The Great Goldie!

"Okay guys," said Mike when he finished locking up that night. "I've been hearing a lot about surprises tonight so let's see what all the fuss is about."

There was no immediate response. The dining room was empty and the curtains for the stage were closed. It only added to Mike's anticipation of what was coming.

"Aye, I'm a bit curious meself," said Foxy, stepping out from his curtain. "I gather there's a fair bit-a fuss goin' on tonight."

"You gather right. Goldie tells me she's got a surprise tonight, Chica says Bonnie has one. I honestly don't know what to expect."

Foxy blinked. "Isn't that the point of a surprise, lad?"

"I…" Mike thought about that. "Fair point."

"Well, you are certainly right, gentlemen." Freddy emerged from the maintenance room with a twinkle in his eye. "This is an occasion we have been very much lookin' forward to. History in the makin' for Freddy Fazbear's."

"An event," continued Chica, wearing an excited smile, "brought to you by the finest entertainers this sleepy town has ever seen."

Mike and Foxy exchanged an unsure look with each other. What was all of this leading up to?

"But now, without further ado, the time has come for me to welcome tonight's very special performance," continued Freddy. "She's been retired for some time now, but I can assure you, the years have done nothing to dull the flare she's always had. She was the showrunner for Freddy's back in the old days and now she's back, in a brand new way!

Chica sounded like she could hardly contain her excitement. "Ladies and gentlemen, it is our immense pleasure and pride to present… the Great Goldie! Magician Extraodinaire!"

The curtains swung open, revealing a large figure dressed in a sparkling purple cape and matching hat. With a dramatic whirl, it turned, revealing Goldie but looking much different. She was still an animatronic in a suit but the suit itself looked brand new. It sparkled like her cape, the synthetic fur smooth and pleasing to the eye. There were even actual eyes in the head now, blue like her brother's and she twirled a silver top cane in her hand.

Mike stared openly, his smile growing into a grin. He could hardly believe it and by the look of it, neither could Foxy. But both of them were clapping and cheering.

"Thank you, thank you everyone!" She bowed to them. Even the movement seemed less jerky. "It's absolutely wonderful to be back onstage again after so long!"

"So this is what you were getting delivered!" realised Mike. "Goldie, you look amazing!"

"Don't I just?" She flourished her cape again. "However, I still appreciate hearing it from you, my friend. Tonight, I shall perform for you illusions to amaze and feats to astound! But I cannot do it alone. Chica, if you would?"

"Thank you. Yes, every magician whoever performed is only as good as their assistant. A humble partner, helping make the magic real and who is not a magician's greatest companion if not a rabbit?" She tittered in delight. "So assisting the Great Goldie tonight is none other than our very own Bonnie!"

Everyone looked expectantly at the stage. There was no sign of movement, nor any indication Bonnie had heard them.

Chica cleared her throat. "I said… Bonnie!" Still nothing. "Bonnie? That's your cue."

"I'm not coming out," came her very irritated voice.

"Bonniiiiieee, you said you'd do it," replied Chica in a sing-song voice.

"You can't make me!" she insisted.

"Oh can't I?" Chica's smile became a little more sinister. "Do you remember that little poem you wrote about a certain lead guitarist you admire?"

A moment of silence passed. "You wouldn't."

"It was so sweet though. I think it would be a shame not to share it with everyone else, don't you?"

"No! Okay, fine, I'm coming out!" Bonnie stomped out from backstage and stood next to Goldie. "There! Happy?"

Once again, Mike was astounded. It seemed that Chica had made Bonnie follow through on her penalty from a few nights ago after stealing her guitar because here she was, as promised, in a dress. A form fitting velvet one that trailed down to her heels, with the straps on her shoulders showing off her arms which were folded in front of her.

"Oh wow." Mike stared openly. "You did it. You actually went and did it."

"I don't make empty promises, Mike," said Chica brightly. "Doesn't she look lovely?"

Bonnie's face flushed but she didn't say anything. She just kept her arms folded and grumbled under her breath.

"Well, I'll be a parrot's uncle," remarked Foxy. "Never woulda known, even after all this time, the truth ya try so hard ta hide." He grinned cheekily. "Ya really are a woman!"

She glared at him. "How about I come over there and make you into one too?!"

