Lost Puppet – by Kem (this is in my AU. So if anything's confusing/doesn't line up with the FNAF series, don't say I didn't warn you. Enjoy!)
"…What is that thing?"
"I dunno, Jere,"
"Is it alive?"
"…No, I think it's…metallic?"
Puppet's eyes shot open as he felt someone poke his arm. Crouched before him were 2 boys probably not even 10 years old. They stumbled backwards as they realized the Puppet's eyes were open, and they scrambled to their feet, running off as fast as they could.
Needless to say, Puppet was a little more than just slightly confused. Who were those kids? He'd never seen them before, so…maybe they were new to the neighborhood? How long had they been here? "…Waaaait—," the marionette looked around himself. This wasn't the pizzeria…this wasn't his Prize Box…
So…
Most important question at the moment was…
"WHERE AM I?!" he cried out in a panic as he pulled himself to his non-existent feet. This was SO wrong! Last he remembered he was in his Prize Box, drifting off to the sounds of his beloved music box, soooo how'd he get here in this quite gross and dirty alleyway?
As much as he went through his memory banks, Puppet couldn't remember HOW he could have gotten there. There were no leads as to who could have done it, and, from the looks of things, he seemed to be pretty far away from the pizzeria.
…Whiiiich scared him even further.
Yeah.
He wasn't very good at being alone…or staying calm while being alone as well, as now he was pacing back and forth having a small mental-breakdown. Stopping, Puppet took several deep yet slightly shaky breaths. He had to stay calm.
"Alright," the marionette thought to himself, trying to clear all negative thoughts from his head. "What would Golden Freddy do in this situation?" he leaned against a wall and put a finger under the chin of his porcelain mask in thought as he stared at the ground. "…He'd remain calm, firstly." Puppet continued. "Secondly he'd probably use his powers in someway to get back home…buuuut I can't teleport. Huh…this is gonna be tricky."
A lady walked by, not noticing the tall animatronic in the alley beside her. "Maybe I could ask for directions!" Puppet followed behind the woman, finally tapping her on the shoulder when she stopped walking to get something out of her purse.
"Uh, excuse me," Puppet said politely as Golden Freddy would have done. "but do you happen to know the way to Freddy Fazbear's pi—," "AAH!" the lady shrieked, seeing the giant, unearthly creature that had followed her. In her panicked state, she swung her purse at Puppet, knocking the marionette over onto the pavement. Puppet didn't know WHY the lady had screamed and ran away from him like she did, but what he DID know was one thing: After attempting to catch himself from falling, one of his wrists was really hurting.
Great.
Just what he needed.
After he tended to his wrist, Puppet was going to try and ask someone else to help him find his way home.
Man, he missed Goldie already.
Chapter 2
Back at the pizzeria, the other animatronics had just powered on from a good night's rest (if that's what you'd call it). The guard hadn't been at the pizzeria lately, so the bots could take it easy.
Freddy, the leader of the animatronics at the well-known "Freddy Fazbear's Pizza", was the first one to power on like every morning. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, only that for the first time in awhile Puppet hadn't woken up to rewind his music box (which sometimes would get very annoying to listen to for the thousandth time over). Other than that, nothing else seemed weird.
After stretching, Freddy stepped off the Show Stage, making a slight clunking sound as his hard padded feet hit the black and white tiled flooring. The building was dark, just how he liked it being, but unfortunately he was in change of turning on the lights in the building—and to be honest, he'd much rather prefer the building to STAY dark. Oh well.
After finding the light-switch, Freddy turned on the lights, causing him to cover his eyes for a few moments so he wouldn't malfunction. This was another reason he hated bright lights. The others could handle them just fine, but Freddy? Well it wasn't exactly his cup of tea. That didn't matter now though, there was a birthday party for a little 6 year old they had to decorate for.
"Alright, guys!" the bear exclaimed as his friends slowly began to power on. "Everyone up! Remember we've got a birthday party to get ready for!" surprisingly the bots didn't groan when Freddy made them power on. That was actually relatively rare in his books.
He chuckled in partial relief. "Wow! I don't think I remember the last time I told you guys to wake up and you didn't groan at me!" "Oh, shut up, Freddy," Bonnie, the purple guitarist of the Fazbear Band, yawned as he stretched his stiff, slightly rusted joints. "I don't think I've ever slept so well after Puppet and that annoyin' music box of his!" "Speaking of the Puppet," Chica, the backup singer of the band said as she glanced towards the Prize Corner where their friend usually resided during the night. "Someone'd better go get him up. You know, or else he'll probably be pretty grumpy during the birthday party later today, and I and everyone else probably really don't want that happening."
Hearing what Chica said, Foxy, the slightly bad-tempered, decommissioned pirate animatronic stepped out from his Pirate Cove. "Yeah, I guess I'll do it," he sighed, knowing fair well that the others would be having fun at the birthday party while he was stuck in his Cove…again. Usually Foxy couldn't stand the Puppet's sometimes over-peppiness, but it wasn't that he HATED the guy.
Foxy knocked lightly on the lid of the marionette's Prize Box, waiting for him to spring out and begin shouting like he usually did.
But no-one answered.
Worried, Foxy knocked again. "Puppet?" he said, cracking the lid enough that he could see inside the large, grayish-blue and purple box. "Ya awake? It's time to get up. You…" he paused, not wanting to say what he was trying to tell Puppet. "Y-you and the others have a b-birthday party to get ready for, remember?"
…
"…What's wrong with you? You're usually screaming in my e—," upon opening the Prize Box, Foxy realized why Puppet hadn't answered his calls.
Puppet wasn't there.
This wasn't good. This REALLY was not good.
"GUYS!" Foxy ran back over to the Show Stage, alarming his friends with his shocked expression. "PUPPET'S NOT IN HIS PRIZE BOX!" "WHAT?!" everyone cried out in shock. Freddy ran over to the Prize Box, hoping Foxy was playing a really mean prank and not actually telling the truth about the Puppet.
But to the bear's horror, Foxy WAS telling the truth—Puppet was nowhere to be found.
"O-oh no," he said in a whisper after his system processed what was going on. Slowly, he turned towards his friends, giving them a look to show that Foxy wasn't kidding in the slightest. "P…P-Puppet's not here,"
"THAT'S WHAT I JUST SAID, FREDDY!" Foxy shouted in frustration. "HE'S NOT THERE! HE'S GONE!"
"What if the company scrapped him?!"
"Or what if the Nightmares came and got him!"
"What if Puppet ran away?"
"What? No! You know Puppet, BB! He'd be too scared to."
"What's with all the shouting?" everyone looked towards the golden colored bear that had just came out from the Parts and Services Room. He looked almost identical to Freddy Fazbear himself but instead had dirty-golden fur and blackened eyes that seemed to pierce through your very essence.
