I Don't Own Fnaf

"You sure you're alright?" The puppet nodded, not quite annoyed yet at Mike, he knew the other man was just concerned about him, but he could admit the over protectiveness, while usually charming and quite endearing, was quickly becoming a tad irritating, even if he didn't allow himself to get bothered by it, he respond for what felt at least like the tenth time time morning.

"I'm fine Mike, I don't want this to be held over our heads any longer than it could be" He must not have done quite a good enough job to be able to hide the faint annoyance in his tone, because as much as he didn't want to admit it, he was nervous, and a bit anxious. Thankfully Mike seemed to decide on cracking a joke to try and lighten the mood instead of calling the puppet out.

"Right. If you need any dashing rescues just let me know" Mari managed to find something to say back, relaxing a bit as he replied teasingly.

"Oh? Do you happen to have a handsome knight on speed dial?" The man didn't bother thinking about it, just saying right back.

"No, but I got a shiny badge which is basically the same thing" That got a proper laugh from Mari, as he shot the man an almost exasperated look, before breaking into another smaller laughing fit as he actually tried to imagine Mike in a suit of armor. It was too goofy to really visualize, so he could only manage to speak back, fondness creeping back into his voice.

"Dork" Mike smiled back as he said back just as softly

"So you love to tell me" Mari thought about something else he loved, and had a moment on whether or not he should mention it, when a light grumbling cough came from the side, as both shot to turn to look over at an unamused Goldie who said plainly.

"Are you two going to keep being sappy or go talk to Charlie?" Mari knew he couldn't blush, but he still somehow felt red in the face while Mike made some comment, brushing it off, even though he looked a bit more pink than normal as the two found themselves walking to the office door. Apparently no longer stalling was easier than dealing with embarrassing himself in front of his partner's brother.

The two didn't quite know what to do now that they were in front of the door, though of course Mike didn't let that stop him, instead shooting a look over to Mari who just gave as certain a nod as possible, telling the man it really was alright, as Mike reached up and knocked solidly on the door. There wasn't a sound for a long moment, at least one that was noticeable, but Lefty as an animatronic had been made to be as quiet as possible.

So he wasn't quite surprised there wasn't any sound beyond the door suddenly creaking from the handle being engaged and turned to swing open to reveal a nervous looking Charlie standing there. Mike being the man he was, bulldozed through any kind of awkwardness that Mari was sure would have descended on them all if the silence was allowed to continue for more than half the beat it had existed for.

"Hey, bit overdue, but we need to talk about something" Charlie shifted a bit, her lone eye shifting from Mike to Mari, once, then twice, before slowly nodding.

"Right... Come on in" The two did so, as they all stood in the office, Mari kept close to Mike, he was fine, surprisingly... He just kept that feeling close and kept Mike a bit closer, just in case, though he wasn't genuinely worried that something would happen, the two had talked over the phone more than once since the accident a little over a week ago now, and both sides had apologized more than once over the whole thing, and it wasn't even what they were here to talk about, but that didn't mean the memories weren't still there.

Thankfully they had something more important to focus on, something that wasn't about what almost happened, as Mari led into the conversation after a second.

"Aunt Jen came over to our house last week" Okay... Maybe that wasn't the best way to go about it, as Charlie sort of stumbled where she stood from the shock of it, as a short low pitched noise came from somewhere in her chest. She did actually have a music box, same as Mari's, Lefty had to have to have been able to play the tune that haunted Mari's nightmares, but it was a lot more rare to hear any kind of notes similar to what he did when he was emotional.

Charlie almost seemed embarrassed about it but was still too caught up in the sudden information being dropped on her to be able to really process the noise, instead saying bluntly.

"S-she did? Why?" Mari explained it to her, though if he was being fully honest, while it had been nice to see someone from his family, even if he didn't really remember her, he still didn't really get why she had shown up now of all times, but Mike went on from there to explain the conversation anyways for the both of them. Explaining she had wanted to catch up with Mike and how she had wanted to meet or at least talk to Mari, or, well, Marion.

The puppet had so many names nowadays it was almost hard to keep track of who all called him what.

