Mable: Unfortunately, a few factors went into delaying this chapter, but I will cut the explanation so that I can post the chapter. In short it really is 'everything that could stand in my way did'.
GeminiJoker: Hello there! I'm assuming you mean as in how old their souls would be instead of the bodies- or I hope you do, because pinpointing when the animatronic parts were created would be one wild challenge. XD After becoming animatronics, their souls have continued aging in their new bodies, so Marionette is in his late teens and Foxy about in his mid-twenties. Max the magician would be about the same age as Foxy, but maybe a bit younger. The Minireenas aren't exactly like those three, but are very much like children.
Ennard is very difficult to break down. It'll be easier just for you to see it in action than for me to write it.
Anyway, the story must go on! I hope you Enjoy!
Can't Go Home Again
Chapter Seventy-Three
The doors flung open to the kitchen and a whistle echoed through the dining room. The group of animatronic who were standing around the stage turned and looked back.
"Remember me?!" Mike called over with a beaming smirk. "Yeah, I bet you do!"
Doc let out a groan and turned his head around, staring in his direction, and then broke into an odd sprint.
"Let's see if you can get me this time!" With a smug smile, Mike slipped back through the door and waited alongside it. As expected, Doc broke through, but had no idea that Mike wasn't alone.
He couldn't even see the Puppet waiting until it had sprung on him. The force was enough to knock Doc back through into the dining room, again, and send him falling heavily to the floor. Marionette rolled forward off him and crouched on the ground, quickly looking for a second target. Once his eyes affixed on Hickory, who was rapidly approaching, he sprung again. This time he made sure to completely ensnare the mouse animatronic in his strings.
Mike slipped in behind, stepping over Doc who was struggling to stand, and made a mad dash for the kitchen. "Jeremy?! Foxy?!"
Instead of seeing the two, he came face to face with Bo Peep. She turned away from the old stone and set her eyes on him with shriek, then started to bound over. Her sheep also veered around the corner of an island counter and smacked right into the security guard's calf, which was moderately uncomfortable, but not enough to stop him. Mike whipped out the tazer again, waving it attentively, and backed right back out even as Bo Peep followed him.
"Stay back! I just took out the weasel!" Mike accused and looked back to watch where he was going. Doc was now getting assistance from Dickory while Hickory was distracted elsewhere. Before Mike could even look back at Bo Peep, the familiar blur of black jolted by, and Mike looked to her again just in time to see the Puppet ensnare her. One of her arms popped off like it was barely attached; probably largely from lack of maintenance from the Funcade's staff. It was just enough damage to distract her fully from continuing after Mike.
"Foxy, did you hear that?" Jeremy asked with alarm. He started to lean over and draw the curtain back, "Mike…?"
He was met with an endoskeleton face jolting forward at his own.
Jeremy cried out and leapt back from Bobby's bite. Foxy grabbed ahold of his shoulder and smoothly yanked him back, though hard enough that Jeremy lightly thumped against the back wall. The animatronic then dove forward and tackled Bobby back onto the ground. He could hear the music playing from his brother and knew that he was fighting, even if he couldn't afford to look up and see him.
"Jeremy, run! I got her down!" Foxy called out and Jeremy stumbled out from behind the curtain. He stayed near the wall and started to run for the door out. Mike noticed him and ran for him, getting in front and shielding him with the tazer.
"Slow down, stay quiet," Mike whispered harshly as he kept his eyes on the three blind mice. Doc was finally back on his feet, which meant that all three were now free to hunt once more. The security guard was willing to risk himself and pointed Jeremy at the door, then ran across the dining room. As he expected, Hickory and Dickory heard his footsteps and started their pursuit after him.
Unfortunately, Doc had not moved with them. He now blocked the door and twitched unnervingly as he listened in for possibly prey. More specifically, Jeremy, who was still unable to scoot by out of both dread and realistic chance of getting caught. Apparently Foxy noticed this as well and in his semi-crazed state decided that he had to get Doc out of the way as fast as possible. Thus, he shoved himself off Bobby, broke into a sprint, and rushed Doc.
Doc heard Foxy's clattering footsteps long before the fox reached him and braced himself, catching the animatronic and fighting against him. Jeremy only watched for a moment before he ran, knowing that Foxy wanted him to go. Indeed, as soon as Jeremy was gone, Foxy attempted to untangle himself from Doc and proceeded out the doors. Instead of following, Doc focused on Hickory and Dickory's new target, and Mike became the focus again.
Mike watched Foxy sprint out and knew it was time to make a getaway. He didn't want anymore of a battle or he knew it would lead to injuries. He circled the room, trying to effectively lose the surprisingly quickened Hickory and Dickory. They may have not been a threat before, but they certainly were now. He was midway through a turn when his path was blocked by Bobby. She recovered from the strike by Foxy and was crawling in Mike's direction.
Between Bobby alone or Hickory and Dickory, the choice of who to face was obvious. Mike turned around and tried to maneuver himself around the two mice. This nearly worked, especially when he briefly struck the tazer into Hickory's arm. The shudder of electricity stopped the mouse in his tracks, even as Dickory tried to grab ahold of the back of Mike's jacket. He tugged out of the weak hold and made another dash across the dining room.
