Mable: Here we are! Halloween Hijinks: Act 2, if you would. XD Anyway, I hope you Enjoy!
Almost Feels Like Home
Chapter Twenty-Four
Charlie expected that she would be in the Prize Corner for five minutes and then grow bored of the party. What she didn't expect was how interested she would be in watching human interactions. She couldn't see too well through the Prize Corner door, but she could certainly hear well enough, and she watched people enjoying their time. The music, the smoke, the low lights, something about a Halloween party truly brought out the feel of the holiday. Even if she hadn't been to one in many years. In fact, she couldn't ever remember celebrating a proper Halloween, as her mother hated the holiday.
The Prize Corner wasn't entirely empty. The wooden boy puppet, which she thought she heard Jeremy call 'Balloon Boy', was currently wandering behind the counter, getting into what he could. Charlie was a bit curious about him, being that he too was alive, but he seemed too restless to stop for any amount of time. So instead she continued watching the party and the costumed goers who walked by. Once or twice she was noticed and when this happened she had done as Marionette recommended some time ago and went as still as a statue. It was surprisingly easy, as though her body wanted to go still when spotted by strangers.
The relatively comfortable situation couldn't last forever unfortunately.
Charlie had spotted him only by sheer luck as he paused outside the Prize Corner door. His face was painted like a skeleton and he wore an outfit that gave the illusion of him being made of bones. Because of this light attempt at a costume, certain things showed, such as coppery hair and familiar facial features. She recognized him as one of her close friends, and one of the two who had helped her sneak into Freddy's afterhours. Just seeing him shot off all sorts of alarm bells inside of her. Before he could see her, she dropped into the box.
"What's he doing here?!" Charlie asked in confusion. "Are the others here? Why would they be here after what happened at Magictime Theater?!... Unless they're looking for something..." That didn't sound sensible, especially with her friends. Saying that she had been the one pushing to go into Foxy's was an understatement. They were probably ready to let go of the past and move on, and maybe he was only there out of some sort of weird obligation. Deciding not to dwell on it, she pulled her legs in and rested her head on her knees. Just waiting until she would be willing to peer out again.
Her thoughts began to wander in the sensory deprivation of the box. With only the dulled sound of voices and Halloween music coming through the box, it left her mind open to wander, and she thought back to what she could remember. Everyone had always been so reluctant about Halloween, so something must have happened. She distantly remembered something and watched as the memories trickled in.
She remembered a large building and colors. She was playing with someone and at one point remembered falling down, crying, and getting a piece of candy from a bowl of it. It had tasted like… Cherries? The person she was playing with got one too. He was a boy- maybe her brother. She only slightly remembered her brother. He and her used to love to play games together and she had permanently had a playmate at her side. But then he was gone, and when she tried to remember the last day they were together she remembered playing under black and orange streamers. It had to be Halloween. Everyone was in costume-.
The yellow rabbit.
All at once, Charlie was overwhelmed by the image of a towering, disgusting, yellow rabbit. One with thick, grabbing fingers and wide, uncomfortable smile. Its eyes, very small in comparison to its massive grin, stared down with a coldness that reached beyond the fake smile. She remembered it reaching down and her clutching to her brother as she let out a cry of fear. She could smell something nasty as the monster wrapped its hands around her brother and lifted him smoothly-.
It was all too much. Charlie didn't know if she had fallen asleep or if it was a vivid daydream, but she roused with a start, horror consuming her, and burst through the lid of the box. She hunched over the side convulsing in shivers as her fingers gripped tightly into the edge of the box. She could care less about anyone seeing; all she could think about was that disgusting rabbit that had taken her brother. She knew it was a man in suit, but it was still just as terrifying as if it was an overgrown living rabbit with a taste for human flesh. She shuddered to even think about it.
She had forgotten how young her twin had been when he was taken. He hadn't been a child, but a toddler. Barely old enough to say his own name, let alone to yell for help when he was taken. She couldn't do anything, and her parents hadn't been there to save him.
It reminded her of her own death: she couldn't do anything to stop the man in the machine, and her parents hadn't been there to save her.
"Hello."
Charlie jolted upright and looked to the right to see Balloon Boy standing beside the box. He looked up at her with large, blue eyes and a smile stuck on his face. He gave another chirp of, "Hi!"
"…Hello," Charlie dared to answer in a low voice. She kept an eye out towards the door and realized that they were alone again. The animatronic began gesturing up towards something. "What?" She looked up and realized he was pointing to a small group of glow-in-the-dark balloons tied to a pumpkin shaped weight. "You want me to get you the balloons?" He nodded eagerly, giggled, and gave a slight tremble. His desperation was rather clear. Checking the door again, she rose from the box, stepped out, and leaned to grab the balloons.
She patiently tugged the strings out from under the weight. Balloon Boy watched the bobbing balloons with wide blue eyes, shivering further, his hands tapping together restlessly as he awaited his prize. He gave a delighted laugh as she leaned down and tied the balloons onto his wooden wrist. She wasn't sure how such a small thing could make him so happy but assumed that it had something to do with him being named 'Balloon Boy'. It was as she was finishing the bow of balloon strings that she checked the door again and realized her friend had returned, and he was watching her.
The first instinct was to freeze up, but she knew this would look suspicious. She averted her gaze down to Balloon Boy, moving her head slowly to not tip the young man off, and thought through her next move. Moving as naturally as she could, she raised her leg, leaned back, and stepped back into the box. Then she slowly knelt back in the box and closed the lid behind her once more. She then went silent and still.
