Mable: Once again I missed Thursday and had to update on Friday instead. I'll get this in gear one of these weeks, but the chapter needed those last few hours of work. Without further ado, Enjoy!

Almost Feels Like Home

Chapter Twenty

Charlie roused slowly and tried to stretch only to suddenly remember she was still in the tight confines of the box. Between the walls and the multitude of plush toys she was laying on, she had spent most of the night pulled into a ball. Yet it still felt comfortable regardless of how cramped it should've been. She slowly regained her vision and only then noticed that the box was open, and that Marionette was looking down at her.

He had his arm propped on the edge of the box to rest his head on and looked down with a playful smile. She stared back at him, feeling embarrassment creep up on her instead of the surprise she would've expected. She doubted he was there long, but he obviously knew what she had done. He had caught her in the act.

"Good morning," the Puppet greeted. "Almost good afternoon but you made it just in time. You must have had a busy night."

"Does he know?... No, he couldn't know. Baby wouldn't tell," Charlie assured herself. She looked back down at the more pressing situation. "I'm, uh, sorry. I probably should've asked before yanking out your stuff and crawling in here."

"It's no trouble! I offered you my bed," Marionette warmly assured. "It really is a nice box, isn't it? It's better grade than the ones they used to make at the old pizzerias. This one doesn't turn to mush if it gets too humid." He tapped on the edge of the box affectionately and she tilted her head with a jingle from her prong.

"Do you still use the box?" she asked in confusion. She wasn't sure why he would.

"Sometimes. I used to use it a lot more than I do now, but it used to help me through the long nights. It really is nice to have something protecting you, and the plushes help." He scooped out a Bonnie and affectionately toyed with it in his hands. "These little guys can make good friends when you need the comfort." She nodded in agreement.

"They can. Like when you need to vent but aren't desperate enough to talk out loud to an empty room," Charlie remarked with some humor. "I was just so tired last night and for some reason the box looked so… Inviting. I don't know, now that I'm in it I can see the charm, but on the outside… Was that programming?" she asked curiously.

"Maybe the slightest bit, but probably not. The box is a natural comfort, after all! I used to be so terrified of being locked away, but I became very fond with how secure the box could be. It's a nice feeling." Indeed, it was. He almost missed it sometimes but sleeping alone in a box couldn't compare well against sharing a comfortable bed with Mike. "You must've had a busy night to be so exhausted."

"Not really," Charlie reflexively defended. "I wouldn't consider being alone for one night a big deal."

"Oh no, not at all! You were very capable of taking care of yourself," Marionette assured. Then he got the slightly glint in his eye, with literally glowing pinpricks of light. "I just meant that it must be tiring to spend so long with Baby."

He knew. That one comment gave it all away that he knew exactly what she had done, and she felt the embarrassment overwhelm her. She fumbled with her words, "You already know." He nodded. "…I know it was a mistake. I don't even know what I was thinking. I don't even know Baby, let alone trust her enough to risk everything helping her…" She looked up to him almost questioningly, as though waiting expectantly for something. He was still silent as though waiting for her to continue. "…You're not angry?"

"Perhaps a little, but not at you," Marionette honestly admitted. The curiosity and urge to be supportive overwhelmed his better judgement. His playful smile softened a bit, "But Baby aside, how was it?"

"How was it?" Considering everything, she was shocked at how calm he was. She wasn't used to people being so calm about her decisions. Whether it be her aunt or her friends, they worried so much that they occasionally crowded in. Even Marionette himself was overprotective, so his passiveness was surprising. It was kind of nice. "The entire time I was so terrified that I was going to be caught. The risk was always there, especially once Baby set off the alarm at Chica's. I thought we were going to get pulled over…" She was nearly trembling. "…It was exciting."

Marionette gave a chime and readjusted his arms. "And there was a spider animatronic there?"

"I think it was a spider. Don't hold that to me, because it had cymbals and called itself the Music Man. It became fixated on me after I made the horrible mistake of ringing in front of him. He kept calling me his muse and I could barely outmaneuver him and… And it was the most exciting thing I've ever done in my life." That rush was undeniably potent. She could still feel inner metals tingling.

Meanwhile, Marionette found his concern growing. After all, this was obviously a haunted animatronic, as a non-sentient one would say nothing of muses or anything of the like. He tried to disguise his worry with a continued smile. He didn't want to lessen that foreign sort of excitement that she was getting to feel. "I've never heard of him, but he certainly sounds… Eccentric." He chimed in amusement. "But you got away?"

