The road home 6
Jeremy stared at the game board then at the row of bright red plastic hotels that, by magic, had sprouted up along two sides of the board and his poor little car was facing down a long row of expensive hotels and owned railroads. He sighed then looked at the pathetic amount of play money in his hands, all of twenty dollars then back at the Monopoly board. Only then did he recall the fox's warning about not playing Monopoly with the rabbit. Bonnie had a sneaky way of buying up property and railroads then putting up hotels.
He groaned then dropped the tiny pile of thin paper bills onto the board. "You win." Despite the faint irritation, he was a sore loser after all, he couldn't help but to smile when the rabbit's tail jerked to life and a broad smile split his muzzle.
Nora smirked from her spot on the couch, having long ago given up after seeing hotel after hotel pop up on the game board. "Don't be such a sore loser Jeremy."
"I'm not being a sore loser." he huffed, pushing his unruly hair back out of his eyes. "I just really suck at board games." they did have some back at Freddy's but Chica had eaten or partly eaten most of them. It made him wonder if the chicken-duck had some version of pica
The doorbell snapped him out of his thoughts. "Yes! Food's here!' he scrambled to his feet and darted for the door.
"Please tell me that you didn't order pizza." Ellie made a face. She couldn't take the smell or sight of pizza any more, not after having to eat it, see it or smell it nearly every day when the old restaurant was working and Jeremy got to bring home the extra pizzas that were destined for the trash.
"Nope, there's a new Chinese place down the street." He grinned, returning with a load of bulging bags from which heavenly smells emitted. He sat the bags on the only clear spot on the table only to grab them back when Bonnie went face first for the nearest one in fear he might accidentally eat the bag in his haste to get to the food. "Hey, take it easy." The rabbit stares at him then eyes the bags, inching closer and closer like an oversized inch worm.
He bites his lower lip to keep from laughing while digging out a carton of noodles and handing it over to the rabbit only to yelp and pull back when Bonnie all but snatched the container out of his hand, jaws crushing up the cardboard. He counts all his fingers just to make sure then shivers a bit. While he's sure Bonnie would never bite him on purpose, it's a startling reminder of how strong and fast the rabbit was in comparison. Especially when he was hungry.
Ellie can't help but to grimace at the mess, bits of chewed up cardboard and noodles everywhere. "I am not cleaning that. I'm a nurse, not a housekeeper." she joked.
"You should see the messes he makes when he's really hungry." He grimaced at the idea of having to get a second job just to feed the rabbit given how much food he could put down in a single sitting. "I swear most of it ends up on him or on the floor." he couldn't remember the rabbit making that much of a mess back in the restaurant but then again, he had been surrounded by kids and there hadn't been all that much to eat. Come to think of it, he wasn't sure what they even ate back at the restaurant, certainly not pizza all the time.
Maybe Mike would know.
"Fork, Bonnie. They make those for a reason." he chuckled at the soft huff while digging into the box of crab rangoon while the rabbit all but inhaled another box of noodles, a few of them sticking to his wide muzzle.
"He's still not talking?"
Jeremy shook his head, keeping his voice down. "Nope. He must have traumatized something awful." to lose all your friends in a fire knowing you couldn't help them or get them. He tried not to think too hard about it, at least he gave himself nightmares.
"Give him time, he will come around eventually." Then again she didn't know much about mental trauma when it came to humans, just physical stuff. Maybe it wasn't too much different, all he needed was time and a chance to come to terms with what happened.
"I hope so. It's hard to have one sided conversations." Jeremy watched as Bonnie eagerly scarfed yet another container down, large tongue licking off the bits of rice that stuck to his muzzle. At least he was using a fork though it looked small in his large hand. In some strange way it was almost as if the rabbit had become a child if that was even possible. Like he had retreated into some part of his mind to protect himself. It wasn't the most healthy way of dealing with trauma but it was better than lashing out and taking the anger out on others like Jeremy's father had after his mother divorced him.