All at once, everyone began talking, frantically trying to tell the bear what'd happened.
"HEY!" he shouted, causing the other bots to stop talking. "Now," he said. "SLOWLY, ONE OF YOU tell me what's going on."
"Puppet's been bot-napped, Golden Freddy!"
"What?!" Golden Freddy cried out as he felt his mechanical stomach sink at the news of his best friend being taken. "Bot-napped?! By who?! The Nightmares?!" "Well, we're not sure if he's been bot-napped, Goldie," Toy Bonnie, the more feminine-looking version of Bonnie said nervously. "All we know is that Foxy went to go wake the Puppet up and when he got to the Prize Corner he realized Puppet was gone."
Golden Freddy stood there, panic-stricken at the thought of the marionette being somewhere alone and probably very, very afraid. "Okay," he said shakily in an attempt not to sound nerve-wracked. Thankfully he was a fast-thinker, because he had a plan like always. "Freddy," he looked at his counterpart. "You and the band look in the basement," he looked at the Toys, "Toy animatronics, you guys look in the Parts and Services Room," then BB & JJ, "Balloon Kids, you two look in any small nooks and crannies you can. Puppet CAN'T be far off."
"Hey! What about me?" Foxy exclaimed in annoyance. Golden Freddy turned and looked at him, inwardly scolding himself for forgetting the decommissioned fox animatronic. "O-oh, yeah, uh…Foxy, you stay here just in case Puppet returns while we're gone. If he comes back and sees us gone he might have a panic-attack."
"What?! Seriously?! You mean I just have to STAND here?!"
"Yes, precisely, Foxy."
"And what're YOU gonna be doing, oldie Goldie?"
"I'm going to be looking through a few dimensions to see if Puppet's there," Golden Freddy retorted, crossing his arms at Foxy's rude nickname towards the bear. "You never know, the Nightmares may have him. Or knowing Puppet, he may have done something stupid and got himself in a dilemma in another dimension. So just stay here, okay?" after a few moments of staring at Golden Freddy, Foxy sighed. "Fine, if it makes ya happy, I'll stay."
"Good," Golden Freddy said before he teleported to the Chest. The Chest was something he never really liked to use unless of an emergency, and this was classified as an emergency. He had to fine Puppet before something else found him.
Chapter 3
(Meanwhile)
Puppet collapsed with a sigh on a park-bench. He'd been trying to ask people for directions all day, but all he got in reply, mostly before he could even finish his question, were screams, shrieks, and people running away from him. It kinda lowered his self-esteem to be honest. He watched as the little birds infront of him hopped around, pecking at the ground for any leftover seeds and bugs that might have been missed from previous people that threw them on the ground. At least they didn't seem to be scared of the marionette.
Suddenly a squirrel ran into the small flock of birds, causing them to fly away in a hurry.
"…Hmmm…" Puppet mumbled to himself in thought while watching the feathered-creatures fly away. HE knew how to levitate! Maybe if he levitated high enough he'd be able to see the pizzeria from the air. The animatronic-puppet had seen Mari, the female version of him (who, almost shamefully, he was in love with) levitate before, but levitation wasn't very…what was the term Puppet was looking for?
It wasn't very close to the ground in some cases.
Looking up at the sky, Puppet's feelings of uncertainty grew. What if he fell? Or worse! Actually, what could be worse then falling?
He took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself. If some GIRL could do it, than surely HE could, right? "Well," he sighed to himself. "Here goes nothing. If I fall, then—ouch." Focusing all his powers on levitation like Golden Freddy had taught him, Puppet slowly began lifting off the ground. "Woah!" he gasped before quickly landing back on his non-existent feet. Maybe flying wouldn't be such a good idea. What if he DID fall?!
"Oh, come on, you big crybaby!" the marionette inwardly scolded himself for being so cowardly. "Golden Freddy can do it! So can Mari! And Mari's a GIRL! So if a girl can do it…" he looked back up at cloudy, gray sky, gathering what little courage he had. Puppet sighed. "…Then…then I guess I can, too." He tried levitating again, and that time he didn't panic after he felt himself lift off the ground. Closing his eyes seemed to help take away some of the fear he felt in his ascendance, enough so that he wasn't freaking out as badly as he thought he was going to.
A chilly gust of wind made Puppet lose his balance for a moment, causing him to gasp again and open his eyes. The wind simmered down to a breeze long enough that Puppet could get a look at the scenery below and around him. It wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. Still pretty high up, but, for the first time that he could remember, he wasn't having a breakdown from being up so high.
"Alright," he said aloud to try and decrease the anxious feeling inside his wires. "Now, where's the pizzeria…hmmm…" there were so many buildings below him, but none of them looked familiar—not even the pizzeria was in sight. That made Puppet begin feeling anxious again, and no calm breathing or thoughts of home was going to help him. His animatronic heart began pounding, making him even more afraid. The tranquil breeze began to turn into a heavy gale, throwing the terrified marionette around like a ragdoll. That was it, he couldn't stay airborne any longer, if he did, he'd surely be injured somehow or another.
Almost as if to prove Puppet's thoughts, another gust of wind pushed him almost mercilessly towards the ground. He desperately tried to levitate upwards, but the now howling wind was too much for him to bear. Puppet was falling.
And fast.
Quickly he looked around himself, trying to see if there was anything he could grab onto to keep him from being injured. The only thing he could see was a tree-branch coming in quick. Puppet had to think fast, either that or he'd smash into the rough concrete ground about 20 feet below him. With one quick motion, Puppet grabbed the thick branch, wrapping his arms around it to ensure he had a good grip. That was close, that was too close.
Silence surrounded the terrified marionette animatronic, leaving only the sounds of his shaking breaths audible. It was almost funny how terrified he was, but if anyone had laughed at him right then he'd probably would have yelled at them. That was kinda rare that Puppet could yell at someone in anger, only when he was terrified more then words could say. That was the last thing on Puppet's mind though, he'd almost died.
The soft, rolling sounds of thunder pulled the animatronic out of his thoughts. To Puppet, it was almost calming. He remembered how Golden Freddy like that kind of thunder, it seemed to help him concentrate better. That thought helped, but only a little bit. Remembering Golden Freddy…well…it made Puppet feel weird inside—almost like it hurt to think about how far away they were from eachother.
"Plip!"
"Huh?" Puppet sat up, feeling something wet drip onto his mask.
"Plip! …Plip!"
Two more water droplets fell onto the leaves on the tree he was sitting in. Then more came, and more, and more. Soon they were falling by the dozens, and then finally what seemed like a never-ending flow of water poured from the sky. The rain didn't just make Puppet feel cold, it made him feel even more lonely…
He was so, so far away from home.
He was so, so far away from Golden Freddy…
More water began to drip down Puppet's mask, but this water was…black? He wiped at his eyes, realizing that he was crying. Crying seemed appropriate right then, so…that's what Puppet did.
