Mable: And the Halloween chapter appears the week after Halloween. XD That's some amazing timing, but I'm not too disappointed. I got a lot of encouraging feedback about it, so if you don't mind then I'm happy to drag the holiday out. ^-^ I'm just not too ready to jump into Christmas, as it seems most television programs and commercials are, ha ha! Anyway, I hope you Enjoy!
Almost Feels Like Home
Chapter Twenty-Three
Mike wasn't the type to excessively plan for any holiday. Christmas would be the only exception and that was only because the holiday required the exchanging of gifts. This meant that most holidays almost snuck up on him, including Halloween. Even with all the candy being sold at the grocery stories and the decorations being mounted along the street, never had it passed Mike's mind that it would be in his favor to secure a Halloween costume, nor did he realize that he was running out of time. Even when he was out getting things for Marionette, he found himself putting it off, unwilling or unable to decide on one of the subpar disguises being displayed.
This was a bad idea. Especially considering that there were plans for an actual Halloween party this year. Yet it wasn't until the day of the party that Mike realized that he had procrastinated too long. By this time, it was much too late, as he learned when he tried to go look for a costume. Most of Hurricane's larger department stores were selling a plentiful assortment of costumes the weeks before, but the day of were mostly picked dry. The remaining costumes were either incomplete, incompetent, or flatly something that Mike wouldn't be caught dead wearing. It was hard to be picky at the last moment, but he would've rather gone naked than dressed as a cowboy missing half its pieces.
Returning emptyhanded was the last thing that Mike wanted, but he didn't really have a choice in the matter. He started back towards the bedroom with the desperation that he could throw something together with what he had- or else he would have to get into his puppeteer get-up and make do. He paused while passing the bathroom door, which was cracked open, and noticed Marionette before the mirror. In what could only be classified as some weird form of irony, Marionette, who honestly didn't need a costume to scare others, had one while Mike didn't.
Mike found Marionette's costume undeniably adorable. It consisted of a high collared cape of black on the outside and deep red on the inside, a red faux-velvet vest that he had tailored into fitting correctly, and a pair of cuffs that vaguely resembled something that would be on a suit, which he had made himself. His tear marks and lips had been painted red to match the costume. Earlier that day they had been painted orange and purple while he was serving costumed children at the pizzeria, but now, after hours, he changed them to match his own costume, which he hadn't worn during work hours.
Currently Marionette was trying to glue plastic fangs into his mask's mouth to finish off the vampire look he was going for. He noticed the security guard and looked over. "There you are! What did you find?" the Puppet chirped curiously. When there was no immediate answer, he looked over and noticed him empty arms. "…You did find a costume, right?" Mike gave a sort of hiss noise as an uneasy answer.
"Not exactly… But I'll figure something out. Trust me," Mike assured. He noticed the Puppet beginning to go from surprised to slightly concerned. "Don't get that look or you'll mess up your fangs. I'll put something together with what we've got. I've never thrown out a costume; I probably have something shoved back in the closet."
This was a nice thought in theory, but soon Mike was tearing through the master bedroom's closet with nothing to show for it.
"There's got to be something in here… Wait a minute." It was then that he spotted something of an egregious purple color sticking out from the back, trapped behind both his clothing and the clothes leftover from William. He slid them further and his eyes widened. "What the…?"
What Mike stared at looked to be an old suit. Except it wasn't a normal suit or even just an odd, eggplant colored one. No, it was the brightest, gaudiest purple he had seen in a long time. The suit with flared pants, nearly like bellbottoms, a much too open collar, and all drenched in the tacky purple hue. A bright yellow tie, which looked like it shouldn't go anywhere near the suit, was tied to the clothes hanger as though it did.
"Please don't tell me this is why they called him the Purple Man…" Mike muttered as he brought the suit out and looked at it better. "What kind of nightmarish blast from the past is this? This looks like something that crawled out of the seventies long enough to make everyone uncomfortable." Yet he couldn't deny that he wasn't fascinated by it. It was just so utterly terrible; he was shocked he hadn't noticed it in the back of the closet before. "Please tell me there's a hat," he muttered as he looked back inside. There, hung on a hook on the very back corner, was a gaudy looking, wide brimmed hat of matching purple, with a black band wrapped around.
"How much would you have to hate yourself to wear something this? What would convince someone to actually put this on?" he asked as he looked it over. Then, almost unbelievably, Mike got his own answer. "…Other than it being the only thing terrifying enough to work as a Halloween costume."
