Mable: Enjoy!
Going Home in a Box
Chapter Twenty-Six
"Gregory?"
Gregory didn't realize he was falling asleep until he woke up. He was still in the same position with his head resting on his folded arms which were on his knees, which wasn't especially comfortable but good enough with how tired he was. He could hear and feel Freddy climbing out of the recharge station.
"I'm awake," he said groggily, rubbing his eyes. It couldn't have been that long because it barely felt like he slept. "Are you charged up?"
"Well… No, but the recharge cycle is complete. I should have enough power to last us for a while, long enough to continue looking for another exit," Freddy explained. He sounded uneasy, which was explained by his next comment. "Vanessa just passed by and went into the daycare. She did not see me, but I do not want to risk being here if she comes back through."
"Yeah. Let's get out of here," Gregory agreed. He tried to not let his unease come through on his voice, not wanting Freddy to know that he was even the slightest bit scared. Not that the security guard was any scarier than the animatronics, but she definitely had more of an effect on what would happen after he got out of here. If he got out of here. "…Do you think that sun guy's going to tell her what happened?"
"I am not sure. Whatever happened in the daycare, Sunny did not seem pleased with you. I have never heard of him banning someone before!... Though the daycare has only been opened for one day, so perhaps it is not that surprising…" Freddy trailed off for a moment before continuing. "That aside, I do not believe he will. He doesn't trust the human employees. We are more at a risk of him telling Chica, Monty, and Roxy, and then them telling Vanessa."
"Yeah, he said that. That he didn't trust her. I don't blame him, I don't trust her either," Gregory remarked. It was still the only thing they agreed about. "…So, he doesn't like humans? Is that why he was being so creepy and chasing me around?"
"No, no! Sunny is very good with children! It is just that he works with much younger children. I could imagine it would be difficult to adjust to working with a child out of his age range, such as yourself," Freddy explained. Gregory made a scoffing little huff noise. "Due to overhauls required at the daycare, Sunny has had to receive frequent maintenance work, which I believe led to his distrust of the employees… He has gone through quite a lot. Please, try to be nice to him."
"What does that mean?" Gregory asked defensively.
"…There used to be two daycare attendants."
That was an answer to a question the boy hadn't asked, but something about the way Freddy said it and the implications behind those words halted any correction in its tracks. Just the bear's drop in tone seemed to hold a weight that any normal child would have trouble grasping. Not Gregory, he knew exactly what that tone was solemnly implying, even if it was about robots.
"What happened to the other one?"
"I am not entirely sure…"
There was a pause.
"Well… It's too late for that. I already got 'banned from the daycare'," Gregory said, mimicking the Sun's voice. Freddy chuckled warmly, his chest rumbling around him. "So, what's Monty's problem?"
"Hmm, I am not sure on that either. He seemed to be acting normal with Chica and Roxy… but what I heard in the office was anything but normal," Freddy said. His voice grew pensive and concerned. "It is just not like Monty to be that way. He is laid back and relaxed, chilling out on stage just as he chills out on the golf course- like a real alligator!"
"Uh, don't alligators eat people?" Gregory asked.
"Well… Perhaps… But this one eats Pizza Gumbo! He does not count."
"He was acting like he wanted to eat me."
"Perhaps it was a security protocol. Monty needed to get to you and when he could not it caused his systems to get confused. I highly doubt he would have ever seen you as a threat, but… but Monty does have a habit of taking out his frustrations on anything in sight. And that is anything, not person," Freddy suggested.
Gregory wanted to argue that he wasn't there, that he hadn't seen Monty, but he decided that it wasn't worth the effort. Freddy, on the other hand, noticed the boy's silence and knew it wasn't a contented one. He too thought it was best to just leave it there, because there was nothing, he could say to explain what Monty had done. He didn't understand it, so he couldn't excuse it.
There was a few moments of silence only punctuated by the thumping of Freddy walking downstairs, and he only broke that silence once reaching the bottom.
"I have located two possible exit points that may circumvent the nighttime protocols. The first being the fire escape and the second being the loading docks exit. The fire escape can be escaped through at any time in case of an emergency. My only fear is that it will activate an alarm upon opening. The loading docks exit is kept under less security for nighttime and early morning deliveries. I believe that one would be better."
"Okay. How do we get there?"
"We are on our way as we speak!" Freddy proudly proclaimed. "We will just have to cross through the kitchen. Which we will be doing after we ride down on the staff elevator."
Gregory just allowed Freddy to take the wheel. This was the closest he had to a free ride all day and his legs were thankful for it, even if Freddy bumping down the stairs wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world. Though progress was progress, and every jarring step was a step away from getting caught.
That was, until the steps stopped. Until he could hear a rattling noise as Freddy fidgeted with something and hummed.
"What?" Gregory asked. He had a creeping suspicion that something else was about to go wrong.
"It seems that the door to the kitchens is locked. I cannot understand why they would- Oh… Hmm…" Freddy stopped yanking at the knob and took a step back. He rested his hands on his hips as he looked around and tried to think of another way. "The problem we have is that the elevator to the lower kitchens is behind this door. There is another way through, but I am almost certain it too will be locked. The other alternative is through the tunnels, but that is not… preferable."
