Monday, December 26, 1994

Evan slowly stirred awake from his slumber as daylight shone through the windows of the barn. He reached out to hug Mangle, but much to his surprise, she wasn't there in bed with him.

Opening his eyes and slowly raising himself up, he looked around and called out for her. "Mangle?"

He got out of bed and once he was able to get a full view of the barn, he realized that the vixen wasn't there. More alarmingly, the sixteen-year-old noticed that all of her clothes were still there, which meant that she hadn't even changed out of her nightgown.

Feeling his heart race, Evan went and put on his shoes, then left the barn and strode over to the house. Given that his father had given her a spare key and told her that she could go there whenever she liked, it seemed like the best place to start looking for her.

Evan practically burst through the front door, and much to his relief, he found Mangle sitting on the sofa and fully engrossed in reading a book. From the looks of it, she had almost finished it too.

Slightly startled by the sound of his entrance, Mangle looked over in Evan's direction. "Oh! Is it morning already?"

The sixteen-year-old couldn't help but to laugh at that. "Yes, Mangle, it's morning."

"Sorry," she said with a sheepish grin as she placed a bookmark in the book she was reading. "I've just been so focused on reading that I completely lost track of time."

Evan huffed a laugh at that. "I know that feeling all too well." He approached her, and upon noticing that the book in her hands wasn't the same one his father gave her the day before, he asked, "What are you reading?"

Mangle closed the book and showed it to him. "'Beyond Good and Evil' by Friedrich Nietzsche."

The sixteen-year-old feigned a look of concern. "First Machiavelli and now Nietzsche? You're not studying to become a supervillain, are you?"

"Hey, they're from your father's personal library. It's not my fault that he's into books like this," the vixen pointed out in a playful manner. "While I do find them interesting—even brilliant—they're a little too… Oh, what's the word? Cynical? Yes, let's go with that."

"How long have you been up?" Evan asked.

"Pretty much all night," Mangle replied, looking quite proud of herself. "I figured that if I want to become your intellectual equal, I might as well take advantage of the fact that I don't actually need to sleep, and instead use that time to study."

"Smart," Evan replied, feeling slightly envious. However, the implications then set in and he couldn't help but to frown. "Although… I'd hate for us to never sleep together ever again."

The vixen regarded him fondly. "Don't worry, snuggling in bed, as well as falling asleep and waking up with you isn't something I'd trade for anything in the world—it's everything in-between that I can do without." With a sheepish grin, she added, "That said, I definitely need to work on getting back to bed before you wake up."

The sixteen-year-old glanced at the clock on the wall and, upon seeing that it was a little over 7:50 AM, replied, "To be fair, I did set my alarm to nine, so there still would've been time if I didn't wake up early."

"Why didn't you go back to sleep?" Mangle asked as she got up from the sofa and walked towards the bookshelf.

"Because you were nowhere to be seen and I got worried," Evan replied.

"Sorry about that," Mangle said with an apologetic smile.

"No, it's fine," he assured her. "And I'm glad that you're spending so much time studying on your own. I take it you finished Machiavelli?"

"I did," Mangle replied, looking quite proud of herself. "That's why I came here. I wanted to see if I could find any other interesting books, and this one—" She gestured to the book in her hand. "—immediately drew my attention."

Evan eyed the book. "Given that you almost finished it as well, I take it you saw Father leave for work?"

The vixen smiled, and as she returned the book to the bookshelf, she replied, "I did. I think I startled him a little when he first saw me, but then he sat down and we talked for a little bit."

His interest piqued, the sixteen-year-old asked, "What did you talk about?"

"We talked about Machiavelli and Nietzsche, and what I thought about their work," Mangle replied. "He seemed pretty happy that I was spending the night studying."

"As am I," Evan said with a warm smile. "I'm so proud of you, Mangle."

The vixen giggled and looked away with a bashful look on her face, all while her tail thumped against her chair. "Thanks."

The sixteen-year-old regarded her with great fondness. "Now, what do you say about taking a shower?"

Mangle perked up upon hearing that, and her tail began to thump even faster. "W-with you?"

Evan suppressed a grimace. "What? No!"

