Chris hoped that at least before his birthday, he wouldn't have to visit any Freddy's restaurants any longer, but he wouldn't have the luxury. His dad was busy at Circus Baby's, probably once again doing something evil, and as always, he left Mike to watch over him and Lizzy. He told him to be gentle and said if he finds out about the return of Mike's harsh attitude, he will punish him harshly, but of course, Mike didn't care. He decided to take them to Freddy's so they could stay around while he talked to his friend. Chris wasn't even surprised and didn't find it in himself to protest, even though Elizabeth tried to convince him that he shouldn't do it. Mike said that he volunteered to help the company his father worked in with some manual work at the restaurant, but even without it…Mike would do something like this just to be mean. Chris knew him like no one else.

Perhaps this will be the moment he gets an opportunity to try and face his other fears, those of the animatronics. The boy realized just how important to embrace them and stop running away; this was the only way for him to leave this constant state of oppressive terror.

"Come here, enjoy the show; we are performing just for you today!"

But as Chris stood before the stage with three members of the animatronic band performing their best hits, the boy once again felt his knees shivering in utter desperation. Their mechanical limbs would cross from one spot to another, and their eyes ran from one excited child to another; they probably wanted to choose their prey. He couldn't look at them any longer; it was simply too much…

And so he found himself amidst this dreadful cycle once again, running away from the stage and searching for Elizabeth to seek her company once again. She decided not to come too close to the stage, instead deciding to stick to the gift shop and spend the money Dad gave her.

"Yarr, come onto my ship and try to hunt down the booty of the great seas!"

Chris ran past Foxy's pirate cove, causing him to shake even more. All he did was look at those robots, and this was enough to force Chris into this dreadful state of mind…Why was he so pathetic? Why?

"…You need anything else?" Mike's voice rang out in the hall.

"It's still half an hour or so till the other crates arrive; you can take a break." A worker answered.

"Sure, just call me when you need me."

The worker made his way moments before Chris rushed into the hall only to encounter a tired, grumpy Mike who lazily tied with a set of keys in his fingers. The moment the teenager saw his brother, he let out a sigh of disappointment.

"Oh, for fuck's sake…What now?" Was Chris so obvious in his gestures? Yet another failure…

"Can we go home, Mike?" Chris pleaded, knowing exactly how this would end.

"No chance, can't you see I'm pretty damn busy right now? I'm working, just like Father wanted."

"You have a break…Can Lizzy and I go home, at least? We can play together while you stay here and…"

"No, I'm not letting you go out alone; we don't need another fucking lecture on responsibility from our father, dearest." Mike crossed his arms. "Guess your only option is to stop being a baby and suck it up." He said it in such a cold and cruel manner that Chris couldn't help but feel the stain of his hateful scorn upon him…

"Mike…Please, I don't want to be here!" In moments like this, fear overtook all rationality, making Chris willing to begin in the most pathetic of ways. Anything to stay away from those creepy beings and not think about them and get his momentary relief. Tears would come again, always the same shameful display…

"And in again with the whining, you're predictable." Mike chuckled. "Wipe your nose and grow up; that's the best advice I can give you. The adult world isn't exactly merciful when it comes to crybabies like you. It's scary in its own right, and even the whiniest bitch needs to be prepared…You know what?" A sly smile shimmered on Mike's face, making Chris's heart immediately sink. "Now that those guys gave me the keys from the backstage room…Yes, I think I know how to solve both of our problems!"

"What are you…" Chris looked up and was prepared to plead again, but the time he had was not enough. Mike grabbed his hand and pulled the boy towards a nearby door while no one was looking. Chris immediately lost what little control he still had and felt all of his limbs shaking as if he was freezing to death amidst an icy wasteland. He didn't even have it in him to scream; his throat got pierced with a feeling of despair as his mind raced in absolute chaos.

