Going Home in a Box
Chapter Twenty-Three
After much debate, Marionette decided to go ahead and wear the red velvet bowtie. It just felt like the kind of day that he wanted to look good on, to make a statement on, to make a little more special. He put it on in the Prize Corner while he was getting prepared for the day and headed out shortly after to show it off.
Mike took notice right away. The way his eyes trailed down and back up and a smile slipped across his face seemed to suggest that he liked what he saw too, only further boosting the puppet's confidence and coaxing a low trill to begin stirring.
"What do you think?" he asked. The vibrations could be heard on his voice.
"Cute," Mike replied coyly.
"Just cute?" Marionette returned.
"Devilishly handsome," Mike corrected.
The puppet chimed in delight because he knew that he meant it even with the playful coaxing. He adjust the tie even though it was already straight. "Good! I just felt like trying something different today."
"It's already paying off. I can't keep my eyes off you… but what else is new?" Mike murmured. He leaned in and kept his voice just low enough that Jeremy wouldn't be able to hear from the table he was getting ready for an early party. While his shameless flirting was a dead giveaway for how hard he was trying to ignore what today was, Marionette played into it just as eagerly. "Seriously, you look great."
"Thank you! Though you might be a bit biased," the puppet returned, voice quieting towards the end and eyes narrowing slyly. He then looked over towards Jeremy setting up the table and then to Foxy's stage. The curtains were cracked enough that he could see nobody was inside. "Is Foxy still in the office?"
"Mmhmm," Mike agreed. He was still looking over the striped one with a thoughtful look. "Almost off topic, but what would you think about getting a costume for you?"
"You mean a pirate costume like Foxy's? Or I suppose like the one from the cartoon?" Marionette asked. He looked a little intrigued.
"It doesn't have to be either of those. You could do whatever you wanted, just something so you're not running around like a streaker." This was abrupt enough to get a laugh out of Marionette. Mike smirked a little bit. "Okay, okay, jokes aside, I think it's a good idea. You could even design it yourself and then we'll just get Costume Guy to do it," he suggested. "How about a matching jacket?"
"I always look good in a jacket," Marionette boasted.
"True but imagine one that actually fits," Mike countered. Another chime and he smiled wider, feeling the edge of tension letting off.
"It is a tempting idea…" the puppet considered; one arm crossed while his chin rested on the back of the other hand. After a moment of thought he waved it off with that same hand. "It would be complicated. My measurements are weird."
"He suited Foxy," Mike reminded.
"Foxy's different. He's closer to a normal animatronic."
"He suited Ennard," Mike reminded.
"…Okay, so we can establish that he IS flexible," Marionette caved. His face started to betray his actual feelings before his words did. "But I don't want to take the money that you should be using on tuition."
"Don't start worrying about money. We're got more than enough to manage and half of it's yours, and we even get a little more every week. No big deal," Mike assured. He knew Marionette was worried about the business after today. Mike was an owner, Mike had to worry about the business, but he didn't want to yet. He just wanted to ride as long as he could. "I consider it a business investment. We could probably write it off as a tax deduction."
Marionette smiled and thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure that's how it works… but let's say we did decide to go ahead with it. I suppose a jacket would fit better with Foxy's, even if it's not pirate themed. Maybe something with longer coattails or even brass buttons- what looks like brass buttons that is. Or maybe even a tuxedo! Not the whole thing but the jacket- could you imagine me trying to wear pants?... Hmm, perhaps it wouldn't be that difficult."
Mike listened to Marionette with only an occasional interjection here or there. It was always a treat to hear him get on a role about something. This was the first time it was about clothes. That piqued Mike's interest; how long had he been holding back on costume ideas for himself? Everything got sidelined after the news about Freddy's, so it could've been a while. Now all he had to do was condense those ideas into something that could be stitched together.
"But enough of that!" the puppet finally interrupted himself. "We're opening in- goodness, that soon? We're opening soon and still no captain! Let's go see if Foxy's ready," he suggested. Mike agreed and led back towards the office.
He opened the office door and looked in, finding Foxy laying on the couch. The fact that he didn't wake up the second the door opened signaling he was in a deeper sleep than expected.
Mike turned back to Marionette and mouthed, "He's out."
