Author Notes
Here's the next chapter! Just one thing first. Corona Pax made an amazing picture based on this story and posted it on her deviantART account. Check it out if you're interested. It's really cool :) I really can't believe someone actually drew a picture based on my story. Its just awesome!
Chapter 22
Interviews
Ruby stared at the wall across from her, blinking, while she tried to process what the manager had just told her.
"You…want me to come in and help you choose new day guards?" she asked sleepily, having been woken up by the phone call.
"Uh, y-yes." The manager answered nervously.
"Already? You just told me you were planning to hire the other day." She covered a yawn.
"W-we had a good response." He responded. "H-Hedy will be coming in to help as well."
Ruby let out a groan and flopped into the pillow. There went her nice afternoon nap.
"Fine." She muttered into the pillow, her voice muffled by the material.
The manager thanked her and hung up.
Ruby dragged herself out of bed and made herself presentable. This new schedule with the job and school was wreaking havoc on her sleep habits. She wouldn't change it for the world though.
She headed downstairs, snagging a snack from the kitchen as she called out a goodbye and ran out the door.
"WHAT is she doing here?" Toy Bonnie seethed to Toy Freddy.
The bear didn't need to turn around to know who he was talking about.
All the 'bots were on the floor, working with the kids but the Toys were staring at the door, radiating hostility.
"Afternoon." Ruby called sleepily, getting the attention of customers and employees alike.
The reaction was instantaneous.
The 'bots waved happily at her. The employees either smiled and greeted her or groaned in mock irritation. (At this point only Henry really didn't like her. She had a way of growing on people.) The parents waved at her, all of the regulars already knowing her. The kids screeched in excitement and mobbed her.
She chuckled and a gentler expression appeared on her face.
"Hey guys. Sorry, but got to talk to my boss today so I can't play."
She knelt down as they groaned in disappointed.
"How've the new animatronics been by the way?" she asked curiously.
The opinion in the group seemed divided. Some kids liked the new Toys while other kids preferred to stay with the old gang.
"Who do you like best?" one of them asked.
She gasped in indignation. "Foxy of course! I'm a proud member of the Foxy fan club."
She stuck her nose in the air as they giggled and started discussing their favourite 'bots. Ruby ruffled a kid's hair before standing and grinning at said fox. He rolled his eyes and waved.
"I'm the second favourite." Bonnie said proudly in hearing distance of the Toys. "Cause I'm awesome."
As she passed by on the way to the meeting room she high fived the rabbit and hugged Chica. Freddy waved across the room while looking at her curiously.
She mouthed 'interviews' to him before heading into the room.
Inside, the manager was nervously rearranging a pile of papers while Hedy tapped a pen impatiently against a clipboard next to him. She clearly didn't approve of Ruby being involved in this.
Ruby yawned again and slumped down into a chair on the manager's other side.
"Afternoon." Ruby mumbled, eyes already closing.
She really should have hyped up on sugar.
"A-afternoon Ruby." The manager greeted her with a nervous smile.
"Afternoon." Hedy rubbed her temples, remembering the aftermath she had to help clean up the previous night.
"So how's this going to work?" Ruby asked.
"We look a-at the applications and t-then talk to the applicant." The manager handed them their copies.
Hedy began looking through the applications immediately but Ruby frowned at the first page.
"Oh no. You don't want this guy." She pointed to the page.
"Why?" the manager was surprised.
"He took a part time job at my school. Trust me, does NOT get along well with kids." She grimaced. "He yelled at this bunch of kids when I was walking past once. He regretted it and now he can't go near glitter either."
The manager nodded thoughtfully and took the application out of the pile.
Hedy was surprised. It seemed like she was actually taking this seriously. Beneath the reckless, carefree attitude maybe there was some responsibility after all.
The younger girl skimmed through the pages and stopped on another one.
"Ummmm." She looked down sheepishly while she fiddled with the page. "This one might be a problem."
"Why?" Hedy asked cautiously.
"Weeeeeeell, there was this incident where he yelled at Ricky for something stupid. Made him cry, and I didn't…react well. He's got a restraining order against me. So we can't work in the same building. Didn't know that he was still in town though. Thought I scared him off" Ruby frowned at the paper.
Hedy sighed. Maybe a no on the responsibility front then.
The manager wordlessly put the application away. A night guard was more valuable than a day guard after all.
"Anyone else?" Hedy asked, rubbing her eyes.
"Nope." Ruby grinned happily.
"Alright. Then let's get started." Her professional side took over and she looked expectantly at the manager.
He nodded hurriedly and picked up the first application.
"First one, Olivia D. Reyes. Twenty years old and studying engineering." he read.
"For what position?" Hedy asked sharply, picking up on the engineering bit.
"Day guard." The manager assured her. "And emergency mechanic for small problems during the day. We can't call you in for everything and some things can't wait."
"Better not let her try anything on my 'bots." Ruby shot him a dark look and he gulped.
"O-o-of course not." He started trembling.
"Good." She lay down on her arms and stared at the door. "Well then, call her in."
Olivia was a little nervous, ocean blue eyes darting between them and fingers playing with her light hazel ponytail.
Ruby spoke first of course. The manager didn't even get to the greeting part.
"Are you angling for the night shift?" she asked bluntly.
Hedy face-palmed. Ruby's one-track mind.
Olivia looked surprised and confused. "Uh no? I'm only available in the afternoons…"
Ruby watched her for a moment. "Are you planning to do anything to the 'bots?"
