Hello everyone! Guess who got pneumonia for the millionth time! So yeah, that was fun. What was even more fun is that I had the exact symptoms of covid LMAO- I've just been lying in bed watching Degrassi this whole time. Burned through seven seasons in like two weeks, and I'm only halfway through.

Also, depending on where you live it's summer break or almost summer break! I hope you guys enjoy your time off from school or work, and I'll have a lot more time to post chapters!

Reviews!

SomeRandomRobo: thanks for the longer review! School washrooms are actually the worst, you only use them as a last resort. Kids always vape in the gender neutral ones too, and the public ones have people rip off the soap dispensers, or graffiti all over them. It's so annoying! And my friends have been telling me to watch that show too, so I'll definitely watch it!

Qxr: Yeah, they're very much dating now LOL. And no, I'm just joking about the Roblox boyfriend part haha, we do know each other irl.

Lydia-From-Limmet: I know, we need to stop Ducky abuse! I'll give him cupcakes or something. I think Chica needs a hug, too. And I'll definitely check that show out, it sounds really interesting

Penguimom: why thank you!

Enjoy!

Chapter 77

No Strings Attached

"BUT I THOUGHT THEY WERE MADE OF BANANAS!" Jojo wailed, fat tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Hush, Joey. You'll wake up your brother." Mari hissed, her gaze shifting to the snoring Malcolm beside them. After an unfortunate incident with Foxy casually mentioning that hamburgers were, in fact, made of cows, Jojo had fallen into a great depression. She loved animals to death, and knowing that she'd eaten them was unforgivable, at least in Jojo's eyes.

"Huh?" Malcolm mumbled sleepily, rolling over on his blankets and running his eyes. Mari groaned inwardly, great. Once Mal woke up, he'd never go back to sleep again. She crawled over to the small boy, adjusting his blanket and tucking him in. Luckily, he was only half-awake, and would hopefully go right back to dreamland soon enough.

"Sh-sh-sh. It's okay, sweetie. Go back to sleep." Mari soothed, stroking his light brown waves gently.

"I'VE EATEN BABY COWS! I'M A MURDERERRRR!" Jojo lamented, head tossed towards the sky.

"You've killed people before." Malcolm pointed out lazily.

Mari glared at him. "That's quite enough out of you. Now hush up and go back to sleep. Jojo, if you can't be quiet for him, then let's go out to the main room." Mari stood up and took Jojo's arm as lightly as she could and led her outside, the smaller girl still sobbing.

"Hey, Mar- woah, you okay, Joey?" Ruby asked, greetings turning into concern. She was sitting on a ratty old pillow at the coffee table, papers spread out on top of it and pen in hand. Freddy, Bonnie, Foxy, and Mangle all sat at chairs opposing her.

"I'M A TODDLER KILLER!" Jojo screamed at the top of her lungs, waterfalls streaming from her sky-blue eyes. Mangle handed her a tissue, and she blew her nose obnoxiously loudly.

"Same," Springtrap chimed in, popping in from behind a corner. "Wait, what are we talking about?"

"Goodbye, Springtrap." Freddy sighed, not even turning around to face him. "And Ruby, I'd say 'outgoing'."

"Noted," Ruby replied, jotting something down on her paper.

Curious as to what they were writing, Mari wandered over to an empty chair, motioning for Jojo to come with her. Jojo shook her head sullenly, plopping down on the ground in the hallway.

Mari frowned. "Joey, if you aren't staying in here then you can go back to bed, as long as you're quiet."

"Not tired," Jojo replied sulkily.

"Too bad. Since you've calmed down, you can go to sleep." Mari quipped, motioning back down the hallway.

With a grumble from Jojo, she stalked back down the hallway. Mari laughed tiredly and turned back to the group. "Sorry about that. Anyways, what are you all doing?"

"It's a project for Careers. I have to interview thirteen people and ask them what words describe me best." Ruby explained.

Mari made an ooh of approval. "That sounds cool! When's it due?"

"Yesterday."

"Ruby! You have to hand these things in on time!" Freddy scolded.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Relax, no need to put on your mom cap. I've come up with a few flawless excuses and my teacher agreed to let me turn it in today. But like, I cannot be a second late." Ruby scanned over her sheet. "So far I've interviewed my mom, Jared, Rylie, Tulisa, Josh, Ducky, Myah, Freddy, Mangle, and Foxy. Bonnie, you wanna add one?"

"Hmm…" Bonnie's brow creased, mulling it over. "I don't know…"

"Well, know faster." Ruby edged.

Bonnie shot her an emerald glare. "Okay, fine. Pushy."

Ruby beamed, apparently satisfied. "Thanks!" She scribbled that down on her sheet. "Mari, you wanna give it a go?"

"Sure! How about…mm, eye-catching?" Mari suggested. "Not in a weird way, just that you look interesting."

Ruby laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment." After writing that down, she frowned. "Ugh. I still need one more."

