Author's Note:
We're finally here! The Sister Location Arc starts here. Hope you all enjoy!
Chapter 177
Father
It was about three a.m. when Hedy got the phone call. The Originals couldn't help but find it strange how the Toys automatically quieted when Hedy put the call on speaker and set it beside her as she continued working on Spring.
The rabbit opened his mouth to ask who it was but stopped when Hedy put her finger to her lips.
Ruby leaned her arms on the back of a chair in interest. Who would be calling Hedy in the middle of the night? The last time this happened, it was a drunk call from Sarah regaling Hedy in way too much detail about how a previous date had gone. Hedy only spared the poor bots' ears after she checked that Sarah wasn't in a risky situation before telling her friend to go to find Rena and get a taxi home.
Hedy didn't answer first this time.
"H-hello?" an older man's voice, with a distinct English accent, crackled through the line after a few awkward seconds, a little distorted but still easy to understand.
"Hello hello," Hedy said, politely. "Fitzgerald residence."
Spring looked at her questioningly, but she ignored him.
The man sounded a little relieved, "Oh good. I'm looking for a Ms. Hed...um...Hedwig Fitzgerald?"
"This is she," Hedy said without looking up from her work. "May I ask the nature of your call, sir? I don't get many at 3 am."
"Oh yes, of course. I do apologize. I hope I didn't wake you," the man said. His voice sounded soft and very tired. "Bad form on my part if so, but I was told the best time to contact you was between midnight and six in the morning. I hope that was correct." He cleared his hoarse throat. "I-I am looking for a skilled, freelance engineer for a project of mine. You came highly recommended and I'm hoping to hire you."
"Who suggested me?" Hedy asked, glancing at the phone in confusion. She shrugged when Ruby mouthed at her asking what he was talking about.
"An old acquaintance of mine. Do you know a Dr. Morow?"
"He's one of my engineering professors."
"Well I contacted him looking for recommendations and Tom mentioned you had a specific interest in specializing in artificial intelligence? He…" There was frantic shuffling of paper as the man searched for something.
She could almost hear him squint at the paper when he next spoke.
"He gave me a research paper you wrote several months ago...ah, here it is...'Morality in Circuitry'?"
Some of the bots looked at her questioningly.
Hedy sputtered a bit and turned a little red in the face as she debated taking the call off speakerphone. "Y-yes, I wrote that a while ago. It was more a thought exercise for the class." She really hoped this strange man wasn't going to start reading it where all the animatronics could hear. She wasn't sure she could take the embarrassment.
"It was an Ethics of Artificial Intelligence class, I understand. To my knowledge, that whole class is mostly a series of thought experiments," the man chuckled, it lacked any real humor to it, sounding strained and tired as if laughing wasn't something he was used to doing, "Ahem, I...I particularly liked a part you wrote describing how the preconceptions of criminal human psychology wouldn't be applicable to robots with no sense of age or human gender. You theorized a robot with the programmed knowledge of a highly intelligent adult but the real world experience of a child or teenager would not have the same basis for right or wrong as a human child who grows up with a human-typical pace of knowledge and learned behaviors. They wouldn't even have the deep-seated social gender divisions that lead to some crime patterns being mostly committed by males and others by women. You talked about how because artificial psychology would have to be in its own category, rehabilitation with artificial sentient beings would have to be handled completely differently than humans."
Hedy's eyes flicked over to Toby and the other Toys, who started as they realized who Hedy's paper was probably describing.
The idea of Hedy studying them like a weird mix of wildlife and children was incredibly funny, especially with how embarrassed she suddenly looked.
She wouldn't look at the others as she tried to keep her tone even. "I'm surprised Professor Morow kept it. I failed that paper and he made me do it again."
"Ah, yes, I'm quite aware. He gave me both drafts and explained that while your first paper was much more convincing and you clearly were passionate about the subject, you weren't willing to cite evidence for your claims and kept it too hypothetical. It was more a work of science fiction since it's impossible to have examples or data with the AI technology currently available. That's what he said, at least. Still, he seemed quite impressed with your thought process, as am I. You were very thorough with the psychology side of it."
Hedy nodded, forgetting for a moment the caller couldn't see her do so. The others staring and silently laughing at her was a little distracting.
"I've read a lot of similar writing regarding, ani–robots with souls and the moral implication that has on humanity," the man said, almost rambling now since she hadn't given him an audible response. "And while some are not all apocalyptic or verging on the edge of paranoia, those that aren't usually have a tone of romanticism and drama that I was never too keen on. Usually they ring of… conspiracy and, frankly, fantasy. Not to say your paper didn't have some imaginative elements to it. However, the tone of your paper was far more...well...realistic...and, at the risk of overstepping my bounds, very loving, Miss Fitzgerald. That is the distinct tone of optimism I was looking for in someone to help me with my… project. Er…and I was surprised to find a student, or anyone really, with that particular philosophy. I was less interested in your science and more impressed with your values. I do hope that makes sense." He took a breath as if he had attempted to blurt that all out before she could stop him.
Hedy ducked her head and blushed at the looks she was getting, while Ruby snickered at her.
Spring jokingly patted Hedy on the head with his good hand while she refused to look at him.
"Aww," Ruby, Chi, and Mags all whispered with snickers.
Goldy trapped a startled Hedy in a hug as she whispered. "Aw you used us for a school project!" she giggled. She squinted at the embarrassed mechanic, still grinning. "Should we be offended that you didn't give us sign consent forms?" she teased with fake haughtiness.
Hedy grunted and scowled at Goldy as she tried to wiggle out of the hold without making too much noise "Shhh!"
"... , are you alright?" the man asked, concerned by Hedy's quiet shout.
"Sorry..." Hedy gasped around Goldy's hug. "Just... dropped something..." She smacked Goldy's arm until the bear loosened her grip. "I'm very flattered by the praise, sir, and a little embarrassed you liked my paper, especially given how… un-academic it was in the end. I'm curious about this job you're offering, but I should tell you up front I don't freelance anymore. I got a regular job about six months ago and I'm not looking to leave anytime soon."
"I'm sure we can work something out," the voice said, unphased. "You don't need to quit your job and I'm more than willing to negotiate with your current employers if there's a conflict as well as compensate you for any time spent away while working on my project. This could be on top of the pay for the project of course. If your school is an issue, I can talk to your professors. It's my understanding your degree requires an internship at some point, yes? Perhaps I can pull some strings to make this count. It's definitely going to be… very hands on, to say the least."
Hedy looked a little dumbstruck. She frowned and hit mute.
"This is weird… " At the confused faces she said, "People don't do this. People don't offer jobs, especially not contract jobs, and throw in a bunch of stuff like that."