"Bonnie, no!" said Chica sternly. "You are not ruining that dress by fighting Foxy!"

"But Chicaaaaaa…!"

"No buts. You're just going to have to rise above it and behave yourself for now. I don't want to see a single tear in that dress tonight."

"Aye, Bonnie, rise above it. Ya know, like a real woman would," teased Foxy.

Bonnie clenched and unclenched her fists. It was clearly taking all of her self-restraint not to respond to Foxy's teasing. Chica shot him a stern look too and he held up his arms defensively.

"Oi now, don't round on me. This a rare opportunity I have here, ya can't expect me ta pass up on it," he protested.

"I can and you will. Because tonight, I get to be doing all of the teasing," she said with another giggle.

Foxy stared at her. "Yer really not as innocent as ya seem ta be, are ye lass?"

"My dear Foxy, I'm sure I have no idea what you mean," she said in a sweet tone.

"Dear god, I'm in hell," groaned Bonnie. "Well, at least it's not one of those sparkly swimsuits you seem some of them wear."

"See, Bonnie? There's always a bright side to everything," said Goldie.

"Yeah, yeah. It's a good thing you got that new suit. Maybe now your old one's gone it'll stop stinking up the back room," muttered Bonnie.

"Funny, I thought that was just Freddy's jokes," she quipped.

"Are we gonna do this or what?" asked Bonnie impatiently. "I thought this was supposed to be a practice show for the real thing."

"Wait, hold on. So… this isn't just something you're doing for fun?" asked Mike.

Golden shrugged. "Well, it is but at the same time, this does indeed serve a higher purpose. You don't think they just got me a new suit to make me feel better about myself, do you?"

"Does that mean you're actually…?" Mike looked at Freddy who gave an affirming nod. "No way! Goldie, that's fantastic news!"

"Now, don't get yourself too excited yet, Mike," said Freddy. "Aaron is still givin' the matter careful deliberation but Goldie approached him about it not too long ago and he didn't seem opposed to the idea. I believe however, with Goldie's new suit, we can fully expect her to be joinin' us onstage before long."

"He did seem sceptical especially with what's been happening recently, but I argued that it might do the restaurant good to bring back an old face from the past. A reminder of our better days. It might provoke some more pleasant memories from some of the older patrons to see me performing again," explained Golden.

"I think it's great either way," enthused Mike. "So what have you been working on?"

"Why don't my lovely assistant and I show you?" With that, she pulled out a deck of cards. "Now Bonnie, would you be so kind as to shuffle these cards for me?"

Bonnie raised an eyebrow. "Really? This trick? What, are you gonna be pulling me out of a hat next?"

Goldie laughed. "Isn't she a riot, folks?" She waited until Bonnie took the cards. "Now, can you confirm those cards haven't be tampered with in any way?"

"Sure, whatever."

"Thank you. Now, if you would give them back?" She spread them out in front of Bonnie. "Now, select any card here and don't tell me what it is. Pick it, remember it and put it back in the deck." She did so and Goldie shuffled them, quite impressively considering the suit's large fingers. "And… is this your card?"

Bonnie stared at it. "No."

"Really?" Goldie looked at it in confusion. "Oh, very well then. How about… this one?"

"Nope."

"Oh. This is uh… a little embarrassing." She spent a little more time picking the next one. "This one, it must be this one."

"Yeah, that's it!" Bonnie beamed, then added. "That's what I would be saying if it was, but it isn't."

"Oh this is ridiculous!" Goldie glared at the deck. "It's this deck's fault, it's a bad one! Well, I won't stand for it being here any longer! Alakazam!"

Her hands appeared to emit a bright flash and suddenly there were cards fluttering everywhere. Bonnie jumped back in shock as did everyone else. But Goldie remained immovable in the storm of cards floating to the ground. That was when they all saw one of the cards that literally was floating. It was levitating between her palms, emitting a faint blue light.

"I take it, from the way you're staring in utter amazement, that this is your card?" asked Goldie.

"… Yeah, that'll be it," she muttered.

"Well, we got there in the end." She clamped her hands together. There was another flash as she did. She opened her hands up and blew, paper petals scattering everywhere. She then took a seat on thin air, her feet not even touching the floor. "And believe me, that's only the start of it."