"Have a little break until I'm done here, will you?" Mike said mockingly as he opened the door, finally allowing Chris to witness the nightmarish place. A backstage section where no visitors were allowed, all filled with spare parts for animatronic skeletons and their suits…Chris could see the faces of Freddy, Bonnie, and Chica lying around without eyes as if someone had just ripped them away from their bodies and left them to rot. Their endoskeletons were around, too, those metal forms that didn't move at all, staring into the void with their eyes and sharp teeth, the only element that gave any resemblance to a living being.

"No, please, not here…" Chris whimpered as he heard Mike's chuckle. The shaking child did nothing to soothe him; he was cruel and malicious…Chris got yet another proof of that.

"You can't defeat your fears if you never face them!"

"PLEASE!"

Mike tossed Chris into that room like some broken toy, and the moment he began running to the last source of light that came from beyond the door, Mike shut it behind him.

"LET ME OUT, PLEASE, LET ME OUT!" Chris screeched like a wounded animal, a dying soul begging for mercy that he knew he would never get. He was alone in the shadows now as his nightmare became a reality.

…

The days when Elizabeth could get any joy from walking around Freddy's restaurants were over, and today made it clear.

The girl couldn't look at the animatronics without remembering Chris's gruesome story. She could barely believe it when he described Lily's horrific death that he saw, even trying to imagine it was enough to put Elizabeth's heart into despair. How monstrous it must have been to come to an animatronic you loved so much and to die so quickly…And she was about to die in the same way. She would've died like this after ignoring Daddy's warnings if not for Alison.

She didn't know if she wanted to believe Chris. Elizabeth had no doubt that Daddy was better than this; he would never kill anyone, especially children, and he was very kind and protective of everyone…But then why did he want to keep her, Mike, and Chris away from the animatronics? Was it because they were dangerous, like Chris said? What did they do to those children…To Lily? Elizabeth didn't want to ask this question. She knew Chris wouldn't lie to her about this…Thinking about this made her head spin. She loved both Chrissy and Daddy, but with what Chris told her…It just made no sense; Elizabeth still struggled to come to terms with it.

And so she tried to distract herself, first, by spending time at the gift shop, though that did not last for long. Those were still made in animatronics images, and the girl felt uneasy beside them. Eventually, she just left and decided to search for Chris. He would probably feel pretty lonely around here, and Mike won't be in the mood to play with him.

But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find Chris. Not near the stage, not at any of the tables, not in the halls…Elizabeth started to get worried. She would expect him to come to her at some point, yet he never showed up. As she continued her search, she noticed Mike amidst one of the halls, helping a few restaurant workers carry a large metal crate.

"Mikey!" Elizabeth called out to him moments after he passed the crate over to another man. The teenager looked around with a tired gaze.

"Yeah, what?"

"Do you know where Chris is?"

"Nope." The response was swift and confident, though it sounded very suspicious to Elizabeth. He avoided looking her in the eyes and spoke too quickly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." His voice grew more dismissive, much to Lizzy's suspicion. The girl sighed and tried to look into his eyes.

"Did you do something to him again? Come on, Mikey, I know this look…"

"Nothing too drastic." Mike shrugged.

"So you did?" The girl crossed her arms in disappointment. Her poor brother couldn't catch a break from all the abuse coming from Mike.

"It's not your concern, Liz, I'm teaching him a well-deserved lesson."

"No one deserves this; you're just being a meanie! And he's your brother; how can you even say this…."

"Oh, stop with your moralizing bullshit. He needs to toughen up if he wants to enter adulthood!"

"Where is he?"

"If you care, then find him yourself," Mike said dismissively and quickly left, leaving Elizabeth alone in the hall. No kindness or sympathy in his voice, only cold detachment; it made the girl's heartache horribly.

And yet, if Mike didn't want to tell her, she'd go find Chris herself. It took some time for her to wander around the halls, carefully checking every corner and listening to every sound. Maybe Mike made him run away from the restaurant…No, that would mean making Daddy angry; he doesn't want that. But he didn't care when it came to bullying Chris, so perhaps he was alright with punishment.

Sometime later, the girl finally heard it. A quiet sobbing came from behind one of the pizzeria doors in the left hall, and it grew louder as she began approaching. Elizabeth heard someone scratching the door as if desperately trying to get out.