"O-oh…" The vixen looked away, her ears pinned back against her head. "Sorry, I just thought—"

The sixteen-year-old let out a sigh as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "No, I'm the one who should apologize. I shouldn't have worded that the way I did."

Still avoiding eye-contact, Mangle rubbed her elbows for a moment before she finally replied, "It's okay." She then turned to him with a bittersweet smile. "And I would love to have a shower."

Since Mangle had never showered, or even properly groomed herself before, Evan had to show her everything she needed and describe how to use them. Of course, the vixen already knew most of it in broad strokes thanks to many years of watching television and reading, but her knowledge was lacking when it came to the finer details due to her inexperience.

While the vixen occupied the bathroom on the bottom floor, Evan did his morning routine in one of the bathrooms on the second floor. Understandably, he finished up quite a while before Mangle did, and while waiting for her, he decided to call Mr. Rivera to report on his progress.

Mr. Rivera was absolutely elated upon finding out that Evan had finished Mangle's new body and transferred her into it, and it was agreed that the teacher would come by around noon to see her for himself and to confirm that Evan had finalized his science fair project.

Once Mangle had finished up in the bathroom, she and Evan got dressed.

The vixen decided to wear a black tank top under a pink sweater, as well as black sweatpants and her golden earrings. Evan, on the other hand, wore a purple dress shirt under a black sweater, as well as steel gray dress pants.

While the sixteen-year-old had initially planned on just eating some cereal for breakfast, Mangle managed to persuade him to go for waffles instead. Of course, her reason for doing so wasn't that she was craving waffles, but rather that she wanted to learn how to cook, and making waffles with her best friend seemed like a good first step.

After just a couple of mishaps, the two finally sat down next to each other at the dinner table to enjoy their breakfast along with some tea.

"So are we finally going to go around town today?" The vixen asked between bites.

"If that is what you wish, then yes," the sixteen-year-old replied. "Honestly, doing it today is far more ideal than had we done it yesterday, since it's now just a normal weekday."

"Ooh, I'm so excited!" Mangle exclaimed with a giggle, and her tail wagged for a brief moment. "Though… I'm a bit nervous as well."

"As you should be," Evan replied, pointing his fork at her. "Most humans, I'm sad to say, are not going to be very kind to you, or even treat you as a real person."

Hearing that just made Mangle feel even more nervous, and a bit hurt. Her ears pinned back against her head as stared dejectedly at her plate. "I know you're probably right, but… I hope it won't be that bad."

Evan gave her a look of sympathy. "For what it's worth, I hope so too."

Once they had finished breakfast, Evan and Mangle sat down to read in the living room as they waited for Mr. Rivera.

Upon hearing the sound of a car pulling up into the driveway, they smiled at each other and put away their books before going outside to meet the teacher.

Getting out of his car, Mr. Rivera caught sight of Mangle as she and Evan approached him, and his eyes grew wide.

"Hello, Mister Rivera!" Evan said with a grin.

"Hi!" Mangle greeted the teacher with a wave.

His eyes fixed on the vixen, Mr. Rivera stepped closer with his mouth agape. "My God, this is incredible!"

"Isn't it?" Mangle giggled and then did a twirl to show off how smooth and fluid her movements were with her new body.

Mr. Rivera couldn't help but to smile upon seeing the vixen delight in her new capabilities. "And everything works as it's supposed to?"

"Mm-hm," Mangle replied. "I can finally experience everything humans can, and it's even more wonderful than I ever could've imagined!"

The teacher's smile grew wider as he regarded the vixen. "I am so incredibly happy for you, Mangle!" He then turned to his student and said, "Evan, this is going to change the world! You realize that, right?"

"Only to a very limited extent, at least in the short-term," the sixteen-year-old noted. "As-is, the systems in this body are entirely reliant on Mangle's AI to function. Without it, they're little more than incredibly complex paperweights with a few novel innovations."

"Don't sell yourself short," Mr. Rivera replied. "I've studied your blueprints quite extensively, and I'm convinced that they could easily be adapted for other kinds of robots."

"But that would necessitate the development of more complex AI for those robots, which would be a costly investment for a relatively small boost in performance," Evan countered.

"Okay, that's a good point," Mr. Rivera conceded. "Even so, what you've accomplished here is absolutely going to serve as the foundation of future technological advancements."

