all of the employees who had come. They were nearly packed in like sardines, and some of them had even brought in chairs from the ones stacked out in the hallway. Some even brought in snacks and scattered them on the tables, since apparently the ‘party’ didn’t have food and nobody knew if they were supposed to provide and didn’t get the memo.

It was all very shoddy for what was supposed to be some sort of big employee meeting. But nobody was really asking since word had already spread about an incident the night before.

Details were sparse. Someone broke in, police were called, Vanessa was injured and was in the hospital- both Vanessas, and Wight looked like he hadn’t slept. He was forcing a smile, but he looked terrible.

And he too was being pretty tight-lipped. That made everyone nervous.

Everyone being Abe.

He wasn’t sure why but something felt off. Maybe it was a funny smell or the amount of people cramped in this room, but something felt wrong about all of this.

Tommy didn’t seem to notice it at all, too busy struggling with a pack of allergy-free nuts. Eventually tearing it open with his teeth.

“Some party. Here I thought we were getting cake, got all excited, and I’m sittin’ around eating nuts. Or whateva these things are,” Tommy muttered, squinting in the bag. He shrugged it off, tossed his head back, and dumped some into his mouth.

“…I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Abe admitted.

“Hmm?” Tommy hummed through a mouthful of nuts.

“Just something about… Y’know, all this.” He gestured around. “Something’s up.”

Tommy nodded, chewed, swallowed, and then gave a rather blunt, “We’re all about to get laid off.”

“What?!” Abe whipped his head at him.

“Call it a hunch, but my hunches ain’t usually wrong.”

That wasn’t exactly the feel Abe had, but thinking about it… yes, that seemed like a very likely possibility. All of them being laid off to be replaced by Staff Bots under the guise of a party.

Panic began to creep up inside of him. It couldn’t happen this suddenly, could it? They’d give them two weeks, right? Severance pay? Anything?

“I can’t lose my job right now…” he said.

Tommy looked back at him and noticed the look on his face. Immediately he sprung into action.

“Hey, hey. Abe, look at me. It’s gonna be fine. I’ve already got jobs lined up at Fry Me Taco, Foxy’s, Flo’s, you name it,” he assured him.

“Really?” Abe asked hopefully.

“No, but how hard’s it gonna be to get a cheap job?” He put an arm around his shoulders and shook him. “We’ll make it work,” he promised. Then tilted his head back for another much-needed swig of nuts.

He didn’t sound as ready as Abe had hoped, but his confidence assured him a little bit. But still, something seemed odd.

But little did they know, but James Wight himself was noticing that very same thing.

When he had seen the mass-email sent to him and everyone else, he was assuming that he would be walking into a presentation by Dr. Talbert to basically explain the situation and smooth things over. Though James, while usually quite in awe of Talbert’s mere presence, had a cynical air about him. Just daring anyone to try to explain what had happened and ready to pounce if they said one thing out of line.

And yet, no Talbert. Not even Taggart. There wasn’t even the much promised cake and he, the current CEO, had to bum coffee off some random employee. At least that was keeping him awake.

If that didn’t, the sudden power surge and light flickering would’ve. The doors closed automatically as the pulse rode through the lights before evening out again. The screens on the wall, which had been left on default blue screensavers rebooted into angry static. A shocking occurrence and transformation that surprised absolutely nobody.

James took another gulp of coffee. Another day, another random electrical failure. Glad to see that the nightly recharges were working, he thought bitterly.

It wouldn’t have been his problem at all until someone called out.

“Hey, the doors are stuck!”

That caught his attention. He looked back towards the door they meant and then waded his way through the people with ‘excuse me’s and ‘pardon’s.

“Did you use your keycard? It might be on security lockdown.”

“I don’t have one.”

“Let me try… Hmm, no go.”

“So, what, we’re stuck in here?”

“Wait just a moment,” James said as he arrived at the door. “Now what seems to be the problem?”

“The door’s glitching,” the woman, who he didn’t know the name of, explained. “We can’t get it open.”

“This one’s stuck too!” someone called from the other side.

There was some murmuring from the crowd.

“Now let’s not panic, everyone! Obviously, the power failure activated some sort of emergency lockdown. It will probably go off on its own- but! So we don’t have to stand here waiting around, I will send a call up to security and they will have us out in a jiffy!”

Abe and Tommy exchanged a look.

“Would you mind calling up to security?” James asked the woman closest to the phone. “Just type in one-one-two, it should route up there.”

She agreed and called but soon began to frown. “They’re not answering.”

“Well, try it again. Let’s see.”

She did, again. And then again. And by then James was getting impatient. He gave a dramatic huff and dropped his arm by his side.

“The one time we need those two and we can’t reach them. If I find out those security guard are loafing around up there-!”

“Mr. Wight, before you keep swallowing your foot there…” Chaz interrupted.

Wight looked to him in offense. Chaz directed his attention to Abe and Tommy who were still at a table. Tommy with his head tipped back finishing off his peanuts, Abe wide-eyed, and both waving when they were finally acknowledged.

James’ eyes went wide as saucers as it clicked.

“So, time for plan B,” Chaz said.

“What is plan B?” James asked.

“Well, if we can’t get to anyone, I’m going to have to bust the panel open and try to override the door.”

He didn’t have to say it for James to know that it would lead to a broken door whether it worked or not, and that would be another unnecessary expense. But if they couldn’t find anyone else to open it…

“AH! Wait one moment!” James said, snapped his fingers. “We’ll call one of the Glamrocks! The bots can override the door, yes? After all, they are supposed to automatically unlock them to get in. We will just summon one here to let us out. Let’s say… Freddy. Freddy’s the most even tempered. We’ll call him.”

“That’s not exactly how that works, but we can take a shot at it,” Chaz agreed, though he seemed pretty unimpressed with this suggestion. “Anybody have a Handitool or Fazwatch?”

.

Freddy wasn’t having a good day. He had been stuck in his green room for hours- not by anyone else’s choice but his own. For how could he face anyone except himself in the mirror?

No son. No daughter. No companion. No band. He felt like the loneliest person in the world.

And worse, he wasn’t quite a person anymore. Just another thing to literally haunt him.

When all of a sudden he received an alert. He straightened up with a gasp, recognizing it as a summons from a Fazwatch.

“Gregory?!”

Had he come back? Snuck back to the Pizzaplex? He checked the alert and immediately his heart fell. No, it wasn’t him. The Fazwatch’s code didn’t match, and it was located downstairs in the employee cafeteria, where he was aware that there was a meeting going on.

How strange, what would they need him for? Perhaps to ask about last night. Chica and Roxy were still holed up in Parts and Service as far as he was aware, stubbornly refusing to budge until someone rebuild Monty. Chica had sent him a message earlier saying as much and offering for him to come join them. They were worried about him, clearly, but he preferred to be alone.

How strange that was too. He felt so lonely and yet he didn’t want to see anyone at all. Maybe it would make him feel better, but he doubted concocting a story for the Pizzaplex staff would scratch that itch.

What would he even say?... He would tell them the truth. A woman in a rabbit suit came into the Pizzaplex. She and the security guard got in a tussle. The security guard was stabbed, the bunny woman fell, and that was all. No mention of the secret labs in the basement. Not a word about Glamrock Bonnie, or Foxy, or anyone else who had been there.

With this decided on, he gave a firm nod and stood up. He left his green room through his door and started the long walk through the atrium. It was eerily quiet, and he couldn’t bare to look at the posters.

Maybe… Maybe he would go see Sun after this. Everything was so strained with him, knowing what he did about him, but he missed him so much. He missed everyone so much.

He heard a whisper.

Freddy spun around and looked around. “Hello?”

He couldn’t identify the voice, so he wasn’t sure who it was, but it had crept up behind him. Within only five to ten feet of him. Yet the only thing behind him was empty space.

How strange… Something didn’t feel right. Now uneasy, Freddy turned ahead and continued through the atrium and behind the food court to reach the elevator down.

He sighed as he passed right over the spot where he told Sun that they had to let Gregory go. It still hurt, a raw wound in his chest were-

A pop up appeared in his vision. The words on it were jumbled but it seemed to be an error message. Confused, he blinked forcefully, and it closed. Then he entered the elevator and pressed the button.

Maybe he was breaking down. From a broken heart, perhaps, he considered. Or more realistically, from his drained battery and the transfer it required. Maybe it had gotten into his systems.

He could run an assessment, but he didn’t want to. He just wanted to get this over with. Then he could head over to Parts and Service and see his friends, like he should’ve hours ago.

But as he stepped out of the elevator he felt a strange tremor in the floor. It was enough to shake even his weighted body, and the light above him flickered with an obnoxious buzz.

“An-An earthquake?” he asked in surprise.

Suddenly he was snapped out of his despair and began to jog towards the employee cafeteria. It wasn’t safe for anyone to be in the basement now; he had to warn them!

He almost broke into a run, only holding back because he knew the risk of running during such an event and risk shaking the floor further. He hurried though, heading down the hallway towards the door leading into the employee cafeteria.

When a familiar voice suddenly screamed out.

“FREDDY!”

He snapped his head to the side, looking down the hallway. He knew that voice but it couldn’t be- and why did it sound like-?

“FREDDY, HEEEE̷̡̅LLLLP! He̷̛̻HEHLLLȩ̸̯̑ELLP!”

He dared to step down the hall, but something held him back. It was a deep-set instinctual fear that told him that there was no way, no possible way it could be-

He heard movement and watched as it came around the corner at the end of the hall and saw-

And saw too much.

.

The lights were surging again.

“What IS that?” James asked.

“Could be anything,” Chaz said vaguely.

“That’s very helpful.”

“Doing my best, Sir,” Chaz said with a little salute.

James gave him an unamused look.

Everyone was just as tense as ever, waiting for the lights to return to normal. Which they did. A few might’ve breathed sighs of relief, others returned to talking.

Suddenly, the whole room began to shake. The floor trembled and a rumble passed through somewhere nearby, sounding like it was on the far side of the wall. Some stuff fell over and there were frantic murmurs from a couple of people and swears from others. Including James.

“What the hell was that?!” he cried. “Was that an earthquake?!”

“I don’t know. It sounded like it was coming from- y’know over in the- For crying out- GRADY, what’s over that way again?”

“I think it’s just utilidors until you reach the daycare!” Grady called from the far side of the room. “And that was no earthquake!”

“How do you figure?”

“Because it didn’t come from the ground, it came from that way! So it was something inside of the building! If it was an earthquake, we’d feel it more in our feet!”

“Dear God, so something in the Pizzaplex made that noise?!... Oh God, do you think it could be the boiler?” James whispered.

“Not the boiler. The boiler’s…”

Chaz had started to point off towards the enormous boiler room only to stop and hang his arm in place when he realized it was very close to where that rumbling would’ve come from. He stayed frozen with his finger pointed and his mouth clamped shut.

“The boiler’s there?!” James translated. He pointed towards the wall. “There, there?!”

“I don’t think that was the boiler,” Abe spoke up. Causing James to jump as he hadn’t noticed the security guard sneak up on them. “If it was the boiler we’d know it.”

“And what does that mean?” James asked impatiently.

“It means if that boiler popped, we’d be dead,” Tommy chimed in.

“NO, THAT’S NOT WHAT IT MEANS!” Abe rushed out. He waved his arms wildly, trying to stop the panic that was about to transpire. “A boiler would be a BOOM not a shake! Trust me, I know.”

“Why should I trust you and how do you know?” James asked, still visibly disturbed.

“To make a long story short, I’m… I’m very paranoid,” Abe admitted. “And we’ve got a HUGE boiler room, so I wanted to know if we…”

“He wanted to know what it sounded like if a boiler blew so he could run,” Tommy clarified.

“So, I could warn everyone else! Not run!” Abe defended.

“You can warn ‘em while running.”

“You two are by far the most unhelpful people I have ever met, and that includes the shoplifters,” James stated. He then turned back towards Chaz. “I feel like I’m trapped in Wonderland. Does ANYONE have any good idea on what that was?!”

“At this point it could’ve been Freddy,” Chaz said with a shrug.

“Doing what?! Falling down a flight of stairs?!”

“Y’know, not a bad guess!” Tommy cracked with a smirk. A smirk that went slack as James shot daggers at him, him turning away to look at Abe who was also not looking too happy.

“Does ANYONE have ANY idea what that was?!” James yelled across the room, at his wits end.

He was answered, but not by anyone standing there. By the return of the rumbling. The room shaking harder and a strange noise, a noise that sounded concerningly like things bending in the walls, squeaked and groaned through the room.

The lights went out, but the screens were still on, and the room was still largely illuminated by their static. But by now panic was starting to fill the room.

“GRADY, GET OVER HERE! WE’RE POPPING OPEN THE DOOR!” Chaz yelled. Grady, who was already on his way, barged past Abe and Tommy. “Come on, help me here.”

“Alright, that’s it,” Tommy muttered. He stormed off.

“Wait-,” Abe tried reaching for him but ended up grabbing someone else. “Sorry!”

“You’re fine, Hun,” Kayla assured. She seemed tense.

Tense was an understatement. Everyone was tense, but they were also terrified and growing increasingly close to an all-out panic. The only thing holding it back being the fact that they all knew once the panic began it would spiral out of control. Nobody wanted that even though it was rapidly approaching.

Tommy returned with some sort of flat metal bar that looked like it had come off something.

“Where’d you get that?”

“I don’t know.”

He promptly, and with little warning, jammed it in the barely opened crack of the door, almost catching Grady’s fingers as he did. Then he began to pry at the door. Grady caught on and tried to help, trying to force the automated locks to give.

But while they were working on the door, there was a growing disturbance in the room. Something that was heard before it was fully noticed.

There was a growing static noise coming through the speakers. It rose until it was dominant above the murmurs, a crackling and dialing hum that made teeth itch and ears pulse.

Chaz couldn’t even hear himself think. He tried to flip on his radio to contact Stanley on the other side of the room to see if he would check the other doors only to have it spill out of his radio as well. He yanked it away from his head like it burned him and stared at it in disturbance.

James looked between him and the radio uneasily. “What is that…?”

“Interference of some kind?” Chaz guessed. He too had no idea.

And right as they were beginning to become increasingly worried, a voice came through. Edging through the static. Coming from both radio and speakers.

“Momma…”

It was a child’s voice. A little boy, it sounded like, one who was very young. His voice slurring together.

“Momma… Momma… Maaa…Nnn…No… No! I don’t WAnt to GO!”

Another child’s voice edged in. One that was older, yelling alongside until both were blending and shouting together.

“LeT me GO! LETTT GO! MOmmA MomMAA!”

They didn’t sound like children anymore. They didn’t sound much like voices either after that, swallowed by static and churning noises. Clattering and writhing slick metal squeals melting into the drone of choppy feedback. It hurt the ears more than even the screaming did.

This was a prank; it had to be. It had to be and yet James couldn’t imagine who would be doing this.

“If any of you- If any of you are in on this…” he choked out. His voice was rising, trying to call past the noise. “Stop it. You stop this right now!”

“Who’d be doin’ this? We’re all down here,” Tommy grunted as he pulled at the door. “Jeez-us, this thing’s stuck tight!”

“Those’d be the locks,” Grady grunted. “Just a little more…”

There was a loud pop.

But it wasn’t from the door, it was from somewhere else in the walls. A crack of electricity as some connection was made in the wiring.

The screens started to flicker and through the static rolling images fought to make a clear picture. Too dark to see anything clearly, but with them there was a break in the static, and with that a voice.

“He’s not really dead…”

James lifted his head with a start and slowly looked towards the nearest screen. Everyone else did too. Every single person in the room, save Tommy and Grady, looked towards the screens.

“He is over here. Follow me…”

“Who is that…?” Abe asked.

Chaz swore under his breath.

“I know where your puppy is, Susie.”

The picture suddenly came in. Clearly.

And violently.

Distorted and flickering and flashing, moving, hard to make out but very clear in what it was and what it was was the blurry form of someone in a rabbit suit murdering a little girl with a kitchen knife.

A woman screamed somewhere in the room, but the others held out moments longer, because for a moment it seemed almost fake. It seemed like some sort of sick trick until-

It flashed to him killing another one.

And another one.

And another one.

A child’s body strewn on the tiled floor.

A child’s body lying in the back of the trunk.

Flicker, flicker flash of impossible camera angles up close and personal to the most horrifying pictures imaginable. So graphic, so believable, so…

They were real.

That realization must’ve hit like a wave because the second James realized it the screaming really went into effect. Screaming and swearing, and a sweeping panic as everyone in the room was forced to stare at the images of numerous dead children.

“Oh my God…” James choked. “Oh m-my GOD!”

“Get the door open, get the door open, get the door open-!” Abe hastily whispered to Tommy. His hand now shielding out the images but his eyes wild.

“I’m tryin’, I’m tryin’!” Tommy said. He didn’t look- given Abe’s reaction he knew not to- and instead pulled with all his might.

Grady stole a glance, went as pale as a sheet, and suddenly threw his weight forward into opening the door and finally, finally they began to force it open.

Few noticed though as panic spread through the room. Not the kind of panic that led to charging the doors and treading over their fallen employees, but the kind that led to frantic words and yells, screams, laments and remorse as they put together the horrors that were still flickering around on the screen.

It was unclear whether there were that many kids or whether they were jumping around between the murders, because there were so many and so many of them looked the same.

Occasionally, too, an adult was thrown in the mix. A slumped bear suit with blood oozing out of the joints, a man being bitten by a deformed white and pink Foxy- horrendous, grotesque, there were so many incidents. So much blood.

“She was right… She was right!” a voice cried.

James heard him before he saw him shove through the crowd and grab for him. It was Luis seizing him by the shoulders, his eyes wild and dark with rings from being awake all night with worry. Now filled with anger and betrayal.

“You said they were RUMORS!” he shouted. He shook the older man. “How many kids died here?!”

“Hey, hey, stop it!” Chaz pried them apart. “Freaking out isn’t going to help!”

“All those kids died at Freddy’s!”

“Well, where’ve you been, Luis?! Everyone knows those kids died at Freddy’s! What, did you think they went missing off to a farm or something?!”

James’ eyes snapped to Chaz, shocked at how quickly he jumped on board. Almost like he had known. Had everyone known? Had everyone been- the rumors… The rumors. They were all true. Every last one of them.

And it only got worse when Chaz looked across the room and past the heads towards the screens, saw something on them, and then pointed Luis over towards it.

“And there’s William Afton right there! I KNEW he was behind it! I KNEW IT!” he shouted.

Luis and James both looked over but only one of them recognized the split second of the man before it jumped to another scene. A brief glimpse of him in that rabbit suit, standing in a backroom before sharply cutting to a scene of the same suit standing beside a small carousel covered in blood and dripping it onto checkerboard flooring.

They couldn’t see the victim; the camera was strung up above some box and no matter how much it shook it seemed unable to break itself free.

There was no denying that he looked exactly the same as he did with his head opened and William Afton’s face set inside.

James wanted to scream but he just kept gasping in air and choking on it. His heart started to pound and he grabbed his chest, for a second thinking he was having a heart attack. He couldn’t remember if he had taken his Aspirin today. Maybe this was going to kill him; it felt like his heart could’ve stopped on the spot, mouth open in abject horror as he kept staring at more and more.

There was so much of a commotion that practically nobody noticed when Grady and Tommy finally popped the door open. Graby squeezed his upper half through the gap.

There was a bundle of slimy wires blocking the door on the other side. His hand landed on them, and they were scalding hot to the touch. He recoiled but the grimy black substance stayed stuck to his hand. He wiped it off on his shirt and down the hallway.

There was Freddy standing there in the hall. He was looking off in another direction, just turned enough that his face couldn’t be seen.

“Freddy!” Gredy called. Freddy would have the strength to move this junk out from out of the door.

Freddy lifted his head, still standing there strangely.

“Freddy?”

Freddy turned his head slowly in his direction and revealed his face.

Grady’s stomach dropped.

Something was wrong with Freddy. There was a strange glint in his eyes, glowing through his pupils, and he was smeared in the same black oil soaking the wiring. Though instead of being all over his body, it was just on his face. Down his cheeks. Like it had oozed out of his eyes.

He took a clumsy step to readjust himself in Grady’s direction before the technician yanked back and shut the door.

“Hey, what the hell?! We just got that open!” Tommy snapped.

“Freddy’s out there,” Grady choked.

“And?!”

“Oh no, what’s wrong with Freddy…?” Abe mumbled, catching on quicker.

Grady shook his head and shuddered. “It was like he-.”

There was another vibration that cut him off. Something that rolled through the walls and shook the floor yet again. The screens finally cut off, ceasing their relentless recreations of death and returning to a droning static.

But the screaming had not stopped. If anything, it became more apparent that it hadn’t stopped when the other distraction cut out. Shrieking in the static, so close that it wasn’t clear where those began and the noise ended.

But the movement was continuing. It was moving through the walls and wrapping around the room like those wires outside the door.

James, overwhelmed with all of it, backed into the kitchenette area where a couple of women huddled as well. One of them comforting the shaken other. No one was comforting him, but he would’ve shaken them off anyways in his state of horror and stupor.

Something bent and groaned above him. He and the women looked up at a grate in the upper wall and followed it down to the wall of the kitchenette. There was cracking and deforming pushing out of the plaster. Like something was moving around underneath.

The ceiling groaned under the weight of it. James knew he needed to move but he couldn’t help but stare.

A voice flickered through Chaz’s radio.

“Wh…Wherrrre…iss-sis he? He-He’ss he’s herehe’sherehe’sHERE!”

“Who…? Oh-!” He swung his head. “Oh sh-!”

With an almighty groan the deforming wall collapsed and crumpled, and the vent fell in from above. Through the trench created between both dropped a tangled mess of those same, matted, oil soaked wires that fell in a heap. The women had already ran, James backed into the counter and took an extra second.

And they collapsed over him. Bundles of wires landing on him so hard that he dropped to the floor under their weight, gasping in a breath as his chest was compressed underneath it.

He started pulling himself out, reaching an arm blindly out and then in Chaz’s direction as the man reached over the counter. Their fingers brushed before he caught his grip.

And the wires moved.

James only had a moment to rationalize the writing coils around his body before they suddenly cinched around him and began to pull.

Everyone was screaming. James could barely hear his own as he was dragged to the wall and up it on a torrent of wires. Staring back upside-down at the horrified faces of Chaz, Luis, Abe, Tommy, and Grady as he was dragged into the broken wall. Soon he was surrounded in a suffocating cocoon of wires, holding him too tight to get much breath.

He could hear the crying. It was so close.

So loud.

Suffocating.

And then… nothing.

…

Scott’s van and Jeremy’s car whizzed up to the Pizzaplex in record time. Though Scott almost instantly slowed down when he saw the packed parking lot.

Mike looked over and saw his eyes wide, processing the scene, as though it had only just become real that the hostage numbers went up from three to dozens more.

Mike had already come to terms with it. Though he would be lying if he didn’t say that the three were the ones worrying him the most. As soon as they parked around the side he hopped out, carrying Bonnet under his arm. Her arms limp but her head raised and watching.

“There’s Carlton’s car…” Scott mumbled as he got out of the driver’s side. Before Mike could even unbuckle the older man was out of the car and running towards Carlton’s.

He found it to be, as expected, completely empty. Save for Ennard’s jacket left in the open trunk. He pulled it out, hugging it to him as he headed back to the van.

“He’ll need it,” he told himself. When Ennard came out, when this was all over, he would need it. He put it on as he watched Jeremy park his car beside the van.

“It looks like the shutters are closed,” Jeremy had pointed out as they drove in. When he parked, he got out and called, “Guys, I think the shutters are closed!”

“I’ll go check,” Mike said. Then he jogged for the entranceway, going around the corner to see that yes, the shutters were closed. Just like they did at night. Sealed up tightly.

“Yup, they’re closed!” Bonnet said.

That’s fine, Mike thought. It wasn’t like they’d be safe going in the front anyways. He turned to head back, noticing the lines of empty cars once more, and then jogged back.

“Alright, heading around back,” he said. He prepared to stride past when Michael grabbed his shoulder.

“What’s the chances of someone being down there to open the door?” he asked.

“We don’t-… Right. Got any other ideas?” Mike asked, remembering abruptly and disappointedly that Marionette wasn’t there to open the door.

He relied on him so much, it was hard to have him just be gone. Or maybe it was just because he knew he was in danger that it made his absence seem much larger.