"Maybe he didn't notice anything… Of course he noticed something. Who wouldn't notice an overgrown puppet tying balloons onto a wooden doll?" Charlie rubbed over her mask and tried to listen if he had left. Yet at the same time she started to get other thoughts sinking in. "…Mari said that maybe others could know. Maybe I could just- No, it would hurt him and the others too much. Or worse, lead to the entire restaurant becoming a target of media attention. As though it wasn't already." She wanted to burst out, to tell him the truth, to tell him to get Jessica and to tell John she was sorry, but she knew better. She didn't want to risk what she had left.
Charlie raised her head as she heard the lid lifting and looked upwards in shock. To her relief, it wasn't a human opening the box but the Balloon Boy. She was confused and, unsure if she showed it well enough, tilted her head to punctuate it. Instead of any sort of clarification, Balloon Boy started to climb into the box. Even though confused, Charlie slid to the side and let him climb inside. The lids shut on the balloon strings, but Balloon Boy seemed fine with it as he settled in beside her. She was confused to why he wanted to stay with her and whispered quietly.
"Why would you want to hide in here?" Charlie asked in confusion. The smaller animatronic looked to her with its large eyes and then-.
"Because I don't like when people watch me either."
Balloon Boy's voice was strangely unsettling. Largely because it sounded two-toned, as though two voices were weaving together into one. One voice sounded like the one used in his greeting, young and childish, and the other sounded more like a teenager's, deeper than the child's but still rather life. It was uncomfortable in a way but didn't sound aggressive or dangerous. Balloon Boy looked forward at the front of the box. "I think he's leaving…"
"Are you sure?" Charlie asked. The wooden puppet nodded in agreement. "Good… He's a- He was a friend of mine." She felt the need to explain it but didn't know if it was to defend him or herself. "Up until recently… What are you doing?"
The Balloon Boy had reached up and was unscrewing his hat. Upon removing it, pieces of Halloween candy fell into the box, and he caught one before offering it to her. It looked like a little sour ball wrapped in an orange, pumpkin themed wrapper. She doubted she could eat it as intended, but she undid the wrapped and looked at the yellow ball inside. "Thanks. I'm Charlie," she introduced.
"They call me BB, the Balloon Boy… But I don't know who I am now." For a moment she thought he was being reflective until he looked down at himself and continued. "I think I was supposed to go to a candy store, but I never got there." He then looked back to her and said with finality, "But I like balloons better anyway!" He then laughed pleasantly. As weird as it all was, Charlie found his strangeness a bit endearing, and then questioned her own sanity in thinking so.
Suddenly sitting quietly together didn't seem like that tragic of an outcome. Especially with as much candy as Balloon Boy had stashed.
Out in the front room things were a little less hopeful. While Mike had largely ignored the intruding elephant in the room- the detective- enough to enjoy himself, it was becoming more apparent that he was going to be an issue. He had originally been relieved that the detective had moved away from Fritz to talking to someone else and had continued going on as he would; with ice breaking party chatter and an arm around the Puppet to keep him close and convincing. Though that was before he had paid closer attention to the unlucky man who had caught the detective's interest.
At first it was just some guy dressed in a relatively underplayed clown costume. It was only after the second glance that he realized the clown was none other than Scott, and that the detective was grilling him just as he had to Fritz. By now Mike's patience all but ran out.
"If you have any ideas on how to get rid of Sherlock over there then I'd love to hear them," Mike whispered to Marionette, leaning in closely so that nobody else would hear. "Other than distracting him myself. I'm desperate, but not that desperate." The Puppet hummed but seemed to be paying attention to something on the other side of the room. "What's on your mind?"
"There's a young man whose been standing outside of the Prize Corner for a little while now. He's looking inside, so he may have seen Charlie," Marionette pointed out as he watched the costumed person in question. He couldn't have been much older or younger than himself and he didn't look like he had ill intentions, so his attention was curious. "Take a look at him. What would you say?"
Mike looked back and, like with Scott, it took a few seconds and glances to realize that the younger man looked familiar. "Wait a minute, I recognize that face…" He snapped his fingers in recognition, which might've gotten them weird looks if Mike wasn't standing out of the way and near the wall. "That one of the kids that broke into Foxy's with Charlie. I'd recognize him anywhere, he was the smartass."
"I think they call that the 'comic relief'," Marionette correctly jokingly. Then he took in the information and suddenly went from curious to alarmed. "Wait, you're saying he's one of Charlie's friends? As in, he knows Charlie?"
"Yeah, I see the problem too," Mike muttered. Charlie's friend was currently staking out the Prize Corner that she was hiding inside and was already known to have some knowledge of the history of Freddy and Foxy's. "Stay put and don't go anywhere near the detective. I'm going to go see what's up and scare him off."
"That shouldn't be too hard," Marionette murmured as he glanced over Mike's suit.
"We both know you love it," Mike smirked before heading over towards the door. The Puppet made sure to look convincingly strung up on the railing. He moved to where he could watch and listen in on both Mike and the young man, and the detective and Scott. He made certain that he had a chance to observe all of it.
Meanwhile, the security guard approached the young man, who hadn't even noticed him approaching. "Hey. What are you doing here?" he asked. The wording seemed harsh, but his tone sounded weary. The younger man looked to him in surprise. Then, like Marionette, he looked over the gaudy suit he was wearing.
"What is with you and the color purple?" the young man asked in disbelief. He then winced and clamped his mouth shut, as though realizing that his comment completely gave away his guilt. Mike arched a brow.