He cried.
Chapter 4
Golden Freddy frantically searched every dimension he could with no signs of the Puppet. When he got back to the pizzeria, the others had never seen him so tense. Oh course he'd been on edge when there was a threat of the Nightmares attacking, but this was over the top.
"S-so, guys," Freddy stuttered in a quiet voice to his friends, making sure that Golden Freddy wasn't listening to him. "W-who's gonna tell Goldie that we uh…" he sighed. "That we didn't find Puppet?" no one spoke as they looked at Freddy, each of them silently hoping that their boss and friend would tell Golden Freddy for them.
"W-well, uh, Freddy," Mangle said, twirling one of her many wires nervously as she spoke. "Y-you're the boss here, so…I was kinda thinkin' that, uh…" she pointed to Freddy shyly, hoping his reply wouldn't be harsh. "That…YOU would tell him."
Freddy's blue eyes widened. He knew he was the boss, and whenever something needed to be done, something important, he was always the one who had to do it. Well, at least that was the excuse his friends had whenever that important something had to be done. So he decided that he would be the one to break the bad news to Golden Freddy.
"Oh, alright," he sighed as he glanced over his shoulder at the older version of himself on the other side of the room. "I'll…I-I'll go tell Goldie…if…it makes you guys more comfortable."
Bonnie nodded once. "Thank ya, Freddy," he said in the same quiet tone as Mangle. "I know we make ya do a lot around here because, well," he chuckled as a small smile creaked its way onto the purple rabbit's face. "B-because you're our boss technically, but, again, thanks, bud." "No problem, Bonnie, guys." Freddy sucked in a deep breath as he turned towards Golden Freddy. It wasn't very easy breaking bad news to him, mainly because he'd stress out about it until it almost made him sick.
This news, however, would surely break Golden Freddy, Freddy thought.
He shuddered, inwardly hoping that the yellow bear wouldn't snap under all the pressure he was feeling from the loss of the Puppet. The walk from the group of bots behind him to Golden Freddy seemed to take a lot longer than usual for Freddy, but that was probably because HE was stressed as well.
"U-uh…Golden Freddy?"
"Yes?!" Golden Freddy whipped around to the sound of his friend's voice, hoping that he'd say that he or one of the others had found the Puppet accidentally locked in the janitor's closet, or maybe even sulking about one thing or another in the basement—as long as Golden Freddy knew that the Puppet was just SAFE.
But from the look on Freddy's face, Golden Freddy knew that wasn't what he was going to say.
He didn't want to ask, but he knew he had to. "You…you didn't find him, did you?" he said. Freddy looked down at the floor and shook his head slowly, feeling guilty that he hadn't found the marionette. "…I'm going to lose him…just like I lost Spring Bonnie,"
"W-what?!" Freddy gasped. "What do you mean you're gonna lose Puppet, Golden Freddy?! Was he sick or something?!" "No, not that," the golden colored bear shook his head. "It…has to do with the Chest. You know, the thing that the Puppet and I get our powers from?"
"Yuh-huh,"
"…If…" Golden Freddy's voice trailed off, trying to find the words to say. Trying to think of a way to explain to Freddy what was going on without confusing him. "…It's like this," he said. "You know how the guard charges the tablet in the office every night after he leaves?"
"Yeah…?"
"Think of it as being that the Chest charges Puppet's and my powers. Without the charger we rely on just our own energy if we're a mile away from it."
Almost immediately, Freddy understood what Golden Freddy was implying. "So…you're saying that Puppet could…" he didn't want to say what he was thinking, he really, really, didn't want to. Golden Freddy nodded as if he could read his younger friend's thoughts. "Yes," he said. "Puppet will die." Those words stung, and they stung hard.
"H-how long would he have if he was further than a mile away from the Chest?" Freddy said.
As Golden Freddy started at Freddy, he felt tears prick his invisible eyes. "…Only a week, Freddy." He replied as he tried blinking the tears from his eyes. "I'd give Puppet a week before he powers off, and the process isn't painless either. He'll hallucinate, and be in so much pain when he tries using his powers…" thoughts of the Puppet he'd grown to know and love over the years being in pain made Golden Freddy cringe inwardly.
"It'll be hell for him."
Chapter 5
~ ~ ~ ~
The world around Puppet was silent, dusk had fallen as well as the rain, which caused the pavement to sparkle with the vibrantly colored sunset that painted itself over the horizon. Puppet had always been attracted to things that sparkled, heck, it was a nightmare when glitter was around, so it kinda frustrated him that he could only look at the slowly fading sparkling below him.
Yawning, he leaned back against the trunk of the tree and closed his eyes as the sunset finally sank out of view. Puppet hadn't gotten a chance to rest all day, that and the terror he'd felt when falling out of the sky and ALMOST to his death had sucked out some energy as well.
"Well," he thought to himself as he began to drift off, "I…I guess I'll try to look for the pizzeria tomorrow…g'night, Goldie…wherever you are."
And with that, Puppet powered down…
(The next morning)
"Creeeeak…"
"Wha—?" Puppet opened his eyes, hearing a heavy creaking sound close to him. He was still half asleep when he heard it, so he wasn't sure if he'd just dreamed the sound or not. He didn't hear it now, so he just assumed he'd imagined it. The morning sun greeted Puppet with its warmth, slowly evaporating the dew that would occasionally drip onto the marionette from the leaves.
"Creeeeak…"
The creaking began again, followed by a "snap!" "What IS that?!" Puppet thought in curiosity as he looked around his surrounding. When he looked down, that was when he realized what was making those sounds.
The branch he was sitting on was slowly beginning to break.
Well, at least it didn't happen in the middle of the night when he was sleeping. "Okay," he thought as he slowly attempted to climb off the breaking tree limb. "Just slowly climb off the branch, and everything's gonna be—,"
"SNAP!"
"—FINE!" Puppet finished his thought with a shriek as he barreled towards the ground below, but before he could hit the pavement, two blue orbs shot from his hands, causing the fall to become much, MUCH more graceful than it would have been.
Upon standing, a slight burning sensation made its way into Puppet's hands. It kinda hurt, and it made him feel a little bit dizzy and a little drained as well. He flexed his fingers in an attempt to extinguish the burning sensation in them. He didn't quite know what to think about it, only that it frightened him a little.
That didn't matter now though, what Puppet had to do was somehow find the pizzeria AND find out how he was taken out of it without waking up.
(Later)
While walking though the small town, Puppet found it kind of odd that the streets were clear. He'd seen no-one on them all morning, and even if he did, they'd quickly make their way into the closest building and close the door behind themselves. Soon a sweet smell made its way to the Puppet, making his stomach growl. He'd been so caught up in finding home that he'd forgotten to eat!
