Grace

If I counted today, which was nearing its end, I had been sitting on this couch for four painfully insufferable days. All of which were comprised of near constant code reading and battery jumping. I'd slept maybe a total of five hours, my diet consisted almost entirely of beef jerky, and every liquid in my body was replaced with Red Bull. Not that the caffeine helped, I was still exhausted and was even starting to see things. The micro naps were kicking in.

Coupled with the responsibility of feeding and entertaining Gregory, along with having to explain why my shop was closed to angry customers over the phone, it was possible that I'd achieved a scenario worse than anything hell could offer me.

But if I looked on the bright side, at least it was quiet with Freddy's voicebox removed, and finding something for Gregory to do was easy, as I had a practically endless collection of toys, games, and movies at my disposal. Though this'd probably be the only time my childish hobbies would work in my favor.

There was little to no organization of Freddy's code, which didn't surprise me considering he was a product of Fazbear Entertainment. Thankfully though, as I continued to scroll through the chaos, I began to see some scripts that at first glance appeared to be situationally relevant. I confirmed my suspicions by skimming my old college textbooks, then double checked online for extra security. When I was confident I was where I needed to be, I reached out and knocked on the animatronic's arm. Freddy had been sitting still as stone and silent for nearly the entire time I'd been working on him. So even though I expected him to acknowledge my gesture, when he actually turned his head to look at me I was startled. I only barely managed to resist the reflex to jump.

"I found it, finally." I told him, allowing myself to breathe a sigh of relief. "And the good news is I know exactly how to fix it. It should only take a few minutes."

Freddy nodded to show me he was tracking.

"Do you have a copy of your blueprints on this drive?" I asked. "I might as well save them while I'm hooked up."

Again he responded in the positive. His eyes lost focus for a moment, and when it came back he pointed towards my laptop.

Now open was an explorer window containing multiple pdfs with randomly generated titles. Freddy had opened their file directory remotely.

"That's...horrifying. Thank you." I mumbled, copying the contents to a Blueprints folder on my desktop. "Those will be handy later if something inside you breaks down." I explained, though he probably already knew that. "Okay back to the code. I promise it'll be quick and painless."

Freddy

I was in no position to tell Grace she should not push herself. Mainly because my voicebox was removed, but also because she was an adult and was free to ignore my suggestions.

It was obvious that her lack of rest was taking its toll. She had developed dark circles under her eyes, and despite her caffeine intake she struggled to keep them open. She caught herself dozing many times and would bolt back upright, only for the resulting wakefulness to last ten minutes at best. So I was relieved when she informed me she would soon be finished.

The keys of her keyboard clicked quietly as she typed away with renewed focus. This continued for just over eleven minutes, then finally stretched out her arms and rolled her neck. I could hear her joints cracking from the movement.

"The limit is gone, so your max charge should now last around eight hours." Grace leaned into the couch cushions and shut the laptop. "Oh my god it's actually done." She laughed a little to herself before briefly turning her attention to me. "Gregory's been hovering a lot, probably to make sure I don't let you die." She rested her head against the back of the couch, closing her eyes. "He doesn't have to worry about it anymore though." There was a short period of silence. "I hope he'll feel safer here now." Then she was asleep in an instant.

I couldn't say I was surprised to hear her speak her motivations aloud, but it did fill me with almost overwhelming gratitude. Grace could have turned Gregory away at any point. She could have declined to help him after seeing me, as it was clear that she feared and detested my presence. Despite even that she allowed us into her home. She stayed up for days fixing my code with nothing to gain from it, all to assure Gregory's sense of security.

I pulled the cables out of my chest so I could stand, carefully removing the computer from Grace's lap and setting it onto the coffee table. She still had her glasses on, but I didn't dare try to remove them since it would probably wake her. I looked around for something to cover her with and spotted a blanket hung over the back of the couch. It was the one she'd given Gregory on our first night here. I grabbed it and moved to drape it over her, but when I took a step closer the floorboards creaked under my weight.

Her eyes shot open and I immediately attempted to apologize, but I only produced static.

Not that it mattered, because she'd instinctually reacted even before I tried to speak. She struck the side of my face plate with a closed fist, causing the metal to reverberate loudly. Her scream, however, was much louder.

I grabbed my head to stop the vibration and looked down at Grace. She was now hunched over, chest to her knees, completely unmoving. I couldn't even ask her if she was alright.

"What happened!?" Then came Gregory's voice from in front of me. He was standing in the guest bedroom doorway. "Is that blood?" He asked next, expression morphing from startled confusion to mild horror. "Freddy did you just- Is she dead!?"

I shook my head and raised my hands defensively. Trying to explain was of course fruitless.

Grace did sit back upright after what was likely only a few seconds, but with Gregory looking at me like that, it felt like forever.

She was holding her breath, and her eyes were squeezed shut. It appeared she was attempting to suppress further screaming.

"I'm okay," Her voice was heavily strained. "My fault, that was my fault, I'm sorry."

Hesitantly Gregory approached us, walking around the couch to see what was going on. Now that I had a chance to look more closely, I could see she was holding a hand protectively to her chest. It was bleeding moderately, getting all over her clothes.

"That looks really bad." Gregory stated, turning his head up to meet my gaze. "She cut herself on your insides?"

Grace leaned forward slightly, a few short sobs escaping her before she tried to speak again. "He scared me, I panicked." She explained through gritted teeth.

"So what, did you hit him or something?"

She nodded.

"Are you gonna be okay?"

She exhaled a shaky breath, able to offer him a smile even through her pain. "I'll be fine." She insisted, reaching out her injured hand. Clenching her jaw she made a fist, then extended the fingers. "See? It's not broken. But it's real fuckin' nasty looking, huh?" Her tone, while still tense, had shifted into one more exuberant.

I was unable to object to her language in this state, but Gregory seemed to be reassured by her response and even a little amused. I supposed I could let it be, just this once.

"In the bathroom, under the sink there's a first aid kid, can you get that for me kiddo?" She now requested, being met with little resistance. He returned after only a few seconds, first moving to give it to Grace, then thinking twice about it and giving it to me instead.

"I can put his voicebox back in once he's done." Gregory said. "Or do you think you can still do it?"

She paused for a moment, looking up at me as if she wanted to ask me something. Then shaking her head slightly and rejoining the conversation. "I can do it, no problem." She said with levity. "You'd probably be better at it than me, and there's no way I'd let a kid show me up."

Gregory grinned at this. "Better not then, I wouldn't wanna make you feel bad."

AN: Hey I just wanted to put a note in. If anyone wants to see the cover art in more detail you can find the progress pictures on my Instagram @AdaladeKasner