Author's Note

First off, I want to apologize for how long this chapter took to finish. I knew I said that I didn't want to rush Chapter 4 to avoid the situation I had with Chapter 3, but this was ridiculous. Long story short, some personal issues got in the way, but they're all taken care of now.

I really don't have much to add beyond that, so let the chapter begin!

- KromeDome97

Chapter Four: Hare Raising Climb

While Caleb was walking the path to Fazbear Plaza, he noticed a strange, yellow light flicker in his peripheral vision. With a start, he turned his flashlight to where he thought the light came from, only to find nothing but grass and the occasional spindly tree. Perturbed but not discouraged, he continued on to the plaza and took in the sights of the derelict park. It certainly didn't do justice to the fuzzy memories he had of the place. Though he obviously knew that it would be abandoned, something in his subconsciousness made him expect the hustle and bustle that it once enjoyed, perhaps with specters in the place of customers. The silence and stillness of the park were heavier than lead, and finally hammered home for Caleb that he was completely and utterly alone.

Still, Caleb had already crossed the gates and walked the path. He already decided that he was going to dive face-first into this whimsical nightmare realm, to take the chance that he might not come out the other side. To turn back now, however good of an idea it was, would be to betray everything he had set out to do for himself. His decision cemented, he glanced at the paths to the realms of Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy, and figured his time would be best spent snooping around the nearby stage instead. If he could find any relics of the past, like some instruments, or even the animatronic mascots that he never got to see, then they would be a sight to behold. He headed for the stage, only for a luminous, yellow ball to fly right in his face.

Caleb nearly jumped out of his skin. Was this the source of that weird light from earlier? What the heck even was it? It didn't look natural, but he wasn't sure if it was manmade either. It was too large to be a firefly and too small to be a drone. He supposed it could have been ball lightning, a weird phenomenon that he read about in a book from his school library, one which few people have ever seen and scientists haven't agreed on an explanation for. This would have been awesome, for that would've made him one of the handful of people in human history to have witnessed it. However, he thought that ball lightning only appeared in thunderstorms, yet there wasn't a cloud in the night sky. Furthermore, he read that ball lightning left the smell of sulfur in its wake, and this light had no such odor. Granted, it hadan odor, and an unpleasant one at that, but it was more akin to expired lunchmeat than the eggy smell of sulfur. One thing was for sure: whenever Caleb tried to walk around it, no matter how wide a path he took, it blocked his way. Was it trying to keep him away from the stage?

No, that couldn't have been it. This twinkling orb could have been a lot of things, but it couldn't have been intelligent. Still, it wasn't the only thing in this park that Caleb could not explain. Once again, he recalled the shadow-cloaked monster that tore DiDi away from him and their mom forever; he doubted there was a rational explanation for that thing either. Maybe his subconscious image of phantoms roaming the park wasn't entirely incorrect. After all, if there was anywhere near his town with a bloody enough history to be haunted, it was Freddy's Fantasy Park.

Caleb's train of thought was derailed when he felt a rumble in his stomach.

Dang. I didn't eat dinner, did I? he realized.

He had been so caught up in his unplanned trip to Freddy's that he didn't think to sate the needs of his body. Speaking of which, he was thirsty too, so he reached for the water bottle that was secured in his backpack's bottle holder, only to discover that it wasn't there. He swished his flashlight around, scanning the ground for his drink, then cursed audibly when it was nowhere to be found. Oh, well. At least he still had the snacks in his backpack. He turned back from the plaza to eat near the help desk, since the smell coming from the orb would have ruined his appetite.

Once he reached the booth, he fished out a bag of chips, popped it open, and took in the salty aroma. Eating this would only make him thirstier, but he wasn't in a position to be choosy about his food. Just as he was ready to take a bite of his first chip, he was startled yet again, this time by an animalistic shriek. He turned around and saw the frenzied, marble-like eyes of a raccoon staring back at him - or rather, at his food.

