Happy Halloween! This is a sequel to The Alleyway and the Closet, so make sure to read both of those beforehand. Enjoy!

The Lullaby

Chapter One

The Puppet woke from his sedated stupor and realized he was being swallowed whole.

The darkness was closing in and there was only a small opening that was quickly closing. Now he realized with horror that he was being trapped inside. He couldn't remember what had gotten him here. There was a blackout where time was missing, but regardless he knew he was in danger. He had to get free.

In a frenzy he pressed his legs to the back of the cavity and shoved himself forward. His head went through first, freeing his mask from harm, then his arms followed as he clawed down at the exterior. Panicked chiming and rapid music spilled out of him as he become more aware of his situation. These warnings fell on deaf ears and his captor only noticed that he was beginning the free him. In response, his captor gave a soft shushing from the microphone clasped in its hand. It was like it believed that it could quiet him down and coax him back into its belly by that alone. He would not fall for it.

In a smooth motion he was out to his chest and pressed down, one hand on its belly, one on its gaping mouth, intending to free himself for good. Or he would've, if not for the opening suddenly closing on him. He could feel it tightening around his chest with an intense pressure as he continued trying to climb out. He was so close to freedom as the closure tightened on him. Something cracked deep inside Marionette's chest and his music cut off with a terrible wail. He hadn't felt that much pain since he had still been alive. Since he felt that agonizing pressure on his head. This time the pain wasn't halted by the mercy of unconsciousness.

For a few agonizing minutes he was trapped there in the opening. His chest pulsed in pain as the parts inside stuttered and cracked together. The bear held him tightly as it reached forward with its free hand and grabbed onto his wrist. It then started to open again so that it could force him back inside as it tugged back at his arm with another shush. It must've assumed that it had broken him enough to keep him in, but Marionette would not go quietly into the darkness.

All at once, he ignored the pain in his chest and shoved himself out, smoothly slid out of the bear, and collapsed to the floor in front of it. He then proceeded to crawl along the tile floor to get away from it. He couldn't levitate in such a damaged state and was in too much of a panic to even consider how pitiful it looked. The bear was trying to stand behind him to follow as he made it down the hall. He could see the back door and knew he could escape. It was so close.

He reached up for the knob as he heard footsteps closing in…

With a breathy gasp of static, Marionette awoke on the couch, clutching a drawing pad so tightly that the papers crinkled underneath his fingers. He stared ahead at the television which was rattling out a commercial for some sort of laundry product. He recognized the sound of footsteps and sat upwards abruptly, looking down past the couch. Instead of the trap he expected to be approaching, there was Mike Schmidt, fully dressed in his uniform and entering the kitchen to pour a thermos of coffee. It had felt so real, but it was all a figment of the past.

In reality, it was just a normal evening at his new home and Mike was about to leave for work. The Puppet had been living with the security guard who rescued him for nearly two months now. After the first week or so they had bypassed the last of any barriers and had begun speaking to each other, and life together had only gotten more comfortable since then. Learning to deal with the memories of that horrible night had gotten easier with Mike's support and, within a few days, the Puppet had started to feel almost brand new. This was the first nightmare he had since then, and it felt confusingly out of place considering how much better he had been doing.

Trying to ignore it, he rose from the couch and followed Mike into the kitchen. During the week, the human had secured a security guard job at a nearby mall that stretched from ten in the morning to five in the evening. On the weekends, he worked a different security guard position from six to one in the morning, which was what he was getting ready for now. Marionette sidled beside him to watch as he closed the thermos.

"It should be an early night. If I'm lucky, I'll be out by Midnight and maybe we'll salvage the evening," Mike remarked. It was clear that he wasn't exactly thrilled about going in to work. He still managed to shoot the puppet a playful look. "Maybe we'll stay up the rest of the night watching whatever cheesy horror movie we can find on?" The Puppet trilled lightly and nodded, but he noticed something was amiss. "Something's up. You're not usually this silent. You okay?" Only then did the puppet realize that he hadn't said anything and corrected it.

"No," Marionette answered. Mike quirked a brow. "…By which I mean, no, nothing's wrong. I must've fallen asleep and I'm still a little… Sluggish." It wasn't entirely a lie, he had just chosen to leave out a few facts.

