It was night again and Daddy hadn't returned.

Elizabeth couldn't deny the gnawing anxiety she felt about that. After following the lullaby last night, he hadn't returned. Which meant he was correct: it was a trap. If it returned, would she be able to resist? Did she even want to resist it? She couldn't leave her father all alone in whatever trap had snapped around him. No, she had to rescue him, no matter what he said!

She hauled herself to her feet and skated to the front of the warehouse where she had been waiting all this time, too hesitant to leave lest she miss her father's return. She craned her head to the side and listened, waiting.

A few minutes later, the lullaby snaked through the air, a tinkling melody that spoke to the half-functional circuits inside her. She glided out into the night, tilting her head this way and that way to pin down which way coming from. There, hidden down the alley to the right. With a powerful kick, she was off!

She never could exactly see what it was other than a dark shape just barely eluding her. That didn't dissuade Elizabeth though, furiously kicking her skates to go faster and try to catch up. She was skating at breakneck speeds, narrowly dodging trashcans and taking turns sharp and close.

She whipped around a corner and just as she did, something collided with her! She yelped in surprise as she tripped, tumbling head over foot across the pavement and into a wall.

She shrieked furiously, struggling to right herself again. But she was snared in wire. No…

"Ohhh, hello there Baby!" a familiar face rose from the wires in the form of a decaying and discolored Funtime Freddy mask.

"Freddy!" she seethed, "Why are you here?! Scratch that, is that really you puppeting them?"

"By process of elimination!" he crowed, tightening his grip on her, making her cry out.

She hissed. She couldn't believe he was really the leader, even if she had seen him before. But ultimately, that didn't matter now. She bashed him over the head with her claw and screamed, "Let go of me!"

Freddy screeched and whiplashed her back in the face. She screeched in kind and opened her claw, prepared to snip his head right off. But he swerved right out of the way, forming a fist with his wires and smashing it down on her head.

Her vision immediately distorted, her hearing ringing as something in her head buckled under the hit. Freddy cackled in triumph and continued bashing her. Elizabeth could hear her father's careful work fracturing under his assault. She had to get away but she was too tied up and in too precarious a position to start snipping!

Her vision continued to glitch, worse and worse until she couldn't see anything but static. The last thought she had before she was pulled under was of raw fury.

Morning came and with it, Michael and company to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza Place. The previous day had been a pleasant, if overwhelming, surprise. More than the few families they had expected showed up which left their skeleton crew of employees running this way and that to keep up. One had stopped Michael to gently (passive-aggressively) ask him to hire more people on. Michael told him he would next week.

The first task of the day was to check the back alley which was tasked to Mike and Jeremy. Henry was inside giving the Rockstars their pre-show checklists, making sure they were in tip-top condition. Even if he wasn't tasked with that though, the pair would insist he not help them on account of his age.

It was still grey out, the sun barely having come up. Discretion was necessary so no prying eyes may see whatever had wandered into their trap. Michael stepped out the back first, waiting at the bottom of the steps for Jeremy coming with a dolly.

"So you think it's going to be your sister now?" Jeremy asked as he came down the stairs.

Michael nodded, "She would come after Father."

He turned and walked some way down the alley, Jeremy trailing along. Then he went stiff, so suddenly Jeremy nearly walked into him. He peeked around him, at just what had stopped him cold. "Oh. That's not your sister, is it."

"I don't think so."

Coiled in a mess of loose wires and parts was what could only arguably be an animatronic. Set on top attached to a damaged endoskeleton head was a damaged and discolored Freddy mask, segmented like the Funtime Freddy Michael described. Michael was stuck in place, shuddering, his eyes unfocused. Jeremy took his shoulder and squeezed, "Mike, it's asleep, it's alright."

"I don't want to," Michael weakly protested, his attention somewhere distantly away from the situation.

Jeremy looked back at the miserable pile of parts, "Maybe I could get it on the dolly by myself…"

"No," Michael's whole demeanor changed, "Won't let you do it alone. F-Father didn't wake up so this thing shouldn't."

He bent down to try to figure out where to start. He wasn't even sure if there was a way to get it on the dolly or if him and Jeremy would have to grab armfuls and hope for the best. He didn't particularly like that idea as it left no hands free for the taser. He could get Henry but he really didn't want to have him help them haul anything, much less this nightmare.

As he was inspecting it, Jeremy broached the elephant in the room, "So this is the thing that made you like this...Ennard?"

"What's left of him, I reckon," there was no hiding the disdain in his voice, "Reckon he might just be Freddy now. I don't think Lizzie would be caught dead like this."

"So it really isn't your sister."