The puppet was only a little concerned and slipped by so he could peek around the door for himself. Foxy was lying on his side facing the back of the couch with his blanket bunched up in his arms and his face pressed into it, probably to block out the light from the desk lamp. It wasn't immediately apparent whether he kept the light on because of it being business hours or just because he didn't plan on napping long.
Marionette caught one look at him and decided not to wake him, smiling to himself as he turned off the light and slipped back out. Foxy didn't stir. Mike was still waiting out in the hall as he quietly shut the door behind him.
"I can take over the first party. He'll be up by noon," Marionette said.
Mike got a small smile somewhere between knowing and amusement and threw an arm around the puppet as they headed out. "You've got this, and I've got your back if you don't," he said once he was certain they were out of earshot.
Marionette was sure that he did, but the physical assurance went a long way, because today was going to be a long day.
It was the first day Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex was opening alongside them.
Natalie awoke to a pleasantly dim bedroom and briefly mused that blackout curtains were the best thing they ever invested in. She couldn't tell what time it was, but from the fact that she felt relatively rested she assumed that it was either late morning or early afternoon. A quick check of the clock confirmed that she had gotten in about seven hours of sleep, and it was some of the best sleep she had gotten in ages.
She could still smell lavender from the oil Fritz used when he rubbed her back last night. She vaguely remembered nodding off a few times during it, but it had worked wonders it taking the tightness out of her back. Alas, as much as she wanted to continue lying in bed with that soft memory, she knew she had to get up.
She pulled on a shirt and ran a brush through her hair before heading out of the bedroom, feeling dried rose petals under her feet from last night. She expected them to still be there, doubting that Fritz was going to come in and vacuum when she was still asleep. What she didn't expect was to come out and find the coffee machine on.
She furrowed her brows, especially once she noticed voices coming from downstairs. She walked to the top of the stairs and listened and, sure enough, she could hear Fritz downstairs talking to Chance. She couldn't make out too much of the conversation, but it sounded like a casual one. Either he stayed out of work today, a shocking turn of events, or he just stopped in to check on everything during lunch.
She decided to leave them be and make something for breakfast-lunch. Fritz must've heard her walking around because he came upstairs shortly after, catching her midway through frying an egg.
"Morning!" he greeted, coming up beside her to steal a kiss.
"Morning was about six hours ago," she retorted, doing a rather close impression of Chance's tone. He chuckled at it. "I appreciate you stopping by to make sure I dragged myself out of bed."
"Actually, I 'stopped by' the Pizzeria this morning to open and came back. I'm taking the day off," Fritz said. She looked startled. "What, I can't take a day off?"
"I honestly didn't think you could," Natalie said in mock shock. She smiled knowingly as she gently turned the egg over, eyes darting between it and him. "Oooh, I know it must be killing you to not be working yourself to the bone right now."
"The withdrawals haven't kicked in yet. Once they do, I'll just break open our least favorite appliance and tinker around."
"The blender. Everything I make in it has a slightly metal taste," she suggested.
Fritz stared thoughtfully for a second. "…That probably should be looked at."
"Fritz!" Natalie scolded.
"Someday! Not today. Today my schedule is wiped totally clean. It's just you, me, and maybe Chance if he's not too tired of me," he reassured. Natalie gave him a suspicious look, but his somewhat cheesy grin wore it down into a smile.
"Okay, I'll let you off the hook… But I'm watching you, mister!" she threatened. Then returned to putting together an egg sandwich, looking forward to the day more than she was expecting to.
It was a good day too. Unlike they had joked, Fritz was totally capable of separating himself from work. Considering the tenseness surrounding today that was probably a good thing. They spent the day just existing in their house and with each other without any hassle.
That was until a little before seven.
The two of them were watching a game show with Chance, actively competing against the competitors on the screen, when Natalie's cellphone began to ring. There was a moment of silence. Fritz looked to Natalie, she closed her eyes with exhaustion and begrudging before standing from the couch and making a run for the stairs. They both knew who it was. Chance knew too, watching her go but not commenting.
Well, not commenting beyond a toss at the screen, "Oh, come on. It was Jamaica! They made a movie about it!"
Natalie managed to get to her phone before it stopped ringing. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing, but it was definitely a sign that whoever it was would probably be calling again if she hadn't. She answered with, "Hello?"
"Hello! Is this Ms. Smith?"
She grimaced at the question but covered it in her voice. "Yes, who is this?"