"That guy really wants to hire you..." Teddy whispered. Something was bothering him about the conversation, but he didn't know what. He chalked it up to the fear of even the idea of someone trying to steal Hedy away. She was theirs.
Hedy sent him a comforting smile, "I'm not leaving, Teddy no matter what this person is asking..."
" ? Have we been disconnected?" He sounded a bit baffled and concerned by her sudden silence.
"Sounds too good to be true," Ruby said knowingly before Hedy could unmute, leaning in. "He hasn't even said what the job is. Or who he is."
Hedy nodded seriously. She took a breath and hit unmute. She wasn't even going to bother turning off the speakerphone. Everyone was too curious and would pout if she tried to make the conversation private now. "Sorry about that. I had to mute for a second. I'm... speechless. You're being very generous."
"I'm the owning partner of a couple of small but very lucrative companies. Well, one is all mine, and the other is technically a corporation, I suppose. I haven't really paid much attention to the business side of things in years. But I do have a small fortune I won't be spending on myself. I'd rather give to people who need it and love what they do. You seem to love what you do, Ms. Fitzgerald." There was a pause. "Your skill set and values are exactly what I need for this job," the man said. He seemed a bit more somber for a moment. "This project is...very...important to me..." his tone was extremely sincere and sad.
Weird…
He broke into a coughing fit, seeming to have lost the battle with whatever was bothering his throat, and Hedy waited patiently for the harsh noise to subside.
"Ah ahem, hm, apologies. Anyway, I must warn you, Ms. Fitzgerald, there's a reason your artificial intelligence background and theories about… an artificial being's morals are of interest to me. I am not really...at liberty to say much more unless you take the job...but..." he paused and then sighed, "What I am about to tell you has scared off the few other people I've offered this job to, Ms. Fitzgerald. Or they thought I was playing a joke. I would just ask that you hear me out before hanging up. Perhaps even think about it for a couple days? I admit it requires a bit of an open mind, or… well… some flexibility to your worldview… at least." They could almost hear the wince. "This is not a joke. A prank. A scam or whatnot. I'm fully willing to send you any documentation you wish for, at least regarding my legitimacy."
Puppet wasn't paying very much attention to the phone call, more focused on looking over Spring's circuits that he was helping Hedy with that night.
He was usually was so much more observant. When he thought about it later, he wondered if maybe some part of him was in denial about the voice, shutting down any moment of recognition without him noticing.
Spring had been having an odd short that locked up his left hand at random times and Hedy was having trouble pinpointing where the short was happening. It frustrated her enough to prompt the rare occasion she'd ask for help. Spring hadn't come with a manual like the others, not that those were very helpful to begin with. Puppet didn't need them.
Hedy had stopped working entirely, too intrigued by the phone call. She wondered if the others thought it was as weird as she did. They weren't exactly familiar with jobs related conversations.
Hedy raised her eyebrows and looked around the room at the animatronics. "I think I can handle it."
The man hesitated, but spoke eventually. "This job carries some...serious dangers. I'll admit part of the reason I'm even hiring others to help me is because I'm not as fast as I used to be and there's quite a lot of uncertainty surrounding this… property of mine. I have tried to take precautions but given how little I know at the moment, the risk is still there."
Hedy looked worried and glanced at Ruby.
Ruby signed at her slowly. "WHO IS HE?!"
Hedy almost asked, but the man kept talking.
"See, I'm a business owner, but I like to think my true job is as an inventor. Many years ago, I created...well...frankly I created life." He paused, probably realising how crazy that might sound before continuing quickly. "Artificial life. Not at all sure how." He sounded in a bit of disbelief himself, "Oh, uhm… are you still with me?" There was a pause. "Drat… " he mumbled. "I've made her hang up, haven't I?"
Puppet paused and glanced at the phone in surprise, squinting his eyes a bit as he thought hard about something.
"I..." Hedy looked very concerned and confused. "No. Just...processing..."
The animatronics and Ruby looked curious and shocked. Okay, Ruby looked more eager than anything. She stared with curious eyes. Sure, the bots were completely normal to her, but that didn't mean she wasn't aware of how amazing and unique they were.
"More like us?" Foxy asked, very quietly.
It truly hadn't clicked for a single one of them. Not even Goldy.
Relief colored the man's words when he realized she hadn't hung up, "I understand...a bit of a shock to hear all that out of the blue instead of on the news from a high-tech lab. Do bear with me, please?"
"Hmm hm."
"Thank you. You've lasted longer than most. Something has gone… wrong...horribly wrong...and..." he trailed off. "I can't tell you much more...I am so sorry."
"That's rather a lot of information you just gave me," Hedy said pretty calmly to the man, and probably not as surprised as he expected. She did look worried though.
"I'm terribly sorry."
"No, it's alright. Sir, I'm not sure if you realized it, but you haven't even said who you are or the name of this company you own." Her mouth felt dry, though she wasn't completely conscious of why. Yet.
"Oh! I do apologize… I didn't… I hadn't even realized! I-I forget the simplest of things sometimes and went right into a ramble. You must think me insane. This head doesn't appreciate late nights anymore."
Hedy tried not to laugh too much. "It's fine."
"My name is Af—"
Hedy and Ruby had an excuse. The girls wouldn't have reason to recognize the voice. And Spring wouldn't remember. But the other bots knew. They knew. They absolutely knew from the first word out of Hedy's phone. They had to. Some tiny part already knew from the moment he first spoke, but it hadn't clicked. They didn't process it. Why didn't they process it?! Denial was a funny thing, especially for animatronics apparently. Because there was no way…
"-ton. William Afton. Please forgive me for not saying so from the start."
Hedy choked.
Everyone choked.
Even the building felt like it choked, though that might have been it reacting to any one of them.
Timmy suddenly appeared, his eyes wide as he watched the chaos. Something was wrong. He wasn't listening to the phone call Hedy was on, but he felt all the violent reactions.
Hedy barely had a second to react and mute the call before Puppet dived at the phone and Goldy tried to swipe it out from her hand.
"I'm a co-owner of a small company called Fazbear Entertainment. Mostly restaurants really," the man continued, entirely oblivious to the panic on the other end of the call. He sounded a little pained. And maybe tired.
Hedy shouted as she dropped her phone and it slid under the table.
"My focus has always been my robotics company, though. Afton Robotics. I'm afraid you won't find much about it. I'm my only employee at the moment–"
Ruby scrambled for it and got it a moment before Mangle did, darting away to keep it away from everyone as the fox glared at her. The teen opted to climb onto a table, holding the phone up and pointing her taser pen threateningly. Ruby never bluffed so that kept them at a distance for the moment.
