The Shadow of Peace

"Little one," Springtrap greeted as he saw the redhead approaching. His silver eyes were lit with delight at the sight of her. She reminded him of the better part of his past, and when she was with him, she still held the same childish charms she had when she was younger despite all that had happened to her since.

"Hey, Springtrap," she said with a smile. She had left Vincent and Liam to come talk to her old friend. "Are you doing well?"

"I'm doing fine," the bunny replied smoothly to his human friend. "It is nice to see you. You should come by more often. It can be a bit lonely with no good company."

She looked at him sadly. "I'll try to come by as much as I can. I would love to spend more time with you. I wish I'd known you were down here earlier so you could have been back in civilization at least a little earlier."

The bunny gave her a toothy smile and approached her slowly and wrapped his golden arms around her. She was never a big hugger, but she accepted the hug anyway and in turn wrapped her arms around him. When she had found him, she had caught him up on everything like the pizzeria, the new animatronics, and herself.

He had been interested in his new models although he gave her an odd look when she told him about Toy Bonnie's obsessive behavior. He just seemed overall curious about them though. He seemed more concerned for Cordelia after he heard about her wreck and that she had metal limbs. She had showed him, and the bunny had hugged her in an assuring way.

"It only matters that you found me and are here now," he said lightly before letting her out of his hold. "It could have been even more years if you hadn't found me."

"I'm glad I did find you. I just wish I could get you out of this room. Maybe you should come up tonight and talk to the other animatronics," she offered.

His silver eyes kept complete contact with her pale green ones as he replied. "The boy is helping me get out of here to see the children. He agreed to the other night. And I would like to get out and socialize but maybe another night." He seemed a little tense as he added, "I have some other things to think on and attend to."

His heart sank a little when he saw her smile drop in the smallest fraction at his decline. He placed his hand on the top of her head and ruffled her red hair. In order to bring back the small amount of shine that was lost in her smile, he added, "Don't worry though, little one. I will be ready to come out and explore soon then you will have to give me a tour and introduce me to everyone I have yet to meet."

"Of course," Cordelia said happily with her smile getting just a little bigger. The bunny felt joy bubble in his circuits to see her happy, the happiness he had missed bringing. He loved it; Just knowing he could bring these feelings in people made him want to again hug the girl.

"I guess you should be going back up now though," the bunny said sadly. Missing her companionship had become part of his daily routine, but as long as he at least saw her, he knew there was hope. There was hope that he could one day be loved again by others and again bring the blessings of joy to children.

"I guess," she sighed longly. Her green eyes looked toward the stairs then back to him as she pulled the old model in one last hug before she left him for the day. She felt she should give him as much love and care as she could since he had been alone and forgotten for so long. Loneliness was a feeling she was used to, and she knew it was hard, but forgotten is another story. To be forgotten shows that no one cares enough to remember. She had never been forgotten, and he had. Worst of all she had forgotten him.

Her feet reluctantly took her up to the stairs and out of the room as she cast one last look to Springtrap and gave a small wave and smile. The golden bunny normally might have tried to prolong her stay, but he was awaiting company so his silver eyes watched with a growing cold hollow sadness as she made her way up stairs. His long gold ears twitched as they caught the noise of the manager's new office door closing and the light giggle of a child.

The office was quite. She still had a little bit before 12am. No one seem to coming for any early visits. Her eyes held themselves half-lidded and foggy while watching the advertisement poster for the pizzeria on the wall.

"I wonder where I would be if I my mom hadn't made me work here," she pondered boredly. "Probably sulking in my room while what's left of my body wasted away."

In a moment of sheer boredom she peeled her black glove away from her metal hand to hold it right in front of her face. The light buzzing coming from her arm was almost entirely inaudible in the silent room, but she could feel the soft reverberation pulsing through as her arm flowed from mechanical circuits, screw, and wire to flesh, muscle, and veins. The joints in her fingers made a click when she balled her fist in frustration.

Her cheeks then puffed themselves out as she felt herself tearing up. She hadn't wanted this. She hadn't wanted to be in a wreck and loose an arm and leg. She hadn't wanted to be isolated. She hadn't wanted friends. She hadn't wanted to work here.

Everything was different now though. Her job here was not too bad. She wanted to be friends with almost anyone. She wanted to be with people and not alone. So what if she had to trade an arm and a leg?

Her mind didn't respect the idea that change was good this fast. She pulled her hands over her face and breathed hard to calm herself. Part of her wanted to go back to her boring life where she used to go to school, study, and sleep while occasionally going out to a dance or something. One part wanted to hide herself in the darkest corner of her room and never ever come out. Another simply wanted to enjoy what she had now and march in with a 'What the hell' attitude and push through any hardships that are thrown toward her.

She rose onto her feet and slid off her jacket and upper layers of shirts so she was only left wearing a dark blue tank top that in no way hid her arm and bright green shorts that reached her knees. She felt several pounds lighter and a little exposed. It had been a while since she had taken off all the layers of clothes. She was like an onion; there were so many layers.