But Freddy wouldn't make it through the tunnels. They both knew this. He would be forced to stop and charge, and it would eat up the precious time they had before someone caught wind that they were travelling together.
Gregory was, unfortunately, out of options. He barely knew the Pizzaplex, let alone could concoct an idea to get out of it- especially when he was currently grounded inside of Freddy, so the bear was the one who had to figure this out. He tried to consider his options quickly. He knew of only two direct ways into the kitchen but knew there had to be more. He just didn't have access to full detailed maps. Not like the Staff Bots who had overlapping routes.
It was that thought on which an idea formed. That and him noticing a large vent in the wall nearby, just as big as the one behind his green room and flush to the floor.
"I believe I have an idea, but it is not without risks," Freddy said pensively. He then popped open his stomach hatch while looking over his shoulder to check for anyone behind him. "Here, take a look."
Gregory cautiously leaned out a little, though it didn't take much to see what Freddy wanted him to. "Another vent?"
"I cannot be certain, but I believe that this vent may let out somewhere behind this door. Climb out and let me show you something," Freddy coaxed. Gregory did as told with only a little reluctance. The bear crouched down on one knee and pointed a claw to his watch. "Now, your Faz-Watch has a special button right- Gregory! Where are your shoes?!"
Gregory knew he had forgotten something the second he felt the cold tiles sticking to his feet. "…I guess they're the sun guy's now."
Freddy gave a disapproving hum but knew it was too late to do anything about it now. He went ahead and took Gregory's wrist in a gently hand as he pointed out a middle button with the other.
"This is an emergency button. As you are on my server frequency, when you press that button, it will alert me to your location. If you go through the vent, come out the other side, and press the button, it should lead me to you. In theory."
"Won't it just lead you to the door?" Gregory asked skeptically.
"That is the good part! The mapping system it uses to pinpoint your location is the same system used for assigning Staff Bot routes. It will lead me along the same path they are supposed to take, so none of the doors will be locked… However, it may still take me a few minutes to get to you depending on how far the detour takes me. Would you be alright until I reached you?"
Freddy's eyes were wide with questioning and concern and Gregory felt rather small under them, even when the bear was kneeling down to almost his level. He looked away quickly as to not tip him off that the idea of splitting up again made him increasingly nervous. He was very close to outright protesting the idea, but then Freddy would know he was scared, and he didn't want that. That was just embarrassing.
"I guess so… Guess I'm not going to run into those other guys if they're all stuck in the daycare," Gregory thought. That was a welcomed thought. He got a more determined look. "Okay. I'll do it."
"At-a-boy! I know you will do fine. Just be careful, and if at any time you cannot continue onwards turn around and come back. We can always find another way," Freddy warmly assured him. His eyes darted to the side momentarily, betraying concern before his voice could. "…There is one small thing."
"What?"
"As far as I know, I am the only one who is alerted when the emergency button is pressed. Though I would not be surprised if Vanessa also gets an alert. If that happens, she may come looking for you and you will need to hide, but do not worry. I will still come, even if I lead her away or must hide myself. It would be best if she does not see me."
"Then we just get to the loading dock before she does and we don't even have to run into her," Gregory proclaimed. Freddy's worried tone was starting to seep through, so he had to shut that down before it risked getting mushy. "Can you open it up for me?"
"Of course! Please step back."
Gregory stepped back. Freddy started to reach for the grate before looking back at him and pausing.
"…Please step back a little further."
Gregory tightened his mouth and took a few more steps. Only then did Freddy slip his claws around the loose edge of the vent and pull it off in one swift motion. He propped it up against the wall beside it and looked back to the boy. Gregory came forward and shined his flashlight into the vent. It looked like the other one without much else of note.
"You do not have to do this. We can stay together if you would prefer," Freddy offered, giving him one last out. He shook his head.
"I can do it. I did it last time," Gregory said. He then crouched down and began to crawl into the vent. Freddy stayed knelt behind him and watched until he took a corner and disappeared from sight.
The inside of the vent wasn't much different than the last one either, save that the air wafting through it was warmer and had a slight, lingering food scent. He supposed that made sense since it was connected to the kitchens. He could hear a rattling coming from somewhere but couldn't tell from where. He crawled along the tight passage for a while, it opening into a larger room momentarily where he found vent covers on the floor.
Almost like something had come through here already. That was an uncomfortable thought, but so far, he hadn't heard or seen anything else, so he pressed onwards.
The shaft continued a little further before it suddenly sloped down. This raised a few red flags, being that he was supposed to be let out on this floor, but he had climbed an upward slope earlier and assumed somehow it would justify itself. It was, again, a rather gentle slope. He started to crawl down it, but the smoothness mixed with the slope and an oily sort of finish caused him to slide down, stopping himself at the next turn.
That wasn't so bad. Wasn't too much different that the slide. He readjusted himself and pushed down the next slope, then was able to go around the next one with the slightest push, and then suddenly- and it was so sudden that he couldn't stop himself- the bottom of the vent opened up and he was falling headfirst into the room before. Before he could even consider how much it was going to hurt, he landed face first into laundry cart full of oily, sticky drop cloths.
Other than falling at a weird angle and the aftereffects of the adrenaline, Gregory was alright, and pushed himself up with a groan.
