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Gregory creeped slowly around the quiet, yet illuminated arena that served as Roxy's Raceway. The only sounds that were audible were his own footsteps and the noticeable, loud, and infinitely irritating squeaking of wheels as the security robots continued to dash around the area, flashlights in hand and prepared to blare their alarms in case contact was to be made with the small boy. Gregory had no clue where Freddy was, making a deeper sense of dread simmer in his stomach. At least with Freddy with him, he knew he had an escape route, or at least SOME wall of defense against the other animatronics. At least none of them had arrived yet, but, regardless, it was nice to have some sort of companionship when being hunted down by robots twice your size.
The brunette continued to look for an unused, yet still operable Raceway Kart to drive. The whole mission seemed absurd, yet he knew he had to do what was necessary to steal the parts that he needed. For Freddy. Gregory cringed as he shined his flashlight in front of him, the thought of ripping out various animatronic components being the human equivalent of harvesting organs. It wasn't a pleasant thing to think about. He knew Freddy wasn't enthused about the method, either.
Continuing forwards, the boy began to learn the patterns of which the security bots went in, and began to learn how to dodge the bots with ease. He slipped around their backs or out of their sight range, smirking a bit to himself whenever he dodged the tall, white animatronics. Those stupid robots would never get in his face again, mark his words!
"You're the best.. You WILL find him first!"
Gregory froze. Every single blood cell in his body turned to pure ice as he recognized the voice of Roxanne in the distance, seemingly coming from the other side of the Raceway. The confidence he had taken in disappeared as quickly as it had flooded in, immediately being replaced by black pools of fear. He knew she would eventually show up, but he didn't want it to be so soon! Where was Freddy?!
Hiding around the walls of the large, makeshift mechanic garages, Gregory violently tapped on the watch around his wrist. He felt sweat begin to bead across his forehead as his breathing increased. His eyebrows knit together in anxiety and frustration as the internal communication device buffered, eventually bringing up a successful connection screen and allowing Gregory to contact his orange savior.
"Freddy, where are you?!" The boy quietly hissed, the wrenching fear clearly flooding through his words. He would give up everything to see the animatronic right now. "I need your help! I'm in Roxy's Raceway!"
Gregory put his arm down after the message was sent, careful to not have the screen emit too much light in case it would give away his position. His breathing hitched once more as he heard Roxy's stomping in the distance, the sound evident that she was getting closer to his position. The boy clenched his eyes shut.
Peeking around the corner, he saw a glimpse of lilac colored metal and red clothing, causing a lump to begin to swell in his throat. Had Vanessa gotten to Freddy and sent him somewhere?! Had he run out of battery in the building!?
Slowly sinking down against the wall, Gregory began to fold in on himself, the pressure of the entire situation slowly beginning to crush his withering bravery. He had survived so many nights on the streets in boxes or under makeshift blanket roofs in the cold and unmerciful conditions of nature, yet he couldn't get his nerves together for ONE night within the Pizzaplex. The boy began to thread his fingers through his hair, gripping the umber locks so tightly that his knuckles turned pale. His vision began to blur as a familiar wetness coated them. A sharp exhale of air exited his mouth as he completely hit the ground, his knees buckling due to the raw terror that began flowing through his veins at an alarming rate-
"I HEARD that."
Gregory forced his lungs to stop, the hands that gripped his hair moving to his mouth at a lightning speed. His body began to shake. He heard footsteps.
His camera! He still had his camera!!
Fumbling for the small, orange device, the boy shivered violently, the plastic of the camera shuddering against his sweaty palms. It would be easy. Just snap a picture. Roxy would be stunned. RUN like HELL.
Gregory heard the oncoming of footsteps get closer.
One.
They quickly pounded against the floor, the velocity suddenly sharply increasing as metal collided with patterned carpet.
Two.
The footsteps were almost around the corner as they approached Gregory. He felt the ground shake as they came closer, over 300 pounds worth of colored metal and steel running towards him to shred his body apart.
SNAP!
Gregory flinched and clenched his eyes shut as the blinding light of the camera suddenly flashed in front of him, immediately causing the animatronic rushing towards him to stumble back in retaliation. A flash of orange greeted the boy's vision before being replaced with white light.
Wait, that wasn't-
"I cannot see!" Freddy burst out, his arms racing up to cover his yellow eyes.
