Going Home in a Box

by Mable

(Sequel to Can't Go Home Again and Almost Feels like Home) Freddy Fazbear's has returned from the grave and brought something of hatred and agony with it. Their livelihoods on the line, Mike, Marionette, and the others must learn to handle this new threat. This is easier said than done once Foxy finds himself snared by the new location, and the white rabbit now pulling the strings.

47. Chapter 47

Mable: I'm so sorry this took so long, but I hope you enjoy!

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Going Home in a Box

Chapter Forty-Seven

Freddy led Marionette down through an elevator located by the kitchen and past the loading dock to the Staff showers and lockers. This was, as far as Marionette knew, a first for Freddy Fazbear's. While they were a stickler for their employees to have a virtually undetectable scent- even strong perfume could receive a reprimand- they hadn't been nearly big enough to justify installing showers. Honestly, for having so few human employees, it was weird to have them at all.

It made Marionette wonder if the Pizzaplex wasn't always intended to have this much of a robotic workforce.

"Here we are! The shower room," Freddy introduced. Though it was less a room and more a hallway of showers with red curtains blocking them. He opened up his stomach hatch and let Gregory lower to the floor.

Gregory looked at the row of showers and seemed less than excited.

"And here you go," Freddy said. He handed him a bottle that he had grabbed off a random counter while coming in.

Gregory took it and looked at it. It was some kind of generic two-in-one shampoo and conditioner. It had the Freddy logo on it, but otherwise the bottle was a drab green and popping it open revealed that it smelled like soap. Boring old soap.

As much as Gregory didn't want to do this, he knew he had to. One look at Freddy's encouraging smile made it very clear that no amount of reasoning would get him out of this without Freddy being disappointed. Besides, he and Marionette were going to be out here. One of them would surely spot someone coming before they got to him. He slipped off his backpack and handed it to Freddy, then kicked off his shoes.

"I see you are using your backpack. Has it been working well?" Freddy asked, testing the backpacks weight.

"Yeah, it fits a lot of stuff. I've got a lunchbox and a bunch of tapes in there right now."

"Tapes?"

"Like, video tapes. Mike put them in there. You can look at 'em if you want."

Freddy hummed and curiously unzipped the backpack. He looked around at the tapes stacked inside before spotting the lunchbox. He poked it until it tilted back enough for him to see the Superstar Daycare logo, and he smiled.

"I see your new lunchbox," he said with a knowing tone.

"Don't get any funny ideas. Someone left it at the daycare and that Sun guy gave it to me."

"I see. How very fortunate! I will need to thank him."

Freddy wondered what was packed inside. Though he couldn't get the box out without removing the tapes, so he would just have to wait until later. He chuckled shortly to himself as he zipped the backpack back up.

He looked up in time to see Gregory throwing his socks and shirt on the floor beside his shoes in a soggy pile. Freddy gave a slightly disapproving hum and Marionette gathered the clothes in his arms, along with the rest that Gregory tossed out once he was behind the curtain.

"Now you should start by turning the hot and cold knobs equally and then adjusting them to fit the right temperature," Freddy suggested.

"Freddy, I know how to take a shower," Gregory replied flatly.

"My apologies. I just did not want you to burn yourself," the bear added. Once the shower was turned on and going, he turned towards Marionette. "It is quite fortunate that you came with us. I was not thinking at the time, but I would not have been able to leave Gregory to put the clothes in the washing machine. Would you mind staying with him?"

"Not at all. Here you are."

Marionette handed over the clothes and took the backpack to hold. No wonder Freddy took notice, it was a little heavier than he expected.

"Thank you. Gregory, I will be right back!" Freddy called in. He then turned and headed off.

This left Marionette alone with Gregory and despite the residual guilt it made him feel, he felt more comfortable that way. Freddy was a good person and by all accounts he had taken good care of Gregory and had been a good friend to Foxy. Yet he felt like there had to be a catch. That stomach hatch lent itself to suggest as much.

But being here watching Gregory- or standing guard outside of a shower curtain- made Marionette feel oddly contented. It made him feel like a protector again. That he could keep Gregory safe under his watchful eye. That there didn't have to be any losses this time, that he had gotten here quick enough to save someone. While he couldn't shake the fear that something had happened, this was enough to bring him comfort.

At least until Freddy's heavy footsteps returned. Marionette turned to greet him and watched Freddy come down the hall. Only now did he realize he hadn't given the bear any special directions for Mike's jacket. Which was likely fine. It was a relatively sturdy jacket; it could survive any wash that a kid's clothes could.

Freddy had brought back the orange shirt Sunny had given him, the green and black alligator print shorts he had gotten from the gift shop on the way here, and a towel. He held them on his arm at the ready for when Gregory needed them.

But he was surprisingly silent. Marionette noticed it immediately but had assumed Freddy was just waiting to get closer to speak, as to not risk drawing outside attention. It turned out that wasn't case when Freddy stopped a good five or six steps away. His steps, so a bit further than a human's own. It felt like a significant gap compared to earlier. Marionette acknowledged his approach with a greeting nod and Freddy stood there silently for a moment.

Then, as though having finally decided on it, he made a throat clearing noise to catch attention and then beckoned the Puppet to come over. Despite himself, Marionette felt his guard edge up, but he still drifted over to him.

"Mari, forgive me for bringing this up… but I have noticed that you have seemed bothered tonight," Freddy quietly said.

"Yes. It has been a long night," Marionette admitted. His head lowering and mask betraying his fatigue. "And this whole rabbit deal has my strings in knots."

"I am sure it has, but that is not what I meant," Freddy said. His voice surprisingly hesitant. "I meant that I noticed you have been… uncomfortable around me."

Freddy came off as at least a little oblivious. It was just a natural assumption that came from how blissfully optimistic Freddy seemed about what were serious issues in the Pizzaplex, but that was obviously not the case. Because somehow Freddy had still noticed the tension that Marionette thought he was hiding. It almost startled the puppet.

"…Yes, I have. I didn't mean for you to notice."

"Was it something I said? Or was it seeing me with my head removed?... Or is it because I was not present for what happened earlier?" Freddy asked softly. He sent a guilty look past Marionette at the shower curtain.

The Puppet quickly moved to the side to block his view. "Freddy, no! It's not that. It's…" Guilt started to well up inside of him. "…It's how you carry Gregory around inside of you. How you hold him in your stomach."

"I see, and I understand completely. I know it does not look very safe… and it is not as safe as I would like, admittedly. I am going against every precaution carrying him around like this-."

"No, Freddy. That is not it," Marionette quietly interjected. Freddy fell silent and listened expectantly for an answer. Marionette hugged himself with one arm, the other still holding the backpack that dangled beside him. "It is dangerous for a completely different reason. When I saw him climb in there, it brought back memories… It terrified me. It still does."

He tried to keep it vague, hoping that would be enough. Because he didn't want to go into those painful explanations.

"Why?"

But he was about to anyway, because Freddy looked thoroughly concerned and wasn't taking 'no' for an answer. At least, not unless Marionette put up a fight he wasn't willing to commit to.

"Because…"

But how was he supposed to tell Freddy the truth? The stomach hatch terrified him on so many levels. Children trapped in animatronics; numerous machines built by Afton Robotics with stomach hatches to hide them in and abduct them with.

"Because…"

Bodies stuffed into animatronics with the hopes that they would come back. People shoved into suits at the mercy of golden bears and faces that looked just like Freddy's. Bears that looked just like Freddy. Bears built like Freddy.

"…Because I was once trapped in the stomach of a bear that looked a lot like you. It was built to trap me inside. Someone made it with the intention that I would never get out… And I nearly didn't. I was stuck in there, trapped, and when I fought it would play music to make me weak. And when I fought harder it shocked me until I was limp… I barely escaped and when I look at your hatch… It reminds me of being trapped," Marionette said in a hushed, despondent voice.

Freddy's eyes went wide with shock. "That… I…" His voice was quiet, showing that same alarm but also a different kind of dread. It slowly sunk in as Freddy processed what the Puppet had just said to him. It all made sense, but it also didn't make any sense at all. How something like that could happen, how someone could build something like that, and why. "That is terrible! I cannot even begin to imagine… I can imagine but I also cannot imagine the fear you must have felt being trapped like that. No wonder you were uncomfortable around me! Mari, I am so sorry that happened to you!"

Marionette was almost a little embarrassed by the caring tone. "It's alright Freddy. It isn't your fault, none of this is. I just projected those feelings onto you, I suppose…"

"Very justified feelings, if I may say so," Freddy insisted. "Why on earth would anyone do that to you!?"

"It's, well…" That was a loaded question. It didn't help that by now he was starting to tick, meaning the risk of his voice catching at an inopportune time was very present. He rubbed his arm with slight nervousness. "It's a long story."

He was about to offer to tell it when he was suddenly cut off.

"It does not matter."

Marionette was surprised by the firmness in the bear's tone and looked to him questioningly.