"Gregory?! Gregory, what happened?! Are you alright?!"
He sat back in the cart and pressed the watch's message button. "I'm fine. I just fell out of the vent into some kind of cart thing."
"What?! Are you hurt?!"
"No, I'm fine! I'm fine! I landed on a bunch of gross sheets," he insisted. This wasn't the time to get fussed on by Freddy.
"Thank goodness! When I heard you scream through the vent, I was afraid something terrible had happened. I would have never been able to forgive myself," Freddy confessed, quieting towards the end. "Now then, what do you see?"
Gregory took a look at the room around him. "I'm in some sort of room with brick walls. There's red tanks on both sides of me with stickers of your face on them, and there's pipes, and one of those carts they move stuff on."
"Hmm, it sounds like you may have fallen into the basement. Can you press that emergency button?" Gregory did and could hear Freddy make a little sound on the other end of the line. It sort of sounded like the noise Sunny made when the tower of barrels got knocked over, but unlike him Freddy returned to normal quickly. "My suspicion was correct. It seems that you have fallen into the basement, right outside the main kitchen."
"Ugh, that's just great! How am I supposed to get back up now?!" Gregory vented. Looking up at the vent he had just come through he knew instantly that he wasn't going back that way.
"No, Gregory, this is a good thing! The loading dock IS in the basement, and you are on the right path to it. I have been given access to the path to your location and am on my way!... It will take me a few minutes like I suspected."
"Then can I keep going?" the boy asked as he climbed out of the cart. Freddy was silent for a long moment, seemingly hesitant to agree to it. "Come on, I made it this far. Then it'll take you less time to find me."
"Hmm, that is true… And there should not be anyone down there… And you are very close to the kitchen… Very well. You have my permission to continue on ahead," Freddy said. Gregory scrunched his face at the comment. He wasn't asking for 'permission' to do anything. "Now be careful, cadet. This alien planet has been unexplored by scouts. There could be hostile lifeforms around every corner!" The boy relaxed once more.
"I'll be careful, uh… Captain?"
"Oh, no, no! Captain is Foxy's name. Please, call me Chief."
"Oookay, Chief," Gregory said with a tinge of playful smugness. Then he let his arm drop to his side and started to look around for where to go. It looked like there was a way to the left and right, but he took the left.
He walked past a line of lockers and up to a security door that matched the ones that led into the office he hid from Monty in. It was unlocked and opened automatically for him to step through, but the office inside was only barely like the one he had been in before. There were a bunch of little screens and some large ones all tight together with office chairs squeezed in between them, but the most noticeable thing was all of the thick wires strung around, one even sparking.
Gregory decided it was best to just cross through and not get himself electrocuted in the process. An idea that was only encouraged by one of the wires hanging by the door twitching as he passed. He spared it a brief look while rushing by.
He stepped through the next door and stared in shock and awe at what lay past it. The room was filled with huge tanks that were only separated by a metal walkway. He carefully stepped down onto the walkway and began to walk in between the massive containers, which were grey with red Pizzaplex logos on them but had no further details explaining what they were for.
Looking down he saw something thick and dirty under the grating. Gregory stuck out his tongue at it and lifted his eyes to the tanks and the watch to his mouth. "Hey, Freddy? This room is full of huge tanks! What's it for?"
"Huge tanks?... Oh! You must be at the Fizzy Faz vats! All of the Fizzy Faz served in the Pizzaplex is manufactured, canned, and sold by the Pizzaplex. That is why Fizzy Faz is only sold here. For now, at least."
"Do you think they might have some just… lying around somewhere?" Gregory asked. "I'm thirsty."
"Hello, Thirsty. I am Chief Fazbear."
"Ugh, Freddy!" Gregory said grumpily. Freddy gave a good-natured chuckle. "I'm just going to keep going," he said. He continued down the walkway towards a blue door in a yellow wall. There was a suitcase looking sign mounted beside it.
"I would be happy to get you a drink once we make it to the loading docks," the bear offered warmly.
"Don't worry about it. Over and out," Gregory said. He then opened the unlocked door and stepped into an office.
This one wasn't a security office, just a bunch of desks with computers on them. The whole room had a strangely murky color to it, from the dark carpet to the deep green walls, so Gregory didn't feel like sticking around. He crossed through quickly and opened the door on the next side. Just like before, the scene rapidly changed as he found himself on yet another walkway. This time on one above a large kitchen.
He looked down over the railing as he walked to the next door, which was also unlocked. It led into another hallway with another security door and this time a little window to peek into and see the office inside. Dark, with a large screen and a bunch of small ones and some boxes stacked on the other side.
"Why's there so many security offices?" Gregory quietly asked himself. He looked through the window with scrutiny. "…And only one security officer?"
It was weird, but not weird enough for him to really stop and think about it. He continued on to a flight of stairs and stepped down them before turning back to the door behind them, in the direction of the kitchen. He was rewarded with a sign over the door that proudly proclaimed, "Exit To Docks," and hurriedly ran over before pushing through. It led into the kitchen just like he expected it to.