"Please…Someone…" The broken, whimpering voice left no doubt in her mind. Elizabeth put a hand to her mouth in horror and rushed to the door.

"C…Chrissy, is that you?" She got close to the door and attempted to listen.

"Lizzy?" His voice finally turned hopeful. "Help me, I'm scared! I can't get out, and those heads, they're…I think they're moving. Mike locked me, and I'm…Please, let me out!" His voice sounded so desperate and terrified that, for a moment, Elizabeth believed that the animatronics had moved. And all of this because of Mike's cruelty…How could he

"I'm sorry…" She said in a warm yet shaking voice. "Is it locked?"

"Yeah…"

"Wait here. I'll get someone to help you."

"No, don't leave me!"

"Please, I need to let you out!" Elizabeth pleaded. "I will be very quick, I promise." After this, she heard a long pause, after which Chris finally caved in.

"Just be quick…"

"I promise."

She would not let him stay there any longer.

…

Every time Chris thought that it could not get worse, someone emerged to prove him wrong, most often Mike. As the boy shook and sobbed, alone amidst the dark backstage room, feeling dozens of animatronic eyes staring at him like predators at a wounded prey…He felt even more pathetic than before. He didn't want to be scared of them, he knew they were just props, and yet every time he dared to peer into the darkness, he would immediately look away in shame and collapse to the floor once again, starting to sob and pray for them to walk away.

They are watching you.

They are not your friends.

Fredbear's pressing voice cursed Chris's mind, not allowing him to feel alone even for a single second. They were watching and waiting; they were here…Those inhuman eyes attached to the horrifying skeletons…

He hated moments like this, hated every time Mike or one of his nasty friends made him cower and beg like this. He was always kind and respectful to all around him despite his fears, yet no one except Lizzy cared about repaying him in kind. He was just a crybaby, a pathetic child who still could not grow up.

Chris imagined Mike being here. What would happen if he was placed in a room with his worst fears to the point he would be terrified? Chris imagined him in a dark room, desperately hitting the door and begging for Chris to release him as tears flooded his eyes. Chris would listen and then just giggle and remind Mike that he deserves it. He didn't feel any sympathy for him, not for Mike.

"Here, he's here!" Elizabeth's hopeful voice rang out from behind the door, making Chris raise his head.

"Okay, let me see…" A man's voice responded, and then Chris heard the sound of keys entering the keyhole, and moments later, the boy finally saw the light again. A broken, tearful child relishing in the smallest offering of succor. "Jesus Christ, what have they done to the guy?" A bearded worker said with sympathy.

"It's Mike." Elizabeth sighed.

"Guess I'm gonna have to talk about it with him, eh? That's no way to treat children, especially siblings." He spoke with some warmth and sympathy, but it was passing, and this annoyed Chris, even though the boy wouldn't dare to show it. The worker saw a child weeping due to the evil deeds of his brother, and all he did was shrug and admit it was wrong…So many would say the same. A child's game… "Do you want me to help any further? I have some stuff to do…"

"No, it's fine." Chris sniffed and wiped his tears before standing up. The man just nodded silently and left.

"Take care, kids. Okay?"

"Yeah." Chris sighed quietly as he looked at him, walking away, leaving him and Elizabeth alone in the hall. He couldn't force himself to look up, his entire body was sweating, and his knees couldn't stop shaking even after this. The eyes of the animatronics still flashed in Chris's mind, causing him to sniff and gulp from time to time.

"I'm so, so, sorry…" Elizabeth hugged him.

"It's fine, you didn't do anything wrong…Thank you." He noticed that Lizzy wiped her own tears. "Are…Are you okay? You're crying."

"No, I'm fine, I promise…I am just really tired." The girl looked down. "Why does he have to hurt you like this…It's so mean and horrible, I just don't understand…" There was no anger in her voice, just the exhaustion and pain of a person who couldn't understand the cruelty of the people she loved…Chris shared this sentiment. They would just have to live with this…At least for now.

Tomorrow was another day.