"Hi, I'm Misty. Marketing associate at Fazbear Entertainment, currently running the check-in counter at the Pizzaplex," the woman introduced. She sounded exhausted. "We're starting our first show at eight and we're swamped. Mr. Wight asked me to call and see if you could come in early to monitor the situation? I know you're technically on the night shift, but he's- we're afraid- I'm afraid that things might get out of hand once the show starts."
Natalie was gritting her teeth. She didn't hold any ill will towards the woman- she sounded at the end of her rope- but she didn't really want to head in there early. She could just hear the loudness in the background of the call and knew there was going to be a lot of people. Which wouldn't be a problem if she wasn't somewhere between 'responsible to keep a rowdy crowd in line' and 'significant other to an owner of the rival establishment'.
She hissed through her teeth before asking, "Do I have to stay all the way through to my shift?"
"Mr. Wight didn't say, but I don't think so. The show should wrap up long before then, so I don't think he'd argue with you leaving and coming back. If it's worth the gas," Misty offered.
"Believe me, it is," Natalie agreed defeated. "I need a few minutes to get ready."
"Thank you so much! You're doing us all a huge favor."
"No problem." It definitely felt like a problem though. She hung up with a sigh and looked back towards the stairs, hearing Fritz coming up with her. She gave him an apologetic look. "They want me to come in early to keep an eye on things."
"Things getting hectic over there?" Fritz asked. He was disappointed, maybe a little worried.
"It sounds like it. They want me to come in and monitor a show at eight, but she said I might not have to stay until my shift," Natalie muttered. Fritz gave her a sympathetic pat on the back, and she groaned before heading to go get dressed.
The phone call was not enough to brace her for what was coming when she arrived at the Pizzaplex.
The place was beyond packed. If not for the small parking section devoted to employees- with signs up threatening a fine if anyone else parked there- she would've had to park at the edge of the lot. Though even the employee section was overfilled, probably because they had to call in so many workers to handle the workload.
The front lobby didn't seem too busy. There were a few people up in the Faz-Pad and in the locker room and gift shop, but it was nothing crazy. She met Misty at the locker room counter, who thanked her profusely for coming, and went to clock herself in on the lost and found computer. Then she started to drag herself in the direction of the atrium, knowing from Misty's behavior alone that it was going to be a lot more hectic.
She was climbing the stairs towards the elevators when she glanced over through the gift shop window and noticed a familiar face inside. It was Ness, sitting at the counter and nibbling at a box of fries.
It was still a little while before the show was supposed to begin and Natalie wasn't jumping through hoops to get out there early, so she decided to stop in and visit. There were only a few people in the giftshop, a family and a couple of preteens, but none of them were at the counter so Ness wasn't busy. The brunette noticed her only once she was a few feet away and brightened up.
"Hey there, Nat-ah… Uh, Van… nessa?" Ness gave an embarrassed and apologetic smile. "How's it going? You got roped into some overtime?"
"Something like that," Natalie sighed, not hiding her disappointment in the slightest. "What about you?"
"When Mr. Wight makes the call to arms… I'm always standing nearby," Ness admitted with a tight smile. "I could always use the money, but I really don't want to be here," she whispered out the end.
"Tough day?" Natalie asked. She leaned in on the counter just in case the other woman wanted to keep it quiet. Ness' mouth pulled briefly into an even more tense, rather fed-up smile.
"You have no idea. That elevator out there? The one right out there? Leads up to the Prize Counter. It's down, and I've had people coming in here all day asking, "is this all?" And so I say, "No, this is just a gift shop. The prize counter's upstairs. You've got to go through the elevators, up the escalators to the third floor, and right into the door under the big 'Prizes' sign". And they leave, and half of the time they come back because they don't understand why they need tickets and tokens, and I tell them it's a prize exchange, but if they want to buy stuff there's five other gift shops across the Pizzaplex. There's one in Monty's Gator Golf, Roxanne's Raceway, Fazer Blast, there's even one in the daycare-."
Ness finally stopped herself and after a short moment quietly added, "This has happened like ten times now."
"Oh, I can tell," Natalie agreed. She gave her a sympathetic smile. "But nobody's giving you that hard of a time?"
"No… but some got close. It's no big deal," the brunette murmured. She popped another fry and offered the box to Natalie, who took one.