"Because leopard print isn't in season," Mike flatly answered. "That's not important. How'd you even find out about this party? It's a friends and family thing, and petty criminals don't fall under either of those." Except maybe Jeremy.
"I'm just… I came with family. With my dad," the young man excused. When he got a look of disbelief, he insisted. "No, really. I came here with my dad. He's right there." He pointed across the room and, to Mike's surprise, at the detective.
"That's your dad?" At first Mike was shocked, but then something all clicked together. Maybe he could use this to his advantage. He looked back a the younger with a beaming smile that was so conniving that it almost unnerved him. "How'd you like to work of that bad blood with Foxy's? Erase the debt or something like that. You do me a favor and that break in never happened," Mike coaxed. The younger looked surprised.
"Uh, really?... Wait, what kind of favor?" That suspicion set in immediately; Mike saw the family resemblance already.
"I need you to get your dad out of here. He keeps grilling people, and now he's questioning a borderline handicapped man. At this rate, the party's going to bomb, so if you can get him out of here then the debt's paid," Mike explained. He didn't know if it was exactly safe to tell someone who broke in that he was wiping their debt, but he was out of options, and the detective was certainly not stopping his crusade willingly.
"I don't know…" The young man was obviously hesitant as he looked back towards his father. He wasn't sure what to trust or what to think, but he couldn't say that he thought grilling people at a party was a good thing. "Alright, I'll try to do something. But I can't promise anything. You've met him; he'll see right through me." Mike gave a partial shrug; he agreed, but this was pretty much his only chance at getting rid of the detective. "…Under one condition."
"Shoot," Mike said.
"This is probably going to sound really weird…" he began with a slightly goofy smile. "But if I come back- some time when you're open, whenever- think I could get a closer peek at the animatronics? I'm, uh… Studying animatronics! And I'm interested in seeing some of them up close." This would have sounded like a real excuse, but he was too nervous to sell it effectively. That being said, Mike wasn't in the place to turn him down. Especially when it would look suspicious.
"You've got it. Just come by some time when we're here. Not tonight. If I take Foxy off his programming then he'll be pretty much dead for the rest of the party," Mike excused. The younger didn't seem to notice that it was an excuse and headed towards the detective. With him leaving, Mike's interest shifted to the box that he had been watching, and he walked closer. Balloons hung above the box with their strings closed in the lid and the inside of the box was eerily silent. "Hey, everything okay in there?" he asked as he started to carefully lift the lid.
He was met with a pair of blue eyes and an unsettling laugh. Then Charlie added in with a casual enough, "It could be worse." A good enough answer; Mike closed the box again and silently walked off.
In any case, Mike's plan did work. He wasn't sure what the detective's son had said, but both left shortly after the conversation and spared Fritz and Scott of the grilling. The two were currently talking- more venting- towards each other about the event. Which was unsurprising since both had a history with the man. With him gone Tabby had also loosened up enough to take to the kitchen with Louise to get more refreshments. Everything seemed to be back on schedule.
Though that didn't mean that all was fine. While enjoying the party and his time with it, Jeremy was starting to get distracted, and Foxy noticed it. He noticed the young man moving close to the front door and spending a large amount of time gazing out the front window into the parking lot. Foxy eventually approached Jeremy about it and asked. He smiled innocently enough, though it looked forced, and defended it quickly.
"It's nothing! Just checking to see if anyone got here yet. The night's still early so I'm not too worried." But as much as Jeremy insisted, the night was not early, and there was no sign of any of his family members. Foxy was starting to become more concerned. Half of him wanted to point out the obvious and yank the band-aid off quickly. Jeremy wasting his night waiting would only hurt more than the truth. But while Foxy knew this, he couldn't muster up the nerve to tell him this. Foxy wasn't the kind of person to feel so guilty that he would suppress the truth, but Jeremy brought out his softer side. His too soft side, if he was to be honest.
He needed advice. Foxy noticed that Marionette was on his own, watching Mike and Natalie desperately fighting over an apple floating in a tub of water, and approached him. Silently, he put an arm around him and started to lead him back towards the hallway to stand near the kitchen, where they hopefully wouldn't be noticed. By now the intrigue of having animatronics walking around had worn off and most of the partygoers, those who were left, were too distracted with the game of bobbing for apples to pay attention.
"Lad, I need yer opinion on something," Foxy began lowly after checking to make sure they were alone. He then looked back to the Puppet. "Let's say there be someone hidin' something and tryin' to deny it and pretending all's well when it ain't. But ya notice it. Ya notice they're dodgy and know what they're hidin', and ya know what's botherin' them- we'll say… Family matters." The whole thing must've sounded terrible, as the usually composed Marionette was staring with eyes as wide as saucers. "For instance, ya don't want to say anything to ruin, eh, we'll say a party. Ya don't wanna ruin the party, but you gotta come out with it."
"I think I understand…" Marionette quietly murmured as he glanced to the side. "But this is all theoretical?"
"Not exactly," Foxy admitted as he looked back towards Jeremy. Marionette didn't seem to notice this, because while the pirate was discussing his vague worry about the human, the Puppet took this all as a confrontation on something else.
"And you're… Certain you know what it is?" the striped one squeaked out. He ran a hand over his mask in growing nervousness.
"Yeah, I've got a pretty good idea," Foxy admitted. He looked back and noticed the other's look. "…And judging that look, I'd say ya figured it all out too…" He sighed and fidgeted with his fake beard. "Guess we can't keep putting this off."
"No, you're right… Wait right here. Signal me if someone's watching."