“I wouldn’t have stopped you if I didn’t,” Michael said. He turned to the others and explained. “On the other side of the building is the fire escape. It leads right onto the roof and to the exit door that leads into the Prize Counter, where Jake and Sun are staying. Our best chance is to get up there and try to use the radio to signal them.”

“A’ight, everyone back in the cars!” Foxy announced.

A few minutes later they were parked on the opposite side of the building.

“Good thing the whole place is deserted,” Charlie mused as she got out.

Michael climbed out the back of the van. “Depending on why, perhaps. Come on, I need you.”

“Me?”

“You’ll see.”

They walked to the front of the vehicles and looked up at the fire escape, and the last section of stairs and ladder that had been pulled up. Likely so that nobody would try to sneak in.

“I do see,” Charlie agreed.

“I’ll give you a boost,” Michael said. He cupped his hands. “Step up onto my shoulder to reach.”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Unless it goes directly into my eye, I highly doubt it will.”

Charlie gave a small, serviceable laugh and did as agreed. She stepped up onto his hands, put a pointed leg up on his shoulder, and then in one smooth motion pushed herself up with a little spring and grabbed ahold of the fire escape. She took a second to get her grip before swinging up her legs to get a better grip and climbed up.

The others watched from below, including a worried Scott and a very attentive Baby.

“Do we have radios in the van? I believe we do,” Baby asked.

“Ah… Yeah. A couple of them,” Scott agreed.

“We may need them. Mike, you will have the easiest time retrieving them.”

“Gives me something to do,” Mike agreed. He walked around to the back of the van. He sat Bonnet down. “Do you know where they are?”

“I think so!”

“Point me there?”

“I’ll do you one better!”

Bonnet suddenly scuttled into the back of the van and over to where Ennard kept a lot of his tools and stuff piled up. After digging around with her arms for a while, she managed to find a small box with a peeled lid that barely stayed closed and pushed it back across the van to Mike.

Sure enough, the radios were inside- along with some loose extra batteries. Mike pulled them out and looked them over, trying to check if they needed those batteries.

“You look sad,” Bonnet said. Mike looked down in faint surprise and the bunny stared back up at him.

“I’m worried about Mari,” he admitted.

“I’m worried about Ennie,” she agreed.

“I’m worried about him too. I just…” Mike exhaled tiredly. “I’ve seen Ennard pull himself back together a few times. I’ve only seen Mari do it once, and that was really a lucky break…”

Bonnet rubbed her hands together almost worriedly, the plastic clacking as she patted them against one another. Maybe not the best assurance for Ennard’s little buddy.

Mike reached out and patted her on the head. “They’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure? I’m not so sure…” she admitted. Her ears staying cocked in a sort of droop. “I have a bad feeling something really bad’s going to happen…”

“Something might, but we’ll pull through. They’ll pull through. We’ve got this,” Mike assured her.

It wasn’t a lie; it was the honest truth. Things were probably about to get really sketchy, but they’d pull through. No matter what happened, they would make it through.

Then they could piece everything back together.

Mike picked Bonnet up with one arm and the radios with his free hand and walked back around the van as Charlie finished getting the fire escape down. He passed the radios to Scott who dragged his eyes down to start working on said radios and getting them on, tailing at the back as they made their way up the fire escape.

After a significantly long climb, the group arrived at the top of the building. Looking out showed miles of unused desert land past the few planted trees outside of the front of the Pizzaplex. Atop the Pizzaplex itself, looking around showed a plethora of air conditioners, fans, and a few other entry points far across the rooftop.

The closest one was not only the easiest to get to but also almost guaranteed to lead into the Prize Counter. They headed over and Michael gave a few firm thumps on the door.

“Maybe we’re close enough that I can get a signal,” Charlie said. She leaned on the door and got out her own radio, trying to hold it close enough to breach the Pizzaplex’s barrier. It didn’t seem to be working.

Though she only had a second to try before the door started to open against her. She stepped aside and it opened to reveal none other than Jake, who came face to face with Charlie and jumped in surprise. Then he looked around at the others congregated outside.

“…Let me guess, you’re here because of the craziness going on downstairs,” he said nonchalantly.

Both statement and tone were a red flag.

“What craziness?” Michael asked.

“There was some sort of meeting going on downstairs and, I don’t know what happened, but the electrical system is acting up or there’s a glitch in the system? The lights are going crazy, the screens are all glitched out- look at this!”

Holding the door open with his foot- for only a second until Michael took over in holding it for him- he lifted up his panel and turned it around. His screen has an unusual amount of static crackling over it and there was a ‘No Signal’ message flickering in and out in the corner.

“Has that ever happened before?” Charlie asked.

“No, and that’s not all. I think some sort of lockdown happened too, because all the shutters closed. I heard over the radio that the employees were stuck down in the dining room. Well, before I lost signal.”

“Can you hear them now?” Michael asked.

Jake answered by turning on the radio attachment. There was nothing but static.

“I see…”

“I’m shocked you guys know about this though. It only started a while ago,” Jake said.

“That’s because we’re not here about that!” Gregory chimed up. “…Maybe. It might be him?”

He looked up at Foxy questioningly and the foxy nodded. “Ya smell smoke an’ ya know it’s that dumpster fire.”

“Oh, hey Gregory! Sun’s going to be really happy to… see you. Wait, why are you here then?” Jake asked.

“Because Bonnie went insane AGAIN and he kidnapped Mari!” Gregory cried.

“Wh- Wait, wait. What?”

“Bunny, he means,” Michael clarified. “He possessed Charlie’s friend Carlton and then came and possessed and took Ben as well.”

“What?!”

“And then he came to Foxy’s and took Mari,” Charlie added. “He said he had some plan that he needed Mari for and Mari went with him to keep Carlton and Ennard safe.”

“And that plan involved this meeting,” Michael completed.

“A meeting which, if I may say, shouldn’t be happening. There’s no way that there would just be a random meeting at this time of the day, and I’ve seen the email- no. I’m pretty sure this was all Bunny’s doing,” Scott hastily tacked on. “Unless they’re having like a company-wide layoff this has got to be Bunny’s doing.”

Jake was thoroughly startled. His posture showed it even if his mask didn’t. He stood there silently for a long moment.

“We need to get inside,” Mike said impatiently.

“Right! Sorry, here. Right this way. Mind the stairs,” Jake said, shuffling inside.

“Ugh, the stairs,” Baby grumbled. “Everyone stay behind me. I would rather not crush anyone on the way down.”

“I’ll go first. I’ll catch you,” Michael said.

“You will catch me?”

“And then fall in a crumpled heap in a springlock failure, yes, but it will soften the landing.”

Baby rolled her eyes and began to carefully step down behind him, keeping her feet sideways. Scott behind her, monitoring her, while Michael followed behind Jake down the steps.

Mike was feeling even more antsy. This wasn’t fast enough. They needed to already be in there searching for them. The place was huge and there was a laundry list of locations where Bunny could’ve taken them. The security office, the basement, the secret lab- by time they found him, Bunny would’ve done whatever he was planning on doing.

It would be over by time they got there.

He noticed a hand patting his back and looked to see Jeremy.

“Hey. We’ve got this,” he assured.

“Right…” Mike said stiffly.

“We’ve gotten through worse… Bunny’s not William.”

“Right.” This time Mike exhaled with it, the slightest edge of relief creeping in to comfort him. This wasn’t William Afton, this was Bunny. This was a desperate guy with a plan on the fly. They could work with that. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.” Jeremy smiled. Mike half-heartedly returned it.

After the longer than expected walk down the stairs, Mike weaved through everyone to get to the front and Jake, Jeremy following behind him.

“First thing’s first, we need to find Bunny. We find him, we find them, we get this whole thing shut down. You know him better than anyone, he had a hideout downstairs, right? Or do you think he headed over to Vanny’s old place?” Mike asked, getting straight to the point.

“I… I don’t know… Wait. Wait, I do know. If Bunny set off a lockdown, then he probably headed through the main security office, and lucky for us that’s also where the security lockdown can be shut off from,” Jake explained.

“Then that is where we go,” Baby said. “And with the employees locked up, we can all go.”

“Aye, an’ we can jump Bunny with his back turned!” Foxy agreed.

“Unless he’s in Carlton! Then we should probably not do that,” Jeremy interjected, his hands raised. Baby and Foxy regarded him, Foxy lowering his hook while Baby still seemed tempted.

“He’s not going to stay in Carlton if he’s got Ennard,” Jake added.

Bonnet squeaked. Michael covered his face with his hand, shuddering without the uneasy breath that would’ve accompanied it. Jake apologetically patted him on the arm, whispering a soft apology.

“That’s even worse,” Baby remarked bluntly.

“But he’s right,” Mike muttered. “Double or nothing he jumps inside Mari.”

“We can only hope not.”

“HE better bloody hope not,” Foxy hissed.

Gregory was starting to get the same antsy feeling Mike was. Though despite him being worried about Marionette and Ennard, he found himself getting increasingly worried about Freddy. He just had a feeling that if there was anyone else Bunny would pick up, it would be him. Freddy was too trusting, he might believe Bunny’s ruse.

He tried his Fazwatch but nothing happened. There was no connection, like he hadn’t even entered the Pizzaplex at all.

“Where’s Freddy?” he spoke up.

“Probably down in his green room. He’s been, uh… moping,” Jake admitted.

Gregory sighed. “I sorta figured he would be…”

Well, at least he hadn’t totally went on like nothing happened, but Gregory didn’t exactly feel good about him being down in the dumps.

Foxy ruffled his hair. “We’ll go find him in a bit, Lad. Let’s get this Bunny dealt with first so Freddy don’t gotta deal with him.”

“But what if Bunny finds him first? What if he makes a deal with him like he did with Mari? Freddy will fall for it too!”

“If he’s planning on that then he has already had plenty of time to get to him,” Baby mused.

“I don’t think Bunny’s planning on a second round with Freddy,” Charlie disagreed.

Baby looked at her quizzically. “I thought you said he took control of him before?”

“I think he did, but I don’t know. From all that went down downstairs and how he was acting with Freddy… I don’t know. Call it a hunch, I don’t think he wants to tango with him,” Charlie said vaguely.

Baby was even more confused at why Charlie was avoiding eye contact while explaining this. It was almost like she was hiding something, but what could she know that they didn’t?

“Oh no…” Jake mumbled.

“What?” Michael asked.

“…Nothing.”

“No, what?”

“Nothing! I just, uh… Here, okay, let’s get the radios working so if we get separated we can stay in contact, yeah?”

“I’ve got two here,” Scott volunteered. He offered them up. “You’ll be quicker than me. You know what you’re doing.”

“Heh, kind of! Alright, let me just get these all on the same frequency. Or close enough…”

He made short work of it but by the end Mike was pacing around the piles of plushies with Bonnet under his arm like a sack of potatoes. She let her arms hang and had her eyes lidded like she too was becoming tired of the waiting.

Though somehow, the moment Mike came around the bend and started striding over to volunteer to head out on his own, Jake started handing out the radios again.

“Okay, these are all on. Those two link up, Charlie’s links up with me. We should have some communication maybe. I don’t know what’s going to happen when we get split up.”

“When?” Michael asked.

“You know where the security office is, right? The main one?” Jake asked, looking around. Eventually getting a nod from Mike, Gregory, and even Charlie. “Good! You guys start heading that way. I’m guessing the coast is mostly clear but try to keep a low profile.”

“And you’ll go up the fire escape and head out to the van,” Michael finished.

Jake gave an exhausted little sigh. “I can’t do that-.”

“You can and will. This is it. You have to leave, now, before something else happens,” Michael said firmly. “How many times must this place collapse in on itself before you realize that it’s only weighing you down. This hulking husk. This… godawful place. I know you feel obligated to stay, but you can’t. You can’t.”

It was an amount of passion that surprised both of his siblings, who had seen him be so lethargic in many situations. No, this one was the matter of the upmost importance.

And Jake agreed.

“Without Sun.”

Michael blinked, expecting an argument that didn’t come, and settled.

“He’s still down in the daycare. He can’t be alone out there if Bunny’s pulling something. He’ll go after him, the two will fight, and I’m sure you know how well that went last time! He can vouch for it,” he pointed at Foxy.

“Aye, it be bad.”

“It be super bad, and all it’ll do is stir Bunny up more,” Jake explained. “I’ll go get Sun and get him back up here. It’ll be easy. Once he knows Gregory’s here he’ll come running.”

“Alright. You’re going alone?” Michael asked unsurely.

“Bunny won’t come after me,” Jake assured. “It’s just a matter of who gets to Sun first and I know where he is.”

“I’ll go with you. Just in case,” Charlie volunteered. Jake looked at her in surprise, and she looked towards the others. “There’s enough of us heading to security office, someone should go with him.”

“You sure, Lass?” Foxy asked.

“I’m sure. I’ve been to the daycare plenty.”

“Plus, if we have to drag Sun out of there for whatever reason he’ll probably not get too angry if it’s you. Okay, you’re in,” Jake agreed.

“What?” Baby asked in quiet confusion. She was noticing something but she couldn’t entirely place what it was, except that Charlie’s sudden volunteering seemed odd.

Scott heard her little rebuttal and assumed she was worried. Maybe she would want to go with them, but he knew she wouldn’t offer. She would feel obligated to stay with him and while he didn’t exactly want her going off on her own, he understood her desire to worry about them after what already had happened- or that’s what he thought.

“Baby, maybe you should go with them.”

“What?” Baby repeated. She looked at him. “What about going to look for Ennard?”

“We still are, but, y’know,” he said. He gestured his eyes in Charlie’s direction.

He certainly thought he knew, that was for sure. Ennard was rubbing off on him, a musing that immediately caused Baby to hurt a little in her chest. But she stayed firm.

When it came to where her loyalties lie, Ennard stood leagues above both Jake and Sun combined. Charlie was what balanced the equation, but even then she might’ve been less willing if not for Foxy and Michael both being there to keep an eye on Scott. Michael especially; he proved himself against that horrid doll creature at the dump.

She glanced over at him and at Foxy momentarily before looking back to Scott. “Perhaps I should.”

“You can. I’ll call you if- here, take this.” He handed her one of his radios. “I’ll tell you what we find at the security office. Odds are he’s… probably not going to be there, but maybe we can at least get more eyes around the building, y’know? Splitting up isn’t exactly the smartest move but it covers a lot more ground.”

“Unfortunately, that ground happens to be a daycare flooded with tacky bibbity-bobbity-boo music,” Baby remarked.

She poked a finger in between the plates of her side to catch a wire. This got a chuckle out of Scott- one that sounded overwhelmingly stressed- but she was still assured in hearing it. She used the malleable wire to wrap around and hold the radio tight to her side.

“Are you sure you want to come? I can handle it!” Charlie said.

She had to ask? That made it a definite now. Something was going on here, and she had a suspicion it involved Charlie trying to sneak away and confront Bunny herself for some ridiculous reason. Which didn’t make much sense, but sometimes Charlie did things that didn’t have much logic to them.  

And as for Charlie, well, there went her idea of catching Jake alone, but the more the merrier she supposed.

“Absolutely. Besides, Scott is right. We don’t know where Ennard is. I have just as much chance finding him in the daycare as anywhere else. Perhaps he migrated over there somehow.”

“I hope not. That’ll mean Bunny’s down there and we really don’t want to run into him,” Jake remarked. He was looking down at his panel so he totally missed the looks of befuddlement and unamusement that Charlie and Baby gave him. He offered his panel to Michael. “Do you want to take this?”

“Wait, we might need that. Here, take mine,” Charlie said, reaching out a hand to stop him. She started to hold out her radio before passing it into Mike’s waiting hand. “Don’t lose it.”

“I’m trying my best not to,” Mike remarked with a wink and a very tight smile.

The groups didn’t split up just yet though. They left the Prize Counter in one group, with Foxy and Baby overpowering and lifting the shutters over the entrance. Then they headed downstairs and there they split up, with Charlie, Jake, and Baby heading off towards the daycare- them managing the shutter to the hallway on their own- while the rest headed through the atrium.

As ominous as everything felt, there was still sunlight making it through the skylight. So, for the moment things almost didn’t feel so dire. They did feel overwhelmingly off though.

Rockstar Row was eerily quiet. There was a strange feel to the air but nobody noticed what it was, except for Foxy.

“Music’s off,” he muttered. “Didn’t notice it but it was off upstairs too, yeah?”

“Yeah, now that you mention it… Weird,” Jeremy said. “It doesn’t sound right.”

“Guess Baby’s gonna miss the tacky daycare music,” Foxy half-joked, giving the blond a little nudge. Though then his head snapped forward as Gregory started to run ahead, watching as the boy ran towards Freddy’s green room window. “Don’t go too far, Lad!”

“I’m not!” Gregory called back. He then peered through the slender crack of the curtains, seeing only a slither into the green room. “Freddy?” He knocked on the glass.

There was no answer.

He tried the Fazwatch again. “Freddy? Freddy, come in!”

He was answered with the faintest prickle of static. He gave a frustrated groan and threw his arm down. Then he stormed around to the green room door. Thankfully, it opened automatically.

The green room looked the same as it always did, save no Freddy. Gregory scoured the room like a sleuth, trying to see if there was any hint to where he might’ve gone.

There wasn’t, but he had an idea. Parts and Service! He must’ve gone down there to see his friends.

Gregory headed into the back room and right up to the elevator which he pressed the button for. There was an error noise. He pressed it again, and again.

“Come on. Come on!”

But there was nothing. Gregory gave the doors a frustrated little kick and spun around, falling back onto them and staring across the room. Seeing the glow of the recharge station.

Gregory dragged himself up and wandered over to the station and found his hiding space just as he left it. Freddy hadn’t packed up the rest of his stuff yet. In a way, Gregory was relieved that he didn’t. It was less like Freddy didn’t remember and more that he wasn’t ready to pack him up and ship him out.

He nudged one of his blankets with his foot. It felt so empty though. Maybe because he wasn’t really back. Even if Freddy had been here Gregory wouldn’t really be back.

It was just a matter of switching houses and families once again. Though this time it really had felt like home.

He lifted his watch to his mouth again. “Freddy?”

Nothing.

He turned to head out.

“Freddy, please… I really need your help…”

Nothing.

He slowly wandered past the recharge station.

“Something bad’s going on and we really need you. Dad, please. If you can hear me, say something.”

…

“…….…ry.”

Gregory stopped on a dime. “Freddy…?”

“…Gre…ory…”

“Freddy!”

It was him. His voice was weak, hidden behind layers of static, but he could hear him there. Gregory’s face broke into a relieved smile.

“Where are you?!”

“Dow…n…..ere…..”

“Down where? In the basement?”

“…Y..s… Nnn…Fa..zer…last.”

Under Fazer Blast? Right, there was a way to get down into the basement from all of the attractions, wasn’t there? Freddy must’ve went down there since his elevator wasn’t working. That made sense, though- and Gregory’s smile slipped as he realized it- something sounded off about Freddy.

“It’s really you, right?” he asked.

“It’s… me…”

“Prove it. That you’re not some… Some fake voice or something. Tell me something only you would know.”

He expected Freddy to say something about like his favorite ice cream, or the first time they met. Something only they would know.

Instead, Freddy said something very alarming.

“…nny’s here... Scr…ing.”

Bunny’s here?

“In the Pizzaplex?”

“He..re…screa…ming.”

In the Pizzaplex, screaming. Probably screaming about how everyone betrayed him or something, like down in the basement.

Well, if it WAS Bunny he surely wouldn’t be outing himself to Gregory. That was something, a warning like that. Though Freddy did sound a little-

Injured, Gregory clicked together. Delayed, confused, slowed down. Just like when his battery was drained. Freddy was injured. He wasn’t faking, he was hurt!

“Can you move? Can you get back up here?” Gregory asked.

“I… don..’t…ow…”

Freddy sounded very confused, and Gregory snapped to attention.

“Then stay right there! I’m coming to get you! Don’t move!” he said.

Then he hurried out of the back room and back to the others to warn them about what he had heard.

Meanwhile, Mike had all but bolted to the door leading up to the security office and tried it and almost walked right into it when it was locked tight. He swore under his breath and tried it only once more before progressing to ram his shoulder into it, to no avail.

Michael waved him out of the way and then gave it a firm ram, only for it to not budge. He realized why it didn’t a moment later.

“Oh, wait…”

“Move!”

Mike and Michael both looked back in time to see Foxy racing over. With little warning to be given, Michael could only duck out of the way and watch as his younger brother slammed right into the door and promptly slid to the floor.

“Gabe, the door comes out this way,” Michael said apologetically.

“Ya bloody ‘ell could’a told me that,” Foxy grumbled.

Mike grabbed his arm and helped pull him up, with Foxy mumbling an embarrassed thanks.

As soon as he was cleared, Michael swung in on the door with one last desperate thump of his fist. Trying to see if there was any chance that the hinges were wavering even the slightest bit, but no. The thick metal door was unlike the others scattered around the Pizzaplex. This one was truly built to keep things out.

He shoved himself back and turned, spotting Mike unhooking Charlie’s radio to call in and reaching out his hand.

Mike noticed and handed it off, hating that he was going to continue standing there doing nothing but not wanting that to be the hill he was going to die on. Instead, he started walking down the length of Rockstar Row to see if there was another door he had happened to have forgotten.

All while Michael called in. “Jake, can you hear me?”

There was a surge of static as he turned on the radio, but surely enough a clear voice could be heard through it.

“Hey! Guess where we are right now.”

“The Daycare?”

“Close! Daycare shutters are on the fritz, so we’re heading to take a longcut through the utilidors and come up through the theater basement. You’ll probably be back before we are.”

“Guess again. The security office is locked tight and we can’t break it in,” Michael muttered, leaning against the wall. Already feeling exhausted.

“The security doors?”

“No, the door leading to the stairs.”

“Oooh!... Oh. Yeah, it’s reinforced. You won’t be able to. Okay, okay, uh… I know how you can get the key to get in, but you’re not going to like it.”

“Basement or ventilation?”

“Maybe both. The backup key’s probably on one of the security guards, and they’re down in the dining room.”

Michael threw his head back to clunk against the wall, the radio pressed to his chest to muffle the sound.

“But, hey, good news! You’ve got humans with you- I mean, you know. Still human humans. You can at least get the key from them.”

Michael lazily looked over at Scott who had taken his turn trying to wring the doorknob off before stepping back with his hands up and then pinching the bridge of his nose. All the stages of grief laid out in only a matter of seconds, and him, Jeremy, and Foxy there to witness it.

Michael also took a moment to quickly seek out Gregory and spotted him coming out of Freddy’s greenroom with his Fazwatch at his mouth, seemingly trying to contact Freddy. Which meant Freddy wasn’t here either, unfortunately. He could’ve possibly gotten them through- save that of all doors this one required a physical key.

“I wouldn’t be shocked if what happened with Vanny didn’t really scare them… But that’s not important now. What’s important is… Maybe they didn’t lock it at all. Maybe Bunny’s still up there.”

Jake’s realization made Michael straighten up. Because yes, everything had been closed up in the Pizzaplex, but someone painstakingly going out of their way to lock this door? It could’ve been the security guards, but it was probably where their rabbit ringleader was hiding away, watching the destruction unfold through the security cameras.

They had to get in.

“We can get the key. You find Sun and escape onto the roof once you do.”

“That’s the plan!... Though, uh. Baby’s shaking her head at me. I don’t think she’s planning on leaving.”

Michael gave an amused hum. “Tell her we can talk once we have the key. Be careful.”

“We will! You too.”

While this conversation wrapped up, Gregory ran up to Foxy.

“Foxy! I got ahold of Freddy!”

“Ya did?!” Foxy crouched down. “Where’s he, Lad?”

“He said he was under Fazer Blast, but something’s wrong. He sounds like he’s been hurt, or like his battery’s dead again or something. I think he ran into Bunny and they got in a fight or something.”

“Blast it, Freddy…” Foxy mumbled. He ran his hand down his jaw, fingers tapping on his chin as he looked at the floor in thought, worry. He shook his head and looked up again. “Is he gonna make it up here on his own?”

“I don’t know. He sounded sort of… confused,” Gregory admitted.

Foxy only took a second to think about it before looking back at Michael.

“Ya’ll go look fer the key. I’ll take Gregory over to find Freddy,” he said.

“I’ll go with you!” Jeremy volunteered.

“Wait, wait. Just… wait a second,” Michael interjected. “I know you are worried about Freddy, but we can’t keep splitting up. We need to track down Bunny and his hostages first and foremost.”

“Wha? Ya let Lizzie go!”

“Reluctantly. To the daycare. And I’m not stopping you, I’m just saying that perhaps we should get this situation figured out before you run off after Freddy.”