Besides, regardless of their opinions on the phone call, Foxy would start a fight if anyone actually tackled his kid. Phone call be damned. That was probably the ace up her sleeve since Mangle eyed the pen before glancing at Foxy and backing up a bit.
"Explain!" Ruby growled, although she didn't really need an explanation. Talking about the problem would force them to stop and do something other than try and end the call.
"Hang up," Freddy scolded. "Hang up, right now!"
"Of course, that would change if you and a few others I've spoken with accept the job." He paused. "Although, admittedly, I believe I've gone a little more in detail with you than the previous calls."
"Who's this guy?!" What a stupid question. She knew exactly who it was. Maybe she just wanted them to admit it. "Uh uh!" she snapped when Puppet edged closer and a crackle of electricity cut through the noise. "You know I don't bluff Marionette," she reminded, the use of his real name a rarity.
"Ms. Fitzgerald? I believe we have a bad connection… I can't hear anything… hello?" the voice was baffled again as it came through the phone Ruby was still holding and her glare dared them to continue with their attempts to get it. She would fight.
And she'd probably still win cause she played dirty.
Several of the bots held similar expressions to Freddy, like they wanted to kick themselves for not completely recognizing the voice immediately. Maybe they had… They just… didn't want it to be true.
"Hang the phone up!" Mangle demanded angrily, hands clenching in a show of agitation as she paced out of taser distance, her teeth barred and flashing under the lights and a snarl under her voice.
Ruby stared at them all. It was rare when all the animatronics seemed to have the same strong feelings about something. They got along these days, but they rarely agreed this drastically. Most of them would disagree purely out of spite.
She still kept the phone well out of reach.
"NO! Don't hang up!" Goldy begged frantically, finally snapping out of the shock. "Give me the phone Ruby, please? Please…" But he didn't teleport close to grab it since she knew how badly that would go down. The phone would probably end up broken if she did that.
There was a long sharp whistle and the bots flinched, some ears going back at the sharp noise as they looked at Hedy.
Hedy took her fingers out of her mouth and stared them down, noting how distressed the bots looked, Toys and Originals alike. Even Goldy and Puppet looked upset. Spring did too, but he was more upset at the missing memories and worried about the others' reactions.
"Here's what we're going to do," she said, her voice deathly chill. "Ruby's going to hand me back my phone and I'm going to finish this nice conversation with the man who has the same last name as Michael and Timmy." She heard Timmy gasp. She stifled a wince as she glanced at him apologetically. "Every single one of you is going to be completely silent. Not. A. Word. I'm going to end the conversation, promising to get back to him about this worrying job he's talking about. I'm not going to say anything about any of you or the pizzeria or specifically where I work. I'm going to keep it civil and say goodbye without any tip off that you're here and listening. THEN, we'll talk about this! Am I being perfectly clear?"
They glared at her.
"...Fine," Freddy growled, though several of the bots didn't look like they were going to listen.
"Agreed?" And that was the tone that made Toby wilt and Puppet back off so the others didn't stand a chance.
Freddy and the others nodded stiffly, very reluctantly and still eying the phone.
Hedy's eyes narrowed. "It's a deal."
They stared in shock as the building shuddered around them, locking them into the agreement for the next several minutes.
Goldy moaned and Ruby smirked, a little proud of the move. She hopped down from the table and put the taser pen away now that she was safe from potential phone thieves.
Freddy stared at Hedy in shock and maybe a little betrayal, never having guessed Hedy would go anywhere near a deal with the Building even if she had a ten-foot-pole. She despised them.
Puppet was livid, but he couldn't help being begrudgingly a little impressed with the mechanic. Hedy was nothing if not practical. That didn't stop him from practically vibrating in anger.
Mangle ground her teeth and glared at Hedy, mostly just pissed off with everything happening now.
Ruby handed the phone over, sharing a glance with the mechanic that seemed to hold an entire conversation since the teen nodded and moved to comfort Goldy who seemed to be having a minor panic attack as she watched the phone change hands.
When it looked like the deal had settled, Hedy went back to the call.
"Hello? Maybe I should call back…" Afton muttered to himself.
"Sorry about that Mr...Afton. You were saying?" She impressively managed to keep her tone even, despite the venomous looks she was getting from everyone.
Timmy moved a little closer to listen to the conversation with wide eyes but he stayed silent.
"Oh, well, I thought you had decided to hang up for a moment." He gave a strained chuckle. "Um, as I was saying, I've just recently started trying to...fix some issues with my company. On the technical side. I was never very good with the business side of things. It's...unfortunately bound by a confidentiality agreement. I can't talk about the details, it's silly really… It's my company and… well you understand. The frustration I mean… Or perhaps you wouldn't, sorry I've gone off rambling again."
Ruby grimaced as she remembered the contract the company tried to make her sign. Emphasis on tried. Her lawyer was really good and he was motivated by the challenge she usually presented him.
The man on the phone–Afton– seemed pretty annoyed that even he was stuck in that non-disclosure hellscape. But he wasn't breaking it for some reason, despite his distaste.
'No signing without a lawyer.' she signed to Hedy, barely going slow enough for the older girl to read. She always forgot to since she usually only signed with Mangle who had no problem keeping up now.
"What I can tell you is that there appears to be…" He spoke slowly, choosing his words carefully and with not a little bit of frustration. "Programming issues with some of the robots in a…shutdown location that my company–one of them–owns. The board is quite eager to open it again." There was a tinge of something a bit past annoyance to his voice now. "So…" he paused. "I've decided to go in and deal with it myself." There was another awkward pause and Hedy couldn't help but feel like he was in disbelief at himself.
He cleared his throat again. "But, as I mentioned earlier, I find that I need help. I'm being as up front and transparent as I reasonably can at the moment. There's quite a lot of risk simply because I don't have all the information myself. I would have you sign a waiver, but I've made sure to include that you're well within your rights to back out at any time should things get out of hand, whatever that means. I will have to have you sign my own non-disclosure agreement. I'm afraid I can't compromise on that, for the safety of… well… of the animatronics. The… the living ones… I-I did mention the living AI didn't I?"
"You did," Hedy confirmed.
"O-oh good. I wasn't sure. You didn't have much of a reaction. I wasn't sure you heard. If there are problems, I want to make sure I accommodate as much as possible and mitigate the risk best we can. I'm sorry. I know it's a lot. I'm not asking you to decide now. Perhaps you can call me when you've decided?" There was an almost painful note of hope in his voice.
Ignoring the glares from most of the bots, Hedy answered. "I'll think about it and call you tomorrow?"
"That would be perfect." He sounded relieved again and gave her his number, which she wrote down.
Hedy glared at the bots warningly as she kept the notepad close in case any one of them tried to snatch it. Honestly, she tried to commit it to memory considering BB's sticky fingers.