The sweet smell of baked goods lead the hungry marionette to a slightly small, baby-blue building with a sign that read "Patrice's Baked Goods" above a large window in the front of the shop. That window allowed Puppet to look inside the building and see all the beautifully decorated cakes, pies, muffins, cupcakes and—
Wait a second.
Puppet gasped in delight as a cupcake with pink frosting caught his eye. How did Cupcake get HERE? He wondered. "Cupcake!" the animatronic exclaimed as he tapped on the glass, trying desperately to get the pastry's attention. "Cupcake! It's me! The Puppet! How did you get in there?! Where's Chica?! Where are the others?!" but the cupcake gave no reply, causing Puppet to worry a little bit.
Before he could call out again, a little girl about 6 years old with brown hair, brown eyes, wearing a light purple dress skipped over to the cupcake, observing it for a few seconds before picking it up with her slightly plump hands. She didn't seem to notice the 8-feet-tall animatronic standing out the window watching her, all her sparkling eyes were focused on was the cupcake.
And to Puppet's horror, she took a bite out of it.
In all honesty, Puppet was horrified! He had given life to that cupcake almost 30 years ago. Or at least he THOUGHT that the now partially-eaten cupcake infront of him was Chica's. Pounding on the glass, the little girl panicked, dropping the cupcake on the floor and backing away quickly as she saw the creature looming over her from outside the window.
"YOU ATE MY FRIEND!" Puppet screamed at her as he felt tears prick his eyes again. "YOU LITTLE—BRAT! YOU JUST ATE ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS!" "D-DADDY!" the little girl cried out as she ran over to a large man standing behind the counter in the bakery. But before the man could understand what his daughter was saying, or before he could see Puppet, Puppet ran off.
That had to be the most brutal thing the marionette had ever seen in his life. He usually loved kids to death, honestly he did, but when that little girl ate his best friend…Puppet had lost two things: His appetite, first off, and second off, he thought he'd lost a friend.
What he didn't know he was losing, however, was time. He'd already been out almost a day and a half—time was beginning to run out.
Chapter 6
~ ~ ~ ~
After explaining the others what would happen to the Puppet if he wasn't found within a week, Golden Freddy, Freddy and all of the other bots all gathered around to conduct a plan on how to find him.
"Alright, guys," Freddy stood up, gazing upon the worried faces of his friends. "We've gotta make a plan on how we're going to find the Puppet. Golden Freddy's already explained to you what'll happen to him if we don't get him back in a little less than a week, so we've gotta think fast." "Hold on a moment, Freddy," Golden Freddy said as he stood up as well and looked into the other bear's face. "If we think too quickly, the plan might not work in our favor." After a few moments, Freddy nodded in agreement.
"Yeah," he admitted with a sigh, slumping down into his seat. "You're right, Golden Freddy. I'm just…" as much as he hated to say it, he was nervous, and Golden Freddy and everyone else could see that. In an attempt to comfort him, Golden Freddy pat Freddy on the back. "I understand." The golden-colored bear said.
From across the table, Foxy stood up, catching the other bots' attention. Ever since they'd sat down, he'd been hatching a plan on how to find the Puppet, it wasn't much of a plan, but he hoped it was enough for them to find the marionette and bring him home safely.
"I…uh…I-I've got a plan, Goldie, Freddy." He admitted nervously. In all the commotion, the fox had forgotten how much he hated when everyone was watching him. Oh well, too late now. "What?! You do?!" Golden Freddy exclaimed as a spark of hope lit inside of his wires. "Well, what is it?!" "I-I…w-well, uh…it's…"
"Oh, come ON, ya wuss!" Foxy scolded himself internally at his cowardice. He was a freaking PIRATE! PIRATES shouldn't break down when it came to everyone staring at them! He took a few deep breaths to calm himself.
"My plan," he started, "is that a few of us leave the pizzeria to go find Puppet. Not all of us, because then Mr. Afton, the jerk, might get suspicious. It's not like he gives a da—," "Alright, Foxy," Mari, the last animatronic to know of Puppet's disappearance, cut in, her usually light and cheery voice wavering from worry and frustration. "BEFORE you say a word that BB and JJ shouldn't be hearing, continue explaining your plan. You're getting distracted."
Foxy rolled his eye, his other one being lost from a battle with their enemies, the Nightmares. "Yeah, yeah, yeah," he sighed. "You're right. Sorry. As I was saying: A few of us leave the pizzeria until we find the Puppet, and when we find him, Golden Freddy or Mari can teleport us back here." "But, like you said before, Foxy," Toy Chica chimed in after raising her hand. "Won't the company be a little suspicious when they realize a few of us are gone?"
With a smirk, Foxy crossed his arms. "Well, Toy Chica," he said. "The company isn't gonna miss ME. Heck," ever since Foxy could remember, he'd always had a habit of pacing when explaining something important, so, of course, that's what he did. "I've been stuck in my Cove ever since, what, the 80s? Anyway, I was thinking that I would be one of the few animatronics to go find Puppet! Sound like a plan?"
The others weren't quite sure what to think of their friend's plan. Sure it sounded like an option, but what if they were seen? Or worse?! "…IF we were to go along with this plan, Foxy," Golden Freddy said as he tilted his head in curiosity. "Who'd go with you? I mean, Freddy and the band," he nodded in the band's direction, "they can't go with you. Neither can the Toys and ESPECIALLY not BB or JJ!" "THAT, Golden Freddy, is why I was implying that you and-slash-or Mari comes along."
Hmm…that actually sounded like a good idea.
"If it saves Puppet's life," Mari exclaimed as she looked at the usually pushy and conceited fox, "I'll go with you guys. I don't entertain children very often, heck, the little…urchins are always so grabby. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love 'em and all, but…Puppet's like…well…really special to me." everyone stared at the female puppet for a few seconds before she realized what she'd said. Quickly shaking her head in dismissal before sitting back down, she looked at the floor in embarrassment. "I didn't mean it like that, but yeah, I'll help for sure!"
"Alright! Looks like Mari's in!" Foxy exclaimed before everyone looked at Golden Freddy. "So, Golden Freddy, what about you?" "W-well I…" the bear sighed. Usually he despised leaving the pizzeria due to the fact that the Nightmares could attack at any given second, but this was dire. "Yes, of course, Foxy." He agreed, flashing a nervous smile as he spoke. "I'll come along, but we'll need to bring the Chest. Remember what I told you guys about what'd happen if I, Mari, or Puppet were more than a mile away from it."
Carrying a chest didn't seem that hard of a task to Foxy, so he volunteered to carry it on his, Golden Freddy's and Mari's adventure.
After some preparation for the hopefully short trip to find their friend, Golden Freddy, Foxy, and Mari left the building in the middle of the night. The others were sad to see their friends go, but they knew that there was hope for finding the Puppet if the three of them were involved.