Frustrating as his mother's lectures could be, he had to admit that they taught him some valuable lessons. One of those lessons was to never fight an aggressive raccoon, if it could be avoided. He may have been yearning to take risks, but a slow and painful death by rabies was not one of them, so he bolted away from the raccoon and towards the plaza. The fiend was too quick, however, and cut him off before he could get far. Maybe Caleb was slowed down by the weight of his backpack, or, more likely, he was tired from running and walking to the park on an empty stomach. Either way, Caleb knew that he couldn't stop the raccoon from rushing him.

When the animal geared up to do just that, a blinding flash stopped and staggered it, doing the same to Caleb in the process. Caleb, who regained his bearings far more quickly, was shocked to see the glowing orb from earlier, circling the downed raccoon.

Did... did that light just rescue me? he wondered in disbelief.

He couldn't wonder for long, because the raccoon jumped back up and snatched the chips from his hand while he was gawking at the light. It hauled tail with its loot to Fazbear Plaza and kept going for good measure. Caleb was about to give chase, but he decided to accept defeat.

Better my chips than my skin, I guess, was his comforting thought.

Caleb found his attention drawn back to the yellow light and his curiosity piqued. It was certainly intelligent - its little act of heroism quelled all doubts of that - but how could that be? There was only one way that he could think of to find out. He extended his right hand to the orb, which cautiously floated towards him. It soon got close enough to brush against his hand, and he was shocked at how it felt. Somehow, it felt cool, damp, and fluffy, like a pillow that someone left out in the rain, or perhaps a stuffed animal.

Sure enough, the light faded away from the being, and in its place levitated a familiar teddy-bear. If Caleb didn't know any better, he'd assume that it was a plush of Freddy Fazbear, but some of the details were off. Most noticeably, it was sparkly and gold instead of dull and brown, but its equally glittery vest was pure-white, barring some odd, brown stains around its belly. Furthermore, its eyes were blacker than the night sky, as if all they had were pupils. It took a few seconds of observation, but a certain piece of his memories forced itself back into place. He knew this plushie. It was the same one that DiDi won for him at Foxy's Treasure Cove, the one that she was trying to retrieve from under the dumpster before she was ripped from her mortal coil. It was the rarest Freddy plushie of all.

"Golden Freddy?" gasped Caleb.

When Caleb kept telling himself that he was going crazy, he was half-joking, but now he considered that might seriously be the case. Plushies didn't float, and ghosts weren't real, end of story. Still, he couldn't deny what was right in front of him. The teddy-bear was floating, and a ghost very well could have been responsible. Also, considering that the toy had the will to save him from the raccoon, there may have been a perfectly good reason to keep him away from the stage earlier. Maybe the best course of action was to follow Golden Freddy's guidance.

"Alright, little guy, where do you wanna go?" inquired Caleb, unsure but fairly confident that the toy could understand him.

Without a second's delay, Golden Freddy surrounded himself with an aura of light and flew back to the plaza, and Caleb speed-walked just behind him. He led Caleb to the path to Bonnie's Rockin' Gym, making sure to give the stage a wide berth in the process, then to the playground itself. Caleb suddenly recalled that he and DiDi never got to use any of the playground equipment before she died. If he got the opportunity, he would play harder than he ever had before and dedicate his session to both of them. He already had his eye on the rocking horse-looking thing that seemed to be given the image of Bonnie the Bunny. The problem was, the plush was guiding him away from the wood-chips and climbable objects, and instead brought him to a suspicious-looking cubical building with two doors. To make matters more confusing, Golden Freddy sped up to the point where Caleb had no hope of catching up to him.

"Hey, little guy! Where are you going?" shouted Caleb.

The teddy-bear turned around and covered his mouth with both paws before continuing his course.

Did he just tell me to shush? mused Caleb.

As the toy slowed down, and Caleb got closer to the building, he realized that the symbols on the doors were those for men's and women's bathrooms, and that an old dumpster rested near the building's side - the same dumpster that DiDi was pulled under.