Doc sprinted in his direction and Mike jolted off out of its path, watching as the third mouse instead ran to its companions. A shrill, mechanical cry alerted him that Bobby was closing in, and he looked back in time to see the crawling animatronic reaching for his leg. He turned on the taser and prepared to give her a jolt.
Before Mike could even react, a flimsy table flew across the floor and crashed into Bobby. The animatronic's head was knocked back and its back folded in a way that looked utterly gruesome. Though Mike doubted that it even fazed such a broken body. Even as Marionette floated in, glowing gaze pointedly fixed on Bobby, swinging his arm upwards and telekinetically knocking the broken one further back against the stage, Bobby seemed largely unchanged. Even as a large section of her fabric exterior peeled back and hung off from her arm.
"We're out of here!" Mike called to his companion as he looked around the room. Bo Peep was already shuffling back towards them and the three mice now turned their heads towards the voice. However, Marionette seemed stuck with his gaze on Bobby, twitching with growing anger. "Stop fixating, let's go!" Mike called to him. He would've made a grab for him, but the forewarning groan from Doc signaled that he was about to rush over. He knew that the Puppet could just teleport out, but he could not.
"We're going! Come on!" the human called with finality before turning and making a break for the kitchen doors. He busted through and continued sprinting down the aisle to the front of the arcade. With an awkward sort of heave, Mike stumbled through the broken door and stopped outside, waiting… But Marionette didn't appear. He looked at his car and around the corner at the van, but it was clear that the Puppet still had to be inside. Suddenly Mike's confidence in getting out without a trip to the hospital plummeted into dread.
Marionette simply couldn't draw himself away from Bobby at first. He stared down at the broken animatronic with a mix of pity and fury. This thing, this broken and traumatized thing, had attacked the person he cared for most. It had also gone for both a good friend and his brother; it was clearly out of control. And yet he could feel the anger and confusion coming from it as it looked to him. It seemed blindly aggressive, even labelling him as a threat, but then stared at him blankly and refused to approach.
Bobby nearly did something unforgivable, but the Puppet could still show mercy. It was of no comparison to some of the things the others had done- to what Baby herself tried to do- so it would be a crime to be biased. Especially when the animatronic had clearly suffered at the hands of the establishment. If it compulsively tried to break itself, then something had to be direly wrong.
Curiosity started to cloud his judgement and he moved in closer, cocking his head slightly as he started to reach out spiritually. Normally, an animatronic that was this deprived would eagerly latch on, such as Max did or Foxy had been willing to. Others, such as Ennard, could not be reached. In Ennard's case it was because of how fragmented its soul was; he saw glimpses, but he could've never fully identified what was inside. He cautiously reached out this same suggestion to Bobby, watching her, wanting to know why she was like this.
As yellow eyes met his, Marionette was overwhelmed with a white-hot anger that he never expected. He would've flinched back if he wasn't so determined to hold his ground, but the broken animatronic overflowed with rage. He had opened a Pandora's Box full of restlessness and fury, and it was aimed towards him. While he could've assumed it was blind rage, it felt too precise. It was just enough to drive him away; he couldn't stay and help, he needed to leave immediately.
It didn't help when the Puppet drew his attention to the others in the room. They now stood still, staring at him, and while he hadn't opened himself to them, he already knew that they had to feel the same anger. He could still feel Bobby's own searing behind him and hovered towards the door, intending to go after Mike. Something was welling in his body that he couldn't stand. It made him feel unsteady in his movements.
Only then did the Puppet notice that his journey was blocked by something in front of the door. It sat on the ground, propped against the closed door, and stared up at him. It wasn't its wobbly body or resemblance to a standard puppet that triggered his interest, but how uncannily it looked to the Balloon Boy model. The eyes, the coloring, how it looked like a human child; it certainly was an odd animatronic staring up at him.
Marionette moved in closer and stared down at the limp animatronic. Its large, blue eyes stared back at him, judging him, and Marionette felt his insides twist with a sourness. He couldn't remember the last time that he felt so out of sorts, especially when staring at something that looked so much like Balloon Boy. It looked so much like Balloon Boy.
Instead of teleporting out of the restaurant, the smarter decision, Marionette reached out again. He could feel the growing anger around him and the pounding heat from restless spirits laying blame on him, but he still reached out. The puppet boy did not show the same amount of anger. He could feel its fear, its sadness, and some frustration, but there was something else there; familiarity. He didn't realize how deep he had gotten until he heard the hushed voice of a child from inside the core of the animatronic.
"Where did you go?"
…Whatever that meant, it didn't mean what Marionette thought it meant. It couldn't; he was hallucinating the sound of Balloon Boy from the nightmare he had before. The similarities were uncanny, the animatronics were similar, but it was all a coincidence. The Puppet still moved back from the puppet child, still staring into those bright blue eyes, and then looked to the other. The anger, the pain, it was all so feverish as he looked over Bo Peep and Doc. Hickory and Dickory seemed largely devoid of any soul activity.