“Uh huh.” Foxy put a hand on his hip, still crouched. Cocking his head challengingly. “And ya wouldn’t go runnin’ off if we found out Ennard be sittin’ downstairs?”

“Ennard is literally somewhere in this building, right now, possessed by a psychotic rabbit spirit, as is our younger brother. We need to get into this door NOW,” Michael firmly laid out.

“Ey, I tried breaking it down!”

“And I let Lizzie go only because I knew Jake and Charlie would be at risk alone.”

“An’ this ain’t no different! It ain’t like I’ll be dragging me feet neither, an’ you better believe if I don’t go this one’ll be sneakin’ off on his own,” Foxy said, pointing at Gregory.

“Yeah, you got me,” Gregory appeared.

“If we’re that spread out he’s going to target one of us, and that one of us will absolutely be you,” Michael warned.

“An’ why’s that?”

“I don’t know, Gabe. Why would Freddy’s ex target his current best friend and the boy he was always chasing around the Pizzaplex?” Michael asked sarcastically.

“Do we even know if it’s actually Freddy?” Scott asked.

“Bah, of course ye’d take his side.”

“I’m not taking sides!” Scott said, his hands going up in defense. “I just, I think it’s a pretty reasonable question knowing what we do about Bunny. I mean, he has Ennard. If he’s- If he’s using his body then he can mimic voices. It doesn’t take much for Ennard to sound like the real thing…”

“I know, I thought that too. But I think it’s really him!” Gregory reaffirmed. “I’ve been tricked before but this time is different. I know it was his voice.”

All throughout this argument Mike and Bonnet had been watching the back and forth. Bonnet raising her hands to her mouth and Mike finding himself a little torn.

There was a part of him, a small bitter part, that was frustrated with how everyone’s top priority wasn’t getting to Marionette. He knew whatever Bunny was planning with him was going to be awful and their time was ticking away, precious time that they couldn’t get back. Bunny was a liar, he couldn’t be trusted, and he was about to break everything.

But Mike knew that it had nothing to do with not caring about Marionette. Charlie and Baby didn’t leave because they weren’t concerned, it was because they knew Bunny might target the former friends he held a grudge against. And Gregory wasn’t worried about his friend, he was worried about his surrogate father.

He knew that nobody would be more worried than Foxy for Marionette’s sake- well, except he himself. The only reason Foxy would consider it was because Freddy was his friend. Because Freddy was in danger, and because Bunny likely left him in a state worse for wear too.

There was more than Marionette at risk here but standing around deciding on what to do wasn’t helping anyone. That’s how he made up his mind.

“Hey,” Mike called to attention, striding up. He nodded at Foxy. “Go get Freddy.”

Foxy’s ears perked, surprised at how quickly he took his side.

Michael gave a frustrated grunt. “I don’t like the idea of us splitting up any more than we already have,” he remarked.

“Well, I do. We know if Bunny gets us alone in a room, he’s going to lock us up in it. That’s what this is, keeping us out while he finishes up his plan,” Mike remarked, pointing a thumb towards the door. “Besides, it’s not like he’d be helping us get the key. He’d be stuck hiding while Scott sweettalks it out of the security guard.”

“I’m going to do that?” Scott arched a brow.

“Sure you are. Put on the old Fazbear charm. The managerial rigmarole.”

“…Y’know, I might actually be able to. My mole’s down there and he’s been feeding me info about how things are running here. I could probably play off being a silent higher up and nobody’d know the difference,” Scott considered. “And if I can’t do that we could just… I guess, ask for it.”

“There we go. Now let’s go. We can’t keep screwing around,” Mike said.

“I hardly consider this screwing around,” Michael remarked.

“That was borderline,” Mike said, gesturing a hand between him and Foxy. “C’mon, we’ll go get the key and come right back.”

“Right.”

“Do you want this?” Scott asked, offering his radio to Jeremy. “We’ve already got a connection to Jake. This’ll keep you in the loop.”

“Thanks. Better safe than sorry,” Jeremy agreed, taking it. “Worst case scenario, Jake can have a radio in one hand and one in the other and translate for us.”

That got a weak chuckle out of Scott.

Michael gave the faintest noise of humor, but they were already starting down the hallways so the only one who heard it was Mike. He got a dry smile for a second.

All the while he was running laps in his head about what he was going to do next, what he would say to the employees, what he would say to Bunny, what if he had to fight for the key, what if he had to grab Marionette and run, what if Marionette was damaged, what if his mask didn’t have its tear marks-

“I shouldn’t have let him get into that trunk…” Mike muttered. He had to say something and that’s what fell out.

“I shouldn’t have let Bunny walk out of that house. I should’ve had him take me instead,” Michael agreed.

“Then you’d be up there with him and Ennard would be slamming himself into that door trying to get to you,” Mike pointed out while reaching out to pat him on the back, just like Jeremy did to him.

“Oh no. No, no. Bunny wouldn’t have made it down here if he had me…” Michael muttered darkly.

With a tone like that, Mike could’ve believed him. Though he could’ve also believed that it was no different than his own ‘what if’s for if he had done something more. If he would’ve been quicker to grab Mari, if he clocked Carlton, if he had offered himself instead-

It was pointless though. Pointless to look back with it being so important that they moved forward. They needed to know what they were going to do next.

“Once he’s out of Carlton we wring his spongey little neck,” Mike offered.

“Agreed.”

…

It was a relief to leave the discomfort of the utilidors and get back into normal hallways. The deep basement had been unusually humid and there were ominous echoes coming from deep in the pipe work. While the temperature could’ve been due to it still being daytime, the noises were strange. Like the pained groans of the Pizzaplex itself.

The daycare basement was a vast change. Air-conditioned and cool, with functioning lights that were only turned off because nobody was currently downstairs. It smelled like carpet deodorizer instead of muggy mildew. It was almost welcoming, if a little too much so.

Unfortunately, with it came a lot more stairs. Charlie offered for Jake to go ahead, but he insisted to stay with them. That was, until Baby firmly told Jake and Charlie both to go ahead after painstakingly getting up the first flight. She told them to wait for her at the top.

Funny enough, but without them there Baby was somehow able to climb the rest of the stairs on her own in record time. Charlie had a suspicion that Baby had just given up and crawled up them instead of fighting with her skates but didn’t ask. She could ask later when this was all over.

As they made it to the upstairs portion of the theater and Jake opened the poster door, letting them into the short hallway leading to the Daycare Attendant’s room. They could make out faint mumbling and frantic footsteps.

“Sounds like Sun,” Jake said, breaking into a speedwalk.

“What gave it away? The frantic muttering or the incessant jingling?” Baby asked dryly.

Jake gave a half-chuckle and turned back, “Just give me a second before you come in,” and continued the turn before heading inside. Leaving Charlie and Baby to wait as he broke the news.

It wasn’t more than a few seconds before Baby huffed unhappily and shifted on her feet.

“I should be looking for Ennard right now,” she confessed guiltily.

“We are,” Charlie assured. She reached for her arm and hooked hers around it. “Now that we’ve found Sun, we’ll head straight over to the security office and see if we can find a way in, and if we can’t, then we’ll wait for the others to grab the key and then we’ll get in and see what we can find.”

“…I’m more concerned with what we won’t find,” Baby admitted. She wrapped her other arm around herself, holding herself, and raised her eyes to look at Charlie. “What could he have wanted with him?”

“Muscle it sounds like. He wanted Mari.”

“Somehow, that doesn’t comfort me much.”

“Me neither,” Charlie admitted with a sigh.

“I KNOW! I HEARD HIM!”

Sun’s frantic scream caused both women to look towards the door suddenly. Well, bad news delivered it seemed.

“Let’s get in there.”

“Mm-hm,” Baby hummed in agreement.

They walked and rolled down the hall and into the room to find Sun mid panicked ramble.

“-heard him screaming through the Staff Bots! They all ran off, gone, off SOMEwhere and Freddy’s not answering and I-I-I don’t know if he’s AVOIDING me or if he’s HURT or-!”

“Hey, it’s okay! Relax!” Charlie tried.

“How can I RELAX?!” Sun cried, turning on her with his hands on his hips. “Also, hi.”

“Hi. Because Jake said all of the signals in here are screwy and everything’s glitching out. Odds are Freddy isn’t avoiding you or hurt. He’s probably stuck in his green room or down in parts and service.”

“But… Y-Yeah… Yeah, that- that makes sense.” His shoulders slouched. “And I don’t have to worry about Gregory anymore because he’s not here…”

“…Actually, he is here.”

“He’s what?! What’s he doing back here?!”

“He wanted to come, but it’s okay! He’s with Mike, Michael, Foxy, and everyone else.”

“Oh, and that’s supposed to make me feel better?” Sun challenged.

“Yes, because he could’ve been roaming the Pizzaplex alone,” Baby interjected. “Now stop that. You going to pieces won’t help anything. That’s what he wants.”

“Gregory?”

“No, Dummy. Bunny. I think it’s pretty obvious that all of this glitching and mismanagement is part of his devious plan, is it not?”

“Yes…” Sun slouched, his arms falling to his sides. “This is all one big… accident waiting to happen. He’s going to ruin everything…”

“Everything’s already ruined. You’re on the lam, I’m scrap metal, and there’s no way the Pizzaplex can survive any more bodies popping up. I think this is it…” Jake admitted.

“It is… Eugh, I knew it was coming! But I-I didn’t think it’d be so soon?” Sun wrung his hands together. “Where do we go, back to the dump?”

“You are not going back to the dump,” Charlie said with a little exasperation. “You’ll just come home with us and we’ll work out the long term later.”

“It’s just happening so fast…” Sun mumbled.

“I know, and I’m sorry,” Charlie sympathized. “I know how it feels to suddenly get everything ripped away from you.

Jake rubbed his shoulder and Sun’s posture slouched in defeat.

“The others are going down to find the employees and acquire a key that they can use to get into the main security office, where we are certain bunny and his puppeteered cohorts are hiding. Can you get us in any easier?”

“Uh… Maybe? I don’t know if Moon’s got that clearance. Sun certainly doesn’t,” Sun muttered.

“It’s worth a shot since we’re heading in that direction anyways,” Jake said with a shrug. “Where’s the stuff?”

“Uh… Forget the stuff! Let’s just get out of here…” he answered with a dismissive wave and a grab at his points. “Let’s go find Gregory. A-And your friends, and our friends.”

With that, the small quartet left the dusty backroom and started to head back out. Apparently, Sun was aware of the issues with the shutters as he naturally followed Jake down towards the basement. That or, from his slumped posture, he was just so defeated that he was going with the motions and being led anywhere.

Baby managed to make it back downstairs, grumbling all the while, and they headed back into the damp utilidor tunnels far below.

Except something had changed. There was a weird feeling that hung in the air. Like static, like a looming oppressive heaviness.

Charlie had a bad feeling. Something felt wrong, like a sinking, sucking feeling of despair was settled in her stomach and pulling at her heart. She could only consider it something like premonition. A warning of what was to come.

“I wish I could have told him. Them,” Baby said out of the blue.

Her words sounded like a warning too.

“Told them what?” Charlie asked.

“That I loved them,” Baby confessed. “I don’t say it enough. I don’t want to sound weak, so I say nothing. But if there are no more chances…”

“There will be. We’re going to find them and when we do… No matter what happens, we’ll put them back together. Alright?” Charlie assured her.

Baby gave a solemn nod. Moon gave something between a groan and a whine, slumping his head into his hands. He too must’ve been regretting not contacting Freddy before now.

Charlie could only assume that this unprompted confession was for her feeling that strange sensation too. That creeping dread that clung to her skin like tar.

And for a second, a strange sort of second, Charlie wondered if she should tell Baby how much she cared about her. In case this was the last chance.

But she quickly shrugged it off. No, she wasn’t going to do that in a panic in a dark basement underneath the Pizzaplex. They needed to keep their heads clear.

So, they pressed on. Moon leading the way now, his slippers sticking to the floor as he stalked ahead but him paying them little mind. His jingles, the creak of Jake’s leg, the low whirr of Baby’s wheels, it became the ambience of the tunnel, backed only by those distant groans of metal.

Until they passed a cross where two halls met. There wasn’t much to see except an abandoned forklift and some boxes, and Moon was quick to lead them through.

But as they started into the next tunnel, Charlie heard it. Or no, she couldn’t tell if she heard it or she felt it.

Something wrong. Something familiar and wrong rising up beside her and yet when she turned all she could see was an empty, dark passage. She was drawn to it. As the others continued on, she stepped inside. She paused, hit by that strange pressure, and then took a few cautious steps inside.

Baby noticed her detour first. “Charlie?” she asked quietly. Jake and Moon stopped and turned back as well.

Charlie continued staring down the dark tunnel. She could hear something moving in the distance. The faint echoes of something being dragged along. Metal rubbing wet metal.

“What?” Moon asked briskly.

“I… I don’t know…” Charlie admitted. “I think there’s something down there…?”

“I don’t see anything,” Baby said. She rolled back just to look, but she felt that ominous tug regardless. A familiar heat prickling at her fingertips. “Charlie, come back. It’s not safe.”

“What is it?” Jake asked, walking back over. Moon caught his arm, trying to hold him in place.

All three stood there at the cross while Charlie stared down the tunnel. She had stopped then, no longer approaching and now able to distinctly hear the noise of something coming.

Something pulling itself towards her.

“Sammy…?” she called back to it.

And then she saw it.

Saw so much of it.

Chapter 105

Chapter Summary

Gregory, Foxy, and Jeremy look for Freddy. They find him.
Mike, Scott, and Michael are looking for a way to the security office. They find him.

It didn’t take long for Foxy, Jeremy, and Gregory to make it to Fazer Blast. Gregory was practically running the whole way with Foxy on his heels and Jeremy catching up behind them. They made it outside the front entrance before the others could’ve made it even to the kitchen elevator.

The doors leading inside were closed by left unguarded. They didn’t automatically open, but Foxy was able to pull them apart with only a little strain since they were closed but not locked.

“Do you notice all the Staff Bots are gone…?” Jeremy asked quietly.

“They are?” Gregory looked around. Even though he wouldn’t have been able to see any other Staff Bots from here, he did notice that they hadn’t passed any coming in. “Weird…”

“Bunny must’ve deactivated them… Sent them somewhere…”

There was something eerie about that. Jeremy should’ve been relieved that there weren’t any security bots patrolling or attendant bots blocking them but instead it only made the place seem more abandoned.

He snapped his attention back to the doors though as Foxy got them cracked open enough that he could reach in above him and help. They got the doors open and headed into the lobby for Fazer Blast.

Fazer Blast too was empty. No Staff Bots, no music. The lights flickered a bit and as they stepped in there was a weird shift from the floor. Foxy’s head snapped up and Jeremy froze up.

“Did the floor just move?” he asked.

Foxy’s hum confirmed as much.

“That can’t be good…” Jeremy mumbled.

But any consideration the two could have was ignored as Gregory slipped past and started to head towards the door to go into the Fazer Blast arena. Nothing was working right, but the automatic doors in here at least seemed to be working like usual. They made their way deeper.

Only to find themselves stopped at the last hurdle. Making it only to the gearing up rooms for the laser tag before the lack of automatic functionality caused them to hit a brick wall. There was no way to get through the last doorways into the arena proper.

But thankfully, Gregory had an out.

“There’s a vent over here. Maybe we can go through there,” he said. He wound them around to a back corner where there was a securely covered vent.

Foxy got the vent pried open in no time flat, then Gregory crawled in, Foxy behind and Jeremy leading up the back. It was a tight squeeze but doable. Especially since it was getting them past doors that couldn’t be pried open so easily.

Or it did until they hit the fan. A big fan blocking their way that, like many of the functions of the Pizzaplex, was off. Gregory grabbed it and tried to shake it.

“Ugh, come on!” It didn’t budge and he struck it with his fist, to no give. “Oww!” He hissed and shook his hand, then moved the fan a little. He couldn’t move it but… “I think I can squeeze through…”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Jeremy volunteered.

“Why not? If I get through then Foxy can break the fan, right?” Gregory offered.

“Ya think ya can squeeze through there without getting stuck?” Foxy asked. Jeremy tapped frantically on his foot. “Err, maybe it ain’t such a good idea. We’ll slide out and switch out.”

“No, it’s okay! I can do it!” Gregory said persistently.

He pushed the fan blades around until he made himself a hole at the right angle and then pressed into the corner and tried to squeeze through. It was painful, the blade jabbing into his skin as he dragged himself through.

All the while Jeremy called after him, “No, wait, wait! You’ll get stuck!”

And that gave him more drive to keep pushing through. Gregory managed to get his shoulders past and then had to push and pat at the nearly frictionless walls to try and pull himself through the rest of the way. It was Foxy grabbing his foot, giving him a foothold to push back on, that got him through the last push and into the vent.

“There ya are, Lad! Now slide on back but not far. I want to see ya but I don’t want to clip ya,” Foxy instructed.

Gregory scooted back and Foxy began to deal with the vent. Hooking on it and pulling to no avail. Tapping on it, fiddling around and looking.

“What kinda fan is this? Ain’t there usually screws ‘er somethin’?” Foxy mumbled.

As he worked, Gregory scooted further back into the vent anxiously, trying to get the signal back on his Fazwatch. He pressed the button.

“Freddy? Can you hear me?”

Nothing. He tapped the button repeatedly, on and off.

“Freddy? Freddy! Hey! Can you hear me?!”

There was a crunchy, staticky sound and Gregory inhaled sharply, holding the watch to his ear with baited breath. Sure enough…

“…gory…”

“Freddy! We’re coming, we’re almost there!” Gregory called. The response was smothered in static. He turned over and began to crawl through the vent. “I’ll be right back!”

“Lad, where you goin’?!” Foxy called.

“Just trying to get a signal! I’ll be fine!”

“Don’t go far! Bah, there he goes,” Foxy grumbled. He gave the fan a frustrated little punch. “Bloody thing. Iff’n I was turned ‘round, this thing’d be blown right through.”

“Think we can crawl back out, switch places, and you can kick it out?” Jeremy offered.

“Maybe. Worth a shot.”

They started the slow process of trying to crawl backwards out of the vent, Jeremy having an easier time and pulling Foxy along by the feet.

Meanwhile, Gregory started to run towards the backdoor of Fazer Blast that would lead into the basement area. The closer he got, the clearer the voice was. Still loaded with static and the words cut off, but the voice itself was more audible. It was absolutely Freddy’s voice.

Gregory ran up to the door leading to the basement and tried it, and found that it wasn’t locked. Possibly left open since the night with Vanny. Gregory didn’t question it and instead descended into the darkness that was only broken up by the dull neon lights inside.

The stairs led into a hallway, even darker than before. He pushed along into it, falling the wall with his hand.

“Freddy?” Gregory called down the hallway. “Freddy, can you hear me?”

He heard a crackle of static over the Fazwatch but no response.

The temperature dropped as Gregory stepped into the next room, one loaded with servers. He could see his breath but little else, with the small lights from the servers flickering and too faint to make heads or tails of most of the room. He ventured further and halted only when he heard movement, a plastic squeak.

Gregory shined his Fazwatch ahead like a flashlight.

And found Glamrock Freddy standing in the darkness. His posture slumped in a strange way and his back towards the boy, but he was still standing there.

“Freddy…?” Gregory called.

Freddy’s head twitched and then cocked. He slowly straightened up his back, his head lulling, and then began to turn around and look over his shoulder.

Gregory’s stomach dropped as he saw his face.

Glamrock Freddy’s eyes were strangely darkened, only illuminated by small dots of light in their pupils, and some sort of slimy black sludge was oozing out of them like tears and stained down his face. It looked ghastly, and Gregory took a frightened step back.

“Fr-Freddy?” he squeaked.

“Gregory…?” Freddy stared at him before stiffly turning to face him. He stepped over his own feet in an awkward shuffle and his head lulled almost bonelessly. His arms hanging at his sides limply. “Gregory… Why are you here…?”

Something was very wrong with Freddy, but… he wasn’t attacking him. He didn’t run up and try to bite him or anything, so Gregory stayed. His guard stayed up though. Prepared to run if it turned out Freddy was being controlled by something else, like Bunny.

“Because of Bunny. I came to help! And to find you,” Gregory said.

“You shouldn’t have… It’s dangerous… Something’s wrong with me…” Freddy said. He shuddered a little and flexed his fingers.

Gregory grimaced but stood his ground. “Did… Did Bunny hurt you?”

“He’s… Screaming…” Freddy gave a heaving choke, like a sob. “I’m scared.”

Nowhere near as scared as Gregory suddenly became, because he was starting to realize that there was more wrong than Freddy’s face. Something deeper. Freddy didn’t talk like that, he didn’t get scared like that. Either something went really wrong or…

Freddy suddenly went still. His eyes seemed to lock onto Gregory. Then he began to slowly straighten up further before taking an awkward shambling step forward.

Gregory stepped back. “What are you doing?”

“I will… protect you,” he said. “I couldn’t protect the others… but I can protect you…”

“What others?”

“…Here…” He fumbled at his chest before catching onto his stomach hatch and pulling it open.

A few loose, oil slicked wires fell out of his chest and hung towards the floor. They twitched and writhed like they were reaching for something. Gregory’s mouth dropped open in aghast.

“There’s roooom inssiide. Insideeeherewherehe cann’t find uss.”

“No,” Gregory said instantly. He looked up at him. “Freddy, you’re freaking me out!” Freddy took a shuffling step towards him. Slow and lurching like a zombie. “Get away from me! You’re not acting right! You’re- You’re not Freddy!”

“Greeegorry…?”

But Freddy kept coming, so Gregory turned and began to run back the way he came. His heart pounding, his eyes wide and struggling to see in the darkness, stumbling over steps but forcing himself forward. He could hear Freddy’s heavy footsteps following behind him.

And his voice calling through the room and through his Fazwatch.

“Where are you going…? Come back…!”

“It’s not him, it’s not him,” Gregory reminded himself. No guilt, no hesitation, he had to run now.

He got down the hallway and was rounding on the stairs when the heavy footsteps started to thunder behind him. He whipped his head back and caught sight of the ominous glow of two white pinpricks of light cutting through the darkness and closing in fast.

He yelped and bolted up the stairs, tripping on the last step and falling through the door. He turned back just as Glamrock Freddy lurched over him. Those eyes boring into him. The wires dangling over him.

“Grrre-e-egoryyy, pleaasse. The purrrple man is hERE. He will FInnnd usss. He will hurrrt you.”

The wires writhed and reached for him.

“Get away!” Gregory slapped them aside and scuttled back. Quickly getting to his feet and running into the maze.

But Freddy was following right behind him. Gregory ducked into the maze to lose him and within seconds of panic was completely disoriented. He yelled out desperately.

“Foxy! FOXY!”

And Foxy, who was halfway back out of the vent, snapped his head up in alert.

“Gregory?!”

“FOXY, HELP! HELP!”

Without even a moment to think, Foxy scrambled forward towards the fan to shove through. One failed attempt to ram with his head and he snapped, shoved through, and grabbed the blades in his jaws and twisted. And in that violent head moment he broke the whole thing loose, then shoved it down and crawled through.

“Way’s clear!” he called back.

“Yeesh! Did that hurt?!” Jeremy replied.

“Yar.”

Didn’t hurt as much as Bunny would once he got his hook into him. It had to be him. It had to be him. And THIS had to be a trap.

“Hurry an’ stay close!” he warned.

“Right behind you, Captain!” Jeremy called.

He clamored after him, crawling over the fan. Something metal caught his clothes and tore but it didn’t reach his skin, so he pulled free and kept up with Foxy who was rapidly getting away from him.

“That better not be Bunny or I swear- I swear I’m going to just- I’m going to kill him!” Jeremy vented. “What am I even saying? This is all my fault. I should’ve never-!”

“This ain’t nobody’s fault but his! He knows what he’s doin’!” Foxy quickly deflected.

“Right! Right…”

They followed Gregory’s trail through the end of the vent and out the opening into the Fazer Blast arena. Meanwhile, Gregory was sprinting across that arena trying to escape the heavy footsteps that seemed to surround him on all sides. Freddy clumsily bumping and charging through as he frantically searched for him.

Gregory had gotten himself entirely turned around and ended up running into an area underneath one of the upper platforms. Usually a good place to hunker down during a game, but he doubted it would slow down Freddy now. He could already hear his thudding footsteps catching up.

“Gregory…?! Come back, please…! I will protect you…!”

