Marcus never intended to quit his job at the pizzeria. He was willing to risk getting fired if it meant he survived the night, but he wasn't going to quit. On the contrary, he was even more intrigued by the mystery of the pizzeria after the events of the previous night. He wasn't the only one with questions. He stepped inside the restaurant to find the Toys and Mangle waiting eagerly for his arrival.

"Did you find anything?" Toy Chica asked.

"How long have you four been waiting for me?" Marcus asked in reply.

"Not long, maybe a few minutes," Toy Bonnie answered, "Felt like forever, though."

"So? Spill," Toy Chica insisted, "What did you find?"

"Hang on, let me set up at my desk first," Marcus chuckled. He walked down the hallway and sat down in his chair, immediately causing the four animatronics to gather around. Marcus made sure the music box was wound before continuing. He didn't want another Puppet fiasco to deal with.

"Well, any information on 'Charlie'?" Mangle asked.

"Maybe a thing or two." Marcus set down the newspaper from the library. The Toys leaned in over the desk to better see the text.

"Local restaurant owner Henry Emily mourns the loss of his daughter Charlotte this week," Toy Freddy read aloud, "The young girl was found with a stab wound outside Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, the restaurant started by her father. No suspects have been identified."

"I'm guessing that Charlotte goes by Charlie," Toy Bonnie said, "but how does that relate to our rampant puppet? Right now, this could just be a grieving father giving a nickname to cope with the pain."

"I'm getting there," Marcus replied.

"Well hurry up."

"Hey, give me some room!" Toy Chica spoke up, "I can't see!"

"Well, maybe if you removed your beak, you could solve multiple problems at once," Marcus replied, not thinking.

"And what do you mean by that?"

"Well, no offense but you look kind of silly with your beak on. Besides, it gets in the way and—" Marcus turned around to see the other three animatronics cowering behind the yellow chicken.

"Oh really?" She growled, "What do you want me to do with it, lodge it in your forehead?"

"Well, uh, maybe we can talk about—" Before he could finish, Marcus felt something hit him upside the head, knocking him onto the floor. He felt at his head as he looked up at Toy Chica, whose beak was held in her hands like a bat. At that moment Marcus was incredibly thankful that the new animatronics were made of plastic and not metal. Toy Bonnie and Toy Freddy gave the guard an apologetic look as Toy Chica returned her beak to its proper location.

"Now, can we please get back to researching?" Toy Chica said, offering a hand to Marcus.

"Um, yeah," Marcus replied, still baffled by the animatronic's actions. He took the hand and sat back down in his chair. "So anyway, Charlie's body wasn't the only thing they found in that back alley. Next to her, cradling the girl in her arms, was—"

"The Puppet," Toy Freddy finished, catching on.

"So, she possessed the Puppet?" Toy Bonnie asked.

"Certainly seems like it," Marcus replied.

"So, mystery solved, right?" Toy Chica said.

"How does Foxy know?" Mangle asked before Marcus could answer the previous question. The others turned to stare at her. "Well, he knew her name. If we didn't know about this, how did he?" The animatronics turned to look at Marcus.

"I have a pretty good idea," he muttered.

"You aren't suggesting—" Toy Freddy said, but Marcus cut him off.

"I am. Charlie wasn't the killer's only victim."

"Are you sure?"

"No, I'm not." Marcus absentmindedly pressed the button to wind the music box. "Do you have a place where files are kept? Maybe I could look there."

"I believe so," Toy Freddy said, "It's not on the map, but I think there's a room somewhere in the building that holds paperwork. Finances, manuals for the animatronics, information on said animatronics, and maybe some newspapers about the business."

"Sounds like a good spot to search," Marcus said, "Any ideas where it might be?"

"No, not really."

"Well, Freddy's doesn't have a second story, so the papers aren't hidden in some concealed attic."

"Could there be an underground area?" Toy Bonnie asked.

"It's possible, but where would it be hidden?"

"It would probably be somewhere no one would go," Toy Chica mused.

"Parts and Service would be a good place to hide a trapdoor," Marcus suggested.

"Uh, guys?" Mangle spoke up, drawing the other's attention to her, "The Puppet is out of the box." She pointed at the monitor in front of them, which showed the present box open and empty. Immediately the animatronics moved to protect Marcus as he searched the cameras for the missing animatronic. But it wasn't on the cameras, and its signature tune was not echoing through the restaurant's halls.

Marcus glanced at the button for the Parts and Service camera. It was the last area he hadn't checked. He was beginning to think the Puppet had managed to turn off the music that came from it and was about to kill him. Frantically looking around for the animatronic, he switched to the Parts and Service camera to find…nothing. The camera was filled with static. He tried switching away and back, but the static still remained.

