The rest of the night was uneventful to say the least. Michael stuck to the cameras, but even from his office, he could tell that everyone was being a little bit more careful. Not to imply that they were being particularly reckless before, but it was clear to see that he had made some sort of impact on them. If this was to be his job from here on out, then he would have to change his approach. As much as he wanted to stay sheltered in the little security office, that simply wasn't prudent or necessary with the new animatronics. Before Mike had any more time to think it over, he realized it was already six. He stood up and headed to the front door.
"Where are you going?" from anyone else, the question would have sounded unnerving, but Freddy managed to imbue it with a pureness. Michael turned around; all four animatronics were looking at him. Before, this would have been absolutely terrifying, but after spending the night with them, he couldn't look at them quite the same as those who came before.
"My shift is over," Mike explained, "I'm going home."
"You mean you're leaving us all alone?" Chica asked.
"Don't get so worked up, we'll be fine," Monty taunted.
"The day staff will be here shortly. I'm sure they'll look after you just as well as I have," Michael said, placing his hand on the door handle.
"But… will we ever see you again?"
The security guard rolled his eyes, "I'll be back tomorrow night." With that he closed the door, locking it behind him.
As he walked out to his car, he couldn't help but ponder the reaction the animatronics had given to him leaving. Would they really miss him, or was that just some programmed response? The type of thing where they guilt trip customers to come back and spend more of their money. It all felt too specific. There was always the possibility of artificial intelligence, but to work on a level as complex as the ones displayed by Freddy and the gang was unthinkable. There was always the option of popping the bots open and taking a look himself, but Michael had always been more of a mechanics guy. The technical programming tended to go over his head.
Regardless of the technicality, it wasn't worth getting too worked up over. All he really cared about was whether they posed any danger, and from what he saw, that was unlikely. He drove home, flopped into bed, and waited until morning. Sometimes, Michael wondered if he ever truly needed sleep, being a corpse and whatnot. The rest helped though. If not physically, then at the very least mentally. There was something satisfying about ending the day by going to bed. Back when he was being possessed by Ennard, there was no sleep to be had. When he was eventually set free, he decided he didn't need it, but over time he began to crave some sort of rest.
He shifted onto his side, grasping the pillow with one hand and the blanket with the other. There was no real point in having either of them. His body was unable to generate heat, so the blanket could not make him feel warm, and there was no way something as trivial as a pillow could ever relieve his constant discomfort. In spite of this, he kept them. They added a sense of normalcy, a way to remind him of what he was like before… the incident.
The next night, Michael arrived just before twelve. He always preferred arriving with a little bit of time to spare.
"Welcome back Michael," Freddy waved, stepping off the stage as the guard entered, "It is a pleasure to see you again."
"Thank you, Freddy," Michael said rather awkwardly, locking the door behind him, "It's um… it's nice to see you too."
Unlike yesterday, where everyone was waiting for him on stage, the only other animatronic in the room besides Freddy was Roxy. She didn't seem to pay him much mind though, examining her appearance in a small hand mirror.
"Where are the others?"
"They discovered the arcade," Freddy explained, following Michael to the security office. The security guard nodded in response. That was one of the new areas added after the renovation.
"So how was your first day?" Michael asked, hardly believing he was making small talk with an animatronic.
"It was everything I hoped it could be!" Freddy said enthusiastically, clapping his hands together, "The children were simply delightful, you should have been there to see the smiles on their faces when they saw us! I was worried some of them might get scarred, but it seemed like everyone had a lot of fun. The day staff were quite polite as well. I mean, I don't know if they're as caring as you are, but they treated us well none the less."
"Caring?" Michael turned to face him. Out of all the words anyone had ever used to describe him, Michael was certain that was a new one.
"But of course!" Freddy beamed, "I don't know if any of them would have removed a chicken bone with as much care as you did last night."
Michael nodded. He was beginning to feel like a parent listening to their child describe their first day of school.
"No one suspected anything did they?" he asked, flicking through the cameras at his desk.