"What?" Foxy asked in confusion, but Marionette was already floating down the hall and into the office. The captain was rather confused, but assumed it had something to do with the Jeremy predicament, so he continued to keep an eye out. Maybe he would bring back a list of Jeremy's emergency numbers to family. Then Foxy could call and straighten them out. He certainly wanted to; he didn't care how risky it was or how he didn't really want them to be here in the first place. They needed some sort of firm hand considering that they left his first mate standing here waiting.
Foxy certainly knew what it was like to reach out to family and have them either not reach back or not notice at all. It was unfair. It was a fate as terrible as being totally forgotten.
"Here…" Marionette meekly said as he came up behind. Foxy turned back and instantly did a double take, because the object in Marionette's hands wasn't a phone book. It was an old Foxy mask. "I found it in the attic. I was going to show you earlier, but I… I lost my nerve," the younger admitted sheepishly. "I didn't want to make everything weird during the party."
"Is this…?" Foxy stared in shock down at the mask. He reached forwards tentatively and took the object. "This is mine?" he asked in a murmur. He flipped it over and got his answer as he spotted the name scribbled on the edge of the mask. "Oh, this definitely be mine…" There was his name printed right on it. "I thought I lost this long ago…"
"I did too! It really surprised me that it was in the Halloween box…" Marionette explained with a tentative smile. He decided to ignore any hidden connotations that came from the mask somehow finding its way back to the house again. "I knew it might make things a little odd, but I thought you might want to see it again."
"Are ya kidding? This thing- Me and this thing go way back!" Foxy felt a bizarre mix of feelings. There was a part of him that looked at the mask and saw a piece of his human side, which could go either positively or negatively depending how he looked at it. He cocked his head and looked over the mask for a few moments before looking back up at the striped animatronic. He couldn't understand how alright he seemed. "But… Don't it bring up bad memories seein' it, Lad?"
"No! It just reminds me of you!" Marionette assured. Foxy's silence after this comment made it clear that he took that statement the wrong way. "By which I mean, I remember good memories too. Not just the ones at the end." He looked down at the mask with a slightly wider smile, deciding to ignore the memories of it in favor of happier ones of his brother. "Do you remember that night we were home alone, so you let me stay in your room? We spent all night making shadow puppets. Oh! Or that time I had chicken pox and you brought me that rubber chicken, and we laughed because it had that squeaker with the weird noise-!"
"I didn't think you remembered any of that," Foxy interrupted. He was so stunned by it that it totally threw him out of character. All he could remember- or what usually came to mind- were the many instances when he had been horrible to his younger sibling. He had been a bully just long enough that the guilt was always there.
"Of course I did! I loved when we spent time together!" the Puppet assured. He hesitated, refusing to add any additions. Such as 'back before Elizabeth died' or 'back before you started spending all your time with your friends'. "And I… Yes, I remember the bad times, but I didn't forget the good. I couldn't forget the good." Marionette reached down and laid a hand on the Foxy mask. "So, when I saw this, the first thing I thought of was my big brother."
Foxy was positively dumbstruck, staring back at the striped animatronic with wide eyes. A few seconds of this and Marionette gained a worried look. It was obvious that he was afraid he had upset the other, which was what he feared.
"Aww, Marion…" Foxy perked and reached out to pull him into a hug. Marionette could feel the mask pressed against his back as he was pulled against his brother's chest in a tight squeeze. "I love you, ya know? Always have! Yer the only one I'd share a stage with." Marionette trilled and hugged back giddily. "…And that wasn't just cause Lizzie was spoiled and Michael split." This got a chime of amusement.
"I'm just glad you're not upset! I knew I had a fifty-fifty chance of you being amused or getting angry," Marionette admitted.
"And this be the worst outcome of all!" Foxy lamented. "Ya got me all mushy, and right before I need to talk to Jer'my… Wait a minute." He drew back, and his ears perked thoughtfully. "Maybe I can use this with 'im." This got a quizzical look out the Puppet. "What I really wanted to ask you about was Jer'my. He's waitin' for his family to pop up, but…" The fox sighed and shook his head. "It ain't gonna happen."
"I see. Poor Jeremy…" Marionette sympathized. "I'm sure of anyone he would take it best from you. Just… Try not to be too blunt about it. Jeremy's liable to be more upset than he's let on."
"I know that, Lad. That's what's got me so uneasy…" Foxy looked back across the pizzeria and spotted Jeremy looking out the front again and sighed. "I'm gonna go do it… And I think this old thing's gonna help me," Foxy said, looking at the mask.
"Well, glad to be of help! Even if it wasn't planned help," Marionette said with a playfully exaggerated shrug. They both left the hallway, returning to their previous places while making sure they weren't detected by the partygoers.
What they had failed to notice, however, was someone watching them through the cracked kitchen door. It swung shut as the listener backed away and took in what they had heard. They had heard Foxy and the Puppet talking and acting like normal humans, holding a full conversation set with anecdotes and memories, and then right back to pretending that they were brainless.
That was simply too much for Louise to take in.
"Oh my gosh, Mom," Louise choked out as she hurried over. Tabitha was taking a pizza out of the oven when she grabbed the woman's bicep. "Mom, something just happened out there. I just saw- I can't believe this- I just saw the Mime and- and Foxy and they were talking like normal people. And it wasn't staged or anything, they were even doing it back in the hallway like they were hiding!" She was nearly trembling as her mother stared back. "I don't even think the Mime was using its strings! It was just- It was like floating there!" Tabitha finally looked away and gave a weary sigh. "Mom, I'm not exaggerating!"