William Afton's weigh fluctuated over the years, but in general he had been a large man. Or larger than Mike, at least, so the suit was a little baggier than he would've liked. A belt fixed the pants well enough, but the top nearly hung on him, making the open collar looking wider than sane. At least the hat fit fine. He glanced at himself in the mirror behind the bedroom door.
"I look like a purple train wreck," Mike stated with an almost proud smirk. "…If this doesn't scare Fritz, nothing will." Fixing the hat, he stepped out of the bedroom with every intention of wearing this as his costume.
Marionette came out of the bathroom, fangs now glued in, and intended on helping Mike with his costume, concerned that the security guard would decide not to go. Instead, he came out, got one look at Mike, and his eyes widened in shock that he couldn't suppress. He looked over the suit in one sweeping motion.
"Oh, dear heavens…" the Puppet muttered. "I…I just assumed someone burned that a long time ago."
"Unfortunately, no. But if all goes well, then we'll strike up the bonfire when I get home and celebrate the end of Halloween in style," Mike said with a smirk and a wink. "Come on, I know you're covering your awe at how good I look," he teased.
"I'm covering something, but I'm not sure if awe would be an appropriate word," Marionette said. He pointed thoughtfully at the suit. "Perhaps… Mortification? What word would be defined by 'terrible fear of being spotted with'?"
"I think that pretty much sums up anything that crawled its way out of the last couple of decades," the human quipped. He then gestured his head back towards the living room. "What did Charlie say?"
"I don't think she's interested in going," Marionette explained as he glanced back. "She said she would think about it but didn't make any attempt to consider a costume."
"Well, let's get out there and get her to think about this ungodly thing I'm wearing. She'd be insane to give up a chance to see me making an ass out of myself," he said as he passed by.
"Mike, I think you're mistaken…" Marionette quietly began. Then he got a teasing smirk, "When it comes to parties, I've seen you make a fool of yourself without the costume."
Mike quirked a brow. "Oh yeah?" he asked. "Name once."
"Easter." Marionette smiled in confidence and Mike had absolutely no defense. He just gave the slightest wince as he remembered the event.
"Right… Note to self: no more religious joke." He barely managed to shake it off as they stepped out into the living room. "Hey, so we're ready to get going. Mari said you might be tagging along," Mike pointed out. Charlie set down her book to look up at him.
"I don't know. It just seems-…" It was then that Charlie saw what Mike was wearing. He shot her a smile and splayed his arms while she just gawked back. "…Uh…"
"Speechless? I know. There aren't words to describe this," he quipped with a playful smile.
Marionette started to chime in with, "I could think of a few-."
"Anyway," Mike interrupted, raising his hands as though in defense. "No pressure… But I don't want to leave you here on Halloween when you could be out having a horrifying time with us. You wouldn't have to interact with anyone- you know we don't want to- but maybe just to observe. See how many people are rendered completely mute when I stride in there dressed like a purple people eater."
While Charlie knew to say no, she was very tempted. Ever since her trip out with Baby she had been feeling oddly restless. It had been such a risky, dangerous night and yet she was still finding herself curious about going out in her current form. Maybe Baby's words about her not returning to her human body stuck, as even hiding in the back of a pizzeria to observe a party sounded better than staying home. She looked down at her book and tapped her fingers on the cover.
"…Maybe I should go… Let's do it!" Charlie couldn't help but smile at the idea. "But I don't need a costume. I don't want anyone rushing out to get one this late. Let's just go."
"Nonsense! We could find you something perfectly suitable right here!" Marionette chirped in excitement. "There's plenty of costumes in the attic that I could strip for pieces. If you could just bear with me a moment." He hurried back down the hall, and after a moment of consideration Mike followed afterwards.
"I'm going to go make sure he doesn't need me to move anything heavy," Mike excused. The Security Puppet nodded and tried to return to her book. She couldn't focus on it, her mind kept wandering back to the thought of being out with others. It was much too trilling to ignore; she could barely contain herself.
Mike climbed up into the attic only a few seconds after Marionette had found one of the boxes filled with Halloween costumes. The Puppet dragged the box closer and opened it up. He started to go through the various pieces in the box and set aside some of them on the floor. One of which, a plastic machete painted with fake blood, was lifted by the security guard and looked over.