"Nope," Michael scowled, "I really should have asked Father about her."

They lingered for a moment before Jeremy bent down and grabbed an armful of the beast. With a defeated sigh, Michael followed suit, helping him pile Freddy onto the dolly. The wires felt bizarrely and uncomfortably warm and fluid, sending an uncomfortable shudder through their bodies.

Freddy didn't fit completely onto the dolly so they resorted to piling as much as they could and Michael carrying the rest. Jeremy pushed the dolly with the taser pressed up against the wires. He was hoping it wouldn't come to that, as Michael was holding Freddy, but a shock was much more preferable to the possibilities of what could happen if it awoke.

As they took the short trek to the side salvaging room, it was mostly uneventful. As Michael awkwardly hefted the bulk of Freddy onto his shoulder to unlock it, the wires restlessly shifted. Both froze, slowly looking at the other. They waited a few moments for it to wake up but thankfully it remained asleep. That still didn't prevent Michael from hurriedly unlocking the door and rushing him into the room.

They didn't bother putting him in the chair neatly or even trying to pose him. They simply dumped him over the chair and beat a hasty retreat.

When they got back outside, they took a second to catch their bearings and to process just what they had invited inside. Jeremy anxiously looked back at the door and asked, "Are you seriously going to try to "talk" to that thing?"

"Against my better judgment, yes," Michael frowned, "I just have a feeling it knows where Lizzie is."

"That's...fair," Jeremy conceded, "Just please be safe."

"C'mon, when have I not?"

Seeing Jeremy's skeptical expression, Michael added in a cough, "...don't answer that."

The pair set back down the alley and into the pizzeria, Michael's posture stiff. He had set his mind to questioning Freddy but he was anything but happy about it. It was just that the amalgamation showing up instead of his sister bothered him. He was banking on Lizzie following their father right into the trap. After all, she had always been daddy's little girl.

The day went on just as the previous had: busy but uneventful. Michael found himself with a lot of time on his hands and not a lot of things to do with it. He tended to pace the floor, watching over the place from behind his bear mask with Helpy, his pet project, in tow. Kids were delighted by both his mask and his little friend and in a sense he was just as much a part of the experience as the animatronics were. He was just another piece of the facade.

Henry was scarce for the day, his job relegated to maintenance and keep of the animatronics. Since they were behaving, that meant he spent a lot of time backstage. Jeremy's job was manning the counters and passing on orders to their few other workers.

In all this, Ness was busy but it didn't bother her that much. She liked being in the thick of it, running plates this way and that amongst excited and happy kids. She lingered a few times in between runs to watch snippets of the animatronic shows, whether it be the hourly musical numbers or the short skits that ran in between. There was one where Foxy pestered the three with his parrot and another where they had to coax Chica onto Foxy's ship, as she was scared of the wet deck. If you didn't know anything about Freddy's before coming that day, you would have never guessed the dark history underneath.

For now, Ness retreated to a quiet corner to take a moment. The day was winding down but there was still plenty of work to do before she could go home.

"I swear to God, I really heard something!"

Her attention was drawn to a couple feet away where two of her coworkers were whispering to each other. They were two of the few workers at the place, a set of twins named Liam and El. Liam had been the one she heard, speaking in a frustrated hiss. El looked skeptical, "Are you sure? Maybe you're just hearing things because you're stressed…"

Liam tensed, suggesting his brother had stuck some kind of nerve. But before any meltdown could happen, Ness barged on over, "What did you hear?!" she asked in an excited whisper.

"No, don't get him started," El began.

Liam ignored him, "Alright, so I was in the back getting some more party hats. And I hear something banging around in the ceiling, like in the vents."

"It was probably just a raccoon," El complained.

"No, it was too big for a raccoon," Liam cut him off, his tone deadly serious.

"Wow!" Ness clapped her hands together, "What do you think it was then? Did you hear anything else?"

"Well, no," Liam looked away sheepishly, "I just kind of grabbed the party hats and bolted. I don't know what it might have been but it sounded too big for an animal."

"What are you three doing?! The day's not up!"

From across the room, their manager barked at them and they practically fell over themselves to get back to work. While his voice trended quiet and raspy, when Mick wanted to he could raise it to something that put the fear of God—or unemployment-in them.

Ness scrambled to the nearest table to clear it of dirty dishes. But yet, questions swirled around in her mind because of her coworker's words. Something was banging around in the ceiling, larger than a raccoon, or any other animal. Just how big was it? What could it even be then? None of the animatronics were missing, they were still performing their pre-programmed routines for the last stragglers of the day. Curiosity gnawed at her.