"There is no reason to do that to someone. No matter what they are or what they have done… It is simply unacceptable," Freddy said. He watched Marionette's expression relax with understanding and his voice fell softer. "I knew the older models were… questionable but I had no idea they were capable of this! That someone could build such a thing is worrisome."

That caught Marionette's attention. "The older models? What have you heard about the older models?" he asked. His suspicion long gone and replaced with concern-tinged curiosity.

Freddy lowered his head. He almost looked ashamed. Or maybe just hesitant, like he knew he was saying something wrong.

"Do not tell Foxy. Please, I do not want him to know that I know…" Freddy murmured. The puppet nodded and the bear believed him, and continued, "I hear how some of the guests speak about me. Or about the… rumors about the old business. I am not surprised you are afraid of me, so are they. Though I AM surprised to hear this is true. We have always been told that the rumors were false."

Suddenly the water shut off and Gregory called out, "Okay, I'm done!"

Freddy covered up his concern as best he could. "Good job, Superstar! And here you go," he said. He handed the towel in through the curtain. To which Gregory gave a quick "Thanks!"

"We should continue this later… But if it is any consolation, that trap that was built for me was not an old model. It was recently built," Marionette quietly said. "Foxy and I are older models though."

"I was not trying to imply-."

"No, no. It's okay. I know you weren't. I am just assuring you that… Hmm…" Marionette paused to think about it. "…That even though we are something, that doesn't make us dangerous. A fitting moral." He smiled a bit, which Freddy returned.

"I agree," he said. He opened his mouth again like he was going to say more when he was interrupted.

"Shirt!" Gregory called and stuck a hand out.

"Shirt!" Freddy repeated. He flipped the orange shirt off of his arm and into Gregory's hand.

"Thanks!" The arm drew back in behind the curtain. After a few seconds there was a groan. "Fred-dy!"

"Yes, Gregory?"

"I thought you were going to get me one of your shirts, like that one we saw the other day. Not this!" He held the shirt out and shook it, showing off the sun face on it. "This one's got the Sun's face on it! If anybody sees me in this, they're going to think I like him!"

Marionette got a small smile and chimed with amusement. Freddy was just as nonchalant about it. "I apologize, Gregory. It was the only one that Sunny had on hand. I could go get you another one if you would prefer."

"No, I'll wear the stupid Sun shirt," Gregory grumbled. He could be heard pulling it on. "Pants?"

"Very cool pants!" Freddy offered, repeating his earlier action. Gregory took them and started to put them on behind the curtain. Meanwhile, Freddy hummed. "The hourly recharge is coming soon. The clothes will be fine; many of the appliances in the Pizzaplex are programmed to come back on and continue their prior processes before the recharge takes place… I am more concerned about Sunny. I hope they are not working on him when the lights shut off…"

"I'm sure they'll be watching the clock. Sunny doesn't strike me as the type to let something like that slip by," the Puppet said.

"He is not. He is very much on top of everything, especially time… Perhaps I will send him a message of support," Freddy said. He then closed his eyes and fell quiet for a significant amount of time. Marionette could hear his servos humming.

Gregory threw back the shower curtain with a less than enthused look. Freddy shot him a winning smile and a thumbs up.

"Looking good!"

Gregory didn't believe him. He believed that Freddy believed it, but he didn't believe it was true. He stepped out and looked down for his shoes, furrowing his brows.

Marionette answered his silent question. "They're in the washer."

"Oh," he said simply. Marionette offered his backpack, and he slipped it back on. It too was still a little damp, but with the material it was wet enough to soak into his dry shirt. Even if it did, he would probably use it as an excuse to switch into a less kiddie one. "So, what are we going to do now?" he asked.

"It will be a little while until the clothes are done. How about we return to the daycare and play a few games while we wait for them to finish?" Freddy offered.

"Sounds good to me," Gregory agreed. It sounded a lot better than sitting around waiting down here. He stepped forward and Freddy got the signal and leaned over, opening his hatch so he could climb in.

Marionette watched the hatch open and could feel his spools tightening again. That apprehension rising inside as he looked at that open cavity and finally pinpointing why it was.

His hand shot forward.

"Wait," he said. His hand raised to stop the bear. Freddy looked to him with concern and Gregory with confusion. Marionette looked pensively at Freddy's open stomach hatch. He closed his hand into a fist and rubbed his fingers nervously. Finally, he dared to ask, "May I… May I climb inside of your stomach hatch?"

Freddy's eyes popped open in surprise. "Wh-What? You want to… climb inside of me?"

"Yes," Marionette said. His voice quiet and slightly unsure.

"But I thought you were scared of the hatch. After what you went through, why would you want to climb inside?"

"Because I am scared of the hatch and I'm tired of it," the Puppet answered. The motion of his mask showed him looking back up at Freddy. "If you are comfortable with it. I don't want to impose myself on you… Or, well, in you."

"No! That would be fine if it would help you confront your fear. I just am not sure that you will fit…" Freddy said. Looking over the rather tall puppet and glancing briefly down at the relatively child-sized opening.

Marionette laughed with only a slight hitch of anxiousness. "That's no trouble. Believe me, I've fit into cardboard boxes even tighter than that," he assured. "But only if you are alright with me doing so."

"I am! Here."

Freddy turned towards him with his hatch fully opened. The Puppet felt the tenseness spread to his comb now and released a hiccup of a chime to take the tension off. Freddy looked worried and Marionette recovered with a more natural smile before reaching forward and laying his hands on Freddy's shoulders. He rested his hands there a moment before lifting himself up with his arms and lowering in legs first.

It was a little tighter on the inside than he expected. Largely because of Freddy's endoskeleton taking up so much space in the middle. He bent his knees and continued sliding inside, regardless of how every instinct told him not to.

"It's a tighter fit than Lefty's hatch, that's for certain…"

"Lefty?" Freddy asked.

"Oh, the bear. The bear trap I told you about. Well, actually his name is Chance now. The man who tried to trap me in the bear passed on a little too closely to it and now he's the bear. Which is also terrifying, as he has admitted that he still gets the urge to trap me… Though then again, he doesn't like me very much. He might've been saying that to keep me from popping by as much," Marionette somewhat rambled nervously.

"He became the bear?" Freddy asked in confusion.

"Yes."

"Wait, is this like that haunted thing you were talking about? You said you were haunted, like you're a ghost or something?" Gregory connected.

"That's right. I used to be a human too. As was Chance and Charlie, Foxy, and there's plenty more of us outside-…!"

At that moment Marionette just happened to catch a glance at Freddy's face and saw how he was staring at him. It was with shock or wide-eyed confusion. As though Marionette's words were surprising to him.

Which was the exact moment when Marionette realized that Freddy didn't know.

"And… me?" Freddy asked, confirming as much.

Normally the Puppet would've said yes off the bat because he knew Freddy was too awake and aware to be fueled by something like the virus that controlled the unnatural Circus Baby. No, Freddy must've been a person, he was certain of… he just didn't know it. Which made Marionette a little hesitant to suddenly blurt it out. It could be a jarring realization to just have thrust upon someone- especially if it roused memories.

"Perhaps…" Marionette answered vaguely, gently. "…Do you remember anything like that?"

"I cannot. Though Foxy did ask me a similar question…" Freddy said. He then made the connection, Marionette saw it click in Freddy's eyes. "And you said Foxy also used to be human?"

"Yes… But please, don't let that change your opinion of him. Remember, he is still the same pirate he was before I told you," Marionette said. A twang of worry lingering in his voice.

"I would never! Foxy is one of my- is my closest friend. It just explains some things…"

Marionette waited a moment to make sure Freddy was alright. The bear looked to him expectantly which gave him the go ahead to continue climbing in. Trying to escape the conversation gave him enough willpower to stop dragging it out and just squeeze in. It was a weird fit and he had to have his neck bent painfully to get his head inside. His entire body folded up and compressed so tightly that he couldn't recall if he had ever been in such a position.

All the while, Freddy had started to talk again. Now he seemed to be the one rambling.

"We are supposed to be the most advanced models, the Glamrock line. We are able to emote and feel just as humans would… Yet Foxy does so too, and he is not as advanced as us- err, don't tell him I said that."

"I won't," Marionette said. His voice portraying a little of his strain. A small puff of non-aggressive static slipping out like a sigh. "You can close the hatch."

"Alright. I will close it slowly."

Freddy slowly closed the hatch, and then closed it again once Marionette squeezed further inside. The latches clicked into place, and he was trapped inside the claustrophobic space. His ticking was increasing, and his spools were so tight that his strings might've snapped. He was surrounded by the hums and tones of Freddy's internal system. It sounded much more electronic than Lefty's hatch ever did.

"It's alright. You are alright. You could teleport straight out if something went wrong. You are safe," Marionette told himself. He started repeating the last line like a mantra, even starting to imagine it in Mike's voice to calm him down.

"Mari, is everything alright? You seem to be… ticking," Freddy asked. His voice rumbling from the speaker above. "You can come out now if you like. You have faced your fear!"

"I would, but I- I can't until I calm down. Until I relax. Then I will have faced my fears," he insisted.

"I understand. Take all the time you need. You are doing excellent so far," Freddy encouraged him.