Actually… on second thought, she was giving the paper to Ruby. Any pickpockets would get a bit of a shock no doubt. Even BB hadn't managed to actually steal a battery from her that she didn't let him take.
"Thank you for taking the time to speak with me, Ms. Fitzgerald. Enjoy the rest of your evening. O-or…" he snorted as he corrected himself. "Morning I suppose?"
"No problem. Goodbye Mr. Afton." she hung up, and the click plunged the room into silence.
"Soooooo, that's interesting." Ruby mused, waiting for the impending explosion.
That opened the floodgates. The Originals started ranting and raving at the top of their voices.
Goldy burst into sobs while the Toys sulked except for Mangle, who joined the yelling aggressively.
Spring was cowering away from the noise behind Hedy while Puppet fumed in silence.
"That was… Dad," Timmy whispered. He almost sounded out of breath.
"Will! That was Will! He's still alive, and it's been so long and-" Goldy trailed off into sobs.
Hedy gripped the piece of paper with the man's phone number in her hand defensively. She still wouldn't put it past some of them to try to steal it so she couldn't call back later.
Puppet at least seemed angry enough to pull that stunt.
Ruby sidled up to Hedy and took the paper without a word, much to the bots' dismay. She maintained eye-contact as she slipped the paper into her jean pocket. A silent dare that some of them might actually take, considering how worked up they were.
BB had done a fairly good job of maintaining a blank expression up to that point, but even he had a flash of irritation as the paper went out of sight. At least they knew his opinions now.
Neither night guard or mechanic could really understand what everyone was shouting. Their voices bled together, painfully loud. But they could catch a few phrases.
Even those that were usually the most level-headed were throwing a fit. There were even a few curses sprinkled in there from a very pissed off Foxy.
"He thinks he can disappear for years and we don't hear a single word!" Freddy seethed.
"H-he just..." Chica sounded like she was tearing up in rage despite the dry eyes, "He can't just...be alive like this."
"He can fucking stay gone for all I care!" Foxy said, shaking a little. His jaw looked like it was coming loose from the force he was clenching his jaw with.
Bonnie paced, his hands reaching up to pull on his ears. "NO! NO! I don't care anymore. I don't want to hear anything from him. We're doing just fine on our own!" His voice cracked from tears animatronics couldn't shed.
Foxy took the moment to stop yelling at air and actually responded to Bonnie. "We WEREN'T doing fine! We went through HELL for years! And where was he? NOT. FUCKING. HERE!" Foxy swung his hook, the sharp tip slamming into a wall.
Hedy and Ruby watched as Freddy bumped into a table and without much thought, one hand curled under an edge.
Hedy watched as several of her tools and a dozen party hats fell to the ground as Freddy upturned the table, the loud and violent action very unlike him. It was a bit frightening.
Spring looked terrified and shrunk back. In his fear he wondered if he needed to pull Hedy out of the way.
Ruby subtly moved between Hedy and the chaos. She didn't think that the bots would actually hurt her, not even when they were this angry.
But if they threw something without thinking, it could end badly.
The teen crossed her arms and waited, well aware that this kind of rage had to be vented out before any conversation could be had.
"He left us! He left us! He left all of us!" Mangled screamed at the ceiling, suddenly sounding much younger than usual. It was a strange reminder that she and the other Toys were still teenagers. "I was pulled apart and he didn't care! He didn't care! He said he wouldn't leave us! Then he wasn't there when we needed him!"
"He left us to rot!" Foxy shouted. He actually pointed at Mangle now. "He sent you to replace us and left us like trash."
The other Toys stared at the scene, just as mad, but not as easily vocal.
Teddy looked like he wanted to scream, his fists clenched at his side, while Toby crossed his arms and paced much like Bonnie. He gripped his arms so tightly, Hedy saw dents in his arms from his fingers.
Chi muttered to herself and nodded along to Mangle.
Mangle turned on Foxy with a sharp snap of teeth and a staticky animalistic growl reminiscent of when her voice box didn't work. "Don't you dare turn this on us!" she snarled, stalking up to him until they were nearly nose to nose, staring up at the slightly taller fox with vicious hurt in her eyes. They were glowing noticeably brighter. "None of us asked to be made! None of us asked to go to the same building. We didn't even know you existed when he was making us. We were alone! Who's fault is that, huh? Not ours!"
Hedy covered her ears.
A moment later Ruby's airhorn split through the air. She let the painful noise drag on until everyone was quiet again. She still drew the line at them turning toxic on each other. She planted herself between the foxes and blasted the airhorn again, forcing the pair to back up as their ears went back again.
"Timeout," she raised her voice to be heard and didn't flinch at the glares turning her way. "Vent on the furniture and scream your feelings to the ceiling. But my rules on hurtful arguments stands and I will blast this until your hearing circuits are short-circuiting."
They didn't know if that was possible, but Ruby would certainly try.
Hedy didn't bother correcting Ruby. There was no such thing as "hearing circuits" but the microphones that made up the bots "ears" could definitely be blown out by the airhorn, so Ruby's threat still stood.
Ruby eyed them for a moment as a tense silence fell before lowering the airhorn.
"Alright then, that was all cathartic anger venting before it devolved into the blame game," she glanced at Foxy and Mangle in some disappointment. She hadn't expected her foxes to fall into that old wound since they hadn't been that bad in the beginning. "Now that that's out of the way, we are going to remember that we have inside voices." She cast a meaningful glance at Spring who Hedy was trying to comfort. "As per Hedy's deal, we'll do the explanations now hmm? In a less-screaming manner since I'm not using the airhorn on the next bot to raise their voice. I'm just hitting you with Betty. Sounds good, Hedy?"
Hedy nodded sharply before turning her attention back on Spring to check if he was okay.
He glanced at the others with a mix of worry and fear that had mostly subsided after the initial shock. The other bots would feel awful for scaring him after they calmed down. He met Hedy's eyes and nodded weakly. He scooted closer to her, telling himself that it was to protect Hedy if things got out of hand again, but he could only lie to himself so much. Where was Kitty?
No one said anything, and for some reason, the building gave them a reprieve from the mini deal. It didn't force them to talk. Not yet, at least.
"What the hell happened?!" Mike asked in concern, poking his head in, wondering why an air horn had gone off. Twice. He had begged and bribed Ruby to go lighter on the noise the last few nights. He was studying to renew his electrician's license so had holed up in the staff room to read while the others respected his request.
Even Ruby had left him alone "shockingly" (he couldn't resist one electrical pun).
He had just gotten into the groove of things so he couldn't help being a little annoyed at the interruption. But he was sure there was a good reason…
Mike recoiled at the angry looks shot his way. He had never seen the expressions adorning the bots at the moment. He just hoped that wasn't all directed at him.