"I knew this was going to happen eventually, but I was hoping it would be when I wasn't here, so I wouldn't be the one giving 'the talk'," Tabitha lamented as she quickly cut the pizza and then set it aside. "There should be an instruction manual or something. I don't get paid enough to do this."
"To cut pizza?" Louise asked in confusion. "Or about the robots?" Tabitha turned to face her.
"So, here it is: the robots are alive," Tabitha announced. Louise stared back blankly. "They're haunted or something and they act like humans when we're off the clock. Everyone working here knows it. That's what was going on at Freddy's and Hickory Dickory Dock's when I was working there. They're alive and they think like normal people… As normal as you can be working at a place like this."
"When that guy was taking that girl and Foxy ran out of the pizzeria…" Louise finally started to realize the truth, though doubt returned quickly. "Mom, I swear, if this is some sort of prank for Halloween-!"
"Was Mike holding up the Puppet?" There was a pause and Louise shook her head. "Did either it or Foxy have a microphone or a speaker, or anything else that would make a voice?" Louise paused and then shook her head slowly again. "And if it was a prank, do you think that we'd keep going with it after that overblown cop came throwing his weight around?" She was unsurprised that her mother was still bitter about that.
"I mean… Mom, this… This is insane." Louise watched as Tabitha lifted the pizza and passed by to take it out. No doubt she was intending to flee from the conversation even as her daughter followed her. "You're expecting me to believe this?!"
"Yes," Tabitha interrupted, pushing open the kitchen door. "Don't tell anyone I told you. I need this job." Then she was gone, and Louise was left with her thoughts.
It had to all be some sort of elaborate prank. It couldn't really be happening, but Louise couldn't ignore the reality of what was happening. Everything fit too well and, while her mother was both as blunt and vague as usual, it didn't seem like she was lying about it. Stuck and unsure, Louise waited in the kitchen, trying to pull her bearings together.
Out in the front room, Jeremy was becoming a little more desperate as he looked out into the parking lot. They hadn't given their word they would come, they hadn't even called him back, but he had assumed that at least one of them would show up. His family was large and not all of them thought poorly of him, so he had thought at least one of them would come. Or at least would call, as he kept his cellphone on waiting for them. Maybe they left a message on his answering machine, and hopefully none of the animatronics answered. He was so distracted that he didn't notice Foy come up until he spoke.
"Here, Lad. I brought ya somethin'." Jeremy perked and looked over to see Foxy offering him a mask of his own likeness. "Used to be mine. I wore the bloody thing more than me own face. It's yers fer the evening, but I get it back before sunrise."
"Thanks! This is probably what my costume needs. I still have had people asking what I'm supposed to be," Jeremy pointed out as he started putting the mask on. It fit slightly awkwardly over his glasses. "How do I look?"
"Ya look like me, Lad, and Captain Foxy always look good!" Foxy joked with a boisterous laugh. Jeremy chuckled good-naturedly and looked back towards the window. An arm caught around his shoulders and drew him back away. "Then again, so do you…" Foxy murmured as he nuzzled into his shoulder. Under the mask, the security guard went red, giving a goofier, much more nervous snicker.
"Foxy, someone's going to see us and think I have some sort of major obsession with you, and that I've programmed you to give me affection."
"Maybe ya did," Foxy challenged with a smirk. "Just when I had me back turned ya casted some sort o' siren's curse to take over the pizzeria by gettin' through to me heart." He pulled Jeremy further against him, tucking his head almost protectively under his chin, to keep him from squirming out. "This be my revenge."
"Foxy, if my parents came up and saw this-." Jeremy was cut off by a tighter hug. "T-That's a little tight, Captain… Captain?"
"Lad, we need to talk," Foxy wearily said as he drew them apart. It wasn't any easier to tell Jeremy this while wearing the mask. He had hoped that it would shield that look of devastation, but it was clear that he was going to feel it even if he didn't see it. He nudged up the fox mask. "So, here's the thing, Lad. Sometimes family members hurt each other without even thinkin' about it. Maybe later they'll figure it out, they'll realize their mistake, but that ain't gonna take away the sting when they made the mistake. Ya just need to know that it ain't nothin' wrong with you. Yer perfect."
Jeremy looked confused at this. "I don't really understand-."
"Your folks ain't comin', Jere."
Just like a band-aid he tore it straight off. One smooth motion and it was all out there. Jeremy stared blankly back at Foxy and the animatronic grit his teeth. The moment was tense as they stood there. Then Jeremy's hands tightened into fists and he released a shaky exhale. "I know."
Foxy was surprised, but not for long. Obviously Jeremy knew what was going on; he wasn't stupid or ignorant. He wasn't the type to get lost into complete denial. He just clung to hope a little longer than someone as pessimistic as Foxy would.
"I just thought that maybe they'd surprise me… But it's my fault. I expected them to just pop up when I didn't even give them much notice or even get a response from them, and this is after we haven't talked in months." Jeremy didn't want to allow himself to get emotional in front of Foxy, not when he was aware of Foxy's less than happy family situation. After everything he went through, this all had to seem massively silly to him. "I got my hopes up. That's on me."
"Lad, that ain't on you. Doesn't sound like they were reachin' out if its been months," Foxy pointed out. Jeremy seemed doubtful, so Foxy lowered his voice and let his character slip. "Jeremy, you've done nothing wrong. You tried to let them come and see you and if they weren't even wiling to call back with an excuse, then they aren't much of a family." He drew him closer. "Besides, you've got family here. You've got Fritz and Schmidt, Mari and me, and even that hoard of small ankle biters that prowl your house."