Freddy shook his head, "No, not at all."
"Alright, that's good. Probably would have come out of my pay if they did," he paused, "Don't tell Chica." Am I really concerned about their feelings now? he thought to himself.
"As you wish," Freddy said with a nod of his head before stepping out of the office. He turned, as if about to leave, before turning back to Michael, looking a bit nervous. "Erm, do you mind if I ask you something?"
The guard glanced over at him, pondering what on earth this could be, "I suppose not."
"I do not wish to cause offense, so, if it is too intrusive, then feel free to let it remain unanswered."
"Freddy just ask the question already."
"Very well. As you know, today was my first day meeting all the day staff. Many seemed quite curios, some were surprised as well, but overall, a lot of them gave off a positive impression. As the day went on, they became much more used to us, and began asking about us. At a certain point, someone asked about how many people I had truly interacted with so far, and naturally one of the people I mentioned was you. I am unsure as to why, but after this, it seemed like there was quite a bit of curiosity amongst the day staff about you. Some of them had more questions about you than they did me."
"Where are you going with this?"
"My apologies. What I am trying to convey, is that there seems to be a great deal of rumors about you amongst the day staff. They talk about you like… like you're some kind of monster."
Michael nodded, "That sounds about right."
Freddy seemed surprised at this response, "But why? From what I have seen, you do not seem like the type of person to gain such a reputation."
Michael sighed. This was not a conversation he thought he would have to have, but these animatronics were fairly innocent after all.
"Freddy, when we first met, was there anything you noticed about me that would make me… stand out?"
The bear thought for a moment. Whether he was thinking of what to say as an answer, or how to phrase the answer he already had was anyone's guess.
"I did notice that your complexion was different, but I felt it would have been rude to mention, so I kept it to myself."
"That's certainly one way of putting it," Michael chuckled, "Freddy, to someone like you, I look a bit different, but to most people I look grotesque."
"What? Why?"
Michael pinched his eyebrows, trying to think of a way to explain. "There's no logical reason for it. Sometimes, humans just find things repulsive, and that's the way things are."
"But… but that's not fair," Freddy said, trying to understand this new information.
"Life's not fair."
"With all due respect Michael, I just don't understand. The day staff speak of you like some kind of horror story, and as far as I can tell, you really haven't done anything in line with what they think of you. There has to be some other reason-"
"There isn't," Michael snapped, far sharper than he had intended. Freddy stood there, looking sorrowful.
"I… I am sorry. I should not have pushed."
"It's fine," the guard said with an exasperated sigh, aggressively flicking through security cameras.
"It is not fine. You are upset."
"I'm not upset."
"But your tone of voice indicates otherwise."
"Look Freddy, can you just let me get on with my job?"
The bear opened his mouth, as if about to say something, before nodding and leaving the room. Michael watched him go before turning back to the cameras. That was wrong and he knew it. He should have contained his frustration, there was no reason for him to take it out on Freddy. The guy was just curious after all, he couldn't help it. What was worse was that Michael had gotten emotional over it. He could have sworn that he was at a point in his life where stuff like this no longer bothered him. He had been a corpse for so long, this was just the sort of reaction he always got, there was no point in trying to fix it. Still, by avoiding people so much, it was something he never really needed to confront. He liked the solitude, if nothing else, so that he could avoid what others thought of him. Then again, now that he was thinking about it, that really wasn't a way of dealing with the problem. But what could he do? People would always think of him as a monster.
Michael stood up. If nothing else, the least he could do was smooth things over with Freddy. If he was going to be seeing him every night, then he didn't want there to be any tension. As he walked down the hallway, a part of him couldn't believe he was going to apologize to an animatronic of all things, but he was set to do it none the less.
Freddy was speaking with Monty in the party room. While he could not make out what they were saying, Michael decided to wait for what appeared to be a lull in the conversation.
"Hey, Freddy, can we talk?"
The two animatronics turned towards him, having not noticed that he was in the room.