Charlie mostly just listened in silence, but the puppet could tell something was on her mind with the way Mike had described the event to the best he could recall the details. Until finally, as Mike finished explaining the conversation, she spoke up and said simply.

"I never talked about Mari, or at least barely more than mentioning him, I mentioned you a few times, but she's making it sound like I couldn't shut up about the two of you" Mari just frowned, because that was the exact opposite of what they had been lead to believe from how Aunt Jen had talked about it. But, why would she lie about something like that?

Mike however seemed to have already come to the conclusion as the man let out a short sound of vindication as he said suddenly and a bit sharply.

"That's it! I forgot that, you mentioned this before to us, I just forgot it. That's what felt wrong about all of this, and with how pushy she was about it. But why?" The man's face scrunched up in that way it did when he was thinking deeply about something. Mari normally found such a look attractive, to be honest he still did, but it was a little bit overshadowed by worry about whatever it was he was thinking so hard about.

Then again, as much as he liked to think, one of his family members still out there simply wanted to catch up and play a part in the life of someone so important to him. He... Mari wasn't honestly sure he had believed that himself, it was a nice thought, but nice things weren't in common supply in their lives, and if the woman had never bothered before, then something had to have changed since right?

He wished he wasn't as pessimistic as he truly was, but it wasn't as easy to imagine the good in someone anymore, even family, when he learned how much harder it was when they betrayed that trust and how it could burn like acid on your mind.

Charlie was the one who spoke up, before Mike could sort out anything to tell them, speaking softly as always, but with worry in her tone.

"You don't think that she knows about Sam do you?" Mari hadn't considered that, but the idea of it wasn't at all appealing, as he felt a low dull kind of dreading noise escape him before he could help it. He was deeply uncomfortable with the idea that anyone knew about him outside of the people he trusted explicitly. Of what that could mean or what conclusions the person involved might jump to... What they wouldn't be wrong for thinking.

That man, Sheldon, the former day manager at Freddy's who Mari had witnessed be murdered in front of his own eyes, the man who had only wanted to get justice for a friend... The man's face flashed across the puppet's vision, it wasn't a pleasant feeling. Mike just shook his head however, saying quickly.

"No, it's not that, something else" Mari felt relieved at just how certain the man sounded, but he had to ask anyway.

"Are you sure?" Mike just nodded, a troubled frown on his face that cleared after a second as he went on to explain his thought process.

"She wouldn't have made it about Charlie, she would have questioned the Cove and the animatronics at all if she wanted to know anything that might be going on with you. And 'Marion' wouldn't have been brought up at all, not to mention I bet she would have reacted stronger to it when I mentioned we were dating if she knew the person we were talking about was her nephew. She wasn't acting like someone trying to search for their family, or... Not you at least. I mean, if anything, it almost reminds me about what all Charlie got up to when she was searching for... Oh..."

"Well, that doesn't sound good" Mari had been aiming for teasing, but his tone fell flat just as Mike's had fallen off into a short soft end. Charlie however seemed to get it before Mari did, as she asked carefully.

"You think she's trying to see if you had anything to do with my death? Like how I looked into you and the Cove for anything suspicious" Mike just nodded. A grim look playing on his face as everything suddenly made sense to the puppet.

Aunt Jen wasn't trying to catch up with Mike for her own peace of mind, she was doing it because she wanted to know if the man had anything to do about it, and she was asking after the puppet himself because that was who would be closest to the man to let her know if Mike was some kind of horrible person. Only... Only she wouldn't know about Marion at all, if Charlie had barely mentioned him, and the only person who could have put her on that line of thinking was-

"Burke, he told her and is trying to make her get information out of me to use against you" Mari's voice had come out harsh, angry, because he was, Mike only grimaced, confirming the man had been on the same line of thought. Charlie frowned, but did mention.

"He's not a bad man, I mean, I know he can't know, it'd be risky, but... If he's going this far..." Mike shook his head.

"No, we can't risk it. The man has something against me specifically, even if we talked to him about this, and were honest... I'd be admitting to at least a dozen crimes just to catch him up, because we all know he wouldn't settle for anything less than the full story. There's no way in hell he'd not use that as a confession, and I'm not planning on going back to jail anytime soon" Charlie didn't seem to fully agree, but she also seemed to realize the risk there was just too great to even really think more about it.