"Gimme." Bonnie snatched the sheet from her and read it over. "Seems like you haven't asked Chica. I'm sure she'd love to describe you." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Um, I don't know about that. She's been kind of cold around me lately, I'm not sure why. She made up some excuse when I came here today and just…left." Ruby sighed. "She hasn't been returning my texts, either. I just want to hang with her again, but she's not even telling me what I did!"

Freddy and the others exchanged sympathetic looks. "I'm sure that if something was wrong, she'd tell you."

"Yeah, I sure hope so." Ruby sighed. "So, anyways, I still need another person to write something about me. I have to hand this in online, and it's due in an hour. What about Jojo or Mal?"

Mari winced. "That's not such a good idea. You saw what she was like, and Malcolm is always up forever if he's woken up."

"...Cassidy?" Ruby asked hesitantly.

"She's in a bit of a mood. I wouldn't, unless you want each of your fingernails to be removed and worn as a bracelet."

Ruby bit her lip. "Then that only leaves…"

She didn't need to say it. Springtrap. Mari sighed. While everyone in the house (minus Cassidy, but that was different) tolerated him, for the most part he was still very, very hated, and for good reason. But deep down, way past Mari's soul and into Charlie's, she couldn't find it in her to hate him. And she hated herself for that, but she just couldn't.

"Well, then I'll go ask him." Mari said briskly, standing up and walking away before anyone else could protest. Okay. Go in, ask the question, go out. Easy as pie.

When she walked in, he immediately spun around with a wide-eyed expression, clearly startled. "Hello, Charlie, what are you doing here?" He never used her other name.

Mari sighed. "Mari. And I need to ask you something on behalf of Ruby."

Springtrap's gaze suddenly turned steely, wary. "If this is something about my past, then I swear, I'll-"

"No, no, nothing like that." Mari hurried. "It's for a school project. She needs you to describe her in one word."

"Oh." Springtrap frowned. "Um, persistent."

"Why's that?"

"Ruby never seems to let things go, she always needs to know. So stubborn." He gave her a half smile. "Kind of like Elizabeth. Do you remember how she'd beg for another helping of ice cream? That girl always had to get her way. And she usually did, I was always too tired to disagree." Springtrap took a seat on his wooden stool. "The only thing I wouldn't budge on was letting her see Circus Baby. That was a hard never."

Mari frowned, her brow creasing. "I thought I remembered you saying you'd let her, that day me and your kids set up a lemonade stand."

Springtrap laughed raggedly. "I lied to save face in front of Henry. I mean, I never could have told him I built her to - to what, be a damn storage unit for children? He would have hated me."

He grinned. "Actually, no, he would've been confused. And then he would have hated me."

Mari, who'd been up against the wall the whole time, slid down it, bringing her knees to her chin. "Do you…you know, miss him?" She asked hesitantly.

Springtrap laughed humorlessly, throwing his head back to stare at the ceiling. "Every bloody day of my life. He was the only one who seemed to truly understand me. More than my family, more than my wife, more than any shrink ever could."

At Mari's shocked expression, he rolled his eyes. "Come on, Charlie. I might be a psychopath, but I'm allowed to have feelings."

"But you- you tried to kill him!" Mari cried. How could he miss someone he was already going to end?!

"To keep him with me, you idiot!" He snarled. Mari flinched, and he sighed, cooling himself down. "I'm sorry. I just…after he found out I'd killed you, I knew it was over. He'd never speak to me again. And he was already depressed, who knew what he'd do? So I…I tried to kill him, because I knew I could contain him, make him stay with me forever. Because even then, if he despised me, at least he'd rely on me till the end of time, and that counted for something."

"Oh…" Mari whispered. And here she'd thought he'd tried it in a fit of pure rage.

"Yeah. Guess he finished the job for me." He mumbled, a crooked smile on his face. "Only this time, it was for real."

Sympathy washed through her veins. Sympathy for a killer. "I'm so sorry." Your killer. "That's awful." He took you away from your father. "I can't imagine how that must have felt for you." You're such a doormat. Mari glared at herself, pushing the thoughts away. This wasn't about her, it was about someone else.

He exhaled brokenly. "Yeah, well, I deserve it. And I'll live with the pain for eternity now, so I guess I really did end up in the hell I tried to avoid."

Charlie's gaze downcast. There was something that had been itching at her for a while now, and she had to know the truth. "William…last year, when we did that Q and A thing? You were asked what your regrets were. And you said you regretted killing me. Was that…did you regret killing me because of me, or because of losing my father?"

He sighed. "Honestly? Probably a little of both. Mostly losing your father, but you were a sweet kid. If I could go back, I'd wait it out, pick some snot-nosed brat to replace your Remnant. The reason I picked you was that you were out there, all alone, and it was too good of an opportunity to pass up. Same as the others here. Nothing personal, just another kid."

He smiled crookedly. "I think I kind of went insane during the period where Henry didn't know. Every time he mentioned it, it was like the truth was on the tip of my tongue and there was a voice screaming I KILLED YOUR DAUGHTER over and over again, and it wouldn't ever stop. It was a game to me, I think. It was sort of fun, a sort of twisted game at first, that I had this secret and everyone else was oblivious, but then it just got tiring. If it was some other kid, I'd have no problem with interacting with the whiny, crying parents. But seeing Henry like that…"

He shook his head. "You were his life, Charlie. And once I took that away, I don't think there was anywhere else for him to go."