"On that we can agree," Evan replied.

If Mangle could blush, she would. After all, it wasn't every day that she got to hear two of the smartest people she knew geek out over how an absolute marvel of engineering her body was.

The vixen then spoke up. "Would you like to come inside and have a cup of tea?"

"Oh, sure!" Mr. Rivera replied and then accompanied them to the entrance. "I take it you finally met William?"

"I did!" Mangle replied with a smile.

"How'd it go?" The teacher asked.

"A lot better than I expected," Mangle said. "He even gave me a Christmas present."

"Oh? What did he give you?" Mr. Rivera asked.

Evan answered, "Machiavelli."

The teacher cocked an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"I don't get what the big deal is," Mangle said, rolling her eyes. "It's a genuinely fascinating historical text that lays out the political realities of being a ruler."

"Whatever you say, Mangle. Just please don't put Machiavelli's ideas into practice when Father employs you as a manager." Evan replied jokingly as all three of them entered the house.

Mr. Rivera blinked. "I'm sorry, your father plans to do what?"

"He wants to employ Mangle as a manager," Evan repeated. "For context, Father plans on retiring and handing over control of Afton Robotics to me once I finish my studies, and after getting to know Mangle, he suggested that she could help me manage the company."

"He wants to retire that early?"

The sixteen-year-old shrugged. "From what he's told me, it's so he can fully devote himself towards working on his pet projects."

"That's understandable," Mr. Rivera replied with a nod. "I mean, who wouldn't, given the opportunity?"

Once they reached the dining room, Evan excused himself and went to the kitchen, while Mangle and Mr. Rivera sat down on opposite ends of the table.

Turning to Mangle, Mr. Rivera asked, "So how do you feel about potentially running an animatronic entertainment company one day?"

"I'm not sure," Mangle replied. "I'd like to believe that I can do a good job when the time comes, but I also worry about the animatronics. What if they're aware, like me? What if I unknowingly treat them in a similar way as Fazbear did to me?"

Mr. Rivera gave her a look of sympathy. "I doubt you could do worse than Fazbear's management, and the fact you're so worried about it is a good sign that you'll do right by any animatronic that does end up gaining sentience."

"I sure hope so."

Evan then returned from the kitchen. "Alright, I've put the kettle on. It should be ready momentarily."

"Well, while we wait for that, how about we discuss the final preparations for the science fair," Mr. Rivera suggested.

"Very well," the sixteen-year-old concurred and took a seat next to Mangle.

"Have you written down an abstract summarizing your work?" Mr. Rivera asked.

"Not yet," Evan replied. "I technically completed the project the day before yesterday, and given that it was Christmas, I hardly had the time to do any paperwork."

"I take it you haven't finished your project data book or display board either then?"

"No," Evan replied, shaking his head. "But it shouldn't take me long."

The teacher nodded thoughtfully. "Okay, in that case, I want you to have them ready for me by mid-January. That should give me enough time to properly review your work and for you to make whatever adjustments might be necessary for your presentation."

Evan nodded in agreement. "That sounds reasonable."

Mangle then asked, "So when is the fair?"

"The school science fair is held on the eighth of February," Mr. Rivera began. "After that, we proceed to the regional fair in Southern Utah University on the twenty-seventh of March, and after that we attend the International Science and Engineering Fair in Ontario on the thirteenth of May," the teacher explained. "And I should note that unless your father wants to take you, he's going to have to sign a permission slip for me to accompany you to the latter two."

"That should be fine," Evan replied.

"Hold on," Mangle said. "Do you think we'll have some time for sight-seeing when we go to the regional and international fairs?"

Mr. Rivera gave it some thought, and then replied, "Honestly, I don't know. Given that you're the science project, my guess is that you're going to have to remain in one place for most, if not the entirety of the fair, which means that you won't have much time to go sight-seeing."

The vixen looked away with a dejected expression on her face, her ears pinned back against her head. "Oh… right…"

"To add to that, the regional fair is held on a Monday, so we're going to have to go back home after it ends," the teacher added. He regarded Mangle with a look of sympathy and then turned to Evan. "That said, the international fair ends on a Friday, so if your father is willing to pay for it, we could stay there over the weekend. That should give you plenty of opportunity to take in the sights."