"Well, get your sleep now, because we might have a long night in store," Mike playfully remarked. At least he sounded to be in a good mood, and the prospect of a long evening together sounded nice. The Puppet wouldn't deny that he was very fond of Mike. So much so, in fact, that he had to fight the urge to stop him from leaving. He wanted to keep him to himself, but he knew that he couldn't, and instead escorted him to the door. "If something happens and I get stuck pulling an all-nighter, I'll ditch. So, in the meantime, try to take it easy."

Though with that comment alone- Marionette hesitated behind him- he knew that Mike must've realized everything wasn't well. The Puppet pulled himself together enough to slip forward and wrap his arms around his human companion, punctuating their goodbye in one last embrace. "Don't be too late," he murmured with a chime. "I get lonely without you."

He could hear Mike's heartrate start to quicken and trilled low in his chest. This had become a new habit, where when they got too close Mike's pulse would get faster. It certainly didn't feel like a frantic, frightened heartrate either. It gave Marionette ideas about a closeness that would never be but pleasant enough to imagine. Still, Mike returned with a one-armed embrace, and then was gone out the door. The Puppet was left alone.

The things Marionette did to pass the time were mundane. Yet after the history he had these basic things seemed so nice. Years ago, he had been able to give gifts to and entertain children, but that was lost when the toys were retired and deconstructed. Except himself, of course. Then he had spent years simply hiding in the cracks and crevices of the pizzeria as it reopened and closed, was repaired and fell apart, and hid without being seen so that he might survive another day. This meant that he had little time to do much other than wait for nighttime and even then, he needed to be careful.

In contrast, everything at Mike's apartment was a matter of choice. If he wanted to read, he could. If he wanted to draw, then he could do that too. If he wanted to watch people and cars pass by in the glow of the setting sun, then he could do that too. All these things seemed so inconsequential, but it was a matter of existing with the sole goal of being happy. No worrying about death or fear of being caught and dismantled, Marionette could exist quietly and comfortably, and that was something that he wanted for so long. After all, it was all a matter of buying time until his human companion got home.

And then midnight came.

The Puppet always got a buzz around Midnight. Like an animatronic second-wind that used to come when they were able to wander the pizzeria. Now, at the apartment, he was still capable of feeling it. This energy had turned into excitement and planning the evening that was sure to follow. Mike was a night owl, so he was sure to stay awake later than expected, and they could take careful advantage of that time. It was shortly after midnight and he was fussily moving things on the coffee table when he heard something peculiar.

It sounded at first like a distant chiming noise. Then it began to grow into music box music, which would have startled him if not for the song. Instead of the accursed one made to put him to sleep, it was a familiar tune that he recognized of somber hope. The saddened joy of when friends had to be separated and converted into a melody. He hadn't heard that song since the night that he had lost the others. It was the song of his friends and Marionette felt his strings tighten in longing as he realized what it meant. She came back for him.

He didn't know what he would do, but he had to see her, and he promptly tossed aside the books in his hands and approached the window. He could hear her outside as he looked through the blinds.

…But it wasn't her standing on the sidewalk underneath the window. Illuminated in the glow of the streetlight was a black figure staring up with a single eye.

It was the black bear.

In an instant, the Puppet was broken from his trance and jolted back, landing on the couch. He crawled over it, over the armrest, and skirted into the bedroom where he proceeded to hide behind the bedroom door. The panic was immediate. He struggled to keep himself quiet and suppress any desire to scream in horror or static in warning. It was out there; the black bear had found him. He didn't know how it possibly could've or how nobody saw it on the road, but it was out there waiting for him. It was only now that he realized it had started the same trick as last time: coaxing him in with their song, using 'Grandfather's Clock' to incapacitate him, and then trying to trap him.

Now it stood outside and Mike was long gone. He was trapped. Worse still, Mike might've had an apartment on the second floor, but it was one that had been fashioned from a hotel and thus there were outside stairs that led right to the front door. If it had made it this far from Freddy's, then it could surely climb a set of stairs to get to him. The doors wouldn't hold it back. Panicked, he stayed still, waiting, and listened carefully as the music abruptly stopped. Now he didn't know where it was, and he was stuck in place. He was at the borderline of a breakdown once again; how could he fight something that could instantly put him to sleep and trap him?