"Doesn't that feel uncomfortable?" Gregory asked. His brows permanently furrowed since the puppet had actually fit inside.

"Not at all! He is quite soft," Freddy assured.

Strangely enough, Freddy talking did help. It was a sharp contrast to the soft shushing and music box lullaby of Lefty. A reminder that he was aware and willingly going along with this at Marionette's insistence. It helped relax him a bit.

Eventually he deemed himself calm enough to get out. Not all of the tenseness had gone away, and the tight hatch still made him uneasy to think about, but at least he felt a little better about it. Better enough that he had stopped ticking.

"Okay. I'm going to get out now," he said.

"Would you like me to help? I could tilt forward," Freddy offered.

"I can handle it, but thank you," Marionette said. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate the help, but he wanted to do it himself. It seemed more appropriate.

Marionette reached back and up, bowing his back to reach, and hooked his hands on Freddy's shoulders. Then with one swift push of his legs he pushed his upper half back out of Freddy's hatch. He found himself back face to face with Freddy, pausing there to take a breather. He needed one after feeling so suffocated even without lungs to fill.

Freddy smiled encouragingly at him, and Marionette naturally returned it.

He felt better. He truly did.

---

Sunny had one rule upon leaving the daycare. "Wh-When I start setting, you all look away, m'kay-ay?" Considering he requested such while wringing his hands with his good hand, this clearly came from a place of nervousness. Nobody argued.

This request made much more sense a few minutes later when Sun stepped outside the daycare and started to immediately shift. He gave a pained cry as the change took over, but the others did as agreed and averted their gazes. By time they looked back the Moon had returned and was now shuffling down the hallway. They were lucky nobody came out to investigate. Natalie must've heard it but likely didn't rush out because of Mike's forewarning earlier.

Moon still refused help as he limped along leading the way. He took them a different way to the one Jake initially led them down, involving an elevator by the kitchen, a few hallways, and coming out the door outside the double doors to Parts and Service. The only time he let anyone overtake him was to check for a light switch in any halls that were lit up. Usually there was one, if it wasn't dark enough for him to just walk through.

But they arrived at Parts and Service in one piece. Moon leered at the large safety capsule before glancing to the two men who came up at his side, waiting for his go ahead. He made an impatient noise and pointed them at the monitor.

"T-Turn that on and put in a repair request-st," he instructed. Mike nodded and headed over to do so, with Jeremy shortly behind him. Moon decided to stay put as long as he could.

Charlie did too apparently. She was standing at his left looking at the massive piece of machinery looming before them. He was too aware of her presence, likely due to the pain in his side leaving him agitated. She could tell. Though not towards her, more so picking it up in the sharp way he addressed Mike and Jeremy.

That was when he gave an impatient little huff and a quiet, "What now?" Charlie looked to him to find his eyes darkened and his head down, as though he was focusing with his eyes closed.

Much to her surprise, Moon gave a low, out-of-place giggle. He kept his head down for a moment longer before lifting it. He noticed her looking at him and turned his head back away, pulling down his cap a bit.

"Preparing for repair procedure. Please deliver the animatronic mascot into the protective cylinder and secure it onto the work chair."

Moon winced further, growling or groaning lowly before dragging himself towards the cylinder. Charlie followed along behind him.

"Are you still going in, Charlie? If you want, I can go in there with you. I went in with Freddy," Mike offered.

"No thanks, I think I've got it covered," Charlie said. She looked towards Moon to see if he would give any input.

He didn't. Instead, Moon just silently limped to the door, halting in spot when it opened, and gave the slightest shudder. It was unclear if it was from the light partially falling on him or just the sight of the work chair. He stepped inside and began to shift back into Sun, trying to suffocate any sounds of pain.

"He might be more comfortable if it's just me," Charlie whispered quickly. Mike agreed and sat down in the office chair as she headed in after the pending patient.

Even with his frozen face, Charlie could tell from his slightly tilted head and drooping posture that Sunny was looking at the work chair with utter distain. He barely acknowledged Charlie coming in behind him except to step forward beside the chair, and then finally climbing up onto it. He settled onto it uncomfortably.

"Security Frequency recognized. Welcome, Daycare Attendant. Activating comfort restraints."

The head rest spread and tilted forward. The two padded edges closed around Sunny's neck. The armrests then closed to clamp onto his arms, or on his limp arm as the other was still bent back behind him. A band restraint then slid out and secured around both of his thighs. Sun's points recoiled but he didn't react with much surprise elsewise.

"Whoa, wait. Did they do this to Freddy?" Jeremy asked.

"No." Mike got up from the office chair to look and spotted the newly applied restraints. He threw his hands up in a shrug. "Sunny, I didn't do that."

"I-I know! This is normal-al!" Sunny called back.

"…What?" Mike returned.

"What?" Charlie mirrored. Though before she could receive an answer from him, she got the answer from another source.

"Daycare Attendant's right arm is not secured in the proper restraint. Daycare Attendant must be retrained before the repair can proceed."

Sunny groaned and balled his hand into a fist. He knew he wasn't going to get out of this and started to lower his arm slowly, shakily. That was, until Charlie caught it.

"Wait. Maybe they can override this," she offered. She turned to look out the window and called, "Can you turn this off?"

"I'll try!" Mike called back. He sat down and found the error pop up on the monitor. He clicked around trying to get it to cancel out, since there was no 'x' to close it, but it just flickered and stayed. He inhaled slowly and exhaled, "Jere, do you think you can help me out with this? You're better with computers."

Jeremy leaned over beside him to look at the screen. "…Yeeeah, let's try this," he said. He pressed a few buttons down- control, alter, and delete- but the pop up flickered. "Okay, so that's not going to work. Let's just…" He started to press the escape button to no avail. "Huh. It's really putting up a fight."

They continued trying to work with the monitor. Sunny watched them a moment before groaning and rolling his head in Charlie's direction.

"I-It's no good. Th-They ALWAYS do this," he said. His voice filled with weariness that might've suited Moon's exasperation better.

"They'll figure something out. There's got to be a way around this," Charlie assured him. He gave a frustrated cry and twisted his legs on the chair as much as he could.

"I-I just wanna get this OVER with-th. I don't even want to BE here-re," he whined. He turned his head to look at them, then to her, then down at the restraint, and then with an irritated huff he suddenly slammed his arm down into it.

It immediately locked into place around him. His points pulled in again, the only telltale of his immediate regret.

"Good job. The Daycare Attendant is now secured. We can now begin repair procedures. You may now enter the protective cylinder and begin a visual diagnoses. During which, make sure that the animatronic is secure in the restraints. Enter findings into the control module after diagnoses is complete."

Mike got up and he and Jeremy headed into the cylinder. Though it was less because the robotic voice told them and more because they wanted to figure out what was going on. Now they both got a look at the restraints.

Sunny turned his head away in embarrassment. "Qu-Quit staring! Can't we just get this over with-th?" he asked.

"What happened? Did it close on you?" Jeremy asked.

"No, he put it in himself. Just like he said, to get this over with," Charlie said with slight tiredness and exasperation.

"Sunny, you didn't have to do that-."

"YES! Tick, tick, time's tick-cking away! If- If I'm in here when the lights go off, golly gee, I'm g-going to be in so much pain!" Sunny blurted out. His growing panic finally starting to leak out in full. "C-Can't we just hurry up, PLEASE?!"

"Okay, okay, we'll speed it up," Mike assured him. He looked down at Sunny's side and said quietly to Jeremy, "What would you say, damaged left side and exposed wires?"

"That sounds like it'll cover it," Jeremy agreed. "Maybe put in that it's on the chest too."

"We're going to go do it now," Mike told Sunny.

"Y-Yup!" he replied. Still tense, still agitated.

Able to tell they weren't helping, Mike and Jeremy decided not to stick around and instead do what he said. They returned to the monitor to find what looked to be a blueprint of Sunny's body on the screen. As Mike scrolled the pointer over, different sections lit up.

"I'd say right there," Jeremy said, pointing to his side. Mike nodded, rolled his mouse to it, and clicked.

"Middle left quadrant. Click anymore points of interest. When finished, press the enter key to begin scan."

"I'm just going to click the whole chest."

"Good idea."

He did and then pressed the enter key. The machine whirred to life inside the cylinder.

"Beginning scanning procedure."

One of the arms lifted to the ceiling and pulled something that looked like a square microphone out of the base of the tools, connected to its spot by a scrunched cord. Though except for a microphone cap, it had a round lens mounted on the tip of it. The lens protruding out of the socket like an eye. It was lowered to Sunny's side where a flickering blue light came from it and scanned along the damage. It readjusted and took a second scan on the chest.

"Taking additional scans."

The scanner was moved to different angles as it did a few more quick scans. Up at Sunny's shoulder, further down by his side, and very close to his chest. So close it nearly bumped the protruding wires.

"Scanning complete. Oh dear, it appears that Daycare Attendant has a breach in his hull. It will require a replacement. A warehouse Staff Bot is on its way with the part. In the meantime, let's get everything ready. Open the panel on Daycare Attendant's lower arm and plug in the cord from the back of the service chair."