Tonight she wanted to feel a little freer and let loose. There was no use in hiding her limbs anymore. All her co-workers had left for the day as had the customer, and everyone of the animatronics had seen them. Her privacy being violated in this way still bothered her slightly, but her mind figured who needs privacy when you need protection.

Her teeth peeked out from behind her light pink lips as her ears heard the familiar sound of the 12am chimes ring through the pizzeria. Her shift had officially begun, and she had no clue what to do, but her happiness would not quell because today she knew she was safer than she had ever been since the day her sneaker clad foot set down in this place.

"That's a new look," a voice echoed from the vent. The nightguard knew who it was but flashed the vent light anyway to illuminate the blue bunny who sat there staring at her. "Don't worry though. You look nice without being bundled up like a blizzard is hitting. I like it a lot."

"Thanks," she muttered quietly while her pale eyes averted to the opposite side of the room as her cheeks became lighted dusted with pink. The clanking sound of the bunny getting out of the vent and approaching her drew her gaze back to him.

"Did you like my guitar playing, sweetheart?" he asked his characteristic wide grin.

"It was nice," she replied before snarkily adding, "A bit loud, but it was nice."

He rolled his eyes and for some reason morphed to his human form as he sat on the office's desk's top, which caught her attention. Once he saw that he had fully captured her gaze, he stuck his tongue out at her playfully before again growing serious. "So who was the other guy you were talking to today?"

She sighed at the possessive blue boy. He had his elbows resting on his knees and his head was sitting slightly cocked to the right inside his hand that cupped around his chin and red painted cheeks. He tapped his black shoe on the tin front section of the desk as he patiently awaited a response.

She knew he wasn't speaking about Liam, and she didn't want to upset him over nothing by teasing him on the subject so she came straight out and told him. "He is the day guard as you probably do know. I met purple guy when he was working on Mangle like Liam told him, too. I think his real name is uh….. Vincent, maybe? He is even creepier than you surprisingly."

"I don't like him. None of us here do. He acts strangely around the children. Stay away from him," the blue haired boy demanded. His unwavering green eyes showed his stern position on this but upon looking at the redheaded night guard, he noticed her eyebrows were raised in a rebellious way so he added, "Please."

"That's fine," she said slowly. "I didn't really like him anyway."

"Good," Toy Bonnie sighed in relief. His teeth showed brightly as he rose from the desk and motioned for her to follow her in the hall. "So how am I creepy?"

"I dunno," she replied back. "Maybe it is that big grin you always have."

"Still cute though so it doesn't matter," he hummed out cheerful when he heard her sneakers pattering against the floor as she followed him.

"Why are you in that form?" she questioned curiously.

"Why?" he snapped back quickly. His mouth in a now semi-nervous smile that looked incredibly forced as it twitched at the edges much like his ears that were tremoring slightly. "Do you not like it or something?"

"No," she replied in an instant after she noticed the state of distress she had thrown the humanoid bunny into. "I was just curious. You normally stay the other way. You look fine either way to me. I'm good with you either way."

He glowed and beamed with pride after she said that. He had always seen this side of him as very personal and rarely held it for long or at all. Knowing she liked it and liked him in his ordinary form made him feel good about himself. His deep green eyes hit her with a warm bubbly glance that did not fit his normal personality.

His arms pulled her into a soft hug as he rubbed his cheek on the top of her head happily. His ears had fallen into an almost floppy position. "That's great! I thought it might make you more comfortable since you are a little bit human and all. I hope I am just as cute this way as the other way. Now follow me."

He then promptly released her and darted down the hall toward the stage room. The line of her mouth flipped up the tiniest bit at his antics, and her feet started to fall in place in the bunny boy's tracks.

A light laugh exited her mouth as she entered. He was standing next to the carousel, waiting with his hand extended in her direction for her to take. She walked over quickly and placed her metal hand into his softer one. He pulled her up and placed her on an ornate horse that had the main colors of pastel blue and green on a white horse.

He was perched on the horse next to her. It was black with pastel purple and gold accents. After a second of sitting his hand raised up in the direction of where a conductor for the ride would sit. Soft music played for the ride and it started moving. Cordelia was surprised to see Marionette smiling broadly at her. She felt stupid as she felt more heat rise in her cheeks.

She puffed her cheeks out in mild internal frustration. There was no good reason for her to blush. Part of her mind wanted to punch something at how easy it was to make her nervous and blush. She hated the butterflies that had taken residence in her stomach. Her ears picked up a low chuckle from her right. Her pale green eyes snapped to Toy Bonnie. He looked very amused by her internal fight.

"You look pretty adorable when you do that, sweetheart," he laughed with the sweetest voice he could probably make. "You know it is kinda odd to be born into a place like this."

"What do you mean?" she asked. Her interest was pricked by the possibility of getting to know more about her animatronic friend.