Marionette had a horrible feeling that once it trapped him there would be no coming back out either. He would forever be confined in that accursed bear. That bear that was currently outside, that could be anywhere.

He didn't know how long it was before he heard something at the front door. In the dread he was in, Marionette could think of nothing more than escape, and quickly moved under the bed to hide. His internal works sputtered and ground together as he looked out from the safety of the floor. He could hear the front door easily open, he could hear the footsteps, and then he heard-.

"I'm home! Sorry I'm a little late, but I had to hang out until the next shift got there. They've been having a problem with kids spray painting the back of the building. Like a guy with a flashlight's going to stop them," Mike said as he shut and locked the door. He hung up his jacket and looked around. "Stripes?" The Puppet tried to speak, but all the came out was a garble of static and chimes. Thankfully Mike was at least able to locate him, as he sent a confused double take into the bedroom and then came in. He knelt and looked under the edge of the bed. "What's going on? Why are you under here?"

"Living room-!" Marionette choked out. "Living room- window- that way-!" The security guard did as told and headed out to the window and looked out.

"…I don't see anything," Mike called back. "Was someone out there watching the window or something?" Yet the Puppet was simply frantic about the fact that the bear was now gone. He clamored out from under the bed and rushed out beside Mike. He then began to stare through the window. There was nothing there.

"I-I saw it!" Marionette cried with growing static. He pointed at the spot where the black bear had stood. "It was right there! The black bear- the bear trap- it came back for me! The music-!" Then all at once, his voice was lost to the abrupt and rapid chiming of 'Pop Goes the Weasel', which managed to drown everything else out. Mike could only stare as the striped one began to move in circles, clutching his head, and slowly working himself into a fit. Then he decided to act.

"Hey, hey, easy," Mike coaxed as he reached for the Puppet's shoulders and stopped his frantic movements. "Let's just calm down for a second, okay? It's not out there now." The animatronic's music sputtered and skipped as its fear grew. "It's not outside the front door either, so whenever it is, it's not outside. Just sit down, okay?" While Marionette didn't want to sit, he did so at the human's insistence. He promptly clung to his companion's side and buried his mask into his shoulder. "Just tell me everything that happened, and we'll figure this out."

"I heard it playing music outside and saw it there, then I hid, and the music stopped," Marionette babbled out, "and you came home."

"Is there any chance that you could've seen a hallucination of it?" Mike was rewarded with what sounded like an exasperated huff. "I'm just asking because I've seen those working at Freddy's. I believe you saw it, but I wanted to make sure."

"It couldn't have been… At least… I don't think it could've been…" Yet as he thought of it further, maybe Mike was correct in questioning it. After all, how would a good sized animatronic walk all the way from Freddy's to here while completely unscathed? Someone would have noticed it. Even if this side of the apartment building was mostly vacant, there had to be cars driving around who could've spotted the bear on the side of the road. Not to mention how it could've tracked him this far. "Could I- Am I so unhinged that I could imagine that?!"

"Hey, I'm not unhinged, and I've seen eyeless Bonnie popping up in the pizzeria's office before," Mike pointed out. He could tell that the other was distressed and cupped his mask, raising it up so that the Puppet would look at him. "But I believe you. I don't want to, I don't want to even think of that thing out there, but I believe you. So… So, what we're going to do is shut the curtains, lock all the doors and windows, and I'm going to stay up as long as I can to keep an eye out."

He drew himself back from the Puppet's clinging grasp and went to make sure everything was locked. There were no signs of the black bear as Mike checked the windows and door. Even stepping out of the front door and looking around revealed nothing out of sorts. He couldn't hear any music either, which he took as a good thing. This didn't mean that he totally believed the bear was out there or not- he honestly wasn't certain either way- but it did mean that nothing was immediately breaking down the door. He locked the front door and headed back into the living room.

The Puppet was clutching one of the couch pillows tightly to his chest. The sheer stress portrayed on his mask showed that he had not calmed down at all. Mike sat down alongside him and reached out to put a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't see anything outside, so whatever it was it's gone now," he reassured. Dark fingers only dug tighter into the pillow as low static began to grow. "Let's just watch a movie and try to distract ourselves, alright?" the security guard offered as he turned on the television. He then began for something to ease the mood.