Charlie hesitated before reaching forward to Sunny's arm. "Can I…?"

"H-Have to," Sunny answered.

She took that as a yes. Though before she could do any more than touch the arm, the panel popped open. Obviously, he did it himself. Charlie reached behind the chair and found the little white plug, which looked like a longer version of the wire Jake used to plug himself into his control panel and brought it around to plug into a slot in his arm. Sunny looked down at it warily, though it was hard to tell with his mask.

Some statistics popped up on the monitor screen. Security code, power level, currently in 'Sun Mode', positive for both 'R' and for in functional order. A lot of stuff that was hard to decipher, especially when it flicked off the screen almost immediately. Either way, Mike pulled over a nearby sticky pad and started writing most of it down just in case. Jeremy gave him a thumbs up out of the corner of his eye.

"Good job. Please stand by while the Daycare Attendant is being repositioned. If you notice any looseness in the restraints, make sure to flag down and inform any technicians outside of the protective cylinder."

Sunny's fingers grabbed at the end of the armrest as he watched the clawed arms start to lower towards him. The chair tilted upright and stopped, then the neck rest pushed forward and lifted him partially from the back of the seat. Raised until there was a significant gap between him and the chair, his arms still in the restraints. He groaned a little at the tug on his side from his limp arm.

"The Daycare Attendant is now ready for repairs. In case of an emergency, the protective cylinder will protect important service personnel outside of the protective cylinder… Begin by unscrewing the two red knobs on the Daycare Attendant's chest."

That was Charlie's cue to step in again. She looked to Sunny questioningly, he was looking back at her, tapping his fingers on the armrest impatiently. She literally stepped in beside him and reached for the knobs. Thankfully they weren't directly on the seam, so she was easily able to avoid the protruding wires. She gently and carefully unscrewed the button-like knob and pulled both free. His chest shifted a little, like the panels were loosened.

"Good job. Now please stand by while the automated systems remove the defective hull piece."

Charlie took a few steps back to around the lowering arms. Two claws descended on Sunny and grabbed ahold of the opened panel. He whined at the sensation as a third arm lowered behind him and used a tool to start opening up his seams. His fingers grabbed tightly at the arm restraint and Charlie stepped right back forward, taking his hand in hers. His fingers tightened around hers. Hers squeezed back in an attempt to comfort him.

The claws removed the bent panel and practically that entire corner of his chest. Part of the back as well, as when it was pulled away, she could see the half circle of the opening in his back. Two arms grabbed ahold of his upper left arm and suddenly popped it into place. That was enough to make Sunny cry out and twist up his legs.

It was horrifying to watch. It was the closest Charlie felt to actually feeling sick, watching this happen and knowing Sunny could feel it. She would've shut him down in a heartbeat, but there was no shutoff on his neck. She could see that for herself. She wasn't the only one who noticed either. Jeremy and Mike were watching too. Jeremy standing at the window, Mike standing beside the desk, and both looking equally disturbed in their own ways. Horrifying even for humans.

"Carefully return the exposed wires into the remaining casing. Be sure to use Fazbear-quality electrical tape to seal up any damaged wiring."

"Fazbear-quality electrical tape," Charlie muttered in disbelief.

"B-Be carefulll…" Sunny warned quietly. His voice now much hoarser.

"I'll do my best," she assured him. Squeezing his hand one more time, she leaned forward to begin.

Charlie carefully cupped the mass of wires and began to slowly lead them back into his chest. Sunny went rigid the moment she touched them, but he only released the tiniest wince as she did so. It was much more restrained than when the machine was working on him. Though she didn't know if it was because she was doing a good job or because he was trying to smother it.

The wires laid in pretty easily. The hardest part was just going slow to make sure there was as little pain as possible. It wasn't long before they were carefully tucked in, and she drew away.

"Good job."

There was an eerily long pause after those to words. Then a beeping noise came from somewhere above.

"The Daycare Attendant is showing high levels of activity." Sunny went rigidly still on the spot. "Before we continue, let's soothe it with a controlled shock."

Charlie was startled. "Are they serious...?"

They were very serious. One of the arms took another wand like the scanner out of the base and lowered it towards the chair. The difference being that the head of this one much more closely resembled a Fazbear Entertainment-brand taser.

"I-I didn't even move this tiiiiIIIIME?!" Sunny yelled, his voice peaking as he stared at the taser lowering down in front of his face. It angled itself like it was aiming for his neck. "NO! No, no, no, no, turn IT OFF!"

What he didn't know was that Mike was already on it, trying to click out or cancel out with the tricks he saw Jeremy use, to no avail. Blocked by a screen that simply read "Procedure Underway" with a little Freddy head spinning underneath it. He was starting to grow frantic, half banging on the keys and looking for any way out. Direly not wanting to be the reason that this injured person was suddenly electrocuted into submission.

"Jeremy, help me!" Mike didn't know what Jeremy could do, but at this point he was out of options, and he was the only person he could count on.

"I'm on it!" Jeremy was back from the window and at his side in a second, though just as aware as Mike that his options were limited.

He tried the same tricks again, and when they didn't work added in bolder ones. There was a power button on the monitor but pressing it did nothing. The monitor refused to cooperate. Even if it did, neither was sure it would halt the process.

All the while Charlie was inside the protective cylinder being the only thing standing in between Sunny and the taser. Since she couldn't physically do so without getting on top of him, onto his open chest cavity, getting tased, and likely tasing him in the process, she settled with trying to wrestle back the arm while the automated voice repeated warnings for her not to do so. Sunny watching the whole thing while helplessly cinched in the seat.

It bought them time, but not enough time to figure out a solution. Jeremy was trying another set of keys when Mike noticed a nearby sound and looked back, and then both were all but pushed aside as some charged through and took over.

Which, considering that it was the Map Bot, left Mike and Jeremy very confused.

Using the edges of what appeared to be clumsy fingers, the Map Bot somehow chicken pecked at the keys like a natural. Something that tipped off Mike to the fact that this likely wasn't the same Map Bot he ran into earlier- at least, not under the hood. He looked to Jeremy, but the blond didn't notice. Instead, he tried to watch the keys it was pressing.

Much to both of their shock, and relief, the Map Bot managed to bring up another screen. One with the simple question, "Are you sure?" splayed on it. Map Bot waved for both and either Jeremy and Mike and pointed a hand towards the mouse. It then rolled back out of the way. Jeremy got to the mouse first and clicked on the yes as Mike scooted the chair back over.

As soon as that yes was clicked, the arm stopped pushing back against Charlie. It hung there a moment before raising back to the ceiling and inserting the tased back into the base. All alongside an automated warning.

"The controlled shock has been manually cancelled. Proceed with caution."

Sunny's hands went limp, but the rest of his body was still rigidly stuck upright. His points were still drawn in. Charlie looked to him with concern.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Uh… huh… Uh huh," he answered. He was clicking and rattling inside, probably worsened by his bouncing leg, and his fans had kicked into overdrive. Charlie took his hand again and after a moment he squeezed back, his grip looser now.

Jeremy looked in on the scene and breathed a sigh of relief. Mike did as well, but then sent a somewhat deadpanned look at the Map Bot still posted at his side.

"So…" he said, leaning back exhaustedly in the office chair. All but collapsing into it. "Is this a new thing or is handing out maps your side hobby?"

That gave away that he already knew it was Jake. How could he not, considering it had pretty much just brute forced its way into shutting down an automated system. Something he doubted a casual Staff Bot could be capable of doing.

The Map Bot, Jake, gave an unreadable shrug and a less than clear, "Hi. Please take a map." Which got Mike to raise a brow.

Though that brow dropped and his face softened into a look of sincerity. "But thanks. There's no way we were going to stop that. You really came in on the clutch."

The Map Bot lifted and moved his hand side to side. "Take a map."

"No thanks. I've already got one."

"I'll take one," Jeremy volunteered. Map Bot took a map out of his holder and handed it over. He opened it up to look at it. "Wow, that's a lot of basement."

"Yeah, and we walked through most of it trying to find our way here," Mike remarked.

There was a clatter at the door, and both looked over to see another Staff Bot rolling through. It had a green hat and shirt on and was carrying a cardboard box. It rolled over and handed off the box to Jeremy, the first human it saw, before turning around and rolling back out.

"This must be the part," Jeremy said. He sat it on the edge of the desk to open it, stealing a brief glance at Mike. "No, 'No, you think'?"

"I'm tired," Mike said. He still sat upright and fished out his pocketknife to pass on to Jeremy.

He used it to cut the tape away and opened the flaps. Much to his surprise, it wasn't just one part like they were expecting, but Sunny's entire chest section. Just separated into its individual plates.

While he was getting out the pieces, another message broadcasted into the protective cylinder- "The required part has arrived. Please exit the protective cylinder and retrieve the package from the warehouse Staff Bot." -and the automated door opened and allowed Charlie to step back out.

"What's up?" she asked dryly.