"I vaguely remember the Halloween Foxy used that. I think he was going as Jack the Ripper, but that was the weapon he wanted to go with it," Marionette explained. He then pulled a fluffy, pink, toddler-sized dress out of the box. It was set aside quickly. "Certainly not that." He then pulled out another child sized costume. This one being a witch dress. "Maybe I could take the pieces off this… No. I think if we want one close enough to fit, we'll need something of Foxy's. Perhaps his Grim Reaper costume is still in here."
"Why am I not surprised that Foxy would go as the harbinger of death?" Mike asked as he reached into the box. It was while he was reaching around that he felt something at the bottom of the box. The paper Mache-like texture made it feel almost like a mask. He caught his fingers in the eyeholes and started pulling it out. "I think I found a mask or something. Hold on." In one tug he had yanked the object free. He was moderately surprised to see that it was a Foxy mask. "Huh… Didn't you mention something about a Foxy mask? Or we had one around here or something?" He looked up to notice that the Puppet staring in shock. "Mari?"
"I… I don't recall…" Marionette tried to recover visibly as he took the mask. "I wonder if this was…?" He turned the mask over and looked at the inside. To his surprise, on the edge of the mask he found the name 'Gabriel' printed in permanent marker. "It was… This was the mask he always wore." It was almost fascinating to be holding it after so many years of his brother keeping it close by. Sure, he had seen other Foxy masks, but his brother's held a significance to it, both good and bad. It both struck a regressive fear into him and brought up a bizarre form of nostalgia.
Yet what caught him the most off-guard was that it was here at all. He had assumed that someone- probably the Purple Man- had disposed of the mask. Instead it was hidden in this box, and now he was holding it. He gave a small, forced chuckle at seeing it. "I wonder what Foxy would think to see this again. Maybe I'll take it to him. He was so attached to it when he was young… You know, that's what I'll do!" He smiled and tucked it under his arm. Even if he didn't have pleasant memories roused, perhaps Foxy would like to see it again. "I'll take it in and see what he thinks."
"Maybe we should just give that to Charlie to wear… Wait a minute. What is this red thing?" Mike reached into the box and started to draw out a red costume. He stared blankly at the familiar words and design printed on it. "…Is this supposed to be a bottle of ketchup?" The Puppet glanced over and nodded. "…Well, I think we have a winner here."
Marionette decided not to tell Mike his mixed feelings on the mask. He assumed that Mike would probably be against him carrying it around if he knew the significance of it. He would still tell him the full scenario- he would rather tell him himself than let him figure out some other way- but not before he was intended to be attending a carefree Halloween party. In the meantime, he carried the reaper costume and a few leftover pieces of the witch costume downstairs. Mike brought the ketchup costume down. Not to offer it as a real option, but perhaps to show that there was a costume almost as embarrassing as his own.
The ketchup went unworn.
The party hadn't begun yet when Mike, Marionette, and Charlie got to the pizzeria. They had managed to cut it closer than they intended, with the party beginning shortly and them having to get settled quickly, but there would be a slim window of time. The dining room had still been decorated from the daytime crowd, but someone had taken the liberty of putting up more streamers of black and orange, along with laying one of the tables with punch and party snacks.
Foxy rushed over to greet them. Like Marionette, he had gotten costumed up after hours. He wore a pirate hat and matching jacket, with a stuffed bird perched and tied to his shoulder, and a fake beard hanging around his neck like a necklace.
"Yar! Welcome to Davy Jones' Locker, ya scallywags! Yer in the presence of the damned tonight, an' if ya thing they're gonna let you walk free, then ya got…!" Foxy trailed into quietness, staring blankly at the purple suit that walked in behind the two Puppets. Marionette chimed in amusement and gestured back.
"I see you noticed the purple catastrophe stalking us. Fascinating creature, is it not? You would think it was completely colorblind!" Marionette teasingly mocked. Yet Foxy was still gawking.
"Shiver me timbers, I never thought I'd see that thing again…" Foxy gave a full body shiver to punctuate the point. "If'n there was one thing to outlive that house, it just had ta be that thing!" He hesitated a moment, then stuck a hand out to Mike. "Congrats, Schmidt. There be no reason fer the costume contest. Ain't nobody gonna bring in anything more hideous than that."