"Of course," the bear answered, a slight nervousness to his tone.
"I'll just be in the arcade if y'all need me," Monty said, quickly leaving. The two watched the gator leave, not saying anything until they were certain he was out of ear shot.
"Freddy, look, I want to say I'm sorry for getting snippy with you earlier," Michael began.
"What? No, no, you don't need to be apologizing for that. In fact, I wanted to express my apologies to you. I was clearly overstepping my bounds."
"No, it's fine. Besides, you already apologized back in the office. I can't get mad at you for just being curious," Michael took a seat on one of the tables, resting his head in his hands, "I think the reason it got to me was just cause I don't like to talk about this stuff. I mean, I'm not doing myself any favors by ignoring it, but it's not as if I really have anyone to talk about it with."
Freddy took a seat on the bench opposite Michael, looking at him directly in the eyes, "Well, if you so wish, then I am here to talk with you."
Michael raised his head, not sure whether he should laugh, "What? Don't tell me you're trying to be my therapist."
"While I am not equipped to deal with serious mental health issues, I have been prepped to provide emotional support, as well as facilitate an emotionally healthy environment."
The security guard scoffed, "If that's the case then I don't think you're prepared for what I'm going to throw at you."
"I see," the animatronic nodded, "Still, the offer stands, should you need it." He stood up, ready to leave, when Michael suddenly held up a hand, indicating for him to stop. The bear looked down at him, inquisitively.
"Can… can I ask you a question?"
"Of course," Freddy said, sitting back down.
"Earlier, you said the day staff had all sorts of rumors about me. What… what sort of stuff were they saying?"
Freddy furrowed his eyebrows, "Michael, with all due respect, I do not know if this is something you want to hear."
"I don't care, I want to hear it."
"Very well," Freddy paused, clenching his fists, "Before we begin, I would just like to let you know that… that these are merely what I have heard, as you requested. These do not reflect my own opinion of you in any way."
"I know, just tell me."
"As you wish. The main rumor centers mainly on your relationship to the old animatronics as I understand it. As I stated earlier, I don't know them personally, so I do not want to cast aspersions, however, from what I have heard, they seem to have quite the… reputation."
"More than just a reputation."
"I see. Well, the main thing people say about you is that you are inhuman. That you have only managed to survive due to the fact that you can't be killed."
"I wouldn't go that far," Michael placed his hand on the back of his neck, "I'm sure something could take me out, but I'm not willing to put it to the test. Oh… sorry, go on."
"Right. As I was saying, they speak of you as if you are something to be feared, as if you are more dangerous than the old animatronics themselves, and that is how you managed to survive them. The way they talk, it is as if you are not an employee, but a ghost story. Like you are merely haunting the premises, and not a real person still working here. Now, before continuing, I must preface by acknowledging that I am not the best at picking up social ques. With this in mind though, it seemed to me like you were not thought of in a positive light. The way they spoke, they made you out to be such a malevolent figure, lurking over the pizzeria. I even heard one of the staff joke that if they did not finish their work promptly, then you would be sent after them as a punishment."
Michael simply nodded at all of this. It was about what he had expected. People often got one look at him, or even just a whiff of his smell, and began making all sorts of assumptions. As pathetic as it was, he was beginning to get used to it. People feared what they did not know, and unfortunately for him, there weren't any other zombies walking around to set a better precedent.
"I see," he said to Freddy, standing up, "Thanks for telling me."
"I hope you are not… distressed," the animatronic stated, concerned.
"Honestly, with a face like mine, I'd be shocked if they thought anything else of me," Michael turned, beginning his trip back to the office.
"Michael, it is ok to feel sad at such information. I would not think less of you for doing so."
"I said I'm fine Freddy," his tone was much calmer this time, more tired than anything else.
"I can talk to them about it if you want. Your reputation doesn't need to stay like this," the bear offered.
"Freddy, really I'm fine. Don't go troubling yourself on my behalf," with that he disappeared around the corner, ending the conversation.