That still didn't stop the countdown for the end of the week, though.
Chapter 7
~ ~ ~ ~
This morning marked the third day Puppet had been away from his friends, and it hadn't started out very well either, he'd woken up with a splitting headache followed by almost unbearable dizziness—however it all passed after a while. "Okay," he thought with a stretch and a yawn as he pulled himself to his feet. "Now THAT'S over, I guess I'll continue trying to look for the pizzeria…by myself…aaaagain." it still really bothered him that everyone was scared of him…
But, to be honest, he couldn't really blame them.
He'd never really been liked by many of the kids he'd ever met, only a handful of them would enjoy going over to the Prize Corner to see the marionette's shows—the other little kids thought he was scary. His slightly large, black eyes with a pair of white, glowing pupils in them always seemed to be what frightened the children away. And to Puppet, that was slightly more upsetting than insulting.
Pulling Puppet from his thoughts was a burning sensation in his hands, the exact same burning as the day prior when he'd caught himself from falling with his powers. It felt slightly more painful though, almost like he'd accidentally burned himself. It wasn't excruciating, it just stung a little, but it wasn't enough to keep Puppet from completing what he had in mind.
Or, at least TRY to complete it anyway.
That is what troubled Puppet mostly—the possibility of him never getting home was growing more and more, choking all hope out of him like a vine choking the life out of a tree.
And that vine was growing, tightening around the marionette's fragile mind quickly, squeezing out what little hope he had left.
Shaking his head quickly, Puppet attempted to dismiss the feelings of uncertainty that plagued him. He NEEDED to get home, he WANTED to get home. He missed Golden Freddy and Mari heckling him for giving something life. He missed Foxy yelling at him for shouting. He missed all of that dearly, no matter if it made him upset or mad when it happened, he just wanted to hear his friends' voices again.
Puppet stuck out his chest, blinking a few tears from his nearly invisible eyes. There was no time for drama, he had to get this show on the road! There was no time for doubt, sadness, or fear, he had to be brave, he was GOING to be brave, just like Golden Freddy.
"Now," looking upwards towards the beautiful, blue, cloudless sky, he watched as a few birds flew by, darting up and down through the clouds as if they were playing a game with eachother. "I'll give levitation one more go, and if ANYTHING happens, I'm going to come back down immediately! All I have to do is, uh…float…20-40 feet above the nice…safe…level…g-ground…oh PLEASE don't let the sky be windier than down here…!"
Concentrating his powers again, Puppet slowly began to float off the grass. As he ascended, he got a good look at his surroundings. It was so much prettier than he could have ever imagined! The trees were in bloom with little, pink, purple and white flowers varying from each large tree. The grass looked greener from above as well, but that was probably because the sky contrasted it. The sky was a beautiful shade of light blue, so beautiful that Puppet didn't realize how high he was going until he looked down.
But he didn't panic that time.
Instead, he smiled, feeling a warm breeze rush past him as he outstretched his arms to let the breeze flow seemingly through him his thin, metal frame. It felt nice. It felt really, really nice. Almost like it was blowing all the fear out of him.
Suddenly a sharp pain shot through all of Puppet's body. He screamed as he barreled to the ground, and this time, there was nothing he could do to catch himself. The pain he was feeling hurt worse than anything imaginable. The marionette thought this was the end, that he'd hit the ground at a high speed and smash into a thousand little pieces, but, almost miraculously, a gust of wind blew Puppet into a fountain in the middle of the park he'd taken refuge in for the past few days.
As he landed in the cold water, it sent a shock through his system, causing the pain to quickly fade. When Puppet came to his senses, he realized something…
Everyone was screaming, running away from him as if he was some…some MONSTER.
He hated it…he hated it so much.
"W-wait!" Puppet looked at the terrified people as they ran off, hoping that at least one of them would see if he was okay…but…but no-one did. Tears began flooding down Puppet's porcelain mask, realizing how much he terrified people.
No mortal liked him.
No-one cared for him.
…
As much as Puppet knew, no-one was going to look for him either.
"JUST SOMEBODY HELP ME! PLEASE!" he sobbed as panic overtook him once more, bringing him to his knees. "P-PLEASE! Please! I…I wanna go home…" looking up at the sky, Puppet screamed, letting his emotions go into the wind. "I WANNA GO HOME! JUST. LET. ME. GO. HOME!"
Chapter 8
~ ~ ~ ~
~(Later that evening)~
That evening, Golden Freddy was remarkably silent. Usually he'd be talking about things that were almost unbearably boring for Foxy and Mari to listen to for more than five minutes without yawning, but for the time-being, he just sat alone, staring up at the full-moon in thought—almost in a trance it seemed.
"…Should we…y-you know…make sure he's okay, Mari?" Foxy asked unsurely as he and the female marionette gazed over to their friend. "I mean…he's barely said anything the entire time we've been away from the pizzeria." "…Yes, Foxy," Mari nodded after deciding whether to bother Golden Freddy or not. "Maybe it'd be best if we gave him some sort of company. He…h-he looks pretty distraught."
Surprisingly, Mari never really showed her emotions, you might even say she was very similar to Foxy—getting mad over the littlest of things, saying stuff she didn't mean, heck, she was even annoyed at Bonnie and his "fowa"-s, but like Foxy and everyone else, Mari had a soft-side. When her soft-side came out, she could be very motherly, almost annoyingly caring and sweet.
And now was definitely the time for her to be that soft, motherly image.
As Foxy and Mari joined Golden Freddy, they could see just how upset he was. Usually Golden Freddy had white pupils, but now he had none—just empty, black pits for eyes. With him, that was a clear indication he was crestfallen. He didn't even notice his two friends sit by his side. All that was on the bear's mind was Puppet…
Clearing his throat at the same time, Foxy lightly tapped Golden Freddy's shoulder with his hook, being careful not to accidentally poke a hole through his suit like a few times in the past years. "Hey, uh…G-Golden Freddy?" Foxy said, "Are, uh…a-are you okay?" "Hmm—?!" snapping out of his trance, Golden Freddy quickly looked at Foxy. "Oh, hey, Foxy," he sighed sadly. "I-I didn't know you were right there, sorry, I'm not ignoring you…I-I'm okay…"
No one spoke for a few moments. To be honest, they didn't really know what to say.
"…Goldie," Mari began unsurely. "Believe it or not, although you're very, very good at hiding things and keeping secrets from the others, it's not as easy to disguise when you're upset." Golden Freddy and Mari stared at eachother for a few moments. Golden Freddy seemed more surprised than anything when he realized how sad he looked to her and Foxy.
Man, keeping THAT secret was a lot harder than he thought.
"N-no, no, I'm not upset," Golden Freddy lied while placing his gaze back on the moon shining above the trio. "I'm just…thinking." "Thinking?" Foxy echoed out of curiosity. "About what?"