Needless to say, the night had been completely derailed. While Mike did stay awake with Marionette, it was clear that the animatronic was struggling to calm himself down. Though eventually it did start to grow easier, and that was only because he began to talk himself into the belief that maybe it had just been a hallucination. By time Mike had nodded off on the couch, Marionette was finally comfortable enough to be alone. He watched the television with limited interest before scooting closer and resting his head on the other's shoulder. Maybe he would rest too. Maybe he could let his guard down.

From his internal clock he knew if had just turned two when suddenly everything changed once more. The cheesy, soap opera like film that had come on the television was lulling him into a false sense of security. He turned his mask further into the human's shoulder and began to relax.

The moment he started to cross into sleep, he heard the music again, and it was louder than ever.

The Puppet straightened abruptly and pressed back into the couch as he looked around wildly. The music was nearby and, again, it was that familiar tune trying to coax him in. He wouldn't fall for it a third time.

"It's all in your head. It's all just a nightmare," he tried to rationalize. The sound of heavy footsteps only punctuated the music and he looked towards the front door. The sound of his own music started to grow, and he struck his own chest to stop it. It barely managed to work- in all honesty, he might've only regained silence was out of the fear of being spotted. His mind was racing; he wanted to wake up Mike, but he now couldn't be sure if it was in his head or not. He heard something shuffling outside the front door and finally broke down. Silently, he grabbed Mike's shirt and shook his frantically.

Mike woke up with a sputter. "What- What's going on?!" he blurted out along with a groggily confused look. He straightened and looked to Marionette, confusion and maybe the slightest bit of accusation in his gaze. Marionette tried to speak, but his defenses were too high, and his voice had been stolen. Mike looked like he was about to question him, mouth opening to speak and brows furrowed, but he didn't.

Instead, the security guard slowly turned his head. His gaze crossed the living room before looking back towards the front door. It was now that the Puppet's horror increased tenfold, because he knew the human heard it too.

Slowly, quietly, Mike rose from the couch and started to approach the front door. There was a low thump from beyond it, along with the continuing music box melody trickling through. His footsteps were just quiet enough to not be detected while his own breathing sounded so loud in his ears. He then leaned in and peered through the peephole. A black bear with a single eye stared back.

Most of Mike's thoughts were overtaken by as many swears as he could fit into them. He took a hesitant step back. "It's a recolored Freddy! How in the hell did that thing even get here?!" the man silently asked as he took another step. The floor squeaked underneath his foot. Immediately there was a heavy thump on the door. The bear heard him and now it wanted inside. Frantic, Mike turned to Marionette and silently pointed to the bedroom. The Puppet vanished from the spot.

"How the-?!" Looking back, Mike could now see Marionette in the bedroom, pressed back near the windows. "What- Forget it! Focus, Schmidt!" Another loud bang shook the door which wobbled flimsily. It wasn't going to hold, and Mike quickly hurried into the bedroom before shutting and locking the bedroom door. He then made a move for the closet, which the Puppet quickly moved inside of and huddled into the back of. "You just stay here and hide," Mike whispered as he moved things around. He then found what he was looking for: his crowbar. The weight of it in his hand with a comfort. "I'll listen at the door."

Marionette grabbed his wrist and shook his head. It was clear that he didn't want Mike to leave.

"I need to listen to where it is, and if it gets in here I can fight it back," he assured as he lifted the crowbar. If anything, Marionette only looked more horrified by the prospect. "While I distract it, you need to get out-." A loud banging interrupted him as the front door was broken in. The security guard winced at the sound; it was just as powerful as the other animatronics were. Mike slowly opened his eyes again to look down at Marionette. He was trembling in fear and purple tears were beginning to bubble forth. They had only started a few moments before, so he didn't know if it was because the bear broke in or the worry over his human.

Mike pointed into the bedroom and mouthed, "The window." He had a bad feeling that even though he said this, the Puppet wouldn't leave like he insisted. He then straightened and quietly approached the door to listen in closely.