"Just give him some time. And understanding. I'm sure he will come around." she reassured him. "And I'm not cleaning that mess in the bathroom either. It looks like a Wookie got in there."
Jeremy nearly choked on an egg roll while trying not to laugh. "Giving him a bath in the bath tub wasn't the smartest idea ever, I know. But he refused to go outside and wedged himself right into the tub and I didn't have a forklift to move him." he shifted a bit at the look his sister gave him. "I'll clean it later. I promise."
"You better. I will hold you to it. I hate using the guest bathroom. That creepy frog that sits on the toilet stares at me." Ellie shuddered, recalling the strange statue of a demented frog with large eyes that sat on the back of the toilet.
"My last girlfriend gave that to me." he feigned hurt.
"Where did she get? The last circle of Hell?
"Some weird little store in a place called South Vale. She said it had all manner of weird things like that. "
Jeremy tried to imagine working in a store with all manner of odd things with eyes that stared as if they had seen into the portals of Hell and shuddered. He would have quit the first day. "I'd get rid of it but I'm afraid the blasted thing will claw its way out of the trash can and come back into the house."
"Don't give me nightmares. I really don't want to wake up thinking that the frog has made its way back into the house seeking vengeance." Ellie shifted uncomfortably on the couch.
"I'll stick it in the back of a closet somewhere, high up and behind a bunch of stuff. Maybe it won't come after any of us." Jeremy joked.
"I hope not."
"I wonder what's under that bib of hers. Probably nothing." Mike idly leaned back in the chair, feet propped up on the desk, watching the machines idle about. He snickered at the almost perverse mental images that leapt into his mind. The bird looked like a stripper with those tiny shorts. He swore he felt eyes boring into the back of his head.
"What? I can feel you staring." In fact he was certain his hair was smoldering from the force of the stare. He reached up and brushed his fingers over the back of his head just to make sure nothing was burning. "It's a matter of curiosity."
Fetch titled its head at its master, ears flopping forward. It got up and trotted off, on a mission now.
The phone chimed and a message popped up on screen. 'Retrieving.'
"The hell? I didn't-" then it hit him. His expression turned from boredom to mirth as he began laughing. A loud screech of outrage echoed throughout the large halls making him laugh all the harder. Too bad Jeremy wasn't here, he'd love this.
A few moments later Fetch came trotting back in, the brightly colored bib dangling from its jaws. It sat down near his feet, stub of a tail wagging.
Still snickering he reached down and took it then looked at the camera feeds. Sure enough the bird was standing near Freddy, gesturing angrily in the direction of the security room with one arm while the other was covering her chest. The bear had a look of helplessness and confusion on its face which made him laugh all the harder until tears made tracks down the sides of his face and his chest hurt.
That's not funny, Michael.
Like hell it wasn't. The sound of heavy feet stomping into the office made him pause and look up, right into the furious eyes of the bird that glared at him with all the hate she could summon which made him laugh even more while he held up the bib. She snatched it out of his hand then much to his shock and surprise, slapped him hard enough to send him sprawling on the floor before storming off again.
Mike sat up, groaning softly and rubbing the side of his sore jaw. "Don't know why she's so mad, she's flatter than a three day old soda." then snickered again and righted the chair, plopping down in it.
Did you learn something?
'Is there something else you want me to retrieve?' the phone beeped.
He leaned back, still rubbing his jaw. "Not to make Chica mad." no doubt would be a bruise in the shape of a large hand there for a few days. Still, it was worth it.
"A soda would be nice."
'Retrieving.'
Mike turned back to the cameras, watching the bird continue to argue with the bear who continued to have a look of helplessness on its face. The real Freddy would have never tolerated something like this. The bear was such a stick in the mud and a sticker about the rules and that he sucked the fun out of the job.