He almost asked what he did, but Hedy mutely shook her head at Mike and gestured at some chairs.
Mike frowned but luckily took the hint and sat down quietly, looking on intently. He'd figure out what was going on, one way or another.
Hedy paused a moment before speaking, sorting her thoughts. "Timmy, that was your father? Yours and… and Micheal's?"
Timmy nodded, hopeful tears in his eyes. "I-I thought I was too late..." he cried, but it was less in sadness and partly in relief. "I thought he was gone." His eyes widened and his gaze snapped to her in desperation. "Hedy, you got to take his job," he pleaded. Desperation was so out of character for Timmy. He hadn't heard the whole conversation, but he heard enough. Did he realize what he just asked Hedy?
Hedy couldn't hold it against him. "We...I don't even know what the job is," Hedy said patiently. "Sounds like more murderous animatronics to me."
Goldy whimpered. It did sound a lot like that, didn't it? "Oh no... oh no...y-you can't Hedy..."
Puppet stiffened. It couldn't be...could it?
Timmy looked a bit panicked and swallowed, but he didn't take back what he asked her. He looked down, his feelings twisting in conflict, hope, and guilt. It was wrong to ask Hedy to potentially put herself in danger. But he couldn't just… let his dad slip away. Not again…
Hedy stared at him. It wasn't often she could sense what he was feeling. Timmy was usually so controlled about cutting himself off from the other ghosts.
"One thing at a time," Ruby interrupted. "Who, specifically, is this guy? Besides Shit Ghost and Timmy's dad." She knew who it was. She'd researched everything she could on Michael, after all. She knew who created the bots she loved so dearly.
She wanted to hear it, though. As much as she loved the animatronics, they were hypocrites when it came to not talking about their trauma. And no matter what they said, it was traumatic to be left by their parent.
Abandoned.
Ignoring it wouldn't make the pain go away.
The bots were quiet for a very long minute, each silently daring each other to speak first while Ruby progressively grew more visibly irritated as she waited. They knew Ruby was asking because she wanted it in their words, not whatever she already knew. But they also knew that if they didn't answer, her patience would snap and not all of them were protected by being foxes or Spring. Everyone else was likely to get a smack with Betty.
"He's our...inventor. He made us. All of us," Freddy said stiffly. For the first time he seemed to notice the table he tipped and looked surprised he had done that. He glanced at Spring in guilt.
Spring was oddly silent. He stared at his hands with an unreadable expression.
Ruby crossed her arms and waited. Yes, she was annoyed. But she was also concerned. Their reaction had been… a lot. That had been ...unexpectedly violent.
"Okay, so he's your inventor." She repeated carefully, not wanting to set the group off again. She knew that part. She did her research. "And you're upset with him because?" Now she sounded like her therapist, with her leading questions aimed at the heart of the trauma they were caught up in.
And here was the conversation that was usually dead in the water if she and Hedy so much as implied they try to talk about this. But now they couldn't just drop it. Ruby wasn't going to let this go and Hedy wasn't either.
Hedy didn't cut in. She had not seen the research Ruby had done. She knew of it. But when Ruby had not-so-subtly offered if she wanted to learn more about the bot's history and who the Afton's were, she declined. Ignored it. She hadn't been ready to really consider how close Michael actually was to the bots she cared so much about. But she knew some things. She knew how Timmy had died, of course. He had told her. And she paid attention when any of the bots briefly mentioned a time before they were working, gathering that most of them spent their "childhoods" in a workshop or a house with whoever made them.
"He left." Foxy ground out.
Silence descended and there were a few sniffles among the more sensitive bots.
"He told us he'd always be there for us, and then he just left."
The girls could see the hurt under the anger. Even Goldy, who obviously desperately wanted to see him, looked down.
William Afton had hurt the bots badly and the hurt and anger had only festered over the years..
Timmy didn't break the silence, fidgeting next to Hedy. It seemed even he couldn't defend his father.
"Okay. So he fucked up." There was no grumble of 'language.' They were all too upset. "And now he's called Hedy, NOT knowing that she's working here so that he can get some help with some bots somewhere else."
Angry muttering swept over them while a few flinched.
"Considering how bad the management is, and how he said he never got involved with the business side of things, he probably doesn't even know about the issues at this place. Which means whatever went wrong at this other place was really really BAD since he DID hear about it."
The muttering turned a bit uncomfortable now. Why did Ruby choose now to be all calm and logical instead of angry? Half of them expected her to take their side and threaten to hunt Will down herself. She was overprotective of all of them, after all.
Foxy understood, despite his anger over it. With Ruby, parents were a complicated topic and she generally wanted others to have what she didn't.
"So," Ruby continued, dragging out the words to make sure they were listening to her. "Don't you think Hedy should be allowed to consider going to help these other bots like you guys got help?"
Sulky glares narrowed on her while most of the Originals looked away. When Ruby was calm it was usually hard to actually argue with her. And that had got worse after she grew close to Hedy.
It was impossible to argue with them when they were working together.
"Don't act like the ghost brats now." Ruby crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, tone mildly annoyed as she exchanged a glance with Hedy.
That was harsh…
And pretty insulting.
Ruby probably did that on purpose, redirecting their anger towards her instead of the man who'd just called.
"Forgetting about how angry you are at William for the moment, don't you think these other bots deserve help?"
The bots were still clearly angry, but they were a lot calmer now with some good points thrown at them. She'd learnt far too much from Hedy and it annoyed Puppet.
"Hedy will think about it, and she will decide if she's going or not. And you are not going to be mad if she decides to check it out." It was ridiculous that her older sister attitude worked on most of the younger bots as well as it did on kids. "If she does decide to go however, I'll tag along and keep an eye on things. It might be at a different branch, but I'll still be showing up for my shift, so the deals will be intact."
They could have sworn that the building shook a little with laughter at that weird but accurate logic. Honestly, it probably only worked because the building had a soft spot for the teenager. Ruby believed in the loophole, therefore it was a loophole.
Hedy looked up at the ceiling tiredly. "Of course you would like Ruby Logic." She ran her fingers through her hair and huffed.
Everyone was looking at her now, waiting for her to decide. That wasn't fair. They all knew what she was going to say already. That didn't stop the intense stares from glowing eyes practically begging her to say "No."
For once, Ruby seemed to be the only one who was the most willing to accept her decision. When had she started to mature from that reckless and admittedly selfish teenager?
The silence stretched for a long moment and the tension increased. Mike shifted anxiously, not sure about his own feelings. He didn't want Hedy to be in more danger but he also didn't like the idea of other bots suffering like these groups had.