There was a shelter nearby. They were pretty useless during Fazer Blast, but where Freddy was now Gregory knew he would see him if he tried to make another run for it. He was practically cornered.

Without a second to waste, he climbed into the shelter and hunkered down. Looking out of the small seeing slit and trying to see where Freddy was, to no avail. He could hear him stomping around nearby, calling for him.

“Greeeegory-y-y…”

Gregory shuddered and moved his backpack in front of him as though preparing to beat Freddy away with it. Did he have his camera?

He cautiously unzipped his backpack. Slowly, methodically, as quietly as he could before slipping his hand into his pack and feeling around. His hand landed on, ironically, his Fazerblaster. He grabbed onto it tightly.

Maybe he could use it instead. If he shot Freddy in the eyes it would have to slow him down without seriously hurting him, right? He told him what happened with Foxy, why they didn’t shoot in the eyes, what they did to the Glamrocks.

But… could he really shoot Freddy? Was he really going to shoot Freddy in the eyes?

“G-G-Greeeegorryyy…”

Gregory tightened his grip on the Fazerblaster and pulled it free from his backpack. No, he wouldn’t. He wouldn’t shoot Freddy, because that wasn’t Freddy.

“Even if it was Freddy, he’d understand. He’d tell me to run and to fight back if I had to!” Gregory thought to himself. “Maybe… Maybe it’ll turn him back to normal?”

Okay, that was stupid. How would shooting Freddy in the eye cause him to stop being possessed? Then again, his eyes did look pretty weird-

The footsteps were suddenly right behind him. Gregory clamped his mouth shut and held his Fazerblaster up, drawn ready to shoot. Freddy was right beside the shelter now, but he couldn’t see him. He cautiously leaned forward to peek out of the slit to see.

When suddenly he was grabbed by the back of the shirt and hoisted out of the shelter. Dropping his backpack but clinging to his Fazerblaster as he whipped his head to see Freddy’s hollow, oozing eyes.

“Therre you aree…!”

“Let GO!” Gregory shouted. Then promptly shot Freddy in the eyes.

The bear only twitched his head a little. It wasn’t until Gregory emptied the gun of its charge and then threw it into his face that he was finally let go, landing on his feet and half on the shelter, and made another run for it. Running out from under cover and into the maze, with Freddy running after him.

He didn’t get far. He only got around a bend before he was suddenly hoisted up again. Except this time it wasn’t by Freddy, but Foxy. Grabbing him up and swinging him behind him before facing down the incoming threat.

Said threat came barreling so hard into one of the walls that he knocked it over. He collapsed along with it, landing facedown like a fallen statue, but staggering upright light a giant action figure brought to life. Stiff and wobbly, awkward and somehow impossible.

“Bloody ‘ell, Freddy?!” Foxy cried out. “Freddy, what’re you… what… what…?”

Freddy lifted his head and their eyes locked. The ominous lights staring straight through Foxy and him unable to look away, going as rigid as a board.

“Something’s wrong with him! It’s not him!” Gregory cried, shaking Foxy’s arm.

“He’s possessed!” Jeremy cried. Just from the tilt of Freddy’s shoulders to the way he shuffled like he couldn’t handle his own body. Gregory was right, it wasn’t Freddy. It might’ve not even been Bunny. He grabbed Foxy’s shoulder. “We’re going to have to run for it!”

But Foxy was frozen solid. Jeremy frantically shook his shoulder and he teetered on his feet.

“Foxy?! Foxy! Hey!”

He yanked him back and Foxy fell into him, and Jeremy held him up and leaned around to look him in the eye and found an alarming sight. It was pitch black with a singular white dot in the center, matching Freddy’s own two.

“That fast?!” Jeremy shook him insistently. “Hey! Foxy! Fox- Gabe! You can resist it! Pull back, pull back!”

Freddy didn’t even touch him, how could it possibly spread to him?!

Foxy inaudibly mumbled.

“What?”

Freddy took a lurching step towards them out of nowhere. Jeremy looked up with wide eyes and gritted teeth.

“Freddy, stay back! I have a taser!” he bluffed. He then reached for his waist and whipped out radio to contact the others. “Guys, we need- Wha- What?”

The moment he pressed the button the radio began to spill forth garbled interference. Static screams twisting up with faint voices underneath. It sounded like kids talking. Not young kids, but teenagers. Whatever they were saying, Jeremy couldn’t decipher.

“That’s what my Fazwatch was doing! I don’t know, it’s like it scrambled Freddy’s brain and all the electronics!” Gregory shouted. He grabbed ahold of Foxy’s other side and tried to pull at his arm. “We have to- mmph- get out of here!”

Jeremy tried to pull too, but by then Foxy had seemingly dug his heels into the carpeted floor and refused to move. Instead standing like a board as he stared down Freddy.

“Ugh, Foxy, come on! MOVE!” Gregory shouted.

“Snap out of it, Gabe! We’ve got to get out of here!” Jeremy tried to reach through to him. He leaned in front of his face, blocking his view of Freddy.

Foxy muttered again, but this time, at this angle, Jeremy heard exactly what he said.

“It’s hilarious.”

“What?” Jeremy asked uneasily.

Foxy tilted his head slightly in his direction with that thousand-yard stare. Those lit pupils pointing blankly ahead, seeing through him instead of looking at him.

“Hey.”

“Hey?”

“Guys.” Foxy’s jaw opened and clicked shut as the words struggled out. “I think… the little man said heee wants… to give Frrrrrr a big kiss.”

Jeremy’s brows furrows and mouth dropped open. In one sentence Foxy was able to creep him out and totally confuse him.

“Foxy, what the hell are you talking about?!” Gregory shouted.

“Gabe…” Jeremy pressed pleadingly. He could hear Freddy take another heavy step. “What do you mean…?”

“Let’s give this little man he wants to get even close and personal,” Foxy rambled. His words stringing together incoherently. “He will love it. He will love it. He will love it.”

But it was with those words that finally helped Jeremy piece together what he was saying. He had an idea of where they came from, he knew what they meant.

He had been told them once.

“It’s always hangin’ over me head,” Gabe confessed.

It was a late night at the pizzeria and Jeremy had stayed over to clean up and hang out, though with Tabitha and Louise still there it hadn’t transitioned from one to the other yet.

Marionette had just left with Mike and headed home when Foxy suddenly sat down on his stage looking more forlorn than usual. Jeremy sat with him; an arm tiredly draped around him and got him to open up relatively easily considering that it had still been early in their relationship.

“Just creeps up sometimes.”

“You can’t beat yourself up about it forever. Look, Mari’s doing great! You two are best buds now! It happened and it was bad but you more than made up for it, Gabe. You’re a better person now. You’d beat up kids like that. Like you, I mean, not Mari.”

Gabe scoffed a little but seemed to appreciate the sentiment.

This was usually when he would change the subject and hop fully back into pirate character. Back to the jolly captain he was supposed to be.

But instead, he tilted his head to peek up at Jeremy, almost timidly.

“Can I tell ya about it…?”

Jeremy was confused. Why would he have to ask-?

Oh. Because he was afraid that Jeremy would judge. He was afraid that Jeremy would blame.

But how could he? He knew Gabe had picked on his younger brother when they were kids, but now they were the closest he had ever seen two siblings. Marion obviously loved him and forgave him. How could Jeremy ignore that and focus on something that happened over ten years ago?

Okay, maybe he was a little biased…

“Sure!” Jeremy said a little too enthusiastically. A little too cheery for the assurance he was trying to give. “I mean, sure. Not like- If you want to. You can tell me anything.”

“Maybe not everything…” Gabe mumbled.

“One time I stole panties from Allmart and then showed them to my friends to prove I had a girlfriend,” Jeremy bluntly admitted.

In hindsight, he could’ve probably chosen a less embarrassing story- from how Gabe snapped his head up at that with an immense amount of confusion. Jeremy gave him a half-smile and a half-shrug. Yup, it happened.

“Huh…” After a second, Gabe chuckled. “Al’ight, ya got me there. Did it work?”

“Yeah, but I think they caught on once said girlfriend never showed up.”

“Aye, that’ll do it,” Gabe said. Sounding thoroughly amused. He definitely would be laughing about that later.

Though he then ducked his head again.

“We were- about what happened- we were at the old diner… It was his birthday. There was gonna be a party at the diner fer him. Eh, not fer him. It was, ya know, a publicity thing. Parties always looked good fer business. The only reason He ever arranged fer somethin’ that big. Maybe for Lizzie. Henry would’a done it, Henry was doin’ all our parties fer a few years after Mom… That ain’t important.” Foxy shook his head.

“I was with my crew. We were messin’ with him again and I- I don’t know. I don’t know where it came from, but I got this horrible idea. This stupid idea.”

His fingers dug into the fabric on his leg. They too had fabric on them, it wasn’t like he would tear anything, but Jeremy still reached down and grabbed his hand. Letting him squeeze his instead of risk his suit at all. Gabe gladly did so.

“And that idea was, yknow, to do that.”

They both knew what ‘that’ was.

“It was so stupid. Don’t know where I thought it was a good idea. It was his birthday and here I was, just… ‘hey! Let’s go give Fredbear a big kiss!’ And God, it was the biggest mistake of my life… that I can remember off the top’a my head,” Gabe muttered the last part.

He was silent for a long pause. So long that Jeremy thought he was going to leave it there, but before he could say anything Gabe continued.

“We dragged him to Fredbear kicking and screaming…” he said quietly. “He was crying his eyes out. I didn’t care. Didn’t even think twice.”

But that wasn’t true. He cared now, he was thinking about it now. It was enough to convince Jeremy that he was remorseful, but it did little to relieve Gabe’s guilt. Marion forgiveness hadn’t even done that- they had really only just become close again, it was too soon to assume all was well.

“It’s okay, Gabe,” Jeremy assured.

“It’s not though. It’s not okay,” Gabe said lowly.

“…Maybe it’s not, but it’s getting there,” Jeremy tried.

Apparently, this was the right thing to say as Foxy patted his leg and slouched further against him.

That wasn’t all of it. He had told him more after that. More about what happened following the accident, but that wasn’t important now.

What was important now was that for some horrifying reason Foxy was repeating things he said during that accident. Not in some past teenage voice either, not a verbatim mimicry of the memory, but in his own blend of Foxy and Gabe melding into one.

Something was very wrong here, and it was beyond Bunny.

And right as he realized that, Freddy made a choking noise. His whole body shuddering as he staggered closer towards them, closing the already impossibly short distance. Jeremy looked back and found the bear standing over him, teetering at full height.

Was he coming for Gabe? Jeremy wasn’t sure but he had a feeling in his gut. It wasn’t about Gregory anymore, and he spun around and shielded Gabe with his body. Trying to block the bear’s line of sight from either, the light glinting on his glasses’ lens in an ominous way before-

GvEiErEbRaFdAgIbKsIsBaGlErI

He was in the diner. It was clear and foggy. The diner, the smell of pizza, the soft glow of the overhead lights. That warm sensation that came standing underneath those lights. The diner was always comfortably warm even though it wasn’t ever truly comfortable.

He was getting tugged along by the arms. To his left- who? He couldn’t see, but to the right it was Chris. Chris leaned into his vision and began to speak, and he said:

“Gabe.” His words strung into mush. “He wants to get up close and personal.”

Gabriel opened his mouth and words of agreement poured out.

“You heard him. Gabe. Closer.”

Gabriel turned his head forward and looked up at the looming form of Fredbear standing tall before him. Its illuminated eyes staring down through him. A creeping fear began to swell in his chest but it was so dull and flat that he couldn’t truly acknowledge it.

As though he wasn’t even really there. He could smell the pizza and feel the warmth, but he felt so entirely detached from the moment. Like it wasn’t real.

Staring into those empty eyes.

But then Chris was suddenly in front of him. He was grabbing and shaking at him.

“On THREe.”

Fredbear violently grabbed Chris by the shoulder and shoved him out of the way.

“One.”

Fredbear grabbed ahold of Gabriel and began to hoist him up towards his mouth. Its jaw opening wide to reveal the gaping darkness inside.

“Two.”

And from the depths inside he could hear his younger brother crying and screaming. Pleading to be let go as he’s dragged to the mechanism of his own murder.

There was a moment of clarity, and in that moment with his mind together Gabriel didn’t fight back but instead spoke up.

“Mari…” he choked.

Fredbear hesitated.

“I’m sorry…”

Fredbear stayed frozen, still holding Gabriel aloft with his jaw cocked open and an absent expression. Yet somehow Gabriel had made some form of piece with his decision. This was where he was supposed to be and he accepted it. He would accept the same fate as his-

“…Gabriel?”

That wasn’t Fredbear.

“What…?”

And in a jolt the diner was gone, and he was being hoisted up easily by Glamrock Freddy. The bear’s mouth gaped in preparation to crunch down on the fox’s head, but frozen in place now. Dotted eyes staring back at him in silent horror as Jeremy banged on his side and took swings at him, trying to pry Foxy out of his grasp.

Everything clicked back into place for Foxy, along with what he had heard and seen. And whose voice had come out of the bear.

That hadn’t been Freddy’s voice, or Bunny’s. It had been-

“Mari…?”

Freddy stared back with a hollow realization. His mouth twitching and his pupils shifting before it spoke again.

“Gabriiiell?”

It was definitely Marionette. And his voice grew in distortion and panic.

“GabrRRiEL?!?”

At once Glamrock Freddy threw Foxy to the ground. Not aggressively, but in a panic, and he landed just as heavily. Jeremy was quick to pull him up, using all his strength to drag Foxy up onto his feet.

“That’s not Mari!” he warned as he got Foxy up. Though an agonized cry from Freddy got him doing a double take and a reconsideration. “Is it…?”

“NonoNo I don’t want thisss…” Freddy slurred out. His eyes rolling around as he clawed at his head. “What did I do…? Gabe… GAb̴̛̠ë̸̖́!”

“I’m here!” Foxy pulled back against Jeremy’s arms to try and get to him. His eyes clear but pulled by sheer desperation. “Mari, I’m here!”

“Don’tdon’tDON’T comme CLOSE…!” Freddy desperately shouted. Marionette’s voice a strained echo following right behind each of Freddy’s thundering words, but it was clear that only one of them was truly talking. He clawed at his face with both hands. “SomethiNg’s WRONg with ME…!”

“Marion, listen to me!”

Foxy tried to reach up towards Freddy and the bear looked at him with wild panicked look. Like their roles had been reversed in who tried to bite who.

“What’s going on here? Why are you in Freddy?” Foxy pried, trying to stay calm.

“He’s here…!”

“Who, Freddy?”

“HE’S in herrre. It’s so hot,sohotsohotBURNING wIIIrrres in my SKIN! Sammy’s screaming S̸c̷r̶E̶A̴m̷I̴N̴G̷!̷”

Freddy was clawing at his head and Foxy grabbed his arm to try to yank it away. “Marion, stop that! You’re going to hurt yourself!”

“I’M…! I… I’m…?”

Freddy stared at Foxy with an eerie calmness considering the frantic babbling that had just occurred. His fans going into overdrive trying to combat the heat- even when Freddy himself didn’t feel so hot. Though that familiar burn of infection stung Foxy’s hand. He ignored it, holding on tightly.

“…That’s right, yer gonna hurt yerself,” Foxy continued. Breaking the heavy silence. “I’ve got ya, Mari. We’re here. We’re gonna fix this and take ya home.”

He ignored the way Freddy’s face started to blur back into Fredbear’s when he made eye contact. His head was a little clearer now, he wasn’t fooled by what he was seeing. Wasn’t tricked by the sting crawling up his arm. This was his little brother, and he was scared and in pain.

“I… can protect you…” Freddy said distantly.

“Ya don’t need to-.”

“I’m sorry. Freddy. I’m sorry. I’m sorrrRRy.”

Foxy felt his heart start to sink. He suddenly recognized that distorted tone. Confused, scared, certain.

“Marion, whatever you’re planning on-.”

“The only way out is to let go let go leT GO Of HIM!”

And he was pushed off and back into Jeremy. Harder than he might’ve intended, causing Foxy to get somewhat knocked off his feet and stumble into the blond who struggled to keep them upright.

The moment Foxy let go of Freddy’s arm, Freddy reached up with both hands and grabbed his head before beginning to twist and yank at it.

“MARI, DON’T!” Gregory screamed.

“MARION, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!” Foxy yelled. He lurched forward and grabbed ahold of one arm, planting a foot on Freddy’s leg and pulling back with all his strength. He managed to pry back one of his arms. “THAT’S NOT IT! STOP!”

But Freddy lurched and shoved him back and then staggered a few steps away. He grabbed his head tightly and twisted, pulled, and ripped. Wires pulling out, fragile neck pieces snapping and creaking as in one quick yank his head was ripped straight from his neck.

Gregory screamed. Foxy screamed. Jeremy swore, and swore, and swore under his breath repeatedly.

Freddy dropped his head and his arms at his side. Gregory dove onto the carpet and barely caught it in his hands, almost dropping him right afterwards before clutching it to his chest. Holding Freddy’s head tight as his headless body staggered, threatening to fall forward on him.

Foxy lunged forward for him, to push it away, but it leaned back on its own and fell against the maze wall. It collapsed underneath him, pulling down some of the panels with him with a loud crash. Then an eerie silence, save the twitching of Freddy’s internal servos.

Gregory looked at Freddy’s head in shock before hugging it tightly, his eyes burning with tears. No, no, no, this couldn’t be happening. It couldn’t have.

Foxy was frozen over him. Staring at Freddy’s headless body with an open jaw, a raised eyepatch, and wide-eyes. It would’ve been comical if the situation wasn’t so horrifying.

Then Jeremy stood behind them. Unsure what to do, in a similar form of shock. Though he wasn’t frozen up like Foxy, just reeling. He yanked his eyes off of Freddy’s body and instead down at the crying Gregory, and then back to the still Foxy. He slowly reached out with both hands, putting one on Gregory’s shoulder and resting one on Foxy’s back.

He had to say something. He had to say something.

But right as he started to fumble into a sentence, “I don’t know-.”

He was interrupted by the last person he expected.

“Gr-Gregory?”

Gregory’s eyes snapped open at the voice coming from his chest. He pulled the head away from him, looking at it in shock.

“Freddy?!”

For a moment Freddy’s eyes were still blackened out with not even the pinpricks of light in them. Before he blinked and they were suddenly clear. They rolled up to meet Gregory.

“Gregory! What in the world are you doing here? And why are you crying?” Freddy asked worriedly.

“Wha-HOW?!” Gregory blurted out.

“How what?” he asked. His eyes squinted with concern, but it was clearly him. His way of speaking, his expressions, his voice. It was him.

Gregory couldn’t hide his elation as his mouth broke into a huge grin. Eyes still tearing up as he pulled him into a tight hug against his chest. “You’re alive! We thought you were dead!”

“Thought I was dead?!”

“How are you even talking right now?!” Gregory asked. He pulled Freddy’s head back to let him answer, seeing the bear’s thoroughly confused look.

“Bloody ‘ell, Freddy!” Foxy hunched over to look him in the eye. “Is that really you?! Where’d the- Where’d… Where’s…” He turned back towards Jeremy. “Where’s Mari…?” he asked soberly.

Any relief Jeremy had on his face was quickly wiped away.

“Foxy? You are here too?” Freddy asked in confused. He then groaned and blinked. “Urgggh. Something is wrong. I feel strange, and my chest speaker is not working? In fact, I cannot feel anything beneath my shoulders.”

“That’s because it’s over there,” Gregory said, turning Freddy’s face to see his body.

Freddy gave a startled shout at the sight of his body.

“Is… Is that my body…?” he squeaked, or the closest thing to a squeak from his baritone voice. “Why is my body over there?!”

“You were- You ripped your- I don’t know how to explain this, it’s crazy,” Gregory rambled. “I think… I think Mari took control of your body and then he was chasing me around? And then you ripped your own head off!”

“He was tryin’ to let you go, I think…” Foxy mumbled. Gregory steered Freddy’s head back towards him. “What happened, Freddy?”

“That is a good question. I remember… Hmm…” Freddy looked around thoughtfully as he struggled to remember. “I… I was called to the employee cafeteria downstairs. Something was wrong, but I do not know what. I was in the elevator when… No… No, I left the elevator. I was walking down the hall when I heard a voice.”

“Mari’s?” Foxy asked.

“No. Bonnie’s. Err, Bunny’s.”

“Oooh no,” Jeremy muttered. A sentiment Foxy shared.

“Ya saw Bunny?” he asked.

“I saw… I… I saw…” Freddy’s eyes slowly widened. “I saw… something terrible.”

“What, Bunny?” Gregory asked.

“I… I do not know. I cannot even remember what it was, but it had his voice and it looked like… There were wires.”

“Oh God, it’s Ennard,” Jeremy muttered again. “Then what? Did he grab you or?”

“I… I do not know. Everything went dark.”

“Well, yeah. I’d say so. Your eyes were all blacked out and you had this oily ooze coming out of them,” Gregory said. He wiped it with his finger and showed it to the bear. “See?”

“That looks like… That looks like the black oil that Bunny was crying,” Freddy said.

“He said Bunny was there… Screaming,” Gregory said uneasily. Wrinkling his lip in detest. “That doesn’t sound good.”

“That ain’t good,” Foxy said bluntly. He had that thousand-yard stare again, which Jeremy noticed. He put his hands on his shoulder and squeezed, trying to offer support.

But he knew a possession when he saw one. He knew what they saw and heard, and it didn’t bode well. Especially since Marionette was now cut free from Freddy and still missing.

But Foxy wasn’t the only one who was overwhelmed. Gregory was starting to tear up again as he looked between Freddy and his fallen body. His mouth wrinkling for a different reason now, and Freddy took notice. After all, Gregory was one of the few things he could see at this angle.

“Oh, Gregory. Do not cry. I will be fine!” he tried to assure.

“Yeah, but you almost died!” Gregory blurted out. “And now you’re- How’re you going to live without a body?”

“Do not worry, that can be fixed! This is not the first time I have had my head removed, you may recall,” Freddy said with a chuckle. “We will just stroll down to Parts and Service and reattach my head. I will be good as new.”

“O-Okay…” Gregory sniffed and wiped his face with his arm. “I’m just… I’m really glad you’re okay.”

“And I am glad to see you again. Though I wish it was under better circumstances…” Freddy said apologetically. “…Imagine that I am hugging you, because I cannot.”

Gregory finally cracked a smile. “Okay, but you owe me one.”

Foxy seemed relieved that Freddy was alright, but… not as much as he should’ve been. Jeremy noticed his quietness and understood right away. Freddy was fine, good. Marionette was not. Marionette was still missing and that brief glimpse of him ripped open an old wound with it.

“Hey,” Jeremy said quietly. He guided Foxy a little to the side while Gregory and Freddy were still talking, so they wouldn’t be listening in. “What happened back there… You know Mari didn’t mean that. He would’ve never done that on purpose. You saw how shocked he was.”

“I know,” Foxy said dourly. Finally making eye contact with eyes filled with fear. “An’ that’s what scares me.”

“Maybe it was Bunny?”

“Whatever that was, it wasn’t Bunny,” Foxy said, lowering his voice so the other two wouldn’t hear.

Jeremy wasn’t sure what gave him chills, the cryptic way he said it or the fact that he knew it was true. This was beyond Bunny. Why else would he be screaming?

“Do you think you can help us get down to Parts and Service?” Freddy asked, clearly asking them instead of Gregory. Foxy turned back towards them, covering up his concern.

“How d’ya figure we’re gonna get yer rear end up ‘an down there?” Foxy asked.

Freddy hummed thoughtfully. Silently wondering if there was any possibility to move his body himself, despite not being connected to it. So much in the Pizzaplex was connected wirelessly. Perhaps if he really focused he could still exhibit commands to his own, unmanned body.

“Can’t we just ask the Glamrocks for help?” Gregory suggested.

“Might just get Sun in here,” Foxy mumbled. He nudged Freddy’s body with his foot to test its heaviness. Only to have it suddenly jerk. “Whoa!”

Freddy’s body started to lurch upright, pushing itself off the floor awkwardly and stumbling up to its feet. Shifting and rotating on its feet in a struggle to keep its bearings.

“Get back!” Foxy barked. Either at it or at the others, hopping back and whipping out his arms to shield the others and pull them behind him.

But Freddy’s body simply righted itself and stood there. Legs bent in a little, feet pointed awkwardly, arms and shoulders slack.

“No, it is alright! That was just me!” Freddy said. “I thought maybe I could ping my own body and get it to respond. I can barely believe that it worked!”