Then he was looking back at broken Bobby Black Sheep, staring at him across the room, dragging herself closer. She was the spitting resemblance of Mangle. Between her and Balloon Boy- Balloon puppet- they were so much like the Toy animatronics that he had knew. Their behaviors, their emotions, their eyes… But this was just how it was. They were all made by the same company; of course they were similar. ARI had built these animatronics and according to the files that he and Mike had found-.
"Remind me to ask about 'concept unification' when we get back to Fritz."
They had been dismantled, but that continuation. What had Mike meant by that question? At the time, Marionette had been too distracted to even think about what Mike had said. He wasn't rationally clicking one together with the other. He wasn't thinking of retrofitting or progress, or that single room that could separate exterior and interior parts. He had been the last one planned, but they couldn't find him, and he just accepted that the Toys were long gone. After all, William didn't care about broken things. He used them until he couldn't anymore and then threw them away.
…Unless he could still use them.
A growing panic started to fill him as he looked around at the ones staring at him. It tingled along his limbs as the growing static started to buzz in his audio receptors. It was only now that he remembered that horrendous cracking noise that night, in the early hours of the morning, that cracking as plates came apart from metal endoskeletons. The Toys were taken apart piece by piece while he waited for his turn in the dark halls of his father's dungeon. They were dismantled, tugged apart piece by piece, rendered scrap of their previous bodies, but then what happened next?
The answer came in the sudden wash of angry voices that overtook him from the inside out. If he could've retched then he would've, to force the voices out with his own, but he could do nothing but tremble in place and look around at the animatronics who he had just attacked to save Jeremy and Mike.
They were the same animatronics who he had left behind that night. The others knew what he did.
The back of the van opened and Jeremy jumped back in horror, only to be relieved to see that it was Mike. The security guard looked through the back before wincing. "Damn it, Mari…"
"What? What's wrong?" Jeremy asked in paranoia. Foxy also looked over in alertness and clear concern. Mike gave a weary exhale and tapped his fingers on the door.
"Mari's still inside… You two stay here. I'll go back in and get him." Mike then shut the door and started to jog back around the corner. Before he could get there, he could hear Foxy open the back door and call out.
"If ya get in deep water, come get me!" Foxy assured and Mike gave a noncommittal wave back at him. He loathed climbing back into the arcade, but he wouldn't risk waiting for Marionette. Not when he already wasn't supposed to be staying behind like this. He passed down the aisle, ignoring Sly who looked like he was trying to stand, and approached the kitchen door cautiously. At first it sounded deathly silent. He could just imagine Marionette still inside, staring down Bobby, and fought the urge to sigh impatiently as he reached for the door.
He couldn't tell if it was touching the door, pushing it open more, or just stepping into a closer vicinity, but the madness he was struck with was overwhelming.
With a heavy pounding of his head preceding it, he was bombarded by multiple furious and distorted voices. It was as though they came straight from inside, like when they had tested telepathy in the past. Though instead of the gentle and soothing tone of Marionette, it was all of this, and it was enough to cause Mike to stumble back.
"What the hell was that?!" He was almost afraid that the animatronics would hear his thoughts, but this didn't seem to be the case. He took a moment to calm himself down and regain his bearings, then tried to approach the door again. The sound was still unfathomable and largely unbearable, but he could finally peer through the slot in the door.
Marionette was just hovering there in the center of the room, twitching, and only turned his head so that his gaze could constantly shift amongst the animatronics. They weren't moving in on him, but it almost looked like he was frightened, or in pain.
"It's got to be all this noise!" Mike naturally assumed. He briefly thought through his choices before they landed on the music box, still over on the office desk. He dashed to grab it and hurried back, easily dodging Sly's grabbing hand as the animatronic started to pull itself off the ground. As far as Mike was concerned, he wasn't the one who was in immediate danger. He nudged the door open with his foot and was again hit by distorted words and accusations.
Instead of trying to decode them, Mike wound the box and then slid it across the floor towards Marionette. It skidded over the tiled floor and came to a stop right where he expected, and chimed out the music. He then watched the room carefully, looking for a reaction.
The only one that gave a full physical reaction was Marionette. Mike watched as he slowly dropped to the floor and slumped exhaustedly onto the tile floor, dropping into unconsciousness. However, the calls and voices, the static and pain, all quieted down until it was entirely silent. Once he thought that maybe it was safe, Mike cracked the door open further and looked over the animatronics. Most of them had lowered their heads, save Bobby, and none of them moved or acknowledged him at all, so he assumed that they were subdued.
"Here goes nothing…" Mike stepped into the room, passing by the Balloon Boy looking puppet, and took a few hesitant steps towards the fallen animatronic. He leaned down, briefly looking over the others that just seemed to stare blankly, and then started to pull Marionette into his arms.
He was interrupted by a few heavy thumps and a crack, and looked over just in time to see Doc stride forward and kick the music box, which skidded right back out of the kitchen door, with the boy puppet had propped open behind Mike.
"…Well, I'll be damned…" He would've been impressed if he hadn't realized that this meant the music box had done literally nothing. The phone call tip had been wrong.