Soon after, it was time to close. The last customers left for home, the workers cleaned up and then left too. Michael lingered by the door, watching the last worker, Ness, leave for her car. The only ones left now were him, Jeremy, Charlie, Cassidy and Henry. Cassidy was lingering around, unseen, evidently antsy about the upcoming "interview" with Freddy. Jeremy came up to stand beside Michael, "Another day done, eh?"

"Yeah…" Michael sounded distracted.

Jeremy frowned, "What's wrong? Is it about that animatronic?"

"...yeah."

Jeremy wasn't entirely convinced but let his skepticism go. "I'm sure it'll be fine," he assured.

Michael turned to him and shot him a smile, "If he tries anything, maybe I'll put so many volts in him I won't have to worry about setting him on fire."

Jeremy chuckled, "If only."

Despite his show of confidence to Jeremy, Michael's bravado faded as he walked to the interrogation room. Cassidy's presence beside him afforded him some comfort but it didn't completely put him at ease. In his brother's defense, he wasn't sure if anything could.

He was also reminded of his father's presence, just above him inside the vents. No doubt he was very angry at him right now. Not that Michael regretted his actions but it did make him feel uneasy. They had never had a problem before, even when Michael got irritable when he was younger. Now all that separated that anger was a few feet of concrete and steel.

He was sure the racket he heard his employees talk about was his father. It seemed at least one of them was skeptical about it which was good. He didn't particularly want something like that to get out. Ness, with how terribly curious she was, might complicate things but as long as things stayed airtight until the week was up, things would go smoothly.

Ah, he was already at the door. He grimaced and inputted the code into the keypad.

He noticed immediately the amalgamated Freddy was not in the same position him and Jeremy had left him. Freddy looked like he had gathered himself in the chair and was sitting up, his head slumped to the left. Michael stood in front of the door for a moment before he hesitantly moved to sit. This time he only brought the taser and held it tightly in his fist. Once he sat down, he spoke, "Lizzie isn't in there, is she."

The bear shifted, his wires skittering against each other uncomfortably. He chuckled, the laughter glitchy and erratic. But it didn't answer.

Michael tightened his grip on the taser, "Where's my sister?"

Freddy's single eye lit up orange, "Oh, is that the birthday boy? Is that little Mikey?"

Despite himself, Michael tensed and Freddy took this for confirmation, "Oh ho, it is the birthday boy! Together with us again!"

"I don't like what you're implying," Michael said coldly, "Just tell me where my sister is."

The bear rose so he towered over him, "Baby, that party pooper? She complained and whined and cried how we hurt you like it wasn't all her idea! Like she didn't want to escape too!"

"She was confused—"

"Oh, boo-hoo! Aren't you mad? Angry? Furious?"

"NO!" without thinking, Michael lunged forward with the taser, practically across the table to jab it in Freddy's wires. Freddy shrieked and convulsed as the light above flickered and swayed. When it stopped flickering, he had gone still and slack, his wires unraveling over the chair and table.

Michael withdrew, shuddering with rage. All he could see was red, even if Freddy was down. He hissed, "It's not her fault. Not her fault she had to make that decision."

Freddy didn't respond. Michael wasn't sure if he was simply pretending or he had genuinely shocked him so badly he went dormant or flat out killed him. It was certainly too much to hope for the latter.

Minutes ticked by slowly as he waited for a reaction. Finally, he decided he wasn't getting anything out of him and rose from his chair. He was just turning away when something winched around his ankle and pulled it out from under him.

Michael yelped as he fell, the taser clattering out of his hands, across the floor and out of reach. He was yanked under the table and out the other side. Freddy was awake now, having risen as high as he could. He mocked, "Leaving so soon, Mikey?"

"Fuck you!" he spat.

He was really in no position to snap; the taser was across the room and Freddy was dangling him upside down. He only had one hope now.

"Back off!"

And there he was. Cassidy manifested with a flash right in Freddy's face, his eyes alight with anger. Freddy tilted his head, confused but not intimidated, "What's this? Another birthday boy?"

Cassidy's demeanor noticeably changed. Michael couldn't exactly tell from his unflattering angle but he could tell his brother had gone very very still. Cassidy said slowly, "You can say that. Let my brother go and I won't have to give you a surprise."

"Aw, but I like surprises!" he said as he lifted Michael higher into the air.

Michael cried, "Cassidy, what in the hell are you doing?!"

Cassidy grinned viciously, so viciously it sent a shudder through Michael. He had forgotten how vengeful his brother could be and frankly had wanted to. His brother said, "Your loss."