Caleb stopped short near the dumpster, eyes locked to the darkened space underneath it. Would that same monster be waiting for him all these years later? Was it readying its claws to pull him into that same void? Golden Freddy didn't seem to think so, because he traversed every inch of the shadowy depths before coming back up and beckoning him to come closer. Hesitant as Caleb was, he eventually complied. The toy wouldn't go through the trouble of saving him from a wild animal only to betray his trust now, right? After that, the teddy-bear pointed emphatically to the dumpster, and Caleb soon realized that he wanted him to climb inside. Against his better judgement, he did that as well, and he found himself enveloped in a pool of darkness, with only his flashlight to illuminate his surroundings. The lingering smell of stale garbage hung over him like the dirtiest laundry.

Some exciting trip this is, lamented Caleb.

Instead of exploring every nook and cranny of the park like he wanted to, there he sat, alone and unstimulated. Golden Freddy didn't even bother to fly in with him to keep him company. There better have been a good reason for putting Caleb in this situation, but he would have to wait and see. Several minutes of fidgeting and pouting later, he got his answer when a metallic roar resounded in the distance, followed by a thunderous clang.

Caleb jumped so high he nearly hit his head on the lid. While he questioned where the noise came from, and what could have made it, the shouting of a man rang out, and another roar came soon after. What the heck was going on out there?

When Caleb cracked the lid open to check, Golden Freddy gazed back at him. The plushie frantically shook his head and waved his paws downward, miming for Caleb to close the lid again. The boy did so with the utmost reluctance, only to hear a woman's scream next, one which he would have recognized from anywhere...

Mom?

No, that couldn't have been her. Caleb's lonely ears were just playing tricks on him. There was no way she could have made it all the way out here. She would've called the police, the fire department, the navy, anyone to find him, but she wouldn't have made such a trip by herself. Then again, "all the way out here" wasn't very far from town, and he knew how distrusting his mom was of authority. Still, would she have gone as far as to comb a dark forest to find Freddy's rotted gates, all on her own? Even if she did, that still gave no clues to who the masculine voice belonged to. He supposed that was probably just a young couple who thought this would be a good place for some alone time, and his imagination was filling in blanks with things that didn't exist.

His thoughts were interrupted again, this time by a rumble that he swore was a miniature earthquake. That didn't sound like a young couple's alone time, unless that kind of stuff was even more raucous than how Mei had once described it to him. Something far more interesting was going on, and he was going to check it out whether his wannabe guardian angel liked it or not. After all, he didn't escape one worrywart just to put himself under the watch of another. Golden Freddy was probably expecting him to try and run out, so Caleb planned to wait a few minutes before throwing the lid open and leaping out. Surely, he would be able to get away before the stuffed animal could react. However, just as Caleb lifted the lid to do just that, he found himself not facing Golden Freddy, but a pair of beady, white eyes, a black button nose, and rows of teeth as long as his mom's kitchen knives.

In a flash, he slammed the lid back down, turned his flashlight off, backed to the opposite side of the dumpster, and froze. His mind raced, trying to process in hindsight what he had only seen for a split second. Could that have been a version of Freddy Fazbear? That wasn't possible. No small child would have gone within ten feet of that beast, except for the most daring of them all. Regardless, he found his doubts about Golden Freddy dashed away. The toy really did have a good reason for hiding him in this dumpster, if that thing had been prowling the park all this time. The problem was that he had blown his own cover, and he was trapped with that monster waiting right outside. In fact, he was surprised that it didn't lunge for him the instant that he opened the lid. As an ungodly screech echoed just outside the bin, Caleb prepared for his safe haven to be broken into, and for himself to be mauled.

Though Caleb expected the lid to swing open, he was taken completely aback when it was torn off its hinges. He looked up and turned around to find a scrawny, navy blue rabbit looming over him from the building's rooftop. It was probably two to three times Caleb's height, and he looked even taller sitting up on the roof. It's noodle-like arms extended all the way down to the lid, and they looked like they could reach far enough to wrap around the underside of the dumpster, in stark contrast to it's short, stubby legs and flat, floppy feet. Unnatural as it's bodily proportions were, its face was even more unnerving. It's bulbous, blood-red eyes rested far apart, each one much larger than its pinprick nose, and its grin extended up and around the majority of its wide, round face. Combine all that with its droopy ears and the maroon, loose-fitting leotard it was wearing, presumably to evoke a fitness motif, and Caleb was faced with a creature as ridiculous as it was terrifying.