"Yeah, well, I'm here now. Anyone starts giving you a hard time, you tell me and I'll throw them out," she said with playful firmness. That tone that would suggest that while she was playing around, she wasn't exactly joking.
"Then don't go too far. I'd love to leave early, and they've been here a long time," Ness lightly joked. She pointed towards the family who were currently going through some toys off to the side.
"I'd love to, but I've got to go out and make sure nobody storm's the stage," Natalie joked. Ness gave a sympathetic little noise. "You know I don't think anyone would mind if you slipped out to see the show."
"I don't know… You know how I feel about the band. I'm not really that in-."
"The show is about to begin. Please head to the main stage in an orderly fashion." The automated voice over the intercom cut her off midsentence. She decided it wasn't important to finish it.
"Guess that's my cue to go," Natalie murmured. Ness gave her an apologetic smile. "I meant what I said earlier. Anybody gives you trouble, and you come and get me, okay?"
"I will. You take care. It's… I've just got a little hunch that it's going to get a little crazy once the music begins," the brunette tentatively warned. She waved after the blond with a tiny smile. "Good luck!"
Natalie left and headed to the elevators to head into the atrium, though it wasn't long before she was wondering if she could've stalled longer at the giftshop. It wasn't like she was going to be able to break up a crowd if they got rowdy.
Nothing made that clearer than when the doors opened, and she was hit by the sheer volume of everything. Natalie had grown up in a house with a lot of kids, so she had a tolerance for noise that others might not have. Yet the atrium was still impressively loud, even before the show had begun. She steadied herself and walked over to the railing to look down at the crowd that had gathered in front of the stage.
There were so many people here. It reminded her a lot more of a crowd in an amusement park than one in a pizzeria, which was fitting considering this place was more like an indoor amusement park. No wonder they need so much staff.
She was almost startled by an automated voice from behind her- "Hi! Please take this map." -accompanied by a short gasp from the victim in question. She smirked a little; at least the Map Bot was up to his old tricks- and must've recognized her since it didn't run up on her. She glanced back over her shoulder, then shot upright in surprise.
"Hold up! What are you doing here?!"
There, with a map shoved in his chest and the guiltiest smile he could muster, was Fritz. He took the map, which triggered Map Bot to slowly turn and roll off with a simple, "Thank you."
Natalie gave him the look and he cut in with a quick, "I can explain." He wandered over to stand beside her, probably trying to pull together a reasonable excuse before he got there. "I thought about it, and it seemed like a good idea to come spy on the competition. Keeps my hands out of the blender."
"You know if someone sees us together, they're going to know something's up," Natalie remarked.
"Hey, as far as they know, Wight let me in for free to see the opening show and I'm just talking to the first pretty girl I saw walking out of the elevator," he said, then winked. Natalie slightly snickered but recovered quickly, shaking her head.
"Yeah well, I don't know you. So, if you start acting up, I will bum-rush you out of here. I know your soft spots and I'm not afraid to use them," she almost flirted. Just barely, though she didn't dare express the action with any body language in case anyone was paying attention. She leaned on the railing, and he joined her at a comfortable distance as they looked down at the crowd.
He inhaled through his teeth and exhaled slowly through his lips at the sight of it all. It was just as busy as he was expecting. It made him want to call and check on Foxy's.
"Did Wight really let you in for free?" Natalie asked.
"That he did," Fritz said. "And all it took was one phone call."
"…Do we owe him our firstborn or something? Because it normally costs an arm and leg to get in here," she asked with a slight smile.
"No, just my soul," he answered. A partial joke until he added on, "Had to make it sound like I was really interested, and he took the bait."
Before she could ask what exactly he said, and how he might've schmoozed Wight into coughing up a free pass, the lights suddenly dimmed across the atrium. There was an excited murmur from the crowd, especially from some loud children, which was even more audible once the background music was abruptly cut off.
"Looks like the show's about to begin," Natalie remarked.
Fritz nodded as he looked out at the stage. Then popped his lips and discreetly asked, "Think if I run really fast that I might make it out of here in time?"
As though on cue, music boomed across the massive room, echoing from the stage and channeling through mounted speakers. Fritz and Natalie looked over at the stage the moment smoke began to gush out of slots in the stage and a circle of lights illuminated atop of it.
"Oh no. You're stuck," Natalie answered.
"Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls," a voice that sounded suspiciously like the HandUnit's automated one announced. "Fazbear Entertainment would like you to put your hands together for the one, the only, Freddy Fazbear!"
The music hit a crescendo and the audience in front of the stage began to clap and cheer with an excitement that Fritz wasn't expecting and found himself sinking down at it. Natalie either shared the sentiment or noticed him react as she laid a hand on his. He turned his hand to take hers as they leaned on the railing and watched the show begin.
Screens on either side of the stage alit with footage of the band coming to the stage. Framed in smoke and travelling down a hall lit by neon and dramatic lighting, each bandmember got a pose, a flash of their face, a moment to silently introduce themselves before they would come out to perform. A prerecorded introduction to the newest members of the Fazbear family, to tonight's main event.
But things were much less dramatic inside the lift. Freddy could hear the music amping up and the cheering following it from far above. He tightened his hand on the microphone stand and stole a quick look at his bandmates. Chica was stretching her neck and arms, Roxanne fluffing her hair one last time, and Monty staring down at his bass as he adjusted his grip on it. They all had to be as nervous as he was, but they didn't show it.
Freddy owed them the same. He gave a nod of finality and looked up as the lift finally began to ascend, bracing himself for the big moment.
The lift arrived at the stage and the band members literally burst onto the scene. Freddy leaping off of the lift and onto the stage proper and coming face to face with a crowd of cheering patrons. He couldn't explain the feeling that spread through him upon the sight of so many eager faces watching and goading him on. It was exhilarating, and he eagerly lifted the microphone to his mouth.
"Welcome to the Piz-za-plex! Where the par-ty nev-er eeends!~" Freddy sung. He gave a quick spin on the stage. "Rock out, cause you're going far. Blast off!~" He gave a forward fist pump, pausing for emphasis. "And you'll be a superstar!~"
Chica, Monty, and Roxanne spread out across the stage while Freddy backed into the center stage once more.
"My name is Freddy; you'll hear me belting as I-.~" He pointed a finger towards the ceiling and bowed his head down into his tilted microphone stand. "-Reach for the stars.~"
Chica was swaying her head to the beat as her fingers strummed the strings feverishly, her foot tapping in thumps to the beat. Freddy sidled up beside her.
"This here's Chica, she's a master when she shreds the guitar,~" he sung before leaning out the mic to her.
She promptly broke into a squealing guitar solo, leaning into the mic before breaking it off with a peace sign to the audience.
Freddy then rushed to the opposite side of the stage, right up to Monty. He leaned in back-to-back with the gator.
"Then there's Monty, watch him tear up the bass.~"
Monty pulled down his sunglasses with a claw to wink at the crowd. Freddy smiled and nodded towards the front of the stage.
"And then there's Roxanne, she's leading the race.~"
Roxanne hiked her leg up on an amp and tossed her hair back. This got an exceptionally excited buzz from the crowd directly underneath her.
"We're all together, 'cause it's now or never!~" Freddy rushed the edge of the stage and slid in on his knees, fully committing to the moment and the music pumping through his body. He felt alive. "We're gonna rock this pizza place!~"
As the music hit for the chorus, the platforms built into the stage began to raise up and lifted Monty and Roxanne- who hustled over to get on one before it could. They didn't miss a beat and seamlessly played into the next chorus.
"Freddy's Piz-za-plex! Jam out with your new best friends! Time for a brand-new start, so shoot for the moon and sing from you heart!~"
In a brief respite between the chorus and the bridge Freddy looked out across the sea of faces. So many smiles, so many wide eyes staring in awe at him and his bandmates, who were also playing their hearts out. The pulse of the music, the brilliant flair of the neon lights at his back; it was magical. He couldn't understand how he could've been worried about this; it was so amazing.
The show had only just begun and yet he couldn't wait for the next one, for the next song, for more of this. He straightened up and prepared for the coming verse, taking it all in and living in the moment.
And that was when he saw him.
There was a child standing outside of the entryway into Kids Cove, alone. In fact, the only reason Freddy spotted him across the packed auditorium was that he was standing alone. There were no adults or kids nearby, he didn't come any closer to the stage either. He wasn't cheering and at this distance Freddy couldn't even tell if he was smiling. He was just silently watching the show, arms at his sides, completely alone.