"I didn't like how he mentioned he's not as fast as he used to be," Hedy said at last. "Sounds an awful lot like he needs someone younger who can sprint for a door or vent." She frowned and flicked a glance at Ruby who met her gaze. It was frustrating for the others while they seemed to have a complete conversation with minor facial expressions. Finally, Ruby tilted her head in what almost seemed like agreement. Hedy looked back at the bots they needed to convince. "Not that I don't appreciate my professor caring more about my skills, but I don't think he mentioned my wheelchair to Mr. Afton..." She shook her head and Ruby's serious expression finally cracked into a smirk that pulled an exasperated smile from Hedy.
The others felt left out and it was getting ridiculous now.
"I'd be annoyed—and possibly asking for a death wish—if you didn't tag along," Hedy said dryly.
Mangle shifted, looking like she wanted to say something, while Foxy clenched his jaw. Neither fox had a chance to speak.
They all jumped at the sickening dry snap of wood and the screech of springs and metal giving way from the force as Puppet suddenly slammed the side of a fist against the nearest wall. He had been silently pacing in the back of the group, skirting back and forth along the wall like a tense spider. Now he leaned against the wall by his shoulder for a moment as his broken arm failed to support him. The arm slid down the wall and fell to his side with the twang of loose cables. There were guttural-like clicks as motors in his shoulder and elbow attempted to do as he wanted, grinding gears with audible effort. But it didn't matter how much electricity Puppet pushed to the arm; he wasn't able to lift it back up.
Bonnie and a couple of the other bots looked notably ill and didn't want to be around if Puppet decided to remove his arm from the suit. It couldn't look pretty. Ruby's eyes narrowed but she said nothing for the moment while Spring looked stunned. He knew that kind of pain intimately. He'd been through more than even the Originals, after all.
Goldy was alarmed, but Puppet completely ignored her as she floated slightly closer, reaching out hesitantly.
"Mari..." Hedy said, startled.
Puppet never hurt himself like that. He hadn't even shouted. But she knew how painful that might have been. She couldn't imagine having the strength coupled with the bone fragility necessary to slam her arm against a wall like that and shatter it. She felt queasy at the awareness of how excruciating that would be. There was a sizable dent in the wall now, which the Building wasn't pleased about if the shudder that ran through it was any indication.
"You're going to die," Puppet whispered harshly, his voice cracking. Whether it was from stress, anger, or fear, they couldn't tell. It very well might have been the pain catching up to him as he realised what he just did. He stared at Hedy, one finger from his good arm sharply up in emphasis as he addressed both her and Ruby, ignoring his left arm as it hung limp and shattered inside the fabric of his suit.
He paused as if about to spit out something else, but he just stared for a moment. His hand lowered and Hedy might have sworn she saw it tremble. Without another word, he stalked out of the room toward his Prize Corner, holding his damaged arm as still as he could. He didn't even drag his box with him.
"You say that even after everything, Mari?" Hedy asked before he was past the doorway. She thought it was an odd thing to say, given his current relationship with them and the other bots. It wasn't great, but he had changed a lot from that cold psychopath who had been willing to kill or hurt them not too long ago.
His tone was hard to interpret. And this didn't make sense. After everything… He'd seen what Hedy was capable of in the warehouse. He'd seen what Ruby could and had done. And he wouldn't admit it, but he could grudgingly respect the pair's abilities to stay alive and win.
Together? The girls were something to be a little afraid of. When they were in agreement about something, Hedy's strategic mind worked well with Ruby's ability to improvise. The mechanic curbed the night guards' more reckless behaviour while the teen got the older girl to step out of her comfort zone.
There was a reason they were no longer allowed to be on the same side in any game. But now Puppet seemed to genuinely believe that they wouldn't manage with this new challenge.
Hedy and Ruby glanced at each other. What did he know that they didn't?
Spring stood up. He considered following Puppet, but hesitated as Goldy floated next to him. She looked strangely lost.
Puppet didn't answer and disappeared down the hall. He needed to calm down first. He needed to be calm. He needed to be calm. He needed to find some place to hide and sit before the pain overwhelmed him. He needed to deal with his arm before the shock wore off and his computer cycled the pain up to where he was more aware of it. Absently, he wished he had that "anesthetic" program Hedy had made for Spring, but even he knew he wasn't about to ask for it.
Puppet turned too close around a corner in his haste and searing "heat" rippled up through his neck as his shoulder knocked against the wall. There was the brief screech of static before he forcibly shut off his voice box so no one could hear him scream and curse. It wasn't long before the silently suffered cusses at the pain devolved into screaming at a man who couldn't even hear him if Puppet had the means to say his hurtful and vicious things to the man's face. Had anyone been in that hallway to see him, Puppet looked insane, pacing around and his head making the usual but somewhat unnatural movements they did when he was speaking, except these were words only he could hear as he ranted in silence.
No one saw that side of Puppet. It was too weak and pathetic. He couldn't let anyone see him like this. Weak. Not in control of even himself. He was the even-headed one. He was the eldest. He was the one who had to look after everyone. It was what Will fucking made him for and he couldn't even do that right! He fucked up his only purpose in life over and over and over again. He needed to stay focused. That was always where he failed. Every time. He wasn't paying attention. He was distracted.
He couldn't think.
Hedy couldn't take that bastard's job. Why? She just couldn't. She and Ruby wouldn't be here. They were safe here. They would be too far away. Too far…
That man would get them killed too.
None of those thoughts were making sense as he tried to focus, piecing together every word he heard from the phone call.
He had his suspicions and they chilled him. No. It couldn't be them. They were okay. They were out there somewhere. Will fixed them before sending them to their own location. He fixed them.
Didn't he?
Ruby dragged her eyes from the hallway long after Puppet was gone and looked back at Hedy. The older girl could see the moment that the teenager decided to leave the Puppet topic alone until later.
The bots didn't doubt that the girls would talk about it later, when they weren't around. There was some jealousy from both foxes although they squashed it down. It was good for the girls to have someone else they could rely on. But Foxy wouldn't be able to deny that he missed being the one Ruby usually leaned on and it was a bit shocking for Mangle to realise that she wasn't the only one Hedy confided in anymore.
It was good but… it felt awfully like they were growing up in a way. Which was ridiculous, since Hedy was already an adult and older than half of them. But… still…
"Of course I'm coming. If you tried to leave without me, I'd be pretty miffed." Ruby crossed her arms, but it was clear even she was a bit shocked by Puppet's actions, gaze flicking to the hallway and away.
And words. It was an odd thing for him to say these days.
The anger in the room had rapidly shifted to concern now. Which was both good and bad since now the bots were all looking sad and worried and that was worse than anger.
"Lass..." Foxy started, but she held up a hand, expression softening a bit.