Tears pricked at her eyes, her vision going blurry. She'd taken her father for granted when she was young, never appreciated all the work he'd done for her, being a mother, father, and siblings all at the same time. And now she was gone and he was gone and she could never tell him how much she truly loved him.

I should hate William for this. And yet…

"I don't hate you." She mumbled. "Just so you know. I just…you were like a second dad to me. Your kids were my siblings, your home was mine. I remember playing in the brook with Evan, watching TV with Michael, playing make-believe with Elizabeth. I remember you showing me how a springlock suit works, taking me out on walks, buying me ice cream at the park, fastening me into my booster seat. And it's so wrong of me to not despise you, because you've caused my best friends, my father, your own kids, and me so much agony. But I can't, I just can't." She buried her head in her gray hoodie, tears soaking the fabric to black drips.

They sat in silence for a moment, before he nodded thoughtfully. "That's interesting. You know, I've found that when you're having good times, it's easy to forget the bad ones. Whenever Clara and I would joke and go on anniversary dates, she'd be so happy and forget that last week I'd shouted the most horrific things at her. And I feel like it's the same in this place. Like Freddy for example. He tolerates me, even joins in on the conversation with me, completely forgetting all the things I've done."

Mari smiled through her tears. "Or maybe he's just so much more mature than us."

"That too. He did run a whole business for ten years. Hell, even I was impressed that an eight-year-old was running a restaurant." Springtrap chuckled.

Mari nodded with a smile, then realized. "Oh, pumpkin! I've completely forgotten about Ruby! I'm sorry, I've got to go, they're all waiting for me." She rubbed her eyes furiously, all tears squeezing out.

Springtrap smirked. "'Pumpkin'. Haven't heard that one in a while. And yes, go ahead. It was lovely talking with you, I don't get much chatter besides Plush and the dogs."

Mari frowned in confusion. "The dogs?"

Springtrap shifted his silver gaze. "Um, never mind that. Just an old British expression. Go have fun, now." He shooed her off.

Mari nodded, standing up and making her way to the door. As she opened it, bright yellow light illuminated the dingy darkness of Springtrap's room. Outside, she could hear her friends talking and laughing, bright and sunshiney. And in this room, all she could hear was the drip-drip-drip of a leaky pipe and the occasional snuffle of Plush, dark and moody.

She felt a pang of sadness. "Um, William? I'm…it was nice talking to you."

"Yeah. Same." He didn't look up from his desk.

Mari fiddled with a stray string on her striped sleeve. "I still dislike you. A lot."

Springtrap gave her a loose smile. "Good. You should."

She nodded. "Yeah. Okay. Well, have a good night."

"You too."

Mari left the room quickly, hands stuffed into her pockets, and joined the others.

"Hey, Marbles! What took you so long?" Ruby asked, tilting her head to the side.

Mari looked to the side. "Um, nothing. He said that you were stubborn."

Ruby grinned. "Love it. Okay, done. I'll submit this to my teacher, hopefully I get something good like engineer or technician."

Mari smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Yeah, hopefully."

A few minutes later, there was a notification ding on Ruby's phone. After a couple taps and swipes, Ruby had her Careers teacher's response.

"I GOT SHAMPOO AD ACTRESS?!"

~lll~

Mari undid her chestnut-coloured braids, letting the shoulder-length dark waves loose from their confines. Beside her, Jojo and Malcolm slept safe and sound, the only indication that they were even alive was the slow rise and fall of their chests.

She fell down against her makeshift bed of layered pillows and blankets. When a crackling sound emitted from behind her head, she sat up in confusion. Laying underneath her was a small sheet of paper. She squinted, even the constellation of yellow glow-in-the-dark star stickers they'd decorated their room with wasn't a lot of light.

Dear Charlie,

I remember you used to enjoy playing the harp, so check beside you. I'm not certain you still like it, but nonetheless, please accept this present from me. No strings attached.

The note was unsigned, but it was pretty clear who wrote it. Mari glanced to the side, and - oh, wow.

It was her harp! Well, probably not her harp exactly, she'd left it behind in Saffron last year. But it was pretty close. Beautifully carved oak and pine, with angel-wing shapes and smooth, glossy wood sure to avoid any splinters. The strings were silver and thin, perfect for plucking to bring out a soothing, melodic tune.

Her smile stretching from ear to ear, Mari clutched the familiar instrument in her arms. After a quick glance at the kids to make sure they were in a deep enough sleep, Mari spread her fingers and began to play.

A/N

No Mari, don't make friends with the serial killer. Baaaaaad idea.

Some insight into Mari's POV, I felt like we were lacking. And is Springy lying, or does he actually feel bad about Henry's death? Probably the latter tbh.

Question/challenge: what is your favourite reptile? I personally like snakes (the non-dangerous type), they're really cute! Unless you have a fear of snakes, of course. Then I'd say a chameleon.

Have an amazing day/night!

~Ghost