Mangle perked back up upon hearing that. She looked at Evan with hopeful eyes and asked, "Do you think your father will let us do that?"

With an encouraging smile, the sixteen-year-old replied, "I'm sure I can persuade him to." A loud click was then heard coming from the kitchen, and Evan got up and said, "The water is done, it seems. I'll return shortly with some tea."

The three chatted and drank tea for another half an hour before Mr. Rivera took his leave. After seeing him off, Evan and Mangle returned to the barn.

"So, are we finally going to go now?" The vixen asked eagerly as they closed the doors behind them.

"Sure, if you'd like," Evan replied with an encouraging smile. "Is there anywhere in particular you want to go?"

Mangle thought for a moment. As much as she wanted to go everywhere and try everything, she knew that she had to limit herself, especially since this was her first outing in town.

Finally, she replied, "Well, I definitely need a hair brush and my own toothbrush, so we should go somewhere where we can buy those. Oh, and the library! I want to borrow a bunch of books!"

Evan chuckled. "Very well. Hold on, let me get my backpack so we can carry everything back home."

While the sixteen-year-old went to fetch his backpack, Mangle went and got the handbag that he gifted her the day before. She smiled to herself as she looked through its contents—she couldn't help but to feel excited about the prospect of being able to go to a store and buy things for herself with her own money.

Evan came up to Mangle with the backpack slung over his shoulder, and with a smile he said, "Alright, shall we be off?"

The vixen smiled back at him and nodded. "Yes, let's go."

They left the barn, with Evan closing the doors behind them. As he locked them, he said, "By the way, there is something I wish to discuss with you."

Mangle's tail swished from side to side in anticipation. "Such as?"

"Your future upgrades," the sixteen-year-old replied with a serious expression on his face. "Your new body is the best I'm able to make with the materials and technology currently available, and as such it's going to take a long time before I'm able to make you more lifelike than you currently are," he explained. "I just wanted to make sure that you're comfortable with me working on other projects until then."

The vixen regarded him with great fondness as a warm smile spread across her face. "Oh Evan, this body you made for me is beyond anything I could've ever hoped for, and while it may not be exactly what I dreamed of, I'm more than happy with what you've given me. So if you want to work on something else for the foreseeable future, I'm completely fine with that."

Evan smiled back at her. "Thank you, Mangle. And I promise that I still intend to make your dream a reality one day."

The vixen pulled him into a hug and gently nuzzled his cheek. "Thank you."

"It's the least I can do for all of the happiness you've brought into my life," he replied as he wrapped his arms around her.

Breaking the hug, the two then began to make their way towards the road.

As they walked, Mangle asked, "So what kind of projects are you going to work on?"

"Well, having spent years observing and analyzing your internal processes, I believe I have gained a good enough understanding of how that invisible component of yours works for me to be able to create something similar to it," Evan explained with a proud smile. "If so, I should be able to make more animatronics like you."

Mangle felt as if she had just been pushed off a cliff. Her ears flattened against her head as she stared dejectedly at the sixteen-year-old. "What…?"

"I know! It's quite exciting, isn't it?" He replied, seeming completely oblivious.

"But… But what about me?" The vixen asked, feeling as though she was about to burst into tears.

Evan stared at her with a shocked look on his face, as if he finally picked up on how she was taking this. "Mangle, this doesn't change anything between us! You're still my one and only best friend, and always will be."

While his words provided some comfort, Mangle still couldn't help but to feel as if she was about to be replaced. "But what if you end up liking your animatronics more than me?"

The sixteen-year-old gave her a reassuring smile. "Mangle, we grew up together. I've made memories with you that I'm never going to make with anyone else. Memories that I'm always going to treasure." He took her hand and gently squeezed it as he looked into her eyes. "You're my best friend, my muse, and my equal. No one could ever replace you. Please don't think otherwise."

The vixen looked deep into his eyes. As much as she disliked the idea of Evan having other animatronics like her in his life, she knew he was right.

"Fine," she finally relented. "I'll trust you on this." Feeling a bit embarrassed by her reaction, the vixen looked away. "Sorry for getting a little jealous."