"…About…stuff…"
"…That…th-that stuff being Puppet, right?"
"Y-yeah, Mari."
Glancing at eachother for a moment, Mari and Foxy both struggled to find the words to say. "You…you're really attached to him, aren't you?" Mari said as she gently put her hand on Golden Freddy's shoulder in a comforting manner. Golden Freddy chuckled once at Mari's words. It was kinda like what she said, actually. "Well, Mari," the old bear began to explain as memories flashed through his mind. "Puppet was—I mean, IS more or less attached to ME. There…th-there wasn't one day where he wouldn't need my help for something or…or he'd need someone to talk to about, ah, I don't know, just something or other…"
After another few moments of silence, Mari and Foxy both saw tears pool in Golden Freddy's eyes. It was rare that he'd ever cry about anything unless something was wrong or…well…unless someone very close to him or very, very innocent could easily die in a short amount of time.
And Puppet was both of those things.
"…I remember…" Golden Freddy paused in order to calm himself down. He really didn't want to cry infront of the two that thought he was strong. After taking a few deep breaths, he managed to calm himself enough to talk. "I remember one time Puppet caught the animaflu from…I…I think it was…Bonnie? No, it was from Freddy…I-I think…anyway, Puppet was sick and I remember staying up all night to make sure he was okay."
"Really?" Foxy chuckled in disbelief as he crossed his legs and made himself comfortable. "When was that? I mean, I remember when the kid was sick—he was absolutely miserable, but how long did'ja stay up for?"
"…If I was to make a rough guess, I'd have to say just about 3, maybe 4 nights." Golden Freddy said with an unsure shrug. "But anyway, with I being so close to him for those days, I caught what he had."
"Okay, THAT is something I don't think any of us could forget, Goldie," Mari giggled in amusement. "Your powers went BEZERK!" "Yeah, yeah," Golden Freddy chuckled, also remembering what the marionette was talking about. "It WAS pretty bad, I'll admit. But…when I got what he had…I dunno…you know how Puppet's really cranky in the morning if he doesn't get a good night's sleep?" "Yeah," "How could we NOT know, Golden Freddy?" "Well…he stayed up as well…for ME. I…I-I never got to thank him for that."
"You mean that Puppet, the one who can barely make it through the day without at LEAST 2 cups of coffee, stayed up AAAALL night long without falling ASLEEP?" Foxy exclaimed, wide-eyed in surprise at what he was hearing.
Man, maybe Puppet wasn't as much of a baby as Foxy thought.
Golden Freddy nodded in assurance. "Yes, Foxy," he sighed. "The same exact Puppet that wakes us up almost every night to wind up his music box." Everyone went silent for a few seconds before any of them had the courage to speak again. They just didn't know what to say…
"…I'm…I-I'm sorry if I'm boring you, Foxy, Mari," the bear said, trying as best he could to keep his voice from sounding as depressed as he felt. "It's just…I…I-I've already lost three very, very good friends and…well…I-I…I…" he sighed as a few tears freed themselves from his eyes. He really didn't want to talk anymore…
First Elizabeth had been mercilessly slaughtered by Nightmare, then Spring Bonnie was taken away, then Kealy grew up and never spoke to Golden Freddy or Puppet ever again, and now Puppet was gone. Heck, Golden Freddy was surprised he wasn't as crazy as the Puppet himself! Sometimes he felt like it was bound to happen though…
"If you need to be alone for a bit," Mari said in a hushed voice, "Foxy and I will go for a bit, okay?" Golden Freddy didn't say anything, if he spoke, it'd definitely make him cry—and he hated crying in front of everyone. So, he just nodded. Mari and Foxy didn't go too far away, just enough that Golden Freddy could be alone.
That allowed him to think back upon everything that'd happened…Elizabeth's death…Spring Bonnie…Kealy…and now…
…the Puppet…
…his best friend…
…possibly in pain and crying somewhere in a dirty, disgusting alleyway…
…all alone…
Chapter 9
~ ~ ~ ~
The searing pain ran its way through Puppet's body again, bringing him to his knees. It seemed to be getting worse with every passing second—much, much worse. It felt like someone was pressing his insides against a hot skillet that was slowly increasing in temperature. The worst part about it was that Puppet had no idea what was going on—he knew he was dying, that was clear, but he was hoping he was wrong.
"AAH!" the pain shot through the slowly dying marionette's frame once more, completely crippling him. Yep, it was getting worse. It was no use, no matter how many times Puppet would get up, he'd always be dragged right back down by whatever was going on inside of him. When IT happened, he couldn't think, he couldn't see, he couldn't hear, he couldn't feel—it was as if he was powering down for a few seconds every time.
Puppet HAD to get back to the pizzeria, he needed help, he needed this to stop…so he could rest.
~ ~ ~ ~
"Guys! GUYS! Wake up! We've gotta go, NOW!" "W-wha—?!" Foxy and Mari quickly sat up, unsure what was going on in their half-asleep state. Golden Freddy seemed frantic about something, but since the two animatronics had just woken up, it all seemed like a blur. From what Foxy could hear it sounded like Golden Freddy was saying something about someone dying, the Chest, and the Puppet.
"GOLDEN FREDDY!" Foxy shouted as he pulled himself up from the pavement and stretched to loosen his old, rusted joints. "Now, SLOWLY tell us what you're saying because it was all a blur just a few moments ago, okay?" "Okay, sorry, sorry," after taking a deep breath, Golden Freddy had calmed himself enough to speak relatively clearly. "I said: Puppet's dying, I can sense it. W-we've gotta go and get the Chest close to him or at LEAST within a mile of it, like, NOW! Is THAT clear enough?!"
"What?! Then what are we waiting for?!" Mari jumped to her feet like a spring, feeling her animatronic heart fall to her non-existent feet at Golden Freddy's heart-wrenching news. She'd never moved so quickly in all her life—Puppet's life was on the line, and Mari would do ANYTHING to save him. "Let's go, NOW!"
~ ~ ~ ~
The pain was growing more intense and more frequent now, Puppet could feel himself weakening—he couldn't even stand anymore. He curled into a ball as another wave of unbearable pain shot through him and tears filled his eyes. This was it, he thought, he was going to die here, alone, in this disgusting alleyway…without even telling Golden Freddy or the others goodbye…without even telling MARI goodbye.
Now, Puppet was numb, lying almost lifeless on the concrete as his life began slowly slipping away…he couldn't see…he couldn't hear…he couldn't feel…he couldn't breathe.
He was dying…alone, in this disgusting alleyway…just like he hoped wouldn't happen…
~ ~ ~ ~
Golden Freddy, Foxy and Mari had been searching for Puppet for almost two days with no signs of him—they were beginning to lose hope that they'd ever find their high-spirited friend. The only thing that was racing through Golden Freddy's mind was that…well…they were too late. He could sense it, stronger than he'd ever sensed anything before in his life.
