The robots on-stage stirred as midnight struck. Jeremy's spirit began feeling through the metal cogs and springs, warming them up for another evening of hunting. Susie and Gabriel did the same on his left while Fritz could be heard at the other side of the room moving behind his purple curtain. They were all becoming increasingly impatient as the days wore on...it had been far too long for their revenge to remain undealt. They knew their killer was there every night, watching them as they tried to move to his office, but their efforts continued to be fruitless.

They always knew it was him when they watched frozen, unable to move as he walked to the back of the building for his nightly shifts. He'd always give that awful, taunting smile as he went, sometimes a wave or a greeting to accompany it. It only made them loathe him more. They knew for certain it was him because Charlie told them so. The puppet who gave them this new life. He had gotten her too. Not that she knew why.

And so, for six hours they persisted, trying as much as they could to reach that office, but once again, 6:00 AM came, destroying their chances. They were so close that time too.

Jeremy felt an intense fury boil within him as the man and his partner opened up the door and strolled past him where he stood just outside it, frozen and helpless. He could feel the others stirring with that same rage as the two left the building. Was there any point in all this?

Would they ever win?

...

William smirked, glancing back through the glass doors at the robots stuck in place as he and Dana left the pizzeria. He was quite satisfied with what data he collected at the restaurant-the animatronics were quite lively during his hours spent there, nearly breaking into the office on several occasions. His partner was entirely convinced that they were just having malfunctions, but...he knew what was really going on.

William had to admit, the robots were seriously deadly and would grow more aggressive as the weeks progressed. He had even considered bringing the handpistol he kept in his workshop but had thus far decided against it. He didn't want Allan freaking out on him for that...it was something he would do.

He flipped through his nightly notes as he walked to his car, Dana beside him finally unplugging her nose. "Gah-I'm glad Allan's got that new location ready for us tomorrow. I can't stand the scent anymore," she said with a disgusted look on her face. William chuckled with a grin and nod. For weeks, their boss had hired multiple cleaning companies to do thorough work at the restaurant because of the mysterious and horrendous smells arising there. It would work initially, but the stench would always return.

The employees considered themselves lucky that Allan had decided to open up a new location in the center of town months ago-they had no idea their current building would be rendered useless due to smells. About a week prior, it went into operation, and William and Dana were scheduled to start working there that week, although he had been changed to doing night and dayshift through a week-alternating timetable.

He found it amusing that his coworkers thought they were escaping the stenches of the previous pizzeria for the new one when they planned to bring the animatronics with them for spare parts. They had no idea that the robots were the source of the malodor. Oh well. Fine by him. The place they were moving to was nearly half an hour closer to home for him anyhow.

William unlocked his car, waving at Dana as she pulled out of the parking lot. Tossing his notes onto the passenger seat, he made the two-hour trek home and went immediately to his office-the others were still asleep and he didn't want to wake them up.

He started filing various documents when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's Allan."

"Morning, sir," William said, cradling the phone between his ear and shoulder as he continued working.

"Sure. Listen, since you're on both shifts at the new place, I want ya to be keepin' an eye out for suspicious characters. I don't want another police problem on our hands," Allan said, voice static-y on the other end.

"Did something prompt your concern, sir?" William asked, eyes skimming various pieces of mail. "Yeah actually," the manager replied. His eyebrow raised in curiousness as he listened further. "Some guy's been calling me since all the investigation stuff happened, won't leave me alone. Can't block his number either, he keeps callin' from different phones," Allan continued.

William's attention perked. "Do you have a name for the caller?" He asked. "Nah. Apparently he's been callin' Johnny too, asking all sorts a weird questions about the incident. Not gonna lie, it worries me a bit. Anyway. Keep an eye on stuff, alright?" The man finished, obviously getting increasingly uninterested in their talk. "Yes sir. Have a good day," William said, hanging up the phone.

Interesting. He wondered who this man could be. He'd have to be careful...especially since he already had some plans for the new pizzeria. He would need to remain unnoticed by all the right people.

He continued sorting through his files when the phone rang again. "Hello?" He asked. "Mr. Afton?" The man on the other end questioned. "To whom you're speaking," William answered.

"Mr. Afton, we wanted to update you on the progress of your property. Electrical systems are in place and are at full functionality. You're good to begin interior construction," the caller said. William smiled. "Thank you so much. My check should be in later this week," he spoke.

"Thank you sir. Pleasure doing business with you," the man said, hanging up. William's grin remained as he glanced at the blueprints for 'Circus Baby's Pizza World' on the wall. Plans were truly in motion now.

He picked up a pen, about to start on some business documents when the office door opened. "Hey honey," Clara said, hair still somewhat messy as she stood in her robe and slippers. "Morning," William said, looking over at her with a smile. "Could you join us for breakfast this morning, or do you want to go to bed?" She asked. The man put the pen down, feeling how heavy his eyes were getting. "Sure, darling," he said, standing, blinking away the sleepiness. It wasn't every day he got to spend an early meal with his family.

He put a hand around her waist as they walked to the kitchen. Elizabeth and Michael were already seated and eating pancakes. William took a seat next to his daughter, ruffling her hair with a chuckle while Clara went back to attending to the grittle. The girl groaned, using one hand to try and smooth her hair back down. "Daaaaad," she whined. "What?" He teased.

Michael chuckled quietly to himself as he watched them from the other side of the table. His father looked at him from the corner of his eye as Clara set a plate of pancakes at the center of the table. "Say, Mike, my new franchise is ready for design work. Why don't you come with me this weekend to help work on it?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.

The teen looked up, glancing to the side as if to make sure it was really him his father was speaking to. "Uh...really?" He asked quietly. "Sure. If you ever decide you want to take up the business, it'd be helpful to have some experience," William said, pouring himself a glass of orange juice. "Um. Yeah, okay," his son replied, slightly cheerier. The man nodded with a smile as Clara took a seat beside him. "You've changed your schedule though, haven't you honey?" She asked, reaching for a fork.

He nodded. "Yep. Got some new things to do," he said. "Sounds fun," his wife said. "I kind of liked having you home more though," she said with a teasing grin, giving him a kiss on his cheek. He chuckled with a grin. "Me too."

But, he thought to himself as they started in on breakfast. This new schedule meant new opportunities. And he was not going to let those go to waste. No.

There were some birthday boys and girls that were in for a real treat.