"Shockingly, yes. It was really the first time that I didn't feel like I was trying to control this body. It was as though it was just me controlling myself. Sure, I wasn't exactly in full control, but I was able to fight back. I even got a hit in." She felt herself smirking but wasn't sure if her mask changed or not. "Sometimes it felt like he couldn't even catch me, and I talked to Foxy-… I'm guessing you already know about that?" He nodded again. "Foxy was really reassuring and between that and holding my own… I don't know. Maybe I can learn to live like this. It would at least be nice to show Baby that I can walk fine on my own."

It was now that she noticed Marionette's reaction. He seemed to be beaming even wider and there was a light chiming in his chest, playing out a short tune. "Is everything okay? You look a little excitable," Charlie asked. She wasn't sure if he was suppressing hidden anger at Baby or short-circuiting in front of her.

"I'm just so glad that you're alright. I'm proud of how well you handled yourself." Though that was a massive understatement. Her excitement and confidence were a relief, and in his excitement he leaned in and pulled her into a hug. "This is wonderful!" he exclaimed with chiming laughter. Though this joy was short lived as he realized what he had done. Shocked at himself, he drew back, reining himself in and giving her space. "Sorry about that! I tend to get a wound up sometimes."

"Oh, it's not… It's okay." It was strange: Charlie couldn't say she didn't like the affection. It was actually a nice change to get some form of a reward, even if it could've potentially sent mixed messages if she wasn't sure of what he was encouraging. She could tell that the Puppet was now the one who was flustered. "I'm glad you both got home alright. Nobody saw you?"

"Not especially," Marionette vaguely answered. Though before Charlie could ask- and she was about to ask- he abruptly dismissed himself. "I'll go check on Mike while you wake the rest of the way. I know how odd it can be climbing out of a box while someone's watching." He tried to look unphased as he nearly darted out of the room. Though once out of view, he covered his face with a hand.

"And as soon as she starts to become comfortable you have to go and do something rash. This is exactly why everyone's scared of you." He dropped his hand as he approached the kitchen and began to hear Mike talking to someone. He found the security guard leaning back on a dining room chair and talking into the phone, obviously halfway through a call to Fritz.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do… You know that's exactly what I would do," Mike flatly said with minimal context. "Just don't do anything that'll come back to haunt us. I'll talk to you later, Mari just got back." He then ended the call and looked to the Puppet. "All's well?"

"Not exactly…" Marionette rubbed his forehead tiredly. "Firstly, Charlie told me more about this animatronic that tried to hold her hostage. We should expect him to drop into our lap any day now if our track record is any indication." Mike gave a shrug and nod of agreement as he watched the Puppet continuing to pace beside the table. "On the positive side, Charlie seems to be feeling more confident… Which I took as sign to promptly hug her and no doubt crossed any boundaries that we've set."

"I can't believe this," Mike muttered with a shake of his head. "The one minute I leave you alone and you start hugging other puppets. How can I ever trust you again?"

"…Thank you for your support," Marionette unenthusiastically pointed out. "No, Mike, I'm serious. I feel like I'm balancing on a tightrope between supportiveness and concern and wanting to encourage her but not wanting to push her away by smothering her. This is, of course, if we ignore how horrifying the thought is that Baby could've gotten Charlie into serious trouble and the spider altogether…" Marionette sighed and slumped onto the other side of the table. He folded his arms on the table with a soft sigh. "What's wrong with me, Mike?"

"Congratulations, Mari. You've become a father," Mike remarked. The Puppet raised his head enough to send an unenthused look. "I'm dead serious, Mari. You're pretty much turning into her parent. You're worried about her, but you still want to be the cool dad, and now you're at that crossroads where you've got to decide whether she's grounded or if you're just taking TV privileges."

"Mike, if I intended to punish Charlie, I would make her spend more time with Baby," Marionette corrected with light amusement. Though he then started to dip back into concern. He fiddled with a string in the crook of his arm, wrapping it in his fingers, keeping his gaze low. "But… Is that a bad thing? Me becoming more parental?"

"Not really. I sort of expected it. You're pretty much a fairy godfather to all the kids at the pizzeria, so adoption was eventually going to come into the picture, and this one doesn't require a home visit," Mike pointed out.

"But Charlie and I are practically the same age. It feels…Wrong that I am treating her like a child," the Puppet quietly murmured.

"You're not treating her like a child," Mike easily waved off. He straightened in his chair and sobered up, intending to get his point across and ease the other. "You're overthinking the whole thing. You weren't treating me like a child when you got onto me about some of the stupid things I've done. That's just how it is; we're doomed to do something idiotic eventually, and some of us are lucky enough that when we do we have you to pick us up afterwards. You have that aura about you, Mari. You're warm. Some of us would fall apart without that." This got a trill out of the animatronic.