A lone little boy standing where Foxy had only a few weeks beforehand. It almost felt like fate that Freddy saw him and for some reason his eyes were transfixed. He couldn't understand why he was standing over the alone without his parents.
He realized that he just passed his cue to start singing and tried to snap back into the performance, but his body wouldn't respond. He was frozen to the spot and when he tried to fight it his body shuddered and twitched. He couldn't pull his eyes away from the unattended child standing on the far side of the room.
A warning popped up on his vision along with a halo of red, alerting him of a threat, detecting something before distorting. Sapping the color from his vision as he read the words dancing in front of his eyes. The microphone stand slipped from his hand as his fingers went numb. He thought he was still holding the mic itself in the other hand, but he couldn't tell, and he couldn't move his eyes to look.
His body was twitching but it didn't feel right, his head suddenly feeling very light and wobbly. It was as though he was beyond the reach of his body, watching the twisting shapes and colors between his eyes and in the back of his head.
Behind all of it he could hear the music distorting and twisting. No longer able to hear his band beyond a shrill tone in his ears, then a muffled voice in the back of them. A dull whisper slurred and incomprehensible that slowly grew louder.
"...R….R…R…"
"…REVER..AN….ER….VER…"
".. ..AN...EVER…AN..VER…"
"FOREVER..AND…EVER…AND…EVER…"
The tune repeated in the back of his head as his circuits overloaded with the vital warnings he couldn't process. The concert disappearing behind the haze and that song drowning it all out as the world swung.
"AND EVER. FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER AND EVER."
Freddy hit the ground with one heavy thump. Seeing his microphone rolling out of his hand, seeing Chica running towards him, and seeing the numerous warnings stack up before-
"LET'S GO!"
Everything was gone.
…
The best way to describe the immediate aftermath of Freddy's collapse on stage was mass confusion.
The band on stage reacted instantly. Chica ran to and was crouched down beside Freddy in a second. Roxanne yelled something to Monty- which could barely be heard from the booming background music- before running over to stand by his other side. Monty took the cue and sort of did a kicking little shuffle in front of Freddy, perhaps to block him from the audience, and then began a bass solo with no end.
There was a collective gasp from the audience that soon turned into confused murmurs and the loud questions of children with no volume control. All of them asking how and why their animatronic entertainment had stopped.
Natalie and Fritz just stared with mouths agape. It wasn't even the fact that Freddy collapsed on stage, but the fact that Freddy Fazbear collapsed on stage during Fazbear Entertainment's grand opening of their mega entertainment venue.
"Wow," Natalie finally said.
"Wight is going to freak," Fritz said.
"Oh yeah."
She caught sight of a couple of familiar figures running out from backstage, Chaz and Stanley, with three more people dressed in various uniforms. Two of them didn't even look like technicians and yet it was all men on deck to get up onto the stage and over to Freddy. Over the intercom the Handunit voice attempted to placate the onlookers.
"We are experiencing some technical difficulties. Just sit tight- the show will begin momentarily."
"It doesn't look like they're getting him up," Fritz mumbled to Natalie as he watched one of the technicians- Chaz- try to rouse Freddy. When he couldn't, he pressed a button to open his chest and stuck a cord somewhere inside, one that was connected to what looked like a sleeker, grey Handunit that the other technician- the one Natalie didn't recognize- was holding. "See, this is the sort of thing I was expecting to happen the day we opened Foxy's."
But even with them managing to start a conversation, they were both in a state of shock at what they were seeing. It didn't look like things were getting better either once Monty was called out of his solo to start hoisting Freddy off the floor, them either not having a dolly on hand or just thinking it would look more authentic than wheeling him off the stage. If they were taking him off stage and not just rolling him around.
It was rather unfortunately that Natalie had gotten as close to Freddy as she had, because now worry was starting to twist up her insides. Chaz and Stanley were alright guys, but their- and Fazbear Entertainment's- track records weren't great.
Fritz must've had the same idea as he out of nowhere asked, "Should I do something?"
"Run while you still can?" she dryly asked.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for visiting and we hope you enjoyed the show! Freddy and the gang are pretty tired, so we will be closing early tonight to let them rest. Please make your way to the front of the building where you will be given novelty glasses, a voucher for one free soda refill, and where you will sign a legal disclaimer releasing us of all liability for anything that might have happened during your visit. Have an awesome night, and we'll see you again soon."