"…Golden Freddy? Are…are you okay?" Foxy said as he looked up at the slightly taller animatronic. Clearly something was suddenly wrong—Golden Freddy had that look in his eyes that meant nothing good was happening.
All Golden Freddy could do was shake his head and close his eyes as he leaned against the tree they were standing next to—and as much as he tried, he couldn't contain what he was feeling. Golden Freddy didn't want to cry, but he just couldn't help it anymore! His best friend was dying, and there was nothing he could do about it.
Suddenly Mari raced over to the two from a few feet behind the tree, holding something in her three-fingered hand. She was crying, HARD. "Woah, woah, woah, Mari!" Foxy exclaimed as he put his good-hand out infront of himself to stop the marionette from running into him. "What's going on?! What's that you're ho—," "That's one of the Puppet's buttons!" Golden Freddy's hand snatched the button from Mari, all of the bots in total disbelief and, mostly, relieved.
Golden Freddy knew what to do now. By using something that belonged to Puppet, he could use that to track where he was—they'd all be back at the pizzeria by sundown.
WITH the Puppet.
~ ~ ~ ~
~(Later)~
~ ~ ~ ~
"Alright, guys," Golden Freddy's voice shook as he spoke. "I-I-I've tracked down where Puppet is, he's somewhere within a hundred-foot radius of us. If we split up, we can find him, now, let's go." "You got it, Golden Freddy!" "Aye aye, oldie Goldie!" "…Don't call me that, Foxy," "Oh, uh, sorry, Golden Freddy." Foxy said, stifling a chuckle while he talked. With that the search began. Mari searched above, under, in, and around everything she could.
But a small noise caught her attention while she passed an alleyway.
"P-Puppet?!" she cried out as her gaze landed on her double lying motionless on the dirty, moldy pavement. Within a flash, Mari was by Puppet's side, desperately trying to wake him up. "PUPPET!" she shouted, tears streaming down her mask and onto the pavement. "P-PLEASE! WAKE UP! PLEASE!"
"WAKE UP! PLEASE!" "M…M-Mari…?" Puppet thought to himself as he heard his female counterpart's voice above him. "W-where did she come from?"
After hearing Mari's shouts, Golden Freddy and Foxy raced over, the both of them scared and relieved at the same time. Sure enough, Mari had Puppet in her arms…but he wasn't moving. Golden Freddy grabbed Puppet and shook him, hoping that somehow it'd bring him back to consciousness. "P-Puppet, it's me! Golden Freddy!" the golden animatronic said as calmly as he could. "Just say something! ANYTHING! Please! Please…"
…
"…G…Goldie?" everyone gasped as they heard Puppet's voice. He looked at Golden Freddy with a very faint, very weak smile on his face. "G-Golden Freddy, I—," "Puppet, please! Save your strength, my friend," Golden Freddy ordered as he held both of Puppet's hands. "We're gonna get you back to the pizzeria, just hold on…
…we're gonna get you home."
(later)
~ ~ ~ ~
The animatronics waited outside the Parts and Services Room for Golden Freddy to come out with some good news—it'd only been about 20 minutes since he'd gone in there to try and revive Puppet, but it seemed much, much longer to everyone else. Each of them silently feared that the happy-go-lucky, rambunctious marionette wasn't going to come out of there alive, and that thought sickened them all.
"…So, uh…a-anyone hungry?" "Seriously, Toy Freddy?!" Freddy snapped impatiently, whipping around to face his younger counterpart who was now regretting ever speaking. "Puppet could be DYING right now and you're concerned about FOOD? You're ALWAYS hungry!" the word "dying" made everyone stare at their boss in surprise. Usually, Freddy hated talking about death and gloomy things like that and would avoid bringing it up at any cost—and now was really not the time for him to be bold and say it.
"Freddy!" Bonnie crossed his arms and gave the bear an ashamed look as he nodded towards the Parts and Services Room door. "Golden Freddy can probably hear you from in there! If"—he lowered his voice to a whisper—"if Puppet dies, I…I-I'm worried that Golden Freddy might hurt himself. He's not always been the most happy, jolly guy like the Puppet wa—I-I mean…is." After staring at eachother for a few moments, Freddy sighed, realizing that Bonnie was right.
Sometimes Freddy's temper DID get the best of him.
He sighed. "You're…right, Bonnie," he said while nervously straightening his trademark top-hat. "I'm sorry…we're…just all a little stressed right now. I didn't mean to snap like that. Sorry, T-Fred." "I-it's alright, sir," Toy Freddy assured with a sheepish smile. "You're right, too—I'm always hungry."
~ ~ ~ ~
(in the Parts and Services Room)
~ ~ ~ ~
Golden Freddy stared at Puppet's motionless body lying before him—if he could sweat, he would be. It'd seemed like an eternity since the bear had heard his friend's high-pitched, loud voice talking to him and he was growing more and more worried as the seemingly infinite seconds passed. Golden Freddy and Puppet had been friends for such a long time, ever since the early 90's. He could remember their first meeting, however they didn't exactly click at first. Puppet really liked him though, and he didn't understand why—back then, Golden Freddy was unkind and hateful to everyone, no matter who or what they were.
He could remember it was as if it was only yesterday…
~ ~ ~ ~
(flashback)
~ ~ ~ ~
Golden Freddy floated around the halls of the "new and improved" Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, temporarily disabling the security cams with his recently discovered powers so he wouldn't be seen as he floated effortlessly along. It wasn't really necessary for him to concentrate on what he was intending to DO with his powers anymore, which was very good considering the present circumstances—when he was deep in thought, Golden Freddy was VERY deep in thought.
What he was thinking about were…unfortunate…things that happened in the past few years: the Bite, Spring Bonnie being taken away and scrapped, Elizabeth's death, the downfall of the diner—everything. Those thoughts swirled around in his mind like a snowstorm, a snowstorm that made his once loving, almost goofy heart cold—and it would remain like that no matter how many warm memories tried to thaw it.
Sometimes Golden Freddy wished he could go back and change what'd happened, but for some reason he was too scared to. Probably because he wasn't sure if there WASN'T anything he could do and he'd have to witness it happen all over again.
It was painful to think about.
All of it.
Golden Freddy gasped and looked up at who he'd bumped into that had surprised him out of his thoughts. Whoever or WHAT-ever this…this creature was, it exceedingly tall and unearthly skinny. Its arms and legs were striped with white from the elbow joints to the three-fingered hands on the ends of the arms and missing feet at the bottom of the long, lanky legs. It looked very feminine with its hourglass appearance with three white buttons going down the chest, that and it had almost dark-red blush and lipstick on its off-white, porcelain mask. The eyes were black and slightly squinted with purple, artificial tear-streaks running down from them into the cheeks.