"Yeah, well, we'll see. Depends on whether or not Scott comes alone," Mike pointed out as he adjusted his hat with a small smirk. It was then that he remembered the mask from the attic. He put an arm around the striped one's shoulders. "You know, Mari and I did find something you might be interested in seeing," the purple dressed human suddenly pointed out. Though he was then partially distracted when Fritz started to approach from the kitchen, carrying a plate of Vienna sausages dolled up to look like severed fingers. This meant that the Puppet was almost on his own when the fox looked to him in interest.
"Oh?" Foxy asked. "Let's see it, Lad."
All at once, Marionette suddenly second guessed himself. The mask was still hidden behind his back, under his cape, held securely by a loosened string, but suddenly he didn't want to show it to Foxy. He almost was too ashamed to.
"It's not that important. It can wait," the striped animatronic brushed off. His voice sounded find, but he seemed to almost shrink under the other's gaze and moved his arms behind his back in almost a sheepish way. "I'll show you later."
This led to an awkward moment where Foxy stared at Marionette, not buying it, Marionette stared at the floor, wishing he would, and Mike only now noticed the peculiar exchange. Thankfully, it was all interrupted by Charlie.
"So, there's not going to be any children at this party?" the Security Puppet asked. She didn't know why she would be so concerned, but it seemed like a dangerous night to have children coming in this late.
"None whatsoever! We tended to the children earlier today," Marionette reassured. He then smiled wider at the memory. "You should've seen Chrissy. She was adorable. She was me!" He chimed in delight at the memory. "Chrissy dressed up like me for Halloween! Isn't that amazing?!"
"An' we had in 'bout three Foxy's," Foxy added in. "That be one sort o' ego boost! Ya know the business be doin' well when ya got kids doin' free advertisement." The pride in his voice was obvious.
It was now when Fritz popped in on the conversation. "Anyone want a finger?" he offered the platter. While he was trying to be subtle, it was obvious that he was bluntly staring at Mike's costume. He himself looked to be dressed like Willy Wonka, which landed him in a similar purple costume choice. The difference being that, even though similar, Fritz's somehow looked more in place than the pieced purple suit that Mike had nearly tied to himself. The technician then cut himself of by pointing between the suit and Marionette's own costume. "That's clever."
"What is?" Mike asked, having a suspicion he was about to walk into a trap.
"The theme you guys chose," Fritz remarked with a patronizing tone. Then he beamed wider and added, "Things that died a century ago." To this, Foxy hunched over and crackled a bark of laughter and a wheeze. Mike gave an unimpressed look.
"Yeah, that's funny. Especially coming from the guy whose pretty much just a version of me from a different era," the security guard pointed out. He then went to take one of the sausages but paused halfway through. He glanced between his suit and Fritz's own. "…You don't think people are going to get the wrong idea, right?" he asked. The technician also looked between them, his eyes slightly widened, and he gave a strained response.
"God, I hope not. I don't think Foxy's will survive if we become known as the place where the owners wearing matching, flamboyant, purple outfits," Fritz remarked. Seeing that they were distracted, Marionette took this moment to slide to the side and quietly dismiss himself into the office to hide away the mask.
Foxy noticed his sibling's abrupt disappearance and was slightly suspicious but pushed it aside as he noticed how Charlie was watching after him. He perked as he got a better look at her, then stepped in closer. "I thought ya looked familiar!" Foxy pointed out as he looked her over, lifting his eyepatch with his hook. "That be one of me old ones. Ah, that was a good year fer chocolate. Did ya get the scythe?"
"Scythe? No, I'm guessing that Mari couldn't find it," Charlie answered. She then gave a light jump at the jingling of the bell on the door. She looked back to see that it was only Jeremy with one of his animatronics. "Hey, so… Where would be the best place for me to hide out and watch the party without being in the party. I don't think I'm ready to fool anyone just yet." The captain hummed and looked over the pizzeria.
"We could stick ya at one of the tables, but you'd prob'ly need to be still. Or maybe behind me curtain or in Mari's box," he suggested. Charlie was surprised at how tempting the idea of the box sounded. She could easily hide back inside if anyone got too close, along with being able to shut everything out if it all became too much to keep up with. It would be perfect for someone who was still hesitant to throwing herself fully into the ring.
"I think I might stick to Mari's box if you don't mind," Charlie suggested. "I don't know how many people you're expecting. Do they all know that you and Mari aren't like normal animatronics?"