"I don't know. It is just strange," he said as if in a ponderous trance but with his eyes deeply set into hers. "I was born here. I was not here one day, and the next I was. I was activated and put here just as I am now. I can't exactly just leave. I have no past and no real future. My whole purpose, and everyone else's here, is to entertain the children. We all love the children more than anything else." He was quiet for a second. "Sometimes I wish there was just more."

Cordelia had never thought too much on if the animatronics had wanted more. She knew they liked what they did so she never gave it anymore thought. That decision now seemed selfish. Since she was feeling all loving and nice, she decided to show the toy she cared.

Her shoes popped against the metal flooring as she hopped off of her horse and on the back of Toy Bonnie's. Her non matching arms wrapped around the boy and pulled him to her chest tightly. This was the only way to show him that she cared for his plight.

His half-lidded dark green eyes cast a glance over his shoulder at the girl who clung to him. "You know," he said quietly, "you can be more, my more. You already give me something else to look forward to other than the kids. My thoughts aren't even on killing recently. You and Liam are good for all of us. I just want you to be mine. Be the more I need. Let me make you more."

Her eyes stared into his back, and she inhaled his scent. He smelled like candy and slightly like bleach. The words that spun from his mouth had caught her like a web. She didn't know if this was part of the game he had set up with her or if he actually meant it or both.

One thing struck her as odd though. "What do you mean by make me more?"

He leaned deeper into her and rolled his head backward onto her shoulder. "Let me make you like me. Marionette thinks it's possible if you are willing to risk it. You could stay here forever. You wouldn't even get old. Every day would be fun, and I'd make sure the nights were even better. You would love it here."

The humanoid bunny didn't react as her body tensed at the words he just let out. She was now confused by everything. The girl knew she wanted to stay, and that she would be coming back often. The thought of being stuck at the pizzeria forever was just not appealing to her, and a strong feeling in her mind told her that to be able to stay here forever would cost something grand in exchange, probably her life.

"I'm not ready for that," she replied in a low and tiny voice. He knew she meant she didn't want to die or to be stuck in one place for eternity. His body shifted slightly as a long breathe exited it. He wasn't really smiling at this point and his lively green eyes were masked completely by his purple shadowed lids.

"That's okay," he mumbled sadly as the lids of his eyes moved to show his green eyes looking into her soul sternly. "I will wait because I know that one day you might change your mind, and I'll be here to do it for you if that times come. I would make it fast and painless then you would be just like me."

"Thanks," she said awkwardly and nervously; that wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear from him, but she did not say anything further to him, and they fell into silence. He was still leaning back on her firmly; therefore, she could not move from her place. In an effort to make the silence a little less awkward, she reached her hand up and grabbed his ear and rubbed it as she had before.

He let out a long pleased sigh and tried to push his ear farther into her hand. He reacted like a cat or dog getting its ears scratched. "Who needs anything else in life than this? How did I not figure out this felt so good? I would have begged people to do this if I'd have known."

A smile was sent from the night guard to the bunny as they fell back into a comfortable silence as the carousel finally came to a halt. The time passed, and Toy Bonnie noticed that their weight distribution had changed. Her form was now leaning more against his body and his ears could pick up the sound of her deep breathing.

Ever so carefully and skillfully, he moved his body off the horse while sliding Cordelia off as well and into his arms. His human feet made less noise as he started to make his way to the office. He passed Toy Freddy who only gave him a smile. He passed Bonnie, who looked a little distraught at what he was seeing; the purple bunny reluctantly gave the toy a thumbs up and a smile which Toy Bonnie returned, surprising the older animatronic.

Once the blue haired boy entered the office, he placed the redhead onto her make shift box-bed, and placed his lips lightly on her forehead while caressing her cheek in his soft hands before morphing back into his animatronic form. "I know I said I would play this game and would wait for you to decide to join this family willingly, but I'm not sure how long I will hold out if you keep making the situations so opportune. Whether you want it or not, if I can find no other way, I will murder you so you will be mine forever. Sweet dreams, my toy. I'll see you tomorrow." He then placed one last kiss on her lips lightly as not wake her before turning to leave.

A small and sweet yet creepy smile curled onto his face as he marched out of the office toward his fellow animatronics. He was pleased with the night's events.

Thirty minutes before her shift was to end. Cordelia woke with a start. Where her metal arm and leg attached itself was frying the skin with electric pulses. A dull pain started to form on the front of her brain as a hollow cry that was never voiced built in her throat. The reason this cry never reached existence was because of the splatters of blood the girl started to choke on and cough out.

Her small body trembled as a few tears leaked from her eyes. Her hands fumbled as she retrieved her phone from her pocket and proceeded to message her doctor.

Luckily for her, the pain subsided and all of her extra layers were reapplied before the 6am bells chimed. She hurried out as soon as it rang and let her feet lead her to the car so she could travel to the doctor's office.

I hope you guys like it!