One second, his brother was there and the next there was a nightmare. His new visage was massive and golden and familiar and terrible, that warped Fredbear that quite literally used to live in his nightmares. He roared, showing off his too many rows of teeth, each sharper than the next.

Freddy immediately screamed in terror and dropped Michael. Michael was on his feet in seconds, bolting around the table in blind terror. He only paused long enough to retrieve the taser. He punched in the code to the keypad and threw himself onto the other side, letting the door slam close behind him and lock automatically. In that span of time, he had gone sprinting down the hall.

When he got to the end of the hallway, he came to a stop, bracing himself against the wall. Around the corner came Charlie, "What's wrong?!" she cried, "Did something happen?!"

"Cassidy scaring the hell out of me!" he wheezed.

Cassidy appeared beside him, "He was hurting you!" he protested, "And he hurt you before!"

"Yeah, yeah I get that," Michael paused, "But since when could you do that in the real world?!"

"Did you do the," Charlie raised her arms and curled her fingers like claws, "nightmare thing?"

Cassidy nodded then answered Michael, now noticeably sheepish, "Well, I don't have reason to do it! And it takes me getting really mad to do it."

That made sense. He nodded in understanding, letting it go. There was no need to ponder that terrifying trick any longer than necessary. Not that he wanted to but he also didn't want to upset Cass. He instead complained, "Too bad we didn't get anything out of him."

Cassidy scowled, "I could go scare him again?"

"No, no. We're just gonna leave Freddy alone. Lizzie's bound to come soon and I'll just ask her then."

Guilt and doubt twisted his phantom-stomach into knots but he hoped, so desperately she'd make it there.

Cassidy noticeably cheered up, even if he had wanted an excuse to further terrorize the Freddy amalgamation, "Yeah! I can't wait to see her!"

Michael smiled at him. He remembered how close him and Lizzie had been, how angry she had been at her older brother after the incident, "She's gonna be happy to see you too."

Cassidy beamed. Charlie watched them then suggested, "Mikey, how about you go make sure Jeremy actually knows you're alright?"

Michael immediately slumped. Charlie internally frowned then read him with laser-point precision, "You...haven't told him yet."

Cassidy cried, "You haven't told him!?"

"No, I haven't!" Michael immediately went defensive before deflating just as quickly, "No, I was going to tonight."

"He's going to be upset you waited," Charlie murmured.

"He's going to be upset whatever I do! I don't win either way!" Michael cried.

Charlie and Cassidy shared a glance before Cassidy floated closer to his brother. He didn't know what to say but he wanted to give some comfort. Michael leaned closer, not touching him (even if that was possible), but he was appreciative nonetheless. He sighed, "Alright. Let me go get it over with," and with that, he headed back out into the main restaurant.

Jeremy was relieved to see Michael shaken but unharmed. He recounted what he happened, how disappointing it was he didn't really get anything out of the encounter. He seemed downtrodden so it was that disappointment he chalked it up to. Nonetheless, he worried all the way to the car and down the road.

They were driving through the deserted streets of the town when Michael said out of the blue, "Jeremy, pull into the park."

Jeremy raised an eyebrow but eased his foot off the gas, "Mike?"

"Just. Do it, Jer."

The anxiety that slept in Jeremy's chest awoke anew. It took all his will not to start asking questions right then and there but to pull into the park and put the car to a stop.

It was late so all was quiet and still. There was not a soul around but the pair of them. Michael was still for a moment before he opened the door and stepped out. He waited for Jeremy to follow suit before he beckoned him to follow him into the park. He lead him under the tallest tree there and stopped. Jeremy stopped beside him, "Mike, what's wrong?"

Michael wouldn't meet his eyes and he was wringing his hands. Something was really wrong. He said quietly, "Jeremy, listen. I really have to tell you this. Fuck, I should have earlier," his expression was pained.

Jeremy's heart fell through his chest and to his feet, "Michael, what did you keep from me," he asked in a hush.

He just had to come out about it, no frills or dancing around it. "When we set the place on fire," he cringed, "Me, Henry, Cass and Charlie. None of us plan on leaving."

Jeremy stared.

And stared.

He...couldn't believe this. He broke down, "You...you're going to die?! You want to die?!" he cried, his voice raising to a hysterical pitch.

"Jeremy-"

"You didn't tell me!" he wailed, tears flowing down his face, "You fucking waited until the last minute!"

"I know, I'm sorry," he took his shoulders, "I know I messed up and there's nothing I can say to make it better. I just. I put myself in these dangerous situations but when it comes down to it, I'm a coward."

Jeremy didn't answer and they stood like this for some time, Jeremy sobbing his heart out and Michael awkwardly hovering, wanting to give comfort but knowing this wasn't his place, not this time. He felt terrible. There was no good way to break the news but there was certainly bad ways.