Mari felt a pull of agitation in his chest at it all, about how some police officer, of whom he already had such low regards for, for how incompetent they had been in solving any issue that the puppet had dealt with over the years with and from Freddy's, thinking they had any right to pry into their lives like this. To use his own family to do so... It felt like crossing a line. He already hadn't been happy about it, but had also been content to listen to Mike about just ignoring it, now though... It felt more personal somehow.

But just like how they couldn't tell the man, they also couldn't actually do anything to ward him off either without looking even worse in his eyes, there was nothing they could do. The idea of that ached and burned something fierce in the puppet's chest, it wasn't fair, but nothing about this had been fair from the start. It's just... It felt awful, with nothing to do to let the feelings escape in a way that would be helpful, they just rolled around in his chest.

"So, what? We can't do anything?" Mike just frowned, still thinking, while Charlie had something to say to the irritation in the puppet's voice.

"I mean, we could talk with her... Mike can, I mean, give her what she wants" She sounded so hesitant about it, Mari just let out a short whine-like sound, before shaking his head.

"How would that help? She's trying to get him thrown in prison!" The idea of that made Mari panic, the idea that Mike could just be taken from him after doing everything as best as he could.

"No... No, she's trying to figure out what happened to me, maybe... Maybe we can tell her something that will satisfy her enough to drop this? If Mike had known to talk to me from the start, there's a chance I would have dropped it instead of prying even more if he managed to ward me off properly. Aunt Jen might be the same way. If we can say something that will prove to her Mike is innocent then she might just stop trying to help Mister Burke out" Mari frowned, but he couldn't say there wasn't any truth there, but that felt like a risk as well, like doing what the man wanted.

"Are you sure that's the only reason?" Mike had spoke up now, as Mari's eyes flickered over to the man, who spoke softly, sympathetically, like he was seeing something that the puppet hadn't noticed yet, as he glanced back to Charlie who tensed, before looking away awkwardly, like she hadn't been expected on being called out on whatever it was that was happening between the two.

"No... No I guess it isn't... Sorry" Mike just glanced away for a second, before finally sighing, as he said back.

"I get what it's like to want to talk to a family member who is just out of your reach... But I'm not sure that's a good idea" Mari felt almost ashamed to say it only just occurred to him that Jen, a woman he didn't remember, was also the same person who basically raised Charlie herself for her entire teenage years.

To Mari, 'Aunt' Jen was more a title he had heard and used in turn, but the word Aunt had such little meaning to him. He knew she was family, he knew that meant something, because it did. It made him curious, it made him happy to know she had been such a big part of his sister's life, but beyond that, there was a disconnect. Like there always had been between him and the real world.

Even with him and Charlie, her memory was just better than his own, he still couldn't really recall anything in his childhood with certainty, unlike her. So when she had come back into his life, in the beginning it was like meeting a stranger who he knew he'd get along with, who he knew he wanted to try with, in a way he hadn't with anyone else beyond Mike himself, and only because he had known she was family, close family.

Jen... wasn't that. He would love to know more about her, would like to hear stories from Charlie about her time growing up, about her life, he had loved to hear those stories, even if they did make something in him twinge with sadness that he never got to have that for himself, it never lasted long. Simply because he could never be able to imagine what a life like that would have been like, but Charlie could, she had lived that life until so recently that she couldn't have really adjusted to it all.

Suddenly separated from someone so much closer to her than Mari could imagine, not being able to remember much of any parental figures in his life, and the few memories he now had of one who should have been so much worse than anything he could imagine. He couldn't imagine just how difficult it was for her to hear this, to know that Aunt Jen was trying to help, to get justice for Charlie, to go as far as to confront and talk to a person she might think was responsible in some way for her death...

However difficult it was for him, it was so much worse for Charlie, it made him feel breathless with worry, as he felt a low chime come from himself as he stared at the dejected look Charlie got for barely a second longer than he could stand it, as he turned back to look at Mike, saying a bit imploringly.