Mike shoved himself upwards, clinging to Marionette, and tried to clamor back. Unfortunately, all the animatronics moved in at once, all with a vigor that he couldn't have anticipated. Mike managed to get his tazer out and jolted Hickory, looping his other arm around the Puppet's middle and trying to drag him out of the arcade. This almost worked until Bo Peep's good wrist locked onto Mike's and the two began a tug of war. He continued to back up, stumbling over the sheep and kicking it towards Bobby, who was slowly dragging herself closer.
Hickory started to move back in, now with Dickory following in with him. If they reached him then he knew he would be trapped, so he kicked Bo Peep in the back of the leg and slipped out of her grasp. If it wasn't for Sly, who then barged through the kitchen door and rushed him from behind, Mike would've made it out. Instead, it became a blur of animatronic hands grabbing at clawing at him.
Through the growing panic, Mike felt Marionette's hands grabbing onto his arm and weakly squeezing. He was starting to waken, and this alone managed to push Mike to get his second wind. He swung back and cracked the end of the tazer into the side of Sly's head. The weasel jerked back and his grip weakened, just enough that Mike could slide out. Unfortunately, he immediately fell forward into Hickory and Dickory's grasp. Still determined, he jolted Hickory with the tazer, feeling a light shock back from its grasp. He yanked Marionette closer and continued his struggle.
It wasn't until Sly was back on him and the mice had fully gotten ahold of his tazer and arm that Mike realized there was no escaping the animatronics' grasp. With no other options, Mike shoved Marionette off and out of the group, trying to spare him from whatever they intended to do next. Thankfully, the Puppet caught himself before his face hit the ground, and he was slowly rousing more and more, struggling against the sedation of the music box and whatever else these things had done to him beforehand.
Mike continued to fight, but there were too many of them. Hickory got a full hold on his right arm and Dickory on his left, subduing him and dragging him over towards Doc, who hadn't moved since kicking the music box out of the room. Both him and Bobby just watched. Sly and Bo Peep fell back to watch as well, like they knew exactly what was coming.
Marionette pushed himself off the ground and looked over to the scene. His eyes widened in horror as the static edged into his mind. He knew what they would do- or what Doc intended on doing.
Doc stared down at Mike and for the first time, he swore that the mouse could fully see him. It reached out and grabbed ahold of his shoulders, then leaned itself down, its mouth widening open. It intended to bite him through the flimsy mask. He could only imagine what the hidden teeth underneath looked like and hoped they were small and dull, unlike the ones that Bobby was showing of. With a sudden rush of adrenaline, Mike yanked his arm free of Hickory and planted his palm on Doc's face, trying to shove him back.
He was running out of time. Any moment and Doc would be biting down on him, content with trying to kill him in front of Marionette, inching closer as he tried to push him back…
And then, to almost his disbelief, he heard Marionette's voice.
"Down the Rabbit hole, we saw you come in.~"
The sudden singing was almost as surprising to the animatronics as Mike. The strength that Doc was using to push onward suddenly wavered and he hesitated. His head cocked to the side, listening in. Mike could've thought of a more appropriate time to sing, but it was obvious that it was already changing his attacker. Marionette was subduing them.
"Through the glass of our cages, chained up where we live,~" Marionette quietly continued as he pushed himself further off the ground. "Where we live…~"
The animatronics looked confused and some even hesitant to approach the singing Puppet. He looked around at them, listening to their sudden silence, and his gaze fell on the smaller puppet.
"Please don't be afraid,~" Marionette murmured as he reached out for the 'child's' hand. "We're a little bent.~" The Balloon Boy puppet rose up on narrow legs and stepped over to him, wobbling as it did so, and offered its hand. Marionette took it, tightening his own fingers around the smaller fist which couldn't do the same. "Broken souls looking for a way to start again,~" he murmured. Then Marionette drew his hands away and raised off the ground, all the while studying the others. "Start again…~"
There was a hesitation then. Long enough in fact, that Mike started to wonder if that was the entire song, even with the soft chiming that continued to trill from Marionette's core. This wasn't the case though as he turned his head back to see Marionette approaching Sly and Bo Peep. The human tried to turn further and found that Hickory and Dickory's grip had loosened a bit. Perhaps enough that he could work himself free from their hands.
Now standing in front of Sly, Marionette couldn't help but see the similarities, even if they were ones located down beneath the changed exterior. Only now did he really see the damage that he had done; Sly's mask was almost completely folded off and parts of its endoskeleton could be seen.
"Listen to the voice keeping you alive.~" The Puppet reached upwards to its mask and began to fix it back into place, trying to fix the damage they had caused. "You need us, we need you, it'll be alright.~" The mask was snapped back into place and looked slightly better, even though it still had the grotesque look to it. Marionette drew his hands back slowly, "Yeah, it's alright.~"
Then his gaze went to Bo Peep and to her missing arm. His voice briefly broke out of tune, but he recovered as he looked to the arm laying on the ground abandoned across the room. He drew over to it and knelt onto the ground, taking it into his arms and hugging it close.