The rest of her show was Goldie's usual display of theatricality and a little bit of dramatics with Bonnie providing colour with her snark and sarcasm for Goldie to work off. She performed another version of the card trick with Chica, this time supplanting an egg that she pulled out from behind her ear.

"Chica! I had no idea you were expecting!" she enthused.

"Wh-what?!" Her face flushed. "No, that's not mine!"

"Chica, please! You'll give the poor child abandonment issues!" Then the egg cracked. "Congratulations, it's…!"

"My card!" she squealed in delight.

She interacted with each of them. With Freddy, he pulled a plush version of Bonnie out of his top hat to the abject horror of the genuine article. She challenged Foxy to a duel that resulted in turning his wooden sword to rubber and making his pirate popgun shoot flowers. Lastly, she called Mike up and asked to look at his phone.

"Hmm. That's odd. I thought you said you didn't have any money on your phone."

"I… I don't, why?" asked Mike.

"Just look." She held up the screen to reveal a single cent on it. She even let Mike touch the screen but it was only the screen. "Honestly, Mike, that is no place to be leaving money. Hold on, let me just…" She slid her finger across the screen and the coin moved with it, coming out of the top of Mike's phone and into her hand. "There you go, don't spend it all at once!"

Needless to say, they were all up on their feet and clapping by the end of it.

"That was a fine performance! Bravo, I say, bravo!" cheered Freddy.

"Thank you, thank you!" she said, bowing to them. "They packed all sorts of little goodies into this suit but don't expect me to reveal them."

"Aye that was grand!" Foxy said. "Ya must have missed it a great deal, performin' onstage." He gazed off into the distance. "I know I did. Seein' their faces light up, hearin' the cheers and the laughter…"

"… the looks of adoration, knowing it was you that helped to make their day," finished Goldie forlornly. "Yes, Foxy. I have missed it. More than I can really say." She looked down at her body, examining her arm. "I used to be envious of you for the existence that you have, in those bodies. In a way, I still do. But honestly? I don't really care if I never get a synthetic body. If I can have the chance to join you all onstage again, I'll be happy with that."

"Yeah." They were all surprised to hear Bonnie be the first to respond to that. "What? Just… when we were getting trained, I always figured that you'd be up there with us. It'd be neat if that would happen."

Goldie took her time answering. "Well… thank you, Bonnie. Coming from you, that means a lot. Really, it does."

"Yeah, whatever. You're welcome, I guess, but don't let it go to your head." Despite her words, her smile was sincere. "Okay, can I get out of this stupid dress now?"

"And you call me the pervert," remarked Mike.

"Yeah, you are because you immediately said that," countered Bonnie.

"I can't win with you, can I?"

"Nope. So, can I?" she asked Chica.

"I'm afraid not," she answered. "I said you had to wear it for the whole night and we're not finished with the whole night yet."

"Dammit," she muttered. "Well, so long as I'm not having to do more dumb stuff onstage, I guess it's not so bad."

"It really isn't, you know. You look absolutely beautiful, Bonnie," said Chica kindly. "I mean, you look beautiful anyway but this really exemplifies it."

She looked away when she blushed. "Chica…"

"It's true though. Don't you think so too, Foxy?"

"Aye, ya look pretty fetchin'," agreed Foxy.

"Not you too," she whined.

"You certainly do. This shows off a different side we don't often see, I think," put in Freddy.

"Okay, I get it."

"An attractive assistant alongside a good magician can really help bring the act together," voiced Goldie.

"Yeah, I get the message."

"I agree," said Mike. "I get that you're not comfortable wearing one but you look really great."

"Oh god just quit it, seriously! I get it, I'm hot! You can cut it out now!" Bonnie protested, though she was clearly working to keep a smile off her face while it turned a shade of blue.

"So when someone says how great you are at guitar, you're fine but you get all flustered when someone says you look pretty?" Mike laughed a little. "You're a mixed up egomaniac, Bonnie."

"I'm a mixed up person in general, deal with it," she retorted. "Can we move onto something else now?"

"Well, may I suggest a good old fashioned, friendly game of Monopoly?" asked Freddy. "I realise it's not as advanced as Mike's electronic games system but it has its appeal."

"A fair point, Freddy but I question the validity of putting the words 'friendly' and 'Monopoly' in the same sentence," said Goldie.