"Would it really be that bad though? It's, I mean, if she only wants to make sure you're innocent, then she'd be able to tell Burke that herself, if anyone would be able to get him off your case... And... And if you two can connect then..." He didn't need to finish the sentence, he could tell Mike already knew, from the conflicted look that played over the man's face, as his eyes moved between the twins for a long moment, clearly struggling with the idea of it, and Mari felt awful for it, but he couldn't help but add a desperate, "Please Mike"

The man held out just long enough to get hit by an equally pleading look from Charlie before eventually buckling, as he hung his head for a moment, before finally saying in a bit of a gambit.

"You know even if I keep talking to her, she'll still want to talk to you at some point. Even if it's over the phone, it'll happen eventually" Mari... couldn't say he liked the idea of that, but that was because talking to anyone he didn't already know was always daunting, but if that's what it took...

"As long as she doesn't recognize my voice, I can manage" The man just nodded. A frown playing on his face, no doubt worrying about all of this, but knowing that if the two wanted to do this, then there was little Mike could actually do if Mari wanted to go through with this. It still felt risky, but it was a risk that the puppet was willing to take to both be able to learn more about someone from his family, and as well to help his sister, it would be more than worthwhile in that case.

"She shouldn't, I don't think she'd have heard your voice in a bit over a decade, and you weren't exactly chatty back then" Charlie spoke up after Mike had finished, adding onto that point, seeing that this was happening and excitedly wanting to reassure the point.

"She won't, you sound pretty different even if she was around enough to remember what you had sounded like. I recognized your voice but it had been a stretch and if I hadn't known any better I would have just dismissed it, Jen wouldn't even think twice about it right now" Mari nodded, glad to hear that at least wasn't a big issue. Not that he thought it would be easy to be able to build up the courage to actually make a call like that. Mike would have to hold the conversations for a while until Mari felt he could manage.

It felt embarrassing to have to think like that, he wasn't even sure it was out of shyness or paranoia anymore that left the feeling of talking sometimes too much, neither really left him feeling wholly comfortable with the flaws in his ability to interact with people.

"Then I guess we got a plan... Is there anything you want me to tell Jen next time we talk? Something I can say you mentioned before... all this?" Charlie just shook her head.

"N-no, I can't think of anything, but I- I'll probably want you to say something at some point if that's not a problem"

"Of course, it's never a problem" Charlie looked relieved while Mike just tilted his head about before saying.

"We should get going then we still have work to get to" She nodded, and before long, after a few goodbyes, they were leaving. It... It was a productive conversation, though Mari knew he would be calling back soon to talk to Charlie to learn more about the aunt he never got to really meet, just because he'd probably be talking to her soon enough, maybe it would be easier if he got to know more about her from Charlie. Maybe it would make it easier to separate her from her brother.

"H-Howdy!" Fritz blinked as his eyes refocused over to the living room where Lolbit was taking up as much space on the couch as they could manage. Given they were within the top five tallest people Fritz knew, which said something that six feet only put them on par with another animatronic, they were managing to take up more than their fair share. Still, that wasn't exactly new, and it was better than them putting all their bulk onto one spot and potentially crumpling some of the springs in the couch completely, so Fritz just gave a wave, saying as he walked back the sideways fox to the kitchen.

"Hey Bit, have a good night?" That seemed to be either the worst thing to say or the only correct thing to say. It was always difficult to tell with Lolbit, they were constantly set at a ten for energy and it was only when they were abundantly serious that their tone changed any, so it was hard to tell if it was sarcasm or genuine when they made a complaint about something. This time though it was fairly self explanatory when the fox happily proclaimed to him.

"Got bored!" That wasn't the first time he had heard that, and Fritz highly doubted it would be the last. The fox had half the attention span of Foxy, which was down right impressive in Fritz's opinion. He wondered if it was a fox thing, though there was no real way of checking, Foxy probably wouldn't remember or want to answer, and Lolbit didn't do much talk about their past, though they made up for it by talking about just about everything else.

"You're always bored" The fox didn't even try to deny that, saying back cheekily.

"Got more b-bored then" Fritz just rolled his eyes, moving into the kitchen. Janet wasn't here at the moment, she had gotten an early start to the morning while Fritz was catching up on his sleep. He had the feeling that the animatronic had given the same treatment to her as well.