"F-Freddy!" Gregory stuttered out, the deafening waves of fear within him being clouded temporarily with relief, but being quickly purged with a tsunami of guilt. Shit! He had just crippled Freddy's eyesight!
Gregory rushed to the bear as he leaned down, his arms still being held against his now slowly recovering vision. Gregory watched in terror as he panicked. What did he just do?! What COULD he do?! His hands began to shake again as Freddy finally pulled his arms away, the clear image of the small boy finally being registered once more in his glowing orbs. Gregory's hands hovered over the crouched, yet still taller form that lay in front of him.
"What are you doing, Gregory?" Freddy angrily asked, causing Gregory to jump back slightly. The boy's mouth opened, releasing pure air as his brain violently stumbled on deciding what to say.
"I-I thought you were- Roxy was- I-" Gregory stuttered violently, his inhales becoming so intense that his throat burned and his lungs felt like collapsing.
He couldn't take it anymore.
Pools of tears began to spill over the boy's eyelids, cascading down his cheeks in small rivers. His expression crumbled in on itself, his teeth clenching harshly together and eyes forcefully squeezing shut as more drops of water seeped from them. His fingers balled into fists as he let out a sob, his spine shuddering and causing his entire body to tremble.
Freddy froze, all feelings of anger suddenly disintegrating as he watched the boy, his boy, physically and emotionally crumble in on himself. His eyes widened.
"Gregory.." Freddy spoke gently. The bear raised both of his orange arms, the limbs surrounding the small, sobbing body.
Gregory wasted no time.
Immediately, the boy lurched forwards, lacing his smaller arms around Freddy's neck. He hissed out another sob, the sharp inhales and exhales making his small frame shake and stiffen. As the fear continued to ravage his body, Gregory's grip tightened around the animatronics neck, lowering his face to hide it in Freddy's neck. The bear responded instantaneously, his metal arms engulfing the small body that hugged him.
Freddy could feel the child still shaking and sputtering as his crying continued, causing the animatronic's circuitry to metaphorically shatter. Gently, he moved his oversized paw against Gregory's back, the soothing motions causing a small bit of tension to drain from his shoulders.
"I'm sorry, Frebby!" Gregory spat into his shoulder, his voice being slurred with the forcefulness of his uncontrollable sobs. "I thought you were Roxy- and-and-!"
"Shhhhh.." Freddy hushed, tightening the grip on the young boy. "It's okay, Gregory."
Gregory continued to let the tears run down his face, the sobs slowly deteriorating as time passed. Eventually, after a few minutes, the boy was reduced to sniffles, slightly removing his face from Freddy's shoulder and using an arm to wipe at his soaked cheeks. God, how embarrassing. He hated crying in front of others.
Freddy took back his own arms slightly, allowing him to see the boy's face. His brown eyes were bloodshot and puffy, his cheeks red as mortification gripped him. Crying was one of, if not his most hated thing, ever. Though he usually felt better after letting it out, it still was absolutely humiliating when he broke down while around people. Gregory looked up at Freddy, his eyes meeting the bear's golden ones.
"Gregory, do not worry. It was not your fault," Freddy spoke gently, moving his hands to Gregory's small shoulders. "I apologize for taking so long. It took me a moment to find your exact location."
The small boy sniffled once more, wiping the last remaining tears from his eyes. "I-It's okay. You don't have to apologize."
Freddy smiled down at Gregory, a paw raising to gently ruffle his hair in an affectionate manner. "You're so brave for being alone for so long, Superstar." Freddy complimented, causing Gregory to flush deeper and look away.
"It wasn't even that long, and I can't even differentiate you and Roxy." Gregory sighed, clenching his eyes shut out of returning embarrassment.
Freddy patted Gregory on the back. "I already said that it was okay, Gregory. It was merely an accident," Freddy smiled warmly. "Us hunks of metal sound alike when moving around!"
Gregory chuckled softly at the jest, a small, yet noticeable smile crossing his features. Freddy stood up completely, unfolding his chest cavity and revealing the compact space within.
"Now then, let's go find that Kart! It has to be around here somewhere.." Gregory nodded, moving to climb into the hatch. Now, together, they could roam the stupid track and stumble around nearly carefree as Gregory was safely secured in Freddy's chest cavity.
Together.