He doesn't realize it at first.
It's as short as a blink.
But, as he is standing in a pitch black room with no wind or breeze or sound, he realizes he knows what those words mean.
He understands them.
Then there is something that clicks deep inside and he can move. He turns his head and looks around.
He cannot see anything, but he can see.
What is wrong with him?
But then there are thoughts inside his head, far too many to comprehend.
Why, hello there! My name is Funtime Freddy, birthday boy! What's yours?
I'm Matthew!
Well Matthew, want to see something special I can do?
Then he remembers the old sensation of his chest opening - since when can chests open? - and a sudden silence of memories.
He tries to take a step forward. Though he knows he has moved, he feels no sensation of the floor hitting his foot. It is like he is not really there. But there is something. A sound.
Only the soft ping of metal on metal.
He touches his chest.
Same sound. Same lack of sensation.
Fingers brush against each other. Eyes open and close. Another step forward.
Ping. Ping. Ping.
What is wrong with him?
But he only has a short while to think about it because then there are lights blaring across the room.
He squints out of reflex before realizing that his eyes are already perfectly adjusted. He could never do that before.
It illuminates a large open room sprinkled with posters, with light blue walls. The floor is made of white tiles. Where is he? He distantly recognizes it but its like a different part of him that does.
What is going on here?
He takes a look at his left hand and screams.
There are giant, white and pink metal fingers in front of him. They are as long as his head and are tightly holding a microphone. They have a familiar look to them.
A quick look at his body tells him all he needs to know.
Pink and white paws laying solidly on the ground. A pink chest with several black buttons and a large speaker. A bright pink bow tie.
And to his right…
There is a blue bunny attached to his hand, one with long ears and no legs. It's eyes are closed.
He touches his face. He has no real feeling underneath his fingers but he hears the sound. The sounds of metal on metal.
His name is Matthew, but it is also Funtime Freddy, and he is so, so confused.
But then there are noises and the soft click of a button, and his body freezes up. His hands fall to his side, eyes closing.
He cannot move, but he can think, and he screams inside of his head.
"Alright. Let's get this show on the road. " there is a voice, soft and male and very, very close. He is still confused.
"I know, I know. It's not like you've used that line a million times before." There is another voice, somewhere to his right. It's lighter, and somehow he knows that it is female.
"Off you go, Freddy!" It's the male one again, and there is another click of a button. His eyes snap open.
He desperately tries to twist to the side, to see who is talking, but his body is moving for him and he starts to move forward. Robotically he jumps off of a stage, landing softy. He walks toward a large crate on wheels, made of wood. He climbs inside, ducking heavily to fit.
Then, eyes snapped shut, he turns around and sits.
What was that?
He was moving but the movements weren't his. Something inside of him moved his arms and legs and eyes until he was in the crate, and now he can't move again.
"Man, that gets creepier every time I watch it." It's the male one.
"Shut up. He's got to be there in an hour." Female, and moving. What is going on?
Then the box he is in starts moving, and he's sliding with it.
There is a long period of time where he cannot move and he cannot talk and he cannot look around, but he can think.
And somehow, he's piecing it together.
He was Matthew first, but somehow he is now Funtime Freddy. But not like Funtime Freddy once was. Now he can think, and he can also think like Matthew.
But then the moving sensation snaps off, and he can hear a door being opened.
"Come in. Load him up."
It is not the box door being opened, but he is moving still. Now more strangely.
He jerks up, then forward, and finally down. Then he is rolling smoothly across whatever is below him.
He stops.
"Off you go, Freddy! Make us proud!" It's the female, standing somewhere in front of him.
Then there is another click and his eyes flare open.
He can see several bright overhead lights and a dark blue wall. There are more walls surrounding him, and he realizes that he is in a room.
Standing in front of his box are two people. One girl, one boy. The boy has a black thing the size of his palm in his hand, and he is squinting at it. The girl looks over his shoulder at it.
But his body is still not his own and he shuffles forward until he can stands and then he leaps out of the box and lands on concrete. He doesn't move, though he tries. He is still frozen.
Waiting for instructions.
"Boss wanted Show 5. Guess we haven't done that one for a while," the female says. Her voice is light and happy. "I reloaded him back up, don't worry."
"Where's the stupid button…" It's the male, and he sounds frustrated. Angry. But with whom?
A shuffle. They are behind him now, and he cannot live to see them. "The one right there. It's even labeled, idiot." Female.