"I was joking!" Natalie choked.
"That was the punchline," Fritz tried to joke, the whole thing feeling exceptionally tense. They looked down to see some, though not many people starting to come back in their direction. "Maybe I should get out of here?"
"Right. I guess I'm going to have to hang out and make sure everyone leaves… So much for coming back home," Natalie sighed. Fritz suddenly leaned forward and planted a kiss on her lips. "Whoa!" she scolded.
"Sorry, I tripped," he said with yet another cheesy grin, patted her shoulders, and then turned and jogged to the elevators. She sighed but waved after him with a slight smile, his apologetic, as the doors shut.
At least he chose the one time nobody would be looking in their direction. She could let him off the hook for that, especially when it was looking like she had a long night still ahead.
Fritz made it into the lobby and speedily made his way down the stairs. He didn't want to look suspicious, but he did want to get out of here before someone assumed the worst. Though his speed quickly increased when he heard Wight's voice from somewhere. He was just through the turnstiles when a voice called after him.
"Sam! Sam, wait up!" Suddenly James seemed to swoop out of nowhere and speed walk after him. Fritz inwardly cringed and slowly turned back towards the older man. He looked to be whipped up into a panicked frenzy. "Did you see what happened out there?!"
"Well… Yes. You saw it?"
"No, I didn't! I was in the gift shop; I start ascending the stairs and I catch a televised screening of the show just in time to see Freddy down on stage!" James exclaimed. "This is the absolute worst thing that could've happened today. Freddy Fazbear collapsing in front of an auditorium FULL of people! And I can't count on those buffoons to get him back up. My God, I'm already down one entertainer because of them! How are we supposed to get a replacement in one night?!"
"Whoa, wait. Don't do that. You don't need to replace him," Fritz suddenly interjected. H he quickly readjusted his volume. "I know it's not my place to say, but considering you let me swing by for free I think I owe it to you. I've been in the animatronic game for a long time, and I've seen what happened on stage happen before. I think what happened to Freddy's was… like a power surge, from charging."
"A what?" James asked. He looked desperate and was listening very closely.
"That looked like a battery that got overloaded. Basically, you've got a low battery, you suddenly fill it up, and then you put it under pressure. It surges and the animatronic shuts down to save the systems from failing. So, technically there's nothing wrong with the battery or the animatronic, it's just a matter of charging," Fritz explained. He was lying, he had no idea what was wrong with Freddy. He was just trying to save him from the scrap heap.
"Then what should we do, replace the battery? We wouldn't have to replace the wiring, would we?"
"Nothing that complicated. I'd say to start by letting him charge up slowly and then make sure not to charge him right before performance. Especially if you're coming off an empty battery, so he doesn't rebound." Fritz decided to cover himself further with, "I'm surprised your guys never mentioned anything like this."
"You can't count on them. They couldn't even get the Staff Bots finished on time," James said bitterly. He shook his head, then offered his hand to Fritz. "Thank you, thank you. I'll have them take a look. Now if you'll excuse me."
James' sudden departure from the conversation was a little surprising until he rushed up to a family who was on the way out and started talking to the father on a first name basis and sounded to be schmoozing his heart out. Maybe someone important, maybe just a business acquaintance, it didn't matter. Fritz took whatever opening he could get and slipped out the front door.
Natalie watched the atrium empty out slowly. At one point she had to call down to a group still lingering in front of the stage to get them moving, but now they all made their way outside of the elevators, where they were then stuck in a bulky crowd waiting to load in. Those elevators were likely used to funnel people in slowly, but the result of such a decision now had her standing down on the walkway over Kids Cove as they slowly filed into the elevators and out.
This whole thing was a mess, whether it be the sheer amount of customers decked out in Freddy merchandise or the fact that the place had a hiccup and was forced to shut down instead of rolling with the punches. Though she wondered if it would effect business at all when they already pulled in this many people, regardless of Freddy's past transgressions. Maybe they didn't know, or maybe they just didn't care.
It was while lost in this train of thought and watching the crowd slowly file out that Natalie caught movement out of the edge of her vision. She looked down to see a kid grabbing stuff off a table down on the floor beneath her. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal as there were still a few stragglers making their way back from Fazer Blast and Monty Golf, it was the fact that he was unaccompanied and swiping chip bags that caught her interest.