He wasn't overly annoyed about it, he did work in a restaurant built around entertaining children after all, almost all of which were much louder than the fox and with half of Lolbit's ability to focus, not to mention age, but he couldn't lie and say it was wholly great to such a chatty person living with him. He also wouldn't say he'd change it either, he had been the one who had said it was fine if the animatronic wanted to come back to him after everything.

Even if it had been at the time mostly because Lolbit had apparently been getting on the nerves of Goldie and Foxy to the point the two were ready to snap. Apparently the three did not at all get along together, but Janet hadn't said anything about it, and she clearly enjoyed having the home they shared have more energy to it, something Lolbit supplied in great waves... But all of this to say, he was not a fan of energetic conversationalists before he had any coffee in him.

Thankfully the pot still had enough for a cup for him, even if he did have to throw it into the microwave to make it suitable to actually drink.

"S-s-so, are you going out today or will I-I have company for an afternoon?" Fritz paused at that, it didn't sound anything but casual, yet it stopped him as he reached for the door of the fridge to grab out a cup of yogurt as a quick and easy meal to start his day off and to mix uncomfortably in his stomach with the coffee for the next hour. Instead leaning back a little bit to look over into the conjoined living room where the fox was still casually laying on the couch, giving Fritz a cheeky wave when he spotted him.

"Do you want company?" The fox sort of twitched, but that was normal enough to not notice, or at least not enough to pay attention to, as the fox just shrugged.

"I-I spent s-six years trapped in a tablet left behind in a dingy horror movie basement, not gonna say no to having someone to talk to" Fritz... Winced, not a lot, but enough to be noticeable, as the fox spotted the reaction and immediately continued on, "Course the tv's better than nothing, and if I need to I can just get on your computer again" That was just enough to distract the man, as Fritz asked before he could stop himself.

"How do you know my password?" The fox just snickered as they said back confidently.

"It's cute you think I need to actually touch an electronic to use it" Almost like the fox was trying to prove a point, the tv flickered before suddenly bursting into static, a familiar looking fox head appearing on it for just a moment, before flickering away to show some cartoon showing off a rabbit being chased around. Fritz... just blinked before nodding.

"Right, sure... Is that new?" Lolbit shrugged.

"E-eh, not really, could do it before. I-I messed with a lot of stuff in Afton Robotics, got all up in its mainframe, c-course back then I was a lot more binary in my thinking, l-literally with the handunit being my body and all. T-Taking me a bit now that I have limbs and eyes and noses again to get back to that. Y-Your computer has been a great help!"

"Is... Is that why the thing has been moving so slow lately?" He had thought the thing was finally beginning to just wear out on him, the computer was old, but a modern one just hadn't been needed yet, even if there were a ton of things about it that he would like to have, it just hadn't been necessary with the one he had now still functioning. He wasn't really sure just how he felt about that changing because the fox decided to start experimenting with their ability stuff. Something he already didn't really understand, given he was pretty well outnumbered when it came to the people he knew and the amount of them that could do weird magic ghost stuff.

"M-Maybe? Eh, runs fine with me, but maybe p-plugging my screwy noggin into it isn't the best for the thing" Huh... That was... It kind of made sense, Bonnie never really broke anything when he messed with random bits and pieces of machinery, but he wasn't doing anything long term, he was mostly just doing the same as resetting something by unplugging then plugging it back in.

Lolbit on the other hand was basically forcing the things to have a whole new interface to work with that they weren't at all built for, that could cause some serious strain on whatever it was they were messing with.

"Well, could you not? If it's damaging stuff, I could just tell you my password so you don't mess the computer up anymore" The fox just did their version of a pout.

"But that's not as fun! It's cooler when I have to break into stuff" Fritz just rolled his eyes a bit, not really seeing the point in that, as he pointed out simply.

"We live together, and I wouldn't have minded anyways, it's not like you were actually breaking into something" Lolbit just waved him off.

"Yeah, well, that's because you're boring, I got to get my fun somewhere you know!" Fritz could already tell this wasn't an argument he could win. The fox was right in that fact that they didn't really have anything to do, so if that got them some amusement, well, at least it wasn't as dangerous as the last time the impulsive fox had an idea on how to 'cure' their boredom. Needless to say, after that attempt, the animatronic was barred from even stepping foot into the kitchen.