"If bots are in trouble, I'm going to help. Plus, this guy obviously hurt you. So I need to go and see what he's like. Then pound him into the ground for that." She cracked the familiar 'I'm gonna hurt someone' smile that drew a weak laugh from Foxy and Bonnie and exasperated sigh from Freddy and Chica. Toby winced, a bit too familiar with that smile, while Mangle glanced at him with a weak smirk.
Suddenly, they felt more on even footing. Mike knew that it was on purpose. Ruby had learned that from Jeremy, of all people. Which was a much healthier method than the manipulation she used to use. He couldn't help but be a bit proud of how the teen was handling everything. She hadn't even lost her temper!
Goldy hovered next to Hedy and whispered to her frantically.
"Please don't let Ruby kill him..."
Hedy pursed her lips. She actually didn't think Ruby would ever even get close to that unless this man was like Michael. She was a little too idealistic when it came to parents. She looked at Goldy for a long moment, trying to understand the bear's emotions. There was a heartbreaking amount of hope mixed with pain and love pulling her between this man who appeared and her upset younger siblings. "I'll try..." Hedy said hesitantly, deciding to keep her deeper thoughts to herself for the moment. Hedy glanced at Timmy as the soft sound of him taking a breath he didn't need.
"Micheal?" he called quietly.
They stiffened and fell silent. Ruby's expression pinched into annoyance and Hedy almost rolled her eyes as the mature attitude she'd been holding almost disappeared.
"Micheal," Timmy said again, a little more annoyed.
Nothing.
"Michael!" The shout made most of them startle. Timmy was usually so quiet. For some, it was probably the first they had heard him sound angry. And not the patient quiet type that was more likely.
"GOD! What?!" Michael snapped, "What the hell do you want?!" The man immediately skipped away to put a table between him and the rest the second he appeared. He eyed Betty and Ruby snarled, although she didn't right out attack him if Timmy wanted him there. He squinted suspiciously. Which was a valid reaction. Ruby would still attack him for any number of reasons and that was unlikely to change.
Her attitude had changed towards the ghost kids. But not to him. Never to him. Ruby would never be able to let go of her hatred towards the person who had started so much of the pain her bots and Hedy went through. None of them would really, although Goldy sometimes felt a smidge of pity for the twisted creature the man had become.
"Dad called Hedy," Timmy said calmly, despite how Hedy stiffened as Michael looked her way. Timmy patted her hand and shot Ruby a pleading look. Don't run him off yet. Ruby scowled but she stayed quiet for the moment.
Michael froze and stared at nothing for a second, his eyes fixed on a space above Ruby's head. "...What?"
"Dad called Hedy for a job," Timmy emphasised. He wasn't going to let Michael pretend like he didn't hear.
They weren't entirely sure how Michael would react. Even he didn't seem to know for a minute.
Michaels sneered and his eyes snapped to his brother. "That bastard's still kicking? Ain't that a hoot...Why the fuck–" He ignored how the bots glared at him. "-Should I care?"
Ruby twitched slightly and the tools next to Hedy rattled. The mechanic gave the teenager a glance, wondering how long her control would last. She was already tense from everything else.
"He wants Hedy to help him fix some more bots," Timmy said. "Ruby's going with her." Quickly he added, "You still can't possess Spring if she does. The deal still counts it as working for the company."
I didn't completely confirm I was going yet. I just said "if," Hedy wanted to say, saddened at the pressure Timmy's longing was putting on her. She could feel it so clearly. Ruby shifted her weight but didn't look away from Michael.
He had gone quiet again. The sneer was gone and replaced by a furrowed brow as he stared at Timmy and thought about something no one could interpret.
"... He say which group of freaks it was?" he asked in a bored tone. He glanced at Ruby and stepped a little further away. The only reason he got away with it was because she wanted answers more than she wanted to beat Michael to within a reach of oblivion. His comment had caught her interest. She still hadn't got a straight answer about how many bots there were in the world, no matter how much she'd tried. All the bots refused to talk about anyone else.
But Michael wasn't fooling anyone with the casual attitude. That was a genuine question and he wanted the answer. There was too much focus in the killer's eyes as he watched his brother for some kind of reaction.
"How many bots are there?!" Mike blurted out. He couldn't help it. He had really tried to be quiet. This did not involve him… He had no right to comment.
"Two other sets," Goldy said softly before Michael could make some snide comment. "That I met. Will…he um…he might have made others after he…"
"Abandoned us?" Mangle supplied through clenched teeth and Foxy growled while other bots flinched.
Goldly winced and Hedy shot Mangle a warning look. "We lost one set during a location move…" Goldy said with grief colouring her tone. "We could never find them…" She swallowed. "The other set…"
Michael barked out a laugh, but there was no humor in it. "The other freaks crushed my little sister like a junkyard car compactor."
Even Ruby looked stunned at the brutal description, eyes widening. She knew Elizabeth Afton died under strange circumstances, but she was never really able to find anything… detailed. There was a limit to what she could find out herself and the bots hadn't been willing to give her what she was missing.
"What?" Hedy hissed at the ghost, horrified.
Timmy looked both nauseous and so utterly sad. The temperature in the room dropped and they weren't sure if that was because of Timmy or Hedy. It might have even been Michael.
The bots looked…upset. And uncomfortable. And angry at Michael. Goldy closed her eyes for a moment, like she felt sick.
Michael smiled at Hedy like it was some big inside joke. "What else?" he snapped at Timmy.
"Nothing. Just wanted you to know Dad's still alive." The boy never seemed bothered by Michael's tone whenever he talked to him.
"Like I give a flying fuck," Micheal scoffed and disappeared before Ruby decided he overstayed his welcome.
Ruby didn't look pleased, but Timmy almost always got his way with her. And he knew it so he used it sparingly.
"Ugh." she grumbled. "I really think you're too nice for your own good Timmy."
Spring had practically hid behind Hedy when Michael's name was first mentioned and he now carefully moved back onto the table. He was better, especially after the last time Michael got the chance to possess him, but sometimes… the fear he had around Michael was just hard to shake. He was much better about admitting his trauma than almost everyone else here though, since he often talked to Hedy or Goldy if he was struggling.
"So what do you think, Hedy?" Ruby asked after a moment of silence. She was starting to sound bored now. Most of the tension was gone and everyone mostly just looked unhappy or resigned.
Mike shifted, listening intently. He already knew the answer, though.
Hedy didn't respond for a moment. She then groaned and facepalmed. After a second, she sighed. "... Of course I'm taking the job." She looked up sharply at sniffling.