“Wait! Does that mean you can still use your body?” Gregory asked in surprise. His face then fell. “And was that a pun?”

“Yes! And, er, no. Well, no to both. I cannot properly use my body until we return my head. But, it is awake and upright! Foxy, Jeremy, if you two can lead my body we can head down to Parts and Service and reattach it. And find my friends as well…” Freddy’s features softened. “I am very worried about them.”

“Aye. Us too,” Foxy said. He let his arms drop and turned to Freddy, keeping his eye on his headless body. “We’re all here lookin’ fer Mari, Ennard, and Carlton. Bunny went mad an’ took the lot of ‘em. Brought ‘em here and set off some sorta lockdown.”

“That is terrible!... But… I cannot say I am surprised. After whatever it is that I saw. Something terrible is happening here. I am evidence of that,” Freddy said somberly.

“We’re lookin’ to get into the main security office. Any ideas?”

“Hmm… I believe only the security staff or an animatronic with level nine security clearance would be able to get into the main office during a lockdown. I am afraid I will not be any help in this state.”

“Hey. We ain’t askin’ ya to do anything but stick around,” Foxy said, patting Freddy on the top of the head. “We’ll take ya down. We’re headin’ down anyways.”

Freddy brightened up. “I can always count on you, Cap’n.”

He could.

But not everyone could, Foxy thought. It was a cold thought that chilled the otherwise comforting warmth that radiated from Freddy.

“So, what do we do? Hold hands and walk him down?” Jeremy joked, gesturing a thumb towards Freddy’s body.

“That is a faztastic idea, Jeremy! My body is now awaiting commands I cannot give. If you lead it, it will surely follow.”

That wiped the smile off of Jeremy’s face. He slowly looked back to the headless Freddy with a disconcerted stare.

Then he inhaled deeply through his nose and exhaled a mumbled, “Yeah, I guess that might work…”

Which is how they found themselves heading down the stairs into the darkness underneath Fazer Blast, Foxy on one side and Jeremy on the other, holding hands with a headless Glamrock Freddy while Gregory led the way while using Freddy’s head as a makeshift flashlight. Freddy’s eyes did a better job than three flashlights combined.

“The stairs leading down to the utilidors are not far. Though we may have trouble with the door… Nothing a firm hand will not be able to fix! We will be at Parts and Service in no time at all,” Freddy assured. He had a tone as bright as the glow from his eyes. Too bright for the situation; he was clearly trying to compensate.

Freddy wasn’t oblivious. He could easily tell that something bad was happening. Less from their explanations but from Foxy’s somberness. The usually brash and hardheaded captain’s lingering silence. He knew it was something more than whatever happened between them in his possessed state, and he did what he could to take over in lightening his burden.

Jeremy only wished he could be that much of a help, but he wasn’t much better off. Now that the shock wore down, what they had witnessed and the ramifications of it…

What was he going to tell Mike? What could he tell Mike? Except that he knew in his gut that Marionette wasn’t up in that security office. Bunny wasn’t either. They were somewhere else. Somewhere.

He looked across Freddy’s chest at Foxy. Foxy’s face was cast in shadow but he could see that thousand-yard stare had made its return. He wished he could comfort him in some way.

But for now they could only continue down, down into the darkness. Freddy as their lone light. Gregory as their guide.

And Marionette haunting their every thought.

---

If you asked Mike how he had gotten himself into this situation the answer would’ve almost always been the same. A locked door, a non-responsive elevator, or Marionette.

And in this case it was all three that got him into that humid vent, crawling on his hands and knees behind a speedy Bonnet. He didn’t know how the little pink bunny did it, but she was a master of scuttling through the vent despite her only reliable traction being the shallow grooves on her palms.

Scott was behind him. Maybe a little closer than he should’ve been as Mike almost kicked him twice while trying to clamor and keep up with Bonnet. Michael was bringing up the rear and despite barely fitting in the shaft, despite looking like he was struggling to get through, he was keeping up well with Scott.

It wasn’t the first time Mike had been in a vent and it sure enough wouldn’t be the last. Maybe it was that familiarity that was getting into his head, making him get lost in his thoughts. Lost in memories that decided that this was the best time to pop up.

Memories of crawling through that burning pizzeria trying to survive. Of that setup at that facility, where Marionette got snared in a vent and barely got loose. Crawling through Afton Robotics, popping out the other side with Marionette popping up right in front of him. Not just vents, crawling through those caves with Marionette out in the desert.

Marionette was so excited to see that cave. He was so excited to see the world. Even if it was a lousy- eh, slightly cool- cramped cave.

It didn’t feel right that he wasn’t here. It wasn’t just them being apart, it wasn’t just missing him, it felt wrong. Like he was gone for good. And that made Mike paranoid because there was no reason to feel that way. Marionette had been kidnapped; he didn’t disappear off the face of the earth. It was just the vibe of this place getting to him.

He wanted to go home, but he couldn’t go home without Mari. There was no home without Mari.

How in the hell did he let him get in that trunk? Why did he play along with that stupid plan? What was Bunny going to do, he was all talk. He would’ve budged. He would’ve cracked. Bring up Ness as a bargaining trip. Send him to the hospital after her. Get Jake on the phone to talk him down. Something. Something.

Anything except let him get in that trunk. But he didn’t even fight it until it was too late.

Marionette wasn’t okay. He was sick. Mike knew something was wrong, that he had been more rundown. Maybe because of stress, maybe because of lack of sleep, it didn’t matter. He was supposed to be protecting him while he was vulnerable and he practically handed him over to some sick little loser who thought Marionette owed him something.

Mike didn’t notice that he was starting to move more frantically, more desperately, until he almost kicked Scott again. Which he only noticed because Scott chimed up.

“Heh. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re aiming for me,” he joked. Trying to lighten the mood.

Normally Mike would’ve appreciated that, but this wasn’t normal. This wasn’t a time to be joking.

“If I was aiming for you, Scott, you’d know it,” he snapped.

“Uh…” Scott faltered.

He didn’t have to see Scott’s face to know that he had an expression like he had been slapped.

Mike instantly regretted it. “That was a joke,” he tried to excuse, softer.

“That sounded like a threat,” Michael casually added in.

And if Michael noticed it then Scott absolutely did.

Mike sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m just a little on edge. I’ve got a lot on my mind,” he apologized properly.

Scott accepted it without a hitch, sounding apologetic and a little awkward himself. “Hey, it’s okay! I know how you feel…”

He did, Mike realized a little too late. Scott losing Ennard was barely different than him losing Marionette. It must’ve been especially awful having to watch that creep possess him and parade around in his body. At the very least, Mike had been spared from that. Scott had to sit here with the knowledge that Ennard was currently being manhandled.

God knew what Michael was going through. Between his little brother and his best friend, he had lost most of his support group to some crazed guy in a rabbit suit. Again.

“It was bad timing on my part. Sometimes I run my mouth,” Scott continued.

“So do I. Don’t worry about it, I was out of line,” Mike insisted. Only then did he look up and notice the vague pink blob in the distance had disappeared. He pulled up his flashlight all the way to look only to see no sign of Bonnet. “Oh no. We lost her.”

“Bonnet?”

“Yeah.”

“I was afraid of that…” Scott tried to look past Mike’s shoulder. He cupped his mouth and called down the shaft. “Bonneeeet!”

After a beat a voice called back. “Heeeeeeerrrrreee!”

“She really got up there,” Scott said. He then called again, “Wait there until we catch up!”

There was no response.

“She may have not heard you,” Michael said.

“No, she heard me. She’s just pretending she didn’t so she can keep going,” Scott said knowingly.

They kept moving, trying to catch up with her, and it wasn’t long before Bonnet called back again.

“I think I found a way out!” she said. There was a clanking noise that echoed through. Bonnet gasped, “There’s people in here! I think we made it! We found- Hey! HEY! Let go of me!”

Mike’s head snapped up. “Bonnet?!”

“Help me! Help me!” she cried. There were other voices too.

Mike started to hastily crawl down the vent. Scott tried to keep up, yelling from behind him.

“Hey, stop! Let her go! Can anybody hear me?! HEY!”

“Hey, is there someone down there?” someone called back.

Mike went around two short and abrupt corners and found an open vent cover midway down the next shaft. That was the way out and that’s where the voices were coming from.

He clamored up and looked out to find two guys standing there, one of them holding Bonnet out like she was going to bite him- she probably would’ve, and a room crowded with people behind them. Most of said people sitting huddled in a group in the center of the room.

He stuck his upper half out and held out his hand. “Yeah, that’s mine. I’d like it back.”

“Uh, sorry. Here you go,” the bigger guy awkwardly said. He started to hand it back, continuing to hold her out as Mike climbed out of the vent.

Bonnet reached for him eagerly and settled into his arms. Well, until Scott climbed out and then she practically crawled out of Mike’s arms and into his. But Scott was grabbing for her anyways so Mike took no offense.

“Where did you come from?” a second, befuddled man asked.

“Well, my folks used to live in Minnesota but they moved south to be closer to family-,” Mike started.

“Hey, Chaz! Some guys got in from outside!” someone out of the way called.

Oh right, Chaz. Mike recognized that name. He stole a glance at Scott and noticed he looked particularly interested, so apparently he did too.

Sure enough, a familiar fluffy bearded technician- funny, he didn’t look nearly as much like a wolfman the last time he saw him- pushed through the workers clustered around the vent. Mike expected him to recognize him immediately, but instead his eyes went right to Scott and he even got a tired smile.

He reached out a hand to him. “There’s a sight for sore eyes! How’s it going, Boss?”

Mike’s brows shot up and he looked at Scott who shook his hand.

“It’s going somewhere alright. Can’t say in the right direction.” Scott noticed Mike looking at him questioning and pulled his hand back to gesture between them, still holding Bonnet in the crook of his other arm. “Chaz, this is Mike. Former night guard at Freddy’s and current Foxy wrangler.”

He put his hand on Mike’s shoulder as he continued. “Mike, this is Charles. Former worker at the old Freddy’s and current mole.”

Those brows raised even higher and Mike looked at Chaz incredulously. “You’re the mole?”

“The mole be I. Fitting now that we’re all buried down here,” Chaz said with a sigh. He then stuck out his hand, which Mike shook.

Abe and Tommy had come up behind Chaz and the latter was currently squinting at Mike.

“Don’t we know that guy from somewhere?” Tommy asked.

“The hospital. He’s Vanessa’s friend,” Abe clarified.

“Which one?”

“Our Vanessa.”

“Ah, Blondie. Good.”

“What happened in here?” Scott dared to ask. He had glanced across the room and noticed the damage, and the collapsed corner in the back.

“I think it’d be easier to leave it at ‘everything’s gone to hell’. Because that’s what happened,” Chaz said disgruntledly. “You’re not going to believe what we’ve seen down here. Something’s outside. FREDDY’S outside and he’s glitching out. Wight got dragged off by something and, uh…”

He hesitated.

“And…” Chaz leaned in and lowered his voice. “The, uh. The screens came on. Started showing old Freddy’s footage, the stuff FazEnt wouldn’t want getting out.”

“Like what…?”

“Like everyone here saw Will kill those kids.”

Scott stared at him. Then he gave a dry half-laugh and an incredulous look, as though thinking he was joking. Chaz’s face was like stone. Scott’s face sobered up quickly in quiet horror.

“That’s not all they saw either,” Chaz said, looking towards Mike.

“Please don’t tell me I was on there,” Mike muttered in blank shock.

“No! No,” Chaz said. More so he was wondering if Mike knew what he was about to say. He had to, he was a former Freddy’s worker too. He looked between him and Scott. “There were some blips of the very much not haunted animatronics moving on their own. And everyone saw them.”

“Of course they did…” Scott pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Not as bad as seeing the former owner’s little afterhours sessions, but now I’ve got a room full of people thinking the Pizzaplex animatronics are haunted too. And right on schedule, Freddy’s out there acting funky. Grady had the door open and got scared back inside.”

“Whoa, whoa, wait a second,” Grady- apparently, since Clay pointed at him- spoke up. “What do you mean haunted ‘too’? Are you talking about those ghost rumors?”

“No, he’s talking about that abandoned motel outside’a town. It’s a real hot spot for drumming up the dead,” Tommy said sarcastically. “No duh, Grady! We just watched a bunch’a kids get killed! Or heard it. I sure wasn’t looking.”

“You believe that?” another guy asked Chaz.

“Believe- we saw it!” Tommy cried. Whipping a hand towards the staticky screens. “What did I just say?!”

“Not the- Not THAT! The ghost stories! That the animatronics were haunted, you said-.” He turned to Chaz. “You said all that stuff was just rumors.”

“I did not say that. I said talking about those rumors was going to get me fired,” Chaz clarified. He looked tiredly at the guy. “It’s about time you learned the truth.”

“You can’t really believe in ghosts… You wouldn’t,” Grady said. “Okay, the animatronics are malfunctioning. Makes sense. But ghosts?”

“I believe it,” a woman added in. “Something’s always been… off with them.”

“That’s just the personality chips. They’ve always been glitchy. You change one thing and suddenly Freddy thinks he’s Chica.”

“Freddy said he thought he was human. What if-?”

“Freddy’s standing out in the hallway right now with oil spurting out of his eyes acting like a zombie. What do you make of that? It’s glitch.”

It was around this point that Mike put together that the group surrounding them were probably all technicians working under Chaz, but he did little to argue with them. He just let them continue to sort it out, unaware that someone else was losing their patience.

It wasn’t Chaz, though he was getting there. Sighing again and giving a direct, “Frankly, I don’t care if you guys believe in ghosts or not. The bottom line is that those old animatronics were haunted. Not these ones. End of story.”

“You mean those old broken-down ones at the old Freddy’s? Those were even more broken than these!” another technician argued.

“Y’know, this is really sick,” Stanley intervened. “We just saw real actual evidence that some serial killer murdered a bunch of kids and Freddy’s and we’re arguing about whether or not the animatronics are haunted?”

“I know you’re going through a hard time after what happened to Ray,” Grady began.

Chaz whipped on him. “Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare finish that sentence.”

Grady back peddled a little. “Sorry, I… This is all just a lot to take in. I know you want to believe that there’s a second chance in all this-

“Believe whatever you want. That is exactly what allowed him to walk free.”

Michael’s gravelly voice cut straight through the back and forth. It sounded more inhuman than ever, and neither Mike nor Scott were sure if it was on purpose. They looked back at the vent expecting him to continue.

What they didn’t expect was for him to drag himself out. Sticking his ears and head out, looking up to size up the technicians with an unimpressed glaze to his eyes, and then lumbering to his feet. His joints squeaking and clicking as he did.

Scott’s mouth dropped open. Chaz’s eyes went as wide as saucers. “Whoa. We’ve got a live one,” he said in quiet awe.

Grady made something like a gagging noise and stumbled back. One woman gasped and covered her mouth. Abe looked like he was going to be sick- funny, Michael thought. If it wasn’t for the layers of carpet deodorizer he bathed this suit in he would think they were recoiling from the smell. Maybe they still were; ‘Orchard Nectar’ never was very appetizing.

They were all horrified at what they were seeing. He was used to that. He knew what he was and he was glad, glad to make them see it. To face it.

But Scott strode up and grabbed his arm. Half to help him up and more so to shove him back in.

“Michael, what are you doing?!” he shout-whispered. “You’re going to expose yourself to a whole roomful of people!”

“What are they going to do? Tell the police a rabbit man broke in? Better yet, maybe they can tell them about the body they pulled from their elevator,” Michael said dryly. He continued pulling himself to his feet, using Scott’s arm as additional leverage. “I don’t think Dr. Taggart or his cronies will let a word of this get out. Might affect the brand image.”

Scott didn’t seem convinced. If anything he shifted from being extremely concerned to being that and a touch exasperated. Eyes narrowing suspiciously as though he saw straight through Michael’s decision and saw something else driving it.

“Let them look the truth in the eye and deny it then,” Michael said with more finality.

But when the truth was Michael risking his own safety to reveal himself to Fazbear Entertainment workers, how did that have any value? Scott knew what those workers were thinking, because he knew what he would’ve done if he was a manager in this situation.

Deny. Cover up. Quiet down. Hush up. Wipe it all away. Seeing isn’t believing when you’re looking at a Fazbear Entertainment non-disclosure agreement… Or up at Fredrick Fazmann as he stood above your broken, half-dead body. And Scott had no doubt that Jimmy Wight would be just like him.

And Scott was more than prepared to tell Michael all of that, despite the fact that they were standing in front of a bunch of staring technicians.

But also, they were standing in front of a bunch of staring technicians. So he didn’t even have a chance.

“You’re that guy,” Grady choked. “The guy who…took those kids…”

Both looked over at the man like he had just butted himself in out of nowhere, then were reminded of their audience. Thankfully, due to the crowding those located in the center of the room hadn’t noticed him yet. Though they had likely caught wind of someone getting in from outside.

Michael knew that accusation was coming but he couldn’t help but feel a tinge of offense.

“I’m in that suit, yes, but I am not the man you saw using it. Just the one who was trapped in it,” he said. “He used me to avoid his own punishment and now I carry his burden.”

“So, you’re not…?”

“No. I worked at Freddy’s. I died in this suit.”

“I was with you all the way up until the end,” Tommy chimed up. He swept an arm out and nudged Abe with the other. “Wouldn’t you believe our luck! Here we are talking about haunted animatronics, and one just HAPPENS to show up! In some really old, nasty bunny costume that prob’ly came outta the back room.”

“Do I look like a suit that came out of the backroom?” Michael said with growing irritation.

“As a matter of fact, tough guy, ya do,” Tommy cracked. Managing to keep up his smirk despite the situation. “Ya look like you came out of a Halloween store- AND! Don’t think I didn’t notice how quickly you showed up after those sPookY~ videos.”

Michael’s eyes widened and then narrowed at the suggestion. All that frustration that made him want to do something desperate and stupid came right back.

“Now I’m not sayin’ that Wight gettin’ dragged into the wall wasn’t some elaborate prank, but I am sayin’- Hey!”

Michael grabbed Tommy’s arm roughly and started to pull him over.

“Hey, wait!” Abe reached to stop him, but Michael put a hand up to stop him.

“I’m just giving him what he wants. Real, undeniable proof. It’s only fair since he has doubts,” Michael said with barely disguised frustration. Like he was biting down his words.

He pulled the somewhat dumbfounded shorter man over to the vent, putting him between him and the opening and his back to the rest of the crowd.

With Scott whispering a heated exchange with Chaz, it was Mike who tried to step in and stop whatever was about to happen. He reached for his shoulder.

“Hey, wait. Stop and think before you do anything crazy. You said it yourself; it doesn’t matter if they don’t believe- GEEZ!”

And with one sudden motion, Michael reached into his own mouth and pried it open. All the way open. Forcing the suit’s mouth all the way until Tommy and only Tommy had a clear view of the skewered skull trapped underneath. Everyone else just got to see the back of his head opening uncomfortably far, even if it was ‘just a suit’.

Tommy’s mouth opened in a silent scream. Exaggeratedly stretched but not a peep made it out.

Scott whipped back around. “What happened?!” Catching Michael in the act. “Michael, you didn’t!”

Michael let his mouth snap shut as an answer. Then gestured with his thumb, directing Tommy back to where he was. Tommy walked away from the exchange as white as a sheet and as stiff as a board.

“He’s real,” he stated.

“What did you see?” Abe asked uneasily.

“I’ll tell you later.”

“Holy- You flipped that open like a Pez dispenser! Did it hurt?” Mike asked.

“Excruciatingly, but it was worth every second of it,” Michael replied.

Scott clasped a hand over his face. “God, give me strength.”

“At least he didn’t bite him!” Bonnet chirped.

“Not to lay it on, but that sounds an awful lot like him,” Chaz mumbled to Scott over his shoulder.

Scott sighed and dragged his hand off his face. “That’s his son.”

“The one who always wore the Foxy mask?”

“No, the one who went to college.”

“College really was my only accomplishment,” Michael said deadpanned. He looked at them. “And I hate to burst your bubble, but the Pizzaplex is filled with ‘live ones’.”

“What?” Chaz looked confused but then seemed to figure it out on his own. “Oh, no. I know what you’re thinking, but no. Those are personality chips that make them act like they’re real people. It’s all preplanned.”

“But you don’t actually believe that, right?” Mike challenged. Not upset, but unconvinced. “You’ve seen them. They have thoughts and feelings. They do stuff just because they want to. They think, therefore they are. They’re alive, and I don’t think anyone can fake something that real.”

“Except maybe Edwin Murray,” Scott mumbled under his breath.

“It’s not the same. We all know- well, the three of us know- what it was like at the old place. This isn’t like that,” Chaz affirmed. “They’re not zombies wandering around dazed. Not knowing what’s going on or who’s going to hurt him. These guys are programmed to be their characters.”

“I know for a fact that the Sun and Moon’s real name is Andrew and he was killed at the old Freddy’s. The broken Sun, his name is Jake. Chica remembers being alive as Funtime Chica, before she was refurbished with any chip, and Freddy remembers being the technician whose body you found.”

Chaz’s confidence was wiped away in a second. Something strange crossed his face. He shook his head to deny it, “No. That’s not it.” But he looked bothered.

But before he could continue, Scott turned towards the entirety of the group. Or most of it, pointing a finger at them and swinging it around towards the others.

“This doesn’t leave this room,” he said firmly. He pointed at the floor. “Everything, everything we’re discussing right now stays HERE. Because if those higher ups find out that you know any of this, you’re done. You’re getting wiped off the map. You’ll be scraping gum off gas station floors for the rest of your life and you won’t know why.”

“Wight doesn’t seem that dangerous,” Abe said skeptically.

“Actually, Wight’s probably dead…” Grady cryptically added.

“If you think Wight’s the one running this show, you’re in for a rude awakening,” Scott continued. “We have evidence that Fazbear Entertainment is just a cover for a company called Talgart Industries… Or Tagbert Industries. One or the other.”

“That’s crazy,” someone said.

“No, wait. He’s onto something…” Stanley said. Once doubtful he now seemed to be swayed. He shook a finger at Scott as he looked to Grady and Chaz. “Talbert. That was the guy who took Ray’s body away, remember? The guy who’s working with Mr. Wight. There’s always been something weird about him.”

“Something fishy about their deal…” Chaz said lowly. He was looking towards the floor, clicking together puzzle pieces in his head.

“I noticed that the discovery of a body at the Pizzaplex somehow managed to evade the news,” Michael said coldly.

“You know how it is. Peach Days start coming around and it’s all anybody can talk about,” Mike added sarcastically.

“But that’s not important right now,” Scott redirected. “We came down here to get the security office keys. And find you guys, but we need those keys to get in and lift the lockdown.”

“Good. Somebody oughta do it,” Chaz said, snapping back to attention. He gestured at Tom. “Tom, give him your keys.”

Tommy blanched. He slowly looked at Abe. Abe unhooked and held up his own little ring of keys. Tommy gave him a relieved thumbs up.

Mike held his hand out and Abe passed them over. “Thanks.”

“Is there another way out of here other than the vent?” Scott asked Chaz.

“No… Unless… Unless we can pull open the other vent and climb down through the access shaft. Drop down into the utilidors.” He took a deep breath. “…We’ve been sitting around here too long anyways.”

“The door’s entirely out?”

“As long as Freddy’s out there, yes,” Grady said.

“What exactly is going on with Freddy?” Mike asked.

“He’s glitching out or something,” Stanley said.

“That wasn’t a glitch, whatever it was,” Grady disagreed.

Scott was already onto the next task, looking around the room. “Okay… Okay. We need a tarp or a tablecloth. Something to cover him with.”

“Scott, they’ve already seen me,” Michael said.

“Only these guys have. There’s at least two dozen people sitting on the floor over there who just saw your ears and that’s enough.”

Chaz thumped Scott’s shoulder to get his attention. “Hey, you know. With this guy here we could probably pass off this whole thing as a hoax.”

Scott looked like he was considering it for a second, but then he got this look. Like he suddenly realized something, and it jarred him. He shook his head.

“No. They… They should know. Maybe Fazbear Entertainment won’t recover from it this time.”

“They’re all under NDA,” Chaz reminded.

“Then maybe they won’t come back,” Scott said more dourly. He looked towards Abe and Tommy. “This is a dining room. There has to be a tablecloth in here somewhere. Check that side of the room.”

Tommy snapped out of his lingering horror to give him a ‘are you serious?’ look while Abe just went ahead and started going to look. Tommy went with him and they came back shortly later not with a tablecloth but with a dirty drop cloth left from when the cafeteria was repainted.