"I'm afraid not, Lass. We've got a few friends and family members comin' an' most the crew workin' here keep a secret," Foxy explained to her. Though he then got a confident glint in his yellow eyes. "But this be Halloween! I got somethin' planned and, trust me, no one's gonna notice anything weird… And if they do, all we've gotta do is just act it out!" He winked before covering his eye with the eyepatch again and turning towards the Prize Corner. He intended to walk her there, but instead was suddenly halted when he got a better look at Jeremy.
At first glance, Jeremy was dressed like a pirate, or a part of the crew. A striped shirt, red bandana tied on head, plastic pirate saber at his side, eyepatch covering his right eye; it was apparent that he was a pirate. However, there were other accents as well, ones that Foxy didn't notice until he paid more attention. Such as a headband with fluffy ears poking through the bandana and a fluffy tail- or it kind of resembled a tail- pinned to the bottom of the back of his shirt. He wasn't just a pirate as he first assumed, but a pirate fox, just like Foxy was.
And Foxy just found himself staring. He just watched, nearly gawking, while Jeremy was distracted with Puppet Balloon Boy, who he carried in and set down. He had a small child-sized pumpkin suit on, almost making him look innocent. Jeremy fussily adjusted his suit before looking up and noticing Foxy. He seemed a little anxious.
"I suppose that makes four Foxy's today. Five if you count you," Charlie playfully remarked. She looked between the two of them. Then she noticed exactly how Foxy was staring at the other human. "Wait a minute… Don't tell me…" She didn't know whether to gawk like Foxy was or laugh as she slowly realized that it wasn't as innocent as she expected. She knew these weird stares between animatronics and humans by now. "Uh… Foxy?"
"Well, I'll be blown over by the salty breeze…" Foxy muttered, still seemingly shocked. "Pardon me for a moment, Lass."
"Sure. I'm going to just go get into the box," Charlie excused. She smothered her amusement well as she staggered into the Prize Corner. "Just try to go easy on him. He looks a little nervous."
"I'd be more worried if'n he didn't look nervous," Foxy answered. He recovered and strode towards the young man. Jeremy looked to him, smiled in a strained way, and nudged Balloon Boy's back. The animatronic boy let out a loud peal of laughter and awkwardly bounded off towards the kitchen. He barged right in front of Natalie, who was dressed like an Oompa Loompa, and pushed through the door. Foxy just watched, shook his head, and looked back to Jeremy. "So, Lad, ya get any inspiration fer this costume?"
"Well, you know- Of course, you know. I thought maybe first mate- like a real first mate…" Jeremy was definitely more anxious than usual. Foxy tried to remedy it with a low, metallic purr and raising his hook to trail down the other's cheek. The human nearly shivered at the cold metal, but then snapped out of his brief hesitation. "Sorry. I'm a mess. I… I did something really stupid earlier." The fox cocked his head in questioning and Jeremy forced out a rush of words. "I invited my family to come to the party."
This almost surprised the fox. Then again, it would've surprised him more if not for the fact that the whole point was to invite friends and family. If Natalie and Fritz invited certain members of their family, then it wasn't too strange that Jeremy invited his own as well. Then again, again, Jeremy seldom mentioned his family and Foxy knew they weren't very close. "Ya have this salty dog's sympathy," Foxy joked as he reached out to pat his shoulder. "When they getting' here?"
"…I don't know," Jeremy admitted. Foxy stared at him and the human got an awkwardly sheepish smile. "They didn't answer the phone… Last night at Midnight… So, I left a message with directions. I even offered them a free pizza, so I expect them to show up eventually. Or at least Mom might, or one of my sisters. Someone's going to have to come and then… Then they'll meet you." Any amount of courage quickly drained out after this. Not just because Jeremy realized what meeting Foxy would entail, but because Foxy seemed to get that look- that subtle sort of smirk look. That didn't raise his confidence any.
The captain threw an arm around his first mate and reeled him in. "Ya just point 'em out to me an' Captain Foxy- or Long John Silver fer tonight- will scare up a show!" Foxy offered with the upmost confidence. That almost scared Jeremy more.
"Just remember that they aren't… They haven't worked at Freddy's," Jeremy joking remarked with a slight smile. Then he leaned in and pressed his lips chastely to the side of the fox's muzzle. "But thank you. I can't imagine how weird this all would be for you… I know it's pretty weird for me." The fox's chest rumbled in metallic vibrations. The human drew back just in time to pretend that he wasn't doing anything when Tabby and Louise entered.
