Disclaimer: I do not own any of the non-original characters. All of those belong to Scott Cawthon and Scott Games.
Second Disclaimer: This chapter is based on GiBi's Horror Homestead's theory. I do not necessarily agree with him (there are too many counterarguments like the footprints outside the window or timeline issues) but there are narratively interesting points he makes. I mainly take the idea that William's father was abusive from that theory for this chapter. That theory can be found at this link: https/watch?v=iqHq7IMYros.
Final warning: This story will deal with murder, death, suicide, abuse, and other themes. (It is a Five Nights at Freddy's story after all.) Reader's discretion is advised.
Chapter 1: Uneasy Childhood
William Afton woke up. It was late. His small clock, which was always on his nightstand, told William that it was just a little past midnight. The young boy got out of his bed and walked around his cold and dark room. Newcastle was always cold this time of year. Yet, when William looked out of his small window, he noticed it was not snowing but, rather, raining. He thought that was odd. The rain was falling heavily on the outside of his house.
"Wasn't it supposed to snow when it is this cold," the 8-year-old boy asked to no one. He continued to look around. As if answering the question, William heard two voices coming from outside the door of his bedroom.
"Oliver, please come and sit down. Leave him alone tonight. He had a rough day," William's mother, Piper, said with an annoyed tone. William knew that probably meant that his father was drunk- as usual. William's mother only talked to his dad in that particular tone of voice when she knew something bad was about to happen.
"Where is my son," William's father asked. The way that he was slurring his words and sounding like he was not quite sure what he was saying was all the confirmation that William did not need to tell him that his hunch was correct. Oliver Afton had gone to Jr's, the bar, and came home drunk.
"Oliver, come on. Don't do this," Piper said.
William could tell what was happening, so he quickly reacted. William ran over to the door and locked it. Then, he took a large rock that William was hiding in his dresser for just this type of situation. He knew it was possible that he could be heard doing what he was about to do but he did not care. He needed to escape before time ran out. With all his might he threw the rock at the window, breaking the glass. Climbing out, William cut his small arm, and he felt blood trinkling down. He could not stop now, though.
When William got outside of the window, he started to think about what he should do next. He did not have any plans besides getting out of the house to avoid his father's wrath. Looking around him, William could not help but to realize that not having a plan was a bad plan. He quickly thought of two ways he could go: straight through a gap in the bushes that surrounded the Afton's house, or he could hide in the bushes to the left of where he was. After a few seconds of considering his options, he chose escape. Quickly he ran as the rain seemed to want to slow him down.
A few hours later William woke up in an area of grass. He was soaked from the rain but, at least, he was safe. As William stretched two thoughts came into his mind at the same time: it was daylight now and he had to return to his house. While William hated his father, he did not want his mother to worry. She would have surely realized that William had left the house last night. William was not sure how far away from his house he had run. Yet, he knew the direction.
After about 15 minutes of walking, what William found when he got to his house scared him. There were police cars and an ambulance around the perimeter of the house. William could understand his mother calling the police. That did not really disturb the young boy. However, what was an ambulance doing there?
As he approached the house, he could tell something really bad happened. Then he heard something he did not quite understand. Two of the police officers were talking.
"The deceased's name is Piper Afton," one of the officers told the other.
'Deceased' was a word that William had never heard. He could tell, however, by the way that the officer said it that it was not a good word. He was so caught up on trying to figure out what that meant that William nearly did not notice that the name mentioned was his mother's.
"Well, let's book the man and take him in for questioning," the second officer said.
William tried to get a little closer without being noticed. He was able to get a look into the house. There were two things that caught his attention. One was a stretcher. William could tell someone was on the stretcher, but their face was covered. William slowly began to realize what this meant. He had seen images like that on the news channel that his mother and father watched. The second thing that William saw was a third police officer putting his father in handcuffs and starting to lead him out of the house.
The first officer, who mentioned that William's mother was deceased, noticed William standing near the door.
"Hey, it is a bairn," the officer, who spoke with a heavy Scottish accent, said, "What is your name?"
"William Afton," the boy replied.
"Afton? Liam, bring the man here," the officer shouted into the house. William's father and the officer who had handcuffed him came out of the house.
"Is this your boy," the first officer asked.
"Yeah, that brat is mine," William's father answered, "But I never liked him too much." With those words, William's father was placed in the back of one of the police cars.
"Nolan, do you want to talk with the boy while I finish stuff up with the medics," the first officer asked the second one.
"Want to? No. But I will do it," the second officer responded, "Let's go over there." The officer motioned to a place in the garden where no one else was standing. William followed him.
"Son, what is your name," the officer asked.
"William… William Afton," William said. He knew what the conversation was going to be about. William was a smart kid, and he could see what happened at the house last night.
"William, my name is Officer Walsh. Where were you last night," the officer asked.
"I left," William said.
"Well, it is probably a good thing you did. William, there is no easy way to tell you this. Your mother is dead. We think that your father killed her. We are going to call an agency to try to find you a place to live but you can't live here anymore. We took your mother away, but we need you to get your stuff," Officer Walsh, a man who had become calloused from years of seeing the worst of humanity, said.
As tears fell from William's eyes, he was led inside the house he once called home. He picked up a bag and began to put as much as he could inside it. Looking at his bed, he saw something he had to take with him: a small brown teddy bear his mother had given him for his fourth birthday. William had given the teddy bear a name- Freddy.