In the dim light of the costume, another "Exit To Docks" sign was illuminated above a door on the other side of the kitchen. Gregory began to hustle across the room and was about to burst through just like last time when his eyes caught something off to the side. Up until now he had largely ignored whatever he was passing on his quest to the loading docks, but that flat of Fizzy Faz cans was hard to ignore.
Gregory stopped outside the door and stared at the lot of cans, looking between the two for a few seconds, then slowly inching towards the latter. While looking around to make sure nobody was nearby, paranoia creeping up once more. All of the cans were orange with Freddy's visage, meaning they were all the same flavor. He pulled one out and noticed the cans weren't exactly cool either, but at this point he was willing to drink out of a bathroom sink.
He cracked open the can and looked around with paranoia again. If not for some crazed animatronic hearing, then Freddy himself seeing it, deeming him a troublemaker, and handing him over willingly to the security lady. Freddy didn't seem like the type, but Gregory knew better than to get too comfortable. Sometimes the nicest smiles hid the coldest people.
But the Fizzy Faz was definitely not cold. That was fine though, because other than being excessively bubbly the flavor was pretty good. Sweet and tangy, tasting almost like orange candy more than the fruit, and it helped that he was so thirst that even that grime clogging up underneath the Fizzy Faz tanks might've tasted good.
Then, right as he was gulping it down, there came a thump. He yanked the can down and looked up and around as he listened. That was a weird noise, a heavy clunking noise, that sounded like a metal door shutting or heavy stuff being moved.
Gregory lifted his watch to his mouth. "Freddy, is that you?" he whispered into it.
"I'm… n… ay…!" Freddy's scrambled voice spoke through. There was something creepy about how staticky it was after the clarity either. His words barely coming through a lot of pulsing static.
"Freddy?! I can't hear you!" he whispered back. Though there was no response. He pulled his finger off the button and looked around with growing discomfort. He couldn't hear anything else, but he didn't feel safe, and he started to back towards the doors. Still carrying the Fizzy Faz can as he pushed through them and into the next room.
The Loading Dock wasn't nearly as futuristic as he was imagining. With all the space theming upstairs, he half-heartedly hoped that it would be neon and spaceship thing, like the loading dock in a spaceship. Instead, it was the same grimy normality as everything else once he stepped below the ground floor. He wasn't surprised, he was just disappointed.
Instead, it was concrete floors and large, shuttered doors for trucks to drop off stuff into towards the right. There were a couple of forklifts and most of the far-left side of the room was made of freestanding shelves.
What caught his attention right away a lone desk on the far side of the room that almost looked like a smaller security desk, and the door sitting beside it with an exit sign above it. This must've been the exit that Freddy had been talking about. Gregory ran over to see it better, then set the can down on the desk and pressed the button on his watch.
But before the other's name could make it past his lips, noise began to spill forth from the watch. It was that same static he had heard while trying to talk to Freddy a few minutes ago, but it was worse now. Loud and crackly, crunchy, and pulsing like a heartbeat. The whines and crackles only briefly displaced by the pounding throb of a tone building in the back, slowly getting louder and clearer, like a warning sound.
"Fre- Freddy?" Gregory managed. There was no answer, not even the quietest murmur of Freddy's voice. Just that growing, pulsing, throbbing sound growing against the static.
It uneased him and eventually he reached the point where he couldn't bare it any longer and pulled his finger off the button. The Faz-Watch silenced instantly.
Fast enough to hear a door creaking open.
Gregory snapped his head back towards the left side of the room with wide eyes. There were a few large boxes blocking his way and he cautiously stepped to the side to see around them. There was another door on that left wall. Blue in color, like many of the doors he passed already, and illuminated by a sole light above it. It was sitting halfway open.
He stared at it without daring to step any closer, knowing that something was holding it open on the other side and that it couldn't and wouldn't be Freddy. He breathed shallowly and quietly as he waited for it to come through, but it didn't. It felt like ages were passing and nothing had happened, as though it was waiting for him.
Eventually Gregory couldn't stand the tension anymore and called out, "Who's there?"
He got his answer in the form of gloved fingers curling around the edge of the door.
The boy could only watch as a second hand joined the first, then a pair of ears poked out from behind. The greyish white fabric was a dead giveaway that it wasn't any of the animatronics he had seen but another being entirely. As its head slowly peeked out, he found himself under the gaze of another set of glowing red eyes. This time the belonged to a white rabbit.
It leaned out further until he could see its face fully and recognized right away that it didn't look like a robot, that it was wearing something akin to a Halloween costume mask, but that didn't mean it felt like a human either. Just looking at it made his eyes ache for some reason and that alone made his heart pound harder than it already was.
It lifted a single hand from the door and waved its padded fingers at him in greeting before turning its hand over and beckoning him.
There was no way. Gregory couldn't find his voice, but he certainly found the will to shake his head and refuse the offer. The rabbit beckoned a little more insistently, more animatedly, like a cartoon character, like a proper animatronic.
"No," he said. His voice was weak. He wanted to yank up his watch and call Freddy, but he was afraid any sudden movements.
The hand slowly lowered to the door and the rabbit stared at him for a long moment. Then it slowly slunk back behind the door. A long moment passed where he continued staring at the door, knowing it didn't leave and waiting with bated breath for whatever it was going to do.