Mangle was crying. She didn't know what other sets there were. She'd never asked since it didn't seem important. Like… family she'd never met. The Originals were the only bots she'd met. She didn't know anything about who Hedy was going to go fix. But it couldn't be safe. Not after what Michael just said… Not after Puppet's reaction.
She knew something bad had happened, though. There was an unfinished group that…Will...had started before her and the other Toys. But he didn't finish them, at least not that she ever saw. If he did, it wasn't until after the Toys were shipped to what they thought was "their" location. None of them had ever thought to ask and she regretted that now. Especially with the strange and conflicted expression on Foxy's face. He looked like he was remembering something that made him sad, ears flicked down. It was a rare sight and bothered her. Foxy only looked like that when something was happening with Ruby. Who was he sad about?
Chi was crying now too. If Mangle couldn't hold it together, there was no way she could.
"This is awful of me to say," Teddy said softly. "But you shouldn't go. Will...c-can deal with it himself."
Hedy softened. "You don't really believe that."
Toby snapped, "You could get hurt!"
"As I recall, you tried to kill me and ended up with your detached head in an elevator," Hedy deadpanned. "And that was before you and Teddy fritzed when I electrified the guard cage."
She was getting just a little annoyed with them talking like she was helpless. She handled them fine. And she survived when Ruby was in a coma. She wasn't some delicate flower.
"That was hilarious," BB muttered quietly, sounding forlorn despite his words.
Mangle snorted through her dry tears.
"How come I haven't heard of this electrocuting incident?!" Ruby looked miffed at having missed out on a funny story. She was going to be bothering Hedy for the details soon. "And stop worrying so much guys! What the hell?! I'm starting to get offended. I'll be there to help and we've survived a lot. We're tough you know?"
And she'd never let Hedy get hurt. Not again. She'd promised.
"And they've also got a disadvantage," she added casually, stance shifting to something more lazy. Deceiving.
The bots all looked at her in confusion.
"The Toys and the psycho at least got a warning about me, since I survived previously. And the Toys probably weren't trying very hard against Hedy," she smirked teasingly through the offended looks the Toys and Hedy shot her. "These new guys have no clue what's about to hit them." Her smile was bordering on manic now. "They've got no warning. Neither does Afton. Have a little faith in us guys, we're badass. And everyone tends to underestimate us both."
Bonnie blinked at her. "We need to stop encouraging this behaviour," he muttered.
Freddy grumbled. "I've been saying that from the start."
Her smile just grew wider, slightly more feral. There was a game coming and she was getting excited. She loved a challenge.
Ruby met Mike's eyes as the others grumbled or chuckled. He looked worried but accepting. She cocked her head when he signed something where no one could see. He was awful at it but he'd been practicing.
'Keep her safe.'
Ruby nodded slightly. She'd learnt her lesson with Michael. She wouldn't be that cocky and reckless again.
Hedy couldn't help a grin either, missing the exchange between her boyfriend and pseudo sister. Abruptly, the smile wiped and she frowned, looking at Ruby. "Oh crap. When did I turn into you? I could have sworn I used to be the careful one."
"Well, it's your fault I was all reasonable today, so we're even," Ruby huffed. She made a disgusted grimace.
"You were a bit of a stuck up too," Bonnie added with a grin at Hedy, getting a startled laugh from the teenager and offended sounds from the Toys.
"Thank you, Bonnie. Thank you," Hedy deadpanned.
That broke the rest of the tension as Bonnie and Toby started bickering, the foxes got into an argument over which girl had corrupted the other the most and BB tried to steal Hedy's batteries again.
Mike leaned against the wall. He knew there was no way he was going to convince either Hedy or Ruby, regardless of whether he thought they should stay or go. His opinion didn't matter. He hoped things weren't about to go downhill, but… he glanced in the direction Puppet had gone. He was worried…
Hedy noticed his silence as she drove them back to her place. She knew he didn't want to leave her for his own apartment. She reached over the middle and took his hand without looking away from the road.
"Everything will be fine, Mike."
"...I wish we had talked a little more before you decided to go," Mike admitted.
Hedy frowned. "I don't think it would have changed my decision."
"No, but I would have liked to be involved in the conversation," Mike said. "This sounds dangerous, Hedy…" He looked at her. "Maybe I should go with you. You might need extra help."
Hedy shook her head. "I need you to look after the bots for me."
"Jeremy can do that."
Hedy smiled sadly at that.
"Jeremy hasn't worked through his trauma from the bots yet. He cares about them, but some part of him can't…love them yet. He's going to be too worried about me to keep an eye on them."
"And I won't!?" Mike snapped.
It was quiet between them for a moment.
"Aren't you scared?" Mike asked, though he lowered his voice. He hadn't meant to yell at her...
Hedy's grip tightened on the steering wheel and his hand. "Of course…but we need to do this, Mike. Something is happening. We don't know what. But their…dad…calling me out of the blue like this?" She glanced at him. "Don't you believe things happen for a reason? God's plan or something?"
"You don't believe in God," Mike deadpanned.
"...no…but you do," Hedy said. "And if I can believe in ghosts. And souls. And a half-sentient building that can manipulate reality to the point I was destined to end up in this job—with this family. If I can believe in all of that—granted even if only because I witnessed it and faith had no play—then I can at least consider believing in something like fate."
"Or it's a trap."
"Or it's a trap," Hedy agreed.
She pulled into her driveway. They sat in silence for a few minutes. Mike wouldn't look at her as the sun rose.
"Promise me you'll…" Mike trailed off, his throat drying.
She lifted his hand to her lips and kissed it, looking right at him. "I promise I'll come back. Ruby and I will be okay." She smiled softly. "I will call you if we need help."
"And I'll come," Mike said firmly, still unhappy with her. But he wouldn't stop her. If she or Ruby got hurt… he'd had to live with the regret that he could have stopped them.
But could he really stop them? No. Probably not.
Hedy wove her fingers through his, rubbing circles on the back of his hand as she tried to work out his tension. She kissed his hand again. "Come to bed?" she asked gently, her breath feathering across his knuckles as she spoke.
Mike tipped his head in a weak nod and finally looked at her, even if that meant letting her see the fear in his eyes as he turned his hand to brush his thumb across her lips for a moment. "I just need a few minutes to think…" he pleaded.
Hedy nodded, trying to smile comfortingly while he pulled away. She left him alone in her car. She left him the keys in case he changed his mind and decided he couldn't be with her right then. It would hurt, but she would be okay. She just wanted to hold him close and tell him she would be alright. He had every right to be worried, and she wasn't about to disregard his fear or other feelings, even if she couldn't do what he wanted. All she could do was love him as much as he loved her. That was where his worries stemmed from, after all.
Mike waited until the front door was closed. He leaned his head on the car window and wiped his eyes as he looked at the sunrise sky.