"I suppose when you put it like that… Thank you." He looked back up at Mike with a warm smile, but it quickly turned mischievous. "On an unrelated note, how much would you pay for an enormous, clingy spider that likes bell noises and plays the cymbals?"

"There's no way in hell."

"I've already got at least three calls from the cops this week! If that detective finds out that animatronics connected to Foxy's broke into a mall, mauled another animatronic, and- and they used the van! I can't breathe- malls have video cameras recording the parking lot at all times and the van- I can't breathe!"

"Fritz, calm down. You're working yourself into hysterics," Natalie said firmly. This was exactly why she decided to come with him. Ever since he had ended the call with Mike, Fritz had been a mess, and even now he was in the passenger seat hyperventilating. The stress of the detective's calling was already wearing him down without something insane like this happening. "Chances are that this isn't going to get to us… And if it does, we'll be honest and say that the van was stolen."

"They're going to think we broke in and vandalized a competitor! Oh… God!" Fritz dropped his head down and grabbed the dashboard. "I don't think I've told you this, but I have this extreme fear of going to jail for animatronics."

"Gee, really? I couldn't tell." Yet as apathetic as that could've sounded, Natalie did care. She knew that Fritz had been a suspect in the missing children incident and could only assume that traumatized him. "We'll figure something out, okay? Worse case scenario we have to lie extensively to the police, but we have an alibi."

"But that's not even the worst part, Nat," Fritz rambled. "The worst part is that now Baby knows she can get out. She can get out, she can get away with it, and I can't- What am I supposed to do!? I can't babysit her twenty-four seven!" They pulled into the parking lot where the van came to a stop. He grabbed the door handle so tightly that he could've broken something. "We have to get back to work tomorrow and Baby could decide to leave again! What if she tries daytime next time?! She ignores the cameras unless someone's in there!"

It was clear that it wasn't getting any better. As such, Natalie knew she had to step in, and after shutting off the car she reached for him and hugged him tightly. "Fritty, we'll figure this out. Trust me, okay? You're going to work yourself into a total nervous breakdown." She pulled him down to kiss him on his stubbled cheek. Her hair traced through his damp hair. "Wow, you are sweating bullets. I don't think you've ever sweat this much, and I'm including that time Mom and Dad stopped by unannounced. This can't be healthy for you."

"No worse than your parents stopping by," Fritz choked out in a joke. Natalie gave an amused snicker.

"There we go! Starting to get your humor back… Hey, wait…" She paused and thought back to what he had said earlier. "I think I have an idea in how to fix this Baby situation." He looked to her suddenly. "We'll get her a babysitter."

"Nat, nobody's going to willingly guard Baby. She's too… Abrasive," Fritz remarked. "And we're still saving for the expansion. I don't want to waste all of our savings on hiring someone who can keep quiet."

"It will only be one day," Natalie assured. Fritz's brow arched in questioning. "From what you've said, Baby's proud, she's stubborn, and she obviously doesn't want to be treated like lesser being. So, we'll call her bluff. We'll tell her that we're getting her a babysitter to watch her until she cooperates. I guarantee that after one day being under constant surveillance, Baby will cave and realize that it's more beneficial to not act out."

"…That's… That's actually a good idea. That would be like something you'd do for a teenager, and Baby's maturity doesn't go too far past that… Alright, we'll try that," Fritz said with determination. "…But first, I'm going to confront her and see what she says. Hopefully she's too shaken by last night to even consider something so crazy again… But I doubt it." He sighed, and Natalie turned his chin to kiss him on the lips.

"Don't let her get too close to your neck," Natalie casually warned. Fritz gave a non-committal sort of noise, kissed her again, and then drew away before heading inside. He knew he had to stay firm with this and let himself into the warehouse, keeping himself straightened and trying not to show any fear. He wouldn't let Baby talk her way out of this and wasn't going to give her the joy of seeing him falter. He headed down towards the office and let himself inside.

Baby was already waiting for him. Her wires were wound tighter together, especially now that she had more of them, and she watched him. Her green eyes were transfixed on him. She wondered if he noticed the slight change in her physique.

"Hello, Baby," Fritz greeted. He looked directly at her and dropped any oblivious act. "I heard about your trip last night. You know, Chica's Party World is a long way away to travel in a van. If you wanted to go out to another animatronic show, I could've pulled some strings at Chippers or taken you to Foxy's. Wouldn't that have been better than breaking into a mall?"