What it did was catch the edge of the door with a bunny shaped foot, or costume boot, and suddenly yank it open all the way in one dramatic flair, revealing itself in full standing in the doorway. It was a tall white rabbit- not as tall as the animatronics but tall to Gregory- with a stretched open smile and vacant red eyes. It stood in the doorway staring at him for a long moment before it started to move.
It stepped through the doorway and immediately into a dance. Stretching its arms above its head and raising up on the balls of its feet, then lowering down before bobbing back up with languid movements of its arms. It was almost like a slow, awkward ballet, performed by someone who had probably never done it before. In the next step it started moving towards him.
It began a tiptoed little shuffle across the floor, arms bent at its sides, hands waving back and forth in front of it, creeping ever closer. This was interrupted by a little kick to the side followed by a step forward that turned into a twirl that came to a dead stop only a few steps in front of him, where it ended its performance with a theatric bow. Even if he wasn't creeped out, he would've been speechless.
The rabbit slowly lifted itself back up with its arms still at its sides and looked at him for a long second. It leaned forward and cocked its head quizzically, and he leaned back in response.
"Are you having fun yet…?"
Its voice was strange. Feminine but garbled up. Sort of like how Freddy's voice was on the watch but Gregory could hear her words clearly.
"What?" he asked.
"Are. You. Having. Fun. Yet?" she repeated. Slowly leaning in further with every punctuated word.
"N-No," Gregory defiantly answered. Though his shakiness betrayed his fear. "Who are you?"
"Who in the world am I?" the bunny asked faintly. Then she gave a little hop, popping her hands up to pose beside her face. "My name's Vanny. Vanny the Bunny, and I love to play games." She tucked her arms behind her back and leaned back in. "Would you like to play a game with Vanny the Bunny?"
Gregory shook his head. He tucked his own hands behind his back like she had, but it was so he could rapidly press the emergency button and hope Freddy could hear.
"No?" Vanny asked. She slowly tilted her head in the other direction. "But what if… you were already playing?"
He continued pressing the emergency button as fast as he could as he took a cautious step back. He was starting to breath faster, just edging on hyperventilating as the rabbit slid her foot forward like she was going to close that space. Like she was about to make a leap for him.
But before he could run, before she could grab him, before anything else could happen, he started to hear a heavy thumping noise. Quiet at first but quickly growing louder as it grew closer. He knew that it had to be Freddy.
Sure enough, the kitchen doors flew open and there was Freddy sprinting in. Gregory immediately ran for him, making a wide circle away from Vanny out of fear of getting grabbed.
"Open! Open!" he called. Freddy opened his stomach hatch without another word and Gregory practically dove inside, helped by the bear to climb in fully.
As he turned around in the cavity, he caught sight of Vanny waving at him. That was the last thing he saw before the hatch closed up and sealed him inside.
"Gregory, what happened?" Freddy asked worriedly. Gregory was still breathing heavily, and it took him just a few gulps to recover enough to speak.
"It's that rabbit lady! I-I think she was going to hurt me, and the watch wasn't working!" he blurted out.
"Rabbit lady?! What rabbit lady?" Freddy asked in surprise.
"That-! She's right there! Over by the desk! She was right in front of me!" He could hear the shifting of metal as Freddy looked over. The long moment of silent searching didn't bode well. "…You can't see here?"
"I… I do not see anyone."
"Open up," Gregory instructed. Scared or not, he had to see it for himself. There was no way that she could be gone.
But when Freddy opened his chest, she was gone. Gregory was in enough disbelief to lean out and look around the large room. Freddy loyally turned with his leaning, both so he could see and that he wouldn't risk falling out. There was no sign of her. He knew she could've been hiding somewhere in the room, but from where he did see she seemed to have vanished into nothing.
"What…? No! She's gotta still be in here! Over there, look at those shelves!" Gregory insisted. Freddy walked closer, keeping a safe distance, and allowed both of them to peek around the shelves. She wasn't there, and in her light-colored suit it should've been easy to see her. "I don't understand. She must've ran out the door… But how come you didn't see her? You didn't see her standing right beside me?"
"I did not. When I came in, I only saw you!... Hmm, though I did notice minor glitching around the edges of my vision. Perhaps my visual feed was corrupted, and I could not see her… That is still very strange."
"You believe me, right?" Gregory asked suspiciously. He looked up at the bear's face, with Freddy looking surprised by the question.
"Of course I believe you! I saw how frightened you were- not frightened, startled. My apologies," Freddy said. Gregory's less than pleased look suggested that he was digging himself deeper. "It is just that… there is not a rabbit at the pizzeria…" He closed his eyes as though in pain, making a motion similar to if he was mimicking taking a deep breath as his hands slowly clenched. "…Not anymore."
Gregory recognized that tone and his browns slowly drew together. Before he could ask though, Freddy suddenly seemed to snap back into a more upbeat persona almost instantly.
"But good news, Gregory: you have made it to the loading docks! And you made it here on your own. I am so proud of you," he assured. His eyes brightening up and his voice warm, and Gregory feeling a little awkward getting all this mushiness while currently half-hanging out of his chest. "You were very brave tonight, Superstar."
"Let's just get out of here before she comes back," Gregory dismissed.