"Oh! Hello there." He said as he looked down at Golden Freddy with a warm smile. The deep voice totally didn't suit the feminine appearance of the animatronic, but Golden Freddy really couldn't care less—he absolutely loathed talking with anyone besides himself. "Who are you? I've never seen you around before. Are you new around here? And…" the animatronic noticed how Golden Freddy was levitating, which really seemed to be confusing, "…how are you doing that? Are you a marionette, too?" "Who wants to know?" Golden Freddy growled as he crossed his arms in annoyance at the supposed marionette's seemingly endless sting of questions.
"Oh, forgive me, I'm Puppet. Or the Marionette, but "Marionette" sounds so feminine—everyone keeps calling me "Mari" and it really gets on my nerves." Golden Freddy chuckled once at the nickname "Mari"—it DID sound a little funny, though. "I'm Fredbe—I-I mean…I'm Golden Freddy," he said, stopping himself before he spoke his old name that he hated saying, "and I was JUST leaving." "W-what?! So soon?! W-we just met! I don't know anything about you! Where do you live in the pizzeria? Are you new? If you live in the pizzeria, what do you do h—,"
"Hasn't anyone told you that you talk a lot, Mr. Chatterbox?" Golden Freddy was really getting tired of listening to this animatronic's constant blabbering—to be honest he didn't really care. He wanted to go back to the Parts and Services Room to be alone like always, but for some reason…he didn't have the heart to leave. "I mean, I just-so-happened to bump into YOU and all it's been is "bla bla bla bla BLA"! What do YOU do to entertain children? Talk 'em all to SLEEP?"
"I don't get to entertain children very often, thanks. Most of them are afraid of me."
Immediately, Golden Freddy stopped laughing, internally scolding himself for that wisecrack he'd pulled. "Oh, uh…sorry. S-sucks to be you, I guess." he stuttered before turning his back and attempting to leave the Puppet behind. However, Puppet wasn't going to have any of it apparently. He quickly went after Golden Freddy and stood in front of him with a pleading look on his face that made Golden Freddy feel…sorry?
"C-can't we just talk for a few minutes?" the marionette said in a pitiful tone, "Please? It's so lonely in the Prize Corner, no one really ever comes to visit me. They think I'm weird and that I talk too much. You don't think I talk too much, do you, Goldie? I don't think I talk too much, I don't really say that much at all. Maybe because before I can get a word out they shy away like I'm some…" he paused and gazed down at the floor as black tears filled his eyes, "…like I'm some monster." After a few moments he looked back up into Golden Freddy's eyes with a heart-broken expression. "You…y-you don't think I look like a monster…do you?"
Golden Freddy wasn't sure what to do then. Usually he'd say something mean just to get the person or animatronic to leave him alone, but as much as he tried saying something now, it was as if his voice-box couldn't put together what he was attempting to say.
"…No…? You…y-you don't," he replied in a quiet tone as a new kind of guilt washed over him. It made him feel even more sorry for the Puppet. "I—I-I-I'll stay and talk with you if you want, but only for a few minutes, after that, I'm gone." Puppet smiled as he wiped the tears from his eyes, and for the first time in years, Golden Freddy actually felt happy. Happy that he could make someone else smile again.
"Thank you, Goldie,"
"You're welcome, I guess. But don't call me that, it'll never catch on and it sounds kinda dumb if ya ask me."
"Oh, okay, sorry, Golden Freddy."
~ ~ ~ ~
(out of the flashback)
~ ~ ~ ~
A sharp pain shot through Golden Freddy's robotic-heart, making him have to lean against the table that Puppet was still passed out on. The pain he was feeling wasn't the same kind Puppet had been feeling almost an hour earlier…
…it was from remembering the first moment Golden Freddy and Puppet met…
…it was from knowing that their friendship might all just be a memory in a short matter of time…
…it was from knowing that Golden Freddy was probably about to lose his best friend…
…and he never got to say goodbye.
In a panic, the bear grabbed Puppet's shoulders and shook him in a last attempt to revive him. "PLEASE, PUPPET!" he cried out in fear and devastation, trembling as he finally broke inside. "D-don't leave me! PLEASE! I…I-I need you…you're my best friend! PLEASE! JUST WAKE UP! PLEASE!" he stopped in realization that he might just be doing more harm than good and lied Puppet back down gently. Puppet didn't respond, he didn't move, he didn't breathe, he didn't twitch. Nothing. Golden Freddy broke down crying, finally letting go of all the fear and devastation he'd kept inside inside of himself for so many years.
"No…" he sobbed as he held his best friend's hand for what he thought would be the last time. "Why? WHY?! W-what did he do to deserve this?! WHAT DID HE DO?!"
The world around Golden Freddy went silent and still, just like the Puppet was at this very moment.
It'd happened again…Golden Freddy had lost another friend…another animatronic he was so close to.
"…G…G-Goldie…?"
Golden Freddy jumped to his feet as a wave of relief and happiness washed over him and stood over the Puppet. Had he just talked?! "Y-yes, Puppet! I'm…" Goldie quickly wiped the black liquid out of his eyes and off of his face in an attempt to sound like his usual mature self—but DANG it was hard at that moment. "I-I-I'm right here! It's me! Golden Freddy!"
At the sound of Golden Freddy's voice, Puppet slowly opened his eyes. He was weak, no doubt about that, but he was so happy he was home. "G-Goldie!" he exclaimed as loud as he could in his state. "I'm back! What happened? Wh-where's Mari? Are you alright?! Why're you crying?! How'd I get in the Parts and Services Room?! Where's—uh…I'm talking too much again, aren't I?" "Puppet, you can talk as much and as loudly as you want to." Golden Freddy assured with a tight hug for his friend. "You have no idea how much I've missed you! You were so close to…actually, uh…never mind on that last part, but I missed the heck outta you!"
"You were gonna say I was so close to dying, weren't you, Goldie?"
"…Wellll, yes."
Puppet chuckled. "Yeah," he said as he hugged Golden Freddy in return. "I know…oh! By the way! I flew! Twice! Well," slowly sitting up, Puppet crossed his legs and giggled at the memory of the first times he'd ever flown by himself, "they were both disastrous and I almost lost my life each time, but…I never stopped thinking about you the whole time I was out there, Goldie. I really didn't." "What?!" Golden Freddy exclaimed in shock. "Oh, well, uh…thanks, and congrats for flying! I kinda wish I was there to see you probably freak out."
"Which I did…I missed you more than the ground, by the way." "No, I missed YOU more!" "No way! Oh, come here, weirdo!"
~ ~ ~ ~
After those few days of being lost, Puppet was finally back with his friends…with Mari…with Foxy who he annoyed ten times more than usual for the next few weeks…with Golden Freddy…but most of all…
…Puppet had been reunited with his family.