"I needed the wires to be whole. She wasn't alive anyway, so she didn't need the wires," Baby excused. She reached up with her hand and lightly traced over her cheek and then a strand of her wire hair, trying to mimic twirling it even though it was too firm to properly do so. "How do I look?"

"…You look better," Fritz remarked. Though he wasn't condoning it. Especially when he didn't notice much of a difference. "But if you needed wires then I could've gotten them for you safely. Without having to break the law in the process." They would've had to come from Ennard, who Baby probably wouldn't agree to take wires from. Still, he had to point it out. "Baby, I'm here to help you. I want to make sure you're comfortable and well taken care of. You could've told me. You should've told me."

Baby had to watch her words and play towards her advantages, because it was clear that Fritz was not happy with her. She lowered her voice into its softer tone and dropped her head as though ashamed. "I'm sorry. I just got so overly excited about getting my wires back. I wanted to look perfect for you…" She lightly rolled about on her skates, shifting her legs, and then quietly added more. "I didn't think anyone would see us…"

"Someone nearly did, Baby. I know you don't know this, but I've been questioned by the police because of what happened recently with the children. If they thought I broke into a competitor's business and tried to destroy their animatronics, then they would lock me up for a long time…" He inhaled and exhaled rather slowly. "…I can't risk you sneaking out again."

"Will you shut me down?" Baby asked. Her eyes slowly moved up to stare at him across the room. Her tone was empty, but almost testing. It was dangerously quiet in that regard.

"No, Baby. I wouldn't do that. I wouldn't shut you down without your agreement… Besides, I don't think that helps the situation," Fritz pointed out. "I think, instead, you're going to need someone here to watch you during the day… Like I used to stay and watch you back when we were making sure that your programming wasn't taking effect."

It sounded an awful lot like Fritz was suggesting that he stay and watch her. It would be a horribly shameful idea if it wasn't Fritz himself. The idea of him sitting within feet of her, watching her, staying loyally there to observe and protect- Baby could've easily refused it, or said she would never leave again convincingly, but instead she was too intrigued about what may come next if she didn't stop him. Was this how animatronics got human playmates to fawn over them?

"…Perhaps you should… I don't know if I could control myself if the opportunity came back," Baby quietly suggested. "Maybe it's because I'm so alone here…"

"Well, starting tomorrow you won't be alone anymore," Fritz assured her. "I just have to run and make a call to get some things ready? Will you be okay today?"

"I'm tired from last night," Baby lied. "…But even if I wasn't, I wouldn't want to do anything to upset you after all the trouble I caused. Go make your calls and I won't be a burden." She dropped her head again; false sympathy was sure to bring about his protective side. Soon he would be spending all his time with her, and part of Baby was beginning to relish that. Fritz would make a perfectly wonderful plaything.

Baby had no idea that she would live to regret this decision.

"….You want what?!" Scott immediately regretted being as loud as he was. Ennard couldn't have not heard that and he could only hope that he would ignore it. Quieting his voice, he nearly whispered through to Fritz. "Y-You're wanting me- me- to house a dangerous animatronic?!"

"You're already housing a dangerous animatronic," Fritz pointed out. Then he reigned himself in. "I just need you to let her stay in your garage for a day while I'm at Foxy's. I think it should annoy Baby enough that we won't have a problem with her trying to run off again, or she'll be stuck in your garage, and that's not exactly what anyone wants."

"That sounds like a great idea on paper, Fritz, but you're- you're asking me to bring Baby in when she and Ennard can't stand each other, and she'll be in what's pretty much his room," Scott pointed out to him. He rubbed a hand over his face desperately. "Is there anyone else who could do it?"

"As of right now, you're the only one with the means and the time," Fritz pointed out. Then he let his desperation come through. "Scott, please. I'm about to be investigated for Freddy's as it is. Baby's going to get me put in jail… You're the only one I can turn to about this and I'm out of options. I don't know what else will work."

There came the guilt. Scott had never been sure if his testimony to the police had been the reason Fritz had been questioned as much as he was at Freddy's, which had weighed on his conscious once he knew about William's crime. Not to mention that, without Fritz, he would've never made it out of the pizzeria alive. There was no doubt that 'Fredrick' would've left him to die if it wasn't for the technician being there, and then it was said technician's finesse that had freed him from most of the metal. Scott tried to fight it, but he began to cave.

