{ Freddy's POV }
As he was hiding, a voice came from the shadows behind him.
"And who might you be, dipstick?"
Turning around, Freddy searched for the voice he had heard. It didn't sound like an animatronic, so he was curious, not scared.
A tall, slender boy stepped out of the shadows. He had a tuxedo and dress shoes on, but they were odd. It was split down the middle. The right of his tux jacket was white and the left was black, where as his pants were the opposite; the right side of his pants was black and the left was white. He was wearing a mask that smiled creepily with red cheeks and purple streaks running from the eyes to open mouth like tears. His scruffy hair was black, and his left shoe was white and the right was black. In his hand he held a music box with a small marionette popping out that looked like an mini version of him, wearing the same mask but had a black suit with white buttons and sleeves. He was one of the weirdest people Freddy had ever seen, although he did not voice that thought.
Behind him came another boy. He was short and looked around 7-9 years old. He held a balloon in his hand. He wore a red and blue striped shirt with a matching cap, which had a small propellor on top. Simple blue jeans and brown shoes adorned the lower half of his body. In all honesty, he was a bit plump. He had big blue eyes and a fat nose. His grin stretched wide across his face.
What came into sight next to the boy was what really scared Freddy.
It was a... Fox? Maybe? It had the head of a fox, but it looked mostly like a naked exoskeleton with a pink bow tie and a fox head. The head was white with rosy cheeks and lipstick. Inside it's mouth were sharp teeth, and it had one eye on the exoskeleton skull and one on the mask. It gave Freddy chills, but the small boy was petting it like a cat.
Just who were these... Things? People?
The boy in the suit, who looked about 16 or 17, held out his hand for Freddy to shake, which Freddy took reluctantly, and then the boy giggled again, although it wasn't loud enough to alert the animatronic fox, who was searching for Freddy across the room. The younger boy just waved, smiling.
"Hi, my name's Billy, but everyone calls me Balloon Boy because I love balloons, so you can call me BB for short." The little boy, BB, babbled in a quiet voice. "And this is my pet fox, Mangle." The fox shifted a bit, causing slight metallic creaks.
"And I'm Mark, but everyone calls me Marionette because of my love for puppets," the other boy said with a dramatic bow, although Freddy couldn't tell he was speaking because of the mask he was wearing. "Who are you?" He asked, straightening back up and closing his music box.
"I'm Freddy." He said quietly, still looking over at the animatronic fox. "I can't talk now, I kinda got a killer animatronic following me." He pressed a hand to his back, which was now soaked in blood.
Marionette just laughed again, a bit louder this time. "I'll take care of that rusty dipstick for you. They love this music box," He said, then walked over to the fox.
Freddy watched in awe as Marionette started turning the crank on his music box and the fox seemed to become hypnotized. "You will go back to where you came from and power yourself down, dipstick," Marionette giggled. The puppet in the box popped out after the tune ended and the fox turned, walking out of the open door and dissapearing down the hallway.
Marionette returned to Freddy and BB, his ceepy mask smiling at them. BB was sitting next to the fox and stroking its head. Freddy couldn't help but notice the lipstick and blush on its face. "So Mangle's a girl?" Freddy asked.
BB looked confused, and shook his head. "No." He said simply.
"Mangle's a... boy?"
"No." BB answered again, but didn't elaborate any further, as if it were obvious what the mutilated fox's gender was. Marionette didn't offer any additional information, he was just turning his music box, Pop Goes the Weasel playing. At the end of the tune the puppet inside the box pupped out again and he giggled once more.
"Alright then. Why are you guys here?" Freddy asked, changing the subject. He was getting extremely anxious. With the fox out of the way he could go look for Chica, but these guys might be able to help him, so he forced himself to stay and chat.
"We hang out here together," Marionette answered, finally looking up. "It's like our hideout."
"Really?" Freddy asked. "There's a pizzeria similar to this one where I live. That's where the other robots came from."
"You don't live here?" BB asked. "Where are you from?"
"South Carolina."
"Why are you here?"
"My friend was kidnapped by my evil brother."
"He doesn't sound very nice."
"He's not. Which is why I was wondering if you guys could help me get my friend back."
Marionette then spoke up again. "What's in it for us?" He asked with another laugh, his voice dripping with an almost dangerous tone.
Freddy racked his brain. Great. Just wonderful. They wanted something. "What do you want?"
"Help us reactivate the animatronics here. They're our friends, but that blonde dipstick showed up and turned them all off. If you can turn them back on, we'll help you find your girlfrind." He answered, playing with the box again.
"She's... she's not my girlfriend!" Freddy retorted, his cheeks heating up, causing Marionette and BB to snicker. Freddy shook it off and nodded. "You got it. Let me-" he was cut off by a voice.
"Freddy! Arrrg!" Then a door slammed across the room. Freddy whipped his head around to see Foxy, his hair covered in dirt and all over the place. He trying to force the door closed and the bear animatronic from earlier was trying to push in.
Marionette didn't even seem to care. He just giggled and turned the crank on his music box. "Leave us alone, dipstick!" He called to the bear, his mask's smile reminding Freddy of Jeff the Killer. When the tune on his box ended and the puppet popped out, the bear got that same hypnotized look and wandered off. Foxy slammed the door shut.
"Good job, Marionettey!" BB squealed, giving the older boy a big hug. "You can convince any animatronics to do anything!" Marionette waved off the compliment, scratching the back of his neck.
Foxy, who was panting heavily, eyed Marionette, BB, and Mangle with confusion and fear in his eyes. He had a black eye and his forehead had a cut on it. He was holding his left calf tightly, blood oozing ot betwen his fingers. "Freddy," he said, still gasping for breath. "Who're these landlubbers?"
Freddy shook his head. "I'll explain later. No time. Where's Bonnie?"
As if to answer their question, a blood-curdling scream echoed through the dark pizzeria.