Fetch came bounding back in, a can of ice cold Pepsi in its jaws. "Oh hell yes." he took the can, popped it open and took a deep drink from it. Screw Cowery and his rule against drinking or eating in the security room.
The camera feeds showed little of interest other than the bird sulking in the shadows of the party room while plastic Freddy roamed around the prize counter, head down, looking dejected. The blue rabbit however, was sneaking down the star spangled hallway towards the security office. He waited until the rabbit was just at the edge of the doorway then turned the flash light on, catching it square in the eyes.
It froze, pupils dilating then once he turned the light off, staggered back into the hall.
You shouldn't be tormenting them like that.
Almost as if on cue the rabbit was tattling on him to the bear who still looked as if he simply didn't know what to do. There was no way the old Freddy would have allowed any of this to happen which made him miss the old bear a bit. "I'm not tormenting them. The blasted rabbit won't stay out of the office."
'Is there something else you want me to retrieve?'
"Not at the moment." While tempting to have the dog steal the chicken's bib again, he wasn't sure his jaw could stand up to another slap.
He's harmless and curious.
He swore he could feel Charlie's disapproving gaze. With a sigh he picked up the flashlight and got to his feet, deciding to do a little walking around.
Every room looked almost the same, the same cheap bright and colorful decor, the same posters, the same tables. Only the large arcade room with its silent hulking machines and the still under construction playground area held any interest. The floor was sticky in spots from spilled soda, vomit and dropped food and the air smelled heavily of cleansers.
The Parts and Service room looked from the dark, the door partly open as if maintenance had forgotten to close it. A cold draft that carried the scent of oil and metal waffered out. A strange sense of apprehension carpet over him. Shaking it off he pushed the heavy door open and stepped into the dark room. Flicking the light on, he passed the beam over the shelves stacked with animatronic parts, unblinking glass eyes, limbs and other mildly disturbing bits of anatomy.
Moving further into the room he passed the light over the hulking shape of a fox, its red fur worn and filthy, missing in patches allowing bits of the endoskeleton to be visible. It seemed frozen in place, pale baleful yellow eyes staring at the door, rusted hook raised slightly. It gave him the chills.
"Good thing you guys can't move around. I'd hate to see any of you pop up on the cameras."
The old Bonnie lay slumped in a corner, wires sprouting from the shoulder socket, face missing, fur matted and torn. A small pang of sympathy flashed through him. It was sad to see any of the old band in such a state of disrepair even if they were just machines that followed pre programmed routines. After so many, many years of service they were just tossed into some back room like trash.
He jerked towards the sound of hissing hydraulics and groan of metal on metal. The beam of the flash light played around the room but he couldn't find the source of the noise at first. Probably just something settling, hydraulics bleeding off. Then the light caught on the fox, its head had turned towards him, jaw dropping open to reveal dual rows of sharp teeth.
Mike shuddered and slowly backed away and slammed the door behind him.
There was no way it could have moved that much. Not without power. But there had been no mistaking the way the fox's head had been tilted or how the eye had been focused on him as if it could see him. It had no remnant. He shuddered hard and slowly backed away from the door, half expecting the door to be flung open at any moment and the rotting rusted machines spilling out of the dark room with murder on their mind.
Once he was back in the office he felt a little better then the phone that was still on the floor buzzing, the low battery alert chimining. Hesitantly picked it up and turned it over. A large crack marred the screen and there was one new text message from Jeremy. He clicked on it and regretted it immediately, his stomach dropped into the abyss. And the strength left his limbs as he plopped down hard onto the chair.
Oh Michael, I'm sorry.
He sighed heavily and rubbed his face, fighting back the tears. At least they had been found and put to rest instead of ending up in a landfill like trash. "Thanks." he muttered.
Thankfully the plastic coated animatronics didn't bother him for the rest of the night, instead they seemed to pick up on his mood and stayed well away. Even the phone remained silent. No creepy sounds, no creepy text messages. The only sound it made was a low chime as its battery died.