"I…Okay," Scott caved. "But only okay if you keep looking, and if you find someone, anyone, that can do it. There's got to be someone more qualified than me." He pinched the bridge of his nose as the technician began to gasp and ramble out thanks and assurances. "Right, yeah, well, just… I have to go figure out how to break this to Ennard… Call me back if you find someone else." With that he ended the call, sighed, and turned around in his chair.

Ennard was standing right behind him.

"Ugh!" Scott choked out as he grabbed the armrests on the seat. "Ennard, you scared the daylights out of me! How… How long have you been there?"

"You told him Baby could stay here." Ennard's voice was much quieter and flatter in tone than usual. Not even the slightest bit of humor. Even with his mask which gave a permanent smile, Scott could see unwavering deadpan underneath.

"It's just for one day. We wouldn't have to see her… And who knows, Fritz might find someone else," Scott tried to excuse. The amalgam gave a displeased sort of staticky, huffy noise and gave a slight twitch. "It's really not a big deal. He might not even need us-."

"I don't want Baby in our house," Ennard said. His voice deepened, solemn and firm. "I don't like Baby… I don't trust Baby."

"I know you don't trust Baby. Believe me, Ennard, I don't trust Baby either. I haven't even met Baby!... But Fritz is in a tight jam… It was my fault he was accused at Freddy's. I was the person who said that I thought it was one of the workers, and Fritz took the brunt of the investigation. If I can spare him that much then I'll be doing something right by him," Scott tried to convince. Ennard looked almost entirely unmoved; perhaps his dislike for Baby outweighed any feelings towards anyone else. "Alright, how about this?" Scott rubbed his face. "Baby stays in the garage for the day and you can stay in my bedroom. That way you don't have to be anywhere near each other."

This was when Ennard finally perked up with a flicker of interest in his gaze. It was very subtle, but his blue eyes moved a bit more, and his wires now started to shift slightly like they normally did. "I could stay in your room? You wouldn't make me leave?" he asked. Scott was slightly confused, because he never remembered directly kicking Ennard out- except maybe once or twice when he was much too chatty at two in the morning.

"Sure! We could share it. Then if, uh, let's say Baby gets too rowdy, we can just hide out in the bedroom. We'll play cards or something," Scott tried to convince. It would be hard enough to deal with Baby, so to get Ennard on board and willing to stay away from her would be best. Not that Scott wanted to be with Baby alone either.

"…I can use the bed?" Ennard asked. Scott agreed. "I can have food in your room?" Scott agreed again, though more hesitantly. He could only hope that he didn't mean he would hide things in the room. "All I have to do is let Baby stay in the garage?"

"Well, yeah. A-And she won't be staying long. He should be back to get her after work." Scott had to keep repeating it to comfort himself as well. "It'll only be a few hours-."

"Okay!" Ennard chirped. The human stared back in surprise at the change in tone. "What's that look? I don't care where Baby goes!" he continued with a brief chortle. Then he turned and started out of the office. "Lemme just move my stuff and then we can plan all the fun things we're gonna do when we're sharing the bed!"

Scott's face flushed at how the amalgam worded it. Yet he didn't stop the clown from going to move his things. He simply returned to work on a project he had started on his computer and tried to ignore the sound of Ennard moving pieces of his collections. By time afternoon came, he checked to see what damage was done and found half of his bedroom now filled with Ennard's treasures. Thank goodness it would only be one day, because he wasn't sure if he could stand sleeping with the statue of parts staring from across the room.

Alas, as well as this was going, it abruptly changed when late that afternoon Scott heard a vehicle outside and looked out to see none other than Fritz's van. Almost immediately the panic returned with a vengeance. He scrambled to meet the man outside, watching as he continued to back into the driveway.

"I thought you weren't coming until tomorrow morning," Scott choked out. Fritz gave him a strained smile and rubbed the back of his neck.

"That was the plan, but time is going to be tight tomorrow, and it's clear that nobody else is going to watch Baby… I mean, if you want I could drive her back to the warehouse and you could watch her there-."

"No, this is fine," Scott interrupted. He certainly wouldn't be going to the warehouse after the horror stories he had heard about it. Especially if Henry's spirit had a chance of being there still. "I'll just… Open the garage door and you can put her inside." He had to keep reminding himself that he owed Fritz this much as he opened the garage for him. Fritz then backed the van to the garage and went around back to open the van.

Baby was already staring him down disapprovingly as the technician opened the doors. "Come on, Baby. It's not too bad in here," Fritz promised as he gestured to the garage. "It'll only be until the business is secure enough that I can watch you during the day, to make sure you're safe." He sent her a smile and easily disguised how happy he was that his plan was beginning to work. She slowly started to roll forward and he placed down the small ramp so that she could wheel herself down. "And think about it: if all goes well, I won't have to hire a stranger to come in and watch you."