With Michael somewhat covered, and Scott directing a sort of wall of technicians- technically Chaz getting them to do it- they started to migrate to the far side of the room.

Mike looked around and couldn’t help but count up the amount of distraught people stuck in that room. Some of them staring towards them, likely having seen Michael. All of them having seen William Afton in his prime, and possibly more than that.

He caught sight of the guy who came to visit Natalie and Ness at the hospital. Sitting there with his head in his hands looking distraught. Luis, right? It wasn’t a good time to ask.

It wasn’t a good time to ask anybody in this room anything. They all looked shaken to the core. A couple in the back even arguing about what they had seen. If it was real.

It was right around this time that Mike felt it creeping up on him.

Up until this point he had been fine. All things considered, he thought he was handling this all pretty well. Marionette being taken by a crazed rabbit, the Pizzaplex being taken over, and now a room full of witnesses not only seeing all of those kids getting murdered and possibly Marionette putting them in suits but Michael presenting himself, his Springtrap self, to an entire group of people who could and would talk and god help them if they go to the police or the news-

Ah, there it was! Right on schedule, the creeping fingers of panic starting to tighten around his throat. His vision beginning to tunnel in as his head got that wobbly feeling.

“Come on, not now,” Mike coaxed himself. “I can have a freakout later. Pull it together.”

Deep breaths. They didn’t seem to really help, but deep regulated breaths as he half-heartedly listened to Michael go back and forth about how real he was. Would’ve been funny if it didn’t sound like he was talking on the other side of the room.

Right when Mike was fighting his own battle, finally starting to get the upper hand, Scott put an arm around him reassuringly. Squeezing him in a one-armed hug.

Mike felt a flush of embarrassment, thinking Scott saw him and recognized what was going on and was trying to help calm him down. But when he looked at him he realized that Scott was watching the scene of Michael and the technicians with a downright dismal look. He hadn’t noticed, he was just reaching out to comfort him because he could.

Because he too was shaken.

Mike sobered up a little. He put his arm around Scott’s shoulders in return and rode out the rest of the nausea and tightness in his chest with someone likely feeling the same thing.

They stood there watching as Chaz and one of the technicians tried to get a maintenance hatch open. Michael lost patience and stepped forward preparing to yank it open himself only to stop short when a strange rumble echoed through the walls. Someone began to panic.

“It’s coming back!” the technician assisting Chaz choked out.

“It’s not coming back. That’s the… That’s the boiler. That’s got to be,” Chaz mumbled.

“There’s something wrong with the boiler too?” Scott asked in shock and dismay. “And what- what’s ‘coming back’? You mean Freddy?”

“Something big tore through here and dragged Wight off through there.” He pointed to the collapsed wall.

“It must’ve been huge,” Mike mused. “You’re sure it wasn’t the DJ on the fritz?”

“No, it was a bunch of wires. They were moving on their own...”

Scott went pale. There weren’t that many living bundles of wires prowling the Pizzaplex…

“But after it showed up, tearing up the place, we started noticing some grumbling and rumbling from-.” Chaz pointed off towards the wall. “That direction. It, whatever it is, is huge. We’re thinking it might’ve messed with the pipes. Did something, and now the boiler’s acting up.”

“And that’s bad,” Mike half-questioned. Scott looked at him in moderate surprise. Oh, okay. It WAS bad.

“Ohh, that’s an understatement.”

“If that thing put extra pressure in the pipes or changed the pressure outside the pipes or did something- did anything, really. Then we’re looking at- you know, with a boiler of that size, we could be looking at…” Abe attempted to explain. He huffed at his fumbling and looked to Tommy. “Help?”

“Imagine a can of pop getting shaken up and blowing open,” Tommy explained. “Now imagine it a hundred times bigger and leveling the whole building.”

Extremely bad. No wonder they were less concerned about the wire ‘thing’ that kidnapped Wight-

“Aaand up to speed on Bunny’s plan. Use Ennard to kidnap father-in-law and drag him off somewhere. Possibly up to the security office.”

-but that meant they were all sitting ducks.

“Then what was everyone just sitting around for? Why weren’t you trying to get out?” Mike asked.

“Do you see any way out? We’ve got a torn down ceiling and a blocked door.”

“And a fully intact vent that we just crawled in through,” Mike said matter-of-factly.

“Hey, you didn’t see those wires, man! Those things can get through there they can get through anywhere!” Stanley defended.

Mike glanced at the hole in the wall. If they were talking about Ennard- “You’ve got a point. Sorry.”

“No, you’ve got a point. We’ve got to do something or we’re all dead one way or another…” Chaz said pensively.

There was a brief pause. A second. Two. Then Michael held out his hand out to Mike.

“Radio, if you would.” Mike unhooked it and plopped it into his hand. Michael pulled it up and clicked the button. “Jake, we found-.”

Only to be met with harsh feedback. He recoiled from the radio, staring at it in confusion as the garbled noises and distorted voices spilled through.

“At least the screaming stopped,” Grady mumbled. Michael heard it though, and he made an uneasy note to remember it.

At the very least, it meant that they were cut off from the others. Which made that ticking timebomb even more dangerous.

“So, you didn’t come alone?” Abe asked Scott and Mike. “That’s good, right? They’ll call for help.”

“There’s others but… they won’t call unless we tell them. As far as we knew-.” Scott cut off while gesturing between him and Mike, briefly recalculating their story for why they were there. “…As far as we knew, there was some sort of big meeting today and we snuck in to listen in, and the next thing we knew everything was under lockdown!”

Nobody seemed to question the story. At least, not out loud.

“Which means… Nobody’s coming,” Abe finished.

“Not unless there’s a working phone in here,” Mike said. He could tell that there wasn’t when the suggestion went without a response.

Chaz turned back to the maintenance hatch and gave it one last, strong tug. That with the metal bar Grady was using to pry caused the hatch to finally open with a loud crack. A gust of sour air came out, no doubt rising out of the tunnels below.

“Okay,” Chaz said. He stood up, dusting off his hands, and turned towards the others. “Here’s the deal… Someone has to check on the boiler.” He looked around. “Anybody here know anything about boilers?”

Nobody volunteered. Stanley and another technician looked at Abe and he looked back wide-eyed. He knew what would happen if things went south, but that didn’t mean he knew anything about fixing them.

“…No takers. That’s fine. Most of the stuff in this place is automated, right? We’d be able to figure it out on our own. There’s got to be a shutoff or something. So!” Chaz clapped his hands. “Who wants to be a hero and help me out? …Come on, someone’s got to help. We don’t do something and it might blow on us. I need extra hands.”

…Well, just because he didn’t know anything didn’t mean he couldn’t help. Like he said, everything at the Pizzaplex was automated. Maybe it was just a matter of turning knobs…

Now Tommy, on the other hand, had no interest in volunteering in running around in the death zone with glitching robots, wire snakes, and the possibility of getting stuck around a bunch of pipes preparing to blow. Though maybe that guy had a point, maybe it was about time they tried to find a way out of here. Maybe from that same vent?

Tommy looked at Abe-

Ah hell, he knew that look. That weird look Abe was giving Chaz right now, he was considering it. Standing there with a distant, nervous look. He was about to make himself a hero.

He was about to go screw around with the same boiler that he warned was oh-so dangerous. With absolutely zero idea of what he was doing.

Tommy gave a long sigh and let his shoulders drop with exasperation.

“Ah hell, I’ll do it,” he said. Abe looked at him with surprise and Tommy nudged him. “Better than dyin’ in here. Am I right?” He noticed someone giving him a disturbed look past Abe and waved. “I’m kidding! I’m just kidding.”

“Anybody else?” Chaz asked. “Please. If it’s just us, I’m going to kill him.”

“I’ll come too!” Abe volunteered. Tommy clapped him on the back with a tight grin.

“Somebody other than these two?... Nobody else? Okay. That’s… That’s what I have to work with.” Chaz sighed and looked at Scott with his brows raised. “Miss being the one in charge?”

“I miss my leg. Does that count? No thanks.”

Within some minutes, the six- and Bonnet- squeezed through the maintenance hatch and made their way down. It took another tight squeeze through a narrow service tunnel to make it to the ladder that led down into the tunnels. Soon they found themselves walking through the dark, dreary utilidors. Mike and Michael lead the way under Chaz’s directions.

“We’ll take a left at the end of this tunnel and hit some stairs. Then we split up. You guys’ll keep heading down in that direction until you hit the next stairwell and we’ll… We’ll figure out how to get to the boiler room from here.”

“You don’t know where it is?” Scott asked.

“I know where it is, I just don’t know which way’s going to be open. We can’t wait for the security lockdown to lift, we’ve got to GET to that control room.”

“Right.”

“…Hey… Before we do, though…” Chaz’s voice dropped. He took a steadying breath. “You, uh… Michael, right?”

“Right,” Michael said briskly.

“Right. You said…” He quickened his pace to catch up beside him. “Why do you think Freddy’s that technician? Where’d you hear that?”

“He’s been telling Foxy he is,” Michael answered simply.

Chaz stared at him. “…Foxy’s still…?”

“He’s still the one in the Foxy mask. Yes.”

“And he’s been here?”

“That too.”

Chaz looked back at Scott incredulously. Scott put up his hand. “It’s a long story.”

“And this is a real long stroll, so let’s hear it,” Tommy volunteered. “I’ve gotta know how Foxy’s involved with all this.”

“The same way everything at Freddy’s is,” Michael said tiredly. “It’s all connected once…”

There was a tremor through the tunnel. Michael went silent while Chaz, Tommy, and Abe all stopped in their tracks. Listening, feeling, and surely enough the tremors were growing worse. More violent, shaking the structure in the distance. It wasn’t the same as when the boiler rumbled though. It was something less targeted.

Something that seemed to be getting closer.

“You still have that radio?” Chaz whispered. “Turn it on. Now.”

Mike pulled it off his belt. “Are you sure?”

“It’s the only way we’ll know where it is. The voices get clearer when it’s closer,” Chaz said. His eyes were as wide as saucers. “I left mine back with the techies. We’re going to have to use yours.”

Mike looked at the radio for a second and then forward down the utilidor tunnel. The darkness yawning back at him. There was plenty of room for something to come towards them.

But then again, maybe that’s what they wanted. They wanted to find Bunny and Ennard. They had to figure out where he was.

He licked his lips and pressed the button, intending to say something.

He didn’t expect to hear sobbing on the other side. And screaming. Panicked, frenzied sobbing and terrified screaming, and begging. Voices blending together into a strange frenzy of noises. Voices filled with agony and fear. They didn’t sound right. They didn’t sound real.

But one voice was very clear. His heart lurched and his eyes went as wide as Chaz’s.

It sounded like Marionette. He recognized his crying.

“Mari?! Mari, is that you?!” he called into the radio. “Mari, can you hear me?! It’s me, Mike!”

“Mike…?”

Marionette’s voice sounded shaky and… strange. Almost airy and distant. Like a hollow echo through a tunnel.

The rumbling was increasing. There were more noises travelling down the utilidor tunnel.

Abe grabbed Tommy and Chaz and hastily pulled them towards a little ridge in the wall. Scott tried to do the same with Michael and Mike, trying to take Tommy’s example, but Mike wouldn’t move. Even when Michael considered it, Mike stood there firm, shirking off the grab and stepping forward.

“Mari, it’s me! I can hear you!” he called into the radio. “Where are you? I can come get you, just tell me where you are!”

“Mike… M.mMmiikeeMiiikkmikemikeMIKE!”

The sound got closer. It was almost deafening as it melted together with the screaming over the radio. At it closed in on them.

Mike hadn’t considered until that moment, that very moment, that it might not be him.

And then he saw.

Chapter 106

Chapter Summary

The truth comes out when Charlie comes face to face with the one person she's been searching for all of her life... Or what is left of him.

It felt like time ground to a halt. Jake, Moon, and Baby were frozen at the crossroads. Staring past Charlie towards the corner at the end. Towards what was coming.

As whatever it was crawled closer, Jake’s panel started to spill forth static. He hadn’t even turned on the radio; it forced its way out. A distorted humming mixed with agonizing gargles. Like someone choking on water but suffocated in white noise. He made no effort to silence it.

Charlie stood a few paces ahead, staring down the yawning shaft. She stayed planted where she was, listening, hearing whatever it was beyond the corner. Something large and heavy, dragging itself along the walls of the tunnel as though it barely fit through.

It was pulling itself towards her.

She had a feeling in her heart that she knew who it was. That familiar tug. That lonely, empty hole in her chest throbbed at it.

“Sammy…?” she called out to it.

And then she saw it.

Saw so much of it.

It started with an endoskeleton arm. Something off a Glamrock that had been peeled down to its core metals. Its sharp fingertips scraping on the ground as it crawled out from behind the corner. And with it came everything else, swallowing it up just as quickly in a rolling bundle of wires.

Then came the mass. Wires, dozens of them, hundreds of them clumped together. Fused and stuck tight with a tarry black liquid. They moved together like sludge, rolling down its frame. Its heaving mass struggling to drag its way through the utilidor.

Stained limbs would broach the surface briefly to claw the walls and floor. Monty’s claws. Bonnie’s broken arm.

The only thing that stayed aloft from the sea of wires being its head. Stuck out awkwardly on a crooked and bent metal fixture was a lone head. It was a… Funtime Freddy head?

It was so stained with oil that it almost looked black. One of its eyes so clotted with sludge that it was blacked out, its mouth agape and jaw slack, it looked more like Lefty than Freddy.

Its head turned in their direction, and its lone eye lit up red as it saw them.

“G-Guys…?”

“Bunny…?” Jake choked.

“Bunny?!” Moon echoed.

“GUYS!!!”

The creature lurched towards them. Grabbing and crawling with wire choked arms as its body slithered into itself. Bunny’s choked up weeping barely audible over the noise of its own mass moving through itself.

It dragged through a clump of wires hanging from the ceiling and Charlie took notice as it was swallowed into it. Tugged inside and joining the mass. The same happened to a broken Staff Bot torso laying off to the side. As the wires rolled over it its eyes took an ominous glow before it disappeared inside. It was absorbing them in.

It had likely absorbed Bunny too. There was no way he was doing this on purpose.

Charlie stared up at it in horror only to suddenly be yanked back by Baby and pulled into the group once more.

“That is not Ennard,” she said softly, in genuine horror. “That can’t be.”

All four watched warily as the tangle crawled and drug its way up to them. It smelled like harsh chemicals and burning metal, to the point where Moon had to cover his nose with his hand, hopelessly thinking it may somehow block wherever his scent receptor was. He gagged regardless.

“Y-You have to help me! He’s- He’s got me. In here. He won’t let me go!” Bunny desperately panted out. “He’s a monster! He’s got me TRAPPED in here with him!”

“It-It’s going to be okay! We can get you out,” Charlie choked out. Her hands were shaking as she looked up at the horrendous mass. “How did you get in there?”

“He did this!” Bunny choked. “And I did this! I didn’t want this- HE TRICKED ME!” He began to give heaving sobs. “I didn’t know he could do this…!”

The wires writhed and seized as he wept, and in the backing tone of his voice, in the low static echoing behind his words, other voices began to rise. First faint whispers and slurred words, and then babbling, yelling and calling from people who weren’t there.  

One voice cut through.

“You deserve thisss,” Moon hissed.

But it wasn’t Moon. It was his voice, but it came from the depth of the creature. Moon and Jake looked at each other in surprise.

“I know! I screwed u-u-up!” Bunny choked, as though it had come from them instead of himself. “I ruined EVERYTHING! Ruined Nessie- Oh God Nessie Nessie no no…” The voices began to scream louder. “No no no Nessie don’t go I’m sorry I’m so-ho-ho-sorry I take it back I take it back!”

The temperature in the tunnel began to rise. Charlie noticed it first, but it soon spread to everyone else. Heat poured off the behemoth and spilled into the small space. It was suffocating, or it would’ve been if they could’ve breathed.

But with it came a strange sensation. A pricking burn on their skin and exteriors. Charlie felt it climbing up her arms and washing over her and then settling in her chest like her ribs were being squeezed by a vice. It was a familiar crushing sensation that she couldn’t place her finger on and yet somehow recognized well.

She could hear Moon let out a gargled noise. He tossed his head back so hard that the top hit his back. She wanted to look back, but when she tried- when the bear’s face reached the edge of her vision- it seemed to lock eyes with her and she couldn’t look away. Staring right into the boring red dot, watching as black ooze poured down its face.

Jake turned quickly to Moon in horror. “Moon?!” He grabbed his upper arm and shook it. “Andrew!”

Moon was burning hot. Hotter than the tunnel, just touching him burned and made the edge of his vision fuzzy. He leaned back to look at his face to find Moon’s eyes glowing a violent red. His body standing rigid and trembling in place.

Just like when Bunny took control of him before, but something was vastly different. It didn’t feel like Bunny was pulling any strings right now, so who or what was?

“I can’t breathe…!” Baby whispered. In the moment forgetting she couldn’t. “We… We have to leave… I can’t breathe!”

“What?” Charlie asked her, head still turned. “Liz-.”

“I feel strannnge…” Baby murmured. Her vision was beginning to tunnel. She was hearing music that wasn’t there. She smelled… she smelled birthday cake and…

Charlie reached back without looking and shoved hard. Baby gasped as she rolled back on her roller skates, only stopping herself once she regained enough of her control to do so. The overwhelming heat was still there but the tight hold on her body loosened considerably in only a few feet.  

“Better?” Charlie asked back.

“Better…” Baby tentatively admitted.

But what did that mean?

“He has a range,” Charlie said. She couldn’t look at Moon, but she could see his state out of the corner of her eye. She knew what was happening. “We have to get back!”

The bear head cocked fast in her direction and only then was it truly staring into her.

“Get… Wait, wait, no, no, no. I’m not- I’m not going to hurt you. I- I know I did some terrible things but you’ve gotta believe me, I’m not going to hurt you! Please, just pull me out!”

The wires underneath its head split apart as an arm reached through and out of the mass. Then another. Then another. Endoskeleton arms, Staff Bot arms, Monty’s arm, a purple hippo arm, random limbs reaching out of the slimy depths to claw at the ground and reach out to her frantically.

All locking in on Charlie. Reaching desperately for her.

“D-Don’t leave me in here! Please! PLEASE! HELP ME!”

And despite everything, she found her hand lifting. She couldn’t tell if it was his influence or not. It felt deep, instinctual. Like she had been waiting her whole life to reach back.

But she fought back that feeling and forced herself to take a few steps back, stumbling on a groove in the floor and staggering, and tilting back until getting caught on Baby’s claw.

They hastily backed away. Jake attempted to follow, but Moon was stuck in place. He grabbed and began to pull with all of his might, and Moon staggered with him. He was starting to move but it wasn’t fast enough. The mound that housed Bunny was already clawing at the ground to unwedge itself from the wires wandering and getting trapped.

“Don’t let me gooOOO! ANDY! ANNNDY!”

Moon’s body seized as he fought against the foreign control. It was burning hot to the touch, so much that it hurt just holding onto him. Like touching a hot iron.

Jake put himself between them and began to shove Moon with all his might, getting him to stumble back more. A magnetic hold seemed to hold on tight. It wasn’t until Charlie came in, one arm held by Baby’s claw in the safe zone and the other grabbing Moon’s ring and pulling that they started to get leeway.

Something slimy dripped on Jake’s shoulder. He knew the head was above him, if the deafening sobs and screams and burn wasn’t any indication. He had to make a choice, one of them wasn’t going to get out of this.

So, he made the choice that came naturally, and he dropped his control and rammed Moon with strength he had been unknowingly holding back. Knocking Moon right off his feet and back into Charlie where he landed unceremoniously on his bottom. No doubt leaving a sludgy stain on his starry pants.

Moon’s eyes cleared up for a second. They locked eyes in that moment, him and Moon, before Moon looked past him at something above his head.

A drop of something landed on Jake’s shoulder. He didn’t need to look back to know it was a tarry tear. He didn’t have to see that the bear’s head was right above him.

He could hear the wires unfurling and reaching for him. He couldn’t get away in time, not with his bum leg and trailing cloak. He wouldn’t get further than a dive before he was dragged in. So, all he did, all he could do, was duck and cover his head.

It all happened very quickly. The coils burned his back, writhing against him live wires. Something pushed off his head, if felt like a hand. The weight of a body crashing onto him before being yanked off. It wasn’t the tangled mass; it was something else.

He looked up just in time to see Andrew, the person he had tried to hard to save, getting lifted upside down and pulled right into the mass.

“NO!” Jake yelled defiantly. He reached for him, missed, and then leapt inside without a second thought.

“Jake!” he heard Charlie cry.

“No, both of them?!” he heard Baby add.

Then he heard the deafening voices as he was swallowed up by the wires into the darkness.

And then… silence.

But it was a conscious silence. It was as though feeling slipped away and he was hanging in a dark abyss. He could hear voices in the distance. He could hear Bunny screaming, but it was muted as though he was miles away, banging on glass. There was sobbing that didn’t belong to him either.

Taking what will he had, he reached out into the darkness, and he noticed that he had changed. He saw a human hand reaching out instead his animatronic one.

“Am I dead?” he thought. “…Yeah, of course I am. I must… this must be like… Like my soul.”

Like when Bunny first moved them. When he pulled them from the Stitchwraith and plopped them into the Sun and Moon. It had been an incredible sensation. Both solid and fluid, and he saw and heard things- music, kids screaming in both joy and fear, the smell of pizza. Bunny pulled them into his world for a moment before pushing them on.

But if this was Bunny’s world, it had taken a disturbing overhaul. It was just a black abyss that smelled like burning oil and felt way too suffocatingly hot.

If Jake was here, then Andrew had to be too. So, he began to reach for him.

“Andrew?” he asked. “Andrew!”

He reached and he felt in the darkness. It was a strange mix of numbness and something slick and metal dragging against the back of his hands. He was definitely in the tangle now, but he was so detached from it that he could barely tell.

And then, suddenly, a hand grabbed his.

The whole world shifted as he pulled and it pulled and suddenly, they were face to face. Him and Andrew.

It was the first time he had truly seen him since they had moved from the Stitchwraith into the Daycare Attendant bodies. He had looked like an adult then too, it was weird to think that they had aged so much in that body, but he had still had an ever-present gator mask stuck to his face. Holding back curly black hair and sitting above a tight grimace.

He had changed again. The gator mask was gone or had morphed into one that looked like Sun and Moon’s faces, half one and half the other. Cut off midway down so he could see his exhausted grin. The clothes that he had died in now replaced in what looked like a Sun and Moon costume.

Andrew never adopted the Stitchwraith persona. The body was just one he existed in. But he had fully committed to being Sun and Moon, and despite his complaints Jake knew that it would take death itself to drag him back out of it.

Jake didn’t know what he himself looked like, but he knew he too had grown up. It felt like his hair had grown back too. He wasn’t sick anymore, but of course he wasn’t.

“It’s weird seeing you again,” Andrew said.

“Yeah,” Jake agreed. “You look tired.”

Andrew scoffed. “I wonder why.”

Jake gave a forced chuckle.

There was a short pause.

“You shouldn’t have followed me in,” Andrew mumbled. “…But… it’s kind of nice.”

Jake looked incredulous. Smiling awkwardly. “This?”

“Not THIS. This is terrible. I mean… being together again. That’s not so bad.” He reached his other hand out. “Hold my hand?”

Jake reached out and laced their fingers together on both hands.

They were held together even in the tumultuous storm of wires. It felt like a screaming, dark void surrounded their quiet bubble. Neither could even feel the wires that were no doubt hugging and wrapping around their bodies.

It was almost peaceful. Jake was guiding them into a gentle turn. It felt like they were floating.

It almost made Andrew feel at peace despite the creeping anxiety reminding him that this was wrong. It only cemented Jake’s decision.

“Andrew… I’ve got to tell you something,” Jake said softly. “I… I never regretted staying back with you.”

“What…?” Andrew said timidly.

“Never,” Jake swore. “I know it’s been hard. And this? This sucks. But… I’m glad we got to do it together.”

“Y-Yeah!” Andrew gave a dry chuckle and a strained, sad smile. He clutched Jake’s hands tighter. “…I never forgave myself for keeping you away from whatever’s out there.”

“You should, it’s okay. I forgive you and I’m sorry and… Thanks.” Jake swallowed, getting choked up. “For taking care of me.”

“I always would! Always would take care of you…” Andrew’s voice cracked as he continued, “I love you, Jake.”