It wasn't long after this that the party began. Within a matter of fifteen minutes, most of the guests arrived into the pizzeria. Family members and friends, both those recognizable and unfamiliar, had packed into the restaurant. By this time Fritz had turned on what seemed to be a fog machine and had flooded half of the main room in a foot and a half of smoke. Alas, not enough to hide the animatronics, as Marionette soon figured out. He had managed to get the cupcakes out, but then was forced to latch onto his rail to blend in. He made sure that his sentience was still questionable and then stood alongside Mike, who threw an arm around him and pulled him close.
Foxy, however, was a little more difficult.
As soon as it looked like most of the guests had arrived, Foxy climbed up onto his stage and called them to attention. He faked stiff movements as he began to introduce. "Yar, ya landlubbers! Welcome to Foxy's Halloween Party! The souls of the dead be restless tonight-." At this moment Marionette felt a crawling Balloon Boy, smothered in smoke, brush past his leg. He had to hold a hand to his mouth to suppress the chime of amusement. Mike glanced to him and he silently waved it off; he would explain later. "Ya best watch yer back! Ya never know what be a wolf in sheep's clothing- or a fox!" He laughed and then raised his hook. "Enjoy the party and live like the dead!"
A few people raised cups of punch, if they had them, and there was one whooping noise from somewhere in the back. Everyone agreed with him, took his words as they would any good host, and Foxy was already getting a buzz. He dropped down from the stage and made a beeline after Jeremy at the refreshment table. He eagerly leaned in beside him, leaning an elbow on the table- though then drawing back when the table made an unsettling squeak- and looked to the human eagerly. "How'd that go? You were watchin', right?" the pirate asked. "Didn't see anything suspicious?"
"No, I thought it was great!" Jeremy encouraged with an eager smile. "You know how to rile an audience, Captain."
"They ain't children, but it ain't much different," Foxy remarked. He then looked down at a cupcake in Jeremy's hand, which was chocolate with orange, jack-o-lantern designed icing. "One of Mari's? Where'd ya get that?" The human pointed towards a plate behind the fox and he turned to grab one, and almost immediately ran into someone who had quietly squeezed in behind him. He turned to see that it was Louise, who he recognized even though she had dyed her hair red to go with her mermaid costume. He nonchalantly gave a, "Sorry, Lass."
Louise started back in confusion while Jeremy hesitated, halfway through a sip of punch, waiting for a reaction. Instead of getting one, Louise quickly shuffled off. He noticed how quickly she left.
"So, which ones are yers, Lad?" Foxy asked as he looked over the crowd of people. "Tell me what I'm lookin' for."
"They're not here yet… Uh, Foxy? You were a little out of character there," Jeremy pointed out. "And… I think Louise might have noticed."
"Huh? Ya think?" Foxy turned back and searched around until he spotted the woman crossing the room. She didn't seem panicked from how she was walking, so he shrugged slightly. "Ah, she ain't gonna notice! If'n anything, she's gonna think ya got a remote on me or somethin'." He doubted it was anything more, but it was possible that he was purposefully trying to ignore it. Jeremy couldn't say that he was entirely certain which of those was more likely.
"If you say so, Captain…" Foxy noticed Jeremy's uneasiness and put an arm around him. He tugged him close with a low chuckle, patting his shoulder, and continued to watch and see if anyone else had noticed. Within a few minutes they seemed to forget about the event. After all, it was just Louise. It wasn't as though she would notice something amiss after visiting for so long.
They weren't the only ones beginning to loosen up either. As on guard as Mike knew he had to be, temptation was increasing to be a little risky. Or maybe it was the costume itself somehow inflicting some sort of unnatural urge to embrace the party in a new way. He leaned towards the Puppet, still at his side, and whispered to him. "Want to dance?"
Marionette was surprised by the offer. He glanced around the partygoers, not noticing anyone watching, and took Mike's hand. As gently as he could, he spoke to him telepathically. The last thing he wanted was to give the security guard a crippling headache on Halloween. "Don't you think that is a bit risky?"
"Everyone already thinks I have no grasp of reality from this unsightly thing." He gestured to his suit. "It's just going to look like I partied a little before I got here… Besides, it's not like nobody isn't staring already. Who doesn't want to see a sock monkey all dolled up like a vampire?"