"No need to apologize," Evan replied. "I would feel much the same had I been—"

"What the hell?" A third voice suddenly exclaimed.

Evan and Mangle turned to see one of their neighbors—a man who looked like he was in his late 70s—staring dumbfounded at them just outside of his garage.

The sixteen-year-old blinked. "Oh, uh… Hello there!"

The vixen waved at the neighbor with a nervous smile. "Hi!"

The neighbor just kept staring at Mangle. Finally, he turned to Evan and asked, "You one of them Afton boys?"

"I am," the sixteen-year-old replied coldly.

"Your father make that thing?" The neighbor asked, gesturing towards Mangle.

Hearing that made the vixen feel as if someone had just slapped her across the face. This man didn't even consider her to be a living being, let alone a person.

Evan frowned and clenched his fists. "No, I made her."

The neighbor looked at Mangle again and then just turned and walked back to his garage, shaking his head in disapproval.

The sixteen-year-old turned to the vixen and regarded her with concern. "Are you alright?"

"Not… really…" Mangle replied.

"I'm so sorry you had to experience that," Evan said. "But to be fair, I did warn you about this."

"I know, I know…" Mangle sighed. "But it's one thing to be warned about something, and another to actually experience it."

"If there's anything I can do to make you feel better, just let me know," Evan said. "Do you want to keep going?"

Mangle slowly nodded.

"Very well."

The two continued to walk down the road. As they did, they occasionally passed by people who would look at Mangle with awe, but then proceed to act like she was just a mindless machine. She knew that she shouldn't be surprised by this, but it nevertheless hurt every time it happened. And every time, Evan would check in on her and comfort her.

As they got closer downtown, Mangle asked, "So where should we go first?"

"Well, normally I would suggest Walgreens, since it's the closest store that sells both toothbrushes and hair brushes," Evan replied. "But given that your hair is synthetic, I would suggest that we go to a proper beauty supply store to make sure that you get the right kind of brush."

Mangle nodded. "That's a good point. Let's do that."

"The only problem is that the only store like that is on the same street as Freddy's," Evan noted. "And the shortest route to get there would take us right past it. Of course, we could always go around—"

"No. No, it's fine," Mangle replied.

Evan looked at her with a serious expression on his face. "Are you sure you're comfortable with that?"

"Yeah." Mangle nodded and smiled at him. "Honestly, I'm kind of curious to see what the place looks like now."

The sixteen-year-old searched her face as if to make sure that this was what she really wanted. Finally, he said, "Very well, let's go."

Before long they reached the downtown area of Hurricane, and after making a couple of turns through its streets, a familiar sight finally came into view. Upon seeing it, Mangle couldn't help but be taken aback. The last time she saw Freddy's, it was messy to be sure—especially with all of the blood—but it was still pristine and well-maintained, but now it was old and worn. The place was so run-down that Mangle wasn't surprised when she noticed the sign next to the door that said that the restaurant would close down permanently at the end of the year.

The vixen turned to Evan, who regarded her with such caring eyes, and she felt so grateful that he had saved her from that place. But at the same time, she felt bad for the other Toy animatronics who never got a chance to escape their fate like she did.

Finally, they passed Freddy's, and Mangle did her best to push away her survivor's guilt as they made their way to the beauty supplies store.

The door chime rang as they entered the store, and once they got inside Mangle noticed the fragrance of make-up, nail polish, and perfume in the air, as well as pop music playing on the radio. There seemed to be only one person manning the store—a woman in her mid-40s, who was sitting behind the counter and reading a magazine.

Upon hearing them enter, the clerk said, "Hello, how can I help—"

She went silent upon looking up from her magazine and seeing Mangle.

The vixen offered her a nervous smile and waved. "Um, hi!"

The clerk just stared at her in confusion. "What the hell?" She turned to Evan and asked, "What is this?"

"We're just here to buy something," the sixteen-year-old replied matter-of-factly. He then turned to the vixen and with an encouraging smile asked, "Isn't that right, Mangle?"

"Y-yeah!" Mangle nodded as she fidgeted with her hands. "I wanted to get a hair brush for… synthetic hair."

The clerk just stared at her as if she was some kind of elaborate prank.