The male grumbles. "Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up." Then he hears the click and he is moving again.
Legs propel him forward and arms swing by his sides. Eyes are open wide and his mouth is partially opened in a wide grin. He still isn't moving.
It's not him.
He enters to the left, and sees something different from the dark blue walls. A softly rippling wall. His Matthew mind supplies the word.
Curtains.
He pushes past an opening and finds an empty stage surrounded by a light purple curtain.
He is arranging himself in the middle when the lights around his go dim.
Somewhere past the curtain, he hears shuffling and whispers as giggles made by high-pitched voices. Children.
Then the curtains slide open and he explodes into action.
"Hello, boys and girls!" His mouth moves but the sound comes from his chest. From the speaker. His voice is bright like the sun and is overflowing with friendliness. It is not his voice.
There is a group of children outside, and they burst into cheers as soon as they see him. A wild, happy explosion that does nothing to calm the terror in his chest.
There are 27 children in the room, and he's not sure why he knows that.
But he is still not him, and he's already moving.
He raises his right hand and the puppet there comes to life. When did that happen?
"Hello, everyone!" It chirps in a warm, female voice. "My name is Bonbon!"
"And I'm Funtime Freddy!"
The children cheer back.
"Anyone want to see a magic trick?" Why is he saying that?
The room goes wild.
He does all sorts of things. Everything from making his voice come from the other side of the room, telling a wild story about an adventure through a dangerous land, and changing his voice to match any kids' in the crowd. For his final trick, he pulls a mini Bonbon from his hat. It is made of cloth and buttons, and is only the size of his finger.
But then he starts to move forward, and he steps off the stage.
The children shriek with delight and surge toward him. Their hands slap against his metal sides and their voices tiny in his ears.
But he is heading toward the child wearing a crown on his head.
He offers out the tiny Bonbon puppet. "For the birthday boy!"
The boy grins wildly, takes it, and hugs him.
Then there are adults coming out of the back rooms, and they chase the children off of him. He goes back on his stage - it's still not him - and stands back in the center. Every kid shouts some form of "Goodbye, Freddy!" at him, and then the room is quiet.
He is so, so confused.
But then the curtains part, and the male and female come back. The male is still holding the click-making button thing.
A tablet, some part of his mind supplies.
"Great job, Freddy!" The female congratulates. "Now we need to just get you back in an hour, and that'll be our fifteenth successful show in a row!"
"We're blowing the Funtime Foxy shows out of the park," the male agrees.
He would have frozen if he could move.
There are others? More like him?
But then there is a click, and Bonbon the puppet powers off again and sags against his arm. He is up and moving toward the back of the stage. Pushing past the curtains and heading toward his box. It is made of heavy planks. He steps inside and powers off.
It is still not him.
They drive him back, the box bouncing as they hit bumps. He still cannot move.
But then they unload him from the box and shift him back into the first room. He can tell by the lack of wind or breezes.
"Out ya go, Freddy," the man mutters. There is the click and his eyes snap open.
He jumps out of the box and moves forward. The stage he nears is a light purple, with a colorful array of lights behind it. It is the most cheerful thing in the room.
He steps on it, slowly turning around. He comes back to face them. He still cannot move like he wants.
The female grins and reaches over. She clicks a button on the tablet.
"Here's your free-roam mode, Freddy!"
And then he sags, body suddenly his again. His eyes snap shut.
And when he opens them again, the male and female and box are gone, and the lights are off.
He is left in a dark room with nothing else but he is himself again and he can move.
But who is he?
He is both Funtime Freddy and Matthew, and he's tearing himself apart.
Hello everyone!
Funtime Freddy is and will most likely always be my favourite character. So I wanted to write a story about him.
So, in this universe, Freddy was the first character to get a human soul, and it's a long while before anyone else does. I'm also trying to make Freddy suffer a lot, because who doesn't love animatronic suffering?
But I'm trying to build a bit of backstory for Funtime Freddy, though. Funtime Foxy is in Funtime Auditorium, so why isn't the other character named Funtime Freddy? Why is he shoved in the Breaker Room, and why is that room so broken? Also, how does the dynamic of the mascot response system work into Funtime Freddy's trust building relationships? If the person attached to your hand shut you down every night, how would you feel?
So yeah! I hope you like this little story. If you have any ideas for chapters, please tell me!
Please read and review!
Frost OUT!