"Goldie has a point. I… still remember what Foxy did the last time we played it," said Chica quietly.

Foxy whipped his head up. "Oi! I'll admit I lost me temper but what do ye expect any self-respectin' pirate ta do when ya keep stealin' his booty?"

"That's capitalism for you," shrugged Mike. "But I guess Monopoly could be fun. It's been a while since I've played it."

"Better watch yourself. Freddy's a ruthless banker," warned Bonnie.

"Actually," said Golden suddenly, "before we do anything else, there's something I want to talk with you all about. It's… quite important."

Her voice was hesitant. When she was usually so confident in speaking, this was a subject of concern, one that Mike was first to pick up on.

"Goldie, what is it?" he asked.

"Don't worry, it's nothing bad. Well, it is but… it's something I've been keeping close to my chest for a long while. But I've kept enough hidden from you all and you've all given me a second chance when by rights you never should have. I vowed to my best friend that there would be no more secrets between us. It would be remiss of me if I didn't do the same for all of you. Please, take a seat. I think you might need to."

None of them said anything but it was clear they were worried about what she might have to tell them. Mike had his own suspicion about what it might be but he kept it to himself. She waited until they were all seated around her before continuing.

"So," she began, "I've mentioned before that I used to perform with a partner. His name was Spring Bonnie. Like our Bonnie here, he played guitar while I sang. We were something of a double act, sort of a mischievous scamp to my straight man. For a while, it worked out that way. But Spring always had… problems. His behaviour was erratic and unpredictable. One moment, he's laughing and joking along with it all. The next, he might seem like he's going to rip your head off. No matter how many diagnostics they ran or repairs they did, they could never work out what was wrong with him. But he was one of our main attractions and I didn't want to perform without him. He was like my brother. I suppose they expected me to be able to keep him under control and then they could always step in if things got out of hand. It worked, at first."

"Then I'm assumin' it didn't?" asked Freddy.

"Indeed. It all culminated in an event that became known as the Spring Incident. Our very own '87, back in '81." She took a moment before continuing. "It was a birthday party for this one boy. By that point, it seemed like Spring had actually turned a corner. He hadn't had an episode for about a month and so we weren't really keeping as close an eye on him as we should have. He was talking with one of the young boys. I don't know what happened but he started crying. Spring never liked it when they cried. He was trying to calm him down, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder. The next thing I knew…" She stared at her own hands. "They were around his neck. Spring was yelling at him to stop crying, Aaron and Sid were rushing over and I was… I just stood there and watched. I couldn't believe it. I just…"

She closed her fingers into a fist and her body shook. Freddy found her hand and Chica had stood up to put an arm around her. Both Foxy and Bonnie looked shocked. While Mike shared their feeling, a part of him wasn't completely surprised. Having personally met Spring Bonnie, he could definitely say he wouldn't put it past him to do something like that.

"Wow. I knew Spring was bad but… I had no idea he'd done something that bad," murmured Mike.

"It shocked me too. After that, they knew there was no chance of him ever really being 'fixed' so he was put out of commission permanently. Fortunately by that point, plans had already been finalised to move locations to here and we were able to close. With the announcement that the new performers would have the technical bugs worked out and giving it a new name and face, it didn't take long for the backlash to blow over. It was still a hefty backlash though and as you can see, some still remember it enough to bring it back again." She sighed. "Our franchise really doesn't have the best luck, does it?"

"Aye, that's one way-a puttin' it." Foxy frowned. "Not really sure how I feel about this Spring feller. I'm not sayin' ya didn't try ta help him before shuttin' him down but it still seems like a pretty big dive ta take."

"We did try, Foxy. I… I tried," she added sombrely. "It didn't work."

"Trust me, it really didn't," chimed in Mike.

"He… wasn't all bad, was he?" asked Chica.

She shook her head. "No, not at all. He had good taste in music. He always knew how to make me laugh. He was the only one who was, well, like me. We were developed alongside each other. The closest thing I have to a childhood friend. But not anymore…"

"What exactly happened when you went to find him then?" asked Freddy.

"He trapped us in an underground lab and tried to kill me while at the same time trying to convince Goldie to join in," said Mike bluntly.

"That… yeah, that is pretty messed up," agreed Bonnie. "But I gotta ask. Why tell us this now?"