"Here it is: Sun's new chest," Jeremy replied. He held the casing out for her to see it before nudging the box towards her. "They've got the whole thing in there too. I just took out what we needed."

Charlie pulled in closer with her finger and peeked in. It was surprising how much color had to have come from Sunny's lighting system, because the chassis was a neutral grayish-white color, and unsurprisingly thin.

"Hey," Mike said. She looked at him. "Do you want to tag out? I could go in with him."

She smiled back. "Nah, I've made it this far. I can handle it."

"Sure you can. But one of us could come in with you if you wanted. Only one of us is needed to man the mouse," he offered.

While they were talking, Jake rolled Map Bot over to the side window to look in at Sunny. He knew there was no way he would've been able to get Map Bot inside the door with the pathing route being blocked for Staff Bots, so this was the next best thing. He could tell he was stressed from here, head back and staring at the ceiling with unwavering fixation. Jake tapped his hand on the window and only then did the jester look at him with milky blue eyes.

Jake waved at him. Sunny waved back; his right arm still trapped tight but the motion still being visible. He was relieved to know Jake was here, but it didn't sate all of his fears. He was growing more agitated with every passing moment, and it didn't help that to him his supposed helpers were outside the door chatting amongst themselves. Even if it was about how they were going to go about this. His patience ran out before they could finish.

"C-Can we just get this over withhhh?!" Sunny hissed. His voice having now fully changed into the one associated with his Moon self. Snapping them out of their discussion in an instant.

"We are, don't worry. We still have a while before the power goes out," Charlie called back. The only reason she had even taken this long was to give him a break. She took the casing section from Jeremy. "I think I'll just go in myself. He's not comfortable and we shouldn't crowd him."

"Right. Good idea," Jeremy agreed. She headed inside and he stepped forward to watch through the window after the door shut and secured.

"Align the replacement casing along the appropriate seam and hold it steady while it is mended back into place. It is very important that you do not move during the mending procedure. Coming into contact with the Quick-Weld may lead to severe burns, blood loss, or an amputation of fingers or greater value limbs. Fazbear Entertainment is not liable for any injuries sustained by not following exact directions."

It rushed out the last part awful fast, but Charlie caught the jest of it. She came over and carefully aligned the panel where it needed to go. From the opening in the back to the seam on the waist, it fit on perfectly. She made sure to keep her hands flat on the panel and her fingers drawn in.

Suddenly a metal arm looped down and began to quickly make its way around the seam. It had a tiny welding head on it and closed up said seam in only a matter of moments, maneuvering around Charlie to seal every crack. It pulled away and she dared to remove her hands, only to replace them as another arm came down. Though this arm has what looked like a micro sized buffer head attached to it and quickly ran it over the welded seam. By time it was done, it was barely visible.

"Good job. Now replace the knobs and screw them back in."

Charlie did so, being careful as she tightened them all the way until they were properly secured.

"Good job."

Now she removed her hands for good. Just in time, as the chair began to move once again. The neck restraint slid back and allowed Sunny to lay back on the backrest once more. This was the first time she noticed that his eyes were blue. His head had been turned away when she came in and she kept her eyes on her work, so only now did she see the change. She had a hunch.

"How are you feeling, Sunny?"

"Nnngh… Sore," Sunny replied. He still had Moon's voice. Hunch confirmed.

"Good job. Now use the lighting controls to test the Daycare Attendant's emission system."

The arm that lowered with a panel for Mike to reattach Freddy's head lowered and presented itself to Charlie so she could use it. The only part of the panel that responded was the knob, as when she turned it the bright lights above the chair began to dim. She paused instantly and looked to Sunny.

"Is it okay if I try turning the lights down?" she asked. He tilted his head in a lethargic and confused way. "I don't want to hurt you," she clarified.

"…You won't. I'm not going to fight it," he assured. He readjusted his head on the chair and leaned back like he was sinking into it.

Taking that admittedly uncomfortable answer as a go-ahead, Charlie began to turn down the lights until they were off. She half expected him to slowly turn from yellow to blue, but instead halfway through the process he suddenly flipped over. He gave a hiss and huff of discomfort, but it was nothing like earlier, and to everyone's relief they watched the blue glow return to his left arm.

"Alright, looks like you're good to go! And not a moment too soon," Charlie said encouragingly. She slowly turned the lights back off and watched Moon turn back into Sunny. Sure enough, his glow was still functioning.

"Hurray…!" Sunny said tiredly. His voice starting to soften up again.

"Well done. The Daycare Attendant is now ready to return to the daycare. You may now exit the protective cylinder."

But Charlie instead decided to stay inside and let the others handle the work on the monitor. Mike already knew what to do from this point, having the monitor flick onto the same option screen that it did with Freddy. He knew exactly where to go to release the animatronic and finish up the procedure.

Except once again he was blocked by an unexpected pop up. This one reading: There is a software update available. At first, he assumed it was for the computer, something so baffling that he was about to announce it, when he clicked- outside the box, but it still did nothing- and a new page covered the screen. This one having a lengthy list of fixes in said update. All it took was a glance over one line to realize this didn't apply to the computer.

"Jere, Jake, come take a look at this," he said. He continued to read over the last as the two made their way over. "What did Sun say about a software upgrade?"

Map Bot came to an abrupt halt while Jeremy came over to look. He too got to read what Mike was currently looking over, and it was eye-opening.

The list was rather direct:
*Fixes Daycare Attendant's cleaning cycle. Daycare Attendant will no longer have cleaning as the highest priority.
*Daycare Attendant will be strongly discouraged from taking more than the allotted craft supplies for the daycare.
*Daycare Attendant must now report all unregistered parents to the security staff.

"Are they reprogramming him? That's… Wow, that's fast. You remember how long it to Fritz to reprogram Baby. They just tack it on in an update," Jeremy said.

"I don't like this," Mike said immediately.

An opinion that Jeremy shared. "Same."

The lines sounded innocuous on the surface, but programming in general was a questionable subject when it came to these sentient animatronics. Both of them had witnessed the lengths Marionette, Ennard, and Baby herself had to go through just to make their own decisions. This wasn't just dancing when a certain song came on, this was effectively changing the way Sunny thought. This was closer to the brainwashing Jake eluded to.

And nowhere was that more apparent than the next line.

*Daycare Attendant (Sun) streamlining to exhibit less performance hiccups and behavioral ticks.

"THAT is a loaded statement," Mike said, pointing to the line. "What does it mean by streamlining? Does it mean that it fixes the programming that makes Sun clean up constantly and that makes him work better? Or does it mean they're going to try to reprogram him to get rid of his anxious ticks?"

"I… I don't know," Jeremy said. It slowly starting to sink in for him too. "I guess they think Sunny's ticks are programming bugs."

"They can't actually think this is all just programming. Somebody has to notice something's up; they can't be that naïve," Mike muttered.

"Maybe they just don't care."

Mike had a feeling that comment was going to haunt him for a while.

Though not as much as the next line his eyes fell on a few down. He silently pointed at it and Jeremy readjusted his glasses as he peered in.

*Daycare Attendant (Sun) will no longer be able to exit Daycare unless escorted by employee.

"That's bad. That's really bad," Jeremy said. His eyes scrolling down to read some of the ones closer to the bottom.

"Look at all of these! How can you even program this much red tape?... Geez, if this is what they've got on Sun, I don't even want to know what they've got on Moon," Mike muttered.

"This one down here installs a safety phrase that automatically shuts Moon down."

"There's no way…" Mike looked and Jeremy pointed it out to him. Indeed, the phrase was: 'Nighty-night to Mister Moon Man'. It sounded innocently childish, but in this context, it was anything but.

"No wonder he was so afraid. I thought he was just scared of it hurting, but this- this is what Jake was talking about!" Jeremy said. Then, remembering he was there, he turned back to the Map Bot. "This is what you were taking about?"

The bot silently nodded.

"There's no way I'm doing this," Mike denied. He rolled the mouse around as he looked for an 'x' or a 'cancel', an arrow back or anything else. He couldn't even click outside since it was the whole screen. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me," he muttered. He sighed and scooted his chair aside before turned towards Map Bot. "Think you can get us out of this?" he asked.

Jake nodded and rolled forward to the desk. He brought the edges of his fingers down and pecked at the keys the same way he did before. Though stopped instantly when a pop up suddenly appeared on the screen. His head snapped right up and he stared at the words: Installing Updates. Do not unplug animatronic.

The Bot jerked upright startled and then instantly began to continue pecking away. The combination he used to stop the controlled shock only rewarded him with a disapproving error noise for the effort. That was when the panic set in.

But not just for him, and not just for the two human onlookers who realized what was happening either.

Sunny suddenly lurched on the chair, catching Charlie's attention and she looked away from the window and back to him. He was beginning to twitch, flinch, his shoulders tensing and his legs trying to bend as he stared out the door window.

"Wh… What's… Is that- Is that-?!" Sunny went frantic in seconds and began to thrash on the chair. "What are they doing- WHAT ARE THEY DOING?!"

