"Fireworks"

Pre-BoC2

Red / Clyde

Romance

The wind would pick up again before dying down. The brand new, deep green leaves in the trees rustled from gently to harshly as the wind blew. It was summer, just nearing the fourth of July. In fact, the animatronics were sure it was Independence Day. The wind had a warm yet crisp chill to it, something that summer could produce.

It was late. Not too late, but late enough for the restaurant to be closed. The moon was high and full, and dark gray clouds blew across the sky at a steady pace. Stars littered the sky behind the clouds, and everything was quiet.

The music box didn't need winding. The paperwork was done. Everybody in the pizzeria was asleep, asides for two of the long-term residents.

The two active animatronics sat silently on the roof, listening to the noises of the outside world. Unknowing to them, it was something that the originals had done often. However, for the two on the roof, it was something completely different. It wasn't just for stargazing to them, it was for bonding.

Red's face gently rubbed against Clyde's as a sign of affection. His face remained solemn as it usually was, despite the display he was performing. The bunny laughed softly and nuzzled him back, sighing.

"Thank you for taking me up here." The blue animatronic half-muttered, resting his face on his boss. He closed his eyes, his tail wiggling happily. "It's a beautiful night."

Red simply nodded, sitting up straight. He would occasionally allow his gaze to drift down over the bunny, his 'breathing' calm and gentle. "Yes, it is."

The two fell silent. Clyde was sure he was going to fall asleep until he suddenly felt the bear move. Looking up at him drowsily, he furrowed his brow in confusion when the other male smirked slightly, walking towards the edge of the room.

"Reddy?" He questioned, yawning slightly. He snapped to attention when the bear suddenly stepped off of the roof, stepping down on what he guessed was a fire escape. Standing up, he went into a mild panic mode, his large ears perked.

"R-RED!" He cried out loudly when the bear began walking downwards, getting closer to the outside world with every step. Their eyes met for a moment, and Clyde saw something he had never seen before.

He looked deviously playful.

"Coming?" The brown animatronic asked with a small smirk, his tail flagged proudly. Clyde could only stare. He couldn't be serious, was he serious?

Red stepped off of the fire escape, looking at Clyde expectantly. The rabbit hesitantly followed the other animatronic after a long moment, his expression filled with fear. Cautiously, he met the bear on the ground.

His heavy paws touched grass for the first time ever in his life. His green eyes widened a bit, he could feel it just as he could feel everything else. It was cool and soft, and just ever so slightly damp. He had never felt anything like it, it amazed him. He heard Red chuckle softly at his reaction, followed by the rustling of grass as he walked off. Clyde watched him, it was as if he knew what he was doing. Had he left the restaurant before?

Mindlessly following his friend, Clyde looked around at the new surroundings. Everything was quiet, and it looked so much different from the ground. He noticed that Red was going into the forest that stretched behind their restaurant. Nervous, he followed him either way. Red didn't seem anxious or worried in any way, which relaxed the bunny a bit. He knew he wouldn't lead him into any danger, he trusted him.

The trees were tall, and Clyde could see life all around. Flowers had closed up for the night, and he even saw some real rabbits scurry off in a distance. It was all odd and foreign, but still very beautiful.

"Red," Clyde finally started, catching up with the bear. They continued walking, Red glancing over at Clyde as they did so. "Where are we going?"

Red remained silent, flashing Clyde a playful smirk. Without warning, he bounded ahead, causing Clyde to stop and leaving him confused. He stared for a few moments before finally attempting to run after him, wondering just what he was doing.

A loud laugh came from Red as he looked back at the other animatronic, making the bunny smile to himself. Apparently this was some sort of game. Clyde had never seen Red like this before, it was almost adorable.

Clyde sped up and grabbed him by the arm, which caused them both to stop and slide on the grass. They weren't very graceful during any of this due to being over 200 pounds each, but they didn't care. Nobody was watching, and they were sure they'd be destroyed if anybody was.

After they had worn themselves out by running (and Clyde speeding past Red every time), they simply walked side by side until they hit a small clearing. The sky was more visible in the area, and the stars shone brightly. Red let out a soft sigh, rubbing his face against Clyde's again. The rabbit let out a happy whir, his tail wagging.

The wind could be heard clearly from their location, and even the sound of a large group of distant humans. Red didn't pay attention to it, despite Clyde's worry.

After a few moments, they both sat down and listened to the silence of everything. Although it was horribly forbidden for them to have left their location, they both didn't seem to care. Red would lean over and groom the bunny whenever he would get antsy, relaxing him in the process. Another gust of wind blew over them, making the bear sigh quietly.

"Io canto per te, questa mia melodia." The leader began in a soft, rich singing voice, relaxing himself. Clyde perked up a bit at the unexpected song, laughing sheepishly.

"Che ti dice 'Sei mia e la vita tu sei per me'."

Clyde shifted a bit, suddenly glad it was dark. He could feel his face heating up, a tell tale sign that he was blushing.

It was rare to ever hear Red sing when he was offstage, especially if it was a song that hadn't been programmed into him. Normally, it wouldn't have affected him, but this time he was singing for him alone, nobody else. It was something that he had never done before, he was completely shocked.

In fact, Red had never been this affectionate before. He wondered why.