"Bonnie?" whispered Caleb.

The rabbit replied with a hoarse, babyish groan, which wafted the stench of rotting flesh in Caleb's direction. He didn't yet question how any of this was possible, because he was focused on keeping himself from covering his clothes in puke.

Bonnie reached a little further down and grabbed hold of the bottom of the dumpster, beginning to lift it up with Caleb inside. Now Caleb was really trapped - if he jumped out, the impish Freddy would surely catch him and tear him to shreds, but Bonnie would do who-knows-what to him if he let him lift him to the roof. He was doomed either way, and his heartbeat sped up exponentially as his face got closer to Bonnie's.

In the nick of time, Golden Freddy flew up to Bonnie's face and turned to Caleb before covering its eyes. Taking the hint, Caleb mimicked his actions and blocked another blinding flash that Bonnie was not so prepared for. The rabbit froze and trembled, and he dropped the dumpster and Caleb right on top of the mini-Freddy, who had been observing the situation from beneath them. With one threat disabled, Caleb gave a wave of gratitude to Golden Freddy before hopping out and speeding full tilt away from the seizing animatronic.

Unfortunately, it didn't take Bonnie long to get his bearings, and the first thing he did was smack Golden Freddy away from him before the plushie could repeat its technique. He then hopped off of the roof, shaking the ground with a thud, and power-walked after Caleb with his arms rather than his legs. A single stride from the bunny matched five of Calebs, and when the boy turned around and saw he was being pursued, he knew he didn't have long before he was caught. Pushing himself to his limits, Caleb hightailed it to the playground. Surely, there had to be something there to slow Bonnie down with. When the eight-swing swing set caught his eye, he threw together a plan.

Caleb made a beeline for the swings, as the distance between him and Bonnie shrunk to a hair's breadth. Once he made it to them, and just barely at that, Caleb ran parallel to the swings, pushing them in alternating directions as he passed them. He hoped that Bonnie would get himself tangled up, but alas, that was too much to hope for. However, Bonnie did take the time to catch each swing and toss it away from him while continuing his path, buying Caleb the precious seconds he needed to put some distance between them. He just needed to figure out where to go next.

His gaze shifted to the jungle gym, that dome of metal bars that was probably too high to be safe in most circumstances, but was a lifesaver here. Sure, that rabbit may have gotten himself in some high places, but there was no way he had the dexterity to climb like Caleb could. His course decided, he rushed to the jungle gym and climbed more quickly than he thought was possible, almost slipping and falling off the cool, rusted bars several times. He was certain that he outwitted Bonnie when he reached the top, but was met with a nasty surprise when he looked around. Without so much as a pause, Bonnie skillfully climbed after him, his arms at such a length that he could skip most of the bars that Caleb had to grip on his way up. Apparently, it was unwise to assume the robot's lack of dexterity.

Climbing down the other side wasn't an option. Bonnie would snatch Caleb up before he could get close to halfway down. Knowing that he would risk breaking something, Caleb slipped his body between the bars and let himself fall to the woody ground under the dome, rolling as he landed. It was about as painful as he expected, but the worst he got was a scraped knee and elbow, and adrenaline allowed him to get up and keep moving fast enough to avoid Bonnie's grasp as the bunny reached through the bars. Caleb scurried out of the dome and tried to formulate Plan C.

The lookout would allow for the last viable plan Caleb had. Bonnie would easily be able to get up there, but at least there were enough twists and turns that he would probably be slowed down some more. Still, this could easily work against Caleb too. Despite how much smaller he was, he was also far less familiar with the layout than Bonnie probably was. It was quite a gamble, but Caleb was running out of time and options.