"I know… I don't even know why I'm upset. I'm not upset, really. I'm fine." Jeremy got a smile, a partially forced one, and looked to Foxy. He fell silent for a moment and then quietly asked, "Will you come home with me tonight?"
As much as Foxy didn't want to stay around the small animatronics that despised him, he immediately perked at the thought of going home with the security guard. His ears raised, alert with eagerness, and a low rumble echoed through his chest. "I'd be honored to, Lad. It'll let me keep an eye out fer any ghouls and goblins," he joked as he returned to character. He could tell Jeremy wasn't completely better, but at least this was something. "We'll make this be a night to remember!
It could be a rough night, and Foxy planned on being there the whole time to help Jeremy through it. With an arm around his first mate and a night still young, there was nowhere he would rather be.
A loud shriek burst from the throat of the victim as she shirked back from the killer who had burst out of the closet. Ennard had the exact opposite reaction. One look at the flimsy mask and out of shape build the killer was sporting and he doubled over in unrestrained laughter. To him, this guy was a joke, and he barely resisted the urge to immediately change the channel to something better. That was if not for a knock at the door.
Ennard sat upwards on the couch on alert as he listened carefully to what lay on the other side of the door. Even from here he could hear what sounded unsettlingly like… Children… They were trick-or-treaters, no doubt. Television and Scott both had warned him of the phenomenon, with the latter even serving candy to a few costumed children who had come by when it was still daylight, before he left to wherever he was going. Maybe he had said something about Foxy's. Either way, Ennard had moved into another room every time Scott opened the door and returned eagerly afterwards when the coast was clear.
But now Scott was gone. He had snuck out the door while Ennard was in the garage with only a promise of being back later. It was later now, dark, kids were knocking on the door, and Scott was nowhere to be seen. The clown glanced at the bowl of candy sitting on the coffee table. This was what they wanted, and he couldn't blame them. He had been dipping into the stash all night and could honestly say he would be willing to hike the neighborhood to get them. After a few seconds he heard fading footsteps and hurried to the window to peek past the curtains.
Dejected children were walking back to the street. All of them in costume, both colorful and mock-scary. He could only assume that they were devastated that they couldn't get their candy.
The most obvious answer was also the most terrifying: open the door and give the children candy if they come back. There was so much wrong with this train of thought that Ennard was shocked it even popped up at all.
Firstly, there was no way that he wouldn't scare children with how he looked. It couldn't be passed off as a costume- though even if it was, it would still probably be too much for them to handle. Secondly, his programming. That programming that was no doubt still coursing through him, telling him to take children, to trap them, to be a monster. Ennard could resist it and sat down on the couch again, pulling the candy bowl into his lap. He wouldn't succumb to it, he would beat it.
…But if he was hiding from it, was he really beating it? This thought intruded quickly, and he stared blankly at the television. Would he ever be fixed if he couldn't trust himself around children? Besides, it wasn't like they were alone…
He needed a costume. There was plenty in the house to work with, but it wasn't the most effective illusion. Not that he cared if he didn't look very good; he just wanted to look human enough to pass as normal. He found a large, deep purple, suit jacket in the closet and a pair of sweatpants he could fit into then slipped on a pair of rubber dish gloves. Unable to find shoes that fit, he cut a garbage bag in two and tied each half around a foot. Then came covering his head. His normal mask was not good enough, but he had a backup in the garage that would cover everything.
Thus, Ennard was dressed as a half-formal, half casual human with dish gloves on his hands, garbage bags on his feet, and a large, metal, Funtime Freddy head engulfing his own. He took one look at himself in the bathroom mirror and broke down in laughter so hard that he nearly came undone then and there. He barely managed to pull himself together.
"Alright, this is serious!" he commanded himself and stared into the mirror. "Ya got one chance. You won't hurt anyone, you won't think about warmth or bodies, and you'll be honest. No more forgiveness." He continued staring at himself blankly in the reflection, then gave another snicker. "It's a shame Scott's never gonna see this." He stepped out of the bathroom, ignoring his discomfort at staring at his reflection and pretending it was all amusement. "Just until Scott gets home… I can hold out that long!" Ennard snatched up the candy bowl and went to stand beside the door.
Shortly afterwards there was a ringing of the doorbell. He was ready for them and swung open the door. "Here ya go!"
To his surprise, his programming didn't immediately kick in. What happened instead was that the kids took one look at what stood in front of them and mouths started dropping open. One of the younger kids even started crying loudly and turned to hurry off to an adult waiting beside the road, who was watching with slight confusion. They were all aghast, but not screaming so the disguise probably worked. Ennard decided not to take it as a bad sign yet as he dropped a piece of candy into each bag. "One for you, and you, and you, and done! Bye bye!" Then he unceremoniously slammed the door.
"Alright, I did it!" Ennard praised as he reached into the bowl for a chocolate. "Ha ha, piece of cake! No programming problem at all! That went gr-great!" He popped the chocolate past his sharp teeth and bit into it, feelings the sugary sweetness spreading through his mouth. He chuckled again and relished in his victory… For a few seconds.
"…But there was an adult there. Maybe that's what stopped my programming, not me." What a disappointing thought, but it was a reasonable one. Especially since he spotted the woman as soon as he came out. Perhaps that had immediately silenced his programming. "…Maybe I should try again?" He tapped his gloved fingers on the bowl and looked down at the goodies. That's what a normal human would do, even though he had never been a human. He lingered there so long that soon there was more ringing at the doorbell. His reaction was immediate, and he opened the door.