There were heavy footsteps as the bear came into the apartment and wandered closer to the bedroom door. Mike bit down on his lip until his dried lips started to crack. It was closing in and he tightened his hands on his crowbar, waiting for it to try and barge through. It was so close that he could hear the static on the music box recording. It was so close; it could sense him. It was as though it could hear the purple tears beginning to roll down his mask.

But then it started to grow quieter as the bear turned and walked away. It was only once he heard it knocking over a glass that they realized it had bumped the coffee table. It was entering the living room. Licking his lips to try and wet them, Mike unlocked the door and inched it open. He could see the shadow of the bear from the lamp light and took a step out to peer around. The black bear was standing in front of the couch, staring at the corner by the window, where Marionette had previously been sitting. It was then that Mike had an idea. He slipped back into the bedroom and rapidly beckoned the Puppet.

The last thing the animatronic wanted was to go anywhere near the trap. Yet Mike kept beckoning insistently and finally the striped being slipped out and came closer. He clung onto the security guard's arm as he started to inch out. The bear was still staring towards the window, so this was the only chance they had to escape. He stared to lead the animatronic carefully towards the front door. The Puppet clung tightly, pressing his mask into the back of Mike's shoulder, and the human kept his crowbar close. Baby steps towards the front door, which was left agape, watching as the black bear twitched in place.

The car keys were sitting on the counter. Being a typical countertop, there was little doubt that the keys could make noise against it while lifted. He took a deep breath and pushed Marionette along without him. The animatronic was reluctant but did as the human insisted and backed towards the front door as Mike reached for the keys. He laid his hand on them and slowly closed his fingers on them, then lifted them with only the slightest jingle. The bear's head and neck jostled in a way that didn't seem natural and the human drew back his arm. He only noticed his container of pens and pencils when his elbow hit it and knocked it over.

The black bear turned on him and stared at the human. He vaguely noticed its yellow eye move to focus past him. As soon as it fell on Marionette, the black bear rushed them.

The thundering footsteps seemed too quick for the awkward body. It would be on them in seconds. Mike turned, dashing after the Puppet, and shoved the keys into his hand.

"Hurry! Get to the car!" Mike commanded. In an instant Marionette was over the railing and dropped to the first floor, where he rushed to the car. The security guard hurried down the staircase. At the bottom, he was greeted with a garbled screech, and looked back to see the black bear at the top of the steps. It dove down the stairs- not falling, but pouncing- and he barely scrambled out of the way as its heavy body landed in a heap. Mike made a break for the car. It was already unlocked and with the key in the ignition, with the Puppet in the passenger's seat. The 'Pop Goes the Weasel' returned and he was staring back at the bear.

The human got in and immediately threw it in reverse. The bear had gotten to its feet by then and was at the car's side in second. It landed a heavy blow on the driver's side window, fracturing it in a web of cracks, before the car careened out of reach. In moments the car was peeling down the road, with Mike checking the mirror as the Puppet looked out the back.

"Is it following us?! I can't see it!" Mike asked.

"Sti- Still foll-…" Marionette struggled to get his voice pulled together. "Still-! Try- Trying-!"

"Then we'll lose it!" The security guard took a sharp left and was soon heading deeper into town. Within a few moments he looked back and couldn't see the bear but kept driving ahead. It was a good five minutes of driving around before the silence was broken.

"What are we going to do?" Marionette quietly asked. "It knows where we live…"

"Which sucks, because someone's going to loot my apartment now. I hope that bear at least sticks around and keeps watch," Mike muttered. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the Puppet drop his head into his hands. "Hey, don't worry. Worst case scenario, they'll take the TV. We'll get insurance to replace it."

"Mike!" the Puppet cried brokenly with exasperation. He looked to the human with desperation. His mask was still stained and he still looked shaken. "Mike, right now?!"

"…Sorry." Mike was taken off-guard by the scolding. For a second, he could only stare back, but then returned to looking out at the road. The pinpricks of light in the animatronic's eyes flickered over the human before reading his body language. He immediately felt so much worse. Even though fearful and panicked, there was still guilt.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I'm just… I'm just not… Handling this well…" He looked down into his lap and shuddered. "I-I never thought it would find me, let alone come for me." Tears landed on his legs. "What do I do now?"