The Puppet looked around at the others. He couldn't feel any harsh stares, so perhaps it wasn't that dangerous. In a smooth motion, he turned to Mike and slid in close. He wrapped one arm around the human's shoulder and the other took his hand, moving easily into a dancing pose, then moved in until his buttons pressed against Mike's chest. "Hold me close so they don't get suspicious."
"You got it." Mike didn't need to be told twice. He flashed the animatronic a smile and hooked an arm around his waist. Honestly, he didn't care if anyone noticed. He already becoming a reluctant public figure for what happened at Magictime Theater, so this wouldn't be too troubling. Though if it was an option, Mike much preferred being "The Guy who danced with the Puppet at Halloween" than "the Guy who maybe killed Dave, but we don't know". He could feel the quiet trilling through Marionette's chest as the music's tempo began to quicken.
In one instant, Mike dared to spin his striped companion before pulling him close. There was no scrutiny and the sky didn't completely fall in, so he was encouraged to go further, and so was Marionette. The Puppet only kept his strings barely wrapped upon the track as he led back along the dining room. He too was falling into the same trap of Foxy, where he knew to be careful and yet let his guard down. A twist and spin, being pulled in, a striped leg hooking around the back of his human's and turning them together; he was certainly feeling eyes now. He kept his gaze on Mike; that was the one gaze he wanted to keep.
"Get a room, you too!" Natalie called out across the room. Then she hesitated before adding in, "…Okay, I don't think they heard me. In fact, I think I probably just sent every couple in the room into confusion." To go with Fritz's theme, Natalie was dressed in a full Oompa Loompa ensemble, from the white lederhosen to the curly, green wig. She turned to shoot him an eager smile. "Hey, why don't I get the apple bob ready? I don't know how late Mom's staying and that's pretty much her favorite thing ever." Her father wasn't present- thank goodness- but this meant her family that didn't attend probably wouldn't stay long.
"Sounds good! The tub's already filled," Fritz answered. "Need me to help?"
"Nah, I got it," she assured and kissed him on the cheek. Then she headed into the kitchen to get the apples. Fritz watched her go with a slightly lopsided smile as he adjusted his bowtie.
"She's a sweet girl you have," a familiar voice suddenly spoke. It was a reminder of a distant time, as though it had stepped out of the past and into present day. Fritz flinched, and a chill rushed down his spine at the recognition. "I'm glad to finally catch up with you, Mr. Smith."
"Detective Burke! It's been- It's been a while! I didn't know you were coming…" Fritz tried to sound less than suspicious, but his nervousness was a dead giveaway as he looked at the detective who had sidled up beside him. Ironically enough, the detective was dressed like a traditional detective as seen in movies and television. The technician was baffled that he hadn't notice him come in dressed like that. "It's Sam now… Just to shake that whole Freddy's thing."
"I've figured that out," the detective, Burke, cut him off. He looked over the younger man's costume. "Fitting."
"Because… Because it matches Mike's?" He gestured a thumb off in a random direction towards the middle of the dining room. "Trust me, that was not intentional. I had no idea Mike was coming in that velour nightmare."
"Not that. Just the concept of Willy Wonka himself. A strange man with a large amount of power takes in hand chosen children into the basement of his factory and whittles them down through terrifying means before settling on a successor."
"…I, uh, I don't specifically remember Willy Wonka having a basement, but when you put it that way…" Fritz trailed off and looked back for Natalie, but she was still busy getting the apples. "But it was my girlfriend's idea."
"Ah, I see. Of course," the detective agreed. "Speaking of factories, the gutting of ARI is going as planned." The technician turned his head abruptly and stared at the man. "Just going down one floor at a time. We expect to find something eventually." Fritz didn't expect such a scare on Halloween.
Though Fritz wasn't the only one stuck feeling disturbed. It was around this time that Louise tapped on her mother's shoulder with a concerned frown. "Mom, do you notice something… Weird going on?"
"…You only now just noticed?" Tabby asked back flatly. "We're partying with complete strangers, drinking pumpkin flavored punch, and watching a couple of robots party. If anything, I'd say we're the weird ones since we've got nowhere to be."