Apparently not all Michaels are equal when it comes to cooking ability.

"What do you even do?" The fox shrugged.

"Chat rooms mostly, it's nice to be able to talk to people, and I don't even need to lie about it! They just think I'm some weird teenager probably, but if I don't get kicked, then I get to be as weird and robot fox-like as I want!" Fritz... just frowned, as he said a bit hesitantly.

"That... Doesn't feel safe" The fox just waved him off.

"I made a new account, my pen name isn't even Lolbit, not like that actually meant anything to anyone anywhere anyways... That was a lot of anys..." Well, that did make Fritz feel a bit better, if it wasn't really connected to anything they had to worry about, not to mention just how hard it was to trace back anything online, much less random chat rooms... If Lolbit wanted to spend their time talking to others, well, Fritz couldn't really blame them. It was probably good for them, given they couldn't do the same as the ones who worked at the Cove, where they got to interact with at least a few dozen people nearly everyday.

"Alright, I guess that makes sense... I'm going to be heading out in a bit, I got to go over to the Cove to help the others set some stuff up for a private party we have scheduled tomorrow" Turning away to head back to the fridge to actually get a start on his breakfast and therefore day as a whole, he missed the way the fox's ears twitched down just a bit, before snapping back up, as the sound of the tv increased soon after.

"I can't believe you" Mike could only hum, a feeling of dispassionate victory playing through his mind, separated from the rest of him as to not give anything away. His game plan, his long term test of will and patience, was finally coming to fruition after so long of playing nice, of pretending at just the right moments, of faint glimpses of someone kind in the world they found themselves peeking out from his stoic expression.

As his eyes glanced up to meet the man across from him, and let victory shine in his eyes.

"You better get to believing it Stripes, I win" The puppet let out an anguished sort of sound as Mike reached out, and with a simple gesture... placed down his last remaining card while the puppet let out a small cry of defeat, slumping in his chair, as his head bent down to rest on the table, before suddenly springing up, pointing a fingering right at the now very smug face of Mike, as he said demandingly.

"I want a rematch!" Mike just hummed, keeping the giddy kind of amusement burning through him locked tight to his chest as he spoke casually.

"I've already won the last three games, I don't think it's going to go any differently" The puppet was having none of it.

"That's because you're cheating!" Mike let out a faint sound of shock, holding a hand up to his chest in mock offense, giving nothing away. The puppet was right of course, Mike was a dirty cheat, as sadly for his boyfriend, he was very well versed in the art of counting cards. The offended look on his face however couldn't hold for too long, instead shifting back into smug, as he leaned in and asked plainly.

"Any proof of those claims?" The puppet was practically shaking, whether from poorly hidden mirth or his desire to strangle Mike a little bit for being so smug about it, the man wasn't quite sure, but he wasn't overly worried in any case, as the puppet snipped back quickly.

"No but give me another game or two or beat you and I'm sure I'll figure out what your trick is, mister!" Mike couldn't take it anymore, breaking into a soft laugh before just shaking his head as he reached out to gather up the cards.

"If that's what you want, but I think we're getting low on things to bet" Mike's eyes went to the side where his 'winnings' laid on his side of the coffee table, of which the two were sitting down on opposite sides of, on the floor, using the rug as cushion enough as they played in the living room. The winnings in this case was the large supply of plushies that they had in the house.

Normal foxys were worth one, silver foxy's were worth five, gold were worth ten, a goldie was worth twenty, and a marionette was fifty. The other ones, the assortment of bonnies, chicas, and freddy toys that had been smuggled from the warehouse's old stores into the puppet's room were all worth fifteen to thirty depending on their rarity, which was assigned via the puppet's expertise the quality and rarity of Freddy merch.

As it stood, Mari had two normal foxys, one silver, two bonnies and a chica. That sounded like a fair but, but given, well... Mike had the rest.

And given that Mari's room had a frankly bordering on obsessive amount of the things, that really said everything it needed to either about the puppet's inability to play cards, or Mike's ability in them. Mike personally thought it was a mix of both, they had played this a few times now and it usually went the same way, though quicker, Mari was still getting used to something Mike had spent four years using to pass the time while he had been... indisposed from the rest of the world.