Finally, Jeremy lunged for him and Michael accepted the embrace, letting him bury his face in his chest and wail viscerally. He clung to him like a rock in a storm and if Michael wasn't so steadfast in his choice, he would have changed his mind right then and there. He gently set one hand on his back and let him expend his emotions.

Finally, he went quiet. In a whisper, he asked, "Why?"

Michael squeezed his eyes shut. He knew that was coming, he had rehearsed what he would say but he was never really prepared for the real thing. "I'm not. Really happy to still be kicking. I don't really want to die but I don't want to live like this either. I don't think I should stay alive either. My whole family needs to die."

Jeremy sniffled, "I don't understand."

"I was worried you wouldn't. I don't hold that against you."

He paused then added, "...there's something else too."

Jeremy went quiet. Michael murmured, "The reason I'm still alive. I guess Dad did experiments, terrible experiments. He discovered this stuff called remnant. It's haunted metal, or something like that. What matters is he believed it could cheat death. It could bring someone back to life, he thought. But it gives eternal life. And it's...it's made from the children's souls."

Jeremy looked up at him, his face a mask of horror. Michael nodded, his voice cracking as he spoke, "I got a second chance because all those kids didn't even get their first chance."

"But Michael! That's, that's not your fault!"

"I know!" he snapped then his voice faltered as he repeated, "I know. But. It feels like it is."

Jeremy didn't reply to that, instead asking, "What am I going to do without you?"

"Me n' Henry are leaving some of the money to you-"

"You know that's not what I mean, Michael!"

Michael went silent, unsure of what to say to that. He knew that's not what he meant but to admit that meant confronting what it actually meant. He said quietly, "You'll be able to go on, you're the strongest person I know."

"I don't feel very strong," Jeremy admitted, "I've just always done what I had to do."

"That makes you strong," Michael assured.

Jeremy didn't answer, instead sitting with him in silence. Michael didn't argue, instead holding him as they stood in the silence. If going on didn't sound like such a prison sentence, he'd change his mind. He loved Jeremy so much. But going on between life and death, living in shadows—that was no way to live. What would happen in five, ten, twenty years? Or after Jeremy passed? And it felt going on was an insult to the souls that gave him life.

No, he had to die. All the Aftons had to die.

"Stay with me until then," Jeremy murmured.

Michael almost argued that's what he had been doing all this time, how Jeremy practically lived more at Henry's place than his own at this rate. But instead he nodded, "Whatever you want, love."

"I don't want to go home yet."

"Then let's not go home! We can stay out all night if you'd like!"

Jeremy gave him a weak but genuine smile, "Not the thing I wanna hear my manager say," he teased.

Michael waved him off, "Our pizzeria is already so fucked up. It'll be fine tomorrow."

Jeremy didn't say anything more, instead taking his hand and leading him back to the car. He didn't want to think about what was to come, about the yawning void that was going to replace Michael. He...could see what Michael meant. But he couldn't wrap his head around his dilemma, of coming back to life after death or maybe not even dying at all, and lingering past when he should.

He didn't want to think it was because he wasn't enough.

He came to a stop and blurted, "Michael, it's not because I'm not enough, is it?"

"Jeremy, no! How could you think that!?" his partner cried, turning on him.

"I dunno," and here he was going to cry again, "I just feel if I was better you wouldn't…"

"No," Michael cut him off, "It's not like that. It has nothing to do with you."

"You promise?"

Michael shot him a weak smile, "I promise."

Not completely soothed but feeling better, Jeremy took his hand again and squeezed it, "Alright."

With that, he stepped back into the car, Michael walking around to his side to follow suit. He stood there for a moment, hand on the handle of the door. There was no describing how he felt: a swirling turmoil of guilt, sadness, pain...and even anger.

The anger wasn't at Jeremy, no. It was at his father, his circumstances, even the entire world. None of this was fair at all. In another world, another place, maybe him and Jeremy could be happy, far from the twisted story they were both written into.

With a deep sigh, he did his best to stamp all those feelings down and open the door. Now wasn't the time to sit and self-pity. He had to be there for Jeremy.


Author's Note: I'd say there's three scenes in this fic that really stopped me from finishing it and Michael and Jeremy's conversation here is one. This fic really ended up being a lot more heavy than I set out it being.

Now a fun fact: Liam and El (actual name Luigi, also nicknamed LP) are cameos of my original OCs! Liam is schizophrenic so that should provide additional context as to why his twin is so skeptical of him. Alas, this time whatever Liam is hearing is actually there.