She was still silently glaring at him. This was Baby's version of the silent treatment; staring down, claw twitching, and being dead silent. It was the first sign that Fritz probably needed to leave her alone. "I'll be back tomorrow after work, okay? Try to be good for Scott and maybe we'll find something fun to do." With that, he shut the van, shut the garage, and approached Scott who was standing by the front door. "Alright, Baby's in there. Look, I don't think she'll be any sort of a problem… But… Come here. I have something to give you." He beckoned the man to the driver's side door. In a few moments he set something metal into the older man's hand.

"A taser? Fritz, I don't- I don't think I could even- Ennard would react badly to seeing this…"

"Just in case anything serious happened. If somehow Baby attacked someone or Baby and Ennard fight to the death, or she attacks you- I'm not saying she will. Don't worry," Fritz quickly added to correct Scott's growing look of horror. "Just for safety's sake, okay?"

"…Alright," Scott murmured as he held it tighter. He was sure that somewhere he had a taser in the house, but he wasn't willing to look for it. Not when he would have to hide this one from Ennard. "Thanks."

"Thank you for doing this," Fritz insisted. This his voice grew quiet. "I think by tomorrow afternoon it'll be safe to leave her in the warehouse again, and if it's not I'll figure something else out." He patted the Phone Guy's arm and then climbed into the van. The man watched him drive away before he even dared to step back into the house. Ennard was long gone, which was a good thing because this gave him the opportunity to rush into the kitchen and hide the taser in one of the drawers. With that out of the way, he headed back towards his bedroom, knocked lightly, and then let himself in.

"I, uh, I just wanted to tell you that Baby…" Scott trailed off as he stared at the cluster of pieces that made up the plated body now oddly propped in the corner of the room. "…Do we really have to keep that in here?"

"If I left it in the garage, Baby might want it back!" Ennard pointed out. He was stretched out on the bed, with his wires starting to loosen and one arm tucked under his head.

"Yeah, I'm not too sure about that." Scott had a feeling he wouldn't be sleeping well tonight. "Anyway, Baby's in the garage now. I don't know if she's going to come out, but if she does- just a head's up- I'm not going to ask her to go back in. Not just because she might break my good leg, but because I don't think she'd go. It just seems better if we try to stay civil."

"As long as I don't have to see her," Ennard remarked. His voice showed his lack of interest. Blue eyes rolled to the ceiling, stared at the roof, and then flickered back quickly. "Don't get too close to her. I don't want her getting grabby."

"…Considering what you've said about the claw, I don't think I want to either." Ennard giggled at Scott's comment even though there was truth behind it. The human hesitated a moment before turning to the door. "So, I'm going to be heading to my office-." There was a scrambling noise behind him and he looked back in time to find Ennard now sitting at the foot of the bed. It was unbelievable how fast he had moved, and no doubt it was to stop him from leaving.

"Aww, don't leave so soon!" He stood from the bed, towering over Scott as he moved in close enough that he was practically atop Scott- as usual. "I know! Why don't we play a game? We've got cards!~ And I'm a really quick learner!"

It was obvious that the clown just wasn't ready to lose his human companion to whatever lay outside the door. Whether that be Baby or just work in the office. Scott couldn't help but be amused. "Ennard, you're starting to cling."

"But you like when I'm clingy!" Ennard quickly slipped in for a tight hug. Thankfully not tight enough to hurt, as the amalgam had gotten better about doing that. "You work too hard, and all work and no play's gonna make Scott a dull, dull boy!"

"Alright, alright," Scott caved. He patted the clown on the back. "Alright, you win. We'll play a couple of games. I think I can afford the night off." Ennard hummed in contentment and hugged just a bit more securely, poking the human in the neck with his nose. Scott gave another chuckle at the squeak as he patted down the raised wires. "I used to play a lot of cards. You know, long nights in the office, usually with nothing more than a pack of cards and a fan. I think we'll pass on the two-person solitaire and go straight to the real games."

Ennard gave the illusion that he was clueless to most concepts, but in actuality he was quick to learn, and nowhere did he prove that more than with how quickly he picked up card games. It only was a game or two before Ennard had totally understood the rules and was a good competitor to go up against. Gin Rummy turned out to be the one they had the best luck with. Black Jack was played briefly, but Scott gave up once it was obvious that Ennard played the game a little too well. All in all, it was better than confronting Baby or returning to his work. He forgot how good the amalgam was at being a distraction.