"Because things looked bleak and hopeless then too, during the backlash we got. We didn't think we'd ever be able to move on from it, even with the new location and the new project. But even though it's not been perfect, it worked. Here you all are." Mike could hear the pride in her voice. "You're alive and you're living. We made it to this point, despite everything and we're going to make it again. I believe that and I'm going to be with you through it all. I promise you that. And like I said, I'm done keeping secrets from you all. Keeping things like that inside me got us to where we were a few weeks ago."

"Oh, Goldie…" Chica pulled her in a little closer.

Mike smiled proudly at her. Had someone told him a few weeks ago that this was the scene he would be seeing, he would have very much doubted it. Yet here she was. It really made him think…

"We very much appreciate your honesty, dear sister and your encouragin' words in this uncertain time," said Freddy kindly. "But let's try to turn our thoughts away from such things for the moment and have ourselves a little fun."

"That sounds like an excellent idea," agreed Goldie. "Let's get this game set up then."

"Um, you guys go on. I'll be with you in a sec," said Mike, rising from his seat.

"Everything okay, Mikey?" asked Bonnie.

"Yeah. Just… something I have to do first," he replied.

She shrugged. "Suit yourself. Don't be too long or we'll start without you."

"No, we won't," said Chica pointedly. "Take all the time you need, Mike."

He nodded gratefully and walked along to the security. He made sure he was alone first.

Mike pulled out his phone, looking again at the fateful text. He spent a long while taking in those words again, remembering how they'd first made him feel. Surprised. Terrified. Full of dread. He probably would have carried on as he had been, never replying to it but never deleting it either. A strong desire to run from his mistakes while holding onto the faint hope of possibly fixing them.

But he had had a lot of time to think over the past few weeks. Jeremy had given him some sound advice and just now, he couldn't help but feel inspired by Goldie. Despite her mistakes and shortcomings, she wasn't willing to run from them any longer. She was being completely open and honest with them all. The story about Spring Bonnie had proven that.

Foxy was another example. Even now, he received reminders about his biggest mistake and there was more than one occasion when it looked like he might buckle under the weight. Yet with their support and encouragement, he still found it within himself to keep smiling and laughing, in defiance of the despair that threatened to consume him.

The same could be said for every single one of them, Freddy, Bonnie and Chica too. Forced to hide, never being allowed to leave the pizzeria and live the lives meant for them, yet they still forged onward. They held onto the hope of something better and though they had faltered before, they'd always come back together. It really put Mike's troubles into perspective really.

Despite everything being against them, they managed it but they hadn't been alone. They'd found strength from those around them. If they could do it, why couldn't Mike? They wouldn't let him face it alone. None of them would. It was with this thought in mind that Mike finally typed out a response.

Hey Lidiya.

Sorry it took so long for me to reply, I had to take a while to think. Not much changed there, right? Also, sorry this is so late, I'm at work right now.

If you're still in town, then I think it'd be good if we met up too. A long time has passed and there's a lot we need to talk about. I don't have much going on throughout the day tomorrow. You just suggest a time and place and I'll be there.

He read over it a few times, checking it sounded okay and his finger hovered over the 'send' button. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and pressed it. A few seconds later, his phone confirmed the message had been successfully sent.

Mike let out another breath and put the phone back in his pocket, returning to the dining area. It was done now. The only thing he could do now was to wait and try his best not to think about it in the meantime. But sat here, surrounded by them all as they set up the board game, he didn't think that'd be much of a problem.


ST4RSK1MM3R: I know it's madness! I'm glad to be back. Sorry again for keeping you waiting so long.

Sonnie Celanna: High praise indeed. Thank you.

Monkey999Boy: Not again…

Lavender Hope: I do remember you and I very much appreciate it. Trust your feelings and I certainly shall.

Arc of Carona: Yes, he was.

Auto-Buscus: You often have conversations with younger guys about girls? XD
Well here it is!

DnB: I can see where your frustration is coming from and I will admit, typing stutters is a little annoying. But there's a reason for it: it's how he is. Stuttering when nervous is a very common speech impediment that affects many people, including myself. Showing his nervousness through description isn't good writing either. Show, don't tell as they say. Sorry it annoys you but for the foreseeable future, that's just part of his character.