“I love you too, Andrew. You’re my best friend. My brother- we’re practically the same person now, we’ve been together so long…” Jake looked down, swallowing again. When he looked up he had tears in his eyes. Tears that his animatronic body couldn’t have produced. “I’m sorry, Andrew.”

“I forgive you,” Andrew smiled. “We’re still together, right? Until the end?”

Jake gave him a broken smile.

Something hard thumped against his chest.

Andrew looked down in confusion and the illusion cleared enough for him to see the metal endoskeleton foot pressed against his chest. He looked up with a start. Jake was still smiling and crying.

What was he doing? Was he trying to kick him-?

And then it clicked.

“Don’t you dare…” Andrew muttered.

“You’d do the same for me.”

Jake’s foot pressed hard into Andrew’s chest. It was almost a crushing shove until the wires behind him began to give and split apart. Andrew’s back up against the swallow edge.

Jake had maneuvered him right into position without him knowing it.

“Don’t do it!” Andrew yelled.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

The foot pushed harder.

“Just…”

“No, no! Jake, NO!”

“Returning the favor.”

And with a firm kick, Andrew’s upper half fell back from the wires. A distortion of sights swirled as piles of wires mixed in where the void once stood. Another firm blow and he was shoved free, falling down and landing heavily on his back. No longer a human man but once again an animatronic jester.

Jake’s façade cracked. He was back to his broken sun state; his mask shoved to the side and his body wrapped up in the wires further in the cave that Andrew had left.

There was black oil oozing down his exposed eye. Right before the wires met back together it turned an ominous red. Then he was entirely swallowed up.

“NOOOOOOO!!!” SunMoonAndrew screamed. He lunged forward on unsteady legs and wobbly ankles and tried to grab and claw at the wires to climb up. “Jake! JAKE!”

One of his legs was clamped by Baby’s claw and she physically dragged him back, struggling to stay out of reach of the aura. A wire hooked around her ankle and she looked down with wild eyes filled with disgust and panic and stomped it with her wheels.

“Don’t touch me,” she hissed. She clamored back. Trying to step over the writhing floor around her. There were suddenly so many wires. “Don’t TOUCH me!”

Charlie grabbed her arm and helped pull her back, then grabbed for Moon as well to pull him back. Though while doing so, she looked up anxiously, trying to spot any sign of Jake. If she could see his hand, a leg, anything, she would throw herself into the mound just like Moon had to pull him out.

But he had disappeared entirely. It was almost like he wasn’t ever there. She looked up and froze as her eyes locked with a glowing red one.

The Freddy head was staring at her. And when she looked back, it started to lean in with recognition.

It- He gasped. Black oil sputtering from its eyes and dripping down the loose plates making up the face. He was shaking frantically.

“CHARLIE!” he screamed.

Its plated jaw cracked as a limb broke through the head’s mouth. Forcing its way through its shoved open jaw and reaching desperately out for her. Wrapped in wires that dipped into its black fabric, crisscrossing over its white stripes, a three fingered hand reached for hers. A familiar hand.

Marionette’s hand. Bunny’s voice.

She couldn’t stop herself. She compulsively reached back for them.

“Charlie, NO!” Baby screamed.

Right as they were about to make contact, she skated forward into a sharp U-turn, catching Charlie around the waist and ducking her head in time to miss the reaching hand. She pushed off fast, snatching Moon around his middle and beginning to hastily skate down the tunnel. Tripping and forcing over lose wires.

“No, NO!” Moon clawed at her arm to no avail. “I can’t leave him! I have to go back for him!”

“And you will get trapped too! Don’t let his sacrifice be in vain!” Baby yelled back. It didn’t stop him from struggling, but he couldn’t overpower her claw arm.

On the other side Charlie wasn’t fighting. She was just staring back over Baby’s shoulder. Stumbling along awkwardly as they rushed down a random tunnel.

For a split second she wondered if they would be able to find them again.

And then they caught up.

Suddenly the enormous mound of wires was closing in on them. Writhing, wriggling, forcing its way down the tunnel like an enormous serpent with a million tails. Endo hands, claws, broken limbs of all kinds reaching out and grabbing at the ground to drag it along. Its eye glowing like a spotlight.

And underneath the rising sound of shrieking and children crying they could barely hear Bunny pleading for them to come back.

Baby was fully focused on getting away. She had to be, carrying the other two with her. Charlie had gotten her footing and started to run, but Baby grabbed her hand tightly in her own in case she tripped or got pulled away. That, and it was her lifeline. Moon was unreliable, a babbling mess.

“Which way?!” she shouted at him. He fumbled on an answer. “Answer me!”

“I-I don’t know! I DON’T KNOW! I can’t-t seeee!” His head craned and twisted, his eye glowing and flickering.

“Just wonderful! NOW you decide to let yourself be possessed!”

“Just keep going to the right! We came to the left this way!” Charlie cried, pointing past her. Baby nodded and they headed into the tunnel. Though a moment later, Charlie realized she had made a mistake. “No, wait… Wait, I think I was wrong?!”

“It doesn’t matter now! Anywhere is better than here!” Baby cried, pushing them further.

The tunnel seemed to blur. Charlie knew that’s why she made her mistake; she couldn’t think straight. The thing behind them was sucking her towards it, if not her body than her soul, her mind. She had to shake the grip off.

“OH!” Baby’s startled cry caught Charlie’s attention and she looked up from the floor, watching her legs to not trip, to see that the tunnel would soon end in a fence.

Normally a chain-length fence wouldn’t be that much of a problem. Baby could break through and Charlie and Moon could probably climb over, but not in this situation. Baby couldn’t pick up enough speed and even if she did the tangle would be on them. She and Moon doubted they could scale it. Probably if Baby helped them, but…

She couldn’t leave Baby. It had already taken the others; she couldn’t lose Lizzie too.

At the end right beside the fence was a large metal dumpster. Opened, not close enough to use to help Baby climb over, but enough to hide behind. Stealing a look back rewarded her with a heated mask and the knowledge that the wire creature HAD lost some speed. It desperately dogged them though.

“Behind that!” Charlie pointed. She took the lead to pull and guide Baby behind it, who dragged Moon in too.

The space between the dumpster and fence was claustrophobic and yet still barely a shelter. It would only work if the bear’s lowered head hadn’t seem them when they ducked behind it. Charlie fought the urge to peek out knowing it would expose them.

Baby shook her arm. Charlie looked at her and she pointed insistently at the top of the fence.

“Go over! Go over!” Baby whispered pleadingly.

“I’m not leaving you!” Charlie whispered back.

“Then we will both be taken!”

“Fine by me!” Charlie proclaimed, lacing her fingers with Baby’s own to stop her pointing. Baby’s eyes glowed brighter in surprise while Charlie raised a finger to her own mouth. “Shh…”

Baby gave a snort nod and a quiet hum. Despite her usually stoic demeanor, her wire hair looked ruffled, and her loose wires were raised and twitchy. She was clearly shaken and scared.

Moon wasn’t much better. Hunched down in a crouch with his arms wrapped around his lowered head, heaving like he was breathing as his fans hummed in overdrive. He was fighting back Bunny’s lukewarm control. Though at this point, who was to say it was Bunny.

The creature was crawling closer into the tunnel. It lost sight of them and was now looking around desperately.

“Wh-Wherrrr-e?! Wheheherre?!” Bunny was sobbing into his words. “Don’t leave me with HIM…!”

Something bumped the other side of the dumpster. Charlie tucked her head in against Baby’s. Baby returned the gesture, huddling against her, their hands still clasped tightly together as they listened to the wires drag against the metal.

Moon twisted himself before freezing solid. Even as invisible strings crawled through his plating, he went rigid as he saw the oily head slide forward past the dumpster. It pressed its face against the fence and stared through searching for them.

All it had to do was turn its head and it would see them, and it was so close that it would have them.

Its weight pressed into the dumpster and it started to slide forward with a squueeeeaaak as the space between it and the fence closed. It was so close. This was it.

And then-

“Mari?! Mari, is that you?!”

That was Mike’s voice, and it had come from inside of the creature. Charlie peeked out with utter confusion while Moon realized with crushing horror that it was a radio frequency. The thing that had absorbed Jake had swallowed up his control panel too.

And now it raised its head in slow realization.

“Mari, can you hear me?! It’s me, Mike!”

The violent red eye flickered to a blinding white.

“Mike…?”

It was Marionette’s voice. Quiet and vacant.

Charlie felt her heart sink. Baby must’ve not seen his arm earlier as she gave a suppressed little gasp into Charlie’s jacket.

There was calm for a moment.

Then the wires began to churn and twist with a life they hadn’t had before. The limbs flailed as the creature crawled at the walls to turn itself around. The mass that made up the back of its body slamming into the dumpster and pushing it further, shoving all three against the fence. It didn’t notice, it didn’t care.

“Mike… M.mMmiikeeMiiikkmikemikeMIKE!”

Down the tunnel, Mike was unaware of what was happening. But he was about to get a huge wakeup call. He could only look on at the crossroads ahead and feel the rumbling underneath his feet.

Bonnet burrowing her head in his chest, Michael standing at his side, Scott’s hands locked onto both Mikes’ shoulders but frozen as it raced up on them.

And then it passed by. But they all saw it. In the few seconds it took to pass they witnessed the most horrifying thing they could’ve seen.

The wires. The limbs. The reaching grabbing limbs and wires. The enormous mass that was a blend of broken machinery and chewed up animatronics tied up together into a massive, heavy rat king of a tangle. Coated in oil, radiating so much heat that it was like the sun itself passed straight by them.

And the entire time it was screaming. Dozens of voices yelled and wept together and out of sync, with one dominating all.

“MIIIIIIIIIIIIIKKEE!” Marionette screamed. His voice echoing down the tunnel, nearly deafening.

Then it was gone. It had passed, a trail of oil saturated wires dragging behind and behind that a mob of broken, filthy Staff Bots. They followed with their arms stretched out, reaching for the matt of wires with a desperate, zombie-like fixation. Undead robots pulled along by a magnetic force until they were gone too.

And then they were left to pick up the pieces. Mike, Scott, and Michael all standing there in horrified shock. Bonnet equally alarmed but still in Mike’s grasp, with her mouth and eyes opened wide. The other three men watching from behind them.

Mike found his voice first. “Oh my God,” he said. “What THE HELL?!” His voice raising into yelling. “WHAT THE HELL?!”

Scott reacted quickly, turning him towards him to try and calm him down. Unfortunately, he was just teetering on the same edge of panic as Mike was.

“Mike, Mike. It’s okay. We’ll get them. We’ll just- We’ll find them- It probably isn’t even him-.”

“-DID YOU SEE THE SAME THING I SAW?! DID YOU SEE THAT THING?!”

“I saw it, I know. It looked-.” Scott swallowed thickly. “It- It sort of looked like Ennard. The outer body, yeah. It looked like Ennard.”

Bonnet made a little squeak of horror, either that or from getting jostled in Mike’s arms. Scott reached out and took her, and Mike gladly handed her over so he could grab a bunch of his own hair with both fists. Fingers digging into his scalp and head spinning. Scott kept his free arm around him.

Michael was still staring down the tunnel in shock. Only able to break eye contact to round on Mike.

“You can see better than me. Are you absolutely sure he wasn’t one of the bots following it? That one of those things weren’t him?” he asked desperately.

“No, it was him! It was DEFINITELY him!” Mike choked out. “Je-hee-sus Christ!”

It was absolutely him. His skin was still burning from that little bit of distant contact. The same pain he would get when he touched Marionette when he was wound up. He was in there somewhere.

Michael turned back to the tunnel to stare down at nothing. He muttered something, but neither of them could make it out what he said.

Meanwhile, the other three were watching in shock and horror- though a different kind and degree- from some feet behind them.

“SHHHEEEEZ! WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!” Tommy shouted.

“Shhh! Don’t! Don’t! It might come back!” Abe tried to shush him.

“Did you see that thing?!”

“Shut up. Just shut up,” Chaz hissed. His eyes locked down the tunnel. “Scott!” he shout-whispered.

Scott looked back wide-eyed.

“What was that?! Have you seen that thing before?!”

“Uh…” Scott paused on that answer for a long moment. “…I’ve seen… a thing like it…”

Chaz raised his hands in a mix of exasperation and confusion. A silent ‘What kind of answer is that?’ Scott did not clarify. He just stared like a deer in headlights.

“We’ve got to keep moving,” Chaz continued.

“Ri-Right. Get to the security office. See where he’s- where they’re going…” Scott agreed. He tugged at Mike a little. “Let’s go. We can figure things out there.”

Mike nodded stiffly and went along with it. He wasn’t stupid enough to run after the creature. Desperate enough, maybe, if he thought he had any chance of getting to Marionette he would be sprinting after him. But he couldn’t keep up, and he didn’t know where he would even be going.

He had to figure out where he was going.

“We need to hurry. Hey!” Mike called back to Chaz. “Where’s the closest set of stairs?”

“Right down the way,” Chaz said, pointing down the tunnel. “Means we’re going to have to follow behind it-.”

“Oh God,” Abe mumbled.

“So, we’ll need to be careful- Hey! That thing’s probably still down there!”

With little more than a, “Come on,” Mike was starting down the tunnel. Michael and Scott matching speed quickly and soon enough Chaz following as well.

“Oh God,” Abe whispered again. He looked at Tommy. “That’s the thing that took Wight…?”

“No, you think?” Tommy said.

“I’m being serious! That… That thing- What if he’s still in there?”

Tommy seemed to grow a touch paler. “…That’s a real possibility.”

Abe inhaled shakily. “What if-?”

“What are you two screwing around for? Hurry up! Or did you forget the gigantic ticking time bomb sitting in this basement?” Chaz called back.

“Excuse us for being a little slow on account of the gigantic ticking time bomb racing through the basement!” Tommy called back. He sighed. “I shoulda quit.”

“Me too…” Abe said regretfully. “…I’m sorry.”

“Huh?” Tommy thought at first that he was talking about volunteering to work on the boiler, which was really the least of their increasingly dangerous problems. But then he realized what he meant, when Abe stopped him from quitting. “Hey, no. Don’t beat yourself up about it. I’m glad I stayed.”

Abe gave him an unconvinced look.

“Okay, I really wish I would’a quit, but if it’s between me being here and you in this alone, I’d choose to be here.”

Abe cracked a smile. Still a little unconvinced but believing that at least. Though it didn’t do much to assuage the guilt.

They continued along the tunnel, side to side, and incredibly uneasy.

It wasn’t long after that when they reached the stairs and the groups split up. They headed up a flight together before Chaz took Abe and Tommy through a service door while Mike, Scott, and Michael continued up into the Pizzaplex proper. They came out on a back hallway by Monty Golf and headed to Rockstar Row from there.

Soon they were back at the security door and using the keys they were able to make it through. Scott led the way up the stairs, Bonnet perked and alert in his arm crook. Looking ahead wide eyed and watching for any slightest movement in the dark stairwell and prepared to forewarn him.

But they made it upstairs and Scott gave an exasperated sigh as he saw two more locked up security doors waiting for them. These ones without locks, being traditional security doors.

He stood there helplessly as Mike climbed the stairs behind him, looked at the doors, and then gave a blunt, “Goddammit.”

“Language, Mike,” Scott mumbled.

“Dammit.”

“Yeah, better.”

“It’s not a disaster. We can still get through. We’ll just have to find a way to shut down the power…” Mike tapped his fingers on the railing antsily. “Or- Hey, Michael.”

“Yes?” Michael called up, further down the stairs.

“How do you feel about banging on a metal door until it looses enough battery power that it pops open?”

Michael stared at him for a long second before giving an exhausted sigh that resembled Scott’s very well. “Let me take a crack at it.”

He trudged up onto the landing and then over to the doorway. He cracked his fingers- they popped in a way that made Scott cringe- and he gave one firm slam on the door with his fist.

And he heard something, faint whispering. He leaned in against the door and listened carefully.

“-do we do? That took out a whole chunk of the power!”

Michael recognized that voice, and while he couldn’t be sure it wasn’t a fake he had a hunch it was the real deal.

“I think Carlton’s in there,” he said.

“Are you sure? Do you think he’s-… Do you think it’s still him?” Scott asked.

“If it’s not, he’s still who we’re looking for,” Michael simply said. He banged lighter on the door. “Carlton!”

“Wha? Wait. Wait, wait, hold on!” There were quick footsteps and suddenly Carlton’s voice was a lot clearer but was still somewhat muffled. “Mike, is that you?!”

“No,” Michael replied.

“He doesn’t sound anything like me,” Mike called out.

“Holy crap, it is! Guys! Hey! It’s me, Carlton! The REAL Carlton!” Carlton babbled out. “Guys, you have no idea the CRAZY stuff that’s been going on here!”

“We have an idea. Open the door?” Michael said.

“Doing that right-!... Uh…” Carlton hesitated. “…Can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

“How’d you and Ennard meet?”

Michael rolled his eyes to Mike. “He’s testing me.”

“Smart kid,” Mike complimented.

“We went to college together. His name was Ben Hansberry and we shared a robotics class.”

“…Got it! Okay, Mike, how’d you meet Mari?”

“He came with the house,” Mike answered.

“Solid. You both passed, come on in.”

“Let me go in first,” Scott whispered. He passed Bonnet to Michael who cradled her like he would a cat.

Then he stepped between them and to the front, where he was so close to the door that it almost bumped his nose when it opened.

Carlton was waiting on the other side and his eyes nearly bugged out when he spotted Scott there who he hadn’t vetted. He looked flustered and disheveled but not possessed. His expression matched his real self; Scott could tell just as well as Mike and Michael could.

But then Scott’s eyes were immediately drawn to the right where a large chunk of control panel, and practically half of the security room, had been nearly obliterated. The screens were smashed with some hanging, the panel was uprooted, broken wires hung loose, and there was an enormous hole in the floor like it had collapsed. Likely due to Fazbear Entertainment’s cheap building materials… or a miniature explosion.

“Scott!” Carlton exclaimed in surprise. “I didn’t know you were… Quick! How many cats do you have?”

“Three.”

“Wrong, four.”

“No, three.”

“I saw four cat beds.”

“One of them’s mine!” Bonnet volunteered.

“What happened in here?” Scott asked, ignoring Carlton’s questioning entirely now.

Though before Carlton could answer he got an answer from someone else.

“Sc-Sc-Sccott? Scottiiie?!”

Scott’s heart lurched, like it leapt and dropped at the same time. He all but shoved Carlton aside to get past. His fake foot just scraped a lip at the bottom of the door and he came through in a stumble and without a second to spare to recover continued in until he could see around the wall splitting the security office.

And that’s when he saw him. He was looking emaciated around the middle and some of his wiring was strung directly into the console he was leaning over, as though he had laced himself into it. It tethered him there, but he had still straightened up with wide, blue eyes looking desperately towards him.

It was Ennard. He wasn’t in the mass, he wasn’t the mass, he was here. He was safe.

Scott didn’t even say a word beyond a sort of mutter of, “Oh thank God, thank God, thank God…” and rushed in to hug him. Ennard caught him and eagerly clung back.

He had lost so much of his mass around the middle. Scott could only hope that it was lodged into the panel because otherwise it would take all their reserves of Funtime wiring just to replenish it. But he’d go back down into Afton Robotics to get it if he had to. Anything. Anything.

“Sc-SCott! Ha!” Ennard sounded so cheery, even with his heavily glitching voice.

It was fake. Scott picked that up quickly. He could tell he was afraid.

“I saw that thing running around downstairs, I thought it was you,” Scott mumbled into his shoulder.

“Th-Th-tHi-Th- The-.”

“That… wire thing that has Mari’s voice.”

Ennard hugged tighter. He didn’t have to say it, he knew exactly what it was. And from the pressure in that hug, he knew even more than that.

“Yooou shouldn’t have c-come down here,” Ennard whispered. His fake tone dropping along with his volume. The true fear coming through as close as he could get to his ear. “Sc-Scott, it’s so bad. It’s-It’s worszze than anything else.”

“What happened?” Scott pulled back to look at him. “That thing, you mean. Bunny? He took Mari?”

“Scott,” Ennard grabbed his face gently but assertively. His eyes were wide and his pupils shrunk and shaken. He looked like he had seen hell itself. “That IS Mari.”

“…What?”

“Himm, an-an-and Bunny. They got allll wrapped up in the wirrrres. Look-!” He pointed, grabbing his shoulder with his other hand to turn him, pointing him towards the broken open and largely gutted control panel on the other side of the room. Though they couldn’t see much of it past the wall. “That’zzz where they got theeemem. That’s wherrre they got him. They just-… sucked ev-rr-thing up. Went out throu-ough that vennnt.”

“What…?”

“What?” Mike’s voice cut through. He had walked up on them.

Ennard and Scott both stared at him wide-eyed like he had intruded on some sort of intimate conversation.

“What? What happened?” Mike repeated impatiently.

This seemed to snap Ennard out of it. Both the ruse and the hesitation, and he continued. All while Carlton stood there shaken and silent.

“Bunny possessed Marrri,” Ennard said. “He- MIiichael!”

“Keep going,” Michael encouraged. He sized him up. “God, you look terrible.”

“Ha HA, nice to seeee you t-too!”

“Ennie!” Bonnet cried. She made grabby motions at him. “Take me to him, Michael! Please!”

He did, carrying her over. Ennard grabbed her up and then slung an arm around Michael before he could pull away. But Michael didn’t pull away, he eagerly hugged back. It would’ve been a harder hug if not for Ennard’s state. The three held that hold for a few lingering seconds.

Mike looked towards Carlton. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just… Shaken up.”

“Alright.” Mike put a hand on his shoulder in assurance. “Did you see what happened?”

“Most of it. Bunny put his mask on Mari and he- I don’t know- it’s like they fused together?” Carlton tried to explain. “They started screaming and crying, and then these wires Bunny was using to hold Mari started ripping out and they were wrapping up in them. They took out half of all the electronics! Then they ran off.”

“I’vvve been watch-ching them on herrre,” Ennard nodded up at the security screens. Most of them were either dead or static, but the one right in front of Ennard was lit up like normal. “Trrying to fiiind them.”

“And hoping they don’t come back,” Carlton half-heartedly joked. His smile slipped easily with a groan.

Mike squeezed his shoulder. “Well, we’re here to help, and… and find him. Find them. And get them-.”

There was a loud clunk from somewhere outside the door. Mike, being the closest to the door, walked over to investigate. Carlton tailing behind him. There was clattering on the staircase.

“Someone’s coming,” Mike warned. Everyone went quiet as he listened.

And about a second later he heard a wail that definitely came from Sun and Charlie desperately trying to shush him. Mike exhaled in relief.

“Never mind, it’s just the others.” He put a hand back for Carlton to wait and walked out to the stairs. “Hey, we’re up here!”

“Oh, hey! We’re down here!” Charlie called back.

“Jeezzz Louise! H-Howw many pEople did you brrring down herree?!” Ennard asked.

“The whole family and then some.”

“Thought we’d, uh, use the excuse to make this a group outing,” Scott said, forcing the joke and a smile. Ennard greatly appreciated this, snickering with a popping crackle and pulling him back in after he switched Bonnet to his other arm.

Shortly afterwards, Charlie and Mike helped Sun walk into the room. He was as limp as a scarecrow, sobbing pathetically as he stumbled on wobbly feet. He then collapsed onto his bottom beside the door, back against the wall, curling up and burying his face into his knees. Charlie gently patted him on the back before turning to meet Carlton.

“Are you okay?” she asked worriedly.

“Yeah, I’m fine. My head hurts like somebody clocked me over the head, but I think I’m okay. At least I’m the only one in it.”

“Good! Good…” she trailed off. She knew he wouldn’t be possessed after all. She turned to face Michael who was walking up and met him halfway.

“It’s good to see you. Where is Baby?” he asked.

“Coming up. She wanted me to bring Sun in while she manages the stairs,” she explained. She looked at Scott and only then noticed who else was there. “Whoa, Ennard!”

“Hi! Werrren’t expecting meee, huh?” Ennard replied.

“No!” Charlie laughed a little in relief and walked up to him. “It’s good to see you. In, uh, most of one piece. What are you- omph!”

She was suddenly yanked into a tight hug. She returned it as best as she could with trapped arms.

“You’re- mmph- you’re not stuck, right?”

“NooooPE! Willllingly st-stuck in herrre.”

They split apart right as Baby finally made it to the stairs and came in. She tripped over the same door lip Scott did and stumbled on her skates, and gave an audible, frustrated huff as she righted herself. She turned her head to address the group only for her eyes to immediately land on Ennard. She gasped.