It wasn't that Scott and Ennard didn't spend time together- they certainly did- but totally exclusive one on one time without any distractions didn't usually last this long. At least, not until it got later into the night. It was clear that Ennard's current clinginess was brought on by Baby's arrival. Yet this lull couldn't last forever.

Eventually Scott started to get restless. He gave a slow exhale and set down the cards to stretch. "Alright," he announced as he set a glance over his bed and his three cats now laying on it. He tussled his fingers through his hair to massage his scalp. "I'm going to find dinner. You've got any preference tonight?" Maybe Ennard didn't eat, but he himself had no ideas anyway, so he would rely on the clown's judgement.

"Got it covered!" Ennard chirped. He leaned over the edge of the bed, reached underneath, and yanked out plastic bag full of things. His upper torso still off the bed, he shuffled through the bad. "Whaddya feel like? I got chips."

"I need to eat something a little more filling than chips," Scott answered. He leaned over to look. "What else have you got in there?"

"Plenty! We've got cereal, we've got tomatoes, we've got canned meat- How about canned meat? That's filling!" Ennard pointed out as he pulled the tin out. He popped the can open before Scott could even answer. "Hey, I got it! We could dip the chips in the meat! Delicious dinner, right?"

"That's pretty tempting, but I don't know if one can will split between us." Ennard offered it over. "No, that's okay. Let me go throw something in the microwave and I'll be back." Scott slid off the bed and just barely dodged the wire hand reaching for him. He opened the door and peered out. Everything still looked the same as earlier. The lights were all on, the garage door was shut, and nothing looked out of place. "The coast is clear, so I'm going. I'll be back in a minute."

"I'll be counting the seconds!" Ennard chirped with a fit of giggles. He was clearly covering; he probably would be counting. Scott stepped out, drawing the door closed behind him, and headed to the kitchen to look around.

Eventually he settled on one of the many microwavable dinners that he fell back on most of the time. He opened the box, he prepared the meal, put it in the microwave, and was punching in the numbers when he heard a squeak.

But it wasn't the squeaking that Ennard would make when his wires rubbed together. No, it was the squeaking of the garage door. He pressed the start button right as he realized this and then froze. His hand was still poised there as the microwave came on and the food inside started to slowly turn. He tried to pay attention to it even as he heard clinking metal and soft squealing. It sounded like ungreased wheels.

And then, a voice.

"I didn't think you would ever come out… I can't imagine what he's been telling you about me."

Scott realized that Ennard had done an utterly brilliant impression of her but swallowed it down with an awkward cough and looked over. He had to immediately pull himself together again when he took in how broken she looked. She didn't even look like an animatronic, but a frame of broken parts. She even looked more damaged than Ennard did, or maybe that was just because she didn't have a proper mask.

"Who, Fritz? No, he said nothing but good things. I promise. Only thing he said was that, uh… You might not feel like talking." He was lying through his teeth about everything. "But, uh, I get that. We're pretty much strangers."

"But you know who I am. That would make you the stranger," Baby pointed out. Her voice was still gentle, so it almost seemed like she was coaxing for a proper introduction.

"Oh, right, sorry! I'm Scott." He raised his hand in a wave instead of offering it. Not when one of her hands was a claw and the other still looked threatening. "I was just making something to eat… Do you want something?"

"I don't eat. We're not made to eat," Baby pointed out. Then her voice grew the slightest bit colder. "But the defective ones still try and make a mess of things."

"Right. Sorry, it was just a force of habit. I could've offered you something better anyway. This isn't really something you bring out for a guest. I mean, I served microwave chicken to company, but that was different. It was the best I could do under short notice and he liked it anyway, so it could've gone worse." He was prattling on without end while she silently watched him. "I think I had leftover cake too. It was one of those square lemon ones."

"Do you know what I used to serve? Back at my pizzeria?" Baby quietly inquired. "Ice cream. Fresh, sweet ice cream cones. They are best when served soft… Though they can still taste good in a scoop. What could be better than a heaping mound of ice cream scooped out of a nice, fresh tub? Every single scoop emptying it until it's all gone."

"…Actually, I have a half-full carton if you'd like some." Scott didn't like Baby's tone or wording, so he pretended to ignore it. "It's that kind with the chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry, but we're down to mostly vanilla and some strawberry. I could make you a bowl of it," he rambled, stumbling briefly over his words.

"I don't eat," Baby repeated. She almost sounded impatient.