This time he kept himself reigned in. A few of the kids gave cheers of, "Trick-or-treat!" One or two looked concerned, maybe one startled one, but the rest of them were fine. There were no adults in sight and yet Ennard was pleased to see that he felt fine. Once again, he dropped candies in their bags happily and closed the door again. It was so easy and by the third ringing he was getting the hang of it. Smaller groups of children, once only two of them, sometimes accompanied by parents, usually on their own, a single baby, maybe one or two teens accompanying younger siblings; so many people and he was fine with it.
And then he threw the door open and looked down at… a lone child.
An uncomfortable sensation crawled up his spine. The child looked young, though not a toddler. A boy dressed as some sort of super hero or fighter of some kind with plastic nun chucks in one hand and a plastic pumpkin for collecting candy in the other. "Trick-or-treat!" he cried out and lifted his little pumpkin eagerly.
Ennard could only stare as something seized at his inner metals and tightened. "This is it," he realized. "This was that feeling I got when I was alone with the girl." He remembered back in Foxy's when he was still disguised as Baby. Everything had crashed down in that horrible moment when they were alone together. That budding friendship with Foxy, the ability to perform, the freedom and trust that came in being in that body instead of his own was all thrown away when he had grabbed her. He hadn't meant to and certainly didn't want to, but he had, and if not for Marionette he could've done something terrible, something the real Baby would've done.
His internal wires twisted painfully as his arms twitched. He needed to do something. He needed to reach out and do something quickly or he was going to combust. That irritating itching and burning was spreading through his wires. He didn't know whether he wanted to pull in tighter or rip them out piece by piece. He knew what he needed to do and as his vision narrowed, he shakily reached towards the child-.
And dropped a few pieces of candy into the pumpkin he carried.
And then disappeared back into the house as fast as he possibly could. Ennard collapsed on the door heavily as he tried to regain compositor. It didn't work; the twisting and irritation was still there. "I'm- I'm not even ne-near him aaanymore!" He wanted to rip the door back open and throw himself onto the concrete, spilling wires and blood from the gaping wound in his-.
He shook his head and tried to knock the intrusive thoughts back, but they were there too. The programming, the tightening, the scooping, all wanting his wires out of his body. Then a sudden epiphany struck him. Ennard tore open the jacket and digging his fingers into the wires that made up his bow. When the thoughts still didn't recede, he jolted himself with as much electricity as he could. It seemed so strange to be able to shock oneself. He didn't do it normally of course, and it took every once of willpower to force a controlled shock upon him.
He seized briefly before the currents halted and he was left weighted against the door. It had been awful: a surge of pain that halted him in his tracks and felt like it lasted for minutes longer than it had. Yet he couldn't argue with the results once he realized that he no longer felt like tearing himself apart. He gave a small shiver. He paused, waiting, quietly accessing himself, and then finally began to relax. That was much, much better. No more programming problems. Maybe the controlled shocks really did have a purpose. He was caught by the irony and snickered in amusement.
"Let's try another controlled shock!" he mockingly mimicked as he pushed off the door. He copied the voice of the Handunit exactly as he opened the coat the rest of the way and started to shirk it off. "Looks like Funtime Foxy doesn't want to start the show! Let's give him a little encouragement to get the ball rolling." He was fine, apparently. Able to joke and jest to himself and speaking freely to keep the house from getting too quiet. "Ballora's not spinning counterclockwise. Let's try a controlled shock to get her spinning in the right direction." He looked down at the gloves before starting to tug one off. "Get backon your stage. Now."
…
But if he beat the programming, which he did, then what was the point of hiding away inside the house? It was a holiday after all and the children needed their candy, so maybe it was worth going outside to do it. Maybe then he would be seen better so if he did stumble upon another child unaccompanied, he wouldn't have as hard of a time. His programming wouldn't activate, in theory, and he wouldn't need to shock himself into submission. He couldn't be in this house alone. It was the perfect idea.
Within seconds, Ennard redressed himself again, got the candy bowl, and this time stepped out of the house. It felt so strange to be able to walk freely and know that nobody would notice he wasn't human. Everyone was too distracted and convinced that anything dressed up was as it should be. He walked to the street and stood alongside the mailbox, anxiously awaiting the next group of children. "Just like the first time. This'll be easy! Scott will be so proud!... Scott is never gonna know!"
It was only a few minutes later when trick-or-treaters started to pass by again. Ennard played his part; he hummed to himself and handed out more of the candy. He was finally reaching the bottom of the bowl and soon would be able to retreat into the house as a success. Nobody would know the amazing feat he accomplished- something that even Baby couldn't have done.
"Scott?"
Unless something immediately went wrong. Such as the neighbor woman suddenly wandering over and confronting him directly. At first Ennard didn't even look at her. He almost hoped that she would think he didn't hear her and spontaneously decide to walk away. Unfortunately, she kept moving in and he knew he had to think of something quick. Sure, he could mimic Scott, but then if she and Scott talked later then they could discover inconsistencies. He had to pretend to be someone else and he had to do it quickly. So, he faced her and spoke in the first human voice he could think of.
"No, sorry. Scott's out for the night. I'm just working the night shift." Of course it had to be the one voice that made him uncomfortable. "I'm not sure when he's going to be back."
"Oh! Okay, sorry. I just assumed you were Scott. He doesn't usually have people over," the woman explained with a friendly smile. She seemed nice enough, but he could tell she was probing. He turned his body back to the road and waited for more children; hopefully this would give her the hint that he was busy. "Are you his brother or just a friend? I'm guessing not his brother with that accent." Or maybe she would keep asking questions.