"We don't want to stay under lock and key,~" he murmured as he raised again. He turned himself towards Bo Peep and crossed to her. He tentatively set the arm back in place, peeling back her loosened exterior so that he could see inside. "You can help break the curse, we all want to leave.~" Mike wasn't sure how Marionette did it, but the arm stayed in place. "Want to leave…~"
It was only now that Marionette turned fully to Doc. Only now that his attention was fully on the mouse that had been ready to bite Mike. He tightened his hands and held his ground against him. In a sense, he pleaded past Doc, past the anger, and to whatever still waited underneath that.
"How can we ever be free, when our prison is skin deep?~" Doc shuddered visibly and Bobby drug itself closer. "Left to rust, underneath,~" Marionette continued to almost plead with them, looking around at what was once his friends. "Buried us down below so no one sees!~"
And Mike was floored. Unlike at Chipper's, unlike in Afton's, the animatronics had gone from completely murderous to fully passive. Once again, he was left in awe. "Daddy's little monsters…~"
The room was silent for a few moments, save for the light chiming resonating through the Puppet's chest. The tenseness that had been so heavy had softened and the voices were no longer audible. Hickory and Dickory lowered their heads as though dormant and Doc had lost complete interest in Mike. Every one of them seemed affected.
Then there came the creaking as Bobby decided to drag itself closer to the scene. Marionette turned his head to look at her, looking over her broken body, and started to hover closer.
"If we could only shed our shells, wear a mask and escape these cells.~" Marionette lifted Bobby's head until he could see her endoskeleton and the familiar yellow eyes underneath. "On the surface, you could flee.~"
Its eyes widened and for a moment he had a flash of a memory. He could remember cupping Toy Foxy's face after he had broken everything. That first night after the assault, that made them the Mangle, and his promise to then protect them that night at the old pizzeria. He almost kept that promise to stay with Toy Foxy- all the lost souls until they found a way to be set free. Yet then came that night at Afton's. There came a fate that they were all supposed to share, but he hadn't.
Marionette eyes widened in horrible realization. The repercussions of his actions stared to creep up on him and his voice cracked, "You could've gone if… you were me.~"
And suddenly that night that he had blocked out came back. Him leaving his box, him teleporting out of Afton's and returning to Freddy's alone, even when they were still being 'worked on' in the other room. All the Toys went in there together, facing the fear as one, but he had left alone and then hid at the Pizzeria, and dodged the results from their hunting. They all did the crime, but they didn't all pay the price.
"Though you couldn't hear my voice,~" Marionette began, "I should have stayed, but I made my choice.~" Tears poured down his mask as his voice became more uneven. Distorted tones started to grow louder and were starting to suppress his voice. He started to sing louder and in a more frantic tone. "You would stay and I got to leave.~" He shuddered with chiming sobs as he tightened his hold on Bobby's head. He had used them to help him and then threw them away; he truly was William Afton's son.
"Thanks to you, now everyone will see,~" Marionette lamented with despair, "Daddy's little monster!~"
With that, there was no more singing. He collapsed to the floor once more and broke down into pathetic weeping, barely holding himself up as purple began to spatter onto the tiles. The same purple that decorated his skin; suddenly he the familiar selfishness. They could all see it washing out of him and branding him for the crimes that they previously accused him of. It was equal to any confession.
Mike looked back between Hickory and Dickory before trying to move his arms. They easily slipped through the limp fingers and suddenly he was free, but not yet bold enough to reveal this. A few more moments of terrible sobbing passed and the urge to move in and get Marionette was almost unbearable.
There was the familiar pain in his chest. Mike couldn't stand the crying and even though he was used to it, it wasn't usually like this. It wasn't usually this heartbreaking.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I left you." The voice was rather faint, but Mike could assume that the others could hear it better. "I was scared… I didn't want to die that night."
"Oh God," Mike tensed with growing discomfort.
"But I promise- I swear- I can make it up to you… I'm still your friend, I can fix you." Marionette reached forward and took Bobby's face in his hands again. "I'll put you back together."
It was the Balloon Boy puppet that truly reacted to this. It took it as an invitation to draw in closer to the Puppet and stood alongside him, looking to him attentively. Bo Peep was next and took a few heavy steps forward, but wouldn't move in any further than this, even as her sheep bumped the back of her leg. The tone had changed; the anger was gone and a looming somberness had swallowed the room.
Though he knew it could be a mistake, Mike stepped past the mice and approach Marionette. It was like he didn't exist at all; the animatronics had completely forgotten that he was there and that they were supposed to be killing him. Even Marionette himself seemed to be too distracted to notice. Or he was until the security guard was nearly within arm's length. Then he managed to pull himself together enough to look back at Mike.
"Mike, help me," Marionette was nearly begging. "I can't leave them like this. I need to fix them."
Mike took one look at Bobby, looked around at the others, and then stared at Bobby once again. He would've had an easier time trying to piece the glass in the door back together. All the others could be cleaned up fine enough, but Bobby was a mess. Bobby was just broken enough that Mike didn't know if she could be fixed. Especially if she would then proceed to break herself apart again.
"Okay," the human drew out as he looked over Bobby, who was now staring at him. "I'll see what I can do…" He turned away stiffly, "Let me get something out of the van-." All the animatronics were now staring at him, which wasn't exactly comforting but Mike felt generally less concerned for his life. Even though he had almost just been bitten by the largest of them.