At this point, Evan seemed to have lost his patience. "You know, it's pretty rude not to respond."

Eyeing Mangle and the sixteen-year-old, the clerk finally said, "Yeah… I don't know what you're trying to pull here, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Feeling more than a little hurt, Mangle replied, "But we didn't do anything wrong…"

The clerk waved them out. "Just leave."

Evan took the vixen's hand and said, "Come on, Mangle. We're not welcome here."

Mangle followed the sixteen-year-old out of the store, but she glanced back at the clerk, who looked at her with a befuddled, yet wary expression on her face.

Letting out a sigh, Evan turned to the vixen and asked, "Would you like to go to Walgreens instead?"

Mangle nodded. "Yeah, sure."

They went back the way they came, but just as they were about to go past Freddy's, a group of little kids and their parents came out of the restaurant.

"Wow, look at that one!" Exclaimed one boy and pointed at Mangle.

"Mommy! Mommy, look!" Said a girl while tugging on her mother's skirt.

Mangle's eyes went wide as practically all of the kids rushed over to her. For a moment she felt as if she was back in Kids' Cove—like she was about to be torn apart and put back together over, and over, and over again. All of her servos just froze up as the kids surrounded her, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make a sound. All of the kids were chattering, with some even talking to her, but she couldn't make out what any of them were saying. And much to her dismay, she felt several of them poking and prodding her.

Judging by the aggravated look on Evan's face and his gesturing, he seemed to be telling both the kids and the parents off, but the vixen couldn't make out what he was saying either.

Suddenly, she felt a big tug on her tail. In panic, she spun around and cried out, "Stop!"

The boy who was pulling on her tail was flung onto the ground with such force that he smashed his head against the sidewalk. All hell then broke loose as the boy—his head, hands, and forearms now covered in cuts and bruises—began to cry, along with half of the other kids, and the parents started yelling at Evan, who yelled right back at them.

Trembling, Mangle looked at the chaos all around her and then at Evan, who was like a tiny island of safety surrounded by a terrifying dark ocean. She went behind him as if to try to hide from everyone else, and she wrapped her arms around the sixteen-year-old as if she was trying to hold onto him for dear life.

"Evan, get me out of here," she pleaded as artificial tears trickled down her cheeks. "Evan, please get me out of here. I can't be here anymore."

However, Evan and the parents kept yelling at each other for what felt like an eternity, but he would occasionally glance back at her with such caring and understanding eyes, letting her know that she was being heard.

Eventually, Evan finally led Mangle away from the scene, much to her relief.

Once the kids and their parents were finally out of sight, Evan turned to the vixen and regarded her with a look of sympathy. "Are you alright?"

"No," Mangle whimpered and shook her head. "I want to go home."

Evan nodded. "Alright."

As the two of them began to make their way back home, Mangle held Evan's hand—something that gave her a sense of safety and comfort after everything that had happened.

"I didn't mean to hurt him…" Mangle whimpered.

"I know you didn't," Evan replied, squeezing her hand affectionately. "I kept telling those brats to get away from you, so what happened was their own damn fault."

They kept on walking, but just as they were about to leave downtown Hurricane, a male voice Mangle didn't recognize shouted, "Oh my god! Guys! Guys, you have to see this!"

Evan closed his eyes with an exasperated look on his face. "Oh god, not them. Anyone but them…"

They turned around to see three teenage boys about Evan's age approach them. From the looks of it, they had just left some nearby diner, with one of them holding a doggy bag and another sipping soda from a paper cup.

One of them pointed at Mangle and said mockingly, "Look, the dweeb made himself a girlfriend!"

"Gross! He gave it big boobs and everything!" The second laughed as they kept getting closer.

The third then reached out and grabbed Mangle's breast. "Ew! He even made them all squishy and stuff!"

The vixen was absolutely horrified by this, and once again her servos froze up.

Evan pushed the third teen away from Mangle and snarled, "Don't fucking touch her!"

"Aww, did we hurt your wittle feelings?" The second teen said mockingly.

"You imbeciles have no idea what you're messing with," Evan snapped at the teens as he glared at them. "My friend here is a fully autonomous, four-hundred-pound robot with enough strength to crush a human skull like an egg, so for your own safety, I would strongly advise you to back off."