Something was going on in there. He needed to find out what.


"Charlie, he's not going to hurt any of them."

"But he is! The night guards have always been dangerous!"

Marcus sidled up to the doorway, followed by the Toys and Mangle. He gestured for the animatronics to be quiet, making sure that they wouldn't be caught eavesdropping.

"Don't you remember, Gabe? The man who shut you down, tried to take you apart? He was wearing one of those badges!" The voice Marcus assumed to be coming from the Puppet was childlike, incredibly jarring alongside the adult voice coming from one of the original animatronics.

"Umm, maybe we shouldn't—mmph!" Toy Bonnie's protests were cut short by one of Mangle's paws.

"Charlie, you can't just start a witch hunt for the one who killed us!" This voice was new, a female one, shaky and warped by feedback. There was only one female in the group, so Marcus knew this was Chica. Actually, though, the voice kind of sounded similar to Mangle. Marcus made a note to ask the fox about it later.

"Susie, this isn't about him! I don't know where my father is, so you're the only family I have left. I won't let him destroy you."

"Hi!" Marcus jumped at the sound of the short, balloon-carrying animatronic behind him.

"Get lost, you piece of shit!" Marcus hissed. Balloon Boy only laughed in response. Marcus reached into his pocket and retrieved his flashlight. He unscrewed the device and took out the batteries. "You want these?" he asked, "Go get 'em." He chucked the batteries into the dining area, causing the metal nuisance to go waddling after them.

"Is someone out there?" One more new voice, extremely glitchy, like Mangle, but male. Suddenly, Marcus heard footsteps approaching the doorway.

"Run!" Marcus whispered, turning to find his companions had already abandoned him. He attempted to flee, but immediately a metal hand grabbed the back of his collar, holding him in place. He was spun around to find the old Bonnie staring back at him.

"Oh, hey Bonnie!" Marcus said, letting out a nervous chuckle, "Haven't seen you around lately! How have you been, now that I know you won't kill me?" The night guard couldn't read Bonnie's expression, since he no longer had a face, but he could tell the animatronic wasn't buying it. For a moment he was worried that the robot in front of him would indeed try to kill him.

"Uh-huh," the bunny said in reply, beginning to drag the man inside, "Come on."

"Wait, nonononono!" Marcus shouted, grabbing the door frame as it passed, "I'm not going in one of those suits!"

"You're not getting stuffed, Marcus," Bonnie replied, "I just think we could settle this much faster if you were in on the discussion."

"Bonnie, you can't just drag the man into this conversation," Freddy said, one hand pinching the bridge of his snout.

"What's the big deal? He was already listening in on us!"

"Is this true, lad?" Foxy asked.

"In my defense, I was mainly trying to find out where the Puppet had gone," Marcus replied.

"Well, Marcus," Freddy said, "As you may have heard, the Puppet here—"

"Charlie." The animatronics in the room stared at the guard. "I know her name is Charlotte Emily, and she goes by Charlie." The Puppet immediately turned to look at the spare suits. "Foxy called her Charlie last night and I did some research afterwards!" Marcus added, "There's a newspaper on my desk to prove it!"

Freddy gestured for the marionette to stand down. "Alright, Charlie is incredibly protective of the animatronics here," he continued, "She especially cares about us four. After all, it's not every day you get another chance at life."

"It's true, then," Marcus breathed, "You're all kids who were murdered and are now possessing the animatronics."

Freddy nodded. "I'm Gabe, and this is Jeremy, Susie, and Fritz," he said, gesturing to himself, then Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy as he gave their names. "Look, Marcus, Charlie is willing to leave you alone if you promise not to hurt the other animatronics."

"You don't have to worry about it," Marcus said with a smile, "I'm just happy I don't have to fear for my life anymore." He checked his watch. "Okay, I have to get back to my office before it hits six. We're cool, right?"

The other animatronics turned to look expectantly at the Puppet. "Yes," came Charlie's reluctant reply, "But if you lay one hand on them, then you won't be collecting your next paycheck."

"Good enough," Marcus said with a shrug before moving back out into the hallway. He sat down in his desk chair and played with his monitor as he waited for his shift to end. That was one mystery solved, but a new one had arisen. The night guard shrugged and kicked back in his chair. It could wait until tomorrow night.


Alright, this marks the end of what I would think of as the pilot. I'm gonna be honest, I didn't like how these chapters ended up. I think some of the dialogue is kinda shaky, and some of the plot moments are a little too quick. But now, I can get to the more interesting ideas I have for this story! Please know that these chapters will not come this quickly after this. These chapters were already written when I started to publish, so actually completing a chapter will take more time. There is one more chapter that is mostly finished, but after that, you will have to wait, unfortunately. Hope you enjoy my story!