"I know. I just thought… I don't know, maybe you wanted to try. Or you could just… Look at it. Excuse me." The microwave beeped, and Scott turned to it. He pulled out the food, worked on prep, and hastily put it back in. It simply couldn't cook fast enough, and he was only more unnerved than ever.

"I have to wonder why you would let something so broken into your house. Something so dangerous. Aren't you afraid?" Baby asked with a tilt of her head. "Don't you feel the need to preserve your life?"

"Fritz is one of the most trustworthy guys I know. If he trusts you then I trust you," Scott reassured.

"I don't mean me," Baby firmly answered. "I mean him. The one you're hiding away in that room. I know he's in there… I could hear his obnoxious, faux-Freddy laughter."

"Oh! You- You mean Ennard. Yeah, he's in there… But that's mostly my doing. I didn't think you'd want to be bombarded by a bunch of people when you're at a stranger's house," Scott almost lied. In a way, it was almost the truth. The microwave dinged, and he pulled the food out and finished preparing it. "We were just playing cards. It's sort of my night off and I thought we could try some card games-."

"You don't know him," the female interrupted. That quieted him down immediately. "He's just like a broken toy you pulled out of the gutter. You don't know where he's been or how he was broken. Did you know about his… Programming? If I were you, I wouldn't let him get close to ice-… children."

"Well, I don't have any children," Scott tried to nonchalantly answer. "I just have cats and a Salisbury steak. So, I'm probably just going to…" Scott started motioning out of the kitchen. Baby quickly skated backwards and to the open garage door. She started to back into it. "You don't have to leave," Scott said quietly, trying to cover his relief.

"I think I would be safer in here than you would be in there," Baby murmured, her voice dangerously low. Then she slowly shut the door and he was left alone. Scott hurried back to his bedroom where as soon as he stepped in, he was bombarded. Not only was Ennard standing just inside the door, waiting for him, but he began looking over him and requesting answers.

"Are you okay? She didn't touch you right?" Ennard fussily asked. Annoyance almost immediately entered his voice. "She's just like she always is: she kills a party! Ruins everyone else's fun..."

"You heard her?" Scott asked as he sat down on his bed and absentmindedly stirred his mashed potatoes. He wasn't surprised to learn that Ennard was listening in, though he was a little surprised that he resisted coming out.

"Yeah, I heard her! How could I not? She's always like this! With that way she pretends to be nice and then mocks you, and all her talk about ice cream and the sc- the sco- the… Ugh!" Ennard gave a frustrated cry and turned his back on Scott. His wires flared, and he grabbed at his head and mask in obvious distress. His voice lowered in a dangerous growl, "I don't want her here."

"I know... I don't want her here either," Scott quietly admitted. She didn't want Baby to hear but didn't feel up to lying. The clown looked back to him in surprise. He absolutely didn't expect Scott to be anything less than accepting. "I'm sure Fritz is being honest about her doing better, but I'm not… I'm barely fit to watch cats, let alone watch Baby… Besides, there was something strange about all that ice cream talk. I'm not that naïve; I know she wasn't really talking about ice cream." There were other things he wouldn't say, like how hard it was to trust any animatronics period, let alone one who wasn't immediately assuring that they were safe.

"…But I don't want to spend all night thinking about that. I mean, really, if we think about it, she's not going to be here long enough. She's leaving tomorrow afternoon, and if we take sleeping out of that, and maybe meals, it's really only a few hours. I can live with playing games for a few hours," Scott reassured. He tried to stay optimistic to counter Ennard's unusual pessimism. "It'll be over like that! Time flies, you know?" He expected a rattle of laughter, but the clown was silent. "…Ennard?"

"What?" Ennard asked vacantly. He seemed distracted, perhaps paranoid, and finally looked back only to look lost. He was obviously more upset then he let on if he was this on edge.

"…Aren't we going to play?" Scott pointed at the cards with his fork. "We could make a wager. You could put up whatever sweet you have in your bag and I'll put up my corn. It doesn't look like much, but it has butter on it."

All at once, the clown seemed to snap back to normal. He gave a delighted chuckle and dropped onto the bed heavily- so heavily, in fact, that the cats were all startled awake. "Oh, Scottie, that was a bad move…" Ennard forewarned. "You shouldn't have mentioned the butter. Now I'm gonna have to beat you with everything I've got! Ha ha! Let's see if you can keep up.~"

Between butter and ice cream, Scott was starting to see a pattern. No wonder he wanted to hide in his room.

Mable: Yeah, Scott's in a great situation. I can't imagine this ending in disaster… Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! I'm aiming to get back on schedule next week, so cross your fingers!