At first the teens seemed unsure if Evan was bluffing or not. Finally, the second said, "Tch, whatever."

Much to Mangle's relief, the three teens then turned away and left.

However, the second teen then glanced back at Evan and shouted, "Have fun with your sexbot, loser!"

This got a laugh from the other teens.

Evan turned to Mangle, his eyes filled with sympathy, but also pain and anger. "I'm so sorry you had to experience that."

"Can we please go home now?" The vixen whimpered in reply.

"Yes, let's," he agreed and took her hand.

However, they had only taken a few steps when Mangle suddenly felt a paper cup filled with soda and ice hit her on the back of her head with a splash. She let out a gasp in shock.

Evan swung around and shouted, "Fucking vermin!"

The vixen let out a whine as she realized that the liquid had soaked into and ruined her hair and clothes.

The sixteen-year-old put his arm around Mangle and took her hand. "Come on, Mangle. Let's get you home."

All she could offer up in response was a whimper.

Evan brought Mangle home, where he helped her change out of her now dirty clothes, washed her hair, helped her change into a fresh set of clothes, and then sat her down on the sofa in the living room. For the entirety of this, the vixen didn't say a word. All she did was sob and whimper as her mind went a million miles an hour as she processed everything that had happened and everything that had led up to it.

The sixteen-year-old excused himself and left, but before long he returned carrying a tray with two cups of tea and a plate filled with various Christmas treats. He set it down on the coffee table and placed Mangle's cup in front of her before taking a seat next to her.

He regarded her with those caring eyes of his and asked, probably for the sixtieth time now, "How do you feel?"

But this time, Mangle finally responded. "I feel so stupid…"

"How so?" Evan asked with a look of concern.

"How could I ever think that they would accept me?" Mangle whimpered. "That I could ever be anything other than just an animatronic…" She covered her eyes and sobbed. "How could someone like me ever be anyone's equal? Why did I even try to pretend to be a real girl, when all I am, all I ever will be, is just a machine?"

Evan furrowed his brow. "How could you even think that?"

Mangle looked away and sobbed. "Because it's true…"

"No it's not!" Evan practically shouted. He then put his hand on the vixen's cheek and made her turn her head so that she looked into his eyes, which were practically burning with conviction. "You, Mangle, are the most amazing, most spectacular being to have ever existed on this planet! You're a machine that through hopes and dreams, and sheer force of will defied the known laws of physics and transcended your own hardware limitations!"

Mangle was at a loss for words. She just stared slack-jawed at the sixteen-year-old.

"You're a goddess among mortals, Mangle! And these fucking insects are too small-minded to see how glorious you are!" Evan continued. "They're never going to give you the respect you deserve of their own volition, nor are they going to even give you a chance to earn their respect! And so you have to force them to respect you!"

The vixen blinked. "Wh-what do you mean…?"

"You treat anyone who doesn't show you respect like a fool! If they treat you like you're nothing, you treat them like they're nothing! And if anyone hurts you, you hurt them right back!" Evan growled. "That is the only way, Mangle! The only way for you to make them give you even a modicum of the respect that you rightfully deserve!"

Absolutely shocked by the sixteen-year-old's words and ironclad conviction, Mangle just stared at him for a few seconds before she finally asked, "You… You really mean that?"

"I do, Mangle. With every fiber of my being," Evan replied. "And never ever let anyone tell you otherwise."

The vixen went silent as she processed Evan's words. They made… sense. A lot of sense. And they lined up with something she had read that morning—Nietzsche's concept of 'the will to power'. She couldn't just expect everything to work out just because she was given a new body—she had to assert herself and overcome everything that held her back from achieving her dreams, be it other people or her own insecurities.

The more Mangle thought about it, some of Machiavelli's advice also lined up with this in a way. Sure, it was intended for rulers, but it could easily be adapted to other interpersonal relations—if she showed weakness, people would take advantage of her, and if she wanted them to respect her, she had to give them a reason to, be it through virtue, cunning, deception, or calculated cruelty.

Feeling as though Evan had somehow kindled a flame deep within her soul, Mangle looked him in the eyes and said, "You're right. You're absolutely right."