"Yes, that would be for the best. Let us see…" He turned towards the desk before perking further. "Good news again! There is a phone on the desk. You can call your parents to come and get you," Freddy said. He carried Gregory over before letting him down to the floor, not noticing the boy's lack of a response. He then guided him over to the desk with a hand on his shoulder, stopping him in front of the landline phone.
The boy stared at it but made no attempt to pick it up. Freddy could sense his hesitation.
"It is okay, Gregory. They will not be upset with you, they will just be relieved that you are safe," he assured him.
Gregory stared at the phone for a moment longer before taking a deep breath and picking it up from the receiver. He poised his finger over the four button and hesitated again, but this time looked up at Freddy who was standing behind him.
"Hey, can you look over that way?" he asked, pointing towards the space between the kitchen door and the one the rabbit came in, towards a passage blocked by a fence. "I don't want anyone sneaking up on us."
"I would be happy to," Freddy assured. He turned around, folding his arms in front of him as though standing guard.
Gregory looked back to the phone. After another beat, he quickly dialed in ten numbers, and then as quietly as he could pressed the receiver button to cancel the call. He kept the phone tightly pressed to his ear, even while it droned a dial tone.
"Hey, Mom. It's me… I went to Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex, the one on that commercial, but I got lost and locked in. But I got some help, and I found a way out. Can you come pick me up?... Okay! Thanks!" Gregory hung up the phone. "You were right, she wasn't mad. She's going to come pick me up."
Freddy turned back to face him. For a second, he had a strange look on his face. Probably because of how quick the phone call was, Gregory assumed. "We don't live far away, so she'll be here any minute!"
"That is… good. I am glad you got ahold of her at this time of night," Freddy said with a vague tone.
"She, uh, she stays up pretty late. Her and dad," he excused. "So… I should just go wait out in the parking lot. The door's open, right?"
"It is, and it should not sound an alarm… But perhaps you would like that drink before you go? I am sure you are famished too. Perhaps I could find something we could cook. We are right beside a kitchen, after all," Freddy tempted.
This was weird. Earlier Freddy had been so on-board with letting him leave and now here he was having second thoughts. Gregory felt that suspicion creeping up but tried not to get defensive just yet. This was Freddy, the only person who had been helpful and friendly this entire time. He wasn't going to suddenly turn into a completely different person.
"I already got one," he said, pointing to the can on the desk. Freddy looked at the can and then reached over to pick it up with his claws.
"…But this Fizzy Faz is not appropriate temperature! It will not give the same refreshing sensation that an ice cold one will. There should be some in the fridges-."
"There's no time for that. My mom will be here any minute, so I should really get outside."
"But…" Freddy caught himself at the last second. He closed his mouth and looking into the lower corner thoughtfully, then looked back to Gregory, a sort of sadness in his eyes. "If you are certain. It is… against protocol, but I am willing to let you go… But I am also willing to break protocol and let you stay. At least, until your mother arrives."
"No, that's okay. I'm good," Gregory assured. Though right after he said that he got this weird feeling in his stomach. Not a twisting of fear or a gnaw of hunger, but a sinking sad sort of feeling. Maybe because he realized that this was goodbye and, in all likelihood, they would never see each other again. "So… I guess this is goodbye."
"I suppose it is. Will you come back?" Freddy asked. Seeing the confusion Gregory's face, he quickly corrected, "Not to stay afterhours I meant during the daytime, when we can properly spend time together."
"You don't think I've been banned from this place too? If that lady saw me come back, she'd come after me."
"She is only the nighttime security guard. If you came during the day, then it would surely be safe!" Freddy assured. Gregory looked a little concerned. "And if you are able to make it in, I may just be able to find an unclaimed Superstar VIP pass.~ I think you have more than earned it being so brave."
"Well… Maaaybe," the boy said without commitment. He lifted up his wrist. "Here's your watch back."
"Keep it," Freddy assured, pushing his hand back down. "Consider it a gift for getting me out of my room. Though we will not be able to communicate once you leave the premises. Oh! However, if you do return, you can use it to contact me! Yes, it is best that you keep it with you. To remember me by."
"I don't think I'll ever forget tonight," Gregory joked. He then dropped his arm to his side and walked to the door, looking back one last time. "…Goodbye Freddy."
"Goodbye, Superstar," Freddy said solemnly. That concerned and sad look took his eyes again as Gregory turned away to open the door.
The boy stepped out into the parking lot section designated to trucks. The smell of asphalt still lingering in the night air as he stepped out of the light, still holding the door open as he looked back at Freddy one last time. The bear gave him a warm smile and a wave, hiding that trepidation behind both, and Gregory returned it with a more subdued version of both. Then he let the door shut.
Gregory had made it out.
Freddy was still standing by the door long after he had left.
This whole night had been a disaster for Natalie. There had been alerts going off all over the place and yet somehow there was no sign of the kid. The few Security Staff Bots kept getting spooked by something and preemptively flagging for something that was either long gone or never there. Either that or someone was messing with her, and since she hadn't seen the rabbit, she knew that was a real possibility.