"Hey, kid," she called down. The boy looked back and up at her. "What are you doing?"
"Waiting for my parents," he said. He seemed a little dodgy, but that could be because his arms were half-filled with other people's leftovers. Not that Natalie would rat him out for it, instead pointing a thumb to the second floor.
"You're going to have to wait up here, bud. If you want, you can come hang out in the security office with me. I'm sure there's snacks stashed in there," she offered.
The change in demeanor was instantaneous. Up until this point the scruffy boy seemed largely unphased and direct with his answers, but the second she suggested he go with her he got an edge of nervousness on his previously stoic face.
"Can't I just wait here? They'll be back," he said. His voice had an edge of frustration.
"Sorry, but we're trying to get this place cleared out…" She trailed off as she noticed him beginning to look around. Not quite like he was looking for someone, but something- a quick escape route. "Don't you dare," she said before thinking. Not in a scolding way, but in a 'I know what you're about to do, so don't do it' way.
This turned out to be a mistake because he immediately decided to take that dare and suddenly bolted off towards Monty Golf, dropping the bags in the process.
"No, wait! You're not in trouble! Geez…" Natalie dropped her head with a sigh before dragging herself after him.
She didn't run after him, not willing to stir up an unnecessary scene, but did follow briskly down the escalator and in the general direction he had gone. Only risking to speed up once she was sure nobody was watching. It sounded to her like he had went into the hall leading to Rockstar Row, so she followed in that direction, keeping a careful eye out.
All of the patrons had already been sent out of Rockstar Row and on first glance the place looked empty, save for Chica's green room. Natalie stole a glance inside as she passed. Monty was sitting on the couch with his arms stretched out on the back while Chica and Roxanne stood beside the vanity, the wolf's back to her, Chica's head down and arms slouched like she was upset.
While Natalie looked away before they could notice her looking, she didn't get by unnoticed. Chica spotted her past Roxanne and made a run for the door. Natalie's only warning were a few thumping footsteps and she turned around just in time to have Chica leaning way too close into her personal space. So close that she could smell the combined scent of vanilla and pizza coming off of her.
"Hi, Officer Vanessa!" Chica greeted with a rather phony sounding cheerfulness. "Are you here to bring Freddy back up to his room?"
"No, I'm looking for someone right now," she said. "Where did they take Freddy?"
"Parts and Services, but they were getting all worked up about it- and we're really worried!" the chicken lamented. Now she was starting to sound a little more honestly upset. "Freddy's never gone down like that," she fussed.
"Freddy's never gone down period," Roxanne spoke up. Natalie hadn't even noticed her leaning in the doorway. "It wasn't his battery. He charged up before we headed out."
"Something else must've happened, but I'm sure they'll figure it out. They might be dragging their feet on the Staff Bots, but they can't with Freddy. He's the star of the show," the blond assured Chica, who gave a small nod.
"One of them," Roxanne said briskly.
Natalie realized that she might've offended her and was about to amend her statement but was beat to it before she could.
"Wait, you said you were looking for someone?" Chica asked with a cock of her head. Natalie nodded and pointed back the way she came.
"Some kid ran back here. He's not in trouble, I just don't want him getting locked in here somewhere and stuck all night," she explained. "Would you guys tell me if you see him?"
"…Of course!" Maybe she imagined the delay in Chica's response, but she didn't miss that something strange happened with her expression. Her pupils seemed to shrink just a bit and her one overly expressive eyes seemed to freeze up. For a second she looked just as listless as the time Natalie caught her eating cardboard in the kitchen, but she seemed to snap out of it- head literally snapping out of its slight tilt- when Roxanne spoke.
"I'll keep an eye out. If there's a kid in here, I won't miss him," she said. Natalie took what she could get and smiled.
"Thanks. I'm going to keep looking, and I'll tell you if I hear anything about Freddy."
With that she continued on her way, feeling the eyes of the animatronics on her back. She wasn't sure why she got such a weird feeling talking to them in comparison to someone like Marionette, Foxy, or Charlie, but she pushed it aside for the moment. She had a job to do- and if she did it fast enough, she would almost have an hour off until her shift truly began.
She tried to ignore the feeling that this was about to be a very long night.
Mable: It's going to go by like that. *Snaps fingers*