"We're just friends, and I'm just here until he gets back," Ennard excused.
"That's nice of you! Usually Scott's here handing out candy, but I'm glad he got out of the house. I was just telling him the other day-." A couple of children walked up and Ennard lost interest in the conversation. It had all been so exciting at the door but now it all seemed a little more overwhelming. He felt too on guard, too tense to be comfortable, and it only made him more aware of how on point he had to be. "-And she is a lovely woman, but Scott wasn't interested at all. Maybe you could talk to him?" And what a terrible time to come back to the conversation.
"I'll see what I can do," Ennard vaguely remarked. "You know how Scott is. He's married to his work and his cats are his children."
He was rewarded with a boisterous laugh from the woman and he started to ease once more. Apparently, his ruse was working. He was charming, the kids were happy, the adults thought he was realistically, and he looked up just in time-.
To see a car pulling up and Scott staring at him from the driver's seat.
Ennard straightened abruptly and stared back with blank blue eyes. He wasn't sure which of them looked more alarmed, but he knew instantly that he made a terrible mistake coming out here. He took a step back from the curb.
"Would you look at that? There's Scott. Let me just… go get the door for him," Ennard excused before turning and bolting towards the door. He was in the house in a heartbeat. He tossed the bowl on the couch and pushed the door closed, in contrast to the excuse he said to the woman standing outside. He then made a mad dash to the bedroom and locked the door behind him. He quickly started to shed off the costume, starting with replacing the Freddy head with his normal mask.
That was when the doorknob started to turn. "Ennard!" Scott called through the door. Ennard made no attempt to unlock the door, intending to stall as long as he could. Which was only a few moments, as he soon turned around to find Scott walking through the bathroom door with his cats circling around his feet. He didn't even look at them, but just stared down the half-dressed animatronic. "Ennard!"
"Oh, heya there Scott!I was just getting out of my costume- I didn't even hear ya come in!" The animatronic lied very poorly, which seemed shocking when he played pretend so well. Not that Scott wouldn't see straight through him anyways.
"Ennard, you were- what were you- you were outside!" Scott choked out. "You were outside in broad daylight and people saw- kids, there were kids- Ennard, there were kids!"
"And there wasn't any sun, so I don't think it was broad daylight," Ennard playfully responded. He knew he should've been concerned by how worked up the shorter human was getting, but it was equally comical, seeing him so flustered. He's be red faced if not for some white face paint that had been partially and poorly wiped off. It was only now that the amalgam realized the human was also in a Halloween costume, and glanced down at the colorful clothing. He immediately focused in on the large, red bow affixed to a collar around Scott's neck.
"Ennard, you could've been seen! They- They could've seen through a crack- if they saw your wires then they would've figured out what you- what we're- what's happening! I can't protect you if you're going to walk outside in-…!" Scott looked down at the amalgam's 'costume' in disbelief. "Please, Ennard, please tell me those aren't used garbage bags." He then looked up further and landed on the jacket. "For goodness sake- and you're wearing Will's-."
"You're a clown!" Ennard interrupted. His eyes brightened excitedly as he studied his companion closer. "Ha ha, oh wow! That's so cute! You actually got all dressed up like this! You even got the bow and all the ruffles.~" He reached down to tug at one of the cuffs, gushing over how colorful it all was and how much he loved seeing it on Scott.
Scott, meanwhile, nearly lost track of his ramble. Here he was trying to point out the dangerousness of the situation and Ennard had gotten totally distracted. "Ennard, I'm-!"
"Adorable!"
"Ennard, I'm- I'm being serious!" Scott was fighting a losing battle. Ennard was practically on top of him, currently fiddling with his bow, and his words were falling on deaf ears. "Your programming a-and those kids-!"
"Relax, the kids are fine," Ennard dismissed. "I pretty much handed out an entire bowl and nothing happened."
"…You did?"
"Yeah! No problems at all!" He decided it wasn't important to tell him about the small episode. Especially when he noticed how relieved the human seemed by the revelation and felt a swell of pride. Episode aside, he had done it, he had proved himself, and now Scott knew how safe he could be.
"That's… That's a relief…" Scott got the slightest bit of a smile. Maybe the warnings about Ennard's programming were blown out of proportion. He certainly hoped so. Then he looked to the clown with concern once more. "But Ennard, you have to be careful. That was our neighbor. She gets a better view of the house than anyone else. If she caught you sneaking out one night…"
"I was careful, don't get worked up over nothing," Ennard assured with a chuckle of delight. "I even used a normal voice when she popped up. She's got nothing to be weirded out by!"
"Which voice?" He expected Scott to eventually ask a question he didn't want to answer.
"…Doesn't matter," Ennard excused quickly. He briefly glanced away before brightening and looking back. "What does matter is that I didn't get to see you with your face paint on. Ya slipped out of here so quickly." He reached up to trace his gloved wires over his cheek, right along where the paint was wiped away. "I would've loved to see it."
The skin that wasn't painted seemed to redden. Though it was already pink from being worked up earlier. "I, uh, I guess I could put it back on…" Scott wasn't sure if he wanted to go through with all the effort, but he didn't want to disappoint. Not when Ennard was being so encouraging. "But only because you did so well, and only if you never to that again without telling me."
"You got it, Scottie!" Ennard chirped eagerly and followed him into the bathroom where he had the face paint waiting.
Ennard already couldn't wait for next Halloween.
Mable: Trashtime Freddy will always be the only suitable Halloween costume for someone as chic and with the times as Ennard. Anyway, see you next week and I hope you enjoyed!