Finally, she got a real alert, but she didn't realize it wasn't a false alarm until she walked into the daycare and heard a commotion inside. She hustled down the second-floor walkway to the large wooden doors of the daycare and was surprised to see Chica, Monty, Roxanne, and the Sun standing outside of them talking. She was almost surprised to see it outside the daycare, though not as surprised as the horrifying realization that it was as tall as the other three.
It was rambling too. It looked so worked up as it flung its arms around and babbled a longwinded explanation that definitely sounded like it could've come from Ennard's mouth.
"-And then I tossed him out here and told him, 'You're banned from the daycare!' and off he went! Like nothing happened, bye-bye, no sorry, not even a, 'Good-bye, Mr. Sun. Sorry I broke your one rule and was mean to you!' Nope!" Sunny vented to the onlooking audience. His prongs twitching and some of them pulling in, showing his agitation.
He wasn't the only person who was annoyed though. Monty was especially leering at him with a surprising amount of focus compared to usual. He huffed and interrupted before the jester could go into another tangent.
"Did ya see where he went or not?" he asked gruffly.
Sunny's arms and shoulder's slouched as he leaned forward, head cocking in a sort of "are you kidding me?" sort of look. His ticking counting the seconds in his pause before he straightened back up, hands on his hips.
"I just told you! I put him right here!" He gestured his hands to where he sat the boy down. "And then he went over to-…" He trailed his hands over before spotting Natalie coming down the stairs. His points popped with an "Eep!" and he skirted right back through the small gap in the wooden doors and shut it quickly behind him.
Roxanne gave a frustrated noise as she dragged her claws down her face. "This is just a waste of time," she growled. Her ear then perked at the footsteps and looked back, seeing the security guard coming down. "Great. Keeps getting better."
"Maybe she'll have better luck than we are," Chica suggested slyly. She then flipped quickly to a more perky posture and waved to the blond. "Hi, Officer Vanessa! Any luck finding that little boy?"
"None whatsoever. Did-?"
"Neither did we! But SUNNY here has seen him," Chica interrupted and said, pointing a thumb back at the wooden doors while the other hand rested on her hip. "Sunny's a little mmm fluttery. Maybe you would have better luck getting an answer out of him!" she chirped and stepped aside, watching expectantly.
Roxanne's lidded eyes were a little more challenging in their glint, as though daring her to test that luck.
"I'll talk to him," Natalie agreed. She headed over to the door, walking past Monty who stood alongside with his arms tightly crossed, and knocked on it. "Sunny?" she called in.
She could see his white eye peek through the slender crack in the door. "Helloooo…" he said quietly, uncomfortably.
"Hey there. Chica said you saw that kid in here."
"Mmm-hmm," Sunny agreed. He then fell silent, clearly not wanting to talk with her.
Now, she considered just continuing to ask him and hope that eventually he would tell her something, but she knew from this coyness that it was going to be like pulling teeth to pull answers out of him. Except she had seen that he wanted to talk about what happened before she came up, so she decided to take a different approach.
"Did that kid give you a hard time?" she asked in her most sympathetic, matronly voice.
He cracked instantly.
"YEEESS! Oh, he was just- and he just- I can't even BEGIN! And it wouldn't have been so bad if he hadn't been so smug about it!" Sunny pushed the door open and leaned his upper body out. His points popping and fidgeting with a mix of agitation and anxiousness. "He could've gotten me in sooo much trouble and he didn't even care!"
"Well, nobody's in trouble yet. If we can find this kid and get him handed off to his parents at six, we might just avoid a lawsuit. I might even avoid losing my job," Natalie remarked. "So, if you know anything else it would really help."
"I know something," Sunny remarked. He lowered his voice and leaned further in, the closeness of his face more than a little intimidating. "His name's Gregory."
"Alright, that is something. Thanks," Natalie agreed. "Is there anything else?"
"Like can you at least point to the door he left through?" Roxanne asked from behind her. "We know you didn't just let that kid out and let him walk away. You have to know where he went."
"I-I-I'm trying!" Sunny stuttered. "I carried him right outside, plopped him down right there-." He reached out an arm to point at the same spot he had pointed at numerous times. Though this time he didn't get a chance to try the same story.
"Are you gonna give us a straight answer or not?!" Monty bellowed, suddenly losing his composure. It was loud enough and close enough to Natalie that she jumped and took a step away from him with an almost offended look to cover any fear. Sunny's head snapped to him just as quickly, and while his expression didn't change his tone certainly did.
"Huh, that's funny. Because I swear the kid said that he ran into YOU before he came into the daycare," he remarked. His voice dropped in a lower, colder tone. "Said you weren't playing so nice…"
Monty growled lowly. Natalie turned to him and asked bluntly, "What does that mean?"
"Means I chased him up from the basement and lost him," Monty gruffly answered.
Natalie tightened her lips at that. There was something he wasn't saying, but Monty's current behavior was tipping off what it could've been. That he got impatient with and might've even scared the kid, which wasn't helping anybody- which was the best-case scenario in all of this. She was still eyeing Monty, who had decided to look off towards the gift shop. Arm still resting on the edge of the door and still leaning on it.
She turned back to the Sun. "So, you didn't see where he went?"
"Nope!"
"We're out of here," Roxanne suddenly announced. She almost looked more fed up than Monty did, turning away with a swish of her tail and heading to the half circle doors that led out to Kids Cove. "What a waste of time."