Taking his chances, Caleb sped to the lookout and climbed up the ladder. His shoe-clad feet clopped on the lookout's wiry, metal floor, hopping up stairs, darting around corners, and even passing a cleverly integrated tic-tac-toe game set up near one of the guard rails. The creaks and moans coming from Bonnie got steadily louder, and Caleb could swear he felt hot breath on his neck when he finally made it to the slide. The boy shot himself through the slide's entrance and let himself soar down its twists and turns, only to stop short when he felt something clamp down on his left forearm. A fuzzy, blue hand had it in a vice grip, and it was pulling Caleb back up the slide.

Caleb wiggled his body and limbs every which way, desperate to free himself. The adrenaline that coursed through him gave him little extra strength, only hyperventilation and a dangerously high heart rate. He didn't know what Bonnie had in mind for him, but he knew that it wouldn't be pretty, and there would be nobody who could save him from his gruesome fate. Golden Freddy was nowhere in sight, his mother was probably miles away, and nobody knew where he was.

How ironic. He was so excited about being alone and unguarded just a few minutes ago, but he figured the phrase "Be careful what you wish for" was made for situations like this. He didn't want independence or excitement anymore, and he certainly didn't want this kind of risk. He wanted his mom.

His mom wasn't coming, though. He was on his own, plain and simple. He had to accept it, and part of that was not flailing around in the hopes that someone will rescue him. He had to come up with a way to defend himself, like he had throughout the whole chase up to this point. He could not give up.

Caleb was a quarter of the way up the slide when a light in his brain flickered on. He didn't have the strength to fight Bonnie's grip, but he didn't need it either. He had gravity on his side.

He twisted his left arm to grab Bonnie's, reached his right arm around to do the same, and pulled. It took a few seconds and all the strength he could muster, but Bonnie tipped forward and fell headfirst into the slide. The surprise caused Bonnie to loosen his grip, and that was all Caleb needed to wriggle himself free and catapult himself back down. After tumbling out of the slide's exit, which gave him the appearance of being upchucked by the Bonnie face the slide was decorated to look like, he hurried away from the playground and back to the plaza, looking back only once to find Bonnie struggling to free himself from the slide, now just as helpless as he almost made Caleb.

Unbeknownst to him, the tiny, sharp-toothed Freddy had clawed it's way out from under the dumpster, such was its surprising strength. It noticed the sprinting Caleb and snarled, prepared to give chase, until a distressed moan drew its attention away. It caught sight of Bonnie, still unable to get his head and arm out of the slide, and abandoned its target to scamper over and assist the rabbit.

Caleb couldn't believe what had just happened, even as he soared down the path back to the plaza. Imagining an encounter like that was one thing, but actually having the breath of Death wafted so close to his face was quite another. Screw taking risks and coming out the other side. He was getting out of this twisted park before he became its next casualty. The only thing that stopped his mad dash for the exit was the sight of the stage, now reduced to a pile of wood-chips as numerous as the ones on the playground, burying what appeared to be Freddy Fazbear. What happened here? Was this the aftermath of the commotion he heard while he was hiding in the dumpster? Those questions would soon be answered when a familiar voice cried out.

"Caleb!" the voice called, drawing Caleb's gaze towards the food court.

Running with arms outstretched to him was his mother, tears flowing down her cheeks. Behind her hobbled a strange, thin man, with one hand pressing the side of his neck and the other clutching at his abdomen. The man looked to be in great pain, but Caleb's mom was more concerned with giving him the squeeze of the decade and wetting his shoulder with her tears. Caleb figured he was probably safe now, but he still had many questions that needed answering, and he hoped he would get those answers soon.

Closing Note

Hopefully, this chapter was worth the wait. I'm kind of disappointed that there weren't any FNaF-related easter eggs to throw in during this chapter, but I'll bet many of you haven't heard of ball lightning before, so at least there's that tidbit.

I'll try not to take as long with Chapter 5 as I did with this chapter, especially since I'm excited about the fowl play that's going to happen in it.

Whether you want to stroke my ego or give some constructive criticism, make sure to leave a review. Adios!

- KromeDome97