"Well, for one, we're not returning to the apartment," Mike assured. He had quickly brushed off the other's previous outburst. "We'll find somewhere else to hide out for the night. I can guarantee that thing won't be walking around by morning. We just have to make it tonight and then tomorrow I'll… I'll figure something out. If I got to take this crowbar back to Freddy's and shove it up the boss'- I will find a way to stop this godforsaken bear." He then dropped the crowbar between the seats and looked around at the town. They returned to silence for a few moments before the Puppet looked over.

"Mike… You don't have to deal with this. You've done so much for me… The bear doesn't want you! He wants me! If I… If I left, then you would be safe."

"We're not doing that," Mike shot down immediately. The Puppet seemed surprised by this and Mike glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "…Look, I…I care about you too much to abandon you now. As far as I'm concerned, you and I are in this together, no matter what that freakish bear does." There was his heart pounding again, but this time he wouldn't let it subdue him at all. He needed to say this. He reached out to grab for the Puppet's hand and take it in his own, to show the sincerity he couldn't with his eyes on the road. "I'm going to guard you with my life, Mari. I promise I'll keep you safe."

There was a moment of quietness. Then Marionette's hand squeezed his. "Mike…" His tone sounded thankful and naturally Mike expected the thanks. So, he was caught off guard when instead the Puppet said, "You're wonderful."

All at once a flood of warmth and endorphins spread down Mike's spine. It was a completely different kind of sensation than he expected, but something about hearing that- about how much adoration poured from the other's voice- made him feel exhilarated. It contrasted strangely with the direness of the situation. Something was trying to hunt down and trap Marionette and it wasn't afraid of tearing through Mike in the process, yet here he was standing loyally beside the Puppet, and he wanted nothing in return. He was risking his life to protect his animatronic. Perhaps he did care too much.

He had to try and get ahold of himself. "On the plus side, I haven't had a good adrenaline rush in a few weeks. Maybe this'll pull me out of my rut," Mike jokingly remarked. This got a light chime of amusement out of the Puppet, who still held onto his hand as though holding onto his last shred of sanity. The security guard looked away and back to the road. Back to reality and to the task of finding someplace where they could go. Then it struck him at once that there was only one option. "I have an idea of where to go, but it means we're going to have to get chummy with a friend of mine."

The Puppet's hand tightened. He didn't exactly like the idea of presenting himself to a human who he didn't trust. It wasn't as though he could protest when they were already out of options.

"His name is Fritz and he used to work at Freddy's, so he knows about animatronics, and he knows about you because I needed his help in repairing you. He's got a house with a guest room, he lives alone, he's not going to turn us in to anyone; Fritz is our best option," Mike listed out.

"Oh… Him," Marionette said unenthusiastically. The security guard recognized that unenthused, though knowing tone.

"You remember Fritz?" he asked in confusion.

"He used to work the nightshift before the pizzeria was closed down and I was taken to be dismantled with the other Toy animatronics. I only vaguely remember him, but I assume he remembers me." How could he trust a man who thought he was a monster? Or how could a nightguard trust an animatronic that hunted him? He doubted Fritz was as understanding as Mike, and probably was apathetic to the business' crimes and cover ups if he had worked there long enough. He tightened his hand on Mike's. "He may not be as welcoming to me. While he was working there I and the other animatronics believed he was the murderer."

"He'll welcome us in, trust me. Fritz might've been oblivious to the situation before, but its become pretty clear that Freddy's shady past goes beyond animatronics. It roots itself directly into the owners. Hell, rumors are one of them died in a suit accident and was sealed up in a back room somewhere to hide the evidence!" The Puppet stayed silent. "If I have to pay Fritz to get him to agree then I will. He won't turn us away." Or he hoped not, because eventually he would have to stop and get gas and he didn't really want to stop the car with the bear prowling the streets.

Marionette leaned closer, still holding Mike's hand, and pressed his mask into the human's upper arm. His free hand also slid around the arm to hold him closer. Mike looked down at him sympathetically.

Even if Fritz didn't turn them away, there was a very real threat that could be following them even now, and Mike had no idea on how to stop it.