"What's going on?! What's wrong?!" Charlie asked. She hurried back to his side. "Are you hurting?!"

"NO, THEY'RE- I feel it! I feeeelllelelelehehehehahhaahah!"

Sunny broke into a, uncontrollable laugh as he rolled his head around back on the chair. It was borderline hysterical and paired with the flickering of his eyes and the roaring of his fans it signaled something was seriously wrong.

"I should've- shooould've know better- better- betterrrr to trust yooou all yooou all yooou shut it off SHUT IT OFF! TAKE IT OUT I CAN'T THINK!"

All she got out of this was 'take it out' and she locked onto the cord still attached to his arm. She raced to the other side and tried to pull it out, but it was locked in place. Sunny twisted up into himself, bending his legs in unnatural angles.

"Jake, he's freaking out! What can we do?!" Jeremy asked.

Jake couldn't exactly respond, instead continuingly trying to find some way to shut off the process. Mike shot up from his chair.

"There's got to be a breaker around here somewhere! We can find it and shut all this down!" he said. Though before he could run off, Map Bot's arm swung out to stop him. It then straightened up and stood there unmoving for a few moments before coming back to life and pointing him off towards the gated corner of the room. It returned to the keyboard as he raced off in that direction.

Sunny's joints had been so twisted up that Charlie thought he was going to break them, folding them and rotating the joints, with it suddenly becoming apparent that he might actually be able to contort out of his restraints a split second before he got a leg free. Then a few moments later the other, and then using both to press off the chair and bowing his back, pulling on the restraints on his arms and neck.

"Sunny, you're going to hurt yourself!" Charlie warned. She grabbed his upper arm, and he twisted around. His spider-like legs coming up to face her like he was about to kick her off.

"Stop it, STOP IT! DON't TOUCH me!"

Charlie released his arm but didn't back down. "That welding's still fresh! If you keep thrashing like this-!"

Her warning was cut off by Sunny suddenly snapping his neck through the small gap in the neck restrains, partially freeing him further from the grip chair. His face snapped in her direction, his teeth separated to reveal the little gap for his straw, and then he lunged. In her direction but not for her, instead dropping his mouth to his arm. The gap closed on the wire, and he started twisting his face to try and chew through it.

It was like a lightbulb went off and Charlie pushed his face back before getting out the knife she still had sticking out of her pocket. Sunny was already starting to push back when he saw that and recoiled. He swiftly drew his leg up to kick it away only to halt when she started sawing at the cord and then cut straight through.

In an instant the connection was severed, and his mind went clear. The unfinished update slipping out of his head like water through a sieve. Charlie put the knife back as she tried to pull out the connector, which now came out easily.

She looked up to Sunny who seemed to be in a state of shock before collapsing back on the chair. As though his energy drained out with the unfinished upgrade.

There was a clatter from outside and Charlie looked out the window to see Jake all but rip the keyboard off of the monitor, unplugging it in the process, desperately trying to stop the update. It wasn't until then that Jeremy noticed the screen had changed and caught Jake's attention. The Staff Bot looking up and staring with a blank expression and frozen arms. She could only imagine his relief since she couldn't exactly see it.

That was when the room went dark. The humming emanating from the protective cylinder powering down as the restraints holding Sunny's arms popped open. He yanked his arms up even as he went through the shift into Moon.

Charlie knew it wasn't time for the power to go out and, sure enough, looking out the cylinder she noticed there was still dim light coming through the large windows on either side of the double doors. The power was just out in the room.

Jeremy came up to the door and it opened for him, much to both of their relief. Though they didn't even have the chance to exchange a single word when suddenly Moon lunged forward. Jeremy barely stepped out of the way in time for Moon to land on his feet and break into a sprint. The jester sprinting down the way, racing past the returning Mike, and barging through the double doors which swung close behind him.

"Did I get it shut off in time?" Mike asked.

"I think so, but I think Jake got the update to stop. This screen popped up that said the connection was interrupted or something and… yeah, that." He pointed at the keyboard laying on the ground.

"Or it could've been me cutting the cord," Charlie volunteered, stepping out of the cylinder. "Sorry I didn't do it sooner. I forgot I had a knife."

"That's quick thinking. You didn't get shocked, right?" Mike asked. She shook her head. "Good work. For that, I'm getting you a pocketknife for your birthday."

Charlie smiled a little and started to point towards the door to suggest they go after Moon when Map Bot rolled up. He reached forward and patted her on the shoulders.

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you," Jake repeated through the Staff Bot's voice. Then he steered the bot to turn around and started heading for the doors. Charlie and Jeremy followed behind, with Mike making a detour to turn the power back on before following them out.

"What about the mess we left behind?" he asked as he followed them out.

Map Bot raised his arm a few times.

"You'll take care of it?" Charlie asked. He nodded, and she turned back and clarified, "He's going to take care of it."

"Thanks," Mike said. He appreciated it, not wanting to do it himself while not wanting anyone else to spot it and get suspicious.

They searched for Moon the way they had come from. Jake led the way, swerving around to search and frequently looking up at the ceiling, but there was no sign of the Daycare Attendant. Something that became increasingly more concerning the further they got away from Parts and Service. It wasn't like it was a one-way path either. Moon could've gone either; Jake was just heading the way they came because he assumed he had gone that way.

Until they arrived at the elevator. Jake had rolled around the corner and stopped on a dime as he noticed the doors to the elevator were opened. The bright light inside pouring out into the much dimmer hallway. The fact that the doors were staying open suggested that someone was inside. Jake put an arm out to stop Charlie and the others as he continued to watch the door.

When nobody came out after thirty seconds of waiting, Jake had a hunch that he knew who was hiding inside. He waved his hand for them to stay and rolled down on his own to peek into the elevator.

There was Sunny sitting on the floor while hugging his legs. His face buried into his puffy pants until he heard Jake roll in and he silently lifted his head.

"Hi," Jake said.

Sunny gave a little nod. His points were tilted forward like they were drooping like the petals of a wilting flower. He didn't seem to be protecting his side any longer though, so there was a positive.

Jake waved for their companions to come over. Sunny noticed and dragged himself to his feet before sliding sideways into the corner. His eyes flicking from blue back to their neutral white as his fingers hooked on the edge of the door.

And then suddenly swung himself around and popped his head around the corner. "Peek-a-boo!"

Charlie gave a short cry and flinched back. Then promptly relaxed once she realized it was him.

"Thanks for that," she said sarcastically.

"Gotta keep you on your toes!" Sunny chirped as he leaned back in. Rocking on his heels and lightly swinging on his arm. He raised a hand to wave at Mike and Jeremy, who looked mildly amused and relieved respectively.

"Guess that means you're feeling better," Charlie continued.

"Me? I feel great! All ready-Freddy for showtime tomorrow! No more stitch in my side!" Sunny gushed. He waved for them, backing into the elevator. "Come in, come in quick! We've gotta get up the elevator before the lights go out!"

Nobody had to question why he was acting like none of that had happened. The strain of exaggeration in his voice gave away how hard he was trying to play up this role. Yet as they entered the elevator, Mike had to bring it up.

"I'm sorry about what happened back there. Believe me, that was the last thing I wanted to happen. There's no way we would've been on board with that," he explained.

"Oh, no worries! All is forgiven- if there was anything to forgive! I know you didn't do it on purpose, I know," Sunny insisted. He wrung his hands together. "B-Besides, you worked so hard to turn it off- especially Charlie! Smart thinking!"

"Thanks… but do you maybe want to talk about it?" Charlie cautiously offered.

Sunny looked past her to watch Jake roll back out as she asked. The controlled Staff Bot waved and then pointed down the hallway before continuing on his way. Sunny didn't stop him, waving quickly before returning his attention to Charlie, and then flinching at the end.

"When you say talk about it you mean…" He trailed off anxiously while tapping his fingers together. Then splayed his hands with a forced laugh. "That! Well, the thing about that is that, well, that wasn't me, nope! That was Moon! Moonie gets a little squirmy sometimes. All I can remember are bits and boops here and there!"

"…Right. Okay," Charlie said. She decided to accept that with how stressed he obviously still was.

Jeremy pressed the button for the elevator and the doors slid closed before it began to lift. The elevator music began to chime through the small space, breaking up some of the suffocating silence that settled over.

Until the music suddenly cut off and the lift slowed to a stop. Leaving them suspended between two levels.

"You don't think-?"

Whatever Jeremy was asking was cut off by the lights suddenly cutting out. The Sun's glow following suit as his points pulled in and his yellow turned to blue. He was eerily quiet the entire time.

Mike clicked on his flashlight and shined it over his watch. As expected, it was the beginning of the hourly recharge. He sighed and dropped his arm to his side. "Well… At least we don't have to worry about the music getting annoying."

"AUUUUURRRRGH!"

The sudden yell from the Daycare Attendant caused everyone to jump. He grabbing at his head in exasperation before scuttling back, dropping against the opposite wall, and curling back up into a frustrated ball on the floor.