Ennard let Charlie go to spread an arm towards her. “BbaBydoll!” he garbled.

She grabbed her chest, rolling back on her wheels for a second before finding her footing and sprinting towards him. He quickly tossed Bonnet into Scott’s arms and caught her sudden slam of an embrace with an ‘oomph!’ He teetered and she responded by all but pulling him off his feet. Her claw flat to his back and keeping him pressed tight.

“I can’t believe- I can’t believe you would do that. I cannot believe you would be stupid enough to give yourself up like that,” she muttered against his shoulder.

“You’rrre welcome, B-Baby.”

“No. Don’t you dare. This isn’t funny.”

“I knooow.” He bumped her head with his nose. “I did it ‘cause I lovvve you-uu.”

“I know. And I hate that I love you for it.” She felt around his back. “…You’re so small…”

“Bunnnny borrrrowed some wirrres and didn’t give them back-ck, ha ha.”

She gave a discontent hum and held him a little more gently but still held him securely. Making no attempt to let go. So filled with relief after the anguish that was seeing where Marion had ended up. Ennard became her lifeline- then again, he always had been.

While this was going on, Mike crouched down in front of the inconsolable Sun.

“Hey, hey. What happened?” he gently asked.

“I lost him…” Sun choked.

“Jake?” Mike guessed. He was the one missing.

“YES! Yehehess!” Sun wailed.

Then he lurched forward and grabbed Mike in a desperate, crushing embrace. Not a gentle, friendly hug but the desperate grab of someone teetering on the edge and begging for someone to help pull him up. It took Mike off-guard in the suddenness of it.

…But he knew exactly what it felt like to watch a disgusting monster drag away the one you loved. He knew exactly what Sun was going through.

“Hey, we’re going to get them back,” he soothed. He hugged Sun back, patting his back reassuringly. Having to readjust to not hit his ring.

Sun whimpered and muttered something quietly. It sounded like, “I knew he would...” But the context was lost on Mike.

“What about Gabe?” Baby asked.

Charlie looked to Mike. “Have you heard from Foxy or Jeremy? Where’d they go?”

“They went with Gregory to find Freddy. We can try radioing them again now,” Mike said. “Scott, you have the radio that connects with Jeremy’s, right? This one’s Charlie’s.”

“Yeah, sure, here.”

Scott handed it over and Mike tried to call through. Hesitating for a moment, dreading the possibility of hearing Marionette screaming, but instead the radio was quiet.

“Hey, you guys okay?” he spoke through.

Jeremy’s voice replied, “He-! We’re-… wn to Par… vice. Freddy’s… it on.”

“You’re breaking up on me,” Mike said. “You’re all okay?”

“Uh, ye… But Fr… e’s optim…”

“We found Ennard, he’s okay. Uh… Okay, tell you what. You radio when you’re back up here, okay?”

“Yeah.”

“If you hear any rumbling, any screaming, any… Anything that sounds like Mari, stay away from it. It’s not… him.” Sun looked up at him, Mike didn’t look back. “It’s not him.”

“It is him.” Baby said cryptically.

“Yeah… But I don’t think he can hear me, and I don’t want them going after him alone. Foxy will try.”

“Jake’s in there too now…” Sun murmured.

That confirmed Mike’s suspicion. He pulled him into another one-armed hug, and Sun slouched on him. Face thunking onto his shoulder and points slightly poking into his head.

There was a heavy pause. Though there was at least one happy reunion there was plenty of less-than-happy revelations taking place.

Charlie knew this well but having seen the state Marionette and Bunny were in she knew that they needed to figure something else. At least she needed to.

She clapped her hands together once to get everyone’s attention.

“While we’re here, we should try to figure out what’s going on. You know, put together everything we found out,” she said. She made a noise like taking a deep breath. “That big tangle of wires in the basement has Mari and Bunny in it. I heard both of their voices and I saw Mari’s arm.”

Well, there went the fleeting hope that maybe he was just possessing it and not in it, Mike thought. Though he wasn’t surprised in the slightest.

“Jake’s in there too,” Mike spoke for Sun.

“What?” Michael looked over in alarm. “What?”

“Bunny was grabbing for Moon and… Jake was pulled in,” Charlie gently explained.

“He gave himself up for me,” Sun said shakily. His head going into his arm, choking on a sob.

Michael stared with shock. His eyes darting around as he processed what that meant, where he was. In that. In that thing. He moved his mouth but didn’t say anything.

“And… possibly Wight,” Scott added.

“If he’s in there, he is definitely dead,” Baby stated bluntly. She turned to face them, though stayed planted at Ennard’s side. He took advantage of it by leaning on her for support.

“Neverrr say neverrr,” he said.

“I never said never, I said definitely.”

“Definitely’s jus-jus-just an optimissstic neverrr.”

“I mean… He could be alive, but he’s not having a good time. That thing is hot,” Charlie said.

Carlton quirked a brow at her.

“Not like that! Geez Carlton.”

“You’ve got to admit, that sounded bad without context,” he said.

“Then here’s the context: they’re burning up. And there’s this aura that comes off them that starts… influencing animatronics when they get too close.”

“Indeed. I felt it too,” Baby agreed.

“Mee too! I-It’s like that sszzzzstuff that came off’a that scarecrow Baby!” Ennard also agreed.

“It’s that stuff Mari’s been carrying around with him,” Mike admitted. His free hand squeezed at his knee, nails dragging across his pants. “He’s been having that burning heat for a while. Every time he gets worked up, he starts burning up and it hurts to touch him. Gives me a headache…”

“Why…” Michael looked up at him. Eyes still wide in their quiet horror. “Why didn’t you say anything…?”

“…We were ignoring it,” Mike confessed. “Like it was just going to go away. Even though we don’t know where it came from.”

It just showed up out of nowhere. That burning heat. That fever. That suffering burning and the mental noise. They had no clue, except…

“Except… Except wait, we do.”

Marionette had one comparison that he made. One comparison that connected directly to Bunny.

“Mari said it was like the red lake. The one that Afton was shacked up at. And Bunny’s been in that lake.”

“He… He has…” Sun mumbled, lifting his head. “He said he almost drowned in that lake.”

“And so did Mari!” Charlie proclaimed. “That’s it! It’s the lake!”

“The lake?” Michael asked doubtfully.

“Yes! Think about it. Bunny said he’s been IN the lake, right? Mari was IN that lake too. Dad helped me fish him out!”

“How-?”

“Long story, I’ll tell you later,” Charlie quickly rebuffed. “The important part IS the lake. It’s the common denominator with all of this. Everyone whose been infected by this weird virus has either been in the lake or directly connected to it.”

“I wasn’t,” Baby tentatively denied.

Charlie rounded and pointed at her. “But you were! Remember, back when Afton tried to make you break my body to trap me with him? He tried to possess you. He infected you then!” She spun around and pointed at Sun. “We saw it in Moon too. Anybody possessed by someone in contact with that lake ends up getting this virus. That’s what this is. This burning, painful heat, suffering, paranormal contagion- it’s a residual of that lake! It has to be!”

“I think she’s right,” Mike agreed. “Mari said it was exactly like the lake. And we don’t even know what that lake is. What it really is.”

“…Hey… I think I saw that lake,” Carlton said. Everyone looked at him now. He looked between the eyes before landing on Charlie. “When I was at Scott’s there was this weird moment where, umm… I saw… I think I saw the lake.”

“You did?”

“And I heard something…”

“What?” Charlie stepped closer. Carlton looked away hesitantly. “Carlton, please. Any piece will help.”

“There was… I think I saw Afton… You know, the red guy at the lake? I saw him, and he said- Bunny was saying something to Scott or Ennard or something and then suddenly I see the red guy and he said… I didn’t want you. I want her,” Carlton hesitantly repeated. “Charlie… I think he was talking about you.”

“He was… He was!” Charlie said.

That was it. That was when the last pieces fit snuggly together. It all came together and there was no denying it anymore. She knew the truth.

“Bunny was taken into that lake and almost drowned by Afton, and that’s when he was infected- just like Mari!” She began to pace in a little circle. “Anger makes it worse. When Mari was upset he would get overheated. Bunny, when he was in Glamrock Bonnie, was always burning up. And now that wire thing they’ve fused into is burning! Because they’re both angry- but why? Why is Bunny so angry?”

“Because… Charlie…” Carlton said hesitantly.

“Because he blamed Mari for taking his identity! Because he was angry at being forgotten by his family, forgotten by everybody!”

Charlie rounded again and pointed at Carlton.

“Because Bunny is Sammy!”

Some of the others were shocked at the accusation. Or maybe that Charlie herself had come up with it.

Notably, Carlton wasn’t one of them.

“I think so,” he agreed.

“I knew it!”

“Wait, you mean you already knew? How?”

“I had some… suspicions after are run-in with Vanny and him. I fell off a catwalk and he caught me, and there was this thing he said…” Charlie deflated. “And when I got home, I checked the family album and there he was. In the corner of only one picture of all those pictures I saw his bunny doll. The same one that was inside of Glamrock Bonnie. The one that looked like my bunny, Theodore. We both had one… but I forgot about his because it was gone. Because he was in it.”

“Whoa…” Carlton said.

“Oh, Charlie…” Baby sympathized.

“But that’s not important!” Charlie quickly deflected. “The important part is the virus. Finding out about the real Sammy is just a plus. Sun, do you remember Sammy ever being-…”

She turned towards Sun and cut off. He peeked up at her as she hesitated, fumbling her words.

“You… knew…?”

Everyone was staring at Sun now. He dropped his head again and nodded stiffly.

“…Why didn’t you tell her?” Baby solemnly asked.

“I promised him I wouldn’t…”

“And he was more important than her?” Baby challenged.

“He was… Back when he was my friend…” Sun mumbled. He dragged his head up to look at Charlie. “I’m sorry, Charlie… I should’ve… said anything.”

“It’s… It’s okay. You were doing what he wanted. And the truth is, it wouldn’t have changed anything,” Charlie said.

She would’ve liked to have known… but then again, Sammy himself could’ve always told her. He never did. He chose not to. And that was something she couldn’t hold against Sun.

“It might’ve given Mari peace of mind,” Michael spoke up. He didn’t seem so dismissive.

“No, I think that was shot either way.” Mike sighed. “I mean, yeah. It might’ve made him feel better to know that you guys were siblings. He was worried that if he wasn’t it would change things with you. But he still would’ve been torn up about Sammy. He was already blaming himself when he thought Bunny fell into that fake lake down in the basement.”

Which was exactly why Mike hadn’t brought up his doubts in him being Sammy. He had noticed that “Bunny” never gave out his father’s name during his speech…

…But also-

“There’s another piece of evidence for the corkboard. They were building a red lake down there. At least it looked like one.”

“How would they even know about it…?” Charlie asked uneasily.

“Beats me. But that explains it. Mari’s been flaring up for months. Ever since he’s been in that lake, he’s been sick. I’ve felt it come off him.” He gestured exasperatedly at the hole in the office. “And now he’s in THAT thing and it’s hot as hell. It just ran past me for two seconds and it was like getting punched in the face by a wall of heat.”

“It IS hot,” Charlie agreed. “It heated up the tunnel like it was nothing.”

“It threw off more heat than the furnace at Afton Robotics…” Baby hesitantly remarked. “The outside, that is. Though I cannot imagine it wouldn’t match on the inside as well…”

“So, it’s hot. What’s the worst thing that can happen?” Carlton asked. Both jokingly and pryingly. Trying to figure out why heat left them so concerned.

“He runs himself ragged overheating and breaks something,” Mike said worriedly.

“Or he overheats his hardware and catches on fire,” Michael added.

Oh.

Wait.

Wait.

And in one split second everything changed. The tone, the mood, the concern, the risk. Everything shifted in that one second. Even Michael knew it from how his jaw opened back up and he paused, mid-comment, as the ramifications of what he so casually added sunk in.

They hit Mike like a truck. He looked at Michael for a start, as though hoping he would quickly amend that he was joking. But he didn’t, and Mike knew he wasn’t. He was right.

Marionette wasn’t one of these new state-of-the-art animatronics. He was older. His body relied more on a simply endoskeleton and he did the rest.

But he was still an animatronic. A skeleton of metal sealed underneath a velveteen skin. And if he heated up high enough, he wasn’t going to shut down. He wasn’t going to fizzle out.

He was going to catch on fire.

And that was going to kill him.

Undead, half-alive, haunted animatronic or not. Fire was the one thing they knew may force the soul from the body. It would kill Marionette again.

Panic hit hard and grabbed the wheel, steering Mike to spring up run over to the consol and frantically look up at the one remaining camera feed that was functioning.

“How do we switch this?” he asked hastily. He didn’t even get Ennard real time to answer. “We need to find him. Now. I’ve got to get to him and talk him down, now.”

“Easy, easy! We d-d-donn’t know that’zzz going to happen,” Ennard assured him. “He-He’s not built with all the same gizzzmos and cirrrcuitboards as most anima-matronics.”

“No, but he does have some of them. He’s got-… He’s got facial recognition! He’s got more than just metal in there! And if he overheats- even if you just overheat fabric, something’s going to spark up,” Mike said, struggling to keep himself calm. He waved him over desperately. “So just come over here and help me.”

“I-I’ll do yya one better.”

Ennard twitched and there was a click. Mike looked up to see that the screen he was looking at had shut off and another one popped on, one aimed in Gator Golf.

“Wow. You’re really wrapped up in there, aren’t you?” Scott asked.

“Haaha, yeaaah,” Ennard slurred.

“Are you… okay?”

“Deeefineokay.”

“Keep going,” Mike goaded. Ennard clicked to another screen. “If he’s up here we’ll see him. That thing is gigantic. The problem is if he’s still in the tunnels…”

“Yyyou’ll know if he’zz therre. He makes thhhe camera go fuzzzzy.”

“Yeah, see-.” Carlton hurried up to Mike’s side. “And that’s not the only thing. All the Staff Bots are drawn to him. We saw them all follow him when he first ran off. So, if we start seeing a wave of Staff Bots going somewhere we’ll know where he is.”

The others all grouped behind them to watch. The only one who didn’t was Sun, who stayed sitting on the floor. Silently ruminating in his thoughts and regrets.

It took quite a few camera flickers, each one Ennard rode through with a full body twitch, before they finally caught sight of a cluster of Staff Bots. They could barely see them in the back end of Roxy Raceway from the mounted camera feed that was picked up, but most of them recognized where they were congregating around.

“That’s that door that leads to the elevator to the labs,” Mike said.

“What’s up there?” Carlton asked.

“Down. And nothing good.”

“Sammy’s old body, right? Maybe he’s going to find it,” Michael speculated.

“No, he already got it. We saw parts of it stuck inside of that… mass,” Baby disagreed. She tilted her head. “Do you smell something?”

“Isszzzme.”

“Oh, for goodness sake, Ennard. Unplug yourself then. We know where to go now.”

“Right, and we better move FAST. Because if we don’t catch up with him then the whole place leveling from that boiler blowing’s going to,” Mike added on.

“…I forgot about the boiler,” Scott muttered. He recovered quickly and turned to attention. “Ennard, you’re not fit to stay in here. We need to get you and Carlton out. Then maybe I can… Maybe I can get downstairs, meet back up with Jeremy, and see if we can get a way cleared for the employees.”

“Wait, wait,waitwaitwait WHAT’zzz wrong with theee boilerrr?!” Ennard asked.

“It’s gonna blow up!” Bonnet chimed up. “All that rumbling isn’t just Mari and that big sludgeball he’s in in the basement. It’s the boiler too!”

“DID YOU SAY THE BOILER WAS GOING TO BLOW?!” Sun shouted from the other side of the room.

“That’s what Chaz thinks. He headed down there with a couple of guys to try and sort it out,” Mike called back.

Sun made a horrified noise and slinked further into himself, grabbing at his face in panic. His plating burned underneath his palms.

“There’s no way to stop it?” Charlie asked.

“If there is, it’s nothing we can assist with. None of us have even been in a boiler room,” Michael explained. “Chaz is our only chance, but we can’t take the risk. Mike, I’m giving the plan.”

“Go for it,” Mike agreed.

“Mike and I are going after Mari, Jake, whatever’s left of Wight, and whatever’s left of Bunny. They’re likely heading down into the labs. Scott, Lizzie, Charlie: you three take Ennard, Carlton, and Sun downstairs and out the front. Scott, while you’re down there you radio and warn Jeremy and Gabe. You’ll be passing directly above the atrium, near enough to parts and service, and Mike and I will have to make a run for it.”

“That I can do,” Scott agreed.

“I’m coming with you,” Charlie said.

“It’ll be quicker if it’s Mike and I.”

“I know less people will be quicker but I’m going with you. I’ll keep up,” she said. Her resolute tone showing that she wouldn’t budge. “I’ve got to go rescue my brother. He might be a mess, but he needs me.”

“…Fine.”

“I can come too,” Baby volunteered. “As soon as I get Ennard and Scott to the outside.”

“You need to stick with them,” Michael argued.

“Actually, yeah. I need you with me,” Scott added. “I might need your help to clear the way to get to those trapped people downstairs.”

Baby contemplated this for a moment before nodding.

“Then let’s get moving,” Mike said. Antsy and prodding. Wanting to rush out.

Ennard pulled himself free of the security panel. Upon which the camera feed died. Unfortunately, not enough wires came out with him. He had some of his shape be he was marginally unraveled. Scott put Ennard’s jacket on him and handed him Bonnet before heading to the door.

Mike went over to help Sun up only to find an empty spot where he once was. He quickly walked around the room and checked the other door, but it soon became clear that he must’ve slipped out through the hole. Nobody had even heard his bells jingling to signal his exit.

“Sun’s gone,” he announced as he walked back up to Michael.

“I noticed…”

“I’m going to take a wild guess and say he got a head start.”

Michael nodded.

They continued waiting then followed the others down. Both antsy to go but wanting to make absolutely sure they made it out.

The group moved quicker than expected. Baby yanked Ennard onto her back and began to skate through Rockstar Row with the others tailing behind her. They made it to the Atrium entrance shortly after where they gave brief goodbyes before Mike and Michael started off.

“Be careful. I don’t want to have to tell my dad you died twice,” Carlton said to Charlie. Half-joking but clearly understanding the true weight of the situation.

“I will. I barely lived it down the first time,” she replied.

She looked over towards Baby. She was standing with Ennard while Scott tried to radio to Jeremy in Parts and Service, Mike having handed back the radio to do so. Now the only one he had was her own, which connected with Jake’s defunct control panel which was likely still lodged inside of the tangle. She made a mental note to remember that for later.

But she had wanted to say goodbye to Baby. Just in case, but it was fine. They needed to get going.

“We’ll be careful,” she said. Then she ran to catch up with Mike and Michael.

She’d be back. They’d be fine. The more important part was finding Marionette and Sammy and getting them to safety before worrying about anything else. She could talk to Baby later. Baby would understand.

…

…

That was exactly what she thought last time though, wasn’t it?

When she drove out to Magictime Theater she had thought to herself that it would be fine. She couldn’t wait, it couldn’t wait. She had to go do it then and it turned out to be the right call, she was able to save Chrissy, but it left her with so many regrets. Had she not survived as she did and reconnected with her friends she would still have those regrets.

And this time was different. This time it was more than confronting Sammy. It was confronting this all-consuming monster that had eaten him and Marionette. It was heading into the belly of the Pizzaplex while a giant ticking time bomb boiler throbbed underneath the flooring. Last time was possible death, this time could be guaranteed.

She…

She had to tell Baby.

“Wait.”

Mike and Michael looked back. Charlie was already backing away. She raised a finger.

“Wait, just… One second. I’ll be quick.”

She turned and sprinted back towards where they came.

“She is quick,” Michael mused.

“Wait until you see me get downstairs,” Mike dryly mumbled.

“Wait until that boiler blows. We will all be traveling out of here in record speed.”

The two then fell into a tense silent as they watched her catch up to the others.

“Liz!” she called.                                                                                                

Baby straightened with a start and turned to look. She saw Charlie racing over and felt a pang of worry, briefly setting Ennard down and skating a few steps to meet up with her.

Charlie was already rambling when she stumbled to a stop. “Baby, Liz, before you go I have to tell you something. It’s important.”

“What is it?” Baby asked.

“It’s just… So… We’ve been through some crazy stuff over the years. Nothing like this, but close. We barely survived any of it, and this is probably the biggest… biggest thing to happen to us since last year. You know, with… him.”

This was going terribly already. She fidgeted in an antsy way, trying to pull her words together.

Baby was sympathetic, assuming that Charlie was frightened. She understood, she was too. They both had a brother lost in this and they were both in a building about to crumble around them.

“Yes,” she coaxed.

“Right. But it’s going to be okay! But… I needed you to know- I can’t have any regrets like last time. There’s so many things I wanted to say and do before I died and I stupidly ran in headfirst without thinking and I’m doing that again-.”

“Charlie, you’re rambling.”

“I love you!” Charlie blurted out.

Baby blinked. Then her eyes went wide as the words sunk in.

“Wh…Wh-WhAT?!” she gasped. Her voice rose into an unexpectedly high pitch.

“I mean it, Liz,” Charlie said, her own voice softening. “I think I’m- I know I’m in love with you.”

“WOOOOOOOOOooo!” Ennard whooped so loud that both jumped. “You go-o-ot this KID!” he cheered, shaking Scott’s shoulder excitedly.

Baby chose not to acknowledge him. It wasn’t hard because she was still speechless in a state of shock.

“Charlie, I- Why would you tell me that now?!” she finally sputtered.

“I didn’t know Ennard would still be here. I had to take the chance!”

“No, Dummy! Why now?! Why on earth right now when we are on the verge of a fiery death?!” Baby sputtered out.

Charlie tilted her head and gave her a lopsided smile. “For dramatic effect.”

“That isn’t funny!”

“I know,” Charlie said. She looked hopefully. “Do you…?”

“Oh, Charlie,” Baby sighed.

She rolled forward and closed the space between them. Taking Charlie into her arms and pulling her into a hug as secure as the one she gave Ennard. But gentle, soft, taking as much care as she could. She pressed her cheek to Charlie’s. Jingles rung through Charlie’s chest that she didn’t suppress.

“You already know that I do. I do, I do love you.”

“AwwwWWWW!”

“Enn, shh,” Scott quietly shushed.

Carlton was just grinning knowingly. Pretending like he hadn’t figured it out already through John.

Baby sighed. “Though this was still the worst possible time.”

“I know. But if something happens to me, I don’t want any regrets,” Charlie confessed. She turned to give Baby’s cheek a tap kiss. “Not this time.”

“If anything happens to you… I will have many regrets,” Baby murmured. She held her tighter and pressed her face into her jacket. “Come back safe or break my heart.”

“Don’t put me on the spot or anything,” Charlie joked.

“After this? Oh, I certainly will.” Baby drew back, holding her hand in her own. “Mark my words, Charlie Emily.”

The security puppet smiled back and took her claw in her other hand. She squeezed it. Baby very carefully closed it on her hand in a gentle squeeze of her own.

There was a moment where both considered leaning in once more. That this time Charlie wouldn’t aim for Baby’s cheek. She waited to see if it was alright, and Baby too was considering if it was okay.

But then there came a whistle from Mike. It was a celebratory whistle, but Charlie snapped to alert like a dog being called across the park.

“I’ve got to go,” she rushed out.

“Yes, go,” Baby agreed. “But come back.”

“I will!”

“And if something does happen-.” Baby pulled herself in, rolling a little closer. “Worry about yourself. Don’t sacrifice yourself saving someone else.”

“I’ll try not to,” Charlie sincerely said.

She stepped back and hesitantly let go. Baby only released her claw once it was the only thing left holding her. Once freed, Charlie turned and sprinted back over to Mike and Michael. Still jingling as she did and only managing to suppress it into soft tinkling by time she caught up.

Mike was smiling. Michael looked a little shocked. Mike offered a high five which Charlie eagerly returned.

“Ready to go,” she said. She held out her hand. “Radio?”

Mike unhooked it and handed it back. “Kept it safe for you.”

“Thanks. I just feel better having it on me.”

After all, she knew where the panel was that it connected to. Worst came to worst maybe they could use it to somehow track down the mass if it made an escape.

She felt ready now. Ready to confront the creature. Ready to find her brother.

Ready to finally find Sammy.

“I’m coming, Sammy. Mari, Jake,” she silently promised as they walked into Roxy Raceway. “We’ll be there soon. Wait for me.”

Afterword

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