Mike was in a sort of confused daze. Largely because this situation had gone from dire to contained so quickly that his adrenaline, the growing panic, was telling him that he was still in immediate danger when he wasn't. It wasn't like any of the times before; the animatronics had been talked down. Mike had just started to assume that any animatronic other than Marionette or Foxy was a ticking time bomb, unable to be reasoned with and largely unwilling to trust any adult humans. Even Foxy was borderline with this theory.
It was obvious in the exchanged words that his thoughts in the car were correct; the animatronics were the dismantled Toys. That was about all the answers that he was going to get. He wasn't going to ask Marionette about more details after all of this, not with how distraught he looked.
"So, to sum this all up," Mike mentally went over as he headed to the van. "The Toys used to be at Freddy's, got canned, were dismantled, and then were sold to a random arcade so that someone could make a quick buck. That probably means that Mari was supposed to be the monkey… But he left before he could be altered. Probably would've done the same thing myself…" Here it was, all cut and dry, both simple and complicated. "…Only real question is why Foxy thought driving out here was a good idea," he added as he opened the back of the van.
He wasn't surprised when Foxy's face was waiting there, pressed into his own space. "Where's Mari?" he asked dangerously, very prepared to storm back inside the restaurant and lose himself to whatever came next.
"He's safe. It's a long story," Mike excused, then looked to Jeremy. "I need the tool box. Whichever one has the most stuff in it." Jeremy looked confused, but did as suggested and started to look through the back of the van, clearly nursing one of his hands. After watching a moment, Mike looked back to Foxy, "Did you know they were from Freddy's?"
Foxy stared for a few seconds. Then he answered, "It wouldn't'a mattered." Which meant 'no', he had no idea that they were from Freddy's. Mike expected him to ask further, but the fox did not. It was like he didn't even want to know who they were. In a way, Mike wasn't too surprised by this. It was probably easier to pretend that he no longer knew them.
Jeremy handed over a heavy, green toolbox before returning to sit down. In the motion of doing so, Mike could see some dark red, or what looked to be red in the darkened van, caked in his other palm. "Thanks. By the way, you're bleeding. In case you didn't notice." The nonchalant tone went largely unnoticed as Jeremy uncomfortably slipped his hand behind himself.
"It's- It's nothing. I cut it on the glass, but it'll be okay until we get back… We are getting back soon?" Jeremy's voice betrayed his worry and Mike's features softened, sympathetic to the night that Jeremy had been though now that he witnessed the full extent of it.
"Yeah. I've just got a few things to deal with, then we'll be out of here," Mike assured before closing the van doors again and heading back inside. Foxy turned his attention to Jeremy yet again.
"Lemme see it, Lad," Foxy said. Jeremy hesitated and shuffled awkwardly in his kneeling. "Come on, I won't bite." This was possibly the worst wording considering the situation, but finally the human caved and scooted closer. Foxy took his injured hand and looked over the sliced palm. "Pretty deep. That's gonna be stingin' tomorrow."
"Heh, it's stinging now," Jeremy awkwardly agreed. His nervousness sunk back in, "Do, uh, do you think it needs stitches?"
"Nah! Just a lil' wrap and… Here, hold on." Foxy started to look around the back of the van. "We got anything clean in here?" The answer was almost a resounding no until he spotted a small, red box underneath some things. He carelessly shoved the stuff off and yanked out the box. It was, to his and Jeremy's relief, a small first aid kit. "Ah! Here's what we need…" Foxy began to shuffle through the small box. "Com'ere, Jer'my."
It was so seldom that Foxy called him by his name that it was almost jarring. Jeremy still obeyed and shuffled in closer, before sitting down beside the fox. His hand was taken by the captain, who then looked it over before reaching into the box. There really was little in the box, but the gauze wrap was already enough to deem it as useful. There was also a small bottle of some sort of antiseptic.
"Pop this open," Foxy said and dropped it into Jeremy's good hand. He then went along with unrolling the bandage and cutting it with the sharp tip of his hook. The human dabbed some of the fluid on the cut and then hissed in pain, clenching at the stinging. In this moment, Foxy took his hand and swiftly started to wrap it up. This continued for a few moments, with the pain easing as the nasty wound disappeared under cotton. The quietness of the van was a comfort that Jeremy hadn't anticipated. It almost made things feel normal.
"Lad, I'm sorry," Foxy broke in. His voice was filled with remorse. "I… I let this happen. I was supposed ta take care of ya an I muxed it all up." While Jeremy wouldn't disagree with this being at least some of Foxy's fault, he didn't like how upset he sounded. Not when he usually was so brimming with sureness.
"It's okay, Foxy. It happens… We just made a bad call. It won't happen again." The animatronic gave a noncommittal sigh. "A-And I would be dead if you didn't come in and protect me! That… That makes up for it."
"Maybe…" With the bandage finished, Jeremy pulled it into his lap and somewhat cradled it. He was about to thank Foxy again when one arm looped around his back. "Ya know yer my favorite, right? Me only First Mate?" Foxy asked, checking to make sure. The human gave a small smile.