"I'm being serious!" Louise whispered insistently with a pout of frustration. "Foxy was just acting a little… I don't even know how to describe it. He talked to me like he noticed me, but I didn't notice anyone was controlling him, unless Jeremy was hiding something behind his back…" She looked off towards the party and her eyes landed on Mike and Marionette, and her eyes widened in surprise. "And see, that!" She pointed out the two. "That's super weird."
"If Mike wants to dance with a doll then he can do that. It's not like he's going to get any sane person to dance with him while he's wearing that," Tabby remarked nonchalantly.
"I'm talking about- Don't you see it?!" Louise looked between her mother and the striped animatronic. "He's dancing with it like- like it's actually dancing. I've never seen that happen before. I swear, a couple of minutes ago I didn't see strings."
"You're overreacting," Tabby waved off. She then decided to abruptly change the topic. "See that nice young man over there dressed like a candy corn? He's the one who does the supply deliveries. Go over there and introduce yourself." Her daughter frowned pointedly as she turned towards her to fix her dyed hair. "Go schmooze a little and see if he can get us any discounts-…" It was then that Tabby's gaze passed Louise and landed instead on the scene between Fritz and the detective nearby. She stared for a moment and then a cold look settled on her face. "Excuse me a minute."
"Huh?" Tabby passed by her daughter and started towards the scene. Seeing what was happening, Louise called after her, "Don't do anything crazy! You don't want to spend Halloween in the clink!"
There was no warning before Tabby suddenly popped up behind the detective. She had that cold, apathetic look as she stared up at the back of the detective's head. "Happy Halloween, Clay. I see you're sticking to your usual tradition of keeping the peace by harassing common citizens."
The detective let out a weary sigh and turned back towards the woman. He almost seemed exhausted with her already, but he knew she was fuming, and he knew there was no use in avoiding her. "I didn't expect to see you here, Tabby."
"I work here," Tabby answered. "Speaking of jobs, did you ever find that guy who mugged my sister, or is that just not as important as the high-profile Dave Miller case that you already solved?" She narrowed her gaze. "I know how hard it was to walk in and declare your job done."
"You know that it's a completely different situation. We've been looking into your sister's case, but you have to be reasonable. It was in the middle of the night, there weren't any details, and no license plate. It's going to take us longer to find him," the detective tried to rationalize. It was obviously not going to work. "I was just asking about the incident at Magictime Theater to see if Fritz here had heard anything."
"Oh please, everyone's heard everything. There're at least five dozen rumors going around right now. Most of them probably started by your wife," Tabby spat. "You caught the guy and the kids got home safe. The case is closed."
"It was more than just a kidnapping, Tabitha. Everyone didn't go home that night." For a moment, the detective's features grew colder. "I will not argue with you about this, but even you must see the connections. As far as we're concerned, it's still open, as is the unsolved disappearances of those children." Tabitha's apathy dropped quickly, and her anger started to come full force. Even Fritz swore he could feel the intensity from where he was standing.
"And I heard about you reopening that Freddy's case. Congratulations, it took you years and you waited until everyone was either gone or dead, but you finally started addressing the fact that children keep disappearing in this town!" Jeremy and Foxy watched from nearby in shock as she moved in on the taller man. "Where were you to take Dave Miller off the street?! A repeat offender?! For God's sake, Clay!"
"Okay! Time to cool down!" In an instant, Louise swooped in and started trying to pull her mother away. "Let's not make this a big scene," she insisted with a forced smile and a false bubbliness. "After all, it's Halloween! It's bad luck or something." She continued leading Tabby away, to which the woman turned back with one final shot of venom.
"You know what's really scary, Clay? The fact that people like us are supposed to rely on people like you. You keep winning those awards for nothing." Then she turned her back on him and disappeared into the crowd. By time the detective turned back, Fritz was long gone, having disappeared during the dispute.
"Wow…" Jeremy quietly muttered.
"Eh, he deserved it," Foxy remarked with a sour smugness. He turned towards the younger man and put his arm around him again. "Let's move before he spots ya, Lad. I don't want to hafta bite 'im." Jeremy gave an amused snicker, but then his eyes widened as he realized the animatronic was right. He grabbed his arm and led him off. Hopefully closer towards the front door, where he could watch for his family to get there and then use them as a human shield.
What a night for Foxy to be out of character.
Mable: That subtle horror when you realize that if Scott's at the party then Ennard's probably at home… Alone… On Halloween. Let's hope those Tick-or-treaters don't wander too close to the windows. XD I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you next week, when Halloween stretches even further into November!