He was rusty yet still well practiced, but Mari was new to the game, so he figured he had another few game nights before the puppet figured out his tricks and jumped across the table to try and strangle him, but until then he'd be having as much fun as he could manage in the meantime.

Mari obviously was having fun as well, though there was probably a part of it that was because the puppet was about as competitive just like Mike was, even if the other man was a bit more subtle about it until the game in question started, and a much more graceful loser than Mike himself was. As the puppet leaned in over the table, elbow down and his hand propping up his chin as he putt on a charming look as he asked in a bit too casual a manner-

"I don't suppose I can get a loan on some foxes then?" Mike felt his face spasm a bit as he tried desperately to keep himself composed, as he leaned back a bit, putting on a thoughtful look, humming in consideration.

"Hmm... I'm not sure, what exactly will I get in return?" The puppet just leaned in a bit more, staring up at Mike with wide innocent eyes that the man knew all too well to trust.

"Oh, I don't know... What do you want?" Just because he knew better to trust a scheming puppet, doesn't mean he was strong enough to resist, as Mike found himself leaning, until both were half over the coffee table and a bit too close for most to be considered comfortable, as he murmured back.

"Hmm, I have an idea" He could see the way the puppet's composure was breaking, Mari liked to think he had a big game, but the puppet was so incredibly easy to fluster. It was one of the more endearing traits about him in Mike's opinion.

"Y-Yes?" Mike just hummed, still acting like he was considering something as he leaned in a bit more while Mari's head tilted up a bit closer to himself... Before smirking and saying cheekily.

"First pick at whatever you make next I think might be worth a few foxes" It was incredible to see the mix of the disappointed pout and indigent scowl warring over the puppet's mask, as Mari choked and stumbled on whatever he wanted to say first as he reared back and finally managed to huff out.

"You-! Nope! Know what, I think I- Ah" Mike was still grinning as he leaned over, his arm coming up and placing a hand on the puppet's shoulder to pull him back in as Mike said cheekily.

"Just kidding" And proceeded to lean in and kiss Mari, who let out a surprised half sound that quickly turned into an almost harsh high note that dissipated into a thick warbling mess of sound that was, frankly, adorable as the puppet melted into the kiss. A few seconds later Mike pulled back and contemplated something, before saying.

"I'd say that was worth at least two silvers" The puppet was trembling a bit with excess nerves, before, in a surprising show of confidence leaned back in before Mike could get done with teasing, as Mari said before pressing his face against Mike's.

"I'll have to aim for gold next then" Mike just grinned and pressed back, deciding to take the puppet up on his challenge.

All in all, a solid date night.

Even if Mari would proceed to throw one of the chicas at Mike's head in the following hour when he caught the way the man was staring at the backs of the cards and realized what he was doing. It was definitely worth it.

Fun chapter, the end there was just because I wanted some fluff, because, you know, I want it and because Mike and Mari are adorable and while everything is going to get fun again soon, doesn't mean they don't get to have nice things in the mean time.

While on the other side of things Charlie get's to have no nice things at all. She's really going through it, and a lot of that is hidden behind a wall of impassiveness and trying her best to seem unaffected by it all, but Jen coming back into the picture is a lot harder on her than it appeared, to the point that even Mari, who is caught up with his own thoughts and feelings has taken notice of it. Shit's complicated, but it'll work itself out in time, just got to give it the time to get there.

Then there's Lolbit, a fun a character as always, surprisingly hard to write for if I'm being honest, at least in this chapter, they're at their best when I have someone with a similar energy or a situation with a similar energy to them to be able to probably bounce their goofy dialogue off of, but Fritz is the straight man when it comes to the group, both literally and comedically. So it's a bit harder to play off of them directly in a one on one situation, but I think I did a decent enough job. And we get to see a little bit about what's going on properly in that little fox head of theirs. Very fun. Anyways, that's all really, the main point was some more character building for Lolbit, as they had basically none last story even though they were technically 'around' for like half of it, so got to fill in those blanks now, and getting the Jen situation with Charlie caught up and expressed, and with that done, nothing much more to mention, so... See ya!