"Of course. Who else would- would come all this way to adventure with you, Captain?" he gave the fox a warm, but shaky smile. He didn't expect Foxy to suddenly pull him in.
"Aye, yer right, Lad. The only one. My only first mate," Foxy murmured as he rested his head atop Jeremy, nearly nuzzling into his sandy locks. "I'd always protect you."
By now, Jeremy's face was nearly ablaze by the gesture. He had never been held this tight by Foxy before. It was odd… But he would be lying if he said that he didn't enjoy it. Foxy did make him feel safe, even as the dread of Hickory's continued to loom nearby. For the moment, everything was okay. Though this was followed by a second of uncomfortableness as Jeremy realized what they were doing and drew back.
"…Thanks. I- We needed that." It felt a little better to suggest that Foxy needed it to. The van then grew silent once more. "…I needed that."
Inside the Funcade, Mike returned to the dining room to find everything slightly different. Marionette was still with Bobby and the Balloon Boy puppet, but now Bo Peep and Sly had moved in closer to the Puppet, looming over him. Doc was maybe a step or two closer, but Mike really couldn't tell. He wandered back to the group and knelt beside Marionette.
"Alright, where do we start?" Mike asked as he opened the toolbox. He was answered by Marionette offering him Bobby's arm, which he was cradling instead of Bo Peep's. The wrist was limp and full of exposed wires; obviously a task for someone more skilled than Mike. Though he didn't know if even Fritz could fix something like this. He dug into the toolbox for a screwdriver small enough to fix the first bolt he could see. "Let's see what we can do about all of this…"
What followed was one of the most challenging puzzles that Mike had ever gone up against. Separating wires, tightening screws, manipulating joins; he literally was putting Bobby back together, and it was a long, tiring job. Occasionally he would become stumped, whether it be through not knowing where to go next or from the growing strain of such a large task.
In one instance, Mike was forced to draw back for a moment of rest. He rubbed at his cramping wrist and looked down at the mangled head laying in his lap. This thing which had previously tried to bite him now laid with its head on his lap, neck stretched out to work on, and waiting expectantly. With all honesty, Mike couldn't very well claim that he knew what he was doing. He then inhaled and started to reach in again, with his hands resting poised above the exposed wires.
It was then that Marionette laid his hands upon Mike's and coaxed them down to the base of the exposed wires. He showed Mike exactly where to go and guided his hands along with the following movements. It kept him going. After all, if it wasn't for Marionette, Mike wouldn't have even had the choice to help. And while he had more than a little trouble sympathizing with these bots, even with the tragic circumstances, he was willing to do it, because it was the right thing, because Marionette needed him too.
In the end, Mike couldn't fully fix Bobby. He could tighten her limbs, Marionette could tug and pin the flimsy fur and fabric together, but there were still issues. This aside, even Mike felt somewhat more successful when he could glue the rubbery mask back together and snap it back onto her face. After the time that passed- it could've been hours, but Mike hadn't been checking- he was certain enough that he was in the clear. Maybe it was the song, maybe just Marionette's apology, but they were remaining passive.
Though Mike didn't trust them not to change their minds, especially with five-twenty looming on the horizon. The sooner they were back in the car, the better. So, when Bobby was to a more stable state, while still trying to crawl around on the floor, seemingly refusing to try standing and walking, Mike decided that it was time to try getting out. Especially in case someone did swing by to check up on the arcade. After all, as far as they knew, Mike was still here, working the entire night.
"Mari…" Mike stood and reached down to take the Puppet's shoulder. "We should go."
"But… I can't leave them like this," Marionette protested. "…I can do more."
"You can't- You already-…" Mike wasn't sure where to go with this. He looked around at the others. Would they put up some sort of fight and refuse to let them go? It could be very possible, which would only make this more difficult. "Morning's going to come and someone's going to see us. We need to leave while we have the chance." He tugged the animatronic upwards a bit. Marionette clung to his arm, slowly raising off the ground with him, and holding on for dear life while doing so.
Mike looked around warily at the surrounding animatronics. They weren't reacting to his words, or not showing it, and the boy puppet was now missing. With Marionette now standing, Mike put an arm around him to lead him out. The Puppet was unmovable from the spot, barely willing to budge even the slightest bit.
"There must be more…" Marionette quietly protested. "Something else, something more."
"You already put their parts together. I mean, look, they all look a lot less busted. I don't know what you did to Bo Peep's arm, but it's as good as new," Mike pointed out while gesturing towards Bo Peep. "It's an improvement!"
"But does it make up for what I did…?" Marionette quietly asked. He tightened his grasp on Mike's arm. "I made them like this, Mike. I put them in their bodies and then I abandoned them. What monster would do that?" His mind went to his father and he began to feel the tears fighting to return. Mike's gaze grew a bit firmer. He had a rather good idea.
"Golden Freddy did." Mike immediately regretted saying it, dreading that he had only made the situation worse. Marionette looked upwards at him in alarm and stared. One of the others made a squeaking noise, but it was deathly silent otherwise. The sentence had left a silent questioning.