Mike's mouth stayed tight as he glanced between Jeremy and Charlie. Jeremy having that awkward look of someone witnessing a complete stranger's meltdown in a restaurant and Charlie's mask paused in a wince, giving the false impression of a half-smile. Still in the restaurant, likely recognized the stranger as an old classmate. Unsure how to approach after how Sunny desperately pretended that nothing had happened, putting it on Moon two seconds before the lights died.

Jeremy started to step forward and it was that that encouraged Mike to do so as well. He couldn't help but feel responsible for this. Obviously, the upgrade wasn't any of their faults, but this could've been avoided if he got to the Pizzaplex a little faster. At least he could've done something beyond rolling up after the fact. Though guilt was only one of the many feelings he was feeling about this situation.

He didn't want to think about how much that update sheet scared him. Just remembering the dread that gripped him when he saw that 'installing updates' pop-up made it start to creep back up. The worst kind of adrenaline rush.

Mike didn't want to sit in this cramped, dark elevator thinking about it until he worked himself up into something. So instead, he walked over and sat down alongside Moon. He didn't say anything- he knew he was already walking the line breaching this much of his personal bubble- and instead just sat there. Moon shifted slightly, barely noticeable if his wrist bells didn't jingle.

Jeremy and Charlie followed suit. Jeremy sitting beside Mike while Charlie sat on the other side of Moon. While sitting down, Jeremy had to readjust his jacket and by time he was settled in there was a little white head sticking out.

"Uh!" the Minireena fussed. Forget-Me-Not, Mike presumed.

"Shh. It's just a few minutes," Jeremy gently shushed. He tapped her head with his finger in a soft patting motion.

She stopped her fussing, but the way she slowly turned her head displayed her continued displeasure well enough. It brought a smile out of Mike.

On the other side, Charlie was sitting there with her arms folded in her lap when Moon shifted beside her. She looked down to see his arm resting on the ground, hand up, slightly turned in her direction. She looked up to him, but he had his face turned away into his other arm and pants. Though that confirmed that this wasn't just a reflex to relax his arm, but a request.

Charlie reached down and laid her hand on his and his fingers closed around it. She smiled at him even though he wasn't looking and then leaned back against the wall and waited for the lights to come back on.

…

By time the lights came back on, Sunny popped up with the same vigor is earlier and pretended that all was fine.

Though by time they actually got back to the daycare, that excitement had all but fizzled out and the act was all but over. He was practically dragging his feet through the hallway outside of the daycare, seeming all but fed up with tonight.

Sunny made a beeline straight for the slide with the intention of sliding into the daycare and getting a quick lift up to the balcony. He was stopped by a call before he could.

"Hey!" Jake yelled.

Sunny straightened up and waved back. "Hello! Miss me?"

"You? No way," he denied. "Freddy's down in the arcade. You might want to tell him you're back. He was worried about you."

"Oh? Maybe I will," Sunny said coyly. He turned and headed towards the little gate instead.

"Mari's down there too," Jake called to the others.

"Thanks!" Charlie called back.

They followed Sunny through the little gate, him going so far as to hold it open for them and headed down to the stairs. He seemed a little more excited than nervous, fluffing his ruffled collar and fixing the ribbons around his wrists.

As they approached the arcade, they could see Gregory playing an arcade game while Freddy and Marionette stood behind him and watched. He was all but shielded in front of them, playing with one hand and eating from the lunch box that had been sat on a tall stool beside him.

Marionette was wearing Mike's jacket and holding a blue ball with stars on it. He spun around the second he felt someone's gaze only to break into a delighted smile when he saw the repaired Sunny and his family all in one piece.

Sunny brushed down his pants and strode into the arcade.

"Gooood morning!" he greeted with a theatrical little twirl. Freddy turned back with a start while Gregory slightly turned but was unable to pull his eyes away from the game. "Is it just me, or is it a little brighter in here?" Sunny asked jokingly.

"Sunny! You have been repaired!" Freddy said happily. He patted Gregory's shoulder to signal he would be back and walked over towards the jester.

"Mm-hmm! Yup, all better! And it's all thanks to- Eep!"

Sunny was cut off by Freddy suddenly pulling him into a hug. One that wasn't tight enough to be painful but did leave him standing on the balls of his feet, chest to chest with Freddy's arms fully wrapped around him. The bear softly nuzzling against his retracted points. It might've caught Sunny off-guard, but he then eagerly returned it with a little giggle.

Freddy drew back with a smile and looked over his repaired chest and arm. To which Sunny couldn't help but strike a pose, one hand on his hip and the other arm bent behind his head.

"How do I look?" he playfully asked.

"You look fantastic! Glowing so bright- If I had not seen you beforehand, I would not be able to tell that you were damaged at all!" Freddy fawned. He rested a hand on Sunny's shoulder, rubbing it with his thumb. "I hope it was not too hard on you. How was it?"

"Oh, uh… It was… Fine!" Sunny said. He splayed his hands to play into the act. "Good, good! All together, all good! Went fiiine!"

Something briefly passed Freddy's face. It was so quick that it could've been missed, but it was a split second of doubt. Though Freddy covered it back up with a smile that shown through his eyes.

"I am so relieved to hear that. I was very worried about you, Sunshine," he said warmly.

"You worry too much~," Sunny said in a singsong tone. "About me, you should be worrying about that." Him emphasizing exactly who 'that' was by suddenly tilting his whole body sideways to look past him and at Gregory. "Did you clean up?"

"Yes, Mom," Gregory called back sarcastically. He seemed unconcerned about the Sun's return, but he did steal a look back when he had a moment and was satisfied to see him all back together. Maybe even relieved, but he wouldn't say that.

"Good! Now I would looove to stay and have you sweet talk me some more," Sunny said. Popping back into place and taking Freddy's hand, which had remained waiting where he left it. He gave it a squeeze before rhythmically tapping his fingers over it. "But I should really go tell Nanny I'm home. She gets awful lonely without me to brighten up her day."

"I can imagine. So do I," Freddy said with a wink.

Sunny snickered and turned on his heel, head rotating to remain in place a moment longer, and waved back at the bear before flipping it forward and rotating his face to head out.

Only to instantly turn and lock onto the onlookers inside the doorway. Jeremy had a goofy smile while Mike and Charlie had more subdued ones.

"…And what's that look?" Sunny asked suspiciously. His question aimed mostly at the blond.

"I'm really into puns," Jeremy excused.

"Ngh…" That sound seemed to suggest Sunny didn't believe him. He hurriedly headed back out the door, only to suddenly twist around and grab Charlie by the shoulders. She jumped at the suddenness. "But first! Can a borrow you for a second, pretty please?"

"Sure," Charlie agreed. He released her and she turned and followed him out. She almost expected him to take her back to Jake, but instead he just led her a little ways. Stopping beside a table against the wall of the playground area.

"First of all, I think a thank you is in order," Sunny chirped. His points spinning around his face. "Thank you, thank you! Two whole thank yous! No, three!"

"You're welcome, but I really didn't do all that much. The machine did most of it. Sorry, the 'protective cylinder'," Charlie replied.

"Au contraire! You did so, so very much for me! And I don't just mean that thing you did at the end with the knife and with me almost having a whole buncha junk forced into my head!" His voice grew tense at the end, but then recovered and softened considerably. "I-I meant being so nice to me. Especially since I haven't really been nice to you."

"Sun, I kind of barged into your home. You didn't have to be nice to me," Charlie said flippantly. "It's no big deal."

"It is a HUGE deal to me! Because I… I don't know why you're making excuses for me," Sunny admitted. "I know I'm… difficult. And I know whatever was in that update was to try and make me easier to handle."

"Have you heard them say that?" she quietly asked. Wondering if this was why he didn't like the technicians.

"Are you kidding? They talk about me like I'm not even here! Then they act all weird about it. Very rude. Very, very rude," the jester explained animatedly. Though that peppiness faltered once more, his head dropping with guilt. "You've got every reason to feel the same way…"

He trailed off for a second, slouched there, before looking back up at her. She offered him an understanding smile and he instantly perked back up. He grabbed her hand in both of his.

"Let's start over! We can be friends, right?" he offered.

"Sure! Friends," Charlie agreed. He dipped his points happily. "How about Jeremy and Mike?" she asked.

"Well, I was going to be friends with him until he gave me that look," Sunny said flatly. His eyes had darkening, almost like his eyes half-lidded without the eyelids. "…Ehh, I guess so. They really got me out of a jam. They're not too bad for former Freddy Fazbear flunkies!... Don't tell Freddy I said that. I don't think he'd find that funny."

"Somehow, I don't think Freddy would mind," she said.

"Eh, maybe not- but I'm not going to risk it! Nope, I'm going to go check up on Jake and then recharge. And by recharge, I mean I'm going to lay face down in a dark tiny room until I feel okay enough to move. Tell Jeremy if he's still here when I get up, I'll give him and his little sunflowers a super-fun tour of the tunnels! M'kay?"

"I'll do that. You just take it easy. And don't worry about us, we'll keep it lowkey for the rest of the night," Charlie offered.