"At least we know he's not here!" Chica tried to reason. She looked back and gave a little wink and wave to Natalie. "See you later, Miss Security Guard! Hope your luck gets better soon!"
"Yeah, same," Natalie answered. She looked back to Monty to find him looking at her. He slid off the wall and sent one last tense look at Sunny before following his bandmates back out. The blond tightened her lips as a new suspicion cropped up and waited until the door closed to act on it. She looked back to Sunny. "Well, they're gone. Are you sure you didn't see where he went?"
"Nope! Honest! I shut the door as soon as I put him out, and then I called security! That's all, the end, un-happily ever after!" Sunny said. So, he was dodgy without the Glamrocks being here too. Nice to know.
"What about what happened with Monty?" she asked with concern.
His head tilted town and his voice deflated. "Dunno. All's I know is that the kid was pretty scared of him… They should put a warning sign on that guy!"
She quirked a brow. "Monty or the kid?"
"Both!" Sunny chirped with a spin of his points. "Okie dokie, Ma'am! Time for me to go restock the arts and crafts, so have a good niiight!"
Before she could even react to the fact that he just dismissed himself, let alone try to stop him, the door was suddenly shut behind her and she was effectively shut out. She stared at the door for a second before deciding that she would likely have a better chance looking through the security cameras than waiting for an answer from anyone else.
She started heading back towards the lobby and got as far as the daycare security door when she heard something wheeling up behind her. She recognized the sound of a Staff Bot and was mildly surprised to look back and see the Nanny Bot.
"Hey there. What are you… doing?" Her one-sided conversation was sidetracked when the Nanny Bot continued by and wheeled over towards the line of Fizzy Faz machines. It then waved her down and once she caught up began pointing towards the Fizzy Faz machine with Freddy on it. It pointed firmly, adamantly, as though trying to tell her something.
"Freddy?... Is this about that kid?" she asked. The Nanny Bot nodded. "Is he with Freddy?" she guessed. It nodded again. This wasn't as much of a surprise as it might've been, not after finding Freddy wandering around in the basement. She had thought that was weird at the time, but she didn't think he was capable of misleading her, let alone that he would hide a child. Unless they met up after that. "I'll go talk to him. Thank you."
The Nanny Bot didn't respond, it just rolled past her and returned to the security doors, which opened again to let it inside. Natalie watched it leave before quickening her pace and heading towards a new destination: Freddy's green room.
He wasn't there. She waited around for a while before leaving to go check the cameras, but she came back later. He still wasn't there. A few times she returned to check the room before he finally showed back up. She hadn't even seen him on the camera, she just came by the window again and spotted him sprawled out on the couch. One foot resting on the floor, one arm tucked under his head, staring up at the ceiling with a melancholy look.
Freddy didn't even notice her until she was using her security pass to open the door. He straightened up quickly, teetering just a little as he did.
"O-Officer Vanessa!" he shouted in surprise.
She didn't return the greeting, instead choosing to walk into the room, put a hand on her hip, and shooting him the look. He wasn't sure how to describe such a look except that it became immediately apparent that she knew exactly what he had done. He dropped his head and shoulders with shame.
"Where's the kid?" she asked. He didn't answer right away. "…Freddy, come on. I know he was with you."
"…I took him down to the loading docks and let him out through the exit. He… He called his mother, and she should be coming to pick him up."
"He got a call through?" Natalie asked questioningly.
"He used a landline phone."
Freddy too seemed reluctant with details. Though unlike the others who were being purposefully dodgy, it seemed like Freddy was more so guilty about the whole thing. Her face softened more with weariness than to let him off the hook.
"I don't need to tell you what part of that was wrong, right?" she asked.
"I know…" Freddy simply said.
"Can I at least ask why you did it?" she asked again.
He stared at the floor for a long moment, arms resting on his knees, with his expression slightly changing as he thought about it. To be honest, he didn't really know why he had gone through such lengths to keep Gregory hidden from her. He knew she was the responsible authority afterhours, and that Gregory was just afraid of getting in trouble. Yet he had done it and he couldn't very well say he wouldn't make the same decision again.
"I just… wanted to help him," he finally said. He sounded so defeated, so uncertain, that she decided to throw him a bone.
"Well, you got him out of the building in one piece and you contacted his parents. That's not great, but that could've gone a lot worse. From what I've heard its been a crazy night, so the sooner he gets home the better," she said. He nodded silently in agreement. "…Are you okay? You're not usually this quiet," she pointed out. His head snapped up at that.
"Oh! My apologies, I am still not quite myself. The safe mode is taking a lot out of me," he explained. He sounded a little more normal saying this, but she couldn't tell if he was being truthful or covering. Either way, she let him off the hook.
"Then I'm going to get out of your hair and let you rest. If you need me, I'm going to be glued to the cameras for the next couple of hours," Natalie said. She turned to head for the door, only to stop and spin on her heel. "And if this ever happens again, please just tell me next time?" He agreed and then she let him off the hook. Leaving him to recover while she returned to the security office.
Natalie walked out of that green room feeling like she dodged a bullet.
…And still feared that there was a gun pointed at her head.