Mike ignored the others and instead turned Marionette's face gently to face him. "You did more than Goldie would've. You've just secured them another day off the chopping block," he gestured out at them. This would've been the best time for them to break in and do something. They looked around at each other in response, calculating some part of the conversation. "But if we stay, we're on the same block. I'm looking at vandalism already for Foxy's throw down on the door." Keep the conversation light; try to delay the hurt.
It was at that moment that Marionette suddenly jolted. As though he had been struck, he straightened abruptly, his eyes glowing again as he turned to look back at Doc. Mike could hear a low humming along with some sort of a muffled, deep voice. It was similar to the shouts of anger earlier, but only one voice and without the aggression. The human was unable to understand, but Marionette heard everything as clear as could be.
"You need to leave. If you stay, they will change you too. They'll put you on stage with Bonnie. That's where they were going to put you."
He chimed back, lowly, in tones that were just out of Mike's range of hearing. "I'm sorry," he apologized again.
"It's okay. We can forgive you."
It was as though a weight was lifted from his shoulders. Marionette almost couldn't believe it and he hovered back hesitantly. Mike caught the gesture and reached over to grab the toolbox. He briefly met eyes with Bobby, still feeling ultimately unnerved in her presence, but she just stared back without making any moves forward. He stood and turned around, only to find that Bo Peep had taken his place.
She brushed her fixed hand, which Marionette had unintentionally broken, over the Puppet's back. The motion was surprisingly gentle, but rather curt, as she drew back when she saw Mike watching. Apparently, they still weren't trustful of any security guard. He understood it well enough and ignored it. Instead, he reached an arm around Marionette and went to guide him out. This time the Puppet went along with him. They passed Sly by the door and both he and Marionette locked gazes for a few moments. Mike heard the distortion; they exchanged brief words.
Sly followed at a distance as Mike led Marionette out of the dining room. They only stopped so that the latter could lean down and grab his music box, and then continued to the front door. Mike was halfway past the glass when he heard what sounded like a child's echoing giggle.
"I hope that's just some sort of reflex and not a war cry," Mike muttered as he stepped out and turned back. Marionette was staring into the Prize Corner. "Come on, Mari. We're running out of night."
"I know… Take this." Marionette handed the box through the door. "I'll be right there. Don't worry." Then he headed straight into the room. He apparently expected Mike to wait, but at this point he wasn't comfortable leaving him alone. Not until he made sure that he would be safe.
Mike peered into the Prize Corner and spotted the source of the giggle from earlier. There was the Balloon Boy puppet slumped against the counter and clutching a plush mouse to his chest. Marionette knelt in front of them and, unlike the others, Mike could hear the faint exchanging of words. Perhaps because they didn't know he was watching. He couldn't make out much of what was being said. Marionette reached forwards and gently rested his hand on the boy's shoulder, tilting his head as he did so, and whispering soft apologies and promises.
Then the boy puppet returned such a gesture by reaching out and offering Marionette the plush that he had. It was obviously one from the prizes and he most likely only had it to give to the Puppet. Marionette took it thankfully and tucked it into the crook of his arm, then pulled Balloon Boy into a hug.
Mike couldn't watch anymore of it. He felt bad watching this much and slipped out the front door before he could be noticed. He headed down to the van and opened the backdoor cautiously, as to not startle either occupant. Foxy was still on alert and looked to Mike with raised ears and interested eyes. Jeremy's, in contrast, was slumped on Foxy's shoulder, clearly asleep. It was almost a miracle that he could sleep through a situation like this. The security guard set the tool box aside and then whispered to Foxy, knowing he would hear him.
"We're leaving. Wake up Jeremy and he can follow me back to the pizzeria." Foxy gave a still salute and Mike shut the doors again, then headed to his own car. He was almost surprised to see that Marionette was already inside and in the passenger seat. It would be another long ride, so it wasn't as though there was much sense to starting out in the back. The music box was sat in the back seat and Mike started the car.
"We're going to lead Jeremy back to the pizzeria, to make sure Foxy and him get home alright," Mike pointed out. He noticed the Puppet's prolonged quietness, "Are you going to be okay?"
"I will be," Marionette assured somberly. "Not now… But I will be tomorrow… Which should be any minute now." At this comment, Mike checked his watch, winced at the time, and grumbled as he pulled out of the parking lot. It would be a long drive and perhaps a largely silent one. "Mike… I want to tell you about that night," Marionette admitted in a hushed tone. "…But not yet. Let's enjoy our car ride together first."
It could wait a few moments longer, he assumed. Mike didn't say anything. Instead, he reached out, offering his hand to the Puppet. Marionette took it without a second thought and clung for dear life.
Hickory, Dickory, and Doc's Funcade disappeared into the distance.
Mable: Someone did call the Toys earlier on, but I couldn't find their comment, so unfortunately, I can't credit them. Alas, this is the world of animatronics. If you're interested in how this sort of thing happens, there's a 'concept unification' video on YouTube that shows the process… It's clear why such an event would be traumatizing if the animatronic was sentient.
Also, you probably know of the lyrics used midway through the chapter. There's a male cover that TryHardNinja sung that I recommend listening to.
Anyway, the next chapter should be faster than this one, because I'm supposed to get my new keyboard by the end of the week! (Yay!) I hope you enjoyed!