Olivia shook her head. "No. If it's alright I'd rather, uh, keep my distance from them."
She wrung her hands nervously.
"Okay." Ruby shrugged and lay her head sideways on her arms.
In all honesty it looked like she was going to sleep.
The manager cleared his throat and offered the seat across from them to Olivia. The girl sat, still stealing confused glances at Ruby.
Hedy just rubbed her forehead. It was going to be a long day.
The mechanic asked more practical questions; the extent of her skills, what experience she had, where she was studying. Olivia relaxed a bit at the normalcy.
Until Hedy reached into her bag and threw something at the girl.
Olivia caught the piece of wiring and plastic on reflex and looked at it in surprise. "Uh."
"Fix it," Hedy said.
"What? What is it?" the applicant frowned in confusion.
"You tell me. It's broken and needs fixing. So fix it or tell me how you would," Hedy said.
Ruby cracked open an eye to see what was going on. When she spotted the device she lifted her head. That little bundle of wires and plastic looked familiar...
"Well," Olivia turned it over in her hands. "It's some kind of motion sensor, right? And, something is supposed to go in this little pouch." She pulled a slightly sticky finger away and sniffed, "I-I might be imagining things but uh.. it's uh, covered in cookie dough?" She looked at Hedy in confusion.
If she hadn't been avoiding eye contact with Ruby, she would have seen the night guard's mouth open in a silent 'oh' as she turned to stare at the head mechanic.
"And there's something sticky and shiny in the pouch. What is this? Glitter? And the whole thing smells kinda like fireworks...or um gunpowder."
"How would you fix it," Hedy said a small smirk growing on her face as she noticed the night guard's realisation and surprise.
"Well, I think it isn't really broken," the poor interviewee looked eager to give the strange device back. "It's just these two wires that are disconnected." She moved to connect the wires but paused when all three people in front of her scooted back just a bit. "Is something wrong?" She asked with a slight squeak.
"Nope. Good job," Hedy said with a rather concerning smile that somehow still put the girl back at ease. Just a little. The mechanic held out her hand for the device and immediately disconnected the wires again when the girl handed it over.
Ruby was doubled over in silent laughter and Olivia finally looked at her. The night guard finally drew in a breath in and spoke.
"...That's one of my cookie bombs..." she said accusingly although she didn't seem too mad.
"Yes," Hedy said as she put the cookie glitter bomb back in her wheelchair's side pouch and put on her glasses to look at Olivia's application again.
"Bomb!" Olivia jerked her hands backward as if the device was going to jump out of Hedy's bag and bite her.
Ruby took no notice, "And you took it apart...without blowing it up..." she stared, just a little impressed.
Not that she would say anything.
"Yep." Hedy shrugged.
She was the mechanic after all. Although there were a few of Ruby's inventions that she wouldn't touch even if her life depended on it. Ruby had a knack for defying the set rules of the universe it seemed.
They ended up approving Olivia and she left with a sigh of relief, glad for the job but wondering about her new co-workers.
They went through a few regular applicants. Some Ruby rejected flat-out them moment they showed hostility towards the animatronics and the other two couldn't budge her on the matter. Hedy rejected a couple based on suspicious past work experience. The manager just sat quietly in the middle as the two took over.
"Next, Samuel Falmer." The manager read from the application.
The man that came in was chubby with long arms and legs. He also looked really intimidating with most of his face obscured by two scarves, his blue eyes and short blond hair the only features visible.
The manager looked even more nervous but the girls looked unfazed.
Samuel greeted them, sounding friendly and amiable.
Ruby asked her two questions and was satisfied with the negative answers. Hedy did her cookie bomb thing and he passed.
They seemed happy with him and the manager was forced to hire him even if he was nervous about the intimidating appearance.
The rest of the interviews passed quickly enough. Ruby only got into a verbal confrontation with one poor idiotic soul who was thoroughly traumatised as a consequence. Hedy managed to keep most conversations polite though.
By the time the last applicant left they had five new part-time day guards…and a sleeping night guard.
Ruby had fallen asleep and didn't seem to be getting up anytime soon. The manager watched her, uncertain about what to do. Hedy rolled her eyes.
"Oh for goodness sakes." She muttered, reaching over and shaking Ruby's shoulder despite the manager's sudden panic.
She shot bolt upright instantly. "Honest, I didn't buy the gunpowder mom."
She blinked sleepily as she realised where she was.
"We done?" she asked, covering a yawn.
Hedy nodded as the manager thanked them both and hurried out. Ruby nodded absently and stood up, stretching. She picked up her bag, said goodbye to Hedy and waved at empty air as she left.
Hedy frowned. That was weird. Before she could think further on it though, the cookie bomb in her bag went off.
"When did she even do that?" Hedy asked in dismay, no doubt in her mind that it was Ruby's doing.
Goldy stifled a giggle at the mechanic's expression. Too funny. Ruby was getting good at sensing her as well. It was surprising how nice it felt to have her acknowledge that she was there when she waved goodbye.
She sobered up as she watched Hedy pack up and leave.
She didn't know how she felt about seeing the girl back at Freddy's after all these years.
Author Notes
So Olivia belongs to WarHusky2000 and Samuel belongs to roboticfreeze. :) More OC appearances and reappearances in the future.
Hope you enjoyed and thank you for reading.
Night 2 up on Sunday.