He came out of his daydream when he noticed that the bear had stopped singing, and was staring at him expectantly.

"U-uh," The bunny muttered, looking away. If the plastic on his face hadn't turned red from embarrassment, he would've been surprised. He opened his mouth in attempt to sing along, but he couldn't find the nerves.

"I-I bring you a song," The bunny began mirroring his singing into English, nearly silent as he did so.

"In hope that you'll see," His voice was shaky, completely petrified and nervous to sing around the larger animatronic.

"W-when you're looking at me, that I'm looking for lo-..." His voice trailed off, his singing going flat. The final word came out as a rush of air, his embarrassment getting the best of him. Sighing, he shifted again, looking away once again. "S-sorry, I can't."

Red laughed lightly at his reaction, scooting a bit closer to put his arm around him. He licked near the rabbit's ear, nodding in understanding. He nuzzled the blue male's face a bit rougher than he had earlier, sighing out of his nose.

"I brought you out here because I just wanted some time with you." Red muttered into the rabbit's ear, his deep voice making the smaller animatronic shutter. "Being out here alone isn't the same, and I knew you'd enjoy it."

Clyde nodded simply, smiling at his best friend. "Well, you were right. I guess you know me too well."

Red let out a small growl, making the rabbit shutter again. He knew that growl all too well. The bear got closer and snorted steam onto his neck, smirking. "Indeed I do, Clyde. Indeed I do."

Clyde went silent after that. The two spent another half hour at the edge of the clearing, the soft sounds of growling, groaning and whimpering only echoing a few feet away. They dozed off there, just glad nothing-or nobody had found them.

Clyde's eyes flickered to life, illuminating the grass in front of him. Memories from only an hour or so ago flooded back, making him smile. The bear beside him was peacefully in sleep mode, the whirring of his inner fans the only sound coming from him.

A suddenly loud crack followed by an explosion jolted Clyde upwards, his eyes wide. He looked to the sky to see a few fireworks in the distance, from the same area they had heard the humans. He looked over at Red to find him staring lazily at the sky, seeming mostly unfazed.

"Good evening, boss." Clyde said with a small, content sigh. His eyes were half lidded, and his posture was fully relaxed. Red stretched out and nodded, rolling over. He seemed to look the same as Clyde, only even further relaxed than he was.

"Mmhm. Same to you."

The two watched the sky for a while after they had spoken, each firework fizzling out before a new one shot into the sky.

Red's ears suddenly twitched. He lifted his head up and scanned the area, frowning. He let out a low hiss to alert Clyde, who glanced over at him.

"Go back, there's some humans."

Clyde let out a low groan of complaint, standing up. Red followed him and they both left the clearing, heading back into the forest. The walk back was mostly uneventful, Red acting as solemn as normal. Clyde didn't buy it, however.

They approached the restaurant in no time. Both males stared at the fire escape, looking back up to the roof. They exchanged glances, Clyde's eyes looked him over, his voice quiet as he spoke.

"We can just run away now." The rabbit said flatly, making the bear sigh a bit. He shook his head, frowning.

"Clyde, we can't. We have a job, and that job is to entertain the children. We shouldn't even be doing things like this, it's not natural for us. We're robots."

Clyde looked away at that. Red sighed at the bunny's forlorned expression, shaking his head. Gently taking his friend's muzzle with his paw, he carefully brushed their 'lips' together, making the bunny squeak.

"Won't stop me, though. Never will."

Red finished his statement with a genuine smile, taking Clyde's hand and going back up to the roof. Clyde followed straight after him, a small blush on his face due to so much contact with him in one night.

Red locked the door and they both went back to the stage afterwards, pretending that nothing had happened. They both fell asleep listening to the sound of distant fireworks rumbling one after another.

The next day, they gave each other various knowing glances. They could only chuckle when the humans mentioned the fireworks from the previous night.

Author's Note:

Heya, guys! Here's the second fanfic for the LoC collection! Red/Clyde was pretty requested, so here you go!

I almost made it a lemon, but I didn't. I have self control, I promise!

Anyways, I have two other chapters planned. One's a friendship chapter, and the other's more romance. But, other than that? I don't know!

Requests are still open! Feel free to continue dropping them on me!

Huge thanks to Chillaid for beta reading!

Also, big thanks to Ralakai, TheNumberNineIsEight, Anon Kayla, Bink1999, 4ctual1nsanity, kattylm, Anon FoxylefttheCove, LevitatingPiez, Pokeythewarrior (Huehue, one Shaf/Shab fic coming up!), Is It Me or Not, Anon MissDarkRaven, Anon makao, TFAArtFreak, KudleyFan93, super nuka fan, MCHaunter, Anon Guest, HenryFEA, Anon Chocohonut, DespicableMe1, TackiestFire, Leo2flyt, mystery8icarus, AddiLion, Anon Guest 2, Mudkiptreecko, MinecraftMotavator1987, NoMore-Pikachu, Elysion Wish, Jenny Lockhart, xXToxicWolfXx, Kureneko, and Anon Guest 3 for reviewing! Thank you so, so much!

((If you weren't able to tell, this chapter was inspired by Io Canto Per Te/Looking For Romance from Bambi. Don't shoot me.

Y'know. Get it? Shoot me? Like Bambi's mom?

I'm a terrible person.))