He seemed content with this and with a little 'ta-ta' took off. His tiredness echoed in the lack of bounce in his steps but his posture indicating that he was feeling better. She turned and headed back to the arcade.

Mike and Marionette were coming out as she reached the door. The look on Mike's face gave away that he was about to deliver bad news.

"I need to talk to you both before I go talk with Freddy," he said, seamlessly bringing her into the conversation as the door shut behind them. "It's about what was in that upgrade."

Marionette and Charlie listened as he detailed exactly what they had found. At first Marionette had fiddled with the ball in his hands, but by the end they were still, and his attention was entirely on Mike. Charlie, meanwhile, was both shocked and unsurprised at what she was hearing. Having enough hints to have a suspicion but still shocked to hear the truth.

"So, it looks like it didn't take, which is great, but chances are they're going to try to pull that stunt again the next time he goes down there," Mike summed up. "And if that happens, his world is going to be changed forever. They're going to have a lot more control over what he does and doesn't do."

"That's insane. Do they realize how dangerous it is to just go in and tamper with an animatronic like that? To just add in all this extra programming willy-nilly? Look at what Baby had to go through to break her programming. Fritz couldn't even break it, he had to change it, and she's still having trouble trying to balance it out. It's ridiculous! And that's ignoring the moral implications of just forcing someone's personality to change to make the 'easier to deal with'," Charlie said.

The rambling nature of her explanation betrayed her fear while the tone gave away her frustration. Both feelings shared by Marionette.

"Frankly, I'm not surprised at all. You'd best believe they would've done the same thing to us if they had the technology. They nearly did with blocking out the saferooms," Marionette remarked. "You're right. We should tell Freddy… Though if Sunny's already aware of it like Charlie said, then he might already know."

"Then maybe he knows more. Freddy doesn't seem like the keeping secrets type," Mike pointed out. All three looked in at the bear who was currently standing there while Jeremy played the game. Having taken over for Gregory who took a break to eat more sandwich. Mike sighed and opened the door. "Let's get this over with."

Freddy looked back when the door opened and waved.

"Hey, Freddy," Mike said back. "Can we talk to you for a second?"

Freddy agreed and started to come over.

"I'm going to leave this to you two," Charlie said. They agreed, letting her between them so she could take Freddy's former spot. The bear offered her a high five as she passed, so she gave him one.

Freddy walked up to Mike and Marionette with a smile on his face and in his eyes. "Greetings once again! Mike, I would like to thank you for taking such good care of Sunny," Freddy thanked.

"Don't mention it," he answered, scratching the back of his neck. It was hard doing this when Freddy seemed so happy. "Speaking of Sunny, we were wondering if we could ask you a few questions."

"Is this about what happened with Sunny's repair?" Freddy asked. His voice lowering as he did.

"You know what happened?" Mike asked in confusion. Freddy shook his head.

"I know that something happened. Sunny cannot hide when something is bothering him, and when he does it means that it is worse than if he did not… What happened?"

"Well, what almost happened was that Sunny nearly got a software update, but they put a stop to it," Marionette explained. "We were wondering what you knew about these updates."

Freddy seemed taken aback, but as expected he was forthright.

"Sometimes our… behavior is not fitting of a mascot at the Mega Pizzaplex. When that happens, we receive software upgrades to correct it," he explained. Just from the quietness and hesitation it was clear that he understood the seriousness of what he was saying. "…What was it for?" Freddy dared to ask.

Mike took a deep breath and sighed. "There was a list of stuff, but there were a few that concerned us more than the others. Like one that made it so Sunny couldn't leave the daycare unless an employee was with him, and another that would've installed some sort of shutoff phrase. Basically, someone would say the phrase and Sunny, or Moon, would shut down on the spot."

"That is… Why would they do that? I know that some employees and children may be scared of Sunny, but he is an excellent Daycare Attendant! I just do not understand. First his unfinished room and now this…" Freddy gave a discontented noise. "…He is just returning to his room, yes? He will be back?"

"Charlie, Sunny's coming back?" Mike called over to her.

"I think he's going to sleep this off," Charlie called back.

"Then that is fine. Anything he needs to recover," Freddy agreed. He seemed rather distressed, and that made Mike feel bad for causing it.

"I'm sorry to have to be the bearer of bad news. I didn't want to distract you when you've got your hands full-," he started to apologize. He was quickly cut off.

"I need to know. I am more upset that I did not notice it sooner… But rest assured that I will not be distracted. Gregory comes first… That is not to say that Sunny does not also come first, but since he is resting my full attention is on Gregory. And you all as well! And my bandmates and so on."

"You're spreading yourself thin, Freddy."

"I am the pizza crust of Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex. I can be cut into slices to be shared amongst all of my friends."

That comment was goofy enough to get a smile out of both Mike and Marionette.

"We appreciate it, Freddy. You've been doing a lot tonight. Especially since you too were on the chopping block earlier," Marionette remarked. He kept his voice light as he asked, "Have you ever had a software update, Freddy?"

"Not that I recall. I remember Monty has received a few, such as one for when he joined the band as the bassist, and Chica has had a few," he answered.

"Ah, good." No firsthand experience, but also no having to worry about Freddy. "Thank you for being open with us. We'll let you get back to the game. We're going to step out for a moment, but we'll join you in a minute."

"I hope you do! I know that tonight has been rough on us all, but perhaps we can have a little fun before it's over," Freddy offered. He regained some of his pep from earlier, but they were sure he was still bothered. More so he was doing exactly what he said, putting everyone first. He returned to the game where he immediately shot a compliment at Jeremy's playing skills and ruffled Gregory's hair. Back to being good ol' Freddy.

Meanwhile, Mike and Marionette stepped back out into the daycare proper.

"We did the right thing in telling him. Even if he already knew, he deserves to know the full extent. Chances are we won't be here when they try it again," Marionette assured him. His hands resting on his shoulders.

"That's true. I'm glad he's going back to the game. I don't know what it is about Freddy, but it kills me having to bring him down like that," Mike confessed.

Marionette could tell that Mike was worn out. Between his tone, posture, and expression this night had done a number on him. He wasn't the only one, but he was the one showing the effects of the night in total, how it wore on him. Because of this, he decided to keep the mood light. Maybe a more positive direction was in order.

"I know what you mean. I can see why Foxy likes spending time with him… And on that note, you will not believe what I squeezed into today," Marionette hinted.

"…Washing machine?" Mike guessed.

"Close! As a matter of fact, I-." The Puppet drew out the 'I' to spin around him, adding a little flourish to his announcement. "-Climbed inside of Freddy Fazbear himself, the crust of Freddy Fazbear's pizza."

"Wait, what?" Mike asked with surprise.

"Yes! I decided to finally face my fear! No longer would I be at the mercy of nightmares of being trapped in a bear. I would put myself in that bear and climb out on my own, and I did! And I survived to tell the tale," Marionette playfully boasted.

"Mari, that's great! I can't believe you did that!" Mike applauded. He hooked an arm around him and pulled him in. Intending to give him a kiss on the cheek when Marionette smoothly turned and caught him on the lips.

They stayed together for a few moments, exchanging what warmth and affection they could in what felt like a fleeting moment through a long night. Comfort that they both needed, accompanied by a pleasant tingle they were familiar with. Only pulling apart to allow Mike room to breathe, with Marionette gently resting his head against his.

They stood there in silence until Mike broke it.

"It's a shame I missed it. I would've loved to see the look on Freddy's face," he said.

To which Marionette laughed. "It's not like I yanked him open and jumped in!" He nuzzled closet, cool porcelain on warm skin. "We don't have to stay all night you know. I can tell that you're tired and it's been such a long night already. Freddy's with Gregory and Sunny's with Jake, and Foxy's bound to show up any time now. I think it's safe to go home."

"Maybe… Let's just stick around for another hour to make sure things stay quiet. I can make it that long," Mike suggested. Marionette found this reasonable and agreed.

Eventually the two separated but didn't head back into the arcade just yet. They just strolled a little further into the daycare, hands still interlocked, not saying anything but not needing to.

Somewhere along the line, Marionette looked into the windows of the daycare and at the tunnel filled structures, and he got an idea.

"Remember that night at Hickory's?" he asked, breaking the silence.

"How can I forget? I got bit by a rabid sheep. Come to think of it, I got bit by the same rabid sheep that bit Jeremy," Mike answered.

"No, I mean our night at Hickory's. The one where we spent the whole night hiding from Music Man, Orville the Elephant, and the local police department," Marionette corrected. He got a playful smile. "This isn't too different from Hickory's, is it? Plenty of arcade machines, the constant risk of being caught and arrested, and there's even a Music Man in here somewhere!"

Mike got an amused smile. "What are you suggesting?"

"Let's recapture those old memories! There's a whole nest of play tunnels right there and completely unguarded!" the Puppet pointed out. "What did Freddy say about getting in what fun we could tonight?"

"Is that what you call fun, falling asleep in a plastic tube?" Mike teased.

"As a matter of fact, I do," Marionette retorted. He gave a playful tug towards the wooden doors. "Shall we?"

There was only one answer to that.

"Why the hell not?"